Dance Review Essay Example for Free

Dance Review Essay The performance, â€Å"Dance Matters† was absolutely amazing. Walking into the theater I wasn’t quite sure of what to expect and was really excited to see the show. I got even more excited seeing that this performance was directed by my professor. There were four parts in the performance. Also, each of them had its own story and full of meaning. I was surprised and learned from the performance. I appreciated to have a chance seeing this amazing show. There was one part of the performance that attracted me a lot. When the curtain was rose, I saw dancers sitting on the chairs with their hands covering their faces expect the girl who was expressing herself. The voice was strong and full of passion which grabbed my full of attention. Through her strong beautiful voice, I felt her. She had so many stories to tell. Moreover, the strong feeling was turned into the movements. All dancers started moving their bodies with energies. All of their extensions and turns and leaps were perfect and they were all in sync. I noticed one thing that we learned in class, they constantly kept their bodies flowing and moving. Every movement connected to another one. Everyone danced to their full potential, there was no lagging from the dancers. I was very impressed and enjoy watching this performance. It was perfect that all the dancers were full of energies and every movement was perfectly presented. Generally, it was an amazing performance. Somehow, â€Å"Fragmented† was my favorite part in this performance.

Development of Luxury Products: Montblanc

Development of Luxury Products: Montblanc Dissertation subject: a. Montblanc. Its development in the luxury industry OK b. The Montblancs brand extension in the luxury industry OK c. Montblanc brand: from a specialised luxury brand to a global luxury brand 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Dissertation issue / key question: a. Did Montblanc, a specialised luxury brand in the writing instrument segment, extend its perception of luxury brand to its other product categories? OK b. Has Montblanc, a specialised luxury brand in the writing instrument segment, been successful in extending this perception to its other product categories? 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Literature review: a. Definition of luxury: * Different points of view * Key words/concepts (to be tested in the survey) b. Definition of luxury brand c. Concept of diversification strategy: * Objectives * Types * Drivers to be successful (consumer perception / reaction) * Performance (to which extent) * Montblanc:    strategic diagnosis (SBU) d. Brand extension    Luxury brand perception: * (How to measure it? Consumers reaction) 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The research: a. Key question: can a specialised luxury brand extend its perception of luxury brand to other product categories? The case of the Montblanc brand.Today, is Montblanc a global luxury brand (not anymore a specialised luxury brand)? Therefore how was it possible? Well know reputation in its core business (for quality, design, social status) and the choice of neighbouring segments. b. Hypothesis: Montblanc is today an established global luxury brand. Montblanc is a clear example of a successful brand extension. How was it possible? (Reputation, tradition, quality, Montblanc extended its way of doing business based on quality and style next to its outstanding reputation in its historical core business) 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The research: a. Objective: To prove that Montblanc has been able, in a relatively short time, to become a global luxury brand. 6.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The research method: a. Which is the information to be collected in order to answer the issue discussed within our work and to verify the hypothesis?    the consumers perception of the Montblanc brand (the only boss) and the point of view of the Montblancs managers (figures on diversification mix, and resources allocated) b. How to collect the data (survey, interviews)? c. Which is the pitch of the research? Luxury sector, Montblanc and its major competitors in jewellery / watches / leather categories, luxury brand current and potential consumers. Becker, Howard S. (1998), Tricks of the trade, How to think about your research while youre doing it, The University of Chicago Press. 7.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Analysis of the research findings: a. Analyse and understand the collected data    as usually it helps identify some factors that may answer our issue, although often these elements are not complete b. Criticise the research method and its limits (limited sample) 8.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Conclusion: a. Buyers of Montblanc products (not only writing instruments): confirm the hypothesis b. Buyers of only Montblanc writing instruments    to gain tradition in watch and jewellery segments requires times although a good quality but not impossible c. Montblancs managers: good results so far. Recommendations: a. Montblanc has to go on investing in its diversification strategy because failing in doing so would be highly risky for its brand perception among the final consumers. Could Montblanc extend its perception to other product categories? Not right now: low resources and need to be definitively established as a luxury brand in key categories such as watches and jewellery. Write: * la probl ©matique involves the key question, the hypothesis of the research and the elements / factors which will help to develop the chosen subject.This first part includes the definition of the subject, the review of the literature (plus bibliography), the question, the hypothesis and the method of the research other than the action plan. * Final dissertation: develop the different topics without any linking parts, add these linking parts, further develop underestimated parts and cut what is useless. Add the table of contents, bibliography, appendix, etc. Executive Summary * The research and its Interest * The key question and the hypothesis * Research method * Major findings * Conclusion * Recommendations The purpose of this research paper is to investigate if and how a specialised luxury brand can extend its perception of luxury brand to other products categories. Being the luxury industry so wide of dimensions, the researcher decided to focus on one specific brand: Montblanc. This choice permitted to closer define the pitch of the analysis in order to carry out a reliable and feasible research that might prove the success of the diversification strategy pursued by the Montblanc brand. Montblanc represents, indeed, an interesting case study to show how the diversification strategy can be an effective tool to increase the luxury brand perception among the final customers. Montblanc, market leader for what concerns the writing instruments, has been striving during the last few years to definitively become a global luxury brand. To do so, Montblanc entered many different segments of the luxury world, such as leather, watches, fragrance and eyewear in the last â‚ ¬Ã‹Å"90s and the silver jewellery at the beginning of the 21st century. Moreover, a couple of years ago, Montblanc stepped forward into the fine jewellery business which is seen as the critical step in its strategic development to attain the full status of global luxury brand. In order to verify how the Montblanc brand is viewed and perceived in its competitive environment, the researcher adopted both a quantitative and a qualitative research method. On one hand, a customer survey consisted of XXX questions was developed. This survey submitted to actual and potential customers had the objective to impartially investigate the customer perception of the Montblanc brand. On the other hand, in-depth interviews with some Montblancs managers were carried out. The interviewed, who represented different levels of the Montblancs management, allowed the researcher to gain a full picture of the Montblanc brand and its strategic movements. Moreover the direct comparison with the Montblancs management was important to identify on which resources and competences the final recommendations could be based. For practical purposes, this study can be divided in five major parts: 1. the first part outlines the theme and the key question of the research paper; 2. the second part concerns the review of the literature as regards the following points: the definition of luxury and of luxury brands, some approaches to measure the brand perception / the reasons why people buy luxury goods (status-laden or conspicuousness-laden), and the diversification strategy. This part will be concluded with an in-depth analysis of the Montblanc brand; 3. the third part gives a fulfilling view of the undertaken research with particular attention to the objective, the hypothesis and the research method; 4. the fourth part covers the relevant findings coming from the analysis of the research results; 5. the last part presents the conclusions of the study and the researchers final recommendations to the brand. The theme of the research paper Luxury and the Montblanc brand gives an important insight of the key constructs at the core of the work. In first position one finds the term luxury whose meaning and definition are almost fuzzy. It is the reason why, this work will examine some important findings coming up from the literature so wide in this respect, at the end of which some major traits of the definition of luxury will be underlined. Especially, the literature review will cover the evolution of the definition of luxury all along the recent history. To be noticed that, the construct of luxury will be also investigated in the survey submitted to the final customers and also in the interviews to the Montblancs management and other practitioners of the luxury industry. This research, carried out by exploring both the customers and the professionals point of view, enriches the research itself and helps to get a good understanding of the major characteristics emerging nowadays about this fascinating concept. To be clarified that this study, focusing on the Montblanc brand, is related to a part of the luxury market such as t he accessories, jewellery and watches segments. The second part of the theme of this study is represented by three words: the Montblanc brand. This recalls two topics. The first one refers to the term brand. By revising the literature, a definition of brand will be proposed. In this respect, there are not important doubts and we will briefly comment the definition of brand recently provided by Jevons (2007). Nevertheless, some issues may arise for the definition of luxury brand which is obviously related to the construct of luxury. The expression the Montblanc brand as a whole, moreover, puts the attention on the leader German brand whose unmistakable star logo is worldwide the icon of quality and excellence. As previously said, the researcher chose a specific brand to be able to concretely study the fundamental question of his research paper that will be clarified in the next lines. To be noticed that the two parts of the theme title luxury and the Montblanc brand are tied up by the conjunction and that underlines the strict link between luxury and the Montblanc brand. Nevertheless, this link requires a further consideration because it can be misleading if not misunderstood. Which is the real mean of this linkage? There are no doubts that Montblanc is a luxury brand; but is it a specialised luxury brand or a global luxury brand? This question is strictly connected to the core issue of this master thesis. More precisely, the driver question is if a specialised luxury brand can extend its perception of luxury brand to other product categories. In order to answer this key issue, the researcher chose to study a well-known brand which has been pursuing a diversification strategy to become a global luxury brand. The construct of diversification strategy will be explained from a literature point of view. Moreover, an in-depth analysis of the Montblanc brand and its strategic business areas will be undertaken by applying some tools learned during the studies at the ESCP Europe especially during the modules of strategy and of strategic diagnostic. This becomes fundamental to better understand in which kind of diversification strategy Montblanc is engaged and to give a wide knowledge to the reader about the brand itself. To conclude, herein the reasons why the student chose this theme for his master thesis. There are three major reasons bringing to this choice. The first one refers to the luxury world. The construct of luxury, albeit widely analysed in the literature, remains somehow mysterious. Today, the definition of luxury is strongly evolving mainly due to the economic uncertainty mostly caused by the financial crisis of 2008. Therefore, although the probability to uniquely define luxury is very low if not nil, the challenge to better understand what luxury is/means/represents/is perceived nowadays represents to the researcher a great topic of interest. His interest in luxury is also nourished by the will to work in this sector in the upcoming future. This surely stems from the professional experiences made by the student as part of his studies within companies (Montblanc and Concord) operating in the jewellery, watches and accessories segments. Indeed, during these experiences, the student was impressed by this world rather mysterious where the care of the smallest detail makes a huge difference. The second reason concerns the Montblanc brand. The researcher had the chance to work for five months at Montblanc International, at the Headquarter in Hamburg within the Jewellery Category Department, and for three months at Montblanc UK, in London within the Retail Department. During this extremely positive experience, the student discovered in-depth this fascinating brand, from its tradition to its vision, from a strategic and more operational point of view. Surely the experience personally gained at Montblanc became highly useful in the development of the research and mainly in the analysis of the brand and of its strategy. Moreover the ongoing meetings/interviews with the Montblancs management had a double advantage. On one hand, it enriched the content of the study and on the other hand helped the student maintain the contacts with a firm that is at the top of his personal ranking of his employment research. The third reason concerns the strategic aspect behind this theme. Indeed, the diversification strategy pursued by Montblanc offered to the student the possibility to develop this construct often used/abused by luxury brands to extend their perception of luxury and, as a consequence, to finally increase their revenues. The diversification strategy has often been the object of strong discussions, mainly for what regards the results of pursuing this strategy and the ways of implementing it. This work has got the objective to rationalise the different types of diversification strategy and to investigate this theoretical concept on a concrete case study, thanks to the study of the Montblanc brand. This research will focus on the key factors of success or failure standing from the analysis of the diversification strategy pursued by Montblanc. Did Montblanc, a specialised luxury brand in the writing instrument segment, extend its perception of luxury brand to its other product categories? This key question gives a stricter view on the content of this research paper. This study will focus on the strategic development of a specialised luxury brand as Montblanc was/is in the writing instrument segment since its origin. In detail, the research has got the purpose to investigate how the Montblanc brand is nowadays perceived from the final customers. The findings coming up from the customer survey will help the researcher evaluate if the Montblanc brand is still perceived as a specialised luxury brand or if its image has developed to the status of a global luxury brand. The customers responses represent indeed the most reliable feedback to assess the degree of success of the diversification strategy pursed by Montblanc in the last years which has brought the brand to operate in relevant luxury segments such as leather, watches, fragrance, eyewear and jewellery next to the historical business area of writing instruments. At a second stage, the customers responses will be compared with the Montblanc managements point of view in order to verify if some discrepancies exist. This step is important to get a full picture of the Montblanc brands standing. Then, after an accurate presentation of the research, the student will point out the major findings in order to draw his conclusions about his study. The conclusions will include the major factors of the diversification strategy pursed by Montblanc to extend its perception of luxury brand to other segments in the luxury industry, in addition to the fields of improvement coming out of the research. Finally this research paper will present the students recommendations which will take into account the strategic objectives standing out from the interviews with the Montblancs management and also the Montblanc brand perception outlined by the customer survey. In the next pages, the student will study, by starting from the literature review, some key concepts at the core of this research paper which include: * the definition of luxury and its evolution; * the definition of luxury goods; * the definition of brand and of luxury brands; * briefly the different approaches to measure the brand perception among the final customers.> the reasons why people buy luxury goods (status or conspicuousness); * and the presentation of the diversification strategy: the objectives, the different types, the advantages and the drawbacks, the risks, and the key success factors. The literature review, as said, will be completed by the contextualisation of these constructs to the Montblanc brand. At this stage the Montblanc brand will be studied in order to give all the required basics to launch the following research. In order to better define the constructs at the core of this research paper that will give the background of the following research, an in-depth literature review will be made. Four major concepts will be discussed thanks to the support of different literature material which includes insights from books, articles, management and fashion websites and personal references in terms of power point presentations, excel documents and excel files. The activity of research consisted mainly in going through the databases accessible from the Intranet at ESCP Europe in order to directly access to a wide range of reference material. The definition of luxury The first part of the literature review regards the construct of luxury. Luxury has always been a central field of research. Indeed its specific characteristics have attracted the interest of the researchers all along the history. However, albeit the meaning of luxury is widely discussed in the literature, researchers did not come up with a commonly accepted definition of this construct. For sure, it is not possible to uniquely define luxury. Simply, the words do not seem to be able to describe what luxury means. In this respect, the literature leaves this concept shrouded in mystery. This research paper will face the definition of luxury by going through different steps. At the beginning some different definitions of luxury will be put forward by touching its literal and economic meaning, and also by exploring some philosophical and social interpretations. Then, an interesting brief explanation of the etymology of the term luxury will be presented. Afterwards, the history of luxury will be outlined before entering in more detailed considerations regarding the notions of old and new luxury. At the end of this first part, the student will show the latest development of the luxury construct by getting important insights from the practitioners point of view founded in articles related to the luxury world. Literal definition of luxury Websters Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913): Anything which pleases the senses, and is also costly, or difficult to obtain; an expensive rarity.'[1] [2] Economic definition of luxury Mason (81): Un produit est consid ©r © comme luxueux si l ©lasticit © de la demande par rapport au revenu est sup ©rieure    1. Philosophers definition of luxury Paul Iribe (1932): Luxe: besoin qui commence o ¹ finit la n ©cessit ©.'[3] Voltaire (1694-1778): Superflu chose tr ¨s n ©cessaire. Jaime le luxe et m ªme la mollesse. Rousseau: Le luxe doit  ªtre rejet © car il est contraire aux exigences de la nature. Sociology researchers definition of luxury Bourdieu (79,84): Comme tout acte de consommation, lachat dune marque de luxe est un moyen daffirmer sa position sociale, de faire croire    un changement de position ou prouver un changement de position sociale. Tout d ©pend du r ´le que lindividu joue ou pense jouer au sein de son groupe de r ©f ©rence. Baudrillard (68): Lacc ¨s au luxe est d ©termin © par une volont © sociale de se distinguer, de se d ©marquer ou bien encore de saffilier    un groupe. Suivant le groupe social auquel la personne se r ©f ¨re, le luxe aura une signification diff ©rente. Maffesoli (96): Lanalyse du luxe par le prisme des classes ne prend pas en compte le resserrement des individus autour de groupes restreints, de tribus. La consommation devient alors un plaisir personnel et intime, sans volont © ostentatoire. Management researchers definition of luxury Gutsatz M. (96): Le luxe comprend deux niveaux de repr ©sentation. Le premier niveau est mat ©riel, il comprend le produit et la marque (son histoire, son identit ©, son savoir faire unique, le talent). Le second niveau est psychologique. Il sagit de repr ©sentations qui nous sont propres, influenc ©s par notre milieu social et les valeurs de la marque. Roux E. (91): La marque de luxe se caract ©rise par une valeur ajout ©e symbolique, imaginaire ou sociale qui la diff ©rencie des autres. La marque de luxe correspond ainsi aux besoins symboliques que le consommateur peut ressentir (par opposition aux besoins fonctionnels ou de vari ©t ©). Laurent G., Dubois B. (95): Le luxe est subjectif, personnel et perceptuel. Si lon cherche    d ©terminer les attributs caract ©risant un produit de luxe, 6 dimensions apparaissent : Une qualit © sup ©rieure et per §ue, un prix  ©lev ©, une s ©lectivit © et une raret © des produits et de la distribution, un pouvoir attractif important un savoir faire certain et la non n ©cessit ©. Practitioners definition of luxury Coco Chanel: Le luxe est le contraire de la vulgarit ©. Boucheron A.: Le luxe est une  « mayonnaise  » constitu ©e de diff ©rents ingr ©dients. Si lun dentre-eux manque ou est mal dos ©, la mayonnaise tourne. Le luxe est un concept et non un produit.[4] Jean-Louis Dumas-Herm ¨s, historic Chairman and CEO of Herm ¨s: [5] Just by analysing these few definitions of luxury, one can notice the absolute subjectivity of this concept. It stands out that luxury has got a close linkage with pleasure, rarity, exclusivity, quality, high price tag. Economists define luxury as something which is unnecessary, statement which would be probably argued by some studies on the consumers reasons to buy luxury. For someone (Rousseau) luxury should even be avoided because it is not a primary need of the human being. Luxury is something that belongs to the inner part of each individual but it can be also highly other-oriented. By wearing or experiencing luxury items, an individual expresses his own personality and can show his social status and position in the community. The fact is that luxury is probably a bit of everything, a perfect trade off of opposite concepts. This makes luxury a kind of mystery. After this round-up, the study will briefly present the etymology of the term luxury before briefing touching the historical evolution of luxury. Etymology of word luxury According to Dubois, Czellar and Laurent (2005) the English term[6] luxury is derived from the Latin luxus, which, according to the Oxford Latin Dictionary, it signifies soft or extravagant living, (over-)indulgence and sumptuousness, luxuriousness, opulence; luxus also means sensuality, splendour and its derivative luxuria is extravagance, riot etc. Merriam-Websters Dictionary defines luxuriance as something characterized by richness and extravagance, often tending to excess. The word luxury is also often semantically associated with lux the Latin word for light; therefore, luxury carries connotations of brightness. It is glittering and, in addition, it is something visible. The evolution of luxury Until the Middle Ages the writings point out that luxury was the reflection of the religious mystery that drives the human being to go beyond himself driven by an offer or a sign. But the heyday of luxury is without any doubt the Renaissance (15th and 16th century), flourishing period for literature, art and science. This period reflects the explosion of luxury, vogue of the ostentatious architecture coming from Italy. At that time, luxuries are exclusive items belonging to the aristocracy and the court. During the Renaissance luxury becomes the prerogative of the bourgeoisie. During the 18th and 19th century luxury remains exclusive of the  ©lite. The 20th century signs an important step in the evolution of luxury. Mainly after the Second World War luxury becomes almost conformist, not extravagant or eccentric. In the â‚ ¬Ã‹Å"80s, the focus is on the luxury consumer; in this time, younger period discover luxury thanks to the accessories. At the end of this decade, there is the boom of luxury for what concerns the distribution channel development. The major players widen their reach by exploiting the markets where they are present and even by entering new markets. At the beginning of the â‚ ¬Ã‹Å"90s, the crisis that hit also the luxury industry, pushed to rethink the concept of luxury that gained a higher spiritual/moral meaning in addition to the impeccable quality.[7] Old-luxury vs New-luxury With the 21st century, new terms about luxury are emerging in the practitioners literature. For the purpose of this research paper, in the next few lines some considerations will be made on the expression of old luxury in opposition to new luxury in order to clarify their meaning. Some practitioners argue that old luxury is about the good itself and is defined by the company, in opposition to This seems to trace a clear line between the two concepts: old luxury is about the material thing, it is about stuff. Instead, new luxury is about experiencing. Nowadays, it seems evident that old luxury cannot anymore survive. The high quality of luxury products is assumed by consumers who are looking forward for something more. In our time, luxury is increasingly defined as those special qualities, features and attributes intrinsic to a product and that go beyond the item itself. According to Ms. Danziger (2008)[9], the product itself does not anymore create personal fulfilment. Today, luxury is in the eye of the beholder and the consumers perceptions are not anymore, exclusively depending on the exceptional quality of luxury products and on the high price tag. This does not mean that the materialism is not important but only that consumers are eager of experiences. Therefore, as a consequence, a shift from product-centric to consumer-centric point of view becomes inevitable to attract luxury consumers. The needed clarification of old luxury and new luxury concepts will become also useful when the study will discuss the definition of luxury brands and in the research of the consumers perception of the Montblanc brand which will lead to the students recommendations at the end of this research paper. At this point, it becomes interesting to see how the todays definition of luxury has evolved in the light of the recent events occurred in autumn 2008 which had an important impact on the entire economy and, therefore, also on the luxury industry. Todays definition of luxury ppt vale, crisis, bling bling, tradition, According to Yeoman and McMahon (2005), luxury is incredibly fluid, and changes dramatically across time and culture'[10]. This opinion becomes very much clear by thinking if the meaning of todays definition of luxury is the same definition of luxury of just eighteen months ago. Today it is even harder to give an accurate definition of luxury. After the financial crisis, culminated with the bankruptcy of some key players in the real estate and banking industry which caused a chain reaction hitting all the other sectors, the perception of luxury has surely changed, at least to a certain extent. This critical point merits further considerations and, therefore, it will be investigated in the following research at the core of this study. In the next lines some leaders opinions in luxury will be presented. Some of these thoughts were collected in a confidential in-depth research carried out at the beginning of 2009, supplied by Montblancs management. They will introduce the students point of view about the sharp evolution of luxury meaning in the last months. Herein, some comments about the change of luxury construct in the last year. S. Toledano, Dior: Compulsive shopping, its over. M. Nieto, Baume Mercier: Price sensitivity is coming back fiercely. C. Binkley, The Wall Street Journal: Its bling over J. Rupert, Richemont: During a recession, Im sure consumers will choose solid values. B. Pavlowski, Chanel: Dont neglect any aspect of the product quality. R. Palti, Le Nouvel Economiste: Many markets are saturated and there is an increasing number of offers proposing the same service. Finding what will best meet the clients expectations is no easy task. And yet, in these days of economic, financial ( lack of confidence) crisis, there is not a single company that can afford not to satisfy its clients, even just to sell. B. Arnault, LVMH[11]: post-recovery customers will not only place a particular emphasis on values like quality and craftsmanship, but also on exclusivity and commitment to social and environmental responsibility. D. Dion, Sorbonne University: Luxury has to return to its exclusive and extraordinary roots. B. Fornas, Cartier: We are witnessing a return to true luxury and high end luxury products, which Cartier symbolises. JC Biver, Hublot: When there is a crisis, it is necessary to get as close as possible to ones clients to better understand them, to reassure them and to make in due time the right decisions. S. Toledano, Dior: There should be both empathy and connivance between the brand and the client. A. Ahrendts, Burberry: Even though the overall market may become difficult, I think that retailers and customers are always open to a new innovative idea or a new exciting concept. Jeffry M. Aronsson, Donna Karan: luxury is attention to detail and quality backed by superior service.'[12] B. Pavlowski, Chanel: One should keep investing in creation. D. Peters, Jewelers of America: Selling in challenging times is not about product and its not about price. Rather, its about people and relationships, and the quality of the customer experience. J. Taylor, Harrison: The definition of living well is changing. There is a desire to not stand out. If youre laying people off, you dont want to buy a Ferrari. S. Geary, Mulberry: In the coming months, the mood will be against that â‚ ¬Ã‹Å"blind consumption. A. Arnault, LVMH: The collection focused on elegance and discretion and used materials that were noble but not too visibly noble. Giorgio Armani: Those who deliver what they promise to their customers, and bear their customers in mind, will survive the current economic climate. After this round-up, some further considerations have to be made. At our time, some relevant trends can be observed in luxury. These trends have an important impact on todays interpretation/ perception of luxury. Increasing of price sensitivity is one of them. In time of crisis, luxury sector is one of the most negatively affected due to the nature itself of luxury products. According to Maslows pyramid, luxury products do not belong to the first steps of the human beings needs (phy

The Physics of Bowling Essay -- Physics Bowling Papers

The Physics of Bowling The definition of physics by some may be the science that deals with matter, energy, motion, and force. Therefore everything in the world uses physics in some way or another. One of the numerous things that deal with physics is bowling. Some of the major parts of physics bowling has is the motions, the ways that Newton’s laws apply, the different momentums, and the energy. Other physics topics include torque, pendulum theory and collisions. In the motion of bowling many things are going on that apply to bowling. There is displacement, velocity, gravity, and acceleration. There is also an opposition to motion, which is friction. The displacement would be the bowling ball going from the position of leaving the hand to where it rests at the back by the pin collector. The velocity of the ball would include the speed and direction of the ball. The equation to find the velocity of the ball would be the displacement divided by the time taken to reach the destination. Gravity affects everything on this planet. Bowling is no exception. If the bowling ball were thrown up out of the hand of a bowler, gravity would bring it down to the floor. If the pin and bowling ball fell at the same time from the same height they would hit the ground at the exact same time. This is one main reason everything deals with physics. The acceleration would be in a slowing down state or deceleration. It would decelerate because of the small friction f rom the ball to the floor. The opposition to the motion, called friction is the ball touching the floor. In bowling this is a great factor because it is used to spin into the pins in an exact location. As soon as the ball makes contact with the lane's surface, friction comes into ... ...f the physics world that most don’t take time to think about. In this sport it was noticed the many applied physics that happens. It includes the motions, the ways that Newton’s laws apply, the different momentums, and the energy. Some of the other physics topics include torque, pendulum theory and collisions. This sport as well as anything else is affected by physics. Even though physics is involved and it might not seem so complicated to hit down pins but physics affects everything so it would take a lot of luck and skill to not mess anything up with the physics. Works Cited: 1.Internet website, http://kingfish.coastal.edu/physics/projects/2000_Spring/bowling/ by Colleen Bryan Emily Butsic Bo Hu Adrienne Metz. 2.Book, â€Å"A World View fourth edition,† by Kirkpatrick and Wheeler, 1992. 3.Article, â€Å"The Physics of Bowling,† by Tim Burgess, vol.34, May 1996. The Physics of Bowling Essay -- Physics Bowling Papers The Physics of Bowling The definition of physics by some may be the science that deals with matter, energy, motion, and force. Therefore everything in the world uses physics in some way or another. One of the numerous things that deal with physics is bowling. Some of the major parts of physics bowling has is the motions, the ways that Newton’s laws apply, the different momentums, and the energy. Other physics topics include torque, pendulum theory and collisions. In the motion of bowling many things are going on that apply to bowling. There is displacement, velocity, gravity, and acceleration. There is also an opposition to motion, which is friction. The displacement would be the bowling ball going from the position of leaving the hand to where it rests at the back by the pin collector. The velocity of the ball would include the speed and direction of the ball. The equation to find the velocity of the ball would be the displacement divided by the time taken to reach the destination. Gravity affects everything on this planet. Bowling is no exception. If the bowling ball were thrown up out of the hand of a bowler, gravity would bring it down to the floor. If the pin and bowling ball fell at the same time from the same height they would hit the ground at the exact same time. This is one main reason everything deals with physics. The acceleration would be in a slowing down state or deceleration. It would decelerate because of the small friction f rom the ball to the floor. The opposition to the motion, called friction is the ball touching the floor. In bowling this is a great factor because it is used to spin into the pins in an exact location. As soon as the ball makes contact with the lane's surface, friction comes into ... ...f the physics world that most don’t take time to think about. In this sport it was noticed the many applied physics that happens. It includes the motions, the ways that Newton’s laws apply, the different momentums, and the energy. Some of the other physics topics include torque, pendulum theory and collisions. This sport as well as anything else is affected by physics. Even though physics is involved and it might not seem so complicated to hit down pins but physics affects everything so it would take a lot of luck and skill to not mess anything up with the physics. Works Cited: 1.Internet website, http://kingfish.coastal.edu/physics/projects/2000_Spring/bowling/ by Colleen Bryan Emily Butsic Bo Hu Adrienne Metz. 2.Book, â€Å"A World View fourth edition,† by Kirkpatrick and Wheeler, 1992. 3.Article, â€Å"The Physics of Bowling,† by Tim Burgess, vol.34, May 1996.

Summary of Teaching Philosophy and Objectives Essay -- Philosophy of E

Summary of Teaching Philosophy and Objectives My desire to teach is based upon the belief that teaching will provide me with a challenging and rewarding career. This is my second college experience as I have accomplished a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and pursued jobs in the field of retail management and the banking industry. However, I found those career paths to be lacking in terms of fulfillment. I have come to the realization that I want my life’s work to accomplish more than a numerical salary. Teaching is the profession that will provide the opportunities for me to reach these goals. The philosophical stance that will guide my approach to teaching is idealism. For I believe that the individual is a creation of God’s own image and has free will. With this established, the process of learning is self-initiated. Plato best described this principle of idealism in his writing entitled â€Å"Allegory of the Cave† in which he states: â€Å"Whereas, our argument shows that the power and capacity of learning exists in the soul already; and that just as the eye was unable to turn from darkness to light without the whole body, so too the instrument of knowledge can only by the movement of the whole soul be turned from the world of becoming into that of being, and learn by degrees to endure the sight of being, and of the brightest and best of being, or in other words, of the good.† I agree with Plato’s reasoning that our cre...

Hmos: Making A Killing Essay -- essays research papers

FACT: Currently 46 million Americans live without any health care insurance whatsoever. FACT: The United States is the only industrialized nation in the world that does not provide health care insurance for all of its citizens. FACT: The United States spends more money per person on health care than any other nation in the world. FACT: The World Health Care Organization has ranked the United States 37th in the world regarding the health care a country provides for its people. FACT: No country in the history of the earth has provided universal health care coverage for all its citizens under a private health care insurance system. The facts stated above are not only embarrassing and frightening; they are simply unacceptable. How our country, which takes great pleasure in calling itself â€Å"The World’s Only Superpower†, is unable to provide health care for all its citizens is unfathomable. The citizens of countries in Western Europe have benefited from universal health care polices for almost 40 to 50 years now. Why can’t all of the citizens in America enjoy the same benefits? Especially, at a time our country is in the midst of its greatest economic boom to date. The answer is simple enough. What stands between the citizens of America and a fair, equal and effective national health care policy is one basic human emotion, or lack there of, greed. There is a huge disparity in the distribution of health care in America. Most notably between rich and poor but also between the races. 11 percent of the white population lives without health insurance. That is already a troubling number but it pales in comparison to the 21 percent of African-Americans, 21 percent of Asian-Americans and 33 percent of Hispanic-Americans that lack proper health care insurance. Lack of coverage is not the only problem in our current privatized health care system. There are also huge problems in the coverage for prescription drugs, dental, vision and hearing care, mental health care, preventive care for children, and treatment for drug and alcohol addiction. Health care in our nation should be provided directly by the federal government under what is known as a â€Å"single-payer† health care system. It is a program that would cover Americans from â€Å"the cradle to the grave†. In our current system, hundreds of billions of dollars go to insurance company overheads, unnecessary administrati... ...hat come along with any extended stay at a medical facility. Vice President Gore says he is in favor of â€Å"step by step† movement towards universal heath care; the same universal health care that he and President Clinton both promised to provide to all Americans 8 years ago in 1992. Since 1992, there has been an 11 million person increase in Americans without any health insurance at all. Sounds more like a step backwards than a step towards universal care for all. The only candidate that stands firmly behind a single-payer system, the only candidate who stands courageously in the destructive path of Big Business, the only candidate who is willing to take a stand, draw a line in the sand, and declare once and for all that health care is a basic innate human right is the Green Party Nominee, Ralph Nader. The Declaration of Independence states that all people have the rights to â€Å"Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness†. Do you think that our founding fathers who didn’t have available to them the amazing health care treatments and techniques that we now have available to us would want us to reserve their benefits only for the rich? If asked the same question what is your response?

Where I Lived, and What I Lived for

In the â€Å"Where I Lived, and What I Lived for† chapter of Walden, Thoreau emphasized that people need to make life simple and slow because it eventually helps you know your real goal and realize the true meaning of life. He begins with his own story –he imagines that he works at farms as a farmer and he cares for seeds in succession. He thinks his farms will bring happiness because all sessions for cultivation are naturally accomplished. However, his imagination ends up with his real financial situation.He wants to buy farms not minding his profit margin but enjoying his time with seeds. However, the owner turns down his proposal because his reason was hardly accepted in modern times where people give importance to wealth. After this experience living in a house in the woods, he feels a natural spirit and he glorifies the beauty of nature. He developed his feeling for nature after he realizes that people should be awakened –â€Å"[They] must learn to reawaken and keep [them] selves awake, not by mechanical aids, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn†.He also came to know why people are so busy and why they work as hard as â€Å"ants† It is because people seem to set count on economical value but people do not know what they really want. According to his examples, there is a railroad which can effectively reduce time between places. At the same time, we could lose our landscape to see. So, he describes a railroad that â€Å"We do not ride on the railroad; it rides upon us†. Therefore, he criticizes that â€Å"fast† seems to be effective but it brings wrong judgment and lose our opportunity.He mentions that our society is pressured to â€Å"hurry† for our life to be successful. However, he thinks that our society now is complicated and dangerous because we do not have ideas of â€Å"slow† and â€Å"simple† to reflect ourselves. All in all, he states that we need time to be â€Å"slowâ €  and â€Å"simple† for our clever intelligent life. This is his obvious viewpoints – â€Å"Let us spend one day as deliberately as Nature, and not be thrown off the track†.

Blood Imagery in Macbeth

Blood Imagery in Macbeth Imagine a war without guns, missiles, or bombs. A war with swords, daggers, and arrows. A war with blood, gallons and gallons of blood flooding the battlefields. Set in eleventh century Anglo-Saxon Scotland, this would be the typical battle scene in Shakespeare’s bloody tragedy, Macbeth. In Macbeth Shakespeare presents a bloody tale of an age-old struggle for power when Macbeth, the play’s protagonist, and his wife plan to kill Duncan, Scotland’s current beloved king, after hearing a prophecy told by three evil witches proclaiming Macbeth to be the new king.The higher Macbeth rises to the throne the deeper he slips into a bottomless pool of the blood of those who dared stand in his way. Throughout Macbeth, Shakespeare uses images of blood as a means of symbolism, using multiple recurrences of blood imagery to promote the primary feelings of â€Å"fear, honor, and pain† (Spurgeon 115). As a symbol blood ultimately â€Å"covers ever ything Macbeth has touched† in many ways â€Å"both qualitative and quantitative† that â€Å"real blood† is unable to do (Mack 53).As the play progresses the symbolism changes and transforms from honor to betrayal and ultimately to guilt and revenge. Macbeth begins as a courageous hero in the midst of battle. A â€Å"bloody man† in King Duncan’s court tells a story of a bloody battle in which Macbeth fulfills the role of the hero (1. 2. 1). On the verge of bleeding out the Captain manages to â€Å"paint Macbeth’s valor† despite his blood flooding the King’s court (â€Å"Character Profile† 193). Images of the Captain, a man mortally wounded protecting Duncan’s son Malcolm in battle, smothered in his own blood gives a symbol of an honorable death.While the Captain lay dying, he still goes on about Macbeth unseaming an opponent from â€Å"the nave to th’ chops,† building King Duncan’s trust in Mac beth (1. 2. 18-23). After the three witches visit Macbeth and Banquo, Macbeth tells his wife, Lady Macbeth, of the promises the witches mentioned. Hearing her husband’s prophecy to be king, Lady Macbeth begins plotting the murder of the current reigning king, Duncan. She calls upon spirits to â€Å"make thick† her blood and stop the â€Å"access and passage to remorse,† so that she can murder Duncan without regret (1. . 44-45). Wishing her ability to regret her actions to be replaced with â€Å"direst cruelty† leaves Lady Macbeth believing that she and her husband will be able to kill Duncan with no remorse (1. 5. 44). While Macbeth contemplates his wife’s treasonous plan, he sees a dagger before him covered in â€Å"gouts† of King Duncan’s blood (2. 1. 46). The blood and dagger are not real, though Macbeth believes they are, but instead they are a vision that Macbeth sees before the â€Å"bloody business† (2. 1. 48).These bloo d images convey a symbol of betrayal as well as treason. Murdering Duncan involves Macbeth betraying his trusting cousin and committing treason against Scotland. Immediately after Macbeth kills Duncan, he is â€Å"rigid with horror at his â€Å"blood-stained hands† (Spurgeon 115). The â€Å"endless red of the blood† on his hands is all Macbeth can focus on (Campbell 130). Seeing the blood on his hands begins amplifying the guilt, sending him into shock, forcing Lady Macbeth to smear the â€Å"grooms with blood† (Campbell 130-131).Lady Macbeth plans to shift the light of guilt from her and her husband to the guards who were supposed to keep watch over the noble king. Using Duncan’s blood to â€Å"gild† the guard’s faces Lady Macbeth transforms blood into a physical symbol of guilt (2. 2. 55). Lennox, a Scottish nobleman, reports on the scene of Duncan’s death describing the guard’s faces to be â€Å"badged with blood† an d their daggers â€Å"unwiped† (2. 3. 104-105). Because they are covered in the king’s â€Å"golden blood† the alleged murderers are â€Å"steeped in the colors of their trade† (2. 3. 114-117).Bloody stains of the hands and hearts of Macbeth and his wife and the blood that covers the faces and weapons of the guards becomes a physical symbol of guilt. The guilt of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth is hidden from others while the guilt of the guards is painted on their faces. Macbeth is fully aware that he is totally consumed by the blood of his murderous deeds. He states that his hands are stained with blood from the murder of Duncan. As the play progresses, the guilt of Macbeth multiplies as the amount of blood on his hands continues to grow, becoming a symbol of Macbeth’s guilt.Each death at the hands of Macbeth causes the stain of red to expand from his hands and spread all over him, â€Å"from head to foot†, symbolizing his growing guilt that beco mes more inescapable (McElroy 46). As time goes on after the murder, Lady Macbeth begins to slowly unravel into insanity. She is haunted by memories â€Å"deeply etched in fear† (Campbell 131). One of these memories is the scene of Duncan’s death she recalls the shock of the â€Å"old to have had so much blood in him† as well as the idea that her hands will never be clean (5. 1. 42-43).Walking in her sleep, Lady Macbeth finds a spot on her hand that she is unable to wash clean, a symbol of her eternal guilt. Bloody memories push Lady Macbeth into the waiting hands of insanity through the guilt that she feels. Images such as â€Å"the blood upon her hands,† and Duncan â€Å"bleeding so much blood,† feed Lady Macbeth’s guilt, causing it to continue to grow from guilt to deeply embedded fear, and finally to pure insanity (Campbell 132). With the murderous and wicked deed of the evil tyrant and his wife come plans of revenge and vengeance.Malcol m and Macduff, both having had horrid injustices done unto them, plan to take action to seize the throne from the wicked tyrant, Macbeth. With Malcolm’s father’s murder and the massacre of Macduff’s family, the two men have burning passions for vengeance. In the country near Dunsinane, Scottish nobleman, Mentieth, tells that Malcolm and Macduff are coming to Scotland with Malcolm’s uncle Siward and the English powers. He explains that â€Å"revenge burns† in both Malcolm and Macduff and that they come for revenge for Scotland, Duncan, and Macduff’s family (5. . 2). The bloody deeds of Macbeth drive Malcolm and Macduff toward their goal of reclaiming Scotland. Malcolm describes the bloody state Macbeth has driven Scotland to as a country that â€Å"sinks beneath the yoke† (4. 3. 39). He claims Scotland â€Å"weeps†, â€Å"bleeds† and â€Å"each new day a gash / Is added to her wounds† (4. 3. 40-41). The personifica tion of Scotland as a living being adds to the imagery of cuts and bloody gashes, upholding Malcolm’s need to avenge his father’s death and reclaim his father’s throne.The gruesome murder of Macduff’s family provided him with â€Å"the most natural of motives for revenge† and brought Macduff to the â€Å"impersonal role of Scotland’s avenger† (Felperin 104). In the final act of Macbeth blood comes to symbolize a mean for revenge. It is the bloody acts of the evil Macbeth that drive the good men of Scotland to revolt against Macbeth’s rule, and ultimately in the reclaiming of their homeland and the death of Macbeth at the hands of Macduff. The final scenes of Macbeth transform the symbol of blood to one of revenge.It is bloody acts that lead both Malcolm and Macduff to seek revenge against the tyrant along side the noble men of Scotland who wish to regain their homeland. ? Works Cited Campbell, Lily B. â€Å"Macbeth: A Study in Fear. † â€Å"Macbeth. † Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc. , 1999. 126-135. Print. â€Å"Character Profile. † â€Å"Macbeth†. Ed. Harold Bloom. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publisher, 2005. 193-197. Print. Felperin, Howard. â€Å"A Painted Devil: Macbeth. † William Shakespeare’s â€Å"Macbeth. † Ed. Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987. 91-112. Print.Mack, Maynard. â€Å"Literary and Political References in Macbeth. † â€Å"Macbeth. † Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc. , 1999. 45-57. Print. McElroy, Bernard. â€Å"Macbeth: The Torture of the Mind. † â€Å"Macbeth. † Ed. Harold Bloom. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publisher, 2005. 27-52. Print. Shakespeare, William, and Sylvan Barnet. The Tragedy of Macbeth. New York: Signet Classic, 1998. Print. Spurgeon, Caroline F. E.. â€Å"Shakespeare’s Imagery Heightens Emotions. † â€Å"Macbeth. â €  Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc. , 1999. 107-117. Print. Word Count: 1,223