Society and Femininity Essay -- American Literature Essays

Society and Femininity: Triumph of the Human Spirit Very few novels in American Literature can earn the title of timeless. These novels transcend the ages, because they possess a greater meaning. Their stories teach people about life, the glory of the human soul, and all it can endure to overcome. Three novels in particular get to the very heart of feminine struggle. Though they touch not on women’s struggle to vote, they reach the higher plain of women’s struggle to be seen as who they are and not what society wants them to be. To Kill a Mockingbird, The Color Purple and The Bluest Eye all deal with the topic of women trying to overcome society. Although these novels were written in the mid to later half of the twentieth century, they go back to a time when the Great Depression was touching all walks of human life. Each of the main characters in these novels does not fit society’s view of femininity during the time period. Although the main characters in the three stories do not fit society’s idea of femininity, they each, in their own way, overcome this and show a greater beauty of strength. All three main characters in each of these stories fail to fulfill society’s idea of beauty and femininity. The lead character of To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout, is a nine year old tomboy, during a time when girls aren’t supposed to be tomboys. She receives much criticism by her aunt and many others for not being the ideal young little girl. Harper Lee, the author, expresses through the view point of Scout, â€Å"Aunt Alexandra was fanatical on the subject of my attire. I could not possibly hope to be a lady if I wore breeches, then I said I could do nothing in a dress, she said I wasn’t supposed to be doing things that requi... ... is not willing to give up the fight by her amazing desire to want that child to live. Although the book does not show Claudia in adulthood, one can envision her as the epitome of a strong woman. These three main characters defy society because of their strength. These books become timeless because of the female characters. Each novel defies the expectations of society in its own way. They exemplify women who rise above the average to become greater than what most people are. The novels show the female spirit in all its glory; they portray its strengths and ability to overcome obstacles. Works Cited Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. 1960. 40th Anniversary Ed. New York: HarperCollins Pub, 1999. Morrison, Toni. The Bluest Eye. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1970. Walker, Alice. The Color Purple. Orlando: Harcourt Brace Jovanocich, 1982.

Myer Holdings Limited (Myer)

Prospective analysis – forecast The previous reports have already approached the industry and financial analysis of Myer. This report will analyze the forecast, valuation and application of Myer, including forecasting the major data, valuating share price under four model and discussing the opportunity and challenge of Myer. 1. Forecast sales growth rate As one of the most important indicators, sales can reflect directly Myer’s financial performance and influence other indicators. Therefore, the forecast of sales growth rate is the foundation for forecasting Myer.Based on the previous annual reports from 2007 to 2011, Myer’s sales are not optimistic and the average growth rate is negative 2. 89%. The decline of both global economy and purchase power of consumers in Australia will lead to the depression of whole industry and unsatisfied performance of Myer in 2012. Additionally, growth of 20% online shopping shows that more and more consumers prefer to purchase on line instead of in the shops . Therefore, negative 1% of sales growth rate for Myer can be assumed in 2012. However, Australia would have a weakening global economy impact and have strong national growth in the future .According to IMF, Australian economy growth rate is expected up to 3. 5% in 2013 . Considering the previous performance of Myer, 2% of growth rate can be assumed for 2013. After that, 3% of growth rate can be assumed from 2014 to 2017 and the sales would approximately even to 2007. (See below chart) Previous years ‘00020072008200920102011Average rate Sales3,002,3532,940,3312,798,9162,825,0342,666,803? sales growth? -2. 07%-4. 81%0. 93%-5. 60%-2. 89% Future years ?2011201220132014201520162017 Sales growth? -1%2%3%3%3%3% 2. Forecast ATO & calculate NOAAccording to the past five years’ data, Myer’s Assets Turnover ratio (ATO) declined slowly following the decrease of sales, apart from 2011 down quickly. Therefore, the average rate 2. 05 can be used to predict the future years. (See below chart) ? 20072008200920102011Average rate ATO2. 02 2. 282. 152. 001. 772. 05 3. Forecast PM & calculate NOPAT Profit Margin (PM) is another important indicator in forecasting Myer’s performance. This indicator relates between the sales and cost of goods sold and operating costs. The competition in retail industry is stronger than before.That means through increasing sales or decrease COS to increase PM is more difficult. The change of PM fluctuated markedly in the last five years. In order to fairly predict the data, the average of 7. 5% can be used as the future PM growth rate. (See below chart) ? 20072008200920102011Average rate profit margin4. 7%13. 4%4. 9%7. 8%6. 6%7. 5% 4. Forecast net dividend payout Dividend payout is a significant indicator to influence share price. Therefore, estimating this rate means the people can determine Myer whether focuses on benefiting shareholders and beautifies share price or not.According to the past 5 years, only 3 years Myer paid dividends. After calculation, the average rate based on 3 years is 45% and 5 years is 27%. However, 27% is too low for shareholders if Myer earn more profit base on the forecast. In addition, most of dividends payout is higher than 50%. Therefore, the forecasting dividend payout rate is estimated by 45%. (See below chart) ? 20072008200920102011Average rate(3yrs)Average rate(5yrs) Dividend0%50%0%28%59%45%27% 5. Forecast cost of debt and debt balance Basically, cost of debt means the expense of liabilities.Determining the cost of debt is as well as setting up the financial structure such as how much debt Myer plan to borrow. According to the previous data, Myer repaid a huge amount of debt in 2010 and led to the cost up and net debt down. However, the debt did not rise up again and kept the similar level as 2010. Therefore, concerning about the cost of debt, the average of 10. 75% seems more reasonable to predict the future. (See below chart) ? 20072008 200920102011Average rate % cost of debt6. 25%6. 41%6. 36%30. 31%4. 41%10. 75% net debt (ND)928,503 856,242 904,258 414,574 457,362 ?Prospective – Valuation Four methods are used to valuate Myer, DDM, DAE, DAOE and DCF. In addition, two ways are used to determine cost of capital, which are CAPM and WACC. In CAPM model, risk-free rate, risk premium rate and ? are assumed separately 4. 5%, 6. 5% and 1. 1. It is not easy to determine ? because it changes every day. Assuming 1. 1 for? means the fluctuation of Myer share price is a little stronger than the market but not too much . Therefore, cost of capital (Re) is calculated by the formula and equals to 11. 65%. This Re is used in DDM and DAE. In WACC model, because Re is 11. 5%, Rf is calculated by formula and equals to 11. 43%. This Rf is used in DAOE and DCF. The share price is calculated by these 4 different models. (See below chart) ModelForecast Share price in 2012 DDM1. 7423 DAE2. 4548 DAOE2. 5603 DCF2. 5603 DDM is influen ced strongly by dividends because this model uses dividends to calculate value of shares. If the company does not pay dividends, the share price would be lower. Myer is estimated to pay dividends in 45% and the share price closes to market share price. (See below chart) DateLast % Change High Low Vol * 24 Oct 20121. 950-1. 27% 1. 621. 9306,259,477 This model is easy to understand Myer’s business conditions. However, this is affected by dividends too much and dividends are not always linking the value creation , the valuation model seems very limited. Obviously, this cannot reflect the Myer’s real value and conditions. Additionally, compared to DDM, DAE involves in other indicator abnormal earnings to value Myer share price and is better to present Myer’s conditions. Myer share price in DAE is higher than DDM because it reflects book value of equity and PV of future abnormal earnings to add share value.Therefore, this is more close to the real performance of Myer . Also, DAOE model is similar with DAE apart from that DAOE focuses on the equity which is determined by operating abnormal earnings. This eliminates the influence of Myer’s financial activities to calculate abnormal earnings. However, Myer’s financial value has been added to the equity finally. Therefore, this can reflect Myer’s condition in operating. Finally, DCF model focuses on cash flow which results in the equity increases. Usually, it can get the same share price with DAOE, but does not affected by accounting rules.However, investments are treated as losses for cash flow, which can bring more future benefits to Myer. Therefore, if Myer plans to use investments to produce free cash flow, then this model is very close Myer’s real conditions. Prospective – Sensitivity On one side, Myer is department store and compete in retail industry. Seasonality is more significant aspect in retail industry. The boom seasons for Myer are the end of financia l year and Christmas holidays. Also, the weather, new products in season or other factors are the aspects which Myer is sensitive.On the other side, according to Appendix 4, the four models of sensitivity can be analyzed. For the indicators of sales, ATO, dividend payout, DDM is the most sensitive, while DCF and DAOE are not sensitive. However, DDM is not sensitive in debt, while DCF and DAOE are most sensitive. Application Opportunities According to the forecast analysis and valuation, Myer has some possible opportunities to improve herself and get rid of the difficult conditions although the depression of condition expands the whole retail industry. Myer is predicted to pay more dividends to their shareholders in forecast analysis.This will addict more investor to buy shares and this can push the share price to rise up. Also, the book value of equity for Myer can be increased and this leads to no one can buy Myer’s share lower than book value. Therefore, a higher merger val ue or acquisition value can be created. Eventually, Myer will get more capital to investment. Therefore, Myer has an opportunity to invest this implemental capital. Concerning about the future economy, Australia will have strong domestic economy increase . As a result, Australian consumption and requirement will be up.Therefore, keeping and maintaining domestic consumers are still the main tasks for Myer. With the online shopping eroded the traditional shopping stores, Myer should improve their online shopping services, such as beautifying and making it convenient for customers. Myer’s CEO announced they would launch a new â€Å"omni-channel† service to stimulate consumers shop online . Obviously, Myer has already recognized online shopping is the main method to regain market share. Additionally, expanding the overseas market seems a good lamb for Myer to increase profit.Recently, Australia government has signed two Free Trade Agreement negotiations with China and Japa n separately. This provides a firm foundation to encourage more foreign investments between Australia and both of countries . Therefore, Myer can be provided more supports to invest in China and Japan. There are three reasons for Myer to choose China rather than Japan to set up the first overseas branch. Firstly, 1. 34 billion of China population is more stable for consumption foundation than 127million of Japan . Secondly, the advantage of exchange can provide more benefits for Myer to invest in overseas.Thirdly, more products of Myer are produced by China; therefore, setting up branch in china can save the delivery cost and tax. Challenges Although Myer’s forecasting is more profitable, it still has a potential challenge for borrowings. First of all, the purpose of loan for Myer may be to expand its shops or update its online shopping. These have more chances to be long-term debts instead of short-term debts. However, when they are in the lack of cash flows, Myer may pay di vidends through borrowings. Although this can be short-term debts, it is not for earning profit.Therefore, both of these are risky for debtors. Secondly, the figure shows that Myer would not plan to increase its financial expenses. That may be Myer prefer to get more funds from shareholders and her own operates rather than debts. This looks lower risky than people’s anticipation while it also means Myer would slow the repayment of debt and the previous debt risky will be raised up. Thirdly, the steady growth rate of dividend payout shows Myer would pay more dividends to benefit their shareholders when they earn more money instead of pay the debt or reinvest.In other words, Myer prefer has more long-term debt than short-term debt and maybe the benefits will be impaired. Therefore, the debt’s risk of Myer tends to be increased by Myer’s trend. Fourthly, the debt leverage looks healthy. However, the decrease of debt leverage is because not only the debt decreases, but also the net operating assets increase. Above all, Myer probably has problem when debt from debtors. Therefore, a detailed loan structure should be planned to make debtor have more confidence and willing to borrow money to Myer.This loan structure need to concern about the percentage of debt and equity for Myer. Also, the percentage of long-term debt and short-term debt should be considered. In addition, the purposes of debt need to be clear, easy to understand and report to debtors and shareholders. Conclusion To sum up, these analyses are really useful to approach Myer’s conditions and performance, and also can give some particular information through valuation. However, there are not perfect analyses; people still need to look for more effective analyses to value the firm.

Football and Soccer Compare and Contrast

Football and Soccer Compare and Contrast. Football and soccer have never been really compared before, probably because alot of people think they dont have many similarities. But they actually have alot more in common that people think they do. Having played both sports myself i can tell you that they are very different in varius ways, but also very alike. It depends in what aspects you look at it that you can see differences or similarites. Off field soccer and football share different backgrounds. On field comparisons are never talked about but they actually have somre similarities. Yes football is more of a contact sport, and soccer more of a technique sport. But football does have technique as well, and soccer contact. On the field, both teams rely on team play to move up the field and try to score on the opposing team. Both sports have a total of 22 players on the field, 11 on each team, and passing the ball to teamates is key. In both sports the offensive players take most of the glory and the spotlight, but its know that without a good defense, its hard to win. You can score all the points you want but if they score more points on you then your still losing. Scoring is very different though. On football each time you score is called a touchdown and its given 6 points plus and extra point to try to make it 7. Soccer scoring its only 1 point and its not called touchdown but its called gol. The game of football has alot more breaks during it, and it has 4 quarters. During each play you have small breaks, plus alot of timeouts and tv comercial breaks. Soccer is a non-stop sport with only 2 halfs and no breaks during each half, just the 30 minute halftime break. One of the main differences on both these sports in my mind is that football is only a sport played in the United States, while soccer is a worldwide know sport. Soccer means alot in many countries all over the world, and theres tournaments that bring every teams all over the world together. Football's major event is held here in the United States and it only it involves the one country. United States has soccer, but its one of their least successful sports economacly and physically. It has faild to reach the fan base they wanted, and the MLS (soccer league) was close to be being shut own due to lack of fans and lack of income. Soccer is like a religion in many countries all over the world and it means everything to its fans. Where im from, Argentina, soccer is bigger than anything. Alot of people take soccer even more serious than their jobs. Sometimes a little to serious. There has been a lot of soccer related accidents in Argentina and many other parts of the world. Many of the ac cidents occur during games in the stands. Soccer rivalries are very big in Argentina. Sometimes they seperate towns. Just like gangs here in United States, soccer fans fight for respect and hate towards the other team, a lot of times ending in deaths. Other incidents occur off the field. A good example to show how serious fans take the game, is the incident that occur after a World Cup, when a colombian player scored an own goal during an important game, and he was assasinated a few days later. Things like that usually never happen here in the United States. Not to say that fans are no passionate about football, but its a different type of passion. The United States understands how important soccer is worldwide, and they have tried to make soccer bigger here in the United Sates, but have failed several times. They have tried to publish soccer more by advertising and by trying to bring famous players all over the world to play here in the United States. Living here in the US, i saw that football was the major sport here. But there are alot of competing sports like basketball and baseball, and there is also college sports, which are also very big here. In Argentina, there are of course many other sports, but none come close to soccer. As a little kid, i never knew of any other sport than soccer. Every little kid growing up wants to be a soccer player when their older. And that dosn't sound like a problem, but in my opinion it is. Alot of kids growing up have â€Å"dream jobs†. Some are sports realted some are not. A lot of kids dream of being doctors, lawyers, firemans and of course start athleets. But in Argentina, most of the kids wanna be the only thing they knew growing up, a soccer player. And with most of those kids not reaching that dream, it leaves a lot of confused kids. So like most people think, there are many differences overall between football and soccer. But there are more similarities than people think there are. Maybe in the future wih the growth of soccer in the United States, we will have even more things in common. And maybe the passion for soccer here in US will one day be as big as it is in the rest of the world, but hopefullt without all the violence.

Manual vs Automatic Transmission Essay

Why are cars with manual transmissions so popular? Also, what are some of the differences and some of the advantages to driving a car with a manual transmission? They are more difficult to drive than a car with an automatic in it. They also require certain motor skills that you don’t need with an automatic. One could also choose an automatic that is easier to drive and would make your drive in rush hour traffic more comfortable. People who have driven cars with manuals in them know the differences and the advantages of driving one. The driver has more control over the car’s power than they do when driving cars with automatics in them. Cars with automatics are great to drive around because they don’t require too much driving skills. People who don’t really like to drive usually will choose a car that is automatic. They often don’t pay as much attention to the things that are happening around them while they are driving. They have improved a lot through the years with better gear ratios, and the shifting response when the driver just presses on the gas. However, they are not as much fun to drive. That is why race are drivers drive cars with manual transmissions. Cars with manual transmissions are very fuel efficient. They respond better to the driver which makes them safer. People that drive cars with manual transmissions are more focused on their driving. When the driver down shifts when they are driving to reduce their speed, they are also saving their brake pads. Other thing cars with manual transmissions have more power and tend to respond better when you accelerate. It also makes your driving more interesting. Also race car drivers drive cars with manual transmissions to take their driving skills to a higher level for maximum performance. Ones personality will make you decide on which is better for you to drive. My personal opinion is that cars with manual transmissions are a lot more fun to drive than automatics. Because, cars are made for driving and driving should be fun.

How can a manager motivate a workforce and what are the major benefits Essay - 7

How can a manager motivate a workforce and what are the major benefits of this to a company Support your answer with examples - Essay Example Other managers and HR officials believe that the work environment that comprises of treating employees with respect, and providing interesting work to them plays a great role in motivating these employees. Each and every of these explanations has some relevance and some truth in it; however, one theory cannot adequately explain how to motivate employees of an organization (Loehr and Kaye, 2011). This is because people are not purely political, economic, and psychological beings. On this basis, this paper asserts that employees of an organization need material, emotional, and social benefits as motivating factors. One of the methods of motivating employees is giving them the vision of the company. The management must also provide them with the methods of achieving this mission and vision of the company. All most all serious business organizations have an outline of their vision, and they normally require employees to satisfy and fulfill these visions (Loehr and Kaye, 2011, p. 33). Take for example the vision of Barclays bank is to become a premier banking institution in Europe, offering high quality banking services, and innovative solutions (Branham and Hirschfeld, 2010). When employees of an organization are aware of the vision of a company, they will work hard to ensure that they are able to meet the organizations vision. Creating and communicating the vision of a company is a psychological motivating factor. Another method of motivating employees is giving them what they need and want. It is important for managers of an organization to check whether employees have the necessary tools, sup port and training needed for purposes of carrying out their duties. Take for example a hospital organization that has employed doctors and nurses. The organization must provide these employees with the various tools needed for carrying out their duties,

Reflective Journal Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Reflective Journal Assignment - Essay Example The success of this stage in growth leads to the virtue of hope which often goes a long way in determining how a person would view the world and/or tackle real life crises and problems that are ever existent. Being of a middle age compared to the other of our siblings, I was never accorded the utmost care that the others had and this I believed strengthened my resolve greatly. I become more independent and assertive and this enabled me too to recognize my abilities and skills. Taking part in groups, organizing class events at schools, sorting out fellow children quarrels and disagreements enabled me to recognize my special talent in counseling at a tender age. Ages 10-20, regarded by most scholars as the age bracket that makes or breaks an individual were rather hectic for me. This is where self actualization occurs when one starts to learn the roles he would want to play as an adult. At an adolescent age, I got to learn a lot about myself and the surrounding. This is the age where I got to re-examine my identity and who I really was both in our family and to the society at large. This period came to pass with a lot of challenges that defined who I became. I decided to set myself on a career path and developed a greater sense of fidelity and tolerance. My later advanced ages presented to me the worst times I ever had. Before making any considerations on the need and motives, I decided to have a partner in my early 20’s. As described in the eight stages of development by Erikson, this is the period in the lifespan of an individual when one yeans for intimacy and a certain level of commitment. I got married at a comparatively younger age and this came with its share of problems. I had a marital relationship that that took turns at every face of difficulty and disagreements. This stage gave me a lot of insight into the issues that couples face on a daily basis and opened me up more to the counseling profession. At the

Scenario medication management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Scenario medication management - Essay Example We will be touching a few topics that come under this heading. We are first going to talk about â€Å"Mental Capacity†. There is actually an act on mental capacity which is called â€Å"The Mental Capacity Act 2005† which basically states that a framework is there to protect and empower people who are incapable for not making their own decisions. This act makes it clear that the person who can make decisions for that incapable person would be held responsible in the future. The individual who is looking after the invalid should have the best interest for the person. The individual must also consider that whether it is likely that the invalid person in time or in future will be able to make their own decisions. As it is said by British Geriatrics Society that â€Å"Mental capacity is a legal concept and any decision as to whether a person does or does not have mental capacity is ultimately a decision for a court of law†. For example: that is a nurse gives a medication or a drug with a food item or liquid other than water it might cause a reaction and the person who solely be responsible for this conduct would be the nurse that gave the patient the medication, where the patient was in no condition to make his or her own decision. Now lets move on to the second topic which is called â€Å"Role of Pharmacist &MDT†. As we have always recognized that the medical consultants work within a clinical team and they have the sole responsibility for the clinical management of the patients assigned to them but with in that team the pharmacist has a specific and the most important responsibility and that responsibility is to provide safe and appropriate use of medication or drugs. When we look at the role of a pharmacist in a hospital setting it should basically include medication storage, packaging and compounding, support personnel, see drug expenditure and quality improvement and