Edwin Henry Landseers work Waiting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Edwin Henry Landseers work Waiting - Essay Example The essay "Edwin Henry Landseer’s work Waiting" discovers the painting "Waiting", created by Edwin Landseer. Because all artists tend to capture the images and scenes that mean the most to them, whether they intend to or not, they also manage to provide their audience with clues as to the ideals of their era. As a result, artistic efforts often provide useful tools for the study and understanding of complicated concepts in a variety of fields. In cases in which the artists choose to provide visual images in which the forms and figures are recognizable, future generations are able to get a sense of how these people lived by examining shifts in depictions, deliberate misrepresentation and so forth that provide clues as to the underlying social structures. These ideas can be found in Sir Edwin Henry Landseer’s work, such as in his oil on canvas painting â€Å"Waiting† This painting appears to represent an inner courtyard to an estate. An arched wooden door stands aj ar at the back of the painting revealing blue sky and green fields, but there is a stonework wall surrounding the picture space and the ground is covered with bare ground and more stonework. A cement stairway curves up along the left-hand side of the painting just revealing the bottom edge of another wooden door at the top of the steps. The second-floor banister for these steps is covered with a red rug on which perch several birds. The main characters of the image, though, are a dazzlingly white horse, a small black dog and a much larger black.

The Influence of Family Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

The Influence of Family - Essay Example This influence is often reflected in the childhood and adult life of the child. According to various researches, it has been proved that, children always associate themselves with the problems of the parent and worry about these issues even if they are not part of the problem. This is a regular experience faced by families which have divorced. This is the main reason why individuals ask themselves if the family can influence the way they think, act and feel in the society. It is true that the family plays a significant role in the way individuals behave in the family and society. Every concept an individual adopts are learned from the family. For instance, everything a child learns is always influenced from his or her parenthood and how they reacted to their parents. Parents are good people to emulate as they are familiar with what life entails. This is due to their life experiences. They are essential in teaching their children what they have learned, how they should act, think and feel about the modern society. However, some parents are not good role models to their children. As in the case of Cary, whose life will be discussed in the papers’ body, her mother was never a role model. Her mother was full of hatred and brought her up in a manner that she never liked. As such, she vowed to bring her children up in a manner that was completely different from her mothers. However, Cary’s mother case contradicts the claim that mothers are the primary caregivers. Mothers are considered as the primary care givers and consequently being viewed as the most influential to the child’s life. However, recent psychoanalytical studies have shown that fathers have a major role to play in influencing the behaviors and thinking of their children. The parent’s behavior can be explained from their past experiences or prominent figures in the society which they look up to and desire their children to emulate. Young maternal age is usually associated to with harsh and abusive parenting (Smithbattle 521) which can be explained by the fact that most young mothers are mostly poor and at risk of social isolation. They also go through depression and stress making them harsh and abusive parenting. However, these are not usually the only factors affecting the influence that a parent has to his children. Some parents may have prominent figures in the society who they want their children to grow up to emulate and they therefore train them to be like to people. Griffin also brings out the fact that a parent’s control over the family can have an influence on the child’s life (Griffin 302). A child whose parents exercise full control of every aspect at home grows to learn what ask and what not to ask. In exercising so much control in the family, children may not feel good while within the family and when faced by a problem they withdraw to cry alone as seen in Laura’s family (Griffin 307). Apart from the influence one gets from the family, the society plays a great role in influencing a person’s behavior. Moreover, after getting to a certain age, one starts becoming self aware and it is at this time that they start erasing whatever they do not need and developing their desired qualities. The essay on the loss of a creature by Percy tries to expound on the influence of the past knowledge and experiences to the sightseer in their visit to the tourist sites. According to Percy (2), precedent experiences and awareness determines the nature of leisure and enjoyment in any vacation. The prospects of the visit have a role to play in assessing and evaluating the intensity of satisfaction in any tour. Sightsee that satisfies the goal and objective of the vacationer

Existentialism - God Essay Example for Free

Existentialism God Essay What is the meaning of life. The meaning of our lives, the purpose, and the dreams both dashed and realized, and the expectations forced upon us by others. In other words how do you translate what life is? Translation means to explain in simple terms. What is it supposed to be about? There are different answers for different people at different times in their lives. A persons lifetime is filled with self-examination. Why am I here? What am I doing? Is this as good as it gets? You have a beginning. Youre in the middle, and your story hasnt ended yet. If one would recognize the greatest things we have in life, they would not be asking this question. These great things are faith, hope, and love. Faith is the one that can keep one from asking questions. If God wanted us to know something, then we would know it. In most religions, Christian ones in particular, the question of meaning in life is inextricably wrapped up in a relationship with God. Living in, for, with, and through him. Therefore, how one answers the meaning of life question bears directly the existence of God. Soren Kierkegaard said to be the father of existentialism maintains that there are three basic answers to the question of the meaning of life. He called these stages of life, because he believed that people progressed from one stage to the next. Whether or not that is true, there do seem to be at least three fundamental outlooks on life. One is a life devoted to pleasure. This value perspective can be shown by a person whose only concern is for what they are doing now. They would rather gain from pleasures in life without any regards to how they might affect their future. Another stage is those choosing ethical and moral paths. People who are honest and loyal demonstrate this in their everyday lives. Finally, there is a live religiously. This has been the popular way of life for many of us. It is going to church and practicing your faith Stace argues, the present age has begun to weaken faith in God. The concept of a supernatural person has begun to seem unlikely to many people. The Bible no longer seems as respected for many Catholics. While many people say they believe in God they are beginning question whether faith and God are the answer to the meaning of life. Most of us whether we choose to admit it or not show that material things are what we base our lives around. These ideas are at the heart of existentialism, which is a view of life that says that human beings are the creators of their own sense of meaning or purpose. The most famous existentialist, John Paul Sartre in his books and novels developed several themes that portray existentialism. The first is the notion that existence precedes essence. A legacy of traditional philosophy has been that we have a fixed human nature. Sartre challenged that we have no such set purpose or meaning. Our real meaning or who we are is a result of our decisions. We are what we decide. The second associated concept is the importance of human freedom. Sartre believed that every human being has the freedom to live life as we choose to. He believed that we are often terrified by our freedom, and in fact frequently do not want to take responsibility for our own actions. This attitude Sartre called bad faith. Bad faith is an act of self-deception in which we rationalize our actions as being caused by circumstances instead of being self-caused. Basically blaming others for our own deceptions and mistakes. The third major concept of existentialism is the idea of the Absurd. The philosopher Albert Camus popularized this concept. The concept of the absurd is promoted by atheistic existentialist, such as Sartre and Camus. The similarity between Christian and atheistic existentialist is the significance of human freedom and the belief that we are the makers of our own lives One of the most significant pieces of the decline of religious faith is the continuing awareness that there may not be any purpose in life. Both Albert Camus, and Stace, write from this perspective. They believed that traditional Christians have found security in the belief that their lives are invisibly directed or orchestrated by God. That we have assumed that God has a plan for our life, that things happen for a purpose. But as we experience, if we do, the decline of faith or the reality of God in our lives, we come to realize that perhaps we are more responsible than God is for what happens to us. We begin to realize or suspect that it is we, not God, who is the creator of our lives. We are responsible for who we become. Of course, there are always going to be those people who doubt everything God stands for. For them, the body dies and eternity is darkness, I suppose. The fight is going to be, perhaps even as it has been a battle between those who reject God and the, and those who know that God is real. The soul is ones conscience. Without the acknowledgement of that soul, there is no inner voice that helps guide him in the decisions that he makes. Yet, the soulless atheists still seek to discover the meaning of life, and this is where the battle is fought. They are simply stating that there is no meaning to their lives they have no soul, there can be no meaning. Theists realize life isnt fair. People arent created equal. Atheists believe that until all people actually are equal, life is meaningless, and this is the connection we have to make for them. People are not equal, people will never be equal, and if this equality is the requirement for accepting the meaning of life, then life will always be meaningless. If ambition brings about advantage, those advantages must be neutralized. This is the goal of the atheist. If there is nothing but darkness after life, the goal must be to create heaven on earth. Everyone has questioned their purpose in life for example in his article, My Confession, Leo Tolstoy has gone through his life without ever really questioning the meaning. Then he periodically questioned it until one day he eventually could not picture himself living anymore until he came up with an answer to his questionings. All the things he was thought to be living by no longer made any sense or had any meaning at all to him. He tried to answer his question many different ways, but whichever way he went he kept coming up with a dead end. He first thought the answer must be his family. Although he loved them very much, as humans they are confronted with the same questions he is. They are living this lie right along with him pretending that they have all the answers, or just simply ignoring the questions. He next thought the answer to be in his work. Eventually, coming to the realization that with all of his success in art and poetry he had become distracted. He was using art as a decoy. Without knowing his answers to the meaning of life, it was wrong and useless to depict these lies to others. He soon felt as if life had stopped, and was even contemplating suicide when he came to the realization that faith is present in each one of us and is what makes our lives meaningful. Everyone must believe they have a purpose here, for if they didnt they would not be living at all. For life to have true meaning, that meaning must come external to the individual and be somehow consistent with life as a whole. Christians would argue that only God could grant this. It is the helping hand, which guides us through life with an honest and loving heart. Jesus is the only man to lead a true, meaningful life. His life is really the only life of meaning and it is only through him that we have the opportunity to live meaningful lives. Without accepting this answer, one will have only difficulty for the rest of their lives, especially in answering the question of the meaning of life. If you accept this answer, however life is much simpler, because your search is over. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life? John 14:6. The way the truth and the meaning of life itself. There are scriptural accounts of people claiming to see God, and while a witness is more proof than no witness is, there is no way to scientifically verify these statements. They must be accepted purely on faith. Some say that the existence of humans or planetary balance is proof that God exists. These do not prove He exists. Christians believe God is in control of everything in the universe, and created the same. God created all beings, and every atom in this universe. We know God exists because He says He does. The bible is His word, left for us to read. Psychologist Viktor Frankl wrote in Mans search for Meaning that we should not ask what we expect from life, but what life expects from us. He was making the point that people must deal with what daily tasks are put in front of them. Instead of arguing and complaining, we have to take action. Our strength is shown through the soul survival of the hardships we face. Which brings us to the problem philosopher John Hick was facing. In his article, The Problem of Evil he asks the question, if God is perfectly loving, he must wish to abolish evil. But evil exists; therefore God cannot be both omnipotent and perfectly loving. The very fact that there is such suffering gives good cause to doubt not only the value of the whole human race, but also the existence of God. A God that can be said to care in the slightest for whats been created, any God who has power over all things, who is anything other than a horrible monster who finds cruel unusual joy in squeezing every last drop of suffering out of them. It would rule out anything even vaguely resembling the God that Christians speak of. A God who deserves our utter hatred not our worship. However, Hick found that although harsh and painful, evil did have purpose in the world. He stated in his article, the finest characteristics of personal life must have a good deal in common with our present world. It must operate according to general and dependable laws: and it must involve real dangers, difficulties, problems, obstacles, and possibilities of pain, failure, sorrow, frustration, and defeat. Without these sufferings, we would not be able to know what happiness and love really was. Evil provides us with the possibility of soul making, and according to free will, we must choose our fate. The Laws of nature must be abided by without them the world could not exist. God may be creating the lesser of the evils. There must be suffering in order for God to give inner strength that compensates for loss, and gives the sufferer inspiration to live faithfully and effectively. What God provides are the resources so we can face the suffering and make something positive come from it. He gives the direction and power to make these resources work. He gives hope and wisdom to find the way past the suffering, and to learn from it. John Paul II gave us an outline of what is believed to be the salvific meaning of suffering. Suffering as he wrote in the Apostolic Letter Salvifici Doloris, cannot be transformed and changed by a grace form outside, but from within? This question of human suffering is not answered directly by God. As man begins to share in the sufferings of Christ, the answer is discovered within in him. Suffering changes and can either increase or decrease, and in those moments Christians become aware of Gods closeness. We are given inner peace and spiritual joy when we suffer generously. When we are suffering we are never alone we are with Christ. With Christ everything has meaning whether its moments of happiness and peace or of pain and suffering. Nothing in life can be fully explained without God. . Look to the bible and Jesus gives us the answer. Love God with your whole heart, mind, body and soul. Love your neighbor as yourself. If you do this, you are following all the commandments. Humble yourself and give the praise and glory to our creator. God the Father our creator is love and he loves you very much. God created us to worship him and he deserves all the praise because he is the first and the last. He has no beginning and no end. Just look around and take in all the beauty he has created. Everyone is special and made in the image of God. We are nothing without our creator. Sin will keep us from God for he is pure and perfect. It is hard to let go of pleasure and putting ones self first. However, the key to peace and happiness is to surrender your freewill to God, the author of life, and he will give you complete, happiness, peace, contentment and purity you are looking for. That is what we were created for. God is made evident every day when the sun comes up, and there is still air to breathe, and you made it through the night. One cannot believe that everything we know was created by accident. Things are just too perfect to have happened by chance. Man is too corrupt a creature to have invented the beautiful things in the world, as in faith, hope and love. He allows evil in this world because He wants us to have the opportunity to choose either Him or evil, thereby proving our love for Him. If His were the only game in town, then there would not be a free will conscious choice for Him. It is evident that the meaning of life has to far to complex for any one to fully understand or agree on the same answer. All these ideas of these different philosophers are not necessarily inaccurate, just incomplete. All pieces to a puzzle that one has no way of fully figuring out. No one has seemed to accomplish this yet in life. There are so many obstacles that we face as we try to achieve a higher good. Many of these are based in the fact that we are human beings, and because of that are flawed by the ways of our culture. Things such as self-doubt, worry, ignorance, and the values put into our heads since the day we were born all are roadblocks on our way to a higher level. Also being human beings makes vulnerable to the ways of the world around us, so it is not easy to block these things out of our lives. This life is a stage in which we are to develop our minds, bodies, and souls to their highest potential in preparation for the afterlife. Only God could ever really show anyone true meaning.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Chapter 1 Introduction Corporate Social Responsibility is a rapidly developing, key business issue. It is a concept that has attracted worldwide attention. Due to the demands for enhanced transparency and corporate citizenship, CSR started to embrace social, ethical as well as environmental challenges. Today, companies are aware of the social and environmental impacts of international production. It is accepted that Companies should not be only profitable, but also good corporate citizens. Through globalization of the economy, multinational companies are increasingly involved with suppliers and customers worldwide, especially if they operate in developing countries. The CSR agenda has a close relationship with international development. CSR within multinational companies is seen as a vehicle through which larger, well known corporations can contribute to the well being of developing countries by operating responsibly in terms of social and environmental issues. However, the promoted CSR in the developing world by multinationals is not real CSR, despite significant contribution to development in some cases. Very little is known about the companies CSR policies and practices in an international context, developing countries in particular. As reality shows, most of the larger corporations abuse the CSR and behave unethically and irresponsibly towards both society and the environment. Issues such as unsafe working conditions, unfair payment, gender discrimination, sexual h arassment, toxic emissions and the hazardous pollution of water and soil have all raised fair allegations by consumers, non-governmental organizations and the larger society. . Famous global brands like Nike, Coca-Cola, GAP and McDonalds are often under intense pressure from the public. Much of those pressures are due to their unethical behaviour in developing countries, where their main operations take place. Though companies operate in host countries, their reputation extends across numerous national boundaries. The actions of multinational companies in a host country can cause significant loss of reputation in the developed world, where the general public have become more sensitive to environmental issues and social impact. The public have the power to boycott the goods and products of multinational corporations in cases of unethical behaviour where organisations are thought not to fulfil their social and environmental obligations. However, international reputation side effects a re not the only reason behind the potential increased level of social and environmental responsibilities faced by multinational companies; there are many drivers for the correct implementation of CSR by business entities. However, for many companies, corporate reputation and brand image are the fundamental components of business success. Corporate Social Responsibility in developing countries represents the formal and informal ways in which multinational business enterprises contribute to improving the social, ethical and environmental conditions of the developing countries in which they operate. However, the rational approach to the CSR in the developing world is different from CSR in developed countries. For example, developing countries represent the ongoing growth of the economy; hence the most attractive growth markets for many foreign companies. They provide cheap labour, an absence of strong regulations and a rich availability of resources; all crucial concerns for multinational enterprises for conducting their businesses in developing world. It has been found that the public and the government are not as critical of unethical business practices within foreign companies. In addition, developing countries are where globalization, economic growth, investments and business activities are likely to have both posit ive and negative social and environmental impacts. Therefore, developing countries represent a different set of CSR agenda for multinational companies to those operating in the developed world. In this research paper the CSR practices of multinational corporations will be examined. Their CSR commitment as well as irresponsible practices will be highlighted. In the first chapter, there will be overview on the previous works in this field. As CSR is a new concept, especially in developing countries, the short history of the development of CSR and main contributions will be presented. Literature review will give us the background knowledge about CSR. In chapter two, research methodology and relating this to the subject matter will be discussed. As research will be based on case study, there will be some examples of multinational corporations experience in developing countries. The examples of their commitments towards environmental and social sustainability as well as negative impacts caused by their unethical operations will be provided. The opinions and critics of analysts and experts will provide a clear understanding of companies CSR practices in the developing world. The well known multinational companies like Nestle, Nike, KFC, Apple iPod and many others will be examined for their irresponsible and unethical behaviour in developing countries such as China, Indonesia, India, Southeast Asia and Africa. For the main research point the Coca-Cola crisis in India has been chosen, as Coca-cola, despite its CSR commitment towards society and environment, has caused damages to both the community and environment where it operates. From the case study, we are able to make some conclusions regarding CSR practices and make suggestions and recommendations for future of Corporate Social Responsibility, as it will undoubtedly increasingly become a major issue and integral part of business practise. Chapter 2 Literature review The 21st Century has seen much advancement in the issue of corporate social responsibility (CSR), and there has been particular interest in the impact CSR could have globally. This literature review will begin by defining what is meant by corporate social responsibility. There are a lot of debates about the origins of CSR; however it is clear that CSR is a modern term, a consequence arising from the history of business responsibility. The modern term is considered to have western origin; however it has developed from different countries ideas and theories. This has created a number of definitions of CSR. This can lead to confusion making CSR less effective. It is interesting to observe that none of the definitions actually defines the social responsibility of businesses, as so famously discussed by Milton Friedman (1970), but rather describe it as a phenomenon. The Government sees CSR as a business contribution to sustainable development. However, the modern concept of CSR has been i nfluenced by Globalization and so CSR has developed and is taken in different context worldwide. (Crane, Matten, Spence, 2008). In addition, organizations such as the European Union (EU) see CSR as a concept integrating social and environmental concerns in business operations and in their interactions with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis. However, others like Ethics in Action Awards (2003), describe CSR as a companys obligation to be accountable to all of its stakeholders in all operations and activities (Dahlsrud, 2006). There are a number of debates raised in academic literature over the issue of to whom the business must have responsibility. Various authors have referred to the common approaches: shareholder, stakeholder and societal approaches. According to shareholder approach, the classical view on CSR maximizing the profits of shareholders (Friedman, 1962). This approach can also be interpreted as being that the company should make contributions to the extent, to whic h it can be connected with the creation of long-term value for the shareholders (Foley, 2000). From the stakeholder theory, it is obvious that organisations should be accountable towards other groups of stakeholders, who can affect or be affected by a companys objectives (Freeman, 1984). The last approach, which is regarded to give the broader view on CSR, argues that the organisations should be responsible to societies as a whole, of which they are an integral part. The aim of the following literature review is to identify the most valuable academic studies and important practical investigations. The field of Corporate Social Responsibility can be divided into several parts; definitions of CSR, analysis of CSR approaches, CSR in supply chain, CSR in developed countries as well as in developing ones, the link between CSR and globalization and last, but not least the global understanding of CSR. The history of CSR The development concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has been carried out mainly in western countries; particularly in United States. Literature picks up the issue from the 1950s when attention was devoted to the responsibility of businessmen ( Bowen, 1953) to the 1980s when the argument with stakeholder theory took place (Freeman, 1984) and of course, to the 1990s when most studies were devoted to the analysis of the relationship between CSR and corporate financial performance (Roman et al, 1999). In the beginning of the 1950s, Howard Bowen tried to give rational and systematic arguments in favour of CSR and its connection with big corporations and their influence on social consequences and undoubtedly, their primary societal responsibilities. The one of the earliest books on CSR, The Social Responsibilities of the Businessman, was written by Bowen in 1953. Bowens book was specifically concerned with the doctrine of social responsibility. Bowen argued that social responsibility is not panacea for all business social problems, but that it contains an important truth that must guide business in the future (Asongu, 2007). Because of Bowens early and very valuable work, Carroll has argued that Howard Bowen should be called the Father of Corporate Social Responsibility (Carroll, 2000). The decade of the 1 960s is characterized as seeing a growing interest in the formalizing or more precisely, defining the meaning of CSR. One of the prominent writers in this period was Keith Davis, who later extensively wrote about the topic in his business and society textbooks, later revisions and articles. He argued that social responsibility is a nebulous idea, but should be seen in a managerial context (Mahon, 1991). Another influential contributor to the early research into CSR was Friedman. The argument made by Friedman (1962) that the main corporations responsibility is toward shareholders has created much debate among academics. It was not until 1970, that Wallich and McGowan first made attempts to demonstrate the link between corporations social responsibility and shareholders interests. They argued that the aim of corporations long-term interest should be linked to the environment to which a corporation belongs. If society and environment became worse, a business would lose their critical s upport structure and customer base (Keim, 1978). In the 1970s there are a wide range of references, increasingly being made to corporate social responsiveness, corporate social performance as well as corporate social responsibility. In the 90s, literature tried to find out answers to questions such as why some companies are doing well and if CSR could be identified as a competitive advantage. Most academics and scholars started to apply the stakeholder theory to CSR, because stakeholders, other than shareholders have interest in the well-being of a company in relation to employees, customers, governments and others. This model renewed the interest in CSR and more research was devoted to this subject. Also, there is great interest in the linkage between CSR and corporate competitiveness; but bbbthere is a shortcoming of quantitative translation of socially responsible practices into specific results affecting the income and loss of particular organization (Murillo and Lozano, 2006). Many scholars connect CSR with the competitive advantage that a company can gain. The most well-known work in this field is Professor Michel Porters The competitive advantage of corporate philanthropy in which he describes how a company is able to improve its long-term potential by linking financial and societal goals (Porter, 2003). Further development in this area was made by Kramer (2003). Problems with CSR research We know very little about CSR initiatives and undoubtedly, there are some questions about both the efficiency of CSR approaches and the tangible benefits for stakeholder groups. Also, we know very little about the social and environmental impacts of CSR initiatives. For example, many business schools analyzed and devoted their works to studying the content of codes of conduct. They looked at specific issues such as child labour, but they failed to study the wider societal impacts of CSR. The most notable study about societal impacts came from development study scholars, not from business schools. The study by Barrientos and Smiths (2007) reviled that there are, in particular in those countries where empirical investigation took place such as South Africa, India, Vietnam and Costa Rica, some benefits from codes of conduct and initiatives implementing CSR by multinational companies. However there are failures in the areas of noncompliance and ensuring the improvement of working conditi ons. In addition to this, Barrientos and Smiths questioned the methods used by the business communities in investigating the societal impacts of CSR, doubting the efficiency of the tools used to monitor CSR performance. Due to the lack of empirical study and evidence regarding CSR impacts, there are still analytical limitations in the current CSR field. For example, some academics (Lantos, 2001) wrote about conceptualization of CSR, however, current field of CSR and business scholars fail to answer vital questions. For example, how can CSR tackle a development challenge like poverty, without an understanding of the negative influence caused by multinational companies operating in host communities? Even if there is agreement about societal benefits of CSR initiatives, there is still uncertainty about the way in which CSR should be studied and analyzed. Lockett, Moon and Wisser (2006) argued that CSR knowledge should be best described as a continuing state of emergence. Indeed, many s cholars study CSR initiatives without any reference to theoretical perspectives. Milton Friedman and other authors highlighted the agency problem of CSR for a long time. For example, Friedman argued that the pursuit of societal and environmental objectives will undoubtedly hurt shareholders by lowering profits. However, other scholars like Margolis and Walsh (2003) oppose the arguments of Friedman. They found that, between 1972 and 2002, at least 172 empirical studies investigated the positive relationship between social responsible behaviour of an organization and its financial performance. Levels of CSR Another main contribution to the development of CSR made by Carroll (1991), considered the economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic levels of CSR. These levels represent what is required, expected and desired for CSR strategies (Crane, Matten, Spence, 2008). According to Crane, Matten and Spence, Carrolls pyramid of CSR is the most widely accepted definition of CSR. Until the 1980s, environmental corporate responsibility was the part of social responsibility, which was used as a frame term that covered a wide field of ideas. However, corporations became to understand the importance of environmental responsibility. For this reason, the concept of corporate environmental responsibility has started to be used by researchers such as Rondinelli and Berry (2000) in parallel with the development of corporate social responsibility by Carroll (1998), Maignan and Ferrel (2000) and Zarkada-Fraser (2004). CSR and Corporate Social Reporting The great number of scholars, who have since the 1970s (Fenn, Ackerman,), analyzed the complex issue of Corporate Social Responsibility and the advantage of reporting on a wider scale, have given the possibility to evaluate social performance (Levis, 2006). The theme of social reporting has been developed along with the CSR. The approach for researching reporting is different in comparison with past decades due to the growing number of organizations that have published a social report. (Belal, 2002; Bitcha, 2003; Weaver et al, 1999). The reason for the growing interest in this field is linked to progress in business ethics (Donaldson, 1999) and the significant importance of the stakeholder approach, which has led to an increase of interest in studying the causes and real meaning of the phenomenon. The present approach to social reporting activities can be divided into two parts: fists, those who still think that it is a responsiveness approach and others, who argue that it is much mo re than communication; it is a tool of strategic management. Research in CSR worldwide Cultural differences affect CSR dynamics as well as companies practising responsible behaviour. For instance, research by Juholin (2004) reviled that long-term profitability is the prominent driving force behind CSR in Finland. Research by Fulop et al. (2000) discovered differences in CSR orientations between large and small firms. A similar study by Uhlaner et al. (2004) suggests a mixture of CSR perspectives (economic benefits, legal, ethical and philanthropic considerations) as useful in explaining variations in CSR orientations amongst Dutch firms. Despite cross-cultural and national differences, there are differences in the variety of methodologies adopted in examining and analyzing CSR. Some studies considered CSR as a philanthropic and ethical responsibility; however other studies have made a distinction between CSR as simple legal compliance vs. CSR as conducting business with high regard for morality. As noted previously, the debate about CSR has existed since the 1950s. In the first academic papers, a narrow concept of corporate social responsibility was used. Most of the authors like Bragdon and Marlin (1972) and Spicer (1975), tried to approach CSR through the main social and environmental problems such as pollution and contributions to the local community. The data used for their analysis was based on information issued by the Council on Economic Priorities. However they were not able to cover the whole aspects of CSR and their works were not valid for every industry (Dooley, 2004). Later, a broader valuation and examination was provided by Moskowitz (1972, 1975). In his work he tried to cover almost every aspect of corporate social responsibility such as equal employment opportunities, charitable contributions, fair dealing with customers, product quality and more. CSR in developing world Despite the great interest in ethical and responsible behaviour in business, very little is known of the practise of CSR in developing countries. For example, Belal (2001) notes that there are a wide range of academic publications, describing CSR in the context of developed countries such as Western Europe, the USA and Australia. Also that we still know too little about practices of corporate responsibility in ex-colonial, smaller and developing countries. He suggests doing more research into developing countries as it will give a valuable insight to the western meaning of CSR in context (Jamali, 2007). There are no large scale developmental studies of CSR in developing countries as there are in western countries. However, the CSR discussion traditionally revolved around the multinational companies operating in developing countries. The multinational companies response to CSR has great impact on the future global CSR agenda. The first notions of corporate social responsibility in developing countries emerged in the 1960s amongst American companies operating in developing countries, particularly in Asia and Africa. Perhaps a simple definition, truly reflecting the responsible behaviour of current multinational companies operating in developing countries is presented by Davies, who suggested CSR as a framework for the role of business in society. The implication of this definition is that it includes any society in which the company operates, including the global society (Engle, 2006). Within the Asian context, most academics paid attention to describing the governance aspects of environmental responsibility (Hong Kong: Hills and Welford; China: Bi; The Philippines: Forsyth). In contrast, in India, Mohan has focused on social responsibilities and corporate citizenships. Also, there is some research into the normative aspects of CSR such as the evolution of business ethics in Taiwanese companies (Wu). In the study of CSR in Malaysia, Teoh and Thong found that the most foreign multinational companies seemed more inclined to accept their responsibilities towards environment and society (Chapple, 2005). CSR in the Global Context CSR and multinational corporations. Relatively little is known about management of corporate social responsibility by multinational companies (Gnyawali, 1996). In general, little is known about the management of CSR in multinational companies, either practically or academically. While many areas of research have examined the nature of cultural or business preference to social equality (Adler, 1997; George and Jones, 2002; Lantos, 2002), there has previously been no research regarding the role of CSR in the expansion of organizations into new territories or cultures. The dominant theoretical approach to studying CSR practices among multinational companies, operating in developing countries, is the works of Bartlett and Ghoshal (1989) and Prahalad and Doz (1987), who tried to analyze general multinational companies management practices in CSR. This framework was then extended by Yip (1992) and Husted and Allen (2006) to cover CSR practices (Geppert et al., 2006). The studies of these researchers enabled interesting insights such as how CSR is being managed, the potential barriers to successful implementation of CSR practices within domestic p laces into operation among multinational corporations. However, mainstream research of CSR was concentrated particularly on domestic issues such as labour issues, racial discrimination, the position of women and the environment. To date there has been limited analysis in the developing countries context, in particular regarding foreign multinational companies. Further detailed analysis is needed of what instrumental, moral and relational motives exist in systems very different to the western context in which they were developed. CSR and Globalization With Globalization, CSR has been propelled into a global context. Ruggie (2004) identified three particular aspects of social responsibility in the context of global governance. Firstly, nowadays it is expected that multinational companies will build new capacities and take care of issues such as working conditions, healthcare and education as well as respect human rights. So that, if corporations insist on setting up in developing countries, they are forced to consider challenges, normally associated with developing countries like poverty or child labour. Nowadays, most multinational companies face a lot of new and challenging problems in this era of Globalization. According to Weber, Lawrence and Post, multinational companies are able to solve such problems. They have introduced the idea of Three sector world, compromising multinational companies, non governmental organizations and community. In their research, they compared both strengths and weaknesses of each sector and analyzed their contributions to solving global problems. The research method was based on comparing attempts of two multinational companies in implementing CSR in developing countries (Young, 2008). Based on their findings, it is obvious that a collaborative partnership with community and non governmental organizations can carry better results in implementing CSR. Therefore CSR in the global context involves more than business implementation, it needs business cooperation with other organizations whose focus is greater on CSR. From the vast majority of literature, it is clear that CSR has gained major significance in the era of Globalization and multinational companies should take responsibilities for their actions worldwide, especially in developing countries. Multinational corporations should behave as a moral leader in an area where there are no legal requirements (Scherer and Smid, 2000). CSR is considered a Western idea, which has now to be applied to problems in the developing world ( Scherer and Smid, 2000). The literature review is an account of what has been published on corporate social responsibility; it acknowledges the critical points highlighted by scholars and researchers. The literature review conveys what knowledge and ideas have been established on corporate social responsibility and it enables further research to compare and contrast these ideas in order to create new theories. Therefore a literature review provides the basis for the analytical framework of this research (Bryman, 2004). It has also helped with the interpretation of the results and has led to other questions being asked. The literature review also highlighted that there had been little research carried out on the societal impacts of CSR and implementation of CSR by multinational companies in developing world. This gives further importance and emphasis to the analysis of literature in giving rise to new questions and theories. The literature review has provided the framework of following deep research about cor porate social responsibility of multinational companies in developing countries, in particular the problems and benefits of implementing of CSR and the role of huge corporations in this issue. The literature review has helped to identify key themes within CSR by multinationals and from this more questions have evolved. Chapter 3 Methodology In this research paper the case study was employed as the research strategy. Usually descriptive or exploratory research is associated with the case study, and this might be particularly useful when the phenomenon under investigation is difficult to study outside its natural setting. Using case study research methodology is also helpful when the concepts and variables need to be considered where experimental or survey methods are regarded to be inappropriate (Yin, 1994). Case study is used particularly in looking at the specific questions such as how and why that is set in the contemporary environment (Yin, 1989) Case study methodology has a lot of advantages over some other methodologies. First, it allows the use of multiple data collection techniques in order to build a more comprehensive picture of the case being investigated. Second, this in turn leads to the ability to capture both qualitative and quantitative data. Case studies can provide a solid understanding required for hyp othesis development that then leads to improved theory development. The main advantage of case based research is that results are considered to be interesting and important and can shift the focus of investigation towards a new area of interest (Scapens, 1990). The case study is usually considered more accurate, diverse and rich, if it is based on several sources of data (Alasuutari, 2000). Advantages of using secondary data for research purposes As the research is concerned with multinational companies operating internationally, secondary data will probably provide the main source of necessary information. As our research strategy is case study, it is better to use compiled data that have already been sorted or summarised (Kervin, 1999). Secondary data can be obtained from different sources aimed at the same geographic area, where our case study takes place such as the Coca-Colas crisis in India. Area-based multiple sources of data are usually easily available in different forms, especially in published forms. Also tracking the original source of secondary data is much easier, especially when time restrictions are severe. As it will be a case study, it is even preferable to use newspapers, journals and media on a regular basis, as they may provide recent events within the business world. Research will concern the specific country i.e. India, data from government sources are also useful due to their high quality. Because of t ime constraints, secondary data can be obtained very quickly, in addition they have better quality standards in comparison with collecting own data (Stewart and Kamins, 1993). Using secondary data within collection also has a wide range of benefits, as they have already been collected and analyzed (Cowton, 1998). Unlike the data collected by myself, secondary data are permanently available and easily accessible, so that it can be checked relatively easily to others (Denscombe, 1998). Problems with collecting primary data for research purposes Access for some primary data can be problematic and difficult. Therefore it is unlikely that gaining permission for physical access will be easy and will be time consuming. As an interview is way for collecting primary data, however it is difficult to seek access to a range of participants such as employees, suppliers, customers and other stakeholder groups. The main cause might be restricted access to companys data either directly or indirectly (Bunchanan et.al., 1998; Raimond, 1993). As a full time master student, you are not able to have prior contact with huge multinational companies and you will be required to negotiate in order to gain any access to each level of information. Also, the major obstacle in obtaining primary data is time constrains. There is not sufficient time for all methods of collecting primary data, as physical access may take weeks or even months (Bunchanan et.al., 1998). Even, if there are time allowances, nobody can guarantee that replies will be quick and contain all necessary information. In case of opportunities for conducting interviews, undertaking questionnaires or engaging in observation, unfortunately, this would take several weeks. Whichever method will be chosen, almost all methods for gathering primary data are very time consuming (Bryman, 1988). However, due to the growing significance of the topic, many researchers have used primary data to conduct research. They collected primary data through interviews, observation and questionnaires. There are some examples of case study based research approaches. The implementation of CSR in developing countries was examined by Christina L. Anderson and Rebecca L. Bieniaszewska in the paper The Role of Corporate Social Responsibility in Oil Companys Expansion into New Territories. The aims of the study were to analyse the role of CSR in British Petroleums overall business strategy and to examin the benefits of employing CSR as a part of business strategy when it was operating in new territories and cultures. The case study approach was conducted through providing interviews with representatives from BP, social auditing and accounting specialists. Recent company reports and website information were also examined. Another example came from Richard Welford and Stephen Frosts research that provides an overview of CSR practices in Asia. The aim of the research paper is to review the benefits of the implementation of CSR in supply chains and arising obstacles. In order to collect data for research purposes, interviews were undertaken with six CSR managers working for well-known brand corporations, ten factory managers and eight CSR experts. Interviews were held confidentiality and anonymously. All participants have extensive experience of CSR issues and provide a good overview of the challenges for CSR by multinational companies in Asia. The case study based approach showed that multinational corporations such a

An Invasion of Haiti is Averted by Accord To Restore Aristide :: essays research papers

An Invasion of Haiti is Averted by Accord To Restore Aristide 1993- President Clinton needed a significant foreign policy victory to boost his sagging political career, and Haiti seemed to be the "perfect opportunity" to do this. 1994- Even after a year of frenzied negotiations no tangible results were in sight and the "perfect opportunity" seemed to be turning in to yet another nightmare for the President. However , this was not to be and President Clinton turned near defeat in to a resounding victory, with the help of former president and skilled negotiator, Jimmy Carter. September 19, 1994- Today the threat of invasion is over and, "a society (American society) that doesn't rest comfortably with the burdens of imperialism can breathe easy". American troops will enter Haiti as "peace keepers" and not as members of an invading force. In order to arrive at a peaceful solution several concessions had to be made by U.S government negotiators and Haitian dictator, General Raoul Cedras. 1) The U.S government let General Cedras and his cohorts "save face" by allowing the military junta to step down, after their parliament passed a general amnesty for the military. If this had not happened the U.S government would have had to oust the ruling party by using force, and this would have made the junta look bad. 2) The U.S agreed to lift the economic sanctions imposed on Haiti as soon as possible. 3) The U.S also dropped it's insistence that General Cedras and two of his military commanders leave the country. On it's part, the Haitian Junta agreed to hand over power to the democratically elected government of exiled Haitian leader, Jean-Bertrand Aristide. The key to solving this complex problem was former President, Jimmy Carter. All through the crisis, Jimmy Carter stayed in direct contact with General Cedras, who he had come to know well while acting as an independent election- observer during the Haitian elections in 1993. Carter knew the situation on the ground and offered to act as a go-between. However, White House officials declined his offer initially. This was partly because they were upset that Carter had publicly disagreed with some of the current administration's policies as regards North Korea. When negotiations between the U.S and the Haitian government broke down, President Clinton went on national television and announced that United States armed forces would soon invade Haiti. This move wasn't aimed at ending negotiations but at making a last ditch attempt to arrive at a peaceful solution.

Summary of Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx Essay -- Karl Marx Communi

Summary of Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx Introduction Karl Marx was born in 1818 into a middle-class, German family. During his studies, Marx was heavily influenced by the philosophy of Hegel. He joined a group called the â€Å"Young Hegelians.† The group, though â€Å"inspired by Hegel, [was] determined to champion the more radical aspects of the old master's system.†[i] Though he was a strong scholar, he got into trouble because of his radical political views.[ii] In 1847, together with fellow German, Freidrich Engels, Marx wrote The Communist Manifesto. The Central Authority of the Communist League approved The Communist Manifesto January of 1848, and the document began printing the next month.[iii] The manifesto was â€Å"inspired by the emergence of the modern working class, [he] developed a wholly new socialist outlook based upon the principle of socialism from below.†[iv] In Marx’s version of socialism, there were two central themes, one of which was that the working class had to libe rate themselves from their oppressors, and the other involved the working people overthrowing their current government to create a new, democratic society for themselves.[v] Summary of Section 1 Marx begins by showing that throughout all of history humans have divided themselves into certain ranks or classes. For example, in the Middle Ages social divisions were â€Å"feudal lords, vassals, guild-masters, journeymen, apprentices, [and] serfs.†[vi] As long as social stratification has existed, one group or groups have been the oppressor while another group or groups have been the oppressed. The fight that exists between the oppressed and the oppressor is destine to end reconstruction of society triggered by revoluti... ...o of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.. New York: Russell and Russell, 1963. [vii] Marx [viii] Marx [ix] Marx [x] Marx [xi] Marx [xii] Marx [xiii] Marx [xiv] Marx [xv] Marx [xvi] Marx [xvii] Marx [xviii] Marx [xix] Marx [xx] Marx [xxi] Marx [xxii] Marx [xxiii] Marx [xxiv] Marx [xxv] Marx [xxvi] Brians, Paul. Study Guide for The Communist Manifesto. 15 March 2002 . LINKS TO: http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~brians/hum_303/manifesto.html Study Guide for The Communist Manifesto. http://marxist.org http://www.anu.edu.au/polsci/marx/marx.html http://www.philosophypages.com/ph/marx.htm http://cepa.newschool.edu/het/profiles/marx.htm http://www.classicnote.com/ClassicNotes/Titles/communist/ http://homepages.udayton.edu/~santamar

A Rose for Emily: Emily as a Tradition, a Duty and a Care Essay

Emily Grierson is the title character in the short story â€Å"A Rose for Emily.† The narrator portrays Emily as a â€Å"tradition, a duty, and a care,† (Faulkner,79) but in her actions, it is obvious that Emily is a true outsider. She shuts out the townspeople, only allowing them to see certain aspects of herself and leaves them to speculate the rest. She lives with her father until his death. Any chance at love for Emily was denied due to her father driving potential men away so that he could have her all to himself. Having been sheltered and secluded by her father, she continues to lead that kind of lifestyle after his death. Miss Emily’s home fits in with her character. Both are dark and mysterious. Emily rarely lets people into her life to see the real her so she remains dark and mysterious. Her home is also closed off to the townspeople. She rarely allows people into her home, and those that do find it layered with dust. The house is also falling into decay which also coincides with Emily’s aging and bloated and pallid appearance. It is clear that Mr. Grierson was extremely controlling of Emily. He showed this in his attempt to drive potential suitors away. After his death, Emily attempts to take control by denying that he has passed and refusing to give up his body. Before they can resort to using the law to take his body, Emily finally gives in and releases the body to them so that he can be buried properly. The townspeople are not surprised by her actions. They felt it was something she needed to do because she had nothing left, so she had to cling to the one thing she did have, and that was her father. Miss Emily follows her own rules. She does not abide by the law like everyone else. A deal had been made that she didn’t owe any taxes. Colonel Sartoris told her it was because her father had loaned the town money and therefore the taxes were remitted. When a new generation took over and sent her a bill, she either ignored it or sent back the bill with a note. When they came to her home to talk to her about it, she still adamantly refused to pay the bill, telling them she owed none and to speak to Colonel Sartoris about it. Even though the Colonel had been dead for ten years and there was nothing in the books to show that the taxes were remitted, she refused to accept the new authorities and has them shown out. She also refuses to put numbers on her mailbox when federal mail is put into place and in stating why she is buying the poison. No one ever pushes her and forces her to follow the law, it is as if they are afraid to question her or just ignore her eccentricity. They even refused to bring the multiple complaints of a bad smell to her attention and instead snuck into her yard at night, breaking open the cellar door to sprinkle lime in there as well as in all the outbuildings. No one wanted to â€Å"bother† Miss Emily. Eventually a man named Homer Barron comes to town. He begins to spend time with Miss Emily. At first the townspeople are happy that someone has piqued her interest. Many thought that they would eventually marry, even though Homer states that he is not the marrying kind. Many feel that she will find a way to persuade him to marry even though it seems as though he is interested in men. Eventually, the townspeople all believe that they will soon be married because of items that Emily buys for Homer. Homer leaves at one point while Miss Emily has family visiting. The townspeople see him return, but it is the last they see of him. This is when Emily’s failure to follow the law takes a turn. She was never questioned on why she needed the arsenic. It of course gets around town that she has purchased it, and they all believe she will kill herself. Even though Homer is never seen again and even though her home is mainly closed up until her death, except for the few years she teaches china painting, no one ever thinks that the arsenic is being used in a more sinister way. After Miss Emily’s death, the townspeople come to pay their respects. The men do so more out of respect while the women are more interested in seeing her home after all these years. It is soon discovered that Homer Barron’s dead body is lying in a bed in one of the rooms. Next to his body, on the pillow, it is clear that Miss Emily has spent time laying there beside him. It is clear that Miss Emily couldn’t bear the thought of Homer abandoning her, so she poisoned him so that she would always have him with her. She clung to him just as she had her father, but this time she found a way to make sure Homer would not be removed from her home. No one ever calls Miss Emily crazy, even though she had a great aunt that had gone crazy. All her actions are just thought of as part of her eccentric ways. No one thinks to question her or what she does. It is clear that Emily is suffering from some sort of mental illness. She clearly shows she has abandonment issues after being sheltered by her father. She refuses to accept or reveal his death until forced to do so. It is also clear in her actions of poisoning Homer Barron. After her father’s death, the narrator states that â€Å"she was sick for a long time after that.† It seems as if maybe she had some sort of mental breakdown after she is left alone. If only her father hadn’t sheltered her so much and refused to allow her to find love and seek friendship, she would not have acted in such desperate ways. If she could have gotten help to get over her fears or was able to talk to someone about it, maybe Homer would not have been poisoned. Although her actions and the outcome were tragic, in a way you have to feel bad for her because she was following the example that her father set for her. He desperately clung to her and in turn, she desperately clung to the men she cared for.