The Concept of Strategic Planning and Its Relevance

Abstract The purpose of this essay is to analyse the concept of strategic planning and its relevance to the activities of an organization. Strategic planning has been viewed as an important cornerstone in the decision making activities of an organization. It enables an organization to achieve its goals and objectives through the development of plans. These plans can either be long term, medium or short term depending on the type of business and the context that strategic planning will be used in.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Concept of Strategic Planning and Its Relevance specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Introduction Strategic practitioners recognised the importance of strategies in the processes and operations of an organization which saw a lot of emphasis being placed on strategy which later saw the development of strategic planning as an organizational concept. Strategic planning slowly replaced corpora te planning which mostly involved developing formal plans that lacked any strategic focus. This change was largely due to the emphasis placed on the planning activities of an organization. The relationships that were meant to result from this change sometimes could not be achieved. Researchers found that only few organizations were able to succeed in achieving their goals and objectives through the use of strategies. Practitioners of strategic planning have founded their research efforts on the assumption that the creative task of formulating and implementing strategies can be designed into a series of actions referred to as planning that will lead to results that can be repeated in the future. Definition of Strategic Planning Strategic planning is a technique that is used to organize the present activities of an organization to reflect the desired future projections of what the organization wants to achieve over a certain period of time. A strategic plan is a map or guide that will be used to lead the organization from where it is now to where it would like to be. Strategic planning mostly focuses on the external environment of an organization. Since every organization has different activities and operations that set it apart from other companies, the strategic plans of every organization will therefore be different from that of the other organization; therefore Strategic planning systems will be designed to deal with the unique characteristics of organizations (Samson and Daft 2009). Strategic planning is derived from strategy which is the layout of a plan or set of actions that will be used by the organization to achieve their objectives. Strategic planning is the systematic and formalised effort made by an organization to develop detailed plans that would be used to implement the objectives, goals, strategies, and policies of an organization (Wittman and Reuter, 2008). Planning deals with looking at the future results of current decisions that are made by decision makers. This means that strategic planning provides managers and people in positions of decision making with the cause and effect of consequences that would occur over time if that particular decision was made. If the decision maker does not like the results of the decision, he can easily change it to one that would yield positive results. Strategic planning looks at the alternative courses of action that are available in the future and what options are chosen from these alternatives, they are used as a basis for making present day decisionsAdvertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Grunic and Kuhn (2008) viewed strategic planning as a process that began with the identification of objectives and goals which later led to the development of organizational strategies, plans and policies that would be used to achieve these goals. Strategic planning was seen to be a process of mak ing decisions in advance that would determine what kind of planning activities would be undertaken and how these activities would be done. The process was also systematic as the various activities were organized in a sequence. Strategic planning process was geared towards companies that had their operations and activities in one particular industry within the market. The basic format of a strategic planning process that is used by most organizations is to first develop the company’s mission, objectives and goals as a first step. Once this is done the organization’s internal and external environment is assessed to determine the strengths and weaknesses as well as the opportunities and threats. The next step will involve selecting strategies that will be used to deal with the identified strengths and weaknesses as well as the opportunities and threats. The organization should ensure that the identified strategies are in line with its mission ad goals. After the appropria te strategies are identified and developed, they are finally implemented. Hills and Jones (2009) note that organizations go through a new process of strategic planning every year as a result of changing business environments and the global economy. This however does not mean that new strategies have to be identified and implemented every year. What usually happens in most organizations is that the strategies are modified or reaffirmed since the strategic plan is usually designed for a period of more than five years. Strategic Planning for Small businesses and Improved Performance Given all the evidence on the benefits of strategic planning, most small businesses still do not practice planning. Most of the concepts and research on strategic planning have been geared towards helping larger organizations. Managers of small businesses mostly focus on the short term rather than on the long term strategies. Their decision making technique is characterised to be reactive instead of proacti ve and deliberate. For those managers who do practice strategic planning, the process is mostly characterised by ad hoc instead of formal activities (Wang et al. 2006).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Concept of Strategic Planning and Its Relevance specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More According to May (2010), small business owners today are realising more than ever that they need strategic planning to make decisions. This has emerged out of their uneasiness about what the future holds for their businesses or the fact that they have attained the present level of small business success without any strategic planning and they don’t feel like proceeding with ventures that they are unsure will yield any profits. Such uncertainties lead them to secure stable and predictable styles of management that mostly involve strategic planning. The main difference of strategic planning for both the large and small busines ses is that the larger organization can financially afford to conduct extensive strategic planning activities which at times might be very expensive while the small business has a limited amount of financial resources. The strategic activities of the smaller organization might be limited or constrained due to finances; the smaller business will also mostly rely on its internal resources do the planning (May, 2010). Wang et al (2006) conducted investigations on why some small businesses failed in their activities and operations. They noted that the major reason was attributed to the lack of strategic planning and poor business motivation. Previous studies by scholars such as Mintzberg, Crawford and Lefebvre also suggested that formal strategic planning systems in small organizations were absent. The authors noted that small business strategic planning was mostly characterized by informal planning systems that were unstructured and sporadic. Other characteristics were that the process was viewed to be incomprehensive, incremental and reactive. Wang et al (2006) note that the motivation for a small business owner to be in business was mostly interwoven with their personal lives. Most small businesses are family owned which shows that the personal motivation in starting the business lies in trying to provide a better life for the business owners and their families. Some of these owner usually lack a business background or the technical known how of running the business. This means that they lack basic strategic planning information. Such a situation enables the businesses owners and entrepreneurs to get away with developing short term strategic plans for their businesses .Because of the size of the firm and constant uncertainty in the global business environment, small business have a limited ability to control events. That is why their focus is on short term and medium planning instead of long term. The strategic model should be designed in a simple and inexpensi ve way Pitfalls of Strategic Planning The main problems experienced by small businesses when trying to initiate the planning process have been identified as the lack of time and lack of proper strategic planning knowledge. But when managers discover ways to overcome these constraints, strategic planning can lead to the improved performance of the business.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Small business managers need to gain an understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of small businesses which will set a strong foundation for strategic planning activities. The size and simple structure of small firms allows them to increase their responsiveness to external changes. In discussing the failure of the concept, various studies have been referred to further explain why strategic planning sometimes fails in organizations. One pitfall is that no one study has been found that has assessed the outcomes of deviating from the long range plans. All studies that have been conducted on the subject do not show whether there has been any negative consequences of not following the long range strategic plan. Another pitfall came from an earlier study that highlighted that while particular companies engaged in systematically planned activities, other organizations that did not engage in strategic planning were able to surpass these companies performance wise; this showed that t he best planners did not always perform the best (Dimitrou and Thompson, 2007). Studies done in the 1970s by scholars such as Malik and Karger found favourable results when strategic planning was used while other studies such as those done by Sheehan, Grinyer and Norburn did not see any benefits of practicing strategic planning. Henry Mintzberg after a review of these studies came up with a conclusion that planning was not the only best way. He noted that in some circumstances it did not pay and that when planning was at its best, it might have had some suitability to particular and not all organizational contexts. Another pitfall of strategic planning is that most companies find the solutions derived from the formal process of strategic planning to not be what they had actually expected. They usually had a basic idea of the kind of results to expect once the process was done. Strategic planning makes a majority of the firms today to engage in less risky forms of long range planning in their decision making activities which often at times do not yield the best results. Major criticisms have been drawn to the fact that strategic planning does not in any way contribute to the strategic thinking of major decision makers in organizations. Many of the benefits that accrue from strategic planning cannot be measured and it is difficult to prove the planning process in absolute terms. This is due to the fact when the planning process is initiated; it becomes hard to compare what has happened with what could have happened. This leads to a lot of speculations and formation of assumptions that are in most cases usually wrong. There is also another pitfall in the form of identifying the amount of costs that have been used in the planning process (Hill and Jones, 2009). These costs can only be seen if additional profit made by the organization exceeds the additional costs used in planning. Logical expectations of most organizations are that strategic planning will lead the company to be successful in the future; this is a big misconception. Most managers view strategic plans to be the key that will lead the organization to market success which explains why they become devastated when the strategic plans fail (Hill and Jones, 2009). Conclusion Planning activities are important to an organization to ensure that everything moves in a systematic and orderly manner. Without planning the members of an organization would lack a guide or plan that would direct them to achieve the organizational mission, vision, goals and objectives. Planning is therefore to be the most important activity that an organization should undertake to ensure that it runs smoothly and effectively. Strategic planning should also be given the same level of importance as general organizational planning. While strategic planning for organizations has been going on for a very long time, the smaller businesses are yet to catch on, yet planning is very important for an organization to achi eve optimum success through the proper utilization of resources. Strategic planning might have some pitfalls but when used in the proper way and in the right organizational context, it can improve the performance of both large and small businesses. Managers should therefore exercise this concept to ensure the decisions they make now will reflect what the organization wants to achieve in the future. References Dimitrou, H.T., and Thompson, R. (2007) Strategic planning for regional development in  the UK. Oxford, UK: Routledge Grunic, R. and Kuhn, R. (2008) Process based strategic planning. 5th Edition. Berlin: Springer- Verlag Hill, C., and Jones, G. (2009) Strategic management theory: an integrated approach.  Ohio, US: South Western Cengage Learning May, M.G. (2010) Strategic planning. New York: Business Expert Press Samson, D., and Daft, R.L. (2009) Management Third Asia Pacific Edition. Australia: Cengage Learning Wang, C., Walker, E.A., and Redmond, J. (2006) Ownership motiva tion and strategic planning in small businesses. Journal of Asia Entrepreneurship and  Sustainability. Vol II, No.4 Wittman, R. and Reuter, M.P. (2008) Strategic planning: how to deliver maximum value  through effective business. London: Kogan Page This essay on The Concept of Strategic Planning and Its Relevance was written and submitted by user Natal1a to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Free sample - Ethical Standards. translation missing

Ethical Standards. Ethical StandardsMoral and ethical aspects of human life are very important for the personal development and statement. These life values determine attitude towards people, God and family. They are not regulated by law or other governmental documents, and there is no determined punishment for their violation, but still breaking ethical rules means breaking own personality and acting against oneself. 1. Ethical standard in majority of cases is taken from the parents’ family, social life, religion and historical period. Also, some people think that social groups, mentality and corporate culture, make impact on ethical standards formation. In other words, it is possible to consider the social environment as a major factor, which influences the ethical and moral standards of the personality. 2. According to the respondents’ point of view, those standards of personal ethics, which were grounded by parents in the childhood, are completely impossible to change because personality makes all important life decisions and actions, according to these standards. In some cases, it is possible to make some impact for the personal ethics while changing environment and religious- person would have to adapt to the new life conditions and to the people, surrounding him or her with their life principles. 3. In most cases ethical standards consider God as the main judge of all our actions. The God is also represented for many people as the personal example on how people should live and act. Family values are the core principle of ethics and people think that it is impossible to be fair with him/herself without being fair in own family. Parents, kids and beloved are the sense of life. Belief in afterlife time – one more important issue in following all ethical norms and standards. Respondents consider the afterlife time as the remuneration for the fair and faithful life, for acting, according to the ethical norms. References: Auditing Practices Board (2010) Ethical Standards. [Online] (Updated 17 July 2010) World Health Organisation (2010) Ethical standards and procedures for research with human beings

Maxs Grocery Mart- Projected Income Statement Research Paper

Maxs Grocery Mart- Projected Income Statement - Research Paper Example I have read the CQU policy on plagiarism and understand its implication. I can produce a hard copy of this assignment within 24 hours if requested. Max's Grocery Mart is a family-owned business that has been experiencing a stable growth since its inception. Mr. Leroy Feronti, the owner of the business now wants to expand the business by renovating the grocery mart building with a bank loan. To help the application for bank loan, Mr. Feronti has prepared the pro forma financial statements for three years from 2007 onwards. The data of the accounting period 2006 are taken as the base, upon which the projections for 2007, 2008 and 2009 are based. The bank has demanded to prepare Pro forma Income Statement for three years on the basis of the likely growth and other important parameters of the firm. The statements are prepared projecting the future likely growth of the firm. The growth rates estimated are 7.25, 7.75 and 8.25 annually. The projected in come statement exhibits that at 7.25% growth rate, the firm will be able to achieve $ 477175 net income. Similarly, for the year 2008 and 2009, the projected net income is $479400 and $481624 respectively. Mr. Feronti is also asked to prepare projected income statement to reflect the changes in sales at various rates. The income statement is also prepared to reflect the impact on the net income of the increase in workers hourly rate from $12 to $14 and Mr. Feronti's salary is reduced from 15% to 8% of Gross Profit. The impact of increase in the number of workers from 17 to 19 is also projected through income statement. Table of Contents Introduction 4 Discussion 5 Projected Income Statement for the Year 2007, 2008 and 2009 7 Statement Showing the Impact on Net Profit on account of 9% growth in sales 9 Statement Showing the Impact on Net Profit on account of 9.5% growth in sales 10 Statement Showing the Impact on Net Profit on account of 10% growth in sales 11 Statement Showing the Impact on Net Profit on account of 4% growth in sales 12 Statement Showing the Impact on Net Profit on account of 5% growth in sales 13 Statement Showing the Impact on Net Profit on account of 5.5% growth in sales 14 Pie Chart 16 Statement showing the impact on Net Income of the changes in employee hourly rate and Mr. Feronti's Salary 17 Statement showing the impact on Net Income of the changes in the no. of employees from 17 to 19 18 Recommendations 20 Appendix 21 Introduction Max's Grocery Mart is a family-owned business that has been experiencing a stable growth since its inception. Mr. Leroy Feronti, the owner of the business now wants to expand the business by renovating the grocery mart building with a bank loan. To finance the business expansion, Mr. Feronti has approached a bank. The bank wants Mr. Feronti to prepare Pro forma Income Statement for three years to substantiate the loan allocation as a formality. The pro forma financial statements are usually prepared in line with the likely changes in the financial affairs of a firm. Mr. Feronti prepared the statements taking into account the various changes that are likely to incur in his business. First, Income statement is prepared to reflect the growth at 7.25%, 7.75 %and 8% rates. The projected in come statement exhibits that at 7.25%

Mind Map and a Critical Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Mind Map and a Critical Review - Essay Example They argued that the management of the disease requires a combined effort of several groups of individuals involved in the health sector such as the nurses, dieticians, podiatrist and those dealing with retinal screening services and the patients are also not left behind in the bid to take charge of the disease. Funding towards the control of diabetes in New Zealand is mainly done by an organization known as CarePlus which offers finances to key organizations that are charged with the responsibility of taking care of people who suffer from terminal illnesses as well as chronic conditions (GUTHRIE, D. 2002, 67). The study demonstrated that preliminary consultations with the nurses consisted of physical examination of the patients, proper distribution of health records of to other health professionals, referrals, timely completion of checklists before the patients had opportunity to meet with other healthcare service providers. Thus the nurses played a very vital role in taking care as well as managing the patients owing to the fact that they are the ones who are deeply concerned with the consultation aspect of the patients. The main challenge that faced the nurses is that they felt overburdened by the amount of responsibilities that were geared towards them and too many expectations from the patients as well as other medical practitioners. The authors finally concluded that the role of the nurses reliable but was however misguided by the duration of time that was needed to have them complete all their tasks within the stipulated time. The article confirms the works of previous writers on th e role of nurses in the management of diabetes patients but disagrees on the need to have them do most of the tasks that may seen overwhelming to them (RICE, R. 2006, 09-45). The author aimed at detailing the role of nurses in the management of people who are suffering from type 2 diabetes mellitus. She argued that the nurses are in a better

The Chinese Miracle Essay Example for Free

The Chinese Miracle Essay Many developing countries have sought rapid and sustained economic growth, but few have encountered China’s success. What are the key explanatory factors accounting for the so-called â€Å"Chinese miracle† of the past three decades? Introduction The landscape and the economy of China has extremely changed and developed for thirty years. The â€Å"Chinese miracle† as we called is a really interesting topic such no one country had known a lightning economic ascent as China. Several factors explain that rise to power but I think it is better to talk about almost entirely a few of them instead of name ten factors and develop them during only some sentences. That’s why I have chosen to develop three elements for this essay which are, in my opinion, the main key factors explaining the potential ascension of the Chinese economy of the past three decades. Of course, for this subject, we have to talk about the Reform and Opening up of 1978 without which China would not be the second world economic power nowadays. Given that it is an essay of a few pages, I will develop a few aspects and not all the elements of this economic reforms’ program. China’s Reform and Opening up In 1978, thanks to Deng Xiaoping who led the Communist Party of China, China knew the world’s biggest economic reform of the nineteenth century. This reform is the most important key factor which can explain the so-called â€Å"Chinese Miracle†. It provides the country an open-minded economy on the world. The reform and opening up took place in two steps. Firstly, in the first ten years from 1978, the reform involved stopping collectivize of agriculture and doing the opposite, the opening up for the foreign investments and to allow businessmen to start up business. Secondly, from the end of 1980s, it entailed privatization of companies and contracting out of a lot state-owned industry. Although state monopolies in sectors such as banking and petroleum remained, the economic reform brought lifting of price controls, protectionist policies and regulations. Thanks to this economic reform which is the largest, foreigners and also overseas Chinese began to invest in China. During the past 30 years, the investment range of overseas Chinese has developed from labor-intensive to capital or technology-intensive industries and has expanded from the hometowns of overseas Chinese to western China via the coastal areas, the inland and central, eventually leading to the all-round opening-up of China. Overseas Chinese businessmen and their enterprises have made a huge contribution to the expansion of Made in China products all over the world. At present, investing in China has become a trend for overseas Chinese. Although statistics are not complete, overseas Chinese and compatriots from Hong Kong and Macao who have found enterprises represent about 70% of the total of overseas-funded enterprises in China. In the past thirty years, they have donated billions of yuan to Chinese public services, to set up thousands of middle and primary schools. They also donated vehicles, medical equipment, motorcycles, nylon cloth, fertilizers, chemical fibers, refrigerators and agricultural machines. The return of many overseas Chinese directly changed the daily lives of ordinary Chinese people at that time by means of televisions, washing machines, sewing machines and radios which were scarce items. When we notice all the capital, the investments and donations which have been brought for three decades by the overseas Chinese and the foreigners, we can say that without the Reform and Opening up which gather a lot of economic reforms, the economy and quality of the life in China would not be what it is now. Population, production costs and way of life in China According to me, ones of the most important factors which can explain the surprising and rapid growth of China are the population in China, the cost of living and the way of life of Chinese people. Although some of countries in Europe enjoyed a fast growth decades ago, no one benefited from a growth with two numerals during several years like China. One of the reasons is the population in China which exceed 1. 300. 000. 000 persons, which means that more than one person out of five on the Earth is Chinese. With the biggest population of the world, it is not surprising that China is one of the biggest economic world-power because the country disposes of a huge workforce. Although having a big population for a country bring it to be a big economic power in the world like the United States, France and Russia, it is not enough for a country to establish itself as the first worldwide producer in a lot of different sectors. Indeed, China can base its economy on its population but especially on its cost of living therefore on the production costs. The cost of living is the biggest known reason of the economic success of China since we had known the globalization because all the production costs for the companies are cheaper than in Europe and the United States. Since our world economy entered in the globalization, almost of the companies from the secondary sector (in contrast with the primary and the tertiary sector) had begun to produce their goods or some pieces of their goods in China. Worldwide companies except non-profit-making organizations and a few ones have as goal to make profits. So, since China has opened its borders to foreign countries to doing business with them three decades ago, multinational but also small and medium-sized firms took advantage of this great opportunity to outsource their factory in order to reduce their production costs substantially and so to make more profits. However, it’s also the way of life, the culture of the Chinese people which contribute to make this kind of large-scaled producing system possible. Chinese people have a different consideration about their job, their work more and they have less leisure time than European people. They work hard, they usually finish their workday at 8 pm and they have fewer days off than in Europe or the United States. They consider the job as emancipating, an opportunity to socially go up. Of course, it is the case for the graduated Chinese who went at school and university and not for the Chinese who work in the toys or textile factories for example. It is easy for Chinese companies or foreign companies like Foxconn to find workforce like this second part of workers whose agree to work more than ten hours per day in hard working conditions without a good salary because they don’t have work in their village and also in order to bring back money at home to pay the school of their children. In my opinion, these three factors mixed together come to one of the most important reason that China imposes itself as regards world economic power. For a few years, China is the factory of the world. Billions of goods come from the factories of China and most of the biggest factories in the world are located there. Nowadays, the result is so that the Chinese industry carries weight in the world economy. China is the first producer of the toys sector, the shoes sector, the textile sector, the household electrical goods and many more thanks to its huge workforce. The monetary policy of China The second key explanatory factor is the monetary policy of the Chinese government. If China was able to establish itself as nowadays the second economic world-power, it is mostly thanks to its substantial exportations. In fact, we can easily understand that the rate of exchange of the Chinese currency, the Yuan or RenMinBi, play an important part to promote or not the exportations of the country. That’s why for several years, the Chinese government has chosen to devaluate its currency in order to boost its exportations which make for China to maintain a strong rhythm of growth. When we look at the recent history of the RenMinBi, we notice that since 21th July 2005, a nearly-fixed parity vis-a-vis the U. S. Dollar was organized. However, starting from that date the authorities decided to index the Yuan to a basket of currencies and a devaluation of 2% of the Yuan was also decided in parallel vis-a-vis the U. S. Dollar. Facing the American pressure, Beijing agreed to revalue the Yuan little by little until it will be again index to the dollar by a fixed parity in 2008. Since 2008, the Yuan has not evolved weighty in the exchange rate market. For three-four years, we see arguments from Europe and the United States about the Yuan’s exchange rate. According to them, Beijing often maintains its currency to a low artificially level. However, not long ago, even if China wants to keep the control of its currency and not to be dictated by Europe, United States or the IMF about the exchange rate of the Yuan, that one was revalued by its government. So, we can notice that the low rate of the Yuan has greatly favored the Chinese companies compared to European and American firms for many years. Today, the Yuan’s rate has already begun to increase in relation to five years ago. Some experts say that the Yuan is undervalued by more than 20%. But even if the Chinese economy is based on the exportations for three decades, the re-value of the RenMinBi will give again some purchasing power for the households, restart the consumption and will bring China to be less dependent on its overseas trade. Conclusion In conclusion, we can notice that the â€Å"Chinese miracle† has been possible for the most part thanks to the Reform and Opening up in 1978. However, this single reform program doesn’t suffice to explain the fast economic growth of China. Factors as the production costs, the huge population of the country, the culture of the work and the devaluation of the Yuan are key factors which have led China to be the second, and first soon, economic world-power. For three decades by means of these mixed factors, China has greatly improved the state of its economy, the quality of the life of its population, its infrastructure, its education system, etc. Moreover, thanks to the Reform and Opening up in 1978, Chinese people became more open-minded of others cultures. They could meet foreigners and started doing business with them. We can also notice that China is indebted to overseas Chinese who has brought a lot for their country with their bountiful donations. However, although the life’s quality of the Chinese people is better than thirty years ago, we don’t have to forget that in China the Gini coefficient is the highest and so the contribution inequalities are the biggest. One of the next challenges of the Chinese government is to watch out for what more Chinese can take advantage of the good health of the economy. Bibliography Websites : * http://www. china. org. cn/china/reform-opening-up/2008-12/19/content_16978369_2. htm * http://www. china. org. cn/china/reform-opening-up/2008-10/15/content_16645211. htm * http://www. china. org. cn/china/reform-opening-up/2008-12/10/content_16926213. htm * http://www. china. org. cn/international/2008-06/20/content_15859984. htm * http://www.china. org. cn/china/reform-opening-up/2008-11/25/content_16822741. htm * http://www. bbc. co. uk/news/world-asia-china-20069627 * http://www. nytimes. com/2012/11/09/opinion/china-should-reform-and-open-up. html * http://www. lefigaro. fr/tauxetdevises/2010/04/10/04004-20100410ARTFIG00642-la-chine-et-les-etats-unis-debattent-du-yuan-. php * http://www. lefigaro. fr/tauxetdevises/2010/09/29/04004-20100929ARTFIG00722-yuan-les-deputes-americains-veulent-sanctionner-la-chine. php * http://www. lefigaro. fr/tauxetdevises/2010/03/30/04004-20100330ARTFIG00772-pekin-se-prepare-a-reevaluer-sa-monnaie-. php * http://www. lefigaro. fr/tauxetdevises/2010/05/19/04004-20100519ARTFIG00599-baisse-de-l-euro-pekin-hesite-a-reevaluer-le-yuan. php * http://www. thedailybeast. com/newsweek/2012/07/08/the-end-of-china-s-economic-miracle. html * http://www. guardian. co. uk/world/2004/nov/08/china. jamesmeek Videos: * http://www. china. org. cn/video/2008-11/27/content_16838090. htm * http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=SSuUM3Abe00.

Gender and Transcendence: Sexing Melvilles Whale :: essays papers

Gender and Transcendence: Sexing Melville's Whale Mention Moby-Dick to most undergraduates and their response is either a yawn or a groan.Of course, few of them have actually read the novel; rather, their trepidation is usually based on hearing over and over again that it's a Great Book.If it's been a Great Book for over 150 years, they ask, what could it possibly teach us now, on the brink of the 21st Century? Such thinking seems to have created a rather large hole in what most undergraduates know about 19th century American literature--a hole large enough to swallow not only Melville's whale but all of R. W. Emerson and most of Emily Dickinson, as well.Without such foundational works, most undergraduates--even those interested in a serious study of American literature--miss out on a great deal in 20th Century American texts which builds on the philosophical themes present in those Great (Old) Books. For instance, Transcendentalism was one of the major intellectual centers to much 19th century American writing; and of course thousands of pages have been written about transcendentalism as a theme in Emerson and Dickinson, and an anti-theme in Melville.But most undergraduates are for the most part unaware of this deep vein of transcendentalism running through American thought and letters, and thus portions of modern prose and poetry that respond to it are largely unintelligible to them.If they've studied Emerson at all, it is as the high priest of American individualism, a sort of early American "self help" guru. On the other hand, most of today's undergraduates considergender criticism supremely relevant; many are even somewhat familiar with its terms and principles.Examining literary and cultural texts in terms of what they have to say about gender is a practice with which they are relatively familiar, and one about which they usually already have opinions.It is, in short, a vocabulary in which they are far more conversant than that of transcendentalism specifically and 19th Century American literature generally. As I began thinking about a class which might bring these two topics together, some questions immediately occurred to me: Are examinations of transcendence at all gendered?Is transcendence figured as possessing gender, requiring gender, confounding gender?If the new gender criticism seeks to go "beyond" the boundaries of our traditional concepts of gender and sexuality, then shouldn't one expect to find some connections with works which examine the very philosophy of going beyond common boundaries of self and other? Gender and Transcendence: Sexing Melville's Whale :: essays papers Gender and Transcendence: Sexing Melville's Whale Mention Moby-Dick to most undergraduates and their response is either a yawn or a groan.Of course, few of them have actually read the novel; rather, their trepidation is usually based on hearing over and over again that it's a Great Book.If it's been a Great Book for over 150 years, they ask, what could it possibly teach us now, on the brink of the 21st Century? Such thinking seems to have created a rather large hole in what most undergraduates know about 19th century American literature--a hole large enough to swallow not only Melville's whale but all of R. W. Emerson and most of Emily Dickinson, as well.Without such foundational works, most undergraduates--even those interested in a serious study of American literature--miss out on a great deal in 20th Century American texts which builds on the philosophical themes present in those Great (Old) Books. For instance, Transcendentalism was one of the major intellectual centers to much 19th century American writing; and of course thousands of pages have been written about transcendentalism as a theme in Emerson and Dickinson, and an anti-theme in Melville.But most undergraduates are for the most part unaware of this deep vein of transcendentalism running through American thought and letters, and thus portions of modern prose and poetry that respond to it are largely unintelligible to them.If they've studied Emerson at all, it is as the high priest of American individualism, a sort of early American "self help" guru. On the other hand, most of today's undergraduates considergender criticism supremely relevant; many are even somewhat familiar with its terms and principles.Examining literary and cultural texts in terms of what they have to say about gender is a practice with which they are relatively familiar, and one about which they usually already have opinions.It is, in short, a vocabulary in which they are far more conversant than that of transcendentalism specifically and 19th Century American literature generally. As I began thinking about a class which might bring these two topics together, some questions immediately occurred to me: Are examinations of transcendence at all gendered?Is transcendence figured as possessing gender, requiring gender, confounding gender?If the new gender criticism seeks to go "beyond" the boundaries of our traditional concepts of gender and sexuality, then shouldn't one expect to find some connections with works which examine the very philosophy of going beyond common boundaries of self and other?

Hannibal and the Carthaginian Empire Essay

Hannibal was great and famous Carthaginian general. He is remembered for his great strategic skills on the battle field and as a great military chief. Born in late 247 BC, was the oldest son of Hamilcar Barca. In 237 BC, Hamilcar took his nine year old son, Hannibal, to the altar of a Carthaginian god and made him pledge eternal hatred to the Romans. Then Hannibal and his father left for Spain. The headquarters of Carthaginian power in Spain was the city of New Carthage. Hannibal saw immediately his father’s techniques for war . When Hamilcar perished in the battle of 230 BC, his son-in-law, Hasdrubal, became the military leader plus the political leader and continued Carthage’s pressure in Spain. In 226 BC Hasdrubal signed an agreement with the Romans. The agreement stated that neither army could cross the Ebro River in the northern Spain . When Hasdrubal was murdered in 221 BC, the Carthaginians collectively elected twenty-six-year-old Hannibal to be the leader in Carthaginian government and commandant of the army in Spain. After Hamilcar’s death Hannibal became an excellent military leader. â€Å"Under [Hannibal’s] control the Carthaginians made large territorial advances†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (I-cias). He learned quickly how to be a leader and with the support of his brothers he was able to succeed through his battles. Hannibal was crossing the Alps and was able to receive rations for a couple days. â€Å"On the third day he captured a Gallic town and provided the army from its stores with rations for two or three days† (Alps). He wanted the best for his army, but had little support from Carthage. Despite the number of men falling from the army due to natural disasters he managed to recruit others. â€Å"Even if many fell from his army during this march because of snowstorms, landslides, and attacks from hostile local tribes, he managed to recruit new personnel along the route. † His strategy was to respond quickly to these natural disasters and it helped him. Hannibal earned his success by enduring hardships with his recruits and reinforcements. Hannibal experienced many challenges including battle delays little amount of military equipment and a small number of reinforcements from home. Other military leaders knew he would not be able to handle a delay due to the lack of preparation he took for each battle. â€Å"He [Fabius, Roman Military Leader] believed that Hannibal lacked the equipment for a prolonged siege and that a delay in the battle would seriously reduce the Carthaginian food supply†. Rome believed that delays would end in the conquering of Hannibal because of the lack of necessities there was little he could do. Hannibal began to suffer during his career due to the lack of food. â€Å"Zama was the only defeat. Hannibal suffered in his military career† . After his defeat his enemies began to discover his weakness. Hannibal was running out of everything during the Battle of Cannae and his help refused to aid him. â€Å"Hannibal needed reinforcements, which the Carthaginian government refused to furnish, and he also lacked siege weapons† . Hannibal’s restrictions could have given him success, had he been willing to bargain with another force greater then his own. Hannibal was the instrument of his own undoing. Hannibal was set on being the conqueror and set on some one else’s defeat, which lead him to his own. His enemy, Rome, was the center of his downfall. He would never settle and there was no satisfaction between them. â€Å"†¦In 218, he clashed with the Roman army. The Romans claimed that this was a break of an existing treaty between Rome and Carthage and demanded Hannibal surrendered to them†¦the Second Punic War started† (I-cias). If Hannibal conquered Romans he would never be able to rule over. â€Å"According to legend, Hamilcar had made the young Hannibal swear on a sacred altar that he would remain an enemy of Rome for life† . Hannibal had made a promise to his father, therefore intending to go on with nothing. â€Å"The loss of the second city of Italy cost Hannibal the allegiance of many of his Italian allies and put an end to his hopes of further replenishing his army from their ranks† . Hannibal had lost it all. His hope had been limited at this point. Hannibal both succeeded and failed. He never won the hearts of the people; therefore he was never able to truly be victorious. Hannibal married a Spanish princess and conquered the surrounding land and took hostages from the adjacent tribes to assure their loyalty to him without crossing the Ebro River, except for the city of Saguntum, an ally of Rome. When Saguntum began trouble between Carthage and Rome in 219 BC, Hannibal invaded the city. This began the Second Punic War . After hearing the declaration of war Hannibal immediately starts off towards Rome. The problem was he had to go by land since Rome controlled the seas. Hannibal began a long and hazardous expedition across the Pyrenees and the Alps in August of 218, with battle elephants walking at the front of his army . In the spring of 218 BC, Hannibal handed over command of the Spanish armies to his brother Hasdrubal. He then led his troops north toward the Pyrenees Mountains and began one of the most famous journeys in history . Hannibal’s army included Libyans and Numidians from North Africa, Iberians and Celtiberians from Spain, and Gauls from Spain, France, and Italy. There were thirty-five thousand foot soldiers, twelve thousand horsemen, and fifty war elephants. Hannibal used the elephants to break infantry lines and to create fear and disorder. The elephants also frightened horses, so they were able to disrupt the enemy’s cavalry . In the Pyrenees, Hannibal encountered resistance from local tribes. He lost a lot of his men to fighting, and some of the mercenaries went home because they were scared of the long journey. With all this, Hannibal continued to move as quickly as possible, but bad luck fell into Hannibal’s lap as early snows and landslides kill many of his men and almost all of his war elephants . He enters Italy with only twenty-six thousand men and five or six war elephants in September 218. Hannibal and his troops spent the winter in Po Valley. In the spring of 217 BC When news of Hannibal’s army reached Rome, the Gauls of northern Italy revolted. They joined Hannibal in fighting the Romans. Now Hannibal had a sufficient army of infantry and cavalry. The Romans had plans to attack Carthage and New Carthage, but they had to be delayed because of the rebelling tribes in Italy and the approach of Hannibal. So the Romans sent troops under the command of Publius Cornelius Scipio, to stop Hannibal at Massilia . Massilia is on the French coast where the Rhone River runs into the Mediterranean Sea. The Rhone is a wide river with a swift current, so it was a great obstacle to Hannibal. Scipio’s troops set up camp by the sea, thinking that Hannibal would reach Massilia in the near future. But he did not realize how fast Hannibal was moving his troops . When Scipio received news of Hannibal, it was too late. Hannibal had moved his entire army across the Rhone, fifty miles north of Massilia . Although Hannibal’s army had been reduced to twenty-six thousand infantry, nine thousand horses, and five or six elephants, it was a great accomplishment to get across the Rhone. To transport the elephants, the men built rafts . When the Alps came into view, Hannibal allowed his army a few days to rest, because he knew that his army had doubts about crossing the Alps. Never before had elephants crossed the Alps. The army did not reach the Alps until late in the year, and many troops and horses were killed. Some troops who came from warmer climates died from the cold. Some troops died of hunger because food was short to come by. Others died in fights with mountain tribes. Some of the mountain tribes rolled big stones down the mountains and caused men and animals to fall from the narrow mountain passage .