Mankinds Evil Exposed in Lord of the Flies Essay -- Lord of the Flies

Mankind's Evil Exposed in Lord of the Flies        Ã‚  Ã‚   Despite the progression of civilization and society's attempts to suppress man's darker side, moral depravity proves both indestructible and inescapable; contrary to culturally embraced views of humanistic tendencies towards goodness, each individual is susceptible to his base, innate instincts. In William Golding's Lord of the Flies, seemingly innocent schoolboys evolve into bloodthirsty savages as the latent evil within them emerges. Their regression into savagery is ironically paralleled by an intensifying fear of evil, and it culminates in several brutal slays as well as a frenzied manhunt. The graphic consequence of the boys' unrestrained barbarity, emphasized by the backdrop of an external war, exigently explores mankind's potential for evil.    Dismissing the detonation of an atom bomb and the possible deaths of their parents as merely an "unusual problem" (14), the schoolboys selfishly indulge in their lush jungle environs. The overwhelming "glamour [which] spread[s] over them" (25) momentarily eclipses their awakening need for domination. At first, the boys express this necessity through the seemingly innocuous heaving of rocks and the belittling of Piggy, who is physically inferior. Had these actions occurred in the boys' English homeland, they would have been accepted as ordinary,childish behavior. However, under the guise of innocent excitement, the boys derive an unimaginably "violent pleasure" (18) from "exercising control over living things" (61).    Ominously, their craving for power is a presage for the blood that is to be shed. This blood which had initially been so "unbearable" (31) is now lusted after; it compels Jack... ...lightenment is a condemnation rather than a liberation, because the knowledge of evil will forever remain as a scar upon his mind.    Now that Ralph truly understands the "darkness of man's heart" (202), he will recognize it in all its forms and disguises, falling heir to Simon's role of the bearer of truth and condemnation. The constant possibility that he may succumb to internal evil may instill Ralph with an further sense of anxiety and despair. This torment marks "the end of [his] innocence" (202), and Ralph will never be able to return to his former state of carefree happiness. Only death, the end to each individual's experience of the human condition   the same death that liberated Simon and Piggy   can free Ralph from the enlightenment and curse of his insight. Work Cited Golding, William.   Lord of the Flies.   New York: Harcourt, 1962.

Patagonia Case Study

Ana Martinez Valls 22/10/2012 PATAGONIA 1) Evaluate Patagonia’s business model. How important to Patagonia’s business model is its environmental position? Business models generally have as a primary objective to earn money, however, Patagonia’s is primarily oriented towards â€Å"doing things right†. That is why Patagonia’s founder Yves Chouinard considers the company an opportunity to â€Å"challenge the conventional wisdom and present a new style of responsible business†.It’s business model differs substantially from the traditional business’ one. PATAGONIA’S BUSINESS MODEL * Target customer: Patagonia builds products for its â€Å"core users†, those who lead the â€Å"dirtbag† lifestyle (someone who wanders for temp jobs and long summers†, someone who is passioned about climbing, surfing.. etc) * Product: High quality & useful products, for different occasions that are aimed to â€Å"last foreverà ¢â‚¬ : Four main product categories: Sportswear (47%), Technical outwear (30%) Technical Knits(12%), Hard Goods (6%). Mission- Core service:  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm and use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis†. Value delivered: Manufacture of high quality outdoor and adventure sport clothing -Quality: Best clothes, own quality Lab (patents and technique used by other big corpportaions) -Environmentally impact (organic materials, recyclable products, environmental campaigns) -Innovative products that can â€Å"last forever† (more intelligent consumption) -Service to he customer (repair, replace) Acquire and keep customers: during a recession as it is the case nowadays, in a competitive market if two firm s have the same product at a similar price and one of them has a more responsible business, customers are going to choose the responsible business’ product * Differentiation: Organic mate rials that decrease harm to the environment. Products that last forever. Indeed you don’t have to buy new products you can repair them ! Products tested (proved by professionals) and developed in Patagonia’s lab. Revenue generation: Margin earned from selling through its four channels: wholesale(44%), retail (33%), catalog and internet (23%). As a percentage of sales, the gross margin ranges form 50 to 55%. In their new products they focus on innovation, environmental impact and quality what enabled them to â€Å" charge prices roughly 20% higher than those of other outdoor apparel and 505 higher than mass market brands for comparable products†. * Cost structure: one third of the cost comes from manufacturing and two thirds form raw materials.Higher costs due to labor costs in North America which are â€Å" estimated to be anywhere from four to ten times those elsewhere† but also by the use of eco friendly materials such as organic cotton which was betwee n 50% and 100% more expensive than normal cotton. * Profit margin: $26 963 000 ($332 862 in net sales) in 2010 2) How fast can Patagonia grow? How fast should it grow? Patagonia could grow faster, from a financial perspective but if it did it so it would not be â€Å"The Coolest Company on the Planet† (Fortune cover  story, Casey 2007).Indeed Patagonia endeavors a sustainable growth and it prioritizes a slow growth that enable the corporation to be committed to its mission and values. Patagonia’s growth path is closely related to the values that have being shaping the company since 1957 when Chouinard founded it. Indeed, Chouinard is a reluctant entrepreneur and his primary objective in business is not to earn money but he states that â€Å"the reason why [he is] in business is to protect what he likes†. An unsustainable growth goes against his values. Patagonia has found unambiguous ways to couple their products’ function and the brands environmental v alues.Their business model raises major sums for environmental causes and their technological innovation reduces the environmental impact of their products- and that is what it is important for Patagonia. A perfect example of the sustainable growth Patagonia wants to pursue is their willingness to use organic cotton. The help provided to other corporation in order to help to establish a whole new  organic? cotton industry is also a landmark of how they are committed to a sustainable development of the manufacturing industry.Indeed, Patagonia is a reference for other business in its path to reduce contamination and some big corporations such as Nike have imitated -in a certain degree -this new organic cotton initiative. Patagonia has a responsibility towards society and the future reduction of pollution and feels that its mission is â€Å"to share broad sustainable practices†. Another initiative that in theory slows Patagonia financial growth is its participation in the â₠¬Å"1% For The Planet† program- â€Å"an alliance of over 1200 business that donate a self imposed environmental tax of 1% of revenues to environmental organizations worldwide.Also, some of Patagonia’s practices such their Employee Internship Program- through which employees can leave their jobs at Patagonia for up to two months to work full-time for the environmental group of their choice- could also slow their financial growth but increase their positive impact in society In a nut shell, Patagonia is not only focused in economic and financial growth but more on â€Å"its path of breaking new ground on reducing environmental harm†. Patagonia wants to be part of the solution to this economic crisis, and not part of the problem.Even if it could grow faster in financial terms, there is no doubt that Patagonia is growing exponentially in other parameters such as in its position as a beneficial actor in society. 3) Would Patagonia’s business model differ if it were a publicly held company? If Patagonia was a Publicly held company it should in theory pursue other objectives and values that the ones it has currently since it should give priority to shareholder’s value. At a first glance we may think that a faster growth pace will be the solution.In fact, in the case it is suggested â€Å" the fact that Patagonia was private was a major reason that it could pursue environmental sustainability†. On the one hand, shareholders care about dividends and the value of their stocks and â€Å"Patagonia’s sustainable agenda† is said to be â€Å"at the expense of its growth†. On the other hand, Patagonia’s environmental committeemen â€Å"g[ives] the company its competitive advantage† and helps the company to pursue a sustainable growth.Maybe it is true that in the short term to have as the main goal Maximizing shareholder wealth by boosting growth could be a good solution. Nevertheless, in the long ter m it may be unsustainable. In a long term perspective achieving the multi-ends of the firm in accordance with the common good of the society seems to be the good solution-and more now in times in of a global economic crisis where competition is huge and customers have a high bargaining power.Customers will appreciate that the company is a member of the society, a member that balances short term and long term value and seeks for the common good. Patagonia does so by being environmentally committed and by providing services for other companies by sharing with them their innovative sustainable practices and product innovations. It is interesting to point out that Patagonia has being increasing its profits each year even if they were environmental friendly.They have always bear in mind that â€Å"if [they] wish to lead corporate America by example, [they] have to be profitable†. This kind of rationale will be difficult to implement in a publicly held business where the stockholde rs may be unsatisfied with the company’s objectives. However in the medium or in the long term stockholders will be happy to earn stock from one of the â€Å"100 Best Companies† that is probably carrying on growing.Patagonia has achieved an exceptional degree of integration between Corporate Social Responsibility values and commercial activity. Its business strategy is extraordinary and instructive. Patagonia WTP * High products * Durable Credible environmental Policy * Moral Wellbeing * Innovation * Multi use Organic cotton: reduce models because they did not found as many providers as they needed Patagonia’s business model : Invest in research and development: quality , innovation, high price, profit Invest in environment: Reduce harm, En4139ry

The Holocaust is One of the Worst Events in Human History - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 5 Words: 1433 Downloads: 9 Date added: 2019/04/26 Category History Essay Level High school Tags: Holocaust Essay Did you like this example? Germany’s most known and devastating historical event happened between the years 1941-1945, the period of time where the Holocaust occurred. The main perpetrator was Adolf Hitler, but the people of Germany allowed escalation beforehand. The Holocaust was a terrifying experience for anyone who wasn’t a part of Hitler’s â€Å"Aryan† race, but was mainly directed towards Jewish people. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Holocaust is One of the Worst Events in Human History" essay for you Create order Hitler and his followers attempted to sentence all Jewish people and other non-Aryans to death, killing them on a mass scale (genocide). The mentioning of the Holocaust sends chills to thousands of people in Germany, of Jewish descent, and especially Holocaust survivors. These horrific occurrences caused other countries to realize the potential dangers power can cause. Preventing power from falling into the wrong hands is made a priority so these types of experiences won’t be able to happen again. Germany had multiple steps that led up to genocide. This process is called the Pyramid of Hate. It begins with the prejudice attitudes and acts of prejudice stages which were characterized by scapegoating and stereotypes, which led to the discrimination and violence stages which involved oppression and laws that deprived Jews of certain rights, which finally resulted in the genocide stage whose principal attributes were camps that led to killing a large population of Jews. Prejudice attitudes and acts of prejudice begins with anti-semitic behaviors. Germany was involved in World War I and citizens were promised victory by their government. Although Adolf Hitler was born and raised in Austria, he was accidentally given the opportunity to serve his time in the German army. When Germany faced defeat, the government and Hitler himself, â€Å"blamed the country’s downfall, though some 100,000 German Jews fought for their country during the war,† (Holocaust-Overview). Since the government is the only news source for Germany, German citizens easily believed the credibility for this accusation. There was a vast amount of Jewish people in the army, but the Germans brought what was called the â€Å"stab in the back† theory. The Germans were convinced that they somehow betrayed their own country while serving time in the military. Multiple forms of propaganda was released afterwards, all of them framing the Jewish population as traitors that brought their country to defeat in World War I. A really popular piece of propaganda was Hitler’s book titled â€Å"Mein Kampf†, which translates to â€Å"My Struggle†. The title is self explanatory, Hitler wanted to speak about his supposed hardships living in a country filled with Jewish people. He introduces his idea of a â€Å"pure† race, and calls it the Aryan race. Ideally, people who fit within this racial category would have pale skin, blue eyes, and blond hair. Jewish people did not fit within any of those standards, and Hitler began to stereotype them in his book. He describes that, â€Å"the black-haired Jewish youth lurks in wait for the unsuspecting girl whom he defiles with his blood, thus stealing her from her people.† In other words, he claimed that Jewish people are purposefully got involved with pure-blooded Germans specifically to disconnect them from their race. Throughout his writing, he portrayed Jewish people as the enemies i n every situation. He had the intent of gathering as much people on his side so he could gain power, and he succeeded. Mein Kampf became a bestseller and managed to influence many people into believing anti-semitic beliefs. Hitler was able to gather a really big amount of followers that are later referred to as Nazis. Discrimination and violence is where Jews begin to experience more oppressive treatment. By what was called the Nuremberg Laws, Jewish people were deprived of receiving certain education, had limited housing options, and weren’t able to get employed outside of Jewish businesses. Then, they were forced into ghettos. Ghettos were areas that isolated the Jewish community from the non-Jewish people. Living conditions were miserable and they were crowded. There, â€Å"The Germans ordered Jews in the ghettos to wear identifying badges or armbands,† (Ghettos-Discrimination). The badges and armband contained the Star of David, a significant symbol in the Jewish religion. Using this as a way to separate Jews shows how much the Germans objectified them. The Germans looked down on the Jewish people and their religion, and felt superior in every way. Jews were all labeled as if they were property and were put into ghettos to create the feeling that they didn’t belong. German s who were aware that this was morally wrong allowed this to occur due to a psychological circumstance called bystander apathy. It’s been proven that the, â€Å"presence of others creates a diffusion of responsibility,† (Intro to Bystander Apathy). Bystanders in the Holocaust are those who didn’t participate in giving the Jews unjust treatment, but they let it happen without speaking out or offering to assist the victims. There’s a really strong possibility that the witnesses didn’t know how to aid those in need or feared for their own safety. Bystanders don’t feel responsible because they aren’t the ones who’s committing the oppression directly. The Nazis used this to their advantage and it made their goal easier to reach. They relied on bystanders so they would be able to gain more control. In the ghettos, they were constantly living under fear. Jewish leaders and policemen within ghettos had no choice but to work with German authorities. It’s also described that, â€Å"The Germans did not hesitate to kill those Jewish policemen who were perceived to have failed to carry out orders.† Along with living in what wasn’t exactly the most comfortable environment, their lives were constantly on the line. The Germans were willing to kill over simply failing to follow instructions, and terror overwhelmed those who were trapped in this secluded area. The Jews had to carefully think about every move they make so they wouldn’t upset the Germans in any way. It was a hard life to live, but what came next was unbearable. Genocide, also known as the holocaust, resulted in the death of six million people. After the ghettos, Jewish people were imprisoned in concentration camps. Jewish Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel describes his experience in concentration camps in his book â€Å"Night†. When they first arrived, they were sorted out into two groups. In fear, he questioned, â€Å"which road led to prison and which to the crematoria.† The ones who were in good health and relatively young were enslaved doing nothing but hard labor. They spent their time in concentration camps starved, beaten, tortured, and always expected death. Those who became a survivor made it out barely alive. Those who weren’t in the best health and were considered old had to wait in line for a painful death. This already killed a big amount of Jews, and of course, inspections were done once a while to see whose health was failing and who was growing older. They were sentenced to death without hesitation. Later o n, death camps were created. They had gas chambers that â€Å"killed tens of thousands of Jews, primarily forced laborers too weak to work,† (Final Solution- Overview). All these events are the â€Å"Final Solution†. Hitler first wanted to use them for labor work, but his primary goal at the end was to exterminate the entire Jewish population. The Pyramid of Hate was the escalation of events that happened prior to the Holocaust. Adolf Hitler and his followers directly brought the enormous amount of oppression to the Jewish people of Germany. Yet, witnesses who were well aware this was morally wrong let Hitler gain enough power to the point where it was too late to stop him. The prejudice attitudes and acts of prejudice stages seemed harmless. They both involved scapegoating and stereotypes, something that seemed like would pass overtime. Then came the discrimination and violence stages. They were both filled with more serious oppressive treatment. Laws were created, and Jews were held against their will to live in ghettos. Still, everyone thought that this would be the worst form of oppression their government could give them. The citizens let it slide, allowing themselves to rely on some other being to help the Jewish people out. No one called for action. When the last stage of genocide came, it finally became clear what Hitler’s true intentions were. Indifference led to genocide, and Nazis relied on it in order to gain control. The traumatic events that happened in Germany taught other countries to not let power fall into the wrong hands. Anti-semitism still exists today, and allowing escalation is made a prime concern not to let happen again.