The Life and Work of Christine de Pizan, Feminist Writer of the Middle Ages

The Life and Work of Christine de Pizan, Feminist Writer of the Middle Ages Women during the Middle Ages tend to be seen as oppressed, robbed of all agency, and constantly under the guardianship of a man. Even though the lives of women during the Middle Ages were more circumvented than the lives of women living in Europe and the United States today, the idea that they lacked control is not entirely true. Nor is it entirely true that medieval women were prevented from expressing their views in public, or that they were prevented from pursuing artistic careers because of the burdens laid upon them as mothers, wives, and daughters. In fact, during the Middle Ages there were plenty of women who led independent lives, excelling as politicians, artists, and writers. One of these women was Christine de Pizan, a French renaissance poet who is the first known woman in France to have made her living solely from writing. Christine is also known as one of the earliest feminist writers, publishing protest poems, utopian fiction about a city inhabited only by women, and a celebration of the achievements of Joan of Arc. Portrait of Christine de Pizan (British Library, Harley MS 4431 f. 4). Born in 1365 in Venice, Christine de Pizan grew up at the court of King Charles V of France, where her father was the royal astrologer and alchemist. The royal court in Paris gave Christine ample opportunity to explore the libraries at the palace and to participate in the intellectual environment. At the age of fifteen, Christine married Etienne de Castel, employed at the royal court as court secretary. Together they had three children before he passed away ten years later. Barely twenty-five years old and a widow, Christine faced the daunting task of supporting her three children, as well as her widowed mother. Christine turned to writing. Throughout her writing career Christine de Pizan produced a total of ten volumes of poetry, most notably a number of so-called complaints, which in medieval literature means “protest poems.” Complaints were short political songs or satirical poems targeting a specific vice or injustice. Her most famous work today is the utopian story The Book of the City of Ladies, which was published in 1405. The story highlights the accomplishments of women, resulting in the establishment of a city populated only by women. In the sequel, The Treasure of the City of Ladies, also published in 1405, Christine furthers her   argument that women can make great contributions to society if they are allowed a level playing field. Christine de Pizan died in 1430. The previous year, she had completed her final work, titled Le Ditié de Jeanne d’Arc (Song in Honor of Joan of Arc). Here, she celebrates the victories and achievements of Joan of Arc, the only known such celebration written in French during Joan’s lifetime. In her writings, Christine de Pizan took aim at the patriarchy, arguing in favor of women’s rights to an education and their right to be considered as men’s equals. It is uncertain how widely spread her books and poems were among the French population, but it is believed that her ideas did have an impact on French legislation. But how could Christine de Pizan criticize the misogyny and injustices of medieval France so openly and get away with it? She achieved this because of her high social status and her connections among the royal court. Also, she embedded her criticism and satire in Christian thought and doctrine. But most importantly, she was a widow. Widows in the Middle Ages were their own legal guardians. Soon after her husband died, Christine de Pizan made the conscious decision not to remarry and instead focus on her writing. And we owe her a debt of gratitude for it. In addition to the titles mentioned above, Christine de Pizan’s work is also available in English in the following editions. Christine de Pizan (Charity Cannon Willard, editor, Sumner Willard, translator), The Book of Deeds of Arms and of Chivalry. Because of its subject matter, one of Christine de Pizan’s lesser known works. Published by Christine de Pizan in 1410, this book discusses the technology and strategies of French contemporary warfare. For a long time it was claimed that Christine had only copied the military writings of others, but as the editor and the translator of this edition show, Christine de Pizan knew her warfare as well as she knew her French renaissance rhetoric. Christine de Pizan (Charity Cannon Willard, editor and translator), The Writings of Christine de Pizan. A collection of excerpts of Christine de Pizan’s works, including The Book of the City of Ladies and Song in Honor of Joan of Arc. Christine de Pizan (Renate Blumenfeld-Kosinski, editor, and Kevin Brownlee, translator), Selected Writings of Christine de Pizan. This Norton Critical Edition contains eighteen of Christine de Pizan’s writings, complete with annotations and manuscript illuminations. Also included in this volume are critical essays discussing the selected texts.

Harappa Capital City of the Indus Civilization

Harappa is the name of the ruins of an immense capital city of the Indus Civilization, and one of the best-known sites in Pakistan, located on the bank of the Ravi River in central Punjab Province. At the height of the Indus civilization, between 2600–1900 BCE, Harappa was one of a handful of central places for thousands of cities and towns covering a million square kilometers (about 385,000 square miles) of territory in South Asia. Other central places include Mohenjo-daro, Rakhigarhi, and Dholavira, all with areas over 100 hectares (250 acres) in their heyday. Harappa was occupied between about 3800 and 1500 BCE: and, in fact, still is: the modern city of Harappa is built atop some of its ruins. At its height, it covered an area of at least 250 acres (100 hectares) and may have been about twice that, given that much of the site has been buried by the alluvial floods of the Ravi river. Intact structural remains include those of a citadel/fortress, a massive monumental building once called the granary, and at least three cemeteries. Many of the adobe bricks were robbed in antiquity from the significant architectural remains. Chronology Period 5: Late Harappa Phase, also known as the Localization phase or Late declining phase, 1900–1300 BCEPeriod 4: Transitional to Late Harappa, 1900-1800 BCPeriod 3: Harappa Phase (aka Mature Phase or Integration era, the major urban center of 150 ha and between 60,000–80,000 people), 2600–1900 BCEPeriod 3C: Harappa Phase C, 2200–1900 BCEPeriod 3B: Harappa Phase B, 2450–2200 BCEPeriod 3A: Harappa Phase A, 2600–2450 BCEPeriod 2: Kot Diji Phase (Early Harappan, incipient urbanization, ca 25 hectares), 2800–2600 BCEPeriod 1: pre-Harappan Ravi aspect of the Hakra phase, 3800–2800 BCE The earliest Indus phase occupation at Harappa is called the Ravi aspect, when people first lived at least as early as 3800 BCE. At its beginnings, Harappa was a small settlement with a collection of workshops, where craft specialists made agate beads. Some evidence suggests that people from older Ravi phase sites in the adjacent hills were the migrants who first settled Harappa. Kot Diji Phase During the Kot Diji phase (2800–2500 BC), the Harappans used standardized sun-baked adobe bricks to build city walls and domestic architecture. The settlement was laid out along gridded streets tracing the cardinal directions and wheeled carts pulled by bulls for transporting heavy commodities into Harappa. There are organized cemeteries and some of the burials are richer than others, indicating the first evidence for social, economic, and political ranking. Also during the Kot Diji phase is the first evidence for writing in the region, consisting of a piece of pottery with a possible early Indus script. Commerce is also in evidence: a cubical limestone weight that conforms to the later Harappan weight system. Square stamp seals were used to mark clay seals on bundles of goods. These technologies likely reflect some sort of trade interactions with Mesopotamia. Long carnelian beads found at the Mesopotamian capital city of Ur were made either by craftsmen in the Indus region or by others living in Mesopotamia using Indus raw materials and technology. Mature Harappan Phase During the Mature Harappan phase (also known as the Integration Era) [2600–1900 BCE], Harappa may have directly controlled the communities surrounding their city walls. Unlike in Mesopotamia, there is no evidence for hereditary monarchies; instead, the city was ruled by influential elites, who were likely merchants, landowners, and religious leaders. Four major mounds (AB, E, ET, and F) used during the Integration period represent combined sun-dried mudbrick and baked brick buildings. Baked brick is first used in quantity during this phase, especially in walls and floors exposed to water. Architecture from this period includes multiple walled sectors, gateways, drains, wells, and fired brick buildings. Also during the Harappa phase, a faience and steatite bead production workshop blossomed, identified by several layers of faience slag—leftover material from the production of the glassy ceramic known as faience—chert blades, lumps of sawn steatite, bone tools, terracotta cakes and large masses of vitrified faience slag. Also discovered in the workshop were an  abundant number of broken and complete tablets and beads, many with incised scripts. Late Harappan During the Localization period, all of the major cities including Harappa began to lose their power. This was likely a result of shifting river patterns that made the abandonment of many cities necessary. People migrated out of the cities on the river banks and up into smaller cities the higher reaches of the Indus, Gujarat and Ganga-Yamuna valleys. In addition to large-scale de-urbanization, the Late Harappan period was also characterized by a shift to drought-resistant small-grained millets and an increase in interpersonal violence. The reasons for these changes may be attributed to climate change: there was a decline in the predictability of the seasonal monsoon during this period. Earlier scholars have suggested catastrophic flood or disease, trade decline, and a now-discredited Aryan invasion. Society and Economy Harappan food economy was based on a combination of agriculture, pastoralism, and fishing and hunting. Harappans farmed domesticated  wheat  and  barley, pulses and  millets, sesame,  peas, chickpeas, and other vegetables. Animal husbandry included humped (Bos indicus) and non-humped (Bos bubalis) cattle and, to a lesser degree, sheep and goats. The people hunted elephant, rhinoceros, water buffalo, elk, deer, antelope and  wild ass. Trade for raw materials began as early as the Ravi phase, including marine resources, wood, stone, and metal from the coastal regions, as well as neighboring regions in Afghanistan, Baluchistan and the Himalayas.  Trade networks  and migration of people into and out of Harappa were established by then as well, but the city truly became cosmopolitan during the Integration era. Unlike  Mesopotamias royal burials  there are no huge monuments or obvious rulers in any of the burials, although there is some evidence for some differential elite access to luxury goods. Some of the skeletons also show injuries, suggesting that interpersonal violence was a fact of life for some of the citys residents, but not all. Part of the population had less access to elite goods and a higher risk of violence. Archaeology at Harappa Harappa was discovered in 1826 and first excavated in 1920 and 1921 by the Archaeological Survey of India, led by Rai Bahadur Daya Ram Sahni, as described later by M.S. Vats. Over 25 field seasons have occurred since the first excavations. Other archaeologists associated with Harappa include  Mortimer Wheeler, George Dales, Richard Meadow, and J. Mark Kenoyer. An excellent source for information about Harappa (with lots of photographs) comes from the highly recommended at Harappa.com. Selected Sources: Danino, Michael. Aryans and the Indus Civilization: Archaeological, Skeletal, and Molecular Evidence. A Companion to South Asia in the Past. Eds. Schug, Gwen Robbins ,  and Subhash R. Walimbe. Malden, Massachusetts: Wiley Blackwell, 2016. Print.Kenoyer, J. Mark, T. Douglas Price, and James H. Burton. A New Approach to Tracking Connections between the Indus Valley and Mesopotamia: Initial Results of Strontium Isotope Analyses from Harappa and Ur. Journal of Archaeological Science 40.5 (2013): 2286-97. Print.Khan, Aurangzeb, and Carsten Lemmen. Bricks and Urbanism in the Indus Valley Rise and Decline. History and Philosophy of Physics (physics.hist-ph) arXiv:1303.1426v1 (2013). Print.Lovell, Nancy C. Additional Data on Trauma at Harappa. International Journal of Paleopathology 6 (2014): 1-4. Print.Pokharia, Anil K., Jeewan Singh Kharakwal, and Alka Srivastava. Archaeobotanical Evidence of Millets in the Indian Subcontinent with Some Observations on Their Role in the Indus Civilizatio n. Journal of Archaeological Science 42 (2014): 442-55. Print.Robbins Schug, Gwen, et al. A Peaceful Realm? Trauma and Social Differentiation at Harappa. International Journal of Paleopathology 2.2–3 (2012): 136-47. Print.Sarkar, Anindya, et al. Oxygen Isotope in Archaeological Bioapatites from India: Implications to Climate Change and Decline of Bronze Age Harappan Civilization. Scientific Reports 6 (2016): 26555. Print.Valentine, Benjamin, et al. Evidence for Patterns of Selective Urban Migration in the Greater Indus Valley (2600-1900 BC): A Lead and Strontium Isotope Mortuary Analysis. PLoS ONE 10.4 (2015): e0123103. Print.

Main Topics in Chemistry

Progressive Reformers Free Essays

10/08/12 Progressive Reformers The Progressive movement has had a tremendous impact on society and preserving the doctrine of a democratic nation. The Progressive Era, which initiated between the years 1890 through 1920, was instituted because progressives who wanted to rid politics of corruption and inefficiency. Progressives wanted to curtail the power of the business trusts, and protect the general welfare of the public. We will write a custom essay sample on Progressive Reformers or any similar topic only for you Order Now The Progressive name derived from forward-thinking or â€Å"progressive† goals that its supporters sought to advance. John Dewey, who is known as the father of Progressive education, has been most influential in Educational Progressivism. His vision for schools tied to a larger vision, leading towards a good society. His focus on education was on teaching the â€Å"whole child†. This learning extended beyond the subject matter and the attention was on the needs and interest of the child. I like to look at this as a form of nature vs. nurturing. Progressivism and Pragmatism are similar in its aims. They both contained the same educational aims, needs and interest, in educating the whole child. Pragmatic philosophers, such as Rousseau, looked at the correlation of education and politics. Progressivism, as I interpret it, was more of a movement. This movement formulated interest groups, like unions, which seek interest around the progressive philosophy. These interest groups protected the needs of the people. Organizations such as American Federation of Teachers began in 1916, during the time of the Progressive Era. Interest groups like American Federation of Labor, founded in 1881, focused on skilled workers (such as painters and electricians) and Congress of Industrial Organizations (early 1930s) advocating the organization of workers in the basic mass-production industries (such as steel, auto, and rubber). A lot of the people, on the frontline, in this progressive movement were women, farmers, and African American. This movement made a profound impact on education. In a publication of Progressive Education, George Counts wrote an article which focuses attention upon the child. He states that â€Å"progressive education has recognized the fundamental importance of the interest of the learner; it has defended the thesis that activity lies at the root of all true education; it has conceived learning in terms of life situations and growth of character; it has championed the rights of the child as a free personality†. Child-centered educational practices are shared by progressive educators. The pedagogical method is object teaching. The teacher begins with an object related to the child’s world in order to initiate the child into the world of the educator. The focus is on thinking and doing. Problem-solving skills are required to overcome obstacles between a given and desired set of circumstances. Education is not simply a means to a future life, but instead it represents a life to the fullest. Progressive educators view existing schools as being formal, not focusing on real life situations, and strict. They prefer variety in classroom preparations and informal interaction between the teacher and their student. Progressives prefer schools teach useful subjects (including occupations) and emphasize â€Å"learning by doing† rather than instruction purely from textbooks. This brought about schools such as trade and vocational schools. The student was placed at the center of thinking, â€Å"teach the child not the subject. † John Dewey’s model of learning is to: become aware of the problem, define the problem, propose hypotheses to solve, evaluate the consequences of the hypotheses from one’s past experience, and test the most likely solution. Progressive like Dewey felt that children, if taught to understand the relationship between thinking and doing, they would be fully equipped for active participation in a democratic society. The educational program depended on close student – teacher interactions that required altering of traditional subject matter. How to cite Progressive Reformers, Essay examples

Kurt Cobain1 Essay Example For Students

Kurt Cobain1 Essay For our modern day hero we used the singer and songwriter Kurt Cobain from the band Nirvana. This punk Seattle band moved almost mainstream almost overnight. Nirvana caught on fast and changed rock and roll music forever and molded the music of the 90s, alternative. Cobain had an enormous amount of talent but unfortunately his life was cut short by a still controversial suicide in his Seattle home. On April 9, 1994, his body was discovered. He is a hero for many of todays troubled youth because his music influences how these troubled kids feel. They are able relate to Cobain and his music. Kurt Cobain was born in 1967. He lived with his sister and parents two hundred miles away from Seattle in the small logging town of Aberdine. His aunt, who helped him form his first band, introduced him to music at a very young age. His parents divorced when Kurt was only seven years old. Torn up by his parents divorce, he went to live with his mother in a trailer. After the divorce, Kurt was force d to look at his life in a different light. Kurt became extremely anti-social, had few friends, and was picked on in school because kids thought he was gay or weird.Kurt started writing poetry at the age of thirteen, and when he was 14, he received his first guitar. Throughout high school he was in many bands- Fecal Matter, Skid Row, Brown Cow, The Sellouts and Pencap Chew. He formed Nirvana during his senior year of high school with his friends Chris Novoselic and Dave Grohl who Kurt called the worlds best drummer. Shortly after the band was formed, Kurt dropped out of high school, and his mother kicked him out of the house. Homeless, he lived under a bridge at the end of his street. It was here that he would spend time alone writing his own songs. From his parents divorce to his mother pushing him out of the house, Kurt had become even more alienated from other people and life. He was very detached. Kurt hated the music of big rock bands like the Sex Pistols, Rolling Stones and Aerosmith. He felt their lyrics were sexist and pointless with no meaning. Kurt was a very sensitive and emotional person, a characteristic that showed through all of his songs. Eventually he became so famous that he a cult following. The songs exemplified the kids world. In the song Dumb Kurt sings, I think Im dumb over and over again to show how his years of neglect from his peers at high school and his family made him feel as if he was to blame. Kids relate to his music because it portrays how the world was so cruel and how he and the kids were treated badly. He was responsible for the most creative rock music of the last decade. Kurt didnt have to hide behind face paint or wear tight clothes to grab attention as the other rock stars. He wore flannel s and jeans, something that every other kid wore, and he wasnt ashamed by it. In one song Come As You Are Kurt sings Come as you are as I want you to be. He wanted to show the youth that they dont have to follow the crowd and do something someone else wants them to do to fit in. Every modern alternative song has a tint of Nirvanaism in it. Just like bands that followed the Beatles, many groups that followed Cobain tried to sound or copy his same music pattern. In his music he didnt communicate in complete sentences or elaborate arguments. Instead his lyrics were a stream of conscious insights that inspired and appealed to the short attention span of his audience.We picked Kurt Cobain as a hero because he is different than the conventional hero who just goes out and saves lives. Kurt was an emotional leader for the troubled youth, and he gave them a place to escape from a life that was hard to live. His music gave them a hideaway from the harsh realities of the real world. All they had to do was listen, and they felt instant relief because they knew that not only they felt the way they did. They could relate to Kurt and his fragile emotions. In the song Rape Me Kurt sings; Rape me, my friend. Rape me again. Im not the only one. Hate me. Do it and do it again. Waste me. Taste me, my friend. My favorite inside source, Ill kiss your open sores. Appreciate your concern. Youll always stink and burn. This shows how he believed society took advantage of him because he was weak and emotional. These kids relate to Kurt. Kurt once said that he would rather be in pain than fame. His words and music make him a modern day hero. .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 , .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 .postImageUrl , .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 , .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595:hover , .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595:visited , .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595:active { border:0!important; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595:active , .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595 .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u422f2e1179412f0864e5f091390e7595:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Rosa Parks EssayBibliography:

Benetton and Yeo Valley Companies Marketing Communication

Benetton and Yeo Valley Companies Marketing Communication Introduction Businesses employ different communication strategies in an attempt to attain increased productivity, sales volumes, profitability, and creation of a reputable brand name. The execution of appropriate communication strategies can propel organisations towards unmatched success.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Benetton and Yeo Valley Companies Marketing Communication specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More However, failure to exercise caution, particularly in the manner of carrying out the communication strategy, can have undesired consequences on the company’s brand name. This set of circumstances significantly affects the overall success and sustainability of the organisation. Similarly, inappropriate advertisement can have detrimental effects on the society and other stakeholders of the firm. Therefore, all firms undertaking the role ought to adopt ethical advertising practices in a bid to avoid negative impacts on the targeted groups in the society. This paper critically examines two case studies that involve the Benetton and Yeo Valley Companies with a view of gauging their marketing communication strategies, achievements, and critical issues affecting social-economic and cultural ecosystems owing to the use of different advertising methods. Advertising Objectives for Benetton and Yeo Valley Companies and Theoretical Explanations Advertising is a core function of any communication department in businesses (Ã…  erić, Gil-Saura, Ruiz-Molina, 2014). The central role of advertisement is to communicate, particularly to the target audience, what the organisation has in store and the value of its goods and services to the outside world. It also seeks to create a brand name by maintaining a high sense of reputation. Advertising encompasses both informative and persuasive functions (Belch Belch, 2011). Informative advertising is theorised to announce the availability of a product th ereby saving customers search costs. The negative perception of informative advertising is that it tends to alter consumers’ tastes as it seeks to create product differentiation and inelastic demand. On the other hand, persuasive advertising is theoretically viewed as a means to win consumer taste from a competing brand in favour of the company’s product.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In the two case studies, both advertising roles are clearly indicated since each entity exhibits a set of guiding objectives. For instance, the Ye Valley Company wished to change the customers’ perception that organic yoghurt inexpensive. This persuasive function of advertising was effectively executed as it was reflected in the skyrocketing profitability and productivity. On the other hand, the Benetton Group employed informative advertising by unravelling the important issues that affected the society in an attempt to inform the public of the existence of its products. The Benetton Company used the social learning theory in marketing its products. Through its Creative Designer, Mr Toscani identified that most consumers were interested in learning through observation, imitation, and modelling. These practices significantly influenced their purchasing behaviours (Percy, 2014). As a result, he used provocative communication strategy to evoke the consumers’ involvement in the debate on societal issues that were not being addressed. Most consumers believe in the benefits of a product besides its quality and pricing. The Yeo Valley Company created more demand for the organic and natural yoghurt by collaborating with celebrities who praised the usefulness of the product to the consumers (Chitty, Luck, Barker, Valos, Shimp, 2015). One of the advertisements done by Toscani on behalf of the company featured teenagers and children from dive rse cultural nations. The children were dressed in clothes of different colours that were designed by the Benetton Company. This creative artwork portrayed racial harmony and peace. Consumers expressed a positive attitude towards the products as evidenced by several letters that praised the company. The advertisement was used to reverse racial perceptions (Chitty et al., 2015). This phenomenon enhanced the company’s acceptance across multicultural regions.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Benetton and Yeo Valley Companies Marketing Communication specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Pictures also portray the reality of an issue. Some advertisements used by the company addressed political issues and diseases such as AIDS among others. For example, the company used a dying patient suffering from AIDS in the hands of the family members. The Benetton Company’s publicity increased due to an advert on the Colour M agazine that targeted the young generation worldwide. The advert was composed in different languages that embraced breaking of linguistic barriers with a view of creating a solution to issues that related to racial discrimination. This strategy benefitted the company in terms of its popularity and publicity (Chitty et al., 2015). The Benetton Company also implemented the theory of selective perception. This theory elaborates how people select, evaluate, and/or organise conditions for manipulating the external environment to seek a meaningful outcome (Lin Atkin, 2014). It further highlights that people tend to pay attention to certain features of the surrounding environment while excluding others. As highlighted in the case study, Toscani believed that those who welcomed the ideas were likely to develop more loyalty for the brand; hence, influencing higher sales returns. For those who opposed the company’s advertisement strategies, Toscani believed that the boycotts and publi city contributed to the popularity of the Benetton Company (Lin Atkin, 2014). This strategy worked successfully. Even when Toscani was replaced, the company still employed shock-advertising techniques in addressing the contemporary issues that affected the environment and society (Ailawadi, Beauchamp, Donthu, Gauri, Shankar, 2009).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Theories of planned behaviour and reasoned action are based on three core assumptions that include beliefs and the evaluations of the results of a given behaviour that lead to either positive or negative attitude towards the successfulness any given brand. Secondly, belief and evaluation of the cultures and expectations of other people can result in their rejection or acceptance. Lastly, the philosophies of particular societies and its strength can lead to the perceived control of the behaviour. The Yeo Valley Company had realised that most consumers of organic food products of the dairy family were driven by beliefs, attitudes, and perceptions of a particular brand of a product. The consumers associated the term organic with expensiveness. As a result, they limitedly purchased products from the company due to such factors. Upon learning the behaviour and perceptions of consumers, Tim Mead employed both modern and digital advertising strategies involving celebrities to alter the exp ensive (organic) attitude to affordable (natural) yoghurt. Advantages and Disadvantages of Shock Advertising Adopted by the Benetton Company Led by its marketing manager Oliviero Toscani, the Benetton Company embraced the shock advertising method that had both beneficial and disadvantageous effects on both the company and society. Shock advertising is mostly applied in social marketing to promote the products of a company (Parry, Jones, Stern, Robinson, 2013). It is implemented to address issues such as racism, HIV-AIDs, social inequality, abortion, brutality, bad governance, and climate change among others that affect the society. The focus of shock advertising is grabbing the customers’ attention and priceless publicity that can only be attained through shock value creation (SandÄ ±kcÄ ±, 2011). The idea was to shift from the common purpose of many advertising campaigns that centre on increasing product awareness and profitability. According to Toscani, there was a need for the Benetton Company to show the public that it cared for the societies, economic, and other global issues such as racism and capital punishment that affected them. The advantages of shock advertising in relation to the Benetton Company include the creation of brand awareness (Ailawadi et al., 2009). In every image shared by Toscani’s shocking advertising campaign, there was an embedded logo for the company (United Colours of Benetton). Despite its public deterrence and opposition, the company’s brand name awareness increased profoundly, a situation that resulted in the achievement of the author’s (Toscani) philosophical objective. Shock advertising brings about societal issues such as health, inequality, hunger, drought, and poverty among others (Virvilaite Matuleviciene, 2013). In this manner, it addresses issues that can rather remain unmentioned despite their significance in people’s lives. It breaks from the advertising culture of product awaren ess. In addition, shock advertising counters the negative theoretical perception of advertising that organisations depict selfish behaviour in promoting their products for profits without caring for the society. Shock advertising is beneficial to the brand as it drives the societal message home, induces debate, and response (Virvilaite Matuleviciene, 2013). However, sometimes the response can go viral over the social or mainstream media thereby creating inadvertent and massive brand awareness. It creates a long lasting perception of the brand in the public minds. The positive reception of the provocative messages of shock advertising can propel the company towards a great success besides creating an unshakable customer loyalty. Customers develop a personal attachment to the products of the company that addresses the societal issues that affect them significantly (Virvilaite Matuleviciene, 2013). Toscani showed the importance of shocking value to create lasting memories as he shatt ered the conventional clutter of advertising roles. Benetton’s advertisements (shock ads) were inevitably successful as they communicated the company’s values that converted into increased sales worldwide. Nevertheless, shock advertising can have irreversible detrimental effects on the society. When the campaign goes too far, it can result in controversy that can shy away customers. For instance, the death row and priest kissing a nun images sparked a massive controversy around the world. The death row images were heavily criticised since the public viewed them as an exploitation of the victims. The priest kissing a nun advertisement was deemed a promotion to a sinful act of immorality. The two ads resulted in negative perceptions of the company’s values among most of its consumers. Shock advertising can result in a decline of the company’s profitability due to the reduced sales volumes as customer stop buying products from the company. Numerous researche s have revealed that proactive advertising messages such as the ones depicted in the Benetton case can cause misinterpretation on the part of customers and the public as it can be viewed as offensive and unethical (Virvilaite Matuleviciene, 2013). This situation arises from the cultural diversity and understanding that are inherent in humanity. Proactive advertising works excellently for some countries but is highly unsuccessful in others. Furthermore, it can result in negative international relations between the company’s host country and foreign markets. For instance, images of racism featuring a black person breastfeeding a white child can be taken as an act of slavery. This message can restrain the international ties between the Black and White people from the respective countries. Shock advertising is a form of proactive advertising that can be used successfully by many companies. The appropriate group that can employ this technique without necessarily infringing people ’s attitudes and perceptions include charity organisations that women rights, child abuse, and violence against animals among others. Analysis of the Yeo Valley advertisement campaign in the year 2010 and the Churned â€Å"Forever† campaign in 2011 Advertising is a communication process that entails transmission of a message from the manufacturer to the consumers through diverse communicative media. The purpose of advertising entails inspiring, informing, persuading, reminding, influencing, and stimulating the demand for a particular product, service, or ideas to seek a response from the target audience concerning the message. The manufacturers’ message can be packaged and conveyed in numerous forms. The 2010 2011 Yeo Valley videos used the communication process to bring about the intended message. The viewpoint of the actors in the video is that the new natural yoghurt has been produced through ethical processes that focus on caring for animals and their habit ats. It uses audio-visual messages to convey the intended message. The source of the message is the Yeo Valley farm. The actors used voice and images to reach the recipients (viewers) and customers. Each of the components is essential to the achievement of the company’s goals. Customers in turn respond to the message to complete the process. The response can be in terms of purchases or complaints. The Yeo Valley advertisement won awards. This state of affairs implied that the customers (voters) accepted the product. The reaction was also manifested in the skyrocketing sales volume that resulted from the distribution of the natural yoghurt. The ad talks about how the Yeo Valley Company conserved the environment throughout its operations. The message passes information on the presence of clean air and conservation systems concerning change. It tells the viewers that the firm is not driven by selfish profitability goals rather it puts the society at the centre of its production processes. The 2011 Yeo Valley campaign incorporated both audio and visual elements into the company’s message to the viewers to show its respect for nature. The author uses the song in conjunction with images of various people driving tractors, a bird, hen, cows, and the green field to convey the company’s practical message concerning its ecological consciousness (Sokolowski, 2010). The artists exhibit their cordial relationship with the animals in the video as they feed and play with them. Feeding the cows is a proactive strategy that implies care for the animals. The message can be extended to address animal violence in the society. Animals have often been explicitly shown to be harassed despite the benefits that they attract to human beings. They deserve care, healthy feeding, and protection. The artists in the video are shown enjoying and sharing the natural yoghurt. This scene conveyed a message that the product was good to the public. As a result, the consumers were evoked to try the new product (Sokolowski, 2010). The persuasion of what they saw in the video obviously lead to more sales of the new product. Increased purchases meant more productivity and profits for the company. The videos clearly indicated the process of marketing communication. It was a new trend of advertising as those who viewed the videos can use the same channel to provide feedback. Traditional ads are one-way like the ones in the mainstream media. The YouTube videos also show other avenues that customers can use to get in touch with the company including Facebook and Twitter. The social media is an effective channel for modern advertising since it provides the recipient and sender an opportunity to interact instantly. Organisations do not have to wait to gauge the impact of their advertisement efforts. Instant feedback guides them to take decisive actions regarding the product promotion mechanisms. The negative response can compel the company to make the necessary c hanges whilst positive feedback can help the group make improvements for a greater customer base. Effects of Marketing Communication Strategy of Benetton and the Yeo Valley Companies on Society The nature of marketing strategies has different effects on the targeted companies and audience. As much as the organisations seek to create brand awareness, product’s existence, and boost sales volumes, societal aesthetics ought to come first as their efforts can impact the society adversely, a situation that can result in the company’s failure in the end. The Yeo Valley Company’s marketing strategy is depicted as effective. The company adopts conventional advertising methods including the mainstream and social media to convey ethically conscious information on the new organic yoghurt. The leasing Britain dairy farm adopts transformational marketing strategies that have undoubtedly delivered better business without damaging the environment and society. Tim Mead, the owne r of the farm, believed that adopting organic agriculture attracted not only more profitability but also had little adverse effects on the environment. Through its digital advertising platform that included Twitter and Facebook, the Yeo Valley Company brought people such as celebrities and their fans together as it promoted the value of the new organic yoghurt that was packaged in friendly coloured containers (Virvilaite Matuleviciene, 2013). On the other hand, the Benetton Company utilised shock-advertising techniques that involved the use of provocative multimedia to create a shock-value for the target consumers. The method contributed to massive brand recognition all over the world considering both good and bad reasons. At the outset, the company’s global sales volumes scaled up. This set of circumstances resulted in increased the sales returns. However, the marketing strategy adopted by the company had a myriad of adverse effects on the society. The marketing campaign ad opted by Toscani created a positive brand image on those who felt that the company was selfless as it volunteered to address societal issues that other marketers overlooked. While the strategy was praised in some countries, it caused boycotts among other countries with its high level of shock depicted on the images it contained. The religious society including the Pope was particularly irritated by the image of a priest kissing a nun. Images of people sentenced to death caused the families of the victims to file lawsuits demanding for compensations regarding violation of their people’s rights. The Benetton Company’s marketing strategies led by Toscani went too far thereby affecting the society unfavourably (Virvilaite Matuleviciene, 2013). Conclusion The essay has elaborated the role and effects of communication in business, particularly in the advertising functions. It has indicated that the adoption of suitable advertising strategies can result in positive results f or the organisations and society. The Yeo Valley digital and mainstream advertising of organic dairy products reveals this state of play. The essay also presents the adverse effects of advertising. A good example portrayed by the Benetton’s Company case study. Marketing communication is an essential function that ought to be carried out by the appropriate people who understand cross-cultural differences, attitudes, and perceptions of both people and countries. Reference List Ailawadi, K., Beauchamp, J., Donthu, N., Gauri, D., Shankar, V. (2009). Communication and promotion decisions in retailing: a review and directions for future research. Journal of Retailing, 85(1), 42-55. Belch, G., Belch, M. (2011). Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communication Perspective. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Chitty, B., Luck, E., Barker, N., Valos, M., Shimp, T. (2015). Integrated marketing communications. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning. Lin, C., Atkin, D. (2014). Communicat ion technology and social change: Theory and implications. London: Routledge. Parry, S., Jones, R., Stern, P., Robinson, M. (2013). ‘Shockvertising’: An exploratory investigation into attitudinal variations and emotional reactions to shock advertising. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 12(2), 112-121. Percy, L. (2014). Strategic Integrated Marketing Communications. Routledge: London. SandÄ ±kcÄ ±, O. (2011). Shock tactics in advertising and implications for citizen-consumer. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 1(18), 42-50. Ã…  erić, M., Gil-Saura, I., Ruiz-Molina, M. (2014). How can integrated marketing communications and advanced technology influence the creation of customer-based brand equity? Evidence from the hospitality industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 39(1), 144-156. Sokolowski, O. (2010). International Strategic Leadership: Case study of Benetton Group. Web. Virvilaite, R., Matuleviciene, M. (2013). The Impact of Shocking Advertising on Consumer Buying Behaviour. Economics and Management, 18(1), 134-141.

Introduction to Holography

Introduction to Holography If youre carrying money, a drivers license, or credit cards, youre carrying around holograms. The dove hologram on a Visa card may be the most familiar. The rainbow-colored bird changes colors and appears to move as you tilt the card. Unlike a bird in a traditional photograph, a holographic bird is a three-dimensional image. Holograms are formed by interference of light beams from a laser. How Lasers Make Holograms Holograms are made using lasers because laser light is coherent. What this means is that all of the photons of laser light have exactly the same frequency and phase difference. Splitting a laser beam produces two beams that are the same color as each other (monochromatic). In contrast, regular white light consists of many different frequencies of light. When white light is diffracted, the frequencies split to form a rainbow of colors. In conventional photography, the light reflected off an object strikes a strip of film that contains a chemical (i.e., silver bromide) that reacts to light. This produces a two-dimensional representation of the subject. A hologram forms a three-dimensional image because light interference patterns are recorded, not just reflected light. To make this happen, a laser beam is split into two beams that pass through lenses to expand them. One beam (the reference beam) is directed onto high-contrast film. The other beam is aimed at the object (the object beam). Light from the object beam gets scattered by the holograms subject. Some of this scattered light goes toward the photographic film. The scattered light from the object beam is out of phase with the reference beam, so when the two beams interact they form an interference pattern. The interference pattern recorded by the film encodes a three-dimensional pattern because the distance from any point on the object affects the phase of the scattered light. However, there is a limit to how three-dimensional a hologram can appear. This is because the object beam only hits its target from a single direction. In other words, the hologram only displays the perspective from the object beams point of view. So, while a hologram changes depending on the viewing angle, you cant see behind the object. Viewing a Hologram A hologram image is an interference pattern that looks like random noise unless viewed under the right lighting. The magic happens when a holographic plate is illuminated with the same laser beam light that was used to record it. If a different laser frequency or another type of light is used, the reconstructed image wont exactly match the original. Yet, the most common holograms are visible in white light. These are reflection-type volume holograms and rainbow holograms. Holograms that can be viewed in ordinary light require special processing. In the case of a rainbow hologram, a standard transmission hologram is copied using a horizontal slit. This preserves parallax in one direction (so the perspective can move), but produces a color shift in the other direction. Uses of Holograms The 1971 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to the Hungarian-British scientist Dennis Gabor for  his invention and development of the holographic method. Originally, holography was a technique used to improve electron microscopes. Optical holography didnt take off until the invention of the laser in 1960. Although holograms were immediately popular for art, practical applications of optical holography lagged until the 1980s. Today, holograms are used for data storage, optical communications, interferometry in engineering and microscopy, security, and holographic scanning. Interesting Hologram Facts If you cut a hologram in half, each piece still contains an image of the entire object. In contrast, if you cut a photograph in half, half of the information is lost.One way to copy a hologram is to illuminate it with a laser beam and place a new photographic plate such that it receives light from the hologram and from the original beam. Essentially, the hologram acts like the original object.Another way to copy a hologram is to emboss it using the original image. This works much the same way records are made from audio recordings. The embossing process is used for mass production.