Understanding Cultures And Intercultural Communication

â€Å"Understanding cultures and intercultural communication in terms of countries and nationalities is no longer relevant or effective.† Evaluate this statement, referring to relevant theories and using examples where appropriate. Student ID: 6749473 Academic subject: MSC Accounting and Financial Management Word count: 1511 Topicï ¼Å¡Ã¢â‚¬Å"Understanding cultures and intercultural communication in terms of countries and nationalities is no longer relevant or effective.† Evaluate this statement, referring to relevant theories and using examples where appropriate. In the past five decades, there has been a considerable increase in exchanges between different countries, such as business, financial, individual, economy, religion, education and gender. Intercultural communication is essential in the contemporary world due to globalisation. Indeed, some economists claim that intercultural communication is no longer relevant to countries while others believe that it is still significant for the entire world. This essay will evaluate the effectiveness and relevance of understanding cultures and intercultural communication based on countries and nationalities, and then explain why this understanding is still meaningful, and will address three aspects, namely business, education and society. First of all, it is important to note that there are a number of definitions of cultural and intercultural communication. For instance, Piller (2011: 16) indicated that interculturalShow MoreRelatedIntercultural Communication : Understanding, Culture, And Perspect ives1470 Words   |  6 PagesIntercultural communication is about distinctions and variances that refer to traditional, and everyday life. In this reflection paper I will display supporting factors that contribute to my understanding of cultures. 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This paper explores five published articles pertaining to communication among individuals from different cultures. More specifically focusing on intercultural friendships and the importance of creating opportunities for communication across cultures in adolescents. This paper recognizes a study by the University of Wisconsin

Fight Club By Chuck Palahniuk - 1442 Words

Fight Club At first glance, Chuck Palahniuk’s award-winning novel Fight Club gives the impression that it is a simple story revolving around a man who struggles to manage his insomnia. However, a deeper literary analysis will show readers that the novel is much more than that. Fight Club is actually a cleverly written novel that contains many elements of Marxist and psychoanalytic theories throughout the storyline. Marxism is based on the concepts of Karl Marx’s theories that focuses on class relations and social conflict. On the other hand, psychoanalytic criticism stems from Sigmund Freud’s theories of psychology. The novel is best interpreted from a Marxist point of view because Palahniuk uses Fight Club as a means of expressing his†¦show more content†¦His economic ideas and principles contributed to the establishment of many communist states. Marxists refer to socioeconomic class when discussing the class structure because economic power always incl udes social and political power as well (Tyson 50). There are two distinct social classes featured in Fight Club that constantly clash with one another: bourgeoisie and proletariat. The bourgeoisie consists of powerful, wealthy individuals who are well above the proletariat. These are the people who â€Å"control the world’s natural, economic, and human resources† (Tyson 50). On the other hand, the proletariat is made up of weaker individuals but hold a much larger amount. Even though they lack power, the proletariat make up for it in numbers. They are the â€Å"majority of the global population who live in substandard conditions and who have always performed manual labor† (Tyson 50). Although not obviously mentioned, the proletariat is the ultimate source of bourgeoisie power as their labor allows the entire system to function. Without the proletariat, the bourgeoisie would cease to exist. The struggle to survive has kept the proletariat from fighting back. Fight Club does an excellent job at revealing many examples of social conflicts between the two classes. The whole basis of the story is centered on attempts to overthrow the upper class. In the scene where the

Betrayal and Loyalty free essay sample

Throughout the play, Iago manipulates the other characters into betraying one another so that he can get his ultimate betrayal on Othello. Shakespeare uses Iago as the main portrayer of betrayal throughout the entire play. He betrays all the other characters, but his main focus is on Othello. Despite that, he ends up betraying all the people closest to him. Iago’s betrayal starts off from the first scene page of the play right until the end. The audience learns Iago’s motive through his monologue: â€Å"Thus do I ever make my fool my pursel hate the moor, and it is thought abroad that ‘twixt my sheets’ has done my office. I know not if’t be true, but I, for mere suspicion in that kind will do as if for surety. † Iago suspects that Othello has had an affair with his wife. However, Shakespeare makes Iago’s motif very unclear; therefore, it can be argued that this is Iago’s excuse and in actual fact he has no reason other than he simply hates Othello. Iago wants to destroy Othello because Othello promoted Casio as chief lieutenant instead of him, which is another reason why Iago wants to destroy him. Iago is one of Shakespeare’s most complex villains. Initially, we see Iago’s character as pure evil, yet later we see him as a completely amoral person. Iago does not push aside his conscience to commit his evil plans, he simply lacks a conscience to begin with. Through Iago, Shakespeare shows us a character that acts against his reputation and betrays all this friends and loved ones. Through some careful thought out words and actions, Iago is able to manipulate others to do things in a way that benefits him and moves him closer to his ultimate goal. He is the main driving force of the play, pushing Othello and everyone towards their tragic end. Iago is smart. He is an expert judge of people as well as their character and uses this to his advantage. Iago is also quick on his feet, making him able to improvise when something unexpected occurs. Being as smart as he is, Iago is quick to recognize the advantages of trust and uses it as a tool to forward his main purpose. Throughout the story he is commonly known as the â€Å"honest Iago†. He even says himself, â€Å" I am an honest man†. Trust is a very powerful emotion that is easily betrayed. Iago is a master of betrayal. He slowly poisons people’s thoughts, creating ideas in their heads without risking himself. Iago is capable of anything, not even the brave soldier Othello is safe from this villain. Othello holds Iago to be his closest friend and advisor. He believes Iago to be a person, â€Å"of exceeding honest, who knows all qualities with learned spirit of human dealings†. Yes, he does know about human dealings, but he is not the honest man he appears to be. He uses Othello’s trust in him to eventually turn Othello into a man no better than himself. Othello is introduced to us in the first scene of the play in a negative light, when Iago and Rodrigo refer to him using derogatory terms such as, â€Å"The Moor†, â€Å"the thick lips†, â€Å"an old black ram† and â€Å"a Barbary horse†. Othello may be an outcast in Venice due to the color of his skin; however, he is a highly respected soldier. He is extremely skilled in his field and a loyal man; therefore, valuable to the state. Due to this, we soon learn of Othello as the noble man he is. Othello, however, has the â€Å"tragic flaw†. It is the internal imperfection in a hero that brings him down. His downfall becomes his own doing; he is no longer the victim of fate. The prejudice of those around him destroyed him, and they believed that, â€Å"A black man is an unattractive creature, not quite human, and unworthy of love†. Thinking this made him unable to believe that Desdemona could truly love him. This is why he believes Iago so easily when he convinces him Desdemona has had an affair. Othello betrays his wife by believing Iago’s word over hers, this then leads him to his ultimate betrayal when he kills her at the end of the play. At this point he also shows his loyalty to her by killing himself, stating that he can’t live without her. The man we see at the end of the play is not the loyal man we meet in the beginning. Othello has let the â€Å"green eyes monster of jealousy† turn him from a loyal soldier to a betrayer just like Iago. Desdemona is a lady of spirit and intelligence; she is the most direct, honest and loyal character of the play. She only betrays people to those to who she is loyal. Desdemona is a lady of few words, yet she makes sure every word counts to get her point across. In Desdemona’s eyes, Othello is the hero of many exciting and dangerous adventures; he is the orphan who needs love. These are the reasons Desdemona had fallen in love with Othello, despite all the nasty remarks from fellow Venetian citizens. Her marriage has brought her position and happiness, so much that she finds it unbearable to think that her husband has turned against her. This numbness lasts until she sees that he actually intends to kill her. She then puts up a defense, insisting on her loyalty and innocence. In despair of losing his love, she still defends him from consequences of his actions, but he is past seeing the truth: that she has committed herself to his love, and without it she cannot live. Othello ends up killing his wife, in spite of her loyalty toward him till the very end. By the end of the play, all characters have lost their loyalty to each other from what Iago as done to make them feel betrayed. Desdemona is left lifeless in her room, Iago kills his wife Emilia, as she reveals that Desdemona has been falsely accused of adultery, and Othello kills himself rather than living with what he has done. Iago is the only survivor by the end of the play, which further justifies his intelligence. All the characters have reached their downfall and Iago is finally pleased. He has completed the ultimate betrayal.

Sears Case Study free essay sample

Sears is our nation’s fourth largest retailer. With over 4,000 stores in the United States and Canada, Sears has grown from its humble beginnings. Sears is a leader in apparel, home appliances, home, lawn and garden, tools, automotive repair, maintenance, and electronics. Sears also provides home service, serving 11 million service calls yearly. Richard Sears founded Sears as a mail order company and it grew to be one of the largest retailers. He opened the first department store in Chicago in 1925. Sears found success and by 1928 three more stores had opened. Now Sears employs 249,000 employees and it has grown quickly. In 2005, Sears merged with K-Mart and has helped both evolve and the merger proved to be both successful and positive. Although they have faced challenges along the way they have been able to gain a large market share because of their product mix, quality services, products, and solutions. No matter what difficulties they have faced Sears has been a leader in the retail industry and they will strive to be sure that doesn’t change. We will write a custom essay sample on Sears Case Study or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Sears has come a long way from its beginnings as a catalog. Sears has many unique attributes that make it a place that people want to shop. Despite their great accomplishment and striving to become one the largest and most competitive retailers, Sears is facing several key issues. Sears must reevaluate their internal and external environment in order to implement the changes and solutions necessary to get Sears back to where it needs to be. This has definitely been key to their success because they are able to tailor their products to their customers needs using an integrated cost leadership/differentiation strategy. Sear is competing in a very competitive industry and if they follow through with their differentiated strategy they will continue to improve. Sears was able to pursue low cost and provide differentiation to their customers. Rosa Corporate Financial Position Sears financial position is currently improving. They are dealing with not only a let down on their fourth quarter losses but the sales have decreased as well in both their department stores and Kmart unit. To deal with their losses they are in the process of selling 11 stores to make up for their finances which has made their stocks go up at 19% (MarketWatch, 2012). If they sell these properties they could earn around $270 million in proceeds. It could go either way though since when sales decrease selling assets may not be the right way to bring in growth in the future. Also if they follow their plan of moving Sears Hometown and Outlet stores they could bring in between $400 million to $500 million of proceeds during the third fiscal quarter (SHLD: Nasdaq, 2012). Sears net income has dropped continually year after year from $235. M to a mere $133. 0m. One reason being is the percentage of sales has been more focused on the SGA (Sales General Administration) costs which has made it go from 23. 69% to 24. 09% (SHLD:Nasdaq GS, 2012). Core Competency The main core competency would have to be in there customer service. They offer great service to their customers which has gave them a comp etitive advantage against competitors. They use this to differentiate themselves from competition. They have built up a good customer base. They make sure they have their best associates available for customers especially through peak hours. They try and do all possible that will let them have a good customer relationship with their customers. Sears also likes to make sure their customers are completely satisfied with their shopping experience. Strengths/Capabilities/Resources †¢Strong balance sheet †¢Holds valuable assets-substantial liquidity($3. 2 billion total) †¢Strong retail network †¢ Economies of scale (3,847 stores in U. S Canada) †¢Brand mix is balanced †¢Extensive product offerings †¢Top market position †¢Many different lines to offer (appliances, automotive, lawn and garden, tools, home electronics, clothing, etc. †¢Dependable to the customers †¢Service Departments Weaknesses †¢Poor operating performance (high operating expenses than competitors) †¢ Store sales volumes are low †¢Inventory turnover is low †¢Negligence towards quality control †¢Weak in specialty retailing †¢High administrative costs †¢Sustainable growth †¢Too much diversification (offer too many services) Firm’s External Environment Amy Demographics Please note, I didn’t include any information about Sears’ target markets. I was not sure if this would go in the demographics section I thought it might flow better under strategy. I can certainly add more to this section as well, if any of you have any thoughts/suggestions. Thanks! Currently, worldwide demographic trajectories show that the fastest growing age group is people over the age of 60. As this age demographic continues to grow, younger populations are projected to decrease at the same rate. The under 15 age group is currently 26% of the global population, which will decrease to 20% by 2050. (Market Potential of Maturing Customers) This will drastically change business strategies in the future, as younger generations are target less marketing becomes more adult-focused. With an increasing older population, this will create additional buying power and opportunities for the retail market. Currently, individuals over the age of fifty own 80% of the U. S. financial assets and have half of the discretionary income needed for retail spending. Additionally, worldwide consumers over 60 years older are projected to spend $15 trillion by the end of the decade, which is a massive increase over the $8 trillion recently spent by this age demographic in 2010. (The Market Potential of Maturing Consumers) By focusing on this age demographic, it may provide great growth opportunities for Sears in the future. Changes in target age demographics will also change the dynamic of shopping. Mature consumers are likely to spend more time in-store, looking for a quality shopping experience. This will likely change the dynamic of retail service, store layouts, products, and prices. Sears and its competitors may become more focused on limited, high-quality products at low prices, rather than unlimited, low-quality, low-priced products. With these changes, there will also likely be a shift in marketing strategies, customer service focus, and product designs.