Property law exam questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Property law exam questions - Essay Example Garcia and other persons or entities that may later on claims interest on the property. By virtue of its nature, an annotation on the Torrens Title is indefeasible. Where there is clear showing that the property is held under the Torrens Title, the argument in Garcia shall not be applicable. Reliance on the mortgage and guarantee executed over the couple’s home as evidence by the annotation in the Torrens Title is enough to bind the couple and other interested persons. a. My advice to Ms. Tomasina Jones is to seek redress in court based on the argument of prior right over the property and the fact that it was sold without her consent and authority. She can file a case against Ms. Thompson for fraud and recovery of property. Since Ms. Esther Asterix have not registered the sale and could not be held the absolute owner thereof thus Ms. Jones can claim prior right. Furthermore, since Ms. Thompson unduly enriched herself on the expense of Ms. Asterix, she shall be liable to return the money to Ms. Asterix plus damages. To best understand how the case metamorphosed, let us go back to the facts. Ms. Jones is a holder in fee simple where she has all the rights towards the property. In the case at bar, she employed Thomson Thompson to manage the far in her absence. Unfortunately, Ms. Thompson found the certificate of title concealed in an old Tim Tam Indulgence tin and used the same to sell the land to Esther Asterix. Ms. Asterix paid the valuation on a walk-in-walk-out basis, which is valid under the Conveyancing Act 1919. At the time of the sale Ms. Asterix have no idea that Ms. Thompson was not really the true owner of the property, making her a purchaser in good faith2 under Section 29B of the Conveyancing Act 1919. Under this section, â€Å"an instrument purporting to exercise a legal or equitable power of appointment over property, which, in

A Review of An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge Essay Example for Free

A Review of An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge Essay In all honesty, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge was a bit confusing to read. It was not only confusing, but the ending was a surprise to the reader. In the story, we got to see many different aspects of the life of Peyton Farquhar. This story shows the difference that times were back then compared to now. In today’s would, a man would not be hung, let alone executed for tampering with a bridge. I also liked the part in the story of the betrayal of the soldier that appeared to be in the confederate army. This showed that Farquhar was gullible and would do anything to get involved in the army, since he was not able to fight in it. At the end of the story, I was very surprised in finding out that Farquhar was really dead and his escape was just a figment of his imagination. The escape that he had watched in his mind showed how eager Farquhar was to get back to his home and his family. I enjoyed the narrative style the story was written/told in. I thought that since the story was split into three different sections, it was easier to read, and all around understand. The narrator made the beginning of the story suspenseful because the reader wants to know why Farquhar was going to be executed. This technique wants us to keep reading on to find out the terrible thing that Farquhar did. In the middle of the story, we learn the reason he was to be executed was because he tampered with the confederate bridge, thinking it was going to help them. The narrator did a good job of explaining what Farquhar was like and gave the readers a good mental picture of the situation he was in on the bridge. There are several possible themes that could go along with this story. The specific theme that I would choose for this story would be the difference between reality and fantasy. The difference between reality and fantasy go hand-in-hand throughout this story. It is not until the end of the story that we see the difference of them in Farquhar’s life. When Farquhar describes his escape, we believe that this is really happening. Farquhar describes his escape in a lot of detail and talks about his desire to be back with his family and back at home. The difference between reality and fantasy also is seen with the soldier that pretends to be a Confederate. Farquhar believes that the soldier is a Confederate, therefore plans the hurting of the bridge. This ends up being the illusion that leads him to his execution. This illusion of the soldier caused Farquhar to damage the bridge was the reason of his demise. This story did a great job of making you ask yourself, â€Å"what just happened† after reading the last few sentences. The narrators’ creation of Farquhar’s escape confused the reader, yet made it more interesting in the greater scheme of the story.

The Personification of Death in Jean Cocteau’s Orpheus Essay -- Movie

The Personification of Death in Jean Cocteau’s Orpheus The personification of Death is done by means of a princess of the Underworld in Jean Cocteau’s Orpheus. This Princess is very powerful, yet surprisingly vulnerable. For no one is allowed to love in the Underworld, the Princess falls in love with a famous poet named Orpheus and goes to drastic measures to be with him. But in the end she cannot be with her love, and she realizes this and does what is forbidden in the Underworld and defies time and sends back her love to whom he loved before her. Death in Cocteau’s Orpheus is not only powerful and vulnerable, but she also changes throughout the course of the movie. Three elements support that the Princess changes throughout the course of the film and what brings about this change. These elements are dialogue, clothing and appearance, and actions. One way that Cocteau creates the Princess’ character by the usage of dialogue. The powerful Princess Death is a very harsh, and controlling character at the beginning of the movie. She is seen as very authoritarian and demanding. The first scene in which the viewer encounters the princess, she orders Cegeste, Heurtebise, and Orpheus. This is the first time that the princess is ever seen by Orpheus and the first words that she speaks to him are very harsh and demanding. The Princess is accompanied by a young poet named Cegeste, and when Cegeste is killed by the motorcyclists she orders Orpheus to help her and to come as a witness. She then continues her orders by ordering the chauffer, Heurtebise, to not go to the hospital, but to go â€Å"the usual route†. She continues in her harsh tone of voice by ordering the motorcyclists. Every person that the Princess converses with in the begin... ...s also seen when she can kill people with a single glance and then raise them to be her servant in the Underworld. She chooses to raise Cegeste to be her personal slave. Her vulnerability is displayed when she watches Orpheus sleep. Despite the Princess’ power, she becomes vulnerable and defies the rules of the Underworld and return’s Orpheus back to life. This action proves that the Princess has a true love for Orpheus and does not worry about the consequences of doing what her heart feels right. Cocteau suggests that there is a higher power than even Death itself. The Princess personifies Death, but she is controlled by the Committee of the Underworld. If she were the most powerful facet of Death, then she would not be controlled by anyone or anything. Therefore, the Princess in Jean Cocteau’s Orpheus represents not Death, but one of the many faces of Death.

Arhurian Romances Essay -- essays research papers

Chretein de Troyes, Arthurian Romances   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  From the Classical age through the medieval age, women were greatly disrespected. They did not have any say in anything and were not appreciated. In Classical texts such as The Odyssey, the women were treated as if they were animals. They did not have the respect of others and some were thought of as whores. In the stories of Erec and Enide, Lancelot, and Perceval, we see a dramatic change in this, due to the system of government that Arthur entails giving them the freedom and rights they deserved. The new man to woman relationship brought about in these stories is very different then the past stories we have read from the classical age. This system gave great honor and respect to women, which became part of the chivalric code that was followed by the knights and royalty of that time.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The courtly relationship between man and woman is the theme created throughout the stories in the Arthurian Romances. The ideas of courtly love and chivalry are su mmarized in these stories. We see many instances where knights go out of their way to please their woman. Once a knight chooses his woman, she thought of as his chattel, or property. He can do what he pleases with her and she must listen to him or possibly be killed. He respects and loves her as long as she is loyal and faithful to him. If someone were to interfere in his or her relationship, they would fight ‘til death or until someone begs for mercy. The knights fought for the most beautiful and did what they pleased with them. They fought for them if necessary to keep respect for themselves and for their maiden. This is what the chivalric ideology was based on and so the knights followed and respected it.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the story of Erec and Enide we see how some women affect the lifestyle and choices that the knights make due to their love. The woman was the prize possession to every man. They were won in various games that were played by the knights. Different cere monies were held to award to the winner the most beautiful woman in the land. We can see here that women were so important that a knight had to prove he was the best at what he did to gain her hand. These types of games were normal in this time since the woman was respected so much more. Competition was also based on who was th... ...confess all his sins and feels guilty about all he has done. He meets up with the lady he raped and her knight on a quest. He confesses all he has done to her along with his other sins and this infuriates the knight. They battle and Perceval defeats him and sends him to his maiden. All he defeats he send to his maiden as a gift to show her that he still loves her. Through his atonement and courtly love, Perceval returns back to normal and remains King Arthur’s faithful knight. In conclusion I feel that the medieval period allowed the women to gain a powerful status in society. They gained honorable reputations and were respected by everyone. The chivalric attitudes that the knights obtained allowed for an uprising of the public status between the sexes. Their attitudes toward each other had a tremendous change from the classical era to the Medieval one. We can still see the medieval attitude today towards some women. Some men go out of their way to help the lady. Men open doors for ladies and keep them warm. Instead of them being called knights, they are called gentlemen. This can be an indication of the existence of medieval knights and the chivalric code they followed.

United Airlines

United Airlines employees seem utterly incompetent. The recent dog death incident is only the latest in a string of situations in which United employees have screwed up. But the incidents don't reflect a competence deficit at the airline; they reveal a culture problem — and United's leaders must take specific actions to fix it. United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz must take specific actions to fix the culture problem at his company. (Photo by Jim Young/Getty Images)The ProblemWhen Dr. David Dao refused to give up his seat on a plane last year, specifically United Express employees under contract carrier Republic Airlines called airport security who ended up dragging him off the plane. Weeks later, a United gate agent refused to allow two young girls to board a plane because their leggings didn't adhere to the airline's dress code for â€Å"pass travelers.† And just last week a flight attendant insisted on putting a dog in an overhead bin because its carrier wouldn't fit under the seat and assured the dog's owner that it would be fine up there. The dog was found dead upon arrival at the destination.These employee actions are deplorable and quite a disconnect from the company's brand slogan â€Å"Fly the Friendly Skies.† The employees seem completely opposite from those featured in the company's recent Olympics advertisements which aimed to show that their superhero-like qualities enabled them to ensure the safe, smooth, and fun passage of Olympic athletes as well as everyday customers. The contrast between the company's brand aspirations and its actual operations couldn't be sharper.The DiagnosisAlthough United's employees seem to be at fault, the underlying cause is the company's lack of culture leadership. CEO Oscar Munoz and his fellow leaders are responsible for the huge gap between the company's brand identity and organizational culture. They have failed to engage, train, and motivate employees adequately and appropriately.Munoz is credited with stabilizing the airline's workforce after the poorly executed merger of United Airlines and Continental Airlines in 2010 resulted in a widespread lack of trust between the airline's management and its workers. He also has boosted United's position in monthly on-time performance rankings of U.S. airlines from near the bottom to middle of the pack or better.But he and other United executives have not been effective in cultivating the culture at the company. In fact, they have contributed to an unhealthy and poor-performing corporate culture by:Making vapid promises and setting vague values. After the disaster with Dr. Dao, the airline rewrote its overbooking policies and promised to empower employees to act in the moment to put customers first. Munoz pledged that â€Å"every customer deserves to be treated with the highest levels of service and the deepest sense of dignity and respect. † The company initiated a new employee training program called â€Å"core4† to emphasize the company's four core values: caring, safe, dependable, and efficient.Clearly the recent dog death, along with several other incidents in the past year involving pets being delivered to incorrect destinations and/or dying while under United's care and the fact that the airline remains among the highest of U.S. airlines for complaints, indicate that whatever changes the leaders have implemented have not delivered on their promises. The training has not been effective and its values are at best aspirational and more likely inconsequential.Prioritizing operational performance over employees. United's on-time and financial performance gains seem to have been achieved on the backs of its employees. On online forums, flight attendants routinely complain about what they view as deliberate understaffing. This, combined with the increase in quick turns due to more aggressive flight scheduling, means that attendants have too much to do in too short of a time during the boarding process. They aren't paid until the aircraft pushes back from the gate and they're held accountable for departures delayed by lack of in-cabin readiness. It's easy to see why they often rush through procedures and indiscriminately follow procedures.Not respecting or listening to employees. United recently announced that it would discontinue quarterly bonus payments to most employees and would replace them with a lottery-based system in which those who qualified for the lottery through participation in the core4 program could win prizes.When employees responded in an uproar, Munoz explained that the program's intent was â€Å"to spice up the process a little bit.† His comments suggest that leaders view employee compensation as something needing an injection of fun instead of understanding its role in meaningfully engaging employees and contributing to their livelihood. Also his statement, â€Å"We'll be working over the next couple weeks to make sure we get input from people at all levels,† suggests that employees were not adequately consulted during the conception of the change. RecommendationsSetting prescriptive values. Setting policies and procedures do not help to anticipate every customers and also dictate the appropriate employee's response. Employees must be guided by clear and prescriptive values that help them determine how to handle unforeseen or difficult situations. Vague values such as â€Å"caring† don't provide the specificity that employees need to help them make the right in-the-moment decisions. But if United's leaders were to articulate and abide by values such as â€Å"listen carefully and respond respectfully,† they would increase the likelihood that customers would be treated appropriately.Empowering and equipping employees. It's important for employees to develop emotional intelligence and learn effective communication skills, their hands shouldn't be tied by restrictive policies that dictate certain customer handling and they shouldn't face serious consequences for improvising when the situation calls for it. Moods and e motions influence how well the employee follow the decision process. Leaders should let the employee to have the freedom to make judgement.Aligning employee experience and customer experience.Employees can and will only deliver an experience to customers that they experience themselves , so leaders must train employees the way they want employees to treat customers. Therefore, managers should motivate their employees. If managers only follow procedures and don't take the time to understand what their employees need, employees are going to operate by the book regardless of what customers might really need. If employees are treated as if their behavior is less important than airline performance, they will care less about customers' well-being and more about on-time departures and efficient operations. This will affect the company's profit growth. But if leaders listen, value, and trust their employees, Employees will likely to listen to, value, and maintain loyalty of the customers.

Decleration of Independence essays

Decleration of Independence essays Rafi Jacobs A.P. American History Report About two months ago I still thought that the Declaration of Independence was something written a few hundred years ago, and was very famous, but had no real historical value. I just thought it was a nice thing, and after it became famous was adapted as a work of art. And to be honest I didnt even know what signifagance it had and how much it really did for out country. But after reading the Declaration of Independence, by Carl Becker, I found out what it really meant. In this report I will not only prove that I read the book, but show what affect it had on our country, the independent Unites States of America. Actually, the decleration wasn't even the officiol act of seperation from Great Britian. That was done on June 7th, 1776, when Richard Henry Lee, on behalf of the Virginia Delegation made three resolutions, one that declared the United Sttes should be free and indipendent states, and there should be no connection between them and Great Britain. It was voted in on July 2nd, 1776. However, on the 10th of June in when they decided they should write a decleration of indipendence, and they appointed Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston. At first Thomas Jefferson ask John Adams if he could write it. He replied "First, you are a Virginian, ought to be in charge of buissness, next I am obnoxious, suspected, and unpopular, reason number three, you are a ten times better writer, Mr. Jefferson." When writing this document, they had to be careful not to do a few things. First, they didn't want this to sound like a rebellion. They tried to make it sound like it was a moral and justified thing to do. The goal was to make this rebellion a justified act. Rebelling against a king is seriose. So they had to be careful. They couldn't just make this against their own king of Britian, instead they wanted it to ...

Free Essays on Socrates, Plato, And Aristotle

Three Great Philosophers What makes a civilization great? It depends on the tools, the laws, class structures, religions, and government. However, it also depends on the way an individual thinks and how their way of thinking could contribute to improving society. In ancient Greece, there lived three great men named Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. These men were the first and still the greatest philosophers of all time. They questioned people's way of life and even the meaning of life itself. The teaching of philosophy would help shape Western civilization into the greatness that it would become. Three men, three different ways of thinking, but they all shared one common thing: their love for philosophy. These three intellectuals had very different lives, yet eventually, their paths would cross. Socrates was born poor to the city of Athens, Greece. He worked as a stone carver and married at age 13. Socrates believed in living for the present not living for the future. He believed in the superiority of argument over writing, therefore he never wrote anything down. Socrates spent most of his time socializing in argument and dialogue in marketplaces and public areas. There in the Agora, he would meet Plato and enlighten him. Plato had a similar curious nature, but a different background. He was born, also in Athens, into wealth for his father was a politician. Plato aspired to become an Olympic wrestler as a youth because of his astounding strength, but that ended when he received a serious injury. Sometime after, he met Socrates and became open-minded to his opinions. Plato would spend hours taking notes on Socrates' deepest thoughts. But Socrates was soon charged with blasphemy, the act of not expressing reverence for God. He was forced to drink hemlock and died. "It is better to die on my feet than to live on my knees," he stated proudly. Plato became disillusioned with Athens after Socrates died. Later, he started his own universit... Free Essays on Socrates, Plato, And Aristotle Free Essays on Socrates, Plato, And Aristotle Three Great Philosophers What makes a civilization great? It depends on the tools, the laws, class structures, religions, and government. However, it also depends on the way an individual thinks and how their way of thinking could contribute to improving society. In ancient Greece, there lived three great men named Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. These men were the first and still the greatest philosophers of all time. They questioned people's way of life and even the meaning of life itself. The teaching of philosophy would help shape Western civilization into the greatness that it would become. Three men, three different ways of thinking, but they all shared one common thing: their love for philosophy. These three intellectuals had very different lives, yet eventually, their paths would cross. Socrates was born poor to the city of Athens, Greece. He worked as a stone carver and married at age 13. Socrates believed in living for the present not living for the future. He believed in the superiority of argument over writing, therefore he never wrote anything down. Socrates spent most of his time socializing in argument and dialogue in marketplaces and public areas. There in the Agora, he would meet Plato and enlighten him. Plato had a similar curious nature, but a different background. He was born, also in Athens, into wealth for his father was a politician. Plato aspired to become an Olympic wrestler as a youth because of his astounding strength, but that ended when he received a serious injury. Sometime after, he met Socrates and became open-minded to his opinions. Plato would spend hours taking notes on Socrates' deepest thoughts. But Socrates was soon charged with blasphemy, the act of not expressing reverence for God. He was forced to drink hemlock and died. "It is better to die on my feet than to live on my knees," he stated proudly. Plato became disillusioned with Athens after Socrates died. Later, he started his own universit...

Essentials for Tree Seed Propagation

Essentials for Tree Seed Propagation Trees use seeds as a principal means of establishing their next generation in the natural world. Seeds serve as a delivery system for the transfer of genetic material from one generation to the next. This fascinating chain of events (the formation of seed to dispersal to germination) is very complex and still poorly understood. Some trees can easily be grown from seed but, for some trees, it may be much quicker and easier to propagate them from cuttings. Seed propagation can be a tricky process for a number of tree species. A small seedling can be very tiny and delicate when first germinated and often require much more care than a cutting. Seeds collected off tree hybrids or grafted stock can be sterile or the tree may  be off-character from the parent. For example, seeds collected from a pink dogwood will most likely flower white. What Stops Seeds From Germinating There are a number of important reasons a seed refuses to germinate under artificial conditions. Two major causes for unsuccessful tree seed germination are hard seed coats and dormant seed embryos. Both conditions are species-specific and every tree species has to subject the seeds to unique conditions to assure germination. Treating the seed properly is necessary before germination occurs and a seedling can be assured. Seed scarification and stratification are the most common methods of seed treatment and they will increase the chances of seed or nut germination. Scarification and Stratification The hard protective coating on some tree seeds is natures way of protecting the seed. But hard coats on some hard seed species actually inhibit the germination of the seed, because water and air cannot penetrate the hard coating. Interestingly, many tree seeds require two dormant periods (two winters) before the protective coating breaks down enough to germinate. The seeds must lay on the ground completely dormant for one full growing season, and then germinate the following growing season. Scarification is an artificial way to prepare hard seed coats for germination. There are three methods or treatments that will usually make seed-coats permeable to water: soaking in a solution of sulfuric acid, soaking in hot water or immersing the seed for a short period in boiling water, or mechanical scarification. Many dormant tree seeds need to be after-ripened before they can germinate. This is the most common cause of seeds failing to germinate. If the seed embryo produced by a tree is dormant, it must be stored at the proper temperature and in the presence of abundant supplies of moisture and air. Stratification is the process of mixing the seed in a moist (not wet) medium like peat moss, sand or sawdust, then placed in a storage container and stored in an area where the temperature is controlled at a low enough level to ripen the seed. This storage is usually over a definite period of time at a specific temperature (around 40 degrees F). Methods of Tree Seed Treatment by Species Hickory: This tree nut is generally considered to exhibit embryo dormancy. The common treatment is to stratify the nuts in a moist medium at 33 to 50 degrees F for 30 to 150 days. If cold storage facilities are not available, stratification in a pit with a covering of about 0.5 m (1.5 feet) of compost, leaves, or soil to prevent freezing will suffice. Prior to any cold stratification, nuts should be soaked in water at room temperature for two to four days with one or two water changes each day.Black Walnut: A walnut is generally considered to exhibit embryo dormancy. The common treatment is to stratify the nuts in a moist medium at 33 to 50 degrees F for two or three months. Although the seed coat is extremely hard it usually cracks, becomes water permeable, and does not need scarification.Pecan: A pecan does not fall into dormancy like other hickories and can be planted at any time with the expectation that the embryo will germinate. Still, the  pecan nut  is often collected and cold-stored for planting the next spring. Oak: Acorns of the white oak group generally have little or no dormancy and will germinate almost immediately after falling. These species should usually be planted in the fall. Acorns of the black oak group that exhibit variable dormancy and stratification are usually recommended before spring sowing. For best results, moist acorns should be held for four to 12 weeks at temperatures of 40 to 50 degrees F and can be placed in plastic bags without a medium, if turned frequently.Persimmon: Natural germination of common persimmon usually occurs in April or May, but two- to three-year delays have been observed. The main cause of the delay is a seed covering that causes a major decrease in water absorption. Seed dormancy also needs to be broken by stratification in sand or peat for 60 to 90 days at 37 to 50 degrees F. Persimmon is hard to artificially germinate.Sycamore:  American sycamore  needs no dormancy, and pre-germination treatments are usually not required for prompt germinati on.Pine: Seeds of most pines in temperate climates are shed in the autumn and germinate promptly the next spring. Seeds of most pines germinate without treatment, but germination rates and amounts are greatly increased by pretreating the seeds. This means storing seeds using moist, cold stratification. Elm: Under natural conditions, elm seeds that ripen in the spring usually germinate in the same growing season. Seeds that ripen in the fall germinate in the following spring. Although seeds of most elm species require no planting treatment, American elm will remain dormant until the second season.Beech: Seeds from beech trees need to overcome dormancy and require cold stratification for prompt germination. The seeds may take a combination of stratification and storage. Seed moisture level is the key to successful stratification in beech seeds. Beech is difficult to artificially germinate in significant amounts.

Describe the roles of amino acid R-groups to the transmembrane Essay

Describe the roles of amino acid R-groups to the transmembrane channels that allow passage of molecules and ions across lipid bilayers - Essay Example On the other hand, the hydrophilic amino acids are usually established on the outside of proteins and in the lively cores of enzymatically lively proteins. This means that the natural world of some amino acid R-groups permits enzyme reactions to take place. The imidazole ring of histidine permits it to function as either a proton contributor or acceptor at physiological PH. Therefore, it is mostly discovered in the hasty heart of enzymes. Hemoglobin is the best example of membrane channel that plays a vital role in movement of molecules and ions. The aptitude of histidines in hemoglobin is responsible for cushioning the H+ ions ionization of carbonic acid in red blood cells (Berg, Tymoczko and Stryer 55). This is the main factor of hemoglobin that that permits it to swap over O2 and CO2 at the tissues or lungs respectively. The most influential alcohol of serine and threonine in addition to the thiol (-SH) of cysteine, permit these amino acids to take action as nucleophiles throughou t enzymatic catalysis. Moreover, the cysteine thiol is capable of developing a disulfide union with other cysteines: From the chain above, the easy disulfide is recognized as cystine. The development of disulfide unions between cysteines available within proteins is significant to the development of lively structural spheres of influence in a huge number of proteins (Berg, Tymoczko and Stryer 60). The process of disfulfied union between cysteines of distinct polypeptide chains of oligomeric proteins performs a significant function in commanding the structure of complicated proteins such as the insulin receptor. All the above mentioned processes takes place in membranes and the fact that certain little molecules go through easily while others find it hard to go through makes the membranes of the R groups to be considered selectively permeable (Berg, Tymoczko and Stryer 67). This is because when several sugars of equal molecular size are available both

Inflation and the cpi index Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Inflation and the cpi index - Research Paper Example Indeed, it affects financial planning and budgeting where it considers costs for goods and services, labor, and employee benefits (City Budget Office Web). In addition, inflation affects revenues as changes occur in the prices of taxable goods and services. Price inflation is normally confused with â€Å"Price Deflation† which is the percentage decrease in the price of the basket of products over a specific period. However, the question arises as to what measures the inflation rate. The Laspeyres formula applies in calculating the inflation rate that is defined by the consumer price index. This paper looks at the overwhelming evidence supporting that current inflation due to economic and political pressures has adversely effected the consumer price index The consumer price index (CPI) is generally the measure of the average change in the prices paid by urban consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services over time. Indeed, the CPI represents all goods and service s purchased for consumption by a given population in a program that produces monthly data on changes in the prices paid by urban consumers for available goods and services. ... Indeed, the CPI is best applied when the market has the intention to allow consumers to purchase goods and services at current market prices in equivalence to future purchases. However, the CPI may not be applicable to all population entities and is limited in measurement where it manifests sampling and non-sampling errors (Bureau of Labor Statistics Web). Inflation is caused by many factors that include economic, political, and human activities. The current inflation due to economic and political pressures has adversely affected the consumer price index. As stated herein, there are many causes of inflation where inflation can be long-term or short term. Economic pressures like the need to have more money in the market than the value of goods and services in the market and various shocks of the economy lead to inflation conditions in the economy. Indeed, economic shocks like increases in prices of imported raw materials, increases in costs of production, food and energy price shocks are common examples of the causes of Inflation. This form of inflation has diverse effects on the consumer price index. This is so because the market will not be in a position to effectively, adjust to the effects of the economic pressures. In addition, it causes many distortions in the economy that affect the purchasing power of the population. Moreover, this form of inflation hurts retirees living on a fixed income since when prices raises the retirees cannot buy their normal quantities as their income is fixed (Gerolamo Web). This is a direct effect on the Customer Price Index. In addition, this boosts the value of money presently compared to the future hence they will not save thus affecting the CPI. Indeed, when inflation surfaces, persons that include factories will

Corporate Fundraising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 2

Corporate Fundraising - Essay Example As can be observed with reference to the case scenario presented, The Green Coffee Company Ltd is aiming at investing in Vietnam which requires a substantial amount of funds. It is worth mentioning in this context that corporate fundraising options available to a particular business depends on various factors including the size of the company which further signifies its certification as a public or a proprietary company as per the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (â€Å"A Practitioner’s Guide to Corporate Law†, 2007). To be noted, as per the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) Section 45A, a proprietary company can be limited or unlimited with share capital. Another type of company identifies as per the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) is the public company wherein the Section 195 of the Act specifies that â€Å"public company means a company other than a proprietary company† (â€Å"Corporations Act 2001† 2005). Also, the corporate name of a proprietary company is distinct to that of a public company, i.e. ... With reference to this context, The Green Coffee Company Ltd can be identified as a public limited company which shall further determine its fundraising obligations when attempting to invest in an international expansion venture to Vietnam. One of the major differences and opportunities for The Green Coffee Company Ltd in fundraising, being a public limited company, is that it can issue equities or sell its debentures or shares to â€Å"more than 50 non-employee shareholders† through the obligatory issuing of prospectus where proprietary companies (either limited or unlimited) are exempted from such permits (â€Å"Corporate Law† 2011). From a managerial concern, fundraising activities performed by organisations such as The Green Coffee Company Ltd will quite essentially give rise to company liabilities and thus will seize the risk of affecting shareholders’ or investors’ interests. It is in this context that The Green Coffee Company Ltd must ensure its com pliance with the norms prescribed in the Chapter 6D of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). It is worth mentioning in this regard that The Green Coffee Company Ltd is planning to offer shares to the public with the intention to obtain a capital of around $7 million and $15 million owing to which the company must ensure the disclosure of all the required and lodged documents prior to offering securities as per the provisions mentioned in Section 727 (1) of Chapter 6D in the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (â€Å"Corporations Act 2001, 2005†). It is mandatory on this note to lodge the disclosure document to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) as per Section 709 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (â€Å"Better prospectus disclosure† 2006). Contextually, any identification of forging in the

Class student dicussions answers week 4 Assignment - 1

Class student dicussions answers week 4 - Assignment Example When revising written messages, it involves trying to find the errors within the message. In doing this, I would read the message to others and take their opinions. Then using their opinions I would go back and step by step correct the errors. In cases where no one is available, I would use different references to see if the message is constructed correctly. I still am learning new ways to better construct my messages, and how to revise them. Over the years, I have done great in courses in revising my messages, and within my written, this course is my first to not get it done properly. I go over my messages, and try to correct them, and use many resources to help, but I find myself still coming up short. Even with spell-check and other things to help aide me, it seems not to be working. It seems that the best revising plan for me would be to keep working on my revising, and being open to many new ways to revise my work. I agree with Joshua scenario on the chosen OSI Model. However, I think a model in computer networking will clearly explain this model. Messages or data is sent from one computer user to another via the internet. The Application layer is where a person decides on the interface to use like Mozilla Firefox. The Presentation layer is where the message will be encrypted into a Microsoft Office document and then copied to the interface. The Session layer is where the sender ensures that the computer is well connected to the internet. The Transport layer is where the sender decides on how to send the message and based on a given priority. The Network layer is to obtain information on the required email address and obtaining the IP address of the sender. The Data-link layer puts the email address to the subject of the email where the MAC address of the sender is stated while the Physical layer involves the sending of binary signals in the process of data exchange. The scenario used

Do you think that theories of authorship are incompatible with the Essay

Do you think that theories of authorship are incompatible with the industrial context of film production - Essay Example The auteur theory is one of the most important theories of authorship. The term, politque des auteurs was coined by Francois Truffaut, who realized that American Directors often worked within strictly circumscribed parameters in reference to the kinds of films and the scripts they could direct, since these were often predetermined and allowed the directors little room to experiment with their own ideas (Keller 1930). The notion of the Director being the true author of a film first emerged through the views of Andrew Sarris on the distinctive nature of a particular director’s work. According to Sarris, Hitchcock was â€Å"great† and Welles was classed as â€Å"brilliant†, based on the view that over the course of preparation of several films, a director may reveal certain recurring characteristics of styles or themes, which are like his or her personal signature or stamp upon the film, identifying it unmistakably as their product (Sarris, 1979:650-665), irrespective of the collective nature of film production. It may be argued that American cinema in earlier decades was circumscribed by the industrial context of production and the concentration of power in the hands of studio top executives. The power wielded by the writers and directors of the film was considerably less than that wielded by studio heads and their creative control over the film much lower. Yet, despite these restrictions, some directors such as Hitchcock were able to achieve a personal style that was uniquely their own. In particular, where some directors such as Orson Welles and Jean Luc Godard are concerned, some recurring themes may occur in all their works, or their work may demonstrate a particular worldview or personal vision that becomes evident through their work. They bear the unmistakable personal imprint of the author, despite the plethora of external market and commodity pressures that may fashion the final products. For example, in the works of Godard, the

Class student dicussions answers week 4 Assignment - 1

Class student dicussions answers week 4 - Assignment Example When revising written messages, it involves trying to find the errors within the message. In doing this, I would read the message to others and take their opinions. Then using their opinions I would go back and step by step correct the errors. In cases where no one is available, I would use different references to see if the message is constructed correctly. I still am learning new ways to better construct my messages, and how to revise them. Over the years, I have done great in courses in revising my messages, and within my written, this course is my first to not get it done properly. I go over my messages, and try to correct them, and use many resources to help, but I find myself still coming up short. Even with spell-check and other things to help aide me, it seems not to be working. It seems that the best revising plan for me would be to keep working on my revising, and being open to many new ways to revise my work. I agree with Joshua scenario on the chosen OSI Model. However, I think a model in computer networking will clearly explain this model. Messages or data is sent from one computer user to another via the internet. The Application layer is where a person decides on the interface to use like Mozilla Firefox. The Presentation layer is where the message will be encrypted into a Microsoft Office document and then copied to the interface. The Session layer is where the sender ensures that the computer is well connected to the internet. The Transport layer is where the sender decides on how to send the message and based on a given priority. The Network layer is to obtain information on the required email address and obtaining the IP address of the sender. The Data-link layer puts the email address to the subject of the email where the MAC address of the sender is stated while the Physical layer involves the sending of binary signals in the process of data exchange. The scenario used

Cultures. African Culture Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Cultures. African Culture - Research Paper Example This persuasive essay looks at the African culture and its significance. The African continent consists of two main cultures, which are the Sub-Saharan Africa and North African cultures. These cultures have a number of ethnic, tribes, social groups. One of the main features of this way of life is the large number of cultural groups where some nations can have twenty or more ethnic groups, and the variety of their principles. The African culture is varied and diverse. Like other cultures in the world, it has been obstructed upon by both external and internal forces, which in turn affect it negatively and positively. Their art, music, literature, and African cultural customs of Africa have motivated interest and admiration all over the world (Barakat79). The African continent has a rich custom of arts and crafts. Their arts and crafts observe manifestation in an assortment of leather arts, woodcarvings, brass, and other metal works. These art and crafts consist of sculptures, woodwork paintings ceremonial, pottery, religious ornaments, and other dresses. According to Barakat, African art must be innovative and in being revolutionary, the artists ought to be collective, functional and committed to their works (80). Barakat continues to note that art is socially functional within the society (81). The African culture places a lot of emphasis on the appearance and jewelry, which has endured an important individual accompaniment. Most pieces of this jewelry are crafted using cowry shells and metallic materials (Namulundah 23). In the same way, the masks are crafted using elaborate objects and are significant part of the culture. During ceremonies, these masks are used as symbols of spirits and ancestors, deities and mythological characters (Namulundah 23). Certain themes are significant in the African arts and crafts, and these themes keep on recurring from one art to another. They include men carrying weapons, women carrying children, men posing as hunters with anim als on their shoulders. Pairs may symbolize ancestors, society founder, married people, or twins (Namulundah 23). The couple subject rarely displays intimacy of the married people. The mother carrying a child or children as argued by Namulundah shows strong aspiration of the African women to give birth to her own children (23). The theme is also an agent of woman mars and the communities as her children. On the other hand, the man carrying a weapon or animal subject represents principle and power (Namulundah 23). An alien or a stranger may be someone from other ethnic groups or somebody from a different nation, and accurate representation of the stranger signifies fairly better gap from the stranger (Namulundah, 23). Oral presentation is very important in African arts and crafts. African oral literature includes arts like origin fables, myths, history, folklore, lineage, folk therapies that are very common with the African continent. Initially this information was not recorded in wr itten materials, but instead passed from one generation to another through word of mouth. Storytelling and singing are very common and highly appreciated in this society. Just like other human culture, the African religion and folklore represents different aspects of social issues within the African community (Namulundah 21). Similarly, like all other civilization and cultures, myths have been presented in different parts of the African continent. Religion and culture share space and deeply rooted in the African cultures. For example, the Ethiopian culture consists of their African culture and informs dietary customs together with rites and rituals (Namulundah 21). The pygmy myth

An Introduction to Genre Theory Essay Example for Free

An Introduction to Genre Theory Essay An Introduction to Genre Theory Daniel Chandler 1. The problem of definition A number of perennial doubts plague genre theory. Are genres really out there in the world, or are they merely the constructions of analysts? Is there a finite taxonomy of genres or are they in principle infinite? Are genres timeless Platonic essences or ephemeral, time-bound entities? Are genres culturebound or transcultural? Should genre analysis be descriptive or proscriptive? (Stam 2000, 14) The word genre comes from the French (and originally Latin) word for kind or class. The term is  widely used in rhetoric, literary theory, media theory, and more recently linguistics, to refer to a distinctive type of text*. Robert Allen notes that for most of its 2,000 years, genre study has been primarily nominological and typological in function. That is to say, it has taken as its principal task the division of the world of literature into types and the naming of those types much as the botanist divides the realm of flora into varieties of plants (Allen 1989, 44). As will be seen, however, the analogy with biological classification into genus and species misleadingly suggests a scientific process. Since classical times literary works have been classified as belonging to general types which were variously defined. In literature the broadest division is between poetry, prose and drama, within which there are further divisions, such as tragedy and comedy within the category of drama. Shakespeare referred satirically to classifications such as tragedy, comedy, history, pastoral, pastoral-comical, historical-pastoral, tragical-historical, tragical-comicalhistorical-pastoral (Hamlet II ii). In The Anatomy of Criticism the formalist literary theorist Northrop Frye (1957) presented certain universal genres and modes  as the key to organizing the entire literary corpus. Contemporary media genres tend to relate more to specific forms than to the universals of tragedy and comedy. Nowadays, films are routinely classified (e. g. in television listings magazines) as thrillers, westerns and so on genres with which every adult in modern society is familiar. So too with television genres such as game shows and sitcoms. Whilst we have names for countless genres in many media, some theorists have argued that there are also many genres (and sub-genres) for which we have no names (Fowler 1989, 216; Wales 1989, 206). Carolyn Miller  suggests that the number of genres in any society depends on the complexity and diversity of society (Miller 1984, in Freedman Medway 1994a, 36). The classification and hierarchical taxonomy of genres is not a neutral and objective procedure. There are no undisputed maps of the system of genres within any medium (though literature may perhaps lay some claim to a loose consensus). Furthermore, there is often considerable theoretical disagreement about the definition of specific genres. A genre is ultimately an abstract conception rather than something that exists empirically in the world,  notes Jane Feuer (1992, 144). One theorists genre may be anothers sub-genre or even super-genre (and indeed what is technique, style, mode, formula or thematic grouping to one may be treated as a genre by another). Themes, at least, seem inadequate as a basis for defining genres since, as David Bordwell notes, any theme may appear in any genre (Bordwell 1989, 147). He asks: Are animation and documentary films genres or modes? Is the filmed play or comedy performance a genre? If tragedy and comedy are genres, perhaps then domestic tragedy or slapstick is a formula. In  passing, he offers a useful inventory of categories used in film criticism, many of which have been accorded the status of genres by various commentators: Grouping by period or country (American films of the 1930s), by director or star or producer or writer or studio, by technical process (Cinemascope films), by cycle (the fallen women films), by series (the 007 movies), by style (German Expressionism), by structure (narrative), by ideology (Reaganite cinema), by venue (drive-in movies), by purpose (home movies), by audience (teenpix), by subject or theme (family film, paranoid-politics movies). (Bordwell 1989, 148) Another film theorist, Robert Stam, also refers to common ways of categorizing films: While some genres are based on story content (the war film), other are borrowed from literature (comedy, melodrama) or from other media (the musical). Some are performer-based (the Astaire-Rogers films) or budget-based (blockbusters), while others are based on artistic status (the art film), racial identity (Black cinema), locat[ion] (the Western) or sexual orientation (Queer cinema). (Stam 2000, 14). Bordwell concludes that one could argue that no set of necessary and sufficient conditions can  mark off genres from other sorts of groupings in ways that all experts or ordinary film-goers would find An Introduction to Genre Theory acceptable (Bordwell 1989, 147). Practitioners and the general public make use of their own genre labels (de facto genres) quite apart from those of academic theorists. We might therefore ask ourselves Whose genre is it anyway? Still further problems with definitional approaches will become apparent in due course. Defining genres may not initially seem particularly problematic but it should already be apparent that it is a theoretical minefield. Robert Stam identifies four key problems with generic labels (in relation to film): extension (the breadth or narrowness of labels); normativism (having preconceived ideas of criteria for genre membership); monolithic definitions (as if an item belonged to only one genre); biologism (a kind of essentialism in which genres are seen as evolving through a standardized life cycle) (Stam 2000, 128129). Conventional definitions of genres tend to be based on the notion that they constitute particular conventions of content (such as themes or settings) and/or form (including structure and style) which  are shared by the texts which are regarded as belonging to them. Alternative characterizations will be discussed in due course. The attempt to define particular genres in terms of necessary and sufficient textual properties is sometimes seen as theoretically attractive but it poses many difficulties. For instance, in the case of films, some seem to be aligned with one genre in content and another genre in form. The film theorist Robert Stam argues that subject matter is the weakest criterion for generic grouping because it fails to take into account how the subject is treated (Stam 2000, 14). Outlining a fundamental problem of  genre identification in relation to films, Andrew Tudor notes the empiricist dilemma: To take a genre such as the western, analyze it, and list its principal characteristics, is to beg the question that we must first isolate the body of films which are westerns. But they can only be isolated on the basis of the principal characteristics which can only be discovered from the films themselves after they have been isolated. (Cited in Gledhill 1985, 59) It is seldom hard to find texts which are exceptions to any given definition of a particular genre. There are no rigid rules of inclusion and exclusion (Gledhill 1985, 60). Genres are not discrete systems, consisting of a fixed number of listable items (ibid. , 64). It is difficult to make clear-cut distinctions between one genre and another: genres overlap, and there are mixed genres (such as comedy-thrillers). 2 Specific genres tend to be easy to recognize intuitively but difficult (if not impossible) to define. Particular features which are characteristic of a genre are not normally unique to it; it is their relative prominence, combination and functions which are distinctive (Neale 1980, 22-3). It is easy to underplay the differences within a genre. Steve Neale declares  that genres are instances of repetition and difference (Neale 1980, 48). He adds that difference is absolutely essential to the economy of genre (ibid. , 50): mere repetition would not attract an audience. Tzvetan Todorov argued that any instance of a genre will be necessarily different (cited in Gledhill 1985, 60). John Hartley notes that the addition of just one film to the Western genre changes that genre as a whole even though the Western in question may display few of the recognized conventions, styles or subject matters traditionally associated with its genre (OSullivan et al. 1994). The issue of difference also  highlights the fact that some genres are looser more open-ended in their conventions or more permeable in their boundaries than others. Texts often exhibit the conventions of more than one genre. John Hartley notes that the same text can belong to different genres in different countries or times (OSullivan et al. 1994, 129). Hybrid genres abound (at least outside theoretical frameworks). Van Leeuwen suggests that the multiple purposes of journalism often lead to generically heterogeneous texts (cited in Fairclough 1995, 88). Norman Fairclough suggests that mixed-genre texts are far from uncommon in the mass media (Fairclough 1995, 89). Some media may encourage more generic diversity: Nicholas Abercrombie notes that since television comes at the audience as a flow of programmes, all with different generic conventions, means that it is more difficult to sustain the purity of the genre in the viewing experience (Abercrombie 1996, 45; his emphasis). Furthermore, in any medium the generic classification of certain texts may be uncertain or subject to dispute. Contemporary theorists tend to describe genres in terms of family resemblances among texts (a notion derived from the philosopher Wittgenstein) rather than definitionally (Swales 1990, 49). An individual text within a genre rarely if ever has all of the characteristic features of the genre (Fowler 1989, 215). The family resemblance approaches involves the theorist illustrating similarities between some of the texts within a genre. However, the family resemblance approach has been criticized on the basis that no choice of a text for illustrative purposes is innocent (David Lodge, cited in Swales 1990, 50), and that such theories can make any text seem to resemble any other one (Swales 1990, 51). In addition to the definitional and family resemblance approach, there is  An Introduction to Genre Theory another approach to describing genres which is based on the psycholinguistic concept of prototypicality. According to this approach, some texts would be widely regarded as being more typical members of a genre than others. According to this approach certain features would identify the extent to which an exemplar is prototypical of a particular genre (Swales 1990, 52). Genres can therefore be seen as fuzzy categories which cannot be defined by necessary and sufficient conditions. How we define a genre depends on our purposes;  the adequacy of our definition in terms of social science at least must surely be related to the light that the exploration sheds on the phenomenon. For instance (and this is a key concern of mine), if we are studying the way in which genre frames the readers interpretation of a text then we would do well to focus on how readers identify genres rather than on theoretical distinctions. Defining genres may be problematic, but even if theorists were to abandon the concept, in everyday life people would continue to categorize texts. John Swales does note that a discourse communitys nomenclature for genres is an  important source of insight (Swales 1990, 54), though like many academic theorists he later adds that such genre names typically need further validation (ibid. , 58). Some genre names would be likely to be more widely-used than others: it would be interesting to investigate the areas of popular consensus and dissensus in relation to the everyday labeling of mass media genres. For Robert Hodge and Gunther Kress, genres only exist in so far as a social group declares and enforces the rules that constitute them (Hodge Kress 1988, 7), though it is debatable to  what extent most of us would be able to formulate explicit rules for the textual genres we use routinely: much of our genre knowledge is likely to be tacit. In relation to film, Andrew Tudor argued that genre is what we collectively believe it to be (though this begs the question about who we are). Robert Allen comments wryly that Tudor even hints that in order to establish what audiences expect a western to be like we might have to ask them (Allen 1989, 47). Swales also alludes to people having repertoires of genres (Swales 1990, 58), which I would argue would also be likely to repay  investigation. However, as David Buckingham notes, there has hardly been any empirical research on the ways in which real audiences might understand genre, or use this understanding in making sense of specific texts (Buckingham 1993, 137). Steve Neale stresses that genres are not systems: they are processes of systematization (Neale 1980, 51; my emphasis; cf. Neale 1995, 463). Traditionally, genres (particularly literary genres) tended to be regarded 3 as fixed forms, but contemporary theory emphasizes that both their forms and functions are dynamic. David Buckingham argues that genre is not simply given by the culture: rather, it is in a constant process of negotiation and change (Buckingham 1993, 137). Nicholas Abercrombie suggests that the boundaries between genres are shifting and becoming more permeable (Abercrombie 1996, 45); Abercrombie is concerned with modern television, which he suggests seems to be engaged in a steady dismantling of genre (ibid. ) which can be attributed in part to economic pressures to pursue new audiences. One may acknowledge the dynamic fluidity of genres without positing the final demise of genre as an interpretive framework. As the generic corpus ceaselessly expands, genres (and the relationships between them) change over time; the conventions of each genre shift, new genres and sub-genres emerge and others are discontinued (though note that certain genres seem particularly long-lasting). Tzvetan Todorov argued that a new genre is always the transformation of one or several old genres (cited in Swales 1990, 36). Each new work within a genre has the potential to influence changes within the genre or perhaps the emergence of new sub-genres (which may later blossom into fully-fledged genres). However, such a perspective tends to highlight the role of authorial experimentation in changing genres and their conventions, whereas it is important to recognize not only the social nature of text production but especially the role of economic and technological factors as well as changing audience preferences. The interaction between genres and media can be seen as one of the forces which contributes to changing genres. Some genres are more powerful than others: they differ in the status which is attributed to them by those who produce texts within them and by their audiences. As Tony Thwaites et al. put it, in the interaction and conflicts among genres we can see the connections between textuality and power (Thwaites et al. 1994, 104). The key genres in institutions which are primary definers (such as news reports in the mass media) help to establish the frameworks within which issues are defined. But genre hierarchies also shift over time, with individual genres constantly gaining and losing different groups of users and relative status. Idealist theoretical approaches to genre which seek to categorize ideal types in terms of essential textual characteristics are ahistorical. As a result of  their dynamic nature as processes, Neale argues that definitions of genre are always historically relative, and therefore historically specific (Neale 1995, 464). Similarly, Boris Tomashevsky insists that no firm logical classification of genres is possible. Their de- An Introduction to Genre Theory marcation is always historical, that is to say, it is correct only for a specific moment of history (cited in Bordwell 1989, 147). Some genres are defined only retrospectively, being unrecognized as such by the original producers and audiences. Genres need to be studied as historical phenomena; a popular focus in  film studies, for instance, has been the evolution of conventions within a genre. Current genres go through phases or cycles of popularity (such as the cycle of disaster films in the 1970s), sometimes becoming dormant for a period rather than disappearing. On-going genres and their conventions themselves change over time. Reviewing evolutionary change in some popular film genres, Andrew Tudor concludes that it has three main characteristics: First, in that innovations are added to an existent corpus rather than replacing redundant elements, it is cumulative. Second, in that  these innovations must be basically consistent with what is already present, it is conservative. Third, in that these processes lead to the crystallization of specialist sub-genres, it involves differentiation. (Tudor 1974, 225-6) Tudor himself is cautious about adopting the biological analogy of evolution, with its implication that only those genres which are well-adapted to their functions survive. Christine Gledhill also notes the danger of essentialism in selecting definitive classic examples towards which earlier examples evolve and after which others decline (Gledhill 1985, 59). The cycles and transformations of genres can nevertheless be seen as a response to political, social and economic conditions. Referring to film, Andrew Tudor notes that a genre defines a moral and social world (Tudor 1974, 180). Indeed, a genre in any medium can be seen as embodying certain values and ideological assumptions. Again in the context of the cinema Susan Hayward argues that genre conventions change according to the ideological climate of the time, contrasting John Wayne westerns with Clint Eastwood as the problematic hero or anti-hero (Hayward 1996, 50). Leo Baudry (cited in Hayward 1996, 162) sees film genres as a barometer of the social and cultural concerns of cinema audiences; Robert Lichter et al. (1991) illustrate how televisual genres reflect the values of the programme-makers. Some commentators see mass media genres from a particular era as reflecting values which were dominant at the time. Ira Konigsberg, for instance, suggests that texts within genres embody the moral values of a culture (Konigsberg 1987, 144-5). And John Fiske asserts that generic conventions embody the crucial ideological concerns of the time in which they are popular 4 (Fiske 1987, 110). However, Steve Neale stresses that genres may also help to shape such values (Neale 1980, 16). Thwaites et al. see the relationship as reciprocal: a genre develops according to social conditions; transformations in genre and texts can influence and reinforce social conditions (Thwaites et al. 1994, 100). Some Marxist commentators see genre as an instrument of social control which reproduces the dominant ideology. Within this perspective, the genre positions the audience in order to naturalize the ideologies which are embedded in the text (Feuer 1992, 145). Bernadette Casey comments that recently, structuralists and feminist theorists, among others, have focused on the way in which generically defined structures may operate to construct particular ideologies and values, and to encourage reassuring and conservative interpretations of a given text (Casey 193, 312). However, reader-oriented commentators have stressed that people are capable of reading against the grain. Thomas and Vivian Sobchack note that in the past popular film-makers, intent on telling a story, were not always aware of the covert psychological and social  subtext of their own films, but add that modern film-makers and their audiences are now more keenly aware of the myth-making accomplished by film genres (Sobchack Sobchack 1980, 245). Genre can reflect a function which in relation to television Horace Newcombe and Paul Hirsch referred to as a cultural forum, in which industry and audience negotiate shared beliefs and values, helping to maintain the social order and assisting it in adapting to change (Feuer 1992, 145). Certainly, genres are far from being ideologically neutral. Sonia Livingstone argues, indeed, that different genres are concerned to establish different world views (Livingstone 1990, 155). Related to the ideological dimension of genres is one modern redefinition in terms of purposes. In relation to writing, Carolyn Miller argues that a rhetorically sound definition of genre must be centered not on the substance or form of discourse but on the action it is used to accomplish (Carolyn Miller 1984, in Freedman Medway 1994a, 24). Following this lead, John Swales declares that the principal criterial feature that turns a collection of communicative  events into a genre is some shared set of communicative purposes (Swales 1990, 46). In relation to the mass media it can be fruitful to consider in relation to genre the purposes not only of the producers of texts but also of those who interpret them (which need not be assumed always to match). A consensus about the primary purposes of some genres (such as news bulletins) and of their readers is probably easier to establish than in relation to others (such as westerns), where the very term purpose sounds too in- An Introduction to Genre Theory strumental. However, uses and gratifications researchers have already conducted investigations into the various functions that the mass media seem to serve for people, and ethnographic studies have offered fruitful insights into this dimension. Miller argues that both in writing and reading within genres we learn purposes appropriate to the genre; in relation to the mass media it could be argued that particular genres develop, frame and legitimate particular concerns, questions and pleasures. Related redefinitions of genre focus more broadly on the relationship between the makers and audiences  of texts (a rhetorical dimension). To varying extents, the formal features of genres establish the relationship between producers and interpreters. Indeed, in relation to mass media texts Andrew Tolson redefines genre as a category which mediates between industry and audience (Tolson 1996, 92). Note that such approaches undermine the definition of genres as purely textual types, which excludes any reference even to intended audiences. A basic model underlying contemporary media theory is a triangular relationship between the text, its producers and its interpreters. From the perspective of many recent commentators, genres first and foremost provide frameworks within which texts are produced and interpreted. Semiotically, a genre can be seen as a shared code between the producers and interpreters of texts included within it. Alastair Fowler goes so far as to suggest that communication is impossible without the agreed codes of genre (Fowler 1989, 216). Within genres, texts embody authorial attempts to position readers using particular modes of address. Gunther Kress observes that: Every genre positions those who participate in  a text of that kind: as interviewer or interviewee, as listener or storyteller, as a reader or a writer, as a person interested in political matters, as someone to be instructed or as someone who instructs; each of these positionings implies different possibilities for response and for action. Each written text provides a reading position for readers, a position constructed by the writer for the ideal reader of the text. (Kress 1988, 107) Thus, embedded within texts are assumptions about the ideal reader, including their attitudes towards the subject matter and often their class, age, gender and ethnicity. Gunther Kress defines a genre as a kind of text that derives its form from the structure of a (frequently repeated) social occasion, with its characteristic participants and their purposes (Kress 1988, 183). An interpretative emphasis on genre as opposed 5 to individual texts can help to remind us of the social nature of the production and interpretation of texts. In relation to film, many modern commentators refer to the commercial and industrial significance of genres. Denis McQuail argues that: The genre may be considered as a practical  device for helping any mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate its production to the expectations of its customers. Since it is also a practical device for enabling individual media users to plan their choices, it can be considered as a mechanism for ordering the relations between the two main parties to mass communication. (McQuail 1987, 200) Steve Neale observes that genres exist within the context of a set of economic relations and practices, though he adds that genres are not the product of economic factors as such. The conditions provided by the capitalist economy account neither for the existence of the particular genres that have hitherto been produced, nor for the existence of the conventions that constitute them (Neale 1980, 51-2). Economic factors may account for the perpetuation of a profitable genre. Nicholas Abercrombie notes that television producers set out to exploit genre conventions It makes sound economic sense. Sets, properties and costumes can be used over and over again. Teams of stars, writers, directors and technicians can be built up, giving economies of scale (Abercrombie 1996, 43). He adds that genres permit the creation and maintenance of a loyal audience which becomes used to seeing programmes within a genre (ibid. ). Genres can be seen as a means of controlling demand (Neale 1980, 55). The relative stability of genres enables producers to predict audience expectations. Christine Gledhill notes that differences between genres meant different audiences could be identified and catered to This made it easier to standardize and stabilise production (Gledhill 1985, 58). In relation to the mass media, genre is part of the process of targeting different market sectors. Traditionally, literary and film critics in particular have regarded generic texts (by which they mean formulaic texts) as inferior to those which they contend are produced outside a generic framework. Indeed, film theorists frequently refer to popular films as genre films in contrast to non-formula films. Elitist critics reject the generic fiction of the mass media because they are commercial products of popular culture rather than high art. Many harbor the Romantic ideology of the primacy of authorial originality and vision, emphasizing individual style  and artistic self-expression. In this tradition the An Introduction to Genre Theory artist (in any medium) is seen as breaking the mould of convention. For the Italian aesthetician Benedetto Croce (1866-1952), an artistic work was always unique and there could be no artistic genres. More recently, some literary and film theorists have accorded more importance to genre, counteracting the ideology of authorial primacy (or auteurism, as it is known in relation to the emphasis on the director in film). Contemporary theorists tend to emphasize the importance of the semiotic notion of intertextuality: of seeing individual texts in relation to others. Katie Wales notes that genre is an intertextual concept (Wales 1989, 259). John Hartley suggests that we need to understand genre as a property of the relations between texts (OSullivan et al. 1994, 128). And as Tony Thwaites et al. put it, each text is influenced by the generic rules in the way it is put together; the generic rules are reinforced by each text (Thwaites et al. 1994, 100). Roland Barthes (1975) argued that it is in relation to other texts within a genre rather than in relation to lived experience that we make sense of certain  events within a text. There are analogies here with schema theory in psychology, which proposes that we have mental scripts which help us to interpret 6 familiar events in everyday life. John Fiske offers this striking example: A representation of a car chase only makes sense in relation to all the others we have seen after all, we are unlikely to have experienced one in reality, and if we did, we would, according to this model, make sense of it by turning it into another text, which we would also understand intertextually, in terms of what we have seen so often on our screens. There is then a cultural knowledge of the concept car chase that any one text is a prospectus for, and that it used by the viewer to decode it, and by the producer to encode it. (Fiske 1987, 115) In contrast to those of a traditionalist literary bent who tend to present artistic texts as nongeneric, it could be argued that it is impossible to produce texts which bear no relationship whatsoever to established genres. Indeed, Jacques Derrida proposed that a text cannot belong to no genre, it cannot be without a genre. Every text participates in one or several genres, there is no genre-less text  (Derrida 1981, 61). Note *In these notes, words such as text, reader and writer are sometimes used as general terms relating to texts (and so on) in whatever medium is being discussed: no privileging of the written word (graphocentrism) is intended. Whilst it is hard to find an alternative for the word texts, terms such as makers and interpreters are sometimes used here as terms non-specific to particular media instead of the terms writers and readers. 2. Working within genres John Hartley argues that genres are agents of ideological closure they limit the meaning-potential  of a given text (OSullivan et al. 1994, 128). Robert Hodge and Gunther Kress define genres as typical forms of texts which link kinds of producer, consumer, topic, medium, manner and occasion, adding that they control the behavior of producers of such texts, and the expectations of potential consumers (Hodge Kress 1988, 7). Genres can be seen as constituting a kind of tacit contract between authors and readers. From the traditional Romantic perspective, genres are seen as constraining and inhibiting authorial creativity. However, contemporary theorists, even  within literary studies, typically reject this view (e. g. Fowler 1982: 31). Gledhill notes that one perspective on this issue is that some of those who write within a genre work in creative tension with the conventions, attempting a personal inflection of them (Gledhill 1985: 63). From the point of view of the producers of texts within a genre, an advantage of genres is that they can rely on readers already having knowledge and expectations about works within a genre. Fowler comments that the system of generic expectations amounts to a code, by the use of which  (or by departure from which) composition becomes more economical (Fowler 1989: 215). Genres can thus be seen as a kind of shorthand serving to increase the efficiency of communication. They may even function as a means of preventing a text from dissolving into individualism and incomprehensibility (Gledhill 1985: 63). And whilst writing within a genre involves making use of certain given conventions, every work within a genre also involves the invention of some new elements. An Introduction to Genre Theory As for reading within genres, some argue that knowledge of genre conventions leads to passive  consumption of generic texts; others argue that making sense of texts within genres is an active process of constructing meaning (Knight 1994). Genre provides an important frame of reference which helps readers to identify, select and interpret texts. Indeed, in relation to advertisements, Varda Langholz Leymore argues that the sense which viewers make of any single text depends on how it relates to the genre as a whole (Langholz Leymore 1975, ix). Key psychological functions of genre are likely to include those shared by categorization generally such as reducing complexity.

Challenges Of The Indian Textile Industry Marketing Essay

Challenges Of The Indian Textile Industry Marketing Essay Scale: Indian Textile Industry is highly fragmented Industry that is lead by several small-scale industries. Because of this, there is lack of Industry Leadership. These small companies do not have fiscal resources to invest in technological up-gradation and they are not able to generate economies of scale. This leads to inability to establish a world-class competitive player. All the sectors except spinning face the problem of scale. India has very few large firms and other firms are generally smaller than their Chinese or Thai counterparts. Some of the Chinese large firms have 1.5 times higher spinning capacity, 1.25 times denim (and 2 times gray fabric) capacity and about 6 times more revenue in garment than their counterparts in India  [1]  which in turn gave an effect on the overall cost distribution along with the ability to attract customers with big orders. No of Exporters Source: CRISIL Skill and Labor productivity: Though Industry has cheap and skilled manpower but they are less productive comparative to other south Asian countries. Low Labor productivity due to lack of skills and modernized infrastructure is making Indian textile industry less productive than other competitor nations. An Industry and Regional Perspective Source: Economics Program Working Paper Series: The Cost Competitiveness of the Manufacturing Sector in China and India (Bart van Ark, Abdul Azeez Erumban, Vivian Chen, Utsav Kumar) Along with the labor productivity issues three other issues are of important consideration: (a) there is a lack of technical manpower -there are only 30 programmes at graduate engineering (including diploma) levels graduating nearly 1000 students this number is insufficient for bringing about significant technological change in the textile sector; (b) Investment by Indian firms for training of its existing workforce is very limited and the skills are confined to already existing processes; (c) there is serious dearth of trained operators and supervisors in India. It is expected that Indian firms will have to invest close to Rs. 1400 bn by year 2010 to increase its global trade to $ 50 bn. This kind of investment would require about 70,000 supervisors and 1.05mn operators in the textile sector and at least 112,000 supervisors and 2.8mn operators in the apparel sector (assuming a 80:20 ratio of investment between textiles and apparel).  [2]  In this situation the real bottleneck t o growth is going to be availability of skilled manpower. Poor Infrastructure: Technological Obsolescence and low degree of modernization in various steps of value chain affects the quality, cost and distribution. The general trend in the country is to go for second hand and outdated looms thus resulting in lower productivity and quality. Raw material from power looms and handloom is of low quality. Though India is a hub of IT services, they are not effectively implemented in textile sector to improve the productivity 1.png Inadequate Research Development and Lack of Technology Upgradation: Government of India has done significant investment in various schemes and other programmes for the growth and development of the industry. It launched Technology up gradation fund scheme in 1999 and issues Rs 916 bn for technology upgradation. However TUFS have not benefited all the segments of the Textile Value Chain -large parts of the funds have gone to the relatively healthier spinning sector. 2.png Low FDI: Lack of scale and the fragmented nature of industry have discouraged mega investments in the Indian textile industry. Unattractiveness of the industry has resulted in abysmal FDI inflows, despite 100% FDI being allowed under the automatic route. These drawbacks created a hurdle to make industry more competitive on the global basis. Legacy of government policy: Government followed protectionist policy for handlooms (labour-intensive and seen as a means to sustain employment) vis-à  -vis power looms mills. India had antiquated labour laws. The companies have often broken their business down into small units to avoid any trouble created by labor unionization. India also maintained capacity restrictions for a long time because government wanted to incentivize Small-scale industries. The Land and urbanization laws resulted in closure of urban mills and lack of import subsidies on advanced machinery resulted on limited technology advancement. Lack of Trade membership: India is serious lacking in trade pact memberships, which leads to restricted access to the other major markets. This issue made others to impose quota and duty, which put scissors on the sourcing quantities from India. High Power Tariff: After raw material, power cost is the most significant cost in the whole supply chain. High power cost and erratic supply hampers the production in India. High Cycle time for garments: Cycle time is the key factor in determining the competitiveness of a firm. It has a direct impact on both price and delivery schedule. Cycle time reduction is strongly correlated with high first pass yield, high throughput times, low variability in process times, low WIP and consequently cost. Currently Indian firms have high lead times and they must reduce their cycle times across the entire supply chain.   The average lead time in manufacturing and delivery sums to around 45-60 days from fabric buying to shipment of apparels. It can also get extended to 80 days. The mean delay in exporting finished garments from India after procurement of raw materials is estimated to be 15.5 days. The shelf life of products driven by fashion is merely 45 days therefore, such delays are indefensible. In contrast Turkey completes entire task ranging from approval of design to delivery in warehouse in a flat 30 days cycle  [3]  . Turkey also has the strategic advan tage of being located close to EU markets and positive liberal political conditions. Customs must provide a turnaround time of  ½ day for an order if we expect Indian firms to become part of larger global supply chains. Indian textile firms must enforce a deployment of industrial engineering with specific importance on cellular manufacturing, JIT and statistical process control to minimize lead times on shop floors. Usage of IT for increasing the productivity is also low in this sector. Indo French Collaboration Machinery: The French textile machinery Manufacturers has established a firm foothold on the international markets for many years. France is the European Unions third largest exporter of textile machinery and the sixth largest in the world. More than one hundred countries have chosen them as their partners to whom they export 90% of their national production. They are a dynamic group of companies who created years ago a private professional Association UCMTF (French Association of Textile Machinery Manufacturers), whose aim is the promotion of the French machines and French companies. The specialized sectors of the French textile machinery industry are: Spinning preparation machinery Long fibre spinning machinery Fibre opening, fibre blending machinery, textile waste recovery Cards Nonwovens manufacturing line Such expertise if augmented with Indian government support can help the issues associated with poor infrastructure and machinery resulting in poor quality of fabric and thus increase the competitiveness of Indian textile in global market. The French textile machinery manufacturers also realized the importance of the Indian textile industry. They invited the Indian textile producers to a series the Indo-French seminar French Technology to Boost the Indian Textile Industrys Competitiveness which were held in Mumbai and Ludhiana on 20th and 23rd April 2010 respectively. The aim of this seminar was to regularly facilitate direct contacts between the Indian textile producers and the top management of the French machinery producers. In words of Mrs Evelyne Cholet, the Secretary General of UCMTF- Organization of such seminars in India is very important at present especially when the Indian Government realizes the importance of new investments in textile machinery to stimulate this strategic sector. The technical textiles sector for which France has an expertise is another sector which has great potential in India This endeavor is supported by Indian government as these seminars were held under the patronage of the office of the Textile Commissioner Ministry of Textiles and Government of India. The French Trade Commission of the Embassy of France in India, Ubifrance (Frances agency for the international development of French companies) and the French Textile Machinery Manufacturers Association (UCMTF) were co-organizers of the seminars. Technical Textile: India is at the threshold of technical textile development, which is set to play a huge role in the development of the countrys various facilities, thus offering the greatest growth potential in this sector. Owing to the rise in demand for value added textile products in the developed nations, the technical textile industry is said to grow around 4 5 percent. According to the recent research by the Textiles Committee, the technical textile industry in India is expected to grow at a rate of 11% anually and reach a size of around $14 billion by 2012. The current size of the market is little less than $8 billion and the projected investment in this sector is around $1000 million. Technical textiles correspond to a multi-disciplinary field with different applications in numerous fields such as medicine, aerospace sports, defence, agriculture and construction. France has already developed expertise in this segment. In France, the technical textile industry comprises nearly 600 companies, consisting of very small businesses, numerous SMEs and big groups alike. Some twenty trades are represented, from fibre production and spinning through to clothes-making and assembly, and cover 12 sectors of application. This type of material is regularly used in widely varying fields such as packaging, protection and safety, clothing, construction, transport, the environment and the medical sector. All these mutually complementary companies work within a network of technical centres, laboratories, universities, competitiveness clusters and professional associations. Their excellence is recognized far beyond the borders of France. Indian manufactures can learn a lot from French technologies and products in technical textile segment. In order to facilitate this learning Techtextil India International Trade Fair for Technical Textiles and Nonwovens is organized where pavilions from Germany, Frnace and Italy present their latest innovations. The objective of the fair is to achieve a future oriented perspective and practical technical information in a range of presentations and discussions specially formulated for the high potential Indian market. Techtextil India is supported by the Office of the Textile Commissioner of the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India. In words of Mr. Dayanidhi Maran, Union Textiles Minister, present at Techtextil 2009- The technical textile industry has a high potential to attract investments worth $1.03 billion and generate around 3,00,000 additional employment by 2012. Since India has highly-skilled manpower and abundant availability of raw material, it can emerge as a key player in the technical textiles industry Innovation through Competitive pole: In order to improve the highly fragmented textile industry of India the French model of competitive poles can be applied. Since French textile industry is a mature sector, innovation is the key factor driving the industry. The French textile industry has been re-organised in the past few years in order to respond to the current innovation and technology creation needs. In 2004, the  «Ã‚  Pà ´les de Compà ©titività ©Ã‚  Ã‚ » (Competitive Poles) were put in place to respond to this need. These poles are associations that group enterprises, research centres, and public and private training institutions. The objective of these poles is to create the environment to the economical renewing of the regions by implementing new products and services. Innovation is, therefore, in the centre of the competitive poles. There are in France now 71 poles spread across the country. The programmes of the poles are financed by the government, by 1.5bn EUR each year in total (including all industries and activities), but local authorities and associations also contribute to the financing. The competitive pole is organized under 2 main axis: Technical textiles Customization of clothing textiles The Lile region is a key example of the competitive pole approach. Nowadays, more than 50 % of the textile engineer in France are graduated in the metropolitan area of Lille Mà ©tropole at lENSAIT and HEI. Technical trainings are also available at the ESAAT. The UP-tex is the pole dedicated to the textile, technical and traditional (clothing), that is located in the metropolitan area of Lile. The UP-tex works as an association of enterprises, research centres, and centres dedicated to technology transference. Its ambition is to become the European reference in terms of advanced textile materials, polysensoriality and design and mass customisation. Furthermore, the labelling of the competitive pole UP-tex has also contributed to the reinforcement of Liles position as a reference in terms of innovative and clothing textiles. The UP-tex has as objectives: Develop the project of the  «Ã‚  customized enterprise  Ã‚ », in order to create a new value chain to the textile  / clothing branch Promote the national and international plan of the high-performance textile regional pole, its economic network (through the CLUBTEX) and its scientific competences Create basis for the emergence of an European technological platform through the creation of the CETI (French  : Centre Europà ©en du Textile Innovant, English: European centre of the Innovative textile) Support the research projects by the attribution of labels to selected projects Further develop innovation in the textile and clothing industry CLUBTEX, which is the association of local industrials to promote innovation in technical textiles, is key element to the success of the Lile textile pole. The association is grouping, nowadays, 58 industrial, 1 union and 6 training and researching centres, all with one common objective to create innovation through the mutualisation of resources. The industries participating in CLUBTEX produce under the SPL (SPL  : French for Systà ¨me Productif Local , in English  : Local Production System) District Textiles Techniques label, which helps on the identification and differentiation of the products towards the customers. Recommendations Government Initiatives: Government can take actions under the following heads for improving the textile industry: Flexibility of contract labor law: Labor Laws should be more liberalized and made favorable that will help to make labor more productive. Textile industry should be exempted from contract labor law Better implementation of TUF: Government should focus on providing uniform disbursement of incentives through TUF Attracting FDIs: Government should provide tax incentives to attract FDI to make it more competitive in global marketplace. Establish integrated textile parks. Allow more Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Garment Retailing to enable large, modern retail showrooms to set up shops in India which will promote local sourcing and will result in better production Encourage Private Sector for Partnership collaboration Develop supporting Industry: Develop textile machinery industry (currently 70% of textile machinery is imported. Faster port clearance and cheaper transport Skill development Initiatives: Set up skill development centers. More Training centers should be opened to train the workforce and awareness of new technology and trends should be increased among manpower. Collaboration with Institute like SITRA (South India Textile Research Association) for labor skill development Reduce power tariff, encourage renewable sources of energy through government subsidy, reduce interest rates and transaction costs. Setting up of quality checking laboratories to ensure global competitiveness Apparel park to promote exports: In National Textile Policy 2000 government established Apparel International Mart: Apparel Export Promotion Council has constructed an Apparel International Mart (AIM) at Gurgaon to provide showrooms on lease and license basis to the established exporters to showcase their products Aid to agriculture industry to improve the availability, productivity and quality of Raw Material: In National Textile Policy 2000 government implemented Cotton Technology Mission: To improve the performance of Cotton sector through improvement in Research Development, quality and productivity of products. The Govt. of India is aimed to increase production of cotton by 50% with improved quality and productivity Firm level Initiatives Companies should improve the productivity at firm level to develop economies of scale: Up-grading technology: Form JVs with global players for technology up-gradation and scale Implementing TQM: ensure waste minimization, product durability and reliability. Lean manufacturing: optimized distribution network and supply chain management to attain reduced cycle time Use of IT services In-house skill development program Apparel Industry Landscape Global Textile and Apparel trade is recovering after a slump during the economic recession in 2008-09, and is expected to reach US$ 1 Trillion by 2020 from the current US$ 510 Bn. The growth in trade is driven by increased outsourcing of western / developed countries towards lower cost countries in Asia. Indias Textile Apparel industry (domestic + exports) is expected to grow from the current US$ 70 bn to US$ 220 bn by 2020. The Indian domestic Textile and Apparel market size in 2009 was US$ 47 bn and is expected to grow @ 11% CAGR to reach US$ 140 Bn by 2020 Domestic Apparel retail market was worth US$33 Bn in 2009 and is expected to reach US$ 100 Bn by 2020. Export Sector: Indias exports have also recovered in 2009-10 following increased global demand and is currently worth US$ 23.5 Bn. Indian apparel exports have also grown by a CAGR of 11.7% in last 4 years. The export market includes readymade garments of cotton, man made, silk, wool and other textile materials with cotton products accounting for the major share. India has the potential to increase its export share in world trade from the current 4.5% to 8% and reach US$ 80 Bn by 2020. India has the potential of this strong growth in exports because of increased sourcing shift from developed countries to Asia. Indias also possess different strengths which makes it a suitable alternative to China for global buyers. In terms of financial returns, Apparel is the most attractive product category amongst retail product categories both in terms of Returns on Capital Employed and EBITDA. Garmenting Technical Textiles are the most attractive segments within the Apparel value chain in terms o f ROA and EBITDA. According to KPMG research investments upto US$ 68 Bn will be required by 2020 across the Textile supply chain to tap the potential market generated by the growth of textile industry. Investment required in garment sector by 2020 is to the tune of US$ 14 Bn and for processing is US$ 19 Bn. Apparel Industry: However Indian Apparel Industry is a small scale sector with high degree of fragmentation. Apparel manufacturing has about 77,000 small scale units classified as domestic manufacturers, manufacturer exporters and fabricators. Due to low entry barrier, garments industry is the least capital intensive part of textiles value chain, leading to high fragmentation. There are around 8200 registered apparel exporters in India. The turnover of 4800 exporters is less than 5 million INR which indicates the high level of fragmentation. Apparel Retailing: A huge chunk of apparel market is contributed by urban segment. Majority of this urban segment stays in few selected cities where organized retail is preferred mode of shopping thus organized retail plays a very important role in domestic apparel consumption. Total apparel and fashion accessories retail market was worth Rs.80,000 crore in 2004, which grew by 11% each year till 2006. Although organized retails chains and exclusive brand outlets are gaining momentum, traditional retailers and MBOs still dominate apparel retailing. One of the key factors for the huge growth is due to expansion by apparel brands and retailers to small but potential cities. Many global brands like Marks Spencer are getting established in India by franchisee route. Malls are expected to be one of the main drivers for growth of apparel retailing, as they provide large areas. Mens Apparel: Man apparel stands at $ 8.1bn in 2007 with a market share of 42% of total apparel market. It is expected to see high growth in near future but % share will decrease due to growth in other segments.In 2007 men apparel industry was mainly dominated by shirts accounting for 36.5% of total men segement. The established key players are Arvind mills, Madura Garment, Westside, shoppers stop and Pantaoon. Levis Strauss is the major newcomer in the same segment. Women Apparel: women apparel stands at $ 6.7bn in 2007 with a market share of 34% of total apparel market. It is expected to grow till 11bn by 2009. Some of the important changiing trends observed in this segment are Liberalization of casual wear in the office is increasing the ready to wear market Working women demand western or indo-western outfits that last in fashion and quality Saree have the higest share but trouser and skirts are growing rapidly due to changing social trends From 2002 to 2007 saree demand has shown a CAGR of 12.8% whereas Trouser and skirts have shown CAGR of 34% 1.png Kid Apparel: Kid apparel is the smallest segment of $ 4.7 bn. Licensing interntional kids apparel is a successful strategy to capture the premium market. Some popular brands in same category are Disney, Barbie etc. This segment have very little brand penetration of 5-8% but it is expected to grow at 15-20% A comparitive analysis of all segments with their expected growth is shown below: Key growth drivers for the textile and apparel Industry are : Growth in organized retailing at 41% CAGR. Increasing number of working women. Increasing household income Changing demographics Affinity for brands and better shopping experience Profile of French brands: High end/ Luxury Brands Products coverage Gender targeted Target Customer Marketing strategy Product Strategy Hermà ¨s Clothing accessories Male/Female High-end/ rich population of all ages Exclusivity is the key word. Products are very Expensive and often perceived as durable goods (can be passed from mother to daughter) Overbuying is discoraged: clients do not have the right to by more than a X number of items per collection Very high-quality, often hand-made by specialized artisans; eg. leather goods often produced by experts in Italy. Each maison has its Flagship products, that remain unchanged, or are slightly updated across collections. Pret-a-porter collections are innovative and trend-setter for the rest of the clothing industry LVMH Louis Vuitton Clothing accessories Male/Female High-end/ rich population of all ages Channel Clothing accessories Female High-end/ rich population of all ages LVMH Dior Clothing accessories Male/Female High-end/ rich population of all ages Chloà © Clothing accessories Female High-end/ rich population of all ages Yves Saint Laurent Clothing accessories Male/Female High-end/ rich population of all ages Lanvin Clothing accessories Male/Female High-end/ rich population of all ages LVMH Givenchy Clothing accessories Female High-end/ rich population of all ages Maison Martin Margiela Clothing accessories Male/Female High-end/ rich population of all ages Premium/ Middle Product Coverage Gender Targeted Target Customer Marketing Strategy Products Strategy Isabel Marant Clothing accessories Female Mid 30s/ Early 40s Targets are high-end of medium class, that cannot afford luxe but wants to buy the best product they can afford. Price sensibility is not to be neglected. Brand strengh based on notoriety, string communication campaigns and sales to clean stocks. New trend is the affiliated-brand strategy, such as Athà © and Etoile, by respectivelly V.Bruno and I.Marant, that target at different age ranges as a way to maximise sales Fit and Design are the key words. Quality is important, but not overvalued as for luxe products. Some brands will have a few flagship products, but as general rule the collections are completely renovated each season Vanessa Bruno Clothing accessories Female Mid 30s/ Early 40s Carven Clothing accessories Male / Female Mid 30s/ Early 40s De Fursac Clothing accessories Male Late 30s/ Late 40s Jacadi Clothing accessories Children 0 to 8y +/- Bonpoint Clothing accessories Children 0 to 8y +/- Gerard Darel Clothing accessories Female Mid 30s/ Early 40s Agnà ©s Clothing accessories Female Mid 30s/ Early 40s Claudine Pierrot Clothing accessories Female Mid 30s/ Early 40s Manoush Clothing accessories Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Maje Clothing accessories Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Zadig Voltaire Clothing accessories Children/ Male / Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Ba Sh Clothing accessories Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Sandro Clothing accessories Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Les Petites Clothing accessories Children/ Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Comptoir des Cotoniers Clothing accessories Children/ Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Athà © Vanessa Bruno Clothing accessories Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Etoile Isabel Marant Clothing accessories Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Kooples Clothing accessories Male / Female Whole 20s Berenice Clothing accessories Male / Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Bel Air Clothing accessories Female Whole 20s Middle/Low range Product Coverage Gender Targeted Target Customer Marketing Strategy Products Strategy Zara (Spanish) Clothing accessories Female Mid 30s/ Early 40s Disposable Fashion. Easy-to-wear collection hits, constantly renovated (short collections) Design Disposable fashion. Quality is not perceived as key product attribute. Products are often produced outside Europe Mango (Spanish) Clothing accessories Female Mid 30s/ Early 40s H M (UK) Clothing accessories Female Mid 30s/ Early 40s Naf Naf Clothing accessories Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Sud Express Clothing accessories Female Late 20s/ Early 30s PROMOD Clothing accessories Female Late 20s/ Early 30s Etam Clothing accessories Female Various Middle/Low range Product Coverage Gender Targeted Target Customer Marketing Strategy Products Strategy Uniqlo (Japan) Clothing accessories Male/ female Families looking for basic items with average quality and good price Long-lasting collections, not really fashion-driven (does not follow trends). Good value for money Le Petit Bateau Clothing accessories Children/ Female French brand in India: Based on the consumption profile we can see that women segment is the fastest growing segment and also the share of formal wear like trousers and skirts is increasing due to increasing number of working women in the society. Thus a French brand targeting female consumers in the age range of Late 20s/Early 30s will be best suited for India. Though the disposable income is increasing, the target group of women is highly value conscious hence Premium/Middle or Middle/Low class brand will perform better than the luxury brands. Also the segment purchasing luxury brands is although growing but currently too small to target. Important Parameters to consider while entering India Positioning: The most important part is the positioning in the Indian consumer mind-space. Smart casual positions are taken in by the brand such as ColorPlus, Dockers and Canary Blue. Design wear are gone with square-1 mall and Kimaya, Kazo and individual designer having their stand alone store. Any positioning below that is lapped up by Zillions of manufacturers. However there are still wide open gaps which lie agape between these broad categories which can be easily targeted. Also Indian consumers show an affinity for foreign brands as it is considered a proxy for status. Therefore even the Indian Manufactures like ITC, Madura garment give exotic names to their brands for eg John Players, Allen Solly. Location: The location is the key to the positioning, it determines and in turns reinforces positioning; in fact, with about 50% of the operational expenses are taken up by the rentals, it has assumed an even more important position. Exclusive showrooms at a high end street or space in well reputed mall are the two options for establishing a high end brand. Buying vs. Manufacturing: It is very important decision for the fore