Speech as Xerxes

Greetings, subjects. My reign was sufficient and completely beneficial to the Persian society, I deserve this power as even Herodetus the Greek writer said with â€Å"among all these immense numbers there was not a man who, for stature and noble bearing, was more worthy than Xerxes to wield so vast a power. I deserved to take the throne, and it was Ahuramazda's will. Other sons of Darius there were, but thus unto Ahura-Mazda was the desire – Darius my father made me the greatest after himself.When my father Darius went away from the throne, by the will of Ahura-Mazda I became king on my fathers throne. I am of royal decent and Achmaenid blood runs through me as I am Xerxes, the great king, king of kings, king of lands, containing many men, king in this great earth far and wide, son of Darius the king, an Achaemenid, a Persian, son of the Persian, an Aryan, of Aryan seed. I have legitimate reason to access the throne. Greek writers have depicted me as an impetuous, arrogant an d sadistic madman.But this is the view of a Greek, not only are the Greeks inferior to me but they are also not going to give an accurate description, and are of course going to be bias. I destroyed parts of their beloved homeland so their views of me can be somewhat inaccurate because of their anger towards me. Greek writers have spoken of me as having negative aspects, but my inscriptions throughout my kingdom say otherwise as I take the good virtues that have been bestowed upon me by Ahura-Mazda. I took care of the revolts in both Egypt and Babylonia swiftly and successfully, with proper actions undertaken to teach the inhabitants a lesson.Egypt lost the privilige of self-government and local autonomy, and even though the Babylonians revolted twice because the first punishment wasn't as harsh, the second time they revolted they lost their Gods and in effect this stopped the revolts in the future. Greek writers described my actions towards the revolts as trying to crush their reli gions without thought, but they failed to mention that it is general practice of rulers in dealing with rebellious countries to destroy sanctuaries.As said in an inscription in Persepolis, when my father Darius went away from the throne, I became king on his throne by the grace of Ahuramazda. After I became king, I finished what had been done by my father, and I added other works. The palace through my building program became twice as big as it was in Darius's reign, there was an innovative design shown in Persepolis with the staircases for example. The palace was not a permenant residentual place, but rather an administrative centre and focus for religious ritual with there also being inscriptions that give details of religion.For the war on Greece, the correct decision was made that they must be punished for their assistance in the Ionians revolt so I made preperations for invasion over 4 years. First I decided to take diplomatic measures, so I sent out envoys to demand earth and water from the Greeks. But because Athens and Sparta were my target, I decided best not to ask for their submission but to just punish them and lay the assault on them. I demanded for my subjects of the provinces to send men for the army I was sending, this army was the largest in recorded history said by Herodetus and further determined by modern historians.I decided that the soldiers of my army needed easier movement, so there was a bridge at Hellespont built over the years in preperation. There was the matter of supplies and food for the many warriors that would travel to Greece, so supply depots were set up for easy access of supplies while travelling or waiting. I then entrusted the Egyptians with the task to make the materials to build a bridge across the Strymon River, the bridge was close to the supply depot at Eion. My father previously sent his ships to Greece unaware of the weather conditions, this resulted in a storm sinking the ships.I learnt from this mistake and built a canal at Mt Athos so the Persian ships could safely pass through. The attack on Greece began at Thermopylae and the cowards hid in the mountains not willing to fight with honor. It was then by the will of Ahura-Mazda that a Greek called Ephialtes came to me and spoke of a mountain pass that allowed us to surround the Greeks and crush their inferior soldiers, Herodetus told the story of the Battle of Thermopylae. After this victory I was then deceived by a Greek who told me that the Greeks were leeing, so the fleet was sent to Salamis and was ambushed unfairly. It was at this defeat I thought it best to retreat and protect the bridges which was the smarter decision in the situation, after this decision was made I left Mardonius in command of the forces and returned to Persia. To carry out my father's legacy I inherrited his foreign policy in which I was expected to further expand the Persian empire. The three things I was required to do through the foreign policy was to punish the Greeks, further expand empire the and to gain personal glory as my predecessors had done.Through the Greek campaign I accomplished the task that was inherrited, I punished the Athenians and burnt their city so my real goal was achieved, I also further expanded the empire to the East with the addition of provinces such as Thrace and Macedonia and I also added territory in the most distant Eastern provinces. Through the building program personal glory was in an obvious way achieved, and the palace in Perespolis showed this and left an impression even after my reign finished. It was also said by J.L O'Neil that I wasn't interested in military affairs and preferred building activities. Religious policy was properly taken out, as said in an inscription written by myself is that I copied the religion of my father Darius who recognised Ahuramazda as the supreme creator or God. More importantly, I recognise that I was king through the favor of Ahuramazda which was also said in an inscripti on. Doing this made religion an important political dimension and through this I was an instrument of Ahura-Mazda.I strengthened the religion shown in the â€Å"daeva† inscription which eliminated other Gods and made the â€Å"demon† Gods no longer worshipped. I was successful in what was expected of me as a Persian ruler, I demonstrated that I was fit to rule the empire and I continued my fathers legacy. Inscriptions throughout Persia said that even after the retreat from Greece my subjects still respected me and thought of me as a great king, showing that the loss did not damage Persian society.

A Critical Analasys of Scientific Management Essay

Fredrick Taylor, the father of scientific management. He had a firm belief in â€Å"one best way† (Samson & Daft, 2003), of doing something. In the year 1899, Taylor held an experiment that involved German and Hungarian men, whose job involved some very heavy-duty work (Gabor, 2000). To his disappointment, men either refused to work, or wouldn’t work to his expectations. The men hated him utterly; to the extent he required security when going home (Gabor, 2000). In his entire dilemma with his employers, in stepped Schmidt, a man not of intelligence but had the strength of a bull and an ox-like mentally required to reach the standards of Fredrick Taylor. The story of Schmidt reflected 2 two significant aspects of Taylorism (Gabor, 2000). Firstly, it reflected his aggressive personality, which included his high expectation in people, hence his drive to keep on improving. Secondly, it reflected how he did not understand nor respect the limits of a human being, revealed in his strict and precise managerial style. Scholars of all times seem to criticise this aspect of Taylorism, but despite its deficiency, scientific management soared into the 20th century and remains relevant to today’s organisations. Scientific management has its shortcomings and in some instances not relevant in today’s organisations. Its relevance to today’s organisations is simply the fact that it worked and continues to today. The system had a strict and clear-cut methodical approach. That was because of Taylor’s firm belief that there was one best way. His view of the management’s role was to decide exactly how a task was to be performed and that they were to determine how this would be done (Crainer, 1999). His idea of finding the one best way was the use of a stopwatch and timing the process of doing a task. Further more, tasks would be broken up into smaller processes, timed and done repetitively until the fastest way of performing that specific task would be found. For Taylor, â€Å"no task was too small for improvement† (Olsen, 2001, p. 255). The aim in all the timing and recording was to maximise efficiency and scientific management done that and more. From researching, it can be seen that efficiency is the primary reason for its survival and relevance today i.e. Henry Ford. Scientific management introduced the initiative of a conveyer belt and assembly lines (Olsen, 2001). A development as simple as a conveyer belt has had a huge impact on today’s productivity levels. According to  Henry Ford, production of cars dramatically increased from 100,000 to 200,000 in the year 1908, at the same time reducing about 1500 workers (Perseus Publishing Staff, 2002). Hence, scientific management lowered the cost of production and therefore enabled profit maximisation. The thought behind the conveyer belt or assembly line was to eliminate unnecessary movement. Instead of people having to move themselves to the raw materials and delivering the goods, they stayed put while the goods and raw material would come to them. Before the conveyer belt, workers had to pull the goods around, generally the unskilled workers (Perseus Publishing Staff, 2002). This raises another aspect of scientific management. People were chosen to do particular jobs depending on their physical or mental capacity (Samson & Daft, 2003). From experience, a past co-worker at McDonald who was handicap was subject to cleaning only, scientific management in action today. The relevance of this aspect is that people are chosen to best suit a task designated to them i.e. if it is a physical task, a person with the physical capabilities would be chosen. As mentioned earlier, Schmidt was entirely admired by Taylor as he met Taylor’s expectation (Gabor, 2000). Schmidt had the physical capabilities required of workers in Taylor’s view. A case study on Mc Donald’s indicates the survival of scientific management and its application to today’s organisations (Kerr I. & Darl K., 1995). For instance, the production of a burger is an example of assembly line style of production is applied. In the making of one burger, approximately 5-8 people are involved depending on the size of the McDonald unit. The making of the burger is split into the heating of the buns, grilling of the meat patty, dressing and finally wrapping. Each role may have up to 2 people on each task with specific instructions on how to perform them the tasks. Imagine an individual having to do all of the above; production would be very time consuming. Hence, the relevance of scientific management to organisations today is simply the fact the fact it has proven successful, extremely efficient in the past through Henry Ford (Perseus Publishing Staff, 2002) and st ill is today at McDonalds. Despite all the flourishing outcomes, it had its shortcomings. The greatest of all was the treatment of workers and that problem still exists today. In researching, critics claim people were treated like machines, by removing  unnecessary movement or wasted effort by the observing of and timing of workers (Crainer, 1999). The use of stopwatches was banned in the year 1912 and was not lifted until 1949. At first sight, stopwatches were not generally accepted until Taylor realised that giving workers breaks allowed them to recover from fatigue. However, the need to recover from fatigue suggests work was getting harder and rest was essential. Analysts of management claimed scientific management ignored human characteristics, those such as workers personal needs and physical restriction (http://en.wikipedia.org). Work processes became so efficient workers had no time to relax. Also the fact that each worker done one task repetitively all day, every day, seems to be absolutely machine like treatment. The constant inhumane treatment of the workers led to a strike in 1911 at a munitions factory run by the army (Crainer, 1999). Fredrick Taylor himself quotes †¦Brutally speaking, our scheme (Scientific management) does not ask any initiative in a man. We do not care for his initiative, each employee should receive every day clear-cut, definite instructions as to just what he is to do and how he is to do it, and these instructions should be exactly carried out, whether they are right or wrong. (Crainer, 1999, p.193). This without a doubt shows how Taylor cared less about humans. His sole purpose of efficiency oversaw the fact that humans will always be humans. Taylor tried to overcome this factor by compensating the workers for a hard days work. He introduced the piece rate system payment. This scheme paid workers according to their production output. Workers at the end of the day had to more productive in order to earn an adequate wage (Kerr I. & Darl K., 1995). Compensation is only temporary unless it is sufficient. Statistics show at Midvale Steel Company in the year 1890, within 8 years an increase in production was more than 300% while the increase in wages was only from 25 to 100% (Olson, 2001), which doesn’t sound fair . Despite the introduction of piece rate payment schemes, workers eventually will get fed up and may react in a negative way i.e. strike or quit. Telling workers the precise way of doing something reflects purely shows he did not want them to think or their opinion. Today, the same treatment of humans as robots can be seen. For instance in Samoa, a Japan Company Yazaki runs their factory  producing wires according to Taylor’s theories i.e. assembly lines, strict and specific tasks etc. Business entities claim that people are first, but at the end of the day, management’s decisions are solely based on profit maximisation, efficiency and so forth. Henry Ford complained, â€Å"How come when I want a pair of hands I get a human being as well?†(Crainer, 1999, p.194), hence the rise of machinery. Taylor faced the same difficulties and inspired him to do something about it. His development of machines started with a large steel hammer. Taylor eventually owned more than 100 patents (Olson, 2001). His view was the combination of machinery to assist human, but not to replace them (Olson, 2001). That view is not as evident today. With machines production type organisations see it as a more efficient way of performing a task as it meant fewer errors and fewer workers who may be considered a setback due to their physical and personal limitations. Today in Japan, scientific management has had a vast impact, however, in most factories, people do not run it. Machines normally perform production. According to the Japanese, the â€Å"final ingredient to mass production was technology† (Tsutsui, p.165). Its relevance to organisations today is that technology has substituted people’s weaknesses for almost errorless machines that enables mass production, reduces wages considerably and in turn maximises profit (Olsen, 2001). However, this could arguably be both relevant and non relevant to organisations. With the introduction of machinery and technology, it in turn eliminated the need for unskilled people. Eventually, organisations will require fewer workers because smaller groups with the assistance of machinery can produce the same amount as a large group without machinery. Last but not least of its shortcomings was the deskilling of people. Scientific management may have made production easier in the sense that tasks were small and repetitive. An effect of this was that a skilled worker could easily be replaced by an unskilled worker (Kerr I. & Darl K., 1995). In doing so, there may be a non-foreseeable effect on the organisation. To conclude, scientific management is largely relevant to today’s organisations. The essay suggests that its relevance and application  overrides its negative aspects. Its contribution has enabled mass efficient production. The one best way view of Taylor came out with a substantial improvement in production and machinery. Humans will always be viewed and treated like machines; this deficiency exists and will continue to until scientific management’s approach sees to the human characteristics, which is unlikely. Despite all its pros and cons, it will survive and will be continually applied in organisations today as it has proven to be successful in the past, is today and will continue to be successful in the future. REFERENCES. Crainer, S. (1999). 75 Greatest Management Decisions Ever Made. Saranac Lake, NY, USA: AMACOM. [Electronic Version]. Retrieved 4th August 2005, from http://site.ebrary.com/lib/auckland/Doc?id=10018416 Gabor, A. (2000). Capitalist Philosophers: The Geniuses of Modern Business – Their Lives, Times. Westminster, MD, USA: Crown Publishing Group, Incorporated. [Electronic Version]. Retrieved 7th August 2005, from http://site.ebrary.com/lib/auckland/Doc?id=2002333 Inkson, K., & Kolb, D. (1995). Management- A New Zealand Perspective. New Zealand: Longman Paul. Olson, J. S. (2001). Encyclopedia of the Industrial Revolution in America. Westport, CT, USA: Greenwood Publishing Group, Incorporated. [Electronic Version]. Retrieved 7th August 2005, from http://site.ebrary.com/lib/auckland/Doc?id=10040740 Perseus Publishing Staff (2002). Business: The Ultimate Resource. London, GBR: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. [Electronic Version]. Retrieved 5th August. From: http://site.ebrary.com/lib/auckland/Doc?id=10022156 Samson, D., & Daft, R. L. (2003). Management-Pacific Rim Edition. Victoria, Australia: Thomson Learning Australia. Tsutsui, W. M. (1998). Manufacturing Ideology: Scientific Management in Twentieth-Century Japan. Ewing, NJ, USA: Princeton University Press. [Electronic Version]. Retrieved 6th August 2005, from http://site.ebrary.com/lib/auckland/Doc?id=10035927 Wikipedia online Encyclopedia. Retrieved 11th August 2005, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_management.

Internationalization of Financial Markets Essay - 1

Internationalization of Financial Markets - Essay Example People adopt all these strategies to reduce the risk and allocate the resources in a strategic manner. Â  During the last 20 years, internationalization of financial markets has developed at a very swift pace. This took place due to the amalgamation of goods market leading to the presence of multinational corporations. Imports and exports volumes have increased largely leading to increasing in international transactions. All these elements have increased their presence internationally but the growth of internationalization of financial markets has gone beyond the adjustment of trade. Along with this growth, banks’ existence has also increased internationally with many new branches in new countries to satisfy the needs of customers working for multinational organizations (Horne, 1990). Â  The reason that banks have different packages for different countries is that people have different needs and trends. Some countries might have the trend of saving more and some might have investment trend depending on the current situation of the country. If there is inflation in the country, demand is high but supply is very low because the purchasing power of consumers has increased but output has not increased at the same pace. The government will increase the interest rate so that instead of spending the money people save the money and do not demand much (Welch & Liostarinen, 1993). During this period, foreigners will start saving their money in those countries’ banks. Similarly, when there is deflation in any country government will decrease the rate of interest so that people invest more to stimulate the production and prices. Â  Moreover, different countries confront different kind of natural calamities and other destructions. Insurance companies have great significance in these kinds of countries, they collect premium from people periodically and invest this money in different projects.

Understanding and Remembering Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Understanding and Remembering - Essay Example Nonetheless, it is worth noting that there are some cultures that are considered humanistic that are usually characterized as the study of man. Therefore, music may not define man and his daily habits; thus, it may be difficult to study it as a culture that defines a people or society. Nonetheless, it is worth noting that music and musical study requires a double specialization that is including anthropology and musical studies, a combinational that is usually never found. Nearly 85 percent of the Americans know that music has four fundamental categories or the academic music that is usually discussed under misleading terms namely the classical that includes folk music that is manly associated with the white community, the popular music that is usually differentiated from the jazz music in aspects including hit tunes, and the Negro music. The other 15 percent do not know the distinction of music other than the hip-hop, jazz, classical, and blues, among other peripheral classifications. To my understanding from numerous research works on the music and its consideration in cultural classification, there are needs to conduct more research to determine what levels and entry point should music to be taught elaborately in schools among other learning institutions. To certain degree those who study music never get into the history of music and distribution of music has a culture but they are only concern with ways music can be perfected along the direction or genre they are interested (Merrian 1173). Therefore, there are needs to address music along anthropologic line. This will help in understanding music and its different application along different cultures and types. In other words, understanding music as a culture in America among other nations, people, and continents will only be achieved when a specific interest through study incorporated in the study curriculum. Additionally, there is the concept of the double

Keeler v. Superior Court, 2 Cal 3D 619 (1970) Research Paper

Keeler v. Superior Court, 2 Cal 3D 619 (1970) - Research Paper Example He insisted, upon viewing her pregnant form, the he would â€Å"stomp it out of you†, then pushing her against the car and driving his knee sharply into her abdomen (New York State Bar Association, 2010, p.623). After striking his wife in the face several times, she eventually fainted. Upon awaking, Robert Keeler had left the scene of the crime. Her first move was to return to Stockton where she approached the police, who summoned medical assistance. She was discovered to have significant facial injuries and extensive bruises on her abdomen (loislaw.com, 2010). Upon the advice of medical practitioners, a C-section was performed in which the fetus was discovered to have a fractured skull and was delivered stillborn. Under Penal Code  § 187, Robert Keeler was charged with murder as it was determined that the damage caused to the fetus could only have been sustained through external force. The Supreme Court of Amador County ruled that Robert Keeler could not be held on murder charges or convicted of the crime. The judge in the case cited Penal Code 187 that provides â€Å"murder is the unlawful killing of a human being, with malice afterthought† (loislaw.com, 2010, p.2). At this time, in 1970, most of the laws pertaining to murder and identifying what constitutes a human being was related to very old common law from the 1850s. There were no precedents set that clearly indicated fetus rights and such rights in relation to classification as a human being. This common law involved protections for individuals who had been born alive, and Teresa Keeler’s child had been stillborn. The judge had no legal viability by which to uphold murder charges. The judge further ruled that citing other relevant laws other than those spelled out in Penal Code 187 would deny Mr. Keeler due process afforded him by law (loislaw.com). Though Robert Keeler’s domestic assault charges were upheld, there were absolutely no

Types of Market Research to Undertake Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Types of Market Research to Undertake - Essay Example The macro-environment involves interactions with technological, socio-cultural, political and economic factors that emanate from without the company’s setting. For instance, since the market for ice ball moulds faces competition from other companies, the following types of research are suggested to be carried out (Loudon et al, 2006, p8). Research will be carried out to determine the level of market penetration by the company and the likelihood of reaching the most remote prospective customer. By facilitating research for market penetration by the company and its competitors, the company will be ensuring that the current market share is maintained and stretched if possible. Research recommendations would give such policies as competitive pricing as well as an aggressive sales promotion for the Soccer Ball Football Ice Mold. The company will ensure that the market dominance is secured by meeting customers’ demand and preferences. Increase in customer orders will be targe ted for research to come with solutions some of which could include loyalty scheme introduction. The existing logistics and distribution networks can be assessed to provide alternative distribution techniques to enhance market development. Product development will be analyzed to determine if the name Soccer Ball Football Ice Mold is enough competitive as a brand name. Market diversification is also another channel to unravel market potential strategies. Research recommendations would give such policies as competitive pricing.

APPLIED E BUSINESS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

APPLIED E BUSINESS - Essay Example ing and Mortgage disclosure Act), according to this new law, it became obligatory for the lenders to disclose their lending procedure to the common public (Squires 7). The year after the passage of HMDA experienced the acceptance of CRA (Community reinvestment Act) because analysis showed that the amount being invested in meager areas was quite low (Ross 44). The Act made it obligatory for the banking institution to provide loans to all the people available in the market; provide the facility of depositing money to limited areas and develop reports regarding the habit of lending and submit the report to the federal body. These reports aided in evaluation of the applicants when these applicants made request for conducting takeovers and amalgamations. The practices made by the Act were not implied on the credit unions as these unions were not as large as the banks of that era. According to the definition of credit unions, these unions are allowed to restrict the amount of money they le nd to people sharing similar characteristics such as work and educational institute. The outcome of the CRA act was that there was a sudden increase in the amount borrowed by people living in areas that consist of low to middle income earners. The research conducted by San Francisco Fed showed that the amount of money borrowed by low income earners for the purpose of purchasing homes elevated by 37% during the period of 1993 to 1997 and during the same period, the amount borrowed by middle income earners elevated by 32% (Laderman 2). During the same era, the number of buying and selling offers of home made by lower middle income earners increased by 43% and for low income earners it increased by 43% (Laderman 2). This era even witnessed an increase in the borrowing conducted by high income earners by 17% and middle income earners by 23% (Laderman 2). Those in the favor of the act believed that these achievements were caused due to the act, while during the same period increase in

Social Problems Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Social Problems - Coursework Example Hence, it is critically significant to minimize or eradicate the seeming inevitable social problems in order to have healthy societies. Alcoholism is a social problem that has deleterious effects on the abuser, the close family, and the wider community (Zimberg, 2013). It is thus important to manage alcohol abuse at local levels in order to avoid undesirable ramifications. Creating awareness about the dangers of alcoholism at the societal level is a significant step towards eradicating the social problem. Typically, educational campaigns and seminars can equip the society with skills to prevent or moderate their drinking behavior. Abstinence from alcohol can be a challenging endeavor, but it does not involve any risks (Lessa & Gilbert, 2009). Thus, educating the community on the significance of avoiding alcohol can save the society from the social problem. It is crucial for the alcohol drinkers to set realistic targets for alcohol use and keep an honest record of their drinking habits. Similarly, collaborating with the policymakers and local government to establish rehabilitation centers can yield good results towar ds instilling behavioral changes on the alcohol abusers. Additionally, controlled drinking support groups can assist the drinkers to moderate their drinking habits and regain

Corporate Governance Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Corporate Governance - Case Study Example Long term capital structures have been indicated to more advantages to the firm over short-term capital structure decisions (Hitt, Ireland & Hoskisson 97). Matters of equity and debt can also be well analyzed through the capital structure. Evidently, the capital structure would help prove useful in sustaining the interests of managerial agents and the firm owners. U.S.-based firms could integrate elements of the corporate governance practices to make better decisions by coming up with policies that will help their firms gain public trust. Additionally, US firms can improve the ethics of the firm, corporate governance and social responsibility (Hitt, Ireland & Hoskisson 317-23). In the event that the mangers are compelled to comply with the set regulations, then the level of ethics will be adhered to across the board. Having a strict code of conduct will allow for compliance of set standards and regulations. This means that all the decisions made will be done

Globalization and Youth Essay Example for Free

Globalization and Youth Essay Globalization and Culture mean different things to different people and the emerging generation will shape the future of both. There has been cultural implications are central to understanding human side of globalization in youth culture as a whole. Youth are important but the society does not realize this because they are paying attention to more the cultural side of the problem. No longer is it a question of whether globalization is having an impact on all aspects of human life; the more pressing question being asked today is what that impact entails. The core goal is to explore the situated effects of the era in which we are living now on the global and local cultures of young people† according to Jacqueline Kennelly. The youth have come to represent both the moral decline of eroding social fabric and the hope for a new and creative response to challenging times in which global youth cultures have responded to that incorporates the limits and possibilities of the contemporary era. There have been many laws that have made children and the youth enter into the market in ways they should not. The implications of this situation is that young people are now required to turn inward- to themselves and in some cases their families in order to respond to enormous uncertainties and risk associated with modern life. Youth studies appear to have increased on how we need to represent local youth identities and social practices within international, transnational or global contexts. This challenge is repeated across many different types of study and worked through in a variety ways. There is a common thread that will help young people’s identities and lives today must or should be understood with reference to global phenomena and frameworks and in terms of how they can negotiate and are formed in the intersection of local and global contexts. People are beginning to question about youth identities today, one of the key problems is that young people do not realize the gains and losses these youth are facing in the local and global comparison. Many of these studies have realized that youth research examines the impact of globalization on the youth experience and identity and in various ways engages with the local and global dualism as conceptual frameworks that have been studied throughout the years. These studies show more of strengths than weaknesses due to the global levels in focus with the local, national and global levels. The youth have been studied for many years which mean there is a lot to more research about how globalization will affect the many concerns today. Contemporary youth research is conducted in the era of cultural globalization and this means that it can cause more trouble to what is being studied. Globalization in youth is something hard to explain but it is easy to explain when talking about the world as a whole. It shows that youth do have a big impact on the world because they are learning to set an example for when they grow up to show that they can make changes as their role models have. Academic youth and culture have been long understood as inseparable and closely related to one another since education is important if they want to have good paying careers. Most of this information is based on the ethnic culture since we have different types it is hard to know which ones will be successful and who will be the troublemakers. The context of globalization processes understanding and the preservation of ethnic self-identity has become important value for that reason our youth needs to understand that the lifestyle is different from what it was a few years ago because youth are using more technology and seem to know more about situations before the adults tend to know. As Sam George states â€Å" Young people have a symbiotic relationship with globalization that accelerates its influence in their lives†, and studies have shown that people have been denied the existence of globalization of culture. As explained it is widely agreed that there is no such thing as global culture, but it has not been figured out and it hard to explain since youth and globalization have different aspects. It is difficult to discern between global and local influences between the spatial effects of globalization in our everyday lives. This is a special issue that needs to be addressed to the point that the youth cultural spaces that have been immune to social inequalities. As explained in many of these articles we see that youth have created new social and cultural spaces in the global and local communities that experience problems with race, class and gender all over the world. I think youth need to have more focus because everyday in the news something is going on with children getting into trouble or dying for unknown reasons. Such as getting shot for wearing a hoodie or taking unknown drugs that affect them by hanging around bad influences this is an example of how youth culture By mapping and troubling how these frameworks operate in recent research about youth and globalization, Kennelly â€Å"asks how researchers interpret that represent apparent transformations in their lives. † Education also plays an important role in the youth culture because the education systems are organized nationally and there has been suspicion that globalization has been on the rise in these communities according to Julie McLeod. Global or transnational changes do not simply happen in global either and can manifest in particular places and times. As Kenneth Hultqvist (2003) argues while there â€Å" is nothing global or general per se,† globalizing trends and ideas are made â€Å"global by being inserted and translated and put to work on various local (national) contexts†. There have been many studies that can be used and be understood about many ideas and truths about young people in today’s society. It also involves looking at local translations and not only of global discourses in the economic processed and how it impacts the experience of young people. The word Globalization has been widely used in the last ten years of the last century especially after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Globalization appeared clearly in a period a little more than ten years and was based in the USA after the collapse of the socialist bloc . Thus globalization moved in rapid leaps skipping time phases especially after the Information and communication revolution, the arm race, the unipolar hegemony over third-world countries and countries of the previous socialist bloc . Globalization was introduced at the beginning as a modernizing aspect that brings about changes in the scientific block. Globalization was introduced at the beginning as a modernizing aspect that brings about changes in the scientific, just like cultural and political fields that aims at linking economic and technological advancement associating things to establish a new global civilization that is in the interests of the global centre that produces technology and leads the phenomena of the flow of commodities, services, construction and other things prevailing in western countries, especially America , to other countries and third world countries in particular. And we believe that globalization especially cultural globalization has different impacts because at first glance, the concept of globalization calls for the unification of ideas, values and ways of thinking among different peoples of the world as a means providing a broad area of mutual understanding and bringing people closer and securing world peace and these are all goals worth respect and appreciation . This triggered more inquiries about globalization; its nature, facts, illusions, advantages, disadvantages and how to deal with it. According to Nadine Dolby and Fazal Rizvi (2008), â€Å"consider the different forms and intensification of youth mobility- physical, imagined,virtual,desired,enforced- across both local and global spaces. † People in different regions are caught up in the continual circulation of global culture, through all types of media, movies and the internet; this is has recently changed since the circumstances that young people inhabit are different from the past. Young people are affected by the local and global dynamic is represented as a part of how they become modern and it not really understood in social or political shapes the young peoples daily lives. There is a fact that globalization represents the local as acted upon, as powerless in the face of global forces and it is argued that power is not confined to the global. As explained by Jacqueline Kennelly not resolving potential debates and argues that an important and fruitful direction for youth studies can be found in more historically enriched approaches to researching â€Å"young people today†. As discussed in many of these articles about youth culture has given me a better perspective of how that are existent throughout the world. The notion is that the late modern condition of globalization is influenced by such forces that are being met by powerfully globalizing forces. Multiple research has been done throughout the world with economic, academic and other resources has been essential because there has been global, political and social forces causing all the young people from being privileged like other countries. Young people are at the very heart of this unfolding global economic and cultural order. Also to acknowledge the effects of national location with all the local and global relations with the contemporary youth has caused many problems and needs to be changed right away without it becoming a major problem. Many discussions have been done about youth culture in different countries because some people may want to know what is going on with youth especially in global communities since we cannot be close to them.

Mohsin Hamid’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist

Mohsin Hamid’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist Identity Crisis of Post- 9/11 Pakistani-American Immigrants: A Study of Mohsin Hamid’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist â€Å"Home is where your feet are, and may your heart be there too!† Uma Parmeshwaran Geographical dislocations and cross-blending of cultures often necessitate traumatic experiences for the immigrants. The multiplicity of ‘homes’, within conflictual boundaries, does not necessarily bridge this gap between ‘home’ –the culture of origin; and ‘world’ –the culture of adoption. Moreover, an unsettled migrant, ‘dwelling in displacement’, may find these two cultures becoming increasingly hostile to each other with the flow of time and space. Quite often, opportunities for work, trade, research and exploration has collectively motivated, both voluntary and involuntary, migration from the East to the West- accompanied by memories of one’s original ‘homeland’ and its history. After the early 1970s, large scale of immigration has shown a great mobility and adjustability, especially, from South Asia to America- a country who has stood on providing thicket of choices to the immigrants throughout the history. However, the twist of the 21st century brought about many changes in the world when September-11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Centre and Pentagon endangered the lives of Asian immigrants in the U.S., most specifically Muslims, than it was ever before. Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak in her seminal essay, Terror: A Speech After 9/111, explicates that â€Å"the traditional left in the U.S. and in Europe has by and large understood the events of September 11 as a battle between fundamentalism and the failure of democracy†, owing to which, the identity of Pakistanis living abroad had become even more precarious. Many who were unable to defend their own set of beliefs and tried to escape from the chaos, were termed â€Å"Pakis’ and increasingly profiled as ‘potential terrorists’. Since Septmeber-11, one has visibly witnessed a new wave of xenophobia in public, resulting into the closing of borders and an irrational suspicion of the ‘Otherâ⠂¬â„¢. In order to negotiate this disruption in the experience of the diasporic Muslim identity in the West, and to investigate the issues of identity, cross-culturality, post 9/11 ‘return-to-home’ and other disaporic tropes, my study focuses on the work of Pakistani expatriate writer Mohsin Hamid’s semi-autobiographical novel, The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2007)2 a tale of an immigrant’s angst and alienation in post 9/11 scenario as he attempts to acclimate to an adoptive homeland. The novel unfolds over a period of a day as the Pakistani narrator, Changez, unspools his life story to the overt addressee, an unnamed American tourist, in a Lahore tea shop of Od Anarkali district. In a one-sided dialogue, Changez reminiscences in detail his experience of living in the United States. Hailing from a well-to-do Pakistani family, Changez excels at Princeton University and becomes â€Å"immediately a New Yorker† after being recruited as an analyst under the prestigious valuation firm, Underwood Samson. Meanwhile, he tumbles into a romantic relationship with a fellow Princeton graduate named Erica, who is consumed by the mythology which she has constructed around her deceased boyfriend. His sentiment of belonging to New York high society, however, begins to stall after the events of September-11 2001 and the following U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. Over the ensuing years, ethnic slurs are tossed in his direction which ultimately act as a catalyst to expose Changez ’s â€Å"fundamental† self. Through the literary trope of migration, Hamid’s novel, in the backdrop of 9/11, illustrates a tale of dissolution and ‘return to home’, which becomes a vehicle for new understandings as the homeland is revalorised. Since September-11, 2001, identity politics and clash of cultures have acquired a special resonance in the public sphere of the Western societies, with regard to their diasporic population, particularly Muslim diasporas. According to Robin Cohen, diasporas are formed when considerable number of people move to a foreign land, either because of some mortifying experience or in search of economic opportunities. Muslim immigrants from South Asia, particularly Pakistan, have been living through a double pledge; on one hand they have to respond to the international political crises’ such as September-11, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq etc., and on the other, they are categorized with the South Asian diasporic identity. The Reluctant Fundamentalist is a narrative of the conflict embodied in the personal dilemma of its protagonist to come to terms with the post 9/11 America and the ‘new identity’ imposed upon him. The basic postulate of ‘melting-pot’ theory that the American culture places on its newly arrived immigrants is amply dynamic; stressing homogeneity on religious as well as ethnic level. Despite of his foreign appearance, Changez ‘merges with the crowd and achieves a new individualized form of social mobility’ by assimilating into the host culture (Cohen: 24). Both Erica and Jim (Underwood’s managing director), notice a â€Å"foreignness† in Changez’s mannerism and demeanour that gives him advantage over others. â€Å"You’re a watchful guy. You know where that comes from? It comes from feeling out of place†, remarks Chris. But this initial excitement over a cosmopolitan way of life in New York is replaced by disillus ionment and scepticism offered by the events that followed 9/11. After watching the attacks on the Twin Towers in his hotel room in Manila, Changez realizes that suddenly a new identity that of a terrorist-look-alike is imposed on him, when he is first strip-searched and interrogated at the airport on his arrival in America. His sense of belonging changes overnight when his foreign appearance becomes a sign of ‘otherness’ for his social environment in New York City. Also, Erica’s neurosis and sudden estrangement from Changez are to be equated with the panic-ridden American society’s doubts towards the loyalties of the Middle Eastern immigrant. This unexpected â€Å"troubled relationship with the host society, suggesting a lack of acceptance at the least’’ is what Cohen also informs as one of the â€Å"common features† of a diaspora (Cohen: 26) that leads the protagonist to a wider examination of his relationship with the adopted home land. September-11 has already set new forces into motion which are redefining the immigrant’s relation to nation, diaspora and homeland. Changez has a decisive attribute in his search for identity that connects him across the post 9/11 continuum. The realization that his job is exploiting developing nations like his own native land, Pakistan, weighs on his conscience and causes him to anticipate what it means to be a member of the U.S. elite meritocracy. The post 9/11 scenario compels him to think about his ethnicity which he wants to retain. Stuart Hall indicates that â€Å"identity is a structured representation which achieves its positive through the narrow eye of the negative†. Disillusioned and disoriented, Changez does not find his identity through solidarity, but through resistance to the dominant culture. The novel seems to make a case for a crucial reality on which personal identity is based, constructed on the notion of ‘home’. According to Safran, â€Å"idealization of the ancestral home and the idea of return† incorporate experiences of several dispersed people who may feel alien ated from the â€Å"host society†. After being verbally abused on several occasions, Changez starts identifying himself with his original roots as he believes that his ethnic identity has become a victim of ethnocentrism in the hands of Americans. Built on the fault lines of East West relations, the novel offers essential cognizance to ‘diaspoic tropes’, such as the beard and the janissary, which highlight Changez’s marginal condition.