Women Role in Athenian Society

Women†s role in Greece can be seen when one first begins to do research on the subject. The subject of women in Greece is coupled with the subject of slaves. This is the earliest classification of women in Greek society. Although women were treated differently from city to city the basic premise of that treatment never changed. Women were only useful for establishing a bloodline that could carry on the family name and give the proper last rites to the husband. However, women did form life long bonds with their husbands and found love in arranged marriages. Women are â€Å"defined as near slaves, or as perpetual minors† in Athenian society (The Greek World, pg. 200). For women life didn†t extend far from the home, which was thought to be their sole realm of existence. Though they ranked higher than slaves did, they were treated in many of the same ways. Just like slaves, their mothers trained women as adolescents what their domestic duties were. They were secluded from all males, including those in their family. They lived in gynaikeion, which were women†s apartments in Athens (Daily Life in Greece, pg. 55). They were kept at home where they were taught the proper manners and duties of a desirable wife. â€Å"Marriage was the inevitable goal to which her whole life tended. To remain a spinster was the worst disgrace which could befall a woman† (Everyday Life in Ancient Greece, pg. 82). However, it was seen as more of a disgrace on her father who ‘owned† her until she was married. Although Athenian women were completely in charge of their household and slaves, they didn†t have much freedom. They rarely left the house, unless they were part of some sort of religious procession. They could only walk abroad in the streets if accompanied by a slave or other attendant. It was improper for respectable women to share the same social entertainments as men. Even if caught in the courtyard of the house by a male visitor, they would return to the seclusion of their own apartments. Pericles once said, â€Å"it was their business to be spoken of as little as possible whether for good or ill† (Everyday Life in Ancient Greece, pg. 82). This sentiment describes the extent of the importance of women in society. Marriage was their only major role in the lives of men. The betrothal was arranged by the parents as a strictly business contract. The parent†s choice of a suitable groom for their bride was a matter of pride and status for the family. The groom†s choice in bride was largely determined by the amount of dowry the bride would bring with her. Although the wedding was a happy ceremony, it was only the beginning of a woman†s loss of independence. Not only did women possess no independent status in the eyes of the law; she always remained under the supervision of a male. If her husband died, she was returned to her father†s or brother†s home where they would take charge of her. After the wedding, the wife†s duties were centered on the management of the home. She would overlook the slaves, mend and make clothing for her family, usually done by spinning or knitting, weave rugs and baskets for the home, or just fold and refold the clothing kept in the family chest. The wife was also responsible for maintaining her attractiveness for her husband. A proper Athenian wife would adorn herself with jewelry and use rouge upon her husband†s arrival home. Sometimes she might spend an entire evening sitting next to the couch where her husband lay reclining. Most importantly the Athenian women were seen as â€Å"fine upstanding matrons† fit to bear a race of excellent athletes† (Everyday Life in Ancient Greece, pg. 86). An Athenian man married primarily to have children. These children were expected to care for him in his old age, but more importantly to bury him with the â€Å"full appropriate rites† (Daily Life in Greece, pg. 57). Moreover, Athenian men married to have male children in order to perpetuate the family line and guarantee him honors when he died. It was also a large disgrace for a man to be unmarried. Basically, Athenians married not out of love for each other, but for religious and social convenience. All this aside, love was abundant in Greek society. Although love was never a determining factor in marriages, a lifelong bond and devotion developed between a couple as the years passed. â€Å"We know that the Greeks of the fifth and fourth century used the word eros (love) to describe the passion linking a husband and his wife† (Daily Life in Greece, pg. 58). There are many instances in myth and history where husbands and wives in Greek society have sacrificed themselves for the sake of the other. They were bonded together by their love of their family and by their dedication to each other through their family. Women were dedicated to the happiness of their husband and the well being of their children. Men were dedicated to providing for and supporting their family and raising noteworthy children. These common goals brought together the husband and wife like never before. It was this bond that sparked the beginning of a lifelong commitment to one another and the growth of th eir love for one another. Although women were not given formal rights, they were able to find pride and happiness in the mundane applications of their life. Women found pride in their children and satisfaction in their husband†s happiness. I would like to leave you with closing remarks that illustrate the bond between a wife and her husband. â€Å"The greatest pleasure to me will be this, that, if you prove yourself my superior, you will make me your servant and there will be no fear lest with advancing years your influence will wane; nay the better companion you are to me and the better guardian of the house to our children, the greater will be the esteem in which you are held at home; and all will admire you, not so much for your good looks as for your good deeds in practical life† (Everyday Life in Ancient Greece, pg. 86). â€Å"Atthis, who didst live for me and breathe thy last toward me, once the source of all my joy and now of tears, holy, much lamented, how sleepst thou the mournful sleep, thou whose head was never laid away from thy husband†s breast, leaving Theios alone as one who is no more; for with thee the hope of our life went to darkness† (Everyday Life in Ancient Greece, pg. 87).

Newtons Laws Relating to Car Safety Devices Essay

Ever since cars were invented in the early 20th century, there have been road fatalities. Advances in car safety technology have seen a diminishing exponential curve in casualties suffered on the road. The first invention was the seatbelt, by George Cayley in the late 1900s. The next major advance was with the airbag, by John Hetrick in 1952. A patent for the design was marketed for automobiles in 1967. The combination of all safety devices located in cars contribute to the wellbeing of the driverThe idea of a seat belt is simple, but it harnesses technology that shows a lot of ingenuity. A seatbelt is designed to keep one fastened in their seat in the event of an abrupt stop. It is essentially a piece of tough fabric that goes around the user. It combats the effect of the separate inertia on ourselves, by making us a part of the car. Inertia refers to an objects tendency to maintain its state of rest or uniform motion unless acted upon by a force. Sir Isaac Newtons First Law of Moti on revolves around Inertia. When the car is in motion, inertia wants it to keep going at that speed, but there are several forces acting on it, such as friction and air resistance. The engines power compensates for this energy loss. Anything that is in the car but not attached to it has its own inertia, and this is evident when the car is accelerating, decelerating and in the event of an abrupt stop. When in uniform motion, one cannot feel the effects of the cars inertia as separate to oneself, but the separate inertia is shown when the car is stopped suddenly. In a high speed collision, each car comes to a stop rapidly. Occupants not wearing their seatbelt will continue at the original speed of the car (as per the Law of Inertia) until acted upon by a force. An unrestrained occupant will then move at a high speed until:Colliding with the car interior or other occupants, stopping faster than the car itself, most of the time over a distance of several centimetres. Crashing through the windscreen. This concentrates an amazing amount of momentum [(momentum=mass x velocity)(M=70kgx90km/h)(M=6300)] on one of the most vulnerable parts of the human body. Impulse is defined as the product of the force and the time interval over which it acts. It is equal to the change of momentum. With a seatbelt on, one will change their momentum slower and therefore spread out the force acting on them. This significantly increases the chance of survival. An occupant with a seatbelt will have the same inertia of the car, & therefore stop with it. The rate of change of the momentum of a restrained occupant is much less than that of an unrestrained person. This means that the net force on the restrained occupant will be less. As well as increasing the time interval over which the wearer comes to a stop, a properly fitted seatbelt spreads the impact force over a larger surface area of the body, in particular the pelvis & ribcage. Seatbelts are an extremely effective means of saving lives. Car accident researchers in Australia estimate that seatbelts reduce the risk of fatal injury to front-seat occupants by 45 per cent and the risk of serious injury by 50 per cent. Airbags are designed to increase the time interval during which the drivers momentum decreases during a head on collision, therefore reducing the net force on the driver, particularly from the steering wheel & dash board. It also acts to cushion our precious head during impact. An airbag consists of 3 parts which all assist in slowing the passengers forward motion:The bag made of a thin nylon fabric, which is compressed in order to fit into the steering wheel etc. The sensor The device that tells the airbag to inflate, in the event of a collision. The sensors receive information from an accelerometer built into a microchip. The inflation system Reacts with sodium azide with potassium nitrate to produce nitrogen gas. Hot blasts of nitrogen gas inflate the airbag. When an airbag is deployed:15 20 milliseconds after impact: The crash  sensors & control unit determine the severity of the collision. This decides if the airbag will be deployed or not. 25 milliseconds: The pad covering the airbag splits in strategic weak places & begins to inflate. 45 milliseconds: The airbag is fully inflated while the occupant is still moving forward. 60 milliseconds: The occupant makes contact with the airbag, which immediately begins to deflate. Up to 100 milliseconds: The occupant continues to sink into the airbag, cushioning the head & chest while deflating. Momentum is the product of mass multiplied by velocity. Unless an outside force acts on an object, it will continue to move at its present speed & direction. If loose objects in the car are not restrained, they will continue moving at the same speed as the car, even if the car is stopped in a collision. Therefore by reducing our velocity using the airbag, one will have less momentum, & therefore a greater chance of survival or serious injury. Air bags do not just cushion your body in the event of an impact, but they also spread the impact over a larger area. By doing this, the force is not all concentrated in one small area of your body. This in turn will cause the seriousness your injuries to be reduced because the force you feel is spread out. A study stated that the number of lives saved by airbags is 600 per year. It also indicate that airbags reduce fatalities by 8% when worn in conjunction with a seatbelt. Airbags also reduce the risk of dying in a frontal crash by 30 %. Wearing both a seatbelt and having an airbag fitted car deeply increases the  survival rate in the event of a crash. Crumple zones are deliberate weak spots the car engineers place in the structure of a car. Consider a head-on collision into a concrete wall. Before the crash, the car & its passengers move together at the same velocity. With a car posing a rigid body, an impact will cause both automobile & occupants to halt very quickly. This immediate stop creates a large amount of force on the passengers. [(F=ma)(F=75kg x -30km/h-2 )(F=2250N)]. By increasing the impact time, the force on the occupants is dramatically reduced, because of this cushioning effect. Newton’s first law (a body will continue its state of motion unless acted upon by a non-zero net force) is another law that explains how crumple zones work in the face of an accident. As your car moves west at 60 km/h, not only is it your car that is going that fast but it is your own body that is travelling that fast also. If your car hits a solid wall and comes to a stop immediately, your body will want to continue going west at 60 km/h because of inertia. As the car strikes the wall, the front part crushes together. As the front of the car is absorbing the impact, energy from the impact is given off in the form of heat and sound. Because the front of the car acts as a cushion, it slows the time it takes for the car to come to a complete stop; this will apply less of a force on you. The graph above illustrates how force changes as time changes with the use of crumple zones. The better the crumple zone, the more effective it is in increasing the time of a collision.†Collapsible steering wheels also aid in ones survival chance in the event of a collision. It reduces the risk of impaling the driver by folding away when force is acted on it. When the body is thrown forward by the effect of inertia, the steering wheel becomes less of a deadly obstacle. Luggage restraining barriers help, in the event of a crash, by stopping the  luggage that will move forward because of its own inertia. http://www.explainthatstuff.com/airbags.htmlAccessed 1/7/09http://www.k12.nf.ca/gc/Science/Physics3204/Projects2003/SlotA/ProjectA2/index1.htmAccessed 2/7/09http://www.reachoutmichigan.org/funexperiments/agesubject/lessons/newton/airbags.htmlAccessed 2/7/09http://www.glenbrook.k12.il.us/gbssci/phys/mmedia/newtlaws/cci.htmlAccessed 4/7/09http://www.scienceperspectives.com/Sir-Isaac-and-Seat-Belts.htmAccessed 4/5/09http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/HFrame.htmlAccessed 4/5/09http://www.howstuffworks.com/airbag.htmAccessed 4/5/09http://midsouthrescue.org/id7.htmlAccessed 4/5/09http://www.gm.com/experience/education/9-12/technology/physics.jspAccessed 4/5/09http://www.k12.nf.ca/gc/Science/Physics3204/Projects2003/SlotA/ProjectA2/link20.htm4/5/09http://www.k12.nf.ca/gc/Science/Physics3204/Projects2003/SlotA/ProjectA2/link20.htmAccessed 4/5/09http://www.autoevolution.com/news/how-crumple-zones-work-7112.htmlAccessed 4/5/09http://auto.howstuffworks.com/crumple-zone.htmAccessed 4/5/0 9

Financial Crisis of 2007 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Financial Crisis of 2007 - Essay Example This led to domination of speculative activities in the economy. Speculators are only interested in short term gain from the economy. Thus the long term yield on assets is not properly ensured. In the process of globalization, the role of nation-state has been undermined by the economies. Due to the lack of fiscal intervention of governments for ensuring sustaining growth, global finance and de-regulation were adopted by the economy as an alternative paradigm and it led to the booms and bust in the global economy. A sound long term macro economic policy was not adopted by the countries and thus the financial and economic stability affected badly and the conditions of financial crisis emerged. 2) Explain the factors that caused the current financial crisis. Discuss the theoretical views of the following three theories below and explain which are more relevant towards the current financial crisis Financial market instability in the economy is the result of defaulted free market system and capitalism. It causes booms and bust conditions in the global economy. The defaults in the operations of banking and monetary system are another root cause of the crisis situation. The rising protectionism among various countries led to rejection of free trade and thus the export opportunities were greatly reduced. As a result of the decreased export opportunities in the economy national income also reduced greatly. It led to contraction of the GDP together with currency devaluation. (Global economic crisis- a different view 2009). Excess liquidity in the market: Unsound methods of debt financing adopted by major central banks generate excess liquidity in the market. Through their irresponsible actions in the economy, increased debt financing without proper guarantee for returns has highly increased. The resulted sudden cash flow in the economy created a more risky environment. Due to the financial recession the returns to financial institutions were restricted and thus bad debts rate highly increased. It affected their financial position badly. (Karam 2008). Stock market crash: Sub prime mortgage loan and excess credit creation led to speculative economic environment. Due to the baseless marketing actions, the stock market faced severe crash situation which affected the entire economy badly. When the speculative borrowings increased it forced the banks and other lenders to tighten credit. As a result the availability of money in the economy contracted, and even to companies that can afford, loan was restricted and thus the economy subsequently contracted. When analysing the nature of the banking systems in the countries, it revealed that the baseless lending actions of the banks are the root cause of the current crisis. Through the expansion of easy credit, boom and bust cycles created in the US economy. Due to the uncontrolled monetary policy adopted by central banks and endorsed by the political regulatory through application of mechanisms of fiat money and fractional reserve banking, there emerged uncertain economic boom and bust cycles. (The global financial/ economic crisis 2008). The financial crisis is started with the mortgage issue. The uncontrolled sub prime borrowings and subsequent depression in the value of the homes leads to

Eating Disorders in today's society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Eating Disorders in today's society - Essay Example It is because of this one standard that eating disorders have become almost fashion statements themselves, as girls result to them to maintain a thin physique. The biggest focus for both men and women when it comes to being attractive is their weight, though this is quickly followed by the physical, flawless appearance of the face. When it comes to females, a thin, slightly toned body is considered attractive and beautiful. In regard to men, they can either be thin, well-built, or athletic in appearance. Despite how pretty a person may be when it comes to their face, overweight and heavyset people are seldom considered attractive in accordance to society’s standards of today. Standards of attractiveness do not vary so much by gender or age. Men expect women to be thin and busty, while women expect men to either be thin or athletic. Each gender expects the other to at least be able to maintain a decent weight; again, the standard of thin being beautiful is still in play regardless of gender or age. Sexual orientation, however, is slightly different. The majority of homosexual individuals do not put as much stock in beauty or attractiveness as heterosexual people do. Indeed, many homosexual females who look butch or manly are considered to be attractive, while homosexual males who look dainty and delicate are regarded as being attractive. Even when, in homosexual relationships, a female looks like the typical idea of a female, or a male looks like a typical male, they are still seen as attractive by their fellows. What our culture tells men about how to attract women is they need to appear as men, regardless of what their real age is. They need to be thin or muscular; many of them tend to look like a cliched Californian surfer. However, men also need to have an appealing and independent personality, which goes to show that not all beauty is physical. On the other end of the spectrum, however, are the women who believe that they need to attract men by

Environmental policy and energy in the next 30 years Research Paper

Environmental policy and energy in the next 30 years - Research Paper Example The policies that are adopted should be geared towards invention of new energy sources to support those that are being depleted and the production, transportation and usage must ensure environmental sustainability. This paper examines the trend in the production, transportation, and usage of energy in the next thirty years, and secondly, the environmental impact due the forecasted trends. Trends in the Production, Transportation, and Consumption of Energy in the next 30 years Energy policy is the way in which the government or an entity decides to address energy, production, distribution, and consumption. The components of such a policy may include international treaties, legislations, offering incentives to investment, taxation and other public policies (AuthorStream, 2012). Consumption The global energy demands are expected to rise by 30 percent from 2010 to 2040 (ExonMobil, 2013). This calls for diversification of energy sources, seeking reliable and affordable sources of energy. It is only through this mix that energy can promote economic growth and social advancement. The world is changing with improved standards of life; introduction of modern appliances and fuel efficient vehicles coupled with limitations of greenhouse gas emissions defines our energy usage in future (Gigaom, 2013). It is projected that up to the year 2020 fossil fuels will still largely dominate the energy use. Oil demand will increase due to transportation needs and will fill the gap where other energy sources are not available. Usage of gas for process, heating, and power generation where available, will be on the rise. Oil is expected to remain the major source of energy up to 2040, recording a growth of about 25 percent. Natural gas is expected to replace coal as the second largest source of energy by the year 2025. Gas demand is expected to grow by 60 percent by the year 2040 (ExonMobil, 2013). Its growth is expected to surpass any other energy source. This may be influenced by gas being economical, clean, and efficient source of energy. Gas production pollutes less and meets the world’s future energy needs better. Coal, natural gas, and oil will remain to be the major sources of energy and they are estimated to account for 80 percent of energy by the year 2040(ExonMobil, 2013). Nuclear energy use is also expected to grow because of the rising need for electricity and the desire to reduce CO2 emissions. Nuclear energy usage is expected to double between 2010 and 2040. There is also an expectation in the growth of use of solar, wind and bio-fuels energy. These fuels are expected to have a demand five times that of 2010 in 2040. However, in 2040 they will only account for 3-4 percent of the total world energy (ExonMobil, 2013). This is because greater technological advancement is required in order to harness this energy source. This leads to higher costs of production and hence preference is given to other more economical sources (Lahidji et al, 1999). P roduction and Transportation Policies in the next 30 years Fossil fuels as earlier stated are expected to remain the most dominant energy source in the next 30 years. Advanced and more efficient technologies are expected to be developed in the production of fossil fuels in the next 30 years. Coal has normally been criticized for polluting the environment, the next 30 years may see introduction of new

An Investigation of Role and Importance of Trust in Establishing Literature review

An Investigation of Role and Importance of Trust in Establishing Online retail Relationship in Fashion Sector - Literature review Example Trust is regarded as the chief strategic asset of a firm when it aims to bring about operational changes subjected to market uncertainness (Park and Srinivasan, 1999). It is perceived to be the central constituent in professional relationships. The value and meaning of trust have changed over time, but its intrinsic outcomes remain beneficial. Organizational scholars provide great importance to the issues of trust. The issues are legitimated by the changes in economic exchange relations, organizations forms and social societal structure (Bijlsma and Koopman, 2003). Tom Tyler (1996) had stated that trust factor is imperative for organizational success. Trust existing within the workplaces of an organization helps to create voluntary-corporation among the workers. The performance and productivity level of an organization considerably depends on the extent of cooperation among the workers. Gradual changes in societies and organizations have enhanced the importance of the matters relating to trust (Parker, 2012). Trust is considered as a solution to specific risk-related problems arising between different individuals. Trust within organizations is mandatory for motivating professional associations and driving rapid business imp rovement. Experts are of the opinion that strategic cooperation and collaboration between different firms become easier with the presence of trust between them (Hahn and Kim, 2009). The attitudes of the employees within workplaces are also determined by the same. Employee satisfaction from jobs and their commitment towards work tasks are largely influenced by their trust towards the firm. Brand value of a company in the market is largely dependent on the stakeholder's trust towards the same. Researchers point out that satisfaction derived by the consumers from the consumption of goods or services of a company is directly proportional to their trust towards the same (Winch and Joyce, 2006).

Anyliss of Edgar Allen Poe's The Cask of Amontillado. What caused Poe Research Paper

Anyliss of Edgar Allen Poe's The Cask of Amontillado. What caused Poe to write such dark poems - Research Paper Example Critics both in history and literature have constructed a number of theories about his motivations to write as he did with some suspecting Poe’s unstable love life while others have noted substance abuse as the cause of his horror stories. To understand Poe’s literary works, it is important to be open to both theories but is evident the death of his loved ones in addition to being abused by his foster father are some of the factors that significantly influenced his works. Poe’s tragic life began when just before his third birthday, his mother died of tuberculosis living him his brother and sister orphans as their father had earlier on abandoned them (Moreno and Rigal-Aragà ³n 128). At this point in life, Poe was very young to comprehend the implication of his mother’s death in his life but in later years especially during adulthood, his reflections led him to grieve for how much better his home life would have been with both his biological parents present. The death of his mother seems to have had a psychological effect on him given that as early as age six he was afraid of the dead or dying causing him to have panic attacks whenever he passed a cemetery fearing ghosts would come after him (Meyers 76). The death of William Henry Leonard Poe also due to tuberculosis infection was the second death of those Poe loved. Poe mourned the death of his brother regretting the lack of chance for them to interact. Although Poe had an unstable rela tionship with his foster father, Poe’s mental stability and work in general was greatly impacted. Therefore, the death of his mother, brother and foster father played an influential role in the in Poe’s dark literature. Given the painful experience Poe had due to the death of those close to him, it is only natural that he would feel death as the ultimate punishment. Death is the most effective means of separating people from each other as it did to those round him. Poe therefore

US taxes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

US taxes - Essay Example Ruane William reported that income tax is excluded for foreign income that is less than $ 95, 100 but in mid-December 2011, a minimum tax was imposed on foreign currencies that these companies earn from all the outsourced jobs and other operations (18). Tax increase on wealthy U.S citizens is intended to create a cash reserve for creating jobs for millions of unemployed American youths. This concept will prevent another recession that hit the U.S. in 2010 where a large number of citizens especially in the middle class lost their jobs, unemployment rose drastically and small businesses folded. In the past, the wealthy citizens paid less that 28% of their total earnings as tax while the middle class paid more tax. Job creation using tax reforms will improve the economy of the U.S and that of each household. American companies that outsource their jobs and operations to foreign countries because of cheap labor will be forced to create jobs in the U.S because they will incur losses because of reduced tax on foreign money that they earn. Americans require companies that outsource jobs to foreign countries to create jobs in the U.S and improve both income and working

Officer Joe Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Officer Joe - Essay Example There is little doubt that â€Å"management of the police department and its leadership is a demanding, complex, and challenging task,† but that task is â€Å"largely possible through good management†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Eisenberg 21). Managing this officer is not an easy task, as his negative attributes and their impact on the department must be weighed against his performance. Accordingly, we should examine the set of behaviors, assess the impact to the department and the public, balance the consequences of the officer’s negative behavior with his superior performance, and determine a way to help this officer. Officer Joe is, as any other police officer, under a lot of stress. The stress of police work is well known, and its effects on the individual can cause the officer to resort to various coping mechanisms. One of the more unhealthy ways of coping with stress on the job is alcohol abuse. In fact, Officer Joe is presenting classic signs of alcohol abuse. Disregard for authority, carelessness in personal appearance, as well as impatience and irritability are three indicators of alcohol abuse (Moriarty & Field 155). Officer Joe’s behavior indicates his condition is worsening, as this is presumptively the first time he has shown up for duty with alcohol on his breath. Immediate management intervention is required in this situation, to protect the public, the department, and Officer Joe himself. As there has been no indication of drinking while on the job, the officer is likely engaging in this self-destructive behavior in private. Some might content that the private behavior of a p olice officer is not an issue to management unless it affects job performance. In Officer Joe’s case, his performance has been very good. However, the private life of a police officer is something that can and should be considered by management. â€Å"The special role that the police

Trials of the Long Twentieth Century Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Trials of the Long Twentieth Century - Essay Example More evidence emerged that significantly incriminated Leo Frank in the murder, convincing Hugh Dorsey, the solicitor, to seek a murder indictment against Leo Frank (Brundage, 36). The trial began, with the prosecution building its case on evidence yielded by very shoddy investigations carried out by the police. Leo Frank was eventually convicted of murder and sentenced to death despite overwhelming evidence indicating that Jim Conley, a black sweeper at the factory, was the more likely murderer (Arnold, 21). The death sentence was eventually commuted to life sentence by the outgoing governor of Georgia, John Slaton. However, he was kidnapped from prison on August 16 by a lynch mob led by prominent individuals of Marietta, who hanged him on an oak tree at a site near Marietta. Leo Frank’s case attracted national attention because of an overwhelming call by the public, especially Southerners, for his execution. It emerged at a time when anti-Semitism was rampant in the Southern States, whose citizens viewed Jews as affluent Northern capitalists out to take advantage of the poor and women of the South. Public outrage following the murder of Mary Phagan was intense, and when police investigations brought in Leo Frank as a suspect, the locals were enraged and immediately started to call for his execution even before he had been proved guilty in a court of law. It is apparent that public clamor tremendously influenced the verdict of the jury and contributed to his sentencing. Despite having a strong defense, Leo Frank had no chance of a fair trial because most individuals involved in the justice process that ensued had anti-Semitic views. The society of Georgia was strongly anti-Semitic because a lot of industry and capital flow in the South was controlled by Jews. Therefore, citizens of Georgia and other southern states viewed Jews as selfish and controlling individuals who aggressively kept much of the area’s economic opportunity to themselves at the expense of the locals (Brundage, 41). In the last half a century, a number of stereotypes had extensively circulated in American society concerning Jews. They include the belief that all Jews are financially well off, all Jews are greedy and stingy, Jews are powerful and control the world of business, Judaism strongly emphasizes materialism, Jews think it is okay to cheat non-Jews, Jews use their wealth and power to benefit only members of their community. As a result, many Americans, especially Southerners, viewed Jews as a hindrance to the American culture of free enterprise and opposed to the progress of non-Jews. Therefore, by the early twentieth century when Leo Frank was accused of the murder of Mary Phagan, anti-Semitism was deeply ingrained in American society (Blakeslee, 45). The Atlanta police who carried out the investigation demonstrated considerable bias against the suspect, Leo Frank, since they were quick to take into account any evidence that incriminated him and rea dily ignored any evidence that disproved him as the murderer. This is demonstrated by their failure to conduct tests on a bloodstained shirt belonging to Jim Conley, the other suspect. They ignored this piece of evidence instead of following up on it to determine whether the blood belonged to Mary Phagan. Furthermore, the police concentrated

Tourism and Indigenous People Essay Example for Free

Tourism and Indigenous People Essay 1. 0 AN INTRODUCTION According to the United Nations definition of indigenous people, they are â€Å"descendants of those who inhabited a country or a geographical region at the time when people of different cultures or ethnic origins arrived† (United Nations, 2011a). It is estimated that there are about 370 million indigenous people around the globe in over 70 different countries. They keep their own political, social, economic and cultural qualities and also their unique traditions which separate them from other major societies in which they live (United Nations, 2011a). Nowadays, when tourists interact with indigenous cultures it is seen to be restricted to a master/servant encounter and sometimes is seen as an unoriginal representation of these people? s long-established and cultural lifestyles (Hinch Butler, 1996). Hinch Butler (1996) go on to say that â€Å"factors within the external environment may have particularly strong influences upon the outcome of indigenous tourism†. These influences which they mentioned included the economy, culture, physical environment, socialdemographics and politics (Hinch Butler, 1996, page 12). The economic considerations to take into account are very important for tourism – the development of the economy through the tourism industry has actually been implemented as an approach to promoting economic independence for indigenous people (Hinch Butler, 1996). It is known that for over the past two decades tourism impacts have been defined under three main headings – economic, environmental and socio-cultural. Within the context of tourism, this report will deal with indigenous people through issues they come to deal with during their everyday lives. From positive impacts which can come in the form of monetary benefits for them through tourism activities and an increased sense of pride for their culture, to more pressing issues, which include exploitation of their traditional knowledge and detrimental effects on their homelands by tourism. Most importantly and of utmost significance in our world today is the manipulation of indigenous people? Rights as inhabitants and I felt a strong need to discuss particular topics which are very relevant today in society and which pose great problems for the future of indigenous people. I separated the topics under 3 classic terms – economic, environmental and socio-cultural. Firstly, I will talk about tourisms economic impact on indigenous people, where I based my research on three short case study examples of tourism and indigenous communities from Mexico, Southern Belize and Namibia. 1 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 2. 0 ECONOMIC ISSUES â€Å"In many developing, or so-called third world countries, the tourism industry has become an economic activity – one that impinges upon social, economic, cultural and environmental structures† (Amador-Greathouse, 2005, p709). The tourism industry, in some form or another, brings about both positive and negative economic impacts for a multitude of people. Particularly in rural areas, the diversification which is created by tourism helps communities that are perhaps dependent on only one industry and in turn, they can create additional income through working in tourism (Kreag, 2001). 2. 1 Importance of the Economy for Indigenous People The main strength that impels the tourism industry is income and literally all of the written matter which deals with these economic impacts looks at foreign income and also the generation of jobs (Bauer, 2008). An example by Hundt, A. (1996) in Jamaica showed that tourism development in the area actually did reap some rewards in the form of increased wealth and an improvement in the position of people? s health, but it also recognized that the money which was generated from tourism was not utilised in the appropriate way and did not improve the health of the people who needed it more than others. On the other hand, Manley (1974) says, when speaking of tourism in Jamaica, that: â€Å"Jamaica cannot afford to go without tourism. No industry grows as quickly in today’s world, nor is as capable of rapid local expansion† (page 101). He went on to say that tourism is one of the most â€Å"labour intensive industries† left to the modern world and that it has a very agreeable multiplier effect when planned successfully (Manley, 1974). According to the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody: National Report (1991) the potential for tourism development is strong in certain parts of Australia. In rural areas it is one of a few growth sections for the economy. However, tourism also brings its quandaries regarding indigenous people, in this case, of aboriginal descent. There are two sides to the coin as at one side we have one of the very few ways that aboriginal people have in taking positive action in creating income for themselves through tourism, but tourism can also bring unwanted invasion of people?s community spirit and lifestyle and bringing with that little benefit to the people (Commonwealth of Australia, 1991). 2 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 Altman Finlayson (2003) examined how employment as a form of economic income in the tourism industry (and tourism-related industries) needs people with good communicational attributes and people who can read and write, as well as embracing different cultures. This idea can be discouraging for some people of indigenous ethnic groups. They went on to say how these issues aforementioned result in a boundary being set around employment opportunity for (in this case) Aboriginal employees and can restrict their involvement within the other service industries to un-skilled or semi-skilled work (Altman Finlayson, 2003). Also mentioned was the fact that â€Å"they (aborigines) prefer indirect economic participation† and â€Å"participation in hospitality and other tourism-related services also demands direct and intensive social interaction with tourists which many aboriginal people are unwilling or unable to undertake† (Altman Finlayson, 2003, p79). 2. 2 Cuetzalan, Mexico: a positive outcome In the case of Cuetzalan, a county in Mexico and country full of various indigenous ethnic groups, tourism has had a positive economic impact – by generating a fresh and busy economic place it has brought forth a totally new understanding in people and has shown the way for a transformation in the likes of shared relations between different societies native to the area (Amador-Greathouse, 2005, pp709-10). One of the top reasons why tourists go to Mexico is to gain insight into the so-called undamaged and unspoiled way of life that Mexicans have in their native setting. The tourists almost expect the indigenous people to put on a show for them in their own style of living. This is what the natives believe the tourist wants to experience in this way and the tourist then seeks out a new awareness of what this indigenous way of life really is (AmadorGreathouse, 2005, pp709-10). 3 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 2. 3 Tourism in a Mayan Village, Southern Belize: Do it at Local Level One case study which sheds lights on the economic impact of tourism is the â€Å"Maya Village Indigenous Experience† in 1990. This programme was a way in which the local Mayan villagers in Southern Belize could take part in a plan which would see them benefit economically from tourism to their area by doing it all at local level, but without compromising their way of life and culture (Steinberg, 1994). In the past the Mayan people had been seen as only useful for strenuous labour and agricultural work, without any economic hopes for them. Their view on tourism was that it would benefit them by concentrating on natural assets that they held. The aim was to invite tourists to stay in the local people? s homes, with a fee and with the profits shared fairly between all (Steinberg, 1994). The main outcome was that now the Mayans believe that tourism was an intricate part in the wheel of economic development for their country and has given them hope that the economic benefits from tourism can help in moving their line of work solely from income through agriculture to other forms of income. Of course, there are negative impacts to be seen also. The idea that tourism would bring immediate money to the people was quickly shattered; the native craftspeople left their jobs because craftwork was not being sold to tourists (due to small numbers arriving) and arguments started between members of different neighbouring villages as they all vied to be in the lead as regards the creation of new plans for tourism development (Steinberg, 1994). These impacts were perhaps inevitable, but the Mayans had a strong community spirit in the start-up phase and this did benefit them. Next we move on to Caprivi in Namibia, where both positive and negatives impacts were experienced. 4 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 2. 4 Caprivi, Namibia: Complement vs. Conflict Another economic impact of tourism is seen in the livelihoods of rural people around the world. It is a matter of sustaining their livelihoods through proper management of tourism in their area. One such case study details positive and negative economic impacts on a Namibian Community (Ashley, 2000). Tourism in the native community of Caprivi is seen as a rural activity, one which is seen as an addition and not as a substitute. A key theme in the study showed that not only did tourism complement other activities, but it also conflicted with them. It strengthened individual household production and increased skills. Sometimes if people get jobs in tourism, they believe it will increase their income over a short space of time, but in fact this is not the reality of it and this is also to the detriment of their traditional way of life. In Caprivi, Namibia, the natives believe that tourism is much easier to link in with their current livelihoods, e. g. agriculture, craft-making, etc These particular tourism jobs are nearer to home, essentially meaning, that if they are farmers working on the land, they can remain farmers working on the land, as well as being involved in tourism (Ashley, 2000). As we have seen the complementative side of tourism for the Caprivians, we will now look to the other side. The conflicting side of these economic tourism impacts come in several ways. 1. Staple activities for income generation are through livestock husbandry and crop production. Tourists have now had the blame put on them for disturbing the wildlife, especially elephants and lions, which in turn, damage water points and kill livestock when the animals aggressively move closer to farms. 2. Grazing lands are lost for farmers whose main income is through livestock-keeping. All of the natural resources are reduced as so much land is set aside for wildlife and for the benefit of tourists. Poorer people dependent on harvesting a variety of natural resources, such as plant medicines, food, weaving materials and items made for selling find that they have little access to these resources, therefore, directly affecting their income (Ashley and LaFranchi, 1997). 3. Time-conflicting: Agriculture and the income generated from this have been affected as community leaders or people who want to set up a tourism enterprise spend a great deal of time working on this. For example, community leaders in Caprivi would need to spend on 5 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 average about 360-720 days between themselves, park authorities and the public sector to establish a lodge in Mudumo National Park (Ashley and LaFranchi, 1997). What we see from the case studies above, and from the general outcome of economic activity from tourism in these areas, there have been both positives and negatives. Perhaps, for the most part, they might always remain hand in hand to some extent, but hopefully in the future with better resources and tourism management in indigenous cultures, we will see a steady distance made between the two. From the economic section we will now move on to issues of environmental importance for indigenous people. 6 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 3. 0 ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES According to Ceballos-Lascurain (1996) the term „environment? refers to all the â€Å"conditions, circumstances and influences surrounding, and affecting the development of an organism or group of organisms†. He speaks of ecotourism, coining it as â€Å"environmentally-responsible travel to relatively un-disturbed natural areas, in order to enjoy and appreciate nature that promotes conservation, has low visitor impact and provides for beneficially active socioeconomic involvement of local populations† (Ceballos-Lascurain, 1996). Tourists may class themselves as „ecotourists? , but this term does not represent who they are. A lot of the time, thinking we are „doing good? for the environment, actual amounts to us being the producers of negative impacts for native people and the ecosystem. This arises due to the problem of littering, the locals producing vast amounts of their resources, i. e. firewood for the creation of log cabins, as well as the de-population of some species of animal native to a particular area due to the visitor? s impacts (Ceballos-Lascurain, 1996). 3. 1 Ecotourism and Indigenous Lands Indigenous people, for some time now, have been present in the context of „ecotourism? and its marketing campaigns. Even still, the native people have stayed ignorant to the real fact of what it? s all about. This is happening without them understanding the full extent of what they are dealing with. Indigenous people are taking their own initiative on the matter and are contesting against the so-called industry „experts? to make their own views and opinions heard on ecotourism (Johnston, 2006, pp. 3-4). At the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues which took place on the 15th May, 2003, many issues were brought to the fore– among the issues were tourism and the severity of damage it had done to the land of indigenous people (United Nations, 2003b). Ayitegau Kouevi, a member of the forum and also an indigenous expert stated that: â€Å"all indigenous people shared a social and ecological relationship with their land† (United Nations, 2003b). People worried regarding the way in which the land was used and the controlling of their resources (United Nations, 2003b). Tourism helps families in indigenous communities is true to some extent, but when it takes these people away from their traditional working of the land for food and crops to work in tourism jobs, then the outcomes become significant. Tourism increases the amount that these people will have to hand over to buy staple foods. A cycle of these people being held in the poverty trap is seen, even when/if they decide to work in tourism (Johnston, 2006, page 8). 7 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 3. 2 Ifugao Rice Terraces, Philippines: Under Threat A publication by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) (2008a) was completed on a specific example of one such indigenous community bearing the brunt of these environmental impacts. The Ifugao are an indigenous people who hail from the Cordillera Mountains in Northern Luzon, Philippines. Through their own way of life, they have been able to preserve and carry on their own traditions which are alive within their rituals, land and native craftworks. They are a people who have depended solely upon themselves to maintain their cultural heritage (Bulilan, 2007). As with other cases on environmental impacts of tourism, much the same is seen to be happening to the native people and their land. As tourism became more pronounced in this area of the Philippines in the early 1920? s, tourism development started to take place. From then until now, a lot of this development has severely impacted on the local land. This area of Ifugao is well-known for its beautiful undulating rice terraces, for which it has become a world heritage site (UNESCO, 2008a). Even still, the dire planning of infrastructure in the area (due to the lack of or non-zoning policies) has led to many problems. Water resources are not up to liveable standards and the land is left with little strength as it is drained of all its natural reserves for infrastructure. A direct result of this is that staple diet foods, i. e. the sustainable rice crop is destroyed and this directly impacts upon the people of the area and their natural food source. Rivers which held innumerable amounts of fish are now used as dumping grounds and the clean air is filled with harmful gases from transport vehicles which frequent the area (UNESCO, 2008a). The first tourist destination to arise in Ifugao was in Banaue (UNESCO, 2008a). With this development, tourism was said to have been the core cause of the deprivation that the environment was experiencing. More problems came in the form of water supply to the rice fields being exhausted as the influx of tourism increased the want for locally carved souvenirs made from wood. In turn, this has increased the level of deforestation in Banaue, as well as in other towns. In what should have been an attractive and aesthetically inviting area, Banaue now has a stark contrast between garish concrete buildings and the native Ifugao homesteads (UNESCO, 2008a). 8 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 3. 3 Sanitation Systems, Littering and Waste Disposal Another extremely important, but still very prominent environmental impact of tourism which can affect local communities is the area of sanitation systems, littering and waste disposal. According to Ceballos-Lascurain (1996) waste can affect soil, vegetation, cultivation and even our air which we breathe. There is no „safe? way of disposing of waste, but the only thing to inevitably stop it is to prevent its production in the first place. Of course, this would prove an immediate problem. In some national parks around the world visitors are given small plastic litter bags to dispose of waste in, but even still, a fundamental mistake was made in the bags being made of plastic, when they should be made of paper. Human waste and littering is leading to the contamination of local people? s water systems, which in itself brings a whole host of health problems. In many areas of the world, indigenous people still fight for their right to the land they were raised upon. They want to be recognised as the owners of the land, the people who cultivate, nurture and maintain it. There needs to be more community involvement with local and indigenous people and the development of tourism. If the locals are recognised as having a part to play in protecting their land and having it „used?in the right way, without it being exploited by tourism development, then perhaps a happier, more sustainable ending might be seen. 9 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 3. 4 Nepal: Tourism Effects on the Environment and the Indigenous Sherpa Environment: Nepal is a well-known tourist destination these days. Many people go there for the purpose of trekking and hiking for days with the help of Sherpa? s, an ethnic group of devout Buddhists living in north-eastern Nepal (Reid, 2003, p54). Due to the large number of tourists who visit this area every year, tourism has taken its toll on the environment. Pollution is visible on most routes, working on its own or as a combination with other underlying issues, such as: lack of hygiene, lack of proper sanitation systems (for locals, guides and Sherpa porters) and the lack of awareness people actually have about the environment (Pandey et al, 1995). Deforestation and pollution issues are still major causes for the environments deprivation, especially in the mountainous areas, but tourism has still become an opportunity for people here to make a decent living (Pandey et al, 1995). Indigenous Sherpas: Out of the 30 or so indigenous groups in Nepal, Sherpas are the most well-known. In fact, Sherpas have a role within the tourism industry rivalled by few indigenous people around the world (Reid, 2003, p54). While less can be said for the environmental impacts of tourism, the tourism industry has been, as a whole, decent enough to the Sherpa people regarding income, better lifestyles and opportunities. When most Sherpa families relied on herding their yaks and harvesting their potatoes, they turned away from the advances of modernization, but now the Sherpa? s are tied to tourism and its development through a very strong hold (Reid, 2003, p55). Ang Rita Sherpa, a graduate of the Khumjung school who now leads the Edmund Hillary foundation in Kathmandu defined three advancements in history which helped the lives of the Sherpa to become what it is today the incoming British tourists of the 19th century brought with them potato plants which was recognised as a new staple crop, the introduction of iodine in the 20th century meant that public health was improved considerably and finally, the westerners who came and saw the mountains and longed to climb them paved the way for the foundation of a tourism economy. This economy has given more stability than the Sherpa? s agricultural or trading activities ever gave (Reid, 2003, p57). The Sherpas are still a strong people, rooted in their history and culture. Through tourism, some of their culture has given way to modernisation and their land has been negatively impacted upon by tourism, but for the most part, they remain true to their way of life. So much so, that the whole idea of building roads through these tourist mountain passes seems 10 6/12/2011. BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 senseless and environmentally wrong to them. They believe having no roads is an â€Å"essential element of the Sherpa condition†. The rimpoche, an important Buddhist lama who lives on Mt. Tempoche in Nepal, said that â€Å"there will never be a road – not in my life-time, not in our children’s lifetime. We are Sherpas. We walk† (Reid, 2003, p71). As we can see, the Sherpas of Nepal are advancing slowly with tourism, but still have a grasp on their traditional ways. Tourism has most definitely brought new opportunities to them so far, but it is the way in which they manage the incoming tourists to their destination which will help in protecting their indigenous culture. 3. 5 Traditional Knowledge: Medicinal Plant Misuse through Bio-Piracy Bio-piracy, according to the ETC Group (Action Group on Erosion, Technological and Conservation, 2005) is â€Å"the appropriation of the knowledge and genetic resources of farming and indigenous communities by individuals or institutions who seek exclusive monopoly control (patents or intellectual property) over these resources and knowledge†. According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC, 2004) â€Å"the market for herbal remedies in North America and Europe has risen by 10% every year for the past decade, research indicates. It is now thought to be worth at least ? 11bn†. There is no doubt that this trade is so huge because companies want to market these remedies in a consumer marketplace. They are not taking into consideration the environmental effects it has on the land and the effect it has on the local people. According to Malani (2003) the importance of traditional knowledge to indigenous people is enormous. Local people around the world rely on this knowledge, handed down for generations, to advance through their daily lives and through their healing in times of sickness. Worryingly, due to the increase of value in this traditional knowledge, many organisations have essentially thrown themselves on the bandwagon to profit from this knowledge (Malani, 2003). The awful truth is that whereas indigenous people see these medicinal plants as having an important therapeutic value, the only „value? companies? associate with using this sacred knowledge is commercial-based (Malani, 2003). Some communities are still somewhat oblivious to bio-piracy. In a remote village in Kenya, the Maasai have introduced an interactive exhibit of plants which shows tourists what particular plants/shrubs they use for curing illnesses and how they use them. The plants are 11 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 labelled by name and are each presented on a coloured stone tablet (Johnston, 2006, p103). Visitors are not allowed pick the shrubs, but are shown their uses which might satisfy them enough and deter them from taking a sprig of one home with them. A different approach was taken by the Nlaka? pamux people of Canada who have set in stone their own rules and regulations when it comes to disclosure of their traditional knowledge. They have created their own line of herbal soaps for tourists under the name „Siska Traditions?. These soaps come with an information pamphlet with describes the basic medicinal properties which they hold, and nothing more. A simple introduction is all that is needed to ensure, for now, protection of their indigenous knowledge (Johnston, 2006, p103). The practice of bio-piracy is still widespread around the globe and is drying out the land of its natural herbal remedies. The utilization of indigenous people? s knowledge of medicinal plants and the exploitation of their lands for this purpose is still a major issue. 12 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 4. 0 SOCIO-CULTURAL ISSUES Sofield (1991) (cited in Ramchander, 2004, p4) described socio-cultural impacts of tourism as â€Å"the sum total of all the social and cultural influences that come to bear upon the host society as a result of tourism contact†. Many studies have been done which deal with the local people? s feelings and attitudes towards tourism and impacts of tourism to their area. According to Swarbrooke (1999) the socio-cultural impacts of tourism are sometimes invisible and intangible and the most worrying as aspect of these impacts are that they are largely irreversible when they have been done. Normally, the effects of these impacts lie on the host community. The answer lies in the relationships which the tourist and the host community create with one another (Swarbrooke, 1999). Increasingly in the last number of years, tourists have been travelling to destinations with have an inclination towards travel for a varied product offering – they now travel for historical, archaeological and traditional purposes, as well as for the atmosphere they get from being in a particular place (Besculides et al, 2002). Cultural tourism, in general, sees a want in the tourist to establish communication with the host culture and with their environment. Tourists now have a curiosity to understand the native? s behaviours, traditions and cultural identity (Besculides et al, 2002). Kreag (2001) identified several positive and negative socio-cultural impacts of tourism which can have profound effects on indigenous people. They ranged from improving the quality of life of the host community and promoting cultural exchange, to drinking, alcoholism and gambling, displacement of residents and an unwanted lifestyle change. As we can see, impacts of tourism to a community can either be an asset to that community or can be to their detriment. Relevant and ongoing socio-cultural issues will now be discussed further. 13 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 4. 1 Aiming to Please and Relative Deprivation Acculturation: Sometimes host communities want to please the tourist and sometimes they can adopt tourist behaviour. This is known as acculturation. According to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM, 2004) acculturation can be defined as â€Å"the progressive adoption of elements of a foreign culture (ideas, words, values, norms, behaviour, institutions) by persons, groups or classes of a given culture and this partial or total adaptation is caused by contacts and interactions between different cultures through migration and trade relations†. This can be detrimental to the host community – they slowly lose their own way of life by being influenced by the tourist. Relative Deprivation: It seems that the impact tourists have on a particular area may actually affect the native people? s feelings about themselves and this, in turn, can cause bitterness toward the visiting influx of tourists to their homeland. (Runciman, 1966), cited in (Walker and Smith, 2002) explained that relative deprivation deals with the idea of people comparing their own lives with that of the other individuals or other social groups. Depending on what type of person they compare themselves with; this will determine the level of resentment which they will inevitably feel. An interaction which takes place between both cultures (tourist and host) can provide new opportunities, but could also suppress independence, as well as forcing a community to adopt a different ethical behaviour, one which they are not used to. This could come in a positive way, e. g. improved understanding between males and females (as many countries think differently about this aspect of social life) or by an increased use of drugs, perhaps (Kreag, 2001). This can create a whole host of other problems, such as an increase in violence in the area. 14 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 4. 2 Traditional Ceremonies and the Tourist Gaze Traditional ceremonies native to specific tribes or groups of indigenous people may be rejuvenated by incoming tourist interests in culture, but these traditional ceremonies may also be lost (Kreag, 2001). Many see culture as a product or service when they travel. It? s as if it? s part of the whole experience and they demand to have it. According to Johnston (2006), whether a tour which tourists partake in whilst on holidays is nature-oriented or ethnicallyoriented, the local indigenous culture will be included in this whole „package? , a lot of the time without the native? s say-so or contribution. This is an unacceptable use of people? s culture for marketing tourism and is one of the negative impacts on indigenous people – it is an ethical issue which has been brought up by indigenous people constantly. The Toraja people of Sulawesi, Indonesia, took the idea of a traditional ceremony shown to the outside world to the extreme, one might say. Following the death of a high-status Toraja figure in December, 1991, a camera crew came, with consent from this man? s family, to film the funeral ceremony in full. The idea behind it was to capture an â€Å"exotic† Toraja funeral, complete with animal sacrifices and rituals being performed in front of the camera lens (Yamashita, 1994). The son of the deceased, a wealthy businessman who had made it big in his early life in the city of Ujung Padang, paid $10,000 as a „co-operation fee? to the production company. We are still taking into account here that even though Sampe (son of the deceased) was well-off, the majority of the Toraja are peasants. Two things were happening in this situation – 1. Sampe, the deceased? s son, was conscious that showcasing his father? s funeral would promote Toraja for tourism purposes. The Indonesian government was also getting on the bandwagon and had endorsed this behaviour by influencing ethnic culture so that it could then market the area to tourists from elsewhere. The second was that the tourists could photograph and record the ceremony, under the spell of the „tourist gaze?. The „tourist gaze? , described by John Urry, is when â€Å"Places are chosen to be gazed upon because there is anticipation, especially through daydreaming and fantasy, of intense pleasures, either on a different scale or involving different senses from those customarily encountered† (Urry, 2002, p3). Other re-enforcers of this „tourist gaze? are seen through watching T. V. , reading magazines, etc The local tradition of the Toraja became removed from the culture of these people and was turned into a commodity for the tourist to consume (Yamashita, 1994). The Toraja of Sulawesi was one such case study whereby not only the tourists were taking full advantage of 15 6/12/2011 BA (Hons) Tourism Marketing Year 3 a traditional ceremony, but the local people too, to some extent, for the beneficial outcome it would give them regarding tourism to the area. Needless to say, these cultural impacts are having a profound effect on indigenous people worldwide and some have come to reject tourism altogether. The American Indian Movement (1984) stated its warning many times – â€Å"We condemn those who seek to profit from Indian Spirituality

Jude the Obscure Essay Example for Free

Jude the Obscure Essay According to philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, religion is a â€Å"falsehood. † The implications of the â€Å"death of God† addressed by Nietzsche are portrayed through the characters and the plot itself of the novel Jude the Obscure written by Thomas Hardy. Nietzsche believes that religion has influenced and distorted the value of truth, the influence of morality, and the need for worship, leading people down a path of wandering. The main character in the novel, Jude, experiences many troubles throughout his life, which stem from uncertainty of his beliefs and desires. Religion seems to be the light Jude should follow, but it is actually an illusion, which leads to a falsehood of truth and meaning, morality, and the church. Friedrich Nietzsche believes that everything that made sense with God no longer exists and religion has led to the death of truth and meaning. This is a common theme in Jude the Obscure. Throughout the book, Hardy displays the feeling that religion is something that people use to satisfy themselves by giving their lives meaning. This is apparent in the main character Jude, who is an orphan constantly searching to give himself an identity. Jude gravitates towards people or places hoping to give his life meaning. His relationship with Mr. Phillotson led him to follow a religious path, believing it will help him add meaning to his life. Jude is illustrated as a wanderer, similar to those who are on the path of religion, wandering from place to place to find work and searching for his own identity. Hardy uses this allusion to convey that a religious path does not provide one true destination, but rather it leaves people wandering. The concept of morality and distinguishing between what is good and evil often causes angst and anxiety among people. Religion creates a battle of guilt and uncertainty. Throughout the novel, Jude is battling with his religious views and his deepest desires, wanting to be religious like his mentor but also fulfill his desire to stay with Sue. The guilt Jude felt about his longing to be with Sue led him to leave the church. These feelings of guilt caused Jude to move away from the Church and â€Å"betray† God, as he states, â€Å"The Church is no more to me (Hardy 237). † Religion produced a falsehood of emotions that only left Jude dissatisfied with his thoughts and actions. Religion forms an image of an attainable ideal world, but this ideal vision rejects reality. Within the novel, Jude sees in Christminster an attainable, ideal world, similar to the one people see in the Church, heaven. Hardy uses biblical references that lead readers to make a connection between the Church and Christminster. Jude sees Christminster as â€Å"the city of the light† and â€Å"a place he had likened to the new Jerusalem (Hardy 22). † Jude sees Christminster as a place where he desires to fulfill his hopes and dreams, but this wonderful world exists only in Jude’s imagination. Jude runs to religion to escape his problems and what he had hoped to achieve in Christminster was unfulfilled. His love, Sue, left him for the one who brought him to religion, and he was not accepted to any of the colleges he had desired to attend. Like Hardy, Nietzsche explains that religion and the church create a false illusion of the world, which is actually filled with many letdowns. When religion is gone and God is dead, all that is left is the love we have for one another and ourselves. Jude’s tribulations throughout the novel are linked to his internal battle of emotions towards religion and his desires. Religion is a falsehood that leads to wandering down a path towards an unattainable ideal world. Religion creates one value of truth, but according to Nietzsche and Hardy, there isn’t one single truth and it is impossible to judge the values and correctness of one group. The judgment and hypocrisy Jude felt in the novel led him down a path of unhappiness and emptiness. Jude’s realization at the end of the novel correlates with Nietzsche view on religion; one must choose his own path because when God is dead, all that is left is the individual perspective on reality.

An Analysis Into The Uk Food Retail Industry Marketing Essay

An Analysis Into The Uk Food Retail Industry Marketing Essay The analysis will begin with a presentation of the food retail industry and a highlight of its significant features. Furthermore, to assess the remote environment of the industry a PEST analysis will be conducted, analysing the political, economical, social and technological factors that affect the industry. Furthermore, a Porters 5 forces analysis will be used to evaluate the operating environment and the nature of competition. Moreover the major competitors and their competition strategies will be identified. Additionally, the effect of the remote and operating environment on the players of the industry will be highlighted. Also, a critical analysis of the industrys strength and its future will be presented. Finally, a critical evaluation on the used business analysis techniques will be illustrated. 2 .Industry profile The UK food retail industry is an established sector of the UK economy. During the last thirty years the food retail corporations expanded their activities to serve various consumer needs. The products that are provided to the public include food and its sub-products, but also alcohol, tobacco, health and beauty products, clothing, electrical products, homeware, fuel and financial services. However, according to the Mintel report 2009, more than half of the total sales in 2008 were assigned to food. Furthermore, concerning the size of the industry an increasing trend of sales can be observed of about 4% per year from 2004 to 2008 and a total amount of 108.1 billion pounds in 2008 (National Statistics Mintel report 2009). The food retail industry is mainly controlled by large supermarket chains that possess the overwhelming majority of the industrys market share, as it will be analysed further in the report. Concerning the size diversification of the retail stores, the majority are large units like hypermarkets, supermarkets and discounters with a percentage of 62% of the total number of stores. Furthermore, small units as convenience stores and gas stations represent the 21.2% and food and drink specialists the 11.3%. The minority are drug stores, warehouses and cash and carry stores (Datamonitor 2009). 3. PEST analysis Macro-environment To analyse the macro-environment or otherwise known remote environment of the food retail industry, a PEST analysis will be used to specify how Political and legal, Economical, Social and Technological issues affect the industry. 3.1 Political There are many political and legal factors that affect the food retail industry. Future political decisions concerning taxation or the retail industry legislation will definitely have an impact in the industry competitors policies and strategies. The current legislation and regulation concern competition, employment, environmental, food and grocery safety, financial services and health issues. Specifically, the UK food retailers are obliged to follow food hygiene legislation set by the Food Standards Agency and the equivalent European Union regulation such as the General Food Law Regulation. In the UK the food safety act of 1990 was enacted to set the food safety requirements for food intended for human consumption. The Food Standards Agency was created in 2000 after the food standards act of 1999, which was enacted to further secure the public health related to food safety (Office of Public Sector Information, 1999). The UK food retailers are obliged to follow the above regulations in conjunction with the General Food Regulations 2004 that set the rules about the transportation, distribution, quality, hygiene, maintenance, advertising and selling of food and its substances. Especially for the food hygiene and maintenance the rules and requirements of the Food Hygiene Regulations of 2006 and the internationally recognised Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) must be followed (Food Standards Agency, 2010). Therefore, possible disobedience of the above regulations by the supermarkets will cause legal problems and the enforcement of fines, harming their budget and social image. The competition in the UK is observed and controlled by two government bodies, the Competition Commission and the Office of Fair Trading. The two government bodies ensure that the companies in the UK comply with the competition law and practices. Therefore, they observe and interface the market to avoid monopoly, oligopoly and cartel phenomena. Their role beyond the control of competition between the competitors within the industry is to ensure the fair trade between the supermarkets and their supplies. According to recent press publications the fair trade is currently the most important issue (Haurant S., 2009). In 2001 the Office of Fair Trading enacted the Supermarkets Code of Practice to regulate and assure the trade between supermarkets and suppliers, who include amongst others, farmers and breeders (Office of Fair Trading, 2001). Additionally, the major supermarket chains had been often accused for anticompetitive, unfair practices and failure to meet the necessary requirements . For example, in April 2010 the Office of Fair Trading fined nine retailers for anticompetitive practices at their tobacco pricing between 2001 and 2003 (Mintel report, 2009). For this reason the Competition Commission planned to change the existing Supermarkets Code of Practice to a new Grocery Supply Code of Practice (Haurant S., 2009). The new code of practice added intensive pressure to the Grocery retailers because they were forced to comply with stricter regulation and to cover the costs of the observation body. This new regulation led to greater competition which toughed the operations of the supermarkets but reduced slightly the prices to benefit the consumers. Another important group of regulations are those concerning the planning and environmental law. The grocery retail companies need to comply with the planning law to be able to expand their activities in new places. During the past years, the grocery retailers tended to expand their stores in places away from town centres. The reason was primary the reduced property prices and the ability to construct large supermarket units, maximising their profits. However this trend provoked a series of issues such as the increased pollution from the consumers transportation leading the government to change the legislation, demanding the presence of town centre stores at first. Therefore, the reaction of the supermarket chains was to increase the number of mid-size and small stores who complied with legislation and increased the supermarkets points of presence (Tescopoly; Butler S., 2006). Furthermore, the grocery retail corporations need to comply with environmental law and regulations concerning goods transportation pollution, aesthetics, proper disposal and recycling. For example the supermarkets were forced by new legislation to charge their customers a certain cost for each provided plastic bag (Brogan B., 2008). There is a significant percentage of the workforce that is employed in the food retail industry. Therefore, the food retail companies are obliged to comply with the UK and EU employment legislation exactly as the rest of the employers. Labour law such as the Employment Rights Act 1996 and the Employment Act 2002 specify the workers rights including wages, working conditions, work hours and job security Also, during the past thirty years, a series of anti-discrimination laws were enacted to establish equality and diversity in the workforce (Businesspme.com, 2008; direct.gov.uk, 2010). Also, the food retail corporations are obliged to comply with health and safety standards in the workplace in operations like the use of machinery, electrical equipment, transportation of goods, violence etc (Shropshire, 2010). These regulations are mainly set by the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Workplace regulations of 1992. Therefore, any political decision leading to more complex employm ent legislation can increase the labour costs in the industry and reduce the profitability. Additionally, non compliance with the labour regulations can lead to long term litigations with former or employees or the government. During the last years the large supermarket chains expanded their activities to provide financial services such as credit cards, loans and deposits. Therefore the supermarkets are obliged to comply with the legislation and regulations enacted by the Financial Services Authority (Financial Services Authority, 2010). Therefore, a possible change in financial services taxation or regulation will affect their profitability. Furthermore, the supermarkets are obliged to pay the equivalent corporate tax at the HM Revenue and Customs. 3.2 Economical The economic factors, incidents and situations that affect the food retail industry can be concentrated in the following categories: Consumer spending and disposable income, inflation, taxation, interest rates, unemployment, monetary issues, and the recent financial crisis. The recent financial crisis has definitely brought many important changes in the food retail sector as well as to the majority of the industries. However, the effect of the financial crisis did not affect negatively the consumer demand. On the contrary the consumer spending in the food retail industry increased from 2007 to 2008 especially in the food products and continues to increase at an approximately rate of 5% (National Statistics; Mintel report, 2009). The main implication for this trend was that because of the recession, the consumers cut their eating out expenses and started to consume food at home as it is much cheaper. Furthermore the sales of organic food, specialised products such as television and sound systems and expensive products declined (Mintel report, 2009).On the contrary, the sales of own brand products and hard discounters chains increased indicating the consumers turn in low cost products. The price competition and the importance of food increased the consumer demand and expenditure; however it is doubtful if it will continue to rise mainly because of the general economic uncertainty and the higher upcoming personal income taxation. In macroeconomic terms, the GDP after a massive decline in its change rate started to increase after the mid 2009 to reach a positive 0.5% in early 2010. Also, the inflation after a decline during the recession increased in late 2009 which probably led to an increasing trend at groceries prices (National Statistics, 2010). However, the Bank of England continues to maintain the interest rates at a low level (0.5%), to protect the fragile economy (BBC, 2010). This low interest rate will lead to increased consumption because consumers will favour to spend than to save their funds and the food retailers will be able to borrow funds at a low costs to cover their liabilities. This fact will act as compensation to the increased inflation and will probably maintain the prices. Concerning the monetary issues, during the last three years the sterling faced a significant decline of approximately (-26%) towards the euro and approximately (-25%) towards the dollar which increased the cost of imported goods in the UK (Yahoo Finance, 2010). Therefore, this situation might force the UK food retailers to construct food manufacturing plants in the United Kingdom and prefer UK suppliers. Thus, the grocery retailers will be able to have a stable pricing policy and larger price margins. From 2009 to 2010 the exchange rates fluctuated causing uncertainty and maintaining the food prices high One of the most important parts of the economic factors that affect the food retail industry is taxation. This is divided to personal income tax for the consumers and to corporation tax for the supermarkets. After May 2010 elections a coalition government between the Conservatives party and the Liberal Democrats party formed and changes are expected in taxation. Concerning income tax an increase in tax contributions is expected in 2010/2011 which will lead to a decline in consumption possibly affecting the more expensive goods and food retailers. On the other hand the corporate tax will be probably reduced during 2010 to boost economy and development. (Vincent, 2010) Therefore, the food retail corporations will be able to afford larger margins to price competition. The above facts will possibly lead the supermarkets to a trend of decreasing prices in basic goods and making offers to maintain consumer spending levels. For example there is a trend at supermarkets to offer products in r ounded prices ( £1,  £2) creating an offer impression (Felsted A., 2010). 3.3 Social The next sector of the PEST analysis is consisted by the social factors that affect the industry such as the demographics, lifestyle, culture and population trends. It is well known that Europes population is getting older and as years are passing this phenomenon will be more intense. In the United Kingdom (Mintel report, 2009) the average age and the percentage of retired people are rising. This trend has many implications to the food retail industry. First of all, elder people tend to consume less than younger people. This happens because their income which mainly comes from pensions is lower. Secondly, elder people tend to shop from the cheaper discounter retailers. Therefore, the market share of the discounter chains will increase against the rest of the competitors in the industry (Mintel oxygen, 2009). Also, the additional needs of this age group leads to an increasing trend of online and distance shopping which increase the home grocery deliveries. Thus, the operational costs of the supermarkets increase due to increased expenses for vehicles and personnel. Another implication coming from the ageing population will be the need for new product lines designed for people with various chronic ailments which are common amongst elder people. An important issue that concerns the society is obesity. According to the Health Survey for England, there is an increasing trend of obesity especially in children (NHS, 2009). The health problems and their consequences led the government and various organisations to promote a healthier lifestyle in Britain. Therefore, the consumers health awareness increased and they turned their interest to healthier foods and to more fruit and vegetables. Thus, it can be supposed that the food retail corporations will continue to adapt to the consumers demand enhancing their existing product lines with new healthier products such as organic foods, low fat and low sugar products and healthy food campaigns. Also, it will be possible to appear products for specific social groups such as people suffering from diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and allergies. Therefore, by targeting these consumer groups the food retail corporations will increase their income and improve their corporate social image. Furthermore, the increasing trend of more women entering the workforce, led to the need for ready meals at the supermarkets because women had less time to prepare food after work (International Labour Organisation, 2008). As this trend continues the supermarkets will expand their ready meals variety and create new categories depending into cost, calories and taste covering different needs. Also, the presence of different people from different background and culture in the UK changed the structure of the society. According to the UK National Statistics approximately the 10% of the UK population is non-British (UK National Statistics, 2001). Different cultures mean different habits and different food preferences. Therefore, the food retailers often provide goods from all over the world to serve those needs. 3.4 Technological The final element of the PEST analysis concerns the technological factors that are related to the food retail industry. The technological development affected and changed the industry in different categories including consumers, environment, cost, distribution, and logistics. During the last decade, the supermarkets in the United Kingdom took advantage of the internet and they are offering online shopping to the consumers. Through this innovative feature the supermarkets offer their entire catalogue of products to the consumers and the ability to compare prices, search for a product, pay and order for their groceries. Therefore, the food retailers reduce their personnel costs while they are able to advertise almost free and make consumers aware of their offers. Also it is not unusual that many products cannot be found inside the stores and are available only through e-commerce (Tesco annual report 2009). This is another example of minimising operating costs while increasing sales. Furthermore, the food retail corporations used the information technology to organise their operations and maximise the organisations efficiency and profitability. Specifically, the management of each organisations functions is assigned to specialised software and digitalisation of processes. Through the use of innovative technology the cost and the paperwork is reduced and time is saved. Also, the logistics department increases its efficiency because the supply chain is more efficient controlled and the stock management provides a real and immediate view (Sainsburys annual report 2009). The implementation of technology can be beneficial for both retailer and consumer. The self-checkout machines reduce the labour costs of the company because they usually require one person per five machines to observe. Also, in that way the consumers save time and control their groceries shopping. The introduction of point earning cards offers discounts and rewards to the consumer while it provides valuable information to the supermarket company about the preferences and habits of each individual. The analysis of this information assists to the companys advertising planning and strategy while it offers the ability of targeted marketing (Moody, 1997). The effective application of technology in the distribution and transportation process through energy efficient vehicles protects the environment as it reduces the vehicles carbon emissions. Furthermore, the food retail company improves its corporate social responsibility and reduces the goods transportation cost. Finally, the Universal Product Code or in other words bar-code was an innovation that brought a revolution in the industry. Each product could have its specific bar-code, simplifying the pricing and check-out while saving time and establishing accuracy. Also, the use of wireless technology and the attachment of electronic chips on the products can prevent theft and measure the product availability on shelves. Therefore, the inventory is the supply process becomes faster and the food retail corporations avoid unexpected losses that due to their volume can have a significant cost for the organisation (Food Marketing Institute, 2010). 4. Porters five forces analysis Operating Environment To analyse the operating environment of the food retail industry and evaluate its competitive nature, a Porters Five Forces Analysis, created by E.M Porter professor at Harvard University Business School, will be used. According to Porter the five forces are: the industry competitors rivalry, the threat of new entrants, the bargaining power of suppliers, the bargaining power of buyers and the threat of substitutes products or services (Porter, 2004). 4.1 The industry competitors rivalry. The competition in the food retail industry is intense. The named big4 supermarkets which are: Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda, Morrisons own the 73.3% market share, fact that makes the industry an oligopoly (Mintel report 2009). Below are the identified the major competitors in the industry and their competitive strategies. 4.1.1 Tesco Tesco is the market leader with a market share of 31%, and a total number of outlets 2,282, is traded in the London Stock Exchange and had  £41,520m sales and  £2,381m profit in 2009. Beyond food products it sells electrical equipment, health products, petrol, clothing, homeware, telecommunications through a joint venture with O2, and financial services through Tesco Bank (Datamonitor, 2009). Also, Tesco is expanding to land telecommunications, construction and youth clothing (Parker; Felsted; Poulter; Minton, 2010) Tescos expansion plans target to the development of the small Tesco Express who satisfy the legal size requirement of Sunday trading act to operate on Sunday (DEFRA, 2006). The objectives of Tescos strategy are concentrated in five areas: to be a successful international retailer, to grow the core UK business, to be as strong in non-food as in food, to develop retailing services such as Tesco Personal Finance, Telecoms and tesco.com and to put community at the heart of what we do (Tesco Annual report 2009). 4.1.2 Sainsburys Sainsburys is a supermarket chain in the United Kingdom with a market share of 15.4%, and a total number of outlets 792, is traded in the London Stock Exchange and had sales  £18,911m and  £466m profit in 2009. Sainsburys sells food products, home and garden products, electrical appliances, clothing, health products, sports and leisure products, petrol and offers financial and insurance services. Also, Sainsburys is expanding to Electricity and Gas, broadband and digital TV. Furthermore, Sainsburys collaborates with convenience store chains Bells Stores, Jacksons Stores, and JB Beaumont Stores in a strategic alliance move to increase its market share in the convenience stores battle. Sainsburys concentrate its corporate objectives in five areas: Great food at fair prices, Expansion in non-food products and services, Reaching more consumers through alternative distribution channels (online shopping), growing supermarket space and active property management of existing stores (Datamonitor, 2009; Rigby and Killgren, 2008; Sainsburys annual report, 2009). 4.1.3. Asda Asda is a supermarket chain owned by Walmart a United States of America supermarket corporation. Asda operates in the United Kingdom with a market share of 15.1% and a total number of outlets 356 and had sales  £18,573m and  £520m profit in 2009. Asda sells food products, health and beauty products, household products and petrol. Also it offers telecommunication services through its own mobile network Asda mobile and clothing through the George stores. Asdas competitive strategy is to differentiate from the competition emphasises in the fresh food, including bakers and butchers in its stores. Also, Asda operates a discount store Asda Essentials with own brand products competing directly with the discounters Lidl and Aldi. In a generic view, Asda targets in price competition boasting better prices and offers. (Datamonitor 2009; Corporatewatch.org.uk, 2004) 4.1.4. Morrisons Wm Morrison supermarkets or otherwise Morrisons is the fourth supermarket chain in the United Kingdom. Morrisons have a market share of 11.8% and a total number of outlets 420. Morrisons sells groceries, household products, petrol and dry cleaning and photo services. Morrisons operates through its own stores and its subsidiaries with Safeway among others. Morrisons target is to become the Food Specialist for Everyone as it owns 13 manufacturing plants and a fresh food factory. Morrisons concentrates its strategy around three brand values: Fresh, Value and Service. This means that Morrisons targets to offer fresh food in competitive prices in a premium consumer service. Generally, Morrisons is an emerging power in the industry and tries to gain competitive advantage by connecting the gap between value and high quality products. (Datamonitor, 2009; Wm Morrison annual report, 2009) Examining the nature of competition and the competitive rivalry it can be observed that the market share of mid-size and local grocery retailers is too small and the increasing appearance of big4 convenience stores and the large fixed costs. This leads to the implication that the competition in the industry is mainly concentrated among the major competitors. The major competitors are operating in a mature market, which pushes them to fiercely compete for market share through price, range and service (DEFRA 2006). In a mature market with a stable population like in the UK the consumption cannot be increased significantly. Thus, the main objective is to acquire a bigger percentage of the market share pie. Therefore, this situation has driven the grocery retailers to compete in a price war to maintain their customers and if possible to attract more to increase their revenues (Felsted, 2010). For this reason the grocery retailers aim to innovate and minimise the cost to be able to allow larger price margins. Also, taking into account the recent financial crisis and the recession it can be observed that the consumers were cutting their expenses and turned to hard discounters chains such as Lidl and Aldi. (Mintel report, 2009) This situation strengthens the price competition from sophisticated to basic products such as milk, poultry and bread. Also, the major competitors adopted aggressive advertising policy comparing often their prices with competition (Leroux, 2009). Furthermore, to increase their competitiveness supermarkets expand their activities and increase their product range. For example they offer in their stores non-food products like electrical equipment, homeware, pharmacy, financial services etc. This action widened their competitive arena, as they compete with a large portion of the retail sector such as electrical equipment, clothing, DoItYourself, furniture and health and beauty stores. The existence of petrol stations at the supermarkets competes directly with the petroleum providers e.g. BP and SHELL. Also, the supermarkets expansion to financial services e.g. Tesco Bank, place supermarkets to compete with retail banks. It can be suggested that the supermarkets because of the mature food market aim to provide a total package of products and services to their customers covering all their consuming needs; thus increasing the food retail industrys sales and profits. 4.2 The threat of new entrants. The entrance of new competitors in the food retail industry faces several difficulties. The creation of a new supermarket chain requires large capital investment, funds for corporate planning, advertising and trading capital. Furthermore, the majority of the industrys market share is acquired by the established big4 chain supermarkets and the margins for expansion are very limited. Also, the acquisitions are very difficult to realise because of the high value of the existing chains. However possible mergers or strategic alliances might take place. Other barriers to entry in the industry are the large fixed costs and the developed supply chains. Also, the existing dominants of the market benefit from the economies of scale which gives them the ability to adopt an aggressive pricing strategy. Therefore, it is very hard for the smaller retailers to compete and survive in that environment. According to the Competition Commission (2008) there are three different factors that lift entry barriers to the industry: a) cost advantages that large grocery retailers have b) the planning regime for grocery retailing and c) the control of land of large grocery retailers. The Competition Commission report divides the large grocery retailers cost advantages in two categories: distribution costs and purchasing costs. The large grocery retailers gain benefits from reduced distributions costs occurring by economies of scale and economies of density. The economies of density benefit the supermarkets because they operate satellite distribution centres that serve groups of stores. This process reduces the distribution costs because the distribution centres supply only the short and medium distance branches saving time distance and transportation costs. The economy of scale impact is that the supermarket chains use technology to control the products availability, to maintain the sensitive groceries such as meat and vegetables. Also, the supermarket maximise the efficiency of the distribution from and to suppliers, supermarket stores and consumers. Therefore this acts as another barrier to entry because the large supermarket chains have established channels of distribution and a cost effective distribution network supported by their own distribution fleet which covers the majority of the British territory (Competition Commission, 2008). The purchasing costs act as a barrier to entry to the food retail industry. The large supermarket chains because of their high volume purchases are able to deal better prices with their suppliers. Therefore, they are able to offer their products at a lower price in contrast with the smaller retailers who are obliged to purchase at a higher price (Competition Commission, 2008). Also, the big4 chains have already a competitive advantage because they possess knowledge and information about the suppliers. The volume of their sales gives them the ability to make large orders of supplies in lower prices. Another barrier to entry in the industry is the current planning regime for grocery retailing. The planning regulation sets limitations to the ability of new and existing competitors to open new stores in the positions they want. The reasons for this include environmental, competition and town planning issues. Also, the continuous development of supermarket outside towns led the UK government to demand the town centre development since 1996 (Competition Commission, 2008). Additionally the large supermarket chains already control the suitable land and the best locations, which make the rest of the sites expensive and difficult to find. All the barriers to entry in the industry are beneficial to the oligopolistic big4 supermarket chains and allow them to increase their profitability through the reduced costs and by controlling the goods prices. 4.3 The bargaining power of suppliers. According to the Datamonitor report (2009) the suppliers in the grocery retail industry include: food manufacturers, food processors, farmers, and agricultural co-operatives. The most powerful suppliers are the food manufacturers and the food processors because their number is smaller and in some cases they are irreplaceable. The bargaining power of the suppliers is high when they supply the supermarkets with branded goods that are highly demanded by the consumers. The supermarkets cannot apply big pressure to secure low prices and the suppliers can negotiate better prices. Therefore the supermarket chains make long term contracts with certain suppliers while maintaining their deals with a variety of suppliers to keep the switching costs low. Furthermore, the presence of the supermarkets own brands weakens the position of the suppliers and reduces their bargaining power. For example the supermarket chain Sainsburys includes in their product line their own branded Sainsburys ham and the Danepak ham and the consumers prefer them because they are usually sold at lower prices (Ali, 2009). The implication is that the supermarkets gain bargaining power because they are able to change suppliers or to make big orders. However when the food retailers choose to cooperate with only a few suppliers they give bargaining power to suppliers. For example big food manufacturer like Nestle have loyal consumers who give high value to the brand. Therefore, the supermarkets are obliged to bargain with different terms with the big suppliers and make concessions to their profits (Hill, 2007). During the last years the big4 competitors demanding for lower prices, were often accused for price wars with the suppliers. Unfair competition practices like late p