ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Three Works Depicting a Contemporary Woman Contemporary western society is seen as a terrain where women have acquired quite many liberties and opportunities. Women occupy highest posts in countries and this can be regarded as a complete victory of feminists. Nonetheless, works by Woolf and Brownmiller, which were written in the twentieth century, verify that all those ‘victories’ are nothing more than a pleasing diversity for men who are still in power. The two essays reveal the essence of gender roles in the contemporary society. The two works depict women as dependant on men. The authors also explain this dependency stating that women were bred to fit the world of men during centuries. It is possible to think of a variety of examples that confirm ideas provided by Woolf and Brownmiller. However, it is also possible to think of a conspicuous example of gender roles which is represented by Georgiana, the main character of Hawthorne’s short story “The Birthmark”. Georgiana is a specific example of the women in the twenty-first century who are eager to please the men without even knowing it, the women who see themselves as empathetic, supportive and selfless creatures destined to be disintegrated in the universe of the men. Woolf’s and Brownmiller’s Suggestions on Women’s Status in the Society Sympathy According to Brownmiller and Woolf, women are expected to be sympathetic, submissive and pleasing. Moreover, being sympathetic is regarded as one of the major virtues of the woman. The two authors note that women are meant to admit men’s superiority and take it for granted. Thus, masculinity is a purely male virtue, while sympathy is a purely female virtue. Men are seen as strong and decisive creatures who are responsible for decision making, and women are seen as those who create comfortable atmosphere for the decision makers. Responsibility Importantly, the contemporary society heavily relies on religious conventions which, in their turn, support the societal order where females are inferior to males. The Bible brings discredit on women depicting the very first woman as a former part of the first man. Moreover, the woman made a very wrong decision (concerning the apple) and was deprived of the ability to make any other ‘erroneous’ decisions in the future. Brownmiller claims that women have quite a restricted responsibility, i.e. to run the household and create comfortable atmosphere for the man. According to the writers, women cannot even have an opinion of their own. A woman’s viewpoint can be accepted in the contemporary society if it goes along with the male’s opinion. Female have no right to contradict. In this case, women will simply be ignored. However, if they express ideas that support existing (male) concepts, these opinions can even be praised. Beauty Finally, the two works also reveal one more aspect defining the role of a woman. The writers suggest that beauty is one of the major tools women can use to please men. Brownmiller states that females were ‘allowed’ to wear make-up and revealing outfits to
Introduction Background to the Research The rapid growth of the Chinese economy over the past two decades has attracted numerous investors from the United States and Europe. Alibaba.com, Huawei, Legend Holdings, HNA Group, Suning, Amer International, and Country Garden are some of the largest private corporations that have registered impressive growth over the past decade. The rapid growth of these companies has been propelled by the massive population in the country and the rapid growth of the economy. As Forsberg and Ojala (2014) explain, China is currently the second largest economy in the world after the United States. As the purchasing power of the country’s massive population continues to increase, the Chinese market is rapidly becoming the target of many large corporations around the world. Investors around the world are also convinced that the best way of getting good returns out of their investments is to buy stocks in Chinese companies. The attractiveness of the stock of these Chinese companies explains why they are increasingly getting listed in the United States stock market. Alibaba Group Holding, Baidu, BIDU, and JD.com Inc are some of the Chinese firms already listed in the local stock exchange markets. A worrying trend is emerging where some of these Chinese firms provide misleading financial statements primarily to lure unsuspecting investors. It is a common practice for most people to buy stocks with a sharp rise in value with the hope of making huge profits within a short period. Armed with this knowledge, these Chinese companies would instruct their accounting officers to inflate growth as a means of attracting investors (Chan, Pollard, & Chuo, 2007). The goal of these companies is to foster rapid growth by increasing revenues from investors instead of sales. On April 2, 2020, United States Securities and Exchange Commission was informed that Luckin Coffee, the largest local coffee Chain in China, was involved in accounting fraud (Dat, Mau, Loan, & Huy, 2020). The company had been registering rapid growth over the years and had attracted numerous local investors who were convinced that it offered a better opportunity that most of the local American firms. Within the first day of the revelation of the accounting fraud, the company lost 81% in its share price (Zhang, 2018). The company has since lost over 94% worth of share prices. Similar accounting frauds have been witnessed with several other companies such as Kangmei Pharmaceuticals and LeEco among other companies. The corporate accounting scandal that is increasingly becoming common in China is a major cause of concern for many companies and investors in the United States. China has become a major global market that can no longer be ignored. Many American citizens and corporations have invested in these companies, but it is now evident that their investment is not protected (Pana & Tian, 2017). The 2008 global economic recession that crippled many economies around the world was caused
Introduction Niall Ferguson’s book “The Ascent of Money” is one of the most investigative works that attempt to describe and determine the origin and progress of the financial system in human history. It traces the origin of money as a means of exchange and measure of value, financial systems, institutions and debts. In fact, the book traces the genesis of the financial system, which the author believes started in Mesopotamia and the ancient Egypt. The author further argues that the evolution of the world financial system was “as important as any other technological innovation and evolution”. In fact, the book attributes the success of human development to the evolution of the financial system. Methodological approach Niall Ferguson develops a compressive analysis of the current situation in the global financial system. In this book, the Ferguson derives information from various historical accounts. Noteworthy, the book uses a review of literature as the study method, which has allowed the author develop a comprehensive historical timeline that begins at Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt. To determine the birth of the monetary system, Ferguson refers to stone and clay tablets discovered from the ruins of various cities in Mesopotamia, Egypt and other parts of Europe and Asia. Theoretical approach It is important to note that the author goes beyond analyzing mere historical accounts. He develops an idea of monetary evolution from mere historical accounts. In fact, the author argues that every historical event in the past had a monetary secret that influenced evolution. In addition, he argues that the evolution of societies was driven by monetary and technological developments. In addition, the author has extensively used case studies to develop his ideas and arguments. For instance, the author refers to the 2008-2010 and 1930s financial crises, calling them as mere examples of the evolutionary trend of the monetary systems. Comprehensive Book review According to Ferguson, “every historical event has a unique financial secret”. For instance, the European Renaissance, which led to expansive changes in arts, music, education, science and other aspects of life, was backed by a financial secret. It was driven by a market boom, which allowed most financiers of art, literature, music and science make fortunes and accumulate wealth. The author uses the Medici case study to elaborate how aristocrats and capitalists of the time used the prevailing social and political dynamic to make money. Similarly, similar events have taken place throughout human history, which
Problem statement The quality of the work environment matters a lot to employees and contributes to improved worker productivity and motivation. The concept of fun while working is exciting and research shows that it improves employee productivity (Catherine, Lottie & Jeremy, 2014). Although the idea of fun at work may be problematic because employees may tend to trivialize everything, emerging evidence, shows that employees can still have fun while taking their core work seriously. Employees clearly want to take things more lightly than currently allowed in most companies. However, what is missing from the current literature is what fun really does to employees making them work harder and focus more on their work. Work stress and frustration are commonly cited as the most common killer of motivation (Hazelton, 2014). If that was the case, how does fun eliminate work stress? Researchers have largely ignored this important question. Fun in the work environment appears to improve communication and reduce frustration (Lamm& Meeks, 2012). The source of frustration could be due to poor communication. For example, if a low-level employee is required to complete certain work and yet cannot more direction as he/she feel needed, it can be a source of frustration (Bennett, Owers, Pitt, & Tucker, 2010). An organization that promotes a culture of fun and informality breaks down inhibitions that hinder communication (Baptiste, 2012). The mechanism through which fun improves the general work environment fosters communication and reduces stress is poorly understood. It is not enough to know that fun is good for improving employee motivation and productivity. Employers need to understand what fun actually does to change people from being frustrated with happy and hardworking people. This information can be captured by interviewing employees and as well as collecting data on things such as absenteeism and sick leave. There is a genuine fear that embracing fun in the workplace would erode professionalism. Knowing what exactly makes employees happy in an environment of fun is important in removing the fears human resource managers and employers may be having. Research questions How often has fun in the workplace acted as your motivating factor in your current or past workplaces?  1. Always  2. Most of the time  3. Half the time  4. Occasionally  5. Never How relevant do you believe fun in the workplace strategy is increasing the employee’s productivity and organizational performance?  1. Very relevant  2. Quite relevant  3. Necessary  4. Has some reservations  5. Completely irrelevant Why is it that most organizations are slow in the implementation of fu
Globalization and internationalization are the processes that have great impact on all the events that take place in today’s world. Geopolitical phenomena like globalization influence not only the political and social life of the world, but affect greatly such an important branch of human activity as economics, and in particular, trade. Among the activities connected with trading the following can be singled out – wholesale trade and retail trade. Their main difference lies in the amounts of goods that are involved in them. As wholesale trade operates with huge quantities of goods this kind of trading is typical of economically developed countries and companies but their possible profit is limited to those companies who take up the same activities. The advantage of the retail trading companies lies in the fact that they activities are aimed at all the layers of the human society – big firms and companies, as well as ordinary people who buy smaller quantities of goods but do it more often, so the sum of the profit made by retail sales is much bigger that a companies dealing with only wholesale can get. That is why the research work presented to your attention is the study of one of the greatest companies dealing with the retail trade in the world – British trading giant Tesco (GAIHA, 2007, p. 45). This company is modern and constantly developing, so the process of globalization influences it at a high rate. At the first stages of its development the TESCO company was a set of shops situated only in Great Britain but it needed new markets for its goods and the process of globalization gave great assistance to Tesco. Development of transnational interrelations made it possible for companies to have their trading representatives all over the world. Companies can easily open their sister companies and branches in various countries abroad because globalization allows to conduct these actions with lesser taxes, at lower prices and with less legislative limitations than it used to be yet in the middle of the 20 th century. This can be explained by numerous Free Trade Agreements concluded by the UK with Asian countries and other states all over the world. Besides, we are interested in the Tesco activity in Asian developing countries because they are former colonies of Great Britain, which means that the climate in those countries is supposed to be appropriate for the development of the UK-based trading c
Several decades ago, the UAE telecommunication market used to be widely criticized for its slow development, the exceeding extent of the governmental regulating power, and the high cost of the offered services. However, the situation seems to have changed significantly with the appearance of the Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company that has become better known as du. Today, the company is, beyond any doubt, the recognized leader in the UAE market of telecommunication providers. According to the specialists’ estimate, du’s customer base comprises of more than 7.5 individual clients and about 80,000 firms that are quite impressive figures for a company that began operating less than a decade ago. Today, du is the recipient of numerous regional and international awards (Kelly & Flanagan 2015). The analysis of the corporate strategy makes one assume that the efficient integration of innovation systems in the company’s performance is one of the determining factors of its success. Information systems have become an integral part of the global environment, and thus, play an important role in the organizational strategy. The implementation of these systems requires careful monitoring and forecasting – whereas some innovations can be applied in a short period, the integration of others might require extra time and effort. According to du’s Sustainability Report, information systems are on the top list of the company’s priorities. Thus, one might note that the development of this field is considered both in the short and long-term perspectives (Emirates Integrated Telecommunication Company, 2015). It is evident that the company that has already proved to be one of the most progressive IT users is not going to rest on one’s laurels. Among the short-term strategies referring to information systems, one should necessarily point out the recently signed agreement that implies the strengthening of collaboration between du and the Project Management Institute (PMI). This initiative is likely to bring a lot of benefits for the company’s performers as du will receive access to the entire global database that the institution currently possesses. The implementation of the following practices is likely to assist in the development of the company’s new projects, Smart City Initiative and Managed Services Solutions. As long as PMI has a reputation of one of the most progressive research centers in the field of IT and information systems, one may suppose, that this cooperation will enable du to find innovative solutions for the projects mentioned above. According to its Chief Corporate Affairs Office, Ananda Bose, the initiative is likely to give du an opportunity to “generate maximum value” for its clients (Kelly & Flanagan, para.3). Meanwhile, du’s CEO, Osman Sultan, in his interview for Entrepreneur, also puts a particular emphasis on the role of information systems in the corporate strategy. While Ananda Bose focuses on the importance of the collaboration with progressive organizations and adopting the best world practices, du’s CEO points out the significance of the Internet’s integration i
Several years ago, the thought of a revolution in the Middle East and other states occupied by Arabs was unimaginable. This is because of the tough and dictatorial rule that the incumbents exercised over their subjects. Consequently, public protests and demonstrations were illegalized, making it impossible for people to air out their grievances explicitly. A majority of these people waited silently for a revolution that would liberate them from the unjust rule and subsequent oppression they suffered under these leaders. It is noteworthy that these protests were perpetrated differently in various nations, since they arose from different circumstances. As a result, this paper examines the difference between protests in Bahrain and other nations, with respect to the influence and role of Shiite Muslims. Tunisia All protests originated from Tunisia. Several issues encouraged the protestors, with unemployment being the most prominent. This was occasioned by extensive corruption perpetrated by government officials. In addition, the state issued several decrees that were oppressive to the populace (BBC News). For example, banning prayers in public places within the major cities did not please the citizens. Secondly, the state decided to ban women from wearing the Hijab in the places of work. This amounted to oppression, since many citizens felt their culture was being suppressed. Lastly, high poverty levels among the citizens and poor living conditions served as another motivator for these protests. This led to numerous political and social conflicts that later resulted in the deaths of many civilians in the hands of police officers and other law enforcemen
Main arguments in the article Overview of the article An assessment of the modern organisations reveals that contemporary organisations have slowly adopted different practices. These practices are viewed as organisational rationalisation where people within organisations adjust their behaviours in a certain manner to align their behaviours to the goals and objectives of organisations. In the article, Kieser (1998) takes a look at the transformation of organisations, especially how the attribute of organisational behaviour has changed since the 18 th century through the 21 st century. Giving the example of estates in the early times, it is apparent that unlike in the early organisations where organisational behaviour was largely determined by coercive forces, contemporary organisations embrace behaviour by avoiding the use of coercive forces. Instead, there is the creation of an understanding where members are given space to develop skills and competencies that determine their actions and behaviours. The orientation behaviour in organizations as embedded in organisational theory and practice Taking a comparative perspective between estates in the 18 th and 19 th century and contemporary organisations, Kieser (1998) brings up a number of differences between estates and organisations in the modern times. Most of the differences that are brought out show that the changes in organisational behaviour as evidenced in the move from real estate to modern organisations often revolves around the evolving roles of individuals in organisations. A focus on the attribute of organisations’ behaviour of discipline by Kieser (1998) further reveals that discipline is something that is being personalized as organisations move from the centralized and complex systems of command to simple systems of command and control where individuals are empowered to discharge their roles and responsibilities with minimal supervision. According to Kieser (1998), rationalisation is a concept that is gaining momentum in the orientation of modern organisations. Modern organisations seek for mechanisms of ensuring that they are oriented in a way that it becomes easier for individual employees to deliver. There is no better way to achieving this than to increase rationalisation. A number of theories and theorists and their arguments are also brought up to aid in elaborating on the elements of change between traditional and modern organisations. There is the attribute of discipline as seen from the lenses of organisational behaviour and positioning in terms of performance. The other interesting thing that warrants attention here is that Kieser (1998) focuses on change in organisational behaviour from a broad perspective; that is, the lenses of change in organisational management as reflected in the forces of management from a political perspective, especially in the 20 th century because most of the reforms that have resulted in the modern structures of organisations and their influence on organisational behaviour are largely derived from the 20 th century political developments. These developments have had resounding
Introduction The ongoing debate about physician-assisted death continues to elicit varied reactions globally, with proponents arguing that individuals have an overwhelming basic right to die at a time of their choosing, and in a mode of their own choosing, when confronted with a terminal illness while euthanasia opponents argue that there exist no moral justification for terminating life before God’s opportune time (Smith, 2006). Euthanasia, the act of ending life, can be voluntary or involuntary, passive or active, but proponents and opponents have largely progressed arguments and counterarguments based on the holistic approach of the term and the resulting effects on the state of the victim, medical professionals, and family members. But while voluntary euthanasia – that is the occasioning a person’s death with his or her consent – continues to draw varying levels of acceptance depending on the reasons advanced for undertaking such an act, involuntary euthanasia is almost treated as murder even when the act of ending life prematurely produces a greater good to the individual or family members. This paper purposes to argue against the view that physicians should be allowed to assist the terminally ill die instead of allowing them to suffer the full consequences of a terminal illness. Why Physician-Assisted Death is Wrong Proponents of physician-assisted death argue that the act of ending life should be enshrined as a private matter of self-determination and personal beliefs in as much as it is done to curtail the suffering of an individual from a terminal illness (Smith, 2006). It is indeed true that many terminal illnesses, including cancer, HIV/AIDS, and Parkinson’s disease, considerably diminish the quality of life of victims to a point of rendering them vegetative. As such, it may seem plausible to end the suffering when the victim is personally-determined to do so and on the sad admittance that no cure will be forthcoming (Karlsson et al., 2007). However, mercy-killing cannot be a private matter of self-determination and personal beliefs since it is an act that requires the input of a medical professional to make it possible and a complicit society to make it acceptable. In some instances, the victim is so vegetative that it becomes impractical to make sound decisions on his own, causing family members to intervene and order the termination of life. In such circumstances, euthanasia cannot be termed as a private matter of self-determination and personal beliefs. Medicine and law are the fundamental institutions charged with the responsibility of maintaining the dignity a