Australia-China Relationship

The following presentation shall be a major discussion on the different relationships that bind Australia and China, which also includes their economic, political, and education as well as the development of the said relationship between the two nations.Relationship between China and AustraliaIt was 1909 when China offered a proposal Of trade-based relationship with Australia, however, it was only during the year 1921 when Australia formally accepted the invitation to trade.The political change in China during the year 1941 however makes it harder for Australia to support the said trade relationship. The political stiffness in China has been a hard-to-deal-with situation for the Australian economic system, considering that Australia adapted to the democratic system of social government.(Lynch, 1989)Because of the above situation, it was December 1972 when the two countries signed a diplomatic agreement noting that although a trade relationship exists between the two countries, both a reas are to be free of being mandated by either of their political set up’s dictation on each countries’ private situations. (Murphey, 1996)At present, the relationship of China and Australia is made stronger through the regular communication that exist between both county’s administrative sections.The assurance of each other’s security in the relationship has made China the second top partner of Australia in terms of trade and political standing in the global situation. (Selden, 1979)As the years of progress in the international trade continues to advance, the relationship between Australia and China appears to step up towards a better situation that most likely ensures the loyalty between both countries’ situation as with trade and political trust.A Focus on the Political RelationshipFrom this discussion, it could be observed that the relationship of both countries have been primarily affected by the third parties that involved other situations t hat have affected the relationship of China [primarily] with other countries such as the United States.America has been mainly trying to change the relationship with China as a partner to becoming a competitor when the military group of the said country was noted by the US government as a spy. As a result, the relationship that China had with Australia was almost jeopardized. (Terrill, 2003)To fix the issue, both China and Australia tried to arrange their mutual understanding through fixing the different misunderstandings that have been evident in their relationship because of the situations mentioned herein. (Sang Ye, 2006)The situations were further fixed to regulate the relationship and as of now, the arrangements have made it possible for the two major economic assets of the global trade to have a considerable connection between each other in terms of social and economical progress. (Thurston, 1994)A Focus on Trade and Economic Stability between China and AustraliaIn terms of tr ade, it is essential that Australia and China have an understanding with regards the relationship that exists between them especially with regards economic stability.

H&M Analysis Essay

1. Question 1 Evaluate the external environment in which H & M operates in. 1.1. PESTEL Analysis 1.1.1. Political As companies begin to expand globally, it needs to understand the laws of each country. Since each country regulations are different, its needs to take special consideration before entering and investing into a new market in order to prevent violating any of them. This is especially true when regulations involving imports and exports are affected. While the restrictions of goods shipments may not be a major concern, selection and switching of suppliers relating to manufacturing and outsourcing can greatly affect profit margins, production costs as well as other incentives in different areas. Moreover, laws governing corporate social responsibility like minimum wages, child labour and other environmental issues affect organisational growth. 1.1.2. Economic Due to inflation, the rising costs of raw materials like cotton are felt globally. This in turn forces manufacturers to increase their production cost and future affecting potential profits globally. As international trade liberalises, the demand for suppliers and manufacturers in low-wage countries increases and completion between fashion retailers intensifies. In-addition, the recent economic crisis has affected consumer spending patterns, forcing organisations to push their retail prices low to meet consumers’ lower spending power. 1.1.3. Social/Cultural Different cultures have different fashion senses, likewise while consumers in Europe like Sweden embraces ‘fast Fashion’, Customers in Asia for example Singapore adopts fashion at a slow pace. To understand ‘local fashion’, most companies depend on home grown designers or in-house sales employees to pick up the latest treads to redesign their products. Moreover consumers globally are growing more conscious about the environment, which encourages the production of environmental friendly/sustainable products. 1.1.4. Technological As technology develops, consumers are getting more informed of their purchase  choices. Today most every individual are able to access the web to gather information, meet friends as well as purchase online. Hence it is not surprising that companies are upgrading their websites to gain attraction. To stay ahead, some companies are employing the latest IT systems to improve operation effectiveness and efficiency. For example, advance logistics capabilities allows organisations to control inventories better and reduce wastage, due to effective information sharing as well as proper empolyee training. 1.1.5. Environmental With the growing need to embrace green culture, consumers are more self-aware about their needs and would prefer to purchase from companies that are environmentally friendly and socially responsible. 1.2. Porter’s 5 Forces Analysis 1.2.1. Threat of entrants (Low) Viewing from a Global perspective, it will be difficult for new entrants to gain huge economies of scales without investing huge initial investments, which includes inventories, start up fund and cost for advertising, research and development expenses, etc. Large international incumbents like Zara, Gaps and H&M had already established strong footholds in multiple countries and with many years of experience to deter new comers. Moreover new entrants will expect retaliations from financially strong incumbents in events like price wars. Being in the fashion industry also makes it difficult for new organisations to differentiate their products. Although access to distribution channels have eased due to information technology advancement, most of the good ones would already have been contracted by bigger competitors. Therefore, I would conclude that threat of entrants is low for H&M. 1.2.2. Power of buyers (High) The bargaining power of buyers considered high because there are multiple alternatives like Zara, Gap, UNIQLO, etc. Moreover there is little or no switching cost involved when selecting fashion needs, thus resulting in little or no customer loyalty to the brands. Finally, H&M is required to monitor their needs as they are the end consumers of their products and is its main source of revenue. 1.2.3. Power of Suppliers (Low) The bargaining power of suppliers is low because suppliers/manufacturers for the fashion industry are numerous. As international trade liberalises, H&M have more options to source and even backward integrate by buying or merging with suppliers to meet organisation’s requirements. In addition, with the opening of cheap labour markets like China and India, the switching cost between suppliers to ensure low cost and better quality is consider low. 1.2.4. Competitive Rivalry (High) Rivalry is high because there are multiple players both large and small in the same business category as H&M. Moreover the recent recession experienced in recent years, have affected consumers’ spending and reduce demand thus intensifying competition. With more funds invested into research and design, firms are constantly renewing their products to capture market share, hence H&M have to be always vigilant to combat market changes. 1.2.5. Threat of Substitutes (Low) Threats of substitute products are low, since apparels are irreplaceable. Although online competitors may erode sales from H&M physical stores, the firm is currently developing its online sales strategy in USA to increase recognition. Rivalry is high because there are multiple players both large and small in the same business category as H&M. Moreover the recent recession experienced in recent years, have affected consumers’ spending and reduce demand thus intensifying competition. With more funds invested into research and design, firms are constantly renewing their products to capture market share, hence H&M have to be always vigilant to combat market changes. 2.1.1. Physical Utilizing the latest IT system allows H&M’s logistics to receive and transmit effective communication to not only make better decisions as well as to provide information based on customer’s needs and placement of products. In addition, renting of retail spaces in good locations can help reduce investment risk, attract more walk-in customers as well as to enable better flexibility and adaptability to the ever-changing environment. 2.1.2. Financial Firstly from the financial data, H&M has a high profit margin of 19.04% compared to its rivals, Zara, Gap and Uniqlo at 18.53%, 13.52% and 16.52% respectively, which proves that the firm have superior cost control. It also has a healthy solvency ratio of 73.28%, which meant that H&M is able to meet all its obligations namely short n long term liabilities. In addition, with a high liquidity ratio of 1.77, H&M will be able to settle its short term debt with ease, therefore proving that the firm is stable and will be able to withstand unexpected issues. 2.1.3. Marketing To further expand its reputation and fashion designs, H&M collaborated with famous designers like Stella McCartney and Versace. The firm have also successfully contracted high-profile celebrities for long-term advertising campaigns. In addition to its strong social media presence through Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc, the firm has achieved high level of consumer awareness and was ranked 21st out of 100 most valuable global brands with a  brand value of $16.5 billion in 2011 by Interbrand. 2.1.4. Human Resource Management H&M has a policy of hiring locals whenever new stories are established; this allows the firm to easily tap into local culture and understanding of the based country. In-addition to align them to the corporate culture, formal training is being provided to adopt the core values of the firm. The strong participative corporate culture also allows employees make their own decisions during their work for the store’s sales and image, if successful would be adopted by other store to generate more profits. 2.1.5. Processes Unlike most competitors, H&M centralises its Design Department consisting for 200 designers and 100 pattern makers to achieve minimum time-to-market as well as effective information sharing between production offices globally. This way design could not only be created rapidly due to shared skills, rapid-response production can be immediately capitalised on the latest design trends. Having constantly redefining the firm’s production and distribution processes to combat the ever-changing business environment, H&M has managed to create a complex integrated logistics and production system that support cost-cutting measures and generates economies of scale. This system has enabled the firm to achieve quick turnaround timing of about 20days as well as reduction of production lead times of 15-20%. (b) Analyse the strategic capabilities providing competitive advantages for H & M Focusing on the distinctive competencies of H&M, can we understand the competitive advantages of the firm? 3. Question 3 Apply the value chain model to analyse the strongest and weakest links in H & M’s global value chain by examining its primary and secondary activities. 3.1. Value Chain To analysis a company, it is important to first understand its structure. Hence through Micheal Porter’s Value Chain which consisted of both Support and Primary Activities, then will we be able to understand H&M’s strongest and weakest links 3.1.1. Support Activities 3.1.1.1. Firm Infrastructure Currently H&M group have over 2,205 stores in 43 countries and employed about 94,000 employees worldwide. Its headquarters is base in Stockholm, Sweden,  where most of the firm’s central activities like buying, logistics, etc are centralised. With 50 production offices which handle about 1,652 factories globally, information is rapidly exchanged to achieve latest trends as well as timely Design to Production to Delivery process. With 70% majority voting rights held by the Persson Family, most corporate decisions are handled by them. 3.1.1.2. Human Resource Management H&M embraces participative corporate culture, which focuses on employees’ involvement that encourages experimentation, trial and error learning, quick decision making, and willingness to take initiative to try new ideas. Mistakes are usually forgiven as long as it is not repeated. The firm also believes strongly in teamwork and expect great results. With little attention to titles and work descriptions, employees are encourage to challenge themselves to learn new skill or even have different job functions. To be social responsible, H&M also employs local staff for its new outlets and ensure fair treatment of global employees by signing agreements with suppliers to practice ethical business prescribed by law. 3.1.1.3. Technological Development H&M a cloth’s retailer organisation, has utilized the latest IT systems to help improve organisation’s logistics and production capabilities as well as reduce significant costs. Having multiple stores globally, H&M is also investing in its online sales capabilities to attract global consumers. 3.1.1.4. Procurement Without owning any production factories or supply farms, H&M is greatly dependent on its suppliers’ capabilities. Small chances in raw material prices can great affect the profit margins of the firm, for example a slight increase in cottons prices will increase the cost of making H&M clothing. However without factories, H&M can easily switch suppliers to achieve better costing and quality. In addition to the firm’s huge purchases, it can easily control supplier to provide huge discount upon delivery of finished goods. 3.1.2. Primary Activities 3.1.2.1. Inbound Logistics H&M do not own any manufacturing plants and has outsourced its production needs globally. Hence it relays on various suppliers to deliver the necessary inputs on its behalf. 3.1.2.2. Operations  H&M utilizes a centralized in-house designing model, its design operation located in its headquarters in Stockholm. With 200 design and 100 pattern makers, the firm is able to quickly churn out multiple fashion designs decided by various well-know designers and markets analysis to meet the latest trends. Having direct connection with the production office also allows immediate production which enhances cost-efficiencies. Training is provided from workers to adopt company’s values and provide better customer services. 3.1.2.3. Outbound Logistics Outsourcing of H&M’s goods transportation needs allows the firm to cut cost by reduction in labour chargers. Utilizing the integrated direct distribution channel that connects distribution centres, warehouses and stores, has ensured that individual store’s needs are communicated resulting in timely delivery of goods daily. 3.1.2.4. Marketing and Sales H&M philosophy is to provide affordable quality fashion to consumers. Benefiting from economies of Scales due to bulk purchases, the firm can negotiate with suppliers to provide huge discounts. Utilizing its philosophy, H&M has successfully communicated its position to the world through advertising means by working with famous designers, being long term advertising contract with famous celebrities, as well as its strong presence in social media. To further achieve its goals, the firm constantly revamp or renovate its stores every 2-3years to embrace the latest cultural trends, thus attracting its target customers. 3.1.2.5. Services H&M views services as a very important aspect of their business, formal training is provided for new employees to adopt its firm’s value. Moreover, employees are highly encouraged to adopt initiatives and new ideas to only improve the working environment as well as customers’ satisfaction. To maintain employees high moral which in turn lead to better services, H&M has introduced many employee welfare initiatives and was consider one of the best work environments. Hence from the above analysis, it can be seen that  marketing and sales is H&M strongest link, due to its links to famous designers and celebrities, which attracted consumers to get knowledge of the brand. Moreover, utilising social media also attracts the tech savvy users to share and expand the brand name at low cost. However, I would say that the firm’s weakest links is in its family business management, since most decisions is made internally and new management ideas from external means may be difficult to flow through. In addition, there is also a risk of business succession where the heir of the company is not as capable as its predecessor resulting in the firm’s failure. 4. Question 4 (a) Based on the preceding analyses, conduct a SWOT analysis on H & M. 4.1. Strengths H&M is a well-known clothing retail firm that specializes in fast fashion and cheap apparels for men, women and kids. Its strong marketing arm has managed to raise brand awareness among consumers globally. In addition to the firm’s commitment to procure sustainable materials for product design has future enhanced brand image. H&M differentiated itself by ensure their designs are unique and not copies from other competitors. 4.2. Weakness H&M is totally dependent on its suppliers for manufactured products, caused the firm to have limited control over manufacturers, which could lead to low quality products and negatively affect branding. With H&M core operation is highly centralized in Europe, leveraging of risk is weak. In addition, being a family own business, most corporate decisions are made internally, which may prevent external ideas to flow through preventing further growth, 4.3. Opportunity Having huge experience in running world-wide business, H&M may expand further new penetrating new markets like Ukraine or Israel. The firm may also want to backward integrate its business process by absorbing various suppliers to better control its product quality. 4.4. Threads Inflations and Currency changes can greatly affect the cost of raw material as well as production cost. Moreover with China’s aggressive product piracy, H&M design could easily be copied and cost globally eating market share.  Europe’s unstable economic nature due to crisis may force governments to raise corporate taxes to keep the economic afloat, which further affect profits. (b) Identify the key issues, challenges and opportunities facing H & M. As H&M centralized design processes, its products are not tailored to individual markets, thus allowing competitors who can better differentiate their products to target different consumer groups eating into the firm’s market share. Focusing on cost leadership strategy, H&M have to ensure production cost is low to achieve profits. Hence to reduce cost of materials companies tend to order huge quantities of raw materials, which may result in overstock and incur unwanted inventory costs. Outsourcing of manufacturing reduces H&M direct control over the production process, thus making it vulnerable to quality issues resulting in bad reputation among consumers. In order to expand its presence globally, H&M may need to penetrate to new markets. It could also improve cost savings through backward integration by buying over various suppliers for its own requirements. 5. Question 5 Based on the preceding analysis, formulate and discuss appropriate strategies that you would recommend to H & M in order for it to achieve above-average returns in the future. After analysing the above information, I understood that H&M is adopting the cost leadership strategy to advance it goals. Since the firm focused on â€Å"Economies of Scales† by purchasing huge qualities of goods in order receive better discounts, have long term â€Å"experience† to monitor its cost savings as well as constantly â€Å"redefining production and distribution† to achieve cost efficiencies (Johnson, G. 2014). However the most important factor that H&M lacks is the control of â€Å"input cost† since the firm had totally depended on suppliers for its productions needs. Hence, it is strongly recommended that the firm adopts backward integration by buying over or controlling various supplier/manufacturers in order to reduce its reliance as well as to be able to handle its â€Å"input cost† well. Even if that is not achievable, H&M could also hire service engineers to better train and monitor the suppliers’ progress through direct collaboration by planting its employees in manufacturing sites. This way, management will be more able to understand the quality and direct cost involved through the manufacturer plant’s production process, thus find ways to reduce cost and  improve efficiencies. Finally to improve total sales, H&M should also seek to venture into new markets so as to increase income and create new opportunities. References Johnson, G. (2014). Exploring Strategy. 10th ed. Harlow [u.a.]: Pearson.

Paper on Depression

Thresa BigMan University of phoenix PSY270 Week 4 Depression paper Depression is a mental illness that a lot of individuals have in today’s society. According to the University of Phoenix fundamentals of abnormal psychology, describes many different mood disorders that effect many people today, â€Å"Depression is a low, sad state in which life seems dark and its challenges overwhelming.Depression can be an illness that can be manageable to an individual that has mild symptoms there are cases of depression that can be so severe that it can take over someone’s life in the aspect that it is manageable with daily living assistance and treatment plans that include assisted living environment and anti-depressants. Patients can even be misdiagnosed to have other disorders if not have a proper evaluation.Mania, the opposite of depression, is a state of breathless euphoria, or at least frenzied energy, in which people may have an exaggerated belief that the world is theirs for the taking. Most people with a mood disorder suffer only from depression, a pattern called unipolar depression. † When an individual has no history of mania and after the episode return to their normal mood others may experience periods of mania that o back and forth with periods of depression in a somewhat of a pattern is called bipolar disorder. (University of phoenix, 2011).Many individuals of all walks of life suffer from mood disorders according to the University of Phoenix Fundamentals of abnormal psychology (2011), â€Å"Mood disorders also have plagued such writers as Ernest Hemingway, Eugene O’Neill, Virginia Woolf, and Sylvia Plath. † Mood disorders have different stages of symptoms, according to the university of phoenix fundamentals of psychology (2011), â€Å"The symptoms, which often feed upon one another, span five areas of functioning: emotional, motivational, behavioral, cognitive, and physical. Emotional symptoms can have the individual feelin g miserable, humiliated, and sad. In severe cases many individuals can suffer from anhedonia which can cause the patient to have the inability to feel pleasure. They begin to have no self-worth. Motivational symptoms can include according to the University of Phoenix Fundamentals of psychology (2011), â€Å"Depressed people typically lose the desire to pursue their usual activities. Almost all report a lack of drive, initiative, and spontaneity. They may have to force themselves to go to work, talk with friends, eat meals, or have sex. The patient will not have any motivation to get up and get out of bed at times. Motivational symptoms could be that a patient doesn’t want to do anything and has to force one self to do the littlest of things in their daily life. Behavioral symptoms include behaviors where the individual becomes less active productive. Cognitive symptoms people see themselves in a very negative light and do not have a high self-worth when they accomplish somet hing that is very substantial they do not see it in the right regards to see what they did was successful.Physical symptoms can include headaches, nausea, vomiting and sleeping issues. Physical symptoms can vary from person to person when it comes to mood disorders. Many times physical symptoms can often cloud proper diagnoses to mood disorders, according to the University of Phoenix Fundamentals of abnormal psychology (2011), â€Å"In fact, many depressions are misdiagnosed as medical problems at first. Disturbances in appetite and sleep are particularly common (Neckelmann et al. , 2007; Genchi et al. 2004). Most depressed people eat less, sleep less, and feel more fatigued than they did prior to the disorder. Proper diagnoses are often over looked because of all the physical symptoms that a person with a mood disorder can develop. Often the symptoms are treated before depression is diagnosed. When diagnosing unipolar depression, according to the University of Phoenix Fundamentals of abnormal psychology (2011), â€Å"People who experience a major depressive episode without having any history of mania receive a diagnosis of major depressive disorder. Individuals who display a longer-lasting but less disabling pattern of unipolar depression may receive a diagnosis of dysthymic disorder.Bipolar I disorder have full manic and major depressive episodes. Most of them experience an alternation of the episodes; for example, weeks of mania followed by a period of wellness, followed, in turn, by an episode of depression. Some people, however, have mixed episodes, in which they swing from manic to depressive symptoms and back again on the same day. In bipolar II disorder, hypomanic—that is, mildly manic—episodes alternate with major depressive episodes over the course of time.When dysthymic disorder leads to maojr depressive disorder, the sequence is called double depression (Taube-Schiff & Lau, 2008). † Unipolar depression is often triggered when the individual is experiencing extreme stress. Forms of treatment for these types of mood disorders may include antidepressants, individual therapy, and in extreme cases an individual may have to be under constant care as the disorder has caused them to not be able to maintain their normal quality of life and may be harmful to themselves or others.Group and family therapy can be an effective form of treatment for patients. According to the University of Phoenix Fundamentals of abnormal psychology (2011), â€Å"Family-Social Treatments Therapists who use family and social approaches to treat depression help clients change how they deal with the close relationships in their lives. The most effective family-social approaches are interpersonal psychotherapy and couple therapy. † Anti-depressants are commonly given as a part of the treatment plan for a patient.According to the University of Phoenix Fundamentals of abnormal psychology (2011), â€Å"Two kinds of drugs discovered in the 1950s reduce the symptoms of depression: monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors and tricyclic’s. † Proper diagnoses are the most important part about treating any mental disorder. Many times physical symptoms cloud the illness. When treating this disorder it is important to diagnose to be accurate because often these types of disorders are often prescribed antidepressants as a way to treat the illness.After proper accurate diagnoses developing a treatment plan to determine what types of treatments would the patient benefit from. Assisting the patient in a proper evaluation to diagnose correctly is also a way for the patient to learn what is a normal mood or reaction to events or stress that happens in their life time can help determine what the patient is experiencing and often even why. Treatment and proper diagnoses goes hand in hand they are as important to the patient. References University of phoenix. (2011). Fundamentals of psychology. Retrieved from University o f phoenix, PSY270 website.

Supply chain management of Coco-Mat case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Supply chain management of Coco-Mat case - Essay Example The Coco-Mat company has several processes and stakeholders associated with the company and contribute to the success or failure of the business (Nagopoulos, Rontos & Pantazidou, 2013). The company relies on type and quality of raw materials obtained from various small and medium international suppliers which affect the sustainability of products and manufacturing. These suppliers lack knowledge on keeping and maintenance of supplies and about sustainable agriculture. This may lead to substandard raw materials and in turn create shortage of the required number of materials to sustain manufacturing. The company comprises of franchisors that run its retail stores. The franchisors have direct contact with the clients and are obligated to listen and respond to customers’ feedback and demands. If the franchisor is not able to deal with the customers well it may result to the company losing clientele which is against their objective of customer satisfaction. As the company loses the customer then, it means that the company is losing sales; therefore, the business may lack enough money to be invested in employees to motivate them. The company also has logistics par tners who contribute to mismanagement and delays of its products. This result to low performance of TQM implemented (Nagopoulos, Rontos & Pantazidou, 2013). Currently, the company if facing challenges in persuading supply chain partners to participate in TQM implementation. Mr. Chatzimichalis visualises a more responsible supply chain that will employ modern information and communication technologies. The C.E.O is searching for technologies that will enable Coco-Mat integrate marketing, logistics and production that will improve the company’s effectiveness and efficiency. Mr. Chatzimichalis also hopes to improve the role of clients in supply chain operations through technology application (Nagopoulos, Rontos & Pantazidou, 2013). 2. Debate the arguments of Mr. Chatzimichalis to make a more

Quality Service Management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Quality Service Management - Case Study Example Spencer was in maintaining quality service by the hotel staff as a result of which he and his family had to wait for a long time before they could finally check in into their room. There were also unavailability of staff to escort them to their room as they had luggages and also a kid. They had to struggle to reach their room this indicates a clear service quality gap as the hotel was not being able to meet the basic requirements of their guests. The guests waited for a long time in queue due to inefficiency of the front desk operators. The hotel even did not possess an effective knowledge management which resulted into same room being allocated to two guests. There was even lack of communication between the hotel staff and guests and this caused the guests to wait for a long time for services such as availability of even room keys. The staff of the hotel also did not take to deliver appropriate services to the guest and there were no staff available to attend the guests if they came after 11pm. Remington Hotel was not able to handle queries of the customers and neither had efficient staffs who could deliver the guests standard services and even could contribute towards making the experience of their guests at their hotel a memorable one. The most important service quality dimension that needs to be considered by Madeline for further service improvement was assurance. The hotel staff and even design of the facilities that were offered to the guests was very low in assuring that they were able to meet quality standards in comparison to other hotels. Madeline needs to improve assurance factor so as to deliver high quality services to all its guests. The main factors that build this assurance aspect are well trained staff, technologically advanced system and quick services as per the requirements of their guests (Lockyer, 2013, pp. 75-76). These factors need to be handled very effectively so that the guests do not come up with such

Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Economics - Essay Example It was noted that ticket prices are relatively higher in 1978, wherein passengers disburse 19 cents per mile. As compared to the present price, which is 14 cents per mile, it is relatively higher. Thus, there is an increase in the influx of passengers (Bonsor, 2006). Airfare prices and travel time are considered the most important factors for passengers as compared to in-flight amenities. As William O’ Conner, an economist stated that â€Å"The speed, comfort, and safety aspects of the journey, whichever airline a passenger selects, are more likely to be the same† (1995). Thus, the amenities are not the priority of passengers in choosing the flight. People based their choice of flight on factors such as having the cheapest ticket price at the same time having the most convenient times of departure and arrival. The consequence is for airlines to increase the number of flights for a certain routes and maintain the price like the competitors (Kons, 2000). Reservation system serves a crucial role in an airline company. By being able to predict the passenger’s need and willingness to pay, the system sets up the scheme of pricing and setting from which passengers have no control on the differences the prices of tickets belonging t o even the same class (Watson, 2004). Pricing of airline tickets is a very complex process that is affected by various factors and considerations. These include the date of purchase and reservation wherein tickets bought several months before the flight schedule is normally lower in price than when it is purchased a day before the flying date. Normally these trend is known to the flying public and for those who wanted to grab these opportunity of buying cheaper tickets they will get one especially those people who travel regularly every week and month. Seat classification or the class is another factor being

American History and Christianity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

American History and Christianity - Essay Example Their justification of this in the name of God was because "Of all these nations God our Lord gave charge to one man St Peter, that he should be Lord and Superior of all men in the world and that he should be the head of all human race" (Rushforth & Mapp, p31). In their view if this was indeed the case then what the Pope said was absolute. The document goes on to state that any delay in refusing to convert to the Holy Catholic Faith will bare the consequences of war, a war that God would assist with. The Huron Indians were allies of the French. The French Canadians had been keen to develop trade relations with the Native Americans and when they were asked for help in a raid against the Iroquois tribe saw an opportunity to build relations (Calloway, p119). Father Jean Brebeuf was a French Jesuit missionary; the Jesuit order like the Spanish wished to convert the Native Americans to Christianity but did so in a very different manner to the Spanish. Whilst the Spanish colonized the Native American lands with aggressive tones in the name of God the French Jesuits introduced Christianity whilst being respectful of Native American own identities. Brebeuf lived with the Indians and like other Jesuits learned their language and studied their way of life and whilst may not have agreed with appreciated their customs. The Huron's tolerated the Jesuits as they wished to remain allies with the French and maintain trade relations but resented their criticism of their ideals, customs and lifes tyles (Calloway, p121). In comparison to the Spanish who threatened violence through non-conformity the Jesuits believed that the natives would and could conform if they were shown compassion. When disease struck in 1640 many Huron Indians blamed the Shamans for not protecting the people and turned to Christianity due to the Jesuits being unaffected by the small pox epidemic. The Jesuits had succeeded in their mission but had assisted in destroying a way of life that had sustained a culture for centuries. John Winthrop's Christian Charity speaks of unity and conformity and is quite authoritarian in its narrative. Whilst traveling to New England onboard the Arbella he Lisa Haddon 12th November 2008 wrote and preached the now famous sermon A Model of Christian Charity. The puritans on board were fleeing England in pursuit of individualism and spiritual freedom from the Church of England which they felt was a derivative of the Roman Catholic Church, Winthrop feared that the pursuit of this individualism would drive them apart once landing in New England or even worse in to the hostile hands of the natives and sought to hold the people together on board through the word of god. He begins his sermon by listing three reasons god made people different the first reason showing a preference for difference over uniformity. His second reason is "He might have the more occasions to manifest the work of His Spirit: first upon the wicked in moderating and restraining them, so that the rich and mighty should not eat up the poor, nor the poor and despised rise up against their superiors and shake off their yoke." (Rushforth & Mapp, p126).

Slavery's Destructive Effect on Women Research Paper

Slavery's Destructive Effect on Women - Research Paper Example In a slave system, all suffer. Perhaps the saddest of all, it is the women who suffered the most. Slavery dehumanized black women by robbing them of the ability to fulfill their basic human needs and instincts. This paper will discuss the horrors and injustices that slave women were forced to deal with on a regular basis. Linda Brent narrates her own story as a woman who experienced slavery. Her personal story of slave life features the  embarrassment, sacrifice, and effort specific to women slaves of the nineteenth century. According to Jacobs, slavery is  awful  for men; however, it is particularly  awful  for women (2001)1. Because of slavery, families  were broken  apart. Linda had shined in  fundamental  reading and writing. This drew the attention of her master, Dr. Flint. Linda was only fifteen when her  master  started chasing her. In  revulsion  she  constantly  declined and avoided him. The representation of Flint shows the  unkind  control   character  of many southern slave proprietors, and as such, tells the  time  of a slave girl to  control  emotional and  bodily  suffering  that was plainly different from the  life  of her  typical  male equivalent. ... Sands in anticipation of him buying her independence demonstrates what disturbing limits she  was pressed  to in their life.  She  freely  surrendered her body to a man for an opportunity to be set free from oppression, and for the  expectation  that one day she  possibly  will  raise  her children without slavery (Jacobs, 2001)1.Her deeds were most  dignified  and  unselfish  in  character, but the  delivery  of her first and subsequent children  consequently  enslaved her to the needs of Dr. Flint, who might have used her children against her if she failed to comply. Her  primary  wish  was to escape with her two brothers, but she also had to think of the outcomes that her children might face because of her disobedience. According to Hine D, Hine H, and Harold, women were tortured by the slave owners, but they became enlightened and organized themselves to find a way of getting their freedom (2011)2. This was during the time in sixteent h-century Africa, when the antislavery progress and making black community organizations could be appealing to any person  concerned  with the in detail  examination  of African-American  record  as it connects to the United States  record. The mixing of the well-known and the  indefinite, male and female, North and South, slave and liberated, gives a textile that unites the fear and the  victory  of the African-American  occurrence  which assisted them to  move  away from the anguish to 2 a  position  of  curative  hope (Hine and Hine, 2011)2.The confidence  beginning  for so much of the African American  victory  might  have been covered  further  at length. Women lived with double  trouble  of  discrimination  and chauvinism, slave women in the  agricultural  estate  South presumed responsibilities in

Sino-Soviet Relations, 1958-1962 --- The Second Taiwan Strait Crisis Essay - 2

Sino-Soviet Relations, 1958-1962 --- The Second Taiwan Strait Crisis and the Sino-Soviet Split - Essay Example From all outward appearances, the 1950 Sino-Soviet alliance was impenetrable and that the two countries were engaged in a common goal to ensure that Communism was a major influence around the world. There was more than enough evidence to support this perception. Under Mao Tse-tung’s leadership, China formally aligned itself with the USSR. When the Communists in North Korea invaded the Republic of Korea, China intervened and the USSR lent military aid.1 What was perceived as an ideal and threatening partnership would not stand the test of ideological differences. This paper seeks to provide an understanding of how this seemingly ideal partnership was doomed for failure. The events leading up to, during and immediately after the second Taiwan crisis of 1958 are significant in their manifestation of just how far apart the Soviet Union and China were growing. By the 1960s, the Sino-Soviet Alliance was practically shattered as their respective ideologies and polices were increasingly at odds. The office of the US Central Intelligence Agency reported to the US’s administrators in February 1962 that: Sino-Soviet relations are in a critical phase just short of an acknowledged and definitive split. There is no longer much of a fundamental resolution of differences. In our view, the chances that such a split can be avoided in 1962 are no better than ever.2 There are a number of theories put forth by historians and political scientists attempting to understand the driving force splitting the union between the world’s two largest Communist states. Athwal argues that the US’ â€Å"nuclear superiority† put increasing pressures on Sino-Soviet relations and policies by first influencing China to obtain nuclear weapons and by forcing the Soviets to look to the West in a more amicable way. Moreover, both China and the Soviet Union had

Similarties and Differences Essay Example for Free

Similarties and Differences Essay Every day in real life we go through a many struggles ranging from man vs. man, man vs. himself and even man vs. nature. The most common struggle we all face is that of man versus man. In the short stories â€Å"Cathedral† by Raymond Carter and Ernest Hemmingway’s â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† the main principal of the story is that of man versus man. In both short stories 3 characters are used, but in each story each character is completely different than the other. â€Å"Cathedral† and â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† share similarities and differences with the main principal of man versus man and the reasoning behind why one man is against the other. Both stories also share similarities and differences in their setting and the most significant differences both stories have is the resolution. In â€Å"Cathedral† and â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† 3 main characters are used. In each story, one character is the antagonist (the man going against the other) and the protagonist. In â€Å"Cathedral† the main characters are the wife, the husband, and Robert. The husband is the antagonist while Robert is the protagonist. In â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† the three main characters are a customer who is an old man, a young waiter and older waiter. The younger waiter is the antagonist in while the old man is the protagonist. Both stories share the similarities between their characters that the protagonist and antagonist are both men. Robert in â€Å"Catherdral† is a friend of the antagonist’s wife and that Robert is blind. The old man in â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† is the protagonist, who the other characters and reader know nothing about other than the fact that he is old. In both stories, the wife and the older waiter both try the protagonist. The first line in â€Å"Cathedral† is â€Å"This blind man, an old friend of my wifes, he was on his way to spend the night†. The wife knows the blind man and is friends with him. In â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† the younger waiter is angry because he doesn’t understand why the old man won’t go home to which the older waiter replies â€Å"‘He stays up because he likes it. ’ While the characters are similar and different in each story the main conflict of Man versus Man is another point that each story shares similarities and differences. In both â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† and â€Å"Cathedral† the central issue and reasoning behind the conflict of man versus man is addressed. In each story one main character is against another, both have similar and different reasons of why. In both stories the major conflict of man versus man happens because the antagonist does not fully understand the protagonist. In â€Å"Cathedral† the husband is against Robert because he does not know how to act around Robert because Robert is blind. The husband has never had to encounter a blind person before and doesn’t wish to. A excerpt from â€Å"Cathedral† shows exactly how the husband feels of Robert’s visit: â€Å"I wasnt enthusiastic about his visit. He was no one I knew. And his being blind bothered me†. There shows the main reasoning of why the husband is against Robert. In â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† the younger waiter is against the old man because he is tired and wants to go home. The younger waiter doesn’t understand why the old man is still at his cafe so late. The younger waiter also doesn’t like the old man because of his age; he tells the older waiter â€Å"’I wouldnt want to be that old. An old man is a nasty thing. ’ Also throughout the story the younger waiter is talking of how the old man tried to commit suicide and how he doesn’t understand why. The younger waiter is making assumptions about the old man throughout the story and finally kicks him out of the cafe. The reasoning that the younger waiter is against the old man is that he doesn’t understand the actions of the old man and doesn’t want to. Both stories share that in common, that the antagonist does not understand and does not want to get to know the protagonist. Both stories share similarities between man versus man and the reasoning behind this conflict. â€Å"Cathedral† and â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† also share similarities and differences between their settings. Both â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† and â€Å"Cathedral† take place at night time. The first line in â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† is: â€Å"It was very late and everyone had left the cafe except an old man who sat in the shadow the leaves of the tree made against the electric light†. In â€Å"Cathedral† the story starts around dinner time and goes into the night. Although both stories take place at night time- both stories have tremendously different places. In â€Å"Cathedral† the story takes place in the wife husband’s house. In â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† the story takes place at a small cafe. Neither one of the stories gives a town’s name for the reader to associate the story with. Also, neither story gives too many details about the place of the story. The only indication of how the cafe was in â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† was when the older waiter said â€Å"†¦ This is a clean and pleasant cafe. It is well lighted†. Both stories share the similarity in setting because of the stories taking place at night time. Both stories are different in the setting because of the fact that one takes place in a house, and the other takes place in a cafe. Although both short stories share their similarities with the characters, the main conflict and the setting- both stories have a very different resolution. In â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† the younger waiter, the antagonist, eventually kicks out the old man, the protagonist. The older waiter then tries to talk to the younger waiter about how the cafe can be a place of peace for certain people, regardless of the time. The younger waiter doesn’t want to have that conversation; he just wants to go home. The younger waiter is selfish and if it doesn’t benefit him, he doesn’t want anything to do with it. In â€Å"Cathedral† the husband, the antagonist, eventually gets to know Robert, the protagonist. Towards the end of the story Robert and the husband share some stories, share some laughs. As the husband and Robert are watching television, Robert asks the husband to try to explain what a Cathedral looks like. When the husband can’t explain to Robert what a cathedral looks like, Robert has the husband draw a cathedral while Robert’s hand is on the pen being used also. Then Robert tells the husband to close his eyes and keep drawing, and the husband does. The last line in â€Å"Cathedral† was the husband saying ’Its really something,’. This last line shows that the husband finally understands that although Robert is blind, that Robert can still experience things just as well as him. The resolution in â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† was the fact that the younger waiter got to go home, but the younger waiter didn’t take anything away from his experience meaning the conflict he has with the old man is still on going. In â€Å"Cathedral† the husband eventually stops the conflict of man versus man when he finally realizes that Robert is just like him. The short stories â€Å"Cathedral† by Raymond Carter and â€Å"A Clean Well-Lighted Place† by Ernest Hemmingway both share similarities and differences. When the similarities are pointed out the two stories seem to run parallel with each other: man versus man, 3 characters and the setting. But, when the differences in the details of man versus man, the three characters and the setting are pointed out it is easy to see these stories have completely different plots and twists. The major difference between both stories is the resolution. Both stories show similarities and differences within each.

The Body Shop Internaltional Plc Commerce Essay

The Body Shop Internaltional Plc Commerce Essay Successful business ventures go through the path into business over the decades if not centuries to achieve its goals and objectives which The Body Shop International plc (The Body Shop) finds itself in such high regards. The founder of The Body Shop was Dame Anita Roddick from Littlehampton, an English seaside town (Dame Anita Roddick: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). It had its very first outlet launched on 26th March 1976 in Brighton, on the south coast of England (Our History: The Body Shop International plc , 2012). The Body Shop offers beauty products that are original, natural and ethical beauty brand (Our Company: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). The Body Shop introduces new products into the market with the use of natural materials and ingredients which is fair trade (Support Community Fair Trade: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). The Body Shop emphasises on positive social and environmental through campaigns with five core values of Activate Self Esteem, Protect Our Planet, Against Animal Testing, Support Community Trade and Defend Human Rights (Our Values: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). According to (About Us: The Body Shop International plc, 2012) its website based indicates the desire for this brand is to make the products with love and care that creates the slogan of Beauty with Heart. The Body Shop offers relatively high quality beauty products in the market to meet consumers demands. TASK 1 SWOT ANALYSIS The specific objective of the business venture is to identify the internal and external factors that are favourable and unfavourable to achieve objectives. (McDonald, Rogers, Woodburn, 2000, p. 148) suggested that A SWOT is an analysis of your strength and weaknesses compared to competitors and of the opportunities and treats by a key account. Strength The Body Shop brand itself holds a strong image in the market which well known for its beauty products (The Body Shop: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). Natural ingredients are use to produces good quality and innovative products. We are the leading key player in the niche market where targeting and satisfying needs of the customers. The Body Shop has a high brand loyalty from consumers due to the product differentiation. Weaknesses The Body Shop does not have direct marketing or advertising department where there is no strong physical public awareness. In the United Kingdom (UK) The Body Shop have small number of retail stores in operation. The products are either in the mature or decline stage of the product life cycle due to high and low consumers demand. The franchise system has specific requirement that cause problem to attract new franchisee. Opportunities The Body Shop products are produce with natural material and ingredients that increased awareness of organic and eco-friendly (Protect The Planet: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). Todays world with advanced technology of internet, develop an online website to increased number of online buyers (The Body Shop UK: The Body Shop Interational plc, 2012). Ageing population has increased in the current market that The Body Shop could target the ageing consumers who are willing to spend on products claiming anti ageing properties. Treats The Body Shop faces a huge growing competition within the beauty industry that offers similar products. In the current harmful environment situation that cause climate change and global warming will affect unstable supplies of raw materials. When UK faces financial crisis in the economic downturn, The Body Shop is in the condition of decreased on sales turnover in the overall market. 2.0 KEY PRODUCT # The key product of The Body Shop is Tea Tree Oil which mainly for blemished skin. The use of this product will have the effect of soothing, has antibacterial properties and does not dry out skins which can apply directly to all skin type. (Best Sellers: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). 2.01 ENVIRONMENTAL VARIABLES An organisation, consumers or in general will conduct a market research that benefits the management to improve economic development. There are six environmental variables which is Political factors, Economic factors, Geographical factors, Cultural factors, Educational-Philosophical factors and Sociological factors use by organisation management to widen the marketing research within a country. (Loudon, 1975, p. 95) Tea Tree Oil considered looking into three environmental variables of Cultural factors, Economic factors and Political factors. Cultural factors In every country have their own culture to learn and influence by tradition that affect different perception towards other culture. Tea Tree Oil is the key product of The Body Shop due to its natural properties where some countries use as an ingredient in medication remedies for healing. Some countries may perceive Tea Tree Oil as a common product where some believe is a valuable product. Economic factors Economic factors plays an important role for any business industry where customers purchasing power and decision making process is concern. Increase costs on raw materials that affect retail price to increase. Most consumers perceived Tea Tree Oil as a valuable product because it uses natural ingredients. Tea Tree Oil could be marketed to any country due to its natural properties that can be use on any skin type. Political factors The Body Shop build relationship with suppliers from different country in order to get finest raw ingredients to produce Tea Tree Oil. Commit local government rules and regulation to import raw materials and ingredients from different country. In the current UK market faces recession that causes The Body Shop to face unstable economic and political environment situation. Tea Tree Oil is a well known product in the world for its natural properties. 2.02 PHYSIOLOGICAL VARIABLE In physiological variable can be related to Maslows hierarchy of needs which include Physiological needs, Safety needs, Social needs, Esteem needs and Self-actualisation (Shaw, Dibeehi, Walden, 2010, pp. 81-87). The needs that influence Tea Tree Oil are Physiological needs, Safety needs and Social needs. Physiological needs Physiological needs are the basics of life. Tea Tree Oil is consumers basic need on daily usage as a beauty product or traditional medicine. Tea Tree Oil has a positive impact on consumers who are beauty conscious. It has its ability to heal wounds naturally because human body has the ability to absorb oil easily. Safety needs Safety needs are most important where consumers concern on product safety which Tea Tree Oil is contact with skin. Tea Tree Oil has gone through the production process of using fair trade natural ingredients and tested on human instead of animal before its being marketed. The Body Shop well trained sales assistants and product label provides appropriate information about Tea Tree Oil to keep the retention and loyalty of the consumers towards its product and brand. Social needs Social needs where customers and employees build relationship with each other to identify the culture and needs of customers to provide best services and information related to its product. The Body Shop keeps promises of using the raw materials and ingredients to produce good quality and innovative products that will gain good connection with customers. Tea Tree Oil itself has its own ability to build relationship with consumers with the positive responds and natural properties. 3.0 MARKETING MIX Marketing mix is an essential theory for every product or service provided in the business industry. The Michael Porters 4 Ps model entails Product, Price, Place and Promotion which are more appropriate for tangible goods. In todays world marketing mix has extended to 7 Ps with an additional of People, Process and Physical Evidence that is used in the servicing industries. (Borden, 1984, pp. 7-12). In The Body Shop business is involved in products which marketing mix of 4 Ps is essential. Product Tea Tree Oil is a key product which is organically grown beauty product that has natural properties and safe to use in contact with skin. Tea Tree Oil is made from extraction of oil from leaves of the Melaleuca alternifolia to form the product which is organic (Wong, 2012). Tea Tree Oil has a short life span due to natural ingredients without preservatives. Price The current retail price in store are selling at  £7 a bottle of 10ml in the UK (Best Sellers: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). The price of Tea Tree Oil is relatively low compared to other competitors in the market. Tea Tree Oil is in the medium price range among the product in store. The Body Shop Tea Tree Oil is considered as an affordable product with the natural properties. Place The Body Shop is a business-to-consumer related organisation that involve in the retail industry. Direct target market of The Body Shop is on consumers. The distribution types that The Body Shop emphasises are the mix of intensive distribution and selective distribution. The Body Shop retail stores in the market run their businesses on a franchising basis (Franchising: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). Promotion The Body Shop are against promotion because there is no direct marketing and advertising department. We own a website for customers to browse for information and purchase products through online. All beauty products in store are organically grown for its natural properties. The Body Shop core values of against animal testing which protect animal, cruelty-free and vegetarian (Against Animal Testing: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). TASK 2 4.0 MARKETING OBJECTIVES Marketing objectives are an organisation desire to achieve its mission and vision to generate more revenue and market share. (Lamb, Hair, Jr., McDaniel, 2012, p. 39) commented that A marketing objectives is a statement of what is to be accomplish through marketing activities. It is essential of any organisation to have a marketing objective in order to develop a marketing plan activity. 4.01 SMART ANALYSIS The Body Shop marketing objectives can be set by using SMART analysis to form a marketing plan to expand its roots to a foreign market (Robinson, Wale, Dickson, 2010, p. 144). Specific The Body Shop should specifically define the aims to achieve in future with clear focus on its objectives and develop approaches that can be use to achieve defined objectives to gain significant market share. Measurable The Body Shop should make sure that its objectives can be measured and quantified in the business operation. Achievable The Body Shop should use the market segmentation to analyse in order to avoid setting unrealistic and unachievable targets. Realistic The Body Shop should focus on its available resources such as funds, time, natural materials and ingredients, machine and employees before setting its realistic target to expand. Timed The Body Shop should make sure that its objectives are timed wisely and forecast its sales and profits in the long term period of time. The objectives been set by The Body Shop are smart and time bound as we can prove that The Body Shop currently still stand strongly in the market. We need to develop the visibility of the brand to create public awareness. Emphasises against animal testing in the foreign market that shows The Body Shop is cruelty-free and vegetarian. Widen the target market to kids range that is organic to refresh the image of the brand. Consider to reinforce environmental policies by working only with Community Fair Trade supplier to keep the loyalty of the consumers. Obtain environmental certification to prove to foreign market consumers that The Body Shop is in the business of ethical trading. 5.0 THEORETICAL CONCEPTS OF GLOBALISATION PROCESS In the globalisation process is base on theoretical concepts which there is no specific definition. According to (Bozyk, 2006, p. 1) the most important part of the research is From the theoretical point of view, globalization means an unlimited access to these markets for all interested business regardless of country of origin and economic regions. Globalisation is a free market to enter into any foreign market to start a business without any barriers. Another theory identified that globalisation process involves compression. According to (Zajda, 2005, p. 614) the most important part of the research is Compression makes the world a single place by virtue of the power of a set of globally diffused ideas that render societal and ethnic identities and traditions irrelevant except within local contexts. Organisation set objectives that is standardise to suite the local market and foreign market. The Body Shop have no issues to enter into any foreign market due to its natural materials and ingredients being use to produce products. The Body Shop emphasises the core values that brings positive impact to the foreign market with the organic and eco-friendly policies. 6.0 BEHAVIOURAL TRENDS AND PATTERNS Todays world, consumer demands are wide that every organisation is difficult to commit. Consumer buying behaviour relates to the social and culture of the consumer decision making process. The trends and patterns of the consumers are form base on the development behaviour among a large population in the long term. The Body Shop consumers bargaining power and purchasing power in the current market are strong that demands and expectations are high. The foreign market trends and patterns of the consumers are different from one another due to its social life and culture environment influences. The Body Shop looks into the trends and patterns of a foreign market in order to target the right market and achieve objectives. Market segmentation plays an important role to understand the foreign market trends and patterns of the consumers. The Body Shop conduct focused groups that provide valuable information of the products market acceptance. On the other hand, The Body Shop experience different perception and background of consumers in different country. The trends and patterns of consumers are dynamic which is difficult to commit. Consumers personal lifestyle will influence a brand in the market if consumers are branding conscious. 6.01 MACRO ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS Macro environmental factors which PESTEL analysis is a useful business strategic tool to measure and understand how The Body Shop market grows or decline, position in the market, potential and direction for its operations (Yeates Wakefield, 2004, p. 265). In any business strategic decision making process, the employment of PESTEL analysis can be use as a framework. Political and Legal factors The Body Shop build relationship with the Community Fair Trade suppliers for raw material and ingredient in different country (Our Values: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). Rules and regulation of the local government in foreign market are different from one another. The Body Shop faces unstable economic and political environment when foreign market is in the recession period. Economic In the current market position consumers demand for good quality beauty products due to climate change and unhealthy meals cause skin problems. The increase cost on raw materials and ingredients that affect the retail price to increase due to high demand. Consumer purchasing power is influences by the disposable income of individual customers. Customers may perceive The Body Shop as a luxury brand in some foreign market. Socio-Cultural The Body Shop consumers may shift to other beauty brand which also offers organic and eco-friendly products. The Body Shop failed to wider the target market to baby and kids range that is organic and natural ingredients for delicate skin. Social media marketing such as Facebook and Twitter is developed to provide information and updates on products to customers. Technology The Body Shop uses social media marketing to promote brand globally and create awareness. The use of natural materials and ingredients that form natural properties creates innovative products. Launching Love Your Bodyà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ card to create consumers retention with the membership privileges when use in store (OUR LOVE YOUR BODYà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ CARD: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). Environmental Climate change and global warming will affect unstable supplies of raw materials and ingredients. Emphasises on the eco-friendly policy in order to save the mother earth (Protect The Planet: The Body Shop International plc, 2012). 7.0 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT PROCESS The process of internationalisation business management can be explained that international business intends to enter the global market in its earliest stage to increase the sales and profitability. Certain circumstance do cause for changes, such as the environment do take place which will affect the internationalisation process. In firms which are successful in their internationalisation process will survive through the previous experience being gained. (Vahlne Nordstrom, 1993, p. 531). There is different industry characteristic affecting the process of internationalisation which is economies of scale, research and development intensity, product differentiation, governmental policies and transportation costs (Vahlne Nordstrom, 1993, p. 532). The Body Shop invests in the foreign market need to think global and act locally in the market to satisfy the consumers demands. The Body Shop needs to implement international business management process in order to expand its roots to a foreign market successfully. 7.01 INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT International human resource management is important in the international business operation. (Briscoe, Schuler, Tarique, 2012) commented that Broadly defined, the field of international human resource management (IHRM)is the study and application of all human resource management activities as they impact the process of managing human resource in enterprise in the global environment. The human resource policies and practices need to implement to support the global strategy in any international company. The Body Shop needs to learn the culture of the foreign market in order to have an appropriate human resource management department. Learning and understanding the foreign market local culture that brings positive impact to work and communicate with foreigners 7.02 INTERNATIONAL MARKETING International marketing can be explained that local company takes the opportunity to invest in the foreign market to gain significant profits and market share. There is no specific definition to international marketing where most definitions of marketing are acceptable. According to (Vasudeva, 2006, p. 5) commented that marketing activities carried out by a marketer in more than one nation across national boundaries may be termed as international marketing. Understanding of what marketing is and how it operates in an international context will complete the study of international marketing. The Body Shop goes to international market will benefit to the consumers who concern on beauty and organic products. The Body Shop invest in the international market will generate more revenue to the company that increase sales turnover. Furthermore, gaining experience from foreign market in order to improve company objectives and strategies. 7.03 INTERNATIONAL LOGISTICS International logistics definition is divided to international and logistic which it gives a different meaning. (Wood, Barone, Murphy, Wardlow, 2001, p. 1) commented that International means that it will deal with transactions involving individuals or firms in more than one nation. (Wood, Barone, Murphy, Wardlow, 2001, p. 1) also commented that Logistics means the organized movement of goods, services and sometimes people. The combination of international logistics can be defined as local company invest in the international market and export goods across the border. International logistics involves the buyers, the sellers, the carries, the intermediaries or middlemen and sometimes the government. The Body Shop involves in the international logistics where the intention to expand its roots to the foreign market that exporting goods and experience people to start up the business. As a result international logistics are costly due to export duties, taxes and other expenses incurred when exporting. 8.0 CONCLUSION The Body Shop is a successful company in the beauty industry where people, animal and planet are concern. Natural materials and ingredients being use to produce products to save the mother earth with guaranteed good quality and safety product. Through its good business model that satisfied the consumers demand which keep consumers retention and loyalty. The Body Shop objectives to achieve with the participation from employees will lead to good reputation that shows the achievement being met. The Body Shop objectives that have achieved will maximise the revenue and employees efficiency of work performance. 9.0 REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHIES About Us: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 26, 2012, from The Bosy Shop International plc Web site: http://www.thebodyshop.com/content/services/aboutus.aspx Against Animal Testing: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 27, 2012, from The Body Shop International plc Web site: http://www.thebodyshop.com/values/AgainstAnimalTesting.aspx Best Sellers: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 26, 2012, from The Body Shop International plc web site: http://www.thebodyshop.co.uk/whats-hot/best-sellers/tea-tree-oil.aspx Borden, N. H. (1984). The Concept of the Marketing Mix. Journal of Advertising Research , 7-12. Bozyk, P. (2006). Globalization And the Transformation of Foreign Economic Policy. Hampshire: Ashgate Publishing Limited. Briscoe, D., Schuler, R., Tarique, I. (2012). International Human Resource Management 4th Edition. Oxon: Routledge. Dame Anita Roddick: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 26, 2012, from The Body Shop International plc Web site: http://www.thebodyshop.com/content/services/aboutus_anita-roddick.aspx Franchising: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 27, 2012, from The Body Shop Internaltional plc Web site: http://www.thebodyshop.com/content/services/franchising.aspx Lamb, C. W., Hair, J. F., Jr., McDaniel, C. D. (2012). Essential of Marketing. Mason: Cengage Learning. Loudon, D. L. (1975). The Influence of Environmental Variables on the Use of Marketing Research. Management International Review , 95. McDonald, M., Rogers, B., Woodburn, D. (2000). Key Customers: How to Manage Them Profitably. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. Our Company: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 26, 2012, from The Body Shop International plc Web site: http://www.thebodyshop.com/content/services/aboutus_company.aspx Our History: The Body Shop International plc . (2012). Retrieved December 26, 2012, from The Body Shop International plc Web site: http://www.thebodyshop.com/content/services/aboutus_history.aspx OUR LOVE YOUR BODYà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ CARD: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 28, 2012, from The Body Shop International plc Web site: http://www.thebodyshop.com/content/loyalty/love-your-body/using-your-card.aspx Our Values: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 26, 2012, from The Body Shop International plc Web site : http://www.thebodyshop.com/content/services/aboutus_values.aspx Protect The Planet: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 27, 2012, from The Body Shop International plc: http://www.thebodyshop.com/values/ProtectPlanet.aspx Robinson, P., Wale, D., Dickson, G. (2010). Events Management. Oxfordshire: CAB International. Shaw, C., Dibeehi, Q., Walden, S. (2010). Customer Experience Future Trends Insight . New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Support Community Fair Trade: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 26, 2012, from The Body Shop Interbational plc Web site: http://www.thebodyshop.com/values/CommunityFairTrade.aspx The Body Shop UK: The Body Shop Interational plc. (2012). Retrieved December 27, 2012, from The Body Shop International plc Web site: http://www.thebodyshop.co.uk/index_s.aspx The Body Shop: The Body Shop International plc. (2012). Retrieved December 27, 2012, from The Body Shop International plc Web site: http://www.thebodyshop.com/index.aspx Vahlne, J.-E., Nordstrom, K. A. (1993). The Internationalization Process: Impact of Commpetion and Experience. The International Trade Journal . Vasudeva, P. K. (2006). International Marketing 3rd Edition. New Delhi: Anurag Jain. Wong, C. (2012, September 15). Alternative Medicine: About.com. Retrieved December 27, 2012, from About.com Web site: http://altmedicine.about.com/od/herbsupplementguide/a/TeaTreeOil.htm Wood, D. F., Barone, A., Murphy, P., Wardlow, D. L. (2001). International Logistics. Massachusetts: Kluwer Academic Publishers. Yeates, D., Wakefield, T. (2004). System Analysis and Design Second Edition. Essex: Pearson Education Limited. Zajda, J. I. (2005). International Handbook on Globalisation, Education and Policy Research. Dordrecht: Springer.

The conceptual framework of feminism

The conceptual framework of feminism The conceptual framework of feminism, as a reactionary ideology, basically consists of power, woman, rights, and equality. The same can be said of African feminism, which has on its priority list such goals as self-determination, which have economic overtones sewn on a materialistic metaphysic. African womanism, despite its pretensions to seeking co-operation or its advocacy for interdependency between men and women, uses a model of conscientisation of women that is foreign to Africa, and runs the risks of obscurantism, vulgarism, inauthenticity, and irrelevance. To put it cryptically, African womanism cant want and cant not want men at the same time. Although gender has made tremendous strides in conscientising women about their plight vis-Ã  -vis male-dominance, its future in Africa demands that it re-position itself appropriately. At least it must re-think three theories, that is, the labour theory, economic theory, and social theory. Africas contemporary socio-political scene depicts theoretical and practical confusion of gender with feminism or, for that matter, gender with broad emancipatory movements, such as African womanism, which nonetheless use gender theory as an intellectual tool for critical analysis for the supposedly discriminatory social, religious and political organisational structures. Feminist thinkers loathe these structures because they see in them deliberate mechanisms for oppressing or marginalising women. This oppression of women characterises the present economic inegalitarianism in a male-dominated status quo. Consequently, it is argued that these male-founded and male-dominated structures can only be changed so as to render them balanced or equitable if and only if revolutionary measures are employed. The usual elements of such arguers form a class of people called feminist ideologues. Feminist ideologues are those people, male and female, minority or majority in one country, who share th e ideas or beliefs or attitudes of male-dominance over women. They tend to look at society in one way; they are certainly unhappy, dissatisfied and critical of what they see around them as compared to what they would like to see. The rational justification of their discontent and critical attitude is quite another thing. Insofar as feminism comprises people, who share one set of ideas or Where is the Foundation of African Gender? beliefs or attitudes as a group or community and who are (radically) organised, feminism is an ideology,1 which is posited to displace the prevailing male-dominated ideology. It is the core of an ideology or the ideological core, which is the most difficult part to change because it is the worldview of the people. The ideological core consists of the core ideas, core beliefs, or core attitudes of a people. By implication, if the core ideas, beliefs, or attitudes are purged out then the peoples practical reality is annihilated. The revolutionary spirit is germane to any feminist ideologue because he or she believes that lasting and effective change must be moral and intellectual. These detested moral and intellectual values are in-built in society so that their removal or reduction calls for a drastic revolutionary overhaul of the whole social fabric. This drastic revolutionary overhaul of society must be no less than a critique of the prevailing ideology because it purports to subjec t to intellectual scrutiny, and eventually refute or reject prevailing ideas, beliefs, or attitudes, which are rationally unjustified or prejudicial to the position of women in society. And then feminist ideology purports to create its own better ideas, beliefs, or attitudes. In other words, feminist ideology creates its own counter-consciousness, and eventually its own counterculture. This counterculture comprises a new set of beliefs and a new style of life that is intended or hoped to challenge and eventually expose the inadequacy of the prevailing culture. Only when the ideological core of the prevailing culture is removed and replaced by a new ideological core can lasting and effective change occur. Any change less than that involving the ideological core is superficial or transitory. In a nutshell, feminism challenges the prevailing status quo and develops a counter-ideology that questions the prevailing status quo and then attempts to modify it. Feminism advocates change rather than order. It criticises the regime in power and existing social and economic arrangements. It advances schemes for restructuring and reordering society. It generates political movements in the form of womens movements in order to gain enough power and influence to effect the changes it advocates. Feminism is an ideology of action for it motivates people to demand changes in their lifestyles and to modify the existing social, religious, political, and economic relations. It also mobilises its followers and adherents to preserve what they value.2 Ultimately, feminism is political and revolutionary. The revolutionary tinge of feminism has historically at times sanctioned the use of violence,3 which has not precluded bloodshed. Gender thinking adopts this feminist stance, with little or no modification or retouching and with few or no disclaimers, so that it is conventional gender thinking to posit men as the perpetrators of female-oppression and discrimination in a society which is viewed as male-dominated, a society in which this sad scenario is ingrained in the fabric of the prevailing political regimes, and where the social, religious, political and economic relations and structures are arranged so as to embrace and promote inequality between men and women. The result is that the gender paradigm centrally addresses the problems of equality and liberty rights, more or less zeroing on a variant of welfare-state ideology. Gender thinkers see no need to take caution in distinguishing gender-ism from feminism. Feminism is taken for granted as the appropriate seed and vehicle of gender. In contemporary literary circles, the philosophical presuppositions of gender thinking and practice are not put to a litmus test because testing gender implies testing feminism, which, in any case, has withstood many a crucial test as evidenced by its record of persistence and triumph especially in Europe, Great Britain, America, Canada, and Australia. This being the case, the cogency of popular gender-isms can only be tested, or critiqued, against cross-cultural objectivity. This paper argues that the lack of demarcation between gender and feminism leads to confusion of western feminism with gender. By grounding itself in feminist ideology, gender inherits most of the weaknesses and shortfalls of western feminism. Gender finds its impetus and modes of expression in western feminism. Therefore, Africa needs to rethink a specific gender, which is appropriate to the African situation in this new millennium. Conceptual analysis of gender and feminism becomes a problem for a start because there is a plethora of such offers on the contemporary intellectual and political scenes. Below, only extant literature is reviewed on the question of gender and feminism in Malawi and elsewhere in Africa. In the case of Malawi, only a few representative papers are considered. Any other contributions outside these papers are nonetheless worthwhile but very likely to be implicitly implicated and/or critiqued in one or more of the representative papers. The choice of the papers is free and deliberate: social philosophy, education, religion, and environment, i.e., unarguably, some of the hottest beds of gender debates and activism. At this juncture, it should be appreciated that African intellectuals have for some time tried to conceptualise gender and feminism in their own situation. As far as philosophical writing is concerned in Malawi, Hermes Chidammodzi was 116 Where is the Foundation of African Gender? the first to notice and then critique this confusion between gender and feminism in the mid-nineties. Feminism is a consecration of the moral and intellectual and hence universal values of equality purportedly denied of women by the dominance of males over women and the sacrosanct ideologies developed in society to legitimatise and perpetuate male-dominance. Thus conceived, feminism as a western reactionary and sacrosanct ideology is not African in origin and development so that the contemporary gender idiom is not a full theoretical framework and expression of the paradigm of African gender. This construing of gender invokes three important thoughts: (1) Gender does not mean and is not women. (2) Gender emerges in a specific situation depicting inegalitarianism embedded in social structures where one sex (male or female) is on the losing side. (3) Gender is a social construct of sets of behaviours, dispositions, ideas, beliefs, values, and attitudes of man and woman. (4) Gender has a strong materialistic tendency, for it grounds womens qualities or modes of action in womens daily li ves in a spatio-temporal-specific resource base presumably conditioned by a sexual division of labour. Insofar as it is situationally embedded in the societys power relations, gender is a reaction to constructed, i.e. real or imagined, male- dominance and female subordination. Gender thus conceived becomes an outgrowth from feminism. 28 The history of feminism is marked by two goals: equality and rights. Pioneer American feminists like Susan Anthony and Elizabeth Stanton had to battle it out with men for their right to vote as equals with men by dint of creation. In the days of old, liberalism provided the initial momentum toward the release of women from social bondage. To womens disappointment, many a revolution (like the American Revolution in 1776 and the French Revolution in 1789) and nationalism did not specifically rescue them from subjugation by men. Social inequalities continued to prevail in the new and independent states. Britain, America and the Continent of Europe clearly illustrate the sluggish pace of women liberation progress; Switzerland is the last European democracy to grant women suffrage in 1971. Despite the universality of female subordination and male domination, the African womans situation is bound to make her suspicious of western feminist discourse, which is mostly the experience of the twentieth century middle-class woman in an industrial sexual division of labour. For the western woman of that era it was only natural for her to cry for balance of power. The feminist fight was a fight for power. She made lots of gains; her emancipatory efforts bore her more equality with men, more rights, and easier access to resources, increase in opportunities or incentives, especially in the public sphere. The yardstick was always her more privileged male counterpart in the already privileged middle-class. In labour, this historicity of western feminism has led to the misconception that women were solely fighting for the soft or top jobs such as company executive, manager, prime minister, parliamentarian, physician, news editor, professor, pilot; surprisingly, the women never zealously fought for rough jobs such as undertaker, trench-digger, dockyard worker, heavy industrial worker, soldier,30 or night-guards. In its counter-critique, western feminism penetrated the rough jobs; eventually, the west saw more women engineers, women soldiers, and policewomen, thus virtually transforming western society into a unisex club. In the inter-war period, and much more vehemently after W.W.II, feminist thinkers zeroed on marriage as the champion of female subordination, and so they strongly argued that the demolition of the marriage institution would automatically lead to total women liberation. It was then a normal spectacle for a woman feminist to be decidedly non-married, although she could be attached and have children. Domesticity, child rearing, or whatever family life stands for, was looked upon as an impediment to women involvement and participation in public life, especially to public employment. The feminist propaganda so narrowly construed was reduced to a feminist fight for space and time in the public spheres of life especially the workplace, which was supposed as a predominantly male ter ritory. Two concepts dominated and still dominate the western conceptual framework. Western gender categories dismally fail to provide a gender conceptual framework for the African woman. For instance, the category of power cannot be used to conceptualise gender in Africa. To argue that a certain normative concept like power has a gender meaning is to claim that its social usage, at least in part, is not what it ought to be for reasons that have to do with gender To claim further that the usage does not command universality and objectivity, due to considerations of differing hermeneutics, i.e. interpretation as grounded in historicity and context is not to advocate gender scepticism. Although the empirical realities of women world-wide are different, this paper argues for the abandonment of gender exclusivity in the face of equally competing, urgent and appealing discourses of, say, ethnicity, racism, and class. In western traditional masculinist literature, power is viewed as repressive, poured from a leviathan above to his subjects below. The subjects are said to need the powerful leviathan because without him, they lack security, peace and well-being. In that western literary world, power is evidently and firmly associated with the male and masculinity, like virility, thus evoking the physicality of power. The correlate of man, woman, is therefore powerless. So when feminists wrote about power over our bodies and power of our lives they were using the very same concept of power, which pervaded traditional masculinist discourses on power. They affirmed the male conceptualisation of power rather than providing an alternative. It comes to us as no surprise that contemporary gender thinkers mimic the same masculinist notion of power in theorising gender. They are not wary of historical, social and political situation of knowledge-claims.32 Trapped in their own ideological cocoon, the western feminist women still think that western rationality is the only rationality; that western science is superior to other forms of rationality (if any), so that in regard to, say, family planning strategy, African women have to be helped by their more scientific counterparts from the west. African women, so claim the western women, need to be conscientised because it is feared that the African women have internalised the oppression or suffering and therefore are in desperate need of awareness campaigns by women animators from the west. The western feminists already fall prey to the yet another ideology of dominance they vehemently fight in their own backyard. Western feminists are totally oblivious to the reality of subject-object relations in research; the reality the helper and the helped are equals as they each experience the other from the viewpoint of their own situations and background knowledge and cultures. Each one (the helper and the helped) is the object of experience of the other so that objectivity is somehow tainted with subjectivity. 31 Oshadi Mangena argues likewise that if one is attentive to differences of ethnic origin, sexual orientation and class, the notion of gender disintegrates into fragments and cannot anymore be employed as a useful category. See K. Lennon and M. Witford, Knowing the difference: feminist perspectives in epistemology, London: Routeldge and Kegan Paul, 1994, pp. 275-282. 32 Annette Fitzsimons and Susan Strickland, Ibid. pp. 124; 265. 129 Nordic Journal of African Studies That the helper enjoys the exclusive right to the objectification of knowledge of the Other is an ingrained feature of western cross-cultural research, after all the helper has scientific skills or rational advantage over the helped, and this ontological arrangement make the helped redundant in the objectification of knowledge of the Other. The only danger though is that the consequent helpers knowledge is partial or fragmentary. The implication is that western feminists cannot emancipate the supposedly un-conscientised African women. 2.2.2 Woman Just as the concept of human, as narrowly presented in western literature, fails to command objectivity, the same literature fails to define woman. Woman is amenable to many different things; it is shrouded by ambiguities about its ontological status. It can evoke intrinsic characteristics, like caring and love, but this smacks of essentialism, which does not have many adherents in gender mainstreams. It can also evoke familial relationships as the non-male member. Both of these evocations partially conceive woman for they are normative since they are descriptive of a set of social facts or relations. As such, woman has no characterizable content and hence the challenge from postmodernist thought that woman is not descriptively adequate since, it is observed, woman is cross-culturally different. According to postmodernists, woman imposes unity over empirical reality.33 Postmodernism rejects the Enlightenment and the humanist presumptions of wonders of reason. The Enlightenment is rejected because of its veneration of masculine reason at the expense of sensuality; humanism is rejected because of its appeals to universal subjectivity or the human condition. Instead of seeking sameness postmodernism celebrates difference, partiality and multiplicity. It detests the search for coherence and hankering after the right (or Platonic or Kantian) solution. Postmodernist feminism equally opposes a hermeneutic parochialism of the present over the past or vice versaof searching for a single given goal, a single representation of reality. This new brand of feminism transcends the historicist recognition of the inevitable peculiarity and contextuality of human thought and practice and hence it advocates the continuity of dialogue between interlocutors, between text and interpreter, and between subject and object, with no advantage, marked goal or reality. This postmodernist re-orientation of feminism is a deliberate step away from essentialism and universalism: marginalisation and exclusion of the Other.34 It puts emphasis on particularity and multiplicity with due attention to difference, diversity and locale. But postmodernists also impose a tough demand on gender thinkers: why should the absence of facts for 33 See Alessandra Tanesini, Ibid. pp. 211-212. 34 See Susan Strickland, Ibid. pp. 266-7. 130 Where is the Foundation of African Gender? description of woman precludes the claim for the notion of woman, even where the possession of the notion may not warrant the description or analysis of the same? Even the points of convergence of feminism and postmodernism are not adequate grounds for their formulation of their purported common aims because their concept-lingualities are different. For example, their meanings of a concept like difference are different. In postmodernism, difference is acknowledged as typical of human experience worldwide; it is at the same time evaded as a threat to dominant perspectives of understanding or interpreting reality. It is consistent within postmodernism to demonstrate that woman was all along acknowledged as different but was included in universal humanity in name only by the dominating men. Feminists believe that the dominant ideology in world history is the root cause of the subjection of women by men. In Rousseaus language of right, the emancipation of western woman, albeit noticeably incomplete as we enter the third millennium, began as late as mid nineteenth century. However, feminism does not argue for the mere acknowledgement of difference; womens experience and perspectives should be noticed and heard along with dominant male experience and perspectives. Feminists complain bitterly that that the dominant perspectives are exclusive of women because they are ideological and hence false, since they are interested and distorted. Feminists are not content with their inclusion in or numerical addition to universal humanity as read in liberal or Marxist theories. Whereas postmodernism stops at the recognition of difference, feminism posits difference as a challenge, a paradigm of its critical dialogue with its situation, past, present and future. The concept woman is thrown into serious doubt because the notion of gender itself is slowly moulding due to its exclusiveness. What is being advocated instead of gender is a multiplicity of identities; for instance, if one widens ones horizon, one cannot fail to realise that differences of ethnic origin and class, sexual orientation (gays and lesbians), should be priority items on the liberation agenda. In spite of its usefulness in certain emancipatory projects, woman as a gender category stands to question now because it has dawned on contemporary gender thinkers that woman is essentially embedded in misogynist literature and that it is conducive to, and promotes, exclusionary practices. In short, a feminist survey of western languages shows that the meaning of some words, such as power, woman, human, reason, depicts gender bias against women; the words are not universal. The concept-lingual sources of western rightist discourses, like feminism, are liberalism or Marxism in their vicious attack of their respective archrivals, authoritarianism, and capitalism. Ironically, Karl Marx did not directly address the specific situation of women. He presumed that his communism would provide liberation for women just as it would for all the exploited masses and underprivileged minorities, male and female. 131 Nordic Journal of African Studies Friedrich Engels (Marxs lifetime friend, economic guardian, co-author, and Marxs editor) also narrowly attributed women subjugation to property relationships of the conjugal family only in capitalist societies; he remained mute on the reality of their enslavement in non-capitalist societies including communism and matriarchal societies. Marxism and capitalism cannot be plausible concept-lingual sources for the gender movement in the new millennium since both of them are ideologies of conflict: they pit man against man; the state exploits the proletariat-worker in the former, whereas the capitalist boss exploits the labourer in the latter. The importance of authentic concepts of gender needs to be stressed. More importantly, the crucial concept of power needs to be unambiguously stipulated in contemporary gender thought and practice. The feminism of the 1970s and 1980s correctly revealed that the concepts that are presented to us as universal and trans-historically valid actually embody male biases. For example, normative concepts such as reason, science and knowledge fail to pass the gender universalisation test, so to say. Even if these normative concepts embody ideals and express values, they nonetheless prescribe and evaluate behaviour in male-perspectives and so the values they express and ideals they embody are far from universal. Normative concepts function as descriptions of the endorsements of a specific society, and are faithful to past usage. Hence the complaint that feminism has taken the experience, i.e. marginalisation, of white middle class women to be representative of all women. The glaring weakness of these normative concepts is that they leave little or no room for disagreement or difference within a situation like a community. Conformity is the order of the day since they are treated as truth-conditions, instead of being emendations of current thought and action. These contemporary feminists fear that these values and ideals are codifications of norms regulating masculinity, where the womans normal is locus of the domesticity of the family, i.e. the private sphere of life. What current gender thought needs is the evolution of ongoing social practice. It should engage in evaluation of these concepts and influence the evolution of social practice in regard to concept-usage. 3. GENDER AND FEMINISM: THE AFRICAN SCENARIO The argument that African women cannot identify with doctrinaire western feminism comes with cogent force because the knowledge and experience of African women have been ignored or marginalised by a feminism that reflects only the perspectives of white western middle-class women; that it indulges in false universalism and lacks critical awareness of its situation are simple inferences drawn from the argument. Its conception of woman remains problematic and therefore vacuous because its woman is intended to deny self-evident differences between woman and woman in situation and experience, 132 Where is the Foundation of African Gender? privilege and power. It is apologetic of the peculiarities of woman since it misconceives them as functional and not as formal differences (from man). As a result, its content and purpose are not based on actual commonalties between women but on the experience and interests of some women who have the position and ability to impose upon other women their own idiosyncrasies, terms and definitions, i.e. what they mean for themselves and others. For instance, when western feminism seeks to balance or reverse the social scales, it employs conceptual polarities such as nature-culture, strong-weak, reason-intuition, public-private, male-female-neuter sexual division of labour. To explain the position of women, it says women are closer to nature; they are more intuitive; they are more private or secretive, etc, not knowing that it simply endorses masculinist (and hence exploitable) viewpoints about woman. Indeed feminism lacks a critical awareness of its situation. Feminism is not in dialogue with its context, past and present, and therefore cannot be used to forge emendations to any society, which cries for transformation of social relations. Feminism is engaged in a monologue, which mistakes its own ventriloquism for effectiveness since it is falsely generalising and insufficiently attentive to historical and cultural diversity. Another unwelcome feature of western feminism is that, although it borrows critical tools from other emancipatory theories like Reformation, liberalism and Marxism, it does not put itself forward to challenging other forms of subordination like slavery, colonialism, racism, and their accompanying prejudices and complexes, which affect women as well. Its exclusiveness to the western middle-class womans experience undermines its universality and objectivity, and therefore puts to serious doubt its relevance to the African woman of the same era.35 Worse still, its silence could easily be interpreted as its assent to slavery, colonialism and racism, experiences that western middle-class men caused on both African women and men. Though not unique, the situation of the African feminist and that of the Western feminist would not replicate. An African woman generally finds herself in a social setting where power might not be the paradigm of interpersonal life. Jobs are just as hard to get for a female as they are for her male counterpart. In a marital situation, for example, she may dispense with the battle of balancing it out with her allegedly dominant male partner in terms of sexual division of labour, involving child-care and domestic chores due to the scenario of dependency, a creation of the extended family. Dependants fill in as auxiliary or surrogate mothers or fathers and as unofficial maids or cooks, etc. Even if dependants were not around, hiring domestic staff would be more affordable in her society than it would be in the west. As is well known, in the west, it is almost impossible to hire domestic staff. 3.1 TRADITION VERSUS MODERNITY: SOCIO-POLITICS IN CONTEMPORARY AFRICA Transformation is a rare occurrence in Africa. Perhaps devolution, rather than evolution or revolution, is the modus operandi for social transformation in Africa. The interface of the past and the present may not be conducive to the development of radical gender even among urban or elite women. Past attitudes and values tend to phase out far too slowly under the weight of new attitudes and values. The usual conceptualisation of woman both among the rural and urban folk might have more conservative undertones than radical gender theorists wish. In Malawi, for instance, even after the legal repeal of the indecent dress code, the woman in trousers or mini-skirt risks categorisation as a champion or promoter of moral turpitude. The continuing scenario of stripping off mini-skirted city women by vendors is testimonial enough of these slow-dying conservative undertones even in the urban or modernised areas of Malawi. Radical gender might be undaunted by this current negative public recepti on of trousers and mini-skirts in Malawi, dismissing it as a primary reaction of a bunch of male savages. Time alone will heal this negative attitude; gender activists console themselves. At this stage though, these attitudes should be of great concern because it is not unusual for radical gender women lobbyists to experience opposition and disapproval from fellow women. Another reality that might prevent replication of western gender in Africa is the social history of Africa. It is difficult to identify the dominant ideology for African societies outside Africas recent experience of slave trade, colonialism, and nationalism. However, anthropology and archaeology, which pretend to dig deeper into Africas past, and re-construct the Antique Africa antedating the three recent experiences of Africa, reveal to us that there are matrilineal and patrilineal societies in Africa. In the patrilineal societies, for example, Ngoni, Tumbuka, Sena, Ngonde in Malawi, males are dominant. However, broadly speaking, in matrilineal societies women are more powerful than men, an issue that is accentuated by the husbands settling in their wives villages upon marriage. One would expect that in a setting where land is the most valuable property, due to reliance on agriculture, a landowner would command a lot of power and influence. Husbands, as co-opted landowners, will in principle and practice have less power and influence than their wives. Therefore, if the western genders power paradigm is anything to go by, the matrilineal society depicts a reversal of the western gender model. In Malawi, Chewa, Yao, Manganja and Lomwe societies are largely matrilineal in principle. The Tonga of the northern shore of Lake Malawi can be included in gender-wise peculiar ethnic groups although the Tonga are bi-lineal. In these ethnic groups, one must distinguish the formal from informal power structures and modes of social organisation; in the formal power setting, that is the traditional chieftaincy, chiefs hold only symbolic power since what they execute in public is largely the consensus, or the communis sensus, of the ruling 134 Where is the Foundation of African Gender? Unlike feminist scholarship in the West, feminist theory and scholarship in Africa have formed neither a neatly delineated field, nor one firmly rooted in theoretically-inflected politics. With the consolidation of Western feminisms between 1960 and the early 1980s and the growth of the so-called second wave, clear political and intellectual traditions were formed around radical, liberal and Marxist/socialist feminisms. Subsequent feminisms drew on or deviated from these positions to engage increasingly with theories and politics emerging in the nineties. African theories and womens movements have taken very different paths. In certain ways, African theories and womens movements have been closely linked to politics, although this politic