Community Project Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Community Project Management - Essay Example These members are responsible for electing the management committee. The management committee looks after all the activity of the community based organization. This management committee is responsible for legal matters, financial position of the organization, & providing of good quality of service. So if we analyze all the organization listed above, we find that these organizations are working for helping the community as & when required. These organizations are big organizations and having large number of members. Members play an important role in helping the people who are in need. Members of these organizations are also responsible for providing good quality of service. These organizations are also known as non profit organization. The management of these non profit community organizations is known as community project management. Designing & implementation of community project management is depending upon the type of community organization. Following factors affects the designing of a community project management: (Reference 1, Page No.-60). 1) Organization size: The size of community organization plays a vital role in designing and implementation of community project management. As the size increases the community project management becomes more critical & difficult to manage. 2) Technology used: During designing of community project management one should take ca... As the size increases the community project management becomes more critical & difficult to manage. 2) Technology used: During designing of community project management one should take care of the recent technology used by the community organization. On the basis of technology used by the organization, designing of community project management takes place. 3) Operating environment: Operating environment is also a crucial and important factor in community project management. Operating environment means the environment in which the organization is operating. During designing one should take care of operating environment, so that the future problem with the environment can be minimize. 4) Sources: The sources of the services should be taken into consideration while designing the community project management. During designing one should take care of the availability of the sources. The sources which are easily available and of good quality are taken into the consideration while designing community project management. 5) Strategy: Strategy of the community also helps in designing of community project management. Following three type of strategy used in the community organization a) Long term strategy b) Short term strategy c) Middle term strategy. So while designing the community project management, strategy should be taken into consideration for optimal utilization of resources available. Project Life Cycle (Reference 1, Page No.-55). While designing the community project management we should know the life cycle of the project. Without the study of project life cycle, we can not design the community project management. Following components are very important in project life cycle: 1) Project Requirement 2) Designing 3)

COMPARATIVE BUSINESS ETHICS AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY Essay

COMPARATIVE BUSINESS ETHICS AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY - Essay Example Many companies across the globe have attempted to adapt their social responsiveness and the way they relate to varied social responsibilities (Windsor, 2006, p. 95). Macdonald is one of the companies that have made significant efforts of adopting business ethics and corporate social responsibility in order to achieve competitive advantage in the global competitive business environment. Although MacDonald Inch have attempted to change their leadership and operational styles through employing effective organisational strategies, the corporate has faced numerous challenges including criticism from the public and also faced legal issues for manufacturing unhealthy foods; thus a failure to conduct business in ethically and socially responsible manner. Company Overview MacDonald Corporation has undergone varied leadership and operational changes since its inception, in 1937. The company has a long standing history and it has built customer loyalty because of its continued dedication to cus tomer services as being reflected in their customer focused approach. The business is among the leading and high competitive global food industries with more than 34, 000 restaurants serving over 70 million customers globally. The company employs unique business strategies of manufacturing what their customers wants; thus their marketing and operation strategies such as being committed in key success areas including cost efficiency, product promotion and product development have enabled the company to sustain their business in the competitive business world. Despite being able to obtain a position as the leader in the competitive food industries, the company has recently faced numerous issues due to managerial failure; thus posing the company into threats of sustaining a competitive advantage in the market. The company is faced with the issues of staying competitive in the fast food industry and the way it can take competitive advantage for varied opportunities available for them; t hus posing threats to effective business performance. Project Aims/ Objectives The aim of the research projects is to critically analyse the significant of comparative business ethics and social responsibility in the MacDonald Company. The objectives of the research include; The project attempts to analyse the significant of conducting business in a socially responsible and an ethical manner in MacDonald Company. To offer detailed analysis of the company in an attempt of employing comparative business ethics and social responsibility as way of achieving business advantage in a competitive business world. To examine or identify problems that has impacted MacDonald Company especially the failure to conduct their business in an ethical and socially responsible manner. To provide effective recommendations vital for enabling the company to continue sustaining their business in the competitive business world. Problem Identification The case for corporate scandals for dealing with manageri al failure has attracted public interest on social responsibility of the corporation towards society. MacDonald Inch is one of the companies that have attracted the government and public interest because of varied scandals especially the issue of manufacturing unhealthy

Case study 2 Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Case study 2 - Coursework Example Taking into account the inferences drawn from the SWOT analysis, a comparative analysis of Zara and H&M have been conducted so as to provide Caifu with rational suggestions and recommendations to select either Zara or H&M, when opting for collaboration in the targeted European market. Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Introduction 4 Company Profile 5 Zara 5 H&M 6 SWOT Analysis of Zara and H&M 7 Zara 7 H&M 9 Comparative Analysis of Zara and H&M 11 Conclusions and Recommendations 12 References 13 Introduction Since the past three years, globalisation has evidently ignited a more advanced and internationalised fashion sense and has diverted the customers towards the fashion industry by a substantial extent. Consequently, cultural values, consumer changing purchasing behaviours, consumer preferences, and willingness of purchase towards fashion merchandises has been the most critical issues faced by the contemporary managers today, in the retail sector of the industry. Based on the fa ct, the contemporary organisations have been largely observed to implement customer-centric market strategies to improve and attract the purchase behaviours of the consumers on the way to the fashion products (Bianchi & Birtwistle, 2010). In addition to these contributing factors, fashion shows in television, fashion advertisements, promotion of fashion apparels by celebrity models and superstars, in-store displays of fashionable clothes and organising fashion events in urban shopping malls have developed the consumer fashionable behaviours among consumers and thus can be regarded as another driving force in the industry since the past three years. Such kind of interactive and attractive marketing strategies of fashion apparels have shown junction of traditional and contemporary values (Rajagopal, 2012). Another the prime driver of the consumer behaviour towards the fashion apparels is the dominance of the social interactions. The relationship between the apparels and identity has c ome out as the result of various social interactions. In other words, apparels have become an opportunity and medium to represent individuals as a new identity of the person within the past few years (Pentecosta & Andrewsb, 2010). Additionally, the strategy of the younger generation of fashion fanship and impulse buying to stand apart from their predecessors and other fellow consumers also act as a driver towards the divergence of the fashion industry (Holmberg & Ohnfeldt, 2010). Also the buying patterns of the consumers have shifted from low-pricing brands to high brand fashion markets that have been established in to family environment, which also act as a few noteworthy driving forces in the industry to change consumer behaviour (Pentecosta & Andrewsb, 2010). It is worth mentioning in this context that the way an organisation manages these driving forces, determine their strengths and weaknesses in the current fashion retailing industry context. Accordingly, in this paper, a comp arative evaluation of Zara and H&M will be conducted with the intention to suggest Caifu regarding its further initiative of collaboration with either of these retail brands to penetrate the European market. Company Profile Zara Zara was founded in 1975 by Amancio Ortega Rosalia Mera as a Spanish company situated in Arteixco, Galicia. It is one of the largest international fashion retailers, which operates under

Memory of Lizzie Comparitive Essay Essay Example for Free

Memory of Lizzie Comparitive Essay Essay Blue Remembered Hills was originally written for television in 1979 before the writer, Dennis Potter, created a stage version in 1984. Potter based the storyline on his nostalgic views on childhood and the transition from infancy to adulthood. The play is set in the West Country during World War Two, where seven children have been evacuated. The audience gains an insight into a childs life in the 1940s and how the individual and very different characters interact with each other. The play ends tragically with the death of Donald, a child abused by his mother and tormented by the other children. A Memory of Lizzie is based on the famous trial in American history where Lizzie Borden was accused of killing her stepmother and father on the 4th of August, 1892. One of the main factors of the play that makes it so original is that it was written to portray Lizzie Bordens potential character and how she interacted with other people as a child. By creating a younger version of the murderess, the audience can see how this cruel and very much neglected child came to commit such horrific murders. The play is set in an American school playground in the 1870s and focuses on how the children react to Lizzie and vice versa. One of the main similarities between the two plays is that the cast of the play are children, although in Blue Remembered Hills adults act out the roles of the seven children. A theme conveyed through both plays is that of bullying and social rejection. Lizzie is ridiculed by the remainder of the group possibly because the groups jealousy of her familys wealth or perhaps her need for attention as a result of the absence of attention at home from her stepmother. However, Donald is isolated from the group mainly because of his physical appearance. . He is described by Potter to be splay-footed, timid, anaemic-looking boy. Although callously, the children use the fact that he is abused by his mother as another route of inflicting anguish on him. Both of the central characters, Donald and Lizzie, have a very distant relationship with their mothers; or in Lizzies case her stepmother. The children in Blue Remembered Hills speak of Donalds mothers unconventional lifestyle, Our mam says hers a bit of a thing Something to do with the sheets, yet Donald does not once bring her into conversation as he fears her; and becomes reclusive when any one of the children begin to taunt him about her. However, Lizzie is very open about her hatred for her stepmother All stepmoms are evil. Both plays deal with the theme of murder and each of the writers use minor events as a significant premonition of the horrific events that are to occur. Blue Remembered Hills shows the boys murdering an innocent squirrel for the amusement, yet it leads the manslaughter of Donald at the end. A Memory of Lizzie in its entirety is a premonition of what Lizzie will come to perpetrate. The slaughter of Rachels doll at the end of the play shows prominent signs of how this potential to commit such a murder would intensify. There is, however, a significant difference between these two cases of death; the children in Blue Remembered Hills felt remorse for the manslaughter of Donald and were almost in denial that it had even happen, yet Lizzie felt no sense of wrong-doing in the slaughtering of the doll and is portrayed to the audience as though she felt she achieved something from it. However the other characters isolated themselves from her behavior once the realization came upon them of what a twisted thing she was doing. This is very different to Blue Remembered Hills as all the children were to blame for Donalds death as they all were a part of the joke. The lifestyles of the children in the plays are very diverse. The children of Blue Remembered Hills are living at the time of the war; so the preponderance of the childrens games and talk revolved around the fear and excitement of the war. They also use the concept of war as a basis of their entertainment, particularly when the klaxon sounds and instead of returning home, they decide to hide in case the prisoner of war they created in their imaginations comes looking for English blood The children also take on the mannerisms of their parents, particularly when they are playing house in the Barn and Angela is imitating her mother. On the other hand, Lizzie Borden appears to be of a higher class than the other children because of her familys wealth, Just cos shes a Borden thinks she owns the whole place. Lizzie uses her wealth as a way of gaining power and often trys to control the other children. The other characters feel particularly degraded and insulted by this, Just like we was your servants or something

Garden State Essay -- essays research papers

Garden State by 'Pipsorcle' Andrew Largeman's (Zack Braff) journey throughout "Garden State" seems to be a testament on the meaning of liberation. Going from his struggling acting life in Los Angeles to his hometown in New Jersey, where he witnesses his mother's funeral, Andrew is in the mist of confronting difficult issues. One of the biggest issues is coming to terms with his psychologist father (Ian Holm), whom he has distanced himself from for many years because he has put him on powerful antidepressants for most of his life. The reason for this I will not reveal but it has caused Andrew to feel as if his father has controlled his life in a way. In showing how Andrew Largeman finds himself again, "Garden State" makes a good choice in putting him in every one of its scenes. Since this film is really about Largeman, because he is in every scene, we see a progression in his character as time goes on. At the beginning, we sense that Andrew feels rather numb and alienated but then as the film progresses, he becomes more energetic and liberated. This gradual change in his character is highlighted clearly in the cinematography, a key method in showing Andrew's psychological state. For a directorial debut, I must say Zack Braff has given me a completely different impression than from his regular role in the "Scrubs" TV series. One might think that for a directorial debut coming from a TV actor would be uneven and at best, formulaic and uninspired. That's not the case here with "Garden State." Braff shows he knows how to handle directing and storytelling yet at the same time, showing a vision that clearly establishes himself as an auteur. Examples of this are the tense moments when Andrew is around his father. A lesser film would go for theatrics and end up being very talky in dialogue, but instead, Andrew and his father's moments together are more subtle. Whenever we see both of them together, they talk but when they talk, their relationship is forced. There's a sense of silence at times, which shows they feel uncomfortable seeing each other after the lack of good communication for about a decade. Of course, one might think that from the way I'm describing "Garden State" so far, the film is on the more serious side. It's actually more funny than serious but even describing the film as a comedy wouldn't do ju... ... selling his invention of soundless Velcro and now trundles down the corridors of his unfurnished McMansion in a golf cart. Another buddy, Mark (Peter Sarsgaard), sells jewelry he acquires in a highly unusual manner. Braff also writes simple yet refreshing dialogue, with plenty of offbeat humor, yet none of it is strained, nothing is played self-consciously for laughs. Braff himself has a warm, easy-to-watch screen presence. He can say nothing during the lull in a conversation, while the camera remains focused on his face, and it feels right. Portman and Sarsgaard are also genuine, each wonderfully relaxed in their roles. Production design is superb: details in every scene are arranged well, and the photography, by Lawrence Sher, is - like the story and the acting – unpretentious, never distracting, tricky or cute. This film never seems to manipulate us; instead it engages us, arouses our curiosity and amusement, bids us gently to care about Andrew and Sam and even Mark, leaving us entertained in the best sense. This movie is as confident, as secure in itself, as comforting, as a well worn pair of house slippers or your favorite reading chair. A splendid film. Grade: A- (09/04)

Management and Leadership Essay

Abstract This paper describes the difference between leadership and management, followed by an examination of the role responsibility of leaders in creating and maintaining a healthy organizational culture. It explains that a leader is someone who can offer a compelling invitation for others to take action, while managers manage and accomplish work through others. Today’s leader needs a multitude of characteristics but most important is the ability to develop a vision and to articulate it. This paper critically examines and articulates key conceptual and practical differences between leadership and management through an analysis of the differences in the form, function and influence processes which underpin these complementary organizational roles. It attempts to show that while management involves a key responsibility for leadership, effective management also needs to include the skillful application of other power bases which underpin the wider influencing tactics of effective leader ship. Management and Leadership Today’s organizations become more complex, more ambiguous, and more unpredictable. So how should managers and leaders respond to these challenges? Along with the world is changing constantly, everything has been changing, like the Internet and information revolution, globalization of economies, demographics and ageing population, decrease in new born babies†¦etc. Changing is the trend of development of society. All kinds of environment such as investing, marketing, financing and operating environment has been changing for organizations. Leadership and management are two notions that are often used interchangeably. However, these words actually describe two different concepts. Leadership is a facet of management and is just one of the many assets a successful manager must possess. Care must be taken in distinguishing these two concepts. The main aim of a manager is to maximize  the output of the organization through administrative implementation. To achieve this, managers must undertake the following functions: Organizing, planning, leading and controlling. A manager cannot just be a leader; he also needs formal authority to be effective. For any quality initiative to take hold, senior management must be involved and act as a role model. This involvement cannot be delegated. In some circumstances, leadership is not required. For example, self-motivated groups may not require a single leader and may find leaders dominating. The fact that a leader is not always required proves that leadership can be just an asset and is not essential for certain groups or organizations. Managers think incrementally, whilst leaders think radically. â€Å"Managers do things right, while leaders do the right thing† (Ikeda, 2003). This means that managers do things by the book and follow company policy, while leaders follow their own intuition, which may in turn be of more benefit to the company. A leader is more emotional than a manager. Men or women are governed by their emotions rather than their intelligence. Leaders stand out by being different. They question assumption and are suspicious of tradition. They seek out the truth and make decisions based on fact, not prejudice. They have a preference for innovation. Often with small groups, it is not the manager who emerges as the leader. In many cases it is a subordinate member with specific talents who leads the group in a certain direction. Leaders must let vision, strategies, goals, and values be the best guide-post for action and behavior rather than attempting to control others. When a natural leader emerges in a group containing a manager, conflict may arise if they have different views. When a manager sees the group looking towards someone else for leadership he may feel his authority is being questioned. Groups are often more loyal to a leader than a manager. This loyalty is created by the leader taking responsibility in areas such as: Taking the blame when things go wrong, celebrating group achievements, even minor ones,  giving credit where it is due. The leader must take a point of highlighting the successes within a team, using charts or graphs, with little presentations and fun ideas. Leaders are observant and sensitive people. They know their team and develop mutual confidence within it. â€Å"The leader is followed, the manager rules† (The University of Edinburgh, 1997). A leader is someone who people naturally follow through their own choice, whereas a manager must be obeyed. A manager may only have obtained his position of authority through time and loyalty given to the company, not as a result of his leadership qualities. A leader may have no organizational skills, but his vision unites people behind him. Management usually consists of people who are experienced in their field, and who have worked their way up the company. A manager knows how each layer of the system works and may also possess a good technical knowledge. A leader can be a new arrival to a company who has bold, fresh, new ideas but might not have experience or wisdom. Leading, often confused with managing, is the process of creating a vision and motivating people to achieve certain goals. On the other hand, managing is the process of organizing, planning, controlling, and leading; hence, leadership is a characteristic of managing but managing is not necessarily a function of leading. Often employees prefer employers to express roles of leading over those of managing. â€Å"If given the choice, most people would rather follow a leader than managed by a manager. To manage is to control and manipulate. To lead is to guide, influence and persuade. In today’s business world, both management and leadership skills are vital, but it’s important to use them in the proper manner – things are managed and people are led† (Iscoe, n.d.). For employers to be successful it is imperative that they distinguish the  difference between managing and leading and are able to express all functions of management (leading included), for if they do not profit maximization is hindered and failure inevitable. For leaders to influence others to become interested in their vision often they need to put some attention toward creating a healthy organizational culture. This is important because when an employee feels comfortable in their work environment it is more likely that they develop loyalty and interest for their employer. Unfortunately, due to costs and lack of regulating standards for creating a healthy organization culture many employers express unwillingness and look towards other creative means to improve employees health. â€Å"So many companies find it easier to try to ‘fix’ the employee than the organization. Focus on employees’ unhealthy behaviors – poor diets, smoking, lack of exercise. Promote self-management of health. That’s today’s typical ‘control strategy,’ but it does nothing to address the deeper organizational ills† (Johnson, 2001). Another creative way to maintain a healthy organization culture is to offer, at the employee’s expense, authorized absence (leave). This has been a common occurrence from those that I know who are in the Navy. Employers will allow an employee to take, at their own expense, additional time as needed off when stress levels are high. I believe that employers do this in attempts to avoid morale drop that could arise out of employees having health problems (some relating to stress). As far as leaders and managers having to be responsible for creating a positive work environment, it is by their own choice and in their best interest. They must make the cost-benefit analysis to decide if expenses are worth an increase in constitution of employees. Unless employers are literally doing something immoral to employees, a positive atmosphere can often be overlooked. In conclusion, leadership is an important function of management and is essential if one wishes to be triumphant. For my captain his leadership was enthralling to anyone that he met, making him and his crew more interested in furthering his career in the military. Creating pride in employees’ job and using your position as a leader or a manager to excel organizational  goals and influence employees to work towards positive goals either for themselves or the organization is my vision of healthy organizational culture. References University of Edinburgh (1997). The Difference Between Management And Leadership. Retrieved April 30, 2005 from: http://www.see.ed.ac.uk/~gerard/MENG/ME96/Documents/Intro/leader.html Ikeda J. (2003) Addressing the Leadership Crises: Clarifying Leaders’ Responsibilities. Retrieved April 30, 2005 from: http://www.linkageinc.com/company/news_events/link_learn_enewsletter/archive/2003/11_03_leadership_ikeda.aspx Iscoe, S. (2004) Link to Success: Management Versus Leadership. Retrieved April 30, 2005 from: http://linktosuccess.com/success-articles/management.html Johnson, D. (2001). Creating a healthy workplace for today’s stressed-out employees. Retrieved April 30, 2005 from: http://www.ishn.com/CDA/ArticleInformation/coverstory/BNPCoverStoryItem/0,2164,62212,00.html

Mean Girls

Celebrity Culture in Mean Girls Mean Girls, written by Tina Fey and directed by Mark Waters, takes Its viewers through high school from the perspective of Caddy Heron, a young girl who never known what â€Å"high school† genuinely meant. Upon arrival, she makes friends with Janis and Diana, who were in the stereotypical â€Å"unpopular† crowd. They warn her to stay away from â€Å"The Plastics†, an exclusive clique that includes three drama-filled girls who are superficial, spiteful, and have vicious attitudes that obtain their power and fame from beauty and glamour.However, â€Å"The Plastics† ask Caddy to Join them. Caddy, Janis, and Diana together plot against the leader of The Plastics, Regina George, the most monstrous of them all. In reality, the more time Caddy spends with The Plastics, the more she starts to actually become one. The Plastics themselves show how monstrous qualities are formed in celebrity culture, while the use of Caddy is the perfe ct example of how culture builds up celebrities to break them back down. The Plastics took Caddy, someone who was naive and candid, and turned her Into something she Is not through the manipulation of their own standards and rules.Celebrity culture heavily relies on qualities of manipulation. This was done through thru burn book, etc Rumors and lies are one are heavily used in manipulation. This is the epitome of celebrity gossip, shown in Mean Girls through Regina George. Regina finds out Caddy has a crush on Aaron Samuels, her ex boyfriend, and promises Caddy that she would talk to Aaron for her; however, Regina fabricates lies to Aaron; â€Å"She [Caddy] writes all over her notebook ‘Mrs.. Aaron Samuels'. And she made this tee-shirt that says, ‘l heart Aaron', and she wears it under all her clothes†¦She saved this Kleenex you used and she said she's going to do some kind of African voodoo with it to make you like her†. Evidence In nineteenth century litera ture Is provided In Frankincense, when Victor Frankincense manipulates his monster through lies: He tells his monster he would create a female companion for him, and afterward declares â€Å"Bygone! I do break my promise: never will I create another like yourself, equal in deformity and wickedness† and proceeds â€Å"to [tear] to pieces the thing on which [he] was engaged† (175).Both Regina and Victor broke their promises, developing a kind of behavior that is so focused on policing others, they almost seem to lose track of themselves; they are so busy broadcasting what they hate, and so focused on consumption of their rival with their loathsome fascination, they do not realize their own personalities turn monstrous. They become so engrossed in this idea, they are unable to distinguish that this hate they developed is the sole reason for their viciousness and misery.This happens when one must realize one's own identity Is crafted from the act of hating. It almost seems Like superficial celebrities In celebrity ultra love, yet hate, to be hated; yet they love the act of hating, and use this hate to surround their world. This kind of â€Å"high school† attitude filled with rumors and Lies that Regina possesses exists in the celebrity world, and if it continues, it will influence animosity and disgust, that a world of peace, accuracy, and love may no longer be accomplished. Another key to manipulation is secrecy.There are countless examples of this in Mean Girls. For example, the scene of The Plastics when they are all on the phone; When Gretchen was on the phone with Caddy, it turned out to be a three-way call with Regina, but Caddy didn't know. This complexity progress when viewers realize the girls are all interlinked, all on the phone with each other on separate lines; Karen gets a call from Regina, puts her on hold, and proceeds to talk to Gretchen and says, â€Å"It's Regina, she wants to hang out tonight but she told me not to tell yo u†.This is similar to the theme of secrecy in Frankincense: Victor states, â€Å"The world to me, is a secret, which I desired to discover† (26), â€Å"l have one secret, Elizabeth, a dreadful one; when revealed to you, it will chill your frame with horror† (218), and he refuses to tell the secret to his audience, telling them to â€Å"listen patiently until the end of [his] story, with which [he] is acquainted with† (44). This is similar to Mantilla, where â€Å"[her father] has a secret grief that destroys [them] both: but [he] must permit [Mantilla] to win this secret from [him]† (47).The fact that one possesses a secret, holds it vital, and purposely shields it from the world acknowledges a kind of unmoral sin, or practical wrongdoing; celebrities allow these secrets to internally eat them alive like in Frankincense and Mantilla, or whether it makes their behavior more aggressive eke in Mean Girls, these secrets have the ability to change and ma nipulate others. In celebrity culture, a secret is a form of power, yet vulnerability – a secret itself could stand for everything one can't see.The public blows these secrets up with crazy ideas and provides evidence with the theories they project onto it. The secret could mean nothing, yet everything, at the same time. This is because that a secret exists. It does not matter what the secret actually is, because the people who spread the knowledge of the secret form its monstrosity. The people have ample opportunity to take control, seceding as a whole or individuals whether they want to make up a rumor, lie, tell the truth, say nothing, or contribute to the situation.The people are monsters, because they take complete control over the situation. An example of this is all of Lord's â€Å"fans† who (most likely) made her miserable because they did not approve of the physical appearance of her boyfriend. [A concluding sentence is needed here] Manipulation is also acquir ed through self-pity, which is shown in Mean Girls with the Burn Book. The Burn Book, which belongs to Regina George, is a book essentially signed to bully her classmates: it has students' pictures with mean phrases, secrets, and other things about them.Regina takes her book, puts her own picture on it, and writes something mean about herself. She then reports it to her school's principal and says, â€Å"l found it in the girl's bathroom! It's so mean†. This is similar to when Victor seeks sympathy from Elizabeth in Frankincense: â€Å"If you knew what I have suffered from, and what I may yet endure, you would endeavor to let me taste the quiet, and freedom from despair, that this one day at least permits me to enjoy' (222).In The Complete Poems and Selected Letters of John Keats, in a short poem called â€Å"When I have Fears†, self-pity is asked for when Keats shows he is in pain, likes the pain, and wants to be acknowledged for his pain: â€Å"Of the wide world I stand alone, and think Till love and fame to nothingness do sink† (301). Just like Keats and Shelley, their own needs. Regina did this Just so she could get Caddy in trouble, Frankincense did this to make it look like it wasn't entirely his fault for the monster's actions, and Keats uses his fans' sympathy to become liked.The public falls into a part of this ultra, where one blames someone else; even the victims themselves get blamed for fault. Besides from celebrities' success, looks, and wealth, it is not uncommon for the public to condone that they are people, humans, Just like them. The public is essentially casting a negative eye upon themselves. Celebrities have people who work with them to help mold their image, but the impossible standards of beauty and perfection they try to fulfill originates from the endless, harsh scrutiny the public places upon them.When a celebrity breaks this image, or differs from the norm, they automatically are seen as monstrous, resulting in sneering and degrading comments from fans. This monstrosity on the celebrities has a counter-effect on the fans; every time there is a mean comment, they are normalizing harsh Judgment, extreme reactions, and offensive language. Celebrity culture takes the blame on how the public has developed a cruel society, through self-pity. Another quality of manipulation used in celebrity culture is feigning their own innocence; this is seen quite often in Mean Girls.Gretchen bullies Regina for violating the rules of their â€Å"girl world† by wearing sweatpants on Monday, and Regina lams she is forced to wear sweatpants because, â€Å"sweatpants are all that fits [her] right now', implying she is â€Å"innocent† because it is not her fault she has to wear those. Another scene is where Regina claims innocence is during lecture, (â€Å"workshop†), in the gym, after the Burn Book is discovered: Regina claims, â€Å"Can I Just say we don't have a clique problem at this sch ool, and some of us shouldn't have to take this workshops because some of us are victims in this situation? Regina implies she is â€Å"innocent†, and she herself is a victim. The teacher responds, â€Å"That's probably rue, how many of you have ever felt personally victimize by Regina George? † Actual innocence and feigning innocence is a huge role in Frankincense: though Victor blames himself for the monster killing his family, despite his creation, he convinces himself that he is â€Å"innocent† and expresses how he feels like the victim. Victor is a contradiction: he is innocent, yet, uses that to his advantage to feign his innocence.He is innocent because he has never intended his creation to turn into an actual form of monstrosity, but yet, feigns innocence by his hiding his guilt and hiding his knowledge about his family's deaths. Victor's innocence decreases over time throughout the novel; his â€Å"UN-innocent† behavior destroys the monster's inn ocence. Victor is performing an act that could be considered â€Å"monstrous† in manipulation by taking away the genuine innocence of one who was never given a chance to prove that innocence. At first Victor decides to â€Å"at least listen to [the monster's] tale† (105), but later on, he decides to â€Å"tore to pieces†¦ The thing on which the creature's] future existence he depended for happiness† (190), not giving the monster a chance to uphold its promise. Celebrities start out with genuine innocence, become corrupted, and may attempt to feign their innocence through their roles – However, once celebrities feign their innocence they are portrayed as â€Å"monstrous†, they are not given a chance to stick up for themselves properly without media and public interference. Lindsay Loan, off the set of Mean Girls, got into drugs, which could â€Å"feign innocence†, and assume that she had no role in her fans doing drugs.According to Good Charlotte, this kind of manipulation is the price of having a lifestyle of â€Å"the rich and the famous† (song lyrics). The most vital quality in manipulation is the key tactic in order to be able to get away with spreading rumors and lies, maintain secrecy, create self-pity, and feign illness. Control itself is the piece that connects all of these qualities. Throughout Mean Girls, there are many scenes were one of The Plastics are in control: At the talent show at school, Regina demands for Gretchen to switch sides with Caddy. When Gretchen protests, Regina says, â€Å"Right now you're getting on my last nerve.Switch! † Gretchen acknowledges this control by obeying. Caddy was also acknowledging control hen she fulfills Region's invite to eat lunch with them â€Å"everyday for the rest of the week†. In the beginning of the movie, Regina took control of Caddy social life. Halfway through, Caddy became the center of attention; she gained control of Region's previ ous fame and publicity and made it her own. The previous examples also hint at some aspect of control. Control is also seen in Frankincense, where the monster says, Mimi are my creator, but I am your master;-obey! (174). Victor chooses condone the monster, and the monster responds by taking control, killing all of Victor's family embers. Control in Charitable is implied when Geraldine takes on a role of masculinity: â€Å"lay down by the maiden's side: And in her arms the maid she took† (250-251). In The Major Works, â€Å"Farewell to a Lady' by Lord Byron shows how a woman's beauty takes control of his life: â€Å"In flight I shall be surely wise, Escaping from temptation's snare; I cannot view my Paradise, Without the wish of dwelling there† (1).By the word â€Å"flight†, viewers can assume he is going to commit suicide as a means to control the elimination of all ties with the Earthly Paradise's temptation. This kind of intro can relate to monstrosity and ce lebrity culture in a number of ways; first, one can see that the society of celebrity culture is so monstrously powerful, it is out of the control of the public to change it. Only the celebrities themselves have control of their own lives and culture and how they want to live it.Second, celebrity culture has so much control and influence over their audience, that they are not only controlling their own lives, but dominating American culture as a whole. By celebrities constantly sleeping with one another, taking part in the lies, secrecy, self-pity, and feigning their innocence inspires the public to act in the same manner. Third, by the news being so obsessed with the daily lives of celebrities, it almost implies as if they are encouraging the public to become more and more like celebrity stalkers.Lastly, they manipulate the public into believing their redefined definition of happiness, which solely consists of money, fame, and beauty. Rumors, lies, secrecy, self-pity, feigning inno cence, and control all tangle together to layer and overlap and form manipulation; celebrity manipulators do not only have control of their own world, but also wish to control the world of others. This allows them to occupy both worlds at the same time, with their rules, in their way: how much more control could a person possibly want?These qualities of manipulation in celebrity culture are allowing people to lose touch with things that are the most important in life, like friends and family. Celebrity culture is so controlling that it even takes over the roles of others. In Celebrity Culture: Are Americans Too Focused on Celebrities, Tompkins, a group an example of how celebrities are taking the roles of [super] heroes: â€Å"When I ask allege and high school students who their heroes are, they usually name celebrities, such as athletes or movie stars, not names that did something heroic or noteworthy. (Tompkins 4). Celebrity culture is now one of our prime sources of entertainmen t; ultimately, celebrity culture manipulates to control their audience's society in such a monstrous way so they are not able to distinguish the difference between genuine importance and the importance of celebrity news. One day, I fear genuinely important news, (politics, world news, emergency issues) will be ignored unless it is presented as a source of entertainment, like celebrity culture. Mean Girls Stacy Gregg Sociology M/W 11:30 Sociological Themes Sociology is everywhere we look, its everything thing we are, and can be described within everything we do. The traditional focuses of sociology have included social stratification, social class, culture, social mobility, religion, secularization, law, and deviance. As all spheres of human activity are affected by the interplay between social structure and individual agency, sociology has gradually expanded its focus to further subjects, such as health, medical, military and penal institutions, the Internet, and the role of social activity in the development of scientific knowledge.Looking through films you can see many sociological themes. I chose to look at â€Å"Mean Girls† and pull the sociological themes out. Mean Girls is a movie about a girl, Cady, who moves to the US from Africa and starts at a new school. She immediately befriends two outcasts, who explain the school's social scene. There are a group of three girls ( the â€Å"Plastics†) who are popular, malicious and rule the school. As a trick, these three girls befriend Cady.Her outcast friends encourage her to hang out with the Plastics to see what they do. But as she spends more time with them, she becomes more and more like them, backstabbing, mean, self-obsessed, and superficial. When Cady and the leader of the Plastics go after the same guy, she begins to plot their destruction, and starts sabotaging the girls in worse and worse ways. Eventually she separates from her original friends and her Plastic friends.When the entire school finds out about some of the terrible things the Plastics have said about them by finding a â€Å"Burn Book† everyone turns against the Plastics and Cady. Eventually, she must apologize to everyone she hurt and begin to find a way to become a better person. The first sociological theme I would like to address is stereotypes. A stereotype is defined as a widely held but fixed and oversimplified imag e or idea of a particular type of person or thing.Mean Girls portrays high school stereo types rather well, at school there are groups such as try-hards, wannabes, burn-outs, band geeks, nerds, the popular girls, the jocks and art freaks. All the girls wants to be a plastic so to speak and they all display it in different ways like how the girls who eat nothing are trying to be thin so they can be like the plastics, but the girls who eat their feelings are also trying to be a plastic but by eating they are showing I don’t care what anybody thinks of me, which is a popular trait.Then when everyone is explaining Regina George and one girl says â€Å"One time she punched me in the face†¦ It was awesome! † this implies that this â€Å"wannabe† made contact with Regina George even though it is contact most people don't what it is contact nonetheless which she hopes has passed on a bit of Regina George's popularity. References: (2011, 04). â€Å"Mean Girls† Analysis. StudyMode. com. Retrieved 04, 2011, from http://www. studymode. com/essays/Mean-Girls-Analysis-676080. html Mean Girls Celebrity Culture in Mean Girls Mean Girls, written by Tina Fey and directed by Mark Waters, takes Its viewers through high school from the perspective of Caddy Heron, a young girl who never known what â€Å"high school† genuinely meant. Upon arrival, she makes friends with Janis and Diana, who were in the stereotypical â€Å"unpopular† crowd. They warn her to stay away from â€Å"The Plastics†, an exclusive clique that includes three drama-filled girls who are superficial, spiteful, and have vicious attitudes that obtain their power and fame from beauty and glamour.However, â€Å"The Plastics† ask Caddy to Join them. Caddy, Janis, and Diana together plot against the leader of The Plastics, Regina George, the most monstrous of them all. In reality, the more time Caddy spends with The Plastics, the more she starts to actually become one. The Plastics themselves show how monstrous qualities are formed in celebrity culture, while the use of Caddy is the perfe ct example of how culture builds up celebrities to break them back down. The Plastics took Caddy, someone who was naive and candid, and turned her Into something she Is not through the manipulation of their own standards and rules.Celebrity culture heavily relies on qualities of manipulation. This was done through thru burn book, etc Rumors and lies are one are heavily used in manipulation. This is the epitome of celebrity gossip, shown in Mean Girls through Regina George. Regina finds out Caddy has a crush on Aaron Samuels, her ex boyfriend, and promises Caddy that she would talk to Aaron for her; however, Regina fabricates lies to Aaron; â€Å"She [Caddy] writes all over her notebook ‘Mrs.. Aaron Samuels'. And she made this tee-shirt that says, ‘l heart Aaron', and she wears it under all her clothes†¦She saved this Kleenex you used and she said she's going to do some kind of African voodoo with it to make you like her†. Evidence In nineteenth century litera ture Is provided In Frankincense, when Victor Frankincense manipulates his monster through lies: He tells his monster he would create a female companion for him, and afterward declares â€Å"Bygone! I do break my promise: never will I create another like yourself, equal in deformity and wickedness† and proceeds â€Å"to [tear] to pieces the thing on which [he] was engaged† (175).Both Regina and Victor broke their promises, developing a kind of behavior that is so focused on policing others, they almost seem to lose track of themselves; they are so busy broadcasting what they hate, and so focused on consumption of their rival with their loathsome fascination, they do not realize their own personalities turn monstrous. They become so engrossed in this idea, they are unable to distinguish that this hate they developed is the sole reason for their viciousness and misery.This happens when one must realize one's own identity Is crafted from the act of hating. It almost seems Like superficial celebrities In celebrity ultra love, yet hate, to be hated; yet they love the act of hating, and use this hate to surround their world. This kind of â€Å"high school† attitude filled with rumors and Lies that Regina possesses exists in the celebrity world, and if it continues, it will influence animosity and disgust, that a world of peace, accuracy, and love may no longer be accomplished. Another key to manipulation is secrecy.There are countless examples of this in Mean Girls. For example, the scene of The Plastics when they are all on the phone; When Gretchen was on the phone with Caddy, it turned out to be a three-way call with Regina, but Caddy didn't know. This complexity progress when viewers realize the girls are all interlinked, all on the phone with each other on separate lines; Karen gets a call from Regina, puts her on hold, and proceeds to talk to Gretchen and says, â€Å"It's Regina, she wants to hang out tonight but she told me not to tell yo u†.This is similar to the theme of secrecy in Frankincense: Victor states, â€Å"The world to me, is a secret, which I desired to discover† (26), â€Å"l have one secret, Elizabeth, a dreadful one; when revealed to you, it will chill your frame with horror† (218), and he refuses to tell the secret to his audience, telling them to â€Å"listen patiently until the end of [his] story, with which [he] is acquainted with† (44). This is similar to Mantilla, where â€Å"[her father] has a secret grief that destroys [them] both: but [he] must permit [Mantilla] to win this secret from [him]† (47).The fact that one possesses a secret, holds it vital, and purposely shields it from the world acknowledges a kind of unmoral sin, or practical wrongdoing; celebrities allow these secrets to internally eat them alive like in Frankincense and Mantilla, or whether it makes their behavior more aggressive eke in Mean Girls, these secrets have the ability to change and ma nipulate others. In celebrity culture, a secret is a form of power, yet vulnerability – a secret itself could stand for everything one can't see.The public blows these secrets up with crazy ideas and provides evidence with the theories they project onto it. The secret could mean nothing, yet everything, at the same time. This is because that a secret exists. It does not matter what the secret actually is, because the people who spread the knowledge of the secret form its monstrosity. The people have ample opportunity to take control, seceding as a whole or individuals whether they want to make up a rumor, lie, tell the truth, say nothing, or contribute to the situation.The people are monsters, because they take complete control over the situation. An example of this is all of Lord's â€Å"fans† who (most likely) made her miserable because they did not approve of the physical appearance of her boyfriend. [A concluding sentence is needed here] Manipulation is also acquir ed through self-pity, which is shown in Mean Girls with the Burn Book. The Burn Book, which belongs to Regina George, is a book essentially signed to bully her classmates: it has students' pictures with mean phrases, secrets, and other things about them.Regina takes her book, puts her own picture on it, and writes something mean about herself. She then reports it to her school's principal and says, â€Å"l found it in the girl's bathroom! It's so mean†. This is similar to when Victor seeks sympathy from Elizabeth in Frankincense: â€Å"If you knew what I have suffered from, and what I may yet endure, you would endeavor to let me taste the quiet, and freedom from despair, that this one day at least permits me to enjoy' (222).In The Complete Poems and Selected Letters of John Keats, in a short poem called â€Å"When I have Fears†, self-pity is asked for when Keats shows he is in pain, likes the pain, and wants to be acknowledged for his pain: â€Å"Of the wide world I stand alone, and think Till love and fame to nothingness do sink† (301). Just like Keats and Shelley, their own needs. Regina did this Just so she could get Caddy in trouble, Frankincense did this to make it look like it wasn't entirely his fault for the monster's actions, and Keats uses his fans' sympathy to become liked.The public falls into a part of this ultra, where one blames someone else; even the victims themselves get blamed for fault. Besides from celebrities' success, looks, and wealth, it is not uncommon for the public to condone that they are people, humans, Just like them. The public is essentially casting a negative eye upon themselves. Celebrities have people who work with them to help mold their image, but the impossible standards of beauty and perfection they try to fulfill originates from the endless, harsh scrutiny the public places upon them.When a celebrity breaks this image, or differs from the norm, they automatically are seen as monstrous, resulting in sneering and degrading comments from fans. This monstrosity on the celebrities has a counter-effect on the fans; every time there is a mean comment, they are normalizing harsh Judgment, extreme reactions, and offensive language. Celebrity culture takes the blame on how the public has developed a cruel society, through self-pity. Another quality of manipulation used in celebrity culture is feigning their own innocence; this is seen quite often in Mean Girls.Gretchen bullies Regina for violating the rules of their â€Å"girl world† by wearing sweatpants on Monday, and Regina lams she is forced to wear sweatpants because, â€Å"sweatpants are all that fits [her] right now', implying she is â€Å"innocent† because it is not her fault she has to wear those. Another scene is where Regina claims innocence is during lecture, (â€Å"workshop†), in the gym, after the Burn Book is discovered: Regina claims, â€Å"Can I Just say we don't have a clique problem at this sch ool, and some of us shouldn't have to take this workshops because some of us are victims in this situation? Regina implies she is â€Å"innocent†, and she herself is a victim. The teacher responds, â€Å"That's probably rue, how many of you have ever felt personally victimize by Regina George? † Actual innocence and feigning innocence is a huge role in Frankincense: though Victor blames himself for the monster killing his family, despite his creation, he convinces himself that he is â€Å"innocent† and expresses how he feels like the victim. Victor is a contradiction: he is innocent, yet, uses that to his advantage to feign his innocence.He is innocent because he has never intended his creation to turn into an actual form of monstrosity, but yet, feigns innocence by his hiding his guilt and hiding his knowledge about his family's deaths. Victor's innocence decreases over time throughout the novel; his â€Å"UN-innocent† behavior destroys the monster's inn ocence. Victor is performing an act that could be considered â€Å"monstrous† in manipulation by taking away the genuine innocence of one who was never given a chance to prove that innocence. At first Victor decides to â€Å"at least listen to [the monster's] tale† (105), but later on, he decides to â€Å"tore to pieces†¦ The thing on which the creature's] future existence he depended for happiness† (190), not giving the monster a chance to uphold its promise. Celebrities start out with genuine innocence, become corrupted, and may attempt to feign their innocence through their roles – However, once celebrities feign their innocence they are portrayed as â€Å"monstrous†, they are not given a chance to stick up for themselves properly without media and public interference. Lindsay Loan, off the set of Mean Girls, got into drugs, which could â€Å"feign innocence†, and assume that she had no role in her fans doing drugs.According to Good Charlotte, this kind of manipulation is the price of having a lifestyle of â€Å"the rich and the famous† (song lyrics). The most vital quality in manipulation is the key tactic in order to be able to get away with spreading rumors and lies, maintain secrecy, create self-pity, and feign illness. Control itself is the piece that connects all of these qualities. Throughout Mean Girls, there are many scenes were one of The Plastics are in control: At the talent show at school, Regina demands for Gretchen to switch sides with Caddy. When Gretchen protests, Regina says, â€Å"Right now you're getting on my last nerve.Switch! † Gretchen acknowledges this control by obeying. Caddy was also acknowledging control hen she fulfills Region's invite to eat lunch with them â€Å"everyday for the rest of the week†. In the beginning of the movie, Regina took control of Caddy social life. Halfway through, Caddy became the center of attention; she gained control of Region's previ ous fame and publicity and made it her own. The previous examples also hint at some aspect of control. Control is also seen in Frankincense, where the monster says, Mimi are my creator, but I am your master;-obey! (174). Victor chooses condone the monster, and the monster responds by taking control, killing all of Victor's family embers. Control in Charitable is implied when Geraldine takes on a role of masculinity: â€Å"lay down by the maiden's side: And in her arms the maid she took† (250-251). In The Major Works, â€Å"Farewell to a Lady' by Lord Byron shows how a woman's beauty takes control of his life: â€Å"In flight I shall be surely wise, Escaping from temptation's snare; I cannot view my Paradise, Without the wish of dwelling there† (1).By the word â€Å"flight†, viewers can assume he is going to commit suicide as a means to control the elimination of all ties with the Earthly Paradise's temptation. This kind of intro can relate to monstrosity and ce lebrity culture in a number of ways; first, one can see that the society of celebrity culture is so monstrously powerful, it is out of the control of the public to change it. Only the celebrities themselves have control of their own lives and culture and how they want to live it.Second, celebrity culture has so much control and influence over their audience, that they are not only controlling their own lives, but dominating American culture as a whole. By celebrities constantly sleeping with one another, taking part in the lies, secrecy, self-pity, and feigning their innocence inspires the public to act in the same manner. Third, by the news being so obsessed with the daily lives of celebrities, it almost implies as if they are encouraging the public to become more and more like celebrity stalkers.Lastly, they manipulate the public into believing their redefined definition of happiness, which solely consists of money, fame, and beauty. Rumors, lies, secrecy, self-pity, feigning inno cence, and control all tangle together to layer and overlap and form manipulation; celebrity manipulators do not only have control of their own world, but also wish to control the world of others. This allows them to occupy both worlds at the same time, with their rules, in their way: how much more control could a person possibly want?These qualities of manipulation in celebrity culture are allowing people to lose touch with things that are the most important in life, like friends and family. Celebrity culture is so controlling that it even takes over the roles of others. In Celebrity Culture: Are Americans Too Focused on Celebrities, Tompkins, a group an example of how celebrities are taking the roles of [super] heroes: â€Å"When I ask allege and high school students who their heroes are, they usually name celebrities, such as athletes or movie stars, not names that did something heroic or noteworthy. (Tompkins 4). Celebrity culture is now one of our prime sources of entertainmen t; ultimately, celebrity culture manipulates to control their audience's society in such a monstrous way so they are not able to distinguish the difference between genuine importance and the importance of celebrity news. One day, I fear genuinely important news, (politics, world news, emergency issues) will be ignored unless it is presented as a source of entertainment, like celebrity culture.