International Management Competencies |Reflection

International Management Competencies |Reflection INTRODUCTION MSc International Management was my chosen area in which to study after my BA honors in International business management at Oxford Brookes and I was given the opportunity to complete a Masters Degree in the same line of study. The semester classes started on the 28th of September 2009, where I was to take part in International Management Competencies. The sessions would give me the possible additional prospect of becoming a first-class international business manager. To be involved in a global business concerning mixed cultures, overall integration and examination for changes that affects globalization by interacting cross-culturally. (Thomas, 2008). The class in which I took part in included 23 students from 17 different countries of origin, which meant I would be having contact with individuals that have the same interest of subject with different backgrounds and experiences to offers with diverse cultures which most certainly could give me an insight into different ethnicity and cross-cultural factors. These could potentially overlap between each other while interacting. With this in mind, understanding culture it is to be associated with the aim to define common human problems which are shared between groups. (Schneider, 1997). The module itself would also give me the unique opportunity to enhance my mangerial skills by learning form my experiences and taking part into the activities that would bring further education in developing my fundamental process of learning. I began to understand that the classes would give me a vast ability to develop my skills on a weekly basis by interacting with all the members of my class and group that I was placed in, also while working on the reading material and keeping a weekly diary (see Appendix A) it seemed to be appealing and would most definitely exceed my knowledge on the subject in question, to understand that International managers hold the responsibility towards an organisations success by managing with their hu man resources which are related to their cultural differences and backgrounds (Groseschl, Doherty, 2000). REFLECTIVE STATEMENT EXPERIENCES The most important task that I had to undertake this semester was associated with a mixed group of individuals form the same division to then explore the core case study given by our module leader, â€Å"The case of the Floundering Expatriate†, in which it involved diversity in cross-cultural groups concerning an organization that tries to manage these mixtures effectively to try accomplish great performance and success. The role for the project would be to analyse Bert Donaldson‘s managerial practices and to address the key issues with his team, and actions he could take in his own cultural development. The final results would then to be presented to the peers in weeks 8 (trial mock, see diary Appendix A, week 8) and week 10 (final assesed, see Appendix A week, 10), with also a group report showing all the content and understanding of the case. The group i got allocated to consisted of 5 people from different countries with mixed culture backrounds, knowledge and experiences to offer (Appendix A,week 2-3), of which Shirley came form Venezuela, Konstantin from Bulgaria, Judith form Germany, Moses from Denmark, and me from Italy. The process in which all these events happened has been recorded in diary format shown in the appendix (Development through the weeks of the semester) showing overall actions taken during the initial process in which it began, where i had to change to another team (Appe ndix A, week 2 and 3). The group was given the chance to be fully independent, and we had the power to decide when to schedule as there was no pattern or organised structure to follow, therefore we could procede as best as we could, to optimize the procedure, which would be critical for the result. As described by Robert Harris, (2004) the synergy within a team has to be promoted by improving strategy that creates enhanced quality of work, autonomy control, improved communication, which then results in higher performance, productivity and more research and development. On initial startup there was a lack of organization and indeciciveness to whome should be the leader, to find a comprimise to work consistenely, but then Shirley proved to be up to the part and showed great ability to commence and organize a programme to follow (see Appendix B) related to meeting times and place, and a leader was found, persuing the role as the motivator and director of the operation by applying her h uman resource skills and direction of the generic scope which are crutial for a successful leader by creating a sense of purpose structure and clear defenition of purpose (Emirates Center, 2002)(Appendix A week 5 to 6). The role in which i could represent myself would be as a team worker and finisher ,a relevant role that would have to be skilled over the weeks to come. As mentioned by Harris, 1998, a team worker has the main priority to put people on top of his list, concerning feelings, needs, and has a strong observing power of the strengths and weaknesses of the group. Additionally he plays as a facilitator minimising any possible frictions that may arise. FEELINGS I was very content to be in the assigned group and ready to combine all our ideas together to then put them into practice. By using different prespectives on cultures and leadership which are essential to be able to learn the basic skills for managing its organization successfully and create a working environment that can develop its skills and training through time. Managers are faced with one of the biggest tasks to motivate and lead individuals to different cultures by understanding their behaviors, as motivation has the need to achieve and dominate in its class (Mc Clelands, 1981). I had an amazing feeling that the overall experience would bring me insight into team working and learning other cultures by having the possibility to integrate and develop skills needed in working life environment, involving decison making process, solving problems, and being able to carry out required tasks. Furtermore an absolute importance to the way in which you present your skills and ideas is cr utial for the success and undestanding you bring across. As explained by Tjosvold et al (2003), cross cultural management is increasing due to expatriation and international trade, meaning that people from diverse cultures must work together in the global marketplace. Societies differ in characteristic ways of thinking, feelings and acting through effective approaches derived from their values which portrays stereotypes and expectations that come from these specific situations. Finally by examining my teams diversity there were some disadvantages towards lack of cohesion(Appendix A week 7-8), and misscomunication through language as none of us were native spakers, but there were several advantages thatour mixed creativity gave a wide range of prespectives, better ideas and less groupthink, that resulted in better problem definition in regards to finding solutions for productivity. THOUGHTS As our first meeting started on the 16th of October many thoughts ran through my head and I was thinking if the group would be able to interact, merge developing ideas and fuse past experiences (work related and life events) with knowledge to minimize any potential cross-cultural issues that may arise. During the meeting everyone knew their role (Appendix A, weeks 3-6). I was motivated to extend and widen my thoughts by analyzing the situation in hand for the development plan needed. I was beginning to feel very relaxed and was pleased to share my opinions and ideologies of the case, by describing as best as I could what I thought we should include for the report to analyze it according to the prerequisites. I stared to realize that I was changing as time passed on, as I understood that my preferences where towards working with others and accepting ideas and mixing concepts to reach an evaluated criteria for fluency. I began to apprehend that I function perfectly as a team worker by constructing a working structure with appropriate skills and resources as suggested by West (2004), but there was a necessary need for change towards the way I express myself and come up with ideas. I would have to be more assertive and confident in myself. As for being an expatriate from Italy it brought additional challenges for working in a new cultural environment. Haour-knipe (2001), argued that in order to be successful during the integration of a new society there needs to be an adaption towards learning the new language, making new friends and getting occustomed to the the new surroundings and local culture. Nonetheless I saw different insights into peoples different styles and ways of achieving a process where I could take into account additional practices to develop myself towards diversity and the power that a team can generate, as mentioned by Essed (1996), diversity can be understood by experiencing events that are in common with the individuals from the team, where the se beliefs, principles and theories have an important impact on the opportunities for success. Not only would this be developed through practice but also the assigned reading would help me to expand the ideas and understand further ways to think globally and express myself. REFLECTION Through team working I understood different aspects of behaviors towards work commitments and endless encounters that would affect the work process. With this in mind i can understand that culture influences behavior as its a process about people or events they carry out, by looking towards cultural norms (acceptable behavior and influences of past experiences, Francesco, 2005) shared in a group, with selective perception, stereotypes, expectations, social dominance and different attributes for reaction (Usunier, 1998). A good example illustrating this could be the existence within the group members of both low and high context cultures of which everyone except for me was low context. Meaning that there explanations are done through words or verbalization instead of context, while I was the only one of high context mainly the opposite of them. Therefore by looking towards my experience i have noticed the various advantages that brought me to seek my role, not only that i knew what i wanted to do but also it was confirmed by Belbins self awareness questionnaire (Appendix C) that i was an implementor and team worker. These implications are the essential attributes for my team, that are in need for improvement towards my communication practice and presentation style that would have to be fully prepared to describe content coherently and right to the point. By developing these aspects it brings me a step closer to becoming a successfull specialist in the field of international business as Brooke (1996) described the process of becoming a successful by 3 stages involving observation, experience and theory, thereon analysing them to understand the relevance of each to learn the theoretical side. THEORY INTO PRACTICE The potential cross-cultural problems related to the topic of the session were plentiful, where there were issues concerning team roles, working skills, and decision making. There were also differences in communication style (verbal and non-verbal) and performing practices among cultures. Moreover there are diverse preferences towards leadership performance (skills), decision styles, and expectations with a need of cross cultural adjustment towards a new environment. Consequently it is necessary to know ones skills to be assertive; portraying what you may offer when entering in United Kingdom to show all the benefits you may bring to future career. SUMMARY Managers need to able to take into account all the concerning circumstances mentioned above to lead Individuals form their team towards working as a unit to increase overall performance to reach targets (Thakur, 1993).What needs to be understood is that globalization is a major factor affecting cultures all around the world, where everyone has to work closely together and need each others support to build up to required expectations and competencies. This factor involves the rapid growth of a market in relation to social, economic and technological problems (Kavous, 2009). This module gave me the chance to question, analyze and improve my managerial skills, while the reflective statement and diaries give a broad outline of the experiences passed. Furthermore the professional development plan below will outline future areas for development .The overall project gave me an opportunity to discover my interpersonal skills as well as weaknesses that I need to overcome to develop sufficient international managerial competencies, the most important of which are communication, decision-making, leadership, presentation skills and team working. BIBLIOGRAPHY Ardalan, Kavous. (2009) â€Å"Globalization and culture: four paradigmatic views†, International Journal of Social Economics, Vol. 36, No. 5, pp. 513-534. Danielle Medina Walker, Thomas D. Walker, Joerg Schmitz, Terence Brake. (2003) Doing business internationally: the guide to cross-cultural success. McGraw-hill pages 33-36 Culture. Dean Tjosvold, Kwok Leung. (2003) Cross-cultural management: foundations and future. Ashgate publishing company, pp. 1-6. Francesco, A.M. and Gold, B.A. (2005) International Organizational Behavior, Upper Saddler River, NJ: Pearson Education Inc., pp. 159, 161,175, 204, 205. Groseschl, Stefan, Doherty, Liz. (2000) â€Å"Conceptualising Culture†, Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal, Vol. 7, No. 4, pp. 2-3. Jean-Claude Usunier. (1998) International and cross-cultural management research. Sage publications. pp. 31-35. Mary Haour-Knipe. (2001) Moving families: expatriation, stress and coping. Routledge publisher, pp. 90-92. Michael A. West. (2004) Effective teamwork: practical lessons from organizational research. Malden Oxford. Pp. 75-85. Michael Z. Brooke. (1996) International management: a review of strategies and operations. Stanley Thornes Ltd. Pp. 3 -21. Philip R. Harris. (1998) The New Work Culture: Hrd Strategies for Transformational Management Publisher HRD Pres, Team working pp. 520-526. Philip Robert Harris, Robert T. Moran, Sarah Virgilia Moran (2004) Managing cultural differences: Global leadership strategies for the 21st century. Elsiver, Oxford ,sixth edition PP.150 -156 Cultural differences. Philomena Essed. (1996) Diversity: gender, color, and culture. Library of Congress, A challenge towards diversity pp. 135-137. Schneider, S. (1997) Managing Across Cultures, Hemel Hempstead: Prentice Hall The Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research. (2002) Leadership and management in the information age pages 12-22. Thomas, D.C. (2008) Cross-Cultural Management Essential Concepts, 2nd Edition, Los Angeles: SAGE Publications Ltd, pp: 49, 50, 59,131-137, 187, 223, 234. APPENDIX A WEEK 1 DATE: 29th of September 2009 EVENT/ACTIVITY: Introduction of the Module and Key Competencies of an International Manager. Discussion of a Case Study, Exercise 3 â€Å"Spanning the globe†. EXPERIENCE: This was my first class where a brief presentation was given on how the module would turn out to be and what was expected form us with course objectives and learning outcomes. During this class we were given a specific task to work on, the case study â€Å"Spanning the globe†, to be worked on as a team with people that were assigned together to work sitting on the same table during the lecture break that was give to us. During the given time the whole group decided we should read the case study individually and then discuss and go through the question given, therefore everyone had a specific task and to combine ideas together. The overall outcome of the task was to see how everybody would react to team work under a strict time management and to combine personal ideas with other members of the team. FEELINGS: My initial feelings of the task were orientated toward overall successful performance to achieve what was asked from me, I thought the group was well organized and prepared to come the exercise to come up with combined answers and ideas. Time management was also dived in 3 sections, the first towards reading the case study, secondly reviews opinions of members and finally to write notes down for a final answers. THOUGHTS: During the whole experience I felt I was learning throughout and getting to know different people and other ways of working as a group which made me happy and motivated to continue with the module introduced to us, where I realized that I would learn a great deal from this module that would most definitely improve me as a potential fine manager. REFLECTION: What I could learn from the first group discussion was that all individuals are different and that everyone has a different way of performing and achieving a process, therefore we have to accept to learn to work together and combine all ideas and conflicts to create something unique and to use individuals strengths to help the process. Also I had a rough look at the content of the module and understood that a wide range of reading material had to be studied, also by using as core text book Cross-Cultural Management essential concepts by David C. Thomas 2nd edition, and others similar to this. THEORY INTO PRACTICE: The potential cross-cultural problems related to the topic of the session are the following: Time pressure (35 min) Different understanding of the content Different opinions about approach Different perspectives of case study Working together effectively (constraints) General discussions to agree on a certain point In order to enhance these potential threats it has to be noted that individual competencies of members need to be worked on in order to be a successful manager and improve cross cultural team work by accepting different skills and behaviors that might come into practice. WEEK 2 DATE: 6th of October 2009 EVENT/ACTIVITY: International Team Working. Work group vs. Team. Division into groups for Assignment 1, Discussion of the Case Study 0.1 â€Å"The Thames Pump Valve Company† and different activities about team working guidelines, reflections about advantages and disadvantages of working in groups, improving long-term performance of leaders of a multicultural team and personal awareness and skills exercise. The group that I was in included me, Julius, Roman, and Pimita, but one member was missing as she did not attend the class. (Of which we were assigned to be group 2). EXPERIENCE: During this class our team explored the performance and potential of multicultural teams and the key barriers to achieve high performance and which strategies to consider to address these issues. The first discussion was about the case study of â€Å"The Thames Pump Valve Company†. This case study was part of our homework for the day and the discussion in my group was productive in the end. During the class we experience even other activities such as the exercise about team working guidelines where different cultural background proved even different ranking of the list of provisional guidelines. The second activity consisted in establishing advantages and disadvantages of working in groups and the other one was about improving the performance of leaders of a multicultural team in the long-term. During the session we discussed on conclusion of the role of self assessment to find each members preference and role within the group by completing Belbins team role task to see each other differences. Finally we were given the case study of â€Å"The case of the Floundering Expatriate† of which we would be analyzing with a group for the rest of the module to then give an oral presentation of the findings and solutions asked for. FEELINGS: I felt very happy to get to know my team members and see if we would work efficiently together, understand there different ways of doing and achieving a method, our group consisted of members from Germany (Julius), Russia (Roman), Italy (Eugenio), Pimpta (Thailand). So there were certainly potential for different cultural issues and idea generation. Overall there was a feeling of excitement for the beginning of a new relationship. THOUGHTS: While we were getting to know each other I was thinking what kind of benefits they would bring to the team and what could I learn from this experience and give towards making the group work. With this in mind previous weeks task for homework help me understand potential preferences that I might be involved in, I assessed myself development by completing the questionnaire given to us to correspond towards qualities for an effective manager where my strong points found were towards: Relevant professional knowledge and understanding Proactivity, inclination to respond purposefully to event Social skills and abilities Secondly I looked towards personal awareness and skills exercise between the roles that an international manger takes into account, by organizing the most important roles that comply with you to be successful, the most important ones for me where: Team leader/ Judge/ Challenger/ and Innovator REFLECTION: While attending the session I learned that I would most definitely be a team worker as I got along with my members and I was motivated to bring great ideas and completing the task assigned to us. At this moment in time there was no evident leader so positions still needed to be assigned. Finally we all decided to meet the following Monday to discuss the case study of â€Å"The floundering Expatriate†, for a general review. Finally I was also reviewing the material that had to be red, the initial chapters of the core text book and others suggested by the module leader. THEORY INTO PRACTICE: The cross cultural factor that were influenced in this session were that there could have been a language restrain between each other and that clear ideas didnt seem to flow at times , therefore a better organization was needed. WEEK 3 Date: 16th of October 2009 Event/Activity: Culture and Values and Managing diversity. I started to feel ill, which resulted in getting the flu. Therefore I could not attend the First group meeting as I was unable to for health reasons and I was therefore moved to group number 1, as another member form group 2 attended and course leader suggested I move to the other group as they were already agreed to work together. Experience: During this week I got a temperature resulting in getting the flu and I was in bed for a few days. On Wednesday we had the first group meeting and one of my group mates was really kind to send me an e-mail with all the details discussed during the meeting. On Thursday I tried to recover from this by taking medicine and resting for a few days which put my back on track, unfortunately I felt badly that I could not attend the meeting and felt very frustrated; also I had to interact with my new group and set up new meeting and roles that would be taken FEELINGS: I was very happy to meet the other members of my group and was ready to work with them on the case study of â€Å"The floundering expatriate†, I wanted to see how we would socialize and combine all our ideas and put them into practice, but as I was ill I could do that, so it made me sad that I let the team down, and I had to tell them that I couldnt attend. The group I was now assigned to consist from Shirley (Venezuela), Konstantin (Bulgaria), Moses (Denmark), Judith (Germany) and me (Italy), a nicely balanced group from different origins. THOUGHTS: During the time I didnt spend with my group I though what I could offer my team, and I started to think towards my potential assets that they could benefit from. One task that helped me realize what I could offer involved in completing Belbins team roles self assessment by looking toward contribution, shortcoming events, involvement in projects, characteristic approach towards work, satisfaction, difficulties that may arise, and problems that can be dealt with. With all this taken into consideration, the final verdict showed that I exceeded towards being an implementer and team worker. Another way in which I understood that I was starting a general development of my life towards a working life was due to understanding wide-ranging points of view and concepts of cross-cultural management from Francesco and Gold, Thomas books that gave me a great deals to think about how my performance would affect the group and how I would interact with fellow members. REFLECTION: Unfortunately I couldnt learn anything from the group meeting as I was absent, but I read the case study and was ready to share my views and opinion on how to come about answering the questions that were given to us. Also I was informed form other member to meet my new group on the following Monday to review question 1 and 2 of the case study, to bring my ideas and thoughts to the next session. THEORY INTO PRACTICE: The cross cultural factor that were influenced in this session were that the group might have thought that I was unorganized and not willing to work as I did not attend and hoping that this would not happen again. Additionally by being and implementer it meant that I would be reliable , disciplined, conservative and efficient and mainly to turn ideas into practical actions and work successful in a team with a smooth flow, knowing that I could bring these positive attributes to my team the following week and for the rest of the semester to complete the task given to perform a presentation on possible ways of developing the case study of â€Å"The Floundering Expatriate† by looking towards the: Cross cultural issues that arise Action plan to develop Berts Team Steps in which Bert need to take into account to develop his interaction skills Finally followed by our groups performance in completing the task WEEK 4 Date: 19th of October 2009 Event/Activity: Second group meeting: Presentation of task 1 and 2 Experience: The group decided to review question 1 and 2 on Monday at 12.00 with a meeting point in the library in Wheatley campus, so we could discuss and review the work done the week before for the tasks and see if any progress was made since their last meeting. SECOND Experience: 22nd of October This weeks class of IMC was divided in two parts; the first one had a guest lecture who talked about coaching and mentoring and the second one was about leadership. During the first part we did a test called ‘International Coach Federation Professional Coaching core Competencies to get a view about our coaching abilities. Also an article about coaching was distributed in class, titled â€Å" Accessing cultural orientations: the online Cultural Orientations Framework Assessment as a tool for coaching† by Gilbert and Rosinski (2007). The second part was about Manager as a leader where we discussed the characteristics of global business leadership and cultural influence on leadership in different counties. FEELINGS: I was happy this week to learn about mentoring across cultures and leadership which are essential needs for an international manager to learn the basic skills for managing its organization successfully and create a working environment that can develop its skills and training through time, as managers are faced with one of the biggest tasks to motivate and lead individuals to different cultures by understanding their behaviors, as motivation has the need to achieve and dominate in its class (Mc Clelands, 1981). While on the other hand leadership has the ability to inspire individuals to influence organizations members towards goals and targets that need to meet. THOUGHTS: As the lesson progressed I was thinking what kind of role would I seek to pursue during a managerial task, and when reflecting I was brought to understand that I would have a great ability to be a leader by having the ability to see members potential assets for the team and task in hand and by leading them to enhance their skills gradually by making them feel comfortable with what their achieving. REFLECTION: After the past experiences I started to realize that I might want to develop my leadership skills in my team, but as time progressed we noticed that Shirley took the role of leader right from the start by organizing schedules and giving out tasks to perform on a weekly basis and found myself in the situation to comply with her demands as she was very organized and everyone had the opportunity to collect and deliver any ideas that may be relevant for the case study. Also during the lectures I learned all the different styles that a manager can adopt or operate on, that can bring a wide variety of solutions. THEORY INTO PRACTICE: The cross cultural factors affected form this session and that concerned me the most were: A leader was found and had to deal with the of being a team worker Time constraint arose and found ourselves to rush through some of the work First sessions were formal and members from the group felt discomfort We need to establish a greater bond to flow in an organized way Different styles for expressing their ideas Different approaches to understanding and exploring ideas WEEK 5 DATE: 26th of October 2009 EVENT/ACTIVITY: On Monday we had our third group meeting. On Tuesday, IMC class, where we had a guest lecture about International Careers and Development. EXPERIENCE: This group meeting took place at the same time and place as organized and decided, were it was productive and we kept on expanding our ideas and development for the project and started to become more organized and coherent. WEEK 5 DATE: 29th of November 2009 EVENT/ACTIVITY: On Monday we had our forth group and on Tuesdays we had IMC class where we discussed â€Å"Problem analysis and decision making in an international environment†. EXPERIENCE: As every Monday we had our usual group meeting in the library the difference this week was that I was the only one to show up on time. During this class we discussed a case study â€Å"Pinpoint executive toys; the culture is important and can be said to be structured!† where we should put ourselves as managers of this organization and make some crucial decisions. While we were discussing the case study and try to find a solution to all the questions we found ourselves to work perfectly and in harmony together. FEELINGS: The guest lecturer gave me more insight into what my future plans would be and preferably were I would like to take my knowledge and skills into which sector of work, this gave me an insight into thinking more deeply into where I would like to work, where to stay in England or go abroad, working in an organization or company, and also what sectors would I be interested in. THOUGHTS: This week I was slightly de-motivated as I felt that I had to catch up with other modules and the work started to load on me, therefore I noticed that I was lacking towards generating new ideas and completing tasks, but I found the will and strength to study more, which showed I was gaining more insight into enhancing my personal skills as I wanted to achieve greater benefits to apply in future jobs or personal

A Lifelong Masquerade

They relied on men to provide all of their daily needs, so they Sistine and agreed to everything that they had to say. Rich heiress Portia, on the other hand, does not adhere to those expectations and rules. Through irony and pun, Portia proves herself to be an intelligent and witty woman who is not afraid to challenge traditional social norm. She is a heroine with refreshing Initiative that displays great knowledge of how to use her rare Intelligence to her advantage, to help the people that she cares about and to gain power.Jessica, Shylock daughter, also shows the traits of a strong woman who is willing to leave her avaricious father Enid for a new life as an accepted Christian rather than a hated Jew. Shakespeare contradicts the common role of women in the 17th century by making Portia, among other women, Instrumental in the plays development due to her intelligence, confidence and silent power. Portia, Jessica and Unreels all Juxtapose the traits of most Elizabethan women; they are witty, powerful and zealous rather than obedient, silent and motivated by blinding love.Portia shows dominance from the moment she is introduced in the play, which juxtaposes the passiveness of women in the Elizabethan era. She respects herself and knows that she is smart; she believes that men are her equals rather than her superiors. She is an educated woman who looks for a husband that values meaningful things, such as intelligence. Many men in the 17th century had superficial values, placing beauty and wealth over wit. Luckily, Portrait's late father has devised a plan to find her the best husband, avoiding a loveless marriage. Despite the strict rules, she has found a way to manipulate her father's â€Å"lottery (1. . 29), providing a clue to help her suitors choose the correct asset. Portia has many opportunities to show her dominance, including when speaking to Inertias about possible suitors. Inertias asks about Monsieur El Bon, and Portrait's reply Is Insolent; â€Å" God made him, and therefore let him pass for a man† (1. 2. 56-57). She Is not afraid to show her dominance by Insulting a man, which would be unruly for any other Elizabethan woman. She is also not afraid to step out of her comfort zone in order to save someone's life. Walking into a courtroom full of people in disguise as a young male is not something any woman would do.This raze act allows Portia to finally seem equal to the men around her because she is just as or even more intelligent. Portia shows her thorough knowledge of the law when she explains Schlock's predicament, ‘The law hath yet another hold on you. / It Shylock casually sharpen his knife on the sole of his shoe well until she can watch him leave the courtroom, with a sense of satisfaction. Her wit and eagerness to prove herself provide a positive outcome for Antonio, who is perceived as very physically and mentally weak at this point in the trial.Her dominant role prevails throughout he time in the court because Antonio is helpless in his time of need. Ultimately, it is a woman who devises the plan to save Notation's life from the â€Å"inhuman wretch† (4. 1. 4) that is Shylock. Although the end of the play is meant to provide comic relief, the theme of Portia and Inertia's power dominates the comedy. Their disguises fool everyone in the court, including Bastion and Granting. Once the women establish that they refuse to sleep in the same beds as their respective husbands until they get their rings back, both Bastion and Granting are desperate.Bastion pleads with Portia, â€Å"Nay, but hear me. Pardon this fault, and by my soul I swear / I never more will break an oath with thee† (5. 1. 265-67). Keeping their composure also shows how obstinate Portia and Inertia's minds are; they watch their husbands' beg them for forgiveness, powerless and inferior, Just for that moment. Portia and Inertias both say things intentionally to make their husbands feel guilty and to display the temporary power they have over them. After the men make their promises, Portia and Inertias assume their role as women and kindly forgive the men to resolve the conflict.An act like this would take a lot of courage on a woman's art, another Juxtaposing trait that the heroines of this play have that many women lacked in the seventeenth century. Portia shows a confidence and boldness that many Elizabethan women were devoid of. Women in the seventeenth century remained silent and were voiceless because they truly believed that men were their superiors. Portia is assertive and feels like she has the same power as any man. She openly Judges Prince Morocco, â€Å"If he have the condition of a saint and the complexion of a devil, I had rather he should shrive me than wives me† (1. . 129-31) because of his darker skin color. She will not settle for someone who has superficial values, despite the casket plot, further revealing her confidence and poise when speaking to a man that will not hesitate to objectify her. She does not feel that she has to respect Morocco simply because he is a man. Furthermore, Portia is also confident enough to reverse gender roles; men usually rate women, but in this case, through verbal irony, she reveals that she rates men instead. Lastly, Portia implementing herself in Notation's trial shows that she knows that she is equal to men.Even though she is disguised as a young man, her voice is heard. Portia valiantly tries to convince Shylock to show mercy to Antonio through a beautiful speech: ‘Its mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes The thorn ©d monarch better than his crown. His scepter shows the force of temporal power, The attribute to awe and majesty Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings; It is enthroned in the hearts of kings; It is an attribute to God Himself; (4. 1 . 194. 201) Portia first tries to persuade Shylock that only the strongest and most noble men show mercy.She compares the possible sense of emp owerment he will feel to God's likes God's When mercy seasons Justice. Therefore, Jew, Though Justice be thy plea; consider this: That in the course of Justice none of us Should see salvation. We do pray for mercy, And that same prayer doth teach us all to render The deeds of mercy. (4. 1. 202-08) Again, Portia refers to the power Shylock will have if he chooses not to kill Antonio. She hopes that he can show mercy despite being berated and publicly humiliated â€Å"many a time and oft† (1. 3. 116).This passage reveals that Portia is able to accept that Shylock has been treated unjustly because he is a â€Å"Jew'. She is not as callously indifferent as other Christians. She moves the whole courtroom with her powerful words; the only exception is Shylock. Her analysis of mercy and elevated diction do not convince him. Portrait's morale is emphasized in the courtroom because she is able to confidently win the trial. She helps orchestrate the resolution to the flesh bond plot, not holding back until the Christian's get what they want.She demonstrates the true power that women possess but are too apprehensive to show. Even though she has to disguise herself, she proves to the audience that a woman can be beautiful and wise. Shakespeare shines light on the hidden potential of Elizabethan women in The Merchant of Venice; a woman, such as Portia, Inertias or even Jessica would not be depicted as intelligent because that is a trait that was undervalued and underestimated in the seventeenth century. Men were the educated breadwinners that stole the spotlight from women for centuries.Despite the common notion of women being unintelligent, Shakespeare decides to show a different side of them by portraying Portia as an educated woman who speaks with an elevated diction and Jessica as a woman with a lot of strength and courage. Portia and Jessica obvious wisdom and awareness again Juxtapose against other women in the Elizabethan era because women were tutored at ho me and were unable to attend university. A woman's purpose was to get married and one day have children; all of their dreams would be put aside to maintain a good family name and positive reputation.Portia is aware of her expected role as a woman, but those expectations will not stop her from gaining the confidence to realize that she is a man's equal. When discussing suitors, she is able to voice her harsh opinion about the Duke of Saxony nephew without gestation, â€Å"When he is best he is a little worse than a man, and when he is worst he is little better than a beast† (1. 2. 86-90). She knows that she needs to find a husband that lives up to her standards, but by her father's will. Many men overlook her confidence and focus rather on her beauty and wealth.The Prince of Morocco even has the audacity to objectify Portia, saying that princes come to â€Å"view' (2. 7. 49) her as if she is a statue. He then places a monetary value on Portia, â€Å"Or shall I think in silve r she's immured, / Being ten times undervalued to tried gold? † (2. 7. 58-59) which Reuters her disdain for him. Afterwards, Portia reveals her quick wit in a new and different way – she puts on an act for Bastion, leading him to believe that she is weak and pathetic, showing a passive yet duplicitous side. She tells Bastion that she him.The audience is very aware of the fact that Portia does not believe what she is saying due to dramatic irony; she is actually strong-willed and refuses to be directed by a man. She has had power from the moment her father died until now, and she does not intend to lose it. Bastion believes the gimmick, and is left speechless, [Madam,] you have bereft me of all words† (3. 2. 179). Using her intelligence, Portia has found a way to preserve her power, which was rare for Elizabethan women to have in the first place. Jessica is also an example of a woman who is witty and has ambition.She coordinates her own escape and arranges her elop ement free from the watchful eye of her covetous father. Lorenz tells Granting how Jessica â€Å"hath directed / How I shall take her from her father's house, / What gold and Jewels she is furnished with† (2. 4. 33-35). Jessica is smart enough to realize that she will live a teeter life as a Christian without her father or any biological family. Using her wit, she devises a plan to remorselessly steal the money and Jewels that her father treasures and to run away to elope with a Christian man.She is also aware of her fathers hate for Christians, but carelessly runs away with one because she does not care about her father's feelings. Both Portia and Jessica are examples of strong-willed women with different motives but a similar drive – they are capable of realizing that they are not inferior to men and that they are allowed to be confident. Often, a man's Judgment of a woman's character is clouded by vague ideas based on appearance and/or social status.In The Merchant of Venice, William Shakespeare explores the hidden yet beautiful side of women that is not based on any sexist notion. Through characters like Portia, Inertias and Jessica, Shakespeare reveals that women have more to them than Just beauty and wealth, which is a common misconception in Portrait's case. Many women have a latent confidence, initiative and ability that can be provoked in a positive and accepting environment. Gender inequality has been an issue for many centuries because women are afraid to speak out.Both men and women should work together rather than try to tear each other down because both genders have incredible ideas to offer the world. Both genders require each other's help to maintain balance and peace through acceptance and resolutions that will benefit both men and women alike. We were created by God to take care of the earth and each other but without love and equality, this task is virtually impossible. Shakespeare, William. The Merchant of Venice. New York: Fo lder Shakespeare Library, 2010. Print.

Remaining Faithful Through Hardship

In Anne Bradstreet’s poem â€Å"Here Follows Some Verses upon the Burning of Our House July 10th, 1666,† the narrator voices her disbelief in the wake of a fire that destroyed her home, as well as her feelings of the loss. During the timeframe that Bradstreet wrote this poem, many if not most Americans were of puritan faith. They practiced a belief that a person must always be prepared for judgment day as it could happen at any moment. This poem is a clear reiteration of her the author’s faith and it calls to mind my experience in church and listening to the minister’s proclamations of what it meant to be faithful.It is both sad and reassuring as it ponders the true meaning of Christ’s sacrifice and the duty of faith that she believed in. In this poem, Bradstreet uses the burning of her house as a way to clarify and reinforce her faith. In line five, she writes, ‘fearful sound of â€Å"fire† and â€Å"fire,†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ referring to the fires of hell as she awakens to her house burning down and believes it is judgment day. The line, â€Å"Let no man know is my Desire† (6), reveals that she secretly longs for judgment day but does not want to let anyone know of her longing.She cries out for God’s aid in hard times with the words, â€Å"to my God my heart did cry / To straighten me in my Distress / And not to leave me succourless† (8-10). The burning of her house is a test of her faith and during the fire, she turns to Him for comfort, asking Him to be her succour, or the one she can depend on in times of trouble. Bradstreet makes it clear that she believed all her worldly possessions did not belong to her but to God himself, as did all of her being. This is evident in lines seventeen and eighteen, â€Å"It was His own, it was not mine, / Far be it that I should repine.† She outright says that her belongings and everything she owns does not belong to her though she owned them in the wo rld. She tells herself that she should not mourn them since they belong to God and have been returned to Him. Throughout the poem, Bradstreet struggles to let go of her worldly possessions and turn to God. All the while, she is accepting of the hardship she goes through and does not question what she sees as God’s actions. Even while she knows that her belongings in truth belong to God, she has a hard time letting go of her worldly items, as made clear throughout the poem.She enumerates everything she was no longer able to do, everything her house would not see, such as, â€Å"Under thy roof no guest shall sit, / Nor at thy Table eat a bit† (19-20). As she struggles to find acceptance and she asks herself if she is tied to her worldly things, â€Å"And did thy wealth on earth abide? / Didst fix thy hope on mould'ring dust? / The arm of flesh didst make thy trust? † (38-40). She expresses doubt in her faith and is appalled by her own yearning for her material thi ngs. Yet her faith is reinforced as she answers her own questions, â€Å"Raise up thy thoughts above the sky / .. . It’s purchased and paid for too / By Him who hath enough to do† (41-49). Bradstreet believes that Christ has paid for her sins and paid for her way to heaven and she reminds herself to believe in His world rather than her own as long as her faith remained true. This was a deviation from puritan faith in that the general belief was that man went to heaven based on their own faith and actions rather than the opinion expressed in this poem, that Christ had already paid their way to heaven and man merely had to remain true in him belief.

Healthcare Consumerism And Its Importance For Individuals,...

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