Thursday, November 28, 2019

Do I Need a Website for My Business 10 Reasons Why the Answer is Yes

If your business has gotten this far without a website, you might be wondering: do I need a website for my business? What’s the point if my business is already successful without one?The short answer is that there has never been a better or more important time to invest in a website for your business. A website offers a wide variety of benefits for small businesses, and most of these benefits increase in value exponentially year over year, just like the Internet itself. than companies who only have social media profiles. Your website is also the perfect place to show off any professional certifications or awards your business has.Beyond that, having your own website lets you create a branded email address (e.g. diana@yoursite.com) which  adds a level of professionalism to all of your correspondence, especially if you’ve used a personal email address to conduct business up until now.2. Your website can attract new customers through GoogleYou may be happy with the curr ent size of your business, but every company experiences customer turnover. To encourage continued success, you need to attract new customers, and one of the best ways to do it is by making yourself visible on Google.A well-optimized website can help your business rank well for a variety of search terms and attract a steady stream of new customers. There are several free SEO tools that make it easy to optimize your website without any prior training.3. You can clearly showcase your products and servicesYou can show potential customers what they’ll get when they work with you by displaying high-quality photography on your website. Take a look at how the UK restaurant Blackhouse has accomplished this on their website:You can also use your website design, along with the featured images, to give people a sense of what it feels like to enter your physical location. This works particularly well if your brand is closely tied to the â€Å"feel† of your location, like the Canad ian restaurant Stormcrow Manor.Another thing you can do is publish important information about your products and services on your website to make sure you’re attracting the right customers. For example, if you run a restaurant, you might want to mark any items on your menu that are gluten-free so people with Celiac or other conditions that make gluten dangerous know they can eat in your establishment.4. You can display your best reviews and testimonials prominently on your websiteDisplaying your best reviews and/or testimonials prominently on your website is a great way to establish social proof. This might come in the form of personal customer testimonials, like this review on the website of the non-profit organization STEAMLabs:If your business has appeared in articles from newspapers or popular local blogs, you can also feature those, as Stormcrow Manor has done below:Publishing your best reviews on your website also serves the secondary purpose of creating a permanent arc hive. This means that even if third-party review sites close at some point in the future, you’ll still have access to your best reviews.5. A website can encourage customers to contact youA website is a great place to make your contact information easily available to potential customers. You can even publish your contact information in a header or footer so it appears on every single page. Snakes and Lattes, a small chain of board game cafes, has placed phone numbers for all four of their locations in their website footer:Modern website builders (more on those in a bit) also make it easy to create a contact form, which can protect your business email from spam.6. You can integrate your website with Google Maps so people can find you more easilyA website lets you embed maps directly into your content. Some businesses, like STEAMLabs, have a map embedded directly onto their home page:An embedded map makes it easy for people who don’t spend a lot of time in your area to fi nd your business. This is particularly great if you host events, as they might attract people who wouldn’t otherwise spend time in the neighborhood your business is in.7. Your website establishes your place in the industryIf your competitors arent online yet, they probably will be soon. Establish yourself as a leader in your field by building a high-quality website first.If your competitors are online, you have a different kind of opportunity: you can build a website thats completely different from your competitors sites, showing potential customers what makes your company stand apart.8. A website is no longer intimidating to create and manageModern website builders like Squarespace and Wix make it easy for you to build an attractive, mobile-friendly site without any knowledge of code. Even WordPress, the most popular way to make a website, has transitioned to a block editor:In other words, it has never been simpler to create a functional, aesthetically pleasing website.How t o make a website with WordPress  Ã°Å¸â€˜Ë†9. A website ensures your success over the long termIn 2019, almost 4.4 billion people use the Internet, and more and more people are getting online.Without a website, your business is invisible to these people. As we progress further into the digital era, your business will become invisible to everyone unless you invest in a website.So to stay competitive in this increasingly digital world, your business needs to get online.10. You can get all of these benefits without spending a fortuneBuilding a website isn’t just easier than it used to be; it’s also more affordable. If youre willing to follow a simple, non-technical DIY approach, you can build a website for as little as $70 per year.WordPress, which again is the most popular way to build a website, is 100% free for the core software. If you add a free WordPress theme like Neve or Hestia and cheap website hosting, you can be up and running at a very low cost.Learn more abo ut how much a website costs  Ã°Å¸â€˜Ë†So, do I need a website for my business? The final verdictHopefully, by now you’ve realized that the question isn’t â€Å"do I need a website for my business†, but â€Å"can I afford to not have a website in the digital era†. And the answer, if you want to continue thriving in the long term, is no. A website is one of the best investments any business can make in its future. our simple, step-by-step tutorial on how to make a website with WordPress. Again, WordPress is the most popular way to build a website it powers over one-third of all the websites on the Internet. Its also affordable and accessible to non-technical users, which is a big part of why its so popular.Finally, if you have any questions about launching a website for your small business, ask away in the comments section below!Free guide5 Essential Tips to Speed Up Your WordPress SiteReduce your loading time by even 50-80% just by following simple tips .

Monday, November 25, 2019

How to Improve Email ROI With Matthew Montoya From Constant Contact

How to Improve Email ROI With Matthew Montoya From Constant Contact Email marketing is that trusted friend that’s been around forever and will never let you down. You can always turn to it when you need some help. Plus, it gives you a whopping average ROI of 3,800%. That’s $38 for every $1 invested. Today, we’re talking to Matthew Montoya, the partner enablement and training manager at Constant Contact. He has helped consult more than 13,000 businesses on email marketing best practices. Email has been around a long time, but Matthew describes current trends and what works today. People who give you their email address are expressing interest in your business Quantify the value of your email list by multiplying the size of your list by the price point of the average they sell to get a dollar figure Biggest change in email marketing over the last seven years is mobile readership; 51% of business/non-profit emails will be opened on a mobile device People used to spend 35-40 seconds reading an email; now it’s 5 seconds Emails need to be succinct, make an impression, and include a call to action Think of an email not as a message, but an advertisement where people see the information, act on it, and go to your website or elsewhere to learn more Every contact matters and can produce money for your company The more targeting and testing you do, the better your responses HTML vs. Plain Text: Depends on your audience, but concise HTML emails usually generate higher, better responses Preview email messages to see how they display on different devices Know your audience to know what content they will find valuable and relevant Constant Contact’s Marketing Pillars: Segmentation, personalization, automation People look first at who sent an email, rather than the subject line; email should come â€Å"from† the brand Test subject lines to avoid repetition and make sure they grab readers’ attention Explore all marketing options across platforms all work together to share a story Links: Constant Contact Constant Contact for Free Email Subject Line Tester Integrations Write and send a review to receive a care package If you liked today’s show, please subscribe on iTunes to The Actionable Content Marketing Podcast! The podcast is also available on SoundCloud, Stitcher, and Google Play. Quotes by Matthew Montoya: â€Å"Email marketinghas changed dramatically over the last seven years. What used to be a best practice has evolved.† â€Å"Email marketing may haveless sex appeal than social media and other kinds of marketing.† â€Å"The one app that most people don’t even think of as an app is email. And yet, that’s probably the most used app on your phone because that’s where we’re doing business.† â€Å"Think of an email not as a message. It’s not a form of communication. It’s an advertisement.† It’s really important for everybody, if there’s one huge takeaway today beyond just building a mobile-responsive and mobile-friendly email, it’s making sure your content within that email is relevant.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

International business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

International business - Essay Example The Indian culture is characterized by heterogeneity thus differentiating various regions according to their local practices. It is a concern for internal firm that are keen to penetrate in this market to first study the cultural ramification of the country before embarking of an entry plan that will guarantee success. The paper makes an in-depth analysis of the techniques and methodologies that selected global companies have employed to successfully penetrate the market through a cultural perspective. Various approaches have been utilized depending of the cultural ramification that each organization was aiming as well as the target market that they were out to exploit. Measures undertaken were not only aimed at leveraging from the vast Indian population but also capitalize on other benefits such as cheap labour. Relatively, aspects of art and religion have also been examined on how they influence the penetration of new businesses in the Indian market as well as the factors that glob al firms have to pin point in order to attain a competitive advantage as far as the two aspects are concerned. India is arguably one of the most pleasant investment destinations that any global firm would fancy to penetrate given the large population that will provide market for their goods as well as the cheap labour that can be exploited by the community since the country has approximately 400 million trained human resources. India is a heterogeneous society as it has a blend of different cultures all under one nation. Traditionally, the country practiced Hinduism as its fundamental religion, and all its cultural aspects were derived from that element. However, with time the situation changed and today India has a mix of cultures starting with Hinduism, Islam, some Westernization and also traces of the British Raj can be experienced in some regions (Ferraro, 2010). Culture plays a critical role in conducting business in India since for a firm to be

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

TEXT AND TRADITION Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

TEXT AND TRADITION - Essay Example Instantly, Socrates objects Euthypro’s assertion by pointing to existence of various Gods implying that there are diverse methods of pleasing them, which brings a logical incongruity since one action can be presented as indecorous and pious instantaneously; â€Å"But I will amend the definition so far as to say that what all the gods hate is impious, and what they love pious or holy; and what some of them love and others hate is both or neither†. Euthyphro further modifies this explanation by indicating that something is pious only if it causes solidly affirmative response in all existing Gods and improper if it causes a negative response in all the Gods. In reply, Socrates articulates the "Euthyphro`s dilemma": an act that is pious in nature is dear to Gods, and the act is pious because it is dear to Gods. From the discussion, the duo concluded that the quality of a phenomenon or subject is primary to someone’s attitude or assessment of the object. It is accurate that piety is an ambition to justice, but it is not precise. Additionally, it is accurate that piety is an indulgence to Gods but it is also not meticulous. Finally, piety as forfeiting and praying is also correct but its exactness cannot be ascertained. The aforementioned definitions of pity are accurate but not outrightly since the philosopher defines only some aspects of an idea rather than the whole idea. Consequently, the prominence is placed on an imperfect unity as the principle of generating parts. The accord is shaped with the help of these parts mishmash. Hence, when piety is rationally comprehended, it becomes ostensible that the perception is too comprehensive, and all the descriptions are correct but not adequate for the elucidation such a multifaceted concept. One of the typical tragedies of primeval times that influenced the progress of the genre is â€Å"Oedipus Tyrannus." The chief subject of inexorability of destiny is probed and viewed by Sophocles from diverse viewpoints. The hero,

Monday, November 18, 2019

Ancient Hero Motifs In Thor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ancient Hero Motifs In Thor - Essay Example Though Robocop is a science fiction, it contains several characteristics of ancient hero motifs enough to place it under the category of ancient movies. Robocop movie contain elements of adventure, hero and others, as well as ending that compares and contrasts it with ancient hero motifs. Lieutenant Murphy is the hero in this movie, and in his role, he acts in a similar manner as the hero in ancient hero motifs. The lieutenant’s obligation is to keep the city safe by getting rid of criminals thereby enhancing the welfare of community members. To accomplish this role he has an inbuilt armor, which consists of guns, flying powers, master key unlock, and computer analysis systems to take commands (Goodman 5). Moreover, children look up to him as their hero who solves crime across the city. They believe that he is real. In a similar way, the hero in ancient stories had one priority, to ensure safety of every member of the community. The hero would have powers, weapons, or techniques to accomplish this task. In ancient movies, everyone in the society looked upon this hero to solve their issues and deliver them from evil opponents. The second factor that shows similarity between Robocop and ancient hero motifs is the opposition from enemies. In ancient stories, there is always an enemy or group of enemies opposing the hero of the story and his activities. In most cases, the enemy would be someone with bad intentions to destroy the community or misuse people in the community (Kerenyi 59). As a result, the enemy will try with all his might to destroy the hero, and at worst attempt to kill him so that the hero does not interfere with his evil activities. In a similar way, lieutenant, who is the hero of the story has enemies. In fact, his enemies are the people who turned him into half him and half machine. Though this company emerged as an organization aiming at rescuing people who have lost hope in life because no medical operation can

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Real Prison Culture And The Shawshank Redemption Sociology Essay

Real Prison Culture And The Shawshank Redemption Sociology Essay A large majority of the population will not have any knowledge of what prisons are a really like, if it was not for the movie studios and the television stations. The population acquire the knowledge about prisons through movies, documentaries, drama and action series involving actual prisons around the world as made available through these two medias. The National Geographic television channel has a program titled Lockdown where crews go inside actual prisons and film the everyday aspects of prison life. This program shows their viewers how difficult, stressful and how dangerous prisons are (National Geographic Television Production, 2010). Compared that with Hollywood movies where a director tells a story to his or her moviegoer customer. The director must ensure that he or she has included some of the real life aspects of the prison environment but he or she can exclude some of these aspects if it does not fit into the storyline. The movie Shawshank Redemption is a perfect example of this. The director, Frank Darabont did not to play the race card and allowed Andy Dufresne and Ellis Boyd Red Redding to become friends. Pending on which real life prison you look at, this might not occur. For example the program Lockdown did an episode titled Gang War. One of their film crews entered Salinas Valley State Prison in California and showed their viewers that the prison is a powder keg ready to erupt at any time because the prison is divided by racial lines (National Geographic Television Production, 2006). If a prisoner crosses these racial lines, violence will occur amongst the prisoner race and the race group he offends (National Geographic Television Production, 2010). This paper will explore the various aspects of prison life, using the movie Shawshank Redemption to show the various aspects of prison life. The following aspects of prison life will be explored: prison as a machine and its use as a form of punishment, prison adjustment on inmates and the prison c ulture. Prison Culture: A prisoner in a federal corrections institute in the United States of America by the name of Michael Santos has a website titled Prison News Blog Prison News and Commentary. Santos writes on what he has experienced while he has been incarcerated since he was 23 years old. Santos writes describing prisons and the prison subcultures as the following: Prisons are like mini communities, totally separated from the wider society. Those who live inside find cultures that differ in remarkable ways from the America that most citizens know and love (Santos, 2008). In this section of the paper the topic of prison subculture will be explored explaining culture in general, inmate subculture, the deprivation, importation models, pains of imprisonment, the different roles of inmates and the types of correction officers. Is there a difference between subculture and inmate subculture, the textbook describes the term subculture as the distinctive values, beliefs, norms, symbols, language, and ideologi es embraced by a particular group or community set apart from the larger society (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p. 131). The term inmate subculture is defined as the norms, beliefs, values, language, and ideologies by inmates within correctional institutions (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p. 131). An example of culture is the people who believe in the Roman Catholic religion. In comparison inmate subculture are people who are incarcerated at one of the federal, provincial or local correctional institutions and the social structure these inmates create and how these inmates interact with each other. Inmate subculture can be further explained by two approaches from Sykes in 1958 and then re-examined by Messinger in 1970. The first approach is the deprivation model, this model describes that prisoners experience considerable suffering and frustration attendant with the deprivation of [the daily] basic needs [a free citizen has] (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p. 132). The needs are the follow ing: freedom, time alone when you need it, you can purchase what you want and obtain the services you want, sexual relationships, independence and the feeling of being safe (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001). The above list of items can also be called the pains of imprisonment. The pains of imprisonment can be defined as the kinds of deprivations inmates experience by virtue of being in prison (Stojkovic Lovell, 1998, p. 244). This creates the inmate subculture and the social interactions between the inmates (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001). A single prisoner can function as an individual, me against the world attitude or allow themselves to integrate with the other inmates to alleviate the pains of imprisonment. (Stojkovic Lovell, 1998 and Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001). A prime of example from the movie The Shawshank Redemption is the character Andy Dufresne, Andy remains by himself until he starts to speak to Ellis Boyd Red Redding. Andy then allows himself to integrate into the inmate subc ulture and becomes friends with the warden, prison guards and other inmates. The second approach of the inmate subculture is the importation model which attributes the development of the prison subculture to the values, roles, beliefs, and inclinations that prisoners bring with them into the prison. [In short,] a prison is a microcosm of the outside society, reflection of the world outside the prison walls and not due to the pains of imprisonment (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p. 132). The importation model includes the prisoner-staff dynamic how they interact between each other. The three different types of inmates which are the following: awaiting trail, post conviction awaiting sentence and serving his or her prison sentence (Stojkovic Lovell, 1998 and Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001). The various racial groups within the prison population such as (African Americans, Latinos, Asians and Caucasians). The type of offence the inmate is in prison for and if the inmate is in prison for reoffending. The inmate subculture will be also be effected by the following: the personality differences of each of the inmates before being sentenced to prison. The hierarchy of the inmates in which the powerful ones will be on top and the weak ones will be on the bottom. The inmate sexual preference will also play a role e.g. sexual urges. Both models are very similar but the deprivation model looks at the pains of imprisonment, while the importation model looks at prison subculture and prisons are like cities in the free world. (Stojkovic Lovell, 1998 and Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001). Many examples from the movie come to light; they include the warden allowing the prisoners to work outside of the prison repairing the roof of the prison and other jobs as a work gang. The prison gang The Sisters and the leader Bogs Diamond trying to get Andy to perform oral sex on him. The last example from the movie is the economic system in prison, Ellis Boyd Red Redding gets Andy a rock hammer and two posters during Andys stay in prison. Red has to smuggle these items into the prison through the laundry area and the help of other inmates. Both the deprivation and importation models are valid theories but what an inmate does before he or she was incarcerated will have an impact on his or her behaviour while they are incarcerated in the prison system (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001). So if the inmate is an outsider before he or she were incarcerated they will be an outsider during the ir prison time. On the other hand, if the inmate does not respect authority and runs wild, he or she will be the same way in the prison system. In the prison system, inmates have established certain names for the various roles each inmate has. The term coined for this set of terms is prison argot rules (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001). The following are the roles that were seen in The Shawshank Redemption movie. The first role seen is fish. A fish implies [to] the vulnerability of the new inmate who must learn to adjust to the prison environment, in other words to sink or swim (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p.134). The movie depicts this role when Andy and the other new inmates are being unloaded from the bus and the older inmates are calling Andy and other new inmates names and making gestures about a reeling a fish in. The movie also shows the current inmates betting on which new inmate would be the first to cry the first night after lights out. Once the lights go out the current inmates start trying to make a new inmate cry. A Centre-Men are inmates that are unpopular with other inmates and these inmates attempt to ingratiate w ith the prison warden and guards (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001).The two characters in the movie are Andy and Brooks. Andy helps Warden Samuel Norton and the guards with their tax forms and investments and Brooks maintains the prison library and deliverers books to the other inmates. Both men are popular with the other inmates so they are not true centre-men because the other inmates are friendly to them. The next term is the Merchant/Peddler is an inmate who sells when he or she is in the position to give and the inmate population regards the merchant as someone who exploits his companions (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p.134). An example of a merchant/peddler in the movie is Red. He can get what you want if you are willing to pay his price for it. The last two argot terms depict in the movie is the wolf. A wolf is an inmate who take[s] on the male role in the sexual encounter [and] these individuals are very aggressive and a punk is inmate who is forced into the female sexual role. [The punk inmate] are forced into submission by wolves (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p.134). The movie portrays the character Bogs Diamond the leader of the prison gang The Sisters. Bogs and The Sisters assault Andy numerous times and one scene Bogs tries to get Andy to perform oral sex on him but does not prevail. The most important argot term in the prison world is the rat. A rat is an inmate who gives information about another inmate to prison officials in exchange for their own personal benefits, preferential treatment and the use of contraband goods (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001). Rats are the lowest of the low in the prison on the same level as rapist or child murderers. In short, if other inmates discover that someone is a rat then he or she will become an outsider in the prison. All these definitions are some of the argot rules that are part of the adjustment an inmate will have to face during their prison adjustment phase. As with inmate argot roles, correction officials (prison guards) have their own roles in terms of the different types of correction officials. The different types of officials are the following: the rule enforcer, hard liner, people worker, the synthetic officer and the loner guard (Cesaroni, 2010a). The first example is the Rule enforcer who is an officer that tends to be very rule based, inflexible officer who believes that he or she is in the prison to teach discipline. This officer is only interested in custody and control and does not want to negotiate with the inmates. Lastly this type of officer does not believe in being friendly to the inmates (Cesaroni, 2010a). The Hard liner officer is someone who is power hungry, enforces the rules very strictly, likes to punish and show their authority, this type of officer tends to be abusive and aggressive to the inmates and have a negative attitude with the inmates. He or she also identifies strongly with his or her follow officers and this type of officer has a negative attitude with the inmates and resent on having to provide any services to the inmates (Cesaroni, 2010a). The People worker officer tends to an older and experienced correctional officer. He or she relays on their verbal skills and common sense, interpersonal skills to resolve problems through mediation and not by conflicts. He or she is flexible with rules has a comfortable style with the inmates (Cesaroni, 2010a). This type of officer enjoys the challenge of dealing with the inmates and does not like being authoritarian with them (Cesaroni, 2010a). The Synthetic officer is a cross between the rule enforcer and the people worker in wh ich he or she follows the rules closely but takes each and every situation into consideration before reacting to it. This type of officer is firm but fair for each situation and they do not let themselves be taken advantage of by other correctional officers or inmates (Cesaroni, 2010a). Lastly the Loner officer, he or she strictly enforces the rules because this type of officer is afraid of being criticized. We see this type of officer with females or minorities. This officer does not want to negotiate with inmates and does not want to make mistakes while on duty. The officer enjoys working in the correctional administration part of the prisons and not rather on one-one-one relations with the inmates (Cesaroni, 2010a). Examples from the movie are the following: Warden Norton is depicted as a people worker officer at the start off of the movie when he informs the new inmates that he believes in two things, discipline and the bible but as the movie progresses the movie watcher sees Warden Norton true colours and the type of officer he really is. Norton shows that he is a hardliner officer by allowing inmate Tommy Williams to be murdered and Andy set free because of the new information that Williams has on who really murdered Andys wife and her mistress. Other examples of Norton being a hardliner officer is that he uses the inmates as inexpensive labourers and he takes bribes from other agencies who are competing on the same contracts. The last example is Captain Byron Hadley, the head officer. Hadley can be seen has a rule enforcer officer. In the movie Hadley is seen yelling, screaming, to re-establish order in the prison after the older inmate made a new inmate start to cry after lights out on Andy s first night at Shawshank. Hadley was the officer that uses his woodened asp baton on this inmate to confirm his authority with the older inmates and show it to the new inmates. Prison as a Form of Punishment and Prison as a Machine: As describe in lecture punishment is a necessary evil and when a punishment is invoked when someone is believed to have done wrong (Cesaroni, 2010b). In 1954, Andrew Flew outlined the rules of punishment. The rules of punishment are the following: there must be human suffering, as a result of a criminal offence; the offender who committed the offence is the only one being punished fourth [b]e the intentional creation of the suffering other humans in response to that offence and lastly [b]e inflicted by [an authorized governing body that created the rules and laws for the society as a whole that the offender has committed the offence in (Cesaroni, 2010b). In 1991, David Garland outlined the Sociological Perspectives on Punishment. The first perspective is the moral process. This perspective stated that punishment of the offender functions to preserve the shared values and norms of the society wishes. Punishment symbolizes and enacts moral judgements and punishment sustains solidarity and collective conscience (Cesaroni, 2010b). An example from the movie is when Andy is sentenced to two consecutive life terms. The second perspective is economic and political where a part of a wilder strategy of controlling the poor and lower classes (Cesaroni, 2010b). It is a known fact the offenders that come from poorer areas are treated harsher then people from wealthier areas. The prison system uses their inmates as a cheap labour force as seen the movie when the inmates are tarring the roof and other times seen working outside. The third perspective is power; knowledge and discipline (Garland, 1991). Power comes from the judges and the court to co nvict offenders (Cesaroni, 2010b). The prison system is setup to educate inmates and to reform these inmates. Prison Officers are the discipline in which they use in daily practice to keep order in prisons. In the movie one scene shows Warden Norton allows an officer to search Andys for illegal items but none are found but is pleased when the warden sees Andy reading the bible. Lastly cultural transformations are changes in attitude, conduct, social organization and modes of interactions (Cesaroni, 2010b). In the past 500 years there have been changes in how society handles the following sensitive issues: sex, violence, bodily functions, illness, suffering and death. Each of these sensitive issues has been moved from a public domain to a private domain (Cesaroni, 2010b). The above perspectives can explain the complicated items of prison as a form of punishment in society (Cesaroni, 2010b). The prison system has been developed to run like a well oiled machine. The prison machine system will not function correctly unless the inmates behave as the parts of the machine. Mason writes the following on the prison as a machine as a the system with its impenetrable sets of rules and regulations which grind on relentlessly. The effect of such mechanistic depiction of punishment is to highlight both the individual fight for survival and inherent process of dehumanization that comes with incarceration in the system. The monotony and regulation of prison life is most often depicted by the highly structured movement of prisoners (Mason, 2003, p. 289.) In the movie there are many examples of the above occurring. The first example is when Captain Hadley yells at an inmate you eat when youre told to eat, you shit when we say you shit, you piss when we say you piss are the set of rules and regulations which grind on relentlessly. The individual fight for survival and inherent process of dehumanization examples are the stay in the hole for Andy when he fights Bogs Diamond and the daily checks every morning by the officers before inmates go for their breakfast and the prison staff discovers Andy has escaped sometime during the night. Lastly the highly structured movement of prisoners is seen when they are being allowed out of their cells, going for meals, eating together and spending time in the yard. Prison Adjustment: When a new inmate enters a correctional institution (prison) the inmate will experience three stages of prison adjustments. The three stages are: initiation, prisonization/ institutionalization and rehabilitation. Based on Wheeler theory that prison life and culture is in a U-shaped curve (Cesaroni, 2010c). The top of the U is the entry period of the correctional institution for the inmate. This is a high stress period for an inmate regardless if they are a first timer or a repeat offender. The middle part of the U is where the prison inmate subculture is established and the inmate and is the farthest away of what they were like in the free world Cesaroni, 2010c). The last stage of the U is when the inmate is nearing the end of his or her sentence and starts to reconnect with their love ones and the outside world. This period is another stressful period for the inmate because the inmate does not know what to expect in the free world but is eagerly looking forward to it (Cesaroni, 201 0c). The initiation process according to Goffman is a radical shift in the social self. This adjustment to prison involves a psychological process (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p.130). Goffman refers this as the mortifications of self the process of adjusting to the institution requires the loss of a civilian identity and the incorporation of a new institutional identity (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p.131). This is depicted in the movie when Andy and the other new inmates are paraded in front of the older inmates and these inmates are calling them fish. The new inmates are then paraded into a dark room where Warden Norton and Captain Hadley continue this process by informing the inmates of the rule one no blasphemy and we tell you when you can do things. The inmates are told to strip down, are then hosed down with water and then are covered with a white powder. The inmates are given their prison clothes and a bible and a forced to walk through the prison naked to their cells. The text stat es that Clemmer argues that the inmates loss of autonomy encourages the inmate to identify with the prison hierarchal system that is very similar to that of the outside world (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p.131). Most of the new the inmates adjust to the prison subculture in order for these inmates to feel safe in prison environment and allowing them to learn and obey the rules of the prison (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001). Goffman describes the term total institution as a place of residence and work where a large number of like-situated individuals, cut off from the wider society for an appreciable period of time, together lead an enclosed, formally administered round of life (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p. 130). Prisons are controlling structures and social organization in which prisons functions. Clemmer coined the phrases prisonization or institutionalization. This refers to the process of socialization of an inmate into the subculture of the prison. This process includes [the] learning about the prisons subculture such as values, beliefs and behaviours that challenge the prison staff (Ishwaran Neugebauer, 2001, p. 131). An example of this is when Brooks is being released from Shawshank; Brooks did not want to leave Shawshank and was forced to do so. Brooks discovered he could not survive in the outside world after being in prison for fifty years. He killed himself by hanging himself in the halfway house after craving his name in the rafters. Offenders commit crimes mainly because they are lazy. They need to learn to work hard and be taught a new attitude toward work. (Cesaroni, 2010d). Thus last phase in the prison adjustment is the rehabilitation phase. In this phase the prison system attempts to re-educate inmates so one day they can return to the general public one day. Throughout history, a strong work ethic was directly related to a positive social behaviour. Currently, the prison systems are teaching the inmates that if you work hard, you will develop work skills that can be used in the free world (Cesaroni, 2010d). An example of this from the movie is the character Brooks, he was paroled after fifty years in Shawshank prison. The parole board got him employment with a grocery store and living in a half-way house. In the end Brooks could have been rehabilitated more to handle the stress after being in the prison system for five decades and the numerous social changes that occurred since Brooks has been in prison su ch as how common the automobile has become, electricity, how people dress. In conclusion, the Shawshank Redemption movie is the closest motion picture that depicts what prison is really like. It is a terrible place to live disconnected from the outside world. The movie also proves that all that correction officers are not the same. Some tend to be power hungry while others prefer to be loners working in the prison office. Inmate subculture is also dealt with by the movie showing the different the various types of roles prisoners have in prison. The three different stages of prison adjustment an inmate goes through while in the prison system. The stages are the initiation phase, the prisonization or institutionalization phase and the rehabilitation phase. Lastly the movie shows the prison system acting as machine and as form of punishment. The Shawshank Redemption is movie that should be watched by any student studying criminology.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet - Friar Laurence Essay -- Romeo Juliet

Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet - Friar Laurence Friar Laurence plays a most intriguing role in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. He is a priest, and a friend to Romeo. With the absence of Montague parental scenes, Friar Laurence also becomes like a surrogate father to Romeo. Romeo seeks him out to marry him and Juliet, obviously assuming that the friar would without parental permission. The friar greets him and addresses Romeo's past love. He even tells Romeo that he mistook what he felt for Rosaline as love when it was not, and therefore not be too haste, " They stumble that run fast" (2.2.94). Therefore, not only has Romeo discussed matters of the heart with the friar, but also the friar himself feels in the position to be able to speak with Romeo on a more personal level. Friar Laurence doubts Romeo's professed love to Juliet and compares it to what Romeo himself swore he felt for Rosaline, "Young men's love then lies/ Not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes" (2.2.67-8). Bluntly, yet fatherly, he corrects Romeo's claim of love by saying (in reference to Rosaline), "For doting, not for loving, pupil mine" (2.2.82). Still, he agrees to marry Romeo and Juliet without thinking twice. In fact, his greater preoccupation is not whether or not they truly do love each other, but how their love could end the feud between their families, as he states, "For this alliance may so happy prove/ To turn your households' rancour to pure love" (2.2.91-2). Friar Laurence also doubts Juliet's love for Romeo. Before she even enters the scene the Friar notes that moderate love is best because it does not overwhelm or become consumed by itself as a rash love would (2.5.10-15). Ironically enough Juliet enters the scene "somewhat fast" (... ...ave to face responsibility for his death. Thus, he leaves Juliet alone in a vault filled with dead ancestors, as well as recently dead Romeo and Paris, and she kills herself. This is not say that Friar Laurence does not feel responsible for Romeo and Juliet's deaths, he recounts his tale to the Prince and offer his life as a sacrifice if their deaths are his fault (5.3.228-68). In every step of deceiving Romeo and Juliet's parents, the government, and everyone who thought Juliet to be dead, Friar Laurence was attempting to: end a great feud between two families, help Juliet keep her marriage vows (by helping her out of marrying Paris), keeping Juliet alive, keeping Romeo safe from imprisonment or death, and ultimately, protecting the lovers' love from outside influences. He sees his acts as acts that are working for the greater good, and therefore they are just.