Financial Disclosure of Starbucks

Accounting is the language of business. It is used basically to communicate or to provide information about the profit or loss and the financial position of the business about which there are many interested parties like owners, employees, creditors, government, investors, and research scholars. To provide such valuable information an accountant prepares financial statements comprising of Trading and Profit and Loss Account and the Balance Sheet. But these statements cannot meet the needs of a wide variety of users unless they are prepared in a prescribed form and discloses all the material facts of the business.To comply with this accounting principle namely ‘full disclosure principle’ has been developed which postulates that the financial statements should disclose all the important material facts about the business. In addition to this, it also states that the objective of such statements must not only be to provide true and fair view of the state of affairs of the bu siness but also it must be able to give the prescribed forms under which such financial statements are prepared. This disclosure of accounting principle helps the organization to reveal their financial statements and mail stone of the development of the business.A qualified financial statement helps to the organization to take the decision accurately. This paper discusses the disclosure principles followed by Starbucks Inc. with regard to certain items. The essay covers only important items of current assets such as cash and cash equivalents, receivables and inventory. The essay also discusses the various components of cash and cash equivalents of the company. Disclosure Policy with regard to cash and cash equivalents, Receivables and Inventory Starbucks is recognized as the world's number 1 specialty coffee retailer company.It has more than 16,000 coffee shops situated at different countries which are about more than 35 countries. Their outlets offer not only coffee drinks and food items, but also roasted beans, coffee accessories, and teas. Starbucks owns more than 9,000 of its shops, which are located in about 10 countries, but most of its outlets are situated in US, while licensees and franchisees operate more than 7,400 units worldwide and they are mainly focused on shopping centers and airports. The company also owns the Seattle's Best Coffee and Torrefazione Italia coffee brands.In addition to this, Starbucks markets its coffee through grocery stores and licenses its brand for other food and beverage products. Starbucks as a firm has some accounting flexibility in measuring their key success factors and risks. This flexibility makes them to manage its reported numbers in such a way that it makes their accounting data to be informative and reliable as regards to how their company is doing and to evaluate and analyze their performance more significantly. Starbucks, like most other companies in the United States, must adhere to standard accounting policies and conventions.With all of the new SEC regulations, companies have less room to move around numbers in their financial statements in a way to benefit the company and it discloses the financial information more clearly and up to date. In order to assess the firm’s business strategy and explaining key accounting policies financial disclosure is necessary. It describes lot about the items involved in the financial statement such as cash and cash equivalents, cash receivable, inventory, allowance for doubtful accounts, property, plant and equipment, etc.The Management Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations section of the 10-K sufficiently explains Starbucks’ current performance and Also their report describes the increase in earnings. Revenues are growing due to the increase of new stores opening in the United States and in other countries. This depicts comparing the Starbucks’Consolidated Statements of Earnings and Liquidity and Capital Resources. This also shows breaks down each item and describes why each increased between the years.Operating segments are the business segments that are focused on in the 10-K. The 10-K does not reflect any bad news or hardly any poor performance that has occurred. Starbucks is a growing company and their revenues do increase each year, but it mainly shows all the increases of the statements and gives some explanation on why certain items decreased. Cash from Sales consists of Sales +/- the decrease/increase of Accounts Receivable. Each year, Cash provided/ (used) by changes in operating assets specifically Accounts Receivable were at a decrease.Because of this reason why the ratio is below one because Cash from Sales is greater than Sales. ThNetSales/Net Accounts Receivable ratio fluctuated throughout the years. Sales increased substantially each year as Accounts Receivable only increased slightly. The Net Sales/Unearned Revenue ratio consistently decreased through the ye ars. The disclose procedure of inventory valuation with respect to Starbucks can implement moving average cost method, last-in-first-out method, or the first-in-first-out method.All of these methods produce variant outcomes that can either benefit or maintain the financial statements of the firm. Also, every firm has a choice on how they want to amortize Goodwill over the period. They can write-off the Goodwill over forty years or take a more conservative approach and write it off over a shorter time period. It is also important to realize how Starbucks records their inventory on their consolidated financial statements. Since they sell products, not services, they have a large inventory, which they record at the lower of cost or market.It is also crucial how a firm records and depreciates its inventory, and can give investors wrong information if not done correctly. Components of Cash and Cash equivalents The components of cash and cash equivalents are stated by Starbucks as being h ighly liquid instruments with a maturity of three months or less when purchased to be cash equivalents. The cash and cash equivalent components of star bucks Cash and cash equivalents are the most liquid assets found within the asset portion of a company's balance sheet.Cash equivalents are assets that are readily convertible into cash, such as money market holdings, short-term government bonds or Treasury bills, marketable securities and commercial paper. Cash equivalents are distinguished from other investments through their short-term existence; they mature within 3 months whereas short-term investments are 12 months or less, and long-term investments are any investments that mature in excess of 12 months.Another important condition a cash equivalent needs to satisfy is that the investment should have insignificant risk of change in value, when used in the context of payments and payments transactions refer to currency, coins, money orders, paper checks, and stored value products such as gift certificates and gift cards. If in adjustment of cash flow is written that investment is short term which should not consider that investment as a part of cash and cash equivalent.

Satisfactory Academic Appeal Form

May I respectfully ask for your patience and understanding as I explain my justifications for appealing to you. In essence, I will be discussing one major issue that influenced my two subjects. I pray that this will greatly shed light and not give a lopsided or biased point-of-view of my present predicament. As the facts evidently point out, I have had extreme difficulty in both, my History and Psychology classes. In this regard, I have spent much time contemplating on the parameters that insinuate the validity or invalidity of my claims with reference to the situations and reasons stated in the Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal Form. As such, I deeply and strongly believe that my basis for appealing is legitimate and warrants your kind consideration. Allow me to first state that English is not my first language. Therefore, I have great difficulty to both effectively communicate and to be communicated upon. With this reality, I honestly admit that it has taken me a vast amount of time and effort just to construct this appeal. This is thus the primary reason for my shortcomings in my academics. I have relentlessly tried to understand and speak with my professors to help me because of this reason. This is the case in my History class, where I find it hard to understand my professor with all the facts and events I as a student have to comprehend in the subject. The same case somehow reflects my problem in my Psychology class, as when my professor will recommend that I read the book every time I ask for his help. I feel that as much as my professors want to accommodate me, this communication barrier tends to be an overwhelming obstacle at times. This does not even account for the fact that I am not the only student they have. Let it be known that I have no intention of directing my inadequacy on my professors. This is not an interpersonal problem with them. I have no queries on whether or not my professors’ styles of teaching are hard or not. My only concern is centered upon my own faults that have become detrimental to my performance and growth not just as a student, but as a person as well. Therefore, I appeal to your compassionate and understanding heart for the consideration of my case. I only hope that you grant me this new opportunity to be a good student and a better person. I place my future in your hands. Thank you very much for then attention you have generously granted to me.

Nacroterrorism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nacroterrorism - Research Paper Example One of the reasons for increased narco-terrorism is that mergers between terrorists and drug traffickers benefit both sides. Terrorists enable drug traffickers to access military skills, clandestine groups, and weapons. Since terrorists mostly operate vast amount of territories, drug traffickers benefit by freely moving their assets. On the other hand, drug traffickers benefit terrorist by being a source of revenue and expertise in an illegal transfer. Additionally, most terrorist organizations believe that flooding their enemies with drugs can weaken them. The terrorists believe that after intoxicating their enemies with drugs, they can go ahead and do what they wish. Hence, they need drug dealers to facilitate their operations (Beers and Taylor 4). Another reason that has fueled narcoterrorism is that terrorists and drug traffickers more or less have similar methods of operations. Both groups employ the services of corrupt officials for mutual benefits. Some of the services include access to fraudulent documents. Both sides increasingly depend on the structures of cells to achieve their respective goals while enhancing security (Beers and Taylor 5). Members of compartmentalized cells carry daily activities as directed by a centralized strong leadership. Additionally, they conceal fund-raising and profits using informal transfer systems, smuggling bulk cash, opening multiple bank accounts, and bribing front organizations. Countries that have poorly regulated banking systems make it easier for drug traffickers and terrorists to use online transfers and open accounts that do not request disclosure of owners. Furthermore, both groups conceal their communication channels and code languages. Moreover, nations use same techniques and equipment to combat drug trafficking groups and terrorist organizations. In the past, state sponsors funded terrorist organizations that in turn helped them to secure

Product & pricing (marketing management) Case Study

Product & pricing (marketing management) - Case Study Example TiVo managements, now spearheading a brand new sector of entertainment industry, did a lot on market development which involves marketing existing products, in this case services in new markets. In some degree product development was used but on a limited scale. Perhaps a lot of work on research and development made both market development and diversification attainable. Also in the area of diversification of TiVo services, there were a few brand names to take care of different sets of customers which new market strategy of Ansoff's growth model seeks to explain. More so, 0.04% penetration rate is abysmally low largely due to lack of awareness on the part of customers. A very good indicator, current quarterly subscribers of 14,000, needs to be sustained while means are to be devised through appropriate marketing channels to increase this number in the near future. Concerning product life cycle, one is of the belief that TiVo is still in its introduction stage - infancy probably heading to growth stage. A period of one year or thereabout cannot be safely considered to be in full growth or maturity or have dominating influence on the market. The net loss increasing progressively as shown on exhibit 3 tends to suggest that management must remodel and refocus its strategies in order to remain profitable. Frankly speaking, since the project is still in introduction stage, it will make economic sense if they could focus on TiVo's long-term prospects. Market Attractiveness As said earlier, TiVo has a cutting-edge technology that can impact greatly the entertainment industry if professional inputs are sought on most policy decisions. The market is really vast but the problems TiVo has include inability to relay what it can offer the public and tendency for the very marketers (including columnist) hired to promote the services end up confusing and dispelling customers. Also the model adopted by the co-founders and management are imperfect, this reflects in pricing policy, branding and marketing techniques. TiVo is highly innovative by featuring qualities like pause, fast-forward, rewind, play and record. Conventional TV can not boost of these qualities let alone recording in basic, medium, high and best modes. Important point about this innovative strength is that for TiVo to sell there is need to reach out to customers and let them understand TiVo's value proposition. New Product Development Process New product development process seems to be lacking or non-existent; diversification, an integral component of Ansoff's Growth Matrix requires that products or services be branded (segmented) to satisfy different customers. Differentiating TiVo's service from recording with different prices is one but inadequate service segmentation. Management should think of bundling different services into TiVo like gaming. A close study of customer's preferences for programmes can be another big clue. Brand Positioning Furthermore, TiVo branding has a huge price differential between the two main recording services defeating the whole essence of branding. Charging $499 for a black box for a 14-hour recording and $999 for the same black box and 30 hours of recording is disproportionately high. To make TiVo more attractive, more brands need to be created perhaps to keep competitors at bay even when partnering with

Physiology and Function Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Physiology and Function - Essay Example This condition is tied to deficiencies in the production of red blood cells in its key factory, the bone marrow, and can be caused by a number of factors, including kidney disease in chronic form, cancer, and rheumatoid arthritis, even as some forms of anemia, such as sickle cell anemia, can be passed on from parent to offspring (ADAM, 2012). Basophils: Basophils are a type of white blood cells in the human body (Childrens Hospital and Health System, 2012). As a white blood cell type, its function basically revolves around protection of the body from infections and diseases. This is done via basophils eating up invading pathogens. Their cytoplasmic contents include grain-like substances, and basophils in general have a dark purple to black hue in Wright stains (MedFriendly, n.d.). Eosinophils: Eosinophils are likewise a type of white blood cells in the human body (Childrens Hospital and Health System, 2012). It is also disease and infection fighting. While they are beneficial in attacking foreign bodies, they can cause disease in large amounts, including asthma, and parasitic diseases (MedicineNet, 2012). Erythrocytes: Erythrocyte is another term for red blood cells, and in general, as already discussed above, erythrocyte are involved in oxygen transport throughout the body, emanating from the lungs. They also are the carriers for carbon dioxide. (Childrens Hospital and Health System, 2012). Normal erythrocytes are biconcave, yellow in color, and has in it the hemoglobin oxygen carriers. Abnormal types include basophilic and hypochromic erythrocytes, the latter a condition where red blood cell counts are lower than normal, healthy values (Saunders,

Parliament Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Parliament - Essay Example The UK parliament is constituted by members who belong to various political parties but mainly in three divisions namely the government, opposition and the cross benchers who are also referred to as independent members, who are not affiliated to any major political party (Grant, 2009). The government is formed by the political party which manages to acquire the highest number of seats after an election while the position of official opposition is taken by the party with the second highest number of seats in parliament (Ware, 2000). The government is entrusted with the responsibility of formulating strategies and effecting economic plans as well as accounting for the country’s wealth. The opposition on the other hand has the role of criticizing the government in all decisions which it makes, concerning governance that may be deemed to be unethical or insufficient, through constructive contributions so as to ensure that only the best comes from the agreed decisions. In addition, the opposition has the powers to oppose government proposals which they are not contented with and which may not be for the best of the country’s development. This form of parliament has its advantages and disadvantages. This is due to the fact that its performance depends on the relationship existing between the government and the opposition. For example, the political parties may lack the ability to agree on crucial bills due to political differences which may arise from future political aspirations of members, who may gang against the government to try and sabotage the government by opposing proposals which may put the government at an advantage over them in the public eye thereby winning their political good will, which may be a disadvantage to the opposition (Kenneth, 1997). This may slow the passing of important bills and amendments, which may be at the expense of

Giving reasons for conversions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Giving reasons for conversions - Essay Example t their pride and their love for their specific religions, but instead had to do everything behind closed doors and away from the eyes of the Muslims. If Christians and Jews converted to the religion of Islam, they would be able to be more open and obvious about their devotion to that religion. Those that are not Muslim must abide to the rules, or the pact, that was set down. If they were to violate the conditions that were agreed upon, their protection would be forfeited and they would receive the same treatments as enemies. Some of the rules, agreements, and conditions that were met involve what Muslims can do, but what Christians and Jews are not allowed to do. Christians and Jews are not allowed to have their crosses and books visible while walking on the roads or in the markets of the Muslim people. They are not allowed to publicly perform any act of their religion, such as the ceremony raising of their voices when following their dead or ring the rattles or bells that summons people to their religious services and ceremonies. It is against the pact for them to convert anybody to their religion, but if one of their own wishes to convert to the Muslim religion, they are not allowed to go against it. Non-Muslims are unable to build churches, convents, and monasteries in the areas of the Muslims, not are they allowed to repair any ruins that are in the areas of the Muslims. They must not bury their dead near the sites of Muslims. It also goes against the pact that Christians and Jews wear clothes similar to the Muslims, or speak in the same way that they do. Those of the Christian or Jewish religion may convert to the Muslim religion because it makes life a little bit easier, with less rules and laws to follow, and a lesser chance of going against the pact. The people in the opposing religions are given â€Å"privileges,† or the chance of safety if they give up their freedoms to an open religion. The Muslim religion offers more freedom in their own religion,

Statutory Interpretation Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Statutory Interpretation - Case Study Example The first condition is defined as the first limb according to which the defendant did a dishonest act according to the reasonable and honest people. According, to this standard what the accused did was clearly dishonest as she took the ring without permission and secondly, the defendant was not even in a state to comprehend what was happening to her. According, to the second limb of the case law, in order to establish the dishonesty of the accused, it would have to be proved that the accused would himself realize that what he did was dishonest according to the standards of reasonable and honest people. In this case, both of the situations are certainly fulfilled as Debbie herself would realize what she did was dishonest as she took the ring from an innocent person in order to sell it for her use and purpose. Since, the crime has been proved, now comes the role of the statuary acts in order to convict this person accordingly of the sort of crime convicted. According to the section number eight of the Theft Act 1968, the person is found to be guilty of an offence when the person steals and in order to steal, subjects the person to some sort of force or seeks to create the feeling of force being used. In this case, Debbie did not use force but when the defendant awoke created the feeling of fear of death as she told the defendant that if she reacted, death was certain. Hence, Debbie clearly fulfilled the criteria of the statute and hence, would be convicted of the crime as according to section one of the same act, the person is found to be guilty when he or she take property with the intention of permanently depriving the person of it. So, according to this definition of the word guilty in section one of the Theft Act 1968, Debbie is clearly guilty.Bi) According to section two of the Fraud Act 2006, the person is found to guilty if he fulfils a number of conditions laid out including if the person dishonestly makes a false representation those include the intention of making the representation, making a gain for himself or another, or in order to cause loss to another or to expose another to a risk of loss.In the case of the representation element, the case if proved too false when it fulfils the following criteria; it is untrue or misleading, and the person making it knows that it is, or might be, untrue or misleading. The definition of "Representation" means any representation as to fact or law, including a representation as to the state of mind of the person making the representation, or Any other person and lastly the representation may be express or implied. In the case of Alex, Clare and his grandmother Bella, all three counts of fraud were visible as according to the first section of the section number two of the Fraud Act 2006, Alex is dishonestly making a false representation of the actual scenario. Though he is actually at fault and is responsible for the accident, has made it the fault of the other driver and is insisting upon the fact that it was a form of revenge on the behalf of the militant vegetarian in order to induce a fear of guilt in Bella. Thus, such a false represent

Candys dog Essay Example for Free

Candys dog Essay In Section three of â€Å"Of Mice and Men† we come to a significant part of the story where Carlson shoots Candy’s dog. From previous sections in the book, Steinbeck has made it evident that Candy’s dog is important to Candy. When we are first introduced to Candy and his dog, Steinbeck repeatedly describes both characters as â€Å"old†, showing how alike both are. â€Å"Old Candy, the swamper, came in and went to his bunk, and behind him struggled his old dog. † In this sentence, the adjective used to describe both characters is â€Å"old†. This suggests the similarity between them, showing that they are both reaching nearer to the end of their life. While Slim, George, Candy and his dog are in the bunk house, Carlson comes in and talks to Slim. He then complains about the smell of the dog. â€Å"God awmighty that dog stinks. Get him outta here, Candy! † Carlson makes it clear that he doesn’t like the dog being in the bunk house as it brings a foul smell with it. But when Candy hears Carlson say this, he reaches over to pat his dog as if it is fully aware of what is being said. This action evinces that Candy is apologising to the dog on Carlson’s behalf. Candy treats his dog like a human as his dog is his only companion. However, the workers at the ranch see him only as a dog. When Carlson mentions to Candy about shooting his dog, Candy’s actions and dialogues convey how Candy feels about this idea. â€Å"Candy looked about unhappily. ‘No,’ he said softly. ‘No, I couldn’t do that. I had him too long. ’ Candy is reluctant to let Carlson shoot his dog and we know this through the use of the adverb â€Å"unhappily†. Candy words make it evident that he is not ready to lose his only company. Candy purposefully tries to delay Carlson when he says, â€Å"You ain’t got no gun. † He is hopeful that Carlson doesn’t have the necessary items to kill Candy’s dog with. When the men hear the shot that marks the death of Candy’s dog, Candy’s reaction towards the death of his dog illustrates his emotions. â€Å"For a moment he continued to stare at the ceiling. Then he rolled slowly over and faced the wall and lay silent. † This action symbolises an act of rejecting the outside world. Candy’s dog was his only way of staying happy. But now that his dog has been shot, he has nothing else in the world that is worth living for. During this conversation between Carlson and Candy, George interrupts. â€Å"George said, ‘I seen a guy in Weed that had an Airedale could herd sheep. Learned it from the other dogs. ’† George tries divert Carlson’s attention to a different topic. This indicates that George is attempting to assist Candy in saving his dog. George is being empathetic towards Candy as he might understand how Candy will feel when he loses his only companion. He is taking into account other’s feelings before his own. We see this previously in the book where George stands up for Lennie when Curley threatens him. George’s only companion is Lennie and he has travelled with Lennie in search of work for a very long time. George may be the only person who realises how difficult it will be for Candy if he found himself alone after a very long time. As Carlson continuously encourages Candy to let him shoot Candy’s dog, Carlson turns to Slim for support. He asks Slim, â€Å"I bet Slim would give you one of his pups to raise up, wouldn’t you, Slim? † From previous descriptions in the book, the audience is aware that Slim is an influential character in the novel. Steinbeck makes a direct judgement about him unlike he does with the other characters in the book. Steinbeck describes him as â€Å"Majestic† and â€Å"Prince of the ranch†. Nearing the death of Candy’s dog, Steinbeck once again shows us the importance of Slim’s character at the ranch when Carlson asks for Slim’s opinion on the matter. When Slim agrees with Carlson that Candy’s dog should be shot Candy look’s helplessly at Slim: â€Å"Candy looked helplessly at him, for Slim’s opinions were law. † Steinbeck yet again directly informs the reader that Slim’s opinions are not taken lightly but seriously by the men on the ranch. It is clear that the men on the ranch constantly have respect for Slim and they do as Slim says. Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE John Steinbeck section.

Summary of Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell Essay Example for Free

Summary of Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell Essay Gladwell’s Outliers started with the introduction of the Roseto Mystery in which he presented the facts and findings of the physician, Stewart Wolf on how the Rosetans lived a life differently from Americans living in the city. Evidences and findings on how the Rosetans have a better life and little cases of heart diseases was not only due to the atmosphere of the place, the things they do, or the food they eat but simply the way Roseto is in which people greeted each other, go to church every day, and their strong family ties. In the first chapter, The Matthew Effect, we may glean from it the idea or phenomenon of â€Å"the rich becomes richer while the poor becomes poorer†. He mentioned about observations on the birth dates of Canadian hockey players and the eligibility of children to participate in youth hockey leagues. This was deemed important as it was a factor that would determine a child’s strength and ability on hockey since they were able to start earlier and they are most likely to be the ones to belong in the elite team in the future. Despite of the fact that birth date is an important factor, an individual’s own skill is really the key to reach the top. In the second chapter, The 10,000-Hour Rule, Gladwell presented that to become truly a master of something, an individual must undergo 10,000 hours of practice and mastery on a particular skill which is like doing 20 hours of work a week for 10 years. He cites examples like K. Anders Ericsson’s study at an elite Academy of Music in Berlin. The study was conducted on seeing the potential of music students by dividing them into three groups based on the potential they could see in them. According to the study, those students who belong in the elite/star group practiced more hours than the others that’s why by the age of twenty, these group of people will probably achieved mastery as they have totaled ten thousand hours of practice. Gladwell also mentioned the success of Bill Joy as he was a genius, and devoted time on computers and programming. Other examples were how the Beatles achieved the 10,000 hours rule due to the number of concerts and performances that they did. He also mentioned how William Henry â€Å"Bill† Gates achieved the 10,000 hours rule and it was not only that. According to his interview with Gates, he paved his way to success not only because of his penchant for computers but also of the opportunities opened to him during his lifetime. In the third and fourth chapter, The Trouble with Geniuses Parts 1 2, it was mentioned that being a genius is not enough to determine whether a person will truly be successful. He mentioned the story of Christopher Langan, a man with an IQ of 195 (higher than Einstein because he only had 150). Despite of Langan’s skills, he was not able to reach a high level of success because of the lack of opportunities and there is no one in his life to lead him to a higher level of success. In the fifth chapter, The Three Lessons from Joe Flom, presented three lessons according to Flom on how a person could achieve success. Lesson 1: The Importance of Being Jewish presents how Jewish people were exposed to work at an early age especially when it comes to clothing that lead them to their success in business. Lesson 2: Demographic Luck shows us how location can determine your place e.g. a place rich with gold and minerals possible for putting up a mining industry vs. a place with little natural resources. Lesson 3: Garment Industry and Meaningful Work presents how hard work is definitely an important factor to success. Reflection Looking at Gladwell’s observations, collection of ideas and stories from people about attaining success or being successful in life made me realize that one factor is not enough to be successful. According to the book, the date of birth, place of birth, how the individual was nurtured, social influences, interests, devotions, intellectual abilities, talents, etc are some of the many factors that determine one’s success Going back to Frank Lynch’s article on Social Acceptance Reconsidered, I realized that some of his points like Pakikisama is one of the factors that could help one become successful. Looking back at Chris Langan’s story, he wasn’t able to attain a higher level of success because he didn’t have someone to help him which means he lacks the value of Pakikisama. Let’s look at this: most successful business people not only in the Philippines but in the whole world achieve success not only by themselves but because of their partners or people who backed them up. Bill Gates too is one example since he had Paul Allen in putting up Microsoft Corporation. It is because of the value of Pakikisama that people achieve success because at times, we cannot accomplish things by depending only on ourselves. Thinking about the Philippines, I think that the ideals in the book, when applied can truly help our country towards development and prosperity. The Philippines is a country laden with a lot of natural resources which means that we possess the demographic luck. We also have some good universities that produce some of the brightest Filipinos that we have today. If only the Philippines would increase the way it encourages people and seek people’s potentials even at a young age, then we may be able to predict what we should mold our future human resources into so that by after 10 years on refining themselves on their chosen field, they could possibly achieve the 10,000 hours rule and achieve mastery on their field.

Impact of Canine Intervention on Rabies

Impact of Canine Intervention on Rabies Problem Rabies-is a fatal viral disease that causes inflammation of the nervous system, caught from bites or scratches of rabid animals, most commonly domestic-dogs (>95%).[1] Immediate treatment of infected humans with four doses post-exposure prophylaxis decreases chance of developing severe infection, but this is often prevented by availability and awareness of treatment in low-income settings. Canine-vaccination provides broader benefits for disease-control reducing cases in dogs, human animal-bite injuries, and number of human-cases.[2] While the value of canine vaccination is well-known, local uptake at low-income-settings have been low despite public provision and financing.[3] Intervention The intervention involves empowering community-health-workers to formulate local-strategies to encourage participation and conduct self-organized rabies-vaccination days, compared against standard of care of centrally-coordinated program. The intervention assumes that low-uptake for current publicly-provided canine vaccination programs is due to locally-inappropriate programs that do not effectively promote awareness and engagement. Community-directed interventions are used in other public health diseases with promising results in improving access to interventions and enhancing efficiency, cost-effectiveness and sustainability.[4] But, its effectiveness for canine-rabies vaccination is-unknown. Community-directed interventions for rabies vaccination is theorized to maximize reach of vaccination activities through localization, more effective community-engagement, and more accurate targeting of potential households. The theory of change behind the intervention is illustrated by the logic model in Figure 1. Inputs The intervention makes use of people, money, equipment, and research base to carry it out. The implementers will tap district officers, train trainors, and recruit village health care workers (HCW, i.e. coordinators and vaccinators). Money will be used for training and logistics, as well the incentives (à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤20/month/coordinators and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤4/day/vaccinators) for the HCW to implement the program. Equipment for training, coordination, vaccination, and monitoring are necessary to conduct the activities. And, all  inputs and activities are developed from the research base available. It is assumed that these inputs are adequate and effective in carrying out the intervention activities. Figure 1. Logic Model Activities The inputs shall be used to conduct recruitment, training, and mentoring for the intervention. Recruitment will include development of criteria and guidelines for choosing HCW and actual strategies to reach them. HCW recruits will undergo training on topics such as rabies, safe handling of dogs and equipment, vaccine administration, and prevention as stated in the logic model. They will also undergo mentoring with the research team through annual retraining and network support to motivate the HCW to perform the intervention. It is assumed that HCW are able to understand and internalize their role in rabies prevention, and that the activities will equip them to formulate adequate and effective local strategies to carry out the vaccination and community engagement programs. Formulation of community strategies is an essential step as it actualizes the interventions main assumption. The developed strategies are assumed to effectively sensitize the community towards the vaccination campaign and mobilize the most number of families to participate. This also assumes each individual HCW agrees with and follows the strategy formulated by the group. The end activity of the intervention is to implement the formulated strategies for conduct of vaccination days, dog registration, and community engagement. Conduct of vaccination days involve local organization and recruitment, logistic management especially for vaccines and equipment, and actual conduct of canine vaccination. The HCWs are expected to conduct dog registrations and maintain an updated record-keeping mechanism. The strategies, being locally owned, are also assumed to go beyond just conduct of vaccination into regular community engagement with follow-up/ supporting activities. Outcomes The interventions assumption on the value of local mobilization and engagement is expected to contribute towards increased community awareness and acceptability of rabies vaccination. This is expected to increase total attendance to vaccination days, as both frequency and method are dependent on local needs assessment and planning of the group. Both higher community awareness and attendance to vaccination days are assumed to influence canine vaccine coverage. Higher canine coverage protects the population by decreasing the number of rabid dogs that can infect humans. This would result in the medium term as decreased prevalence of rabies cases in the community. This assumes that the community is able to recognize the signs and symptoms of rabies and seeks diagnosis and treatment to health facilities that are able to diagnose them. Impact With less rabies cases in the community, less patients will progress into complications that lead to death, hence reducing rabies-related deaths in the long term. This assumes the community patients are willing to be treated once diagnosed. This also assumes health system reforms on case management nor technological advances in treatment of rabies had no influence in change in mortality. Objectives Using the interventions logic model, a process evaluation study is proposed with three supporting objectives from a mix of evaluation theories to give more holistic and practical recommendations regarding the results of the intervention. These objectives are as follows: Table 1: Research Objectives Objectives Key areas of concern Understand the extent to which the intervention was implemented Implementation (fidelity, reach and dose) Test the validity of the underlying assumptions in practice Mechanisms of impact (interactions, alternative pathways) Context Determine best practices that can be replicated in future roll-outs Implementation Mechanisms of Impact Context The first goal (reflective of implementation theory) was chosen to determine if successful implementation was achieved and can be attributed to the results. The second goal (reflective of intervention theory) was chosen to understand if hypothesized mechanisms-of-change were realized and if other mechanisms have emerged to contribute to the results. The third goal (reflective of realist theory) aims to understand the best mechanisms to attain intended outcomes of the intervention for future reference in similar studies and policy implications. Evaluation Overview The process evaluation team created a 24-month evaluation plan that will focus on key aspects of the research objectives believed to contribute most to the results in the intervention arm of the research. Figure 2 gives a general overview of the domains, chosen from the assumptions from the logic model. Figure 2. Research Domains Methods The evaluation will be done in four phases, implemented closely with the timeline of the impact evaluation/research team across 24 months. General methods and target population for the process evaluation are as follows: Figure 3. Method Overview At pre-intervention (month 0), questions on knowledge attitudes and practices (KAP) regarding rabies and the community context will be added as rider questions to the researchers baseline survey. HCWs will be asked to complete a questionnaire on personal data (economic status), relations with the community (social status), and KAP regarding rabies. Focus group discussions (FGD) will be done with the community to gain deeper insight into the community context that may impact the intervention, and with HCW to assess their perceptions on the interventions. Health system documents (policies, care guidelines, local government initiatives, etc.) will be reviewed to look at changes in care management and technological advances that have taken place. During intervention (month 1-24), direct observation and document review will be done to assess fidelity, reach and doses of each of the activities during implementation. All of the activities on training, formulation of community strategies, conduct of vaccination days will be directly observed by at least three researchers to understand how interactions take place. Value judgements will have to be agreed by at least 2/3 of the team present during the activity. Conduct of other activities will be assessed from monitoring documents (attendance sheet, accomplishment reports of each HCW, pre- and post-training test results, post-activity feedback forms) from the implementation team. At post-intervention (month 24), baseline quantitative and qualitative information with be gathered similar to pre-intervention methods to enable assessment of changes from baseline values. The final FGDs with the community and HCWs will also be used as a workshop to create an agreed cognitive map of best practices within the intervention that contribute to its success. Frequency Surveys, questionnaires and FGDs are deliberately scheduled only at pre- and post-intervention as the likelihood of the research team influencing both community awareness and engagement through these efforts are high. The third objective of the process evaluation is to look at best context-practice mixes that can be replicated in future runs of the program and conducting these evaluations mid-intervention may act as mediator that will skew the results positively and affect the program and policy recommendations of the study. Direct observation and document review will be done throughout the activities of the intervention to assess conduct of activities taking place. Sampling Household surveys coupled to the research will use purposive sampling of community households considering geographic factors and socio-economic status. FGD participants will be chosen using purposive sampling to represent different groups and community areas. For quantitative analysis, all of the data from questionnaires and document reviews will be used during analysis. Analysis plan Quantitative aspects of the study will be analyzed through descriptive statistics to show frequency and ranges of responses. Qualitative aspects of the study will be analyzed through causal modelling with mediation and mediator analysis to summarize the responses. Issues and best practices will be determined from post-intervention qualitative analysis using stakeholder cognitive mapping to agree on a generalizable process. Domains, research questions, research methods, indicators, and frequency are summarized in Table 3: Table 3. Methods and Indicators Domain Research question/s Method Target Indicators Frequency IMPLEMENTATION Fidelity Was conduct of the intervention activities done as intended? Were adaptations done necessary? Direct observation HCW Checklist score based on module guide Value judgement score based on agreement of 2/3 observers During each activity (training, formulation of community strategy, vaccination days) What adaptations were perceived to be more successful by the HCW? Document feedback forms HCW Responses After each activity Reach Were effective HCW recruited for the intervention? Direct observation HCW Value judgement score from criteria (positive influence in the community, capacity to understand training and perform vaccination, perceived willingness to participate) based on agreement of 2/3 researchers Combination of observations from training, community engagement activities, vaccination days How many families were influenced by the community strategies? Document attendance Community Attendance to community engagement activities Total of all activities during whole of intervention Dose Was training new to the attendees/ was there added knowledge gained? Which aspects were delivered successfully? Document feedback forms HCW Views on preference for teaching methods/ topics After each activity Was knowledge from training accurate and retained? Document test results HCW Scores on exams and return demonstrations During initial training and retraining Are the inputs (esp. incentives) and preliminary activities (i.e. training, mentoring) given adequate for HCW to perform their role to the best of their abilities? FGD HCW Responses (qualitative) Twice (month 0 and 24) Are the supply of inputs adequate to perform the intervention? Document review HCW Incidence of stock outs during vaccination days After each activity MECHANISM OF IMPACT Interactions Were community strategies developed by HCW unanimously decided and carried out by the individual? Direct observation HCW Strategy formulation process dynamics, value judgement based on agreement of 2/3 researchers After each activity Questionnaire HCW Strategies HCW agreed with Personal conduct of strategies during engagement Personal adaptations done with strategies Once (month 24) Were incentives, training, and mentoring perceived to be adequate by the HCW? Did personal motivation of the HCW affect their performance of community strategies? Questionnaire HCW Percentage of incentives to household income Time available Personal motivations (checklist) Once (month 1) FGD HCW Responses (qualitative) Twice (month 0 and 24) Alternative pathways Were other mechanisms outside the intervention encouraging awareness and vaccination? Were there other reasons for non-attendance of willing families to vaccination days? FGD Community Responses (qualitative) Twice (month 0 and 24) Household survey Community Awareness of new community strategies Willingness to participate in activities Reasons for attendance and non-attendance (checklist) Were there changes in the way the community interacts with dogs not accounted for by the intervention? Household survey Community Presence of dogs in the household Number of interactions with dogs in the past 7 days Did new health system reforms on case diagnosis and management or technological advances in diagnosis and treatment occur? Document -policies System Presence of new policies Changes in budget and procurement of local government CONTEXT What was the communitys level of pre-intervention awareness and engagement in rabies programs? FGD Community Knowledge of rabies pathophysiology Knowledge and engagement to past rabies programs Awareness and engagement Twice (month 0 and month 24) What are the health-seeking practices of the community? Do they recognize and seek care for rabies? Willingness to go to health center Awareness of symptoms of rabies Care-seeking behavior after diagnosis What are the community views on western medicine and canine vaccination? View of western medicine View of canine vaccination What are the community views on the role of dogs and their relationship with them? Which views promote taking dogs for vaccination? View of dogs on being necessary, perceived harm, importance, need for attention, need for medical care References [1] source [2] Cite downloaded cleaveland [3] source [4] Source, reword since copied from assignment

Bruce Stovel’s A Contrariety of Emotion’: Jane Austen’s Ambivalent Lovers in Pride and Prejudice :: Pride Prejudice

Bruce Stovel’s A Contrariety of Emotion’: Jane Austen’s Ambivalent Lovers in Pride and Prejudice The hero and heroine in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice forever intrigue critics, and in Bruce Stovel’s essay, they are once again analyzed. Thoroughly researched and imaginative in scope, Stovel’s â€Å" ‘A Contrariety of Emotion’: Jane Austen’s Ambivalent Lovers in Pride and Prejudice† presents a novel interpretation of Elizabeth and Darcy’s relationship. Stovel believes that the lovers’ relationship is neither love-at-first-sight nor hate-at-first-sight. Instead, he firmly believes that since Pride and Prejudice is comic, it has a â€Å"both/and rather than an either/or vision† (28). Drawing the definition of â€Å"ambivalence† from the Oxford English Dictionary, Stovel clarifies that what Elizabeth and Darcy feel toward each other is ambivalence – â€Å"the coexistence in one person of the emotional attitudes of love and hate, or other opposite feelings, towards the same object or situation† (27). Sandwiching his analyses of the ambivalent lovers between his deliberations on Austen’s intentions and other critics’ inductions, Stovel is able to lodge his essay in a broad, meaningful context. However, this strength of Stovel’s essay is also a flaw, because as Stovel spews forth a list of what other critics think, the reader is left to wonder what Stovel himself thinks. When Stovel finally reveals his opinions, he speaks of â€Å"moral patterns† and â€Å"psychological states† as being ambivalent characteristics of Elizabeth (28). Although Stovel’s idea has great potential for expansion, he fails at explaining this concept clearly. It is difficult to grasp the connection between the â€Å"moral† engagement of Elizabeth in â€Å"protecting herself from her own sharp intelligence† and her being â€Å"humiliated by Charlotte’s defection† (29). After all, Elizabeth prides herself on being a â€Å"studier of charact er† (Austen, 38) and she is shocked at – not â€Å"humiliated by† – Charlotte’s marriage to Mr. Collins. Elizabeth cannot believe her friend’s defection, because she has previously told Charlotte that it is unsound to believe â€Å"it is better to know as little as possible of the defects of the person with whom you are to pass your life† (Austen, 21). Stovel states that Elizabeth’s â€Å"psychological predicament† is being unable to think well of others (Stovel, 29). This is untrue, because Elizabeth admires her sister Jane for thinking well of everyone, and she â€Å"could easily forgive [Darcy’s] pride, if he had not mortified [hers]† (Austen, 19). In short, Stovel is correct in uncovering the contrarieties of Elizabeth’s thoughts and emotions, but he does so with some poor examples from Austen’s text.

Essay --

â€Å"Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do.† This is a quote by Pele that demonstrates soccer in so many ways. Today I will tell you that there are many aspects in the game of soccer, some of which are the history, the rules and how to become a good soccer player. Soccer is the most popular sport evolved from as far back as the Han dynasty in 200-300 B.C. According to the Complete Book of Soccer, the Chinese played with a wet piece of balled up cloth, trying to kick the cloth through the two bamboo poles. This was the start of the great game of soccer. According to the Complete Book of Soccer, in Europe, soccer did not start till the later 14th century. It is said to be a game of kicking rubber balls in the streets of the British Isles for bragging rights. This then lead to teams building up against each other for bragging rights in England. Unfortunately for the United States, the game did not appear till the 1900th century. â€Å"The American Soccer Association was organized in New...

Celebrity Endorser Influence Essay

Celebrity Endorser Influence on Attitude Toward Advertisements and Brands Bahram Ranjbarian Associate Professor of management, Department of Management The University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran E-mail: Bahram1 r@yahoo.com Zahra Shekarchizade Master Student of Business Management, Department of Management University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran E-mail: Shekarchi_2020@yahoo.com Zahra Momeni Master Student of Business Management, Department of Management University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran E-mail: za.momeni@yahoo.com Abstract Purpose- This study aims to analyze the celebrity endorser influence on attitude toward advertisements and brands. Design/methodology/approach – A theoretical model is developed and tested with a sample of 193 students in University of Isfahan in 2009. Structural equation modeling was used with LISREL 8.50 and the maximum likelihood (ML) method. Findings – The findings show that attitude toward celebrity endorser can influence on attitude toward brand directly or indirectly. In indirectly approach, attitude toward advertisement is as a mediator between attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward brand. On the other hand, attitude toward celebrity endorser has not significant effect on purchase intention. Originality/value – This paper provides a model connecting attitude toward celebrity endorser, attitude toward advertisement and attitude toward brand that has been examined and validated using a sample of students in University of Isfahan. Paper type- Research paper Keywords: Endorsement, Celebrities, Brand, Attitude, Advertisement Introduction Today one of the most prevalent forms of retail advertising is through using of celebrity endorsement (White et al, 2007). In fact celebrity endorsers are being used in about 25 percent of all television advertisements in order to promote brands (Erdogan et al, 2001).These endorsers are being paid by about 10 percent of advertiser’s budgets (Agrawal and Kamakura, 1995). Marketers invest huge amounts of money in contracts with celebrity endorsers each year, since they believe that celebrities affect the process of selling of their brands or products (Katyal, 2007). A celebrity endorser is a wellknown person (e.g., actors, sports figures and artists) because of his successes in a special field other than the endorsed product class (James, 2004). Celebrity endorsers are used by firms who want to 399 European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) support a product or service (Amos et al, 2008). Since presence of celebrity endorsers affects purchase decisions of consumers positively, producers and retailers have always preferred to use celebrity endorsements in order to sell their products (Stafford et al, 2003; Erdogan, 1999; Kamins, 1990). Kaikati (1987) believes that using of celebrities in advertisements could have many benefits and advantages including: 1) facilitating of brand identification 2) changing or impressing the negative attitude towards a brand 3) repositioning an existing brand 4) global marketing or positioning of a brand or product 5) affecting purchase intentions of consumers. Although using of celebrity endorsers as brand messengers is impressive, but it could have some risks. For instance, celebrities who are known to be guilty because of negative events (e.g., accident) may have harmful effects on the products that they endorse (Lou ie and Obermiller, 2002). Studies reveal that using of attractive celebrity causes to increase attitude towards advertisements. Such attitude towards advertisements is defined as â€Å"mental states which are used by individuals to organize the way they perceive their environment and control the way they respond to it† (Haghirian, 2004). There is a considerable correlation between desirable attitudes with regard to advertising and rating of certain advertisements by respondents as being likeable, irritating, delightful, etc (Bauer and Greyser, 1968). Celebrity endorsers enhance awareness of a company’s advertising, create positive feelings towards brands and are perceived by consumers as more amusing (Solomon, 2002). Thus using of a celebrity in advertising causes to influence brand attitude and purchase intentions of consumers in a positive way. Celebrity endorsement has a strong effect on consumers’ memory and learning approach too. Most consumers are not in a purchasing situation when they are encounter with message of the brand. Marketers use celebrity endorsement in order to help better storage of information in consumers’ minds which they can easily remember in purchasing situations (Schultz and Brens, 1995). However, there are many studies about celebrity endorser, but it seems that there are limited researches about the relationship between celebrity endorser and attitudes. The purpose of this study is to specify the impact of using celebrity endorsers in Iranian advertisements on attitudes of students in University of Isfahan toward those ads and brands. Literature Review Some properties such as likeability, expertise, trustworthiness and similarity cause a celebrity endorser to become a source of persuasive information and this creates a sense of certainty which has been revealed in many studies (Suranaa, 2008). Also physical attractiveness of the endorser is considerable in effectiveness of a message (Khatri, 2006). Acceptance of a message by a receiver could be influenced by celebrity endorsers as believable sources of information about a product or a firm (Amos et al, 2008). Using of celebrity endorsers to support products is explained by balance theory principles too. According to this theory, successful companies establish an emotional relation between the observer and endorser and a relation between endorser and brand too (Mowen, 2000). Before proceeding conceptual model, we describe the main constructs of this study. Celebrity Endorser McCracken (1998) has defined celebrity endorser as â€Å"any individual who enjoys public cognition and who uses this cognition on behalf of a consumer by appearing wit in an advertisement†. Moreover, celebrity is used as testimonial, endorsement, actor or spokesperson by the firm. Research has demonstrated that celebrity endorsement affects consumers’ feelings in general and it could affect the attitude of consumers towards the advertisement and brands too. This could result in enhancing of purchase intentions and as a result enhancing of sales. Some properties like credibility, physical attractiveness and likeability of celebrity endorser influence the ability of one person to impact other person (Amos et al, 2008). Source credibility is referred to identifying of communicator’s positive properties which influences acceptance of a message by the receiver (Ohanian, 1990). This consists of two main dimensions of expertise and 400 European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) trustworthiness. Source expertise refers to the degree which a communicator is perceived to be a source of valid assertion (Roozen, 2008). Source trustworthiness refers to faithfulness and reliability of the spokesperson (Khatri, 2006). Source attractiveness is the personality, likeability and similarity of endorsers to the receiver, thus to the perceived social values of the source (Solomon, 2002). Physical attractiveness of the source include being attractive, beautiful, elegant and charming. According to the studies in this ground, expertise dimension is more significant than physical attractiveness for matching of a brand with a suitable endorser (Brian and Michael, 1998). Likeability is referred to the positive or negative feelings that consumers have towards a source of information. We can define likeability as affection for the source because of its physical appearance and behavior (Erdogan, 1999). Though some research results reveal effectiveness of celebrities as endorsers (Freiden, 1984), but other researches suggest that celebrity endorsement may have different degrees of effectiveness depending on other factors like the â€Å"fit† between the celebrity and the advertised product (Till and Shimp, 1998). Celebrity Endorsers’ Effect on Aad and Ao Marketers are especially interested in consumers’ attitudes towards advertisements and brands. Essentially, attitudes are our predispositions with regard to things. An attitude shows whether we like something or not. Attitudes have three basic components: affective, cognitive and behavioral. Affective is related to our liking or feelings about an object. Cognitive is referred to beliefs about an object and behavioral component regards actions we take about that object (Severin and Tankard, 2001). Attitude towards advertisement is defined as â€Å"a learned tendency to respond in a consistently desirable or undes irable approach toward advertising in general† (Haghirian, 2004). On the other side, attitude towards the advertisement (Aad) is whether the consumer likes an advertisement (Ad) or hates it. Determinants of Aad consist of attitude towards the advertiser, assessment of the Ad execution itself, the mood evoked by Ad, and the extent to which the Ad affect viewer’s encouragement. Assessment of brands could be influenced by attitudes towards Ads. Of course what causes an advertisement to be impressive will change noticeably cross-culturally (Arnold et al, 2004). In performed studies, Aad is focused on as a mediator of advertiser’s effects on brand attitudes and purchase intentions (Suhere and Ispir, 2009). In recent studies, this issue has been proved that using of celebrity endorsement has a positive impact on attitudes of the consumer towards products and brands with which they are associated brand (Seno and Lukas, 2005). Agarwal and Malhotra (2005) have defined brand attitude as consumers’ general evaluative judgment of a brand based on brand beliefs. Such beliefs concern product-related attributes, like practical and experimental benefits. A successful endorser is able to enhance intentions and preferences towards brands directly or indirectly. An endorser who has major source factors of credibility (like expertise, trustworthiness and effectiveness) is able to impress purchase intentions of the consumer considerably (Liu et al, 2007). Information from a credible source can impress ideas, attitudes and behavior through a process called internalization (Belch and Belch, 1993). Internalization occurs when the receiver is motivated to have an issue. The receiver learns and accepts the idea of the credible spokesperson, since he supposes that information of this person represents an accurate position on the issue. Therefore, if such spokesperson who is known to be an expert endorses a product, consumers will more probably have a desirable idea about that advertisement and brand and they will consider it in their shopping list the next time they go shopping. Researchers have used the identification process of social influence in order to explain the effectiveness of celebrity endorsers (Basil, 1996). This theory suggests that if an individual identifies with another individual, then he is more likely to accept an attitude or behavior of that individual or a group. The internalization process of social influence is occurred â€Å"when an individual accepts influence because the induced behavior is congruent with his value system†. An individual accepts the influence, since it provides a solution to a problem (Daneshvary and Schwer, 2000). In the elaboration likelihood model (ELM), individual’s level of motivation to process central message arguments is represented which is one of its key factors that affects the relative impact of 401 European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) central and peripheral processing (Petty and Cacioppo, 1986). When applied to an adverting context, ELM suggests that consumers’ motivation to centrally process brand-relevant aspects of an advertisement is enhanced, the impact of central processing on brand attitudes should be enhanced, the effect of peripheral processing on brand attitudes should be reduced and the effect of brand attitudes on purchase intentions should be enhanced (Lafferty and Goldsmith, 1999). In this theoretical model, the endorser serves as cue just during peripheral processing. Therefore, the effect of the endorser should be reduced while central processing is enhanced. Mackenzie and Lutz (1989) have stated that advertiser credibility is a central processing cue more than any other thing. Credibility of the source is considered important in influence acceptance. A consumer will accept the accurate influence (information) and apply it if there the source is perceived to be credible. It is accepted because it is â€Å"demand† by ones own values. Therefore, a product’s endorsement by a credible source may impress purchase behavior (Danwshvary and Schwer, 2000). As a result, celebrity endorsement can increase the process of recalling and consume assessment of products (Khatri, 2006). On the other hand, celebrity endorsement has a severe effect on learning approach and memory. Researchers in the field of marketing and social psychology have studied the manner of impressing of purchase decision by celebrity endorsements. Various hypotheses have been proposed including having recall of the product by celebrity endorsement, celebrities have credibility on expertise that makes the product more desirable or increases perceptions of quality; the celebrity endorsers’ image is transferred to the product so that those who use the product are associated with the image. Experiments suggest that celebrity endorsement can increase recall and consume assessment of the products in certain situations (Clark and Horstman, 2003). Most of the times, making connection with the brand message is occurred when consumers are not in a purchasing situation. Marketers use celebrity endorsement so that information will be kept in consumers’ minds better and in the case of purchasing situation, they can easily retrieve it (Surana, 2008). A successful endorser strategy can enhance the level of consumers’ recalling towards product information, reinforces consumers’ recognition to endorsed brands, positively influences consumers’ attitude to low-involved products and even enhance consumers’ purchase intention and preference towards brands (Liu et al, 2007) Therefore, hypothesizes of the study are as follows. H1: Attitude toward ad is positively affected by attitude toward celebrity endorser. H2: Attitude toward brand is positively affected by attitude toward celebrity endorser H3: Attitude toward brand is positively affected by attitude toward advertisement. H4: Intention to buy is positively affected by attitude toward celebrity endorser Method Data Collection Information was obtained from randomly selected students from University of Isfahan through survey questionnaires during September- November 2009. University of Isfahan is one of the major universities in the fields of science, human science and engineering. A total sample of 193 participants was obtained. The sample was composed of 137 women (71 percent) and 56 men (21 percent). A cluster sampling procedure with age and degree as main control variables was applied. The age of the respondents ranged from 19 to 30 years, with a mean of 24. All questionnaires were self-administered by the participants without interference from researchers. Measures The study uses multi-item scales to measure the constructs in our model. All items in the questionnaire were measured on a five-point Likert-type scale anchored from â€Å"strongly disagree† (1) to â€Å"strongly agree† (5). Some of the measures were available in the literature, though most were adapted to suit this European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) particular context. To measure attitude toward celebrity endorser we used ten items. Attitude toward advertisement and attitude toward brand were measured with six items and five items, respectively. In order to measure reliability of questions in the questionnaire, 30 questionnaires have been pre-tested through pilot studies. Then, amount of confidence coefficient has been calculated by method of Cronbach’s alpha for which 0.83 % is obtained. This number shows that the applied questionnaire enjoys confidentiality or in other words the necessary reliability. Results Measurement Model Measurement model Structural equation modeling with LISREL 8.54 and the maximum likelihood (ML) method was used to analyse the data.. LISREL is a structural equations modeling technique that traces structural relations in a set of data (Eriksson et al, 2004). Structural equation modelling was used because it allows to estimate multiple and interrelated dependence relationships and unobserved factors can be represented in these relationships. Additionally, measurement error in the estimation process is accounted for (Hair et al., 1998). The model is assessed with the comparative fit index (CFI), standardised root meanresidual (SRMR), root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), and Akaike’s (1987) information criterion (AIC). The measurement model provided a good fit to the data: (CFI = 0:98, SRMR=0.058, RMSEA = 0.015 and AIC =396.22). All values of CFI, SRMR, and RMSEA meet the standards suggested by Hu and Bentler (1999): 0.95 for CFI, 0.08 for SRMR, and 0.06 for RMSEA.There are no Guidelines for the AIC but lower values indicate better fit. The fit of the structural model is good and is reported in Table I. In the following we will test our hypotheses and consequently report the standardised path coefficients. As shown in Table I, three of hypotheses are empirically supported and one of them is not confirmed. The effect of attitude toward celebrity endorser on attitude toward advertisement is significant (standardised path coefficient = 0:49). This shows that the higher the attitude toward endorser, the more the attitude toward advertisement. Attitude toward celebrity endorser also have significant effect on attitude toward brand (standardised path coefficient= 0.24), but this effect is comparatively weaker than its effect on attitude toward advertisement. On the other hand, the effect of attitude toward advertisement on attitude toward brand is significant (standardised path coefficient = 0:56). This clearly shows that attitude toward advertisement has the highest standardized path coefficient and therefore has the strongest influence on attitude toward brand. The results show that the effects of attitude celebrity endorser on Purchase intention is not significant (standardised path coefficient = 0.11). This means that attitud toward celebrities, does not necessarily always translates into purchase intentions. Discussion The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship among attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward advertisement and brand. Effects of a celebrity endorser on respondents’ assessments about advertisements and products endorsed by celebrities have been studied previously. There are some interesting findings for using of celebrity endorsers in Iranian advertisements. Attitude towards a celebrity endorser has a direct positive effect on attitude towards advertisement. Attitude towards advertisement has important effects on attitude towards brands, too and its effect is comparatively stronger than the effect of celebrity endorser. But the effect of attitude toward celebrity endorser on purchase intention is not considerable. Results of this study demonstrate that attitude towards celebrity endorser has an indirect effect on attitude towards brand. This result confirms outcomes of the previous research by Agarwal and Kamakura (1995), Till and Busler (1998), and W hite et al (2008). When there is a â€Å"fit† between the   European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) endorser and the endorsed product, endorser’s image helps construct the image of the brand in consumers’ minds. In fact, using of an attractive endorser has a positive impact on consumer attitudes towards a brand, because attractive endorsers have a tendency to get more attention than less attractive ones. On the other hand, experience of celebrity’s negative information can have an undesirable effect on the endorsed product. Transfer of negative information between the celebrity endorser and the endorsed product could be facilitated through cognitive relational pathway. We have considered social position of artists because people have more positive attitude towards artists. So, they distribute attitude towards artists to attitude towards endorsed brand. The association between attitude towards celebrity endorser and attitude towards advertisement has been shown in numerous studies, as the relationship between sports celebrity endorsements and retail products’ adverting are reported (White et al, 2008) and sports celebrity endorsements are being used in advertisements to impress brand selection. It is recognized in one study that attitude towards advertisement is considered as an interagent that influences attitude towards brand (Suhere and Ispir, 2009). Results of our study reveal that attitude towards advertisement is as an interagent between attitude towards celebrity and attitude towards brand. In our opinion, Iranians are interested in artists and know them as credible sources. So, ads makers use artists as celebrity to impress viewers’ attitudes towards advertisement and thereupon attitude towards brand. According to previous studies about the effect of the celebrity endorser on purchase intentions, such as Kamins (1990), Ohanian (1991), Liu et al (2007), we expected that positive attitude towards celebrities impressed purchase intentions. But results of this study confirm research outcomes of O’Mahony and Meenaghan (1997). According to this study, attitude towards celebrities does not necessarily always interpret in to purchase intentions. It seems that Iranian’s consumer tendency for buying is influenced by other various items such as age, gender, income and education too. Limitation This study has some limitations. The primary limitation of the present research relates to generalizability. The sample was restricted to students in University of Isfahan and this limits our results to be generalized, too. Another relevant consideration is that numerous girl students in university of Isfahan are more than its boy students. Also, this study relied exclusively on questionnaires to assess influence attitude toward celebrity endorser on attitude toward advertisements and brands, whereas this relationships need to be more investigated. On the other hand, this paper could not estimate effect of attitude toward celebrity endorser on purchase intention. In addition, our results are relational and not causal; therefore, it can not be concluded from this study whether attitude toward advertisement and brand is only cause or result of attitude toward celebrity endorser. Conclusion In this study the goal was to indicate the influence of using celebrity endorsers in Iranian advertisements on attitudes of students in University of Isfahan toward those advertisements and brands. The result of this study showed that the positive and significant relationship between attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward advertisements and brands. By analyzing the output resulting from testing hypotheses, it can be concluded that attitude toward celebrity endorser has directly or indirectly influence on attitude toward brand. Consequences suggested that attitude toward advertisement was as a mediator between attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward brand. On the other hand, attitude toward celebrity endorser hadn’t significant influence on purchase intention. So, future researches should put more effort into making strong believable explanations for how celebrity endorsers are able to have significant influence on consumer intention for purchase. References [1] [2] Agrawal, J. and Kamakura, W.A. 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How the PH changes during a titration experiment Essay

Having a higher concentration of alkali will mean that there will be more molecules closer together for the acid to collide with. This will speed up the reaction as collision theory suggests that molecules have to collide to react and if there are more molecules to collide with the reaction will happen faster as there is a higher chance of a collision. Volume of alkali An increase in volume would mean that the neutralisation would take longer as you would need an equal amount of the same strength acid in order to neutralise it. Furthermore in collision theory if there is a bigger space that the molecules are in then the molecules are less likely to collide which means that the reaction would be slowed. Concentration of the acid Having a higher concentration of acid would like having a higher concentration of the alkali would speed up the reaction. This is because collision theory states that if there are more molecules in a set area there is a higher chance of the molecules colliding with each other which would speed up the reaction. Volume of the acid An increase in the volume of the acid would mean that the reaction would be slowed. This is because you need the same amount of acid and alkali to reach PH 7 or neutral. This is because it would be the same amount just in a larger space reducing collisions. Temperature A higher temperature would mean that the molecules would have more energy this means that when they collide they would collide with enough force to start a reaction off. This speeds up the reaction as the molecules always create the reaction rather than glancing off of each other and not starting a reaction. Presence of a catalyst A catalyst holds one reactant in place so that another can collide with it directly and not glance off of it. This speeds up the reaction as more direct collisions take place. An example of a catalyst is Cobalt in the manufacture of ethanoic acid. The catalyst does not change the products or  get used up in the reaction. Hypothesis Increasing the concentration of the acid will increase the rate of neutralisation during titration. Increasing the concentration of the acid would mean that you would need to use less acid from the burette to neutralise the alkali particles as there would be more acid particles than alkali particles in a set area. I think that the volume of acid needed to reach the point of neutralisation will double from 0.8 to 0.4 and from 0.4 to 0.2. I have chosen to change the concentration of the acid as it will be easier to measure with the equipment we have. Furthermore it will be easier to set up as we have access to different concentrations of the acid such as 0.5 molar and 1 molar concentrations. Indicators Type of Indicator Advantage of Indicator Disadvantage of Indicator Universal Indicator It covers the whole PH scale so we would see how the PH changes during a titration experiment. A disadvantage is that it does not have a clear colour change so we would not be able to tell when it is exactly neutral. Litmus paper Has a definite colour change which we need in a titration experiment. However we could only tell if the solution was acid or alkali so we could not see how the PH changes. Phenolphthalein Has a definite colour change at PH 7 so it is very accurate for titration. It does not tell you whether the solution is acidic or neutral as it is colourless at acid and neutralisation. Methyl Orange Shows if solutions are acids or alkali. No definite end point at neutralisation. A will do a preliminary test with universal indicator to see which if it is accurate and precise in my titration experiment. If not I will use Phenolphthalein, as it has a definite colour change at PH 7, when I test how  changing the concentration of the acid will affect neutralisation. Preliminary Tests Equipment Equipment Why I will use it in my investigation Burette This will let me measure out the acid precisely and accurately unlike a measuring cylinder or beaker. Beaker I will use this as it will stop the alkali from spilling and will contain the alkali easily. Furthermore it is transparent so I can easily see the colour change. White tile I will use a white tile as it will enable me to see the colours much easier than on a tile of another colour such as red or black. Measuring cylinder This will enable me to measure out 25mlá µÅ' of alkali into the conical flask. Funnel A funnel will allow me to pour the acid into the burette without it spilling which will limit safety hazards. Hydrochloric acid 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1.0 molar  50cmá µÅ' for each test. This is the acid that we are allowed to use and the highest concentration we can have is 1 molar to limit risks. Furthermore the school already has 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 and 1.0 molar already made up. Moreover I have picked five equally spaced concentrations because I will need I large range of results to identify a trend which will be easier if I have equally spaced concentrations. Furthermore I have not used over 1M because it is safer. Sodium Hydroxide 1.0 molar 25cmá µÅ' for each test I will use this because it is already made up by the school. Furthermore it will limit risks as it is diluted sodium hydroxide. Burette holder I will use this so the burette does not slip over which could break it or spill acid making the test unrepeatable. Clamp stand I will use this so that I can clamp the burette onto it with the holder. This will stop the burette falling over and keep it upright so the acid flows  properly. Universal Indicator I have chosen to try Universal indicator as it spans the whole PH scale so I will easily be able to judge when it is near PH 7 (Neutral). Preliminary work Method 1. Clear your desk so you have space to conduct the experiment. 2. Gather the equipment on the equipment list. Put on goggles for safety. 3. Attach the burette holder to the clamp stand and attach the burette to the holder. 4. Fill a beaker with water from a tap and fill the burette using the funnel to limit spillages, put the beaker under the burette and remove the funnel. 5. Run the water through the burette into a beaker to get rid of any chemicals left in the burette. 6. Add 50cmá µÅ' hydrochloric acid to your burette using the funnel. 7. Add 25cmá µÅ' of sodium hydroxide to your beaker using the measuring cylinder. 8. Add the universal indicator into the conical flask containing the sodium hydroxide. Mix. 9. Slowly add small amounts of the acid into the conical flask from the burette. Stop occasionally to mix the acid and alkali together. Repeat until the solution goes grass green. 10. Measure the amount of acid used on the burette record it. 11. Repeat steps 5-10 for all solu tions. Burette This will let me measure out the acid precisely and accurately unlike a measuring cylinder or beaker. Conical flask I will use this as it will stop the alkali from spilling much more effectively than a beaker and will contain the alkali easily. Furthermore it is see through so I can easily see the colour change. Moreover it is easier to agitate the solution. White tile I will use a white tile as it will enable me to see the colours much easier than on a tile of another colour such as red or black. Precise pipette/syringe This will enable me to measure out 25mlá µÅ' of alkali into the conical flask much more accurately than a measuring cylinder could. Funnel A funnel will allow me to pour the acid into the burette without it spilling which will limit safety hazards. Hydrochloric acid 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1.0 molar 50cmá µÅ' for each test. This is the acid that we are allowed to use and the highest concentration we can have is 1 molar to limit risks. Furthermore the school already has 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 and 1.0 molar already made up. Sodium Hydroxide 1.0 molar Method 1. Clear your desk so you have space to conduct the experiment. 2. Gather the equipment on the equipment list. Put on goggles for safety. 3. Attach the burette holder to the clamp stand and attach the burette to the holder. So that it does not tilt or fall over to increase the accuracy of the results 4. Fill a beaker with distilled water from a bottle as the water is purified and fill the burette using the funnel to limit spillages, put the conical flask under the burette and remove the funnel. 5. Run the water through the burette into a beaker to get rid of any chemicals left in the burette. This will stop cross-contamination. 6. Add 50cmá µÅ' hydrochloric acid starting at 0.2 and working up through the concentrations so that there is no need to keep washing the burette out which would change the concentration and decrease the accuracy to your burette using the funnel. Remove the funnel to ensure no extra drops of hydrochloric acid drop into the burette to make the results more acc urate. 7. Add 25cmá µÅ' of sodium hydroxide to your conical flask using the glass pipette for precision. The conical flask will stop the alkali spilling out or splashing. It is also much easier to mix the alkali and acid during the experiment. 8. Add the Phenolphthalein into the conical flask containing the sodium hydroxide. Mix thoroughly in a clockwise direction. 9. Slowly add small amounts of the acid into the conical flask from the burette. Stop occasionally to mix the acid and alkali together. Repeat until the solution goes transparent. 10. Measure the amount of acid used on the burette and record it. Make sure that you are on the same height as the measurement so that you do not read it wrong as this will decrease accuracy. 11. Repeat steps 5-10 for all solutions of acid. Evaluation Equipment Improvements that could be made to our method Our equipment was not completely perfect and we had a few problems with some of it. The first problem we noticed was that the burette tilted forward and off to one side because the burette holder did not hold the burette upright however we had no other holders. This could have meant that the liquid flowed in a different way to if it had been straight. This may mean that the repeatability of our experiment is limited as our results may be because of this tilt. Moreover this tilt could have meant that our measuring of the acid and also our reading of the measurements could have been inaccurate as the liquid would have been deeper on one side of the burette. Therefore if I repeated this experiment I would use a burette holder that gripped directly upright so that I could have had a more accurate measurement of the volume of acid inside the burette at the start of our experiment. Another problem was that the end of the burette was chipped. Although it did not change the measuring of the liquid or the turning of the valve it could have displaced the hydrochloric acid differently to a burette which did not have the chip. This could have lowered the accuracy and reliability of my experiment. I increase the repeatability of my results I would have used a burette without a chip as this would have stopped the acid displacing differently to another burette. Evaporation of our solutions was also a problem. During our 0.2 molar tests we had to stop part way through due to the lesson timings. It was damp so the heating was on. This could have made some of our solution evaporate which could have caused inaccuracies with our results because the amount of acid in the burette and amount of alkali in the conical flask would have been less than we had thought. Moreover the temperature of the room fluctuated meaning that there could have been a faster reaction as collision theory suggests that temperature speeds up or slows down particles, Therefore our results could also be unrepeatable as our other tests would have different amounts of acid and alkali. Furthermore the reaction may have happened faster or slower as the particles would be moving around and colliding more at higher temperatures. If I were to repeat this experiment I would have used a laboratory which had no heating or a controlled heating system to avoid temperature fluctuations. I would have also done the trials  all in one go so that my solutions did not evaporate. We also ran out of our original solution of 0.2 molar hydrochloric acid so we had to make more. This second solution may have had a slightly different concentration to the first. Moreover this would have lowered reliability because the results would have been changed because of this. Therefore at the start of our experiment we could have diluted a larger quantity of hydrochloric acid so that the solution would have stayed at the exact same concentration throughout the experiment. This would have made our results more repeatable as the range bars on my graph could have been much smaller. Human error could also have changed some of our results. Washing out and drying our equipment like conical flasks each time could have left drops of water or the previous solution in them. This would have lowered our concentration or cross-contaminated our solutions. This could mean that our results were not accurate as either the alkali already had been cross-contaminated by the acid or the alkali could have been at a lower concentration than the 1 molar that it should have been. To stop this we could have used a dishwasher to wash out our conical flasks and beakers. This would mean that the glasses would have been thoroughly washed and dried properly as the dishwasher would have evaporated all of the liquid moisture left in the conical flasks and beakers. Positive aspects of our method One good thing about our method was that we removed the funnel after pouring the hydrochloric acid into the burette every time. This would have made our results more accurate as after getting 50cmá µÅ' in the burette no more acid dripped in. Therefore we were always starting at exactly 50cmá µÅ' rather than 50.1cmá µÅ' or 50.2cmá µÅ'. Another aspect of our method that was good was that we got down to eye level to measure out the acid and alkali and also to see how much acid was actually used. This made our results more accurate as we did not read of the results from above or below the line which would have made our results seem lower or higher respectively. The biggest positive part of our method was that we got very good results, apart from one outlier, without anyone getting injured. This shows that my risk assessment worked as we avoided the hazards such as the possibility of the glassware breaking and the sodium hydroxide which was corrosive. Moreover, as our results were very close to the line of best fit and had very small range bars, our results seemed both accurate with a high repeatability. Therefore, overall, our method worked well. Evaluation of Results Our results were, on the whole, very good and supported my hypothesis that increasing the concentration of the acid will increase the rate of reaction. I am very pleased with my results as they were all very close to my line of best fit showing me that they were all accurate. Moreover, as my range bars are very small on all my results with the smallest range being 0.4cmá µÅ' and the largest being only 1.8cmá µÅ', they show that our results have a high level of repeatability. However it is possible that we had one outlier. Even though the line of best line still ran close to the result it increased our range bar for the 0.2 molar tests from 1.5cmá µÅ' to 2.4cmá µÅ'. Moreover the result seemed very low at only 109.6cmá µÅ' when we did the 0.4molar tests as our average for that was 56.4cmá µÅ' and as we were doubling the concentration the rate of neutralisation should have also doubled. Therefore we decided to repeat this test just in case and got 110.5cmá µÅ' which was closer to the rest of the results and seemed to be closer to our line of best fit. Our outlier may have happened for several reasons. One is that we measured out a new batch of hydrochloric acid after doing this trial. This new batch could have been a different concentration to the original batch and therefore could have had a different rate of neutralisation. Another reason could be that the first batch had been cross-contaminated before we started the experiment. This may mean that the neutralisation took less time to complete as there was already some acid in the conical flask so the neutralisation process had already begun. The equipment not being washed,  by a previous group, could have been another reason for the outlier. If the conical flask had not been washed out there could have being cross-contaminated from a previous titration. On the other hand there may have being some water left in the flask which would have reduced the concentration of the sodium hydroxide. This would have increased the rate of reaction as there would have been less alkali particles for the acid to neutralise and react with.

The Portrait of Medieval Social Classes as Presented in the General Prologue to Geoffrey Chaucer’s the Canterbury Tales

The General Prologue fulfils two functions: it tells the story of how the tales came to be told, and it introduces the tellers. There are about thirty pilgrims travelling to Canterbury to pray to the holy blissful martyr- St. Thomas of Becket. These characters can be considered the portrait of the whole Middle English society. All the pilgrims can be divided into particular hierarchic structure of classes. The simplest division of society was into three estates: those who fight, those who pray, and those who labour, typified by the Knight, the Parson and the Plowman.Women were often treated as an estate to themselves. The basic tripartite division of society, for instance, is reflected in Chaucer’s making his Knight, Parson and Plowman the three ideal characters on the pilgrimage- along with the Clerk to stand for those who learn and teach. However, I have to admit that this division is not so obvious, which I explained below. ‘Chaucer starts the introduction of pilgrims with the highest-ranking layman, the Knight, with his entourage, and continues with the highest-ranking ecclesiastics, the Prioress and the Monk.The Merchant, Clerk, Sergeant of Law, and Franklin who follow were regarded more or less as social equals, and various other representatives of the middle classes, most of them keen to push themselves up the social ladder, follow in somewhat haphazard order. The Summoner and Pardoner are social and moral misfits in almost every sense, with no obvious place either in a class hierarchy or in the ‘common weal’, society as a system of mutual support’ (Helen Cooper, Oxford Guides to Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales, Oxford University Press, 1996).According to Helen Cooper, the basic organization then is by rank, but with some telling exceptions and some haphazardness: society is not an ordered hierarchy, not least because the people who compose it are reluctant to stay in their places. The Knight and Squire represent very diffe rent types, and functions, of chivalry. The Monk is described in terms that make him a different kind of antitype to the Knight, and the attributes that might be expected of each are exchanged: it is the Monk who hunts and loves good food and clothes, while the Knight is ascetic who has devoted his life to service of Christ (cf. Oxford Guides to Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales, Oxford University Press, 1996). If there is a certain logic in the order of the pilgrims, however, the content of the individual portraits shows a constant variation. The stress can fall on appearance, past life, the pilgrim’s own voice or self-image, moral probity, or tastes and priorities. The estates structure suggest that the pilgrims will be defined by their work, but while many of the portraits adopt an appropriate language, only few show their subject doing what his or her office requires.In my work I will describe and submit every character and then summary the portrait of the class as a whole, a nd finally, in the summary I will put forward the whole portrait of society as a whole by summing up the features of each social class. Chivalry Chivalry was undoubtedly the most important of social classes in middle ages. They fought for the king, his kingdom and the religion. Chivalry is also nowadays considered as a pattern of behaviour of ideal man: he has to be brave, gentle for ladies and honourable; he also has to be ready to die for his beliefs.There are three characters representing this class in The General Prologue. These are the Knight, the Squire, and the Yeoman. The Knight is described by Chaucer with respect and honour. Chaucer does not use any irony or satire in the description of the Knight; the irony is reserved to those who fall short of the standard of perfection he sets. The function of the Knight was to fight; but throughout Christian history, and increasingly in the late fourteenth century, there was a profound unease at the thought of Christian fighting Chris tian.The wars that were held in the highest esteem were those fought in the cause of God, against the infidel. ‘The knight is not only a fighter: he is that most honoured of warriors, a Crusader’ (Helen Cooper, Oxford Guides to Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales, Oxford University Press, 1996). He participated in many wars against Muslims in Spain, North Africa, and the Near East; and pagans around the Baltic. The Knight’s portrait differs from those of most of the other pilgrims in several respects. He is described rather in terms of moral attributes than physical appearance.It reinforces the sense of his asceticism, his devotion more to God than to things of the world. He is also described in terms of what other people think of him: he is ‘evere honoured for his worthynesse’, set ‘aboven alle nacions’ at the table of honour, ‘everemoore he hadde a sovereyn prys’ (op. cit. ‘The General Prologue’, The Canterbury Tale s, Geoffrey Chaucer; lines 50, 53, 67). It is a portrait of ideal Christian knighthood. Almost every pilgrim has some particular object of desire, that the Knight’s should be: ‘Trouthe and honour, freedom and curteisie’ (op. it. line 46). The Knight is considered perfect by Chaucer. He is modest as a maid, he is devoted to God more than any of the characters representing clergy. He sometimes fought on the side of Muslims, but only if they fought against other Muslims; he had never fought against Christians. Despite of his valorous deeds, the knight never boasted of his actions, nor bored his listeners. The Squire would be a candidate for knighthood. He is young, probably in his twenties. He is a son of the Knight. When not in battle, he thinks of himself as a quite a lady’s man.He takes meticulous care of his appearance. He could also sing lusty songs, compose melodies, write poetry, and ride a horse with distinction. He also has all the other proper attri butes to go with his being a young lover: a fine figure, a dashing military career, and all the courtly accomplishments considered those times as being appropriate for winning one’s lady. According to Helen Cooper, the Squire is the iconographic image of young love and its month of May (op. cit. line 92), for the month was often presented as fashionable and gaily dressed youth on horseback.Chaucer does not quite offer us the Squire at his own valuation- a total failure to sleep on account of love has an affectionate touch of the ridiculous about it, as well as the hyperbolic, but the ‘fresshe floures’ embroidered on his clothes, and his associations with the spring with sleepless birds make Squire a ‘courtly version of the lifetime of spring’ (cf. Oxford Guides to Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales, Oxford University Press, 1996). The Squire is not only young, strong, and in love; he is courteous, eager to server, and in all respects perfect of his type, however different from his father’s type.The Yeoman was a servant of the Knight and Squire. He was known as an expert woodsman and an excellent archer. A knight held a position in society that had to be visibly maintained, by the presence of at least a minimal retinue. The Yeoman is the servant he brings apart from the Squire, a modesty of display that Chaucer comments in lines 100-101 (op. cit. ). One would expect a Yeoman in the company of such a Knight to be a military figure, a longbowman; by the addition of green clothes and the hunting-horn, Chaucer defines him more closely, as a forester.A forester could be anything from a senior administrative official to a gamekeeper: the Yeoman’s knowledge of ‘wodecraft’ shows him to be one of the more practical kind. ‘The Yeoman is not a standard figure in estates literature, but Chaucer creates and iconography for him as effectively as he recreates the conventional images of the Squire. Whether the Yeoman really needs his bow, peacock, arrows, and horn on a pilgrimage is less important than the way they serve to define him.His excellence as a yeoman is summed up in the neologism Chaucer creates for him, yemanly’ (Helen Cooper, Oxford Guides to Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales, Oxford University Press, 1996). To summarize, the chivalry social class representatives are shown as brave men, skilful in battle, famous for their deeds, ready to die for their beliefs; servants of their lords and masters. The chivalry participates in wars and is appreciated by the rest of community for its strength, honour, fame, and modesty. Priesthood The priesthood is in the middle class of medieval social hierarchy.Chaucer uses a lot of satire and irony as he describes members of this estate in The General Prologue. Members of this social class who participate in the pilgrimage are the Prioress, the Monk, the Friar, the Summoner, the Parson, and the Pardoner. Descriptions of these characters are much more abundant in satire and irony than any other. The Prioress was a head of monastery. She was rather well educated, even though her French was not the accepted Parisian French. She was very coy and delicate. When she ate, she took great care for her table manners. She was very courteous and amiable and tried to imitate the manners of the court.She had three small hounds with her which she treated very gently and tenderly. Her dress was very neat and tidy and she wore a gold brooch with the inscription ‘amor vincit omnia’. ‘Chaucer’s description of the Prioress is filled with gentle and subtle irony. Here is a picture of a lady who happens to be a nun, but she never forgets that she is a lady first. Her oath, ‘by Sainte Loy’ implies that she has chosen the most fashionable and handsome saint who was also famous for his great courtesy’ (Bruce Nicoll, The Canterbury Tales notes, Coles Notes, 1992). She emphasis on her appearance.The Monk ’s description simply seems to had been ‘swapped’ with the stereotypical description of a knight. The Knight is described as the man who devoted his life to God, and the Monk is called ‘a manly man’ by Chaucer, which means his portrait is that of a country gentleman. The Monk is interested in women (on the way which he should not be, regarding to his profession), wearing expensive clothes and jewellery, he likes hunting. He is not modest. He does all these things although his monastic orders ban him to behave this way. He is supposed to be a beggar and own no goods.In description of the Monk, According to Helen Cooper, Chaucer introduces the materials of antimonastic satire: the good living, his failure to keep within the cloister, his approval of secular offices for religious (op. cit. line 187), and his hunting. But it is he himself, not a satirist, who relays all the standard texts and aphorisms on the ills of such life; and he then dismisses them by reference to those items of food- oysters (a cheap dish), plucked hens- that fall well below his favourite diet of roast swan (cf. Oxford Guides to Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales, Oxford University Press, 1996).The Monk clearly breaks his vows of poverty, obedience to his rule and ‘stability’, staying within his monastery. The Friar, like the Prioress, is described by Chaucer with a set of epithets and attributes that in other circumstances might be complimentary; he is ‘worthy’ like the Knight, and ‘curteis’ and ‘lowely of servyse’ like the Squire (op. cit. lines 99, 250). But his worthiness shows itself in his refusal to fulfil the basic function of his calling, the relief of the diseased and the outcast. The Friar was hobnobbing with the local franklins and surpassing the Monk in being not just like a ‘prelaat’ but like a pope (op. it. line 261). The Friar is the first of the pilgrims who explicitly sets the mone y above God. Destitute widows are the objects not of his charity but of his greed. ‘Over twenty lines of his portrait are devoted to his skill in extracting money; seven more go to his dubious relationships with young women, fair wives, and the barmaids. ’ (Helen Cooper, Oxford Guides to Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales) Yet there is no doubt that all such things make the Friar socially attractive: the whole emphasis of the portrait falls on the busyness of his social life, on taverns and love-days, on all the people with whom he is on good terms.The Summoner was a man paid to summon sinners for a trial before a church court. He had a fire-red complexion, pimples and boils, a scaly infection around the eyebrows, and a moth-eaten beard. ‘He treats his sores as leprosy. To make matters worse, he loved to eat garlic, onions, leeks, and drink strong wine. He could quote a few lines of Latin which he was using to impress people. Chaucer calls him a gentil harlot and impli es it would be difficult to find a better fellow, because for a bottle of wine, the Summoner would often turn his back and let sinner to continue living in sin. He was also well acquainted with ladies of questionable reputation’ (Bruce Nicoll, The Canterbury Tales notes, Coles Notes, 1992). According to Bruce Nicoll, the Summoner’s physical appearance fits to his profession well. He is so ugly and gruesome looking that a summons from him is in itself a horrible experience. Thus, Chaucer ironically implies that he is a good fellow. But furthermore, he is a good fellow because sinners could easily bribe him (Bruce Nicoll, The Canterbury Tales notes, Coles Notes, 1992).The Parson is the only one of the churchmen shown by Chaucer that we can call competent and fair. Although he was very poor, he would rather give his own scarce money to his poor parishioners than demand tithes from them. His principle was to live the perfect life first, and then to teach it. His life was a perfect example of true Christian priest, and by his good example, he taught but first followed it himself. Among the other churchmen described in The General Prologue, the Parson stands out as the ideal portrait of what parish priest should be. He is the ideal Christian man.The Pardoner was a church official who had authority from Rome to sell pardons and indulgences to those charged with sins. He had just returned from Rome with bagful of pardons which he planned to sell to the ignorant at great profit to himself. He had a loud, high-pitched voice, yellow, flowing hair. He was beardless. ‘There was no one so good at his profession as was this Pardoner’ (Bruce Nicoll, The Canterbury Tales notes, Coles Notes, 1992). The pardoner seems to be the most corrupted of the churchmen. In the prologue to his tale, he confesses to his hypocrisy.The Priesthood class is widely criticised by Chaucer. The Prioress pays more attention to her manners than to the substance of her calli ng. The Monk cares nothing for the rules of his order, the Friar sets money above God. The Summoner and the Pardoner are corrupted. There is only the Parson to fulfil his duties well. He is that good shepherd to care for his sheep. He is the ideal set in the minority of the clergy. The other churchmen described by Chaucer are focused more on their own ‘business’ than on their mission given by the Catholic church.These characters (excluding the Parson) may be called hypocrites. Higher bourgeoisie Higher bourgeoisie is the class of rich and/or well-educated townsmen and landlords who are not noblemen. The representatives of this class are, as follows: the Merchant, the Clerk, the Sergeant of Law, the Franklin, the Doctor of Physic, and the Reeve. The Merchant is anonymous, ‘I noot how men hym calle’ (op. cit. line 284). He has a forked beard and a beaver hat that reveals his wealth. He talks about his occupation and the risks connected with working as a merch ant.According to Helen Cooper, the merchant, like the Knight and Squire, has his own areas of contemporary campaign (cf. Oxford Guides to Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales, Oxford University Press, 1996). Chaucer has mentioned something about the debt of the Merchant in his description, but we are not sure whether the debt is still unpaid or the Merchant had dealt with it before. The Clerk is a student of what would nowadays be considered philosophy or theology. He is introduced as a diligent person who has a wide connection of books.He is portrayed as a perfect example of a scholar. He has a bachelor degree and is totally devoted to logic. As a subtext to this portrait, there is an opposite description of less ideal clerks: those who would treat education as a pathway to well-paid office, who would prefer expensive clothes and music-making to the books for which the Clerk longs. The Sergeant of Law is a lawyer whose main focus is to make money. His legal knowledge and skill in ‘p urchasying’ land is apparently used primarily for himself as a purchaser.Chaucer uses a lot of law terms in his description of the Sergeant of Law, but no such word as ‘justice’ appears. The Franklin is the only pilgrim to be involved in running the society. He and the Sergeant of Law are partners in graft. He is a landowner, however he is not a noble. He did not inherit his wealth and he is not a ‘nouveau riche’. The Franklin accepts all the duties and responsibilities that go with his position: he has held the office of knight of the shire, sheriff, auditor, and justice of the peace.There is no a single word from Chaucer that would criticise the way that the Franklin fulfils his duties. The Franklin has a white beard. As Helen Cooper noticed, his love differs from the Knight’s chivalry or the Squire’s ladies, the Franklin loves his morning snack of bread in wine; thus the vocabulary used in his description is gastronomic (cf. Oxford G uides to Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales, Oxford University Press, 1996). Moreover, the Franklin also shares his food with other people. That makes him a perfect landlord.The Doctor of Physic is trained in medicine, astronomy and astrology. He could quote all the medical authorities, but he knew nothing of the Bible. He had made a lot of money during the plague. He has a special love for gold, since he prescribes this metal for cures. The Reeve managed a large estate. He was skinny and bad-tempered. He had a close cut beard and short haircut. His subordinates were afraid of him because of his unrelenting preservance. Similarly to the mentioned later Manciple, he had reaped profits for himself by being clever at buying.The higher bourgeoisie class representatives are shown by Chaucer as people who are greedy (the Manciple, the Doctor of Physic, the Reeve, the Sergeant of Law, the Merchant, the imperfect clerks described in the description of the ideal Clerk), filled with temptation ( t he Franklin) and devoted to their passion (the Clerk, the Reeve). This social class is not criticised so sharply as the clergy. Most of them are fair in their work, some of them are simply perfect (the Clerk, the Franklin), on the other hand some of them cheat (the Reeve).They all want to gain something that make other people consider them ‘upper class’. Bourgeoisie Bourgeoisie are simply the townsmen who are neither that rich nor that well-educated as the people from the class I named ‘higher bourgeoisie’. They are simple people who live and work in town. They are ordinary people and second most numerous class of the middle ages in Europe. The representatives of this class are, as follows: the Guildsmen, the Wife of Bath, the Manciple, the Cook, the Shipman, the Miller, and the Host.The Guildsmen are five craftsmen (four clothworkers and the Carpenter) who belong to a single parish guild. The portrait of the Guildsmen is largely devoted to their anxiety to impress others by climbing on the social class hierarchy ladder; their knives are decorated with silver chasing, which is inappropriate for their social class, because such ornament was reserved for gentry (lower nobility class members). The Guildsmen sit on dais in a guildhall and fulfil their professional obligations. They want to be aldermen and they are improving their qualifications day by day. They work fairly and hard.Unfortunately, the Guildsmen are being corrupted by their wives, who want them to get promoted and advanced in social hierarchy, or at least pretend so. They wish to be accorded the superior title of ‘madame’. Wives of the Guildsmen want to behave ‘roialliche’ and be treated as higher class members and force them to participate in some kind of what nowadays would refer to as a ‘rat race’. The Wife of Bath was an excellent seamstress and weaver. She has been married five times and been on many outland pilgrimages: to Rome, to Bologna, to Jerusalem, to Galice, and to Cologne.Her special talent was her knowledge of all the remedies of love. She was deaf a little. She always was first at the altar or offering in church. The Manciple was a steward for a law school in London. His duty was to buy the food. He was not as learned as the lawyers, but he was smart enough that he had been able to put aside a little sum for himself from every transaction. The Cook in The General Prologue is only defined by his professional skill. He works for the Guildsmen. He has a notorious running sore on his leg.We do not know much more about him from the description in the prologue. The Shipman was the master of vessel and an expert of navigation who knew all the ports from the Atlantic to the North Sea. He was a huge and uncouth man. He could not ride horse well, but no one was a better sailor. Nevertheless, according to Jill Mann, the Shipman had bad habits of thievery, piracy, and mass murder (Chaucer and Medieval Estates Satire: The Literature of Social Classes and The General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales, Cambridge, 1973). The Miller was a stubborn and strong man.His strength would let him outwrestle any man. He had red beard and a wart on his nose. He played the bagpipes as the pilgrims left the town. He had a tendency for thievery. The Host was the leader of the pilgrimage party and the host of the Tabard Inn. His name is Harry Bailey. He was loud, large and merry, although he possesses a quick temper. He was liked by the pilgrims. Members of the bourgeoisie want to get socially promoted and try to do all the things necessary to achieve this promotion (the best example of this is the behaviour of the Wife of Bath).They focus on making money. Some of them, as the Guildsmen, work hard to improve their social and material status, others, as the Miller and the Manciple, prefer continuous small acts of thievery to enrich. Some of them commit more serious crimes, as does the Shipman. All of them a re working hard in their profession and are determined to achieve their destination, one way or another. Peasants Peasants are the lowest social class of middle ages. They are hard-working and poor. Their professions are connected with agriculture. There is only ne representative of this social class appearing in The General Prologue- the Plowman. The Plowman is a small tenant farmer who lives in a perfect peace and charity. He loves God with all his heart. He is always honest with his neighbours. He regularly pays his tithes to the church. He is a brother of the Parson, and so, they are equally good-hearted. The Plowman, unlike most of the pilgrims, is happy with his position in society. He wears his humble tabard which is appropriate for his rank and never tries to be someone else than he really is.The portrait of the only character of peasant class introduced to us by Chaucer lead us to conclusion that peasants are the poorest and the lowest social class of middle ages, but also the most hard-working and morally good people. In my opinion, the Plowman in his morality can be compared to the Knight, although their material and social statuses completely differ. Summary The division of society portrayed by Chaucer is not obvious. In this work I have introduced the division into social classes by the social position, profession and, wealth and education level of each character.I think that Chaucer demonstrates his audience that class order and moral order are two different things. Members of the chivalry and the peasant class are on top and the bottom of the hierarchy. Despite of this fact, in some aspects the knighthood characters and the Plowman are equal. They are all modest, hard-working, truly devoted to god, fair to other people and proud of their position. If we exclude these two classes from the hierarchy, there appears the conclusion that the higher social class character belongs to, the richer, the more educated, and the morally worse it is.The social class portrayed by Chaucer as the most corrupted is clergy. Those who should prevent people from sin appear to be the biggest sinners. We can see that the more powerful and richer people become, the bigger sinners they are. The classes described as these of best morality are chivalry and peasants. Every class has its exceptional ideal representative: chivalry- the Knight, clergy- the Parson, bourgeoisie (as one class with higher bourgeoisie)- the Clerk. These characters are patterns of ideal behaviour for all the members of their classes.By this phenomena, Chaucer shows that there is no class that is totally corrupted- there is always someone who fulfils his duties perfectly. To sum up, the clergy is shown as a class of people who abuse their position for private profits; the bourgeoisie members are only wishing to make more and more money and advance their social status; the chivalry and peasants are happy with their position, neither the Knight, nor the Plowman can be promoted to upper class. The difference is- the Knight, unlike the Plowman, is socially appreciated and respected.Those days your origin and social class membership was the most important part of social life. So, there is no wonder why people from middle classes wanted to be promoted and were ready to do anything to achieve that, on fair or unfair way. Although the portrait of medieval social classes is a little ironical and satirical (and still may appear a literary fiction), I think that it is very likely that it is possibly a complete description of the actual English community in Middle Ages.