Benihana Company Essay Example for Free

Benihana Company Essay Helping our guests feel welcome is as important as our cooking. And it is just as great a skill. Ever striving for excellence in hospitality, it is truly our restaurant family who has built Benihanas success. Company History: Benihana, Inc. owns and licenses restaurants in the Benihana and Benihana Grill chain of Japanese dinnerhouses. The restaurants specialize in an exhibition-style of Japanese cooking called teppanyaki. Customers sit around a communal table at which a Benihana chef slices their seafood, steak, chicken, and vegetables with lightning speed, grills their meal right in front of them, and then tosses it accurately onto their plates. The restaurants are decorated with Samurai armor and valuable art, and Shoji rice paper screens partition the dining areas. For the fiscal year ending March 31, 1996, the company had sales of over $81 million, an all-time high. By December 1996, Benihana operated a total of 49 licensed and wholly owned restaurants in 20 states as well as in Bogota, Columbia, and Aruba, Netherlands Antilles. Early History, from Tokyo to New York The founder of Benihana, Inc. was a 25-year-old Olympic wrestler from Japan named Hiroaki Rocky Aoki. He got his start in the restaurant business by working after school in his familys coffee shop in downtown Tokyo. His mother named the family business Benihana after a red flower that survived the bombing of Tokyo during World War II. Rocky was a scrapper, defending himself in the streets and schoolyards against bigger boys. He got hooked on wrestling, became a national university champion, and earned a place on the 1960 Olympic team. Although he didnt compete because he was over his weight limit, he did fall in love with New York when the plane stopped there on the way to the Games in Rome. That fall he left Japan for the United States. In 1964, Aoki graduated from New York Community Colleges School of Hotel and Restaurant Management. During the summer he earned money driving the only ice cream truck in Harlem. The job was not easy, as he explained in an article in Management Review. Every time I robbed, I get up earlier the next day and work later to make up. Every time I lose money, I get more challenge. With that philosophy, he managed to save $10,000 during the summer, which, along with a loan, was enough to start his first restaurant, Benihana of Tokyo. Aokis concept for his new restaurant, derived from specialty restaurants he knew of in Japan, was part entertainment and part food service. He wanted to offer Americans food they were familiar with, such as chicken, steak, and shrimp, prepared in a novel setting. He chose the teppanyaki tablea stainless steel grill surrounded by a wooden eating surfacewhere customers could watch a knife-wielding, joke-telling chef prepare and serve their food. His parents and brothers came from Japan to help him get started. Unfortunately, New Yorkers equated Japanese food with raw fish and werent comfortable sitting at a table with strangers. They ignored the midtown Manhattan eatery until the restaurant critic of the New York Herald Tribune gave it a glowing review. Suddenly, everyone in New York, including the Beatles and Muhammad Ali, wanted to sit around one of Benihana of Tokyos four teppanyaki tables. Within six months after the review the restaurant had paid for itself, and Aoki quickly opened another restaurant in a larger, fancier building. The new location provided the same teppanyaki-style cooking but was decorated with valuable art, Samurai armor, heavy wooden ceiling beams brought from Japan by Aokis father, and sliding Shoji screens to provide some privacy. 1965-80: Building a Company The Benihana concept combined reasonable prices with good food, and, by preparing what was eaten right at the table, held waste to a minimum. Profits were good, and, in 1968, Aoki opened his first Benihana of Tokyo outside New York Cityin downtown Chicago. That location made $700,000 in its first year and continued to be one of the companys top earning outlets. Between 1969 and 1972, the company opened six more of its own restaurants and licensed franchisees to open another ten. In a joint venture with the Las Vegas Hilton, the company developed Benihana Village, a 38,000-square-foot complex of restaurants, bars, and other entertainment venues. In 1972, the company grossed $12 million and the Harvard Business School selected Benihana of Tokyo as a case study of an entrepreneurial success story. With business going so well, Rocky Aoki could devote time to his other interests which included racing balloons and powerboats, collecting items ranging from vintage cars to slot machines and learning backgammon. Rocky wanted to play, Joel Schwartz, the companys president, explained in a 1989 Forbes article. To help oversee the chains operations and expansion, Aoki brought in a management company, Hardwicke Cos., as a partner in 1976. The relationship lasted only four years and, in 1980, Aoki ended the partnership, paying $3.7 million to break the contract. As Rod Willis of Management Review explained in a 1986 article, He [Aoki] felt the companys management style clashed with his predominately Oriental workforce, and he wanted to maintain control over each restaurants quality. The following year Aoki settled, without admitting any guilt, a Securities and Exchange Commission charge that he had improperly traded in Hardwicke stock while serving as vice-president of Hardwicke. The 1980s: Ups and Downs To help pay off the debt incurred in the split with Hardwicke, Aoki decided to take part of the company public. He accomplished this by having Benihana of Tokyo (BOT) form Benihana National Corporation (BNC) in 1982 and then taking the latter company public the following year. Investors paid the Miami-based BNC $11 for a unit consisting of two common shares and a warrant to buy another at $6. With the $5.5 million raised by selling half a million of these units, BNC bought 11 restaurants from Aoki in exchange for 60 percent of the BNC common stock and $2.5 million to pay BOTs debt. Later in the year, BNC bought another three restaurants from BOT for $7 million. In spite of the new corporate structure, Benihana of Tokyo and Benihana National Corporation remained under the management of the same group of executives. As corporate president, Joel Schwartz continued to oversee the day to day operation of both companies. Aoki, who served as chairman of both entities, retained 51 percent of the common stock in BNC and kept about 30 restaurants in the privately held BOT. Aoki developed new concepts for the Benihana food chain but he also continued to play hard, becoming a championship-level backgammon player and setting a world record in off-shore powerboat racing. The Double Eagle V, a 400,000 cubic-foot gas balloon, displayed the Benihana logo as it became the first crewed balloon to successfully cross the Pacific Ocean, with Aoki as one of the crew members. One of Aokis new concepts was Benihana National Classics, a line of Chinese gourmet frozen foods, introduced in 1984 and sold in supermarkets. Chinese cuisine was chosen when the company found that Japanese food didnt freeze well. Within a year the Classics were the best-selling Oriental frozen foods in the United States, with sales in one quarter alone reaching more than $40 million and profits climbing to over $4 million. The companys stock took off, going as high as $21.50 in 1985. In December of that year, Restaurant and Institution magazine named Benihana of Tokyo the most popular family-style restaurant in America. At that time, Benihana of Tokyo and Benihana National together operated or franchised restaurants in 60 locations, from Seattle to New Jersey, serving a total of 25,000 customers a day. Benihana Nationals frozen food success quickly attracted the attention of major food companies. When Campbell Soup and Stouffers began offering their own lines of Oriental frozen foods, however, Benihana couldnt compete. The company lost $11 million on frozen foods between 1985 and 1987 and finally sold the business, for $4.5 million, to the small company that had been producing the dinners for them. Frozen food, however, was not Aokis only new idea. In 1985, Benihana National opened its first seafood restaurant, The Big Splash, just north of Miami. Aoki believed the sea would be the primary supplier of food in the future, and, borrowing an idea from a Malaysian fish market, came up with the concept of a seafood marketplace/restaurant. Customers could choose from hundreds of varieties of fresh seafood, decide how they wanted it cooked, and watch it being prepared. The idea was so popular initially that a second Big Splash was opened. The seafood restaurants soon experienced difficulty, however, registering losses of $2.7 million during 1987. The wide variety of options ran completely counter to the tight focus and minimal waste of the Benihana steakhouses. At the Miami location, the majority of customers were retirees who resented the high prices and preferred to eat fish they were familiar with. All we sold was salmon and red snapper, Aoki told Eric Schmukler in a March 1989 Forbes article. The company closed its Big Splash outlets in March 1988. The 1988 fiscal year was a hard one for Benihana, as the company recorded a loss of nearly $7 million. Despite the companys financial problems with Classics and Big Splash, the Benihana restaurants themselves were still popular. By the end of fiscal 1989, the publicly owned Benihana National Corp. reported profits of some $1.8 million on sales of $34 million at its 20 restaurants, with Aokis privately-held Benihana of Tokyo taking in similar revenues. 1990-94: Making a Turnaround Rocky Aoki kicked off the new decade by opening a gallery in one of the Miami Benihana restaurants to display a portion of what was becoming known in the art world as the Rocky Aoki Collection. Having spent more than a year consolidating his diverse collections, Aoki told Antiques Collecting, I think its a natural to have a gallery here. More than 90,000 people eat in this restaurant every year; why not provide them with something beautiful to look at, not to mention buy, if they so desire. In a 300-square-foot space that had been the restaurants gift shop, diners could view etchings by Icarts, lamps by Tiffany and Handel, and bronzes by Remington. The publicity about Aokis collection helped generate business for the restaurant, and overall company revenues continued to grow. Profits, however, were less than a million dollars a year, and BNC stock fell below $1 a share. Angry at the situation, some shareholders sued. As Marilyn Alva reported in a 1992 Restaurant Business article, the shareholders claimed Aoki and his management team were in a conflict of interest by managing the two companies. The complainants further maintained that Benihana management had misappropriated the assets of Benihana National Corporation, passing them through Benihana of Tokyo for their personal benefit. The shareholders, however, were ultimately unsuccessful in trying to take control of the company away from Aoki. Meanwhile, Benihana management took advantage of a health-conscious American publics growing interest in Japanese food and entertainment. With the tag line, We have been the restaurant of the 90s since the 60s, Aoki and Schwartz instituted a major advertising campaign stressing the fact that Benihana had always offered healthful food. Soon afterwards, in 1993, the Atlanta Benihana of Tokyo restaurant added an 18-seat sushi bar and 35-seat Karaoke dining room to draw more customers on weekday nights. Despite the higher labor and food costs associated with sushi, the company reported an increase in beverage sales, and a lot of sampling of the $.99 sushi pieces by people waiting to eat at the traditional teppanyaki tables. Learning from its experience a decade earlier, in 1994 Benihana National Corp. decided to get into the frozen food business again. This time, however, by entering into a licensing agreement with Campbell Soup Co., the company hooked up with a major marketer rather than trying to compete with the big names. The new product was a line of frozen stir-fry kits featuring the Benihana trademark. The dinners served six people and sold for about $8.00. As Peter McMullin, an analyst with Southeast Research Partners, told Florida Review.Net, This time the strategy makes sense because it is linking with a high profile food company to help strengthen the distribution side and offsetting the razor-thin margins of retail by manufacturing with a low cost producer like Campbell. By the end of the fiscal year, revenues were over $70 million, with profits up 41 percent to $2.4 million. 1995 and Beyond: A New Company At the beginning of 1995, Benihana National announced it would buy Aokis 21 Benihana of Tokyo restaurants on the U.S. mainland, along with the U.S. rights to the Benihana trademark, for about $6.15 million. On May 16, a newly created subsidiary, Benihana Inc., acquired the BOT restaurants and, through a merger, simultaneously acquired Benihana National. BNC shareholders received one share in the new holding company for each of their shares of Benihana National. Aoki continued to serve as chairman of the new company and Schwartz as president. Benihana Inc. now owned or licensed the 43 Benihana restaurants in the continental United States along with a franchise in Honolulu. It also had the rights to develop or license Benihana restaurants in Central and South America and the Caribbean Islands. Aoki kept private his Benihana of Tokyo restaurants in Hawaii, Britain, and Thailand. During 1995, the new company took several steps to attract more customers. Benihana introduced weekend luncheon service and, following the success in Atlanta, opened sushi bars in seven locations. The company also instituted a national Karaoke contest for its patrons. In the fall, the company opened its first smaller format unit, called the Benihana Grill, in Sacramento. At 3,800 square feet, the Grill format was less than half the size of the traditional Benihana, and enabled the company to open units in smaller locations, particularly in urban areas. Schwartz had been refining this format since 1989 as an alternative to the companys more common free-standing, special use restaurant buildings. The Benihana Grill was designed to accommodate 10 to 12 teppanyaki tables, compared to the 18 tables in the typical Benihana. Analyst Peter McMullin remarked, Initial indications are encouraging even before the grand opening. With the lower capital costs of approximately $500,000 versus a stan d-alone restaurant cost of $2 million, this could become an enormous growth vehicle for Benihana. The new hours and offerings helped increase guest counts in existing restaurants by 8.7 percent and same store sales by an average of 7.7 percent for fiscal 1996. This rise, plus the addition of the Benihana of Tokyo restaurants and the new Benihana Grill, resulted in annual revenues of over $81 million. Benihanas growth came primarily from increased traffic in its existing restaurants, and the company continued to support that strategy. Early in 1996, in an effort to gain a larger share of the ethnic market, the company launched Spanish-language television advertisements in Miami and Los Angeles. In May, Benihana kicked off a two-year, $5 million ad campaign, focusing on the entertainment value of teppanyaki cooking. We want to bring the Benihana name to a different audience, company president Joel Schwartz told Nations Restaurant News in a May 6, 1996 article. The ads show that Benihana is a place the entire family can come to and have a good timea place they will see the chef perform and flip shrimp. Individual restaurants also developed innovative marketing techniques. A visit and meal at the Benihana in Bethesda, Maryland, for example, is one of the activities in the countys social studies curriculum for third graders learning about Japan. The company did not depend entirely on its existing restaurants for growth. During 1996, it also signed leases for several more Benihana Grills and expanded its franchise operations, including restaurants in Bogota, Columbia, and Aruba, Netherlands Antilles. Benihanas track record of steady growth in same store sales, rising customer count, and profitability appeared to be continuing into the late 1990s as revenues for the first half of fiscal 1997 were up over eight percent from the year before. Further Reading: Alva, Marilyn, Very Rocky Business: Aoki Besieged by Shareholder Suits, Restaurant Business, February 10, 1992. Benihana Buying Founder Aokis Units, Nations Restaurant News, January 16, 1995, p. 14. Benihana Profits Rise 67% for First Nine Months of Fiscal 95, Nations Restaurant News, February 12, 1996, p. 12. Benihana Testing Stir-Fry Kits, Supermarket News, October 17, 1994, p. 28.

Comparing the Wifes Role in A Dolls House and Death of a Salesman Ess

The Wife's Role in A Doll's House and Death of a Salesman      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   "A Doll's House" (1879) and "Death of a Salesman" (1949) are plays written by Henric Ibsen and Henry Miller respectively. And, although they were published in different centuries, and "A Doll's House" was written seventy years before than "Death of a Salesman" Nora's portrayal of the wife's role is much more modern, liberal and less chauvinist than Linda's. Nora and Linda's main differences are reflected in their way of acting towards their husbands, their children and them selves; how they each see life.    To her husband, Linda is the perfect wife, she loves him despite knowing he is only "a small man." She is always worried about Willy's health, and tries to protect him. She knows that many times Willy is wrong, but she is unable to face him just in case she hurts his feelings. She supports all his mad ideas knowing this will probably take him to his death. She is loyal and loving, and is always on the background defending him from their sons Biff and Happy. She expresses all this feelings in Act 1, when she says, "I don't say he's a great man. Willy Loman never made a lot of money. His name was never in the paper. He's not the finest character that ever lived. But he's a human being, and a terrible thing is happening to him. So attention must be paid. He's not to be allowed to fall into his grave like an old dog." On the other hand Nora doesn't love her husband, but she doesn't become conscious of this until the end of the play when she discovers she has been living a lie all her life. As Linda, she is worried about her husband's health, but instead of just watching she confronts him, acting behind his back, knowing that she ma... ...who keeps it attached together but she is nothing without her husband. Nora is not of the family; she is more modern and independent, moreover her family is totally broken apart.    In conclusion, we can see that nor Linda, nor Nora are happy with their situation. Linda is incapable of expressing herself and confronting her husband therefore her husband ends up dead. And Nora has never had real love and has always been living a lie, but she realises this too late, and now she has to reinvent herself.    Works Consulted    Corrigan, R.W. (ed.)   Arthur Miller:   A Collection Of Critical Essays.   Prentice-Hall, NJ:   1969. Ibsen, Henrik. Four Major Plays: A Doll House, the Wild Duck, Hedda Gabler, the Master Builder. New York: New American Library, 1992. Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. Gerald Weales, ed. New York: Penguin, 1996

Grade school book report Essay

Tom Sawyer The young protagonist of the novel. Living with his aunt St. Petersburg, Missouri, Tom has a penchant for adventure and â€Å"showing off. † Constantly getting into mischief, he plays hooky from school and would rather go swimming than tend to his Sunday school lessons. Blessed with an active imagination, Tom dreams to be a noble robber such as Robin Hood or a pirate. Hungry for attention, Tom is obsessed with appearing noble and obtaining the envy of his peers. However, Tom is extremely clever and possesses an incredible insight on human nature. Throughout the novel, Tom must learn to listen to his conscience and become accountable for his actions. Huckleberry Finn The town’s social pariah. Son of an abusive and drunkard father who left town, Huck has failed to have been raised with any parental guidance or authority figures. Because he can smoke a pipe and never has to attend church or school, he is the envy of every schoolboy and the nightmare of every mother in town. Huck and Tom often have adventures and both believe in various superstitions. Although disregarded by the â€Å"sociables,† Huck possesses a kind spirit and consideration for others. Aunt Polly Tom’s somewhat elderly aunt and guardian. Religious, simple-mannered, and kind-hearted, Aunt Polly is respected among the citizens of St. Petersburg. Responsible for Tom’s discipline and upbringing, Aunt Polly is constantly torn between expressing her exasperation and showing her lover for Tom. Every time he causes trouble, another hair on her head turns gray; she often wishes Tom would behave properly like his brother, Sid. Sid Sawyer Tom’s younger half-brother. Always trying to tattle on Tom, Sid keeps a close on eye his brother’s wrongdoings. A goody-two-shoes, he is a punctual and studious pupil. Mary Tom’s older cousin who resides with Aunt Polly. Mary is depicted as a sweet and good-hearted young lady who sees the good qualities in Tom’s character. Religious and pious, Mary was an exceptional student  ¬ the opposite of Tom. Becky Thatcher The daughter of Judge Thatcher. Becky is Tom’s age and has recently moved into town. Prim and proper, Becky is the opposite of Tom: she has never been in trouble and is used to obeying her mother’s words. With blonde hair and dressy frocks, she quickly wins Tom’s affection and attention. Injun Joe The antagonist of the novel. Guilty of several murders, Injun Joe possess a violent temperament is set on seeking revenge on those who have treated him harshly in the past. He attempts to frame Muff Potter for one of his own crimes and is pursued by the village authorities. Muff Potter The town drunk who is framed for the murder of Dr. Robinson. Although his kind nature and drunken state make him harmless, Potter is persecuted by the entire town that believes that he is a murderer. Mr. Jones/Old Welshman The old Welshman who lives with his two strong sons in the vicinity of Widow Douglas’s house. With Huck’s help, the Welshman is able to come to the widow’s aide. Widow Douglas A rich, upper-class widow. With a kind spirit and a devotion to the Christian faith, the widow Douglas is known for her open hospitality and good nature. She also appears as a major character in Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Dr. Robinson The young doctor, guilty of grave robbing, whose murder instigates the chaotic happenings in St. Petersburg. Joe Harper Tom’s bosom friend. One of Tom’s â€Å"gang† of pirates, Joe accompanies Tom on some of his adventures. Mrs. Harper Joe’s mother Amy Lawrence Tom Sawyer’s former girlfriend, whom he occasionally flirts with and was previously â€Å"engaged† to. Minor Characters: Judge Thatcher Becky’s father. A proud and well-respected man of justice, whose family has recently moved into town. Mrs. Thatcher Becky’s mother, wife of the Judge. Alfred Temple A well-dressed boy whom Tom thinks is snobby. Alfred also vies for Becky Thatcher’s attention. Mr. Dobbins The schoolmaster. Hated by all the children, Mr. Dobbins is depicted as a stern and pathetic man who uses lashings as a method of discipline. Mr. Walter The Sunday School Superintendent who issues Bibles to the top students. Mr. Sprague The long-winded minister. Ben Rogers A young boy who is Tom’s friend. Setting The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is set in the town of St. Petersburg, Missouri, some time around the middle of the nineteenth century Biography of the Author Born on November 30, 1835, in Florida, Missouri, Samuel L. Clemens wrote under the pen name Mark Twain and went on to pen several novels, including two major classics of American literature, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. He was also a riverboat pilot, journalist, lecturer, entrepreneur and inventor. Twain died in Redding, Connecticut on April 21, 1910, having survived his children Langdon, Susan and Jean as well as his wife, Olivia. In his lifetime, he became a distinguished member of the literati, and was honored by Yale, the University of Missouri, and Oxford with literary degrees. Conflict Man vs. man – Tom and Huck perceive their biggest struggle to be between themselves and Injun Joe, whose gold they want and whom they believe is out to kill them. Conflict also exists between Tom and his imaginative world and the expectations and rules of adult society. Moral of the Story Moral and Social Maturity When the novel opens, Tom is engaged in and often the organizer of childhood pranks and make-believe games. As the novel progresses, these initially consequence-free childish games take on more and more gravity. Tom leads himself, Joe Harper, Huck, and, in the cave, Becky Thatcher into increasingly dangerous situations. He also finds himself in tight spots in which he must put his concern for others above his concern for himself, such as when he takes Becky’s punishment and when he testifies at Injun Joe’s trial. As Tom begins to take initiative to help others instead of himself, he shows his increasing maturity, competence, and moral integrity. Tom’s adventures to Jackson’s Island and McDougal’s Cave take him away from society. These symbolic removals help to prepare him to return to the village with a new, more adult outlook on his relationship to the community. Though early on Tom looks up to Huck as much older and wiser, by the end of the novel, Tom’s maturity has surpassed Huck’s. Tom’s personal growth is evident in his insistence, in the face of Huck’s desire to flee all social constraints, that Huck stay with the Widow Douglas and become civilized. Point of View Third Person (Omniscient) – the narrator does not participate in the action of the story as one of the characters, but lets us know exactly how the characters feel. As a narrator, Twain cannot only see what his characters are seeing and thinking, but he is able to channel their personalities.

Dream, Learn, Do Insipid or Inspirational - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 592 Downloads: 1 Date added: 2017/09/18 Category People Essay Type Argumentative essay Tags: Dream Essay Did you like this example? An Inspirational Motto? Upon first hearing Sierra Colleges motto, â€Å"Dream, Learn, Do,† a strong urge to roll ones eyes ought to be suppressed. However, if its initial hokeyness is overlooked, the motto does provide practical significance. True, not all of us will meet out childhood dreams of traveling in space, or walking the red carpet, but how did those who fly to the moon and make summer blockbusters get where they are? The pop singer Lady Gaga has a career most young women would love to emulate. Gagas success came from her dream to perform, her determination to learn her art, and the practice of that education and perseverance to actually do what she wanted with her life. Lady Gagas huge success did have meager beginnings. Before her fame, she was known as Stephanie Germanotta. Her aspirations to be an incredible musician and performer almost seemed to be natural, as she learned to play the piano at age four. Gaga has said that she always wanted to be an art ist, as if it were her destiny. Often, a persons goals are shaped by their own personalities. This was the case for Gaga, as her inspiration came from within. When her family recognized this passion in their Stephanie, her parents worked hard to help support her when she decided to seriously pursue a career in the music industry. Once this decision was made, Gaga knew that the path to her goal would require persistence, talent, and practical education. Gaga took her dream seriously, and did educate herself. As a teenager, she constantly practiced for singing and dancing on stage by performing at open mikes. In high school, she was a theater star in musicals, while pushing herself academically. However, just receiving a regular education wouldnt be enough for her to become the star she is today. At seventeen, she finally was accepted to New Yorks Tisch School of the arts, where she could begin a true musical education. Gaga studied music and songwriting, and also took an intere st in other arts and social studies. However, Gaga left school before graduation so she could take what she had been learning and practicing since she was an infant and focus on her musical career. After learning a craft and excelling in it, the idea is to use what has been learned. Not everyone get this chance right away though. Not all law students are offered jobs or internships right after finishing law school, and Lady Gaga did not instantaneously become famous. Going out and doing her dream meant going out and doing it, no matter what or where. Gaga was only a music producer behind the scenes upon her first break into the industry, but she wanted more than that. Gaga sang and danced at plenty of obscure clubs until finally being noticed on stage at the Lollapalooza Festival. After that, producers wanted to be the ones behind the scene on what would eventually become her world wide, critically acclaimed album, â€Å"The Fame Monster. † Lady Gaga worked every step o f the way to hear her name chanted in stadiums, and star in music videos with Beyonce as her sidekick. Lady Gagas story is no fairy tale. No one handed her fame and fortune on a silver platter. She worked hard to make her mark, and although may never even have thought of it, she did dream, learn and do. Lady Gagas success may not repeat itself in our lives, but she is living proof that dreams are attainable with the right drive to get there. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Dream, Learn, Do: Insipid or Inspirational?" essay for you Create order

William Shakespeare s Oedipus The King - 909 Words

English Assignment – Oedipus The King In the story, Oedipus The King, written by Sophocles, two important aspects of Oedipus’ character that lead to his demise are his determination to find the truth of his origin, as well as his anger. These are flaws that negatively affect the tragic outcome at the end of the plot. Oedipus first shows signs of anger when he does not want to hear what Tiresias has to say about the murderer of Laius, even after the ruler begs for the truth. Oedipus yells, Enough! I won’t listen to this sort of talk from you. Damn you! My curse on you! Get out of here, quickly. Away from this house, back to where you came from! (25) He goes into a fit of rage when Tiresias explains, in the form of riddles, the evils that the king is living with. The prophet mentions a curse, in which he hints that Oedipus marries his mother and kills his father. Tiresias also reveals that the king is the murderer of Laius. The ruler of Thebes believes that Creon set Tiresias up to convey this accusation, sta ting: â€Å"Was it Creon, or you, that invented this story?† (23) Because of his short-temper, without even considering the validity of Tiresias’ statement, Oedipus becomes irate and is unable to control his emotions, shouting: â€Å"(†¦.) I tell you, you will pay in tears for this witch-hunting—you and Creon, the man that organized this conspiracy!† (24) It is understandable that anyone would be upset and shocked after hearing such shocking claims. Yet, as a ruler of Thebes,Show MoreRelatedExploration Of William Shakespeare s Oedipus The King 1810 Words   |  8 PagesExploration of Intellect in Oedipus the King Joshua Small English Composition II Section 201 Professor Kerwan 24 October 2015 Joshua Small Professor Kerwan English Composition II 24 October 2015 Exploration of Intellect in â€Å"Oedipus the King† Oedipus the King by Sophocles has been examined countless times over the years. 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Essay about Rene Descartes Faith and Reason - 1292 Words

Rene Descartes Faith and Reason The sixteenth and seventeenth centuries witnessed a colossal transition in the scientific view of the universe. During this period a profound rethinking of scientific theory as well as moral and religious matters took place. Traditional ideas were reconsidered by religious thinkers. Philosophers began applying rational scientific thought to problems that they considered. The main concept of the Scientific Revolution was to question everything. The Scientific Revolution was an elaborate movement. Many brilliant people with a wealth of new ideas contributed to this movement. The French philosopher, mathematician, and scientist Rene Descartes was one of these people. Rene Descartes was born March†¦show more content†¦Following his departure from La Fleche, Descartes spent the following four years at the University of Poitiers. He graduated from Poitiers with a degree in civil and canon law. Soon after graduation Descartes enlisted in the Bavarian army, to travel, rather than to do combat. He traveled abroad for the next eight years before finally settling in Holland. Descartes chose Holland because he felt that the atmosphere there provided him with intellectual liberty, which in turn produced a creative flow of ideas 3. He chose to live in a small chateau in isolation except for a few servants. This chateau served him well because it was a rather quiet place where he could evolve his ideas systematically. He spent much of his time strolling through his garden and reflecting. At his chateau in Holland, Descartes devoted nearly all of his time to philosophy and mathematics. Descartes spent his first four years in Holland, 1629 to 1633, writing Le Monde, which attempts to give a physical theory to the universe. He learned, however, that its publication would likely bring to him animosity from the church 4. Descartes felt no desire to become a martyr; therefore, he abandoned it. Following this work, Descartes began work on Discours de la mà ©thode pour bien conduire sa raison et chercher la và ©rità © dans les sciences which was a disquisition on universal science. Descours de la mà ©thode was published in 1637Show MoreRelatedRene Descartes’s Trademark Argument States that God is the Center of the World875 Words   |  3 Pagespage 25, part 5 of Renà © Descartes’s â€Å"Discourse on Method and Meditations on First Philosophy,† the author attempts to explain the meaning behind the way God decided to: create the world as we know it, and maintain it. Descartes uses logic-based reasoning to explain 3 things: why he has an idea about God at all, how his idea was formulated, and why it is makes sense. Renà © believes that God has had his influence in everything on this earth, natural, human, and material. 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The specific three I want to focus on being; St. Augustine, Thomas Aquinas and Rene Descartes. Lastly, I will proceed to relate their ideas on the existence of God and their development of these ideas. St. Augustine s epistemology is rationalization. In his argument for the existence ofRead MoreEssay on The Scientific Revolution and The Enlightenment1731 Words   |  7 Pages16th and 17th centuries changed the way that people views the world. Scientific philosophers such as Galileo and Descartes threw out the old teachings of the church and challenged them with new ways of thinking. These men sought to prove that rational thought could prove the existence of God. They also challenged that it was an understanding of a series of rational thoughts, not faith, would bring understanding of how the world worked. Traditional ways of thinking were ultimately challenged by logicalRead MoreThe Enlightenment Period : The Age Of Reason1332 Words   |  6 PagesAge of Awareness The Enlightenment period, also known as The Age of Reason, was a highly intellectual movement of the late seventeenth century and the eighteenth century Europe. This development highlighted reasoning, equality and more of a humanistic approach was taken as opposed to traditional practice. This period was heavily influenced by scientific thought, skepticism and intellectual stimulation. 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Prefatory Note To The Meditations. The first edition of the Meditations was published in Latin by Michael Soly of Paris â€Å"at the Sign of the Phoenix† in 1641 cum Privilegio et Approbatione Doctorum. The Royal â€Å"privilege† was indeed given, but the â€Å"approbation† seems to have been of a most indefiniteRead MoreMontaigne and Augustine1359 Words   |  6 Pageshumanity as a whole is. By admitting support of Montaigne in the matter, one is clearly saying It is my belief that the creator made us as humans in His image and that in order to cleave to God, we must cast off the unnatural error s of vanity, reason, selfishness and let our natural tendencies decide our modes of conduct and also determine our paths in life that we may better come to know God. An Augustinian perspective on the other hand would fully support the belief that we as humans areRead MoreThe Approach to Nature of Descartes and White Essay766 Words   |  4 PagesThe Approach to Nature of Descartes and White The approach to nature which Renà © De scartes takes is distinct from that of Gilbert White. Descartes and White have similar key methods of examining nature. It is mainly in Descartes’ deductive reasoning and beliefs that lead him to the methodRead MoreThe Enlightenment Impact On Western Society973 Words   |  4 Pagesreligion to answer questions about humanity, they turned toward logic and reason as their guides. In doing so, many arrived at conclusions that radically changed thinking across Europe. Their findings emphasized the rights of the individual, equality of all, feminism, and new perspectives political, social, and economic aspects of society. Some of the most notable figures from this period include John Locke, Rene Descartes, Jean-Jacque Rousseau, and Mary Wollstonecraft. Often considered one of

Amazon.com †the world’s biggest e-commerce retailer Free Essays

Amazon is the world’s biggest e-commerce retailer. They were founded in 1994, being the first online retailer to secure one million customers in 1997. They are based out of Seattle, Washington but have locations in 18 U. We will write a custom essay sample on Amazon.com – the world’s biggest e-commerce retailer or any similar topic only for you Order Now S states and 14 international locations. They currently have over 88,000 employees and are still growing. Amazon sells pretty much anything you want on their website, from DVDs and video games to shoes and sports equipment. When Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon. com, started Amazon all he was selling was books and now they have their own tablet, called the Kindle, which is a virtual book. Amazon’s mission statement is â€Å"Our vision is to be earth’s most customer centric company; to build a place where people can come to find and discover anything they might want to buy online. † The way that Amazon does their business isn’t rushed, just wanting to earn a profit. Jeff Bezos business plan was a slow-growing business, and he didn’t even turn a profit until 2001, after the â€Å"dot-com boom† of the late 1990s couldn’t even stop then when a lot of other online companies had to file for bankruptcy. But they survived and made 97 million just in the last quartered of 2012. Amazon has a code of business conduct and ethics, with their main statement being â€Å"Amazon. com employees should always act lawfully, ethically, and in the best interests of Amazon. com. This Code of Business Conduct and Ethics sets out basic guiding principles. Employees who are unsure whether their conduct or the conduct of their coworkers complies with the Code of Conduct should contact their manager or the Legal Department. † The type of system that they are using is virtue ethics, which is where morals are internal. They are trying to internalize moral behavior, making sure that everyone is aware that they are there to benefit the company and do so in a lawful way. Amazon was built on making their customers happy, and by doing that they need to make sure that all of there employees are performing to the best of their ability, making sure they are making the right decisions for the company. Amazon has strict rules on conflicts of interest, insider trading, harassment, record keeping and many other things. They also give their employees the opportunity’s to submit ideas that they believe will not only better the company, but also the world called the Kaizen program. The Kaizen program is where Amazon employees work together to implement environmental and energy initiatives across all parts of the company. They have done everything from figuring out a new way to package trucks, for less shipments and saving fuel to figuring out how to install lights that are on motion sensors to help reduce energy costs. How to cite Amazon.com – the world’s biggest e-commerce retailer, Papers