Essay on civil rights movementEssay Writing Service

Essay on civil rights movementEssay Writing Service Essay on civil rights movement Essay on civil rights movementThe position of African American in the US was historically unequal compared to white Americans. The first half of the 20th century was characterized by the persisting segregation and discrimination of African Americans, as Dalfiume justly points out. In this regard, World War II contributed to the rise of their social consciousness and the emergence of the civil rights movement because they became an important part of the US society and, more important, they became a part of the nation serving in the US army and performing jobs, which used to be performed by whites because of the shortage of the labor force.In fact, World War II increased the awareness of African Americans of their importance for the nation that encouraged them to enhance their struggle for equal rights and opportunities. They felt that they were an important part of the nation and they had the power and right to struggle for equal opportunities compared to whites. As they were recruite d to the US army, then they would justly expect that they can count on equal rights and opportunities compared to white Americans.In addition, World War II contributed to their self-organization because the service in the US army had opened the way to the better understanding of the importance of the effective organization of their struggle. The enhancement of the civil rights movement was the natural consequence of the growing public awareness and their self-organization. In such a way, the development of African American movement and their struggle for better rights and opportunities. Such change was essential for the enhancement of their position in the US society.

Horatius at the Bridge by Thomas Babington Macaulay

'Horatius at the Bridge' by Thomas Babington Macaulay An esteemed army officer in the ancient Roman Republic, Horatius Cocles lived in a legendary period of Rome during the late sixth century.  Horatius was known for defending one of Romes most famous bridges, the Pons Sublicius, during the war between Rome and Clusium.  The heroic leader was known for fighting against Etruscan invaders such as Lars Porsena and his invading army.  Horatius was known as a courageous and brave leader of the Roman army. Thomas Babington McAulay The poet  Thomas Babington McAulay  is also known as a politician, essayist, and  historian.  Born in England in 1800, he wrote one of his first poems at the age of eight called The Battle of Cheviot. Macaulay went on to college where he began to have his essays published prior to a career in politics.  He was best known for his work in History of England covering the period 1688–1702. Macaulay died in 1859 in London. Summary The story of Horatius is described in Plutarchs Life of Publicola. In the early 6th century BCE, Lars Porsena was the most powerful king in Etruscan Italy, who Tarquinius Superbus asked to help him take back Rome. Porsena sent a message to Rome saying they should receive Tarquin as their king, and when the Romans refused, he declared war on them. Publicola was the consul of Rome, and he and Lucretius defended Rome until they fell in battle. Horatius Cocles (Cyclops, so named because he had lost one of his eyes in the wars) was the keeper of the Gate of Rome. He stood in front of the bridge and held off the Etruscans until the Romans could put the bridge out of commission. Once that was accomplished, Horatius, wounded by a spear to his buttocks and in full armor, dove into the water and swam back to Rome.   Horatius was forced to retire as a result of his injuries and, after a protracted siege of the city, Lars Porsena captured Rome, but without sacking it. Tarquinius Superbus was to be the last of the kings of Rome. Macaulay's Horatius at the Bridge The following poem by Thomas Babington Macaulay is a memorable ballad that recounts the courage of Horatius Cocles in his battle with the Roman army against the Etruscans. Lars Porsena  of Clusium, by the Nine Gods he sworeThat the great house of  Tarquin  should suffer wrong no more.By the Nine Gods he swore it, and named a trysting day,And bade his messengers ride forth,East and West and South and North,To summon his array.East and West and South and North the messengers ride fast,And tower and town and cottage have heard the trumpets blast.Shame on the false  Etruscan  who lingers in his home,When Porsena of Clusium is on the march for  Rome! The horsemen and the footmen are pouring in amainFrom many a stately market-place, from many a fruitful plain;From many a lonely hamlet which, hid by beech and pineLike an eagles nest hangs on the crest of purple Apennine;From lordly Volaterrae, where scowls the far-famed holdPiled by the hands of giants for god-like kings of old;From sea-girt  Populonia, whose sentinels descrySardinias snowy mountain-tops fringing the southern sky;From the proud mart of Pisae, queen of the western waves,Where ride Massilias triremes, heavy with fair-haired slaves;From where sweet Clanis wanders through corn and vines and flowers;From where Cortona lifts to heaven her diadem of towers.Tall are the oaks whose acorns drop in dark Ausers rill;Fat are the stags that champ the boughs of the Ciminian hill;Beyond all streams Clitumnus is to the herdsman dear;Best of all pools the fowler loves the great Volsinian mere. But now no stroke of woodman is heard by Ausers rill;No hunter tracks the stags green path up the Ciminian hill;Unwatched along Clitumnus grazes the milk-white steer;Unharmed the water fowl may dip in the Volsinian mere.The harvests of Arretium, this year, old men shall reap;This year, young boys in Umbro shall plunge the struggling sheep;And in the vats of Luna, this year, the must shall foamRound the white feet of laughing girls whose sires have marched to Rome.   There be thirty chosen prophets, the wisest of the land,Who always by Lars Porsena both morn and evening stand:Evening and morn the Thirty have turned the verses oer,Traced from the right on linen white by mighty seers of yore;And with one voice the Thirty have their glad answer given:Go forth, go forth, Lars Porsena! Go forth, beloved of Heaven!Go, and return in glory to Clusiums round dome,And hang round Nurscias altars the golden shields of Rome.And now hath every city sent up her tale of men;The foot are fourscore thousand; the horse are thousands ten.Before the gates of Sutrium is met the great array.A proud man was Lars Porsena upon the trysting day.For all the Tuscan armies were ranged beneath his eye,And many a banished  Roman, and many a stout ally;And with a mighty following to join the muster cameThe Tusculan Mamilius, Prince of the Latian name.But by the yellow Tiber was tumult and affright:From all the spacious champaign to Rome men took their flight.A mile around the city the throng stopped up the ways:A fearful sight it was to see through two long nights and daysFor aged folks on crutches, and women great with child,And mothers sobbing over babes that clung to them and smiled. And sick men borne in litters high on the necks of slaves,And troops of sun-burned husbandmen with reaping-hooks and staves,And droves of mules and asses laden with skins of wine,And endless flocks of goats and sheep, and endless herds of kine,And endless trains of wagons that creaked beneath the weightOf corn-sacks and of household goods choked every roaring gate.Now, from the  rock Tarpeian, could the wan burghers spyThe line of blazing villages red in the midnight sky.The Fathers of the City, they sat all night and day,For every hour some horseman came with tidings of dismay.To eastward and to westward have spread the Tuscan bands;Nor house, nor fence, nor dovecote in Crustumerium stands.Verbenna down to Ostia hath wasted all the plain;Astur hath stormed Janiculum, and the stout guards are slain. I wis, in all the Senate, there was no heart so bold,But sore it ached, and fast it beat, when that ill news was told.Forthwith up rose the Consul, up rose the Fathers all;In haste they girded up their gowns and hied them to the wall.They held a council standing before the River-Gate;Short time was there, ye well may guess, for musing or debate.Out spake the Consul roundly: The bridge must straight go down;For since Janiculum is lost, naught else can save the town...Just then, a scout came flying, all wild with haste and fear:To arms! To arms, Sir Consul! Lars Porsena is here!On the low hills to westward the Consul fixed his eye,And saw the swarthy storm of dust rise fast along the sky,And nearer fast and nearer doth the red whirlwind come;And louder still and still more loud, from underneath that whirling cloud,Is heard the trumpets war-note proud, the trampling and the hum.And plainly and more plainly now through the gloom appears,Far to left and far to right, in broken gleams of d ark-blue light,The long array of helmets bright, the long array of spears. And plainly and more plainly, above that glimmering line,Now might ye see the banners of twelve fair cities shine;But the banner of proud Clusium was highest of them all,The terror of the  Umbrian; the terror of the Gaul.And plainly and more plainly now might the burghers know,By port and vest, by horse and crest, each warlike Lucumo.There Cilnius of Arretium on his fleet roan was seen;And Astur of the four-fold shield, girt with the brand none else may wield,Tolumnius with the belt of gold, and dark Verbenna from the holdBy reedy Thrasymene.Fast by the royal standard, oerlooking all the war,Lars Porsena of Clusium sat in his ivory car.By the right wheel rode  Mamilius, prince of the Latian name,And by the left false Sextus, who wrought the deed of shame.But when the face of Sextus was seen among the foes,A yell that rent the firmament from all the town arose.On the house-tops was no woman but spat toward him and hissed,No child but screamed out curses, and shook its little first .   But the Consuls brow was sad, and the Consuls speech was low,And darkly looked he at the wall, and darkly at the foe.Their van will be upon us before the bridge goes down;And if they once might win the bridge, what hope to save the town?Then out spoke brave  Horatius, the Captain of the Gate:To every man upon this earth, death cometh soon or late;And how can man die better than facing fearful odds,For the ashes of his fathers, and the temples of his Gods,And for the tender mother who dandled him to rest,And for the wife who nurses his baby at her breast,And for the holy maidens who feed the eternal flame,To save them from false Sextus, that wrought the deed of shame?Hew down the bridge, Sir Consul, with all the speed ye may!I, with two more to help me, will hold the foe in play.In yon strait path, a thousand may well be stopped by three:Now, who will stand on either hand and keep the bridge with me?Then out spake Spurius Lartius; a Ramnian proud was he:Lo, I will stand at thy right hand and keep the bridge with thee.And out spake strong Herminius; of Titian blood was he:I will abide on thy left side, and keep the bridge with thee.Horatius, quoth the Consul, as thou sayest, so let it be.And straight against that great array forth went the dauntless Three. For Romans in Romes quarrel spared neither land nor gold,Nor son nor wife, nor limb nor life, in the brave days of old.Then none was for a party; then all were for the state;Then the great man helped the poor, and the poor man loved the great.Then lands were fairly portioned; then spoils were fairly sold:The Romans were like brothers in the brave days of old.Now Roman is to Roman more hateful than a foe,And the Tribunes beard the high, and the Fathers grind the low.As we wax hot in faction, in battle we wax cold:Wherefore men fight not as they fought in the brave days of old.Now while the Three were tightening their harness on their backs,The Consul was the foremost man to take in hand an axe:And Fathers mixed with Commons seized hatchet, bar and crow,And smote upon the planks above and loosed the props below.Meanwhile the Tuscan army, right glorious to behold,Came flashing back the noonday light,Rank behind rank, like surges bright of a broad sea of gold.Four hundred trumpets sounde d a peal of warlike glee,As that great host, with measured tread, and spears advanced, and ensigns spread,Rolled slowly towards the bridges head where stood the dauntless Three. The Three stood calm and silent, and looked upon the foes,And a great shout of laughter from all the vanguard rose:And forth three chiefs came spurring before that deep array;To earth they sprang, their swords they drew, and lifted high their shields, and flewTo win the narrow way;Aunus from green Tifernum, Lord of the Hill of Vines;And Seius, whose eight hundred slaves sicken in Ilvas mines;And Picus, long to Clusium vassal in peace and war,Who led to fight his Umbrian powers from that grey crag where, girt with towers,The fortress of Naquinum lowers oer the pale waves of Nar.Stout Lartius hurled down Aunus into the stream beneath:Herminius struck at Seius, and clove him to the teeth:At Picus brave Horatius darted one fiery thrust;And the proud Umbrians golden arms clashed in the bloody dust.Then Ocnus of Falerii rushed on the Roman Three;And Lausulus of Urgo, the rover of the sea,And Aruns of Volsinium, who slew the great wild boar,The great wild boar that had his den amidst the re eds of Cosas fen,And wasted fields, and slaughtered men, along Albinias shore. Herminius smote down Aruns; Lartius laid Ocnus low:Right to the heart of Lausulus Horatius sent a blow.Lie there, he cried, fell pirate! No more, aghast and pale,From Ostias walls the crowd shall mark the track of thy destroying bark.No more Campanias hinds shall fly to woods and caverns when they spyThy thrice-accursed sail.But now no sound of laughter was heard among the foes.A wild and wrathful clamour from all the vanguard rose.Six spears lengths from the entrance halted that deep array,And for a space no man came forth to win the narrow way.But hark! the cry is Astur, and lo! the ranks divide;And the great Lord of Luna comes with his stately stride.Upon his ample shoulders clangs loud the four-fold shield,And in his hand he shakes the brand which none but he can wield.He smiled on those bold Romans a smile serene and high;He eyed the flinching Tuscans, and scorn was in his eye.Quoth he, The she-wolfs litter stand savagely at bay:But will ye dare to follow, if Astur clears the wa y?Then, whirling up his broadsword with both hands to the height,He rushed against Horatius and smote with all his might. With shield and blade Horatius right deftly turned the blow.The blow, yet turned, came yet too nigh;It missed his helm, but gashed his thigh:The Tuscans raised a joyful cry to see the red blood flow.He reeled, and on Herminius he leaned one breathing-space;Then, like a wild-cat mad with wounds, sprang right at Asturs face.Through teeth, and skull, and helmet so fierce a thrust he sped,The good sword stood a hand-breadth out behind the Tuscans head.And the great Lord of Luna fell at that deadly stroke,As falls on Mount Alvernus a thunder-smited oak.Far oer the crashing forest the giant arms lay spread;And the pale augurs, muttering low, gaze on the blasted head.On Asturs throat Horatius right firmly pressed his heel,And thrice and four times tugged amain, ere he wrenched out the steel.And see, he cried, the welcome, fair guests, that waits you here!What noble Lucumo comes next to taste our Roman cheer?But at his haughty challenge a sullen murmur ran,Mingled of wrath, and shame, and dr ead, along that glittering van. There lacked not men of prowess, nor men of lordly race;For all Etrurias noblest were round the fatal place.But all  Etrurias noblest felt their hearts sink to seeOn the earth the bloody corpses; in their path the dauntless Three;And, from the ghastly entrance where those bold Romans stood,All shrank, like boys who unaware, ranging the woods to start a hare,Come to the mouth of a dark lair where, growling low, a fierce old bearLies amidst bones and blood.Was none who would be foremost to lead such dire attack?But those behind cried Forward!, and those before cried Back!And backward now and forward wavers the deep array;And on the tossing sea of steel, to and fro the standards reel;And the victorious trumpet-peal dies fitfully away.Yet one man for one moment strode out before the crowd;Well known was he to all the Three, and they gave him greeting loud.Now welcome, welcome, Sextus! Now welcome to thy home!Why dost thou stay, and turn away? Here lies the  road to Rome.Thrice looked he at the city; thrice looked he at the dead;And thrice came on in fury, and thrice turned back in dread:And, white with fear and hatred, scowled at the narrow wayWhere, wallowing in a pool of blood, the bravest Tuscans lay. But meanwhile axe and lever have manfully been plied;And now the bridge hangs tottering above the boiling tide.Come back, come back, Horatius! loud cried the Fathers all.Back, Lartius! Back, Herminius! Back, ere the ruin fall!Back darted Spurius Lartius;  Herminius  darted back:And as they passed, beneath their feet they felt the timbers crack.But when they turned their faces, and on the further shoreSaw brave Horatius stand alone, they would have crossed once more.But with a crash like thunder fell every loosened beam,And, like a dam, the mighty wreck lay right athwart the stream:And a loud shout of triumph rose from the walls of Rome,As to the highest turret-tops was splashed the yellow foam.And, like a horse unbroken, when first he feels the rein,The furious river struggled hard, and tossed his tawny mane,And burst the curb, and bounded, rejoicing to be free,And whirling down, in fierce career, battlement, and plank, and pierRushed headlong to the sea.Alone stood brave Horatiu s, but constant still in mind;Thrice thirty thousand foes before, and the broad flood behind. Down with him! cried false Sextus, with a smile on his pale face.Now yield thee, cried Lars Porsena, now yield thee to our grace!Round turned he, as not deigning those craven ranks to see;Nought spake he to Lars Porsena, to Sextus nought spake he;But he saw on Palatinus the white porch of his home;And he spake to the noble river that rolls by the towers of Rome.Oh Tiber, father Tiber, to whom the Romans pray,A Romans life, a Romans arms, take thou in charge this day!So he spake and, speaking, sheathed the good sword by his side,And, with his harness on his back, plunged headlong in the tide.No sound of joy or sorrow was heard from either bank;But friends and foes in dumb surprise, with parted lips and straining eyes,Stood gazing where he sank;And when above the surges they saw his crest appear,All Rome sent forth a rapturous cry, and even the ranks of TuscanyCould scarce forbear to cheer.But fiercely ran the current, swollen high by months of rain:And fast his blood was flowing; and he was sore in pain,And heavy with his armour, and spent with changing blows:And oft they thought him sinking, but still again he rose. Never, I ween, did swimmer, in such an evil case,Struggle through such a raging flood safe to the landing place:But his limbs were borne up bravely by the brave heart within,And our good father  Tiber  bare bravely up his chin Curse on him! quoth false Sextus, will not the villain drown?But for this stay, ere close of day, we would have sacked the town!Heaven help him! quoth Lars Porsena, and bring him safe to shore;For such a gallant feat of arms was never seen before.And now he feels the bottom: now on dry earth he stands;Now round him throng the Fathers, to press his gory hands;And now, with shouts and clapping, and noise of weeping loud,He enters through the River-Gate, borne by the joyous crowd.They gave him of the corn-land, that was of public right,As much as two strong oxen could plough from morn till night;And they made a molten image, and set it up on high,And there it stands unto this day to witness if I lie.It stands in the Comitium, plain for all folk to see;Horatius in his harness, halting upon one knee:And underneath is written, in letters all of gold,How valiantly he kept the bridge in the brave days of old.And still his name sounds stirring unto the men of Rome,As the trumpet-blast that ca lls to them to charge the Volscian home;And wives still pray to Juno for boys with hearts as boldAs his who kept the bridge so well in the brave days of old. And in the nights of winter, when the cold north winds blow,And the long howling of the wolves is heard amidst the snow;When round the lonely cottage roars loud the tempests din,And the good logs of Algidus roar louder yet within;When the oldest cask is opened, and the largest lamp is lit;When the chestnuts glow in the embers, and the kid turns on the spit;When young and old in circle around the firebrands close;When the girls are weaving baskets and the lads are shaping bowsWhen the goodman mends his armour, and trims his helmets plume,And the goodwifes shuttle merrily goes flashing through the loom;With weeping and with laughter still is the story told,How well Horatius kept the bridge in the brave days of old.

The importance of professionalism within the construction industry Essay

The importance of professionalism within the construction industry - Essay Example For the construction industry, professionalism is important as it avails self-identity. The self-identity stems from the professional firms that personnel within the industry have created. For example in the engineering and architecture industry that have professional bodies, which act as reglators of the graduates who wish to be recognised as qualified, trusted, and capable professionals. The self-identity is also created through professionalism by the belief that exists among the public domain and the community at large that members of these bodies work to serve them (Murray & Dainty, 2013). Professionalism in the construction industry has also aided in ensuring that the experts in this industry are not money-minded, but work to ensure that their customers get the best and serve the needs that the society wants to be addressed and solved. Hence, an aspect of discipline is instilled in the industry through professionalism. Without discipline, any profession is bound to fail in the l ong run. Hence, the durability of the construction industry is fortified by professionalism (Murray & Dainty, 2013). Through professionalism, the corporate social responsibility of the construction industry is enhanced. The enhancement of the corporate social responsibility serves to boost the function-ability and delivery of the industry. Delivery is of great importance to any industry, without it, the industry cannot function. It is through this responsibility that targets are set and met, which ensures that the professional conduct.

Developing Speaking Fluency and Accuracy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Developing Speaking Fluency and Accuracy - Essay Example Paul further expressed that people do have an integral and perplexing fear towards the English language which can be attributed to the inhibitions of a person in expressing themselves using the newly acquired language. As Paul (2009) elaborated, teaching how a word is properly enunciated or pronounced appeared to be the most difficult aspect that students are found to have. This gives an obvious divergence between the teacher and its students. One reason for this is that often foreign speakers are failing to adapt the English language as a secondary language. Since there are different people coming from different countries speaking English, there are modifications made in the pronunciation of a word. It is not an easy task to master the English language especially if this is not the mother tongue of a particular group. There are people who continually struggle with the rules and regulation of sentence construction or grammar. Ways to Improve Speaking These demanding challenges make it necessary for any teacher of English to have formal training in instruction and approach. As expressed by the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) (2003) that it is an effective method for teachers to find an appropriate plan on how the lessons will be presented that can aid the students in better understanding and adapting the enunciation and grammar of the foreign subject. According to the BBC’s (2003) world service radio series, the following elements attributes for a better and effective speaking: confidence, fluency and accuracy, proper usage and choice of words, bulk language learning, pattern as to where one should be going, maintaining the interest in its listeners, and becoming a supportive listener and sounding like a native speaker. This paper underscores the concepts of fluency and accuracy in the development of speaking skills.

Assault and battery Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Assault and battery - Coursework Example It is clear that contact sports imply random injuries. The difference is that when injuries are the result of deliberate, unfair, unacceptable and excessive use of violence, it becomes assault and/or battery, depending on the result. This is the case of aggressive players. In order to establish the existence of assault, the next test is applied: 1. Intentional, unlawful threat to hurt somebody; 2. The threatened person felt a well motivated fear of imminent attack and 3. The possibility of realizing the threat is undoubtful. A similar test is applied in order to establish battery: 1. The existence of a violent act towards the plaintiff; 2. The defendant willingfully used the violence and 3. The causation: the violent act hurt the plaintiff. Therefore, I believe that the user of a deliberate elbow to the face or a knee to the groin in basketball, the deliberate use of spikes by a runner in baseball, eye gouging in football, or other violence that causes unnecessary injuries in sports can be held liable for assault and/or battery, the key words in all this being deliberate and unnecessary.

river island

river island Biography River Island was introduced by Bernard Lewis in 1948, a family business and it started out as a small shop in Londonwith the trading name of Lewis Separates. There have been many changes to the brand name such as Chelsea girl and Concept Man and not until 1989 its officially became known as RiverIsland today. Between the period of twenty years, from the 1960s to 1980s, Chelsea Girl was a well known high street store and was famous for its long haired girl logo. A group of approximately 45 students from Uxbridge and Middlesex has teamed together with the store to regain its reputation in the name of Chelsea Girl. River Island could considered to be one of the UKs biggest and most successful privately owned high street companies with over 250 stores operating all over the world and is still growing. Moreover, to ensure theirs customer a great, unique and fashionable look, unlike New Look and others high street stores which buy others brand design then altered it, River Island has their own in-house designer. River Island always focus on providing their customer the hottest look, hence, they also concentrate on providing their employees with a good working environment so that they can work efficiently and at their best. River Island stores across the country are always similar in both decoration and layout. In recent years, River Island has changed all of their stores to have a unique and similar layout. The general colour schemes are usually white walls with some emphasis of bright green to create a fresh feeling; the flooring is laid with creamy coffee coloured tiles with black paneling. Bri ght spot lights have also been used to create a posh look. In order to help the customer to feel comfortable and relaxed the stores have been designed to have an open air space which is simple but act as an effective background helping the clothes stand out and also enabling the customer to find their clothes. The layout of River Island is known to be like a walk-in boutique where you have trends that are divided into sections in the shop, which helps customers to know what theyre looking for, i.e. casual, smart or going out. Style River Island is a UKs leading high street brand, providing a big range of stylish clothes, but most importantly, their prices are affordable and the quality is great. River Island design clothes for both men and women at the age range from 16-30. With 250 stores and selling many different types of clothing like jeans, skirts, knit wear, jacket etc†¦ or even accessories such as jewelry or shoes. To â€Å"Get the most out of it† the company also provides online shopping so that it is more convenient for their customers. The design team represents the culture thats around them and thats the culture our customers understand, says Richard Bradbury, River Islands managing director. This year, the brand have reported mega profits, as mentioning this, River Island will have to thank their young team of designers, buyers and in-house stylists. The company‘s general theme for clothes line is usually smart looking, quite often the customer will see that there is a combination between smart-casual. Additional glitter, sequins, diamonds and jewels appear on all types of clothes to add a bit of bling and to meet with the young fashion trend. Moreover, these decorations also appear on purses or handbags so that they are all are matching. One of the company philosophies is focusing on finding new talent and bringing them up to contribute to the new high street trend, collection after collection is required to meet with demand of customers who searching for the new look everyday. In order to do that, every two weeks, Style Challenge is launched by one of our insiders. The themes will be different each time to make sure theres something for everyone. Youthful could consider being the inspiration for each design, but still could suit any age range as long as they are the person who is seeking a celebrity or catwalk style at a cheaper price. River Island always concentrated on the style and the quality. The company clothes are so trendy, chic, young, affordable and of a very high quality. Not only the clothes, but also the stores provide an exciting and fun environment to shop within. The average price of each garment is affordable: Ethical issue RiverIslandis committed to providing a fair deal between the company and their employees. The company has understood that to make an excellent business, it has to build strong relationship with its suppliers, consumers and employees. Corporate Social Responsibility has always been the companys strategy. Ethical Supply Chain At River Island, it works enthusiastically with its suppliers and official agencies around the world to provide a standard health and safety regulation to its employees. The company always ensures that their suppliers sign a contract which commit to World Wide Ethical standards and those who violate them will be prosecuted. To support this policy, the company have ordered the buying and technical teams to visit their factories throughout the year and actively engage in looking out for mistakes, hence, improve it. Today, River Island products are made across the world such as in the European Union, Turkey or India. Although there are many ethical and trading issues happening within fashion industry, River Island believes that through gradual changes, it will manage to solve the problem. According to source, â€Å"In June 2008 RiverIsland became a member of the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI). Established in 1998 the ETI is a trade union organization and non-governmental organisations committed to working together to identify and promote good practice in the implementation of codes of labour practice.† River Island committed to the adoption and integration of the ETI Base Code into our World Wide Ethical Policy through its supply chain. River Island believes that to be one a ETI member, the company will be able to gain more experience to tackle the related issues within the industry. Environment: Nowadays, being green is one of the main focuss of each individual company. In order to protect the environment, River Island is strictly committed to a number of main key points targeted such as : reducing problems the environment is having, this includes dropping levels of energy consumption (including the use of renewable energy sources) reducing the level of product packaging, increasing the levels of recycling and increasing the use of biodegradable materials. The retail environment of River Island is very edgy, lively and vivid. The staff are committed to provide the customer a high quality service. River Island also believes that making the customer feel happy is its first priority, as customer service is converted into sales in retail. Promotion In recent years, River Island has gained many important titles from its competitor. Top shop has been at the top for years but slowly losing its â€Å"style crown† losing its best shop on the high street title of three years to rival River Island. River Island also won in the best bags and best place to spend GBP50 categories in the Company Magazine. The winners were chosen by more than 6000 people trough the voting system on the â€Å"company.co.uk† website. River Island advertises itself in magazines for having garments, accessories or products that are copied from celebrities or the catwalk. In order to advertise and campaign, River Island has joined forces with Look in autumn 2007 the UKs first glossy high street fashion weekly magazine- to celebrate and introduce its autumn collection .The collection has been styled and photographed by the Look fashion team. More interestingly, River Islands store windows nationwide have also been specially designed by Look to make a connection between the company and the magazine to promote different aspects of the collection. Look publishing director Julie Lavington comments: We are extremely excited to be working with River Island on such a major project. The collaboration exemplifies our brand credentials, and its great that River Island are harnessing the power of Looks reputation as the authority on high street fashion. After all, were driving hundreds of thousands of women in-store every week !† .In order to expand its market sale, River Island has also launched an online marketing with NME.com (a music brand ). In addition, River Island have celebrities such as Pixie Lot and JLS to model its garments which brings fans to shop in River Island. Together with the advertising campaigns, River Island also sponsors Graduate Fashion Week which brings advertising all over the world, for designers and students who would love to start a career in the fashion industry. Fashion Weeks with new designs and colours, serve additionally to promote new concepts. These Fashion Weeks not only display an array of new products, but also serve to communicate with the audience visually. Dresses and accessories worn by models doing catwalks, are more lively and enthralling than the mere display on mannequins. Normally with a range of Fall, Spring, Summer and Winter collection, Fashion Weeks boost market demand and promote its associated businesses as well. In addition, presence in graduate fashion week is the opportunity for their company to have a review from other people who have visited the show. It gives peopl e an idea to what River Island has to offer as a fashion retail store and how they are incorporating designs from students into their clothing range. River Island was one of the retailers which has joined in High street fashion week to show its line up. The event was taking place on Londons Oxford Street from September 7 to September 11. This is a great opportunity to promote the company image. River Island satisfies its customers with trend, quality, design and durability. That is one reason that River Island is, day by day, getting support and demands by its customers. It provides a range of comfortable draper footwear to soothe aching feet of all day long. River Island won the Draper Footwear Award in 2008 while another proof of its excellence emerged when this brand bagged ‘LK Today Fashion High Street Fashion Award for Best Denim. Fashion is not only a phenomenon for luxurious life, but this concept deals with humanity as well. That is why, modern fashion companies are aware for the fact of supporting special people of society with special needs. River Island is responsive towards special people and that is why it supports BDF (Birth Defect Foundation), now known as New Life Foundation Other than the BDF, River Island also helps Heart and Design; an association that combines creativity of fashion communities with heart and lungs treatment. Fashion is not only for healthy people, but it also helps to make ailing people healthy, it supports them in fighting for health. River Island is a well know high street brand that has over 50 years experience on fashion retail, it provides a big range of stylish clothes but most importantly its price are affordable and its products are good quality. The company satisfies its customers with trend, quality, design, global, human, culture and society friendly. At one end it emphasises collective psychology and trends of a society, and at the other end, it deals with the individual needs of customer care. Healthy trends, balanced life, and busy lifestyle are, what the modern fashion companies have to consider deeply. It is no more a matter of looking good and attractive, true fashion and accessories join comfort and trend together.

Art - A Culturally Constructed Myth :: American Culture Essays

Art - A Culturally Constructed Myth The development of semiotics in the 20th century revealed much about ideology in mass culture. Structuralist Roland Barthes' texts on the matter are very much products of their times, yet many still have a troubling modern-day relevance. Barthes' Mythologies demonstrates the possibilty to find meaning through the 'trivia' of everyday life. He claims to want to challenge the 'innoncence' and 'naturalness' of cultural texts and practices, as they are capable of producing a multitude of supplementary meanings, or 'connotations'. Although objects, gestures and practices have a certain utilitarian function, they are not resistant to the imposition of meaning. Barthes wants to suspend consideration of function, and concentrate rather on what things mean and how they function as signs. Mythologies is a study of the ways in which mass culture constructs this mythological reality and encourages conformity to its own values. Barthes' analysis of signs reveals that there are very few 'innoncent' objects, that almost everything is 'coded' (assigned meaning). Barthes arrives at this conclusion based on his theory of myth: that a form (expanded from Saussure's sound-image, which was limited to linguistics) and a concept create mythologies: sign systems that render one dominant meaning (or 'signification'). For the receiver, this signification arrives automatically and smoothly, thus seemingly denying the intentional re-coding. Barthes believes that this constant creation of myth is how a culture invents its beliefs and narratives, and is able to find meaning in the world. This premise draws a particular parallel in our contemporary society: for it is my hypothesis that our culture now locates meaning through mythological art (whether fine, commercial, popular, industrial etc.). Has art truly become myth? In order to 'read' or deconstruct myth, Barthes suggests, one must (1) accept the myth as a cultural construction, thus emptying its meaning; (2) rear the myth as full, identifying all possible signs and significations; and finally (3) recognize the signifier as both empty and full, capable of signifying many things, yet with only one clear, dominant meaning. It is my argument that such a deconstruction can render art as myth. Having realized art as a structured cultural phenomenon, and having emptied its direct and apparent meaning, it is possible to identify all its possible significations. Interestingly enough, I find that art reveals many diametrically opposed significations: expression and oppression, bias and acceptance, individual and society, creativity and confinement, and freedom and convention, among others. Art signifies the de-politicization of our culture, for even the most political of pieces cease to cause a stir among the masses.