Othello Essay Example for Free

Othello Essay The narrative of Shakespeare’s Othello is driven by the skillfully interwoven elements of doubt, speculation and posturing that are present and intensified throughout. Though the play is filled with sympathetic characters, Iago and Roderigo being the only two whose intentions are known to the audience as malicious, each character is uniquely flawed and the playwright makes this apparent in even the most pedestrian exchanges.   As the focal point of the plot’s manipulation of its well-intended characters and the unseen catalyst of the ire rising between friends and lovers with no true trespasses toward one another, Iago is brilliant at exploiting such imperfection.    Iago uses the highly charged convergence of race and sexuality to act upon his own jealousies. Acting upon the marriage of Desdemona and Othello, a military hero promoted above Iago, the villain would deceive all parties to induce Othello toward the jealous murder of his faithful wife.   The dramatic resolution is underscored by the progressive discussion engaged by Shakespeare on race and sexuality in Jacobean England. In the opening scene, when Iago demands Brabantio’s attention to his daughter’s deflowering, he immediately inducts the audience into a key principle of the world which the characters inhabit.   Depicting to his advantage a circumstance in which some form of violation has occurred, Iago tells Brabantio that â€Å"Your heart is burst, you have lost half your soul / Even now, now, very now, an old black ram / is tupping your white ewe.† (1.1, 85-87)   This is the first recognition of the theme of race, with Othello’s Moorish ethnicity inciting hostility from Iago.   His jealous and deceptive ancient, Iago uses this characterization to draw a distinction between Othello’s sexual congress with Desdemona as opposed to that of a white man. A theme that would be explored throughout the work, this is a demonstration of the lascivious sexual character which society attributed to blacks.   More a means of differentiation than reality, Iago uses it in this context to inspire indignation from Brabantio over the transgression of his daughter’s purity.   The base terms in which he chooses here to describe Othello’s relationship with Desdemona are indicative of the attitude which pervades the order of men through the play’s five Acts regarding race, sexuality and the dynamic of power amongst all three.   And it is also telling to the perspective of the play itself that Iago’s racism provides the first set of eyes through which we are allowed to observe events and individuals.   As one critic notes of the conflict in the play, â€Å"we find out what it is for the first time only through Iago’s violently eroticizing and racilalizing report to Brabantio.† (Adelman, 25)   This hel ps to manipulate events right before the audience’s eyes.   Such a dynamic is further reinforced by Brabantio’s response: â€Å"Fathers, from hence trust not your daughters’ minds   By what you see them act.   Is there not charms By which the property of youth and maidhood   May be abused?† (1.1, 168-170). Here, Brabantio seems to address the audience, admonishing them of the guile which even young women are capable of.   It is unclear at this early juncture of the play whether it is Shakespeare’s intention to voice his estimation of the female mystique or whether he is beginning to establish what would flourish into a full-fledged lampoon of the vulnerabilities which men suffer to their women.   In the case of Brabantio, it is at least perceptible that he recognizes his susceptibility to manipulation, and that the soft and disarming charms of his beautiful daughter had clouded him of his judgment. This is a recurrent theme throughout the play.   Shakespeare straddles an obfuscating line through the narrative that divides the audience in its perception of his views on gender and race relations.   Without assigning blame to one gender more than the other, he sharply assails both men and women for their vagaries in lust and envy.   The manifestation in Othello is an unending cycle of suspicion and resentment.   In the author’s universe, the yielding and delicate exterior of woman plays easily on the resolution to justice which embodies his men.   For both sexes, this sets off a destructive pattern of deception and misperception. The insertion of race into this dynamic creates something of the explosive situation which Iago exploits. Brabantio in particular is a character who is peculiarly incapable of protecting himself from the manipulative ends of those around him.   It is perhaps of some central importance to the play that much of his consternation and confusion centers around his skewed perspective on sexuality, which he typically characterizes as an act of natural transgression.   Proving himself most permeable to Iago’s suggestions, which wisely prey on the Senator’s sexual complex, Brabantio is equally inclined to view men as capable of deception.   Hurling an accusation at Othello over the violation of his daughter, Brabantio quickly shifts from a misogynistic mode to one of egalitarian mistrust: â€Å"Damned as thou art, thou hast enchanted her! For I’ll refer me to all things of sense, If she in chains of magic were not bound, Whether a maid so tender, fair, and happy, So opposite to marriage that she shunned The wealth, curled darlings of our nation, Would ever have, t’incur a general mock, Run from her guardage to the sooty bosom Of such a thing as thou.† (1.3, 63-70) Beyond another explicitly racist sentiment which Brabantio expresses here, there is a complicated set of views on gender, gender roles and the value system which he uses to contextualize the relationship between men and women.   His emphasis here on Desdemona’s rejection of men with great affluence, rank and reputation, especially in favor of the Moorish Othello, as justification for his scurrilous accusations is based not on a sense of who his daughter is, who Othello is or necessarily even the role that race plays in the matter.   More, Brabantio is inclined to an understanding of gender relations which centers on the material rule of society.   In this way, his perspective represents a conservative conception of how the sexes and races are intended to interact.   As another critical perspective denotes, â€Å"Othello is one play, moreover, that intermixes the differences of race and sexuality as the specters of performance.† (Murray, 93) This is to say that the provocative questions there associated are pitched about with a remarkable candor in a play composed in 1622.   Ultimately, even as Othello becomes an aggressor and his own worst enemy, Shakespeare evades the easy connotations of race and sexuality that seem to be at the basis of Iago’s deceit, weaving instead a deeply nuanced outlook on a very complex subject.

Sophocles Antigone - Creons Flaws :: Antigone essays

Antigone: Creon's Flaws In the play Antigone, I choose Creon to be the tragic hero because he is the King of Thebes and he looses everything he has. Creon being King makes the audience believe that something like that can happen to the King then what can happen to us. Antigone the niece of Creon, The sister of Polyneices was punished by Creon for burying Polyneces after his death, Creon has forbidden anybody to do so. Once Creon punished Antigone the blind prophet Teiresias told him that the Gods will take revenge for his actions, then Creon tried to change everything but he is too late. Creon's tragic flaws were his stubbornness, the abuse of power and the actions he took to cause the downfall of the Thebes. Creon showed his stubbornness by not wanting to be proved wrong because of pride. When the Choragos tried to tell Creon that he made a mistake by telling that nobody can burry the body of Polyneices. Creon did not want to listen to the people of Thebes who tried to tell him that Antigone did the right thing, but of fear to Creon the could not really say anything. Creon thought by making an example of Antigone's execution, everybody would get scared and won't try to brake his laws. It actually worked for a while. Creon abused his power by thinking that he can change or brake the laws of the Gods and not allowing other people to brake his laws. He did not want to burry Polyneices' body, but one of the God's law is that every human deserves to be buried after death not depending what that certain person did in his lifetime. Creon caused fear among his people by making a public announcement that nobody is allowed to burry Polyneices. He said that the state of Thebes consists of only him, and that there are no other laws then his. According to the play the major actions that Creon took to cause the downfall of Thebes are that he did not want to burry Polyneices nor did allow any body to do it. Creon broke the burial law of the Gods and punished Antigone for following their laws. The people of Thebes knew that Creon made a mistake but still were too afraid to speak up. Antigone thought that she should get honored for that what she did, but Creon did not think that way.

Customer Loyalty and Customer Satisfaction Essay

Customer Loyalty can be difficult to define given the different views that are presented within the literature. Zithaml, Berry and Parasuraman (1996) determine that loyalty includes a customer’s intention to stay with an organisation and that loyalty includes four elements: repurchase intentions, recommending the service provider to other customers, less complaints and tolerance of price increases. Oliver, (1999) provides a different definition and describes loyalty as a customer’s overall attachment to a product, service, brand or organisation. A better appreciation of the factors that influence the loyalty of customers, particularly their attitudes and changing needs can help companies to develop strategies to prevent customer defection (Coyles & Gokey, 2002). Customer loyalty is important as it can have a powerful impact on a firm’s performance and it is considered to be a source of competitive advantage (Lam, et al., 2004). There is a strong level of agreement that customer loyalty and satisfaction are linked; however, there is an absence of consensus as to what constitutes customer satisfaction (Caruana, 2002); in addition, despite the fact that many loyal customers are satisfied, this does not always translate into customer loyalty (Kuo & Ye, 1999, Jones & Sasser, 1995) and studies have shown that satisfied customers may express a desire to switch to a competitor but it may prove to be difficult due to a lack of suitable alternatives (Pantouvalkis & Lymperopoulos, 2008, citing Mittal & Lassar, 1998). In contrast however, Reicheld & Sasser, (1990), indicate that high customer satisfaction should provide increased loyalty, which makes it less likely that a customer will decide to switch to a competitor. In addition to customer satisfaction, it has been suggested by numerous Researchers that there are other key antecedents to customer loyalty including perceived value, service quality, corporate image, reputation, trust and switching costs (Ishaqa, 2012, Lam et al, 2004, Bitner, 1995); however, although Researchers have posited that there is a connection, it can be argued that the connections is not fully understood, due to the number of potential antecedents (Wang & Wu, 2012); hence the relevance of this research. Perceived value- Perceived value can be defined in simple terms as the benefits received and the sacrifices made by the customer, although some studies have also proposed that perceived value is multi dimensional (McDougall & Levesque, 2000). It is also important to consider how perceived value can be increased and this may be achieved by delivering a better service, providing customisation of services (Coelho & Henseler, 2012) or reducing the customer’s cost perceptions (Ravald & Gronroos 1996). A customer’s perception of value could motivate them to continue to utilise the services of a service provider (Wang, 2010) and customers may also stay loyal to a company if they feel they are receiving greater value than they would from a competitor (Lam, et al, 2004, citing Bitner & Hubbert, 1994, Bolton & Drew, 1991; Sirdeshmukh et al, 2002). Another consideration of why a customer may stay loyal, rather than move to a competitor is the anticipated switching costs, including the cost involved in changing to an alternative, loss of loyalty benefits and developed routines and procedures (Lam, et al., 2004). In situations where switching costs are high, customers may stay with a service provider regardless of the perceived value (Wang, 2010) Service quality- Some studies have examined service quality as an antecedent of customer satisfaction (Rust & Oliver 1994; Spreng & MacKoy 1996), which as indicated earlier, is posited by some studies to link to perceived value. Parasuraman et al, 1988, developed the SERVQUAL model which can be adapted to suit the needs of an organisation and defines service quality as comprising of five dimensions including reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy and tangibles. As part of the model the customer will compare their expectations with the perceived performance of services, or according to Santos, (2003), where the customer will make an overall judgement of the service offered. Whilst the SERVQUAL model is said to provide a good indicator of overall service quality (Buttle, 1996), it has been questioned whether or not the model can be applied to a range of industries and if the five dimensions are sufficient (Hu, et al, 2009, citing Buttle, 1996, Carman, 1990, Cronin & Taylor, 1990). Some Researchers have also argued that  the SERVQUAL model has shortcomings, as the model only measures the quality of interaction and tangibles such as dà ©cor, etc., but not the actual quality of the service outcome (Sureschander, et, al, 2001). Brady & Cronin, (2001) proposed a model which includes the quality of interaction, physical environment and the outcome. Given the fact that for this study the outcome relates to the quality of homes, or the end product, it will be important to determine how this influences service quality perceptions, in addition to considering the SERVQUAL model. Also, according to Barber & Goodman, (2011), since the SERVQUAL model was developed, the debate on how to define and measure customer expectations, perceptions and performance and to understand how to address the gap has not been addressed. It is important to understand where gaps exist with the services provided and customer expectations, as meeting customer expectations is a significant driver of customer satisfaction, which can increase loyalty intentions (McDougall & Levesque, 2000). The reality is that different customers have different service needs and expectations (McKnight, 2009) and it is important that this research also provides an insight into how customer expectations can be met. Corporate image- Several authors propose that service quality is determined by an evaluation of the corporate image of the organisation (Martà ­nez Garcà ­a & Martà ­nez Caro, 2008) and the relationship between satisfaction and corporate image have been reported in a number of studies (Razavi et al, 2012, citing Lai et al, 2009, Leblanc, 2001; Kandamplully and Hu,2007) Gronroos, (1984), indicated that image, including corporate image is built mainly via the customer’s experience and the manner in which the service is delivered. Bitner, (1992), proposed that the physical environment is instrumental, yet in later years these views have been extended to include a wider definition, including the business name, architecture, products and services and general impression of quality (Nguyen & Leblanc, 2001).

Battle of Franklin - Civil War Battle of Franklin - John Bell Hood

Battle of Franklin - Conflict: The Battle of Franklin was fought during the American Civil War. Armies Commanders at Franklin: Union Major General John Schofield30,000 men Confederate General John Bell Hood38,000 men Battle of Franklin - Date: Hood attacked the Army of the Ohio on November 30, 1864. Battle of Franklin - Background: In the wake of the Union capture of Atlanta in September 1864, Confederate General John Bell Hood regrouped the Army of Tennessee and launched a new campaign to break Union General William T. Shermans supply lines north. Later that month, Sherman dispatched Major General George H. Thomas to Nashville to organize Union forces in the area. Outnumbered, Hood decided to move north to attack Thomas before the Union general could reunite with Sherman. Aware of Hoods movement north, Sherman sent Major General John Schofield to reinforce Thomas. Moving with VI and XXIII Corps, Schofield quickly became Hoods new target. Seeking to prevent Schofield from joining with Thomas, Hood pursued the Union columns and the two forces squared off at Columbia, TN from November 24-29. Next racing to Spring Hill, Schofields men beat off an uncoordinated Confederate attack before escaping in the night to Franklin. Arriving at Franklin at 6:00 AM on November 30, the lead Union troops began preparing a strong, arc-shaped defensive position to the south of the town. The Union rear was protected by the Harpeth River. Battle of Franklin - Schofield Turns: Entering the town, Schofield decided to make a stand as the bridges across the river were damaged and needed to be repaired before the bulk of his forces could cross. While repair work commenced, the Union supply train slowly began crossing the river using a nearby ford. By noon, the earthworks were complete and a secondary line established 40-65 yards behind the main line. Settling in to await Hood, Schofield decided that the position would be abandoned if the Confederates did not arrive before 6:00 PM. In close pursuit, Hoods columns reached Winstead Hill, two miles south of Franklin, around 1:00 PM. Battle of Franklin - Hood Attacks: Establishing his headquarters, Hood ordered his commanders to prepare for an assault on the Union lines. Knowing the dangers of frontally attacking a fortified position, many of Hoods subordinates attempted to talk him out of the assault, but he would not relent. Moving forward with Major General Benjamin Cheathams corps on the left and Lieutenant General Alexander Stewarts on the right, the Confederate forces first encountered two brigades of Brigadier General George Wagners division. Posted half a mile forward of the Union line, Wagners men were supposed to fall back if pressed. Disobeying orders, Wagner had his men stand firm in an attempt to turn back Hoods assault. Quickly overwhelmed, his two brigades fell back toward the Union line where their presence between the line and the Confederates prevented Union troops from opening fire. This failure to cleanly pass through the lines, coupled with a gap in the Union earthworks at the Columbia Pike, allowed three Confederate divisions to focus their attack on the weakest part of Schofields line. Battle of Franklin - Hood Wrecks His Army: Breaking through, men from Major Generals Patrick Cleburne, John C. Brown, and Samuel G. Frenchs divisions were met by a furious counterattack by Colonel Emerson Opdyckes brigade as well as other Union regiments. After brutal hand-to-hand fighting, they were able to close the breach and throw back the Confederates. To the west, Major General William B. Bates division was repulsed with heavy casualties. A similar fate met much of Stewarts corps on the right wing. Despite the heavy casualties, Hood believed that the Union center had been badly damaged. Unwilling to accept defeat, Hood continued to throw uncoordinated attacks against Schofields works. Around 7:00 PM, with Lieutenant General Stephen D. Lees corps arriving on the field, Hood selected Major General Edward Allegheny Johnsons division to lead another assault. Storming forward, Johnsons men and other Confederate units failed to reach the Union line and became pinned down. For two hours an intense firefight ensued until Confederate troops were able to fall back in the darkness. To the east, Confederate cavalry under Major General Nathan Bedford Forrest attempted to turn Schofields flank but were blocked by Major General James H. Wilsons Union horsemen. With the Confederate assault defeated, Schofields men began crossing the Harpeth around 11:00 PM and reached the fortifications at Nashville the next day. Battle of Franklin - Aftermath: The Battle of Franklin cost Hood 1,750 killed and around 5,800 wounded. Among the Confederate deaths were six generals: Patrick Cleburne, John Adams, States Rights Gist, Otho Strahl, and Hiram Granbury. An additional eight were wounded or captured. Fighting behind earthworks, Union losses were a mere 189 killed, 1,033 wounded, 1,104 missing/captured. The majority of those Union troops that were captured were wounded and medical personnel who remained after Schofield departed Franklin. Many were liberated on December 18, when Union forces re-took Franklin after the Battle of Nashville. While Hoods men were dazed after their defeat at Franklin, they pressed on and clashed with Thomas and Schofields forces at Nashville on December 15-16. Routed, Hoods army effectively ceased to exist after the battle. The assault at Franklin is frequently known as the Picketts Charge of the West in reference to the Confederate assault at Gettysburg. In reality, Hoods attack consisted of more men, 19,000 vs. 12,500, and advanced over a longer distance, 2 miles vs. .75 miles, than Lieutenant General James Longstreets assault on July 3, 1863. Also, while Picketts Charge lasted approximately 50 minutes, the assaults at Franklin were conducted over a span of five hours. Selected Sources Civil War Trust: Battle of FranklinCWSAC Battle Summary: Battle of Franklin