Persecution in the Early Church Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Persecution in the Early Church - Research Paper Example The essay discusses that religion today is a matter of personal choice in many parts of the world, and this is in sharp contrast to the difficult times of persecution Christianity as one of the world’s religions underwent in its initial stages to become one of the greatest as documented in history. Persecution began in the period after Christ and continued for a period of about 300 years. It was witnessed at the time of the Roman rule during the period 64 A.D to 311 A.D and was facilitated by different Emperors and Jewish religious leaders. Professing to be a Christian during that period was like declaring the death sentence upon oneself because people were martyred in some of the cruelest ways witnessed which included beheading and being thrown alive to man eating beasts, being boiled in oil and crucifixion among others. Emperors like Nero are documented in history to have cruelly ordered that Christians be thrown to hungry lions in amphitheaters as spectators enjoyed. The me aning of the word martyr to the followers of the Christian religion meant just a witness, but it acquired a deeper meaning and implication when the followers were ready to die for what they believed and through this many people were converted probably due to the deep conviction shown by the martyrs. Christians endured persecutions in the early church, not only from Jews, but from Romans as well and they all advocated for removing Christianity in their systems. There were many reasons why the persecution occurred and continued for the long period that it did. Rome had embraced paganism and thus all citizens were expected to adhere to it as the state religion. Failure to do so was considered to be rebellious and was punishable by death. The followers of Christianity were also influenced by ancient Jewish stories as narrated in Christian literature, for example, the story of Daniel who was thrown into a lions den when he refused to stop praying.   Shadrack, Meshak and Abednego were a lso thrown into a furnace when they refused to bow to an idol. The revolt of the Maccabees who believed that it was better to die than deny the nation of Israel was also one of the sources of inspiration for Christians.2 Persecution was not only caused and done by Roman authorities. The Jews who were followers of Judaism, one of the oldest religions in the world and which is based on Abrahamic beliefs strove against the immerging group of Christianity whose beliefs were based on Jesus Christ. Christians believed they were the new dispensation. One of the first Christian martyrs, Stephen as narrated in the book of Acts 7 was not killed by the Romans, but by the Jews when he tried to explain to them about the new faith based on Jesus Christ while they believed in Judaism.3 The Jews in protecting what they believed was the truth teamed up many times with the Roman authorities to persecution. The fire of Rome in which a very great part of the city was burnt was also used as an excuse to further persecute the Christians in the year A.D 64. Emperor Nero, the reigning monarch was thought to have been responsible, probably in his quest to destroy old buildings to give way for new ones, but he was able to lay blame elsewhere. The Jews were accused, but lastly it was the Christians who suffered the consequences.4 Many of them were arrested, tortured and martyred for the Arson. This act made them become classified as trouble makers instead of an accepted religion. This was a reason enough to do all things possible to prevent their rise to become a recognized religion. Roman emperors did not entertain anything that appeared to be superstitious and to them, failure to pray to Roman gods was against state policy. Atheism was construed to mean the worship of other gods other than those accepted by the Roman authorities. The Christians were supposed to deny their faith and accept to adhere to the faith of the Roman gods.5 Many publicly disagreed and were ready to die for Chri stianity and thus were martyred because they were considered

Country and Rap Music Essay Example for Free

Country and Rap Music Essay The types of music that people listen to are very diverse. Country and rap music are just two of these types of music and the composition of audience that listen to these types greatly vary. The primary reason is that country music is commonly identified with white people who live in the countryside while rap music is commonly associated with black people living in urban cities. For the most part, rap music is relatively a new type of music as compared to country music which, as a result, makes it more appealing to the younger generation. The older generation, on the other hand, are more inclined to listen to the type of music that grew up with, especially country music. One of the unique features of rap music is the way in which the lyrics are vocalized. The sound of rap music usually involves the rhythmic speaking of rhyming lyrics dubbed with the so-called â€Å"beats†. The beats are usually created separately through the use of percussions and other synthesizers. On the other hand, country music usually involves distinct guitar picking patterns with a slightly â€Å"blues† feel. More often than not, country songs involve the use of acoustic guitars although there are instances when the electric guitars are also used in certain parts of the song. The way in which the lyrics are sung is melodic, aptly cohering with the chord pattern of the song. Most country songs are easy to listen to since country music is less of the aggressive type, so to speak. These songs usually tell the story of the country life where the days are reminiscent of the outdoor life close to nature. There are also times when country songs express the love affairs of individuals. But unlike other forms of music, country music is â€Å"a more gentle approach to putting emotions† into music, in a manner of speaking (Lewis, p. 44). Rap music, on the other hand, usually expresses the experiences of an individual in the suburban or urban areas. Most of rap songs commonly involve the narration of how a young black American has to survive and rise to meet the challenges of surviving in a cruel society. These songs also have become stereotyped as the music of young people with a rebellious attitude who are part of violent gangsters in local neighborhoods. Thus, it is not hard to identify rap music as an aggressive type of music. Because of the wide generation gap between the time when either one of the two gain much prominence, there is likewise a great deal of difference between rap and country music in terms of its audience or followers. Rap music, being a relatively new type of music emerging and gaining prominence only in the later part of the 80s—with the exception of the theory that the origins of rap being traced as far back as the time when African-American slaves were chanting rhymes while doing work—the composition of its audience can also be said as younger (Sullivan, p. 613). On the other hand, country music has been around long before the birth of rap music. That being said, a large part of the those who listen to country music belong to the older generation although, of course, it can also be said that there are also young people who listen to country music. Not surprisingly, a portion of those who listen to country music may likewise be composed of those who live in the countryside since they can easily relate to the messages behind each country song. The same can also be said about rap music; those who live in more urban areas have the tendency to lend their ears to rap songs as they can easily relate to the message of most rap songs. For example, the rap songs of the artist â€Å"50 cent† may appeal more to younger people who reside in cities and other urban areas whereas the country songs of Johnny Cash may appeal more to older people who live in the countryside. However, these comparisons do not necessarily mean that there are no countryside people who listen to the rap songs of 50 cent or that there are no urban people who listen to the country songs of Johnny Cash. The point is that it is more likely for urban people to easily associate themselves with the songs of rap artists whereas it is more likely for countryside people to easily relate themselves to the songs of country artists. Rapping can also be done without the accompaniment of any musical instrument. It can even be done in simple impromptu gatherings in common places such as in local streets in the neighborhood. As for country music singing, it is difficult to say if a song is sung in a country music style without the accompaniment of musical instruments such as guitars. At the least, a singer would have to need a guitar in order to sing a country song or to make the song sound â€Å"country† in a recognizable way. In more recent times, rap music has been gaining a steady stream of following from the public with the increasing prominence of several rap artists. Country music, on the other hand, has been kept alive by several younger artists although the likes of Johnny Cash and his generation of country musicians have kept a steady support from the public listeners through the years. If there is one similarity between the two distinct musical genres, it has to be the fact that both country and rap have become cultures on their own. Rap music has become a culture tat has been embraced by individuals which, as a matter of fact, has even resulted to certain divisions among its musicians—the so-called East and West sides. Likewise, country music has created its own sense of culture manifested in the rural areas. Works Cited Lewis, George H. â€Å"The Creation of Popular Music: A Comparison of the ‘Art Worlds’ Of American Country Music and British Punk. † International Review of the Aesthetics and Sociology of Music 19. 1 (1988): 35-51. Sullivan, Rachel E. â€Å"Rap and Race: Its Got a Nice Beat, but What about the Message? † Journal of Black Studies 33. 5 (2003): 605-22.

The Concept Of Identity And Cultural Identity Media Essay

The Concept Of Identity And Cultural Identity Media Essay This literature review will start by introducing the concept of identity and cultural identity. It will then move to talk about how the British colonialism influenced Hong Kong in the past. It will followed by discussing how cultural imperialism, globalization affected the formation of peoples identity in Hong Kong. The literature review will then end by talking about how states influence affect peoples identity in Hong Kong. Introduction of the concept of identity and cultural identity The word identity is rooted from a Latin idem same which also mean identical (Lawler, 2008: 2). Identity suggests that people share the sameness as human but at the same time people are unique that make them different from others (Lawler, 2008: 2). Richard Jenkins (1996) defined identity as our understanding of who we are and of who other people are, and reciprocally, other peoples understanding of themselves and of others (which includes us) (Jenkins, 1996 cited in Kidd, 2002:25). The individual and collective forms of identity are closely linked with ideas of family, local and national history and tradition; the sense of history and tradition is learnt from the family, through media, school, National anthems, flags, costumes and holidays, state rituals, national sports teams, pageantry museums, heritage centres, buildings and monuments, historical novels, drama, films, documentaries, etc which create and sustain who we are and where we come from (Weeden, 2004:24). Different forms o f identity can be found on a person therefore they should be seen as interactive and dynamic with each other (Lawler, 2008:3). However, there are forms of identity that mutually exclusive from each other. As Stuart Hall argues: Throughout their careers, identities can function as points of identification and attachment only because of their capacity to exclude, to leave out, to render outside, abjected. Every identity has at its margin, an excess, something more. The unity, the internal homogeneity, which the term identity treats as foundational is not a natural, but a constructed form of closure, every identity naming as its necessary, even if silenced and unspoken other, that which it lacksà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦So the unities which identities proclaim are, in fact, constructed within the play of power and exclusion, and are the result, not of a natural and inevitable or primordial totality but of the naturalized, over-determined process of closure'(Hall, 1996: 5, emphasis in original cit ed in Lawler, 2008:3). It demonstrated that identity is not exist naturally or people born with it but constructed by closing and exclusion. Hall (1990) identified two versions of views on cultural identity (Hall, 1990 cited in Barker, 1997:192). The first version of view of cultural identity claiming that cultural identity in terms of one, shared culture, a sort of collective one true self, hiding inside the many other, more superficial or artificially imposed selves, which people with a shared history and ancestry hold in common (Hall, 1990: 223). This reflects the common historical experiences and shared cultural codes which provide us, as one people, with stable, unchanging and continuous frames of reference and meaning, beneath the shifting divisions and vicissitudes of our actual history (Hall, 1990: 223). This version of view of cultural identity is known as essentialism because it assumes that social categories reflect an essential underlying identity (Barker, 1997:192). From the words of Hall, it can be seen that this version of claiming of cultural identity is based on the common history, culture that shared wit hin a particular group from the past, and it looks at cultural identity without changing and flexibility. Halls second version of view of cultural identity claiming that cultural identity is not seen as a reflection of a fixed, natural state of being but as a process of becoming, cultural identity is not an essence but a continually-shifting position, and the points of difference around which cultural identities could form are multiple and proliferating (Barker, 1997:194). Hall argues (following Derrida), meaning is never finished or completed and so identity is a cut or a snap-shot of unfolding meanings; it is a strategic positioning which makes meaning possible (Barker, 1997:194). This second version of view of cultural identity is an anti-essentialist position, which shown the political nature of identity production and to the possibility of multiple and shifting identities (Barker, 1997:194). It can be seen that the second version of looking at cultural identity as much more fle xible, changeable. Stuart Hall (1990) claimed that Identity is not as transparent or unproblematic as we think. Perhaps instead of thinking of identity as an already accomplished fact, which the new cultural practices then represent, we should think, instead, of identity as a production, which is never completeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦, so Identity is in a moving, fluid, dynamic form in Halls view (Hall, 1990 cite in Kidd, 2002:26). The above two versions of viewing cultural identity are very different. It will be interesting to know how people see their cultural identity in reality. The history and influence of Hong Kong under the British colonialism Colonialism refers to the establishment by more developed countries of formal political authority over areas of Asia, Africa, Australasia, and Latin America (Scott Marshall, 2005:88). Britain and The Qing government signed three treaties stating that the Qing government to give up sovereignty of Hong Kong which includes Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and New Territories and Outlying islands (Thomas, 1999:47). Since then, Hong Kong had become a British colony from 1842 to 1997. In this hundred and fifty year time, the people who lived in Hong Kong experienced differently with those in mainland China. Hong Kong has its own history and cultural identity. How does this distinct Hong Kong identity formed? From 1842 to 1997, Hong Kong was under British colonial rule and British colonial government had adopted an economic laissez-faire and social non-interventionist policy that it just treated Hong Kong as a commercial entre-pot (Ma, 1999:23). First, it wanted to avoid conflict with the Chinese government, second, it wanted to maintain a commercial, apolitical place for economic and diplomatic reasons (Ma, 1999:23). In the late 1940s, there were huge amount of newcomers went from mainland to the British colony Hong Kong and these people sought to escape from the civil war, economic crisis, and the ruling of the rigid communist, etc and this brought a large number of labour force and manufacturing base to Hong Kong (Thomas, 1999:79-80). In the late 1940s, among the refugees there were experienced entrepreneurs, who brought capital and technical knowledge with them (Wong, S.L., 1988 cited in Ma, 1999:25). In 1950s, Hong Kong established a solid light industrial sector; in 1960s, it shifted to plastic industry; in 1970s, it transformed to manufacturing industry of clocks, watches, electronic toys; in 1980s, Hong Kong started to develop a tertiary industrial sector, emphasis on financial and human resources sectors, and this created a large group of middle class (Thomas, 1999 :80-81). On the education side, the Anglicised education system had reduced the Chinese identity of the local people in Hong Kong (Ma, 1999:29). The British colonial government was seriously concerning about the content of Chinese studies and it deliberately did not create a sense of national identity to the students (Luk, 1989 cited in Ma, 1999:29). Students didnt learn much about the modern Chinese history and development since the colonial government just emphasized and focus on the economic value of Hong Kong as a middle person between the trade of China and Britain (Lane, 1994; Sweeting, 1992; Tang, 1994 cited in Ma, 1999:29). The colonial government also aimed at making a Hong Kong Chinese who can speak both the languages of China and Britain but at the same time without any strong sense of belonging to either country, as well as local history was ignored to prevent Hong Kong to become independent itself politically (Ma, 1999:29). On the social policy side, the development of the public housing policy carried out by the British colonial government in the 1950s created collective experiences of mobility and resettlement and social memory for the HK people (Ma, 1999:30). The resettlement process was often showed in the mass media: children running along corridors of the government estates; parents coming back from work; residents watching TV together after dinner, and these familiar images on TV dramas and government-produced documentaries formed of a home in HK mentality (Lui, 1988a cited in Ma, 1999:30). These collective memories of the residents indirectly reinforced the sense of belonging to Hong Kong and enhancing the HongKongese identity. As a British colony, Hong Kong was imported a lot of cultural products from the Great Britain and also from other western countries. It can be seen that in post Second World War period, Hong Kong was modernizing by incorporating Western lifestyles; it was attuned to a hyb rid, cosmopolitan cultural environment which was increasingly receptive to imported cultural products like Hollywood movies (Ma, 1999:27). The capitalist ideology of Hong Kong and the communist ideology of Mainland China generated the us vs. them identification between both sides and this assisted that development of the distinct Hong Kong identity with demonstrating the difference between Hong Kong community and Mainland China (Thomas, 1999:83). The above factors leaded to something unique emerged in Hong Kong which is the Hong Kong Man. The Hong Kong Man is go-getting and highly competitive, tough for survival, quick-thinking and flexible, also he wears western clothes, speaks English or expects his children to do so, drinks western alcohol, has sophisticated tastes in cars and household gadgetry, and expects life to provide a constant stream of excitement and new openings, however, he is not British or western, at the same time, he is not Chinese in the same way that the citizens of the Peoples Republic of China are Chinese (Baker, 1983:278 cited in Ma, 1999:32-33). It can be seen that a distinct Hong Kong identity was developed under the British colonial rule. Although the Great Britain adopted a non-interventional attitude for the colony Hong Kong, it surely still had impact on shaping the cultural identity of Hong Kong in the past as colonialism produced new losses and gains, allowed new forms of identity to ascend, and debased or crushed others (Papastergiadis, 2000:180). For instance, the British colonialism brought the western capitalist ideology, the language of English, fashion, etc to Hong Kong. The style of ruling also helped to create the indigenous identity and sense of being HongKongese to the people who lived in Hong Kong. However, how much influence of the British colonialism in shaping the cultural identity of Hong Kong still remains today? Is this still a strong element in shaping cultural identity of Hong Kong now? Or it has already been replaced by other factors? Cultural imperialism, National Identity, Globalisation and Hybrid identity Cultural imperialism may play a part in shaping Hong Kongs cultural identity. Cultural imperialism refers to the domination of one culture over another, most commonly posed in terms of nationality, so cultural imperialism is understood in terms of the imposition of one national culture upon another and the media are seen as central to this process as carriers of cultural meanings which penetrate and dominate the culture of the subordinate nation (Barker, 1997:183). This theory stresses the homogenization of global culture through the spread of capitalist consumerism; also it stresses the loss of cultural diversity and the growth of sameness (Barker, 1997:185). Is this homogenization of culture under the cultural imperialism implying Hong Kongs cultural identity is being more like other countries in the globe which following the American and the West but lost its own distinct characteristic of identity? However, Tomlinson (1991) argues there are problems that related to the cultural a utonomy inherent in the cultural imperialism (Tomlinson, 1991 cited in Barker, 1997:187). He argues that cultures are not bounded entities but consist of changing practices and meanings; one cannot legitimately endow an amorphous set of practices with ontological identity and agency (Tomlinson, 1991 cited in Barker, 1997:187). The above demonstrated the problem of cultural imperialism theory that the nationally-based cultural domination is problematic (Barker, 1997:187). This thesis didnt explain the formation of collective identities in general, and cultural and national identities in particular, also, in this theory a national cultural identity is assumed as a finished product rather than a process which is constantly emerging and changing (Barker, 1997:188). For the development of national identity, as Benedict Anderson (1983) argues that national identity is an imagined and constructed one assembled in relation to a territorial and administrative category taking as its reference symbols and rituals intend by administrative authorities to enlist identification which the nation is an imagined community (Anderson, 1983 cited in Barker, 1997:189). It can be seen that national identity isnt come innately or people born with it but is socially constructed by social action and activities. Both the cultural imperialism thesis and Andersons conception of national identity posit the subject as a whole person and national identity as a unified position so that diversity and difference are subsumed beneath the sign of the nation (Barker, 1997:190). Stuart Hall saw that national identities as potentially in decline and replaced by new hybrid identities (Barker, 1997:191). Globalization is the main factor that leads to the forming of this hybrid identity. Population movement and settlement, during the periods of colonial and post-colonial globalization, and globalization of electronic communications have made the juxtapositioning, meeting, mixing available, therefore, globalization enhanced the production of hybrid identities by providing the range of sources and resources for identity construction (Barker, 1997:191-192). Hybrid identities prevent a person with a fixed or given identity, but let a person to change or choose to adopt different identification according to different circumstances (Barker, 1997:195). For instance, a young Asian woman may have identifications with being Bengali, English, a woman, with youth culture and with rap, an American-Caribbean hybrid, Anglo-Bengali at the same time (Barker, 1997:195). What we c an see from the above example is that this young Asian woman can shift and adopt the different identifications above in different circumstances. Moreover, the above example also demonstrated a hybrid identity by picking and adopting multiplying global resources (Barker, 1997:195) like rap culture from the Caribbean, etc. Pieterse claimed that Introverted cultures, which have been prominent over a long stretch of history and which overshadowed translocal culture, are gradually receding into background, while translocal culture made up of diverse elements is coming to the foreground (Pieterse, 1995:62 cited in Barker, 1997:197). It may imply that the national identity that formed by culture that bounded or tied to place is declining. In contrast, the hybrid identity that formed by culture that learnt trans-locally is enhancing. However, there are limitations of the thesis of hybrid identity. It was claimed by Parker that the hybrid identities are limited by the number of empirical evi dences despite there is theory to support that (Barker, 1997:196-197). So, how about the situation in Hong Kong at the moment? As Hall argued that hybrid identity is replacing the national identity under the globalization process, it seems that the hybrid identity should be winning in Hong Kong. However, there is an opposite view from Gordon Mathews. He argued that Hong Kongs international character in belonging to the global cultural supermarket and its national character in belonging to the Chinese state are presented as opposites, and it seems to be the latter which is winning (Mathews, 2001:308). He also claimed that Hong Kong is one of the few places in the affluent world today in which the market is giving way to the state, and in which international identity is being eroded by national identity (Mathews, 2001:309). So, is the national identity in belonging to the Chinese State winning or the hybrid identities that draw from the global cultural market winning in Hong Kong? The influence of state to Hong Kongs cultural identity: British colonial state and Chinese state The word state refers to the body politic or the political community; it is the major locus of power and authority in every modern society (Thomas, 1999:43). State is a concept that against the global cultural supermarket, by shaping people to believe not that they can pick and choose who they are from all the world, but rather that they belong to a particular culture, whose values and traditions they must uphold (Mathews, 2001:291). Practically state moulds cultural identity by school education and mass media; train their citizens to believe that they must defend their cultural tradition and their way of life (Mathews, 2001:291). The concept of state contradicts to the concept of cultural supermarket since state ask people to treasure and protect their own country and culture; however, global cultural supermarket ask people to pick things that you like around the world (Mathews, 2001:291). Hong Kong has never become a nation-state, not in the period of colony nor after the hand-over (Tse, 2006:55). During the colonial period from 1950s to 1980s, Hong Kongs civil education was a-political and a-nationalistic; students at that time were just being taught as residents or subjects who live in a colonial state, but nothing about nationality and citizenship (Morris 1992b; Tsang 1994, 1998 cited in Tse, 2006:56). From 1984 to 1997 was the transitional period of the civil education in Hong Kong. Since the sense of Hong Kong-centeredness and Hongkongese identity were being established under the different mode of governing by Hong Kong and Mainland China (Lau and Kuan 1988; Choi 1990, 1995a cited in Tse, 2006:57), reform of civil education to foster the national identity and unity were needed for preparing the time after 1997. After 1997, the new Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government focused a lot on the civil education. It aimed to create unquestioning political commitment and strengthen social order through the promotion of a unifying Chinese identity and values to the exclusion of a distinctive Hong Kong cultural identity and individual rights (Tse, 2006:61). The actual measures that being carried out under the HKSAR government included reintroduction of independent civics as a school subject, revisions of school syllabuses, the strengthening of Chinese history as a school subject, textbooks changed to reflect the new political reality, wider use of Putonghua as the medium of instruction, more schools displaying the national flag and singing the national anthem, exchange activities with mainland to boost nationalism and sense of social responsibility, etc (Tse, 2006:62). The above demonstrated that Chinese state has been influencing the Hong Kongs cultural identity by commanding the HKSAR government to use different strategies in civil education in order to reinforce the national identity and Chineseness of Hong Kong people. However, how much influence does the Chinese state itself and its policies play a part in shaping the cultur al identity of the people in Hong Kong actually?

Leadership And Management Essay -- Business Leadership Management

In today's world economy companies come and go every single day. It takes good strong leadership and management to guide an organization to success. While many people consider management and leadership to be synonymous they are in reality two different concepts. A person can be a good leader but if he does not know how to manage a company that company will be destined to fail. Also if a person had great management skills but lacks in leadership no matter how good he is if he can not lead his employees towards the goal then it is a failed attempt at success. Management is considered a job description whereas leadership is considered a trait. In this paper we will differentiate between management and leadership. We will also examine how leaders create and maintain a healthy organizational culture. As stated before management and leadership are two different concepts. Wikipedia defines management as "the process of leading and directing all or part of an organization, often a business, through the deployment and manipulation of resources". In the world of business, management can be stated as a pursuit towards an overall goal that is effective and efficient. Also management is the ability to integrate works from different workforces through planning, and organizing. Ultimately management is a theory that is put into practice by a team to create a successful organization. The individuals in these teams are known as managers. It is the job of these individuals to guide a company towards the goal. To properly manage it takes a set of functions to make the organization su... ... concerns with process" (leadership, 2005). In closing it is up to management to make sure that the plans and processes are in place, and it is up to the leaders that have the leadership abilities to act on those plans and use those processes. Works Cited Management. (2005). Retrieved Nov. 14, 2005, from Management Web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Management. Leadership. (2005). Retrieved Nov. 14, 2005, from leadership Web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/leadership. orgainzation culture. (2005). Retrieved Nov. 14, 2005, from orgainzation culture Web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organizational_culture.

Henry VIII †Success or Failure? Essay

Henry the eighth was born in 1491. His father’s good reign meant that Henry succeeded the throne without any problem. He became king in 1509. He was courageous and skilled, also ruthless and savage – one of his first actions was to behead two hated tax collectors. This made him popular. He married Catherine of Aragorn – his brother’s widow. This was against church rules, but the Pope gave special permission. Henry spent all of the money his father had given him on battle against France. This was the battle of Spurs, 1513 – the French spurred their horses and ran away straight away. Meanwhile, Scotland attacked England. Catherine of Aragorn and Henry’s nobles quickly built up an army. A tactical error on the side of the Scots meant that Scotland lost and suffered a political disaster. He also had many friends – one famous one was Thomas Wolsey. Wolsey’s intelligence had meant that he hade gone from rags to riches. Henry made him rich and powerful – many people said that Wolsey was more powerful than Henry. However, when Wolsey asked the Pope not to grant Henry’s divorce, Henry told him to attend a court trial which meant that he would go back to rags. Wolsey died just before the trial. Henry’s divorce is one of the most important religious changes in History. To acquire it, he changed England’s church so that it was separate (but still Catholic) from the Pope – who wouldn’t grant him a divorce. He then simply asked his archbishop to grant him a divorce. This created the Church of England and later meant that England would become Protestant. In order to get a son, he married three times. He then married another three times. He married Catherine of Aragorn, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard and Katherine Parr. Of these, 2 were beheaded. He decided to shut down the monasteries, possibly due to the fact that they owned 1/4 of England’s land and were very rich – his excuse was that some did a bad job. The 1535 Black Book of the Monasteries was a biased report on how well the monasteries functioned. By 1536, many smaller monasteries had been shut. In Yorkshire, where the monasteries were very good, there was an uprising of 30,000 men. Henry crushed this by lying to the rebels, waiting until they disbanded and then breaking his promise. This meant that by 1540, nearly 400 monasteries and their lands were owned by the king. Henry spent his last years fighting with Spain and France. To determine whether Henry was successful of not, we must first think, what is a successful king? What makes an unsuccessful king? Kings and Queens such as Mary Tudor and King John have often been called failures because they were not popular. At times, Henry was not popular at all – he had a great uprising. Does this mean that he was definitely a failure? Henry did many good and bad things during his reign. He was very ruthless – he executed many people without proper reason. He spent all of his money on wars. He lied and was arrogant and greedy. He also protected England from attacking countries. He changed the church and destroyed the monasteries. His son succeeded the throne without any problem. Henry himself had a bad personality. He did, however, improve the country a lot, keep it safe from opposing countries and keep his Barons and rebels under control. If you look at it one way, Henry had a bad personality, married 6 times and would not have been a very nice person to be with (he executed people without thinking). He was however; a very successful king and England did gain a lot from him. He went to a lot of trouble to prevent political disaster and acquire a male heir. If being a successful king requires a good personality, then Henry was a failure. But if being a good king depends on how many good things he did for his country, he would have been a successful king. Henry did however, do many bad things that some other ‘failure’ monarchs would probably not have done, such as ignore and mistreat his children/wives and fall out with the Catholic Church. In conclusion, Henry VI was a dictator and a failure, but his motives were not all bad and he, although using ruthless measures did succeed in his main aim to secure the throne of England with a male heir. Therefore overall, if the historian studies what he achieved, then he achieved a great deal more than many other monarchs and is therefore a success.

Case report

Case report Introduction In the world of business nothing limits the quest of stakeholders in venturing into satellite businesses which are either related or not. The extent of diversification is unlimited hence; some businesses are broadly diversified while others are not. The degree of diversification apart, the worthwhile of the venture is what matters.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Case report Sara Lee Corporation specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Companies branch out with an aim of increasing revenues to enable them to grow. However, at times, like the case of Sara Lee Corporation, may eventuate in low revenues and as such, stakeholders need to strategize and come up with a blueprint of rejuvenating a business. With that respect, Thompson, in his six steps of evaluation of the performance of a company sheds light on how one can evaluate and strategize thus reversing the downward trend of a company. In order to compre hend the case of Sara Lee Corporation and hence evaluate the successfulness of its retrenchment initiatives, a synopsis through the company’s history briefly highlights the major talking points. Sara Lee Corporation is a multifaceted business venture that incorporates diverse businesses that range from foodstuffs to non foodstuff products. Over the years though, the company has been grappling with the idea of increasing its revenues through acquisition and, to a lesser extent through divestiture realizing insignificant change. However, the year 2005 which saw the appointment of one Brenda Barnes as the CEO marked the turning point of the company. With his ambitious plan to further curtail the broad business venture such that they concentrate on household, beverage and food did transform the company big time. Even though this would initially decrease the revenue by $7.2 billion, it was projected that the long term benefits will see this translate to revenue gains. As such, to be specific, it was projected that by the year 2010 the revenue would grow by $14 billion. This would translate to a profit margin of 12% relative to an 8.1% prior to the retrenchment strategy in the year 2004. However, by the end of 2010 fiscal year the company fell short of meeting its projected target hence remained blurred with respect to the degree of shareholders benefits. The company had realized a revenue growth of $10.5 billion and a profit margin of 8%.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More If not sufficiently enough, CEO Barnes further engaged her divestiture strategy with the ‘International Household and Body Care business’ receiving the brunt in the very year. Concurrently, the company continued with its ‘Project Accelerate’ which was launched in the year 2008 with an aim of enhancing supply chain effectiveness as well as overh ead cost reduction. This one made significance changes realizing $180 million savings in the fiscal year-end 2010 and, even projected to save a further $170-$220 million in the year 2012. As at the end of the year 2010 CEO Barnes reign was unexpectedly brought to a halt due to illness. This paved way for Smits who buttressed Barnes strategies by focusing mainly on the company’s strongholds to increase its revenues. As such, while reaping on the anticipated benefits of ‘Project Accelerate,’ Smits focused on venturing heavily on the company’s most powerful brands as well as hunting growth in the most attractive geographical market segments. Diversification is a vital venture in any business since it enhances the spread of risk across the industries. A company that invests in one business stands risks of collapsing economically courtesy of economic crunch or technological innovations more than a diversified business. Apart from risk protection diversification enhances growth in shareholder value. Therefore the diversification strategy lies squarely on the top managerial brass who determines the route to venture-either related or unrelated businesses. Corporate managers in the helm of diversification strategy have responsibilities that eventually determine the success of a business. As such; they need to evaluate and decide on which new path of industries to enter, they need to do a self assessment of the company in order to measure its capability in terms of capital, and gauge the influence of the company’s brand on the new industry. Clear answers to these questions will definitely enable the management whether to engage in acquisition, mergers, or divest. Moreover, the management has the responsibilities of evaluating and identifying opportunities that will enhance the performance of the single business units as well as the whole business at large. The corporate managers should acknowledge that these ventures should be such that they gain from the resources accrued from the larger company hence building competitive advantage.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Case report Sara Lee Corporation specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Finally, the corporate managers should be in a position â€Å"to build sustainable competitive advantage by leveraging cross-business value chain relationships and strategic fits. Diversification into related businesses allows companies to gain economies of scope in value chain activities† (Ansoff, 1965). Thompson evaluates a company’s diversification strategy stepwise through six outlines that include: â€Å"industry attractiveness, business-unit competitive strength, competitive advantage potential of cross-business strategic fits, resource fit, performance prospects for business units and assigning priority for resources allocation, and formulating new strategic moves to improve corporate performan ce† (Andrews, 1987). A thorough analysis of each step will gauge the successfulness of Sara Lee Corporation. Industry attractiveness Industry attractiveness centers on a very wider picture of a company’s diversification. To begin with, managers should take the initiative to evaluate the attractiveness of their industries in order to gauge if they stand at a potentially attractive industry marketwise. As such, the managers should be in a position to evaluate the progress of their respective industries thus; they should tell whether the industry is developing, stagnating, or waning. Vitally, knowledge of the competitive forces within the industry will enable one to weigh the degree of success (Ansoff, 1965). With regards to Sara Lee Corporation, CEO Barnes realizes that she can increase the company’s revenues by concentrating more on the market segments which are most promising. As such, she chooses to shelve satellite business which faced stiff competition. She go es ahead with her retrenchment strategy that finds ‘Direct selling, U.S retail coffee, European apparel, European nuts and snacks, European rice, U.S meat snacks, European meats and Sara Lee branded apparel’ on the wrong side of her strategies. Even though Barnes acknowledges that her strategies would shrink revenues initially, her projected long term benefits were her source of motivation. Hence, by the fiscal year-end 2010, though short of her target, Barnes financial analysis reflects a significant growth. She falls short of her target by $ 3.5 billion and 3.5% for revenues and profit margins respectively. Barnes prioritizes Sara Lee Corporation’s business ventures according to the order of their attractiveness marketwise. As such, she concentrates majorly on baked products, meat and beverage products. As at that juncture she concentrates more on increasing their market shares thereby increasing the profit margin. Seemingly, she realizes that engaging more in food related industry is a worthy undertaking.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In particular, baking industry registered increased sales from $91 million to $2.1 billion in a span of 5 years from the year 2003. This elevated its market share astronomically to 8.2% of the US market for packaged bread. This is exhibited by the graph below of the trends of the growth in income from continuing operations for both unrelated and related businesses respectively. Graph 1 The first year (2004) represents the year prior to Barnes reign. As illustrated by the graph above, the unrelated businesses were actually operating at losses-$350 million and $190 million dollars respectively for the first two years. However, in the fiscal year-end 2006, these companies realized a profit of $246 million dollars before taxes. As predicted before by Barnes after her optimistic plans, she realized declined profits initially as portrayed by the graph above (year 2008). The profit margin reduces by $161 million dollars initially but peaks later to $1.093 billion in the year 2010 pending taxes. Cumulatively for the three years the unrelated businesses realized losses before taxes amounting to $294 million. In the contrary, the related businesses registered cumulative profit for the last three years amounting to $1.792 billion. This in comparison with the unrelated businesses is a clear indicator of the positive impact of Barnes retrenchment strategies. Thus, in order to harness the maximum benefit from her biased strategy in reference to related businesses, she ought to work on streamlining the value chains and marketing strategies. Business unit competitive strength After a successful evaluation of the attractiveness of a business venture it is vital for managers to comprehend the competitive strength of the same. Basically this means getting to know where you position your business relative to other competitors in the same industry. As such, one will be in a better position to tell the strengths and flaws of a business diversification portfolio. This comes in hand y when focusing on resource allocation as well as in decision making which determines whether to diversify or to divest (Watts, Copes Hulme, 1998). Sara Lee Corporation ranked high in food stuffs specifically in baked products in the year 2010. As such, the company channeled some more resources to these products. Most notably is the ‘North American Fresh Bakery division’ which for a very long time held the top rank in hotdogs and hamburger buns. This, prompted the company to negotiate with retail supermarkets to increase their display spaces to accommodate more products. Consequently this saw to it an increase in shelve spaces that propelled its weekly sales to triple its initial in supermarkets where more spaces were allocated. Concurrently, as she tussles with strengthening her strongholds Barnes divested other businesses that are seemingly less lucrative. On the receiving end were among others ‘Direct selling.’ This increased focus that would later tran slate to the growth of the company’s revenues and profit margin in the year 2010 though short of its projections. Checking for cross-business strategic fits A business is considered attractive strategically and stands to score high in terms of market share when its value chains are related with a firm’s other satellite businesses that offer opportunities to: realize economies of scale thereby enhancing cost-saving efficiencies, enhance the transfer of technology from one enterprise to the other, leverage use of a company’s assets to enhance differentiation and, take advantage of cross-business association to come up with novel resources and competitive competence. Cross-business strategic fits â€Å"represents a significant avenue for producing competitive advantage beyond what any one business can achieve on its own† (Barney, 1991). As a CEO, Barnes acknowledges the need to cut on the operational costs hence she launches ‘Project Accelerate’ in the year 2008. Overhead reduction apart, Project Accelerate was launched with an aim of enhancing supply chain efficiencies in order to benefit from the creation of a competitive advantage. This project made significance changes realizing $180 million savings in the fiscal year 2010 and, it was even projected to save a further $170-$220 million in the year-end 2012. Although initially the company had taken the advantage of the reputation of its established name to venture into other businesses that rendered it diverse, their costs of operations further outweighed their revenues. As such, Barnes opted to engage in divestiture rather than acquisition to remain focused in the industries where she could reap huge revenues. Analyzing resource fit One of the advantages that diversification adds to a company is that it strengthens the resources of the company. As such it can be deduced that there is a correlation between these resources and the key success factors under which the indus try operates (Barney, 1991). However, even with this advantage, caution should be taken such that the available resources suffice all the facets of the businesses lest it â€Å"spreads itself too thin† (Li et al. 1999). Companies with related diversification approach boast resource fit when its satellite businesses boost its resource position and when their resource requirements match â€Å"at the value chain level† (Thompson Gamble, 2011). On the other hand, companies pursuing otherwise (unrelated diversification approach) boast the same when they have the capacity to suffice their unrelated businesses without straining its resources. Initially, Sara Lee Corporation had spread its diversification strategies from related to unrelated businesses. Barnes opted to proceed with her retrenchment initiative strategy so that she can shelve some businesses both related and unrelated that were nonstrategic. As such, on top of her priority list of retrenchment is ‘Direct selling’ which she sold in the year 2005 at a profit margin of $ 97 million. This company dealt in cosmetics, fragrances, toiletries, apparel and other household products to consumers. Between the year 2005 and late September 2006 she manages to divest 8 businesses that sees her discard entirely all her unrelated businesses to render her focused on lucrative ventures-food, beverages and households. Barnes believes that Sara Lee Corporation would be successful when it focused its finances and management resources on a few businesses showing promising market prospects. Consequently as at the fiscal year-end 2010 she realizes a revenue increment of $ 10.8 billion and a profit margin increment of 8.5%. This though falls below the projection and as such she further engages in her retrenchment strategy with ‘International Household and Body Care’ receiving the matching orders. This company-an affiliate and unrelated, dealt with among other products shoe care products ( Kiwi). Concurrently, she directs resources to initiate Project Accelerate on the remaining businesses to boost its output by reducing operational costs. Grading the prospects and assigning resources to Sara Lee Corporation affiliate businesses. From the synopsis of the history of Sara Lee Corporation, a venture into a food-related industry would definitely increase its revenues and profit margins. She invests majorly in â€Å"five food-related businesses that include: North American Retail, North American Fresh Bakery, North American Foodservice, International Beverage and International Bakery† (Thompson Gamble, 2011). From the analysis of the financial report during the stint of CEO Barnes, her initiative realized growth in the company’s operating income pending taxation. During her reign, from the years 2008 to 2010 she realized operating income growth from continuing operations of almost 12 folds before income taxes. From the financial report, taking 2008 as the ba se year, North American Foodservice recorded a massive growth from incurring a loss ($324 million) in the year 2008 to recording an income of $125 million pending income tax. As such more resources should be awarded to this company since it has the potential of amassing huge profit margin. Next in the priority list in resource allocation is North American retail which recorded a 132% growth in operating income prior to tax reduction. This should be followed by International Bakery which even though was still operating at a loss; it showed potential of amassing huge profits in the long run. It recorded a 96% growth. Fourth in the list of preference should be International Beverage which registered insignificant growth of 7.4% over the last three years from the year 2008. Finally, North American Fresh Bakery should come last since it recorded a loss of 20% during the same period. The graph below gives the trends of different businesses during the three year period. Graph 2 Considerin g the trend of North American Foodservices from the best line of fit, the steepness of the trend is so pronounced than the other trends. This portrays a business with a greater potential to grow. Following the same criteria, it is evident that the rate of steepness increases positively in the following order: International Beverage, International Bakery, North American Retail, and North American Foodservices. However, the North American Fresh Bakery had a negative slope. Consequently, it can be concluded that the potentiality of the businesses increases with the order of steepness. The negative slope as exhibited by North American Fresh Bakery represents a loss hence, this shouldn’t be allocated much resources. Crafting novel strategic approach to improve performance With the status quo the company is bound to increase its income revenues though in the long run this would be negligible, or stagnate. It is therefore, if need be, prudent for the stakeholders to diversify into f ood-related industry since this is the industry where the company has the prospects of growth. More resources should be channeled to the remaining businesses to ensure that the company has a lion’s share of the market. To achieve this then the top managerial brass should consider developing competitive abilities. As such, they should consider: innovating novel products, brand-building capabilities, and competitive pricing. Also, the company needs to work on acquiring new accounts with already established/new discount store customers and supermarkets. To achieve this then the company ought to improve on category management and influence. With regards to specific businesses particularly the North American Foodservice, Sara Lee Corporation should strive at taking the advantage of its goodwill with respect to meat and baked products coupled with the changing trend of the American eating habit to win the market share for its novel and established products. On the other hand, North American Retail needs to channel more resources on branded products which showed greater preferences with respect to customers in order to reap the benefits of economies of scale. As such there is need for increased production of Hillshire Farm smoked sausage, Ball Park franks, Jimmy Dean smoked sausage, Sara Lee Frozen desserts, State Fair corn dog and, Senseo single-service coffee makers and coffee pods. This should be replicated to the other businesses in their respective strongholds to steer the company to greater heights above other companies. Conclusion In a synopsis, it can be concluded that CEO Barnes retrenchment strategy was a success since the company was able to register positive results in terms of growth later. She was able to concentrate resources in the businesses with greater prospects of growth to realize the positive results. This can be strengthened more by working on the ways to boost its market share further in order to reap the benefits of economies of scale. Venturing into related businesses comes with it benefits that accrue from synergies in that the integrated businesses sum up strongly as one. Furthermore, it enhances a company to grow and exploit the benefits accruing from core competencies. However, with her strategy to invest in related businesses Barnes stands more risks than when she would have invested otherwise. This could be due to fluctuations in preferences and costs of the products in the industry ventured. References Andrews, K. (1987). 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