Great Gatsby And Death Of A Salesman English Literature Essay

Great Gatsby And Death Of A Salesman English Literature Essay Marxism is an ideology that was theorised by Karl Marx that is based on the social and economic processes of class formation in a capitalist society. According to Marx there are two classes namely the bourgeoisie and proletariat. The bourgeoisie or ruling class own and control the means of production. They monopolise the political power and put laws in place in order to protect and further their interests. In this way the beliefs and values will reflect and legitimate their rule. Whereas, the proletariat or working class are dispossessed from making their own livelihood, but are forced to sell their labour for survival. If the dominant classs power is accepted as legitimate by the working class, this is known as false consciousness (Longurst, Smith, Bagnall, Crawford Ogborn, 2008). This ideology became the basis of analysing literature, known as Marxist criticism. Marxist critics approach to literature is based on sociological influences, which means that the texts are the result of whichever historical, economic as well as cultural circumstances they were created in. Texts from whichever epoch reveal the dominate classs ideology, thus making them subjective. (Potter, 2010) The Great Gatsby is a novel written by Scott Fitzgerald in 1925. The novel focuses on the lives of the dominant class of a western capitalistic society and how they are shaped by this lifestyle. On the other hand, Death of a Salesman was written by Arthur Miller in 1949. The novel focuses on the life of a family of proletariats and how they are impacted by the bourgeoisies in society. The Great Gatsby does not focus on both economic classes. Instead it focuses on different groups of the dominant class, namely old money and the nouveau riche and as a result this novel reflects the dominant ideology. Although the working class is mentioned, they are ignored for the most part. Old money is represented by East Egg, West Egg represents the nouveau riche and the working class is represented by the Valley of Ashes. The protagonist, Jay Gatsby, is part of the nouveau riche who lives in West Egg. Jay Gatsby moves from being the son of shiftless and unsuccessful farm people (1994 p.105) to becoming the owner of a huge West Egg mansion with a marble swimming pool and over forty acres of lawn and garden (1994 p.11), this shows the possibilities offered by the American dream. Gatsby earns his money through illegal means, which places him in the new money category, and as a result he flaunts by throwing extravagant parties and buying expensive cars. Another reason Gatsby flaunts is to get the attention and win the affection of Daisy, thus treating her as a commodity (Tyson, 2006). Old money, on the other hand, has had money for generations, so they do not flaunt. Old money, people like Tom and Daisy, look down on the nouveau riche, because they got rich quick and, because they are threatening the status quo. Myrtle and George Wilson are working class characters but they have aspirations to move to the upper class. George wants to achieve this through his business. Whereas, Myrtle has an affair with Tom in the hopes that he will eventually marrying her. Both the Wilsons are commodified by the bourgeoisie and disillusioned by the American dream. Myrtles murder is a perfect example of how the bourgeoisie do not suffer the consequences of their actions, because they have money, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessnessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and let other people clean up the mess they made (1994 p.186). One person attends Gatsbys funeral, demonstrating that his attainment of the American dream was only an illusion. Death of a Salesman is also a text that reflects the dominant ideology, but in this case the play is written from the point of view of the working class. Although the dominant class has an effect on the main characters they are largely ignored in the play. Willy Loman, the protagonist, is a worn out travelling salesman on the point of a breakdown. But Willy still believes in the capitalist values and has passed on the hopes of success onto his son Biff. Disillusioned by the dominant ideology, Willy is blind to its destructiveness and is fixated with his plans for Biff. Biff, however, has no intentions in following the plans his father has set out for him and intends to pursue a different path, one that Miller associates with socialist society. His lack of drive to follow conventional success is teaching him, not that he is useless, and but that the business world might not be for him and that he is better off without it. He is trying to understand himself and discover his true identi ty. In the beginning of the play, he was not sure of himself and as a result returned home in an attempt to fulfil his fathers dream. Happy, Willy other son, has a good job and would like to go further. He also has uncertainties about his career but has no way to replace it. (Swets Zeitlinger, 1994) The scene in which Howard, Willys young boss, fires Willy is a perfect example of the logic of the capitalist economic instrument. Willy, in an attempt to avoid failure, appeals to Howards conscience, reminding him the he has been a loyal and long term worker for the company, but to no avail. Although Howard is Willys friend and neighbour, he is a business man and abides by the law of profit making first, business is business (2000 p.63), which is absolute in the capitalist business world. Willy refuses a job offer by Charley because he feels its charity and would destroy his image of himself as a self-reliant individual. Willy failure and Biff similar fate makes Willy reject his son. This shows how capitalist value can distort and destroy a meaningful relationship between father and son. (Swets Zeitlinger, 1994) Willy decides to commit suicide in the hopes that his life insurance payment will enable Biff to rise in the world. But, Biff becomes the only one in the play to understand the destructive nature of capitalist values and pities his father, exclaiming: I cant bear to look at his face! (2000 p.115) Both texts show how in a capitalist society money gives power and those who have money control the power of society. As well as in western capitalist society the upper will inevitably oppress the working class and that the American dream is both an illusion and elusive. This essay has discussed how the two texts differ socioeconomically, using a Marxist criticism approach. Specific reference has been made to Marxism and how it relates to Marxist criticism, the context of both texts by focusing on the time periods as well as how the characters lived. This essay has also looked at the socioeconomic context of The Great Gatsby and Death of a Salesman.

The new look of your magazine

Change in an organized is normally geared towards improving its service delivery. Change in business development requires thorough planning and responsive implementation. Employees of the company need to be consulted, about the changes and they input taken in. Change has to be realistic, attainable and measurable, these factors are important especially when considering business development change.[1] A product can always be enhanced in one way or another. The new look of your magazine This article is in response to your organizational changes that the company has initiated geared towards business development. It is very encouraging that your magazine one of the best in the country has final agreed to have a new look   This will go along way in achieving the company business aims and objective, and of course create new markets as more will be attracted to the new look of the magazine. For long time readers have bean longing for a change in your fortune magazine. In this modern world people are always looking for new ideas, and new products.[2] For the next five it is certain that your company will focus on improving the face of your magazine to reflect the changing moments. As noted society is dynamic and always changing, thus, it is well thought of you to have a five year plan of changing the magazine look as it will reflect the changing society. How you are different Your organization has continued to be outstanding because of its creativity and originality. The magazine produces features and articles with are informative, educative and entertaining. As opposed to other players on the market your articles are always well researched and very relevant to the society. The other unique feature about your organization it is quality; the magazine is produced with high quality that gives the reader a pleasure in reading, clear pictures and quality printing make your magazine to have high clarity and even a person will be able to review a magazine he/she bought two years ago. With the fast changing world of technology I appreciate the effort your company is making to ensure that it is at the cutting edge of technology. This of course proves your company objective of being market leaders in market. Customers’ views Customer satisfaction is very important issue. In the same line many customers fell that your company have done well in this area. The company customer care services are efficient and effective as it responds promptly to customers complaints. Another issue that your company has scored a plus is in being able to feature varying and thrilling articles that customers enjoy to read. The company has continued to be dynamic and has high standards in terms of production sales and marketing, this is according to the customers. The role of the media is reflect what goes around the society, to this end the customers are happy because your articles are able to reflect what happens in the society. Concerning the on going changes, the customers are impressed with the new look of the magazine. They say it more refreshing and well organized. Since the changes are projected to run for a long time, they are prepared for more refreshing looks of the magazine. Their only complaint is that the company should enlarge the magazine at it is too good to be that small. Employees’ views It is good to note that your company has a five year plan of making changes. As Timothy notes change is a continuous process and should be welcomed[3]. Change is a core issue in your organization. Through, change the organization is able to respond to its customer’s requirements. The change that the company has initiated will go along way in general improvement of your company and profitability. As the company’s employees ascertain, the changes that the company has initiated are good and well overdue. The employees are happy to undertake the changes in the organization because their views were incorporated in making the changes. The employees further express satisfaction because the company value’s their contributions. Before any organization implements a successful change it must prepare its employees well, in your company the employees say that, they were well trained before the proposed changes, in order to implement them.[4] According to your employees, the company has a well communication structure that enables free flow of information. This has created efficiency in the company organization. It is important to note that poor communication leads to anxiety and confusion, which affects production negatively. In summary you have a satisfied staff. Organization performance Fortune magazine has continued to perform well in the market. The company sales have improved in the recent years and continue to increase this can be attributed to sound management of the organization coupled by better marketing methods. Though, today the media market is saturated, the company has maintained its market by providing well researched articles and high quality production. In this fast moving business environment it has become increasingly necessary for the organization to embrace change especially in its design of the magazine and marketing strategies, in order to maintain competitive edge. The results are being enjoyed by your company. I remain optimistic that your company will continue making improvement in its magazine. Conclusion Success of a business depends on how it faces new challenges that come due to change technology or new markets demands that arise every day. Business development changes are geared towards capturing or maintaining the market share and should always be accompanied by good planning and a well market research. References Maund, L. (2001): An Introduction to Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice: Macmillan, Palgrave Palmer, I and Akin, G. (2006): Managing organizational change; a multiple perspectives approach, Mcgraw- Hill Irwin Timothy, G. J. (1996): The Human Side of Change. San Francisco, California: Jossey-Bass Inc., Publishers. [1] Palmer, I and Akin, G. (2006): Managing organizational change; a multiple perspectives approach, Mcgraw- Hill Irwin [2]Maund, L. (2001): An Introduction to Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice: Macmillan, Palgrave [3] Palmer, I and Akin, G. (2006): Managing organizational change; a multiple perspectives approach, Mcgraw- Hill Irwin [4] Palmer, I and Akin, G. (2006): Managing organizational change; a multiple perspectives approach, Mcgraw- Hill Irwin      

Cash Basis vs. Accrual Basis Accounting

Cash basis accounting predicts a periodic measure of performance that is used to predict future cash flows. This is the difference between cash receipts and cash payments from transactions related to providing goods and services during a reporting period. â€Å"Revenue is recognized when cash is received and expense is recognized when cash is paid†. (â€Å"Accrual basis accounting,†). â€Å"When transactions are recorded on a cash basis, they affect a company's books only once a completed exchange of value has occurred; therefore, cash basis accounting is less accurate than accrual accounting in the short term†. (Investopedia, 2013).Accrual accounting doesn’t just focus on cash flows, instead, it also reflects other resources that are provided and consumed by business operations during a period. This method measures resources provided by business operations by revenue. The measure of resources used to earn revenues is expenses. The difference between reven ues and expenses is net income/loss. Accrual basis net income provides a better measure of performance because it attempts to measure the resource inflows and outflows generated by operations during the reporting period, which may not provide the same amount of cash inflows and outflows.Accruals involve transactions where the cash outflow or inflow takes place in a period after the expense or revenue recognition. â€Å"Selling on credit and projects that provide revenue streams over a long period of time affect the company's financial condition at the point of the transaction. Therefore, it makes sense that such events should also be reflected on the financial statements during the same reporting period that these transactions occur†. (Investopedia, 2013). While cash basis is the difference between cash receipts and cash disbursements from providing goods and services.For cash basis accounting, a transaction happens only when money is exchanged. â€Å"Revenues are reported o n the income statement when cash is received from the customers. Expenses are reported on the income statement when cash is paid out. This is one of the problems with cash basis accounting because adjusting entries help ensure that all revenues earned in a period are recognized in that same period, regardless of when cash is received†. (Averkamp, 2004). For accrual basis accounting, â€Å"revenues are recorded on the income statement when they are earned, which more often than not occurs before cash is received.Expenses are recorded on the income statement in the period when they occur/expire which is often in a different period from when the payment is made. This method of accounting provides a better picture of the company’s profits during an accounting period because the income statement will report all of the revenues actually earned during the period and all of the expenses incurred in order to earn the revenues. This method also helps because it reports all the a ssets that were earned are reported and all the liabilities that were incurred are reported†. (Averkamp, 2004).

The Rise And Fall Of Communism - 1843 Words

The Rise and Fall of Communism â€Å"Let the ruling classes tremble at a communist revolution. The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win, workingmen of all countries, unite!† (Karl Marx). This quote is one of the most famous political slogans excerpted from the book Communist Manifesto, which was written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. It demonstrates Marx’s opinion on social classism and how he is against it by stating the imbalance between the working class and the ruling class. The quote ends with a rallying cry and call for the unity of all workers to rebel and demand for their own rights. The book Communist Manifesto is based on the idea of socialist theory. According to the Oxford Online Dictionaries, socialism is a political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole (www.oxforddictionaries). I n other words, it is a political system where the means of production is controlled by the government rather than individuals or private companies. It is described by Marx as the â€Å"first and lower phase of communism†. The theory is that the working class should unite together to overthrow the oppressive government and the upper class, which is also known as the bourgeoisie. No private properties should be owned by individuals or organizations. As a result, there will be no social classes to differentiate betweenShow MoreRelatedThe Rise and Fall of Communism1465 Words   |  6 PagesEveryone would like to live in a perfect society, and in Germany, Karl Marx set out to do just that by creating the government system known as Communism. Though, this system has failed in many countries all over the world because of many significant flaws in the very foundation of the system. Some of the most feared probabilities in society that Communism was created to eliminate still prevail ed and were at the heart of the system’s downfall. If the system was infallible, why were so many of itsRead MoreThe Rise and Fall of Communism in the Soviet Union Essay1523 Words   |  7 Pagescommand system, which is also described as Marxism, socialism, or communism, is both a political and economic philosophy. In a communist economy, the government owns most of the firms, subsequently controlling production and allocation of resources. One of the most well-known and well-documented cases of a communist government took place in the Soviet Union, beginning in 1917 and eventually falling in 1992. Idealistically, communism eliminates social classism and provides equal work for all in aRead MoreThe Utopia Of Communism : Why No Communist Country Has Been Successful1613 Words   |  7 PagesThe Utopia of Communism: Why no Communist Country has been Successful After it was conceived from the mind of Karl Marx, a Communist form of government has appealed to many societies, especially before and during World War II. Some of the strongest countries were built on the principles of Communism, such as the USSR. It came to become an enemy of American values, and challenged the political and civil ideas of that time. However, it quickly dropped out of popularity, and has come to only beingRead MoreManifesto Of The Communist Party920 Words   |  4 PagesThe Communist Manifesto, originally drafted as, â€Å"Manifesto of the Communist Party†, is a pamphlet written by Karl Marx, that in essence reflects an attempt to explain the goals and objectives of Communism, while also explaining the concrete theories about the nature of society in relation to the political ideology. The Communist Manifesto breaks down the relationship of socio-economic classes and specifically identifies the friction between those classes. Karl Marx essentially presents a well analyzedRead MoreCommunism Of The Vietnam War And The Cold War1181 Words   |  5 PagesCommunism is an ideology that has a very long history more than one-third of the globe. This ideology is followed by Russia, Cuba, Laos, China, North Korea, and Vietnam. This ideology is the source of many revolutions and conflicts throughout the history lik es the English Civil War, the Bolshevik Revolution, the Vietnam War, the Korea War and the Cold War. However, what makes Communism different from other ideologies is its origin, its policy, and its effects on the poor and the working class. CommunismRead MoreConflict Theory Essay1066 Words   |  5 Pagesown version of conflict theory. Karl Marx was a German Philosopher whose works are mainly reflected from his social economic theories. Also, he is well known by the critics against capitalism, and how it was necessary step on the road toward communism. â€Å"Communism is a system in which property and labor are all held in common†. This system took a while to receive fame. Until, nations such as the Soviet Union and many other nations began forming their government and economy based on this idea originatedRead MoreRemembering A Forgotten War By Donald R. Essay1357 Words   |  6 PagesRoyal Navy created a balance in the operations between Napoleon’s Empire and the United States as they emphasized on the two years which are 1812 and 1813. One of the best historical academic books of journals is the Cold War by Todd Carlsen and Communism is known as â€Å"A Listmania†. As stated by the author of this academic journal about The Cold War beginning under Truman who employed containment, the Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan, and Berlin Airlift to contain Stalin. It has also been seen withRead More The Rise Of A Nation: United States Becomes The Number One Super Power1133 Words   |  5 PagesWar which ended Spanish rule in the America’s as well as helped the United States acquire its own territories, to the first and second World Wars which ultimately bankrupted all of Europe, to the rise and fall of Communism and the ending of the Cold War. So why were these events so important to the rise of the United States? As the Spanish began losing its territories to independence in Central and South America, the United States adopted the Monroe Doctrine to help isolate these American countriesRead MoreThe Collapse of Weimar and the Rise of Hitler Essay1035 Words   |  5 PagesThe Collapse of Weimar and the Rise of Hitler In 1919, a defeated Germany was forced to abandon government under the Kaiser, who had fled to Belgium and adopt the Weimar, a democratic but flawed system. Soon after Hitler and the Nazi Party appeared, and years later the Weimar Republic fell. What accounted for the fall of the Weimar? My essay will prove that there was not a single reason, but in fact a series of events that lead to the collapse of the Weimar. Read More Karl Marx Essay1110 Words   |  5 Pages Most people think of communism as a bad thing. Karl Marx would disagree. He formed the basic ideas of communism in his writings. He argued that communism was the eventual government that formed out of many unsuccessful governments. Many modern communists either use his ideas or use parts of his ideas to form their own. Karl Marx is the true father of communism. Marx was born in Trier, Prussia on May 5, 1818 (Beales). His family was Jewish, but his father converted the family to Protestantism