Tuesday, October 8, 2019
Introduction of tall buildings and urban development. criticised on Dissertation
Introduction of tall buildings and urban development. criticised on the high density and energy issue.understand ecological desi - Dissertation Example By investigating the energy efficiency, health issues and other ecological design component this proposal aims to highlight the rationale of vertical expansion as opposed to horizontal expansion. Highlighting the ecological footprint of buildings from its construction to its maintenance and operation the question remains. Is it really the solution? Solution or not, it is being adopted by countries worldwide, to note in the last decade alone there are more than 602 structures that is more than 200 meters in height. With the urban landscape being changed and the trend is toward the construction of taller mega structures a collective appreciation of its significance to the lives of the common people and the professionals that makes them should be studied and presented. It should be noted that the trend is not confined to one side of the world it is balanced and is existing even in developing countries. For some countries its significance is the ever increasing urbanization of its cities . For some countries it is the first step towards development. ... Urban development has been mostly synonymous with the construction of the tallest building in any locality. It is the most visible indication of how modern a locality is. History background of skyscrapers and urban development The skyscraper and the urban skyline have become the iconic representations of cities around the world (Howeler, 2004). There are about three ways to categorize tall buildings. The first one would be the Architectural Style of the tall building. The second would be the Structural System of the tall building and the Third would be Function of the tall building. The first one is the Architectural Style of the tall building where in it would be taken to consideration the way the tall building was built. These styles are the functional style, the eclectic style, the modern style and the post modern style. The first kind is a functional architecture style, where the building could be used in different ways. An example would be an apartment building. The second would be the Eclectic architecture style. This kind of Architecture style is goes between the lines of functional and traditional designs of architecture. An example of that kind of architecture style is the Barasoain Church that is found in Bulacan, Philippines. The third would be the modern architecture style. The architecture style of the building would be one of the modern times. It has been a popular design of modern buildings to consists of glass mirrors to be the walls instead of concrete. An example would be the IBM Plaza that is located in Chicago, Illinois. The fourth would be the post modern style where in it is between the functional style of a building and a
Monday, October 7, 2019
Do you or do you NOT consider the problem solving techniques such as Term Paper
Do you or do you NOT consider the problem solving techniques such as COP, POP, and COMPSTAT as intelligence-led processes - Term Paper Example For example, Compstat technique is an information-driven managerial process. It is a strategic crime control technique that relies on timely and accurate intelligence for its procedures. According to Bratton and Knobler (1998), Compstat presents practices and structures that enable organizations to successfully maximize efficiency and reduce crime. It is based on the principle that police will be in a better position to maintain order and solve other problems in the community by controlling serious crimes. This will enable them to achieve their goal of promoting public safety. According to Weisburd (2003), Compstat operates under four critical crime-reduction principles. These are, effective statistics, fast deployment of resources and personnel, accurate and timely intelligence, and relentless follow-up and assessment. Compstat involves collecting and analyzing crime data then mapping them. It also involves regularly analyzing other important police performance measures and holding their managers accountable for their level of performance as indicated by these data. Information used in Compstat is usually obtained from various sources like prisoner debriefings, FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) records and reports, field interview reports, incident reports and field interview reports. Compstat presents a paradigm for discretion and accountability at the various levels of the organization. Commanders are held responsible for solving crime problems by top administrators using this information. Compstat has created a management system that keeps everyone focused on the mission of the organization. Through its utilization, Compstat has produced notable public safety (Blumstein and Wallman, 2000 and Conklin, 2003). Law enforcement units hold Compstat meetings regularly. These provide a rational inspection and assessment system that helps to monitor their activities and identify the responsibilities of the middle manager. Compstat
Sunday, October 6, 2019
Training and Development in Small Businesses Research Paper - 1
Training and Development in Small Businesses - Research Paper Example The entrepreneur should know the all the key sections within the technology supply chain. After understanding this, the entrepreneur should determine the appropriate equipment or services to expand the energy business. As an entrepreneur, you should determine the following Product and service; do you aim at providing products only, services related to your products or both? What will be the uses of the products and services you will provide? Will you provide a wider range of products or related services that will enable the sustainability of your business? For instance, providing repair and maintenance services, supplying complimentary products, providing training for use and maintenance of your products and giving credits to your consumers. It is also important to establish a good and working supply chain (Sahlin A). As an entrepreneur you should know how and where to obtain products and provide them to your consumers. For the company to flourish well in the competitive market there is need to understand the markets. The company should identify potential segments that will provide a ready market for the products. The company must understand the ability of consumers to pay for the services and products (Sahlin A). The company needs to have a better understanding of the end user of their products, the levels of spending on energy needs of the product in the target market and the socio-economic strata of the society. Human labor is so important in any enterprise, each and every employee should be treated in the best way possible, and employees should undergo a comprehensive orientation program to familiarize them with the new trends in the markets. Orientation will ensure that new employees familiarize themselves with the structure of the business and will help them cooperate with the existing staff members (Goldstein, 1989). It is important and efficient for employees to receive information concerning the companyââ¬â¢s
Saturday, October 5, 2019
Development of a MARKETING PLAN for Fat Face Ltd in Canada Essay
Development of a MARKETING PLAN for Fat Face Ltd in Canada - Essay Example In addition to its clothing business operations, the company also focuses on charitable activities so as to dispose its social responsibilities more efficiently. ââ¬Å"Life is out there, make the most of itâ⬠is the philosophy followed by the Fat Face Ltd (ââ¬ËHistory our philosophyââ¬â¢, Fat Face, n.d.). The company is always careful in preserving its employeesââ¬â¢ interests and wellbeing. Recently, the company has appointed Anthony Thompson as its new Chief Executive. The Fat Faceââ¬â¢s latest financial reports reflect that the company is growing fastly. The firmââ¬â¢ financial statements in 2010 indicates that the company achieved a sales rise by 4.3% and obtained a revenue of 135.4 million over the year. In order to take advantages of this increased market demand, the company is trying to open subsidiaries across the globe. This paper intends to develop a marketing plan for Fat face Ltd in Canada. Canadian market conditions When a firm plans to launch its br anches in a foreign region, it must be aware of the different market aspects of the target country. In the given case, the Fat Face Ltd proposes to launch its product lines in the Canadian market. Canada is a North American country that constitutes 0.5% of the worldââ¬â¢s population. Although Canada represents smaller proportion of population, according to UN HDI, ââ¬Å"Canada accounts for 2.2% of global emissionsâ⬠(Canada: Country analysis reportââ¬â¢, March 2010). In order to mitigate the increasing environmental problems, the government has imposed restrictions on certain type of industries. However, the PESTLE analysis highlights that Canada is a high potential country in terms of government effectiveness. The Canadian political world is dominated by the conservative and Liberal parties which together form the strong democratic set-up of Canada. The Canadian government encourages regional trade and it adds to the industrial viability of the nation. It is observed th at Canada always keeps better foreign relationship that makes the country a potential market for international expansion. These positive factors would certainly assist Fat Face to run its venture in Canada with little chance of unexpected interruption. At the same time, disparity in developmental operations seriously impinges on the sustainable economic growth of the country. The Canadian economic features of strong banking system and extreme business freedom make the nationââ¬â¢s market potential for foreign business magnets. The global economic slowdown has affected the nationââ¬â¢s development to a large extent because the situation forced Canadian government to extend the rate of unemployment benefits and cut down personal income. The nationââ¬â¢s low productivity can also be directly attributed to the global financial crisis. At this juncture, the unsatisfactory employment rate of Canada is beneficial for Fat Face as this condition would offer sufficient employees/manp ower to the firm. Moreover, the impeded economic development may persuade the Canadian government to welcome the arrival of a leading clothing industry to their market. The PESTLE analysis also reveals that countryââ¬â¢s population aged 65 and above frequently increases; it may adversely affect the companyââ¬â¢
Friday, October 4, 2019
The Inspectors Calls Essay Example for Free
The Inspectors Calls Essay Explore how effectively Priestly delivers his moral message by analysing the roles of the inspector and Mr Birling An Egalitarian would believe that everyone should be equal, either financially or socially. An Egalitarian would want the treatment of everybody to be positive, fair and the same hence we are members of one body they believe there should be no segregation for who they are. These are views of the inspector. He cares about the working middle class of society because of the way he feels theyre being treated in life. A perfect example of this is Eva Smith. Shes a working class woman that struggles and work, to try and get a decent lifestyle compared to the upper class capitalists. Capitalist views are basically about money, business, profit, their financial needs and themselves. They are very self-cantered arrogant. Just like Mr Birling. The Capitalist views are obviously put into practise in him and his family. For one, Mr Birling cares very much about his business and money. This is shown by the situation with Eva Smith and his employers. He refuses to give a small pay rise. They wanted the rates raised so that they could average about twenty-five shillings a week. I refused, of course. This results to Mr Birling taking the first sinful act towards Eva smith. Unlike Mr Birling his old fashioned views, the inspector shows that he cares about the working class by investing Eva Smiths case and making everyone of the Birling family feel bad to see what they did wrong. He keeps on implying what they did wrong how they affected Eva but youre partly to blame. just as your father is, (harshly) Yes. But you cant. its too late. This represents what their beliefs are and how it affects the working class. Because of Mr Billings selfishness profiting thoughts, he sacks Eva. Id agreed to this demand for a new rate wed have added about twelve per cent to our labour costs So I refused. and if they didnt like those rates, they could go work somewhere else He affects her by putting her out of a job, earning no money while he doesnt think twice about her after that and goes about his business, She had a lot to say far too much -so she had to go unlike the inspector and his views. He wants to achieve recognition of the way the working class are being treated. When the word Goole comes to mind, it can mean different function and meanings. Goole sounds as if it was mysterious ghostly characteristics, sound to the word. It can also sound as if it was said with authority. That could represent a judge, a truthful person and it actually comes into play with the inspector. He tells makes the truth come out, as if he serves justice to Eva Smith and the working class. He makes retribution to Eva and slightly revengeful towards the Birling family on the behalf of Eva Smith. With the inspector as well, he can be shown as a fantasy character. He is there with the family, asking questions about something that hasnt even happened yet, but when Gerald goes out and asks about him outside. I met a police sergeantthere wasnt any Inspector Goole or anybody like him on the force. They havent even heard of the inspector. He doesnt exist. This could represent an illusion. The Inspector is shown in the play to be final, significant, decisive and strong minded. He knows what hes doing. Hes intelligent, he speaks when its necessary and in addition he is in control, for instance, he shows the photograph of Eva Smith to the person he is referring to. Not anybody else (INSPECTOR takes a photograph, about postcard size, out of his pocket and goes to BIRLING. Both GERALD and ERIC rise to have a look at the photograph, but the INSPECTOR interposes himself between them and the photograph.) Hes not the head of the house hold or an upper class figure, but he stays in control unlike Mr Birling. Mr Birling is narrow minded nonsensical, Gibberish within form of lectures. He talks about historical periods/ events which happened the titanic said that it will be unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable but in fact, what he said was incorrect. The Titanic actually did sink. Priestly presents these two characters to reflect whats happening in his society in that time. Mr Birling is obviously portrayed to be the higher class (with little things such as having a butler, being friends with people with a higher social status and playing golf) Priestly makes them come across as a self centered, cold hearted, nonsensical man. This portrays what he thinks about the upper class where as The Inspector is caring but stern, purposeful as well, he represents the middle working class. Priestly portrays The Inspector as if he was a messenger, to deliver his ward to the upper class society. He wanted to make the audience see what was happening and the effect/consequences of the strong class divisions and to give his opinion of what he thought of the divisions. Mr Birling is revealed to be inconsiderate, stuck up character. You can see this by what he says Nothing to do with you run alongto Sheila and to the inspectorI dont like your tone (rather angrily impatiently and sharply). All of these show his emotions personality because hes a capitalist, he is used to luxury and hes grown up to look down on the lower class. The stage directions gives us, the readers a visual image of what Mr Birlings doing whether its the way he talks, walks, facial expression, body language or style. Mr Birling body language seems to be stiff, enclosed just by how he is described in the text by the use of language for his character. She looks attentive just after Mr Birling mentions this concerns you too compared to him, The Inspector is a purposeful, stern observing. He looks at everybody and judges everyone by looking hard at each person, as if he was scanning the persons database of personality history. He is purposeful Creates at once an impression of a m assiveness, solidity purposefulness. Priestly wants us to feel different emotions towards them. He wants us to make us see where they are coming from, what their problems are to feel how other people reacts with them e.g. Sheila. Sheila is Mr Birlings daughter even though she added another situation/sin on top of all thats been happening to Eva, unlike the others, she shows remorse when she says: no, not really, it was my own fault. she looks at it closely, recognises it [the picture of Eva] with a little cry and then runs out. Sheila is different to the others because she is the only one that shows remorse guilt and confesses that it was her own fault. Overall he wants the audience to feel each characters personality, attitude, and their way of seeing thing. if the reader gets that, they will see his message. At first the mood of the house is calm, formal, subtle joyful because they are celebrating the engagement. Everything is going according to plan; they have all had a good dinner, are celebrating a special occasion are quite pleased with themselves. The room is bright and nothing rude has been said but, when the inspector comes in, the whole atmosphere and mood changes goes the opposite. Its starts quite dark, dull, definitely serious. He creates a heavy impression by just being himself. Someone with authority or someone to be with the law is always not good, so when that someone visits, people will start to feel uncomfortable and slightly distressed. The topics changes to Eva. The inspector jumps right to the point saying (two hours ago a young woman died in the infirmaryshed swallowed a lot of strong disinfectant. Burnt her inside out, that girl being Eva. He tells the truth and he says it how it is. Because the family are upper class, they would not expect this behaviour, they are not used to anybody speaking to them in that manner, so the react shocked and offended. Eventually the celebration party turns into a confession meeting. After everything has happened in act one, all the family sins come out and all are dreading about whats going to happen next. Mr Birling has the control of the household at the start. You would expect this because hes the man/head of the family (father husband), he earns the highest salary in the family, hes a man he is an honourable man (seen by his family and friends) because of his wealth, business social status. Everyone pays attention to him. Hes also respected by his family, but when the inspector comes in, the authority instantly flips over to the inspector because he is a representative of the police and the law ( the Inspector needs not to be a big man bit he creates at once on impression of massiveness, solidity and purposefulness ). When people sees this they will always set the person below the authority figure, in this case, Mr Birling is the underdog and the inspector comes out on top. They would want to know why he is there, what does he want to know and try to get him away as soon as possible. Even Mr Birling abides and obeys him as any other person in the room. This brings down his control level. The inspector also holds control by little thing he does for example: He only shows the photograph between himself and Mr Birling. Everybody else wants to see it but he refuses and does this for a reason, To show an act of authority. Another act is when he lets each character admit their sins towards Eva Smith, but not at once. He controls them by asking questions they unravel themselves, there story they realize they are wrong, to a certain extent he has the ability to make Sheila breakdown (she almost breaks down, but just controls herself)and so he has a play of their emotions Just towards the end of act 1. Mr and Mrs Birling contribute to Evas death by having a large negative impact on the reasons why. Mr Birling sacked Eva for going on strike and standing up for her opinions for a little pay rise. Mr Birling escalates the situation into a bigger thing then it is. It makes him do drastic things. This is the same with Mrs Birling. Both of them refuse anything to do with Eva her death. They define responsibility whatsoever with her. They are more cold-hearted, uncaring than Eric and Sheila. Eric and Sheila show sympathy and remorse, for instance, Sheila and Eric show remorse devastation when they recognise her from the picture or her name/s (Eva Smith/Daisy Renton) ,(QUOTE). They totally understand and take responsibility for what they did wrong. Eric Confesses on what happened with him and Eva he turns out to be the most honest he has the most positive impact then others (quote). Mr Mrs Birling thinks that the investigation that the inspector carries out is inappropriate (quote). Theyre not used to being questioned, let alone with an inspector. Sheila doesnt really act shocked but because shes so isolated and protected she has become young, naive, innocent, vulnerable and blind to the real society and she doesnt see the consequences of the actions that she does, she doesnt see the affects, therefore she is not used to being involved in theses conversations, let alone an investigation. Eric, however, takes it as a shock when he realises the situation and how Eva felt about him in their relationship that they had. Sheila and Eric feel some sort of indication of remorse regret by being worried and not refusing the blame compared to Mr and Mrs Birling who doesnt show any respect or guilt. They are absolutely fixed on theyre not responsible for it. They do not show any signs of that. The audience are expected to feel negative emotions and thoughts towards Mr Mrs Birling because by them not caring about their contributions towards others. Mr Birling has a snobbish personality and feels like he has got the right to look down on everybody and disrespect them. towards Mrs Birling, I think a negative feeling to her would be expected. She too, is as bad as Mr Birling, because she chose not to help Eva smith because of her pride and shame. Both of them represent the upper class and they are represented as bad. For Sheila, Eric and Gerald, the audience will have a feeling of sympathy because they realised what they did wrong and they took responsibility. I think the audience feel changed by the ending result because everything is unravelled and they all eventually realise what they have done. The hint of mystery i.e. the inspector and the actual situation with Eva themselves gives a mysterious edge to it As a reader I feel towards Eva, a sad, sympathetic feeling towards her because if back in time, women were being treated like that, its not pleasant although towards Eric and Gerald I feel that there is hope, hope that they dont become like Mr Birling. They actually show a caring side to Eva. Sheila, I thought she was a spoilt young woman and overprotected by her parents but now she has had reality check. I like her better than I did before.
Thursday, October 3, 2019
How Market Systems Cope With Economic Scarcity Economics Essay
How Market Systems Cope With Economic Scarcity Economics Essay Contrast how a market system and a command economy try to cope with economic scarcity. A market system is also known as the free market economy or laissez-faire economy. In market system, household owns the resources and allocate them in the course of the workings of price mechanism. If there is an increase in demand, the price of a good will rises and it will encourages firms to switch extra resources of that certain manufacture of the good or service. Households depend on their income to determine the amount of products they consume and market value of an individuals work will decide households income. There is a limited role for the government in a free market system. This is because government tries to protect the property rights of people and business via the legal system. Besides, the value of currency can be protected with intervene of government. The result is competition and widely dispersed economic power. While in the command system, government owns most property resources. The government also gets to make the economic decision through a central economic plan. The central economic planning board determines production goals for each enterprise and specifics the amount of resources to be allocated. The income and wealth distribution is decided by the government too. In this system, market price plays no part in informing property allocation decisions. For each stock in the stock market, the number of shares sold daily equals the number of shares purchased. That is, the quantity of each firms shares demanded equals the quantity supplied. So, if this equality always occurs, why do the prices of stock shares ever change? The prices of stock shares always change is because there is supply and demand like everything else. The additional buyers there are for the stock, the higher the price as the supply of stock shares is for all time fixed. On the other hand, then stock prices will go down when there are more sellers. Both prospective buyers and sellers each of them willing to buy or sell a number of shares base on the stock price in any given stock trading session. If the quantity of shares demanded exceeds the quantity of shares supplied at the current price, the buyers must raise their price offers to encourage sellers to offer enough shares. This situation will cause the price of shares to rise until the quantity demanded equals the quantity supplied. The situation is called the market equilibrium. Now, if there is a report of bad economic news during the shares trading session, the sellers may try to sell out more shares than buyers demanded at the current price. In order to make a quick sale and to find more buyers, the sellers now will lower the selling price of the shares. There will be multiple equilibrium prices going on any trading day, but most of them do not last more than a couple of minutes. In general, demand and supply will affect the change of shares prices. Price Quantity SS DD P0 Q0 In November 1998, Vincent van Goghs self-portrait sold at auction for $71.5 million. Illustrate this sale in a demand and supply diagram and determine the elasticity of supply of this portrait. D1 D0 Price P1 P0 SS Q0 Quantity This graph shows a perfectly inelastic vertical supply curve, at the quantity of 1 unit. The downward sloping demand curve intersected the supply curve is used to determine the price of the portrait which is $71.5 million. When the price increases from P0 to P1, the demand will increases from D0 to D1 where as the quantity supplied is remain unchanged. The demand would likely deceases extremely if there is more than one picture presented. For years a debate has raged between those who favor strategies for reducing the supply of illegal drugs and those who favor strategies designed to reduce demand for illegal drugs. With the aid of two graphs, comment on the situation above using the demand and supply equilibrium analysis. SS1 SS2 DD Price Quantity P1 P2 Q1 Q2 The graph above shows the relationship between demand and supply curve. When those who favors strategies for reducing the supply of illegal drugs, there would be a shift to the left in the supply curve, from SS1 to SS2. The government tries to reduce the supply of illegal drugs by providing subsidies to farmers. This will encourage formers to shift to other crops such as corn instead of crops that produce drugs. Besides, the increasing of border inspection and interdiction of illegal drugs will also affects the supply curve to shift left and upwards, so equilibrium will not achieve. This is due to the decrease in quantity supplied from Q1 to Q2; the price would increase from P1 to P2. This cause less people will buy because of the increases in price. SS P0 P1 Price Quantity Q0 Q1 DD1 DD0 The graph above shows the relationship between demand and supply curve. When those who favors strategies for reducing the demand of illegal drugs, there would be a shift to the left in the demand curve, from DD0 to DD1. The curve will shift to the left is because of government has introduce an educational campaign to explain the disadvantages to human health of illegal drugs. When the curve shift to left and downwards, the market equilibrium is no more achieved. The sales of the illegal drugs would reduce because the demand for illegal drugs has decrease from Q0 to Q1. There are calls from certain quarters proposing that legalizing illegal drugs is the best solution to combating illegal drugs problem. By legalizing illegal drugs, this will increase the amount of illegal drugs available in the market as drug sellers will no longer face prosecution. Addicts benefit too. With the aid of a graph, explain the situation above using the demand and supply equilibrium analysis. Price DD0 P P1 SS0 Quantity SS1 Q Q1 Legalizing illegal drugs will lead to the increases in quantity supply. As a result of this, the supply curve will shift to right from SS0 to SS1. When the supply curve shift to the right, the price of the illegal drugs will decreases from P to P, while the quantity supply will increases from Q to Q. Besides that, drug addicts gain advantages too not only because of the increases in supply but also the legalization of illegal drugs. Provide a counter-argument to the explanation given by the supporters of legalization. Firstly, illegal drugs should not be legalizing because it will only bring destructive effects to our health. It will cause addiction and it will slowly lead to crime. This is because the price of illegal drugs is not cheap and not many addicts can afford it. As a result of not having enough money, addicts will commit all sorts of crimes in order to get money to buy those drugs. If illegal drugs are supported to be legalizing, there would cause a massive numbers of crime rates in the country. People might use drugs to rape, steal or even start a war. Drugs only benefits the addicts as it will cause problem to the government. Government would have to import those drugs from other country and it surely causes a big sum. This will affect the governments financial and the countrys economy. Imagine you are selling a new product in the market. Explain more on the product that you are selling from these aspects: Description of the product that you are selling The product that I am selling is the new model of touch screen laptop. This touch screen laptop is slim and the weight is lighter than normal laptop. Therefore it is very to carry around. This product is aim towards young adults that are working and students that are still studying. With this product, they can carry to their work place and even to schools. Besides, this product also comes with various colors. Consumers can choose the color of the product according to each liking. This product also includes: Bluetooth Built- in GPS system Webcam Water resistant Cold resistant Support Windows 98/XP/Vista/7 6- cell Li- ion battery 4GB RAM Memory How the product is produced or acquired The product is produce in local factory which will be using the modern technology. The internal components for this product will be imported from other country such as America. On the other hand, the external part is supplied by local production. Metal is one of the main resources for this product. Metal is needed in a large amount to produce the laptop. While touch screens are imported from Japan with their high- tech LCD touch screen. The demand aspect of this product e.g. pricing strategies, the threat of competitors, factors affecting demand for this product etc. Pricing Strategies I would use the Price Skimming method which the price is charged higher because this product will have substantial competitors. The high price is to attract more new rivals into the market. Therefore, the price will fall inevitably due to the increase of supply. The price will be set to RM2500. When there are more competitors in the market, I would now change my strategy to economy pricing. Threat of Competitors This touch screen laptop biggest threat is other big company like Acer, HP and also Sony. Although the other competitors are more well recognize, but I believe that my product is better in terms of pricing and functions that are available. Besides, other companies tend to have bigger budget or capital to invest in new product. Therefore it is one biggest threat to my new touch screen laptop. Factors Affecting Demand As for the factors affecting the demand would be the consumers choices and preferences. Consumers taste will be the main factors for the demand curve because it will affect the price as well. Besides, consumers income will contribute to the changes on the demand curve of this product too. If their income increases, they would most likely be able to afford this product. As a result to it, the demand for this product will increase. Elasticity of demand of the product The demand of the product
Wednesday, October 2, 2019
O Brother, Where Art Thou? - From Greek Classic to American Original E
O Brother, Where Art Thou? - From Greek Classic to American Original In the winter of 2001, American audiences initially paid little attention to Joel and Ethan Coen's Depression era, jail-break, musical "buddy" comedy O Brother, Where Art Thou? The film's reputation lingered, however, and over the next seven months O Brother eventually grossed a significant $45.5 million (imdb.com). Loosely adapted from Homerââ¬â¢s The Odyssey, the film focuses on Ulysses Everett McGillââ¬â¢s (George Clooneyââ¬â¢s) journey from the jailhouse back to both his home in Ithaca, Mississippi, and to his wife Penny (Holly Hunter). Along with his two sidekicks, Delmar and Pete (Tim Blake Nelson and John Turturro), Ulysses encounters not only characters from the classic myth including the Sirens and the Cyclops, but also slices of American folk legend. Episodic in its narrative structure, the film unfolds like Homerââ¬â¢s saga with very few, if any, segues between the vignettes. The film deserves an admiring second look for the Coen brothers employ their old-ti me country music soundtrack in a manner analogous to Homerââ¬â¢s lyre, reconstruct gender roles and heroism for the American twentieth and twenty-first centuries, and create a moving tribute to the American South during the Great Depression. The title of the film derives from Preston Sturgesââ¬â¢s 1941 American film comedy Sullivanââ¬â¢s Travels, in which a movie-director character attempts to prove himself a ââ¬Å"seriousâ⬠artist by deserting comedy and making a dramatic film entitled O Brother, Where Art Thou? The Coen brothers perhaps created their O Brother as a realized vision of their directorial counterpart in Sullivanââ¬â¢s Travels. Simultaneously they reinforce the idea that comedy certainly can be art, and thus... ...ary.com/americana/babyface/6.htm>. Jones, Peter V. Introduction. The Odyssey. By Homer. Trans. E. V. Rieu. London: Penguin, 1991. xi-l. Lomax, Alan. The Folk Songs of North America. Garden City: Doubleday, 1960. O Brother, Where Art Thou? Dir. Joel Coen. Screenplay by Ethan Coen and Joel Coen. Perf. George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, Holly Hunter, John Goodman. Touchstone, 2000. O Brother, Where Art Thou?ââ¬âThe Official Web Site. 2000. Buena Vista Online Entertainment. 30 Oct. 2001 . ââ¬Å"O Brother, Where Art Thou?â⬠The Internet Movie Database. 15 Jan. 2002. . Oermann, Robert K. ââ¬Å"ââ¬ËOld-Time Music Is Very Much Aliveââ¬â¢ But you wonââ¬â¢t hear it on ââ¬Ëcountryââ¬â¢ radio.â⬠O Brother, Where Art Thou?: Music From a Film by Joel & Ethan Coen. CD. Universal Music, 2000. Ã
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