Poststructuralism and Feminism

Poststructuralism and Feminism Poststructuralism and Feminism? Poststructuralism and Feminism? Academic Discipline: Womens Studies Course Name: Gender Studies Assignment Subject: Poststructuralism and Feminism?: De-essentializing Without Difference? Towards a Foucauldian Feminist Theory Academic Level: Graduate Referencing Style: APA Word Count: 2,050 The ideas of Michel Foucault have profoundly influenced and altered the development of feminist theory. As second-wave feminists were confronted for their exclusionary and unitary vision of women, new queries about unitary ‘truths’ and grand narratives were being posed by Foucault. At that time, Foucaults ideas about power and subjectivity provided a fitting response to feminism’s crisis in identity politics while also offering feminists theorists with new ways of looking at the world (Francis, 2001). His writings on sexuality and the body seemed germane to feminist goals of explicating how power operates on subjectified bodies in disciplinary and localized ways. And, his rupturing of the socially constructed partiality in modernist philosophical and political texts, and in methods used in the human sciences also aligned with feminist aims to challenge androcentric essentialist claims about women’s capacities. For these reasons, a Foucauldian feminism began to emerge, albeit adapted at times, and his lack of attention to gender notwithstanding, which has led to a prolific body of feminist scholarship. Not all feminists welcomed this emergent framework, arguing that Foucault’s fracturing of the subject undermines the goal of feminist liberation. This paper will explore the theoretical tension between Foucault and feminism, beginning with the points of convergence and utility. Critiques of a Foucauldian feminism will then be mapped out, followed by reconciliatory efforts and responses. In doing so, this paper will elucidate the ways in which a Foucauldian feminism is not only relevant, but also offers an expansive and inclusive vision of women and their experiences in localized operations of power. From Foucault to Feminism: Power, Sexuality and Subjectivity Foucault’s early reception among feminists was generally favorable. His attention to the subject helped theorize a timely response to allegations of feminism’s homogenized and exclusionary identity (Deveaux, 1994) while also echoing feminist goals of making the personal political (Amigot Pujal, 2009). However, as feminist theorists began engaging more closely with his works, it quickly became evident that his views on gender were ambivalent at best. For example, in the History of Sexuality (Volume 1), he explicitly noted that disciplinary practices have made female bodies ‘hysterically marked,’ yet he offered no explanation as to what these practices are and how they operate on women’s bodies (King, 2004). There has also been no paucity of accusations of Foucault’s sexist, if not misogynistic comments about gender. Of frequent note are comments in a 1977 essay for a Parisian anti-psychiatry group that punishments for rape should be the same as those for physical violenc e “and nothing but that” (Heyes, 2013). Views on women aside, Foucault’s explication of subjectivity in determinations of ‘truth’ by regimes of power have had a significant impact among feminist and social theorists (Amigot Pujal, 2009). His rupturing of ‘rational’ and ‘objective’ approaches to scientific inquiry, provided an important window through which feminist researchers could (finally) expose the masculinist and essentialist worldviews had legitimized their subjugation (Francis, 2001). Foucault’s analyses with regards to knowledge claims more broadly, such those in modern literary and philosophical texts that constructed and reinforced power relations were also fruitful for a feminist epistemology to emerge (Davies Gannon, 2005). As he wrote, “Each society has its regime of truth, its ‘general politics’ of truth”, determined by “the mechanisms and instances which enable one to distinguish true and false statements, the means by which each is sanctioned, the techniques and procedures accor ded value in the acquisition of truth; the status of those who are charged with saying what counts as true” (Foucault, 1980, p. 131). Conversely, these politics of truth enable modes of thinking and being that deviate from established norms to appear as “abnormal” or “irrational,” and thus warranting sanction (Taylor, 2013). Foucault’s writings on sexuality and the body also offered feminists with a new understanding of the complex workings of power. For example, in Discipline and Punish (1975), he draws from Marx, in pointing to a “political economy of the body,” but refutes Marx’s over-attention to the state in noting this political economy is an intricate “micro physics of power” through which bodies are disciplined (Schrift, 2013). Foucault (1977, p. 138-139) explains these disciplinary practices as “a policy of coercions that act on the body, a calculated manipulation of its elements, its gestures, its behavior,” broken down and rearranged so that “discipline produces subjected and practiced bodies, ‘docile’ bodies.” For feminists, such an analysis offered an understanding that went beyond the simplicity of the state to more insidious forms of discursive versus grand structures of power and control (Deveaux, 1994). Beginning in the 1980s, feminist works inspired by Foucault have explored the disciplinary and normalizing technologies and practices that produce feminine bodies in essentialist and over-deterministic ways (Amigot Pujal, 2009). In a similar vein, Foucault’s writings on sexuality and the discourses that operate to normalize its domination have attracted many feminist theorists. In the History of Sexuality (Volume 1), he pays particular attention to how sexuality shifted within modern regimes of power and the proliferation of discourses that subjectify and produce docile bodies (Deveaux, 1994). In pointing to the culturally constructed nature of these bodies and of sex, Foucault also ruptured the legitimization of essentialism, and it is this idea that remains one of his greatest contributions to feminism (Falzon, OLeary Sawicki, 2013). In many ways, this allowed feminists to challenge modern assumptions about sexuality and the female body which were understood as inevitable and natural (Davies, 2008). Moreover, Foucault’s explication of the socially constructed nature of women’s bodies and sexuality has proven useful for many feminist theorists to expose the falsehood of sexist stereotypes which were profoundly at odds with women’s lived realities (Mills, 2003). The influential work of feminist Sandra Lee Bartky that has prompted a myriad of works from other feminists was premised on a Foucauldian analysis in identifying the ways in which societal and cultural norms about the idealized woman are oppressive to women, regulated through disciplinary practices and industries such as dieting, cosmetics and fashion (Geerts, 2016). By bringing power to the micro level, through the operation of “micro-physics,” feminists were provided with new ways of understanding and challenging it. Rather than viewing power unilinearly, he illuminated the ways in which individuals are both objects and subjects in its operation. For Foucault (1980, p. 98), subjects of power “are not it’s inert or consenting target; they are always the elements of its articulation. In other words, individuals are the vehicles of power, not its points of application. In many of his later writings, he expanded upon the ways in which subjects can be vehicles of power through micro possibilities for resistance. Foucault (1998, p. 95-6) further asserts that resistance exists wherever there is normalisation and domination, and that “if it is exerted on ‘micro levels’ it can be contested on micro levels; there is “no single locus of great Refusal” but a “plurality of resistances” (King, 2004, p. 37). Thus, rather than seek emanc ipation through overturning systems of the state, such as patriarchy and/or capitalism, Foucault provided feminists with a vocabulary of resistance (Mills, 2003) that opened up possibilities of doing and thinking otherwise (Allen, 2013). Problematizing and Reconciling Foucault’s Fragmented Subject While Foucault’s conceptualization of power, subjectivity and resistance resonated among many feminist theorists, others have argued that it is insufficient for feminist ends. More specifically, criticisms have been raised about his lack of elaboration of the practices of and degrees to which liberation are afforded to subjects (Amigot Pujal, 2009). This is particularly problematic for many feminists who reject Foucault’s vision of emancipation, such as Hartsock (1990) who suggests resistance is strained at best by reducing women to ‘docile’ bodies and victims of disciplinary technologies. Moreover, this reduction, coupled with Foucault’s perspective on the micro operation of power has been challenged as decentres the experiences of the subject (i.e. women) as well as goals to challenge systemic injustice and oppression (Deveaux, 1994). In other words, his diffuse conception of power prevents the existences of a localized gendered inequality and an identification of an ope rative antagonism to organize against (Amigot Pujal, 2009). Indeed, challenging the micro exertions of power is a departure from established feminist theoretical traditions. However, by highlighting the complex entanglements with power does not mean that Foucault refutes the existence of power and the importance of resistance altogether (Allen, 2013). In other words, Foucault’s ideas do not deny global situations and systems of domination, such as male domination, but points to the heterogeneity and complexity in the operation of power and in possible modes of resistance (Amigot Pujal, 2009). Thus, for Foucault, regimes of power function to limit, or at times eliminate the range of possible subjectivities and discursive practices available to individuals (Davies, 2008). Moreover, Foucault’s attention to the subject also opens up possibilities for self-agency, enabling reflexive awareness of discursive practices and positionality that was otherwise unavailable (Davies Gannon, 2005). In that reflexivity, and in the range of possible subje ctivities, Foucault also provides a more liberating view of gender in not unitarily positioning all women as powerless all of the time, caused in any simple way by mens possession of unwavering power (Falzon, OLeary Sawicki, 2013). As such, Foucauldian feminist theorists and researchers see change as ‘transformative quest’ as opposed to an emancipatory agenda that aims to expand the range of subjectivities available to women (Baxter, 2008). Another central criticism of Foucault is his fracturing of the subject, as without unified gendered subject, it is difficult, if at all possible to make claims for and political demands on behalf of women (McLaren, 2002). Feminist theories such as Nancy Harstock have voiced some vehement critiques of a destabilized gender subject. As Hartsock (1990, p. 163) asks, “Why is it just at the moment when so many of us who have been silenced begin to demand the right to name ourselves, to act as subjects rather than objects of history, that just then the concept of sujbecthood becomes problematic?” Similarly, Brown (1995) problematizes Foucault’s fragmented subject as it offers no critique of vision of collective struggle, or grounds for activist efforts. In other words, the notion of “womanhood” appears to be indispensable to feminism as it is the fundamental basis of feminist thought, without which there would be no feminism (Francis, 1999). Feminist theorists that have embraced a Foucauldian perspective suggest such critiques are premised upon a limited and exclusionary politics that emerged in feminism’s second-wave. As Butler (1990: 148) aptly notes, “a feminist identity politics that appeals to a fixed feminist subject, presumes, fixes and constrains the very ‘subjects that it hopes to represent and liberate.” To reject such fragmentation would also deny that feminists have discriminated against other women, and that power relations and inequalities exist between women, just as they also exist between women and men (Francis, 2001). It would also ignore an understanding and analysis of the ways in which gendered relations of power intersect with other oppressive regimes, as Third-Wave and postcolonial feminisms have demonstrated (Amigot Pujal, 2009). Furthermore, Foucauldian feminists point out that by illuminating heterogeneity and differences among women, there is a freedom binary constructions, not only of female/male, but those such as gay/straight, Caucasian/racialized, etc. that have been used to grant normalcy, and conversely deviancy and irrationality (Davies Gannon, 2005). As this paper has illustrated, the relationship between Foucault and feminism has been a tenuous one, inciting some of the fractures within the movement itself. Indeed, his critiques of modern conceptions of reason and truth have resulted in a feminist double bind (Allen, 2013). Those that use Foucauldian concepts for feminist aims have found his analyses of the micro workings of power, whether through modern texts, disciplinary or discursive practices helpful to bring about a more complex and inclusive understanding of gender on localized levels. Those that contest his ideas suggest his denial of structural bases of power, and of a shared gendered inequality resulting from such power are insufficient to accomplish any kind of feminist emancipatory ends. While there is no denying that a Foucauldian feminist theory has complicated, if not undermined the possibility of a feminist representational ‘truth,’ and his works are not without flaws, he has offered feminism with an enrich ed and inclusive vision of gender and new tools for understanding and challenging the intricate workings of power. References: Allen, A. (2013, September). Feminism, Foucault, and the critique of reason: Re-reading the history of madness. Foucault Studies, 16, 15-31. Amigot, P. Pujal, M. (2009). On power, freedom, and gender: A fruitful tension between Foucault and feminism. Theory Psychology, 19(5), 646â€"669. Baxter, J. (2008). Feminist post-structuralist discourse Analysis â€" A new theoretical and methodological approach? In K. Harrington, L. Litosseliti, H. Sauntson, J. Sunderland (Eds.), Gender and language research methodologies (pp. 245-255). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Brown, W. (1995). Postmodern exposures, feminist hesitations in states of injury: Power and freedom in late modernity. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. Butler, J. (1990). Gender trouble and the subversion of identity. London: Routledge Davies, B. (2008), ‘Re-thinking ‘‘behaviour’’ in terms of positioning and the ethics of responsibility,” in A.M. Phelan and J. Sumsion (Eds.) Critical readings in teacher education: Provoking absences (pp. 173â€"86). Netherlands: Sense Publishers. Davies, B. Gannon, S. (2005). Feminism/Poststructuralism. In B. Somekh C. Lewin (Eds.), Research methods in the social sciences (pp. 318-325). UK: Sage Publishers. Deveaux, M. (1994, Summer). Feminism and Empowerment: A Critical Reading of Foucault Feminist Studies, 20(2), 223-247. Falzon, C., OLeary, T., and Sawicki, J. (2013). Introduction. In C. Falzon, C. O’Leary and J. Sawicki (Eds.). A companion to Foucault (pp 1-7). Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell. Francis, B. (1999). Modernist reductionism of post-structuralist relativism: Can we move on? An evaluation of the arguments in relation to feminist educational research. Gender and Education, 11(4), 381-393. Francis, B. (2001). Beyond postmodernism: Feminist agency in educational research. In B. Francis and C. Skelton (Eds.), Investigating gender: Contemporary perspectives in education (pp. 1-7). Buckingham: Open University Press Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison, trans. A. Sheridan, (Ed.). Harmondsworth: Peregrine. Foucault, M. (1980). Power/knowledge: Selected interviews and other writings, 1972-1977. C. Gordon (Ed.). New York: Pantheon Books. Poststructuralism and Feminism Poststructuralism and Feminism? Poststructuralism and Feminism? Academic Discipline: Womens Studies Course Name: Gender Studies Assignment Subject: Poststructuralism and Feminism?: De-essentializing Without Difference? Towards a Foucauldian Feminist Theory Academic Level: Graduate Referencing Style: APA Word Count: 2,050 The ideas of Michel Foucault have profoundly influenced and altered the development of feminist theory. As second-wave feminists were confronted for their exclusionary and unitary vision of women, new queries about unitary ‘truths’ and grand narratives were being posed by Foucault. At that time, Foucaults ideas about power and subjectivity provided a fitting response to feminism’s crisis in identity politics while also offering feminists theorists with new ways of looking at the world (Francis, 2001). His writings on sexuality and the body seemed germane to feminist goals of explicating how power operates on subjectified bodies in disciplinary and localized ways. And, his rupturing of the socially constructed partiality in modernist philosophical and political texts, and in methods used in the human sciences also aligned with feminist aims to challenge androcentric essentialist claims about women’s capacities. For these reasons, a Foucauldian feminism began to emerge, albeit adapted at times, and his lack of attention to gender notwithstanding, which has led to a prolific body of feminist scholarship. Not all feminists welcomed this emergent framework, arguing that Foucault’s fracturing of the subject undermines the goal of feminist liberation. This paper will explore the theoretical tension between Foucault and feminism, beginning with the points of convergence and utility. Critiques of a Foucauldian feminism will then be mapped out, followed by reconciliatory efforts and responses. In doing so, this paper will elucidate the ways in which a Foucauldian feminism is not only relevant, but also offers an expansive and inclusive vision of women and their experiences in localized operations of power. From Foucault to Feminism: Power, Sexuality and Subjectivity Foucault’s early reception among feminists was generally favorable. His attention to the subject helped theorize a timely response to allegations of feminism’s homogenized and exclusionary identity (Deveaux, 1994) while also echoing feminist goals of making the personal political (Amigot Pujal, 2009). However, as feminist theorists began engaging more closely with his works, it quickly became evident that his views on gender were ambivalent at best. For example, in the History of Sexuality (Volume 1), he explicitly noted that disciplinary practices have made female bodies ‘hysterically marked,’ yet he offered no explanation as to what these practices are and how they operate on women’s bodies (King, 2004). There has also been no paucity of accusations of Foucault’s sexist, if not misogynistic comments about gender. Of frequent note are comments in a 1977 essay for a Parisian anti-psychiatry group that punishments for rape should be the same as those for physical violenc e “and nothing but that” (Heyes, 2013). Views on women aside, Foucault’s explication of subjectivity in determinations of ‘truth’ by regimes of power have had a significant impact among feminist and social theorists (Amigot Pujal, 2009). His rupturing of ‘rational’ and ‘objective’ approaches to scientific inquiry, provided an important window through which feminist researchers could (finally) expose the masculinist and essentialist worldviews had legitimized their subjugation (Francis, 2001). Foucault’s analyses with regards to knowledge claims more broadly, such those in modern literary and philosophical texts that constructed and reinforced power relations were also fruitful for a feminist epistemology to emerge (Davies Gannon, 2005). As he wrote, “Each society has its regime of truth, its ‘general politics’ of truth”, determined by “the mechanisms and instances which enable one to distinguish true and false statements, the means by which each is sanctioned, the techniques and procedures accor ded value in the acquisition of truth; the status of those who are charged with saying what counts as true” (Foucault, 1980, p. 131). Conversely, these politics of truth enable modes of thinking and being that deviate from established norms to appear as “abnormal” or “irrational,” and thus warranting sanction (Taylor, 2013). Foucault’s writings on sexuality and the body also offered feminists with a new understanding of the complex workings of power. For example, in Discipline and Punish (1975), he draws from Marx, in pointing to a “political economy of the body,” but refutes Marx’s over-attention to the state in noting this political economy is an intricate “micro physics of power” through which bodies are disciplined (Schrift, 2013). Foucault (1977, p. 138-139) explains these disciplinary practices as “a policy of coercions that act on the body, a calculated manipulation of its elements, its gestures, its behavior,” broken down and rearranged so that “discipline produces subjected and practiced bodies, ‘docile’ bodies.” For feminists, such an analysis offered an understanding that went beyond the simplicity of the state to more insidious forms of discursive versus grand structures of power and control (Deveaux, 1994). Beginning in the 1980s, feminist works inspired by Foucault have explored the disciplinary and normalizing technologies and practices that produce feminine bodies in essentialist and over-deterministic ways (Amigot Pujal, 2009). In a similar vein, Foucault’s writings on sexuality and the discourses that operate to normalize its domination have attracted many feminist theorists. In the History of Sexuality (Volume 1), he pays particular attention to how sexuality shifted within modern regimes of power and the proliferation of discourses that subjectify and produce docile bodies (Deveaux, 1994). In pointing to the culturally constructed nature of these bodies and of sex, Foucault also ruptured the legitimization of essentialism, and it is this idea that remains one of his greatest contributions to feminism (Falzon, OLeary Sawicki, 2013). In many ways, this allowed feminists to challenge modern assumptions about sexuality and the female body which were understood as inevitable and natural (Davies, 2008). Moreover, Foucault’s explication of the socially constructed nature of women’s bodies and sexuality has proven useful for many feminist theorists to expose the falsehood of sexist stereotypes which were profoundly at odds with women’s lived realities (Mills, 2003). The influential work of feminist Sandra Lee Bartky that has prompted a myriad of works from other feminists was premised on a Foucauldian analysis in identifying the ways in which societal and cultural norms about the idealized woman are oppressive to women, regulated through disciplinary practices and industries such as dieting, cosmetics and fashion (Geerts, 2016). By bringing power to the micro level, through the operation of “micro-physics,” feminists were provided with new ways of understanding and challenging it. Rather than viewing power unilinearly, he illuminated the ways in which individuals are both objects and subjects in its operation. For Foucault (1980, p. 98), subjects of power “are not it’s inert or consenting target; they are always the elements of its articulation. In other words, individuals are the vehicles of power, not its points of application. In many of his later writings, he expanded upon the ways in which subjects can be vehicles of power through micro possibilities for resistance. Foucault (1998, p. 95-6) further asserts that resistance exists wherever there is normalisation and domination, and that “if it is exerted on ‘micro levels’ it can be contested on micro levels; there is “no single locus of great Refusal” but a “plurality of resistances” (King, 2004, p. 37). Thus, rather than seek emanc ipation through overturning systems of the state, such as patriarchy and/or capitalism, Foucault provided feminists with a vocabulary of resistance (Mills, 2003) that opened up possibilities of doing and thinking otherwise (Allen, 2013). Problematizing and Reconciling Foucault’s Fragmented Subject While Foucault’s conceptualization of power, subjectivity and resistance resonated among many feminist theorists, others have argued that it is insufficient for feminist ends. More specifically, criticisms have been raised about his lack of elaboration of the practices of and degrees to which liberation are afforded to subjects (Amigot Pujal, 2009). This is particularly problematic for many feminists who reject Foucault’s vision of emancipation, such as Hartsock (1990) who suggests resistance is strained at best by reducing women to ‘docile’ bodies and victims of disciplinary technologies. Moreover, this reduction, coupled with Foucault’s perspective on the micro operation of power has been challenged as decentres the experiences of the subject (i.e. women) as well as goals to challenge systemic injustice and oppression (Deveaux, 1994). In other words, his diffuse conception of power prevents the existences of a localized gendered inequality and an identification of an ope rative antagonism to organize against (Amigot Pujal, 2009). Indeed, challenging the micro exertions of power is a departure from established feminist theoretical traditions. However, by highlighting the complex entanglements with power does not mean that Foucault refutes the existence of power and the importance of resistance altogether (Allen, 2013). In other words, Foucault’s ideas do not deny global situations and systems of domination, such as male domination, but points to the heterogeneity and complexity in the operation of power and in possible modes of resistance (Amigot Pujal, 2009). Thus, for Foucault, regimes of power function to limit, or at times eliminate the range of possible subjectivities and discursive practices available to individuals (Davies, 2008). Moreover, Foucault’s attention to the subject also opens up possibilities for self-agency, enabling reflexive awareness of discursive practices and positionality that was otherwise unavailable (Davies Gannon, 2005). In that reflexivity, and in the range of possible subje ctivities, Foucault also provides a more liberating view of gender in not unitarily positioning all women as powerless all of the time, caused in any simple way by mens possession of unwavering power (Falzon, OLeary Sawicki, 2013). As such, Foucauldian feminist theorists and researchers see change as ‘transformative quest’ as opposed to an emancipatory agenda that aims to expand the range of subjectivities available to women (Baxter, 2008). Another central criticism of Foucault is his fracturing of the subject, as without unified gendered subject, it is difficult, if at all possible to make claims for and political demands on behalf of women (McLaren, 2002). Feminist theories such as Nancy Harstock have voiced some vehement critiques of a destabilized gender subject. As Hartsock (1990, p. 163) asks, “Why is it just at the moment when so many of us who have been silenced begin to demand the right to name ourselves, to act as subjects rather than objects of history, that just then the concept of sujbecthood becomes problematic?” Similarly, Brown (1995) problematizes Foucault’s fragmented subject as it offers no critique of vision of collective struggle, or grounds for activist efforts. In other words, the notion of “womanhood” appears to be indispensable to feminism as it is the fundamental basis of feminist thought, without which there would be no feminism (Francis, 1999). Feminist theorists that have embraced a Foucauldian perspective suggest such critiques are premised upon a limited and exclusionary politics that emerged in feminism’s second-wave. As Butler (1990: 148) aptly notes, “a feminist identity politics that appeals to a fixed feminist subject, presumes, fixes and constrains the very ‘subjects that it hopes to represent and liberate.” To reject such fragmentation would also deny that feminists have discriminated against other women, and that power relations and inequalities exist between women, just as they also exist between women and men (Francis, 2001). It would also ignore an understanding and analysis of the ways in which gendered relations of power intersect with other oppressive regimes, as Third-Wave and postcolonial feminisms have demonstrated (Amigot Pujal, 2009). Furthermore, Foucauldian feminists point out that by illuminating heterogeneity and differences among women, there is a freedom binary constructions, not only of female/male, but those such as gay/straight, Caucasian/racialized, etc. that have been used to grant normalcy, and conversely deviancy and irrationality (Davies Gannon, 2005). As this paper has illustrated, the relationship between Foucault and feminism has been a tenuous one, inciting some of the fractures within the movement itself. Indeed, his critiques of modern conceptions of reason and truth have resulted in a feminist double bind (Allen, 2013). Those that use Foucauldian concepts for feminist aims have found his analyses of the micro workings of power, whether through modern texts, disciplinary or discursive practices helpful to bring about a more complex and inclusive understanding of gender on localized levels. Those that contest his ideas suggest his denial of structural bases of power, and of a shared gendered inequality resulting from such power are insufficient to accomplish any kind of feminist emancipatory ends. While there is no denying that a Foucauldian feminist theory has complicated, if not undermined the possibility of a feminist representational ‘truth,’ and his works are not without flaws, he has offered feminism with an enrich ed and inclusive vision of gender and new tools for understanding and challenging the intricate workings of power. References: Allen, A. (2013, September). Feminism, Foucault, and the critique of reason: Re-reading the history of madness. Foucault Studies, 16, 15-31. Amigot, P. Pujal, M. (2009). On power, freedom, and gender: A fruitful tension between Foucault and feminism. Theory Psychology, 19(5), 646â€"669. Baxter, J. (2008). Feminist post-structuralist discourse Analysis â€" A new theoretical and methodological approach? In K. Harrington, L. Litosseliti, H. Sauntson, J. Sunderland (Eds.), Gender and language research methodologies (pp. 245-255). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Brown, W. (1995). Postmodern exposures, feminist hesitations in states of injury: Power and freedom in late modernity. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. Butler, J. (1990). Gender trouble and the subversion of identity. London: Routledge Davies, B. (2008), ‘Re-thinking ‘‘behaviour’’ in terms of positioning and the ethics of responsibility,” in A.M. Phelan and J. Sumsion (Eds.) Critical readings in teacher education: Provoking absences (pp. 173â€"86). Netherlands: Sense Publishers. Davies, B. Gannon, S. (2005). Feminism/Poststructuralism. In B. Somekh C. Lewin (Eds.), Research methods in the social sciences (pp. 318-325). UK: Sage Publishers. Deveaux, M. (1994, Summer). Feminism and Empowerment: A Critical Reading of Foucault Feminist Studies, 20(2), 223-247. Falzon, C., OLeary, T., and Sawicki, J. (2013). Introduction. In C. Falzon, C. O’Leary and J. Sawicki (Eds.). A companion to Foucault (pp 1-7). Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell. Francis, B. (1999). Modernist reductionism of post-structuralist relativism: Can we move on? An evaluation of the arguments in relation to feminist educational research. Gender and Education, 11(4), 381-393. Francis, B. (2001). Beyond postmodernism: Feminist agency in educational research. In B. Francis and C. Skelton (Eds.), Investigating gender: Contemporary perspectives in education (pp. 1-7). Buckingham: Open University Press Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison, trans. A. Sheridan, (Ed.). Harmondsworth: Peregrine. Foucault, M. (1980). Power/knowledge: Selected interviews and other writings, 1972-1977. C. Gordon (Ed.). New York: Pantheon Books.

Tax Year End Process SPD Case Free Essay Example, 2250 words

The clear-down process is where all of the payroll figures for the year are accumulated, and then tabulated to provide the data for the end of year payroll report. At this stage of the proceedings, payroll personnel needs to ensure that the final payment for the year has been processed and deemed accurate and that the year-to-date figures tally with the sum of the monthly figures previously recorded. There are a number of different items that need to be cleared off for the financial year including; Gross pay to date Gross PAYE to date Gross SSP to date Gross Deductions to date Gross Allowances to dateThe Inland Revenue Department also requires that each company complete an End of Year Summary form (P14) for each employee (current and historic) that has been paid by the company during the relevant financial year. Student Declaration forms (P38[S]) for students who may have been employed during holiday periods and Employee Supplementary Returns (P38A) also need to be completed for any employee that was paid during the financial year but for whom a P14 was not completed. Other returns that must also be completed during the end of year reporting process include an Employees Annual Return (P35), an Employee s Certificate of Pay, Income Tax and NICs (P60) an Expenses Payments and Income from which tax cannot be deducted for the financial year (P9) and/or an Expenses and Benefits Form (P11D). Finally if applicable a form (P11D[b]) Return of Class 1A National Insurance Contributions, Return of Expenses and Benefits: Employer s declaration must also be completed if the company is liable to return any expense payments or benefits. Because the closedown period is a complex and busy time of the year, it is advisable that a trial run of the close off is completed two weeks before the end of the year date. Although the year to date figures will not be complete (because of two pay periods still to process) this trial run will allow accounting staff to run a check on f igures generated by the payroll software program to ensure that the program is working accurately and that all of the information required for end of year processing is available through generated payroll reports. We will write a custom essay sample on Tax Year End Process: SPD Case or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now

How Do You Pronounce EU in French

The letter combination EU appears often in the French language, but do you know how to pronounce it? Depending on how its used, the EU takes on the sound of an English U. This French lesson will explain how and when its used and give you some example vocabulary words to use as practice. How to Pronounce the French EU The French letter combination EU can be pronounced in two different ways and they  are quite similar to one another. When EU is an open syllable -- the vowel is the last sound in the syllable -- it sounds more or less like the U in the English word full:  listen.When in a closed syllable, EU is pronounced with a slightly more open mouth: listen. There is an exception to the EU pronunciation rules. When used as the past participle of avoir, eu  is pronounced like the French U. French Words With EU Its time to practice your EU pronunciation with a few words. You can click on each word to hear the proper pronunciation, but give it a try on your own first. neuf  (nine)feu  (fire)peu  (a little) Did you notice how  neuf  used the closed syllable EU while  feu  and  peu  use the open syllable sound? You can almost expect to say full and pull with those two words. Dont Get EU Confused With These If you see the letter combination of EUIL, the sound will be different. This is more of an OO sound as in good followed by a Y. Here it is in use:  une  feuille  (leaf). The  vowel combination of AU  has a closed O sound, as does  the combination EAU.   If youre reading fast, it can be very easy to mistake either for EU.

Xenophon and Aristophanes Free Essays

In Greek society women had little control over their lives. A husband wanted to be able to control his wife so she would run his household as he saw fit, so she did not damage his reputation, and so he knew the paternity of his children. A husband wanted the girl to be closely controlled by her father before she married for the same reasons. We will write a custom essay sample on Xenophon and Aristophanes or any similar topic only for you Order Now Aristophanes’ comedies and Xenophon’s Oeconomicus contain very different depictions of a Greek citizen woman’s life before she is married and during the time shortly after she is married. Both the comedies and Oeconomicus examine how girls were educated, how closely guarded they were in their father’s household, and their willingness to deceive their husbands. In Oeconomicus, Xenophon wrote about the ideal girl, but she was exaggerated in the direction of perfection. In the comedies, however, some the female characters were almost the exact opposite of the girl in Oeconomicus. Even though ideas about how girls were raised and how they behaved after they were married are very different in Oeconomicus and in Aristophanes’ comedies, both sets of ideas get at a husband’s desire for his wife to have been closely controlled by her father, and then by him. Aristophanes and Xenophon illustrate this desire by presenting the ideal characteristics of a wife and the characteristics men fear. They also use exaggeration to make the distinction between the good wife and the undesirable wife even clearer. Because husbands wanted their wives to be controlled first by their fathers, and then by them, women spent their entire lives under the control of men. There was also a large difference between how closely guarded by her father Ischomachos’s wife was, compared to the girls in the comedies. Girls were not only guarded to keep them from learning too much, but they were also guarded to keep them away from men so they would not have sex with or be raped by them. Because if a girl was, and after marriage her husband found out, he would be unsure of the paternity of his children. Ischomachos’s wife â€Å"had previously lived under diligent supervision in order that she might see and hear as little as possible† (Oeconomicus, VII, 5). She obviously did not leave her house much if her family was making an attempt to have her see and hear as little as possible. Because she was supervised that closely, even if she did leave her house she wouldn’t have had a chance to get into trouble because there would be someone with her or watching her. In Women at the Thesmophoria, the Kinsman portrayed a female character who was obviously not guarded closely, â€Å"I had a boyfriend, who’d deflowered me when I was only seven† (Women at the Thesmophoria, 503). If a man was able to get to the Kinsman’s character when she was only seven she was not being watch closely. Calling the person who deflowered her, her boyfriend, implies that this was not a single instance of negligence on part of her guardian; it implies that she was not being watched closely enough to prevent her boyfriend from continuing to see her. Ischomachos’s wife reflects the ideal for Greek husbands. Because her father so closely controlled her, she would not have had an opportunity to do anything that would call the paternity of her future husband’s children into question. The Kinsman’s character is a depiction of a girl that shows men’s fears about how their wives might have been raised. She is completely out of the control of her father, so when she marries, her husband will have no idea if she is all ready pregnant. It is likely that how closely or loosely these characters were guarded is an exaggeration. Although Ischomachos’s wife probably was guarded as closely as possible, her incredible ignorance implies that she was guarded more closely then was achievable. The Kinsman’s character is probably also an exaggeration. Although there probably were some girls who were deflowered when they were very young, it seems unlikely that she would have had a boyfriend at the age of seven. The exaggeration only makes the ideal of a father’s control more clear. In Ischomachos’s wife’s extreme case there is almost no chance that she was pregnant with another man’s child when she married, but in the case of the Kinsman it would be surprising if she was not all ready pregnant. In order for a husband to be able to control his wife easily and so he would be able to teach her how he wanted her to run his household, girls were supposed to be kept as ignorant as possible before marriage. Ischomachos’s wife is an example of this ideal. He says that † [she] had previously lived under diligent supervision in order that she might see and hear as little as possible and ask the fewest questions as possible† (Oeconomicus, VII, 5). In Lysistrata an opposite view of the education of girls is presented. A chorus of women spoke about their experience in several different religious ceremonies and festivals. They use what they learned in the festivals to justify giving the polis advice. We want to start by offering the polis some good advice and rightly, for she raised me in splendid luxury. As soon as I turned seven I was an Arrephoros; then a Grinder; when I was then I shed my saffron robe for the Foundress at the Brauronia. And once, when I was a beautiful girl, I carried the Basket wearing a necklace of dried figs† (Lysistrata, 669). Because they use their experience in religious ceremonies as a qualification, they believe they have learned from these experiences. The contrast between Oeconomicus and Lysistrata is striking in that Ischomachos’s wife was kept home and an attempt was made to teach her as little as possible, while the girls in the chorus left home for extended periods of time and apparently learned from their experiences. The experience of both Ischomachos’s wife and the chorus girls is an exaggeration of what is possible in reality. Ischomachos seemed to think his wife did not know anything he did not teach her. When she made a mistake, such as when she cannot find something that Ischomachos asks for, he took full responsibility for it because if he had not taught it to her she could not be expected to know it. â€Å"But you are not at fault in this, rather I am, since I handed over these things to you without giving orders as to where each kind of thing should be put so that you would know where to put them and where to find them again† (Oeconomicus, VIII, 2). The list of religious festivals given by the chorus as evidence of their education contains service in five separate religious rites. This list of religious service is â€Å"the most prestigious any Athenian woman could boast† (Lysistrata 669, note 138). Some of the rites were only open to girls from the â€Å"noblest Athenian families† (Lysistrata 670, note 139). It seems unlikely that many girls, if any, would have had the experience that the girls in the chorus listed. So the experiences of girls in Lysistrata are exaggerated to make the girls appear more knowledgeable than they probably would be, and in Oeconomicus the girl is more ignorant than seems possible. The exaggeration illustrates why men wanted ignorant girls. Ischomachos’s wife is incredibly ignorant and is very easy to control. She does exactly what her husband tells her to do, once instructed. This contrasts with the women in Lysistrata who have an unusual amount of experience outside of their homes. The women’s experience, in part, contributed to their attempt to take over the polis. A wife who attempted to deceive her husband was very frightening for Greek men because men spent a great deal of their time away from home. When a husband was gone, his wife would have the opportunity to do things that would damage his reputation and call the paternity of his children into question. A husband could not really control his wife, if he could not trust that she was doing exactly what she said she was doing. In the Oeconomicus there is an example of a wife deceiving her husband that seems very benign. All Ischomachos’s wife did was put on makeup, but when he sees her with a painted face, he tells her that she should not wear makeup because it is a form of deception. Such deceits may in some way deceive outsiders and go undetected, but when those who are always together try to deceive one another they are necessarily found out† (Oeconomicus X, 8). It seems like he is not just lecturing her about putting on makeup, but also about other kinds of deception. Of course after Ischomachos’s lecture, â€Å"she never did anything of that sort again† (Oeconomicus X, 9). The Kinsman’s ch aracter not only lied to her husband only three days after they were married, but she lied so she could leave the house to have sex with her boyfriend (Women at the Thesmophoria, 504). Her actions could damage her husband’s reputation, and would call the paternity of his children into question. Her actions seem to be as bad as possible from the husband’s perspective. These actions are a demonstration of men’s fears about what their wives might do if they were willing and able to deceive their husbands. The Kinsmans’ actions are a stark contrast with Ischomachos’s wife, who after being corrected, never again deceived her husband. Because she was unwilling to deceive her husband, and therefore easy to control, she was an example of the perfect wife. Although Xenophon and Aristophanes were a part of the same society and wrote about Greek men’s desire for their wives to be closely controlled before and after marriage, they explored this desire in very different ways. Xenophon used it to write a text that gave men advice about what to look for in a perfect wife, and how to treat her after they were married. However, Aristophanes was writing comedies so he exaggerated undesired characteristics to create the worst possible wives for comic effect. When both Aristophanes and Xenophon’s works are examined to see how a father’s control over his daughter and the characteristics that make it easier for a husband to control his wife are portrayed, it becomes apparent that Aristophanes and Xenophon were writing about the same desire Greek men had for their wives to be controlled – first by their fathers and then by their husbands. This control was meant to ensure a properly run household, an intact reputation, and undisputed paternity. Because of this desire for control, when Greek women came of age, they passed from the control of their fathers to their husbands. How to cite Xenophon and Aristophanes, Papers

Luther Whitney Essay Research Paper Luther Whitney free essay sample

Luther Whitney Essay, Research Paper Luther Whitney was a calling felon. Luther went to burglarise a house that he had scope out for many hebdomads. While he was vesting the house, the proprietor came place with the President of the United States. They started to contend Christy Sullivan went to knife the President with a missive opener but two secret service agents walked in and changeable Christy in the caput. The President was extemely intoxicated and did non recognize that Christy had been shot and killed. Luther had seen everything from the secret vault in the wall behind a one manner mirror. Gloria Russell walked into the room and the bloody muss on the floor. Bill Burton one of the secret service agents wanted to name the constabulary but Gloria wanted t Os clean up the seen and acquire out of there. They left Christy on the floor so that it looked like a robbery gone incorrect. Christy had managed to knife the President with the missive opener. Gloria put the missive opener in her bag but before she left the room it fell out. Luther went to go forth the house. He noticed the missive opener on the floor and picked it up and went out the window. Burton asked Gloria if she had the missive opener she cheeked her bag and said that she had dropped it someplace. Burton ran up to the sleeping room and saw the rope hanging from the window. Bill ran down stepss to catch Luther but he got off now the President is worried that he may acquire caught. Luther left the hotel where he was remaining T O go to the airdrome. He got on a plane traveling to Dallas/Forth Worth Then got a linking flight to Miami so another plane to Barbados. Walter Sullivan called the security company because his married woman would non pick u p the phone. The security guard found Christy on the floor and called the constabulary. The constabulary are seeking the house for any marks of burglary. J ack Graham is traveling to hold tiffin with his ex-girlfriend Kate Whitney. Jack said something about Kate # 8217 ; s dad Luther so she walked out of the eating house. Jack chased after her and jumped into her auto and said that he was really regretful. Jack said that it was merely three O # 8217 ; clock and possibly they could catch a film. Kate turned hin down and made him acquire out of her auto. Walter Sullivan had to place his married woman # 8217 ; s organic structure at the mortuary. After he identified her, the technician wheeled her away and Walter started to shout. Jack had a meeting with the caput partnership leader at the house where he works. Jack is about to do spouse at the house chiefly because his biggest client is his girlfriend # 8217 ; s male parent. Jack is traveling to get married Jennifer Baldwin, and she is shaving all of the nuptials with her female parent. Seth Frank is the caput research worker on the Sullivan slaying and he has nil to travel on becaus e the slaying seen was cleaned. The secret service agents had cleaned Christy # 8217 ; s organic structure after she had been shot. Seth keeps inquiring the medical scrutiny to look over the organic structure for anything that he can utilize to happen who did it. All that Seth could happen was a slug hole in the wall but they had removed the slug. Jack merely got back from a concern trip from the Ukraine for his jurisprudence house. He went with Walter Sullivan they had the best there was when they were at that place. It was approximately midnight when Jack got to his flat. He was on his manner out to acquire some nutrient when the phone rang. Luther was naming him to see how his girl Kate was making. They met at a small eating house that dark. Luther asked about Kate all Jack could state that they had a battle and he had non talk to Kate so he had nil to state Luther. Jack said that Luther should merely name her for one time in his life. Luther did non reply so he blurted out that he may necessitate a attorney because he was in a jam and it could merely acquire worse.Jack told Kate about her male parent she went to his flat to see if she could assist him out with this secret job that he was in. Burton had been following her for a twosome of yearss. He followed her into her father’s flat. Bill said that he was looking for her male parent in connexion of the slaying or Christy Sullivan. He told her that he had grounds that he was at that place cleaning the rugs with the company he worked for. Kate so told Bill that her male parent liked to instance out houses be for he robbed them. Kate besides said that her male parent would neer kill anyone. Luther’s spouse in robbing the Sullivan house Wanda Broome overdosed on pills. Wanda had the thought of robbing the house. Wanda was close friends with Christy Sullivan. Walter killed himself at his cabin, before he did he called his close friend Alan Richmond. The secret service agents had taped the telephone conversation. President Richmond had his agents kill Luther Whitney while he was traveling to tribunal for the slaying of Christy. Jack found images of a missive opener and a note stating h im who was involved in the slaying. He sent the images to President Richmond, and the President told his agents to kill Jack. Jack was concealing out at a motel when agents’ Collin and Burton stormed into his room. They told him what they had been covering up and that he was following. When they were approximately to draw the trigger, the constabulary walked into the room and arrested Jack. The following twenty-four hours Bill Burton shot himself in the caput. He left a note for Seth Frank with some cassette tapes say what the President had been making. Soon After Seth served the President with documents and showed him all the grounds that he had. Along with a picture of Collin and Burton about to kill Jack that he had taped from the hotel room. The method of word picture was 3rd individual omniscient. It was frequently told in an indirect signifier when the writer would state Luther heard the vehicles enter the forepart thrust on page 11. The writer besides used direct word picture on page one when he said Luther was a sixty-six-year-old, Luther was eligible to roll up Social Security, and he was a card-carrying member of AARP. Both of these ways of word picture were used during the right times of the narrative and it ever seemed to travel with the flow of the narrative. The writer besides let the character speak for themselves which made me experience that I new the characters better and it made it seem that they were stating me their narrative. The scene was in the District of Columbia. I think the scene was of import in this narrative because it was about a President that was seeking to cover up a slaying. I believe that if the narrative took topographic point any where else it would be difficult to follow since the cons tabulary where ever oppugning the President. The tone was serious with the slayings that took topographic point. I think the subject of the narrative was to state the truth and if you do something wrong you should merely squeal because it could merely acquire worse. I would urge the book to all of my friends because it had great action and ever left me in suspense. I would merely urge this to a mature audience do to its content and it is really descriptive when they killed Christy Sullivan and when they murdered Luther outside the tribunal house. The writer was really descriptive during the minutes of sexual desire. This book had a batch of coarse linguistic communication but most grownups would non mind this. I found the linguistic communication was non a job nor the grave item of slaying and sex. The writer wrote this book really good but it is definite for mature readers. I found this book really gratifying to read and frequently found it difficult to set down because it was real ly action packed and faced paced from the beginning to the terminal. With the job that our President is holding it makes you recognize the power that our President has to command a batch of people. So if you like action and suspense this would be a great book to read.

South Korean Economy

South Korean Macro Environment South Korea is located in the Eastern Asia. Characterized by temperate climate, The country is surrounded by mountains and coastal plains. South Korea also has such natural resources as coal, tungsten, lead. The country also has hydropower potential.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on South Korean Economy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Although South Korea is endowed with arable land, it is apparent that water pollution that ensues from the discharge of sewage and industry will end up destroying the environment. This would consequently pose great danger to the survival of both plants and animals. Therefore, there exist certain environmental issues to be addressed. South Korean population normally speaks Korean although English is also taught in high schools. About 26 percent of the population is Christian, 23 percent of people are Buddhists while 49 percent do not belong to any relig ious group. In total, South Korea has a population of 48.7 million. The working class is about 72.9 percent of the total population while population aged 65 years and above is 11.4%. Even though the level of urban population stands at 83%, the low rate of urbanization is expected to remain at 0.6% until 2015.1 Reportedly, 99% percent of male above 15 years are able to read and write. It is estimated that 96% of women over 15 years can read and write as well. This has enabled the rate of unemployment among youths aged between 15 and 24 years to remain as low as 9.8%.2 The major cities, which are the cornerstones of South Korea’s strong economy, include Seoul, which is the capital city, Busan, Daegu, Incheon and Daejon. South Korea is characterized by high level of education among its population. Notably, South Korean GDP of about 50 years back was compared to that of developing countries in Africa. South Korea’s present success is often explained by strong ties between the government and businesses. For instance, government constantly ensures businesses with steady credit in addition to providing restrictions on imports. In a number of cases, the government of South Korea encouraged the importation of both raw materials and technology. Conversely, it places restrictions to the importation of consumer goods.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More It is through the government’s concerted efforts that emphasize on savings and investment at the expense of consumption that saw South Korea perform considerably well economically. Following the financial crisis that occurred between 1997 and 1998 (which plunged GDP down to 7% in 1998) South Korean government started reforming its policies including the allowance of large foreign investments in South Korea’s economy.3 South Korean GDP stood at $1.554 trillion in 2010. By the end of 2011 the rate of growth was estimated at 3.9%. The per capita was evaluated at $31,700 by the end of 2011. Generally, agriculture dominates 3% of the total economy while 39.4% is dominated by industrial sector. 57.6% of the total GDP is dominated by service sector.4 South Korea’s firms targets cheaper methods of production, access to new skills and financial support in addition to advanced technology. As far as South Korea’s outward FDI in Asia, it is estimated that South Korea has a net investment of 35% in Asia, which amounts to US$33 billion. The second largest investment in the Asian region is that of the North America ($18 billion). The third is Europe which accounts for 11% of the total foreign investment in Asia which is approximately $11 billion. Led by President Lee Myung, South Korea engages with other countries in issues pertaining to global policies. This is evident as Myung speaks for international collaboration between countries. Thus, he seeks to host Nuclear Sec urity Summit, which will be held in March 2012.5 Nevertheless, South Korea frequently confronts with North Korea. For instance, certain tension was created after North Korea sunk South Korean warship in March 2010. South Korean Factor Endowments South Korea was ranked 12th in 2010 with GDP of 1.459 trillion. People refer to Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan as the Asian Tigers.6 Rapid development of South Korea’s economy is due to the rapid growth in the industrial and manufacturing sectors. A major progress has been seen in the movement from labor intensive to capital-oriented economy. However, South Korea lags behind in the agricultural sector. The sector employs only 7% of the total population. The movement towards industrialization and urbanization can explain reduction in the level of agricultural productivity. The main crop cultivated in South Korea is rice. It accounts for 90% of grain production. Other agricultural products produced in South Korea include b arley and vegetables.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on South Korean Economy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More South Korean industrial sector accounts for about 40% of the total GDP. The largest industries in the South Korea include shipbuilding, telecommunication and automobile industry. In 1980s, South Korea was ranked sixth worldwide in the production of electronic products such as watches, PCs, microwave ovens, televisions in addition to semiconductors such as memory chips. South Korea is ranked fifth after such countries as the U.S. and Germany in production of automobiles such as Renault and Hyundai. The country produces about 4.3 million automobiles every year. Following the greatest number of the users of broadband in South Korea, the country has developed wide communication networks.7 The companies involved in shipbuilding include Samsung Heavy Industries and Hyundai Heavy Industries. Currently, South Kore a invests much in the service industry considering that 68% of the workforce is employed in service sector. Summary South Korea is one of the four Asian Tigers that have developed fast during the last four decades. Admittedly, this is a promising market to enter. The government supports international investment. Therefore, it is possible to obtain favorable conditions for the development of business. However, there can be certain limitations as the government restricts import of certain goods. Nonetheless, it is possible to focus on production in such profitable spheres as automobile industry, shipbuilding or telecommunications. It can be even more effective to concentrate on agricultural industry as this niche is underdeveloped. Therefore, there is not much competition in the sphere. Of course, the sphere of services is also quite a promising sector. However, there are certain risks. In the first place, the country is still vulnerable to various economic constraints. Apart from eco nomic difficulties, there is still tension between North and South Korea. Therefore, conflicts between the two countries can become a threat to political stability in South Korea, which in its turn will lead to financial instability. Conclusion South Korea remains a viable locality for various foreign investors. It was earlier recognized that South Korea’s government had placed strict measures with regard to foreign investment within the territory of South Korea. However, the government began encouraging foreign investments. Considering that South Korea is endowed with sophisticated technology, any company investing in South Korea would be assured of competitive technology.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, the highest per capita would mean that South Korea labor is quite expensive. It is also apparent that South Korea is dominated by competitive firms that may give any foreign company tough competition. Nonetheless, there are certain sectors where competition is rather low. For instance, agricultural sector can be a promising sphere for investors. This sector is underdeveloped at present. However, it is still important to take into account such factors as legislation, environment, workforce, etc. Finally, certain political constraints should be also considered as South Korea can have conflicts with North Korea in future. Though, these political issues can hardly drastically affect business, they should not be left out of attention. Endnotes Helen Milner, â€Å"Globalization, Development, and International Institutions: Normative and Positive Perspectives,† Review Essay 3, no. 4 (2005), pp. 37-43. Charles Hill, International Business: Competing in the Global Marketplac e (Boston: McGraw-Hill Irwin, 2011). Susan Douglas and Samuel Craig, â€Å"Global Portfolio Planning and Market Interconnectedness,† Journal of International Marketing 4 (1996), pp. 93-110. Randall Stone. â€Å"How to Reform the IMF,† Current History 109, no. 730 (2010), pp. 98-105. Martin Wolf, Why Globalization Works (Sydney: Yale University Press, 2004). Eugene Gholz and Daryl Press. â€Å"Protecting the ‘Prize’: Oil and the U.S. National Interest,† Security Studies 19, no. 3 (2010), pp. 24-45. Sebastian Rosato. â€Å"Europe’s Troubles: Power Politics and the State of the European Project,† International Security 35, n. 4 (2011), pp. 77-86. This essay on South Korean Economy was written and submitted by user Liberty Z. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

buy custom The Mongol Empire essay

buy custom The Mongol Empire essay The Mongol empire was strictly governed by its great ruler, Genghis Khan called Yassa which means Order or decree. This code became their standard rule and anybody caught violating severely faces the consequence. Like for instance, it was decreed that a mounted soldier must pick anything dropped by his companion ahead of him. If he fails to do so, death penalty will be imposed. This is how strict Genghis was in imposing his laws which greatly amazed the European travelers. Under this rule, the officials were chosen based on their credibility and religious tolerance. Thief and robbery was strictly forbidden as well as destruction of private properties. The Mongols are governed by non-democratic parliamentary-style ruling called Kurultai wherein the high-ranking officials gather and discuss legal issues with their highest ruler no other than the Great Khan. The Great Khan was liberal and tolerant when it comes to the belief of other people and nobody was prosecuted because of his/her religious background. Roger Bacon (1202-1292) commented that this may be due to their advanced culture and knowledge though some historians during the 20th century believed that it was a matter of military strategy so as not to inflict war on other countries. When Genghis Khan fought against Sultan Muhammad of Khwaresm, other Muslim leader did not join the Sultan as they viewed it as a personal fight between the two and not on religious issues. During the time of Genghis Khan, each religion was free to find their converts ranging from Buddhism, Christianity, Manichaeism and Islam. To avoid conflicts, Genghis established a non-sectarian institution though he was a shamanist by belief. Under his domain, religious leaders were exempted from taxes and public service. Religious debates were organized by the Mongol emperors through members of the clergy with larg e audience to participate. The lifestyle of the Mongols was somewhat nomadic in nature so there were only few worship places in formal setting. During the Mongolian Empire, communication was vastly enhanced. Trading routes were created and the postal system called yam was established. Traders, couriers and travelers from China, Middle East and Europe made use of the system. Somtimes, capitals were made available for the Merchants as part of their partnership with the Mongols hence; they likewise enjoy the protection of the Mongols as they passed through the Mongolian realms covering from Mediterranean basin going to China which was later known as the famous Silk Road by the travelers. Genghis Khan introduced literacy through education in writing by using Uighurcharacters in Mongol language which is still being used in Inner Mongolia today. Although taxes were heavy to other individuals in the empire, teachers, lawyers and artists were exempted from paying their taxes. On the other hand, he imposed massive heavy punishment to those who disobeyed the Mongol orders by destroying the cities and the populace slaughtered. After Genghis, the merchant partner business continued to flourish under his successors Ogedei and Guyuk. Merchants brought clothing, food, and other provisions to the imperial palaces, and in return the Great Khans gave the merchants tax exemptions, and allowed them to use the official relay stations of the Mongol Empire. Merchants also served as tax farmers in China, Russia and Iran. If the merchants were attacked by bandits, losses were made up from the imperial treasury During the time of %u04E6gedei, he established respective places of worship in Karakorum for his followersalongside the palaces. Though his wife was a Mongol Christian the dominant religion was Shamanism, Tengriism and Buddhism. His other brothers were converted to Islam faith. After the death of Genghis Khan, %u04E6gedei and Guyuk continued with the partnership in mercantile business. Merchants bring in food, clothing and other necessities to the palaces. In return, the merchants were exempted from paying taxes. Further, they were sanctioned to use the Empires official relay stations. Policies gradually changed during the rule of Mongke, the Great Khan. Due to excessive money laundering and overtaxing, he ordered all merchants to pay revenue taxes. This policy continued until Kublai Khan came to the throne. Kublai Khan founded the Yuan Dynasty and Yuan communication system. More relays with hostels were made. Consequently, different successions took iits part. The fall of the mighty Mongolian Empire led to the downfall of trade and commerce on the Silk Road. In 1368, the Yuan Dynasty was overthrown by the native Chinese and establish their own; the Ming Dynasty and lived independently, totally isolated from other outside forces. Genghis Khans conquests had greatly changed the demography of its people. Its mortality rate decreased considerably though research indicates that the Black Deathduring the 13th century or better known as Bubonic Plaguecaused the vast decline of population from China, Mongolian Empire and across Europe up to 14th century. It was said that when the Genoese traders came to Crimean peninsula, they were under siege by the Mongolian warriors who were already getting weak being infected by the disease. They scattered the infected corpses as their biological weapon. The Genoese traders left bringing with them the plague into their ships which rapidly spread towards Europe. An estimate of about 75 Million people died from the pandemic. China declined by half. Others said that it was the result of Mongol ferocity but scholars like Frederick W. Mote asserted that the fear of being captured and enslaved by the Mongols caused the people to just disappear altogether. William McNeill and David Morgan likewise argue that the main reason of demographic decline was the Bubonic Plague. After the fall of Mongolian Empire it was a Blessing in Disguise for the people during the 15th century. Perhaps, people got tired to war and captivity for a hundred years that all they want during the 15th century was a renaissance for everybody. I therefore conclude that the renaissance was a turning point for all individuals who had suffered the bitterness in war during the 1300 to 14500 and the Black Death had greatly changed the peoples lives from the Dark Era to a more promising renaissance. The chart above shows the effect of the Black Death and its impact. Despite of everything, Genghis Khan has shaped and had led history into the world of contemporary art and technology. Buy custom The Mongol Empire essay