The Rights Of Women By Anna Barbauld - 967 Words

Anna Barbauld’s â€Å"The Rights of Women† (1792), is an intricate poem that was written with a distinct perspective that many female poets would have taken during the Romantics era. The poem begins with a very passive aggressive yet persuasive invitation to take action on the way women are perceived. Barbauld’s feministic voice is heard throughout the entirety of the poem as she is trying to empower women with her passionate words, yet by reading the last two stanzas we realizes she contradicts her concept on her own feministic beliefs and thoughts. Reexamining the poem reveals a sarcastic tone other than the devotee-like tone that we had assumed was being interpreted as. One can conclude that Anna Barbaulds poem is not about feminism but is†¦show more content†¦Barbauld’s internal struggles against the notions of equality is resonated through her sarcastic tone. Barbauld’s contradictions continue throughout the totality of the poem; She i mplies, â€Å"Try all that wit and art suggest to bend / Of thy imperial foe the stubborn knee;† (17-18). She advocates that women should use their cleverness and their slyness to dominate over men. Because of her other insinuations on her argument on equality, we can interpret that she proclaims this is the only way women will ever be equal to men. This conjecture is reinforced with the rest of the stanza which proclaims, â€Å"Make treacherous Man thy subject, not thy friend; / Thou mayst command, but never canst be free.† (19-20). Barbaud proposes that if women dominate over men, which is her opinion of what equality is, they will never be able to be friends with men because of the constant state of fear of men overthrowing women. Consequently, the last line summons her views with a dark and difficult conclusion, but she makes it very clear on what feminism represents and what it will conclude to in her own words. This stanza created a much more dramatic and dismal view to what her philosophy is towards equality than the first four stanzas that resonated with a call-to-arms tone. This could explain why Barbauld couldn’t decipher the difference between extremism and change, and why she felt as though peace would be the only solution to the fight between equalityShow MoreRelatedThe Rights Of Women By Anna Barbauld1354 Words   |  6 PagesAnna Barbauld and John Keats wrote poems in response to proto-feminist writings. Barbauld wrote â€Å"The rights of Women† in response to Mary Wollstonecraft s A Vindication of Rights of Woman. The Rights of Woman mocks gender equality while masked as an inspirational peroration for women. Additionally, â€Å"La Belle Dame Sans Merci† by Keats shows the potential danger in trusting women since the character in his poem was heartlessly betrayed by a woman. Power is an underlying theme in both texts and whileRead MoreThe Role Of Women Throughout Society : A Pacifist Vs. A Feminist756 Words à ‚  |  4 PagesEssay Number One: The Role of Women in society : A Pacifist vs. A Feminist Do you remember those word problems in math class that were about two people leaving two different points and ending up at the same place? This is like how Mary Wollstonecraft and Anna Letitia Barbauld went about the role of women within society. Anna Letitia Barbauld could be classified as a pacifist that believed in peace and peace for both sexes. While Mary Wollstonecraft could be categorized as a feminist, that had strongRead MoreWomen s Rights On The Grounds Of Political, Social, And Economic Equality1834 Words   |  8 PagesFeminism is the advocacy of women s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men. This theme can be prominently found in the Romantic period in Anna Letitia Barbauld’s â€Å" The Rights of Woman† and Mary Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of Woman’s Rights. Anna Letitia Barbauld came from a background of dissenters, which made her face many challenges by being religiously oppressed; nevertheless, that ne ver interfered with her writing as she was the voice for the voiceless. EvenRead MoreThe Feminist Movement During The Romantic Era1572 Words   |  7 Pagesalready set in stone. Women were expected to do certain things, as were men, and they only did such. These clear standards were held very highly in society, however, as many people felt obligated to society to continue with these standards, there were always people who had a different opinion. Women such as Mary Wollstonecraft identified men as the root cause for the need of a change in society. In contrast there were women like Anna Letitia Barbauld who felt that if women truly loved their husbanRead MoreDuring The Romantic Era, Civil Rights Movements Began To1665 Words   |  7 PagesDuring the Romantic Era, civil rights movements began to gain strength. Through various methods, advocates of such causes garnered support and brought attention to perceived problems in the status of various peoples. Poetry was one of these metho ds, but the specifics of its implementation, from appeals to literary devices, varied. â€Å"Washing Day† by Anna Lutita Barbauld used emotions and imagery to support women s rights, but The Negro s Complaint, an abolitionist poem by Cowper, focused on ethicsRead MoreThe Romantic Period Of Wordsworth3520 Words   |  15 Pagesan example of how Wordsworth’s preface defines the Romantic era. Wordsworth preface also influenced the writing of other late eighteenth century and early nineteenth century poets. Coleridge, Keats, Wollstonecraft, Hemans, Shelley, Byron, and Barbauld were influenced by Wordsworth’s preface and were known as Romantic poets. When Coleridge wrote the poem â€Å"Frost at Midnight† he was influenced by Wordsworth’s ideas. This poem is Coleridge talking a walk at night with his son and reflecting on hisRead MoreThe Romantic Period Of Jean Jacques Rousseau1915 Words   |  8 Pagesin Émile was also accompanied with a detailed philosophy on the role of women in society and how they should be educated, centred on a character called Sophie. Rousseau stated that a women’s sole role is to please men and they should be educated accordingly. â€Å"The man should be strong and active; the woman weak and passive† was stated by Rousseau, with the suggestion of equality would result in the collapse of society. Women, in the view of Rousseau, should focus on educating a man in childhood, ratherRead MoreEssay about British Romanticism1831 Words   |  8 Pagesnonrational and emotional experience (Feldman 15). In reality, women addressed philosophical, socioeconomic, medical, and politica l issues of the time, fighting back against mens repressive labels. Maria Edgeworth composed an essay called The Bracelets, which was a site for feminist rethinking of Romanticisms mythologies of origins (90)and showed womens capability in addressing deeply philosophical subjects. Anna Barbauld wrote a series of thirty-three poems referred to simply as PoemsRead MoreLiterary Group in British Poetry5631 Words   |  23 Pages3.2 The Elizabethans 3.2.1 Elizabethan Song 3.2.2 Courtly poetry 3.2.3 Classicism 3.3 Jacobean and Caroline poetry 3.3.1 The Metaphysical poets 3.3.2 The Cavalier poets 4 The Restoration and 18th century 4.1 Satire 4.2 18th century classicism 4.3 Women poets in the 18th century 4.4 The late 18th century 5 The Romantic movement 6 Victorian poetry 6.1 High Victorian poetry 6.2 Pre-Raphaelites, arts and crafts, Aestheticism, and the Yellow 1890s 6.3 Comic verse 7 The 20th century 7.1 The first three

The Reality Of The Beholder From The Ancient Dialogues...

What is Reality? I plan on discussing each section of this essay; however, they do coincide with each other in the topic. I will try to explain my reasoning on how they would question relates to one another. First, what is the difference between appearance and reality? What is the reality of being in a new place, instead of being in a society of other people around you? Does one person think they can another’s perception of their world? Does everything lead to good, and what is good in the eye of the beholder from the ancient dialogues from Plato and Socrates? Lets starts from the beginning, by distinguishing the difference between reality and appearances. Is it something that is done by everyone on a daily basis? Whether it is†¦show more content†¦Another way of thinking of reality and appearance is the theory of idealism. Idealism is only things that really exist are our minds and their ideas. An Irish Bishop named George Berkeley view of idealism is â€Å" †¦though it were possible that solid, figured, moveable substances may exist without the mind†¦ yet how [could we] know this? Either we must know it by sense or by reason.† (Rachels Rachels, 2012, p. 128). Berkeley also goes to mention that our senses comes our knowledge of sensations and ideas that come from the mind, and our reason is for us to believe in the existence of physical objects that is a necessary connection between the physical world and our ideas. Another approach is direct versus indirect realism, which deals with the perception of our reality or mental state. Direct idealism deals with common sense and with the facts of things; however, indirect idealism is the opposite of which it holds the idea of perception of something with our idea of an object that we are aware of. Now, how is reflecting with Plato’s story of the Allegory of the Cave, and reality and appearance the same? In the story of the Allegory of the Cave, goes with the follo wing understanding of the Cave. The cave is a world where prisoners live chained to the ground, and the captors cast shadows on the wall and these shadows construct reality for the prisoners. One of the prisoners is freed by the

Is Iago Evil Essay Example For Students

Is Iago Evil? Essay I am not what I am. What is Iago? as distinct from what he pretends to be and what are his motives?In Shakespeares, Othello, the reader is presented the classic battle between the deceitful forces of evil and the innocence of good. It are these forces of evil that ultimately lead to the breakdown of Othello, a noble venetian moor, well-known by the people of Venice as a honourable soldier and a worthy leader. Othellos breakdown results in the muder of his wife Desdemona. Desdemona is representative of the good in nature. Good can be defined as forgiving, honest, innocent and unsuspecting. The evil contained within Othello is by no means magical or mythical yet is represented by the character Iago. Iago is cunning, untrustworthy, selfish, and plotting. He uses these traits to his advantage by slowly planning his own triumph while watching the demise of others. It is this that is Iagos motivation. The ultimate defeat of good by the wrath of evil. Not only is it in his own nature of e vil that he suceeds but also in the weaknesses of the other characters. Iago uses the weaknesses of Othello, specifically jealousy and his devotion to things as they seem, to conquer his opposite in Desdemona. From the start of the play, Iagos scheming ability is shown when he convinces Roderigo to tell about Othello and Desdemondas elopement to Desdemonas father, Brabantio. Confidentally Iago continues his plot successfully, making fools of others, and himself being rewarded. Except Roderigo, no one is aware of Iagos plans. This is because Iago pretends to be an honest man loyal to his superiors. The fact that Othello himself views Iago as trustworthy and honest gives the evil within Iago a perfect unsuspecting victim for his schemes. The opportunity to get to Desdemona through Othello is one temptation that Iago cannot refuse. He creates the impression that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio in order to stir the jealousy within Othello. It is this jealousy and the ignorance of Othello that lead to the downfall of Desdemona; the one truely good natured character in the play. As the play opens we are immediately introduced to the hostility of Iago against Othello. Iago has been appointed the position of servant to Othello instead of the more prestigous position of lieutenant. Michael Cassio has been appointed this position. Iago feels betrayed because he considers him self more qualified than Cassio to serve as lieutenant. Iago then foreshadows his plans for Othello to Roderigo, O, sir, content you. / I follow him to serve my turn upon him (Act I, Scene I). Iago already realizes that Othello thinks about him as an honest man. Roderigo is used by Iago as an apprentence and someone to do his dirty work. Roderigo is naively unsuspecting. As the play shifts from Venice to Cyprus there is an interesting contrast. Venice, a respectful and honourable town is overshadowed by the war torn villages of Cyprus. It could be said that Venice represents good or specfi cally Desdemona and that Cyprus represents evil in Iago. Desdemona has been taken from her peacefullness and brought onto the grounds of evil. Iago commits his largest acts of deceit in Cyprus, fittingly considering the atmosphere. Ironically, the venetians feel the Turks are their only enemy while in fact Iago is in hindsight the one man who destroys their stable state. Act II Scene III shows Iagos willing ability to manipulate characters in the play. Iago convinces Montano to inform Othello of Cassios weakness for alchohol hoping this would rouse disatisfaction by Othello. Iago when forced to tell the truth against another character does so very suspiciously. He pretends not to offend Cassio when telling Othello of the fight Cassio was involved in, but Iago secretly wants the worst to become of Cassios situation without seeming responsible. Cassio is relieved of his duty as lieutenant. With Cassio no longer in the position of lieutenant, this gives Iago the opportunity to more eff ectively interact with and manipulate Othello. By controlling Othello, Iago would essentially control Desdemona. .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b , .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b .postImageUrl , .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b , .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b:hover , .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b:visited , .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b:active { border:0!important; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b:active , .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ua99cbc334ccbf1d82ba322ee0552a10b:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: My Friend Andrea Essay To reach Desdemona directly is unforseeable for Iago considering that Othello is superior to him. It is for

Against Affirmative Action Essay Example For Students

Against Affirmative Action Essay In the United States a process called Affirmative Action is used to help to overcome the affects of past societal discrimination by granting jobs and resources to members of specific groups, such as minorities and women. The policy was implemented by federal agencies enforcing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and by the Equal Employment Opportunities Act of 1972. While many people believe it is a step in the right direction in stopping employment discrimination, it is taking jobs from qualified persons because they are not of a certain race or gender, in turn doing the same thing that was done to minorities and women for years. I do not support affirmative action for several reasons. This policy would enable two people who apply for a job in an office building for the same position to be judged differently. One applicant is white and the other is black. Only one slot is available. The two applicants have the same exact level of education and work experience. They both have great recommendations and great credentials. According to affirmative action, however, the person of African American origin is automatically better qualified, in an attempt to integrate the work place of higher employment positions. So, in essence, the person of African American heritage is receiving the job only because he is a different race. Now, in the early 1970s this policy was invented to help put a stop to racial discrimination in the work place, but with this policy you are doing the exact same thing you set out to stop, but to the other race. I do not think it is fair to integrate our work forces at someone elses expense. One specific group of people that do not support the policy is, surprising to most, the Asian-American society. Many Asian Americans, specifically Chinese, Koreans, and Japanese, argue that affirmative action policies ultimately harm them. While these policies exist to help the underrepresented, they claim that they are over represented. Their argument is, therefore, similar to that of the white majority. They state that race-based policies such as affirmative action should be abolished based on the argument that group-based affirmative action hurt individuals. Those against affirmative action claim that eliminating affirmative action would increase the Asian American admission rate. They say that Asian American achievement and integration into American society is a proof that affirmative action programs are no longer needed and they hinder opportunities for qualified Asian Americans. On the other hand, I do understand what the goal of the government is by doing so. Early in our countries history minorities were withheld the education and opportunities that the common white male was. This has had a chain effect on our society today. According to federal employment statistics there is a 28 percent difference in employment between minorities and non-minorities. This is largely due to poor education and poor employment opportunities in areas of lower income. This is a great and daunting task to overcome, and it must be dealt with. But it cannot be dealt with at the cost of another citizen. Now granted the playing field is not level yet, and granting modest advantages to minorities and women is more than fair, given hundreds of years of discrimination that benefited whites and men. But our government and civil rights activists, which are the best in the world, have to find a better and more effective way to even the scale with out taking away opportunities from qualified persons. We are not benefiting the nation as a whole with this policy. It hurts the individual more then it aids the minority.

Modern News Programs as the Embodiment of Infotainment Principle

Information is power: those who possess actual knowledge of current events can easier find themselves in the complicated stream of everyday life, as well as classify their understanding of what is going on, make appropriate conclusions, and undertake corresponding action.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Modern News Programs as the Embodiment of Infotainment Principle specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Curiosity for information lies deep in human nature, and for centuries on end people have involved in the process of information sharing. Nowadays, the task of rendering the most actual and up-to-date information lies on the institute of mass media, and one of the key genres of information delivery is TV news programs. Originally designed for the purposes of mere informing of key current events, news programs are observed to have evolved into more entertaining events. A special notion of ‘infotainmentâ €™ appeared, that designates the deviation of news from their informative function into the sphere of entertainment. Pursuing the objective of commercial profit, modern news programs embody the principle of infotainment in both their contents and presentation style. Debate on television news programs losing their professional quality and rolling down into the sphere of popular entertainment events dates back to the late 1980s, when the term ‘infotainment’ was first coined reflecting the genre mix of information and entertainment in news and programs on current affairs. The word turned out to be so catchy and appropriate for what was happening in the contemporary media, that by 1992 it had already been included into Roget’s Thesaurus (Thussu 7). Consequently, infotainment entered still more dictionaries and is now defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as â€Å"broadcast material which is intended both to entertain and to inform†, and in Key Concepts in Political Communication as â€Å"the combination of the words information and entertainment, suggesting a practice of blending together of their presentation within the broadcasting of news and current affairs† (as cited in Thussu 8). Therefore, infotainment reflects a trend in contemporary mass media to place more importance on the presentation form rather than content of their news product. As such, the tendency towards infotainment is not totally new. Providing an in-depth excursion in the historical development of the press, Harrison remarks that although criticism of the popular mass media tendency to entertain rather than educate has risen relatively recently, ‘commercialization of news’ was already observed as early as in the eighteenth century (55).Advertising Looking for research paper on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The trend to make news more thrilling for the general public by introducing exciting stories led to the situation that â€Å"then, as now, blood and sex reigned supreme in the pages of the popular press† (Cranfield, as cited in Harrison 55). As the costs of publishing soared, press agencies had to compete fiercely for the reading audiences. Political news was moved aside and reduced to very small items that were reported in a way attractive to popular interest. Aiming at large circulations, reporters developed the style of their story presentation to increasingly dramatic and catchy, with headlines enlarged and more attention given to interviews, sports, and descriptions of personalities. Thus developed the ‘new journalism’ style (Harrison 56–57). How does this ‘new’ presentation style look today? On the one hand, the representatives of news to public are of major importance: those often are either expert ‘personality’ correspondents who possess enough charisma and acting skills to keep the attention of the audience in an entertaining way, or celebrity presenters who attract the public simply by being generally acknowledged celebrities. On the other hand, not only the presenters but also the news studios have been fit to the demands of the entertainment principle: the wall screens have been added that allow reporters to operate videos in support of the news presented, so that the story can be told by walking from one side of the studio to the other. This dramatization of news allows presenting events to the public as an exciting â€Å"walk into the story of the day† and thus attracting interest and retaining a larger audience (Harrison 168). The modern situation in the world of news programs has been brilliantly summed up by Daya Kishan Thussu, who accentuates that the source for modern concept of infotainment lies in the vision of American media companies: â€Å"This news cannibalizes visual forms and styles borrowed from contemporary TV commercials a nd a MTV-style visual aesthetics, including fast-paced visual action, in a post-modern studio, computer-animated logos, eye-catching visuals and rhetorical headlines from an, often glamorous, anchor person. Such news, particularly on the rolling 24/7 channels, appears to be the answer to attracting the ‘me’ generation of media users, prone to channel hopping and zapping as well as more inclined towards on-line and mobile news. This style of presentation, with its origins in the ratings-driven commercial television news culture of the US, is becoming increasingly global, as news channels attempt to reach more viewers and keep their target audiences from switching over.â€Å" (8)Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Modern News Programs as the Embodiment of Infotainment Principle specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In addition to the aforementioned external factors of news ‘entertainisationâ⠂¬â„¢, one can observe the entertaining principles in the programs content as well. As Hamilton comments on the situation which was observed already in the early 1990s, â€Å"the popularity of entertainment programming also affected the news product† as more attention was placed on soft news, crimes, scandals, and celebrity stories that would secure the channels’ popularity among the viewers (175). Reflecting Thussu’s comment on infotainment as oriented at â€Å"media users, prone to channel hopping and zapping†, news programs involve short, disconnected episodes on a whole variety of topics that are changing each other fast enough not to bore the audience (8). The information is presented in a ragged scrappy style that corresponds to the general trend in modern perception. Nowadays people are getting so much information from the environment that in order to protect themselves from this information tsunami, they try to scan and skim the information resour ces to get only the key facts and not the details. In its turn, such ‘express’ approach to presenting and receiving news bears the jeopardy of superficiality and shallowness of perceiving the world. The over-informed audiences are satiated with information and do not have the time or wish for serious consideration of whatever they are informed of. Struggling to catch their ever-eluding attention, TV channels represent information in such amounts and manner that can be compared to the motley kaleidoscope of a carnival. Instead of instigating the audiences to ponder over the information they receive, modern news programs rather present â€Å"electronic media spectacles where narration or the simple accumulation of anecdotes prevails over reasoned solutions to the problems† (Garcia Canclini, as cited in Thussu 9). Critical assessment and reflection on the presented content is hampered by both the presentation style and pace. The superficiality of modern news program s has been widely criticized as degrading. Researching human communication in the light of the means involved in it, Neil Postman refers to the idea formulated by Marshall McLuhan, â€Å"the medium is the message† (as cited in Erion 193). Based on this idea, Postman develops a theory that it is impossible to preserve the serious and fundamental character of information presented by means of modern television. By its nature, television simply has to be entertaining since it involves exciting and moving imagery that distracts the audiences from thoughtful contemplation of the information they obtain: â€Å"On television thoughtful conversation about serious issues are reserved only for the lowest-rated niche programs†.Advertising Looking for research paper on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Even when interlocutors meet in a discussion format, the discussion as such does not occur, since the show happens according to an a priori devised scenario which does not consider any personal input, reaction, or contribution from the participants. The moderator of the discussion program keeps an eye on the conversation to go exactly the way it has been pre-planned, and restrains any digression, which makes the logical flow of discussion impossible. As Postman observes, the typical roundtables which seem to follow the purpose of discussing and finding a solution to an issue, actually have â€Å"no arguments or counterarguments, no scrutiny of assumptions, no explanations, no elaborations, no definitions† (as cited in Erion 198). Otherwise, a thoughtful conversation would not be entertaining; it would simply bore the audience and make them switch over to a more exciting program. In order to break away from the sticky web of entertainment that impoverishes human intelligence o riginally designed to analyze and seek answers to problems, it is essential to understand what lies in the basis of the infotainment trend. Tracing the possible results of such media policy, Alex S. Jones anxiously predicts that if the nation’s press is â€Å"mostly tabloid, advocacy, or entertainment† primarily aiming at sole â€Å"profit rather than the public good combined with profit†, there is little hope for the nation preserving its rational core (51). The ultimate aim of mass media is also in the center of concern of modern journalists who assemble to discuss the way out of the situation during the Sixth Forum of the Committee of Concerned Journalists. Among them, a Los Angeles correspondent for CBS News, Bill Whittaker, expressed concern not just for the entertainment trend in the news, but in the fact that â€Å"bottom line is everything†: â€Å"†¦ one of the bad things that 60 Minutes did was that it made money, and that for the first tim e, news producers and news divisions came to see that news could make a profit. Before then it wasn’t expected to. Those pressures were taken off of news. It was supposed to be a loss leader and you did it because it was a good thing to do and your anchor was your prestige person up in front. Now all news operations and broadcasts are expected to make money.† (as cited in Mueller n.p.) The solution of the problem is seen by journalists not in rejecting the entertaining nature of news, but in choosing the right items to cover and transforming the news from mere brief nomination of superficial pseudo-entertaining facts to an exciting coverage that would provoke thinking audiences to assess and analyze the information they get (Mueller n.p.). In this sense, the comedy shows that parody ‘real’ news turn out to be much more successful in presenting the public with a more realistic picture of the world than the ‘real’ news programs (J. Jones 219). Mo dern news industry seems to be experiencing a crisis since the trend towards infotainment that bases on desire for profit makes news degrade to superficial statement of irrelevant facts. In order to protect their audience from intellectual degrading, mass media need to rethink the coverage items and volume and thus spur the audience to think, assess, analyze, and act. Works Cited Erion, Gerald J. â€Å"Amusing Ourselves to Death with Television News: Jon Stewart, Neil Postman, and the Huxleyan Warning.† Common Culture: Reading and Writing About American Popular Culture. 6th ed. Eds. Michael Petracca and Madeleine Sorapure. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice, 2009. 191–200. Print. Hamilton, James T. All the News that’s Fit to Sell: How the Market Transforms Information into News. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2004. Print. Harrisson, Jackie. News. Oxon: Routlege, 2006. Print. Jones, Alex S. Losing the News: The Future of the News that Feeds Democracy. N ew York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2009. Print. Jones, Jeffrey P. â€Å"’Fake’ News versus ‘Real News as Sources of Political Information: The Daily Show and Postmodern Political Reality†. Common Culture: Reading and Writing About American Popular Culture. 6th ed. Eds. Michael Petracca and Madeleine Sorapure. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice, 2009. 201–222. Print. Mueller, Bret. â€Å"Has News Been Abdicated for Entertainment?† Sixth Forum of the Committee of Concerned Journalists, Session 1. Los Angeles, CA: University of Southern California, 4 March 1998. Web. Thussu, Daya Kishan. News as Entertainment: The Rise of Global Infotainment. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, 2007. Print. This research paper on Modern News Programs as the Embodiment of Infotainment Principle was written and submitted by user Sons of the Tiger 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.

Personal Statement For Low GPA - What to Do

Personal Statement For Low GPA - What to DoThere are many reasons why you may want to write a personal statement for a student at a low GPA. These reasons can range from just to show what you can do, to help with future admissions and as a backup when a spot opens up. Here are some ways to help you come up with a personal statement that will give your essay the best chance of being read.Going in for an interview with a school or college, they will want to see proof of your ability to do what they are looking for. They may want to see your grades, your transcript, your recommendations, and other records of your academic and extracurricular activities. Having an essay on your application which can show that you have done well in school will get you very far in this application process. Try not to forget the part about having a long-term plan for your future as a student as well.Essays are often the first way to get your attention and can be used to demonstrate that you are smart and a good communicator. This could also be used to let them know that you can relate to their needs and would like to become involved in their life. It is also an effective way to get information out of them and open up the topic of conversation.The importance of personal statements is such that it is often mandatory for students that graduate from the top schools. You don't want to have a horrible first impression that will be difficult to overcome in the future. Your essay is where you can put your best foot forward, showing them that you have taken responsibility for your future and can go far in life if you know how to reach them. You don't want to have them think that you are just a school and want to cause them to stay away from you!Writing a personal statement for a low GPA is so important that having a personal essay sample to start out with is really important. By reading this article you have gained the knowledge you need to know about the essay writing process. Take the time t o look at it carefully and learn how to put together a good example for your essay.It's never too late to use the same information in your high school resume. This will give your personal statement for low GPA an even more personal feel and make it much more special. Always remember that your resume is a summary of all the information you may have regarding you as a student. Make sure it matches this description of yourself and your future goals.If you're aiming to come to college, you need to have your college experience reflected in your resume to really impress them. Personal statements for low GPA are so important that the wrong one can be the cause of lost opportunities to get into college and the subsequent professional benefits that may come with it. Write the best of yourself!

Operating a Franchise Management Essay

Operating a Franchise Management Essay Operating a Franchise Management Essay Operating a Franchise Management Essay Franchising refers to a business relationship in which the owner of a business (a franchisor) provides an independent business or an individual (franchisee) with a licensed privilege to operate under its trademarks and name. In this arrangement, the franchisor may provide the franchisee with a varied assistance, depending on the type of a contract the two entities have signed. Some of the assistance extended to the franchisee by the franchisor include organizational training, marketing strategies and resources, and an access to the franchisor’s business concepts. Franchising is attractive to small businesses because it offers an opportunity to start a business easily. Its attractiveness results from the support afforded by the franchisor. Moreover, since the franchisor is experienced in the business, the franchisee gets a chance to use tested concepts and receives a constant guidance. The franchisor, on the other hand, benefits because franchising provides a cheap way of expan ding business since a little investment is required. Therefore, the agreement is a win-win strategy for both parties. Since the development of this concept, many businesses have adopted it because it helps businesses penetrate markets at a faster rate than when using their own subsidiaries. The franchisee, especially in the international market, is a local business. As such, the franchisee knows and understands the market better than the franchisor. Culture is an aspect that has had a great impact on international organizations when entering foreign markets. The failure to understand culture may prevent an organization from successfully penetrating a foreign market. The presence of a franchise that is conversant with the local culture helps in identifying and serving the local needs efficiently. Types of Franchises There are two main types of franchises, which include product distribution franchise and business format franchise. Product distribution franchise provides the franchisee with the rights and license to distribute its products in designated regions. The distributor uses the company’s logos and trademark, which identifies the franchise as an authorized dealer of the manufacturer. In this type of franchise, the franchisor does not provide the franchise with the entire system to help in running the business. This type of franchise is found in soft drinks, gasoline and automobile industries. To operate a product distribution franchise, the owner of the franchise must pay a specified fee or purchase a certain amount of products from the franchisor. The business format franchise is the most popular form of franchising and involves full rights to the franchisor’s business processes. The franchisor provides the franchisee with a full access to its business format, a quality control process, methods of operations, a marketing strategy, a license for its trade name, a two-way communication system and services, as well as some products to be sold. In addition, the franchisor can help the franchisee set up the facility within which the franchise will operate. This is the fastest growing type of franchise across industries. Franchising Arrangements Single-Unit Franchise Business owners have different arrangements under which they can operate franchise businesses. The most common arrangement is known as a single-unit franchise where the franchisor permits the franchisee to operate one franchise unit (Awe, 2006). Once a single-unit franchise has become operational, the franchisee can buy additional single-units. This is known as a multiple or single-unit relationship. Multiple-Unit Franchise The second arrangement is known as a multiple-unit franchise. It is divided into two sub-units. The first sub-unit is called an area development. In the area development relationship, the franchisee can open more than one unit in a specified area. The franchisor provides the franchisee with exclusive rights to develop the chosen territory. The second sub-unit is known as a master franchise. In this relationship, the franchisor grants the franchisee more rights than the area development franchisee. In master franchise arrangement, the owner of franchises can have multiple units and has the right to sell them to other people within the franchise territory. This arrangement transfers most of duties, tasks, responsibilities and benefits formerly enjoyed by the franchisor to the operator of master franchise. Representative Franchise In addition to these two main arrangements, there may arise another hybrid relationship known as an area representative franchise. The area representative purchases a territorial franchise to service and sells it as unit franchises. The contract signed by the representative is not with the unit franchisees, but with the franchisor. This representative receives a portion of the fees paid by the unit franchisee to the franchisor. The fee received by the representative is as a result of servicing the unit franchises in the territory. How to Evaluate a Franchise Starting a franchise involves some risks because the investor wishing to operate it must invest and pay fees to the franchisor. Moreover, since the franchise agreement allows the operation for a specified period, the franchisee must be cautious when choosing the franchisor with whom to enter into an agreement. The franchisee must make sure that, by the time the franchise is terminated, the business has earned some profits and returned on investment. There are two essential qualities that determine a successful franchise, i.e. trust and understanding between the franchisee and the franchisor. Therefore, the franchisee must assess the opportunities available and the trustworthiness of all the franchisors. The second aspect that the business person wishing to start a franchise must assess is a financial position and track record of the franchisor. Financial records are crucial because they indicate the profitability of the franchisor, which may provide a possible prediction parameter for the franchisee’s profitability. The investor wishing to operate a franchise must analyze the market within which this franchise will operate (Bisio Kohler, 2011). Market evaluation is critical because the franchisee will be able to determine whether the prospective market has some potential customers that will be willing to purchase products at the expected prices. Moreover, this assessment can enable the investor to analyze the trend of the population purchasing the products to ensure that the market is expanding and not shrinking. Comparing disclosure statements from various franchisors helps an investor to relate the fees, benefits, restrictions and risks associated with every potential franchisor. Therefore, such an evaluation guides the investor to make an informed decision on the right franchisor to work with based on the details contained in disclosure statements. The prospective franchisee must assess the potential franchisor on the type of activities involved in the business. The business activities may require special skills that the franchisee may not have. The franchise must match the skills and capabilities of the franchisee so that the management will be excellent and profitable. Another assessment criteria to use is whether the franchisor has been market tested. During an initial business setup, the franchisor must have tested the business model through pilot tests in the market. Such a study must have been guided by professionals. On the other hand, the market testing could be based on the number of years the franchisor has been operational and successful. Market testing is crucial because a tested franchisor is likely to survive in the market for a longer time than a new one. The franchisee must also assess how existing franchisees are operating and their level of satisfaction with the franchisor. The franchise system may look viable on paper, but frustrating in practice. To have the practical information on what it takes to operate a franchise with the franchisor, evaluating existing franchisees is essential. The business model of the potential franchisor is crucial to the prospective franchisee because it can determine whether the business is based on a fashionable foundation or a permanent base. Every investor would wish to have the security assurance that the business in which to invest will be in existence for a long time. A franchisee must, therefore, assess the permanence of a franchisor before investing. It is essential for a prospective franchisee to understand the amount of capital required to start a franchise with different franchisors. Different organizations have different capital requirements for their franchises. The franchisee, therefore, should evaluate potential franchisors and choose depending on the amount of the capital available. In addition to evaluating the minimum capital requirements, the capital required in a worse case scenario should be assessed. Different franchisors provide support services to franchises, but there is no uniformity in this provision. The type of relationship between the franchisor and franchisee may determine the level of support available for the franchisee. The support services extended to the franchise can either increase or decrease its chances of survival. The more the support services provided the higher the chances of surviving and becoming profitable. Advantages of Operating a Franchise to a Franchisee Professional Guidance In a franchise relationship, the franchisor is experienced in the field of management and operating businesses. On the other hand, the franchisee may not have managed a business before, which means that there is the lack of expertise on the side of the franchisee. Depending on the level of assistance provided by the franchisor to the franchises, the franchisee can get some technical and managerial assistance from the franchisor. This assistance can be provided before the franchise is launched and during its operations. The advantage in operating a franchise is that the franchisor provides training and offers the progressive assistance in the course of the franchise’s operations. The technical help that the franchisor can provide the franchise with includes a business layout, design, equipment, purchasing and location. Efficiency The efficiency of operating a franchise is high compared to a start up business because the franchisor has leant through the own experience where problems were arising during a business start up. The franchisee is, therefore, provided with the information that will help the franchise evade common mistakes that lead to high start-up capital requirements (Hetten, 2011). As s result of having a prior knowledge on the processes to avoid and those to focus on, the franchise that is being efficient expands easily. Opportunity To Learn The presence of experienced franchisors in a franchise relationship enables investors to operate a business without any prior knowledge and experience. This advantage is crucial to people who decide to change their careers. They can own a franchise without any experience in the field of business. Some of the organizations sell that franchise with the operations to people with no prior knowledge. Such people are trained from scratch and are able to adapt to the system’s culture at a faster rate than a person who has worked in an organization with a different culture. Therefore, the franchise allows the franchisee to learn how to operate a business practically. Recognized Standards Franchisors require standardization in many aspects of their operations to be adopted by franchises. These aspects have been tested either through experience or a research and have proven to work for the franchisor. One such aspect is quality control. The quality of products can differentiate a business from another and initiate customer loyalty. The application of these uniform standards in all the franchisor’s operations differentiates brand names and create preferences among customers. Although franchisees have the limited independence, the compliance requirement helps them to apply proven methods and practices, which lead to increased revenues and profitability. Potential for Growth The learning and experience gained by operating one franchise can help the franchisee to operate other franchises elsewhere. An opportunity to operate the franchise in another location may arise. Franchisees with experience and knowledge can expand their operations to new locations where they would increase their profits and a scope of operations. Distinctive Trade Identification A franchise has an advantage over other start-up businesses because its association with a recognized franchisor improves its goodwill in the market. The franchise, therefore, enjoys the success in market penetration by being associated with a known brand. Since building a brand name is costly and dependent on time, franchises become famous within a limited time and using fewer resources than other start-up businesses. Advertisement Programs Advertisement is crucial for the success of any organization, irrespectively of the products being sold or the industry in which the business belongs to. An advertisement consumes large portions of marketing budgets and reduces profits and returns on investments. The franchise is exempted partly from the advertisement costs because when the franchisor advertises on a massive scale, the franchise benefits for being associated with the brand name. Disadvantages of Operating a Franchise to a Franchisee Cost of Franchise Although the franchises are assisted during the start-up and the progress of business by the franchisor, the help comes with the price. Once the business becomes operational, the franchisor starts charging loyalty fees in the form of sales revenue percentages. This cost is invisible during the start-up, but becomes evident once the business starts making profits. Since the charges are continually charged, they become a burden to the franchise because the business has to ensure sales up to a certain limit to guarantee that the business can pay the fees. Risk of Misunderstanding or Fraud Not all franchisors are genuine in their business. Some of them promise many things to franchises, but rarely fulfill them. Franchisees may not see the need to involve an attorney in the transactions, but it is crucial because the contract may contain faults that only people involved into the legal profession can understand. Therefore, franchises represent opportunities and risks in an equal measure to franchisees. Over-Dependence The help that franchises receive from franchisors may limit the involvement of franchisees in managing the business. The franchisor may not understand the unique needs of the customers in local regions. This means that methods and means used by the system may not apply to some localities. At such times, the franchisee should decide on how to serve the needs of such customers without relying on the franchisor. The control exercised by the franchisor on the franchise may make the franchisee over-dependent on the franchisor to the point of not being able to adapt to unique methods that would fit localities. Restricted Creativity and Freedom Franchisors place numerous restrictions on the way their franchises conduct their businesses. They have to follow procedures and standard ways of doing things. Any creative franchisee cannot conduct a business differently without offending the franchisor. Moreover, franchises are geographically restricted because they may enter another franchise territory. The restriction can be destructive such that even when the franchisee notices that some products are not suited to the market. They have no remedy because the franchisor has the final word to say. Negative Effects from Other Franchises’ Poor Performance When other franchises licensed by the same franchisor perform poorly in terms of quality or customer service, the effects can be felt even by those franchises that perform well. Since the franchises have the same brand name, customers aggrieved by one franchise are likely to view other franchises with contempt. This may lead to poor sales in high performing franchises. Therefore, franchising may be detrimental to franchises when the franchisor allows low standards in some of its business units. Termination or Transfer Problems A franchise is a contract between two parties and has a time frame within which it can be terminated. Either party may decide to end the contract even when the other party does not wish to end the relationship. This is a disadvantage, especially to the franchisee who has devoted time and energy to build the business. Another aspect that is problematic in this relationship is the transfer of ownership. During the contract signing, the franchisee may not have considered that the business may need to be transferred to another person such as a family member. For this reason, a clause detailing the procedure of such a transfer may not have been included in the contract. It, therefore, becomes difficult to transfer the ownership to another person. Advantages of Operating a Franchise to a Franchisor The franchising relationship is like a double-edged sword because it benefits and receives disadvantages both the franchisee and the franchisor. From the franchisor’s point of view, the following advantages result from the relationship: Rapid Expansion with Little Capital Investment In conventional business models, expansion requires a heavy capital investment. However, this is different when franchising is concerned. The franchisee comes up with the capital to invest. It is given the assistance in establishing the franchise using the money by the franchisor. This means the franchisor can reach new markets at a faster rate without investing capital. The relationship is, therefore, beneficial to the franchisor because the inputs are few, but the outcomes are numerous. Highly Motivated Franchisees In terms of performance, franchising is likely to outperform other modes of investment because the franchisee has a personal interest in the business and is more motivated than a company’s employee. As such, the business of the franchisor can perform better than organizations that rely on the employees’ motivation. The performance of the franchise is high because of the motivation from franchisees. The Expansion Is Controlled Within a corporate chain, rapid expansion sometimes occurs and out-paces the central management of an organization. When this happens, the management may lose control of critical processes and its ability to control all the organizational aspects. In a franchise relationship, the expansion is controlled because franchises are territorial and limit the extent to which the franchise can operate. The franchisor is, therefore, able to control the expansion of the business and has a tight control over its operations. Ability to Purchase in Bulk Purchasing goods in bulk is cheaper than buying fewer items. The presence of many franchises allows the franchisor to purchase supplies and products at great discounts. These discounts increase the franchisor’s profitability and reduce franchisee’s costs. Multiple Revenue Sources Having different sources of revenue is the strength to any business because it diversifies risks. The various sources of income for franchisors include the fee that is paid upon signing a contract, revenue from sales of various products and a portion of franchise’s revenue. The arrangement differentiates the franchising relationship from other corporations and diversifies its sources of revenue. Disadvantages of Operating a Franchise to a Franchisor Franchisee Dispute Conflicts are common between franchisees and franchisors regarding the payment of loyalty fees, hours of operation and expansion. Initially, the franchisee does not envisage such conflicts because the mind is usually focused on a positive side of the business. This changes when the reality of business dawns; and the franchisor starts demanding fees and other compliance issues. These disputes can disrupt business and harm trust, which is essential to the success of the franchise business. Loss of Control Although the franchisor controls several aspects of the franchise business, there is an individual aspect of the franchisee that must be respected. When the franchisor needs to implement changes, consultations between the parties involved must take place. The consultations do not always result into an agreement, and the franchisee may not agree with the franchisor. This makes it difficult for the franchisor to implement changes. The result of this loss of control is that the franchisor may be unable to respond to changing tastes and preferences in the market. In such a case, the franchisor turns to the company owned units. Any testing on a new product is done through these units. The results from the tests are crucial during the negotiations because they act as the evidence of success that can be achieved by the proposed changes. Profit Sharing Once the franchisee recovers the initial investment, subsequent earnings may represent 30-50% return on investments. Such high levels of return on investment are the indication of money that would have otherwise been earned by the franchisor using the company’s owned units. The franchisor would receive all the earnings taken by the franchisee through the company’s owned units. Therefore, franchisee’s earnings are foregone revenues for the franchisor. Legal Issues of Franchising The legal issues affecting franchising involve two documents. These include the Disclosure Document and Franchise Agreement. The state and federal laws in the United States govern the relationship between the franchisor and the franchise. To perform this role, the government requires the franchisor to supply the franchisee with the information that outlines the nature of the two parties’ relationship. The legal aspect of the franchising relationship is contained in two documents known as the Disclosure Document and the Franchise Agreement. The Disclosure Document The Disclosure Document provides the franchisee with information about the franchise system, the franchisor and agreement to be signed. The franchisee should be provided with the document before the contract is signed so that there is enough time to scrutinize the issues therein and make informed choices. The law prohibits a franchisor from selling a franchise before presenting the disclosure document to the prospective franchisee. In the United States, 14 states require franchisors to register their disclosure document with the state to notify that they will offer franchises. This document is important to the prospective franchisee because the vital information that can affect the performance of the franchise is contained in it. Some of the vital information that can help a prospective franchisee to make a wise decision is management’s experience in franchise management. The franchisor’s experience in managing the business can determine whether the franchise will have a prolonged future or not. A franchisor with the limited experience may not offer a profitable and reliable franchise. Another vital piece of information contained in the disclosure document is the litigation history and bankruptcy records. The number of litigation cases in the document can inform the prospective franchisee on the type of legal problems the franchise is likely to face. The franchisor with a long history of legal cases is less attractive to franchisees. On the other hand, bankruptcy records can provide the essential information about the ability of the firm to remain profitable in future. The franchisor with several bankruptcy records indicates inefficiency in managing the business. The information regarding territorial rights informs the prospective franchisee on how large the operation territory is. Sometimes, the franchisor may have many franchises competing for the operational territory. The disclosure document provides the franchisee with details of the geographical size within which the franchise is allowed to operate. The existence of numerous franchises sanctioned by the same franchisor within a small territory can limit the prospects of a new franchise. Such information is crucial because the franchisee prefers a large territory to serve because it provides a large market share. The disclosure information outlines the responsibilities of both the franchisor and the franchisee. This information may be unclear to the franchisee when the document is not provided prior to the contract signing. Consequently, the relationship between the two parties may be strained in the future regarding their duties towards each other. The responsibilities such is the level of support available to the franchisee is crucial when the decision to operate a franchise has been made. The franchisee is likely to choose the franchisor who provides the best support among other considerations. The Franchise Agreement Compared to the disclosure document, a franchise agreement is more specific in defining the relationship between the franchisor and the franchisee (Selden, 2011). The agreement specifies how the system works and the extent to which the franchisee can use trademarks and products. This is essential because the franchisee can understand the extent to which the franchise will benefit from the use of trademarks and licenses. In the franchise agreement, the rights and obligations of both parties are clearly defined and the standard procedures of operation outlined. The importance of this legal document is that the written procedures and standards illustrate the amount of control the franchisor exercises over the franchisee. When every activity of the franchise is strictly guided by operational procedures and standards, the franchisee has a little freedom and creativity curtailed. On the other hand, when the procedures only apply to some activities, the franchisor has limited control over the franchise. This is beneficial to the franchisee because the personal innovation can be incorporated into the business and improve its performance. The franchise agreement contains the information that indicates when the franchise relationship will be terminated. The franchisee benefits from knowing when the franchise will be terminated because forecasts can be done to determine whether the business will have earned returns on its investment and profits. When the forecasts predict that the business will have earned substantial profits, then the franchisee can enter into an agreement with the franchisor. However, when the business is likely not to make any profits by the time of termination, the franchisee may opt not to operate the franchise with the franchisor. The crucial information about the amount of money the franchisee should pay the franchisor is contained in the franchise agreement. The money to be paid out can affect the business performance; and it is, therefore, important to compare such payments across a number of franchisors. The cheaper the payments are, the more profitable the franchise is likely to be. This is because the money paid out to the franchisor either comes from the franchise profits or revenues. Having this information before signing the contract helps the franchisee get the best deal based on facts and figures. The franchise agreement details the terms and the rights to transfer the franchise. At the initial stages of the franchise formation, the franchisee may not have thought about the transfer of the business to another person, such as a next of kin or selling it. However, the procedures required must be known before signing the contract because the agreement may omit such information or write in favor of the franchisor. Even when the franchise duration is long, the franchisee may wish to transfer ownership. The agreement details the procedures. The franchisee should engage a legal counsel when examining the agreement to ensure favorable terms regarding the franchise transfer that should be included in the contract before signing it. Finally, the franchise agreement contains some information on how the franchisor conducts training of franchises; how the franchisor offers assistance and marketing strategies to the franchise. Training offers the franchise a good chance of survival than other forms of start-up businesses. The training methods that the franchisor uses are tested through experience and, therefore, provide the franchisee with the practical knowledge and skills that other start-up businesses lack. Some franchisors create advertisement programs that cover their franchises. The franchise agreement should detail the advertisement strategies used by the franchisor and the role of the franchise in the process. This knowledge helps the franchise plan the marketing budget. Between the two types of franchises, the business format franchise is capital intensive and provides more opportunities than the product distribution franchise. The choice between the two ones may be determined by the amount of capital and skills the prospective franchisee has. The franchise arrangement adopted by the investor depends on the investor’s skills in management and capital availability. Investors with advanced skills and large capital reserves have the ability to operate multi-franchise units or an area representative franchise. From the analysis of the merits and demerits of franchise business to both the franchisee and franchisor, the advantages seem to outweigh disadvantages. This is why there is an increasing number of franchises being operated throughout the world. The choice of the franchisor, which is informed by the evaluation before signing the contract, can reduce the demerits and maximize the merits. Therefore, the prospective franchisee should carefully evaluate the franchisors using the identified criteria to choose the one that will meet the needs of the franchisee and profitably.