Urban legends Essay Example for Free

Urban legends Essay According to Tom Harris, urban legends are modern fictional stories or myths passed from person to person and frequently have the elements of caution, horror or humor. Most of the urban legends are always false though some have proven true. They are mostly always inspired by a true story but tend to change in the course of transmission from one person to another. Moreover, it is hard to follow back an urban legend to its source, this is because it seems to come from everywhere with slight variation each time. James M. Henslin, on the other hand describes an urban legend as â€Å"a deliciously entertaining tale† the truth of which is unverifiable. Thematically, they are characterized by some elements of horror, warning embarrassment, humor, appeal to empathy and morality. Their unexpected twists though always weird, are sometimes so reasonable enough to be taken as the truth. One example of an urban legend is that is exemplified by Harris is called the Vegas organ harvesters†. In this legend, it is reported that a man meets a woman in an Vegas pub and have a drink together, the observer apparently relates how the two hit it off but at one time the man passes out. The story adds that the man later wakes up to find himself in a bathtub covered in ice. There is a phone near him and a note telling him to â€Å"call 911 or you will dies. † When he is taken to hospital, he the doctor tell him that he had a major surgery and one of his kidneys had been taken. This story, though not true has the basic elements of an urban legend. First it has an element of horror in it; the man realizing that his kidney has been harvested. It also encompasses an element of caution. Vegas being among the most widely visited places on earth; the caution is to avoid meeting people you do not know so well. Of the two authors, Thomas Harris is clearer and I agree with him in most of his dissection of urban legends. His simple examples and method of following back a legend to its most probable source is interesting. In my own perspective, urban legends are beneficial in some ways. One is that by cautioning people on what to do and what not to do, they make people careful about what they do. Moreover they also entertain. References Henslin, James M. Sociology: A Down-to-earth Approach. Allyn and Bacon, 1993 Harris, Thomas E. Applied Organizational Communication: Perspectives, Principles, and Pragmatics. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1993.

Audi Marketing Mix Analysis

Audi Marketing Mix Analysis The Audi history begins with a man called August Horch, and in 1899, he established the Company HORCH CO. He invented his first car in 1901. But in 1909 Mr. Horch leaves his company and founded another company called Audi. Audi is the Latin translation for Horch and he took that name. In 1910, the brand AUDI Automobilwerke GmbH was registered. In 1931, the AUTO UNION was founded some members were DKW, HORCH, WANDERER and AUDI. Moreover, the new companies insignia to show the union of the four companies was the now familiar 4 rings, that what still used by Audi today. After the 2nd world war, there were again many cars produced, the most important for them were the DKW Munga, a four-wheel jeep with 3-cylinder 2-stroke engine. Invented in 1956 for the German military, there have produced 250 cars for testing purposes. And these cars made a trip around the world and drove more than 240 000 km also without major problems. This was the beginning of the later concept called Quattro and it had nearly 57 000 Mungaswere built until 1968. In the following years, they have many different engine- and car types were invented and produced in large amounts. There also improving, rallying and testing the first real ur-quattro with the new coupe body was build in 1980. And the power has been raised to 200hp in the testing time, and most of the other car producer did with a 2.2l engine. Audi, the core brand that the Audi has been focusing by the Audi Group in adopting its Strategy 2020 on the challenges of the future. The mission We delight customers worldwide was explored in greater depth during 2011 where the strategy took on firmer contours. Heightened environmental awareness, growing uncertainty about the future availability of fossil fuels and increasing urbanization are the results of giving more weight to new issues that have emerged. The Mission of this company is We delight customers worldwide. The Audi brands products are famous of the brand values sportiness, modernism and sophistication. The brand with the four rings aims to suggest customer delight in many other ways and thus can lead to building technologically advanced vehicles. The mission statement which is We delight customers worldwide plays a main role on the path to becoming the leading first-class brand. The Audi brand has well-defined its understanding of customer delight in greater detail in the following four areas of action. That are We define innovation, We create experiences , We live responsibility and We shape Audi. In this company there have three objectives. First is to create impact and drive awareness of Audi Q5 launch. Second is demonstrating Audis core value proposition of Progressive Performance. And then last is communicate Audis prestige offering. Those three objectives is what Audi company execution in this few years. On the other hand, in this few year the Audi Companys target market are predominantly males between 40-50 years old, married with a household income between $137K $265K. And women who are a key influencer in the purchase process of the Q5. Chapter 2: Analysis of Marketing Mix Strategies 2.1 PRODUCT STRATEGIES 2.1.1 Product Classification Audi car are known as the wants or desires that less frequently bought by the consumer so Audi car is classified as luxury product in the category of consumer product. Consumer product is defined as the products and services bought by final consumers for personal consumption. Audi car is known as one of the well-known car that less frequently bought by the consumers due to the price is expensive which is within the range of RM 179,900 to RM 1250,000. Therefore, consumers will do a survey and planning before they actually want to buy it. Wisely consumers will collect a lot of information that relevant to Audi and do price comparison with other car in the market with their main competitors which are BMW and Mercedes-Benz. Furthermore, Audi car is also selling in high price that seldom consumed by the consumers. It is a branded product that having mass advertisement in magazines, television and personal selling by reseller and producer in order to convince consumers to buy it and remind the consumer about their product in the market. Branding Branding plays an important role in identifying the seller and buyers of Audi. It differentiates them from their competitors. Audi is design with four interlinked rings that represent one of Germanys oldest automobile manufacturers. The first ring from the left represents Audi, the second represents DKW, third is Horch, and the last ring is Wanderer.ÂÂ  Its similarity to the Olympic rings caused the International Olympic Committee to indict Audi in International Trademark Court in 1995. In addition, this is a simple logo and made a lot of people to recognize and remember. With the current type of branding, it had brought the product identification to the consumers with its unique design. This will not only ease the consumers to differentiate their product but also help to segment markets. In addition, it also symbolized the inseparable unity of the four founder-companies which are Audi, DKW, Horch and Wanderer. Each of the four companies was allocated a specific market segment within their group. DKW was responsibility for motorcycles and small cars. Wanderer built midsize cars and Audi manufactured cars in the sumptuous midsize class. Horch produced deluxe top-of-the-range automobiles. Besides, it provides product quality and consistency as the consumers know that they will get the same benefit, feature and quality each time they bought the Audi product. Labeling Labeling are using in describing several things of the product. Audi car will offer an instruction book for every buyer. This instruction book encompasses the information of the brand, details about the car, and instruction in how to use and control the car. Packaging Almost all of the products in the market needed packaging. Packaging is essential in term to market the brand and protect the products to ensure the product is safety. Audi car usually covers the seating of new car with plastic to prevent dust will stain the cushion. Furthermore, a protective film will cover on the scene of indicator. This is to prevent the scene to be scratched. Thus, this can protect the product safety. Product Support Services Product support services are to enhance customer service and satisfaction by assess the value of current services and obtain idea for adding new services to delight the customers. For a new or potential customer, Audi will offer free test drive for them. This is to make sure the customer satisfy with their product. They also provide after-sale services included 2 years warranty and 6 months of installment completely free after customer purchase the car to make sure the customer not just satisfy and also happy when use their product because their product performance is greater than the consumer expectation. There are many Service Centers of Audi Company in Malaysia such as Audi Centre Glenmarie, Audi Juru, Audi Johor Bahruand so on. These services will add up the customers satisfaction with the brand of Audi and increase in brand positioning. 2.1.2 Major brand strategy decision Brand Positioning The Audi slogan is VorsprungdurchTechnik, which means the Progress through Technology. Audi is using the German language tagline as many other country used it such as European countries and United Kingdom. Recently, Audi had updated the slogan into Truth in Engineering. Audi is place in the product benefit because Audi automobiles want to provide the most authentic, truthful driving experience in the luxury segment through their slogan. Brand Name Selection The company name is based on the surname of the founder August Horch, the name itself an English similar with the English word hark, meaning listen.Audi is known as the good brand name selection because it can translate easily into foreign languages and distinctive from other brands. The brand name also easy to pronounce, recognize and remember in the world. Brand Sponsorship Audi is consider as manufacturers brands that also call national brands in the brand sponsorship. This is because Audi sell their output under their own manufacturers brand names. For example, the spare parts of all the Audi car can obtain it from German Motors in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. Brand Development We consider Audi company is using line extension strategy which means existing product and brand for the brand development. Line extension occur when a company introduced additional product in a given product category under the same brand name into the new forms, colours, sizes, ingredients, or flavour of an existing product category. For example, existing Audi S1 is upgrade to Audi S2 and Audi S3 which have a better and advanced performance. Audi S3 thats been tuned by TS Racing. This race car that not only packs an aerodynamic kit, but it was tuned specifically for racing purposes. The kit includes a front splitter, modified bumpers, a rear diffuser, extended wheel arches, and a roof-mounted scoop. 2.2 PRICING STRATEGY Narrowly, price is the amount of money charged for a product or service. Broadly, price is the sum of all the values that consumers exchange for the benefits of having or using the product or service. 2.2.1 Factors affecting pricing decisions Audi is using cost- based pricing method. Audi added a standard makeup to the cost of the product. It is a simplify pricing, which is based on the cost. It is also fairer to both sellers and buyers as the price set is reasonable. Audi is under oligopolistic competition but not monopolistic competition because there are only few companies those producing automobiles such as Mercedes Benz, Porsche, and BMW in Germany. Audi car is a differentiated product. Customers can easily differentiate Audi from the other brands. This is because of the unique logo of Audi which in four rings. The high quality products produced by Audi have developed a very clear image of technology in the minds of their target customers. Besides, Oligopolistic competition market has high barriers to entry. Therefore, Audi is able to earn economic profit in both short run and long run. Audi is price maker which has the power to set its own price. However, it has to be aware of the actions of the others because it is mutual interdependence. Audi shapes its policies with an eye to the policies of the competitors such as Mercedes Benz and BMW. Audi has to observe the actions of them from time to time because the actions of Audis competitors wil l affect Audis profit. Audi spends a large amount of money in advertising to convince customers. 2.2.2 New Product pricing strategies Audi practised market penetration pricing when the new product was introduced in the market. Market penetration pricing is a quick- entry price strategy that assumes low price will gain high sales volume which will result in lowering costs. It set a low initial price which is lower than the eventual market price in order for the brand to penetrate the market quickly and deeply. By using this method, Audi expect to attract a large number of buyers quickly to the new brand as the product demand is highly price elastic. It also assumed that the lowers price will win market share. Once the marker share is gained, the price of Audi will be raised. 2.2.3 Product Mix Pricing Strategies Product line pricing is a pricing strategy used to sell different products in the same product range at different prices based on features or benefits. In another words, it is when a company must decide the price differences between the upgrade of the product or service. Audi has different type of model of car.The purpose of using these strategies is to maximize the profit of the company. For example, there is a huge range price different between Audi S3 and Audi TT. 2.2.4 Price Adjustment Strategies Discount and allowance pricing reduces the product prices to reward customers responses. Discount can be classified in to cash, quantity, functional and seasonal whereas allowances can be divided into trade-in and also promotional. For example, the Audi buyers can get the spare part from Germany Motor located in Petaling Jaya that comes with rebates and warranties. Dynamic pricing is known as time-based pricing or third-degree price discrimination. It occurs when consumers are divided into two or more groups with separate demand curves, and different prices are charged to each group. When done successfully, price discrimination practices like this enables the firm to capture more consumer surplus and thus, increase the profit of a firm. Dynamic pricing adjust the prices continually to meet the characteristics and needs of individual customers and situations. Wide range of goods would be priced according to what the market will bear. If the demands of Audi car increase, the price of it will decrease, vice versa. The location pricing has a different price for different location or sitting arrangement. Audi car will be priced higher in Malaysia due to the location and high government import taxes. 2.3 PLACE STRATEGY 2.3.1 Market Channels/ Distribution Channels Market distribution channel is a system of market institutions that enhances the physical flow of goods and services, along with ownership title, from producer to consumer or business user. Audi is promoting their products by using indirect sales marketing channel. Audi is performing as producer only so it needs other channels like retailers and wholesalers in order to facilitate the exchange process by cutting down the number of contacts necessary. The intermediaries will also help Audi to promote their products to the final consumers with the help of intermediary, Audi manage to focus on produce innovative products rather than busy on promoting their products. 2.3.2 Retailing/ Wholesaling Among the sales channel, Audi is using wholesaler channel to promote their products to the consumers. Wholesaling is known as all activities involved in selling goods and services to those buying for resale or business use. Since Audi is the company that involve in manufacturing products only, so it needs to undergo wholesaling process to promote their products by using developing and spreading persuasive communications. Therefore, Audi has form a strong wholesaling base to promote to the final customers and it need to grasp the real issues facing the wholesalers in order to implement the appropriate growth measures. With the strong wholesaler channel, Audi will able to focus on their innovation for products to keep competing in such high competitive market since this market is known as oligopolistic competition. 2.4 PROMOTION STRATEGIES Audi Company is playing its role very well in the marketing promotional activities through the concept of integrated marketing communications. Audi Company is using a multifaceted promotion mix as its tools to increase the sales of its car and also achieve a higher performance. Those promotional activities of Audi Company are trying their best to attract consumers attention and to make communication with them in order to reach them in a coordinated manner through integrated marketing communication. 2.4.1 Direct Marketing One of the elements in Audi Companys integrated promotional mix is direct marketing. It is offering a very special surrounding for its consumers to make them feeling good in all the way of purchasing their new expectative cars. After stepped in the Customer Center, consumers will be welcomed by Audi Companys staffs and they will consult with the consumer to plan their schedule for the day according to the objective they want to do. The schedule will be included a highlight activities, factory tour. The tour guide will show them how to produce the Audi Cars by using advance technology and accuracy workmanship way. Another highlight activity is visit to Audi shop and Audi museum shop. Audi shop stocks top-quality branded goods and up market lifestyle articles. In the Audi museum shop you are able to browse all the attractive tradition collection and a range of model historical cars are stored in it. At the end of the day that is the moment of the consumers to pick up their new car. 2.4.2 Sales Promotion There is a sales promotion conducted by Audi Company is called as Happy Anniversary and Happy Oktoberfest. This program is available for all the range of the Audi owners. To let more consumers join for this program, Audi Company has provided all the styles, sophistication and performance of its cars in the exceptional prices. Furthermore, consumers also able to test-drive an Audi of their choice to discover which Audi are suitable for them. 2.4.3 Public Relations Public relations refer to a firms communications and relationships with all types of its customers, such as publics. A very good news which is bring from Audi Company is that Audi will organizes the INI and HIN events, which serve as an education forum for everyone. And the INI.JUGEND.KOLLEG and the HIN.JUGEND.KOLLEG is just focus on the youth which are talented and interested in the promotion of technologies. During the series of the events, those participants will gain an opportunity to discuss and obtain some information about the current social and technical topics. A clear and accessible of the knowledge will be brought by a team of well-known speakers from Audi partner universities. With it, Audi Company is able to get more employed with young talent. At the same times, it can gain a good image from its customers and stronger its Brand Name throughout the country or the world. 2.4.4 Product Placement Another promotional mix element using by Audi Company is product placement. It is a non-personal selling marketing strategy. This approach is not only a lower cost-spending but also a very efficient way to gain more patron exposure to the users. Recently, Audi Company is using this approach by launching a free iPhone game which is called A4 Driving Challenge 2.0. By choosing iPhone to expend Audi Companys customer flows as iPhone has gain a high performance of sales in the market segmentations from upper-upper to upper-lower. Audi Company is just a newest brand in using this non-traditional selling method in order to extend sales and to draw in more future clients as well. 2.4.5 Official Web Site On the other hand, it is a new trend that all companies will use advance technology to connect with their existing or incoming customers like social wed site or their own official web site. Same as other company does, Audi Company also having their own official web site which is http://www.audi.com/com/brand/en.html. By browsing their pages, customers are able to obtain latest information, latest improvement and whether there is any latest new product is introduced into market. If consumers are wish to buy a new Audi, there is a fast and convenient way to check in the website, it has uploaded a list of details for all types of the Audi. Chapter 3: Analysis of Market Opportunities 3.1 Technological Opportunities One such opportunity in the future was the concept of a hybrid car that was first introduced in the 90s by Toyota. It would be a great technological opportunity for Audi to explore this as it would be perceived as a core segment of the automotive market of the future. The meaning of hybrid car, as quoted by Jeffrey Orloff (2007), is a vehicle that uses an on-board rechargeable energy storage system (RESS) and a fuel based power source for vehicle propulsion. These vehicles useless fuel than their counterparts and produce fewer emissions. Hybrid vehicles recharge their batteries by capturing kinetic energy through regenerative braking. Some hybrids use the combustion engine to generate electricity by spinning a generator to either recharge the battery or directly feed power to an electric motor that drives the vehicle. This takes place when cruising or in other situations where just light thrust is needed.Besides technology, several other environmental factors will also be discussed o n how it presented such an opportunity for Audi AG and on how Audi could affect those environment. Although there is now in existence of many hybrid cars that are successful like Prius or Tesla, but none has dared to produce an elite and luxurious hybrid car which is currently being developed by Audi AG. Such an innovation could help Audi to dominate the automotive market for the next 25 years as quoted by the company because it would give them a great competitive edge. So far, Audi has developed 3 hybrid concept car which are Audi e-tron, Audi e-tronSpyder and Audi A8 Hybrid. Each of those cars are being researched independently in several workshops that follows on the new hybrid technologies like full hybrid, plug-in hybrid and parallel hybrid respectively. Besides, Audi also monitors all other innovation for a competitive advantage for example new alternative fuels called cellulosic ethanol for the hybrids or even Quattro drive system in correspondent to hybrid technology. With all technology combined and utilized with maximum effectiveness, it helps Audi to address not only th e social concerns but also the economic concerns in the market environment. Focusing on Audi, their hybrid concept cars in the future market is able rival all luxurious sports car and luxury cars existed in the market now.Audi will embrace this opportunity and continue to advance in it technologically by making better hybrid cars and would eventually help pave the way for a more advanced environmentally friendly technology. As quoted in a CNN article by Phil OSullivan (2004), In the future we see this (hybrid cars) as an interim technology. In the future long-term fuel cells (may be) the best alternative. 3.2 Social Market Opportunities Besides, Audi also seeks opportunities in the social of the Asian market as Asian market is new and having vast development in automobile industry. The new emerging markets of Asian markets, especially China and India, are huge opportunities for Audi. By 2015, the Audi Indian car sale is estimated to be reaching more than $40 billion. In China figures indicate that sales will be in excess of 250,000 million vehicles in a similar period of time.The car sales in both of these countries are growing, as people in these countries are getting wealthier and more discerning, they need more high-class brands such as Audi. According to MrMichealPerschke, Head, Audi India, the young generation, especially those who return from overseas, want more and their fathers are handling over the reins of business a lot faster, unlike the past, todays global Indians have different mindset. This kind of mind- set has made India a potential market for Audi to expand their market, giving them the opportunity to be the leader in automobile industry. Another reason for Audi to choose China and India as their target market to expand their automobile industry: China and India are countries which have the most population of people, hence, providing them a great source of labor force, and, the cost of production is much cheaper than in Europe countries because the cost of labor force is much cheaper. China and India have provided a great market opportunity for Audi, as the level of living in these countries is getting higher, thus increasing the demand of luxury cars, and also, people in these countries are able to provide Audi a great source of labor which could enhance the production. Chapter 4: Recommendations 4.1 The electro rheological (ER) fluids used in the hybrid cars engine require high voltage to operate, that is, the breakdown voltage of air is 3kV/mm. Audi can modify the ER fluid, by using different combination of electrodes which can reduce the voltage requirement of ER fluidto function. Suspension, which particles may tend to clump or settle, is also one of the major problems of using ER fluid in hybrid vehicles. Audi can tackle this problem by matching the density of the solid and liquid particles in the components, to ensure the effectiveness of the operation. Or, Audi can use nanotechnology-the nanoparticles, which the particles are very tiny in size, hence, reducing the suspension. To overcome the problem of settlement of particles in the engine, Audi can add lubricant to enhance to lubricity of the engine, which can help to discourage the gravitational settling and promote particle suspense. Lubricant helps to reduce friction, thus, enhancing the smoothness of operation, modify ing the viscosity and inhibiting wear, improving the problem of suspension. 4.2 Next, it could be considered a right choice for Audi to expand its production in China and India because the labour cost in those potentially developing countries is much lower compare to its original country. However, low labour cost might affect the production of the company. A low wage paid to a worker would discourage a worker to put in effort to do his part perfectly. Audi can prevent this problem by increasing the wages or maybe give bonus to its workers who show their initiative to perform well in their job. It would not be a wise decision to have a great number of unskilled or unknowledgeable workers in an operation. Hence, it is suggested that, Audi chooses its crew wisely. Choose skilful and knowledgeable people to join the crew through a careful interview. Otherwise, provide training to those unskilled workers, or provide time- to- time skill- up courses and practical training, so that the workers are equipped with relevant and up- to- date knowledge and skills. Besides, t he Board of Directors has to do its duty checking the employees from time to time, distinguish the problem faced by employees and company, so that improvements can be made to ensure the quality of production is maintained. 4.3 There is a research shows that Asia countries, especially India is a highly potential developing country, as it attracts many international investors to invest in the country, meaning India has potential to become a high class country. This means that people in India will be able to owe luxury cars like Audi in future. However, presently the purchasing power for luxury goods of people in the country is still limited. Actually, Audi can refer to this present situation, come out with the concept of producing low cost cars or ordinary cars, to meet the needs of people in the countries. In this case, people with less income will be also able to own a car themselves. This will not only expand the market and increase the income of the company;it is also beneficial to the people who are having a moderate income. Chapter 5: Conclusion In my opinion, I think the current marketing mix which Audi has, is satisfactory to customer needs. Because for a new or potential customer, Audi will offer free test drive for the customer and to make sure there are satisfy with their product. On the other hand, customer also can easily to obtain latest information from the website. Because Audi Company having their own official web site which is www.audi.com/com/brand/en.html. In providing a wide range of products and with high quality, Audi has by far influenced most of the customers perception favorably towards its products. From time the company was created till now, the quality of the products that Audi offers is improving each year. But the well-known car that less frequently bought by the consumers because the price is too expensive which is within the range of RM 179,900 to RM 1250,000. The price will expensive is because Audi do price comparison with other car in the market with their main competitors which are BMW and Mercedes-Benz. And it is a branded product that having mass advertisement in magazines, television and personal selling by reseller and producer in order to convince consumers to buy it and remind the consumer about their product in the market. Even though the prices imposed by Audi seems to be fair with consideration of the quality of the products offered. The only problem is that, Audi has priced its products too expensively for a middle or lower class customer to afford to buy those products. Apart from that Audi has targeted its market mainly to urban customers as are the only customers who can afford such expensive products. In my opinion, I think Audi has to create also some of low end products with low prices which can be affordable to low income users. As I have mentioned above, In the case of place (distribution), Audi is using wholesaler channel to promote their products to the consumers. With the Audi have strong wholesaler channel, it will able to focus on their innovation for products to keep competing in such high competitive market since this market is known as oligopolistic competition.

Study Of Services Provided By Public And Private Sector Banks Finance Essay

Study Of Services Provided By Public And Private Sector Banks Finance Essay INTRODUCTION Banking in India originated in the last decades of the 18th century. The oldest bank in India is the State Bank of India, a government-owned largest commercial bank in the country. In 1991 banking sector made a remarkable progression. New private sector banks have brought the necessary competition into the industry and acquire the changes towards higher utilization of technology, improved customer service and innovative products. India has 88 scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) 27 public sector banks (stake holding by the Government of India ), 29 private banks ( no government stake; they may be publicly listed and traded on stock exchanges) and 31 foreign banks. They have a combined network of over 53,000 branches and 17,000 ATMs. According to a report by ICRA Limited, a rating agency, the public sector banks hold over 75 percent of total assets of the banking industry, with the private and foreign banks holding 18.2% and 6.5% respectively. Customers are now becoming more conscious of their rights and are demanding more than ever before. The recent trends show that most banks are shifting from a product-centric model to a customer-centric model as customer satisfaction has become one of the major determinants of business growth. Keeping these in mind, an attempt has been made in this study to analyze the factors that are essential in influencing the investment decision of the customers of the public as well as private banks. For this purpose, Factor Analysis, which is the most appropriate multivariate technique, has been used to identify the groups of determinants. This study also suggests some measures to formulate marketing strategies to lure customers towards banks. PROJECT BACKGROUND STATE BANK OF INDIA State Bank of India (SBI) is Indias largest commercial bank. SBI has a vast domestic network of over 9000 branches (~14% of all bank branches) and commands one-fifth of deposits and loans of all scheduled commercial banks in India. The State Bank Group includes a network of eight banking subsidiaries and several non-banking subsidiaries offering merchant banking services, fund management, factoring services, primary dealership in government securities, credit cards and insurance. ICICI ICICI Bank is Indias second-largest bank with total assets of Rs. 3,849.70 billion (US$  82 billion) at September 30, 2008 and profit after tax Rs. 17.42 billion for the half  year ended September 30, 2008. The Bank has a network of about 1,400 branches and 4,530 ATMs in India and presence in 18 countries. ICICI Bank offers a wide range of banking products and financial services to corporate and retail customers through a variety of delivery channels and through its specialized subsidiaries and affiliates in the areas of investment banking, life and non-life insurance, venture capital and asset management. The Bank currently has subsidiaries in the United Kingdom, Russia and Canada, branches in United States, Singapore, Bahrain, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Qatar and Dubai International Finance Centre and representative offices in United Arab Emirates, China, South Africa, Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. Our UK subsidiary has established branches in Belgium and Germany. ICICI Banks equity shares are listed in India on Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) of India Limited and its American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). PROJECT AIMS AND OBJECTIVES To study whether the customers are satisfied with the services provided by ICICI bank and SBI bank To know about the customer preferences among ICICI and SBI bank To compare over all commitment, pattern of affective, normative and continuous commitment in public and private sector To know about the various promotional tools of Private and Public sectors banks in India To make a comparative analysis of customers perception for promotional strategies of private and public sector banks in India To find out the key promotional tools for banking services on the basis of customers responses The above objectives lead to the following Hypothesis: H1: There is no significant relationship between the educational qualification of the respondents and the reason to choose the service. H2: There is no significant relationship between the occupation of the respondents and the type of service they prefer the most. RESEARCH PROGRAMME THE MARKETING RESEARCH PROCESS: RESEARCH PROBLEM Assessment of consumer perception and behavior in relation with SBI and ICICI bank in Panipat, Haryana. RESEARCH DESIGN AND PLAN The study is both descriptive and exploratory in nature. By descriptive research the extent of difference in the needs perception attitudes and characteristics of customers would be gathered. Diagnostic analysis will be used when customers will be asked questions such as why do you feel that way? Exploratory studies will provide information to use in analyzing a situation. Descriptive research will be used to uncover conclusive evidences to determine a particular course of action. The research design and plan was based on various factors like Method of data collection: RESEARCH METHOD The proposal is basically research oriented and it depends mainly on primary sources of data. It would be acquired through close-ended structured questionnaire in various ICICI and SBI banks covered under the project. The information validity depends upon the ability of the peoples understanding of the questions that is being asked by the researcher. Survey Method: This method would be used to get more detailed information of responders through Questionnaire. Further this is the only method to get the desired information. DATA SOURCES Primary Data: The research would be done with the help of primary data as it requires firsthand information on individual interviews. RESEARCH INSTRUMENT: Research instrument would be a questionnaire as the data is primary. The questionnaire would be designed on the following basis: To know about the customer needs and preferences To find ways to provide them more satisfaction To understand the factors that influence their decision while choose among the different banks SAMPLING: The sample consists of all those persons who either have a bank account in ICICI and SBI or are planning to open it in next few months. For this research we use non-probability sampling. Zikmund (1997) stated that in non-probability sampling, the probability of any particular member of the population being chosen is unknown. The element in the population does not have any probability attached to their being chosen as sample subjects. Snow ball sampling will be applied in this research. Snow ball sampling refers to the procedure that involves the selection of additional respondents based on referrals of initial respondents. Elements: Students, businessmen, Traders, Farmers, Workers, Salesman etc. Extent: Panipat Survey Time: 6 Weeks Sample size: 200 customers are to be questioned. The target population in this research refers to the bank customers who are having an account in SBI bank and ICICI bank due to the convenience in collecting the data. The respondents can be any gender, any income level, any occupation and any education level. Approach: 260 people would be approached SAMPLING PLAN Data would be collected from both public as well as private sources from all department.Accompanying each questionnaire is a letter explaining the general purpose of the study. Participants in the study are entirely voluntary. The researcher is going to collect the data from the ATMS and also by visiting the bank. It would be directly obtained from the customers. DATA ANALYSIS Appropriate statistical analysis will be adopted. The data will be tabulated and analyzed. DELIVERABLES To get the clear view as to which bank is more efficient in focusing on serving their customer by building long term relationships through performance excellence and delivering customer satisfaction. To know about the reliability of the response and provide major requirements by getting feedback on questionnaire. What are the reasons to choose a public bank like SBI? To examine in depth about their loan, ATM and other facilities that attract customers To know why some people choose SBI while other prefer ICICI Both the banks are competing equally with each other. But SBI bank is a bit below the line in customer complaints handling when compared to ICICI bank. The researcher would aim to know where they should focus to attain more and more customers while retaining the older ones at the same time. REVIEW OF LITERATURE Making Government the Best Place to Work: Building Commitment (Belcourt, Professor of Human Resource Management at York University, 2000; and Simon Taggar. Resources Library, internet, journels, magazines.

Antony and Cleopatra Essay -- essays research papers

Joseph Innes How does Shakespeare present the sense of opposites or polarities And what is the importance of these to the play? William Shakespeare wrote Antony and Cleopatra around 1606, during the reign of King James  ². The play is a history, set in the time of the Roman Empire many centuries before it was written and based on the well-documented history of Octavius Caesar, Marc Antony and Cleopatra. These characters and their lives were contained in primarily one document: Plutarch's Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans, which was translated by Sir Thomas North in 1579. In the creation of the play, Shakespeare kept very close to the plot of North’s history although some characters such as Enobarbus are largely Shakespeare’s creations. In the play, Shakespeare creates two completely different, conflicting worlds from which most if not all of the drama and tension is derived from, causing tension between those living in the two ideals of Rome and Egypt. From the very beginning one of the themes of the play becomes very evident to the audience, the conflict between Rome and Egypt. The two places represent a symbolic clash of ideals in the play. Rome is seen as a place of honor and duty and taken very seriously, this is shown through the actions and behaviour of Caesar, a man with huge responsibilities, and even when his associates are celebrating and getting drunk, he does not. As a contrast, Egypt is shown as a place of indulgence and pleasure, shown this time through Cleopatra’s court, where it seems the inhabitants do nothing but indulge themselves with games, wine and sex. These differences in ideals are so great that the people in Rome treat Antony’s indulgence in Egypt with Cleopatra as a taboo â€Å"this is the news: he fishes, drinks, and wastes / The Lamps of night in revel†(1.4.4-5). Caesar’s condemnation of Antony’s behavior is an example of how much he is despised for turning his back on Roman duty. This clash is in some ways an example of Elizabethan perceptions on the differences between East and West, an obstacle that is impossible for Antony and Cleopatra to overcome. Shakespeare personifies the two poles of the world as the people living there. Caesar is seen as the embodiment of Rome, with his rigid sense of duty and honour, and Egypt is presented through Cleopatra with her excessive and theatrical extravagance and free flowing passio... ... and charming towards Cleopatra, although she knows he is merely trying to avoid her committing suicide, so that she can be his trophy. After this meeting, Cleopatra resolves to follow her plan of death and although Rome may have triumphed at face value, the East is in fact presenting its true spirit, Cleopatra is refusing to become anything but herself. This conclusion to the conflict between East and West is needed to provide a satisfying ending to the play, although neither East or West wins, but is left at a stalemate. The West wins over reason and duty, and yet the East has won through emotion and love, the love between Antony and Cleopatra. The polarities between Antony and Cleopatra are huge and arguably impossible to overcome as the conflict and differences between Egypt and Rome would inevitably end in tragedy. Shakespeare uses this as the centre of his drama, and without it would lose its powerful and emotive realism that Shakespeare spent his life perfecting. In this way, the conflict between Egypt and Rome is the most important theme, as from it spawns the differences in honour, reason, emotion and ideals, thus forming the framework for much more drama beyond it.

Women Finding Their Voices in Jane Smileys A Thousand Acres :: Smiley Thousand Acres Essays

Women Finding Their Voices in A Thousand Acres "Women, just like nature or the land, have been seen as something to be used,' says Smiley.'Feminists insist that women have intrinsic value, just as environmentalists believe that nature has its own worth, independent of its use to man'" (Duffy 92). Larry Cook, the senile, old power holder and father in Jane Smiley's A Thousand Acres, is a prime example of a man who believes that women and land are nothing more than objects that exist on this earth only so that he can control them. Larry's obsession with control begins in his marriage. In Larry's mind the only thing his wife was necessary for was cooking and cleaning. Larry also becomes obsessed with controlling his daughters, not only through disciplinary actions but also through molestation. He continues to control Ginny and Rose well into their adult lives. Because of their mother's premature death, Ginny and Rose are forced to take over the household. Their main jobs are to look after their little sister, Caroline, and to cook and clean. Rose and Ginny continue to look after Larry on a daily basis well after they are both married and have lives and children of their own. Even though neither of the daughters really wants to cook and clean for Larry, both feel obligated to look after him because he has instilled so much fear into them. Ginny tells the reader of this obligation: "My job remained what it had always been-to give him what he asked of me, and if he showed discontent, to try and find out what would please him" (Smiley 115). Besides forcing his daughters to take care of him, Larry also controls Ginny and Rose through molestation. As one critic observes, "The implication is that the impulse to incest concerns not so much sex as a will to power, an expression of yet another way the woman serves the man" (Duffy 92). The women in this novel are fairly passive and tend to let the men manipulate them. According to Martha Duffy, Smiley sees a link between the exploitation of women and that of the land. The land is stronger than the women in this novel in that despite the fact that men manipulate and attempt to change it as much as possible, it is still its own entity. This presents a contrast to what occurs when the women are dominated.

Poverty: a Silent Killer

Poverty: a silent killer The merciless chain of poverty is enclosing its arm around America. Children are storming the streets starving for a modest meal and a heated room. It confines them, forcing them to live a life of nightmares. It is evidently noted that poverty is the silent killer all over the world. The danger is, no one truly knows what poverty is, and who is to blame. A snapshot of poverty would seemingly resemble the poorest of the poor. As an experienced person who lived through childhood poverty, I can relate.When Bobby, a preschooler, scratched a mosquito bite on his leg, the area became infected. His parents took him to the doctor, who prescribed an antibiotic. However, because Bobby’s father earned very low wages at his job, the family could not immediately afford to buy the prescription. As a result of the family’s poverty the infection grew dangerously out of control and Bobby was hospitalized for three days in order to receive intravenous antibiotics . Each of those hospital days cost about $800, doctors estimated (Sherman, 6) What is the real truth about poverty?Every conception of the term is misconstrued. There is no absolute one-size-fits-all definition for poverty. All we know is that poverty is currently at war with America and has been for an unquestionable amount of time. Poverty has structured the face of destiny for good. In the eyes of Americans, poverty is the plight of delinquents. Beginning with the Bible and continuing through the Elizabethan poor laws, there has been a belief among some that the poor have no one to blame but themselves (Edelman, XV). However, poverty looks different than it did decades ago.The elderly are considerably more impoverished, and children have become the poorest age group. To understand why there is so much more poverty among children, we need to understand why their parents are worse off. Although some experts affirm children are affected by biological conditions (genetics, health, an d nutrition) and environmental conditions (families, communities, and schools), some also believe there are no accurate measurements for poverty (Boyden and Bourdillon, 129). â€Å"Poverty is like punishment for a crime you didn't commit. -Eli Khamarov. Around 21,000 children die around the world everyday due to poverty (Boyden and Bourdillon, 151). At this very moment, a child died from poverty. We need to pinpoint the cause for poverty now! But it is a cycle that cannot be broken. For example, as a child I was raised wealthy. Anything and everything I ever wanted could have been mine thanks to my parents. Although the economy began its sinking process, my family still managed to rise above surface. That is, until my dad’s company went bankrupt and all our money sunk with it.The wealth turned to poor, and we had to do anything and everything we could to carry on. The food was scarce, and the toys were sold. I asked myself everyday why this was our punishment. After nearly a year of enduring the pain of poverty, I now know whom to blame. Ourselves. Are we enough to blame for our own predicament? Have we been lazy, made poor decisions, and been solely responsible for our plight? What about our government? Have they pursued policies that actually harm successful development? We’ve waged war on poverty and poverty won (Edelman, ).With the real cost of minimal living, the cycle will continue unless America platforms a plan. As of right now, President Barack Obama makes little use of the word â€Å"poverty. † The government website detailing the contents of his Recovery Act used the word â€Å"vulnerable† to characterize those portions of legislation relating to low-income people (Edelman, xiv) With that being said, both are to blame. America’s disease is greed. Greed has produced rash tax cuts that have given money to the rich and taken it from the poor.We all want more money, bigger homes, and nicer cars; however, no one can ap preciate what they have. The only people that can are the poor. In result to the greed of my family, when an unforeseen dilemma arose we didn’t know how to handle the situation at hand. Thus, we sunk further and further into the cycle and it took a fight to pull us to the surface. I believe that unless one truly experiences poverty no one will truly comprehend its meaning. On the other hand, poverty can happen to those born into it. As the government focuses more and more on other nation worries, a child dies from poverty.

Henderson the Rain King: Formalist Criticism

NAME: JEREMIAH FOONG KANG YI MATRIX NUM. : D20111047679 FACULTY: LANGUAGE AND COMMUNICATION PROGRAM: TESL PROGRAM CODE: AT 06 SEMESTER: 3 SESSION: 2012/2013 COURSE: LITERARY CRITICISM COURSE CODE: BIS 3023 GROUP : B ASSIGNMENT: CRITICAL ANALYSIS ON HENDERSON THE RAIN KING LECTURER: MR. SEVA BALA SUNDARAM A/L A. M MARIAPPAN For this novel, I will be critically analyzing it using two theories, namely the â€Å"Formalist Criticism† (which is also known as â€Å"New Criticism†) and â€Å"Reader-Response Criticism†.The reason I choose both these criticism theories are because I personally opine that these two theories can realistically reflect our views on the literature read as readers. By the Formalist Criticism approach, I will firstly provide a plot summary of â€Å"Henderson the Rain King†. â€Å"Henderson the Rain King† was written by Saul Bellow in the year 1959. In this novel, Saul Bellow names his main character, or also known as â€Å"the prot agonist†, Eugene Henderson. Eugene Henderson is depicted, in this novel, as a troubled, middle-aged man. He is physically attributed with a large body frame, a bumbling loud voice, and ossesses great physical strength. Contradictory to his struggling life, his family background is one which is rather wealthy. Eugene’s father was a famous author and he left him three million dollars when he passed. He is not at all amazed neither pleased with the life he has been living all the while and plans to heed his inner voice and go out to search for a better life, which he believes, lies in Africa. Before leaving for Africa though, he tried numerous ways to satisfy his weird calls by playing the violin, drinking, and shouting at his wife.He carried on with his plan to Africa with his friend Charlie Albert and his wife. He however set off to travel on his own upon finding a pampered travelling style Charlie practices. Eugene meets the Arnewi tribe and tries to help to settle thei r drinking problem which was caused by a frog infestation at the bottom of their drinking well. Eugene failed to help when he blasted the frogs together with the well. It only made the situation worse. Eugene went on to meet the Wariri tribe with Romilayu and becomes the Sungo, or â€Å"rain king†, when he lifts a heavy idol during the rain ceremony.Later on, the elders sent Dahfu to find a lion which is supposed to be the reincarnation of Dahfu’s late father. As he fails and is killed, Eugene is supposed to be crowned the King as he is the Rain King, the next King in line. Eugene does not desire to be king, and flees from Africa back to his own home. Eugene finds that it is only through love that he had gained all these while when he reflects on his relationship with Smolak the bear in Ontario and his relationship with the orphan boy on the plane back to the United States. The novel consists of twenty-two chapters of roughly equal length.Throughout the novel, flashbac ks are used as a major element of. In the early stages of the novel, more precisely, in the first three chapters of the novel, Henderson’s reminiscence about his motives for departing for Africa. The setting in this novel is considerably uniform, however, throughout the entirety of the story, settings such as Europe, Connecticut, and New York are scattered randomly around. It is noticeable that the subsequent chapters are set in Africa, where most of the plot of the story develops. Through flashbacks, Eugene revisits his place of origin and time periods from his earlier life.Literary tools such as foreshadowing and cliffhangers are used to keep the reader flipping through the pages eagerly for more. Generally, throughout the most major parts of the story, the setting is held in Africa, in the mid-1950s. Scenes from Connecticut, New York City, and Europe during the Second World War are intermittent when Henderson’s rambling narratives take place. Actions which take plac e in Africa are mostly held in the Arnewi and Wariri tribes. The African plains show up once in a while when Henderson and Romilayu wander through the African desert. However, a major part of the story takes place in the Wariri tribe.At the denouement of the story, Newfoundland is also included in the setting of the story, where Henderson touches down from the plane. Physical settings aside, symbolical spiritual settings are also widely included in the novel. A touch of pre-human quality in the landscape and a tinge of childhood memories Henderson had is depicted through the beautiful slight pink in the sky and the sharpness of the rocks surrounding the Wariri village, respectively. Also, after deplaning from Newfoundland, Henderson is said to be walking on ice. This icy-setting shows that Henderson has clearly made his escape from Africa and has started his life anew.Henderson’s word choice in the narration of the novel is of great interest to the readers as he makes referen ce to the Bible regardless of how informal and colloquial his style is. However informal his style is, though, historical events and psychological theories are explained in a rather offhand albeit knowledgeable method. The colourful description of his narration is made up of detailed explanations made possible through visuals and audio. The inability of Henderson speaking in the native African language makes it complicated as Romilayu and Dahfu are required to translate for him directions and advices made on the barren land of Africa.The appearance of African words such as â€Å"grun-tu-molani† appeal to our minds and memories strongly and further enhances the elaboration of the African culture. For this novel, the third person point of view is used. In this case, the third person’s point of view is the point of view of Eugene Henderson. A conversational and more intimate approach is applied in the narration in the story. Examples which show this are â€Å"As you can see for yourselves, these are all impossible answers (HRK 133)† and â€Å"I’ll tell you why (HRK 7)†.The entirety of this novel is told as if Henderson reminisces about his journey to Africa, and also the will and events which led up to his decision to go to Africa. Dialogues are noticeable in some parts of the novel, but the essence and the message of the story is generally brought to the readers by Henderson’s descriptions and inner monologue. The characters who appeared in â€Å"Henderson the Rain King† are as follows. The main character in the story is Eugene Henderson. Even when Henderson is the main character in the story, he is the anti-hero of the novel. Character-wise, he is a bumbling man, always angry and is confused.His physical attributes are big, shocking appearance, and possesses great strength. Henderson’s father leaves behind 3 million dollars. Henderson had married twice and has five children. He was stubborn and pushed on f or combat duty even when he was declared to be too old for it. He got injured by a land mine during the Second World War and received the Purple Heart upon his return. Henderson owns a pig farm but deep down inside, he ambitions to be a doctor. Henderson is constantly plagued by a voice that says â€Å"I want†. He tries various activities and hobbies which he hopes are able of relieving his unknown desire.He tries playing the violin, drinking, and even shouting at his wife. When none of these methods seem to make any effect on satisfying his weird and unknown desire, he goes on to visit Africa with Charlie Albert and his wife. He was fifty five. Upon realizing Charlie’s travelling style which he thinks is too contemporary and boring, Henderson leaves with Romilayu to visit the Arnewi tribe. He attempted to solve the Arnewi tribe’s difficulty which was the infestation of frogs in their drinking well by bombing the frogs. Instead, he bombed and wrecked the whole d rinking well.Regretful and sad, Henderson left for the Wariri tribe with Romilayu. Most of the plot of the story develops from here. Henderson is crowned Sungo, the Rain King, after being able to lift a heavy idol during a rain ceremony in the Wariri tribe. Henderson was supposed to be the King’s successor after Dahfu’s passing. However, Henderson did not want to be King and escaped from Africa to live a complete new life back in the United States. Frances Henderson is Henderson’s first wife. Frances is, as described by Henderson, tall, handsome, elegant, and sinewy. Frances was married to Henderson just to please Henderson’s father.Henderson once told Frances of his dreams of becoming a doctor. His ambitious dreams was revoked and laughed at by Frances. Lily Simmons Henderson is Henderson’s second wife. She is known throughout the story as only â€Å"Lily†. She has a sweet face, fair, and large. Lily is not prone to scolding. Instead, she m oralizes. Lily had married twice before she got married to Henderson. She had previously married a man from Baltimore and an abusive broker from New Jersey who is named Hazard. In the story, Henderson describes Lily as one who is not very clean, a liar, and a con-artist.Edward Henderson is Henderson and Frances’ eldest son. Edward can be considered as Henderson’s pride as Edward is clean-cut and smart. Edward drives around in a shiny sports car. Henderson always believed that Edward would not get a lover. One day, Edward brings home a girl from Honduras and proclaimed to Henderson that he loves her. However, Henderson chose not to believe it. Ricey Henderson is Henderson and Frances’ eldest daughter. She is pretty. Ricey takes a child from the backseat of a car one Christmas and is eventually expelled from boarding school. Alice Henderson is Henderson’s youngest daughter with Frances.The twins are Henderson’s two children by Frances. Charlie Albert is to Eugene Henderson, a childhood friend. They both attended dancing classes together in the year 1915. Charlie is a year younger than Henderson and also a bit richer than him. Charlie was once a cameraman in the army. Henderson was Charlie’s best man at his wedding. Charlie’s wife resented Henderson because Charlie forgot to kiss his wife at the wedding. Henderson joined Charlie and his wife’s honeymoon trip to Africa in the first part. Dick Henderson is Eugene Henderson’s older brother. Dick dies in a rather tragic and ridiculous way.He was shooting a broken fountain pen with his pistol and got engaged in a chase by the police. He crashed his car in an embankment during the chase and jumps into the river. Dick’s cavalry boots got filled with water when he jumped into the river and Dick drowned. Dick was considered by Eugene as the â€Å"sanest of us†. Klaus Spohr is the artist who paint’s Lily’s portrait. There was once wh en Klaus and Lily observed Henderson kiss Clara, Klaus’ wife, passionately. Doctor Spohr is the cousin of Klaus Spohr. He is the dentist who replaces Henderson’s bridgework.Romilayu is Henderson’s guide and translator in Africa. Romilayu tells Henderson that he is in his late thirties. However, he looks wrinkly and much older. Currently Christian, he shows signs of tribal living in his past as he has tribal scars on both his cheeks and ears. He is a patient companion to Henderson. The Arnewi Tribe are the fist tribe Henderson visits in Africa. They are loving and warmly welcomed Henderson’s visit. They were suffering from a drought and their cattle are dying. They are ruled by Willatale. Iteloo is a prince of the Arnewi tribe. He learned English in Beirut with Dahfu.He loses to Henderson in a wrestling match even when he equalizes him physically. Willatale is Itelo’s aunt and the queen of Arnewi. She is a Bittah, which means she is the most revered in the tribe and has husbands as well as wives. She has cataract in one eye and wears a lion skin as a robe. Henderson describes her as a happy woman, stable, and good natured. Mtalba is the queen’s sister and also is a Bittah woman. She is beautiful and pampered looking with indigo hair but is obese. She proposes to Henderson in their traditional way but rejects him when he blows up their well.The Wariri tribe is the second visited tribe by Henderson in Africa. Henderson becomes the Rain King of the Wariri and a close friend to their King, Dahfu. Dahfu is the kin fog the Wariri tribe. Dahfu studied in a medical school but had to return to his dying father in the Wariri tribe. Dahfu impresses Henderson with his charm and philosophy. King Dahfu keeps a lion named Atti and trains him. He dies while trying to capture his father-lion Gmilo. Horko is the uncle of King Dahfu and the man sent to meet Henderson on the day of the rain festival.Horko speaks some English and French bec ause he traveled with Dahfu when he studied abroad. The Bunam is the head priest of the Wariri tribe. The Bunam believes that Henderson can lift the idol during the rain ceremony. Henderson believes that the Bunam communicated to him to encourage him to lift the idol without needing to talk to him. Turombo is the strong Wariri man who lifted Hummat at the rain ceremony. He was misunderstood as one who is shadowed by his past as he did not lift Mummah. It is learned later on in the story that Turombo did not want to lift Mummah because he understands the danger in being a rain king.Queen Yasra is Dahfu’s mother and also the widow of Gmilo. She believes the words of the Bunam who said that Atti represents power of an evil sorceress. Therefore, she begs Henderson to make Dahfu get rid of Atti. The executioner is assistant to the Bunam in the Wariri tribe. He has a narrow face and leathery appearance. He was dressed in white on the day of the lion hunt and guards King Dahfuâ€⠄¢s corpse after he passed. Gmilo is Dahfu’s father and the former king of the Wariri tribe. Another approach to analysing this novel will be the â€Å"Reader-Response Criticism†.The â€Å"Reader-Response Criticism† is based on what the reader feels and perceives about the story after reading the piece of literature. As a reader, I was quite fazed and taken aback when I read the beginning of this story. I was shocked at how unsettled Henderson was even when his father had left behind him such a large amount of money. I think Henderson’s pursuit of happiness and the meaning for life is strong and objective. Henderson is to me a steadfast person and does not get swayed easily by external factors. What makes me feel pitiful towards Henderson is when he was trying to help the Arnewi tribe out by killing the frogs.His intention started out as a good one but ended as an act which displeased the Arnewi tribe. It was lucky for him that Itelo did not kill him afte r such an act because Itelo is his friend. There is a point in the story which I do not agree with the narrator himself. He had seen such bitterness in the Wariri tribe since the first day he got there. He did not have any good moments to savour. The only acceptable moments are when King Dahfu shared with him some philosophy and ways of life. This interests Henderson and us, the readers, but other than that, all the other happenings are bitter.Therefore, it is quite illogical that Henderson did not choose to escape in the earlier part of his visit to the Wariri tribe. However, this is only my view and opinion. Generally, this novel has raised my awareness in issues such as the pursuit of meaning in life and the pursuit of happiness. At the end of the story, Henderson realizes that what he has been going after all this while is love. This is a story worth reading and telling as it bends the human mind into different concaves of perception to what is worth going after, what is worth o ur pursuit, and what is worth holding on to.Bibliography 1) Henderson the Rain King by Saul Bellow. (2000). Retrieved from http://www. bookrags. com/studyguide-henderson-the-rain-king/ 2) Bellow, S. (1976). Henderson the rain king. NY: Penguin Books. 3) Dobie, A. B. (2011). Theory into practice: An introduction to literary criticism. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning. 4) 50 Plus One Great Books You Should Have Read: And Probably Didn't. Retrieved from http://books. google. com. my/books? id=HPDqaTLKOEEC;pg=PA194;lpg=PA193;dq=%22Henderson+the+Rain+King%22;as_brr=3;ie=ISO-8859-1;output=html;redir_esc=y