Book Recommendations for Graduate School in Economics

Book Recommendations for Graduate School in Economics Q:Â  If I want to achieve a Ph.D. in economics what steps would you advise me to take and what books and courses would I need to study to gain the knowledge that is absolutely needed to be able to do and understand the research that is needed for a Ph.D. A:Â  Thank you for your question. Its a question that Im frequently asked, so its about time that I created a page that I could point people toward. Its really difficult to give you a general answer, because a lot of it depends on where youd like to get your Ph.D. from. Ph.D programs in economics vary widely in both quality and scope of what is taught. The approach taken by European schools tends to be different than that of Canadian and American schools. The advice in this article will mainly apply to those who are interested in entering a Ph.D. program in the United States or Canada, but much of the advice should also apply to European programs as well. There are four key subject areas that youll need to be very familiar with to succeed in a Ph.D. program in economics. 1. Microeconomics / Economic Theory Even if you plan to study a subject which is closer to Macroeconomics or Econometrics, it is important to have a good grounding in Microeconomic Theory. A lot of work in subjects such as Political Economy and Public Finance are rooted in micro foundations so youll help yourself immensely in these courses if youre already familiar with high level microeconomics. Most schools also require you to take at least two courses in microeconomics, and often these courses are the most difficult youll encounter as a graduate student. Microeconomics Material You Must Know as a Bare Minimum I would recommend reviewing the book Intermediate Microeconomics: A Modern Approach by Hal R. Varian. The newest edition is the sixth one, bu if you can find an older used edition costing less you may want to do that. Advanced Microeconomics Material that Would be Helpful to Know Hal Varian has a more advanced book called simply Microeconomic Analysis. Most economics students are familiar with both books and refer to this book as simply Varian and the Intermediate book as Baby Varian. A lot of the material in here is stuff you wouldnt be expected to know entering a program as its often taught for the first time in Masters and Ph.D. programs. The more you can learn before you enter the Ph.D. program, the better you will do. What Microeconomics Book Youll Use When You Get There From what I can tell, Microeconomic Theory by Mas-Colell, Whinston, and Green is standard in many Ph.D. programs. Its what I used when I took Ph.D. courses in Microeconomics at both Queens University at Kingston and the University of Rochester. Its an absolutely massive book, with hundreds and hundreds of practice questions. The book is quite difficult in parts so youll want to have a good background in microeconomic theory before you tackle this one. 2. Macroeconomics Giving advice on Macroeconomics books is a lot more difficult because Macroeconomics is taught so differently from school to school. Your best bet is to see what books are used in the school that you would like to attend. The books will be completely different depending on whether your school teaches more Keynesian style Macroeconomics or Freshwater Macro which is taught at places like The Five Good Guys which includes the University of Chicago, the University of Minnesota, Northwestern University, University of Rochester, and University of Pennsylvania. The advice Im going to give is for students who are going to a school that teaches more of a Chicago style approach. Macroeconomics Material You Must Know as a Bare Minimum I would recommend reviewing the book Advanced Macroeconomics by David Romer. Although it does have the word Advanced in the title, its more suited for high level undergraduate study. It does have some Keynesian material as well. If you understand the material in this book, you should do well as a graduate student in Macroeconomics. Advanced Macroeconomics Material that would be Helpful to Know Instead of learning more Macroeconomics, it would be more helpful to learn more on dynamic optimization. See my section on Math Economics books for more detail. What Macroeconomics Book Youll Use When You Get There When I took Ph.D courses in Macroeconomics a few years ago we didnt really use any textbooks, instead we discussed journal articles. This is the case in most courses at the Ph.D. level. I was fortunate enough to have macroeconomics courses taught by Per Krusell and Jeremy Greenwood and you could spend an entire course or two just studying their work. One book that is used quite often is Recursive Methods in Economic Dynamics by Nancy L. Stokey and Robert E. Lucas Jr. Although the book is almost 15 years old, its still quite useful for understanding the methodology behind many macroeconomics articles. Ive also found Numerical Methods in Economics by Kenneth L. Judd to be quite helpful when youre trying to obtain estimates from a model which does not have a closed-form solution. 3. Econometrics Material You Must Know as a Bare Minimum Theres quite a few good undergraduate texts on Econometrics out there. When I taught tutorials in undergraduate Econometrics last year, we used Essentials of Econometrics by Damodar N. Gujarati. Its as useful as any other undergraduate text Ive seen on Econometrics. You can usually pick up a good Econometrics text for very little money at a large second-hand book shop. A lot of undergraduate students cant seem to wait to discard their old econometrics materials. Advanced Econometrics Material that would be Helpful to Know Ive found two books rather useful: Econometrics Analysis by William H. Greene and A Course in Econometrics by Arthur S. Goldberger. As in the Microeconomics section, these books cover a lot of material which is introduced for the first time at the graduate level. The more you know going in, though, the better chance youll have of succeeding. What Econometrics Book Youll Use When You Get There Chances are youll encounter the king of all Econometrics books Estimation and Inference in Econometrics by Russell Davidson and James G. MacKinnon. This is a terrific text, because it explains why things work like they do, and does not treat the matter as a black box like many econometrics books do. The book is quite advanced, though the material can be picked up fairly quickly if you have a basic knowledge of geometry. 4. Mathematics Having a good understanding of mathematics is crucial to success in economics. Most undergraduate students, particularly those coming from North America, are often shocked by how mathematical graduate programs in economics are. The math goes beyond basic algebra and calculus, as it tends to be more proofs, such as Let (x_n) be a Cauchy sequence. Show that if (X_n) has a convergent subsequence then the sequence is itself convergent. Ive found that the most successful students in the first year of a Ph.D. program tend to be ones with mathematics backgrounds, not economics ones. That being said, theres no reason why someone with an economics background can not succeed. Mathematical Economics Material You Must Know as a Bare Minimum Youll certainly want to read a good undergraduate Mathematics for Economists type book. The best one that Ive seen happens to be called Mathematics for Economists written by Carl P. Simon and Lawrence Blume. It has a quite diverse set of topics, all of which are useful tools for economic analysis. If youre rusty on basic calculus, make sure you pick up a 1st year undergraduate calculus book. There are hundreds and hundreds of different ones available, so Id suggest looking for one in a second hand shop. You may also want to review a good higher level calculus book such as Multivariable Calculus by James Stewart. You should have at least a basic knowledge of differential equations, but you do not have to be an expert in them by any means. Reviewing the first few chapters of a book such as Elementary Differential Equations and Boundary Value Problems by William E. Boyce and Richard C. DiPrima would be quite useful. You do not need to have any knowledge of partial differential equations before entering graduate school, as they are generally only used in very specialized models. If youre uncomfortable with proofs, you may want to pick up The Art and Craft of Problem Solving by Paul Zeitz. The material in the book has almost nothing to do with economics, but it will help you greatly when working on proofs. As an added bonus a lot of the problems in the book are surprisingly fun. The more knowledge you have of pure mathematics subjects such as Real Analysis and Topology, the better. I would recommend working on as much of Introduction to Analysis by Maxwell Rosenlicht as you possibly can. The book costs less than $10 US but it is worth its weight in gold. There are other analysis books that are slightly better, but you cannot beat the price. You may also want to look at the Schaums Outlines - Topology and Schaums Outlines - Real Analysis. Theyre also quite inexpensive and have hundreds of useful problems. Complex analysis, while quite an interesting subject, will be of little use to a graduate student in economics, so you need not worry about it. Advanced Mathematical Economics that would be Helpful to Know The more real analysis you know, the better you will do. You may want to see one of the more canonical texts such as The Elements of Real Analysis by Robert G. Bartle. You may also want to look at the book I recommend in the next paragraph. What Advanced Mathematical Economics Book Youll Use When You Get There At the University of Rochester we used a book called A First Course in Optimization Theory by Rangarajan K. Sundaram, though I dont know how widely this is used. If you have a good understanding of real analysis, you will have no trouble with this book, and youll do quite well in the obligatory Mathematical Economics course they have in most Ph.D. programs. You do not need to study up on more esoteric topics such as Game Theory or International Trade before you enter a Ph.D. program, although it never hurts to do so. You are not usually required to have a background in those subject areas when you take a Ph.D. course in them. I will recommend a couple of books I greatly enjoy, as they may convince you to study these subjects. If youre at all interested in Public Choice Theory or Virginia style Political Economy, first you should read my article The Logic of Collective Action. After doing so, you may want to read the book Public Choice II by Dennis C. Mueller. It is very academic in nature, but it is probably the book that has influenced me most as an economist. If the movie A Beautiful Mind didnt make you frightened of the work of John Nash you may be interested in A Course in Game Theory by Martin Osborne and Ariel Rubinstein. It is an absolutely fabulous resource and, unlike most books in economics, its well written. If I havent scared you off completely from studying economics, theres one last thing youll want to look into. Most schools require you to take one or two tests as part of your application requirements. Heres a few resources on those tests: Get familiar with the GRE General and GRE Economics Tests The Graduate Record Examination or GRE General test is one of the application requirements at most North American schools. The GRE General test covers three areas: Verbal, Analytical, and Math. Ive created a page called Test aids for the GRE and GRE Economics that has quite a few useful links on the GRE General Test. The Graduate School Guide also has some useful links on the GRE. I would suggest buying one of the books on taking the GRE. I cant really recommend any one of them as they all seem equally good. It is absolutely vital that you score at least 750 (out of 800) on the math section of the GRE in order to get into a quality Ph.D. program. The analytical section is important as well, but the verbal not as much. A great GRE score will also help you get into schools if you have only a modest academic record. There are a lot fewer online resources for the GRE Economics test. There are a couple of books that have practice questions that you may want to look at. I thought the book The Best Test Preparation for the GRE Economics was quite useful, but its gotten absolutely horrid reviews. You may want to see if you can borrow it before committing to buying it. There is also a book called Practicing to Take the GRE Economics Test but Ive never used it so Im not sure how good it is. It is important to study for the test, as it may cover some material that you did not study as an undergraduate. The test is very heavily Keynesian, so if you did your undergraduate work at a school heavily influenced by the University of Chicago such as the University of Western Ontario, there will be quite a bit of new macroeconomics youll need to learn. Conclusion Economics can be a great field in which to do your Ph.D., but you need to be properly prepared before you enter into a graduate program. I havent even discussed all the great books available in subjects such as Public Finance and Industrial Organization.

6 Tips for Writing your Dissertation Results and Findings

6 Tips for Writing your Dissertation Results and Findings 6 Tips for Writing Your Dissertation Results and Findings After conducting a literature review, designing your research, gathering data and performing in-depth analysis, it can be tempting to cut corners when it comes to presenting the results and findings in your dissertation. But doing so would undermine the hard work you’ve put in so far, and writing a great results chapter isn’t as difficult as it might seem. The keys to success here are clarity and context. Clarity is important because you need your data to be easy to understand. Context is important because you need to communicate the significance of your results in relation to the research questions. As such, it is always a good idea to follow these helpful tips. Check with Your Advisor about How to Present Your Data Many schools will have a style guide covering what is expected from the results and findings chapter of your work. Ask your advisor if you dont already have a style guide, and use this to guide your work. Check Similar Studies Different disciplines present results in different ways. In the hard sciences, for instance, basic findings are often presented separately from the discussion. In the social sciences, however, it is more common to present the results and discussion at the same time. Provide an Introductory Paragraph By explaining what your findings chapter will include, you will prime your reader to understand what follows. This may involve briefly restating the methods of analysis used, particularly if your work includes statistical data. Look Back to the Rest of Your Thesis This is especially true for the literature review and methodology chapters. Referring to the literature review allows you to compare your results to those achieved by others in your field. Referring to your methodology, meanwhile, lets you determine whether your findings were influenced by the techniques used to gather and analyze data. Explain How You Interpreted the Data How you reached a conclusion won’t always be obvious from the data alone. Instead, you need to explain the significance of your results in relation to your hypothesis and justify your conclusions. Use Graphs, Tables and Figures A well-chosen table or graph is an excellent way of presenting your data. However, remember that using too many graphs and charts without explaining their significance can be confusing for the reader! If you need more tips on how to write your dissertation, you should check out the rest of our academic blog. And don’t forget that you can have one of our proofreaders check your dissertation for spelling, grammar and consistency. That way you can rest assured that your work will be its very best!

Four Seasons Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Four Seasons - Research Paper Example 3). Vivaldi’s Four Seasons is distinctly one of the most outstanding works done by Antonio Vivaldi. The song has been used in various movies like; A view to kill, Tin cup, White Chicks among others (Atrium Musicologicum Para. 1). Four seasons has four distinct musical pieces from an orchestra and solo violinist. It signifies the different activities, sounds, atmosphere and weather of the four seasons; Summer, Spring, Winter and Autumn. Despite them being different and each complete by itself, they are designed to perform together (Squido.com, Para. 5). Notes and Historical information Four Seasons by Vivaldi was published in 1725, in a concerto composed of twelve sets referred to as The Test of Harmony and Intervention. Each concerto is in a separate variety of fast-slow-fast movements. Four Seasons by Vivaldi appealed more to the French. That is why King Loius XV loved the ‘Spring’ and authorized it to be performed at the most unanticipated moments (Green Para. 2 ). The period when the Four Season was produced was known as the Baroque era. This era came after the renaissance and middle Ages where there was a large audience for European music that was accompanied with religious hymns. The Baroque era was attributed by the existence of secular vocal music, opera and orchestral music. Based on their texture, the four seasons were unique in the manner that; â€Å"Spring† being one of the seasons was characterized with a Tutti. This represented the arrival of the season, next was the first solo which depicted the greeting from the birds, it followed that the next episodes were related to breezes and a thunderstorm. The solo was also characterized by the existence of a second set of violins. This represented the sound that was produced by the leaves and branches and the viola in the set represented his â€Å"faithful dog† as it was constantly repeated in the set. It should also be noted that the â€Å"barking† was not original ly part of the sonnet but part of the viola part instructions. The set also had an amazing dace part where it represented the inclusion of droning basses. â€Å"Summer† season set was showcased by the opening bars and represented by the sun and a sweltering â€Å"man and flock† (Laphil, â€Å"Antonio Vivaldi†). The first solo consisted of a violin which was accompanied with ornamented and unique cuckoo notes. It was then followed by a turtledove and goldfinch, and rustling of the gentle zephyr breeze, which is joined by the violent north wind (Laphil, â€Å"Antonio Vivaldi†), where the wind has a theme that characterizes the smooth entrance of a shepherd. The shepherd is describes by the music as being fearful that a storm is about to hit the earth and this fearful state was depicted in the form of diminished musical chords. Summer was also characterized by the onset of buzzing insects in the air and the shepherd was listening to them with the mentality a nd thought of the thunderstorm that were about to be experienced. The final set of this portion was that that was related to the actual storm. â€Å"Autumn† was the next season among the four seasons by Vivaldi. It was initially depicted by a dance that was linked to harvest. The individuals enjoy the harvest and they win and dance. They also enjoy the fresh air and rest as they reap their hard

The effective usage of HRM principles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The effective usage of HRM principles - Essay Example The importance of HRM has already been recognised by virtually any company which follows western standards of business. It is clear that its performance depends not only on hard and attenuating work of its personnel, but also on the "human side" of the employees, their competence, motivation, attitudes, communication and other variables: "HRM is the core of company's general efficiency and the basis for effective management" (Gunnigle et al, 2002: 12). In a similar vein Beardwell (2003: 15) believes that despite the visible simplicity, the area of HRM is exceptionally complex due to potentially unpredictable nature of human resources. If a company fails to properly and effectively manage its human resources in the right areas of the business, at the right time and at the right cost, serious inefficiencies are likely to arise creating considerable operational difficulties and likely business failure (Beardwell, 2003). Originally emerged in 1960s, the paradigm of HRM relied, however, on previous researches and findings of organizational scientists. As Alan Price (2000: 62) states the concept of HRM "...hasn't come out of nowhere" as there is a long history of attempts to achieve an understanding of human behaviour in the workplace. Throughout the whole XX century and even earlier both practitioners and scholars attempted to design the theories explaining human behaviour at work and the ways to raise its effectiveness. A number of organizational theories brought to life the principles of HRM in 1960s-1970s. Though many of modern HRM principles have been already developed by this time, the year of HRM "official birth" is 1981 when Harvard Business School introduced a course that served a blueprint for global spread of human resource planning and management (Price, 2000: 64). A good insight into the value of HR related programs is provided by Schuler (1990: 52-54). He emphasizes that the HR function had an opportunity to shift from being an "employee advocate" (associated with personnel management) to a "member of the management team". Schuler's (1990) view was that this required HR professionals to be concerned with the bottom line, profits, organizational effectiveness and business survival. In other words, human resource issues should be addressed as business issues. It is noteworthy that emergence of HRM chimed with decay of heavy industry and development of sophisticated IT business. Storey (2001: 18-34) believes that emergence of HRM contributed greatly to an ever-greatest since industrial revolution shift in the principles of management. HRM encouraged both managers and employees to get rid of traditional patterns of interaction, outdated ideas of motivation, stereotypes, assessment and appraisal. Managers as well stop being the mentors and executioners and turned to be the members of business teams. Introduction of HRM principle has made modern companies more competitive, dynamic and people-friendly that consequently influenced their efficiency and marketability. Storey (2001: 18) argues that HRM caused what was later called "a new managerialism" - a new look on organization, the ways it functions and succeeds and the way its employees work. Regardless of global recognition of HRM, many managers are still

Realism And Narrative Techniques In Short Stories

Realism And Narrative Techniques In Short Stories Alice Munro is one of the most well-known and highly praised representative of Canadian short fiction writing, both on the Canadian and on the international scale. As American writer Mona Simpson notes, [Munros] genius, has the simplicity of the best naturalism, in that it seems not translated from life, but, rather, like life itself. In other words, she is praised for being a realist writer. In another article, Canitz and Seamon showed what techniques Munro uses to create the impression of her stories not being stories, but truth, or the reality as such. Also, they comment on how the narrator in Munros stories reflects from time to time on the narrative technique or the plotline and the development of the story. However, they have omitted some aspects of Munros work which would, in fact, support the argument that despite her realism, her short stories are in fact very well-structured, and fit into the general pattern of traditional criteria towards short stories: they excessively us e foreshadowing technique, the opening sentence initiates the predesigned effect and every word has its place in the story line, they are indeed chosen very carefully in order to contribute to the effect that the author wants to create, and thus creating a dense text. (Critical perspective online) In this paper, I show how the techniques described by Canitz and Seamon can be depicted in Munros novella Miles City, Montana. Then the essay goes on to discuss the other techniques employed by Munro in this short story, including the ones that do not fit into this analysis of realist fiction. Canitz and Seamon explain how Munro, as all realists, must somehow persuade her audience that her fiction is not a product of imagination and creativity, but it is rather the truth. (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 67) This is done in her writings through a variety of subtle strategies which she uses to build our faith in her reality. (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 68) Moreover, as Munro is aware that including realistic details into her stories would not suffice to convince readers that the story presented to them is not fictional, she rather chooses, in a post-modern manner, to acknowledge that she is making up a story. So, we are not simply exposed to the story line, but we are included in a way in the process of writing down the story and creating the characters. Ironically, this technique is in fact a doubly-twisted tool: the fact that she drags the reader into the process of writing does not mean that the writing in fact happened in the way as she told us within the frames of the story. Ho wever, this is not obvious at the first glance, and is indeed an effective method to persuade readers on the reality of what they read. Interestingly, the short story Miles City, Montana, involves a triple twist as to the narrative technique: the narrator is also a character at the same time, who reflects on her story-telling. For example the narrator says at one point: It seems to me now that we invented characters for our children. (Munro, 1985: 661) And indeed, all happenings are told from one point of view, and we only know about other characters what the mother and wife, who is also the narrator, reveals about them. Moreover, this point of view is not consistent in itself: both childhood and adult memories are involved, (Tragedies that help online) which means a change in the way events are seen by the narrator, and also a change in her feelings. This fluctuating view-point, or in better words multiple perceptions of single events can be seen as a post-modern feature in the narrative construction. (New, 2003: 239) In other words, what we read is not the reality, but we are explicitly told that it is not real, th erefore we are more willing to trust the narrator. The second method used by Munro to create the impression of reality is, as the pair of authors point out that the storyline is not linear. Rather, it fluctuates in time and location and subject, and it is left to the reader to figure out the reasons why the shifts are made where and how they are made. (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 69) Sometimes Munro reflects on the shifts I have forgotten to say that but in Miles City, Montana, the shifts are not explained. However, careful reading reveals why the chunks of paragraphs follow each other in the way they do. Steve Gauleys story is told first to open a frame structure, to set the tone and to begin the foreshadowing sequence that follows. The view of the landscape on their road trip to Ontario evocates childhood memories from the narrator, so this time, it is a stream of consciousness that links together the paragraph on their trip with the following sentences on her past. Then when the mother talks about her hope of Meg not having a tem perature, and then jumping back right next to her relation with her parents-in-law, it might be not too far-reaching to conclude that the link that bounds together these two events is the feverishness of the mother to meet up to Andrews parents expectations. I hope she isnt feversih, says she, and at the same time she herself is overly anxious about what opinion her husbands parents would have on their family life. She even compares herself and her husband to strenuous children. (Munro, 1985: 668) Finally, while she goes to get some drink in the park in Miles City, she observes the environment very carefully -as carefully as she is supposed to watch out for her daughters. [Y]ou feel their singleness and precise location and the forlorn coincidence of your being there to see them. (Munro, 1985: 670) This is the sentence that precedes her sudden thought of the children, and it can be interpreted in both ways: meaning the nature, and meaning Cynthia and Meg as well. So, Munros story-te lling is of a rambling nature (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 68) which reminds the reader constantly that what he or she is reading is only a recollection, and successfully creates the impression that we are not being exposed to a story, but to a real, true event. Finally, the article notes that [m]any brief passages in Munros stories quietly create the reality effect she seeks. (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 73) For example when the parents reflect on Megs accident, both reject its unnatural, or supernatural features. The mother denies that she would have a mothers instinct, and attributes her sudden thought about the children to mere luck. Similarly the husband does not recollect properly how he had jumped over or climbed the fence, but plainly states that he cannot understand it, rather than mythologize what had happened. Thus, the narration becomes free of legend-making. (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 77) On the other hand, this episode could be also interpreted as a sign of the ambiguity and unreliability of experience, a sign of how à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¾events and memories, experience and fictional reconstruction, never precisely coincide which is also characteristic of Munros style. (New, 2003: 239 and 299) In addition, by the end of the short story, w hen we already know that Meg had survived the accident, we are nevertheless confronted with another possible ending to this story details of a tragic ending with Meg being dead are elaborated in a lengthy paragraph, at the end of which the narrator poses the question: Theres something trashy about this kind of imagining, isnt there? (Munro 1985: 673), again reflecting on the story-telling. Having showed all this, and before turning towards other techniques that are in contradiction with the claim of reality in the short story, let me point out some further evidence that support Munros realism, but are not elaborated in Canitzs and Seamons article: Firstly, Munros language is not very poetic or literal. She prefers to use everyday langauge, which adds to the real life taste of her stories. As one crticic puts it, Munros stories are translations into the next-door language of fiction of all those documentary details, those dazzling textures and surfaces, of remembered experience. (Ross, 112, quoted in Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 68) However, simple language does not exlude the use of lirical devices. All characters in the short story create images, and make lirical similes themselves. The narrator compares Steve Gauley to a heap of refuse (Munro, 1985: 656) and draws a parallel between the Gauleys tumbledown house and their shackly family life. The children, who play import ant, but not dominent [sic!] role (Jakabfi, 2003: 195) give an old-lady like image to their previous family car, and a sporty image to the new one. The parents make fun of their daughters by the father telling them about the beach which would be after the next curve and the mother pretending to produce some lemonade and grape juice with her magic wand. Cynthia adds that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¾[i]n Miles City, there is a beautiful blue swimming pool for children, and a park with lovely trees. (Munro, 1985: 668) In short, it seems that they are creating reality around themselves. Canitz and Seamon claim that Munro creates the impression of realism [by giving] a significant place to improbability and contingency, elements that are opposed to the conventionally well-constructed realist narrative. However, some techniques utterly contradict the claim that this story would be developing before our eyes, with no obvious plotline at hand at the beginning, but through accidents rather. The most obvious such tool is that of foreshadowing. In Miles City, Montana, there are several hints in the story that imply what the readers can expect to happen by the end. Throughout reading the story, as soon as we learn about the road trip, we fear that one family member, possibly one of the children, will die. This impression is already created in the very first sentence of the novella: My father came accross the field carrying the body of the boy who had been drowned. (Munro, 1985: 656) Immediately, the tone is set: it is rather sinister. The narrator continues to give readers hints about an expected tragedy. Meg waves good-bye to the house, and although Cynthia, the elder girl assures her it is not forever that they are leaving it, the readers are left with a feeling of doubt and uneasiness whether the family would really return. On their way to Ontario, they see a dead deer on the road, which was probably hit by accident readers wonder is one of the family members going to suffer an accident? This fear of one character dying at the end is reinforced by Cynthia song, in which five little ducks go out, but only four come back. Then we learn about the narrator and her husband not living together anymore, which raises the question did their marriage got ruined because of the death of a child? This is followed by the recollection of the narrator and her father saving turkeys from drowning, and finally, the family plays Who am I?, and Cynthia is someone dead. This massive amount of hints indicate a very consciously used foreshadowing technique by the author. To sum up, I have showed in the above paragraphs how the narrative technique of Miles City, Monatana, is in accord with what the Canitz-Seamon article argued about Alice Munros techniques to create the sense of realism in fiction. I have added that language and creating imagery are also techniques used in this short story, while at the same time pointing out that the excessive use of foreshadowing technique does not fit into the line of argument about Munros realism and conscious restraint from linear story-telling. A look at other Munro short fiction could lead to a better understanding of Munros status as a realist writer.

From Strategy to Business Essay

Strategy scholars have used the notion of the Business Model to refer to the ‘logic of the firm’ e how it operates and creates value for its stakeholders. On the surface, this notion appears to be similar to that of strategy. We present a conceptual framework to separate and relate the concepts of strategy and business model: a business model, we argue, is a reflection of the firm’s realized strategy. We find that in simple competitive situations there is a one-to-one mapping between strategy and business model, which makes it difficult to separate the two notions. We show that the concepts of strategy and business model differ when there are important contingencies on which a well-designed strategy must be based. Our framework also delivers a clear distinction between strategy and tactics, made possible because strategy and business model are different constructs. Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Introduction The ï ¬ eld of strategy has evolved substantially in the past twenty-ï ¬ ve years. Firms have learned to analyze their competitive environment, deï ¬ ne their position, develop competitive and corporate advantages, and understand better how to sustain advantage in the face of competitive challenges and threats. Different approaches – including industrial organization theory, the resource-based view, dynamic capabilities and game theory – have helped academicians and practitioners understand the dynamics of competition and develop recommendations about how ï ¬ rms should deï ¬ ne their competitive and corporate strategies. But drivers such as globalization, deregulation and technological change (to mention only a few) are profoundly changing the competitive game. Scholars and practitioners agree that the fastest growing ï ¬ rms in this new environment appear to be those that have taken advantage of  these structural changes to innovate in their business models so they can compete ‘differently’. IBM’s Global CEO Studies for 2006 and 2008, for example, show that top management in a broad range of industries are actively seeking guidance on how to innovate in their business models to improve their ability to both create and capture value.1 In addition to the business model innovation drivers noted above, much recent interest has come from two other environmental shifts. Advances in ICT have been a major force behind the recent 0024-6301/$ – see front matter.interest in business model innovation. Many e-businesses are based on new business models e Shafer, Smith and Linder ï ¬ nd that eight of the twelve recent business model deï ¬ nitions they present relate to e-business.2 New strategies for the ‘bottom of the pyramid’ in emerging markets have also steered researchers and practitioners towards the systematic study of business models. Academicians working in this area agree that ï ¬ rms need to develop novel business models to be effective in such speciï ¬ c and challenging environments (see work by Thompson and MacMillan, as well as by Yunus et al. in this issue), and socially motivated enterprises constitute a second important source of recent business model innovations. Advances in ICT and the demands of socially motivated enterprises constitute important sources of recent business model innovations. While it has become uncontroversial to argue that managers must have a good understanding of how business models work if their organizations are to thrive, the academic community has only offered early insights on the issue to date, and there is (as yet) no agreement as to the distinctive features of superior business models. We believe this is partly because of a lack of a clear distinction between the notions of strategy, business models and tactics, and the purpose of this article is to contribute to this literature by presenting an integrative framework to distinguish and relate these three concepts. Put succinctly:  Business Model refers to the logic of the ï ¬ rm, the way it operates and how it creates value for its stakeholders; and  Strategy refers to the choice of business model through which the ï ¬ rm will compete in the marketplace; while  Tactics refers to the residual choices open to a ï ¬ rm by virtue of the business model it chooses to employ. To integrate these three concepts, we introduce a generic two-stage competitive process framework, as depicted in Figure 1. In the ï ¬ rst stage, ï ¬ rms choose a ‘logic of value creation and value capture’ (i.e., choose their business model), and in the second, make tactical choices guided by their goals (which, in most cases, entail some form of stakeholder value maximization). Figure 1 thus presents our organizing framework: the object of strategy is the choice of business model, and the business model employed determines the tactics available to the ï ¬ rm to compete against, or cooperate with, other ï ¬ rms in the marketplace. The article is organized as follows. In the next section we deï ¬ ne and discuss the notion of business models and present a tool to represent them, while the following section considers the stage two ‘choice’ in our framework, presenting and discussing the notion of tactics in relation to that of business model. The following section then moves back to examine the ï ¬ rst e strategy e stage, after which we revisit our process framework to integrate the three notions. We discuss the connection between strategy and business model, arguing that both notions can be clearly separated. A detailed example is developed in the following stage, followed by some concluding remarks. Business models Although the expression ‘business model’ has gained in prominence only in the last decade, the term has been part of the business jargon for a long time, its origins going back to the writings of Peter Drucker. Although (as Markides points out) there is no widely accepted deï ¬ nition, Magretta deï ¬ nes business models as ‘stories that explain how enterprises work’, and follows Drucker in deï ¬ ning ‘a good business model’ as the one that provides answers to the following questions: ‘Who is the customer and what does the costumer value?’ and ‘What is the underlying economic logic that explains how we can deliver value to customers at an appropriate cost?’ While not formal, her implicit idea is that a business model is about how an organization earns money by addressing these two fundamental issues e how it identiï ¬ es and creates value for customers, and how it captures some of this value as its proï ¬ t in the process. Amit and Zott’s deï ¬ nition, in contrast, is less broad (as it focuses on e-businesses) but more precise. Reviewing the contributions of several theories – including virtual markets, Schumpeterian innovation, value chain analysis, the resource-based view of the ï ¬ rm, dynamic capabilities,  transaction cost economics and strategic networks – they point out that each contributes elements to the notion, but that none, by itself, explains business models completely. They analyze a sample of U.S. and European e-business models to highlight the drivers of value creation, and present the following integrative deï ¬ nition: ‘A business model depicts the content, structure, and governance of transactions designed so as to create value through the exploitation of business opportunities.’ The content of a transaction refers to the goods or information exchanged, as well as to resources and capabilities required; the structure refers to the parties that participate, their links, and the way they choose to operate, and governance refers to the way ï ¬â€šows of information, resources and goods are controlled by the relevant parties, the legal form of organization, and the incentives to the participants.5 In this issue, they build on this deï ¬ nition to propose an ‘activity system perspective’ for the design of business models, arguing that activity systems capture the essence of business models and proposing two sets of aspects for designers to consider: design elements (content, structure and governance) that describe the activity system’s architecture, and design themes (novelty, lock-in, complementarities, and efï ¬ ciency) that describe its sources of value creation. The common thread across all of these approximations to the notion of busin ess model is well captured by BadenFuller, MacMillan, Demil and Lecocq in their deï ¬ nition ‘the logic of the ï ¬ rm, the way it operates and how it creates value for its stakeholders’, and we adopt their deï ¬ nition as the starting point for our argument. To make progress toward understanding business models, we ï ¬ nd it helpful to use the analogy of a machine e by which we mean a mechanical device that transmits energy to perform tasks. (Of course, real organizations are different from machines in many important respects, but the comparison is helpful, especially to our thinking in contrasting the notions of strategy and business models.) Any given machine has a particular logic of operation (the way the different components are assembled and relate to one another), and operates in a particular way to create value for its user. To be more concrete, different automobile designs have different speciï ¬ c logics of operation – conventional engines operate quite differently from hybrids, and  standard transmissions from automatics – and create different value for their ‘stakeholders,’ the drivers. Some may prefer a small car that allows them to navigate congested city streets easily, while others may prefer a large SUV with a powerful engine to enjoy the countryside to the fullest. Automobiles are made of parts – wheels, engines, seats, electronics, windshields, and the like. To assess how well a particular automobile works – or to create a new one one must consider its components and how they relate to one another, just as, to better understand business models, one needs to understand their component parts and their relationships. (We return to this analogy during the paper: readers will gain more value from it if they understand the design and building of the car as representing strategy; the car itself as the business model; and the driving of the car as the available set of tactics.)

Analysis Of The Sound Of Music - 1262 Words

At a period of time in the United States when the Vietnam War was rapidly escalating and gaining opposition among the younger generation, the film The Sound of Music was released. Directed by Robert Wise and released in 1965, The Sound of Music features musical numbers accompanied by the movement and dancing of the von Trapp family. The setting of the film is Salzburg, Austria in 1938 immediately following the start of German occupation due to the Anschluss. Ultimately, the reprise of â€Å"So Long, Farewell† in The Sound of Music subverts governmental authority over war by portraying a movement shift from being restricted and uniform to running away with hope of freedom. The reprise of â€Å"So Long, Farewell† features Maria von Trapp, Captain†¦show more content†¦As this pattern progresses, the children escaping the stage show more and more freedom of movement. The last set of two sibling is two of the oldest daughters who, right before their exit, make a small leap. This is the first time that enough excitement is shown that any of the family members actually leave the stage surface. At this point in the number, only the two adults and the youngest child are left on stage. The youngest von Trapp is ushered off stage to join the others before Maria and Captain calmly walk off stage, embracing each other. The most obvious subversion of war authority belongs to the setting of the movie-1938 in Salzburg, Austria, the year in which Germanic Nazi power took over Austria. In March of 1938, â€Å"Austria was the first victim of Hitler’s policy of aggression. The German domination of that country (the so-called Anschluss) heralded the beginning of a diplomatic demarche† (Clute VII). Specifics as to how this happened include a conspired alliance between Austrian Nazis and German Nazis who infiltrated their power into Austrian government. The timeline of events began when Austrian Chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg met with Adolf Hitler after learning of the conspiracy. Schuschnigg’s intention from this meeting was to reassert dominance and independence, but instead was pressured into electing Austrian Nazis to the cabinet. On MarchShow MoreRelatedFilm Analysis of The Sound of Music2708 Words   |  11 Pagesbecause producers and directors are using different techniques that will enhance their ability to entertain. The Sound of Music is taking numerous ideas and is integrating them together. To fully understand what is happening, there will be an examination of the film and various concepts. This will be accomplished by focusing on: the storytelling, acting, cinematography, editing, sound, style / directing, impact of the film on society / vice versa, genre, application of at least one approach and overallRead MoreAnalysis of The First Film with Basic Sounds887 Words   |  4 Pages1. 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Music in a film creates aRead MoreAnalysis Of Fitter Happier And Climbing Up The Walls1124 Words   |  5 Pagesconcept album, but disputed by the band ) leave much room for interpretation. However, it is overlooked by contemporary audiences that alternative forms of expression exist other than lyrics, in a pieces’ form, tonality, texture, etc. This is why music analysis is so crucial – we can explore meaning more judiciously through it. Interpretation ‘Fitter Happier’ is a minimalist, experimental ode to the passive consumerism of a 90’s westernised society (Randall suggests the synthesised voice has been â€Å"strippedRead MoreMusic As A Form Of Art1125 Words   |  5 PagesMusic is an art to reflect human’s emotion. It is the science or art of using tones and sounds in association and in temporal relationships to make construction having unity and continuity.It can be divided into classical music, pop music, folk music and instrumental music. 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The more different types of music made, leads to having more genres of music to choose from. This begs the question how do we truly know what type of music we are listening too? With the way music is currently, putting music in the correct genre can prove to be troublesome. Reason being, the ideas of past genres are incorporated into current genres which makes labeling a song with the correct genre difficult. It takes a thorough analysis with strong