Sunday, May 24, 2020

How Does Nike Improve The Quality And Reduce Carbon...

In the modern world, energy use, GHG emissions, water use, chemistry and non-renewable resource depletion, and also socioeconomic issues become the most significant environmental issues. It can be said that those affect community, occupational health and safety, and workforce development. Thus, Nike appreciates and follows ongoing improvement in these areas as can be seen throughout this report. Based on energy and GHG emissions, there is dramatic impact of climate change, so Nike sets a new plan with scientific program to improve the quality and to reduce carbon emissions. In the past, the company’s material stage of value chain and in manufacturing lead to biggest energy and carbon impact. In the process, the company made products by loosing much more energy and had low incentives for renewable energy. As the company did not access to renewable energy, so facilities and the contract factories where the company’s products are assembled had to be powered by coal and diesel. In terms of water use, water had impacts throughout the company value chain. Within the production process, the company has to use amount tons of water to produce raw materials that affect in terms of water scarcity. With the chemistry making materials and products, it can make their way into the water and air, especially to people health. With the nonrenewable resource depletion problem, the company uses virgin resources that are nonrenewable inputs to produce materials. By doing this, Nike used oil,Show MoreRelatedAn Evaluation Of The Business Lego2310 Words   |   10 PagesThe report being presented will deliver how consumers have an increased aspiration towards buying products from businesses that demonstrate corporate social responsibility (CSR). Legal compliance, environmental sustainability, social and ethical responsibility will be elaborated on and portrayed how they are incorporated throughout various businesses. Operations processes and strategies will be exemplified throughout the report and broken down further into the supply chain management, outsourcingRead MoreNike Is Brand Of Apparel And Sports Equipment Essay2155 Words   |  9 PagesNike is brand of apparel and sports equipment that operates in North America, Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, Greater China, Japan and other emerging markets. The company was founded by William Jay Bowerman and Philip H. Knight in 1964 and was officially incorporated on September 8, 1969. (Reuters, 2016) On May 31, 2016, the company narrowed products into nine separate categories: Runni ng, NIKE Basketball, the Jordan Brand, Football (Soccer), Men’s training, Women’s training, Action sportsRead MoreNew balance3128 Words   |  13 PagesBalance was the second-largest manufacturer of athletic footwear in the United States after Nike and the fourth largest in the world. Issues the Firm Encounters: The start of New Balance problems began when domestic manufacturing of shoes rapidly declined and was estimated at less than 3 billion annual revenue, which lead footwear manufacturing companies to move overseas to countries such as China because of how much money they would save in labor cost (Veleva 4). With the result of moving operationsRead MoreHistory of Adidas5787 Words   |  24 Pagesare obtainable in nearly every country throughout the world3. The company is held in esteemed regard throughout the sporting world and its athletes, by producing sports footwear, apparel and accessories that are both innovative and of the highest quality. This reputation has been forged from a rich 80 year history of creating such products mixed with an undesired passion for sport and its culture3. For the adidas group to maintain this innovative mindset In modern times, they have to employ teamsRead MoreInnovate the Pixar Way1279 Words   |  6 Pagespotential. Researched to find answers to Pixars sustainable culture of innovation The book is full with lists of ideas based on Pixars culture. For example, 10 ideas to encourage risk taking, 7 ways to create an inspirational environment, 41 ways to improve innovation, and 16 ways to get started. The book is like a sequel to The DisneyWay with the authors quoting and drawing leadership points from their previous book. In many ways, Pixar is a sequel to Disney. The founders of Pixar has Walt DisneyRead MoreInnovate the Pixar Way1285 Words   |  6 Pages Researched to find answers to Pixars sustainable culture of innovation The book is full with lists of ideas based on Pixars culture. For example, 10 ideas to encourage risk taking, 7 ways to create an inspirational environment, 41 ways to improve innovation, and 16 ways to get started. The book is like a sequel to The DisneyWay with the authors quoting and drawing leadership points from their previous book. In many ways, Pixar is a sequel to Disney. The founders of Pixar has Walt DisneyRead MoreIntroduction Traditionally, financial reporting discloses only financial information to determine2600 Words   |  11 Pagesis hard to compare individual organization performance and report on their social account. Environment (Planet) The second element in TBL is planet which is the measure of how environmentally responsible the company is and focusing on the total impact the business has on the environment. Companies that follow TBL seek to improve the environment by minimizing the negative impact on environment such as the pollution and wastage. This can be done by carefully managing the consumption of energy, reducingRead MoreThe Pillars Of Good Corporate Governance Framework2439 Words   |  10 Pagessays that ‘in the past the challenge for organisations was to support process and design improvements and to increase their profits, the challenge of the future is to improve relationships in order to reduce and manage the most important risks’. Building this social capital by engaging with stakeholders means organisations can reduce financial, reputational and political risks. Understanding the concerns and interests of employees, customers, NGOs, politicians and business partners, for example,Rea d MoreEssay on Mega Foods Case Study1893 Words   |  8 Pagesextended hours per week in unbearable conditions. Nike and Gap are both companies that suffered massive legal suits, tarnished reputations and tremendous profit losses due to labor exploitation. In the event that a major fatality is publicized that proves the company is negligent in safety standards; public outrage will directly impact the company’s bottom line. The last major ethical issue I foresee is the quality of the production inputs. Frostburg does not have regulations that require regular foodRead MoreAdidas Sustainable Development Strategy5682 Words   |  23 Pageshigher domestic demand and higher wages. This economic trend creates opportunities for other Asian countries to become new sourcing targets (Bangladesh, Vietnam, Cambodia, India, Sri Lanka and Indonesia). However, new countries doesn’t have necessary quality and quantity requirement, which put companies in a huge dilemma in 2012 and for years to come†¦ Concerning sustainable development in the textile and apparel industries, many challenges are expected. For years and years, consumers have wanted cheap

Wednesday, May 13, 2020

USS Pennsylvania (BB-38) in World War II

Commissioned in 1916, USS Pennsylvania (BB-38) proved to be a workhorse for the US Navys surface fleet for over thirty years.  Taking part in World War I (1917-1918), the battleship later survived the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and saw extensive service across the Pacific during World War II (1941-1945).  With the end of the war, Pennsylvania provided a final service as a target ship during the 1946 Operation Crossroads atomic testing. A New Design Approach After designing and constructing five classes of dreadnought battleships, the US Navy concluded that future ships should make use of a set of standardized tactical and operational traits. This would allow these vessels to operate together in combat and would simplify logistics. Designated the Standard-type, the next five classes were propelled by  oil-fired boilers rather than coal, saw the removal of amidships turrets, and utilized an â€Å"all or nothing† armor scheme.   Among these alterations, the transition to oil was made with the goal of increasing the vessel’s range as the US Navy believed this would be critical in any future naval war with Japan. The new all or nothing armor arrangement called for critical areas of the vessel, such as magazines and engineering, to be heavily armored while less important spaces were left unprotected. Also, Standard-type battleships were to be capable of a  minimum top speed of 21 knots and have a tactical turn radius of 700 yards.   Construction Incorporating these design characteristics, USS Pennsylvania (BB-28) was laid down at the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company on October 27, 1913. The lead ship of its class, its design came about following the US Navys General Board ordering a new class of battleships in 1913 which mounted twelve 14 guns, twenty-two 5 guns, and an armor scheme similar to the earlier Nevada-class. The Pennsylvania-class main guns were to be mounted in four triple turrets while propulsion was to be provided by steam-driven geared turbines turning four propellers. Increasingly concerned about improvements in torpedo technology, the US Navy directed that the new ships utilize a four-layer system of armor. This employed multiple layers of thin plate, separated by air or oil, outboard of the main armor belt. The goal of this system was to dissipate the explosive force of a torpedo before it reached the ships primary armor. World War I Launched on March 16, 1915, with Miss Elizabeth Kolb as its sponsor, Pennsylvania was commissioned the following year on June 16. Joining the US Atlantic Fleet, with Captain Henry B. Wilson in command, the new battleship became the commands flagship that October when Admiral Henry T. Mayo transferred his flag on board. Operating off the East Coast and in the Caribbean for the remainder of the year, Pennsylvania returned to Yorktown, VA in April 1917 just as the United States entered World War I. As the US Navy began deploying forces to Britain, Pennsylvania remained in American waters as it used fuel oil rather than coal-like many of the Royal Navys vessels. Since tankers could not be spared to transport fuel abroad, Pennsylvania and the US Navys other oil-fired battleships conducted operations off the East Coast for the duration of the conflict. In December 1918, with the war ended, Pennsylvania escorted President Woodrow Wilson, aboard SS George Washington, to France for the Paris Peace Conference. USS Pennsylvania (BB-38) Overview Nation: United StatesType: BattleshipShipyard: Newport News Shipbuilding Drydock CompanyLaid Down: October 27, 1913Launched: March 16, 1915Commissioned: June 12, 1916Fate: Scuttled February 10, 1948 Specifications (1941) Displacement: 31,400 tonsLength: 608 ft.Beam: 97.1 ft.Draft: 28.9 ft.Propulsion: 4 propellers driven by 1 Ãâ€" Bureau Express and 5 Ãâ€" White-Forster boilersSpeed: 21 knotsRange: 10,688 miles at 15 knotsComplement: 1,358 men Armament Guns 12 Ãâ€" 14 in. (360 mm)/45 cal guns (4 triple turrets)14 Ãâ€" 5 in./51 cal. guns12 Ãâ€" 5 in./25 cal. anti-aircraft guns Aircraft 2 x aircraft Interwar Years The remaining flagship of the US Atlantic Fleet, Pennsylvania operating in home waters in early 1919 and that July met the returning George Washington and escorted it into New York. The next two years saw the battleship conduct routine peacetime training until receiving orders to join the US Pacific Fleet in August 1922. For the next seven years, Pennsylvania operated on the West Coast and participated in training around Hawaii and the Panama Canal. The routine of this period was punctuated in 1925 when the battleship conducted a goodwill tour to New Zealand and Australia. In early 1929, after training exercises off Panama and Cuba, Pennsylvania sailed north and entered the Philadelphia Navy Yard for an extensive modernization program. Remaining at Philadelphia for almost two years, the ships secondary armament was modified and its cage masts replaced by new tripod masts. After conducting refresher training off Cuba in May 1931, ​Pennsylvania returned to the Pacific Fleet. In the Pacific For the next decade, Pennsylvania remained a stalwart of the Pacific Fleet and took part in annual exercises and routine training. Overhauled at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in late 1940, it sailed for Pearl Harbor on January 7, 1941. Later that year, Pennsylvania was one of fourteen ships to receive the new CXAM-1 radar system. In the fall of 1941, the battleship was dry-docked at Pearl Harbor. Though scheduled to leave on December 6, Pennsylvanias departure was delayed. As a result, the battleship remained in dry dock when the Japanese attacked the next day. One of the first ships to respond with anti-aircraft fire, Pennsylvania took minor damage during the attack despite repeated Japanese attempts to destroy the dry docks caisson. Positioned forward of the battleship in the drydock, the destroyers USS Cassin and USS Downes were both severely damaged. World War II Begins In the wake of the attack, Pennsylvania departed Pearl Harbor on December 20 and sailed for San Francisco. Arriving, it underwent repairs before joining a squadron led by Vice Admiral William S. Pye which operated off the West Coast to prevent a Japanese strike. Following the victories at Coral Sea and Midway, this force was disbanded and Pennsylvania briefly returned to Hawaiian waters. In October, with the situation in the Pacific stabilized, the battleship received orders to sail for Mare Island Naval Shipyard and a major overhaul. While at Mare Island, Pennsylvanias tripod masts were removed and its anti-aircraft armament enhanced with the installation of ten Bofors 40 mm quad mounts and fifty-one Oerlikon 20 mm single mounts. In addition, the existing 5 guns were replaced with new rapid-fire 5 guns in eight twin mounts. Work on Pennsylvania was completed in February 1943 and following refresher training, the ship departed for service in the Aleutian Campaign in late April. In the Aleutians Reaching Cold Bay, AK on April 30, Pennsylvania joined Allied forces for the liberation of Attu. Bombarding enemy shore positions on May 11-12, the battleship supported Allied forces as they went ashore. Later on May 12, Pennsylvania evaded a torpedo attack and its escorting destroyers succeeded in sinking the perpetrator, the submarine I-31, the next day. Aiding in operations around the island for the remainder of the month, Pennsylvania then retired to Adak. Sailing in August, the battleship served as Rear Admiral Francis Rockwells flagship during the campaign against Kiska. With the successful recapture of the island, the battleship became the flagship of Rear Admiral Richmond K. Turner, Commander Fifth Amphibious Force, that fall. Sailing in November, Turner re-captured Makin Atoll later that month. Island Hopping On January 31, 1944, Pennsylvania took part in the bombardment prior to the invasion of Kwajalein. Remaining on station, the battleship continued to provide fire support once the landings began the next day. In February, Pennsylvania fulfilled a similar role during the invasion of Eniwetok. After conducting training exercises and a voyage to Australia, the battleship joined Allied forces for the Marianas Campaign in June. On June 14, Pennsylvanias guns pounded enemy positions on Saipan in preparation for landings the next day. Remaining in the area, the vessel struck targets on Tinian and Guam as well as provided direct fire support to troops ashore on Saipan. The following month, Pennsylvania aided in the liberation of Guam. With the end of operations in the Marianas, it joined the Palau Bombardment and Fire Support Group for the invasion of Peleliu in September. Remaining off the beach, Pennsylvanias main battery pummeled Japanese positions and greatly aided Allied forces ashore. Surigao Strait Following repairs in the Admiralty Islands in early October, Pennsylvania sailed as part of Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorfs Bombardment and Fire Support Group which in turn was part of Vice Admiral Thomas C. Kinkaids Central Philippine Attack Force. Moving against Leyte, Pennsylvania reached its fire support station on October 18 and began covering General Douglas MacArthurs troops as they went ashore two days later. With the Battle of Leyte Gulf underway, Oldendorfs battleships moved south on October 24 and blocked the mouth of the Surigao Strait. Attacked by Japanese forces that night, his vessels sank the battleships Yamashiro and Fuso. In the course of the fighting, Pennsylvanias guns remained quiet as its older fire control radar could not distinguish the enemy vessels in the confined waters of the strait. Retiring to the Admiralty Islands in November, Pennsylvania returned to action in January 1945 as part of Oldendorfs Lingayen Bombardment and Fire Support Group. Philippines Driving off air attacks on January 4-5, 1945, Oldendorfs ships began striking targets around the mouth of Lingayen Gulf, Luzon the next day. Entering the gulf on the afternoon of January 6, Pennsylvania commenced reducing Japanese defenses in the area. As in the past, it continued to offer direct fire support once Allied troops began landing on January 9. Commencing a patrol of the South China Sea a day later, Pennsylvania returned after a week and remained in the gulf until February. Withdrawn on February 22, it steamed for San Francisco and an overhaul. While at the Hunters Point Shipyard, Pennsylvanias main guns received new barrels, the anti-aircraft defenses were enhanced, and new fire control radar was installed. Departing on July 12, the ship sailed for newly captured Okinawa with stops at Pearl Harbor and to bombard Wake Island. Okinawa Reaching Okinawa in early August, Pennsylvania anchored in Buckner Bay near USS Tennessee (BB-43). On August 12, a Japanese torpedo plane penetrated the Allied defenses and stuck the battleship in the stern. The torpedo strike opened a thirty-foot hole in Pennsylvania and badly damaged its propellers. Towed to Guam, the battleship was dry docked and received temporary repairs. Leaving in October, it transited the Pacific en route to Puget Sound. While at sea, the Number 3 propeller shaft broke necessitating divers to cut it and the propeller away. As a result, Pennsylvania limped into Puget Sound on October 24 with only one operable propeller. Final Days As World War II had ended, the US Navy did not intend to retain Pennsylvania. As a result, the battleship received only those repairs necessary for transit to the Marshall Islands. Taken to Bikini Atoll, the battleship was used as a target vessel during the Operation Crossroads atomic tests in July 1946. Surviving both blasts, Pennsylvania was towed to Kwajalein Lagoon where it was decommissioned on August 29. The ship remained in the lagoon until early 1948 where it was used for structural and radiological studies. On February 10, 1948, Pennsylvania was taken from the lagoon and sunk at sea.

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Walt Disney the Quintessential American Free Essays

Disney: The Becky Tashkulova Mr. Brown American History 25 May 2011 Walt Disney: The Quintessential American You’re riding a rollercoaster in a Disney theme park in Orlando, Florida. You look around at the incredible architecture and imagination that is flowing throughout the park. We will write a custom essay sample on Walt Disney: the Quintessential American or any similar topic only for you Order Now You start wondering if your childhood would be the same without the man behind all this greatness. Walt Disney was a man full of charisma, joyfulness, and positivity. He never backed down or felt discouraged after failing. He was a man who knew what he wanted and ended up getting it; he was a go-getter. His legacy is celebrated every year by the making of new Disney movies and he is appreciated throughout the world. If you ask an average person who is the quintessential American, his or her response would be someone like George Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, or Abraham Lincoln. Although those are great examples, they don’t portray the same traits as America would. This paper will show how Walt Disney is the quintessential American. Just like America, Walt Disney is prejudiced, catalytic, and persistent. Many people use â€Å"racist† in a wrong form. To be racist is to keep one race from doing something; while Walt Disney never did that. He was prejudiced against other races, which means unreasonable feelings, opinions, or attitudes, especially of a hostile nature, regarding a racial, religious, or national group. Although there is no hard proof to show that Walt Disney was prejudiced, he did show it in his creations, or so we think (Gabler). The Three Little Pigs† featured the wolf dressed as a Jewish peddler. The American Jewish Congress protested that the characterization was so â€Å"vile, revolting and unnecessary as to constitute a direct affront to the Jews. † According to Walt Disney Archives, Walt referred to Italians as â€Å"garlic eaters† and used a variety of crude terms for blacks. To this day, many critics assume that the crows in Dumbo are shown as stereotypes. But Walt was no closet racist. At home he always preached racial, religious and ethnic tolerance to his two daughters. Under his supervision, Disney studios was inhospitable to many minorities, few of whom said to worked there, said that they were virtually verboten on the screen (Gabler). Everyone sees America as this â€Å"welcoming† and â€Å"interracial† country, but no one remembers all the terrible and hypocritical things that America has done in its history. Some would say America is paradoxal, or hypocritical, or contradictory, and while all those words do describe America, no one seems to describe America as prejudiced. The Chinese Exclusion Act was brought up in Congress due to the overflowing population of Chinese in the United States. The US needed workers to build the Transcontinental Railroad, so they brought in the Chinese to build it. After it was all done, no one knew what to do with the Chinese that were left in the country and the incoming ones. So Congress decided to pass the Chinese Exclusion Act, which permitted the Chinese entering the US starting from 1882. Congress passed the National Origins Act in 1924 because of the crazy amount of immigrants moving to the US. It excluded any Eastern and Southern Europeans and almost all Asians and other nonwhites from entering the US. This act instituted admission quotas by using the 1890 census to determine the population of a particular nationality group; the government then only allowed 2 percent of that population into the nation. After the Japanese hit Pearl Harbor in 1941, Franklin D. Roosevelt had issued an order to â€Å"punish† all the Japanese living in the United States. The order gave the military broad powers to ban any Japanese citizen from a fifty to sixty mile wide coastal area stretching from Washington state to California and extending into southern Arizona. The order also authorized transporting these citizens to assembly centers, or concentration camps, hastily set up and governed by the military in California, Arizona, Washington state, and Oregon (Executive Order 9066). What does it mean to be persistent? According to the modern day dictionary it means, persisting, especially in spite of opposition, obstacles, discouragement, etc. , persevering, lasting or enduring tenaciously. Walt Disney was seen as determined and hard working, never giving up, and always having faith. His views and visions came from the fond memory of yesteryear, and persistence for the future. Disney’s brothers, Roy and Raymond, had gone off to war and although he was too young to enlist his parents insisted on him not going to war. So he forged his parents’ signature on a passport to go over to France as part of the Red Cross Ambulance Corps (Cole, 21). This particular action shows that Disney would not take no for an answer. He wanted to help out, so his determination showed the most during this event in his life. After completing a set of his 1st cartoons, and working every night in his garage with a borrowed camera, he sold his first set of cartoons to a local theater in Kansas City, Newman Theatre: Newman Laugh-O-Grams† (Cole, 25). His 1st production of Alice in Wonderland had failed, so he started working on his other cartoons but when his first animations company had failed, declaring bankruptcy in the spring of 1923, he had asked Margaret Winkler, who was previously interested in Alice in Wonderland, to distribute the money in the creation (Cole, 28). Although there was a nasty court case after, Disney focused on the positives and kept on moving forward. After his bankruptcy in New York, Disney moved to California, but he was simply too young and inexperienced. So he started the same business as he did in Kansas City and started advertising his cartoons. At first, he had trouble-finding buyers, but finally he sold a serious to a local theater (Cole, 30). His life motto, â€Å"Keep Moving Forward† was included in a Disney creation of â€Å"Meet the Robinsons† to show Walt’s persistence and optimism. It meant to never stop, never give up, and just to â€Å"Keep Moving Forward†. This motto also shows that Disney chose to stay positive. He was never pessimistic and tried his hardest to give his all. He worked hard and even after having failed attempts at starting his own animation company, he never gave up and just kept on going. All of his hard work paid off, and we can see his magnificent work and amazing determination today. When you think of America, what is the first thing that comes to mind? First man on the moon, the hunt for Osama bin Laden, the Apollo Program, and the struggle during the Cold War perhaps? All those things were achieved by America because, America always needs to be the best of the best and beat everyone in anything. Russia sends in a man in space, America tries to override it by sending rockets in space and trying to land on the Moon. The Apollo Program was commenced because of this crazy race/competition going on with the U. S. S. R. The program was designed to land humans on the surface of the Moon. Six of the missions completed their task by landing on the moon, while the others only orbited Earth’s surface. This shows how hard America tried to get someone on the Moon, in which they succeeded (Williams). The first man on the Moon was the result of the Apollo Program. The legendary man’s name was Neil Armstrong. As spacecraft commander for Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing mission, Armstrong gained the distinction of being the first man to land a craft on the moon and first to step on its surface. After the tragic events of 9/11, there was a hunt to find the leader of the Al-Qaeda. After a crazy and hectic search for Osama bin Laden, the elite American forces had found him in a custom-built hideout, not far from a Pakistani military academy. It was long believed that he was hiding in caves around the world. His body was quickly buried at sea with a stunning finale to a furtive decade on the run (Osama bin Laden). Despite the inconclusiveness of the Korean War, the existence of Cuba as a Soviet satellite 90 miles from Florida, the draft dodgers and Weathermen terrorists, despite the American retreat from Vietnam, the Watts riots of 1964, the Watergate, the humiliating 1979 occupation of the U. S. embassy in Tehran, from 1947 to 1989, the U. S. successfully contained and defeated the Soviets in the Cold War’s long and tedious struggle (Bay). That took extraordinary persistence. It took resilient, adaptable, creative and able military and security services. But most of all it took the basic, consistent support of the American people. The ones, who go to work, pay the bills; wear the police and military uniforms. And as John Kennedy once said â€Å"bear any burden †¦ to assure the survival and the success of liberty. † (Bay). â€Å"It all started with a mouse† is what everyone says about the Disney franchise. If you think about it, Disney had drastically changed our lives. Walt Disney can be described as catalytic, which means to be relating to or causing or involving catalysis; â€Å"catalytic reactions†, revolutionary. The Disney franchise is a big part of American culture. Kids would do anything for tickets to one of the theme parks. Florida is the top tourist city in America and the only reason it is, is because of the Disney theme parks. Just like America has affected the world with its charm and magic, so has Walt Disney. We celebrate his birthday and his accomplishments every year. His legacy will remain forever. Walt Disney has affected our generation so much and it all started when a mouse character appeared in his series of cartoons, â€Å"Oswald†. When Steamboat Willie opened at the Colony Theater in New York on November 18, 1928, Walt knew that he created something that will change the whole world (Crafton, 5). It signaled the beginnings of animation history. Most people credit Walt Disney as the one who started the animation history, however some critics say that animations have been around since late 1800s (Crafton, 6). If you travel to any country abroad, everyone would know of America as these â€Å"cowboys† who run around with lassos, on horses, chasing Native Americans. That, dear readers, is the magnificent influence of America all over the world. Although everyone sees Americans as these fat, lazy, stupid human beings who eat McDonalds and watch television everyday, Europeans, Asians, Indians, Africans, etc. , praise the United States. Believe it or not, American culture has been so influential everywhere, that everyone wants to live in the US. The culture and entertainment are huge aspects of the influence that America has had on these second world, third world, and even first world European countries. There are KFC’s, McDonalds’, and other â€Å"typical† American fast food restaurants all over the world. America is so powerful, that the celebrities, movies, and any television shows are shown in, almost, every country in the world. Entertainment and culture are not the only features that America has brought over to the rest of the world. After the all-known Revolutionary War, War of Ideas was going around the world. And what it was is that, all the countries that were ruled by kings and queens were starting to ponder upon their rulers. They wanted independence and freedom of speech. The French Revolution that happened shortly after America gained independence from Great Britain can prove that. Now all these countries were starting to revolt because they thought if an underdog, like America, can defeat and break away from a powerhouse, like Great Britain, so can they. To be the quintessential is to be the essential part of something. Walt Disney is indeed the essential whole of everyone’s lives. America and Walt have both been persistent, catalytic, and prejudiced to the world. And although they’ve been the bad guys sometimes, they have tremendously affected the whole world by their great determination and willpower. They have done great things like the Apollo Program, creating Mickey Mouse, landing a man on the Moon, leaving a tremendous legacy behind, etc. And as Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, â€Å"To be great, is to be misunderstood † (Emerson) Works Cited Bay, Austin. â€Å"RealClearPolitics – In Praise of American Persistence. † RealClearPolitics – Opinion, News, Analysis, Videos and Polls. Creators Syndicate Inc. , 3 May 2011. Web. 11 May 2012. . Bell, Elizabeth, Lynda Haas, and Laura Sells. From mouse to mermaid: the politics of film, gender, and culture. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1995. Print. Cole, Michael D. Walt Disney: creator of Mickey Mouse. Springfield, N. J. , U. S. A. : Enslow Publishers, 1996. Print. Crafton, Donald. Before Mickey: the animated film, 1898-1928. University of Chicago Press ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993. Print. â€Å"Executive Order 9066: The President Authorizes Japanese Relocation. † History Matters: The U. S. Survey Course on the Web. N. p. , n. d. Web. 17 May 2012. . Gabler, Neal. â€Å"Walt Disney–prince or toad?. † Los Angeles Times 22 Nov. 2009, sec. Entertainment: n. page. Los Angeles Times-California, national, and world news. Web. 14 May 2012. â€Å"Osama bin Laden is dead – CBS News. † Breaking News Headlines: Business, Entertainment World News – CBS News. CBS Interactive Inc. , 1 May 2011. Web. 17 May 2012. . Peet, Bill. Bill Peet: an autobiography. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1989. Print. Williams, Dr. David R. â€Å"The Apollo Program (1963 – 1972). † Welcome to the NSSDC!. N. p. , 24 Nov. 2008. Web. 17 May 2012.. Emerson, Ralph Waldo. Self reliance. Hoboken, N. J. : BiblioBytes, 199. Print. How to cite Walt Disney: the Quintessential American, Essay examples

Monday, May 4, 2020

Lenny The boy who wanted to be a train Essay Example For Students

Lenny The boy who wanted to be a train Essay The idea of a story about a boy trying to become a train deterred me from wanting to see the play, however, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the performance and the engaging way in which the story was told. Originally written as a radio show, I saw Lenny The boy who wanted to be a train. at Backwell School in March 2007, directed by freelance director, Sally Cookson, it was quite adventurous; with only one actor, Craig Edwards, using multi- role playing effectively to create each character in the story. It aimed to entertain and challenge its target audience of 13-14 year-olds, which it certainly did with the choreographed dance routines and although maybe too challenging for that age group to understand and appreciate the more stylised aspects of the performance. The play is based around Lenny, a young child of around 12 years old who believes he can become a train if he eats metal screws. His fascination with trains is clearly linked with the bullying he suffers; he admires the strength, speed and power of a train. The train station is where he can voice his stress and insecurities through energetic screams near passing trains, escaping the concerns of a typical young boy who cant live up to his idolised older brother Ethan, cant defend himself against the other boys at school and cant grow tall or strong enough to fit in. Lenny takes you through his struggles of everyday life and how he eventually finds his own strength to guide him through it. The story explores many different themes from issues like bullying and building self-esteem to using both naturalistic and abstract theatre, and it provokes a variety of emotions. An upsetting scene was a scene where he was bullied. I think it was all the more upsetting because Lenny is on a block in the centre, isolated and defenceless from the bullies circling him. The actor does not physically play Lenny at this point who makes it all the more upsetting as you watch an empty block and can only imagine what he is going through but also observe how similar the empty block is to the empty lonely feelings he has. His innocence and vulnerability also makes the scene more heart wrenching as he slowly lifts his trousers up to reveal his pair of odd socks that he concluded was the reason that they had bullied him, unable to understand why he was victimised and worried about all the little things he did. In contrast however, there are amusing scenes, like when Lenny is talking to his crush, Linda. In between the conversation the actor gets up runs around excitable and making siren noises, in the same way a cartoon would have elaborate actions. It was very endearing to see how Lenny reacted in a situation that many people could relate to and also amusing how a cartoon-style of acting was used to portray it. This technique was also used when Lenny was swallowing screws, another memorable scene, which at first was painful and horrifying to watch because it was naturalistic but then progressively more cartoon-like as the screws grew bigger and Lenny felt stronger and his desire to become a train grew. This technique was effective in making the play engaging and unique, the structure also achieved this. The actor used cross cutting to cut from different scenes and times, so it was not completely in chronological order. The play began with Lenny at the train station, it then went back in time to illustrate the events that led up to that point, returned to the train station and the end of the play was performed, where Lenny discovers his older stronger brother is just as vulnerable as he is, and this helps Lenny a great deal with realising he can be strong for himself and doesnt need to look up to his older brother or trains. I think this structure is effective in engaging the audience and telling the story because it emphasises the significance of how Lenny idolises the trains, and uses the visits for escapism. .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac , .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac .postImageUrl , .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac , .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac:hover , .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac:visited , .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac:active { border:0!important; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac:active , .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u17e6115de0a0df2e3bdde6ffda4942ac:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Nathaniel Hawthorne's background influenced him to write the bold novel The Scarlet Letter EssayBeing a play from the light travelling company, the set was expected to be simple, however I did not expect it to have been used so effectively and I was very impressed. The set was very minimal with only a table, stool, block and a mat, which the actor performed on. Despite such basic set, the actor made good use of it and the play was never interrupted by set changes, because everything needed was on stage and the changes the actor made were incorporated into the play itself. I also noticed how it as only ever Lennys character that used the props to change the setting of the s cene, which highlighted how the play was from his perspective; he was narrating it. Other more subtle but effective details were how the props and set was designed. The block was painted like a rusty metal colour, as though it was a railway sleeper. Also the mat the actor performed on was painted in a variety of colours, forming a geometric pattern, sets of parallel straight lines across the floor from side to side and diagonally. These lines were similar to railway tracks and during the dancing in the opening scene, Lenny ran around pretending to be a train, he followed those tracks as though he was a train. Throughout the play, when he moved around he followed the tracks. However, this changed when, at the end of the play, he finds his own self-confidence and independency, and now strong enough to venture off the train tracks.