Barbie Essays - Barbie, Mattel, Ken, Ruth Handler, Doll, BookBarbie

Barbie Since the beginning of time, toys have often been an indicator of the way a society behaves, and how they interact with their children. For example, in ancient Greece, artifacts recovered there testify that children were simply not given toys to play with as in the modern world. The cruel ritual of leaving a sick child on a hillside for dead, seems to indicate a lack of attention to the young (Lord 16). The same is true of today's society. As you can see with the number of toy stores in our society, we find toys of great value to our lives and enjoy giving them to children as gifts. Ask just about any young girl what she wants for Christmas and you'll undoubtedly get the same answer: ?A Barbie.? But what exactly has caused this baby boomer Barbie craze, and how did the entire world get so caught up in it? The answer lies in Ruth Handler's vision for the first children's adult doll. Mrs. Handler's eleven and one-half-inch chunk of plastic began causing problems even before it's public debut in 1959, yet has managed to become one of America's favorite dolls. Ruth Handler and her two young children, Barbara and Ken, were merely sightseeing in Lucerne, Switzerland, when Mrs. Handler first saw the doll she herself had been trying to create (Lord 29). In the window of a small gift shop was an eleven and one-half-inch tall plastic doll with a slender woman's body and a long blond ponytail. Her name was Lilli (?Bad Girl? 1). She had been created from a cartoon character in a West German tabloid similar to the National Inquirer (Lord 8). Dressed provocatively, and with a seductive look in her eye, Lilli had become a ?popular pornographic gag gift for men? (?Bad Girl? 1). Excited to see her long-time idea a reality, Mrs. Handler bought three of the dolls and hurried home to begin work on her own doll (?Bad Girl? 2). It was 1956, and within three years, Mattel Creations began marketing the ?teenage fashion model? as ?a new kind of doll from real life? (Tosa 30). The new doll, deemed ?Barbie?, was named after her own daughter Barbara, who's many y ears of play with paper dolls had actually inspired her to begin designing the three-dimensional adult doll (Lord 30). Though Mrs. Handler's version of the doll was not as racy or alluring as Lilli, her imitation of the ?German streetwalker? would come back to haunt her many years later (?Bad Girl? 2). But for now, the Barbie doll would launch Ruth Handler and her company, ?Mattel Creations?, into what was soon to be a successful national corporation. In fact, the Barbie doll was so popular that three years after her release in 1959 Mattel was still filling orders from her first year (Long 17). It wasn't until the late 1960's that critics began ?comparing Barbie to a Playboy Bunny and calling her a corrupter of youth? (?Bad Girl? 3). One woman commented, ?She's an absurd representation of what a woman should be? (?Bad Girl? 3)-?and that's exactly what many others thought she was, too. With such impossible real-life measurements of 5'9? tall, 36?-18?-33? bust, waist, and hip (Benstock and Ferriss 35), it's easy to see why mothers across the country banned the doll from their homes and refused to let their impressionable young daughters be influenced by a piece of painted plastic (Bestock and Ferriss 35). Since dolls have often been responsible for teaching children what society deems important or beautiful, many concerned parents wondered why Mattel did not design a doll that taught more valuable lessons than dressing pretty and being dangerously skinny (Edut 19)? Who said a runway model was best suited for teaching a child what is beautiful anyway? ?According to a Mattel sp okesperson, a Kate Moss figure is better suited for today's fashions? (Edut 19), and that is one reason why Barbie must be so disproportional. Actually, another reason for Barbie's anorexic figure can be traced back long before Kate Moss and the fashion runway. Barbie was originally designed as a doll with a body one-sixth the size of a real person, who would wear clothes made from

Touro University International Essays (466 words) -

Touro University International James L. White ETH 501 Module 4, Session Long Project Dr. Steven J. Gold INTRODUCTION The purpose of this report is to describe any sense of barriers in women's advancement in my firm or if there have been such barriers in the past. This report will provide the reader with some information about the company I work for and some facts about the barriers women have been through. By discussing these topics I hope to offer some knowledge about my organization. I will conclude this report with a brief summary of the entire analysis, highlighting some of the most significant parts that the report contains. BARRIERS As you can recall; I am in the military and we train and mentor Health Service Management Apprentice. In an article entitled Amazing Women in War and Peace by Retired Captain Barbara A. Wilson she explained, "In October of 1778 Deborah Samson of Plimpton, Massachusetts disguised herself as a young man and presented herself to the American army as a willing volunteer to oppose the common enemy. She enlisted for the whole term of the war as Robert Shirtliffe and served in the company of Captain Nathan Thayer of Medway, Massachusetts." (Barbara, 1996) Women for years to come tried to join the military service only to be denied because of their gender. In May 1942 the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps was created to serve at aircraft service stations which freed men to do other vital duties needed by the military. In the spring of 1943 the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps was changed to the Women's Air Corp's. It was not until 8 July 1948 that the first woman, Esther M. Blake, was able to join the Air Force. In accordance with 5 U.S.C 2301. Merit Systems Principles," Recruitment should be from qualified individuals from appropriate sources in any endeavor to achieve a work force from all segments of society, and selection and advancement should be determined solely on the basis of relative ability, knowledge, and skills, after fair and open competition which assures that all receive equal opportunity." 5 U.S.C, 2006). What that means is no one can be denied employment because of their gender. This is one barrier that women like Deborah Samson and Esther M. Blake have paved the way to overcome. CONCLUSION In today's Air Force you can see that women play a big role in the military mission serving in many vital roles, from pilots to ground troops. History has taught us that we lose out on a lot of good ideas and employees if we discriminate against an individual because of race, gender, religion, etc... WORK CITIED 1. Amazing Women in War and Peace by Retired Captain Barbara A. Wilson, retrieved on 21 August 2006 from http://coelacanth.aug.com/captbarb/ 2. Air Force Pamphlet 36-2241 Volume 1, retrieved 25 August 2006 3. Retrieved 21 August 2006 from http://www.mspb.gov/

Ethics and Social Responsibility in International Business

Ethics and Social Responsibility in International Business The importance of ethics in the global business environment needs to be over emphasized. Nowadays, the need for ideal ethical behavior within organizations is paramount if organizations are to avoid potential lawsuits and other uncertainties in their operations as new business trends emerge on a daily basis causing problems to organizations and end users.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Ethics and Social Responsibility in International Business specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Public scandals of corporate malfeasance and malpractices, which and have even claimed death of many organizations, have profoundly influenced the public perception of many multinational organizations. Cases in point are large organizations such as Enron, Arthur Andersen and WorldCom among others. The recent expansion of global business as well as decline of trade barriers has necessitated the world over to further underpin the interes t in the topics of ethical behavior and social responsibility. On top of this, human rights and environmental conservation are getting more recognition with every passing day in both academic as well as commercial circles. As multinational organizations expand globally and establish operations in foreign markets, ethical conduct of their officers and employees gain more importance since the cultural diversity that usually accompany such expansion may compromise the much shared cultural and ethical values observable in the more homogeneous organizations (Morf, Duffy, et al. 1999 ). Although understanding of other cultures and acknowledgement of differences among them will enhance the cross-cultural communication, it may not be enough to offer ideal structures of proper ethical behavior in organizations. In the academic circles, the culture-based consequentiality model is developed to explain among other things, how cultural differences influence the ethical perceptions as well as act ions of individuals engaged in making decisions with ethical overtones. Multinationals need to come to terms with the legal and moral atmosphere in which they operate. And above all, they need to establish an environment that fosters ethical behavior, because in the final analysis to do otherwise eats into their profitability. In contrast to this opinion, some scholars advanced the theory of Virtuous Ethics, which is defined as a theory that focuses mainly on an individuals moral character. According to these scholars, marketing researchers attach little importance to virtuous ethics. Furthermore, they propose that without considering virtuous ethics, an elaborate analysis of the ethical character of marketing decision makers and their strategies cannot be attained.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Strategies such as the codes of ethics represent one means of achieving the ultimate goal of having ethical international responsibility of business worldwide. There are numerous ethical responsibilities faced by multinational organizations. Therefore, just as one can value an individual’s culture by his or her actions and personal activities, ethical climate can be observed on a larger scale; in this case, the organization. Here, ethical climate is the employee’s perception of the norms of an organization (Bartels et al., 1998). Organizations that have a robust ethical climate experience few serious ethical problems and are more successful in coping with such problems. Their research suggests that it is vital for managers to consider developing strong ethical climates in order to equip organizational members with the capability to deal with ethical dilemmas. They have to oversee the development and maintenance of clear and robust set of norms to promote good ethical behavior. As Laczniak, et al (2007) has pointed out an organ ization’s codes of ethics and enforcement of rules goes a long way in controlling the direct behavior of social entities. Based on the above analysis, multinationals must acknowledge the need for a homogenous code of business ethics. Without such a code, the conduct of players in this field will be unpredictable. Furthermore, national governments need to know that the most effective way of safeguarding their citizens, their national interests, and that of the global environment against the vagaries of the global business depend on the development, adoption and enforcement of such a code. However, a surge of momentum has been witnessed the world over owing to increasing interest and awareness of the parties concerned. Many multinational companies such as Toyota, Siemens, General Mills and Johnson Johnson among others have written guidelines that elaborately and explicitly detail how employees are expected to treat suppliers, customers, competitors, as well as other parties. T here are those that have formulated formal codes of ethics- written statements about the values and ethical standards that guide the institutions’ operationsAdvertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Ethics and Social Responsibility in International Business specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Some multinational companies deal with ethical issues proactively, by giving their employees training on how to handle ethical dilemmas. At Boeing, for instance, line managers are responsible for overseeing training sessions for other employees, and the company also has an ethics committee that answers directly to the board of directors. The training sessions entail discussions of various ethical dilemmas that employees might face and how best to handle them. Organizational practices as well as corporate culture also have an influence on the management of ethical behavior. If leaders in a firm conduct themselves in an ethic al manner and violations of ethical standards are promptly and ideally addressed, then everyone in the organization will recognize that the firm expects them to conduct themselves in an ethical manner. If leaders appear to be above the set ethical standards or either trivialize or ignore unethical behaviors, then the wrong message is sent to the employees. References Bartels L.K. et al. (1998). The Relationship between Ethical Climate and Ethical Problems within Human Resource Management†, Journal of Business Ethics Vol. 17, 799-804. Laczniak, G. R. and Inderrieden J. (2007). The Influence of Stated Organizational Concern upon Ethical Decision Making, Journal of Business Ethics. Vol 6, 297-307. Morf, Duffy A., et al. (1999). A Survey of Ethics Officers in Large Organizations, Journal of Business Ethics. Vol 20, 265-271

Hindu Mythology Research Paper Example

Hindu Mythology Research Paper Example Hindu Mythology Paper Hindu Mythology Paper In Hindu mythology, dance is believed to have been conceived by Brahma. Brahma inspired the sage Bharata Muni to write the Natya Shastra, a treatise on performing arts, from which a codified practice of dance and drama emerged. [3] He used pathya (words) from the Rigveda, abhinaya (gestures) from the Yajurveda, geet (music) from the Samaveda and rasa (emotions) from the Atharvaveda to form the Natyaveda (body of knowledge about dance). [4]The best-known of Hindu deities- Shiva, Kali and Krishna- are typically represented dancing. 5] Shivas cosmic dance, tandava, Kalis dance of creation and destruction and Krishnas dance with the gopikas (cow-herd girls)- Rasa Lila- are popular motifs in Hindu mythology. [6] In ancient India, there were no dedicated auditorium halls or theaters, and dance was usually a functional activity dedicated to worship, entertainment or leisure. Dancers usually performed in temples, on festive occasions and seasonal harvests. Dance was performed on a regular basis before deities as a form of worship. 7] Even in modern India, deities are invoked through religious folk dance forms from ancient times. [8] Classical dance forms such asBharata Natyam use mudras or hand gestures also to retell episodes of mythological tales such as the slaying of Kaliya by Krishna. [9] Gradually dancers, particularly from South India, moved from temples to houses of royal families where they performed exclusively for royalty. [10] India offers a number of classical Indian dance forms, each of which can be traced to different parts of the country. Classical and folk dance forms also emerged from Indian traditions, epics and mythology. [11] There are many Indian folk dances such as Bhangra, Bihu, Ghumura Dance, Sambalpuri,Chhau and Garba and special dances observed in regional festivals such as Lohri[12] and Navratri. [13][14] The presentation of Indian dance styles in film, Hindi Cinema, has exposed the range of dance in India to a global audience. [1 Once Gods called a council and were surprised to find out that they had nothing to do. There was absolutely nothing to occupy their minds with or draw their attention to. They realized that they must put an end to such situation and after taking council with each other they decided to retell stories with the help of gestures and motions. So the art of dance and drama came into being. All this happened approximately in the era which is called the Golden Age or Krita Yuga in Indian mythology. No one heard anything about the art of neither dance nor drama then. The Golden Age lasted for hundreds of thousands of years and then according to cosmic laws Krita Yuga was replaced by Treta Yuga and everything in the world underwent great changes. Ideals, morals, ethics were distorted. People were unsatisfied and bored. And then Indra, after calling the council of Gods suggested that they made a request to Brahma to create such an art that would be pleasant for both eyes and ears like the most beautiful things in the world, the art for the highest castes and at the same time available even to the lowest castes which were forbidden to study Vedas. The Lord Brahma heeded their request and went into the state of meditation. In his mind he called for the four sacred Vedas, the embodiment of the eternal truths in Hinduism, and took the very essence from each of the four.