Tim O’Brien “The Things They Carried”, and His Writing Style

In his story â€Å"The Things They Carried† O’Brien depicts casualties of Vietnam war through evolution of characters’ emotional and psychological state. Psychological pressure is caused by war, but O’Brien portrays it symbolically through material and emotional things the soldiers carry. He gives a detailed list of everything soldiers take. The evolution of emotional perception of the world and values is depicted through the character of Lieutenant Jim Cross.His negligence, passion for a girl and narrow-mindedness causes a death of one of the soldiers, and this event forces his to revise his values and ethical code of a soldier. O’Brien uses a simple language, but symbolism and stylistic devices helps him to unfold the message of the story. The short story â€Å"The Things They Carried† was published in 1990. It describes the events of Vietnam War and analyzes deep personal feelings of the main heroes, and things they were faced with during wartime. Soldiers carry different â€Å"things† with them.Under â€Å"things† O’Brien means weapons and ammunition as well as terror, love, personal values and beliefs, but â€Å"almost everyone humped photographs† (p. 4). This story vividly depicts inner state of the characters during wartime and their living essentials such as fear, kindness, love, and uncertainty. These things are so important for them as ammunition during wartime, because they help the main heroes to overcome depression and difficulties they face with. It is important that â€Å"a set of things† has been changed, and at the end of the story the heroes carry a completely different â€Å"things† with them.As Kaplan characterizes war stories: â€Å"Almost all of the literature on the war, both fictional and nonfictional, makes clear that the only certain thing during the Vietnam War was that nothing was certain† (Kaplan, 1993, p. 43). The main character of the book i s Lieutenant Jim Cross, a man who falls in love with a girl who does not return his feelings. Jim suffers greatly and can do nothing but dreaming about close relations with this girl. His negligence of duties costs life one of his soldiers, and after this terrible event, he puts an end to his false dreams, and rethink most of his values and views.It was really difficult to him to change his worldview but he was strong enough to cope with emotional burden, and re-sort his â€Å"things†. The main idea of the text is that wartime has a great impact on feelings and views of people. When one person's actions begin to affect another person, we have moved from personal ethics to social ethics and often have to place some limits on human behavior (Bowen, Weigl, 1997). The story morality states that everyone is responsible for his own actions, and it is useless to blame everything on the people around you.Jim Cross is depicted as the person who is full of life experience, but still ha s not found the truth of life. The story â€Å"The Things They Carried† portrays that for some soldiers their burden is too heavy and they cannot carry it any longer. At the beginning of the story O’Brien describes things they carry: â€Å"what they carry was partly a function of rank, partly a field spatiality† (O’Brien, p. 5). Further, for most of them it is difficult to change their attitude towards life, but the rat-trap of war has an great influence on their outlook.For instance, Jim Cross has burned all pictures of Martha and shifts his attention to duties. â€Å"These burdens – the supplies the men carried to stay physically alive – are placed on the same level in terms of description as the objects carried that provided emotional sustenance to the men of the platoon† (Posek, 1997). The other main characters, Ted Lavender, Kiowa, Lee Strunk, and Henry Dobbins, are also carry their â€Å"things† which differ because they have different life experiences and expectations. Nevertheless, war forces them to carry the same psychological things as scary and hope.They need to adapt to war, but the only way for them is to change their habits and personal values. Some of them like Ted Lavender’s conditioned to this reality using their own way, but fails. Subconscious persuasion and mind-altering drugs have no effects. This causes lack of coincidence between war and personal feelings, since many of the characters struggling to develop their emotions while everyone else struggles to suppress their feelings. O’Brien depicts that when fear starts to dominate, people usually act in their own interests, they degrade as the keepers of customs and morality.It remains disappointing that the social issues that are generally identified as pertaining to deal with questions of individual choice, rather than of communal responsibility. Besides, material things the characters carry emotion burden: â€Å"Grief , terror, love, longing these were intangibles, but the intangibles had their own mass and specific gravity, they had tangible weight. † (O’Brien p. 6). The remarkable feature of O'Brien’s style is very exact descriptions: â€Å"As a first lieutenant and platoon leader, Jimmy Cross carried a compass, maps, code books, binoculars, and a . 45(c) caliber pistol that weighed 2.9 pounds full loaded. † (O’Brien p. 4). Detailed list of material things the soldiers carried helps O’Brien to force a reader to understand a burden they carried. O’Brien goes far beyond a simplistic description given a weight of each item the soldiers carries. â€Å"The weapon weighed 7. 5 pounds unloaded, 8. 2 pounds with its full 20 round magazine. The riflemen carried anywhere from 12 to 20 magazines†¦ adding on another 8. 4 pounds at minimum, 14 pounds at maximum. † (O’Brien, p. 5). O’Brien is a keen observer of people, historical and w ar events which is manifested in his style of writing.O’Brien depicts that a battlefield is the most terrible place he has ever seen. In this collection of the short stories he portrays the futility of soldiers deaths and sufferings of men who are still alive, but know that death is â€Å"around the corner†. The message of his stories is that war is senseless, war brings only grief and constant tension to be killed. In the story O’Brien rings up questions concerning moral health of people, and in spite of all the negative life lessons soldiers understand what it is to be an individual.Throughout the story there is a definite blame unmoral behaviour of the people, but it is most poignantly and symbolically demonstrated with the rejection of previous life. O’Brien shows that the inner state of soldiers has changed, and the readers cannot find a cynical man as most of them were before the war. On the other hand, war causes people to become insensitive. Obrie n depicts that the psychological state of Jim Cross has changed. He has not a â€Å"a love man† as he was depicted at the beginning of the story.To some extent, the moment of death caused the awakening of many characters in the story. For instance, Jim Cross sees the truth of life only when the soldier dies because of his negligence. O’Brien depicts that fear applied to love leads to individual degradation. Tolerance protects that diversity and demands respect. Jim Cross is a person who fights with his own imperfection changing his personal views after Ted Lavender’s death. When fear starts to dominate, people usually act in their own interests, they degrade as the keepers of customs and morality.It remains disappointing that the social issues that are generally identified as pertaining to deal with questions of individual choice, rather than of communal responsibility. The most impressive and powerful is the last scene of the story, when after the death of Lave nder Jim burns Martha’s letters and photographs promising never have fantasies. The facts mentioned above prove the idea that only in difficult situations people show their real nature and values. Toughness stems not from insensitivity but from a strict persona; code which functions as the characters' sole defense against the overwhelming chaos of war.O’Brien possesses a unique style of writing which appeals to readers mind and emotions. Writing of the author is filled with meaning and symbolism, hidden in plain sight beneath a seamless narrative style that breathes not a word of agenda, of dogma, or of personal belief. In this way, his writing contains knowledge that is hidden to all, but give only hints to be comprehended. Also significant in the writing style of O’Brien is a tendency to take on the character point of view in the narrative. The representation of the material is very affective.The structure of the piece is aimed to compel readers to think the p roblem over. Clear representation underlined the author’s awareness of the issues under discussion. The vocabulary is mostly neutral. Style and choice of words create a sophisticated tone, but, as the most important, unprepared readers understand the message of the chapter without difficulties, because the O’Brien’s language is very vivid and clear. He appeals to such universal virtues as equality and faith, and gives insight look into the root of the problem.The most important that the second chapter provides it readers, especially those who are not familiar with the reality of war. There are no romantic and lengthy descriptions in the short stories, but description of events and emotions ae very concise and brief. O’Brien depicts that our ordered and organized world one feels sometimes the need of a change. He â€Å"draws the reader into the text, calling the reader's attention to the process of invention and challenging him to determine which, if any, of the stories are true† (Calloway, 1995, p. 249).The repetition technique helps to shift logical stress and draws the readers attention to some key elements of the sentence structure, helping to shape authors message: â€Å"That's what stories are for. Stories are for joining the past to the future. Stories are for those late hours in the night when you can't remember how you got from where you were to where you are. Stories are for eternity, when memory is erased, when there is nothing to remember except the story. † (O'Brien p. 40). The collection of his stories can be called a â€Å"true† war story as it describes casualties of life experienced by soldiers.O†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢Brien states â€Å"that war is Hell† potraying â€Å"in-depth and sensitive exploration of soldiers’ hearts and minds† (Literary Encyclopedia. 2005). The author depicts that war is a dangerous and tremendous evil which change emotion and feeling, views and customs of so ldiers. In spite of all the negative life lessons Jim Cross understands what it is to be an individual, and re-sorts his â€Å"things he carried†. It was the only way for all soldiers to survive during war. At the end of the story â€Å"things† form a strict ethical code which functions as the characters' sole defense against the overwhelming chaos of war.They set of things include the ideals of honor, courage and endurance in a world that is sometimes chaotic and always painful. The story teaches that a mature person acts in accordance with his own ethical code developing an approach to life that helps him get through the day. As O’Brien writes: â€Å"By telling stories, you objectify your own experience. You separate it from yourself† (O’Brien, p. 9). His characters are mature persons who act in accordance with their own morals developing an approach to life that helps them get through the day.The evolution of a character from a narrow-minded per son who does not care much about the consequences of his actions to a mature personality is another feature of style of writing: â€Å"I’d come to this war a quiet, thoughtful sort of person, a college grad, Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude, all the credentials, but after seven months in the bush I realized that those high, civilized trappings had somehow been crushed under the weight of the simple daily realities. I’d turned mean inside (O’Brien, p. 9).To conclude, O’Brien uses different specific techniques and different stylistics devices to convey a message of the stories and appeals to emotions of readers and imagination. Evolution of characters, simple vocabulary and a deep emotional impact on the reader are the main writing features of O’Brien.Brainstorming IdeasWhy did O’Brien give detailed list of all things the soldiers’ carries?O’Brien depicts a death of Ted Lavender. Why did he select this character?Was it so impo rtant to â€Å"kill† someone?O’Brien uses the theme of love at the beginning of the story. Why?What material and emotional things the soldiers carry? What is their meaning?What is the link between morality of the characters and their actions? Did it affect the other characters? How?The war is not sweet for those people who suffer from it. O’Brien describes, explains and justifies soldiers in terms of a deep and ineradicable difference between â€Å"past† and â€Å"present†. In stories O’Brien uses emotional impact with the implication of uncertainty, hesitation and deliberation. At the end, O’Brien criticizes horrific and piteous nature of war which change people and their world perception.Symbols, metaphors, repetition helps to impress the reader and appeal to his emotions. Emotional burden should not be taken for granted at a causal explanation of death. However, a war giving special significance to the ‘uniqueness' led to a p articular concern about the common sense of reflecting the desire of individual to find relief from emotional pressure. For most of the soldiers a a sense of being in the army to be fully expressed and developed requires that the people enjoy the right to decide upon their destiny.Second, at a personal level, it obviously makes relationships with others possible, creating a world of meaning. War is a true journey for men: it helps to make choices, makes possible relationships with others, and gives strength and resilience. At the beginning of the story many characters were not prepared to rescue the life to save the life of others while at the end they became real soldiers ready to rescuer their life.Note Cards1. â€Å"One thing for sure, he said. The lieutenant's in some deep hurt. I mean that crying jag — the way he was carrying on — it wasn't fake or anything, it was real heavy-duty hurt (O'Brien 17).2. (about cowardice) â€Å"In many respects this was the heavies t burden of all, for it could never be put down.† (O'Brien 13).3. The emotions are the heaviest burden because we cannot throw it down.4. The death of Ted Lavender is a push, which forces soldiers to look for the truth (sense) of life.5. The death of Ted Lavender is a watershed between past and future, old values and new ethics of a soldier.6. â€Å"It was very sad†¦ the things men carried inside. † (O'Brien 10). 7. â€Å"By telling stories, you objectify your own experience. You separate it from yourself† (O’Brien, p.9).8. â€Å"They carried the soldier’s greatest fear, which was the fear of blushing. Men killed, and died, because they were embarrassed not to. It was what had brought them to the war in the first place, nothing positive, no dreams of glory or honor, just to avoid the blush of dishonor. They died so as not to die of embarrassment† (O’Brien, p. 3).9. Fear applied to love leads to individual degradation.10. Soldiers carried the burden of the world (war).11. â€Å"Some escaped the fear, but dealt with the death and damage. Some made very hard decisions, and some just tried to survive† (O’Brien, p.11).Work Cited1. Bowen, K. , Weigl, B. Writing between the Lines: An Anthology on War and Its Social Consequences, University of Massachusetts Press, 1997.2. Calloway, C. â€Å"How to Tell a True War Story: Metafiction in the Things They Carried†, Critique, Vol. 36, 1995, pp. 249-257.3. Kaplan, S. â€Å"The Undying Uncertainty of the Narrator in Tim O'Brien's the Things They Carried†. Critique, Vol. 35, 1993, pp. 43-52.4. O'Brien, T. Literary Encyclopedia. 2005. Available at: http://www. litencyc. com/php/speople. php? rec=true&UID=33705. O’Brien, T. The Things They Carried. Broadway, 1998.6. Posek, J. â€Å"The Paradox of Necessity in Tim O'Brien's â€Å"The Things They Carried† Literature Seminar 180J, November 17, 1997.Available at: http://www. nd. edu/~frsw rite/mcpartlin/1998/Posek. shtml Draft Quotes: â€Å"As a first lieutenant and platoon leader, Jimmy Cross carried a compass, maps, code books, binoculars, and a . 45(c) caliber pistol that weighed 2. 9 pounds full loaded. † (p. 4). â€Å"The weapon weighed 7. 5 pounds unloaded, 8. 2 pounds with its full 20 round magazine. The riflemen carried anywhere from 12 to 20 magazines†¦ addin

Philosophical View of the Little Prince Essay

Sartre believes that most relationship start out not because they are attracted to one another, but it is because of how one makes the other feel about himself/herself by how the other looks at him/her. They need each other in order to see themselves by basing it on the look of the other. This arrangement is often mistakenly known as love but it is really just both participants being enslaved by the look of the other that they feel the need to prove that they have control over the look. According to Sartre, love is the first attitude that one develops towards the other. But with this so-called â€Å"love†, one tries to understand the other’s freedom while also trying to preserve his freedom, thus creating conflict between the two participants. The paper will focus on love and the self-other relation through the story of the Little Prince. Through this book, the real essence of love is to be explained in line with the self-other relation. The concept of â€Å"The Lookâ €  will be used to explain the conflict of the characters in the story, especially the story of the rose and the Little Prince. â€Å"The Look† is to see yourself how others see you. You are conscious of your existence because you are aware that others see you. The book of The Little Prince tells us the story of a pilot who crashed and was stranded in the desert – which is also a personal experience of the author – where he meets the Little Prince. The Little Prince tells the pilot about his journeys and his experiences. The paper intends to tackle love and the self-other relation through the Little Prince, The Little Prince’s journeys, and the Pilot himself. In relation to love and the self-other relation, the story of the rose and the Little Prince is a good example to explain the real essence of love. The Little Prince’s love for his planet is to be given emphasis in this paper in line with him being the caretaker of it. Also, the paper will talk about the journey of the Little Prince and use this to explain why adults do not see what is deep inside but sees what is on the surface. The Pilot’s low opinion of adults will be explained through the self-other relation based on the experiences of the Little Prince in his journey. Lastly, the conversation between the fox and the Little Prince will be singled out to full answer and explain why we are responsible for the one/s we love. â€Å"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.† Using the quote, the real essence of love is to be explained and reason out the conflicting feelings of the Little Prince towards the rose before and after his conversation with the fox. HOW IMPORTANT WAS THE ROSE TO THE LITTLE PRINCE? WHY DID THE LITTLE PRINCE LEAVE HIS PLANET? The Little Prince sees himself as the caretaker of Asteroid B-612 because that is his home. The asteroid is so tiny that he can watch the sunset forty-four times in a single day. His whole existence, his life has been nothing but a bore, doing the same thing every single day. He watches every seed that sprouts out of the ground making sure that those seeds are not Baobabs and are not a threat to his home. He does nothing but makes sure that the Baobabs are taken out every time they start to sprout so that they would not destroy his home. Until one day, a peculiar seed shot up from the ground and he worried that this might be a new kind of Baobabs but it ended up being a flower he has never seen before; a rose so beautiful that he could not restrain his admiration. For the first time, he felt like he had another purpose in the planet and that is to love and protect the rose from harm. The Little Prince took care of the rose by watering it, protecting it from the wind, and from other p otential harm. Through the rose, the Little Prince saw himself as something much more than he was before the rose came. It was like the rose gave him another reason to exist. He needed the rose to realize his own importance and to seek another meaning for his existence. For example, when Lestat turned Louis into a vampire, he was happy because he found a friend, he knew that Louis needed him and that gave his vampire-existence meaning. Louis needed Lestat as a friend, as a teacher, and a lover. A friend in terms of giving each other company, as a teacher since he is new to this life, and a lover because Lestat makes and tells Louis that he is a beautiful creature – no one is to be compared to Louis beauty. Lestat, knowing that Louis needs him, makes him feel like he is important and suddenly, there is more than just being a vampire. In relation to the story of the Little Prince and the rose, the Little Prince felt his importance because he knew that the rose needed him to survive. Without him, the cold winds of the night would just take the rose away, ending its life. The Little Prince knew this so he took care of the rose very well because he cannot afford to lose the rose. He was attached to it and he knew that he loved the rose. The rose makes him feel very special and he sees himself as the caretaker of it because the rose sees him as its caretaker. He finds the definition of his being through the rose and when he started doubting the rose because he caught it lying, he also doubted his being. He felt like that him, being the caretaker and the lover of the rose, is not the real him because the rose lied to him and the rose could be lying to him the whole time. He could not see himself as the caretaker, the friend, and the lover of the rose because he also started doubting himself when he started doubting the rose. He also questioned his â€Å"love† for the rose and said â€Å"†¦but I was too young to know to love her†. He started doubting his knowledge about love when at the start, it was already evident that he knew about love because of how he took care of his planet and the more when the rose arrived. He saw himself as the rose saw him so when the rose lied to him, he saw himself as nothing. He felt like the rose didn’t see him as someone special because it lied to him and so he saw himself as nothing special. This led him to leave his dear planet but he didn’t leave without putting everything in order. Even before it leaving it, he still showed love for his planet and to the rose even if he himself doubts his own love. He needed to see himself in another way aside from how the rose sees him and he hoped to find this through his journey. WHY DO ADULTS TEND TO SEE WHAT IS ON THE SURFACE INSTEAD OF WHAT LIES BENEATH ACCORDING TO THE PILOT? HOW IS THIS EVIDENT BASED ON THE LITTLE PRINCE’S JOURNEYS? â€Å"I would bring myself down to his level. I would talk to him about bridge, and golf, and politics, and neckties. And the grown-up would be greatly pleased to have met such a sensible man.† The Pilot’s notion about the adults never changed. He always sees adults as ones who need constant explanations for them to be able to understand things. The adults only see what they think is important to society and they tend to neglect what is deep inside. Take the Turkish astronomer for an example, when he presented his findings in his local attire, the adults made fun of him and did not believe him. But when he changed what he was wearing into something more acceptable and presented the exact same thing, the adults believed him and accepted his findings. The Turkish changed his appearance because he needed the society to accept him and for this to happen, he needed to change. He saw himself as someone worthless and someone to be made fun of just because the others saw his works worthless and made fun of him. He was not a Turkish astronomer without his audience accepting his works. Also, in the Little Prince’s journey where he met the King. The King saw himself as the King of everything because he believes that that is his purpose. His commands are already what the people are expected to do. He sees himself as king because he thinks that he controls the stars, by commanding them to shine, and they do of course because they are stars – but the stars, being the other, is a very important factor in the King’s self because through the stars â€Å"obeying† his command, he believes that he has rule over them, therefore he is king. Same as the other people or things he thinks that he has control over just because he is already commanding them something they are supposed to do. The Little Prince’s visit on the planet of the conceited man was very short for the conceited man does not know anything but to be admired. Without his admirers, he is nothing. To be able to be vain, he needed constant admiration from the visitors of his planet. The Little Prince simply did not understand why the conceited man needed to be admired. The Tippler, on the other hand, cannot live without his bad drinking habits because that is what makes him the â€Å"tippler†. If he chose not to drink ever again, then he would no longer need alcohol and then he would lose sense of what he really is for being a tippler is what he has been his whole life. The businessman, who counted stars because he thinks that by doing this he owns them and could buy more if any are to be discovered, knew nothing but to count stars. Again, without the stars, he is nothing. There is nothing else to count that would require a lifetime. He found his being through the stars and by doing so, he felt like he owned the stars and is responsible for them. By doing so, he took away his own freedom by obsessing over the stars and letting the stars control his life. The Little Prince’s visit to the lamp lighter was different because according to him, the lamp lighter was not absurd like the others. The lamp lighter was faithful to his orders and he knew what he was doing and it served a purpose. To light the lamp at night means to give light in darkness, and to put it out in daylight because there already is light. The lamp lighter’s lamp is the Little Prince’s rose. The lamp lighter is responsible for the lamp the same way the Little Prince is responsible for his rose. The geographer was just like the others whose job is a little bit absurd. He is a geographer but has not explored any planet, even his. He just sat behind his desk and writes whatever his explorers have for him. All of the Little Prince’s visits, the adults spoke of the same thing: â€Å"matters of consequence†. The adults only saw what is important to the eye because through this, they find themselves important too. They think of the material things because this has value – concrete value – and to own something with great value means being one of great value too. This is all evident because they are all concerned with matters of consequence. The adults do not see what is beneath because they worry about how caring about something foolish would make them foolish and they cannot let see others see them foolish because then, being foolish would be their identifier. The adults concern themselves with only important things so that others would see them as important and they only see themselves as important because others see them that way. WHY ARE WE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ONE/S WE LOVE? †The Little Prince asked,â€Å" What is it to tame?† The fox replies, â€Å"It is to establish ties†¦ to me, you are nothing more than a little boy who is just like a hundred thousand other little boys and I have no need of you†¦ But if you tame me, then we shall need each other. To me, you will be unique in the entire world. To you, I shall be unique in all the world.†Ã¢â‚¬  In this dialogue between the fox and the Little Prince, the fox explains to the Little Prince the value of taming one. He explained that through taming, you are able to establish a relationship with each other. Because of this, the Little Prince was enlightened on how the rose is still unique even if he found a garden of rose in the desert. He took care of the rose until it grew and they established a relationship. They needed each other. The Little Prince needed the rose because he was the one who nurtured it and the rose needed the Little Prince because it needs someone to nurtur e itself. He realized that all the other roses are â€Å"beautiful but empty†. He knew that his rose is beautiful and unique because they share something that the other roses do not have. They have love for each other and they have given each other the gift of friendship. His love makes him responsible for the rose because it was his love for it that started the attachment. He encouraged the rose to depend on him and by showing it that he will always be there to protect and nurture it, hence him being responsible for it’s safety and existence. When you start to love someone, by showing your care and affection for him/her, you are somehow taming him/her, therefore making you responsible for him/her. With this realization, the Little Prince was happy because he knew that what the rose told him was not really a lie and so he saw himself again as someone special; special because he is responsible for the rose, which is of great value for him for he has tamed it. Not only did the Little Prince learn about the important of his rose and his own importance, he also learned about love. The thing he thought he was too young to know of, is now something he knows best about. â€Å"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.† The Little Prince’s mind is now clear of his doubts for the rose. He now knows why the rose is very important to him. â€Å"It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important.† â€Å"You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed. You are responsible for your rose.† The Little Prince kept repeating this to himself so that he would no longer forget and doubt the rose’s uniqueness, causing him to also forget and doubt his. CONCLUSION Love and the self-other relation was the explained through the story of The Little Prince. Three main arguments were presented: (1) the rose’s importance to the Little Prince and his reason for leaving his planet, (2) the probable reason why adults only see what is on the exterior and not what is inside, and (3) to give explanation on our responsibility towards the people we love. To explain the rose’s importance to the Little Prince, the Little Prince as the caretaker of his planet was used to why the rose’s existence changed his. He was just a simple prince; taking care of his planet until a flower of such beauty arrived and he had another purpose in the planet. This newfound purpose was used to elaborate why the Little Prince felt the need to leave his planet and clear his mind of his doubts. The journey of the Little Prince and his stories about the different habitants of each planet he visited were used to reason out the adults’ way of perceiving things, in line with the self-other relation and through the use of â€Å"The Look†. Finally, the last part of the paper explains one’s responsibility for the things or people he/she loves through the wise words of the fox to the Little Prince. The quote, â€Å"you become responsible for what you have tamed†, was used to explain why exactly are you responsible for it by aligning it with why the rose is that much of important to the Little Prince. In summary, love and the self-other relation are closely related because â€Å"love† is the first attraction that develops towards the other. Some just find conflict with the other because they let the look consume their freedom too much that they often confuse their feelings for it for something else. References: 1. Antoine de Saint-Exupà ©ry, The Little Prince (London: Egmont Books Limited, 2002), 5-89. 2. Noelle L. de la Cruz, Sartre on being-for-others & Interview with a Vampire (1994) (presentation at De La Salle University, Manila, Philippines, November 19, 2012). 3. Foxfoo, The Little Prince-Personal Footnotes, http://foxfoo.blogspot.com/2008/01/little-prince-personal-footnotes.html (January, 2008).

Toyota Production System -Business and Marketing Strategy, Swot Analysis and Its Implementation Plan

{draw:g} Contents Executive Summary *â€Å"Toyota Service Management and Project Implementation Plan*† Report provides the complete analysis of Toyota and its Production System. The report includes the brief history about organisation and consists of a comprehensive description about Toyota Production System (TPS). Further we have analysed the Business and Marketing strategy of the Toyota and performed the â€Å"SWOT† analysis in order to understand the strengths, weaknesses of the organisation and also threats to the organisation. The information that had been gathered via various means of the overall Business functioning of Toyota has been transformed graphically into â€Å"Blueprint† that helps us to have a better picture of Toyota’s business. Blueprint of Toyota has been embedded as a major part of the report. On the basis of analysis and blueprint a project plan has been devised to implement the project in a new location. The Project plan has been developed using MS Project and report encompasses the Activity on Node Diagram (Network Diagram) and Gantt Chart to give a detail explanation of the project implementation by breaking down the implementation process into different phases. Finally the report includes financial statements that include the Balance Sheet and Cash Flow sheet to implicate the financial transactions and cost the project would imply on organisation for starting a new venture in Melbourne. The Purpose of this report is to Analyse a Service Industry, its Business and marketing strategy, develop a blueprint, devise a project plan and financial budget for successful implementation of the company in Melbourne using various statistical and organizational information available. History and Background Toyota Motor Corporation is a multinational company headquartered in Japan and it is one of the best car selling companies in the world. The company was founded in the year 1937 by a successful businessman – Mr. Kiichiro Toyoda. [1] Toyota Group is the largest group of industries in the world. Toyota Industries develops and manufactures automobiles and automobile-related products, such as vehicles, engines, car air-conditioning compressors, car electronics components and devices, and stamping dies. In the vehicle and engine businesses Toyota has achieved a top-class level of quality and productivity within the Toyota Group and is contributing to Toyota Motor Corporation's car production. 9] Toyota employs the expertise it has mainly accumulated through its automobile manufacturing business to conduct business in a variety of other fields including housing, finance, communications, GAZOO, marine, and biotechnology and afforestation. [10] {text:list-item} Toyota's management philosophy has evolved from the company's origins and has been reflected in the terms â€Å"Lean Manufacturing† and Just In Time Production, which it was instrumental in developing. The Toyota Way has four components: Long-term thinking as a basis for management decisions. A process for problem-solving. Adding value to the organization by developing its people. Recognizing that continuously solving root problems drives organizational learning. The Toyota Way incorporates the Toyota Production System. [2] {text:list-item} Toyota has long been recognised as an industry leader in manufacturing and production. Regardless of the origin, the principles, described in Toyota's management philosophy, The Toyota way, are as follows: Base your management decisions on a long-term philosophy, even at the expense of short-term goals Create continuous process flow to bring problems to the surface Use â€Å"pull† systems to avoid overproduction Level out the workload Build a culture of stopping to fix problems, to get quality right the first time Standardized tasks are the foundation for continuous improvement and employee empowerment Use visual control so no problems are hidden Use only reliable, thoroughly tested technology that serves your people and processes Grow leaders who thoroughly understand the work, live the philosophy, and teach it to others 10. Develop exceptional people and teams who follow your company’s philosophy 11. Respect your extended network of partners and suppliers by challenging them and helping them improve 12. Go and see for yourself to thoroughly understand the situation (genchi genbutsu) 13. Make decisions slowly by consensus, thoroughly considering all options; implement decisions rapidly 14. Become a learning organization through relentless reflection and continuous improvement [2] Business and Marketing Strategy text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:t oc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:list-item} Toyota adopted series of globalization strategies to become a formidable contender in the global automobile market from being Japan’s number one automaker. The Business strategies have evolved over the years to earmark its global development and drive through all the steam in mist of challenges. Business Strategy currently pursued by Toyota has been described in detail: Growth Strategy by region:- Operations tailored to various conditions in each region Hybrid Vehicle (HV) Strategy: The strategy is to become number 1 selling automaker in HV market. Thus motive is to increase hybrid vehicle and unit supply capacity and making HV systems smaller and lighter and thereby reducing the cost. Management Foundation Strategy*: This is a unique strategy being adopted by Toyota for self improvement. The Binding reasons for developing these strategies are improving quality, reducing cost and developing human resources. {text:list-item} {text:list-item} Toyota has been aggressively pursuin g marketing strategy to effectively implement the business strategy. Toyota’s successes are largely due to its ability to identify growth opportunities and develop marketing strategies to capture them. Firstly, they achieved greater market penetration by marketing their cars as fuel-efficient, well-built alternatives to the gas-guzzling, problem-prone American cars. Secondly, Toyota was also able to identify new opportunities for market development and spent time on product development to tap into these markets. The results of Toyota’s product development were the creation of Lexus and Scion, brands that both offered a unique line up of cars, a unique brand philosophy, and services that target the luxury and youth market. Third, in spite of their successes in capturing new markets and achieving greater market penetration, Toyota occasionally downsizes their products such as the Celica and MR2. The goal was to make difference using sophisticated, normal way while still encompassing luxuries of everyday life. Toyota adopted marketing strategies to brand their car among the identified segmented market. [8] Marketing Strategy for Youth Toyota focuses mainly on the youth market by advertising through youth-oriented media (Rolling Stone, MTV, late-night programming), creating a flashy website to highlight their brand philosophy, and sponsoring live concerts. Not only does it specifically target the young buyers, but they also simplified their sales tactics by offering no-haggle pricing, which means that Scion dealers will not be allowed to negotiate prices or pressure a potential customer into buying, and giving their customers a high degree of vehicle customization. Because of these marketing tactics, Toyota was not only able to bring in younger customers but it also encouraged Honda and Nissan to consider introducing youth-oriented cars into their line up. [7] Marketing Strategy for US Toyota and other Japanese carmakers aggressively marketed their cars to Americans as being fuel-efficient, environmentally friendly, and having better build quality than American cars. In addition, Toyota marketed their cars as being hip and fun with memorable slogans like, â€Å"you asked for it, you got it, Toyota,† and with commercials involving young Toyota drivers jumping in the air. Toyota also decided to create a new brand because they had a reputation of being a company that only offered fun and fuel efficient compact cars. Hence they decided to launch a new car with heavy emphasis towards quality customer service. They also focussed on major metropolitan cities in US in order to maximize their revenue. 8] To sum up, Toyota is a great case study on how a company should develop, identify, and evaluate market opportunities and how to develop the right products and marketing tactics to capture such markets. SWOT Analysis Toyota Motor Corporation – SWOT analysis com pany profile is the essential source for top-level company data and information. Toyota Motor Corporation- SWOT Analysis examines the company’s key business structure and operations, history and products, and provides summary analysis of its key revenue lines and strategy. SWOT analysis provides a study of major internal and external factors affecting Toyota Motor Corporation as well as breakdown and examination of leading product revenue streams of Toyota Motor Corporation. [4] Strengths Global organization, with a strong international position in 170 countries worldwide. High financial strength (1997, sales turnover, ? 131,511 million), sales growth of 29. 3%. Strong brand image based on quality, environmental friendly (greener), customized range. Industry leader in manufacturing and production. Maximizes profit through efficient lean manufacturing approaches (e. g. Total Quality Management) and JIT (Just in Time) manufacturing and first mover in car research and development. Excellent penetration in key markets (US, China, EMEA) and now the second largest car manufacturer in the world, surpassing Ford. Weakness Japanese car manufacturer – seen as a foreign importer. Production capacity. Toyota produces most of its cars in US and Japan whereas competitors may be more strategically located worldwide to take advantage of global efficiency gains. Some criticism has been made due to large-scale re-call made in 2005, quality issues. Opportunities Innovation -first to develop commercial mass-produced hybrid gas-electric vehicles (gas and electric), e. g. Prius model. Based on advanced technologies and R&D activity. With oil prices at an all time high – this investment and widening of product portfolio fits consumers looking to alternative sources of fuels away from gas guzzling cars. To expand more aggressively into new segments of the market. The launch of Aygo model by Toyota is intended to take market share in youth market. To produce cars which are more fuel efficient, have greater performance and less impact on the environment. To develop new cars which respond to social and institutional needs and wants. The development of electric cars, hybrid fuels, and components reduces the impact on the environment. Toyota’s Eco-Vehicle Assessment System (Eco-VAS) has helped in production, usage, and disposal. Continued global expansion – especially in the emerging markets e. g. China and India, Russia, where population and demand is accelerating. Threats Saturation and increased competition, intense marketing campaigns increasing competitive pressures. Shifts in the exchange rates affecting profits and cost of raw materials. Predictions of a downturn in the economy e. g. recession, will affect car purchases (especially new cars). As household budgets tighten – this could lead a decline in new car sales and possible rationalization of dealerships. Changing demographics e. g. number of large families is declining. Undermining the demand for large family cars. Changing usage – families using the car less for taking children to schools. Home deliveries. Businesses – restricting business travel (tele-conferencing). Governments encouraging alternative forms of transport – cycling and incentives to use public transport across Europe. Service Blueprint A â€Å"Services Blueprint† is a process design tool which is a flow chart of the business operations. The blueprint for Toyota has been developed using the information available from different Toyota websites. The Blueprint involves all the steps from customer placing an order to delivery of car to customer. The blueprint is explained as follows: Customer Actions: The various customer action that have been identified are customer placing an order, Checking specifications on internet and enquiring about the details of car and placed orders. Final Customer action that has been identified is customer receiving the car and documents pertaining to car. The identified Onstage customer actions are the different payment details that will be available after customer places the order and also Customer Representatives that will be answering the customers queries regarding the current status of production stage i. e. whether car is in assembly stage or the car is still in welding stage or in delivery stage. Backstage Contact Employee Action: The Different Backstage Contact Actions that have been identified are the overall manufacturing process and the delivery of car from factory. Again the manufacturing process is broken down into Building the engine, making the body i. e. Press Plant, Welding the different parts of car to the body, Painting the car and finally assembling the different sections of car together with the body. Support Process: The different Support processes that have been identified are the records of the current production status for a particular customer. The need for carrying out thorough quality check is imperative to satisfy customer satisfaction level and has been identified as a Support process that complements the manufacturing process at every stage. {draw:frame} Implementing Project Plan The report encompasses project plan for starting a new venture of Toyota in Melbourne. Project Plan is a critical part in implementation and success of project. The estimated time, cost and resources help us to identify the budget and expected duration of project. The project Plan has been designed to implement a new project for Toyota from scratch by breaking down the whole process from setting up plant to delivery of car into different stages. The project plan also includes the time that will be required for completing the different tasks. The constraints that will affect the various task at different stages has been identified and defined in the plan. Following are the relevant activity and its brief description which can be tailored to fit the needs: Conceptual: – The first phase of project is to identify the Business objectives, conceptualising a plan, assessing the place for constructing a plant, staffing requirement and the different requirement for equipments. This again can be broken down into following tasks which consists of above mentioned subtasks: {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:bookmark} {text:toc-mark-start} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:toc-mark-end} {text:list-item} Following is a brief overview of different activities or task with its subtasks. {draw:frame} {text:list-item} {draw:frame} Gantt Chart is a graphical representation of the duration of tasks against the progression of time. It is really useful while monitoring a project’s progress. The above Gantt chart helps us to identify the constraints and the tasks that are dependent on completion of other tasks in the overall Toyota project. Hence it helps to visualize the criticality of project and path and the success of project in Melbourne. Note: Due to Space constraint we have not been able to include the complete Gantt Chart. {text:list-item} Activity Network Diagram can be used within Toyota for detailed evaluation planning. Below is the screenshot of all major tasks identified in the project plan. {draw:frame} The screenshots attached below are of the tasks broken down into its subtask identified in the Project Plan. {draw:frame} {draw:frame} {draw:frame} Financial Factors of Project and Business The Financial factors play a major role in success of project. The financial factors that have been identified and will be impacting the implementation and success of project are: Changes in economic conditions affecting, and the ompetitive environment in, the automotive markets in Australia. Toyota's ability to realize production efficiencies and to implement capital expenditures at the levels and times planned by management. Political instability in the markets of Australia. Toyota's ability to timely develop and achieve market acceptance of new products. Fuel shortages or interruptions in transportation systems, labour strikes, work stoppages or other interruptions to, or difficulties in, the employment of labour in the major markets where Toyota purchases materials, components and supplies for the production of its products or where its products are produced, distributed or sold. 6] On the basis of project plan – the estimated time, resource requirement and cash flows for carrying out the various activities we have prepared Balance Sheet and Cash Flow for the whole Toyota project. The assumptions that have been made are listed below: {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} {text:list-item} On the basis of above assumption we have developed the Balance sheet at the beginning and end of year and Cash Flow statement at the end of year which is given below: Balance Sheet at the End of Year Balance Sheet at the End of Year Cash Flow at the End of Year Conclusion The Primary goal of the report is to analyse Toyota- the way business is carried out and mechanisms by which it implements different processes. The analysis carried out about its business and marketing strategies helped us to devise the overall project plan for starting a new business in Melbourne. Hence on the above basis we devised blueprint and finally prepared the financial statements. The report has taken into account the various constraints i. e. technical and financial constraints that may affect the success of project. The Project that is stated for implementation is a profitable venture. Hence the wise move will be to implement the project due to huge demand in Australian market. References http://ezinearticles. com/? The-History-of-Toyota&id=2790459 ttp://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Toyota http://www. toyota. co. jp/en/ir/presentation/2008/pdf/080828presen_1. pdf http://www. researchandmarkets. com/reports/541936 http://wiki. answers. com/Q/What_is_the_swot_analysis_ of_Toyota http://www. thefreelibrary. com/Toyota+Announces+Third+Quarter+Financial+Results+-+Net+Revenues+and†¦ -a0141766841 http://www. detnews. com/2003/autosinsider/0304/21/a01-141863. htm http://lifeinmotion. wordpress. com/2006/12/23/%E2%80%9Ctoyota-developing-strategies-for-growth%E2%80%9D/ http://www. toyota-industries. com/product/auto/ 10. http://www2. toyota. co. jp/en/business_field/ 11.

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Session Musician Intericate Research Essay Go on tour with bands. Session musicians sometimes go on tour with bands; this involves getting paid a certain amount to play various gigs and concerts around a certain part of the world (or indeed all of it!). A session musician will either ask the company, or the company will ask the session musician to go and play either a whole tour, or just a few numbers in the tour. There is a large amount of gambling involved when it comes to being a session musician or hiring one. This is due to the fact that: a session musician gets pain a certain amount for the show (say  £1,000), if the show is a total flop then the record label will lose money, BUT if the show is a roaring success then the record label will make mega bucks. The gamble for the session musician is that he or she can’t go back and claim a percentage of the profits if it is particularly good. The session musician gets paid a set amount and no more. Recording sessions. Quite often a session musician will go for a recording of a single or a few tracks. This will involve the producer talking with the session musician, and agreeing a set amount of pay, agreeing the song(s) that will be performed, and how long it will take, and possible whether it will be split over multiple sessions of not. After the terms have been agreed, the rehearsal and tuning will be done, this involves the band and session musician playing the first few seconds of each song, and adjusting their instruments until they are in proper tune. Finally the actual recording will begin, this involves the session musician and the band playing a set list of songs perfectly, whilst being recorded. Again there is still the gamble that if the song if a flop, then the session musician will still get full pay. Practice/ individual techniques. In order to be a successful session musician, you must receive some kind of musical tuition. This is because you really need to be the best in the business to be a decent session musician, in order to be the best, and make your songs worthwhile, (and make the big companies pay large sums of money for your musical genius). Rehearsals with bands/ singers. Obviously the session musician will need to play with other on a regular basis, as solo practice is not quite enough to cut the mustard, and a second opinion on your music can make a world of difference. The session musician will have to practice all of the songs he/ she will play in a band, because if they didn’t then the tempo might not line up properly, he/ she would be unaware of any changes made to the track, and furthermore the session musician would have less time to improve their musical craft. During a rehearsal each member of the group (and the SM) will play a few scales, tune up properly and strum a few finger loosening exercises, or something of the like. Then it is down to business with playing through a song that needs to be learnt, identifying the weak areas, tightening them up, and moving on to the next part. Promote themselves. Session musicians are forced to promote themselves, otherwise they would not get anywhere in their career. Promoting yourself consists of, making a few you tube videos, creating a website (hired or self designed), putting up posters, or just making some mix tapes of various songs that show of your various skills. This is probably the hardest part about being a session musician, as there is so much competition. Session musicians are a dying breed, so any opening is quickly snapped up by the fastest and the best. The best approach is to make a site, create a few videos on you tube, call a few companies, and hope for the best. If there isn’t work out there, then make work. Do their own accounts. Session musicians can be self employed, this means doing their own taxes and bills for things to do with their profession. This is the most unexciting branch of being a session musician, as you will have to dedicate a couple of hours a week to doing the tax returns, and the business costs (website maintenance etc). How do they link in with other parts of the music industry? Concert producer/ promoter. Session musicians link in with concert producers through the sharing of music, obviously. But what a lot of people are oblivious to is how the producers get a hold of the session musician and do business. As I have previously stated, the session musician will upload a few videos to You Tube and on other sites that may facilitate this. The producer will look at the musician’s videos, the number of views, and the number of likes and dislikes. After the producer has seen the video, given a verdict, and seen that it is awesome (or not), then the producer contacts the session musician and says â€Å"we have an opening, would you like to have a recording session and make a demo. If it is good then we will take you on tour† but then if you are not what they want, you get a recording session under your belt. Roadie. A roadie is a person who takes equipment etc from place to place. A roadie is one of the less thought about aspects of the music industry, they are not involved in music producing but they are involved in music, just not in the usual way. A session musician is quite dependant on the roadies, because they are busy people (along with the rest of the band) and need as much rehearsal time, and relaxing time before the show. Just imagine a full rock band (Bass, Rhythm guitar, Lead guitar, Full drum kit, and all the other gubbinz that may be needed) carrying their own things in, it would take forever. But luckily the burly roadie is here to take all of the kit in. also I am sure that no musician wants to play with a pulled muscle. Live sound technician. A live sound technician is the bands best friend, and a session musician’s messiah. The live sound technician has the power to make a concert a big hit, or make it fall flat on its face. The LST will first have a detailed conversation with the musicians about what needs to be done, this includes the volume, the dominance of the band instruments to the mic, and the times when certain bits of backing need to be played (if there are any). Session musicians rely quite heavily on these wonderful people. To put it into context â€Å"Jimmy Quake is a session musician, he is about to play his first signed gig. He is playing with Sepultura (a thrash metal band) and he wants to make a good first impression on the world for his debut. The LST says to him and the band what needs to be done to your track to make it a hit, and the band will say this that and the other. But if the LST didn’t do this, the track would fail and Jimmy would never reach the big time. However if the LST an d Jimmy work in unison, Jimmy hits the big time, and the world screams his name when he enters the room.† What would happen if those bonds were not there? Concert producer/ promoter. Well. As you know, the concert promoter/ producer is going to hire the SM in the first place. So the musician would essentially not exist in live performances. Just imagine if you would only ever see bands in their original form. It might not seem that bad, but the band â€Å"them crooked vultures† was formed by merging: john Paul Jones (from led zeppelin), Dave Grohl (from Nirvana and Foo Fighters), and Josh Homme (from Queens Of The Stone Age). They also have a session musician that plays on live tours etc called Alain Johannes, he used to be a session musician, but his music was heard by John Paul Jones, and he decided that his sound needed to combine with the other members sound to create an extremely popular band. Strictly speaking Alain Johannes was not a session musician in all respects, but in many others, he was one. Roadie. A session musician would be lost without a Roadie to cart their various tools, instruments, and all manner of other kit to its proper destination. Hypothetically speaking, a session musician could survive without a Roadie, but it would be rather inconvenient and time wasting. â€Å"Joe is a SM, he is heading to Tokyo to play a $20 000 gig. He gets off the plane and gets into the van, ready to take him to the â€Å"Tokyo Dome†. Joe suddenly realizes that his Roadie no longer shared a bond with him; he takes all of the equipment out of the plane and loads it into the van. Then they set of. Joe has pulled a muscle in his back and is in crippling agony, he gets to the arena, lugs the rest of his things into the staging area, realizes that he is 2 hours late for practice, plays terribly because of his back and lack of practice, he is hung drawn and quartered for his crimes against music, and his career is over. (but realistically not his life.) Live sound technician. Well, as I have previously stated, a LST has the almighty power to change the sound of the music. The fans come for the merchandise, the concession, and the thrill, but the music is paramount over all of these other factors combined. If a SM does not have a LST then the concert would be a disaster waiting to happen.. if there was no live sound technician then the volumes would be all wrong, and any other tracks that may need to be played over it would not happen. Also the LST is the person who runs the rehearsals, so they would no longer happen, leading to an all round shoddy performance. Theoretically, a SM could live without a LST as well, but they would have to play acoustic, or just be realy in sync with the volume and timing of their performance.

Access and consent in public photography

Access and consent in public photography Difficulties in obtaining literature I thought it would be appropriate to start this chapter with a foreword, explaining the difficulties I had in obtaining relevant literature for this review. Whilst conducting an initial search for literature, it became quickly apparent that very little other primary research had been conducted on this subject. To confound matters, the only literature that had been conducted was extremely dated. As a result, there was little other material that I would be able to compare my research to. The one piece of research that was directly relevant was a chapter in Image Ethics by Lisa Henderson – Access and consent in public photography. This chapter will receive a thorough review in a latter section of this review, as its importance as the only other comparable piece of primary research cannot be understated. The only other papers I found that were comparable in terms of content were legal review papers, usually specific to a particular nation. Both Dunedin and Ludlows papers at first glance seemed to be similar in content to my working title (Dunedin 2007; Ludlow 2005). Upon closer inspection though, their applicability was limited. Both dealt with photography as a form of privacy invasion, however, the large bulk of both papers was review of the legislation covering these issues in New Zealand and Australia respectively. Whilst some the content was arguably valuable, I felt that discussing legal legalisation of countries outside of the UK would be irrelevant in the context of my interviews. As there is little to no comparable primary research to base this review upon, I have instead aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of the relevant issues that may occur during the interview process. These include, an overview of the laws in the UK that govern photographers rights, A social history of amateur photography and the advent of the Kodak and specific review of Hendersons Access and Consent in Public Photography. The Law The law is fundamental to many of the arguments covered in this dissertation. The UK law in particular, covers many aspects of photographers rights and details exactly when and how they may intrude upon the privacy of others. Despite issues such as the intrusion of privacy, are more of a modern product of legal development, their creation can be attributed in part to the onset popularisation of amateur photography as a result of the hand camera. In this aspect, it can be argued that photography is on the forefront of ethical and moral issues surrounding privacy and the protection of intellectual property. In particular, this section will focus on the laws surrounding photography of private property, invasion of privacy and harassment, and photography of children. There exists much material on copyright issues pertaining to photography. I have purposefully excluded these issues from this review because I felt it was less relevant to the overall purpose of the dissertation as compared to the issues involved in actually performing the act of taking the photograph. Private property As a rule of thumb, photographers do have the right to take photographs of private property from public spaces (Macpherson 2009). Photographers also have the right to take photographs on private property provided they have the owners permission to do so. Conversely however, any owner of private property has the right to refuse access to a property upon entry, and this includes taking photographs of said property. Macpherson notes that, in addition, photography is restricted upon entry to other areas of private property that some might consider public, including â€Å"museums, stately homes, for example, and by most concert venues† In addition, the use of a of a long lens to take to an picture of a private property, such as a persons residence, is an invasion of privacy if the photograph is taken without the owners consent, even if it is taken in a public space (Macpherson 2009). Exceptions in Public Spaces The UK has two exceptions, where photography is prohibited in openly public spaces. These specifically, include Trafalgar Square and Parliament Square in London. Photography in these areas is prohibited from commercial photography, for example, it could not be used in business adverting or for selling prints (Greater London Authority 2002). Non-commercial photography is not prohibited, for example, tourists taking photographs are unrestricted in their photography in these areas. Harassment In general, any harassment of a person is illegal. Obviously this term is extremely broad but photography in certain circumstances can be viewed as harassment. Macpherson notes that â€Å"Harassment is essentially behaviour that causes alarm or distress, and it refers to a ‘course of conduct not a single incident.† (Macpherson 2009) This means that this behaviour has to be repeated at least twice to count to amount to harassment; however, two separate incidents have the potential to occur in a short period a time, for example, if a person repeatedly tried to photograph of an unwilling subject. Invasion of Privacy As it stands, the UK does have laws governing an individuals privacy. This right to privacy has developed through the interaction of the European Convention on Human Rights with domestic law through the Human Rights Act 1998. This may result in certain prohibitions on the practice of photography. Specifically Article 8 of European Convention on Human Rights gives every individual the right to protect their private family life, correspondence and home from the intrusion of others. Whether this right is directly a result of the Human Rights Act 1998 or is judicially created, is a matter that has been widely discussed (Morgan 2004). Whilst, the right to privacy is protected by Article 8 of the convention, Article 10 detailing freedom of expression, contradicts this right in terms of photography As a result, courts often have to judge each case in terms of its own merits (Human Rights Act 1998). To confound matters, article 8 is in a stage of flux, and laws surrounding the privacy of ind ividuals are often altered, creating the potential for further confusion among both photographers and members of the general public. When specifically considering the case of photographing in public spaces, the core of the issue lies in whether a person could have a reasonable expectation of privacy, however, the degree to which is asserted is a matter of debate. Data Protection Despite there currently not being a case of such, there is still a possibility that photographs may be subject to the Data Protection Act (Data Protection Act 1998). This act monitors and protects all aspects pertaining to personal information. Whilst the act does not specifically mention privacy as a concept, the label of ‘personal information can relate to almost any aspect of an individuals intellectual property, whether this includes their image, is a question that has yet to be clearly stated ,but is a matter that will no doubt be debated in the near future. Protection of Children The law protects children in exactly the same way as adults when considering the issues we have already considered in terms of harassment, data protection and invasions of privacy. However, in addition, children are also protected by the child protection act. It is illegal both to take an indecent photograph of a child, or to edit an image in such a way that a photograph becomes indecent. These laws are detailed in the Protection of Children Act (Protection of Children Act 1978). Macpherson notes that while it is not illegal to take photographs of children under the age of 16 in public places, it may well arouse suspicion from the police and may result in investigation of motives (Macpherson 2009). In addition he notes that other activities and events put on by local councils, such as fairs and school-based events, may well have strict rules about photography of children which can be enforced. Security National Security has become an issue of chief importance in the light of recent terrorist activity. One of the most published examples is the fact that is now illegal to transfer or publish a photograph of a police constable, members of the armed forces, or other security related personnel under new counter terrorist legislation (Counter-Terrorism Act 2008). This rule is somewhat moderated by the fact that the accused photograph would have to be of a nature that would prove useful to terrorists. The accused are capable of defending themselves if they manage to provide a reasonable excuse, nevertheless, the focus of this legislation is arguably still a case of ‘guilty before proven innocent. This law has been met with considerable resistance, with journalists recently staging a protest against the legalisation at Scotland Yard. In an news article covering the protest, Victoria Bone notes â€Å"That means anyone taking a picture of one of those people could face a fine or a prison sentence of up to 10 years, if a link to terrorism is proved The law has angered photographers, both professional and amateur, who fear it could exacerbate the harassment they already sometimes face.† (Bone 2009) A Cultural History Of Amateur Photography The Advent Of Personality And Privacy The advent of a formal understanding of privacy is an issue that is central to this entire dissertation. I wanted to examine the advent of privacy as a concept because it is so inextricably linked to many of the issues that arose through my interviews, aiding my latter analysis. Many of the issues pertaining to the evolution of privacy can be found in Mensels paper Kodakers Lying in Wait: Amateur Photography and the Right of Privacy in New York, 1885 -1915 (Mensel 1991). At first glance of this paper, I was concerned of its potential use because I wanted to focus on the UK, as many of these issues are culturally relative. Despite this, upon further inspection, the concepts the paper produces are universal in their applicability. In addition, many of the issues of privacy do appear to have developed in Victorian New York in a way that is both traceable and easily understood. The first of Mensels key references in the development of privacy is author Warren Susman. Susman has written a wealth of information on the fundamental changes that occurred in American society in the early 20th century. Perhaps the most important of these changes was the shift between being a â€Å"culture of character† to a â€Å"culture of personality†. In her book ‘Culture as History: The Transformation of American Society in the Twentieth Century (Susman 1984) Susman describes how self-awareness developed within society, subtly and yet fundamentally. He argues that for much of the 1800s that society was defined by the nature of â€Å"Character†. Character was defined as form of self-awareness where people examined their own morality. From Susman: â€Å"In the age of self-consciousness, a popular vision of the self defined by the word character became fundamental in sustaining and even in shaping the significant forms of the culture. Such a concept filled two important functions. It proposed a method for both mastery and development of the self. In fact, it argued that its kind of self-control was the way to fullest development of the moral significance of self. But it also provided a method of presenting the self to society, offering a standard of conduct that assured interrelationship between the social and the moral.† This matter of expressing oneself to society was a crucial trigger for a wide reaching social change. For Susman, the advent of character was the first step on the road to society developing personality and consequently, the concept of privacy. Despite these insights, Mensel argues that Susmans use of words such as ‘character and ‘personality are inappropriate because such distinction between them was not recognised at that time. Another key reference that Mensel cites in his paper, is the writing of renowned journalist EL Godkin. Godkin was at the forefront of the development of privacy as a concept and was one of the first to write specifically on the matter. His article in Scirbners magazine ‘The Rights of the Citizen was one of the first writings to consider â€Å"The right to decide how much knowledge of [an individuals] own private affairs the public shall have† (Godkin 1890). Godkin saw privacy as â€Å"a distinctly modern product, one of luxuries of civilisation†. Having recognised the advent of privacy as a new phenomenon, Godkin was also conscious of the threats to privacy that the behaviours of modern society represented. He was particularly concerned with the behaviour of the media in intruding peoples personal lives: â€Å"The Chief enemy of privacy in modern life is that interest in other people and their affairs known as curiosity, which in days before newspapers created personal gossip [A]s long as gossip was oral, is spread, as regarded any one individual, over a very small area, and was confined to the immediate circle of his acquaintances. It did not reach, or but rarely reached, those who knew nothing of him. It did not make his name, or his walk, or his conversation familiar to strangers† Godkins writings on the issues of privacy and how it may be intruded upon, inspired a strong desire within some sectors of the society, to protect their privacy with legal means. Some social commentators have argued that Godkins work was the direct inspiration for Warren and Brandeiss groundbreaking article, ‘The Right to Privacy, that argued for privacy to be protected by law (Warren Brandeis 1890). Ironically , it would appear that Godkin was actually opposed to using the law as a method of protecting privacy. According to Mensel, this was partially due to the fact that a jury in such a trial would be most likely â€Å"be composed of the same ‘depraved classes that were responsible for the advent of sensationalist journalism and intrusive photography profitable† (Mensel 1991). Despite Godkins objections, Warren and Brandeiss article was a huge success. Combining elements from varied and estranged fields of law, they managed to formulate an argument that the law could protect the â€Å"thoughts, sentiments and emotions† of the general public (Warren and Brandeis 1890). This issue was especially important to the authors because of the threat generated by â€Å"Recent inventions and business methods† These included the new journalism style that was similarly disregarded by Godkin, in addition a previously unconsidered threat in the form of the newly invented Kodak hand camera. The Social Impact Of The Kodak Camera Photography, prior to the invention of the hand camera, was a difficult and cumbersome process that was only left to the reserve of a minority of experts. It was certainly not the highly accessible hobby that it became in later years. As Jenkins notes: â€Å"From the time of the introduction of commercial photography in 1839 until the late 1870s, the technical complexities of the photographic process were so great that only professional photographers and a very few avid amateurs chose to pursue the practice. In the 1870s the photographer had, for example, to prepare the photosensitive materials; adjust the camera settings; expose, develop, and fix the glass-plate negative; and print and fix the positive paper copy.† (Jenkins 1975) This situation changed permanently and dramatically with the invention of the hand camera, invented by George Eastman. This camera used an innovative new technology that used dry plates and allowed for instantaneous exposures. This new technology came to change not only how photographs were taken, but who took them. Perhaps the widest reaching effect of the introduction of the Kodak was to allow members of the public with no little to no previous experience of photography to take acceptable quality pictures. Whilst this may have seen as a positive step in terms of the reputation and esteem of the photographers, the advent of thousands of amateur photographers had the opposite effect. In the late 19th century, in America, prominent newspapers such as The New York Times produced articles on what came to be known as The Camera Epidemic (The New York Times 1884). These articles disregarded the mass popularisation of photography to the extent of a labelling it a national scourge. Reports written by members of the public of the growing problem of â€Å"camera lunatics appear frequently in letters to the major publishers. A different article in the New York Times (NYT 1884) went as far to liken amateur photographers to the mentally ill: â€Å"it has not occurred to a single medical man that the first noticeable increase in the percentage of lunatics in this country and in England took place about a year after the introduction of dry plate photography We need search no further to find out why our lunatic asylums are crowded. These reports are a potent reminder of the disregard many people felt for the advent of the hand camera at this time. One article detailing Secretary of Treasury, Charles Folger marked as an oddity for having â€Å"a most extraordinary fondness for being photographed†, In the same article as the author describes Folgers picture being taken be describes â€Å"..while the camera does its deadly work† (NYT 1884) Examples such as these highlight the publics distaste for these new amateurs. One particularly violent solution was offered in The Amateur Photographer1885: There is but one remedy for the amateur photographer. Put a brick through his camera whenever you suspect he has taken you unawares. And if there is any doubt, give the benefit of it to the brick, not to the camera. The rights of private property, personal liberty, and personal security birthrights, all of them, of American citizens are distinctly are distinctly inconsistent with the unlicensed use of the instantaneous process. (The Amateur Photographer 1885) Access And Consent In Public Photography – A Review This essay, written by Lisa Henderson, is essentially a review of an unpublished masters thesis – Photographing in Public Places: Photography as social interaction that was produced while she was a student at the University of Pennsylvania in 1983. I first encountered this essay while studying a book called Image Ethics: The Moral Rights of Subjects in Photographs, Film, and Television published in 1991, the essay however is also revised and reprinted in a book called The Photographer Reader published in 2003. The gap between these dates was a good initial indication that the essay had occupied a unique niche in terms of describing issues of privacy caused by photography from a social standpoint. Indeed, it is the only comparable piece of literature I have found on the subject. Unfortunately, I was unable to obtain a copy of the original thesis. Thankfully, the essay alone contains a detailed summary of the most pertinent results. This section will review these results so that I may be able to compare the findings of our research during my analysis and conclusions. Hendersons results are subdivided into three main categories: Settings, Subjects and Strategies. I will purposefully avoid repeating the reference (Henderson 2003), all of the following material is adapted from the most recent version of her essay in The Photography Reader, all statements can be directly attributed to this essay. Settings Henderson begins this chapter with four elements that she has defined as being key when considering the setting of photographs: 1) The familiarity of the setting 2) Whether the setting is is considered a â€Å"front† or â€Å"back† region of a larger area 3) How frequently photographs are taken in the setting and 4) The purpose of the event within the setting. Familiarity, according to Henderson, is key in defining how comfortable a photographer feels taking photographs in a given setting. She notes that familiarity is key because it allows a photographer to achieve a state of â€Å"normality† By understanding their subject audiences, photographers can blend into specific cultural settings and make their subjects feel at ease. The language used in this case is interesting. Henderson implies that a state of â€Å"normality† is beneficial because photography is an abnormal action. The terms of â€Å"front and back† are adapted from theatrical stage language and define a photographers route of access. Back regions involve a photographer to imitate the image of a consummate professional going about day-to-day business, they can achieve this by being accompanied by a official such a police officer or by â€Å"pretending† to be on official business. Front entrance occurs when an event implies a photographers presence is not unusual. Henderson argues that photographers are more comfortable when surrounded by their own kind. A mob has the effect of drawing attention away from the individual, making it easier for a single photographer to achieve â€Å"neutrality† in their setting. Again, the language here implies neutrality is beneficial in order to avoid unwanted attention. Again, events where photography is expected, such as press conferences, are easier for photographers because photography is the expected norm at such an event. Subjects Henderson introduces this section with what some would argue, is an extremely bold statement: â€Å"No group of people is categorically off-limits or of no interest to photographers†. This statement is modified by adding that many different groups at treated differently by photographers, Age, gender ethnicity and social class all require a modification of strategy be it an invitation to take a photography or an act of â€Å"intimidation in others†. Henderson notes that a common subject for many amateur photographers can be found in street performers performing various formal and informal activities. Individuals performing musical, theatrical or other forms of entertainment are ideal according to Henderson, because photography is usually a welcome presence or â€Å"flattery† for many street performers who are keen for attention. They also allow the photographers to remain relatively unnoticed among a crowd of stationary observers. Strategies Henderson describes a plethora of different strategies in order to gain access to their subjects. These strategies are eased if the photographer shares common characteristics with their subjects, she cites ethnicity, social class and social background as being key in determining the ease at which a photographer can gain access to their subjects. Interestingly, she notes that children are an exception â€Å"Photographing children is an exception. Children are thought to be less self-conscious about their appearance and less likely to anticipate the â€Å"possible horrors† of photographs and they might appear in publication† This comment is of particular interest because it reflects the culture of the time in which it was written. Indeed children would be considered an exception in photography in recent times, more likely for the fact that they were a subject to be avoided due to possible fear of being labelled a sexual deviant. A mass paranoia about paedophilia was not p resent in the early 1980s to the same degree that it is currently. Henderson describes a variety of different strategies that may be employed to gain access to their subjects. The majority of these involve the photographer assuming a role where he/she can appear as â€Å"un-alarming† as possible by either assuming an official role or by blending in with the crowd. Conclusions Hendersons work serves an interesting social insight into the behaviour of photographers. However, there are several factors that would be interesting to have been more informed on. She mentions that this work is based on interviews with 15 ‘photographers, it becomes clear in the subsequent prose that these photographers consist of a mix of amateurs, professionals and photojournalists, which does seem a wide variety for such a small sample. In many ways, the paper exudes a feeling of disapproval, photographers are seen as taking steps to remain â€Å"un-alarming† and seeking to try and gain an appearance of â€Å"normality†. Photographers are also seen as adjusting their approach to different social groups by â€Å"intimidating† them, although direct quotations or evidence to support this claim is not provided. In many regards, this paper seems to follow the line of the amateur photographer as a 19th century â€Å"camera lunatic†. Whilst informative, it does seem somewhat odd that this one-sided approach to the issue remains the only obtainable source on the behaviour of the photographer and their considerations of privacy.