Shylock in The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare Essay

Shylock in The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice contains an array of interesting and complex characters. From the alternately generous and grasping Antonio to the alternately love stricken and exploitative Bassanio to the vulnerable and manipulative Portia, this play has an abundance of multi-layered personalities. However, one of the most intriguing characters is also the most oft-vilified and minimized in the work. This character, Shylock, is certainly just as compelling as any of the aforementioned—if not more so, because he acts as the catalyst for the majority of the interesting sections of the play (i.e. The flesh pact, the court scene etcetera). It is certainly undemanding to simply label Shylock a stereotypical stock character: the greedy, vindictive and bloodthirsty villain. Surely, there are more than enough instances available to label him as such (1.3.38-49, 3.1.59-62), 3.1.372-375). However, there also exists another possible, yet neglected, description of Shylock's character: the aggrieved, marginalized and putupon minority. As the text repeatedly reminds us, Shylock is Jew; moreover, a Jew in a predominantly Christian Venice. He is an individual that is consistently attacked at every opportunity by supposedly goodly Christian characters (1.3.103-105, 108-110 , 2.8.15-17). It is to be expected that someone living in those peculiar circumstances would lash out when the chance eventually arises—in this case, Antonio is the target of the wrath. So, to those who would argue that Shylock is a mean-spirited, unforgiving and avaricious character, I would respond: of course he is. But he can also be seen as a distressed, violated and desperate ... ...ts to the inherent contradictions in the practices of Christians: that they prize their â€Å"humility†--that is, until they have a chance to revenge themselves on a Jew that has wronged them. These words have the color of a man well acquainted with the unfairness and unbalance of the system; that a Christian can pursue retribution against a Jew without consequence but when a Jew does exactly the same, he or she is further demonized. He then concludes that he will follow and then exceed the precedents set by his Christian counterparts by seeking revenge: â€Å"The villainy you teach me I will execute, and it shall go hard but I will better the instruction† (66-67). Here, it is visible that Shylock has finally recognized his chance for a didactic display of revenge against his tormentors; he will finally show them how it feels to be powerless, to be fearful...to be victims.

Issues Relating Diverse and Cross Cultural Management Essay

The diverse workforce has become a reality today. The impact of cultural diversity varies with the type of environment and firm’s overall strategy. As more and more number of firms move from domestic, multidomestic, multinational strategies to operating as a truly global firm, the significance and impact of cultural diversity increase markedly. Management of cultural differences has become more important for creating advantages and getting competitive edge. Companies must also consider stakeholders as employees. The viewpoints of stakeholders such as shareholders, suppliers, public agencies, and government regulators should be considered in shaping the culture of performance and approaching the diverse markets. In number of situations employees, customers and other stakeholders in the service environment interact to produce the ultimate service outcome. To solve the problem of unfair, inequitable treatment of diverse people, both as employees and customers, managers must recognize that such treatment is bound with bureaucratic structure, subjectivity and irrationality, inappropriate policies and practices, ineffective implementation of human. Companies should completely reshape the working culture that make possible the integration of a broad range of viewpoints that leads to a redefinition of how work gets done and how diverse markets are approached and capitalized upon. All employees should be held accountable for their behaviors and human resources results. There are certain arguments for creating a diverse workforce, those are as follows: 1. As the number of women, minorities etc. in the workforce increase, so will their influence as consumers. Hiring women, minorities, disabled, etc. will help the organizations to tap these niche markets. . As all the segments of society have stake in the development and prosperity of the society as a whole, the creation of diverse workforce should be seen as a social and moral imperative. 3. Diversity enhances creativity and innovation and produces advantages. 4. Diversity helps organizations for entering the international arena. 5. Diverse teams make it possible to enhance flexibil ity and rapid response to change. Diversity also causes certain problems those are as follows: (i) Communication becomes more difficult. Employees from different cultures fail to understand one another. Firms operating in different language areas find difficulty in communicating with the local employees as local employees speak different language. (ii) Diversity increases ambiguity, complexity and confusion. (iii) Diversity also causes problems when managers and employees over generalize organizational policies, strategies, practices and procedures. (iv) Cultural diversity creates difficulties for an organization when it wants to reach on a single agreement. (v) Cultural diversity increases the complexity and problems in developing overall organizational procedures. A company with a diverse workforce can better serve and compete in diverse markets. Hiring a diverse workforce can be challenging but the greater challenge is to retain the diverse workforce. Exploring best HR practices helps in identifying the best tools for retaining a diverse workforce. These practices include establishing open communication, supporting ongoing training and mentoring programmes and linking pay to diversity goals. Ultimately, the key to create, develop, and retain diverse workforce is to find a way to make workforce to feel connected to their company Cultural Diversity and Management  The cultural impact on management is reflected by basic values, attitudes, beliefs and behavior of the people. Culture can affect technology transfer, managerial attitudes, managerial ideology and even government-business relationships. Moreover culture affects how people think and behave. In some societies important decisions are made by few top managers, while in others, these decisions are diffused throughout the enterprise. American society comes under the first case and Japanese comes under the latter case. American and other Western countries’ cultural norms require individual rewards that are not so in Japanese culture. In some societies, risk-taking is encouraged which is not so in others. People identify themselves very strongly with their company as in Japan against America where people identify themselves with their occupational group. Some societies encourage cooperation between people. Others encourage competition between people. The managers and employees vary on four primary cultural dimensions: * Individualism/collectivism * Power distance. * Uncertainty avoidance. * Masculinity/femininity (Career success/quality of life). Managing Cultural Diversity The five cultural dimensions highlight the important cultural differences in organizations. To manage effectively in a global or a domestic multicultural environment, we need to recognize the differences and learn to use them to our advantage, rather than either attempting to ignore differences or simply allowing differences to cause problems. Rather managers should be taught how to respect the differences at work and how to work with them to maximize the contribution of each employee. Strategies for managing cultural differences The extent to which managers and employees recognize cultural diversity and its potential advantages and disadvantages defines an organization’s approach (strategy) to manage cultural diversity. Ignore Cultural Differences – managers do not recognize cultural differences (diversity) or its impact on the organization. This strategy is very popular in parochial type of organizations. * Minimize Cultural Differences – managers do recognize cultural diversity but only as a source of problems. In an ethnocentric organization, managers believe that â€Å"our way is the best way† to organize and manage. * Manage Cultural Differences – The organizations which adopt the strategy of managing differences are synergistic organizations. These type of organizations recognize the impacts of cultural diversity that leads to both advantages and disadvantages. Synergistic Organizations Assume I. that groups within society differ across cultures and that each maintains its cultural distinctness. II. that the similarities and differences are of equal importance. III. that there are many culturally distinct ways to live, to work, and to reach a final goal. IV. that there are many different good ways to reach the final goal. The best way depends on the cultures of the people involved. Cross-cultural Training Cross-cultural training stresses on training employees about other cultures and sensitizing them to the discrimination and biases diverse employees feel. Cross-cultural training aims at helping employees live and work comfortably in another culture. Organizations can use two approaches of training that can play a big role in managing diversity. (i) First approach offers training to diverse groups of employees. People from diverse groups can be trained for an entry-level skill. (ii) Second approach is to provide training to managers and other employees who work with diverse employees. Many organizations impart practical, real-life training to teach employees how to handle situations those arise due to cultural differences. Environmental briefings: to provide information about history, geography, climate, schools, government, economy, etc. Orientation in culture: to familiarize the employees with value systems and culture of the host country. Cultural assimilator: is a programmed learning technique that is designed to expose employees of one culture to some of the attitudes, customs, etc. of another culture. Language training: to teach conversational language skills.

My Journey Into The World - 933 Words

As we begin our journey into the world, even as high school students, it is not uncommon to hear those clichà © sayings from our older adults. The stories of how our elders worked so hard to provide for their families, they wished they got an education to help making the ends meet a bit easier. Even when we are young and new to the world, we get asked the question, â€Å"What do you want to be when you grow up?† Even as little ones we already know that having a job, working and providing for ourselves and our family is how we are supposed to live. Finish school; go to college, get a degree and venture out into the working world, is in almost every American’s plan. It is almost as if as children we do not get to use our imagination of what we really we want to be in our adult life. Most of us grow up thinking our only duty in life is to work to make money. Even as high school students responsibilities start to enter our lives. Although these are paltry responsibilities for most, such as; finishing homework, doing well on exams/tests/quizzes, part-time jobs, and so on, it can start to be immensely overwhelming; especially when the word â€Å"college† starts to pop up more and more closer to graduation. Students are hammered down with finding colleges, and finding a major to study in, when in reality, society expects these seventeen or eighteen year olds to make these decisions that determine the rest of their lives. It boggles my mind how society expects us young adults to make theseShow MoreRelatedMy Journey To The Corporate World1338 Words   |  6 PagesI embarked on my ten-week journey into the corporate world at Deloitte, determined and open-minded, soon subjected to the realities of what tech consulting truly was - beyond the corporate mantras and recruiter pitches. In stark contrast to university - applying technical conc epts, synthesizing key meeting discussion points, and attending 9am stand-ups quickly became the norm. For me, this placement was about challenging what I knew as a young professional and adult and in doing so accumulating aRead More My Place by Sally Morgan, The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost, The Transall Saga and Pay it Forward1436 Words   |  6 PagesThe Journey as Depicted in My Place by Sally Morgan, The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost, The Transall Saga and Pay it Forward The inner journey is a concept that has always been debated, and so has its meaning. The word ‘inner’ has the alternative meaning of personal. Moreover, the word journey has an alternative meaning of movement. So, the concept of the inner journey, customarily, has the meaning of a personal movement. Inner journeys have often been described as the metaphor behind a physicalRead MoreJourney Essay1466 Words   |  6 PagesThe Journey is the reward: Discuss the truth of this statement using the core text, with one piece of text from the BOS booklet together with two pieces of related material. All issues are to speak in relation to Sally Morgans inner journey. The inner journey is a concept that has always been debated, and so has its meaning. The word ‘inner has the alternative meaning of personal. Moreover, the word journey has an alternative meaning of movement. So, the concept of the inner journey, customarilyRead MoreMark Mathabane’s Kaffir Boy Essay1684 Words   |  7 PagesMathabane’s autobiography Kaffir Boy, he recalls his journey that begins in apartheid South Africa. Being under control of the whites, he witnesses violence, feels pain and suffers hunger with his family. However he overcomes the hardships and goes to college in America. Mathabane as a child is reluctant to go to school although his mother forces him to go but he earns rewards through education in school and tennis. His family is his aid that helps in his journey and sufferings in South Africa. He almost quitsRead MoreAnalysis Of The Lightning Thief743 Words   |  3 Pagesa quest to reclaim Zeus’s master bolt from Hades. â€Å"The Hero ’s Journey† is a pattern of stages that many heroes experience. Throughout Percy’s quest, the archetype of â€Å"The Hero’s Journey† is followed. A few stages of â€Å"The Hero’s Journey† that Percy undergoes are The Ordinary World, The Supreme Ordeal, and Confronting the Father. In the very first stage of â€Å"The Hero’s Journey†, The Ordinary World, the hero lives in an uneventful world where they are considered unusual and feel out of place. PercyRead More Fifth Business Essay936 Words   |  4 PagesDunstan Ramsey follows his path by completing each step. Dunstan’s journey begins when he gets his call for adventure. The call for adventure lets the hero know that his or her life is about to change. Dunstan’s call for adventure comes when he leaves for Europe for the second time to search for the little Madonna. The little Madonna was what called him to come back to Europe. The little Madonna was a bee in my bonnet; I wanted to see her again, and quite unreasonably (like a manRead MoreThe Stages of Heros Journey1184 Words   |  5 PagesHeros Journey Introduction Heros journey is the transition that a normal man goes through to become a hero. There is a set pattern of events that take place and thus this journey forms the basic template for all the stories and folktales that have been narrated since the beginning of times. From the very fundamental bed time stories to the traditional and popular tales, heros journey is the path that has been observed to be followed by the narrator of the story. In the book called The Hero withRead MoreJourney By Boat Short Story768 Words   |  4 PagesShort Composition on Journey by Boat Introduction: any journey is pleasant to me. But a journey by boat is more pleasant. I like this journey very much. I become thrilled at the prospects of such journey. Anyway, I want to make such journey. However, I got a chance making a journey by boat at moon lit night. It was more thrilling and pleasant. Occasion: two years ago I had such an interesting and exciting boat journey. We some friends made a boat journey from Khilkheth to Ulukhola of Rupgonj. ItRead MoreJourney - Life of Pi, Journey to the Interior, the Red Tree Essay1482 Words   |  6 PagesPRACTICE ESSAY How has your understanding of The Journey been shaped by your study of the set text, ONE text from the Stimulus Booklet and at least ONE text of your own choosing? My understanding of The Journey is that journeys are essentially the only way to find what one is searching for and this will eventually lead to self discovery. Journeys allow individuals to extend themselves physically, mentally or emotionally as they face challenges. This understanding of mine has been shaped byRead MoreHeroic: Black Boy by Richard Wright1416 Words   |  6 Pagesfascinating story of a hero on a journey to discover his true identity and his part in society. â€Å"Heroism is not about rising to the top, fighting for ones rightful place in society, but rather about making ones society and ones self whole. There is, however, also the notion that the right person can solve even global problems single-handedly. If the right person attempts such a feat, it will usually be successful† (Haberkorn). Wright goes from an ordinary world of struggles with hunger and poverty