Shape-ups Sketchers

Shape-ups Sketchers Shape-ups Sketchers Shoes Home›Marketing Posts›Shape-ups Sketchers Shoes Marketing PostsIn today’s society we notice the influence of media on the younger generations and how the ad may seem simple but advertising products are built to have hidden agendas (Eric 1988). In America the news and media have made it a point that obesity is a huge factor in the diet of American’s. We find that majority of people are over weight and this is all due to the laziness that products bring to life. There is always an easy way out when a hard task is at hand. On magazines, television, and new papers we have all seen the new Shape Up Shoes that claim to have an affect in your diet when you wear them. Though customers may have different opinions, the ad shows the obvious outcome of what these shoes can do. Shape Up Shoe ads are merely the beginning of breaking down ads but taking a magnify glass to the ad will surely break down the content, text, and picture angles (Fowles 1976).Just looking at the ad we can identify that placing Joe Montana presents an image of being in his shoes. Although most consumers won’t ever get close to his life style there are still the hopefuls that give into the shoes and buy what is paying for good advertising. Joe Montana is a young athletic man who is fairly good looking and it portrays an illustration of the future shape up owners. This is ad is placing Joe Montana on purpose to target athletic people and even if someone is not familiar with who Joe Montana is they will still see a handsome young man. This is just the coating on the surface of this ad but going in depth with this will prove to show how deceiving this ad is.At first glance the Shape Up Shoes ad seem to be straight forward as to how it catches its prospective buyers, but looking twice may be a natural reaction since the scenery shows to be beautiful. Joe Montana may catch the eyes of men due to his fame but the scenery is famous for catching the ladies eyes. Women natur ally like to see nature in a striking way and what’s better than to have a man and surroundings such as the ones in the ad. When people go through magazines they often try to relate their lives to the ones in the pictures. This is why advertizing companies exaggerate the emphasis of beauty and glamour in marketing.If the picture does not grab you then the written proof will certainly pull you into the advertisement. In big letters across the front we see the page say “GET BACK INTO THE GAME,” which can define life as a game. We often find ourselves playing games in love, work spaces, and in family but having it promoted in magazines only makes you wonder if your still a game piece in the game of life. Do Shape Up Shoes really put you back into the game of life once you have fallen off? Maybe having these shoes will allow you to look better, therefore your outlook on life will improve and your game strategy will change. Its no lie that life is a struggle but this ad implies tha t it will help you get back in there and enjoy it once again. Speaking of enjoying life we can also identify a smile on Joe Montana’s face, which only backs up the joy in life these shoes bring to customers. Being that all this could occur with just one phrase one can only for see the corrections these shoes make in life.Looking into other written material we see that these shoes are promising to burn more calories, tone muscles, improve posture, and reduce stress in back and legs. If one pair of shoes can do all this, wouldn’t you want them too? It’s hard to say no to a pair of shoes that could do so much. The obesity in America is so high that anything that can possibly help that fact would make consumers dive into it. If you think about it having more calories being burnt that what you’re having being burnt now sounds good right? It’s like having double the workout without having to do double the work. Also to have your muscles toned seems nice, especially since appeara nce is a great factor in where your life can lead you. Being in shape and healthy can draw the fine line to getting a job or finding Mr. Right. Any woman would jump into this for a better body.Women are most definitely concerned of their looks since they go through ups and downs in their lives. Having good posture is probably the least important on the list of wonderful things these shoes can do but it is also a difficult thing to teach one to do. Having good posture is the most taught to teach especially in children, which leads to show that these shoes are almost universal to all ages and genders. Finally the ad promises to lower stress in your legs and back. What makes this strange is the not many people are aware their legs and back can be stressed but they do know that their backs and legs ache. Using the word stress exaggerates the need to reduce the strains. Although it may seem clever it only makes people wonder how these shoes work (Lutz). What is it that makes these shoes do all this and still look good enough to wear on in public?This brings us to the website that is written in the corner. It seems as though the ad does not have enough room to advertise the greatness of this product therefore it results in putting it on a website which will in turn present you with more appealing factors to purchase these Shape Up Shoes. These shoes are so great that they even have a website, this allows the consumer know that they are not a beginning product this product has worked which has lead to the making of a website.Notice that the only thing that is not shown in the ad is the pricing. After looking at the pricing it was obvious why this factor is not placed on the front page in bold letters. These shoes are nearly a hundred dollars for one pair. Now if this economy was doing wonderful we could understand the huge price tag but seeing that society lacks jobs and income, the advertisers for the Shape Up Shoes have found it necessary to hide the price. People these days are looking for bargains and this is not exactly a bargain. Having Shape Up Shoes are something a person wants but does not need therefore this ad is trying to make the amount of want in an individual go so high that regardless of price they will charge it just to have the image in the picture.This advertisement was obtained from inside a people’s magazine. Majority of this ad is covered with Joe Montana wearing a baby blue Sketchers Fitness Footwear jersey looking like a stud with the Shape-ups shoe in his right hand. The background of Joe Montana is a cloudy sky, which is a technique to draw the viewers into Joe Montana and the product. Joe’s face looks really bright, which brings joy to his personality when he’s carrying the shoe. The visual content, text, and angle and vantage point of a Shape-ups Sketchers advertisement indicates getting back on your feet and staying in shape can be achieved by purchasing those shoes.The visual content of the whole advertisemen t displays Joe Montana and the Sketchers shoe that can help you stay in shape. Sketchers Shape-ups used Joe Montana as quarterback in this ad, but instead of a football, he is pretending to throw a Sketchers shoe. The fact that he’s wearing a Sketchers shirt makes him look like an athlete that wears that shirt to work out and dedicates him to Shape-ups shoes. The fact that they chose him as a role model for a lot of elderly men is very important because he gives them hope to have another shot to a healthier life by purchasing these shoes, and start walking without any form of athletic exercise but in reality, as a football player, I know how hard it is to get back in shape and have a lean body. The bigger message behind then content is you can have hall of fame, live as a legendary athlete, or even make millions of dollars.The text they chose to use is very influential because of the important facts and visual effects to tie back to the product. If this ad didn’t have any text o n it, I would not be able to tell the difference between the products but when viewing this ad with all different colors, it made it stand out from any other simply because they used red on white and blue to convey cool and intense feeling to grab their audience’s attention. Besides the Joe Montana text, he signed his name so the audience can recognize his fame. They also used facts such as “Designed to help”, “burn more calories”, “tone muscles”, and “improve posture to reduce stress on back and legs”.As Ewen proposes for effective ads, when it comes down to angle and vantage point, Sketchers advertisement portrays higher value power over the audience. Since they took a low angle shot, it indicates that Joe Montana has a higher power and we are looking up to him because he was a leader from NFL. This technique also conveys the idea that they could put their feet in Joe Montana shoes and be an athlete. We are more attracted to products that are offered by celebriti es. This image is definitely exaggerated since Joe is holding a shoe instead of a football. The only thing that is different in the background is the cloudy sky, other than that; the foreground is all Joe Montana with a shoe.Using content, text, and angle and vantage point, Sketchers has been persuading their audience to purchase the shape-ups shoes by using celebrities such as Joe Montana that was a former quarter back for NFL. This is one the best methods to demonstrate that shoes can do an outstanding task without putting any pressure on your body. In my opinion, wearing spectacular shoes does not make you “Burn more calories” or “Improve your posture” that is why we have gym and personal trainers to help us obtain that goal over a long period of time.

Water Scarcity - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 514 Downloads: 3 Date added: 2017/09/12 Category Advertising Essay Did you like this example? Water scarcity already affects every continent. Around 1. 2 billion people, or almost one-fifth of the worlds population, live in areas of physical scarcity, and 500 million people are approaching this situation. Another 1. 6 billion people, or almost one quarter of the worlds population, face economic water shortage (where countries lack the necessary infrastructure to take water from rivers and aquifers). Water scarcity is among the main problems to be faced by many societies and the World in the XXIst century. Water use has been growing at more than twice the rate of population increase in the last century, and, although there is no global water scarcity as such, an increasing number of regions are chronically short of water. Water scarcity is both a natural and a human-made phenomenon. There is enough freshwater on the planet for six billion people but it is distributed unevenly and too much of it is wasted, polluted and unsustainably managed. Click on map to enlarge Sources: Vital Water Graphics. UNEP Human Development Report 2006. UNDP, 2006 Coping with water scarcity. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Water Scarcity" essay for you Create order Challenge of the twenty-first century. UN-Water, FAO. 2007 Water Scarcity and the MDGs The way water scarcity issues are addressed impacts upon the successful achievement of most of the Millennium Development Goals. Water stress versus water scarcity Hydrologists typically assess scarcity by looking at the population-water equation. An area is experiencing water stress when annual water supplies drop below 1 700 m3 per person. When annual water supplies drop below 1 000 m3 per person, the population faces water scarcity, and below 500 cubic metres absolute scarcity. Water scarcity is defined as the point at which the aggregate impact of all users impinges on the supply or quality of water under prevailing institutional arrangements to the extent that the demand by all sectors, including the environment, cannot be satisfied fully. Water scarcity is a relative concept and can occur at any level of supply or demand. Scarcity may be a social construct (a product of affluence, expectations and customary behaviour) or the consequence of altered supply patterns stemming from climate change for example. Sources: Vital Water Graphics. UNEP Coping with water scarcity. Challenge of the twenty-first century. UN-Water, FAO. 2007 Did you know? Around 700 million people in 43 countries suffer today from water scarcity. By 2025, 1. 8 billion people will be living in countries or regions with absolute water scarcity, and two-thirds of the worlds population could be living under water stressed conditions. With the existing climate change scenario, almost half the worlds population will be living in areas of high water stress by 2030, including between 75 million and 250 million people in Africa. In addition, water scarcity in some arid and semi-arid places will displace between 24 million and 700 million people. Sub-Saharan Africa has the largest number of water-stressed countries of any region. UN initiatives that are helping to raise the issue World Water Day 2007: Coping with water scarcity World Water Day 2007 was dedicated to the theme Coping with water scarcity. It highlighted the increasing significance of water scarcity worldwide and the need for increased integration and cooperation to ensure sustainable, efficient and equitable management of scarce water resources, both at international and local levels.

Martin Luther King Reflection - 854 Words

As a little boy, I always admire the late 1980’s show â€Å"The Cosbys†. I felt that my family were perfect like the Huxtible’s family from the show. I was young and naà ¯ve, I did not know the difference between fiction and reality. As I begin to grow older, my reality became much different form that show. The writings, speeches and teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr dramatically impacted my life as I was able to relate and to apply them to my life growing up. In 1963, Dr. King’s wrote a letter to the Clergymen; he stated â€Å"We are victims of broken promises†. (Birmingham) Dr. King expounded by talking about the things that were promised and were never executed as planned. It was as if he would know my story; it seemed to apply to†¦show more content†¦Dr. King, Jr.’s quote â€Å"Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection† (Birmingham). King explained that just being somewhat accepted is just as if not more confusing than just not being accepted and rejected from white society. I was taught that you have to love unconditionally no matter what. I felt like my parent loved me but I was not completely accepted, because of my sexuality, so it made it a lot more difficult to build self-acceptance. There were plenty of actions that were directly shown as lukewarm acceptance because I was their child; it caused some confusion because I felt like society would completely judge me because I was different. Dr.King, Jr. also said, â€Å"I have a dream that one day my four children would not be judge by the color their skin but by the content of their character† (Dream). It sounded good but not being fully accepted and judged allow many self-insecurities to build within because I would keep in the back of my mind that someone was judging me because I was different and not accepting me based on the person I am. â€Å"I say to you today, my friends, though, even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream† (Martin). King was so optimistic about his dream, and knew that today may be hard and tomorrow may be worst. He knew no matter what he will fight hard and stand on his beliefs. Kings talks about brotherhood, standing as one andShow MoreRelatedReflection About Martin Luther King1874 Words   |  8 PagesLeadership throughout history has taken on many faces and many forms yet, whether the leader was considered good or evil, the skills and styles required of a leader have not changed. Christian Reflections on the Leadership Challenge by Kouzes and Posner state that â€Å"The work of leaders is change. To them the status quo is unacceptable. Leaders search for opportunities by seeking innovative ways to change, grow, and improve. They seize the initiative to make things happen. And knowing they have noRead MoreLetter From Birmingham Jail By Dr. Martin Luther King1510 Words   |  7 PagesBirmingham Jail was a letter written by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from a solitary confinement cell in Birmingham, Alabama. Some portions of the letter were written and gradually smuggled out by King s lawyer on scraps of paper including, by some r eports, rough jailhouse toilet paper. Violent racist terror against African Americans was so horrible in Birmingham in the summer of 1963 that the city was being referred to by some locals as â€Å"Bombingham†. King had been arrested while participating in aRead MoreThe Election Of Barack Obama As President Of The United1250 Words   |  5 Pagesbid to be present. Fae Robinson from State College, Pennsylvania, who attended the famous 1963 March on Washington where Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech, cast it on the night of Obama’s victory. The days that Dr. King spoke about seemed to come to reality. Just after 6 p.m. on April 4, 1968, American clergyman and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. is disastrously shot while standing on the balcony outside his second-story room at the Lorraine Motilin Memphis, TennesseeRead MoreKing s Letter From Birmingham Jail1267 Words   |  6 Pagessetting someone or something apart from other people or things. Martin Luther King Jr. is well known for his acts against segregation during the civil rights movement. In this Letter from Birmingham Jail, King discusses the inequalities and prejudice forced upon African Americans. This great injustice leads to protest which ar lead by King and his followers. These protest are described to be as â€Å"unwisely and untimely† but King has counter arguments which include the severe police brutality. Read MoreMartin Luther King And Malcolm X1424 Words   |  6 PagesSelected speeches symbolise the struggle that took place during the 1960s in order to transform this situation, in favor of an egalitarian society. They were promulgated by Martin Luther King and Malcolm X, leaders of this movement, that despite having the same aims, its methodology for achieving them was radically different. While King advocated nonviolence and peaceful means, the attitude of Malcolm X was much more radical, making a common trait of aggress ion. Both leaders used the speech as a way toRead MoreOne Man s Cry Out1530 Words   |  7 Pagesincluding Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., participated in a campaign against racial segregation and economic injustices in Birmingham, Alabama. On April 12, 1963, King and nearly 50 other protestors and civil rights leaders were arrested on a Good Friday for an ordinance violation. The movement was one of nonviolence: however, it was the intent to use confrontational tactics to give awareness of the Blacks’ opposition of the laws that they felt were unjust. It was the intent of King to provoke massRead MoreKing s Letter From Birmingham Jail1253 Words   |  6 Pagessetting someone or something apart from other people or things. Martin Luther King Jr. is well known for his acts against segregation during the civil rights movement. By this Letter from Birmingham Jail, King discusses the inequalities and prejudice forced upon African Americans. This great injustice leads to pro test, which are led by King and his followers. These protests are described to be as â€Å"unwisely and untimely† but King has counter arguments which include the severe police brutality.Read MoreMy First Interview On My Father Jimmy Lee Riley806 Words   |  4 Pagesby the Black community.July 1, 1964: The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is passed, which forbid racial discrimination. .He explain how important they were and what changes they made to the african american community.Historians such as Rosa Parks,Martin Luther King,JFK,Lyndon Johnson,and Malcolm X were also brought up in the conversation. I continued on the ask about a time where he experience some form of discrimination.He first explained to me a time In 1975 where he was working as a contractor .TheRead MoreCivil Disobedience By Martin Luther King1077 Words   |  5 Pageschange in laws or government policies†. Martin Luther King sought to end the unjust law of segregation in a nonviolent campaign. He outlines the four basic steps: â€Å"collection of the facts to determine whether injustices exist; negotiation; self-purification; and direct action† behind the beauty of a nonviolent campaign. King also described the differences between just and unjust laws. King says that we have a â€Å"moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws†. While King was incarcerated in Birmingham he sentRead MoreGandhi s Influence On Indian Politics937 Words   |  4 Pagesrights. By the late 1950’s, most African Americans had reached a point of frustration and hopelessness. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr introduce d a new insight on how to win the war for civil rights. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr believed that the rejection of retaliation and revenge would lead to triumph because non-violent resistance was â€Å"the most potent weapon available to oppressed people† (King 60). That belief would historically lead civil disobedience and non-violence protest such as, the March on

Samsung Electronics Case Free Essays

he Samsung Electronics Company has become the largest conglomerate in South Korea over the past decade. Net sales of the Samsung Group totaled $135 billion in 2004 and has 337 overseas operations in 58 countries. Electronic, finance, and trade and services are the three core sectors within the Samsung Group. We will write a custom essay sample on Samsung Electronics Case or any similar topic only for you Order Now Semiconductor products are classified into two different categories of chips, which are memory and logic. The net value of Samsung experienced rapid growth from 2000 to 2004, growing from $ 5. 5 billion to $12. 6 billion. We will use Porter’s five forces to analyze the industry structure and performance which will help gauge Samsung’s growth against its competitors. Entry into the semiconductor industry can be very costly and difficult because of high barriers to entry. These barriers include, economies of scale, high entry costs, and the difficulty in obtaining industry knowledge. In addition, firms like Samsung have established a strong reputation for quality and reliable products which serve as powerful barriers to new firms hoping to enter the industry. The decreased chance of new entrants indicates a less competitive and more profitable industry. There are many buyers within the semiconductor industry, each controlling a relatively small share of the market. Samsung has a huge range of products they produce and can afford to do so at a low cost. Since the buyers control the industry and what is produced they have a significant amount of bargaining power. Furthermore, even though the amount of producers in the industry is fairly low, they offer many of the same products forcing them to compete on price. Samsung has a little above medium bargaining power with its suppliers. The semiconductor industry faces powerful suppliers but because defective memory is difficult and costly to identify, and could potentially destroy the entire value of Samsung’s product, it is very important for Samsung to establish a strong relationship with its suppliers. In doing so,   Samsung usually pays a 1% price premium to its suppliers to ensure quality giving suppliers increased profit and more bargaining power in the industry. However, Samsung consumes a large volume of sales for its suppliers and can still earn a 5% discount because of this large volume and this discount can offset that 1% price premium. In conclusion, Samsung has a little above medium bargaining power over its supplier. Substitutes in the conductor industry are high for three reasons. First, products in the semiconductor industry are highly standardized. Secondly, other major companies in this industry have the ability to produce a large volume of similar products at average costs. Thirdly, there is the threat of new companies from China. However, these companies from China lack the technology to make high quality and low cost products. Therefore, at this point, Samsung does not need to worry about substitutes from Chinese firms. The semiconductor industry experiences fierce rivalry between the firms. Similar to substitutes, there are six main rivals within the industry. Also, even though the Chinese companies are young/inexperienced, they are becoming a potential rival. No company has the absolute leading market share or absolute technology to break other major companies within the industry. Even though Chinese companies are inexperienced, these companies are having little or no trouble raising money from local government and they are willing to sacrifice profit in order to fight for market share. Over time, Samsung has established a strong competitive position relative to other firms in the semiconductor industry. Samsung’s emphasis on fast and efficient work has let them complete projects faster than other firms, giving them a competitive edge. An example of this occurred in the mid 1980’s when Samsung was able to complete their first large manufacturing facility, a task that was predicted to take 18 months, in just 6 months by working around the clock. Samsung also has a strength in their location, with Samsung’s main RD facility and all its fab lines located at a single site they are able to save an estimated 12% on fab construction costs. This advantage of location also allows their engineers to work closely together to quickly solve design and process engineering problems together, furthering their speed and efficiency advantage over their competitors. Samsung has also done a great job of identifying and seizing opportunities before their competitors, and taking risks that other firms may be unwilling to take. An example of this occurred in 1992 when Samsung decided to invest $1 Billion in increasing the size of the wafers used to cut the DRM chips to eight inches. This investment paid off and gave Samsung a distinct cost advantage that allowed them to gain the number one market share in the DRAM industry for 13 years. Samsung also identified and seized he opportunity to gain high profits through product differentiation by customizing and catering to niche markets, offering over 1,200 different variations of DRAM products. In order to understand the internal Environment of the company. VRIO framework will be used to analyse the internal environment and   to help further understand the strategic position in the industry. Relatively low power of suppliers and large production factories allow Samsung to keep their cost low. Their lo w cost of production will enable them to enter into a price war with any company threatening to enter the market. They have the ability to lower their price to the point where it will become too costly for any other company to enter the market will deter additional entrants. Their low cost production ability also allows them to increase revenues and reinvest more money back into RD. Additionally, having all of their engineers on site allowed for quicker design times and cut 12% of construction fabrication costs. However, rarity is not really an issue within the industry. There are multiple companies all with similar technology. Once Samsung can keep the low cost production system and reinvest to their RD, they could achieve sustainable comp etitive advantage in the industry. Most customers are willing to pay a higher value for their products because they perceive Samsung to have better performance and superior design, quality, and service. The brand loyalty, brand reputation and quality(reliable product) are costly for the competitors to acquire or develop. The competitors also face a cost disadvantage in cost structures since Samsung has an outstanding low cost production system. Moreover, Samsung’s major competitors do not have the cutting edge technology to quickly overpass the quality of Samsung’s product. It would be difficult and costly for their competitors to imitate their technology. Samsung does a fairly good job exploiting their capabilities because of them building brand loyalty and a high quality product. With all of those advantages it becomes difficult for their competitors to capture Samsung’s market share. Finally, Samsung invested heavily in its employees more than any other competitor allowing them to focus on innovation and productivity (Include HR policies). Answer to question 1. Samsung employees a hybrid model of business level strategy which consists of cost leadership advantage and product differentiation. Samsung’s operating cost is $8. 90 per unit and it is well below the industry average $10. 3975 per unit. As of year 2003, samsung offers over 1200 different products. With a proper marketing strategy, Samsung built a high reputation and good brand image for its products allowing them to charge a premium price on most of its products. Answer to Question 2: Samsung has implemented their business strategy very well. They were able to become not only the industry cost leader but obtain a large degree of product differentiation. Above, we conducted a VRIO analysis of Samsung and identified their competitive advantages. However, the advantages are only temporary because they are not rare and any company can imitate them by spending a large amount of capital. Until this point though, all of the competitive advantages that Samsung has created have created positive economic profit. These profits can be realized in the large growth in the company from 2000 to 2004. Recommendations: Our recommendations are that Samsung continue to use their additional revenue from their low cost of production and higher margin to invest in RD. This will ensure that Samsung has the best product on the market and continue to lower their production costs. By doing this, they will continue to make it costlier for new firms to enter the market. Investing into RD is extremely costly/ high risk and could lead to failure if Samsung begins investing in the wrong type of products. However, if done properly, this investment can cement Samsung as the market leader and ensure high profitability for the future. How to cite Samsung Electronics Case, Essay examples

What is Modernity Essay Example

What is Modernity Paper The 17th century was a horrible age of wars and it was during this time period that the 30 Years War took place.Religion also played a large part in modernity.It was starting to separate from the government at this time, and at the same time, the rise of scientific knowledge began.The 18th century is where things really started to take off and is really the beginning of modernity as we know it.Civilization went from horses and carriages in the early 1700s to steam engines by the 1780s.Also, in the early 1700s, art was more neoclassical and governed by the aristocracy, whereas by the late 18th century, art had turned more towards the middle class and romanticism. The 18th century is where modern culture begins with a movement aptly named theEnlightenment.With the Enlightenment came a new use of thought, a more humanistic way of thought. Also with the Enlightenment came the rise of science.Throughout the lifetime of man, we as humans have always been searching for the solid foundation of what our existence is built on.This search became even more important with the new, enlightened form of thinking.Overall there are five parts of the Enlightenment: empiricism, utilitarianism, self-interest, reason, and universalism. Empiricism is knowledge based on the scientific approach.It is always looking for answers through a series of laid out questions.It is very inductive, and after this knowledge of thought has been used, it generally decreases ones spirituality.All the person is seeking out is the proven facts. Utilitarianism is reality based on the greatest good for the greatest number.When searching for the truth, we should find the truth with the most good. John Locke is seen as being a person of utilitarian thought. Self-Interest is a large part of the Enlightenment, mainly due to the book published by Adam Smith in 177 6 entitled The Wealth of Nations. We will write a custom essay sample on What is Modernity specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on What is Modernity specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on What is Modernity specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer

Definition of Accent in English Speech

Definition of Accent in English Speech The term accent has various meanings, but in speaking, an accent is an identifiable style of pronunciation, often varying regionally or even socioeconomically. It can be contrasted with a persons dialect, which includes regional vocabulary. Standard English has nothing to do with pronunciation, wrote Peter Trudgill  (Dialects.  Routledge, 2004). In fact, most people who speak Standard English do so with some sort of regional pronunciation, so that you can tell where they come from much more by their accent than by their  grammar  or vocabulary. George Mason University holds a speech accent archive, where people have been recorded reading the same English passage, for linguists to study, for example, what makes accents distinct from one another.   More on Dialects Versus Accents A dialect is a verbal departure from standard language. Dialects are characteristic of a particular group of speakers and have their own charm as well. Yall in the South, Yah in Minnesota, Eh? in Canada. The regional dialects of Brooklyn, the rural South, New England, and Appalachia, not to mention the greater contributions of Canada and Britain, and those of various ethnic cultures, have certainly enriched the English language. An accent is a particular way of pronouncing a language. Warsh for wash in Cajun Louisiana, New Yawk for New York among native New Yorkers, aboot for about in Canada. The appeal of dialects and accents comes from our appreciation of their musical intonations, imaginative word choices, and emotive speech rhythms. (James Thomas, Script Analysis for Actors, Directors, and Designers. Focal Press, 2009) Regional and Social Accents Accents are not just regional but sometimes contain information about a persons ethnicity, such as in the case of nonnative English speakers; education; or economic status. Within each national variety [of English] the standard dialect is relatively homogeneous in grammar, vocabulary, spelling, and punctuation. Pronunciation is a different matter, since there is no equivalent standard accent (type of pronunciation). For each national variety, there are regional accents, related to geographical area, and social accents, related to the educational, socio-economic, and ethnic backgrounds of the speakers. (Tom McArthur, The English Languages. Cambridge University Press, 1998) Phonetic and Phonological Differences Even though pronunciation differs, meanings of the same words often remain the same, such as around North America or between Britain and Australia.   Differences between accents are of two main sorts: phonetic and phonological. When two accents differ from each other only phonetically, we find the same set of phonemes in both accents, but some or all of the phonemes are realised differently. There may also be differences in stress and intonation, but not such as would cause a change in meaning. As an example of phonetic differences at the segmental level, it is said that Australian English has the same set of phonemes and phonemic contrasts as BBC pronunciation, yet Australian pronunciation is so different from that accent that it is easily recognized.Many accents of English also differ noticeably in intonations without the difference being such as would cause a difference in meaning; some Welsh accents, for example, have a tendency for unstressed ​syllables to be higher in pitch than stressed syllables. Such a difference is, again, a phonetic one...Phonological differences are of various types...Within the area of segmenta l phonology the most obvious type of difference is where one accent has a different number of phonemes (and hence of phonemic contrasts) from another.(Peter Roach, English Phonetics and Phonology: A Practical Course, 4th ed. Cambridge University Press, 2009) Why So Many British Accents? Though Britain is a relatively small place, English spoken there can sound quite different from one end of the country to another. There are more accents per square mile in Britain than in any other part of the English-speaking world.This is because of the hugely diverse history of English in the British Isles, with the originally Germanic dialects of Europe mixing with the Norse accents of the Vikings, the French accents of the Normans, and wave after wave of immigration from the Middle Ages down to the present day.But its also because of the rise of mixed accents, as people move house around the country and pick up features of the accent wherever they find themselves.(David Crystal and Ben Crystal, Revealed: Why the Brummie Accent Is Loved Everywhere but Britain. Daily Mail, October 3, 2014) The Lighter Side I sometimes wonder if Americans arent fooled by our [British] accent into detecting brilliance that may not really be there.(Stephen Fry)You know, Fez, unfortunately there are some people in this world that are going to judge you on the color of your skin or your funny accent or that girly little way you run. But you know what? Youre not alone. Why do you think the Martians wont land here? Because theyre green, and they know people are going to make fun of them!(Ashton Kutcher as Michael Kelso in Bring It on Home. That 70s Show, 2003)[Yankees] are pretty much like Southerners- except with worse manners, of course, and terrible accents.(Margaret Mitchell, Gone With the Wind, 1936)

Pacing in Writing 10 Powerful Ways to Keep Readers Hooked

Pacing in Writing 10 Powerful Ways to Keep Readers Hooked Pacing in Writing: 10 Powerful Ways to Keep Readers Hooked If you’ve ever bitten your nails in expectation while reading a novel - or struggled to focus on a particularly long passage of a book - then you already have firsthand experience when it comes to learning how readers can be affected by the pacing in writing. Pacing refers to the speed at which the action takes place. It’s a vital part of your story, and it takes time and careful consideration to get just right. What is pacing and why is it important? Learn the answer here Why exactly is pacing important?Think all you need is a compelling character to hook readers? Well†¦ you need a bit more than just that. Wonderfully drawn characters can’t keep your readers interested forever - even a book featuring beloved characters like Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, or Elizabeth Bennet would be a slog if the first fifty pages described them slowly going about their daily activities.That's where pacing steps in. Pacing affects the mood of your story, helps develop ideas and themes, and allows your readers to connect to the characters and the events that surround them.While it might be easy to think that a fast pace will be most effective, the truth is that it depends on the story you’re telling. While thrillers tend to be quick and action-packed, romances and other character-driven stories sometimes work best when they take their time.To see what "fast-paced" means, check out these 23 psychological thrillers that will make your head spin.That sai d, the most important thing to keep in mind when you're outlining your novel and thinking about pacing is balance. A single story can’t (and shouldn’t) be all fast or all slow. Instead, there should be a trade-off between the two. This provides variety, makes the story interesting, and keeps the readers hooked.Think about it as music: it’s the highs and lows combined that makes a song appealing to the ear. If it was made up of a single, flat note, it would be pretty boring, wouldn’t it?What techniques have you used to change the pacing of your story? Let us know in the comments below!