Oscar Wilde The Selfish Giant

First of all, in order to either agree or disagree with the statement regarding Wilde's respect for children we must identify the author's tone in his narrative, â€Å"The selfish Giant†. Since it is through the complex process of speech that the author reveals his attitudes to what he is talking about, his relation to his auditor or receiver, and his assumptions about the social level, intelligence, experience, values, and sensitivity of that person. Considering this, Oscar Wilde clearly has a kind and respectful attitude towards his plot and towards the reader of The Selfish Giant. His tone refers to childhood and the conflicts around it. It perceptible due to the fact that we are conscious of a voice beyond the voices of the characters that speak in the tale. We recognize the fact that there is a voice behind all the dramatis personae, even behind the third-person narrator. This is the sense of a pervasive authorial presence that communicates through the characters a world view. Consider, for example, the tone of the following passages in Wilde's The Selfish Giant: â€Å"My own garden is my own garden,† said the Giant; â€Å"any one can understand that, and I will allow nobody to play in it but myself.† â€Å"Only in the garden of the Selfish Giant it was still winter. The birds did not care to sing in it as there were no children, and the trees forgot to blossom. Once a beautiful flower put its head out from the grass, but when it saw the notice-board it was so sorry for the children that it slipped back into the ground again, and went off to sleep.† â€Å"And the Giant's heart melted as he looked out. â€Å"How selfish I have been!† he said; â€Å"now I know why the Spring would not come here. I will put that poor little boy on the top of the tree, and then I will knock down the wall, and my garden shall be the children's playground for ever and ever.† He was really very sorry for what he had done.† Second, the characterization of the protagonist is done by the narrator and also through the dialogues, which is undoubtedly the briefest and best form of character delineation since a long description of a character asks the reader to believe rather than deduct; and not all narrators are reliable either. By contrasting the children and the giant, the reader is lead to have a negative perception of the giant and sympathize with the children: â€Å"After the seven years were over he had said all that he had to say, for his conversation was limited, and he determined to return to his own castle.† â€Å"‘What are you doing here?' he cried in a very gruff voice, and the children ran away.† â€Å"He was a very selfish Giant.† Later on, when the giant and children start to share the same garden, and the same feelings, the giant is described with a different connotation: â€Å"Years went over, and the Giant grew very old and feeble. He could not play about any more, so he sat in a huge armchair, and watched the children at their games, and admired his garden. â€Å"I have many beautiful flowers,† he said; â€Å"but the children are the most beautiful flowers of all.†Ã¢â‚¬  The characterization of the protagonist follows a development through, which is directly associated with the atmosphere and the setting. The changes that take place inside the giant's character and inside the garden are attached to each other. In addition, the action of The Selfish Giant takes place almost entirely in the Giant's property, inside the house and in the Garden, whose changes are directly related to the plot. The setting plays an important role in the dramatic events. The Garden is essential because it creates a feeling of verisimilitude or realism, since a garden is a known setting for kids. Besides, it's not merely a place of action, it is an acting place. It is a thematic space in that it assumes a thematic function, the atmosphere. The actions are shaped and somewhat predetermined by the nature of the place or setting. The Garden act as a kind of characterization device – The giant character feelings step backwards and forge ahead as the garden does, and so it happens the other way around. The Giant comes from an insensitivite and self-isolated state to the discovery of the beauty itself and the beauty of childhood, and also to a self-discovery. Therefore, the garden also follows his changes. â€Å"When they saw that the Giant was not wicked any longer, came running back, and with them came the Spring. â€Å"It is your garden now, little children,† said the Giant, and he took a great axe and knocked down the wall. And when the people were going to market at twelve o'clock they found the Giant playing with the children in the most beautiful garden they had ever seen.† Thus, Wilde uses setting and space thematically and symbolically. Most of the events in Wilde's Selfish Giant take place inside the garden. Since one of the main themes of the novel is childhood, Wilde contrasts adults and children behavior towards nature and simple things of life by opposing two settings when the manifest behaviors are in contrast: Inside the giant's house, where the nature becomes abnormal, and outside the garden, where nature takes its course without changes. â€Å"The poor children had now nowhere to play. They tried to play on the road, but the road was very dusty and full of hard stones, and they did not like it. They used to wander round the high wall when their lessons were over, and talk about the beautiful garden inside. â€Å"How happy we were there,† they said to each other.† Besides, there are plenty of symbology in the story, starting with the names of the characters. There are several fertile words in the story, the words that suggest the most to the reader. Wilde suggests all in a few lines resulting in a single concentrated impression, as a result of it the narrative moves swiftly. In the tale, the Spring is a humanized character, and so are the Winter, the North Wind, the Hail, the Frost, and the Snow. The phenomena of nature stand for complex ideas or emotions associated with it. The Giant is a symbol too, he doesn't even have a first name, so that he represents a whole group of people sharing the same idea. In opposite to children's ideas, he could represent adults, in which connotation, denotation and symbolism combine to form a multiplicity of meanings. Also, by the naming the characters by the words of â€Å"giant†, â€Å"The spring†, â€Å"The Winter†, and other characters which are not usual in the real world, the narrator intimates that the story is likely to have an atmosphere of a fairy tale (in this case, about the adult's world getting in contact with the children's world), as far as genre is concerned, or at least that the plot involves some magic or unnatural events, more specifically the climate, which reflects the mood of the giant himself.

Argumentative Essay Sample on New Media Channels

Argumentative Essay Sample on New Media Channels Defining the new media and their role in American politics is an important, albeit somewhat challenging, task. In this book, we argue that the new media are quantitatively and qualitatively different from the mainstream press. They do not simply represent a variation of the established news media. The new media have significant potential to educate, facilitate public discourse, and enhance citizen participation. They provide mass audiences with a seemingly boundless array of sources that transcend the time and space constraints of traditional media. In addition, new media technologies easily bypass national and international boundaries, bringing American citizens into contact with diverse cultures and distant happenings to an extent previously unimaginable. As such, new media have the potential to enhance the publics understanding and tolerance of different societies. However, new medias promise is undercut by the commercial and entertainment imperatives that drive them. In reality, the political role of new media is ancillary. The new media are political when politics pays. Thus the new medias role in the political realm is volatile. Their educational function is incomplete and sporadic. The new media constitute a highly diverse range of communication formats. One way of distinguishing between types of new media is to categorize them on the basis of whether they employ old or new technologies. For many forms, the term new media is a misnomer. They involve old media technologies that have been newly discovered or reinvigorated as political media. It is the extent of their politicisation that is new, not their existence. Thus there is a sense of novelty even in those media that have existed for some time. New media that employ old communication technologies include political talk radio, television talk shows, television news magazines, electronic town meetings, and print and electronic tabloids. Political talk radio, for example, dates back to the origins of radio itself in the 1920s. Early radio stations featured not only news, but also political broadcasts, such as conventions, presidential inaugurations, and speeches of presidents and other public officials. Television talk programmes also are not new. Morning variety talk shows, such as Today, Good Morning America, and CBS This Morning certainly predate the current interest in new media. The Today Show first aired in 1952, while CBS Morning News debuted five years later. Phil Donahues nationally syndicated talk programme premiered in 1970 and featured presidential candidate debates from 1984 to 1994. His programme became a significant venue for Democratic presidential primary candidates in 1992. There are many more examples of particular new media programmes that did not exist a decade ago. The nationally syndicated Rush Limbaugh radio programme appeared in 1989 and his television show first aired in September 1992. Many other talk radio hosts with large national audiences, such as G. Gordon Liddy and Michael Reagan, have emerged only in the 1990s. MTVs political campaign coverage did not debut until the 1992 presidential primary election. In addition, new media channels employing traditional media technology have surfaced in recent years. For instance, even though cable is not a new format for broadcasting, new channels designed at least partly for political talk now exist, including C-SPAN, CNBC, The Talk Channel, MSNBC, and The Comedy Channel. Some formats are genuinely new, having evolved from more recent innovations in communications technologies. The proliferation of online computer networks, coupled with an explosion in the use of home computers, has created new methods for political communication. Fax machines and voice mail operations facilitate citizens ability to register opinions with politicians and journalists. These new technologies infuse political communication with a new immediacy. The public can now receive and disseminate political messages with increased ease and speed.

Biography of Richard Aoki, Asian-American Black Panther

Biography of Richard Aoki, Asian-American Black Panther Richard Aoki was a field marshal in the Black Panther Party, the less well known colleague of Bobby Seale. Eldridge Cleaver. Huey Newton. These names often come to mind when the Black Panther Party is the topic at hand. But after his death at the age of 70 in 2009, there has been a renewed effort to familiarize the public with this Panther who’s not as well known. Fast Facts: Richard Aoki Known For: Civil rights activist, founder of the Asian American Political Alliance and field marshal of the Black PanthersBorn: November 20, 1938, in San Leandro, CaliforniaParents: Shozo Aoki and Toshiko KaniyeDied: March 15, 2009, BerkeleyEducation: Merritt Community College (1964–1966) Sociology BS, University of California at Berkeley (1966–1968) MS Social WelfareSpouse(s): noneChildren: none Early Life Richard Masato  Aoki was born Nov. 20, 1938, in San Leandro, California, the eldest of two sons born to Shozo Aoki and Toshiko Kaniye. His grandparents were Issei, first-generation Japanese Americans, and his parents were Nisei, second-generation Japanese Americans. Richard spent the first few years of his life in Berkeley, but his life underwent a major shift after World War II. When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in December 1941, xenophobia against Japanese Americans reached unparalleled heights in the U.S. The Issei and Nisei were not only held responsible for the attack but also generally regarded as enemies of the state still loyal to Japan. As a result, President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 in 1942. The order mandated that individuals of Japanese origin be rounded up and placed in internment camps. The four-year old Aoki and his family were evacuated first to the Tanforan Assembly Center in San Bruno, and then to a concentration camp in Topaz, Utah, where they lived without indoor plumbing or heating. â€Å"Our civil liberties were grossly violated,† Aoki told the Apex Express radio show of being relocated. â€Å"We were not criminals. We were not prisoners of war.† During the politically tumultuous 1960s and ’70s, Aoki developed a militant ideology directly in response to being forced into an internment camp for no reason other than his racial ancestry. Life After Topaz After his discharge from the Topaz internment camp, Aoki settled with his father, brother and extended family in West Oakland, a diverse neighborhood that many African Americans called home. Growing up in that part of town, Aoki encountered blacks from the South who told him about lynchings and other acts of severe bigotry. He connected the treatment of blacks in the South to incidents of police brutality he’d witnessed in Oakland. â€Å"I began putting two and two together and saw that people of color in this country really get unequal treatment and aren’t presented with many opportunities for gainful employment,† he said. After high school, Aoki enlisted in the U.S. Army, where he served for eight years. As the war in Vietnam began to escalate, however, Aoki decided against a military career because he didn’t fully support the conflict and wanted no part in the killing of Vietnamese civilians. When he returned to Oakland following his honorable discharge from the army, Aoki enrolled in Merritt Community College, where he discussed civil rights and radicalism with future Panthers, Bobby Seale and Huey Newton. Black Panther Party Aoki read the writings of Marx, Engels and Lenin, standard reading for radicals in the 1960s. But he wanted to be more than just well read. He also wanted to effect social change. That opportunity came along when Seale and Newton invited him to read over the Ten-Point Program that would form the foundation of the Black Panther Party. After the list was finalized, Newton and Seale asked Aoki to join the newly formed Black Panthers. Aoki accepted after Newton explained that being African-American wasn’t a prerequisite to joining the group. He recalled Newton saying: â€Å"The struggle for freedom, justice and equality transcends racial and ethnic barriers. As far as I’m concerned, you black.† Aoki served as a field marshal in the group, putting his experience in the military to use to help members defend the community. Soon after Aoki became a Panther, he, Seale and Newton took to the streets of Oakland to pass out the Ten-Point Program. They asked residents to tell them their top community concern. Police brutality emerged as the No. 1 issue. Accordingly, the BPP launched what they called â€Å"shotgun patrols,† which entailed following the police as they patrolled the neighborhood and observing as they made arrests. â€Å"We had cameras and tape recorders to chronicle what was going on,† Aoki said. Asian American Political Alliance But the BPP wasn’t the only group Aoki joined. After transferring from Merritt College to UC Berkeley in 1966, Aoki played a key role in the Asian American Political Alliance. The organization supported the Black Panthers and opposed the war in Vietnam. Aoki â€Å"gave a very important dimension to the Asian-American movement in terms of linking the struggles of the African-American community with the Asian-American community,† friend Harvey Dong told the Contra Costa Times. In addition, the AAPA participated in local labor struggles on behalf of groups such as the Filipino Americans who worked in the agricultural fields. The group also reached out to other radical student groups on campus, including those that were Latino- and Native American-based such as MEChA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztln), the Brown Berets and the Native American Student Association. Third World Liberation Front Strike The disparate resistance groups eventually united in the collective organization known as the Third World Council. The council wanted to create a Third World College, â€Å"an autonomous academic component of (UC Berkeley), whereby we could have classes that were relevant to our communities,† Aoki said, â€Å"whereby we could hire our own faculty, determine our own curriculum. In winter of 1969, the council started the Third World Liberation Front Strike, which lasted an entire academic quarter- three months. Aoki estimated that 147 strikers were arrested. He himself spent time at the Berkeley City Jail for protesting. The strike ended when UC Berkeley agreed to create an ethnic studies department. Aoki, who had recently completed enough graduate courses in social work to obtain a master’s degree, was among the first to teach ethnic studies courses at Berkeley. Teacher, Counselor, Adminstrator In 1971, Aoki returned to Merritt College, a part of the Peralta Community College district, to teach. For 25 years, he served as a counselor, instructor and administrator in the Peralta district. His activity in the Black Panther Party waned as members were imprisoned, assassinated, forced into exile or expelled from the group. By the end of the 1970s, the party met its demise due to successful attempts by the FBI and other government agencies to neutralize revolutionary groups in the United States. Although the Black Panther Party fell apart, Aoki remained politically active. When budget cuts at UC Berkeley placed the future of the ethnic studies department in jeopardy in 1999, Aoki returned to campus 30 years after he participated in the original strike to support student demonstrators who demanded that the program continue. Death Inspired by his lifelong activism, two students named Ben Wang and Mike Cheng decided to make a documentary about the onetime Panther titled â€Å"Aoki.† It debuted in 2009. Before his death on March 15 of that year, Aoki saw a rough cut of the film. Sadly, after suffering several health problems, including a stroke, a heart attack and failing kidneys, Aoki died on March 15, 2009. He was 70. Following his tragic death, fellow Panther Bobby Seale remembered Aoki fondly. Seale told the Contra Costa Times, Aoki â€Å"was one consistent, principled person, who stood up and understood the international necessity for human and community unity in opposition to oppressors and exploiters.† Legacy What distinguished Aoki from others in the black radical group? He was the only founding member of Asian descent. A third-generation Japanese-American from the San Francisco Bay area, Aoki not only played a fundamental role in the Panthers, he also helped to establish an ethnic studies program at the University of California, Berkeley. The late Aoki’s biography based on interviews with Diane C. Fujino reveals a man who counteracted the passive Asian stereotype and embraced radicalism to make long-lasting contributions to both the African- and Asian-American communities. Sources Chang, Momo. Former Black Panther leaves legacy of activism and Third World solidarity. East Bay Times, March 19, 2009.  Dong, Harvey. Richard Aoki (1938–2008): Toughest Oriental to Come out of West Oakland. Amerasia Journal 35.2 (2009): 223–32. Print.Fujino, Diane C. Samurai Among Panthers: Richard Aoki on Race, Resistance, and a Paradoxical Life. Minneapolis, University of Minnesota Press, 2012.

Thinking about Death Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Thinking about Death - Research Paper Example However, as we shall see, this is modulated very differently in all three examples. Section 1: Henry James, loss and self-actualisation. The critical apogee of Henry James’ story, The Beast in the Jungle, comes only moments from the end in which the protagonist comes to understand himself. The self-awareness that John Marcher develops is critically, and inextricably, linked to the death of Mary Bartram. By connecting Mary’s death with Marcher’s epiphanies about his own life, the realisation of loss, ironically, becomes about the discovery of self-knowledge and the truth about life itself. The story of Marcher’s and Bartram’s relationship is defined by Marcher’s belief that he has an unusual fate: to die by some catastrophic event, what he terms ‘the beast in the Jungle’. It is for this reason that he decides that he will attempt to protect others and himself by not falling in love with others, or developing a deep connection with someone. This fate is developed throughout the novella and then finally achieved in the final moments of the work, when Marcher comes to understand his failure to connect to another person. ... ... He saw the Jungle of his life and saw the lurking Beast; then, while he looked, perceived it, as by a stir of the air, rise, huge and hideous, for the leap that was to settle him. His eyes darkened--it was close; and, instinctively turning, in his hallucination, to avoid it, he flung himself, face down, on the tomb.’ (James, The Beast in the Jungle) Instinctively, the reference to throwing himself down on his tomb points out the connection between Mary’s death and his achievement of his fate. Mary’s death is intimately connected to the acquisition of self-knowledge. He comes to understand, and in that moment achieves, his fate. The loss of Mary at this point becomes then the catastrophic event in his life; he realises what he has lost at the last, and is pained by it. Just as he comes to understand his fate, he comes to understand the way in which he and Mary had lived, and his ultimate failure in life. He comes to understand that his life was a solipsistic o ne. Marcher’s life is detached—detached from human connections, from the emotions and the intensity of profound connection that defines Mary’s life. This is expressed in a number of ways. Recall for instance his inability, in the opening scene of section 1, to remember his earlier meetings with Mary. (It is also expressed in the third person perspective of the narrator, for example.) The consequences of this solipsistic, detached life are brought home to him in the final scenes when faced with Mary’s death. She had offered him an escape from his fate: ‘The escape would have been to love her; then, THEN he would have lived. SHE had lived--who could say now with what passion?—since she had loved him for himself; whereas he had never thought of her (ah how

Personal Statement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 33

Personal Statement - Essay Example Therefore, I have decided to take a step to pursue the next level of education in order to continue acquiring more knowledge that is beneficial to the society and me. In this case, in order to realize my full potential, I had to apply in one of the best institutions offering the PhD program that I need to proceed with pursuing of my academic goals. After identifying this institution, I had to apply hoping that I stand a chance to be one of your students, having met all the requirements for pursuing the program. Knowledge  acquired from my degree and master’s program has facilitated interaction with different people and sharing of relevant ideas with them. After graduating in 2002, I worked as an English teacher under the ministry of education until 2006. Later in 2009, I joined the Arab Open University, where I became a part-time lecture until 2010. During the same year, I worked with the Training center of public security as a part time English Instructor. I later joined Taif University under the ministry of higher education working as English lecturer. Therefore, throughout this career path, I have faced challenges, which serve as a source of inspiration to acquire more knowledge in the field, in order to develop other ways of dealing with the problems in my field. In this case, I believe that by pursuing the PhD program, I will be able to acquire more knowledge that will benefit others people and me. I have spent a significant part of my life acquiring knowledge, and spending time and energy on gaining experience in the field of linguistics. I had set objectives such as laying a good foundation of knowledge by acquiring basics from the degree program, which facilitated achievement my long-term goals to pursue my PhD program. Therefore, through this way, I have been able to learn and cope with the rate of changes occurring in this field. In this case, my perception towards achievement of career objective is not about making a good living, but has

Digital Image Creation for Interactive Media Assignment

Digital Image Creation for Interactive Media - Assignment Example color, gradients, layers, object, brushes, history, actions, size, resolution; layers, e.g. copying, saving, arranging; flattening; colour selection, e.g. foreground, background, color swatch, eyedropper Advanced tools: effects, e.g. layer effects, filters, channels; image adjustments, e.g. brightness and contrast, hue and saturation, color balance, gradients, transparency, invert; masks; paths, e.g. vector paths, converting text to paths; image slicing 2. To publish gave a name to City Guide Monthly type. The Publication Name is not the same as the Name of the Folio. The Folio Name was visible on web client of Folio producer and Name of publication then was visible on the viewer. 4. Selected the (the Link URL found in the menu, and put address in the field of URL previously used). The URL was http://www.bikeworks.org/. I then deselected the Shared Hyperlink Destination. Selected OK. (Ayoub) 5. In the panel of Folio Builder, clicked twice on the Layout of the Landscape to see the document of Enjoy_h.indd. I copied and pasted object of the hyperlink from the vertical file (‘Enjoy-v.indd’) file to the horizontal file (‘Enjoy_h.indd file’) (Ayoub). I then shifted this object to the log of â€Å"D.I.Y. Meet† . 1. In the horizontal file, selected the File > Place, browsed the CityGuide_Folio > Enjoy Article > Folder links, and clicked twice on the image â€Å"cycling_432x234.mpg† (Ayoub) and shifted this movie file in the right most corner. 2. On the panel of the Media (Window > Interactive > Media), select Chose Poster pop-up menu image. Clicked twice on the Folio of City Guide image â€Å"cyclist.jpg† so that Enjoy Article > Links folder† (Ayoub) In conclusion, the creation of this interactive media was a success as the result was what was expected. The various tools employed in graphics design were applied in the right manner to give the intended

Nationalisation of Royal Bank of Scotland

Nationalisation of Royal Bank of Scotland Purpose The purpose of this report is to discuss the change in Royal Bank of Scotland indicated by the companys nationalization in 2008. Shareholders lost the most part of the company in favour of the government and management of the bank had to be changed. The purpose will be fulfilled by analyzing the process of nationalization and its implications for RBS. Theoretical literature provides a lot of models of change management and strategic management. For example, Ansoff (1987) model suggests four quadrants of strategy. Companies can grow by penetrating the market and winning larger market share while competitors share will shrink. Firms can also develop their key products which are their strength and this will be a strategy for expansion. The third Ansoffs (1987) strategy would be to diversify the products and operations to achieve growth. Finally, the company can choose to pursue market development which is entering new geographical areas or new niches that will help generate higher revenue. The case of RBS represents this final model of market development. The banks pursued the new market of mortgage backed securities in the US through acquisition of ABN Amro. This strategy appeared to be unsuccessful and led the bank into a position where accounting losses reached tremendous value of over 30 billion pounds in 2008 and led to national ization of the bank by the UK government. Company Overview Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc is a banking corporation with its branch Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) that is spread around United Kingdom with almost 700 sub-branches, located in Scotland, England and Wales and is one of the largest banks in UK. It was founded in 1727 and is the first bank introducing overdraft availability to its clients. Since its foundation, RBS expanded greatly, with big number of acquisition deals, such as its acquisition of NatWest Group in 2000, First Active (Ireland), Charter One (USA) , Churchill Insurance (UK) and ABN Amro (Netherlands) in 2007 (House of Commons Treasury Committee, 2008). The Royal Bank of Scotland still uses a privilege of printing its own banknotes. Until 2009, it was one of the main shareholders of the Bank of China, but had to sell its shares after the global financial crisis impact. RSB is still in the list of worlds largest banks, being on 6th position in 2003, 10th in 2007 and 19th in 2008 (Financial Ranks Online, 2009). Financial performance of RBS was changing in the last years. In 2005 group operating profit rose by 16%, with total dividend for the year increase by 25%, with capital and earnings increase. During 2006, RBS showed great results and continuing growth, with increased dividends by 25% with total income growth by 10%. With unstable position in the market and in global financial system, RBS had some problems, but managers were working toward control of the situation, however growth of the operating profit decreased by 9%, earnings per share by 18% and return on equity 19.9%. The company faced big net losses of around 7.9 billion pounds. In the 2009 bank entered hard times with reorganization in management field and in structure. (RBS Annual Report, 2005-2009). Due to changing situation in the global economy, in 2008 Royal Bank of Scotland announced its greatest loss in the banks history with the amount of 692 million pounds that was connected to unhealthy loans and 71 billion pounds as a result of incorrect deal of acquiring ABN Amro (Bradley, 2009). Prior to the global financial crisis RBS have had great profit margins and was a respected brand with long history. And it is necessary to mention that the bank was at great position in terms of facing crisis, with little impact until the decision of getting ABN Amro, which brought various problems. In 2008-2009 UK citizens were under shock of the fact that one of the largest UK banking system representatives had incredible losses and unpredictable future. At this position RBS had one way to survive seek government support. However not all UK banks suffered from consequences of global financial crisis, which can be connected with accurate and carefully planned management strategy. RBS have got some capital of about 2 billion pounds from selling its share in Bank of China and after giving up part of Linea Directa, a Spanish insurance company for about 4.5 billion pounds. However, it did not help to make a radical change of the situation (Bradley, 2009). According to Hester, current Chief Executive of the RBS Group (2009), great losses of the Group had nothing to do with management of businesses as their performance was profitable. However problems appeared mainly in two divisions Global Banking Markets and Asia Retail Commercial Banking. Their profits were crushed by market and credit losses, within fast changes in the economic conditions. At the same time top managers of the Royal Bank of Scotland were facing risks of acquisition and had limited time to make decisions. Global financial crisis had its impact in different countries, affecting economies and markets especially in terms of exchange rates. Here, decrease in sterling exchange rate had an influence on further performance of the bank and changing market position intensified the situation (Hester, 2009). In spite of the fact that financial situation became critical for many banks, RBS was still having serious and stable business. Top management was taking steps to recover from crisis consequences, in order to return capital and provide stable ground for future operation such steps included applying to government support. The strategic plan for recovery was supposed to be finished in 2009, meanwhile the focus is on long-term customer franchises, quality and profitability. Royal Bank of Scotland can be an example of the fact that in terms of global financial crisis even big and powerful organisations can face danger. It is the biggest UK company that suffered from the global economic crash. Today it is still far from recovery, having bad loans and loss before tax in the beginning of 2009 was around 44 million pounds. From the forecasts, 2009 and 2010 will still be challenging for the RBS with main focus on debt returns. Now, after current management revision, directors of RBS are more confident of future recovery and success (The Telegraph, May 2009). New Chief Executive supports the position that management must stay calm and take steps for a slow but effective recovery, rather than fast and wasting strategies in order to save more that to spend (Murchie, 2009). However, human resource management of the bank is not so confident and planning to shorten around 9000 jobs, which is about 20%. It is believed that this action will help to decrease costs of around 3 billion dollars (Global Crisis News, 2009). Moreover, RBS represented the worst results in the market, being at the bottom of banking sector in September 2009 (Frei, 2009). Aspects of Nationalisation According to Encyclopedia Britannica, nationalisation is â€Å"alteration or assumption of control or ownership of private property by the state† (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2009) with several variations in the types and motives. Nationalisation usually appears through assets or shares taken over, and this can help the company to continue its business but under control of the government. If the company is nationalised by government it can continue to produce and operate, getting some revenue and have some returns on shares. Usually this process is followed by structural reorganisation, including traditional administrative strategy and style of control (Backhaus and Wagner, 2004). As a fact, nationalisation can come in the form of expropriation, if the previous owners do not get compensation for the business and in the form of rescue tool or governmental support. Not every company can get such support; it is usually a privilege of the companies and corporations that have national importance and heritage. There is a number of examples in the UK history of nationalisation, which helped to reorganise the structure of the company as well as to get financial support (Floud and McCloskey, 1994). It is believed that nationalisation started in the UK in 1908 after the establishment of Port of London Authority with the necessity of production control (Beardshaw and Ross, 2001). Some researches mention negative effects of nationalisation, pointing that it can damage economy and banking sector. One of the problems is decreasing competitiveness, especially in banking sector (Lee, 2007). Also, financial institutions and government avoid participating in management as it can lead to further recalls of nationalisation. And when the company fails to use management as an appropriate tool, the chance of mistake gets bigger with a cause of future nationalisation (Cuthbert and Dobbins, 1980). Mainly, nationalisation has political or economic aspects and motives. When government has power to control specific corporations and their production as well as financial position, it can use the company as an instrument to correct economy. In addition, government can provide more accurate and efficient capital and assets diversification. If the company is fully nationalised, government becomes the owner of the business and has to deal with its problems and debts. Nationalisation is connected to economy, here in order to have more attractive economy, government trying to stabilise financial system through bad assets escape. There are still debates around the necessity of nationalisation and its problems. On the other hand, there is a view that this process must have temporary term, and government acts more as guardian of the company or bank for the hard period. However, one must consider that the process of nationalisation must be done correctly and carefully, with revision of all advantages and disadvantages (Richardson, 2009). Looking at the advantages of the nationalisation first comes its ability to save the company or in our case the bank from heavy and senseless assets, which were collected over the time and are representing thread of bankruptcy. This will include separation such assets from the business allowing operating more efficiently. Unnecessary assets then can be put for sale or managed by another organisation and the bank, free from problematic sectors can continues to operate. In addition, nationalization can help to restructure top management, getting rid of dilettantish approach of operating the business (Richardson, 2009). RBS is also supporting this fact and according to Montia (2009), is now selling some of its asset management business with managed capital of 30 billion pounds. In addition, it is possible that RBS will have to sell more of its business and even at the very low price that is now at the market. It is also a part of the Chief Executives recovery plan for the RBS to separa te troubled divisions from working ones with further selling of non-core parts of the business (Bradley, 2009). Without considering the advantage of nationalisation, government can continue to give money support to the banks that are big and important for the economy, but this can create the situation, where nothing will be changed and achieved. Government support can give a privilege of a competitive advantage, for example, Northern Rock could cut its prices in mortgages and insurance and attract new customers. Among disadvantages of nationalisation is management problem. In reality it is very difficult to find right and appropriate human capital for each bank in order to manage them properly. Still there will be a chance of risks regarding new borrowings, credits and market position. And these risks are now to be taken by the owner. Again the problem of unnecessary assets appears and banks need to get rid of then, basically on very low prices. In this situation market will have clear advantages of nationalisation, while banks will suffer. In addition, nationalisation is very challenging to the government. It must find labor force and money to finance the process. Future performance of the company also depends on who will be in charge could be government itself or another managing company (Richardson, 2009). In order to avoid afterward problems, other options and decisions must be revised before the final decision of nationalisation. The company must stay efficient and respond to the market and global changes in time. Management must stay open and react quickly in order to avoid critical point. Change Process: Nationalisation of RBS In the beginning it is important to discuss global economic situation which caused problems in RBS and necessity of taking radical directions, including nationalisation. UK banking sector was under pressure of economic crisis 2006-2009 and is still recovering. It all started from the US sub-prime mortgage crisis and reached the rest of the world at the beginning of 2007 with increasing debts. Most of all crisis hit banking sector, central banks and international banks worldwide. As a result the Bank of England had to decrease interest rates, and all banks were under risk of failure (Rayner, 2008). Current crisis was named the worst for the last 75 years with negative effects on many types of businesses and customers expectations (Altman, 2009). During this time period management was facing great challenges, especially risk management. In addition, it is obvious from current crisis practice that risk management can help to win the race and using various models and strategies matters (Varma, 2009). Spreading from United Stated over Europe and UK crisis attacked banking sector. UKs economy is connected to the US through trade and loans and borrowings. As a result of the continuing bankruptcy of banks, some tried to avoid it through help request from government. The first bank that was fully nationalised in UK is Northern Rock, followed by the Lloyds Banking Group with partial control from the government. Some researchers put nationalisation under meaning of rescue, and as a fact not all banks or companies were getting such rescuing package from the UK government. In the case of Northern Rock, decision was made according to the point that this bank is special and its failure can cause growing instability in the UK banking sector (Tomasic, 2008). This also can be true about the Royal Bank of Scotland as it is bank with great history, representing Scottish nation as part of Britain, with its own printed banknotes and heritage. In spite of the fact that many banks across the world were put into critical situation, having choices of selling just assets or banks itself, not many were rescued (Woods, Humphrey, Dowd, Liu, 2009). In the report of the House of Commons Treasury Committee (April, 2008) it is discussed that in October 2008 RBS introduced new plan of rescue with capital amount of 20 billion pounds, however, shareholders were getting unattractive returns and government had to rescue RBS through acquisition of major part of its shares. At that time point nationalisation was inevitable in relation to future life of the RBS. Looking at the managerial problems that caused such consequences it can be pointed that RBSs top management along with its prior Chief Executive, Sir Fred Goodwin was taking over optimistic decisions as well as misunderstanding of the critical situation. Wrong decisions were made due to fast process of the economic worsening in UK and globally. According to Hester, RBS was suffering from great downturn due to prior decisions. In addition wrong risk management strategies that were adopted at that time made even worse, in particular control issues. It seems that RBS had a great balance sheet for a long time period and was not prepared for immediate change. In 2007, RBS made a crucial decision of taking over ABN Amro bank, in cooperation with Fortis and Santander banks, this resulted in RBSs independence of private organization. Acquisition of the ABN Amro was a wrong step to take in the thread of economic crisis which made RBS unable to finish its strategic plan. Newly formed group was defenseless in the worsening situation of market changes (House of Commons Treasury Committee, 2008). The step of huge expenditure, acquiring ABN Amro in wrong time, could have been avoided by managers of RBS. Even more, loss of around 72 billion Euros intensified critical situation. Managerial decisions of this acquisition were made without disclose of credit and asset problems in ABN Amro prior to the deal. In addition, this decision was influenced by shareholders, here 94.5% of them agreed on acquisition and it may appear that they pressed top management to finish the deal. However, RBS directors and top managers agreed about the deal with unanimity. Consequence of this deal is big loss in 2008 of around 30 billion pounds instead of assumed profit. The change associated with acquisition of ABN Amro was a representation of Ansoffs (1987) market development strategy. RBS attempted to expand into the US market geographically and in addition the company attempted to profit from dealing with US mortgage backed securities. However, the failure of the strategy caused the banks to suffer losses and request the help from the government which acquired the shares of the business. The process of nationalisation of the RBS began with basic rescue program. In October 2008, RBS started new strategic program in order to increase capital. One of the solutions was to offer ordinary shares at a price of 65.5 pence per share. The offer consisted shares for 15 billion pounds. HM Treasury has got around 12% for 5 billion pounds and later on around 57.9% of shares were acquired by the Government. Decisions that were made by RBS and Government were directed to the achievement of more stable bank position and additional resources for strength and further capital enlargement. Government and the bank deny that there was a strategy of total nationalisation and when financial position of RBS will be stable, it will again be under private ownership (Webster, 2008). It can be argued that this nationalization is an example of emergent change rather than planned strategy (Whittington, 1993). Emergency was caused by the high dependency of the bank on the inflow of cash for sustaining its operations. Whittington (1993) proposed four basic approaches to strategy. These can be classified as classical, systematic, evolutionary and processual. Classical approach suggests that the companys strategy would be to maximize profit. Evolutionary approach suggests that the environment will select the strongest businesses. The systematic approach suggests that social environment will determine business strategy. The change in RBS is processual because it implies that the company consists of different stakeholders who have their own interests and ambitions. The goal of the management is to satisfy the interest of each stakeholder. If RBS was not nationalized and this changed was not made, the society, employees and even shareholders would suffer negative effects. However, it can be argued that the nationalization might have hurt shareholders even more because the value of their equity has gone down as the share price plummeted. PEST Analysis of RBS The change in the organization connected with the process of nationalization can be reflected in the PEST analysis of the company: Political Factors The Ownership of the bank is changed in favour of the UK government; Bail out was done out of the UK government budget; Support of the government will have positive effects on financial matters; Governments support will cause managers to act in the interests of the government rather than shareholders. Economic Factors Interest rates declined; so demand for lending can rise; Financial Crisis in the UK and the world may further deteriorate performance of the banks and additional capital may be required from the government. Social Factors The change in the bank is also connected with restructuring of the company and lay offs; Rising unemployment is a negative consequence of business failures such as RBS. Technological Factors Technologies are constantly improving and this facilitates the banking business of RBS because some costs are being reduced and the work is being optimised; However, since the ownership of the company changed from shareholders to the government, management will be rather interested in meeting the objectives of the government rather than optimising the work with new technologies. Conclusion Royal Bank of Scotland is now almost entirely owned by British government around 70%. Today, RBS is among first banks to enter new program named asset protection plan. In 2009 RBS had suffered of worst loss of about 24.1 billion pounds and adopted plan of survival. Some analysts point that as the RBS is not fully nationalised it can still face the risks and fail to satisfy investors expectations. As resent investors rate increased with great returns there is number of requests to have RBS fully nationalised (Werdigier, 2009). It is hard to judge whether RBS could have avoid nationalisation in the situation when it is hard to turn back and see other choices. However, there were some managerial mistakes that could have been avoided. Poor change management was not ready to face difficulties and get over them. Besides the acquisition of the ABN Amro that was already discussed, there was another managerial mistake of continuing dividend increase after the change in earnings that were decreasing. Trying to attract new investors with high dividends and please current shareholders, management put the business under risk of failure. After the ABN Amro deal, this, along with unhealthy assets that were not sold in time had lead RBS to the final step of nationalisation. Being attractive for investors and shareholders for a short time period RBS created consequences where investors of the company became most affected by nationalisation. Prior to the crisis RBS was a profitable company with attractive position. Later on there was a decrease of the UK shares market and dramatic drop in RBS share prices. Overall at the point that RBS entered in 2008, nationalisation seems to be the last chance of survival. It can give some extra time to make new strategic plan and to recover from the financial instability. There is still a chance for RBS in the future to become profitable, independent and private company. References Altman, R.C. (2009) The Great Crash, 2008 , Foreign Affairs, January/February [Online]. Available at http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/63714/roger-c-altman/the-great-crash-2008# [Accessed 27 October 2009]. Ansoff, I. (1987) Strategic Management, New York: Wiley Backhaus, J.G., Wagner, R.E. (2004) Handbook of public finance, Birkhà ¤user, pp. 554. Beardshaw, J., Ross, A. (2001) Economics: a students guide, Pearson Education, pp.740. Bradley, J. (2009) ‘RBS tipped for  £1.5bn Profit a Year After Crash, The Scotsman, July 19, [Online]. Available at http://business.scotsman.com/business/RBS-tipped-for-15bn-profit.5473605.jp [Accessed 29 October 2009]. Cuthbert, N., Dobbins, R. (1980) ‘Managerial Participation by Pension Funds and Other Financial Institutions, Managerial Finance, Vol.6, 3: 43-48. Encyclopedia Britannica (2009) ‘Nationalization, [Online]. Available at http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/405796/nationalization [Accessed 28 October 2009]. Financial Ranks (2008) ‘Worlds Largest Banks 2008 Update, [Online]. Available at http://financialranks.com/?p=69 [Accessed 27 October 2009]. Floud, R., McCloskey, D.N. (1994) The Economic History of Britain since 1700 3 volume set, Cambridge University Press, UK, pp.400. Frei, E. (2009) ‘RBS leads 100, London banking sector lower, Finance Markets, September 21, [Online]. Available at http://www.financemarkets.co.uk/2009/09/21/rbs-leads-100-london-banking-sector-lower/ [Accessed 29 October 2009]. Global Crisis News (2009) ‘Royal Bank of Scotland to cut 9000 Jobs, April 7, [Online]. Available at http://www.globalcrisisnews.com/europe/royal-bank-of-scotland-to-cut-9000-jobs/id=775/ [Accessed 29 October 2009]. Hester, S. (2009) ‘Group Chief Executives Review, RBS Annual Report and Accounts 2008, [Online]. Available at http://www.rbs.com/microsites/gra2008/gce_review/index.html [Accessed 27 October 2009]. House of Commons Treasury Committee (2008) ‘Banking Crisis: Dealing With the Failure of the UK Banks, 7th report of session 2008-2009, April 21, [Online]. Available at http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmselect/cmtreasy/416/416.pdf [Accessed 27 October 2009]. Lee, Kam-Hon (2007) ‘Chinese Banking in Asias Market Economies, Marketing Panoramic Review, Vol. 2: 24-26. Montia, G. (2009) ‘RBS to sell asset management business, September 28, [Online]. Available at http://www.bankingtimes.co.uk/28092009-rbs-to-sell-asset-management-business/ [Accessed 29 October 2009]. Murchie, K. (2009) ‘RBS boss fears ‘lost decade, Finance Markets, September 13, [Online]. Available http://www.financemarkets.co.uk/2009/09/13/rbs-boss-fears-%e2%80%98lost-decade%e2%80%99/ [Accessed 29 October 2009]. Rayner, G. (2008) Financial crisis: Stock markets across world fall amid emergency bank rescues, The Telegraph, 08 October, [Online]. Available at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/financialcrisis/3160869/Financial-crisis-Stock-markets-across-world-fall-amid-emergency-bank-rescues.html [Accessed 27 October 2009]. RBS Annual Report and Accounts (2005) [Online]. Available at http://www.shareholder.com/visitors/dynamicdoc/document.cfm?CompanyID=RBSdocumentID=1108PIN=209446200resizeThree=noScale=100Keyword=type%20keyword%20herePage=6 [Accessed 27 October 2009]. RBS Annual Report and Accounts (2006) [Online]. Available at http://www.rbs.com/microsites/gra2006/default.asp [Accessed 27 October 2009]. RBS Annual Report and Accounts (2007) [Online]. Available at http://www.rbs.com/microsites/gra2007/index.asp [Accessed 27 October 2009]. RBS Annual Report and Accounts (2008) [Online]. Available at http://www.rbs.com/microsites/gra2008/index.html [Accessed 27 October 2009]. Richardson, M. (2009) ‘The Case For and Against Bank Nationalization, VOX, [Online]. Available at http://www.voxeu.org/index.php?q=node/3143 [Accessed 28 October 2009]. The Telegraph (2009) ‘RBS expects bad loans to mount in 2009, May 8, [Online]. Available at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/5294644/RBS-expects-bad-loans-to-mount-in-2009.html [Accessed 29 October 2009]. Tomasic, R. (2008) ‘The Rescue of Northern Rock: Nationalization in the Shadow of Insolvency, Corporate Rescue and Insolvency, Vol. 1, 4: 109-111. Varma, J.R. (2009) ‘Risk Management Lessons from the Global Financial Crisis for Derivative Changes, Indian Institute of Management working paper, February, pp. 2-26. Webster, P. (2008) ‘Royal Bank of Scotland under State Control, The Times, October, 13, [Online]. Available at http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/banking_and_finance/article4932250.ece [Accessed 29 October 2009]. Werdigier, J.(2009) ‘Record Loss at Royal Bank of Scotland, The New York Times, February 26, [Online]. Available at http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/business/worldbusiness/27rbos.html?_r=1 [Accessed 27 October 2009]. Woods, M., Humphrey, C., Dowd, K., Liu, Y. (2009) ‘Crunch Time For Bank Audits? Questions of Practice and the Scope for Dialogue, Managerial Auditing Journal, Vol. 24, 2: 114-134.