Key Principles of Economics - 1453 Words

The study of economics is vital as it provides an understanding of how the world works. It is the study of how people choose to use resources to improve their well-being. According to Samuelson (1948) â€Å"Economics is the study of how societies use scarce resources to produce valuable commodities and distribute them among different people.† This paper will outline the 10 key principles of economics. These principles are grouped into the three 3 categories of â€Å"How people make decision†, â€Å"How people interact† and â€Å"How the economy works as a whole and will be presented in that order. The category â€Å"how people make decision† speaks about the principles people use to make decision. Under this category four (4) principles come in play. Principle†¦show more content†¦The same point applies to trade between countries. If countries are relatively more efficient at producing services than certain manufactured goods, they benefit from h aving trading partners who supply those goods. (Transtutors, n.d) Firms decide whom to hire and what to make. Households decide which firms to work for and what to buy with their incomes. These firms and households interact in the marketplace, where prices and self-interest guide their decisions. Principle 6 states â€Å"Markets are usually a good way to organize economic activity.† A market economy is an economic system where prices are determined and resources are allocated through the decentralized decisions of many firms and households (Mankiw, n.d). In a market economy, the decisions about what goods and services to produce, how much to produce, and who gets to consume them are made by millions of firms and households. Firms and households, guided by self-interest, interact in the marketplace where prices and quantities are determined. (Transtutors, n.d). Principle 7 states, â€Å"Governments can sometimes improve market outcomes.† Government must first protect pr operty rights in order for markets to work. If markets fail to allocate resources effectively and efficiently it will result to a market failure. There are two types of market failure; externality and market power. Externality is the impact of one person’s actions on the well being ofShow MoreRelatedEssay about BUILDING A POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL LEGACY OF GAMESCOPE761 Words   |  4 Pagessake of the future generations and this can only be done through environmental sustainability and conservation. In episode five we learn all about building a positive environmental legacy that will benefit the future generations. In episode five the key topics that are discussed include: Defining environmental sustainability. Comparing and contrasting environmental conservation and preservation efforts Explaining how risk assessment could be applied in a given situation. Rationalizing a sustainableRead MoreJohn Stuart Mill And Income Inequality1721 Words   |  7 PagesECON1401 Written Assignment 1 – John Stuart Mill and Income Inequality Many great economic thinkers throughout history has offered various differing yet interrelated views and ideas that may prove useful to the analysis of current issues in modern economics. A persistent issue in the modern economy is income inequality whereby the distribution of income among the population is unequal. This means that the gap between the rich and the poor increases over time if the issue is not appropriately addressedRead More‘Conservatism Favours Pragmatism over Principle.’ Discuss (45 Marks)972 Words   |  4 Pagespaternalistic conservatism very much favours a pragmatic approach. This is the belief that behaviour should be shaped in accordance with practical circumstances and goals rather than principles, beliefs or ideological objectives. 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Finally, through interpretation of Max Weber’s works in Max Weber, Richard Bendix addresses how the Protestant Reformation made way forRead MoreThe Implications to the Pursuit of Prosperity1770 Words   |  7 Pagesgiving rise to industrial innovations and opening vast economic potential. However, by the same token, no one could quantify what factors fulfilled economic potential and public policy positioned itself aimlessly as governments were simply naà ¯ve with regards to economic science. Markedly, it wasn’t until Adam Smith, a Scotsman, published An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations which was released in 1776 that economics could be structured according to the new social environmentRead MoreHistory And Meaning Of Corporate Governance1450 Words   |  6 PagesCorporate governance is a key term to understand and it is increasingly important part of running a successful company. The system has evolved over the years, guided by the challenges and misjudgements of the corporate world. The following guide will help you look into the history and meaning of corporate governance and find out about the core principles of it. You can also read about the key models and guidelines that help companies implement strong corporate governance in the demanding and competitiveRead MoreMicroeconomics And Macroeconomics Of Microeconomics1565 Words   |  7 PagesAbstract Economics is an enormous field. The term economics is the broader term, however within this, there are additional fields such as microeconomics and macroeconomics. The difference between microeconomics and macroeconomics is analogous to the human body and the individual cell that makes up the human body. Macroeconomics is involved with the wide lens aspect of society. In other words, macroeconomics focuses on the broader large scale economy of a society. Macroeconomics focuses on largerRead MoreSocialism And The Economic System1373 Words   |  6 Pagestherefore making it an ideal position in the economic justice debate. In looking into this position we find satisfaction in the answers it affords us. Socialism fulfills the innate responsibility of the government to care for its people. Moreover, aside from fulfilling this responsibility, socialism is the economic system that delivers the highest benefit as applied to the whole. The importance of these answers is that the primary qu estion is how to find economic justice. In socialism, we have our answerRead MoreAustralian Aviation Sector Influences On The Australian Economy And The Tourism Industry1580 Words   |  7 PagesTOUR2010 – Applied Economics for Tourism Economic Issues Report Jessica Thomson S43210338 1.0 Introduction This economic issues report will outline how the Australian aviation sector influences both the Australian economy and the tourism industry. The report will also highlight how the economic issues of employment, fuel consumption and environmental challenges affect the Australian aviation sector and how these issues relate to the economic principles of supply and demand. The report willRead MorePersonal Statement On Business And Public Relations853 Words   |  4 Pagesbusiness courses. I have already taken four business courses and I am currently in my fifth. My first two business courses were Introduction to Business and Principles of Economics. These courses introduced me to business and showed me how to work in a business setting. The next couple classes I took were Principles of Accounting and Principles of Accounting II. In these classes we learned how to analyze a company’s economy and utilize their money to the fullest potential. I am currently taking a

Starbucks Weakness Free Essays

Starbucks, as we all know, are one of the globally popular companies, but like everything else, it has its own weaknesses. Here I will suggest some solutions to help solve the problems faced in their inventory management processes. Starbucks follows the EOQ model, which involves heavy calculations and predictions. We will write a custom essay sample on Starbucks Weakness or any similar topic only for you Order Now Without the formulas and some basic information about the demands from customers, the cost of placing orders, and other variables, the calculation of the EOQ model will not be able to reach its optimal potential. From this, collecting the accurate information for the calculations is vital, the company has to acquire reliable and timely sources. Conveying surveys, searching data online from sources like Google Analytics about the spending behavior, and carrying out research are among the ways to collect vital info from current and potential customers. By doing this, it can help determine the annual demand of the company, which can help solve or at least ease on the uncertainties of demand. Having skilled or experienced employees/ staff is also crucial as they are considered by some are the most valuable assets of a company, which they experience customer feedback firsthand. These ‘customer feedback’ are useful to further improve the customer of said company. Listening to employee feedbacks can also help to execute certain operations, selling products to customers, and how to do things better (Vos 2013, p. 1). Other than that, having good employees that takes charge of the calculation, for example the calculation of the EOQ model, are vital because they are needed to calculate the best possible figures of ordering. Through this, it can help narrow down the EOQ model predictions. Also, they can help predict through experience without completely relying on the calculations. Calculation based on the EOQ model also requires constant set of data. For example, the demand for the year has to be known (which has been covered on the second paragraph on accurate data collection), the cost of ordering has to be same throughout the year and also the lead time must not fluctuate and remains consistent. Having a good supplier can help solve the consistency of ordering cost and also constant lead time (Ready Ratios, 2013). A good supplier will be able to achieve expected results, offering good quality of products and delivering goods on time are among some of the benefits of having a good supplier. Building a good relationship with the supplier will get you more benefits, such as priority as a valued customer, competitiveness (in terms of pricing, quality, reliability ahead of the competition, in this case, Starbucks, is facing), innovation and also product development (Bob Reiss, 2010). Other than that, having good material handling can also help cope with the unpredictable usages or the uncertainties of demand. By having good material handling, the company can improve the efficiency of the production this will save time and indirectly save labor cost as productions run faster. It can also maximize space utilization by storing materials in the way it should, it also can reduce cost by saving on inventory carrying cost which is not properly handled. All of this are necessary to make sure if something goes wrong in the calculation, the loss can hopefully be covered by the savings in material handling, making the loss easier to swallow. Having good transport of goods is also beneficial by having shorter lead time and at the same time transporting more goods are both time and cost saving. Furthermore, keeping a contingency plan at the ready can also help the company in case of unpredictable situations happening, such as natural disasters, shortage of raw materials usually hits us by surprise. So, to keep the company on their toes, to be ready to face emergencies such as this, the company can either keep additional safety stocks, or have another backup supplier from another region to provide with the supplies just to counter the sudden changes and to prevent stock outs to happen. Other than that, the appropriate application of the contingency plan can showcase how the company can utilize and prove to others that the company can manage themselves well, inviting more investors to join in the company. Moreover, advancement of technology plays a part in the inventory management of Starbucks. They can use it to keep track of their inventory much faster and efficient. This allows them to keep track and keep updated with how many units they have. With this said, they can improve their inventory flow and also quickly order materials that are needed for fear that miscalculation happens in the EOQ model which leads to surplus or shortage of materials, with the help of inventory management system (IMS) that Starbucks uses, they can further improve their services and provide better quality products. To wrap things up, to have a successful company, one needs to have more than a capable workforce, it needs to have a blend of luck and some daring decisions to start up something new. For instance, Starbucks Corp. which was founded by a few teachers and their friends, and with a simple idea of a company selling overpriced coffee with decent atmosphere. Who could’ve thought that it could be this successful? References 1. Bob Reiss. (2010).  Build a Good Relationship With Suppliers.  Available: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/205868. Last accessed 15th June 2013. 2. Readyratios.com. 2013.  Economic Order Quantity Model (EOQ). [online] Available at: http://www.readyratios.com/reference/analysis/economic_order_quantity_model_eoq.html [Accessed: 16 Jun 2013]. 3. Vos, L. 2013.  People: The Most Important Asset of Any Company. [e-book] Georgia: p. 1. Available through: Georgia SBDC http://www.georgiasbdc.org/pdfs/vos09.pdf [Accessed: 16 Jun 2013]. How to cite Starbucks Weakness, Papers

Governance Preferences Of Institutional - Myassignementhelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Governance Preferences Of Institutional? Answer: Introduction: The company is not only a social construction but constitutes objectives and expectations of the various stakeholders. Stakeholders besides involving managers and shareholders of the organization also constitute customers, employees, suppliers and other individual or group. The owners of an organization are their shareholders (Huang et al. 2014). The Australian Institute of Company Director (AICD) held the interest of its shareholders above all the organization stakeholders. Directors are appointed by their shareholders to manage their organization. Shareholders invest capital in the organization and receive voting rights in the vital matters of the organization. In small organization, shareholders generally serve as the organization officer and director at a same time. As the shareholders are the real beneficial owner of the company, their interests are the ultimate driver of the organization (Yoshikawa and Hu 2017). The organization bears social responsibility for their shareholder s. Responsibilities of the director towards their shareholders: The major goal of the board of directors is to increase and maximize the value of the shareholders in the long-run. Shareholders values consists the considerations for minority shareholders in the organization. Efficient communication with the shareholders Returning the shareholders profit. Exercise accountability to relevant shareholders To ensure that the communication passed both to and from the relevant stakeholders is effective or not. Promoting goodwill for the organization while supporting the stakeholders. Monitor relations with the stakeholders by collecting and evaluating appropriate information. Strategies: The major strategy of the board of directors is basically based on the required conditions needed for meeting the goal of shareholders value (Boubaker, Derouiche and Nguyen 2015). Making an investment in the business of the company, the shareholders are responsible for assessing their profit return from the investment. The decision made by the board helps in determining their expectations in the terms of profits, dividends and capital growth, which is ultimately reflected by their share price. The basic method of making judgments and evaluating investments about the organization competence in which investment is done helps the shareholders in making comparison with the similar companies. For example, Cadbury Schweppes has over two billion shares from their shareholders and more than 85% are owned by the banks, insurance companies and UK USA institutions (Ciampi 2015). Therefore it is important for Cadbury Schweppes company shareholders trust manager to make efficient decisions and manage the organization to create maximum value on their behalf. Analysis: Benesee holdings proactively or entirely disclose the company information to their shareholders and investors. They provide shareholders relations disclosure tools from the annual report and company websites. The organization practices great relevance on mutual communication with their relationship with their investors and shareholders by promoting various Investor relation activities and maximizing the organization productivity. It is important for the stability of the organization to hold shares. Investors are nowadays having various different organization and options for investment to choose (Eccles and Youmans 2015). If the company in which the shareholders are investing is not producing return for them then it is the right of the shareholders to sell their shares and invest it somewhere else. The sales taking place through large institutional shareholders could further create uncertainty for the companys performance in the near future and can cause the share price to fall. This can limit the organization ability to develop. Therefore retaining shareholders interest can increase their confidence leading to the stability of the organization. The value oriented organization religiously monitors the if the buyers of the company is willing to pay valued premium beyond the companys estimated cash flows for their business units, real estate, brands and various detachable assets (Fich, Harford and Tran 2015). This analysis can fail to exploit the opportunity that can compromise the shareholders value. Kmart is a recent example, an ESL investment, where hedge fund is operated by Edward Lampert and gained the control of the company in less than $ 1 billion and later recoup his overall investment by selling their stores to Home Depot and Sears. Later on, the shares were traded at $30 and in the next year at $100 (Soltani and Maupetit 2015). This created chaos and confusion among the shareholders of Kmart and had to liquidate their entire shares at a distress price. Providing accurate information in a comprehensible manner: It is the responsibility of the directors to maintain the shareholders relations by communicating the business conditions, vision and financial position in a comprehensive and timely basis. The directors should obtain maximum feedback from their shareholders to improve the organization management and hence achieve sustained increment in their corporate value. Recommendation: The board of directors should perform their duties honestly uninfluenced by any fear or impartially. They should recognize the main responsibility to their member as a whole and regard the shareholders interest in the organization. The board should not take inefficient or improper advantages of their position. The directors should lay more emphasis on creating opportunities for dialogues with the shareholders. Therefore, more efforts should be given on vitalizing the shareholders general meeting. Increase the transparency of the shareholders in the General meeting. The directors should avoid their scheduling the General meetings of the stakeholders on all those days when other companies meeting is to be held. In the current times the shareholders should be allowed to exercise their voting rights through the internet. It is the social responsibility of the directors to value their shareholders by focusing on their core competencies to provide efficiency in their organization. For exam ple, McKinsey Co offers free consulting to their shareholders. Conclusion Therefore, it can be concluded that shareholders are the major stakeholders of the organization and the board of directors should lay more emphasis on the retaining the shareholders interest. AICD should make a proper decision regarding the relevance of the corporate stakeholders that includes both the financial stakeholders like bondholders and non-financial stakeholders like the customers, NGOs, employees and suppliers. When shareholders reviews the annual report provided by the company, in which they invested major concerns will be given on the earnings per share, dividend yields, tangible and intangible assets and price/earnings ratio. Hence, it is important for the organization to lay more emphasis on the shareholders interest. References: Armstrong, C.S., Blouin, J.L., Jagolinzer, A.D. and Larcker, D.F., 2015. Corporate governance, incentives, and tax avoidance.Journal of Accounting and Economics,60(1), pp.1-17. Boubaker, S., Derouiche, I. and Nguyen, D.K., 2015. Does the board of directors affect cash holdings? A study of French listed firms.Journal of Management Governance,19(2), pp.341-370. Ciampi, F., 2015. Corporate governance characteristics and default prediction modeling for small enterprises. An empirical analysis of Italian firms.Journal of Business Research,68(5), pp.1012-1025. Eccles, R. and Youmans, T. 2015.Why Boards Must Look Beyond Shareholders. [online] MIT Sloan Management Review. Available at: https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/why-boards-must-look-beyond-shareholders/ [Accessed 16 Jan. 2018]. Elyasiani, E. and Zhang, L., 2015. Bank holding company performance, risk, and busy board of directors.Journal of Banking Finance,60, pp.239-251. Fich, E.M., Harford, J. and Tran, A.L., 2015. Motivated monitors: The importance of institutional investors? portfolio weights.Journal of Financial Economics,118(1), pp.21-48. Fuente, J.A., Garca-Snchez, I.M. and Lozano, M.B., 2017. The role of the board of directors in the adoption of GRI guidelines for the disclosure of CSR information.Journal of Cleaner Production,141, pp.737-750. Garca-Snchez, I.M., Rodrguez-Domnguez, L. and Fras-Aceituno, J.V., 2015. Board of directors and ethics codes in different corporate governance systems.Journal of Business Ethics,131(3), pp.681-698. Huang, Q., Jiang, F., Lie, E. and Yang, K., 2014. The role of investment banker directors in MA.Journal of Financial Economics,112(2), pp.269-286. Li, W., Bruton, G.D. and Filatotchev, I., 2016. Mitigating the dual liability of newness and foreignness in capital markets: The role of returnee independent directors.Journal of World Business,51(5), pp.787-799. McCahery, J.A., Sautner, Z. and Starks, L.T., 2016. Behind the scenes: The corporate governance preferences of institutional investors.The Journal of Finance,71(6), pp.2905-2932. Palmberg, J., 2015. The performance effect of corporate board of directors.European Journal of Law and Economics,40(2), pp.273-292. Soltani, B. and Maupetit, C., 2015. Importance of core values of ethics, integrity and accountability in the European corporate governance codes.Journal of Management Governance,19(2), pp.259-284. Technology, M. 2018.Why Boards Must Look Beyond Shareholders. [online] MIT Sloan Management Review. Available at: https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/why-boards-must-look-beyond-shareholders/ [Accessed 16 Jan. 2018]. Yoshikawa, T. and Hu, H.W., 2017. Organizational citizenship behaviors of directors: an integrated framework of director role-identity and boardroom structure.Journal of Business Ethics,143(1), pp.99-109.

The Townshend Act Essays (564 words) - Massachusetts,

The Townshend Act annon The Townshend Acts` repeal of the Stamp Act left Britain's financial problems unresolved. Parliament had not given up the right to tax the colonies and in 1767, at the urging of chancellor of the Exchequer Charles Townshend, it passed the Townshend Acts, which imposed taxes on lead, glass, tea, paint, and paper that Americans imported from Britain. In an effort to strengthen its own authority and the power of royal colonial officials, Parliament, at Townshend's request, also created the American Board of Customs Commissioners whose members would strictly enforce the Navigation Acts. Revenue raised by the new tariffs would be used to free royal officials from financial dependence on colonial assemblies, thus further encroaching on colonial autonomy. Once again the colonists protested vigorously. In December 1767,John Dickinson, a Philadelphia lawyer, published 12 popular essays that reiterated the colonists' denial of Parliament's right to tax them and warned of a conspiracy by a corrupt British ministry to enslave Americans. The Sons of Liberty organized protests against customs officials, merchants entered into nonimportation agreements, and the Daughters of Liberty advocated the nonconsumption of products, such as tea, taxed by the Townshend Acts. The Massachusetts legislature sent the other colonies a circular letter condemning the Townshend Acts and calling for a united American resistance. British officials then ordered the dissolution of the Massachusetts General Court if it failed to withdraw its circular letter; the court refused, by a vote of 92 to 17, and was dismissed. The other colonial assemblies, initially reluctant to protest the acts, now defiantly signed the circular letter, outraged at British interference with a colonial legislature.In other ways, British actions again united American protest. The Board of Customs Commissioners extorted money from colonial merchants and usedflimsy excuses to justify seizing American vessels. These actions heightened tensions, which exploded on June 21, 1768, when customs officials seized Boston merchant John Hancock's sloop Liberty. Thousands of Bostonians rioted, threatening the customs commissioners' lives and forcing them to flee the city. When news of the Liberty riot reached London, four regiments of British army troops-some 4,000 soldiers-were ordered to Boston to protect the commissioners. The contempt of British troops for the colonists, combined with the soldiers' moonlighting activities that deprived Boston laborers of jobs, inevitably led to violence. In March 1770 a riot occurred between British troops and Boston citizens, who jeered and taunted the soldiers. The troops fired, killing five people. The so-called Boston Massacre aroused great colonial resentment. This anger was soon increased by further parliamentary legislation. Bowing to colonial economic boycotts, Parliament, guided by the new prime minister, Lord Frederick North, repealed the Townshend Acts in 1770 but retained the tax on tea to assert its right to tax the colonies. In order to rescue the British East India Company from bankruptcy, Parliament passed the Tea Act in 1773, reducing the tax on tea shipped to the colonies so that the company could sell it in America at a price lower than that of smuggled tea. The colonists, however, refused to buy the English tea. They viewed the Tea Act as another violation of their constitutional right not to be taxed without representation. Colonial merchants also feared that the act would allow the East India Company to monopolize the tea trade and put them out of business. In Philadelphia and New York City the colonists would not permit British ships to unload tea. In Boston, in the so-called Boston Tea Party, a group of citizens, many disguised as Native Americans, swarmed over British ships in the harbor and dumped the cargoes of tea into the water.

Mee February Sample Torts Essay

Mee February Sample Torts EssayThis month, we're going to discuss what your best bet for a Mee Februrary Sample Torts Essay should be, and how to do it. We'll explore different places where you can find a document that will help you move through your writing process faster, along with some tips and advice that you can use to make sure that your Meefurary sample Torts Essay is an outstanding piece of work.Your first step when writing a Meefurary sample Torts Essay should be to think about who you're going to write it for. Why are you going to write this particular document? What do you hope to accomplish with it?If you're trying to prove a point or present information that you want to include in a post, a deposition, or a judicial proceeding, you need to make sure that the information you present is already public domain. If you're dealing with personal information, such as an old child custody battle or a lawsuit between you and your ex-wife, you might want to make certain that the d ocument you submit to the court is thoroughly signed, and legally binding.When dealing with legal documents, it's really important that you get the signatures of all parties involved. The same goes for real estate documents, wills, deeds, and any other type of legal document that you're dealing with.By looking for a document that you have the proper legal authority to represent you, you're going to be able to have a much smoother time with your assignment. You also have the ability to collect as much evidence and facts as possible, so that you have something solid to take back to your lawyer in order to present to your lawyer. It's a great way to prepare yourself for the things that you need to do when you actually meet with your lawyer.Having a great Meefurary sample Torts Essay is really important if you're hoping to have an excellent outcome from your document. Without solid information to go on, you may end up having your attorney produce an unacceptable result, which is never a good thing.Now that you know where to look for your Meefurary sample Torts Essay, it's time to get started. There are many places online where you can find one for less than ten dollars. If you are serious about becoming a writer, you'll soon find yourself producing quality legal documents.

Symbolism in Millers Death of a Salesman Essays - Free Essays

Symbolism in Miller's Death of a Salesman Essays - Free Essays Symbolism in Miller's Death of a Salesman By: Sam Stillwell Mrs. Carol Hake English 101-503 23 April 2017 Outline Thesis statement: The symbolism of the seeds, the tennis racket, the fountain pen, diamonds and the stockings are all essential for the general concept of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman. In Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller uses common objects as symbols between the main characters in his play. Women's stockings and their holes symbolize the failing relationship between Willy and his wife. Seeds in a garden symbolize Willy's declining sense of self-worth and his need to leave something significant behind after his death. The tennis racket Willy observes when he chats with Bernard in Charley's office is a symbol of Bernard's success and Biff's failure. Finally, the fountain pen is a symbol of the burden Willy's son Biff carries as he tries to live up to his father's image even though he never wants to inhabit that role. Linda is always sewing her old stockings to fix their holes. The holes resemble the things in her life that are broken. Willy gets frustrated with Linda when she tries to fix the old stockings; he feels she should throw them out. He says: "Will you stop mending stockings? At least while I am in the house. It gets me nervous. I can't tell you. Please" (75). Willy's reaction to the sewing suggests the guilt he feels for having an affair - he gave a pair of Linda's stockings to his mistress. To Biff, who witnessed that transaction, stockings represent betrayal and deep hurt. "You-you gave her mama's stockings" (121). Biff becomes aware that his father is messing around with another women and becomes very emotional. It almost seems that the stockings are the reason for Biff's anger. It also important note the new stockings are important for Willy's pride in being financially successful and thus able to provide for his family. The seeds that Willy constantly talks about throughout the entire play are very significant to him. Seeds represent for Willy the opportunity to prove the worth of his labor, both as a salesman and a father. Willy is afraid when he dies he will have nothing to leave his family. Willy thinks that when he dies that there will be no one to put food on the table, so the vegetables are his attempt of doing so. Throughout the play you can notice Willy is always talking about the seeds and seems as if he is in a rush to plant the seeds, I think that is because every time he talks about seeds he is closer to the time he plans to commit his suicide. The seeds also symbolize Willy's sense of failure with Biff. Willy planned on raising Biff to be a smart salesman, but Biff got into trouble for stealing and Willy blames himself for raising his son, in what he thinks is the wrong way. The fountain pen symbolizes dishonesty and greed in the business world. After Biff steals the pen and he is on the stairs, he thinks to himself that he doesn't want to be in the same position as his dad and be unhappy and miserable in his life. Biff comes to understand that the American dream only creates emptiness and frustration. The fountain pen also stands for a changing point for Biff and he returns the pen to the office and leaves. You can see this because at the end of the play Biff wants to reconcile with his dad and not argue like they always do. Especially since Biff already knows about his father's affair with the mistress, he does a good job of changing his attitude and keeping cool. "Every time I've left it's been a fight that sent me out of here" (128). This just simply shows that Biff and Willy constantly get into fights and Biff wants to actually change that. "The Jungle is dark but full of diamonds" (85). The diamonds are the second biggest symbol in this play. Ben rubs the diamonds in Willy's face throughout the play. Willy is frustrated because he doesn't have any tangible evidence to show for his achievements in sales, while Ben can physically show his diamonds off.

8 Quick Tips for Writing Under Pressure

8 Quick Tips for Writing Under Pressure You have 25 minutes to compose an SAT essay, two hours to write a final exam paper, less than half a day to finish a project proposal for your boss. Heres a little secret: both in college and beyond, most writing is done under pressure. Composition theorist Linda Flower reminds us that some degree of pressure can be a good source of motivation. But when worry or the desire to perform well is too great, it creates an additional task of coping with anxiety (Problem-Solving Strategies for Writing, 2003). So learn to cope. Its remarkable how much writing you can produce when youre up against a strict deadline. To avoid feeling overwhelmed by a writing task, consider adopting these eight (admittedly not-so-simple) strategies. Slow down.  Resist the urge to jump into a writing project before youve thought about your topic and your purpose for writing. If youre taking an exam, read the instructions carefully and skim all the questions. If youre writing a report for work, think about who will be reading the report and what they expect to get out of it.Define your task.  If youre responding to an essay prompt or a question on an exam, make sure youre actually answering the question. (In other words, dont dramatically alter a topic to suit your interests.) If youre writing a report, identify your primary purpose in as few words as possible, and make sure you dont stray far from that purpose.Divide your task.  Break down your writing task into a series of manageable smaller steps (a process called chunking), and then focus on each step in turn. The prospect of completing an entire project (whether its a dissertation or a progress report) may be overwhelming. But you should always be able to come up with a few sentences or paragraphs without panicking. Budget and monitor your time.  Calculate how much time is available to complete each step, setting aside a few minutes for editing at the end. Then stick to your timetable. If you hit a trouble spot, skip ahead to the next step. (When you come back to a trouble spot later on, you may find out you can eliminate that step altogether.)Relax.  If you tend to freeze up under pressure, try a relaxation technique such as deep breathing, freewriting, or an imagery exercise. But unless youve had your deadline extended by a day or two, resist the temptation to take a nap. (In fact, research shows that using a relaxation technique can be even more refreshing than sleep.)Get it down.  As humorist James Thurber once advised, Dont get it right, just get it written. Concern yourself with getting the words down, even though you know you could do better if you had more time. (Fussing over every word can actually heighten your anxiety, distract you from your purpose, and get in the way of a larg er goal: completing the project on time.) Review.  In the final minutes, quickly review your work to make sure that all your key ideas are on the page, not just in your head. Dont hesitate to make last-minute additions or deletions.Edit.  Novelist Joyce Cary had a habit of omitting vowels when writing under pressure. In your remaining seconds, restore the vowels (or whatever you tend to leave out when writing quickly). In most cases its a myth that making last-minute corrections does more harm than good. Finally, the best way to learn how to write under pressure is . . . to write under pressureover and over again. So stay calm and keep practicing.