Structure, methodologies and approach towards employee satisfaction and motivation

Structure, methodologies and approach towards employee satisfaction and motivation The case study traces over Volkswagen, (South Africas) organization overview highlighting the structure, methodologies and approach towards employee satisfaction and motivation. The entire backdrop of the case study is about Volkswagens internal organizational behaviour, management practices and their effective implementation. In this context, the assignment is focussed initially on the innovatory measures suggesting right direction to retain workforce allegiance and devotion towards an organization. Volkswagen is amongst the few organizations believed to produce world class automobiles, and stands out distinguish, hence the responsibility and related degree of expectations are higher. Considering the competitive environment, todays employee is intelligent yet demanding and hence it has become more complicated to meet their target expectations. The management of VW (SA) is diligently engaged to resolve the issues pertaining to employees financial stability, professional progression, compensations and benefits, challenging and highly equipped surrounding. In extension to this the company has tremendously transformed its cultural values. The introductory part elaborates the management and organizational behaviour practices of VW (SA), discussing the primary objectives, present situation and future prospects determining specific goals. Employee motivation is essential to keep progressive functioning of an organization. The intermediate portion of the assignment is emphasized on the significance of employee incitement and motivational procedures by discussing four substantial theories of workforce motivation and critical analysis of Volkswagen (SAs) initiatives towards employee motivation strategies. The later part concentrates on the importance of co-workers to amalgamate and function as a single unit. Team work introduces a healthy culture that values collaborative efforts and the team firmly believes in thinking, planning, discussing, deciding and functioning to gether with cooperation. Team efforts with positive attitudes and correct path are inevitable to succeed. Critical discussion is based upon the conceptions and innovative ideas by which VW (SA) can ensure their teams to produce efficient synergy and higher productivity. TABLE OF CONTENTS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. Introduction 1 2. VW (SAs) Management Organizational Behaviour 1 2.1 Overview 1 2.2 VWs Behavioural Management Practice 1 (i) In Context of Behavioural Management Theories 2 2.3 VWs Organizational Environment Practice 2 (i) In Context of Organizational Environment Theories 3 3. Motivation 3 3.1 Theories of Motivation 4 3.2 Analyzing VWs Employee Motivation Strategy 5 (i) Structuring Remuneration Package and Benefits 5 (ii) Stipulating Fundamental Equipment 6 (iii) Leadership Training and Development 6 (iv) Open Lines of Communication 7 (v) Professional Content and Indemnity 7 (vi) Company Values 8 (vii) Service Excellence Culture 8 4. Definition of a Proficient Team 9 4.1 Team Contribution to Enhance Productivity 9 (i) Credence on the Leadership 9 (ii) Solidarity of the Members 10 (iv) Articulate Objective 10 (v) Colloquial Ambiance Group Participation 10 (vi) Dissolving Perplexity 10 (vii) Constructive Criticism 10 5. Methods to Ensure VWs (SA) Labour Efficiency 10 5.1 Appropriate Selection 11 5.2 Specifying Codes of Conduct 11 5.3 Establish Substantial Goals 11 5.4 Praise and Appreciation 11 5.5 Developing Sense of Direction 11 5.6 Building Team Spirit 11 5.7 Employee Empowerment 12 6. Conclusive Remarks 12 7. Bibliography 13 8. Appendices 14 (i) Appendix A 14 (ii) Appendix B 14 (iii) Appendix C 15 Page # 1 1. INTRODUCTION: Modern global world is comprised companies and enterprises having highly skilled, knowledgeable, sophisticated and decisive workforce, with dramatically increasing role. Organizations performance and productivity is directly influenced by the commitment and loyalty of its employees. Todays competitive professional atmosphere has compelled the attention of the organizations to apprehend the significance of employee retention and thereby constrained them to develop strategies tailored to fulfil employee satisfaction. The sustainability of an organization is subjected to the overall periphery and circumstances which affect its growth and development. The exemplary employee oriented culture represents correct environment, challenges, individual development, recognition and accurate motivating artifice. Reconciliation of effective leadership and consistent workforce while applying the positive attitudes and correct mind set accounts for higher productivity of an organization. 2. VW (SAs) MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR 2.1 Overview: Volkswagen of South Africa was established in 1946, and is owned subsidiary of VW Aktiengessellschaft (VWAG) in Germany, located in Uitenhage. VW group is the worlds fourth-largest automobile manufacturer, and the largest car producer in Europe, consisting eight brands and operates 44 manufacturing facilities found in 12 European and 6 other countries in the Americas, Asia and Africa. Being aware of its prestigious affirmation in the automotive industry, the organization is focused and consistently engaged to heighten its profile. In order to achieve the desired level of productivity, internal and external customer satisfaction and indemnification has to be prioritised. VWs brilliant strategy makers have apprehended the situation and are continuously involved in developing policies for the inducement of employees to ensure their retention. 2.2 VWs Behavioural Management Practice: Employee positive or negative interaction with its organization and its management is based on the level of satisfaction. An individual is motivated to work proficiently when given appropriate Page # 2 work environment with sufficient equipment. The behaviour at work is directly affected by the overall atmosphere, the relationship with co-workers, job conditions and requirements, the remuneration package and professional stability. The management must habitually practice to evaluate and address constructively the needs and demands of its employees to gain satisfactory and productive employee behaviour. (i) In Context of Behavioural Management Theories: Behaviour analysis is the study of individual interaction with the environment and management of such behaviour is an essential element characterised to produce direct effect on the profitability of an organization. The frustrating behaviour of an employee is a clear indication of the system failure as the general workers behaviour is the reflection of the management policies. Sound policies addressing employees needs including job security, peaceful atmosphere, stipulated necessary equipment, equality and professional progression is more likely to produce the breed of workforce essential for an ongoing productive organization. Mary Parkers behavioural management theory focuses on the fact that influential leadership is the key to motivate employees and for that assessment of their job improvement capacity will benefit. A Hawthorne study highlights the importance of observing the frequency of behaviours and their outputs. An immediat e feedback on performance with sufficient information for self correction is necessary to improve functioning. VWs approach towards team building session is appreciable and is in correct direction. However, employees of today are not restricted to information instead willing to participate, share and discuss their own views and creative ideas for implementation. The worker is aware of the strengths and weaknesses relevant to the job and is the one who has excessive knowledge and command over it and hence knows how to control and improve the task. 2.3 VWs Organizational Environment Practice: Workforce of an organization is essentially compelled to work within groups where behaviour of employees may vary according to the relevant circumstances, work conditions physical or mental state. Provided the situation the environment of an organization is rooted in the behaviour of its employees. Organizational environment must be friendly, supportive and constructive by allowing the management and the common employees to discuss and share their opinions. Page # 3 Progressive organizations are inclined towards building excellent work status and valued atmosphere for their workforce in order to attain desired results. (i) In Context of Organizational Environment Theories: An organization is comprised of a group of people and resources brought together essentially for interaction and conscious coordination to acquire a common purpose or an objective. The survival of an exemplary environment is subjected to its equilibrium. There are several processes ongoing simultaneously within an organization and the major difficulty is with proposing any change of structure because once the structure is developed it deters to adapt to environmental changes. Understanding the difference between formal and informal communication becomes a difficult task for leadership. The organizational environment theories underline the internal and external relationships; external resources serve as inputs which are further processed into goods and services resulting in finished outputs in the environment. An open system is usually interacts with the environment while the closed system is self centred and usually fails to be a ccepted. VWs management is consistently working to develop a culture of excellence where freedom of speech, informal interaction, and service quality meetings can be carried out as casual practices. The concept is commendable yet challenging. The contingency theory emphasizes that the management must be flexible to react to environmental changes. Modern and technological organizations have likelihood to alter the conventional procedures rapidly, so the management must adapt to change with positive attitudes. There can be mechanistic structured organization where management is centralized at the top monitoring its employees and is stable, on the other hand organic structure of an organization is decentralized and reaching out to employees with a lesser control. Sound environment guarantees the motivated and efficient employees and leads to the higher productivity of the organization. 3. MOTIVATION: There could be a single or a set of reasons for human behaviour, engaged in certain activity for the desired outcomes, the ground for such activity is referred as Motivation. Every individual has needs and specific goals and human life is engaged in satisfying those needs and to acquire the desired goals. To attain the sense of fulfilment and feeling of achievement can be the prime motivating factors. Motivation refers to the initiation, direction, intensity and persistence of Page # 4 human behaviour Geen, (1994). Human nature can be simple yet too complex at the same time. Understanding of human nature is a pre-requisite for effective employee motivation which accounts for higher productivity. Regimentation of aims, purpose and values amongst the staff, teams and organization is the most fundamental aspect of motivation. The better the alignment and personal association with organizational aims, the better the platform for motivation. Work organizations offer a degree of satisfaction for an individual which may include financial support, social engagements, mental and physical challenges, self development, and sense of belonging and intellectual stimulation. It is said to believe that Best businesses have the best motivated workers. It has been observed that the overall productivity of an organization is increased with highly motivated employees in comparison to the organization with poorly motivated workers. 3.1 Theories of Motivation: Motivation theories are the combination of needs, inducement, goals and reinforces. Need Hierarchy Theory was put forth by Abraham Maslow, which is one of the most highly acclaimed and widely mentioned theories of motivation. He envisioned human needs according to a hierarchical structure of importance, from the lowest to highest, highlighting the five basic physiological needs, sense of security, social drives, self esteem and need of self actualization. The management must pay huge amount of attention to the needs of employees and as the needs may vary from individual to individual, hence it is essential to implement an efficient system to evaluate employees necessities and furnish feasible solutions. Herzbergs two factor theories in accordance with Maslows theory, proposed an idea that certain factors such as challenging work, responsible position and sense of recognition may contribute as prime motivators but on the other hand certain factors including desired salary, fringe benefits and appropriate environment, if absent may result as de-motivators. According to his theory as multiple goals and benefits serve as precursor of motivation, probability of de-motivation arises when perks and privileges do not exist. Page # 5 Hawthorne experiments of Elton Mayo focused on incentives, pay-cheques and financial satisfaction to be the primary motivation factor. People are motivated by pay and work conditions at higher level. Furthermore he believed that attitude of people at work are highly influenced by the groups and work environment. His theory concluded that human relations and the social needs of workers are crucial aspects of business management. Mc Rogers theory heavily emphasized on two basic kinds of managements which he categorised in Theory X and Theory Y. The management which falls under Theory X is believed to have a negative approach towards the employees considering them untrustworthy and incapable. Theory Y addresses the kind of management having faith in their employees and thereby recognising their needs positively. He concluded that managers view of the human nature is based on a certain grouping of assumptions and tends to mold their behaviour towards subordinates according to these assumptions. Numerous theories has been put forth addressing the benefits and moral value of an altruistic approach to treat colleagues and workforce as human beings and respecting their dignity in all its forms, developing a phenomenon to understand that people can never be forced to work, they will work positively only if they want to or otherwise if they are motivated. It has been observed that when an obvious likelihood is establ ished between performance and reinforcement, it leads to and maintains high levels of motivation. 3.2 Analysing VWs Employee Motivation Strategy: VW is a German manufacturer of automobiles which is the third largest car producer of the world. The name by itself indicates the value for people as Volkswagen stands for peoples car in German, (more literally, folks wagon). Within the past few years the intricacy and dynamics within and outside organisations have drastically altered. In this context, it has become prime concern of organisations to carry out future-oriented, active development which pursues an elementary goal i.e., Stand out as a winner. The organization must propose additional benefits for employees, clients and stakeholders because only then will its culture, values and products be responded to with commitment and interest. (i) Structuring Remuneration Package and Benefits: Volkswagen approach towards pay and benefits is commendable as it involves market research Page # 6 and salary surveys. There is a continuous effort behind structuring the salary packages and fringe benefits. However, there is an important aspect slightly ignored during the practice which is to involve the workforce by itself to comment on the remuneration structure thereby, visualising the basic needs and desires within the employees which in-turn will serve as a helping tool for developing effective payroll strategy by keeping in view of employees physiological needs as everyone desires to be financially secure. Payroll must be structured such that the income level of an individual well addresses the living standard. Pay scale must be determined by analysing qualification, experience and skills of the employee and must be reviewed according to the efficiency level as reported by the relevant department. While rewarding high performers, average and below average performers might feel neglected hence it is essential not just to recognise the efforts by high performers but to issue certificate of participation and non-monetary rewards to the rest, recognising their contributions and to keep them within the string. (ii) Stipulating Fundamental Equipment: Ceaseless review of the budget for essential materials and equipment is highly recommended. Necessary equipment is a pre-requisite as it enhances the work efficiency and performance level of employees thereby promoting professional satisfaction and rewarding appreciation. In absence of the required material it is imbecilic to expect efficient service by the workforce. It is appreciative that essential equipment can be furnished in accordance to a specific budget but smart management plan keeps control of the equipment handling and propose for a budget review where necessary. (iii) Leadership Training and Development: Leadership training is vigorous only when sensibly articulated into the corporate culture with its positive intents and values. Development of a leader is only focused upon an individual personal attributes, behaviour and approach whereas, leadership development is emphasized on the process unfolding interpersonal relationships, social influence process and team kinetics amongst leader and the team at the conjugation level. Volkswagens strong organizational structure do not require just managers but crave for smart leadership which is essential for workforce motivation and infusing energy in the team members. True leadership is what an ordinary employee will look up to, in order to comply with effectiveness and efficiency. A dynamic leader supports Page # 7 trains and develops his personnel, while increasing job satisfaction and genuine interest to do the job, within his team. Trusted leaders are likely to produce splendid motivating spirits.To keep people motivated, you need to display dynamic leadership, and make they feel they are working with you and not for you. Corelli (iv) Open Lines of Communication: Employees feel confident and equally responsible when they believe they are trusted. It stimulates a sense of incitement within the employees, resulting in a propitious work environment. If a supervisor or team leader approaches the workplace with a positive, upbeat attitude about the work projects, that enthusiasm should transfer to associates, thus creating a better work environment for all. Leaders and supervisors, who are serious about maintaining a productive work environment and motivating their staff to do their best, need to talk with the associates to find out what is important to them. For example, some associates may not appreciate public forms of recognition, while others will. Howell, (2000) (v) Professional Content and Indemnity: Highly trained and seasoned employee is an asset to a company. Remnant of todays face paced work environment is the increasing rate of job churn or employees switching one job to another within short time frames. Employee turnover is costly, causing workforce instability, reduced efficiency, lower effectiveness, and negative impact of the company. There could be variety of reasons in the background explaining the boredom, frustrated, discontented and least interested behaviour of the employees. Another important aspect is the lucrative job offers which tend to satisfy the needs and basic requirements but in some cases employees are looking for more than just compensation and rewards and are more inclined towards their visions and challenges. The underlying cause might differ due to the fact that humans act, think, behave and respond differently in accordance with the relevant circumstances, however, the issue remains unchanged. Volkswagen as one of the giants in the automobile busine ss world is relentlessly involved in figuring out possible solutions to this emergence. In order to retain employees it is required to offer a package that satisfies financial, intellectual and the career aspirations of an individual. Page # 8 (vi) Company Values: The value of a company represents culture, shared beliefs, attitudes, institutions, and behaviour patterns that characterize the members of an organization. Values of a company naturally emphasize continuous improvement of processes, transformation into a healthy workplace, satisfied customers, and a growing, profitable business. The level of employees commitment to their work is closely linked with the extent to which the company values are practiced. Ensure that the values of the company are strongly understood and equally treasured by the management and individual employee. Demonstrate professionalism, respect, integrity and duty as the core values of the company. According to a key quote of Harvard Business Review Companies that enjoy enduring success have core values and a core purpose that remain fixed while their business strategies and practices endlessly adapt to a changing world. (vii) Service Excellence Culture: Volkswagen is amongst the very few organization which thinks through, work diligently and proactively to create the culture that will allow the company to succeed long term. Culture is the distinctive personality of the organization which indicates its strength, by which it understands the needs of the workforce and affects the value created for the customers. Therefore, organizations make effort to understand what motivates their workforce and give them what they need to perform well by providing them clear mandates, operating principles, resources, authority, knowledge, and tools so they can fulfil their responsibilities to bring out the best of their talents and recognize by rewarding them in ways they value. Volkswagen is among such high calibre companies demonstrating successful conceptual thinking and with the ability to see patterns among seemingly diverse phenomena and thereby strengthening their employees and motivating them with positive attitude. An effective organisationa l culture enables a two way process to occur where employees help to influence the direction of the corporate values system, through their individual beliefs and approaches they adopt. A service excellence culture is that which develops a sense of responsibility and achievement together within employees, recognising their contributions and considering themselves as an integral part of the overall reputation and success of the company. Motivation can either produce profitability to an organization or improve productivity if it is Page # 9 positive, on the other hand if employees are de motivated it is more likely to reduce profit margin and will hinder overall productivity. The core vision is to encompass human behaviours, needs, attitudes and demands, as machines can operate according to the desired level and mostly produce accurate results, but considering where human beings act as a major workforce it involves a thought process based on mutual understanding in between the management and the employees. It is highly recommended to understand associates yearn and necessities and fulfilling them to some degree and thereby motivating them to produce desired results in the best interest of the organization. The summation accounts for the fact that if appropriate motivation level is maintained within an organization, the management will gain productive associates. 4. DEFINITION OF A PROFICIENT TEAM A bunch of individuals possessing particular expertise, collectively working to attain a common purpose or goal; by collaborating and consolidating their knowledge and actively participating in healthy discussions. The essence of a team work is togetherness and the success lies within its concrete leadership, which accounts for the productivity of an organization. It is well addressed that When you break down barriers, misunderstandings, prejudices, insecurities, divisions, territories and hierarchies you begin to build teams. 4.1 Team Contribution to Enhance Productivity: Firm belief in the reliability and trust upon the honesty of the members are the prerequisites of a productive team. The level of cooperation and understanding builds strong bondage between individuals. Every member of an efficient and productive team is open to support and encourage the co-workers for the completion of required task. Following are the characteristics by which teams can contribute effectively in the success of an organization. (i) Credence on the Leadership: It is essential that a high level of trust and confidence is present within the team members upon the leadership. True leader make sure that each individual of the team is equally supported, respected, privileged and heard. The amount of patience and credible efforts for keeping the team members within a string enhances acceptance and faith of the members which results in high performance. Page # 10 (ii) Solidarity of the Members: Every team member must actively participate to explicitly discuss the team procedure and functioning to attain a common goal or a sole objective. The entire team tends to share mutually agreed approach, mechanics, norms, expectations and rules to follow. The unity of team pledge for its success. (iii) Articulate Objective: The team must set clear and focused objectives and translate into well-defined concrete milestones against any measured obstacles. Larger goals and objectives are easily accessible followed by a habit of practicing a series of small wins. (iv) Colloquial Ambiance Group Participation: Environment to function effectively as a team requires being informal, homely and comfortable enough for each member to open lines of communication with ease, but must remain pertinent to the purpose of the team. This encourages bringing about creative ideas and unique concepts and gives equal freedom of speech to all. Another important aspect is that the team members become easygoing with each other and believes that everybody is equally heard and respected. (v) Dissolving Perplexity: Where there is freedom of speech confusions and disagreements are most likely to occur. Agile and intelligent teams welcome disagreements and complexities to test their brilliance and understanding. Reasons are carefully examined and a midway is figured out to resolve the issues. In case of an opposition to a general agreement, an apparent consensus is practiced for a fair outcome. (vi) Constructive Criticism: Healthy and positive criticism is highly appreciated as it provides pivotal grounds to review and evaluate critical decisions. Criticism must be arbitrary and benefaction oriented toward removing an obstacle that is hindering the way of a team to achieve goals. 5. METHODS TO ENSURE VWs (S.A.) LABOUR EFFICIENCY Intellectual management serves as a catalyst to amplify work level and overall performance of the apprentice. Volkswagen approach towards reducing maximum doing from their teams is exceptionally good. However, there are multiple measures which can add value to the existing strategy of the organization to ensure high degree of performance and matchless effectuation. Page # 11 5.1 Appropriate Selection: While selecting a candidate it is ideal to analyse the qualities complementing the job nature. Selection must be based on the relevant skills, a blend of technical, problem solving and interpersonal skills account for effective performance. A right set of people at the right place on the right time are the key for a successful team and productive organization. 5.2 Specifying Codes of Conduct: Identifying rules is necessary for developing focus, receptivity, commitment and trust. Rules must be well-defined and strictly governed without discriminating position and genders. The most crucial rules may pertain to attendance, behaviour, confidentiality, contributions, positive confrontation and end product orientation which must be set as a code of conduct. 5.3 Establish Substantial Goals: The basic starts from the fact that each and every team member has a task to achieve. It is necessary to make every individual believe that the team has significant purposes and tasks and there is high level of expectation associated with their performance. There must be a sense of worth associated with the tasks apart from being easy or difficult. A strong team is build when every member knows that they are a vital part of a significant accomplishment. 5.4 Praise and Appreciation: This is a natural urge within human beings to be praised and rewarded upon successful completion of a project or a great accomplishment. Intelligent organizations never ignore this fact and develop strategies to encourage their workforce by appreciating their efforts. 5.5 Developing Sense of Direction: This is another important aspect of team building to develop sense of direction amongst the members. The team leader or the manager must efficiently distribute tasks and provide sufficient guidance by defining responsibilities and adopting clear direction towards the common goal. 5.6 Building Team Spirit: Assign performance oriented small tasks that will allow the subordinates to grow and take on additional responsibilities. The idea generated by such challenging but achievable goals is not limited to overall productivity but to evaluate the Page # 12 mobility of potential team. This will in return enhance the spirit of the team and build an effective bond of togetherness. 5.7 Employee Empowerment: A strategy which enables employees to decide for themselves is worth giving as it develops a sense of responsibility and helps them to take charge of their work and learn from their mistakes. It is a reliable process for enabling people to contribute effectively in the continuous improvement and ongoing success of the organization. 6. CONCLUSIVE REMARKS Positive and reinforcement and correct motivational strategies are the compulsion of modern organization in which employees are completely aware of their rights and understand the significance of their roles in the productivity and profitability of an organization. The growth level heightens when the structure of the organization is concrete and is based upon specific values and contemporary culture, where an employee is empowered and actively participating in the progression of the company. Volkswagen (South Africa) has successfully managed to develop a progressive atmosphere and the management has understood the need to focus on retaining employees loyalty and commitment. The efforts and strategies of the company towards maintain their internal environment is tailored with excellence and absolu

Steven Spielberg said about ‘Saving Private Ryan’ that, “I wanted to put chaos upon the screen’

Writing for a film magazine, analyse the methods used to make the opening battle sequence both shocking and realistic and comment on ho successful you think he was in meeting his objective. â€Å"I wanted to put chaos upon the screen. I wanted the audience to feel the same way as those green recruits that were just off those Higgins boats and never seen combat before. Ninety-five percent of them hadn't. It was complete chaos†. Internationally acclaimed by critics and audiences alike, Steven Spielberg's ‘Saving Private Ryan' is an unforgettable film that has profound and lasting impact throughout the world. Winner of five time academy awards including Best Director. ‘Saving Private Ryan' was first released on September 11th 1998 as a joint production of DreamWorks and Paramount pictures. Seen through the eyes of a squad of American troops, the story begins World War Two's historic and unforgettable D-Day landing then moves beyond Omaha Beach, as the eight American troops embark on a special, emotional but dangerous mission. Captain Miller must take his men through a journey like never before to find one man, one private, Private James Ryan, whose three brothers have been killed in combat. Spielberg enlisted the help of Tom Hanks (Captain Miller), who is best known nowadays for his astounding performance in The Da Vinci Code. Tom Sizemore (Sergeant Horvath), Edward Burns (Private Reiben), Barry Pepper (Private Jackson), Jeremy Davis (Private Upham) and Matt Damon (Private Ryan). Contributing to the height of realism Spielberg took an almost documentarian approach to filming. He refused to do any storyboarding prior to shooting, and using hand held cameras much of the time. † I wanted to hit the sets much like a newsreel cameraman following the solders into war†. Throughout the film Spielberg demonstrated the magnificent use of the hand held cameras, maybe the most remembered of these is the first battle scene, that we see when the American troops land on Omaha Beach. Unlike this film, other films of the war genre always seemed to follow the same concept, which was there always seemed to be a glory-figure, the one who always survived right till the end and lived happily ever after. He wanted break the convections of war emphasizing the sense of realism as much as he could. I think the realism is not showing people dying, blood and gore, to me realism shows the emotion of people, those families who lose two, three and even four children, in combat. It shows the devastation of not only solders but innocent people who lose their lives because of other peoples decisions†. In my eyes this film does show realism and how war effects people mentally and physically, and how you can be the most experienced solder or a new solder that has never seen war before and still the effects are the same. Saving Private Ryan' lasts for a remarkable time, of two hours and fifty minutes, the film takes the audience through travesty and triumph and through death and despair. Death, we see a lot of through out the film and blood and gore so if you haven't got a strong stomach I suggest that you don't watch this film. The question that I asked myself while watching ‘Saving Private Ryan' was yes, people are dying because it is war, but for what reason? To maintain your countries status, or to fight the fight that you should not be fighting. This film in my opinion challenges you, and lets you think for yourself, even though this film is just a mimic of what really happened and we know this, you cannot help to think that it's real (watching the action as though it is happening at the present time). We as an audience get emotionally attached to the characters, as we see then through the good times and the bad. Spielberg did this well. But my main reason for writing this review is to focus on the opening scenes, which are the most catastrophic, and highly effective scenes of all. So did Steven Spielberg (also the creator of other box office sensations which include Jaws 1975, Raiders of the Lost Ark 1981 and Jurassic Park 1993) manage to live up to this main aim and did he really succeed on putting â€Å"chaos upon the screen†? I am going to start by analyzing the opening scene, which the idea of the transition of present to past takes place. We first hear classical music which in, and the image of a translucent American flag, blowing in the breeze. Then it passes and the film begins with a selection of characters, all we hear is the very faint music and the sound of the ocean. There is no speaking, this often makes the audience concentrate on the body language of the characters because sometimes, you can tell more on how the character is feeling not by speech but by the emotion that comes through by the characters body language. We see an elderly man maybe in his late 70's leading them, as he stumbles along the path (we as an audience do not yet know that the old man is Private James Ryan). As the camera pans out we see an American and French flag, this gives us a clue to where we are. As it turns out we are in Collevile-sur-mer, Normandy France. Spielberg uses pathetic fallacy here, as we can hear the sea more, as it becomes more aggressive this could reflect the old mans feelings he might be anxious, nervous or even apprehensive. As the camera gives us a long shot from above we begin to see a white sea of headstones. Dramatic music begins to play, and increases in volume as more headstones are reveled. In my opinion the music reminded me of military music, the kind of music that would be played at a funeral of a past solder, a piece of evidence that backs that up is we see a man dressed in full military uniform, standing by one of the graves. So these two suggestions suggest that we are at the graves that we are at are something to do with past solders, and as we are in Normandy, France were part of the Second World War took place, it makes sense. Then we see another mid-shot of the graves and the old man. After walking down a few rows, the emotional man falls to his knees at the foot of a grave almost in a position that you might be honoring someone, he starts to cry. As an audience we feel for this unknown character but we are not entirely sure what is happening. This scene because it is shot in the present the color is vibrant. The camera zooms in to the old mans blue eyes, (suggesting that we are going into one of his memory's) this is called a detailed close up, where the camera focuses on one part of the body to show a specific emotion, and can often make the character appear isolated and detached from everybody else. Then the sounds of crashing waves dominate the scene, and it drowns out the sound of the music, and here we are now taken from present to past. The scene establishes a connection between the elderly man in the graveyard and D-Day. The date and setting are established a mood of fear and tension is created. The audience is given a cursory introduction to the some of the main characters. This scene leaves us too more unanswered questions than answered. Then, a flashback takes the audience and the character back to landing at Normandy on D-Day. All this film is just simply just a memory of Private James Ryan. Now the transition from present to past has taken place, we first see a deep focus shot of Omaha Beach with iron hedgehogs both in the foreground and stretching into the background. We then see from a long shot of the boats as they approach shore. About ten American soldiers in a Higgins boat waiting anxiously, again there is no talking it is all silent all but the sound of the boat and the crashing of the waves, creating tension. The long shot then cuts to a close up of Captain Miller's hand shaking this is a recurrent image, as we see this shot many times through out the film. And we also get close up shots of soldiers terrified expressions. When the boats to finally come ashore your ears are dominated by the sound of constant gunfire, which add to the confusion and devastation. Many solders are killed within seconds of leaving the boats. These soldiers act like pawns in a game of chess, there is no way that they are going to survive they in my opinion they are meant to be killed so the other solders have a chance of surviving. There's medium close up shots of solders being killed. The camera then switches up above, there is an over the shoulder shot of a German so the audience sees the battle from there perspective. Which gives a sense of power to the Germans and a sense of hopelessness to the Americans. But isn't war supposed to be fair? The Americans from their view look like pin pricks on a map; this makes the audience feel like the Americans are fighting a lost cause and this indicates the immense difficulty of the mission. So the various perspectives (German and American) give the overview of the carnage. As soldiers plunge into the sea the camera follows them, giving the audience yet again their perspective as they struggle both below and above the surface. The sound becomes muted, the sound of water fills or ears, this takes us back to what Spielberg said he that wanted us to experience war just like the soldiers. The use of handheld cameras in the battle sequence increases and emphasizes the impact caused and makes the opening scene very lively and this makes us, the audience feel part of the action as if we were making our way around the beach with the troops. † I wanted to hit the sets much like a newsreel cameraman following the soldiers into war†. Spielberg in this part of the film uses desaturated colour in contrast with the vibrant colour in the opening scene. It gives the effect that we are in a memory and in the past, looking back on events that have already taken place. It is just all, instant chaos. Another important aspect of the opening 24 minutes is Captain Miller's confusion. As Captain Miller stagers out the bloody sea. He stumbles and falls. We looks up at witnesses the chaos and around him. As we see the fear in his eyes even through he is an experienced soldier it can still effect a experienced soldier the same as a new soldier just coming into war. This is another point that Spielberg wanted to get across was you never get used to the turmoil, and watching people die before your eyes. It's still the same experience over and over again. Also the fact that if you did manage to survive it was only by luck. There is then an over the shoulder shot of Captain Miller, this shows the audience what war looks like from his perspective. The camera it is not at standstill it is all jerky and shaky because it was a hand held camera. As Captain Miller tips bloody water out of his helmet and replaces it making him look blood-splattered. As muted sound accompanies the slow motion, but the disturbing explosions can still be heard in the background. The facial expression of Captain Miller's shows true fear. His eyes show the question, why are we doing this, is there a point? The sound returns as a General shouts for instructions. Captain Miller finally pulls himself together and he resumes his responsibilities. All of this has it's effects on the audience as we are plunged into the horror of the D-Day landing at Omaha Beach, and we see Captain Miller and experience the senseless carnage through his eyes. Although not a raw recruit he is nevertheless shocked beyond belief. And we as an audience are given an insight into the true horror of war. As the end of the battle finally comes, it comes as a relief to the audience after the exhausting twenty minutes or so of loud gunfire and just immense no stop action. We are struck by the enormity of the event that has just taken place. We then get a close up of Captain Miller's hand shaking, as I said earlier this is a recurrent image. Then the camera zooms to a close up of his eyes again showing the audience his viewpoint. Gentle music quietly fades in. The waves sound peaceful after the prolonged noise of chaos and destruction. Also the melancholy music adds to the solemnity of the images. As Captain Miller rests Sergeant Horvath comments, â€Å"That's quite a view†, a sentiment that is echoed by Miller. This is not however referring to a nice view but a shocking and breathtaking view of the beach. As the camera rises and slowly pans to the left we begin to see the whole of the beach covered in dead bodies, and the scarlet water flowing feely. Then finally zooms on this one mans backpack of one soldier – Ryan. The final shot showing the name ‘Ryan' on the backpack of one of the fallen soldiers establishes a link between the sequence we have just seen as well as both the title and the plot of the film. So did Steven Spielberg fulfill his main aim for ‘Saving Private Ryan' which was â€Å"I wanted to put chaos upon the screen â€Å". In my eyes as a reviewer of ‘Saving Private Ryan' he did fulfill that aim, he showed from start to finish a sense of realism, and broke entirely away from the traditional convections of the film war genre. He used magnificent camera angles, which contributed a lot to the film as a whole. This film keeps you on the edge of your seat, and guessing what is going to happen next. I think the opening sequence prepared the audience for what followed because the horror in the opening scene and the devastation that you see is the same that you see, or even worse than through out the whole film. I would recommend this film if you want a film with a moral, and a meaning. But the one main issue that I had watching this film is the time it lasts for two hours and fifty minutes, so you do have to be dedicated to watching it from the start. The way that I would watch it is with the family on a Friday night with popcorn and a box of tissues. I would give this film a rating of 7/10, the main reasons why I didn't give 10/10 is because for me personally it was to gory, it lasted to long and I didn't have the patience, and it was one of those films that you would watch once and then never watch it again because there would be no need.

Harrison Bergeron Essay

Kurt Vonnegut’s fictional society adopted the theories of Social Contract and Social Justice to establish a new social and legal order. The people amended the constitution to attain equality for all. With the amendments, they created laws to make a uniform citizenry out of their people and in the process stripped them of their individuality. These laws were also intended to make them think and act alike which was their idea of equality. As to who is benefited from such extreme version of social control depends on whose viewpoint it was coming from. Despite their unrestricted freedoms no one was ultimately benefited in this kind of system. It was no guarantee of peace and absolute control, as in the case of Harrison. His physical and mental states were no match for the handicaps. Once both powers were unleashed and unrestrained what resulted was a blending and coordination that produced a beautiful symphony of dance and music. It was symbolical of the good things that can happen or that can be achieved if we let our natural gifts, talents and skills work for the common good. There can be unity in diversity and peaceful co-existence may be possible. In a controlled society as this fictional one, there were no norms, values, and culture that may identify them. For norms, values and culture were what will set them apart. This was a robotic society where the norms were that which are forced upon them because of the handicaps some were made to wear. Acceptable norms were absent because the standard (equality) was built into the system. In effect one had a common standard to follow in which to comport oneself, no less and no better that the others. There was only one value that stood, no one was above the other in appearance and in the treatment he gave and he got. Culture should define who and what this society was, but what would make it truly unique? There was nothing neither appealing nor interesting in it because everything went against the natural ways of man. People followed rules not out of their volition. How were they to know the good was turning bad, and worse was turning worst, if something in their brains signaled a censure. This restraint was basically against their good and benefit, but they had no choice but to obey what was programmed in their system. Once, this was a society that had reached the extreme end of the balance with their all-out freedoms and unchecked rights of individuals. The situation had reached unmanageable proportion that they had to resort to dramatic crisis control which brought them to the other extreme end by way of the encroachment on their rights and freedoms. This society took not only the people’s freedoms but their right senses as well. In what they figure to be the correct moves to effect change, their agitation towards a freak of nature was alarming, like when â€Å"some things about living weren’t quite right †¦ April not being Springtime† (Vonnegut, 1961). Law and society have interchangeable attributes. Law may change a society and society may change the law. In the case of Harrison Bergeron, society had made 3 amendments to their constitution out of desire for and necessity to change. They wanted to regulate and curb freedoms to a comfortable magnitude. The change in the law made this society a strictly tempered one. Lawyers and the legal system do not have a place in this society anymore. The Handicapper General proceeded to punish without trial law breakers. The only crime that can be committed was taking one’s handicaps off and that did not need investigation and defense. The crime and the criminal are self-evident. The fictional society does not have any direct similarities in today’s time. However, the inference to the curtailment of freedoms is plenty. When a society does not allow an artist to express his heart in his art, the Harrison Bergerons to criticize the government which should be for, by and of the people, and ease the fear of ordinary citizens, they are the translations of Vonnegut’s transgressions of freedoms in his fictional society. Instead of seeking for equality in the extreme, working with diversity might be the better option.

Link Between Social Networking Sites And Depression Among...

For this research proposal, I would study the link between social networking site Facebook and depression among older adolescents around the age of 18 and 20. For this proposal, I will look at four scholarly articles, proposal three research questions and have three hypotheses for my research questions based on how social networking sites like Facebook use correlates with a decrease in mood and increase in depression. Literature Review The first article is an article by Lauren A. Jelenchick, Jens C. Eickhoff, and Megan A. Moreno (2012). They evaluated the use of social media networking site Facebook its association with depression among older adolescents. Older adolescents’ ages range from 15 to 20. According to the American Academy of†¦show more content†¦Overall, Jelenchicks et al. (2012) study found no significant association between social networking sites like Facebook and depression. In an article by De Choudhury, Gamon, Counts, and Horvitz (2013), they evaluated the language on social media sites like Facebook that people use as well as the emotions people associate to Facebook. Some of the emotions and language De Choudhury et al. (2013) indicated in their study that people might have used in their â€Å"post† are feelings of worthlessness, guilt, helplessness, and self-hatred. De Choudhury et al. (2013) findings were â€Å"individuals with depression show lowered levels of social activity but showed greater negative emotion, high self-attentional focus, increased relational and medicinal concerns, and heightened expression of religious thoughts.† However, this study did not look at the potential harm of social media and the impact of trauma on an individual. Similarly, Lin and Utz (2015) found in their study that when news or posts appear from a strong tie, a strong and close relationship, that mood is contagious; positive news leads to happiness and negative news leads to sadness. Lin and Utz (2015) noted that there has been no empirical research done on the role of strong ties and the interpretation of one’s emotional response prior. Lin and Utz’s (2015), findings show that the closer the tie and relationship the happier Facebook