Humana Health Incorporation

Introduction Humana Incorporation has managed to position itself optimally within the US healthcare insurance industry. The firm’s success hinges on the acknowledgement and implementation of best management practices. One of the issues that the firm has emphasized over the years relates to marketing.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Humana Health Incorporation specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In its operation, the firm faces significant challenges arising from the dynamic nature of the healthcare industry. This paper evaluates a number of issues associated with Humana Incorporation operation such as its business level strategy, marketing strategy, and financial position and strategy, production and purchasing strategy, among others. Business level strategy Development of competitive strategy is very important in a firm’s effort to succeed in its operation (Harvard Business Review, 2011). Hoskisson (2 008) asserts that business-level strategies are concerned with how a firm intends to develop a high competitive advantage relative to its competitors. When formulating business-level strategies, the firms’ management teams should take into account their core competencies, resources, and capabilities. Additionally, a firm should take into account the goods and services it deals with and its target customers coupled with how it distributes when formulating business-level strategies (Hill Jones, 2007). In its domestic market, Humana Incorporation faces intense competition from two main health insurance companies, viz. Aetna and Cigna. The lucrative nature of the US health care industry has motivated Aetna to incorporate diversity as its business level strategy in order to achieve continued growth.Advertising Looking for essay on health medicine? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The firm recognizes the importance of integr ating diversity in all its operational spheres (Aetna, 2010). On the other hand, Cigna has adopted differentiation as its business level strategy in an effort to achieve its objective of becoming the industry leader. The firm focuses on specialty and individual products and introduction of new healthcare products (Manders, 2008). Marketing strategy In its marketing practices, Humana Incorporation has integrated the concept of market targeting. The firm has identified different market segments, which have enabled it to formulate different healthcare policies. Some of the firm’s target customers include the government and employers. Additionally, the firm has also targeted institutional customers such as Medicaid and Medicare companies. The firm also appreciates the fact that customers are conscious to price. Therefore, the firm has incorporated price discounts in its premium pricing strategy and thus its competitiveness within the healthcare industry has increased. In an effor t to create sufficient market awareness, Humana Incorporation has integrated different marketing methods such as telemarketing. The firm also conducts direct marketing in an effort to promote its sales using its large sales force. Financial position and strategy The firm has managed to nurture a healthy financial position given its asset records. On June 30, 2012, the firm’s assets with regard to cash equivalents, investment in securities and cash amounted to $13.53 billion.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Humana Health Incorporation specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This represents an increment with a margin of $285 million or a 2% increase from its previous level of $13.25 billion on 31 March 2012. By the end of its 2nd quarter in 2012, the firm’s total assets amount $ 20.9 million while its total liabilities amounted to $12.4 million. This shows that the firm has a sufficient working capital (Hum ana Inc., 2012, p.18). Given its increase in earnings during the 2nd quarter of 2012, the firm has managed to lower its debt-to-capitalization ratio with 30 basis points. The firm has also managed to improve its cash flows during 2012. During its 2nd quarter of 2012, the firm’s operational effectiveness resulted in an increment in its cash flows, which amounted to $706 billion compared to $161 billion during the 2nd quarter of 2011. The firm has also managed to increase its stockholder’s equity from $ 8.063 during 2011 to $ 8.455 in 2012 (Humana Inc., 2012). The firm’s financial strategy is to increase its financial strength The organization’s production and purchasing strategies In an effort to satisfy its customers, Humana Incorporation has incorporated effective production and purchasing strategies. The firm has a procurement department that is charged with the responsibility of ensuring that it offers high-quality services to its customers. The firm p urchases its products from different suppliers (Christensen, Allworth, Dillion, 2012). Over the years, Humana Incorporation has managed to develop a strong client-vendor relationship. The firm’s success is greatly dependent on the quality of the products purchased.Advertising Looking for essay on health medicine? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In its purchasing strategy, the firm categorizes its products into four groups, which include facilities, services, supplies, and equipments. The equipments relate to security systems, telecommunications, furniture and telecommunication. Facilities relate to leasing, management, janitorial services, architects, and building maintenance. On the other hand, services include advertising and media, legal, printing, translation, marketing and relocation while supplies relate to medical and pharmaceuticals and general office (Humana Inc., 2012). Humana Health Incorporation The firm’s management team appreciates the fact that its success is greatly dependent on its ability to serve its customers. As a result, Humana Incorporation has integrated a comprehensive recruitment strategy. The strategy entails sourcing for employees both internally and externally. The objective is to enable the firm have a strong human resource base. Humana Incorporation also appreciates the fact that its e ffectiveness in providing healthcare insurance policies is dependent on the prevailing public healthcare policy. Through its human resource department, the firm is concerned with ensuring that the government offers effective healthcare plans. In line with its corporate responsibility, the firm has devised a number of strategies that clearly define its commitment towards serving its members, associates, the society, and the world at large (Humana Inc., 2012) Humana Incorporation SWOT Analysis Strengths One source of the firm’s strengths revolves on its resources, core competences, and capabilities. Over the years, Humana Incorporation has managed to develop a strong financial base. This aspect has contributed to the firm’s success with regard to dealing with financial challenges associated with health care insurance. For example, at times the forecasted insurance cost is less than the actual insured medical cost; consequently, the firm has to seek other sources of fina nce in order to cater for the deficit. Based on its rich financial resources, Humana Incorporation has managed to deal with such challenges. During its 2nd quarter of 2012, the firm’s accumulated revenue amounted to $9.70 billion, which was a 4% increment from its 2011 revenue of $ 9.28 billion (Humana Inc., 2012). To meet its customers’ healthcare needs, the firm has developed a broad product portfolio. Consequently, the firm has managed to nurture a high level of customer satisfaction. In an effort to be competitive, Humana Incorporation appreciates the importance of market communication. Koekemoer (2004) asserts that marketing communication is critical in influencing the target market. The firm has adopted emerging Information Communication Technologies (ICT) to attain efficiency and effectiveness in market communication. An example of such technologies entails development of a web portal known as the Physicians’ Online, which enables customers to obtain pres criptions online. Humana Incorporation has managed to attain a higher competitive advantage compared to its competitors due to its commitment with regard to new product innovation. The firm’s innovativeness has also led to its success in controlling prices. The firm achieves this goal by developing effective cost analysis models. The firm’s capabilities are associated with its ability to avoid risk by developing effective underwriting criteria. The criterion enables the firm to assess whether to cover a particular health risk or not. With regard to core competencies, the firm can identify possible acquisition targets. Ultimately, the firm can undertake different acquisitions. Weaknesses Humana Incorporation has not been successful with regard to geographical reach. This aspect has limited the firm’s ability to increase its membership levels, which arises from the fact that only a few customers can access the firm’s services. Despite implementing emergin g technologies, the firm’s competitiveness with regard to technology is limited by the fact that most of its competitors have also implemented similar technologies. One of the firm’s major customers is the military. However, the firm is not very effective with regard to bidding. Therefore, there is a high probability of the firm losing contracts from the government during the bidding process. Opportunities Currently, Humana Incorporation operates in only 18 states (Parnell, 2009). By formulating and implementing an effective globalization model, Humana Incorporation can expand geographically. The firm will attract a large number of customers due to its attractive and diverse health plans. Its success in attracting new customers is enhanced by the fact that it has a strong sales force in addition to its ability in implementing innovative marketing plan. The ultimate effect will be an increment in the firm’s sales revenue hence its profitability. Over the past d ecade, the US government has increasingly become concerned with the healthcare of its senior citizens and more senior citizens are being incorporated in the government’s healthcare plans. Humana Incorporation can take advantage of this market opportunity by designing healthcare plans that will appeal such potential customer groups. To capture this customer group, Humana Incorporation should formulate an effective marketing scheme. Currently, the US healthcare industry is characterized by a high rate of consolidation (Hammaker Tomlinson, 2011). This aspect presents a unique market opportunity to Humana Incorporation. Considering its success in acquiring small healthcare firms, Humana Incorporation will expand into new territories. Additionally, acquisition will improve the firm’s ability to serve its increasing membership levels. The firm’s innovativeness also presents an opportunity to the firm for it can attract new customer categories by developing new health care products. Threats One of the risks relates to the occurrence of economic recession, which may adversely affect its income level for a recession would negatively affect the consumer’s purchasing power and hence their ability to purchase insurance covers. The high rate of technological innovation in an effort to offer customer high quality healthcare services poses a threat for the firm for such innovations will lead to an increase in the cost of medical care. The firm’s success is also threatened by the fact that its competitors are increasingly considering entering its geographical territory. Incorporation of such strategies by competitors will lead to a decline in the firm’s profitability to increased rivalry. The competitors are imitating Humana’s business model to penetrate its geographical market successfully. This move will likely culminate in price wars unless the firm undertakes continuous innovation. Humana Incorporation has previously exp erienced lawsuits by clients. Some of these lawsuits have not been resolved yet. As a result, the unresolved lawsuits may have adverse effects on the firm’s sales revenue and profitability (Pozgar, 2008). Emergence of new diseases and medical conditions such as H1N1 poses a threat to the firm in offering healthcare insurance for such conditions may lead to occurrence of medical crises (Scutchfield Keck, 2003). Strategic alternatives Humana Incorporation should continue focusing on its current business model. The firm should incorporate the concept of backward vertical integration to increase its membership. The firm should utilize its core competencies with regard to acquisition. The firm should study the environment in order to identify potential customer categories to increase its membership level. Pros and cons of strategic alternatives By focusing on the current business model, the firm will nurture a strong relationship with its current customer categories. However, this move will limit the firm’s ability to grow its membership level. Growing its membership level will contribute towards the firm increasing its profitability. However, this aspect will result to growth in the degree of complexity in the firm’s effort to deal with numerous policies, for example in the event of health crisis. Similarly, backward vertical integration will lead to increased complexity in managing the various medical policies designed to cater for the diverse customer needs (Swayne, Duncan Ginter, 2008). Utilizing its core competencies will facilitate the development of new business lines. Conclusion From the analysis conducted, it is evident that Humana Incorporation’s success hinges on effective implementation of various functional, marketing, and business strategies. Therefore, the company has managed to grow a strong financial base. However, it is paramount for the firm to consider the abovementioned strategic alternatives to succeed in the f uture. Reference List Aetna: Demonstrating social responsibility and integrity. (2010). Web. Christensen, C., Allworth, J., Dillion, K. (2012). How will you measure your  Life. London, UK : Harper Collins Publishers. Hammaker, D., Tomlinson, S. (2011). Health care management and the law:  Principles and applications. Clifton Park, NY: Cengage Learning. Harvard Business Review. (2011). HBR’s 10 must reads on strategy. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review Press. Hill, C., Jones, G. (2007). Strategic management theory: An integrated  Approach. New York, NY: Cengage. Hoskisson, R. (2008). Competing for advantage. Mason, OH: Thomson. Humana Inc: Humana reports second quarter 2012 financial results. (2012). Web. Koekemoer, L. (2004). Marketing communications. Lansdowne, SA: Juta Academic. Manders, M. (2008). Healthcare: Strategy and growth. Web. Parnell, J. (2009). Strategic management: Theory and practice. Mason, OH: Cengage. Pozgar, G. (2008). Legal aspects of health care administration. Mason, OH: Jones Barlett Learning. Scutchfield, F., Keck, W. (2003). Principles of public health. Cliffton Park, NY: Thomson. Swayne, L., Duncan, J., Ginter, P. (2008). Strategic management of health  Care organization. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. This essay on Humana Health Incorporation was written and submitted by user Kaliyah S. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Free Essays on Kantian Ethics

Kantian Ethics If philosophy should serve as an instrument of guidance for implementing our own morality, than Kant presents the driving factor as rationality behind such moral distinctions. In The Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morality, Kant states that there is no need to perceive whether moral law should be truly regarded above everything else, for it is only the goodwill that has the absolute moral worth that needs not to be validated. Kant further argues that since this truth is omnipresent in humanity, then it is humanity’s innate duty to adhere to it, no matter how strong inclination may tempt us. Kant concludes that since it is the moral law to which all beings are bound, the foundations of moral law depends exclusively on a priori knowledge, and not upon empirical or anthropological grounds. With Kant’s basis for argument concentrated on how actions are determined by a binding moral law, the distinction between what may be regarded as an action of moral worth should be made to understand how a deviation from the innate rationality of morality may occur. An action, according to Kant, only displays moral worth if this action is taken out of respect for the moral law and the necessity to follow the maxim, with no influence from any inclinations. For example, a shopkeeper can make many different choices of action to depending on what motives he relies on to determine whether to sell a child candy for a fair price. He can choose either to sell fairly or not to sell fairly, but it is whether his inclinations have influenced these motives for acting which determines whether his action has moral value according to Kantian theory. The shopkeeper may ignore to follow the moral law altogether andz+. charge the children for more than the rightful choice, guided by an irrational decision to follow his desire to make more money. According to Kant, if the shopkeeper chooses this action he is immoral, his action is of n... Free Essays on Kantian Ethics Free Essays on Kantian Ethics Kantian Ethics If philosophy should serve as an instrument of guidance for implementing our own morality, than Kant presents the driving factor as rationality behind such moral distinctions. In The Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morality, Kant states that there is no need to perceive whether moral law should be truly regarded above everything else, for it is only the goodwill that has the absolute moral worth that needs not to be validated. Kant further argues that since this truth is omnipresent in humanity, then it is humanity’s innate duty to adhere to it, no matter how strong inclination may tempt us. Kant concludes that since it is the moral law to which all beings are bound, the foundations of moral law depends exclusively on a priori knowledge, and not upon empirical or anthropological grounds. With Kant’s basis for argument concentrated on how actions are determined by a binding moral law, the distinction between what may be regarded as an action of moral worth should be made to understand how a deviation from the innate rationality of morality may occur. An action, according to Kant, only displays moral worth if this action is taken out of respect for the moral law and the necessity to follow the maxim, with no influence from any inclinations. For example, a shopkeeper can make many different choices of action to depending on what motives he relies on to determine whether to sell a child candy for a fair price. He can choose either to sell fairly or not to sell fairly, but it is whether his inclinations have influenced these motives for acting which determines whether his action has moral value according to Kantian theory. The shopkeeper may ignore to follow the moral law altogether andz+. charge the children for more than the rightful choice, guided by an irrational decision to follow his desire to make more money. According to Kant, if the shopkeeper chooses this action he is immoral, his action is of n...

IT Project Implementation Failures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

IT Project Implementation Failures - Essay Example The major indicators of the failure in the project implementation are: a. One of the major reasons that affected the failure of the project could be that the project ran out of budget to be controlled. An initial project plan was designed with the budgeted requirements needed for the implementation of the project. But in course of time while the project was in progress it was observed that there was huge drainage in fund and this caused a major impediment to the progress of the project. One reason for the failure of the CPOE system was that the project overran the budgeted requirement. (Wager, Lee & Glaser, 2009) b. Another most important factor, which literally led to the failure of the project, could be the time overruns. When the initial outlay of the project is designed a time period is also determined which is recognized as the deadline for the implementation of the project. But in case of the CPOE project it was observed that lack of proper system planning and designing led to creeping up of a large number of issues during the progress of the project. This led to severe delay in the implementation plan of the project. The project, which was divided in several modules, started to get delayed when problems started creeping up in implementing each module.

The Effect of Direct Effect on Directives Essay

The Effect of Direct Effect on Directives - Essay Example The new regulations of European Union Law now state that the European regulations that have been framed in accordance with the provisions of the new European treaties have a direct effect upon all citizens of the European Union and on the laws that are made by the member states of the Union. This principle was first laid out by the European Court of Justice in the case of Van Gend en Loos v Nederlanse Administratie der Belastingen1. In this case, the Treaty of Rome was at issue and the ECJ ruled that individuals could take action against a State for breaching EU rules, since the new treaty grants rights and imposes obligations on individuals. According to the ruling laid out in this case, European Community regulations were also valid when tried in the national courts, because the regulations were similar to the national laws in that they had a similar effect upon an individual’s rights and responsibilities. Therefore in effect, the Court has ruled that a new legal order has b een created. The Direct Effect creates individual rights which the domestic courts must protect without needing to resort to the States concerned, since EU law took precedence. This is known as the â€Å"vertical direct effect† of Treaty articles. A â€Å"horizontal direct effect† was laid out in the case of Defrenne vs Sabena2, wherein provisions of EU law were directly applicable in a domestic court, in proceedings by an individual against a Company. This has affected the application of internal laws within each of the European member States. By virtue of the Direct Effect, member States are now obligated to comply with Community Law as it has been framed according to European laws within the framework of their own internal laws.

The Effect of Attack ads on political campaigns Research Paper

The Effect of Attack ads on political campaigns - Research Paper Example Attack ads focus on ‘the faults of the opponent’ (Frith & Mueller 2010, p.59). Advocacy ads refer to the capabilities of a candidate, without referring to the opponent (Frith & Mueller 2010, p.59). As for the contrast ads, these are a combination of the above, referring both to qualities of a candidate and ‘to the faults of his opponent’ (Frith & Mueller 2010, p.59). Two popular political ads are the following ones: a) the ad entitled as ‘Daisy Girl’ was used in the presidential elections of 1964 (Roberts & Hammond 2012, p.5). The above ad, which aimed on causing fear to voters in regard to the potential effects of their voting preferences, showed ‘a small girl plucking the petals off of a daisy’ (Roberts & Hammond 2012, p.5). The next scene showed a nuclear explosion (Roberts & Hammond 2012, p.5). Voters were asked to avoid voting the nominee of Republican Party who could possibly ‘lead the country to a nuclear war’ (R oberts & Hammond 2012, p.5); b) another popular attack ad is entitled as ‘the 3am phone call’ (Roberts & Hammond 2012, p.5) and was used by Hilary Clinton in the presidential elections of 2008. The particular ad, which can be characterized as a policy comparison ad, aimed to highlight the lack of experience of Barack Obama, compared to Hilary Clinton, in facing emergent issues. The ad entitled as ‘Daisy Girl’, as presented above, has faced strong criticism. Many political analysts did not accept the fact that one of the candidates of the presidential elections was portrayed as a strong supporter of piece, referring to Johnson, while the other was characterized, referring to Goldwater even if he was not named, as a supporter of war... Moreover, Frith & Mueller (2010) notes that political advertisements can be classified into three categories: ‘attack, advocacy and contrast’ (Frith & Mueller 2010, p.59). Attack ads focus on ‘the faults of the opponent’ (Frith & Mueller 2010, p.59). Advocacy ads refer to the capabilities of a candidate, without referring to the opponent (Frith & Mueller 2010, p.59). As for the contrast ads, these are a combination of the above, referring both to qualities of a candidate and ‘to the faults of his opponent’ (Frith & Mueller 2010, p.59). Two popular political ads are the following ones: a) the ad entitled as ‘Daisy Girl’ was used in the presidential elections of 1964 (Roberts & Hammond 2012, p.5). The above ad, which aimed on causing fear to voters in regard to the potential effects of their voting preferences, showed ‘a small girl plucking the petals off of a daisy’ (Roberts & Hammond 2012, p.5). The next scene showed a nuclear explosion (Roberts & Hammond 2012, p.5). Voters were asked to avoid voting the nominee of Republican Party who could possibly ‘lead the country to a nuclear war’ (Roberts & Hammond 2012, p.5); b) another popular attack ad is entitled as ‘the 3am phone call’ (Roberts & Hammond 2012, p.5) and was used by Hilary Clinton in the presidential elections of 2008. The particular ad, which can be characterized as a policy comparison ad, aimed to highlight the lack of experience of Barack Obama, compared to Hilary Clinton, in facing emergent issues.The ad entitled as ‘Daisy Girl’, as presented above, has faced strong criticism. Many political analysts did not accept the fact that one of the candidates of the presidential elections was portrayed as a strong supporter of piece, referring to Johnson, while the other was characterized, referring to Goldwater even if he was not named, as a supporter of war (Sparks 2012, p.223). Such perspective could n ot be accepted since the candidate who promoted this attack ad.

The Language And Gender Sociology Essay

The Language And Gender Sociology Essay Language, gender and society are three complex and closely interwoven terms that I will attempt to explore in this chapter. The question of whether language reflects or shapes the social life and consequently gender relationships and expectations is a central one which I will also attempt to tackle. In other words, is it language which transmits gender thoughts, beliefs and actions? Or, conversely, does language determine men and womens relationships and behavior? Is it possible to define language as a naÃÆ' ¯ve mirror translating the social and cultural reality? Or it is the norms, traditions and values that introduce a basis for the creation of any language? Does society define women and mens language, choices and action? Or it is simply the interaction between language and society which gives birth to gender stereotypes and sexist language? The answer to these questions will help us understand how men and womens space, speech, perspectives and choices are both determined and reflected by language. There are so many questions that I would like to answer and examine in this chapter, but will not be able to answer them all. Instead, I will try to highlight some important notions related to the subject. For example how do the socio-cultural factors interact with language in order to determine men and womens relationships in society? Why and how is gender deemed to be an important and powerful component in social interaction? How does its influence go beyond peoples thoughts, attitudes and beliefs? How can society explain the learning and maintenance of gender? How is gender negotiated in language and across cultures? How does the social construction of society shape women and mens personalities in terms of social roles, expectations, language choice, traditional beliefs and so on? The aim of my work will basically be to explore the importance of both language and society in determining and reinforcing female and male differences in speech (form and content), beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. The emphasis will be on how gender is negotiated and represented in language and society, and how the linguistic form may reflect and shape the social and cultural conditions under which women and men live. Language, a product of society, is considered to play a significant role in human interaction; the human being, language and society are an interwoven texture. (Bennouiss, 2001:20). Accordingly, society is conceived to be the mold which shapes people through determining not only their behavior, but also their identity. Society controls individuals through gendered practices, which are defined as a social process created and renegotiated in interpersonal relationships and encouraged and maintained through social interaction (Weatherall, 2002: 85). Therefore, gender is considered to be social because it connotes all the complex attributes ascribed by culture (s) to human females and males (Lott Maluso, 1993: 99). One may conclude from the two quotes that gender is used by society as a basis or a support to the socialization of both females and males, and is also maintained by social and cultural forces. Gender issues and stereotypes seem to be universal. They are heavily rooted in history and through the social and cultural life, which has a strong influence in defining the individuals identity, behavior, role and occupation. All societies consist of men and women who use language in the interaction of everyday life, and develop ideas and thoughts about how women and men should think and act in relation to social norms. Therefore, it is believed that gender is socially constructed and is reinforced by cultural forces; however, gender contents may differ across cultures. Beall (1993: 131-132) argues that across cultures, ones biological sex does not necessarily imply that one will engage in certain activities or that people will believe that one possesses certain attributes. She goes on to say that some cultures perceive more than one gender, and cultures vary in their beliefs about the nature of males and females (1993: 134). This means that cultures are rich and curiously different from each other. Womens beliefs and actions in Morocco are different from womens thoughts and behavior in England, even if sometimes it seems that British women are not so different from the Moroccan unveiled women in physical appearance. However, there are many variations concerning their ways of thinking and acting. In the Muslim society, boys are given more independence and freedom, and are expected to achieve or occupy different roles and positions. The difference between the two sexes in terms of appearance, behavior, role, and occupation is very much strengthened and encouraged by the traditions, the customs and the habits of the Moroccan society, whereas in the British context, norms and traditions are transgressed, and modern ideologies present men and women as equals in all life spheres. Besides, the authority or dominance of one gender over another is not practiced openly anymore. In other words, the strength and activity differences between the male and female stereotypes are greater in socioeconomically less developed countries than in more developed countries. It also tends to be greater in countries where literacy is low and the percentage of women attending the university is low (Best Williams, 1993: 227) although in many cases, the education people receive in school and universities does not mean that they are not influenced by gender stereotypes. In short, there is a lot to be said about the universality of gender prejudice. Class, education, religion and geography all play a part in determining subtle differences and peculiarities, some of which this work aims at revealing. First, some claims: 1) Men interrupt women more than vice versa. 2) Women are more communicative than men. 3) Men do not give verbal recognition of the contributions in the conversation made by women. 4) Men curse more than women. 5) Women gossip more than men. 6) Women talk more with one another than men do. 7) Men speak more comfortably in public than women. Gender and sex Sex: a biological condition, i.e. defined as a set of physical characteristics Gender: a social construct (within the fields of cultural and gender studies, and the social sciences) Today a return to separate single-sex schools may hasten the revival of separate gender roles Wendy Kaminer, in The Atlantic Monthly (1998) General usage of the term gender began in the late 1960s and 1970s, increasingly appearing in the professional literature of the social sciences. The term helps in distinguishing those aspects of life that were more easily attributed or understood to be of social rather than biological origin (see e.g., Unger Crawford, 1992). Linguistic origins of Gender According to Aristotle, the Greek philosopher Protagoras used the terms masculine, feminine, and neuter to classify nouns, introducing the concept of grammatical gender. Many languages specify Gender (and gender agreement) (1) Greek o andras i gyneka to pedhi the.masc. man the.fem. woman the.ntr. child (2) German der man die Frau das Kind the.masc. man the.fem. woman the.ntr. child (3) French l(e) homme la femme the.masc. man the.fem. woman  Ã¢â‚¬   Indoeuropean had gender distinction; Swahili has 16 gender distinctions. And many others dont! (e.g. English, Astronesian languages) But gender appears on pronouns: (1) He left. (2) She left. (3) It left. (what types of things does it refer to?) Gender correlates with other perceptual (and possibly grammatical) categories like humanness, agentivity, and animacy.

William Shakespeare Biography :: essays research papers

William Shakespeare was born to John Shakespeare and mother Mary Arden approximately in late April 1564 in Stratford -upon-Avon. His father was a prominent and prosperous alderman and later became a leather merchant. In William’s family there was at least 8 children, including him being the 3rd and eldest son. There is no solid proof as to which school Shakespeare attended, but there is an assumption it was at Stratford. The school was competitive and had a good reputation, which would explain Shakespeare’s proficiency in Greek and Latin. William did not go to college, which prompts some people to say that Shakespeare did not write his own work. (Hieatt.2) In November 1582 he married Anne Hathaway, who was 8 years older. Shortly after, their daughter Susan was born in May 26,1583. The couple later had twins, Hamnet and Judith, who were born on February 2, 1585. Hamnet, later died at the age of eleven and William then disappeared from the records for about seven years, until 1588 when he arrived in London to establish himself as an actor and playwrighter. A few years later he joined up with one of the most successful acting troupes in London: The Lord Chamberlain’s Men. He then went on to build his own theater across from the old one. Shakespeare entertained the king and the people for another 10 years until June 19,1613 when a cannon fired from the roof of the theater and burned it to the ground. He then invested in the rebuilding of the new theater. After this successful event he then retired from the stage in 1597, but continued to write until his death in 1616 on the day of his 52nd birthday. On average Shakespeare would write about 3 plays a year for his company along. He was A playwright, an actor, and part owner. Shakespeare was also a principle writer of a famous company of actors know as the King’s Men. In his time Shakespeare wrote 13 comedies, 13 historical plays, 6 tragedies, 4 tragicomedies, as well 154 sonnets. He is most noted for his achievements in highly original tragedies. Shakespeare was quite wealthy in his day, considering he left 300 pounds (120,000) to his daughter when he past away. (Fraser.22) Western Civilization still does embrace the works of William Shakespeare. Shakespeare is the only playwrighter from his ere whose plays are still being performed today. His influences are still seen today with adaptations of his plays such as: â€Å"Romeo and Juliet†, â€Å"Hamet† and â€Å"Titus†.