Business Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words - 4

Business Strategy - Essay Example This led to the request for an ombudsman to provide a non-partisan view on retailer and supplier disputes. A code of conduct is intended to be introduced into the contract agreement between retailers and suppliers. Employee compensation must satisfy the requirements of the National Minimum Wage Law. Labour laws are stringently implemented. Supermarkets take up 73% of the food retailing industry in UK. Food and drink account for 65% of total retail sales (including non-food items). The economic system of the UK is capitalist in nature. The liberal economic policies foster competition. The stagnating growth and reduced profits of the retailing industry are facing the spectre of a 5% increase in doing business with effect from April 1, 2009. The decision has been delayed for the moment. The economy has seen recessionary trends in recent times. This has affected the willingness of customers to spend on discretionary items though the outgo on food continues. The food retail industry has matured in the country and profit margins are pinched (2-6%) as the fight for market share heats up. Inflation has been high though and retailers have had to cut prices and offer higher quality to drive sales. The big players in the food retail industry have seen pay hikes at an average of 3.7% while other retailers have limited the outgo t o 3%. Retailers are under intense pricing pressure due to customer demand for high quality low priced goods. The customer demographics have undergone a change. Single and dual member families with smaller purchase requirements have taken the place of the larger families of the past. Increase in the number of working women. The customers are growing older with single pensioners forming a large part of the customer population. The customers are not limited to a retail outlet and are likely to search for good buying options. They are aware of the price and quality that they can

Sports in America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Sports in America - Essay Example The English settlers that settled in the northern part of America came with different types of games. These games were the major part of their culture. They were forms of recreation. Some of the games that they loved included wrestling, horse racing, bear baiting and cock fighting. The settlers also later introduced baseball. This game became exceptionally famous among the people, something that transformed it into professional sport. Leagues were organized and formalized. In early nineteen century, different types of sports emerged. Football emerged at this time. These games strengthen young men. It encouraged them to join combat life due to the exercise they went through as part of the game. Other types of games that came into existence were tennis, polo, rowing and bicycling. However, all these types of sport underwent different changes over time. Improvement of the rules was made and everyone was to follow them carefully. Despite all these changes, sports have gone through many c hallenges in America since the cold war to the early nineteen sixties. These challenges acted as the blocks that hindered these games from progressing. Many countries at this time used sports events to be the venues of rivalry. They used to show their superiority over other countries. Other challenges included cheating, violence and drugs. During the cold war, many countries used sports to show rivalry to the other countries. Sports were meant for entertainment to the spectators but many political leaders saw sports from a different perspective. To them, sports were a tool to show their superiority. Most Americans who participated in Olympics of 1950s became the major dominants in those games. They won many medals as compared to the other countries’ participants. During this time, Soviet Union did not participate in the Olympics. This made American the favorites in almost all the Olympic Games. There victory caused public concern referring to the international image of the Un ited States (Zirin, 396). The Soviet Union later joined the Olympics games. This caused a great threat to the American participants in the games. Russians won many medals that Americans were used to win. They dominated almost all the Olympic games of that time. The United States and the Soviet Union were not in good terms. They were great rivals in the world during the cold war. This rivalry extended to the sphere of sports that they both participated. Everyone was trying to be superior to the other. Russians defeated American in many games. Russian women defeated Americans in a great range. These made Americans think of other ways of improving their performance. Different leaders who were the heads of the games gave out many ideas. Americans needed to maximize their effectiveness and efficiency in all participations. More improved and modernized management was to be put in place. The whole organization that was heading the participation needed an enlargement and modernization. All these were done to ensure that they defeat the Soviet Union. Americans later defeated them, and it was something that taught Americans that democracy was better than communist system in producing better players (Zirin, 394). During the cold war, reporting sports was influenced by rivalry between the Americans and the Soviet Union. Sports’ reports were biased. Journalists from each country favored the athletes’ of their motherlands. Russian journalist undermined American

History of education Essay Example for Free

History of education Essay Tamil Nadu is regarded to be one of India’s star performers in the sector of elementary education. The results of the 2001 Census show that Tamil Nadu has attained third position behind Kerala and Maharashtra both in terms of overall and female literacy. It recorded close to 100 per cent gross enrolment ratio (GER) at primary and upper primary levels based on 2007 estimates. A major legislative effort for the universalisation of education in line with the constitutional mandate has been the introduction of the Tamil Nadu Compulsory Education Act, 1994. Under this Act it is the duty of the government to provide the necessary infrastructure (schools and teachers) for ensuring universalisation of elementary education. Parents are also liable to be fined if they do not send their wards to school, though this rule is not very strictly enforced as most of the children not going to school come from poor backgrounds. Tamil Nadu’s high enrolment statistics are also the result of the number of welfare schemes that the State government has introduced in the elementary education sector. The large number of missionary and private schools are also playing a role in the spread of education. The government provides textbooks, uniforms and noon meals to the pupils making it a State where the per child spending is much higher than in educationally backward States such as Bihar, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and others and is higher than the all-India average. The State is making an endeavor to provide primary schools within a one km radius of human habitations with a population of 300 and above to increase their accessibility. It is also a State that has actually spent most of the funds allocated to it by the Centre under the SSA scheme, in contrast to States like UP, Bihar and Assam that have huge unspent amounts. Tamil Nadu students stood first in the country in mathematics, language and reading comprehension skills according to the national mid-term achievement survey of Class III children commissioned by the NCERT in collaboration with the MHRD and the SCERT and SSA wings of the States recently. But it has come to light that local bodies like corporations and municipalities are not fully utilizing money collected as education tax as a percentage of property tax under the Tamil Nadu Elementary Education Act and this is affecting the quality and quantity of formal education provision at the grassroots level. While the general literacy rate in Tamil Nadu as per 2001 data is 73. 5%, wide disparities exist across districts, gender, and area of residence as well as social grouping. The literacy rate of the SC and ST populations are consistently lower in all the districts. The retention rate within and after the primary school level is also not very impressive and there is a high percentage of repeaters. This is particularly so in the case of the STs and SCs. It is to overcome this discrepancy between education offered in different kinds of schools, between rural and urban schools and to overcome other numerous ills that have crept into the education system—such as arbitrary collection of fees, induction of daily waged, inadequately qualified para teachers, rote learning, examination stress, problems related to the medium of instruction and so on—that the State government constituted the Muthukumaran Committee, which submitted its report in 2007. This committee had the mandate to work out a framework of a uniform pattern of education in Tamil Nadu and to make recommendations for improving its quality. The report of the Committee recommends only one autonomous board, The Tamil Nadu State Secondary School Education Board, instead of the existing four State level boards—Matriculation, Anglo-Indian, Oriental and State Board. Schools coming under this integrated Board would follow a common syllabus ensuring an equitable school education in the State not conferring any undue advantages with regard to admission into higher educational institutions for students completing their school education from one particular Board. Equitable standard education is to be provided by a Common School or Neighbourhood School system, which with uniform syllabi would help to ‘decommercialise’ educational institutions and put an end to many a private management that does not feel sufficiently accountable to society in this crucial sector. The spiraling cost of education starting at the nursery level is cementing caste-class and rural-urban divisions. A common school system using the mother tongue as a medium of instruction would make equal education accessible to all without discrimination. A common school system also means a common examination pattern. The report of the Committee advocates a reasonable teacher-student ratio of not more than 1:30 and doing away with faulty textbooks and a system of rote learning. It emphasizes the promotion of analytical and rational skills that would equip the students to learn by themselves; a testing and evaluation pattern that involves the application of concepts learnt rather than mere reproduction of facts. The school syllabus should not overload students with information but instead kindle their interest in the subject and teach them how to search for more information and conceptualize it. Traditional knowledge should be incorporated and made part of school education. Evaluation should be comprehensive and not just of academic achievements, and that too only marks based. Evaluation should include an assessment of student abilities and performance in academics, the arts, sports and games, values, reading habits, character, conduct and other extra-curricular activities. Schools should not only lay emphasis on academic subjects but also on moral education. Here the Committee suggests that it may be better to have a progress book with entries made from time to time and also periodically sent to the parents so that they may be made aware of their child’s progress. Regular consultation with parents about their wards’ progress and achievements and educational goals is a must. A sheet of paper containing marks obtained in public exams is not enough to understand a student’s development and potential. If the marks obtained in only one exam are going to decide the person’s admission into an institute of higher learning then all stress is on preparing for this exam neglecting other exams and activities. The chance or temptation to indulge in malpractices is also high. Marks obtained in a one-time exam also are no accurate reflection of the student’s actual knowledge and achievement level and potential. Treating exams and marks as more important than life itself has meant the death of many a student. Finally, children belonging to linguistic minorities should be allowed to gain instruction in their respective mother tongue, while all students in standards 5 or 8 ought to have a specific level of knowledge in Tamil and English so that these languages can be used for communication. No student should be dropped and he/she should be allowed to grow in the chosen field of interest and in accordance with their individual capability. A simple pass or fail should certainly not be a deciding factor in a person’s life. While the government has accepted the notion of one board for school education other major recommendations of the Muthukumaran Committee on education reforms are being sidelined by the State government. In fact, some government run schools are changing the medium of instruction to English and not all schools teach Tamil, though this is compulsory as per current State education law. Moreover, schools with an eye on the results in board exams and aiming at future lucrative career possibilities for their students are introducing modern European languages like French (German is waiting to be introduced on a larger scale on the school level) that are supposedly high scoring subjects in comparison to Tamil, which is seen to be difficult even by those whose mother tongue it is. There is almost everywhere an exodus from government run schools to aided or private schools because of the perceived better quality and the lure of an English medium education, which is regarded by parents to be necessary in today’s world. It is to remain viable and not lose out in this competition for students that government run schools are increasingly offering English medium instruction also, although the English medium sections are permitted only on a self-financing basis. The non-acceptance of important recommendations by the Muthukumaran committee is thus in line with the general pro-globalisation trend in the Tamil Nadu economy as a whole. Current education system Why is India still a developing country and what is stopping it from being a developed country? India’s education system as a stumbling block towards its objectives of achieving inclusive growth. India is going to experience a paradox of nearly 90 million people joining the workforce but most of them will lack requiste skills and the mindset for productiveemployment according to a report in DNA. India has about 550 million people under the age of 25 years out of which only 11% are enrolled in tertiary institutions compared to the world average of 23%. . I will be focussing on how the education system’s failure is leading to another social issue of income inequality and hence, suggest certain policies to improve India’s education system and reduce inequality. Problems and drawbacks The really critical aspect of Indian public education system is its low quality. The actual quantity of schooling that children experience and the quality of teaching they receive are extremely insufficient ingovernment schools. A common feature in all government schools is the poor quality of education, with weak infrastructure and inadequate pedagogic attention. What the government is not realising right now is that education which is a source of human capital can create wide income inequalities. It will be surprising to see how income inequalities are created within the same group of educated peopleSo if the government does not improve education system particularly in rural areas the rich will become richer and the poor will get poorer. Hence, it is imperative for the government to correct the blemishes in India’s education system which will also be a step towards reducing income inequality. Another reason for poor quality of education is the poor quality of teachers in government schools . Government schools are unable to attract good quality teachers due to inadequate teaching facilities and low salaries. The government currently spends only 3% of its GDP on education which is inadequate and insufficient. To improve the quality of education , the government needs to spend more money from its coffers on education. Most economists feel that the only panacea to the ills of the public schooling system is the voucher scheme. Under the voucher system, parents are allowed to choose a school for their children and they get full or partial reimbursement for the expenses from the government. But however, the voucher system will further aggravate the problem of poor quality of education in government schools. Such a system will shift resources from government schools to private schools. This will worsen the situation of government schools which are already under-funded. Moreover, if the same amount given as vouchers can be used to build infrastructure in schools then the government can realize economies of scale. For example- The centre for civil society is providing vouchers worth Rs 4000 per annum to 308 girls. This means that the total amount of money given as vouchers is Rs 1232000. If the same amount can be used to construct a school and employ high quality teachers who are paid well then a larger section of the society will enjoy the benefit of education. A school can definitely accommodate a minimum of 1000 students. I hope government takes certain appropriate policy measures to improve the education system otherwise inequalities are going to be widespread and India’s basic capabilities will remain stunted. Let us strengthen the case for a stronger education system. Conclusion Certain policy measures need to be taken by the government. The basic thrust of government education spending today must surely be to ensure that all children have access to government schools and to raise the quality of education in those schools. One of the ways in which the problem of poor quality of education can be tackled is through common schooling. This essentially means sharing of resources between private and public schools. Shift system is one of the ways through which common schooling can be achieved. The private school can use the resources during the first half of the day and the government school can use it during the second half. It is important to remember that the quality of education is directly linked to the resources available and it is important for the government to improve resource allocation to bring about qualitative changes in the field of education. Common schooling is one of the ways in which government can use limited resources in an efficient way and thus improve resource allocation.

Whole Life Cycle Costing Application Barriers Construction Essay

Whole Life Cycle Costing Application Barriers Construction Essay Ellingham and Fawcett (2006, p. 18) indicate that the net present value method for evaluating an investment cashflow was first developed about 50 years ago and is widely used in many spheres. In property and construction projects it has acquired a special name: whole-life costing. In fact, whole-life costing is simply the application of net present value analysis to construction projects. Most people will confused about the term of life-cycle costing, whole life costing, and whole life-cycle costing. As stated in Boussabaine and Kirkham study (2004, p. 4), prior to the 1970s, investment decisions made by most clients, developers and professionals was solely on the basis of capital cost. It appear a thought that spending more in capital cost will realize substantial cost savings in long term compared with a cheaper alternative, which we known as terotechnology. This concept was largely ignored because the lack of available data and collection mechanisms, and it shown that investor had no interest in the subsequent operational cost of the building. In the early 1970s, the term cost-in-use appear in the industry. It was recognized the concept of cost in use could apply to building and critical structures as to calculate the expenditure related to the operation of an asset. However, it also failed to consider the necessity for accurate future cost forecasting. It required some kind of technology to facilitate this problem (Boussabaine and Kirkham, 2004, p. 5). Until the mid to late 1970s, life-cycle costing emerged as a solution to this problem. It fostered a wide-ranging approach to cost appraisal, encompassing all perceivable cost from construction through to eventual disposal the whole life. By using a variety of forecasting techniques, the analyst was able to demonstrate how increase capital cost could be offset by long-term cost savings (Boussabaine and Kirkham, 2004, p. 5). As stated by Ashworth (1989), LCC is clearly a technique, which (at least in theory) has a potential for the correct financial evaluation of construction works. In should be noted that the concepts of LCC are not new. The principles are based upon economic theories, which have been used in investment appraisal in many areas of industrial and commercial activity.White and Ostwald (Korpi and Ala-Risku, 2008, p.241) show that LCC was originally designed for procurement purposes in the US Department of Defence and Woodward (Korpi and Ala-Risku, 2008, p.241) indicates that LCC is used most commonly in the military sector as well as in the construction industry. Towards the late 1990s, the concept of whole life costing and whole life-cycle costing emerged. The terms whole life costing and whole life-cycle costing are interchangeable (Boussabaine and Kirkham, 2004, p. 6). Whole life-cycle costing is a relatively new concept to the construction industry. It is essence an evolution of life-cycle costing techniques that are commonly used in many areas of procurement (Boussabaine and Kirkham, 2004, p. 3). Theoretically speaking, there is no different between LCC, WLC and WLCC. Schade (2007, p. 2), in reporting Flanagan and Jewell study, emphasizes that it is just a change of term form cost in use to life cycle costing and further to whole life cycle costing. Problem Statement According to Boussabaine and Kirkham (2004, p. xi), the construction industry has recently experienced a paradigmatic shift in its approach to product deliver and the achievement of customer satisfaction. Where previously the design and construction teams placed a heavy emphasis on delivering buildings at the lowest capital cost, a greater awareness and desire to consider cost over the whole life of the building have prevailed. Clients now want buildings that demonstrate value for money over the long term, and are not interested simply in the design solution which is the least expensive. These changes have lead to and highlighted the important of whole life-cycle costing approaches to the design, construction and operation of buildings. Schade (2007) claims that, production cost is the main cost factor in construction and is often set to the minimum in commonly, which does not necessarily improve the lifetime performance of buildings. Therefore, it is important to show the construction client in the early design phase the relationship between design choices and the resulting lifetime cost. Boussabaine and Kirkham (2004, p. ix) also note that the award of public construction contracts based on simply the lowest capital cost bid is no longer recognized as good practice; best value must be taken into account and thereby WLCC should be fully appraised as part of the decision making process. The research of Swaffield and McDonald (2007, p. 132) identify that contractors quantity surveyors generally did consider LCC when procuring new products/elements for Private Finance Initiative projects, but in certain circumstances, such as during exceptionally busy times or when working within tight construction budgets, LCC were not considered and procurement decisions for some product/elements were made on the basis of lowest capital cost. As Byron A. Ellis (2007, p.1) said, Designers, engineers and constructors are under pressure from owners to minimize total project cost. Unfortunately, many owners do not understand the concept of total project cost. As a result, they seek to minimize acquisition (first) cost. Economists Alchian and Allen (Byron, 2007, p.1) argue that the term cost should never be used by itself; they noted that it should always be identified with total, average, or marginal. According to Fischer et al (Tah and Aouad, 2007), although the significance of LCC has been recognized as early as 1980s, the current implementation has not been very satisfied due to two major barriers: first barrier is the historical data of building operation and maintenance. Second barrier is the complexity of the procedures and algorithms of calculating the LCC. For example, a building concern thousands of elements and construction method and maintenance activities. A simple change in the building material might take long hours of recalculations, it is therefore difficult to assist users to manipulate the large design and LCC analysis. However, even the idea of WLCC analysis is to help the owner to examine a economically alternative, there will always have the possibility of misleading the decision making by the error result of WLCC due to lack of data or unpredictable changes. There have no such as 100% accuracy for WLCC analysis because the limitation of forecast ability of human being are impossible to forecast everything that could be happen in future. This paper addresses the problems above by providing a detail discussion of WLCC for assisting and simplifying the application of the technique based on the WLCC in construction industry. At the same time reveal the popularity of application of WLCC in Malaysian construction industry. Aim To identified the barriers of applying whole life-cycle costing and investigate the popularity of implementation of whole life-cycle costing in Malaysian construction industry Objectives To review the important of usage of whole life-cycle costing in construction industry. To identify the barriers of application of whole-life cycle costing in construction industry. To analyse the factors affecting the accuracy of whole-life cycle costing. To investigate the popularity of application of whole-life cycle costing in Malaysian construction industry. Scope of Study The concept of Whole life-cycle costing (WLCC) can be use as many sector, to narrow the scope of study, the study will only be focus on the construction industries. Besides that, case study would not conduct to the project for the calculation of WLCC because it will be extremely difficult to obtain the large quantity of information across the long term of a building life cycle and data such as the project operation and maintenance cost, replacement cost, disposal cost could be confidential to its owners. Thus, to manually collect this data has to be very costly and time consuming and the missing of any result above will cause inaccurate of result. This study will focus on reviewing the important of application of WLCC into construction industry. The first issue to be study in deep is the discussion on the principles, advantages and purposes of WLCC analysis. The second issue is to identify the error and the difficulties of applying WLCC due to lack of necessary information and unpred ictable changes. The third issue is to do a research on the understanding of WLCC among owners and their frequency of applying WLCC. Research Methodology The methodology should be targeted at a consistent whole life-cycle costing (WLCC) approach and calculations and should not be aimed at reducing costs but at making more informed and consistent economic, financial and environmental decisions. The study was conducting in four stages. The first phase is the literature review. Second phase will be interview pilot study to the issue. Third phase will be constructing questionnaires. The last phase is to writing the research report. First stage: The literature review started with the important of application of WLCC and required data for a WLCC analysis. Searching of article about WLCC and the searching key words would be whole life-cycle costing, whole cycle costing and life-cycle costing. And the information of search will be limited into construction industry to filtered unnecessary information. The main sources for the literature research were databases, such as Emerald, web of science, Google and library of college Tunku Abdul Rahman. Second stage: Data collection will take form of a structured postal questionnaire. However an initial pilot study may be conducted to test the validity of the questionnaire through interviews with relevant parties. Third stage: Questionnaires will be conduct and send to respondent. The main ideas of the questionnaires are to test the owners of understanding about WLCC, and also research on the preferable of low initial cost or low WLCC when owner make decision of choosing alternatives. The questionnaire should be highlighted more prominently, to make it easier for respondents to participate in the final questionnaire survey. Last stage: This stage involves writing up the content of the dissertation and should cover the chapters proposed in the following section. The result of interview and questionnaires will be analysis and conclude. Example of WLCC analysis will provide by searching through media resources and calculate by myself with simple and reality assumption based on the WLCC principles.

Mother Night Essays -- Literary Analysis, Kurt Vonnegut

Life is a Snake which Bites its Tail Vonnegut uses the cyclical nature of life to counteract the perceived definitive nature of it. Vonnegut believes that all real life events, history, and time are circular; they have no determinable beginning or end. Each of Vonnegut’s novels stresses the notion that life is cyclical. In Breakfast of Champions, Vonnegut states that time, â€Å"Is a serpent which eats its tail† (205). This imagery shows Vonnegut’s depiction of time as a circle. According to Vonnegut time has no beginning, middle, or end, thus it is impossible to depict it in any linear form. In Slaughter House Five, Vonnegut introduces the Tralfamadorians concept of time, which emphasizes the cyclical return embodied in Billy’s time travels (Wayne D. McGinnis, 118). Vonnegut believes that people perceive life in terms of an old fashion story book, â€Å"With leading characters, minor characters †¦ and a beginning, middle, and an end† (215). However Vonnegut proves in his novel, Breakfast of Champions, that this is certainly not the case. He states, â€Å"I resolved to shun storytelling. I would write about life. Every person would be exactly as important as any other. Nothing would be left out† (215) and that is exactly what he does. Vonnegut believes that â€Å"People have this illusion that when beginning, middle, and end are strung together in one story, a causal and teleological development is implied, and the identification of the cause driving events is what gives meaning to the story† (Daniel Cordle). Vonnegut’s goal is to eliminate this illusion and attempt to prove to his readers that it is not the structure of time or events which gives meaning to the story, it is all the moments combined which give the story its meaning. Just as Von... ...ally rescued by his â€Å"blue fairy god mother† right when he finally accepts his fate as a war criminal. Vonnegut’s use of irony, exaggeration and ridicule in Mother Night is constant throughout the book, from beginning to end, this novel is told in Vonnegut’s unique satirical tone, which he uses to expose and criticize people’s stupidity and willingness to conform and throw their ideas out the window for the sake of survival and acceptance. Literary critic Peter J. Reeds states that Vonnegut’s â€Å"painful comic rendering of the form acknowledges not just the suffering that existence may impose, but the essential absurdity of the situation in which its randomness and incomprehensibility frequently place us† (37). The comedy in Vonnegut’s fiction is meant to express the depths and tragedies of the world in a way which is bearable enough for the reader to comprehend.

Formalistic Approach To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell Essay

The formalistic approach to an open text allows the reader to devour the poem or story and break down all the characteristics that make it unique. The reader is able to hear the text rather than read it, and can eventually derive a general understanding or gist of the text. "According to the Handbook of Critical Approaches to Literature "when all the words, phrases, metaphors, images, and symbols are examined in terms of each other and of the whole, any literary text worth our efforts will display its own internal logic" (Geurin 75)." When utilizing the formalistic approach, the reader must search in and out of the lines for point of view, form, imagery, structure, symbolism, style, texture, and so on. Using the general theme of time, it is important to focus on structure, style, and imagery found in Andrew Marvell's poem "To His Coy Mistress". Structure, a major tool stressed in this poem, tends to rearrange the text in a large-scale way. In "To His Coy Mistress", the reader should focus on the most significant types of structure: stanza and temporal. In other words, time and chronological order assemble the whole meaning of the text throughout the poem. Although the story contains seduction and intimacy, which is portrayed in the title alone, it is merely a cry for two lovers to be together before time runs out. Temporally, the man first explains to the woman how he would love her if he only had the time. The man's sincerity is truly expressed when Marvell writes, "Had we but world enough, and time...I would love you ten years before the flood...nor would I love at lower rate," (373: 1, 7-8, 20). It seems that the man genuinely cares for the lady, or is he secretly seducing her into bed? Taking a look at the second stanza... ... is romantic and at ease, but he turns brisk and honest as time disintegrates. This image becomes crystal clear with words and phrases such as, "heart", "beauty", "youthful hue sits on thy skin", "our sweetness", "virginity", "breast", and "pleasures". All of these words provide the reader with an illustration of the man's desires. The use of imagery permits the author to fully describe the necessity of time, and allows the reader to visualize the thoughts and feelings that the characters experience. The formalistic approach is only one way of dissecting an open text such as the poem "To His Coy Mistress", but it is one of the best ways to search for the overall meaning of a text. With tools such as structure, style, and imagery, the reader becomes personally involved with the characters and savors the story instead of just reading the written words. Â   Â  

The Host Chapter 50: Sacrificed

The Seeker scrutinized my face while Mel and I fought. No, Wanda, no! Don't be stupid, Mel. You of all people should see the potential of this choice. Isn't this what you want? But even as I tried to look at the happy ending, I couldn't escape the horror of this choice. This was the secret I should die to protect. The information I'd been desperate to keep safe no matter what hideous torture I was put through. This was not the kind of torture I'd expected: a personal crisis of conscience, confused and complicated by love for my human family. Very painful, nevertheless. I could not claim to be an expatriate if I did this. No, I would be purely a traitor. Not for her, Wanda! Not for her! Mel howled. Should I wait? Wait until they catch another soul? An innocent soul whom I have no reason to hate? I'll have to make the decision sometime. Not now! Wait! Think about this! My stomach rolled again, and I had to hunch my body forward and take a deep breath. I just managed not to gag. â€Å"Wanda?† Jeb called in concern. I could do it, Mel. I could justify letting her die if she was one of those innocent souls. I could let them kill her then. I could trust myself to make an objective decision. But she's horrible, Wanda! We hate her! Exactly. And I can't trust myself. Look at how I almost didn't see the answer†¦ â€Å"Wanda, you all right?† The Seeker glared past me, toward Jeb's voice. â€Å"Fine, Jeb,† I gasped. My voice was breathy, strained. I was surprised at how bad it sounded. The Seeker's dark eyes flickered between us, unsure. Then she recoiled from me, cringing into the wall. I recognized the pose-remembered exactly how it felt to hold it. A gentle hand came down on my shoulder and spun me around. â€Å"What's going on with you, hon?† Jeb asked. â€Å"I need a minute,† I told him breathlessly. I looked straight into his faded-denim eyes and told him something that was most definitely not a lie. â€Å"I have one more question. But I really need a minute to myself. Can you†¦ wait for me?† â€Å"Sure, we can wait a little while more. Take a breather.† I nodded and walked as quickly as I could from the prison. My legs were stiff with terror at first, but I found my stride as I moved. By the time I passed Aaron and Brandt, I was almost running. â€Å"What happened?† I heard Aaron whisper to Brandt, his voice bewildered. I wasn't sure where to hide while I thought. My feet, like a shuttle on automatic pilot, took me through the corridors toward my sleeping room. I could only hope that it would be empty. It was dark, barely any light from the stars trickling down through the cracked ceiling. I didn't see Lily till I tripped over her in the darkness. I almost didn't recognize her tear-swollen face. She was curled into a tight, tiny ball on the floor in the middle of the passageway. Her eyes were wide, not quite comprehending who I was. â€Å"Why?† she asked me. I stared at her wordlessly. â€Å"I said that life and love go on. But why do they? They shouldn't. Not anymore. What's the point?† â€Å"I don't know, Lily. I'm not sure what the point is.† â€Å"Why?† she asked again, not speaking to me anymore. Her glassy eyes looked right through me. I stepped carefully past her and hurried to my room. I had my own question that had to be answered. To my great relief, the room was empty. I threw myself facedown on the mattress where Jamie and I slept. When I'd told Jeb I had one more question, that was the truth. But the question was not for the Seeker. The question was for me. The question was would I-not could I-do it? I could save the Seeker's life. I knew how. It would not endanger any of the lives here. Except my own. I would have to trade that. No. Melanie tried to be firm through her panic. Please let me think. No. This is the thing, Mel. It's inevitable anyway. I can see that now. I should have seen it long ago. It's so obvious. No, it isn't. I remembered our conversation when Jamie was ill. When we were making up. I'd told her that I wouldn't erase her and that I was sorry that I couldn't give her more than that. It wasn't so much a lie as it was an unfinished sentence. I couldn't give her more than that-and stay alive myself. The actual lie had been given to Jared. I'd told him, just seconds later, that I didn't know how to make myself not exist. In the context of our discussion, it was true. I didn't know how to fade away, here inside Melanie. But I was surprised I hadn't heard the obvious lie right then, hadn't seen in that moment what I was seeing now. Of course I knew how to make myself not exist. It was just that I had never considered that option viable, ultimate betrayal that it was to every soul on this planet. Once the humans knew that I had this answer, the one they had murdered for over and over again, it would cost me. No, Wanda! Don't you want to be free? A long pause. I wouldn't ask you for this, she finally said. And I wouldn't do it for you. And I sure as hell wouldn't do it for the Seeker! You don't have to ask. I think I might have volunteered†¦ eventually. Why do you think that? she demanded, her tone close to a sob. It touched me. I expected her to be elated. In part because of them. Jared and Jamie. I can give them the whole world, everything they want. I can give them you. I probably would have realized that†¦ someday. Who knows? Maybe Jared would have asked. You know I wouldn't have said no. Ian's right. You're too self-sacrificing. You don't have any limits. You need limits, Wanda! Ah, Ian, I moaned. A new pain twisted through me, surprisingly close to my heart. You'll take the whole world away from him. Everything he wants. It would never work with Ian. Not in this body, even though he loves it. It doesn't love him. Wanda, I†¦ Melanie struggled for words. Still, the joy I expected from her did not come. Again, this touched me. I don't think I can let you do this. You're more important than that. In the bigger picture, you are of much more value to them than I am. You can help them; you can save them. I can't do any of that. You have to stay. I can't see any other way, Mel. I wonder how I didn't see it sooner. It seems so completely obvious. Of course I have to go. Of course I have to give you yourself back. I already knew we souls were wrong to come here. So I don't have any choice now but to do the right thing, and leave. You all survived without me before; you'll do it again. You've learned so much about the souls from me-you'll help them. Can't you see? This is the happy ending. It's the way they all need the story to finish. I can give them hope. I can give them†¦ not a future. Maybe not that. But as much as I can. Everything I can. No, Wanda, no. She was crying, becoming incoherent. Her sorrow brought tears to my eyes. I'd no idea that she cared so much for me. Almost as much as I cared for her. I hadn't realized that we loved each other. Even if Jared had never asked me for this, even if Jared did not exist†¦ Once this path had occurred to me, I would have had to proceed down it. I loved her that much. No wonder the success rate for resistant hosts was so low here on Earth. Once we learned to love our human host, what hope did we souls have? We could not exist at the expense of one we loved. Not a soul. A soul could not live that way. I rolled myself over and, in the starlight, I looked at my body. My hands were dirty and scratched, but under the surface blemishes, they were beautiful. The skin was a pretty sun-browned color; even bleached in the pale light, it was pretty. The nails were chewed short but still healthy and smooth, with little half moons of white at the bases. I fluttered my fingers, watching the muscles pull the bones in graceful patterns. I let them dance above me, where they became black fluid shapes against the stars. I ran them through my hair. It was almost to my shoulders now. Mel would like that. After a few weeks of shampoo in hotel showers and Health vitamins, it was glossy and soft again. I stretched my arms out as far as they would go, tugging against the tendons until some of my joints cracked. My arms felt strong. They could pull me up a mountainside, they could carry a heavy load, they could plow a field. But they were also soft. They could hold a child, they could comfort a friend, they could love†¦ but that was not for me. I took a deep breath, and tears welled out of the corners of my eyes and rolled down my temples into my hair. I tensed the muscles in my legs, felt their ready strength and speed. I wanted to run, to have an open field that I could race across just to see how fast I could go. I wanted to do this barefoot, so I could feel the earth beneath my feet. I wanted to feel the wind fly through my hair. I wanted it to rain, so that I could smell it in the air as I ran. My feet flexed and pointed slowly, to the rhythm of my breathing. In and out. Flex and point. It felt nice. I traced my face with my fingertips. They were warm on my skin, skin that was smooth and pretty. I was glad I was giving Melanie her face back the way it had been. I closed my eyes and stroked my eyelids. I'd lived in so many bodies, but never one I loved like this. Never one that I craved in this way. Of course, this would be the one I'd have to give up. The irony made me laugh, and I concentrated on the feel of the air that popped in little bubbles from my chest and up through my throat. Laughter was like a fresh breeze-it cleaned its way through the body, making everything feel good. Did other species have such a simple healer? I couldn't remember one. I touched my lips and remembered how it felt to kiss Jared, and how it felt to kiss Ian. Not everyone got to kiss so many other beautiful bodies. I'd had more than some, even in this short time. It was just so short! Maybe a year now, I wasn't completely sure. Just one quick revolution of a blue green planet around an unexceptional yellow star. The shortest life of any I'd ever lived. The shortest, the most important, the most heartbreaking of lives. The life that would forever define me. The life that had finally tied me to one star, to one planet, to one small family of strangers. A little more time†¦ would that be so wrong? No, Mel whispered. Just take a little more time. You never know how much time you'll have, I whispered back. But I did. I knew exactly how much time I had. I couldn't take any more time. My time was up. I was going anyway. I had to do the right thing, be my true self, with what time I had left. With a sigh that seemed to come all the way from the soles of my feet and the palms of my hands, I got up. Aaron and Brandt wouldn't wait forever. And now I had a few more questions that I needed answered. This time, the questions were for Doc. The caves were full of sad, cast-down eyes. It was easy enough to slip unobtrusively past them all. No one cared what I was doing right now, except maybe Jeb, Brandt, and Aaron, and they weren't here. I didn't have an open, rainy field, but at least I had the long south tunnel. It was too dark to run flat out the way I wanted, but I kept up a steady jog. It felt good as my muscles warmed. I expected I would find Doc already there, but I'd wait if I had to. He would be alone. Poor Doc, that was usually the case now. Doc had been sleeping alone in his hospital since the night we'd saved Jamie's life. Sharon had taken her things from their room and moved them to her mother's, and Doc wouldn't sleep in the empty room. Such a great hatred. Sharon would rather kill her own happiness, and Doc's, too, than forgive him for helping me heal Jamie. Sharon and Maggie were barely a presence in the caves anymore. They looked past everyone now, the way they used to look past only me. I wondered if that would change when I was gone, or if they were both so rigid in their grudge that it would be too late for them to change. What an extraordinarily stupid way to waste time. For the first time ever, the south tunnel felt short. Before I thought I'd gone halfway, I could see Doc's light glowing dimly from the rough arch ahead. He was home. I slowed myself to a walk before I interrupted him. I didn't want to scare him, to make him think there was an emergency. He was still startled when I appeared, a little breathless, in the stone doorway. He jumped up from behind his desk. The book he was reading fell out of his hands. â€Å"Wanda? Is something wrong?† â€Å"No, Doc,† I reassured him. â€Å"Everything's fine.† â€Å"Does someone need me?† â€Å"Just me.† I gave him a weak smile. He walked around his desk to meet me, his eyes wide with curiosity. He paused half a step away and raised one eyebrow. His long face was gentle, the opposite of alarming. It was hard to remember how he'd looked like a monster to me before. â€Å"You are a man of your word,† I began. He nodded and opened his mouth to speak, but I held one hand up. â€Å"No one will ever test that more than I will test it now,† I warned him. He waited, eyes confused and wary. I took a deep breath, felt it expand my lungs. â€Å"I know how to do what you've been ending so many lives to discover. I know how to take the souls from your bodies without harm to either. Of course I know that. We all have to, in case of an emergency. I even performed the emergency procedure once, when I was a Bear.† I stared at him, waiting for his response. It took him a long moment, and his eyes grew wilder every second. â€Å"Why are you telling me this?† he finally gasped. â€Å"Because I†¦ I am going to give you the knowledge you need.† I held up my hand again. â€Å"But only if you will give me what I want in return. I'm warning you right now, it won't be any easier for you to give me what I want than it will be for me to give you what you want.† His face was fiercer than I'd ever seen it. â€Å"Name your terms.† â€Å"You can't kill them-the souls you remove. You must give me your word-your promise, your oath, your vow-that you will give them safe conduct on to another life. This means some danger; you will have to have cryotanks, and you will have to get those souls onto shuttles off-planet. You have to send them to another world to live. But they won't be able to hurt you. By the time they reach their next planet, your grandchildren will be dead.† Would my conditions mitigate my guilt in this? Only if Doc could be trusted. He was thinking very hard as I explained. I watched his face to see what he would make of my demand. He didn't look angry, but his eyes were still wild. â€Å"You don't want us to kill the Seeker?† he guessed. I didn't answer his question because he wouldn't understand the answer; I did want them to kill her. That was the whole problem. Instead, I explained further. â€Å"She'll be the first, the test. I want to make sure, while I'm still here, that you're going to follow through. I will do the separation myself. When she is safe, I'll teach you how it's done.† â€Å"On who?† â€Å"Kidnapped souls. The same as before. I can't guarantee you that the human minds will come back. I don't know if the erased can return. We'll see with the Seeker.† Doc blinked, processing something. â€Å"What do you mean, while you are still here? Are you leaving?† I stared at him, waiting for the realization to hit. He stared back, uncomprehending. â€Å"Don't you realize what I'm giving you?† I whispered. Finally, comprehension slammed home in his expression. I spoke quickly, before he could. â€Å"There's something else I'm going to ask you for, Doc. I don't want to†¦ I won't be shipped off to another planet. This is my planet, it truly is. And yet, there's really no place for me here. So†¦ I know it might†¦ offend some of the others. Don't tell them if you think they won't allow it. Lie if you have to. But I'd like to be buried by Walt and Wes. Can you do that for me? I won't take up much space.† I smiled weakly again. No! Melanie was howling. No, no, no, no†¦ â€Å"No, Wanda,† Doc objected, too, with a shocked expression. â€Å"Please, Doc,† I whispered, wincing against the protest in my head, which was getting louder. â€Å"I don't think Wes or Walt will mind.† â€Å"That's not what I meant! I can't kill you, Wanda. Ugh! I'm so sick of death, so sick of killing my friends.† Doc's voice caught in a sob. I put my hand on his thin arm, rubbed it. â€Å"People die here. It happens.† Kyle had said something to that effect. Funny that I should quote Kyle of all people twice in one night. â€Å"What about Jared and Jamie?† Doc asked in a choked voice. â€Å"They'll have Melanie. They'll be fine.† â€Å"Ian?† Through my teeth. â€Å"Better off without me.† Doc shook his head, wiping at his eyes. â€Å"I need to think about this, Wanda.† â€Å"We don't have long. They won't wait forever before they kill the Seeker.† â€Å"I don't mean about that part. I agree to those terms. But I don't think I can kill you.† â€Å"It's all or none, Doc. You have to decide right now. And†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I realized I had one more demand. â€Å"And you can't tell anyone else about the last part of our agreement. No one. Those are my terms, take them or leave them. Do you want to know how to remove a soul from a human body?† Doc shook his head again. â€Å"Let me think.† â€Å"You already know the answer, Doc. This is what you've been searching for.† He just kept shaking his head slowly back and forth. I ignored that symbol of denial because we both knew his choice was made. â€Å"I'll get Jared,† I said. â€Å"We'll make a quick raid for cryotanks. Hold off the others. Tell them†¦ tell them the truth. Tell them I'm going to help you get the Seeker out of that body.†