Two Kinds Essay Example for Free

Two Kinds Essay â€Å"Two Kinds† is set in modern United States and basically involves two main characters of Chinese descent Jing-mei and her mother.   In the story, Jing-mei, a young Chinese-American portrayed her mother as an overbearing and demanding woman who constantly tried to groom her daughter to pursue a life destined for fame- either as a talented young actress, a genius in geography, or a musical prodigy (Your Faxed Readings, p. 180-182). Jing-mei did not quite understand at first how her mother could persistently force upon her a future she did not want to have any part of.    She struggled against her mother’s will, not fully comprehending the reasons why her mother wanted her to be more than what she thought she was. As it was later on revealed in the story, her mother’s ways and beliefs rooted from the tragedies she encountered in her life before she came to America. Jing-meis mother went through terrible times in China. She lost her babies and had to struggle to be able to reach the â€Å"land of milk and honey. Reaching a new and prosperous land enabled her to start over, and she acquired a renewed sense of hope, along with the belief that in America, you can be all you want to be:   Ã¢â‚¬Å"My mother believed you could be anything you wanted to be in America. You could open a restaurant. You could work for the government and get good retirement. You could buy a house with almost no money down. You could become rich. You could become instantly famous.Of course, you can be a prodigy, too,; my mother told me when I was nine.† (p. 180) The story goes on to expound on the mother’s past and her subsequent actions that affected her American-raised daughter. The story shows that after hurdling through obstacles in life, Jing Mei’s mother probably realized that anything was possible. Hers was a character who believed that if she went through hell in China but still made it to America then anything was possible, especially for a child raised in this land abounding in prosperity.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Looking at it from this perspective, one could surmise that this explained why, as portrayed in the story, she was overbearing and appeared to expect a lot from her daughter.   Her expectations stemmed from what she had acquired from her surviving her misfortunes. As a mother who went through great adversity in life, she could not help but have high expectations for a daughter to whom she had afforded countless opportunities by raising her in America. With her daughter’s resistance to obey, she felt that Jing-mei was not taking full advantage of the opportunities that were made available to her: â€Å"My mother slapped me.†Who ask you to be genius? she shouted. Only ask you be your best. For you sake. You think I want you to be genius? Hnnh! What for! Who ask you! So ungrateful, I heard her mutter in Chinese, If she had as much talent as she has temper, shed be famous now.† (p. 183) It is evident in these lines that the mother was disappointed with Jing-mei. It seemed to her that her daughter was being unappreciative of everything that had been made available for her. On the other hand, the character of Jing-mei was portrayed as a stubborn and willful child. Jing-meis determination not to be what her mother wants her to be stems from her resolve not to let her mother change her. â€Å"And then I saw what seemed to be the prodigy side of me a face I had never seen before. I looked at my reflection, blinking so that I could see more clearly. The girl staring back at me was angry, powerful. She and I were the same. I had new thoughts, willful thoughts or rather, thoughts filled with lots of wonts. I wont let her change me, I promised myself. I wont be what Im not.† (p. 181-182) From these lines Jing-mei’s character is reflected as someone who often stated that she wanted to be who she is and who vehemently refused to be someone she was not. Although   later on she recognized that she could have been great if she did try to be,   the story further showed that till the end of that part of her childhood, she was determined not to (p. 183). â€Å"Two Kinds† is one of the multitudes of stories from Amy Tan’s â€Å"The Joy Luck Club†. Essentially, it deals with the dynamics of  Ã‚   the relationship between mothers and daughters. It gives a fresh perspective about the complexities of such kinship in the eyes of Chinese immigrants in an American Society. It deals with cultural differences and generation gaps, as well as the issue of establishing identity. This short story can be dissected into several areas of interest, all rich in symbolism. It reflects society in various levels of human interaction. While the plot of the story circles around the struggle between Jing-mei and her mother, a one may derive a deeper conflict, aside from the prima facie squabble between the mother and the daughter, that exists within it, comparable to one that is in society. If one looks closely, the mothers character represents individuals who believe that the past can be buried and forgotten once success is achieved. She represents the people who struggle everyday to overcome the ghosts of the past in order to provide for the future. The mother also stands for the people who are trying to compensate for things left undone or mistakes committed. Though their intentions may be good, there is a point where their zealousness in making up for the past becomes a burden that shackles them to what they are trying to escape. Meanwhile, Jing-meis character represents individuals who are in constant journey to find their identities amidst influential forces. It alludes to people caught between two cultures in two different time zones. Jing Mei also represents the young who, at a trying stage in their life, have to cope with the added responsibility of bridging the cultural gap between immigrant parents in modern-day America. On the other hand, the dynamics of the relationship between Jing-Mei and her mother represent the perennial and unavoidable conflicts between parents and their children. It speaks of expectations, of disappointment, of pride, of hurt and of differences and of finding one’s own identity. It reminds readers   how one can never pick his kin and though it may become an uphill battle, what matters is that one learns to accept the family he is given, for who they are. Furthermore, in a very subtle but compelling way, â€Å"Two Kinds†   also urges its readers to think about their past and where they are heading .This story prompts one to look at things in perspective find a way to come to terms with the past, be thankful of the present and look forward to the future with optimism. That being said, â€Å"Two Kinds†, with the infusion of literary brilliance, creativity and true-to-life experiences† has proved to be a true testament of Amy Tans artistic brilliance- both for its literary content and social reflection. This story is but, one of a kind. Works Cited Tan, Amy. â€Å"Two Kinds.† Title of the book of your faxed readings. Location: Publisher, Year Published. pages 180-187.

Legal Progression of Marriage in America :: Essays Papers

Legal Progression of Marriage in America As the British colonies in North America took root, a great part of the economic growth in colonial society was predicated on the labor of imported African slaves. As the number of slaves increased significantly, especially in the southern colonies, a system of separation of the races was established. Since the beginning of the White and Black coexistence in America, Whites have suppressed the rights of Blacks in order to emphasize their racial superiority and to prohibit mixing between the races. In order to maintain their racial purity, Whites established laws making illegal the marriage of Blacks and Whites. Although anti-miscegenation laws were present in early colonial societies, the legacies have continued in the contemporary period. For example, Alabama amended its constitution in 2000 to acknowledge interracial marriages as valid and legal. For over 300 years, anti-miscegenation laws have remained generally the same, outlawing marriages between people of different races. Over time, however, definitions of who is Black have drastically changed, reflecting the status of Blacks’ in society. Anti-miscegenation laws during the era of slavery defined Blacks as having at least one Black grandparent, or one quarter â€Å"Black blood†. Later, these same laws during the Great Migration of the twentieth century, evolved to define Blacks by the â€Å"One Drop Rule,† a rule stating that one was Black if he or she had at least one Black ancestor. These laws, as represented in this paper and based on the policies of the colony and state of Virginia, were used to maintain a separation of races and, thus, to preserve the purity of Whites and to guarantee their system of White supremacy. Sent by King James I, The Virginia Company established the first colony in America in 1607 appropriately named Jamestown (History of Jamestown 1). It is generally accepted that the first Blacks were imported to America in 1619, only twelve years after the colony was established. At this point, no specific laws prohibited interracial relations, but societal taboos and religious doctrines were enough to separate Whites and Blacks from sexual contact. Such beliefs were noted in the proceedings between the governor and his council within the colony: In 1630, a man named Hugh Davis, accused of being sexual involved with a Black, was â€Å"to be soundly whipped before an assembly of Negroes and others for abusing himself to the dishonor of God and the shame of Christians by defiling his body and lying with a Negro† (Hall 602).

Clearwater Seafoods case Essay

Clearwater Seafood (Clearwater) is a seafood company located on the east coast of Canada, and Clearwater Seafood income Fund with operations around the world. As a result of the increasing importance of the Canadian dollar relative to other currencies of the world, Clearwater recently stopped paying their distributions. The decision faced by the financial director to determine the strategy of the company should take to enable it to recover its distribution. This is due to the choice between various financial and operational resources to hedge currency risks that brought the company to its current situation Background: Clearwater was founded in 1976 at Bedford, Nova Scotia as a local lobster distributer and later in 2002 went public. Clearwater Seafood harvests, processes, and distributes fresh and frozen fish and shellfish to sell worldwide. It holds major offshore rights to harvest clams, crab, lobster, scallops, and shrimp off the north eastern coast of Canada. Clearwater Seafood operates its own fleet of ships, along with off-shore and on-shore processing facilities. Foreign Exchange Risk: Foreign exchange risk is the risk to the value of one’s assets when it is valued in another currency. The exchange rate of a currency to another may be volatile. It is this change in value of the currency that gives rise to foreign exchange risk. Depreciation in the currency in which your assets are denominated will result in a lower value of your assets when measured in another currency compared to the period before depreciation. The majority of Clearwater’s customers are international customers. In 2005, majority of Clearwater’s sales were from overseas customers. The source of their foreign exchange risk is the payment method that the company implements. The customers are billed in their domestic currency rather than in Canadian dollars. Clearwater deals with customers from the US, Japan, Europe and Asia. The company receives payment from its international customers in their respective currency. When the Canadian dollar appreciates in relation to all these currencies, the money that Clearwater receives from their customers loses value. The higher the Canadian dollar appreciates, the less Canadian dollars Clearwater can convert to with the US dollars, euros or yen that  they receive from their customers. Risks associated with foreign exchange are partially mitigated by the fact Clearwater operates internationally, which reduces the impact of any country ­ specific economic risks on its business. Clearwater also uses forward exchange contracts to manage its foreign currency exposures. Clearwater’s sales denominated in U.S. dollars were approximately 55% of annual sales as on December 31st 2005. These forward contracts were such that a one-cent change in the U.S. dollar as converted to Canadian dollars would result in a $505,000 change in sales and gross profit. In addition, approximately 19% of 2005 annual sales were denominated in Euros. Based on the sales and hedges in place on December 31, 2005, a one-cent change in the Euro as converted to Canadian dollars would result in a $285,000 change in sales and gross profit. Also, 8% of 2005 annual sales were denominated in Japanese Yen. Based on 2005 annual sales, every one ­ twentieth of a cent change in the Yen as converted to Canadian dollars would result in a change of  ¥118,087,000 in sales and gross profit. It is clear that Clearwater faces significant foreign exchange risk and the implications of an adverse change in the currency conversions can be too huge for the company to endure. Business risk: Business risk is the possibility that a company will have lower than anticipated profits or the company will incur a loss. Business risk may influenced by numerous factors, including sales volume, per-unit price, input costs, competition, and overall economic climate and government regulations. Clearwater’s business depends on a continuing supply of product that meets its quality and quantity requirements. Water temperatures, feed in the water and the presence of predators all influence the level of the catch and harvesting locations are not necessarily consistently successful from year to year. The availability of seafood in Canadian and Argentinean waters is also dependent on the total allowable catch allocated to Clearwater in a given area. Although the totals allowable catch in these areas and Clearwater’s enterprise allocations have been largely stable, fishery regulators have the right to make changes in the total allowable catch based on their assessment of the resource from time to time. Any reduction of total allowable catches in the areas from which Clearwater sources seafood, or the reduction of stocks due to changes in the  environment or the health of certain species, may have a material adverse effect on Clearwater’s financial condition and results of operations. Resource risk is managed through adherence to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (†DFO†) policies and guidelines. The guidelines, developed by DFO, are very often a cooperative effort between industry participants and DFO. Clearwater mitigates the risk associated with resource supply and competition through the diversification across species. Clearwater’s operating costs may be negatively affected by increases in inputs, such as energy costs, raw material and commodity prices. Clearwater uses fuel, electricity, air and ocean freight and other materials in the production, packaging and distribution of its products. Fuel and freight are two significant components of the costs of Clearwater’s products and the distribution thereof the inability of any of Clearwater’s suppliers to satisfy its requirements or a material increase in the cost of these inputs may have an adverse effect on Clearwater’s financial condition and results of operations. The seafood industry is highly competitive in all of the markets in which Clearwater participates. Some of Clearwater’s competitors have more significant operations within the marketplace, a greater diversification of product lines and greater economic resources than Clearwater and are well established as suppliers to the markets that Clearwater serves. Such competitors may be better able to withstand volatility within the seafood industry and throughout the economy as a whole while retaining greater operating and financial flexibility than Clearwater. There can be no assurance that Clearwater will be able to compete successfully against its current or future competitors or that competition will not affect Clearwater’s financial condition and results of operations. Recommendations for management: Foreign Exchange Risk: Clearwater did not completely offset the recent currency fluctuations with their hedge positions and they paid the price for it. It is recommended that they fully hedge all their foreign exchange positions. FPI is an example of a competitor in the industry who has benefited from doing so. FPI was largely unaffected by the currency fluctuation that badly affected Clearwater. This is justified by FPI’s increase in sales from 2003 to 2004  where Clearwater had corresponding drop in sales during the same period. It is also recommended that Clearwater switch its short call options to long call options. In its current short call position, Clearwater is the seller of the option and has no right to exercise the option. Clearwater is responsible to meet its obligations in the case the counterparty exercises the option at strike price. In a nut shell, under this short call position, Clearwater does not eliminate uncertainty on currency prices, its counterpart however does. Instead of this position, Clearwater should enter in long call options to hedge its foreign exchange risk. They should lock in prices to buy Canadian dollars in all the foreign currencies that they receive as payment such as US dollars, yen, euro, sterling and others. If the Canadian dollar were to appreciate, they would exercise the call option at the stipulated strike price and this would cut their losses of further appreciation. If the Canadian dollar were to depreciate, Clearwater would merely lose the price paid for the option premium. Overall, Clearwater benefits from this long call position regardless whether the exchange rate appreciates or depreciates as they have removed uncertainty in the exchange rate. Clearwater should also diversify its hedging strategies and enter into a matching receipts and payments strategy. This method involves offsetting receipts and payments. As a major part of their foreign exposure is to the US dollar, it is recommended that they rearrange some of their purchasing arrangement with its current domestic suppliers and switch to suppliers from the United States. By switching to American suppliers, they will be billed in US dollars. The US dollars that Clearwater receives from its American customers can be used to pay the bills that are denominated in US dollars. This directly nullifies any volatility in the US dollar to Canadian dollar exchange rate. Clearwater should enter into agreements with its large counterparties to receive payment in Canadian dollars. This will transfer the risk onto the other party’s head and will allow matching strategy to be implemented. This may not be possible for the smaller parties that owe Clearwater money. Another alternative would be for Clearwater to hedge their currency positions through investing in gold. It has been a common business practice for many years to use gold or other precious metals to hedge currency positions. The company could consider keeping gold in their portfolios to guard against economic downturns. As the seafood industry is  an industry that is primarily based on international trade, the success of any company in this industry will rely on the way the company manages its foreign exchange risk. Clearwater should expand its foreign exchange management program with qualified financial professional who have years of prior knowledge in hedging currency positions. Operating and Business risk: As compared to its competitors FPI and American Seafoods Group, Clearwater offers more high-value seafood products with higher prices. Therefore it is highly unlikely that the company has the ability to pass on any increases in fuel prices to their customers, without a negative impact on their profit margins. It is recommended that the company buys a fuel swap to hedge against fuel prices. In addition to that, the company could also consider buying a fuel call option. If the price of fuel increases, the company will receive a return on the option that offsets their actual cost of fuel. In terms of expanding its market, I believe that Clearwater should look into entering the Chinese market in the future. The increasing demand for high-value seafood in China has been fuelled by its growing middle class. The company could market its seafood products as being fresh and natural to beat the local Asian aquaculture competitors who currently dominate that market. In order to fund the fuel hedge as well as the China marketing cost, it is advised that Clearwater sell off surplus TACs. Clearwater currently owns the highest percentage of TACs in Canada. It is recommended that clam TACs be sold as Clearwater currently has full TAC ownership of clams with the largest quota of 44,000. However clams only make about 15.6% of the company’s sales which suggest that the profit margins on clams is relatively small compared to scallops or lobsters who have sales percentage of 31.3% and 22.5% respectively and TAC quotas of 10,275 and 720 respectively. I believe it is logical to make a small sacrifice to gain funding to hedge volatile fuel cost as well as fund marketing costs into a new segment. Greater good is expected at the cost of a small sacrifice. As the company currently faces difficulty in the foreign exchange market, this way of funding ignores currency rates as Clearwater will be selling their TACs to other Canadian companies which would be paying for the TACs in the Canadian dollars.

Education Is The Only Road Out Of Poverty - 891 Words

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