The Inheritance of Loss Essay

The Inheritance of Loss Essay As might be expected from the rich input of her cultural background, Kiran Desai, daughter of the author Anita Desai is a born story-teller. Her first novel, Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard (1998), is a fresh look at life in the sleepy provincial town of Shahkot in India. At 35 years old, Desai is the youngest woman ever to win the prize and was already highly acclaimed in literary circles for her first novel Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard which won a Betty Trask award  [2]  when it was published in 1998. She spent eight years writing her second novel The Inheritance of Loss  [3]  . Much has been made of the parallels between the book and Desais family history but its not an autobiography. Desai herself has said that in places its about experiences within her family such as the experience of immigration and going back to India. Kiran Desais second novel The Inheritance of Loss can be viewed as a Diasporic  [4]  novel. The various themes which are intertwined in the novel are globalization, multiculturalism, insurgency, poverty, isolation and issues related to loss of identity. The issues and conflicts mentioned in the novel are portrayed in a subtle and intriguing manner through the central characters. The theme of Diaspora in the world of literature describes loss of identity and isolation witnessed by the Indian writers who are settled abroad. Writers like Salman Rushdie  [5]  , Vikram Seth  [6]  and Kiran Desai have given insight into what it means to travel between the West and the East. The novel is set in modern day India, and the story is narrated to depict the collapse of established order due to insurgency. In her novel, Desai portrays excellently the issues of poverty and globalization not being an easy solution for problems of trapped social middle classes. The story revolves around the inhabitants of a town in the north-eastern Himalayas, an embittered old judge, his granddaughter Sai, his cook and their rich array of relatives, friends and acquaintances and the effects on the lives of these people brought about by a Nepalese uprising. Running parallel with the story set in India we also follow the vicissitudes of the cooks son Biju as he struggles to realise the American Dream as an immigrant in New York. Like its predecessor, this book abounds in rich, sensual descriptions. These can be sublimely beautiful, such as in the images of the flourishing of nature at the local convent in spring: Huge, spread-open Easter lilies were sticky with spilling antlers; insects chased each other madly through the sky, zip zip; and amorous butterflies, cucumber green, tumbled past the jeep windows into the deep marine valleys. They can also be horrific, such as in descriptions of the protest march: One jawan was knifed to death, the arms of another were chopped off, a third was stabbed, and the heads of policemen came up on stakes before the station across from the bench under the plum tree, where the towns people had rested themselves in more peaceful times and the cook sometimes read his letters. A beheaded body ran briefly down the street, blood fountaining from the neck   [7]   The Inheritance of Loss is much more ambitious than Hullabaloo in its spatial breadth and emotional depth. It takes on huge subjects such as morality and justice, globalisation, racial, social and economic inequality, fundamentalism and alienation. It takes its reader on a see-saw of negative emotions. There is pathos which often goes hand in hand with revulsion for example in the description of the judges adoration of his dog Mutt, the disappearance of which rocks his whole existence, set against his cruelty to his young wife. There is frequent outrage at the deprivation and poverty in which many of the characters live, including the cooks son in America; and there is humiliation, for example in the treatment of Sai by her lover-turned-rebel, or Lola, who tries to stand up to the Nepalese bullies. Against these strong emotions however, Desai expertly injects doses of comedy and buffoon-like figures. One of these is Bijus winsome friend Saeed, an African (Biju hated all black people but liked Saeed), with a slyer and much more happy go lucky attitude to life. Whereas Biju finds it difficult to have a conversation even with the Indian girls to whom he delivers a take away meal, Saeed had many girls: Oh myee God!! he said. Oh myee Gaaaawd! She keep calling me and calling me, he clutched at head, aaaiiiI dont know what to do!! Its those dreadlocks, cut them off and the girls will go. But I dont want them to go!  [8]   Much of the comedy also arises from the Indian mis or over-use of the English language. Result equivocal the young Judge wrote home to India on completing his university examinations in Britain. What, asked everyone does that mean? It sounded as if there was a problem, because un words were negative words, those basically competent in the English agreed. But then (his father) consulted the assistant magistrate and they exploded with joy à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Bose, the Judges friend from his university days is a wonderfully optimistic but pompous individual, made all the more ridiculous by his over-use of British idioms Cheeri-o, right-o, tickety boo, simply smashing, chin-chin, no siree, hows that, bottoms up, I say!  [9]   An original and modern aspect of Desais style is the almost poet-like use she makes of different print forms on the page: she uses italics for foreign words as if to emphasize their exoticness and untranslatability and capitals for emphasis when someone is angry, expressing surprise or disbelief (a natural development of the netiquette that to write in capitals is like shouting). Published to extraordinary acclaim, The Inheritance of Loss heralds Kiran Desai as one of our most insightful novelists. She illuminates the pain of exile and the ambiguities of postcolonialism with a tapestry of colorful characters: an embittered old judge; Sai, his sixteen-year-old orphaned granddaughter; a chatty cook; and the cooks son, Biju, who is hopscotching from one place to another in miserable living conditions. The novel is set partly in India and partly in the USA. Desai describes it as a book that tries to capture what it means to live between East and West and what it means to be an immigrant, and goes on to say that it also explores at a deeper level, what happens when a Western element is introduced into a country that is not of the West which happened during the British colonial days in India, and is happening again with Indias new relationship with the States. Her third aim was to write about, What happens when you take people from a poor country and place them in a wealthy one. How does the imbalance between these two worlds change a persons thinking and feeling? How do these changes manifest themselves in a personal sphere, a political sphere, over time?  [10]   As she says, These are old themes that continue to be relevant in todays world, the past informing the present, the present revealing the past.  [11]   The book paints the act of immigration and how the postcolonial war creates despair resulting in a sense of isolation inherited by each character in the novel. In a generous vision, sometimes funny, sometimes sad, Desai presents the human quandaries facing panoply of characters. This majestic novel of a busy, grasping time-every moment holding out the possibility of hope or betrayal-illuminates the consequences of colonialism and global conflicts of religion, race, and nationalism. The novel is set in 1986 in India at the foot of Mount Kanchenjunga, where the Indian border meets that of Nepal, Tibet, Sikkim, and Bhutan, and where people of many classes and cultures collide in their shared struggle to survive. Kiran Desais novel presents the story of one family as a symbol of the global issues related to colonization and the resulting search for identity. As we read the novel, we meet the retired judge, Jemubhai Patel, whose isolated house near the foot of the mountains is home also to his beloved dog Mutt and his cook. The judge and the cook have lived together in apparent symbiosis for many years when the judges orphaned granddaughter, Sai, comes to live with them. Her arrival marks the beginning of the conflicts that defines the novel. Also central to the story are Gyan, Sais Nepali tutor, and Biju, the cooks son, who has travelled to America in hopes of escaping poverty and making enough money to eventually rescue his father from servitude. The central conflict of the novel revolves around the Nepalis fight to gain education, health care, and other basic rights in India. Early in the story, a group of young insurgents storm the judges house and steal his rifles, literally robbing him of the signs of his Western education and professional occupation. When the tutor, Gyan, with whom Sai has begun a romantic relationship, joins the insurgency. Sai finds herself caught in the middle of a war of class and caste discovers that she has also become a symbol of wealth that Gyan despises. While Gyan and the insurgents are fighting a battle for rights and freedom in India, Biju, the cooks son, is fighting for his own survival and struggling to maintain his identity as he adapts to life in the U.S. As he hops from one menial job to the next, Biju discovers that Americas opportunities are not as plentiful as he expected, and he has given up a servants life in one country just to find the same life in new country, where he faces constant poverty and exploitation. He even notes that, through poverty in America is substantially less severe than poverty in India. Desai presents the similarities between the judge, Gyan, and Biju- as they fight to find their identities and reconcile themselves with their histories. The characters in the novel are bewildered and disillusioned by the world, with no initiative to speak of, nor any capacity to learn; quite often theyre not even paying attention. Almost all of characters have been stunted by their encounters with the West. As a student, isolated in racist England, the future judge feels barely human at all and leaps when touched on the arm as if from an umbrella intimacy. Yet on his return to India, he finds himself despising his backward Indian wife. Arguably the most beautiful portions of the book are the nuggets Desai paints of the cooks son Biju who gets by on the barest of bare from one minimum wage job to the other in New York City. In the Gandhi cafà ©, the lights were kept low, the better to hide the stains. It was a long journey from here to the fusion trend, the goat cheese and basil samosa, the mango margarita. This was the real thing, generic Indian, and it could be ordered complete, one stop on the subway line or even on the phone: gilt and red chairs, plastic roses on the table with synthetic dewdrops,  [12]  Desai writes when she describes one of the Indian restaurants Biju works at. What bind these seemingly disparate characters are shared historical legacy and a common experience of impotence and humiliation. For the characters in The Inheritance of Loss, escape is impossible and misery is birthright. Sais parents before they die are filled with the same loneliness as their daughter; the son whose mother was bidding farewell earlier in this review botches his goodbye, and we learn that Never again would he know love for a human being that wasnt adulterated by another, contradictory emotion (37). (The son grows up to be the judge, arranged into a loveless marriage that descends into rape and other abuses.) The cook is an old man with no fulfillment in his own life, desperate that his son do better than he did; this pressure is eventually Bijus undoing. Sais tutor before Gyan is Noni, a spinster who never had love at all (68). And so on, for the entire cast. Its an old story: Certain moves made long ago, we are told, had produced all of them (199). They are, if you like, variations on an absence of dignity: children, criminals, and buffoons. And too often thats all they are or at least the rest is hidden, the civilised sheen of Desais prose obscuring the extent of the violence done to their lives by circumstances. The plot of the novel is fascinating; however, its real charm lies in its atmospheric descriptions and in quirky characters with whom the reader quickly identifies. Desai is careful observer of behavior, both in India and in the US, with a fine eye for details which bring her character and narrative to life. She presents details dispassionately, illustrating her themes without making moral judgments about her characters. Here there are no saints or villains, just ordinary people trying to lead the best lives they can, using whatever resources are available to them. Intensely human, Desais characters, like people from all cultures, make huge sacrifices for their children, behave cruelly toward people they love, reject traditional ways of life and old values, rediscover what is important to them, suffer at the hands of faceless government officials, and learn, and grow, and make decisions, sometimes ill-considered, about their lives. Dealing with all levels of society and many different cultures, Desai shows life humor and brutality, its whimsy and its harshness, and its delicate emotions and passionate commitments in a novel that is both beautiful and wise. The books language, scenarios and juxtapositions are funny, threatening, vivid and tender all at the same time. The comic element always intertwined with irony, as characters struggle with a world bigger than themselves, a world that only ever seems to accept them partially, and rarely on their own terms. The novels elaborate structure takes the reader into the world of Nationalism and migration, which seems contemporary and timeless, familiar and unpredictable. Chapters alternate between India and US, juxtaposing the slow pace of life in the hills with the frantic movements of an illegal migrants existence, maintaining a degree of suspense until discontinuous narratives collide. Kiran Desai writes an elegant and thoughtful study of families, the losses each member must confront alone, and the lies each tells himself/herself to make memories of the past more palatable. It is also true that the book does not have a sense of the movement that has shaped the subcontinents history- in this case the freedom struggle and the movement for Gorkhaland. The backdrop to the action in the novel is political unrest in Kalimpong where Nepali Ghurkas are campaigning at first quite quietly and then with increasing force for an independent Ghurkaland. The uprising brings a new wave of change to the main characters as conditions become significantly worse and much of what theyve come to take for granted is brought into doubt. Desai has been condemned by local people in Kalimpong for portraying them as ignorant and violent and for being condescending. The book has a growing sense of despair and decay as if the people, like the houses they live in and the property they own, are succumbing to the damp and mould of a monsoon season. The Inheritance of Loss is a very inward-looking novel, with far more internal monologues and passages of description than exchange of dialogue, which despite the rough patches mentioned above plays to Desais strengths. As in much of immigrant writing, Kiran Desai is an outsider to all the worlds that form a part of landscape. She is merely the observer passing through. But, her knowledge of alienation makes protagonists search for a sense of belonging more real. The inheritance of loss depicts in its many details the tragedies of a third world country just free from colonialism. The main theme of the novel also appears to be the influence of the West on India and how Indians are wounded by the policies of the West. These influences have oppressed and degraded India. Against the gigantic backdrop of the Himalayas, so savage with beauty and yet the stillness of its towering ranges directly draws upon the boring and mundane life of its characters with tumultuous inner sides and shades. The novel gives us delectable details of the beauty of the natural world. The sound of the wind, the pattering of the rain , the gurgling of pipes, the creaking and clattering of an old house Cho Oyu, the happy snoring of the faithful and happy dog Mutt, sometimes makes reading so refreshing that one can breathe the very crisp Himalayan air and feel surrounded by the looming dark forest. Ms Desai has presented in this book such lovely details that many a times it feels so much like our world.The novel depicts very well in Jemubhai the dilemmas of post colonialism. The judge Jemubhai perfect manners and demeanor is very much British but he cannot get himself free from the shackles (which he thinks to be so) of traditional Gujrati and Indian mentality. He feels guilty of ill treating his wife Nimmi, of shoving away the holy coconut throwing in the water custom. He seems to be a man who is caught, caught between the past and the present, between his days in London and his slow and mundane life in the crumbling house Cho Oyu, between his daughter and his grand daughter, Sai, between the Nepalis struggling for their land and freedom and his own British world of thick volumes of English Literature, of crones at teatime and the choice of white sauce and brown sauce for dinner and his lovely dog Mutt. But soon Kalimpong becomes the hub of activities. The Nepalis struggle to get their own rights and land slowly creeps into the lives of the characters, the cook, the judge, Sai, Noni, Lola and gnaws and questions their very being.. The movement does not even spare Biju the cooks son in America who comes back only to be robbed of all his money and belongings. But yet the reader finds a quaint satisfaction in the union of father and son in the backdrop of a disturbed land of Kalimpong. At least Biju feels safe and at peace compared to his lonely life as a waiter thrown from one restaurant kitchen to another. The progress of the human heart is clearly depicted in Sai. Her yearnings and passion for Gyan, the long wait , the quarrel of English values and Nepali struggles only make her realize and look at life more closely, the very human soul which had been quite frozen and regularized with strict orders in the missionary convent school in Dehra Dun. The novel though rich with details and presenting a picturesque mosaic of life, at times falls prey to monotony and boredom. The darkness and the inner conflict sometimes weigh too much upon the mind and soul. But thats what a good writer should be capable of and Ms Desai has been very successful in touching and stirring the depths of human emotion and thought. A very contemplative work and a must read for all connoisseurs of literature The novel is amazing in many ways. The picture of India drawn is intricate and fascinating. The characters are complex and the writing is simply stunning. However, the whole picture painted in this story leaves no room for hope, no room for joy, no room for even tiny bit of beauty.

Diary Entries for Juliet :: Papers

Diary Entries for Juliet Dear Diary, My time has come, I knew it would come soon, I am soon to be married. I don't know what to do or what to think. When I was told the news my life flashed before my eyes, I saw myself in a loveless marriage, sitting at home in old clothes, slaving over a hot stove all day and looking after the children, what kind of a future is that? Getting married is an honour, because it shows you are wanted and the older you are the less likely you are to get married and your parents will have to look after you. I don't want to disappoint my parents, but I truly feel marriage, at this stage in my life, is not what I want. I am not ready to make such a commitment. The man I am meant to marry I'm to meet at this party my father is throwing. I am supposed to like him, what happens if I don't? Even if I like him, I certainly don't want to marry him. My father, I think, will give me some say in the matter, after all it is my life and he is meant to love and respect me. My nanny is more like my mother, my mother and father weren't around much when I was growing up and I feel a really strong bond between the nanny and I and she will support me whatever I choose, if I get to choose. This party is going to be the worst yet, I'm not even bothered about what I'm going to wear. Also I can't enjoy myself because I know soon I could marry, possibly to someone who is not right for me. Come to think of it I know nothing about this man, how is the marriage supposed to last anyway? HELP! I can hear my mother calling, got to go. Juliet Dear Diary, Romeo, Romeo, I am in love with Romeo, not with the man my dad picked, Paris.

Psychological Warfare Essay

Psychological Warfare is a war of the mind. It is considered to be a plan operation to convey selected information and indications to audiences and influence their emotions,motives, behaviors, objective reasoning towards a particular aspect. It is a weapon used in all aspects of war and whose effectiveness is limited to the commanders ingenuity that has been using it. Psychological warfare or also known as Psychological Operations (PSYOP) is considered ed as one of the oldest weapon in a man’s arsenal,an important force,protector and a non-lethal weapon system. It is simply learning everything about your enemies belief,likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses, vulnerabilities and your main motive is to determine their weak point that will make you win. Here a comprehensive study about Psychological Warfare will be tackled and how terrorists maximizes the use of Internet in doing Psychological operations that will make or break their motives towards a particular enemy. The factors that influences an individual to develop Psychological Warfare and their morale as well as other related dilemmas will also be discussed. Psychological Warfare is broadly defined as a planned use of communication to influence people’s attitudes and behaviors and which main target is the emotion that will support the attainment of national objectives. â€Å"The form of communication can be as simple as spreading information covertly by word of mouth or through any means of multimedia.† (Rouse, 2007) The U.S. Department of Defense defines psychological warfare (PSYWAR) as: â€Å"The planned use of propaganda and other psychological actions having the primary purpose of influencing the opinions, emotions, attitudes, and behavior of hostile foreign groups in such a way as to support the achievement of national objectives.†   Psychological Warfare is also known as infowars. This type of warfare is often used in modern situations, such as the dropping of leaflets and propaganda campaigns. Psychological warfare could be considered a type of unconventional warfare. This is because it attempts to influence the mind of the enemy rather than destroy its military. The press is one of the most commonly used weapons for spreading propaganda. (wikipedia) Here, the primary weapons are sights and sound since it can be disseminated by face to face communication, through radio,television,newspaper,books, magazines or posters. The real deal is not how the message is sent but it is more about the message and how that message impacts the beliefs of an individual. Most of events and terrorist attacks involves Psychological warfare that utilizes tactics (psychological Operations or PSYOP) that will inculcate fear towards the enemy and catches people’s attention to unite with their motives. As communications and technology advances, greater chances for mass propaganda is developed. Psychological Operations (PSYOP, PSYOPS) are techniques used by military and police forces to influence a target audience’s emotions, motives, objective reasoning, and behavior. Target audiences can be governments, organizations, groups, and individuals, and are used in order to induce confessions, or reinforce attitudes and behaviors favorable to the originator’s objectives. These are sometimes combined with black operations or false flag tactics. (wikipedia) It is also classified as white, grey and black whereas white is said to be true and not biased and the source of information is acknowledge. Grey is largely truthful it contains no information that can be proven as wrong and the source may or may not be revealed. Black propaganda is worst because it is really intended to deceive enemies. â€Å"History provides the strongest proof of the importance of moral factors and their often incredible effect: this is the noblest and most solid nourishment that the mind of a general may draw from a study of the past.† (Clausewitz, 1976,p.185)) Psywar and PSYOP is a directed war propaganda at their enemies to induce surrender, disruption and insurrection. It is also said to be more effective when based on military tactics and realities. Since we are now in the twenty first century, mass media now allows the dissemination and reception of information from enemies. Their messages are provided through leaflets, radio, television and know the world wide web invasion is also a medium for Psychological warfare. Through the Internet various propagandas that attempts to persuade people to think and influence people is made possible by individuals that wants to achieve a certain degree of power through their opinions and firm conviction regarding a certain claim. Most individuals who use the net as a means of promulgating informations that attacks certain party are those people whom they called terrorists. Terrorists in the modern sense are classified as people who are violent and uses harmful acts to threaten or directly harm civilians for their political and ideological goals. Terrorists are now increasingly using the Internet to communicate with their co-terrorist and to the rest of the people in the world who uses this medium of communication. Most people have seen certain propagandas like videos that are published on the world’s news networks and other websites made possible by these people. The Internet is a powerful tool for terrorism to be done. Certain websites contains forums, message boards and chat rooms that shares information to coordinate attacks and spread each propaganda to continuously recruit people to be part of their terrorists groups. It serves as a mind opening and soul awakening for an individual to develop more of their Psychological warfare to revolt and act against a particular group. Such websites also serves as training grounds from newbies in the terrorists’ world where tutorials on building bombs,firing missiles and shooting guns are offered. It also host messages that raises morale and for further expansion of recruting and getting funds for their group. The greatest advantage of using Internet is that terrorists have greater edge of disseminating information and they began to develop more sophisticated encryption tools and creative techniques that are efficiently provided by these medium. It also provides a global pool of recruits and greater fund raising means since it has become a commonplace for organizations to accept donations through usage of credit cards and wire transfers. Certain websites that contains terroristic motives was already discovered and disciplinary measures were given to those caught using this as a Psychological Warfare weapon to influence people and inculcate terrorism into the minds of people. An article entitled â€Å"Briton convicted of terrorism offenses† was retrieved and In this article Mohammed Atif Siddique21 years of age and a British Muslim was accused of terrorism offenses and he was also plead guilty of his acts. This is because he was possessing and distributing materials for aspiring Islamist terrorists via world wide web between March 2003 and April 2006. He’s threat of becoming a suicide bomber made also cases to be filed against him. He cannot deny the fact behind the judge’s decision since the presiding Judge, Lord Carloway told him that having those articles in his possession that are connected with the commission made him convicted of significant attempts of terrorism attacks. A video on Mr. Siddique’s computer that shows a man threatening to bomb Britain serves as a strong evidence on his case. The same video was also shown to his fellow students at Glasgow Metropolitan College. Even his cousin Shazia Rehman received 6 e-mails than advocates suicide bombings. Which for him finds most pleasing in the eyes of Allah because blowing himself cannot be considered suicide but rather being a martyr. In spite of the evidences cited against him, he denies the accusation and charges against him by saying that he has those materials for research purposes only. Nevertheless he was sentenced on October 23, 2007 of 15 years imprisonment. His good lawyer. Aamer Anwar wants to appeal on his case since he finds it unfair because according to him what his client does is just a typical everyday activity of young people who surfs the Internet everyday looking for answers. He claims that it is a r ragedy of justice and freedom of speech that differentiates his client among terrorists. (Fontanella, 2007) I can say that in his case, such evidences and activities is credible enough for him to be sentenced. It is better for him to be vindicated than to allow him to be free and put the lives of many people in danger. However, a parole maybe given if he behaves   monitor his activities if there will be another terrorist attempt for him. Shutting down of a terrorist website is one immediate solution on this scenario hence it is also considered as a temporary disruption if the web master is not stopped. Thats why an immediate action like filing a case and sending the accused in jail is a better solution on this case. Because if certain web masters are still allowed to be free even though the website is already shut down,a worst case of integrating another website can be done to develop another Psychological warfare grounds and make terrorist activities possible. A disappointing article about a successful terrorist act is entitled â€Å"Bomb blasts in Pakistan kill at least 25† The outskirts of Pakistan capital, Islamabad were were bombed on September 4, 2007 claiming the lives of 25 innocents and injured 60 more. The blasts happened on two separate accounts in a military garrisoned town of Rawalpindi. The target of the first explosion was a military bus in an encampment of the general headquarters which automatically placed the two areas under high alert. The alert was just lifted a couple of days prior to the bombings. The explosions are deemed to be a succession of terrorist acts happening in Pakistan in the past few months. Government officials indicate that the attacks were suicidal in nature. The military claimed that the motives behind the blasts will be revealed after an investigation. Security officials viewed the attacks as a retaliation to the military operations against the militants in the country’s border.(Bokhari, 2007) The failure of the Pakistani Armed Forces to serve and protect the civilians are becoming more of a habit, rather than a mistake.In recent instances, the Pakistani army is showing that they cannot counter the Islamic Extremists who plague their country. The bombings of the military headquarters obviously prove that the security as well as the military’s competency is highly questionable. The massive difference in number between Pakistani soldiers and Islamic rebels prove that the Pakistani Army needs strategical and tactical training in order to penetrate the base of a small rebel assembly. Furthermore it is clear as day that the military officials are ill-equipped to distribute soldiers to different tasks in order to eliminate terrorist activity and presence in Pakistan, it is blatant that they use quantity rather than strategy in conducting operations. They should have further research about the group before going into war and they should have determine it earlier if they already gathered enough informations about this terrorist by surfing in the web about the propagandas of this group. One might say that morale has been a boosting factor for terrorist to push thorough their acts of being determined in having a Psychological warfare. Morale is a subject clearly less glamorous than high-technology precision weapons and information systems but no less important. There has been no â€Å"revolution in morale affairs† to make the gray shades of morale more black and white. Instead, because morale keeps us flying on instruments â€Å"in the soup,† it serves as a governor to check the hyper pace of modern warfare. Morale inertia also carries an imperative that the will to win the fight is something the victor must maintain and the vanquished must lose. (Tzu, 1963, p.54). Having a moral boost makes a person more determined in doing an activity according to his/her belief and the conviction to triumphed in that particular matter. And since Psychological operations (PSYOP) is officially the business of targeting the mind of the person, (Collins, 1999, p.58) it serves as a weapon to communicate the message directly toward morale, PSYOP uses television, radio broadcasts, and other methodologies like Internet websites rather than physical destruction to convince the enemy to do something and much worst scenario is expected to happen when it was successfully done like the article stated above that killed innocent people. Having enough time to contemplate before thinking of having and building the concept of Psychological Warfare is really an issue for an individual. Because being committed in such group requires a lot of moral dilemmas and many things should also be taken into consideration. Informations generated and are used as weapons of catching up people’s attention is critically analyzed by web masters and terrorist who took advantage of technology in influencing people’s attitudes and behaviors and targets their emotions to get sympathy and encourage others to be a part of their group that will support the attainment of national objectives according to their sets of principle. It requires good decision making whether you wanted to be affected by these factors and it is also your decision that will make or break your personality as an individual and how you view the world in a brighter perspective. After all Psychological Warfare starts with the mind its all up to us how we are going to be influenced by these stuffs. And we also have to overlook the outcome of every decisions that we make. Deciding with the mind and of course with the heart. References Bokhari, Farhan in Islamabad. (2007) Bomb blasts in Pakistan kill at least 25. FT.com Financial Times retrieved December 5, 2007, from: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ad231bc6-5aa6-11dc- 8c32-0000779fd2ac.html Clausewitz, Carl von. (1976). On War, ed. and trans. Michael Howard and Peter Paret. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, p. 185. Collins, Steven. (1999) â€Å"Army PSYOP in Bosnia: Capabilities and Constraints,† Parameters 29, no. 2 (Summer)p. 58. Fontanella,James and agencies. (2007)Briton convicted of terrorism offenses. FT.com Financial Times retrieved December 5, 2007, from: http://us.ft.com/ftgateway/superpage.ft?news_id=fto091720071114413670&utm_source=utm source%3Dyahoo&utm_medium=utm_medium%3DSSP&utm_campaign=utm_campaign%3 Dnews Psychological Warfare (2007) U.S Department of defense definiton. Wikipedia.org retrieved December 5, 2007, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_warfare#United_States_use_of_psychological_w arfare Rouse, Major Ed. (2007) Psychological Operations/Warfare. psywarior.com retrieved December 5,2007 from: http://www.psywarrior.com/psyhist.html Tzu, Sun. (1963). The Art of War, trans. Samuel B. Griffith. London: Oxford University Press,p.54.

Internal Corporate Communications Audit - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 1022 Downloads: 2 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Analytical essay Level High school Did you like this example? CITY OF LONDON ACADEMY QUESTION: 2. Conduct an internal corporate communications audit of your organization using a set of questionnaires. Critically evaluate the results to identify strengths and weaknesses of current practices in your organization. Definations of internal corporate communications audit: A communications audit can be explained as a systematic research method which help to recognize the current condition of internal and external communications in an organization. The various features of internal corporate communications audit can be explained as below: It helps to identify how past communications are handled and the strength and weaknesses of current communications practice. It helps to find out various opportunities for future communications. An internal corporate communications audit helps to suggest suitable communications practice for the achievement of goals and successes of the organisations. It helps to analyse whether the corporate communication audit assist in overall strategy of the organisation. Planning of internal corporate communications audit of the organizations: The internal corporate communication is held among the members of the organization. The development of the organization is highly depend on the strength of the corporate communication strategy. The various questionnaires while planning the internal corporate communication strategy are as follows: Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Internal Corporate Communications Audit" essay for you Create order What is your message? The focus of the internal communication strategy is the message that you delivered. All the information that you develop in your communication strategy depends on the message that you are trying to convey. The managers should convey the message to all its employees which is understandable, appropriate and meaningful. As for example; the information about plans, policies, staff guidance, annual reports, working schedule etc must be delivered by delivering the appropriate message. Who is your target audience? The target audience is the group whom you are trying to reach with your message. Identifying the target audience is important because it helps to show how to develop your message and the form in which your message will take. The various audiences in internal communications are all the members they are related to the organization. The information must be delivered differently according to the age, gender, qualifications and level of the members of the organization. What information does your audience need? The information should not be too vague, broad and confusing. For the internal members of the organization, the communication must be done with short, understanding, clear and necessary information in order to avoid rumors and confusion. How will the message be delivered? Different media of communication like notice board, email, conferences, staff meeting are suitable to deliver the message among the internal members of the organization. How will you gauge the success of your communication strategy? Performance measurements of the internal communication must be done to get the information about the failures and mistakes so that they can be improved in the future. Conducting the internal corporate communication audit: The different steps of conducting the internal corporate communication audit are as follows: Determine the areas to be audited: The internal standard identity pieces as business cards, letterhead, logo, signage, website, online system are the different areas to conduct the internal corporate communication audit. Choose your research methods: To conduct internal corporate communication audit, different research methods such as one to one interviews, focus groups, online or telephone surveys and media analysis are the research methods. Collect and evaluate your past communications: Communicate all the past yearà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s performance and output in the meeting among all the members of the organization. As for example, gather the answer of the following: What were our key messages? Could we reach our target audiences with the right messages? Could we successfully communicate our organisational plans and policies? Look inward: Query your staff and volunteers: Collect the views from the employees about the communication during past year, whether they were effective or not, how could they be improved, did the internal resources serve their needs, whether all the employees are satisfied and have accurate, consistent voice about the organization. Evaluation of results The evaluation of the results can be done from the SWOT analysis. SWOT analysis stands for strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strength: The internal communication audit evaluate the results to measure the strength of the organization. Following are the examples of the strength of the organization gained from the result of the internal communication audit. If the result shows, employees are happy and satisfied with the internal communication system, this is the strength of the organisation. The positive result reflects the development of key steps in building the positive relationships, creating credibility and mutual trust with the employees The good results ensure the strength of organisation in the improvement of communication in the organization. If the internal corporate communication audit is improving than past audit, it means the organization has good organizational culture of open communication, credibility and collaboration. The strength of organization will be the commitment to build the positive thinking of employees and stakeholders about organizationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s communication and initiatives. Weaknesses: The negative results of internal corporate communication audit reflects the weaknesses of the organisation. It means the messages are not properly delivered to the group of stakeholders in comparison to the past performances. The way of delivering the messages is poor in the organisation. Hence the improvement in the delivering system like, way of writing messages in the notice board must be improved so that all the stakeholders can understand. If the majority group of stakeholders prefer to receive messages by email, then the organisation must choose online system to deliver the message. Sometime the mutual cooperation among all the members in the organization becomes poor and hence it effects the internal corporate communication among them. Thus, it will be necessary to strengthen the relationship among all the members by organising staff meeting time and again, conferences and seminar when new plans and policies have to be launched. This will help in improving the poor communication audit for the future development of the organization. References: https://catalogue.pearsoned.co.uk/assets/hip/gb/hip_gb_pearsonhighered/samplechapter/0273711733.pdf https://www.who.int/patientsafety/research/P_Michel_Report_Final_version.pdf https://doubledutchtranslations.com/2013/05/12/05-internal-and-external-audit-swottows/ https://doubledutchtranslations.com/2013/05/12/05-internal-and-external-audit-swottows/