TOPIC NO 9 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

TOPIC NO 9 - Essay Example Factors such as culture and history are not included in the Porter’s five forces industry analysis. Because of this, the model is seen as inadequate as an environmental assessment tool. Moreover, the forces behind the model are grounded on the premise of constant returns to scale by Alfred Marshall in his ‘theory of production.’ This paper aims to discuss the changes, such as increasing returns to scale and their effect on the intensity of the forces. Factors such as culture and history and their effect on the forces are also explored. When constant returns to scale is a vital premise where Michael Porter has derived his Five Forces of the industry model, it mainly based on Alfred Marshall’s theory of production. According to Marshall’s theory of production, for a certain increase in the level of all inputs, the output will increase by the same proportion (ILSTU.edu 2009). This has been identified as the constant returns to scale. The concept of constant returns to scale has been the traditional assumption as regards the theory of production. However, changes in our times state that the concept of constant returns to scale is not always the case for production. As firms strive to build production competitive advantage in order to lead the competition, they strive to produce more outputs for a given increase in the level of the inputs, hence increasing returns to scale. As stated in Porter’s five forces: â€Å"In the traditional economic model, competition among rival firms drives profits to zero. But competition is not perfect and firms are not unsophisticated passive price takers. Rather, firms strive for a competitive advantage over their rivals. The intensity of rivalry among firms varies across industries, and strategic analysts are interested in these differences (AUEB.gr).† â€Å"[†¦] unique industry characteristics that define the industry.

Female Gentinal Mutilation Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Female Gentinal Mutilation - Research Paper Example The paper shall also at times adopt a postcolonial approach to demonstrate the different forces that affect the creation of social forces the way they are. The paper shall, in the ultimate analysis, denounce the practice of female genital mutilation as it is a corrupt practice that impinges on the freedom of women. It shall look at the views of various theorists of Female Genital Mutilation. It shall also look at theorists like Michel Foucault, Amartya Sen, Edward Said and Ngugi wa Thiongo so as to understand the sociological and symbolic, economic, cultural and postcolonial aspects of the problem that Genetic mutilation presents. The problem, finally, needs a holistic solution that shall talk of the need to delink power from sexuality as much as possible. It shall also argue for an altered means of production in postcolonial societies. This is what shall lead to freedom, sexual and economic. Female Circumcision and its Abolition Female circumcision is practiced in many cultures acro ss the world. There are many reasons that are often advanced in favor of this practice and many of them are considered to stem from customary practices of a particular community. However, there are several aspects of this issue that make this situation a complex one. An analysis of this issue needs to take into account what is religiously sanctioned and what is the result of customs that are peculiar to a certain community. For this purpose, it is important to note the differences that arise in different communities that practice circumcision. It also becomes necessary to look at the importance of the differences between the practices of female and male circumcision to understand the impact that patriarchy has upon the custom. This institution has persisted in times of modernity as well. This modernity was inspired largely by European notions of the same. Discussions into the practice of female circumcision shall also lead to a discussion of this modernity. Since much of these notio ns were introduced into non-European cultures through the process of colonization, it is also important to analyze the impact of colonization on the processes of the culture formation in nations that were erstwhile colonies. The persistence of this phenomenon despite the introduction of so many changes to the culture of a place speaks volumes about the entrenched quality of patriarchy in these parts of the world. The phenomenon of genital mutilation can thus be linked to patriarchy and the protests against it can be looked at through a feminist perspective. This may seem like a very obvious point but it needs to be made. This is because it enables one to employ feminist perspectives to critique the practice of genital mutilation. These perspectives would enable one to present one’s critique in a systematic fashion. This paper shall attempt to do so and argue in this context that corrupt practice such as circumcision of Muslim women should be abolished. Female Genital Mutilati on and the Youth of a Nation One of the most important aspects of the abolition of female circumcision is the fact of it happening through the youth of a nation. This would fuel a larger change in the society where it happens by effecting a collective change that would lead to not just legal changes but also to changes in the mentalities of people (Palmieri and Mottin-Sylla, 2011). The change in female circumcisi