Structure of Software Development Industry in the Philippines free essay sample

1. Industry Structure Outsourcing is contracting out some work or particular function to another company or person. This is done to save on cost and time since the third party provider or the service providers usually agrees to render services at lesser expense. During the economic boom in mid 1990s, outsourcing has increased because most of the economically advanced countries send work to businesses in other developing nations. The Offshore and Outsourcing (OO) industry in the Philippines first started in the 1990s, but really started growing in earnest at the start of this decade (http://www. sourcingline. om/). As late as 2004, the industry was only about $1. 5 billion, but grew at almost 50% for several years and is now estimated to be growing at about 30% annually. The OO industry is generally divided into four major segments: the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), Information Technology Outsourcing (ITO), Engineering Services Outsourcing (ESO) and Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO). We will write a custom essay sample on Structure of Software Development Industry in the Philippines or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The BPO companies comprise 76% of the total OO industry, while the ITO and ESO companies are about 19% and 5%, respectively. The figure below (Figure ) shows the percentage of each of the outsourcing segment except for KPO. The market composition of BPO is further detailed in the figure. Note: No data available for KPO. Source: BPAP The Philippines is a leading nation in the business process outsourcing (BPO) market, both in contact center services and the non-voice sector. In the past 7 years, BPO has been one of the fastest growing sectors in the Philippines. It is an emerging player in the IT services market (Web design, software development, application maintenance, etc. ) with companies focusing on niche segments such as animation. It is also a home to a USD $350 million offshore outsource software services sector (www1. american. edu/). The primary focus of the Philippines software development firms is on systems and application development and maintenance of legacy applications. Its command of English and cultural affinity for the US makes it easier to attract companies seeking to transition at their low-level maintenance work offshore. (http://www. awsys-i. com). The primary activity of Software Development segment is to undertake complex software development projects focused on the  development of customized, sophisticated software in areas requiring a tailored approach by teams of programmers located at offshore development centers or at the customer site (http://www. bsgr. com). Software Development Outsourcing is raising interest to more overseas IT companies due to various reasons. Outsourcing of software development offers a combination of reduced cost, better quality and faster time to the market services. Aside from cost, the methodology, ability and core competition are playing the key role in software outsourcing. Software Development Outsourcing has been famous in the past time, or as early as the 1776s. In 1990, Indian government followed this program of economic and was able to control all the systems through policies and regulations. The global Information Technology Services (ITS) exports by country in 2008 (Figure ) shows that the major providers of offshore software development are India, Philippines, China, Mexico, Russia and Brazil. Two of the biggest competitors of the Philippines outsourcing industries are its Asian neighbors – India and China. From the chart above, India dominates the global ITS markets by taking on 72% of global market shares. The Philippines takes 10% of that pie beating China at 4%. Compared to both countries, the country’s population is staggeringly lower. But key factors such as a closer affinity to western culture and the more affluent English-speaking skills of the Philippine workforce, places the country at par in the competition and in gaining market share. Sources: Locsin (2006), Cu (2006), NeoIT (2004), Deutsche Bank Research and NASSCOM (2005) as cited in Schaaf (2005), NASSCOM and McKinsey (2005) as cited in Nandy (2006). Comparing the country against India, the figures above show that by percentage, the country exceeds BPO employment in labor force. However, by large, India, as of the date of these projected values, dominates the Software and IT services niche. This could also be attributed to the core competencies described, in which the Philippines plays strongly in the contact center, transcriptions, animation and back-office operations. According to Maity (2011), Software Development Outsourcing can be categorized primarily into two: one is product engineering and the second is outsourced development work. Most of these can have 2 aspects which is the building something new and then the support and maintenance side of it. And then each of them also has several other parts where someone might just outsource, design, development, testing, documentation, and together they make up the each category. The difference between the two categories is that product engineering is RD related. These companies own the IT and they want part of it to be outsourced – that is the product engineering. The outsourced development work is basically for companies who use software for their operations. An example of this is a company who needs to build an HR system, or an airline who needs to build its reservation system. 1. 1. Firms in the Industry In 2006, Philippines has 516 firms providing offshore and outsourcing services that increased in number to about 620 in 2007. At present, there are about 400+ SEC-registered companies in the Philippines specific for software industry but not all are operational (Maity, 2011). There are approximately 80,000 software developers in the country. The pyramid of a typical company shows that 85% of the workforces are programmers while Admin comprise 5% (www. tholons. com). The Philippine Software Industry Association (PSIA), founded by ten Filipino-owned companies in 1988, has 120 members composed of leading multinational firms and local small-to-medium local enterprises (SMEs). The members list is shown at Appendix 1 (www. psia. org). These member-companies make up 90% of the industry revenues. About 300 more companies that are outside PSIA mostly are start-up or SMEs. Thus, software development industry in the Philippines is dominated by small players and very few large companies like Accenture and IBM. In the global arena, the major players in Software Development Outsourcing are the following: Accenture, Capgmini, Cognizant Technology Solutions, CSC, EDS, HCL, IBM, Infosys Technologies, Patni Computer Systems, Sapient, Satyam, Syntel, and Wipro. In a recent study, the PSIA has classified software development outsourcing companies to be able to figure out the needs of the market. There is basically what we call large global technology companies: Accenture, HP – segmented as those with about 1000 employees (Maity, 2011). There is also what is termed as captives – generally those with 500 employees. Maity (2011) further explains, â€Å"The difference between the global tech companies and captives, captives do not do business of IT. They do IT for their own IT needs like JP Morgan Chase Bank and similar to that. So JP Morgan Chase falls into this category, large captive. . The small companies would be like 120-110 people who are like Travelocity. Travelocity is one of the brands, on ticketing and reservations. These companies in size are about 100 people or so. Basically they do not sell IT service, they do IT internally (Maity, 2011). In the local scene, there are large local and what we call micro-SME (Maity, 20 11). Micro-SMEs are those focusing on the Philippines market, purely like catering to the banks and others, and outsourcing markets. And then, there are few in the product and has an IT of their own. Manila and Cebu ranked No. and 9, respectively, in a study conducted by Tholons’ (2010) â€Å"Top 100 Cities in the World for Outsourcing† (Figure 3). At present, approximately 20% of the IT-BPO companies are located outside the main metropolitan areas of Manila and Cebu and this trend is expected to continue. The country is currently witnessing the impact of the IT-BPO industry on rural communities, as other cities outside Metro Manila emerge as new IT-BPO hubs or the Next Wave Cities (http://www. welive2care. com/). Included in the list of Tholons’ are the cities of Davao No. 69, Sta. Rosa (Laguna) No. 88, Iloilo No. 8 and Bacolod No. 100. The provincial government is also establishing the Negros First CyberPark, a mixed-used complex consisting of more than 12 ,000 square meters of space for BPO services at a three-story building to be built at the Paglaum Sports Complex, which will provide more than 1,000 jobs. (http://www. welive2care. com/). The Global ranking of Tholons for the country is reinforced by the qualifications of many Filipino IT professionals having international certifications credited and given by top software vendors and platforms such as the following: * Microsoft Certified Professionals (MCP) CISCO Certified Network Associates * Computer Associates Certification * SUN Certified Programmer for JAVA2 * IBM Certification * Network+ 1. 2. Profits of the Industry The profit of software development outsourcing industry is hard to determine (Maity, 2011). For the past years, the large global technology companies practice what they call â€Å"transfer pricing†. Out of 45,000 companies, around 20,000 to 25,000 companies do transfer pricing. This means that the company just pass the prices to its mother company thus, end ing up the year with technically zero profits. They are not for profit anyway, they are suppose to cater to the mother companys needs (Maity, 2011). But still, if you look at the profit and loss, its in profits. The average revenue of outsourcing roughly is in the range of $17,000 per year. In reality, thats not a sustainable weight because from our understanding if someone offers global outsourcing work, even to break even, probably the cost is roughly about $15, meaning, $15 is the equivalent if you pay $15/hr times 150 hours a month, times twelve months, thats only $27,0000. After which, management cost to the share of facilities and utilities and other costs are to be added on it which makes transfer pricing cheaper. Market pricing at 20-25% or the average market rate should be $36,000 to $45,000. The average profitability of the company is probably somewhere between 20-25% (Maity, 2011). The Software and ITO accounts for 8% of Philippines’ OO revenue (Figure _ and has a cumulative average growth rate (CAGR) of 33% (Figure )according to Business Processing Association Philippines (BPA/P). The information technology – business process outsourcing (IT-BPO) industry in the Philippines is growing by about 25% a year. The investors see the country as the next â€Å"Asian Dragon, if this growth is sustained (Uy, 2011). Many of the world’s largest companies operate the biggest services centers in the Philippines, which is why the IT-BPO industry continues to grow. As of last year, the industry employed about 525,000 people and had generated more than US$9. 1 billion in export revenues. From less than US$100 million in total revenues in 2001, the Philippines increased IT-BPO and GIC revenues to $3. billion in 2006, effectively doubling revenue every year. This high rate of growth has persisted even as the industry has grown beyond its initially small base. Between 2004 and 2006, the industry grew 49% per year. As a result of this growth, the Philippines is the acknowledge global leader in voice IT-BPO and GIC, and it is number two in complex, non-voice services in a wide range of sectors and functions (http://www. welive2care. com/). At the end of 2008, there were a total of 618 BPO companies in the Philippines. The contact center sector represents 31 percent of the industry, with 191 companies. The contact center sector is consist of inbound and outbound voice operation services for sales, customer service and technical support, among others. Data transcription services (135 companies, 22%), and information technology services and software development (119 companies, 19%) were also well? represented. There were 81 companies offering back office services (sometimes referred to as knowledge process outsourcing or KPO), which refers to services related to finance, accounting and human resource administration, representing a 13 percent share. From only around 100,000 full? time employees in 2004, the BPO industry expanded rapidly to nearly 372,000 employees at the end of 2008. The bulk of BPO jobs are in the contact center sector, which employed around 227,000 people in 2008. The second largest sector in terms of employment in 2008 was the back office/KPO sector with nearly 69,000 employees. Total BPO employment grew by 24 percent between 2007 and 2008, whereas total employment in the country grew by only 1. 6 percent during the same period. Source: BPAP From the data above and in terms of revenues, the BPO industry has also shown resiliency and steady growth amid the recent financial crisis. It is estimated that the industry generated around US$6 billion in export revenues in 2008 from around only US$1. 5 billion in 2004. Contact centers had the biggest impact, bringing in S$4. 1 billion, while back office services generated US$827 million in revenue. Preliminary industry estimates further indicate that revenues grew by 20 percent in 2009. 1. 3. Industry Requirements According to Maity (2011), the industry has different needs for different kinds. When it comes to hiring needs, the big ones have 100 per year, but the small ones needs only 10 or so per year. The college output and quality output improvement is a concern of the bigger ones. The cost for the larger companies is higher, it still survive, and will restrict its operational growth. Global branding, trade show etc, are mostly for the smaller ones. Micro-SMEs (as termed by PSIA) have an average of 13 heads per company. Thus, in terms of things like needs, global branding and all is needed for the smaller companies. The big ones dont care because they dont sell, they have their own arm to sell (Maity, 2011). Local companies are more the ones more interested in IT innovation and trade group, but foreign companies does seem to care. Funding is not a major requirement for the SME sector except for those who are into product and those services who wants to try to grow (Maity, 2011). Certifications and all like CMMI are only needed by the big ones (Maity, 2011). The small ones do not really see much benefit on these certifications and would only incur additional cost for them. Business collaboration, like pooling up resources, bidding together and global business partnering appeal to the interest of some small to medium sales companies (Maity, 2011). Management development, capability, project management, financial management, marketing, offshore client management, software development thats primarily SME (Maity, 2011). The rest have already enough management capability on that (Maity, 2011). Furthermore, information on global trends and finding out whats in demand and not, is also a requirement of the industry. The Philippines is in a good position to supply emerging demand for mobile applications and Cloud Computing. It is among the leaders in developing programs for mobile communications and similar technologies where demand is projected to explode as the number of users and the primacy of this type of communication increases worldwide. Source: BOI 2010 From the figures above, Investors and businessmen who are looking for more bang for their buck will find the Philippines as a necessary stop for their business operations with labor cost that is competitive and the quality of work which is unassailable.

Censorship Debate essay essays

Censorship Debate essay essays Censorship has been a large issue in the history of the United States for quite some time. Though this is the home of the free and land of the brave, how far does the freedom go? Current censorship completely holds back literary works that are made into Currently, 40 percent of the population opposes censorship. The other 60 percent of the population either do not care about censorship or promotes it. The entertainment industry is one of the largest parts of the countrys income, to shut it down would be tragic to the economy. Imagine what would happen if censorship did not have to be a part of the world. As of this day and age, entertainment comes from the most taboo parts of the censorship bureaus strict beliefs. Organizations such as the FCC and AMPA limit the people of the supposed free nation from what they can or cannot see and hear. Europe, mainly England, Germany, France and Russia, has seen a dramatic decrease in teen pregnancy and homicide since censorship does not exist in those countries. Teenagers and children have a fear of openness with their parents. Each day, a parents tells his/her child the truth about where babies come from. Each day, it becomes harder and harder for a parent to realize that the truth is harder to tell than some half baked story of storks and cabbage patches. In Europe, the children and teens have little or no discomfort when confronting parents with similar issues simply because sex and violence is shown on that miracle box in the living room. Motion Pictures have played a large part in the lives of millions of people for the past 70 years. More and more sex, violence and profanity market their way into movies. Fiction is the largest type of movie made and watched because of the entertaining and wild action and sexual scenes The United States has made some of the best movies that the world will ever see such as: Lethal W ...

Romanticism and Realism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Romanticism and Realism - Essay Example It should be noted here that this was a time when religion had lost its hold over the common man with the advent of modernity. Religion and mythology were losing the charm and power they exercised over the common man. Also church was no longer the only powerful figure who commissioned artists to paint artworks on religious or mythological stories. Thus artists became inspired by the common man. In both the romantic and the realist era, common man gained a certain respect. Artists became fascinated with the life of the common man and focused on his life. The Romantic focused on the common man’s emotions while the realists focused on the commonness of man. Both the art movements were more inspired by the rural man rather than the urban one. This is because previously rural life had been ignored in the art circle and in the Romantic era, the subject came forward as an original subject or theme. This was then brought forward by the Realist movement where artists removed the exagge rated emotion from the common man and presented him as he was. In order to draw an effective comparison between the two movements, one artwork from both the movements would be analyzed. The artwork selected from the Romantic Era is The Raft of Medusa painted by Thà ©odore Gà ©ricault. The painting selected from the Realist Era is Stone Breakers by Gustav Courbet. The Raft of Medusa depicts the survivors of the French naval frigate Meduse. It depicts a horrendous scene about how the survivors endured the destruction and how they lived.

Minigrant for integrating technology in the elementary Language Arts Essay

Minigrant for integrating technology in the elementary Language Arts classroom - Essay Example The use of computers has increased drastically in the last decade, especially in the educational field. Experts in the elementary educational field are of the opinion that trying to find out the mistakes in grammar, spelling and organization in one’s own writing is one of the best methods of learning. Introducing computers in the elementary level are highly useful in these processes. Computers increase the effectiveness of the elementary language teachers while drastically reducing their work load. In this application, an estimated budget and advantages of introducing technology in the Elementary Language Arts Class room are also briefly mentioned. Elementary school teachers play a crucial role in the development of children. Generally, children are influenced by what they experience and learn in the school which can also greatly shape their views of the world or about themselves and can be a crucial factor for their failure or success in their personal lives and work. Elementary school teachers introduce pupil to language, mathematics, social studies and science. Teachers use various tools like music, games, films, artworks, books and computers to teach basic skills. Computers can play an integral role in the Elementary Language Arts Program which â€Å"provides balanced instruction in reading and writing.† (Elementary Reading and Language Arts).

Vertigo - Hitchcock Defying Genres Essay Example for Free

Vertigo Hitchcock Defying Genres Essay Based on the French novel D’Entre les Morts by Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac, Vertigo is arguably one of Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpieces and the â€Å"strangest, yet most hauntingly beautiful film he had ever made† (Adair, 2002). At the time, its far-fetched plot drew a mixed response from critics – Time magazine called the movie a â€Å"Hitchcock and bull story† – but today most agree that it is one of the director’s most deeply felt pictures. Vertigo very easily categorized into a specific genre – Thriller, a genre of movies that, in many ways, Hitchcock played a major role in defining. Thrillers are typically movies that attempt to create excitement and include stories about murder, conspiracies, violence, or, in the case of Vertigo, a psychological thriller with unusual characters with unstable mental states. Vertigo checks most of the boxes in defining itself as a thriller. However, simply labeling Hitchcock’s Vertigo a thriller will limit its contents, symbols, motifs and themes to just that of a thriller film. Very frequently, a â€Å"film can revise or reject the conventions associated with its genre† (Bordwell, 2001) Instead, in analyzing the film, we need to explore its mystery and romantic melodramatic themes Hitchcock used in creating this masterpiece which defies itself being categorized into a single genre. As the man who helped to shape the modern day thriller genre, Hitchcock was fluent in manipulating the audiences fears, and suturing them into a state of association with the characters and the world in which they exist. The main point of Vertigo being a thriller is the plot – Scottie, the protagonist and victim of a planned murder of an old friend’s wife – whom he falls in love with, an impossible love as she ‘dies’ and in turn, he continues his downward spiral into mad obsession. These semantic elements are true to psycho-traumatic thrillers, which are centered around the psychotic effects of a trauma on the protagonists (detective) current involvement in a love affair and a crime. The protagonist is always the victim generally of some past trauma which is Scottie’s acrophobia leading to his fellow police officer’s death, and often of villains who take advantage of his or her masochist guilt (Cook, 1999). These elements are evident of Vertigo being a thriller, but there is more . How Hitchcock defies Vertigo as being just a thriller is how the semantic elements fall short. Unlike typical thriller conventions, Vertigo has no happy ending. The flawed protagonist falls in love, which in turn became an obsession that ends in madness. He is guilty of all three deaths, and he stays in a state of transition the entire film. Hitchcock, who pioneered the use of morally ambiguous characters in cinema, filled Vertigo with such characters, especially the protagonist. The repeated motif of the spiral represents Scottie’s constant state of suspension and transition, all the way to the end of the film. Another major element that needs to be explored, is in fact the main motivation in the film – romance, or love, that eventually boils into obsession. Hitchcock uses the several cinematic techniques, music, and the motif of green to portray this element. The first time Scottie and the audience sees Madeleine, she is wearing green, she drives a green car, and when they visit the Sequoias, the name translates as â€Å"Always green, everlasting†. Scottie’s love for her was ‘everlasting’, even after death (Duncan, 2004). The notion of everlasting carries over to when Judy Barton appears, Scottie attempts, with succession to transform her. He changes her dressing, makeup, hair, and speech into his image of Madeleine. Perhaps the most impactful scene visually in the entire film was when Judy/ Madeleine emerges from the bathroom after Scottie convinced her to do up her hair, the final touch/ transformation into Madeleine. The sequence began with Scottie pacing in the apartment near the window as Judy was doing up her hair in the bathroom. He finally settles down onto the couch, facing away from the toilet door, waiting. As the bathroom door opens, he turns to his left, and we only see his left profile (Fig 1.), a mirror image to the first time he set eyes on Madeleine in the restaurant – unsure, and this time, full of anticipation. We are reminded of the green motif, by the neon light outside Judy’s apartment. As Scottie turns around to fully see the resurrected Madeleine, he slowly stands up and at this point the music starts to pick up, leading us to the point at which he sees his beloved. The camera tracks into a close up of Scottie’s face, with the green light reflecting off his eye, he almost looks like he has tears in his eyes (Fig 2.). Cut to Judy/ Madeleine stepping out of the toilet, it is Scottie’s POV of Madeleine bathed in ghostly green light. Similar to the scene in the cemetery where Madeleine was shot through a fog filter, which gave her the green glow, Judy/ Madeleine now had green light superimposed around her body, which gave her the appearance of a blurred, ghostly figure (Fig 3.). This reflected Madeleine coming back from the dead, now a ghost, as green is usually used to represent ghost or spirits in film. She then slips out of the blur and into focus, Hitchcock used this to indicate Scottie’s come back to reality, coming to his senses as he spots the locket in the next scene, realizing that Judy has been tricking him all along (Truffaut, 1985). There is a series of shot/ reverse-shots, as she walks toward Scottie, all the while with the green glow behind both. The walk toward Scottie was slow, as she pauses with a mid-shot, and eventually into a close up (Fig 4). In the close-up, she sneaks a smile, a slight smile indicating that she was happy that she was able to fulfill his request, of her transformation. Cut back to Scottie who takes a step toward her, he kisses her in close up (Fig 5). The dynamics of the music picks up as the camera starts to track around them, starting the 360-degree rotation sequence. The background starts to change, an illusion by Hitchcock to momentarily transform the mise-en-scà ¨ne of the present in Judy’s hotel room to a scene from the past. Scottie looks up from the embrace to see himself at the place where he first passionately kissed Madeleine. At this point, the camera slows the track and pulls back into a medium shot (Fig 6) and the music accelerates into a joyous tune. This shot was a visual externalization of Scottie’s thoughts and desire, while Judy was lost in her own world of denial, snuggled up, kissing his neck an overlap and irony of fantasy and reality. Scottie kisses Judy/ Madeleine again as the camera starts tracking once again as the music slows into the main melodic climax. The sequence is concluded a tight close up, once again with the green glow illuminating the background (Fig 7). Vertigo fulfills many elements that qualifies it as a psycho-traumatic thriller, but we cannot ignore the other (and maybe) more important aspects of the film, as discussed which were the romance, madness and obsession, which makes Vertigo the film that it is. Hitchcock also defies thriller conventions with the use of morally ambiguous characters, the tragic conclusion to the film, and other semantic elements, which deviates from the genre conventions. Vertigo defies genre, instead, it is a mix of genre. We have to look past genre conventions to fully explore and appreciate this â€Å"strangest, yet most hauntingly beautiful film he (Hitchcock) has ever made†. Adair, G. (2002). Alfred Hitchcock: Filming Our Fears. Oxford Univerity Press Bordwell, D. Thompson, K. (2001). Film Art: an Introduction. 6th Edition. New York: McGraw Hill. Cook, P. Bernick, M. (1999). The Cinema Book. 2nd Revised Edition. BFI Publishing. Duncan, P. (2004). Alfred Hitchcock. Pocket Essentials.

Oedipus Rex †The Conflict, Climax and Resolution Essay -- Oedipus the

Oedipus Rex – The Conflict, Climax and Resolution  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚   Sophocles’ tragic drama, Oedipus Rex, presents to the reader a full range of conflicts and their resolution after a climax.    Thomas Van Nortwick in The Meaning of a Masculine Life describes Oedipus’ tragic flaw:    As ruler, he is a father to Thebes and its citizens, and like a father he will take care of his â€Å"children.† We see already the supreme self-confidence and ease of command in Oedipus, who can address not only other people’s children as his own, but also be a father to men older than he is. But beyond even this there is, in the sretched posture of the citizens, the hint of prostration before a deity. We are â€Å"clinging to your altars,† says the priest. . . . That he also exudes a godlike mastery in the eyes of his subjects only strengthens the heroic portrait. . . .(21-22).    The â€Å"godlike mastery† to which Van Nortwick refers is the same mastery which Creon in his final lines designates as the cause of the tragic dimension in the life of the protagonist: â€Å"Crave not mastery in all, /For the mastery that raised thee was thy bane and wrought thy fall.† Oedipus’ total mastery of the investigation resultant from the Delphic oracle’s declaration, yes, his forceful â€Å"railroading† of the investigation against the wishes of Jocasta, Teiresias, the messenger and the shepherd, ultimately spells the downfall of King Oedipus.      Abrams says that the conflict is between the protagonist and antagonist (225). Is the antagoinst within Oedipus in the form of his â€Å"godlike mastery,† as Creon believed? Or is the antagonist weird/wyrd/fate, so that the oracle demonstrated the gods’ power to predestine their creatures? Frank B. Jevons in â€Å"In... ...shers, 1999.    Benardete, Seth. â€Å"Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannus.† In Sophocles: A Collection of Critical Essays, edited by Thomas Woodard. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1966.    Ehrenberg, Victor. â€Å"Sophoclean Rulers: Oedipus.† In Twentieth Century Interpretations of Oedipus Rex, edited by Michael J. O’Brien. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1968.    Jevons, Frank B.   â€Å"In Sophoclean Tragedy, Humans Create Their Own Fate.† In Readings on Sophocles, edited by Don Nardo. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press, 1997.    Sophocles. Oedipus Rex. Transl. by F. Storr. no pag. http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/etcbin/browse-mixed new?tag=public&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed&part=0&id=SopOedi    Van Nortwick, Thomas.   Oedipus: The Meaning of a Masculine Life. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1998. Oedipus Rex – The Conflict, Climax and Resolution Essay -- Oedipus the Oedipus Rex – The Conflict, Climax and Resolution  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚   Sophocles’ tragic drama, Oedipus Rex, presents to the reader a full range of conflicts and their resolution after a climax.    Thomas Van Nortwick in The Meaning of a Masculine Life describes Oedipus’ tragic flaw:    As ruler, he is a father to Thebes and its citizens, and like a father he will take care of his â€Å"children.† We see already the supreme self-confidence and ease of command in Oedipus, who can address not only other people’s children as his own, but also be a father to men older than he is. But beyond even this there is, in the sretched posture of the citizens, the hint of prostration before a deity. We are â€Å"clinging to your altars,† says the priest. . . . That he also exudes a godlike mastery in the eyes of his subjects only strengthens the heroic portrait. . . .(21-22).    The â€Å"godlike mastery† to which Van Nortwick refers is the same mastery which Creon in his final lines designates as the cause of the tragic dimension in the life of the protagonist: â€Å"Crave not mastery in all, /For the mastery that raised thee was thy bane and wrought thy fall.† Oedipus’ total mastery of the investigation resultant from the Delphic oracle’s declaration, yes, his forceful â€Å"railroading† of the investigation against the wishes of Jocasta, Teiresias, the messenger and the shepherd, ultimately spells the downfall of King Oedipus.      Abrams says that the conflict is between the protagonist and antagonist (225). Is the antagoinst within Oedipus in the form of his â€Å"godlike mastery,† as Creon believed? Or is the antagonist weird/wyrd/fate, so that the oracle demonstrated the gods’ power to predestine their creatures? Frank B. Jevons in â€Å"In... ...shers, 1999.    Benardete, Seth. â€Å"Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannus.† In Sophocles: A Collection of Critical Essays, edited by Thomas Woodard. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1966.    Ehrenberg, Victor. â€Å"Sophoclean Rulers: Oedipus.† In Twentieth Century Interpretations of Oedipus Rex, edited by Michael J. O’Brien. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1968.    Jevons, Frank B.   â€Å"In Sophoclean Tragedy, Humans Create Their Own Fate.† In Readings on Sophocles, edited by Don Nardo. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press, 1997.    Sophocles. Oedipus Rex. Transl. by F. Storr. no pag. http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/etcbin/browse-mixed new?tag=public&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed&part=0&id=SopOedi    Van Nortwick, Thomas.   Oedipus: The Meaning of a Masculine Life. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1998.

Theory Comparrison

Write 550- to 750 Provide a formal definition for ethics with citations, references etc. Describe the differences between theories Describe the similarities between each theory Describe how each theory addresses ethics and morality Tell me based on your own morals and ethics, which theories do you think you most closely follow in your life (there is no right or wrong answer) Ethics is the science of right and wrong in human action. (Boylan, 2009). Many theories exist that explores how people come to what they believe is the right or wrong decision.A few examples include virtue ethics, utilitarianism, and deontology. Virtue ethics’ position is that we become good when we cultivate excellence (virtue) by pursuing the moderate course between excess and defect. (Boylan, 2009, p. 133) This basically means that this theory considers how humans should interact with each other meaning that there is a right way and a wrong way. Utilitarianism suggests that an action is morally right wh en that action produces more total utility for the group as a consequence than any other alternative does (Boylan, 2009, p. 53) Those who practice utilitarianism take into consideration all of the consequences and each action. Utilitarianism can be divided into two theories; act and rule utilitarianism. Act utilitarianism is the interpretation of utilitarianism that says that each moral situation should be subjected to the utilitarian formula â€Å"the greatest good for the greatest number. † (Boylan, 2009, p. 164) This idea of ethical decision making seems to be the least emotional due to the fact that it is pure numbers in the equation. This might hurt one person but more people will benefit from it.Rule utilitarianism says that each moral situation should be guided first by prima facie rules (that themselves are justified by utilitarianism). Thus, the agent assesses a situation on act utilitarian principles but within a framework of prima facie rules that can override appa rent act-utilitarian outcomes. (Boylan, 2009, p. 164) Unlike, act utilitarianism, rule utilitarianism considers injustices of an individual for the greater good whereas act utilitarianism does not. Deontology is the moral theory that suggests that an agent’s duty is based upon principle.The theory bases its duties on the nature of human reason or on the nature of human action. It asserts the existence of moral facts and so is a moral realist theory. (Boylan, 2009, p. 171) This idea goes along with the notion that each person has a built in moral code. A person will do the right thing even though they know there will consequences. There are similarities and differences between virtue theory, utilitarianism, and deontological ethics. Each theory has it’s own ideas regarding ethics and morality regarding the individual and society.Consequences and benefits differ with each theory. Virtue theory states that humans have virtues for the sake of what is good and right and the se virtues are the supreme human good. Virtues drive our tendencies for behavior and control how we feel and interpet things. Living a good life is living a virtuous life within society. A person’s actions are the direct results and reflection of an individual’s morals and virtues. Utilitarian theory is concerned with the maximum benefit or good for the greatest number of people.The outcome with the greatest benefits for greatest numbers is always the desired result. However, the greatest good for the majority should not come at the expense of harming the minority. The minority may have to endure some individual sacrifice so that the greatest numbers in society can realize the greatest good. Deontology is concerned with the meaning behind ethical decisions and conduct instead of end results or outcome. It looks at how an individual is obligated to act in terms of right and wrong conduct.It is the individual’s duty and obligation to follow the law and it is accep table to harm some people for the greater good and benefit. Utilitarian theory is less concerned with the individual because all that matters is an outcome the benefits the most people. It focuses more on actions of the majority to create the greatest good and outcome. However, there is always a minority and those people will not always benefit under this system. The majority needs to have good values and morals for society to flourish and benefit. Virtue and deontology theories have more focus on the individual and.