Historical Memory Of The Memorial - 1525 Words

Since the opening of the Emancipation Memorial in 1876, there has always been controversy regarding the accuracy of the message that the monument provides to its viewers. The Emancipation Memorial has become an example of the criticisms that many warped monuments face today, such as heroification. In order to have an effective monument, Loewen believes that the monument needs to be honest in the story that it shows, which includes not omitting any important figures, no racism, and no glorification and heroification of figures or ideas in the monument. Many have agreed that the image depicted in the Memorial is deceiving and creates a misleading historical memory for tourists. Historical memory is the way in which an event is remembered, influenced by monuments, books, movies, and other forms of propaganda. This is significant because the historical memory of the Emancipation Memorial has had a large impact on the group of Americans who have seen the Memorial as a validation for their thoughts that Lincoln was the sole figure who freed blacks from the awful chains of slavery. The degree to which the Emancipation Memorial needs to be toppled is extremely urgent. The monument should be toppled because of the degree of historical inaccuracy that the monument depicts onto the viewer’s historical memory. The Emancipation Memorial should be toppled because it distorts the historical memory of the emancipation of the slaves by heroifying Lincoln, which is one of Loewen’s criteriaShow MoreRelatedThe Monuments And Museums : Art1164 Words   |  5 Pagesthe displays from the Jewish Museum Berlin, The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the Micha Ullman s Bibliothek Memorial, Memorial De La Shoah Paris and the counter-monument Monument against Fascism Hamberg. The assignment will give a brief introduction to the Shoah. It will question and discuss what impact the experience has on visitors to the museums and monuments, would it better the understanding of the historical narrative and is it necessary to view such atrocity in order to pay tributeRead MoreThe Holocaust Museum : The Importance Of Monuments1079 Words   |  5 Pagesthey should take into consideration. Including; the location, the cost, historical background, nature, and the significance of the monument, as well as the community’s perception about the monument. Controversy grew when non-Jewish and Jewish citizens heard they were going to build a Holocaust museum in The National Mall in Washington, D.C. (. Musser). This angered many people due to the fact that a museum dedicated to the memory of the Holocaust would be built in the United States, who did littleRead MoreThe Battle Of The Confederate War1390 Words   |  6 Pagesthe issue further, arguing that all Confederate Civil War memorials should be removed. I disagree; the Confederate monuments hold too great a historical value to simply dispose of them like last night’s dinner. The monuments and memorials under fire all possess similar traits that causes social and racial tension. By first identifying these traits we can then make the necessary adjustments to remedy the issue. Again, Confederate war memorials possess a valuable glimpse into the past and are worth preservingRead MoreGerman History Essay1730 Words   |  7 Pagesvaluable to acknowledge history, whether it be thro ugh documentation, education, or architectural preservation. However, history can be complex and ugly, stained by war, genocide, and destruction. Therein lies a philosophical controversy: should these historical â€Å"stains† be acknowledged or buried? What role do these ugly histories have in the development of a society? Within the last century, no nation has been forced to confront these questions on the same scale that Germany has (Levinger 118). With aRead MorePreserving Memory : The Struggle For Creating America s Holocaust Museum871 Words   |  4 PagesPreserving Memory: The Struggle to Create America’s Holocaust Museum was written by Edward T. Linenthal. This book was published by the Columbia University Press in New York. The book was copyrighted in 1995 and then once again in 2001. This book also has 336 pages. Preserving Memory: The Struggle to Create America’s Holocaust Museum gives the reader an extensive overview in the development of the Holocaust Memorial Museum that is located in Washington D.C. In this edition of the book, LinenthalRead MoreAn Anti Climax1500 Words   |  6 Pageshighlighted individual sacrifice and honor.† You seem to take this point for granted. It is the focal point for your research rather than a claim that needs to be investigated through careful historical analysis. In future work, you need to pay close attention to the rhetoric and actions of the various historical actors and try to understand how they are using these repatriations and identifications to do specific social and political work (which may or may not align to your current claim that theyRead MoreAnalysis Of The Submission By Amy Waldman913 Words   |  4 Pagescan be a way to preserve important traumatic memories for future generations to remember and learn from. Ellie Wiesel write s, â€Å"...I needed to give some meaning to my survival...I only know that without this testimony, my life as a writer—or my life, period—would not have become what it is: that of a witness who believes he has a moral obligation to try to prevent the enemy from enjoying one last victory by allowing his crimes to be erased from human memory† (Wiesel viii). Although Wiesel s Night isRead MoreFacing It By Yusef Komunyakaa1158 Words   |  5 PagesIt†, by the poet Yusef Komunyakaa, he himself is the one who is speaking, the poem is about his own life experience at the Vietnam Memorial. The way a person can tell if the own poet of the poem is the speaker is by the use of first person. In this case, the poet uses words like â€Å"I† and â€Å"I’m† that support the fact that he is the speaker. The Vietnam War was a Historical event taken place in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. Which was one of the first War that African Americans were integra ted with WhiteRead MoreWhy Monuments Should Be Treated With Utmost Respect?1192 Words   |  5 Pagesmany different ways to memorialize a person or an event. Such as having a day to remember the person the monument was built for and having a monument built in memory of the people who actually deserve them. Most monuments should be treated with the utmost respect because of their meaning. They can also be placed on a sacred site or a historical landmark for a specific reason. When creating a monument you really have to think about the present and the future of the monument. Even though monuments canRead MoreWhy Monuments Should Be Treated With Utmost Respect?1192 Words   |  5 Pagesmany different ways to memorialize a person or an event. Such as having a day to remember the person the monument was built for and having a monument built in memory of the people who actually deserve them. Most monuments should be treated with the utmost respect because of their meaning. They can also be placed on a sacred site or a historical landmark for a specific reason. When creating a monument you really have to think about the present and the future of the monument. Even though monuments can

Group Reflection - 1526 Words

Whenever individuals are required to work together in a group to complete a task it can be either a great experience or a dreadful one. This almost always depends on the extent of effectively communicating amongst the group. In our group we managed to always be respectful while still getting our thoughts and opinions across to one another. Initially when our groups were first picked for us we were able to choose 2 to 3 people that we would prefer to work with; who also shared the same ideas when it came to choosing the topic we would research. This gave each group the ability to work together with other like-minded students in order to research topics that we were all interested in. After our groups were picked for us we got to know one†¦show more content†¦Especially when it came to developing a consensus of exactly what we were going to focus on. Throughout this stage of storming I decided that we should break up into subgroups and then focus on what each subgroup topic sh ould be. Afterward we would all teach on another about what we learned as it was extremely important for us to be on the same page for our presentations. This inevitably turned out to be a better method because our group was bigger than what we anticipated with six people. Thankfully we had an even number of group members. Therefore we were able to have two people in each subgroup, to tackle their topics and conduct individual research then later bring it back to the group for explaining. I believe breaking up into subgroups is somewhat of a double-edge sword, first because it’s easy for everyone to get caught up in only what they are supposed to be researching. When in fact everyone needed to know everything about what we were going to present. Therefore we decided after we broke into subgroups that we would make sure each person in the group switched with another person in another subgroup to teach one another about the topics that we individually learned. Because groups tend to produce a better solution than individuals I think it was very beneficial that we had so many people in a group because we were able to think more critically and collectively, while also being there to help correct one another’s misinformation. Working in suchShow MoreRelatedGroup Reflection : Group Process767 Words   |  4 PagesGroup Reflection Group My concept of what a group consist of is a story that needs to be told and heard from many people with similar issues or problems. The group is a tool to help each member to gain some insight on how they can change or make a difference in their lives for the future. I feel that a group is a place where new relationships can develop and to find self again. Group Process The group process is facilitated by a counselor by the process has to be done by the members. It can be easyRead MoreReflection On Group Processes And Dynamics Essay1519 Words   |  7 PagesA Reflection on Group Processes and Dynamics Working within a group or team is unavoidable for most people. We are involved in sports teams, assignment groups, work teams, social groups and a variety of other groups and teams. Each of these groups share one thing in common, that is each requires us to communicate in some way in order to reach a shared goal or target. Therefore, it is imperative to know and understand how to work and communicate effectively with others to maximise outcomes and productivityRead MoreReflection On Group Therapy Reaction1509 Words   |  7 PagesGroup Therapy Reaction Thus far in the program I have had the opportunity to experience the process of group therapy. Luckily, I have had the opportunity to run group sessions at my practicum site, so I have gained substantial information about the group process. As I have learned in this program, group therapy is a powerful form of therapy that allows group members to complete their therapeutic goals in a group setting. As a therapist, I believe it is essential to experience what group processRead MorePersonal Reflection On Group Work906 Words   |  4 PagesPersonal Reflection â€Å"Group work is a form of voluntary association of members benefiting from cooperative learning that enhances the total output of the activity than when done individually†. Working in a group can be very difficult at times. Different people with different views may not always agree which one another. Throughout the various task I played the communicator. I made sure everyone was on track on what we wanted to do. I also made sure people was okay and happy in the role they was playingRead MoreGroup Counseling Reflection Paper4779 Words   |  20 Pagesin Counseling Reflection CPY 540 Paladino: Advanced Theory and Practice of Group Counseling As I reflect upon my experience as a group leader in this class, I learned that therapeutic factors can be group driven or facilitated by the group leader. Cohesion stood as a vital aspect of an effective group, and I realized that as a group leader I needed not only to facilitate the group but to remain as a vital part of the group to assure cohesion. By subsisting as an effective group leader, I createdRead MoreReflection About Group Presentations1189 Words   |  5 PagesWe all certainly have to do group presentations during our student life. This method of study is vital, as â€Å"it is a successful alternative or addition to the traditional term paper. It can balance the student s educational experiences by providing training in oral communication, interpersonal skills, and analytical thinking.† (King 1990, p.77). Therefore, it is necessary for us to reflect on what we have done and learnt through group presentations. In this essay, I would have a look back at whatRead MoreReflection Of A Social Group1457 Words   |  6 PagesSocial Group Analysis The social group I chosen to observe is my church group, more specifically my children’s Sabbath School class. There are approximately 15 to 20 in the class including the children and parents. The ethnicities in the class are Hispanic, Caucasian, Native Africans, and Asians. In this group, the Caucasians are the minority while the Africans makeup the majority of the class. There is a lot I have learned from observing this group of people. Some characteristics of the classRead MoreGroup Reflection : Van Der Linden1524 Words   |  7 Pages Group Reflection Renae Van Der Linden Roberts Wesleyan College â€Æ' Group Reflection When leading a group, it is important to understand what the overall goal should be, as well as understanding what the group expectations are. Knowing what the group goals and expectations are provides a basic outline of what the group dynamic should be. Additionally, the goals and group expectations should be discussed with the group members, providing them with the opportunity to share their input and possiblyRead MoreReflection Of Group Counseling Process And Mental Health Group Activities829 Words   |  4 PagesA Reflection of Group Counseling Process and Mental Health Group Activities One might say the best teachers are the ones who go over and beyond the call of duty to assist their children. This idea could especially be proven true given the factors that are affecting the social and academic capabilities of the students we teach on a daily basis. One emerging, yet commonly overlooked factor is mental health. Mental health is one of those issues seen to be taboo in schools but is becoming a widespreadRead MoreReflections on Syndicate Group Work2177 Words   |  9 PagesReflections about syndicate group work I always had a different opinion to our group leader, but he always made me give in, even when I was not at all persuaded by his arguments, I can t explain how that happened. This statement made by one of my group members is quite revealing. While she recognizes the dominance of our leader ´, she is perplexed because she fails to understand how she was manipulated. How did he do it? Was it only his dominance or were there perhaps Machiavellic elements

When the Leeves Broke Free Essays

Cruz 1 Carolina Cruz Professor Gwaltney English 1102 March 14, 2013 When the Levees Broke: A Rhetorical Analysis It is nearly impossible to imagine that one day you can be safe in your home and with all of your belongings and the next day a hurricane leaves you with nothing. Unfortunately, the 484,000 people who lived in New Orleans had to experience those unimaginable thoughts first hand in 2005 due to Hurricane Katrina. â€Å"An entire city was nearly wiped off the face of the earth† (Kellogg) and at least 1,833 people were killed during and after the storm. We will write a custom essay sample on When the Leeves Broke or any similar topic only for you Order Now There are many theories and conspiracies of what happened with the levees and what could have been done better in order to help the residents of New Orleans. Director Spike Lee felt very strongly about the issue and decided to make a documentary in order to give the people of New Orleans justice. By directing When the Levees Broke, Spike Lee gives the audience his personal view on the entire situation dealing with Hurricane Katrina and her aftermath. With his use of video editing and choice of certain interviews, Lee gave not only emotional credibility to his movie but also a logical point of view. The main argument of the documentary was to explain the series of events that occurred during and following the storm, while also getting the inside point of views of some of the Hurricane Katrina victims. Another argument Spike Lee was trying to make Cruz 2 was that there was a lot more to the disaster than just the storm. I do believe that Lee did a good job in getting his point across in his documentary but I do not believe it was a very strong argument. The argument is not very convincing because not everyone’s view was included in the film. It seems that Spike Lee was very biased while making the documentary and had no problem with expressing it in his film. Though I do somewhat agree with Lee’s point of view, I do not believe that it was a very well rounded argument. In his documentary, Lee confronts the underlying problems that occurred at the time of the hurricane such as racial, cultural and political issues. By adding so much information about what was actually occurring during Hurricane Katrina in his film, Lee made a very well put together documentary. Lee’s purpose of making the film was to give the victims their chance to speak out and to show â€Å"how the poor and underprivileged of New Orleans were mistreated in this grand calamity and still ignored today† (Chisholm). Lee is a very passionate and outspoken man and he conveyed his message in a way where the victims had the upper hand and could speak on the real issues. Had Spike Lee not been so biased, I think both his argument and documentary could have been excellent. Spike Lee used the Aristotelian appeal of pathos the most throughout his documentary in order to catch the audience’s attention. The way he incorporates certain cultural music and photos of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina make the audience more inclined to pay attention. The collection of photographs Lee features in his film not only let us see what was happening during Hurricane Katrina, they also â€Å"add texture and even further weight to these stories† (Kellogg). He does this on purpose in order to make the audience feel sympathy towards all the people who were interviewed as well as those Cruz 3 who passed away due to Hurricane Katrina. The best way Lee kept the attention of the audience was by â€Å"allowing the people who lived through the disaster to tell their stories† (Kellogg). The viewer is more likely to pay attention if they are stimulated emotionally and that is what Spike Lee aimed for. He also shows the audience how the â€Å"evacuation process separated parents from children as people were loaded onto buses,† by doing this, the audience gets a more in depth view of the disaster and is more likely to feel sad and watch the documentary more. The underlying issue that Lee was trying to explain to the audience was that â€Å"the storm was damaging by itself, but that was not the true disaster† (Chisholm). Some critics do not believe that Spike Lee was meant to make this film because he did not capture everyone’s point of view. This film is supposed to be about just the victims opinion on what they thought about the situation dealing with the government and Hurricane Katrina. I think he was well fit for the job because Lee’s â€Å"films have looked unflinchingly at some of the most polarizing subjects† (Jacobs) nd it was no shock that he made this documentary about Hurricane Katrina. There were many criticisms about the documentary such as; it did not necessarily discuss all of the people of New Orleans and it gave us a bad view of the government. Lee had his own conspiracy on how the levees were blown up as opposed to just being ruined by the hurricane. Lee’s film was also criticized beca use it â€Å"suggested that the explosion assured that the poor neighborhoods be damaged and not the rich developments further down† (Jacobs) and that did not take well with the conservative circles. Another reason his documentary was Cruz 4 faulty was because it had a very biased standpoint and â€Å"Mr. Lee’s documentary boils with anger and a degree of paranoia† (Holden). The three main topics this documentary touched on were those such as politics, cultural issues and racial issues. There were many complaints within the movie about the government from the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The people of New Orleans were outraged by the â€Å"tardy response of the Bush administration to the crisis† (Jacobs). A large portion of the documentary focused on the lack of help from the government, it explained how a few government officials took longer than normal to help with the disaster in New Orleans. The fact that bodies were still being found after F. E. M. A supposedly searched all the houses was a big concern for the people. F. E. M. A had not been giving the victims the proper care they needed for the amount of time that they had left and that was a very high concern to the people who desperately needed help from F. E. M. A. George Bush and Dick Chaney were also spoken upon in a bad manner as well because they had more important things to do rather than help the dying people of their own country. Just like most of his other films, Spike Lee made his documentary mostly about race. At one point in the movie it explains how the disaster started the â€Å"racist, vigilante atmosphere which gave cops and soldiers carte blanche to shoot on sight ‘looters’† (Onesto) and how they were not afraid to follow through with orders. The majority of the people Lee interviewed were poor and black and were treated very poorly. In this film, Lee insinuates that the victims are being treated like slaves and separated from their families. He expresses â€Å"the truth of how the institutions of white supremacy and the ideas of racism are woven into the very workings of this system of U. S. capitalism† (Onesto). Culture is a big deal in Cruz 5 New Orleans; the people consider their culture the most important and valuable thing to them. A very large part of the New Orleans culture is Mardi Gras and it was a concern of the people whether they should or should not have the celebration the following year after Hurricane Katrina. Mardi Gras is an annual celebration and even the hurricane could not completely bring the residents of New Orleans down. Spike Lee wanted to show that even though the city looked bad, the people of New Orleans still had their high spirits. All the controversy involving New Orleans such as race, politics and culture lured Spike Lee to make a documentary about the hurricane. Based off his previous films Lee was fit to make this film and did a good job in conveying his message. With this use of enhanced photography and video editing Lee was able to make an informative yet captivating film that showed the other side of the story. In his documentary, we can finally â€Å"put human faces on the devastation† (Jacobs) and realize that these people were once like us in their homes. His film not only allows us to see what occurred in August of 2006, but it lets us hear the individual stories and realize what we were not told by the government. The documentary gives us the victims view of the disaster and it makes the viewer more aware of the devastation that the people of New Orleans had to face. By making this documentary, Lee not only helped explain the troubles of the victims of Hurricane Katrina but he also let the people come out and express how they felt during the evacuation and rebuilding process. Cruz 6 Works Cited Chisholm, Kenneth. â€Å"Plot Summary for â€Å"When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts†Ã¢â‚¬  IMDb. IMDb. com, n. d. Web. 8 Mar. 2013. Holden, Stephen. â€Å"‘When the Levees Broke’: Spike Lee’s Tales From a Broken City. Www. nytimes. com. The New York Times, 21 Aug. 2006. Web. 2013. Jacobs, Jay S. â€Å"PopEntertainment. com: Spike Lee Interview about ‘When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts. ‘† PopEntertainment. com: Spike Lee Interview about ‘When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts. ‘ N. p. , 18 Dec. 2006. Web. 6 Mar. 201 3. Onesto, Li. â€Å"Spike Lee’s When the Levees Broke: Bitter Truth About the Crimes in New Orleans. † Spike Lee’s When the Levees Broke: Bitter Truth About the Crimes in New Orleans. Revolution Newspaper, 27 Aug. 2006. Web. 7 Mar. 2013. How to cite When the Leeves Broke, Essay examples

Marketing Does More Harm to Society Than Good free essay sample

The purpose of this paper is to critically evaluate the statement; â€Å"Marketing does more harm to society than good† This is done by outlining why the statement is made and then to present arguments for the relevance of marketing in society. 2. Introduction to Marketing Marketing has been a foundational study for many business schools since the 1950s and the practice has flourished internationally due to marketing’s universal concept of achieving value for the business firms and its customers. During the 1950s a management expert named Peter Drucker lead the development of the â€Å"marketing concept†, which asserted that firms must create value for customers and see the business from the customer’s point of view. This concept of â€Å"customer orientation† depends on all functional groups of the firm to adopt this type of management thinking (Drucker, 1954). Then in 2008 the American Marketing Association defined marketing as â€Å"an organization function and a set of processes for creating, communication, and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders. Harm of Marketing to Society In the 1950s the role of marketers in society was directly criticized by two commentators, Vance Packard and Kenneth Galbraith, who viewed the practice as immoral and self-seeking. These attacks were primary directed at the commercial aspects of marketing and more specifically at the advertising industry. In the next section of the paper we will look at Parkard’s and Galbraith views of marketing and also consider the view of Naomi Klein, who is a modern critic of how marketing harms society. 3. Criticism of Marketing in the 1950s. In Vance Packard’s 1957 book, The Hidden Persuaders, he describes the psychological dominance of advertising and how marketers look for the why of our behavior so that they can more effectively manipulate our habits and choices in their favor (Packard, 1957). His argument was that marketing made people buy things they did not want or purchase products that were bad for them. Packard raised two points of concern. First, if we suspect all organized communication is manipulated, then how can we know what to elieve? Second, Packard deemed the manipulation of our psyches disrespectful of the individual personalities (Packard, 1957). Schools of marketing may have been the scapegoat for deceptive advertising practices because of influences by Freudian psychoanalytic concepts and techniques in business during that time. In Ernest Dichter’s Harvard Business Review article in 1947, he discusses how both businessman and psychologist are interested in what makes people tick, what motivates them, and how consumers can be molded and influenced (Dichter, 1947). Dichter’s article further mentions motivation research, marketing strategy, and a technique for influencing consumer behavior. Dichter’s psychoanalytic approaches to marketing at the time caused damage to the budding field of marketing and were heavily criticized by Packard. In Kenneth Galbraith’s 1958 book, Affluent Society, he argued that sales promotion and advertising activities motivate people to consume more without making them better off because their desires were artificially created by marketers (Galbriath, 1958). Thus, in affluent societies, ever-increasing levels of production and consumption do not equate to an increased level of social welfare (Dutt, 2008). This relationship between consumption and welfare (happiness) was termed the â€Å"Dependence Effect† by Galbraith. Galbraith foresaw grave consequences flowing from this preoccupation with consumption and growth. He felt it imperiled economic security from the runaway growth in consumer debt that is part of the salesmanship activities (Stanfield, 1983). In Friedrich Hayek’s 1961 response to the â€Å"Dependence Effect,† he outlines why Galbraith’s conclusion does not logically flow from previous examples and statements in the Affluent Society. Heyek’s counter-argument is based consumers’ acquisition of taste through cultural interactions and socialization versus through channels directed by want-creating activities of producers (Hayek, 1961). 3. 2 Modern Criticism of Marketing Branding In Naomi Klein’s 2002 book, No Logo, she â€Å"skewered the role of brands in contemporary culture and the insidious power of corporations to infiltrate institutions throughout society, including schools and hospitals† (Rutland, 2009). This anti-corporate sediment was triggered by branding practices creating artificiality by stretching the notion of value and not taking into consideration aspects of corporate social responsibility. Brand equity mania in the 1980s was defined by the moment when Philip Morris purchased Kraft for $12. 6 billion, an amount six times its book value. The price difference between balance sheet valuations and the price paid was attributed to the value of the word and images related to â€Å"Kraft†. This meant that for the first time a big monetary â€Å"value had been assigned to something that had previously been abstract and unquantifiable: a brand name† (Klein, 2002). Klein goes on to describe how corporations’ choice of marketing over value defined a shift in thinking where the product was mere filler to branding. Nike, for example, leverages the deep emotional connection that people have with sports and fitness. With Starbucks, we see how coffee has woven itself into the fabric of peoples lives, and that is our opportunity for emotional leverage (Klein, 2002). In the case of both Nike and Starbucks we see how the concept of capturing emotional appeal through branding allows for a premium price, above and beyond intrinsic value, to be charged. As Nike CEO Phil Knight explains: For years we thought of ourselves as a production-oriented company, meaning we put all our emphasis on designing and manufacturing the product. But now we understand that the most important thing we do is market the product. Weve come around to saying that Nike is a marketing-oriented company, and the product is our most important marketing tool. † (Geraldine, 1992) In contrast to Klein’s work, Peter Doyle, through work on value-based branding strategies looks at how marketing professionals diluted the problem of building successful and lasting brands by not considering stakeholder impact. This is due to how brands can have a strong consumer connection and emotional appeal yet still not generate value for investors. â€Å"Marketing has overwhelmingly focused on the importance of developing an attractive consumer proposition† (Doyle, 2001). Doyle does however identify that financial orientation and profits depend crucially on the ability of the firm to satisfy its customers thereby shifting the focus to value-based activities of marketing. 4. Benefit of Marketing to Society After the assaults on the practice of marketing in corporations during the 1950s Philip Kotler in 1967 published â€Å"Broadening the Concept of Marketing† to refute accusation by critics like Packard and Galbraith. Kotler encourages readers that â€Å"marketing is a pervasive societal activity that goes considerably beyond selling of toothpaste, soap and steel†. This is because the true nature of marketing is a function the drives product improvement, pricing, distribution, and communication in order to serve and satisfy human needs (Kotler and Levy, 1967). The next section of this paper looks at the role of marketing in satisfying a higher social purpose. 4. 1 Product Improvement The notion of product improvement as a social factor in marketing was initially described in Wendell Smith’s 1956 article â€Å"Product Differentiation and Market Segmentation as Alternative Marketing Strategies† and more specifically the concept of product differentiation was based on Edward Chamberlin’s â€Å"Theory of Monopolistic Competition. † Smith’s view came from a marketer’s perspective, whereas Chamberlin’s view was purely economic in nature. Through the use of information on consumer needs and wants gathered through research and evaluation of the society, marketers develops products amp; services that satisfy societal needs. For example to satisfy the emerging need and demand for an eco-friendly automobile, Toyota developed the Toyota Prius. Using an electric motor and conventional engine together with smart recharging system equals reduction of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. Product differentiation is not only equitable to the firm but provides a social benefit through continuous product improvement and innovation. In Castro and Desender’s study in 2010, they consider technological change and innovation through product differentiation to be at the very heart of the competitive process and the major driver of economic growth (Castro and Desender, 2010). They also refer to Porter’s remark about the central importance of â€Å"innovation as the origin of competitive advantages is particularly relevant in the case of dealing with a product innovation that generates a high improvement on the consumer surplus or the price people are willing to pay resulting in profitability. Milton Friedman once argued â€Å"there is one and only one social responsibility of business – to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits† (Friedman, 1970). Sustainable profit margins play an important role in business but today we know more about how business contributes to society. â€Å"Good firms bring innovation to the marketplace, which facilitates their growth. Innovative, growing firms generate economic growth and employment, which, in turn, greatly improves people’s lives† (Ahlstrom, 2010). 4. 2 Pricing, Distribution and Communication In 1984 Theodore Levitt brought into the spotlight a relatively neglected debate. Levitt’s article â€Å"The Globalization of Market† advocated a standardized global marketing program versus a very narrow local adaptation. He contends that the â€Å"traditional strategy of tailoring its products to the needs of multiple markets may put it at a severe disadvantage vis-a-vis competitors who apply marketing imagination to the task of developing advanced, functional, reliable, standardized products, at the right price, on a global scale† (Levitt, 1984). Walmart in the USA, through supply chain optimization, is able to deliver products at best prices for the consumer, thereby meeting consumer expectations and providing product variety, and freedom of choice. Walmart considers customer preferences in making stocking decisions, maximizing efficiency and passing the savings back to the customers. Products that are manufactured all around the world and developed based on the prefaces of a wide range of cultures can be offered to distant customers as reasonable prices. Global convergence in consumers’ preference can be explain how â€Å"almost everyone everywhere wants all the things they have heard about, seen, or experienced via the new technologies of communication and distribution. There is a ubiquity of desire for the most advanced things that the world makes and sells-goods of the best quality and reliability at the lowest prices† (Levitt, 1984). 5. Conclusion Between 1980 and 2000 there was a paradigm shift that begins to unify the various divisions of marketing in major areas such as â€Å"customer and market orientation, services marketing, relationship marketing, quality management, value and supply chain management, resource management, and network analysis† (Vargo and Lusch, 2004). â€Å"A dominant logic began to emerge that largely views marketing as a continuous social and economic process in which operant resources are paramount† (Vargo and Lusch, 2004). This paramount shift in marketing was due to â€Å"service dominate logic† (S-D) which focuses on the building relationships that involves the customer developing customized, competitively compelling value propositions to meet specific needs through exchange of tangible (goods) and intangible (services) resources. Although S-D logic provides a framework for understanding how business and the process of value creation fosters sustainability and stakeholder thinking, it is focused only on economic value related to resources with little focus on societal and ethical consequences. Through research done by Bo Enquist and Samuel Sebhatu we see attempts of further unification of marketing concepts. The shift is now towards the inclusion of sustainable business practices with service dominate logic. Sustainability has five dimensions; ethical, social, â€Å"nature-philosophic†, economic, and legal (Enquist, 2005). â€Å"Sustainable Service Dominant Logic† was labeled to argue that value-based co-creation of the S-D logic framework can be used to create values-based services for sustainable business by examining the link between CSR and S-D logic based on values and service quality for sustainable business (Sebhatu, 2010). CSR is commonly defined as concepts and strategies involving the voluntary integration of social and environment dimensions into a firm’s business operations and stakeholder interactions. Enquist and Sebhatu used Ikea as a case study of how a firm can combine low prices, economics of scale, innovative thinking, service quality and CSR in order to develop a sustainable business model. IKEA is driven by social values, economic values, and communications (sharing). These functional qualities ensure that the design is attractive to customers and the environmental impact of packaging is minimal. The American Marketing Association has created a statement of ethics for promoting the highest standard of professional ethical norms that are expected and maintained by society and/or professional organizations (AMA, 2004). At the top of this listing of standards is that as â€Å"marketers, we must do no harm, this means consciously avoiding harmful actions or omissions by embodying ethical standards and adhering to all applicable laws and regulations in the choices we make. This shows that marketers are fully aware of the possible negative aspects of marketing but understand it is in their best interest to maintain ethical values and do no harm to society. Therefore through this critical analysis and review of the body of marketing knowledge it can be concluded that it is not the intent of marketing to do harm to society but to sustain relationships with stakeholders and possibly improve people’s lives. 6. Bibliography