Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Discrimination Against Homosexuals in the Workplace Essay

Discrimination Against Homosexuals in the Workplace - Essay Example Outline The main argument of the paper concerns a mythic nature of federal acts, prohibiting discrimination against homosexuals in the workplace. On the one hand, the Acts of 1975 and 2000 are focused on homosexuals’ rights protection in the workplace, but in reality, a few companies have been acting in compliance with the principles propagated by these Acts. Moreover, a straight society is not ready to accept homosexuals to the fullest extent. Social norms, moral underpinnings and stereotypes have always caused a negative impact on homosexuals in different spheres of their activity. Introduction From the historical perspective, the world’s governments were not too much enthusiastic about hiring gays or lesbians. This group of people was restricted from their rights’ protection, the grounds for dismissal were also found in homosexuality and many other negative impacts were caused by homosexuality until 1975. After 1975 a gradual shift of legal policies protecting rights of homosexuals emerged. Further on this tendency was developed in the Acts of 2000 (Dipboye & Colella, 2005). Nevertheless, it is relevant for the government not only to introduce regulations against homosexuals’ discrimination in the workplace, but also implement them in practice. Legal aspects In 1975 the Sex Discrimination Act was approved. Nevertheless, there are many arguments concerning interpretation of this Act: â€Å"†¦the prohibition against discrimination on grounds of ‘sex’ does not include a prohibition against discrimination on grounds of ‘sexual orientation† (Estlund, 2003). Therefore, an intrusion in the sexual life of homosexuals has been practiced by the majority of the companies. A so-called lavender ceiling for homosexuals was invented in some companies. Courts have taken different paths in spite of adopted federal regulations: â€Å"Although the courts rejected immorality as grounds for dismissing gay employees, the ir deference to administrative expertise and administrators' reliance on a common sense standard meant that distaste for homosexuals bolstered national security concerns† (Estlund, 2003). Thus, it is necessary not only to implement Acts against discrimination in the workplace, not only â€Å"on the paper†, but also in practice. The government has to prevent discrimination against homosexuals in the workplace in accordance with the Directive on Equal Treatment in Employment and Occupation (27 November 2000). By December 2003 these legal regulations had to be implemented to the fullest extent. Unfortunately, many homosexuals come across oppressing policies in their workplaces. The courts are not much concerned about sexual discrimination in the workplace. Very often legal regulations and rules are not efficient in practice. There is an interesting quotation concerning legal regulations on homosexuals’ discrimination in the workplace: â€Å"They [courts] treat disc rimination against women with small children as actionable sex discrimination, along with discrimination against aggressive women and effeminate men. Yet, for reasons not fully articulated, they refuse to treat discrimination against men in dresses as actionable† (Yuracko, 2003). It is evident that courts’ actions are full of inconsistencies. These decisions may at first look intricate and unprincipled. There is a need to propagate social policies directed on development of homogenized workplace. Employers’

Monday, October 14, 2019

Example of Bullwhipp Effect Essay Example for Free

Example of Bullwhipp Effect Essay The Barilla company, a major pasta producer located in Italy provides a demonstrative of issues resulting from the bullwhip effect. Barilla offered special discounts to their customer who ordered full truckload of their goods. Such marketing deals created customer demand-patterns were highly peaked and volatile. The supply chain costs were so high that they outstripped the benefits from full truckload transportation. The Barilla case was one of the first published cases that empirically supported the bullwhip phenomenon. The 5 major reasons leading to the bullwhip effect according to Lee: Demand signal processing is the is the practice of decision makers adjusting the parameters of the inventory replenishment rule. Target stock levels, safety stocks and demand forecasts are updated in view of information or deviations from targets. Another major cause of the bullwhip problem is the lead-time, which is caused by two components. The physical delays and also delays in cause of information. The lead-time is a key parameter to calculate safety stocks. The third bullwhip creator is the practice of order batching. Economies of scale in ordering, production set-ups or transportation will quite clearly increase order variability. The fourth major cause of bullwhip is highlighted by Lee has to do with price fluctuations. Price discounts and quantity discounts are often offered by retailers. So the retailers buy goods in advance and quantities and store them. This do not reflect their immediate needs. The fifth cause of bullwhip is connected with rationing and shortage gaming. Inflated orders placed by supply chain occupants during shortage periods tend to boost the bullwhip effect. Possibilities to minimize the bullwhip effect (in order to avoid costs): improve communication in the supply chain simultaneousness of actions (therefore time delays and reaction times can be avoided) centralization of disposition establish strategic alliances reduce the variability

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Auditor Predecessor Successor

Auditor Predecessor Successor Question: What is the purpose of predecessor-successor auditor communications? Which party, the predecessor or successor auditor, has the responsibility for initiating these communications? Briefly summarize the information that a successor auditor should obtain from the predecessor auditor. The purpose of the predecessor-successor auditor communications is to help an auditor determine if a firm should engage with a new client. This communication will inform the auditor about the history of the client with the previous auditor and possibly expose some information that would suggest that accepting this client is not in the best interest of the firm. In recent times it has become important to carefully choose with whom a firm engages in an agreement with for representing them as their auditor. Not only is the firms reputation at stake but they can be held liable for their clients fraudulent activities. The Auditing Standards Board has issued a Statement on Auditing Standards Number 84 in October of 1997. SAS No. 84 replaced the SAS No. 7 which has the same title and was written to update the statement to the present environment. SAS No. 84 defines the required communications between the predecessor and successor auditor before accepting an engagement; what to do when the predecessor limits the responses to the successor; contains sample client consent and an acknowledgement letter and a successor auditor acknowledgement letter. Many of the CPA firms use caution when accepting new clients and go through a detailed procedure before accepting a new client. This is necessary to protect the firm from potential future liabilities based on their clients activities. SAS No. 84 made several modifications or improvements to SAS No. 7 which include communications prior to engaging with the client, discusses the usage and types of working papers, discusses the use of different types of correspondence letters for the predecessor-successor with examples, and outlines actions that the successor should follow if the financial statements are found to be misstated. This Statement was then amended by no. 93 because the statement didnt address the case where an auditor started an audit but didnt complete it. SAS No. 93 clarifies the definition of the predecessor auditor to include this situation. The definition was refined to include any auditor who is engaged to perform an audit but does not complete it. In the ZZZZ Best case study, Greenspan was an independent auditor that completed an audit of the ZZZZ Best Company in 1986. He used analytical techniques to look at the financial data and he confirmed the existence of their jobs by reviewing their documents. After completion of the audit, Minkow that owned the ZZZZ Best Company dismissed Greenspan and retained Ernst Whinney as the companys auditor. A congressional subcommittee was probing into the predecessor-successor communications that occurred when this transition occurred. When the congressional subcommittee asked what information he provided to the successor auditor, Greenspan was said â€Å"Nothing. I did there was nothing because they never got in tough with me. Its protocol for the new accountant to get in touch with the old accountant. They never got in touch with me, and its still a mystery to me.† According to SAS no. 84, the successor cannot accept the new client until they have communicated with the predecessor and have reviewed their responses. Even though the successor is required to initiate the communication, the predecessor is required to respond. The predecessor is required to get permission from the client before providing any information about the client. This means that there is a possibility that the predecessor will state that they will not be providing any information but they must respond stating this. If the predecessor doesnt provide any information, this most likely means that the client doesnt want them to disclose some potentially harmful information about the client and raises some concerns about accepting the new client. In the ZZZZ Best Company case, Ernst Whinney said that they communicated with Greenspan prior to accepting ZZZZ Best as an audit client. They didnt state any details related to the communication and Greenspan did not confirm this communication. Even if Ernst Whinney did initiate communication with Greenspan, given that neither one confirmed the details of what was communicated means that Ernst Whinney didnt follow requirement of reviewing the predecessor responses before accepting the client. The successor auditor should obtain information that will help decide whether to accept the client as their auditor. The type of information that the successor auditor should be inquiring about is related to the integrity of the management and any disagreements that the predecessor had with the management over accounting or auditing procedures. If theres has been issues with management integrity or concerns about their integrity from the predecessor auditor, it most likely will be an ongoing concern which may cause problems in the future. Also, if the predecessor auditor had disagreements with the client about accounting or auditing procedures then it would best to discuss these procedures with the client before starting the engagement with the client. Another item that the successor auditor should request is access to the predecessors working papers. â€Å"SAS no. 84 includes a list of the working papers ordinarily made available to the successor, including documentation of planning, internal control, audit results and other matters of continuing accounting and auditing significance†.1 The predecessor may limit the access to this working papers for reasons such as confidentiality agreements or litigations. These working papers provide the good insight into the client and give exposure to the predecessor and clients working arrangements. They will be the fastest and most detailed information for evaluating the client. When responding to the successor after the initial communication, the predecessor may request a written agreement disclosing the terms of what they disclose. They may request that the successor keep the information confidential and agree not to engage in litigations against the predecessor related to the material disclosed. Another item they should discuss is the reasons for the change in auditors. This information could show some insight into any management integrity issues if the predecessor auditor withdrew as the auditor. The successor will need to document the communications with the predecessor. They should document when the communications occurred, the results of the communications, and details of what material was disclosed. Even though the communications may be oral instead of written, it is good practice to document the details of what communications were made and the nature of the communications. SAS No. 84 doesnt require the documentation of this communications but the successor auditors working papers should show the details of communications that occurred. The predecessor-successor auditor communications is the key to determining if the firm should accept the new client. This communication will allow significant information to be gathered in determining whether to proceed into an agreement or not. The success auditor must initiate the communication with the predecessor. The completion of this exchange of information is vital to protect the firm from potential future liabilities based on their clients activities.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Tradition of Tension and Oppression Essay -- China

Xinjiang lies on the far western boundaries of the People’s Republic of China. An area three times the size of France, home to the vast majority of the People’s Republic of China’s Uyghur population (along with twelve other officially recognized ethnic groups), the Xinjiang Autonomous Region has been isolated from its central Beijing-based government by rough terrain, a language barrier, and starkly different religious traditions and economic structure. Even the region’s Chinese name, Xinjiang or â€Å"new frontier† implies both the relative recentness of the province’s acquisition by China and the imperialist nature of this acquisition. Early Chinese Communist Party policy in the region led to atrocious acts of cultural genocide. Separatist movements developed as resistance to the Chinese Communist Party’s attempts to incorporate the region into a culture with which it was incompatible. While Mao era policies had disastrous effects a cross the People’s Republic, the effort to promote a stronger Chinese identity lead to the isolation of the Uyghur community and the development of Uyghur nationalism as demonstrated by PRC policy towards the non-Han populace during the 1950s and the resulting Yi-Ta incident of 1962. Xinjiang’s past status throughout Chinese history has been used as justification both for and against its incorporation into PRC, depending solely on political perspective. As a sparsely populated and resource-rich vast buffer region between the Soviet Union and the People’s Republic, Xinjiang was strategically and economically valuable. When the Peoples’ Liberation Army entered the province in 1949, despite a lack of familiarity with either the geography or the people, they successfully quelled resistance efforts . A provin... ...-145. Web. Gladney, Dru C. Muslim Chinese: Ethnic Nationalism in the Peoples' Republic. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1996. Print. Kaltman, Blaine. Under the Heel of the Dragon. Athens: Ohio University Press, 2007. Print. McMillen, Donald H. Chinese Communist Power and Policy in Xinjiang, 1949 - 1977. Boulder: Westview Press, Inc., 1979. Print. Millward, James A. Eurasian Crossroads. New York: Columbia University Press, 2007. Print. Moseley, George. "China's Fresh Approach to the National Minority Question." The China Quarterly.24 (1965): pp. 15-27. Web. of Slavists, Canadian. "The Uighurs between China and the USSR." Canadian Slavonic papers 17.2/3 (1975): 341-65. jstor. Web. Waite, Edmund. "The Impact of the Sate on Islam Amongst the Uyghurs: Religious Knowledge and Authority in the Kashgar Oasis." Central Asian Survey 25.3 (2006)Print.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Bartolome de Las Casas

American Literature Massacre in the Indies Thesis: The brutal awakening portrayed by de Las Casas in his account allows us to see what really happened in the Indies and prove why Columbus and other explorers aren’t the heroes their cut out to be. Intro: The discovery of the â€Å"New World† is portrayed as a wonderful time by almost all Americans on Columbus Day each and every year. If people knew the true story about what really happened as accounted by Bartolome de Las Casas then there would be less celebrating and realization that we, as people, are idolizing a false hero. The brutal awakening portrayed by de Las Casas in his account allows us to see what really happened in the Indies and prove why Columbus and other explorers aren’t the heroes their cut out to be. Body: 1. When the â€Å"Christians† arrived to the Indies the Indians viewed them as people from Heaven and soon found out that they were anything but that. A. The amount of food the Christians consumed was unbelievable. For each Christian ate as much food in one day as thirty Indians in one month. B. After the Christians made there way through the villages to the nobles they acted in a way to be considered horrific. They made the rulers watch as they raped their wives with no thoughts of regret in the Christian officer’s minds. 2. It was not long when the Indians decided something needed to be done. They revolted against the Christians but there was no way they could match up to them because while they were using bow and arrows and tomahawks the Christians were using horses, swords and pikes. Brutal raids were implemented on all Indian villages and the Christians used cruel and unusual punishments against them. A. Everyone from pregnant women to children was targeted by these so called Christians. B. Bets were placed by the Christians to see who could cut an Indian’s head off with one swing of the pike as if it were a game. C. Children were taken from their mothers and thrown by their arms and legs into rivers and off the sides of mountains. D. Indians were burned alive in groups of thirteen in remembrance of â€Å"Our Redeemer and His twelve Apostles. E. The hands of some Indians were cut off and tied around their necks as the Christians told them to â€Å"Go now, carry the message,† into the mountains to other Indians who have fled. F. Nobles and Chiefs were treated differently by the Christians, for they were lashed onto a grid of rods and placed on forked sticks then slowly burned in a smoldering fire. One account recalled by de Casas showed four or fiv e nobles latched onto these grids slowly being burned. Their screams were so loud that they were disturbing the captain’s sleep so he ordered them to be strangled but the constable decided to disobey his orders and instead put a stick over their tongues so that they could not scream. 3. While many Indians lives were ended with appalling deaths others were captured and turned into slaves by the Spaniards. More than two million Indians were taken captive and were brought to the island of Puerto Rico to do hard labor. Bartolome de Las Casas American Literature Massacre in the Indies Thesis: The brutal awakening portrayed by de Las Casas in his account allows us to see what really happened in the Indies and prove why Columbus and other explorers aren’t the heroes their cut out to be. Intro: The discovery of the â€Å"New World† is portrayed as a wonderful time by almost all Americans on Columbus Day each and every year. If people knew the true story about what really happened as accounted by Bartolome de Las Casas then there would be less celebrating and realization that we, as people, are idolizing a false hero. The brutal awakening portrayed by de Las Casas in his account allows us to see what really happened in the Indies and prove why Columbus and other explorers aren’t the heroes their cut out to be. Body: 1. When the â€Å"Christians† arrived to the Indies the Indians viewed them as people from Heaven and soon found out that they were anything but that. A. The amount of food the Christians consumed was unbelievable. For each Christian ate as much food in one day as thirty Indians in one month. B. After the Christians made there way through the villages to the nobles they acted in a way to be considered horrific. They made the rulers watch as they raped their wives with no thoughts of regret in the Christian officer’s minds. 2. It was not long when the Indians decided something needed to be done. They revolted against the Christians but there was no way they could match up to them because while they were using bow and arrows and tomahawks the Christians were using horses, swords and pikes. Brutal raids were implemented on all Indian villages and the Christians used cruel and unusual punishments against them. A. Everyone from pregnant women to children was targeted by these so called Christians. B. Bets were placed by the Christians to see who could cut an Indian’s head off with one swing of the pike as if it were a game. C. Children were taken from their mothers and thrown by their arms and legs into rivers and off the sides of mountains. D. Indians were burned alive in groups of thirteen in remembrance of â€Å"Our Redeemer and His twelve Apostles. E. The hands of some Indians were cut off and tied around their necks as the Christians told them to â€Å"Go now, carry the message,† into the mountains to other Indians who have fled. F. Nobles and Chiefs were treated differently by the Christians, for they were lashed onto a grid of rods and placed on forked sticks then slowly burned in a smoldering fire. One account recalled by de Casas showed four or fiv e nobles latched onto these grids slowly being burned. Their screams were so loud that they were disturbing the captain’s sleep so he ordered them to be strangled but the constable decided to disobey his orders and instead put a stick over their tongues so that they could not scream. 3. While many Indians lives were ended with appalling deaths others were captured and turned into slaves by the Spaniards. More than two million Indians were taken captive and were brought to the island of Puerto Rico to do hard labor.

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Porter’s Model Approach for Rice Industry

Why should Vietnam develop rice production as its competitive advantage? Rice is one of the leading food crops in the world with 85% of its production accounted by human consumption (The Importance of Rice, 2011). Rice is also the most important crop to millions of small farmers who grow it on millions of hectares throughout the region, and to the many landless workers who derive income from working on these farms. In the future, it is imperative that rice production continue to grow at least as rapidly as the population, if not faster.The world’s annual rough rice production will have to increase markedly over the next 30 years to keep up with population growth and income-induced demand for food (The Importance of Rice, 2011). In Viet Nam, rice plays an important role in national food security and political stability. Rice also has a direct effect on social security because it is consumed by a vast majority of the total population and is an important source of income for more than 60 million people living in agriculture and rural areas. Rice is the country’s main crop, accounting for more than 90% of total cereal production.Since the 1990s, the volume of rice exports has risen dramatically, making Viet Nam the second largest rice exporter in the world. Nevertheless, serious food security concerns in the country remains. Pockets of poverty and malnutrition persist more in remote areas and among ethnic tribes (Asian Development Bank, 2012 p. 01). Average food per capital has been increased rapidly, but inequally among regions: In 2007, Mekong is 1,075 kg, South Central Coast 287 kg; the North West 217 kg and the Central Highland 174 kg (the variation between the Mekong and the Central Highland is 6. 17 times)(Nguyen Vu Hoan, 2010 p. 3). Furthermore, rice industry is critical in the Vietnamese’s sustainable economic environment. Rice export helps increase foreign currency inflows and capital accmulation for the industrialization modernization process of the country. Specifically, the increase in rice export volumn means a growth in national incomes, in turns, a growth in national GDP. Realizing rice’s significance and the various threats, the government does not only seek solution but also plays an important role in the international rice market, and consequently, in the food security of the international communityThe factorial determinants Land is the first and foremost production material in rice cultivation. The soil fertility dominates profoundly the intensiveness ability and production prices. According to a survey of the Agriculture Ministry, land area with agriculture capability is above 10 million hectares, in which 8. 5 million hectares are suitable for rice cultivation (The Necessity of Vietnam’s Rice Expor, 2011). Therefore, land resource in Viet Nam has advantages in both intensive and extensive farming.In addition, the climate is ideal for rice due to the combination of humidity and stormy wea ther. Also, the canal and river systems spread densely throughout the country, especially the three major rivers including Red, C? and Nine Dragons Rivers, which provide farmers with huge amount of water. These natural conditions helps create a solid foundation for rice industry in Viet Nam. The human resource is another factor contributing to rice production. 50% of national labour force participates in farming with broad knowledge and experience passed down by their ancestors (Asian Development Bank, 2012 p. 1). The Vietnamese culture has been attached deeply to rice cultivation; consequently, the people possessed various compatible skills with the particular weather conditions in Viet Nam. The amount of research and development carried out has been considerable. Many new rice varieties have been introduced offering much higher yield than the old ones. Besides, new production model has been applied and used successfully in boosting productivity, together with efficient irrigation system.Advanced drainage, aluminum, salt removal techniques are deployed to improve rice quality (Asian Development Bank, 2012 p. 02). Viet Nam is the country to have cheapest cost of production within South-East Asia, especially in Mekong Delta – cheapest in the world. This creates price competitiveness for Vietnamese rice in both domestic and foreign market (The Competitiveness of Agricultural Products in the Context of Joining AFTA, 2003). The infrastructure system is continually upgraded to help make use of every source efficiently.The Government is currently working with foreign countries especially Australia. The two nations are carrying on several projects on projects: build Cao Lanh Bridge; Mekong Delta infrastructure and Vietnam Rural Energy Distribution to provide efficient delivery of power service by power companies; also a Southern Coastal Corridor connecting between Viet Nam, Thailand and Cambodia. As soon as these instructions go into operation, many efforts ca n be made to exploit potential benefits that have not yet been seen (AusAid, 2013). The overnment also concerns about the educational and health level of people from rural areas. The systems of school at all levels are being constructed new, upgraded and temporary primitive schools and classes are being eliminated. Besides, rural health care system continues to be enhanced quite comprehensive, truly becomes the rural residents’ crucial initial health care system, growing both in terms of number of health stations, qualification of health service providers as well as the physical facilities. (Agricultural and Fishery Situation in Vietnam, 2011). The Demand ConditionsAs the Viet Nam’s economy has been growing, leading to higher living standards especially in big cities, the demand for consumption goods is rising including rice. Moreover, people get access to high quality rice both from foreign and domestic market. Therefore, a potential growth in demand for superior qual ity rice is obvious and people will turn to other rice exporters like Thailand if its rice quality is higher. However, domestic production can take over the rice market by producing high quality rice with lower prices based on new production model and continuous innovation in machinery and rice varieties.If the rice industry can successfully address this sophisticated demand, it can exploit profits from high-end market both domestically and internationally by producing much higher value-added rice. The Up and Downstream Industries The upstream industries supporting rice production include machinery, fertilizers and pesticides. The government realized the importance of these industries so it implemented policies to encourage investment on R&D and facilities. Vietnam has recently working on a project building a huge milling house with capacity of 100,000 tons per annum, in Mekong Delta region (Huynh Xu TTXVN, 2013).Also, the collaboration of many agriculture scientists and experts has resulted in eco-friendly fertilizers and pesticides using green recycled components, helping paddy field to grow more quickly. The packaging industry is in the downstream process in rice production. In order for the rice to be in the market, it must be packed properly first. An automatic packaging line is being used in many rice processing factories. The government does realize the benefit packaging could bring especially in marketing, value added function and brand perception. It is now encouraging competition among package production firms for a higher quality packaging.Rice manufacturers also cooperate with the packagers on their own packaging designs. The structure of the industry and its rivalry The economic units are mainly dominated by small-scaled farmers and there is significant land fragmentation. Theoretically, there is no competition among cooperatives. However, due to the fact that the whole rice production process is managed by Agriculture and Rural Development Minist ry and its regulations and standards put on the farmers to produce high quality rice, the Vietnamese rice competitiveness is considerable relative to other countries’.Moreover, the pressure to compete with other big rice exporter drives manufacturers to continuously upgrade their production model. The other contributing factors Chance Joining WTO provides several opportunities for rice exports. First, WTO is a big playing field offering a huge market including one for rice consumption as before Viet Nam became member of WTO; rice is limited in participating in global market. Besides, many enterprises have access to advanced technology in rice production.Secondly, a complete law system has been introduced in order to be able to join WTO, which encourages foreign investment funds since the other countries think Viet Nam has a m? e stable environment. Finally, there will be no unfairness in case of conflictions as the WTO’s commerce policy is applied to Vietnam ensuring o ur rights in international playground (Rice production situation after joining WTO, 2009). Wars are still big issues in many regions of the world and will continue to be. And food security is at stake in these particular areas. Vietnam’s rice export can become one of the major sources for food during instabilities.Government Policy The authorities also play a crucial role in influencing the nation’s competitive advantage. Regarding the supply side, Viet Nam’s Government has implemented multiple measures to boost production including decollectivism (xoa b? ch? nghia t? p th? ) transforming land and production materials to household system; agricultural R&D involving one third of the S&T government budget to support hybrid rice varieties for farmers; access to credit provided by Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development and favoured loan interest rate granted to farmers (Dang Kim Son, 2011).The government, being aware of rice industry’s significance, has b een putting huge investment and concern about this and will continue to do so In foreign trade, policy such as removing export quotas has encouraged foreign investors. Besides, control is still be made over export contract registration as well as conditions to rice export enterprises to ensure rice quality. In conclusion, the rice industry is promising due to several factors both from Porter’s model and from outside sources.The human, natural, knowledge resources are all favourable to rice production in the first place. Not to mention other factors namely demand, supporting industries, chances and government policy, these are essentially supporting the growth of rice industry though there are plenty of efforts to be made to exploit them. It is wise to take into consideration that making rice the nation’s competitive advantage. This does not only help the Viet Nam’s economical growth but also ensures its stability in far future.

Disgrace by Coetzee

This paper will discuss and evaluate the changes that the main character David Lurie goes through in the novel Disgrace by Coetzee. It would also cover as how it reflects the changing times in South Africa and its affects on other characters in the novel. In Disgrace by Coetzee, Lurie is a man who has various levels of character evaluation. He went through various phases of changes. At one time, he seems to be contemptuous of others, uses his position to take what he wants and to justify the taking. On the other level, in parallel, he is a white South African male forced to re-evaluate his entire world when he thinks he is too old for change.In the novel â€Å"Disgrace†, we see that 52 years old David Lurie is a professor of communications at a Cape Town University. Unfortunately, he is twice divorced and enjoys this personal opinion that having a woman has never been a problem. In this novel, he reveals various traits of his personality and character through various phases an d changes. Ultimately, he has to acknowledge that he is no longer fascinating with the passage of time; he sought the suitable services of a prostitute. This was an arrangement that finally came to an end, leaving him with no channel for his virility.He is confronted with another change in his approach and approach at this phase in the novel. David Lurie lastly induced himself that an affair with a one of his female students would not be a bad idea after all and went for it. At this stage, we observe another turn in his life. The complaint of sexual harassment by the student shook his academic life upside down and he had to quit the job. As soon as he realizes this, David Lurie go through another phase of his character and leaves for the country side to an unsafe and remote farm. There, he intends to spend some time with his daughter who ran an animal refuge and sold produce and flowers.He gets himself involved in writing. Lucy is violated by gangsters and with that David's disgrace reaches its climax. David, at this critical stage and point of life, unexpectedly finds himself re-evaluating and changing his character. He reconsiders his relations with people, his affiliation with his only daughter, as well as his links with women. This change of approach and re-evaluation process reveal upon him that that love is never unreflecting rather it is always two-sided; it may be called a matter of give and take. He feels a certain kind of change in his character and approach at this specific point of time he was going through.The basic message from this novel is that the reader comes to know the generally accepted truth that a person can comprehend who he/she is only when he analyzes his past. An important change in Lurie’s character is revealed through a significant event when on his journey, Lurie is compelled to visit Melanie's family where he finally performs an act of contrition. When he finds his Cape Town home vandalized, he decides to permanently chang e his life. He returns to stay with his daughter, who is pregnant with the child of one of her attackers and living under the protection of being one of Petrus's wives.Lurie devotes himself to volunteering at the animal clinic, where he helps put down diseased and unwanted dogs, and composing his futile opera. Although not what he would ever have expected, he finds some form of life purpose. We also see Lurie in a different shade of his character when he resists to being part of the University committee's desire for â€Å"prurience and sentiment† echoes the efforts of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) which offered immunity in return for full disclosure of facts and a public show of remorse.The TRC has been internationally acclaimed for contributing to the way South Africa avoided a civil war. The change in his character transpires when Lurie finally apologizes, members of the tribunal refuse to be satisfied, demanding to know whether it reflects his sincere feeli ngs and comes from his heart: â€Å"Confessions, apologies: why this thirst for abasement? † Lurie asks himself. We see that he enjoys various virtues and traits of character during different phases of his life.David Lurie could save his job if he simply expressed the kind of repentance demanded of him by the university disciplinary board that has authority over him. He seems a different Lurie at this stage. We find ourselves sympathizing with the reasons he gives for not giving them what they want when he says: We went through the repentance business yesterday. I told you what I thought. I won't do it. I appeared before an officially constituted tribunal, before a branch of the law. Before that secular tribunal I pleaded guilty, a secular plea. That plea should suffice.Repentance is neither here nor there. Repentance belongs to another world, to another universe of discourse†¦. [What you are asking] reminds me too much of Mao's China. Recantation, self-criticism, public apology. I'm old fashioned, I would prefer simply to be put against a wall and shot. (Coetzee, 1999, p. 58) There is not a word about the ethical conflict between lust and abuse of academic power. And there is no hint that the protagonist thinks he has committed an act genuinely subject to ethical objection. As regards to the same inclination, we also find a somewhat more honest confrontation.A South African professor of English is caught imposing sex upon a beautiful student enrolled in his â€Å"Romantic Literature† course. Here, he seems a different kind of person persuading a young girl to fulfill his lustrous desires. When he first proposes that she â€Å"spend the night† with him, she asks â€Å"Why? † and he answers, â€Å"Because you ought to. † â€Å"Why ought I to? † â€Å"Why? Because a woman’s beauty does not belong to her alone. It is part of the bounty she brings into the world. She has a duty to share it†¦. † â₠¬Å"And what if I already share it? †Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"Then you should share it more widely. † (Coetzee, 1999, p. 16) Conclusion In depicting the characteristic evolution of David Lurie's fall and rise, Coetzee uses his typically spare prose to great effect. Sometimes, the accusation of using stereotypes confuses Coetzee's habit of avoiding unnecessary detail with racial typecasting. If we are to believe that Coetzee is casting all black men as immoral, rapists and liars, then surely it would be equally true that we are to believe that all white men are academic Lotharios who spend their time sexually harassing students.On the contrary, by following the downfall of one man Coetzee is drawing attention to South Africa's dilemma of striving for color-blind equality in the immediate aftermath of decades of institutionalized racial discrimination. The evolutionary changes in the main character of the novel have been connoted in over all opera of contrasts based setting of the nov el. The existence of contrast should not be taken to suggest, however, that these are two entirely separable ways of working with cultural materials; the point at which making becomes creating, or creating reverts to making, is never predictable, and can be assigned only after the fact.It is often a gradual process of false starts and wasted efforts, erasures and revisions, slowly inching nearer to an outcome that, one can only hope, will be the desired one, or arriving at it in fits and starts. We may quote from Coetzee's Disgrace again, though this description of David Lurie's composition of a chamber opera is the echo of thousands of similar accounts across a number of fields. This reflects and suggests change in his character.