English Language Essay on Spoken Text

Text B is a meeting on network show directed by two moderators with the design being to imagine as much data as possible from J. K. Rowling, a celebrated writer on her most up to date Harry Potter book. The crowd here would dominatingly be devoted youthful perusers of the book who need to think about the book and normal adherents of the show. The predominant speaker in this content B would be the questioners and the visit show depends on nearness pairs.Using a bogus beginning and inconsistency in â€Å"no, I don’t †yes I do† delineate parts of communicated in language in spite of the fact that there are clear components where the crowd may realize the questioners had an essential thought of what was to be asked before-hand. The absence of non-familiarity includes all the more plainly propose the inquiries were recently arranged, for instance, when Richard says â€Å"All the papers that have been advancing this meeting today obviously need us†¦Ã¢â‚¬  This dis closes to us research was attempted on what kind of inquiries the crowd or perusers needed answered.The change of tone toward the finish of a sentence recommends suddenness and signals the different speaker’s go to talk. For instance, â€Å"But obviously the last one right now is dwelling in your safe†, depicts the adjustment in tone toward the end. Judy, the questioner utilized more interrogatives like â€Å"two much friends and family? † while Richard utilizes ellipsis to attempt to make immediacy and certainty, â€Å"you told your significant other, clearly you trust in him all things†¦Ã¢â‚¬  permitting turn-taking.The interviewee additionally appears to be a little uninterested through her short answers, for example, â€Å"He did one of the, yeah†; to maybe show she isn’t in the mind-set or the reality she’s attempting to be cautious in order to not uncover any data in this manner thinking of her as words. Text C is a play content from American Buffalo by David Mamet, with the reason principally being to engage. The crowd here would be transcendently taught auditorium going audience.The play content is fundamentally sorted out using contiguousness sets, with interrogatives being a primary viewpoint. Wear is depicted as the predominant speaker as he controls the discussion and states his situation through discourse. Don’s discourse is additionally more and increasingly authorative to additionally depict his higher status than Bob. The utilization of turn-taking and the casual setting offers approach to expression, for example, â€Å"well she was genuine frantic at him†, â€Å"jewed† and â€Å"yup†.Don additionally utilizes â€Å"Bobby† to show recognition with the other character just as it being a touch of disparaging to speak to their unmistakable positions and relationship. Wear additionally impels point moves basically as he attempts to show Bob business, â€Å"Things a re not generally what they appear to be†, demonstrates how a prosaism to maybe depict Don’s development and shrewdness in contrast with the adolescent and naivety of Bob.

Shakespeare Essays (645 words) - Sonnet 18, Sonnet,

The compositions of Shakespeare are probably the best works of writing at any point created. His style made what we know today as buzzwords, and expanded our thinking style about our general surroundings. In accordance with the sentimental styles of his time, Shakespeare was an ace dramatist, holding the crowd hostage with his sparkling bits of work of art, his plays were the type of amusement to bite the dust for in that time. His poems talked flawlessly about adoration and life. His enrapturing expressions were so elegantly composed that they have gotten everlastingly weaved with our general public flunky. The topics communicated by all types of sentimental craftsmanship and writing are not missing in Shakespeare's works. He unquestionably remained in his time, and some would state, he drove the time in the making of sentimental pieces that will always bear the trial of time. Sentimentalism was made during a period in which thriving came through industrialization. It was a contradicting power to the cutting edge world, needing to come back to its unique roots. Nature was exemplified in all types of sentimental works, and Shakespeare was no special case. The excellence of nature was magnificently caught and appeared in a wide assortment of ways. It celebrated nature and supported the prevalence of men. The man was the image of progress, the lady an image of ownership. The lady was something to be glad for, you would need to show her off. Her excellence was lucky and the stature of want for a man. Sentimental writings, lauding the creative mind over the cases of abstract structure, ordinarily center around a detached individual awareness, frequently occupied with offenses against human and awesome law, and regularly set against extraordinary characteristic scenes. Much like the customary subjects of sentimentalism, Shakespeare concentrated a ton on the excellence of nature and of ladies. These were too key parts to a decent sentimental story and were directly in accordance with the sentimental time. Shakespeare concentrated a ton on the magnificence of ladies in is Sonnets, which as a rule were about affection. In Sonnet 20, a wonderful lady spoke to naturally is magnified. William Shakespeare takes the lady in the work and thinks about her to the various ladies. He says that her eye is more brilliant than all the others, and that it is less bogus in rolling. He announces that her face was painted by Nature, and that it was his one genuine energy. He discusses how all men desire for her, and that their eyes are taken by her. She floats smoothly when she strolls. He at that point wraps up by pronouncing that her affection resembles a fortune to him and that he just wishes his adoration could be the equivalent. The lady was his masterpiece, some body that was wanted, and one that he was glad for. She was the flawlessness of nature and caught the entirety of its magnificence. The following poem of Shakespeare is his well known, ?Shall I contrast thee with a mid year's day.? This poem all the more legitimately takes the lady's excellence and partners it with the entirety of his environmental factors. He begins by saying how much more pleasant she is, and the amount more beautiful she is than a summers day, which can be seen as the best season. He thinks about her to the summers day, but then lifts up her above it. She is better than that day since she will never blur away, as the seasons move. Here and there summer is excessively blistering, yet she is rarely excessively outrageous. He points out that gold frequently blurs, yet she will never. Her excellence will always sparkle and she will continue as before to him for his entire life, never losing her demeanor of flawlessness. He finishes by portraying how her magnificence will at last stand the trial of time, by asserting that as long as men inhale, she will be their to amazement them.

PSA from The Minimalists

PSA from The Minimalists This was fun. And cathartic. But dont worry, no robots were harmed during the making of this video. If youd like to read more about the three ways you can participate in Screenless Saturdays, visit this post. Subscribe to The Minimalists via email.

How Climate Change Is Happening All Over And It Has...

Mersadies Butcher Climate Change Paper Dr. Sian Ritchie Opening Sentence: Climate Change is happening all over and it has extreme consequences. Governor Inslee’s plan is heading in the right direction to solve these problems. To help reduce these consequences we need to find alternative cleaner resources to use. Section 1: How climate works Climate change has many factors; albedo is one of many. Albedo is where the snow and ice reflect sunlight back into space. But as the Earth’s temperature continues to rise the snow and ice are beginning to melt causing the ground and water to absorb the sunlight heating things up. With the carbon dioxide levels rising throughout the years the ocean absorbed 30% of it, creating acidification, which is killing coral reefs. As this occurs it is destroying the shelter for many types of fish. With the coral reefs dying the fish population is decreasing significantly this is a major problem for the areas of the world were catching fish to feed their families is all they have as a food source. (Hewitt et al., 343-351) The conveyor belt is being affected as well, due to the rise of carbon dioxide levels. As the snow and ice melt the large amount of fresh water runs into the ocean making it less salty. When the water becomes less salty it turns out to be less dense and not able to sink like it should to keep the conveyor belt going, which keeps Europe from freezing. The level of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases have increased byShow MoreRelatedGlobal Warming : Climate Change923 Words   |  4 Pagesincrease in temperature is a direct result of climate change, although some scientists may disagree, climate change is happening, and this change can be clearly identified by such indicators. By defining climate change, displaying the unnatural causes, and portraying how this affects us, I intend to then bring light to how we can lower the risks of the unintended consequences brought on by future climate change. When hearing the phrase climate change, people generally tend to assume that it is anRead MoreGlobal Warming And Climate Change1131 Words   |  5 Pagescivilization has made rapid progress in industries like air travel, automobiles, and energy production. These developments were made without consideration of the long-term effects that their emissions may have on the planet. Changing weather patterns are now wreaking havoc around the world, and scientists attribute this to human-caused climate change. During President Obama’s State of the Union address in 2015, he stated that, â€Å"No challenge poses a greater threat to future generations than climate changeRead MoreClimate Change Is Defined By Dictionary.com As A Long Term Change1750 Words   |  7 PagesDecember 2016 Climate Change Climate change is defined by Dictionary.com as â€Å"A long-term change in the earth’s climate, especially a change due to an increase in the average atmospheric temperature† (â€Å"The Definition of Climate Change†). Climate change can be separated into four categories which are: evidences, causes, effects, and solutions. These categories help to find out what climate change is and how we can stop it. 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Recent scientific evidence indicates that humans have upset the carbon cycle, leaving more carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Burning fossil fuels such as oil and natural gas, burning biomass such as ethanol and wood, creating cement and releasingRead MoreThe Impact Of Technology On Society1291 Words   |  6 PagesSociety has always been impacted by technology. Each invention has affected how people relate to one another and how cultures have expanded or ended. Technology impacts how cities grow, where people live, and who owns what. Technologies are the reason a few people are very rich, that people are more social, and that teaching, and learning is changing. We are at a crucial time in history where educators can make a difference in how our students interact with one another and make a place for themselvesRead MoreGlobal Warming And Its Effects On Our World1578 Words   |  7 Pagesyears there has been a great development in fuel technology, more and more money is being invested into finding greener sources of energy. However even if the research is in the way there is a problem that must be addressed first for it is the source of the pollution that is affecting our world. That issue is over dependence and extreme consumption of fossil fuels. First-world countries are partly responsible for hindering third-world development, because countries like the United States’ over dependenceRead MoreThe Warming And Its Effect On Human Health1367 Words   |  6 Pagesis the urgent and growing threat of a changing climate† (The White House 2014). Climate change is at the forefront of politics in the twenty-first century. Scientists agree: the planet is warming and something must be done. There is a consensus among the scientific community, with 97% of experts agreeing that humans are causing global warming. For comparison’s sake, â€Å"scientists are as certain that humans are responsible for most recent climate change as they are that cigarettes are harmful to humanRead MoreThe Effects Of Global Warming On Our Environment1595 Words   |  7 Pageswarming is already having significant and harmful effects on our communities, our health, and our climate. Sea level rise is accelerating. The number of large wildfires is growing. Dangerous heat waves are becoming more common. Extreme storm events are increasing in many areas. More severe droughts are occurring in others We must take immediate action to address global warming or these consequences will continue to intensify, grow ever more costly, and increasingly affect the entire planet—includingRead MoreThe Big Freeze1218 Words   |  5 PagesMaria Rosario T. de Mesa 1POL1 December 10, 2012 1. Explain how the film shows the interdisciplinary relationship of the sciences. The film showed the interdisciplinary relationship of the other sciences by relating different sciences to another. The Big Freeze is a film about the climate change that is happening and has happened to the earth. We’ve all been wondering why these things happen and what caused it to happen. These past few years, especially in the Philippines

The Dead By James Joyce - 1334 Words

â€Å"Think You re Escaping and Run into Yourself† : An Analysis of Memories as a Form of Escape in James Joyce’s â€Å"The Dead† In â€Å"The Dead,† James Joyce marks his characters’ lives with an overwhelming paralysis that they can only break away from by reliving their memories. Gabriel seeks solace in his memories, but in reliving them he only succeeds in extending his self-imposed prison of paralysis and enhancing the stagnation he perceives in his life. Gabriel focuses on the emotional sincerity of the events in which he partakes, but, in doing so, he sacrifices the credibility of his recollections. Therefore, although Gabriel may alter the factual accuracy of his memories, he is able to transfigure the past and use it as a form of escape from†¦show more content†¦His inclination towards the glamourous is accompanied by a deliberate dismissal of anything that contradicts his idealized version of the world. When Gabriel notices Gretta standing on the stairs, he wonders what â€Å"a woman standing on the stairs in the shadow, listening to distant music, a symbol of† (2303). He sentimentalizes Gretta’s actions and, as they have no immediately perceptible significance, provides her with meaning. He is mindful of the atmosphere of the moment, and notes to himself that â€Å"If he were a painter he would paint her in that attitude† (2303). Gabriel’s imposition of this equivocal â€Å"attitude† upon Gretta allows him to romanticize her and subjectively interpret her actions. This affectionate moment is antithesized by Gabriel’s memory of his mother describing Gretta as â€Å"country cute† (2289), which he maintains is â€Å"not true of Gretta at all† (2289). However, it is unclear whether or not this is, in fact, an inaccurate portrayal of Gretta, as Gabriel perceives a glorified version of Gretta. He rejects anything that does not either affirm or coincide with his notion of reality. Indeed, when inconsistencies with his construal of reality arise, he seeks refuge in his blissful memories of the past, which in variably support his view of the world. Gabriel relies on the past to alleviate his current feelings of dissatisfaction and paralysis. As he is happiestShow MoreRelatedThe Dead by James Joyce879 Words   |  4 PagesThe short story the dead is written by James Joyce an Irish writer who lived between 1882-1941,he is best known for his modern writing techniques, with stories such as â€Å"The Dead†, this story is well known for its deep analogy of Irish culture, history, and how the story relates to life struggles, the difficulties of time and age and dealing to forget the dead ones we have lost. In the story we learn the toughts and voice of a husband who finds out that his wife previous love of her life still remainsRead MoreThe Dead By James Joyce2257 Words   |  10 Pages‘The Dead’ begins and ends in two entirely different places. What begins as a harmless portrait of simple human interactions, morphs slowly into an examination of the nature of time and memory. James Joyce uses every level of his writing in order to reveal this complex paradox. He breaks down the boundaries of life and death, of time and memory, by breaking down the structure of his grammar. He exposes the ambiguities of existence through the ambiguities of pronouns. In the midst of this acrobaticRead MoreThe Dead By James Joyce2111 Words   |  9 Pageswritten by James Joyce detailing the lives of many seemingly average characters from Dublin during the early twentieth century. Throughout all of Dubliners, Joyce gives the protagonist of every story a sort of epiphany that leads them to r ealize the source of their unhappiness, oftentimes, the characters choose to do nothing about it. Farrington, the protagonist in the short story â€Å"Counterparts,† and Gabriel Conroy, the protagonist in â€Å"The Dead,† are two very different characters. Joyce uses thisRead MoreThe Dead By James Joyce Essay942 Words   |  4 Pages James Joyce emerged as a radical new narrative writer in modern times. Joyce conveyed this new writing style through his stylistic devices such as the stream of consciousness, and a complex set of mythic parallels and literary parodies. This mythic parallel is called an epiphany. â€Å"The Dead† by Joyce was written as a part of Joyce’s collection called â€Å"The Dubliners†. Joyce’s influence behind writing the short story was all around him. The growing nationalist Irish movement around Dublin, IrelandRead MoreJames Joyce and the Dead Essay897 Words   |  4 PagesIn the year of 1882 in Dublin a famous writer of the name James Joyce was born and as of the year of 1941 in Zurich, Switzerland James Joyce passed away at the age of 59. Joyce began his career by writing short stories that engraved, with extraordinary clarity, aspects of Dublin life. These stories were published a part of the Dubliners in 1914. Fifteen stories of his filled the pages within Dubliners the stories are: The Sisters, An Encounter, Araby, Eveline, After the Race, Two Gallants, The boardingRead MoreJames Joyce s Araby And The Dead1176 Words   |  5 Pages James Joyce’s short stories â€Å"Araby† and â€Å"The Dead† both depict self-discovery as being defined by moments of epiphany. Both portray characters who experience similar emotions and who, at the ends of the stories, confront similarly harsh realities of self-discovery. In each of these stories, Joyce builds up to the moment of epiphany through a careful structure of events and emotions that leads both protagonists to a redefining moment of self-discovery. The main characters in both these storiesRead MoreAnalysis Of The Poem The Dead By James Joyce1280 Words   |  6 Pagesto communicate their experiences, thoughts, and sorrows in their fragmented societies. Authors such as James Joyce, T.S. Elliot, and Virginia Wolfe gave voice to these individuals through their implementation of a stream of consciousness writing style that became a key feature in the modernist literary movement. In his short story â€Å"The Dead†, the final tale in his collection Dubliners, James Joyce represents the struggles of a well-respected figure whose depression and low self-esteem causes him toRead MoreDarkness Everywhere in The Dead by James Joyce1080 Words   |  4 PagesHeart of Darkness and The Dead. In the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, darkness is defined as: partial or total absence of light, wickedness or evil, unhappiness, secrecy and lack of spiritual or intellectual enlighten. Comparing, Heart of Darkness written by Joseph Conrad and The Dead written by James Joyce, each author brings out darkness and the living dead into the main character and shows how much it changes them for the worse and/or for the better. The Dead by James Joyce was an amazing story aboutRead MoreAnalysis Of James Joyce s The Dead Essay1857 Words   |  8 PagesJames Joyce has been regarded as a literary genius for the better half of a century, and perhaps his most popular and most widely debated piece is the last story of Dubliners, â€Å"The Dead.† The ending paragraph of the story is deemed one of the most beautiful endings in all of modern literature, and the story’s ultimate meaning can be hypothesized and criticized in discussion after discussion, making it a popular work among the ascribed literary canon in academia. 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Brand Communication Free Essays

string(56) " forces and negotiations of meaning coming from inside\." Journal of Consumer Marketing Emerald Article: Brand communities for mainstream brands: the example of the Yamaha R1 brand community Reto Felix Article information: To cite this document: Reto Felix, (2012),†Brand communities for mainstream brands: the example of the Yamaha R1 brand community†, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 29 Iss: 3 pp. 225 – 232 Permanent link to this document: http://dx. We will write a custom essay sample on Brand Communication or any similar topic only for you Order Now doi. org/10. 1108/07363761211221756 Downloaded on: 08-10-2012 References: This document contains references to 47 other documents To copy this document: permissions@emeraldinsight. com Access to this document was granted through an Emerald subscription provided by Dublin City University For Authors: If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service. Information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www. emeraldinsight. com/authors for more information. About Emerald www. emeraldinsight. com With over forty years’ experience, Emerald Group Publishing is a leading independent publisher of global research with impact in business, society, public policy and education. In total, Emerald publishes over 275 journals and more than 130 book series, as well as an extensive range of online products and services. Emerald is both COUNTER 3 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. *Related content and download information correct at time of download. Brand communities for mainstream brands: the example of the Yamaha R1 brand community Reto Felix ? Department of Business Administration, University of Monterrey, San Pedro Garza Garc? , Mexico Abstract Purpose – The purpose of this study is to understand consumers’ product use, practices, identity, and brand meanings in the context of a brand community dedicated to a mainstream Japanese motorcycle brand. Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative research approach was used in the form of netnography (i. e. ethnography adapted to the study of on line communities). Findings – On the product level, consumers experience multiple con? icts and negotiations of meaning related to the use of the product. These ? dings are reproduced on the brand level, where members of the brand community present a more differentiated look on the brand, accompanied by lower levels of admiration and identi? cation with the brand, as in previous reports of brand communities for brands such as Apple, Jeep, or Harley-Davidson. The results suggest that consumers for mainstream brands may be more prone to multi-brand loyalty instead of single-brand loyalty. Practical implications – Marketers should monitor motivations, attitudes, and decision-making processes on both the product and the brand level. Further, non-company-run online communities such as the Yamaha R1 forum bear the risk of community members transmitting brand information in a way not desired by the company. Thus, marketers should consider sponsoring an entire discussion website, a forum, or part of a forum. Originality/value – Whereas previous studies on brand communities have concentrated predominantly on highly admired and differentiated brands, such as Apple or Harley-Davidson, this study investigates consumer practices, identities, and negotiations of meaning on both the product and brand level for a less differentiated mainstream brand. Keywords Brand community, Brand loyalty, Netnography, Identity, Consumer behaviour, Brand management Paper type Research paper An executive summary for managers and executive readers can be found at the end of this article. Introduction to brand communities and literature review Community-based brand relationships in marketing literature have been discussed commonly with a focus on brand communities. A brand community is a â€Å"specialized, nongeographically bound community, based on a structured set ? f social relationships among admirers of a brand† (Muniz and O’Guinn, 2001, p. 412). Brand communities have been found to be crucial in order to understand brand loyalty (Fournier and Lee, 2009; McAlexander et al. , 2002, 2003). They are based on a shared interest in the brand (Algesheimer et al. , 2005) and, more speci? cally, on the three characteristics of consciousness of kind, shared rituals and traditions, and a ? sense or moral responsibility (Muniz and O’G uinn, 2001). As a positive outcome of brand communities, consumers may engage in cocreation (Schau et al. 2009), and religious-like relationships between consumers and brands may evolve, as documented in the case of the Apple Newton brand ? ? community (Muniz and Schau, 2005; Schau and Muniz, 2006). The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www. emeraldinsight. com/0736-3761. htm Journal of Consumer Marketing 29/3 (2012) 225– 232 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited [ISSN 0736-3761] [DOI 10. 1108/07363761211221756] Because of their geographical independence, brand communities can exist in the form of local clubs or interest groups (Algesheimer et al. 2005; Schouten and McAlexander, 1995), entirely on the Internet (Kozinets, ? 1997; Muniz and Schau, 2005), or in combined form (Kozinets, 2001). Further, brand communities have emerged for virtually any product, such as cars (Algesheimer et al. , 2005; Leigh et al. , 2006; Luedicke et al. , 2010; McAle xander ? et al. , 2002; Muniz and O’Guinn, 2001; Schouten et al. , 2007), motorbikes (Schouten and McAlexander, 1995), computers (Belk and Tumbat, 2005), groceries (Cova and Pace, 2006), or movies and television series (Brown et al. , 2003; Kozinets, 2001). The common denominator of the brands patronized in brand communities is a clear and unique positioning in combination with consumers who strongly identify with the brand. Consumers de? ne themselves by the brands they consume as well as the brands they do not consume, and brands are clearly classi? ed into â€Å"our brands† ? and â€Å"other brands† by the community (Muniz and Hamer, 2001). In other words, members of a particular brand community are not only supposed to be more loyal to the own brand, but also substantially less loyal to competing brands. This phenomenon has been described as oppositional brand ? loyalty by Muniz and O’Guinn (2001) and may lead to enhanced intergroup stereotyping, trash talk targeted at members outside the community, and emotional pleasures from news about a rival’s failure (Hickman and Ward, 2007). In extreme cases, oppositional brand loyalty can turn into active consumer resistance or anti-brand communities (Hollenbeck and Zinkhan, 2006; Luedicke et al. , 2010). However, brand communities are not free of oppositional forces and negotiations of meaning coming from inside. You read "Brand Communication" in category "Essay examples" Rather, brand communities may embrace consumers who are 225 Brand communities for mainstream brands Reto Felix Journal of Consumer Marketing Volume 29  · Number 3  · 2012  · 225 –232 critical with the brand or the product in general, and it would thus be overly optimistic to expect equally high levels of loyalty from all visitors of a brand community. For example, Kozinets (1999) classi? es members of virtual communities according to the identi? cation with the consumption activity (or brand) and the intensity of the social relationships with other members of the community. Whereas insiders show both high levels of brand identi? cation and social orientation towards the community, other members may have lower levels of brand identi? cation (minglers), lower levels of social relationships with the community (devotees), or both (tourists). Especially consumers who are simultaneously members in competing brand communities in the same product category may have high levels of participation in the communities, but without showing high levels of brand loyalty or admiration for the brands (Thompson and Sinha, 2008). In an application of these segmentation approaches to a sample of videogame players (Settlers of Catan) and a Swatch brand community, Ouwersloot and Odekerken-Schroder ? (2008) ? nd one segment of community members who are highly interested in the product, but not in the brand (36 and 7 percent, respectively) and a second segment including consumers who are neither interested in the product, the brand, or social relationships, yet still prefer to remain in the community (15 and 7 percent, respectively). Thus, it can be argued that consumer responses, such as satisfaction or loyalty, operate not only on the brand, but also on the product level (Torres-Moraga et al. , 2008). In the following analysis of an online brand community for a Japanese mainstream motorcycle brand, it is shown how consumers negotiate product and brand meanings, and how identity construction and brand attitudes are affected. The analysis is divided into a ? rst part on issues related to the activity and practices of riding a sports bike and the identity of sports bike consumers in general, and a second part on brand attitudes and how brands mediate identity construction. as chosen as the primary data source. Yamaha is one of four mainstream Japanese motorcycle brands with worldwide sales of US$12. 5 billion in 2009 (Yamaha Motor Co. , 2009). As a comparison, Harley Davidson’s same year consolidated sales from motorcycles and related products were US$4. 3 billion (Harley-Davidson, 2009). The Yamaha R1 foru m is primarily dedicated to Yamaha’s top-of-the-range sport bike, the Yamaha R1, but there are also members subscribed to the forum who either have motorbikes from different brands, such as Honda, Suzuki, Kawasaki, or Ducati, or who currently do not have a motorbike. As of June 14, 2010, the R1 forum had 107,249 subscribed members and more than four million postings in approximately 265,000 threads. The threads in the forum are organized into ? ve different sections: 1 Community 2 R1-related discussion 3 Technique, racing, and stunt discussion 4 Marketplace/classi? ed. 5 Misc. section. After starting reading threads in the Community section, it was possible to identify preliminary themes and issues by further browsing through the postings. At a very early stage of the research, evidence was found for more complex and ambiguous brand relationships than in previous studies on brand communities. Following a purposive sampling approach (Lincoln and Guba, 1985; Wallendorf and Belk, 1989), reading and downloading posts were continued as long as analysis of the postings generated new insights and did not lead to redundancy (Belk et al. , 1988). At a later stage of the study, the forum’s search engine was used to immerse more systematically into the data. Over the period between August 2006 and June 2010, around 10,000 postings were read, of which approximately 300 were downloaded. Organization, analysis, and ethical procedures In a ? st step, downloaded postings were pre-classi? ed into different categories and reoccurrences were coded by assigning one or several codes to the statements in the postings. Using an iterative approach, jumping back and forth between coded and uncoded statements facilitated the interpretation of the data. Codes were then condensed into more meaningful constructs and subsequently into interpretive themes in order to obtain relevant layers of me aning and richly textured interpretations (Arnould and Wallendorf, 1994). This procedure allowed a grounded, hermeneutic interpretation to emerge from the data that did not strive for representativeness, but rather for analytic depth and relevance. In order to impede the tracking of forum members’ identities, user names were changed to generic member names, such as â€Å"forum member 1. † Deviating from Kozinets’ (2002) recommendations, permissions from community members to use direct quotations were not requested. The reason for this decision was twofold: First, in an initial attempt to contact community members, only one response out of ten emails sent was obtained. If only those postings had been used that responses had been received for, the pool of usable data had been reduced signi? cantly. And second, Langer and Beckman’s (2005) reasoning was considered in that postings in an internet community forum are intentionally public postings, comparable to readers’ letters in a newspaper, and that it would be highly unusual to seek 226 Method Netnography was used to explore brand relationships and identity construction for an online community of a mainstream Japanese motorcycle brand. Netnography has been de? ed as â€Å"ethnography adapted to the study of online communities† (Kozinets, 2002, p. 61) and has been used in consumption contexts such as the X-Files (Kozinets, 1997), Star Trek (Kozinets, 2001, 2006), wedding messages (Nelson and Otnes, 2005), cars (Brown et al. , 2003), and consumer gift systems (Giesler, 2006). Similar to traditional ethnography, netnography is open-ended, interpretative, ? exible, metaphorical, and grounded in the knowledge of the speci? c and particularistic (Kozinets, 2002). However, netnography is usually faster, simpler, and less expensive than traditional ethnography (Kozinets, 2002, 2006). Further, it has been argued that new online communication technologies have â€Å"expanded the array of generalized others contributing to the construction of the self† (Cerulo, 1997, p. 386), and netnography as a tool of analyzing online communities is thus able to integrate the broadened spectrum of agents involved in the construction of individual and collective identity. Data collection Because of its size and relevance for the motorcycle community, the Yamaha R1 forum (www. r1-forum. com) Brand communities for mainstream brands Reto Felix Journal of Consumer Marketing Volume 29  · Number 3  · 2012  · 225 –232 ermission to use direct quotations in this context. However, Kozinet’s concerns about adequate ethical procedures in netnography research are certainly valid, and the pragmatic issue (non-responses for permission requests) ? nally was the one that complicated following his recommendations. The product level: practice and identity Although recreati onal motorcycling in general is considered a high-risk leisure time activity, there are different segments within the motorcycle community that distinguish themselves in attitudes and behaviors related to riding style and speed. On one extreme of street bike riding are the easy-rider oriented owners of choppers or touring bikes who prefer to ride at moderate speeds and enjoy the immediate experience with the environment. On the other extreme are sports bike enthusiasts who prefer a fast, competitive riding style that is often accompanied by the exhibition of riding skills and risky stunting maneuvers such as performing wheelies (Haigh and Crowther, 2005). Commercial sports bikes aim to be copies of racing bikes used by professional riders at the Moto GP or Superbike competitions, and a modern liter bike, available at dealerships for under US$15,000, accelerates from zero to 200 km/h (125 miles) in less than ten seconds and reaches speeds in excess of 290 km/h (180 miles). A complete safety gear, consisting of helmet, leather gear, gloves, and boots, is considered an obligation for any sports bike rider by some, but lead to mock comments by others, ridiculing the â€Å"power ranger† out? t of sports bike riders. An important number of psychological and social con? cts are derived from the inherent nature of sports bike riding. Physical, functional, ? nancial, psychological and social risks form a complex, multilayered ? eld of tensions and constraints that are constantly negotiated by the individual, both internally and externally, and rarely resolved with simple heuristics. The actual or anticipated implications of an accident are dominant in many of the comments on the R1 forum, as the following sequence of succeeding narratives related to accidents and quitting riding suggests: I quit riding one time in my life. I was just getting married, building a house, etc. [. . . ] and coincidentally I was involved in a string of near misses: cars cutting me off, almost getting side swiped by an idiot who didn’t know how to turn into his own lane, getting run off road and up over a curb through a gas station parking lot by a garbage truck who just decided he wanted to cut across two lanes with no warning. It was my opinion that there was just some bad energy around me right then, and with all the other stress in my life maybe it was adding to the problem. I don’t know. I hung it up for a few years, then got back into it when everything felt right again. It still feels right [. . . ] all the while I’ve witnessed bike wrecks, been close to others’ fatal accidents, laid my own bike down at a track day, etc. [. . . ] but it still feels right for me. My single rule is that as long as my head is in the game, then it’s â€Å"rightâ€Å". If my head is constantly focusing on crashing, dying, etc. [. . . ] then it’s time to take another time-out. Shouldn’t be riding if you can’t focus on what you’re doing. Period. No shame in that (forum member 1). I’ve seen bad accidents but also I believe its mental. With so many, â€Å"I’ve gone down† threads, it can eat your con? dence away and make riding not fun. If it ain’t fun, that’s a good time to step back and let time rebuild your enjoyment (forum member 2). [. . . ] Subscribed [. . . ] (forum member 3). Personally everyday that I wake up and am fortunate enough to ride I tell my wife I love her I get my brain focused and I always keep reminding myself that this could be my last ride and I think that is half the reason I ride so responsibly on the street. I don’t want to have a last ride I love this sport. I have been down once very hard and that was a wake up call but I can’t give up what I love and to all my friends and fellow riders if I do go down and don’t get up please keep riding for me cause I would do the same (forum member 4). The con? ict between the hedonistic and aesthetic pleasures of riding a bike and the inherent risks involved in the activity becomes salient in forum member 2 comment about how riding a motorcycle should be related to fun. Speci? life events, such as those mentioned in forum member 1 narrative, amplify these tensions and may lead to important changes in attitudes or behaviors. However, these attitudinal or behavioral changes are frequently dynamic and unstable in time. For example, the decision to quit riding is in many cases a temporal one, and forum members compare riding to an addiction such as drinking or smoking. This addiction-like need to ride a motorbike then becomes an imp ortant factor in identity construction: From the point of view of the individual, riders do not choose riding a motorbike in order to signal certain values. Rather, as expressed by forum member 4, the activity forms a natural part of the self and is just there, similar to early conceptualizations of gender or race in the essentialist identity logic. Riding a bike is elevated to a mission that does not leave room for choices, and fellow riders are encouraged to honor the dead by continuing the mission and keeping the spirit alive. The inherent trait of being addicted to motorcycles is assessed critically in a re? ective discourse by many riders. For example, forum member 5 explains that he is aware of the multiple con? cts that surround his hobby, but apparently resolves these con? icts by stating that riding is the most important thing in his life, and that he has learned that riding makes him happy. The shared consciousness and discourse related to themes such as the risk of experiencing a severe accident, losing a fellow rider, or problems with girlfriends, spouses, or the family in general, leads to a collective identity that is const ructed, complex, and deprived of precise classi? cations. The brand level: attitudes mediating identity construction The negotiations of meaning related to the practice of riding a sports bike are reproduced at the more speci? c brand level. Whereas previous research on brand communities has been largely focused on communities with extraordinary high levels of brand loyalty and commitment, members of the R1 sports bike community show a more ambiguous and differentiated relationship with the Yamaha brand: I’m really faithful to Yamaha, but when sitting on a new R1 and a new GSXR1000 side by side, I have to say I like the Suzuki. The R1 just feels so much [. . . bigger. I don’t know. Also, the magazines bitch about the suspension [. . . ] yet how many serious track people leave suspension stock anyway? Regardless, I’m too poor to buy a new bike, so I’ll continue riding my 02 R1 on the track (forum member 6). Faithfulness in this context is not experienced as absolute loyalty to only one brand. Rather, it is legitimate to question publicly the qualities of the favorite bran d. Contrary to what might be expected, forum member 6 receives very few objections from the community members, and a relatively ational, attribute-based discussion of the merits and disadvantages of different motorcycle brands and models follows. In general, discourses presented by the forum members include few elements of real enthusiasm and emotional commitment for the brand. Apparently, community members perceive both the products and the brands in the sports bike category as little differentiated. This does not mean that R1 owners are dissatis? ed with their bike 227 Brand communities for mainstream brands Reto Felix Journal of Consumer Marketing Volume 29  · Number 3  · 2012  · 225 –232 r the Yamaha brand in general. Rather, the speci? c situation of the sports bike community suggests customers who are highly satis? ed with their brand, yet nevertheless would switch to another brand easily. It has been suggested that brand loyalty can be measured by asking individu als how likely it is they would recommend the brand to a friend or colleague (Reichheld, 2003). Because people new to sports bike riding frequently ask for advice on the forum, a great number of posts are related to what bike from which brand would be recommended. Typical answers include statements such as â€Å"any of the new bikes are great† (forum member 7) or â€Å"I’ve spent some time on all the bikes and seriously there is no true winner, no matter what you get nowadays is a rocket out of the crate and you will be getting a good bike! Each has its ups and down but overall I could see myself on any of them really! † (forum member 8). Rather than showing indifference, consumers like and actually buy any of the important sports bike brands. Using the conceptual partition of the awareness set into an evoked set, an inert set, and an inept set (Narayana and Markin, 1975; Spiggle and Seawall, 1987), it seems that R1 community members place most of the important sports bike brands into the evoked set, whereas the inert set is relatively small. Instead of a highly committed loyalty to one single brand, as in previous accounts of brand communities, the Yamaha R1 brand community is, if anything, prone to multi-brand or split loyalty (Jacoby, 1971; Jacoby and Kyner, 1973). Identity is thus less de? ed by a speci? c brand, but rather by the activity of riding a sports bike itself. Wherever brand personalities in? uence decision making, it seems that these criteria are exclusive rather than inclusive. That is, the consideration set is not formed by the inclusion of a speci? c brand or set of brands, but rather by excluding unattractive brands. For example, in the R1 forum, some members distance themselves from Suzuki, one of Yama ha’s main competitors, because they don’t identify with the people who ride Suzukis: Yes, gixxer is by far the â€Å"squid bike† all the ? st time riders and newbies love the gixxers [. . . ] Their mentality and unfriendly attitude is because they are young, dumb, and think their bike is the best ever (forum member 9). the brand and clash with the otherwise positively perceived performance and quality of the product. The identity of the R1 brand community is further formed by the relationship with two other groups of motorcycles. On one hand, most forum members seem to admire the more exclusive Italian sports bike brands, such as Ducati and MV Agusta. On the other hand, the relationship to Harley Davidson is not marked by a clear distinction of acceptance versus rejection pattern, but rather by a complicated and sometimes ambiguous pattern of mixed emotions toward the brand and its users: There are a lot of douche bag riders, Harley and sportbike alike, but I will admit I’ve ? ipped off quite a few Harley riders. I’ve gotten less camaraderie from Harley riders than anyone, but those are just the young wannabies, the old guys are usually cool tho, hahaha (forum member 10). In motorcycle slang, Gixxer stands for Suzuki’s GSX-R line of super sport motorbikes. Forum members do not reject the Suzuki brand because of issues with the quality or performance of the product, but rather because of the characteristics of the riders who use the brand. Squid, an expression that, according to some forum members, is a combination of the two words â€Å"squirrel† and â€Å"kid,† describes irresponsible motorcycle riders who overestimate their riding skills and frequently wear inappropriate and insuf? cient riding gear. By claiming that the Suzuki GSX-R series is the typical squid bike, attributes of the consumers are ascribed to the brand. Thus, brand identity is built on exclusion (â€Å"this is not how we want to be†) rather than on inclusion. Further, meaning transfer in this case deviates substantially from the traditional symbolic consumption process. Symbolic consumption suggests that individuals transfer the symbolic meaning of a brand to themselves, and subsequently the audience, such as peers and signi? cant others, assigns the attributes of the brand to the individual (Grubb and Grathwohl, 1967). However, meaning in the example above is transferred in the reverse direction, from the user to the brand. Negative attributes of Suzuki brand users (such as being squiddish, dumb, and inexperienced) are transferred to 228 Here, forum member 10 develops a differentiated look toward Harley-Davidson riders by explaining that the less friendly Harley riders are typically those that are younger (and thus less experienced), whereas the older riders seem to be more open. Both positive and negative feelings co-exist at the same time as the result of a cognitive evaluation that avoids simple stereotyping found at other brand communities. Many R1 forum members perceive the Harley-Davidson brand as both cool and obsolete at the same time, and this ambiguity toward the brand is replicated for the users of the brand, where Harley-Davidson riders have been experienced as both cool and authentic riders or as ignorant and unfriendly â€Å"weekend warriors. † Thus, brands in the R1 community are not iconic symbols that unambiguously communicate attitudes and lifestyles of brand users to the larger audience via the meaning of the brand. Rather, brands are complex, multidimensional entities that gain meaning only in the reciprocal relationship with the brand user. Unconditional single-brand loyalty and â€Å"we† versus â€Å"us† stereotypes are replaced in large part by ambiguous, differentiated, and often critical attitudes toward the own brand. Brand identity is based on exclusion (Suzuki is a typical brand for squids) instead of inclusion, and within a relatively large evoked set, multi-brand loyalty is more common than religious-like brand worshipping described for, e. g. the Apple Newton. Conclusions and managerial implications Brand communities have sparked the interest of marketing researchers and practitioners alike because of the high levels of brand loyalty and commitment observed in previous studies on brands such as Apple, Jeep, or Harley Davidson. However, the results of this qualitative study suggest that instead of single-brand loyalty, consumers for mainstream brands may be more prone to multi-brand loyalty. As forum member 8 (see citation above) expressed it, â€Å"[. . . ] no matter what you get nowadays is a rocket out of the crate and you will be getting a good bike! Each has its ups and down but overall I could see myself on any of them really! † The case of the Yamaha R1 brand community thus presents preliminary evidence that speci? c industry conditions may shape the relationships consumers have with their brand, and more speci? cally, that multi-brand loyalty is more probable to occur for low levels of brand differentiation (Felix, 2009) combined with more choices (Bennett and Rundle-Thiele, 2005). It follows that from the point of view of a company, having many members in a speci? c brand community does not necessarily translate into a highly loyal customer base. Rather, under certain Brand communities for mainstream brands Reto Felix Journal of Consumer Marketing Volume 29  · Number 3  · 2012  · 225 –232 conditions, higher levels of participation may actually increase the likelihood of adopting products from competing brands, especially if individuals are simultaneously members in several brand communities (Thompson and Sinha, 2008). The results of this study suggest that marketers should monitor and track consumers’ motivations, attitudes, and decision making processes on two levels: On the product level, it is important for marketers to understand barriers and con? cts related to the general use of the product. In the speci? c case of a sports bike, the physical risk (in the form of experiencing a severe accident) is probably the most important issue, which in turn may lead to substantial social tensions, especially with family members. For other products, such as clothing, computers, or food, the motivations why consum ers may or may not consider a speci? c product category may be different, but it remains essential to understand these reasons. On the brand level, it is important for marketers to understand the degree of brand identi? ation in the community as well as the way how consumers perceive a consciousness of kind, share rituals and traditions, and experience a sense of moral responsibility ? (Muniz and O’Guinn, 2001). In a world of online consumer-to-consumer communications, companies are increasingly losing control over their brands. It is therefore important for marketers to get involved in the process of image building and brand positioning in online communication platforms. Non-company-run communities, such as the Yamaha R1 forum, bear the risk of community members transmitting brand information in a way not desired by the company (Stokburger-Sauer, 2010). Marketers thus should try to integrate consumers by either sponsoring an entire discussion website, a forum, or part of a forum (Pitta and Fowler, 2005). Finally, an unobtrusive and authentic way of increasing a company’s involvement in a noncompany-run forum is exempli? ed by a company that provides motorcycle braking systems. One of the company’s employees invites Yamaha R1 forum members to ask him brake related questions and explains that he is on the forum not to sell, but to educate riders about brakes in general. By choosing a nonselling approach in the R1 forum, the company manages to gain credibility in the community and to build customer relationships that are more consumer-focused and authentic than many of the hard-selling approaches at the dealerships. The employee’s thread on brake questions has more than 600 postings, which is signi? cantly above the forum’s average of around 15 postings per thread, and evidences the interest of the community in a direct contact with company representatives. The example also suggests that online communities are not limited to relationships between consumers and the brand and between consumers and consumers. 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(2009), â€Å"Annual report†, available at: www. yamaha-motor. co. jp/global/ir/material/pdf/2009/2009 annual-e. pdf (accessed June 14, 2010). About the author Reto Felix is an Associate Professor of Marketing at the University of Monterrey, Mexico. He received his Master’s in Marketing and PhD in Business Administration from the University of St Gallen, Switzerland. He has been a Visiting Scholar at the Marketing Group, Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley, and has published in journals such as Journal of International Marketing, Journal of Brand communities for mainstream brands Reto Felix Journal of Consumer Marketing Volume 29  · Number 3  · 2012  · 225 –232 Business Industrial Marketing, and Journal of International Consumer Marketing. Further, he has presented his research at conferences hosted by the Association for Consumer Research, the American Marketing Association, the Academy of Marketing Science and the Society for Marketing Advances. Reto Felix can be contacted at: rfelix@udem. edu. mx Executive summary and implications for managers and executives This summary has been provided to allow managers and executives a rapid appreciation of the content of this article. Those with a particular interest in the topic covered may then read the article in toto to take advantage of the more comprehensive description of the research undertaken and its results to get the full bene? ts of the material present. The topic of brand communities has provided the focus for much marketing literature. Brand communities transcend geographical boundaries and contain people who exhibit passion for a particular brand. These individuals also display similarities in consciousness while â€Å"shared rituals and traditions† is another cornerstone of their social relationships. Some scholars have even noted the propensity for â€Å"religious-like† associations to develop. Evidence shows that groups can be based locally, online or a combination of both. A wide range of products has supplied the inspiration for brand communities to form. In addition to strong consumer identi? ation with the brands, â€Å"clear and unique positioning† is viewed as a common characteristic among brands concerned. Brand loyalty can be fervent to a degree that an â€Å"us and them† mentality often arises with regard to other brands. Bonding within the community can generate stereotypes and outsiders are treated with some disdain. Any failure of competitor brands is cause for celebratio n. It is, however, a misconception to assume that brand communities are always homogenous. Signi? cant internal differences appear to be the rule not the exception. Relationship intensity with other members is subject to variation because some are loyal to the brand while others may identify more closely with the product. Levels of social orientation can similarly differ. Researchers have also pointed out the possibility of some individuals lacking interest in brand, product and social relationships yet remaining in the community. Others might become involved with different brand communities in the same product category, resulting in further dissemination of loyalty. Felix explores the topic in a study of an online Yamaha brand community principally devoted to the Japanese manufacturer’s R1 luxury sports otorcycle. Yamaha is one of the world’s leading brands in its category and in 2009 boasted sales of $12. 5 billion. At the time of the study, there were 107,249 registered members in the R1 forum. Some members did not currently own a motorcycle, while others possessed a different brand. The author considers netnography as the most relevant study method for the investigation of brand relationships and â€Å"identity construction of an online community†. This approach is regarded as ethnography adapted for the purpose of exploring online communities. Among other things, netnography has been commended for its ? xibility, 231 open-endedness and interpretative qualities. Different researchers have used the approach in a variety of study contexts including cars, consumer gifts and TV programs. Following initial analysis of messages posted on the forum, the threads were arranged into ? ve different sections respectively labeled as: Community; R1-related Discussion; Technique, Racing and Stunt Discussion; Marketplace/ Classi? ed; and Miscellaneous Section. Analysis of the threads enabled messages to be coded and then organized into â€Å"interpretive themes† so that appropriate â€Å"layers of meaning† could be identi? d. Message themes were analyzed at the product level to ascertain factors whic h in? uence practice and identity. In general, considerable risk is associated with riding a motorcycle for leisure purposes. But the variation in attitudes towards factors like speed and riding style means that different segments exist within the biking community. At one end of the continuum are those who ride around at moderate speeds to savor the experience with the environment. Positioned at the other extreme are bikers whose penchant for high speed is often accompanied by an aggressive style of riding. Such individuals are also likelier to ? aunt their biking skills through dangerous maneuvers like pulling wheelies. According to Felix, riding a motorcycle gives rise to various risks and con? icts that can be physical, functional, ? nancial, psychological or social in nature. The activity is therefore highly complex and generates a web of â€Å"tensions and constraints† that the individual must constantly address internally and externally. Concern about accidents is a recurring theme with community members referring to â€Å"actual or anticipated implications† in that eventuality. Message content reveals that con? ict exists between knowledge of the intrinsic risks associated with bike riding and the grati? cation derived from it. Forum members suggest that such tensions may prompt attitude or behavioral changes, albeit sometimes ? eeting in nature. This occurs because riding a motorcycle is almost addictive and an important aspect of identity construction. Some comments imply that it is a â€Å"mission† that simply has to be ful? lled. Even though members are aware of the con? icts which surround this pastime, the desire to ride is the main driving force. Analysis reveals a â€Å"shared consciousness† about issues including serious accidents, loss of a fellow biker, and problems relating to the family. The author ascertains a collective identity that is complex in nature but dif? cult to categorize precisely. An examination of meaning at the speci? c brand level reveals a relationship between forum members and the Yamaha brand that is â€Å"ambiguous and differentiated†. Instead of absolute loyalty to the brand, it is more evident that people engage in balanced debate about its qualities and those of other motorcycle brands. Members apparently perceive little differentiation between brands and may switch to another brand even if they are highly satis? ed. Many studies have noted that some consumers can display loyalty to multiple brands and there is some evidence of this tendency here. Messages seeking advice on future purchases are frequent and members typically recommend a range of brands they consider decent. In the opinion of Felix, this indicates that riding a sports motorcycle de? nes identity much more that the speci? c brand of bike. Another signi? cant ? nding is how decision making seems in? enced more by exclusive than inclusive brand criteria. A Brand communities for mainstream brands Reto Felix Journal of Consumer Marketing Volume 29  · Number 3  · 2012  · 225 –232 key example is the negative perceptions of the Suzuki brand among some R1 forum members. The interesting fact about this hostility is that is has little to do with product quality concerns. Instead, such evaluation ar ises because members question those who ride Suzuki sport bikes. With regard to identity construction, meaning is normally transferred from brand to individual. Here, however, it is the negative traits of Suzuki riders that re transferred to the brand. Some con? ict with positive perceptions of the product subsequently occurs. That brands are complex and multidimensional is further illustrated by the contrasting ways in which R1 members relate to Harley Davidson. Positive and negative feelings exist simultaneously as the brand is regarded as cool yet obsolete. Contrasting statements are likewise directed at Harley Davidson riders. One important deduction is that ambiguity surrounds brand meaning, attitude and lifestyle conveyed within this community. This study indicates that consumer-brand relations might be shaped by â€Å"speci? industry conditions†. Marketers are also alerted to lack of clear brand differentiation and the possibility that multi-brand loyalty will ensue, e ven when a large brand community exists. Understanding what in? uences consumer attitudes, motivations and decision-making at both product and brand level is essential. Certain factors may encourage or deter choice of a particular product, while it is equally important to be aware of brand identi? cation levels and collective sensitivities among consumers. Given the revealing nature of online communication, Felix suggests that ? ms might gain greater insight into consumer thinking by becoming actively involved in non-company forums. An unobtrusive approach is considered vital though. The aim should not be to sell but to build authentic consumer-focused relationships with an emphasis on providing advice or information. ? (A precis of the article â€Å"Brand communities for mainstream brands: the example of the Yamaha R1 brand community†. Supplied by Marketing Consultants for Emerald. ) To purchase reprints of this article please e-mail: reprints@emeraldinsight. com Or visit ou r web site for further details: www. emeraldinsight. com/reprints 232 How to cite Brand Communication, Essay examples

The Double Personality of Violence in Margaret Atwood’s Alias Grace free essay sample

Not only the fact murdering her employer, Tomas Kinnear and housekeeper, Nancy Montgomery draw a wild public attention, but also the gender and age of Grace shock people. Because it is not a common sense that a sixteen year-old woman(or a girl) has any motivation to kill two innocent people without a second thought. Due to the complex situation of this case, even though Grace narrowly escape from death sentence which has happened on James McDermott(who also is considered as the murder), she is still tortured at first several years since people suspect her is a psychotic. In short, to find out whether Grace is mad or not; Whether Grace really is a violent murder or not, probably is the way to understand this story. So, this paper will argue that Alias Grace suggests that Grace’s second personality of violence is made by those external individual forces that company Grace through her whole life. We will write a custom essay sample on The Double Personality of Violence in Margaret Atwood’s Alias Grace or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The first time Grace suffers the pain form violent separation of her mother is in the voyage to Canada when the whole family looks forward a better life. In this long distance travel, no matter how serious the food shortage will be, Grace is still willing to share her limited biscuits to an old woman named Mrs. Phelan who travels with two her daughter’s children. However, when Grace’s mother falls gravely ill and badly needs help, the ship’s doctor does not come as if Mrs. Phelan claims â€Å"it is shame and they would treat a cow better. †(Atwood 137) The mental gap of people’s morals doubtlessly hurt Grace deeply. Finally, the way burying her poor mother is simply tipped into sea, which is a kind of violent separation for Grace and mother. Normally, the children’s life without mother may not be too terrible if they are companied with father. But, that is absolutely a daydream for Grace because in her memory, nothing about father are not full of domestic violence. Grace’s father is totally a drunker and never thinks about finding a decent job to support the family, especially after Grace’s mother dead and the family lives in tough. All he does is to keep drinking and try to compel Grace to work for family’s daily payments. Ironically, although Grace feels sad for leaving her little brothers and sisters(Grace is the oldest children before she leaves family), she is sort of thankful to this chance which actually is a time to get rid of her father’s rages. Meanwhile, after tolerating so much domestic violence from her father, sometimes, some evil ideas once flash in Grace’s mind, like she hopes that the heavy iron cooking pot should happen to drop on her father while he is sleeping, which definitely will kill him. However, the contradictory thing is that she somehow is also afraid that the fiery red anger that is in her heart against her father will drive her to it. (Atwood 149). The second violent separation happens between Mary Whitney and Grace. In Grace’s heart, Mary Whitney is an explicit and enthusiastic girl but suffers a lot from emotional violence at the end of her life, which will never be forgotten to Grace. After losing mother, Grace regards Mary as the most important and dependable person in the world. Indeed, Mary’s positive attitude towards life influences Grace becoming more optimistic towards future. Compared with Mary, Grace is absolutely as ignorant as an egg. Usually, Grace is astonished at those coarse words which are used by Mary while Mary herself feels nothing about it. Atwood 173) What is more, Grace is such an innocent girl who even feels afraid of going a long way around to buy a dress and also feels frightened but curious to see the street where the whore live. (Atwood 175) Obviously, Grace will keep her pure nature as long as the emotional violence never come into Mary’s life. Unfortunately, this peace is broken by Mary’s death caused by failed abortion, which actually re veals the unjust discrimination against women in society. In some aspects, to relate back to Mary’s miserable fate, we could say that it is emotional violence which comes from the inhuman society kills Mary Whitney. Speaking of prison, a symbol of violence for Grace, she has a horrible experience in there before Dr. Jordan comes. Without any significant evidences, Grace is sent into Asylum as a psychotic, locked with other real psych-patients. She witnesses a lot of mad women who are tormented by matrons while those keepers enjoy this kind of physical violence. Similarly, situation in prison is as same as it in Asylum, Grace has to endure the sexual offend from Dr. Bannerling who pretends to do regular test but actually is a filthy bastard. Meanwhile, life in prison is barbaric and brutal, prisoners are treaded only with the limited bread and water as daily food without any meat or even any cabbage. Under such psychological and physical violence, it is hard to imagine how those prisoners survive from this. What is more, the reason why Grace is afraid of seeing any doctors is that she once hears, that James McDermott is cut into pieces like a pig after being sentenced to death. So, it is easy to understand why Grace, with so many violent and bloodcurdling memories in the mind, then asks Dr. Jordan over and over again as if he comes to cut her open at their vary first meet. To combine those experiences above together, it is clear to see that different violences always exist around Grace’s life and the negative impacts eventually explore when Dr. Dupont hypnotizes Grace and unlocks all the memories that Grace can not remember before. During the hypnosis, Grace is not Grace any more and it looks like her second personality is talking. The strange voice keeps changing in different conversations. The memory about relation with James McDemott is full of sexual violence, which makes the Governor’s wife intends to leave. Then, when Dr. Jordan recalls the murdering scene to Grace, she sort of enjoys it and even claims that Nancy Montgomery deserves dying since the wage of sin is death. (Atwood 481) Obviously, at that moment, Grace acts like a psych-killer and she enjoys sharing these violent stories while she does not afraid at all, which is absolutely different from the original Grace who looks peaceful and even smiles to everyone in the room after she wakes up. So this is Grace’s second personality which is similar to a collapsar swallowing all kinds of violences. The hypnosis is the first and also the last scene that displays to people the second personality of Grace. However, it is a connection between those violent experience and Grace’s second personality. This scene actually emphasizes how many negative influences are brought to Grace through her harsh experience, rather than how serious the madness is. Meanwhile, we will never know who the â€Å"voice† is, even though after many assumptions(such as Mary, Nancy, James ). That is to say, probably, there is no a particular person and all these odd behaviors and words come from every character who once leaves different violent memories to Grace. The story about Grace is indeed a tragedy, however, when the whole society is covered by violence and everyone’s heart hides an evil, then it will become the real tragedy. Work Cited Atwood, Margaret. Alias Grace. Toronto: Seal, 2000. Print.