Robert Benchley on How to Avoid Writing

Humorist Robert Benchley describes the sort of commitment that not writing demands. It took me fifteen years to discover that I had no talent for writing, Robert Benchley once said. But I couldnt give it up because by that time I was too famous. In truth, Benchley had a great talent for writing—comic essays, for the most part, and theater criticism. But as Benchley was quick to admit, he had an even greater talent for not writing: The secret of my incredible energy and efficiency in getting work done is a simple one. I have based it very deliberately on a well-known psychological principle and have refined it so that it is now almost too refined. I shall have to begin coarsening it up again pretty soon.The psychological principle is this: anyone can do any amount of work, provided it isnt the work he is supposed to be doing at that moment.(How to Get Things Done in Chips off the Old Benchley, 1949) A master procrastinator, Benchley is remembered for his work at The New Yorker magazine in the 1930s—and even more for his deadline-defying high jinks at the Algonquin Round Table. Like many of us, Benchley maintained a strict writing regimen, which involved postponing work until the last possible minute. In How I Create, he described the sort of commitment that not writing calls for: Very often I must wait weeks and weeks for what you call inspiration. In the meantime I must sit with my quill pen poised in the air over a sheet of foolscap, in case the divine spark should come like a lightning bolt and knock me off my chair on to my head. (This has happened more than once.) . . .Sometimes, while in the throes of creative work, I get out of bed in the morning, look at my writing desk piled high with old bills, old gloves, and empty ginger-ale bottles, and go right back to bed again. The next thing I know it is night once more, and time for the Sand Man to come around. (We have a Sand Man who comes twice a day, which makes it very convenient. We give him five dollars at Christmas.)Even if I do get up and put on part of my clothes—I do all my work in a Hawaiian straw skirt and bow tie of some neutral shade—I can often think of nothing to do but pile the books which are on one end of my desk very neatly on the other end and then kick them one by one off to the floor with my free foot.I find that, while working, a pipe is a great source of inspiration. A pipe can be placed diagonally across the keys of a typewriter so that they will not function, or it can be made to give out such a cloud of smoke that I cannot see the paper. Then, there is the process of lighting it. I can making a pipe a ritual which has not been equaled for elaborateness since the five-day festival to the God of the Harvest. (See my book on Rituals: the Man.)In the first place, owing to 26 years of constant smoking without once calling in a plumber, the space left for tobacco in the bowl of my pipe is now the size of a medium body-pore. Once the match has been applied to the tobacco therein the smoke is over. This necessitates refilling, relighting, and reknocking. The knocking out of a pipe can be made almost as important as the smoking of it, especially if there are nervous people in the room. A good smart knock of a pipe against a tin wastebasket and you will have a neurasthenic out of his chair and into the window sash in no time.The matches, too, have their place in the construction of modern literature. With a pipe like mine, the supply of burnt matches in one day could be floated down the St. Lawrence River with two men jumping them. . . .(from No Poems, or Around the World Backwards and Sideways, 1932) Eventually, of course—after sharpening pencils, making out schedules, composing a few letters, changing typewriter ribbons, relighting his pipe, building a book shelf, and clipping pictures of tropical fish out of magazines—Benchley did get down to work. If youd welcome some advice on how to skip all the preliminaries, see Writers on Writing: Overcoming Writers Block  and Writing Rituals and Routines: Advice on How to Become a More Disciplined Writer. .

Compare and Contrast the Philosophical Contributions...

In order to begin analyzing Aristotle and Descartes contribution to our notion of a person, we need to be able to understand what the term ‘personhood means. Unfortunately there is no clear answer, with philosophers still presenting conflicting ideas. However by asking questions such as; is ‘personhood identical to human being? What is the essence of a person? What relation does a person have with the world? When does personhood begin? At what point if ever does it end? And finally what makes a good person? We move closer to a set of characteristics that make up a person. Therefore we can judge Aristotle and Descartes contribution to a person by evaluating their answers to such questions. Personhood being purely a human phenomenon is†¦show more content†¦Drawing on predessesors and Christian theologians view that the soul is the essence of a person, Descartes adds to the theory of the soul that it is located and connected to the body in the pineal gland. And as the organ is unique to humans, he is able to conclude that animals do not have souls, and therefore do not have the essence of a person. However, Descartes theory of the pineal gland has been almost universally rejected, mainly because his anatomical assumptions were wrong, as the pineal gland is not as Descartes said; suspended in the middle of the ventricles and is not surrounded by arteries but veins. Aristotle uses biology contrastingly to distinguish between animals and humans. A most notible difference is on the issue of animals having souls, in which Aristotle believes animals do have souls whilst maintaining personhood as only a human phenomena. Unlike Descartes rationalist approach, Aristotle being an empiricist believes that the ultimate source of knowledge is perception, and that we arrive at concepts firstly from experience and then we use reason to understand them. Through observation Aristotle is then able to allocate parts of the soul (what he refers to as the psuche) to species, enabling him toShow MoreRelatedExistentialism vs Essentialism23287 Words   |  94 Pagesthings have a set of characteristics that make them what they are, amp; that the task of science and philosophy is their discovery amp; expression; the doctrine that essence is prior to existence While, Existentialism:A philosophical theory or approach, that emphasizes the existence of the individual person as a free amp; responsible agent, determining their own development through acts of the will. Existentialism * is a philosophical term which posits that individuals createRead MoreHerbert Spencer Essay13142 Words   |  53 Pagespublished in 1859, completed Spencers evolutionary system by providing the mechanism by which organic evolution occurred. Spencer enthusiastically elaborated on Darwins process of natural selection, applying it to human society, and made his own contribution in the notion of survival of the fittest. From the beginning Spencer applied his harsh dictum to human society, races, and the state - judging them in the process: If they are sufficiently complete to live, they do live, and it is well theyRead MoreMetz Film Language a Semiotics of the Cinema PDF100902 Words   |  316 PagesNote on the Translation by Bertrand Augst When Film Language was translated, nearly twenty years ago, very few texts about semiotics and especially film semiotics were available in English. Michael Taylor s translation represents a serious effort to make Metz s complicated prose, filled with specialized vocabularies, accessible to a public unfamiliar with the concepts and terms of semiotics. Excepting the inadequate translation of a few words which either cannot be translated into English or onlyRead MoreLogical Reasoning189930 Words   |  760 Pagesattract readers. Stanley Baronett. Jr., University of Nevada Las Vegas Far too many authors of contemporary texts in informal logic – keeping an eye on the sorts of arguments found in books on formal logic – forget, or underplay, how much of our daily reasoning is concerned not with arguments leading to truth-valued conclusions but with making choices, assessing reasons, seeking advice, etc. Dowden gets the balance and the emphasis right. Norman Swartz, Simon Fraser University v Acknowledgments

Financial Analysis and Porter Five Forces †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Financial Analysis and Porter Five Forces. Answer: Introduction Porter five forces enable a company in developing of business strategy. This model helps to determine the market attractiveness of the particular industry. The assignment deals with Technology industry, which is operating in the region of Australia having overseas investment and operation all over the World. The company will determine many industries. It will face and the profits it will incur. The Porter model will help to determine the companys profit. It is a useful tool, which is powerful and helps in determining the profitability of the industry and the ways to maximize profit (Yunna and Yisheng,2014). Porter five forces model was applied to the market in Australia, the exchange rate for this country is AUD, which is a developed country. The IT industry helps to transform their own business models so deal or accommodate when the customers shift their choice. This will make the industry successful and it is a promising for the technology industry. The Australian industry made huge investment in local and overseas market as USA is trying to discover new solutions for strict rules that it can stop from basic doings, such as keeping the technology sector forward, thereby overseas investment helps in making improvements in the sector (Delgado, Porter and Stern, 2014). Information Technology Industry from Porters view The IT industry has gone through many difficulties and thereby achieved success in the future and in coming times. The IT industry have attained a greater success and its success attributed in having the ability to innovate and bringing the product that will make the IT industry in Australia very successful in the coming times. The product development used in the industry helps in dealing with major forces in the market and thereby helps in increase in the profit and market share of the industry (E. Dobbs, 2014).This model helps in the competition and thereby it gives power to negotiate to the suppliers. Suppliers having more power can negotiate there prices, in that case it gives them an upper hand which is a negative point for the customer. (Lai et al, 2014). Competitive rivalry The level of competition in these IT companies competes with other IT companies. These companies invest a lot on their research and development and marketing for improvement. The competitive force for the industry is strong, it is very competitive, and the cost of changing from one industry to the other is low. It actually does not require for the consumers to switch over from one work to the other (Hu and Yang, 2016). The threat in this market is a matter of concern for the companies operating in this industry, one has to continuously develop and research on new products and increase its market strength. The IT industry in the local market of Australia is growing rapidly ad is very effective and the reason behind the growth is the rivalry among the existing persons which have led the new entrants not to enter the market. The large-scale industry and the investors get benefit from economies of scale, which is very valuable. Products are branded in this sector and sometimes they might even face legal and advertising rivals. In case of changes in AUD, rate which will have a great impact on the industry prating in the market. There is local as well as overseas investment and this will helps in the industry improvement. Negotiating limitations of customer In case of IT industry the number of customer is very large so is the number of service provider. Customers are very sensitive to the price of the products and they are willing to buy goods with quality. The interaction between buyers and IT companies because of the need to upgrade on technology and advertising (Rothaermel, 2015).The technology is something which people depend on and therefore there will customers throughout the year even if there is differences in exchange rate. All the people depend on technology to live their lifestyle so phones and computer have to be imported from outside and all countries have IT operation. Problem of entrance of new companies Problem of entrants does affect IT industry. The factors are additional cost establishment cost. The capital and the RD cost required to develop and produce the product and then bring the product in the market and generate revenue (Adi, 2015.).The new entrant faces strong competition within the industry and in some new companies with financial banking from the Government will face challenge and such a challenger arising is remote. The IT industry is trying to improve where it stands at this moment and these changes will help in maintaining the value of the company in the future by making overseas import and export of their product. This industry will be attractive for new comers and will grow at a rapid base. At the same time, the industry faces customer base and the advantage on significant amount of capital invested. The IT industry is not very attractive but it is the routine and profitable sector for people to enter and invest in this industry whether locally or overseas througho ut the World. Even many firms enter the industry but they are not very famous (Kearney et al, 2014). Negotiation capability of supplier In the IT industry the negotiating power of the supplier is very little. The supplier is in no situation to negotiate May that be the rate or other things what so ever. As there are huge number of supplier already present in the market, switching from one company to other is very easy. Suppliers are important to the buyers, thus they will not want to end their relationship at the first instance (Crum et al, 2016). Threat of substitution These are the products which are similar to the products that are offered by the companies and they have very little difference amongst them. They have similar qualities, attributes and performance. So we can conclude that the competition is very high as it gives chance to the customer to change the choice of product very easily. In the digital arena the country rely on IT to run the business and even lives of the people. Nothing can actually replace the big vast industry and the culture (Rosenzweig et al, 2013). While industry analyzing in the region of Australia, the competitive structure of the industry and profit potential of the market. The threat of Substitutes of Porter forces are: Consumers switch cost Substitute products are equally competitive Substitute product is superior to the other products Substitute products are competitive in the market Substitute products are expensive than industry product Sometimes substitutes are not available Whenever there is a decrease in exchange rate, then other companies and the substitute companies which operates within the IT industry will be profitable. This change in exchange rate will bring in investment for the companies which are situated USA. The threat of substitutes for this industry is very low. The switching cost in the IT industry between the services is very less so it gives the consumer a chance to explore other products. For example: A person who is using a website to get some service he can easily shift any other website providing similar services unless there is a cost associated for discontinuance. The IT sector is very large and its growing bigger each and every day. There are enormous numbers of companies who are delivering similar services and the difference in quality is very minimal. This makes the consumer vulnerable to change. If the consumer does not feel satisfied with the service provided and easily shift. Impact of overseas investment in the industry if the AUD exchange rate differs In case of foreign overseas investment when there is a fall in the USA dollar rates then import from USA will be cheaper whereas if there is a increase in the exchange price of USA then the investment by overseas would be profitable. The exchange rate is dependent on the market and the Government controls the rate. The reason is that the exchange rate is strong in USA as compared to Australia. The effective rate in both USA and Australia shows an image over the years. There are many causes of change in exchange rate, the change in the rates causes much bad effect but it would have been worse in case the exchange rate wouldnt have fall. Once there is currency exchange rate lowers then it can be sent for overseas investment and then investment in IT industry helps in the future growth of the industry and as well as the company. The system of transfer of domestic and international money transfer, and this system help in overseas investments of funds in the sector. Conclusion The model that is suggested by Michael Porter is very helpful in nature but it does have some issues. It assumes that the potential to make profit does not change. It suggests that in order to make profit the share needs to be transferred in that case it has to earn profit from supplier or a buyer etc. It tells that the industry remains same and there is no change that is increase or decrease is not calculated. References Yunna, W. and Yisheng, Y., 2014. The competition situation analysis of shale gas industry in China: Applying Porters five forces and scenario model.Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews,40, pp.798-805. Delgado, M., Porter, M.E. and Stern, S., 2014. Clusters, convergence, and economic performance.Research Policy,43(10), pp.1785-1799. Zhao, Z.Y., Zuo, J., Wu, P.H., Yan, H. and Zillante, G., 2016. Competitiveness assessment of the biomass power generation industry in China: A five forces model study.Renewable Energy,89, pp.144-153. Dobbs, M., 2014. Guidelines for applying Porter's five forces framework: a set of industry analysis templates.Competitiveness Review,24(1), pp.32-45. Lai, Y.L., Hsu, M.S., Lin, F.J., Chen, Y.M. and Lin, Y.H., 2014. The effects of industry cluster knowledge management on innovation performance.Journal of Business Research,67(5), pp.734-739. Hu, Y. and Yang, S., 2016, June. The competition situation analysis of environmental service industry in China: Based on Porter's Five Forces Model. InService Systems and Service Management (ICSSSM), 2016 13th International Conference on(pp. 1-5). IEEE. Rothaermel, F.T., 2015.Strategic management. McGraw-Hill Education. Adi, B., 2015. An Evaluation of the Nigerian Telecommunication Industry Competitiveness: Application of Porters Five Forces Model.World,5(3). Kearney, M.R., Shamakhy, A., Tingley, R., Karoly, D.J., Hoffmann, A.A., Briggs, P.R. and Porter, W.P., 2014. Microclimate modelling at macro scales: a test of a general Microclimate model integrated with gridded continental?scale soil and weather data. Methods in Ecology and Evolution,5(3), pp.273-286. Crum, M.F., Trevaskis, N.L., Williams, H.D., Pouton, C.W. and Porter, C.J., 2016. A new in vitro lipid digestionin vivo absorption model to evaluate the mechanisms of drug absorption from lipid-based formulations.Pharmaceutical research,33(4), pp.970-982. Rosenzweig, C., Jones, J.W., Hatfield, J.L., Ruane, A.C., Boote, K.J., Thorburn, P., Antle, J.M., Nelson, G.C., Porter, C., Janssen, S. and Asseng, S., 2013. The agricultural model intercomparison and improvement project (AgMIP): protocols and pilot studies.Agricultural and Forest Meteorology,170, pp.166-182.

The Weavers Of Woe Essay Research Paper free essay sample

The Weavers Of Woe Essay, Research Paper Hesiod one time said, # 8220 ; He for himself weaves sufferings who weaves for others woe # 8221 ; showing the belief that those who bring sorrow to others are besides conveying sorrow upon themselves. Emily Bronte # 8217 ; s Wuthering Heights seems to formalize Hesiod # 8217 ; s thought of the black effects of hatred and retaliation. Bronte suggests that retaliation brings uhuappiness to all involved, including those who seek it. Surely, the victims of a vindictive onslaught suffer from the hurting and heartache that their enemies have thrust upon them. However, they are non the merely who feel the crisp sting and painful effects of retaliation. Though one who seeks retaliation may believe that it will convey joy, ironically, retribution may cover the most terrible blow on the retaliator. Revenge leaves no psyche untouched, aching wholly, as it destroys every life in its way. Vengeful and malicious Acts of the Apostless doubtless bring wretchedness and enduring into the lives of the victims. We will write a custom essay sample on The Weavers Of Woe Essay Research Paper or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page All of Heathcliff # 8217 ; s actions are done wiht the exclusive intent of makinghis Nemesiss # 8217 ; lives every bit suffering as possible. Catherine Linton, one of Heathcliff # 8217 ; s many antagonists, suffers vastly as a consequence of Heathcliff # 8217 ; s torturing. One of Heahcliff # 8217 ; s malevolent Acts of the Apostless is coercing Linton to subscribe a will giving Heathcliff all ownership of the land once belonging to Heathcliff # 8217 ; s enemies. Heathcliff # 8217 ; s wicked program is successful in robbing Catherine of her joys and go forthing her # 8220 ; destitute of hard currency and friends. # 8221 ; Heathcliff # 8217 ; s cruel intervention amendss Catherine # 8217 ; s spirit. In her wretchedness, she can # 8220 ; fell and see merely decease # 8221 ; and moreover she # 8220 ; experience [ s ] like death. # 8221 ; Heathcliff # 8217 ; s resentment is dispersed far, and besides takes its toll against Hindley Earnshaw. Cunning and scheming, Heathcli ff is easy able to take clasp of Earnshaw # 8217 ; s ownerships, go forthing Earnshaw helpless and hapless. Earnshaw is doomed # 8220 ; to be a mendicant # 8221 ; and is unhappily unable to inquire his enemy to go forth, for fright that hello will # 8220 ; lose all, without a opportunity of retrieval. # 8221 ; Earnshaw, in the deepnesss of desperation, is acrimonious and angry toward Heatcliff, cognizing that, # 8220 ; he # 8217 ; ll be [ Earnshaw s ] ruin. # 8221 ; Edgar Linton is another challenger of Heathcliff, and Isabella Linton, Edgar # 8217 ; s sister, suffers in effect of Heathcliff # 8217 ; s wrath towards him. Heathcliff entices Isabella to run off with him and # 8220 ; marrie [ s Isabella ] on intent to obtain power over [ Edgar } . Heathcliff so treats Isabella as Edgar s placeholder in enduring until Heathcliff can bring down hurting on Edgar. Isabella suffers in changeless cear and a tiger or a deadly snake could non bestir panic in [ her ] equal to that which [ Heathcliff ] wakens† because she knows that â€Å"he’ll be [ her ] death.† Vindictive and vindictive workss beyond doubt hurt the victims of these evil behaviors. Even though one may seek retaliation to derive pleasance and felicity, reprisal may frequently be most damaging to the retaliator. Though Heathcliff is consumed by the thought of retaliation throughout his life, his vengefulness fails to convey him anything but wretchedness. Retaliation can non convey Heathcliff the felicity and love he desires, and though he has wealth and stature # 8220 ; cipher loves [ him ] # 8211 ; cipher will shout for [ him ] whien [ he ] die [ s ] . # 8221 ; Alternatively of being content and satisfied one time hiw life long program for retaliation is complete, Heathcliff is # 8220 ; suffering # 8230 ; lonely like the Satan, and covetous like him. # 8221 ; The satisfaction which Heathcliff had been seeking is losing, and he is # 8220 ; excessively happy ; and yet [ he is ] non happy enough. # 8221 ; He reaches the acme after his long ascent, and discovers that the wages he is anticipating is non at the extremum. His retaliation is complete, yet streng th and contentment are missing since his # 8220 ; soul # 8217 ; s bliss putting to deaths [ his ] organic structure, and does non fulfill itself. # 8221 ; The thought of retaliation consumes Heathcliff and his uninterrupted pursuit for requital finally takes over his life. His individual purpose in life has # 8220 ; dovoured [ his ] being # 8221 ; and hello is # 8220 ; swallowed up in the expectancy of its fulfillment. # 8221 ; Though he longs for retaliation, Heathcliff has become tired in his older age and acknowledges that # 8220 ; it is a long battle # 8221 ; and even admits that he # 8220 ; wish [ Es ] it were over. # 8221 ; Those who seek retaliation frequently do non recognize that the effects of retaliation can non be predicted and many times they are most deleterious to themselves. Heathcliff # 8217 ; s Acts of the Apostless of retaliation spread suffing and anguish throughout the land, impacting all who come in contact with it. This powerful blood feud had flown through their lives as a hurricane and left merely devastation and ruin buttocks. Fiery hatred and retaliation can convey no heat or visible radiation ; it can merely destruct everything that lies in its way. The weavers of woe shall convey merely wretchedness into the universe as they weave the togss of hurting and misery into life # 8217 ; s tapestry.