Human Resource Management. Motivation. Maslow.

Motivation- Having the will or desire to go ahead and do something or to work that little bit harder. Why we need motivation? Motivation may come from a person’s own interest such as their safety or other things not so personal like praise or reward. Different theorists have proposed that there are many different ways to motivate people. Pay is considered a main type of motivation in a work environment and outside a work environment. Pay however is not the only way of motivation.There are other ways that people may be motivated and things that will keep them motivated. These types of things are appreciation of work, opportunity to advance, responsibility and empowerment, a sense of achievement and the sense of challenge and enjoyment. A motivated workforce will work harder and together achieve more resulting in the whole workforce having a greater output in much less time, resulting in lower labour costs. It also doesn’t need much supervision. An unmotivated workforce w ill do the opposite.This work affects the amount of work and its quality. How to motivate is a difficult topic with everyone looking for something in a job sometimes not just pay. So a number of theorists have researched how this should be done. Frederic Taylor motivation in the late 1800s at the Bethlehem steel company in the USA. He believed that employees could be working more efficiently using their shovels. He figured out that 21. 5 pounds of weight was the best weight of material for an employee to lift in order to work at their full potential creating the best output.He recommended that they use shovels that could lift that amount. So Rewards that would be part of Taylor’s theory are things such as: * Pay :-For many employees the reason they go to work is for pay. They need money for bills and other expenses involved in everyday life. Some organisations will use pay as a reward for employees. They may be given additional pay in the form of a one off bonus or by giving employees a pay rise. However pay not be the key motivator to employees and some employees will work for low pay but may have job satisfaction.Tesco uses this form of reward to all employees. * Performance related pay :- This is a way for employees to be rewarded dependent on their performance in the last three, six, or twelve months. Lots of types of businesses use this type of reward and so will Tesco to its higher job roles such as management and so on. It is very common for manufacturing and sales jobs where the more products or sales the employees make the more they are paid. Area managers at Tesco will be paid more if their area is performing faster and of a higher standard. Profit sharing :- Profit sharing is when a business gives its employees a share of the businesses profits depending on how well the business is doing. Shares are divided between employees depending on how many years the employee has worked at the organisation and their level in the organisation. If the bus iness is doing well the employees will see great benefits but if the business isn’t doing too well the payment will be small. Tesco will once again offer this to much higher staff such as managers and directors. * Employee Share options – Share options, like profit sharing are a way to reward employees based on a company’s performance. Share options can be given to employees free shares that they can sell after a set period of time or as an option to buy shares at a lower fixed rate than what the general public would pay. It can be quite difficult for employees to see how their individual commitment will affect the overall running and company performance. * Staff discounts :-Businesses such as Tesco and other businesses in this type of sector may offer discounts on products to their staff. Elton Mayo.In the 1920s and 30’s a theorist by the name of Elton Mayo set out about perfecting the ideas of Taylor and explored them in further depth he realised there was more to employee motivation than just pay. He created a study known as the Hawthorne Study, he carried out some experiments in the USA, Chicago to investigate motivation further. His study discovered a number of factors by testing incentive schemes, rest periods, hours of work, and changes in lighting and heating. Mayo’s whole study uncovered that rises in productivity were not only due to financial rewards, but also due to management involvement, team working and communication.So Rewards that would be part of Mayo’s theory are things such as: * Company Vehicles :- Company vehicles may be given to employees as a reward. They can use these vehicles in both their working and their personal lives and do not need their own vehicles for evenings and weekends. This kind of benefit like bonuses is taxed. Higher employees in Tesco may receive a company car this is good for both employee and employer, because the employee feels a sense of belonging and the employer will usu al have free advertisement because the company car will have the logo of the organisation just like Tesco’s does. Childcare :- childcare is another reward that employers may offer to their staff. The childcare may be within the building with something like a nursery or creche, whilst other employees may pay toward the fees of a private or council nursery. For older children after school activities or holiday clubs may be paid for or subsided Tesco offers childcare schemes to most Tesco staff. * Corporate clothing :- Corporate clothing may be a uniform that an employee wears during their working hours as part of their job. Employers might also offer their staff a discount on clothing they can buy from the business.Some organisations use staff as Part of their identity, for example you can recognise staff from Tesco by their work apparel. * Flexible working :- Organisations like Tesco can offer employees special working hours which can be more motivating for staff helping them balance their working lives and their personal life. Work –Life balance can be very important to employees, especially if they have people to take care of or other personnel commitments. Flexible working hours usually makes employees feel more valued and less stressed. * Leave – offering yearly paid leave to employees is another form of a reward that is offered by Tesco. As of the 1st of April 2009 every full time employee is entitled to 5. 6 weeks paid leave per year as part of the working time regulation. * Cafeteria incentive schemes :- The name is a reference to the way you can pick what you want from a selection of different rewards and benefits and chose the ones they want. Making these rewards more personnel and motivating. The employer therefore, avoids spending money on rewards that are not wanted or needed. A sample of the type of benefits offered is things such as: Holidays * Company car * Bicycle loan * Insurance, e. g. medical cover * Loans * Childcare * H ealth screening * Season tickets for sporting events * Computers * Discounts * Pensions. Abraham Maslow suggested needs of individuals can be ranked into a hierarchy. The lowest ranking needs are basic needs and they must be fulfilled before any other needs can be fulfilled So Rewards that would be part of Maslow’s theory are things such as: * Pension schemes :- Some organisations like Tesco offer pension schemes such as rewards to employees these are usually one of two types.Contributory and non contributory. A contributory pension scheme is one that both the employee and employer put into, whilst a non-contributory pension scheme is one where only the employer puts money in to. Tesco employees all have the option of opening a contributory pension scheme they can open but also have the choice not to have one. * Health care :- many employers offer free or subsided health care to their employees and often their families as well. This means that if they are ill they can claim f rom organisations such as BUPA to have treatment privately.Health care may be given in the form of discount vouchers for treatments such as massages or beauty therapy. * Extended parental leave :- Extended parental leave is the amount of leave that can be taken by employees to look after their children in addition to what they are entitled to by law so tesco must offer leave however they also offer extended parental leave to higher management or skilled staff. – the work and families act 2006 ensures that all parents can take a certain number of weeks off work however it is not paid and neither is extended parental leave.But some employees may choose to pay full wage or half wage to employees who are taken leave and the organisation must keep their job position open for them until they return. * Career Breaks :-Employees are not entitled to a career break and they are also unpaid. They cannot also be guaranteed that once they return they will be placed in the exact same Job. Some organisations such as Tesco can offer these types of breaks because they may also bring benefits to the organisation.Key staffs are not lost, employees may return to work refreshed and happier and therefore more motivated also the organisation is seen to be caring for the well being of their employees. It is more common for employees over the age of 35 to take a career break rather than younger employees. * Salary Sacrifice schemes :- These schemes enable employees to give up some of their gross salary to receive a form of a reward or benefit instead. The advantage of using this scheme is that the employee or employer will not have to pay as much tax or national insurance.Tesco can offer salary sacrifice schemes to all levels of employees for example the options for floor staff to have a pension scheme or not. Frederick Herzberg Frederick Herzberg had close links with Maslow and believed in a two factor theory of motivation. He argued that there were certain factors that a busi ness could introduce that would motivate employees to work harder, these are called motivators. But on the other hand there were also factors that would de-motivate an employee these are called hygiene factors So Rewards that would be part of Herzberg’s theory are things such as: * Bonuses -Bonuses can be a god way of rewarding employees with extra money. When they are paid a bonus this doesn’t have to be done every year. They are a reward that many employees like to receive however bonuses like pay do require tax and national insurance to be paid. Other forms of rewards that tesco do not offer but could are things such as * School Fees :- some employers will offer to cover or contribute to school fees as areward to the employee. This happens especially if the employee teaches or works for the school that their child attends.If an employer had a number of employees that’s children went to a particular school the employee may be able to gain a discount. Loans/ ad vances :-sometimes employees may have large expenses they have to pay for in their personal life so employers may offer part of their future wages (an advance) to be paid in to their account. Employers may also offer loans, often with a special low rate interest. * Mortgage subsides :- mortgage subsides are payments that are given to employees to pay toward their mortgages.This reward scheme is usually used in areas where the housing is very expensive. Some organisations such as banks offer mortgage subsiders as part of their employee’s benefits. * Relocation Fees :- A relocation fee is the money that is paid to relocate an employee as part of their new or current job. There is no automatic right to receive relocation fees and some organisations will willingly pay for all expenses. This option will be placed on the type of position that the employee has in the organisation and how long they have worked for the organisation.

Applied research method - topic to be defined out of the assignment Essay

Applied research method - topic to be defined out of the assignment - Essay Example The difference in organizational culture is perceivable and culture has been recognized as a strong determinant of beliefs, attitudes and behavior. The strategic decision of M&A would have to take into account the impact of the differences in culture between two organizations or even between two nations. A high percentage of mergers and acquisitions fail to meet expectations and a very strong argument is that cultures were not integrated. This makes it interesting to know the impact that M&A has on the culture of an organization. To determine the impact of cultural differences when M&A take place, literature review would be conducted. There is a broad stream of literature available but since it is not possible to go through or include the entire database, select academic journals would be used to determine the impact that culture has during mergers. Three academic papers are recent while two papers are decades old. This has been done to understand how the mind set of people has changed over time. Literature review permits quick and easy collection of general information on the issue. The literature review would help to arrive at the research question. Cultural differences have been blamed for high failure rate in M&A but research suggests otherwise (Teerikangas & Very, 2006). Differences in top management styles have been found in top US companies but not in rewards and evaluation system to have a negative performance impact. Functional background had a positive impact on post-acquisition performance. A buying firm’s behavior throughout the buying process is influenced by its national background. According to some authors, differences in national cultures are not an impediment but a potential success factor for M&A. Research suggests that decision-makers give disproportionate attention to strategic fit as compared to integration issues (Olie, 1994). One of these issues is the ‘cultural fit’ where the fundamental differences

LOreal Consultancy Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

LOreal Consultancy Report - Essay Example Following in part four the report will identify organizations and alliances, what impact they may have on the industry and on the competitive position of L'Oreal. Finally, I determine what strategic options are the most appreciate to this organization to ensure its success in the next five years. The sales of cosmetics and toiletries is on the rise after it slowed down globally in 2004, the world market was valued at $253 billion in 2005. With a positive growth after sentimental recovery from SARS scares and the war in Iraq (GCI, 2006), with strong cosmetic sales in Latin America and Eastern Europe, peaking in Western Europe the largest market. According to indications there was a 4% growth in 2004, an according to the Global Cosmetic Industry Magazine the Euromonitor International forecast of a possible 20% can be obtained if current key trends are followed. Dividing the world cosmetic market in two sections, the mature and the developing markets, it is possible to show where sales are peaking, and where there are still opportunity for expansion. The mature markets can this be seen as Western Europe, Asia Pacific, North America and Latin America as this are where the lion share of the market currently lies. Many of the consumers in this mature market demand more sophisticated products and due the amount of competition product prices needs to be reduced if a company wants to stay competitive. The one market in this section that shows promise are China and most of the high profile players are entering this new market, such as Este Lauder and P&G, with retailers including Sephora and Sa Sa, and direct sellers Avon, Alticor, Mary Kay and New Skin (GCI, 2006). Developing markets can be seen as Venezuela, Vietnam, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Russia. In 2003 Vietnam showed a 19% growth in cosmetic sales even though demand are still concentrated in the urban areas, offering ample opportunity to expand. The South African market showed a healthy growth as consumers started to buy high margin multi-functional products. With more black South Africans entering the middle income group with the governments aggressive affirmative action policy,

A concert report that discuss the concert I give you Essay

A concert report that discuss the concert I give you - Essay Example Its creation involves the poets writing the stanzas in alternating shifts. The modern poets have manipulated the original renga to come up with the present renga with freedom of line and stanza structures. However, the poem still boasts utmost value between the Japanese and it has become one of the most popular students’ poetry teaching references. Remarkably, the concert was well planned and initiated by the organizers. The performers were on stage just in time to dispel anxiety among the audience who arrived as early as 5 p.m. I specifically loved the glamorous design of the hall – partly reflecting traditionalism and partly reflecting modern life. Probably, the purpose of this form of hall design was to contrast between the times of initiation of the poem (that traces its roots back over 700 years ago) and the present day of conducting and presenting the poem to the modern world by a modern society. Even the sophistication in the types of musical and sound equipment used points to the direction of traditional music on the face modernization. There was a perfect combination of the expansive, etherall veil of Morton Feldman’s final composition. Even the aesthetic contrast could not fail to attain recognition from the eyes of the audience, with specific dates during when the poets composed and or composed poems. A number of musical instruments are available to spice up the concert, to make it more lively and appealing to the ears and eyes. Even though the percussionist found a challenge in simultaneously playing the sounds and navigating between the cognitive creations of outward, immovable, internal and the public spaces of musical satisfaction, he fast gets to the reality of the impossibility of the fact that such simultaneous endeavor may not be practical. However, he managed to achieve a relatively unexpected outcome of sounds and high-toned aggregate of musical zeal and vigor both confluence together in the

1967 war is it a defeat or a victory to the Arabs Essay

1967 war is it a defeat or a victory to the Arabs - Essay Example After the second war between the Arab and Israel in 1956, the Egyptian forces agreed to maintain peace with the positioning of the UN peacemakers in the borders of Egypt and Israel. This positioning of the peacemakers were due to the efforts of the US and Soviet Union in the war of 1956 between Egypt and Israel, UK and France. In the next decades, there were several minor conflicts between Israel and the Arabs, particularly with the Syrians (Hammel, 2001). In 1966, Soviet Union reminded Syria for not violating the agreement of peace between the Arab states and the Israel. Soon after that amidst environment of tension, the Palestine Liberation Organization launched a mine attack in Syria that killed three Syrian soldiers. This created a series of retaliatory activities between Israel and the Arabs, mainly Palestine, Syria, Jordan, Egypt. The King of Jordan noticed that Egypt did not come forward to the aid of Jordan against Israel which forced him to sign a defence treaty with Egyptia n president in order to stop the military invasions of Israel. The cause of the war of 1967 was also due to dispute of sharing of water from the Jordan River. Israel diversified the flow of water from the Jordan River into its west banks for agriculture and irrigation (Sadeh, 1997). Syria tapped the flow of stream and diverted it into the regions of Syria, Jordan and Egypt due to which Israel faced shortage of water. The tensions over the conflict with water sharing also led to the war of 1967. Role of Arab states in the war of 1967 Prior to the war of 1967, the Israeli borders faced ample terrorist attacks from the Arabs. These terrorist attacks were Palestinian attacks on Israel. Israel figured out that Syria has been sponsoring these terrorist attacks on their land. The Israeli forces warned Syria to stop sponsoring the terrorist attacks for honouring their peace treaty. When the terrorist attacks of the Arabs on the Israeli borders continued, Israel carried out planned military operations on the villages of the West Bank of Jordan and Syria. Israel also started to deploy armies in a pre-planned manner in the demilitarized zones in the borders of Israel and the Arab states (Louis and  Shlaim, 2012). When the Arabs states found that Israel has been aggressive and has been launching military attacks to destroy their nations and villages, they started to unite and sign defence pacts. The Egyptian president started to gather his troops in the Straits of Tiran in order to block the access of Israel to this waterway. The Syrian army started to collect troops in the Golan height. The Egyptian president ordered his army to block the Israelis in the Gaza strip and the Sinai Peninsula (Dunstan, 2012). The Jordanian troops also joined hands with Egypt and Syria in the war against Israel. The Straits of Tiran was regarded as the international waterway by Israel and other international communities. According to the previous treaty signed between the Israel and the Ara b states, blocking the Straits of Tiran would mean declaration of war. In order to overhaul the resistance and opposition of the Arab states in the Straits of Tiran, the Israeli government decided to go for war and break the barriers created by the Arab army forces. This led to the six-day war of 1967 that saw Israel launching a series of carefully planned air strikes on a continuous basis over the Arab military forces that resulted into severe damage and killing of the Arab troops and soldiers (Quandt, 2001). Thus the Arab states played the role of creating irrevocable conditions by blocking the access of Israel to the Straits of Tiran, raising military deployments in the Gaza strips and Golan height that stimulated the outbreak of underlying tensions to the

United States View on the Cold War Research Paper

United States View on the Cold War - Research Paper Example However, the war reflected a competition between two superpowers that were the America and Soviet Union. This paper illustrates various view of the America concerning the occurrence of the cold war. Causes of the Cold War The United States saw the Cold War as a war between itself and the Soviet Union3. Moreover, the American saw the war as a global confrontation between itself and the Soviet Union. According to the Americans, the war occurred because of having different views regarding a number of world issues with the Soviet Union. Moreover, the Americans viewed the cause of the war to be various political differences that existed between the country and the Soviet Union. The other possible factor that contributed to the development of the Cold War was the Americans fear that the communists might attack them. This contributed to the Americas want to show that it could not be defeated by any other nation in the whole world. The other significant issue that led Americans to engage in the war was the bad blood between Truman and Stalin. However, other issues contributed to the development of the Cold War were those from the side of the communists. For example, the Russians feared that the American would cause a great trouble if it managed to release the atomic bomb. Another major factor that contributed to the development of the war was that the Russians disliked the concept of capitalism4. How the Cold War reflected Americans in the world Most of the countries that were involved and those that were not involved in the cold viewed America as one of the biggest enemy of Soviet Union. The rivalry between the two powers existed from as early as 1917. At first, both of the two powers were fighting against the Axis powers. Some of the Axis powers that were great enemies of America during the cold war include Germany and Japan. However, even though the two nations were fighting together, their relationship was tense. This means that they did not believe in one another on various issues concerning the war. This is because the Americans saw the Soviet Union as a major threat regarding to how they wished various issues would go concerning the war. The Americas started to mistrust the Soviet Union when it managed to gain control of the Eastern Europe. The Soviet Union on the other hand, started to view the American as a threat especially when it managed to make a move on the development of the atomic weapon. It is believed that one of presidents who contributed to the occurrence of the strong relationship was Woodrow Wilson. Under the leadership of Wilson, America had dedicated itself to maintain democracy. Wilson also managed to promote the country in enacting the free enterprise system. However, the communists were emphasizing on the issue of the excellent revolution. With the world class, the communists believed that most of the countries under its leadership would bring socialization in f uture. Through the contribution of Wilson in trying to promote democracy, many parts in the world viewed America as peaceful although there were others with different views. However, even with the contribution of Wilson to promote democracy, he did not succeed. Even the Soviet Union did not succeed in its contribution of promoting peace. Damage of America’s Reputation America damaged its reputation after engaging on the war against Vietnam. Most of the countries in the world viewed that America had not made the right decision on engaging

Medea and the Myth of Feminism Essay Example for Free

Medea and the Myth of Feminism Essay Medea the Myth of Feminism It is only males who are created directly by the gods and are given souls it is only men who are complete human beings and can hope for ultimate fulfillment; the best a woman can hope for is to become a man (Plato 90e). Euripides Medea was written in a time where even the word feminism did not exist and yet he gave Medea a role of substance and a stature of strength. It is a wonder whether or not Euripides knew Just how much power he put into the hands of this woman as well as many more in the creation of her character. Perhaps not in his time and perhaps not y intention, but since then Medea the play and Medea the woman have filled a symbolic role in the area of feminism, the debate being for or against it. In countless cultures and streams of media, the woman stands timeless. What this paper intends to explore is the levels of the performance and how they stack up to the idea of feminism by framing Euripides possible intent, understanding various audience response to various productions, and finally studying Medea herself to see whether her roots of vengeance are in feminism or rather immorality. At the beginning of our quest we find the author, alive at a time in which ancient Greece was overwhelmingly patriarchal, but where did Euripides find himself? Is it possible to suspect that he may have allied himself among other voices which held sympathy for the plight of women? Could he have been the model of a proto-feminist or was he a misogynist? In either case, Medea seems to be the place to look. While pursuing her ambition, Medea disregards many of the feminine characteristics of the patriarchal Greek society. She questions the inequality of women, contradicts Jasons chauvinist beliefs, challenges the stereotype that women are weak and passive and ltimately completely disregards the feminine role of motherhood. Euripides portrays a woman who completely subverts feminine norms, overcomes masculine bonds and, given that his depiction of Medea was highly influential and replicated to some extent by most later authors, the Medea viewed as a figure of feminine power in modernity is at least in part dependent on Euripides (Mastronarde 52). Honing in on the text, one might examine Medeas opening speech, a fine feminist harangue (Hadas 81), showing that, Medea has been treated unjustly by men, and her eloquent indictment of womens lot is never denied (Foley 265). This speech is the first introduction to Medea as a strong and independent woman, but the words are not hers alone. These lines have sometimes been seen as Euripides bitter reflections on his own isolation as an advanced and intellectual poet. There is much truth in this view, but the lines are also Medeas, the complaint of a woman of great intellectual capacity who finds herself excluded from the spheres of power and action (Knox 314). It is this exclusion that leads her to the inexcusable action of killing her children, or is it so inexcusable? When focusing on Euripides intent one might see that: Euripides made Medea herselt choose to murder ner chi Idren as the hurtful part of her revenge against Jason. It perhaps sounds at first as if this might tell in favor of the idea that Euripides was hostile to women. But in fact it turns out to have quite the opposite result, because of the way Euripides treats his material Euripides has created this new Medea who chooses to kill her own children. He condemnation the murderous deed: shows us with painful insight and utterly without mind of the woman who has the ability to do such a the torment before the final decision, the ultimate grief, and, here in he final scene, the inevitable results. Medea is now finally untouched, untouchable by human hands and by human emotions (March 35-36; 43). By this evidence it would appear that Euripides has molded a woman for women. Unfortunately, while the presentation of this piece could certainly cause a discomfort among male audience members, it equally might encourage greater suspicion and scorn by males of females. Euripides Medea questioned prevailing norms and beliefs, primarily those of the heroic masculine ethic, though perhaps at the expense of women, and not in their support. The meaning of Euripides words cannot be eciphered simply by picking and choosing sections of the play to analyze. To understand his intent there is the need to understand the totality of the narrative as well as the audience he wrote for. Playing to a primarily male audience, Euripides does not introduce Medea immediately but has the chorus and nurse tell of her first, giving the audience a misconception of Just how much power the woman holds. In fact supported by Medeas cries of anguish heard offstage she is first represented as emotional and submissive. By Euripides authorial intent, he lulls the audience into a state of pity here there should be fear. Skillfully contrived is the choral passage in which we first hear the agonized voice of Medea from offstage. If we had been prepared to see a woman of monstrous power and witchery, a being of preternatural passion and resource, we are deceived (Musurillo 54). Medea is first painted as nothing other than what you would expect of a woman, a merit of pity though not empathy, however when first seen she shifts to reasonable and calculating. Returning to analyis of her first speech, one can more deeply apply what she is saying to her situation. Her eloquent first speech on the wrongs of women deceptively applies only in part to herself. For Medea is far from the passive victim of marriage and masculine brutality that she claims to be (McDermott 259). Within the world of the play Medeas deception makes sense in winning the approval of the chorus, however to spectators the mismatch of her words to her situation carries a different meaning. It paints a new picture and a new woman who is willing to exaggerate and lie in order to achieve her goals. It becomes clearer as the play progresses that Euripides initial ortrayal of Medea serves as a baseboard for growth from helpless to dangerous, parallel to the audience reaction as it stems from pity to loathing. An ancient Athenian audience would have found little to no fault in Jasons actions, by a public standard, Jason satisfied his marital obligation toward Medea and returned favor for favor by bringing her to Greece (Walsh 295). This leaves it to Medeas character to be the cause of any unsettlement. Her ultimate action of killing her children, makes her most territying, tor sne is not a victim and not vulnerable†that is, not teminine†yet he has been identified as and with other women (Rabinowitz 132). With this information, only fear is struck by Medea in the name of women. Regardless of Euripides intent, proto-feminist, misogynist, or most likely of all neither, his audience rests at the wrathful hands of a powerful woman, but empathy is unlikely. It is important however, to take into account various audiences beyond simply that of Euripides time. A present audience interprets a performance of Medea much differently than ancient Greeks would have and there are countless Medea inspired adaptations which ancient Greeks never had the chance to experience. It is these productions and these audiences that are next to be studied on the road to feminism. To approach from another end of the spectrum, a drastically different style of performance than that of western culture may be studied. Carol Sorgenfrei provides this with her 1975 work, Medea: A Noh Cycle Based on the Greek Myth. Noh theatre, like many traditional Japanese theatre forms, prioritizes stylization above realism in performance, a practice that aligns well with a myth of murder and revenge. The stylization draws away from the brutal acts, allowing the audience a chance to accept Medea for her motives instead of unquestionably condemning her. By adhering to the structure of Noh, Sorgenfrei creates a world where time, place, and gender are transcended in favor of larger-than-life emotions and issues (Edelson 1). It is also worthy of note to state that Noh theatre is an all-male performance style (as it would have been in ancient Greece as well). One might take it upon themselves to understand by this knowledge that the theatre form is inherently sexist, yet, since the 1960 s, theater practitioners have drawn on these traditional forms to rediscover feminine and feminist messages (2). Furthermore the stylization and art that go into the intricacies of embodying a female are no Joke within the ritualistic practice. As denoted in the title, Sorgenfreis piece is a cycle play referring to the five different plays that would be performed in a traditional Noh performance. These plays are thematically based, in the order of God, Warrior, Woman, Frenzy, and Demon. Drawing inspiration from Noh style, Sorgenfreis Medea, develops the Medea myth through her plays five scenes, which progress through the different traditional categories despite the thematic linkage (2). As for the audience of this particular performance, it is no surprise that not only is it drastically different than that of Euripides and ancient Greece but also vastly different than that of Zeamis and the fifteenth century (the roots of Noh theatre). Sorgenfrei writes very consciously for a feminist audience in 1975. This retelling of the Medea myth from a female point of view in a beautifully feminine style of Japanese theatre, despite its male performance history, allocates the piece among cultural feminism, praising what is feminine while still acknowledging the differences among men and women. Feminine, however, is not the same as feminist. For that title we might analyze Medea in the fourth scene, the frenzy play, where Medea gives birth to herself as the Sun God. In one sense, the birth metaphor is emblematic of the mother/daughter bond, but its glorification of motherhood also implies that a womans self-fulfillment can best be attained by fulfilling her biological capabilities (Dolan 30). Seeing as Medea is a mother to herself though, it would appear that Sorgenfreis intent is that, birth is a metaphor tor revealing ones true selt, becoming oneselt, independent ot a partner or arents. Not only does Sorgenfreis Medea serve as the antithesis to the glorification of motherhood, but she also subverts the concept of birth as something that can be successfully and independently accomplished without the aid of man (Edelson 6). If this transformation is not convincing enough, then the transformation of Jasons character in the final demon play certainly thrusts the play into feminism. At this point in the cycle play Jason and the children reveal themselves as demons and, by displacing Medea and focusing solely on Jasons (and the childrens) transformation n Demon Play, Sorgenfrei forces the viewer to explore the cause of Medeas suffering instead of only investigating the effect of her actions (7). The audience, throughout Sorgenfreis production, due to the stylization of noh performance as well as the cycle transformations, is able to question Medeas past and her motives instead of assuming the worst from the start. Sorgenfreis as well as many other variations of Medeas tale open the doors to inquiry for viewers. As performances vary, so does the message of femininity, but it really comes down to the character herself and the motivation behind her actions. If her strength is solely for the sake of revenge then women lose merit, however if she acts in defiance to a patriarchal society she is a voice for feminism. In studying the woman we might discover hints as to whether or not she, as a character, is a feminist. The obvious first argument is that feminism is not an option for Medea as a character. The time period in which she is set in the play and in which her character was created do not allow such a term. However, for the sake of this paper and staying true to the idea that characters never die, it is now assumed that she is still alive oday and thus feminism exists. Now, to discover whether Medea is a feminist or not it seems vital to set aside any notions of her being simply a victim of patriarchy. To see her only as such is to exclude very important aspects of her character which tie her to humanity. It is her darkness that is relatable and takes her beyond a pitiable subject to be observed. It is the independence throughout her struggles that makes her more than two dimensions. Medea is a compelling character. Through plays, films, operas, paintings and novels, we have heard her story told again and again and e remain fascinated by her. Our fascination is not without reason, for Medea brings us face to face with darkness that lurks within anyone and catastrophe that can befall any marriage. We watch and listen to her because she speaks to us of ourselves (Fuller 3). Her story is not uncommon, the betrayal of a spouse and the desire for revenge. This theme can be found reinterpreted within films such as War of the Roses and The First Wives Club. Both embody the spirit of Medea, the story of a woman who gives up everything for a man only to be left for a younger woman. So it s seen that the character lives and changes as time passes. What these film adaptations lack is the darkness that individualizes Medea and the accumulation of this darkness to the point of murdering her children. However, this theme too may be found in literature such as La Llarona and even in history such as the Andrea Yates trial. Its clear that Medea, even in her darkness, is an influence to art and to life, but another question rises in this darkness. By throwing her maternal nature aside does she also discredit the female race or does the strength it takes to murder ones own hildren become commendable? Motive is the question at hand and Medea does nerselt no tavors at tirst glance . The decision to murder ner children in return tor the joy she will receive in witnessing Jasons anguish gives Medea little respectability. It is precisely at this point, where rage and pain and revenge come together, that Medea creates a problem for feminism (5). She flaunts her immorality, showing no remorse whatsoever for her actions. While it is admirable of a woman to overcome her situation, Medeas display of heartlessness after the fact of murdering her hildren leaves her alone, independent, and selfish. On the other hand it is so difficult to grasp the understanding of killing a child and the action is so inconsistent with Medeas prior feminism. Her original revenge was upon Creon, Jason, and his bride. It is reasonable to consider based off this knowledge that Medeas hand was moved by the authorial intent of Euripides rather than by her own will. Perhaps this was essential though, perhaps with a loss of darkness comes a loss of complexity and then what need would there be to discover why this troubled woman acted as she did. There would be no question of her feminist nature because there would be no care. A last note on Medea herself, she is not human, at least not fully. She is a mythical creature who by the end of the tale is taken into the sky by a chariot. So, take into account the action that takes place within other greek myths, birth from Zeus thigh, rape by Zeus in the form of a swan (among other animals). By these mythological standards is child murder something that can be Judged by mankind? By keeping in mind that Medea has a part of the divine within her, her actions become less of an atrocity and more of a symbol. Seen in this light, that Medeas are not the acts of a literal person but rather are symbolic, the child murders then become more understandable (11). Her children too then become a symbol of her marriage which is destroyed and thus the children must be destroyed. Seldom do women, let alone feminists, act out so much as to murder their children over the betrayal of their husbands, but divorces and custody battles do not stray too far from it. Medeas actions, when taken literally, may be unforgivable by a feminist society, but symbolically she hits right on target. Children become the battleground for the arents rage and disappointment and most often they are the collateral damage in the marital wars (13). Medea lives on, struggles on with a voice unafraid to speak out against the wrongs done to her. This is the voice that feminists cling to while they avoid acknowledgement of the rash action of murder. When it comes down to it though, Medea is studied because she is relatable, darkness and all. In order for a woman to know herself, she must come to terms with her own capacity for darkness, rage, and power and this is what Medea has to offer. There has yet to be an adaptation in hich she experiences the same pain and anger without the result of destruction, but maybe that is the standing lesson. Medea continues to struggle because women continue to struggle and as women evolve so shall she as she has before. In order to stand for women, it is not essential to be a model woman, only to continue on in the struggle, to continue fighting, and so she does.