Edgar Allan Poe Essay

The diction of Edgar Allan Poe’s works have surely enhanced their literary value . Firstly, Poe was a believer in the law of liberty of diction, in the aesthetic tradition in art, in storytelling. Hence, the diction in almost all his literary works, be they poems, short stories or whatever carry a smell of freshness, of originality, of innate beauty. Again, as he was an iconoclast he could free the diction of the â€Å"short stories† from the heresy of the didactic. He keeps an eye on details and hence a flexibility of diction was the need of the hour which he mastered. He has dovetailed poetry in prose as and when required in order to enhance the readability and appeal of the prose, in particular. For example, â€Å"Conqueror Worm†, as an individual poem has immense appeal as it can create a typical supernatural ambience. The lines have a dramatic ring, the diction is effective in weaving a credible picture of life, though, an angel comes and sits amidst the audience ‘to see/A play of hopes and fears’ where he found ‘much of Madness and more of sin/And Horror the soul of the plot! ’ But, in the middle of the poem, the tone alters and the brilliant effect is brought forth through befitting diction. ‘But see, amid the mimic rout/A crawling shape intrude! /A blood-red thing that writhes from out/The scenic solitude! /It writhes ! -it writhes! -with mortal pangs/The mimes become its food,/And the seraphs sob at vermin fangs/In human gore imbued. † The very lines from this poem, when incorporated into the famous short story â€Å"Ligeia†, it enhances the appeal of the latter. This story is primarily based on the theory of metempsychosis [transmigration of souls], as Ligeia makes a return to her husband through the takeover of the corpse of the second wife of her husband. Poe gets torn between the two disintegrated parts of the story—one, the life and death of Ligeia and the other, the return of heroine Ligeia ,years after, to life. It was not a cakewalk to harness the two threads to give rise to a unity of narrative. For this end in view, Poe has made use of a succession of highly suggestive images and words that mentally prepares the readers for the heroine’s strange return to life from the land of the dead. Weaving of the weird atmosphere adroitly with chosen, appropriate, vibrant diction reminds us of the romantic poet, S. T. Coleridge ,who with similar adept and facile pen used to make us ‘willingly suspend our disbelief’. For example, in the story ‘Ligeia’, the way in which the revelation occurs to Ligeia’s husband is really remarkable, â€Å"The greater part of the fearful night had worn away ,and she who had been dead once again stirred and now more vigorously than hitherto, although arousing from a dissolution more appalling in its utter hopelessness than any†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. The corpse, I repeat, stirred, and now more vigorously than before. The hues of life flushed up with unwonted energy into the countenance—the limbs relaxed—and, save that the eyelids were yet pressed heavily together, and that the bandages and draperies of the grave still imparted their charnel character to the figure, I might have dreamed that Rowena had indeed shaken off, utterly, the fetters of Death. † Through the turns of phrases, suggestive images, gothic expressions, meaningful caesura, hair-raising descriptions the writer dawns the ghastly truth upon Ligeia’s husband , at long last, â€Å" ‘Here then, at least, I shrieked aloud, ‘can I never be mistaken—these are the full, and the black ,and the wild eyes—of my lost love—of the lady—of the Lady Ligeia. † â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart† is a significant story certifying Poe’s oeuvre. Use of maximum expletives is a characteristic feature of diction here. The very opening is striking from the point of diction, â€Å"True! -nervous-very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will you say that I am mad? The disease had sharpened my senses –not destroyed—not dulled them. †¦. How then am I mad? Hearken! And observe how healthily—how calmly I can tell you the whole story. † The colloquial intimacy of the narrative, the protagonist’s fear of the old man’s ‘vulture-like, pale blue eye’, the Evil Eye , as he names it. After continuously assiduous attempts, he succeeds in killing the old man with the Evil Eye. But, he becomes victim of divine retribution and the ticking of the old man’s heart begins to throb in himself, abruptly, rather mysteriously and he admits the heinous deed. Poe’s diction is really apt in bringing forth the heart-rending finale of the story, â€Å" ‘Villains! ’I shrieked, ‘dissemble no more! I admit the deed! -tear up the planks! -here, here! -it is the beating of his hideous heart! † It has already been said that ,Poe believed that the tale should have unity of effect and that everything must be subservient to this unity. The Fall of the House of Usher is a brilliant example of Poe’s craftsmanship as it is tightly structured, concentrated and possessing unity of effect, diction, design and atmosphere. At the very outset, an atmosphere of desolation and disintegration is woven deliberately by Poe . The use of his another poetical piece The Haunted Palace is also timely and appropriate and in unison with the demand of the narration. Especially, in the concluding stanza of the poem ,we find the real appeal of the story packed meticulously, â€Å"And travelers now within that valley,/Through the red-litten windows see/Vast forms that move fantastically/To a discordant melody;/While, like a rapid ghastly river,/Through the pale door,/A hideous throng rush out forever,/And laugh—but smile no more. † In the following lines, Poe is keen on justifying the germaneness of the poetical lines, as included. The tempestuous elements of nature ,the solemn movement of the prose, rising to a crescendo at the end and all the strands of the story converging to the ‘single effect’ produce the grim phantasm, fear, which dominates the story. The strange appearance of the house, the weird actions of the mad inhabitant of the house, Usher, the strange burial and return to life of Madeline ,the death of Usher and the destruction of the house are incidents that contribute to the effect of horror. But there are other subtle factors too. One such factor is a series of ‘weird identifications’, for example, identification between the house and its inmates, between Usher and his sister and finally between the madness of Usher and the momentary madness of the narrator. Even, in the poems too Poe is at his innovative best ,so far as the use of diction is concerned. In the most popular poem,â€Å"The Raven†, the poet with his capturing diction runs to relate to the readers the grief of a bereaved lover for his lost love. The refrain ‘nevermore’ expresses the intensity of sorrow of the lover for his never-to-return beloved! In another poem â€Å"To Helen†, Poe mingles theme and form adeptly. Poe’s complete mastery over the diction is seen in the poem The Bells, where the four different stanzas recapture with striking effect the sound of four different bells—silver bells,golden bells, brass bells and iron bells. It has been rightly praised as one of the finest examples of onomatopoeia. In conclusion, it can , of course, be said in the words of Kirszner and Mandell , â€Å"Using vivid imagery and evocative comparisons, writers of imaginative literature often stretch language to its limits. By relying on the multiple connotations of words and images, a work of imagination †¦encourages readers to see the possibilities of language and to move beyond the factual details of an event. †[p-1] Sources Books: 1. Kirszner, Laurie G. & Mandell, Stephen R. : Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing, Heinle&Heinle,1999. 2. Davidson, Edward H. : Poe—A Critical Study ,Harvard University Press, USA. 3. Krutch, Joseph Wood: Edgar Allan Poe—A Study in Genius, N. Y. Knopf, USA Web Sources 1. www. poestories. com 2. www. poemuseum. org

You and i

Martha Cecilia, which was taken after her daughter's name, is one of – if not the most popular Tagalog romance pocketbook writer of today. Most of her written works became best-sellers and her very popular Kristine pocketbook series which consists of a total of 54 books was even turn into a TV series by one of the largest broadcasting network in the country.She is best known for writing love stories with happy endings and she has released over 00 books under her current company, Precious Heart Romance. 9. Carlo]. Caparas He was the man responsible for the creation of the undying story of Ang Panday (The Blacksmith). In addition to that, he also created other great stories who later turned to movies and/or TV series such as Gagambino, Bakekang, Totoy Bato, and Joaquin Bordado to name a few. Caparas was originally a comic strip writer who later ventured in to film directing and producing.In July 2009, he was proclaimed as a National Artist of the Philippines in the category of V isual Arts and Film. 8. Mars Ravelo Like Caparas, Mars Ravelo is also a comic strip writer and creator who rose to popularity because of his works such as Darna (a local version of America's wonderwoman), Dysabel (a mermaid whose fate is a little similar to Ariel of â€Å"The Little Mermaid†), and Captain Barbel (a local version of Superman) to name a few. As you may have observed, Ravelo's works are so much alike to some American fictional stories.This is because he was born at the time when Philippines was still an American Territory. Thus, it's understandable that his writing is heavily influenced by the American literature. Ravelo started out as a cartoonist who worked his way up until he became an editor-in-chief for several publications and film companies before establishing his own company. During his time, he was the highest paid comic writer.

Music in Classical Era Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Music in Classical Era - Essay Example Of the various eras in music history, the classical era stands out as a unique period regarded as the age of enlightenment. In light of this, the paper seeks to explore the classical era in the history of music, paying attention to the cultural characteristics, musical development, and the role of musicals in the society. Classical Era The classical era was preceded by the Baroque period, which provided a unique basis of evolution in terms of form, style, and medium. The period between 1750 and 1820 experienced the height of classical compositions and performances across Europe. This follows the shift towards new styles in architecture, literature, and arts in the continent that sought to emulate classical antiquity from ancient Greece. The works of great philosophers such as Isaac Newton would soon be incorporated in music, as composers and performers sought structural clarity. This catalyzed the evolution of the Baroque period into the classical period of layered instrumental melod ies to create a combination dubbed homophony. The pre-classical music presented a change in form, style, and production eventually replacing old forms of music with new sectional structures. This indicates a sharp contrast with previous styles where music was mostly written for human voices and instruments were regarded as dull compared to the human voice. Notably, a symphony orchestra is a widely acknowledged medium of classical music, which involves a group of instruments from various classes. This comprises a string section that includes harps, violins, and string bass; brass section with French horn, trumpet, and tuba; a percussion section with drums, cymbals, xylophones, and chimes; and a woodwind section incorporating flutes, clarinet, and bassoon. As such, orchestra bands consist of large numbers of players, each with his or her own music piece that is performed concurrently. However, the size and composition of the orchestra are largely dependent on the music piece being per formed. At the height of classical music, about 10 performers for serenades, which spurred the rapid development of opera, performed compositions. This development was characterized by regional styles across Europe that would identify the origin and inspiration behind the piece. Notable Composers The classical era provided recognition to renowned composers for their work that sought striking melodies and dramatic effects. Their unique compositional styles refined previous works to produce clearer textures and dramatic shifts in the performance of music. Among these composers known for their role in the classical period are Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Muzio Clementi, and Luigi Boccherini, to mention but a few. Haydn is regarded as the father of symphony owing to his role in the development and expansion of the presentation and is credited for numerous symphonies. Another classical composer worth noting is Beethoven whose work is considered as a bridge between classical and romantic eras. Mozart is well known for his compositions, especially the wedding of Figaro, which is quite popular and has had a significant impact in society, generally. His compositions took an educational turn with the influence of J. S. Bach who only served to inspire him further into applying mathematics and ethics into his compositions. Through this, the society saw change in music becoming a form of communication, where he applied social

Portfolio Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Portfolio - Coursework Example In addition to that media aids influence issues voters should care concerning the elections and the criteria that should be used to evaluate contenders2. And my opinion is that the political life starts to conform highly to the political image portrayed on TV. Through a process known as quasi-Darwinian, scandals, events of media, and other forms of political and entertainment s eventually takes control facing out other forms of information of politics and public debate, changing the sense of public disclosure. In this manner objectives of political transparency can be beaten by what come into view as the vital mechanisms: revealing the secrets, proliferating information and holding political officials responsible for their actions. 2. A lot has been written about the culture of secrecy of late. The article says that government is keeping some information from the members of the country as believed by most Americans. Potion of the members of congress is calling for the access to the secret documents, federal agencies last to withhold a huge amount of information claiming it is crucial for the national security, upholding secrecy entrenched in the cold war3. This new book is examining who in the government is keeping what information from the public, how they do it, and why a concern to the members of the public4. Causal scholars, attorneys and journalists survey the rules of federal intellect agencies and presidents particularly Nixon, Reagan, Bush and Clinton to ensure that information are kept secret5. My opinion is that the Currency is protected by the spirit of house hold and generally the spirit of robbery specially, and the best locks and way of hiding that can be mustered. 3. Social media is playing more and more famous role in our culture. The article says Social media became a new battle ground for the nationwide both presidential and parliamentary elections6. A horde of politicians, who at first sight it seems adequate and

Operation Management Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Operation Management Case Study - Essay Example Consequently, the total number of clients that the Seven Hills Hotel had to attend to during the conference was 810 clients. Seven Hills Hotel was the hotel approached by the events planner at Global Events Company to host these delegates during the entire period of the conference. Apparently, some mishaps happened during the organization process that made the entire conference turn up as a disaster (Amason, 2011). The case study provides complications in operations management in two major organizations involved in the organization and planning of the conference. The first organization is the Global Events Company, an events planning company contracted by Glo-Tech to arrange the event, and Seven Hills Hotel, the hotel approached by the events planner to host the event. Global Events Company experienced operational problems from the moment it failed to analyze the situation at the hotel first before contracting it to be the host of such a major event. It was apparent that the conditions of the hotels were not favorable to host clients of such large numbers. In addition, the location of the hotel was inappropriate, as it was both unsecure, as well as unapproachable (Belda, 2006). These aspects would have automatically ruled out the hotel as the best choice to host such an event. On the other hand, operations problems also emerged from the lack of appropriate communication between the organization and the hotel about the nitty gritty details of the clients they were expecting. For instance, the company failed to give the hotel the exact date from which to expect the clients, the total number of clients to receive, as well as the dietary specifications of each client expected to attend the conference. This in turn made it difficult for the hotel to plan appropriately on how best to host all the delegates. In addition, the company failed to plan for the best routes to use while transporting delegates from the airport to the hotel (Dennis and Harris, 2008). It is

Ancient Flood Stories (Problems for Critical Scholarship) Essay

Ancient Flood Stories (Problems for Critical Scholarship) - Essay Example However, it is not an easy task to find out the important details of these flood stories because of their extreme antiquity and the lack of supporting evidence except for a few broken shards or fragments of pottery that detail these flood stories. It is unswervingly a very daunting task indeed to verify the stories that will anchor them on historical details as many of these stories are seemingly myths or legends. This brief paper examines some of the challenges encountered in critical scholarship of stories like great floods which occurred a long time ago and for which records are incomplete. Discussion The aim of critical scholarship is to set historical records straight but problems are inevitable when the records are themselves incomplete or at times even contradictory. Many scholars, academicians, historians and archaeologists realize these limitations but still try to carry on with the task. In this regard, to claim certainty in the absence of corroborating pieces of evidence i s not only risky but also considered as reckless in terms of academic scholarship. To refer to something without a degree of certainty is likewise faulty, even deceptive. Several issues with regards to critical scholarship concerning these ancient flood stories pertain to the provenance of these stories, their lack of correspondence and the contradictions, the use of varying terms or emergence of several versions by different authors that hinders the task. The two most famous and well-read flood stories are that of the Biblical Noah's Ark and the Epic of Gilgamesh. The latter predates the former by a good thousand years or more, going back to at least the period of an actual king named Gilgamesh who had ruled a kingdom of Uruk in ancient Sumeria at around 2700 B.C.E. (before current era) but was written down on clay tablets only at around 2000 B.C.E. which were discovered only fairly recently in the libraries of King Ashurbanipal, who ruled around 700 B.C.E. by a young British museu m curator named George Smith back in 1872 and translated even much later (Mitchell 4). It is a story considered as the oldest-ever written story but what is even more remarkable is that it is very similar to Noah's Ark, especially the story about an immortal named Utnapishtim and a massive flood in his time. There are also many other similar stories about a great deluge in other cultures, namely that of the massive waters released by the Greek god Zeus, the Chinese version of a deluge in the great central river valley of the mighty Yangtze and the Indian story of Manu mentioned in ancient Sanskrit religious texts dating back to around 600 B.C.E. These stories have a familiar theme, the futility of fighting against the force of Nature or the powers of God although the themes may vary a bit, depending on context (History-world.org 1). Provenance – as stated earlier, the exact or precise origins of these flood stories defy even scholars and historians because of the passage of e xtremely long periods of time, dating back to antiquity itself. Based only on fragmentary records, with many pieces of evidence lacking, the best that can be done is make a conjecture or an approximation of their origins. It believed that the Epic of Gilgamesh is actually a literary masterpiece constructed by several authors and not just one writer, the story embellished with each successive re-telling. In many instances, the similarities between the Noahic story and Gilgamesh made historians surmise it was actually copied and translated into Hebrew by Moses circa 1450 B.C.E. and the Israelites brought

Assess the value of Kingdon's multiple streams approach for analysing Essay

Assess the value of Kingdon's multiple streams approach for analysing agenda-setting - Essay Example The multiple stream frameworks are a combination of different public issues as well as ideas and politics (Howlett & et. al., 2009). The framework provides an opportunity to move the policy issue in the government agenda. The framework is helpful in developing strategies that is applicable for different policy areas and analyse how the policies are framed in case of lack of self-interest of the individuals. The Kingdon model analyses the situation in which the issues are involved in the political agenda and puts certain problems at the different level of priority. In addition, this theory also describes how the alternative solution to the issues is developed (Zahariadis, 2007). The Kingdon model of multiple stream theory is based on three elements that are ‘policy’, ‘problem’ as well as ‘politics’ (Furlong, n.d.). The three factors of the model facilitate change in the policy. The three streams of the Kingdon model are different from each other and are often guided through separate rules. The problem factor of the model is essential for agenda setting because it defines certain condition of the concerned issue. The ideas of the policy makers are translated to relevant policies, as they are feasible and acceptable. On the other hand, the politics stream of the Kingdon model indicates the legislative turnover, the increase in administrative pressure or dependence on nation (Howlett & et. al., 2009). The implementation of the three streams of Kingdon model in public policy ensures increased attention of the policy makers because the three factors result affects the changes in agenda. Timing is one of the vital factors in agenda because it influences the particular problem and policies linked with the issue of public policy. The three elements of the Kingdon model are independent of each other. However, for the success of agenda it is necessary that any two

In Piazza San Domenico by Steve Galluccio Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

In Piazza San Domenico by Steve Galluccio - Essay Example The play is celebrated as a romantic comedy inspired by 'Feydeau, Goldoni and Sophia Loren,' and "it bears the mark of all three, with a dash of trademark Galluccio smut thrown in just to remind us that it's a modern-day spoof of the past." (Donnelly) Therefore, the play In Piazza San Domenico by Steve Galluccio attracts large number of audience, including me, and the play deviates from the ordinary plays within the world of theatre through the presentation of the days passed by with a satirical note. One of the most cheery and thoroughly entertaining comedies of love, lust and misunderstandings, In Piazza San Domenico was set in a burning hot August in Naples in 1952 and the main plot of the play centers on a series of misunderstandings which lead young Carmelina Benevento to believe that her fianc Guido is cheating on her with the town tramp Mafalda. When Carmelina unexpectedly faints upon hearing some bad news about Guido, there is a series of striking findings between people which provoke gossip and the series of misunderstandings run through the plot of the play.

No topic Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 10

No topic - Assignment Example This is a perfect representation of democracy as it is the voters’ opinions that are reflected on the elected leaders. #2.The voters are allowed to make independent choices too. They are never forced towards making a decision that satisfies the previous leaders’ wishes. Instead, they are issued with at least two leaders or choices to make in case of a referendum in the ballot paper. Hence, it is up to a voter to make his choice, which counts, in the final tally of the total. #3. In the aftermath of the elections, there are losers too. They are rather termed as the minority in the government. The minority are guaranteed rights such as freedom of speech and expression and the right to access the media/press. #4. All these actions of the minority are in an attempt to keep the majority (government) on toes to fulfil their promises to the citizens and live up to the expectations of a good government. The government then leads the country effectively and cannot be subdued by personal opinions/

Importance of Friedns in Life Essay Example for Free

Importance of Friedns in Life Essay Throughout the twenty-eight years of my life, I have had many friends, yet some of them would be called my admirable friends. No one of us can live without a friend. In truth, my friends can be divided into three types: honest friends, caring friends, and bibliophilic friends. My first exciting type of my friends is honest friends. Two of their prime traits are trustworthy and dutiful. They can tell me what the matters are with me even though they may not such good friends after telling. I remembered that when I had to evaluate my listening records, one of my friends said that my first record was terrible. She pointed out my weaknesses, so I could fix them. When I had difficult times, they helped me out and cheered me up. I was so appreciated another of my friends who I had lent money when I was unemployed in 2005. In addition, she spent time to drive me anywhere to look for jobs. This group of friends usually calls me to hang out with them, and we feel really happy together. I often go the mall with them at least once a week even though we cannot find out anything to buy. In short, this type of friends is wonderful for anytime. My second exciting type of my friends is caring friends. Two of their dominant traits are kind and sensitive. They know how to tell me what the problems are by the softest way. Last year, I got into a car accident. One of them came to see me right away after I called her. She had driven me to work and anywhere for two weeks. When my times are hard, they treated me kindly and helped me a lot. I will never forget another of my friends who had fed me for a couple weeks. I also borrowed her $200 at the time I had no job. However, she refused to take it back when I returned. This kind of friends is sensitive to my feelings, and they pay attention to me whether I am happy or sad. We often go out together for dinner or movie. As a result, they are delightful if I share or chat about my problems in my life. My third exciting type of my friends is bibliophilic friends. Two of their leading traits are awkward and intellective. They do not know how to observe on things delicately. By the time I asked my friend that how I dressed, she said that it was too ugly. They are sometimes with me when I have trouble although they are too busy in the libraries or work with their computers. They did not even know that I got into second accident in this January; however, they helped me out with homework from school. I remembered that when grandfather died in 2001, I had not gone to school for a week. One of them tried to write all of my lessons, and another one tried to explain to me those lessons. Nonetheless, they are not the kind of people who like to hang out with. They prefer staying the libraries to going shopping. To sum up, this group of people is satisfactory for a study, but they are not concordant with having fun. In conclusion, my truthful friends, my caring friends, and my bookworms have fulfilled my life with many significant things that they have done for me. I think it is important that we treat our friends well with respect and kindness just like they treat us. I am thankful to have those friends, and I will hold on them forever and ever.

Ecommerce in Tourism Industry

Ecommerce in Tourism Industry 2.1. Introduction to e-Commerce ‘Electronic commerce (e-Commerce) is such a service offering people the opportunity to do their shopping via modern information and communication technologies at home’ (Schultz, 2007). It enables everyone to conduct business via the Internet. The only precondition is a computer and a connection to the Internet. The term e-Commerce is becoming increasingly important in the dictionary of today’s tourism managers all around the world. This is reflected in the development of the overall online travel market turnover in Europe reaching a total of EUR 70 billion in the year 2008 (V-I-R, Verband Internet Reisevertrieb, 2009). The introduction of the internet represented both, major opportunities as well as threats, for the tourism industry. The internet erased physical borders and enables everyone to participate in a global marketplace. The only requisite is a computer and an internet access. This section explores the current dynamics within the broader area of e-Commerce and provides definitions for the incorporating aspects of business transactions via the Internet. The worldwide proliferation of the internet led to the birth of electronic transfer of transactional information. ‘E-Commerce flourished because of the openness, speed, anonymity, digitization, and global accessibility characteristics of the internet, which facilitated real-time business’ (Yu et al., 2002). One can of course argue, whether the anonymity of the Internet is still valid today. Maya Gadzheva (2008) for example, suggests that the ‘achievement of unobservability and anonymity in the Internet is going to be much more difficult in the future, due to the possibility of unlimited collection of data’. Through the aide of the internet tourism companies are able to market and sell their products to a far greater mass which represents substantial growth opportunities for them. According to Porter (2001), the ‘Internet technology provides better opportunities for companies to establish distinctive, strategic positioning than did previous generations of information technology’. However, those opportunities can also represent burdens for companies participating in transactions via the Internet. Those companies are now more than ever forced to keep their web sites up-to-date and to provide reliable information. Since the Internet is a very fast changing medium, it requires their participants, in this case the e-merchants, to keep up with this pace. In case the companies cannot fulfil these requirements, they will probably face a shift of customers to the competition. Especially the area of tourism, being labelled as largely information driven (Morgan et al., 2001) requires constantly updated and reliable information. Customers need to find every information they require on the web. They need to know where to search and they need to be convinced of the trustworthiness and reliability of this information. The ability to inform clients and to sell and market products in the virtual marketplace is a critical success factor for economic triumph of tourism companies nowadays and in the future. The website is thus a digital business card of tourism companies and one of their most effective sales persons at the same time. ‘Internet technology provides buyers with easier access to information about products and suppliers, thus bolstering buyer bargaining power’ (Porter, 2001). This will also decrease the costs of switching suppliers (or tourism companies). That is the downturn of the Internet. Competitors are only a few mouse clicks away (Porter, 2001) and the whole industry becomes more transparent. Just about every company participating in e-Commerce is obviously forced to list prices of their holiday components. This facilitates the comparability of tourism services. Customers do now have access to all kinds of information that facilitate as well as influence their holiday choice. Since tourism companies can no longer differentiate themselves from the competition by pricing means, the corporate website, and the online booking process of a holiday becomes progressively more important. This involves the appearance of the website, including usability and content related features, but also everything concerning the actual booking process and transaction handling. The tourism company (the seller) and the customer (the buyer) conducting business over the internet have usually never seen each other face-to-face, nor do they exchange currency or hard copies of documents hand-to-hand. When payments are to be made over a telecommunications network such as the internet, accuracy and security become critical (Yu et al., 2002). In other words this would mean that customers need to transfer extremely private information like credit card details to a complete stranger. Summarizing this section it can be said that Internet and e-Commerce present various advantages for tourism customers, since companies and offers are more transparent and easier to compare. Furthermore, improvements in IT technology will enhance the search for relevant information and facilitate the navigation in the World Wide Web. However, there are also threatening factors for tourism companies. Competition will become stronger, since competitors are only a few mouse clicks away, switching costs for customers are much longer and due to their access to nearly unlimited information the customers’ bargaining power will increase. Nonetheless, tourism companies who can keep up with the fast pace of the Internet and who are able to convince customers of the reliability, trustworthiness and timeliness of their displayed offers and information will benefit from the Internet. 2.2. Online Trust or eTrust What is (online) trust? A first step towards the answer of this question can be made by looking at various definitions of the term trust. Trust is defined as ‘the trait of believing in the honesty and reliability of others’ (Wordnet, Princeton University, 2006). According to this definition, buyers conducting transactions via the Internet will have to rely on a person or institution they may have never seen or even heard of. This would certainly be not sufficient as an assurance for most of us. Another definition defines trust as ‘to hope or wish’ (Wordnet, Princeton University, 2006). Summarizing this would mean that we need to rely on the goodwill of the other party and hope or wish that it will act as it was promised. Those definitions might be a good starting point in explaining the meaning of trust, but they certainly do not seem to be convenient for most of us. Bà ¶hle et al. (2000) argue that trust is a precondition for flourishing e-Commerce. Shankar et al. (2002) advance a different view, although they classify ‘(online) trust as being important in both business-to-business and business-to-consumer e-business’. Koufaris and Hampton-Sosa (2004) pursue a similar way of argumentation. They suggest that ‘lack of trust in online companies is a primary reason why many users do not shop online’. Another author, Peter Landrock (2002), founder and managing director of Cryptomathic UK Ltd., one of the world’s leading providers of security solutions to businesses, points out that ‘without such trust, neither businesses nor consumers will conduct transactions or sensitive communications across this medium (the Internet)’. This argument is being supported by a recently conducted study by Ernst Young and the Information Technology Association of America who concluded ‘that trust represents one of the most fundamental issues impacting the growth of e-Commerce’ (Talwatte, 2000). Strader and Shaw (Chadwick, 2001) point out that ‘consumers are more likely to buy from an online company they trust, when price differences are small’. Thos would in turn imply that whenever price differences are significant, customers are willing to accept a higher level of uncertainty and perceived risk in transactions with companies they do not know or trust. According to those argumentations one can say that trust is the major precondition for both, businesses as well as consumers to conduct transactions via the Internet. ‘Trust is a key challenge to the customer acceptance of e-Commerce: the lack of trust is an important reason for the hesitant growth in e-Commerce and for the reluctance of consumers to engage in online buying transactions’ (Schultz, 2007). A Forrester Survey from 2000 stated that ‘51% of companies would not do business with parties they do not trust over the web’ (Shankar et al., 2002). However, this would also mean that 49% of companies would do business with companies they do not trust. Trust needs to be strongly combined with uncertainty and ambiguity. The more information a buyer has about the seller, the better can he or she estimates whether the seller will act as it was promised. Thus, the better the information about a seller the better can he or she be trusted. Good examples for this assumption are online marketplaces like eBay or Amazon. Those two providers offer nearly everyone the possibility to participate in e-Business. Since they recognized the increased need from customers for information about sellers, they introduced up-to-date ratings. Every seller can be rated after transactions whether buyers have been satisfied with the transaction process or not. The higher and better the rating, the more trustworthy is the seller (in a simplified way). These ratings are good indications for (unexperienced) buyers, since they equip them with information about the seller’s past performance in transactions. Other ways in creating trustworthiness are so-called trust seals. ‘Those seals are issued by third parties to verify the commitment of an e-vendor’ (Cook and Luo, 2003; Hu et al., 2003; Kaplan and Nieschwitz, 2003; Koufaris and Hampton-Sosa, 2004; Loebbecke, 2003; Patton and Jà ¸sang, 2004; Urban et al., 2000; Yang et al., 2006; in Schultz, 2007). Trust seals are generally indicated via symbols on the web site of the seller. Those seals are a sign that the seller conducts business according to the standards of the third party, the trust seal provider, and/or that the seller conducts business as promised by the statements and policies on the web site (Schultz, 2007). ‘Further measures to increase trust are security features, the availability of alternative payment methods, privacy, security and return policies and feedback mechanisms and consumer communities’ (Schultz, 2007). ‘Security is the main concern of consumers before engaging in e-business with a seller’ (Schultz, 2007; Hinde 1998). ‘Sellers need to incorporate certain security features into the design of their web sites in order to ensure the safety of the whole transaction process’ (see Credit Card) (Schultz, 2007). Offering alternative methods of payment is another approach of the seller to signal the willingness to adapt to the customers’ needs. Being able to choose a method of payment equips the customer with the perceived power over a part of the transaction process. It is essential to display the ‘rules of the game’. Privacy, security and return policies need to present on every seller’s web site in order to inform the customer properly. This will not only increase trust but will also facilitate processes in case of complaints or other problems. The provision of customer feedback mechanism (ratings, reply forms, forums, etc.) is another way for customers to increase knowledge and gather information about a seller. The advantage is that customers can exchange with previous customers of the seller. This way they can obtain an objective evaluation of the seller. However, sellers can also manipulate those forums by uploading faked ratings or deleting negative ratings or feedbacks. Again, the customer needs to develop trust in these kinds of information. Furthermore, customers do also need to develop trust in the IT infrastructure they are using, since this will be the mean of communicating the transactional data between the seller and the buyer. In other words, consumers not trusting the technology they are using for an intended transaction via the Internet will not participate in any e-Business transaction unless they feel confident with the security. When considering security issues, a public key infrastructure (PKI) that can provide secure authentication on the Internet is an important step towards secure Internet transactions. It can help to build trust, reduce the potential for fraud, ensure privacy and provide merchants with non-repudiation (Bà ¶hle et al., 2000). It is essential for the merchant that the customer can trust him, his connection and Website and the payment system used. Otherwise there will not be any transactions between the two parties. Summarizing this section it can be said that information is the key to (nearly) everything. A higher level of information about the other transactional party will increase the level of trust, since uncertainty and ambiguity can be erased at least to a certain extent. Furthermore, it is essential to create awareness for technologies and tools needed for security improvements and the development of trust. These tools and technologies can involve ‘soft’ components like trust seals and customer feedback forums. The ‘harder’ components are embedded in the aspect of IT infrastructure. This includes improvements in the encryption and network and database security. 2.3. Electronic Payment Systems Monetary transactions via the Internet do always involve risks and uncertainty. In most of the cases, there is no personal interaction involved. That means that the customer has to put a considerable amount of trust in the seller’s promise to fulfil everything that has been agreed upon during the confirmation of the purchase (e.g. the delivery of the ordered products or services on time, in the right quality and that the agreed amount of money is charged) (Schultz, 2007; Chadwick, 2001). According to Lammer (2006) ‘Electronic Payment Systems or e-Payment Systems may be defined as all payments that are initiated, processed and received electronically’. The main concern with electronic payment systems is the level of security in each step of the transaction, because money and merchandise are transferred while there is no direct contact between the two sides involved in the transaction. If there is even the slightest possibility that the payment system may not be secure, trust and confidence in this system will begin to erode, destroying the infrastructure needed for electronic commerce (Yu et al., 2002). The customer is concerned right from the point he is connected to the website of the seller. The risk of losing private information like contact details, credit card or bank account information is a primary concern of the customer. Therefore, it is necessary that both, the seller as well as the customer take care for the security of their own network as well as with the data exchanged during the transaction. In Germany, there are currently up to ten different electronic payment methods used with varying frequency and success. The author will only refer to those payment systems which are applicable for intangible goods, such as holidays. The definitions below are based on the work of Stroborn et al. (2004), who were arguing that one way to ‘classify different payment instruments is by the point of time when the liquidity effect sets in from the payer’s point of view that means the exact point in time when the customer’s account is charged with the payment’. ‘Following this premise, one can distinguish between â€Å"prepaid†, â€Å"pay-now† and â€Å"pay-later† systems’ (Stroborn et.al, 2004). Other authors (Yu et al., 2002, Dannenberg Ulrich, 2004) categorized payment systems with regard to the following variables. ‘The first variable is the ‘size or the amount of the payment’ (e.g. micro-payments). The second variable depends on the ‘type of transaction’, e.g. credit card, paying via e-mail (PayPal)’, etc. It can be argued which of these two different approaches in classifying e-payment systems is the most appropriate. However, the author decides to use the classification of Stroborn et al. (2004) for the reason that this type of classification can be best applied to the underlying topic of this work, due to the following facts. The ability to differentiate e-Payment systems by the time, the liquidity effect sets in is important within the industry of tourism. Holiday components, especially cruises are oftentimes financed using prepayments of customers. Therefore, it is particularly important for cruise lines to know which of the offered payment systems allow them to use prepayments as financing means. On the other hand, customers do always want a certain level of security, especially when they purchase a holiday, which is certainly not an everyday expense with regard to the amount charged. Therefore, equipping customers with the perceived power of determining the point of time when the actual payment will be processed will result in a beneficial feeling on the side of the customer. This equipment of perceived power is another way of demonstrating willingness to adapt to customer needs. Customers seem to have all under control, since they receive the product before they have to pay for it. So the seller has already delivered the agreed upon product or service. 2.3.1 Pre-Paid-payment systems The different Pre-Paid-payment systems currently in use in Germany will not be further explained. Systems like GeldKarte, MicroMoney or WEB.Cent are being used to settle small-or micro-payments up to usually â‚ ¬ 100. In this respect an application within the tourism industry is of no relevance. According to the DRV (Deutscher Reiseverband, 2008), the majority of holidays booked via the Internet was between â‚ ¬ 500 -â‚ ¬ 1.500 (55, 1% of all holidays). 2.3.2 Pay-Now-payment systems ‘So called pay-now systems debit the account of the customer at the exact time the customer purchases something. Cash-on-Delivery (COD) and debit entry are well established examples today’ (Stroborn et al., 2004). Online Transfer: According to Monika E. Hartmann (Lammer, 2006) online transfer can be defined as follows: These services are embedded in the online shopping process, e.g. via an automatic popup window connecting to the service provider and already containing all necessary transaction details. The customer is invited to choose a payment option and provide his account details. The completed transaction data set will be routed to the relevant payment service provider for authorization. After successful payment authorization the bank (or the payment service provider) confirms the payment to the merchant so that the purchase transaction can be completed (Lammer, 2006). COD (Cash-on-Delivery) COD is usually used for the settlement of amounts for physical goods. Customers order their desired articles over the website of an online merchant. The goods are then delivered by a mail service. In addition to the price of the delivered goods, the customer pays also COD charges to the delivery service. The mail delivery service then mails a money order to the internet merchant. Due to the simultaneous exchange of physical goods and money, COD is said to protect consumer and merchant at the same time. Nevertheless, it is considered not to be cost-effective and awkward for the consumer, who needs to be present for the delivery. Additionally, this payment method cannot be used for goods delivered electronically (Stroborn et al., 2004). M-Payments (Mobile Payments) M-Payment is such a service, where the mobile phone of the customer in combination with a PIN number deals as authentication device. Whenever the customer wants to purchase goods or transfer money, he or she is called by a third party, e.g. Paybox (www.paybox.net), on his or her mobile phone. He needs to confirm the transaction with a PIN. The sum of the transaction is then debited from the customer’s bank account (Stroborn et al., 2004). According to a recent study conducted by the Verband Internet Reisevertrieb, v-i-r (2007), only two percent of all holiday purchases have been settled using mpayments. However, this payment method is expected to grow tremendously in the future. This is already indicated by the awareness level of m-payments. Although only two percent had used m-payments to settle their online purchases, more than 23% of all respondents are aware of the possibility of using mobile payments. Debit Entry ‘The process of a debit entry requires the receiver of the payment, the seller, to inform his banking institution to charge the account of the buyer with a certain amount. This amount is in turn booked on the account of the seller’ (www.wikipedia.org). PayPal With over 150 million registered accounts worldwide (PayPal, 2009), PayPal is one of the most successful internet-based payment schemes. Authentication is done via the personal e-mail address of the customer in addition to the entry of a password. The amount is then debited from the customer’s PayPal account. Customers using PayPal will benefit since they will no longer have to reveal their debit or credit card number. Furthermore, the whole transaction process is speeded up due to the fact that customers no longer need to enter their address details. PayPal also promotes its product as being more secure in comparison with other e-payment schemes. 2.3.3 Pay-Later-payment systems ‘In terms of pay-later-systems (e.g. credit cards), the customer actually receives the goods before being debited’ (Stroborn et al., 2004). However, this depends upon the point in time when the customers’ bank account is being debited. It is also possible, particularly within the area of tourism that the bank account is debited before the holiday is ‘consumed’. Within the tourism industry it is a common practice to book and purchase holidays long time in advance. Especially in terms of family holidays, customers like to book in advance, since they do only have a small time frame (namely the school holidays) where they can go on holiday. So, holidays in these periods are strongly demanded. Thus there is an incentive for customers to book as early in advance as possible. In this case, the classification of Stroborn et al. (2004) is not valid anymore. The holiday is purchased long before it is consumed and thus the bank account will also be debited before the consumption. Credit Card ‘Settling payments via the use of the credit card is the most commonly used payment method worldwide. Nearly 90 % of all items and goods purchased via the Internet are paid by credit card’ (Dannenberg Ulrich, 2004). Stroborn et al. differentiate between three basic ways of credit card payments via the Internet: An unsecured transaction ‘A transaction via Secure Socket Layer (SSL), which is a sort of digital envelope. SSL is the de facto standard for secure online transactions, preventing eavesdroppers from learning customers’ account details’ (Ashrafi Ng, 2009). The SSL technology establishes a secure communication channel between the participants of an online transaction. ‘a transaction employing Secure Electronic Transaction Protocol (SET), which is currently considered as the safest credit-card-based payment systems on the Internet’ (Stroborn et al., 2004). Recapitulating this section again highlights the importance of awareness. According to Monika Hartmann (Lammer, 2006) ‘many payment solutions did not succeed in reaching a critical mass of users’. This can be seen in within the example of Mpayments. Payment methods may be very useful, however if they do not manage to reach a critical mass of users, they will not succeed in the market. So customers need to be enlightened about the different payment methods available and the advantages and disadvantages involved. In addition the aspect of trust reappears in this section. Customers need to trust the security of their Internet connection in the first place before they are conducting any business transactions. 3.1 Factors favouring the growth of e-Commerce in tourism The introduction of the internet as well as the ability to pay for goods and services via electronic payment systems created potential advantages for customers as well as for tourism companies. ‘The marketing of an intangible product such as tourism largely depends upon visual presentation’ (Morgan et al., 2001). With the Internet, marketers finally found the perfect tool. The capability of combining the presentation of facts and figures, emotional pictures and the whole booking process is a huge asset for tourism companies. Buhalis (Morgan et al., 2001) stated that ‘organizations and destinations which need to compete will be forced to compute’. Thereby, he assigns companies participating in e-Commerce a significant competitive advantage. According to a recent study of the VIR (Verband Internet Reisevertrieb, 2007) customers value the easy and fast way of booking trips via the internet. Furthermore, they appreciate the possibility to customize their trips, to see if their desired holiday is still available and the extensive range of offerings. The possibility to pay per credit card and the savings in terms of time they need to invest are also big advantages for German customers booking their trips and holidays via the Internet. Cheyne et al. (2006) suggested that ‘the Internet is providing the means for suppliers and consumers to bypass the travel agent and interact directly’. Furthermore, many writers propose that ‘the Internet furnishes travel consumers with more information, quicker responses and often lower prices than they can achieve when making travel arrangements through a traditional travel agent’ (Cheyne et al., 2006). Tania Lang, a senior consultant at Cap Gemini Ernst Young, stated in her work in 2000 that ‘there are a variety of factors providing advantages and benefits for the users of the Internet’. Amongst those factors is the access for availability enquiries and bookings when consumers want to research and purchase travel. Customers are no longer restricted to the opening times of their local travel agency. According to Buhalis (Lang, 2000), ‘the ability to access information which is detailed and up to date assists the travel consumer by making the product more tangible in their mind’. Another important advantage of e-Commerce in tourism is the bypass of travel agent fees and the access to online discounts. Lang (2000) stated that there is a ‘cost advantage in purchasing travel online as a result of the market becoming more competitive. These cost advantages can also be explained by decreasing distribution costs’. Concluding this section it can be suggested that customers will benefit tremendously from e-Commerce in the tourism industry. They will be faced with lower prices, since no intermediaries are involved any more so that potential cost savings can be achieved. In addition to this, the authors cited above implied that the visual representation of holidays will improve due the recent and upcoming developments in technology. According to this, there should not be any disadvantages for customers and conducting bookings via the Internet are the best solution for the future. However customers will also have to sacrifice in certain aspects as well as they will have to experience that bookings holidays via the Internet might not be that advantageous as the following section will point out. 3.2 Factors for the hesitant growth of e-Commerce in tourism In 2009, Prashant Palvia argues that ‘the Internet is far from achieving its potential due to the reluctance of consumers to engage in its use’. Palvia (2009) stresses this assumption by a recent study, indicating that sales of online retailers were only 2, 2% of total goods sold in the U.S. in 2005. Moreover, analysts have predicted that even by 2011, e-Commerce sales would only account for only 7%. According to Tania Lang (2000), there are certain barriers or disadvantages of the Internet and the World Wide Web (WWW) for consumers. Amongst those factors, the ‘lacks of a human interface and of confidence in the technology as well as security issues have a high relevance’. There are a lot of situations, where a customer has built a strong relationship to his travel agent. For some travellers, the actual booking process (whether via a travel agency or the Internet) is already part of the holiday itself. The booking process might even be some kind of ritual which is carried out in exactly the same manner every time the customer goes on holiday. Those loyalty or relational factors are hard to be erased or replaced by the Internet which is in fact a major threat to electronic commerce in the tourism industry. A number of authors maintain that ‘travel agents provide better services, especially when more complex products are to be purchased’ (Cheyne et al., 2006). ‘Those complex travel arrangements are more information intensive and therefore needs consultation of travel agents compared to less complex holiday components such as flights or rail tickets’. Other authors, including Inkpen, Lyle and Paulson (Cheyne et al., 2006) argue that ‘travel agents can offer a more personalized service and provide unbiased advices that add value for the customer’. Concerning the latter assumption one can argue that this is true for inexperienced or first-time users. Customers, who are familiar with the Internet and know where to find the information they are looking for, will not need the advice of the travel agent no more. First of all, the travel agent might provide them with information they already know or find by themselves. Secondly, travel agents are biased too, regarding the amount of commissions they receive for the sale of products. Another case where customers do not need the advice of the travel agent are repeated holidays, meaning customers who always travel to the same hotel. Those customers will not benefit from a travel agent’s consultancy. Summarizing this, one can say that ‘the service offered by travel agents is value adding for customers, who are inexperienced with the process of online booking and for customers who want to travel to a variety of different destinations’ (comparing Cheyne et al., 2006). The lack of confidence in the technology as well as the mistrust in security are the two other major disadvantages of the Internet that Tania Lang has determined. She points out that the ‘main barrier stopping consumers from booking travel via the Internet is the perceived lack of a secure payment method’ (Lang, 2000). ‘The main concern with electronic payment is the level of security in each step of the transaction, because money and merchandise are transferred while there is no direct contact between the two sides involved in the transaction’ (Yu et al., 2002). ‘If there is even the slightest possibility that the payment system may not be secure, trust and confidence in this system will begin to erode, destroying the infrastructure needed for electronic commerce’ (Yu et al., 2002). Putting this in other words, tourism companies may have the perfect product in terms of price quality ratio. However, the company will not be able to sell its products to a greater mass if their payment system is lacking security. This will not only erode trust in the payment system itself, but may also affect the customers’ acceptance of the company, thus affecting the company’s reputation, image and profits. In 1998, Haas surveyed that even though ‘many Internet users go online to find product information, most users prefer to log off and buy their goods through traditional sales channels’. Of course, this trend has increasingly changed over the last years; however, still today customers inform themselves over the Internet without performing t Ecommerce in Tourism Industry Ecommerce in Tourism Industry 2.1. Introduction to e-Commerce ‘Electronic commerce (e-Commerce) is such a service offering people the opportunity to do their shopping via modern information and communication technologies at home’ (Schultz, 2007). It enables everyone to conduct business via the Internet. The only precondition is a computer and a connection to the Internet. The term e-Commerce is becoming increasingly important in the dictionary of today’s tourism managers all around the world. This is reflected in the development of the overall online travel market turnover in Europe reaching a total of EUR 70 billion in the year 2008 (V-I-R, Verband Internet Reisevertrieb, 2009). The introduction of the internet represented both, major opportunities as well as threats, for the tourism industry. The internet erased physical borders and enables everyone to participate in a global marketplace. The only requisite is a computer and an internet access. This section explores the current dynamics within the broader area of e-Commerce and provides definitions for the incorporating aspects of business transactions via the Internet. The worldwide proliferation of the internet led to the birth of electronic transfer of transactional information. ‘E-Commerce flourished because of the openness, speed, anonymity, digitization, and global accessibility characteristics of the internet, which facilitated real-time business’ (Yu et al., 2002). One can of course argue, whether the anonymity of the Internet is still valid today. Maya Gadzheva (2008) for example, suggests that the ‘achievement of unobservability and anonymity in the Internet is going to be much more difficult in the future, due to the possibility of unlimited collection of data’. Through the aide of the internet tourism companies are able to market and sell their products to a far greater mass which represents substantial growth opportunities for them. According to Porter (2001), the ‘Internet technology provides better opportunities for companies to establish distinctive, strategic positioning than did previous generations of information technology’. However, those opportunities can also represent burdens for companies participating in transactions via the Internet. Those companies are now more than ever forced to keep their web sites up-to-date and to provide reliable information. Since the Internet is a very fast changing medium, it requires their participants, in this case the e-merchants, to keep up with this pace. In case the companies cannot fulfil these requirements, they will probably face a shift of customers to the competition. Especially the area of tourism, being labelled as largely information driven (Morgan et al., 2001) requires constantly updated and reliable information. Customers need to find every information they require on the web. They need to know where to search and they need to be convinced of the trustworthiness and reliability of this information. The ability to inform clients and to sell and market products in the virtual marketplace is a critical success factor for economic triumph of tourism companies nowadays and in the future. The website is thus a digital business card of tourism companies and one of their most effective sales persons at the same time. ‘Internet technology provides buyers with easier access to information about products and suppliers, thus bolstering buyer bargaining power’ (Porter, 2001). This will also decrease the costs of switching suppliers (or tourism companies). That is the downturn of the Internet. Competitors are only a few mouse clicks away (Porter, 2001) and the whole industry becomes more transparent. Just about every company participating in e-Commerce is obviously forced to list prices of their holiday components. This facilitates the comparability of tourism services. Customers do now have access to all kinds of information that facilitate as well as influence their holiday choice. Since tourism companies can no longer differentiate themselves from the competition by pricing means, the corporate website, and the online booking process of a holiday becomes progressively more important. This involves the appearance of the website, including usability and content related features, but also everything concerning the actual booking process and transaction handling. The tourism company (the seller) and the customer (the buyer) conducting business over the internet have usually never seen each other face-to-face, nor do they exchange currency or hard copies of documents hand-to-hand. When payments are to be made over a telecommunications network such as the internet, accuracy and security become critical (Yu et al., 2002). In other words this would mean that customers need to transfer extremely private information like credit card details to a complete stranger. Summarizing this section it can be said that Internet and e-Commerce present various advantages for tourism customers, since companies and offers are more transparent and easier to compare. Furthermore, improvements in IT technology will enhance the search for relevant information and facilitate the navigation in the World Wide Web. However, there are also threatening factors for tourism companies. Competition will become stronger, since competitors are only a few mouse clicks away, switching costs for customers are much longer and due to their access to nearly unlimited information the customers’ bargaining power will increase. Nonetheless, tourism companies who can keep up with the fast pace of the Internet and who are able to convince customers of the reliability, trustworthiness and timeliness of their displayed offers and information will benefit from the Internet. 2.2. Online Trust or eTrust What is (online) trust? A first step towards the answer of this question can be made by looking at various definitions of the term trust. Trust is defined as ‘the trait of believing in the honesty and reliability of others’ (Wordnet, Princeton University, 2006). According to this definition, buyers conducting transactions via the Internet will have to rely on a person or institution they may have never seen or even heard of. This would certainly be not sufficient as an assurance for most of us. Another definition defines trust as ‘to hope or wish’ (Wordnet, Princeton University, 2006). Summarizing this would mean that we need to rely on the goodwill of the other party and hope or wish that it will act as it was promised. Those definitions might be a good starting point in explaining the meaning of trust, but they certainly do not seem to be convenient for most of us. Bà ¶hle et al. (2000) argue that trust is a precondition for flourishing e-Commerce. Shankar et al. (2002) advance a different view, although they classify ‘(online) trust as being important in both business-to-business and business-to-consumer e-business’. Koufaris and Hampton-Sosa (2004) pursue a similar way of argumentation. They suggest that ‘lack of trust in online companies is a primary reason why many users do not shop online’. Another author, Peter Landrock (2002), founder and managing director of Cryptomathic UK Ltd., one of the world’s leading providers of security solutions to businesses, points out that ‘without such trust, neither businesses nor consumers will conduct transactions or sensitive communications across this medium (the Internet)’. This argument is being supported by a recently conducted study by Ernst Young and the Information Technology Association of America who concluded ‘that trust represents one of the most fundamental issues impacting the growth of e-Commerce’ (Talwatte, 2000). Strader and Shaw (Chadwick, 2001) point out that ‘consumers are more likely to buy from an online company they trust, when price differences are small’. Thos would in turn imply that whenever price differences are significant, customers are willing to accept a higher level of uncertainty and perceived risk in transactions with companies they do not know or trust. According to those argumentations one can say that trust is the major precondition for both, businesses as well as consumers to conduct transactions via the Internet. ‘Trust is a key challenge to the customer acceptance of e-Commerce: the lack of trust is an important reason for the hesitant growth in e-Commerce and for the reluctance of consumers to engage in online buying transactions’ (Schultz, 2007). A Forrester Survey from 2000 stated that ‘51% of companies would not do business with parties they do not trust over the web’ (Shankar et al., 2002). However, this would also mean that 49% of companies would do business with companies they do not trust. Trust needs to be strongly combined with uncertainty and ambiguity. The more information a buyer has about the seller, the better can he or she estimates whether the seller will act as it was promised. Thus, the better the information about a seller the better can he or she be trusted. Good examples for this assumption are online marketplaces like eBay or Amazon. Those two providers offer nearly everyone the possibility to participate in e-Business. Since they recognized the increased need from customers for information about sellers, they introduced up-to-date ratings. Every seller can be rated after transactions whether buyers have been satisfied with the transaction process or not. The higher and better the rating, the more trustworthy is the seller (in a simplified way). These ratings are good indications for (unexperienced) buyers, since they equip them with information about the seller’s past performance in transactions. Other ways in creating trustworthiness are so-called trust seals. ‘Those seals are issued by third parties to verify the commitment of an e-vendor’ (Cook and Luo, 2003; Hu et al., 2003; Kaplan and Nieschwitz, 2003; Koufaris and Hampton-Sosa, 2004; Loebbecke, 2003; Patton and Jà ¸sang, 2004; Urban et al., 2000; Yang et al., 2006; in Schultz, 2007). Trust seals are generally indicated via symbols on the web site of the seller. Those seals are a sign that the seller conducts business according to the standards of the third party, the trust seal provider, and/or that the seller conducts business as promised by the statements and policies on the web site (Schultz, 2007). ‘Further measures to increase trust are security features, the availability of alternative payment methods, privacy, security and return policies and feedback mechanisms and consumer communities’ (Schultz, 2007). ‘Security is the main concern of consumers before engaging in e-business with a seller’ (Schultz, 2007; Hinde 1998). ‘Sellers need to incorporate certain security features into the design of their web sites in order to ensure the safety of the whole transaction process’ (see Credit Card) (Schultz, 2007). Offering alternative methods of payment is another approach of the seller to signal the willingness to adapt to the customers’ needs. Being able to choose a method of payment equips the customer with the perceived power over a part of the transaction process. It is essential to display the ‘rules of the game’. Privacy, security and return policies need to present on every seller’s web site in order to inform the customer properly. This will not only increase trust but will also facilitate processes in case of complaints or other problems. The provision of customer feedback mechanism (ratings, reply forms, forums, etc.) is another way for customers to increase knowledge and gather information about a seller. The advantage is that customers can exchange with previous customers of the seller. This way they can obtain an objective evaluation of the seller. However, sellers can also manipulate those forums by uploading faked ratings or deleting negative ratings or feedbacks. Again, the customer needs to develop trust in these kinds of information. Furthermore, customers do also need to develop trust in the IT infrastructure they are using, since this will be the mean of communicating the transactional data between the seller and the buyer. In other words, consumers not trusting the technology they are using for an intended transaction via the Internet will not participate in any e-Business transaction unless they feel confident with the security. When considering security issues, a public key infrastructure (PKI) that can provide secure authentication on the Internet is an important step towards secure Internet transactions. It can help to build trust, reduce the potential for fraud, ensure privacy and provide merchants with non-repudiation (Bà ¶hle et al., 2000). It is essential for the merchant that the customer can trust him, his connection and Website and the payment system used. Otherwise there will not be any transactions between the two parties. Summarizing this section it can be said that information is the key to (nearly) everything. A higher level of information about the other transactional party will increase the level of trust, since uncertainty and ambiguity can be erased at least to a certain extent. Furthermore, it is essential to create awareness for technologies and tools needed for security improvements and the development of trust. These tools and technologies can involve ‘soft’ components like trust seals and customer feedback forums. The ‘harder’ components are embedded in the aspect of IT infrastructure. This includes improvements in the encryption and network and database security. 2.3. Electronic Payment Systems Monetary transactions via the Internet do always involve risks and uncertainty. In most of the cases, there is no personal interaction involved. That means that the customer has to put a considerable amount of trust in the seller’s promise to fulfil everything that has been agreed upon during the confirmation of the purchase (e.g. the delivery of the ordered products or services on time, in the right quality and that the agreed amount of money is charged) (Schultz, 2007; Chadwick, 2001). According to Lammer (2006) ‘Electronic Payment Systems or e-Payment Systems may be defined as all payments that are initiated, processed and received electronically’. The main concern with electronic payment systems is the level of security in each step of the transaction, because money and merchandise are transferred while there is no direct contact between the two sides involved in the transaction. If there is even the slightest possibility that the payment system may not be secure, trust and confidence in this system will begin to erode, destroying the infrastructure needed for electronic commerce (Yu et al., 2002). The customer is concerned right from the point he is connected to the website of the seller. The risk of losing private information like contact details, credit card or bank account information is a primary concern of the customer. Therefore, it is necessary that both, the seller as well as the customer take care for the security of their own network as well as with the data exchanged during the transaction. In Germany, there are currently up to ten different electronic payment methods used with varying frequency and success. The author will only refer to those payment systems which are applicable for intangible goods, such as holidays. The definitions below are based on the work of Stroborn et al. (2004), who were arguing that one way to ‘classify different payment instruments is by the point of time when the liquidity effect sets in from the payer’s point of view that means the exact point in time when the customer’s account is charged with the payment’. ‘Following this premise, one can distinguish between â€Å"prepaid†, â€Å"pay-now† and â€Å"pay-later† systems’ (Stroborn et.al, 2004). Other authors (Yu et al., 2002, Dannenberg Ulrich, 2004) categorized payment systems with regard to the following variables. ‘The first variable is the ‘size or the amount of the payment’ (e.g. micro-payments). The second variable depends on the ‘type of transaction’, e.g. credit card, paying via e-mail (PayPal)’, etc. It can be argued which of these two different approaches in classifying e-payment systems is the most appropriate. However, the author decides to use the classification of Stroborn et al. (2004) for the reason that this type of classification can be best applied to the underlying topic of this work, due to the following facts. The ability to differentiate e-Payment systems by the time, the liquidity effect sets in is important within the industry of tourism. Holiday components, especially cruises are oftentimes financed using prepayments of customers. Therefore, it is particularly important for cruise lines to know which of the offered payment systems allow them to use prepayments as financing means. On the other hand, customers do always want a certain level of security, especially when they purchase a holiday, which is certainly not an everyday expense with regard to the amount charged. Therefore, equipping customers with the perceived power of determining the point of time when the actual payment will be processed will result in a beneficial feeling on the side of the customer. This equipment of perceived power is another way of demonstrating willingness to adapt to customer needs. Customers seem to have all under control, since they receive the product before they have to pay for it. So the seller has already delivered the agreed upon product or service. 2.3.1 Pre-Paid-payment systems The different Pre-Paid-payment systems currently in use in Germany will not be further explained. Systems like GeldKarte, MicroMoney or WEB.Cent are being used to settle small-or micro-payments up to usually â‚ ¬ 100. In this respect an application within the tourism industry is of no relevance. According to the DRV (Deutscher Reiseverband, 2008), the majority of holidays booked via the Internet was between â‚ ¬ 500 -â‚ ¬ 1.500 (55, 1% of all holidays). 2.3.2 Pay-Now-payment systems ‘So called pay-now systems debit the account of the customer at the exact time the customer purchases something. Cash-on-Delivery (COD) and debit entry are well established examples today’ (Stroborn et al., 2004). Online Transfer: According to Monika E. Hartmann (Lammer, 2006) online transfer can be defined as follows: These services are embedded in the online shopping process, e.g. via an automatic popup window connecting to the service provider and already containing all necessary transaction details. The customer is invited to choose a payment option and provide his account details. The completed transaction data set will be routed to the relevant payment service provider for authorization. After successful payment authorization the bank (or the payment service provider) confirms the payment to the merchant so that the purchase transaction can be completed (Lammer, 2006). COD (Cash-on-Delivery) COD is usually used for the settlement of amounts for physical goods. Customers order their desired articles over the website of an online merchant. The goods are then delivered by a mail service. In addition to the price of the delivered goods, the customer pays also COD charges to the delivery service. The mail delivery service then mails a money order to the internet merchant. Due to the simultaneous exchange of physical goods and money, COD is said to protect consumer and merchant at the same time. Nevertheless, it is considered not to be cost-effective and awkward for the consumer, who needs to be present for the delivery. Additionally, this payment method cannot be used for goods delivered electronically (Stroborn et al., 2004). M-Payments (Mobile Payments) M-Payment is such a service, where the mobile phone of the customer in combination with a PIN number deals as authentication device. Whenever the customer wants to purchase goods or transfer money, he or she is called by a third party, e.g. Paybox (www.paybox.net), on his or her mobile phone. He needs to confirm the transaction with a PIN. The sum of the transaction is then debited from the customer’s bank account (Stroborn et al., 2004). According to a recent study conducted by the Verband Internet Reisevertrieb, v-i-r (2007), only two percent of all holiday purchases have been settled using mpayments. However, this payment method is expected to grow tremendously in the future. This is already indicated by the awareness level of m-payments. Although only two percent had used m-payments to settle their online purchases, more than 23% of all respondents are aware of the possibility of using mobile payments. Debit Entry ‘The process of a debit entry requires the receiver of the payment, the seller, to inform his banking institution to charge the account of the buyer with a certain amount. This amount is in turn booked on the account of the seller’ (www.wikipedia.org). PayPal With over 150 million registered accounts worldwide (PayPal, 2009), PayPal is one of the most successful internet-based payment schemes. Authentication is done via the personal e-mail address of the customer in addition to the entry of a password. The amount is then debited from the customer’s PayPal account. Customers using PayPal will benefit since they will no longer have to reveal their debit or credit card number. Furthermore, the whole transaction process is speeded up due to the fact that customers no longer need to enter their address details. PayPal also promotes its product as being more secure in comparison with other e-payment schemes. 2.3.3 Pay-Later-payment systems ‘In terms of pay-later-systems (e.g. credit cards), the customer actually receives the goods before being debited’ (Stroborn et al., 2004). However, this depends upon the point in time when the customers’ bank account is being debited. It is also possible, particularly within the area of tourism that the bank account is debited before the holiday is ‘consumed’. Within the tourism industry it is a common practice to book and purchase holidays long time in advance. Especially in terms of family holidays, customers like to book in advance, since they do only have a small time frame (namely the school holidays) where they can go on holiday. So, holidays in these periods are strongly demanded. Thus there is an incentive for customers to book as early in advance as possible. In this case, the classification of Stroborn et al. (2004) is not valid anymore. The holiday is purchased long before it is consumed and thus the bank account will also be debited before the consumption. Credit Card ‘Settling payments via the use of the credit card is the most commonly used payment method worldwide. Nearly 90 % of all items and goods purchased via the Internet are paid by credit card’ (Dannenberg Ulrich, 2004). Stroborn et al. differentiate between three basic ways of credit card payments via the Internet: An unsecured transaction ‘A transaction via Secure Socket Layer (SSL), which is a sort of digital envelope. SSL is the de facto standard for secure online transactions, preventing eavesdroppers from learning customers’ account details’ (Ashrafi Ng, 2009). The SSL technology establishes a secure communication channel between the participants of an online transaction. ‘a transaction employing Secure Electronic Transaction Protocol (SET), which is currently considered as the safest credit-card-based payment systems on the Internet’ (Stroborn et al., 2004). Recapitulating this section again highlights the importance of awareness. According to Monika Hartmann (Lammer, 2006) ‘many payment solutions did not succeed in reaching a critical mass of users’. This can be seen in within the example of Mpayments. Payment methods may be very useful, however if they do not manage to reach a critical mass of users, they will not succeed in the market. So customers need to be enlightened about the different payment methods available and the advantages and disadvantages involved. In addition the aspect of trust reappears in this section. Customers need to trust the security of their Internet connection in the first place before they are conducting any business transactions. 3.1 Factors favouring the growth of e-Commerce in tourism The introduction of the internet as well as the ability to pay for goods and services via electronic payment systems created potential advantages for customers as well as for tourism companies. ‘The marketing of an intangible product such as tourism largely depends upon visual presentation’ (Morgan et al., 2001). With the Internet, marketers finally found the perfect tool. The capability of combining the presentation of facts and figures, emotional pictures and the whole booking process is a huge asset for tourism companies. Buhalis (Morgan et al., 2001) stated that ‘organizations and destinations which need to compete will be forced to compute’. Thereby, he assigns companies participating in e-Commerce a significant competitive advantage. According to a recent study of the VIR (Verband Internet Reisevertrieb, 2007) customers value the easy and fast way of booking trips via the internet. Furthermore, they appreciate the possibility to customize their trips, to see if their desired holiday is still available and the extensive range of offerings. The possibility to pay per credit card and the savings in terms of time they need to invest are also big advantages for German customers booking their trips and holidays via the Internet. Cheyne et al. (2006) suggested that ‘the Internet is providing the means for suppliers and consumers to bypass the travel agent and interact directly’. Furthermore, many writers propose that ‘the Internet furnishes travel consumers with more information, quicker responses and often lower prices than they can achieve when making travel arrangements through a traditional travel agent’ (Cheyne et al., 2006). Tania Lang, a senior consultant at Cap Gemini Ernst Young, stated in her work in 2000 that ‘there are a variety of factors providing advantages and benefits for the users of the Internet’. Amongst those factors is the access for availability enquiries and bookings when consumers want to research and purchase travel. Customers are no longer restricted to the opening times of their local travel agency. According to Buhalis (Lang, 2000), ‘the ability to access information which is detailed and up to date assists the travel consumer by making the product more tangible in their mind’. Another important advantage of e-Commerce in tourism is the bypass of travel agent fees and the access to online discounts. Lang (2000) stated that there is a ‘cost advantage in purchasing travel online as a result of the market becoming more competitive. These cost advantages can also be explained by decreasing distribution costs’. Concluding this section it can be suggested that customers will benefit tremendously from e-Commerce in the tourism industry. They will be faced with lower prices, since no intermediaries are involved any more so that potential cost savings can be achieved. In addition to this, the authors cited above implied that the visual representation of holidays will improve due the recent and upcoming developments in technology. According to this, there should not be any disadvantages for customers and conducting bookings via the Internet are the best solution for the future. However customers will also have to sacrifice in certain aspects as well as they will have to experience that bookings holidays via the Internet might not be that advantageous as the following section will point out. 3.2 Factors for the hesitant growth of e-Commerce in tourism In 2009, Prashant Palvia argues that ‘the Internet is far from achieving its potential due to the reluctance of consumers to engage in its use’. Palvia (2009) stresses this assumption by a recent study, indicating that sales of online retailers were only 2, 2% of total goods sold in the U.S. in 2005. Moreover, analysts have predicted that even by 2011, e-Commerce sales would only account for only 7%. According to Tania Lang (2000), there are certain barriers or disadvantages of the Internet and the World Wide Web (WWW) for consumers. Amongst those factors, the ‘lacks of a human interface and of confidence in the technology as well as security issues have a high relevance’. There are a lot of situations, where a customer has built a strong relationship to his travel agent. For some travellers, the actual booking process (whether via a travel agency or the Internet) is already part of the holiday itself. The booking process might even be some kind of ritual which is carried out in exactly the same manner every time the customer goes on holiday. Those loyalty or relational factors are hard to be erased or replaced by the Internet which is in fact a major threat to electronic commerce in the tourism industry. A number of authors maintain that ‘travel agents provide better services, especially when more complex products are to be purchased’ (Cheyne et al., 2006). ‘Those complex travel arrangements are more information intensive and therefore needs consultation of travel agents compared to less complex holiday components such as flights or rail tickets’. Other authors, including Inkpen, Lyle and Paulson (Cheyne et al., 2006) argue that ‘travel agents can offer a more personalized service and provide unbiased advices that add value for the customer’. Concerning the latter assumption one can argue that this is true for inexperienced or first-time users. Customers, who are familiar with the Internet and know where to find the information they are looking for, will not need the advice of the travel agent no more. First of all, the travel agent might provide them with information they already know or find by themselves. Secondly, travel agents are biased too, regarding the amount of commissions they receive for the sale of products. Another case where customers do not need the advice of the travel agent are repeated holidays, meaning customers who always travel to the same hotel. Those customers will not benefit from a travel agent’s consultancy. Summarizing this, one can say that ‘the service offered by travel agents is value adding for customers, who are inexperienced with the process of online booking and for customers who want to travel to a variety of different destinations’ (comparing Cheyne et al., 2006). The lack of confidence in the technology as well as the mistrust in security are the two other major disadvantages of the Internet that Tania Lang has determined. She points out that the ‘main barrier stopping consumers from booking travel via the Internet is the perceived lack of a secure payment method’ (Lang, 2000). ‘The main concern with electronic payment is the level of security in each step of the transaction, because money and merchandise are transferred while there is no direct contact between the two sides involved in the transaction’ (Yu et al., 2002). ‘If there is even the slightest possibility that the payment system may not be secure, trust and confidence in this system will begin to erode, destroying the infrastructure needed for electronic commerce’ (Yu et al., 2002). Putting this in other words, tourism companies may have the perfect product in terms of price quality ratio. However, the company will not be able to sell its products to a greater mass if their payment system is lacking security. This will not only erode trust in the payment system itself, but may also affect the customers’ acceptance of the company, thus affecting the company’s reputation, image and profits. In 1998, Haas surveyed that even though ‘many Internet users go online to find product information, most users prefer to log off and buy their goods through traditional sales channels’. Of course, this trend has increasingly changed over the last years; however, still today customers inform themselves over the Internet without performing t

Versaces Men Without Ties :: Versace Image Advertising Essays

Versace's Men Without Ties Men Without Ties (p.25, Hannah) reveals a male figure, athletically built, broad shouldered, narrow-waisted, muscular legged, with one Versace necktie in hand and two tied around the waist. The figure is captured in a dynamically dashing pose, choreographed to show off his muscles, built, vitality and gracefulness. Men Without Ties is one of many nude poses in Versace's Men Without Ties, a portfolio album of his works. Here, Versace puts together a collection of sketches, designs and magazine advertisements, inserted into such avante-gard fashion magazines as Vogue, Elle, Bazaar, etc. for his Mens Wear collection. Here, Versace introduces to the general public, to the passionate collectors of Versace clothes and to those fans with an eye for fashion, his idea and concept of the "New Man," Versace's man without ties. This "man without ties refers directly back to Roman sculptor's Diskobolos a marble copy of Greek's original of c.450BCE . (Diskobolos is one of many surviving Roman copies of Greek sculptures, indicating Greek art and sculptures' prominent and long lasting influence on Roman civilization and society). This heroic- sized statue depicts a nude athlete, a discus thrower at the moment when the discus is swung furthest back, at the very decisive moment just seconds before the discus will be soared into the air (p.114, Robertson). Discus Thrower type sculptures, art and architecture is typical of Greek High Classical and Hellenistic art and concerns. High Classical and Hellenistic art desire to portray healthy and vigorous athletes of ideal physical proportion and beauty, to represent the vigorous, healthy and active Greek individuals and citizens. In this way, sculptures, along with other art mediums and architecture, hope to elevate Greek's victory and to celebrate Greek's triumph of a democratic and enlightened city-state over Persia's imperial forces; Greek civilization over Persia's barbarism; reason over animal passion. Both Man Without Ties and Diskobolos , as mentioned, portray a vigorous, athletic figure, dancing theatrically in dramatic actions and gestures. Whereas Diskobolos is rendered in sculptural, life-size, three-dimensional form, Man Without Ties is rendered in a two-dimensional, black-and-white photograph. Nevertheless, both mediums further express Greek High Classical and Hellenistic arts' concern for a more expressionistic figure, one that conveys and appeals directly to the senses through this lustrous glistening of surfaces and emotions. The action-figures are now able to reach out beyond its "contained" space and into the immediate surrounding environment. The figures now seem to impose themselves forcefully upon the spectator, provoking the viewer's response to the dramatic situations.

Roles of Women During the Renaissance as Seen in Shakespeares Henry IV

Roles of Women During the Renaissance as Seen in Shakespeare's Henry IV      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The plays of Shakespeare can be used as a window upon Renaissance society. However, if one looks through this window and does not leave behind the ideals of a modern society, the view may become distorted and not be as pleasing as it was for Shakespeare's contemporaries. In I Henry IV, the characters of the women are not equally developed as the male characters; but their interaction, or lack thereof, depicts the changing, yet somehow stagnant, roles of women during the English Renaissance.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In I Henry IV, the "themes of public and private life are brought together" (Speaight, 163). Elizabethan society was marked by gender seperation, both publicly and privately. Lady Percy does not play an active role outside of Hotspur's private life. To Hotspur, a woman's world was "To play with mammets and to tilt with lips (2. 2. 91), a gentle powerless occupation that did not mix with man's domain of "bloody noses and cracked crowns" (2. 2. 92). Although women writing during this time affirmed that women are "tender foft and beautifull, fo doth her difpofition in minde correfponde accordingly; she is milde, yielding, and and vertuous"(Sowernam, 43), women among the higher social classes began to question their inferiority to men as a result of the new emphasis on education for women. The heightened exposure to Biblical and classical influences among Renaissance women created paradoxical results. "Education was designed to fill specific private functions and responsabilities" (Travitsky, 5). Women were not encouraged to leave their place within the home, but instead were encouraged on the "development of the home as a school of faith" ... ...lewd, froward, and unconstant men, and Husbands. Divided into Two Parts. The first proveth the dignity and worthinesse of Women, out of divine Testimonies. The second shewing the estimation of the Foe-minine Sexe, in ancient and Pagan times: all which is acknowledged by men themselves in their actions. Written by Ester Sowernam, neither Maide,Wife, nor Widdowe, yet really all, and therefore experienced to defend all. London: Printed for Nicholas Bourne, 1617. STC 22974. University Microfilms Reel no 1188. 4. Spaight, Robert. Shakespeare: The Man and his Achievement. London: J.M. Dent and Sons Ltd., 1977. 5. Travitsky, Betty, ed. The Paradise of Women: Writings by Englishwomen of the Renaissance. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1981. 6. Watson, Curtis Brown. Shakespeare and the Renaissance Concept of Honor. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1960.