Bank of America Essay Example for Free

Bank of America Essay The apparent problem in the Bank of America case study is that Jen McDonald (head of the Bank of America digital marketing group), and Douglas Brown (senior vice president of mobile product development) received requests to create mobile apps more specific for individual businesses as a way to gain leverage (Supta Herman, 2012). Brown, specifically, was hesitant to add additional mobile app features as he feared it would make the application far too complex. Not only would it prove to be difficult for some users to understand, more features often make applications run more slowly, which could complicate the idea of mobile banking. In addition this could possibly give the customer a more negative experience. To cite the problem specifically, Brown stated â€Å"App complexity has led to some high-profile failures in the market place. This carries a huge risk† (Supta Herman, 2012). Furthermore, Bank of America was provided $20 billion in capital from the United States government during the financial crisis under leadership of CEO Kenneth Lewis (Supta Herman, 2012). Lewis had concerns that certain investors and customers would start to correlate Bank of America with Citigroup, who had previously given up 36% of its ownership to the federal government (Supta Herman, 2012). This resulted in Brian Moynihan (head of consumer and small business banking) taking over as CEO on January 1, 2010 (Supta Herman, 2012). Constraints and available options One of Bank of America’s options was to create different apps to target different groups and market segments, which proved to be somewhat of a risk. Not only was the organization concerned for the customers reaction, Bank of America was also hesitant because mobile apps are costly and in doing so, technology resources would be taken from other essential areas of banking such as online banking and atm machines. At this time customers were not completely trusting in working with their banks, as financial struggles were becoming more and more apparent. In order to give theBank of America the trusted name and customer loyalty it had previously held for so long, executives decided Mobile banking was the right path to take in order to save the company. Analysis and Evaluation The bank of America officially launched their mobile banking application in May of 2007. This included the ability to bank on the customers phones either by application or by accessing the mobile web through their phones browser. Douglas Brown confirmed that the success of the mobile application was astounding as the company gained four million mobile banking customers over the time span of less than three years (Supta Herman, 2012). Because of the high level of success, business managers were eager to update the applications, in an effort to raise the level of functionality even higher. This proved to be a decision that had to be carefully considered by the Bank of America corporate team. Strengths: The Bank of America already holds the title of being one of the most prestigious banks and a leading company in the U. S. Because of their household name, marketing new products prove to be fairly easy; however identifying a product that customers will adopt and figuring out the target market are essential to Bank of America’s success. An additional strength of the mobile banking application was the timing in correlation to the launch of the application and the launch of the iPhone, making Bank of America the first bank to be able to offer a banking application on the iPhone. The most used features of mobile banking came from viewing account balances and viewing transaction details, making debit card holders the most popular users. After the mobile banking launch more customers opened checking accounts in the months of the introduction of mobile banking and did in fact use the application during that time. Weaknesses:  A weakness shown by Bank of America proved to be within technology adoption and which smart phones the mobile applications could be used by. The Bank of America was slow to adopt SMS technology and access to mobile banking was limited. It was only available to those who used online banking with Bank of America, therefore leaving a huge portion of customers out and feeling negatively about the new product. Another weakness in the new mobile application was that it had to be created with more features than competing mobile applications, which added the risk of making the mobile app more complex. Complexity is a weakness when striving to offer a simple and functional upgraded product to customers. Furthermore, the bank was recovering from the financial crisis, which caused a great loss for a company as big as themselves, as customers had to put a curb to their spending. They also feared they damaged their name in asking for $20 billion in federal backing which proved to be a huge mistake. Bank of America did not want to be associated with other banks that had borrowed capital, but in turn were forced to give up a percentage of their company. Opportunities: In analyzing the Kotler Keller text, marketing opportunity is described as a buyer taking interest in something that has the probability to make a profit (Kotler Keller, 2009). The introduction of mobile banking was a huge opportunity that the Bank of America capitalized on. When mobile banking was introduced costs per transaction started at 10 cents and were expected to drop to 3 to 4 cents. ATM costs were already 1. 34 per transaction which provided an advantage to debit card holders with low account balances. They also benefited in that they could easily check their account balance through their phones before making a purchase. The Bank of America capitalized on the opportunity to offer this feature to customers for absolutely no cost. This was a huge plus in gaining additional customers and fans of mobile banking, as other banks had already begun to waive ATM fees during the times of the market dropping. Mobile banking was a way for Bank of America to bounce back after financial crisis and offer users an experience they had never before been exposed to. The novelty of the design and idea would bring trust and value back to the company. Threats: A potential threat of mobile banking was that expanding on apps and adding new features can turn potential customers off because it tends to make banking more complicated throughout the introduction process. Surveys and research also showed that 44% of customers did not see a need or any type of value within mobile banking. When introducing a new product, buyer behavior tends to be very guarded as customers are reluctant to trust a pone application to keep their banking statements and accounts secure at all times. Major competitors are also a threat that the Bank of America faced. Major Banks such as Wellsfargo, Citigroup and PNC, to name a few, also offer mobile banking with virtually the same functions and applications. Mobile banking was also seen as a threat because of the high initial costs, however, from a marketing perspective, if the Bank of America were to pay extra costs to set their mobile applications apart from competing banks, the additional features would be worth the price in customer popularity and satisfaction. Recommendations Because mobile banking has been introduced by so many other banks, the best recommendation would be to create a form of mobile banking that is more secure and user friendly than competing applications. These are the two issues that customers seemed to have the most doubts about, so putting extra emphasis on these areas will surely set the Bank of America apart from others. Another recommendation is to target one particular audience and market to them specifically, therefore making age and stage in the life cycle of great importance. It is likely that the younger generation will be much more open to yet another phone application, as it is the norm for them, and will provide huge ease to another aspect of their lives. This may result in the younger generation taking more initiative when it comes to banking and gaining more responsibility in this aspect of their lives. Phone applications makes it easy to transfer money and to check balances, providing an awareness of your funds 24/7, opposed to only during banking hours. Kotler Keller advices marketers to take the following three steps when marketing a product: 1. Compare it with a product that consumers already know about, making it more comfortable for them to base the purchase off of a past decision (Kotler Keller, 2012). 2. â€Å"†¦The lure of â€Å"free† is almost irresistible† (Kotler Keller, 2012). 3. Consumers often experience the â€Å"optimism bias† or â€Å"positivity illusion. † They tend to overestimate their chances of experiencing a positive outcome and underestimate their chances of experiencing a negative outcome (Kotler Keller, 2012). These steps are recommended to the Bank of America’s target audience in order to raise popularity and awareness of the mobile banking application. In other words, it is essential to understand the meaning of consumer behavior. Kotler Keller define consumer behavior as how individuals come up with ideas and experiences that work to satisfy the customer’s wants and needs. The customer’s desires will be met in that the mobile banking app will be free to current customers, which will already account for a huge part of the appeal. Compared with online banking, which customers are likely to be more familiar with, the target audience will see the mobile app as an easier, faster version of a feature they already value. Furthermore, because of the optimism bias and positivity illusion, customers using this product are more likely to feel it will improve their financial security and well-being. Lessons Learned In the review of the entire Bank of America case study, it is apparent that control was an issue that was brought up as the main concern of the customer in accepting the new application. Customers were weary at first, as they had concerns for the security of their finances and feared they were giving up control of their bank accounts to a mobile application. In retrospect, the customer actually gained more control over their finances as they were able to access them from nearly anywhere in the world. This goes to show how identifying with the customers emotions and providing them with a product that gains their trust and eases their concerns, will make the innovation and the company that much more successful.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee :: To Kill a Mockingbird Essays

As readers, we saw Scout mature and grow as our narrator and as a person. She learned many things, but also lost many things. As she grew up and changed, she began to see how things really were, and gained the knowledge of the pure hate that one man can show another. Scout lost her innocence when she found this out. She began to see how cruel the world could be to someone who is a little different or strange. She saw this in the prejudice that was shown to Tom Robinson, Walter Cunningham, Miss Maudie and even herself. She gained the wisdom of the world outside her back door and began to see how society works, (it is very cruel and cynical). Although this may not have been a good thing, she could now see how unimportant it was. Atticus taught Jem and Scout to be polite, caring kids. He instilled in them a great sense of love for their neighbor and told them things that would help them get on in life. Scout was very lucky to have someone to guide her along the way. Although she was faced with â€Å"the real world†, she had lots of people who would willingly explain to her and guide her. Scout really matured during the course of this book. She went from a six-year-old child with no knowledge of the real world to a ten year old who had a lot of life’s most important lessons shown to her at a very young age. She had to learn, very quickly, that life would not always be easy and fun. She learned of the horrible ways men can treat other men and of the ugliness of station, poverty and hate. The author, Harper Lee, picked an interesting person to narrate the story. This had some advantages and disadvantages as the story progressed. This writing technique is a very versatile one. When the author uses Scout as the first person, she opens the reader’s eyes to the way children think and act. She also offers a fair opinion of the affairs of Maycomb, and doesn’t dwell on adult matters and make it boring. Some disadvantages of picking Scout for the first person viewpoint were that even though she was smart, she didn’t really understand what all the fuss was about. She was too innocent and young to really grasp the point sometimes and tell the reader, about it.

How Has Globalization Affected Corporate Strategy in the 21st Century Essay

In the last 21 years the notion of a multinational company has changed significantly. This is best demonstrated by the 1973 United Nations definition, which clearly stated an enterprise is multinational if it â€Å"controls assets, factories, mines, sales offices, and the like in two or more countries† (Bartlett, Ghoshal 2000 p.3). As we know a multinational corporation is much more then just that it controls foreign assets, it must also have a substantial direct investment in foreign countries, as well as engaging in some form of management of these foreign assets. The evolution of corporations over this time has been somewhat difficult and by no means is the process of change finalized. As with most things this evolution and learning process could be seen as being life long. The environment in which we operate clearly evolves each year and to stay ahead businesses are now required to stay ahead of developments to compete. Some of the slower players, such as Phillips (Bartlett 1999) merely lost market share through this evolution, others in the past and perhaps in the future will lose their businesses. To understand the importance of multinational corporations in relation to the world economy we see that they account for over 40 percent of the worlds manufacturing output, and almost a quarter of world trade (Bartlett, Ghoshal 2000 p.3). Although the focus is often on the larger players such as Ford, Procter and Gamble, or Coca Cola as time progresses it is more the smaller companies which we will need to keep an eye on, as they become important players, especially in international niche markets(Bartlett, Ghoshal 2000 p.3). Traditionally there were three motivations for most organisations to enter international markets, or to undertake investment overseas. These were: 1. Suppliers – the ongoing need to source supplies for operations (adapted from Bartlett, Ghoshal 1989, 2000). 2. Markets – seeking additional markets to sell products. Traditionally companies went international to sell excess production lines, or to meet one off needs. The market then moved to increased competition where players were keen to be the first mover to a market, so as to gain a competitive advantage. Corporations were often driven by the home country size, with the need for further consumers for ongoing viability and growth (adapted from Bartlett, Ghoshal 1989, 2000) 3. Lower Cost – by seeking production facilities which would attract lower labor costs and hence higher profits. Clothing and electronics were the first movers in this strategy, usually looking to developing countries such as China or Taiwan. This is still used somewhat today as a strategy, such as large call centers providing services in India for most Australian banks (adapted from Bartlett, Ghoshal 1989, 2000) It is not my intention to go into the advantages and disadvantages of a corporation entering an international market, or to continue to operate in an international market, beyond the above three initial drivers. What is imperative that in the 21st Century an organisation must seek a strategy that meets the organisations ongoing needs which is clear and precise so as to provide direction for future growth. Due to the ongoing worldwide demand after WWII, most organisations prospered when entering international markets. Often however the strategies to entry were ad hoc and did not provide clear objectives or guidance for ongoing management. Operations were based on an ethnocentric approach. Even though at the time they were referred to as Multinational Corporations, literature now refers to them as ‘International Corporations’. As international operations expanded and took on a more important role in the organisation, such as being a key profit centre, or perhaps a product innovation being conceived in an offshore operation, they tended to come under increased management scrutiny, such as the case with Fuji Xerox (Gomes-Casseres, McQuade 1991). This then progressed the corporation to a multinational approach, international markets being as important or even more important then the home market, which is more a polycentric approach to management. The potential from these operations were reviewed by management; the possibilities for cost reductions due to standardization moved most corporations onto the next phase being the global corporation mentality. This is that the entire world is a potential market. Retaining a image from their initial home country, such as McDonalds, they seek to enter all markets to service all customers, hence a regiocentric or geocentric philosophy of management. Bartlett and Ghoshal have gone beyond this to advocate the development of the transnational corporation. This takes the concept of global corporations one step further. Corporations to prosper in a globally competitive environment, should concentrate wherever possible on responding to cost pressures, leveraging of knowledge and information, whilst ensuring local responsiveness to consumer needs (1989 p.13). Cost reduction are imperative to ensure the ongoing viability of corporations. The sharing of costs globally for items such as R & D and mass production both provide examples of significant cost reductions, while enhancing learning and knowledge. By increasing the availability of information across the group you are more likely to also encounter a higher quality product as the innovation and knowledge is shared for the corporations greater good. Often companies forget that knowledge does not just reside in just the home country. Important information such as the local consumer market are often best to be determined by local managers so as to respond to local needs. In relation to local responsiveness Theodore Levitt (1983) provides a somewhat extreme view of the global market. His philosophy is that technological, social and economic developments over the last two decades have combined to create a unified world marketplace in which companies must capture global-scale economies to remain competitive. As we have discussed, the need to become competitive through reduction in costs is imperative for every business. However Levitt’s concept of a unified marketplace with homogenous needs has still some way to go. As researched by Procter and Gamble even how we wash our clothes differs throughout the world, sometimes even within each country. The provision of a standardized product to suit all in this industry would be a failure due to not meeting the needs of local consumers (Bartlett 1983). When we review these three elements of cost reduction, leverage of knowledge and local responsiveness we are aware that these terms are somewhat contradictory. History tells us that to provide local responsiveness you need to increase costs to increase the number of products which meet a specific consumer groups needs. The alternative is to standardize products to achieve economies of scale during production and marketing. Caterpillar has somewhat successfully implemented such a strategy. They redesigned their products around the use of standardized components. These are produced on mass through large production facilities to reduce the component costs and provide economies of scale. Machines are then transported to foreign markets where localized knowledge and components adapt the machines to the needs of local consumers (Srinivasa 1985). The overall approach is that they are able to combine all three elements of the transnational approach. Corporations also need to be aware of the increasingly complex nature of undertaking business in an international market. Social, cultural, and political environments, as well as currency fluctuations, and geographic diversity need to be considered carefully in any decision to undertake a foreign operation. It is best to research thoroughly and constantly review any strategy for overseas ventures as situations can change as in any business venture quite quickly. An example of this would be the increased use of Indonesia as a low cost production base for Australian corporations. With the increased political instability and also terrorism most corporations would be considering the ongoing viability of continuing in this market. Finally corporations need to be aware that to make any significant changes to an corporation strategy or structure it is both extremely complex, time consuming and challenging. As Ford has discovered, by constantly changing strategies to seek higher profitability, all they have been able to achieve has been another announcement of huge losses in 2001 from failed global ventures (Hill, Jones 2004 p276). The move to a transnational approach for most corporations would need to be a slow progression, while for some it is even perhaps out of reach. By focusing on the main elements of cost reduction, knowledge leveraging and local differentiation perhaps this will provide an avenue in the future for continued competitive advantage in an environment which is slowly moving towards Levitt’s concept of the ‘global village’ (1983). Perhaps the key lies with Bartlett and Ghoshal when they tell us that companies â€Å"must now respond simultaneously to diverse and often conflicting strategic needs. Today, no firm can succeed with a relatively unidimensional strategic capability that emphasizes only efficiency, or responsiveness, or leveraging of parent company knowledge and competencies. To win, a company must now achieve all three goals at the same time† (1989 p 25). REFERENCE LISTING Bartlett, Christopher A. 1983 â€Å"Case 6-1 Proctor and Gamble Europe: Vizir Launch†, taken from Bartlett, Christopher A. & Ghoshal, Sumantra 2000 Text, Cases, and Readings in Cross-Border Management, 3rd Edn, McGraw-Hill International Editions, Singapore, pp 632 – 647. Bartlett, Christopher A. & Ghoshal, Sumantra 1989 Managing Across Borders: The Transnational Solution, Harvard Business School Press, Boston Massachusetts. Barlett, Christopher A. 1999 â€Å"Case 2 -4 Phillips and Matsushita 1998: Growth of 2 Companies†, taken from Bartlett, Christopher A. & Ghoshal, Sumantra 2000 Text, Cases, and Readings in Cross-Border Management, 3rd Edn, McGraw-Hill International Editions, Singapore, pp 164 -180 Bartlett, Christopher A. & Ghoshal, Sumantra 2000 Text, Cases, and Readings in Cross-Border Management, 3rd Edn, McGraw-Hill International Editions, Singapore. Gomes-Casseres, Benjamin & McQuade, Krista 1991 â€Å"Case 4-1 Xerox and Fuji Xerox†, taken from Bartlett, Christopher A. & Ghoshal, Sumantra 2000 Text, Cases, and Readings in Cross-Border Management, 3rd Edn, McGraw-Hill International Editions, Singapore, pp 418 – 443 Hill, Charles W. L & Jones, Gareth R. 2004 Strategic Management Theory: An Integrated Approach, 6th Edn, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. Levitt, T. 1983 â€Å"The Globalization of Markets† Harvard Business Review, May – June, pp. 92 – 102. Srinivasa, Rangan V. 1985 â€Å"Case 3-1 Caterpillar Tractor Co.†, taken from Bartlett, Christopher A. & Ghoshal, Sumantra 2000 Text, Cases, and Readings in Cross-Border Management, 3rd Edn, McGraw-Hill International Editions, Singapore, pp 259 – 279.

Analysis Of Shakespeare s Othello - 1131 Words

An Analysis of Othello by Shakespeare Shakespeare is known for his use of recurring themes throughout his work, including love, death and betrayal. These themes are present in his work of Othello. However, the most fundamental issue is jealousy. The lives of the characthers in Othello are ruined by jealousy from the beginning to the end of the play. The telling of the story is carried out by passion, jealousy, and death. Shakespeare’s Othello reveals devastating tragic inevitability, stunning psychological depth, and compelling poetic depth; the fragility and mysterious power of love, as well as demons of doubt, and how suspicion can be triggered by manipulative villain (Barthelemy 12). In the play, evil intentions destroy what we know of a pure heart as well as trust and genuine honesty by this falsehearted deception. The agony of the tragic play is captured in a nutshell when Othello admits to Desdemona â€Å"when I love thee not/chaos is come again.† There is some misunderstanding of tragedy of love between the two characters. Trust is misplaced, honesty smeared out and finally, lives are ruined by denigrating fabrications and outright lies (Lupu, Jeffrey and Westmaas-Jones 12). The tragic cautionary of Shakespeare offers a supreme warning over jealousy which is referred as â€Å"the green eyed monster with doth mock the meat it feeds on.† At First , Roderigo is envious of Othello because he wanted to be in love with Desdemona. This is the beginning of jealousy which runsShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Shakespeare s Othello 1567 Words   |  7 PagesWOMEN’S ROLE IN SOCIETY: DISECTING THE MISOGONY IN SHAKESPEARE’S OTHELLO Judging Othello from a self-proclaimed feminist Audre Lorde’s perspective allows the reader to see the double standards women faced in the Elizabethan society. 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Health Effects of PBDE Absorption

Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) is a common flame retardant used to reduce the risk of fire in a wide variety of products, such as childrens pajamas and your computer. PBDEs are excellent flame retardants, but the chemicals have been accumulating in the environment and in human bodies. Relatively recent reports have indicated that exposure to low concentrations of these chemicals may result in irreparable damage to the nervous and reproductive systems. The European Union will ban two of the three most common PBDE formulations starting in 2004. California is the only U.S. state to take action, passing a law to ban certain PBDEs, but not until 2008. Several Japanese electronics companies will be phasing PBDEs from their products. Other countries and individual manufacturers are taking steps to eliminate their use of PBDEs. PBDE concentrations are 10-20 times higher in North Americans than in Europeans. European concentrations are about twice those of Japanese levels. Calculations performed by Ronald Hites of Indiana University show that body concentrations have been exponentially increasing, with a doubling time of 4 to 5 years. PBDE-containing products are being phased out, but the chemicals remain a health concern because they are so persistent in the body and in the environment.

Climate Change Affects People And The Atmosphere Every Day

As people live their lives every day, climate change is currently happening. Climate change is the shifting of normal weather patterns, which can cause the environment to become unbalanced. The greenhouse effect plays a major role in climate change, and it consists of four types of gases: carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and flourished gases. These greenhouse gases help trap heat on Earth, but yet the carbon dioxide levels are increasing, and this can damage the cycle of the greenhouse effect. Climate change affects people and the atmosphere every day. Many people do not realize that current climate change can cause huge problems in the future; people need to find solutions in order to get climate change under control. Climate change is a major issue in the world. As the population increases, more resources are required to supply basic human needs. The resources such as oil, coal, and natural gas are essential in human lives. An excessive amount of these resources in the atmos phere can cause the ozone to become compacted with C2O. These resources are called fossil fuels and burning them will trap more heat in the greenhouse effect; wildfires and volcanic eruptions can also cause more C2O in the atmosphere (Weeks). The ozone currently has more carbon dioxide than it did three million years ago. It will take two decades to replace the carbon and fifty years for the weather to adapt back to its normal state. The arctic regions of the world are melting. This can beShow MoreRelatedDeforestation: A Major Reason for Global Warming753 Words   |  3 Pages Topic: Climate Change Research question: How is deforestation a major reason for global warming? Deforestation is cutting down of trees for some purpose (furniture). It is very harmful for everybody as it causes landslides, earthquakes and many more problems†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.Deforestation is a major cause as it also causes the main problem global warming. 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How do the first five minutes of “Shane” and “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” establish genre and narrative Free Essays

string(40) " these orange colours were fashionable\." A genre is a specific form of media commodity. It has characteristic qualities that are familiar to audiences because the same method is applied repeatedly. A genre functions like a language and is used by film producers to ensure an audience can identify and predict what is likely to happen. We will write a custom essay sample on How do the first five minutes of â€Å"Shane† and â€Å"Bram Stoker’s Dracula† establish genre and narrative? or any similar topic only for you Order Now Genres can offer comforting reassurance in an uncomfortable situation; the conventions are recognisable usually through iconography, familiar narrative, mise-en-scene, actors and style of representation. These sets of conventions are constantly renegotiated between industry and audience. Genre can also be a way of working through important myths and fear by the use of repetition, variation and resolution and can be thought of as â€Å"tidying up† the mess of life. Narrative involves a basic structure (beginning, middle and end) and a basic decision on the genre of story being told. It can imply the use of various codes to create or to reveal a character, to generate suspense, to provide setting and to further the plot. Through narrative we become aware of the fact that each genre contains certain common elements but have different characteristics. They might be told in different ways, styles, or from different points of view. It is important to know and understand the difference between narrative and story. A story is a sequence of events known correctly as the plot and narrative is the way in which those events are put together so they can be presented to an audience. Narratives involve the following; Technical codes, Verbal codes, Symbolic codes, Structure, Characters and conflict. Twentieth Century theorist Claude Levi Strauss suggested that all narratives had to be driven forward by conflict that was caused by a series of opposing forces. He called this the theory of Binary opposition, and it is used to describe how each main force in a narrative has its equal and opposite. Some examples of these opposing forces are as follows: good/evil, light/dark, right/wrong and poverty/wealth. He believed that if this strategy was used, a balance or resolution could be achieved. Narratives, in short, have to be about change, disturbance and disorder. Commonly narratives will feature the following structure: Establishing a problem, Elaboration of the problem and resolution of the problem. The nature of the problem and how it will be resolved depends on the genre or form of the narrative, whether it involves solving the mystery, punishing the wrongdoer or obtaining the desired object or person. This brings me to the opening sequence, which can be the most important moment in a film. This is because they are the first images the audience sees when the lights go down. These quick segments form a contract outlining the filmmaker’s intentions and setting up the expectations of those watching. The opening sequence can be the most action-packed part of a film; it creates suspense and gets the audience asking questions. This is what the director aims to achieve, by getting the audience to unconsciously ask questions he has gained their attention for the remainder of the film. This can also be a chance to give the audience a taster of what’s to come by introducing characters and setting up themes. The audience will now be aware of the genre they are going to watch. The Western genre is widely popular with audiences around the world simply because its an easy genre to recognise, we know that westerns are fictional. They are set in west America and are centred on a particular period of American history, the years between 1865 and 1890. â€Å"The Great Train Robbery† is a 1903 Western film. The film is only ten minutes long, but is a high point in filmmaking and is considered the first American western to tell a fictional story. The film used a number of innovative techniques, these included parallel editing, camera movement and location shooting. The film also employed the first pan shots; almost every shot was a static long shot confining the action to the perspective of the camera at eye level. The plot was inspired by a true event that occurred on August 29, 1900, when four members of George Leroy Parker’s ‘Hole in the Wall’ gang halted the No. 3 train on the Union Pacific Railroad tracks toward Table Rock, Wyoming. The bandits forced the conductor to uncouple the passenger cars from the rest of the train and then blew up the safe in the mail car to escape with about $5,000 in cash. This can be related back to the western genre because it includes the villain; hero and the general setting you would expect to see a Western film in it is relevant because it tells a fictional story this is what Westerns should do. Directed by George Stevens the film Shane was made in 1953, the idea for the film was taken from a novel written by Jack Schaefer. Jack Schaefer was an American journalist, whose best-known novel Shane (1949) has been considered the ultimate achievement in creating a mythical western hero with a shady past. The story followed the pattern of a classical Greek tragedy, in which there is no escape from fate. As a writer Schaefer made his breakthrough with Shane (1949), a tale of a gunman’s involvement with a homesteading family in Wyoming. Schaefer had never been west of Cleveland, but his vision of the West was so clear-cut, that his novel Shane was awarded the best western novel ever written in 1985. Alan Ladd who was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas plays Shane. Other main characters include Jean Arthur who plays Marion Starett, Van Heflin who plays Joe Starett and Brandon De Wilde who plays Joey. The titles are old fashioned and are in traditional techni colour. â€Å"George Stevens a production of Shane† appears on screen shortly followed by â€Å"Shane† in a deep red/orange colour. This is typical of the period of 1953 in which these orange colours were fashionable. You read "How do the first five minutes of â€Å"Shane† and â€Å"Bram Stoker’s Dracula† establish genre and narrative?" in category "Narrative essays" The music used to accompany these opening titles is strong with a joyful feeling. The opening camera shots reinforce what we have just seen and set up the genre. The first thing we are drawn to is the large open spaces, we are looking out across the plain, deserted area, in the background there are large mountains, these are surrounded by low lying clouds. The camera then sweeps across; this is when we see more of the area. We become aware of a stag in the water surrounded by bushes. We get a glimpse of small boy who is almost completely hidden by bushes. He is holding a rifle and aiming for the stag. He spots a man on horse back in the distance and looks startled. The music turns from joyful to loud and deep this creates a sense of anticipation and this is what the producer aims to achieve when he accompanies a film by different moods of music. We are already asking questions, who is the man on the horse? , Who is the boy? It then cuts to a man chopping wood with an axe we can hear a woman singing and catch a glimpse of her. She has blonde hair and a soft singing voice; she’s wearing a white shirt this makes her look pure and untouched. She is in the kitchen preparing a meal for her husband in generic realism we would expect to find a woman in the kitchen and doing the housework while her husband goes out to work. The man on horseback who we become aware is Shane is wearing a cowboy hat, cream top and beige trousers with brown tassels hanging from them. He is on horseback and around his waist is a belt with miniature horse cartwheels on. The music becomes more mysterious and the scene that follows is full of anticipation as Shane and Joe exchange a few words. Shane produces a gun and the music hits it’s highest point as the problem is resolved the gun is put away and a lighter friendlier music appears. So far we have the stereotypical family: a small boy, a mum in the kitchen preparing food for her family and a dad chopping wood for his family. Then there’s Shane who fills our ideology. He comes in to disturb this peaceful family but turns out not to be a threat. So what are we missing? The villains. These come in the form of the Ryker brothers. The Rykers and their posse of gun-toting ruffians ride by and threaten to run Starrett off his farm. The Rykers, are ruthless businessmen, and have been trying to rid the valley of homesteaders so they can expand their ranch. After witnessing this brutality, Shane decides to stay on and help out at the ranch. Provoked by Ryker’s boys, Shane joins the homesteader’s fight, facing off with a hired gunslinger to make the valley safe for civilized folks like the Starretts. While helping Shane falls in love with the wife but he keeps his distance out of respect for the husband. This brings me to Bram Stoker’s Dracula. This is a film, which is true to the original text rather than the hammer house style; the belief in Christianity is under question and the film is centred on Dracula’s relationship with life and after life. A narrator introduces Dracula this strange and mysterious figure employs us to sympathise with him. We see him as a person whose anguish has affected his bond with eternity. Dracula represents an apparition of what may happen to us if we happened to be in the same situation as him. In the opening scene the background is drenched in red and we see the battle of two opposing forces, good and evil. There are close shots of the building and the red skies in the heavens above gives it a threatening look. The titles do not appear until after the opening sequence, this is because Coppola wants to give the responsibility to the audience as to why they believe Dracula is a horror villain rather then a monster. The music is slow and deep in tone to create atmosphere and suspense; it changes in volume when people begin to talk. There is never silence, the constant tapping in the background is almost like screaming. When we finally meet Dracula he is covered in orange armour, the rigid lines on his armour flow horizontally and give him a look of strength. He has long brown hair and a large moustache. He looks angry and screams before he drinks the blood from the goblet. Elizabetta couldn’t be more different, she also has brown hair but is wearing a long flowing dress, her pale white skin against the red of the blood is a strong contrast, she looks innocent. The gold surrounding them gives the place a look of importance, which can also be reflected into the clothing. The story continues with Dracula believing he is an agent of god: â€Å"Praise god I am victorious† As things progress his wife receives a false message of his death this results in her taking her own life. On hearing about this Dracula is grief stricken; he turns against god because she is in hell and stabs the cross, blood fills the room and Dracula drinks the blood in a parody of holy communion. This opening scene addresses the audience’s knowledge of the use of conventions. Coppola knows that the audience will have encountered Dracula in many other forms before and plays on this. The story is told from Dracula’s point of view. Similar to Shane there are Binary opposites and the themes of the genre are noticeable through mise-en-scene and iconography. There are candles and crucifixes, tall windows and dark colours. Again the audience are asking questions even though they will have had some knowledge of Dracula before. In conclusion we now know that the purpose of an opening sequence is to allow the audience to establish the genre and set the foundations for the remainder of the film. We know that to do this you can use generic texts; this will allow the audience to predict what is likely to happen, although this may seem boring it actually does have some advantages it allows the audience to feel comfortable with the following events that will take place. I have found that generic texts are easier to watch because of this. The opening of both texts were slightly different, in Dracula the titles were not shown until the end of the opening sequence I found this more exciting because it gives the audience more of a chance to question what is going on. They were very similar in the ways they established themselves as generic texts though. They used similar techniques but fitted it to a different genre. Both films were enjoyable to watch because they followed a plan and had binary opposition. How to cite How do the first five minutes of â€Å"Shane† and â€Å"Bram Stoker’s Dracula† establish genre and narrative?, Essays