International Business Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

International Business Environment - Essay Example Globalization has its benefits and challenges. However, it is almost inevitable and the global economy is expected to continue influencing operations of businesses. This paper â€Å"International Business Environment† addresses the question on whether globalization is good or not. The discussion will involve a brief explanation on how different schools of thoughts perceive globalization. Additionally the drivers of globalization, its implications on international business, the benefits, and challenges of globalization to the international society in general will be discussed.Globalization as Perceived by Various Schools of ThoughtInternational business entails any business activity conducted across national borders. The activities may involve sell of goods or services but must be done between two or more countries. Most multinational companies may have their management located in one country. However, they are international since they carry out business activities across more than one nation. International business has become a common phenomenon that influences decision in the political social as well as economic arena. International business operations are characterized by opportunities as well as challenges (Bray, 2003; Stefanovic, 2008).The term globalization means different things to different people. Some view globalization as increased worldwide interconnectedness in different aspects such as cultural as well as social ones. Hyperglobalists describe globalization as a phenomenon that exposes people.... International business operations are characterized by opportunities as well as challenges (Bray, 2003; Stefanovic, 2008). The term globalization means different things to different people. Some view globalization as increased worldwide interconnectedness in different aspects such as cultural as well as social ones. Hyperglobalists describe globalization as a phenomenon that exposes people to international market resulting in denationalization of economies. Skeptics consider globalization to be the economic interdependence resulting from economic integration. However, skeptics oppose hyperglobalist argument that globalization leads to denationalization. Conversely, skeptics claim that globalization leads to increased influence of national governments on the global economy (Bray, 2003). Transformationalists agree with the hyperglobalists’ argument that globalization reshapes social, political, and economic societies. However, transformationalist fail to agree with hyperglobalis ts’ argument that globalization leads to assimilation of the global societies into a single society. They argue that existence of a single business system does not mean that the global economic society is unionized (Bray, 2003). Drivers of Globalization Although the process of globalization has been going on for a long period, it has intensified in the recent past. There are several factors also referred to as drivers that are responsible for the increased pace of globalization. The main driver of globalization is technology. The economic world has made a great leap in technological advancement. Communication plays a major role in the business environment (Devemdra, 2009). This is because most business

Political or social issues Essay Example for Free

Political or social issues Essay Ethnocentrism refers to people’s habit of applying selfness in daily life activities by considering themselves just than others, pulling towards themselves and therefore make all judgments based on their own values, feelings, ideas, ideals, traditions and cultural practices. It is an aspect that brings issues of prejudices, hatred, ethnicity and stereotypic practices. On the other side, it strengthens and maintains belief structures and behaviors as well as creating rationale pride. It also creates personal volunteering spirit for one’s group or society aimed at collective benefits. The mostly realized effect of ethnocentrism is that it creates negative effects especially when it comes to communication and understanding one another. This is because people from different cultures have different opinions and perceptions when it comes to different issues in life such as cultural, political or social issues. It is therefore difficult for people to reach a consensus as everyone considers him/her right, thus misperceptions and misunderstandings (Felix, 2004). b. Explain the difference between individualistic cultures and collectivist cultures and your personal experiences with culture shock. Hofstede compared ethnocentrism American and Indian college students and came up with two major aspects which mostly deepened American’s student’s socio-cultural conformity. One of the aspects was individualistic culture, where a culture is developed to value oneself more than others and when it comes to a group; its members are considered more than non members. The other aspect was power distance dimension which mainly focused on societal equality and inequality. This is the view that high powered people are entitled to more privileges than the low powered. According to his research the above two aspects made America score 91% and India 48% of ethnocentrism in students. Collectivist culture is the culture in which benefit to all is the principle. It applies in countries or society where people value mutualism by caring for one another (Violet, 2001). Reference Felix, G. , (2004) Social Psychology. London, Blackwell Publishers Violet, T. , (2001) Sociological Theories and Approaches. West, CT, Praeger

Success Of Tobacco And Slavery In The 1600s History Essay

Success Of Tobacco And Slavery In The 1600s History Essay Back in the 1600s, there was a town called Jamestown in what is now the State of Virginia. It had many hardships. At first, no women came over, only the men and their sons. As time progressed, the people who knew how to build homes and shelter fared much better than the ones whom did not. At one point, winter had come and most of the population of Jamestown was not prepared for the cold and they had inadequate food supplies. There were many shocking stories arising out the genuine shortage of food and the resulting starvation, with reports of people killing others to eat them. It was not until the local growing of tobacco did the town turnaround from its downward spiral, but this discovery also marked the beginning of slavery. According to Captain John Smith, none of the native crops were planted at first, not even tobacco.  [1]  The reason for this was that the settlers attention was on anything they could grow for food. The two highest priorities for the settlers were food, as well shelters to live in to protect themselves from the elements. Shelters proved to be extremely important and essential for survival, especially during the cold months. As time moved on, the settlers did interact with the Native Indians and found them using tobacco, but under the name of uppowoc or apooke.  [2]  Most likely, the settlers bought or traded for some tobacco during that time. It was not until 1612 did tobacco cultivation began among the English settlers, even in small patches.  [3]  However, two years before, John Rolfe found that tobacco could be obtained only by buying it from the Indians, or by cultivating it.  [4]   From this mindset, it could be guessed that Rolfe tried to grow a small patch for himself and cut his reliance from the Indians. Rolfe was also trying to find a way to make some money, and find a local product that could be sold overseas in England that would be profitable. Nevertheless, adding one and one together, John Rolfe became one of the first colonists to grow tobacco. Rolfe had become accustomed to the fragrant aroma and taste of the imported Spanish tobacco,  [5]  and so had the people in England. Spanish tobacco became the standard or the bar to which other tobacco was compared. A native tobacco plant of North America was the nicotiana rustica. It was found to be substandard when compared to the tobacco grown in the Spanish Colonies. In 1611, Rolfe decided to experiment with seed of the mild Spanish variety.  [6]  This batch, as they called it, was Rolfes first experimental crop. When it arrived in England, it was stated that its quality was great, but the Spanish grown tobacco was still better. Rolfe came out and said, no doubt but after a little more triall and expense in the curing thereof, it will compare with the best in the West Indies.  [7]  Ã‚  Rolfe was trying very hard to get the tobacco grown in the west to be a desired product in England and Europe. By 1617, Rolfes experiment turned out to be a success, as his business was thriving. He had shipped 20,000 pounds of tobacco was exported from Virginia.  [8]  Tobacco in England was nothing new, the people had e already grown accustomed to it and it was something that only the rich or people who had some extra money could afford. Tobacco grew extremely well in Virginia, as the climate was perfect for cultivation. Virginian Tobacco also had a greater advantage Over All Other Staples in That It Could Be Produced in Larger Quantities Per Acre.  [9]  Since in virginia there was plenty of land, they were able to export a gargantuan amount. The Virginia-grown tobacco had brought down the price of tobacco generally to a much more affordable price, that even more people in England started purchasing tobacco. Spanish tobacco was very expensive in England which almost made it extinct, but the rich still purchased it for special occasions. Since the Virginia-grown tobacco could be produced in such large quantities, there was plenty of supply for the demand. In 1616, Jamestown had been impacted by a fever and the following description indicates the impact of the fever: there were but five or six houses, the church downe, the palizados broken, the bridge in pieces, the well of fresh water spoiled; the storehouse used for the church, [and] the colony dispersed all about, planting tobacco.  [10]  The town was falling apart, they had only a few buildings left, the water supply was spoiled and the town in shambles. The settlers had nothing left, hardly a population, but when the colony dispersed to plant tobacco, it became the only activity to engage in. The settlers started growing in the streets and in the market place.  [11]  Whatever space they had to grow tobacco, they used it. By 1622, plantations extended at intervals from Point Comfort as far as 140 miles up the James River.  [12]  The colony was feverishly spreading out and planting they even stopped caring about hunting, as they gave the Indians firearms and employed them to do their hunting  [13]  This shows how focused the colonists were on tobacco. However, later in 1622, all the space they had for planting and cultivation was greatly reduced due to the Indian Massacre of 1622.  [14]  This event was when the Indians suddenly attacked the colonists and killed many of them. But still, the planters were able to produce 60,000 pounds of tobacco,  [15]  which had tripled from the amount produced back in 1617. So even with the massacre, the colonists were still able to produce a large amount of tobacco. Sometime after the massacre, the settlers started extending their territory to cultivate tobacco. The settlers took over the fields previously cleared by the Indians, which were among the best in the colony. This made it easy for planters, as they did not have to clear the ground beforehand. They did not have to spend time clearing the trees and waiting for the stumps to rot out, so this greatly accelerated the planting process. With the expansion of the settlers into more land, a head-right system was developed which gave fifty acres of land to any person who brought a settler to the colony.  [16]  This meant that people who were already in the colony were strongly encouraged to bring over more people from England to be settlers in the area. The people brought over were known as indentured servants. In 1619, A Dutch slave trader exchanged his cargo of Africans for food in 1619. The Africans became indentured servants  [17]  as well, whose status and work were very similar to the indentured servants whom were brought over from England. People in England were offered a paid voyage to the colony, but they had to work on the land for a certain period until they had paid their dues. This was the start of slavery, as time progressed. The colony started importing more Blacks. In 1624, The Dutch, who had entered the slave trade in 1621 with the formation of the Dutch West Indies Co., imported Blacks to ser ve on Hudson Valley farms.  [18]   At first, there was no slavery at all, The first general planting in the colony began at West and Shirley Hundreds where twenty-five men, commanded by a Captain Madison, were employed solely in planting and curing tobacco.  [19]  The first planting in the colony was done for pay, as they were employed. The head-right system was in place so that people would come over from England. It mostly lured poor or landless people. Shortly after the indentured servants came from England, they complained that their work was endless and very hard. Many of them did not feel comfortable and loathed about the lower average death rate. They were also not treated properly by the landowners who had brought them over. Since none of the settlers wanted to do any hard work, the slave trade thrived to be working in full force, as one could buy a slave or trade food for one, for a relatively cheap price. Slave work was so badly needed for tobacco cultivation that African Slavery was legalized in Virginia and Maryland, becoming the foundation of the Southern agrarian economy.  [20]  It was now legal and normal for settlers to buy a slave, which made slavery and the demand of slaves even higher. African American slaves grew slowly at first, by the 1680s they had become essential to the economy of Virginia.  [21]  The economy relied heavily upon slave labor for its financial success. Planting tobacco was not a hard task, but it was a very time-consuming task and with the many and many acres of land that the landowners had owned, they needed a workforce to take care of all the land. For to sow it, you must make a hole in the earth with your finger and that as deep as your finger is long, then you must cast into the same hole ten or twelve seeds.  [22]  You also had to keep it watered if it had been a dry season. You also had to manage and keep working with the tobacco as it was hoed for the first time about eight to ten days after planting.  [23]  This is exactly what slaves did. The slave industry was big, as between 13,000 and 20,000 slaves were brought into Virginia and Maryland between 1619 and 1697  [24]  The slaves were African people, which had been picked up by British merchants with large vessels, who had either brought slaves from Africa or were reshipped from the West Indies.  [25]  The slave industry has become the trading commodity. West Indian and Portuguese companies also shipped slaves. The Portuguese were primarily sending slaves to the Spanish Colonies. Almost all of the companies or merchants were receiving the majority of their slaves from the People from the Bight of Biafra (present day eastern Nigeria or adjacent Cameroon).  [26]   When ships came to Jamestown or Chesapeake, slaves were put on display and slave buyers came and bought them. Slave buyers were forced to buy them, as it was cheaper to boost their African labor force rather than hiring people who already were in the colony. African people of many countries were mixed with other African people from different parts of the African continent due to the slave merchants going to different parts of Africa to bring back Black Africans as slaves. This caused isolation between the slaves, as they could not understand one another. It was dubbed the Babel of Languages.  [27]   There were also many indentured servants from the head right system who were mixed in with the African slaves. They lived, worked, socialized and ran away together. In 1663, settlers passed a law saying, that all imported blacks are to be given the statues of slaves.  [28]  If a white person marries a black slave, they are to be slaves during the time they live together. A law in 1681 made it so that children born from a white servant women and blacks are regarded as free. By the 1700s, there were many reports of slave revolts. In 1712, New York slaves revolted and killed nine white people. The consequences of this were that twenty one slaves were executed. Then, twenty three slaves rose up in revolt about mistreatment and killed nine whites before they were defeated. The captured slaves were all hanged or burnt. Since the Blacks were starting to rise up and revolting and talking about treatment, the State of Virginia assembly declared that no Negro, mulatto, or Indian shall presume to take upon him, act in or exercise any office, ecclesiastic, civil or military.  [29]  Blacks were also not allowed to serve as a witness in court and they were condemned to a lifelong servitude. In 1772, George Washington was a member of the House of Burgesses and he drafted a petition on the importation of slaves into the colonies from the coast of Africa. He labeled it a trade of great inhumanity. In 1773, some Massachusetts slaves petitioned for freedom, and by 1778, a law was passed in Virginia that no slave should be imported into that commonwealth by sea or by land.  [30]  Around this time, Blacks started to receive certain rights. There were some reports of Blacks suing for their freedom and winning. Slaves later on were commanded to do other work other than farming since the civilizations had advanced. In 1785, a letter written to George Washington and Thomas Johnsons stated that slaves would be used to build canals. Slaves were still being imported at this time. A British bill designed to restrict the number of slaves went into effect. It restricted the number of slaves based on the ships tonnage. By 1815, slave trading was declared a felony by Britain, punishab le by exile to a penal colony, also known as a jail. Portugal accepted a large sum of money to restrict slave trade to Brazil and Spain also received money to abandon trade to Caribbean. This was the end of slave trading, as we knew it back in 1619 with the early years of Jamestown. The settlers who had come to Jamestown were primarily from cities. They were not prepared for the primitive and harsh conditions in the Jamestown area. The population of Jamestown almost was wiped out one winter as food supplies ran out. It was not until the home growing of tobacco did Jamestown begin to thrive. It also led to the beginning of the use of slave labor and the slave trade. One of the first persons to successfully grow tobacco was John Rolfe. While in Jamestown, he perfected growing tobacco and sold it to England. His streamlined process resulted in much lower prices for the people in England, where tobacco became more affordable and more people began buying it. Many people in Jamestown started planting tobacco of their own and converting many acres of vacant land. This created a new problem. The larger the area of the tobacco farms, the more people it required to properly grow it.. Slavery started because of this. Land owners needed more workers to maintain their crops, so ship owners started the slave trade. The Dutch ship that came to Jamestown in 1619 traded food for some African people, which turned into the latter into indentured servants to the landowners. This was the start of the major slave trade, as the Dutch found it to be profitable. Other countries started slave trading as well. Shipping of Black Africans was treated as a commodity. Therefore, in the end tobacco was an extreme success which brought money and people to Jamestown, but it also was the start of slavery, one of the worst practices in the history of mankind.

War and Propaganda: A Look at How the Two Have Been Inseparable Though Time :: Essays Papers

War and Propaganda: A Look at How the Two Have Been Inseparable Though Time There have been many wars that the Unites States has been a part of. Some were fought on American soil, others fought abroad. But through it all, there has always been a need for the public’s support. And what better way to get that support than by putting information out there for the public. Now of course this is biased information that it put forth in front of the general public; just enough to get people caring and thinking about the war, but not enough to keep them fully educated on the subject. Once people start knowing too much and researching, it becomes something that they either feel has too much support, or they take stands that the government does not want. The different media that is out there is geared towards the general public knowing the truth. But I pose the question that â€Å"what is the truth?† especially back in the old days? Who, but those who put the information out, knew what was really going on when it came to wars and the enemies? This is why I thought it might be interesting to look at the way the citizens were swayed towards believing certain things during the war. Why was there such a scare about the Japanese being in the United States during WWII? The propaganda that was out at the time was highly against the Japanese, even the Japanese Americans, calling them the enemy. While it is sad to know that these sentiments are true, it is important to remember the past and to learn from it. History of Propaganda Propaganda has been a human activity as far back as reliable recorded evidence exists. The writings of Romans like Livy are considered masterpieces of pro-Roman statist propaganda. The term itself originates with the Roman Catholic Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, the department of the pontifical administration charged with the spread of Catholicism and with the regulation of ecclesiastical affairs in non-Catholic countries (mission territory). The actual Latin stem propagand- conveys a sense of "that which ought to be spread". Propaganda techniques were first codified and applied in a scientific manner by journalist Walter Lippman and psychologist Edward Bernays (nephew of Sigmund Freud) early in the 20th century. During World War I, Lippman and Bernays were hired by the United States president Woodrow Wilson to sway popular opinion to enter the war on the side of Britain.

My Best Friend Essay

My best friends name is Brittney Lewis. We have been friends since the ninth grade. We have a few things in common, but we’re mostly best friends because opposites attract. Brittney and I met in a Physical Science class we had together. At first we didn’t talk very much if at all, but after a while we grew on each other and stated hanging out together. Since then we have remained friends and since shared many things together like good laughs, jobs, and even some times that weren’t so good for both of us. Mostly, I’m just happy to be able to have such a great friend like her. Like I said before, Brittney and I met in a Physical Science class that we had. That class contained an abnormal group of people. There were a lot of those student types that didn’t care about school, much less class and then there were those that were class clowns who always thought they should have a minute or two to enlighten us with a joke everyday. As you can see this class was pretty out of control and there wasn’t any way to cool us down. Brittney and I sat next to each other all the time and would sit back and watch as the rest of the people in the class made fools of themselves while receiving referrals to the principal. We always laughed and played around in that class and it made us closer as friends; seeing as how we were the only two normal ones there we sort of became really good friends. Don’t get me wrong there have been many other times that she and I spent laughing our â€Å"asses† off, if not at other people or things then at us. Many of our laughs come from when we started working together at Dunkin Donuts/Baskin Robbins. Boy, we sure have a lot of bonding memories at that job. We absolutely hated working at that dump and would strongly suggest that no one apply to work there. It all started off when I got hired in the 10th grade and Brittney and I were in History together when I told her. She immediately asked if I could get her hired and I told her I supposed I could help her since she sounded so desperate when she asked. After a few days after I mentioned to my boss that a friend of mine was seeking employment and wanted to join our staff he told me to call her and tell her she was hired. She was thrilled that I had gotten her the job. The both of us were not so thrilled to find  out what our job was going to be like. Soon after working there for a little over a year Brittney and I realized we didn’t have to slave for minimum wage when many of our friends had clean jobs and were getting paid way more than either of us. So, we decided to throw in the towel and quit. It wasn’t long until Brittney and I landed a job together getting paid way more and staying clean at a shoe and apparel store called The Underground Station. We loved our job. It was just another thing that brought the two of us even closer. Read more:  Friends in Need are Friends Indeed Some of the closest people to you, like your mom, dad, uncle, grandparents will tell you what don’t kill you will only make you stronger. During Brittney’s and my last year and a half in Savannah, before moving here, we both hit some bumpy areas in the road. At this point Brittney and I had been really good friends for about three years. Brittney was sixteen years old and I was still fifteen, about to turn sixteen. Now, sometimes, young folks, like me, get spur of the moment ideas and run with them. The idea was to get a tattoo. I knew my mom would be devastated if she found out, but I wasn’t thinking about her. Brittney already had a tattoo and wanted another one. I didn’t have any and wanted one. Together we made an appointment to go see â€Å"P†, our local tattoo artist for under age kids wanting some permanent body art. In less than thirty minutes I had deceived my mom and still knew she would be crushed if she knew what I had done. Well, eventually, my mom found out and killed me, like I knew she would. She was so heated she told me to get out of her house. Not having anywhere else to go I went to Brittney’s house where she and her mother comforted me for the next four days. My mom loves me dearly, but was very upset with me and needed some time to cool off. Like me, Brittney has been the typical teenager as well, only her â€Å"oops† was a baby; not a mistake, but a blessing, Brittney got pregnant at the end of our senior year in high school. I was there 100 percent to help her deal and prepare for what was soon to come. Brittney and I have been through so many circumstances together; some good and some bad. Together we have grown as both people and friends. Even today we remain best friends. Through all of our laughs, silly jobs,  and bad times we’ve never had a fall out or been upset with each other for anything we couldn’t get over in five minutes. Although my mom has since moved from Savannah, Brittney and her mother still go visit her in her new home and my mom still visits them as well. I couldn’t ask for a better friend to have to be there for me when I need it the most or to just call up when I’m bored. Brittney and I will remain best friends for a long time and so will our families.

Mickey Mouse Character Essay

A century ago who would have believed a small little, rodent creature would be the icon of not just a multi-billion dollar company but also a symbol of innocence, youth, and, happiness. The icon of course is none other than Mickey Mouse, a character that has hundreds of different meanings to millions of different people. But the Mickey the public knows today is not the same cartoon mouse that audiences knew when he made his first public appearance in 1928. Rather throughout the eight decades he’s been around, Mickey Mouse has evolved and grown, just as the public has. Where Mickey was once a mischievous, abrasive, adventurer over the years he’s transformed into a cheerful, calm, educational tool. But the question lately has been whether Mickey Mouse is still a relevant figure in a fast paced, high-tech world full of video games and action films. Where exactly does the eighty-three year-old Mickey Mouse fit in with newer icons such as Super Mario and Spongebob Squarepants? Disney hopes to answer this question by rebranding the aging character to once again become an important character in the upcoming decade of the teens. By going back to the essential qualities of humor, heart, mischief, and adventure that once made up Mickey Mouse, Disney can rediscover a character that is truly timeless. It’s important to note that Mickey Mouse wasn’t always the prize creation of Walt Disney; you see once upon a time there was a young animated creature known as Oswald The Lucky Rabbit. Oswald was a happy, upbeat fellow who often found himself in sticky situations whether it was run away vehicles[1], danger at war[2] or his girlfriend getting kidnapped by a shadowy figure wearing a top hat when he’s trying to milk a robot cow[3]. Sadly Oswald’s happiness soon came to an end when his creator Walt Disney realized despite being the man behind the character, he actually didn’t own the rights to the animated rabbit, as he was property of the distributor Universal Pictures. Upset over his contract, Disney broke his ties with Universal, which meant leaving both his staff and Oswald behind. When attempting to come up with a new cartoon character he himself would own, Walt Disney’s mind wandered back to the days he spent living in Kansas City. His studio there was frequently overrun with field mice, and he found himself particularly close with one specific mouse. When bored with work he would play with the mouse, training the rodent to remain in a small circle  through the process of operant conditioning by touching its nose with a pencil whenever it began to leave. Walt then decided to make the character modeled after the mouse he grew so fond of. The basic design used for Oswald was still retained, with mostly minor changes to make the character resemble a rodent rather than a rabbit. Walt originally planned to name him Mortimer, but his wife thought the name sounded pretentious. The two compromised on the name Mickey, and with that the most famous cartoon character was born. Contrary to popular belief, â€Å"Steamboat Willie† was not Mickey’s first appearance, but rather it was six months earlier with the short â€Å"Plane Crazy† (1928). Based after famous aviator Charles Lindbergh, the short consisted of Mickey becoming a pilot as an attempt to impress his future girlfriend Minnie Mouse. The Mickey in the short is quite possibly the furthest you could get from what he is today, as his goal throughout the cartoon is to get an unwilling Minnie to kiss him while flying the plane. After several futile attempts, he tries to get the kiss by using force on her until she has no choice but to parachute out of the plane to escape. Mickey Mouse lusting so heavily after a kiss would be deemed bad enough by today’s standards, let alone using physical force to try and get it. Now Mickey wouldn’t be caught dead doing either activity. Soon another Mickey Mouse cartoon was made titled â€Å"Gallopin’ Gaucho† (1928), but it wasn’t until â€Å"Steamboat Willie† (1928) that the character would catch on. â€Å"Steamboat Willie† was a complete revolution at the time in 1928. While The Jazz Singer was the first movie to use sound, it was only used sparingly throughout the film. â€Å"Steamboat Willie† on the other hand was a celebration of sound in film, acting in many ways as a technical show off. Bells chime, cows moo, steam whistles blow, and more to show off the marvel that can occur when the sound one hears directly correspondents to what appears on screen. The short became an instant success and officially launched the career of the young cartoon star. Mickey’s appearance in the short is particularly reminiscent of a rodent, especially when compared with his later design. He has beady eyes, long  tail, and lacks the trademark gloves the character is known for. His nose is more protruded from his face, while his ears are placed closer to his head giving him an overall scrappier look. Mickey is also portrayed as smaller than he’s normally shown, being significantly smaller than a cow. [4] While Mickey is shown to still be fairly happy-go-lucky, he’s not innocent kind fellow the public now knows. He pulls a cat’s tail repeatedly with the intention of getting it to cry out, simply to contribute to his impromptu jam band. Mickey laughs and grins almost roguishly, taking immense delight in what is visually causing the cat pain. He even swings the cat around and around, until throwing the animal carelessly across the room to move on to his next victim. Mickey is clearly abusing the animals he’s supposed to be taking care of. The cartoon ends with Mickey being mocked and laughed at by a parrot to which he responds by throwing a potato he was peeling at the bird, knocking the creature into the water. Mickey then listens closely to hear the off screen sound of the bird struggling in the water only to burst out in laughter at the bird’s misfortune. Compared to the tame Mickey that the character later turned in to, it’s shocking to see he originated as a sort of sadistic fellow. Yet ironically, Mickey looks more innocent than ever as he throws his cares away, making musical instruments of the various animals around him. To kids, Mickey was a representation of fun and excitement. He turned whatever job he had into an entertaining adventure, even if that meant getting in trouble sometimes. The mouse had a distinct personality that seems to be lacking in the goody-two-shoes of today. The genres of Mickey’s early cartoon ranged greatly from short to short, with everything from prison movie spoofs[5] to war satires[6] to a surrealist nightmare[7]. Though each cartoon shared a similar sense of humor and fun. That is except for the 1933 short â€Å"The Mad Doctor†, which features Pluto being kidnapped by an evil scientist who attempts to detach the dog’s head in order place it on top of a chicken’s body to â€Å"find out if the end result will bark or crow or cackle†[8]. Mickey enters the Mad Doctor’s lair, avoiding booby trap after booby trap, and even fighting off an army of  skeletons until he himself is caught and nearly sawed in half. In the end it turns out the whole experience was a dream, but nonetheless the short is quite terrifying for what was thought of as children’s fare. In the Journal of Popular Film and Television professor Rick DeCroix said that the short was, â€Å"perhaps the first animated horror film played more for chills than laughs – in fact, it was so stark that British censors deemed it unsuitable for viewing by children.†[9] Even many theatres in the U.S. banned the short, refusing to allow such scary material to be shown to young kids. More Mickey Mouse cartoons continued to be produced at an increasing rate, as the character grew more and more popular. But with newfound popularity came increasing demands to make Mickey Mouse a more wholesome character for the later half of the 1930s. In his book Art of Walt Disney from Mickey Mouse to the Magic Kingdoms artist and popular culture studier Christopher Finch writes: â€Å"Mickey †¦ had become virtually a national symbol, and as such ‘he was expected to behave properly at all times. If he occasionally stepped out of line, any number of letters would arrive at the Studio from citizens and organizations who felt that the nation’s moral well-being was in their hands†¦ Eventually he would be pressured into the role of straight man.†[10] The character of Mickey had become too big to continue his troublemaker ways; it soon became apparent the character would have to change to accommodate his sudden fame. In 1928 he was groping and physically touching Minnie Mouse (â€Å"Plane Crazy†) but by 1936 Mickey would settle for a handshake with Minnie to show their feelings (â€Å"The Rival†). Many of Mickey’s characteristics were transferred to new characters such as Donald Duck and Dippy Dawg or better known as Goofy. Three began to share more cartoons together with Mickey being the rational upstanding one, while Donald and Goofy were the silly more outrageous characters. Donald would eventually start appearing in more cartoons than Mickey, as the angry duck provided funnier material than the moral mouse. But the change in Mickey’s character didn’t come suddenly; rather he gradually reformed his mischievous ways. Mickey’s occupations also began to change as he moved from the countryside and barnyards to take on more cosmopolitan positions. He soon started playing polo (â€Å"Mickey’s Polo Team†) and more upscale activities, partially based on Walt Disney’s newfound interests. By the forties Mickey had moved into the suburbs and wear more sophisticated clothing. In cartoons like the 1942 short â€Å"Mickey’s Birthday Party† he can be seen donning a snap-brim hat with red ribbon, a button down blue shirt, and a cane. [11] As Mickey’s personality and profession began to change so did his appearance to reflect his new image. Professor Stephen Jay Gould of Harvard did an extensive study of the character from a biological artistic perspective concluding the following: â€Å"He has assumed an ever more childlike appearance as the ratty character of Steamboat Willie became the cute and inoffensive host to a magic kingdom. By 1940, the former tweaker of pig’s nipples gets a kick in the ass for insubordination (as the â€Å"Sorcerer’s Apprentice† in Fantasia). By 1953, last cartoon, he has gone fishing and cannot even subdue a squirting clam. The Disney artists transformed Mickey in clever silence, often using suggestive devices that mimic nature’s own changes by different routes. To give him the shorter and pudgier legs of youth, they lowered his pants line and covered his spindly legs with a baggy outfit†¦His head grew relatively larger- and its features more youthful.†[12] The character of Mickey Mouse eventually began to physically reflect the audience Disney started aiming at. Mickey began to shift into the position of being a peer of the children who watch him. He no longer was a rodent, but rather a child just like the kids who wanted Mickey Mouse merchandise. 1953 was the last theatrical Mickey Mouse short and it wouldn’t be until two years later that the character would reappear, this time in the form of the television show The Mickey Mouse Club. The series was a variety show that consisted of live action serials, newsreels, and classic Mickey cartoons.  It was an attempt to cash in on a new audience of young children who hadn’t yet seen vintage Mickey shorts. This is a format that would be replicated several times over the next few decades as the show reappeared in the ‘70s and the ‘90s, with each episode repacking old cartoons. This displayed a substantial shift in the character as the cartoons in theatres had a universal appeal, enjoyed by both adults and children, but The Mickey Mouse Club was clearly meant for kids only. From this point on Mickey was a children’s only character, and his new roles would display this. The Mickey Mouse Club also is the start of the character as an educational tool as a many of the show’s non-cartoon segments were aimed at teaching kid’s valuable lessons and morals. New Mickey Mouse material was scarce throughout the sixties, seventies, eighties, and nineties with the only major Mickey film/TV appearances being three theatrical shorts[13] and one direct to video movie[14]. Mickey during this period became less of a character and more of a corporate icon. He appeared allover the money machine theme parks Disneyland and DisneyWorld, along with finding his face plastered onto all kinds of merchandise and logos that pertained to the Disney company. During the 2000s the character of Mickey Mouse was finally put back into production with the creation of the show Mickey Mouse Works. The series was made up of all new shorts featuring Mickey and friends, picking up right where the Mouse left off in the ‘50s, living in a comfortable suburbia. The show didn’t last long, being taken off air in the late 2000. Instead the shorts were reformatted to fit a new series, House of Mouse, which put Mickey as the head of a dinner theatre where all the Disney animated characters gathered to hang out and watch cartoons. Half the show consisted of new material with Mickey running the club, while the rest was shorts from either Mickey Mouse Works or vintage color cartoons. The character also appeared in four direct to DVD movies, two of which being spin-offs of The House of Mouse and the other two being Mickey’s Twice Upon a Christmas (2004) and The Three Musketeers (2004). Despite being placed in all these different settings they all stuck to the recent version of Mickey Mouse, boring and calm as ever, with the character forced to play the straight man  to all the crazy people around him Mickey’s main cartoon appearance today is limited to the preschooler series Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, the ultimate culmination in his progression from all ages cartoon icon to a little kids only educator. The character’s animation is slow and careful, trying to remain at a pace three year-olds can easily follow. Unlike The Mickey Mouse Club this series contains no classic Mickey shorts, being entirely educational based programming disguised thinly behind a narrative. But there is no disguising the fact that the show is limited in its appeal, having a clear audience of three to five year-old toddlers. Mickey Mouse, a character that previously climbed dangerous mountains[15], explored the jungles of Africa[16], and fought off hordes of skeletons[17], barely shares any form of resemblance with the great mouse he once was. As the character became non-existent in film and watered down within television during the aughts, the area Mickey Mouse’s character became most interesting lies in the realm of video games. While he has appeared in them since the early eighties, it wasn’t until the release of the 2001 Square Enix game Kingdom Hearts that the character began to be recognized as a true video game icon. The Kingdom Hearts series is a complex combination of Disney characters mixed with the Final Fantasy video game franchise. The game takes place in a universe that consists of numerous worlds, typically based off a Disney film or a set of Disney/Final Fantasy characters. A large portion of the main storyline is put into motion when the ruler of the prominent world known as Disney Castle disappears in an attempt to rid the universe of oncoming darkness. The ruler is, of course, none other than King Mickey Mouse. Throughout much of the first game Mickey himself is rarely seen, but his trademark mouse ears icon is displayed frequently as the symbol of Disney Castle. The characters talk about how great and powerful the King is, but he only makes one actual appearance at the very end. At the time Disney wasn’t quite sure how the game would turn out, and as such was weary of having him be a main character, so he was allowed to appear in one scene  only. Due to the game’s overwhelming success the character became more significant its numerous sequels and spin-off titles, especially in the 2006 game Kingdom Hearts II. It’s in this title that the character attempts to prove himself a true video game hero, displayed as powerful and valiant. He defeats enemies in a single blow, strikes fear into bosses eyes, and is all around a truly strong threat. Yet Mickey’s personality remains happy and upbeat as ever. Squire Enix was able to use his goody two-shoes personality to put a new twist on the character. [18] Mickey’s regular clothes in the Kingdom Hearts universe is a play off his traditional clothing, keeping with the basics of white gloves, redshirt, and yellow boots. They then added extra details such as the straps on his shoes, tinges of silver and black, along with large zippers to try and give a slightly more complex, mature look. Though a lot of the time spent with Mickey Mouse occurs when he’s dressed in all black, wearing a cloaked hood that is the trademark of a mysterious organization within the game. This is how the character looks when fully reveled for the first time in Kingdom Hearts II, being an effort to make the character look cooler and more stylish then he’s typically portrayed. The game establishes right away that while he may still be Mickey Mouse, this isn’t the same guy that teaches math on television. This version isn’t quite a radical overhaul, but rather a step in the right direction to bring the character back to his hero, ad venturer roots. [19] The radical overhaul in Mickey’s character would actually occur four years later in the 2010 release of the video game Epic Mickey; Disney’s first big attempt in years to completely reinvent and redesign the character for a new, contemporary generation. With this the company itself has recognized that the character has become out of touch with current audiences, so what better way to began a character’s modernization than by making the reintroduction first occur in the newest medium of storytelling, video  games. Epic Mickey is a much darker take on the character that has more in line with the mouse of old than the currently familiar suburban incarnation. [20] The story involves Mickey breaking into a wizard’s workshop, making a mess of paint on the model of a magical land the wizard created. He accidentally spills paint thinner allover the world when trying to clean his mess up, and runs away before the wizard can return to catch him in the act. Years go by with Mickey being carefree, not thinking about the trouble he created until the day a mysterious creature pulls Mickey back into the workshop and drags him into the model world. The world is now known as The Wasteland and is where cartoon characters disappear to when forgotten by society. While Mickey Mouse appeared in new shorts and adventures over the years, those he left behind ended up populating this abandoned world. The leader of this land happens to be none other than the original forgotten character himself, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, being his first official appearance since 1943. Mickey is forced to face the consequences of his selfish actions that caused the destruction of their world, going around helping old faces that once were his friends, but due to forgotten time feel more like strangers. The gameplay itself revolves around the idea of using paint, which creates, or thinner, which destroys, to solve puzzles. This allows the gamer to directly decide whether Mickey is a hero or an anti-hero. Mickey never can go as far as to truly harm another character, but he can choose the easy way out or be selfish to better himself over others. This lets the game act as a bridge between the old mischievous Mickey Mouse and the righteous modern Mickey. The character’s art design reflects this combination, as he is a mixture of both the original and the more current Mickey. The rest of the game’s artwork is distinctly dark and dreary, which represents the studio’s attempts to inform consumers Mickey isn’t just for kids. He can be a mature character, caught up in a question of morality and the tribulations that come with fame and leaving friends behind. [21] Epic Mickey is a good start, but just one game isn’t enough. Disney is going to have to be more aggressive if they hope to keep the character relevant as the new millennium’s teen years soon kick in. The leash needs to be pulled of the character and he must be promoted as more than just a corporate mascot. The greatest step they could take would be to finally release a feature-length Mickey Mouse film. In the eighty plus years the mouse has been around he has never had his own full-length feature. He’s appeared in parts of movies, such as with Fantasia (1940), along with Fun and Fancy Free (1947), but never a whole film. The main fear has always been that if a Mickey movie came out and performed poorly it would reflect badly on the character, harming his image. But it appears the company is beginning to change their mind as news broke in March of 2011 that such a movie might happen, as long time Disney animator Burny Mattinson revealed he’s been working on a pitch for a film staring Mickey Mouse, along with his friends Donald and Goofy[22]. Such a film is exactly the major kick-start the character needs. It would allow a true fresh start to the largest audience possible. Mickey Mouse has evolved and changed over the years, but the public’s love for the character seems to never go away. One can’t be certain what exactly Mickey’s future holds, especially as the character’s copyright finally expires in 2023, meaning unless Disney finds a way of interfering then the cartoon icon will enter public domain. Disney is desperate to make the character relatable to all ages again, and it seems the key is to reevaluate what once made him so great. Mickey Mouse is the most versatile cartoon character in history and there’s a reason he has lasted so long. Mickey has survived eighty plus years remaining in public consciousness, and it isn’t hard to believe that with a few adjustments he’ll survive another eighty more.