GATTACA film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

GATTACA film - Essay Example Specifically, Socrates writes the following: [H]e who has experience of the manner in which we order justice and administer the State, and still remains, has entered into an implied contract that he will do as we command him. He claims that those who do not obey commands are unjust because they have accepted parental training and education from the state. If they fail to convince the state otherwise, disobedience itself is a kind of crime against the state. Taking this definition on its surface, the character of Vincent Anton Freeman in GATTACA can be shown to violate his contract with the state by trying to rise above his genetically prescribed circumstances. There are many different examples available to show that Vincent refuses to accept his lot in the society of GATTACA. Three such examples will be shown here. First, from his early childhood, Vincent competes against his brother Anton in swimming contests. They swim out to sea and see which one gives up first and swims back. In these early contests, Vincent loses to his brother due to his brother’s superior genetic make-up. However, he continues trying to beat his brother rather than accepting this outcome. In the end, he learns to beat his brother by using all his strength to swim out, not saving anything for the swim back. In this example, he learns that his will can overcome his genetic destiny. Exercising this, he violates his supposed understanding with the state. Second, Vincent decides he wants to become an elite astronaut. In this choice, he also violates his implied contract, which should require him to accept a menial job not afforded those without superior genetics. In the mere decision to attempt to become more than is available to him, Vincent goes against the deterministic direction the state tells him he should accept. While one could make the argument that by attempting to leave earth and go to the stars, Vincent is in fact â€Å"leaving† the state, the fact that he uses state space programs in order to achieve his dreams of becoming more indicates that he has accepted the state’s material conditions without accepting its moral dictates. Third, and finally, the fact that Vincent uses deception to achieve his dream of becoming an astronaut shows that he violates his contract. He steals DNA from a person with a â€Å"superior† profile and uses this to impersonate a different identity. He even undergoes surgery to make himself taller, so that he won’t be detected. In doing this, he shows that, on one hand, he is willing to live within the state’s expectations, but on the other he does not accept its ultimate ordering of justice. He deceives the state while accepting the benefits that it affords him as he lives under that deception. GATTACA, in the end, poses questions about the justice of a state that is formed on genetic determinism. However, it is also an example of a citizen acting within such a state in a way that is, contrac tually speaking, unjust. By using the state for his own private ends, Vincent can be said to be unjust, in view of Socrates’ definition. The fact that we pull for him forces us to ask questions about this social contract and about the nature of justice generally. Second Prompt In her poem, â€Å"Ethics† Linda Pastan defines a situation in which a person must choose between saving a classic painting and another, older human being. She considers this question in light

Exploring the Marketing Mix Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Exploring the Marketing Mix - Essay Example I feel that the consumer perceptions of brands and their attitudes toward strong brands is the core element of this lecture, as it all boils down to figuring out consumer preferences and what consumers actually expect and how they behave (Brassington & Pettitt, 2003). The reason I prefer this part is that it also throws light on the bet practises to win a customer, from a company’s or a manufacturer’s perspective. All the arguments in the lecture lead to the fact that brands affect the buying behaviour of consumers to a great extent. A classic example of this is the choice between diet coke and diet pepsi. As a consumer, I have always preferred diet coke over diet pepsi. But I was amazed to find that various tests have actually proved that the quality of diet pepsi to be better than diet coke. But still, diet coke leads the market as the most preferred drink in the diet colas segment (De Chernatony & McDonald, 1998). When the drinks were tested with two matched sample of consumers, the first ‘blind’ (brands were concealed) group preferred diet pepsi. However, when the same test was carried out in an ‘open’ (brand identities were shown) group, they preferred diet coke (De Chernatony & McDonald, 1998). This example indicates that strong brands are important to both companies and consumers. Though product qualities and prices are given great importance, strong brand overrules all these elements, and can influence the decision making process of the consumers to a much greater extent. Hence distinctive brand identity is the most important element in creating a successful and strong brand (Jobber, 2004). It is evident that a successful brand should win consumer trust and should add value to the companies and positively affect the customer perceptions of the brand. Consumers also gain, as strong brands assure them of the quality of the products and act as a certification. The formula put forth by Doyle (1998) states that a successful brand is a