Incentives For Blue And White Collar Workers

Incentives For Blue And White Collar Workers The term incentive has been used both in the restricted sense of participation and in the widest sense of financial motivation. The concept of incentive implies increased willingness or motivation to work and not the capacity to work. It refers to all the plans that provide extra pay for extra performance in addition to regular wages for a job. Under this programme, the income of an individual, a small group, a plant work-force or all the employees of a firm are partially or wholly related to some measure of productive output. Wage incentives are extra financial motivation. They are designed to stimulate human effort by rewarding the person, over and above the time-rated remuneration, for -improvements in the present or targeted results. Basically, the wage incentive implies a system of payment under which the amount payable to a person is linked with his output. Such a payment may also be called payment by results. MEANING AND DEFINITION Incentives are monetary benefits paid to workmen in recognition of their outstanding performance. An incentive scheme is a plan or programmes to motivate individual or group performance. An incentive programme is most frequently built on monetary rewards (incentive pay or monetary bonus), but may also include a variety of non-monetary rewards or prizes. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) refers to incentives as payment by results but it is appropriate to call them incentive systems of payment emphasising the point of motivation that is the imparting of incentives to workers for higher production and productivity. Unlike wages and salaries which are relatively fixed, incentives generally vary from individual to individual, and from period to period for the same individual. CLASSIFICATION OF INCENTIVES Incentives can be classified into: (i) direct compensation, and (ii) indirect compensation. Direct compensation includes the basic salary or wage that the individual is entitled to for his job, overtime-work and holiday premium, bonuses based on performance, profit sharing and opportunities to purchase stock options, etc. Indirect compensation includes protection programmes (insurance plans, pensions), pay for time not worked, services and perquisites. Also incentives may broadly be classified into monetary and non-monetary. Monetary incentives have an important contribution to make within the total motivation pattern. They provide extra-financial motivation, by rewarding the worker over and above his regular remuneration for performing more than the targeted work. Some of the financial motivations are overtime wages, higher basic wages, incentive bonus, merit increments, suggestion rewards; various allowances, promotion and fringe benefits. Some of the non-financial incentives are good human relations, self-respect, recognition, status, sense of belonging, appreciation, higher responsibility, greater authority, job satisfaction, improved working conditions, greater leisure, etc. All these motivate workers to raise their productivity. ILO classifies incentive schemes into four categories: (i) schemes in which earnings vary in proportion to output, (ii) schemes where earnings vary proportionately less than output, (iii) schemes where earnings vary proportionately more than output, and (iv) schemes where earnings differ at different levels of output. Incentives have also been classified into individual, group and organisation-wide. In an individual incentive plan, the rewards of incentives are based solely on individual performance. It is the extra compensation paid to an individual over a specified amount for his production effort. Such a system is feasible only where an individual can increase the quantity and quality of his output by his own individual efforts and where his output can be measured. The payment is normally on a monthly basis, though in a few cases it may be quarterly or other convenient periods. The standards of performance have been set by a qualified industrial engineering analyst, using technically sound work measurement procedures. The rewards under this plan are almost always immediate, that is, paid daily or weekly. The advantages of individual wage incentive plans are relatively obvious and straightforward. First and foremost, the individual incentive plan rewards the individual for his or her production. The more the worker produces, the more the worker earns. Second, the individual incentives appeal to the basic need for money found in most people. Almost everyone will work harder, up to a point, when there is a justifiable reason to believe that increased productivity will bring about a personal gain. Although individual wage incentives have advantages, there are also limitations. Individual wage incentives work best with jobs that are primarily operator-controlled. They may also lead to labour problems. Incentives, because they reward production levels, can lead to quality problems. Safeguards must be taken to ensure that quality is not sacrificed for quantity. It is the output of the group rather than that of each individual member of the group that can be measured most conveniently or accurately. Group or area incentive schemes provide for the payment of a bonus either equally or proportionately to individuals within a group or area. The bonus is related to the output achieved over an agreed standard or to the time saved on the job the difference between allowed time and actual time. Such schemes may be most appropriate: (a) where people have to work together and team work has to be encouraged; and (b) where high levels of production depend a great deal on the co-operation existing among a team of workers as compared with the individual efforts of team members. Group bonuses are calculated on the basis of the output of the team and are divided among the members either equally or in specified proportions, with more being given to skilled employees than to those who are unskilled. Group incentives are usually applied to small teams and the rewards are based on the performance of the entire group. The bonuses are often much larger than individual wage incentives. Group incentiv e plans, since they evaluate overall performance, are applicable to a wide variety of tasks. Sometimes, however, they are applied to all workers of a department or even of a whole undertaking. One of the disadvantages of group incentive plan is that there is a possibility of ignoring the individual performance as the rewards are based on group performance. In large groups it is often inevitable that there will be slackers who can disrupt the functioning of the whole group. Some of the advantages of group incentive plans are: Better co-operation among workers Less supervision Reduced incidence of absenteeism Reduced clerical work Shorter training time. The disadvantages of group incentive plans are: An efficient worker may be penalised for the inefficiency of the other members in the group The incentive may not be strong enough to serve its purpose Rivalry among the members of the group defeats the very purpose of team work and cooperation. The organisation-wide incentive system involves co-operation and collective effort of the employees and management in order to accomplish broader organisational objectives, such as: (i) to reduce labour, material and supply costs; (ii) to decrease turnover and absenteeism; (iii) to strengthen employee loyalty to the company; (iv) to promote harmonious labour management relations. One of the aspects of the scheme is profit-sharing under which an employee receives a share of the profit fixed in advance under an agreement freely entered into. Some of the advantages of such a scheme are: (i) it inculcates in employees a sense of economic discipline as regards wage costs and productivity; (ii) it engenders improved communication and increased sense of participation; (iii) it is relatively simple and its cost of administration is low; and (iv) it is non-inflationary, if properly devised. MERITS AND DEMERITS Everything has its merits and demerits. In the same way incentive has also some advantages and disadvantages. MERITS 1. Motivation: The primary advantage of incentives is the inducement and motivation of workers for higher efficiency and greater output. It may not be difficult to get people for fixed wages and salaries. 2. Removes fear of Insecurity: With fixed remuneration, it is difficult to motivate workers to give better performance. Fixed remuneration removes fear of insecurity in the minds of employees. 3. Improves Standard of Living: Earnings of employees would be enhanced due to incentives. There are instances where incentive earnings exceed two to three times that of the time rated wages or salaries. Increased earnings would enable the employees to improve their standard of living. 4. Increase in Productivity: There will be reduction in the total as well as per unit of cost of production through incentives. Productivity would increase resulting in greater number of units produced for given inputs. This would bring down the total and unit cost of production. The production capacity is also likely to increase. The other advantages of incentive payments are: reduced supervision, better utilisation of equipment, reduced scrap; reduced lost time, reduced absenteeism and turnover and increased output. Furthermore, systems of payment by results would, if accompanied by organisation and work measurement, enable firms to estimate labour costs more accurately, than under the system of payment by time. This would facilitate the application of cost control techniques like standard costing and budgetary control. On the other hand, systems of payment by results may have disadvantages. There is a tendency for the quality of products to deteriorate unless steps are taken to ensure maintenance of quality through checking and inspection. This involves added expenses. Difficulties may arise over the introduction of new machines or methods. Workers may oppose such introduction for fear that new piece of bonus rates set may yield lower earnings; or when new machines or methods are introduced, they may slacken their rate of work. Another disadvantage is that jealousies may arise among workers because some are able to earn more than others. One of the greatest difficulties with the incentive systems is in the setting of piece or bonus rates. Rate fixing involves delicate problems of judgment in which there is always a risk of error. If rates are set too low, workers are bound to be dissatisfied and will be under pressure to work very hard. If rates are set too high, workers may slacken their efforts at times and employers may not take recourse to revision of rates because the earnings are too high. Difficulty also arises in determining standard performance. Many organisations follow a safe route to fix the standards which is usually the average of past years performance. Past performance may not be the ideal basis for fixing production norms. Most of the problems of financial incentives arise either from the inadequacies of the particular system or from incorrect application and insufficient control. In western countries, as also in India, it has now been realised that economic gain has ceased to be a source of motivation and that greater emphasis should be placed on non- economic factors. Many empirical researchers have shown that monetary incentives alone do not bring about the desired motivation. PRE-REQUIS1TES OF EFFECTIVE INCENTIVE SCHEME All things considered, it may be concluded that in many industries or undertakings and for a large group of operations, well designed systems of payment by results shall yield advantages to all concerned. Many of these advantages will be realised provided sufficient safeguards are provided. Such pre-requisites are: The co-operation of workers in the implementation of an incentive scheme is essential. In particular, workers co-operation is necessary wherein: (a) the methods followed in measuring the results or output upon which payment is based; (b) the methods followed in setting wage rates for different classes of work; and (c) appropriate safeguards concerning earnings, job security and settlement of disputes over piece-work rates and allotted time. The scheme must be based on scientific work measurement. The standards set must be realistic and must motivate workers to put in better performance. Workers must be provided with necessary tools, equipments and materials so as to enable them reach their standards. Indirect workers, such as foremen, supervisors, charge hands, helpers, crane operators, canteen staff, store keepers, and clerical staff should also be covered by the incentive schemes. There should be management commitment to the cost and time necessary to administer incentive schemes properly, and these must be carefully assessed before go on an incentive programme. There is greater need for planning. Many incentive schemes, started hurriedly, planned carelessly, and implemented indifferently have failed and have created more problems for the organisation than they have tried to solve. INCENTIVE SYSTEMS Some of major incentive systems are as follows: 1. The Halsey System: This system which was developed by F.A. Halsey. He provides this system for the fixation of a standard time for the completion of the task. For the work done in correct time or more, the actual time rate is paid. Thus, the minimum wage is guaranteed even if the output falls below the standard. If the job is completed in less than the standard time, the worker receives a bonus payment at his time rate for a specific percentage of the time saved. This percentage may vary anywhere from 30 percent to 70 percent, but usually it is fixed at 50 percent (the other 50 percent going to the share of employer). Thus, if a worker does the work in 6 hours against that of 10 hours standard, he gets bonus after 6 hours plus 50 percent of 4 hours, i.e., 2 hours, as bonus. The other 50 percent (2 hours) is shared by the employer. Bonus= Â ½ of Time Saved/ Time Taken* Daily Wage 2. The Rowan System: Under this system also a standard time is allowed for a job, and bonus is similarly paid for any time saved. This plan differs from the Halsey plan only in regard to the determination of the bonus. In all other respects, the two are the same. The premium is calculated on the basis of the proportion which the time saved bears at standard time. Thus, if a worker does work in 6 hours against the 10-hour standard, the wage payable is 6 hours wages plus 40 percent of the wages as bonus. Bonus= Â ½ of Time Saved/ Time Allowed *Time Taken* Hourly Rate 3. The Bedaux Point System: Under this system, the standard time set is divided into a number of points at the rate of one minute per point. The bonus is calculated at 75 percent of the points earned in excess of 60 per hour. Thus, if the standard time is 10 hours and if the worker completes the job in 7 hours and if his hourly rate is 0.96 money units, the standard number of points for completing the job is 600 points. The worker thus earns 600 points in 7 hours. His bonus, therefore, will be 75 percent of 180 x 0.96/60 which is equal to 2.16 money units. If a worker does not reach the standard, he is paid at his time rate. This system is really more than the incentive system, since it enables the management to record the output of any worker of the department in units which show at once if the production is up to the standard the management desires. 4. The Taylor Differential Piece-rate System: This system was introduced by Taylor with two objectives. First, is to give sufficient incentive to workmen to induce them to produce up to their full capacity and Second, to remove the fear of wage cut. There is one rate for those who reach the standard; they are given a higher rate to enable them to get the bonus. The other is the lower rate for those who are below the standard; so that the hope of receiving a higher rate may serve as an incentive to come up to the standard. Workers are expected to do certain units of work within a certain period of time. This standard is determined on the basis of time and motion studies. Such scientific determination assumes that the standard fixed is not unduly high and is within the easy reach of workers. A proper determination of the standard depend the success of the scheme. This system is designed to encourage the especially efficient worker with a higher rate of payment and to penalise the ineff icient by a lower rate of payment. In practice, this plan is seldom used now. 5. Premium and Task Bonuses: It has been devised by Gantt and is the only one that pays a bonus percentage multiplied by the standard time. Under this system, fixed time rate are guaranteed. Output standards and time standards are established for the performance of each job. Workers completing the job within the standard time or in less time receive wages for the standard time plus a bonus which ranges from 20 percent to 50 percent of the time allowed and not time saved. When a worker fails to turn out the required quantity of a product, he simply gets his time rate without any bonus. Its fairness and practical value depends on the reasonableness of the standard fixed and the wages which workers of average ability can earn without having to work at excessive speed and becoming unduly fatigued. 6. The Profit-sharing System: The profit-sharing scheme is based on the same principle as the group system where incentive is related to the collective effort of the group. It is a system freely entered into under which an employer gives to his employees a share the net profits of the enterprise, fixed in advance, in addition to their wages. The essential features of profit-sharing are: (a) that the arrangement is voluntary but based on an agreement between employer and employee; (b) that the amount to be distributed amongst the participants depend upon the profits earned by the enterprise; and (c) that the, proportion of the profits to be distributed is determined well in advance. The aims of profit-sharing plans are: (i) to promote increased effort and output; (ii) to share some gains in the productivity of the firm; (iii) to secure employee co-operation and to achieve industrial harmony; and (d) to strengthen unity of interest and employee loyalty to organisational objectives. The profit-sharing scheme is comparatively easy and less expensive to adopt. In some cases, these schemes have become successful resulting in increased production at a lower cost. There are cases where they have not made any significant contribution towards improving the overall efficiency of the company. To be effective, profit-sharing schemes should be based on the considerations of profitability of industrial units, computation of surplus profit for distribution on an average basis, and fair return on capital invested in an enterprise. It should not be treated as a substitute for adequate wages but provide something extra to the participants. Full support and co-operation of the union is to be obtained in implementing such a scheme. Since the Second World War, profit-sharing has generally grown in importance, especially in those countries which have adopted legislative measures promoting or requiring its use. Thus, in the late 1970s, approximately 310,000 profit- sharing plans were in operation in the United States covering about 9 million wage-earners, or roughly 10 percent of the employed labour force. Mandatory profit-sharing schemes have been introduced in a number of developing countries. Some voluntarily introduced profit-sharing schemes have continued in the United Kingdom for 40 or 50 years. 7. The Scanlon Plan: It is a plant-wide incentive scheme developed by Joseph Scanlon of the United Steelworkers of America in 1927. The basic concept underlying the Scanlon Plan is that efficiency depends upon plant-wide co-operation. The purpose of this incentive plan is to develop teamwork. It has two main aspects: (a) adopting a measure for increased productivity; and (b) sharing the gain accrued from that increased productivity. The objective of the plan is to devise the formula which will most adequately reflect the prospective efforts of workers and management as a whole. The bonus formula is devised to fit the particular operating conditions of the plant. Some of the salient features of the plan are: (a) it encourages group work; (b) there is high flexibility in the generation of decisions and execution of the plan; (c) it integrates the companys objectives with group activity; (d) it involves all the workers in the exercise and they make their maximum personal contribution to the process of production. Earnest Dale has described four degrees of co-operation between labour and management in the Scanlon Plan, namely: (a) information co-operation by gathering information; (b) advisory co-operation through the process of consultation; (c) constructive co-operation by making suggestions for improvement; and (d) joint union-management decision making. Although there have been remarkable successes with the Scanlon Plan, not all applications have worked. Most of the successful applications have been in relatively small plants, one hundred employees or less. The Scanlon Plan seeks to provide the highest order of incentives to the workers by inviting them to offer suggestions and to share decisions with the management for improving productivity and moulding work incentives. 8. The Rucker Plan: The philosophy of the Rucker Plan is similar to the Scanlon Plan, but the bonus computed is based on a more sophisticated basis. There are two major differences between the two plans. The standard under the Rucker Plan is based upon a careful study of accounting records and is not considered bargainable. While the Scanlon Plan rewards only savings in labour costs, the Rucker Plan offers incentives for savings in other areas as well. 9. Merit Rating: Method may be made of merit rating as a form of wage incentive. It presupposes that the workers in a given grade or occupation differ in their efficiency at work in the undertaking. Merit rating is a method of attempting to give recognition to the best Workers by systematic objective standards. Various qualities are listed, such as skill, efficiency, reliability, initiative, care in avoiding accidents, adaptability, co-operation with other workers, and regularity of attendance. Points or gradings are given for each of these qualities, and workers who reach a high level receive an addition to the normal rate of pay for the job. Rating may be done for each year, and workers who had been receiving merit pay may lose a part or whole of it if they do not maintain their rating. Merit rating is usually applied to time- workers, especially in occupations where opportunities for promotion are less. Merit rating should not be confused with job evaluation. Job evaluation is an attempt to measure the worth of the job, irrespective of who does it, while merit rating is an attempt to measure the performance of the individual. WAGE INCENTIVE PLANS Wage incentive plans may be discussed as (i) plans for blue-collar workers (ii) plans for white-collar workers and (iii) plans for managerial personnel. Each of these categories of employees have separate and distinct needs and hence specific tailor- made incentive plans have to be devised to meet their requirements. Therefore, correct measurement of performance for the purpose of incentive payment is very important. The four critical performance indices are: (a) the standard index (b) the reference index (c) the base index and (d) the incentive index. Various wage incentive schemes are formulated on the basis of these indices. 1. INCENTIVE PLANS FOR BLUE COLLAR WORKERS: Short-term incentive plans for blue collar workers may be broadly classified into three categories: (a) Plans under which the rate of extra incentive is in proportion to the extra output; (b) Plans under which the extra incentive is proportionately at a lower rate than the increase in output; (c) Plans under which the rate of incentives is proportionately higher than the rate of increase in output. Every employer wants his workman to do the maximum work they are capable of doing. On the other hand, there is a feeling among the workers that an increasing effort benefits only the employer even when they are employed on a piece-rate basis. The result is that they never produce to their full capacity, and, in most cases, put in the minimum necessary work. This feeling on the part of workers may be removed either through fear or through expectation of gain, it has been found that fear can never produce the desired effect, but a hope of earning a bonus does induce them to work harder and produce more. Incentive plans are, therefore, known as premium plans because they offer a premium for outstanding performance. All bonus or premium plans relate to two factors: one, they set a standard time for the completion of a definite output or piece of work for a fixed wage; two, the fixing of rate of percentage by which bonus would be earned by a worker over and above his set wage, if the standard time is saved or the standard output is exceeded. Indirect workers such as crane operators, charge hands, canteen staff, helpers, security staff, employees in purchasing, sales and accounts, and maintenance staff also deserve incentives at par with direct workers. Such payments are desirable to avoid dissatisfaction and dissension among the workers in a plant. The payment of bonus to indirect workers, however poses a serious problem because the output of many of them cannot be accurately measured. For example, it is extremely difficult to measure the output of maintenance staff, canteen employees, or security personnel, though it is possible to assess the performance of inspectors, sweepers and packers. Much management therefore, prefers to apply a merit rating system to indirect workers, which rewards these workers for other qualities, in addition to their output. 2. INCENTIVE PLANS FOR WHITE COLLAR EMPLOYEES/SALESMEN: The salesmen are usually given incentives in the form of sales commissions. One study reported that almost 75 % of the organisations surveyed paid salesmen on some type of incentive basis. This is due to three factors: (i) the unsupervised nature of most sales work; (ii) tradition in the market; and (iii) the assumption that incentives are needed to motivate salesmen. There are several incentive plans for sales staff each appropriate for different markets, products, but all plans are basically variations of three types of plans: straight salary, straight commission, and combination plans. The straight salary method is not an incentive plan; the salesman is simply paid on weekly, monthly, or on yearly basis. The advantages of this method are that: (i) the salesmen know in advance what their income will be; and (ii) the expenditure on salesmen is known beforehand. The disadvantages are: (i) this method tend to shift salesman emphasis to just making the sale rather than prospecting and cultivating long-term customer; and (iii) pay is not related to results. This lack of relationship reduces salesmens performance. Under the straight commission, the salesmen are paid on the basis of sales effected i.e., they are paid for results and only for results. Therefore, high performance salesmen are generally attracted. But the disadvantages are: (i) salesmen focus on making a sale on high volume items and as a result cultivating dedicated customers and working to push hard-to-sell items are often neglected; (ii) salesmen tend to .be less company-oriented and more money-oriented, and the company has less control over them; (iii) salesmens income generally fluctuates widely. Under the combination method of salary and commission, salesmen not only get a fixed salary but also a commission in proportion to the sales effected. The advantages of this method are: (i) since salesmen are assured of minimum earnings, they are relieved of financial worries; (ii) the company has more control over its salesmen, as there is sizable salary component in most combination plans. But the main disadvantage is that salary is not related to performance; only incentive value of money is being traded off for its security value. Incentives for Management Employees: In many organisations, the managers are paid bonus. There are two types of bonus plans: one determined by formula (i.e. some criteria like increased sales) and the other determined by some discretion used in allocation of bonus (i.e., paid on more or less permanent basis). The bonus plans are generally reviewed annually to make them more effective. For top level management, bonuses are generally tied to overall corporate results. The size of bonus is much higher for top level executives and lower for the lower level executives. At the top management level, incentive payments are mostly in the form of bonuses which are usually a percentage of base salary that depends upon the level of performance and company profits. Mostly bonuses are paid in cash but in some cases the company may use stock plans that offer the executive the companys stock at a fixed purchase price. Such plans are designed to encourage ownership in the company and indirectly serve as an incentive for good work and represent a form of saving. In the manufacturing and retailing fields, where year-to-year results are largely a reflection of management performance, it is common for executive and managerial personnel to be compensated partly in the form of a base salary and partly in the form of a year-end bonus. The decision of whether to install an incentive bonus plan for executives and, if so, what kind of plan to install should be made appropriately. On the one hand, a bonus is a more immediate and flexible form of compensation than salary and thus has greater motivational potential. On the other hand, the bonus plan that is poorly conceived or administered can have a negative motivational impact. If a bonus plan seems appropriate, careful attention should be paid to what kind of plan would be most effective. WORKING OF INCENTIVE SCHEMES Incentive schemes are regarded as beneficial to both employers and workers. They are accepted as a sound technique for the achievement of greater productivity and good performance. The main advantage of any wage incentive scheme is that for a little expenditure of capital, there can be sizable gains in productivity; the gestation period is also small. The workers chase the supervisors for material, tools, etc., instead of supervisors chasing the workers. The experience gained in India and in other countries indicates that wage incentives have resulted in raising productivity, increasing output and earnings, reducing direct labour costs, and curtailing absenteeism. Despite certain merits of incentive schemes, their actual working is not quite happy. Some critics point out that the output of modern industry does not depend so much on individual human effort as on the capacity of machines and on good organisation. The most effective incentive, they claim, is a combination of good regular wages, good working conditions, and good human relations. There is a tendency for the quality of the products to deteriorate unless steps are taken to ensure the maintenance of quality through a stricter system of checking and inspection. Their application in some cases has not only failed to increase production over a period of time but has caused an actual reduction in employee productivity. One company, for instance, found that a substantial increase in pay through wage incentive systems merely resulted in higher absenteeism, restricted output and lower work standards. Some studie

Post-Colonial Themes in David Maloufs Remembering Babylon Essay exampl

Post-Colonial Themes in David Malouf's Remembering Babylon It is interesting to note that, although in the context of this MA course we are studying Malouf's novel in terms of a post-colonial response, the author himself has expressed the opinion that it is not, strictly speaking, a post-colonial text. Most would agree with Malouf in that it is certainly not an example of resistance or response from a member of a colonised community in the same vein as, for example, Chinua Achebe or some Native Canadian authors. Rather, it can be seen as an examination of the colonial project by a descendant of the original colonisers. Nevertheless, there are several themes running through the novel which constitute elements of post-colonial discourse, and this page intends to briefly examine some of them. There is a pervasive sense of colonial guilt throughout Remembering Babylon, an awareness of the suspect morality of the colonial process. Like Great Expectations, Babylon recognises Australia as a potential utopia for the industrious European immigrant - unlike Dickens, however, Malouf asserts that the success of the project rests not on merely exploiting the resources available (while ignoring or displacing the indigenous people), but on reaching a kind of harmony and exchange with the landscape and with the colonised. This hybrid culture represents, for Malouf, the ideal ultimate outcome of the colonial process. The potential for this utopia is personalised in the crude shape of Gemmy Fairley, an English castaway who lives among aborigines for 16 years before crossing back into European civilisation, where his identity is immediately called into question. Gemmy is an 'in-between creature'(p.28), occupying an uncertain cultural spa... ...piphany, a realisation of harmony with nature which is very aboriginal in character. Viewed from a post-colonial perspective, Remembering Babylon is a pessimistic assessment of the colonial project, a lament for the missed opportunities which a meeting of disparate cultures could provide for humanity. Yes, there is a hopeful hint that the utopia is still somehow attainable, in the self-knowledge gained by Jock, Janet, Lachlan and Frazer. However Malouf, writing as he is in the last decade of the twentieth century, is aware that the colonial project has failed on these terms, and this realisation must inform any reading of the novel. NOTE: Much of the material used on this page is taken from a conversation with David Malouf in Dublin, 19 April 1997. NOTE: The page numbers referred to on this page are taken from the 1994 Vintage edition of Remembering Babylon.

Plato, Greek Art and Censorship Essay

It is imperative that we begin the illustration of Plato’s pursuit for censorship with the definition of his times, the context by which his beliefs on music and poetry were formulated.   Greece during Hellenic times was distinctively marked by a superior regard to the polis or the city-state. With what the civil wars wrought to its citizens, the Greeks developed a strong inclination towards the attainment of what they believed to be the kallipolis or the ideal state, one that is marked by justice, order and harmony, and will do everything in its power to preserve it. The general concession of its superiority justified acts which would have been highly condemnable in the present times. Acts like infanticide and common life are surely not to arouse the approval of the many. One of the necessary steps that Plato strongly advocated for the attainment of the idea state, was the censorship of the arts, music and poetry alike. In summary he claims that the polis needed to constrain its arts, to mitigate its negative influences and curb the dangerous effect of its mimeric nature if they were to avoid the disruption of the state, more like its demise considering how pervasive arts was during the Hellenic period. Plato’s definition of censorship came in the form of 1) the prohibition of music that was intrinsically bad, and 2) the sanctioning of tales that were weaved from a state of madness, thereby promoting false virtues.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On Music – It was a general belief during those times that there existed some form of music that was intrinsically bad or an aberration to the natural harmony of the universe. These were the songs whose words upheld false virtues and songs whose musical tones were derived from the improper order of interval. There in the sequencing of its notes lay a palpable sense of disharmony and discordance which mathematicians and philosophers went to great lengths to prove.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is to be said too that the soul is part of a force called Harmonia – a force that brings to union all elements of the universe, good and bad. The soul acts like a sponge, is its modern rhetoric equivalent, absorbing the discordance of the notes and sending the soul to a confused state as it cannot adequately grasps the things it acquires (Republic 78). The faculties of the physical body become misguided and the resulting man is one who is corrupt and unable to discern what is just from not. Hence, guardians, producers and rulers were considered susceptible to music’s negative influences and must be then censored by the polis if it were to protect man’s virtues. Rhythm and harmony penetrate the inner part of the soul and that gracelessness, bad rhythm and disharmony are akin to bad words and character (Republic III)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This was perhaps the first attempt to advance the concept of the subliminal meaning. The Doctrine of Ethos – music’s ability to form one’s character – still remains on solid ground after centuries. I find sense in what these early philosophers claim. How else do we explain the anarchic proclivities of Rock Music and Rap’s inclination towards street violence despite shifts in paradigm of the many generations that have passed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On Poetry – Here Plato refers to drama, tragedies and words of a song without the musical notes.   Unlike the subliminal effect of some music, poetry has a more direct and invasive effect to one’s character.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Plato’s Theory of Forms states that Nature is an imperfect representation of the ideal and perfect reality of Forms; that man ought to take actions that will bring him closer to the reality of Forms. If poetry represents that which is already imperfect, the resulting work ushers man away from the light and further into the shadows. Without the light, man now becomes a slave to the shadows he continuously imitates.   Moreover, when exposed to poetic illusions man naturally takes on what he sees and starts to assume the character of the poetic subject, in whole or in parts. This mimeric nature, Plato says, is dangerous as this will distract man from achieving his highest state of being.   It is better to stick to one craft and be good at it than to acquire all trades but be good at none. Guardians must be prohibited to learn the trade of the poets. This is   to ensure that his optimum self is achieved.   Otherwise he starts to neglect his duties to the state.   Also, the process of producing poetry sends the artist in a temporal state of divine inspiration or madness, simply that he loses all sense of rationality, he weaves one that is not according to Reason’s dictates but that of his many passions, ignorance and possibly appetites albeit the poetic charm. Anything that is far from Reason is necessarily deemed unhealthy for the kallipolis. Clearly the Hellenic times were defined by their end goals. Plato and others saw censorship, along with many state policies, as a justified means to their end. The present times, however, see a completely different paradigm. People have long shown the world that the morality of the means is just as considerable as the end itself. Censorship to a substantial part of the world is unacceptable. Now, it’s all about rights to freedom of speech and expression. When New Zealand Broadcasting Standards Authority decides to cut off offensive language from the radio, immediately journalists are tagging it as discrimination. In US alone how many controversial lawsuits, to include a high school valedictorian as complainant, have been filed because people have been forbidden to make religious references. Plato would have been shocked, even enraged at this underlying idea of the Individual catching up with the State; or the state policies being subservient to Individual Rights. He would have thought it a narrow insight and I completely agree.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   All this talk on Rights and Freedom of Expression is based on the faulty assumption that 1) everyone is capable of responsible and sensible expressions, and 2) everyone is capable of judicious interpretations of these expressions. When truth of the matter is that when people make tirade speeches against a group , they almost always fail to consider the sensibilities of whose who are being attacked. One’s unguarded   expression becomes another one’s discrimination. To compound things, people are impressionable. Plato was correct when he said that man naturally adopts the things he sees and hears no matter how unjust and far from virtues. Man doesn’t generally step back and take a moment to carefully weigh what he perceives. To those who can, notice that they don’t go out of their way to educate the public. These educated minds have become an elite preferring apathy. This is what turns expressions into social disturbances. Sooner or later when more people start to believe, these expressions become acceptable truths. Eventually they become imbibed as values. With the advent of the digital age, things are even escalated. The cyberspace contains practically all sorts of information, educated, trash, pornographic and otherwise, which can be accessed by anyone even those who are not in the right minds to discern right from wrong. Censorship, contrary to what people believe as a tyrannical act against freedom, is simply responsible regulation. It is to ensure that information is accessed   by the right audience and that the propensity of these expressions to stir and rouse disturbances is curbed. This time it is to preserve not the State but the Society with the Individual at its core and Values at stake. Each processes information or whatever elements one picks up from the cosmos in various ways and degrees. What misguided minds process as motivation for unjust ways may be an educated mind’s trigger for higher knowledge. But if takes only one out of a thousand and perhaps millions of minds to have his virtues corrupted because of unregulated information, that for me, and should so for the progressively liberal states, provide more than enough justification for censorship.   It is a rational step to reduce freedom’s excesses especially in a time where the universe presents wider, freer and borderless ways by which man can inflict harm to another, even to himself. Works Cited Plato. â€Å"The Republic†, translated by Benjamin Jowett,

What Happens if You Touch Dry Ice

Dry ice is solid carbon dioxide, which is extremely cold. You should wear gloves or other protective gear when you handle dry ice, but have you ever wondered what would happen to your hand if you touched it? Heres the answer. Extreme Cold When dry ice heats up, it sublimates into carbon dioxide gas, which is a normal component of air. The problem with touching dry ice is that it is extremely cold (-109.3 F or -78.5 C), so when you touch it, the heat from your hand (or other body part) is absorbed by the dry ice. Exercise Caution A really brief touch, like poking dry ice, just feels really cold. Holding dry ice in your hand, however, will give you severe frostbite, damaging your skin in much the same manner as a burn. Wear protective gloves. You do not want to try to eat or swallow dry ice because the dry ice is so cold it can burn your mouth or esophagus. If you handle dry ice and your skin gets a little red, treat the frostbite like you would treat a burn. If you touch dry ice and get frostbite so that your skin turns white and you lose sensation, then seek medical attention. Dry ice is cold enough to kill cells and causes serious injury, so treat it with respect and handle it with care. So What Does Dry Ice Feel Like? Just in case you dont want to touch dry ice but do want to know how it feels, heres a description of the experience. Touching dry ice is not like touching normal water ice. It is not wet. When you touch it, it feels somewhat like what you might expect really cold styrofoam would feel like...sort of crunchy and dry. You can feel the carbon dioxide sublimating into gas. The air around the dry ice is very cold. The Smoke Ring Trick, But Dont Do It The trick (which is inadvisable and potentially dangerous, so dont try it) involves putting a sliver of dry ice in your mouth to blow carbon dioxide smoke rings with the sublimated gas. The saliva in your mouth has a much higher heat capacity than the skin on your hand, so it isnt as easy to freeze. The dry ice does not stick to your tongue. It tastes acidic, sort of like seltzer water.