Wesfarmers : Financial Analysis

Wesfarmers : Financial Analysis Wesfarmers main focus is very simple but an effective objective of providing a satisfactory return to its shareholders. The beauty of this objective is that it is measurable, and they seek to achieve a return on equity, which ranks Wesfarmers in the top 20 percent of Australia’s listed companies and able to manage the portfolio of businesses which make up the group with strong financial focus (Australian Securities Exchange,2008). The ongoing success of Wesfarmers is based on shareholder focus, financial disciplines and goodwill and hence it has achieved significant financial growth in the preceding 6 years. It is a â€Å" diversified Australian group, provides home improvement products, building supplies, coal mining, gas, industrial and safety products, food, groceries, apparel, office products and insurance (Business Review, 2008). Wesfarmers key strategy is to grow through acquisitions. In line with the strategy, Wesfarmers made several acquisitions over the years which enhanced their financial position and stability. Over the years the group acquired Linde Gas, which is a major provider of gas to the Australian Industrial market. In 2003 Wesfarmers finalized the acquisition of Lumley Australian and New Zealand insurance business which helped diversify Wesfarmers business operations and finally in 2007, Wesfarmers acquired the Coles group (Greenhalgh, 2008). Table 1: Major Acquisitions BusinessPriceEBIT ($m)EV/EBIT multiple OAMPS7255812. 5 Linde Gas5007313. 5 Coles Group19,3001,15016. 8 Source: www. wesfarmers. com. au The most common form of financial analysis is undertaken using ratios, using the data from financial statements and other related sources. By analyzing and calculating the figures obtained from the Wesfarmers financial statements of the preceding 5-6 years we can develop an insight to the success and growth of the company (accounting text book). Over the years Wesfarmers has grown significantly both physically and financially. In 2003 the group achieved a result with net profits reaching $538 million, with an after tax net profit of 16 percent. Earnings per share before goodwill amortization were up by nine percent and shareholders received an increase in dividends by up to 14 percent. The total operating revenue increased five percent a revenue of 7. 8 billion when compared to the previous year, and a 20 percent increase in net operating cash flow due to a strong focus on working capital and preceding years higher profit (Wesfarmers 2003). Over the last 4 years Wesfarmers net revenues kept rising dramatically from 7. 54 billion in 2005 to approximately 8. 71 billion in 2007. With the acquisition of Coles retail assets in 2007, the scale of Wesfarmers retail operations increased extensively with operations from over 3,200 stores throughout Australia and total sales of $39. billion in the year 2007. This substantially demonstrates the significant buying power with suppliers manufactures and obtains benefits associated with dedicated networks and shareholder goodwill (Wesfarmers, 2007). There was a significant rise in net profit margin 7. 65% in 2004 to 9. 85 % in 2006. However 2008 being a difficult year due to the global financial crisis there has been a drop in ne t profit margin. There has always been a constant increase in the Return on asset from 8. 60% in 2004 to 12. 2 % in 2006 and also large increase on the return on equity a tremendous increase to 26. 15% in 2006. This demonstrates the overall growth and performance over the years (FinAnalysis,2009). As organizations grow and expand successfully they are also faced with a lot of challenges. Given the recent acquisition of Coles, Wesfarmers financial policies and liquidity position has changed significantly. Until 2008 Wesfarmers has a strong control over their assets, and the ability of the company to meet short term obligations were high. However off late their liquidity position is considered to be weak, considering the significant level of short term debt they have acquired, although a portion of it was paid off by the end of 2008, there is still a segment of it which is yet to be completely cleared off. However given the global financial and economic crisis, Financial experts have predicted that Wesfarmers debt levels are going to rise in the short to medium term of 2009 (Greenhalgh, 2008). This shows the ability of Wesfarmers to purchase assets using borrowed funds and thus lever up their total assets. The short to medium term debt will have to be refinanced in the coming months to assist it reducing any further risks. Wesfarmers services a diverse customer base reflecting the broad range of industries in which the company operates, given this diverse operations of groups they have a large number of competitors including MITRE 10, BHP, RIO and Orica, Caltex etc ( FinAnalysis, 2009). However the major one of them all being Woolworths. Woolworths has established a clear lead in sales growth in recent years, and is estimated to hold approximately 27% of the market with Coles falling down to 23%. Woolworths has clearly demonstrated a lead in terms of supermarket margins and supply chain automation resulting in heavy price discounting, and they have reported a solid growth in margins from 4. 7% in 2005 to 6. 2% in 2007(Woolworths, 2008). As Wesfarmers operate in various other industries and segments they have demonstrated a strong position in the market. General merchandising and apparel store Target has performed strongly compared to peers, reporting margins growing from 2. 1% in 2002 to 8. 8% in 2007. However both Coles and Woolworths operate in a duopolistic market for large scale retailers, with other competitors finding it difficult to compete with these two massive players. Stakeholder analysis: â€Å"The Board of Wesfarmers Limited is a strong advocate of good corporate governance and is committed to providing a satisfactory return to its shareholders and fulfilling its corporate governance obligations and responsibilities in the best interest of the company and its stakeholders complying with the ASX corporate Governance Council’s Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations† (Wesfarmers, 2008). The stakeholders include employees, customers, suppliers and other contractors, government agencies, local communities, and also shareholders in the parent company. The company strives to expand and improve its sustainability efforts into the future by enhancing the physical environment in which they operate, provide a safe working environment for employees, customers and other stakeholders, treating all stakeholders with respect, investing in the communities for development and better standards of living and most of all, behaving in a legal and ethical manner (Hill et,al. 007, p. 34 & Wesfarmers, 2008). However there were a few discrepancies and criticism in the early 1990’s, regarding environment and longstanding pollutions issue from sites used for fertilizer production by Wesfarmers. The government and the public were concerned about leaching of heavy metals into the water table. Criticism also leveled at the company over its adequate stakeholder involvement in the issue ( Sustainable Asset Management, 2003). It was also known that a large number of stakeholder of the parent company were now pleased and supportive of the acquisition of Coles group. However eventually it was understood that shareholders supported the proposal and realized it was an opportunity for future growth, increased market share, and higher share prices and returns (Bolt, 2007). Over the years Wesfarmers made strong efforts and changes to advocate the best practice in Corporate Governance by fulfilling its obligations and responsibilities. The board approved new terms of reference for the audit and compliance committee. The committee also has the responsibility to assess the effectiveness of the group’s compliance reporting programe to cover areas such as crisis management, legal liability, risk review, insurance, financial issues, environmental health and safely management (Wesfarmers, 2007). Wesfarmers also revised their disclosure process and policy and improved timely disclosure of relevant information to the market, this includes the conduct of investor and analyst briefing and communication with the media. Stakeholders are involved in reviews and stakeholders surveys to tackle key areas such as supply chain, OH&S, resource consumption, product stewardship, feedbacks and complaints etc to comment on the company’s performance. The Australian Standards Technical Committee, Australian Water and other authorities have concluded that Wesfarmers has involved in ensuring environmental responsibility and safety (Wesfarmers, 2007). Succession planning is another issue which is constantly under review within the group. Together with the mergers and acquisitions taken place over the years, Wesfarmers board ensured that these transitions were a smooth one, keeping abreast with the history and culture of the company. This evolution had diversified and strengthened the company together with the experience and knowledge and skill of highly committed directors (Wesfarmers, 2007). References Wesfarmers, 2008, ‘Corporate Governance’, retrieved on 27 December 2008, . Bolt, C, 2007, ‘Wesfarmers makes improved offer for coles, The West Australian, retrieved on 27 December 2008, . Wesfarmers, 2008, ‘Submission on the federal government’s Green paper for a proposed carbon pollution reduction scheme’, retrieved on 27 December 2008, . Sustainable Asset Management, 2003, ‘Sustainability Leaders Australia Fund’, retrieved on 27 December 2008, . Wesfarmers, 2007, ‘Annual General Meeting – Chairman’s Address’, retrieved 29 December 2008, .

Reflecting on Wisdom Essay

The one individual that I consider to be very wise is Bishop T.D. Jakes. Even though, I have never met him face-to-face; words spoken by him has inspired mass congregations; as well as me. Opposing to common beliefs, wisdom is not the ability to be knowledgeable about everything, but to a certain extent holding an open mind to additionally enhance comprehensions A wise person considers anything they say before they speak and discuss about area of circumstances he/she knows about and asks questions about the ones he/she are not familiar with. Individuals who have wisdom are inclined to be modest instead of displaying show-offs mentality. A wise individual have a tendency not to be competitive and do not mind if others have the notion to accuse them of being wrong. People with wisdom also know that people will gain knowledge at their own rate and in their own time, therefore not staring down on someone just because they are not equally understood. Wise people have great insight and a g ifted ability to articulate it without belittling or embarrassing others. My favorite characteristic of a wise person is their ability to look beyond what is obvious (especially in unfavorable circumstances) and focus on the subject at hand. It must be also being made aware of that wisdoms come from life encounters, mirror image and/or educational training. Bishop T.D. Jakes holds these characteristics traits as an individual of wisdom. Bishop Jakes uses illustrations from his personal experiences in life, in addition to the lives of others which is under his counseling; Bishop Jakes provides pointed guidance on how to shift from battle to triumph, from prey to conqueror. Motivating and revitalizing direct honesty, this is the ultimate source for those seeking to comprehend and care for the love ones in their lives. This lends a hand decoding individual’s often impenetrable conduct which offers one-on-one approaches for better understanding and therapeutic in a person’s affiliations. Books such as, He-Motions written by Bishop T.D.  Jakes h ave put into words precision and prospect to everyone; which help them strengthen their relationships with themselves, others, and with their Savior. It has also given females the explanations they try to find as they communicate to the men they be devoted to. It may seem unbelievable to some because of the fact; a book causing so many people to get nearer as one in relationships and closer to God. Wisdom is that attribute of spirituality by which creates the greatest potential outcome with the greatest potential measures; through ministry and spirituality. Wisdom and intellect-knowledge are not equivalent, yet are strongly associated. Knowledge is obtained by building up information, but wisdom is effects from the approaching of issues that are learned. Knowledge is the bits and pieces made known through which wisdom put together its formation. An individual not educated possibly will be wiser than the most knowledgeable intellectual in actuality time and again are! While speaking of Bishop’s wisdom, it stands for his capability to formulate flawless conclusions and to accomplish those conclusions by great measures. Bishop in his wisdom makes use of the unlimited knowledge so that he may accomplish his objective in a means which praises God the greatest. All that is done by him seems to be prepared with flawless wisdom. Bishop perceives every thing in its proper relation to everything else, and so He is able to work toward His predestined goals with flawless precision. These are the reason, Bishop T.D. Jakes is known by many as a man of wisdom. He has changed lives through his knowledge of the Bible. There is not any study of more importance or value than a study of the nature and attributes of spirituality. In the past few years, I have been drawn deeper into what is known as, â€Å"The Words of God†. This is the reason why attributes of spirituality is the area, in which I have developed most fully. At the same time, not anything in life worth having was ever gained overnight. Therefore, I feel much work is ahead for me; to fully develop in future years come. Neither knowledge nor wisdom is gained overnight; it is a continuous growth process for years to come.

Affirmative Action Is Not the Solution Essays -- Affirmative Action Es

One of the arguments against affirmative action is that it injures white men and violates their rights. If were to take a closer look at the affirmative action laws, we can see why this would be true. For example, let’s take a hypothetical situation of two males, one white and another individual who happens to be a minority, both sending in college applications to Harvard to compete for admission. Unfortunately, the university only has one available spot and must decide between the white individual and the minority. The white male has slightly better grades and quite a few more volunteer hours, while both of them excelled in sports and completed two foreign languages. Under the current affirmative action policies, the minority would probably get the final position because of the perceived need for ethnic diversity in the college atmosphere, despite the fact that he did not have the stronger academic credentials. Would this be considered just? In this case not only would affirm ative action be serving an injustice to the white individual, but it would also help create a loophole by indirectly establishing a legal form of discrimination.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The counterpoint to this argument is that although affirmative action creates a larger obstacle for white men to achieve, such measures are necessary in order to break the cycle of de facto employment and school discrimination. However, this does not seem to be a valid counterpoint. If we take a look at another hypothetical situation we can see why it is not † However, this argument is not compelling, as the best way to increase productivity and improve the economy is to hire on merit. Hiring based on something other than objective merit may result in economic inefficiency and a less qualified staff. If minorities have a qualified resume and are available, they will meet the criteria of the employer. Once again, it is more effective to treat the disease itself, rather than to stoop down to the same level and discriminate to treat the symptoms. In athletics, for example, in spite of past discrimination blacks have excelled, not because standards were lowered but because barriers were eliminated. Now more than ever blacks comprise the largest ethnic group in professional sports and have come to dominate some of the most lucrative sports such as football and basketball, and are now using their earned social capital to give back to their communities to help others along the way. This is a prime example of how minorities can be helped without lowering the standard by which others are also measured by. To improve our standards as a whole, we must remove the ball and chain on minorities, rather than adding a heavier ball and chain on whites.

Choosing the Effective Method for the Research Essay

Choosing the Effective Method for the Research - Essay Example What procedure enhances the applicability of the research methodology processes relating to the research conducted? Background to the Storyline Hucker (2001) observes that a researcher tends to make definite choices over different types of research methods in the course of conducting a research in an effective fashion. The researcher may focus on gathering information all by oneself from the larger market or may depend on large amount of data sets whether published physically or available online to conduct the research needed. The course of gathering information from the larger available market through the identification of a target population holds to be Primary Research while that which focuses on gathering information rendered by others relating to the same topic holds to be of Secondary Research type. Hucker (20001) further states that available information relating to Secondary Research methods is gained through the avid study of large number of journals, books, articles, govern ment publications and other type of data sources available whether in print and online form. These data sources help the researcher to gain hold of authentic information related to the research question where information is obtained from different peers. Secondary research also helps the researcher to save both cost and time related to the research activity. Similarly Primary Research methods are found to be in use through the construction of questionnaires through which interview is conducted over a sample population. Herein the researcher is required to understand and evaluate on the type of questionnaire to be constructed whether structured or semi-structured or fully unstructured in nature to assist in gaining the right type of information sought. Qualitative and Quantitative Research methods gain emergence on the pattern of research activity taken depending on non-statistical or incorporation of statistical research conducts. However in many cases as Hucker (2001) states that t he process of triangulation is followed where the researcher is required to incorporate or combine different research methods for conducting a total project (Hucker, 2001, p.8-11). Literature Review Types of Research Methods Kothari (2009) observes reflects that based on the needs of different types of researches a variety of research methodologies have come into existence. Firstly where the researcher is required to conduct the research based on historical or already existing information focus is rendered from gaining the same through library research techniques. Herein the researcher tends to use contents gained from literary sources or other information sources like recordings audio or print to formulate the research. Similarly where the researcher is required to gain current information from the field the research types are generally experimental or exploratory in nature. Herein the researcher is required to formulate different questions whether structured or unstructured to con duct interviews on a targeted sample population and thereby to gain needed inferences and information. Questionnaires are rendered either by mailers or telephonic interview is conducted over the target population. Similarly, Kothari (2009) also focuses on the use of Case Study based research where the focus of the research is narrowed down to a particular issue that bears representation to the research objectives

Meditation to the Heart of Darkness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Meditation to the Heart of Darkness - Essay Example Yet Conrad, as a man who had endured many hardships in his life even before his eleventh birthday (Papke, 2000), was also aware of the hidden aspect of the hearts of men. Motives ranging from good to evil reside in the human heart, yet are not always visible on their faces. Hearts are very private and hidden places, and the heart of a continent is shown to be often as dark as the heart of the humans who seek to penetrate it. Work is essential to life, and people spend so much time performing the actions of their life's work that they are often inextricably tied to the job. Marlow shows the lengths to which people will go to get employed when he relates that after asking men for a job and they "said 'My dear fellow,' and did nothing. Then-would you believe it-I tried the women. I, Charlie Marlow, set the women to work-to get a job" (Conrad, 72). His subsequent job with the Company demonstrates the power that Work can have over persons. It is depicted as a one-dimensional and overarching presence to which the men of the tale answer. It is connected with not just the men who travel on the steamers into the African territory, but also with the hearers of the tale, whose jobs are intimately connected with the operation of the Company's machine. Work may also be seen as a machine that drives the darkness of the ivory business. The fact that so many persons must provide for both themselves and families makes p opular what is essentially an inhumane practice of de-tusking elephants. The natives who work with the whites engage in this practice for the sake of having the income that work provides. This they do, though it encroaches upon the sanctity of animal life much in the same way that slavery has encroached upon the sanctity of human life. Yet, for the sake of work the natives become a party to something of an inhumanity that is similar to those their kinsmen have faced within the past century. For seamen, the sea is synonymous with work, and Conrad has been quoted by Papke (2000) as saying, "men and sea interpenetrate, so to speak--the sea entering the life of most men and the men knowing something or everything about the sea." The work enters every part of a seaman's life and is connected somehow with his actions, whether honorable or dark. In Africa, the work that is done by the Europeans who enter the territory is as dark as the continent as it has been described throughout history. Though theft is frowned upon in European society, robbery is essentially the goal of these "reputable" merchants who enter that territory. Of this double standard Conrad writes, "By heavens! there is something after all in the world allowing one man to steal a horse while another must not look at a halter" (98-99). The truth of these men's dishonesty is substantiated in the text. As Marlow travels along the coast and then within the continent, he comes upon several instances in which the continent and its inhabitants are being robbed of their possessions. The animals whose tusks provide the ivory are in danger because the greed of those robbing seamen who want their tusks and would see them die in order to have the boon that they desire. Not only do the European seamen rob the elephants of their lives, but they also rob the Africans of the riches of their own territory. This type of robbery is especially perceptible in the character Kurtz, who under the guise of entering the African territory for trading purposes has resorted

INDEPENDENT RESEARCH PAPER PROPOSAL Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

INDEPENDENT PAPER - Research Proposal Example rch exist on corporate and market strategy of companies in domestic market, yet literature is pretty scarce when it comes to shedding light on corporate and market strategy of companies, while they enter new international territory (Deng, et al., 2012). On the other hand, consideration of research works of Chen and Ho (2004) and Deng, et al. (2012) reveals the fact that importance of China is increasing among multinational companies from USA and other European Union (EU), who are planning to expand international base of the business. In such context, the paper has selected Tesla Motors (an American company that specializes in designing, manufacturing and selling electric vehicles and power train components) as sample organization in order to understand nature of its corporate and market strategy and how the company would enter the Chinese market (Tesla Motors, 2014). From academic perspective, the research findings would bridge the gap in the literature, regarding adjustment of corpo rate and market strategy of companies, during internationalization process and from business perspective, findings of the paper would help Tesla Motors to identify the probable entry mode for Chinese market. Till date, very few researchers have tried to understand corporate and market strategy adjustment by companies, while moving from a developed nation (USA, in this case) to a developing one (China, in this case). Such gap in the literature has influenced the researcher to take up this study and conduct research on the topic in order to fill up certain gaps in the literature. Xue and Zhou (2007) defined corporate strategy as the direction as well as the way used by corporations through integration of different operational activities in order to achieve particular business objectives. In case of corporate strategy, companies use its resource capabilities and operational activities of different departments, such as, production and manufacturing, financial and marketing department, in

Malpractices during Elections Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Malpractices during Elections - Essay Example Hans Von Spakovsky argues that in order to ensure a democratic election process, the election board and authorities should ensure safety and security just before elections, during the election and after the election. He argues that this encompasses preparations made before voting that include ensuring that there is a credible voters register, ensuring that during voting process all legible people are allowed to vote peacefully and ensuring that the vote counting is conducted with a lot of integrity. Hans acknowledges that the use of IDs by voters can help in curbing election irregularities that may occur as a result election malpractices. He points out that use of IDs can to a certain extent deter people from impersonating other voters, prevent illegible people from voting and prevent people from casting their votes in more than one state or region. Hans argues that unless the use of voters IDs is launched then it will be futile trying to charge those caught in voters’ fraud. This is because of lack of sufficient proof to charge those caught committing election crimes. Hans further argues that fears by a section of the public that use of IDs would result in lower voter turnout are baseless. He justifies his sentiments by arguing that almost all American adults have IDs and those without can easily acquire them with ease. He backs up his sentiments by pointing out that during the 2008 presidential primary elections, Georgia one of the states in the USA with existing strict voter ID laws registered the highest of voters (Louis 407). Therefore Hans concludes by stating that voter identification is one logical way that can be employed in the USA to prevent election irregularities and hence ensuring a democratic election process that most Americans deserve. Contrary to arguments put forward by Hans that voter fraud is real in the USA and voters IDs can be used to curb down on these irregularities, Chandler Davidson argues that identification cards cannot elim inate fraud if at all exists. He instead argues that trying to impose the use of IDs is discriminative and would result in lower voter turnout because minority groups such as the elderly might not take part in the elections. Edward Foley, on the other hand, argues that both arguments presented by conservatives and liberals are logical and therefore should be addressed cautiously. He asserts that identification of voters can be discriminative to a certain degree and therefore may have an influence on the voter turnout and at the same time it can be used to a certain extent to address issues related with voters’ fraud. He instead proposes that a more valid and logical way that can be used to ensure democracy in elections is by employing the use of digital technology. Ha argues that voters should be allowed to present digitized photos of themselves at the voting venue. This he argues can be used to confirm the true identity of the voters. He argues that a digital photo can easil y be obtained therefore fears that use of drivers license, passports or other forms of IDs could be a burden to some people won’t arise. He further proposes that for absentee voters they could email a copy of their digitized photo alongside their ballot to help in confirming identity. This could help in eradicating fraud among the citizens who may not personally go to the polling stations (Louis 413).  

Google case study analysis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Google analysis - Case Study Example Analysis The key cultural management issues for Google are: negotiation between two cultures with opposing social and cultural values, and understanding the factors that affect Chinese culture and how these factors can be used to persuade China to allow Google to operate in China. The first issue is negotiation between two cultures that have diverging social and cultural values. On the one hand, Google and China have strong social differences. Google wants to do no evil and it wants to provide all information needed by Chinese users. On the other hand, Google also wants to follow local laws and procedures, as it does with other countries, although it does not want to support political oppression in China. China wants to control search engines and other Internet websites to impose political control, which is often criticized as a modern form of political oppression, because it violates people’s freedom of speech and freedom to access free information. Using Trompenaar’s value dimensions, it is clear that eastern cultures like China prefer building relationships first, before doing business with others. The Chinese are believed to be motivated by openness and acceptance, while American companies like Google are motivated by reliability and congruence (Gaunt). China wants to have an open relationship with Google, where it expects Google to open its technology to its Internet restrictions. Google, however, cannot compromise its principles. It wants something gained for something it will lose. If it is going to do some self-censorship, it must get something in return.

Christian scriptures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Christian scriptures - Essay Example The Christian holy scripture forms the starting point of the great majority of the doctrines and theological concepts adopted as well as disputed by the numerous denominations of the Christian faith.2 Today as much as in the past the Old Testament could be read to give the reader an indication of what Jesus Christ was expected to achieve, whilst the New Testament describes what he is supposed to have actually achieved. The New Testament also mentions how the Early Church started to spread the Christian religion whilst having debates about the best means of leading Christian lives.3 The studies of the New Testament soon came to the conclusion that there was a great deal that the Synoptic Gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke held in common with each other.4 The study of holy scriptures was tightly restricted before the Reformation yet that altered with the spread of Protestantism, especially in its most evangelical guises.5 The consequences of the Protestant Reformation as well as the Roman Catholic counter - Reformation could be arguably discerned in the study of holy scriptures right down to our own times.6 The numerous Protestant sects and the Roman Catholic Church even now present their own, sometimes very different interpretations of the holy scriptures.7 Yet in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries many Biblical scholars were of the opinion that the Synoptic Gospels all shared at least shared one common source of information about Jesus before using different sources to raise the unique parts of their own gospel accounts.8 Those different understandings of holy scriptures are shaped by theological differences and how literally the text of the Holy Bible is, or is not taken to be. The Christian holy scriptures had a very strong influence over the development of many Western cultures and societies although there are convincing indications of declining religious affiliations in

Social Mention Defined Essay Example for Free

Social Mention Defined Essay Social Mention Social media is serves as an outlet for public relations practitioners to provide around the clock management for clients and publics. Cites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are just a few of the social media tools that are used to maintain relationships with publics and build brand names. The hassle of managing a variety of social media pages has produced the need for social media management tools. Social media management tools available are used to help further manage social media relationships and monitor success and failures of clients in social media. Social Mention is a management tool analyzes different content from a multitude of social media networks at one time. Public relations practitioners can use this tool to evaluate client’s relationships with publics on various social networks and measure their presence online. PR professionals utilize this tool to gauge the success of a brand, client, organization or product. This tool allows for quick and easy access to social media crisis management in order to maintain a positive image. Social Mention provides information such as the amount of users discussing a topic and what time of day a particular subject is being discussed. The tool provides in time reports covering what is going on at that exact moment in social media. Social Mention is a beneficial tool in the PR field. The tool provides reports describing categories such as strength, sentiment, passion and reach. Strength measures the possibility of a client being discussed in social media. The calculation for strength is simply the number of mentions of a keyword over the hours of a day. Sentiment determines the positive and negative ratio of a client referenced in social media. Passion is the measurement of how likely a client’s brand will be discussed repeatedly. Reach is the category that determines how many users the specific topic reaches and can potentially reach via social media. Reach is found by the number of authors referring to the specified word over the number of times it is mentioned. The different categories allow a user to tailor their image to improve positive popularity in social media. Social mention provides alerts to users e-mail accounts upon relevant updates regarding clients or brands of interest. Unfortunately, the updates only recognize keywords noted about a particular topic and disregard the context of the keywords. Therefore some notifications are unnecessary. Across the Internet PR practitioners take advantage of the benefits Social Mention has to offer. Bloggers rave about the efficiency and convenience of managing social networks all in one place. Healthy Choice launched a PR social media campaign based on the information gathered by Social Mention. The company used the feedback given on social networks to configure a campaign that would improve the Healthy Choice brand image in consumer’s minds. Once Healthy Choice improved social media relationships with its publics, social media involvement with the company skyrocketed. After offering a coupon on the Healthy Choice Facebook page, â€Å"likes† increased from under 10,000 to over 60,000. Social Mention helped Healthy Choice reach out to its publics and respond to their feedback. The data gathered from Social Mention provided Healthy Choice with the material it needed to increase the company’s popularity and improve the brand name.

Catcher In The Rye Essay English Literature Essay

Catcher In The Rye Essay English Literature Essay People  who  shut their eyes  to  reality simply invite their own destruction, and anyone  who  insists  on  remaining  in a  state  of  innocence long after  that  innocence is  dead turns himself into  a  monster (James Baldwin). One cannot hold onto their innocence forever, the longer he or she holds onto it, the more one can lose sight of their selves. In The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield struggles in accepting his loss of innocence which leads towards his downfall. Holden is a struggling 16 year-old boy, trying to find his place in the world, a world in which allows him to retain his innocence and as he begins to move towards the adult world, he clings to his innocence in a more urgent desperation. Over the course of three days, the novel follows Holden where he eventually accepts his loss of innocence, but not without going through many struggles along the way first. Through Salingers use of symbols, the reader is able to clearly identify Holdens resistance towards becoming an adult and releasing his innocence. In The Catcher in the Rye, the author uses the Museum of Natural History, the erasing of profanity, and the carousel to reveal that a person cannot avoid his or her loss of innocence and it is difficult to accept that once it is gone, it never comes back. Holden visits his childhood spot, Museum of Natural History, symbolizing a world in which nothing has to change which in turn, Holden wishes could apply to life. While reflecting on his memories from the museum he realizes that the reason he loved it so much was because the way he could count on everything staying the same, The best thing though, in that museum was that everything always stayed right where it was. Nobodyd moveà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the only thing that would be different is you (Salinger 121). Just like the thought of preserving innocence, Holden revels in the thought of everything staying exactly the same, forever. However, Holden knows he has become different, he acknowledges this in the quote. He realizes that he possesses less innocence than he did the last time he visited the museum. The concept of stability that this quote provides makes it evident that Holden is afraid of becoming different, evolving into an adult with different views than he once held. Deep down, he a dmits that even though certain things can remain the same, he will not. He is slowly beginning to recognize the fact he has lost his innocence for good, but it comes down to his admittance of this. Although, he thinks he can protect himself, the loss of his innocence is inevitable. Holden reflects on the museums consistency and he believes a world where everything could be preserved (even though it would be impossible) would solve many problems that he holds, Certain things they should stay the way they are. You ought to be able to stick them in one of those big glass cases and just leave them alone. I know thats impossible, but its too bad anyways (Salinger 122). Holden longs for a world in which everything can stay the same. Holden wouldnt have to enter the adult world and he would never have to lose his innocence and accept his growing responsibilities in his ideal world. It is implied that some of the certain things Holden might want to preserve is Allie, his deceased brother. I f Allie was put into one of the glass cases, he would never be exposed to his death, he wouldnt have to lose his innocence. Holden recognizes the fact though that this thought is impossible. He knows there is never a way in order to protect the ones he cares about and their innocence. He knows that there is no avoidance in the loss of innocence, but he is only scared to see it will never come back. Holden arrives at the museum, only to be consumed by a feeling that changes his wanting to visit the museum, When I got to the museum, all of a sudden I wouldnt have gone inside for a million bucks (Salinger 122). Holden realizes that if he steps into the museum he will acknowledge the fact he has changed, become different. Holden sees that he has lost his innocence, but he isnt ready to admit that he has lost it for good. Holden chooses to not go into the museum in order to try and avoid his recognition of his loss of innocence. However, eventually, if not the museum something will cause Holden to see reality for what it really is. As a child, Holden held on to the fond, innocent memories of the museum. Now, grown up, he is afraid that if he sees the museum now, his innocent perspective will change forcing him to accept the fact that he has lost his innocence for good. The Museum helps Holden realize the fact that as much as he wishes things could stay the same; he knows life does not work that way. Holdens erasing of the profanity symbolized the corruption of innocence and Holdens strong sense of duty towards the children who would see it, thinking it is his responsibility to be able to preserve all of their innocence, but knowing it is impossible. While visiting Phoebes elementary school, he observes the profanity that is written on the schools wall and is taken aback, Somebodyd written Fuck you on the wall. I thought how Phoebe and all the other little kids would see ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦If you had a million years to do it in, you couldnt rub out even half the Fuck you signs in the world (Salinger 201). Holden feels that children should not be exposed to anything that has a chance of corrupting their innocence. In this incident, the exposure to the phrase Fuck you creates Holden to believe it is his duty to be the savior to all the children. Although he wants to believe that by erasing all of the Fuck you signs could save childrens innocence, he knows that it is impossible to be able to save every single child. He cannot accept the fact that these children cannot avoid their loss of innocence, just like Holden cant as well. He is worried that if these children see the phrase, they will have no way of retaining their innocence which is already impossible. Again, he comes across another profane expression carved into the schools wall, I saw another Fuck you on the wall. I tried to rub it off with my hand again, but this one was scratched on, with a knife or something. It wouldnt come off (Salinger 202). Holden is beginning to witness that some things, like innocence, cannot be avoided. Some things are unavoidable. Even though he knows that phrase is permanently etched into the wall, he still desperately tries to erase it. This is symbolic of how he desperately tries to preserve his innocence even though he is already becoming different, something that cannot be changed. While the phrase symbolizes another way to corrupt ones innocence, it becomes evident that like the etching, innocence cannot be protected forever. When Holden is at the museum, in the tomb exhibit he sees yet more profanity on the walls, only this time it is written in crayola, Youd never guess what I saw on the wall. Another Fuck you. It was written with red crayon or something, right under the glass part of the window, under the stones (Salinger 204). While Holden is beginning to realize that the Fuck you signs are everywhere, providing many opportunities for the corruption of ones innocence. It is apparent this is symbolically showing that nothing can stop the process of losing ones innocence, it is only natural. The fact that this time, the phrase was written in crayon, it is a hint that this was most likely the work of a child. Holden has been working so hard in order to save these children, he didnt consider that unlike him, they are more willing to lose their innocence and accept the fact that it is gone for good. He is finally becoming aware of the fact that chi ldren are letting go of their innocence and making that transition into adulthood, and he isnt able to control this. At one point, Holden takes Phoebe to a carousel which is symbolic of Holdens new found acceptance towards his loss of innocence and realization that he is not able to save all children from losing their innocence as well. Holden takes Phoebe to a carousel where he encourages her to ride it, without him, Maybe I will next time. Ill watch ya. I went over and sat down on the bench, and she went and got on the carousel (Salinger 211). Holden rejects Phoebes invitation to join her on the carousel, marking Holdens developing maturity. It is becoming noticeable that Holden is slowly starting to show evidence that he is accepting the fact that he knows he has lost his innocence for good. Therefore, he feels it is not necessary to partake in childish activities such as the carousel. He sees Phoebe as the one who is her innocent stage. He has already passed that stage in his life and transition into the adult world, which doesnt include riding on the carousel. Seeing Phoebe reach for the gold ring while on the carousel he begins to realize that he cannot protect children from their growing up, The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off, but its bad if you say anything to them (Salinger 211). The gold ring is what children would literally reach for once their horse passed under it on the carousel. Symbolically, Holden is accepting that growing up is a part of life, something that cannot be avoided. He is admitting that losing ones innocence is a part of growing up and a child cannot be protected from it forever. He realizes that adults must let children reach for their own gold rings; their dreams, hopes, and wants. Holden is acknowledging that he has to be the adult; he cannot be that child forever. Holden continues to watch Phoebe ride the carousel and is overwhelmed with happiness seeing her enjoy herself in her youth, It was just she looked so damn nice, the way she kept going around and around, in her blue coat and all (Salinger 213). Holden is seeing innocence incarnated, through Phoebe. Phoebes circling on the carousel represents seeing her innocence circling. Holden is accepting his loss of innocence and transitioning into the adult world. Watching Phoebe was almost a moment of truth for him, he realizes that one cannot avoid the loss of sense forever. He knows that eventually Phoebe will have to lose her innocence eventually but she doesnt have to yet. Holden thinks it is nice seeing Phoebe not worrying about her loss of innocence and he accepts the adult world for himself in this moment. Seeing and experiencing Phoebe on the carousel and seeing her in her innocence, Holden knows it is his time to move on, his innocence and innocent stage has come and gone and it will never come back. Learning to accept the loss of ones innocence is and to face the reality of it can be difficult for some. Through Holdens story, Salinger reveals that although it is understandable to try to protect ones innocence, it is only a foolish notion. Even in todays world, some struggle with accepting their loss of innocence. The loss of innocence can be related to taking that first sip of alcohol, or taking that first hit of marijuana. For young girls and boys, losing their virginity is an example of them giving away their innocence in an intimate act. Once some takes a drink, a smoke, or has sex, there is no going back, just like there is one cannot regain their innocence. Although these are examples of ways one can lose their innocence, it is much more complex than this. The losing of innocence marks the gradual change into the adult world where one is unable to access their childhood memories and youth. It is when one becomes an adult and fully matures that one loses his or her innocence . When one learns to accept the loss of innocence, it is then that they mark the turning point in their lives. Innocence is usually associated with ignorance and youth, so by losing this, one is accepting wisdom and adulthood. One is able to transition into the next part of their lives without the extra baggage of trying to retain their childhood. Although yearning for innocence is natural even in some ways perhaps good at some point, everyone has to face the realm of adulthood and venture into it, without the aid of their innocence to accompany them any longer.

Adobe and the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act :: Hackers Hacking Computers Technology Essays

Adobe and the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act 1. The Background. In July of 2001 a Russian programmer Dmitry Sklyarov , an employee of ElcomSoft arrived at DefCon9 hacker conference which was held in Alexis Park Hotel in Las Vegas. DefCon conferences were designed for hackers from around the world to meet in Las Vegas and display their skills, while checking the innovations and techniques of other hackers (www.defcon.com). ElcomSoft is a privately owned software development company with headquarters in Moscow, Russia which specializes in Password Recovery software, Advanced Disk catalog, Advanced Registry Tracker and E-Book Processing software. (note: the e-book processing software is still advertised on the company's website: www.elcomsoft.com). Dmitry Sklyarov gave a speech, titled "eBooks security - theory and practice" about ElcomSoft's software which was designed to crack protections on Adobe Systems' eBooks. Here is what the software was doing: "Advanced eBook Inscriber, or simply AEBIN, is a program to convert Sealed eBooks in Microsoft Reader (.LIT) format to Inscribed ones. Sealed eBooks can be created with Microsoft Reader Content SDK (available for free) or various 3rd party tools; AEBIN allows to add any purchaser-specific information (such as purchaser's name or order number) to the Sealed eBook, so that information will be shown on the cover page of the book when it is opened in Microsoft Reader. This reinforces honest usage by consumers." 1. Adobe charged Sklyarov and ElcomSoft with violating a 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act. "The Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA) was the foundation of an effort by Congress to implement United States treaty obligations and to move the nation's copyright law into the digital age... Key among the topics included in the DMCA are provisions concerning the circumvention of copyright protection systems, fair use in a digital environment, and online service provider (OSP) liability (including details on safe harbors, damages, and "notice and takedown" practices). Resources on these and other topics are included below." 2. (note: while I was opening an Adobe PDF format document with DMCA, my computer froze twice, causing me to loose most of my essay). FBI agents arrested Sklyarov on July 17, 2001 after his presentation and charged with distributing a product designed to circumvent copyright protection measures (the AEBPR) (www.freesklyarov.org). He was booked in jail and then released on $50,000 bail, but was not allowed to go back to his family in Russia, or leave United States for that matter.

Increasing Taxes to Bail Out Social Security Essay -- Argumentative Pe

Increasing Taxes to Bail Out Social Security In 1935 the United States was in the throws of the worst economic depression our country had ever seen. The President at the time was Franklin Roosevelt. As part of Roosevelt's "New Deal", he instituted Social Security, which established an old-age pension system, to be administered by the federal government, and financed by taxes on both employers and employees. This system was to help the older citizens and dependents of workers of the U.S. However, since its inception, Social Security has been turned into a retirement plan of sorts. Many retired and older citizens rely solely on Social Security benefits to live. The program has been successful for the last 64 years, but in the near future Social Security might run out of resources unless some drastic measures are taken to preserve it. The program will be collecting less than it is paying out by the year 2012 and be insolvent by 2030. Something must be done. Social Security has been a safe and reliable source of income for the old for the last 64 years. Some 42 % of elderly citizens rely on social security as a large part of their income. Every month, millions of people over the age of 65 receive a check in the mail. The preceding fact is one of the main reasons that Social Security is in trouble. When Social Security was first instituted, the percent of the population that lived past 70 was much lower than it was today. Recent discoveries in the medical field, and new attitudes towards eating and exercise have extended the life span of Americans much longer than in 1935. This means that there will be much more people receiving Social Security and they will be receiving it for a much longer time. The next problem with the sy... ... It seems to me that the government should stick with what it already does and knows how to do, that is, raise taxes. I am in favor of a sharp tax increase for Social Security. There is no risk involved in raising the tax, except for disapproval by the citizens of the U.S. I would also like to see the retirement age raised to 70 and the early retirement age raised to 65. This would make it lighter on the system as I mentioned above, providing more tax and fewer people to support. The measure I would implement would be to raise the cap on the amount of money that is taxable for Social Security. This would allow more tax money to be generated. These three things would set the system straight for the upcoming years. They are stable and sound ideas that have been proven to work. Privatization is not needed, we need to balance before we try to accumulate an abundance.

Employee Benefit Programs in the Information Technology Industry Essay

Individual Case Study Develop a case study that analyzes the competitive position of a business organization in a technologically-oriented industry. This case study should demonstrate an understanding of competitive forces and principles applicable to competitive environments, including Sun Tzu’s â€Å"Art of War† axioms. The case study should be 5-7 pages in length. â€Å"All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved. Sun Tzu â€Å"Can you imagine what I would do if I could do all I can?† Sun Tzu I work for Electronic Data Systems (EDS). "EDS is a global business and technology services company headquartered in Plano, Texas." Hewlett-Packard Co. reached a deal with EDS to acquire the company for $13.9 billion . On August 26, 2008, the deal was sealed and EDS was renamed EDS, an HP Company. After the normal paranoid questions were raised (possible layoffs, transfers, loss of pensions, etc.), everyone had questions about HP and Compaq computers. The first questions were, â€Å"What are we going to do with all of the Dell servers and computers? Are we going to get new HP workstations? And how can we get free computers, or at least reduced? These questions got me to research Employee Computer Purchase Plans with several other companies. Siemens AG is Europe's largest engineering conglomerate; it is one of the world’s largest communications, electronics and electrical engineering companies. Siemens' headquarters are located in Berlin and Munich, Germany. Siemens employs over 480,000 people in nearly 190 countries; their revenues were over 72.448 billion Euros in fiscal year 2007. The company has three main business sectors. These... ... It’s perfect. BIBLIOGRAPHY â€Å"Sun Tzu Qotes (2008). Retrieved September 10, 2008 from the BrainyQuote website: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/s/sun_tzu.html â€Å"Electronic Data Systems† (2008). Retrieved September 11, 2008 from the Wikipedia website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_Data_Systems. Margaret E. Dobbin. (2008). â€Å"Open Text: The Content Experts†. Retrieved September 11, 2008, from Open Text Web siste: http://www.opentext.com/news/pr.html?id=123. Paul, Franklin (2008). "HP to buy EDS for $12.6 bln in challenge to IBM", Reuters, pp. 4. Retrieved on September 11, 2008, from the Reuter UK website: http://uk.reuters.com/article/companyNews/idUKN1230539620080514. (2008). â€Å"Fujitsu: The Possibilities are Infinite†. Retrived September 11, 2008, from the Fujitsu website: http://www.fujitsu.com/uk/

Essay Bishop

The below essay is a final draft, and not a final copy; therefore, it does not have page numbers and cannot be quoted in future publications. The published version of the essay is in the following book available in print and online versions in the Seneca library: Elizabeth Bishop in the 21st Century: Reading the New Editions. Eds. Cleghorn, Hicok, Travisano. Charlottesville and London: University of Virginia Press, June 2012. Part II (of the 4 part book with 17 essays by different people) Crossing Continents: Self, Politics, Place Bishop's â€Å"wiring fused†: Bone Key and â€Å"Pleasure Seas†Angus Cleghorn Elizabeth Bishop's Edgar Allan Poe & The Juke-Box and the Library of America edition of Bishop's poetry and prose provide readers with additional context enabling a richer understanding of her poetic project. Alice Quinn's compelling tour of previously unpublished archival material and her strong interpretive directions in the heavily-annotated notes let us color in, highlight and extend lines drawn in The Complete Poems. Some of those poetic lines include wires and cables, which are visible in Bishop's paintings, as published in William Benton's Exchanging Hats.If we consider the extensive presence of wires in the artwork alongside the copious, recently published poetic images of wires, we can observe vibrant innovation, especially in the material Bishop had planned for a Florida volume entitled Bone Key. The wires conduct electricity, as does The Juke-Box, both heating up her place. Florida warms Bishop after Europe: in this geographical shift, we can see Bishop relinquish stiff European statuary forms and begin to radiate in hotbeds of electric light.Also existing in this erotic awakening is a new approach to nature in the modern world. Instead of wires representing something anti-natural (modernity is often this sort of presence in her Nova Scotian poems, for example, when â€Å"The Moose† stares down the bus), the wires conduct ener gy into a future charged with potential where â€Å"It is marvellous to wake up together† after an â€Å"Electrical Storm. † This current brings Bishop into alien territory where lesbian eroticism is illuminated by green light, vines, wires and music. Pleasure Seas,† an uncollected poem that stood alone in The Complete Poems, is amplified by the previously unpublished Florida draft-poems, many of which include the words Bone Key in the margins or under poem titles; this planned volume is visible in the recent editions and is prominent in Bishop's developing sexual-geographic poetics. In The Complete Poems, â€Å"Pleasure Seas† is first of the â€Å"Uncollected Poems† section. As written in the â€Å"Publisher's Note,† Harper's Bazaar accepted the poem but did not print it as promised in 1939.This editorial decision cut â€Å"Pleasure Seas† out of Bishop's public oeuvre until 1983 when Robert Giroux resuscitated it in the uncollected se ction. Thus it is read as a marginal poem, which has received relatively little critical attention. Far less than â€Å"It is marvellous to wake up together,† a previously unpublished poem found by Lorrie Goldensohn in Brazil that has been considered integral to understanding Bishop's hidden potential as an erotic poet since Goldensohn discussed it in her 1992 book, Elizabeth Bishop: The Biography of a Poetry.Perhaps because â€Å"Pleasure Seas† has been widely available since 1983 in The Complete Poems, this poem does not appear to critics as a found gem like â€Å"It is marvellous . . . .† Now, however, we can read these previously disparate poems together in the Library of America Bishop: Poems, Prose and Letters volume, in which â€Å"Pleasure Seas† was placed accurately by editors Lloyd Schwartz and Robert Giroux in the â€Å"Unpublished Poems† section. As such, it accompanies numerous unpublished poems, many of them first published by Quinn i n Edgar Allan Poe & The Juke-Box. Pleasure Seas† is a tour de force, and its rejection in 1939 likely indicated to Bishop that the public world was not ready for such a poem. I speculate that had that poem been published as promised, Bishop would have had more confidence in developing the publication of Bone Key, a volume which would have followed, or replaced A Cold Spring and preceded Questions of Travel; she might have re-formed A Cold Spring into a warmer, more ample volume as Bone Key.A Cold Spring ends with the lesbian mystique of â€Å"The Shampoo,† the bubbles and â€Å"concentric shocks† of which make a lot more sense when accompanied, not by the preceding poem, â€Å"Invitation to Miss Marianne Moore,† but by erotic poems such as â€Å"Pleasure Seas,† â€Å"Full Moon, Key West,† â€Å"The walls went on for years & years†¦,† â€Å"It is marvellous to wake up together,† and â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe & the Juke-Box. â⠂¬  Bishop's writing in Florida involves tremendous struggle to express sexual desire and experience.Automatic bodily impulses contend with traditional strictures. Since in Florida â€Å"pleasures are mechanical† (EAP 49) and for Bishop counter the norms of heterosexual culture, her tentative imagination treads â€Å"the narrow sidewalks / of cement / that carry sounds / like tampered wires †¦ † in â€Å"Full Moon, Key West† (EAP 60). She fears the touch of her feet may detonate bombs. Bishop's recently published material offers explosive amplitudes measured against the constraints of traditional poetic architecture. Full Moon, Key West† and â€Å"The walls went on for years & years†¦,† in EAP are dated circa 1943. In both poems, Bishop envisions nature merging with technology to provide an extension of space in her environment: The morning light on the patches of raw plaster was beautiful. It was crumbled & fine like insects' eggs or wal ls of coral, something natural. Up the bricks outside climbed little grill-work balconies all green, the wires were like vines. And the beds, too, one could study them, white, but with crudely copied lant formations, with pleasure. (EAP 61) Teresa De Lauretis writes in Technologies of Gender about how innovative language and technology (in film) represent gender and sexuality in new formal expressions of life previously considered impossible. The new poetic material from Bishop similarly re-formulates human living spaces. In the above poem, the man-made room's construction breaks down into natural similes. A dialectic between nature and architecture has nature grow into walls, balconies and rooms.This poetic process is found in later poems such as â€Å"Song for the Rainy Season,† in which the mist enters the house to make â€Å"the mildew's / ignorant map† on the wall. Typical human divisions between construction and organicism are made fluid. In â€Å"The walls†¦,† divisions between inner and outer worlds crumble; for instance, white beds are studied, but are they beds to lie in, or plant beds on the balconies? Bishop writes that they are â€Å"with crudely copied / plant formations,† suggesting both flowers and perhaps a patterned bedspread (rather like the wallpaper-skin of â€Å"The Fish†).The phrase, â€Å"walls of coral,† itself merges architecture with nature, also echoing Stevens' 1935 image of â€Å"sunken coral water-walled† in â€Å"The Idea of Order at Key West,† which Bishop had been reading and discussing in letters with Marianne Moore. Stevens and Bishop draw attention to artifices of nature, and nature overpowering artifice. The natural versus manufactured-world dichotomy is deconstructed through innovative cross-over imagery, continuing in these lines: Up the bricks outside climbed little grill-work balconies all green, the wires were like vines. (EAP 61)Vines simply grow up buildin gs, so we have a precedent for nature's encroachment on man-made constructions. Here, Bishop replicates natural vines with â€Å"little grill-work balconies / all green,† a man-made architecture that looks as if it grows on its own. Then the poet surprises us again with another simile, â€Å"the wires were like vines. † The imagery of the wires blackly echoes that of the balconies; again this accretion lends the physical man-made constructions a fluid, surreal life of their own, which is empowered naturally by the simile that has them acting like vines.Vine-wires extend nature through technology into potential domains far from this balconied room. However, despite the revolutionary â€Å"Building, Dwelling, Thinking,† to use the title of the well-known Heidegger essay, this is a poem of walls, which offers temporary extensions of nature, only to be shut down when One day a sad view came to the window to look in, little fields & fences & trees, tilted, tan & gray . Then it went away. Bigger than anything else the large bright clouds moved by rapidly every evening, rapt, on their way to some festivity. How dark it grew, no, but life was not deprived of all that sense f motion in which so much of it consists. (EAP 62) With a last line again sounding like Stevens, and yet the rest of the poem very much Bishop, â€Å"The walls†¦Ã¢â‚¬  concludes with walls between the poet's human nature and nature's indifferent â€Å"festivity. † The muted colors of traditional human habitation infiltrate her window, so Bishop will have to wait, as her wishful thinking indicates earlier in the poem, for a â€Å"future holding up those words / as something actually important / for everyone to see, like billboards† (61). My essay hoists up these formerly scrapped images of alien technology, held back in Bishop's time, â€Å"like billboards. Those diminutive â€Å"little fields & fences & trees, tilted, tan & gray† are found in an earli er poem, â€Å"A Warning for Salesmen,† written between 1935 and 1937. Earlier poems, especially from Bishop's years in Europe, lack wires as conduits of energy and transformation. â€Å"A Warning to Salesmen† offers a static portrait of marital doldrums; it speaks of a lost friend, dry landscape, and farmer at home †¦putting vegetables away in sand In his cellar, or talking to the back Of his wife as she leaned over the stove. The farmer's land Lay like a ship that has rounded the worldAnd rests in a sluggish river, the cables slack. (EAP 16) Alice Quinn found this poem in Bishop's notebook, written when she took a â€Å"trip to France with Hallie Tompkins in July 1935†³ (251). Even if it is a poem of loss, it also anticipates gain. The slack cables await tightening. The lack of desire in the poem begs for it; Quinn notes this through Bishop's scrawling revisions: Lines scribbled at the top of the page to the right of the title: â€Å"Let us in confused, b ut common, voice / Congratulate th'occasion, and rejoice, rejoice, rejoice / The thing love shies at / And the time when love shows confidence. To the right at the bottom of the draft, Bishop writes, â€Å"OK,† but the whole poem is crossed out. And below, on the left: â€Å"My Love / Wonderful is this machine / One gesture started it. † (251) This machine anticipates the mechanical sexual pleasures found in the Florida bars written into â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe ; the Juke-Box. † â€Å"A Warning to Salesman† shows she had long been waiting for Florida. Before she slots nickels into the Floridian Juke-Box, Bishop's trip to France includes time spent residing by â€Å"Luxembourg Gardens† in fall 1935.This poem of garden civilization indicates Bishop's relationship with European traditional architecture; the poem begins: Doves on architecture, architecture Color of doves, and doves in air— The towers are so much the color of air, They could be any where. (EAP 27) While the deadpan-glorious tone might resemble Stevens, we might also think of Bishop's â€Å"The Monument,† which was written earlier and first published in 1940; it also ambiguously provokes present explorations of art, thought and place, rather than fixing memories of the past.Barbara Page's essay, â€Å"Off-Beat Claves, Oblique Realities: The Key West Notebooks of Elizabeth Bishop,† clearly demonstrates that Bishop's â€Å"The Monument† is a response to Stevens' statues in Owl's Clover, one of which was located in Luxembourg Gardens, as Michael North demonstrated in The Final Sculpture: Public Monuments and Modern Poetry. Similar to Stevens' rhetorical parody of monuments, in Bishop's â€Å"Luxembourg Gardens,† â€Å"histories, cities, politics, and people / Are made presentable / For the children playing below the Pantheon† (27) and on goes a list of history's prim pomp.Then a puff of wind sprays the fountain's water, mocking à ¢â‚¬Å"the Pantheon,† the jet of water first drooping, then scattering itself like William Carlos Williams' phallic fountain in â€Å"Spouts. † Finally, the poem ends with a balloon flitting away, as children watching it exclaim, â€Å"It will get to the moon. † By employing the fluid play of kids, wind, water and dispersal, Bishop builds a conglomerate antithesis to traditional Parisian monumentality.With even more Stevensian flux than â€Å"The Monument,† this poem situates Bishop's critique of monuments in Europe, unlike the well-known â€Å"Monument† poem, which could be anywhere, and thus speaks of a more liberating and expansive American perspective, drifting from European classical culture possibly all the way to Asia Minor or Mongolia. Also from her 1935 notebook is â€Å"Three Poems,† which works well to explain Bishop's transition from studying the architecture of Europe to recognizing its sterile limitations and then finding her own perspective.Section III develops an emotional movement away from stultifying monumentality: The mind goes on to say: â€Å"Fortunate affection Still young enough to raise a monument To the first look lost beyond the eyelashes. † But the heart sees fields cluttered with statues And does not want to look. (EAP 19) In the final stanza a future is foretold by the promise of a fortunate traveler: Younger than the mind and less intelligent, He refuses all food, all communications; Only at night, in dreams seeking his fortune, Sees travel, and turns up strange face-cards. EAP 19) Starving (a word Susan Howe uses to describe American women poets before Dickinson), this speaker is impoverished by statues and has, as the lone alternative, future fortune in surreal night visions of travel. Bishop's travels will fill her gypsy-heart's desire as it expands its vocabulary in the roaming poetic technologies found in Florida and Brazil, but Paris itself does not illuminate love. In the Pari s of â€Å"Three Poems,† â€Å"The heart sits in his echoing house / And would not speak at all† (19).This inarticulate â€Å"prison-house† enables us to see why Bishop needed to travel in search of home as an idea, but not a physical settlement, as her use of Pascal illustrates in â€Å"Questions of Travel. † Her jaunt to Brazil inadvertently became an eighteen-year residence with Lota de Macedo Soares, but their home was not fully expressed in the volume, Questions of Travel. Florida was the source of sexual-poetic experimentation; Bishop's work from there proliferates with freedom not yet found in Europe, and not written into the published poems from Brazil.The reticent Bishop did not want to be known as a lesbian poet; it would limit her reputation and her private life in the public sphere, and she likely feared that sexual expression would not be accepted in print. A poem from Questions of Travel, â€Å"Electrical Storm† (1960), strikingly ind icates excitement with Lota in Brazil. Just as striking, though, is the repressive prison-house in this poetry. It reveals as much repression as it does desire: Dawn an unsympathetic yellow. Cra-ack! – dry and light. The house was really struck. Crack! A tinny sound, like a dropped tumbler. . . . hen hail, the biggest size of artificial pearls. Dead-white, wax-white, cold – diplomats' wives favors from an old moon party – they lay in melting windrows on the red ground until well after sunrise. We got up to find the wiring fused, no lights, a smell of saltpetre, and the telephone dead. The cat stayed in the warm sheets. The Lent trees had shed all their petals: wet, stuck, purple, among the dead-eye pearls. (PPL 81) While the electrical storm is substantial, the poem narrates it after the fact, and the storm cuts off communication with a dead telephone and â€Å"wiring fused. So the electricity certainly was there, but the lightning is pejoratively â€Å"like a dropped tumbler. † And the only animal in bed is Tobias the cat, â€Å"Personal and spiteful as a neighbor's child. † Personal electricity is not expressed, certainly not through Lent; it is spited in the society of neighbors and â€Å"diplomats' wives,† whose nature is described as â€Å"dead-white,† their hail like â€Å"artificial pearls. † Unlike the earlier poem of desire, â€Å"The walls went on for years . . . ,† in which balconies are transformed by vines into wired energy, â€Å"Electrical Storm† displays the reverse action.Nature is hardened into artifice. Social civilization, like Bishop's monuments, is a restrictive agent, part of the past in conflict with the newfound energy of Bishop's tropical present. In Brazil, the poet constantly observes the natural world as vulnerable to civilization. Sometimes Bishop presents an alternative harmony, as in â€Å"Song for the Rainy Season,† which moistly answers to the repres sive short-circuiting of â€Å"The Electrical Storm† by opening the door of an â€Å"open house† to the mist infiltrating the house and causing â€Å"mildew's / ignorant map† on a wall.This poem's erotica is played out as the house receives nature's water. The house, with its opening to the outer environment, suggests Lota de Macedo Soares' property, Samambaia (a giant Brazilian fern), in the mountains above Petr? polis where Soares built Bishop a studio (PPL 911). The progressive architecture of their house lends itself to the way in which Bishop's poem has the outer environment flow indoors. More often, however, Questions of Travel traces aggressive conquests, as Bishop works through history's impact on the country. Natural power has been contained – harnessed, mined and packaged throughout history.Take â€Å"Brazil, January 1, 1502,† for example, and note how Bishop's natural images dialectically break down, then reach forward technologically. T he branches of palm are broken pale-green wheels; symbolic birds keep quiet; the lizards are dragon-like and sinful; the lichens are moonbursts; moss is hell-green; the vines are described as attacking, as â€Å"scaling-ladder vines,† and as â€Å"‘one leaf yes and one leaf no' (in Portuguese)†; and while the â€Å"lizards scarcely breathe,† the â€Å"smaller, female† lizard's tail is â€Å"red as a red-hot wire. † That beacon beckons from the poem's forms of colonial imprisonment. Breathlessness will find breath in EAP. * * William Benton's words from Exchanging Hats: Elizabeth Bishop Paintings accurately convey the benefit of studying two of Bishop's art forms to gain greater compositional insight into her â€Å"One Art. † In his introduction, he writes that, â€Å"If Elizabeth Bishop wrote like a painter, she painted like a writer† (xviii). Wires, cables and electrical technology are strewn abundantly through the paintings. O bserved in sequence, Bishop's black lines powerfully extend this emergent narrative of Bishop as an electric writer. The paintings Olivia, Harris School, County Courthouse, Tombstones for Sale, Graveyard with Fenced Graves, Interior withExtension Cord, Cabin with Porthole, and E. Bishop's Patented Slot-Machine are marked with black lines that technically disturb nature. The bold presence of Bishop's lines factor in virtually every painting to infringe upon nature (with the exception of the explicitly pretty watercolor odes to nature, such as the arrangement on the cover of One Art). When we align the Florida paintings with Bone Key and other published poems from Florida, we can chart the artist's development in accord with the technological presence of wires.As with the early poems in EAP, her oft-undated Florida paintings, circa 1937-39 when Bishop had returned from Europe, depict square architecture set off by wires askew. In Olivia, a painting of a weathered wood house on Olivia Street in Key West, the modest brown house is fronted by two contrasting white porch-pillars, and to the left â€Å"like a cosmic aspect, the telephone lines form a tilted steeple† (Benton 18) connected to the proximate telephone pole. The painting comes across as a satiric â€Å"Monument. † Likewise, the next painting, Harris School (21), is topped with battlements contrasted by wispy kites flying freely in the orange sunlight.Bishop's painterly contrasts invoke satire, rather like the parody of old Parisian architecture in â€Å"Luxembourg Gardens. † County Courthouse (23) is extremely dramatic – a transitional painting in the evolution of Bishop's transgressive art. Benton describes it well: â€Å"A view composed of what obstructs it. The central triangle [courthouse structure] that leads the eye into the painting is at once overwhelmed by foliage. Downed power lines contribute to the sense of disorder. The scene is the exact opposite of what a Sunday watercolorist might select. It is, in fact, a picture whose wit transforms it from a â€Å"scene† into an image of impasse†(22).The palms in the foreground overpower the courthouse of similar size in the center. Nature's supremacy over the architecture of man-made legal institution is accentuated by downed power lines, symbolizing, as often for Bishop, that our efforts to transmit information over and above nature depend on the co-operation of nature, the winds of which can knock down our voices. Tombstones for Sale, which is the cover of The Collected Prose, and Graveyard with Fenced Graves (31, 33) are filled with iron bars in harsh but beautiful contrast with flowering trees. Recall the iron-work balconies ‘growing'† up buildings in â€Å"The walls went on for years and years †¦. † These wonky walls are evident in Interior with Extension Cord, a painting of undetermined year with â€Å"the dramatic focus on the extension cord crossing the pl anes of the white room† (42). In here, the barren walls out-space the open door with view of the garden. The painting yearns for nature to be let in the door. Cabin with Porthole, the next painting (45), provides compositional relief. Bare but cheerful yellow walls surround the open porthole with blue ocean view; the painter's travel bags are casually set in order beside a neat flowerpot on the table.Travel looks homey here, made additionally comfortable by the fan plugged into the wall with electrical cord in the top-right corner. The next undated painting, Gray Church (47), is set by Benton in contrast to the lightness of Cabin with Porthole. The editor's placement of Gray Church, the painting's mood nearly as dark as van Gogh's The Prison Courtyard, suggests that Benton, like Quinn in EAP, ordered a dramatic narrative sequence so observers could follow an interpretive trail of artistic development. Although E.Bishop's Patented Slot-Machine (77)appears later in the book's se quence, perhaps because it is more of a sketch than a painting, it would have likely been created near the time she wrote â€Å"The Soldier and the Slot-Machine† in Florida, as Quinn documents it with a rejection letter from The New Yorker, October 28, 1942 (EAP 279). These amateur works of art evince the crucial importance of publishing flawed poems, scrawl, sketches and paintings that are incredibly useful tools to instruct us about their masters; in this case we see projection of the artist's techno-dreams. Of E.Bishop's Patented Slot-Machine, Benton writes, â€Å"The rainbow arc at the top of the picture – resembling the handle of a suitcase – bears the legend â€Å"The ‘DREAM'† (76). This dream, rainbow-shaped, carries technology in the form of the slot-machine. Whether or not observers want to view the rainbow dream as lesbian codification, as some students of â€Å"The Fish† do with that poem's victorious rainbow of otherness, the und eniable fact is that Bishop has painted â€Å"The ‘DREAM'† onto the handle of her slot-machine. This slot-machine is dependent upon currency for the dream of a fortunate future.Although an amateur painting, it is far more developed in terms of the progress of artistic, hopeful vision than earlier works, such as 1935's â€Å"Three Poems,† in which Bishop is desperately scanning seas from France, and the fortune teller turns up strange face cards as the only potential currency, so the poet dreams of travel. The 1942 sketch and poem, â€Å"The Soldier and the Slot-Machine† (EAP 56-57), not to be confused with the painting just discussed, appears like an adult-version Dr. Seuss parody of E. Bishop's Patented Slot-Machine complete with fearful alien beast atop machine in the sketch.In the poem, Bishop uses the soldier persona to depersonalize her dream, destroyed by a third-person other. Still, the persona employs first person: â€Å"I will not play the slot-m achine† bookends the poem as a mantra of abstinence from the drunken slot-machine. Nevertheless, it consumes coins until they melt surreally into â€Å"a pool beneath the floor . . . / It should be flung into the sea. / / Its pleasures I cannot afford† (EAP 58). This denial and apparent dismissal through the otherness of the soldier stays with Bishop, who cannot trash her desires in the sea; they pulled on her for years even if their expression remained unpublished.After The New Yorker's Charles Pearce rejected â€Å"The Soldier and the Slot-Machine,† Bishop recalled this event twenty-two years later in a letter to Robert Lowell: â€Å"Once I wrote an ironic poem about a drunken sailor and a slot-machine – not a success – and the sailor said he was going to throw the machine into the sea, etc. , and M[oore] congratulated me on being so morally courageous and outspoken† (EAP 279). Moore in 1964 was at that time congratulating Bishop on a moral lesson to be learned about Brazilian crime and punishment in â€Å"The Burglar of Babylon. However, the point that Bishop makes with quiet sarcasm in her letter to Lowell is that Moore missed the irony so crucial to understanding â€Å"The Soldier and the Slot-Machine. † Moore reads moral courage in Bishop's condemnations; actually, Bishop's morally courageous core, the one of social conformity that Moore applauds, melts in the machine. The soldier's denial to play it is weaker than the power of the machine itself, which melts and breaks into subterranean pieces – unacceptable mercurial junk that will be â€Å"taken away,† a disposal of natural, illicit desire.Travel in Florida and Brazil offers many cabins with portholes for Bishop to view the sea far away from stultifying northwestern culture. Sometimes Bishop allows the establishment to triumph, as in the balanced yellow painting of The Armory, Key West. Even here, though, wires dangle from the flagpole to create slight asymmetry. Merida from the Roof (27), the well-known cover of The Complete Poems, while a bit chaotic with copious windmills outnumbering church steeples, nevertheless illustrates an intoxicating tropical harmony. The dominant palm, telephone wires, city streets and buildings hang together nicely from the painter's balcony view.This Mexican painting from 1942 anticipates work Bishop would do in Brazil over the next two decades, such as â€Å"The Burglar of Babylon,† which ends with the poet looking down on Rio's crime-ridden poverty with binoculars. * * * When we contrast The Complete Poems with Edgar Allan Poe ; The Juke-Box, we can see just how much further Bishop's unpublished poems went in configuring her relation with the world through nature and technology's extensions of it; natural growth is given additional electrical currency to express sexual awakening, and I argue, a potentially full realization of her poetic power.Lorrie Goldensohn in The Biography of a Poetry discusses her discovery of â€Å"It is marvellous to wake up together† in a box from Linda Nemer in Brazil. This discovery and â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe & the Juke-Box† best exemplify Bishop's rewired sexuality. Quinn cannot be certain which of these poems was written first. In terms of the arc of the poetics I'm tracing here, it makes sense for â€Å"Poe's Box† to come first because it works to loosen up the sexual expression of â€Å"It is marvellous †¦. However, Quinn notes work on â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe ; The Juke-Box† as late as 1953, and narrates its intended place as the closing poem of A Cold Spring, which Bishop considered calling Bone Key. It may have been written as early as 1938 when Bishop wrote to â€Å"classmate Frani Blough from Key West about her immersion in Poe† (EAP 271). Lloyd Schwartz and Robert Giroux date it in the late thirties to early forties period. As A Cold Spring stands, it concludes with the rapture of à ¢â‚¬Å"The Shampoo† – a thinly veiled poem of lesbian eroticism in nature's guise. And yet when I teach this poem to students, I often have to explain the â€Å"concentric shocks. â€Å"The Shampoo† is a wonderful climax, but it abruptly follows â€Å"Invitation to Miss Marianne Moore. † This sequence repeats the juxtaposition evident in Bishop's letters between her lush tropical experience and her polite correspondence with Moore. Now we can envision an enlarged not so cold spring in the key of human bone warming up with â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe & the Juke-Box. † This poem is filled by emanations of light and sound from the Juke-Box. Starlight and La Conga are the Floridian dance-halls described as â€Å"cavities in our waning moon, / strung with bottles and blue lights / and silvered coconuts and conches† (49).This erotic-tropical electric fulfillment sounds more like Walcott than Bishop. The poem has â€Å"nickels fall into the slots,† drinks drop down throats, hands grope under tablecloths while â€Å"The burning box can keep the measure †¦. † Perhaps to ruin the party, Edgar Allan enters the last stanza in which Bishop writes, â€Å"Poe said that poetry was exact. † This poem, though, is a corrective to Poe's poetics, for Bishop knows for herself and Poe in the drinking establishment of poetry that â€Å"pleasures are mechanical / and know beforehand what they want / and know exactly what they want. Bishop focuses on â€Å"The Motive for Metaphor,† like Stevens, or like Baudelaire whom she was also reading at the time, knowing and tracing her desire for expression as expression. Conversely, Poe in the 19th-century tried to unite his metrical poetic exactitude with ideals of beauty while explaining his technique in â€Å"The Philosophy of Composition. † While the mechanics of meter involve precise measures, Bishop suggests that seeking pleasures is comprised of a more powerful m echanics. â€Å"Lately I've been doing nothing much but reread Poe, and evolve from Poe . . a new Theory-of-the-Story-All-My-Own. It's the ‘proliferal' style, I believe, and you will see some of the results †¦ [a reference to her prize-winning Partisan Review story ‘In Prison']† (OA, 71; EAP 271). Bishop's use of Poe illustrates her gripe with tradition as a source of monumental fixture, thus limited understanding, which has taught her well but prevents the poet from dancing at La Conga and telling that Floridian tale in A Cold Spring. Bishop wanted this poem near the end of A Cold Spring but didn't quite get it done.The final lines of the poem deal a further blow to Poe, and by extension to Bishop herself, when she asks, â€Å"how long does your music burn? / like poetry or all your horror / half as exact as horror here? † (50). Poe's horror stories (see Bishop's notes on â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart† on the upper-right corner of the draft of this poem), and I would suggest her writing in The Complete Poems (as wonderful as it is), articulate a fictional horror that only comes half-way to expressing the full pleasure of horrific catharsis available in the experience and writing of Florida honky-tonks.Who would have thought Elizabeth Bishop a â€Å"Honky-Tonk Woman†? Bethany Hicok traces Bishop's florid night-life in her 2008 book, Degrees of Freedom: American Women Poets and the Women's College, 1905-1955, and thanks to Quinn we have the poetic evidence in print. â€Å"It is marvellous to wake up together† is a full and complete rendering of Bishop's eroticism. We might give Bishop latitude for not publishing this one in the Second World War period; Quinn estimates the date between 1941-6 when Bishop lived with Marjorie Stevens in Key West (267).Perhaps in the twenty-first century readers are comfortably relieved to hear Bishop express her lesbian sexuality, but in her time she did not want to be publicly scrut inized as a lesbian poet. In some respects, â€Å"It is marvellous to wake up together† is like â€Å"Electrical Storm,† since the poem speaks of sex after it has happened. Here, though, the stormy clearing is less anxious and repressive. Instead of diplomats' wives and spiteful neighbors' children, Bishop feels â€Å"the air suddenly clear / As if electricity had passed through it / From a black mesh of wires in the sky. All over the roof the rain hisses, / And below, the light falling of kisses† (EAP 44). Technology is god-like, hovering over their chosen house, and yet it is not alien, for the lightning storm's electrical current of rain follows in hisses rhymed with kisses. Bishop is fully in the arena now – with the powers above electrically charging the nature that conducts itself harmoniously in the bedroom. In the second stanza electricity frames the house so readers can imagine it being sketched artistically.Remnants of past prison-houses exist, and yet the past constraints of an inarticulate heart are transformed in this reality where â€Å"we imagine dreamily / Now the whole house caught in a bird-cage of lightning / Would be delightful rather than frightening;† the pleasure of this reality is also a dream, and it remains a dream in the last stanza. My point is not simply that dreams can come true, but that this true dream is limited to this house's electrical currents. The speaker is â€Å"lying flat on [her] back,† which is an interesting line because it suggests sex, and yet it is from this position, this â€Å"same implified point of view† that the speaker emphasizes inquiry: â€Å"All things might change equally easily, / Since always to warn us there might be these black / Electrical wires dangling. Without surprise / The world might change to something quite different †¦. † What sort of change is envisioned? The poem vaguely considers open futures; â€Å"something quite differentâ €  could be horrific or promising. Whatever change may come, these wires hang over the house, through Bishop's poem and art as charged presences connected to future advancement. â€Å"Dear Dr. -† was written in 1946, around the same time Bishop might have finished â€Å"It is marvellous to wake up together. † It continues to wire her present into the future: Yes, dreams come in colors and memories come in colors but those in dreams are more remarkable. Particular & bright(at night) like that intelligent green light in the harbor which must belong to some society of its own, & watches this one now unenviously. (EAP 77) These seven lines pull together a lot. Bishop's dreams – in Paris were quite alienated from her art-culture milieu; in Florida dreams are amplified by Juke-Boxes, liquor and dancing.There she finds physical lushness to match the dream currents that will sizzle in Brazilian experience. And yet in â€Å"Dear Dr. —† near the end of he r relationship with Marjorie Stevens, Bishop is writing from Nova Scotia to her very helpful psychiatrist, Ruth Foster (286), expressing this foreign glow as an alien perspective: â€Å"that intelligent green light in the harbor / which must belong to some society of its own,† suggesting some alien technological prophesy, which â€Å"watches this one now unenviously† (77).Goldensohn writes of electrical impasse in The Biography of a Poetry: â€Å"But still the wires connect to dreams, to nerve circuits that carry out our dreams of rescue and connection, or that fail to: in â€Å"The Farmer's Children,† a story written in 1948 shortly before Bishop went to Brazil, the wires also appear, telephone wires humming with subanimal noise eerily irrelevant to the damned and helpless children of the story† (33). This story, written late in the Florida years, is further evidence of Bishop's â€Å"proliferal† style, the multi-generic â€Å"One Art† deve loped in response to family, Northern traditions, Poe, and Europe.Bishop's evolving art comprised of poetry, fiction, letters and painting demonstrates psycho-sexual evolution found in Southern tropical harbors, far from the Northern remoteness of her mother's Nova Scotia. These poems from Edgar Allan Poe & The Juke-Box register extensively the alien vision so far ahead of what was admitted in Bishop's present. By contrasting the reserved perfections from The Complete Poems, such as â€Å"Electrical Storm,† and the limits of history as in â€Å"Brazil, January 1, 1502,† we can see what is held back there, waiting for the more fully expressed imperfect transgressions of Edgar Allan Poe ; The Juke-Box.The Complete Poems provide intricately innovative poems that point out limited perspectives while expanding ethical imaginations of the future, whereas Quinn's book enables readers to thoroughly explore the dream workings of a poet bursting from the libidinal confines of he r time, swinging by green vines through wires of sound and light to transmit electricity for an erotically ample future. Bishop's anxiety and longing for a more tolerant future society, as expressed in â€Å"Dear Dr. —,† can also be traced back to her thwarted effort at publishing â€Å"Pleasure Seas. This powerful erotic poem sits chronologically in the middle of her poetic development away from Europe (signaled by â€Å"Luxembourg Gardens† and â€Å"Three Poems† circa 1935), and stimulated by Florida in the late 1930s. â€Å"Pleasure Seas† illustrates the new powerful range of Bishop to be discovered when reading EAP and the Library of American edition next to The Complete Poems. As an â€Å"Uncollected Poem† in The Complete Poems, â€Å"Pleasure Seas† would perhaps sit more easily in the Poe . . . Box. The aberration of â€Å"Pleasure Seas† in The Complete Poems may explain why only a handful of critics have discussed its s ignificance.Bonnie Costello, Barbara Comins, Marilyn May Lombardi, and Jeredith Merrin have published helpful interpretations of â€Å"Pleasure Seas. † Each critic picks up on the poem as an indication of developments that Bishop makes, or does not quite make, in other published poems. Bonnie Costello, for example, writes in Questions of Mastery: â€Å"’Seascape’ and ‘Pleasure Seas’†¦anticipate the perspectival shifts in ‘Twelfth Morning; or What You Will,’ ‘Filling Station,’ and ‘Invitation to Miss Marianne Moore,’ in all of which the poet's pessimism is countered.In these later poems she achieves a vision at once immediate, even intimate, and yet directed at the world and questioning a single perspective of selfhood† (15-16). Costello also makes an important observation in a footnote: â€Å"‘Song' may be a rewriting of ‘Pleasure Seas'† (249, n. 16). However, according to Schwart z and Giroux, â€Å"Song† was written in 1937, two years before â€Å"Pleasure Seas,† which then reads as an amplified fulfillment of the sad song from two years earlier. The latter ocean poem swells with pleasure in face of forces that threaten that very pleasure.Now that we can read â€Å"Pleasure Seas† in the larger context of Bishop's struggle to write sexual poetics, the poem makes more sense and gathers like-minded poems into its vortex of desire. â€Å"Pleasure Seas† is a study of water — contained, distorted and freed. It begins with still water â€Å"in a walled off swimming-pool† (195) – another wall like the ones that go on â€Å"for years and years† in the poem from 1943. This man-made pool contains â€Å"pink Seurat bathers,† like the publicly acceptable automatons in his famous paintings, Bathers and La Grande Jatte.This viewer, though, is a surrealist who observes this scene through â€Å"a pane of bluish glass. † Seurat's bathers have â€Å"beds of bathing caps,† again resembling and anticipating the beds inside and outside the balconied rooms of â€Å"The walls go on for years and years †¦. † Are these bathers' heads in or out of it? Contained within a pool, they are willing prisoners of public space in chemically-treated water. At the close of the poem, they are â€Å"Happy . . . likely or not–† in their floral â€Å"white, lavender, and blue† caps, which are susceptible to greater weather forcing the water â€Å"opaque, / Pistachio green and Mermaid Milk. The floral garden colors of their caps contrast with disarming shades. That awfully bright green is â€Å"like that intelligent green light in the harbor† of â€Å"Dear Dr. ,† belonging to the alien society unenvious of the contemporaneous one. Jeredith Merrin, in â€Å"Gaiety, Gayness and Change,† asks how â€Å"Pleasure Seas† moves â€Å"from entrapme nt to freedom, from (to borrow from Bishop's own phrasing from other poems) Despair to Espoir, from the ‘awful' to the ‘cheerful'†? (Merrin in Lombardi 154).The next sentence of â€Å"Pleasure Seas† envisions free ocean water â€Å"out among the keys† of Florida mingling, interestingly, with multi-chromatic â€Å"soap bubbles, poisonous and fabulous,† suggesting both â€Å"The Shampoo† to come, and the poisonous rainbow of oil in â€Å"The Fish† – another natural being that should exist freely in nature, which is caught in a rented boat. Even â€Å"the keys float lightly like rolls of green dust† connotes geological formations that are susceptible to erosion. Everything green and natural is made alien. The threat is intensified by an airplane; a form of human technological height that flattens the water to a â€Å"heavy sheet. The sky view is dangerous in Bishop's poems; consider â€Å"12 O'Clock News† in whi ch the view from the media plane ethnocentrically objectifies the dying indigenes below. In â€Å"Pleasure Seas† the poet says the plane's â€Å"wide shadow pulses† above the surface, and down to the yellow and purple submerged marine life. The water's surface even becomes â€Å"a burning-glass† for the sun – the supreme force of nature is harnessed as destructive technology, as with the high airplane, which, as Barbara Comins notes in â€Å"That Queer Sea,† is â€Å"casting a ‘wide shadow' upon the water . . . uggesting some inherent anguish in going one's ‘own way'† (191). Comins and Merrin see Bishop here pushing the poetic limits of her sexual expression. Even though the sun turns the water into â€Å"a burning glass,† the sun naturally cools â€Å"as the afternoon wears on. † Nature and technology dance in a somewhat vexed but â€Å"dazzling dialectic† here. Brightest of all in this poem is the â€Å"vi olently red bell-buoy / Whose neon-color vibrates over it, whose bells vibrate // To shock after shock of electricity. † Neon is the most alien of lights. As with the Juke-Box charging its place, this buoy electrifies its environment.Its otherly transgression â€Å"rhythmically† shocks pulses through the sea. â€Å"The sea is delight. The sea means room. / It is a dance floor, a well ventilated ballroom. † These lines from â€Å"Pleasure Seas† contain the charge picked up in â€Å"the dance-halls† of â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe & the Juke-Box. † That poem has seedy, drunken desire releasing the inner alien; in â€Å"Pleasure Seas† it is potentially trans-gendered here in the homonym of the â€Å"red bell-buoy,† the color of passion also found in â€Å"the red-hot wire† of the lizard tail in â€Å"Brazil, January 1, 1502. † That lizard is notably female. Both poems vibrate outward into larger spaces.From paradisal waters, the poem retreats to the â€Å"tinsel surface† of swimming pool or ship deck where â€Å"Grief floats off / Spreading out thin like oil. † Natural poison spills, damages, and disperses. â€Å"And love / Sets out determinedly in a straight line†¦But shatters† and refracts â€Å"in shoals of distraction† (196). These shoals receding around the keys anticipate the homosexual vertigo of Crusoe's surreal islands in the late great semi-autobiographical poems of Geography III, the 1976 volume beginning with young Elizabeth Bishop's formative experience of inversion â€Å"In the Waiting Room† – â€Å"falling off / the round, turning world† (160). Pleasure Seas† ends with water crashing into the coral reef shelf – at the surface of nature, half in, half out – â€Å"An acre of cold white spray is there / Dancing happily by itself. † Out there in the sea, as land gives way to coral reef, the poet creates a  "well ventilated ballroom† to be free and ecstatic. Unlike the public spaces of the Florida honky-tonks, these pleasure seas are solitary. They are, however, natural – and thus contrast the ironic happiness of â€Å"the people in the swimming-pool and on the yacht, / Happy the man in that airplane, likely as not–† (196). This pleasure of 1939 holds the promise of liberation, momentarily.While explorations in the late thirties lead to joyful poems such as â€Å"It is marvellous to wake up together,† and the thirsty â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe & the Juke-Box,† another Florida poem bids farewell, circa 1946. â€Å"In the golden early morning †¦Ã¢â‚¬  contains many of the Floridian tropes merging nature with technology. About a trip to the airport, it indicates a break up with Marjorie Stevens (â€Å"M† in the poem). As the speaker is being driven to the airport in the early morning, she reads the newspaper stories of human horror: I kept wondering why we expose ourselves to these farewells ; dangers—Finally you got there ; we started. It was very cold ; so much dew! Every leaf was wet ; glistened. The Navy buildings ; wires ; towers, etc. looked almost like glass ; so frail ; harmless. The water on either side was perfectly flat like mirrors—or rather breathed-on mirrors. (EAP 80) The water as foggy mirror is an example of how technology (a mirror in this case) extends nature to reflect for Bishop an extension of herself that can't quite exist freely on its own, or in the social world. More dramatically, an airplane descends this early morning: â€Å"Then we heard the plane or felt it . . .† She feels the sublime vehicle â€Å"as if it were made out of / the dew coming together, very shiny. † The plane is similar to the aircraft's technological transgression in â€Å"Pleasure Seas,† but â€Å"In the golden early morning . . . ,† it is also like a product of nature made from the dew. This simile resembles the fusion of technology and nature in â€Å"Pleasure Seas† where the red bell-buoy charges the sea, or in â€Å"The walls . . . † where the â€Å"wires were like vines. † These images express Bishop's longing to extend but not quite transcend the provocative desires of the physical world.Her projections are made possible by poetic language's explicit tropic function: it is a technological extension of reality. Bishop's technologies blatantly transgress nature by pointing to her exclusion from it when it participates in traditional symbolic order. She comments, as the flight crew in the poem gets out of the plane, â€Å"I said to you that it was like the procession / at the beginning of a bullfight . . . † (EAP 81). Somebody's going to die. From the outside looking in, Bishop is neither inside the plane, or remaining part of the natural morning. Always liminal, always on the move, she and her poetry are the