Monday, December 30, 2019
Analysis of the Case Study of BizRate.com - Free Essay Example
Sample details Pages: 5 Words: 1474 Downloads: 2 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Marketing Essay Type Case study Did you like this example? Analysis of the Case Study of BizRate.com Table of Contents What are the facts? What problem exists, and why? What additional information is needed to analyze this case adequately? What are possible solutions to the problem? What are the consequences of each alternative? What decision should be made or what solution should be chosen and what is the rationale for it? What general ideas can be drawn from this case that might have application elsewhere? References What are the facts? One of the founders of BizRate.com is Farhad Mohit (Khalaj, 2003), who is young, charming and full of energy. Farhad Mohit was very famous for à ¢Ã¢â ¬Ã
âAsk Farhadà ¢Ã¢â ¬Ã , a column based on advice he wrote for the Whartonà ¢Ã¢â ¬Ã¢â ¢s student newspaper and was introduced to the Internet by his classmate. BizRate was initially found with the aim of collecting data through forms on different retailer websites about the quality of services provided, thus providing research on vendors. It started off with funds adding up to $260,000 from family and friends. Mission Ventures and Media Technology Ventures invested $4.5 million in the company because they liked the core idea of collecting information using surveys (Conlin, 1999). In the year 2000, around 2000 merchants had signed up with the survey program and it became the number 21 most visited website on the Internet. BizRate also provided Customer Analysis Reports that overviewed the experiences of online buy ers for a specific merchant. In the fall of 1999, the company had grown considerably and needed a professional team for management. Thus Chuck Davis was hired as CEO, who is a professional and has a lot of repute. In October 1999, he launched a new website with the name of Red October which included extra features and tools. The changes included a new search tool for searching by type of product, other than the previously available option for searching by specific merchant. It also provided direct links to the websites of the retailers where customers were offered a rebate if they made a purchase through this process as well as a little commission from the retailer for BizRate. They also started to accept outside advertisements on their website which was previously not in the plan. The new strategy of the website brought in a lot of success for BizRate, securing its place across the top 10 Internet Shopping Sites by December and attracting more than 4 million unique visitor s per month. This helped Red October to gather an additional $50 million dollar in the next round of financing in March. Based on the accomplishments of Red October, Davis began to explore into different e-commerce initiatives. Merchants were charged with a straight fee of referral on mouse clicks, instead of taking out commissions from purchases. Direct e-mail marketing strategies were adopted as well as promotional campaigns and special deals for customers to increase the amount of revenues. The search result lists also showed entries by default by the highest paying merchant that customers had to re-sort according to different quality criteria. Donââ¬â¢t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Analysis of the Case Study of BizRate.com" essay for you Create order What problem exists, and why? The main problem lies in deciding about the future aim of the company; i.e. whether to continue both the research idea side and e-commerce hub together or choose between one of the two. This problem mainly exists because this decision makes a big impact on the financing that may be available for the business in the future. It affects the goals of the company and leads to conflicts and confusions about the main priorities. Thus the reasons behind the problem are the lack of direction and focus towards a specific sector, whether research or e-commerce. What additional information is needed to analyze this case adequately? The additional information required to analyze the case adequately is a report of the profitability ratios (Peavler) that have been generated separately for the research area of the business and the e-commerce area. It is necessary to check the trends that have been observed in the profits gained individually for the research sector and e-commerce sector over a fixed period of time. This can also be used to forecast future expectations of output from each sector individually and then make an estimate of what would seem a better option for more success. Whichever sector has been performing better in the past, i.e. by giving more profits with lower investments, should be the key solution to the case. What are possible solutions to the problem? There are three possible solutions to the problem. The first one is to stick to the original aims of the business model; to carry out operations focused only on the research portal and surveys that BizRate initially provided. The second solution is to let go of the research area of BizRate, and focus only on the E-commerce section of the website. This involves modifying all goals to match the objectives of the new competition in the e-commerce sector and leave the market research sector as a whole. The third solution is to continue with both areas of the business, with core strength of market research and a gradual adaptation of e-commerce applications. The business can co-exist with both sides of the business and achieve benefits and drawbacks of each. What are the consequences of each alternative? If a decision is taken to concentrate only on the market research area of the business, it can help increase or stabilize the retention rates of the merchants and customers and give a unique aim to the business. Since the business has a good history of success in this field, it will be a risk free solution. However, this will take away all of the advantages that can be gained from the booming and emerging e-commerce sector. If the business focuses on only the e-commerce section, it can try and establish its share in the market and reach higher market caps in a shorter period of time. However, a large amount of risk is involved because BizRate does not have much experience in this sector, and already a growing amount of competition from other websites can be observed. If BizRate decides to keep both areas of the business, it can achieve a share of profits and knowledge from both the sectors but this can lead to inefficient management of resources and lack of commitment to any specific goals of the organization. It can also affect is brand image as merchants will be disappointed by the other services provided and also disturb the financing made available to it. What decision should be made or what solution should be chosen and what is the rationale for it? I think that the business should concentrate only on its core mission of market research and work on delivering exceptional quality in that area that no one else offers. This would allow it to create a niche and stand out from all other websites, thus directing all market research survey needs to their portal. It would build trust in the customers and different merchants to rely on information gathered only from BizRate and keep letting them come to the site repeatedly in the future. It would allow all the resources to be utilized effectively with a common goal, instead of distributing them into areas and thus losing the businessà ¢Ã¢â ¬Ã¢â ¢s main strength. In the long run, it will allow BizRate to establish its brand and be recognized as the best Market Research Program available and build customer loyalty. Thus, it will prevent BizRate from going off track and having a sense of direction to follow throughout its future. What general ideas can be drawn from this case that might have application elsewhere? General ideas of diversification can be drawn from the case study. It can be seen that if a business tries to grow by offering different products or services, it can bring in both advantages and disadvantages. If a business offers new and different services, it can gather a bigger market share and consumer base (Johnston), and probably increase the level of profits. But at the same time, the business can suffer from the lack of attention and expertise (Xaxx); and thus the existing resources can be insufficient thus leading the new approaches to be quite costly. References Xaxx, J. (n.d.). The Disadvantages of Diversified Business. (Demand Media) Retrieved January 20, 2014, from Small Business: https://smallbusiness.chron.com/disadvantages-diversified-business-22155.html Conlin, A. W. (1999, February 07). BizRate.com Banks $20 Million in New Financing. Retrieved January 20, 2014, from E-Commerce Times: https://bizfinance.about.com/od/financialratios/a/Profitability_Ratios.htm Johnston, K. (n.d.). Advantages and Disadvantages to Corporate Strategy Diversification. (Demand Media) Retrieved January 20, 2014, from Small Business: https://smallbusiness.chron.com/advantages-disadvantages-corporate-strategy-diversification-62119.html Khalaj, S. (2003, September 27). Do it now! Retrieved January 2014, 2014, from The Iranian: https://iranian.com/Diaspora/2003/September/Mohitt/index.html Peavler, R. (n.d.). Profitability Ratio Analysis. Retrieved January 20, 2014, from Business Finance About.com: https://bizfinance.about.com/od/financialratios/a/Pr ofitability_Ratios.htm
Sunday, December 22, 2019
Tin Pan Alley - 1990 Words
Tin Pan Alley The 1920s was the beginning of a decade of change in the American arts. Jazz, along with such inventions as the phonograph, radio and sound movies, transformed the music industry. By the end of the decade, 40% of all Americans had radios in their homes. Not surprisingly, 58% of households in New York City owned a radio. New York became the center of the music world, and at the center of New York was a small area called Tin Pan Alley. Radios initially provided the young centurys second uppercut to the music publishing business of Tin Pan Alley. Burton Lane was part of a well-known Cape Town-based duo, who delivered a powerful, emotive and distinctive blend of acoustic rock stated, Tin Pan Alley was a real alley on Eastâ⬠¦show more contentâ⬠¦Dorothys career spanned over five decades, she collaborated with some of the greatest of the industry. Many of her songs became instant classics, and she was one of the biggest co-librettists of all Broadway. Another composer, Kay Swift, was born into a cultured New York family of modest means. Swift often accompanied her father, a music critic, to performances at the Metropolitan Opera. This was how she developed her interest in composing. In her graduation piece, she displayed the ability to combine classical rigor with inventiveness, blending ragtime and fugue. Touring the New York area with the Edith Rubel Trio after graduation, Katharine performed at the summer home of a friend and met rising young banker James Paul Warburg, whom she married in 1918. It was at one of the couples boisterous parties that she met George Gershwin. Gershwin was the one who transformed Katharine Warburg into Kay Swift. She joined the musicians union and worked as a rehearsal pianist for Richard Rodgers as he readied A Connecticut Yankee for Broadway. With her husband collaborating as lyricist, Kay made her first hit at the age of thirty-four with the song, Cant We Be Friends. A year later, in 1930, she wrote the entire score of the Broadway musical FINE AND DANDY, which ran for two hundred and thirty-six performances. But Swifts continuing relationship with GershwinShow MoreRelatedMusic s Impact On The Music Revolution1729 Words à |à 7 Pagesthat time there was no major companies who consistently put out music for the purpose of being consumed. The first time we can see this concept being readily applied would be in Tin Pan Alley. Although Tin Pan Alley was still producing sheet music it was created for the purpose consumption. Even during the time of Tin Pan Alley the music was still created for people who had money. As time progressed the idea of big businesses that dominated the industry began to flourish. Soon the only way for an artistRead MoreMusic Must Keep up with Cultural Tides and the Changing Demands of its Customer s887 Words à |à 4 Pagesthe culture industry, implying that music was not independent of industry and commerce, that it was produced en-mass in a standardised format with no other purpose than to maximise profits, in an assembly line like production method. Citing the Tin Pan Alley method of producing jazz standards for ordinary consumption, and thereby sabotaging the very essence of improvisation which characterises jazz, further stating that even the pseudo like improvisations on recordings and live performances were manufacturedRead MoreThe Spread of Jazz and the Effects on Society1288 Words à |à 6 Pagesblack culture throughout America and provided black entertainers with the best opportunity available to them. The emergence of Tin Pan Alley and the commercialization of sheet music and recordings greatly expanded popular music in America and set the way for the development of jazz music in the following decades. Though most of the successful songwriters in Tin Pan Alley were white, there was a significant black presence, especially early in the development of the industry. Fletcher Henderson, whoRead MoreWhat I Attended A Concert1398 Words à |à 6 Pagesof the songs performed by the ensembles included ââ¬Å"La Almeja Pequena,â⬠ââ¬Å"Count Me In,â⬠ââ¬Å"Rockinââ¬â¢ In Rhythm,â⬠and ââ¬Å"Iââ¬â¢ve Got a Crush on You.â⬠Although there were many diverse styles played throughout the concert, many songs performed are from the Tin Pan Alley, jazz or swing genres, all of which became popular between 1930 and 1950. The songs performed by the Northwest Jazz and Studio Jazz Ensembles can collectively be classified as big band era music, including polyphonic textu res, complex rhythmicRead MoreMusic Publishing : An Integral Part Of Their Professional Lives Essay1659 Words à |à 7 Pageshuge milestone. (Hull et al., 2011 pg. 112) From the late 1800s to the early 1950s, 28th Street between 5th Avenue and Broadway, became known as Tin Pan Alley. Tin Pan Alley was a major publishing hub. Publishing staffs included piano demonstrators, arrangers, staff composers and lyricists. (Passman, 2006 pg. 255) As Flattum describes it, ââ¬Å"Tin Pan Alley became an assembly line.â⬠(Flattum, 2006) However, with the invention of the gramophone, a new form of music publishing was born which marketed theRead MoreMusic During The Early Years Of Music1798 Words à |à 8 Pagesspotlight. The first main type of music that was the style to start with was the music that came out of Tin Pan Alley. ââ¬Å"After the American Civil War, over 25,000 new pianos a year were sold in America and by 1887, over 500,000 youths were studying piano. As a result, the demand for sheet music grew rapidly and more and more publishers began to enter the marketâ⬠(In Search of Tin Pan Alley). This music consisted of a collection of artist who produced sheet music and sold it to consumers for theirRead MoreEssay about Jazz Styles in America1905 Words à |à 8 Pageshas influenced many time periods and ways of life in America. Tin Pan Alley was a real alley on East Fourteenth Street near Third (in New York), but it was never just a place. Tin Pan Alley has come to be known for an era of songwriting when many musical ideas mixed together to form American popular music. Tin Pan Alley brought together many styles: blues, jazz, musical scores, and ragtime (Burton Lane qtd. In Tin Pan A lley). What are the various jazz styles? Not only has jazz affectedRead MoreMusic Notes3387 Words à |à 14 Pages * Television (emerging 1940ââ¬â¢s) * Inherited radioââ¬â¢s national audience * Radio began to turn to local/regional audiences (developing blues amp; country) Tin Pan Alley * Songwriters, white, Jewish (Irving Berlin, George Gershwin) * Sheet music publishing concentrated in an area of NYC called tin pan alley * Standard, very flexible, formal pattern * Sectional verse-chorus format (sectional chorus people are likely to recognize, and sectional verse is the set up) Read MoreThe Comparison of Entertainment in the Early 1900s and 20002034 Words à |à 9 Pageswere still produced by Tin Pan Alley, including 1923ââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"Yes We Have No Bananasâ⬠and 1925ââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"Sweet Georgia Brown.â⬠.(Carlisle 43) The name Tin Pan Alley was given to a group of music publisher and artists who lived in New York City during the 1900s. Tin Pan Alley was very popular around that age. ââ¬Å"They dominated the popular music of the United State in the late 19th century and early 20th century.â⬠(Carlisle 43) Tin Pan Alley got their name because they were located in an alley in Manhattan. Jazz initiallyRead MoreBob Dylans Impact on Popular Music1013 Words à |à 5 Pagesphilosophical topics to the younger audience through music, he almost single handedly killed Tin Pan Alley. The whole traditional form of publishing and producing music and in his doing so changed music for everyone, he established a new path that didnt mean people were going to be writing and performing the way he does, but that they are not going to be performing anything like the world of Tin Pan Alley before Dylan. Making music personal and in the moment, influencing The Beatles and evolving
Saturday, December 14, 2019
Introduction to Ergonomics Free Essays
Dafpus skripsi Bridger, R. S. 1995. We will write a custom essay sample on Introduction to Ergonomics or any similar topic only for you Order Now Introduction to Ergonomics. International Editions. Singapore : McGraw- Hill Book Co. European Agency for Safety and Health at Work. 2010. Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders in the EU-Facts and Figures. http://osha. europa. eu/en/publications/reports/TERO09009ENC (diakses pada tanggal 17 September 2012) Health and Safety Executive Authority. 2004. Getting to Grips with Manual Handling. UK : sss http://www. hse. gov. uk/pubns/indg143. df (diakses pada tanggal 17 September 2012) Health and Safety Authority. 2005. Guidance on the Management of Manual Handling in the Workplace. http://www.hsaeng/Publications_and_Forms/Publications/Retail/Management_Manual_Handling. pdf (diakses pada tanggal 17 September 2012) Kurniawidjaja, L. Meily. 2010. Teori dan Aplikasi Kesehatan Kerja. Jakarta: Penerbit Universitas Indonesia (UI-Press). Nurmianto, Eko. 2004. Ergonomi: Konsep Dasar dan Aplikasinya, 2nd. Ed. Surabaya: Penerbit Guna Widya. Tarwaka, dkk. 2004. Ergonomi untuk Kesehatan, Keselamatan, Produktivitas. Edisi I, Cetakan I. Surakarta: UNIBA Press. Santoso, Gempur, Dr. , Drs. , M. Kes. 2004. Ergonomi: Manusia, Peralatan, dan Lingkungan. Jakarta: Prestasi Pustaka Publisher. Sastrowinoto, Suyatno, Ir. 1985. Meningkatkan Produktivitas dengan Ergonomi. Jakarta: PT Pustaka Binaman Pressindo. Sumaââ¬â¢mur, P. K. , Rd. , MSc. 1989. Ergonomi untuk Produktivitas Kerja. Jakarta: CV. Haji Masagung. Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission of New Brunswick. 2010. Ergonomics Guidelines for Manual Handling, 2nd. Ed. , Australia : Worksafe NB, http://www. worksafenb. ca/docs/MANUALEdist. pdf (diakses pada tanggal 03 Agustus 2012) WorkCover New South Wales Authority. 2012. Manual Handling Black Spots: Manufacturing. Industry Reference Group, http://www. workcover. nsw. gov. au/formspublications/pages/manualhandlingmanufacturing. aspx (diakses pada tanggal 06 November 2012) How to cite Introduction to Ergonomics, Papers
Thursday, December 5, 2019
The Mask of Love free essay sample
The Phantom of the Opera, the interactions and attitudes of the characters, and the language used, I will show how the Phantomââ¬â¢s obsession over Christine, although at times destructive, leads to his change from an evil and selfish villain, to a remorseful and compassionate hero. To understand the psyche of the Phantom, one must first have a brief overview of the play. In 1984 Andrew Lloyd Webber, transformed the original The Phantom of the Opera novel (written in 1911 by Gaston Leroux) into a dialogic, emotional masterpiece. The prologue starts at the end of the story, in an auction in the Paris Opera House, in 1905. Raoul, the Vicomte de Chagny is buying a papier-mache music box, which Christine, his love and Fiancee of his youth had described to him. The auction then transforms back in time twenty-four years and recounts the story of the Phantom of the Opera. A seeming ghost, this disfigured man lived in the dungeons of the opera house. We will write a custom essay sample on The Mask of Love or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Although he was a musical genius, a scholar, a composer and an architect, his deformities forced him to live in the shadows. The protagonist, Christine, a young ballerina, whose late father had recounted her stories of this angel of music, is taught to sing, by the Phantom. Through music the Phantom wins the admiration of Christine. Trusted as her guardian angel, he tutors her at night, through two-way mirrors in her room. As the play progresses, with the help of the Phantom, Christine secures a leading role in an opera, and becomes a huge success. In hearing Christine, Raoul recognizes his childhood friend and pursues her. Christineââ¬â¢s singing lessons come with strict rules, and in breaking them by seeing Raoul, the Phantomââ¬â¢s demeanour turns from firm to deadly. Act two is six months later, where at a masqued party, it is revealed to us that Christine and Raoul are secretly engaged to be married, which enrages the Phantom. He shows up at the masquerade, and presents an opera he had written and demands it be performed, with Christine as the lead. The opera staff decided that if they put on the Phantomââ¬â¢s opera then they might have a chance to capture and destroy him. Christine is uncertain whether or not to betray her Angel of Music. The Play ends in an odd love triangle; the Phantom has taken Christine to his lair, five stories below the opera, where Raoul has followed. The Phantom catches Raoul in a noose, and forces Christine to choose to either live with him in his lair to free Raoul, or go free condemning Raoul to his death. Christine decides to free her fiance by spending the rest of her life with the Phantom, and with a sudden change of heart, the Phantom releases them both and disappears. The character of the Phantom of the Opera is a mysterious one. Haunted by a deformed face, he was forced to live in the shadows. Having a great hostility towards the human race in general, his release was in music. He falls in love with Christine, as she has been the only one whoââ¬â¢s trusted him at all. Although her feelings of admiration for him are genuine, she sees the Phantom as a guardian, not a love interest. When Christine falls in love with Raoul, it obviously hurts the Phantom. His love and care towards her become obsession. Ultimately the Phantom wants to marry and spend the rest of his life with Christine. The wax bride of her that he keeps in his lair makes this very apparent. It is clear throughout the play that the Phantom would never hurt Christine, but his obsession over her drives him to unruly lengths. He engages in a swordfight with Raoul, while Raoul and Christine are visiting her fathers grave, he kills numerous stagehands who mocked him or defied his orders and ends up forcing Christine to make an appalling life choice. The Phantom feels that Christine would be better off with him, than with Raoul. Even though the Phantom refers to himself as ââ¬Å"this loathsome gargoyle, who burns in hell, but secretly yearns for heaven, secretlyâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ (The Phantom of the Opera, 1. 6), he tries to convince Christine that a life with him would not be so horrible; ââ¬Å"fear can turn to love, youââ¬â¢ll learn to see, to find the man behind the monster: this repulsive carcass, who seems a beast but secretly dreams of beautyâ⬠(1. 6). With Christine having fallen in love with Raoul in the beginning of the play, the majority of the Phantomââ¬â¢s actions are out of jealousy. Actions such as taking her to his lair for what the stage notes indicate to be at least two nights, or ââ¬Å"condemningâ⬠her to be enslaved to him, although cruel and unusual, these acts are solely out of love and desperation. Only after Raoul comes into Christineââ¬â¢s life again, does she start to ââ¬Å"betrayâ⬠the Phantom. Christineââ¬â¢s attitude towards the Phantom changes from fascination and admiration, to fear, and then to disgust towards the end. This coincides with the change in the Phantomââ¬â¢s attitude towards her, which goes from love, to jealousy and then to obsession. At the beginning the Phantomââ¬â¢s language is serene. He sings to Christine of bettering her life; ââ¬Å"Close your eyes, let your spirit start to soar! And youââ¬â¢ll live as youââ¬â¢ve never lived beforeâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ and he tries to entice Christine to think of him as more than just a tutor; ââ¬Å"Touch me, trust me, savour each sensation! â⬠(1. 5). His words are gentle and caring. In act 1, scene 2 Christine calls the Phantom out, asking ââ¬Å"Angel of Music! Hide no longer! Secret and strange angel. â⬠Christine uses docile language when referring to him, as when she explains to her colleague Meg that he ââ¬Å"calls her softly, somewhere inside, hiding. â⬠(1. 2). When the Phantom initially criticizes her judgement for being tempted by Raoul, she apologizes saying ââ¬Å"Angel! I hear you! Speak ââ¬â I listenâ⬠¦ stay by my side, guide me! Angel, my soul was weak ââ¬â forgive meâ⬠¦ enter at last, Master! â⬠(1. 3). Her words do not have any underlying fear or distress. Sheââ¬â¢s asking for his forgiveness, and looking to please her mentor. The Phantom loves her and she sees him as a caring, fatherly figure. After Raoul wins over Christineââ¬â¢s heart, the Phantom becomes jealous. He mimics Christine and Raoulââ¬â¢s love song to each other: I gave you my music, made your song take wingâ⬠¦ And now, how youââ¬â¢ve repaid me: denied me and betrayed meâ⬠¦ He was bound to love you when he heard you singâ⬠¦ You will curse the day you did not do all that the Phantom asked of youâ⬠¦ (1. 10) Becoming more threatening to Christine, the Phantom makes her fearful of him. After he lashes out at her for removing his mask, saying ââ¬Å"You little demon, is this what you wanted to see? [â⬠¦] now you cannot ever be freeâ⬠(1. 6), Christine runs to Raoul and tells him that they will be ââ¬Å"safe on the roofâ⬠and that ââ¬Å"his eyes will find [her] thereâ⬠(1. 10). The use of the words safe and find, indicate that she no longer wants to be near the Phantom. Christine begs Raoul to help her get away from him; Raoul, it scares me ââ¬â donââ¬â¢t put me through this ordeal by fireâ⬠¦ heââ¬â¢ll take me, I knowâ⬠¦ weââ¬â¢ll be parted forever, he wonââ¬â¢t let me goâ⬠¦ what I once dreamed I now dread, if he finds me, it wonââ¬â¢t ever endâ⬠¦ and heââ¬â¢ll always be there, singing songs in my headâ⬠¦ (2. 3) The Phantom becomes physically threatening as well, when he find out Christine and Raoul are engaged he rips the ring off Christineââ¬â¢s necklace, saying ââ¬Å"Your chains are still mine, you will sing for me! (2. 1). This is another act towards Christine in which the Phantom is trying to force her to reciprocate his love. The way Christine sings to Raoul, when she is uncertain whether or not to betray her Angel of Music, is indicative of the loss of feeling of admiration. Twisted every way, what answer can I give? Am I to risk my life, to win the chance to live? Can I betray the man, who once inspired my voice? Do I become his prey? Do I have any choice? He kills without a thought, he murders all thatââ¬â¢s goodâ⬠¦ I know I canââ¬â¢t refuse, and yet, I wish I couldâ⬠¦ Oh God ââ¬â if I agree, what horrors wait for me, In this, the Phantomââ¬â¢s Opera? (2. 3) Finally towards the end of the play, the Phantomââ¬â¢s obsession has taken over any sense of reason or logic. He no longer is asking for the love of Christine, but threatening her. When Christine denies him, out of fear, the Phantom brings Christine back down into his lair, and sings; ââ¬Å"Pity comes too late ââ¬â turn around and face your fate: and eternity of this before your eyesâ⬠(2. 9), as he thrusts his deformed face in front of her. Christine replies to this saying ââ¬Å"This haunted face holds no horror for me now, itââ¬â¢s n your soul where the true distortion liesâ⬠(2. 9). Christine is no longer being polite, or soft-hearted towards her once-mentor. Knowing that his physical appearance is his biggest vulnerability she takes that shortcoming and turns it inwards on to his soul. At the culmination of the Phantomââ¬â¢s twisted logic, when he makes Chris tine choose her freedom or Raoulââ¬â¢s, Christineââ¬â¢s language becomes very harsh. She says, ââ¬Å"The tears I might have shed for your dark fate grow cold, and turn to tears of hateâ⬠¦ Farewell, my fallen idol and false friendâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ (2. 9). The fact that she verbalized the feeling of hatred, along with calling him a false friend and fallen idol, attest to her true judgment of the Phantom of the Opera. She sings to him ââ¬Å"you deceived me ââ¬â I gave my mind blindlyâ⬠(2. 9). Any feelings of admiration or respect she once had for him have disappeared completely. The Phantom, although undoubtedly hurt that the women he loves does not reciprocate any feelings for him, has taken his obsession for Christine too far. His words are crude and stark; ââ¬Å"Refuse me, and send your lover to his death! This is the choice ââ¬â This is the point of no return! (2. 9). The final words of the play are extremely significant. Both the Phantom and Christine change their attitudes towards each other drastically. Christine, although indignant of the situation decides to free her fiance by giving herself to this monster, saying ââ¬Å"Pitiful creature of darknessâ⬠¦ what kind of life have you known? God give me the coura ge to show you, you are not aloneâ⬠(2. 9). Her plea for courage, shows her altruism, and how much she loves Raoul. Her words illustrate her frustration and surrender to the damning ultimatum of the Phantom. This response to the Phantomââ¬â¢s threat is what triggers the unexpected change in him; from malicious to benevolent. In seeing Christine give up her entire life to set her true love free, the Phantom realises that he too must be selfless. His obsession for Christine had forced her to make a horrid decision, one that would lead to her ultimate misery either way. In realizing that his obsession had taken him too far and that the women he loves no longer respects or admires him, the Phantom makes a choice to let both Christine and Raoul go, losing his prodigy, his love, and his passion. Christine comes back to him, only to calmly put his ring back on his finger, in a way of thanking him for his compassion. The Phantomââ¬â¢s last words are ââ¬Å"Christine, I love you. You alone can make my song take flight ââ¬â itââ¬â¢s over now, the music of the nightâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ (2. 9). The Phantom of the Opera wraps himself in his cloak and disappears leaving only his mask behind. This ending is very satisfying, because the transformation of the Phantom of the Opera over the course of the play was upsetting. This musical genius with a grotesque disfiguration, who finds love, is a classic Jungian archetype. The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Beauty and the Beast are just two other well-known similar situations. The Phantom is a transcendent hero who eventually does the right. Although the Phantom did cause fear and pain with his tormenting of the staff of the Paris Opera House, his intentions with Christine were always based on love. He cared for her, tutored her, and comforted her at night when she missed her late father. His jealousy over another man in her life twisted the love for her into an obsession that leads him to threaten her and ultimately push her away. The love he had for Christine changed the way he viewed music, his true passion, and as a result of his actions towards her, that passion and outlet for his music was taken away, leading to his ultimate demise. His realization of the absurdity and ghastliness of the situation he had put Christine in, is refreshing and conclusive. Love can lead people to act in ways they otherwise never would, the Phantom of the Opera was no exception to this. The mask, the only thing left behind when he disappears in the end, is the one thing that was true the whole time. He was hiding his appearance, to allow others to see who he was on the inside. He let the deformities of his body seep into his head, and let the obsession over his lover take him to unruly lengths. In leaving the mask, he is saying that heââ¬â¢d rather Christine be happy without him, than miserable with him. The Phantom no longer had a need for the mask, as he was nothing without Christine.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)