3D Leadership Models

5 Steps to Write a Strong Position Paper

5 Steps to Write a Strong Position Paper In a position paper assignment, your charge is to choose a side on a particular topic, sometimes controversial, and build up a case for your opinion or position. You will use facts, opinion, statistics, and other forms of evidence to convince your reader that your position is the best one. To do this, youll collect research for your position paper and craft an outline in order to create a well-constructed argument. Select a Topic for Your Paper Your position paper centers around a topic that is supported by research. Your topic and position have to hold up when challenged, so its helpful to research a few topics and pick the one you can best argue, even if it may not reflect your personal beliefs. In many cases, the subject matter and your topic are not as important as your ability to make a strong case. Your topic can be simple or complex, but your argument must be sound and logical. Conduct Preliminary Research Preliminary research is necessary to determine whether sufficient evidence is available to back up your stance. You don’t want to get too attached to a topic that falls apart under a challenge. Search a few reputable sites, like education (.edu) sites and government (.gov) sites, to find professional studies and statistics. If you come up with nothing after an hour of searching, or if you find that your position doesn’t stand up to the findings on reputable sites, choose another topic. This could save you from a lot of frustration later. Challenge Your Own Topic You must know the opposite view as well as you know your own stance when you take a position. Take the time to determine all the possible challenges that you might face as you support your view. Your position paper must address the opposing view and chip away at it with counter-evidence. Consider having friends, colleagues, or family debate the topic with you to get alternative points of view that you might not have readily considered yourself. When you find arguments for the other side of your position, you can address them in a fair manner, and then state why they are not sound. Another helpful exercise is to draw a line down the middle of a plain sheet of paper and list your points on one side and list opposing points on the other side. Which argument is really better? If it looks like your opposition might outnumber you with valid points, you should reconsider your topic or your stance on the topic. Continue to Collect Supporting Evidence Once you’ve determined that your position is supportable and the opposite position is (in your opinion) weaker than your own, you are ready to branch out with your research. Go to a library and conduct a search, or ask the reference librarian to help you find more sources. You can, of course, conduct online research as well, but its important to know how to properly vet the validity of the sources you use. Ensure that your articles are written by reputable sources, and be wary of singular sources that differ from the norm, as these are often subjective rather than factual in nature. Try to collect a variety of sources, and include both an expert’s opinion (doctor, lawyer, or professor, for example) and personal experience (from a friend or family member) that can add an emotional appeal to your topic. These statements should support your own position but should read differently than your own words. The point of these is to add depth to your argument or provide anecdotal support. Create an Outline A position paper can be arranged in the following format: 1. Introduce your topic with some basic background information. Build up to your thesis sentence, which asserts your position. Sample points: For decades, the FDA has required that warning labels should be placed on certain products that pose a threat to public health.Fast food restaurants are bad for our health.Fast food packages should contain warning labels. 2. Introduce possible objections to your position. Sample points: Such labels would affect the profits of major corporations.Many people would see this as overreaching government control.Whose job is it to determine which restaurants are bad? Who draws the line?The program would be costly. 3. Support and acknowledge the opposing points. Just be sure you arent discrediting your own views. Sample points: It would be difficult and expensive for any entity to determine which restaurants should adhere to the policy.Nobody wants to see the government overstepping its boundaries.Funding would fall on the shoulders of taxpayers. 4. Explain that your position is still the best one, despite the strength of counter-arguments. This is where you can work to discredit some of the counter-arguments and support your own. Sample points: The cost would be countered by the improvement of public health.Restaurants might improve the standards of food if warning labels were put into place.One role of the government is to keep citizens safe.The government already does this with drugs and cigarettes. 5. Summarize your argument and restate your position. End your paper focusing on your argument and avoid the counter-arguments. You want your audience to walk away with your view on the topic being one that resonates with them. When you write a position paper, write with confidence and state your opinion with authority. After all, your goal is to demonstrate that your position is the correct one.

Capital Budgeting Individual Project Assignment

Capital Budgeting Individual Project - Assignment Example Strategic planning is important to the future success of a business enterprise. Capital budgeting is one of the ways that can help a company achieve its long term success through proper planning. Lack of good road map that a strategic plan provides, may lead to misallocation of company resources through addressing short-term issues. This would in turn compromise the long term needs of the company. Necessary Information Sparklin Automotive Company (SAC) has been a successful company within the automotive manufacturing industry, operating since the last eight decades. The company has come up with an innovative idea to launch a new spark plug which offers an enhanced mileage to vehicles i.e. up to 100,000 miles. In order to initiate the new spark plug production, the company needs to set up a new manufacturing plant which would need to be analyzed financially in order to consider it viable for SAC. The entire setup would require information pertaining to the cash inflows and the cash ou tflows that would occur as a result of carrying out the production of the new spark plugs. The financial information that would be needed should only include the relevant costs that would only be attributed as a result of carrying out the new spark plug production. ... owing data would be used to evaluate the capital project: The new spark plug plant would need an initial investment of $1 billion in 2013, which would further be followed by another $500 million investment in 2014. The cash inflows that are expected as a result of this investment are: $300 million (2015), $350 million (2016), $385 million (2017), $400 million (2018), $450 million (2019), and $500 million (2020). All of these expected inflows are considered to be after-tax inflows. It is also expected that the new plant would not attract any Capital Gains; hence no tax savings would be gained. SAC’s current cost of capital is 10%. Capital budgeting The firm’s senior financial officers are faced with two important tasks in a firm. One of the tasks is to make decisions for improving the company’s return on equity. The other task is to find adequate funds for investment opportunities that may arise (Dayananda, 2002). Capital budgeting is the process in which a busine ss management determines whether projects such as long-term investment or building a new plant are worth undertaking. Basically, business should pursue all opportunities and projects that will increase shareholder’s value. However, because of limited nature of capital available for new projects, management needs to implement capital budgeting techniques to determine which will result to high return on a given period of time. Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) Weighted Average Cost of Capital is the calculation of a firm’s cost of capital that involves proportionate weighting of each and every category of capital. When calculating the firm’s weighted average cost of capital, all capital stock such as preferred stock, common stock, bonds, and any other long-term debt are all included. The formula

Women Trafficking around the world Research Paper

Women Trafficking around the world - Research Paper Example This trend is expected to grow in the future with the fact that it is highly profitable, lowly investigated and few traffickers are usually prosecuted. In the Middle East, trafficking in women and girls is a prevalent crime where the victims are usually discriminated against by the prevailing cultures and customs. Some laws in the region do not even recognize human trafficking as a crime, which is why the crime continues to fester in the region (Murphy, 2001). Though victims of human trafficking are usually sold for reasons like slavery and forced labor, trafficking for sexual exploitation is still the biggest problem faced in the region. In most states in Arab regions, trafficking for sexual exploitation is not restricted. This is because some countries in the region have retrogressive laws that discriminate against women and favors the men. For example some countries allow temporary marriages, where the man decides when the marriage ends, which means that women and girls can be use d as sex slaves. Another supporting factor is that the women and girls who are caught up in the trafficking syndicates are usually prosecuted as illegal immigrants, which only serves to increase instances of human trafficking. ... The other economic factor that contributes to the women trafficking is the demand for cheap labor in destination countries. For example, Saudi Arabia demands for a lot of cheap labor, so women and children are trafficked from other countries and forced into slavery in this country. The other main cause of women and girls trafficking in the world is the increasing demand for sexual services. In the Middle East, women are usually discriminated against and can be exploited for sexual services Anti-Slavery International (2006). The traffickers understand that victims of human trafficking do not usually have any real rights in the countries of destination, so exploit this chance. Most of the women trafficked into these countries are transformed into sex slaves and commercial sex workers to earn a revenue for their masters. This increased sexual abuse of trafficked persons is recognized by the UN as a cause of increased demand for sexual services and should be addressed separately. The oth er reason why there is an increase in women trafficking is the fact that there are retrogressive laws in the destination countries. As already mentioned, some of the countries of destination of trafficked women and children do not recognize the rights of these women and children. Government lack of control and the lack of laws that prohibit women trafficking serve to increase its instances. For example, lack of legislation that expressly prosecutes human traffickers means that it is going to continue. In many countries, human traffickers are not sufficiently investigated or prosecuted. Domestic violence and organized crime are two other reasons that usually

Rolls Royces Strategic And Business Management Management Essay

Rolls Royces Strategic And Business Management Management Essay Rolls-Royce is founded in 1906 by Frederick Henry Royce and Charles Stewart Rolls (Pugh, Peter, 2001).Headquartered in London. As a diversified company, Rolls-Royce operates in four global markets namely civil aerospace, defense aerospace, marine and energy-in each of which it is among the worlds top three competitors. The company has manufacturing sites or service centers located in 50 countries around the world. Rolls-Royce produces both commercial and military engines civil and defense aerospace business for a broad customer base, including more than 650 airlines, 4,000 corporate and utility aircraft and helicopter operators, and 160 armed forces around the world. Rolls-Royce also supplies power generation systems to the oil and gas industry and is one of the worlds largest makers of marine propulsion systems. It maintains key operations in North America, Europe, and Asia, with emerging presence in the Middle East (Nancy Daniels, 2001). Rolls-Royces revenue for the year 2009 was  ¿Ã‚ ¡10,414 million, definitely higher than the figure for 2008, which is  ¿Ã‚ ¡9,082 million. In 2009, 44% of Rolls-Royces revenue came from civil aerospace, while defense aerospace, marine and energy each accounted for 20%, 26%, 10% (Rolls-Royce, 2009). 2. Analysis of the Current Business Environment Affecting the Industry 2.1 Macro-Environmental Analysis The PESTLE analysis (appendix A) details the main macro-environmental trends affecting the aviation industry. Of these, the economic crisis is the most pressing current issue but in the longer term, technological advancements remain central to the industrys progression. More international cultural exchange will accelerate the development of aviation industry, and the growth in developing countries needs more energy and a range of products serviced by Rolls-Royce. 2.2 Micro-Environmental Analysis Porters Five Forces analysis (appendix B) indicates that the threat of substitution in the aviation industry is fairly low. Limited to the technologies and standards, the airline company can only get the suitable parts from the original corporation which supplied the products. Threat of entry is quite low because the aviation industry needs the latest scientific and technological achievements and long-term technology accumulation as well as a lot of money and human resources, so the potential competitors are hard to entry. Suppliers are hard to influence the aviation industry, for the reason that big corporations such as General Electric (GE) and Rolls-Royce possess the key technologies, while the suppliers are so many that can be easily replaced. The power of buyers has increased somewhat due to ease of switching, transparency of costs. But they dont have many choices but only three. Overall, competitive rivalry within the aviation industry is very high due to the presence of General Electric (GE) and Pratt Whitney (PW), rapid technological change and intense products and services competition. 2.3 Main Opportunities and Threats The main opportunity is the increasing business in the jet aircraft market and growing aerospace and defense market as well as Rolls-Royces Strategic alliances and investments. The most prominent threat currently faced by the industry is the economic crisis. Based on a survey of randomly selected flight departments about their expected use and purchase plans over the next five years, market forecasters believe Europe will remain a major source of demand for business aircraft, and orders will reach record levels in the next five years. While most of Europe entered recession about a year later than the America, European orders are expected to recover once economic growth resumes (Ian Goold, 2010). The challenge of climate change will present a range of exciting opportunities for Rolls-Royce. Many customers will potentially consider investing in new technology earlier in order to minimize emissions. Equally there is likely to be a lot of interest in future low carbon technologies as well as alternative energy sources (Rolls-Royce, 2009). And as manufacturing employment has declined in Britain, there has been less reason for the best and brightest to study the subjects that manufacturing demands. Rolls-Royce executives say that the pool of experienced engineers, process managers and skilled workers from which the company can recruit is shrinking (The Economist, 2009). Any company engaged in global business should be aware of the risks of currency fluctuations. In such an economic environment, the exchange rate fluctuations can affect Rolls-Royces earnings and value. They are fully exposed to what is known as an exchange risk. 3. Analysis of Rolls-Royces Strategic Capabilities 3.1 How the various market trends have affected Rolls-Royce plc And after 1987 the various market trends are as following: Rolls-Royce was rescued by being nationalised by a Conservative government when the firm reached its nadir in 1971. Margaret Thatcher privatised it in 1987, when Rolls-Royces engines were then used by only a handful of airlines. There was a trend that the engine market would be dominated by GE and Pratt Whitney. After that, the core of the firms strategy had been to increase the number of its engines powering the worlds civil jets. There was a trend that defence spending would be reduced after 1987, which was the edge of the end of cold war. Growth in civil business was doubly important because Rolls-Royce was badly hit by the fall of the Soviet Union-at which time defence accounted for 60% of its revenues (The Economist, 2005). Government began to reduce defence spending, thus Rolls-Royce got less orders from the military. Worse for the firm, British Airways, which was Rolls-Royces old customer, equipped its new Boeing 777 wide-body planes with GE engines (The Economist, 2005). From then on, Rolls-Royce tried its best to get its engines on the wings of big airlines around the world. The British government used to be Rolls-Royces biggest customer, buying its jet engines for Royal Air Force planes and its nuclear power plants for Royal Navy submarines. But nowadays America (the biggest defense market by far) is its biggest defense customer, using its jet engines on todays jump-jet aircraft and planning to do so on the Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter, which promises to be the subject of the biggest contract in military history (The Economist, 2005). Nowadays America and British are facing the threat of international terrorist organizations, so the market is still promising. With the development of the worlds emerging economies, the world needs ever more tankers to transport oil and gas over long distances, and demand is growing for economical but high-power marine gas turbines to drive them, in place of the diesel-electric hybrid motors that have dominated until now. 3.2 Rolls-Royces development strategies According to these various market trends, Rolls-Royce increased the number of its engines to civil jet, and bought copper in order to push oil and gas along pipelines. In order to expand American market share, Rolls-Royce bought Allison. With over 80 per cent  of global commercial shipbuilding taking place in Asia, Rolls-Royce recently relocated its global headquarters for the Marine business to Singapore, bringing the Group closer to the customer base. The company had already placed its Global Headquarters for Marine Services and the regional headquarters for the Commercial Marine business covering Asia, the Middle East, India and Australia in Singapore. The operations also house one of Rolls-Royces global repairs and overhaul service centers. Rolls-Royce stands out as well for being the only company to offer an expanded OEM warranty (Rolls-Royce, 2009). As the expansion of the new markets and the use of new engine, Rolls-Royce has sold more services together with their products. Ansoff: product/ market matrix Product Current new Current penetration product development Market New market development diversification The theory of the Ansoffs: Product penetration refers to current product for current market. Aircraft engines Automation and control equipment Diesel and gas turbine engines Electric propulsion systems Engine support services Fuel cells Generators Offshore drilling equipment Overhaul and repair services Technical publications Training (Hoovers, Inc., 2009) Product development -it means new product for current market. Diesel and gas turbine engines; providing a better service Market development it means current product for new market. Marine motors ¼Ã…’Fuel cells ¼Ã…’Engine support services; Expanding American market share Diversification-It means new products for new market. Such as jet engines 3.3 How the main competitive advantage have been built up Competitive advantage refers to condition which enables a company to operate in a more efficient or otherwise higher-quality manner than the companies it competes with, and which results in benefits accruing to that company. After 1987 Rolls-Royce focused on four sectors which are civil, military, and marine as well as energy, and the firm continued its expenditure on investment and RD, it provides new products and new technologies. Rolls-Royces competitive advantage mainly focuses on core markets and core technology. We can see that, for the past decades years, the core strategy of the company has been to focuses on the four chosen markets namely civil aerospace, defense aerospace, marine and energy, now each of them are the top three in the world. Meanwhile, Rolls-Royce has increased the number of its engines powering the worlds civil jets, and the whole firm mainly makes all kind of engines, which accounts the majority of their revenue.   3.4 Evaluate the companys use of acquisitions Acquisitions means acquiring control of a corporation, called a target, by stock purchase or exchange, either hostile or friendly, also called takeover. After 1987 Rolls-Royce had several acquisitions as a method of strategic growth as following: (1) In 1996 Rolls-Royce bought Allison, its an American maker of small jet engines, mostly for corporate jets. This gave Rolls-Royce a significant presence in America-essential for any firm seeking to increase sales to the Pentagon (The Economist, 2005). From then on, American gradually  replaced Britain as Rolls-Royces largest market.   (2) In 1999 the company bought Vickers, a struggling arms-and-marine business. This acquisition took Rolls-Royce into the business of marine propulsion systems for warships. (3)In the same year Rolls-Royce bought Coopers, another specialist company, as the short cut in compressors with gas turbines in order to push oil and gas, which was very good for Rolls-Royces energy business. 3.5 Main Strengths and Weaknesses Rolls-Royces main weakness is they have to employ a lot of employee, which is very common in the manufacturing industry. It means Rolls-Royce has to pay a lot benefit for the retail employee. And sometimes, the orders may not be implemented well in such a big group corporation. There is another issue that Rolls-Royce has to focus on, that is, the increasing inventory which is caused by the unexpected order or demand. This will increase the companys operating costs. Rolls-Royces main strength is they are a leading integrated power systems company operating in the civil and defense aerospace, marine and energy markets. They have built their golden quality of their band, and they have regular partners and customers, for whom they will provide sustainable products and services. Furthermore, Rolls-Royce is a global corporation, so their business has a diversified geographic spread, which can be a source of guaranteed profit. Also they have a strong and trustful leadership to guarantee the right direction the corporation goes. Evaluation of Rolls-Royces Recent Strategies Rolls-Royces recent strategy is based on five key elements: 4.1 Address four global markets Rolls-Royce should focuses on the four core businesses, civil aerospace, defense aerospace, marine and energy, which are the most four profitable markets to the corporation. And there are still a lot to be done in order to develop the international market. As we know, Europe and the American market accounted for the majority of revenue, thus Asia and African are two emerging markets to emphasize. In some developing countries, Rolls-Royce will benefit from the preferential policies and cheap labor force. 4.2 Invest in technology, infrastructure and capability Rolls-Royce needs to invest more in RD to develop more innovative, environment-friendly products in order for it to keep the possession of advanced technologies and to offer better services. Meanwhile, with the development of the global market, it is necessary to invest more on the infrastructure to offer better services and attract more customers. 4.3 Develop a competitive portfolio of products and services As mentioned above, a competitive portfolio of products and services can consolidate existing markets and explore new markets. 4.4 Grow market share and installed product base Across the group, the installed base of engines in service is expected to generate attractive returns over many years (Rolls-Royce, 2009). 4.5 Add value for the customers through the provision of product-related services. Rolls-Royce should seek to add value for their customers with aftermarket services that will enhance the performance and reliability of their products (Rolls-Royce, 2009). 4.6 Others Manufacturing industry need a lot employee to make products, so Rolls-Royce could move the manufacturing centers to countries with low labor costs, which can greatly cut the cost. 4.7 Key Competitors GE Aviation and Pratt Whitney are Rolls-Royces top competitors. General Electric (GE) enjoys a very strong position in the wide body market, with the CF6 and GE90 engines powering about 40% of aircraft in the class. Pratt Whitney (PW) and Rolls-Royce each have about a 30% market share with the JT9D/PW4000 and the RB211/Trent series, respectively (Aircraft Economics, 2004/2005). To date, the most fuel efficient single-aisle jet engine belongs to Pratt Whitney, a considerably smaller player. The company unveiled its PW1000G geared turbofan in 2008 after a decade of development and promised it would reduce fuel burn by some 12% to 15% compared to todays engines (WSN Staff, 2010). In other business areas, there are some Rolls-Royces competitors not as big as GE and Pratt Whitney, such as SAFRAN, Emerson Electric, GE Honda Aero Engines, Honeywell Aerospace, IHI Corp, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, McDermott, Siemens AG, and Volvo. 5. Evaluation of Rolls-Royces leadership Sir John Rose took over as CEO in 1996. Rolls-Royces CEOs used to have an engineering background until Sir John Rose. He likes the intensely challenging job in Rolls-Royce which has something to do with His adventurous lifestyle, I guess. His leadership is critical to Rolls-Royces success. Rose insisted on continuing to invest substantially in the Trent engine series and it proved to be very important. Under Roses direction, the second largest business of Rolls-Royce, marine propulsion also has fared very well over the past years (Heller, Richard, 2005). Sir John Rose attaches importance to the after-sales business. And it makes sense, because engine services and sales of spare parts to replace worn components make up more than 50 percent of turnover. All in all, Rolls Royces leadership is smart, mature ¼Ã…’dynamic, aggressive and trustworthy. 6. Conclusion Rolls-Royce, the global leader in power systems and services for air, land and sea, will focus on both the importance of services for its civil and defense aerospace markets and its newest programs for these markets, mainly on the global market. In civil and military business, they can also through acquisition of developing countrys jet industry to expand market segment. Therefore there are tremendous opportunities for future business in expanding consumer markets, such as China and India. After setbacks in the exploration, the corporation has achieved a positive development under the leadership of Sir John Rose.

Odysseus Cannot Return Home in Homers Odyssey Essay -- Odyssey essays

Odysseus Cannot Return Home in Homer's Odyssey   Ã‚  Ã‚   Webster's College Dictionary defines home as: An environment offering security and happiness" and "a valued place regarded as refuge or place of origin." Anyone can build a house but the emotional security a home provides is created by the people who live there. In Homer's Odyssey, the Greek hero Odysseus leaves his home in Ithica to fight in the Trojan war. The Odyssey tells the story of his treacherous journey back to Ithica, and the turmoil he experiences. Due to his strong desire to return to the place he remembered as home, Odysseus endurs the hardships of his journey. He hopes his homecoming will return him to the same home, and same life he built twenty years ago. Odysseus will never truly return home because he is not the same king, husband, or man he once was; He is not capable of recreating the home he once had. Ulysses' quote," I am part of all that I have met," is the epitome of why Odysseus can never again truly return home. Throughout his journeys he has experienced multiple life changing events. As the quotation states, he has become a part of everything he has experienced. Victimized by kleos, arrogance, and emotional weakness, Odysseus is forever changed from the Trojan war, and his journey home. Fighting on the battle grounds of the Trojan war, left Odysseus narcissistic, and controlled by his desire for kleos. Odysseus desire for recognition is demonstrated often before he reaches Ithica. It eventually leads to the death of all of his men. An earlier example is the manner in which he dealt with the Cyclops. When Odysseys and his men were sailing back to sea, after escaping the beast, he called out to the already furious Cyclops,... ...the suitors and the women who were in some way connected to them. Odysseus will never be the same husband, because he broke the trust between himself and Penelope, and the security of marriage. Emotionally damaged and belligerent, Odysseus is not the same man and will never be able to play the role of the person he was. The home he once had, the security, attachment, and people that are associated with it, will all be effected by him. The home Odysseus, the all mighty Trojan hero once built, will never again be more than a memory. Works Consulted: Bloom, Harold.   Homer's Odyssey: Edited and with an Introduction, NY, Chelsea House 1988 Crane, Gregory.   Backgrounds and Conventions of the Odyssey,   Frankfurt, Athenaeum 1988 Homer. The Odyssey. Trans. Robert Fagles. New York: 1996 Tracy, Stephen V. The Story of the Odyssey Princeton UP 1990

Virgil’s Aeneas and Dido Essay

Love Stories Introduction Virgil’s Aeneas and Dido   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This romantic story has been in existence for decades. It is therefore evident that it is one of the most narrated romantic stories. It is a love story between Dido and Aeneas, a Trojan soldier (Virgil 21). After the shipwreck, Aeneas and his troop had no option but to seek refuge in Carthage, which was ruled by Dido. When Dido spots Aeneas, she immediately falls in love with him, hence, allows his troops to stay in Carthage. Although Dido admires Aeneas, she does not want to fall in love with him. This is because she wishes to remain loyal to her dead husband (Virgil 12). Her sister however convinces her into falling in love with Aeneas. According to Anna, Dido’s sister, falling in love with Aeneas will be beneficial to Carthage since it will become mightier than before (Virgil 51). Although Dido developed the perception that she and Aeneas were married, this was not the case for Aeneas. This is because after a short period of stay in Carthage, Aeneas decided to leave for Italy. Dido tried to prevent him from leaving but this did not bear any fruits since Aeneas was acting in response to the gods that had visited him at night. When Aeneas finally left Carthage, Dido was left in tears to the extent that she opted to end her life. Strengths and Weakness   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This story can be equated as one of the best stories ever written. This is because it has a number of strengths in it. For instance, Dido portrays real love to her dead husband. According to Virgil (12), Dido had sworn never to fall in love again after the death of her husband. This is enough proof that she was quite loyal. The other aspect of real love that comes out in this story is the manner in which Dido falls for Aeneas. It is because of her love towards Aeneas that makes Dido allow the Trojan soldiers to stay in Carthage. Dido’s love for Aeneas was strong to the extent that she did not want her to leave cartage. It was because of the passion she had for Aeneas that made her decide to end her life the day she realized that Aeneas had left her for Italy. Although this story has a number of strengths, it also has several weaknesses as well. For instance, although Dido was in love with Aeneas, this was not the case for Aeneas. Th is is because Aeneas did not seem interested in Dido. This brings out the fact that Aeneas took advantage of Dido’s and was never in love with her. Apuleius’ Cupid and Psyche   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The story is about a romantic relationship that blossomed between Psyche and Cupid, the son of Venus, who was the goddess of love.According to the story, Psyche was quite beautiful to the extent that Venus, the goddess of love, developed hatred for her (Apuleius 39). He asked her son, cupid, to go and stab her. However, cupid was stunned by Psyche’s beauty to the extent that he stabbed himself instead. Cupid immediately falls in love with Psyche and gradually a relationship blossoms between the two. The most interesting thing about this love is that psyche was not allowed to see the man she was in love with. Out of curiosity, Psyche decides to see who his suitor was. When Cupid was fast asleep, Psyche uses the lamp to know the identity of her lover (Apuleius 26). She is surprised to learn that it was Cupid. Cupid is not happy with psyche; hence, he abandons her and goes back to Venus. Psyche is not ready to let her lover go, hence, she goes to Venus and requests to be allowed to see Cupid (Apuleius 39). Venus is not comfortable seeing Cupid with Psyche, hence, she assigns her difficult tasks in a move to get rid of her. To Venus’ surprise, Psyche accomplishes all these tasks. Cupid finally comes to her rescue and transforms her into a goddess; this implied that she was immortal. Strength and Weakness   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Unlike the previous story, this one tends to have more strength; hence, it stands a chance becoming the best love story ever written. This is because the story brings out the extent that one can go in the name of seeking love. For instance, although Cupid and Psyche were from two different worlds, they were able to finally marry each other and live happily. Similarly, the power of love is seen when Psyche decides to go search for Cupid (Apuleius 39). Although Psyche was aware that Cupid’s mother was never pleased with her, she still went to Venus to Inquire about Cupid’s whereabouts. Psyche’s love for Cupid is also seen when she accomplishes all the difficult tasks she was given by Venus.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The only weakness about this story is the fact that there are a number of unrealistic aspects in it. For instance, it is quite unrealistic for Cupid, a god, to marry Psyche who was a human being. Additionally, the fact that Psyche was finally transformed into a goddess also brings out the unrealistic aspect of this story. Human beings are mortal; hence, it is not possible for them to be transformed into gods and goddesses, which implies that they cannot become immortal. Dante’s Paolo and Francesca   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This is a story about Francesca, the daughter to the lord of Ravenna, and Gianciotto, the son to the lord of Rimini. These two cities had continuously been engaged in war. In order to end the continuous conflicts, an agreement be made. The two lords agreed to marry off their children in a move to have a lasting solution to the warfare (Singleton). Since Gianciotto was disabled and ugly, he did not attend the wedding ceremony. Paolo was the youngest brother to Gianciotto. He was picked to represent Gianciotto since he was handsome and good-looking and it was obvious that Francesca would fall in love with him. The plan proceeded well since Francesca did not know the truth until the following morning when she woke up besides Gianciotto (Singleton). Although she is angry, nothing could be done about it since she was already a married woman.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, since Francesca had fallen in love with Paolo, a secret relationship blossomed between the two (Singleton). After several years, the secret finally came to light when Gianciotto walked on them while they were behind closed door. This discovery angered Gianciotto to the extent that he decided to kill Paolo. However, when he swung the rapier, Francesca rushed between them and the rapier ended up cutting through Francesca’s bosom before finally slitting through Paolo, hence, killing both of them on the spot (Singleton). Strength and Weakness   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Although it has a tragic end, it is also one of the best-drafted love stories since there are a number of lessons worth learning from it. Compared to other love stories, this one tends to have more weaknesses than strengths. In the case of strength, through marriage, there was peace between Ravenna and Rimini. This implies that love can cause harmony to dominate in a region that that marred by wrangles.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The story tends to have more weaknesses compared to strengths. The story is marred with a lot of deception. For instance, during the wedding ceremony, Paolo impersonates Gianciotto since he is more handsome. This implied that not only did they lie to Francesca but also her father who was also the lord of Ravenna. It was because of this deception that the marriage between Francesca and Gianciottowas unstable. For instance, since Francesca had fallen in love with Paolo, this relationship still went on even after the wedding. This implied that Paolo was having an affair with Francesca, who was Gianciotto’s wife. It was because of these deceptions that finally resulted to the tragic death of the two couples. Analysis   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Although the three stories are romantic, Apuleius’ Cupid and Psyche is the most romantic love story. This is because unlike the rest that end tragically, it is only Apuleius’ Cupid and Psyche that ends positively. Similarly, it is also the best love story since it has more strengths than weaknesses. In Apuleius’ Cupid and Psyche, Psyche portrays real love since she was willing to go to her extreme in search for her lover. References Apuleius, Joel. The Tale of Cupid and Psyche. Indianna: Hackett Publishing, 2009. Print. Singleton, Charles. â€Å"Romance Stories: Paolo& Francesca as told by Dante.† Wisdom Portal. 1977. Web. 31 October 2014. Virgil &Maclennan, Keith. Virgil: Aeneid Iv. London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2013. Print. Source document