Keys to Small Business Marketing

KEYS TO SMALL BUSINESS MARKETING Kimberly Smith, University of Houston Small Business Development CenterEach year, about 400,000 new small businesses open their doors to the economic landscape in their communities. But according to www.bloomberg.com, a whopping 80 percent of these new ventures will fail within the first 18 months. What’s the difference between one energetic, inspired entrepreneur with an idea that succeeds and a similar one who just can’t seem to get his or her business off the ground? To answer that question, I spoke with Kimberly Smith, director of marketing and publicity at the University of Houston Small Business Development Center. She shared her insights about strategic marketing tactics and how they help small businesses across all industries build their brand. â€Å"If you’re an entrepreneur with a great idea, and you’ve had big sales at opening that later tapered off, you might be experiencing a combination of problems,† said Smith. â€Å"When business owners come to me for advice, I tell them in order to be successful, they have to have a well-planned, well-researched marketing strategy.† According to Smith, if you’re a new or aspiring small business owner, there are five fundamental elements of a marketing strategy that will move you closer to achieving your business goals in the first year and beyond. Marketing Strategy Do’s: 1. DO identify your ideal target market for your product or service. It might be that everyone is your â€Å"target market,† but not everyone is ideal. Find out exactly who needs your service or product, who wants it, and who can afford it. Do lots of research, and find out exactly who fills those three categories. â€Å"For example, when Apple started marketing their computers, they knew they wouldn’t be appealing to the cheapest consumers, so they used a different approach to marketing,† Smith said. â€Å"They advertised (their product) as a ‘work of art’ that would appeal specifically to people who would appreciate art — like graphic designers, illustrators, innovators, musicians. That made the market much smaller and easier to target.† 2. DO figure out How to reach your ideal target market. Where are the people who need, want, and can afford what you’re selling? How can you get the word out to them? â€Å"The best way to answer these questions is to do a lot of research,† Smith said. â€Å"So, if your ideal target market is professional women between the ages of 30-40, the next step is to figure out where they purchase. Online? In brick and mortar stores? Do they listen to certain TV or radio shows?† Smith said that pinpointing the specific buying behaviors of your target market will lead you to the most effective places to spend your advertising dollars. Follow up with social media. â€Å"Figure out which social media platform is the best fit for your product, and start posting there,† Smith said. â€Å"It takes time and effort, but it pays off.† Helpful Hint: Call a TV or radio station, or a community newspaper — any publication that posts a website with banner ads. Tell them you’re looking at their ads, and explain which market you’re trying to reach with your product or service. They can tell you exactly who their ads will connect with, so you’ll know if your advertising money will be well spent there or if you need to keep looking. Free Advice: â€Å"The librarian here at the Small Business Development Center at the University of Houston will run a competitive marketing analysis free of charge for any small business owner,† Smith said. â€Å"She’ll help you figure out the trends so you can market more effectively in your particular industry.† 3. DO use surveys. If you’re in business, you have access to people. It’s always a good idea to ask them questions about your products and services. â€Å"Even if you’re still at pre-venture stage and you don’t have actual customers yet, survey your friends and family,† Smith said. â€Å"Ask them if they think the price points you’ve set are acceptable. Get as much feedback as you can about that.† Ask how often they might need or want the product or service you’re selling, and how they tend to receive information about new products — online, social media, flyers in the mailbox? â€Å"That’s extremely useful information for your new business,† Smith said. For new businesses that have already opened, Smith suggested a by-invitation-only special party consisting of a specific focus group of guests. â€Å"If you’ve opened, you can use your own place to bring customers in after hours, let them know how much you appreciate them, and ask them to answer a few survey questions,† she said. â€Å"The feedback you’ll get from this is invaluable.† 4. DO claim and maintain your online presence. Too often, business owners believe their online profile ends at their website. â€Å"If you want to succeed, you need to get beyond your website and set up profiles on Yelp, Google, the Yellow Pages, and Google Plus,† Smith said. â€Å"Claim them. Take control of your online profile. Make sure all of them convey a consistent message about your business, and all the details are correct across all of them — your selling proposition, your business hours, your contact information.† That also will positively affect your search engine optimization (SEO), which is essential for targeting your customers and driving traffic to your website. â€Å"It helps to be at the top of the page when someone is searching for a business that has your products or services,† Smith said. â€Å"All the information should match. It’s surprising how many inconsistencies there are from site to site with basic information like store hours. That’s confusing to the customers. Your pages should be constantly monitored and maintained.† 5. DO create a marketing plan using these elements. Smith said small business owners don’t always understand what she means when she tells them how important it is to create a marketing plan, but it just means pulling together the four previous points. â€Å"It’s just a way to make sure you’re finding your target audience, you’ve identified your unique selling points, and you’ve set goals with a plan to achieve them,† she said. â€Å"You’re not just selling. You’ve got an efficient, clear plan in place, and you’re progressing toward your goal.† Marketing Strategy Don’ts: Not only should new business owners take an active role in planning and implementing their marketing strategy, they also should be wary of traps that can undermine their efforts. When entrepreneurs run out of money, it’s often because they’re overconfident, their marketing message doesn’t connect with consumers, or they underestimate the need to keep up digitally. Smith said the following poor practices are a recipe for new business failure. 1. DON’T make assumptions. If a business owner assumes his product or service is so great that everyone will buy it, he’s in for a big disappointment, Smith said. â€Å"This shows a real lack of focus and research into the ideal target market. Let people try your product or service for free and get feedback. That tactic usually works very well and teaches the owner a lot about how people are receiving his product or service.† 2. DON’T design your own logo or own website. Brand image is everything, and if it’s not on par with your competitors’, your target customer base will not take you seriously. â€Å"Unless you’re a trained graphic designer, hire a professional to do your logo and your website,† Smith said. â€Å"People often think cheapest is best, but the smart thing is to set aside the money you need to get a good website and logo, and hire a very reputable person to do them.† 3. DON’T create too many social media profiles. It’s better to have one or two well-maintained social media profiles that fit your business than to have a lot of profiles that don’t get any traffic. â€Å"Your ideal target market can’t necessarily be reached on all social media platforms,† Smith said. â€Å"It’s impossible to keep posting on multiple social media pages, so choose one or two that match your products and services and post regularly. Don’t get on Pinterest if you’ve got a business or service that doesn’t apply.† Hint: When the last post on a social media page is from a year ago, it could imply that you’re no longer in business, which causes customers to look elsewhere. 4. DON’T ignore bad reviews. When customers leave a bad review on Yelp or Google, don’t think it won’t affect you. â€Å"When people search for your business, those reviews will come up,† Smith said. â€Å"Negative reviews deter people from your business, whether they’re true or not.† She said it’s best to reply to each bad review and apologize for failing to meet expectations. Then offer something to make it right with the customer. 5. DON’T rely on referrals or word of mouth. You work hard to earn a good reputation and have your clients tell their friends about you, but relying on them to do that is another trap that can lead to failure. â€Å"It’s the ‘if I build it, they will come’ theory,† Smith said. â€Å"If you create a marketing plan and remain consistent, you do a good job with your customers, and you get lots of referrals and good word of mouth, imagine how well you’d do with advertising,† she said. â€Å"Advertising expands your customer base. If you’re already doing well, advertising will help you go beyond referrals and word of mouth. You can make enough money to hire more employees and go sit on the beach!† BIO Kimberly Smith has nearly 20 years of experience in marketing and public relations. With the direction of the executive director, she is principally responsible for the marketing of the Texas Gulf Coast Small Business Development Center Network, the largest economic development program of the University of Houston System. Smiths vast experience in strategic marketing has helped businesses, large and small; build brands across a variety of industries. She has produced award-winning campaigns on national and international accounts such as JC Penney, Basset Furniture Industries, Harland Clarke and CHRISTUS Health. Smith is an avid photographer, foodie, and Texas Aggie football fan.

Ibn Battuta and the Role of Women essays

Ibn Battuta and the Role of Women essays The role of women in society of Dar al-Islam in the 14th century and the world of Utopia have some similarities and many differences. The attitude toward the women of both societies differs for the most part. The location, different centuries and different religious backgrounds tend to account for the differences in opinions of the roles of women. The role of women in the 14th century society of Dar al Islam is limited to very few tasks. Under the guise of the patriarchal society, the males do not feel that the women can manage work, marriage, free choice and the right to make independent decisions. The women are domestic workers preparing food for many men to eat, preparing rooms for these men to meet in and sleep in, raising children and fulfilling men's desires. Many of the women are slaves and do many menial tasks. They do not seem to have any free time nor do they seem to be able to further their education. Ibn Battuta observes different customs as to the treatment of women. He did not agree with many of the local practices concerning women. He thought they were inconsistent with Islamic rectitude. In many cases he is very critical of women having a high status or being able to meet socially with men. He is also critical of women who in his view are not modest in dress, going topless, and not having their faces covered. He praises women who cover up and are thereby modest. Ibn is extremely strict, as a Muslim qadi would be about adultery and prostitution. One of Ibn Battuta's greatest aberrations was the women's modesty and the males acceptance of it. While Ibn was in Iwalatan he commented that,"most of the inhabitants belong to the Massufa, and as for their women they are extremely beautiful and are more important than men" (Battuta, 37). This seems to differ from the beliefs Ibn was raised with. The women in his life and religious settings were not more important then men. They wore ...

Bejjing(China) Need Blue Skies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Bejjing(China) Need Blue Skies - Essay Example This will includes the stringent measure of facing out backward production facilities which are the leading cause of the air pollution. Other than that, the government will start punishing the offenders without showing any form of mercy when using the law. This will prevent more people from causing the pollution or refusing to follow the law in as far as pollution measures are concerned. Since China has been pursuing economic growth more and at the expense of the environment leading to the increase in the levels of air pollution, the new government now vows to tackle the environmental issues first before economic growth can be pursued as the health of the Chinese people comes first. Lastly is that the government plans to work hand-in-hand with the citizens to clean the air as the success of the exercise needs the input of the public more (Kang Lim and Sui-Lee 1). Fisher, Max. â€Å"The most shocking photo of Beijing air pollution I’ve ever seen.† The Washington Post, February 28, 2013. Retrieved from: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/02/28/the-most-shocking- photo-of-beijing-air-pollution-ive-ever-seen/ Kang Lim, Benjamin and Sui-Lee Wee. â€Å"Chinese Premier Li Keqiang pledged on Sunday that his government would "show even greater resolve" in tackling Chinas festering pollution crisis, a source of increasing public fury.† Reuters, March 17, 2013. Retrieved from:

Intellectual property law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Intellectual property law - Essay Example The case was viewed as critical to the search engine’s business model that had been built around the system. The ECJ also added that the Cour de Cassation, France’s highest court would have finality on other cases, case-by-case. The court also contended that its decision on whether the search engine company was liable over stored client data should be left in the hands of the French courts (Hill, 2012: p19). Google, it said, could not be held liable if at all it possessed a neutral role that was passive, automatic, and technical, pointing to a lack of data control or knowledge (Smith, 2012: p72). Previously, Google used to stop advertisers from buying the brand names of others as keywords, although, this policy was altered in 2004 for the North American market before the extension into Ireland and Britain four years later. An interim legal opinion in September of 2009 delivered by the European Court of Justice contended that Google had not infringed on any trademark law s or rights, via allowing the buying of keywords by advertisers in correspondence to registered trademarks. Several trademark lawyers, such as Fiona McBride of Withers & Rogers, described the European Court of Justice’s ruling with regards to an ad’s origin as perplexing (Stim, 2010: p34). ... Consequently, very rarely will users of the internet be able to ascertain that his or her services or goods’ origin, as well as making it easier for advertisers to navigate the law and utilize trademarks from third parties as key words (Wherry, 2012: p77). This translates to advertisers being able to secure commercial advantages by taking a piggy ride on other trademark’s reputations. This paper seeks a critical evaluation of the development of the trademark infringement law in relation to ad-words, as well as the implications of the European Union Court of Justice’s ruling pertaining to the use of key words in advertising over the internet (Wild, 2011: p22). Development of the Law in Trade Mark Infringement relating to ‘Ad-words’ As the analysis of the Louis Vuitton vs. Google Inc. above has indicated, trademarks are valuable assets to top corporations. In cases where these trademarks are exploited correctly, they endow their proprietors with increa sed benefits, distinctiveness, and fame (Bainbridge, 1999: p45). Therefore, the respective proprietors of these trademark rights, via contemplation of their significance and value, as well as devotion of material efforts towards their evolution in the future, can invest vast sums in attempts to protect them. During the past decade, proprietors of various trademarks have begun to turn their attention to violation of their trademarks that are occurring over the internet. The internet has shown a tremendous rate of growth over the past decade, which has led to new economic models developing, as well as novel methods of advertising (Colston & Galloway, 2010: p45). The internet has made, within the context of a new economic

The changes in Education Essay Example for Free

The changes in Education Essay This week it was announced by ministers that A levels and GCSE`s in secondary schools will be replaced by a Baccalaureate. Baccalaureate exams are already used in France, Germany and the United States of America. The government are hoping to start this system in September 2004. A Levels were first introduced in the 1950`s and GCSE`s were introduced when O levels were phased out in the 1980`s and have caused much discussion and many arguments by Head teachers and Education ministers during the last few years. The education secretary said that A Levels were too narrow and exclusive. If there is going to be an English version of the Baccalaureate it will make things far easier to study at universities abroad because they would understand the qualification that a student in Britain would achieve. Recently AS Levels have been introduced by many schools across the country. This has given a student the opportunity of choosing up to 5 subjects to study for one year and then dropping one or two of these subjects before continuing with the remaining ones. This gives the pupil a much broader education as they are not just studying for the same 3 subjects during the two years of studying. I am not sure if these exams have been a success because everyone moans about them as students have to take continuous examinations. Change at schools must always cause complaints because it is very hard after so many years to adjust to new rules. Heads of schools have to change the way their teachers educate the pupils, and new guidelines have to be carried out nationally. This must be very disruptive during the first couple of years for both students and pupils participating in this scheme, and after the fiasco this year with the marking of them, I do wonder if change is a good thing. Education is changing rapidly, and we will know by the end of the year if the Baccalaureate will definitely be in force. The Baccalaureate will include English, Maths, and Science and then students will be able to choose from a range of academic and practical courses. Work experience will be a must for anyone who takes the exam as will voluntary work. If the baccalaureate is introduced there will be fewer exams and more internal assessment. This will give a student much more of an all round education, and would be more varied on a day to day basis. This would make education much more original and personal, and could be tailor made for each individual pupil. This I am sure would make the normal school day far less boring. I would welcome an opportunity like this. I think every student should participate in voluntary work. This would give everyone a chance to help others and would save money for local councils, as it would have to employ less paid staff. The Baccalaureate will have to be accepted by all the Universities, in England and abroad, especially in Europe, and have the support from future employers, especially those in industry, otherwise this new exam will not work in Britain. It is yet to be decided what it will include. But it will change the way 14 to 19 year olds are taught. Ministers and Headmasters think that this is the most significant way forward and it will be the biggest change education has seen for years. There would be different levels of attainment. As yet they have not decided what these levels will be called but it is likely that they will be along the lines of foundation, intermediate and advanced. Mathematics, English and Science and Information Technology will be compulsory for GCSE and pupils will have to be educated in Sex Education, Physical Education and Religious Education. Pupils will also have to study citizenship. At fourteen years of age pupils will be free to drop many other subjects, which have been compulsory in the National Curriculum, including History, Geography, Art and Music. These subjects will now only be optional. College training will be offered locally on a one or two day a week basis. Day release would also be available to some pupils. With employers so that they could gain skills, which they would never be able to achieve at present at their school. It would also give a pupil the chance to decide if they enjoyed college, wanted to work or pursue a different field all together. I welcome this, and think that the more choices offered the better. If I personally cannot have these choices I hope my younger sister will be able to benefit from the new curriculum. There are big shortages of trained engineers, technicians, hairdressers and plumbers at present and by doing these new regimes of studying, pupils will have a much better chance of future employment. Many students are bored by school education and would welcome the chance to study something more vocational, and maybe this would keep them at school until 19 rather than leaving at 16 with very few qualifications and no prospects of a job. Also if a student enjoys his or her day release, a job might be offered there and then for the participating pupil, and the employer would then be obtaining an apprentice that knew what he was doing. On the other hand employers will only be able to offer a limited number of jobs and this may leave a large percentage of unemployed students with very few qualifications. These work related GCSEs would be renamed and would combine both academic studies and more practical work; they will be tried out across the country in various schools this coming September. Industry will benefit from this as many more students will be trained in the relevant work and not just fresh from a class without any experience. Another change on the way is the way that the league tables for exam results are calculated. It will show the difference between advantaged and disadvantaged pupils at each school. Each school throughout the country will then be awarded a grade from A to E depending on their excellence or their failures. This is meant to be much more understandable and will offer more information to parents choosing schools for their childrens future education. People need to know the correct facts, and by changing the tables slightly, this will offer just that. Before the league tables were started several years ago, it was virtually impossible to obtain information about how well or how badly pupils had faired in their exams at school. So in my opinion the tables have been a great help. Also by printing these tables in all the newspapers, it has been made everyone aware of the academic successes of schools around the country. This also has meant that everyone is aware of the schools that have done very badly academically and this has made the government enforce an improvement during a certain period of time, or they have threatened closure and/or a change of management. This must be good for education in the future. It can only improve schools especially those in disadvantaged areas, where expectations of pupil performance is low. Every student should be aware of poor teaching and academic successes and although it might not always be possible to enter the school of your choice, it will enforce better education at all schools around the country and hopefully the worst offenders will be greatly improved or shut down. All students whether in Independent Education or State Education should be offered the same curriculum with the choice of vocational subjects. Employers must welcome these changes as well. I have enjoyed my education, and am looking forward to furthering it, but would have preferred a much more varied curriculum. I have a job on a Saturday which has given me an insight into retail, and have secured work experience in a large organisation in the summer which will be very interesting for me. But although I know I want to study art I have no idea in which area I would like to continue and if I had been able to study in a more practical manner, maybe I would be more knowledgeable, and more able to progress in the appropriate area.

Pen Pals: Based On X-files Characters :: essays research papers

Pen Pals: Based On X-Files Characters Forward: This story was written based on the X-Files characters created by Chris Carter and Ten Thirteen productions. In no way this story is being used to infringe or defame these characters or the X-Files television series. The story is based on my speculation of what happened to Agent Fox Mulder's sister when she was a child. According to the writers of the X-Files, this story has no affiliation to what really happened to Samantha Mulder when she was a child, as no one really knows the whole story. As the series unfolds, we will hopefully learn more about what happens. I have submitted my story to the writers & producers of the X-Files via the Internet in hopes they will use my story in a future episode. This story is also available over the Internet on my home page so others can view it at their leisure. The idea for this story has been in the back of my mind before I was assigned this project. I have always loved the X-Files since it premiered and within the past year, I have submitted my stories, ideas, and suggestions to the writers of the X-Files. Unfortunately, none of my ideas have been selected. Lots of activity regarding the X-Files goes on over the Internet, and through discussions are where I get a lot of my ideas for the stories that I write. =============================================== June 8th, 1996 6:58pm- Washington, DC, Scully's Apartment Dana Scully arrived home to find a package sitting in the hallway outside her door. Curious, she picked it up and tucked it under her arm while she let herself into the apartment. Once inside, she set the box wrapped in brown paper down on her dining table and left it there while she hung up her coat and kicked off her high heels. Mulder would be coming over later to discuss the case they were currently working on, but until then, she wanted to relax. She made herself a cup of hot coffee and carried both it and the package with her over to the sofa. She noticed that her mother's return address was on the label. I wonder what this could be? She didn't say she was going to be sending me anything. Dana set her tea down and ripped the paper open. Inside she found a rather old, very familiar shoebox with an envelope taped to the top. She opened the envelope and read the letter her mother had enclosed. Dear Dana, I found this when I was going through some boxes in the attic and almost threw

Eros, Thanatos and the Depiction of Women in “a Farewell to Arms” Essay

A career as distinguished as that of Ernest Hemingway cannot simply be condensed into a handful of words. If one were to make the attempt anyway, no choice seems to be more fitting than â€Å"love, death and women†. These topics are constant companions throughout all of his work and indeed, his life. His 1929 masterpiece, â€Å"A Farewell to Arms†, is a particularly good example of this. In this paper, I will show how these recurring subjects – the fascinating interplay between Eros and Thanatos and the depiction of women – help shape this seminal work. To fully appreciate the tale told in the novel, and to better understand the aforementioned, seemingly inadequate three-word summary of Hemingway’s life, some key events in his biography should be made known. Ernest Hemingway was born on July 21, 1899, in Oak Park, Illinois. In his high school years, he wrote for the school newspaper and would go on to work for the Kansas City Star; these early journalistic experiences would influence his distinctive writing style. In 1918, he signed on to become an ambulance driver in war-torn Italy. On July 8, he was severely injured by a mortar shell and received a medal for bravery. During his sixth-month recuperation, he fell in love with a Red Cross nurse; after deciding to get married, she left him for an Italian officer. This traumatic experience would decisively shape his view of women. (â€Å"Wikipedia†) Hemingway would endure further trials throughout his life; shortly after the particularly difficult delivery of his son in 1928, he received word of his father’s suicide, foreshadowing his eventual demise by his own hand on July 2, 1961. Until then, he suffered through severe alcoholism, multiple divorces, crippling accidents, bouts of depression and dangerous war coverage. (â€Å"Wikipedia†) Taking this eventful existence into consideration, the importance of both Eros and Thanatos and the noteworthy depiction of women in â€Å"A Farewell to Arms† come as no great surprise; it is the latter which I will first examine more closely. Hemingway and, by extension, his works, have often been accused of misogyny; â€Å"A Farewell to Arms† is no exception (Wexler 111). Catherine, the main female character, â€Å"defines herself in terms of men† (Fetterley 67). When her late fiancee goes to war, she joins him as a nurse because of the â€Å"silly idea he might come to the hospital where [she] was [,] [w]ith a sabre cut [†¦] [or] shot through the shoulder [;] [s]omething picturesque† (Hemingway 19). Later on, her stereotypical wish to nurse her lover back to health even comes true when Frederic is placed in her care (Fetterley 67). She also shows a significant need for reassurance: â€Å"You are happy, aren’t you? Is there anything I do you don’t like? Can I do anything to please you? † (Hemingway 105). Her self-loathing and unhealthy self-image also reveals itself in this telling passage: How many [girls] have you [†¦] stayed with? [†¦] It’s all right. Keep right on lying to me. That’s what I want you to do. [†¦] When a man stays with a girl when does she say how much it costs? [†¦] I do anything you want. [†¦] I want what you want. There isn’t any me any more. (Hemingway 95-96) This section is a particularly damning example of misogyny; in effect, Catherine is asking Frederic how to be a whore, demeaning both herself and her entire sex in her quest to please her beloved at any cost (Fetterley 68). Catherine is far from the only victim of the sometimes debasing treatment of women in the book. During the retreat, the â€Å"girls from the soldiers’ whorehouse† (Hemingway 168) are loaded into a truck; one of the soldiers present remarks: â€Å"I’d like to be there when some of those tough babies climb in and try and hop them. [†¦] I’d like to have a crack at them for nothing. They charge too much at that house anyway. The government gyps us. † (Hemingway 168-169) This stunning disdain of female dignity makes apparent the utter disregard the soldiers have for women as human beings. A passage later on exemplifies this victimization and objectification of women during war even more clearly; when the retreating convoy picks up two virgins, their fearful demeanor leaves no doubt: there are only two roles for them on the battlefield – â€Å"whores if they are picked up by their own side, victims of rape if they are captured by the enemy†. (Fetterley 50) The contempt of the fair gender does not stop at the disparagement of women themselves; the very thing that makes them female is attacked. When the â€Å"gray leather boxes heavy with the packs of clips of thin, long 6. 5 mm. cartridges† are described as making the troops look â€Å"as though they were six months gone with child† (Hemingway 4), deadly implements of war are directly linked to pregnancy. This paints an unsettling picture of female biology itself as a source of death, not life, culminating in Catherine’s passing in the final chapter (Fetterley 62-63). This depiction of women as subservient to men, trying to fulfill their every need, is almost Puritanical in nature, hearkening back to the earliest, primary incarnations of the American myth. The fact that sexual gratification, not conception and childbirth – which is indeed presented as a â€Å"biological trap† (Hemingway 125) and, eventually, a death sentence – is extolled as the primary reason for a relationship shows, however, that Hemingway’s work is firmly in the subversive consummatory phase. Thankfully, the view of women presented in the novel is not wholly sexist. Catherine in particular manages to distinguish herself as a strong woman both in the beginning and the end of the novel, despite losing her identity to Frederic in the middle. Frederic’s courtship of Catherine starts with a literally stinging rejection; when he first tries to kiss her, he is rewarded with a â€Å"sharp stinging flash† of a slap (Hemingway 24). Thus, Catherine asserts her dominance, taking control of their early relationship. After Frederic manages to make her laugh, however, she quickly accepts his advances. (Wexler 114) Frederic’s intentions towards Catherine are less than noble to begin with: â€Å"I knew I did not love Catherine Barkley nor had any idea of loving her. This was a game, like bridge, in which you said things instead of playing cards† (Hemingway 29). Catherine, however, is not only aware of the deceptive nature of their faux-relationship, but actively addresses it: â€Å"This is a rotten game we play, isn’t it? [†¦] You don’t have to pretend you love me. † (Hemingway, 29-30) With the mutual acknowledgment of their pretense, Catherine is using Frederic just as much as he is using her – where he seeks to escape the horrors of the war with carnal gratification, Catherine needs someone to fill the hole left by her late fiancee. (Wexler 114-115) Despite the loss of self and neediness experienced by Catherine throughout most of the middle of the novel, her strong, confident side manages to reassert itself before her unfortunate demise in childbirth. Even though she faces her imminent death, the only thing on her mind is reassuring her husband: â€Å"Don’t worry, darling, [†¦] I’m not a bit afraid. It’s just a dirty trick† (Hemingway 292). This serenely selfless behavior is far removed from the desperate need to please she displayed earlier. As has hopefully become apparent, both death and life (or love, both physical and romantic) play a crucial role in â€Å"A Farewell to Arms†. In the following section, I will take a closer look at this compelling relationship between Eros and Thanatos. Since the novel takes place during the uncompromisingly brutal conflict that was World War I, Thanatos is always active. Eros always manages to weave its way into the proceedings, however, even gaining the upper hand at one point in the novel. In the beginning, however, Thanatos prevails (Flores 29). The reader is presented with uncompromising scenes of violence and carnage, but the horrors of war are met with stoicism by the protagonist Frederic Henry. The death of thousands barely qualifies for a single paragraph: â€Å"At the start of the winter came the permanent rain and with the rain came the cholera. But it was checked and in the end only seven thousand died of it in the army. † (Hemingway 4) Frederic also seems to have no particular reason for even being in the war; being in Italy seems to be enough (Flores 29). He is not driven by any particular ideological reason, either: â€Å"Abstract words such as glory, honor, courage, or hallow were obscene beside the concrete names of villages, the numbers of roads, the names of rivers, the numbers of regiments and the dates. †(Hemingway 165) Almost every character in the novel also engages in self-destructive behavior – excessive drinking. Seeking oblivion instead of actually facing the horrors of war, alcohol is a constant companion to all throughout the book (Flores 31). Even when Eros touches the characters in the beginning, it is only in its basest forms. The flirtatious Rinaldi seems incapable of real love, seeking only sexual gratification (Ganzel 587). And, as mentioned above, even the relationship of Frederic and Catherine starts out as a lie, filling a need in both of them not with love, but lust. As the story unfolds, however, the grip of Thanatos on Frederic begins to weaken. Following his injury on the battlefield, his stoicism and aloofness are only slightly fazed (Ganzel 594). During his extended period of recuperation in the hospital, Frederic and Catherine start developing real feelings for each other; learning about her pregnancy in particular shakes him to his core: â€Å"Her conception forces him into a continuum in which the death of another can subtract from his own life. † (Ganzel 579) During the Italian retreat, Thanatos tries to reassert its grasp on Frederic – but after not only witnessing, but being directly responsible for a number of deaths in a harrowing experience, he finally slips its grasp (Ganzel 595). Having truly fallen for Catherine, his new commitment to Eros is confirmed in his baptismal â€Å"farewell to arms† in the river. Frederic voices these new life-affirming thoughts after escaping the river: â€Å"I was not made to think. I was made to eat. My God, yes. Eat and drink and sleep with Catherine. †(Hemingway 206) Thanatos reclaims his power at the end of the novel after the deceptively light-hearted stay in Switzerland; in a cruel twist of fate, it is childbirth, the ultimate expression of Eros, that takes Catherine’s life, springing the biological trap and leaving Frederic to trudge out into the rain, forlorn (Ganzel 581). He poignantly laments his fate: â€Å"Poor, poor dear Cat. And this was the price you paid for sleeping together. This was the end of the trap. This was what people got for loving each other. † (Hemingway 283) Frederic is not the only one affected by an insidious turn of events like that, however; Rinaldi also becomes a victim of the biological trap, falling prey to syphilis (Hemingway 289). Thus, Thanatos is not only able to turn the lofty side of Eros – romantic love – against its followers, but even manages to turn its basest side into death. Thus, Frederic Henry is â€Å"the first completely developed example of what was to become Hemingway’s dominant motif: a man [†¦] who is forced to recognize the inevitability of death and the concomitant frustration of trying to secure something of value from its onslaught† (Ganzel 577). The â€Å"good soldier†, protected from feelings of loss and fear by an uncaring stoicism, loses his â€Å"gift† through love, only to reach the tragic realization that his newfound feelings can be turned against him. (Ganzel 578) This portrayal of life and death, distinctive of the â€Å"Lost Generation† of modernist authors, stands in stark contrast to earlier, romantic and playful depictions. Where Whitman is able to confidently boast â€Å"And as to you Death, and you bitter hug of mortality, it is idle to try to alarm me† (â€Å"Song of Myself† 1289), Hemingway’s view of death paints a much more sobering picture: If people bring so much courage to this world the world has to kill them to break them, so of course it kills them. The world breaks every one and afterward many are strong at the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially. If you are none of these you can be sure it will kill you too but there will be no special hurry. (Hemingway 222) Even spring, once the ultimate symbol of hope and life flourishing anew, is turned into a mockery of itself. As Eliot aptly puts it: â€Å"April is the cruelest monthâ€Å" (â€Å"The Waste Land† 1), bringing only death and desperation to Frederic and Catherine. Winter, on the other hand, once the harbinger of struggles and hardship for the first pilgrims that reached the shores of America, is shown as peaceful, quiet, serene: â€Å"It was a fine country and every time that we went out it was fun. † (Hemingway 269) The future, once viewed with optimism, a â€Å"Manifest Destiny† to look forward to, suddenly looked much bleaker, an outlook colored by a war that defied belief. Compassion and courage were nowhere to be found, but cruelty abounded, as illustrated in this passage: â€Å"’If there is a retreat, how are the wounded evacuated? ’ ‘They are not. They take as many as they can and leave the rest. ’† (Hemingway 167) In conclusion, I hope that the importance of the changing influence of Eros and Thanatos and the questionable portrayal of women in â€Å"A Farewell to Arms† has become obvious. These topics appear in all of Hemingway’s works, with varying importance. Much of the novel becomes clearer when viewed through the lens of Hemingway’s biography. Taking into consideration some of the key points of his life I mentioned in the introduction, the autobiographical tendencies of the book should emerge – perhaps helping to make his overt machismo understandable, if not palatable. Most importantly, â€Å"A Farewell to Arms† does an excellent job of showing the reader the sheer insanity and, through the author’s unique style, the stark reality of war. Hemingway himself put it quite succinctly: â€Å"Never think that war, no matter how necessary, nor how justified, is not a crime. †Bibliography: * Eliot, T. S. The Waste Land. Project Gutenberg. http://www. gutenberg. org/files/1321/1321-h/1321-h. htm (Last accessed: 13. 08. 2013) * Fetterley Judith. The resisting reader: A Feminist Approach to American Fiction. Bloomington, Indiana University Press, 1978. * Flores, Olga Eugenia. Eros, Thanatos and the Hemingway Soldier. American Studies International, Vol. 18, No. 3/4 (Spring/Summer 1980), pp. 27-35. * Ganzel, Dewey. â€Å"A Farewell to Arms†: The Danger of Imagination. The Sewanee Review, Vol. 79, No. 4 (Autumn 1971), pp. 576-597. * Hemingway, Ernest. A Farewell to Arms. London, Arrow Books, 2004. * Wexler, Joyce. E. R. A. for Hemingway: A Feminist Defense of â€Å"A Farewell to Arms†. The Georgia Review, Vol. 35, No. 1 (Spring 1981), pp. 111-123. * Whitman, Walt. Song of Myself. University of Toronto RPO. http://rpo. library. utoronto. ca/poems/song-myself (Last accessed: 13. 08. 2013) * http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Ernest_Hemingway (Last accessed: 13. 08. 2013)