Absenteeism & Motivation Theories Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Absenteeism & Motivation Theories - Essay Example employees are not only required to contribute to their level best in their organizations but also required to show loyalty to the place where they earn from, so in order to get maximum from them and in order to utilize their talents at best, motivation is playing a tough role, so that employees keep on moving in the right dimension, they should think and work for their achievements as well as the organization's achievement and they should not give up in life ever.Keeping in view the growing needs of employees there are so many motivational theories that have taken place in the present day organizations, a lot of employees get motivated using such theories, in this discussion we would be discussing few of these theories that are useful for the employees in the given case, the main concerns would be on Douglas McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y, while other useful theory would be Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Both these theories work hand in hand for preventing stress and absenteeism in t he employees of organizations, mostly the stress has been found in financial institutions, yet many other industries have the employee issues. . McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y Theory X The assumption, which says that employees who dislike work are lazy, they dislike responsibility, and they must be coerced to perform well. This should be relatively more discussed in this case because either way the organization should be concerned with taking out work from the employees but it could be so wonderful if employees do not need any such dose and they somehow get shifted to Theory Y. Theory Y The assumption, which says that employees who love their work are creative, they seek responsibility and they can exercise self-direction. The organizations should try to bring their employees under this theory naturally and this is what we would be discussing. Douglas McGregor gave two different views of human beings, the first view is the negative view and is known as theory X, the other view is positive and is known as theory Y, the entire explanation of the theory says that the manager shows his or her behavior according to certain assumptions, the theory X would be the effective one here, as the employees are assumed to be forced to work, the four basic assumptions for theory X are, 1. Employees inherently dislike work and whenever possible, will attempt to avoid it. 2. Since employees dislike work, they must be coerced, controlled, or threatened with, punishment to achieve goals. 3. Employee will avoid responsibilities and seek formal direction whenever possible. 4. Most workers place security above all other factors associated with work and will display little ambition.Now lets have a look at the assumptions of theory Y that is not applicable in this case because of the fact that employees are not hardworking and not devoted to their work. But the organization has to bring them in this category. 1. Employees can view work as being as natural as rest or play. 2. People will exercise self-direction and self-control if they are committed to the objectives. 3. The average person can learn to accept, even seek, responsibility. 4. The ability to make innovative decisions is widely dispersed through out the population and is not necessarily the sole province

Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emission In Bangladesh Economics Essay

Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emission In Bangladesh Economics Essay Atmosphere is a global public good and all nations around the globe dump pollution in the atmosphere at zero cost. As a result the concentrations of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) have been increasing in the atmosphere leading to its market failure. The four major components of GHG are carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and F-gases. In targeting GHG emission, main focus is given to CO2 since it constitutes a large share of the GHG . The rising concentrations of GHG in the atmosphere are bringing considerable changes to climate for example rise in global mean temperature by 0.4-0.8Â °C and average annual rate in sea level by 1-2 mm in the last century . Reducing GHG emissions in Bangladesh Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable countries of the threat to climate change. IPCC report suggests, a one-metre rise in sea levels would flood 29846 sq km (total area of Bangladesh is 147570 sq km) of Bangladesh and create 14.8 million people landless . Most of the land of Bangladesh is less than 20 feet high from the sea level. Bangladeshs population is 150.5 million in 2011 and per capita greenhouse emission is 0.3 in 2008 . Bangladesh is currently contributing to global carbon emissions by an amount slightly less than its share in world GDP . CO2 emissions per capita (Tonnes) Year Figure 1: GHGs emission by Bangladesh, India, China and Pakistan Source: Although Bangladesh has low GHG emission, its paying higher prices for the consequences of climate change associated with higher GHG concentration in the atmosphere. The frequency of natural disasters has rapidly increased. Bangladesh has been always arguing in favour of reduced global GHG emission in climate negotiations. Bangladeshs own GHG emission is also showing an increasing trend. There is a projection of Bangladeshs greenhouse gas emission under different growth scenarios up to 2050: Source: Figure 2 The vulnerability of Bangladesh for climate change demands interventions to reduce GHG emission from her own end. There may be different policy intervention instruments for reducing greenhouse gas emission like creation of property rights, market based incentives (a tax, emission trading scheme), different forms of regulation, subsidies etc. When taking any policy, it is important to evaluate the policy under certain standards like environmental effectiveness, cost effectiveness, distributional impacts and institutional feasibilities. Two proposed policy interventions to reduce GHG emissions in Bangladesh are: Regulation (setting renewable energy target to reduce carbon emission) Regulations are most common form of interventions to reduce GHG emission like renewable energy target, light bulbs, specifying production technology or input to use or not to use etc. Market based incentives to reduce pollution (tax on carbon emission) Market based interventions create a price incentive to internalise the cost of externality and correct the market failure. Regulation : Renewable energy target A tax on carbon emission Regulations can be imposed by considering the particular circumstances of a firm or industry. For example, it is possible to set a renewable energy target for a firm consuming more energy after a limit. A tax on carbon emission is uniform in nature. For example, two companies electricity generating and transport, have to pay same amount of tax on each tonne of GHG emission. The connection between regulations and GHG emission outcome is more direct. So the outcome of regulation on GHG emission can be predicted with some degree of certainty. Tax gives assurance about the marginal cost of reducing pollution but the amount of pollution reduction is uncertain under taxation. Regulation requires reliable and accurate information because abatement cost will possibly rise when the regulators do not have accurate information. Sometimes tax is more complex compared to regulations. In setting the tax rate, knowledge of all functions, MPC, MEC and MPB, or MB and MC is required. Regulations require changes over time as MC function changes with changes in production technology, input costs, and product demand. MC curve shifts over time with changes in production technology, input costs, and product demand requiring changes in tax. Regulations are unlikely to be lowest cost. Tax allows the producers to find least cost or cost effective way of reducing pollution. Regulation does not generate government revenue but creates transaction cost for monitoring and implementing those. Tax generates government revenue. Regulations are appropriate for developing countries as they build initial capacity by bringing new technology e.g. solar energy, wind power etc. Tax interventions are appropriate for developed countries as they require more institutional feasibility and sensitive monitoring system Regulation adds implicit extra production cost. Tax adds explicit extra production cost and often politically unpopular and may assist rent seeking by lobby groups. Regulations are imposed by targeting goods and services which emit more carbon. Tax on carbon gives signal to producers and consumers about which goods and services produce more carbon and which produce less or none. Therefore, consumers and producers can plan to shift from high-carbon products and technologies to low-carbon products and technologies. Under regulation, firms do not have incentives to reduce pollution after meeting the regulation target. Under tax, firm have incentives. Renewable energy target The current potential demand of energy in Bangladesh is 5569 MW where supply is less than 4000 MW . The economy of Bangladesh has been growing at a rate of 6-7 percent from last few years . These are causing rise in energy demand which in turn increases GHG emission. Bangladeshs GHG emission from energy sector is relatively low as most of the power is generated from natural gas which causes low carbon emission. The current contribution of renewable energy is 0.5 percent. The government is planning to increase the share of renewable sources in total power generation by 5% in 2015 and 10% in 2020 . Source: Figure 3: Power Generation Fuel Mix of Bangladesh in 2009 But as the reserve of natural gas has been depleting very quickly and the demand of energy is increasing, dependency on fossil fuel and coal based energy is increasing. As a result it is expected that the GHG emission will rise. Natural gas contributed 64 percent of CO2 emission and petroleum products contributed 36 percent emission of Bangladesh during 2008-2009 . Efficiency of regulation There will be an efficiency gain for regulation if the regulation is implemented in cost effective way. Price ($) KW electricity S= S + Regulatory Cost S= MPC Regulatory Cost MC MB Welfare Gain 0 = em Reduction of pollution Figure 4: Market effects of regulation Quantity of coal and fuel produced electricity P P Q e* Q D=MPB=MSB Price and cost per unit pollution As the government is trying to increase the share of renewable energy in total energy, its imposing some regulatory costs on coal and fuel produced electricity. In figure 4, MPC=S curve shifts to S due to the regulatory cost. The amount of electricity produced by coal and fuel has decreased from Q to Q while price has increased from P to P. In the second part, initially at the market solution, reduction of pollution is 0. Due to the regulation, the amount of pollution reduction increases from 0 to e*. Optimal level of pollution reduction will be at the intersection of MB and MC curve. From 0 to e* level of pollution reduction MB > MC and the amount of welfare gain is the blue triangle. The correlation between production of coal and fuel based electricity and GHG emission is very high. So the regulations imposed on those will directly influence the amount of GHG emission. Regulations are unlikely to be lowest cost. For example, the cost of producing electricity by solar panel is higher compared to the cost of producing electricity by coal. Table 1 Source: But the price of coal and gas is also increasing which is lowering the gap of the costs. A renewable energy plant like solar panel can reliably serve for decades without emitting GHG at lowest maintenance cost. Under regulation, once firms meet the regulation target Q*, no incentive for further reduction. Reduction of pollution Cost per unit Q* Figure 5: Regulation and pollution reduction $ If regulations are not met Distributional effects Firms producing energy by using coal and fuel will lose their share in the market as their quantity decreases which will also reduce the amount of GHGs emission. The price of coal and fuel produced electricity will rise. The prices of products which use electricity a lot will also increase and influence the buyers of those goods. To increase the supply of renewable energy, more renewable energy plants will be built. It will increase the demand for renewable energy accessories like solar panel, wind turbine etc. So the suppliers of those inputs will gain. Initially at the market solution, amount of pollution reduction is zero. When the regulations are imposed the amount of pollution reduction increases to e*. The people who are polluted initially are gaining as the amount of pollution is decreasing. A tax on carbon emission A tax on the emitter of GHG can also be proposed to reduce GHG emission in Bangladesh. The tax will place an explicit additional cost on per unit emission. Before the tax, polluters emit GHG at zero marginal costs. The result is excess supply of GHG gas in the atmosphere leading towards its market failure. In presence of the tax, polluters emit GHG at a cost equal to tax rather than zero. This tax sets a price of GHG emission in the market where the market chooses the quantity of emission. Efficiency of carbon tax Price ($) KW electricity Quantity of electricity MSC= MPC + MEC S= MPC Regulatory Cost MC MB Welfare Gain 0 = em Reduction of Pollution MEC Govt. Revenue Figure 6: Market effects of tax e* Pt P Qt Qm MPB Pm Price and cost per unit pollution In figure 6, the production of electricity generates GHG emission by product and MEC curve shows this negative externality. Market equilibrium is at the intersection of MPC and MPB curve and the market price is Pm and quantity is Qm. But the social optimum is at the intersection of MSC and MPB curve. To attain the efficient level of Q, if a tax is imposed on Q by the amount of MEC then the level of output and price will be Qt and Pt respectively. The amount of electricity has decreased from Qm to Qt while price has increased from Pm to Pt. In the second part, initially at the market solution, reduction of pollution is 0. Due to the tax, the amount of pollution reduction increases from 0 to e* and the amount of welfare gain is the blue triangle. In the above figure, tax sets price, market chooses quantity. The efficiency of the programme depends on the ability of setting tax at a point that induces behavioural change. Distributional effects Firms producing output that by product emit GHG will lose their share in the market as their quantity decreases which will also reduce the amount of GHG emission. The price of electricity will rise which will also increase the prices of products which use electricity a lot in production. The consumers of those products will be worse off by paying higher prices. Moreover, more than 75 percent of Bangladeshs export revenue comes from Ready Made Garments (RMG) sector which consumes high electricity in the production process. A rise in electricity price led by the carbon tax will increase their production cost and reduce their competitiveness in the international market. There is a gain in government revenue by the yellow rectangle. A portion of the generated revenue may be used to compensate RMG producers by providing financial incentives. Most taxes create distortions but carbon tax corrects distortion. Carbon tax may yield double dividend one by reducing emission and another by financing the reductions of incentives. Carbon tax increases the amount of pollution reduction from 0 to e*. The people who were polluted initially are gaining as the amount of pollution is decreasing. Tax allows the producers to find least cost or cost effective way of reducing pollution. In figure 8, from 0 to e* level of pollution, tax is higher than MC of pollution reduction. Firms will find it profitable to reduce pollution by inventing new technology, investing in research and development rather than paying the tax. After e* level of pollution reduction, MC of pollution reduction is higher than the tax. So it will be cost effective for the firm to pay the tax. Price and cost per unit pollution Reduction of pollution T MC of reduction of pollution e* Figure 7: Pollution reduction efficiency 0 = em Tax In Bangladesh, relative elasticities of the products should be considered in setting the carbon tax because tax imposed on carbon passes to buyers and the share that will pass on depends on relative elasticities. In figure 8, the full burden of taxes passes on to consumers when elasticity is perfect. Price ($) KW electricity Quantity of electricity MSC= MPC + MEC S= MPC Regulatory Cost MSC=MPC+MEC MB Qt Quantity of electricity MEC Figure 8: Effects of tax on price depending on elasticities Qm Pt P Qt Qm MPC Pm Pt Pm Price ($) KW electricity A carbon tax will increase the cost of production for not only the products directly involve pollution e.g. electricity and transport but also for other products using electricity and petroleum inputs in production. As their production cost rise, their price will also rise. 31.5% population of Bangladesh live below the poverty line in 2010 . The carbon tax will increase the burden of poor people through increased price. To ameliorate the burden, financial assistance can be provided to the low-income households by using the tax revenue . In figure 9, we can see that as tax is imposed on electricity, the price of electricity increases so the budget line of the consumers will rotate inward and the consumer will move to a lower indifference curve ICt. The consumer can be compensated by an income subsidy which attains the same level of utility as before tax. Quantity of electricity IC ICt Quantity of X Figure 9: Income substitution to the consumers In 2009, 5 percent of total labour force of Bangladesh was unemployed . A carbon tax may deteriorate the scenario by occurring creative destruction associated with the jobs of carbon intensive products and production processes. But it will also create jobs for carbon extensive products and production processes. The net aggregative employment effect is close to zero. Recommendation Energy is the lifeblood of growing industry sector of Bangladesh. The intensity of current potential energy deficit can be substantially met by fuelling the growth of renewable energy. Different financial incentives can be offered for that purpose. For example, Bangladesh imports renewable accessories from abroad like solar panels from Germany. If import duties are removed from the accessories of solar panel, the cost of producing solar energy will decrease. Moreover, the poor people living in the rural areas having no electricity access also lack the capability to install renewable energy at household level. Government can provide them financial assistance in launching solar panel. Private investment should also be encouraged by creating proper financial incentives. For large scale investment Public Private Partnership (PPP) can be formed. RD for inventing renewable accessories at domestic level can reduce the production cost substantially. It may be difficult to enforce a carbon tax with underdeveloped institutions occurring higher administrative costs. In Bangladesh, the current tax structure lacks the capability and institutional feasibility to implement carbon tax. Before introducing carbon tax, the tax mechanism is needed to be restructured by developed institutional capability. In setting the tax main focus should be given to on electricity, gas, coal, some petroleum, fugitive emissions and some manufacturing while exclude agriculture, petroleum used by small vehicles and primary production and small business. Conclusion Although Bangladesh is attaining persistent economic growth, per capita energy consumption is still very low. So in future there will be increase in total energy production and consumption which in turn will increase the amount of carbon emission . A key way to transform into low carbon economy is imposing regulations on renewable energy target which can create two-fold benefits for Bangladesh- environmental and energy sufficiency. The reduction in GHG emission in the atmosphere will bring environmental improvements. Moreover, it will reduce the potential demand and supply gap of power and help to attain energy sufficiency. A carbon tax can also be charged by restructuring tax mechanism with substantial infrastructural improvements.

Sigmund Freud as a Dream Analyst Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research

Sigmund Freud as a Dream Analyst You step out of your car onto this amazing white sand beach. You walk toward the water and notice all of these beautiful women coming toward you and saying your name. As you start to lay the charm down you notice that one of them is chewing on your leg. Then all of a sudden all of them are taking huge bites out of you and ripping you apart. You try to escape but you seem to be unable to do anything in your defense. AAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! All of a sudden you awake in a frantic scream. You realize you are still in one piece and that no beautiful women really want you, you are just the same loser you were the day before. Dreams such as this one I described above happen to millions of people all over the world every time they stop to take a little nap or when they are asleep at night. Why do we dream? What do they mean? Why do humans as well as animals have dreams that sometimes fit into our daily life and others seem to be way out of the ordinary and have no significance in our lives? Throughout history human beings have sought to understand the meaning of dreams. The ancient Egyptians believed dreams possessed oracular or all knowing power. In the Bible, for example, there are many instances where people have gained power or went on hunger strikes because of dreams. Other cultures have interpreted dreams as inspirational, healing, or an alternative to reality. Many Indian tribes believed that dreams were what were expected of the future. Dreams have been a part of life for hundreds and hundreds of years and many people have various feelings about what they mean and why we have them (Sleep Disorders). There was one man though, who has changed the world's point of view on dreams. His name... ...(rev. ed) New York: McGraw-Hill, 1966 Mahoney, Maria F. Meaning in Dreams and Dreaming Citadel Press: Copyright Maria F Mahoney, 1966 Machenzie, Norm Ian Dreams and Dreaming Aldus Books Limited, London, 1965 Gyn, Lynn The Dream Emporium. 2000. March 29, 2002 http://dreamemporium.com/ Green, Ariadne Ancient Symbols. 2000. March 29, 2002 http://psychology.about.com/library/weekly/aa111501j.htm?terms=Dream+symbols Tiger's Nest 2000. March 29, 2002 http://www.frii.com/~tigrnest/drmart.htm Dreams and Their Meanings Copyright 2001 by PageWise, Inc. http://mtmt.essortment.com/dreamsmeanings_rfee.htm "Sigmund Freud" Thinkquest Library Website April 22, 2002 http://library.thinkquest.org/17039/Normal/freud.html "The Dreaming Life" Sleep Disorders April 19, 2002 <http://sleepdisorders.about.com/library/weekly/aa021101a.htm?terms=Bible+and+dreams> Sigmund Freud as a Dream Analyst Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research Sigmund Freud as a Dream Analyst You step out of your car onto this amazing white sand beach. You walk toward the water and notice all of these beautiful women coming toward you and saying your name. As you start to lay the charm down you notice that one of them is chewing on your leg. Then all of a sudden all of them are taking huge bites out of you and ripping you apart. You try to escape but you seem to be unable to do anything in your defense. AAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! All of a sudden you awake in a frantic scream. You realize you are still in one piece and that no beautiful women really want you, you are just the same loser you were the day before. Dreams such as this one I described above happen to millions of people all over the world every time they stop to take a little nap or when they are asleep at night. Why do we dream? What do they mean? Why do humans as well as animals have dreams that sometimes fit into our daily life and others seem to be way out of the ordinary and have no significance in our lives? Throughout history human beings have sought to understand the meaning of dreams. The ancient Egyptians believed dreams possessed oracular or all knowing power. In the Bible, for example, there are many instances where people have gained power or went on hunger strikes because of dreams. Other cultures have interpreted dreams as inspirational, healing, or an alternative to reality. Many Indian tribes believed that dreams were what were expected of the future. Dreams have been a part of life for hundreds and hundreds of years and many people have various feelings about what they mean and why we have them (Sleep Disorders). There was one man though, who has changed the world's point of view on dreams. His name... ...(rev. ed) New York: McGraw-Hill, 1966 Mahoney, Maria F. Meaning in Dreams and Dreaming Citadel Press: Copyright Maria F Mahoney, 1966 Machenzie, Norm Ian Dreams and Dreaming Aldus Books Limited, London, 1965 Gyn, Lynn The Dream Emporium. 2000. March 29, 2002 http://dreamemporium.com/ Green, Ariadne Ancient Symbols. 2000. March 29, 2002 http://psychology.about.com/library/weekly/aa111501j.htm?terms=Dream+symbols Tiger's Nest 2000. March 29, 2002 http://www.frii.com/~tigrnest/drmart.htm Dreams and Their Meanings Copyright 2001 by PageWise, Inc. http://mtmt.essortment.com/dreamsmeanings_rfee.htm "Sigmund Freud" Thinkquest Library Website April 22, 2002 http://library.thinkquest.org/17039/Normal/freud.html "The Dreaming Life" Sleep Disorders April 19, 2002 <http://sleepdisorders.about.com/library/weekly/aa021101a.htm?terms=Bible+and+dreams>

Kant on Time as A Priori Essay

Immanuel Kant presented a series of arguments regarding the nature of time. He sought to prove that time is innate in the sensibility of all human beings and that it is independent of the material world and argued that time belongs to experience as an a priori form of intuition (Kant, 74). In his Critique of Pure Reason, he claimed that time is a priori instead of being a permeating feature of mind-independent reality. He also argued that the nature of time as an element of the universe is sensible instead of conceptual which the mind   compels upon experience (75). He arrived at the conclusion that time could not independently exist or be associated to other objects as a verifiable entity. He claimed time to be the form of inner sense and maintained that time is â€Å"It is the immediate condition of inner appearances (of our souls), and thereby the mediate condition of outer appearances.†Ã‚   (77).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The first of Kant’s arguments regarding time as an a priori form of sensibility states that it is a necessity for our understanding of   simultaneity and succession to be preconceived since they are generated in our minds prior to our experience of simultaneous but successive moments in time (75). Kant claims: â€Å"Time is not an empirical concept that has been derived from any experience. For neither coexistence nor succession would ever come within our perception,   if the representation of time were not presupposed as underlying them a priori. Only on the presupposition of time can we represent to ourselves a number of things as existing at one and the same time (simultaneously) or at different times (successively).†Ã‚   (74) By stating that â€Å"Only under its presuppositions can one represent that several things exist at one and the same time   or in different times,† (74) Kant, in essence, is implying that concepts can not made on the basis of perception unless we have a preconceived notion of such concept. For example, our notion of a â€Å"dog† could not be a concept which is based on our experience since our mind would not be able to perceive it we did not have an idea of a â€Å"dog† which was based on a preconceived notion.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, even with Gardner’s explanation, Kant’s argument is still unpersuasive. It fails to offer us sufficient reasons to agree that a preconceived notion of time is a necessary prerequisite of the perception of time. This argument is not compelling enough to weaken how time is viewed in the common sense because it begs a faulty conclusion that if this was so, our notion of color should also be a priori. Consequently, with this argument, the logical assumption about time would be that â€Å"because the notion of time is conjured simultaneously with representing the world of material objects, it cannot be based on perception of material objects. The basic view of the nature of time actually remains definite as the properties of time, which exists in and all the objects of the universe, are perceived through our experiences.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Kant’s second argument tries to prove that time is an a priori form of intuition by arguing that it is possible to consider time without any appearances of any material object but it is not possible to consider any material object without the appearance of time. Kant argues: â€Å"Time is a necessary representation that underlies all intuitions. We cannot, in respect of appearances in general,remove time itself, though we can quite well think time as void of appearances. Time is, therefore, given a priori. In it alone is actuality of appearances possible at all. Appearances may, one and all, vanish; but time (as the universal condition of their possibility) cannot itself be removed..† (74-75) However, if we take this argument into consideration, it would then be logically imperative to conclude that space embodies the of outer sense or time embodies the inner appearance however this conclusion, albeit sound based on the provisions of the Kant’s argument, actually contradicts the text itself .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   All in all, Kant’s arguments fail to mitigate the strong points of the common sense view of time which is, that time is a pervasive feature of the world. His arguments do not offer conclusive ideas. Although he tries to provide empirical evidences to his arguments by referencing his claims with the realities of experience, his arguments imply assumptions that when interpreted do not necessarily hold true. His theory requires a vital premise, that our notions of time and space are a priori, and it requires it to be granted in the onset however he offers no compelling argument. This vital premise caused the undoing of his entire theory. Works Cited Kant, Immanuel. The Critique of Pure Reason. Trans. Kemp-Smith, Norman. Palgrave Macmillan, 1995.

Discuss the Role of Benjamin and the Sheep in Animal Farm

Discuss the role of Benjamin and the Sheep. In the novel ‘Animal Farm’ written by George Orwell both Benjamin the donkey and the sheep are introduced on page two, â€Å"Benjamin was the oldest animal on the farm, and the worst tempered† and â€Å"the sheep and cows lay down behind the pigs. † This is the first introduction of the animals on the farm and it immediately gives the reader an indication about how important they will be in the novel as the sheep have not even been described all the reader knows is where they lay and gives the reader an idea on their status compared to the other animals.Benjamin’s next appearance is on page eighteen when he expresses his attitude towards the rebellion, â€Å"about the rebellion and its results he would express no opinion†. This tells the audience that Benjamin is a bad â€Å"tempered† character but not this it hints to the reader that he has a pessimistic attitude towards life. Benjamin is ver y important in terms of his opinions towards the rebellion as he helps to foreshadow the rebellion reverting backwards as â€Å"donkeys live a long time. † This tells the reader that he has seen it all happen before and that nothing every stays right for long.Despite Benjamin being a miserable character, he still fought in the batter of the cowshed, â€Å"Snowball now launched his second line of attack. Muriel, Benjamin and all the sheep†. This shows how Benjamin just does what he is told, and that he isn't an argumentative character this could be because of his cynic attitude as he knows everything is going to go wrong anyway because â€Å"donkeys live a long time†. This helps the audience to question whether or not the rebellion will be successful or not as Benjamin is always used to help lower the optimism of the animals throughout the book.Benjamin and the sheep show a good contrast as they are both very similar in the ways that they are controlled and order ed. However the sheep do not have the knowledge which Benjamin knows as they have not seen things come and go. The sheep are in the same line of attack as Benjamin and I think this shows that the animals in this line of attack are very similar. This infers to the reader that if the rebellion was to revert backwards they would all be equally powerless and hopeless.Benjamin’s cynic attitude is maintained throughout the novel and is again shown to be a miserable character, â€Å"only old Benjamin refused to grow enthusiastic about the windmill, though as usual, he would utter nothing beyond a cryptic remark that donkeys live a long time†. This was said on page forty three and it reminds the reader about the possibility of the windmill going wrong and this is playing a big role in the prefiguring of the windmill failing to be built successfully as he has seen many things go wrong in his lifetime.Even thought Benjamin is the â€Å"worst tempered† animal on the farm h e still shows a lot of affection towards Boxer, â€Å"without openly admitting it, he was devoted to Boxer. † This was said in his character description on page two and it helps to show Benjamin as a human and it makes the audience think about him in society and the impact that he has. By looking at him like this we are able to start to understand the lack of power these animals have compared to the other human beings in society.This plays a huge role in our understanding of status and higherarky around the farm as we are able to interpret the farm animals as human beings. Benjamin is character that does not like to get involve because he knows something is always going to go wrong, â€Å"Clover asked Benjamin to read her the sixth commandment, and when Benjamin, as usual, said that he refused to meddle in such matters. † This was said on page fifty-six and it shows Benjamin’s pessimistic attitude as he does not want to take any interest into what is going on ar ound him as he knows what is eventually going to happen through his life experiences.Benjamin can sometimes come across as a smug character due to his knowledge and this helps to reinforce to the reader that things are not going to work out on the farm, â€Å"slowly, and with an air almost of amusement, Benjamin nodded his long muzzle†. The word â€Å"amusement† portrays Benjamin to be smug at this moment in the book because he knew that the windmill was going to go wrong. This makes the audience think that every cynical statement that Benjamin says it likely to be true making his function very important as it helps the reader to understand what is going to happen in the following chapters.Benjamin is also seen again on page sixty-eight and we know again that something is going to go wrong again, â€Å"except old Benjamin, who nodded his muzzle with a knowing air, and seemed to understand, but would say nothing. † The reader is now starting to see a trend in Ben jamin’s senses, â€Å"with an air almost of amusement† and â€Å"with a knowing air† (page 68) these very similar sentences tell the reader that Benjamin could see all of this happening and that he knew everything was going to go wrong. The role of Benjamin is to help prefigure what is going o happen, so when he urges boxer to slow down on page sixty-nine, â€Å"Benjamin urged Boxer to work less hard† the reader knows straight away that Boxer is going to get seriously hurt. This is very shocking for the reader because his death is prefigured on page five, â€Å"Boxer, the very day that those great muscles of yours lose their power, Jones will sell you to the knacker. † This shows how close Benjamin and Boxer are but also prefigures the death of Boxer which is done using the knowledge which boxer has retained from his long life.Benjamin has a family like relationship with Boxer, â€Å"Benjamin, who lay down at Boxer’s side, and, without spea king, kept the flies off him with his long tail. † On page seventy-five audience see Benjamin showing his compassion towards Boxer and it helps use see Benjamin as a real person and this plays a big role in how we feel when we read on as when Boxer does get taken away to the knackers we see Benjamin and Boxer as people and it makes it more distressing and more heart breaking for the reader. After Boxer’s death Benjamin becomes more miserable and quiet and his attitude gets worse, â€Å"more morose and taciturn than ever. (page 80) Suddenly Benjamin has become even more cynical possibly because life has got worse than he expected. Benjamin’s role in the novel is to now express the lack of hope there is on the farm especially as Boxer was symbolic of hope and now all hope has gone Benjamin is there to symbolise that to the audience so they are able to understand how bad things are getting on the farm. Benjamin plays a big role on page eighty-four when he reads out the last broken commandment for Clover, â€Å"for once Benjamin consented to break his rule and he read out to her what was written on the wall. This is very striking because Benjamin knew that â€Å"some animals are more equal than others† all along and it is very upsetting for the reader as all hope is lost for the animals and all the animals know that now through the breaking and changing of the commandments. The sheep are used to heckle other farm animals so that it is impossible for any opinions to be raised. The sheep are often heard when Squealer is talking to the other farm animals about changes which have taken place on the farm, â€Å"of late the sheep had taken to bleating ‘four legs good, two legs bad’ both in and out of season†.The sheep are very easily manipulated because of their lack of intelligence and Napoleon was keep to take advantage of this to use it in his favour so Snowball would get interrupted during his speeches, â€Å"especia lly liable to break into ‘four legs good, two legs bad’ at the crucial moments in Snowball’s speeches. † This was due to Napoleon training them like he did with the dogs. The role of the sheep is to interrupt Snowball so that Napoleon is able to get his own way. The sheep have little knowledge and power on the farm which is why they are the animals to be manipulated to work in Napoleons favour.On Pages twenty-nine, thirty-two, thirty-four and forty the sheep either interrupt Snowball whilst he is talking, â€Å"occasionally interrupted by bleating from the sheep† or they are heard to prevent any discussion developing so that Napoleon is able to get his way, â€Å"tremendous bleating of ’four legs good, two legs bad’ which went on for nearly a quarter of an hour which out an end to any chance of discussion†. The sheep are used to stop the farm animals from asking any questions which could possibly cause the rebellion to progress t his allows Napoleon to take charge and to take what the animals work for without questions.The sheep are also potentially used to scare the other farm animals, because the sheep are very easily manipulated it is quite possible that Napoleon had forced them to confess to a crime which that had committed, â€Å"then a sheep confessed to having urinated in the drinking pool – urged to do this, so she said† (page 53). More sheep continued to confess to various crimes and their role is to sacrifice themselves so that the other farm animals would be too scared to stir up a rebellion against Napoleon.The sheep are seen again on page fifty-six carrying out the same role of heckling so that the other animals do not get a chance to protest, â€Å"some of the animals might possibly have protested, but at this moment the sheep set up with their usual bleating of ‘four legs good, two legs bad’†. This ensured that Napoleons decision of the abolishment of ‘B eats of England’ did not get argued against as the moment which they could have possibly said anything had already passed.This role which the sheep undertake is very important in terms of the rebellion reverting backwards as if they didn’t interrupt the positive ideas the Snowball came up with they could be living better lives. Not only this but if they didn’t bleat out ‘four legs good, two legs bad’ after Napoleon makes a change the animals may have been able to rebel to Napoleon’s ideas resulting in a better life for the farm animals. The sheep are very easily manipulated and when they get taken away by squealer on page eighty-three we know something bad is going to happen, â€Å"squealer ordered the sheep to follow him†.We know something bad is going to happen as Napoleon did the same thing with the young puppies from Jessie and Bluebell. The sheep had been taken to convince the other farm animals that walking on two legs was good, â€Å"four legs good, two legs better†. This shows how the pigs are better than the farm animals as they are now walking on their â€Å"hind legs†. The sheep repeat this so much that the animals do not get a chance to protest, â€Å"it went on for five minutes without stopping. And by the time the sheep had quieted down, the chance to utter any protest had passed. This is the sheep’s’ main role so that the pigs are able to do what they want without the other animals protesting allowing the rebellion to revert further and further backwards. Overall, the main role of Benjamin is to prefigure the failure of the rebellion through his pessimistic attitude and through his life experiences as donkeys live a long time. And the sheep are used to help manipulated the animals into thinking that what the pigs are doing is a good thing but also to prevent them from protesting so that the pigs are able to maintain their power and carry on doing what they want like a d ictator would.