Customer Service Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6250 words

Customer Service - Assignment Example According to the discussion the Sales Manager at Kangaroo must consider all the above criteria before implementing the customer service. To Understand these attributes, the sales manager must have an informal network with the employees and understand their needs and wants. On doing this, an excellent internal customer service will develop. This would help the sales manager in understanding the problems of employees and develop a system to foresee the events to be strategized in discussion with employees. Some examples include: The sales manager might plan a campaign like â€Å"The Best Customer Award† or any other special incentive or contests and foresee its financial implications after delegating the work to his employees.This paper declares that the Technical Customer is interested in a factual, detailed explanation for the product and is on the alert for any inaccuracies or hesitations in describing the product. The Silent Customer will not talk, but does think. Lack of re sponse may give the salesperson the impression that the customer is indifferent, but is listening carefully. The Timid Customer is ill at ease, inhibited, and sensitive. Sometimes the customer is shopping in a higher price range than the customer has been accustomed to, and may be unsure of own judgment. Luxury is the main focus here.  This customer respects brevity. The Decisive Customer knows what he/she wants, is confident that what he/she wants is right, and will not tolerate another opinion.... To Understand these attributes, the sales manager must have an informal network with the employees and understand their needs and wants. On doing this, an excellent internal customer service will develop. This would help the sales manager in understanding the problems of employees and develop a system to foresee the events to be strategized in discussion with employees. Some examples include: The sales manager might plan a campaign like "The Best Customer Award" or any other special incentive or contests and foresee its financial implications after delegating the work to his employees. By having a good network and relation with employees and having an internal customer service will surely help the sales manager make critical decisions and it will be supported by employees and Top management. By having this decision making power, the sales manager could easily achieve the objective of "Delight the customer". Question 2 (70 Marks) You are at a conference of hotel managers and find yourself in conversation with Helen (who is the manger of the best five-star hotel in town) and Damian (who manages the local backpackers hostel). Both managers state that: their year-to-date profits are well in excess of target their customers expect 'excellent levels of service customer satisfaction research show that they are both exceeding these expectations. (a) Briefly describe what you perceive to be the customer characteristics that separate Helen's market segment from Damien's market segment. (100 WORDS) (10 MARKS) Helen's Market Characteristics The Technical Customer is interested in a factual, detailed explanation for the product and is on the alert for any inaccuracies or hesitations in describing the product. The Silent Customer will

Yonnondio and Waiting for Lefty Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Yonnondio and Waiting for Lefty - Essay Example This is the reason many authors are still writing about issues that bring negative impacts to the community and are related to capitalism. They have chosen individuals in their writing to portray the experiences in the superior communal entirety of capitalism. In the given novels, there are many similarities shown in the characters way of life. There are two families used by the authors to show the different lifestyles among capitalized people. In both novels, it is essential to note that similar issues are discussed. The authors mostly focus on the struggles people have to undergo to ensure that there lives are better. In the play waiting for lefty, Miller is a learned man working in the lab as lab assistance. He works for a certain company and is requested by his boss to make poisonous gases that are to be used to fight in a chemical war. To ensure that he does not neglect his request, his boss tells him of his raise in his office. He does not understand that he is being used to ma ke poisonous gases that are to be used by certain people in chemical warfare. At first, he seems to accept to the terms as offered but as Fayette, his boss, continues with his explanations he remembers the deaths that have occurred due to war (Odets, 23). He remembers the death of his brother and is willing to lose his job. The author states that he tells it to Fayette’s face that he had rather get a livelihood from digging ditches. The author tries to show that there is a lot of exploitation among the people who live in lower standards of life. Since they are willing to have better lives, they are willing to bear with anything to have their goals achieved. Just like Miller, many people should be ready to overcome worse experiences as seen among people living under capitalism (Odets, 30). In the novel Yonnondio, it is evident that the characters used bring out the idea of capitalism really well. Anna Holbrook believes that her children can evade the kind of life she was livin g by acquiring education. The author uses day- dreaming and imagination to bring out the ideas in Anna’s mind. Although she lives a poor life, she is willing to have changes in the life of her children whereby they live a better one than they have in their childhood. She has to undergo through beating from her husband every time he comes home drunk. She does not have a job as her husband, but the chores at home always leave her very exhausted. She has to act as the ideal homemaker, always finding food and laundering clothes. Despite doing all this duties, she has to deal with domestic violence (Olsen, 34). The violence she has to undergo has changed her personality to an extent that she beats her children to make up for the pain she feels. Although she does this, she still cares about her children. This is the reason she always emphases that education is the only best thing that her children deserve. Her children have lived a miserable life, and she is not willing to have the m pass through the same life. To have her goals achieved, she has made them believe that the only way they are going to overcome the experiences of the people living under capitalization, is by working in offices. If they are ale to get good jobs and be admitted in any office, they will abandon the miserable living conditions. As a way of motivating them, she assures them that their hands will become whiter. The author to show that people living under capitalization are always willing to overcome the experiences uses Anna. She is willing to use any method to overcome ideas in capitalism (Olsen, 43). The author shows that there is some evidence of love among these people. Jim always attempts to create a good life

The key factors of scientific management

The key factors of scientific management Scientific management is the study of a job and identifying the best way to do the job. Appropriate workers are selected and training are provided to them, so that the performance of individual worker is enhanced, leading to improved efficiency of the firm (Davidson, P., Griffic, R.W Erica, F. 2003). Frederic W. Taylor did the first study of scientific management. He is known as the father of scientific management for his findings in the field of management. Scientific management emerged in 19th century, but still today, large number of companies practice scientific management. Scientific management is widely used in assembly lines and in fast food outlets (Davidson, P. and Griffic, R.W. 2003). In the following essay I have analyzed the how scientific management is applied in the New Zealand based Fletcher Building limited. The company is one of the largest commercial employers of (200,000 workers world wide, with 9000 New Zealand workers) the New Zealand, the organizations operatio ns range from construction, manufacturing and sales of products related to construction. Fletcher building not only operates in New Zealand but also in other countries (Fletchers Building, 2008). The key factors of scientific management are discussed one by one in the following paragraphs with examples for each of key points from Fletcher Building. Followed by the conclusion. The first step of scientific management is to find a standardized method to do a particular job. This involves dividing a complex task into large number of small tasks, each task done by an individual (Samson, D Daft, R.L., 2005). Individual jobs are scientifically analyzed and the best way to the job is identified. As a result, the old rule of thumb is replaced by a more efficient method. However, workers are treated more like robots. Uniformity and repetition of the same task leads to boredom and frustration among workers. In addition to that, skills of labour are lost as multi skilled employees are forced to do only a small part of a complex job; leading to lose of pride in the work, they do. Another set back of scientific management is individual ideas of workers are ignored (Davidson, P., Griffic, R.W Erica, F. 2003). Fletcher Building also successfully implemented standardization in their business activities. All the workers are given specific jobs. Due to this, employees of the company have more understanding in one particular field. This can be seen all over the company. For example, machine operators in Pacific Steel division (New Zealand Steel maker) or a truck driver who works on construction sites of the company. They specialize in their own field, which leads to improvement in the output in all areas of the company. Identifying the best practice for a task is the first step of scientific management. Followed by selecting workers who are appropriate to do the job (Robbins, Belgman, Staga Coultec 2003). In the past workers are selected to jobs without considering whether their skills and abilities. The right person for the right job is needed. Each and every worker tends to have different skills and interests. Under scientific management, suitable workers who match their skills to the task are selected (Samson, D Daft, R.L., 2005). It is the managers job to find the right person with the matching abilities and skill to a particular job. Or else if an inappropriate worker were selected the efficiency and effectives of the company and the rest of workers, whose work are related with the inefficient worker will fall. In Fletchers Building, applicants for a job under-go various procedures to check whether their skills and experience are at the level to perform the task associated with the job. As a result, the most suitable workers are selected for various jobs of the company. The third stage of scientific management is to train workers to their job (Samson, D Daft, R.L., 2005). Employees are trained in the accordance with the best way to do the job. The worker may have knowledge of how to perform the task that s/he was selected for. Previously workers select their own ways to do the job. However, the company needs to train them according to their findings in step one, which is the efficient way to do that task. This training must be ongoing if the managers find a better way to do the job than the previous one. It is the managers duty to keep the training up to date (Davidson, P., Griffic, R.W Erica, F. 2003). Training workers is one of the priorities of Fletcher Building limited. Training is brought down from the top of the companys hierarchy as an important part to be the market leader in todays competitive market (Jayne V. 2007 July). New employees are given training to teach them how to perform the task according to the companys procedure. In scienti fic management, workers are trained only in one way to do the job. However in Fletcher Building Limited workers are trained in according to the need of the company, not only in a simple task. This not only helps to react to the consumer needs, but also this enables the company to face competition in the dynamic market. A well-trained work force is more flexible to adjust to new ways. The next key factor of scientific management is providing support to workers and helping them to plan their work so that interruptions are eliminations or minimized (Samson, D Daft, R.L., 2005). Taylor considered that its managers duty to plan the work and to eliminate any bottle necks in the work. Workers and managers are equal at work. Managers plan and organize work so that interruptions and bottlenecks are eliminated, while workers are the person who actually does the work (Davidson, P., Griffic, R.W Erica, F. 2003). In Fletcher Building, workers are encouraged to discuss any problems associated in their work with higher ups. Moreover, employees are free to submit any ideas to the company. This helps managers to identify any difficulties associated with the work. One of the key factors in supporting the employees is motivating them in the work. Fletcher Building has various schemes to motivate the workers. For example, they have gym facilities in some of the company work sites and provide discount card for those workers who work in a site which doesnt have a gym facility (Leveson, V 2008). This enable worker to be more involved in their jobs and motivates them. The last character of scientific management is performance based wage incentive. Earlier workers tend to work at a slower pace as they get the same salary as others (Samson, D Daft, R.L., 2005). In scientific management, workers are paid according to the output they produce. This led to employees increasing their output to earn more money. As a result, the worker who is efficient produces and earns more. Money is one of the key factors, which attract workers to work more. In piece rate system or performance, based payment workers who produce more are paid extra and those who meet a certain level of output get a bonus. However, this approach tends to treat workers as they are only motivated by money. This approach ignores social and higher requirements of workforce (Samson, D Daft, R.L., 2005). On the other hand, in Fletcher Building Limited workers are paid a set value of wage. However not the only benefit which they get from working for the company .In order to further motivate th e workers, the company provides various benefits. For example discounts cards for workers on their wide range of products (Leveson, V 2008) The main focus of this essay is the implementation of five elements of scientific management in Fletcher Building Limited. The five elements are one best way of doing the job, selecting appropriate workers, providing training according to the best way to do the job, supporting workers to eliminate bottlenecks and paying a performance based wage to boost their performance. Fletcher Building limited implemented most of the factors of scientific management to some extent. Some factors of scientific management have been applied more than others have. Scientific management has played a major role in the running of Fletcher Building Limited and it will continue in the future. Scientific management not only affected the operations of Fletcher Building limited but also in many organizations all over the world. Even though this was established in 19th century still many companies use scientific management in their business day-to-day tasks.

Brecht :: essays research papers

It is difficult to imagine a play which is completely successful in portraying drama as Bertolt Brecht envisioned it to be. For many years before and since Brecht proposed his theory of â€Å"Epic Theatre†, writers, directors and actors have been focused on the vitality of entertaining the audience, and creating characters with which the spectator can empathize. ‘Epic Theatre’ believes that the actor-spectator relationship should be one of distinct separation, and that the spectator should learn from the actor rather than relate to him. Two contemporary plays that have been written in the last thirty years which examine and work with Brechtian ideals are ‘Fanshen’ by David Hare, and ‘The Laramie Project’ by Moises Kaufman. The question to be examined is whether either of these two plays are entirely successful in achieving what was later called, ‘The Alienation Effect†. Over the course of his career, Brecht developed the criteria for and conditions needed to create Epic Theatre. The role of the audience can be likened to that of a group of college aged students or intellectuals. Brecht believed in the intelligence of his audience, and their capacity for critical analysis. He detested the trance-like state that an Aristotelian performance can lure the audience into. Plays that idealize life and humanity are appealing to an audience, and this makes it easy for them to identify with the hero, they reach a state of self oblivion. The spectator becomes one with the actor, and experiences the same fantastical climax that is unattainable in real life. â€Å"However, at the end of the performance, the audience has already experienced the highest emotional climax, the memory of which is strung along by the inevitable plot resolution. The audience has no choice but to leave with the rapidly fading memory of their dramatic stimulation and return to the underwhelming reality that awaits them outside of the theatre.† "The task of epic theatre, Brecht believes, is not so much to develop actions as to represent conditions. But to à «representà ­ does not here signify à «reproduceà ­ in the sensed used by theoreticians of Naturalism. Rather, the first point at issue is to uncover those conditions. (One could just as well say: to make them strange (Benjamin 1966, 18-9) "The art of epic theatre consists in arousing astonishment rather than EMPATHY." (Benjamin 1966,16) â€Å" ‘Theatre’ consists in this; in making live representations of reported or invented happenings between human beings and doing so with a view to entertainment.

Case: Circuit Board Fabricators, Inc.

Case: Circuit Board Fabricators, Inc. What type of process flow structure is CBF using? The company is using a batch shop process flow structure. CBF, Inc. bases its board fabrication process on the average job size or on its typical order. This means that the company proceeds with the manufacturing process in batches so as to meet the specific requirements per order. The typical contract that the company currently gets is 60 boards per order. However, due to persisting factory defects, they manufacture a total of 75 boards per batch in order to compensate for 20% of the boards that they typically reject during the process. Diagram the process in a manner similar to Exhibit 6. 7 We don’t have this Exhibit in our Handouts Analyze the capacity of the process The capacity of the flow process is at an imbalance. There is a significant amount of manual labor in this flow process in which human error must be taken into consideration. It appears that some of the stations may be run by an inefficient amount of operators. Lastly, with 6 employees on 6 machines for the final inspection, the end of the process should not take as long as it does. What is the impact of losses in the process in Inspection and Final Test? The impact of the losses in the system is quite extensive. It is stated that 15% of the board are typically rejected during an early processing inspection along with an additional 5% rejected during the final testing. This results in a production order increase of 25%. Ultimately, the first inspection should not be a bottleneck of this process and there should not be any rejected boards in the final inspection.

Introduction to Literature; Plot; Character

ENG 150 Reynolds 1 Online Lecture 1: Introduction to Literature; Plot; Character If you've ever taken a literature class, you will have realized that not all literature is the same. There's the stuff you read for information (mostly nonfiction, and not our concern in this class), there's the stuff you read for fun (literature with a little â€Å"l†), and there's the stuff you read in classes like this (Literature with a capital â€Å"L†). The stuff you read for fun (â€Å"literature†) is mostly easy to read. Most romance, science fiction, and mystery novels fall into this category, for example. Okay, you hard-core sci-fi fans: I said â€Å"most†! ) It's usually plot-oriented; that is, you read it to see what's going to happen next, and you enjoy it more if it builds suspense and keeps your interest. It entertains you. It doesn't require much thought; no one needs to discuss it to discover its hidden messages–it doesn't have any. When you've finished it, you're finished. This sort of reading rarely challenges your ideas about the world. In fact, it usually reinforces the things we'd all like to think are true: everything happens for a reason, the good are rewarded and the bad suffer, everything comes out okay in the end. You'll notice that most of these books have happy endings. When they don't, you cry along with the characters, but their sad fates don't make you question the order of the universe. Those who die, die for a clear and logical reason. Literature with a capital â€Å"L† is different. It demands more of you. It requires both your attention and your participation. It asks you to think, to analyze, to stop occasionally in the middle and ask, â€Å"Why did that happen? † or â€Å"What is he doing in this scene? † Many of these stories (or poems or plays) make you uncomfortable. They make you question your comfortable and easy assumptions about the world and your place in it. And sometimes there's not a happy ending. In return, Literature helps you grow. It allows you to experience events emotionally and intellectually without having to suffer the physical danger. You get to experience the Vietnam War in â€Å"The Things They Carried† without having to worry that you'll be the next to die. You get to meet a serial killer in â€Å"A Good Man is Hard to Find† without having to worry about being murdered. You get to follow a woman into insanity in â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† ithout having to be institutionalized yourself. You get to look into the hearts and minds of the characters and take home for free what they teach you about yourself, your family, and your friends. Everything in this class is designed to enhance that experience–to help you learn to read more effectively, so that you can experience Literature more fully, and enjoy it more. And any reader will tell you, that's the point of all this: enjoyment. I can't promise you that any of the information you receive in this class will ever make you a dime. I seriously doubt that any Human Resources director is going to look at your resume and say, â€Å"Oh! Here's someone who's read A Streetcar Named Desire! Let's hire him! † Your gains will be less tangible: an enhanced ability to see things from other points of view, to detect patterns in people's actions, to have a deeper understanding of the complexities of human motivation. Okay, okay, enough with the theory; let's get to some real stuff. ENG 150 Reynolds 2 One example of a literary work that challenges the traditional canon is â€Å"All about Suicide† by Luisa Valenzuela, an Argentinean writer. A brief, shocking story, â€Å"All about Suicide† is part of a large and growing genre of literature from around the world that purposely violates our standard literary expectations to make its point – in this case, a point about the political realities of Argentina in the 1960s. LUISA VALENZUELA (1938- ) All about Suicide (1967) Translated by Helen Lane Ismael grabbed the gun and slowly rubbed it across his face. Then he pulled the trigger and there was a shot. Bang. One more person dead in the city. It's getting to be a vice. First he grabbed the revolver that was in a desk drawer, rubbed it gently across his face, put it to his temple, and pulled the trigger. Without saying a word. Bang. Dead. Let's recapitulate: the office is grand, fit for a minister. The desk is ministerial too, and covered with a glass that must have reflected the scene, the shock. Ismael knew where the gun was, he'd hidden it there himself. So he didn't lose any time, all he had to do was open the right-hand drawer and stick his hand in. Then he got a good hold on it and rubbed it over his face with a certain pleasure before putting it to his temple and pulling the trigger. It was something almost sensual and quite unexpected. He hadn't even had time to think about it. A trivial gesture, and the gun had fired. There's something missing: Ismael in the bar with a glass in his hand thinking over his future act and its possible consequences. We must go back farther if we want to get at the truth: Ismael in the cradle crying because his diapers are dirty and nobody is changing him. Not that far. Ismael in the first grade fighting with a classmate who'll one day become a minister, his friend, a traitor. No, Ismael in the ministry without being able to tell what he knew, forced to be silent. smael in the bar with the glass (his third) in his hand, and the irrevocable decision: better death. Ismael pushing the revolving door at the entrance to the building, pushing the swinging door leading to the office section, saying good morning to the guard, opening the door of his office. Once in his office, seven steps to his desk. Terror, the act of opening the drawer, taking out the revolver, and rubbing it across his face, almost a single gesture and very quick. The act of putting it to his temple and pulling the trigger – another act, immediately following the previous one. Bang. Dead. And lsmael coming out of his office (the other man's office, the minister's) almost relieved, even though he can predict what awaits him. (When reading this, remember that the ENG 150 Reynolds 3 story takes place in Argentina; there, a â€Å"minister† is a highly placed government employee, similar to a Cabinet member in the U. S. ) Then tell me: what happened? Did Ismael kill himself? What details of the story make you think he did or didn't? Did Ismael kill the minister? What details of the story make you think he did or didn't? Are there other possibilities? How does the use of pronouns (â€Å"he,† â€Å"him,† â€Å"his†) contribute to the ambiguity of the story? (â€Å"Ambiguous† means â€Å"susceptible to more than one interpretation. â€Å") If Ismael didn't kill the minister, why is the story called â€Å"All About Suicide†? Why doesn't Valenzuela tell the story in chronological order (that is, in the order in which the events happened)? Do you think Valenzuela is deliberately confusing the reader? What point might she be making about the political situation in her country by doing that? Theme When I asked that last question, I was asking you to think about the author's intentions. Most authors, in addition to telling a story, want their stories to explore ideas. The â€Å"theme† is the dominant or central idea of the story. It is seldom stated explicitly–most stories do not have a â€Å"Moral† at the end. A theme is not the same as a plot. The plot is what happens in a story, the events that take place in the story. A theme is the ideas the story asks you to think about. For example, in â€Å"All About Suicide,† Luisa Valenzuela is telling you about Ismael–but not just about Ismael. We know he's just one of many people in the country who have died. (â€Å"It's becoming a vice. ) So maybe the story is asking you to think about what it's like to live in a country where you can't speak freely and where it's easy for the government to kill. How might that affect a person's character? How might it affect his way of handling problems? And Valenzuela doesn't tell her story straightforwardly, in the same way that people may not be a ble to speak straightforwardly in this country. So the truth gets confused, and you never really know what it is–just as someone living in this country would have to deal with never knowing the real truth; the most he could hope for would be the official version of the truth for that day. A story may have one theme; more often, it has several, as you can see from Valenzuela's story. Interpreting Literature As you can see, it is possible–in fact, it's likely, that different readers will come up with different interpretations of stories and poems. Many works are deliberately written so as to allow more than one interpretation. So if, in the discussions, you find yourself disagreeing with anyone else's ideas about the story, please don't hesitate to say so, and volunteer your ideas. The point of having the discussions is to allow readers to learn from each other, to show each other things they might not have noticed themselves. ENG 150 Reynolds 4 But! A note of caution here. While it is usually true that there is no single correct reading of a text, your interpretation must be supported by the text. It is often tempting to â€Å"read into† a work things that are not there. After all, we all bring our own experiences and preconceptions to anything we read. Like scientific theory, literary interpretation must have a basis in fact: you must be able to support your interpretation with dialogue, descriptions, events, or other details from the text. The Reading Process To read more effectively, follow these steps: Read the story once, all the way through. Highlight or otherwise mark the text to identify key elements: words, phrases, or images that are repeated; any elements that seem out of place or unnecessary. Make notes in the margins of any ideas that occur to you about what the writer's theme(s) might be, any questions you might have, or the definitions of any words you didn't know and had to look up. Read the story a second time, and make note of anything else that occurs to you. Literary Criticism Many books and articles have been written by professional literary critics who analyze and interpret literature. Reading their work can help you gain new perspectives on particular works and help you understand them better. But you should not accept the ideas of any critic unquestioningly. Each critic, like other readers, has his own interpretation. And different critics come up with very different conclusions about the same work. For an example of this, look on pp. 1912-1920 followed by a sample student paper on page 1921-1926 each with a different interpretation of a story. Plot The plot of a story is simply the events that take place in the story. Most people read only for plot–but you now know to look for theme, too. And often, clues to the author's intentions can be found in the plot. For example, pay attention to beginnings and endings of stories, and ask yourself questions: Why did the author choose to begin the story with this event? Why choose to end it with that event? What has changed between the beginning and the end? â€Å"The Secret Lion,† for instance, begins when the boys are in junior high, and then moves back in time. Why wouldn't Rios choose to begin when the boys were younger, and then work his way up to junior high? And what has changed in the boys, and in their lives, between the beginning and the end of the story? Look also at the stages in all the important changes. What happens to change things or people? Why do you think the author chose to take this course of action? In â€Å"Happy Endings,† Atwood ENG 150 Reynolds 5 details the possible outcomes of a single event. What is her point in showing us all these alternatives? Look for events, people, and/or circumstances that work against the action of the story. In â€Å"The Things They Carried,† for example, the narrator tells us what happens to the soldiers–but he also repetitively tells us what they carry, and this slows down the story. Why would O'Brien choose to include all this information? Why not just tell us what happened? Look for characters, events, and details which seem to make no contribution to the plot or movement of the story, and ask yourself why they are there. In â€Å"This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona,† (pg. 474) for instance, the narrator tells us a lot of stories about Victor's and Thomas's past which seem to have nothing to do with the events taking place on their trip. Why tell us? We are told about a gymnast they meet; but the gymnast is unnecessary to the plot; why is she there? The reservation where the boys live is described; what details are we told about the reservation? What is left out? Why? Look for repetition of events and details. What details repeat themselves in Faulkner's â€Å"A Rose For Emily†? (pg. 29) Is there any sort of pattern that you can detect in this repetition? The narrator of â€Å"The Tell-tale Heart† also repeats himself; why? Note the conflicts that occur in the story, whether they are between the characters, the characters and their surroundings, or within the characters themselves. And look at how those conflicts are resolved. In â€Å"Kansas,† the narrator describes the conflict between the boy and the farmer; why is he so frightened? How does this affect his later actions? And how is the conflict resolved? What does this resolution reveal about the boy? About the reader? Character Characters in books and stories can function in two ways: they can be individuals, with unique characteristics, habits, quirks, and personalities, so that they seem like real people; or they can be â€Å"types†Ã¢â‚¬â€œthat is, they can typify or represent something larger than themselves. The best characters do both. In a story, the main character is called the â€Å"protagonist. † The protagonist's opponent is the â€Å"antagonist. † The antagonist is usually another person, but in some stories it is an animal, or a spirit, or even a natural force. Figuring out which character is the protagonist can help you to interpret the story's theme. For example, in â€Å"A Rose for Emily,† we might say the protagonist is Emily–or we might say the protagonist is the town. If we choose Emily, we might see the story's theme as having to do with fear, loneliness, or mental illness. If we choose the town, we might see the story as having to do with social isolation or social class. Some characters are â€Å"flat†; others are â€Å"round. † Flat characters may play a small or a large role in a story, but they experience no change or development throughout the course of the story. Round characters change, grow, develop. (This does not make round characters superior to flat characters; it simply means they serve a different function in the story, depending on the author's ENG 150 Reynolds 6 intention. ) In â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper,† (pg. 436) for instance, the husband is flat; we do not see him experience any growth or development during the story. But the narrator, his wife, is round; her experiences change her. Sometimes it is not easy to figure out whether a character is round or flat, and that in itself can help you arrive at an interpretation of the story. For example, is the narrator of â€Å"The Tell-tale Heart† flat or round? Does he change or develop during the course of the story, or does he stay the same? The way you answer this question may affect the way you see the theme(s) of the story. Often, the names of characters are revealing. Authors are usually careful to give their characters appropriate names. Charles Dickens, for example, in Nicholas Nickleby, names a schoolmaster â€Å"Mr. Choakumchild†; right away, we know that Nicholas is in for a rough time at this school. Sometimes, the