International Business Law and its Environment Essay

International Business Law and its Environment - Essay Example These bribery fuelled projects have gained Siemens more than $1.1 billion in revenue (Schaffer, Earle and Augusti). In the period between March 2001 and September 2007, about $1.4 billion in about 4,283 payments were shelled out to bribe government officials in exchange for lucrative business deals in different countries which also include high-ranking Iraqi officials who got kickbacks at the expense of the UN. Millions of dollars were also spent to pay up third parties that implicated embezzlement. It was found that there is an atmosphere of tolerance and even the company’s cultural acceptance of the practice in all levels of the corporation. There has been a systematic implementation of this scheme that engaged the members of the organization (ibid). There was a failure by the internal safeguards of Siemens to clean up their business adequately in time prior to the case filed by the SEC to their disadvantage. The main issue encompasses the acts of the company in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA) under the United States federal law which punishes bribery of foreign officials. This is in relation to the thrust of the Securities and Exchange Commission to regulate businesses under its jurisdiction. Specifically, the provisions of Sections 30A, 13(b)(2)(A), and 13(b)(2)(B) of the Exchange Act were violated (ibid). The court found in favour of the SEC and granted the highest settlement in this particular area where Siemens has offered $1.6 billion in payment for the fines and disgorgement provided under the law. Out of which, $350 million will go to the SEC in disgorgement, $450 million in criminal fine to the Department of Justice, about $569 million as fine to Germany’s Office of the Prosecutor General in Munich. This is apart from the approximately $285 million Siemens has already paid in 2007 to the Prosecutor previously mentioned (ibid). In the end, the SEC and the State together with the German government on this case through an amicable settlement by the plaintiff and defendant.

Reading assignment Essay Example for Free

Reading assignment Essay The common house mouse, Mus musculus, is a model organism for human diseases. As such, it has been recently utilized in QTL mapping to see which genes may contribute disproportionately to disease states. Unfortunately, because of its high rate of inbreeding and bottleneck effect when it was first developed as a model organism, it displays a high level of linkage disequilibrium such that QTLs can span 20-40 cM, containing hundreds of genes. This is a problem on two levels: One, while this resolution is great relative to the â€Å"double crossovers† of Morgan’s flies, it leaves much to be desired in terms of quickly discovering traits that contribute to disease states. Two, using inbred lines such as mouse decreases verisimilitude—we’re trying to see how diseases work in humans, we should use animals with same genetic variance as humans. This is especially relevant because mice colonized the world with humans, and as such may show similar patterns of gene evolution and population structure. These authors found that QTL maps can be made to the resolution of 1 cM (about 100 kB in M. musculus) by using the wild conspecifics of these lab mice. In doing so, they also found that wild mice have much lower rates of LD, comparable to humans. They do show a lot of homozygosity, which the authors attribute to some inbreeding and previous bottlenecks. The authors suggest that using wild mice to develop finer mapping resolution for QTLs, especially because they can use the same SNPs that they use for laboratory mice. That is to say, we can use the same tools available to us in lab mice on wild mice for experiments more relevant to populations of humans, as opposed to individuals. Questions: 1) Wild mice have a lot of homozygosity. Would wild mouse populations (new world field mice, etc. ) show less homozygosity, and can we use them in these experiments when homozygosity somehow impedes the resolution of the mapping? 2) The text keeps saying that African populations are in a state of high linkage disequilibrium, and I’m assuming it is because they are in reproductive isolation. If mice are commensal with Africans as they are with other human populations, do they exhibit the same LD? Can we then use them as a model to look at disease states and disease traits in Africans?

Beam-Beam Effect :: essays research papers

Beam-beam effect, or beam-beam interaction, is a recent research being conducted over many areas throughout the world, from European laboratories to American Institutes. Basically the issue involves the passing through of proton bunches which results in many different types of effect, sometimes including the unexpected. Aside from the shooting of particles across one another, usually the collision rate of the protons generates a certain amount of energy. Today, the issue is to focus on modifying new colliders to enhance the effectiveness of the machines. The study of the beam-beam effect involves particle colliders which determines the collision rate of protons. One of the commonly used collider is the LHC, which stands for Large Hadron Collider. The LHC is an accelerator which brings protons and ions into collisions at higher energies than ever achieved before. This will allow scientists to penetrate still further into the structure of matter and recreate the conditions prevailing in the early universe, just after the "big bang". It is represented by a thick gaussian lens, and the ring is described by a 9th-order Taylor map. At the single-particle level we compare the dynamic aperture with and without the beam-beam effect. At the multiparticle level, using a "strong-strong" description of the beam-beam interaction, we compare the collision rate with a linear lattice map and with the full nonlinear map. The LHC is being used at CERN, the world's largest physics center for particle physics exploring what matter is made of, and what forces hold it together. Many different models for this effect have been conducted before, but most of them often ignored longitudinal motions of the particles, meaning that they only look for steady-state solutions, or assumed one beam contained a larger number of particles. These are usually known as "weak-strong" simulations. The LHC being developed is a "strong-strong" simulation in that it treats both beams equally and allows them to have arbitrary relative strengths. It is dynamic in that it models the motion on a turn-by-turn basis looking for coherent oscillations in the beam shape. It uses a variety of methods for computing the electric fields so that it can run as quickly as possible in each situation it encounters. Inside the LHC, usually there is a storage ring acting as accelerator that collide the bunches of particles repeatedly by storing the bunches in the collider throughout a certain amount of time. When shooting out the particles, the collider aims for a very high collision rate, or luminosity.

Consumer Perception on Public vs Private Bank

Consumer perception on Public Bank versus Private Bank A survey Report Prakhar Agarwal (09FN-077) Ravi Jain (09FN-090) Sachin Gogia (09FN-094) Sandeep Agarwal (09FN-099) Saurabh Kumar (09FN-101) Sunay Jain (09FN-110) * CONTENTS Particulars Page No Executive Summary Introduction Methodology Data Analysis & Findings Recommendation Conclusion Bibliography Executive Summary Regulatory, structural and technological factors are significantly changing the banking environment throughout the world.One factor that is spurring the growth of the service economy in India is the liberalisation that has been ushered in by the government in the banking sector. The financial sector reform in India was designed to infuse â€Å"greater competitive vitality in the system†. In other words, financial liberalisation has led to intense competitive pressures and retail banks are consequently directing their strategies towards increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty through improved service qu ality. Retail banks are pursuing this strategy, in part, because of the difficulty in differentiating based on the service offering.Typically, customers perceive very little difference in the banking products offered by retail banks as any new offering is quickly matched by competitors. This research endeavours to fill the gap in the service quality by exploring the dimensions of customer perceived service quality in the context of the Indian retail banking industry. A set of service quality parameters, drawn from customers’ perceptions about service quality as well as the bank marketing and service quality literature using the RATER model have been drawn up.Finally, the research has drawn upon the findings of the service quality dimensions to contend the initiatives that banks’ managers can take to enhance employees’ skills and attitudes and instil a customer-service culture. This research will thus help bankers to know the ways in which how to improve customer perception towards the services provided by them. Introduction Perception: Perception is a process by which an individual select, organize & interpret stimuli in a meaningful picture of the world Also, we can describe as â€Å"how we see the world around us†. Perception is one of the objects studied by the science of consumer behaviour.Analyzing the works of scientists studying consumer behaviour, it is possible to make a conclusion that perception is presented as one of personal factors, determining consumer behaviour. Personal factors mean the closest environment of a human, including everything what is inside the person, his head and soul, characterizing him as a personality. Customer Perception: Customer perception is an important component of our relationship with our customers. Customer satisfaction is a mental state which results from the customer’s comparison of expectations prior to a purchase with performance perceptions after a purchase.A customer may m ake such comparisons for each part of an offer called ‘‘domain-specific satisfaction’’ or for the offer in total called ‘‘global satisfaction’’. Moreover, this mental state, which we view as a cognitive judgment, is conceived of as falling somewhere on a bipolar continuum bounded at the lower end by a low level of satisfaction where expectations exceed performance perceptions and at the higher end by a high level of satisfaction where performance perceptions exceed expectations. Customer Perception on Service These characteristics of service also make service unique and different from goods as described below a.Intangibility. b. Heterogeneity. c. Inseparability. d. Perishability. e. Non-returnable. f. Needs-match uncertainty. g. Interpersonal. h. Personal. i. Psychic. Like other industries, banking and financial services companies have reached the conclusion that the relationship with the customer should not (metaphorically and lit erally) end at the bank door. Customer access after the transaction adds value to the transaction. Definition of Banking Banking means accepting for the purpose of lending or investment, of deposits of money from the Public, repayable on demand or otherwise and withdraw able by cheques, draft, order or otherwise.Banking is a crucial economic function and forms an integral part of nation’s economy. A healthy banking system is essential for any economy striving to achieve good growth and yet remain stable in an increasingly global business environment. The Indian banking system, with one of the largest banking networks in the world, has witnessed a series of reforms over the past few years like the deregulation of interest rates, dilution of the government stake in public sector banks (PSBs), and the increased participation of private sector banks.The growth of the retail financial services sector has been a key development on the market front. Indian banks (both public and pri vate) have not only been keen to tap the domestic market but also to compete in the global market place. New foreign banks have been equally keen to gain a foothold in the Indian market. Fig. 2. 1-Segreation of banking industry The Banking Sector Today Depth Countrywide coverage Large number of players Increasingly sophisticated financial markets Technology Increasing use of technology in operations Poised to expand and deepen technology usage Diversification Emergence of integrated playersDiversifying capital deployment Regulation Robust regulatory system aligned to international standards Efficient monetary management Fig. 2. 2-Banking sector Sector Snapshot Indian Banking sector is dominated by Public sector banks (PSBs) which accounted for 72. 6% of total advances for all SCBs as on 31st March 2008. PSBs have rapidly expanded their foot prints after nationalisation of banks in India in 1969 and further in 1980. Although there is a restrictive entry/expansion for private and fore ign banks in India, these banks have increased their presence and business over last 5 years.Within the group of banks, foreign and private sector banks grew at higher rate than the industry from FY03 to FY08 primarily because of lower base effect and rapid expansion undertaken by these banks. In FY09, overall growth in credit and deposits was led by PSBs. However, growth of private and foreign banks was significantly lower in FY09 due to their high exposure to stressed sectors and problem at parent level for foreign banks. Size Total assets of US$ 335 billion Total deposits of US$ 279 billion Number of banks Over 290 scheduled banks Public sector: 27 Private sector: new – 9; old – 24 Foreign: 37Over 190 regional rural banks Branch network Over 66,000 branches Public sector: 46,000 Private sector: 5,500 Foreign: 190 Regional rural: 14,400 Source: ICICI bank Fig. 2. 3-Indusrty size Measuring Customer Perception in the Banking Industry The domestic Indian economy is an i ncreasing pie which offers extensive economies of scale that only large banks will be in a position to tap. With the phenomenal increase in the country's population and the increased demand for banking services; speed, service quality and customer satisfaction are going to be key differentiators for each bank's future success.Thus it is imperative for banks to get useful feedback on their actual response time and customer service quality aspects of retail banking, which in turn will help them take positive steps to maintain a competitive edge. The working of the customer's mind is a mystery which is difficult to solve. This exercise in the context of the banking industry will give us an insight into the parameters of customer satisfaction and their measurement. This vital information will help us to know how banks can build satisfaction amongst the customers and customer loyalty in the long run which is an integral part of any business.We can recognize where we need to make changes to create improvements and determine if these changes, after implemented, have led to increased customer satisfaction. Need and Importance of the Study One of the most important developments in banking sector has been the growth of the financial industry over the past two decades. The benefits of financial industry can be seen in the form of large scale industrial development, increased employment opportunities, higher turnover as well as revenue generation to the government and also increase in export of goods and services. Investments play a vital role on the part of the customers.A real investor does not simply throw his or her money random investment. Today banks have a relationship management approach with their clients. Banks are offering more customized solutions to their clients. Everything revolves around the customer and banks via with their innovative and quality products to suit their clients. Today the bottom line for any customer is convenience understanding and evalua ting the customers perception on the service ;amp; products of a bank has without doubt become a need, which propels the body to structure itself for better performance and service.Indian Overseas Bank has ensured that whoever comes in for cash withdrawal will receive his/her cash within five to ten minutes. Fig. 3. 2-Reliability Assurance * Employee’s knowledge and courtesy and the ability of the firm and its employees to inspire trust and confidence. * Every customer treated with utmost care * Problem solved with great enthusiasm. * Customers are assured * the money they invest is secure * the interest rate that is being provided to them is at par or higher. * the money they have invested will be returned to them as and when required with proper interest. Empower their customer contact people * Regularly train them in skills to build trust and loyalty between employees and customers. * Assigned some of their staff members to build relationships with the customers by getting to know them personally. Fig. 3. 3-Assurance Tangibility The appearances of physical facilities, equipments, personnel and communication materials. * Entire premise is air-conditioned. * Computerized systems in place – quick, accurate and efficient service can be provided to the customers. * Tables and chairs are conveniently located. * Personnel always have a cheerful and helping behaviour.Fig. 3. 4-Tangibility Empathy * The caring, individualized attention the firm provides its customers. * Employees are always polite humble and helpful. * Ready to go out of the way. * Regularly holds seminars and training workshops for employees so that they can understand the consumer better and thus serve them better. Fig. 3. 5-Empathy. Responsiveness * The willingness to help the customer and provide him with immediate and fast service. * Prompt at providing customers with information and services they seek. * Prompt when it comes to resolving complaints of customers. The customers, in their feedback form, mentioned this as one of the most important factor that has prompted them to continue with this bank. Fig. 3. 5-Responsiveness Source of Data The researcher proposed to gather the required data through primary data . Primary data are those which are collected afresh and for the first time, and thus happen to be original in character. It will be collected through questionnaires method. Universe The proposed study is to find out the services rendered by the Public and Private Sector Banks to their Customers. The population is uncountable and is considered as infinite.However, the proposed sample for the study from Private Sector Banks and Public Sector Banks is 120. Sampling Method The universe of the study is the account holders of Public and Private Sector banks and the sampling technique adopted will be convenient sampling method. Statistical Tools and Techniques The collected data have been analyzed with the help of percentage analysis. Limitations of the Stu dy The time spent for canvassing the bankers and customers to get the questionnaire filled was considerable. Further, there was reluctance on the part of customers to respond the questionnaire.The cost and time factors are the other limitations. However adequate care was taken to collect unbiased data. Data Analysis ;amp; Findings We have based our survey on RATER model (given by Parasuraman), thus considering the effect of Age, Occupation and Income on various parameters defined by RATER. During our analysis we will focus on various combinations of Age, Income and Occupation and various parameters of RATER model:- During our study we have maintained weights for various options which are maintained underneath:- 1 for Strongly Disagree 2 for Disagree 3 for Neutral 4 for Agree for Highly Agree We have divided our analysis in two parts a. Those who have accounts in both Private and Public Banks and thus have firsthand experience with both the banks b. Those who have accounts with only one of the banks(i. e either in Private Bank and Public Bank) and thus during analysis we have taken their perception about other bank thus the analysis may be biased based on their perception Analysis for those who have account with both Private and Public Banks:-1. Based on AGE Group Fig4. 1-Depicting relationship between age and RATER model parameters a. For the Age Group ;lt;20 They believe that the tangible benefits are more in private banks as compared to public banks. * They are more than satisfied with the Reliability of Private Bank with respect to Public Bank * They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are notch higher than of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private and public banks are almost of the same level. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers are better than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters and few other things they believe that overall Private Banks are slightly bet ter than Public Banks . For the Age Group 20-30 * They are satisfied with the tangible benefits provided by private banks as compared to public banks. * They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank are in terms with Reliability of Public Banks. * They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are higher than that of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private and public banks are almost of the same level. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers are better than shown by Public bankConsidering the above parameters things they believe that overall Private Banks are better than Public Banks c. For the Age Group 30-40 * They are satisfied with the tangible benefits provided by private banks as compared to public banks. * They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank is bit less than the Reliability of Public Banks. * They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are bit higher than that of publi c bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private Banks is bit higher than provided by public banks. They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers are almost same than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters things they believe that overall Private Banks are satisfactory in compared to Public Banks d. For the Age Group 40-50 * They are not satisfied with the tangible benefits provided by private banks as compared to public banks.* They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank is in terms with the Reliability of Public Banks. They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are same as that of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private Banks is bit lesser than provided by public banks. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers are almost same than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters things they believe that overall there is not much diff erence in Private Banks and Public Banks e. For the Age Group 50-60 * They believe with the tangible benefits provided by private banks are of same level as compared to public banks. They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank is in terms with the Reliability of Public Banks. * They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are slightly more satisfying than of public bank* They believe that the assurance provided by Private Banks is bit lesser than provided by public banks. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers is a bit less than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters things they believe that overall Public Banks are slightly better than Private Banks f. For the Age Group ;gt;60 They believe with the tangible benefits provided by private banks more satisfactory as compared to public banks. * They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank is very less as compared to Reliability of Public Banks. * They be lieve that the responsiveness of private banks are in terms with responsiveness of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private Banks is far less than provided by public banks. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers is a far lesser than shown by Public bankConsidering the above parameters things they believe that overall Public Banks are far better than Private Banks Findings Based on Age Group: The Public Banks are the most preferred by the age group of ;gt;60 years with the Reliability being the highest scoring point of Public Banks over Private Banks. This may be attributed to the fact that they have been associated with Public Bank for very long time so a sort of relationship is developed between them. Also they are more prone to risk so they prefer Public Bank s as they are backed by Governments.On the contrary Private Banks are mostly preferred by age group segment of 20-30 years this may be attributed to the fact t hat most people in this group are working class and for them time is the most important factor so the services such as better Online Banking, better responsiveness provided by Private Banks make them more attractive to this segment 2. Based on Income Level Fig4. 2-Depicting relationship between income groups and RATER model parameters a. For the Income ;lt; 1. 5 L * They believe that the tangible benefits are more in private banks as compared to public banks. They are a bit more satisfied with the Reliability of Private Bank with respect to Public Bank * They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are notch higher than of public bank* They believe that the assurance provided by Private and public banks are almost of the same level. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers are better than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters and few other things they believe that overall Private Banks are slightly better than Public Ba nks b. For the Income 1. L-5L * They are more than satisfied with the tangible benefits provided by private banks as compared to public banks. * They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank is slightly better than the Reliability of Public Banks. * They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are more satisfying than that of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private and public banks are almost of the same level. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers are slightly better than shown by Public bankConsidering the above parameters things they believe that overall Private Banks are slightly better than Public Banks c. For the Income 5L-10L * They are satisfied with the tangible benefits provided by private banks as compared to public banks. * They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank is bit more than the Reliability of Public Banks. * They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are bi t higher than that of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private Banks is almost same as provided by public banks. They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers are slightly better than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters things they believe that overall Private Banks are slightly better in compared to Public Banks d. For the Income ;gt;10L * They are satisfied with the tangible benefits provided by private banks as compared to public banks.* They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank is lesser than Reliability of Public Banks. They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are same as that of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private Banks is almost same level than provided by public banks. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers are almost same than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters things they prefer Public Bank as compared to Private Bank e. For the Income Not Applicable * They are satisfied with the tangible benefits provided by private banks as compared to public banks. They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank is in terms with the Reliability of Public Banks. * They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are slightly more satisfying than of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private Banks is bit more than provided by public banks. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers is a bit more than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters things they believe that overall Private Banks are much more satisfying than Private BanksFindings Based on Income Levels: The Private Banks are the most preferred by income group of ;gt;10 L. with Tangible benefits as the most differentiating Factor . This may be attributed to the fact that private banks provide customized services to the customers, also the t imings of public bank are more suited to them, the services such as mobile banking, online banking saves them lot of time which is of utmost importance to them. On the other hand Public Bank are most preferrd by middle class income group (i. e 5L;lt;Income;lt;10L) with assurance as most differentiating factor .This may be attributed to the fact that they are more prone to risk and for them safety of money is of utmost important. 3. Based on Occupation Fig4. 3-Depicting relationship between occupation and RATER model parameters a. For the Business Persons * They believe that the tangible benefits are more in private banks as compared to public banks. * They are a bit more satisfied with the Reliability of Private Bank with respect to Public Bank * They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are notch higher than of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private and public banks are almost of the same level. They believe that the empathy shown by Private B ank employee to its customers are almost same than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters and few other things they believe that overall Private Banks are almost as same as Public Banks on various parameters b. For the Service Person* They are more than satisfied with the tangible benefits provided by private banks as compared to public banks. * They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank is slightly better than the Reliability of Public Banks. They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are more satisfying than that of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private and public banks are almost of the same level. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers are slightly better than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters things they believe that overall Private Banks are slightly better than Public Banks c. For Students * They are satisfied with the tangible benefits provided by pri vate banks as compared to public banks. They are of the view that Reliability of Private Bank is bit more than the Reliability of Public Banks. * They believe that the responsiveness of private banks are bit higher than that of public bank * They believe that the assurance provided by Private Banks is almost same as provided by public banks. * They believe that the empathy shown by Private Bank employee to its customers are slightly better than shown by Public bank Considering the above parameters things they believe that overall Private Banks are slightly better in compared to Public Banks Findings Based on Occupation:-The Private Banks are the most preferred by students with tangible benefits is the most differentiating factor among banks. This may be attributed to the fact that students are tech savvy and the services provided by private bank in this regard is better also students don’t have much concern towards safety aspect as the amount of money involved is very small. On the other hand Business persons are indifferent to both banks as for them both are important their safety concerns (regarding huge money ) is appropriately addressed by Public Bank where as their time concerns are addressed appropriately by Private Banks .Analysis For Customers having accounts with only one type of Bank : The analysis is done for those customers who have banking accounts with either private banks or public banks but not both. Since, those customers have accounts in only one of the banking sectors i. e. either private or public; the inferences drawn will be based on their perception of the other banking sector without any practical banking experience. The inferences may have a biased opinion towards the banking system in which the customer hold an account and is thus only a suggestive indication of the customer perception towards both private and public banks.

Fahrenheit 451 Christ Figure Essay

If any character in the novel represents a Christ figure it has to be Montag. Even though he does not share all the same traits as Christ that does not mean that he is not a Christ figure. Traits of Christ that are applicable to Montag is that he’s around his 30’s, self-sacrificing, good with children, came to redeem an unworthy world, in agony, in a way is unmarried, and is in a type of wilderness with an encounter with the devil. Just like Christ, Montag was sacrificing himself and his life to redeem his society of its unworthiness. For example even though many were opposed to him, thought he was crazy, and wanted him under control, he knew what was right for the people by sacrificing his own life to try to get more books printed for them. He is good with children such as Clarisse (even though she’s not typically a child but an adolescent) by not treating her as if she’s an inferior but like as a friend; which is not how most adult figures in this novel would treat her. Montag himself is in pure agony, even though he may not be physically but mentally. His soul is in torment with so much unanswered to him and he feels the only way to redeem it is through books which holds such vast amounts of information. Even though he is supposedly ‘married’ to Mildred they do not even have love and compassion for one another, just only making them seem like housemates sharing a home. One can assume that his own town can be seen as a wilderness and that the mechanical hound could be seen as the devil. The mechanical hound could be seen as the devil for it shows no sign of positivity but negativity. For example all the hound is programed to do is kill and torture people like Montag, or in this instance Christ. There are some ways Montag could be in opposition of representing a Christ figure such as killing Captain Beatty, but he being a Christ figure does not mean you have to represent Christ in every aspect. It could be seen as more favorable that Montag does represent a Christ figure depending on the viewpoint one choses to look at through.