Smith 1 Misha Smith Professor Sandor English 1A 17 May 2020 The Comparison and the similarities of Culture According to both novels, “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, and American Born Chinese”, Gene Luen Yang have both shared the same situations to being stereotype cause of their cultural heritage. Alexie and Yang have briefly experienced the similarities in both novels of racial discrimination due to the cultural of being belittle because of their own race. “When the class finally figured out that we weren’t related, rumors began to circulate that Suzy and I were arranged to be married on her thirteenth birthday” (Yang 31). This had gone to affect them into a different aspect because they weren’t related in any kind of form, and that they've assumed that if they’re not related that maybe, that they’re supposed to be married at a young age. A young age that they believe that other culture heritage is different from the other culture. “It’s a school on the reservation border filled with the poorest Indians and poorer- than white kids. Yes, there is a place in the world where the white people are even poorer than you ever thought possible” (Alexie 45). Discrimination still plays a major factor in the culture of believing that another race is actually poorer than another race. Which will always continue to belittle race after race, and continue to the myth of actually believing that every race has some kind of poor people. “Just remember this, “my father said. “Those white people aren’t better than you.” (Alexie 55). Smith 2 Another reason to why that if the hate still continues as a hatred against one another that it will never change the mind of others, and that will go beyond the line from one another to build a better relationship with another race. This goes to show that the discrimination of another culture taken the edge of continuing the hate against one another, and it has been the cause to the situation that why another culture is belittle. Alexie and Yang also explain the situation of being a student who’s the only race in a school full of one particular race, that make you feel you're out of place. When one of the new students who came from Tai Wan had experience a situation where when he wanted to become friends with one of the other classmates and when he wanted to start a conversation with the other classmates. It had begun like this, “Eh... We B-Be Friends? I have enough friends” (Yang 38). Although in the novel of American Born Chinese begun to feel disappointed because the thought of him being different from the rest of them would make him feel out of place, and didn’t want to be friends with. “A few of my white classmates have been to a grandparents’ funeral. And a few have lost an uncle or aunt. And one guy’s brother died of leukemia when he was in third grade. But there ...

1. Smith 1
Misha Smith
Professor Sandor
English 1A
17 May 2020
The Comparison and the similarities of
Culture
According to both novels, “The Absolutely True Diary of a
Part-Time Indian by
Sherman Alexie, and American Born Chinese”, Gene Luen Yang
have both shared the same
situations to being stereotype cause of their cultural heritage.
Alexie and Yang have briefly experienced the similarities in
both novels of racial
discrimination due to the cultural of being belittle because of
their own race. “When the class
finally figured out that we weren’t related, rumors began to

2. circulate that Suzy and I were
arranged to be married on her thirteenth birthday” (Yang 31).
This had gone to affect them into a
different aspect because they weren’t related in any kind of
form, and that they've assumed that if
they’re not related that maybe, that they’re supposed to be
married at a young age. A young age
that they believe that other culture heritage is different from the
other culture. “It’s a school on
the reservation border filled with the poorest Indians and
poorer- than white kids. Yes, there is a
place in the world where the white people are even poorer than
you ever thought possible”
(Alexie 45). Discrimination still plays a major factor in the
culture of believing that another race
is actually poorer than another race. Which will always continue
to belittle race after race, and
continue to the myth of actually believing that every race has
some kind of poor people. “Just
remember this, “my father said. “Those white people aren’t
better than you.” (Alexie 55).
Smith 2

3. Another reason to why that if the hate still continues as a hatred
against one another that it will
never change the mind of others, and that will go beyond the
line from one another to build a
better relationship with another race. This goes to show that the
discrimination of another culture
taken the edge of continuing the hate against one another, and it
has been the cause to the
situation that why another culture is belittle.
Alexie and Yang also explain the situation of being a student
who’s the only race in a
school full of one particular race, that make you feel you're out
of place. When one of the new
students who came from Tai Wan had experience a situation
where when he wanted to become
friends with one of the other classmates and when he wanted to
start a conversation with the
other classmates. It had begun like this, “Eh... We B-Be
Friends? I have enough friends” (Yang
38). Although in the novel of American Born Chinese begun to
feel disappointed because the

4. thought of him being different from the rest of them would
make him feel out of place, and
didn’t want to be friends with. “A few of my white classmates
have been to a grandparents’
funeral. And a few have lost an uncle or aunt. And one guy’s
brother died of leukemia when he
was in third grade. But there's nobody who has been to more
than five funerals. (Alexie 200).
Another reason why Yang felt out of place because even though
that some of them been to
funerals a few times, but they haven’t been to more than four.
Which gave him another
disappoint that he doesn’t belong nor fit in with the rest of them
because they have been to less
than five funerals, but he has been to five of them. “All of these
whites' kids and teachers, who
were so suspicious of me when I arrived, had learned to care
about me. Maybe some of them
Smith 3
even loved me. And I’d been so suspicious of them. And now I
care about a lot of them. And

5. loved a few of them” (Alexie 212). This goes back to the fact
that even though they’ve been
suspicious of another human being because of what they’ve
thought of, instead of knowing of.
That gives them the opportunity to be not even get the chance of
going outside of their mindset
of learning to care instead of judging.
Although in both novels Alexie and Yang had gone through
difference prior to what it’s
like to move away, and being able to start difference at a new
place. “You know how I
transferred from Hughes Academy at the beginning of the year?
Well, the year before that I
transferred from High Rohmer High. (Yang 126). Changing
location and making better decisions
to start over when things get difficult. Which can trigger you to
adjust to it because when you get
frightened of how things will look if you stay. So, moving on to
different places will make you
feel like more comfortable, and less stressful. “And once I

6. arrived at Reardan, I became
something less than, less than, less than Indian” (Alexie 83).
When you arrived at places you
start to think less of your own culture because you’re busy
trying to fit in with the rest of the
cultures. That you are no longer thinking or doing activities that
you normally do in your own
culture. Which shows once you leave another state that you
think less and less than your average.
“She found a home across the road from a University, they soon
now spent all his free time
reading book about mathematics, science, and history” (Yang
24). In this particularly situation
Smith 4
that once you move on to a different location, you’re more
focus and less distracted on learning.
Which goes beyond that when She had found a home away from
the University, that she had
more time to study than to not being able to stay at all. That
shows moving to away to other
places is sometimes for the better.

7. Alexie and Yang have briefly experienced the similarities in
both novels of racial
discrimination due to cultural of being belittle because of their
own race. That they assumed that
the race of another are supposed to be the opposite of theirs.
Alexie and Yang also explain the
situation of being a student who’s the only race in a school full
of one particular race, that make
you feel you’re out of place. Making new friends in a new
school environment, and not be
accepted because you feel that you the opposite to the rest of
them. Lastly, how they went
through the differences prior to moving away, and starting at
new places has become a better
decision for their lives.
INSTRUCTIONSProject Specifications
For this graded project, select a retailer that you’re interested in
from the following list:
American Eagle Outfitter
Ann Taylor
Apple
Autozone
Bed Bath & Beyond
Best Buy
Costco

8. CVS Caremark
Dollar General
Family Dollar
Finish Line
Foot Locker
Home Depot
Kohl’s
Kroger
Lowe’s
Macy’s
Men’s Warehouse
Michaels
Nordstrom
Office Depot
Pep Boys
PetSmart
Pier 1 Imports
Ross Stores
Safeway
Staples
Target
Tiffany & Co.
Walgreens
Wet Seal
Whole Foods Market
Zales
You’ll prepare a paper and presentation using APA format about
your chosen retailer.
Your project will contain the following sections:
1. Title Page
2. Strategic Analysis
3. Store Layout, Design, and Visual Merchandising
4. Internet Retailing
5. Works Cited
With the exception of the title page, each section should begin
on a new page and should be labeled with the appropriate

9. header. For example, the header for the Strategic Analysis
section would be Strategic Analysis.
The questions for each section should be typed using a word-
processing program. Each answer for that section should be
labeled by its number/designation and question and should be
answered in an essay/paragraph format.
This project requires you to research your chosen retailer, and
you’ll need to find, cite, and reference a minimum of three
sources of information using APA format. Do not summarize
information without giving credit to the source from which it
was drawn.
Be sure to double-space your answers with left and right
margins of 1 inch, flush left and ragged right. Use a plain 12-
point font, such as Times New Roman.Section 1: Title Page
The first section of your graded project is the title page, which
requires the following information:
· Title (Retail Management)
· Your name
· Your student number
· Graded project number: 08068700
· The dateSection 2: Strategic Analysis
Research
All of the previously listed retailers are publicly held
companies, meaning that you can access financial statements
and annual reports. Many reports can be found at the SEC’s
website, https://www.sec.gov, and annual reports can be found
online at the company’s website or by calling the company and
requesting a report be sent to you as a potential investor.
You’ll find the information you need to complete the
assignment using databases and resources, including the
following:
· Magazine articles, such as those in Money
· Television, including channels such as MSNBC
· Websites such as Google Finance, CNN Money, Bloomberg,
Forbes, MarketWatch, E*TRADE, and Scottrade

10. · Any provider of financial and industry news information, such
as the Wall Street Journal and Investor’s Business Daily
Cite and reference the original sources that your information
was drawn from, not the database where you found the source.
Questions
Answer the following questions in your project:
1. Provide a brief overview of the retail sector in which the
retailer operates.
1. What economic factors and environmental factors (if any) are
affecting the retailer?
1. What are the competitive pressures, evolving and emerging
technologies, effects of online selling, changing demographics
and buying preferences, consumer behavior issues, and image
issues affecting this retailer and how it conducts business?
2. Describe your retailer.
2. What is your retailer’s primary business?
2. What is its business model—how does it choose to operate?
2. What is its corporate strategy?
2. What are its goals?
2. How has your retailer changed and evolved over time?
2. What parts of the business are growing and generate the most
revenue?
2. How is your retailer seeking to increase revenue in the
future?
3. Complete a corporate analysis.
3. Has the retailer been profitable during its last fiscal year?
3. What are its projections for the future?
3. Is the retailer expanding or contracting its operations?
3. How does this retailer compare financially to other retailers
in its industry?
4. Do a financial analysis of your retailer and two to five of its
top competitors.
1. What is the revenue growth, return on assets, gross margin,
net margin, gross margin return on investment, and inventory
turnover?

11. 2. What does this analysis say about how your retailer operates
and its profitability?
3. What can your retailer do to improve its profitability?
5. Analyze the competition.
5. Who are the retailer’s competitors, both direct and indirect?
5. How does your retailer compare to these competitors in terms
of its size, market dominance/share, sales, profitability, and so
on?
5. What is your retailer’s competitive strength?
5. Are there strategies that haven’t worked for the retailer?
5. What retailers have the retailer identified as competitive
threats? Why?
6. Determine the retail market strategy.
6. Who is the retailer’s target audience? (Describe the audience
demographically and psychographically, if possible.) How does
this compare to the competition?
6. What image does the retailer want to convey? How does it
compare to its current image in the industry and in the minds of
consumers? How does it compare with competitors’ images?
6. How has technology affected the way the retailer conducts
business? How does it make use of the Internet, e-commerce,
supply chain management, information systems, and so on?
6. What is the retailer’s global presence and strategy? Has it
been successful? Why or why not?
6. What is the retailer’s location strategy and why?
6. Describe their merchandising strategy: how they buy, what
they buy, breadth versus depth of merchandise, and so on. How
is it reflected in their financial strategy?
6. What is the retailer’s pricing strategy, and how does this
affect profitability?
6. What is the retailer’s approach to advertising and sales
promotions? Has it been effective?
6. What challenges does your retailer face in terms of the retail
strategy variables just described? Do some appear to be working
better than others?
7. Summarize your retailer’s primary strengths and weaknesses

12. and support your assessment.
7. What are the retailer’s largest opportunities, both now and in
the future?
7. What are the retailer’s biggest challenges, both now and in
the future? How is it preparing to meet those challenges?
8. Describe what you think the future holds for this retailer.
8. If you were hired as the CEO, what specific strategies would
you pursue in the future for this retailer?
8. What opportunities would you capitalize on? Why?Section 3:
Store Layout, Design, and Visual Merchandising
Research
Go to one of the retailer’s physical locations and evaluate the
store layout, design, and visual merchandising techniques
employed. Be sure to reference the concepts you’ve learned in
your chapters.
Select a particular product. (You’ll be using this product to
compare with your Internet shopping experience.) Review the
next section on Internet retailing to understand the information
that will need to be gathered to complete the next section of the
research project.
Questions
After you’ve done your research, explain your answers to the
following questions:
1. Appearance
1. Are the store layout, design, and visual merchandising
techniques used consistent with the exterior of the store and the
location? What does it say about the type of store this is and the
market it is trying to attract?
1. Is the store’s ambiance consistent with the merchandise
presented and your expectations as a customer?
1. Does the store need a face-lift, update, remodel, or
renovation? What improvements would you suggest?
2. Fixtures
2. Does the lighting highlight merchandise, structure space,

13. capture a mood, or downplay unwanted features?
2. Are the fixtures consistent with the merchandise and the
overall ambiance of the store?
2. What type of image do the fixtures portray?
3. Promotions
3. Does the store’s signage effectively sell merchandise?
3. Has the retailer used any theatrical effects to help sell
merchandise?
3. Does the store make creative use of wall space to sell
product?
3. Does the sales staff use suggestive selling?
3. Is the sales staff friendly and helpful?
3. Is the image of the staff consistent with the image of the
store?
4. Layout
4. Does the store layout help draw people throughout the store?
Why or why not?
4. How does the layout facilitate purchases?
4. What type of layout is used? Would another type of layout be
better?
5. Merchandising
5. Has the retailer employed any techniques for achieving
greater space productivity such as using the “cube,” downsizing
gondolas and racks, minimizing no-selling space, and so on?
5. Are there any displays that increase interest in the products
being offered? If not, would you recommend any?
5. How has the retailer organized merchandise? What
improvements could be made?
6. Critique
Summarize your suggestions on how this retailer can improve
the shopping experience for its customers, increase sales, and
improve its image.Section 4: Internet Retailing
Research
Go to the retailer’s website and shop for a product. Select the
product and place it in the shopping cart. Go through the

14. checkout procedure up to the point where you’re asked to enter
credit card or checkout information. Important: You don’t
actually need to purchase any products or services.
Questions
After you’ve done your research, answer the following
questions in detail:
1. How do you compare your experience shopping on the
Internet to shopping in a local store for this type of product?
2. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the Internet
shopping experience?
3. Describe the Internet shopping experience using the
following criteria:
4. Price
4. Suggestive selling
4. Website features
4. Design of website
4. Ease of website use
4. Closing of the saleSection 5: Works Cited Page
Be sure to include a works cited page at the end of your project.
Using APA format, include a list of all the sources you
consulted. Visit Purdue Online Writing
Lab, https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/10/ APA-
formatted works cited pages.GRADING CRITERIA
The following rubric will be used to grade your project.
MKT340 Retail Management
Graded Project
Skill/Grading Criteria
Exemplary (100–90)
Proficient
(89–80)
Fair (79–70)
Poor or Not Evident (69–0)
Section 1: Title Page
3 points

15. The title page includes the following information in the
following order:
· Title (Retail Management)
· Your name
· Your student number
· Graded project number: 08068700
· The date
2 points
Title page includes the following information in the following
order but has minor errors:
· Title (Retail Management)
· Your name
· Your student number
· Graded project number: 08068700
· The date
1 point
Title page includes the following information with minor errors
or may not be in correct order:
· Title (Retail Management)
· Your name
· Your student number
· Graded project number: 08068700
· The date
No points
The title page doesn’t include the following information in the
following order:
· Title (Retail Management)
· Your name
· Your student number
· Graded project number: 08068700
· The date
Section 2: Strategic Analysis
40–38 points

16. The student provided thoughtful and thorough responses to each
of the eight questions.
The student cited sources in correct APA format.
37–35 points
The student provided mostly thoughtful
and thorough responses to each of the eight questions.
The student cited sources in mostly correct APA format.
34–31 points
The student provided somewhat thoughtful and thorough
responses to each of the eight questions.
The student cited sources in mostly incorrect APA format.
30–0 points
The student didn’t provide thoughtful and thorough responses to
each of the
eight questions.
The student didn’t cite sources in correct APA format.
Section 3: Store Layout, Design,
and Visual Merchan- dising
30–28 points
The student provided thoughtful and thorough responses to each
of the six questions.
The student cited sources in correct APA format.
27–25 points
The student provided mostly thoughtful
and thorough responses to each of the six questions.
The student cited sources in mostly correct APA format.
24–21 points
The student provided somewhat thoughtful and thorough
responses to each of the

17. six questions.
The student cited sources in mostly incorrect APA format.
20–0 points
The student didn’t provide thoughtful and thorough responses to
each of the six questions.
The student didn’t cite sources in correct APA format.
Section 4: Internet Retailing
12–11 points
The student provided thoughtful and thorough responses to each
of the
three questions.
The student cited sources in correct APA format.
10 points
The student provided mostly thoughtful
and thorough responses to each of the three questions.
The student cited sources in mostly correct APA format.
9–8 points
The student provided somewhat thoughtful and thorough
responses to each of the three questions.
The student cited sources in mostly incorrect APA format.
7–0 points
The student did not provide thoughtful
and thorough responses to each of the three questions.
The student didn’t cite sources in correct APA format.
Section 5: Works Cited Page
5 points
The works cited page is well-organized, in correct APA format,
and includes all
the consulted and referenced sources.
There are at least

18. three citations.
4 points
The works cited page is mostly organized, in mostly correct
APA format, and includes all
the consulted and referenced sources.
There are at least
three citations.
3–2 points
The works cited page is somewhat organized, in mostly correct
APA format, and includes all the consulted and referenced
sources.
There are fewer than three citations.
1–0
The works cited page is nonexistent, or is poorly organized, in
incorrect APA format, and doesn’t
include all the consulted and referenced sources.
There are fewer than three citations.
Written Communication
10 points
There are no or very minor errors in gram- mar spelling and
mechanics
The project flows well, helped by usage.
Each section begins on a new page and is labeled at the
beginning.
9 points
There are a few errors in grammar, spelling, and mechanics, but
they don’t detract from flow of the project.
8–7 points
There are many errors in grammar, spelling, and mechanics,
which detract from the flow of the project.

19. 6–0 points
Many errors on grammar, spelling, and mechanics, which truly
disrupt the flow of the project.