...Brtlt20a.wpd Lesson 20a: The Victorian Novel (Day: 168-170) The Victorian reading public firmly established the novel as the dominant literary form of the era. Virtually the entire literate population consisted of novel-readers. Herbert Spencer, that rigorous apostle of science, exempted George Eliot's works works from his general condemnation of "mere" novels; Newman and Arnold were avid readers of fiction; and Darwin stated in his Autobiography that to him novels were "a wonderful relief and pleasure." Carlyle, however, dourly excluded the novelist from the category of the hero as writer. Amazingly, Tennyson compared the novel to verse drama and gave it higher rating: "I am of the opinion that if a man were endowed with such faculties as Shakespeare's, they would be more freely and effectively exercised in prose fiction with its wider capabilities than when "cribbed, cabined, and confined" in the trammels of verse." Certainly the novel may well be termed the most distinctive and lasting literary achievement of Victorian literature. At the outset of the Victorian period no one, except possibly Thackeray, considered the novel a significant art form. By 1853, however, Clough, writing in the North American Review, recognized that cultured readers had turned their attention from poetry to the novel. By the century's end the novel had completely triumphed over poetry as aesthetic and spiritual nourishment for English readers. The novel by this time claimed writing...
Words: 814 - Pages: 4
...Greece – Crisis and Solutions Paper International Economics Greece - Crisis and Solutions June 25, 2013 Content 1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………2 2. Greece joining the Eurozone…...............................................................................3 3. Budget structure that lead to the crisis…………………………………………………………………6 4. Supporting and rescue measures…………………………………………………………………………9 5. Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………………………….11 6. References……………………………………………............................................................13 1 1. Introduction In the last years the severe debt crisis of Greece has posed a large challenge to the member states of the Eurozone. It is threatening the stability of the European Monetary Union (EMU). After having piled up over 300 Billion Euros of debt, in 2010 the market mistrust in Greece dramatically increased, especially as the newly elected government revealed the incorrectness of the financial statistics of previous years. Finally, on the 23rd of April 2010, Greece was threatened by national bankruptcy and requested help of the other Eurozone members and the International Monetary Fund. Although Greece is one of the smaller economies of the Eurozone, its daring default has great effects on the whole community. Now then, what happen if Greece “Grexit”? The Pros are that a return to the old currency like the Drachma would have the effect of depreciate in value, it would become more competitively in...
Words: 3814 - Pages: 16
...Policy Paper, spring 2012 ------------------------------------------------- Is a Greek exit from the European Union inevitable? 0909512 Table of Contents Pg. List of Illustrations 3 Executive Summary 4 1.0 Introduction 5 2.0 The Economic Cost and Benefit for State Membership of the EMU 5 2.1 Benefits of EMU Membership & Mechanisms 5 2.2 Costs of EMU Membership 7 3.0 Contextual Factors: The Profusion of Dept 10 3.1 The Eurozone Crisis 10 3.3 Greece- The Forefront of the Euro Area Crisis 13 4.0 Alternate Policies and the Effective Consequences 15 4.1 Predicament 15 4.2 Abetting Dependent on Austerity 16 4.3 Creditor-Led Default 17 4.4 Debtor-led Default and Greek Haircuts 19 4.5 Greek Exit 20 5.0 Recommendation 21 Appendices: Appendix 1: Preferential liberalization References List of Illustrations Pg. Illustration 1: The cost of EMU- Diminishing Domestic Flexibility to Asymmetric Macro Shocks 7 Illustration 2: Cost and benefit of Monetary Unions 9 Illustration 3: Evolution of Nominal Unit Labor Costs in the Eurozone Pre to the US Credit Crunch 9 Illustration 4: Current Account Balances in Percentage GDP 10 Illustration 5: Core Bank Exposure to the Weaker Eurozone Member States 12 Illustration 5: Holders of Greek Government Bonds and Dept (in billion Euro) 16 Executive Summary The standing...
Words: 6430 - Pages: 26
...Background: As the consequence of the 2008 U.S. banking crisis, Europe was hit by one of the worst debt crisis. Starting from Greece in autumn 2009, the crisis spread to other European countries, especially Spain, Italy, Ireland and Portugal and forced European policy makers to take many actions to limit its consequences (BOG, 2014, p.42). While others European economies such as Spain, Portugal avoided the severe crisis by following advisory strategy like austerity, reducing public spending…, Greece situation did not improved. To help Greece improve its situation, the IMF and Eurozone governments sealed a deal for two bailouts in 2010 and 2012, totalling €240 billion. On July 5, 2015 the majority of Greek citizens voted to reject the Europe’s plan to bail out the country’s economy, which caused the fear about the potential exit from the European Union, Greece’s future and world economy as well. Despite that fact, Eurozone leaders still reached an agreement on a third bailout programme to save Greece from bankruptcy on July 13. Although Greece overcame the severe situation, there is no indicator that the crisis will stop. This essay will discuss Greek situation involving 3 main issues, which are mistakes leading to crisis, financial regulation and the role of banks, potential financial contagion and moral hazard. Discussion: 1. Mistakes leading to crisis: One of mistakes leading to crisis was supposed to involve economic statistical data fraud. According to a comprehensive...
Words: 2431 - Pages: 10
...EUROPEAN DEBT CRISIS – ORIGIN, CONSEQUENCES AND POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS F RA N TI Š E K N E M E T H Abstract What is the European debt crisis? As the head of the Bank of England referred to it in October 2011, it is “the most serious financial crisis at least since the 1930s, if not ever.”1 In fact, the European debt crisis is the shorthand term for the region’s struggle to pay the debts it has built up in recent decades. Five of the region’s countries – Greece, Portugal, Ireland, Italy, and Spain – have, to varying degrees, failed to generate enough economic growth to make their ability to pay back bondholders the guarantee it’s intended to be. Although these five were seen as being the countries in immediate danger of a possible default, the crisis has far-reaching consequences that extend beyond their borders to the world as a whole. Introduction The global economy has experienced slow growth since the U.S. financial crisis of 2008-2009, which has exposed the unsustainable fiscal policies of countries in Europe and around the globe. Greece, which spent heartily for years and failed to undertake fiscal reforms, was one of the first to feel the pinch of weaker growth. When growth slows, so do tax revenues – making high budget deficits unsustainable. Greece's economy has struggled since the country joined the euro in 2001. In 2004, it admitted its budget deficit was higher than allowed under rules of entry. By 2008 the government had narrowly passed a belt-tightening budget...
Words: 2916 - Pages: 12
...Introduction The Greek debt crisis in 2009 occurred as a result of an understated financial deficit and extreme spending. The stagnation of the Greek economy and the demotion in their debt rating did not aid their financial situation. Greece was then faced with the possibility of sovereign debt default. The failure of Greece to pay their debts required bailouts from the European Union (EU) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). While the loan bailouts have eased short term liquidity problems, Greece still remained in financial turmoil which may even deteriorate. This research paper aims to explore the history behind the Greek debt crisis, the implications it has globally and on South Africa as well as the lessons that can be learnt from the crisis. Origins of the Greek debt crisis 2.1 Historical development: 2001-2008/09 In 2001 Greece became the twelfth member to join the Euro zone and was permitted to use the Euro (€) as its currency. Greece joined the Euro zone because of the benefits associated with being part of the Euro area. These benefits were essential to the economy of Greece who had a record of unpredictable inflation (Gibson, Hall & Tavlas, 2012). In addition, after Greece changed to the Euro they had the freedom to borrow money from foreign capital markets. During 2003-2007 government records showed Greece to be growing at 4% a year which gave investors’ confidence and made Greek bonds a popular investment...
Words: 1993 - Pages: 8
...Tom Fernandez Professor James Terry HIST-102-H1 25 April 2013 The 2003-2007 real estate boom which led to the eventual 2008 meltdown of the U.S. financial markets unfortunately was not contained to the big banks and investment firms based mostly in New York City. By the time bailouts were implemented by the United States government, the effects of the financial crisis were exported to Europe. States similar, but not limited to Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece, and Spain (PIIGS) have each been in the media spotlight in recent years as attempts to rescue their respective financial markets are implemented. Unfortunately, many efforts made by Eurozone member states and other international actors have failed in alleviating the financial stresses of the region. Considering this, then, is there really a permanent solution that can not only relieve financial markets but also prevent the crises from spreading? To date, the European Unions’ collective response up to this point has been insufficient in order to curb the further slide into Europe’s second recession. I contend, then, that Europe and the Euro would greatly benefit from following many if not all of Germany’s internal budgetary constraints in order to fix the overall problem of debt and spending. One of original intentions of the euro when it was established in 1992 was to limit the amount of budget deficit a sovereign member state could have. Furthermore, the euro was designed to prevent a “bailout” should a state be...
Words: 3864 - Pages: 16
...Greek Financial Crisis 1. Page 501 answer question 1 in the "hit or miss section." Be specific in your answers and give at least two examples. Participating in the global economy has benefits, but it also comes with perils in that economic catastrophes on the other side of the world can have real impacts at home. The European debt crisis and recession affect American exports and the stock market. There are consequences for global trade and possibly for the American Financial system as well. Exports are an important source of the American recovery so if Europe tanks, there will be fewer exports to Europe and that will hurt American manufacturing. Not only does the European debt crisis directly affect American exports it impacts other areas of the global economy which further drags on growth rate here at home. The recent slowdown in China has been attributed to the weakness in Europe. Europe being in a prolonged recession has caused the global economy to slow down. And that has an indirect effect in the United States in terms to the unemployment problems. If worldwide demand were higher, there would be more jobs created for American workers. Europe is not an insignificant part of global demand, Germany’s economy is the fourth largest in the world, followed closely by France, but collectively the economies of all 17- Euro area countries are nearly equal to that of the United States, at about 13 trillion dollars versus 15 trillion of the U.S. 2. Page 501 answer...
Words: 962 - Pages: 4
...Samantha Meneguzzi Hussein Al-Zyoud EC ON 401 December 30, 2012 Greece’s Economic Turmoil and the Global Economy The financial headlines of 2012 were prevalent with the tribulations of the Greek economy. Its problems, in the eyes of many of the other nations of the euro zone, were not only negatively impacting the prosperity of the Greeks, but also the viability of the European Union. The country as a whole requires a major restructuring. Not only are drastic changes needed in financial and economic policies, but the Greeks need to understand their attitude of government entitlements cannot be sustained. The mismanagement of the Greek economy is also evident in its place in the global market community. It has not found the path that a county needs to follow to become an active member of the vibrant, high growth world of globalization. Over the past ten years, Greece had been on a debt spree that came to an abrupt halt in late 2009. This unsustainable expenditure in social entitlements provoked an economic crisis that had destroyed the country’s economy, brought down its governing body, unleashed increasing unrest in the populace and greatly endangered the future of the euro. Greece’s debt issues can be traced back to years of spending that the government did not recuperate in taxes. Greece was borrowing from banks worldwide and had no way of repaying the billions of dollars owed. One might even trace the issues further back to 2001 when Greece joined the...
Words: 2495 - Pages: 10
...Greek Sovereign Debt Crisis CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................... 2 2. THE CRISIS ........................................................................................................................... 2 3. THE WAY TO THE CRISIS...................................................................................................... 3 4. HOW DOES THE CRISIS AFFECT THE GLOBAL FINANCIAL SYSTEM? .................................... 4 5. WHAT IF GREECE LEFT THE EURO ZONE? ........................................................................... 5 6. IF GREECE HAS RECEIVED BILLIONS IN BAILOUTS, WHY IS THERE STILL A CRISIS? ............. 6 7. CONCLUSION....................................................................................................................... 7 8. BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................................................................................................... 8 1|Page Greek Sovereign Debt Crisis 1. Introduction The economy of Greece is the 45th largest in the world with a nominal gross domestic product (GDP) of $238 billion per annum. It is also the 51st largest in the world by purchasing power parity at $286 billion per annum. As of 2013, Greece is the thirteenth-largest economy in the 28-member European Union. Greece is classified as an advanced, high-income economy, and...
Words: 2375 - Pages: 10
...THE FACULTY OF ECONOMICS LJUBLJANA THE CRISIS IN GREECE subject: TAXES MAY 2013 TAXES THE CRISIS IN GREECE author: P.Fux Contents INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... 3 GENESIS OF THE FINANCIAL CRISIS (USA) ................................................................. 3 THE TIPPING POINT ........................................................................................................... 3 IMPACT OF BANKING CRISIS ON EU - DEVELOPMENT OF FISCAL CRISIS .............. 4 WHAT HAPPENED IN GREECE............................................................................................. 4 DEBT IS HER OLDEST COMPANION ............................................................................... 5 CRISIS HAS SHOWN FIRST EFFECTS.............................................................................. 5 HOW MARKETS SAW GREECE ........................................................................................ 6 GREECE'S PROBLEMS SINCE THE CRISIS HAS ARISEN and BAILOUTS ..................... 7 The huge numbers of Greece's debt in pictures (2012) ...................................................... 9 A FEW WORDS ABOUT GREECE'S RATIOS ..................................................................... 10 THE GOVERNMENT SPENDINGS ..............................................................
Words: 6764 - Pages: 28
...II. Greece public debt 1. Current situation Greece has been in the public debt crisis since 2009. The Greek public debt crisis is one of a number of current European sovereign-debt crises and is believed to have been caused by a combination of structural weaknesses of the Greek economy coupled with the incomplete economic, tax and banking unification of the European Monetary Union. Those days, Greece has confronted with three main related problems: government trust crisis, declining liquidity capacity and high risk of bankruptcy. a) Government trust crisis The prestige of Greek government was impaired seriously during crisis time. Greece borrowed uncontrollable amounts from the financial market to ensure the liquidity for the budget deficit. The budget deficit limit allowed in Eurozone was only 3% of the GDP, while this level of Greece in 2009 was 13.6% and might even increase to over 14%. To cover the overspending in the past years, the Greek government had reported data inconsistently and bias, containing various unusual sections in budget. This action drew to the negative consequences on the reputation of the Greek government on the domestic as well as international market. The credit ascertaining organization successively downgraded Greece recently. Within the first four months of 2010 S&P had lowered continuously the credibility coefficient of Greece, from A- to BBB+ and BB+. b) Declining liquidity capacity Unpaid debt of Greece was nearly 400 billion...
Words: 1933 - Pages: 8
...banking industry disregarding ethical behavior and leaving the philosophy of sound investing strategies for a philosophy of profits. In evaluating the role of unethical decisions in causing the financial crisis, we will start by defining ethics. Ethics can be defined as rules of behavior based on ideas about what is morally good and bad. In every profession, each person has to abide by codes of ethical standards for that profession. So with regards to the financial crisis individuals acted in an unethical manner which eventually aided in the great recession. In analyzing the sources of the problem in the financial crisis, such as poor risk controls, too much leverage and an almost willful blindness to the bubble-like conditions in the housing market, we can strongly say that ethics did play a major role. Financial firms became unmoored from its ethical base and were free to behave in ways that were in their, top executives, short-term interest without any concern about the longer term impact on the industry’s customers or the broader U.S economy. Integrity and a sense of responsibility to the industry’s customers are at the core of what a financial industry must be all about; otherwise it is just a big Ponzi scheme. The ethical failures in the subprime lending played a major role in the financial as mortgage brokers did not care about the credit worthiness of the borrowers as they were getting paid for the number of transactions that they had conducted. Immelt’s comment was in regards...
Words: 3142 - Pages: 13
...overcome its financial crisis. At the end of 2009, the problems for Greece started emerging when the newly-elected government realised that the country was heavily in debt. In the meantime, both Greek banks and the government were graded by rating agencies as dramatically low, as the country's debt had peaked (Tseronis 2014). Furthermore, in 2010, reports concerning accounting irregularities for the statistics which the Greek government delivered to Brussels caused the media to put Greece on the spot and raised concerns about the sustainability of the Greek debt and the country's credibility (Tseronis 2014). Thus, Greece became the first EU member to activate a bailout package from the newly set up European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) and representatives of the European Commission (EC), the European Central Bank (ECB), and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), commonly referred to as the ‘troika’, in May 2010 (Gemenis & Nezi 2015; Tseronis 2014). Afterwards, Greece required a second bailout programme in February 2012 and an agreement that led to a third bailout after marathon negotiations, on 13th July 2015. The aim of this essay is not only to describe and analyse how Greece reached a third bailout but also to investigate if this programme could be the end of the Greek and euro crisis. It is divided into three main sectors: the first one is about the previous bailout programmes as well as the reasons for their failure. The second one analyses the present crisis, the new...
Words: 3251 - Pages: 14
...a monetary union with others in the club. Trouble in the public sector, problems with taxes, structural challenges and downfall of tourism and shipping due to economic crisis made it next to impossible for Greece to settle down being a part of euro zone. Not only was Greece in a troublesome state, but even all the European leaders are dealing with growing debt problems that are rattling investors worldwide; as everything is globally connected. Background When it came to joining the euro in 2001, it should have been obvious that Greece did not meet the debt conditions. But, by spinning the numbers, Greece gained entry, not just to the single market but to debt markets that allowed it to borrow as though it was as dependable as Germany. Greece went on a spending spree on infrastructure, services and public sector wages. Meanwhile, the Greeks stopped paying taxes. To Athens’ delight, banks and the financial markets filled the gap by lending billions of euros. With the onslaught of the credit crunch, Greece’s vast debts were exposed - but so was the exposure of European banks. Euro accession led to an economic boom in Greece and the fiscal policy was pro-cyclical * Adoption of the euro and loose global credit conditions in the 2000s allowed Greece easy access to foreign borrowing that financed a significant expansion of government spending. * Robust private credit growth following financial liberalization also served to boost household consumption. * Real GDP...
Words: 930 - Pages: 4
