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The Yellow Wallpaper Analysis

The Yellow Wallpaper is a short story that was written in 1952, and the setting of the story takes place in the period that it was written. The time of the setting of the story affects how the characters address each other. She has no right to argue with her husband for the female narrator, and she needs to keep him happy by doing things that he wishes. To this end, she even pretends to improve while her condition is worsening to make her husband happy. On the other hand, the narrator’s husband addresses her as his inferior. His language, such as calling her his blessed little goose and his treatment towards her, indicates that he takes her likes a child instead of an adult. The atmosphere of the story combines a big room and restriction to indicate emptiness and loneliness in life. During the story, a rich man could afford a big house for his family, but due to the time that the story was set and the society’s perceptions towards women, he had to isolate her in a big empty room for his rest cure. When the story was set, women were thought to lack abilities, and thus the time of the setting led to the isolation of the narrator. 

This short story’s protagonist is an unnamed narrator who tells the audience about her story to madness through her diary. The main characters, especially John, are depicted according to the way they address other characters. John, in various circumstances, ignores what the narrator tells him and forces his opinion on her. t5he author mostly bases her description of the characters on their interactions. Mainly the interaction between the narrator and her husband as she undergoes her rest cure. 

The story’s main theme is the subordination of women in the 1950s, which was common, and was it not for the madness that the narrator undergoes at the end of the story. The whole story would have seemed like a usual occurrence to an audience of the time. Women’s subordination was the societal expectation of women, which required women always to obey their husbands no matter what. The theme is indicated in the various suggestions that the narrator gives to her husband, who responds by discrediting them without any consideration. She has no option but to accept the rest cure, which her husband insists will do her good while she knows it’s destroying her but has no way to prove it to her husband. Other key themes of the story include the need for self-expression and the dangers of the rest cure. 

Price-Value Relationship

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Price-Value Relationship

Previously, the value of a product determined its price. In this line, customers would look at the product’s qualities, such as the quality of material making a piece of clothing, to determine what it should cost. However, things have changed, and the price of a product is determining its value. Therefore, when a customer steps into a supermarket, for example, he/she doesn’t go for the product that has the highest quality; many don’t even know these qualities anyway, they just look at the price tags, and the most expensive product has the highest value (Serwetz, 2020). The concept of price-determining the value of a product is true and has been the main way consumers have been using to select products when purchasing. The concept is true for companies such as Gucci, which make elegant products have always put a higher price on their goods, and many people do not care about the quality of their goods; having a Gucci expensive shoe is all that matters. Despite the competition from other cheaper products from places like China, Gucci continues to prevail by selling expensive products that consumers believe are worth the price.

TJX retailers have survived the price-value problem that has bankrupted other brands. Their price level is lower than that of other retailers such as Macy’s, but they have been consistent in their pricing, and customers have trusted the value of their goods based on the price (Serwetz, 2020). If TJX continues with the success, it should never try to restructure their price-value relationship. Brooks Brothers messed with their price-value relationship when they lowered the price of their shirts. If Brooks Brothers are to survive, they need to redesign their shirts and tag high prices, making consumers believe that the shirts are worth that price. Macy’s have also messed with the price-value relationship by lowering the price creating a mentality that the product will be cheaper tomorrow than it is today. Macy’s have lost their customers’ trust, and to regain it, they need consistency in their prices as all their customers need an assurance that their products are worth that price. Neiman Marcus has taken a similar route to that taken by Macy’s, which will have fatal results if they do not change. All their products have a 50% discount, and with the current price-value relationship, this strategy does not work. If they are to escape their downfall, they need to make customers believe that their products are worth the price they have tagged.

As a consumer, the price determines the value of the product I purchase; if it’s expensive, it’s good and original. I trust the seller’s prices as a determinant of the values that they sell, and this has, in many circumstances, helped me get better products. If the use of price to determine the value of a product is anything to go by, the statement cheap is expensive would serve me as a customer right, which would be a breakthrough in my purchasing strategy. 

References

Serwetz, M. (2020, June 22). Not understanding the relationship between price and value can be (Is, was) lethal. I, Sourcerer Business & Marketing Community. https://www.isourcerer.com/2020/06/not-understanding-relationship-between.html

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Harriet Tubman

Harriet Tubman is an American icon who was enslaved and rose to become the leader of the Underground Railroad, which facilitated many slaves to gain liberty before the civil war began. She was a nurse who also acted as the Union’s spy while a bounty on her head had been placed (Krasner 2). Harriet was born in 1820 and worked as a cook before being rented as a muskrat traps setter. At the age of twelve, she began her quest for justice, but this led to a head injury due to heavy weight that was thrown at her but intended to hit another fugitive (Mcelya 1). The traumatic head injury made her dizzy and hypersomnia. She began to have strange visions and elaborate dreams and believed that they were from God. Religious background and the experience led her to be religiously devout. Harriet was a major activist for the suffrage of women movement. She was married to John Tubman, who was a free black man and acquired his second name. 

Since Harriet got a head injury, she never regained normal health. This led to a major sickness in 1849, which rendered her useless as a slave, and her master could not get a buyer for her. She was discontented to learn of her master trying to sell her and continuous enslaving her relatives further (Larson 7). After the death of Edward Brodess, his wife wanted to sell Tubman and her relatives, but she decided to liberate herself. She believed that it was either liberty or death for her to be free despite persuasion from her husband. Harriet managed to escape together with her brothers in the same year she got sick. Her escape was hardly noticed by Brodess’s wife Eliza for two weeks (Whitehead 3). Eliza decided to offer a $100 bounty for every escapee and posted it on the Cambridge Democrat. Following the bounty, her brothers decided to return, and this forced Tubman to return with them. 

Tubman did not stay long before she planned and executed another escape alone. She informed her mother of her planned escape through an encoded message in the form of a song. She escaped using the Underground Railroad route, which is not exactly known. This route network had been well established by other free and enslaved black people, white abolitionists, and other people who fought for the rights of others. The Quakers were dominant members of the Underground Railroad movement in Maryland (Broyld 7). It is believed that from Maryland, Tubman traveled through Preston close to Poplar Neck and then headed to Pennsylvania through Delaware. Through the journey, she traveled at night and followed the North Star as the direction guider. This enabled her to hide from the slave catchers who hunted for escaped fugitives and collected their bounties. To ensure protection, the conductors of the movement had to use deception techniques so as not to be recognized (Clinton 30). One would be given some chores so as to appear as to be working for a certain family during the day and at night be transferred to another household using a cart. 

While in Philadelphia in 1850, the U.S. Congress approved the fugitive slave law, which advocated for a hefty punishment for those slaves that escaped. The law enforcers in all States were forced to assist in capturing the escapees. This made it difficult for Harriet Tubman to remain free. Following notice on the sale of her niece and her two children, Tubman hid in Baltimore with her brother-in-law Tom Tubman. Her niece Kessiah and the children managed to escape with the help of John Bowley using a canoe to Baltimore, where they reunited with Tubman (Larson 14). In 1851, she returned to Maryland and escaped with her brother Moses and two other men. When she traveled to Dorchester County to meet her husband, she learned that he had married another woman. Tubman tried to persuade them to follow her, but they refused to claim that they were comfortable with their lives (Whitehead 4). John Tubman was later killed sixteen years later due to a confrontation with a white man. 

By December of 1851, Tubman managed to escape with eleven fugitives and headed north. The Fugitive Law of 1851 had made life unbearable for the escaped fugitives, and the only option was to escape. Evidence indicates that Tubman and the eleven fugitives visited Fredrick Douglass, who was an abolitionist and a former slave (Clinton 32). Tubman’s continuous assistance for the escape of slaves gave her more confidence to continue with the work she had started. The returns to Maryland led to saving another seventy slaves over a period of eleven years. It is believed that this took thirteen returns to achieve. Approximately another sixty slaves managed to escape northwards without Tubman, but they were given instructions by her (Broyld 7). She managed to lead a group of eight fugitives harbored by her father when she learned of the possibility of his arrest. Her efforts to assist slaves into freedom from the whites earned her the nickname ‘Moses’, comparing her to the biblical Moses, who assisted the people of Israel in gaining freedom from the Egyptians. 

Achieving such tremendous and noble tasks was not easy for Tubman as there was a bounty on her head. It took a lot of determination and courage to carry out the plans. She came up with an ingenious plan that worked marvelously. Every time she had to escape with the slaves, it had to be during the winter season. During this time, it was cold, and people had to stay at home (Calkhoven 15). Also, the nights are longer and the day time shorter. Therefore it would be easier for her to flee unnoticed at night and travel for long hours the night with the fugitives. She always made early contact with the slaves, and the escape would be conducted on Saturday evening. This was because the runaways were not printed on weekends and had to wait until Monday (Hobson 6). This would give them ample time to be far from the bounty hunters. The art of subterfuge played a major role in hiding the slaves. They would pretend to carry out normal errands and thus go unnoticed as escapees. 

Tubman was a staunch religious believer and used her visions to guide her and the others as they escaped. She altered songs to inform the fugitives when it was safe and unsafe in their journey. Due to the success achieved, more slaves believed opted to follow her (Krasner 112). She used to carry a revolver, which offered security and never feared using it when required. It is believed that the revolver was also used to threaten any slave who would try to return back or escape. Due to her methods of escaping with the slaves, the slaveholders did not know that it was Tubman who was responsible as she was considered disabled due to the head injury (Broyld 2). They thought that there was a white abolitionist who lured the slaves to himself from the region. When they came to realize it was Tubman, a huge bounty of about $40,000 was given for her in 1868. 

Tubman met John Brown, an abolitionist, in 1858, and the two believed to have a divine calling. Brown believed that slavery would only be abolished by the use of violence, while Tubman advocated for peaceful means. However, she decided to support his ideology of direct action. Brown sourced support from activists, abolitionists, and fugitives to form a movement that would attack the slave masters (Clinton 65). He met with Chatham Ontario and gave him his plan. The plan was leaked, forcing Brown to change it. Tubman offered invaluable strategies adding them to the plan. However, the plan failed, and Brown was arrested, convicted for treason and hanged. Tubman considered his death as worth more than a hundred living men who were not resisting slavery (Calkhoven 20). Brown’s resistance gave many slaves and abolitionists the courage to fight more for freedom. 

In 1861, the American civil war began, and this was an opportunity for Tubman to help in ending slavery. Due to the help that slaves got from the army, Tubman felt that the Union Army would be the solution to slavery. She wanted to assist the Union with her expertise and thus became a spy (Larson 14). She joined other abolitionists, where she was able to assist more fugitives. The Union’s generals, such as Benjamin Butler and David Hunter, supported the abolition of slavery and ordered the freeing of contrabands in the regions. Former slaves joined the army regiment and thus empowered the black community in the fight against enslavement (Hobson 4). At Port Royal, while an abolitionist and a spy, Tubman became a nurse where she made concoctions of traditional plants for the treatment of dysentery and smallpox. 

In 1863, Tubman led an army assault. She then joined Montgomery at the Combahee River and raided plantations using steamboats (Krasner 121). They managed to destroy properties worth thousands of dollars using fire and also seize food. When the slaves in the area saw this, they ran towards the boats together with their belongings and children (Calkhoven 24). Over seven hundred and fifty slaves gained freedom during that raid, and Tubman was hailed for the work. She continued to work with the Union Army until 1865, when she went back home. In 1869 she was involved in an argument with a train conductor. The conductor wanted her to move to the baggage car, but she refused as she had papers allowing her to be in the half-price area. The conductor was assisted by two other white passengers and got Tubman into the baggage section. Her hand got broken, and this act of defiance has been hailed since then (Broyld 11). She spent the rest of her life with her family in Auburn. 

Harriet Tubman played a major role in the abolishment of slavery in the Northern region of America. She used to be a slave but got injured on the head and could not be sold as a slave. The injury gave her visions, which she believed were from God. She managed to escape and began her journey as a freedom fighter for people of color who had been enslaved. Through many returns to Maryland, she managed to escape with more fugitives to freedom despite having a bounty on her head. She met with many abolitionists and planned more for the fight for the end of slavery. When she joined the Union army, she led an attack that saw over 750 slaves were rescued. Her works are remembered today in American history as an icon. In her old age, she advocated for women’s suffrage as she believed that women had equal rights to vote as men. Suffragist activism earned her more admiration in America.

Works Cited

Broyld, D. J. “Harriet Tubman: Transnationalism And The Land Of A Queen In The Late Antebellum”. Meridians, vol 12, no. 2, 2014, pp. 78-98. Duke University Press, doi:10.2979/meridians.12.2.78.

Calkhoven, L. Harriet Tubman: Leading the way to freedom. Sterling Publishing Company, 2008.

Clinton, C. Harriet Tubman: The road to freedom. Little Brown & Company, 2004.

Hobson, J. “Harriet Tubman”. Meridians, vol 12, no. 2, 2014, pp. 1-8. Duke University Press, doi:10.2979/meridians.12.2.1.

Krasner, B. Harriet Tubman: Abolitionist and conductor of the Underground Railroad. Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2017.

Larson, K. C. “Harriet Ross Tubman Timeline”. Meridians, vol 12, no. 2, 2014, pp. 9-27. Duke University Press, doi:10.2979/meridians.12.2.9.

Mcelya, M. “:Harriet Tubman: Myth, Memory, And History”. The American Historical Review, vol 113, no. 4, 2008, pp. 1163-1163. Oxford University Press (OUP), doi:10.1086/ahr.113.4.1163.

Whitehead, K. W. “Harriet Tubman”. Meridians, vol 12, no. 2, 2014, pp. 156-160. Duke University Press, doi:10.2979/meridians.12.2.156.

The global pandemic has been a challenge to several countries across the globe. Regarding the news article posted by Minyvonne Burke, she claims that over the past few months after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the Corona Virus a global pandemic, with millions of cases Covid-19. Simultaneously, the third wave hit massively, prompting the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) to take action. Moreover, Burke claims that the country has recorded more than 200,000 coronavirus cases over the last twenty-four hours, which brought the number to 12,002,863, with a total number of deaths of 255,567 (Burke 2020). He further states that the numbers are likely to rise. 

In a bid to contain the global pandemic, Burke notes that several governors have added masks’ measures and tightened the rule on attending social gatherings. The news item depicts clear that the new measures came after the stay after the issue to stay at home was ordered, which had been invalidated by the Supreme Court. At least six governors issued their opinions concerning the spread of the global pandemic. The six governors, including Tony Evers urged the Americans to take the virus seriously and work together in fighting the virus.  Moreover, the governors urged the Americans to reconsider traveling for the thanksgiving event, which will result in thousands of citizens contracting the dreaded virus.

The Covid-19 has impacted the usual ways of doing business. Businesses are significantly affected, leading to some of them completely shutting down. The economic concepts, such as value, scarcity, supply and demand, costs and benefits, and incentives, among others, are significantly affected in one way or another. The concept of the world having scarce resources leading to business owners on constant decision making. With the emergence of covid-19, several businesses were shut down, causing products to be scarce as the public is in constant demand for them. Since the United States banned Flights from major producing countries such as China, businesses need products from other countries to shut down. Since the United States economy is led by a constant demand and supply chain, most businesses’ closure due to Covid-19 has put a significant setback to the demand and supply chain economic concepts. Enterprises are currently redefining their way of conducting business. Some of them did not incorporate change strategy, which leads them to make losses instead of profits, consequently causing the company to shut down promptly.  The closure of such businesses causes massive unemployment that significantly impacts the United States’ economy. Since most firms have closed down, the firms’ values have tremendously dropped down, causing a negative impact on the economical concept (Hossain, 2020). The government’s straining orders have also affected different firms produces products for public consumptions.   

According to the article (Burke, 2020), the governors urged Americans to observe the health regulations that will contain the virus’s spread. In a bid to stop the virus, the governors have set out measures that ensure that the general public is safe and are not at risk of contracting the dreaded virus. I want to support the opinion since it has affected all classes of people, including us. We should join hands in the wake of the virus to reduce the mortality of the virus. By working together, the American economy will regain, and people will continue living their everyday lives.

References

Burke, M. (2020, November 21). U.S. records over 12 million cases of coronavirus. NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/u-s-records-over-12-million-cases-coronavirus-n1248511 

Hossain, M. (2020). The effect of the Covid-19 on sharing economy activities. Journal of Cleaner Production, 124782.

European Management and Business Strategy

Topic 1: The Development of the EU
Assess the extent to which integration in the European Union has been economic. Why has economic
policy played such an important role in the development of the EU?

Formalia:
Minimum 2000 Words – Max 2050 words This excludes words used as part of tables, graphs, appendices,
the bibliography, cover, and table of contents.

The essay should focus on answering the discussion question by providing a summary of the key issues and
wherever appropriate providing your insights and recommendations.
The work must be typed doubled-spaced. Marks will be deducted where the word requirement is not
adhered to.
It is important that you carefully reference your sources so that there are clear distinctions between your
thoughts and those expressed by others. You should follow the Harvard referencing style which can be
accessed through the Word References tab.
While appendices provide greater flexibility for you to illustrate your points, this does not mean they
should be used as a method to circumvent the word limit. Appendices must be referred to in the work;
your mark will suffer if you do not refer to them.
We require a formal word count of the main body of text at the end of the paper before the bibliography
and appendices. You can use the Word Count feature in Word that is found on the Review tab.

Evidence of a well-planned, organized and structured piece of work including clear conclusions and
recommendations.
Appropriate content and coherence: relevance of the context to the questions set; has the assignment
questions been squarely and clearly answered? To what extent does the content develop coherent themes
of argument in answering the questions?
Analytical standard: emphasis on analysis rather than repeating descriptive details; application of
theoretical concepts and techniques, demonstration of analytical learning.
Presentation: use of essay format, use of diagrams and visual aids, quality of academic writing and the use
of English. Proper referencing and use of bibliography.
Full details of all published or unpublished books, articles, pamphlets, reports or papers used must be
included in a bibliography at the end of the paper.

Answer

Development of the European Union

The European Union (EU) consists of 27 members from Europe. The origin of the organisation is traced in the 1950s between European steel and coal communities who were in constant wars. It is a political and economic union where it has developed an internal market for various goods and services through the standardised laws and regulations among the members (Chalmers, Davies and Monti 2019). The policies of the organisation are about free movement of goods, people, capital and services among the member states. Member countries maintain standard guidelines in the trade, agriculture and fishing sector to enhance the common objective of free movement. There has also been the enactment of legal laws for the administration of justice to home affairs. There is no restriction on travelling, making it easier for the flow of people among the member countries. 

In 1992 a monetary union was established which came into existence in 2002, the monetary Union aimed to improve the trade policies of the movement and the usage of a common currency. The monetary Union consists of 19 member states. With time other countries have been able to join the organisation like the 2009 Lisbon treaty, which was amendments to the European Union constitution to allow members to join. European Union is represented to the World Trade Organization (WTO), which promotes economic and trade growth (Richardson 2015).  EU has played an essential role in improving the financial states of the member countries and also the nominal gross domestic product (GDP). Member states have lower inflation rates which are enhanced by free movement across the borders. 

Economic policies have played an important role in the development of European Union because there was partisan support brought about by the policies put in place. Prior to the formation of EU partisan support was associated with political but with the formation of the EU, partisan support was achieved through the economic policies. The market and price stability was the main objective of the formation of the Union which was achieved through sound economic policy (Braniff 2011). The economic policies that were put in place enabled more countries to joining strengthening the Union. It is through the policies that we see more countries participate in free trade. The policies were important to minimize the trade wars that could arise, for example, wars that were early witnessed in the steel and coal region.

Policies of the European Union

European Union is commonly characterised by its single internal market which was among the main objectives during formation. The internal market involves free movement of capital, goods people and services in the members’ states. Also, there is the customs union which requires the implementation of standard external tariffs. When the goods are already circulated in the market, they are not subjected to discriminatory taxes, custom duties and import quotas. The legislation and policies are well articulated in the constitution, and this enhances the trade relationships between countries (El-Agraa 2011). The free movement on capital targets on more manageable investment in share capital and also buying of properties in other countries. Free movement of people means that there is reduced administrative requirements on the boarders; hence people can work and live freely in other countries. 

 Various policies help in governing and ensuring that the objectives of the organisation are made. The policies are in line with the goals of each member state. In the movement, there is a policy on the economic empowerment of member countries. The monetary policy aims at stabilising the use of Euro. With the help of a common currency, there is completion among the companies. The European Central Bank regulates the interest rates applied by all financial institutions in the member countries. The standard interest rates will be easier for companies that need financial assistance to access with the same rates in different countries. The bank also regulates the inflation and exchange rates which means there are no additional costs incurred when doing transactions in other member countries. The European Central Bank, through the Union, pays member states subsidies on development projects intending to improve the living standards of the people and also the economic value of the state.

There is enhanced financial supervision in the Union.  There are three authorises governing the supervision aspect they are; European Securities and Market Authority, European Banking Authority and European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority. These authorities can check on the financial obligations of the members. The securities exchange board is responsible for supervising the aspects of the capital and securities performance on the market. The authority also oversees that all the companies participating in the market are treated equally and doing the right businesses. Through this board, there has been improved and secure trading of securities (Maudos and de Guevara 2015.). The Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority has been on the frontline on fighting for better laws about the occupation. Different occupations have been recognised in member states. Also, there has been the application of standard procedures and rates when pensions are applied—the European Risk Systematic Board, which analyses risks in the markets and advice on the way forward. There has been excellent economic stability since risks are analysed, and internal controls are put in place to minimise the occurrence.

The Union is concerned with the industry and entrepreneurship among the members. There has been an emphasis on the need for industry development and also encouraging the growth of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SME). With the growth of digital industries across the members, there will be enhanced trade relationships. There have been programmes that have developed to aid in the establishment and functioning of the SMEs. Through SMEs, there has been increased economic growth and innovation. There have been policies which encourage the operation of small and medium-sized enterprises (Cini and Borragán 2019). With the right economic systems already put in place, many SMEs have been formed. There has been an immense improvement in innovation and also the digital economy. Many enterprises have been able to embrace the digital economy since its cost-effective.

The agricultural policy is critical in the European Union. This is evident by the passing of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The policy focuses on the increasing food certainty to the members, increasing agricultural production and also improving the living standards of the farmers. The policy too focused on stabilising the farming markets and ensuring fair prices for both farmers and consumers. The policy also looks on ways of minimising on overproduction of agricultural products so that the supply does not exceed the demand. The policy allows subsidies and direct monetary aid to be offered to cut the cost experienced by the farmers (Richardson 2015). For example, farmers in less fertile areas are given financial assistance to support their cattle rearing compared to farmers from the productive areas in central Europe. Good packaging has seen many consumers be satisfied and happy for the example Finland people are delighted when they see food packaged in Finnish even if it was imported from other EU member countries.

There has been a policy on the infrastructure whereby the organisation is working on improving the inter-country transport system through the Trans-European Networks (TEN). There have been various projects to improve the infrastructure coverage in the Union they include, Brenner Base Tunnel and the Strait of Messina Bridge. There has been a notable improvement on the railway, roads, harbours and airports in the member countries. Also, the synchronising of the railway network by the European Railway Traffic Management System (ERTMS) has enhanced security and efficiency of railway services to the people (Dall’Erba and Fang 2017). With developments in the infrastructure across the countries, there has been ease of accessibility to different parts. Perishable agricultural products can be transported promptly to reach the consumers in time. Good infrastructure has enhanced the operation and movement of goods across the borders.

The policy on security has been emphasised by the members, which focuses on the internal matters of Europe. There is a standard enforcement agency called Europol, which allows police authorities among member states to cooperate and solve crimes affecting the region (Kaczorowska-Ireland 2016.). Europol focuses on international crimes like illegal immigration, drug trafficking and money laundering. The cooperation between law enforcement authorities like judges and prosecutors has led to improved justice delivery and also saves time. The presence of rapid forces to help when there are an emergency or terror attacks as helped in mitigating difficult situations among members. There is a possibility of formation of common security across the member countries of the 

Union.

An acceptable policy on labour force has been a good relationship between member states. With the development experienced in world trade, the economic recession, there has been an increase in the unemployment cases (El-Agraa 2011). The Unions seeks to keep jobs for its people and find more jobs to cushion the shortage. There is an excellent investment in the education system and research in forecasting any changes in the economy in the forcible future. The Union offers grants to education and research to make it easier to access education systems for better service delivery. During the economic recession, there are subsidies granted to building offering large scale jobs. With better terms on the labour policy, there is the easy availability of the services which has common laws across member countries.  

Impact of the European Union

The European Union has played a significant role in the development and growth of the world economy since it is the second contributor to the world economic income. The Union has brought about the economic development of the member countries. The member countries have had a significant improvement in the national per capita income and the national gross domestic product, which has enhanced development of other sectors in the country (Chalmers, Davies and Monti 2019). With no application of trade tariffs on goods and services, also the free movement of people, capital, goods and services, there has been an improvement in economic growth. Trade tariffs increase the cost of imported goods which, when used in production it increases the cost of production, making the price to go high. The EU has no tariffs on the goods; hence the cost of production will be cheaper.

There is the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises. The Union has a strategy that helps in the development of SMEs, especially in developing member countries. Growth of SMEs help in reducing unemployment and also plays an essential role in inflation (Wallace, Pollack, Roederer-Rynning and Young 2020). The Union gives subsidies and direct monetary aid to countries so that they can develop the SMEs system. The development of SMEs has had an increase in innovation and inventories in the economic world. Through SMEs, the tax base of the country is increased hand also it encourages competition from peer companies. Small and medium-sized enterprises adapt fast to the changing economic situations; hence they are suitable for financial cushioning during the recession. 

There is a reduction in financial market risk. The use of common currency by members has led to reduced risks in currency exchange fluctuations. The use of different currencies is associated with fluctuations in the exchange process. Business loses money since there is value difference and the exchange rates change from day to day (Cini and Borragán, 2019). The EU central bank is instrumental in tracing the interest rates applied by financial institutions. The use of similar interest rates across member countries has helped businesses to access financial loans in different countries. Availability of financial loans has helped in the expansion of other companies leading to economic growth in the country.

There has been enhanced unity among the member countries. The union advocates for co-existence and harmony among the member countries in the Union. The joint police cooperation among member states has helped in fighting injustice and crimes. This has reduced the rate of crimes and fostering unity (Maudos and de Guevara 2015). The Union states that there should be no conflict in the affiliate countries, making it clear on the importance of unity.  It has discouraged inequality by stopping rich nations like Germany and France in controlling the affairs of developing countries. Each country has a say in the matters concerning the Union and economic empowerment.

The Union has experienced various setbacks in its functioning. With free movement of goods services people and capital, countries have little power on either to agree or not (Braniff 2011). This has reduced the economic powers of the state in implementing the regulations that favour them. The rules set for members are hard to achieve; for example, Iceland could not join fishing trade due to the regulations set.

Another challenge is the restriction of members by regulations and laws stipulated in the Union. With such laws, the powers and responsibilities of affiliated members are limited. Countries are not able to fully utilise their economic capabilities. Also, the rules make it hard for members who want to exit voluntarily from the Union. For example, in 2016, after the United Kingdom referendum, they decided to leave the Union. Still, they had to sign an agreement for the successful exit, which will be effective from January 2021 (Leruth, Gänzle and Trondal 2019). Considering all the formalities and regulations set, it becomes tough for and time-consuming for a country to exit the organisation.

In conclusion, the European Union has played a vital role in the economic growth of the member countries and the world at large. There has been immense growth in the financial and banking sectors since the Euro is the second traded currency after the Dollar. The Union has enhanced unity among the affiliates and non-member countries (Dall’Erba and Fang 2017). The trade tariffs, which was not applied to goods, led to lower prices of goods encouraging consumption. The policies that were put in place by the Union like the agricultural policy led to sufficient production of food commodities. Through the Union there was market stability and also prices due to free movement. The European Union was able to achieve its set objectives.

                                       References 

Braniff, M., 2011. Integrating the Balkans: Conflict Resolution and the Impact of European Union Expansion. IB Tauris,

Chalmers, D., Davies, G. and Monti, G., 2019. European union law. Cambridge university press.

Cini, M. and Borragán, N.P.S., 2019. European union politics. Oxford University Press, USA.

Dall’Erba, S. and Fang, F., 2017. Meta-analysis of the impact of European Union Structural Funds on regional growth. Regional Studies, 51(6), pp.822-832.

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