Enron s Ceo Jeff Skilling Essay - 1025 Words

Enron executives Ken Lay and Jeffrey Skilling were found guilty of fraud and conspiracy. Andrew Fastow, Enron’s CFO, cut a deal in a plea-bargain in which he testified against his former bosses. The three of them have been called sociopaths. For instance, when Skilling took the stand he almost seemed humble, and assured his innocence, claiming that Enron didn’t do anything wrong. When Skilling was hired, the staff that he motivated as being innovative and independent, used accounting loopholes and poor financial reportings to hide billions of dollars in debt from failed deals and projects. Enron looks like the perfect illustration of the bad barrel bad apple disease. Enron’s CEO Jeff Skilling, pursued a culture that would push through the limits, â€Å"Do it right, do it now and do it better.† he used to say. Skilling encouraged employers to be independent and innovative. This gave rise to the pursuit of excellence, as executives worked to develop ways of preserving Enron’s success, when they unaware they were developing its downfall. Enron’s activities and decisions illustrate a range of characteristics discussed throughout the class, as being involved in institutional sociopathy. Lack of Empathy, for instance, which means the unwillingness of inability to recognize with the feelings and needs of others. Skilling embodies this characteristics, because he resigned his position when Enron, a company that he claimed he loved and cared for so much, was going bankrupt. Lack ofShow MoreRelatedThe Ethics Of The Enron Collapse Of Enron1366 Words   |  6 PagesCulture of Enron Before Enron bankruptcy it was one of America’s most powerful and successful energy companies. The company thrived and pushed to be number one no matter the circumstance, in this company’s case if it meant doing it illegally. 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Internet stocks were valued at astronomical prices and were all the rage on wall s treet, who accepted the increasing prices as normalRead MoreThe Leadership Styles Of The Executive Staff1383 Words   |  6 Pages â€Å"Was Enron the Work of a Few Bad Men or Dark Shadow of the American Dream?† In August 2000, Enron, an American energy corporation, stock had reached a high of $90.75 per share. However, by November 2001, the price had plummeted to less than a dollar amidst the collapse of one of analysts’ most highly recommended investments. On December 2, 2001, Enron became the largest American corporate bankruptcy to date. The company was deceptive, even fooling Fortune Magazine into naming it â€Å"America’sRead MoreEnron Scandal Reaction1483 Words   |  6 Pages The documentary film, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room It is a story about the greed in corporate America  that is always exposed after the fact. 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Moral Responsibility and Alternative Possibilities - Free Samples

Question: Discuss about the Moral Responsibility and Alternative Possibilities. Answer: Introduction: Every organization in this modern period has a set of added responsibility other than simply providing services or products. The use of business ethics in this period is immense and every organization has to adhere to a certain set of such ethics in order to sustain in the market (Trevino and Nelson 2016). The following essay will focus on such ethical issues and a recent case in the world business that reflects an ethical misconduct. The chosen incident that leads to the ethical misconduct was the forceful removal of a passenger from the United flight by the security staffs (Inc.com 2018). The essay will delve into greater detail and analysis of the incident and also focus on the business ethical issue that is relevant to the case. The idea of business ethics is constantly applicable to all the organization in this world. The incident that took place in the United flight was a supreme level of misconduct on the part of the organization towards its customers. The organization went against the moral responsibilities that are imbibed upon them and this lead to customers losing trust on them. A passenger was chosen randomly and was asked to move out of the flight, the passenger resisted and hence was dragged out of the flight by the attendants and security official. The entire situation occurred due to overbooking done for that particular flight and every customer was charged for seats but they were not accommodated in the flight as it was full already (Inc.com 2018). The passenger who was dragged out of the flight had a face that was bloodied and he seemed beaten up. The entire scene created a bad reflection of the organization towards the customers. The team at United was completely unaware of the idea of corpora te moral responsibility and hence such steps were taken to bring out a passenger from the flight. The entire act was horrendous and the flight staffs were aggressive throughout their interaction process with that passenger. Corporate moral responsibilities The organization these days have to abide by certain ethics that reflect their goodness towards the society and its consumer base. The corporate moral responsibility are known as a set of duties that an organization has towards the society and if they fail to follow those then can be acquitted of immoral practices in the society (Widerker 2017). The idea of corporate moral responsibility has been in debate because it is said that the organizations are not living beings and hence they cannot be always acquitted for moral responsibility. However, in case of extreme misconducts it is essential that it being put under the category of corporate moral responsibility misconduct by an organization (Blowfield and Murray 2014). The Kantian theory of ethics suggests that the morality of an act does not depend on the consequences that it may bring but the way in which it is being implemented. The issue becomes grave when it is matched with Kants theory of ethics as United and its staff were comp letely unethical in their way of dealing with the passenger on board management. The case that has been discussed in the essay is that of the misconduct by the staff of United Airlines. The dragging away of a passenger and making the person bleed and bruised is a serious case of corporate moral responsibility misconduct. The people in and around the flight during the time of action have felt serious unease and trauma at such behavior of the airline staffs. The morality of the organization went below all standards and people started perceiving the organization as immoral and wrongful in their customer dealings. The news spread out among the people like wildfire and the image of the airline giants fell down. People started having negative perceptions for the organization and its services (Benoit 2018). The reflection of cruelty in the practice was something that took the entire consumer base in a shock. The media had captured the news and marked out United as an immoral organization that has no security for their passengers and tickets are being sold as a scam prac tice. An organization is believed to act via its members and hence it is said that the organization is responsible for the morality that is being displayed by the organization. United was held guilty for the way they dealt with the passenger and it was seen that subsequently ticket sales dipped down for the organization. The action was completely done due to a failure on the part of the airlines and in order to fulfill their requirements such a harsh action was done against the passenger. This is completely against the Kantian ethics as it shows that the interest or the goals of the human beings were not addressed rather the motives of the organization were fulfilled (Herman 2016). Relevance with the modern business world The modern business world is becoming demanding with each passing day. The organizations need to deliver a lot of other things than just the product or service to the consumers. Each of the organization has to keep in mind the various issues that can rise in the manufacturing process or in the process of the delivering a service to the consumer. Every organization has to keep in mind the various ethical issues that can arise in the working process and the qualities of the organization that are to be met and delivered. In this modern world, people have expectation from organizations regarding their contribution towards the society and the way they operate with the customers. The Corporate Social Responsibility suggests that an organization has to adhere to certain norms and they should contribute positively to the society (Carroll 2015). Organizations these days need to have a separate plan for the CSR activities to be implemented, it is mandatory for a certain share of their profits to be invested in the field of CSR by the organization (Kang, Germann and Grewal 2016). In the same way, there is a moral responsibility that every organization has and needs to make sure that they are being implemented rightly. The behavior that the organization shows towards its clients and consumers are the foremost reflectors of the moral responsibility of the organization. It has to be understood by the people who are part of an organization that it is their responsibility to act in a moral way so that people do not have negative perceptions regarding the morals of an organization. In case of the United airlines, it was seen that the irresponsible behavior from the staff and security team lead to the depreciation of the moral values of the entire organization. The issue of morality is extremely sensitive and it has to be understood that any kind of moral lapse from an organization will have serious negative implications and the annual reports shall show a trend of lowering prof its over a period of time. Kant in his theory of ethics responds to such moral duties as mandatory and categorically imperative (O'Neill 2013). The misconduct of such CI will lead to the organization stoop low in the global market. Ethical misconduct can damage the results of an organization in the market management. Recommendations The United flight was overbooked and it was seen that they were randomly selecting people to drop from the flight so that their standby crew members could sit. The last man to be asked to leave the flight was a doctor and he did not follow their commands and stayed. The steps taken to remove him from the flight created a wave of fear among the other passengers. The people were afraid to see such a behavior from the airlines staff. Such fear in the customers leads to a huge impact on the sales of the organization. The company has to make sure that the staffs understand the duties that are being assigned to them. The staffs should understand that United is a huge airlines company and they are imbibed with an additional responsibility to make things work in a positive way. A proper training has to be scheduled where the staff needs to be trained in the prospects of the moral responsibility that they hold for the organization (Keep 2014). The company must have a transparent public relati ons system that shall accept the fault and make sure that the involved people are either punished or fired from the system. Such steps will make sure that the audience gains back trust in the company and gets assurance that the company does take severe steps in such cases rather than defending their action just like United did through their official statement regarding the issue. The organizations are expected to follow a maxim in their business ethics according to Kants theory. The organizations have to behave in a way that does not harm the people and their interests. It has to be understood by the organization that they should act only in a certain and with certain morality so that they can also get the same in return from the audience or customers. Conclusion The disturbing event that took place in the flight of United airlines makes it sure that such events are completely against the business ethics that prevail within an organization. The globalized marketplace has various organizations that makes sure that people are flooded with choices and hence any kind of lapse by an organization will lead to consumers moving to a different company altogether. The business ethics pave the way for an organizations success in the market. It has to be kept in mind that the people are proactive these days and hence none of the organizations shall get away with any wrong doings. The use of social media and the viral nature of the web 2.0 platform make sure that anything that is posted on the internet reaches out to a huge number of audiences in any part of the world (Paquette 2013). In this world of technological excellence and advancements, it is impossible to cover up any such practice that will be done by any company around the world management. Reference Benoit, W.L., 2018. Crisis and Image Repair at United Airlines: Fly the Unfriendly Skies.Journal of International Crisis and Risk Communication Research,1(1), p.2. Blowfield, M. and Murray, A., 2014.Corporate responsibility. Oxford University Press. Carroll, A.B., 2015. Corporate social responsibility.Organizational dynamics,44(2), pp.87-96. Herman, B., 2016.Morality as rationality: a study of Kant's ethics(Vol. 5). Routledge. Inc.com. 2018.United Airlines Forcibly Drags Bloodied Passenger Off Flight and Doesn't Apologize (No, He Wasn't Wearing Leggings). [online] Available at: https://www.inc.com/chris-matyszczyk/united-forcibly-drags-passenger-off-flight-and-doesnt-apologize-no-he-wasnt-wear.html [Accessed 27 Mar. 2018]. Kang, C., Germann, F. and Grewal, R., 2016. Washing away your sins? Corporate social responsibility, corporate social irresponsibility, and firm performance.Journal of Marketing,80(2), pp.59-79. Keep, E., 2014. Corporate training strategies: the vital component?.New Perspectives, pp.109-125. O'Neill, O., 2013.Acting on principle: An essay on Kantian ethics. Cambridge University Press. Paquette, H., 2013. Social media as a marketing tool: A literature review. Trevino, L.K. and Nelson, K.A., 2016.Managing business ethics: Straight talk about how to do it right. John Wiley Sons. Widerker, D., 2017.Moral responsibility and alternative possibilities: Essays on the importance of alternative possibilities. Routledge.

Should Abortion Be Legal free essay sample

For many people abortion is wrong without any questions and its consequences. Women have been raped or have been irresponsible for their actions. But either way, the situation is the same; women will just say â€Å"it is my body I can do anything I want with it. † It is the same reaction because I do not think the lady who has been raped, would like to have a baby of someone she does not even know. With her anger, she will not care if she is killing a child or not. A woman, who has not been responsible for her own actions, will not care having an abortion either.These ladies sometimes do not care and are more likely to say â€Å"it’s my body and I will do whatever I want with it. † It is sad, however, a woman has a right to her own body. All people have a right to do to their own bodies what they want. We will write a custom essay sample on Should Abortion Be Legal or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page â€Å"The argument in favor of abortion on demand, or abortion for convenience sake, that a woman has a right to do as she wishes to her own body, is not applicable to the question of abortion, since the mother’s body’s different from that of her baby, or fetus,† (Pauline Rocco and Bob Johnson).Many people think is okay to have an abortion, although, â€Å"he fetus is just part of the pregnant woman’s body, like her tonsils or appendix. You can’t seriously believe a frozen embryo is an actual person,† (Randy Alcorn). Randy Alcorn also claims if a child may die, a mother live or the mother may die and the child live, this proves that a child and the mother are two separate individuals. They also think the unborn child takes and active role in his developing. But the truth is who is feeding the unborn child? Should Abortion Be Legal? 3Abortion keeps being a bigger issue for medical reasons. For example, when a mother’s life is in jeopardy, who or what should decide? Should this be left to the discretion of the mother, family and/or doctor? It is true, the mother and the unborn baby are still two separate individuals/entities, but under these difficult circumstances, it is truly a personal decision for those directly involved,† (Pauline Rocco and Bob Johnson). In this situation a member of the family needs to decide between the mother and the unborn child. Regardless of the decision, one life will be lost and one saved.The issue of abortion in this situation is to kill the unborn baby for convenience, and choose the other life to be saved. Therefore, abortion should be treated the same in the case of a rape or medical reasons. â€Å"The government has a legitimate interest in protecting the life of an embryo or fetus, but embryos and fetuses do not have rights themselves unless and until it can be determined that they are human persons,† (Tom Head). The government has a legitimate interest in protecting the potential right of the fetus, but the fetus itself does not have rights previous to the viability threshold.Women have the right to make the decision about their own bodies and fetuses do not have right. â€Å"Therefore, until the fetus is old enough to have the rights of its own, the woman’s decision to have an abortion takes precedence over the interests of the fetus† (Tom Head). Abortion can only be homicide if a fetus is known to be a person and fetuses are not known to be a person. Therefore, government may pass laws prohibiting death threats, and give the right to woman to terminate her p regnancy. Law also criminalizes the procedure generally apply to doctors and not to women.This means that even under state laws banning abortion as medical procedure, women would be able to terminate the pregnancies through other resources. Many women take pills also known as drugs to terminate their pregnancies but are intended for other purposes. â€Å"In Nicaragua, where abortion is illegal, the ulcer drug misoprostol is often used for this purpose,† Should Abortion Be Legal? 4 (Tom Head). This drug is not expensive, and it is easy to transport and conceal. It also terminates the pregnancy in a manner that resembles a miscarriage. Illegally this is one of hundreds of options available to women who want to have an abortion. On the other hand, many people also think embryos and fetuses are equally human. They claim â€Å"true followers of Christ do not share the conventional interpretation of those words given them by liberals, moderates nor conservatives, whether such people are religious or non-religious,† (Against Abortion). They also think that the words â€Å" all men are created equal,† apply to every human embryo and fetus as well. And since they think they are humans at the earliest of conception, they are as equally human as everyone else who is rightly regarded as humans. For the ones who have had and perform abortions for any reason should be regarded by the government and the public as high criminals who should bare the just punishment of death. Human embryos and fetuses cannot secure their own rights to life. â€Å"It should not be left up to some special interest group to seek their protection, and the government should not allow any foolish deep-pocketed special interest group to petition and lobby it for removal of the rights of innocent human beings,† (Against Abortion). Therefore, it should be illegal for abortion-rights advocates to exist.They claim America’s government has become destructive to the right of the unborn. And it also refuses to protect the God-given rights of the most innocent and helpless on earth and refuses to condemn and punish abortion advocates. Innocent human embryos and fetuses have no legal status as being human even though they are very much human. They have no status as citizens even though they are natives, no legal identification certificates, numbers or names. Their fathers have no legal claim on them as being their progeny and their relatives cannot legally claim them as their kin.Even though, they are very much alive, they are treated with fewer honors than the dead. Nobody mourns over them when Should Abortion Be Legal? 5 they are actually murdered by their own mother or no funerals are held or not even a grave for them. This is sad but very true. Since abortion is legal, no charges can be done against their murders and no murders are punished. These people even think that the government themselves are their worst enemies. Many who have fought have blindly directed their energy and resources in the wrong directions.Other has insisted that inducing abortions should be illegal for some cases while keeping it legal for others. The fight against abortion must also be fought using the principles of truth, justice and righteousness. And their goal against abortion is for â€Å"America and the world to begin to legally recognize truths that are ‘self-evident’ which is the human embryos and fetuses and their legal innocence in the eyes of sane law and to give them their rightful status as legal citizen of the united states and the world community† (Against Abortion).

Application of a social cognitive model in explaining physical activity in Iranian female adolescents Essay Example

Application of a social cognitive model in explaining physical activity in Iranian female adolescents Essay Example Application of a social cognitive model in explaining physical activity in Iranian female adolescents Paper Application of a social cognitive model in explaining physical activity in Iranian female adolescents Paper This study looked at the level of physical activity (PA) in Iranian girls and the link that this has to the high rate of obesity in teenagers.   Iranian girls have a higher rate of physical inactivity because they face cultural barriers that prohibit them from exercising in public. The purpose of this study was to use social cognitive theory to test the fit and strength of barriers self-efficacy, outcome expectations, self-regulation and social support in explaining PA in female Iranian adolescents. The study found that there was a 52% chance that girls were going to be more physically active if they had a good support system. The girls that reported that they were more likely to be physically active reported that they had social support from their parents and friends. The researchers felt that the results from this study will allow for future research and interventions not only for Iranian adolescents but also for girls in similar cultural backgrounds (Taymoori et al, 2008). This article offers some very interesting findings on the link between physical inactivity and the rate of obesity among adolescents. The group that the researchers chose to look at was interesting because very little research has probed this slice of society. Iranian culture and customs do not welcome as much probing into their customs and social norms as do some sectors of society.   As interesting as the study was, it was lacking in some important aspects.   First, the study mainly focused on just Iranian adolescents girls. The study did use a screening measure that was given to both Iranian male and female students, but it would have been nice to see the researchers take the study one step further and had a second test group of a different cultural background in order to show that the results are valid across cultural boundaries. Secondly, one of the measurements that the researchers used were based solely on the log that each girl kept about her physical activity.   Unfortunately, humans are incredibly prone to sometimes exaggerate the outcome on something like a personal log or a personal diary. The researchers really had no way of knowing if the girls accurately reported the minutes that they spent in physical activity or if the girls maybe fudged a minute or two in order to make their log look good when it was turned into the researchers. This article has a wealth of information that can be used and applied to American adolescent girls.   In America, many adolescent girls do report that they have a hard time getting more physically active. Girls have a hard time with being physically fit because as a society we still hold onto some of the antiquated ideas that girls should be demure and petite.   In school, girls that like to get out and run are more often then not labeled as the â€Å"tom-boy† and can in many cases be teased by their classmates. In looking at the results of this study, programs that help girls to become more active could be designed.   Peer exercise programs where girls work with a buddy on different types of exercises would be one way to encourage more physical activity.   A second idea would be to get families more involved. Mothers and fathers could both serve as valued role models in providing both their sons and their daughters with examples of good physical fitness.   As the study results showed, girls that have the social support of both their peers and their family are more likely to be more physically active. Self-Regulation, Self-Efficacy, Outcome Expectations, and Social Support: Social Cognitive Theory and Nutrition Behavior In the United States there has been a rapid decline in the rate of nutrition in the last ten years.   The researchers in this study took a look at this trend and used social cognitive theory to explain how other variables, like self-regulation and self-efficacy, may be the key to integrating healthier nutrition into the U.S. lifestyle.   The study looked at 712 church goers (18% African American, 66% female, and 79% overweight or obese) from 14 churches in southwestern Virginia. The study used data from food-shopping receipts and food frequency questionnaires.   The data that was collected was on nutrition that related to social support, self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and self-regulation components of social cognitive theory as well as on the fat, fiber, fruit, and vegetable content of the food that the subjects bought. The results of the study showed that participants’ age, gender, socioeconomic status, social support, self-efficacy, negative outcome expectations and self-regulation made important contributions to their nutrition behavior (Anderson et al, 2007, p. 34). The findings of this article were very interesting.   As a society, people are often affected by how the people around them eat.   Eating is a social activity; we go out to eat, we eat at celebrations, and eating has been linked to many of the rituals of our society, such as the Catholic Communion. As a social activity, the ways that people in our social group eat are often the way that we will eat.   The findings of this study pointed this out very clearly.   As interesting as this article was it did have one area in which it could be improved on. The subject pool was very narrow.   The researchers used church members from one geographical area of the U.S.   Food preferences are different in different areas of the country and so to take those findings and suggest they would work across all areas of the country is a little hard to say.   If the researchers had used the same techniques on Californian beach goers, they might have gotten a much different result. The choice of church members also was a problematic factor.   People who attend church often have a set pattern of eating. They eat chicken on Sunday after church and certain things on the other days of the week.   It would have been interesting if other sectors of the same society would have been polled and to compare those findings with the church members. The researchers also only targeted Methodist and Baptist churches.   They did not look at Catholic or any other kind of church and it would have been interesting to see if the same results would have been achieved given a different church going demographic.

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (1828 †1910)

Type of Work: Tragic love storySetting Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia; nineteenth century Plagiarism Detection >Principal Characters Robert Jordan, an American fighting with Spanish Loyalists Anna Karenina, a beautiful young woman Alexey, her cold, vindictive husband Count Vronsky, a young military officer who falls in love with Anna Stepan Oblonsky, Annas spendthrift brother Dolly, Stepans frustrated wife Kitty, Dollys sister Levin, Stepans rusticc friend, and Kittys suitorStory Overveiw Stepan Oblonskys wife Dolly had discovered that her husband was having an affair. With her beauty fading and her household a wreck, she had had enough. Stepan fretfully wrote to his sister, Anna Karenina, asking her to come to Moscow and convince Dolly not to leave him.Later, while working at his job in the entrenched Moscow bureaucracy, Stepan received an unexpected visitor: Levin, an old friend from the university, came to discuss Dollys sister Kitty, whom he wanted to marry. After being inform ed by Stepan that he had a rival for Kittys affections, a certain Count Vronskv of St. Petersburg, Levin resolved that he would propose to Kitty that very night.At that same moment, Anna and Count Vronsky were riding together in a train bound for Moscow. Vronsky noticed the charming woman as he made his way to the first-class compartment that he shared with his mother. He had time to take note of the suppressed eagerness which played over her face as their eyes met, and she remained in his mind. However, upon reaching their destination, the two went their separate ways Anna to her brothers home, Vronsky and his mother to a hotel.Approached by Anna, Dolly at first refused to discuss her husbands infidelity. Everythings lost after what has happened, evervthinqs over! she raged. But finally she relented to Annas plea to keep the family together.Meanwhile, Levin had arrived early at a dinner party hosted by the parents of Kitty and Dolly, determined to make his desires known to Kitty b efore the appearance of the rich and handsome Count. But That cannot be forgive me, Kitty replied upon hearing his stammering proposal. Crushed by the rejection, Levin escaped from the gathering at the first opportunity.A few days later, at her coming-out ball, Kitty couldnt help but notice how Anna and Vronsky kept gazing at each other. Vronskys face had a look that puzzled her . . . like the expression of an intelligent dog when it had done wrong. It was clear to Kitty that the two were in love.Nevertheless, with her task of seeing to Stepan and Dolly completed, Anna boarded the next train for St. Petersburg. She thought of her son, Seryozha, and her husband, Alexey.. Mv life will go on in the old way, all nice and as usual she thought. But she found that she could not easily dismiss Count Vronsky from her mind. And stepping along the way, as Anna stepped out for a breath of air, there he was. You know that I have come to be where you are; I cant help it, confessed the officer. Anna was both delighted and flattered by this, but it was simply unthinkable that anything could come of his attraction to her. After all, she was a married woman.Back in Moscow, Kitty was devastated. Not only had Count Vronsky spurned her, but Levin had also left the city to supervise work on his country estate. Humiliated and distraught, Kitty became so ill with despair that she was soon unable to eat or sleep. Her frantic parents, after finding no restorative medical treatment in Moscow, sent her to Europe to consult various doctors.Meanwhile, life for Anna in St. Petersburg remained strangely unsettled. The happiness that in Moscow had fairly flashed from her eyes, [now seemed] hidden somewhere far away. To her further disquiet, the love-struck Vronsky took every opportunity to see her. One night she knelt and begged him to leave her in peace; but still he persisted: I cant think of you and myself apart. You and I are one to me. And at that moment Anna let her eyes rest on him, full of love.Soon afterward, Alexey Karenina walked into a party and found his wife with Vronsky; but Anna denied any impropriety. Still, she and Vronsky met night after night, with Alexey seemingly powerless or unwilling to stop them. Anna by now felt so sinful, so guilty; but still she could not curb her passion for the Count.The following summer, while staving at her husbands villa outside the city, Anna confronted her lover with an announcement: she was pregnant. Though he understood the gravity of Annas position, Vronsky smiled. This was the turning point he had been longing for.Leave your husband and make our life one, he implored. But Anna shook her head. If she left, Alexey would take sole custody of Seryozha and she would not be allowed to see her son. But Anna did promise Vronsky that she would tell her husband the truth about the child she was carrying.When Anna made her confession, Alexey, instead of showing jealousy or indignation, merely warned his wife against public displays of flirtation. His sole concern was to preserve his social and business reputation; a duel or a divorce would only serve to disgrace him. The family cannot be broken up by a whim, a caprice, or even by the sin of one of the partners in the marriage, he informed Anna Our life must go on as it has done in the past.Anna reacted to his words at first with guilt and shame, but this quickly turned to anger: He knows that I cant repent that I breathe, that I love; he knows that it can lead to nothing but lying and deceit- but he wants to go on torturing me . . . Vronsky also was increasingly anxious to begin a new life with Anna, who would not leave her son. And so, the position was one of misery for all three Kitty had by now returned to Moscow, feeling somewhat better. One morning, just after dawn, Levin caught sight of her in a carriage, as it skirted his estate destined for her familys summer home. The pangs of love, long since buried, welled up in him once more. Months late r, taking advantage of a trip to the city, he called again upon Kitty. It was apparent to both that they cared deeply for each other, and, after a proper courtship, they were united as man and wife. Levin, for years caught up in trying to find out who he was and where he fit in Gods universe, had finally and happily found his place.But in St. Petersburg, relationships were breaking up. The nearer Anna came to the birth of her child, the more demanding and cold Alexey became. Then Anna survived a deadly fever to give birth to a baby girl. Oddly, the difficulty of the birth eased the tensions between herself and her husband. At the other extreme, Vronsky saw no end to the barriers separating him from his lover. Desperate at the prospect of living without Anna, he unsuccessfully tried shooting himself. Still torn, Anna finally did move in with him, and soon the couple left Russia to live in Italy for a time.Meanwhile, Kitty and Levin were living on their estate outside of Moscow. Levin felt gratified to be spiritually sustained by a loving wife. Like Anna, Kitty went through a difficult pregnancy, but it culminated in the birth of a fine little boy. Theirs was an idyllic life.Upon returning from Italy to St. Petersburg, Vronsky and Anna, found themselves ostracized. Gossip followed them everywhere. The couple argued frequently, and Anna, in a burst of depression, finally accused Vronsky of being unfaithful. Even after they moved into a newly-inherited estate, Anna felt alone in the world. She revived her habit of taking a little morphine to help her sleep, a legacy from her pregnancy.Summer turned to winter, and the family relocated again, this time to Moscow. There, the badly strained relationship fared no better. Though Anna pled for Vronsky to love her and give her security, at the same time she increasingly insisted on greater freedom. This is becoming unbearable! Vronsky screamed one day. Why do you try my patience? It has limits. Anna could only gaze at him with terror at the undisguised hatred in his whole face. Vronsky checked himself: I mean to say I must ask what it is you want of me? All I want, she replied, is that you dont desert me, as you think of doing . I want love, and there is none. .. Vronsky vainly protested; he would never cease to love her.Suddenly, Anna turned on Vronsky, cursing him for the sacrifices she had made to be with him her marriage, her son, her social position Delirious with bitterness, Anna had no place to turn; Vronsky, she was convinced, had found another, and she could never return to Alexey. Ambling into the train station, she purchased a ticket. Then, standing on the platform, watching the trains, she said to herself.. I will punish him and escape from everyone and from myself.Measuring both the speed of the oncoming train and her resolve to end her suffering, she jumped. Something huge and merciless struck her on the head and rolled on her back. Lord, forgive me all!Anna Karenina was dead.Comme ntary Leo Tolstoy is considered one of Russias greatest nineteenth-century novelists, an honor he shares with Dostoievsky. Tolstoy, however, focuses his novels on the vicissitudes of the upper-classes rather than on Dostoievskys underprivileged peasants or criminals. Plagiarism Detection >Tolstoy foresaw the end of the aristocracy in Russian society. Serfs had already been set free; the working class was beginning to expand in power. Moreover, new mores and morals were being imported from the West, and societys upper crust was the first to feel the strain of these changes a strain running an undercurrent throughout Anna Karenina.The novel reads like a soap opera, with the exhaustive cast of characters continually creating their own problems. Contrast Annas tragic quest for love and personal fulfillment with the spiritual odyssey of Levin. Through hard work and the support of an understanding family, his search is rewarded by happiness. Thus, Tolstoys gripping masterpiece revolves a round the dissimilar paths of these two characters, allowing a forum for the authors commentary on Russias maze-like social system, fraught with unresolved incongruities.

The similarities and differences about buddhism between China and Research Paper

The similarities and differences about buddhism between China and Japan - Research Paper Example idual choice for a particular religion is not one unique aspect as there are several influences that make one follow the belief of their ancestors by default. It is only when one is mature enough to think and ponder upon the teachings that he either becomes more devout in his beliefs or seeks new religions to satisfy his thirst for a solid system of principles that he deems supportive and moral. Buddhism is one of the five most followed religions of the world. The concept revolves around the attainment of a state of satisfaction or nirvana, through spiritual development, meditation and acting upon principles of morality and wisdom. The word Buddhism is composed of the word called ‘budhi’ that means enlightenment or awakening. This signifies the origin of Buddhism as the awakening of Siddhartha Gotama’s mind at the age of 35, some 2500 years back. This man is now known as Buddha and his idols are paid respects by the followers of Buddhism worldwide. The concept of a creator or a God is not included as the teachings of this religion, thus is does not revolve around strengthening the bond between the creator and the humans. On the contrary, it believes that change is inevitable and in order for a person to attain a state of spiritual satisfaction he has to act morally and follow the teachings that are designed to help him live through his lifelonguncertaint ies without being wavered. The concept of Buddhism basically starts off with the journey of Buddha and his path of enlightenment. Buddha was born in a royal family in today’s Nepal 2500 years ago. Not having seen any suffering or discomfort in his life, he lived peacefully within his family’s royal enclosure. However, once he stepped out into the real word he saw scenes that were unknown to him, that of poverty, suffering and the harsh realities of life. This incident made him set out to find a balanced way of life that was fair and neither of the two extremes of poverty and luxury. He was resting during

Financial Valuation Techniques Research Proposal

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