Patriot act Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Patriot act - Essay Example While supporters of the law claims that the law is meant to aid the investigations and arrests of terrorists, its opponents argue that although the law was meant to improve security in the US, it has bestowed the government with too much power that threatens the civil rights and puts democracy at trial. The first account that faces the controversy of the Act involves they way in which the law was passed. The law was passed very quickly, barely one month after the September 11th terror attack. The deliberation of the provision of the act was done in less than 48 hours. This brings in the issue of whether the law was well discussed and evaluated before being passed by the congress. For any Act to be passed into law there is a need to have a comprehensive review of its impact and implication. The law has to be in line with other laws taking consideration of the possibility of contradicting other laws. For instance, the law gives powers to homeland security in regard to surveillance and search and seizure in its operations. However, this tends to contradict several civil liberties enjoyed in the country and which are guaranteed by the constitution. For instance, although the Patriotic Act allows the law enforcement the power to surveillance, search and seizure, the law seems to undermine the right to privacy. Although the constitution does not spell out on the issue of privacy, many Supreme Court decisions have supported the right to privacy. In addition, the power to invade ones premise to search without notification is seen as violation of people’s right to privacy (Greenwald, 2006). In another dimension, the law has also been viewed as an avenue to achieve other hidden agendas by the law enforcement agencies. For instance, instead of the law enforces invading suspects’ homes just for the search of terrorism activities, the law enforcers can take advantage and use the law to achieve their own personal goals. Additionally, it has been argued that the law

Marco Polo and Matteo Ricci Accounts of China Essay

Marco Polo and Matteo Ricci Accounts of China - Essay Example The imperial power of the Chinese passes from the father to the son, however the people have a say in the staying in power of a ruler. When the people grow inept of a ruler they have the ability to strip him the throne and place a new man with courage and the qualities of being a leader. The Chinese prefer dying honorable death rather than be under a monarch who is usurping and swear allegiance to him. They therefore use and employ the ideologies of this proverb more frequently that, â€Å"no woman is moral who has two husbands nor any vassal faithful who has two lords†. The laws that are governing China are not enshrined to any logical way, however any person who succeeds in getting the throne makes his own laws and he who succeeds him is obliged to implement the laws .The Chinese people have a government that is monarchial ,however to certain degrees this government is an aristocracy .Decisions in relation to governance are made by the magistrates but the king has to make co nfirmations by writing though he has no powers to make any final decision without first consulting with the magistrates. The income does not go to the exchequer but is a resource of the public and is taken to the public treasury. The running of most of the national issues like the military and management of the prisons are met by the national treasury and where the funds cannot be met by the available resources, new taxes are imposed to raise the extra income to meet the national demands of the republic of china (Kashlansky). The magistrates are grouped into two, those from the national levels and those at the provincial levels. Besides the magistrates there is a group of about 60 philosophers who have proved allegiance to the king and are loyal to the realm. This group is kept by the king for the good of business and benefits to the royalty. In addition to the magistrates ,at the national palace there are various organizations which are instituted for various purposes .there are al so members of the cabinet who have no public administrative powers but have the highest office dignity. Marco gives an account of the tartars who had an eloquent ruler who came into power with approved integrity, justice and valor. The king came into power with so much moderation and fairness that his fame spread all over the world. By finding himself as the head of so many brave men he ordered them to arm themselves with arrows and bows so as to fire an assault to the neighboring provinces. The king ensured that he developed love with the people and gained their respect. However in later stages he became a dictator and developed strict regulation which had even penalties for death of defaulters of regulations .The tartars had a nomadic life and never stayed in one place, constantly moving in search of greener pastures. They had women with courage and virtue for the management of their homes (Marco).The women observe chastity and no quarrel is heard of or experienced in the families with the women always taking care of the children and the provision of food for the family. The city of Kin say is reported to have men and women who love life and use gold and silver. The authority of this city equally felt quite insecure and made it a rule to guard its numerous bridges with numerous precautions especially after dusk such

The Business Of Unilever Nigeria Plc Commerce Essay

The Business Of Unilever Nigeria Plc Commerce Essay Unilever has built its business on understanding and responding to the needs of its consumers globally. Its corporate goal is to add value and quality to the basic aspects of its consumers satisfaction which adds value and srength to the consumers life. Unilever Nigeria Plc, came into life as Lever Brothers (West Africa) Ltd on 11th April, 1923 by Lord Lever Hulme, but the companys antecedents have to be traced back to his existing trading interests in Nigeria and West Africa generally, and to the fact that he had since the 19th century been greatly involved with the soap business in Britain. Unilever Nigeria started with the soap manufacturing company, and is today one of the oldest surviving manufacturing organizations in Nigeria. Their Products: Unilever produces a lot of products, namely; Food brands (e.g., Knorr, Lipton, Blue band, Beverages) Home care brands (e.g., Shampoo, Toothpaste, Soap, Moisturising cream) Personal care brands ( e.g., Lux, Vaseline, Sunsilk, Omo, Pears) Nutrition Health, hygiene and beauty Unilever food solutions Your suggestions Latest brand news The success of this business is as a result of the sound relationship which they have established with the consumers in the local cultures and markets creating products that help them transform in life. In sustaining these successes, they ensured to maintain the highest and sound standards of mutual behavior towards their employees, consumers, customers, communities and operating environment as a whole. Talking about their brands, they produce domestic goods which they know from the onset that people would really need such goods because, it enhances the daily living of people. For this reason, they are committed to meet the everyday needs of people everywhere in Nigeria. In addition, because they are have International experience and support, it enables them to consistently develop brands, which raise the worth of life. In essence, most people in Nigeria always have their products at home. 1.2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK The PESTLE Analysis is an analytical tool used to evaluate and identify the Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental factors in a given economy that would affect the operation of an organization. According to Kotler (1999) PESTLE Analysis is a useful strategic tool for understanding market growth or decline, business position and direction for Operations. This Analysis also allows an Organization to have a competitive advantage over other firms in the industry. Political Factor: This factor is always necessary to be evaluated, in order to know the favorability of the political climate to market growth and development in a particular country, such as the Government Stability, Taxation Policy, and Attitude of the Government towards foreign investment. Economic Factor: This Economic framework is used to measure the state of an economy by considering the GDP, the wage level, interest rate, the disposable income, unemployment rate, business cycle and the economic growth in the country. Socio Cultural Factor: This indicator is used to measure the rate and growth of population, changes in the taste and preferences of consumers, the changes in the lifestyle of consumers and the level of education of the populace which would have a great effect on the demand of the products or services provided by the organization. Technological Factor: This Framework is used to evaluate the level of Government spending on Research and Development institutes and the efforts of government and private sector efforts towards technological advancement. Legal Factor: This is used to know the laws and regulations that exist in the environment an organization is operating such as the employment, health and safety laws. Environmental Factor: This is used to understand the various environmental laws, natural resources available and the prevailing weather condition in the economy. 1.3 ANALYSIS Using Porters models (Kippenberger, 1998; Haberberg and Rieple, 2001), but to examine it in addition to other strategic frameworks of  SWOT  and  PEST analysis. In trying to analyze the strategies, it will be fair to know what Business Strategy is all about. Business strategy to my own understanding is a way in which organisations view the future, the extent to which the business is heading to, the plan, set targets, etc. The basic aim of strategy is to move the business forward, it is not all about making profit alone, but how the business can succeed eventually. In other words, it will establish strategic direction, and implement those strategies, all in an effort to satisfy key stakeholders. Robert and Caldart (2009) view strategy as a way a firm can only hypothesize about the implications of different possible initiatives and learn more about them through interaction with other actors such as competitors, regulators, customers, suppliers, and partners in its competitive landscape. In these situations, managers face the extremely difficult problem in making decisions that demand a long-term perspective, committing the firm in the long-run within a competitive landscape that is unlikely to stand still. We call these decisions strategic decisions. Porter E.M. (1996) Views strategy as being flexible, companies must be flexible to respond rapidly to competitive and market changes aggressively to gain efficiencies and achieve best practice. Strategy to him is total quality management, benchmarking, time-based competition, re-engineering, change management. From this definition, it is believed that, for any business to grow there should be freedom, ability to initiate plans on how to move the business forward. Ellis Williams (1993) expressed that, It indicates the perspectives for business to achieve better advantages, it elaborates tactics for business to face challenges, it points out the trends and competitions around the business. Business consists of two main aspects, namely external factor and internal factor. From the definitions given by these scholars, it entails that, strategy is seen as a means of making business to strive and to achieve a defined goal through vision, hard work, through perseverance that will lead to transformation. 1.4 Application IINTERNAL FACTORS: Internal factors include information and communication as one of the internal control components. The factors are systems used to control financial, reporting and accounting systems in an organisation. Smooth flow of information and communication across and within the organisation is influenced by the nature of the working relationship within the organisation at all levels. The working relationship coordinates organisations activities to achieve specific goal. When effective working relationship exists in an organisation, delegation of responsibilities is achieved. The main internal factors which are considered to uphold the organisation are the managers, employees, capitals, and materials. Managers: Since the inception of Unilever, there were constantly sound and visional managers succeeding the affairs of Unilever and respectively improving the management of Unilever. Employees: Unilever has massive employees who perform specific duties to move the organisation forward. Unilever has the worlds top makers of packaged which has products like shampoo, deodorants, soap, Vaseline, tea, and frozen foods over the world. The company sells its goods in over 150 countries and has returns of approximately $46 billion ( £31,5bn). Unilever controls subsidiaries in at least 90 countries and employs 295,000 (in 2000) people. Unilever is one of the worlds top three firms after Nestle and Kraft and the worlds second largest packaged consumer goods company behind Procter Gamble. Capital: Unilever is one of the oldest surviving manufacturing organisations in Nigeria today. The organisation is well known with its products all over the world, its food brand, home care products, Unilever food solution, personal care brands, nutrition, etc, Unilever is recognised as the worlds most valuable brand. THE EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT The word external simply means outside that is the activities which takes place outside the business environment. The external environment of any organisation is a large and complex place. (Capon, 2009. P.5) for the sake of this work, we shall take a look at PESTEL analysis of the organisation, which includes Political, Economic, Socio-cultural, Technological, Environmental, Legal elements. Political Environment: The government is currently focusing on encouraging the local manufacture of finished and semi-finished goods in the country.  This  will be a  major advantage for interested local investors as it provides them with a playing ground for building their business.  Currently, local manufacturers face a number of challenges including: High Input Cost,   Lack of petrochemical plant,   High cost of production/distribution,   Customs administration and port related issues,   Common External Tariff (CET) and issue of competitiveness Security of life property Weak legal framework   Although, there are various incentives in place to boost local manufacture the high transaction costs resulting from above make local manufacturing uncompetitive with the outside world.   Unilever, as a matter of policy, set a standard as to the way of tackling political issues. In the 1960s, many countries began to nationalise foreign firms which also affected Unilever. There were persistent calls for local equity participation in foreign firms; many companies were subject to local control on prices, imports, and employment of expatriate. An example is UAC, a subsidiary of Unilever, whose operation was in many African countries like Cameroun, Ghana, Ivory Coast, including Nigeria, was focused on as its profit margin and the rate of easy remittance of profit to its Anglo-Dutch parent was enormous. Nationalising UAC hampered Unilevers control over the market where UAC operates. Economic Factor: GDP real growth rate:  3.8% (2009 est.)   5.3% (2008 est.)   6.4% (2007 est.)   Year GDP real growth rate Rank Percent Change Date of Information 2003 3.00 % 105 2002 est. 2004 7.10 % 25 136.67 % 2003 est. 2005 6.20 % 44 -12.68 % 2004 est. 2006 6.90 % 43 11.29 % 2005 est. 2007 5.30 % 90 -23.19 % 2006 est. 2008 6.40 % 66 20.75 % 2007 est. 2009 5.30 % 78 -17.19 % 2008 est. 2010 3.80 % 44 -28.30 % 2009 est. Source:  CIA World Factbook This entry gives GDP growth on an annual basis adjusted for inflation and expressed as a percent. GDP (purchasing power parity):  $353.2 billion (2009 est.)   $340.3 billion (2008 est.)   $323.1 billion (2007 est.)   note:  data are in 2009 US dollars This entry gives the gross domestic product (GDP) or value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year. A nations GDP at purchasing power parity (PPP) exchange rates is the sum value of all goods and services produced in the country valued at prices prevailing in the United States. This is the measure most economists prefer when looking at per-capita welfare and when comparing living conditions or use of resources across countries. The measure is difficult to compute, as a US dollar value has to be assigned to all goods and services in the country regardless of whether these goods and services have a direct equivalent in the United States (for example, the value of an ox-cart or non-US military equipment); as a result, PPP estimates for some countries are based on a small and sometimes different set of goods and services. In addition, many countries do not formally participate in the World Banks PPP project that calculates these measures, so the resulting GDP estimates for these countries may lack precision. For many developing countries, PPP-based GDP measures are multiples of the official exchange rate (OER) measure. The differences between the OER- and PPP-denominated GDP values for most of the wealthy industrialized countries are generally much smaller (CIA World Fact book)   In Nigeria there was uncertainty about duties to be paid by companies due to inflation and fluctuation of currency. The effect on Unilever was a decrease in profit in 2005 compared to 2004, though there was increase in turnover. In 2004 and 2005 the profit after tax were =N= 2.167 billion (naira) and =N= 1.616 billion (naira) respectively, while in the turnover in 2004 and 2005 were =N= 28.6 billion (naira) =N= 33.4 billion (naira) respectively, which indicates increase in turnover but decrease in profit. Also the low per capital of people affects Unilevers market. Over 30% of Africa population lives on less than $ 1 per day. Socio-cultural Factor: Looking at the social factor of Unilever, their main focus is to add beauty to life, they ensure that they meet the needs of consumer on daily basis Such needs are; nutrition, hygiene, and personal care with brands that help someone feel good, look good and get more out of life. Unilever can make products that help give children a good start and be healthy for longer time. Their brands are also involved in a number of social initiatives to promote the importance of playing sports. Unilever has a platform and ground to improve vitality worldwide through its global scale and its interactions with consumers. Every day, 150 million consumers use Unilever brands. They use them to feel really good. Health and Welfare Concerning the area of health, Unilever has the credit to make people feel very healthy because they have good food that establishes their satisfaction. Soya is another plant-derived ingredient with an excellent nutritional profile. It is cholesterol-free, and a good source of protein, vitamins and omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. It has modest cholesterol lowering potential Unilever Brand Unilever brand is superior and sound brands to help add value to the lives of people in general.Unilever Nigeria is a leading manufacturer of Oral care products such as Close up Fresh Red Toothpaste, Close-Up Extended Protection Toothpaste, Close Up Expert and Popular Toothbrushes. From the launch of Close Up Red Gel toothpaste in 1975. Technological Factor: The basic aim of technological factor is that, it enhances quick awareness to the general public through the use of internet facilities, radio, television etc which promotes the marketing aspect of the business. Unilever attract people with their advertisements, another strategy they use is e-commerce. Unilever wants to step up the use of the Internet in order to improve brand communication/marketing and on-line selling to simplify business-to-business transactions throughout the supply chain. Legal Factor: Though Nigeria has a weak legal structure generally, it has a Parastatal called Nigeria Agency for Food Drugs Control (NAFDAC) that regulates activities of multinational companies that are into manufacturing of consumables like foods, Beverages and Detergents. Unilever are committed to providing consumers with products that are consistent in quality, safe in use and free from adverse effects at all times. These are achieved by: 1. Fostering a consumer safety structure throughout the company by establishing systems and processes that will guarantee the well being of their consumers. 2. Complying with all legal requirements in the management of consumer safety. 3. Implementing an effective consumer complaints mechanism, to monitor, investigate and deal with complaints from the trade. 4. With all these precautions, they are continuously ascertaining that their products and processes meet the highest standards of quality and safety. Environmental Factor: Unilever  Nigeria takes the responsibility of raising the quality of life of people in the operating environment through the quality of their brands and contributions to communities in which they operate. Talking about the environment, it explains the weather, temperature and the climatic condition of the environment which the business operates, in most cases, when the weather condition is good, it favors the business itself. Unilever is a market that is known globally and its market has been successful all over the world, due to this awareness, its brand is well appreciated. Porters Five Forces: Understanding the nature of each of these forces gives organizations the necessary insights to enable them to formulate the appropriate  strategies  to be successful in their market (Thurlby, 1998). Rivalry: Rivalry in any business outfit is inevitable, when a business should have its rivals, it motivates them to improve more in their products in other to attract more attention to consumers. The intensity of rivalry, which is the most obvious of the five forces in an  industry, Unilever has been more dominant in market compare to Nestle. Barriers to Entry: The threat of new entrants is usually based on the market entry barriers. In contrast, entry barriers exist whenever it is difficult or not economically feasible for an outsider to replicate the incumbents position (Porter, 1980b; Sanderson, 1998) Suppliers: The threat that substitute products pose to an industrys profitability depends on the relative price-to-performance  ratios  of the different types of products or services to which customers can turn to satisfy the same basic need. Customers: Kippenberger (1998) states that it is often useful to distinguish potential buyer power from the buyers willingness or incentive to use that power, willingness that derives mainly from the risk of failure associated with a products use. In any business organisation, Buyer Power is a force that influence the value established by an  industry.   The most important aspect of buyer power is the size and the concentration of customers. Other factors are the extent to which the buyers are informed. Substitutes: as the name implies, substitute products are usually many in the market and vast numbers of substitutes are available, supplier power is seen as a mirror image of the buyer power. In other to convince customers to buy products at different prices in the value created for each of those buyers usually indicates that the market is characterised by high supplier power and at the same time by low buyer power (Porter, 1998). Bargaining power of suppliers exists in the following situations: Where the switching costs are high (switching from one Internet provider to another); High power of  brands  (McDonalds,  British Airways,  Tesco); Possibility of forward integration of suppliers (Brewers buying bars); Fragmentation of customers (not in clusters) with a limited bargaining power (Gas/Petrol  stations in remote places). 4. SWOT ANALYSIS: SWOT analysis to my own understanding is a way to analyze the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in a business environment. It explains the purpose of the business and if there are any lapses or pot holes, the management is liable to provide solutions. The table below summarises the SWOT analysis of Unilever Nigeria Strength: Unilever Nigeria is recognised as a global company which has its products all over the world. It has strong brand portfolio and sound relationship with retailers basically and economies of scale. Strong roots in local markets and first-hand knowledge of the local culture. Weakness:Unileverweakness is the dual leadership not connecting with customers and secondly, Inefficient management for RD the inability to maximize. Opportunities: Unilever has the opportunity of increasing need for healthy products and changing consumer preferences by adding value to their daily needs. Threats: Unilever encounter decrease in revenues and strong competition, increasing store brands. They also encounter Tougher Business Climate and exchange rates. 1. Core Competences: A core competency is a way in which a business handles the affairs of the organisation. In other words, the organisation makes advancements to the growth of its business. In core competence, it is not usually easy for competitors to imitate, take for example, in the area of branding, the Logo of a company, and their style of doing things etc it is usually difficult to imitate. The core competence of Unilever is that, it can provide competitive advantage in its strong brand portfolio, strong relationship retailers. Brand is an asset of a company, it helps to distinguish companies product just as my lecturer Mr. John rightly said, it is the brand and logo of a company that promotes the market to competing products to help sales and capture the market. 2. Global perspectives Unilever is an organisation known globally and it has made impact to so many peoples lives, their products have spread abroad, they have gainfully employed millions of people and their products have been sold massively across the globe. Its global factor is achieving its growth and objectives, looking at how Unilever has pushed the business toward global approach is focused towards new opportunities, this could be traced back to how Unilever started, viewing this from the historical perspective of the company. In 2002, Unilever initiated a procurement centre in Shangai and China, this was to increase opportunities for Chinese raw materials providers. Unilever also carried out research and development to be able to ascertain new product and have basic knowledge to introduce to new market, these activities were meant to boost Unilever global business. Another factor Unilever adopted is in the area of brand, they did this to create awareness across border synergies in manufacturing and marketing. In other to accomplish this task, it started in 1999 when it launched the Heart Brand logo of ice cream product, this was meant to enhance its products. This idea was carried out to capture integration amongst subsidiaries to facilitate control centralisation. Conclusion: Bye and large, the organisation is in a very good position to continue growing. The history of Unilever is really amazing because, it started with the soap production and gradually, it grew up to producing diverse products today which is really enhancing the lives of people. In this work, I established the following which include thus: The History of Unilever Nigeria The theoretical Framework The Analysis, internal and external factors The five forces (Porter) SWOT Analysis and Core competences and finally, Global perspectives

internship Essay -- essays research papers

I had many responsibilities and duties as a teacher assistant/chaperone. Such as arriving at the assigned school for bus and student pick-up at 8:00 a.m. assisting teachers and counselors with Daily Opening Activity, with Math and Reading as well as Arts/Folklore classes. Escorting students to and from the bathroom. Supervising students during breakfast and lunch and assisting with clean up. Being responsible for picking up and returning materials to the GEAR UP office. Attending weekly Staff and Team meetings to discuss the past week and plan for the weeks ahead.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This internship opened many doors leading to my future. This would not only help me academically and financially, but would also provide me with necessary experience in real world situations. This internship with this program, is well established and a brilliant source of knowledge. Firstly, I will be able to physically see and experience the concepts that I have learned through out my life. This provides me a chance to reflect upon what I have learned in the past. On the other hand, I will be able to gain some very important insights of working with seniors officials in reality. I would be able to utilize their experience as a guide to correct my mistakes and discovering more skills that might be of use in the future. Another exciting feature about this internship program is that, I will actually realize what my duties would be when I would start as an employee for a similar organizat...

Managing Organizational Change (MOC) Essay

What have you learned about Managing Organizational Change (MOC) and how are you going to apply MOC concepts to benefit your career? 1.0. Executive Summary Based on my time in class these last 7 weeks, I have learned a process that I never knew really existed. I have worked for several companies, large and small, in my lifetime and I have never really experienced an Organizational Change process like what has been introduced in this class. I felt that the information provided could be very useful in anyone’s career because it is a more structured way of executing change in an organization with minimal problems during the transition. I am sure that the large companies that I have worked for had some sort of formal change process or model in place when I worked for them. I believe that the communication of the changes could have been done better now that I am aware of what to look for in such a practice. What it boils down to is that now that I am aware that there is a formal process for each of the three areas concerning organizational change according to the Lewin’s model that I used in my MOC project, I will be able to use these processes to assist upper management in any organization that I am a part of in order to make the change as easy as possible. In my current situation, I will recommend to my organization various processes and/or models that are not currently being used for all the changes that we are currently experiencing. For example, when I discussed the MOC project with my CEO and what it was going to be about, he was very interested in the outcome because he was not aware of any type of formal change model to begin with. Many of the decisions that he has made involving the change Rickey and I discussed in our MOC project seem to coincide with a formal process of some sort, however it was not formally identified and specifically followed as we discussed in class during our MOC presentation. The plan is to continue to make recommendations to my employer as changes continue based on the material received and the research completed during the MOC project development. 2.0. Body of Deliverables 2.1. Managing Organizational Change (MOC) Concepts. During the MOC project there were several MOC concepts that I was interested in and had struggles understanding along the way. How it was explained to me was that some of the concepts can be used in more than one stage of the  organizational change with some modification of course. 2.1.1. Change Model Concept I had a lot of struggles trying to decide on a change model with my partner Rickey during the development of our MOC project. Most of which is because I was not able to determine the difference between the Change Model and the Change Management Model. Once I was able to distinguish the two concepts, it made it easier to decide on which one to use. We decided to use the Lewin Change Model for our project. There are three stages to Lewin’s Change model; unfreeze, change, and refreeze. The unfreeze stage of this change model involves preparing the organization to accept the change and that it is necessary for future growth in the organization. You have to be prepared to provide examples of why the change is necessary such as the benefits of the change and that you as management have done your due diligence to research why this would be the best way to make the change. Unfortunately, some changes are not decided by choice. For example, in mine and Rickey’s MOC project, we illustrate that AC4S had to make a change in their Accounting System because it would not be supported in the year 2011. This first stage is usually the most challenging and can be where you experience the most resistance if you have not prepared your organization successfully or received total buy in of those affected by the change. The next stage of Lewin’s Change Model is the actual change itself. This can be the area where individuals begin to resolve the uncertainty that a change has developed. It is also part of the change process where employees start to embrace the change and support the new direction that the organization is going. Experts say that this is not an overnight process. However, in the change that AC4S is experienced in changing their Accounting System, it was continually explained that the new system had a reporting system that would make managing projects much easier because the financial documents can be generated in real-time. This was just one of the many benefits that were provided to employees during the change process. Time and communication are the two keys to success for the changes to occur. People need time to understand the changes and they also need to feel highly connected to the organization throughout the transition period. When you are managing change, this can require a great deal of time and effort and hands-on management is  usually the best approach. (LEWIN’S CHANGE MANAGEMENT MODEL: UNDERSTANDING THE THREE STAGES OF CHANGE, http://www.consultpivotal.com/lewin’s.htm) The final stage of Lewin’s Change Model is the refreeze stage. This is the stage when the people of the organization have incorporated the changes into everyday business and are used all the time. However, sometimes at this stage you may need to adjust some changes for them to be more effective or more beneficial to the organization. At this point, the organization needs to refreeze. This stage is very important to complete. The employees have to have closure in the process in order to want to be involved in futures changes in the organization. In the example of AC4S’ Accounting System change, the President and CEO did not want call the change as being complete until the organization did not have to use the previous system at all. His refreeze stage was considered completed when he shut the old system down completely. 2.1.2. Forces for Change Concept Today, organizations have to continually monitor its external environment in order to maintain a competitive edge. This competitive edge consists of making internal adjustments in order to meet the customer’s needs whether it is a product or service. Here are some examples that illustrate what Kotter identifies as four global environmental forces for change: * Technological, which requires more globally, connected people and faster communication and transportation. * Greater economic integration of currencies and international capital flows. * Maturation and slowdown of domestic markets, leading to greater emphasis on exports and deregulation. * Fall of socialist countries and their reorientation toward capitalist economies. While the latter has led to new opportunities such as larger markets and fewer barriers to entry, it also has been associated with more competition and a demand for increased speed. (Palmer, Ian. Managing Organizational Change, 2nd Edition. McGraw-Hill Lea rning Solutions, 2008. p. 56). In the case of AC4S, they were forced to make their Accounting System change due to technology. They were informed by the supporters of the accounting system software that it will not be supported in the year 2011 back in 2009. I believe that this change was going to be necessary eventually whether it was going to be supported or not, based on the growth of the organization and in order to be able to compete with the much larger  organizations that AC4S competes with and teams with for business. The benefits that were generated by the executive team for this accounting system upgrade illustrated massive improvements in many processes completed internally consisting of the way financial reports are generated, a procurement capability that was not available previously, and a Human Resource module that provides statistical information and is HIPPA compliant. 2.1.3. Images of Change Concept Every change manager has a different image of what managing change means and these images are often based on how the manager of the change can achieve the change and how the change should be approached. At least six images of change management can be identified: directing, navigating, caretaking, coaching, interpreting and nurturing. These images are also considered to be roles that are played during the course of the change. The following identifies all six images (6 Images of Change, http://www.12manage.com/forum.asp?TB=change_management_iceberg&S=48): 1. Director: this role will be played out different for situations like that of communicating change, sustaining change. 2. Navigator: similar to the director role but this one is only given so much power. 3. Caretaker: takes care of issues within change, again through various things like evaluating change. 4. Coach: will coach the people within an organization to carry out change or will sort out relevant issues. 5. Interpreter: will interpret the change that is to be carried to staff, has strong link with moment. 6. Nurturer: facilitates change, makes sure that everyone understands it. I believe that during the change process that several people play several of these roles at the same time. In the example change that I have been referring to at AC4S, the CEO main role during this change was the Director of the change, however there were moments that he was required to play the role of the navigator, the caretaker, the coach, the interpreter and nurturer not only to the VP of Finance but towards the organization as a whole from time to time. I also believe that the VP of Finance played the other five roles or images at one point or another depending on where and what was being done du ring the change. 2.1.4. Change Management Model to Manage the Change Concept Change management models are methods by which the processes of change management are implemented. (Change management models, http://changemanagementmodels.net/change-management-models/) Based on what I have introduced earlier in this essay is that the Change Management Model is used during the actual change that is occurring or taking place. For example, the second stage of the Lewin Change Model discussed earlier in the text as the change stage. Change has to be continuous in an organization in order to keep a competitive edge in your market segment, as well as improve customer satisfaction through various improvements of internal processes. If the change is not managed correctly, it can make or break an organization. This is something that we have discussed several times about in class about different organizations such as Kodak. Kodak decided to hang on to traditions such as you will be a Kodak employee for life that really hurt them in the end when it came necessary to make major changes in the structure of the organization. During the research for my MOC project, Rickey and I found the Kirkpatrick Change model almost matched up to the steps that AC4S performed during the change management. As we stated in our presentation to the AC4S Executive Committee last week, the steps that AC4S followed during the change management portion of changing our accounting system followed very close to the Kirkpatrick steps but was not formally recognized by the organization. We provided them the steps and described how they matched up so that during future changes in the organization so that there will be a more structured method of change management. Below are the steps to the Kirkpatrick Change Management Model: 1. Determine the need or desire for change. – AC4S was informed that they were going to have to change accounting systems due to nonsupport by the software developer. This change was also necessary to meet the needs of the organization when it comes to future growth support. 2. Prepare tentative plans – AC4S hired a consultant to prepare a tentative plan for the change. 3. Analyze probable reaction – The consultant provided several solutions that included the accounting system software and the organizations that will support them. 4. Make a final decision – The AC4S Executive Team made a decision on the software and support package based on the presentation provided by the consultant that was an expert in this field. 5. Establish a timetable – The consultant provided the Executive Staff a timetable of approximately how  long that it would take the necessary changes to bring the new system online and fully functional. 6. Communicate the change – The CEO began communication with all employees within the organization in order to initiate the change via a KickOff Meeting. The VP of Finance managed several other face-to-face meetings with the change and technical teams in order to determine the progress of the change establish timetables and additional directions during the change. 7. Implement the change – AC4S actually implementing the change selected by the executive staff. 2.2. Terminal Course Objectives (TCOs) 2.2.1. TCO A Depending on the organization, change can be generated by many different forces. As I have said previously, in order for an organization to stay competitive in any field of service, change has to be mastered and incorporated in everyday activity. A way for organizations to stay competitive is to continue to improve internal processes and procedures that will in turn improve customer satisfaction because you are providing more efficient customer service. Some organizations like AC4S that are IT service providers have to continually change due to the driving forces of technology. In my MOC project, technology was the driving force for the change in the accounting system which is an internal process. With the IT services that AC4S provides to customers, technology is also an external driving force that the organization has to keep up with in regards to new technology in order to assist the end user of our services and/or products in making their work more efficient. If AC4S did not continue to address change in the organization such as technology, then the organization would eventually fail to meet the guidelines of the Department of Defense which is their major client. AC4S will not be able to compete with other organizations if change is not continuously addressed, because other organizations may be able to provide the same level of customer service at a cheaper price due to upgrades in technology as one example. 2.2.2. TCO B Based on conversations that I have had with my CEO in developing the material for my MOC project, I discovered that the organization that I work for does not have a Change Model that it follows or any other model that maybe used  during the change process. However, AC4S did use a consultant that participated in the change process in the form of a change agent. The Change Agent and/or consultant helped guide us through the change. However, I believe that if the organization uses the suggestions for the different models that AC4S should use for future changes that they will be more structured and completed sooner than expected. I say this because even though AC4S did not have any type of models in regards to organizational change that the change went fairly smooth. During our research for the MOC project, Rickey and I evaluated many different models that are involved in the change process and selected the models that fit the organization based on the fact that AC4S is an IT services provider. 2.2.3. TCO E Resistance to change is not uncommon in most organizations. I believe that one of the key reasons for the resistance to change is the fear of the unknown or the outcome of the change. An employee may be more or less resistant to change depending on whether the employee feels that the change is good or bad and how that change may impact them. (Managing Change: Managing People’s Fear, http://management.about.com/cs/people/a/MngChng092302.htm). There are many reasons for resistance to change besides fear such as comfort, not perceiving a need for the change, no faith in the process, lack of trust and lack of knowledge. When dealing with resistance to change, it is important to identify who is resisting and how they are resisting to change as soon as possible because if not it can significantly slow down the change process or completely interrupt the change. As a manager, you can use the Kurt Lewin’s Force Field Analysis technique to combat resistance to change. This technique is used to identify the driving forces for change and reasons for resisting the change or restraining forces. According to Kurt Lewin, â€Å"An issue is held in balance by the interaction of two opposing sets of forces – those seeking to promote change (driving forces) and those attempting to maintain the status quo (restraining forces)†. Based on Lewin’s theory, change can only happen if the equilibrium of the two forces that have been changed either by adding conditions that will cause an individual to be more favorable to the change or reducing the resisting forces to the change. In order for the change to be successful, the manager in charge of the change  has to either strengthen the driving forces of the change or weaken the restraining forces of the change. During the course of our MOC project, we completed a change readiness exercise on AC4S. Based on the results of the exercise, AC4S’ change in regards to their accounting system w ill most likely succeed. The responses that we provided were based merely on my impression on the organization as a whole and are subject to change. The responses that were provided were based on observations during my employment with AC4S for the last three years. 2.2.4. TCO G The process of creating a vision for an organization starts in the mind of the leader, usually a dream for the future of the organization. The leader of the organization should not only develop the vision of the organization but develop a strategic plan on communicating that vision in order to be sold and shaped to the organization. Refer to the following key questions that the vision should answer in order for individuals to want to share in the same vision: Where were we? Where are we? Where are we going? Most importantly, how will we get there? It is critical to communicate these items to an organization in order to get the support needed for any change that may need to take place in order to meet the vision of the organization. Without knowing the vision, organization may struggle with change and labor/management problems may incur. Below are five elements used in developing the organization’s vision. (Scott, et al., 1993) 1. Values are the principles, the standards, the actions that people in an organization represent, which they consider inherently worthwhile and of the utmost importance. They include: how people treat each other, how people, groups and organizations conduct their businesses and about what is most important to the organization. 2. Scanning the current situation involves looking beyond the organization to its customers and suppliers and industry trends for information on what is important to them. Involving the internal customers – the employees – is also an important part of the process. 3. Mission is the core purpose for which a person, team or organization is created. It is summarized in a clear, short, inspiring statement that focuses attention in one clear direction by stating the purpose of the individual’s business or group’s uniqueness. 4. Visioning is picturing  excellence – what the person, team or organization wants to create in its best possible future. It is an evocative description of what is possible. A vision is not â€Å"something out there† that is impractical, but a way of setting a compelling scenario. Creating this image of the future requires the ability to expand one’s sense of possibilities and then focus on what new initiatives can lead to success. 5. Implementation includes the strategy, plans, procedures and key actions that will put all of the above into action. In regards to the change that AC4S experienced in the change from one accounting system to another, the CEO illustrated during the kickoff meeting that with the rapid growth that our organization is experiencing that the organization would have to change accounting systems in order to keep up with our growth. Also, that this particular accounting system was selected because other known large organizations that support the Department of Defense which include our competitors and teaming partners that have the same system that has been approved and certified by the government. Finally, this accounting system will provide capabilities that will improve internal processes that again will improve customer satisfaction. 3.0. Closing Statement During this course I have learned many organizational change concepts that I feel can be applied towards the organization with which I am currently employed, AC4S. I have identified several concepts and objectives that will be very beneficial to future changes at AC4S that will occur due to the exponential growth that is currently being experienced. These changes will be more structured and organized now that a formal Change Model and Change Management Model have been identified and that other MOCK concepts have been introduced. I appreciate the fact that the knowledge I have gained from this course will not only serve me well through my experiences with my employer, but will also further strengthen my management abilities.

Contradiction Between Innocence and Individuality in the Age of Innocence

CONTENTS |ABSTRACT†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |2 | | †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |3 | |1 Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |4 | |2 Individuality and Innocence in The Age of Innocence†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |6 | |2. Ellen’s Individualistic Qualities†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |7 | |2. 2 May’s Artificial Innocence†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |10 | |2. 3 Contradiction between Individuality and Innocence†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |12 | |3 Old New York Society in The Age of Innocence†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |14 | |3. The Social Values of Old New York Society†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |15 | |3. 2 Attitude toward Ellen’s Individuality†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |16 | |3. 3 Attitude toward May’s Innocence†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |17 | |4 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |18 | |BIBLIOGRAPHY†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |20 | ABSTRACT Edith Wharton is acknowledged as one of the most important American female writers in the early 20th century, who produced many works of different types such as novels, poems, critic essays, travelling diaries and autobiographies. The Age of innocence, the most successful work, made her the first woman win Pulitzer Prize in 1921. Ellen Olenska and May Welland, are two female protagonists in The Age of Innocence. Through analysis on the omparison between different personalities of these two protagonists and society’s different attitudes towards them, the author of this paper attempts to argue that the conventionality of society is much weightier than the pursuit of individuality in that given era, yet the individuals, especially women should step out their circumscribed roles to realize their unique identity. Key Words: The Age of Innocence, individuality, innocence, convention Contradiction between Innocence and Individuality in The Age of Innocence 1 Introduction Edith Wharton, novelist and writer of short fiction, was born into a carefully guarded upper class of New York society in 1862 and died in 1937. Her parents, George Jones and Lucretia Rhinelander, were from two aristocratic families that dominated New York society. Both her father’s and mother’s family protected her in the New York Four Hundred[1]. Though born in New York, Wharton was transformed by European culture and tradition because she once lived in France, Italy, Germany and Spain between the age of four and ten. She herself insisted that after she returned to New York at the age of ten, she â€Å"never felt otherwise than as in exile in America. † So deeply influenced by both European and American culture, Wharton produced a great number of fictions with the background of New York society and European experience. During her lifetime, Wharton published numerous works as a writer, including 86 short stories, 11 collections of short fiction, 22 works of large fiction, 3 collections of poetry, books on architecture and gardens, a travel book, a critical study called The Writing of Fiction, and an autobiography A Backward Glance. Wharton achieved great accomplishment as a female writer in American literary history. Her most productive period as a novelist began with the publication of The House of Mirth in 1905 and ended with the publication of The Age of Innocence in1920, which enabled her to become the first female writer who was awarded the Pulitzer Prize. Elizabeth Ammon once argued that women â€Å"like Wharton, Cather and Stein† were â€Å"the real giants against whom† writers such as Fitzgerald and Hemingway â€Å"needed to define themselves. The Age of Innocence was the most sophisticated novel written by Edith Wharton in the year of 1920, when American women first had the right to vote. Wharton reviewed the 1870s New York upper-class society in the sight of 1920s. Like most of her works, The Age of Innocence tells a story about love and marriage among three characters: Newland Archer, Ellen Olenska and May Welland. Young lawyer Newland and beautiful girl May announce their engagement a t the party for welcoming the return of Ellen Olenska, May’s cousin who was born in New York but later has grown up in Europe and married a wealthy Polish Count. Ellen comes back to New York for her family’s support and comfort because of her husband’s unfaithfulness. However, as she claims to divorce, the whole family as well as the whole Old New York society strongly opposes to it for they regard divorce as scandal and humiliation. So they send Newland to persuade Ellen from her decision. However, Newland is gradually fascinated by Ellen’s confidence, sophistication and individuality, which he never feels from his innocent fiancee and inevitably falls in love with her. He hesitates between the two totally different women and vacillates whether he run off with Ellen to live a life with moral freedom and personal fulfillment or marry May to live a decent life accepted by the whole upper class though he still loves Ellen. Later, he actually marries May but after their marriage, Newland dates with Ellen frequently and has planned to elope with her to Europe. However, to everyone’s surprise, May’s announcement of pregnancy smashes Newland’s wish thoroughly. It traps Newland in the excruciating marriage and expels Ellen from New York society. Thus, at the end of the story, the three characters all surrender to their destiny. Many major literary critics and authors have reviewed The Age of Innocence. The list of writers and scholars who have reviewed it includes such important figures as Carl Van Doren, Henry Seidel Canby, William Lyon Phelps and Vernon L. Parrington. The criticism of The Age of Innocence is roughly divided into two categories: Naturalism and Feminism. The former one thinks that this novel is influenced by Wharton’s growing background and the vast change of society. The latter one holds the opinion that the novel expresses the female constrain and rebellion. Both of the two views make sense. The Age of Innocence gives us a portrait of Old New York society in 1870s, a particular moment in history when individuality is shunned and a set of social rituals and conventions are enforced. During that period, it is common that the intellectuals, artists and writers are not welcomed by Old New York society members for they would probably bring about ideas and opinions that are disconcerting. On the contrary, most members believe that they have the duty to follow the rules and conventions upheld by Old New York society, and few of them are able to get rid of them and take their lives into their own hands. However, Ellen Olenska, the leading female protagonist in The Age of Innocence, as an alien and invader of Old New York society, is against those rigid conventions to a large extent. Brought up in Europe, Ellen has become a kind of female maintaining her own individuality which does not exist in those New York women at all. It is exactly this kind of individuality that conflicts against the national celebration of female innocence. 2 Individuality and Innocence in The Age of Innocence Literary works always have their female protagonists as â€Å"heroines†. It is generally accepted that men are born to develop their individual identities while women are doomed to serve men. They should be â€Å"relative to men. To please them, to make themselves loved and honored by them, to make life sweet and agreeable to them——these are the duties of women at all times, and what should be taught them from their infancy. (Rousseau 1966, p. 263) So in many men’s novels, women usually serve as the mere subordinate characters. However, in Wharton’s novels, the female figures weigh as important as male figures. Just as Mary Kelly once pointed out, the female figure in Wharton’s novels is â€Å"a strong, commanding, central figure in the home, a supportive and guiding redeemer for husband; a model and teacher of rectitude for children; and a reformer of and servant to an American society judged to be in dire need of regeneration. Yet on the other hand, â€Å"an undercurrent of despair runs throughout the novels which question the possibility of women’s autonomy and individuality. † (Dudovitz 1900, p. 88) The idea is well presented in Wharton’s The Age of Innocence. There are two sharply contrasted female characters: Ellen Olenska and May Welland. May Welland is a charming young girl with the careful bringingup in Old New York society who represents innocence. On the contrary, Ellen Olenska, the disturbing element of that society, is a dark, passionate beauty touched with the xperience and idea of Europe who represents individuality. 2. 1 Ellen’s Individualistic Qualities Ellen Olenska, one of the female protagonists in The Age of Innocence, is born in an aristocratic family of formidable social background in New York. However, her parents were dead when she was a little girl. So she grows up in Paris full of music and art with her aunt, Mrs. Medora Manson, a lady being independent. This distinguishes Ellen from the characters of those typical New Yorkers in The Age of Innocence. Unlike the innocent May, Ellen is mysterious and attracts all people’s eyes. In the opening scene of the novel, when those aristocrats are watching the opera â€Å"Faust† in the new Opera House, Ellen’s first appearance makes all people shocked because she is â€Å"a slim young woman, a little less tall than May Welland, with brown hair growing in close curls about her temples and held in place by a narrow band of diamonds†¦which gave her what was then called ‘Josephine look’, †¦carried out in the cut of the dark blue velvet gown rather theatrically caught up under her bosom by a girdle with a laree old-fashioned clasp. † (Wharton 1996, p. 7) When she was a little child, Ellen â€Å"scandalized† (ibid. p. 52) her family because she â€Å"was in crimson merino and amber beads, like a gipsy foundling† (ibid. , p. 53), and was â€Å"a fearless and familiar little thing, who asked disconcerting questions, made precocious comments, and possessed outlandish arts, such as dancing a Spanish shawl dance and si nging Neapolitan love-songs to a guitar† (ibid. , p. 53). Unlike her other cousins growing up in the respectively restricted atmosphere, Ellen receives â€Å"expensive but incoherent education† which makes her incompatible with the society, and thus she is doomed to isolation and separation from the old New York society. Ellen leaves her unfaithful husband in Europe for the comforts from her family members in New York. However, when she returns, she notices that everything has changed from her memory. And through a series of events, it can be concluded that Ellen is a sincere, strong-minded, independent and sophisticated person with strong individuality. Beauvoir says, â€Å"It is required of woman that in order to realize her femininity, she must make herself object and prey which is to say that she must renounce her claims as sovereign subject. It is this conflict that especially marks the situation of the emancipated woman. † (Beauvoir 1953, p. 643) Ellen is such kind of emancipated woman with courage and independence. When she comes back to New York for comfort, her past brings her not sympathy but endless rumors and mocks among those so-called aristocrats. In order to seek freedom, Ellen leaves her unfaithful husband and returns to New York. However, her word and behaviors are striking and intolerable to most of the New Yorkers who are always devoted to keeping their circle decent and conventional. Ellen’s individuality is reflected in her confrontment with different men. Soon after she arrives in New York, she breaks the conventional rules of the old society and seeks the company of gentlemen at the party. What she has done makes people uncomfortable because the old pattern requires that a lady â€Å"should wait, immovable as an idol, while the man who wished to converse with her succeeded each other at her side. † (Wharton 1996, p. 56) Her individuality can also be found in her style of dressing and her house decoration. She appears first in a decollete, showing her neck and shoulder. She chooses unadorned dark velvet for the opera, a fur-trimmed lounging robe at home-clothes. And her house is kind of foreign style full of old romantic scenes and sentiment, as â€Å"the scent of some far-off bazaar, a smell made up of Turkish coffee and ambergris and dried roses. † (ibid. , p. 45) What’s more, Ellen is brave enough to renounce her rights. In the Old New York society at that time, the richer the husband is, the less freedom his wife will own. As Ellen realizes that her marriage can no longer continue, she is courageous enough to leave her husband, a noble count with vast fortune and return to her hometown. Unfortunately, her clan as well as the whole New York society is not her backup but the obstacle. They only welcome her on condition that she doesn't bring them unpleasant decisions which will probably destroy the decency of the upper class. Here, Ellen is trapped in a dilemma that her true self is in contradiction with her role in Old New York society. For one, she may win the support of society once she decides to return to her husband. For another, she will lose all the support of society if she insists on divorce. At that time, the legislation was for the divorce while the social convention was against it. At last, driven by her strong desire for seeking individuality, Ellen makes up her mind to give up that marriage and insists in a legal opinion on her divorce. Ellen’s individuality is also reflected in her attitude to Newland. Though deeply affected by each other, Ellen refuses to be the mistress of him because she s clearly aware that if she sinks into this helpless love, she and Newland will be torn into pieces by the harsh reality. Look what Ellen responses when Newland asks her to elope with him: â€Å"For us? But there is no us in that sense! We are near each other only if we stay far from each other. Then we can be ourselves. Otherwise we are only Newland Archer, the husband of Ellen Olenska’s cousin, and Ellen Olenska, the cousin of Newland Archer’s wife, trying to be happy behind the backs of the people who trust them. † (Wharton 1996, p. 243) So, she rejects Newland’s fantasy and persuades him to face the reality by her rationality and individuality. She cannot aimlessly yield to the social conventions by giving up her mind and soul. The road for individuality is full of obstacles and people keep telling her that she will lead a better life if she gives up her idea of freedom and individuality. However, she sticks to her own perseverance and bravely put herself against the social customs. 2. 2 May’s Artificial Qualities May Welland is Newland’s fiancee and succeeds in being his wife later. She is an innocent and dull girl accepted by the whole New York society. It is generally acknowledged that the most salable woman is this virginal girl who is the commodity needed by this materialistic world —— a girl without soul, without self, distorted and twisted from her true nature into a marketable product. (Cerrito 1999, p. 372) In Newland’s as well as Old New York society’s eye, May represents all the merit of aristocratic class. She is â€Å"innocent† because she is a loving and sweet New York upper-class girl who simply doesn't conceive that â€Å"what they do† and â€Å"what they say†. Born into the upper-class family, she receives good training that suits the conventions of her class. She has been taught to remain graceful and noble, ignoring all the unpleasant things and avoiding all the difficulties. During their engagement, Newland sends her lilies of the valley every day, which represents virginal purity. And during a long period, Newland supposes that his wife is an innocent and ignorant girl knowing nothing about evil and disturbing things. Only at the end of the story does he realize that May is actually complicated and calculating. However, the â€Å"innocent† here can e interpreted that she is conventional, unimaginative and does not think for herself, only to ingratiate the society’s expectations. As Newland points out, May is a â€Å"product of social system† (Wharton 1996, p. 7), a â€Å"creation of factitious purity† (ibid. , p. 41) that is blind to reality like â€Å"the Kentucky cave-fish, which had ceased to develop eye s because they had no use for them. † (ibid. , p. 73) May is interested in books, but she cannot appreciate the beauty of contents in Ulysses even with the help of Archer’s explanation. She has little sense of humor which is obvious from her reaction to Newland’s jokes. She is frank, because she has nothing to conceal, assured because she knows nothing to be on her guard against. † (Wharton 1996, p. 41) As a girl of dependence, May actually follows what adults want her to do and say and she is inclined to her mother’ opinion of a long engagement, just for the reason of â€Å"having time to prepare a hand-embroidered trousseau containing the proper number of dozens. † (Wharton 1996, p. 70) Therefore, in spite of her attracting appearance, she lacks all the charming qualities which Ellen obtains to catch the eyesight of Newland. It is mainly due to the background and surroundings where she has grown up. Under such kind of atmosphere, May as well as the other women in the Old New York society gets in touch with little advanced ideas and thus, what they consider right is merely to follow the social conventions. However, May is not as â€Å"innocent† as she looks like. She distinguishes Newland’s feeling towards Ellen at the rather early time, but she pretends to know nothing about it. She keeps silent and remains loyal to Newland even though she suspects the relationship between Newland and Ellen. There is much evidence which can support the statement that May is not so innocent. It can be first identified from Beaufort’s ball when Newland asks about Ellen’s absence. She answers that it is because of the dressing problem that Ellen decides not to appear at the ball. Actually, she knows about the truth that Ellen doesn't come for fear that her scandals may influence her clan’s reputation. Even facing the one she loves, May still doesn't tell the truth. She says and does everything in correspondence with the social conventions rather than her true feelings. In the early time of their engagement, when Newland persuades May to advance their wedding, she responds: â€Å"Is it because you are not certain of continuing to care for me? Is there someone else? I’ve wanted to say this for a long time†¦ I’ve wanted to tell you that, when two people really love each other, I understand there may be situations which make it right that they should- should go against public opinions. And if you feel yourself in anyway pledged†¦and if there is any way, even by her getting divorce, Newland, don't give her up because of me! † (ibid. , p. 127) How beautiful and attracting of what she has said! However, when she really feels that Newland cannot help yielding to the relationship with sophisticated Ellen, she advances the date of their wedding just the moment he thinks of breaking the engagement. After they get married, when feeling their intention to elope to the other country, May persuades Ellen to leave New York by confiding the news of her pregnancy, though she herself doesn't confirm whether it is true or not. Thus, Ellen gives up her decision to continue having an affair with Newland and later returns to Europe. Besides, May’s announcement also pulls back Newland for the responsibility of being a husband and father. 2. Contradiction between Individuality and Innocence In The Age of Innocence, there are two female protagonists with totally different personalities though they have blood relation. Ellen represents the kind of â€Å"New Women† seeking for freedom and individuality, while May stands for the traditional women in Old New York society, graceful a nd innocent. It can be easily identified that May and Ellen are two different kinds of women by comparison of their dressing style and the way they express their ideas and many other aspects. When creating the image of May Welland, Wharton alludes to using Roman myths and the image of Roman goddesses. Brought up in Old New York society, May has received perfect traditional education like other women in her circle. So she owns all the virtues which the society is fond of — beauty, reservation, obedience and innocence. When May appears at the opera at the beginning of the novel, with her pink face and fair hair, she is dressed in white tulle caught modestly at her breasts with a gardenia and is holding a bouquet of lilies of the valley. In western culture, lily of the valley represents not only purity but also the Roman Goddess Diana[2](Artemis). And in this novel, Wharton makes several explicit analogies of May and Diana. For example, when May makes her second formal entry to the Van Der Leyden’s dinner party, it is depicted as follows, â€Å"in her dress of white and silver, with a wreath of silver blossoms in her hair, the tall girl looked like a Diana just alight from the chase. † (Wharton 1996, p. 62) In the contest of archery, she comes out of the tent â€Å"in her white dress, with a pale green ribbon about the waist and a wreath of ivy on her hat, she had the same Diana-like aloofness†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Wharton 1996, p. 11) All of these quotations indicate that May is pure and vigorous like Diana. However, just as puzzled as Newland Archer, â€Å"what if ‘niceness’ arrived to that supreme degree was ‘only a negation, the curtain dropped before an emptiness? ’† (Wharton 1996, p. 212) Through Newland’s puzzlement, Wharton indicates that May’s gracefulness is only a kind of superficial presentation, behind of which is an empty and bland mind. It also indicates that May’s so-called innocence is a kind of cover because Goddess Diana, who represents purity and innocence, usually becomes ruthless when she tries to protect her own family. So May Welland, who knows very much about Old New York society, protects her own interests by the powerful traditional force from her aristocratic class and finally expels her cousin Ellen from New York. To some extent, May is the symbol of Old New York society. On one hand, she represents the moral value orientation of Old New York society, such a superficially harmonious, stable and responsible family relation. On the other hand, she represents the nature of Old New York society that kills people without spilling blood with the graceful appearance. In contrast with May’s innocent image, Ellen is more authentic. rought up in Europe and influenced by European culture, Ellen is full of the quality of freedom and independence. In order to get rid of the miserable marriage, she comes back to New York, hoping she would gain comfort and support from her relatives. However, what she has thought about is not acceptable for the upper class of Old New York society. Ellen’s uniqu e personality and exotic style are displayed from her way of dressing and decorating her house. Unlike her sister May’s white dress and silver blossom, Ellen is dressed in dark blue velvet gown. And while May is linked to white lilies of the valley, Ellen is linked to red and yellow roses. These all indicate that Ellen is full of vitality, passion and sophistication. Unlike those New Yorkers’ indifference, Ellen expresses her own feelings and views frankly towards different people and objects. Ellen’s individuality is also shown from her sympathy and her attitude towards the servants. Ignoring the conventions and rituals held by the upper class of Old New York society, Ellen just does what she thinks is right. When her servant goes out, she lends her own cloak to her, ignoring others’ strange glances. To some degree, Ellen stands for the new trend in Old New York society. Her image symbolizes a group of â€Å"New Women† seeking for freedom and individuality who are influenced by different kinds of trends of thought in literature and art. However, Old New York society still has the predominant status and it is still hard to pass through its value orientation and moral standard. That's why it is impossible for Old New York society to accept Ellen’s unique individuality. Old New York Society in The Age of Innocence In The Age of Innocence, the story is based upon the background of New York society in the 1870s. After the Civil War, America underwent considerable social changes. It was just in the age of transformation to a new world from the old one. With the economic boost, the society changed to some extent. There were two rising groups despite the traditional aristocra ts. One was the newly arrived immigrants from Europe and African Americans from the South. The other one was the newly moneyed classes with large possession but low social status. To Old New York society, these two groups were the invaders and intruders. Heedless of tradition, the newborn riches and immigrants shocked Old New York society with there unfettered manners and their brash displays of wealth. However, it did not mean that the conventions and the rituals would also change. At that time, the social conventions and the popularity of keeping silence still dominated the society. People living in that circle were required to obey the rules and were forbidden to fight against the setting rules. That is to say, it was the particular time and place that individuality was shunned and a set of rituals and conventions were enforced. During that period, people with free ideas and creative thinking were not welcomed by Old New York society. On the contrary, most members believed that they had the duty to follow the rules and conventions upheld by Old New York society, and few of them were able to get rid of them and take their lives into their own hands. 3. 1 The Social Values of Old New York Society In The Age of Innocence, Old New York society refers to the time of 1870s in New York. Though new ideas and improvement flourish throughout the outside world of America, they have never penetrated the conventions of Old New York or changed its long-lasting ritual in any way. This aristocratic class tries its best to fight against creation and innovation. Isolated from the outside world, the society copies itself from generation to generation in its own way. In the novel, we often see children growing up in imitation of their parents. Henry and Louisa van de Luyden dominate this Old New York society through their aristocratic European ancestry. May Archer dies with fulfillment, leaving a daughter resembling her very much. Besides these characters, the public scenes also repeat themselves year after year. The opera circulates itself season after season and the diamond arrow won from the archery match is passed on to the children. Old New York society consists of prominent families. They are classified by hierarchy according to their blood lineage and financial capacity. Usually, the former one is much more important than the latter one. As a matter of fact, the mention of money is disturbing. They talk about it and try to think about it as little as possible. Those new-rich without noble blood relation are usually looked down upon by those self-contained aristocrats. One of the most obvious characteristic of Old New York society is the â€Å"gender specification†. In the novel, many places are gender specific: men go to their libraries talking about politics, finance and other issues after dinner while women use the dining room and the drawing room. In such a male-dominated Old New York society, woman always plays a role as decoration and property of husband and â€Å"the perfect wife and mother†. And the society is in favor of the girls who possess those feminine virtues such as modesty, purity, obedience, gracefulness and innocence. On the other hand, the society doesn't like those girls who pursue freedom and individuality. Another significant figure of Old New York society is the â€Å"dread of innovation†. People are reluctant to change and experience those newly-born things as they may offend their existing conventions and rituals. They are used to those traditions which represent truth in their view. For them, new ideas are as dreadful and fierce as floods and savage beasts. 3. 2 Attitude toward Ellen’s Individuality According to the existing conventions and family purity, Old New York society regards Ellen as doubtful as mushrooms. Although she is born from the Mingott family, her orphanage and long-time living abroad makes her different from those typical New York girls such as May Welland. So Old New York society regards Ellen as an outsider and intruder to their circle. It is widely believed that those fossil New Yorkers like innocent young women more than sophisticated women. Ellen’s orphanage, her experience of living in Europe and her scandal with her Polish husband all challenge the acknowledgement of Old New York society. When Ellen first appears in front of everyone’s eyes, the whole society is shocked because they have never met such kind of woman with strong individuality. They are shocked by both her dressing and her behavior. The way of Ellen’s dressing arouses great disturbance to the upper-class of Old New York society. It is indicated from Leffert’s reaction, the foremost authority of the upper-class of Old New York society. When he sees Ellen at the first sight, he cries out â€Å"my god† and concludes that she could not be one of the Mingott because the Mingott would not dress in that way. If Ellen’s dressing and behavior are shocking to Old New York society, then her decision to divorce might be the blockbuster to them. In Old New York society, it has double standard on the issue of marriage. To be more specific, it demands woman of her completely loyalty to her husband and marriage while man is not required to obey so in the same level. When betrayal happens, it is always woman who is to blame. Although Ellen’s unsuccessful marriage is due to her husband’s unfaithfulness, Leffert still finds it unacceptable of Ellen’s choice to divorce. So when Ellen’s Grandma Mrs. Mingott holds a welcome party for her, he refuses to take part in. As Leffert enjoys high prestige and commands universal respect, other members of the society all follow him and reject the invitation. As a result, no one appears at that party. The refusal to accept Ellen by the whole Old New York society reveals that all people are firmly in favor of conventions and against the nonconformity. In that case, social conformity is much weightier than the pursuit of personal happiness and freedom. In 1870s, it is the time when Old New York society tries their best to exclude the outsiders because they are afraid of destroying their long-lasting rituals. The flourish of bourgeoisie class forces the upper-class to fasten their pace to assert the endangering conventions. For instance, the Van der Luydens are repeatedly required to support the existing rituals. For those New Yorkers, Ellen is too foreign and fashionable, and thus her appearance is the potential threat to the conformity of their circle. She has stayed abroad for so long that they can hardly regard her as their comrade. Her unimaginable idea of divorce with her unfaithful husband is undoubtedly unacceptable to the upper-class. What’s more, Ellen’s spiritual â€Å"date† with Newland is another important reason that banishes her from Old New York society. It is her misfortune that Old New York society at that time is hypocritical and marble-hearted. 3. 3 Attitude toward May’s Innocence Unlike Old New York society’s attitude toward Ellen, May is always welcomed by this circle. In the upper-class of New York, people are more afraid of scandals and rumors than diseases because they think decency is much more important than individuality. In their opinion, keeping stable, unchanged and being innocent, obedient is much weightier than pursuing personal fulfillment. Living in Old New York society since she was born, May is undoubtedly sincere, innocent and sensitive which is in accordance to the society: â€Å"In Old New York society the most salable woman, is the virginal child bride, May Welland, who is commodity demanded by a materialistic world——a woman without soul, without self, distorted and twisted from her true nature into a marketable product. (Cerrito 1999, p. 372) As is mentioned above, May is the most salable woman in Old New York society, which means she is widely welcomed and accepted in that circle. The New York society needs this kind of conventional woman who is without any thought and imagination for change. Brought up by the society, May always obeys all the conventions held by this society and always satisfies the New York society’s and her family’s expectation. In other words, May is the ideal woman in patriarchal system in Old New York society. In this society, it is regarded that women are the subordination of men and is required that women should be fully dependent on men. It is hard to imagine that women have the same rights as men. To this extent, May perfectly matches Old New York society, for â€Å"she is virtuous because she is incapable of temptation, competent because she is incapable of any deep perturbation, and willing to suit herself to the least decorum of their world because she is incapable of understanding that there is anywhere anything larger or freer. †(Carl 1920, p. 86) 4 Conclusion Not as a â€Å"writer of manner† as some critics comment on Edith Wharton, she is an outstanding female writer who seeks for the true meaning of life. During her lifetime, she has devoted to keeping the balance between personal desire and social responsibilities. Although born in an aristocratic family in New York, Wharton discloses the limitations and demerits of her class in a rather cruel way when she writes different novels. Among them, The Age of Innocence is one typical representative which has been awarded the Pulitzer Prize. Wharton wrote The Age of Innocence not just about the lost love, but also about the profound distress caused by the destruction of World War I and by the deaths of her close friends such as Henry James and Howard Sturgis, all of which indicated that the former era had ended. This novel was written in 1920 when World War I had just finished. After that disaster, the world, especially the New York society, was out of order both materially and spiritually. Under the circumstances, Wharton was puzzled so that she decided to write a story with the settings in 1870s in Old New York society. Compared to the reality, Old New York society was much more stable. However, she was also aware that stable as it was, it would strangle all the personal fulfillment and freedom because of its social conventions and rituals. In the 1870s, though Old New York society has experienced great changes, it is not to say that the new social order is free of norms. It is a society which is frightened by change that it absolutely stands for obedience and innocence against creativity and individuality. At that time, women are never given the chance to enjoy economic independence like men. Besides, there are many conventions existing in Old New York society. Women are encouraged to play the role as â€Å"perfect wife and mother† and to tolerate the betrayal of their husbands. All in all, it is concluded that the core of the conventions and rituals in Old New York society is that woman should play passive roles in social affairs and should live for the whole family other than for her own happiness. It is represented in The Age of Innocence by the two protagonists May Welland and Ellen Olenska. It is illustrated how Ellen’s individuality challenges the long-time accepted â€Å"innocence†, and how Old New York society sustains its rules and conventions by oppressing Ellen’s individuality and encouraging May’s obedience to â€Å"innocence†. As a representative of traditional woman in Old New York society, May obeys all the rules regulated by the patriarchal society. On the other hand, as a representative of â€Å"New Woman† in Old New York society, Ellen challenges the traditional woman’s role and tries to be the kind of women of rationality, independence and individuality. As a result, it is concluded that through the contradiction between Ellen’s individuality and May’s â€Å"innocence†, the conventionality of society is much weightier than the pursuit of individuality in that given era, yet the individuals, especially women should step out their circumscribed roles to realize their unique identity. BIBLIOGRAPHY [1] Aaron, D 1995, ‘Three Old Women’, Queens Quarterly, pp. 633-639. [2] Benstock, S 1994, No Gifts from Chance: A Biography of Edith Wharton, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York. [3] Carl, VD 1920, ‘An Elder America’, the Nation, November 3. [4] Cerrito & Joann & Laurie 1999, Modern American Literature, St. James Press. [5] Cordasco, R 2008, ‘Listening to the Narrative Voice in the Pit and The Age of Innocence’, Studies in American Naturalism, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 60-78. [6] Dudovitz, RL 1900, The Myth of Superwoman: Woman’s Bestsellers in France and the United States, Routledge, London. [7] Gargono, WJ 1987, ‘Tableaux of Renunciation: Wharton’s Use of The Shaughran in The Age of Innocence’, Studies in American Fiction, vol. 15, pp. 1-11. [8] Holbrook, D 1991, Edith Wharton and the Unsatisfactory Man, St. Martin’s Press, New York. [9] Judith, F 1984, ‘Purity and Power in The Age of Innocence’, American Literary Realism, vol. 7, pp. 153–68. [10] Klimasmith, B 2008, ‘Salvaging History: Modern Philosophies of Memory and Time in The Age of Innocence’, American Literature, vol. 80, no. 3. [11] McWilliams, J 1990, ‘Wharton’s The Age of Innocence’, Explicator, vol. 48, no. 4, pp. 268-70. [12] Pres ton, C 1999, Edith Wharton’s Social Register, Martin’s Press, New York. [13] Rousseau, J 1966, A Treatise on Education, Ginn Health, Boston. [14] Singley, CJ 1995, Edith Wharton: Matters of Mind and Spirit, Cambridge University Press, New York. [15] Singley, CJ 2003, ‘Bourdieu, Wharton and Changing Culture in The Age of Innocence’, Cultural Studies, May, vol. 7, no. 3/4, pp. 495-520. [16] Wharton, E 1996, The Age of Innocence, Bantam Dell, New York. ———————– [1] A phrase coined by Ward McAllister. It represents the number of people in New York who really mattered. [2] Roman Goddess Diana and Greek Goddess was the same person. She was the goddess of[3]Z^bh?  ¤Ã‚ ¦?  ¬Ã‚ °Eou? [4]nâ‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã¢â‚¬  ? S? Z? ’? z ¤AAOoaU? U U ®U U â‚ ¬wâ‚ ¬i`? `  ®?  ®?  ®hybPCJ? o([pic]hu^ehybPCJOJ? o([pic]hY9lCJ? o([pic]hhYhybPCJ? o([pic]hybPhybPCJ? o([pic]hhYhybPCJ wild animals, wil derness and virginity.

buy custom Congestive Heart Failure essay

buy custom Congestive Heart Failure essay Congestive heart failure (CHF) has become a serious health issue throughout the world. By 1999, five to seven million people in North America were living with this disease. In addition, there were twenty million others in the rest of the world (Jobin, Maltais, LeBlanc, 2000). According to statistics from different studies, the hospitalization cost for heart failure patients, is more than double of all forms of cancers. Congestive heart failure (CHF) refers to the hearts inability to meet oxygen requirements of the body tissue when operating normally or at elevated filling pressure (Wolfsthal, 2007). Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a syndrome arising from the combination of many diseases that affect the working of the heart. CHF can result either due to systolic dysfunction or diastolic dysfunction. Normally, the heart works by contraction and relaxation thereby pumping the blood throughout the body. Systolic dysfunction results from problems with contraction of the heart. Diastolic dysfunction results from problems in relaxation (Wolfsthal, 2007). In CHF, circulatory congestion can result, either as systemic venous circulation resulting to peripheral edema or can result to pulmonary circulation congestion leading to pulmonary edema. Pulmonary edema is a life threatening condition (Tuttle-Yoder Fraser-Nobbe, 1995). It should, however, be noted that, acute CHF in most cases results from myocardial infarction. The signs and symptoms of the congestive heart failure (CHF) differ depending on the side of the heart affected. When the congestion is on the left side, pulmonary circulation congestion occurs which in turn leads to dyspnea (shortage of breath). On the other hand, if it occurs on the right hand side, systemic venous circulation results. Systemic venous circulation manifests itself by distended neck veins, hepatomegaly and edema (Tuttle-Yoder Fraser-Nobbe, 1995). In systolic dysfunction, the contraction of the heart in terms of degree of contractility reduces. In the contractility, the heart is unable to withstand the afterload (force against contraction) and preload (the sarcomere stretch before contraction). Decreased contractility can be caused by myocardial infarction (MI), valvular heart disease, hypertension, and cardiomyopathies (Wolfsthal, 2007). In myocardial infarction, a part of the myocardium undergoes necrosis and, therefore, cannot generate the force required to pump t he blood effectively. MI normally results to weakening of the ventricle. If large areas are affected, myocardium results to CHF. Valvular heart disease results due to stenosis (regurgitation of the cardiac valves) thereby placing a lot of load on the heart. In most cases, cardiomyopathies results due to the injury on the myocardium. This injury can be due to toxic chemicals or the diseases. Increased afterload makes it harder for the heart muscles to shorten, thus resulting to reduced cardiac output (Wolfsthal, 2007). In diastolic dysfunction, alteration of active and passive factors that affect the diastole results. Active relaxation result due to pumping out of calcium from the myocardium. Active relaxation occurs before the passive filling of ventricles with the blood previously stored in the atria. Diastolic dysfunction can result due to abnormalities in the active relaxation, abnormality in the passive filling also due to the neurohumoral hypothesis of heart failure. In abnormalities, in the active relaxation, this dysfunction can result due to impairment of the calcium reuptake at the beginning of the diastole. The abnormalities in the passive filling can be due to the myocardium being stiffer than normal. The stiffness can be caused but the increase in the thickness of the chamber walls than normal. Lastly in the neurohumoral hypothesis, the heart failure leads to the activation of related neurohumoral systems and hormones. When persistently over activated, they turn into cardio toxic agent s. They, therefore, lead to the decline in the cardiac function. According to this hypothesis, the blockage of these systems should be beneficial to the treatment of congestive heart failure (CHF). Some of the physical signs are tachycardia, pulmonary rales, cardiac enlargement, fourth (S4) and third (S3) heart sounds. Other physical factors include the neck vein distention, hepatic enlargement, edema and ascites. In tachycardia, elevated heart rate results due to increased releae of the catecholamine. They occur as a compensating mechanism, in the attempt, to maintain the normal cardiac output even in the decreased stroke volume. In pulmonary rales, increased hydrostatic pressure results to the transudation of the fluid into alveoli. Then as the air circulates, cracking sounds results when taking the heart sounds. Not all of these cracking sounds are symptoms of CHF and, therefore, care should be taken. The fourth heart sounds (S4) results from patients in sinus rhythm and heart failure due to the noncompliance of the left ventricle. Therefore, they are also excellent indicators of the CHF. This S4 probably arises due to the reverberation of the blood during ejection of blood into the left ventricle. Aging can also lead to the production of S4. Therefore, more tests should be done to ascertain the presence of CHF. Third heart sounds also known as ventricular gallop occurs mainly in early diastole and is the most reliable sign of the left heart failure. It also occurs due to the rapid filling of the left ventricle. Although it is a reliable sign of heart failure, S3 is common in individuals older than forty years and young athletes. Increased systemic venous pressure results to transudation of fluids into peritoneal space. This consequently leads to elevated neck veins and ascites which can indicate the presence of CHF. Other signs of left-side heart failure include cough, fatigue, crackles, weakness and fatigue (Singh, 2011). The clinical symptoms and features that assist the physical ones in the identification of the CHF are paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea and orthopnea. In addition, Nocturia and edema can also be used. In dyspnea, the individual experiences the feeling of breathlessness and reduced cardiac output to the periphery (Wolfsthal, 2007). Orthopnea refers to dyspnea that occurs due to lying in a recumbent position. It can be relieved by the raising of the head. Paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea refers to dyspnea that awakens the patient from the sleep. It may also occur due to lying in the recumbent position thereby resulting to the pooling of blood in the vasculature and increase, in left ventricular filling pressure, (Wolfsthal, 2007). For paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea, the symptoms disappear after the patient has been standing for five to twenty (5-20) minutes. Nocturia, on the other hand, results due to increased renal blood flow when the patient is in the recumbent position or asleep. Lastly, edem a and particularly cardiac edema occur when systemic hydrostatic venous pressure is higher than systemic oncotic venous pressure. The laboratory assessment of congestive heart failure in patients, involve the use of chemicals, waves and measuring of the blood pressures in many parts of the body. In the determination of the extent of myocardial infarction (MI), an electrocardiogram (ECG) can be used. When using the electrocardiogram the presence of Q waves helps in the confirmation that the MI has been the cause of the CHF (Wolfsthal, 2007). A chest radiograph can also be used. Chest radiograph can monitor cardiac chamber enlargement and congestion. An echocardiogram can also be used to identify the chamber enlargement as well as quantifying the ventricular and valve function (Wolfsthal, 2007). Use of radionuclide ventriculography can be used in measuring range of the right and left ventricular ejection fractions. In addition, the use of Doppler interrogation techniques can be applied in determining the direction and rate of blood flow. Doppler interrogation can detect quantify valvular stenosis. Any variation f rom the individuals normal may indicate the possibility of valvular regurgitation and intra-cardiac shunts. Lastly during the cardiac catheterization, many cardiac characteristics can be evaluated. These include the chamber size, valvular stenosis, intra-cardiac pressures and other coronary anatomy. The extent of stretching in the heart muscle cells can also be monitored by the use of the Brain Natriuretic Peptide (BNP). This is a polypeptide secreted by the muscles of the heart ventricles in response to overstretching. Increased filling pressures in the heart leads to dyspnea, production of the atrial natriuretic peptides (ANP) and Brain natriuretic peptides (BNP) (Siegenthaler, 2007). By monitoring the levels of ANP and BNP, we can rule on the possibility of heart failure, pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary embolism, acute coronary syndrome and renal failure. High levels of BNP (BNP 400pg/mL) are strongly suggestive of cardiac dyspnea. Normal levels (BNP 100pg/mL) highly excludes any cardiac cause. In addition, high levels of BNP may suggest general volume overload or liver failure that may occur in response to hepatic cirrhosis. The level of the BNP also correlates to the severity of the heart failure, if detected (Siegenthaler, 2007). The best diagnosis tool for the CHF is the echocardiography. It can be used in the determination of congenital defects or cardiomyopathy presence. Echocardiography can also be used in the assessment of heart size, cardiac function, hypertrophy and dilation (Potts Mandleco, 2011). All therapies aim at reducing of the volume overload, improvement of the contractility, reducing afterload and in the decreasing of cardiac work. These therapies are in the form of drug therapy and nursing care (Potts Mandleco, 2011). The patients of CHF are in most cases edematous and compromised respiratory functions arising from the fluid overload. They, therefore, need fluid restriction drugs for the lungs. Therefore to lower the amount of the fluid that has accumulated, diuretics can be administered. In addition to decrease the hearts overload, Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme (ACE) inhibitors can be used (Singh, 2011). ACE inhibitors can restore the cardiac and hormonal response to volume overloads, and thus, reduce natriuretic in mild heart failure (Jobin, Maltais, LeBlanc, 2000). Administration of morphine reduces pain also lowers the peripheral resistance. In severe cases, oxygen (O2) should also be given, in order to reduce anxiety and facilitate breathing. In cases where th ere are chest pains, nitroglycerin (nitro) can be used. Nitroglycerine also acts as a vasodilator (Singh, 2011). Normally these patients require rest to conserve energy. Other therapies include administration of Angiotensin II Receptor blockers to reduce the effects of angiotensin II. To patients who are intolerant to ACE inhibitors the Angiotensin II Receptor blockers can be administered. Other medical related therapies are diuretics (for improvement of congestive symptoms), digitalis (to increase the ejection fraction of the left ventricle) as well as administration of -Blockers. The -Blockers can be administered for inhibition of sympathetic nervous system thereby limiting progression of heart failure (Jobin, Maltais, LeBlanc, 2000). In infants whose the heart failure is secondary to congenital defects then, the primary treatment is the surgical correction (Potts Mandleco, 2011). Although no long-term randomized study on the effects of ACE inhibitors exists, the adverse effects of ACE inhibitors and Angiotensin II Receptor blockers can be related to angiotensin suppression and potentiation. Angiotensin refers to hypotension, potassium retention and worsening renal function. On the other hand, potentiation refers to coughing and angioedema (Jobin, Maltais, LeBlanc, 2000). The use of beta blocker medication has led to the increased cases impotence among the older men (Wallace, 2007). These drug-disease interactions encourage the discontinuation of the medication, and the search of the alternatives that do not impact on related disease processes. When diagnosed with CHF, Patients need to be prepared psychologically on how to live positively with the illness. Another part of the patient that should be considered is the family relations. These members should also be prepared psychologically on how to assist their patients at home psychologically and physically. Regardless of age, patient teaching is a vital component in disease management (Wallace, 2007). Unhealthy behaviors like drinking, smoking, or poor nutrition should be broken as they deteriorate the disease. The patients of CHF should eat less salt and limit fluid intake. Patients diagnosed with CHF should monitor their weight regularly. This should be done every morning at the same time. During measuring of the weight, same clothes and scale should be used. The patient should call the doctor if he notices sudden change in weight, increased swelling of the legs or ankles as well as having trouble in breathing when resting or sleeping at night. While dealing with the olde r adult population, ultimate care should be given to the management of pathological diseases of aging. Lastly, exercises and better night sleep should be encouraged for continued improved health (Wallace, 2007). Buy custom Congestive Heart Failure essay