Little Children Movie Review Essay

â€Å"You couldn’t change the past. But the future could be a different story. And it had to start somewhere. † This final statement sums up the message of the Little Children, a film opus of Todd Fiend, that talks not merely about a love affair of two married persons, but the story of struggle and redemption of common folk living in an upper-middle class suburban Boston. This notwithstanding, the film also shows a stereotypical, albeit real depiction of the contradictions in such a neighborhood – the soccer moms, the disempowered husbands, better called ‘house-bands’, and the bored housewives in terrible need of an ego boost. The film review shall mainly quote dialogue from the film, in order to showcase fully the power of this story about suburban Northeastern America. Sarah Pierce is a successful academic and campus figure, but has since lost all glory upon her marriage to Richard, and subsequent birth to Lucy, a self-assured little girl who refuses to do everything Sarah requests. She currently suffers from an absolute absence of love in her relationship with Brad, shattered further with her catching Richard in a fit of masturbation, while wearing her panties around his head. Moreover, she eternally despises the pretentious moms she sees in Lucy’s playground all the time. The lines with sarcasm are clearly suggestive of her clear disdain for the mothers, to wit – Mary Ann: He should just be castrated. Just snip, quick and easy. Sarah Pierce: [sarcastically] You know what else you should do? Nail his penis above the entrance to the elementary school. That’d really teach him a lesson. This initial situation of Sarah inextricably creates the objective conditions for the future love affair with Brad, because one cannot reasonably expect, despite promises made at the consummation of marriage that she can eternally be faithful in the wake of the loveless situation that she is in. Her disempowerment as an intellectual by becoming a fulltime housewife living in a sea of pretentious women around her also gives further ammunition, albeit personal isolation from her community-at-large, for the blossoming of a new yet forbidden relationship with Brad. The other player in this love affair is Brad Adamson, a ‘house-band’ whose career is at a standstill – he failed the bar exams twice, and his wife is a successful documentary filmmaker, named Kathy. In such as situation, he feels absolutely helpless, in view of the fact that it is his wife that serves as the breadwinner of the family, and his main task for every given day would be to accompany their child Aaron during his playtime. Without an actual career to speak of, and a similarly successful past as Sarah, it is without a doubt a situation which would create the necessary conditions for his decision to enter into an affair with Sarah – them hopeless beings supposedly full of potential, now finally united. The proverbial meet-cute of film may be the scandalous yet affirming prank they pulled against the pretentious mothers in the playground, when Sarah and Brad hugged each other, to the absolute disdain of the mothers. The prank unleashed their long-kept longings of spontaneity and passion, long gone in the running of their marriages and only to be found again in each other’s embrace. Sarah, as the formerly empowered intellectual, possesses almost the same ridicule at Richard as what she has against the pretentious mothers, to wit – Brad Adamson: You have a nice place here. Sarah Pierce: You think? Yeah, Richard does pretty well for himself. Brad Adamson: Oh, yeah? What’s he do? Sarah Pierce: He lies. They shall soon engage in passionate love-making during a fierce rainstorm, but only after Brad realizes that their feelings for each other are mutual, as shown by a picture kept by Sarah in her study. Nonetheless, the couple in the affair approach their forbidden relationship, with great fervor, but a bit unsure, with even a tinge of guilt and remorse, particularly on the part of Brad, to wit – Brad Adamson: Do you feel bad about this? Sarah Pierce: No, I don’t. Brad Adamson: I do. I feel really bad. The other characters in the movie are as interesting as the two main love-struck protagonists. Ronnie McGorvey is an indecent exposure offender, having served prison time and has since moved back into the neighborhood with his mother. Ronnie seems to have been unreformed in his perverted ways, when he masturbates yet again during a date set by his mother, ruining the date, and destroying all hopes of him ever finding love. His return, nonetheless, is met with great protest by Larry, Brad’s teammate in touch football, and a disgraced police officer. His protests turn violent at times, not content with the mere handing out of flyers and posters about Ronnie, but also vandalizing his house, and almost assaulting Ronnie and his mother. Their seemingly grown-men, good vs. evil conflict reaches a terrible turn when a drunken Larry goes to Ronnie’s house with a megaphone, waking the entire neighborhood and shaming fully Ronnie and his mother. As his mother tries to stop Larry from further his drunken actions, he pushes her to the ground, triggering a heart attack which would soon take her life. Nonetheless, before entering death’s door, she writes a note to Ronnie with a chest-pounding plea – â€Å"Please be good boy. † This triggers Ronnie to go on a fit of rage for losing his mother, ending in castrating himself, in pursuit of his mother’s request at death. Larry would soon realize how grave his mistake was and looks for Ronnie, and bring him to the hospital for medical attention. The stories of Ronnie and Larry ironically show the awkward sense of justice and reason disgraced persons in the community pursue to redeem themselves to their loved ones and to the community. Ronnie, in the most dramatic expression of remorse and love to his dead mother, has cut of his testicles – the physical object of his sexual perversion, in order to unrealistically undo the hurt feelings of his mother created by his former acts. But despite the spectacle of it all, the drama attended by it, there is no point in doing such. The mother is dead, and the date has been left crying. On the other hand, Larry, the disgraced police officer, puts the law into his own hands by maligning Ronnie’s person and by engaging into overt acts of harassment and violence in pursuit of this. The objective is clear, that despite his failure as an officer of the law, he himself continues to be an upright man, rejecting sexual depredation and moral turpitude in the person of Ronnie. He does his brand of redemption to a serious fault, notwithstanding through aimless grandstanding, by lumping together Ronnie’s person to that of his mother, by vandalizing her property and pushing her to the ground in pursuit of his shame campaign. By doing such, he fails in the end, because the object of vigilante-ism is not the person whose life was lost, but some innocent person whose continued life could have influenced Ronnie towards full redemption from his sins, without need of castration, nor the spectacle of it. Meanwhile, the affair between Brad and Sarah becomes all the more serious, to the point that Kathy herself now witnesses the truth of the affair through the tacit sexual tensions between the two during a dinner. They have even agreed to run away together, as when two young star-crossed lovers would leave their unyielding parents in pursuit of their hasty, yet seemingly ‘true’ love. In pursuit of this, Sarah even declares the situation to Mary Ann, to wit – Mary Ann: Oh that’s nice. So now cheating on your husband makes you a feminist? Sarah Pierce: No, no, no. It’s not the cheating. It’s the hunger – the hunger for an alternative and the refusal to accept a life of unhappiness. The two were prepared to leave their loveless homes, their young children and their real spouses to perfect the ‘love’ long lost, and which now they have found through one another. This feeling of seemingly ‘great love’ is expected, but appears clearly as one that is fleeting, one that is artificial, one that was created by the sordid personal experiences of their lives, where the affair’s function was a mere outlet of a love that is merely not sought, but never absent, in their own homes. Such is how their love is that in the film’s climax, at the supposed point of no return by meeting on the night they agreed upon to run away for love, the family and the past they have left pull them back, not through force, but by circumstances that put everything back into its proper perspective. Sarah’s Lucy gets lost, and a panicked mother searches for her relentlessly in the playground where she left her, only to soon find her along under a street light. It is on this moment, that the bubble of ‘love’ in the affair is completely pierced, that the idea of the absence of love is merely in her mind, nothing more, and Lucy is the personification of that love, that has never been absent, but as stated above, a love merely unsought. Brad himself experiences a similar piercing of the ‘love bubble’, in the exact moment towards their scheduled departure for love. Brad, the confident but now disempowered lawyer-to-be, has failed to leave his goodbye letter to Kathy when he met a serious accident while trying some skateboard tricks. No clue has been given as to why he failed to leave the note to Kathy, but what can be surmised is that he probably felt the same as Sarah had, the inability, at the final instance, to create the actual physical wedge between his past and his supposed future with Sarah. This unstated inability to leave is further buttressed by Kathy’s rush to the hospital to meet Brad at the emergency room doors, showing that despite acting as the breadwinner of the family, she is not without love for her husband, and that, as in Sarah’s case, Brad’s idea of a loveless home is again, a love merely unsought, waning and almost at the point of death, yes, but present with the ability to be roused to life again. In all these, the film shows who the real Little Children are in this story of suburban America – it is the adults who allow their feelings to get in the way of principled contemplation of relationships and love.

Midnight Journal Entry

The Midnight Journal Entry Anne T. Lawrence, San Jose State University On an overcast afternoon in Portland, Oregon, on Friday, March 28, 2003, Richard Okumoto intently studied a set of hard-copy accounting documents called â€Å"adjusting journal entries† spread out on his desk. He had been appointed chief financial officer (CFO) of Electro Scientific Industries, Inc. (ESI), a multi-million dollar equipment manufacturer, just a few weeks earlier. Okumoto was in the midst of closing the company’s books for the third quarter of fiscal year 2003, which ended February 28.An experienced executive who had served as CFO for several other technology firms, Okumoto was familiar with the task, which normally would be routine. But this time, he felt that something was seriously amiss. When reviewing the company’s recent results, he had noticed a sharp dip in accrued liabilities between the two quarters ending May 31 (the last quarter of the 2002 fiscal year) and August 31 (the first quarter of the current fiscal year).Now, looking at the detailed journal entries his staff had provided, he noticed that several significant accounting entries had been made around midnight on September 12, 2002. The entries made that September evening had significantly changed the company’s results for the quarter ending August 31, 2002, a few days before they were reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission. He later recalled: The fact that the time stamps [on the journal entries] were midnight through one o’clock in the morning made me believe they were having difficulties closing the quarter.Not just because of accounting difficulties, but because they were having difficulties finding the right answers. My initial reaction was, even given a difficult quarterly close, if the team was working that late at night, that wasn’t typical. From the pass codes required by the accounting software, Okumoto could see who had made the entries. They inclu ded James Dooley, then the company’s acting chief operating officer and now the CEO, the corporate controller, and several senior members of the finance team. One midnight journal entry in particular drew the new CFO’s attention.The late-night team had wiped out an accrued liability of $977,000 associated with the anticipated cost of retirement and severance benefits to company employees in Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. That entry, and several smaller ones, all of which were favorable to net income, had the cumulative effect of permitting the company to report earnings of $0. 01 per share for the quarter ending August 31, 2002, rather than a loss. When he realized that, Okumoto recalled, he felt â€Å"a sinking feeling in my gut. † He asked himself, â€Å"What happened here? At that time of night?All of the changes in a single direction? What’s going on? † He was sure something was not right. RICHARD OKUMOTO Born in 1952, Richard Okumoto was raised wit h his four siblings in a Japanese-American family in a low-income, African-American neighborhood that bordered the Pepper Street Projects of Pasadena, California. He explained how his parents’ experiences had shaped their outlook: My parents grew up during the depression years. Dad farmed with relatives, and Mom grew up tending 3,000 chickens on a three-acre ranch in Gardena, California.Shortly after the Pearl Harbor attack by the Japanese, my parents were relocated under Executive Order 9066 [under which persons of Japanese ancestry on the West Coast were sent to relocation camps during World War II]. They met and married in a relocation camp. During their incarceration, their families could not make their payments. Dad and his relatives lost their land, and Mom’s parents lost their chicken ranch. After those experiences, my father was committed to having no debt. He built our family home in 1955, with the idea of paying off the loan in eight years.In 1962, Okumotoâ⠂¬â„¢s father, who worked as a gardener, landscaper, and salesman of Japanese mutual funds, was disabled in a serious auto accident. Fortunately, by then, he had almost paid off the loan on their home, so the family was able to survive financially. After the accident, Okumoto’s mother took a job cleaning homes to help support her five children. Okumoto described his relationship with his mother: She and I had an especially close bond. Shortly before my dad’s accident, both her parents had died. I was the one who supported her through a very difficult year.As a result, she always treated me differently from the other kids—almost like an adult. The Okumoto family’s financial situation after the accident was difficult. Okumoto had vivid memories of how they coped: Money was very short. We had to account for every penny. Every week, my mother wrote down in a leather-bound journal everything she earned and everything we spent in the household, down to the penn y. Every week, from the time I was ten years old, she went through that with me. We lived on a cash basis. There was no credit card, no second mortgage.In that situation, budgeting became extremely important. Her comment to me was, â€Å"You can’t complain [about what you don’t have] unless you understand what’s happening. † Those were her ground rules. He added this comment about his mother’s values: The ethics of doing the right thing become very important, because that’s really all you have. [My mother] instilled in me at an early age, regardless of what else you do, always take the high road, always do the right thing. That has influenced me throughout my career.After high school, Okumoto attended San Jose State University, where he completed an undergraduate degree in accounting in 1974 and attended the MBA program from1975 to 1978. He soon embarked on a highly successful career in finance. Over the next two-and-a-half decades, he held increasingly responsible roles at a number of high-technology companies in the Silicon Valley, including Fairchild Semiconductor, Novellus Systems, Measurex, Credence Systems, and Photon Dynamics. Okumoto admired a number of managers he had worked for, who had set high professional and ethical standards for him and his co-workers.He felt fortunate to have had three exceptional mentors: Woody Spedden, the CEO of Credence Systems; Jim Hefferman, his boss at Fairchild and later at Measurex; and Don Waite, the CFO at Measurex who later took over that position at Seagate Technologies. â€Å"All three individuals upheld the highest integrity,† Okumoto recalled. â€Å"Aside from the technical training I received from them, I got a strong ethical grounding. They would always tell me to ask myself—what are your obligations to others? † ELECTRO SCIENTIFIC INDUSTRIES, INC. Electro Scientific Industries, Inc. ESI), the company that Okumoto joined as CFO in early 2003, was t he second-largest technology company in Oregon, trailing only Tektronix in size. Based in Portland, the company was founded in 1944 as Brown Engineering to make test and measurement equipment. As technology evolved, so did the company’s products. In the 1960s, the firm—by then called ESI—moved into lasers, and later developed applications of laser technology for the emerging semiconductor industry. ESI went public on the NASDAQ exchange in 1983. In 2003, ESI’s core business was providing precision production equipment to electronics firms.The company manufactured equipment that was used in the production of a wide range of electronics products, such as computers, cellular phones, home entertainment systems, automotive electronics, electronic games, and personal digital devices. Its products included advanced laser systems, test equipment, and packaging systems, among others. The company’s customers included many leading electronics firms, including AMD, Ericsson, IBM, Samsung, Hitachi, Flextronics, Honeywell, and Lucent. Seventy percent of ESI’s sales were outside the United States, mainly in Asia and Europe.The company owned and operated manufacturing facilities in Portland and Klamath Falls, Oregon, and in Escondido, California, and operated sales offices in many countries. In 2002, it employed 875 people and reported sales revenue of $167 million (down from $472 million the prior year). Like many firms in the electronics industry, ESI was badly battered by the economic downturn that began in 2001. After achieving record sales and income in the fiscal year ending May 31, 2001, the company’s financial results declined precipitously in FY 2002, as shown in Exhibit A.Sales and profits had continued to decline in the first half of FY 2003. Exhibit A: Electro Scientific Industries, Selected Sales and Income Data, 1998-2002 | 1998| 1999| 2000| 2001| 2002| Net sales| 252,134| 197,118| 299,419| 471,853| 166,545| Net i ncome (loss)| 22,347| 7,528| 40,860| 99,933| (15,961)| Net income (loss) per share| 0. 89| 0. 29| 1. 55| 3. 71| (0. 58)| Data refer to fiscal years ending May 31. All data are given in thousands of dollars, except per share data. Source: ESI 2002 Annual Report. The company noted in its 2002 annual report:In fiscal year 2002, ESI weathered the worst downturn in the electronics industry in over 30 years†¦We are conducting a thorough review of our overall market strategy as well as product line strategies to assure that they will generate significant shareholder returns over the inevitable cycles in our industry. To cut costs, the company initiated a shutdown of its Escondido facility, consolidating its operations in Portland. It divested several underperforming lines of business and sought to invest in areas it saw as promising through partnerships and, potentially, acquisitions.It also informally explored a merger with another firm in southern California. In early 2002, Don VanL uvanee, the company’s long-time CEO, suffered a stroke and was no longer able to serve. The board appointed David Bolender, the former CEO of Protocol Systems and a director since 1988, to step in as acting CEO until it could find a permanent replacement. At that time, the board also elevated James Dooley, who had been serving as the firm’s chief financial officer, to the role of acting chief operating officer to run the company’s day-to-day affairs.In December 2002, the board promoted Dooley to the position of chief executive officer, and Bolender became chairman of the board. (Executives and directors of ESI named in the case, and their positions, are summarized in Exhibit B. ) [Exhibit B should appear about here; it is at the end of the file. ] CLOSING THE QUARTER Shortly after Dooley became CEO, Okumoto was recruited as chief financial officer. He started work on February 17, 2003. I was excited about the job. I thought it might be my last one in the industr y. The company, management, and employees—all had a long history of stability.To me, it was another walk down the path of hard work, a fresh chance to apply my skills in strategic planning and execution as well as to implement the new Sarbanes-Oxley compliance rules. His first task was to prepare for the FY 2003 third quarter close. In reviewing the company’s books for the past several quarters, he soon noticed a sharp downward spike in the balance of accrued liabilities. He noted that fact for further investigation. In addition to closing the quarter, several other items required Okumoto’s attention.Just one week into his new job, on February 24, he got an email from John (â€Å"Jack†) Isselmann, Jr. , the general counsel, asking him to forward to the manager of the Japanese office, Mike Tetsui, a set of revised work rules (terms of employment) for ESI’s Japanese employees. As a newcomer, Okumoto knew little of the background or why he had been as ked to do this, but complied with the general counsel’s request, sending on to the Japanese office manager the revised work rules. Okumoto received the following reply from Tetsui on March 2: I have read the proposed work rule and found no section of [sic] retirement fund.I do not know what is the intention of removing that section, but it is a huge impact on each employee we have†¦I do not think I can get concents [sic] from [ESI’s Japanese] employees without reasonable change in retirement benefit. Please let me know how you would like me to proceed. Okumoto recalled: My first response was, â€Å"uh-oh. † There was a big disconnect between what I had been told and Mike’s reply. I had assumed that the Japanese had already been informed of the cancellation of their retirement benefits and agreed to the changes. It was clear they had not.In a prior job at Novellus Systems, Okumoto had set up that company’s Japanese operations, and he was aware that Japanese work rules were normally filed with the government. Regulators were very strict about altering any documented benefits. Accordingly, Okumoto believed that ESI was obligated to pay benefits that had been promised to employees, and he told Isselmann this. Okumoto also expressed the opinion that employees, if dissatisfied with the revised rules, could take the matter before the Japanese labor board, and that this would be a â€Å"quantifiable event† that would have to be recorded on the books as a liability.Isselmann responded that he was unfamiliar with Japanese law. On March 4, Okumoto spoke with CEO James Dooley about his concerns that the reversal of benefits for Japanese, Korean, and Taiwanese employees might expose ESI to litigation, and this could affect the accounting treatment of the event. Dooley strongly disagreed. Okumoto recalled: He told me that everything had been cleared with everyone. He said there was full information. There was full disclosure. H e emphasized that KPMG [ESI’s external auditor], the company’s own legal staff, and the board had all signed off on it. He said I should â€Å"just get past it. Okumoto was concerned about this conversation, particularly because the CEO seemed so defensive. On March 11, Okumoto met again with Dooley, this time to discuss Okumoto’s upcoming presentation to the audit committee. The new CFO recommended that the company delay announcing its third quarter earnings and restate its first and second quarter earnings to report correctly the $977,000 in liabilities associated with the anticipated cost of retirement benefits for its Asian employees. Okumoto explained his view that not reporting these liabilities had violated Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.At that point, Okumoto recalled, Dooley became visibly upset. The CEO—all six feet-six inches and 280 pounds of him—turned an angry red and told me again to just get past this. That’s when I knew that this was going to be swept under the rug. It was clear I was not part of the club. Then Jim said, â€Å"If I’ve got to reverse this entry, I’ll quit. † THE â€Å"MOFO† MEMORANDUM On March 13, Okumoto attended a meeting of the board of directors’ audit committee. Also present at that meeting, in addition to the audit committee members, were Dooley, Isselmann, and several senior managers.At the meeting, Okumoto recommended that the company’s financial statements for the previous two quarters be restated, and that it hire an independent accounting firm to conduct an audit of the Asian benefits issue. Dooley countered that everyone had been fully informed of the reversal and had â€Å"bought off† on it. The audit committee declined Okumoto’s suggestion that an independent accounting firm be brought in, but it did direct Barry Harmon (formerly ESI’s CFO and a member of the audit committee), Okumoto, and Isselmann to lead an internal investigation into the matter.After the audit committee meeting, Isselmann came into the CFO’s office. Okumoto recalled: He closed the door and just broke down. He told me that after the benefits reversal in September he had asked MoFo [Morrison Foerster, an outside law firm on retainer to ESI] to review its legality. MoFo had advised it was illegal to cancel the retirement benefits without employee consent. He said he had immediately shown the memo to Dooley, who had brow-beat him, intimidated him, and essentially boxed him into a corner. I believed this, because in one meeting I actually saw Jim stand up and tower over Jack, who was only 5 feet-6.I watched Jim almost physically overtake him. Jack was a young guy, pretty inexperienced, and his job at ESI was his first in the industry. On his way out, Isselmann handed Okumoto some documents. From the documents, Okumoto learned that on October 3, 2002, Isselmann had written MoFo, asking for an opinion on wh ether or not it would be legal for the company to terminate the Asian employees’ retirement benefits unilaterally. In his letter, Isselmann had pointed out that the rules had been distributed to employees but had not been submitted to the relevant government agency.On October 7, Toshihiro So, a Japanese labor and employment attorney affiliated with Morrison Foerster, responded to Isselmann’s request. The MoFo memo, now in Okumoto’s hands, read in part: Retirement allowances are not a legal requirement [in Japan]. However, once the company agrees to pay retirement allowances in Rules of Employment (even though they have not been submitted to the relevant government agency), the company is obliged to pay them in accordance with the Rules and cannot remove them at the company’s discretion.According to Japanese case laws, as a general rule, †¦the deprivation of previously acquired rights by newly drawn up or changed work rules are [sic] not permittedâ₠¬ ¦[It] is required that before changing the work rules, the company should hear and consider the opinion of the related employees. Okumoto was shocked. â€Å"This is the smoking gun,† he thought. Investigating further, Okumoto learned that although private employers in Japan were not obligated to pay retirement benefits, doing so was considered a good industry practice, and since 1981 ESI had offered such a benefit to its employees there.Under the rules of employment established for ESI’s employees in Japan, any employee (except executives) who chose to retire after reaching the voluntary retirement age of 60 would be entitled to a â€Å"retirement allowance† of one month’s pay per year of service—in effect, a one-time severance payment. Workers who were involuntarily terminated and the estates of any workers who died before reaching the age of 60 were also entitled to this benefit. Similar rules were in effect for the company’s workers in Korea and Taiwan. At the time, ESI had 18 employees in Japan, 13 in Korea, and 23 in Taiwan, mostly in sales and customer support roles.On March 14, Okumoto called an â€Å"all hands† meeting to disclose his initial findings and discuss a path forward. Present at the meeting were Dooley, Isselmann, Harmon, and several other senior managers. The CFO asked directly if there had been full disclosure and review of all material facts with respect to the accrual reversal. Dooley confirmed that everything had been disclosed. Okumoto did not mention the MoFo memo, thinking that Dooley’s response indicated that he must have already disclosed it to KPMG and the audit committee. On March 20, Okumoto spoke by telephone with Mike Tetsui.The Japanese manager told the CFO that the employees had not yet been told that their retirement benefits had been terminated, and he—Tetsui—would resign before he would tell them that news, which he expected would be devastating. â₠¬Å"As head of the group,† Tetsui told Okumoto, â€Å"I will fall on my sword. † On March 21, Okumoto met again with Dooley to press him on how the reversal had happened. Dooley was initially â€Å"combative. † As the conversation went on, however, he â€Å"let his guard down† and began talking about what had happened on the night of September 12.As Okumoto recalled the conversation: Jim told me that he had sent a financial packet to the board of directors prior to their meeting on September 13. After he had distributed the packet, but before the meeting, he was contacted by KPMG, who told him there had been an error in the company’s calculations of its overhead costs, so the financial statements distributed to the board were incorrect. ESI’s reportable earnings were suddenly much less than they thought, by as much as a million dollars.Jim said this was particularly important because the company was in informal merger discussions with a compan y in southern California. Then he said, â€Å"No one was helping me, so I had to help myself. † When Jim made that comment, my first thought was, he was looking for revenue. He was hunting for credits. He was looking to manipulate earnings. That was a definite red flag. Okumoto walked out of Dooley’s office stunned. He called his staff together and asked them to assemble any documentation they had on accounting entries on or around September 12.He also began talking with the members of the finance team who had participated in the late-night meeting with Dooley and learned that a number of people on the finance staff had questioned the benefits reversal, but had not brought it forward. This was consistent with a negative tone at the top. I would almost characterize it as bullying. That’s one reason why no one stepped forward. That tone at the top created an environment where people really couldn’t speak out. It’s important to look at the people. Ità ¢â‚¬â„¢s similar to qualitative research. We all do that intuitively.When I looked at the body language of a lot of the people involved—the cost accountants, the financial analysts—it became apparent to me that they were scared. They knew something was wrong, and they wanted to say something, but something held them back. They reminded me of beaten animals. Growing up in the neighborhood I did, I knew what fear looked like. As part of his further investigation, Okumoto independently approached the audit team from KPMG. They told him Dooley had informed them that the company had received a legal opinion that the reversal was appropriate, and they had deemed that information sufficient.Okumoto observed: KPMG was new on the account, which they picked up after the collapse of Arthur Andersen. They didn’t have deep familiarity with it. They did not have all the information. Some of the partners were new. On March 28, a week after he had requested the relevant account ing entries for September 12, his staff finally produced the complete documentation for that date. Now, drilling down into the details, he saw the full scope of the midnight journal entries—and who had made them. WEIGHING THE RISKS Over the weekend, Okumoto considered his next moves. None of the ndividuals and groups from whom he had sought support—the CEO, the general counsel, or the auditors—seemed to share his concern about the seriousness of the issue. The audit committee had shown some interest, but had turned down his recommendation to bring in independent auditors and seemed to believe the matter could be handled internally. Okumoto was losing sleep, worrying constantly about what—if any—additional steps he should take. He had tried to warn the key players. From all, he had received the same message: We don’t see this as a serious problem. Let it go.Okumoto realized the risks of escalating the issue further. He was earning a base sala ry of $250,000, with the possibility of a 100 percent performance bonus. He reflected: I certainly realized the risks. I knew that if I brought this forward, there was a strong likelihood that I would either lose my job, or I would be in an environment where it would be difficult to operate, so I would have to leave. The idea also occurred to him that â€Å"I can leverage this for more money and stock if I look the other way. Plus, I can become invaluable to the company with this dirt.I can immediately become part of the established inside club. † He had also recently signed a contract to purchase a home in the nearby community of Lake Oswego, and wondered how he would make good on that commitment if he lost his job. However, he felt reasonably secure financially. Following the example of his parents, Okumoto had worked hard to avoid debt and to save for adverse times. He reflected: One of the first things I ask friends who are or would like to be CFOs or general managers, wh ere risks such as this can jeopardize their careers, is: Are you financially secure enough to make good decisions?Because if you aren’t, I can count on the fact that you will make bad decisions when times of adversity hit. We all talk about the value of making good decisions, but as we all know, life creeps in. There are economic commitments, family commitments, and people are sometimes moved to do the wrong thing. As the old adage goes, hire your sales people so they are hungry enough to get the deal done. Hire your finance people so they are not hungry enough to do the wrong thing. He added: Fortunately, I was financially in a position where I could afford to leave if t came to that. I was single, so I figured the only person I had to protect was myself. He also had a network of friends in the area he felt he could turn to for support. I had a number of friends in the Portland area, having worked there earlier. My prior company had a division of about 1000 employees in the area. Of these, 500 had worked directly for me. It might have been a false sense of security, but I felt I had a pretty good infrastructure of people that I knew. By this time, Okumoto was also becoming concerned about his personal safety.Several times, he received anonymous messages on his home answering machine. At the time, he was living temporarily in corporate housing while he shopped for a home, and he felt he was particularly visible there. But, he added that he was not easily intimidated. I felt that I could take care of myself. I had faced a lot worse threats than this one. As a teenager, I was robbed at gunpoint. I was stabbed in the back and left for dead. I was beaten so badly that my eyes were swollen shut. I grew up around a lot of physical violence. Although Okumoto saw risks in taking action, he also saw risks in inaction.He commented: I was concerned about my own legal liability if I did not take action. From the point of view of the DOJ [Department of Justice] and SEC [Securities and Exchange Commission], if you don’t fix the problem, you become the problem. I had potential legal risk. As Okumoto pondered the risks of both action and inaction, he reflected on the board of directors and what kind of response he might expect if he approached them directly. (See Exhibit C for a list of members of the board. ) [Exhibit C should appear about here; it is at the end of the file. ] Dooley was the only insider on the board.There were some old timers on the board—like Barry Harmon, who had earlier been CFO at ESI. But there were also a fair number of independents. Even though I was new at the company, I had a prior relationship with two of the directors. Jerry Taylor, the former CFO at Applied Materials, was a member of the audit committee. Jerry and I had worked together 25 years earlier at Fairchild. So, I had a long-standing relationship with him. Jon Tompkins, the former CEO of KLA-Tencor, was also on the board. I had known Jon from T encor days, where he had interviewed me for the CFO position.As he contemplated his next move, Okumoto thought back to an experience earlier in his career. As he told the story: I had been in a situation before where I hadn’t spoken up. I had been a CFO for another public company. I was in a situation in which I had questions on some of the accounting. But it was close enough, and I was concerned that I didn’t have enough evidence to support my reservations. I had only been with the company three months. Within four months, we had a major revenue shortfall. At that time, I made the decision not to try to cover up the revenue shortfall.But, because we had not called it to the attention of analysts earlier, we lost the confidence of the Street. At that point, the CEO and I both resigned. I made a decision then that if I ever again saw something that was close, I would act much faster. He also thought about his mother’s admonition always to do the right thing, and the advice of his mentors, who had counseled him always to ask the question—what are your obligations to others? Exhibit B: Executives and Directors of Electro Scientific Industries, Inc. Named in the Case and Their Positions (Listed in Order of Mention)Richard OkumotoChief Financial Officer (CFO) James T. â€Å"Jim† DooleyActing Chief Operating Officer (COO), early 2002 – December 2002 Chief Executive Officer (CEO), December 2002 – Don VanLuvaneeFormer CEO David F. BolenderActing CEO, early 2002 – December 2002 Chairman of the Board, December 2002 – John â€Å"Jack† Isselmann, Jr. General Counsel Mike TetsuiManager, Japanese Office Barry L. Harmon Former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Director and Member of the Audit Committee Gerald F. â€Å"Jerry† TaylorDirector and Member of the Audit Committee Jon D. TompkinsDirectorExhibit C: Members of the Board of Directors, ESI Inc. , March 2003 David F. Bolender, Chairman of the Board Chairman of the Board and CEO (retired), Protocol Systems, Inc. ; President of Pacific Power and Light Co. (retired) James T. Dooley, Chief Executive Officer Barry L. Harmon (member of the Audit Committee) Senior Vice President (retired), Avocet Corp. ; formerly, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of ESI Keith L. Thomson Vice President (retired), Intel Corp. ; Chair of the Board of Trustees, University of Oregon Foundation Jon D. TompkinsCEO and Chairman of the Board (retired), KLA-Tencor Corp. ; President and CEO of Spectra-Physics (retired) Vernon B. Ryles, Jr. President and CEO (retired), Poppers Supply Co. Gerald F. Taylor (member of the Audit Committee) Chief Financial Officer (retired), Applied Materials W. Arthur Porter (Chairman of the Audit Committee) Dean of the College of Engineering, University of Oklahoma Larry L. Hansen Executive Vice President (retired), Tylan General, Inc. —————————— ————– [ 2 ]. Copyright  © 2012 by the Case Research Journal and Anne T. Lawrence.The author developed this case to provide a basis for class discussion rather than to illustrate either the effective or ineffective handling of a managerial situation. An earlier version of this case was presented at NACRA’s annual meeting in San Antonio, Texas, October 2011. The author gratefully acknowledges the assistance of Richard Okumoto and the thoughtful comments of the editor, Deborah Ettington, and three anonymous reviewers. [ 3 ]. In 2002, average annual salaries for ESI employees were $68,000 in Japan, $27,000 in Korea, and $38,000 in Taiwan (in U. S. dollars).

Nursing Application Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Nursing Application - Essay Example The purpose of this paper is to present a proper application of theory to practice and the theory this is applied in this part would be taking history in case of a patient with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. This paper would demonstrate the history-taking techniques based on the developmental stage. This would include culture, religion; developmental and physical milestones gross & fine motor skills, language, and social development for the particular age group. (Kar, 2006) A 56 year old male patient was admitted in the hospital with the ailment of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. He was suffering from Cough with phlegm. Alongside there was Wheezing and there was also Shortness of breath. It was needed to gather personal details for an intricate future diagnosis and treatment. For this it was important to communicate with the patient in a warm and personal manner by introducing oneself, ensuring patient's privacy, sitting at eye level when speaking with patient to comfort him as the patient was already in a situation of utter discomfort due to his ailment. For this it is important to use both verbal and nonverbal communications skills. Within this approach it is also important to explain the purpose of this interview in a heartily manner to sooth the patient telling him as in the case of legal advisor it is necessary to provide complete and accurate details as it would only help the doctors and nurses to diagnose perfectly and only then it would be possible to treat properly and thus this would help the patient to recover in a better and faster manner. It is also helpful and advantageous to use open-ended questions and summarize the interview for patient to be sure t he information is correct. (Fletcher, 2003) The details and summary of the patient's first hand vital particulars based on the interview performed are enumerated below. Culture: This patient was born and brought up in the United States however he seems to have as strong cultural overtone of his ancestral roots in South Asia but as a mainstream member of the American society he identifies himself as an American in the political and social context of the word. Religion: according to his birth certificate the patient could be enumerated as a Hindu by religion but like his cultural background he is attached to the American way of life and has no bias about any from of medical treatment or procedure. Physical milestones: The patient suffered from jaundice twice at the age of 16 and then again at the age of 27. He was diagnosed with diabetes at the age of 44 and he is still suffering from it however a report taken only 2 months back suggests blood sugar content sums up to 103. Gross & fine motor skills: Gross & fine motor skills were found to be at a normal stage however there was reported pain on the left shoulder and upper arm. Otherwise gross & fine motor skills were found to be normal. Language: The patient comes from an all American background and therefore he is fluent in English however he has a slight accent on his language of English like most South Asian. His mother tongue is Bengali. Social development: the patient was accompanied by his wife who is a native of India though she is well acquainted with the English

Report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Report - Assignment Example The company is aware that employees must be qualified for specific positions to ensure that the company prospers in the market. This is demonstrated through the intensive training that the company gives to newly hired employees into the staff of stell ar award –wining service providers. Basically, Ritz -Carlton Hotel Company begins their long process of incorporating individuals into the Company through orientation, a key process that created a team of employees who share the same vision and goals. At Ritz –Carlton Hotel Company, assessment of needs is important as it enables the Human Resource manager to ground justification for development of a training program to determine the actual needs of our associates or employees. Moreover, the Company has numerous learning strategies ought to be applied in relation to induction of new staff, customer service, interpersonal skills, over and above, development of team skills and leadership skills. After learning strategies have been implemented through various training sessions, it is important to evaluate them to fully establish their effectives. Basically, measuring the effectiveness of such programs consumes valuable time and resources although it is worth the course. Of importance to note is that the business environment is continuously flowing. Introduction Human resource management is a practise that focuses on the level of performance in an organization. In essence, its focal point is based on both individual and team work performance in various department in an organization. Besides, it uses management systems to assess the organizational performance, over and above, creating a sustaining competitive advantage so as to achieve a considerable financial performance (Armstrong, 2007). Consequently, HR architecture incorporates competencies, employee behaviour practises and system that have a great role in the utilization and management of human resource. During implementation of the human resource, a n organization should put more focus on key strengths and potentiality that are necessary. In light of this, Ritz –Carlton Hotel Company has for the second time received an award of the Baldrige National Quality, and is continuously earning top ratings from leisure industry (Kapoor et al., 2012). It is worth noting that the awards and excellent customer service had emanated from a strategic human resource practise that has dominated the company. Apparently, the company is aware that employees must be qualified for specific positions to ensure that the company prosper in the market. This is demonstrated through the intensive training that the company gives to newly hired employees into the staff of stell ar award –wining service providers. Basically, Ritz -Carlton Hotel Company begins their long process of incorporating individuals into the Company through orientation, a key process that created a team of employees who share the same vision and goals. Armstrong, 2007 ar gues that orientation infuses new employees with the company character, over and above, getting information about the history of the company and its endeavours. After general operations, employees are placed according to their qualifications. Job-specific training is designed and delivered by five best employees in each job category. For instance, waiters attend training sessions with veteran waiters who serve as coaches (Martin, 2006). Through this,

Introduction to Hinduism Caste System Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Introduction to Hinduism Caste System - Essay Example People belonging to Brahmin caste are assigned the duties which are considered as sacred by Hindus. Duties like studying religious texts, performing religious rites and acting as a link between humans and God. The role of a priest in a temple is performed by Brahmin. This caste is regarded as the highest class of in the Hindu Caste system. The next caste is Ksatriya; Ksatriyas are allocated the duty of protecting the people. They are considered as warriors. They are allowed to study religious studies but they cannot perform religious rites. The third caste is of Vaishyas, people of this caste are expected to engage in agricultural activities, trade, and money lending business. Vaishyas also can study the religious texts. The lowest caste in the Hindu society is that of Shudras. The only duty dispensed to the Shudras was that of service. They serve the people belonging to other three castes. Shudras are prohibited from studying religious texts. The Hindu caste system reflects the noti on that duties of an individual are determined by the caste to which he belongs.   A person born in a particular caste has to perform the duties, assigned to his caste. People belonging to one caste cannot perform the duties of people belonging to another caste. The only duty that is shared by these cases is the study of religious texts but that also among the castes of Brahmin, Ksatriya, and Vaishyas.  Hinduism also displays tendencies, according to which God is considered as one Supreme Being and the universe is created from one basic matter.  

The story of an hour by Kate Chopin Research Paper

The story of an hour by Kate Chopin - Research Paper Example mmediate duty to grieve over her husband’s death as depicted in the line â€Å"She wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sister’s arms.† Mrs. Mallard, however, escapes the face of agony right away upon entry to her room, as though it were a private world of all unseen hopes. Apparently, the room represents another dimension consisting of objects that symbolize what Mrs. Mallard has long yearned for and Chopin illustrates this in the phrases â€Å"new spring life†, â€Å"delicious breath of rain†, and â€Å"countless sparrows† twittering. While part of her consciousness has fully absorbed the thought that she is expected to mourn for a major loss, she is being spontaneously consumed by something that makes her exclaim â€Å"free, free, free!† and â€Å"Free! Body and soul free!† in a rather cautious mumbling gesture which is altogether understood by herself alone. In that realm, the moment of illumination leads the widow to cherish mixed conflicting emotions where she obtains a sense of certainty toward a much desired fate – the return to singlehood and freedom. Chopin proceeds to enumerate the attributes that recollect the state of youth of Mrs. Mallard, stating â€Å"She was young with a fair, calm face, whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength.† These details may be claimed as necessary in order for the character of Louise to emerge out of Mrs. Mallard and exhibit some sharper manifestation of hope for liberation despite lack of concrete evidences to support the idea that the passing away of Brently amounts to the happiness of Louise. This hope eventually shatters when Mr. Mallard comes back alive, contrary to the previous belief, so that his presence causes the irony of his wife’s diagnosis where â€Å"the joy that kills† is actually a metaphor that means â€Å"the joy that has been killed.† Women of the 1800s lived in societies that were sexist by nature. Most opportunities in and out of an industry employed men for a variety of

United States Court System Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

United States Court System - Research Paper Example In spite of the belief that the adversarial system is a contest between two rivals, in reality a complex system of collaboration between judges, prosecutors, and defense lawyers is usually present. In the U.S. court system, members of the courtroom work team create guidelines about how specific kinds of cases must be dealt with and what type of petitions is legitimate for particular kinds of offenses (May et al., 2007, 159). At present, the United States implements a dual system of state and federal courts that often work autonomously, even though state cases are often petitioned to the federal courts. The dual court system developed from the belief of the founding fathers that every state has to have substantial judicial sovereignty and legislative power (Cole, Smith, & DeJong, 2012, 105). The federal court system emerged after the nation gained its independence from England. The existing federal court system emerged as a concession between the founding fathers who preferred a powerful federal government and those who supported the rights of the states with a restricted federal government. At present, there are several independent court systems in the United States. Even though some American Indian communities and the military have their own court systems, the general U.S. court systems are the state court systems and the federal court systems (May et al., 2007, 161-162). Figure 1. Structure of the federal court system (May et al., 2007, 162) Even though state court systems emerged with almost no interaction with other states’ court systems, the state court systems that ult imately progressed noticeably resemble one another in structure and organization. Almost all court systems at present are structured in a hierarchical way (Cole et al., 2012, 363). The first major characteristic to remember when looking at state court systems is the difference between courts with appellate jurisdiction and courts with original jurisdiction. Because cases come from them, trial courts are usually called ‘courts of limited jurisdiction’. These courts handle cases of misconduct or less serious offenses, cases of small claims, family disputes, and traffic disobedience. These courts seldom conduct jury trials and rely greatly on the judge for the final resolution (Neubauer & Fradella, 2010, 95). Courts of general jurisdiction handle both felonies and misconduct cases and function as a round-table for major civil actions. Courts of general jurisdiction, in numerous states, facilitate the first appellate level and give the accused who came from a court of limit ed jurisdictions the opportunity to open up another trial. These courts employ prosecutors, defense attorneys, witnesses, juries, and all the other players usually connected to American courtrooms (Walston-Dunham, 2008, 147). These courts are more formal than courts of limited jurisdiction. They operate under the adversarial framework. The intermediate appellate court level—court of appeals-- is the subsequent level in state court systems. The main task of these courts is to evaluate petitions that came from resolutions given in the courts of general jurisdiction. The topmost court level in every state system is the court of last resort—the Supreme Court (Cole et al., 2012, 364-365). A petition can progress no further after the Supreme Court gives

Criminal Law doctrine and women who kill Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Criminal Law doctrine and women who kill - Essay Example Thus when women do not conform to the male-dominated sex role expectations of what it is to be a good wife, good mother and therefore a good woman, they are then considered to be 'doubly deviant' and punished for both their legal infringements as well as their refusal to conform to the female gender behaviour. This becomes all the more relevant while considering that the bulk of female homicides involve the killing of those closest to them that is, their spouses, lovers or infants thereby contradicting all concepts of motherhood, wife and woman. She further writes that when women kill it is typically not to terminate violence on their part, nor to gain any power over their male partners. Instead it is usually an attempt to get some degree of final and desperate control and relief for themselves from their abusive partner especially at that point when they realise that their very life is being threatened. Patricia Pearson, Toronto based author of the hard-hitting book on female violence When She Was Bad: Violent Women and the Myth of Innocence, says women get off the hook for violent crimes because society will not admit they can be predators. According to her some women are getting away with murder simply because they're women. She argues that legal defences, portraying the murdress in a battered-women's syndrome, and misogynistic attitudes are giving some women a social licence to kill and be violent because society considers it too intimidating to admit that women can be capable of ruthless crimes just like men. She writes that society would rather think ofviolent women as hopeless, weak or child-like creatures more likely to have been abused or being simply crazy. To prove her point she gives the example of women like the wicked Karla Homolka, who was guilty of helping to kidnap, sexually torture and kill three teenage girls, including her own sister. However, after winning a plea-bargained 12-year sentence she sat happily in her prison cell reading the books Battered Women and Perfect Victim. "It worries me when people begin to feel entitled to use violence because they've bought so deeply into the idea of their own victimization," Ms. Pearson said during an interview. "The whole idea of learned helplessness is, you're so helpless you can't walk out the door and therefore, somehow, you're able to discover the strength to shoot the guy in the head. I think a larger number of women than we realize get away with murder for a whole number of different reasons." "We don't want to take female violence seriously because I think we have our hands full with male violence and I think that we have an idea of women as being the people that you go to for your shelter. Out there in the mad and dangerous world at least you can go home at night to a sweet and comforting hearth. We can't accept the fact that we can't go home to a safe house." Ms. Pearson is highly critical of some feminists who, according to her, are trying to keep the issue of female violence hidden. This allows society to avoid admitting that women, like men, can commit violence for an elaborate variety of reasons, and not simply on account of madness or in self-defence. This also permits these feminists to continue depicting women as sufferers rather than predators. The silence on the issue, she says, is making sacrificial lambs out of men who are victimized by violent spouses, mothers and other women. "These guys are pariahs because we're

Pharmaceutical Industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Pharmaceutical Industry - Essay Example This is to ensure the safety of administering a new drug to health volunteers and patients (Novartis 2004). Prior to the therapeutic trials in patients, which is the Phase 1 trials, the pharmaceutical company will need to have: the preclinical testing data and findings from the laboratory studies, the manufacturing information, clinical protocols and investigator information in the form of an Investigator's Brochure which will contain all the information about the study drug (MHRA 2006). This information will be required by the licensing authority, which in the UK is the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency as part of the application for a Clinical Trials Authorisation which would enable a trial to be conducted in humans. In addition to this Authorisation, the pharmaceutical company will need to obtain a favourable ethical opinion and approval from the site where this drug will be tested. Once all required approvals are in place, the drug can be tested in a Phase 1 trial in healthy subjects. If the results of this trial are positive and no serious adverse events or suspected unexpected serious adverse events occur, then this progresses to a Phase 2 trial in subjects with the disease or medical condition. The key issues that

Indinisation of jane austen Essay Example for Free

Indinisation of jane austen Essay In Gurinder Chadhas hands, Balraj (Bingley, Naveen Andrews) arrives in Amritsar from Los Angeles with the American hotelier Darcy (Mike Henderson). Balraj likes Maya (Jane, Meghna Kothari), and there is tension, or in Amritsari, tashn between Darcy and Lalita (Elizabeth, Aishwarya Rai). But Balraj and Darcy return to LA and it is only after the Bakshi sisters visit London and LA on the invitation of Kohli (Collins, Nitin Ganatra) that some sort of crisis develops by way of a punch-up between Darcy and Wickham (Daniel Gillies) in a cinema hall and successive slaps for Wickham from two Miss Bakshis. The plot does not make a film any more than it does a novel. The quality of the novel is in the texture of the interaction among characters and their ideas. Now be sincere, Elizabeth says to Darcy in the end. Did you admire me for my impertinence? For the liveliness of your mind, I did, Darcy replies. It is largely Austens creation of that mind that gives Pride and Prejudice its character, and makes of it such a celebrated novel. The film script is another story. In snobbery as directed by Chadha, Darcy wants to know if its safe to eat a pakora because he doesnt want Delhi belly on his first day in India. He says rude things about arranged marriages. Lalita defends it as a global dating service, and so no different from western ways. Darcy says people pay $500 a day for one of his hotel rooms. Thats more than what a lot of Indians earn in a year, Lalita replies by way of lively repartee. Nothing wrong in having standards, he says. So long as you dont impose them on others, replies she. Later, Darcy gallantly gives his first-class seat to Mrs Bakshi to seat himself next to Lalita in economy class when they all happen to meet at Heathrow en route to LA. How can anyone sleep in economy class, Darcy wants to know. Lively Lalita says she will sleep 10 hours in a 10-hour, 53-minute flight. A film that grandly declares itself inspired by Austens novel deserved something better than this for screenplay. After taking on an interesting idea, Chadha deserved to give herself a better scriptwriter than herself. Some of the better lines come straight from the novel; pity that Austen could provide no NRI material for Chadha to lift. What should have been the strength of a film like this emerges as its weakest link. Austen aside, its hard to see what this kind of script can do for anyone other than feeding a British audience yet more cliches of their idea of ways Indian. This is the flip side of Indianising icons; every such feed adds to a reduction. Within this adventure, Indianness is reduced, and by the same failing, Elizabeth is reduced. Far from the style of Elizabeth, Lalita emerges as a singularly dumb creature. Here Aishwarya, such as she is, seems to fit the script, such as it is. She never gets past that look-at-doe-eyed-me look. She rode a chariot that her admirers made for her when she became Miss World, and she hasnt gotten off it yet. She looks afraid that a real expression would mark her as a woman of the world rather than the lady on the chariot. Her expressions seem to halt in the early stages of formation; who knows which particular look might trap her in an unflattering snapshot? She travels the world a prisoner of her facial paint. Chadhas shadow of the book limps along in faltering episodes that fail to hold together, or to hold the audience. The characters only move from one country to another without appearing much moved in their selves. At the heart of the story is the idea of giving up pride and letting go of prejudices. Elizabeth sees how hearsay and her own misjudgement led her away from truth. She thinks she was blind, partial, prejudiced, absurd, I, who prided myself on my discernment. Nothing much happens to Chadhas characters. Theyre comfortable passengers (pardon the Punjabi! ), just transferring from a jumbo jet to a couple of elephants in Amritsar for the shaadi in the end. The faux-Bollywood style doesnt quite pull off either. The song-and-dance sequences seem to follow the dumb end of Bollywood style. Coming to Bollywood, as it has so regrettably come to be known, the film probably needed Madhuri Dixit, and screenplay of the Farhan Akhtar class. The script is self-consciously synthetic, the lyrics flat when audible, the music forgotten as you hear it, the film forgettable once youve seen it. The idea of adaptation wasnt bad, the adaptation is. It is a translation that fails both languages.

Analysing leadership and determinants of Leadership Effectiveness

Analysing leadership and determinants of Leadership Effectiveness Leadership is the behavior of an individual when he/she is giving directions and activities to a group moving towards a common purpose. A leader is seen as someone who sets the paths in an effort to influence people to adhere to those paths. Leadership is an action and not just a position. It can be shown via different people in various situations. A person may not born to be a leader but can be cultured through the upbringing and environment. But there are people who have innate capabilities to become leaders even though they are not exposed. These innate characteristics need to be polished in order for the person to let his or her leadership skills and capabilities shine through. Such leaders also need to be further equipped with certain competencies so that they can pick up qualities that they should demonstrate to become even greater leaders. A leaders personal characteristics are also vital for the developments and motivations of the organizations. True leaders such as the teachers who illustrated that leadership is an action (teaching and leading the students) and not a position. Personal characteristics can also determine what type of leadership approach a person will demonstrate and how effective his or her leadership capabilities are in different situations. Touching the lives and affecting the outcome of many different expectations, a teacher is the epitome of a leader. A leader has his or her own style of motivating the people in the organizations. A leader must find the best skills in order to provide directions, motivations and purposes. Effective leaders are flexible. Organizational Leadership Model The effective leadership influence is not the same for everyone. It depends on their ranks in the organization and abilities which are required in leaders. The three basic leadership roles identified: initiation, speech, and management. 1. Initiation Initiation refers to planned decision making on policy formulation or structural change. These vital decisions are the determinants of the organizations culture and mission. 2. Speech Strategic decisions and methods designed for implementation within the establishment. It includes adjusting or adding on to the present structure towards new policy demands. 3. Management Management is putting into practice the policies and measures that are available to maintain the operations of the organization efficiently. These three kinds of Leadership are naturally executed at diverse ranks in the company with different abilities and skills. The top level management would initiate new policies that involve a change in the businesss structure or understanding the companys mission. An understanding of the entire organization, culture, mission, vision and how it correlates with the external parties is mandatory for these top level individuals. They represent the organization and what the business stands for. Understanding the policy decisions and practicing them to the existing organization via utterance or speech is usually made by the intermediate-level managers. They must uphold a two-way point of reference by taking orders from the above management and adapting them for the lower groups of people in the organization. Type of Leadership Process Typical Organizational Level Cognitive (Knowledge) Affective (Emotion) Initiation: Change, creation and elimination of structure Top echelons System perspective Charisma Speech: supplementing and piecing out of structure Intermediate levels: pivotal roles Subsystem perspective: two-way orientation Integration of primary and secondary relations: human relation skills Management: use of existing structure Lower levels Technical knowledge and understanding of system of rules Concern with equity in use of rewards and sanctions EXHIBIT 16.1 The three Leadership Models. The Position in the Organization. The Skill Requirements A companys policies and procedures will be administered by the Lower-level supervisors. These personnel must possess both the technical knowledge and a clear perception of the organizations rules in order to be successful. They have to continually deal with issues such as equity, rewards and punishments in leading others. Therefore, leadership plays a crucial role in an organization because it has direct impact on the effectiveness of the organizations. Leadership is when a person manipulates others to perform a task at their own will which they would not normally do. Leadership is a vital process to an organization and it can be deliberated on three different stages; i.e. the individual, group and organization. Analysis at the individual stage: the leadership studies have paid attention on the successful leader personalities. Behaviors of both formal and informal leaders are focused at the group level. The effectiveness of an organization is decided by the relations between the leader, follower and circumstances. The studies have caused an emergence of different theories of leadership, namely situational and contingency. In Search for Leadership The requirements in selecting and training efficient leaders were emphasized during the World War I and the quarter century between World War l and World War II; numerous studies were made to examine the personal characteristics of good leaders. These studies are usually referred as characteristic studies since the primary goal was to classify the traits and personal characteristics of successful leaders. The diverse methods used to study these leadership traits could possibly be the reason in the irregularities of the results. The manner of studies was not consistent in identifying the leaders. A majority of the studies was in comparing efficient with inefficient leaders or leaders with non-leaders. Some were identified by external observers, others selected by the group by way of recommendation or voting, nominated by observers such as teachers while some were chosen because they are already in leadership positions. The studies conducted were in conflict as to the way they deliberated on the traits. Some traits were measured by mental tests; others relied on viewers to spot the traits they have seen while some depended on the persons to report their own personality traits. The trait studies were quite unsatisfactory as a whole especially since they had hoped to develop an accurate measure of leadership effectiveness. The spotlight on the leadership research moved because of the flimsy results, to contingency studies which investigated more than just traits of a leader. Numerous traits formed an important divergence in leadership effectiveness and they interrelated with other conditional variables to stimulate the effectiveness of the leader. Physical Behaviors Physical attributes including height, weight, health and appearance are also examined in the studies. It was concluded that there is a relationship between the above features and leadership. Apparently leaders have the tendency to be taller, heavier, better fitness, greater physique, higher energy output and more attractive in appearance. However, these types of results were not always reliable and consistent. The results neither are too weak in general and not consistent to be effective in selecting leaders nor are they helpful for training functions since not much can be made to alter most of these physical traits. Intellect It was generally agreed that leaders are more intellectual than non-leaders and the relationship was shown in the various studies. The relationship could probably begin from the reality that leadership functions depend mostly on success in problem solving. Leadership roles such as initiation, speech and management necessitate great mental ability. In general, it is safe to assume that leaders seem to be more intelligent than non-leaders but the relationships are small. Many other variables other than intellect inspire leadership effectiveness. It was also suggested that leaders should not be too intelligent than the group because associates who are notably brilliant than others are rarely chosen as leaders since the other members tend to snub them. Individuals with high IQs are inclined to have different sets of vocabulary, networks and aspirations that would create communication and inter-relations problems. Leaders do extremely well generally at school/college/university and score better grades. It is important for effective leadership to know how to do things. Thus general and practical knowledge are essential for leaders to make better decisions. Characteristic Traits Only a partial of the characteristic traits seem to be related to leadership and most are not especially convincing. It was suggested that the average leader is more social, has greater initiative, is more persistent, smart in getting things done, highly self-confident, cooperative, and adaptable to situations and possesses excellent communication skills. Leaders were found to be more emotionally mature than non-leaders in the personality integration or emotional adjustment. It can be concluded that personal characteristics are related to leadership. Effective leadership does not depend on a mixture of personality traits only because situational variables are also important since they always decide whether a character was associated with effective leadership either positively or negatively. Therefore, it can be deduced that effective leadership depends on the leaders characteristics, his subordinates and the nature of the task at hand. Many leadership styles were based on studies of leaders behaviors. The finest researches on the styles of leadership are made together at the same time; i.e. The State University in Ohio and the Michigan University. Researchers acknowledged two leader behaviors that were similar although the investigations were conducted separately. As a result, a two dimensional aspects of leadership have been to used to form the Managerial Grid. Authoritarian, Democratic, and Laissez-faire Leadership Due to the diverse political systems in the US and Germany before World War II, studies of leadership have been inspired which evaluated the three leadership styles: the authoritarian, the democratic and the laissez faire. In the democratic leadership style, decisions were made by vote of majority; equal participation encouraged; criticism and punishment minimal. In the autocratic leader, the leader made all the decisions and others must follow the set procedures strictly. In the laissez-faire leader, there was minimal actual leadership and others were permitted to work and play as usual without proper directives. Initiating Structure and Consideration The two leadership factors were initiating structure and consideration which include leadership behaviors in organizing and defining the tasks to be performed and goal achievements. A leader who assigns people to do specific jobs, expected workers to follow set routines and meet deadlines. The consideration factor is friendliness, showing trust, exhibiting warmth and concern for followers. Production-Centered and Employee-Centered Leader Behaviors Production centered behaviors were akin to initiating structure in which leaders would establish targets, gave directives, checked on operations and planned the group Employees work. Centered behaviors were similar to the considerations dimension in which the leader would develop a caring personal relationship with the subordinates and encouraged a two-way communication with them. The associations between the production-centered and employee-centered behaviors are found to be independent scopes of leadership. A leader with strong production orientation does not mean that he is disinterested in the employees. Managerial Grid Robert Blake and Jane Mouton had created a framework which relates task accomplishment to concern for people called the Managerial Grid. They both assumed that concern for production and concern for people would produce the most effective leadership style. There are leaders primarily more concerned with accomplishing the production and task not concerned about people. This person wants the job done and schedule followed at all costs. There is also individual who is not concerned whether the group produces anything but concerned more about the personal needs and interests of the team members. Ideally, leaders should be concerned about meeting schedules in order to get the work done and simultaneously are concerned about the team members interest and feelings too. The Managerial Grid is popular among managers. It is extensively used by organisations as part of their training program to assess leadership style. However, the effectiveness of the Managerial Grid is not consistently supported. The factors which are considered in determining leadership styles interact in complicated ways which resulted in various leadership styles. SITUATIONAL LEADERSHIP In assessing leadership effectiveness, there are many factors that must be combined. A situational leadership model developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard considers three variables: (1) the guidance and the direction provided by the leaders (task behavior) (2) the emotional support given by the leader (relationship behavior) (3) the maturity level exhibited in performing the task As a result, four potential leadership styles have been created using a combination of the above factors: S1: Telling Give instructions and supervise performance closely. Suited for followers who are unwilling but of low maturity. S2: Selling Decide and provide opportunity for explanation. Appropriate for followers who are not able but willing. S3: Participating Sharing ideas in making decisions. Suited for followers who are able but not willing. S4: Delegating Responsibility handed over for decisions and performance. Appropriate for groups who are able and willing. Contingency Theory of Leadership Fiedler studied the interaction of leadership style and situation. He identified and developed ways to measure leadership orientation of the leader and situational factors which influence leadership. Leader Orientation Two types of leaders were identified, i.e. relationship-oriented or task-oriented. Leaders who are relationship-oriented tend to look at others as coworkers and look upon interpersonal relations as a requirement towards accomplishing the task. However, for task-oriented leaders, they react strongly against people whom they could not get along with in performing a task. Situational favorableness (1) relationships between leader and member can be good or bad; (2) the task is relatively well planned or not; and (3) the leaders authority is relatively strong or weak. The task structure becomes the second most important situational variable based on evaluation of four aspects of the task structure. Clarity: whether requirements of the tasks are stated clearly, Multiplicity: which the problems encounter can be solved. Verifiability: which the correctness of the decisions can be ascertained. Specificity: which there are generally more solutions involved in performing the task. Group effectiveness Relationship-oriented leaders perform excellently well in situations where concern for the team members is apparently necessary in order to motivate them to perform well. People naturally prefer leaders who care about them and their welfare. However, task-oriented leaders are clearly more effective in impossible situations. Path-Goal Model Directive leadership: subordinates are told what to be expected. Specific guide, standards and work schedules are provided to ensure that task are performed as expected. Supportive leadership: subordinates are treated equally and show concern for their needs and well-being; develop pleasant interpersonal relationships among the group members. Achievement-oriented leadership: challenging goals are set and subordinates are expected to perform at their highest level, improvement in performance always. Participative leadership: subordinates are consulted on suggestions and ideas in making decisions. Situational Aspects The distinctive personalities of those who follow and the environmental factors which affect the leadership style are called situational aspects or features of the situation. Significant characteristics of the followers which have been identified as determinants of leadership style are: (1). Followers with internal locus of control believe that they are rewarded for their own effort. Meanwhile, followers with external locus of control believe that external forces have a control on their rewards. (2). Authoritarianism: an individuals willingness to accept the influence of others. (3). Abilities: The followers ability and experience influence a leader whether they are able to work with an achievement oriented leader or a supportive leader who are patient enough to provide encouragement and instruction. The path-goal model recognizes three environmental factors which effect leadership styles: the nature of the task to be performed, the existing organizations authority system the organizational norms and dynamics The above factors may influence the effectiveness of various styles of leadership in a many ways. NORMATIVE DECISION-MAKING MODEL OF LEADERSHIP Based on the contingency theory of leadership, this leadership model does not assume any leadership style as appropriate for all situations. Leaders must develop a range of leadership styles and take on the most appropriate style depending on the situation. Leaders are required to know in which circumstances they need to consult others and vice versa. Even though the leader may be the chairman of the group, he/she is just one of the group members and does not have or even try to influence the other group members to adopt or follow a particular solution. The principle in selecting a leadership approach. The two measures/principles used for assessing the efficiency of a leadership style are excellence and approval. The quality of the decisions made refers to the accurateness of the actions taken and the extent which some objectives are achieved. The quality of decisions depends on accurate and relevant information Conferring with other group members often provides additional information. Diagnostic decision rules. In order to save time and minimize costs, some managers choose the lead autocratically. If the aim was to further the subordinates personal development, the participative style is selected. In some strategies, the manager decides alone. At times, the manager decides on his own after earlier consultations with his subordinates. Comparing the leadership models. All situational leadership models emphasize on the effect of external factors on a particular leadership style. Different leadership styles suggest styles that are determined by various situational factors. The models focus on different methods, which are situational factors and criteria for selecting the best style: task-oriented versus relationship-oriented. The normative decision-making model ascertains three leadership styles, namely autocratic, consultative, and participative. In each model, situational factors which influence the effectiveness of leadership are somewhat different. A significant reason which contributes to this is that normative decision- making model likens leadership to decision making and considers only this aspect of the leadership function. The model also uses different criteria for evaluating leadership effectiveness. DETERMINANTS OF LEADERSHIP EFFECTIVENESS Although identifying what makes an effective leader seems like a simple task, however, individuals who are in leadership positions are often faced with a dilemma on deciding which leadership pattern to practice. Choosing a Leadership Style Choosing the most appropriate leadership style to adopt depends largely on the context of the organization. A successful leader must be capable of assessing the situational forces in the organization and respond accordingly to the needs. The forces include the organization culture, business goals as well as the organizations strategic plans. Effective leaders must understand themselves, the group, company and social environment. Strategies for Improving Leadership One of the main variables to improve leadership relates largely to the organizations reward system. Leaders should not overlook his capacity to reward his followers accordingly since followers will respond otherwise. For instance, the managers of high- performing groups generally are compensated according to their achievements. Considerate leaders manage to create satisfaction among their performing subordinates while at the same time; changes in the behavior of the leaders could be caused by the performance of the subordinates. Constraints on leader behavior. Leaders have limited opportunities to influence others. Leadership effectiveness is inhibited by a variety of factors. For example, the managerial decisions are planned ahead due to factors such as organizational structure, state and federal law, technological specifications and innovations as well as the absence of other alternatives. Many other organisational factors can impose limitations on the leaders capability to communicate with subordinates or reinforce their behavior towards achieving the organisational purpose. For example, organisational policies, nature of task, skills and abilities of available resources and other external factors may impede the capacities of organisational leaders. External factors. In terms of external factors, leaders are constrained by factors that they have no control on such as state and federal laws. Other external factors include the world economy and global issues. Irrespective of their leadership style, leaders with unskilled resources will face great challenges in leading. The availability of skilled followers is subjected to the external labor market. Organizational policies. The organization may limit a leaders effectiveness by hampering the amount of communication between leaders and followers. The existing company policies may also pose restrictions on the ability of leaders to reward or punish followers. Group factors. Leaders may find it hard to penetrate or influence group members who are highly unified. This will create difficulty for leaders to demonstrate his true capabilities in performing tasks for the organisation. Individual proficiencies and competencies. The leaders own talents and aptitudes may become their constraints because leaders can only possess limited expertise, energy, and power. Some situations may need greater amount of skills, experience and capabilities compared to what the leader may possibly have. Substitutes for leadership. Leadership is an extremely important function. It has an enormous influence on the value of organizations, especially in a business environment. However, in complex situations, we may not know exactly which leadership behaviour will be the most effective to adopt. In addition, certain situations warrant that leadership may be unnecessary subordinates. SUMMARY 1. Leadership is the increasing influence which occurs when an individual manipulates others to do task voluntarily which they would not do otherwise. The basic leadership roles include initiation of policy and structure, speech, and management. Leadership is required within organizations to provide direction to employees towards a common organisational objective. 2. The studies of leadership were mainly studies on traits that tried to identify the characteristics of effective leaders. The studies focused mainly on physical traits, intellect and characteristic. The results were usually weak and inconsistent although some personal characteristics were always related to leadership. Most studies concluded that apart from behaviour characteristics and traits of the leader, the nature of subordinates and the type of task to be performed were as equally important to determine success. 3. Another approach to studying leadership set on leader behaviors; i.e. how leaders actually behave. One of the studies compared the three leadership methods i.e. the authoritarian type, the democratic style and the laissez-faire mode. A democratic leadership produced the greatest satisfaction among subordinates while autocratic leadership style encouraged high level of productivity in the organisation. 4. A research conducted at the same time at two different universities identified two groups of similar behaviors of leadership. At The State University in Ohio, the researchers identified these two leader behaviors as initiating constitution and thought whereas at the Michigan University, the two parallel features were called the production-centered which focus more on the production and the employee-centered with the workers as the focal point. These two leader behaviors seem to relate leadership functions which are essential to the effectiveness of a group. A matrix named Managerial Grid had been formed based on these two factors. The Managerial Grid correlates the concern for production and the concern for people in identifying leadership effectives. 5. As a result of unsuccessful researches conducted to identify superior leadership behaviors, four situational theories of leadership were developed instead. Theories have suggested that the effective of leadership style depends largely upon situational factors, especially nature of the group and the task to be performed. 6. A situational leadership model that matches various amalgamations of chore and relationship manners with maturity of the subordinates. As the number of followers increases, the appropriate leadership style that should be employed would be telling, selling, participating and delegating. 7. Three situational variables are used to assess the most appropriate leadership style. The variables are the connection between the leader and the members (either good or bad), the task (structured or unstructured) and the strength of the leaders power. Based on findings, the most effective leadership style when these three variables formed an extremely favorable or unfavorable circumstance is task-oriented leadership. Nevertheless, a leader with high concerns for interpersonal associations is most effective when there were intermediate levels of favorableness. 8. The path goal model theory is derived from expectancy theory. It suggests that effective leaders must clarify the paths to attract followers. Based on this theory, the command, the sympathetic, the accomplishment-oriented and the contributive leadership styles emerged. The most appropriate leadership style is dependent on two types of situational factors: characteristics of followers as well as the internal/external environment. Three significant characteristics of follower are the locus of control (internal or external), authoritarianism and personal capabilities. The three environmental attributes are nature of the task to be performed, the existing organisational authority system and norms and dynamics of members. 9. The three leadership styles identified are autocratic, consultative and group decision making. Determining which style is most appropriate depends largely on several factors such as considerations whether adequate information is made available to the leader when making decision alone, whether the goals of the organisation are acceptable by the subordinates, or whether the followers accept decisions made without their involvement. 10. Members of the group also have a reciprocal influence on the leader. Group member can induce heir leaders behavior by reacting to the specific leaders behaviors selectively. The power and influence of a leader can also be limited due to certain external factors such as policies of the organisation, norms of the group members as well as the skills and abilities of followers. POSITIONING ON LEADERSHIP CRISIS Many leadership theories have been in existence as more people try to determine the most effective leadership style available. In addition, various leadership models and approaches have been used to produce identified types of leaders. Arthur G. Jago (1982) had projected a structure that organizes leadership theories that are based on each theorys focal point and approach. However, effective leadership also depends on specific situations, among other factors. The result of exposure to different experiences in life throughout the learning process also have the potential to produce mature leaders with high capabilities to lead organisations. Coupled with certain identified competencies which can be acquired, these leaders can demonstrate high skills and capabilities in their capacities as organisational leaders. There are various kinds of behavior that leaders can display to its followers. The two leadership behaviors that have been consistently identified are called the production-centered and the consideration-centered activities. A person can change his or her behaviour without being forced to based on the amount of influence exerted by another individual. Influence is also a contributing factor in shaping the behavior or personality of people. I concur with A. Ange on the presence of leadership crisis but I also foresee the resolutions taken and are still being taken to resolve the problem. Many organizations are spending money in sending their employees to be groomed and trained for future growth of the company whereby they are exposed to different methods of management and how to be great leaders. Leaders are born to leaders but in some circumstances, situations and environments also play a huge role in creating a leader. Leaders with innate capabilities also need to be exposed to certain conditions in order to build their characters and polish their leadership capabilities. Some can be shaped through exposure to various lifelong knowledge and skills training available today. With all kinds of methods and approaches easily accessible, average leaders can become even greater leaders with enough exposure and experience. Leaders come and go and new ones are always on the threshold to take over the empty space. The qualities of the leaders and their leadership styles vary but they are vital in the development and motivation processes of the organizations. There is a crisis in good leadership but it is not at a critical point. Big organizations would have everything in place for the future growth of the company and would have in line the replacements for all aspects of the management. Even small to medium sized organizations have planned their management line-ups for the future. The ongoing programs and trainings that are conducted by organizations to produce capable leaders and gr

William Crimsworth Essay -- Character Analysis, Monsieur Pelet

To fall in love is a terrifying and confusing thing to most people. William Crimsworth is an excellent example of someone who goes through the trials and confusions of falling in love with the wrong person, falling out of love, and falling into unexpected love. In The Professor, Charlotte Brontà « uses Crimsworth to show the effects of love and loss in a person’s life, but how that loss may be healed. The Professor was told from the first person point of view of William Crimsworth. Monsieur Crimsworth, as he is mostly throughout the novel, is an orphan in England trying to figure out how he would make it through life. He was a smart and thoughtful man; he would often sit throughout the book and meditate on how he should handle every situation. In the beginning of the novel, Monsieur Crimsworth became a clerk for his brother, he served him â€Å"faithfully, punctually, diligently, (13)† but soon found out that working for his brother was â€Å"the most nauseous slavery under the sun (24).† Being so, Crimsworth moved to Brussels hoping to find some hope there as to how he will make it through life. Crimsworth, after being given a recommendation from a friend, is hired by Monsieur Pelet and later hired by the directress, Mademoiselle Zoraide Reuter as an English teacher in their schools. Mdlle. Reuter and Crimsworth soon began to flirt with one another and Mdlle. Reute r later becomes his â€Å"first flame(163),† and shows him what falling in love feels like along with heartbreak, after he learns that Mdlle. Reuter is in love with Monsieur Pelet. After Crimsworth realizes he was led on, he began to feel â€Å"something feverish and fiery had got into [his] veins (65).† and he treated Mdlle. Reuter with â€Å"a look, where there was no respect, no love, no te... ...† and in his case, the â€Å"impulse† is his love for Mdlle. Henri and his ability to no longer be inside of a shell. He finally told Mdlle. Henri exactly how he felt and how he wished to start a life with her. The product of him stepping out of his comfort zone to tell Mdlle. Henri how he truly feels shows how much Crimsworth really did progress throughout the novel. Crimsworth life was not the easiest of lives; he started out an incredibly confused and scared man about how his life would end up. And just when he seemed to be finding his way, he found that heartache can be one of the strongest and hardest things a person may go through, because it affects every aspect of your life. However, Brontà « uses Mdlle. Henri as the one who repairs his heart, and proves that with love and just believing in himself he can understand and make it through this terrifying life. William Crimsworth Essay -- Character Analysis, Monsieur Pelet To fall in love is a terrifying and confusing thing to most people. William Crimsworth is an excellent example of someone who goes through the trials and confusions of falling in love with the wrong person, falling out of love, and falling into unexpected love. In The Professor, Charlotte Brontà « uses Crimsworth to show the effects of love and loss in a person’s life, but how that loss may be healed. The Professor was told from the first person point of view of William Crimsworth. Monsieur Crimsworth, as he is mostly throughout the novel, is an orphan in England trying to figure out how he would make it through life. He was a smart and thoughtful man; he would often sit throughout the book and meditate on how he should handle every situation. In the beginning of the novel, Monsieur Crimsworth became a clerk for his brother, he served him â€Å"faithfully, punctually, diligently, (13)† but soon found out that working for his brother was â€Å"the most nauseous slavery under the sun (24).† Being so, Crimsworth moved to Brussels hoping to find some hope there as to how he will make it through life. Crimsworth, after being given a recommendation from a friend, is hired by Monsieur Pelet and later hired by the directress, Mademoiselle Zoraide Reuter as an English teacher in their schools. Mdlle. Reuter and Crimsworth soon began to flirt with one another and Mdlle. Reute r later becomes his â€Å"first flame(163),† and shows him what falling in love feels like along with heartbreak, after he learns that Mdlle. Reuter is in love with Monsieur Pelet. After Crimsworth realizes he was led on, he began to feel â€Å"something feverish and fiery had got into [his] veins (65).† and he treated Mdlle. Reuter with â€Å"a look, where there was no respect, no love, no te... ...† and in his case, the â€Å"impulse† is his love for Mdlle. Henri and his ability to no longer be inside of a shell. He finally told Mdlle. Henri exactly how he felt and how he wished to start a life with her. The product of him stepping out of his comfort zone to tell Mdlle. Henri how he truly feels shows how much Crimsworth really did progress throughout the novel. Crimsworth life was not the easiest of lives; he started out an incredibly confused and scared man about how his life would end up. And just when he seemed to be finding his way, he found that heartache can be one of the strongest and hardest things a person may go through, because it affects every aspect of your life. However, Brontà « uses Mdlle. Henri as the one who repairs his heart, and proves that with love and just believing in himself he can understand and make it through this terrifying life.