Fords Control Mechanisms Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Fords Control Mechanisms - Essay Example About one hundred years ago, demand could be easily matched to supply particularly in the rural agricultural areas, and the existence of production and consumption was in a closed loop supply chain, therefore, goods were predominantly manufactured and used as required. The just-in-time approach to manufacturing adopted by Ford presents a return to this form of relationship between the production and consumption phase that was present before the industrial revolution where consumers gave specifications of what they wanted before the process of production could begin. Henry Ford, who came up with the assembly line JIT approach used in the manufacture of Ford cars, had an awareness of this form of a rural tradeoff as he hailed from a small community whose main activities involved agriculture. The beginning of the economic business philosophy adopted by Ford and the main aim for JIT manufacturing was mainly informed by the recognition that increasing the wages of factory employees leads to increased rates of productivity. Initially, Ford was simply assembling the cars and not manufacturing them, as the parts were produced by external shops, however, they were not made to be highly tolerant necessitating that the company shapes and fits them before they could come together appropriately. The company lacked control in terms of the quality of parts in the supply stream as well as the incoming flow of materials that came from external sources. There were no control mechanisms in place to arbitrate the inconsistencies in the manufacturing and assembly processes.

Teen Suicide Essay Example for Free

Teen Suicide Essay Romeo and Juliet is one of the most famous love story in the English literary tradition by Shakespeare. The play focuses on teenagers committing suicide when they are overwhelmed; they cant see solutions to problems or the whole truth or what the future might be. In Romeo and Juliet, suicide is considered a solution and a misunderstanding. Not in all cases is this necessarily true , there are many reasons for someone to commit suicide. In the course of the play, the young lovers are driven to kill themselves for one another in order to be together. ( Juliet pretends to kill her self so that she could be with the one she loves. ) When there was a misunderstanding and Romeo thought she was dead he then killed him self) They decided to commit suicide because they did not see the whole truth of what the future might be. Teen suicide is the superseding theme of the play which is represented by hatred, unleashed emotions in which leads them do the unexplainable against others and even to them selves. In 1995 Christian, 14 and Maryling,13 were lovers who were not allowed to see one another against their will. Later on they stood at the edge of a Florida canal, joined hands and jumped 15 feet into the cold water to their death. They believed that was the only way they could be truly together. This is exactly what happened in the play Romeo and Juliet. As in the Play Romeo an Juliet even though it was a misunderstanding they wouldnt go on with their live and forget the other you die, we die together. The nature of suicide can be seen in the way it was described in Romeo and Juliet. At times through out the play it was described as parents not understanding and others as a simple misunderstanding. Kids have so much to deal with and are always put on the spot. Many teens experience stress weather its from school or home. Especially with school, having to deal with other peers as well as working hard is not quite easy. Having to always worry about your future, parents always up your case on how your performance is at school. Other reasons point to a sense of self doubt, confusion, depression and other fears. In many cases it is considered a solution, teens feel thats the only way they could end with their miseries and live a peace once and for all. Look at it this way the way you might be feeling now might not be the way it will be in the future. There is not a single person that could say how some ones life will end up. Trying to fix something or working on ways to improve it will make it better for the teen. Its also selfish at times to commit suicide because you leave loved ones in grieve. As in the play their families suffer from their tragic death. Romeo and Juliet does not make a specific moral statement about how suicides are wrong, It portrays that it was necessary in that case. It seemed like the author was intending for Romeo and Juliet to kill them selves because thats what was needed in that case. Through out this analysis, it has proved that when teenagers are overwhelmed or misunderstood teenagers seem to take the extreme by taking their lives or by attempting to. Romeo and Juliet was a perfect example in this case. It showed what drove the star crossed lovers to take their lives.

Importance of Organizational Behaviour on Teamwork

Importance of Organizational Behaviour on Teamwork According to Keith Davis organizational behavior is the study and application of knowledge about how people act within organizations. It is human tool for the human benefit. It applies broadly to behavior of people in all type of organization such as business, government, schools, etc. it helps people, structure, technology, and the external environment blend together in to an effective operative system. Fred Luthans defines organizational behavior as understanding, predicting and controlling human behavior at work. [http://www.mbatown.com] Stephen Robins defines organizational behavior as a field of study that investigates the impact that individuals, groups, and structure have an organization for the purpose of applying such knowledge improving an organizations effectiveness. According to Stephen Robbins, four elements make up the Organizational Behavior life cycle. They are Leadership, Employees of the Company, Organization Behavior Guidelines and time frame, Organizational Framework. Organizational Behavior is an important aspect to maintain interaction levels amongst employees in the company and also to enhance healthy relationships between them. Other attributes like leadership qualities of the employees, openness to discuss problems between the top level and ground level employees, challenge-initiative are all embedded in to this basic concept of Organizational Behavior to help the business in achieving its strategic and sometimes its business objectives. What Case Study Says The General Electric(GE), the conglomeratecorporation incorporated in the State of New York, USA, is famous for its organizational culture. In GE, the management philosophy followed by the management is to Encourage employees to share their views in a collaborative culture, Vest greater responsibility, power, and accountability with front-line employees, Eliminate wasteful, irrational, and repetitive steps in the work process (which would come to light through employee feedback), Dismantle the boundaries that prevent thecross-pollination of ideasand efforts and they consider customers and community as the emperor. They gave former importance to team job and gave respect to each other. All these optimistic aspects helped the company to get strong faithfulness of millions of employees during the long 120 years since the Company was founded by Thomas Edison. Jeffrey Immelt managed the whole company in a well-known style that has been very legendary till now. In 2000 to till now, when GE passed away correspondingly, along with the obituary wordings it was noted by writers, that the founders legacy was not the reason for the huge growth of GE-but it was the one and only GE Way. But after the merger of GE with ITT Corporation,Ling-Temco-Vought,Tenneco, the things misrepresented upside down. Former GE people like former dissection heads, managers, engineers, and all the employees says about the GE Way as something special. General Electric usually visited the corporation halls, interrelate with community and staff about their projects, their troubles etc. They keep in mind that at time everybody valued everybody else. The actual issues started when John Francis Welch Jr, was hired from outside as GEs Chairman and CEO. He stuck hard to the productivity of the company. A background of fear started among the staffs which never be real before. The main complaints against him were valuing money more than people, maltreatment lay-offs and creating a culture which is inequitable to the staffs. His intentions didnt match with GEs visions. They saw revenue only as a bludgeon to achieve other objectives which are given equal value. The other objectives include welfare of the employees, customers etc. The above case was all about GE Way. It is a across the world held opinion that GE Way played a critical role in Companys achievement. Critics may say that to support an excellent corporate civilization, the company should be at its superior times. But people of GE who have experienced GE Way will never agree this because GEs most struggling times were also the times when GE Way was established at its best. [http://www.paloaltoonline.com] 1) The contribution, motivation, rewards and roles of individuals within these groups and teams According to Stephen P. Robbins, motivation is the willingness to exert high levels of effort toward organizational goals, conditioned by the efforts ability to satisfy some individual need. Fred Luthans views motivation as a process that starts with a physiological or psychological deficiency or need that activates behavior or a drive that is aimed at a goal or incentive. Each and every function of life is accompanied with one or other type of motivation. There are two main kinds of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Internal motivation is known as intrinsic motivation. When external factors compel the person to do something, then it is extrinsic motivation. [http://www.elmotivator.com/] [http://www.mbatown.com] Elton Mayo has the opinion that a employee having societal links at the place of work will be motivated more. Mayo believed that employees can also be motivated by acknowledging their social needs and making them feel important among others. This is what is done by General Electric in the case of GE Way. The employees who have skilled the actual GE Way says that everyone is valued by everybody else which means all the employees are given significance and also the opportunity to articulate their thoughts and views. Employees were given liberty to make decisions on the work and superior concentration was paid to relaxed work groups. This model is named as Hawthorne effect by Elton Mayo. [http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles] [http://ezinearticles.com/] In the case study, General Electric were very victorious in inspiring their employees by simply being down to earth. They never forget to visit their employees, to interact with them and to know their troubles and also to find answers. From all these illustration we can say motivation is what propels life. In everything we do motivation plays a major role. To care about output, learning, means, employment, achievement, victory, breakdown, etc motivation should be there An example for motivation, in management and organizational behavior: Example: Under-performing of employees which resulted in performance outcome A unexpected collapse in the profits was experienced by Company A. The companys management executive found out that this returns fall is as a result of under-performing of their employees. The performance of the employees was extremely much under the expectations of the management. This resulted in a rapid action from the companys part by firing about 6 employees and a new batch of people was hired. The company unsuccessful to understand in an earlier stage that the managers incapability was the basis cause of under-performance of the employees. The manager unsuccessful to provide them safer working conditions and this de-motivated the employees which resulted in decrease of productivity. This incident really opened their eyes which made them to execute strategies which help the company as well as employees to come from Under performance era. [http://www.org-behavior.com] The motivation process is demonstrated through several theories. They are as follows: Need-based theories: Need based theories include Maslows need hierarchy, McGregors Theory X and Theory, Herzbergs two-factor theory, Alderfers ERG theory and McClellands need theory Process based theories include Expectancy theory, Goal-setting theory, Reinforcement theory, Attribution theory Individual-organizational goal-congruence theories consists of Exchange, Accommodation, Socialization, Identification Maslows Need Hierarchy is all about a hierarchy of five basic needs which includes Physiological needs: hunger, thirst, shelter etc. Safety needs: security and protection from physical and emotional harm, Social needs: affection, belongingness, love, acceptance, and friendship, Esteem needs: internal esteem and external esteem, Needs for self-actualization: the drive to best realize ones potential. Alderfers ERG theory talks about three types of needs-Existence needs consisting of physiological and safety needs, Relatedness needs including the desire for maintaining important interpersonal relationships: social needs, and the external components of the esteem needs and Growth needs: an intrinsic desire for personal development: the intrinsic component of esteem, and self-actualization. McGregors theory X and theory Y Theory X has the assumption that employees dont like work, and they are lazy, not willing to take responsibility, and not motivated. Theory Y has the assumptions that employees like work, are creative, responsibilities seekers, and are self motivated. Herbergs two-factor theory talks about two contrasting views of satisfaction and dissatisfaction and it also talks about two factors-motivational factors and hygiene factors. McClellands Need Theory deals with the need for achievement. In other words it talks about a drive to excel, to set a higher goal, to seek higher responsibility, and to strive to succeed. All these theories more or less deals with what all factors create motivation in people and also the influence of motivation in an business. In the case of GENERAL ELECTRIC (GE), earlier the company was very good in mounting employee morale and thereby improving the efficiency of the operations of the company. But after the merger, the things totally fell upside down. The new top level authorities intense only on the profitability and not on the employee morale. This paved the way for dissatisfaction in employees which negatively affected the productivity of the company. Reward system consists of financial rewards and employee benefits, which is collectively known as total remuneration. They also include non-monetary rewards such as appreciation, promotion, praise, achievement, responsibility and personal growth. Recent studies and researches on reward system shows that reward criteria of the organizations, both monetary and non-monetary rewards have great influence on the employees and performance and the performance of the employees. As an answer to the question, why reward system is required, we can find out a number of reasons like it can improve organizational effectiveness, it is capable of achieving integration, motivate the employees, compete in the labor market, increased commitment towards work, it can attract employees having fair and improved skills, improved quality, develop team working. Singh et.al. (1977) in a study of organizational culture and its impact onmanagerial remuneration concluded that the demands for money was significantly influenced by the quality of organizational culture and that it can substantially be reduced by improving the quality of organizational culture. Findings such as those suggest that satisfaction, task involvement, demand for money and commitment are largely determined by organizational culture. Steve Williams and Fred Luthans (1992) stated that, the choice of reward interacting with feedback had a positive impact on task performance. According to Theodore R. Buyniski (1995),Despite the tendency in recent years to down grade the importance of money as an organizational reward, there is ample evidence that money can be positively reinforcing for most people. Teams are also important in an organizational context because it bring together people with different skills and experiences that enable the organization to quickly respond to innovation, changes in the business environment, and changes in the customers need faster and more effectively. Teams also solve problems quicker because of increased communication (Katzenbach Smith, 1999). The positions that are defined by a set of expectations about behavior of any job incumbent are termed as Roles. A set of tasks and responsibilities that may or may not be spelled out is accompanied with each and every role. Since money is being paid for the performance of the roles, there is prestige attached to a role, and a sense of accomplishment or challenge, roles have a powerful effect on behavior. In the context of the case of GENERAL ELECTRIC(GE), even though reward plays a vital role, the morale of the employees was more affected by changes in the psychological environment of the organization and also sudden change in the culture of the organization. As they were practicing a different culture of informality, they find it difficult to a survive the new environment which is so formal and which gave no importance to their opinions. When an organization gives importance to the views and opinions of employees, they feel it better to work in such conditions because it is human nature to wish to be recognized. Better performance will be the result if the individuals are given some roles to perform. [http://www.indianmba.com] [Steve Williams Fred Luthans (1992), The Impact of Choice of Rewards and Feed Back on Task Performance, Journal Of organizational Behavior. Vol. 13, P: 653-666] [Katzenbach, J.R. Smith, D.K. (1999). The Wisdom Of Teams. New York: HarperBusinees] [http://www.nwlink.com] (b) Management and leadership relating to both groups and teams Alan Keith stated that, Leadership is ultimately about creating a way for people to contribute to making something extraordinary happen. Tom DeMarco says that leadership needs to be distinguished from posturing. Northouse says that leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal. Mary Parker Follett defined management as the art of getting things done through people. Setting a new direction or vision for a group to accomplish the objectives of that group is known as leadership. But management is the controlling body or directing body of people and resources available in a group according to already established values. Even the terms management and leadership are often confused, they are actually different, but interrelated. The GENERAL ELECTRIC(GE) Way dealt with the legendary management style of two leaders Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard who through their leadership skills and qualities, developed the organization as a single f amily giving respect to each other. It is evident from the growth of GENERAL ELECTRIC(GE) that they were very successful in managing the people. Warren Bennis and Burt Nanus (1997) said leadership is like the Abominable Snowman, whose footprints are everywhere but who is nowhere to be seen. Leadership is everywhere but no one seems to be able to determine or figure out what makes up good leadership. It has been discussed by Bass in his book a study by H.L. Smith and Krueger (1933) in which they researched various primitive cultures around the world and finally reached a conclusion that leadership exists among all people, regardless of their culture, race or beliefs. Even though if societies do not have established or elected leaders, chiefs, or rulers, someone always exists who initiates a process and plays a critical role in the decision making process of a group (Bass, 1990). Hewlett and Packard found out that leadership qualities are lying hidden in each and every individual and thus they developed a culture of respecting each other developing a sense of integrity in the organization. According to Hollander, leadership is a process that involves three main components. One is the leader, the second is the employees, and the third is the culture of the organization. If the relationship between these three components is not compatible then in a long term perspective leadership will fail and so will the team. The first component of leadership is the leader. A leader must possess certain beliefs, perceptions, characteristics, and skills for good leadership to occur in teams. A leader must hold the Wallenda factor closely. The Wallenda factor is the ability to only think about succeeding, and concentrating on the task at hand and not even thinking about failing. The Wallenda factor was named after a famous tightrope walker Karl Wallenda who fell to his death. Karl Wallenda was preparing for his most challenging stunt of his life. But what he could think for 3 months before stunt was about failing, instead of working hard for the stunt. Checking and supervising the const ruction of his rope, he has never done it before and due to the thoughts of failing he checked it for the first time. (Bennis Nanus, 1997). The willingness to share power and control with the team should be a quality of the leader. Acting like a traditional boss is not good for a leader; he should be like a player or coach to the team. As already seen in the case of GENERAL ELECTRIC(GE), leaders must be there for support and encourage employees to solve problems on their own. Hewlett and Packard were typical leaders in the sense that they regularly visited company halls to interact with people and to solve their problems. GENERAL ELECTRIC(GE) Way, as the employees feel was a life and the leaders were like colleagues not bosses. They treat employees like equals and there were nothing that could be communicated only to managers and not to employees. [http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk] [Bass, M.B. (1990). Bass Stogdills Handbook of Leadership. New York, NY: The Free Press] [Bennis, W. Nanus, B. (1997).Leaders: Strategies for Taking Charge. New York, NY: HarperCollins] [www.sagepub.com] [Hollander, E.P. (1978). Leadership Dynamics. New York: The Free Press] RESOURCES QUANTITY GOALS OBJECTIVES SCHEDULE QUALITY Boundary Management Chart Harvey Robbins created a chart that helps leaders and the team members to know their boundaries specifically. This chart is having goals and objectives in the middle box, resources in the box above it and quality in the box below it. The quantity box is to the left of goals and objectives and to the right is the schedule box. When a team member becomes more skilled the leader will put his or her name in one of the boxes and then that team member will be responsible for that job. The other boxes deal with being in charge of the quality of the product produced, the quantity of the product produced, and in charge of the resources used to produce the product. Other responsibilities assigned to other employees could be added to the chart if needed. The only box, according to Harvey Robbins, that is not negotiable is the center box: goals and objectives. Leaders are not ready to completely give up control of goals and objectives because they must make sure the team members goals and objectives are matching with the organizations goals and objectives. But the team members will be given the opportunity to involve in decision-making (H. Robbins, personal communication, September 15, 1999) An important element of good leadership is trust. Trust can be earned through many ways. In case of GENERAL ELECTRIC(GE), one way of creating trust was sharing of information and access to upward communication. A second was allowing team members to take risks without fear of punishment. Instead of firing or giving punishments the culture in GENERAL ELECTRIC(GE) was to give reassignments of jobs from which they can learn their mistakes. c) Group structures, goals and objectives. The group structures are important since it plays a vital role in determining the productivity of a group. A group can do better than the collective effect of employees working independently. A successful group leader can lead a group to success. Different organizations structure their groups differently based on their goals and objectives. Groups should not be over crowded with skilled people, at the same time should not lack skills and talents. A group lacking skilled personnel may fail to achieve the said objectives. Goals and objectives provide the team members with the means of doing an act, and the end result will be their successful accomplishment. The groups goals, work plans, procedures, resources etc should be successfully arranged to get good results. When the work is carried out in well managed groups, the groups will enjoy operational and managerial freedom, which can increase their satisfaction towards work. The members of the group should be aware of his/her contribution towards the group and it is being valued, each individual starts viewing the group as an attractive entity. Well managed group structures enable the employees to work in co-operation. The statements that describe about the vision to be accomplished, or the results of any action that will be achieved in the future are known as goals and objectives. Goals provide a wide context of what the vision is and what is it trying to achieve. Objectives are more statements that describe in a narrow context i.e. specific, tangible products, deliverables and fruits that will be delivered as a result of the action. Compared to objectives goals are high level statements. Goals may include more than one objective to achieve since it is at a higher level. To be more precise, achievement of many objectives may result in the accomplishment of a goal. Generally goals cannot be measured. Goals are defined as long-term aims, in which validation is possible in the future while objective accomplishment is a step by step process and can lead to the successful accomplishment of a goal. What the action is trying to achieve is what that matters in objectives. The objectives are concrete statements which should be written at a lower level. Then only it will be possible to evaluate at the conclusion of a goal to check whether it was achieved or not. Compared to goal statements, objectives should not be vague. An excellent objective will be specific, measurable, attainable/achievable, realistic and time-bound. Even though goals and objectives are often used interchangeably, there is a main difference in their level of concreteness. Goals are less structured compared to objectives which are more concrete. In the case study Hewlett and Packard were having clear cut objectives and goals which never hampered the satisfaction of the employees and customers. They considered profitability as a tool to enable other objectives which are equally important to them. But the problems started when the management failed to align the objectives of the organization and the objectives of the employees together. [http://books.google.co.in/books] [www.askscs.com] [www.articlesnatch.com] CONCLUSION Organizational behavior is so important because it studies or investigates about the impact of individuals and groups on behavior within organizations and it is used for the purpose of applying such knowledge towards improving the effectiveness of the organization. Organizational behavior provides the managers and leaders of the organization, the way through which they should travel and also make their employees travel to achieve organizational goals and objectives. For managers to build up a better work related understanding of themselves and their followers it is important to learn about organizational behavior in todays business environment. As the definition says, a manager has to get his things done through others; the organizational skills become a valuable talent or asset for him. The role of the managers has become more sensitive due to the changing nature of todays business environment. It is now essential to be familiar with handling new work forces, dealing with the complication of new environment and so on. For this, business people have to develop their information about attitude and behavior of individuals, and groups in organizations. In any organization or company, motivation and communication are two important elements in determining the success of the company. Based on motivation itself many theories have been developed to study behavior and characteristics of employees. The internal theory focuses on the differences within the individual that give rise to motivation and behavior. There are also theories about relation between personal needs or desires and organizational needs. The process theory focuses on the relationship of the employees with the company. The external theories focus on the various components in the environment making it a basis explanation of the behavior of the employees at work. Communication is the so important since it is the basis of all activities and it is used by all the employees regardless of their position whether upper or lower for informing about what is going on in the organization or company. An important motivating factor for employees is harmonious relationship in Maslows th eory, which is a type of affiliation. The prior position in determining the satisfaction of the employees is occupied by working environment of the company. The employees when given roles to perform and rewards for their performance can perform better. This is the reason for many companies setting up teams to work and develops a healthy competition among the teams. Management and leadership also play an important role in the ultimate success of the company. Both these terms are essential because one without the other will make the operations of the business incomplete. Leaders can make sure that the team possesses clearly defined goals that match with the overall vision, goals and objectives of the company. Leaders and managers are concerned with effectiveness which will be reflected in the companys operations. Conclusively, OB can create an environment having happy moments of bonding together that can make each employee more intact that can help to maintain teamwork.

Evil in Chinua Achebes Things Fall Apart :: Things Fall Apart essays

Evil in Things Fall Apart Throughout the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, the reader feels evil. Evil is a concept that is hard to define. The dictionary defines it as " morally bad; wicked" (Funk & Wagnalls 220). But is the definition of evil really as simple as that? Many would say that there is more to defining evil than just a few words. Evil can also be defined by a culture. If one were to study various cultures around the world, he or she would discover that each culture has a different way of defining evil. Even world politics sometimes plays a role in defining evil. But one's personal definition seems to have the most impact on what one thinks is evil. Theology has played a strong role in defining evil for thousands of years. The Bible teaches Christians that Satan is evil, and not to follow his teachings. Evil as a concept in Christianity developed in the third and fourth centuries. During that time, St. Augustine determined that "Evil is the privation, or absence, of good, as darkness is the absence of light." (Funk&Wagnalls19) In modern times, theology has had a difficult time defending the existence of God in light of the many atrocities that have occurred in the last 100 years, such as the Holocaust, World War II, the Vietnam War, and the ethnic cleansing of Kosovo. As a result, theology is now having to redefine what evil is. Cultures and politics among cultures have a way of defining evil for their own inhabitants. The Europeans who visited the Ibo culture in Things Fall Apart viewed many of the customs that the natives practiced as evil or barbaric or primitive. The Ibo concept of the "Evil Forest" was one of them. It was something that each village had and "In it were buried all those who died of the really evil diseases, like leprosy and smallpox." (Achebe 148) Another belief held by the tribe in the novel is that if a woman has children, and each dies under "evil" circumstances, then she is under attack by an evil tormentor. The remedy to this problem is to " Let her not sleep in her hut. Let her go and stay with her people. In that way she will elude her wicked tormentor and break its evil cycle of birth and death" (Achebe 77).

Male and Female Relations in Virginia Woolf’s Essay

Lily is also very much a product of society, yet she has new ideas for the role of women and produces one answer to the problems of gender power. Besides providing these examples of patriarchy, To The Lighthouse examines the tenacity of human relationships in general, producing a novel with twists, turns, problems, and perhaps a solution. Mrs. Ramsey is the perfect, patriarchal woman. She scarcely has an identity of her own. Her life is geared towards men: If he put implicit faith in her, nothing should hurt him; however deep he buried himself or climbed high, not for a second should he find himself without her. So boasting of her capacity to surround and protect, there was scarcely a shell of herself left for her to know herself by. (Woolf, Lighthouse 38). Identity is a strong desire in all humanity, yet in a patriarchal society it has been denied to women. Women who are owned by men are mere possessions, having no control over themselves and no way to develop their own personalities. Mrs. Ramsey needs people about her at all times because she has nothing internalized. She must create herself through other people. She is always bouncing off someone else, preferably a male who has power, yet needs her to keep that power. By gaining acceptance and love form those in power, Mrs. Ramsey creates a shadow of a self. Woolf says, â€Å"Not as oneself did one find rest ever, in her experience. Losing personality, one lost the fret, the furry , the stir† (Lighthouse 63). When alone Mrs. Ramsey must lose her personality because it is a show, a created essence which takes work to maintain. A symbol of this is apparent when Mrs. Ramsey covers the skull in her children’s room. She covers the reality with a veil, much like all men and women cover their true identity in order to play the role patriarchal society has given to them. Mrs. Ramsey even avoids looking at her own face in the mirror. Is it possible that she would not even recognize herself? I think, yes, because she does not have a fixed identity. She does not know who she is or what she really looks like. She must change in every situation, with every different man she is expected to support. Mrs. Ramsey supports these men in her life because that is the only way she can create an identity. Woolf suggests that even this support may be false. Of course it is false, because Mrs. Ramsey has no other choice. She cannot lose herself in her work like a man. Her work is to make men feel superior and this is ingrained in her mind. Of her husband we are told that, â€Å"She was not good enough to tie his shoe strings, she felt† (Woolf, Lighthouse 32). In spite of the power of men, To The Lighthouse suggests that many men feel sterile. Perhaps men are psychologically sterilized by power. Patriarchal men can form no equal relationships with women because they must always defend themselves. They cannot admit an equal into their life for fear of losing power. This could be why Mrs. Ramsey pitied men, â€Å"She pitied men always as if they lacked something. Women never, as if they had something† (Woolf, Lighthouse 85). The sense of sterility in men’s minds may also come form the biological fact that women are the childbearers. Nature has, in defiance of patriarchy, given women the central role in childbearing. At most, men are equals when it comes to having children. It seems as if Mr. Ramsey tries to disprove his sterility by having eight children. The fact remains, men are expendable when it comes to child bearing, and therefore they need to defend against this perpetual encroachment upon their power. The one man who is productive is Mr. Carmichael. It is interesting to note that he does not allow Mrs. Ramsey to support him. He refuses her and seems somewhat scared of perhaps falling back into the trap of patriarchal roles. Woolf tells us that Mr. Carmichael shrinks form Mrs. Ramsey and that, â€Å"she felt him wince. He did not trust her† (Lighthouse 40). Mr. Carmichael is productive because he does shrink away form Mrs. Ramsey and the sterilization that comes with the patriarchal relationships of men and women. Ms. Ramsey’s state of submission leads her to develop her power in other areas. Woolf suggests in fact, â€Å"that all this desire of hers to give, to help, was vanity. For her own self-satisfaction was it that she wished so instinctively to help, to give† (Lighthouse 41). Here Woolf implies that desire to give is a sort of vanity, a vanity that is control. Woolf also points out that, â€Å"Wishing to dominate, wishing to interfere, making people do what she wished. That was the charge against her, and she thought it most unjust† (Lighthouse 57). Of course Mrs. Ramsey should want to dominate in some arena. Men deny her control of her own life, so she reverts to subtle manipulation of others. John Stuart Mill states in The Subjection of Women, â€Å"[Women’s] power often gives her what she has no right to, but does not enable her to assert her own rights† (155). The power that Mrs. Ramsey cultivates is a perverted power created through the repression of their natural tendencies. She has no control over herself and therefore will try to control others, whom she really has no business trying to dominate. Mill also says of feelings: Women are schooled into suppressing them in their most natural and most healthy direction, but the internal principle remains, in a different outward form. An active and energetic mind, if denied liberty, will seek for power: refused the command of itself, it will assert its personality by attempting to control others. (213) When Mrs. Ramsey encourages Paul and Minta to marry, it is uncertain whether the union ever would have come about without her influence. The marriage does not succeed, not in the way Mrs. Ramsey would have envisioned. Her wish to dominate hurts others and herself. Eventually the struggle and lack of identity seem to cause Mrs. Ramsey’s death. She has to deal with all of the motional problems of family and friends, and she also deals with the day to day running of the household. Mills observes of married women, â€Å"she takes not only her fair share, but usually the larger share, of the bodily and mental exertion required by their joint existence† (164). Ramsey does not deal with the trivialities of family life, and goes into a rage at the expenses of running the house. Mrs. Ramsey had given. Giving, g iving, giving, she had died† (Woolf, Lighthouse 149). Mr. Ramsey portrays the evils of patriarchy on men. Women are not the only ones who are hurt. Mills says, â€Å"this power seeks out and evokes the latent germs of selfishness in the remotest corners of [men’s] nature† (153). Mr. Ramsey is extremely selfish. He belittles not only women , but also himself with the idea that he needs someone to praise him in order to be worthy. He is the empowerment one, but can only keep the power through the inferiority of others. Perhaps this need for superiority is also the cause of his raging attitude. Woolf’s description of Professor von X in A Room of One’s Own seems frighteningly accurate for Mr. Ramsey, â€Å"the professor was made to look very angry and ugly in my sketch, as he wrote his great book upon the mental, moral and physical inferiority of women† (Woolf 31). Both the professor and Mr. Ramsey are angry and must, in order to gain power through patriarchy, keep women in their inferior position. Woolf makes this point on power division very apparent in Mr. Ramsey’s worry about how good his books are. He is not satisfied with pleasing himself; he must be better than others to retain power. This power causes his isolation and psychological sterility. Woolf writes that, â€Å"the fatal sterility of the male plunged itself, like a beak of brass, barren and bare. He wanted sympathy† (Lighthouse 37). Woolf shows here one important fallacy inherent in the patriarchal system. It is odd that men believe in the inferiority of women, yet they rely on those inferior women to give them praise and sympathy. However, Mill observes that, â€Å"There is nothing which men so easily learn as this self-worship: all privileged persons, and all privileged classes, have had it† (158). Not only does Mr. Ramsey learn this self-worship, he has followers. Mrs. Ramsey and all women must kneel at his alter. His contemporaries and future intellectuals must admire his work. Even young men, like Charles Tansley, want to model themselves after Mr. Ramsey. Perhaps these young men only see the superior position of the patriarchal man; they certainly do not understand the implications of the sterility and anger that go with power. The many general comments about human relationships in Woolf’s novel point out the frailty and questionable nature of love and friendship in a patriarchal society. Woolf writes, â€Å"How then did it work out, all this? How did one judge people, think of them? How did one add up this and that and conclude that it was liking one felt, or disliking† (Lighthouse 24). Here Woolf highlights the almost ambiguous nature of liking. Any human trait may evoke many different emotions in people. Physical factors, such as distance, may also influence relationships. If a loved one is far away, a person may forget that loved one and let love or liking die a natural death. For Woolf, therefore, human relationships are rather inadequate. They are changing, and Woolf notes, â€Å"self-seeking, at best† (Lighthouse 42). Perhaps if the characters had more stable and defined self-identities, their relationships would be more true, without that self-seeking goal. Lily is also a product of the patriarchal society, yet she struggles to break out of the role assigned to her by men. Why she does this is not clear. She is an artist, and maybe she feels more deeply or sees more clearly than other women. Woolf seems to point out that women artists have difficult time in patriarchal society. In A Room of One’s Own, Woolf asks of women artists, â€Å"who shall measure the heat and violence of the poet’s heart when caught and tangled in a woman’s body? † (50). Lily is also taking care of her father, so probably her mother is dead. Maybe her mother has been dead for a long while, and Lily has had no submissive role model. Perhaps she just sees what this role does to women. Lily loves Mrs. Ramsey and it must hurt her to know Mrs. Ramsey has no self and must cater to men. In any case, Lily thinks often and deeply about the roles of men and women. Not only does Lily notice that Victorian, patriarchal society hurts Mrs. Ramsey, but she also notices that it negatively affects Mr. Ramsey. Lily thinks, â€Å"Could one help noticing that habits grew on him? Eccentricities, weaknesses perhaps? It was astonishing that a man of intellect could stoop as low as he did — but that was too harsh of a phrase — could depend so much as he did upon other people’s praise† (Woolf, Lighthouse 23). In a patriarchal society, the influence of men on women and women on men is a vicious circle. Lily tries to escape this game, yet time and time again she is drawn in, especially when she is around Mrs. Ramsey. Lily lies and is insincere in her attempts to placate the men around her. Lily, however, realizes her deceit and the harm it causes. She resists the male/ female role game and wonders, â€Å"But how would it be †¦ f neither of us did either of these things? † (Woolf, Lighthouse 91). When she is drawn in and lies, Lily only strengthens her resolve to resist this pressure in the future. She realizes the importance of relations and how these narrow, gender roles create false identities Woolf’s narrator underscores the fact that, â€Å"She had d one the usual trick — been nice. She would never know him. He would never know her† (Lighthouse 92). The difference in Lily is that she does have an identity. She does have work in her art. Lily does not need to be around other people because she is someone. She does not need to be externally created; she is real. With her unique identity, Lily is allowed unique ideas on relationships. She sees how men respond to Mrs. Ramsey, that the love men gave was to an idea or ideal, â€Å"love that never attempted to clutch its object; but, like the love which mathematicians bear their symbols, or poets their phrases† (Woolf, Lighthouse 47). Men loved this symbol of patriarchy. Mrs. Ramsey is to the patriarchal man what a symbol is to a mathematician or a phrase is to a poet. She is a symbol to men; men could not love Mrs. Ramsey as an individual because she does not exist. In her art, Lily creates what she herself sees, a representation of life through her own eyes. Lily is struck with the need to move her tree to the center of her painting. Lily thinks, â€Å"she need not marry, thank Heaven: she need not undergo that degradation. She was saved from that dilution. She would move the tree rather more to the middle: (Woolf, Lighthouse 102). Lily will not â€Å"dilute† herself by joining with a man. Lily decides to be autonomous, as Woolf tells us that, â€Å"she would move the tree to the middle, and need never marry anybody, and she had felt an enormous exultation† (Lighthouse 176). Moving the tree symbolizes the oneness of Lily. She is not going to be united with a man. She is going to keep her identity and fix it in the middle of her painting, her representation of life. Still, Lily feels the urge to comfort Mr. Ramsey after Mrs. Ramsey had died. She decides to give him what she can because, as a woman, she fees guilt about causing his need. In order for patriarchy to perpetuate, women have been brainwashed and inundated with the belief that they re placed on earth to support men. If a woman ever tries to rebel against patriarchy, the guilt is inevitable. Lily thinks of Mr. Ramsey’s pleas for sympathy, † A woman, she had provoked this horror; a woman, she should have known how to deal with it† (Woolf, Lighthouse 152). But Lily, in her strength, overcomes the guilt and refuses to play the game f patriarchy, and Mr. Ramsey cannot play the game alone. Lily and Mr. Ramsey’s relationship may be uncomfortable, but it certainly is an improvement for male/female relationships. Lily notes that she has, â€Å"reduced their relationship to something neutral, without that element of sex in it which made his manner to Minta so gallant, almost gay† (Woolf, Lighthouse 170). Perhaps the discomfort is caused by the breaking of tradition, the lace of power on Mr. Ramsey’s part and the empowerment of Lily. After denying Mr. Ramsey comfort, when he is sailing to the lighthouse, Lily thinks, â€Å"Whatever she had wanted to give him, when he left her that morning, she had given him at last† (Woolf, Lighthouse). Lily has given Mr. Ramsey the freedom from patriarchy. She did not let him fall into the trap of making a woman praise him. Without that false worship, Mr. Ramsey will be forced to develop his identity based on reality, and Lily and all women will be forced to develop an identity separated from men. With these thoughts, Lily is able to secure her own identity by drawing a line in the center of her painting, and secure her own identity by drawing a line in the center of her painting and secure her personality in life. To The Lighthouse offers this look at human relationships with a promise of bettering those relations through change. Even today there are strong remnants of patriarchy dominating society. Men consistently climb higher in management and receive higher pay for equal jobs. This novel shows both men and women suffering and struggling with societal roles.

Reading Reflection Essays

Reading Reflection Essays Reading Reflection Essay Reading Reflection Essay Reading Reflection Barbara Morales ENG125 – Introduction to Literature Professor Sarah Ross December 5, 2011 What peaked my interest in this story is the title â€Å"The Welcome Table†. In essence it should be titled â€Å"The Unwelcome Table† because of its profound examples of racism, poverty, and unfair judgment and treatment; in short, man’s inhumanity to man. This short story is a prime example of hypocrisy, intolerance, and unchristian like behavior while in God’s house. An old, black woman walked from her home to an all-white church to worship and was turned away with cruel words and physical ousting by two big, burly men. This ill treatment by the â€Å"Christians† did not deter or discourage her from praising the Lord. The entire congregation was guilty of the same crime because they all felt the same way. There was no judgment or correction of each other because they all thought alike. Even the spiritual leader of the church gave a poor, unforgiving example to the congregation and they all followed suit. She was not worthy to be seen past her shabby clothing, her work worn hands, her aged body, her tattered stained clothing, her greasy scarf, and her scuffed shoes. They did not see past her external, soiled trappings to her internal childlike, unconditional love of God’s righteousness, and her right to worship him. After being thrown out of church, she continued on her way until she saw Jesus walking towards her. He looked at her lovingly and said â€Å"follow me†. This proved that Jesus is everywhere not just in church. Alice Walker’s â€Å"The Welcome Table†, is written from an omniscient point of view because Alice Walker is not a character in the book but she did know and understand the feelings of the characters in the story (Clugston, 2010). Walker’s writing contained many examples of Similes and Metaphors. †¦Ã¢â‚¬  and he walked with sure even steps in her direction, as if he were walking on the sea†. â€Å" the skin ashen but durable, like the bark of old pines†. â€Å"There was a sad but joyful look to his face, like a candle was glowing behind it†. (Clugston, 2010). The use of irony is visible in the following excerpt from â€Å"The Welcome Table†: â€Å"The protection and promise of God’s impartial love† (Clugston 2010). Through the congregations’ negative behavior toward the old woman, the congregation proved that they did not practice what He preached. Alice Walker uses a biographical/historical approach in her writings. She had firsthand knowledge of the struggles of black people of the South who experienced the lack of basic human rights. They lived racism, segregation, sexism, poverty, and social and economic injustice. In her writings she wrote about her life experiences and the lack of equality and the prevalence of racial injustice. She brought awareness to people of other parts of the country to the plight of the poor and forgotten and stressed the need for radical change in our society. The Civil Rights March of the 60’s, led by Dr. Martin Luther King had a profound, life-changing impact on Alice Walker’s life which is evident in her writings. Her writings reflect her life as an educator, civil rights worker, advocate and mentor. She understood the importance of power in numbers. The organized protests of the people and by the people gave to the people the inalienable rights guaranteed to all under the Constitution of the United States of America. By their actions they strengthened their demands for equality for all in the land. Change was imminent. While collaborating through her efforts in registering and encouraging people to vote, she met and married a Jewish, Civil Rights Lawyer named Melvyn Leventhal. Her writings have surpassed color lines and made us aware that we are all members of the human race. There is no superior color and we are all members of the human race. Interestingly enough, the Alice Walker book â€Å"Color Purple† brought much criticism from many black male scholars. They felt she depicted an unfair image of black men. They took offense at her portrayal of black men who treated their wives as chattel and unworthy, second class citizens. In the end of her stories, women all got their retribution. She experienced negativity from many in society and sadly also within her own race and culture. References Clugston, W. R. , (2010). Journey Into Literature. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Alice Walkers Love Stories. The Way Forward Is with a Broken Heart by Alice Walker. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, No. 31 (Spring, 2001), pp. 132-133.