...The standards of success and prosperity for the protagonists of Death of a Salesman and Wall Street are inflated by the media, celebrities, and their family lives. In the face of his brother’s triumph in Alaska, Willy struggles to achieve the same level of unrealistic, exaggerated success as a mere salesman in Death of a Salesman. Similarly, by working under the exaggeratedly cutthroat Gordon Gekko, Bud Fox seeks a hollow life of luxury, stolen through cheating. Both Willy and Bud try to succeed with exaggerated and unrealistic goals due to the pressure presented to them through external forces such as their mentors, society, their families, and the workplace. The pressure that Bud and Willy’s mentors place on them causes them to exaggerate their goals to unrealistic levels. As a result, Willy’s lucidity spirals into a deep depression that leaves him in a delusional mentality that refuses to let him face the reality of his present situation while Bud’s sanity becomes overcome by his hunger for power that is fed by his ego and arrogance. Ben Loman is the foil to Willy Loman’s character. He is wealthy, bold, and a ruthless business man. He is the epitome of a success story and living the American Dream. Ben is one of the fortunate few who found incredible success without much work, something which Willy recognizes and wants. Willy Loman believes that like his brother, he too can rise from humble beginnings to importance. His specific angle on this outlook is that a man succeeds...
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...Realism and Naturalism Old Grannis and Miss Baker - Necessary or Needless? June 17, 2013 In "Frank Norris' "Drama of a Broken Teacup": The Old Grannis - Miss Baker Plot in McTeague", Donna M. Campbell disagrees with the critics that have argued that the Old Grannis - Miss Baker storyline in McTeague, is out of place and unnecessary. Rather, Campbell claims that the storyline is not deserving of the abuse heaped on it, and argues the alternate, that it is essential to the plot of McTeague, helping us both with the storytelling itself, and also with advancing the naturalistic nature and style of the stories of the other two couples in McTeague, Trina and McTeague as well as Zerkow and Maria Macapa. Campbell's main argument is that based on the two types of stories in the text, naturalistic stories as well as commonplace, "local color fiction", embodied in the actions of all three couples in McTeague, Norris is able to fully examine and explore what naturalistic writing is meant to entail. Using Norris' own words in his letter to Isaac Marcosson, Norris claims that he is writing a novel of "straight naturalism with all the guts I can get into it" (P. 48). According to Campbell, "Thus each pair of lovers functions on several levels: as representatives of varying social levels and codes of manners; as unwitting victims of the world of forces; as "owners" in several senses - of money, of passions, of restraint; and finally as characters in plots suitable to the differing...
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...To fully understand how the business culture has acquired the greed mindset, a look at what a corporation is and defining corporate behavior becomes the starting point. First a corporation is defined as “an association of individuals, created by law and having an existence apart from that of its members as well as distinct and inherent powers and liabilities (Webster Dictionary).” Although made up of people, being separate or apart from its members also equals unaccountability. The question of “who pays when a company goes under” is at the forefront of discussions today. Corporations are developed to serve society, meet a need or provide a service. Over the years, however, the good intentioned corporation has evolved into a greed machine that has lost site of the community that it serves and the people employed who ultimately perform the work. The steady parade of top executives confessing to engage in price gouging, tax dodges, accounting shams, employee rip-offs, and other shady unacceptable acts are coming to light daily. Unethical and illegal practices are documented from the RJR Nabisco scandals in 1988 to today’s Enron, WorldCom, Merrill Lynch, Arthur Anderson, Xerox, and endless other corporations. The world realizes now that corporate greed is not about one-bad company, but large companies in general that have adopted unacceptable guidelines for corporate behavior and an overall attitude that greed is acceptable. The bottom line, insatiable need for growth, amoral corporate...
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...Corporate greed essay To fully understand how the business culture has acquired the greed mindset, a look at what a corporation is and defining corporate behavior becomes the starting point. First a corporation is defined as “an association of individuals, created by law and having an existence apart from that of its members as well as distinct and inherent powers and liabilities (Webster Dictionary).” Although made up of people, being separate or apart from its members also equals unaccountability. The question of “who pays when a company goes under” is at the forefront of discussions today. Corporations are developed to serve society, meet a need or provide a service. Over the years, however, the good intentioned corporation has evolved into a greed machine that has lost site of the community that it serves and the people employed who ultimately perform the work. The steady parade of top executives confessing to engage in price gouging, tax dodges, accounting shams, employee rip-offs, and other shady unacceptable acts are coming to light daily. Unethical and illegal practices are documented from the RJR Nabisco scandals in 1988 to today’s Enron, WorldCom, Merrill Lynch, Arthur Anderson, Xerox, and endless other corporations. The world realizes now that corporate greed is not about one-bad company, but large companies in general that have adopted unacceptable guidelines for corporate behavior and an overall attitude that greed is acceptable. The bottom line, insatiable need...
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...Corporate greed, by definition, is when a company chooses to place significance on increasing profits in a way that harms employees, consumers and the environment. It occurs when making money becomes the only goal, and the other company’s social responsibility is ignored. There is some debate with companies over whether they are being greedy versus looking for the best business practice. How can one tell if a company’s practice is defined as corporate greed or if the company is just working to reduce costs in order to increase profit growth? How much social responsibility does a company have to society and the environment? An article written by Edmund Bradley, about the problem with corporate greed, gave a perspective on these questions stating that “However greedy or altruistic a business person happens to be, the institutions of the market channel his or her motivation to a social end. Business must serve society in order to thrive,” (Bradley, 2003). In order for a business to grow and expand, they need to make a positive impression on society. Especially in today’s market, with consumers focusing on what companies are doing to the environment and how to find ‘green’ products. Society want to know that the companies making millions of dollars are using their influence and power to do good things in the world around them. Another perspective, however, is that companies have to only focus on the growth and profit of the company. They should work to please shareholders...
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...Greed in Sports Recently Michael Jordan wanted to de-certify the union of the National Basketball Association, because he felt he could never make what he was "worth" under the current agreement. Michael Jordan had an estimated income of $33 million in 1994. Last year, Major League Baseball players went on strike because they felt the deal that the owners were proposing was unfair. The minimum salary for a major league player is $119,000. For the first time in ninety years, there was no post-season baseball, and no world series. Eric Turner was designated as the Cleveland Browns franchise player. He then proceeded to hold out during spring training, because he knew he could get more money then his current $2.15 million dollar contract. At one point in every athlete’s life, there is nothing they would want to do more than play their sport, not because it fattens their wallet, but because they have a true love for it. At what point does the athlete lose the love and gain the greed? The NBA has become the land of the guaranteed contract. These players want their millions handed to them on a silver platter, no matter what happens. If they get injured and can no longer play; pay up! If they averaged thirty points a game in college, but struggle to make the transition into the pros, and average only four points; pay up! If their egos swell so much that they are out of control in public and do something to disgrace the organization they play for; pay up, because the...
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...International Conference on New & Renewable Energy Development The Rector The university of saint Joseph The speakers’ hall 27 october 2011 of need & greed The story of the City of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania is, perhaps, the best example of how to manage existing and dwindling resources at a time of reduced means. On the other hand, the panorama of new and renewable energy today is filled with mostly mega projects, and assumed solutions that are only that, assumed. No matter what happens, the highest values of humanity have to supersede the expediencies of engineering. It is, however, undeniable, that we are compressed by issues that require immediate and all encompassing approaches. We seem to be corralled by the melting of ice caps and the submersion of cities; the rise of temperature and wild climate change, that ranges from desertification in places to shattering floods elsewhere; the scarcity of water and the specter of wars over maddening thirst; the rights to achieved development for some and to develop for others; the cost of economic growth and the supposed unbearable price of eradicating poverty; the blighted ecology of soviet-style systems and the menace to the environment of unbridled capitalism; the urge to increased material comfort and the menace of diminished humanistic cultures. We are, thus, compelled to make sense out of numerous scientific, political, governmental, social, religious, and ideological discourses: many ambiguous, others...
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...American Greed Synopsis: Generous With Other People's Money Summary: The Tom Petters was a Chief Executive Officer of his company over 10 years and did the biggest Ponzi scheme, for 3.6 Billion dollars, in U.S. history. Tom had astonishing enthusiasm for business and he started business called Peters company Inc, in which he purchased and exported all garments and bothered products and exchanges them to big stores. After few years when he expanded his business with warehouse direct his annual income was 20 million dollars. Later he became manager of American brands like Polaroid and Sun country airlines. Tom began donating funds to few foundations, grandiose parties and he became popular figure. During the year 2007 the monetary business of US government starts to fall, which drove the Peters to lose his confidence. The frightful young lady Friday planned to escape from this Ponzi business scheme and strolls into lawyer Allan Caplan and clarified about her inclusion in the 3.6 billion of Ponzi scheme and US lawyer gathered all the data about this Multi-billion dollar scheme of once-high-moving CEO and sentenced for a long time. Conceptual Thoughts : In the Multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme, Tom Petters was the main pillar and his friend Deanna Colman and partner Bob White helped him to maintain the business for a long time. Petters understood the weakness of investors and fascinated them by offering a high rate of premium and gained a decent name in society...
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...Article Review: - The Greed Cycle, by John Cassidy The article by Thomas Cassidy, points out the instrumental role that greed plays in the modern corporation. Modern Economists have always seen greed as not only a necessary element in the corporate environment, but as also a vital part of the successful evolution of a public company. As the article points out, “Economists from Adam Smith to Milton Friedman have seen greed as an inevitable and, in some ways, desirable feature of capitalism. In a well regulated and well balanced economy, greed helps to keep the system expanding”. In the early public companies, greed was not seen as a danger, as the implicit trust that managers would not slack off, and would run the company in the interest of the stockholders and stakeholders was not undermined. Economist was the first to identify the issue of managers not acting in the interest of the shareholders, and instead being motivated by greed, and “self-enrichment”. Public Companies, evolved as a way to create financing for large industry, where in the owners agreed to relinquish day to day control and operation of a company to mangers, who in turn would act in their interest, and maximize revenues. As the article points out, in the beginning, “most of the professional managers were content to collect generous salaries and pensions rather than habitually attempt to rob the stockholders and bondholders. It is a strong proof of the marvelous growth in recent times of a spirit...
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...In his novel, The Pearl, John Steinbeck uses characterization to develop the idea that greed is a destructive force. A second example of destructive greed in The Pearl is the character of the doctor. First, during the procession led by Kino towards the doctor’s house, as they pass by the church and the beggars, John gives insight to the beggars’ knowledge of the whole town, “They knew his [the doctor] ignorance, his cruelty, his avarice, his sins. They knew his clumsy abortions and the little brown pennies he gave sparingly for alms,” (9). The beggars describe the doctor; his greed and cruelty, how he cares not for the well-being of his patients, but for how much money he can make and keep from them. The patients having the abortions lives’...
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...Beowulf is a world-renowned literary work and is commonly cited as one of the most important works of Old English literature. The early English epic Beowulf consists of a marvelous hero, three ghastly villains, and deeds of great honor and valor. The main hero Beowulf has three main battles throughout the story. Each villain symbolizes a specific evil that all people have to face. The first monster Grendel represents rage, Grendel’s mother represents desire for revenge, and the dragon represents greed. The vicious monster Grendel represents the topic of rage throughout the epic. Grendel’s thirst for blood grows due to many different reasons. One reason Grendel was full of rage is because he was separated from God’s love. In the epic it...
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...Corporate Greed Forces Change Keller Graduate School of Management HR587 - Managing Organizational Change Professor T. Downfall of the Old Boy Club Back in 2003, one of the largest healthcare company in the United States, HealthSouth was in its height of success when it experienced the largest organizational change starting from the board of directors all the way down. The CEO at the time was Richard Scrushy who was accused of directing his company employees to falsely report exaggerated company earnings in order to meet its stockholder expectations. This was a violation of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. This act was enacted on July 2002 in response to a number of major corporate and accounting scandals such as Enron, Tyco International, and WorldCom. These scandals cost the investors billions of dollars due to the fall of stock prices. This act was implemented to hold companies accountable for falsely reporting their financial statements. The act contains eleven titles that describe specific mandates and requirements necessary for financial reporting including Corporate Responsibility, Financial Disclosures, and Corporate Fraud Accountability. In HealthSouth’s case, the entire board of directors was ultimately held accountable for falsely inflating the company earnings as much as 4700% at one point. HealthSouth was the leading provider of acute care hospitals and orthopedic clinics, employing more than 60,000 people in over 2,000 facilities. By 2006,...
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...grievances and succumb to their greed. Diamonds then became a kind of incentive for violence. This applied not only to RUF fighters, but eventually to their opponents also. There were very few ‘traditional’ battles fought during this war, but the ones that did occur were always in and around diamond rich areas. Keen notes that, “thousands of civilians were expelled and kept away from diamond-rich areas… rebels often forced diamond prospecting work to continue and then took diamonds” (CITE KEEN 2005). A women whose home...
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...The article “The Greed Cycle” is an in depth look of the advancements in the ways business compensates its heads of industry. The article links the trend of corruption among executives when there was lax regulation, and methods of fixing numbers. The question that is purposed by the article is if greed comes naturally; or if it is an evolution that corporate America creates. It is true that the creation of Sarbanes-Oxley has significantly prevented the events that occurred regarding CEOs and the stock option crisis. There have been numerous recent events, however, that have occurred with CEOs and others alike make me believe John Cassidy’s theory that there is validity to his theory of a greed cycle. The problem was regulation; there were none. Stock options were engaging executives in achieving the goals of the company, while also allowing the company to not count their stock options as a corporate expense. It was a win- win situation for both executive and company. Because of this the stock option plans for executives were an emerging trend for most well known companies. How government officials purposely denied the idea from the Financial Accounting Standards Board (F.A.S.B.) to count stock options as an expense is hard to fathom. When has there ever been a time the government not wanted to receive their share of someone’s fortune? The greed of senators receiving money from lobbyist helped the system stay intact in 1994: after they threatened to shut down the F.A...
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...In the world, greed is very powerful and takes over people very easily. It is not something that people can overcome quickly, and this is beautifully portrayed in The Pearl. In The Pearl, greed overtakes a man named Kino who has a wonderful family. He ends up finding a pearl and wanting more than he can get. This quickly destroy his family and shows him that he should be grateful for what he has. Some of the ways the author showed how greed took over kino by using characterization, foreshadowing, and symbolism. One way the author showed how kino was overtaken by greed, was by characterization. In the beginning of The Pearl, Kino was very humble and cared about his family very much. “Kino’s eyes opened, and he first looked at the lightening...
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