Pride And Prejudice By Jane Austen Essays (755 words) - Fiction

Pride And Prejudice By Jane Austen Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen The title of the novel Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen, can be interpreted as a theme running through the novel. Pride, observed Mary, . . . is a very common failing, I believe. By all that I have ever read, I am convinced that it is very common indeed, that human nature is particularly prone to it, and that there are very few of us who do not cherish a feeling of self-complacency on the score of some quality or another, real or imaginary. Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us. Pride and/or vanity is exhibited in different forms by each character. Ms. Austen was trying to send the message that an excess of pride or vanity is indeed a failing. Those characters who can recognize their flaw emerge as the true heroes of the story. In many minor characters of the novel, pride is a common characteristic. Mrs. Bennet, for instance, is extremely proud when it comes to her daughters marriages of mercenary advantage. She is so concerned that her neighbors have a high opinion of her that her own vanity will not even allow her to think of her daughters love and happiness. This is best shown with the case of Elizabeth Bennet s proposed marriage to the esteemed Mr. Collins, a man she did not love. Mrs. Bennet was so upset when her daughter refused Mr. Collins offer that she would not speak to her for passing up such an opportunity. We can see an example of pride for imaginary qualities in Mary Bennet who was herself the speaker of this passage. To the embarrassment of her family, Mary would take every chance she could to put on a show whenever in a public situation. Although she was not talented in any of the activities she decided to undertake, her high opinion of herself and her desire to esteem herself in the eyes of others enabled her to display her supposed talents. Mr. Collins possesses a definite sense of vanity. He is in no way concerned about his own opinion of his character, for as we see his character leaves much to be desired. All he cares about is what others think of him. He always needs the approval of his present company. When he gives Elizabeth the grand tour of his nothing-spectacular home, he is looking for her approval of his position and possessions. It is not important to Mr. Collins for people to like him as a person, they just had better be impressed his status in life and his connections. Mr. Darcy, as one of the main characters, is for the better part of the novel a focus of the theme of pride. His pride is very obvious. It is a part of his nature and is seen in his mannerisms and in his speech. Darcy has such a high opinion of himself that he does not care what others think of him or his prideful actions. He believes that he is the best in every way possible and finds that his standing in society gives him the right to be critical of those not as perfect as he. Elizabeth Bennet, the other main character of the novel, is just as guilty of being proud as any of the other characters in the novel. She prides herself on being unprejudiced and rational in the judgement of others. Yet, this is an imaginary quality as she learns that her preconceived notions of both Mr. Darcy and Mr. Wickham turn out to be false. She is also very proud when Darcy confronts her about her family and connections. Although Darcy s accusations of the unsophistication of certain of her family members are true, Elizabeth is too proud to listen and accept the truth. Instead, she becomes so angered with Darcy that it effects her entire relationship with him. Both Darcy and Elizabeth come to recognize their pride as a flaw in their respective characters. Darcy realizes that he must check his pride in order to be seen in a good light by others. Elizabeth, the object of his affections, is so turned off by his prideful ways that a touch of vanity enables him to change himself for her. Elizabeth, while observing the transformations of

Summary How Group-Think Makes Killers Essay Example

Summary How Group Summary How Group-Think Makes Killers Paper Summary How Group-Think Makes Killers Paper The article starts by describing the setting in which an experiment, which was designed by psychologist Philip G. Zanzibar of the University of Stanford was conducted. The experiment involved college students who are to be divided into two groups one, the prison guards, and two, the inmates. However, six days after the experiment started, the experiment had to be stopped due to the abusive and sadistic behavior of the prison guards towards the inmates. Zanzibar explained the sudden change in behavior of the young men by saying that in a large group, one loud disregard any laws as he becomes nameless with respect to the crowd. Today, it is often cited to support the idea of the evil collection. Although groups do sway their members into doing things which they would not be doing in their normal daily life, those actions are as equally likely to be positive as it is to be negative. The same experiment, aired by BBC, was conducted by British psychologists Stephen D. Richer and S. Alexander Hassle and was met by a different scenario, that is, the guards in in their experiment acted insecurely which led them to conclude that the behavior of a roof depends on the members expectations of the social role they should play. Although psychologists may disagree over how individuals might behave in a crowd, they do agree on one fundamental point: lost in a collective, the individual outgrows himself, for good or bad. Giving Up l for We The BBC experiment refutes the widespread negative view that in a crowd, an individuals identity dissolves and the person is carried away to commit immoral, irrational deeds. Psychologists have demystified collective behavior, showing that normal, scientifically explainable psychological actions are taking place and that it is tot pathological. However, when an individual Joins a social group, he or she is somehow stripped off of his or her individual identity. Gustavo El Bon, a French physician and sociologist, maintained that individuals in a group lose their identity and thus, self-control; and guided only by emotions and instincts, they operate under a primitive force he called the racial unconscious. Fanatical Norms William McDougall, a British-born psychologist, who formulated the so-called group- mind hypothesis, said that however Joins a crowd, gives up his identity in favor of a collective soul. Another experiment in the sass consisted of participants that were randomly assigned to groups according to trivial criteria and although the assignment was arbitrary, it created a strong group sense and analogous behavior. Henry Taffeta and John C. Turner, psychologists if the University of Bristol in England and the Australian National University in Canberra, formulated in the sass the social identity theory which states that belonging to a group created a we feeling in an individual, a sense of a collective self. Summary How Group-Think Makes Killers By Snowboard

Change Management Process Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Change Management Process - Research Paper Example The change is beneficial in a number of ways, which aid businesses in realizing increased outputs, customer relations, and profits (Benjamin, & Levinson, 1993). The proposed change in this case is the adoption of IT and web based technologies in the operations of business, in a generalized capacity. Transition is a concept by which businesses have to encompass in operations. It is an obligation for proprietors to meet the customers’ expectations in the manner by which operations are conducted. The market in which businesses operate set the standards by which operators in the setting must uphold. Advances in technology, particularly in the IT department, such as the introduction of ecommerce in the business environment, have led to changes in how business and its management are conducted (Benjamin, & Levinson, 1993). With more consumers relying on IT and web technology in sales, marketing and advertising, incorporating IT into businesses is a change management process that is beneficial to the businesses. The management has the opportunity to learn the customers’ needs and wants, while the customers are provided with the opportunity to learn more about the enterprise, such as the products and services offered (Mento, Jones, & Dirndorfer, 2002). Adoption of IT in the business environment incorporates three major phases. The first step of the process involves preparation for the change. In this case, the preparation involves defining the change management strategy, making preparations revolving about the management team and developing the model to follow (Kettinger, Teng, & Guha, 1997). The second phase is change management, which incorporates defining the change management plans and taking the proper action to implement the plans. The final phase of the process is based on strengthening the change. The phase involves collection and analysis of feedback based on the plans implemented (Benjamin, & Levinson, 1993). Diagnosis and management of pitfalls and