Moral Degradation in The Awakening Kate Chopin's master novel, The Awakening, takes the modern reader to an earlier time while still provoking the questions of morality and self-sacrifice that exist in the present age. Edna Pontellier, the protagonist of the story, places herself as the individual against society from the onset of the novel. Throughout initial chapters, her sporadic characteristics and actions worthy of rebuke lead to a breakdown of her moral integrity. These behaviors permit her eventually to become a woman that not only her Creole culture, but civilization in general no longer accepts. Edna's plight thoughout the entire novel perfected her status as the individual against society. From the inception of the story, her uncommon reserve toward her children placed her in abnormal standing. Her behavior, not necessarily of neglect, rather of apathetic involvement in their lives contrasted the ideal motherly figure of the age. Her friend, Madame Ratignolle, on the other hand, showed quite a reverse position towards her children and husband. She possessed the dependent attitude which the Creole society not only encouraged, but in some aspects required. But, this approach toward domestic responsibilities was something Edna was not able to foster. Although she loved her children dearly, and in spells needed them with fervor, she was more accustomed to leaving them with the nanny or a friend rather than looking after their needs herself. As she proved, she would give everything she had for her children, but she would not give herself. In an age of expected domestic dependence, Edna's rejection towards obligation as mother and wife went against the tacit rules of the world she lived in. While in the beginning Edna was outwardly performing the duties of her life, her heart was occupied with other thoughts. Over the course of the summer, she fell in love with the local lover who followed her around, Robert Lebrun. Although he had previously established his "third wheel" status in the families at Grande Isle, this was another aspect of her life that pitted her against her surroundings. As Robert fell in love with Edna, and she with him, her independent longing was inflamed, and her passions began to overpower her self-control. Seeing that her husband, Leonce was in love with the idea of a wife for him and mother for his children rather than Edna herself, it became easier for Edna to let go of her morals. When Robert suddenly bolted for Mexico on a business excursion, Edna became despondent and unfocused. Perhaps through the severe longing for him and grief at his removal she became intensely connected to herself. When she started painting again, trying to express her inner passions, she began to feel life once more. In her visits to Madame Reisz's piano concerts she was moved to tears at the music that touched her soul. She appreciated nature all the more; she valued the glory of the ocean with improved vigor. When Leonce was away on a trip, Edna finally cut the outer strings of enslavement to her duties as a wife and mother. She gathered her belongings and moved out of the house. After throwing one last party, she proceeded to wait for Robert's return, which she had learned about in his letters to Madame Reisz. In the meantime, however, after becoming involved with Alscee Adonwin, Edna realized that her values and choices in her life were no longer acceptable in the society that she lived. Although her friend, Madame Ratignolle told her just to live the life she was called to lead, she could not do it. In her last days when she saw the family doctor, he reflected her thoughts best by saying, "The trouble is...that youth is given up to illusions. It seems to be a provision of Nature, a decoy to secure mothers for the race. And Nature takes no account of moral consequences, of arbitrary conditions which we create, and which we feel obliged to maintain at any cost." Often in life we never see the consequences of our actions. We are never given the chance to see how our lives might be had we made different decisions . But, the story of Edna Pontellier, the wife, mother, hostess and friend, showed all too clearly a woman who was really a lover, a painter, an outcast, and a soul who knew to well what might have been. Upon telling Robert goodbye after a serendipitous meeting in a secret garden, Edna returned to the sea. She swam out to the place where she once felt fear....and then she kept going, swimming her way to the only answer she knew to her inner desire for independence --death.
Edna misunderstands the situation and claims that she is the victim of Robert removing himself from her life. Robert solely wants to salvage her reputation and be a good man. He does not wish to become the man that ruined Edna’s even if it meant he could be with the woman he loves. She wholly disregards the things Roberts cares about when deciding that he is selfish for not only thinking of her. When Robert leaves her near the end of the book to protect her reputation, Edna still believed that she was the victim: “‘Good-by--because I love you.’ He did not know; He did not understand … it was too late”(125). Edna is a woman who leaves her husband, her children, and her friends all because she only cares about herself, and when she does not get what she wants, Robert, she decides that there was no more reason to live.
Edna’s first action that starts off her route to freedom from her relationship is when she fell in love with Robert. Edna had already married a man that she had not loved but he has not been treating her a...
Unfortunately Edna has no clue that she is being treated so poorly in the beginning of this story. With Mr. Pontellier being absent from home so often she finds plenty of time to spend with Robert. Through the whole summer she does not realize the feelings she is developing for Robert and only sees him as a friend. She enjoys spending all of her free time with him and gets along with him much better than her husband. It is not until she is back home and Robert leaves for Mexico that she starts to "awaken" and realize her true feelings not just for Robert but also for life in general.
Critics of Kate Chopin's The Awakening tend to read the novel as the dramatization of a woman's struggle to achieve selfhood--a struggle doomed failure either because the patriarchal conventions of her society restrict freedom, or because the ideal of selfhood that she pursue is a masculine defined one that allows for none of the physical and undeniable claims which maternity makes upon women. Ultimately. in both views, Edna Pontellier ends her life because she cannot have it both ways: given her time, place, and notion of self, she cannot be a mother and have a self. (Simons)
1. Nowadays, in terms of severe rivalry, UPS company tries to implement the strategy that will be able to guarantee its success and gradual improvement of the quality of company`s products and services. That is why, nowadays the company works in accordance with the main principles of the Total quality approach. There are several main reasons for this choice. The first obvious reason is that being the world`s greatest franchisor of retail shipping and business centers, the company needs constant development and improvement in order to remain competitive and hold leading positions. TQM (Total Quality Management) implies the usage of various means and remedies in order to improve all spheres of activity of the company, which results in significant
the outside society, with little or no contact at all until the inmates stay is
“Sometimes courage is more critical than judgment in making a decision.” This, as a belief of mine ties in with factors operating within an organization. It also deals with conviction, courage, value, truth, as well as individual initiatives. For example, Total Quality Management represents an excellent example. Total Quality Management, by definition, encompasses teamwork and thus, gives new meaning to the decision making process. Individuals must make decisions on their own, and as well, be willing to participate with other team members.
The project manager instilled trust with her team by effectively managing their work and their perception of how they contributed. By doing this, she demonstrated integrity, which is another building block of TQM. Leadership and teamwork were also displayed by this team. The team champion acted as a mentor to the project manager, supporting her in effectively managing a team of employees who did not know each other at the onset. Because of this effective cascading leadership, the diverse team was able to come together and successfully execute not only one product launch, but an entire product line. A big piece of the project champion and project manager strategy for managing the team was recognition, another element of TQM. However, the most important aspect of TQM is communication. Communication was expertly executed through consistent and timely meetings with team members. This meant all team members were on the same page at all times and clearly knew what it was they were responsible for and when it needed to be completed. It also meant that a team of supporters were readily available to provide feedback and assist when needed. This focus on good communication trickled-down to the communications with customers through the marketing plan. All current customers received the pitch prior to the physical product launch as a courtesy and included an invitation to get a sneak peek at the new products. This was done to re-open lines of communications and foster the relationship. It proved to be a good strategy as several customers acted on that offer. (Padhi,
(2012), the term total quality management (TQM) refers to a quest for quality in an organization. There are three key philosophies in this approach. One is a never-ending push to improve, which is referred to as continuous improvement, the second is the involvement of everyone in the organization and the third is a goal of customer satisfaction, which means meeting or exceeding customer expectations. TQM expands the traditional view of quality looking only at the quality of the final product or services. But to looking at the quality of every aspect of the process that produces the product or service. TQM systems are intended to prevent poor quality from
T.Q.M (Total quality management) is the attitude, organization and culture of a company who aims to offer the best service and products to the consumer. The main of total quality management is quality. There are many acronyms of T.Q.M, these include:
The father of Total Quality Management (TQM) is W. Edwards Deming and the key elements of TQM are:
The term was coined in the ‘50s and became popular in the ‘80s. It is viewed by some as a drastic management style. A robust TQM plan depends on external and internal team building. The leadership level and the organizational culture have to blend well together. If they don’t, the process should be implemented only when precise assessment and positive circumstances exist. TQM is the techniques a company uses to raise the service quality and production efficiency. It involves solid teamwork and is implemented horizontally within a business. Typically all internal employees and departments are included. The same applies for externals such as suppliers and current and potential customers. The fundamental goal
Armand Vallin Feigenbaum was born on April 6, 1922 and lived to November 13, 2014. He was an American quality control expert and businessman known for the concept of Total Quality Control which later became Total Quality Management (TQM). He obtained a bachelor’s degree from Union College and his master’s degree from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Sloan School of Management. He progressed to a PHD in Economics from MIT. In 1958, he became the Director of Manufacturing Operations at General Electric for a period of ten years. During that period, he was chair of a special committee under the American Society for Quality that laid the foundation for raising the level of importance of quality control in professional
The first question in the assessment dealt with emotions, and I answered mostly false; while I do think that emotions can turn efficient work into excellent work, or a lack of passion or interest in work can lead to unacceptable performance, I do not think that feelings should be the main guide. You mentioned process in your podcast, and expanded on the Daft definition. Processes are repeated over and over, and managers have to assure that alignment results in the targeted goals being the focus. I am thinking of myself, as much as others, when answering this question; I don’t feel like doing what I need to do fairly often. Once I get started, I normally do pretty well; because I know that it is not best to just go with what I feel. I need self-control to turn off the Netflix, and pick up my class notes. I may desire to binge watch another two or three shows, but I know this is not wise or best. Daft quotes Douglas S. Sherwin about control being actions that adjust what we do to predetermined goals or standards. I think we all need readjusting and refocusing, even in quick adjustments, most days. You mentioned Total Quality Management as an organizational wide,
TQM is a system of continuous improvement of work processes to enhance the organization’s ability to deliver high-quality products or services in a cost-effective manner [2]. The focus of TQM is to improve customer satisfaction and reduce waste [3]. Customers include ...