Gabriel urbain faure And His requiem mass Essay Example for Free

Gabriel urbain faure And His requiem mass Essay â€Å"Gabriel Faure is regarded as the master of the French art song, or melodie. His works ranged from Classical, when in his early years he emulated the style of Haydn and Mendelssohn, to Romantic, and finally to an ascetic 20th century aesthetic† (â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). Gabriel Urbain Faure was born in 1845 in a town called Pamiers. It has been said that even at an early age, his potentials as a musician were already evident and noticeable. It was not given much attention by his parents, because at that time, they were in the belief that sending Faure to school to receive formal learning was of more importance. In fact, it was Faure’s teacher that noted his talents in music. Consequently, this teacher suggested to Faure’s parents that their child be sent to Paris to study in Niedermeyer, a religious music school. From the age of nine, Faure studied music at the Ecole Niedermeyer, the ‘Ecole de musique religieuse et classique’, where Saint-Saens was a member of staff. Saint-Saens had been lifelong friends with Faure and later said that he owed everything to him, introducing him not only to traditional music and composers such as Mozart and Bach but also to controversial composers such as Wagner whom he admired, but was one of few composers of his generation not to come under his influence and also Lizst. Saint-Saens encouraged and helped him to get his music published. From then on, he was able to meet and encounter different individuals who played major roles in the life of Faure. He served as an organist in one of the churches in Rennes. Then, in 1870, â€Å"the Franco-Prussian War broke out and Faure was enlisted into the First Regiment of the Imperial Light Infantry as a messenger† (Martin, â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). After the war, Faure was once again an organist, but in another church this time. When Saint-Saens retired in 1877 Faure took over his post as choirmaster. Faure would remain at the Madeleine for almost 20 years. He also taught composition at the Paris Conservatoire, becoming director in 1905, and his pupils included Maurice Ravel and Nadia Boulanger. Gabriel Faure’s Music A perusal of different accounts concerning the life and music of Gabriel Faure would show that he always strived to be different. For instance, in the field of music, regardless of how popular a type of music was, Faure will come in and try to change it, in order for the same to reflect his views and emotions; he wanted to be unique and different from the usual. The subtlety of Faure’s music, and his concentration on the small-scale, led many to criticise him for lacking depth, a judgement based on the mistaken premise that the bigger and bolder a composer’s music the more worthwhile it must be (Bawden J. â€Å"Gabriel Faure). As to what Faure found himself interested in in the field of music, it has been said that The majority of Faures piano music up to 1871 had mainly been romantic songs. Poems by Hugo, Gautier, and Baudelaire, had been recommended to him by his teachers. His early songs hint at his developing originality but were written in the strict classical style he had learned in school. It was characteristic of Faure, however, to constantly renew himself in his compositions. He always wanted to try something new, something different that no one else had done; and he never followed the fads of his day, prefering instead to follow his heart. Thus his songs show a continuous personal and unique evolution (Martin, â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). It is this courage of his to change things, however, that made him face certain setbacks in his career when he joined the Madeleine as its choirmaster. There are individuals in his field who were not in favor of the changes that Gabriel Faure was introducing into the system. As a choirmaster, Faure would always find himself in disagreement with members of the clergy. â€Å"The clergy were only concerned with keeping the congregation happy; and so their musical preferences were for popular, operatic-styled church music that was all the rage, rather than for enlightening religious music† (Martin, â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). Hence, it was quite difficult for Faure to introduce the changes that he wanted. As will be discussed further, Gabriel Faure’s most popular work which depicts his love for uniqueness is his Requiem Mass, which totally differs from the traditional Requiem. In fact, In Armand Vivets book on French sacred music he wrote of the first performance, Immediately the ceremony was over. The vicar called Faure into the sacristy and questioned him as follows: What was that mass for the dead youve just conducted? It was a requiem of my own composition. Monsieur Faure, we dont need all these novelties; the Madeleines repertoire is quite rich enough, just content yourself with that. Family and Marriage Gabriel Faure was once engaged to Marianne Viadot. In 1877, Faure asked for Marianne’s hand in marriage. It took quite a while, but eventually, the lady gave a positive response to the proposal posted by the bachelor. The problem was Marianne kept on postponing the date of their wedding, and â€Å"this continued delay was more than Faure could handle and he complained vehemently. Marianne used his outburst of frustration as an excuse to break off their engagement for good† (Martin, â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). True, the failed engagement to Marianne Viardot made Gabriel Faure sad and depressed, but later on, he would find himself recovering from this hurdle and agreeing to his friend, Marguerite Baugnies’ suggestion of being in an arranged marriage. Mme. Baugnies found three possible young ladies who belonged to the artistic world: the daughters of Octave Feuillet and George Feydeau who were both writers; and the daughter of Emmanuel Fremiet, a well-known sculptor of the day. Unable to make up his mind, Faure hastily wrote the names down on slips of paper, placed them in a hat, and randomly picked Marie Fremiet, daughter of the sculptor. After a brief engagement, the wedding took place on March 27th, 1883 in Paris. (Martin, â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). In 1883 Faure married Marie Fremiet, with whom he had two sons. In order to support his family Faure spent most of his time in organising daily services at the Eglise de la Madeleine and teaching piano and harmony lessons. He only had time to compose during the summers. He earned almost no money from his compositions because his publisher bought them, copyright and all, for 50 francs each. During this period Gabriel Faure wrote several large scale works, in addition to many piano pieces and songs, but he destroyed many of them after a few performances, only retaining a few movements in order to re-use motives(â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). It could be his unique way of choosing his bride that led to an unhappy marriage. Later on, he would find out that he didn’t really share much in common with his wife. They talked less and grew apart despite being gifted with two children. In an account by Martin, she said that the couple would write each other letters to communicate even both of them were in one and the same city. The Latter Part of Faure’s Life â€Å"The last two decades of Gabriel Faures life were marked by his steady rise to fame, his increasing health problems, and the new love in his life. After serving as choirmaster for nineteen years, he became organist at the Madeleine in 1896. In the same year he also became Professor of Composition at the Paris Conservatoire† (Martin, â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). After his stint as organist, he joined the Paris Conservatoire as its director. It could be said that his success would have continued further, if not for the health problems that Faure had been experiencing. In 1902, Faure was having problems with is hearing. Martin would say that this problem was hereditary as Faure’s brother also had the same problem. His hearing problem, however, was not an obstacle to his finding another chance to love again. The output of Faure had greatly reduced because of his responsibilities at the conservatoire combined with his loss of hearing . during the World War I, he remained in France and retired from the Conservatoire at the age of 75. in the same year he received the Grand-Croix of the Legion d’Honneur, an honor rare for a musician. â€Å"In 1900 at the premiere of Promethee, Faure met and fell in love with Marguerite Hasselmans. She was born in 1876 and even though Faure was the same age as her father, nevertheless, they stayed together until the end of his life in 1924† (Martin, â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). Gabriel Faure died in Paris from pneumonia in 1924. He was given a state funeral at the Eglise de la Madeleine and is buried in the Cimetiere de Passy in Paris (â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). Legacy as a Composer and Music Teacher Aside from his numerous musical masterpieces described as elegant, introspective and intimate, Faure made an enormous mark on his younger contemporaries as an influential teacher and mentor. One of his students, Nadia Boulanger, herself known arguably as the greatest classical music teacher of all-time, is an achievement enough. Among other distinguished composition students are Ravel, Koechlin and Enescu (â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). â€Å"Although he wrote several works involving a full orchestra, his particular talent lay within the more intimate musical forms – songs, piano music and chamber music. His somewhat austere style and highly individual, impressionistic harmonic language contrasts markedly with the music of the Austro-German tradition which dominated European music from the time of Beethoven until well into the twentieth century†(Bawden, â€Å"Requiem†). â€Å"Gabriel Faure served as inspiration for crafting flexibility into their works. As performers, teachers, talented administrators, and church musicians they understood the fine art of composing pearls with limited forces which could then be jeweled for the concert hall† (McCauley M. , â€Å"Requiem†). The Requiem Mass of Faure â€Å"The Requiem flourished during the Renaissance period, despite during the 14th century when the Roman church limited the amount of times the Requiem was performed and of what chants it consisted† (Green, â€Å"The Requiem Mass†). As earlier pointed out, Faure’s love for trying out new things is best mirrored in his Requiem Mass. His Requiem Mass is different from the traditional Requiem being played in the chapels and churches and that time. â€Å"By the time of the first performance, on January 16 1888, there were five movements: an Introit and Kyrie, the Sanctus, Pie Jesu, Agnus Dei, and In Paradisum. To perform the work, Faure called for a mixed choir with divided tenors and basses, a soprano soloist, an orchestra of low strings (violas, cellos, and double basses), harp, timpani, and organ, with a violin solo in the Sanctus. He added an Offertoire in 1889, and added a setting of the Libera Me that he had written for baritone and organ some twelve years earlier. He added horns, trumpets, and trombones to the orchestra, and a baritone soloist, and this version was first performed at the Madeleine in January of 1893† (â€Å"Chorale Music Notes†). Compared to the Missa pro defunctis, Faure changed portions of the text in his setting of the Requiem Mass. In the Libera me and Offertory for example, he left out certain words or repeated others so that the movement became more musically balanced and the words more clearly heard. The Libera me and In Paradisum actually dont belong to the Missa pro defunctis but to the Office for the Dead. Libera me is the prayer for absolution which follows the Requiem Mass; and the In Paradisum is spoken outside the church at the moment of burial. The use of this last text in particular shows how much Faure wanted to break from tradition (Martin, â€Å"Gabriel Faure†). The most important feature of the Requiem mass is the reflection of the emotions and views of Faure towards the idea of death. Faure was recorded to have said My Requiem has been said to express no fear of death; it has been called a lullaby of death. But that is how I feel about death; a happy deliverance, a reaching for a happy deliverance, rather than a mournful passing Perhaps I have sought to depart from what is conventional because for so long I was organist at services of interment. Im fed up with that. I wanted to do something different (â€Å"Requiem-Gabriel Faure†). This kind of view made his Requiem lack the vibe of sadness and terror. In fact, some writers would say that there is a certain tone of sweetness in Faure’s Requiem, something that one cannot normally expect from any form of music associated with death. As confirmed by Bawden, †the prevailing mood is one of peacefulness and serenity, and the work has often been described, quite justly, as a Requiem without the Last Judgement† (â€Å"Requiem†). Faure originally designed this work to be functional for church services with appropriately conservative accompaniment: the organ supplemented by harp, tympani and strings generally omitting violins except in the Sanctus. The technique of backing off the violins for a more somber effect may have been an idea borrowed from Brahms (McCauley, â€Å"Requiem†). Besides numerous motets and a mass written for liturgical use, theres no question that Gabriel Faures best known choral work is the Messe de Requiem. Written between 1887 and 1890, the Requiem was written not for the death of his father, but as another experiment in Faures endless quest to write music that was new and different (â€Å"Requiem†). Despite the discouraging start, Faures Requiem did become popular during his lifetime and was played throughout Europe. Today it is still very popular and has been recorded more than any of his other works. REFERENCE Martin, S. â€Å" Gabriel Faure- A Biography†. http://w3. rz-berlin. mpg. de/cmp/faure. html Green, A. â€Å"The Requiem Mass† http://classicalmusic. about. com/od/classicalmusic101/a/requiemmass. htm â€Å"Online Guide to Requiem† http://requiemonline. tripod. com/ â€Å"Faure, Gabriel- Biography†. http://www. naxos. com/composerinfo/Gabriel_Faure/26049. htm â€Å"Requiem†. http://www. classiccat. net/faure_g/biography. htm â€Å"Gabriel Faure†. http://www. basicfamouspeople. com/index. php? aid=4340 Asiado, T. (2008). â€Å"Gabriel Faure Brief Biography†. http://great-teachers. suite101. com/article. cfm/gabriel_faure_brief_biography â€Å"Masses of Requiem†. http://www. newadvent. org/cathen/12776d. htm â€Å"Requiem†. http://requiemonline. tripod. com/history/masshistory. htm â€Å"Chorale Music Notes†. http://members. macconnect. com/users/j/jimbob/classical/Faure_Requiem. html â€Å"Gabriel Faure- Requiem†. http://www. beijingifc. org/index. php? option=com_contenttask=viewid=28Itemid=36 â€Å"Requiem†. http://www. orbilat. com/Encyclopaedia/R/Requiem. html Bawden, J. (2006). â€Å"Gabriel Faure- Requiem†. http://www. choirs. org. uk/prognotes/faure%20requiem. htm McCauley, M. â€Å"Requiem†. http://www. halway. com/mchorale/faure/program. html

Intervention to Reduce Progression of Diabetes

Intervention to Reduce Progression of Diabetes Developing an Intervention to Reduce Progression and the Development of Complications from Diabetes Mellitus in Adults in Glasgow. Introduction Type 2 diabetes is a serious medical condition that is increasingly prevalent in developed countries (International Diabetes Federation, 2013) and the most common variants of the condition are Types I and II. Type I patients have a deficiency in their pancreatic beta cells which leaves them unable to produce insulin. Thus in these individuals, some control over the condition can be achieved using insulin therapy (Schilling, 2007). Type II diabetics, have cells that have become resistant to the effects of insulin resulting in a delayed reduction in blood glucose (Skrha et al., 2010). There are additional types of diabetes; gestational, and a variety of Type III diabetes, however, the overwhelming majority of cases are of Type II with a significant minority of type I cases (Hardt et al., 2008). Complications of Diabetes Regardless of the underlying aetiology, the long-term complications of diabetes are similar. Excess blood glucose is thought to drive increases in oxidative stress both directly and via the derangement of mitochondrial energy pathways (Cade, 2008). Long term macrovascular damage will inevitably increase the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), and ischaemic heart disease, with diabetics estimated as having a 3 and 5-fold increased risk of CHD mortality for men and women respectively (Loveman et al., 2008). Cerebrovascular disease is also a consequence of the chronic macrovascular damage with similar increases in stroke risk (Naci et al., 2015) Since each organ has its own microvascular supply, chronic hyperglycaemia also results in diffuse and widespread damage to a variety of body organs. As a result, diabetic complications include visual disability due to diabetic retinopathy; the leading cause of blindness in working age adults in the UK (Fowler, 2008; Kempen et al., 2004). In addition, patients suffer end stage renal disease from diabetic nephropathy (Adler et al., 2003), diffuse impairments of autonomic and somatic neural function, including pain perception, due to diabetic neuropathy (Stirban, 2014; Voulgari et al., 2013). Furthermore, the combination of microvascular damage, and reduced pain sensation, usually in the lower limb, results in many patients developing ulceration and necrosis of the inferior surface of the foot, the most common cause of non-traumatic amputations in the UK (Elraiyah et al., 2016). Costs of Diabetes In addition to the significant cost to the individual suffering with diabetes in terms of reduced personal health and quality of life, there are significant financial costs in treating the condition. In 2010-11, the total cost of diabetes to the UK was estimated at  £23.7bn (Hex et al., 2012). This was comprised of  £9.8bn in direct costs related to treating the disease, and  £13.9bn in indirect cost (e.g. lost productivity through absenteeism, early retirement or unemployment, (Hex et al., 2012)). More recently, the direct costs were estimated at  £13.7bn in 2012 (Kanavos et al., 2012). Within these direct costs, only around a quarter is directly spent on treating diabetes its self, and the remaining three quarters is spent on treating the complications following from the disease, (e.g. CHD, retinopathy, liver failure, diabetic foot, neuropathy (Kanavos et al., 2012)). Risk Factors for Diabetes There are a variety of factors that have been identified that places individuals at risk of developing type II diabetes, these include; having a family history of diabetes, obesity assessed using body-mass index, hypertension, visceral adiposity, adverse blood lipids, smoking, and impaired fasting glucose control (Lyssenko et al., 2008). Notably, several of these risk factors, including blood lipids, BMI, hypertension and visceral adiposity, are shared risk factors for CHD, which may in part explain the elevated risk of CHD in diabetics (Haffner et al., 1998). Indeed the clustering of these risk factors has been shown to be predictive of both CHD and diabetes (Haffner et al., 1998) and are collectively referred to as the metabolic syndrome. Moreover, these risk factors, appear to primarily be related to obesity in general, and excessive visceral adiposity in particular (Wozniak et al., 2009). Early work by West and colleagues (1978) demonstrated a strong positive association between rates of obesity and rates of diabetes with a variety of populations. Since then, the epidemiological link between excess body fat and risk of developing type II diabetes in particular has been repeatedly supported. For example, in the Nurses Health Study (Chan et al., 1994) females who had a BMI of greater than 35 kg.m-2 had a risk of diabetes 95 fold higher than those with a BMI of less than 21 kg.m-2 . Epidemiology of Diabetes The incidence and prevalence of diabetes have increased dramatically in the last two decades. Currently, the World Health Organisation estimates that diabetes effects around 9% of the adult global population (International Diabetes Federation, 2013) with variations in prevalence ranging from 26.4% in Kiribati to 1.54% of the population in Manin (International Diabetes Federation, 2013). Overall the UK ranks relatively favourably; in the same data from 2014, the UK had a prevalence of 3.9% (172nd out of 193 countries). Despite this relatively low ranking, the UK, in line with many developed countries, has experienced a rapid growth in the proportion of the population suffering with diabetes. Between 2007 and 2015 the number of patients diagnosed with diabetes increased by 75% from two to three and a half million cases (Diabetes UK, 2015). There are also an estimated half a million undiagnosed individuals at any one time. Indeed, the absence of overt symptoms in the early stages of the disease means that it is not uncommon for patients to have had the disease for several years prior to diagnosis, and confounds attempts to accurately calculate prevalence rates. Scotland has experienced similar increases, with the number of individuals diagnosed with diabetes increasing markedly over the last decade. The Scottish Diabetes survey (2014) demonstrated that the number of individuals with diabetes doubled from approximately 100,000 to 200,000 individuals between 2002 and 2007 despite a stable population of 5 million. Currently estimates for Scotland indicate that there are 276,500 diabetics in Scotland resulting in an overall prevalence that is a third higher than the UK average at 5.2% (NHS Scotland, 2014). Diabetes and Deprivation While the reasons that link indices of deprivation to diabetes are likely multifactorial, they undoubtedly exist. Individuals living in the most deprived areas of the UK are 2.5 times more likely to suffer from diabetes than those in the least deprived areas (Diabetes UK, 2006). Moreover the complications arising from diabetes such as CHD and stroke are more than three times higher in the lowest socio-economic groups and those with lowest educational achievement are twice as likely to have heart disease, retinopathy and poor diabetic control (Diabetes UK, 2006; International Diabetes Federation, 2006). The cause of the increased risk is not clear, however many of the risk factors such as obesity, smoking and physical inactivity, are also higher in those areas with the greatest degree of deprivation (Diabetes UK, 2006; International Diabetes Federation, 2006). From the data outlined above, the development of diabetes is a serious chronic medical condition that can result in early morbidity and mortality and is associated with significant personal and healthcare costs. Despite many of the risk factors for its development being modifiable, it remains a significant and increasing health risk that has a disproportional focus on the areas of greatest deprivation. Given that there is strong evidence that Glasgow has higher rates of both deprivation and type 2 diabetes than the rest of the UK, the aims of this paper are to discuss methods of describing the degree of the problem in Glasgow, as well as identifying, implementing and evaluating initiatives designed to reduce the burden of Type 2 diabetes within that area. Epidemiological Investigation of Diabetes in Glasgow The Centre for Disease Control defines public health research as consisting of four phases, public health tracking, public health research, health intervention programmes, and impact and evaluation (CDC, 2015). Thus before designing and implementing a diabetes focused health initiative, it is necessary to first establish that there is a public health need within Glasgow. This can be undertaken using primary or secondary data sources. Although secondary data sources are repositories of data that have been collected for some purpose other than the investigators main research question, Bailey et al. (2012) suggest that secondary sources also have several advantages. Typically, they are large data sets, and their use is highly cost efficient, as the data collection has already taken place. In terms of this investigation into Diabetes prevalence in Glasgow, there are a number of possible secondary data sources. The most directly relevant data is from the Scottish Diabetes Survey, the most recent data for which covers 2014 (NHS Scotland, 2014). In the most recent report, there is evidence that diabetes is a specific public health concern in Glasgow. For example, while it is not surprising is that Glasgow has the highest number of diabetics, around 22% of Scotlands diabetic population, since it is also the most densely populated region. However, this also translates to the region having the highest age adjusted prevalen ce of diabetes within Scotland at 5.8%. Furthermore the Greater Glasgow and Clyde (GGC) NHS board is criticised as falling behind other NHS health boards within Scotland, in its system of managing and screening its diabetic population in order to limit the progression of the disease. In addition, the Scottish Public Health Observatory (SPHO) provide a number of secondary data sources which may be valuable in triangulating conclusions and include; mortality rates, primary care information from GP practices, the Quality Outcomes Framework (QOF) detailing the performance of GP practices in dealing with key health issues, the Scottish Diet and Nutrition Survey, and the Health Education population survey (Scottish Public Health Observatory, 2015). In addition, both English and Scottish governments produce databases of indices of multiple deprivation (IMD), which can be useful when attempting to standardise the degree of a public health issue by deprivation level. This secondary data should be supported with primary evidence of the population of interest. While there are a number of research designs that could be used to collect primary data on Glasgow residents with diabetes, in this instance a cross-sectional observational design would be most useful. This method has several advantages, it is cost effective, requires only a single group, and each participant is only required to be assessed at a single time-point. This means that it becomes feasible to assess relatively large numbers of people (Bailey Handu, 2012). The limitations of this method are that it represents a single point in time and as a result, cannot be used to determine the sequence of events for a given set of exposures and outcomes. Therefore, it is not possible to infer causality from cross-sectional data. This type of research is most useful for determining prevalence rates for a specific condition (Bailey Handu, 2012).. An ecological study design might also be used, however, in this case, there are wide variations in income levels and deprivation levels within specific postcodes. Thus the possibility for the data to be affected by unknown confounding variables is significant. Similarly a case control study design has some additional control regarding possible confounders, but is again limited in being retrospective in nature and is predominantly used for rare diseases, which type 2 diabetes is not (Greenfield, 2002). Experimental designs such as prospective cohort studies or randomised control trials are the most internally valid designs to attribute causation of a condition to a specific exposure. However, they would not be appropriate in this instance, as they time consuming, expensive, and typically include far fewer individuals. Thus in order to use this type of study, the cost would be greater than the cost of any proposed intervention. In addition, while such designs are internally valid, they often lack ecological validity. That is, while the exposure and outcome can be linked in the study, at the population level, individuals may experience exposure to several predicating factors, and several protective factors. Thus, it is not always straightforward to transfer the findings from a highly controlled study to individuals (Peat et al., 2008). In order to undertake the cross-sectional survey, would require defining a series of areas (e.g. roads or school catchment areas) within specific post-codes to act as the sample frame. The survey data would be collected on these areas. The main problem with collecting this kind of data is a low response rate (Levin, 2006), and the possibility that individuals may responder or not due to the influence of some other factor introducing some systematic bias into the data. The main protection from this is to maximise the response rates. This is best done using face-to-face interviews with individuals in the sample frame (Levin, 2006). Diabetes Interventions The evidence for the type of behaviours that are useful in limiting the adverse complications of diabetes, have been the subject of several large scale epidemiological studies. In the UK the UK Prospective Diabetes Study (UK Prospective Diabetes Study, 1998) and its 10 year follow up (Holman et al., 2008) evaluated the effect of managing type II diabetes through diet alone, versus aggressive management aimed at restricting blood sugar concentrations. The data from the study indicated that while both the aggressive intervention only lowered blood sugar for one year, this translated into significantly lower rates of complications at the 10-year follow up. In the US, the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT, 1993) and its 10 year follow up (the Epidemiology of Diabetes Interventions and Complications EDIC (Nathan et al., 2005)) also demonstrated that limiting increases in blood sugar, by maintaining concentrations within strict individualised limits, reduced the incidence of c omplications at the 10 year follow up by 57%. Similar reductions in adverse outcomes have also been found when diabetics have measures of blood lipids, blood pressure, nephropathy, retinopathy and diabetic foot complications assessed at regular intervals. It is also noteworthy that the Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS region regularly performed in the lowest quartile of Scottish NHS authorities for implementing each of these evaluations (Scottish Diabetes Survey 2014). In long-term conditions such as Type 2 diabetes, the most appropriate strategies to control and manage the condition is for patients, to recognise themselves as stakeholders in their own treatment and to take ownership of the critical aspects of their care such as pharmacological treatment, dietary modifications and physical activity recommendations (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2015). There have been several interventions that have aimed to use patient education to allow for a greater degree of self-management with a resulting closer control of risk factors for diabetic complications. Most recently Minet et al. (2010) evaluated the efficacy of 47 RCT studies aimed at improving diabetic patient education, and found that there was a significant reduction in the degree of hyperglycaemia experienced by the patients at the 6 and 12 month follow up time points. Similar meta analyses have supported the role of education in reducing the incidence of nephropathy and dia betic foot (Elraiyah et al., 2016; Loveman et al., 2008). Given that the UKPDS (1998) demonstrated that even short term reductions in blood glucose can reduce the numbers of patients who progress to sever complications, and given that the majority of the financial burden in treating type 2 diabetes is related to complications rather than the disease its-self. It seems clear that patient education could significantly improve the prognosis of diabetics as well as reduce the costs of future treatment. Implementing an Intervention in Glasgow Having identified a suitable educational intervention, the next stage is to ensure its faithful and appropriate replication within patients with Diabetes in Glasgow. A limitation of much of the available research is that interventions are predominantly applied in academic settings, and the effectiveness of interventions in community and primary care settings are frequently lower than anticipated from the scientific literature. This is a continuing challenge for implementing evidence-based strategies for public health issues. Kilbourne et al. (2007) recommend the REP framework, which although originally devised for faithful implementations of HIV educational programmes has been evaluated and found to help improve the effectiveness of other public health interventions. In order to use the REP framework for educational programmes aimed at Diabetics in Glasgow, the four stages of the REP framework would be developed. Pre-condition requires the identification of a suitable educational intervention. In this phase it is important that the chosen intervention is both feasible and appropriate for the setting in which it will be used. Pre-implementation requires that all staff involved in the intervention undergo training not only in the interventional educational curriculum, but also in the underpinning theories that shaped the original intervention. Implementation requires the educational programme is rolled out to diabetics within Glasgow, and that feedback is sought from stakeholders including patients undergoing the education. In this way it is possible to modify the intervention to better fit the situation, while still remaining faithful to the initial conceptual design. Finally, maintenance and evaluation requires further feedback regarding the effe ctiveness of the intervention, as well as ongoing support for partners who are delivering or helping ensure the continuation of the intervention. Monitoring an Evaluation For the proposed educational intervention, the evaluation would use the RE-AIM framework. This is the most widely adopted model for evaluation of public health interventions originally proposed by Glasgow and Colleagues (1999). This framework proposes the evaluation of five key elements of the intervention. Reach assess the number of individuals from the target population who received the interventions. Efficacy evaluates the degree to which the education intervention improved patients ability to manage their condition (e.g. better control of blood glucose, maintained or lowered blood pressure). Adoption would focus on the number of patients receiving the educational intervention whose behaviour was altered as a result. Implementation attempts to assess the degree to which the intervention was faithful to the evidence base upon which it was designed or was there pragmatic or other issues that meant the interventions was poorly delivered, or delivered in a manner not originally envisa ged. Maintenance attempts to quantify the degree to which the intervention becomes self-sustaining. This can be at an institutional level, i.e. does the health authority feel the programme is sufficiently successful to continue its development. However, it can also be at the individual level, were patients value the intervention and it becomes part of the persons habitual processes. Conclusion The aim of this paper was to investigate an intervention aimed at reducing the complications of type 2 diabetes in individuals diagnosed with the condition, living in Glasgow. It has established that in order to implement any such strategy, it is necessary to evaluate the degree of the problem using secondary and if required primary sources of data. In addition, any intervention should be evidence based, and attempt to replicate those interventions that have been demonstrated to be successful. This should be attempted in a strategic and structured manner in order to ensure high fidelity conversion from research evidence to intervention. The intervention its-self needs robust evaluation to determine if it was effective, and if not was it because of a failure of the underpinning theories or a failure in delivery. Unless they are well managed, individuals with Type 2 diabetes are at a significant risk of serious and life threatening complications. Educational interventions may be one wa y to provide effective strategies to enable better outcomes and reduced personal and financial costs. References ADLER, A.I., et al., 2003. Development and progression of nephropathy in type 2 diabetes: the United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS 64). Kidney International. 63(1), pp. 225-232. BAILEY, S. and HANDU, D., 2012. Introduction to epidemiologic research methods in public health practice. Jones Bartlett Publishers. CADE, W.T., 2008. Diabetes-related microvascular and macrovascular diseases in the physical therapy setting. Physical Therapy. 88(11), pp. 1322-1335. CDC. 2015. Public Health Cycle [Online]. [Viewed 4th April 2016]. Available From: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/hearingloss/publichealth.html. CHAN, J. M., RIMM, E. B. COLDITZ, G. A. 1994. Weight gain as a risk factor for clinical diabetes mellitus in women. Diabetes Care, 17, 961-9. DIABETES CONTROL AND COMLICATION TRIAL RESERCH GROUP, 1993. The effect of intensive treatment of diabetes on the development and progression of long-term complications in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. N Engl j Med. 329(14), pp. 977-986. DIABETES UK 2006. Diabetes and the disadvantaged: reducing health inequalities in the UK World Diabetes Day 14 November 2006. A report by the All Parliamentary Group for Diabetes and Diabetes UK. https://www.diabetes.org.uk/Documents/Reports/Diabetes_disadvantaged_Nov2006.pdf. DIABETES UK. 2015. Diabetes Facts and Stats November 2015 [Online]. [Viewed 20th March 2016]. Available From: https://www.diabetes.org.uk/Documents/Position statements/Diabetes UK Facts and Stats_Dec 2015.pdf. ELRAIYAH, T., et al., 2016. A systematic review and meta-analysis of adjunctive therapies in diabetic foot ulcers. Journal of Vascular Surgery. 63(2), pp. 46S-58S. e2. FOWLER, M.J., 2008. Microvascular and macrovascular complications of diabetes. Clinical Diabetes. 26(2), pp. 77-82. GLASGOW, R.E., VOGT, T.M. and BOLES, S.M., 1999. Evaluating the public health impact of health promotion interventions: the RE-AIM framework. American Journal of Public Health. 89(9), pp. 1322-1327. GREENFIELD, T. 2002. Research Methods for Postgraduates, London, Arnold. HAFFNER, S.M., et al., 1998. Mortality from coronary heart disease in subjects with type 2 diabetes and in nondiabetic subjects with and without prior myocardial infarction. New England Journal of Medicine. 339(4), pp. 229-234. HANLON, P., et al., 2005. Why is mortality higher in Scotland than in England and Wales? Decreasing influence of socioeconomic deprivation between 1981 and 2001 supports the existence of a Scottish Effect. Journal of Public Health (Oxford, England). 27(2), pp. 199-204. HARDT, P.D., BRENDEL, M.D., KLOER, H.U. and BRETZEL, R.G., 2008. Is pancreatic diabetes (type 3c diabetes) underdiagnosed and misdiagnosed?. Diabetes Care. 31 Suppl 2 pp. S165-9. HEX, N., et al., 2012. Estimating the current and future costs of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes in the UK, including direct health costs and indirect societal and productivity costs. Diabetic Medicine. 29(7), pp. 855-862. HOLMAN, R.R., et al., 2008. 10-year follow-up of intensive glucose control in type 2 diabetes. New England Journal of Medicine. 359(15), pp. 1577-1589. International Diabetes Federation 2006. Diabetes, deprivation and outcomes in a wealthy world. Diabetes Voice, 51, 37-40. INTERNATIONAL DIABETES FEDERATION. 2013. IDF Diabetes Atlas [Online]. [Viewed 20th March 2016]. Available From:https://www.idf.org/sites/default/files/EN_6E_Atlas_Full_0.pdf: IDF. KANAVOS, P., VAN DEN AARDWEG, S. and SCHURER, W., 2012. Diabetes expenditure, burden of disease and management in 5 EU countries. LSE Health and Social Care. KEMPEN, J.H., et al., 2004. The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy among adults in the United States. Archives of Ophthalmology (Chicago, Ill.: 1960). 122(4), pp. 552-563. KILBOURNE, A.M., et al., 2007. Implementing evidence-based interventions in health care: application of the replicating effective programs framework. Implementation Science. 2(1), pp. 1-10. LOVEMAN, E., FRAMPTON, G.K. and CLEGG, A., 2008. The clinical effectiveness of diabetes education models for Type 2 diabetes: a systematic review. Health Technology Assessment. 12(9), pp. 1-136. LYSSENKO, V., et al., 2008. Clinical risk factors, DNA variants, and the development of type 2 diabetes. New England Journal of Medicine. 359(21), pp. 2220-2232. MINET, L., et al., 2010. Mediating the effect of self-care management intervention in type 2 diabetes: a meta-analysis of 47 randomised controlled trials. Patient Education and Counseling. 80(1), pp. 29-41. NACI, H., et al., 2015. Rethinking the appraisal and approval of drugs for type 2 diabetes. BMJ Open. 351(h5260),. NATHAN, D.M., et al., 2005. Diabetes Control and Complications Trial/Epidemiology of Diabetes Interventions and Complications (DCCT/EDIC) Study Research Group: Intensive diabetes treatment and cardiovascular disease in patients with type 1 diabetes. N Engl J Med. 353 pp. 2643-2653. NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH AND CARE EXCELLENCE, N. 2015. Type 2 diabetes in adults: management: NICE guidelines [NG28] [Online]. [Viewed 20th March 2016]. Available From:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng28: NIHCE. NHS SCOTLAND 2014. Scottish Diabetes Survey 2014. Scottish Diabetes Survery Monitoring Group. PEAT, J., BARTON, B. ELLIOT, E. 2008. Statistics Workbook for Evidence-Based Health Care, Wiley-Blackwell. SCHILLING, J. A. 2007. Diabetes Mellitus: A guide to patient care, Ambler, USA, Lippincott. SCOTTISH PUBLIC HEALTH OBSERVATORY. 2015. Overview of Key data sources [Online]. [Viewed 4th April 2016]. Available From: http://www.scotpho.org.uk/publications/overview-of-key-data-sources/introduction. SKRHA, J., CERIELLO, A. GITT, A. K. 2010. Chapter 6 Microvascular and Macrovascular Complications. In: HALAN, P. (ed.) DIAMAP 1 : Roadmap for Diabetes Research in Europe. http://www.diamap.eu: European Union. STIRBAN, A., 2014. Microvascular dysfunction in the context of diabetic neuropathy. Current Diabetes Reports. 14(11), pp. 1-9. UK PROSPECTIVE DIABETES STUDY (UKPDS) GROUP, 1998. Intensive blood-glucose control with sulphonylureas or insulin compared with conventional treatment and risk of complications in patients with type 2 diabetes (UKPDS 33). The Lancet. 352(9131), pp. 837-853. VOULGARI, C., PAGONI, S., VINIK, A. and POIRIER, P., 2013. Exercise improves cardiac autonomic function in obesity and diabetes. Metabolism. 62(5), pp. 609-621. WEST, K.M., 1978. Epidemiology of diabetes and its vascular lesions. Elsevier. WOZNIAK, S.E., GEE, L.L., WACHTEL, M.S. and FREZZA, E.E., 2009. Adipose tissue: the new endocrine organ? A review article. Digestive Diseases and Sciences. 54(9), pp. 1847-1856.

Triple Bottom Line Reporting on Corporate Sustainability

Triple Bottom Line Reporting on Corporate Sustainability In this paper we explore the concept of triple bottom line reporting and its use in gauging the level of corporate sustainability. The concept of triple bottom line reporting is shown to be effective in ensuring that the corporate sustainability concerns are addressed and business takes account of the outcomes. This is done using a review of relevant literature in order to point out the success factors as well as the threats that face TBL reporting programs. Introduction The contemporary corporate environment and culture has been steadily leaning towards the increasing need of higher levels of transparency and accountability in regard to public reporting as well as communication. This is a trend that demands for increased disclosure of the nature and level of corporate performance and engagements in matters of social-economic and environmental dimensions (G100 2003).In a nutshell, the public is in need of information regarding the level of sustainability in which various corporations engage in. In order to gauge the level of sustainability, it is important that a standard of reporting be adopted. Triple Bottom Line reporting is one of the techniques of reporting sustainability. The definition of TBL reporting A standard definition of triple bottom line reporting does not exist. This therefore means that no universally accepted definition exists. It can loosely be defined as the a form of corporate communication which engages stakeholders and holds the key to the corporations accepted approach to the management of social, economic and environmental dimensions via clearly instituted communication channel that provides information on the above mentioned three dimensions (G100 2003). The elements of social, economic and finally the environmental dimensions in an organization are what constitutes sustainability/sustainable development.TBL can therefore basically be used to refer to the official publication of social, economic and environmental information of a given business entity in a manner that is integrated to reflect both the activities as well as the results of a corporations performance on the basis of the three dimensions. The factors driving the general trend towards the adoption of TBL reporting There are quite a number of factors that are driving corporation towards the adoption of TBL reporting. Some of these factors are; mandatory requirements, the need to be consistent with the high level of public vigilance on the corporate code of behavior, and the increase in the level of stakeholder requirement for high level of transparency as well as results. The idea of Triple Bottom Line (TBL) reporting has in the previous years become progressively more stylish in organizations; consulting firms, investment firms, and also the NGOs extensively employ it in the management of their operations. The thought lies behind the TBL model is that a firms final can be gauged not merely by the customary financial end result, but again by its social, moral as well as ecological performance. For quite a long time, the majority individuals who are both in the corporate world and outside have come to an agreement that organizations are required by the stakeholders to perform their tasks responsibly. Firms are not capable of flourishing in the long run when they constantly ignore the interests of the main stakeholders. The evident uniqueness of TBL is lying in the contention of its supporters that the general accomplishment of responsibilities to the society, workers, clients, and suppliers ought to be calculated, reviewed and the information provided to the stakeholders the same way that the financial results of public corporations is being conducted. If we strongly believe that moral practices of the business and also social responsibility are significant purposes of corporate authority and administration, then we ought to accept the efforts to come up with tools that are capable of making much clearer to the administrators, shareholders besides the other stakeholders how well a corporation is performing in this regard. This paper looks at the usefulness of TBL, the advantages of socially responsible practices by the businesses, and the probable effectiveness of tools that are capable of being used to assess and report on performance. Triple bottom line reporting is making firms liable for not only economic and social effects but also for environmental results of doing businesses. Indeed it is an accepted accounting form for the nonprofit organizations and also the governmental organizations to demonstrate their dedication to corporate social responsibilities. To these firms, both the ecological and also social performance also significant the way financial performance is important. The concept of triple bottom line reporting was originally applied by John Elkington in the year 1995. He published a book concerning this topic in the year 1998. The book was entitled Cannibals with Forks: the Triple Bottom Line of 21st Century Business. Indeed, Triple bottom line reporting has got drive in all sectors and industries and not for the not for profit making organizations and also for government organizations as it has been presumed. As stated above, the term triple bottom line was supposedly invented by John Elkington in the year 1995 (Sarre Treuren 2001) despite the fact that it was not made popular until the book that he published became widespread in the year 1997. The Triple Bottom Line (TBL) is an idea that has got authorized imprimatur as a structure to give confidence to the organizational concerns regarding sustainability. Despite the fact that at first it was viewed as a mere idea or a method of thinking about sustainability, similar to the notion of corporate social responsibility, it has now become a device for both accounting and reporting. Other authors are arguing that Triple Bottom Line is essentially imperfect in the things it is offering, and besides, they are saying it is transmitted by proponents who are mainly uninformed of the other approaches that are in existence. The Function of Triple bottom line reporting Triple bottom line reporting needs the corporations to socially be responsible to both the shareholders and also to every stakeholder of the respective firms. Stakeholders usually entail all the shareholders, workers, clients, goods and services providers and any other person who is influenced by the events and proceedings of the business. It is demanding that a firm be liable for all the aspects of the business. The Benefits of Triple bottom line reporting The social feature of triple bottom line reporting is focusing on reasonable treatment of a firms human resources. in addition to the provision of a safe place of work and also reasonable salary for workers, being responsible socially involve performing responsible and helpful business practices in the community the surrounds the business. Triple bottom line reporting is requiring a corporation to be involved in sustainable ecological activities. Corporations and firms ought to put great efforts to conserve the surroundings, or to significantly minimize the harm that they are inflicting on to the surroundings. A corporation using triple bottom line reporting is capable of managing the utilization of energy, minimizes waste, recycles resources and also shuns the production of very dangerous substances like chemicals and weapons. The Significance of Triple bottom line reporting When a business appears to be both socially and environmentally responsible to its clients, it will be capable of maximizing the profits that it is making. It is very common situation to see many companies making headlines because of being involved in accounting scandals, giving their workers very unjust salaries, unsafe work conditions and prejudice. All these reports are affecting the reputation of the firms that are involved besides their goodwill, thereby resulting into the lost of many revenues. Also, focusing on more things just profits can help a company open market potential that was unattainable before. Companies may also lose market share to other competing businesses that are utilizing triple bottom line reporting because they appear more socially responsible to consumers. TBL is capable of making a firm to reach the untapped market. Indeed TBL firms are capable of finding niches that are financially profitable, and which were previously missed by the firms when their driving force was money only. TBL is capable of developing highly profitable ways to aid the NGOs that are in existence with their missions like fundraisings, getting to the customers, or generating networking opportunities with other numerous NGOs.It is also capable of providing goods and services which will be of great use to the populations that are languishing in poverty. It is capable of making businesses to become familiar with new business ventures. Due to the fact that numerous business opportunities are coming up in the sphere of social entrepreneurship, the businesses that are having hopes of reaching this growing market have to prepare themselves of being profitable financially, socially helpful and economically sustainable or else they will not be able to compete with the firms which are not designing themselves that way. For instance, just trade and ethical Trade firms need moral and sustainable practices from every supplier providing them with goods and services. Any businesses that are having plans of working with the firms that are dealing in just Trade or moral Trade have to design the models of their business to become TBL. Firms usually issue TBL reports mainly for two purposes: to meet the demands of the investors and also to be recognized for the actions that the firms do. For instance, firms like Shell and Nike have in the past applied this kind of reporting to enable them restore the reputations of their firms after having received negative exposure for inefficient ecological and social decisions Tschopp (2003) Firms are usually being scrutinized both by the media coverage and public watchdog groups. It is an undeniable fact that the individuals who are capable of ensuring that their firms have good reputations in environmental conservation and social policies will have to succeed. Those ignoring responsibilities as such will probably fail Tschopp (2003) Firms are also capable of getting financial advantages from TBL reporting. The firms will be able to get attention from the new investors. Similarly, they will trap new employees as they maintain their current workers. TBL reporting permits transparency of a firms environmental and social undertakings, limitations, and goals of the years to come. Firms that are striving for success are capable of meeting eligibility standards and they can be members of some environmental and social funds. When the firms fail to achieve the requirements, their stock performance can be hindered (Tschopp 2003). Triple bottom reporting has been shown to have several benefits. The first on is that it improves the reputation of an organization. It also has a positive influence on the brand name of the firm as well as its products. The reputation of a corporation is a function of the manner in which it is perceived by the stakeholders. Having an effective method of communicating with the stakeholders on the social, economic and environmental dimensions can act very well in changing the perceptions of the stakeholders and in the process improving the reputation of the corporation. The other benefits of TBL reporting are that it aids the corporation to openly operate in the society. In this context, it acts as a sort of a license to enable the business to operate freely by the virtue of the support, acceptance and acknowledgement that it receives from the stakeholders. The transparency in communication and accountability in actions are what makes it possible for the corporations to be granted the license to operate. The rest are outlined below Through the integration of sustainability into the business models and thinking, firms are capable of realizing these seven bottom line benefits: It will be very easy to hire the best employees. Researchers are estimating that the highly significant corporate resource after 20 years for any organization is usually talented workers. Majority of them usually pay great concentration to corporate social responsibilities and also to the environmental behavior of the firms for which they are working. TBL results into greater withholding of the top talents. It is very challenging for firms to keep their most talented and most skilled workers in the present market that is characterized by a lot of competition. Studies are however showing that the skilled workers usually tend to continue staying with a firm when they are having meaningful work. TBL is also capable of maximizing the productivity of the workers. There is a big connection that exists between important job and productivity. The managers of organizations should involve the whole firm in sustainable growth goals such as zero emissions, independent energy production, and no d isposal of waste and helping in the conservation of environment, the firm will get much more back from the workers. Enhancement of reputation and brand Efficient communication with the shareholders and also the stakeholders on one or more dimensions of TBL is capable of playing a significant role in the management of the perceptions of the stakeholders. This will not only protect but also enhance the corporate reputation of the firms. Securing a social license to operate Having a good reputation, the members of the community and the stakeholders will strongly support the operations of the organization. The surrounding communities will probably provide more support to the firms because they are communicating openly and besides, they are honest about the performance of the firms in relation to environment factors, social factors and also to economic factors. Attraction and retention of high caliber employees Through the publication of the information regarding TBL, the information is capable of playing a significant role in positioning the employer as the employer to work with. This is capable of enhancing worker loyalty, reducing turnover and also capable of attracting skilled workers. Reduced risk profile During TBLs reporting, firms usually indicate their obligation to minimize risk. This usually takes place during the times of growing legal action, where owed diligence is capable of being established and a firm comes up with risks, the risks can be managed better. Consecutively this is capable of advancing the relations of the stakeholder and hence makes it simpler to draw investment capital and consequently positively influence the price of the shares. Identification of potential cost savings TBL reporting is involving the assortment and scrutiny of information on resource, the usage of materials and the evaluation of business processes. This is capable of actually helping the firms to identify the opportunities that are present for savings of costs through effective and efficient allocation of both resources and materials.TBL is accompanied by minimized expenses at the commercial sites .numerous unnecessary waste usually happen at the non-manufacturing areas. Through the employment of more sensible handling of wastes, effectiveness of energy, conservation of water and naturalized landscaping (Ann 2003) Reduced risk, easier financing Firms that are showing both the environmental and social responsibility always is likely to be seen as less dangerous. That is capable of translating into the avoidance of cost, minimized insurance premiums, minimized official and regulatory costs, and evasion of missing revenue from customer crusader actions (Ann 2003). The desirable qualities of a TBL report. A good TBL report has the following qualities and characteristics. Reliable- a good TBL report should be accurate and should provide information that is true regarding the activities as well as performance of a given corporation. The report should be useful meaning that the information contained should have a high level of relevance to the stakeholders (both internal and external ) the information should be relevant to the corporate decision making process. The TBL report should exercise and exhibit full disclosure meaning that the content should have open explanations. The report should be reproducible in order to allow for the ongoing publishing of the information contained for the purpose of reporting in the future. The report should have a high level of auditability. This means that the report should be having the quality of being able to be verified externally (G100 2003). The challenges that affect the use of TBL reporting Angela Lewis Consulting (n.d) pointed out that the two main problems facing the use of TBL reporting are that it lacks a universal method of gauging/measuring its success. The implication of this is that there is no social, economic, environmental or ethical equivalents of assets, liabilities, equity, expenses and revenue. The other one is that there is no numerical method of accurately describing consumer, environmental or community benefits. Rafiq (2010) pointed out that the other challenges to TLB reporting are informal corporate culture, lack of understanding by the top management, lack of human resources capacity, Lack of support from the government and other development agencies, resistance by privately listed firms to reveal their financial information, resource constraints that affect SMEs and a general lack of public service orientation. Conclusion Despite the challenges affecting TBL reporting, extant literature reveal that it is indeed a success since it has its benefits outweighing the challenges. It is therefore crucial that all firms embrace TBL reporting since it pays to be social responsible. . Referencing Angel Lewis Consulting,n.d. The Triple Bottom Line Explained: http://www.angelalewis.com.au/publ/The%20Triple%20Bottom%20Line%20Explained.pdf Anne,P, A. 2003. The Sustainability Advantage: Seven Business Case Benefits of a Triple Bottom Line. (Book Review).CMA management. John Elkington,J. 1997 Cannibals With Forks: The Triple. Bottom Line of 21st Century Business. Capstone,. Oxford,402 pp. ISBN 1-900961-27-X G 100, 2003.Sustainability:A guide to triple bottom reporting http://www.group100.com.au/publications/G100_guide-tbl-reporting2003.pdf Rafiq, M .2010. Major Challenges for TBL Reporting in Pakistan http://www.tbl.com.pk/major-challenges-for-tbl-reporting-in-pakistan/ Sarre, R. Treuren, G. 2001. The triple bottom line: balancing social, environmental and financial outcomes in business (paper prepared for the South Australian Business Vision 2010) (on-line resource) http://business.unisa.edu.au/cae/tbl/tbldownloadables/sabv2010fin.rtf [accessed 26 February 2004]. Tschopp, D. 2003. Its Time for Triple Bottom Line Accounting. The CPA Journal. 73(12): 11.

Anton Chekhov’s Use of Grief in Misery and Vengeance Essay -- Misery, V

Anton Chekhov’s Use of Grief in â€Å"Misery† and â€Å"Vengeance.† What is the fascination with grief and suffering that caused Anton Chekhov to entwine these two sad emotional states into everything he wrote? â€Å"Reading Anton Chekhov’s stories, one feels oneself in a melancholy state. Everything is strange, sharp, lonely, motionless, helpless† (Nebraska 1). Further, according to William Gerharde, Chekhov answered this very question with the following: â€Å"When you depict sad or unlucky people, and want to touch the reader’s heart, one should try to be cold— it gives their grief, as it were, a background, against which it stands out in greater relief† (Gerharde 110). While Chekhov uses pain and suffering in all his stories, he does an especially effective job with two short stories â€Å"Misery† and â€Å"Vengeance.† In both, Chekhov introduces a similar theme, although it is first suggested in â€Å"Misery†: â€Å"The theme of the individual isolation is suggested in many of Chekhov’s early stories, but it is first fully developed in the brief sketch ‘Misery’,† (Winner 137). While reading â€Å"Misery,† the reader can absorb Chekhov through the twined themes of loneliness and isolationism. This enables characters to become so real that each reader can relate through the characters and the situation. One reason â€Å"Misery† is so well thought of by critics is that â€Å"the story takes a powerful look at the lack of human involvement and compassion towards one man’s grief† (Guevara 2). Of course, almost all who read the story have felt such loneliness or grief at one ti me or other in their lives and can, therefore, relate to the protagonist’s pain and isolation. In addition, the atmosphere in â€Å"Misery,† suggest grayness and depression, a setting that immediately conveys ... ... is factually correct, a trivial kind of truth, though a kind central to works of verisimilitude; saying that which, by virtue of tone and coherence, does not feel like lying, a more important kind of truth; and discovering and affirming moral truth about human existence— the highest truth of art† (Creighton, 1). Chekhov is able to contribute to all three of the ways there is to â€Å"tell it like it is† when writing fiction. Not only does he tell the truth in his writing, he does so in a down to earth and straightforward way. Reading Chekhov, is like reading someone’s daily journal. It is real, it is intense, and it makes the reader deeply feel for the characters involved in each individual story. Pain and suffering are commonly used emotions, so people can relate easily to the characters. This is what makes Chekhov such a successful writer, and why he was adored by all.

Fire Imagery in Charlotte Brontes Jane Eyre Essays -- Charlotte Bront

Fire Imagery in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre Incomplete Works Cited The prevalence of fire imagery and it's multitude of metaphoric uses in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre expresses two things that could not be expressed openly in the Victorian Period, which are mainly passion and sexuality. Brontes writing was dictated by the morals of her society, but her ideas were not. Jane Eyre was written with the Victorian reader in mind. Bronte knew that if she were to write about these two things directly she would have to face possible rejection of her book. A resolution to this dilemma was to awaken the audience in a way that society deemed not only respectable, but also acceptable. So Bronte creates Jane, and Jane becomes the embodiment of these morals. She takes Victorian psychology of passion on as her own. The psychology of passion then becomes the novel's most dominant theme. Throughout Jane Eyre, passion becomes centrally focused on self-control, female sexuality, and its relationship to Bertha's insanity as images of fire. Jane Eyre's images of fire bring to the forefront the contradictions that Victorian women faced in fulfilling their passionate needs and while maintaining self-control. Jane is confronted with the duality of freeing herself from the constraints of society and her fears of releasing the consuming energy of her sexuality. Jane keeps these feelings and passions in stringent check because she does not want to give in to the fires she feels inside, but is always struggling to do so. David Lodge says this eloquently, "the heat emanates from a source of passionate love, not of vengeance, and the possibility of being consumed by it is as seductive as it is terrifying" (128). Jane thus creates fire and uses this ... ...'s eyes. Through the destruction of Bertha, Jane is able to come to terms with her idea of self-consuming passion. Berth's death was the liberating factor for Jane. It was the release of the suppressed passions that were dwelling inside her. The fires that Jane speaks after the reuniting of her and Rochester are of warmth and happiness. Jane says: "Can you tell when there is a good fire?," which is telling of the fact that she feels the fires inside are of a good nature now. The fires that represent the passions of the characters in the novel have great significance in Victorian society. Bronte knew this and added to it social commentary on passion and sexuality in one of the most ingenious books of its time, Jane Eyre. Works Cited: Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. London, Penguin Books Ltd.: 1996. (Edited with an Introduction and Notes by Michael Mason).

“Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin – Character

A dynamic character is a major character in a work of fiction that encounters conflict and is changed by it. In â€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin, the emotional pattern and thought process of Louise Mallard after she is informed of her husband’s death are explored. Over the course of the hour in which the story takes place Louise has a realization about the constraints she feels in her life and in her marriage. By delineating Louise as a flat and dynamic character, Chopin is able to convey her theme that real freedom is found in death.Over the course of the story, all the characters are left as fairly flat and undeveloped. Louise is simply described as a young woman with â€Å"a fair, clam face whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength† (paragraph 8) and that was suffering from a heart condition. When the death of her husband, Brently, is revealed her immediate reaction was that of despair. After weeping suddenly with â€Å"wild abandon ment,† Louise retreated to her room in order to collapse in solitude (paragraph 3 and 4). The tragic realization and emotional exhaustion eventually leads Louise to a realization of freedom.By whispering â€Å"free, free, free! † (paragraph 11) under her breath and not over thinking the feeling she had, Louise was able to embrace the joy with open arms she discovered in her newfound freedom. Although she knew that she would be torn apart at the sight of â€Å"the face that had never looked save with love upon her† (paragraph 12) as a corpse, Louise welcomed the oncoming years spent in devotion to her own desires. This shift in position on death motivates Louise to realize that Brently’s death should not be dwelled on with sorrow. Motivation is a sufficient reason for a character to act the way they do.Louise’s motivation for living a liberated life comes through the open window. Through nature, Chopin provides Louise with purpose. For example, while being described, the upstairs room is left with the simplistic depiction that it has only a single roomy armchair. When her husband is no longer there to restrict her potential, the house, which was once her cage, finally opens up to the outside world. With the â€Å"breath of rain in the air† and the tree tops bursting with life (paragraph four), Louise begins her journey to her conclusion.Even though the visualization of nature, Louise is competent enough to grasp that her love for Brently could not compare to the â€Å"possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being† (paragraph fifteen). Soon enough she had nearly forgotten her departed lover and was â€Å"drinking in an elixir of life through that open window† (paragraph eighteen). After the inhalation of submission, Louise â€Å"carried herself unwittingly like a goddess of Victory† (paragraph twenty) down the stairs.In doing so, the once emotionally unstable and physically ailed woman with â€Å"white slender hands† (paragraph ten) was able to prepare for a life without discretion or restrictions. The development of Louise only seized due to her preexisting medical condition claiming her life. However this motivation is what caused Louise to act in the ways she did and refined the theme. The development of character in â€Å"The Story of an Hour† is left stagnant. Having a flat main character allows the reader to identify with the story on a level of understanding separate from that of any round character.Although the reader is inserted into Louise’s mind, an entirely understood background for her is missing. In doing so a void is made in which the reader can implant themselves into the character’s shoes to further comprehend the exact emotions of Louise during the hour. This further expands the understanding of theme because as Louise remains in front of the window with her arms spread welcoming the years to come, since she is left lacking in detail, the reader can jump into her place; they can shed tears with her or drink the elixir of life with her.The theme that death is the ultimate release from constraint is understood in the story due to Chopin’s development of Louise as a flat and dynamic character. While companionship and love are significantly important aspects of life, Chopin was able to demonstrate that Louise was ecstatic only when she realized the new way she could live her life. After all, the Greek historian Thucydides once said, â€Å"the secret of happiness is freedom. † Works Cited: Kennedy, XJ and Dana Gioia. Literature, An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama and Writing. Seventh edition. Boston: Pearson, 2010. Print.

Why should manager want it in their workforce

The concept of organisational commitment (OC) is not easy to describe. By studying the literature on OC it becomes apparent that there is little consensus as to the meaning of the term. As the area has grown and developed, researchers from various disciplines have ascribed their own meaning to the topic. This is one of the reasons why defining OC is difficult. One definition is â€Å"Giving all of yourself while at work† (Martin and Nicolls). This definition is not very specific nor is it precise. A second definition says that work commitment come into being â€Å"When a person, by making a side-bet, links extraneous interests with a consistent line of activity.† (Becker, 1960) This definition focuses mainly on activities and behaviour in OC. A third definition explains OC as â€Å"an attitude or an orientation towards the organisation which links or attaches the identity of the person to the organisation.† (Sheldon, 1971) The two last definitions differ from each other in their understanding of OC. The second focuses mainly on behaviour while the third is more based on attitude and identification. A good definition should cover the attitudinal-behavioural dichotomy and one definition that does that is Richard T Mowday et al's (1982) definition: This definition represents something more than the previous because it says that OC goes beyond mere passive loyalty to an organisation. It sees commitment to an organisation as an active relationship with the organisation such that individuals are willing to give something of themselves in order to contribute to the organisation's well being. Mowday's definition can be characterised by at least three factors:  · A strong belief in and acceptance of the organisation's goals and values  · A willingness to exert considerable effort on behalf of the organisation and  · A strong desire to maintain membership in the organisation Mowday's definition also has some weaknesses. Firstly it is important to notice that this definition does not prelude the possibility that individuals will also be committed to other aspects of their environment. It simply asserts that regardless of these other possible commitments the organisationally committed individual will tend to exhibit the three characteristics identified. Secondly, the definition doesn't clarify the terms ‘identification with' and ‘involvement in'. It can be discussed whether this is a good definition since the terms may be understood as ambiguous. Although this is not an ideal definition of OC, it is a definition that gives a good understanding and explanation of what OC is. Furthermore, Staw (77) differentiates between 2 different types of OC. Attitudinal commitment: Refers to commitment rooted in an employee's identification with the particular value system upheld by the co, and a desire to continue working there. Behavioural commitment on the other hand, comes about through a consistent pattern of action by an employee over a period of time, and the way in which s/he tends to become bound by this behaviour and hence reluctant to change. The point made here is that attitudinal commitment should lead to behavioural commitment and behavioural to attitudinal. Understanding this, we will examine in part 3 possible ways managers in which look to initially generate OC. There are several possible reasons why managers should want work commitment in their workforce. Drennan suggest that most managers believe that with real commitment from staff the performance of their business could improve dramatically. Beside an increased performance the work will also be a better place to work. The empirical studies carried out on the topic of OC represent a rich collection of findings with respect to both the antecedents and the consequences of the construct. Here is a short explanation of five possible outcomes that has been studied. Few important correlations have emerged in studies, although the correlations are consistently in a predicted direction and often reached statistical significance. (Mowday et al., 1974; Porter, Crampon, & Smith, 1976; Steers, 1977a) Therefore we should expect commitment to influence the amount of effort an employee puts forth on the job and this efforts should have some influence on actual performance. Committed employees are desirous of remaining with the organisation. Highly significant, positive correlations have been found between increased tenure and increases commitment in Mowday 1974 and Steer 1977 studies. Theory would predict that highly committed employees would be more motivated to attend so they could facilitate organisational goal attainment. Modest support can be found in several studies like F.J. Smith, 1977; Steers, 1977a, but this support is not entirely consistent (Angle & Perry, 1981). When an employee's commitments lie outside the organisation (e.g. hobby, family), less internal pressure would be exerted on the employee to attend (Morgan & Herman, 1976). We could say that commitment may represent an influence on attendance motivation. In a study by Angle and Perry (1981), commitment was found to be strongly and inversely related to employee tardiness. The theory underlying the construct suggests that highly committed employees are likely to engage in behaviours consistent with their attitudes toward the organisation. Coming to work on time would certainly represent one such behaviour. The strongest or most predictable behavioural outcome of employee commitment should be reduced turnover, which are shown in five studies. (Angle & Perry, 1981, Hom et al., 1979; Koch & Steers, 1978; Mowday et al., 1979; Steers, 1977a) In a sixth study, a longitudinal design was used to track commitment levels over time among a sample of psychiatric technicians. (Porter et al., 1974) Again commitment was found to be significantly and inversely related to subsequent turnover. Using the model suggested by Mowday et al, we look at the development of OC in 3 stages. What should be clear here is the significance of the early part of the company's relationship with an employee in seeking OC. Here we refer in particular to recruitment and induction practices of the firm. Employee characteristics: Choose people whose values, beliefs, etc in some way fit with those of the firm. The role of this ‘fit' in securing attitudinal commitment is significant Employee Expectations: Make sure these correspond with the realities of the job Job Design: Increase scope leads to increased commitment. Important dimensions inc: variety, autonomy, feedback, significance, challenge. – Participation, group work, and interdependence of tasks leads to commitment thru greater involvement and also increased felt responsibility – Make work challenging: Will attract those individuals who value work and bring an attitude of achievement to the organisation. Management and structure: Integration and supportive/open management – Loosen tight supervision and give employees more discretion Reward System: Internal labour market Organisational characteristics: Co must be seen as protecting the workers' interests while offering employment stability. Socialising employees is also important here, altho little research has been done on either its implementation of its usefulness. Increasing focus on behavioural commitment 1. Employees' jobs more likely to inc those dimensions mentioned above in ‘Job design' 2. Higher extrinsic awards + increased value of investments made by employee 3. Workers generally more socialised in the co Note: A major factor in influencing OC which has been ignored deliberately is that of personal experiences and histories that employees bring with them from previous jobs, etc. as this is beyond the scope of management intervention. In this essay we have mainly argued that organisational commitment is good and we have explained why manager should want it in their workforce. It is also evident that having a strong committed workforce has its advantages. One thing we have not mentioned is the disadvantages of a committed workforce. Randall (1987) used the term â€Å"blind† commitment in describing a workforce that was too committed. If you are too committed it can lead employees to accept the status quo even if the ultimately means that the company loses its ability to innovate and adapt to change. Another possible drawback to commitment can be illustrated by the example of a mediocre employee who has been at for a particular org for some time and who would struggle to get another job elsewhere. In this case, we assume s/he would be committed to his/her job so as not to risk losing it. In this way, this paper, having shown that there are many reasons why managers may wish to secure OC and how it can be achieved, has also highlighted some potential drawbacks that managers should be aware of.