Business analysis of General Electric

Business analysis of General Electric In the history of technology in the united scales, the history of General Electric company constitutes a significant part. The growth of General Electronics (GE) from a mere home laboratory of Thomas Edison to one of the largest companies from simple early applications to complex 21st century high tech wizardry, has been quite outstanding. the company has also merged with other companies, broading its scope , moving from technology to services, consisting of total 11 main operating gates : GE Advanced with high-performance, fused quartz and ceramics which are used by a good number of industries, silicon-based products. One of worlds leading appliance manufacturers, GE Consumer and Industrial is a preeminent global maker of lighting products for consumer, commercial, and industrial customers. Besides, these functions, GE Commercial and Industrial also supplies systems, services and integrated industrial equipment. The energy industry is served by GE Energy, a prominent supplier among its field. P1. Background to Change Major changes in General Electric: The economic problems of GE can be deciphered through its managerial reshuffling. General Electronic experienced a far reaching change when John F. (Jacx) Welch Jr. became the chairman and CEO in 1981. Welch intended to give power to the subordinates i.e. the periphery of the company by invalidating the hierarchy of the management, assigning divisions according to the per formative skills, which he followed from predecessor Reginald Jones time. GE bought 338 business and product lines for $11.1 billion and sold 252 for $5.9 billion over the next few years. Jones wanted GE to be top ranked in all the fields of operation. During this period, in 1943, General Electric Credit Corporation, another of GEs operations was formed. And as it expanded into other markets like real estate, leasing and selling of heavy industrial goods, insurance and inventories its assets doubled to $16 billion between 1979 and 1984. Also, the leasing operations protected the parent company from heavy taxes. It w as done by leasing of the credit corporation on the equipments developed by GE which suffered accelerated depreciation. Forces for change: Controlling bureaucracy: Welchs signature concept was to spark productivity and save the company from eminent threats. Wales took care of both internal and external problems. He sorted out internal problems such as between functions eg-that between sales and manufacturing and external problems like GE and its suppliers and customers. Welch incited any kind of barrier was bad for the company. Information travels easily in an open, boundary less organization. There is a nothing to hinder the continuous flow of decisions, people, ideas etc. the century-old systems of resided hierarchy and bloated bureaucracy in Ge near got rid of because this Boundary less behavior. Welsh spent two decades reforming the bureaucratic procedures of GE, because he thought anything that hindered the free flow of ideas and learning was destructive. Lack of sharing information: Because there was a communication gap between the lower and top management, the goals were not clear to them. So they needed to change and adapt so that everyone could be aware of the goals and objectives of the company. Mobilizing the workforce/winning competitive advantage: GE had to change and adapt itself to the changes around and compete properly and not lag behind. And when this change happens throughout is required to minimize the disturbances associated. For expanding the business: In order to expand his business to suit the competitive market, Welsh globalizes , many were not doing well, so Jack first handled the problems playing weaker domestic sector (i.e. the hardware phase: restructuring, delivering, downsizing etc. ) After solving the hardware problems, Welch concentrated on making GE global. Advancement of Technology: Change is a must to adapt to the growing technological market. Internet initiative was used by Welch. Welch recommended every process to be digitized, as a part of GEs e-Initiative. In making the company diligent and agile this step was much instrumental. P2. GE organizational structure is combination of top-down bottom up structure. Corporate Executive Office Chairman CEO Corporate staff Finance Business R D Human Legal Development Resource GE aircraft GE transp- GE industrial GE Plastics GE Appliance GE supplies Engines orttion systems GE Power GE Medical GE Lighting GE specialty NBC GE Capital Systems Systems Materials GE Capital 26 Business organized into 5 segments Consumer Mid-market Specialized Specialty Equipment Services Financing Financing Insurance Management Advantages of Bureaucratic structure organization: Functional economics of scale Minimum duplication of personnel equipment. Enhanced communication centralized decision making Disadvantages of Bureaucratic organization Submit conflicts with organizational goals. Obsessive concern with rules and regulations. Lack of employee discretion to deal with problems. P3. Mechanistic Organizational structure: Qualities such as high complexity, formality and centralization mark the Mechanistic structures. These structures are well suited for repetitive functions and actions. They react to unpredicted events relatively slow and are highly depended on planned behaviors. Mechanistic Organizational Structure Mechanistic Organizational Performance AlignmentStructure Control-oriented IT Alignment Performance Control-oriented IT Advantages: High specialization Rigid departmentalization High formalization Disadvantages: Narrow span of control Flow of information is not free Centralized Organic Organizational structure: Organic structures emphasis on parallel relations rather than vertical ones and are relatively resilient and adoptable. It is influenced by skills and knowledge rather than status-related authorities, the focus is not on commands but on data sharing and responsibilities are rendered flexible not based on terms of reference. Organic Organizational structure Mechanistic Organizational Performance AlignmentStructure Coordinatio-oriented IT Alignment Performance Control-oriented IT Advantages: Open communication network Empowered employee Wide span of control Cross hierarchical team Free flow of information Disadvantages: Low formalization Minimal formal rules Little direct supervision. .Organizational transformation (Centralized -decentralized) The key to success is innovation. And centralization and decentralization-two structural dimensions of the firm affect this innovation. The degree is to which decision-making authority is kept at top levels of management is known as centralization. And the degree to which -decision-making authority is pushed down to lower levels of the firm is known as decentralization. There is a dispute regarding which is better among the two. There can be two types of centralization and decentralization -geographical and the hierarchy among the employees. In the case of the geographical centralization, an organization can have just one headquarter and vice versa in the case of decentralization. The other type would be when the authority and decision making sessions are involved. The centralization or decentralization of an organization depends on factors such as type of industry etc. In the case of centralized organization, the hierarchy is strictly maintained and power is held by the top executiv es and the headquarters. In decentralized organizations, the power all including various outlets and lower level managers. Tesco, the super market chain, where each store has a manager who take important decisions regarding the store, and is responsible to the regional manager is an example of decentralized organization Recommendation: The firm should have a Communication consultant who will help to assess the situation. This in turn will help the business to be as productive as possible. The communication assessment helps to figure out the faults through an external source and tries to solve them and provide better business structure and design. P4. Features of radical Changes Merger Acquisition: During the early 1980s Factory automation became a major activity. Calma and Intersil were acquired by GE and were essential to this program. To manufacture and market Hitachis industrial robots in the United States, GE also entered into an agreement with the Japanese, company. In order to robotize its locomotive plant in Eric, Pennsylvanian, and GE spent $300 million by itself. GEs aircraft engine business also participated in an air-force plant-modernization program two years later. The controversial B-1B bomber engines were also manufactured by GE. Restructuring: The six sigma was adopted by GE in the late 1990s under Welchs leadership, a Motorola, Inc. and Alliged Signal Inc pioneered quality control and improvement initiative. Costs were cut by reducing errors or defects through this program. The six sigma was claimed to yield $1 billion in annual saving by 1998. Restructuring continued within the company including a $2.3 billion charge in late 1997, which led to the closure of redundant facilities to shift to cheaper labour market production. Reconfiguring the business portfolio: Welch wanted GE to be identified as a broadly diversified corporation. Buthe was also aware that GEs business portfolio should at first focus on a limited number of sectors which will be potentially attractive for growth and profitability. In his initial says, Welch confessed about his interest in dealing with the top companies in the global market. He highlighted GEs resources on its best opportunities: the consumer electronic business, mining interests ( notably Utah International), small household appliances division, semiconductors, and radio stations were sold off by Welch. And GE acquired small companies. the bigger ones includes RCA, NBC, Kidder Peabody, CGR etc. GE made over a hundred acquisitions with financial services being the largest sector acquired. Charging the structure: One major factor which contributed to the transformed product-market face of GE and the consequent increase in growth was the changes in the business portfolio. Along with it, revitalizing the management systems and management style was required to generate ambition. This also led to a changed structure of GE. Several layers of management and large numbers of administrative positions were eliminated under Welchs supervision of special importance is the disbanding of GEs sectors, which resulted in the direct reporting by 13 business leaders to the CEO. The CEOs office expanded to include a corporate Executive council to facilitate GEs senior corporate officers and business level chiefs. Changing management systems and processes: A more flexible and responsive corporation resulted from the changes in GEs structure. GEs highly developed management systems were also required to be changed, specially the much popular strategic planning system. A less formal and more personal process substituted the staff-led, document driven process though the framework of an annual planning cycle was retained. Modify human resource management: The development of management talent contributed GEs long-term development and performance. Welch retained GEs well-developed management appraisal system and development. He thought that greater flourishing of managerial talent could be achieved by vesting managers with greater profit and loss responsibility early in their career. And better incentives were required to encourage risk taking and higher levels of performance aspiration. The bonus system was redesigned to reach into the middle of middle management. There were stark discrimination on the bonuses. Corporate Initiative: Periodic new corporate initiative as mechanisms to drive particular aspects of companywide performance was used by Welch. About every two year Welch would announce a major new initiative designed to energize the company and drive its performance in a particular direction, while strategic planning, financial control and human resource management provided the basic systems for managing GE. This initiative would be absorbed into the ongoing management systems of GE over time. Work out: The no-holds-barred discussion sessions that Welch held with different managers groups at GEs Management Development Institute at crotonville, New York, gave birth to the idea of GEs work-out process. Because work-out has a practical and an intellectual goal, it could achieve fundamental changes in management the riddance of several bad hobbits during all this twice being the objective. The second objective is intellectual, which puts the leaders of all businessing front of 100 or so, if their people, to let them know what they think. This is done 8-10 times a year. They will get to know more, about their business- feelings, opinions, resentments etc. Its about re-defining the leader-subordinate relationship. This helps form all kinds of dynamics, source go and hide, and others emerge successful. The Boundary less Organization: Though Welch reacted strongly to GEs is depicted as a conglomerate, it did GE good, for the utilization of its products and geographical diversity for the betterment of performance led to GEs growth and expansion. Globalization: GEs global responsibilities included exploiting international growth opportunities and the advantages of global reach. This was done through exploiting increased learning opportunities and global that affected particular countries could be handled properly because of global diversity. Also the advantages of such downturns were well-used. Six Sigma: This program dominated corporate initiative and primary driver of organizational change and performance movement during 1998 to 2000. Soul transferring cultural initiative- such was it called by Welch. Motorola inspired the methodology of measuring , analyzing, defining, improving and thus controlling every process that lead to the customer so that the defects reduced to 3.4 per million. P5. Evaluation of the Change Merger and acquisition: Several importance purchases were made by GE in the year 1986, including the $ 6.4 billion purchase of the Radio Corporation of America (RCA), the largest for the company till that date. Interestingly, GE in 1919 had helped to found the company. GE/s broadcasting business was brought into full force by RCAs National Broadcasting company (NBC) , the leading television network. This RCA GE match was considered beneficial by the company though both the companies were heavily involved into consumer electronics. This success had been possible because GE had been shifting into service and high technology from manufacturing compared to the50 percent 6 year before almost 80 percent of GEs earnings came from services and high technology, after the merger. GEs labs made RCAs famous David Saran off Research Centre quite redundant and divested itself of it. RCAs television manufacturing business was sold to a French company Thomson in 1987. Thomsons medical diagnostics b usiness was taken up by GE instead. And to complete 130 European acquisitions, GE spent $ 30 billion during the 1990s. Restructuring:- e-business was chosen by GE for further growth of the company in 1999. GE cautiously reacted to the Interact explosion in the 1990s. Though it was thought that the Honeywell deal would serve as a capstone for Welchs much admired leadership it ended sourly. Because of the11th hour negotiations between the European regulator and GE executives were broken down, the European commission had to block the deal on antitrust grounds on 2001. Restructing: The Headquarters and the interiors of the business experienced further elimantions. Decisions were taken by the operating units which could have four layers in the hierarchy. Welch was named Neutron Jack for his administrative costs and ruthless attacks on bureaucracy. It was so severe, that many people had to leave. Human Resource modification: Because of the restricting, fewer people were left, and the 10 to 15 percent bonus was substituted by 30 to 40 percent bonus. Also, much wider range of managerial and technical employees received stock options instead of just the top echelon of management. The number of stock options receiving employees increased to 22,000 by the end of 1995, from a 400 in early 1980s and Welch said the stock compensation which was based on total GE performance salary or bonus associated with the performance of individual business or unit then. This enables a harmonious relationship between the interests of the individual, the company, and the share owner behind the powerful on company results. Workout: the interaction between people will create the scope for rewarding and more fulfilling jobs for it is when they meet and talk, opportunities broaden. The quality of work life too is bound to improve. Work out concentrated on eliminating bureaucratic practices, at first but with time it evolved to the analysis and redesigning of complex cross-functional processes-involving customers, suppliers and Ge employees. Sig Sigma: It became an unprecendents fervor across an unprecendentant broad front at GE. 100000 people were trained in sciences and methodology in four years, GE reported by 2001,- six sigma was their way of working, speaking a common language of DMOS (defects per million opportunities), Needs Assessment Maps, CTQS (critical to quality) , FMEAs (Failure, mode effect analysis) etc. GE gained as lot in performance and it moved the rank from reduced waste and lower operating costs to improved, financial management and faster customer service. P6. Model of Planned change: The action research model, contemporary adaptations to the action research model, and Lewins change are the three theories which tells about the process of planned change in the organization. It showcases the four basic principles that is to be carried out by the practitioners and organization members. It can be drawn into a diagram, a flowchart , depicting the series of actions and its consequences-events from entering and contracting, to planning and working out the change, to evaluating and institutionalizing change. It is not a simple linear flowchart, but is constructed of overlaps and cycles among the activities. Unfreez, change, freez: Infreez, change, freez (or Refreez) is a three stage theory of change designed by Kurte Lewin . Though the three stages can be complicate it is not required , for it works fine even when simple. But the simplicity has been criticized. And though it has been change considerably since 1947, it is still relevant. This model has helped the formation of many others model as well. The three stages, i.e. unfreezing, change and Freezing are explained in the following paragraphs:- Stage 1. Unfreezing:- The first stage is the most important and should be understood very well. It creates the ground for the change. It creates awareness about the change and prepares the organization for it. Making it come out of the comfort zone. Under Welch this first stage contributing the organization, using lessens, delaying the organization etc. He actually merged and used acquisition, using the six sigma to bring about this change Stage -2- Change-or Transition Kurt Lewin knows that change is a process, not event and called it transition. This journey also involves our reaction to the change. In the second stage the changes actually occur. He used merger and acquisition changing management system and process to help the change happen. This involved restructuring, reengineering and changing the HR to bring out the best within. He also made use of devices like work out globalization, boundary less organization, and six sigma. Stage 3. Freezing It is variably called the Refreezing. It is about stabilizing the situation after the changes. It is about making people aware and comfortable about the new norms, routines. It can be time consuming. GE achieved huge success through this method and was ranked 10 in the SFORTUNE 500 magazine. P7. Implementation Procedure Communication Communication is the most important and required process to let the employees know about the consequences of not adopting to the change and the benefits that the post change time will reap. Objectives, coverage, timing, costs; individual and organizational implications and change methods should be communicated. Educated and Training Education and Training is required to teach the employees who may not have the desired environmental, functional, financial, organizational, technical, strategic and behavioral knowledge or skills. Participation and Involvement Participation of the concerned people is absolutely necessary right from the beginning. This also helps to generate a sense of responsibility, ownership. Facilitation and Support Skilled facilitators implement the change initiatives. Proposals and issues since resolution of conflict team building and development of a conducive change climate are surfaced through them. Negotiation Some valuable things are needed to be exchanged for reducing the resistence among the employees, so the change agent has to negotiate. This is particularly interesting in the case of resistance from powerful employees. Tongue battle, supportive facilitator and cognitive Reasoned are the three styles of Negotiation. Implicit and Explicit: Direct threats or force is applied on those who strongly resist lent this method works only in a crisis situation, otherwise it is quite redundant. Contingency plan for GE A contingency plan can be made when eligible CEO candidates who cannot be fully located or trained by the hand once deadline, and through this Welch could extend the tenure. The person can be employed as an unofficial consultant, even though the government mandated retirement age is reached by 2011. The company would be benefited with adequate breathing room. The chances of the creation of dangerous powerful acumms during the change or transition from old tonew CEO can also be avoided.

The Vampire Diaries: The Fury Chapter Eight

â€Å"Who-? Oh, it's you!† Bonnie said, starting at the touch on her elbow. â€Å"You scared me. I didn't hear you come up.† He'd have to be more careful, Stefan realized. In the few days he'd been away from school, he'd gotten out of the habit of walking and moving like a human and fallen back into the noiseless, perfectly controlled stride of the hunter. â€Å"Sorry,† he said, as they walked side by side down the corridor. â€Å"S'okay,† said Bonnie with a brave attempt at nonchalance. But her brown eyes were wide and rather fixed. â€Å"So what are you doing here today? Meredith and I came by the boardinghouse this morning to check on Mrs. Flowers, but nobody answered the door. And I didn't see you in biology.† â€Å"I came this afternoon. I'm back at school. For as long as it takes to find what we're looking for anyway.† â€Å"To spy on Alaric, you mean,† Bonnie muttered. â€Å"I told Elena yesterday just to leave him to me. Oops,† she added, as a couple of passing juniors stared at her. She rolled her eyes at Stefan. By mutual consent, they turned off into a side corridor and made for an empty stairwell. Bonnie leaned against the wall with a groan of relief. â€Å"I've got to remember not to say her name,† she said pathetically, â€Å"but it's so hard. My mother asked me how I felt this morning and I almost told her, ‘fine,' since I saw Elena last night. I don't know how you two kept-you know what-a secret so long.† Stefan felt a grin tugging at his lips in spite of himself. Bonnie was like a six-week-old kitten, all charm and no inhibitions. She always said exactly what she was thinking at the moment, even if it completely contradicted what she'd just said the moment before, but everything she did came from the heart. â€Å"You're standing in a deserted hallway with a you know what right now,† he reminded her devilishly. â€Å"Ohhh.† Her eyes widened again. â€Å"But you wouldn't, would you?† she added, relieved. â€Å"Because Elena would kill you†¦ Oh, dear.† Searching for another topic, she gulped and said, â€Å"So-so how did things go last night?† Stefan's mood darkened immediately. â€Å"Not so good. Oh, Elena's all right; she's sleeping safely.† Before he could go on, his ears picked up footfalls at the end of the corridor. Three senior girls were passing by, and one broke away from the group at the sight of Stefan and Bonnie. Sue Carson's face was pale and her eyes were red-rimmed, but she smiled at them. Bonnie was full of concern. â€Å"Sue, how are you? How's Doug?† â€Å"I'm okay. He's okay, too, or at least he's going to be. Stefan, I wanted to talk to you,† she added in a rush. â€Å"I know my dad thanked you yesterday for helping Doug the way you did, but I wanted to thank you, too. I mean, I know that people in town have been pretty horrible to you and-well, I'm just surprised you cared enough to help at all. But I'm glad. My mom says you saved Doug's life. And so, I just wanted to thank you, and to say I'm sorry-about everything.† â€Å"That's all right,† he said. â€Å"How's Chelsea today?† â€Å"She's at the pound. They're holding the dogs in quarantine there, all the ones they could round up.† Sue blotted her eyes and straightened, and Stefan relaxed, seeing that the danger was over. An awkward silence descended. â€Å"Well,† said Bonnie to Sue at last, â€Å"have you heard what the school board decided about the Snow Dance?† â€Å"I heard they met this morning and they've pretty much decided to let us have it. Somebody said they were talking about a police guard, though. Oh, there's the late bell. We'd better get to history before Alaric hands us all demerits.† â€Å"We're coming in a minute,† Stefan said. He added casually, â€Å"When is this Snow Dance?† â€Å"It's the thirteenth; Friday night, you know,† Sue said, and then winced. â€Å"Oh my God, Friday the thirteenth. I didn't even think about that. But it reminds me that there was one other thing I wanted to tell you. This morning I took my name out of the running for snow queen. It-it just seemed right, somehow. That's all.† Sue hurried away, almost running. Stefan's mind was racing. â€Å"Bonnie, what is this Snow Dance?† â€Å"Well, it's the Christmas dance really, only we have a snow queen instead of a Christmas queen. After what happened at Founders' Day, they were thinking of canceling it, and then with the dogs yesterday-but it sounds like they're going to have it after all.† â€Å"On Friday the thirteenth,† Stefan said grimly. â€Å"Yes.† Bonnie was looking scared again, making herself small and inconspicuous. â€Å"Stefan, don't look that way; you're frightening me. What's wrong? What do you think will happen at the dance?† â€Å"I don't know.† But something would, Stefan was thinking. Fell's Church hadn't had one public celebration that had escaped being visited by the Other Power, and this would probably be the last festivity of the year. But there was no point in talking about it now. â€Å"Come on,† he said. â€Å"We're really late.† He was right. Alaric Saltzman was at the chalkboard when they walked in, as he had been the first day he'd appeared in the history classroom. If he was surprised at seeing them late, or at all, he covered it faultlessly, giving one of his friendliest smiles. So you're the one who's hunting the hunter, Stefan thought, taking his seat and studying the man before him. But are you anything more than that? Elena's Other Power maybe? Elena. Stefan's hand clenched under his desk, and a slow ache woke in his chest. He hadn't meant to think about her. The only way he had gotten through the last five days was by keeping her at the edge of his mind, not letting her image any closer. But then of course the effort of holding her away at a safe distance took up most of his time and energy. And this was the worst place of all to be, in a classroom where he couldn't care less about what was being taught. There was nothing to do but think here. He made himself breathe slowly, calmly. She was well; that was the important thing. Nothing else really mattered. But even as he told himself this, jealousy bit into him like the thongs of a whip. Because whenever he thought about Elena now, he had to think about him. About Damon, who was free to come and go as he liked. Who might even be with Elena this minute. Anger burned in Stefan's mind, bright and cold, mingling with the hot ache in his chest. He still wasn't convinced that Damon wasn't the one who had casually thrown him, bleeding and unconscious, into an abandoned well shaft to die. And he would take Elena's idea about the Other Power much more seriously if he was completely sure that Damon hadn't chased Elena to her death. Damon was evil; he had no mercy and no scruples†¦ And what's he done that I haven't done? Stefan asked himself heavily, for the hundredth time. Nothing. Except kill. Stefan had tried to kill. He'd meant to kill Tyler. At the memory, the cold fire of his anger toward Damon was doused, and he glanced instead toward a desk at the back of the room. It was empty. Though Tyler had gotten out of the hospital the day before, he hadn't returned to school. Still, there should be no danger of his remembering anything from that grisly afternoon. The subliminal suggestion to forget should hold for quite a while, as long as no one messed with Tyler's mind. He suddenly became aware that he was staring at Tyler's empty desk with narrow, brooding eyes. As he looked away, he caught the glance of someone who'd been watching him do it. Matt turned quickly and bent over his history book, but not before Stefan saw his expression. December 5-I don't know what time, probably early afternoon. Dear Diary, Damon got you back for me this morning. Stefan said he didn't want me going into Alaric's attic again. This is Stefan's pen I'm using. I don't own anything anymore, or at least I can't get at any of my own things, and most of them Aunt Judith would miss if I took them. I'm sitting right now in a barn behind the boardinghouse. I can't go where people sleep, you know, unless I've been invited in. I guess animals don't count, because there are some rats sleeping here under the hay and an owl in the rafters. At the moment, we're ignoring each other. I'm trying very hard not to have hysterics. I thought writing might help. Something normal, something familiar. Except that nothing in my life is normal anymore. Damon says I'll get used to it faster if I throw my old life away and embrace the new one. He seems to think it's inevitable that I turn out like him. He says I was born to be a hunter and there's no point in doing things halfway. I hunted a deer last night. A stag, because it was making the most noise, clashing its antlers against tree branches, challenging other males. I drank its blood. When I look over this diary, all I can see is that I was searching for something, for someplace to belong. But this isn't it. This new life isn't it. I'm afraid of what I'll become if I do start to belong here. Oh, God, I'm frightened. The barn owl is almost pure white, especially when it spreads its wings so you can see the underside. From the back it looks more gold. It has just a little gold around the face. It's staring at me right now because I'm making noises, trying not to cry. It's funny that I can still cry. I guess it's witches that can't. It's started snowing outside. I'm pulling my cloak up around me. Elena tucked the little book close to her body and drew the soft dark velvet of the cloak up to her chin. The barn was utterly silent, except for the minute breathing of the animals that slept there. Outside the snow drifted down just as soundlessly, blanketing the world in muffling stillness. Elena stared at it with unseeing eyes, scarcely noticing the tears that ran down her cheeks. â€Å"And could Bonnie McCullough and Caroline Forbes please stay after class a moment,† Alaric said as the last bell rang. Stefan frowned, a frown that deepened as he saw Vickie Bennett hovering outside the open door of the history room, her eyes shy and frightened. â€Å"I'll be right outside,† he said meaningfully to Bonnie, who nodded. He added a warning lift of his eyebrows, and she responded with a virtuous look. Catch me saying anything I'm not supposed to, the look said. Vickie Bennett was entering as he exited, and he had to step out of her way. But that took him right into the path of Matt, who'd come out the other door and was trying to get down the corridor as fast as possible. Stefan grabbed his arm without thinking. â€Å"Matt, wait.† â€Å"Let go of me.† Matt's fist came up. He looked at it in apparent surprise, as if not sure what he should be so mad about. But every muscle in his body was fighting Stefan's grip. â€Å"I just want to talk to you. Just for a minute, all right?† â€Å"I don't have a minute,† Matt said, and at last his eyes, a lighter, less complicated blue than Elena's, met Stefan's. But there was a blankness in the depths of them that reminded Stefan of the look of someone who'd been hypnotized, or who was under the influence of some Power. Only it was no Power except Matt's own mind, he realized abruptly. This was what the human brain did to itself when faced with something it simply couldn't deal with. Matt had shut down, turned off. Testing, Stefan said, â€Å"About what happened Saturday night-â€Å" â€Å"I don't know what you're talking about. Look, I said I had to go, damn it.† Denial was like a fortress behind Matt's eyes. But Stefan had to try again. â€Å"I don't blame you for being mad. If I were you, I'd be furious. And I know what it's like not to want to think, especially when thinking can drive you crazy.† Matt was shaking his head, and Stefan looked around the hallway. It was almost empty, and desperation made him willing to take a risk. He lowered his voice. â€Å"But maybe you'd at least like to know that Elena's awake, and she's much-â€Å" â€Å"Elena's dead!† Matt shouted, drawing the attention of everyone in the corridor. â€Å"And I told you to let go of me!† he added, oblivious of their audience, and shoved Stefan hard. It was so unexpected that Stefan stumbled back against the lockers, almost ending up sprawled on the ground. He stared at Matt, but Matt never even glanced back as he took off down the hallway. Stefan spent the rest of the time until Bonnie emerged just staring at the wall. There was a poster there for the Snow Dance, and he knew every inch of it by the time the girls came out. Despite everything Caroline had tried to do to him and Elena, Stefan found he couldn't summon up any hatred of her. Her auburn hair looked faded, her face pinched. Instead of being willowy, her posture just looked wilted, he thought, watching her go. â€Å"Yes, of course. Alaric just knows we three-Vickie, Caroline, and I-have been through a lot, and he wants us to know that he supports us,† Bonnie said, but even her dogged optimism about the history teacher sounded a little forced. â€Å"None of us told him about anything, though. He's having another get-together at his house next week,† she added brightly. Wonderful, thought Stefan. Normally he might have said something about it, but at that moment he was distracted. â€Å"There's Meredith,† he said. â€Å"She must be waiting for us-no, she's going down the history wing,† Bonnie said. â€Å"That's funny, I told her I'd meet her out here.† It was more than funny, thought Stefan. He'd caught only a glimpse of her as she turned the corner, but that glimpse stuck in his mind. The expression on Meredith's face had been calculating, watchful, and her step had been stealthy. As if she were trying to do something without being seen. â€Å"She'll come back in a minute when she sees we're not down there,† Bonnie said, but Meredith didn't come back in a minute, or two, or three. In fact, it was almost ten minutes before she appeared, and then she looked startled to see Stefan and Bonnie waiting for her. â€Å"Sorry, I got held up,† she said coolly, and Stefan had to admire her self-possession. But he wondered what was behind it, and only Bonnie was in a mood to chat as the three of them left school. â€Å"But last time you used fire,† Elena said. â€Å"That was because we were looking for Stefan, for a specific person,† Bonnie replied. â€Å"This time we're trying to predict the future. If it was just your personal future I was trying to predict, I'd look in your palm, but we're trying to find out something general.† Meredith entered the room, carefully balancing a china bowl full to the brim with water. In her other hand, she held a candle. â€Å"I've got the stuff,† she said. â€Å"Water was sacred to the Druids,† Bonnie explained, as Meredith placed the dish on the floor and the three girls sat around it. â€Å"Apparently, everything was sacred to the Druids,† said Meredith. â€Å"Shh. Now, put the candle in the candlestick and light it. Then I'm going to pour melted wax into the water, and the shapes it makes will tell me the answers to your questions. My grandmother used melted lead, and she said her grandmother used melted silver, but she told me wax would do.† When Meredith had lit the candle, Bonnie glanced at it sideways and took a deep breath. â€Å"I'm getting scareder and scareder to do this,† she said. â€Å"You don't have to,† Elena said softly. â€Å"I know. But I want to-this once. Besides, it's not these kind of rituals that scare me; it's getting taken over that's so awful. I hate it. It's like somebody else getting into my body.† â€Å"Anyway, here goes. Turn down the lights, Meredith. Give me a minute to get attuned and then ask your questions.† In the silence of the dim room Elena watched the candlelight flickering over Bonnie's lowered eyelashes and Meredith's sober face. She looked down at her own hands in her lap, pale against the blackness of the sweater and leggings Meredith had lent her. Then she looked at the dancing flame. â€Å"All right,† Bonnie said softly and took the candle. Elena's fingers twined together, clenching hard, but she spoke in a low voice so as not to break the atmosphere. â€Å"Who is the Other Power in Fell's Church?† Bonnie tilted the candle so that the flame licked up its sides. Hot wax streamed down like water into the bowl and formed round globules there. â€Å"I was afraid of that,† Bonnie murmured. â€Å"That's no answer, nothing. Try a different question.† Disappointed, Elena sat back, fingernails biting into her palms. It was Meredith who spoke. â€Å"Can we find this Other Power if we look? And can we defeat it?† â€Å"That's two questions,† Bonnie said under her breath as she tilted the candle again. This time the wax formed a circle, a lumpy white ring. â€Å"That's unity! The symbol for people joining hands. It means we can do it if we stick together.† Elena's head jerked up. Those were almost the same words she'd said to Stefan and Damon. Bonnie's eyes were shining with excitement, and they smiled at each other. â€Å"Watch out! You're still pouring,† Meredith said. Bonnie quickly righted the candle, looking into the bowl again. The last spill of wax had formed a thin, straight line. â€Å"That's a sword,† she said slowly. â€Å"It means sacrifice. We can do it if we stick together, but not without sacrifice.† â€Å"What kind of sacrifice?† asked Elena. â€Å"I don't know,† Bonnie said, her face troubled. â€Å"That's all I can tell you this time.† She stuck the candle back in the candleholder. â€Å"Whew,† said Meredith, as she got up to turn on the lights. Elena stood, too. â€Å"Well, at least we know we can beat it,† she said, tugging up the leggings, which were too long for her. She caught a glimpse of herself in Meredith's mirror. She certainly didn't look like Elena Gilbert the high school fashion plate anymore. Dressed all in black like this, she looked pale and dangerous, like a sheathed sword. Her hair fell haphazardly around her shoulders. certainly didn't look like Elena Gilbert the high school fashion plate anymore. Dressed all in black like this, she looked pale and dangerous, like a sheathed sword. Her hair fell haphazardly around her shoulders. â€Å"You could go somewhere else,† Bonnie suggested. â€Å"I mean, after this is all over, you could finish the school year someplace where nobody knows you. Like Stefan did.† â€Å"No, I don't think so.† Elena was in a strange mood tonight, after spending the day alone in the barn watching the snow. â€Å"Bonnie,† she said abruptly, â€Å"would you look at my palm again? I want you to tell my future, my personal future.† â€Å"I don't even know if I remember all the stuff my grandmother taught me†¦ but, all right, I'll try,† Bonnie relented. â€Å"There'd just better be no more dark strangers on the way, that's all. You've already got all you can handle.† She giggled as she took Elena's outstretched hand. â€Å"Remember when Caroline asked what you could do with two? I guess you're finding out now, huh?† â€Å"Just read my palm, will you?† â€Å"All right, this is your life line-† Bonnie's stream of patter broke off almost before it was started. She stared at Elena's hand, fear and apprehension in her face. â€Å"It should go all the way down to here,† she said. â€Å"But it's cut off so short†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She and Elena looked at each other without speaking for a moment, while Elena felt that same apprehension solidify inside herself. Then Meredith broke in. â€Å"Well, naturally it's short,† she said. â€Å"It just means what happened already, when Elena drowned.† â€Å"Yes, of course, that must be it,† Bonnie murmured. She let go of Elena's hand and Elena slowly drew back. â€Å"That's it, all right,† Bonnie said in a stronger voice. Elena was gazing into the mirror again. The girl who gazed back was beautiful, but there was a sad wisdom about her eyes that the old Elena Gilbert had never had. She realized that Bonnie and Meredith were looking at her. â€Å"That must be it,† she said lightly, but her smile didn't touch her eyes.

Essay Analysis of “The Great Gatsby” Plot

Just as the majority of works of literature, â€Å"The Great Gatsby† consists of several key sections, which are the following: the initial point, the conflict situation, complication of the plot, climax, suspense and the end. Let’s have a quick look at all of them. The Initial Situation Nick Carraway (the one who is our narrator) gets back from the WWI and makes a decision to rent a house in the small town West Egg, which is located on the Long Island. Guess, who precisely turns out to be his neighbors living across the bay? Cousin Daisy and her husband Tom. Jay Gatsby that Nick is living next door to is a newcomer in the town, who has a tough wallet and throws the biggest parties every week. While having fun at Gatsby’s house, the guests never miss a chance to snub him for how rich he is, while drinking his booze. Do you think it’s a good background for the conflict? You’re right. Conflict Maybe you can call me? Gatsby is longing for something he cannot reach to: Daisy and the upper class of the USA. Tom is also willing to have something he can’t have: a wife and a lover, both of whom do not know about each other. Nick desires something that he is 100% not going to get: make every crazy individual he knows less crazy. Complication Jay Gatsby, here goes James Gatz! Tom Buchanan dislikes Gatsby the very moment they meet, even before he gets to know of why and how is Daisy weeping over amazing Gatsby’s shirts. He performs a thorough investigation over Gatsby’s life. It turns out that this â€Å"newbie† is James Gatz, a poor man who had succeeded to earn everything he has from bootlegging liquor and gambling. Climax The Love Triangle Gatsby and Tom definitely have a tense. At the same time, they realize who gets an opportunity to take control over Daisy. And oh-my-God, Tom is the winner! He decides to seal the victory by letting them to go home together. But on their way back, Tom and Nick, who drive in same car, find out that Myrtle (Tom’s lover) died because she was knocked by a speeding yellow car, in which, according to its description, were Daisy and Gatsby. It seems that a light-speed rise to the top may come along with the casualties. Suspense When Everything Goes Wrong Gatsby spends every night simply watching the house of Daisy. He’s worried that Tom may hurt her in some way. Personally I am not ready to judge or blame Tom: he broke the nose of his lover just for saying the name of his beloved one. What will happen to our fearless anti-hero? Wrapping up When the story is over Tom and Daisy run away. Jordan and Nick break up. Gatsby followed the light. What you end with is the dismal funeral of the protagonist. Among those who come to say goodbye to Gatsby one may see his father, Nick and a stranger with owl eyes who’s been amazed by the books of Gatsby. This is when Nick makes his conclusive statement: â€Å"we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past. This was an example of the Great Gatsby essay, written by the writers of our custom writing service. To buy an essay on the necessary topic, please, fill in the Free Inquiry form in the top right corner of this page.

Civil Disobedience Are We Morally Obliged to Obey Unjust...

Are we morally obliged to obey even unjust laws? This moral question addresses what we commonly know as civil disobedience. In order to properly discuss civil disobedience and whether or not it is moral to disobey laws, we must first characterize civil disobedience. In Peter Singers book, Practical Ethics he begins to characterize civil disobedience as arising from ethical disagreement and raising the question of whether to uphold the law, even if the law protects and sanctions things we hold utterly wrong? (Singer 292). Henry David Thoreau wrote an essay entitled Civil Disobedience that was published in 1854 in the collection of essays called Walden; or Life in the Woods. Thoreau first wrote of civil disobedience in opposition†¦show more content†¦Committing one violent act lessens the resistance to another violent act (Singer 310). There are other arguments for specific types of violence, but we are talking about civil disobedience, not violent disobedience. We must first discuss why we should obey laws to begin with. Singer gives two arguments in favor of obeying laws. He explains that first; people do not voluntarily refrain from hurting others so we need laws to deal with these matters. Secondly, we must have some kind of machinery to deal with the lawbreakers (Singer 296). Singer also reminds us that these two arguments for obeying law are neither universally applicable nor conclusive (Singer 297). Civil disobedience itself can be viewed the same way. It must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. There are rules as to what civil disobedience is, but there is no clear-cut universal answer in deciding to be civilly disobedient (Singer 297). Civil disobedience is about purposefully disobeying a law or rule to make a point, to try and change laws and rules in a specific situation, and is disobedience that is executed in a non-violent manner. Having characterized civil disobedience we can now discuss reasons for why people may act civilly disobedient. Singer explains that there are reasons to obey established laws, and the reason to obey is stronger when the law is established in a democratic manner and represents a majority view. However thereShow MoreRelated Civil Disobedience: Are We Morally Obliged to Obey Unjust Laws? 2003 Words   |  9 PagesAre we morally obliged to obey even unjust laws? This question raises the discussion of what we call civil disobedience. 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Every individual has a choice either agree with the laws that the majority of the population has established or think for yourself, will you be the minority and choose to disobey the unjust laws and do what you thinkRead MoreMoral Responsibility1256 Words   |  6 Pagesbe where it is without the laws that have been placed and the citizens who follow the laws. In order for this to happen the knowledge and acceptance of the laws are needed to establish order. African Americans had been secluded in the past through harsh laws of se gregation. Although many believe disobeying the law is morally wrong and if disobeyed a punishment should follow, Martin Luther King’s profound statement, â€Å"One has the moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws† (King 420) leads to greaterRead MoreThe Necessary Qualities Of A Good Democratic Citizen Essay2147 Words   |  9 Pages The necessary qualities of a good democratic citizen require an individual to recognize an injustice within the law, actively oppose that law, and to do so regardless if that unjust law affects the citizen personally. Rousseau, Emerson, and Douglass all agree that freedom and equality are natural rights endowed to all humans. However the three authors diverge in consensus when envisioning the necessary qualities of a good democratic citizen, such as the position from which each author is theorizingRead MoreDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 PagesWorksheet 661 APPENDIX I GLOSSARY 673 683 APPENDIX II REFERENCES NAME INDEX 705 709 713 SUBJECT INDEX COMBINED INDEX xvi CONTENTS P R E FA C E What’s New in This Edition? Based on suggestions from reviewers, instructors, and students we have made a number of changes in the eighth edition of Developing Management Skills. †¢ Added new skill assessments in Chapter 1 and a new case in Chapter 3. †¢ Revised parts of the book to reflect suggestions and feedback from instructors and students