The King Lears Enlightenment English Literature Essay

The King Lears Enlightenment English Literature Essay In King Lear, Lear goes through a process of attaining a true insight of himself, human nature, and the world. At the beginning, the vanity and the self-image of ultimate power dominate his character. However, a series of loss throughout his life provides him with many precious lessons about the conception of true love, about the nature of a man after rejecting his power, and about the real poverty of people around him. After the unexpected attitude of two older daughters, Lear realizes that real love is manifested not in words. At the beginning, a strong need for praise is set as a standard which he uses to divide his kingdom among his daughters. The one who praises him most will receive the largest dowry. Lear also finds himself blind to assume his reward will ensure his accommodation in the future. However, the following reality hurts him strongly. It is also the turning point for Lear when he realizes his partial blindness and learns the lesson about true love. When his daughters are reluctant to accept him in their houses, he shouts: O, how this mother swells up toward my heart! / Histerica passio, down, thou climbing sorrow; / Thy elements below.-Where is this daughter?(7.224-226). Histerica passio is referred to one kind of mental illness, and Lears sickness is the surprise, the fear, and ultimately, the pain in his heart. His previous assumption about his daughters love is destroyed. They sa id they loved him strongly, but where is this daughter?, he disappointedly asks himself without any reply. They just show their love when they need Lears reward of property; however, when Lear needs an accommodation, no one accepts him. Lear shouts how this mother swells up toward my heart to illustrate that an extreme sorrow fills up his mind and his heart. He cannot suffer it and runs off into a storm. The power of the storm elevates the process of change within Lear. What he changes is how he sees himself and his daughters. He realizes that his daughters love is for his kingdom, not for him. O Regan, Gonoril, / Your old kind father, whose frank heart gave you all- / O, that way madness lies (11.18-20), he states. The term frank heart can be interpreted in two different ways. It may be the divided kingdom Lear gives to his daughters, or it can be his strong hope and belief toward their loves they show up in the love test. In either meaning, he gives them to his daughters already. However, now Lear receives nothing, except their ungratefulness. Their love is just a rhetorical promise, or, more painfully, a lying story. Consequently, that way makes his madness. His enlightenment also illustrates when he insists, Ha, Gonoril! Ha, Regan! They flattered me like a dog, and told me I had white hairs in my beard ere the black ones were there à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ When the rain came to wet me once, and the wind to make me chatter, when the thunder would not peace at my bidding, there I smelt them out. Go to, they are not men of their words. They told me I was everything; tis a lie, I am not ague-proof. (20.95-103). He uses an interesting metaphor the rain came to wet me to illustrate that his old assumption about his daughters love was wiped out of his mind. His suffering in the storm has brought him new insight that they are not men of their words. They swore they loved him to attain his kingdom, but then they betray their words. He subtly uses the term not argue-proof to show how desperate he is when gradually seeing the treachery of his daughters, Goneril and Regan. Argue-proof refers to the immune to fever or shivering, but, in this context, he is not argue-proof. He is a normal human-being so he still gets extreme hurt when his daughters betray their love toward him. True love should be expressed by action rather than by hollow words, and capturing that lesson requires Lear to ask for the forgiveness when he has made an error. The primary point about true love assumption is apparently illustrated when Lear meets his true daughter, Cordelia. She refused to exaggerate her love toward him and be banished, but she returned to take care of him. Experiencing her kindness, Lear easily feels that she truly loves him; consequently, he regrets about his folly treatment to her before. He offers to Cordelia, if you have poison for me, I will drink it. (21.69). Lear is in a state of illusion, but also of great humility because he knows he has wrongly punished her when it was her sisters who should have suffered that treatment. Lear shows more of his humility when he asks his daughter, Cordelia: You must bear with me. / Pray now, forget and forgive. I am old / And foolish. (21.82-84). An almighty king as Lear, of course, hardly says he is foolish, but now Lear does. It proves that Lear himself admits his previous serious blindness about love, and he gains a new visionary insight which is accompanied by a true humility. A series of loss throughout the play teaches him a lesson in common humanity. People respect him just for his title. Once he gives it up, he is totally powerless and becomes a normal man like others. His position as a successful king leads him to overestimate his power, and he thinks of himself as almost a God. This perspective turns out to be a fatal mistake only when the first acts of disobedience of his daughters occur. He confusedly re-evaluates himself: Doth any her know me? / Why, this is not Lear. Doth Lear walk thus, speak thus? Where are his eyes? / Either his notion weakens, or his discerning are lethargies. Sleeping or waking, ha? / Sure, tis not so. / Who is it that can tell me who I am? / Lears shadow? I would learn that, for by the marks/ Of sovereignty, knowledge, and reason/ I should be false persuaded I have daughters (4.215-225). Many questions are raised in succession, expressing clearly Lears confusion about his real power. Sleeping or walking, ha? These terms su ggest his incredulity at what seems to happen in front of him. He always assumes he can keep his daughters in line by virtue of his authority as a father, but, in fact, he loses all of his privileged position. That reality makes him frustrated. Additionally, the self-question who is it that can tell me who I am? / Lears shadow? demonstrates that Lear begins to realize the amount of control he possesses and his position in his own kingdom. Its not Lear himself any longer, yet Lears shadow. An image of an egocentric king is replaced by one of a powerless, weak, and despised old man. The struggle in his self-esteem causes him to run madly into a storm. At this time, he acknowledges that he has nothing. Additionally, when Lear meets Tom, the beggar, in the storm, he discovers humans as no more than animals, except how we wear clothes. Clothing makes him a king and nothing else. He sees all of humanity in a bare level: Is man no more but this? Consider him well. Thou owest the worm no si lk, the beast no hide, the sheep no wool, the cat no perfume. Heres three ons are sophisticated; thou are the thing itself. Unaccommodated man is no more but such a poor, bare, forked animal as thou art. (11.92-97). By listing a lot of nice material from the animal for his clothes like silk of worm or wool of sheep, Lear illustrates that only clothing distinguishes between him and the beggar. Once they remove their clothes, they are equally unaccommodated man. Accordingly, Lear thinks the way to reach at mans essence is to uncover human nature; in particular, he strips away his clothing to cast aside his customary status as a king and therefore bring himself in line with common image of humanity embodied in the poor beggar. Clearly, Lear changes his vision about human nature in which his kingship is just a symbolic status; he is still a normal man once he rejects his coverings. During the storm, Lear also learns about the poverty of people around him. He begins to think of the poor who suffer the extreme storm with the little that they have: Poor naked wretches, wheresoeer you are, / That bide the pelting of this pitiless night, / How shall you houseless heads and unfed sides, / Your looped and windowed raggedness, defend you / From seasons such as these? (11.25-29). He effectively uses many lively words such as houseless heads or looped and windowed raggedness to draw in the readers mind a picture of how harsh the poors condition is during the storm. He raises his concern for the poor as a big question that he had never posed in his life before. By those details, Lear approaches the notion of wide sympathies with his fellow sufferers, with the naked Poor Tom, and with the poor wretches. Now he feels the same needs like others and the basics needs of human beings when struggling with the nature. O, I have taen/ Too little care of this. Take physic, pomp,/ E xpose thyself to feel what wretches feel,/ That thou mayst shake the superflux to them/ and show the heaves more just (11.29-33), he states. With the regretful tone by the term I have taen / Too little care of this, Lear now has a better idea of how he should use his power as a king. He finally realizes that the throne must associate with privileges as well as obligations. Lears new lessons involves realizing that he was blind in judging the love of his daughters toward him, that all men are equal and it is only the clothes that make them different, and that many people in his kingdom are struggling with their poverty. The self-discovery in King Lear is not just for Lear himself, but also for other characters like Gloucester or Albany. Though most characters finally paid for their late self-awareness with their lives, what would their lives have been without it? The play has a sad ending, but its lessons still remain in any audiences mind.

Network factors :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The shape of a network can take many different forms and these topologies can be connected by a variety of means. The differing topologies are Mesh, Bus, Ring and Star and each one will be examined and the advantages and disadvantages explored. These networks can be connected via Ethernet, Token Ring, Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) or wireless. Each of the connection methods will also be analyzed and the differences will be explained.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The term network topology refers to the physical layout of computers, cables, and other components that make up a network. The choice of one topology over another is important for the network professional and will have an impact on the type of equipment the network needs, the capabilities of the equipment, the growth of the network and the way the network is managed. The different types of topologies each require different communication methods and these will also have an influence on the network.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first topology to be discussed is the bus topology. It consists of devices that are connected to a common shared cable. The bus topology is the simplest and most common method of networking computers with the computers set up in a straight line. The single cable that feeds all of the computers is known as the trunk (also called backbone or segment) and connects all of the network computers in a single line. The computers communicate by addressing data to a certain computer and sending out the data onto the cable via electronic signals. The signal is sent out on the bus and only the computer whose address matches the address encoded in the original accepts the information. A disadvantage of the bus topology is that only one computer can send data at a time and this limits the number of computers that can be on the network. The more computers on the bus, the more computers will be waiting to put data on the bus and slow down network performance. Another disadvan tage is that if the trunk breaks or is becomes un-terminated, the network will cease to function since the signal will bounce. The advantage to a bus network is that if one computer on the bus fails, it will not affect the others on the bus.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A star topology has cable pieces from each computer connected to a central hub. The signals are transmitted from the sending computer through the hub to call computers on the network.

The Mummy at the Dining Room Table

The Mummy at the Dining Room Table provides many examples of unusual and difficult cases, and assures the reader that there is hope for every situation. One of the most helpful aspects of the book is that it can be used to prepare for a patient and condition, for which the therapist in not familiar. . While every patient is different, the book provides the consistent message, which therapy is helpful and people can grow and change and succeed. The book gives a large number of examples and treatment strategies that can be helpful to any clinician.Reading about the experiences of experts such as Albert Ellis, William Glasser and Jay Haley is like seeing the theories and techniques in action. The book has use for the clinician as well as the patients. It points out what clinicians learn from their clients, and how they grow as clinicians, becoming more expert and insightful. The clinician learns more about human emotion from every client in which they come in contact.One of the aspects of this book that can be intimidating to the new therapist is the creativity and expertise of the clinicians in the book. Each therapist has a unique and dynamic personality. They are interesting people. Someone new to the field, without the experience and confidence may find the case example and techniques intimidating to some degree. Reminding oneself that everyone started out as new and tentative in the field can help overcome that intimidation.These are well-known and highly successful therapists talking about their most memorable clients and situation. The book tells the stories in a dramatic, interesting and at times funny way. It is so helpful to read the behind the scenes accounts of the therapists preparation for these unusual case scenario. Even the most expert of therapists are always learning and researching. We learn that power of the therapeutic relationship cannot be underestimated and that even the most unusual patients and problems can be treated. Hope is an importa nt part of treatment. With insight, an open mind and hard work, success often comes. The cases situations, therapists, clients and therapeutic techniques are fascinating.The books make it clear that fieldwork, videotaping and supervision are so important. It is a reminder that our patients are real people and not subjects of an experiment. The therapist has a responsibility to be prepared and well trained. Many of the therapists in this book have done extensive research on their techniques. These therapists take a journey with their clients and are able to help them develop solutions to their problems.  Ã‚  In Chapter One, â€Å"The Man Who Wanted His Nose Cut Off†, the new therapist, Jeffrey Kottler was inwardly shocked by his client’s confession that he had been having a sexual and somewhat romantic relationship with a cow. Kottler only saw this client twice but learned an extremely valuable lesson for a therapist. He learned that the simple act of listening, in a non-judgmental way is actually therapeutic. He listened and reflected back to his client and did not judge or attempt to change or analyze anything in these two sessions.He simply listened and by the second session, it seemed that the client Manny had come to his own solution.   While Manny’s solution was not what Kottler would have though was ideal, for Manny it was apparently a fine solution for Manny and he never returned to therapy. Clients will not always complete the journey or the goal that we as therapists have in mind.My personal preference and belief system is most congruent with humanistic an existentialism. This approach to therapy is open minded, flexible, client centered and believes in the goodness of the client and of humanities ability to change and grow. Existential psychology grew from the writings of such well-known philosophers as Kierkegaard, Sartre and Camus. Much of their writings talked about the ability of human beings to come through adversity.The y focus on self-reliance and responsibility and come out on the other side with a philosophy that focused on self-reliance, authenticity, responsibility, and mortality. Rollo May, is one humanistic psychologist that translates the philosophy to psychology. His therapy focuses on the here and now and a clients freedom to choose. Existential psychology focuses less on the person’s genetics, experiences as a child or family or origin and more on the person’s perceptions, responses and conscious choices in the immediate. The existential believers see the motive for behavioral as the rift between existential anxiety and freedom.In the case of Manny, a therapist could easily be entrapped in the reasons for his sexual behavior with a cow and his apparent attraction to the cow. The therapist could look at his family history and try to determine if something led him to this behavior. Another therapist may be inclined to believe that he simply never had proper sex education and so was finding it difficult to relate to human women. Perhaps all Manny knows is how cows have sex. No matter what the reason, the treatment is to relieve Manny of his unhappiness. He came in complaining about his nose and then quickly began to talk about the cow.The key to treating many was in the relationship between the therapist and the client. As Kottler learned I believe, easing the anxiety may have been the real key to treating Manny. Relieving some of the anxiety through acceptance began the treatment process for Manny. The end result, which seemed to give Manny the freedom to pursue this bovine relationship and simply cover up the smell. This may not have been the best outcome at all and I believe there is a lesson there as well. With several more sessions, Kottler may have been able to address the anxiety Manny feels regarding relationships with humans.This certainly may have required some sex education as well as some exploration into family dynamics, but it would also ha ve required a discussion on what he wanted in terms of a romantic relationship.   He may have moved to discuss the issue of existential angst and the desire for meaningful relationships with humansKottler talks at the end of his chapter, about another patient who was distressed by his desire to dress in women’s clothing. Kottlers reaction and apparent acceptance relieved the anxiety for this man. The man was disturbed by his thought but had difficulty managing them, that was is reason for coming to treatment. Ultimately, with therapy, the man's disturbing thoughts subsided to a level he was able to accept. I believe Kottler’s examples speak about the importance of the therapeutic relationship as the major tool in therapy.With both of these patients, therapy could have, and may have   helped the person examine their relationships and make conscious choices that would relived the anxiety and fear that exists without a meaning to ones life. Manny’s future thera py might have moved him towards self-discovery and reflection that he has the ability and freedom to develop meaningful, fulfilling human relationships that result in happiness. He may have been able to discover why he was at the time, using cows for sexual gratification and how he might ultimately, and move to fulfilling intimate relationship with a human.Carl Rogers, with his humanistic focus, believes that humans are good, and desire to be the best and do the best person possible. People do not always accomplish this desire easily, which is where therapy becomes important. Manny, given the freedom to talk and lead the conversation to some extent, could have worked towards self-actualization. If Manny is disturbed by his current relationship and want to move towards relationships that he will find more fulfilling, therapy can be the key. The therapeutic environment can allow him to explore anything in a safe environment and then he can make choices for his life. Manny may have bee n able to understand the concepts of   â€Å"real self†Ã‚   versus â€Å"ideal self†, meaning what he is and what he wants to become or move towards.The many case examples in this work all speak to the hop and powerfulness of therapy and relationships. My belief in the humanistic approach is even stronger as I read these examples. People with such disturbing problems including the woman who hanged herself to test her husband and the family with the mummy at the table, all can have a positive ending. Though not perfect, and perhaps not what the therapist would want, but progress can be made.In the chapter by Carlson, with the same title as the book, a family had mummified a female member of the family. We actually learn about this because the main character of the chapter, Trina is seeking to understand herself better. She feels it is important to establish contact with her family, which we are aware is somewhat dysfunctional. As it turns out, Trina’s aunt has been mummified because the family felt that it would ease their grief. The woman died at home and so with the help of a friend in the medical field, the woman was embalmed and mummified.The family would actually sit her at the dining room table .It seems that the entire family, including her husband and children are involved with the caretaking of the mummified woman.   This example, and this family is probably the most bizarre of the books many odd cases. As a humanistic therapist, this family, if they were in treatment, would need ample time to o talk a process the decisions they had made and the reasoning behind the decisions.Addressing grief, the loss of a close personal relationship and perhaps acknowledging that many people may feel the same way about the loss of a loved one. Most people however, do not have the resources to embalm and mummify.   As with the case of Manny, the behavior is odd and troublesome and probably illegal. However, it is possible trough understandin g, flexibility, a non-judgmental attitude and hope, that the family can have a successful outcome.Each example case in the book is real and each saw some measure of success. Each therapist, no matter what he level of experience at the time of the particular case, learned something from the treatment process. While these cases are shocking and interesting to read about, their treatment process and the relationship with the therapist is not really that different from treatment with other patients.It is important for therapists to understand and look for the uniqueness in each individual and not to just seek out the unusual or overlook the more typical.   Even the most seemingly straightforward problems, can be complicated and unusual once unraveled. This was so with the case of Trina, who began in treatment to address a standard marital issue.   The key to treatment is the training and understanding of the therapist, the belief that treatment is possible and then the therapeutic r elationship..

New York Institute of Technology Admissions

New York Institute of Technology Admissions New York Institute of Technology Admissions Overview: NYIT has an acceptance rate of 73%, making its admissions not highly competitive. In general, applicants with strong applications and good grades/test scores are more likely to be admitted. To apply, those interested will need to submit an application, high school transcripts, letters of recommendation, a personal essay, and scores from the SAT or ACT. Contact the admissions office if you have any questions or concerns about the admissions process. Will You Get In? Calculate Your Chances of Getting In  with this free tool from Cappex Admissions Data (2016): NYIT Acceptance Rate: 73%GPA, SAT and ACT Graph for NYIT AdmissionsTest Scores 25th / 75th PercentileSAT Critical Reading: 460 / 570SAT Math: 490 / 610SAT Writing: - / -What these SAT numbers meanACT Composite: 22  / 27ACT English: - / -ACT Math: - / -What these ACT numbers mean New York Institute of Technology Description: New York Institute of Technology is a private research university with two New York City-area campuses in Manhattan and Old Westbury. The Manhattan campus sits adjacent to Columbus Circle on Broadway, just a short walk from Central Park, while the more suburban Old Westbury campus is located in northwestern Long Island a few miles from the Long Island Sound. NYIT also has several global campuses in Bahrain, Canada, China, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates. The university has a  student faculty ratio  of 14 to 1 and offers more than 70 undergraduate and 50 graduate programs. The most common undergraduate majors are electrical and computer engineering, communication arts, and architecture; popular graduate programs include osteopathic medicine and business administration. Outside of class, NYIT students are active on campus, participating in nearly 50 clubs and activities between the two New York campuses. The NYIT Bears compete in the NCAA Division II  East Coast Conference. T he institute fields six mens and six womens intercollegiate sports. Enrollment (2016): Total Enrollment: 7,628  (3,575 undergraduates)Gender Breakdown: 64% Male / 36% Female89% Full-time Costs (2016  - 17): Tuition and Fees: $35,160Books: $1,104  (why so much?)Room and Board: $15,446Other Expenses: $3,072Total Cost: $54,782 New York Institute of Technology Financial Aid (2015  - 16): Percentage of New Students Receiving Aid: 95%Percentage of New Students Receiving Types of AidGrants: 95%Loans: 56%Average Amount of AidGrants: $21,330Loans: $6,225 Academic Programs: Most Popular Majors:  Architecture, Biology, Communication Arts, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Interdisciplinary StudiesWhat major is right for you?  Sign up to take the free My Careers and Majors Quiz at Cappex. Transfer, Graduation and Retention Rates: First Year Student Retention (full-time students): 77%Transfer Out Rate: 41%4-Year Graduation Rate: 23%6-Year Graduation Rate: 44% Intercollegiate Athletic Programs: Mens Sports:  Lacrosse, Baseball, Track and Field, Cross Country, Soccer, BasketballWomens Sports:  Basketball, Volleyball, Cross Country, Soccer, Softball, Track and Field Data Source: National Center for Educational Statistics If You Like New York Institute of Technology, You May Also Like These Schools: NYU-Poly:  Profile  |  GPA-SAT-ACT GraphHofstra University:  Profile  |  GPA-SAT-ACT GraphDrexel University:  Profile  |  GPA-SAT-ACT GraphStony Brook University:  Profile  |  GPA-SAT-ACT GraphSt. Johns University:  Profile  |  GPA-SAT-ACT GraphPace University:  Profile  |  GPA-SAT-ACT GraphCCNY, City College of New York (CUNY):  Profile  |  GPA-SAT-ACT GraphRochester Institute of Technology:  Profile  |  GPA-SAT-ACT GraphAdelphi University:  Profile  |  GPA-SAT-ACT GraphNew York University:  Profile  |  GPA-SAT-ACT GraphSUNY Old Westbury:  Profile

Chronicle of a Death Fortold Essays - Gabriel Garca Mrquez, Santiago

Chronicle of a Death Fortold Essays - Gabriel Garca Mrquez, Santiago Chronicle of a Death Fortold Chronicle of a Death Fortold, by Gabriel Marquez, is concerned with death in life and life in death. It was rainy on the day of Santiago Nasars murder, and yet by the account of others, it was not. His death is so mingled with illusory images that everything seems mystified: much like death itself. The fact that the story is about how a death consumes the lives of the entire town as well as the victim, shows that it is concerned with death in life and asks us to evaluate our own views. Not only is the story concerned with death in life on the literary level, but the people of the town feel obliged to honor and offer gifts to a bishop that doesnt even like the town. It is perhaps because they fear if they do not keep their faith, they are putting in jeopardy their fate after death; this is the primary concern of all religions, life after death and fear of the unknown. "For years we couldnt talk about anything else. . .and it was obvious that we werent doing it from an urge to clear up mysteries but because none of us could go on living without an exact knowledge of the place and the mission assigned to us by fate"(113). "All right, girl, he said to her, trembling with rage, tell us who it was. . .Santiago Nasar, she said"(53). Whether or not Santiago Nasar was the reason behind Angela Vicarios lost honor, his death shapes and defines her life afterwards. Many in the town describe her as being a woman half in mourning and the narrator is amazed at how she ends up understanding her own life despite how much she was made to die in life(101). Chronicle of a Death Fortold makes us look at life and death and face uncertainty about our future. Because it questions death and our belief in religion, it depreciates, in a sense, our strong belief in the glories of afterlife. Like the narrator, maybe we, "couldnt bring ouselves to admit that life might end up resembling bad literature so much"(102). It makes us think that we should be content now, and not later, and that the intermingling of life and death is not purely coincidental, but perhaps one is no greater than the other.

Kosovo & Serbia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Kosovo & Serbia - Essay Example It was then that â€Å"the Slavonic tribes, mixed with the Avars, made their appearance in the Balkans, which was sparsely inhabited by many different tribes of the Illyrians, the Dardanians, the Thracians and probably others whose names have fallen into oblivion† (Almond, 1998). The present day hostility between Albanians and Serbians could be traced back to this period. Contemporary Albanians, who descended from the aforementioned tribal groups, were defeated in warfare by migrating Slavonic tribes. While some of the conquered were assimilated into Slavonic tribes, the rest took refuge in inaccessible geographic locations like mountain tops. The victorious Slavs on the other hand took control of the most fertile and irrigable lands in the region. Hence, the geography of the Balkans is an important aspect of ethnic rivalries there. â€Å"There is little doubt that the process of appropriating the possessions of the pre-existing population created a deeply felt resentment between those who lost their homes and their land and those who profited from the conquest. This hatred was transmitted from father to son over many generations and it became a constant factor in the relationship between the Serbs and the Albanians. Inherent to this feeling remained a strong desire to retake the lost areas if an opportunity appeared†. (Velebit, 1999) The other important historical development occurred during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, when Serbian leader Nemanyitch made Kosovo his capital. This meant that Serbs who made Kosovo their home were forced out of this rich and fertile piece of geography. Serbian peasants suffered the most in the process. But the balance of power continued to change through the following centuries, with no particular ethnic group able to maintain dominance over other groups and geographic locations for long. Toward the end of the fourteenth century, some of the

Management Strategies Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Management Strategies - Assignment Example This is because the opinions and the level of exposure to an industry vary with the individual. The study also elaborates how managers in other fields can fit in the management of unfamiliar fields by applying universally adapting strategies. Managers, therefore, emerge as resourceful personnel if they have a wide scope of experience rather than being centralized to one line of thinking. When Barnevick was chief executive officer at ABB, profitability was based on acquisition of firms as a means of diversity to enhance the competitiveness. The plan worked well for the firm noting the changes in profitability and the return on capital. The maxim on ‘thinking Global while acting local’ relieved massively on acquiring firms which had local impact in their respective regions. The products offered were standardized for the markets, hence global. This is evidenced by the fact that some were being exported to other areas such as Africa. While dealing with global products, the f irm was profitable. The down trend in ABB started after the change of management when Barnevick stepped down as CEO. The scenario explains the consequence of change in management in an organization. It expresses the need to hire leaders who can impart continuity in the operation. The close down of Combustion engineering was a case poor market choice. It expresses the need to research extensively before carrying out an investment. Though operating separately, firms under the same umbrella should be controlled by sound centralized structures. The competitiveness of ABB became widely challenged due to minimal bureaucracy. With a compact structure, signals of failure become detected at early stages facilitating counter action. After handing over to Lindahl, the profitability reduced to making losses due to different management styles. Lindahl, however, acted like an economist by consolidating the market to areas which offered a competitive strategy. The new CEO concentrated on using the Asian markets where costs of production were low. The case explores how managers implementing the same strategy can embrace different roles. Barnevick’s focus relied on firm acquisition while Lindahl focused on labor intensive manufacture. The new leadership strategy once again increased the profitability of the conglomerate. Lindahl’s successful leadership was not satisfactory since the position was handed over to another CEO, Jorgen Centermann, who held the position of the Automation business. Centermann’s strategy focused on customer segments. Centermann can be noted as a modern manager due to the indulgence in the use of internet in the business. The strategy introduced, however, drove the firm back to making losses rather than propel it forward. All the CEO’s above relied of the global standardization in order to enhance competitiveness. A totally different perspective came into being with the replacement of Centermann with Dormann. This CEO did not have knowledge of the electrical engineering field like the previous CEO’s. Within a short period, Dormann was able to uncover the deficiencies in the firm and set out to eliminate them. With the keen leadership, the board became aware of various investments done for the firm under the leadership of Barnevick and Lindahl. The firm unearthed interests vested in assets such as jets and armored limousines. They also discovered that pension schemes set up in the past for the two CEO’