Deception

Shakespearean Macbeth tells a timeless tale of ambition, greed and treachery. Its themes are universal in nature, as Is the construction of a tragic hero and for these reasons It continues to be relevant to audiences today. The litany of Interpretations and adoptions such as Polonaise’s 1 971 classic, give credence to the argument that Macbeth remains relevant. Macbeth, In a fashion similar to modern teens (or so the media would have us believe) has a great deal of trouble deciding the difference between moral and moral during his rise to power. Consequently, Shakespearean message is as relevant today as it was during the Elizabethan era.

Macbeth is introduced as a kinsman to the Scottish King and a brave and successful military general (l,ii, 15-23), thus earning the praise and esteem of the unfortunately though, he (perhaps Like many In my audience) allows himself to be Influenced by those “whose horrid image, doth unfix” his hair and “make his seated heart knock at his ribs”, who prophesy both further titles and kingship, immediately arousing Machete’s ambition (l, Ill, 127-129). This conflict between good and evil is not only confined to Shakespearean play. It is a theme that we see repeated over and over again in contemporary literature and film.

As a character, Macbeth is magnificent. He represents the Internal battle that forms the plot for the ma]orally of highly regarded modern films and texts such as Pollack’s Macbeth. Initially Macbeth is ambitious, but lacks the evil qualities that often see ambition fulfilled. He also, as his wife points out, is not unscrupulous enough (l, v, 4-24) nor ready to give up the honor and ‘golden opinions’ he has won. He has hysterical courage but not the moral courage needed to stand against his more determined, strong willed wife who questions his love for her and his manhood (l, vii, 39-50).

In committing regicide he violates the better part of his nature; he is so bent on putting evil on evil he becomes “steeped “so far in blood that “returning were as tedious as go lb, 136-138). The troubling question of gender representation is one that continues to be debated. 1 OFF audiences. Initially, characters in Macbeth dwell on issues of gender. Lady Macbeth manipulates her husband by questioning his manhood, wishes that she herself could e “unsexes,” and does not contradict Macbeth when he says that a woman like her should give birth only to boys.

Similarly, Macbeth provokes the murderers he hires to kill Banquet by questioning their manhood. Such acts show that both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth equate masculinity with violence and aggression. Their understanding of manhood allows the political order depicted in the play to descend into chaos. As in the multitude of controversial texts today, female characters are the source of violence and evil. The witches’ prophecies arouse Machete’s ambitions and then encourage his violent behavior; Lady Macbeth provides the brains and the will behind her husband’s plotting.

Macbeth traces the root of chaos and evil to women. While the male characters are Just as violent and prone to evil as the women, the aggression of the female characters is more striking because it goes against prevailing expectations of how women ought to behave. Ultimately, however, the play ends with a revised and less destructive definition of manhood. Malcolm consoles Macadam on the news of his family murder by encouraging him to take the news in “manly’ fashion, by seeking revenge upon Macbeth. Macadam indicates however, that Malcolm has a mistaken understanding of masculinity.

To Malcolm suggestion, “Dispute it like a man,” Macadam replies, “l shall do so. But I must also feel it as a man” (IV. Iii. 221-223). Also, at the end of the play, Seward reacts to his son’s death complacently. Malcolm responds: “He’s worth more sorrow [than you have expressed] / And that I’ll spend for him” (V. 1 1 . 16-17). Malcolm comment shows that he has learned the lesson Macadam gave him on the sentient nature of true masculinity. It also suggests that, with Malcolm coronation, order will be stored to the Kingdom of Scotland.

Macbeth with its frightening paranormal undertones will pique the interest of a generation already obsessed with the supernatural. No remake can match Shakespearean representation of the witches. Polonaise’s opening scene for example, , was rather poorly done. He made the witches look so grotesquely ugly that they distracted the audience from the important plot element of the scene: what they were saying. Unfortunately, this too was clouded: their screeching voices and constant giggling made them difficult to understand.

A witness to the film unfamiliar tit the play or Shakespearean dialogue would have been left without any idea as to the importance of the scene. Undoubtedly the underlining of the plot of Macbeth is highlighted with events that have paranormal roots. The witches, both the bloody dagger that entices Macbeth towards Dunce’s chamber and the ghost of Banquet are mystical in origin. “Art thou not a fatal vision, sensible to feeling as to sight…? Or false creation” (II, l, 41 , 42). Shortly after Dunce’s death, his horses eat each other in frenzy, symbolizing the murder of the king, which leads to this imbalance in nature.

Another relevant lesson on life, we can learn from Shakespeare, is that appearances are often deceptive. In Macbeth, things are seldom what they seem; “Fair is foul and foul is fair”. From the beginning, the play is full of ambiguity and double meanings. The play opens on a day that is extremely foul in weather and extremely fair (the battle has Just been won). The subsequent prophecies “cannot be ill, cannot be good”. In order to disguise their real motives, Lady Macbeth advises her husband to ‘look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it”. One of Dunce’s sons ladled out “Murder! In his sleep, but the other one laughed! Does Lady Macbeth really faint? Or does she simply pretend to faint to divert attention from her husband’s overacting? Does Lady Macbeth commit suicide? What is Lady Macbeth writing in her sleepwalking scene? A confession? A suicide note? A last love letter to a neglectful husband? There is also much discussion about clothing clothes provide both an identity but also conceal who you are. Point being? Beware the wolf in sheep’s clothing! In conclusion, Shakespearean deeper purpose is to show us our own lives and make s think.

The key question that Shakespeare seems to ask is this: is human society fundamentally amoral? This is a question that continues to challenge audiences. Consequently, Shakespeare movies are so numerous; they form their own sub genre. With over 250 Shakespeare movies produced, Shakespeare film adaptations such as Bag Loran’s “Romeo and Juliet”, prove that Shakespearean plays have an enduring appeal. Macbeth is the Dearth Evader of Star Wars, or if you like, Lord Voltmeter of Harry Potter; ignore his lessons at you own peril. Thank You

Your lord does know my mind; I cannot love him; Yet I suppose him virtuous, know him noble, of great estate, of fresh and stainless youth; in voices well divulged, free, learned, and valiant; and in dimension and the shape of nature a gracious person; but yet I cannot love him (Greenbelts, 1. 5. 234-239). ” Olivia defies the classic role of women- marriage. A marriage to the count would be most prosperous to her, as she will have the higher status and respect of being a married woman. He is a man most women would love to belong to, and yet, she continually refuses his attempts to win her over.

She is a literary foil, In many respects, for the queen, who also refused claims of love and adoration. Olav did not want to be ruled. After the death of her male relations, she found a new sort of freedom In the realization that she could make It on her own. Her social rank allowed her the chance to remain single and maintain a high standard of living. However, her position was not one that all women could claim for themselves. Single women of the time were the ones who were “singled” out as witches, and held as suspicious in the event of strange occurrences.

Acts of desperation ensue in the maintenance of independence in a world dominated by men. In an attempt to gain the love of Cesarean, who is in reality Viola, Olivia says to him, “By maidenhood, honor, truth, and everything, I love thee so, that, meager all thy pride, not wit nor reason can my passion hide (3. 1 . 147-149). ” She has overstepped the boundaries of being a demure, quietly submissive woman, as she charges forward In her passions. She has thrown all caution to the wind as she sets out to woo the “man” herself.

The role of wooing, traditionally a man’s Job, was upset by the forcefulness of this woman. In mom ways she could be considered an early feminist, as she strove to maintain her independence and identity apart from male dominance. She no longer cares what anyone may think of her rash display of passions, as she fulfills the typically male stereotypes. Olivia wanted Cesarean because he was, as Viola had put it, her “servant. ” Cesarean was not above her in any way. Olivia saw he was different, as he didn’t pine after her for her beauty, as others did.

He was young and entertaining to her way of life, and desire for freedom. Fear can cause one to question his personal decisions. When faced with the supposed wrath of Sir Andrew, and his sword, Viola said, “l shall be much bound to you fort; I am one that had rather go with sir priest than sir knight; I care not who knows so much of my mettle (3. 4. 247-249). ” Viola upended her role as a man by giving up the idea of valor and courage. She showed weakness In her society, where men are praised for courage and strength, all marks of manliness.

In her desire for peace rather than turmoil and triumph, she adheres to her being one or the other, but wavers in her ways. She does not feel a need to prove herself in any way that would needlessly place her in the face of danger. In taking on the role of a man, she has failed in respect of living up to the stereotypical male standard of courage. She would rather have revealed herself for who she really was in order to retain her life. And yet, she was not completely devoid of courage, as she was willing to face the uncertainties that could be in the event that she confessed.

Cross-dressing in Elizabethan society was taboo. King Henry VIII had established a law that people were to dress within their rank, as in his mind it was the clothes that made the man, which, in Viola’s case, the clothes did make the “man. The act of a woman dressing as a man caused people to question her character. She was often considered to be a prostitute, and when discovered, the sin was punishable with whipping, before she would be locked away in a hospital where she would be forced into hard labor. Even with this thought in mind, Viola’s desire to undergo the change and take on a manly fade won out. O that I served that lady, and might not be delivered to the world till I had made mine own occasion mellow, what my estate is (1. 2. 40-43)! ” With her male relations presumably dead, she, as a lower ranking Oman than the Lady Olivia, knew that women had no place in society, and no ability to inherit anything. She was, by law, left destitute. She admired Olive’s ability to remain single, even in accepting the ridicule of an intolerant society. Viola represents in many ways, the women followers who worshipped the queen’s ability and desire to withstand the pressures of society.

Accepted societal norms can lead to intolerance toward new ideas. “O, she that hath a heart of that fine frame to pay this debt of love but to a brother, how will she love, when the rich golden shaft hath killed the flock of al affections else that live in her; when liver, brain, and heart, these sovereign thrones, are all supplied, and filled her sweet perfections, with one self king (1. 1. 33-39)! ” Olivia is considered noble to give up a supposed desire to marry out of love for her deceased brother. These thoughts toward her devotion are in stark contrast to the thoughts toward Elizabeth l.

Because Elizabethan passion was to lead her country to peace and maintain the power, she was considered grotesque, as any woman who wielded power would have been. Had Olivia expressed an inclination award power rather than grief, she would likely have been received in a similar manner. Yet because she attributed her desire for singleness to the womanly traits of devotion and love, and in the same manner, grief, she was considered the epitome of womanly graces. Her true desire was, however, to maintain a sense of self beyond the dependence on a lording male figure.

Shakespeare seems to be praising Elizabethan desire for chastity in the same way that the count praises Olive’s love, as everything she felt was brought under the power of a single passion. Extremist attitudes attempt to permeate the high social ranks in order to gain ground. Maillot portrays the classic image of a Puritan. As Olive’s servant, he dreams of greatness, and wants nothing else than to marry his mistress. The notion is in itself absurd, as there are societal norms that would prevent such an unfortunate marriage.

Although social mobility was beginning to take place, there was still a division among the classes. It would have been quite out of place for a woman of Olive’s status to marry one so far beneath her. Yet, imagining how it would be between him and her uncle, Sir Toby thus, quenching my familiar smile with an austere regard of control You must amend your drunkenness (2. 5. 9-60, 66). ” The puritan church was considered quite prudish by many. Its legalism and disregard for all things not solemn caused such things as the closing of the theaters in London in 1596.

Maillot’s desire to gain the admiration of Olivia correlates to the desire by the Puritan leaders to gain the admiration of the nobility. In this way they hoped to gain control and wield their influence over society, including the aristocracy. For if it was on an equal level within the hierarchy, it could not be so easily disregarded as the Catholic Church had been at times, such as when Henry VIII proclaimed himself head of the church. The upset in the social hierarchy led to Million being deemed insane for thinking that he could reach these ends.

The supposed order of hierarchy can be upset through logic. Mourning the death of her brother, Olivia finds herself in a mental headlock with Fest the Fool. “Take the fool away… Do not hear, fellows? Take away the lady (1 Fest has challenged the respected status of the aristocracy, by turning the tables and claiming Olivia is the fool. In this way he has placed himself above her, taking on the role of wisdom that was reserved for the educated church and nobility. He has essentially placed her at the bottom of the hierarchy, as a commoner unable to reason for herself.

This upheaval to the order of societal norms takes place in a caravansaries pageant. Caravansaries behavior usually ensued before an ordained church holiday from a desire to break out of the cloister of decency expected in daily living and therefore breach the social barriers. Mockery of religion and the nobility took place through costume, lewdness, and focus on the negative aspects of human behavior. Such behavior was protected under the realm of carnival, Just as the fool’s behavior, at times disrespectful, was deemed appropriate under the safety of his title.

This attack on Olive’s wisdom proves to be truer than when it was first made, as she meets and falls for a woman, thinking her to be a man, and thus completing the idea that she is a fool. Titles are futile unless they are backed by the support of an equal mind. Not understanding the meaning of Sir Taboo’s words, Sir Andrew ignorantly says, “Nay, by my troth, I know not; but I know, to be up late is to be up late (3. 2. 4-5). ” Andrew is an unlikely knight. He acquired the title, and yet, he does not live p to it in the traditional sense of knighthood, nor does he abide by any codes.

He himself said that he dislikes policy (3. 2. 27). A knight, as part of the aristocracy, was groomed and educated to high standards, expected to fulfill his destiny in the circles of nobility. Andrew bears no marks of fine-breeding, groveling in the shadow of Sir Toby Belch, a poor specimen to hold as nobility. The notion of entropy plays into this tale of a society dominated by age old ideals, yet attacked by passions, brains, and whims. The idea claims that a closed system left to itself will become more chaotic as time passes.

Interestingly enough, Shakespearean setting of Lariat is, in itself, a closed system, cut off from reality by the sea, and further isolated from life by the fact that it was a fictitious place. Viola’s deception was but a single act, caused by the disorder and unbalance of the sea, and in effect, the unfairness of life. It leads to more confusion as the story unfolds, until a body finally steps in and puts a stop to it. The chaos and disorder of accepted norms and modes of life creates a dysfunctional world where nothing is as it seems. Things thought to be good in lose their value and Belch for example.

By doing this Shakespeare was making a statement that the high- born are, in reality, not so different from anyone else. They have the same tendencies, minds, and underneath the titles and finery, is essentially, the same man. Order is but a fade for Shakespeare, who had seen it upturned in a second through the Reformation, disease, wars, hunger, and difficulties of life. He had seen both parts of life, the low classes, and also experienced the life of a gentleman. He could relate to various aspects of life, which was in itself an effect of disorder, as the Elizabethan ideal was to maintain a static class structure and avoid social mobility.

Anderson sees biblical Scriptures to Identify our position we have with God. The work of Christ on the cross granted the believers freedom from sin’s power. Satan has no right of ownership or attenuator over us (Anderson, p. People from Anderson adjective goals were to noels Tree their spiritual bondage of their past, depression, fear, thoughts or inner voice on Scriptural conflict, Seven Steps to Freedom in Christ, and addictions through the instruction of God’s Word the provider for bondage to be broken. The author teaches six common misconceptions Christians struggles with that keep them in darkness.

Recognizing these misconceptions give the believers great insight of the powerless enemy. In chapter two the author focus on worldview pertaining to demonic influences. Western world is experiencing a paradigm shift seen in the New Age spirituality and mysticism movement. In chapter three Anderson explains that demonically oppressed Christian do not know who they are in Christ or even what it means to be called a child of God. Therefore the identity and position in Christ is unknown to the Christian. The author explains that we are transformed by the renewing of our minds.

The transformation occurs because we have the mind of Christ within us and the Holy Spirit will lead us into all truth (Anderson, p. 61). Chapter five teaches believer’s authority in Christ. They have no spiritual power or authority apart from their identity and position in Christ (Anderson, p. 77). Chapter six encourage us to dress for the battle by putting on the armor of light, which is God’s protection. The three channels of temptation in chapter nine are lust of the of the eyes, and the pride of life. The seven steps to freedom is taught in chapter hearten.

Evaluation and Critique Anderson teaches that believers’ battle in spiritual warfare is based on the believer knowledge of his or her power, authority, and identity in Christ Jesus. As Anderson moves from Western worldview to a biblical worldview required several paradigm shifts. Believers are to take a firm position in the Word of God and beware of six common misconceptions about bondage. They are strongly warns against any thought of belief of “what the early church called demonic activity we now understand to be mental illness” (Anderson, p. ). Anderson strongly stresses that if believers do not fully understand their identity and position in Christ than we will believe there is minor distinction between our belief and Non- Christians. Satan, the accuser, will take that opportunity, pour on the guilt, and question our salvation” (Anderson, p. 48). The influence that Satan and his demons can have on us is a matter of degree. Since we live in a world whose god is Satan, the possibility of being tempted, deceived, and accused is continuously present” (Anderson, p. 187).

Deception is the pop strategy that Satan uses to keep the believers struggling for freedom in Christ. Alehouses “tenure primary avenues tongue wanly Satan wall attempt to Alehouse us from God’s truth and deceive us into believing his lies: self-deception, false prophets/teachers, and deceiving spirits” (Anderson, p. 167). The book has been written based on Biblical Scriptural, wisdom, knowledge, and spiritual divine revelation of the gifted Anderson who has became a mighty Warrior in the spiritual warfare battle with Satan deceptions.

Anderson speak with boldness on our position in Christ for obtaining freedom in Christ, “Choosing truth, living a righteous life, and donning the armor of God are each believer’s individual responsibility. I cannot be responsible for you, and you cannot be responsible for me” (Anderson, p. 193). Personal Application Anderson different aspects of bondage breaker has placed a spiritual burden upon my heart continues to stand firm in the true Word of God so that my life will be a life lived righteously, marked by wearing the armor of God for maintaining my responsibility to walk free with Christ.

Each day after studying this book I placed a greater expectations upon y self to memorize the teaching that Anderson has shared in his book that will enhanced my spiritual insight on Satin’s deception for keeping me struggling to maintain my freedom in Christ. The most common misconceptions auto Tonnage NAS no power control on my Delete regarding Satin’s subtle deception and intrusion into the lives of “normal” believers. Living Free in Christ is my main objective goal as a servant in Christ. As a good Christian not being deceived is my primary mission because “Freedom in Christ is my inheritance as a Christian”(Anderson, p. 7). The knowledge I have acquired from Andersen’s aspects on bondage freedom in Christ grants me the ability to pursue in helping others to know that it is their individual responsibility as a believer to repent and believe the truth that will set them free. The Word of God, says that I have Every Right to Be Free in Christ because the Scriptures tells me who I am in Christ therefore I will work harder to be victorious over Sin and Death. I study and memorize Anderson aspects of bondage breaker for helping other believers to overcomes the six common misconceptions about spiritual bondage.

According to the commercial speech doctrine, only deceptive speech that is considered commercial may be regulated. General deceptive speech is not commercial, may not be regulated. When deciding what may and may not be regulated, it is important to understand the subtle differences in what is considered commercial and non commercial speech. An analyzation of false advertising would give further understanding to the notion of commercial speech and how it may be degenerative to a society when untruthful.

Commercial Speech

According to the Supreme Court, the definition of commercial speech is a “combination of a core notion surrounded by a penumbral boundary defined on the basis of three characteristics” (Howard, 1991). This “core notion” of commercial speech is “speech which does ‘no more than propose a commercial transaction’” [1] Beyond this notion exists a body of commercial speech identified in the Bolger v. Youngs Drug Prods. Corp. 1983 case by whether the speech is as an advertisement, whether the speech refers to a specific product, or whether the speaker is economically motivated. 2] Although individually these characteristics are insufficient to establish speech as commercial, the combination of all three offers a strong argument for describing commercial speech. Advertising The Merriam-Webster dictionary lists an advertisement as something that is shown of presented to the public to help sell a product or to make an announcement. In short advertising may be described as a public notice published in the press or broadcast over the air.

Many societies receive a bulk of their daily information from advertisements selling physical products, attempting to sway opinions, and introducing new ideas. The increase in media technology has opened a doorway to deliver a constant stream of information including advertisements that may be biased or altogether misleading. Current social network sites allow users to “like” or “check-in” to retailers and offer their own perception of goods and services. These social networks allow for the “word of mouth” method of advertising to increase in effectiveness due to the widespread availability of technology.

Commercial speech is typically given limited First Amendment protections; however, there exists two types of commercial speech that are exempt from any protection whatsoever. Advertising that is false, misleading, or deceptive is given no protection by the government. Advertising that show cases unlawful goods or services will also receive zero protection from the government (Pember & Calvert, 2011). Doctrine The Commercial Speech Doctrine was developed to outline which protected commercial speech may be regulated.

While little to no rights are granted to misleading ads or unlawful goods and services, protected commercial speech may also be subject to regulation if: there is substantial state interest to justify regulation, there is evidence that the regulation directly advances this interest, or there is reasonable fit between the state interest and the government regulation (Pember & Calvert, 2011). Before a state decides to regulate commercial speech that has presumed protection under the First Amendment, that state must assert a reasonable cause for wanting to regulate the speech.

For example: a billboard that is blocking the view of drivers on the street nearby would be reasonable cause for regulating that speech. The state must next prove that this regulation of speech has directly effected the interest at which it was aimed. For example: the removal of the billboard must show a decrease in traffic violations in the area. Finally, the state must show that the regulation of commercial speech has been narrowly tailored to fit a specific interest. For example: the regulation involving the removal of a billboard must be specific to that particular billboard.

Following these guidelines allows for a state to regulate commercial speech that is not misleading or unlawful in goods or services.

Fraud, Falsity, and Misleadingness

In 1981, J. Edward Russo, Barbara L. Metcalf, and Debra Stephens identified three approaches to unjust advertising. Each view parallels the three components of advertising communication. “Fraud focuses on the advertiser and assumes a deliberate intent to create false beliefs about the product. Falsity in advertising refers to the existence of a claim-fact discrepancy. Misleadingness focuses exclusively on consumer beliefs” (Russo, Metcalf, & Stephens, 1981).

Advertisers who display low ethics and advertise deliberate misinformation are guilty of fraud; however, it remains an impractical approach. Proving a “deliberate intent” to mislead through an advertisement is difficult and may be irrelevant to the harm caused to consumers. Although, major industry regulator, the National Advertising Division (NAD) of the Better Business Bureau, does not generally require proof of fraud to remove an ad from publication, this does not apply in all situations (Russo, Metcalf, & Stephens, 1981). Falsity in advertising occurs when a claim is made that is not documented with fact.

For example: a company advertises that a product with fly, but the product does not fly. Falsity is easily verified by proving that a discrepancy exists between advertisement and reality. Insufficiency of falsity occurs when an ad generates a consumer belief of falsity, even though one has not been directly stated. Misleadingness, the third view, focuses entirely on what consumers believe. “A demonstration of misleadingness requires the observation of false consumer beliefs in conjunction with exposure to the ad” (Russo, Metcalf, & Stephens, 1981).

If an ad is believed to be in violation of this, it must prove that there is a direct relation between the release of the ad and change in societal belief. The Federal Trade Commission refocused its approach to misleadingness by focusing little on the actual message and more on the resulting consumer beliefs.

References

1.  Virginia State Bd. of Pharmacy v. Virginia Citizens Consumer Council, Inc., 425 U. S. 748, 762 (1976) (quoting Pittsburgh Press Co. v. Pittsburgh Comm’n on Human Relations, 413 U. S. 376, 385 (1973)).
2. Bolger v. Youngs Drug Prods. Corp. 463 U. S. 60, 66-67 (1983).
3. Howard, A. (1991). The constitutionality of deceptive speech regulations: Replacing the commercial speech doctrine. Case Western Reserve Law Review, 41(4), 1093. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
4. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
5. Pember, D. R. , and Calvert, C. (2011). Mass media law. 17th ed. Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill.
6. Russo, J. , Metcalf, B. L. , & Stephens, D. (1981). Identifying Misleading Advertising. Journal of Consumer Research, 8(2), 119-131. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Power can change people in a way that is incomprehensible. Power can make one so greedy that they will do anything for it and won’t let anyone, or thing stand in their way. In William Shakespeare’s tragic play, Macbeth, characterization is used to show that looks are deceiving when power is involved. When a person uses deception to acquire power, the consequences will be fatal and one’s fate will result in demise. When one becomes aware of their glorious future, they will do anything to acquire it.

Macbeth becomes corrupted because of the power he could possess. Macbeth seems like the person who would not commit the act of murder as he has a conscious. This is known because at the beginning of the play, Lady Macbeth is the one to commit the crime. In this dialogue between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, Macbeth expresses his concerns and Lady Macbeth reassures him. Macbeth: “If we should fail? ” Lady Macbeth: “… screw your coverage to the sticking place. And we’ll not fail” (1. 7. 67-69).

Lady Macbeth then goes on to explain the plan and reassures Macbeth by saying “When in swinish sleep their drench natures lies as in death, what cannot you and I perform upon th’ unguarded Duncan? What not put upon his spongy officers, who shall bear the quilt of our great quell? ” (1. 7. 77-82). Macbeth was evidently unsure about this and needed a great deal of reassurance to finally go through with it. Even though Macbeth’s gut instinct at first was not to commit the murder, he gives in to his wife and goes through with it.

Despite that Macbeth is appalled by his deed, he still goes on to kill more people to secure his position. By the end of the novel, the other lords and everyone else have realized Macbeth is not fit for king and Angus states “Now does he feel his title hang loose about him, like a giant’s robe upon a dwarfish thief” (5. 2. 23-25). Macbeth is realizing that his robes, (roles), are too big for him too fill. He cannot fulfill the responsibilities of a king. Soon after Macbeth is slain for being a traitor as well as a murderer.

Macbeth’s priorities are not straight as a result of his avarice of power. Power is capable of making one so greedy that they will do anything in order to acquire it. Lady Macbeth’s attitude towards power is somewhat similar to Macbeth’s. At the beginning of the play, when Lady Macbeth reads the letter from her husband telling her about the witches, it can be clearly seen that she will be willing to risk anything to see Macbeth as king. Her opinion about murder is that if it helps her to get what she wants, she’s in favor of it.

When Macbeth has his doubts, Lady Macbeth manipulates Macbeth when she call upon “… spirits that tend on mortal thoughts… ” to “Stop up th’ access and passage to remorse that to compunctious visitings of nature shake my fell purpose… ” (1. 5. 47-48 and 51-53). What Lady Macbeth is saying here is that it is as if she were tearing her heart out to make her husband king. Her sole purpose for murder seems to prove that she has been successful in emptying herself of human feeling. Lady Macbeth seems to lie effortlessly. This trait she has shows that all she wants is power and nothing else.

Lady Macbeth believes that worrying over things you cannot alter is a waste of time, “A little water clears us of this deed” (2. 2. 86). Lady Macbeth announces that the deed is done and there will not be any remorse. This makes one believe Lady Macbeth has no guilt, but by the end of the play it is clearly understood that Lady Macbeth is not as simple as she seems. The gentlewoman is observing Lady Macbeth sleepwalking, along with the doctor, and remarks “It is an accustomed action with her to seem thus washing her hands” (5. 1. 30-32).

To the gentlewoman it appears as if Lady Macbeth’s continuous action of washing her hands is a custom. Lady Macbeth, on the other hand, is trying to wash Duncan’s blood off of her hands, which contradicts Lady Macbeth’s earlier actions of saying “A little water clears us of this deed” (2. 2. 86). Her actions now reveal that she does indeed have guilt and fear because she kills herself to escape the horrible nightmares that torment her. Lady Macbeth is a fascinating character. She has immense strength and determination, but by the end, even her greed for power could not stand up to the guilt she faced.

It can be said that Lady Macbeth has struggled with her guilt every bit as much as Macbeth has with his. It can be seen that power can corrupt. Power is something that if placed in the wrong hands, can spoil a lot. Those who crave superiority will do anything to obtain it such as lying and manipulating. The greed for power can make people do outrageous things, and once the power gets into the wrong hands, it will be abused, and can disrupt the sort order that power is supposed to hold within the society.

1. Introduction

It is generally accepted that a CEO of organization must be a competent person or must what he or she is doing in how to run the corporation in term of attaining the corporate goals and objectives. With the CEO at the helm the organization, the same person is in the best position to influence the direction of the organization in the attainment of corporate goals and objectives. But before objectives must be met there are choices that must be made by the same CEO which must be guided by organization’s philosophy and which indispensably code of conducts that would the company’s philosophy.  As such ethics must come into play. Ethics is therefore a matter of choice but it since it includes the CEO as the major decision maker in the success of the organization.  Moreover, it is worth investigating whether ethical value or ideology of the CEO is also important to the organization in making choices for the organization as decisions are made.  This paper will therefore answer the question:  Does the ethical value of the CEO matter in the organization that he or she leads?

This paper seeks to write a literature review using three articles that would attempt to critically evaluate whether the ethical value or ideology of the CEO really matterss in organizations.  The articles include the following: (1) “The Effect of Ethical Orientation and Professional Commitment on Earnings Management Behavior” by Greenfield, Jr, et. al; (2)  “The Escalation of Deception”  by Fleming and Zyglidopoulos;[1]  and (3)  “The CEO’s influence on corporate foundation giving” by Werbel and Carter.

2. Analysis and Discussion

2.1 “The Effect of Ethical Orientation and Professional Commitment on Earnings Management Behavior”

        In making their work entitled “The Effect of Ethical Orientation and Professional Commitment on Earnings Management Behavior,” Greenfield, Jr, et. al,[2] upheld the importance of ethical value of the CEO when they directly found  the clear impact of a person’s ethical ideology or value and his or her level of professional commitment on the earnings management decision. The authors used  of 375 undergraduate business majors as sample in their research and the  results of their analysis revealed an individual’s ethical orientation and decision-making which are significantly related to each other by statistical computations.[3] That ethical orientation or ideology to have significant relationship with ethical decision making may not be hard to accept since to make a decisions essentially involves invoking values and beliefs of the decision maker in a particular situation.  This ideology may be called a bias but the most important is that it matters in following a certain choice.

The study made by the authors primarily found that person’s ethical orientation acts as a go-between an implied relationship of such person’s personal benefit and earnings management behavior.  The study in effect further improved or created an explanation of previous research on the matter asserts that inclination to participate in earnings management came was due mostly to personal benefit mostly.  They pointed out that one’s ethical position partakes of equal if not of greater importance in understanding earnings management behavior.  The authors specifically refer to relativistic ethical orientation of a person to more likely influence a CEO to engage in earnings management practices as compared to one which is idealistic.[4]

 Using Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) which the authors claim to allow some discretion on the part of decision maker to make a choice to what will be used in the organization way of computing its income or earnings per share; they did found evidence of an impact of an ethical belief on managing earnings.[5] An earnings per share is computed essentially dividing net income of a given year divided by average outstanding share.

It may be pointed out however that with the authors finding that ethical position is equally or more important than personal benefit in understanding behavior, they impliedly appear in a sense to have separated personal benefit from ethical orientation and made finding for the latter.

What they claimed as decisions allowed by GAAP after citing relevant authorities, include the capacity of business to report income that had not yet been earned and the stability of income reporting or income smoothing. They cited the experiences of Enron, Allied Carpet and Sunbeam to prove their assumptions.[6] The authors may have cited works where they assumed that GAAP allows certain decisions but this researcher has some reservations on the validity of assumption. Thus without actually accepting the validity of the assumption used since GAAP is for accrual accounting where it would allow what is earned to be recognized only than what is collected, the findings of authors may still be given credit if they just meant that doing such what they apparently referred as what GAAP allows are part of the choice of respondents to their study.

A finding that a level of professional commitment is related to the earnings management decision was also made known and explained by the authors.  In this aspect, they found that personally committed person are less likely to behave opportunistically.[7] The fact that persons with higher levels of professional commitment would have less attraction to engage in earnings management practices and to behave opportunistically clearly speaks for the important of ethical values of CEO that may be measured by level of professional commitment to the organization that they are working.  The study appears to have the limitation that respondents are not actual managers or CEOs but were just undergraduate majors in which case their finding could have some degree of speculation.

The authors also stated the existing research on earnings management reports entail the managers’ employing of different ways to manage earnings in accomplishing different objectives.[8]  Said objectives may benefit the manager only or the company represented or both. Citing Clikeman and Henning, they separated the benefits into three kinds or as stated.[9] The ideal objective is of course to benefit the company only because of the agency theory[10] that supports the primacy of the interest of stockholders above those of the officers.[11]  From this they did find personal benefit have impacted earnings management behavior with ethical orientation assuming the roles of a go-between.

2.2 “The Escalation of Deception”

 In “The Escalation of Deception”[12] Fleming and Zyglidopoulos found that a single lie if it will remained undetected at the start could actually escalate into such a degree that could affect the whole organization. The authors basically have argued that deception is a specific case of corruption from other wrongdoing as to way to emphasize the importance of its effect on organization.

Citing the number of organizations like the case Enron, WorldCom and other companies that collapsed because of corruption which started with undetected deception, the authors argued for the need to stop deception at the early bud before it could affect the whole organization.  They also asserted that understanding deception as separate act of corruption from other wrongdoing separately affords one to understand the refinements of lying.[13]  There is basis to believe the analysis of the authors since there are indeed a number of possibilities from a single act of deception or in certain case deception may be just considered just an element of other wrongdoings. Or possibly there are really other wrongdoings which may not necessarily include deception.

But it could not be denied that an organization lacking integrity is an organization will not last. Given the principles of agency theory where everything is almost based on trust between the agent and principal, lying should be the last thing that should be allowed in an organization.  If officers of the corporation could not be trusted by the stockholders, then there is no use to making them as them agents who are considered as stewards of the corporate property.  CEO then must be a man of integrity if he or she is to lead an organization that runs on ethics. Stockholders under the agency theory[14] are likewise to act with integrity to their creditors since their relationship entail great respect for trust confidence which must have a solid and unshakable foundation on integrity.

2. 3 “The CEO’s influence on corporate foundation giving”

The importance of ethical value of a CEO is further supported by the work of Werbel and Carter, which deals the propriety of an organization giving acts of altruism to foundations which may badly need funds.[15]  The study involved actual CEOs this time instead of undergraduate majors as respondent. Werbel and Carter have in effect validated the arguments of some scholars that a CEO may have excessive influence on their foundation to support the CEO’s personal causes.[16] This means that that any charitable giving by CEO from corporate funds may be tainted with some not ethical at all because the same is motivated by the personal interests of said CEO rather than the organization. The CEO may be therefore lying to his or her teeth when he or she pretends to be promoting the interest of the organization when the act of giving or donating funds to foundations of which they are connected.

He or she could in fact be just increasing their influence to the organization because he or she is also an officer to that foundation that receives the funds.  The CEO cannot therefore invoke giving to a foundation of which he or she is connected directly or indirectly as a matter ethical obligation from a deontological perspective because conflict on interest is really evident.  CEOs are heads of corporations and they occupy great political influence as far as corporate funds are concerned. Doing things with conflict of interest will transgress the principles of agency theory and stewardship theory on the ground that the effect would be to put the personal interest of the CEO over that of the stockholders. The stockholders are the principals through the corporation and the CEO as part of the officers who are agent of the stockholders acting through the corporation.

3. Conclusion

The ethical values of the CEO do matter in the organization that he/she leads as the same could lead to downfall of the organization.  The work of Greenfield, Jr, et. al, found that a CEO’s ethical orientation or ideology does have significant relationship with ethical decision-making. It must be easy to accept this finding since to decide is to invoke values and beliefs of the decision maker in a particular situation. The authors’ finding  that ethical position is equally or more important than personal benefit in understanding behavior after they attempted in the paper to separate personal benefit from ethical orientation does support the need for the CEO to have ethical value. Their distinction of relativistic orientation from idealistic orientation where the first would engage more in earning management practices is also very much confirmatory of the relevance of having the proper ethical value for the CEO.  Earning management could result to scandals since managers may be preparing their financial reports by extending the limit of what GAAP may ideally provide.

It must be pointed however that authors have cited works of other researchers where they assumed that GAAP allows certain things to happen like the allowing business to report income that is still not earned, a stability of income reporting citing as example case of Enron, Allied Carpet and Sunbeam which this present researcher does not readily accept. However if what is just meant by the authors was to include all the possibility of doing things including those that possibly violated GAAP which in a sense became part of the choice  or respondent, this researcher would be ready to accept the part of the conclusion that may result to choosing what is unethical. This is on the premise that if the other decisions are allowed by GAAP the respondent could not be choosing unethical ones.

The authors’ further found that persons with higher levels of professional commitment would have less attraction to engage in earnings management practices and to behave opportunistically which again strengthens the thesis of this paper that CEO which must have ethical values.  However, since respondents are undergraduate majors and not actual managers or CEOS, this researcher makes reservation that there could be some speculative part of the conclusions made by authors.  Moreover, the study’s claim to have isolated personal benefit from the other objective of solely benefiting the company or both the CEO and the company and allow them to focus on ethical orientation and its effect on earnings management behavior is also taken with caution. This is on the ground that their success in actually separating personal benefit from the two to possibility appears is a difficult thing to do.

The importance of having the ethical values of the CEO gets further support from Fleming and Zyglidopoulos, who have asserted that deception could escalate in an organization and in a way that it can even consume the organization. The authors separated deception as a specific case of corruption from other wrongdoing to emphasize the importance of its effect on organization.  Citing collapse of organizations like the case Enron, WorldCom and other companies, it not difficult to believe the great connection of lack of ethics of the CEO and the failure of the organizations they lead.[17] By asserting that deception is separate from other wrongdoing, the authors have in effect emphasized the need to understand deception as a serious that would require the organization to address the same in making the code of ethics of organizations to prevent any kind of deception or even lying that could put the company in danger of losing its credibility.

Since the authors are basically suggesting a prevention of the escalation by managers, all fingers are pointed to the CEO who has the primarily responsibility and control leading an organization with integrity as a rule.  CEO must have integrity or must possess the requisite moral values and must not allow deception to reach an irreversible point.

Although the first two articles are empirical research works they sound to in need of actual applications.  Incidentally the work of Werbel and Carter (2002) could provide a classic example.  Since this study involved actual CEOs as this time, the theory of this paper may appear more convincing and more attuned CEO should not be easily trusted in term of giving help to foundations in the guise of promoting the interest of the company represented. The CEO may not therefore invoke giving as an ethical obligation from a deontological perspective because his or her interest is conflict with giving to charitable foundations as this violate the principles of agency theory and stewardship theory. The CEO should be serving first the stockholders before his own.  With the authors’ finding of significance from the difference of greater giving if the CEO is affiliated with a found than when there is no relationship is  a  proof that philanthropic giving is not always good for the organization because it would just result to benefit of CEO at the expense of the organization.   Every act of giving for altruistic purposes is not always good if the CEO benefit personally at expense of the organization the he or she is representing.

Works Cited

Bowie and Freeman, Ethics and Agency Theory: An Introduction, Oxford University Press, 1992

Fleming and Zyglidopoulos, The Escalation of Deception, Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 81:837–850

Greenfield, Jr, et. al, The Effect of Ethical Orientation and Professional Commitment on Earnings Management Behavior,  Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 83:419–434

Werbel and Carter, The CEO’s influence on corporate foundation giving, Journal of Business Ethics (2002).  Vol. 40,  Iss. 1,  Part 3  pp. 47-60

[1] Fleming and Zyglidopoulos,  The Escalation of Deception,  Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 81:837–850

[2] Greenfield, Jr, et. al, The Effect of Ethical Orientation and Professional Commitment on Earnings Management Behavior,  Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 83:419–434

[3] Greenfield, Jr, et. al, The Effect of Ethical Orientation and Professional Commitment on Earnings Management Behavior,  Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 83:419–434

[4]  Greenfield, Jr, et. al, The Effect of Ethical Orientation and Professional Commitment on Earnings Management Behavior,  Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 83:419–434

[7] Greenfield, Jr, et. al, The Effect of Ethical Orientation and Professional Commitment on Earnings Management Behavior,  Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 83:419–434

[9] Ibid, citing Clikeman, and Henning, The Socialization of Undergraduate Accounting Students, Issues in Accounting Education (2000) 15 (February), 1–17

[10]  Bowie and Freeman, Ethics and Agency Theory: An Introduction, Oxford University Press, 1992

[11] Greenfield, Jr, et. al, The Effect of Ethical Orientation and Professional Commitment on Earnings Management Behavior,  Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 83:419–434

[12] Fleming and Zyglidopoulos,  The Escalation of Deception,  Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 81:837–850

[13] Fleming and Zyglidopoulos, see above

[14] Bowie and Freeman, Ethics and Agency Theory: An Introduction, Oxford University Press, 1992

[15] Werbel and Carter, The CEO’s influence on corporate foundation giving,  Journal of Business Ethics (2002).  Vol. 40,  Iss. 1,  Part 3  pp. 47-60

[16] Ibid

[17] Fleming and Zyglidopoulos,  The Escalation of Deception,  Journal of Business Ethics (2008) 81:837–850

ETHICAL ISSUES FACING EMPLOYERS AND JOB APPLICANTS Ruth Carter October 1, 2012 Some job applicants “pad” their application with false information, such as phony salaries and nonexistent jobs. Even some well-known political figures have been guilty of listing a job on their resume during a period of time in which such a job never existed. When applicants are eager or even desperate to find a job, such ethical dilemmas will rise to the forefront. FALSIFICATION What is falsification?

Certainly, adding information that is not true would seem to indicate a clear intent on the part of the applicant to falsify information. But how do you judge whether or not leaving out pertinent information or information that would cast you in a bad light qualifies as intentional falsification? These are gray areas that are not always easy to define. Honors and Grades. Let’s take a look at a more specific example. What if your grade point average at graduation had been just slightly higher to qualify you for a degree designation of cum laude, magna cum laude, or even summa cum laude?

Clearly, it would be falsification to claim one of these designations when that designation was not earned. However, there is an ethical way to place yourself in the best light without falsifying information. If you earned an outstanding grade point average in the courses for your given major, it is certainly acceptable to state your correct grade point average and specify that the average reflects grades only for courses related to your declared college major or minor. School Activities.

Many applicants are willing to exaggerate or totally falsify their participation in school activities. In order to prove leadership ability, an applicant might be willing to say that he or she was president of a nonexistent club or perhaps organized some type of fictional fund-raising activity. Such deception is clearly falsification. Job Titles. Another area rampant with deception is the list of previous job titles. In order to make a former job sound more impressive, a job contender might add a word or two to the title or perhaps rename the title altogether.

REASONS FOR FALSIFICATION Job candidates lie for any number of reasons. Some of them see getting a job as some sort of game in which the rules really don’t matter. Others equate lying with cheating on an exam and rationalize the deception in some way. Many applicants have families to support and are willing to do anything to get the job. CONCLUSION It is clear that falsification is at hand more than ever, and it is equally clear that the value of ethics has been lost on some applicants.

It is therefore up to the employer to figure out how best to test a potential employee’s integrity, to investigate an applicant’s history, and then to decide whether or not to hire this individual. The importance of ethical intentions in a future employee should never be underestimated. There is an old saying that honesty is the best policy. Honesty is expected and required in the workplace, and great dividends await those who make an exemplary work ethic a top priority.