Metaphors In Robert Solomon

It's difficult not to be cynical about how “big business” treats the subject of ethics in today's world. In many corporations, where the

It's difficult not to be cynical about how “big business” treats the subject of ethics in today's world. In many corporations, where the

In The Crossover by Kwame Alexander, life lessons are told through the use of an extended metaphor. At first glance, The Crossover appears to be a book about basketball. However, basketball is just the vehicle to carry this story and keep it moving. Through the use of poems, this verse novel tells the story of twins, Josh and Jordan Bell, as they navigate adolescents. Throughout the novel, tremendous growth is seen in the characters, particularly Josh. The book is sectioned into “quarters” just like a basketball game. By the time the reader gets to the 4th quarter, emotions and tensions are running high. One particular poem that exhibits this tension is “Mom, since you asked, I’ll tell you why I’m so angry.” This poem shows Josh’s anger and frustration over his father being in the hospital. At this point in the novel, Josh’s dad is still alive; however, the father’s prognosis is not good.

Charlotte, a teenager making her way through high school, undergoes a coming of age transformation through the teachings of her Mrs. Hancock and her mother in “The Metaphor” by Budge Wilson. As with most stories like these, Charlotte has a major conflict that determines how she will grow up. For the protagonist, the conflict is not so much between her teacher and mother, but more so the lessons they bestow upon Charlotte. Through her use of literary techniques, the author is able to craft this dynamic between the two schools of thought. The symbolism, diction, tone and metaphors that Wilson uses shows which discipline, flamboyant and exciting or controlling and passive-aggressive, she chooses to live by.

Money as the single bottom line is increasingly a thing of past. Pursued profit leads to unethical management, propagate false or misleading information, bad corporation reputation, unstable employment, reducing long run profit etc.

Imagine yourself shipwrecked upon an uninhabited island. The experience of being stranded will cause you to pose many questions, with the possibility of only one of those questions to being answered. One answered question is: what is the purpose of literature? Northrop Frye, within “Motive for Metaphor”, uses the analogy of being within an uninhabited island to examines the purpose of literature by connecting it to the purposes of language and their use within the different worlds and levels of the mind Frye sees present.

It is easy to understand Solomon’s argument that unethical practices destroy the business and its key people. This has been proven by so many companies, such as Enron case, whose scandals have been unveiled to the public and the people who used to amass great wealth out of unethical practices are now behind bars. Even if they get out of prison, it will be difficult to imagine how they can recover from the negative image that the public already has on them.

The poem “Discovery,” written by Michael S. Harper, takes the reader on a metaphorical rollercoaster by portraying a man and his significant other discovering their true love for one another. Michael S. Harper uses metaphors which make the reader imagine the couple laying together in the comfort of one another, however what could the author really mean by using these metaphors? In this poem, Harper illustrates that discovery is about reaching out into someplace unknown and understanding first hand what resides within through his use of metaphors. When author makes the poem sound literal, “We lay together, darkness all around” he is using metaphors to symbolize something more (Harper 1). The speaker could be meaning that when they are laying together, they are representing the scene as them being together as a couple not just literally laying together.

Ethics in business addresses the ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ behaviours of business practises, and how these practices impact the employees, shareholders, the general public and the environment.

The passage from Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison describes Milkman’s confrontation with his mother, Ruth, at the cemetery. Before, Macon has convinced Milkman to be disgusted of Ruth because of Ruth’s supposed affair with her father and Ruth’s nature as a sexual deviant. One day, Milkman follows Ruth to see with his own eyes the proof that Ruth is a sexual deviant, and Milkman is led to the cemetery. Milkman confronts Ruth whom reveals that she did not have an affair with her father. Ruth says, “No. But I did kneel there in my slip at his bedside and kiss his beautiful fingers,” which contradicts Macon’s account of what happened. Ruth, fully clothed, only kissed the hands of her mother. Ruth did not strip naked and kiss her father on the mouth like Macon said. Then, Milkman points out Ruth’s nursing of

Can business thrive by profit alone? Barry (2000) described Milton Friedman’s short essay, in the 1970’s, as extremely controversial, in which he denied that corporate executives had any moral duty to relax the conditions of profit maximization on behalf of the wider interests of society. This example of the “bottom line” of business has been demonstrated within the past couple of decades by publicly criticized companies, for fraudulent activities, such as, Enron, WorldCom, and HealthSouth along with many others. These company executives were willing to sacrifice the vast majority and greater good of society for profit gains. This mindset left many of loyal investors, consumers and employees without a sound stabilized future. There are also many businesses that produce a high yield on their investments;

In the book, The Corporation Joel Bakan presents arguments, that corporations are nothing but institutional pathological psychopaths that are “a dangerous possessor of the great power it wields over people and societies.” Their main responsibility is maximizing profit for their stockholders and ignoring the means to achieve this goal, portrays them as “psychopathic.” Bakan argues that, corporations are psychopaths, corporate social responsibility is illegal, and that corporations are able to manipulate anyone, even the government.

Straight on, business has a predicament either to maximise profits for shareholders or to have a moral

The overwhelming facts point to a shady underworld of self-dealing and opportunistic exploitation of the poor and working class, which was until recently, well hidden from the commoner. The executives of WorldCom and Enron provide real world examples of unethical business practices, where the desire to make money for their shareholders transcended into an addiction to greed and self-dealing that were displayed by their, “excessive pay, perks, and golden parachutes”(Carson 392) at the expense of all stakeholders. All is not lost, there are corporations that pride themselves in their sound business model and commitment to ethical business practices. Such companies as Eaton Corporation, and Weyerhaeuser, who according to Ethisphere.com, a business ethics watchdog, are among the “2010 World`s most ethical companies.” (Ethisphere)

One philosopher wrote, "Like the wheel, business is one of the great human inventions. But unlike the wheel, the existence of business depends upon a social context, on unwritten rules and conventions…there is no more chance that we could return to an idyllic state before business existed than we could uninvent the wheel" (Klempner, n.d.). Just as the wheel has been redeveloped time and time again, thus making it better and better, we too must redevelop and enhance our philosophical and ethical decisions in the way we operate businesses in today 's society. Trying to maximize profits in business while catering to growing societal demands, proves to be quite complicated and challenging. Society and business owners alike are continually struggling to find that happy medium. Comparing and contrasting the many moral philosophies and belief systems, combined with trial and error is one way society as a whole can create a system that hopefully one day works for us all.