Organizational training design

Organizational training design Introduction Organization training design is an activity that involves six key steps, namely, organization analysis, laying out training program objectives, creating a detailed lesson plan, creating a before, during and after matrix, evaluation rating and doing cost benefit calculations.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Organizational training design specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The outcome of the design process is a training program whose integration into an organization facilitates the realization of the organizations mission as it is outlined in its mission statement. According to WebFinance, a formal definition of an organization is a social unit made up of people who systematically work together with unity of purpose to achieve collective goals that reflect the mission of the organization (2010, 3). For the synthesis project, the process of organization training design is applied to Netsoft, a private sector company. Netsoft is a global telecommunications company that has it’s headquarter in the United States. It has one of its branches in Kenya, Netsoft Kenya, where a submarine fiber optic communications cable is to be installed that will link Africa with the rest of the world. The fiber optic cable is to bring a world of opportunities not only to the country but to the continent as well. Netsoft wants to seize this opportunity and increase its dominance in Africas internet market as a strategic move towards increasing its earnings. However, its five-telecommunication engineers in Kenya are not conversant with fiber optic technology that is already in use in the rest of the world (Kenya is a third-world country). The engineers are, however, individuals with high academic qualifications and with vast experience in telecommunication and its related fields. Thus, considering these facts the top management of the company has commissioned a one-day training program to teach the Keny an engineers on fiber optic technology. Discussion Organization analysis According to Miller and Osinski, organization analysis is one among the three levels of the needs assessment phase of designing an organizations training and development program (2002, 2).Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The other two levels as given by the authors are task analysis and individual analysis whereas the other phases of designing an organizations training and development program are instructional objectives (2nd phase), design (3rd phase), implementation (4th phase) and evaluation (5th phase) (Miller and Osinski, 2002, 1-2). The purpose of the needs assessment phase is to aid a training manager set the objectives of the organizations training program. Therefore, by the end of the needs assessment phase the training manager has to have established if the training program is neces sary and if it is, what is it on and who are the participants. It is the idea that a properly conducted needs assessment phase reveals no conflicts between the interests of stakeholders and the objectives of the organizations training program. The objective as to why organizational analysis is undertaken is to improve the efficiency, performance and output of an organization (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 2011, 1). To achieve this objective the analysis procedure assesses the organizations systems, capacity and performance in an aim to create an understanding of the behavioral relationships, structures and technology in place and in use in an organization (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 2011, 1). In organizational training design, the theory and models underlying organizational analysis are customized so that the outcome of the procedure is concepts that form a strong basis on which to successfully implement an organizational training program. At the end of an organizational analysis pro cedure that is part of an organization training design, it is fundamental that 10 things be known.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Organizational training design specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The first is how the content of the training program affects the relationship between the organizations employees and its clients. The second is the degree to which the organizations suppliers, partners and clients need to be informed about the contents of the training program. The third thing is how well the training programs augment with the strategic needs of the organization. The fourth thing is whether to devote the organizations resources to the training program. The fifth thing is what input is necessary from the organizations mangers and peers in order for the training program to succeed. The sixth thing that needs to be known is the features of the organizations internal environment that can hamper the success of t he training program. The seventh thing that needs to be known is whether experts can be found who can aid in the formulation of the training program and who enlighten on the correlation between it and the business needs of the organization. The eighth thing that has to be known at the end of the organization analysis procedure that is part of an organization training design is the perception that employees have towards the training program. The perception should be described either as a waste of time, an opportunity, a reward, a punishment or even a combination of these. The ninth thing that has to be known is the section of people in the organization who are interested in the success of the training program. The tenth thing that needs to be known is whose support is critical to the success of the training program. In addition to these 10 things, Miller and Osinski point out that an organization analysis procedure should also identify global markets that are growing and economy stat e and its impacts on organizations operating costs and (2002, 3). How training program aligns with Netsoft’s strategic needs There is a need for the company to seize the opportunity presented by the submarine fiber optic cable as this is essential in aiding the company realize its mission which is to become a global leader in telecommunications.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The training program equips Netsofts Kenyan engineers with the knowledge and skills for designing, implementing and administering fiber optic networks. This paves the way for the company to assert its dominance on Africas internet market. Thus in this way the training program aligns with Netsoft’s strategic needs. Features of work environment that might interfere with the training A feature of the work environment that may interfere with Netsoft’s training program is lack of up-to-date training facilities. Considering that the training is to take place in third-world country getting state-of-the-art facilities to conduct the training can be a challenge. Another feature of the work environment that may interfere with the training is poor organizational culture at the branch. It is possible that the organizational culture in place at the companys Kenyan branch does not encourage or motivate its employees to learn new things and thus this might be a considerable hindrance . How employees will perceive training program The engineers and the other employees in Netsofts Kenyan branch should perceive the training program as an opportunity. If the training program is a success it is the green light for the company to make strategic moves that will enable it assert its dominance in the African Internet market. This means more earnings for the company, which in turns means likely salary increases for the engineers and other employees in Netsoft Kenya. Persons or groups interested in the success of the project The top management of Netsoft is interested in the success of the training program. This is because from it they can take hold of the opportunities presented by the submarine cable and make huge profits for the company at minimal costs. Training objectives The second key activity in organizational training design is setting the objectives of the training program, which can be thought of as sub-goals (SIL International, 1999, 1). The objectives of the t raining program are a byproduct of the needs assessment phase. To create a learning atmosphere it is very helpful that the participants of an organization’s training program understand the programs objectives. The objectives of an organization’s training program capture for each individual training activity in the program its purpose and expected outcome. Depending on a number of factors that include the structure of the organizations training program objectives can be set for the various training sessions and the overall program. It is imperative that trainees not only understand but as well accept and commit to realizing the training objectives set for a given organizations training program especially when the objectives double up too as the organizations goals. A training needs analysis is undertaken so that an organization’s employees can appreciate the need for a training program as well as why they need to learn. Thus, this is why it is a sound recommendat ion that the training objectives be a derivative of a training needs analysis. In addition to streamlining the learning process, training objectives facilitate the identification of certain outcome types that when measured evaluate the effectiveness of an organizations training program. The first of the three components of a training objective is a statement, which clearly describes to an employee what he or she is expected to do. The second of the three components of a training objective is a statement, which describes to the trainees the acceptable performance quality or level. The third of the three components of a training objective is a statement that describes to an employee for a given outcome the conditions under which he or she has to perform in to achieve it. It is important that a training objective always describe performances that are observable and measurable. Donald Kirkpatricks Four Level Evaluation Model is a useful procedure for judging an organizations training pr ogram (Big Dog Little Dog’s performance Juxtaposition, 2010, 1). The constituents of the model are four levels, namely, reaction, learning, behavior and results. In the reaction, level of the evaluation procedure a measurement is done of how the participants of an organizations training program react to the process of learning, that is, their perception towards the program. The measurement is done with the aid of attitude questionnaires that are filled by the participants. In the reaction level of the evaluation procedure measurement of three aspects is done. The first is the extent to which participants change their attitude resulting from the organizations training program. The second is the extent to which participants have improved their knowledge resulting from the organizations training program. The third is the extent to which participants have increased their knowledge because of the organizations training program. In the performance level of the evaluation procedure testing is done to determine the participant’s capabilities to utilize the skills they have acquired on the job place. In some cases, performance evaluation is done through observation only. In the results, level of the evaluation procedure the effectiveness of the organizations training program is measured. Objectives of Netsoft’s training program Using Kirkpatrick’s four level evaluation framework two reaction level objectives for Netsoft’s training program are: Create an understanding of what fiber optic technology is Enable participants appreciate its importance in realizing companys strategic needs and mission The three behaviors are: Understanding Appreciation Pro-activeness The three criteria are: Verbal quiz Paper quiz Observation The three conditions are: Teaching facilities are sufficient Participants agree that they have understood course material Quiz is the same for everyone Using Kirkpatrick’s four level evaluation framework two learning objectives for Nestsoft’s training program are: Participants are able to explain the underlying concepts of fiber optic technology Participants can outline the strengths and weaknesses of the technology The three behaviors are: Competency Understanding Mastering The three criterions are: Verbal quiz Paper quiz Observation The three conditions are: Teaching facilities are sufficient Participants agree that they have understood course material Quizzes are the same for everyone Using Kirkpatrick’s four level evaluation framework two performance objectives for Netsoft’s training program are: Participants are able to successfully design, implement and administer fiber optic networks Participants are able to troubleshoot faulty fiber optic networks The three behaviors are: Competency Understanding Mastering The three criterions are: Practical test Verbal quiz Observation The three conditions are Teaching facilities are sufficient Participan ts agree that they have understood course material Quiz and test is the same for everyone Using Kirkpatrick’s four level evaluation framework two results objectives for Netsoft’s training program are: Training program yields an acceptable ROI Training program yields an acceptable CBR Detailed Lesson Plan A detailed lesson plan contains a variety of components. These include course title, lesson title, lesson length, learning objectives, target audience, room arrangement, materials and equipment needed, evaluation and assignments as well as comments from the trainer (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 2011, 1). The course title is the subject heading of the field the trainer intends to teach. The course is derived from wide field of knowledge or specialization. The degree of extend of the content of a subject vary from one course to another. The inclusion of course title is important to the lesson plan because it communicates to the trainee the overall scope of knowledge to be covered by the different lesson sessions in that course. Lesson title states the scope of content to be covered in a single lesson session. The contents of a lesson title are a subset of course title. Lesson sessions act as building blocks of a course. Depending on the scope and complexity of title it can be divided into several lessons which are convenient to both the trainer and trainee. One of the main importances of having a lesson title is to delineate the content to be covered during the lesson. This avoids the chances of veering of from the intended content. Lesson length in a lesson plan details the duration which a single lesson will last. The lesson length will be determined by a number of factors: availability of time, complexity and scope of the subject and cost of executing the lesson. When deciding on the lesson length, there is need to determine when trainers are to avail themselves while the program is on course, the time constraints on the trainees, program brea ks for snacks, lunch and dinner as well as opportunities for practice and feedback. Some lessons may last full day while others are part time. Learning objectives are the thematic areas within a lesson the trainer intends to communicate and be grasped by the trainees. It is important to factor in the lesson plan the genre of the target audience. The target audience determines the level of communication and interaction between the trainer and trainees. The prerequisites encompass trainee and instructor. Trainee prerequisites refers to possible preparation requirements, necessary skills or the scope of knowledge needed to be trained on prior training sessions or successful completion of tests or certificate or degree programs. Instructor prerequisites points towards what is needed to be done to prepare for the session as well as other educational qualification necessary for the trainer. Before the lesson execution the room arrangement of the trainees is another important component to consider. For instance, the room could be arranged in fan-shape so that the trainees can clearly see the trainer as well as their peers. Fan-shape is also suitable for role play exercises that entail working and organization into groups of two or three. In the lesson plan the trainer ought to include the materials and equipments required. These materials and equipments act as aids to training and enhance the ability of the trainer to relay information effectively. The assortment of materials and equipments in any given set up vary, but, they may include a video cassette recorder (VCR), pens, overhead projector, transparencies, and VCR tapes with titles of the lesson. In the case of evaluation and assignments, role plays could be instituted. Comments imply on the overall appraisal of lesson outcomes and remarks on the way forward. Detailed lesson plan for Netsoft’s training program The detailed one-day lesson plan for Netsoft’s training program is shown in appendix A. B efore, during and after matrix The before, during and after training matrix is a table-like structure that serves two purposes. The first purpose is that it facilitates the diagnosis of problems that are associated with transfer of training. The second purpose is that it serves as an assurance that the transfer of training activity was done to completion. The constituent elements of the matrix are the training manager’s, trainer’s and the trainee’s responsibilities before, during and after learning has been transferred. Each of these elements is entered into its appropriate cell in the before, during and after training matrix. Figure 1 in appendix B shows an empty before, during and after training matrix. Before, during and after matrix for Netsoft’s training program The before, during and after matrix for Netsoft’s training program is shown in appendix C Evaluation rating By doing evaluation rating, a rating form is useful in measuring the behavio r of individual participants in an organizations training program. The rating form is usually accompanied with a corresponding rating scale. The rating form usually has a number of items for which the participants of the organizations training program get graded for. The measuring process of the evaluation rating activity usually has its designated period in which to measure the behaviors of the participants. In an example of an evaluation rating procedure it may be required that the sensitivity (which is the behavior) of a manager be measured using data collected for 3 months. Sensitivity in this case may be defined as the manager’s perception of the personal problems, needs and concerns of others. The rating scale may be 1 to represent always, 2 to represent usually, 3 to represent sometimes, 4 to represent seldom and 5 to represent never. To measure the behavior (sensitivity) a question can be put forward as to how many times in the three months the manager has elicited th e perceptions, feelings and concerns of other individuals? Using the rating scale the answer to this question can be 1 to imply that the manager over the past 3 months always elicited the perceptions, feelings and concerns of other individuals. Evaluation rating for Netsfoft’s training program The evaluation rating done here for Netsoft’s training program follows a 60 days assessment of level 3 (performance) objectives. In this rating, the behaviors to be measured are competency, understanding and mastering. Competency is how well vast a participant is with fiber optic technology. Understanding is how well a participant synthesizes the various concepts of fiber optic technology. Mastering is how well a participant retains the knowledge he or she as acquired on fiber optic technology. These three behaviors are measured on a scale of 1 to 3 such that 1 represents poorly, 2 represents fairly and 3 represents well. Depending on how a question is answered, a participant can only score one of these ratings. After answering all the questions, the average is taken and the participant’s level of competency, understanding and mastering determined. For competency the questions to be asked are: What is fiber optic? What is fiber optic technology? Which are the concepts that underlie the technology? For understanding the questions to be asked are: Explain the fundamental concepts underlying fiber optic technology Explain are the advantages of the technology? Explain are the disadvantages of the technology? Explain the standards that govern fiber optic technology For mastering, the questions to be asked are: Name the advantages of the fiber optic technology Name the disadvantages of the technology Name the networking standards that govern the technology Cost benefit calculation In the doing cost benefit calculations stage of the organizational training design two important values are determined which are the Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) and the return On Investment (ROI). These two values are calculated from the costs that an organization as incurred to successfully complete the training program and the benefits it has yielded. The BCR is a ratio that gives the magnitude of correlation between the costs an organization as incurred to the successfully complete the training program and the benefits it has yielded (Investopedia, ULC, 2011, 1). It is given as the quotient of the total benefits and total costs of an organizations training program. The ROI, sometimes given as a percentage, is a performance measure that evaluates the efficiency of an organizations investment, which in this case is the training program (Investopedia, ULC, 2011, 1). The ROI is given as the quotient of the net total benefits realized from an investment and the total costs of the investment. If the ROI is to be given as a percentage, 100 multiply the quotient. Cost Benefit calculations for Netsoft’s training program From the data given in part F of the synthesis project, the BCR for Netsoft’s training program is, BCR = Total benefits/Total costs = 329,201 / 164,863 = 1.9968. From the data given in part F of the synthesis project, the ROI for Netsoft’s training program is, ROI = ( Net total benefits/ total costs) 100 = ((329,201 164,863) / 164,863) 100 = 99.6816%. Conclusion The report’s main conclusion is that organization training is important in helping a company achieve its mission and goals and thus each stage of the organization training design process should be carried out properly. The goals to be attained as a result of an organization’s training program should be in line with the strategic needs of the organization in which the program is implemented. References Big Dog Little Dog’s performance Juxtaposition. (2010). Kirkpatrick’s four-level training evaluation model. Retrieved from nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/isd/kirkpatrick.html Investopedia, ULC. Benefit cost ratio. Retrieve d from investopedia.com/terms/b/bcr.asp#axzz1dWAsa79S Investopedia, ULC. Return on investment-roi. Retrieved from investopedia.com/terms/b/bcr.asp#axzz1dWAsa79S Miller, J. A. and Osinski, D. M. Training needs assessment. Retrieved from ispi.org/pdf/suggestedReading/Miller_Osinski.pdf SIL International. (1999) What is an objective. Retrieved from sil.org/lingualinks/literacy/ReferenceMaterials/glossaryofliteracyterms/WhatIsAnObjective.htm WebFinance. (2010). Organization. Retrieved from businessdictionary.com/definition/organization.html Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.(2011) Organizational analysis. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organizational_analysis Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.(2011) Lesson plan. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organizational_analysis

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Madame Bovary And The Death Of Ivan Ilych Essay

What is the nature of man? Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary and Leo Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilych portray not only a glimpse of what man’s nature is, but also in so doing provide a criticism of it. Both works look into the life of people who want more out of life, and yet ironically what they desire only adds shallowness and not meaning to their existence. Whereas Flaubert’s Madam Bovary shows the depressing end of a woman consumed by passions, Tolstoy gives hope with a dying man’s last days where he gets an epiphany of what the nature of man should be. Emma is Madame Bovary, a young woman who lived in her world of romantic fantasy. She came from the country and read romantic novels when she was in the convent, and believed in earnest that love and marriage will make her happy. But after marrying a simple-minded and incompetent doctor Charles, she grows disillusioned as she sinks in the routine activities of daily life. She wanted romance, passion, excitement, and although her husband loves her and adores her, she wanted more. She wanted the latest trends in fashion and she felt that she was born unjustly to a lower class than was supposed to be for her, the aristocrat. But Emma does nothing to earn the admiration or the respect of the people she admired: she can copy their outward mannerism and clothes, but she does not have the refinement or the manners to be truly aristocratic. She merely believes in her fantasy world where the aristocrats live in luxury and a life of excitement. She was ambitious, but did not have any means to acquire her material cravings but for using her beauty and body. She gets into extramarital affairs because she finds her married life dull, even when she gives birth to a daughter. She does not take care of her daughter because she wanted a boy, and instead romps off with Rodolphe Boulanger, and does not care what other people say. She is oftentimes indiscreet and cares not of her reputation or her husband’s. Emma is self-centered and she had a sense of entitlement and superiority which had no basis but drove her to act without a thought to the consequences of her actions. She is, in a way, always likening herself to playing a role that sparks her imagination at the moment: a young woman being married to a foreign doctor, a middle class with a noble’s spirit, a bored wife having an affair, a lover, a woman of rich tastes. She could not accept that her reality was the norm and that her fantasies were exaggerated, dramatic ideals. When she was young she wanted the same romance she read in her romantic novels. When she became exposed to the high society at the ball she wanted to become like them. When she saw the melodramatic opera â€Å"Lucia de Lammemoor† she adopts the character and like her commits suicide. She drove herself to debt by buying expensive items which she sometimes gave as gifts to her lovers even when she had no means of paying for these in the first place. She signed promissory notes even when she did not understand them because the merchant Lheureux played with her fantasy that she was meant for the finest things in life. When her first lover leaves her, she is distraught and falls gravely ill. With her second affair she acts as the man, covering the costs for the affair and taking charge of where, when, and how they will meet. Her debts pile up as she purchases more and more to fill the gaping hole in her being. She believed she needed passion and excitement, but it seems that what she really needed was purpose and direction, for her life held no meaning. Her innocent tendency towards romance is transformed into full blown moral corruption as she was unable to hold herself together and keep her urges and desires under control. Emma is not productive, she has no desire to improve herself or her skills, and she does not nurture her relationships with her husband, her daughter, not even with her lovers. She just saw them as means of escape from her dull life, and when they fall short of her expectations she just drops them. When the consequences of her actions finally catch up on her and her world becomes smaller and smaller, she decides to play a role – that of a tragic heroine and kills herself with swallowing arsenic. She could not face up to the trouble that she has caused and decides to escape rather than take responsibility as she could not imagine a life of poverty and shame – although her whole life she was never wealthy and she lived a scandalous life with her known affairs. Up until then she saw her life differently – believed she had wealth, pride and breeding because that was what she wanted, but sadly these did not bring her the happiness she sought. Emma had a good life but was not able to appreciate it with her preoccupation with the things she did not have. By focusing her energies on her fantasies of wealth and romance she failed to live her life to the fullest, and for the most part it could be said that she was living in a dream and when she woke to find herself in the gravity of her real life situation, she killed herself to escape, but there was no going back to her fantasy world, and no redemption as even after her death her husband discovers her infidelity which kills him and her daughter sent off to work on a cotton mill. In her, we see the nature of man as ruled by emotions, desires and appetites, without caution or control, without compassion to others. Emma was not able to see and recognize the humanity in her, all the time she was acting out, even her motherly functions, her martyr facade. She never truly enjoyed life because she never saw anything and anyone beyond their appearances, and never learned to appreciate the little things that make life worthwhile. The theme of life and death is also examined in Leo Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilych, where he uses the characters to critique the artificial life that people live in society characterized by materialism and shallowness. Tolstoy puts forward a picture of society with striking honesty and insight: individuals do not behave as individuals but rather aspire to be like everybody else, trying to live a correct life as appropriated by norms, striving to have a comfortable life accentuated with material wealth even if their spiritual life and human relationships are dry and empty. With his narrative, Tolstoy then poses the question of what is important in life, how life should be led, and ultimately, how important life is and how people take it for granted by deluding themselves into believing they are exempt from death. Most of the characters in the story are portrayed as materialistic social climbers, who equated material wealth and position in society as determinants of success and happiness. Ivan, his wife and daughter, his supposed friends, all troubled themselves with appearances – they were preoccupied with proper decorum and attires, of looking well off, of having power over others. But these are all temporal, for these things do not really matter in the face of death. Ivan finds out that what is important is living one’s life according to one’s own vindication, not blindly following trends in society which results in a shallow, routine, meaningless life. He belatedly understood that empathy and recognizing the individual as an individual with thoughts and emotions rather than as subjects with mere faces is what mattered in life, that to live humanly is what gives life its meaning. Only Gerasim and his son are the ones in the story that have empathy and humanity in them – in Gerasim it is made obvious by his understanding that everybody, regardless of position or appearance, are all equal, with the same fate waiting for them in the end, especially when he said, â€Å"We shall all of us die, so why should I grudge a little trouble? †. The son, on the other hand, is the only one in Ivan household who showed any feelings for his dying father – he took his father’s hand and kissed it while crying. This can be taken as the boy was young; he was still innocent and not yet tainted with the demands of society. Ivan himself was dissatisfied with the boy because he behaved differently from him, his wife and daughter, but in his last days it was his son who showed him that there is a human soul in the world who regarded his life important. Also, this depiction of the innocence in childhood is mirrored in Ivan’s experiences: the only times he felt truly alive was when he was a boy, before he went to Law School. Being assimilated into society, he found that he trapped himself into a prison of standards, and lived a largely artificial life. Tolstoy showed that an artificial life is characterized by materialism and social climbing. At the beginning of the story, we find Ivan dead but his friends were chiefly concerned with the position that he will be vacating, the promotions and changes in the workplace and what they have to gain from it, all the while denying to themselves that they too will end up like Ivan sooner or later, that they will die eventually. They act as though they could live forever and concern themselves with the trivial everyday things. Even in his wake, his friends put a show of grievance because it was what was required of â€Å"friends†, but were more interested in playing bridge. They did not see the inevitability of death and suffering, of the hollowness of their lives. Peter Ivanovich, Ivan’s perceived closest friend, somehow felt disturbed and concerned, but rushed to quell these feelings because he reasoned he was alive and Ivan dead and there should be no reason to â€Å"hinder their spending the evening agreeably†. When he was still alive, Ivan himself saw how he had lived superficially in the way his doctors treated him, as though he was some subject whose sentence they hold in their hands, his life holding no real importance or meaning to the doctors. What mattered to the doctors was their perception of themselves that they feel important and significant by virtue of their occupation; that is what gave them satisfaction and purpose. Ivan himself acted the same way many times in his life – with the accused brought before him he reduced them to facts on paper and did not see them as individuals, he got married for it was expected of a man of his station and chose a bride not out of love or devotion but out of the social status it will benefit him. In the end, the story teaches that material wealth and position in society are not what matters. In the face of death, one looks back at the quality of life that he has led, and the most precious times would be the ones he felt most alive, when he was free and himself. The Death of Ivan Ilych and Madame Bovary teach us the nature of man as susceptible to fantasies of the happiness that wealth and material possessions can bring, but in reality these are more likely to corrupt us than give us real happiness. The nature of man is that of desire – desire to achieve in all aspects of life, and in this man should always apply himself to make himself a better person. However, desire for achievement is different from greed. Achievement should not only be limited to the professional and material aspects of life, but more importantly to the relationships with others. The meaning and purpose of life is not about the material achievement but how well one lived his life. Man’s nature reflects that of his society, and society that of man, as the individual is part of the whole and the whole consists of its parts. Both protagonists were deeply influenced by their time and what was regarded as important then. They have let others dictate, influence and take advantage of them, and by not taking responsibility d control over their lives they eventually found themselves in situations they did not dream of. This could have only come up to those who did not examine their actions and the kind of life they lead. Emma and Ivan believed that wealth and material things can bring happiness, but they both ended up dead – although here the stories’ protagonists differ. Whereas Emma chooses suicide to escape her suffering, Ivan comes to terms with his death and accepts it. Although Emma’s final act was of her own decision, we cannot say that she was finally taking things in her hands as before that she was always feeling hindered and trapped by her circumstances. She did not have a realization of what brought down her downfall, even in her final days she did not know what held meaning and not. Her suicide, like all her actions before, was an attempt at escaping reality, and this time she succeeded. Emma was not able to redeem herself, nor was she able to see what would make her life happy, but Ivan was changed and in his last days was able to make sense of his suffering. Tolstoy showed that no matter how sullen or materialistic a man behaved and lived, there is still hope for him to change as long as he lives. That man’s innate nature is towards living an authentic life, towards goodness, and that even if society is corrupt and superficial, pure love and humanity also exists, and it is always within us, and also in our capacity, to choose what kind of life to lead.