Organizational Citizenship Behavior Essay Example for Free

Organizational Citizenship Behavior Essay Human Resource Management (HRM) is defined as the organizational function that focuses on recruiting, management, and the directing of the employees that work in the organization. It also deals with compensation, performance management, organization development, safety, wellness, benefits, employee motivation, communication, administration, and training. Even though the HR functions evolved, some things never change. Since most companies will always need the traditional HR functions such as hiring and firing employees, providing pay and benefits packages, training and developing the workforce, and dealing with employer – employee conflicts. Organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) is a concept defined as the set of additional activities that are beneficial to an organization and its employees. These activities are not required in a formal way; that is, they are not stated in a contract nor required by the company. OCB is commonly a behavior of employees towards their company and vice versa. It is clear that the organization’s HRM plays a vital role in implementing OCB through creating a well-established relationship between the organization and the employees. Rousseau and Geller argued that this relationship’s status is critical in the amount of OCB produced by employees where the company must deliver first a few requirements. (cited in Morrison, 1996). Schuller states that each company’s HRM has a set of principles and values that are integrated in its overall philosophy, which includes a respectful treatment of its employees (cited in Morrison, 1996). According to Eisenberger, Huntington, Hutchison, and Sowa, how effective is an organization in applying that philosophy is related towards how much the employees feel appreciated in their work place and therefore related to the amount of OCB displayed (cited in Morrison, 1996). OCB is present in all companies and can be considered a cycle. In fact, the HR department encourages OCB through several actions, which pave the way to creating a healthy organizational culture where the company protects its employees who are devoted to their company. This report will discuss OCB in Middle East Airlines (MEA) by taking a closer look at the employee – company relationship and the company – employee relationship. Literature Review on Organization Citizenship Behavior How Companies Encourage OCB In order for employees to work on achieving OCB, the human resource management has to work on some issues to help encourage each individual to participate in developing the company. The management must ensure that several things should be well done: Social Exchange, ldentification with Organizational Objectives, Empowerment, Selection and Socialization, Evaluation and Rewards, Rules and Job Descriptions. In an organization, Blau identified two types of relationships that tie the management and the employees together: the economic relationship and the social relationship (cited in Morrison, 1996). Konovsky and Pugh’ analysis states that it is more likely for employees to perform OCB under good social conditions than economic (cited in Morrison, 1996). Organ claims that this fact is due to several reasons: First, social relationships allow employees to have feelings of mutual trust with the organization and they will build long-term relationships with the management. This will encourage employees to help enhance the image of their company by practicing OCB. Second, the social relationship is one that is ambiguously defined, that is it does not have clear boundaries; therefore employees will more likely include certain citizenship acts in their job tasks (cited in Morrison, 1996). The identification of the employees with the organizational objectives is crucial for achieving OCB. That is because each individual will adopt and familiarize with the values and principles of the company, and hence become a part of its system, which will give a feeling of belonging and an encouragement for being part of the progress of the company. For employees to achieve OCB, Conger and Kanungo believe that they must be first willing to do so, and that is by being encouraged and empowered (cited in Morrison, 1996). Bowen and Lawler claim that many benefits are generated as a result of empowerment. First, it will shorten the time of response of employees to serve their customers. Second, the relationship between the employees and the customers will be more enthusiastic and kind. Third, it will allow the employees to be more innovative and generate ideas for the benefit of the company (cited in Morrison, 1996). Selection is the first phase of the entrance of an employee into a company. During this stage, Shore and Tetrick claim that each individual becomes aware of the job responsibilities in his field. Also, it is through this stage that the company indicates to the employee the responsibilities that the company has towards him as well, such as security, progress and training; hence it identifies a two-way relationship. This will lead to a feeling of respect and interest from the other party, which will lead to employees achieving OCB (cited in Morrison, 1996). Selection is also important in what is referred to by Chatman as person-organization fit: by learning about the organization’s objectives, the employee becomes aware that he or she will be chosen not solely for their job qualification, but for their compatibility with the work environment as well (cited in Morrison, 1996). Socialization as defined by Van Maanen and Schein is when the company prepares the new employees with the set of knowledge, approaches, and behaviors that they should apply in order to fit into their roles (cited in Morrison, 1996). Similar to selection, socialization is about showing the new employee that the relationship with the organization is based on social exchange. This can be clarified through such processes as orientation that holds within it more value than it shows. Chatman claims that socialization also familiarizes the employees with the company’s objectives and values not to mention that it plays a vital part in the empowerment process. (cited in Morrison, 1996). There are two extremes stated by Jones in applying socialization. The first is a highly institutionalized one where the new employees are separated and offered a common learning program. The second end is highly individualized, where employees are left on their own to engage in informal relationships with their fellow employees and to have self-learning experiences. There is however one disadvantage to socialization: when the objectives are clearly defined for employees, they tend to perform solely what they were expected to (cited in Morrison, 1996). Therefore, a company that seeks employee OCB will tend to have a more individualized socialization. OCB by definition includes the set of actions performed by employees that are not asked by management, therefore it is not directly rewarded. Thus, to encourage employees into applying this behavior, O’Reilly and Chatman believe that the company should employ indirect means that will encourage them to do so. That can be done by giving a reward to the organization’s performance as a whole. This will be helpful in two ways: first, it will further familiarize the employees with the company’s objectives and this way they will tend to act more upon achieving those goals through citizenship behavior. Second, by giving an award for the entire company’s performance, the organization will indirectly inform the employees that their job goes beyond what is clearly specified and limited into a certain role or department (cited in Morrison, 1996). According to Bowen, Siehl, and Schneider, when the company imposes a high number of rules and regulation, it is limiting and discouraging the employees’ ability to perform tasks outside their field of work, therefore limiting the OCB that can be achieved in that organization. A high number of rules will clearly define the limits of the economic exchange relationship between the employees and their company which will diminish their will to achieve OCB by determining exactly what the employees are asked to do and not to do and preventing them from engaging in any other action that is indirectly rewarded even if it benefits the company as a whole. Hence, in order for employees to want to perform citizenship behavior, the company must reduce its rules and thus create a social exchange relationship (cited in Morrison, 1996). Like rules and regulations, if a company describes the employees’ job in a very precise and narrow matter, it will reduce according to Bowen and Lawler the citizenship behavior applied by its subordinates. Employees will then have extremely well defined tasks to perform with no regard to any other company-wide actions. That way the exchange relationship between employee and company will more likely to be economic, not to mention that it reduces empowerment by limiting the resources needed by employees such as knowledge and skills to taking action towards OCB (cited in Morrison, 1996). How Employees Exercise OCB: To achieve organizational citizenship behavior, employees must practice different means. First, as Organ defines it, helping behavior is critical and evident in creating inter-employee relationships. Such behavior can be noted in the simplest acts such as when an employee assists his co-worker when the latter is overstrained with his paperwork or any other task being done. Second, according to Organ as well, sportsmanship, another dimension of OCB, is the ability to accept criticism and unfortunate events in the company without complaints, verbal or written. Consider a meeting for a marketing idea where employees are brainstorming. When the group rejects someone’s idea and the latter accepts that without being offended, he/she is considered to have a sense of sportsmanship. Third, organizational loyalty is a major concept when it comes to having a constructive organizational culture. This is evident whereby when employees are loyal to their company, they would feel safer and more content about the workplace and the organization’s culture. Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Paine, Bachrach, 2000) Individual initiative, a fourth aspect of OCB, is represented in taking on additional responsibilities and engaging in task-improving actions without being asked to do so. This also includes encouraging others to do so, which helps the company as a whole improve. (Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Paine, Bachrach, 2000) An example is when an employee suggests to adopt a new method of performing a task, which he/she knows will improve the way things s done. Related to this is self-development, which is yet another dimension of OCB. According to George and Brief, self-development pertains to voluntarily engaging in development courses that are not required from the company in the attempt of improving one’s skills and broadening one’s knowledge. (Cited in Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Paine, Bachrach, 2000) For instance, an employee could learn about upcoming seminars and training sessions and inform his colleagues of their dates. A different aspect of OCB is civic virtue, which can be defined as a commitment to the organization as a whole. This takes place through engaging in governing the organization indirectly, looking out for its best interest, and protecting it from threats. (Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Paine, Bachrach, 2000) A simple example of this is turning off the lights after having used the restroom. Similar to this is organizational compliance, the last dimension of OCB, which is when an employee complies with the company rules and regulations whether or not the latter is being monitored. Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Paine, Bachrach, 2000) Returning to work right after having finished the permitted lunch break is an example of organizational compliance. It is crucial to note that all these behavioral aspects of organizational citizenship behavior are not part of the work contract or job description. Factors that diminish OCB: Several factors antecede and affect organizational citizenship behavior. Such factors can be set into four basic categories: employee characteristics, organizational characteristics, task characteristics, and leadership behaviors. The influence of these categories on OCB can be either positive or negative. It is evident that OCB is present in all companies, whether on a noticeable scale or an imperceptible one. This report will be depicting the negative relations between OCB and its antecedents, whereby, according to studies done in a meta-analysis by Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Paine, and Bachrach, it has been found that organizational and task characteristics have little impact on OCB relative to individual and leadership behaviors which have greater impact on OCB. Employee or individual characteristics affect the presence of OCB and how much the latter contributes to building a constructive organizational culture. Taking two extremes, one can consider an employee who is indifferent of his/her company’s interest. The latter would surely not engage in activities pertaining to civic virtue, thus not exercising good citizenship behavior. The other extreme is an employee who is very concerned about the company’s interest and always seeks to attain goals that hold the company’s benefit. Such employee is more likely to be engaged in the different dimensions of citizenship behavior. To go back to the bigger image, an employee’s characteristics help in determining how well OCB is exercised in an organization. Indeed, it is found that the existence of OCB increases with the increase of employee loyalty and concern to the organization, and decreases with indifference to the greater benefit of the company and the rewards granted for good citizenship behavior. Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Paine, Bachrach, 2000) Leadership behaviors are quite correlated to the presence of citizenship behavior in an organization. According to another meta-analysis reported by Podsakoff, MacKenzie, and Bommer in 1996, leadership behaviors are mostly positively related to OCB, whereby most leaders reward citizenship behavior within performance in general, which increases such behavior in the company as employees are aware of such rewards. The only negative leadership behaviors are contingent and non-contingent punishment behavior as well as leader specification of procedures. This is due to the fact that employees feel confused as to why leaders perform contingent punishment, thereby decreasing their citizenship behavior. Non-contingent punishment is a discouraging factor by itself, which makes it obvious why it negatively affects OCB in an organization.

Making a Difference as an Educator Essay -- Education Teachers Essays

Making a Difference as an Educator I believe the purpose of an educator is to enhance minds and touch lives. I think it is wonderful that in the country we live in today, that all children are not only given the opportunity for an education, but are forced to take advantage of it. Almost every adult can look back at their school years and think of at least one teacher that has touched their lives in one or more ways. I hope that as an educator that I will have made a difference in many lives and be their motivation to reach their highest goals. I can not wait to become a teacher. I love to work with children and I love to see them enjoying themselves. I want to become a teacher so I can be given the chance to touch lives and teach in a fun and successful way that makes my students eager to come to school everyday. I especially want to touch lives of those who do not get any encouragement at home. I want to be able to make all children realize that they are special and that they can do anything they set their minds to. I want my students to look back on their year spent in my classroom, and say that I did touch their lives, I made learning fun, and that I treated the whole class as an equal. Even though the pay does not equal up to the amount of work you put into teaching, I have come to realize that that is not all that matters in choosing a profession. You have to enjoy getting up and going to work everyday, and be dedicated to your job. If you do not enjoy your work, you will not do a very good job, and you will spend the rest of your life in regret and misery. I am a very dedicated person. When I set my mind to doing something I succeed. Teaching requires a huge amoun... ...re likely to work towards a certain goal if not for the purpose of having learned something, than for the purpose of being rewarded. This is how I feel about the purpose of education, why I want to be a teacher, what I want to do to further my career as a teacher, what my classroom will look like, and my philosophical approach to learning. I am going to work hard in completing all of the goals I have set for myself in life. I want to look back at my life and smile about how happy I am for having been an educator and how hard I have worked to touch lives of my students. I am especially looking forward to the first comment or letter that comes in from one of my students saying, â€Å"thank you for pushing me to do so well, and if it were not for you then I would not be where I am today, and I will always remember you for having made a difference in my life†.

Angels Demons Chapter 126-129

126 Cardinal Mortati knew there were no words in any language that could have added to the mystery of this moment. The silence of the vision over St. Peter's Square sang louder than any chorus of angels. As he stared up at Camerlegno Ventresca, Mortati felt the paralyzing collision of his heart and mind. The vision seemed real, tangible. And yet†¦ how could it be? Everyone had seen the camerlegno get in the helicopter. They had all witnessed the ball of light in the sky. And now, somehow, the camerlegno stood high above them on the rooftop terrace. Transported by angels? Reincarnated by the hand of God? This is impossible†¦ Mortati's heart wanted nothing more than to believe, but his mind cried out for reason. And yet all around him, the cardinals stared up, obviously seeing what he was seeing, paralyzed with wonder. It was the camerlegno. There was no doubt. But he looked different somehow. Divine. As if he had been purified. A spirit? A man? His white flesh shone in the spotlights with an incorporeal weightlessness. In the square there was crying, cheering, spontaneous applause. A group of nuns fell to their knees and wailed saetas. A pulsing grew from in the crowd. Suddenly, the entire square was chanting the camerlegno's name. The cardinals, some with tears rolling down their faces, joined in. Mortati looked around him and tried to comprehend. Is this really happening? Camerlegno Carlo Ventresca stood on the rooftop terrace of St. Peter's Basilica and looked down over the multitudes of people staring up at him. Was he awake or dreaming? He felt transformed, otherworldly. He wondered if it was his body or just his spirit that had floated down from heaven toward the soft, darkened expanse of the Vatican City Gardens†¦ alighting like a silent angel on the deserted lawns, his black parachute shrouded from the madness by the towering shadow of St. Peter's Basilica. He wondered if it was his body or his spirit that had possessed the strength to climb the ancient Stairway of Medallions to the rooftop terrace where he now stood. He felt as light as a ghost. Although the people below were chanting his name, he knew it was not him they were cheering. They were cheering from impulsive joy, the same kind of joy he felt every day of his life as he pondered the Almighty. They were experiencing what each of them had always longed for†¦ an assurance of the beyond†¦ a substantiation of the power of the Creator. Camerlegno Ventresca had prayed all his life for this moment, and still, even he could not fathom that God had found a way to make it manifest. He wanted to cry out to them. Your God is a living God! Behold the miracles all around you! He stood there a while, numb and yet feeling more than he had ever felt. When, at last, the spirit moved him, he bowed his head and stepped back from the edge. Alone now, he knelt on the roof, and prayed. 127 The images around him blurred, drifting in and out. Langdon's eyes slowly began to focus. His legs ached, and his body felt like it had been run over by a truck. He was lying on his side on the ground. Something stunk, like bile. He could still hear the incessant sound of lapping water. It no longer sounded peaceful to him. There were other sounds too – talking close around him. He saw blurry white forms. Were they all wearing white? Langdon decided he was either in an asylum or heaven. From the burning in his throat, Langdon decided it could not be heaven. â€Å"He's finished vomiting,† one man said in Italian. â€Å"Turn him.† The voice was firm and professional. Langdon felt hands slowly rolling him onto his back. His head swam. He tried to sit up, but the hands gently forced him back down. His body submitted. Then Langdon felt someone going through his pockets, removing items. Then he passed out cold. Dr. Jacobus was not a religious man; the science of medicine had bred that from him long ago. And yet, the events in Vatican City tonight had put his systematic logic to the test. Now bodies are falling from the sky? Dr. Jacobus felt the pulse of the bedraggled man they had just pulled from the Tiber River. The doctor decided that God himself had hand-delivered this one to safety. The concussion of hitting the water had knocked the victim unconscious, and if it had not been for Jacobus and his crew standing out on the shore watching the spectacle in the sky, this falling soul would surely have gone unnoticed and drowned. â€Å"e Americano,† a nurse said, going through the man's wallet after they pulled him to dry land. American? Romans often joked that Americans had gotten so abundant in Rome that hamburgers should become the official Italian food. But Americans falling from the sky? Jacobus flicked a penlight in the man's eyes, testing his dilation. â€Å"Sir? Can you hear me? Do you know where you are?† The man was unconscious again. Jacobus was not surprised. The man had vomited a lot of water after Jacobus had performed CPR. â€Å"Si chiama Robert Langdon,† the nurse said, reading the man's driver's license. The group assembled on the dock all stopped short. â€Å"Impossibile!† Jacobus declared. Robert Langdon was the man from the television – the American professor who had been helping the Vatican. Jacobus had seen Mr. Langdon, only minutes ago, getting into a helicopter in St. Peter's Square and flying miles up into the air. Jacobus and the others had run out to the dock to witness the antimatter explosion – a tremendous sphere of light like nothing any of them had ever seen. How could this be the same man! â€Å"It's him!† the nurse exclaimed, brushing his soaked hair back. â€Å"And I recognize his tweed coat!† Suddenly someone was yelling from the hospital entryway. It was one of the patients. She was screaming, going mad, holding her portable radio to the sky and praising God. Apparently Camerlegno Ventresca had just miraculously appeared on the roof of the Vatican. Dr. Jacobus decided, when his shift got off at 8 A.M., he was going straight to church. The lights over Langdon's head were brighter now, sterile. He was on some kind of examination table. He smelled astringents, strange chemicals. Someone had just given him an injection, and they had removed his clothes. Definitely not gypsies, he decided in his semiconscious delirium. Aliens, perhaps? Yes, he had heard about things like this. Fortunately these beings would not harm him. All they wanted were his – â€Å"Not on your life!† Langdon sat bolt upright, eyes flying open. â€Å"Attento!† one of the creatures yelled, steadying him. His badge read Dr. Jacobus. He looked remarkably human. Langdon stammered, â€Å"I†¦ thought†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Easy, Mr. Langdon. You're in a hospital.† The fog began to lift. Langdon felt a wave of relief. He hated hospitals, but they certainly beat aliens harvesting his testicles. â€Å"My name is Dr. Jacobus,† the man said. He explained what had just happened. â€Å"You are very lucky to be alive.† Langdon did not feel lucky. He could barely make sense of his own memories†¦ the helicopter†¦ the camerlegno. His body ached everywhere. They gave him some water, and he rinsed out his mouth. They placed a new gauze on his palm. â€Å"Where are my clothes?† Langdon asked. He was wearing a paper robe. One of the nurses motioned to a dripping wad of shredded khaki and tweed on the counter. â€Å"They were soaked. We had to cut them off you.† Langdon looked at his shredded Harris tweed and frowned. â€Å"You had some Kleenex in your pocket,† the nurse said. It was then that Langdon saw the ravaged shreds of parchment clinging all over the lining of his jacket. The folio from Galileo's Diagramma. The last copy on earth had just dissolved. He was too numb to know how to react. He just stared. â€Å"We saved your personal items.† She held up a plastic bin. â€Å"Wallet, camcorder, and pen. I dried the camcorder off the best I could.† â€Å"I don't own a camcorder.† The nurse frowned and held out the bin. Langdon looked at the contents. Along with his wallet and pen was a tiny Sony RUVI camcorder. He recalled it now. Kohler had handed it to him and asked him to give it to the media. â€Å"We found it in your pocket. I think you'll need a new one, though.† The nurse flipped open the two-inch screen on the back. â€Å"Your viewer is cracked.† Then she brightened. â€Å"The sound still works, though. Barely.† She held the device up to her ear. â€Å"Keeps playing something over and over.† She listened a moment and then scowled, handing it to Langdon. â€Å"Two guys arguing, I think.† Puzzled, Langdon took the camcorder and held it to his ear. The voices were pinched and metallic, but they were discernible. One close. One far away. Langdon recognized them both. Sitting there in his paper gown, Langdon listened in amazement to the conversation. Although he couldn't see what was happening, when he heard the shocking finale, he was thankful he had been spared the visual. My God! As the conversation began playing again from the beginning, Langdon lowered the camcorder from his ear and sat in appalled mystification. The antimatter†¦ the helicopter†¦ Langdon's mind now kicked into gear. But that means†¦ He wanted to vomit again. With a rising fury of disorientation and rage, Langdon got off the table and stood on shaky legs. â€Å"Mr. Langdon!† the doctor said, trying to stop him. â€Å"I need some clothes,† Langdon demanded, feeling the draft on his rear from the backless gown. â€Å"But, you need to rest.† â€Å"I'm checking out. Now. I need some clothes.† â€Å"But, sir, you – â€Å" â€Å"Now!† Everyone exchanged bewildered looks. â€Å"We have no clothes,† the doctor said. â€Å"Perhaps tomorrow a friend could bring you some.† Langdon drew a slow patient breath and locked eyes with the doctor. â€Å"Dr. Jacobus, I am walking out your door right now. I need clothes. I am going to Vatican City. One does not go to Vatican City with one's ass hanging out. Do I make myself clear?† Dr. Jacobus swallowed hard. â€Å"Get this man something to wear.† When Langdon limped out of Hospital Tiberina, he felt like an overgrown Cub Scout. He was wearing a blue paramedic's jumpsuit that zipped up the front and was adorned with cloth badges that apparently depicted his numerous qualifications. The woman accompanying him was heavyset and wore a similar suit. The doctor had assured Langdon she would get him to the Vatican in record time. â€Å"Molto traffico,† Langdon said, reminding her that the area around the Vatican was packed with cars and people. The woman looked unconcerned. She pointed proudly to one of her patches. â€Å"Sono conducente di ambulanza.† â€Å"Ambulanza?† That explained it. Langdon felt like he could use an ambulance ride. The woman led him around the side of the building. On an outcropping over the water was a cement deck where her vehicle sat waiting. When Langdon saw the vehicle he stopped in his tracks. It was an aging medevac chopper. The hull read Aero-Ambulanza. He hung his head. The woman smiled. â€Å"Fly Vatican City. Very fast.† 128 The College of Cardinals bristled with ebullience and electricity as they streamed back into the Sistine Chapel. In contrast, Mortati felt in himself a rising confusion he thought might lift him off the floor and carry him away. He believed in the ancient miracles of the Scriptures, and yet what he had just witnessed in person was something he could not possibly comprehend. After a lifetime of devotion, seventy-nine years, Mortati knew these events should ignite in him a pious exuberance†¦ a fervent and living faith. And yet all he felt was a growing spectral unease. Something did not feel right. â€Å"Signore Mortati!† a Swiss Guard yelled, running down the hall. â€Å"We have gone to the roof as you asked. The camerlegno is†¦ flesh! He is a true man! He is not a spirit! He is exactly as we knew him!† â€Å"Did he speak to you?† â€Å"He kneels in silent prayer! We are afraid to touch him!† Mortati was at a loss. â€Å"Tell him†¦ his cardinals await.† â€Å"Signore, because he is a man†¦Ã¢â‚¬  the guard hesitated. â€Å"What is it?† â€Å"His chest†¦ he is burned. Should we bind his wounds? He must be in pain.† Mortati considered it. Nothing in his lifetime of service to the church had prepared him for this situation. â€Å"He is a man, so serve him as a man. Bathe him. Bind his wounds. Dress him in fresh robes. We await his arrival in the Sistine Chapel.† The guard ran off. Mortati headed for the chapel. The rest of the cardinals were inside now. As he walked down the hall, he saw Vittoria Vetra slumped alone on a bench at the foot of the Royal Staircase. He could see the pain and loneliness of her loss and wanted to go to her, but he knew it would have to wait. He had work to do†¦ although he had no idea what that work could possibly be. Mortati entered the chapel. There was a riotous excitement. He closed the door. God help me. Hospital Tiberina's twin-rotor Aero-Ambulanza circled in behind Vatican City, and Langdon clenched his teeth, swearing to God this was the very last helicopter ride of his life. After convincing the pilot that the rules governing Vatican airspace were the least of the Vatican's concerns right now, he guided her in, unseen, over the rear wall, and landed them on the Vatican's helipad. â€Å"Grazie,† he said, lowering himself painfully onto the ground. She blew him a kiss and quickly took off, disappearing back over the wall and into the night. Langdon exhaled, trying to clear his head, hoping to make sense of what he was about to do. With the camcorder in hand, he boarded the same golf cart he had ridden earlier that day. It had not been charged, and the battery-meter registered close to empty. Langdon drove without headlights to conserve power. He also preferred no one see him coming. At the back of the Sistine Chapel, Cardinal Mortati stood in a daze as he watched the pandemonium before him. â€Å"It was a miracle!† one of the cardinals shouted. â€Å"The work of God!† â€Å"Yes!† others exclaimed. â€Å"God has made His will manifest!† â€Å"The camerlegno will be our Pope!† another shouted. â€Å"He is not a cardinal, but God has sent a miraculous sign!† â€Å"Yes!† someone agreed. â€Å"The laws of conclave are man's laws. God's will is before us! I call for a balloting immediately!† â€Å"A balloting?† Mortati demanded, moving toward them. â€Å"I believe that is my job.† Everyone turned. Mortati could sense the cardinals studying him. They seemed distant, at a loss, offended by his sobriety. Mortati longed to feel his heart swept up in the miraculous exultation he saw in the faces around him. But he was not. He felt an inexplicable pain in his soul†¦ an aching sadness he could not explain. He had vowed to guide these proceedings with purity of soul, and this hesitancy was something he could not deny. â€Å"My friends,† Mortati said, stepping to the altar. His voice did not seem his own. â€Å"I suspect I will struggle for the rest of my days with the meaning of what I have witnessed tonight. And yet, what you are suggesting regarding the camerlegno†¦ it cannot possibly be God's will.† The room fell silent. â€Å"How†¦ can you say that?† one of the cardinals finally demanded. â€Å"The camerlegno saved the church. God spoke to the camerlegno directly! The man survived death itself! What sign do we need!† â€Å"The camerlegno is coming to us now,† Mortati said. â€Å"Let us wait. Let us hear him before we have a balloting. There may be an explanation.† â€Å"An explanation?† â€Å"As your Great Elector, I have vowed to uphold the laws of conclave. You are no doubt aware that by Holy Law the camerlegno is ineligible for election to the papacy. He is not a cardinal. He is a priest†¦ a chamberlain. There is also the question of his inadequate age.† Mortati felt the stares hardening. â€Å"By even allowing a balloting, I would be requesting that you endorse a man who Vatican Law proclaims ineligible. I would be asking each of you to break a sacred oath.† â€Å"But what happened here tonight,† someone stammered, â€Å"it certainly transcends our laws!† â€Å"Does it?† Mortati boomed, not even knowing now where his words were coming from. â€Å"Is it God's will that we discard the rules of the church? Is it God's will that we abandon reason and give ourselves over to frenzy?† â€Å"But did you not see what we saw?† another challenged angrily. â€Å"How can you presume to question that kind of power!† Mortati's voice bellowed now with a resonance he had never known. â€Å"I am not questioning God's power! It is God who gave us reason and circumspection! It is God we serve by exercising prudence!† 129 In the hallway outside the Sistine Chapel, Vittoria Vetra sat benumbed on a bench at the foot of the Royal Staircase. When she saw the figure coming through the rear door, she wondered if she were seeing another spirit. He was bandaged, limping, and wearing some kind of medical suit. She stood†¦ unable to believe the vision. â€Å"Ro†¦ bert?† He never answered. He strode directly to her and wrapped her in his arms. When he pressed his lips to hers, it was an impulsive, longing kiss filled with thankfulness. Vittoria felt the tears coming. â€Å"Oh, God†¦ oh, thank God†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He kissed her again, more passionately, and she pressed against him, losing herself in his embrace. Their bodies locked, as if they had known each other for years. She forgot the fear and pain. She closed her eyes, weightless in the moment. â€Å"It is God's will!† someone was yelling, his voice echoing in the Sistine Chapel. â€Å"Who but the chosen one could have survived that diabolical explosion?† â€Å"Me,† a voice reverberated from the back of the chapel. Mortati and the others turned in wonder at the bedraggled form coming up the center aisle. â€Å"Mr†¦. Langdon?† Without a word, Langdon walked slowly to the front of the chapel. Vittoria Vetra entered too. Then two guards hurried in, pushing a cart with a large television on it. Langdon waited while they plugged it in, facing the cardinals. Then Langdon motioned for the guards to leave. They did, closing the door behind them. Now it was only Langdon, Vittoria, and the cardinals. Langdon plugged the Sony RUVI's output into the television. Then he pressed Play. The television blared to life. The scene that materialized before the cardinals revealed the Pope's office. The video had been awkwardly filmed, as if by hidden camera. Off center on the screen the camerlegno stood in the dimness, in front of a fire. Although he appeared to be talking directly to the camera, it quickly became evident that he was speaking to someone else – whoever was making this video. Langdon told them the video was filmed by Maximilian Kohler, the director of CERN. Only an hour ago Kohler had secretly recorded his meeting with the camerlegno by using a tiny camcorder covertly mounted under the arm of his wheelchair. Mortati and the cardinals watched in bewilderment. Although the conversation was already in progress, Langdon did not bother to rewind. Apparently, whatever Langdon wanted the cardinals to see was coming up†¦ â€Å"Leonardo Vetra kept diaries?† the camerlegno was saying. â€Å"I suppose that is good news for CERN. If the diaries contain his processes for creating antimatter – â€Å" â€Å"They don't,† Kohler said. â€Å"You will be relieved to know those processes died with Leonardo. However, his diaries spoke of something else. You.† The camerlegno looked troubled. â€Å"I don't understand.† â€Å"They described a meeting Leonardo had last month. With you.† The camerlegno hesitated, then looked toward the door. â€Å"Rocher should not have granted you access without consulting me. How did you get in here?† â€Å"Rocher knows the truth. I called earlier and told him what you have done.† â€Å"What I have done? Whatever story you told him, Rocher is a Swiss Guard and far too faithful to this church to believe a bitter scientist over his camerlegno.† â€Å"Actually, he is too faithful not to believe. He is so faithful that despite the evidence that one of his loyal guards had betrayed the church, he refused to accept it. All day long he has been searching for another explanation.† â€Å"So you gave him one.† â€Å"The truth. Shocking as it was.† â€Å"If Rocher believed you, he would have arrested me.† â€Å"No. I wouldn't let him. I offered him my silence in exchange for this meeting.† The camerlegno let out an odd laugh. â€Å"You plan to blackmail the church with a story that no one will possibly believe?† â€Å"I have no need of blackmail. I simply want to hear the truth from your lips. Leonardo Vetra was a friend.† The camerlegno said nothing. He simply stared down at Kohler. â€Å"Try this,† Kohler snapped. â€Å"About a month ago, Leonardo Vetra contacted you requesting an urgent audience with the Pope – an audience you granted because the Pope was an admirer of Leonardo's work and because Leonardo said it was an emergency.† The camerlegno turned to the fire. He said nothing. â€Å"Leonardo came to the Vatican in great secrecy. He was betraying his daughter's confidence by coming here, a fact that troubled him deeply, but he felt he had no choice. His research had left him deeply conflicted and in need of spiritual guidance from the church. In a private meeting, he told you and the Pope that he had made a scientific discovery with profound religious implications. He had proved Genesis was physically possible, and that intense sources of energy – what Vetra called God – could duplicate the moment of Creation.† Silence. â€Å"The Pope was stunned,† Kohler continued. â€Å"He wanted Leonardo to go public. His Holiness thought this discovery might begin to bridge the gap between science and religion – one of the Pope's life dreams. Then Leonardo explained to you the downside – the reason he required the church's guidance. It seemed his Creation experiment, exactly as your Bible predicts, produced everything in pairs. Opposites. Light and dark. Vetra found himself, in addition to creating matter, creating antimatter. Shall I go on?† The camerlegno was silent. He bent down and stoked the coals. â€Å"After Leonardo Vetra came here,† Kohler said, â€Å"you came to CERN to see his work. Leonardo's diaries said you made a personal trip to his lab.† The camerlegno looked up. Kohler went on. â€Å"The Pope could not travel without attracting media attention, so he sent you. Leonardo gave you a secret tour of his lab. He showed you an antimatter annihilation – the Big Bang – the power of Creation. He also showed you a large specimen he kept locked away as proof that his new process could produce antimatter on a large scale. You were in awe. You returned to Vatican City to report to the Pope what you had witnessed.† The camerlegno sighed. â€Å"And what is it that troubles you? That I would respect Leonardo's confidentiality by pretending before the world tonight that I knew nothing of antimatter?† â€Å"No! It troubles me that Leonardo Vetra practically proved the existence of your God, and you had him murdered!† The camerlegno turned now, his face revealing nothing. The only sound was the crackle of the fire. Suddenly, the camera jiggled, and Kohler's arm appeared in the frame. He leaned forward, seeming to struggle with something affixed beneath his wheelchair. When he sat back down, he held a pistol out before him. The camera angle was a chilling one†¦ looking from behind†¦ down the length of the outstretched gun†¦ directly at the camerlegno. Kohler said, â€Å"Confess your sins, Father. Now.† The camerlegno looked startled. â€Å"You will never get out of here alive.† â€Å"Death would be a welcome relief from the misery your faith has put me through since I was a boy.† Kohler held the gun with both hands now. â€Å"I am giving you a choice. Confess your sins†¦ or die right now.† The camerlegno glanced toward the door. â€Å"Rocher is outside,† Kohler challenged. â€Å"He too is prepared to kill you.† â€Å"Rocher is a sworn protector of th – â€Å" â€Å"Rocher let me in here. Armed. He is sickened by your lies. You have a single option. Confess to me. I have to hear it from your very lips.† The camerlegno hesitated. Kohler cocked his gun. â€Å"Do you really doubt I will kill you?† â€Å"No matter what I tell you,† the camerlegno said, â€Å"a man like you will never understand.† â€Å"Try me.† The camerlegno stood still for a moment, a dominant silhouette in the dim light of the fire. When he spoke, his words echoed with a dignity more suited to the glorious recounting of altruism than that of a confession. â€Å"Since the beginning of time,† the camerlegno said, â€Å"this church has fought the enemies of God. Sometimes with words. Sometimes with swords. And we have always survived.† The camerlegno radiated conviction. â€Å"But the demons of the past,† he continued, â€Å"were demons of fire and abomination†¦ they were enemies we could fight – enemies who inspired fear. Yet Satan is shrewd. As time passed, he cast off his diabolical countenance for a new face†¦ the face of pure reason. Transparent and insidious, but soulless all the same.† The camerlegno's voice flashed sudden anger – an almost maniacal transition. â€Å"Tell me, Mr. Kohler! How can the church condemn that which makes logical sense to our minds! How can we decry that which is now the very foundation of our society! Each time the church raises its voice in warning, you shout back, calling us ignorant. Paranoid. Controlling! And so your evil grows. Shrouded in a veil of self-righteous intellectualism. It spreads like a cancer. Sanctified by the miracles of its own technology. Deifying itself! Until we no longer suspect you are anything but pure goodness. Science has come to save us from our sic kness, hunger, and pain! Behold science – the new God of endless miracles, omnipotent and benevolent! Ignore the weapons and the chaos. Forget the fractured loneliness and endless peril. Science is here!† The camerlegno stepped toward the gun. â€Å"But I have seen Satan's face lurking†¦ I have seen the peril†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"What are you talking about! Vetra's science practically proved the existence of your God! He was your ally!† â€Å"Ally? Science and religion are not in this together! We do not seek the same God, you and I! Who is your God? One of protons, masses, and particle charges? How does your God inspire? How does your God reach into the hearts of man and remind him he is accountable to a greater power! Remind him that he is accountable to his fellow man! Vetra was misguided. His work was not religious, it was sacrilegious! Man cannot put God's Creation in a test tube and wave it around for the world to see! This does not glorify God, it demeans God!† The camerlegno was clawing at his body now, his voice manic. â€Å"And so you had Leonardo Vetra killed!† â€Å"For the church! For all mankind! The madness of it! Man is not ready to hold the power of Creation in his hands. God in a test tube? A droplet of liquid that can vaporize an entire city? He had to be stopped!† The camerlegno fell abruptly silent. He looked away, back toward the fire. He seemed to be contemplating his options. Kohler's hands leveled the gun. â€Å"You have confessed. You have no escape.† The camerlegno laughed sadly. â€Å"Don't you see. Confessing your sins is the escape.† He looked toward the door. â€Å"When God is on your side, you have options a man like you could never comprehend.† With his words still hanging in the air, the camerlegno grabbed the neck of his cassock and violently tore it open, revealing his bare chest. Kohler jolted, obviously startled. â€Å"What are you doing!† The camerlegno did not reply. He stepped backward, toward the fireplace, and removed an object from the glowing embers. â€Å"Stop!† Kohler demanded, his gun still leveled. â€Å"What are you doing!† When the camerlegno turned, he was holding a red-hot brand. The Illuminati Diamond. The man's eyes looked wild suddenly. â€Å"I had intended to do this all alone.† His voice seethed with a feral intensity. â€Å"But now†¦ I see God meant for you to be here. You are my salvation.† Before Kohler could react, the camerlegno closed his eyes, arched his back, and rammed the red hot brand into the center of his own chest. His flesh hissed. â€Å"Mother Mary! Blessed Mother†¦ Behold your son!† He screamed out in agony. Kohler lurched into the frame now†¦ standing awkwardly on his feet, gun wavering wildly before him. The camerlegno screamed louder, teetering in shock. He threw the brand at Kohler's feet. Then the priest collapsed on the floor, writhing in agony. What happened next was a blur. There was a great flurry onscreen as the Swiss Guard burst into the room. The soundtrack exploded with gunfire. Kohler clutched his chest, blown backward, bleeding, falling into his wheelchair. â€Å"No!† Rocher called, trying to stop his guards from firing on Kohler. The camerlegno, still writhing on the floor, rolled and pointed frantically at Rocher. â€Å"Illuminatus!† â€Å"You bastard,† Rocher yelled, running at him. â€Å"You sanctimonious bas – â€Å" Chartrand cut him down with three bullets. Rocher slid dead across the floor. Then the guards ran to the wounded camerlegno, gathering around him. As they huddled, the video caught the face of a dazed Robert Langdon, kneeling beside the wheelchair, looking at the brand. Then, the entire frame began lurching wildly. Kohler had regained consciousness and was detaching the tiny camcorder from its holder under the arm of the wheelchair. Then he tried to hand the camcorder to Langdon. â€Å"G-give†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Kohler gasped. â€Å"G-give this to the m-media.† Then the screen went blank.

The Penalty of Death by H.L. Mencken

As shown in H.L. Mencken on the Writing Life, Mencken was an influential satirist as well as an editor, literary critic, and longtime journalist with The Baltimore Sun. As you read his arguments in favor of the death penalty, consider how (and why) Mencken injects humor into his discussion of a grim subject. His satirical use of the persuasive essay format uses irony and sarcasm to help make his point. It is similar in mode to Jonathan Swifts A Modest Proposal.  Satirical essays like Menckens and Swifts allow the authors to make serious points in humorous, entertaining ways. Teachers can use these essays to help students understand satire and persuasive essays.  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬â€¹ The Penalty of Death by H.L. Mencken Of the arguments against capital punishment that issue from uplifters, two are commonly heard most often, to wit: That hanging a man (or frying him or gassing him) is a dreadful business, degrading to those who have to do it and revolting to those who have to witness it.That it is useless, for it does not deter others from the same crime. The first of these arguments, it seems to me, is plainly too weak to need serious refutation. All it says, in brief, is that the work of the hangman is unpleasant. Granted. But suppose it is? It may be quite necessary to society for all that. There are, indeed, many other jobs that are unpleasant, and yet no one thinks of abolishing them—that of the plumber, that of the soldier, that of the garbage-man, that of the priest hearing confessions, that of the sand-hog, and so on. Moreover, what evidence is there that any actual hangman complains of his work? I have heard none. On the contrary, I have known many who delighted in their ancient art, and practiced it proudly. In the second argument of the abolitionists there is rather more force, but even here, I believe, the ground under them is shaky. Their fundamental error consists in assuming that the whole aim of punishing criminals is to deter other (potential) criminals--that we hang or electrocute A simply in order to so alarm B that he will not kill C. This, I believe, is an assumption which confuses a part with the whole. Deterrence, obviously, is one of the aims of punishment, but it is surely not the only one. On the contrary, there are at least half a dozen, and some are probably quite as important. At least one of them, practically considered, is more important. Commonly, it is described as revenge, but revenge is really not the word for it. I borrow a better term from the late Aristotle: katharsis. Katharsis, so used, means a salubrious discharge of emotions, a healthy letting off of steam. A school-boy, disliking his teacher, deposits a tack upon the pedagogical chair; the teacher jumps a nd the boy laughs. This is katharsis. What I contend is that one of the prime objects of all judicial punishments is to afford the same grateful relief (a) to the immediate victims of the criminal punished, and (b) to the general body of moral and timorous men. These persons, and particularly the first group, are concerned only indirectly with deterring other criminals. The thing they crave primarily is the satisfaction of seeing the criminal actually before them suffer as he made them suffer. What they want is the peace of mind that goes with the feeling that accounts are squared. Until they get that satisfaction they are in a state of emotional tension, and hence unhappy. The instant they get it they are comfortable. I do not argue that this yearning is noble; I simply argue that it is almost universal among human beings. In the face of injuries that are unimportant and can be borne without damage it may yield to higher impulses; that is to say, it may yield to what is called Christian charity. But when the injury is serious Christianity is adjourned, and even saints reach for their sidearms. It is plainly asking too much of human nature to expect it to conquer so natural an impulse. A keeps a store and has a bookkeeper, B. B steals $700, employs it in playing at dice or bingo, and is cleaned out. What is A to do? Let B go? If he does so he will be unable to sleep at night. The sense of injury, of injustice, of frustration, will haunt him like pruritus. So he turns B over to the police, and they hustle B to prison. Thereafter A can sleep. More, he has pleasant dreams. He pictures B chained to the wall of a dungeon a hundred feet underground, devoured by rats and scorpions. It is so agreeable that it makes him forget his $700. He has got his katharsis. The same thing precisely takes place on a larger scale when there is a crime which destroys a whole community’s sense of security. Every law-abiding citizen feels menaced and frustrated until the criminals have been struck down--until the communal capacity to get even with them, and more than even has been dramatically demonstrated. Here, manifestly, the business of deterring others is no more than an afterthought. The main thing is to destroy the concrete scoundrels whose act has alarmed everyone and thus made everyone unhappy. Until they are brought to book that unhappiness continues; when the law has been executed upon them there is a sigh of relief. In other words, there is katharsis. I know of no public demand for the death penalty for ordinary crimes, even for ordinary homicides. Its infliction would shock all men of normal decency of feeling. But for crimes involving the deliberate and inexcusable taking of human life, by men openly defiant of all civilized order--for such crimes it seems, to nine men out of ten, a just and proper punishment. Any lesser penalty leaves them feeling that the criminal has got the better of society--that he is free to add insult to injury by laughing. That feeling can be dissipated only by a recourse to katharsis, the invention of the aforesaid Aristotle. It is more effectively and economically achieved, as human nature now is, by wafting the criminal to realms of bliss. The real objection to capital punishment doesn’t lie against the actual extermination of the condemned, but against our brutal American habit of putting it off so long. After all, every one of us must die soon or late, and a murderer, it must be assumed, is one who makes that sad fact the cornerstone of his metaphysic. But it is one thing to die, and quite another thing to lie for long months and even years under the shadow of death. No sane man would choose such a finish. All of us, despite the Prayer Book, long for a swift and unexpected end. Unhappily, a murderer, under the irrational American system, is tortured for what, to him, must seem a whole series of eternities. For months on end, he sits in prison while his lawyers carry on their idiotic buffoonery with writs, injunctions, mandamuses, and appeals. In order to get his money (or that of his friends) they have to feed him with hope. Now and then, by the imbecility of a judge or some trick of juridic science, they actu ally justify it. But let us say that, his money all gone, they finally throw up their hands. Their client is now ready for the rope or the chair. But he must still wait for months before it fetches him. That wait, I believe, is horribly cruel. I have seen more than one man sitting in the death-house, and I don’t want to see any more. Worse, it is wholly useless. Why should he wait at all? Why not hang him the day after the last court dissipates his last hope? Why torture him as not even cannibals would torture their victims? The common answer is that he must have time to make his peace with God. But how long does that take? It may be accomplished, I believe, in two hours quite as comfortably as in two years. There are, indeed, no temporal limitations upon God. He could forgive a whole herd of murderers in a millionth of a second. More, it has been done. Source This version of The Penalty of Death originally appeared in Menckens Prejudices: Fifth Series (1926).