Sunday, January 26, 2020

The Life Of Konstantin Serseyevich Stanislavski Film Studies Essay

The Life Of Konstantin Serseyevich Stanislavski Film Studies Essay The American theatre is renown throughout the world for its acting and glamour. It has its beginnings in the early Eighteenth Century and was notably introduced by The Hallams in the year 1752. Though the acting at the time was noted to be above par, there was still room for improvement. Additionally, there was the lack of proper acting methods or procedures which would help actors to improve their acting. Although today the American theatre is widely known throughout the world for the production of thought provoking as well as entertaining plays, it should be noted that this is due to early pioneers of modern acting. One such pioneer is Konstantin Sergeyevich Stanislavski. Many of the current thespians consider acting techniques before the innovation of Konstantin s universal system to be archaic. Close research, thus shall be paid to this revolutionary theory in this paper and this is necessary when focusing on the evolution of theatre to its current level. In early acting productions, especially those of social signifance, it is noted that most of the acting techniques were based on Stanislavsky s Moscow Art theatre. Hence, it can be said that most of modern acting ideas and practices were drawn from Stanislavsky. This paper is therefore an in-depth analysis into the life of Konstantin Serseyevich Stanislavski. It will include research into areas such as his biography and the acting methods that he developed. Additionally, it will include research on how he influenced the acting industry both during his lifetime and after his death. Moreover, it will include his achievements as well as the contributions that he made towards modern acting. An understanding of the American theatre is essential for development of the film industry. Biography Konstantin (or Constantin) Sergeyevich Stanislavsky was born in Moscow on January 5th 1863 during the transition from the serfdom of Czar-ruled Russia under Peter the Great, to the free enterprise of the Industrial revolution. Stanislavsky s father was a manufacturer while his mother was born of a French actress. He is renowned for having impacted or influenced the acting process more than anyone else in the twentieth century. His acting career began when Stanislavski was 14. At that time he joined a theatrical group known as the Alekyseyev circle in which he soon became the main attraction. During the late 1800s, his acting improved and soon he was producing and directing plays. For Konstantin, being brought up by a wealthy father meant that he did not experience financial hindrances during his early stage performance days. In 1885, at age 25, he adopted the stage name Stanislavsky and a while later, established the Society of Art and Literature at the Maly Theatre, where he got experience in ethics, aesthetics and stagecraft. It wasn t long before he began to question and pose challenges to the traditional stage approach. In 1888, he formally married Maria Perevoshchikova who was a school teacher. She eventually became his devoted disciple and a gifted actress. She went by the name Lilina. In 1898, together with Vladimir Nemirovich Danchenko, Stanislavsky founded the Moscow Art Theatre, Russia s first ensemble theatre. Vladimir was responsible for administrative and literary matters while Stanislavsky catered for production and stage. In this capacity, he was not only stern, but also uncompromising in training of actors. He was strict on the genuineness of the performance on stage. The theatre emphasized on a realistic presentation and attention to every minute detail of a production. Consequent productions became legendary under the careful, often autocratic, direction of Stanislavski, achieving classical status in the coming years. Apart from being an actor, a director, coach and a successful businessman, Stanislavsky was also a teacher. Stanislavsky is renowned for developing the Stanislavsky system/method which is a theory of acting. In it, he explained that actors had to achieve an emotional identification with their characters, while at the same time remaining independent of the role in order to help it to the needs of the play. In a nutshell, Stanislavsky demanded the reproduction of genuine emotions at every performance in order to fully convey the character s emotions. As both a director and actor, Stanislavsky showed an amazing subtlety in rendering psychological patterns and a rare gift for satirical characterization. He eventually became a dominant influence on the Russian elite of the time. In 1912, he founded the First Studio. This is where many of his innovations were adopted by many upcoming actors. On October 29, 1928, Stanislavsky suffered a heart attack while acting in The Three Sisters during the Moscow Art Theatre s 30th anniversary. From then on, he put acting aside and focused on directing and educating actors and directors alike for the rest of his life. Stanislavski died on August 7th 1938, just before the start of World War II, maintaining the ideal of a peaceful, socially ethical world. Method Acting Method acting can be explained as an approach to acting based on the idea that an actor should have an emotional identification with their characters. This is important to come up with an enticing film. For the purposes of production several methods have been applied in a bid to expound on film science. Stanislavski viewed the theatre especially that of Russia to be one whose function is not only to entertain but to affect the audience directly with the life of the theatre. Method acting strives to aid actors develop a sincere and deeply felt performances. Vital features of method acting are derived from the work of Konstantin. He formulated an approach that dealt with the psychological and emotional aspects of acting. In his argument, Stanislavsky maintained that the core business for an actor was to be believable rather than to be understood. Stanislavsky implemented methods such as emotional memory to achieve this believable truth . In this case, he suggested that for a performer to get into character where he or she is expected to be frightened, the performer had to remember an occurrence in which they experienced fear, and physically reenact the fear that they felt when acting. Stanislavski further emphasized the need for an actor to take their own personality on stage when playing a character. This was in contrast to earlier methods of acting which encouraged the actor to become the character putting their emotions at bay. Method acting is the most common approach by most modern actors. The actor tries to think and feel the same way as what the character would. Stanislavsky protested against the old manner of acting where emotional rhetoric and non-stylized props, sets and costumes were used. Instead, he chose to show a different form of drama realism. In this setting, the dialogue involved more of everyday speech. Another distinct feature of method acting is that the actors perform to each other rather than to the audience. The play unfolds on stage in such a manner that to the audience, it is as if one wall to a house is transparent or invisible so they can see what is unfolding inside. Therefore, the actors perform without acknowledging the presence of the audience. In Stanislavsky s theory/method, the actor strives to achieve several objectives. Firstly, the actor aims to project the character s actions making them seemingly natural and convincing. Secondly, the actor is supposed to portray the character s inner drive, that is, their aims or objectives. Third, develop the character convincingly. Then most importantly, the ability and willingness to work as a team with fellow actors. Acting exercises and activities Actors implementing the Stanislavsky system perform several exercises to generally improve their performance on stage. Relaxation exercises are primarily designed to help the performer to release tension and anxiety and to make the use of their limbs and voices effortless and fluid. Some actors achieve this through yoga. During yoga, the body and mind are in state of calm, balance and tranquility and this enables the actor to be whatever character they are required to be. Concentration exercises are designed to help nurture the performer s ability to concentrate on an event, person or object on stage. Stanislavsky referred to the specific points of this focus as circles of attention . Actors focus on an object or position/location and afford it their utmost attention ignoring everything else. For this type of exercise, the actor can be done in numerous different ways. For instance, the actor can recite the alphabet backwards severally, or engage in a more challenging exercise that demands concentration. Observation is an acquired skill. The performers are required to observe different people from various backgrounds and ages. From this observation, they are expected to analyze how the subjects go along their daily business and then incorporate those details into their performances. An actor can easily and frequently engage in observation exercises. For example, an actor can try to remember the model, color and number plates, gender and approximate age of the drivers of vehicles passing at a street or outside their apartment. One such acting exercise developed by Konstantin Stanislavski was the Magic If Exercise. It basically requires the actor to question himself in order to proper assimilate the character s role that the actor will be playing. A sample of the exercise is as follows: 1. (Magic If) Sit, stand and walk with justification. (Sit by the window to see why there was shouting on the adjacent street. Sit in order to read the paper. Stand in order to better see the cause of shouting. Stand in order to stretch one s legs. Walk to take a walk. Walk to see what the commotion was all about. Stanislavski influence on the film/theatre industry during his time The Seagull a play produced by Anton Chekhov had been a failure in its original production in St Petersburg in 1896. However, and with a lot of challenges, Stanislavsky was authorized by Chekhov to restage it. Under Stanislavsky s and Danchenko s direction, The Seagull became a success, catapulting Moscow Art Theatre as a new force in the world stage. This led to the acknowledgement of Chekhov as a great playwright whereas after the failure of The Seagull during its debut, Chekhov had vowed never to write again. Consequently, after the success of The seagull , Chekhov wrote, The Three Sisters (1901) and the The Cherry Orchard (1903) exclusively for the Moscow Art Theatre. Were it not for Stanislavsky, it is safe to assume that Chekhov s career would have never made a come-back and the world would have been robbed of such a great playwright as Chekhov. Apart from helping actors get in touch with the concept of showing genuine emotions and feelings on stage breaking from the old system where the actor kept strictly to the exact words and actions dictated on script, Stanislavsky s method of acting also demanded that they acknowledge the unsaid messages within the script. This in turn influenced playwrights like Chekhov to make a change in their mode of writing in order to accommodate more elusive emotionally engaging work. In 1902 Stanislavski continued with his success streak when he staged Maksim Gorky s The Petty Bourgeois and The Lower Depths. Stanislavsky played several powerful roles including; Astrov in Uncle Vanya in 1899 and Gayev in The Cherry Orchard by Chekhov in 1904; Doctor Stockman in Henrik Ibsen s An Enemy of the People in 1900; and Satin in The Lower Depths. In these roles, Stanislavsky made yet another great contribution to theatre by being a great actor and setting the bar for young actors. He was shaping the world of acting not only as a director, but also as an accomplished actor in his own right. In 1912, Stanislavsky founded the First Studio and there, his models and ideas were undertaken by many young actors. By 1918, Stanislavsky was managing the Bolshoi Opera Studio, which was later named after him. In 1922, he staged Eugene Onegin by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky at the Bolshoi Opera Studio which was accredited as a major reform in opera. Stanislavsky made tremendous contribution in not only stage theatre, but also through excellent performance at the opera, sparked what may be termed as a revolution in opera at the time. Stanislavski realized that theatre was at its best when profound emotions content was in tandem with expressive theatrical form and oversaw the production of William Shakespeare s Twelfth Night in 1917 at the First Studio. From 1922 to 1924, Stanislavsky and the Moscow Art Theatre toured Europe and the United States. During this tour, Stanislavsky went in the capacity of the director and leading actor. He also, of course as the founder, had an administrative position in the group. As Stanislavsky travelled the world and introduced his system wherever they toured, many expressed great interest in his system. Therefore, he also contributed greatly in helping spread his system across the world and creating awareness among the circles of film and theatre at the time. It was also during this time that he wrote his autobiography which he called My Life in Art. Stanislavski went on to stage Aleksandr Ostrovsky s An Ardent Heart in 1926 and The Marriage of Figaro by Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais in 1927. The latter demonstrated very bold attempts at theatricality. What proved to mark a milestone in the soviet theatre was Armoured Train 14-69 which was V.V. Ivanov s play about the Russian Revolution in 1927. Stanislavski continued his experiments and more research on finding what he termed as a conscious means to the sub-conscious which basically meant the search for an actor s emotions. In 1935, with the advantage of modern scientific research on the interaction of the brain and the body, he started on his final approach called method of physical actions. This approach was based on emotional creativity. It demanded that the actors assimilate the character s physical and psychological emotions at any given time. This approach also had another impact. It influenced the playwright s writing and structuring of the play. Stanislavsky s influence on the film/theatre industry after his time After the death of Stanislavsky, his work was advanced by Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio from the 1940s. The success of Stanislavsky s work was clearly shown in the fact that some of the most successful actors/performers even after his death, had been educated using his system, being Strasberg s students. Some of those now renowned actors include: Al Pacino, Marilyn Monroe, Paul Newman, Robert De Niro, Alec Baldwin, and Dennis Hopper, just to name a few. Therefore, it is no assumption that Stanislavsky has had a tremendous impact on the film/theatre industry to this day. When a comparison is done between Lee Strasberg and Konstantin Stanislavsky s method, it is noted that Lee s method is heavily influenced by Affective Memory. Stella Adler, who was taught the Method of Physical Action, introduced Lee Strasberg to the new system or method of physical action. Lee who understood the differences rejected the method. He insisted that acting was recollection of emotion. However, it should be noted that Lee Strasberg was based on Stanislavsky s approach. Lee was a student of Boleslavski, the founder of the American Laboratory theatre, who was originally taught by Constantine Stanislavski. The famous actor Charlie Chaplin was quoted as saying that Stanislavski s book, An actor Prepares, tells what an actor needs to inspire himself or herself to profoundly express his emotions. Many other actors acknowledge that his books on acting preparation have been inspiring and his Universal Method has greatly impacted on their acting. Based on Stanislavski s system, many more approaches have been formulated by scholars over the years. Many of these are just a variation of Stanislavsky s system. Nevertheless, they have factored in new trends and colossal changes in the film and theatre industry since the 20s while trying to improve and build on the ideas of Stanislavsky making his system a kind of a framework on which many more innovations are designed to serve specific demands in a performance, or to formulate universally sound approaches to better performance by actors. Research has been carried out on the various works of Stanislavski in an attempt to better understand and implement his universal system. The system which he innovated is also the basis for which many modern acting schools were formed. Research has also shown that method acting is widely practiced among modern American actors. His theories are the used during study by many actors, some of who have become very successful. With Stanislavski s method acting approach still being taught in many acting schools his model is still very much in use in the modern world and has had impeccable effects on performance both in film and theatre. His books are crucial reading materials for aspiring actors and are used in many acing schools. His works (plays and theatre films) are subject to critical study and analysis in modern acting and film-making schools. His mansion in Moscow is currently a public museum and research centre containing the original manuscripts written by Stanislavski, his library collection and the collection of theatre costumes and stage sets used by Stanislavski. Summary Stanislavski s life was wholly emerged in acting. He devoted himself to perfecting his acting skills and of those around him. His mentors and coaches can be regarded as inspiring him and pushing him into visualizing and eventually realizing this dream. Stanislavski not only produced a system that was adopted by actors the world over, he was also a revered playwright, actor as well as director. His notable works which are now classics, many of which were adapted into black and white films include: Stanislasvski s single handedly changed the acting world by the introduction of seemingly simple methods. By many actors he is regarded as the father of acting. He taught actors the simple fact that in order to properly depict the character they are acting, it is necessary for the actor to fit himself in the actors shoes, thus his universal system. By the use of simple techniques, Stanislavski s was able to completely remodel how actors prepare for themselves. His contributions to the acting world can indeed not be ignored for without him the current acting scene would not be as captivating as it is now. Thus, Stanislavski has contributed greatly towards the evolution of modern acting through his universal method. His books, his films, and his universal system have enabled actors to greatly improve their own acting and are highly regarded in the acting world.

Friday, January 17, 2020

Play Report: Our Lady of 121st Street

Immediate Responses: -Easy read -Incredibly funny -Characters are so unlike one another -The relationships all linked together somehow -Very disappointed by the way they found Sister Rose -Loved the simple flow of the dialogue -Had to re-read several things in order to keep the sequence straight due to the jumping around of the scenes and time. Basic Conflict: The basic conflict of the play is the unsettling fact that somebody has stolen the corpse of their beloved nun Sister Rose. Major Events: -Somebody stole Sister Rose’s corpse Balthazar tells Vic a story about a man who didn’t care that his son had died -Rooftop goes to confession with Father Lux for the first time in 30 years. -Inez is Rooftop’s ex wife -Gail’s and Flip’s relationship is established. Gail is an actor. -Flip denies his relationship with Gail in front of Inez -The interrogation of Norca by Balthazar -Edwin’s and Pinky’s relationship is established -Edwin sends Pink y out for Yodels at 10:30 in the morning -Marcia’s asthma attack. Edwin takes care of her. Marcia tries hooking up with Edwin. -Norca and Inez speak in the bar for the first time since Norca slept with Rooftop, Inez’s ex husband. Balthazar takes Rooftop out of his confession. * Pinky kisses Father Lux * Pinky returns from getting yodels over 12 hours later. * He admits to Edwin that he spent time with Norca * Marcia expresses her concerns that Edwin will turn into her alcoholic grandfather * Marcia wants to marry Edwin who doesn’t want to leave Pinky alone. * Flip kisses Gail in public * Balthazar confesses that he was the guy who decided to watch a game on television over going to his son’s death sight. Major Theme: The major theme/lesson of the play is to always put somebody else before you. If you do than you will learn more about yourself in long run. Environment: The environment of our scene is a bar and grill on 121st street at 2 a. m. in the morning. Sitting in the bar I can see the smoke from the kitchen as it passes the lights on the ceiling. I can smell the fantastic aroma of fried food being cooked out back. I can taste the cold, salty, and seasoned French fries as I bite into them off of Marcia’s plate. I can hear the faint jazz music from the jukebox in the corner behind me. I can feel the cool air conditioning coming from the vents as I stand under them when I get warm. Character My character is Edwin Velasquez. Edwin is a super for a building on 121st street and has a great relationship with some of his tenants. Edwin dresses incredibly mainstream and boring. He hasn’t shaved in 3 months, so his scruff is quite visible and doesn’t waste time doing his hair. Edwin loves to eat Yodels with whole milk, and smoke. Edwin’s not the smartest 32 year old and he had to re-do 2nd grade 3 times. He is a very happy person who has taken on a huge burden that causes him to be on edge almost all of the time. Some people may see this as a bad attitude, but it’s simply a result of always worrying. Edwin has to take care of his little Brother, Pinky, by himself due to the fact that their parents are dead. Pinky is mentally challenged, and it just so happens that it’s Edwin’s fault which really weighs down on his shoulder’s 24/7. He threw a brick through a window after being yelled at by his parents for calling Pinky a retard, and the brick hit Pinky on the head causing permanent damage. Edwin’s most important relationship is the one with his brother Pinky. Their parents passed away several years ago. Social Services insisted on taking Pinky into custody, but Edwin would not let that happen, so he took full responsibility for Pinky. He feels that he owes it to his parents to be the best possible parental figure he can be for Pinky. Edwin’s overall need or desire throughout his life is to be certain Pinky is happy and safe at all times. Edwin does extremely well trying to protect Pinky and know exactly where he is at all times, but Pinky makes it incredibly difficult to do so. In our scene he does not achieve it because Pinky was out for over 12 hours and did not tell Edwin where he was going to be which worried Edwin to death, but it was truly out of his hands.

Thursday, January 9, 2020

Auditors Report - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 10 Words: 2941 Downloads: 3 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Analytical essay Level High school Did you like this example? Auditors report Contents Introduction: Responsibilities of audit committee: Audit report: Internal Vs External audit: Relationship: Reporting: Scope of performance: Objective: Audit committee: parts of an audit report: Report title: Introductory paragraph: Scope paragraph: Executive Summary: Opinion paragraph: Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s name: Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s signature: Audit process: Types of audit reports: Unqualified opinion: Qualified opinion: Adverse opinion: Disclaimer of opinion: Importance of audit report: Purpose of external audit: Function: Time frame: Significance: Types: Misconceptions: Role of auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report in corporate governance: Conclusion: Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Auditors Report" essay for you Create order Introduction: Auditing is the process through which the chartered accountants, income tax lawyers, accounts all together helps in accessing the business transactions of the company and filing reports as per the government norms and conditions of that particular country. Auditing is done on a yearly basis. It includes all the requirements related to the economic health and finance of the company that has to be required to be presented before the government agencies for legal and taxing purposes. The effectiveness of auditing can be seen by observing the effectiveness of the audit committee itself which does the external and internal audit of the company. Thus its composition and independence of the members of auditing confirms the free and fair auditing followed in the company. the presence and absence of the audit committee helps in figuring out the quality of the financial reporting that a company adopts. Thus presence of audit committee confirms an attempt of the company to develop a fair repo rting system, while on the other hand, the absence of audit committee clearly signifies the not so good intensions of the company. With the present laws in force the audit committee formation is compulsory in case of company crossing a certain amount of turnover, thus it becomes easier to keep a close eye on the working of the companies which earlier did not had any audit committee. Thus the audit committee members are now more answerable to the government than their corporate owners. Responsibilities of audit committee: The important duty of the audit committee members is to interact with the external auditors during auditing.Audit scope negotiation process is also done by the audit committee.When the auditors assign lower control risk to clients with high corporate governance quality, the auditors may expend less audit effort.Expertise,independence and experience are lacked by many audit committee members.Audit committee acts an effective vehicle in pursuing the interest of shareholders.Less pressure is exerted on the high quality audit members to increase the audit effort.The responsibilities of an auditing committee are: Checking the choice of accounting policies and principles. To hire an external auditor To oversee the audit process To monitor the internal control process. In many countries audit committee was introduced to alleviate the weakness of corporate governance.High profile corporate failures which involves fraud,poor accounting and internal control failure made the organizations to realize the importance of auditing committee.AC plays an important role on the quality of financial reporting.The earnings quality of a company is improved by the audit committee.Meetings,independence and background of the members are also affect the quality of the financial report.The absence of an audit committee affects the financial reportà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s quality.Audit Committee helps an organization to develop a fair reporting system.The formation of audit committee is made compulsory in many countries.Therefore companies which do not have AC is working on the audit committee formation.It is the responsibility of the audit committee members to answer than the government rather than the corporate owners. Audit report: A busineesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s financial status is officially evaluated with the combination of auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s opinion and data collected on the businessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s financial transactions and situation is known as audit report.This is the common process used by companies to examine their own records and to release their financial information to investors and shareholders. (TylerLacoma, 2009) Internal Vs External audit: Auditing may occur either inside or outside the company.An accountant who works in the company perform internal auditing.Internal auditing is easier than external auditing because the auditors are familiar with company records and they have experience in generating such records.The investors and official agencies do not have trust in internal auditing.Some business may not have proper resources to perform internal auditing.Therefore external audit is practiced in some companies.For this purpose, companies hire a firm to perform audit for them. (TylerLacoma, 2009) Relationship: In order to assess the effectiveness of business operations internal auditors are appointed on behalf of management.Internal controls of the business is the main concern of internal auditors. An accountant who works in the company perform internal auditing.External auditors can be appointed by the shareholders of the company to perform external audit.These external auditors are independent of the company and management. (Anon., 2011) Reporting: For both internal as well as external audit a common code of conduct and ethics is applicable.However, they differ in terms of whom they report to.An internal auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report is private and it is only for the directors and management of the business.An external auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report is presented to the shareholders and public. (Anon., 2011) Scope of performance: External audit is performed beyond scope to avoid conflict of interests.The main aim of external audit is to check whether the financial report is free from any misstatement and whether they depict a true and fair view of the entity.Financial and non financial aspects of a firm is focused by internal audit.Fraud is detected by internal audit.Internal audit also provide advise on internal controls and performance appraisal on corporate governance.A businessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s risk management strategies are evaluated by internal audit. (Anon., 2011) Objective: A opinion on the financial statement of an entity is expressed by external audit.Functions of external audit are determined by the statutes.The internal audità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s functions are determined by the board and management.The value to operations of an organization is added by internal audits.Operational audits and compliance procedures are the main focus of internal audits. (Anon., 2011) Audit committee: An Audit committee is meant to monitor the companys financial reporting process on fair grounds by making internal controls and risk management. Thus the committee is meant to bring forth the truth about the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s financial condition that its financial gains and losses, future investment and past requisitions. Thus the audit committee confirms all the facts and figures about the financial conditions of the company. This committee should consist of the non-executive directors of the board. The number of non executive directors should be at least three and in case of chairman included in the board than he should be an independent candidate. (Anon., 2011) parts of an audit report: Audit reports are used by the accountants to publish the data collcted by them during their fieldwork of a company. Seven elements are needed to complete the audit report.These seven elements are report title, introductory paragraph, scope paragraph, executive summary, opinion para graph, auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s name and auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s signature. (Andrew, 2009) Report title: The audit date and the addressee of the report are included in the title of the report.The auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s last day of fieldwork is the date and the board members and stockholders are the addressee.The word independent is also mentioned in the title to set it apart from the internal audits. (Andrew, 2009) Introductory paragraph: This is a boilerplate text which states that audit has been carried out.Financial document used to perform the auditing are identified here and it also credits the responsibility of the management for the accuracy of the financial statements.The time frame covered by the audit is determined in this section. (Andrew, 2009) Scope paragraph: This paragraph emphasize that the rules and standards set by Generally Accepted Audit Standards were followed during audit.A reasonable assurance is provided to indicate the claims made by the financial statements are accurate.The test methods carried out by the auditors to test the accounting methods followed by the company is indicated in the scope paragraph. (Andrew, 2009) Executive Summary: The findings of the auditing is summarized here.The auditor determine the content of the summary.Executive summary does not provide much opinion but it clearly expresses the findings of the audit. (Andrew, 2009) Opinion paragraph: The financial situation of the company and the methods and procedures used to reach a conclusion are included in this paragraph.Auditors opinion on the financial stability of the company is included here.Conformity or non conformity of the auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s opinion based on the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles are included in this section. (Andrew, 2009) Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s name: At end of the audit report it is the responsibility of the auditor to print his name.The auditor must also included the name of the firm or the certified accountant he is working for. Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s signature: The auditor is accountable for the audit results up to the date stated in the audit reportà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s title.The signature of the auditor below his name is the acknowledgement for this accountability. (Andrew, 2009) Audit process: The following steps are included in the audit process. The audit objectives,timing and format of the report and distribution are discussed by scheduling a conference. The internal controls and operations are assessed for the soundness. To ensure proper operation the internal controls are tested. All preliminary observations are discussed with the management. Before the release of the audit report, a discussion on the draft is done with the management. The critical issues raised in the audit report are followed to check whether they have been successfully resolved. (CaliforniaUniversity, 2012) Types of audit reports: Four types of audit reports are: Unqualified opinion Qualified opinion Adverse opinion Disclaimer of opinion (TylerLacoma, 2009) Unqualified opinion: It is also known as clean opinion.In an unqualified opinion an auditor determines the financial statements provided by the firm does not have any misinterpretations.This also indicates that the financial record of the firm is maintained in accordance with the standards of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles(GAAP).Unqualified opinion is considered as the best type of report. The word à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“independentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  is ddedin the title of the report to indicate that the audit is done by an unbiased third party.Main body is followed by the title.The main body includes the auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s responsibilities,audit purpose and the findings of the audit. (TylerLacoma, 2009) Qualified opinion: Qualified opinion is given when the financial record of a firm is not maintained in accordance with GAAP but there is no misinterpretation in the financial statement.The writing of qualified opinion is extremely similar to that of unqualified opinion.An additional paragraph,providing the reasons why the audit report is not unqualified is included in the qualified opinion. (TylerLacoma, 2009) Adverse opinion: Adverse opinion is the worst type of opinion given for a business.Adverse opinion indicates that the financial record is not maintained in accordance with GAAP and also indicates there are misinterpretations in the financial statements.Adverse opinion is the indication of fraud.When adverse opinion is given it is the responsibility of the firm to correct its financial statement and have it re-audited, because the investors,lenders and other requesting parties will not accept adverse opinion. (TylerLacoma, 2009) Disclaimer of opinion: When the financial record of a firm is unavailable, an auditor cannot complete the accurate audit report,in this case the auditor issues disclaimer of opinion, stating that the financial status of the firm cannot be determined. (TylerLacoma, 2009) Importance of audit report: In order to gain support from the investors, board of directors and interested public, business and non-profit organization carry out audit as a part of their annual financial reporting.Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report acts as a certificate that an external auditor has audited the financial statement of the organization.The auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s opinion in the report is considered as the essence of the reports.For the well being of any organization auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report is very important.The auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report helps to find out the financial stability of a firm. (wisegeek, 2013) The finances of a firm is ensured by the auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report,keeping in with the legal requirement, both the accounts payable and accounts receivable are conducted.External auditors are used to conduct the audit because they are unbiased.Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report is a useful tool for small companies.Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report helps the new fir ms to make sure there is proper accounting for all assets, cash flow and liabilities incurred during the calendar period under consideration. (wisegeek, 2013) Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report helps the organizations to enhance their current method of bookkeeping.The auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report may suggest to for some basic changes in the accounting process which may eliminate duplication of efforts.Other suggestions may include appropriate expense classification,processing reports on employee expenses and similar matters.Many believe auditing is conducted when there is suspicion of wrong doing.Annual auditing is carried to check whether internal audit is done properly.Auditing also point out the area which can be improved.Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report plays a major role in the investorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s decision making process.Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report helps a firm to gain the trust of investors, shareholders and interested public.Auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s re port also give suggestions to the firm to improve certain areas. (wisegeek, 2013) Purpose of external audit: An external audit checks the effectiveness of internal controls,process,guidelines and policies and incompliance with government requirements,industry standards and company policies.The errors in the financial statement is prevented by the external audit. (MarquisCodjia, 2012) Function: A full assurance to the investors and financial market participants are provided by the external audit.External audit indicates the accounting records of the firm, are fair and they comply with GAAP,industry standards and regulatory requirements.Full assurance indicates the confidence of the investors and the audit results are accurate.Balance sheetmprofit/loss statement,owner;s capital statement and cash flow statement are included in a financial statement. (MarquisCodjia, 2012) Time frame: Throughout the year, an external audit process is carried out.When the company closes its accounting records and prepares financial statement, an external auditor start testing the financial statement of the company.An external auditor along with the internal auditor review areas with problem.In accordance with such review the external auditor carry out the auditing process.The external auditors discuss audit planning,resource allocation and testing schedules with the head of the department of areas under review. (MarquisCodjia, 2012) Significance: Audit report is useful for three groups.They are management,regulators and investors.Operating breakdowns and segments showing risks are learnt by the top management and audit committee.Business trends and corporate practices are detected by the investors.The companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s economy standing is gauged by the investors with the help of the audit report. Companys economy standing and managements short term and long term initiatives are gauged by the investors with the help of audit report. (MarquisCodjia, 2012) Types: Auditing a financial statement is the primary audit requirement from a company.A financial statement audit is done to ensure the correctness of financial statement.Errors and breakdowns in internal control and procedures are detected by operational audit.How employees abide by regulations in performing tasks are evaluated by senior management with the help of compliance audit.The control around software and technology infrastructure are ensured by information systems audit. (MarquisCodjia, 2012) Misconceptions: Financial audit is performed by a certified public accountant.For performing other audits there s no need of certification for external auditors. (MarquisCodjia, 2012) Role of auditorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s report in corporate governance: Corporate governance consists of board of directors,audit committee and other supervisory committees.An auditor does not have any direct corporate governance responsibility. The auditors report provides a check on the information aspects of the governance system. The auditors report helps the corporate governance to increase the soundness of the operations and internal control. The reports also helps the audit committee to use an effective method in preparing the financial report of the firm. Audit report helps the management to identify the operation breakdowns and segments with high risks. Regulators can identify the business trends and corporate practices. Audit report helps the corporate governance in decision making process,accountability and monitoring. Audit report provides confidence.Uncertainty and risks are reduced by audit reports. The information required by the corporate governance for decision making is provided by audit report.Audit report focus on internal controls. The audit report assists the corporate governance in achieving the goal. (wisegeek, 2013) Conclusion: Auditing is the process of checking the financial report. For every firm it is necessary to conduct auditing. Auditing carried out by the external auditor is effective compared to that of internal auditor. Auditing is done to check the financial record of a firm.investors and shareholders always wants an unbiased external auditor to cheche k the financial statements.exernal auditing gains the trust of investors and shareholders. Financial stability of of an organization can be identified with the help of the audit report.audit report also helps to take investment decision.audit report also identifies the misinterpretation in the financial statements. Bibliography Andrew, 2009. ehow. [Online] Available at: https://www.ehow.com/info_8784373_7-parts-audit-report.html [Accessed 20 December 2014]. Anon., 2011. DianaWicks. [Online] Available at: https://www.ehow.com/info_8478956_difference-between-internal-external-auditing.html [Accessed 20 December 2014]. CaliforniaUniversity, 2012. Internal auditing. [Online] Available at: https://daf.csulb.edu/offices/univ_svcs/internalauditing/audits.html [Accessed 20 December 2014]. MarquisCodjia, 2012. ehow. [Online] Available at: https://www.ehow.com/about_6614835_purpose-external-audit.html [Accessed 20 December 2014]. TylerLacoma, 2009. ehow. [Online] Available at: https://daf.csulb.edu/offices/univ_svcs/internalauditing/audits.html [Accessed 20 December 2014]. wisegeek, 2013. wisegeek. [Online] Available at: https://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-an-auditors-report.htm [Accessed 20 December 2014]. 1 | Page

Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Merchant of Venice and the Crucible Comparison Essay

Ashley Tam Ms. Parker ENG2DB – 01 December 17, 2010 Injustice: Power Gone Wrong All communities run successfully with qualities of fairness and equality. The well-being of the citizens depends on the support and guidance they receive from those with power and influence in their society. When the people become corrupt and start having intentions that do not contribute back to the community, the society will fall apart and be unable to maintain balance and stability. In William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and Arthur Miller’s The Crucible the reader sees examples of injustice inflicted on the victims within the plays through the people with power within the community. The Christians in The Merchant of Venice mock Shylock the Jew†¦show more content†¦The punishments determined by the Christians affect Shylock severely and he ends up losing all that he has. The injustice Shylock receives is more than enough to prove his continuous suffering throughout the play. Antonio â€Å"call[s him] misbeliever, cut-thr oat dog,† (1.3.107), demonstrating the abusive treatment he receives as the Christians make fun of him and throw hateful words at him. Shylock has no one to stand up for him, appearing alone in most scenes whereas the Christians always arrive in groups. This â€Å"ganging up† gives the Christians power over Shylock and when they use this power to hurt Shylock emotionally, the injustice and damage created is exponential. The court is already in favour to Antonio winning as shown by the Duke saying he â€Å"think[s] so too, / That [Shylock] but lead’st this fashion of [his] malice to the last hour of act.† (4.1.17-19) the power is unequal and this ruling forces Shylock to surrender and accept his defeat. It is unjust for this to happen as Shylock does not get a fair trial and ends up losing everything. Likewise, the court overuses its power and ends up killing the entire community. The power of the court enforces theocracy to a degree that results in the cit izens being accused of not following them correctly and turning to witchcraft. John Proctor succumbs to saying he is associated with the devil and â€Å"sign[s himself] to lies† (Miller 133) by confessing to an act he did not commit. TheShow MoreRelatedEssay Prompts4057 Words   |  17 PagesAP ENGLISH LIT AND COMP FREE RESPONSE QUESTIONS 2004 (Form A): Critic Roland Barthes has said, â€Å"Literature is the question minus the answer.† Choose a novel or play and, considering Barthes’ Observation, write an essay in which you analyze a central question the work raises and the extent to which it offers any answers. Explain how the author’s treatment of this question affects your understanding of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary. You may select a work from the list below or another