"Master and Commander": Analyze the movie from an 'Organizational Behavior' point of view.

Essay by Vanitha_85University, Bachelor'sA+, November 2006

download word file, 7 pages 4.0

"Master and Commander" is the best movie to further my understanding of organizational behavior. In short, "Master and Commander" is a story about how to use leadership, motivation, power and politics, decision making and creativity to beat the French competitor that seems bigger, faster or stronger than his ship.

In the first part of the paper, I would elaborate the point of leadership in this movie. In terms of this, the captain has the power to influence the seamen. As the British crew pursued its opponent, the captain and his team were searching for a calculated strategy that would allow them to defeat the French captain and take the ship as a prize. As it turns out, their strategy was its greatest strength. By applying their knowledge about warfare they were constantly learning about the changing environment, such as the new technology used by the French ship.

The British naval officers were able to create an emergent strategy. The captain used the Fiedler leadership model, which matches the leadership style of interacting with the seaman and the degree to which the situation controls and influences the leader. For example, when the captain orders the seamen to fight again the battle, he gives orders to those who are responsible for doing the work. All seamen coordinate together with the captain and follow all the orders of the captain. One proactive aspect of the story was the ability of the captain to embrace knowledge from other disciplines and accordingly act on it. The captain's friend, who was a doctor, was an accomplished naturalist. And his ideology was that insects disguise themselves well according to the situation around them. Naturally, the captain uses this knowledge to fool the French ship by using potential alternative. Master and Commander are sure to...