Drone Attack

Drone Attacks Inside Pakistan there is ‘national consensus’ on the drones: the US must stop its Predators because they kill innocent citizens in collateral damage and increase the pressure on Pakistan Army fighting the Taliban by swelling the ranks of those who fight it for revenge. Outside Pakistan, there is an impression that the drones are being used against the terrorists in Pakistan’s Tribal Areas under some kind of secret deal between the CIA and Pakistan Army.Another al Qaeda top echelon leader has been killed on January 11  in Miranshah in North Waziristan through this alleged ‘coordination’. This was said to be Abdullah Khorasani, who is believed to have been playing a key role in planning the overall strategy of terror acts in Pakistan. The man’s real name was AslamAwan, and he was a citizen of Abbottabad, where Osama bin Laden was killed last May by US commandos. As per routine, the drone attack was effective because it was directe d by spotters on ground calling the strike precisely on to the victim.The strike ended a 55-day-long pause after the Salalacheckpost attack by American gunships in November 2011. Following this, a foreign news agency quoted Pakistani officials who said that the  drones are being operated under an agreed US-Pakistan plan  which remains classified. This clearly contradicts the government’s public stance on this issue, which, quite stridently believes that drones violate Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.The American stance in the past has been that drone attacks had to be carried out without bringing Pakistan into the loop because the Pakistani side tended to ‘pass on’ the information about the attack to the terrorists who then moved away from the target area. This was understood all over the world in the light of the belief that Pakistan was actually an allowing safe haven to foreigner terrorists in North Waziristan whom it used for attac king inside Afghanistan to retain its stake in the Afghan endgame.The new ‘information’ — including quotes from unnamed Pakistani officials — belies much of that. It purports to verify that the Pakistani side was indeed keeping the strikes secret and, instead of passing on the information to the terrorists, was actually helping the CIA target them with spotters on the ground. Given the nature of these revelations, it remains to be seen what the Pakistani military’s response will be to them. One should understand that the drone attacks have been a success story as far as the US and its allies are concerned.The ‘analysis’ about the ‘wiping out’ of al Qaeda and the sharp diminution in its ability to target America and Europe is based on the number of al Qaeda terrorists killed by the drones inside Pakistan. As if to confirm this, a meeting took place between an al Qaeda leader and Mullah Umar in the presence of other commander s in which the al Qaeda representative was quoted as appealing for help for more attacks by allies in Pakistan. Pakistan’s wrath against the CIA after the Raymond Davis case in Lahore early 2011 had brought the  US-Pakistan quarrel to a boiling point.Since then, and since the May 2 attack that killed Osama bin Laden, the relationship has been hurtling downhill, ending in Pakistan’s decision not to attend the Bonn conference on Afghanistan. This would then lead to many arguing that with this all as a backdrop, how Pakistan could possibly be cooperating with the US on the drone attacks. Yet there is logic to the opposite point of view. Pakistan has benefited from the attacks in the sense that some of its most dangerous enemies have been killed by the drones.BaitullahMehsud, the Taliban chief, whose intercepted telephone call revealed that he was behind the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, was killed by a drone. Ilyas Kashmiri was killed in a drone strike and  Hakimul lahMehsud, who succeeded Baitullah, was killed ‘twice’ in drone strikes. The first one was false but the second more recent one is yet to be proven false. Clearly, drone strikes are effective. However, Pakistan’s policy of saying one thing in public and quite the opposite in private should be replaced by when where the people should be persuaded of this strategy’s effectiveness.

Crime Rates Essay

In the recent years, crime rate especially in cities have been increasing at an alarming rate. This phenomenon has become a major source of insecurity and fear in the society and is a mind bogging problem faced by most governments. The increase of crime in cities are mostly due to the lack of education, social inequality as well as an ineffective justice system. Firstly, the lack of education in immigrants is a main cause of the increased crime rate in cities .Cities are attractive places to those living in rural areas as a better living can be obtained. However, those who migrate to big cities often lack proper education therefore they are unable to compete with others who were raised in cities. This causes them to face difficulty in searching for jobs and are often of the low income group or even unemployed. The living expenses in cities are much higher than rural areas thus those people are obliged to resort to crime in order to get cash immediately to pay for their living expenses. So, it is clear that good education does play a vital role in crime rates. Read more: Essay on Crime Rate Increase in India Moreover, social inequality also contributes to the increase of crime rates in cities like Delhi, India. The rich live in luxury while the poor live in poverty. This imbalance in the society results in the poor thinking that the government is not being fair and also jealousy. The poor will then commit criminal offences such as stealing and robbing from the rich in order to show their dissatisfaction. Those living in poverty are desperate for basic necessities and often turn to crime as an alternative as it is the fastest way to obtain it. Therefore, the large difference in society classes leads to an increase in crime rates. In addition, crime rates in cities are also influenced by the ineffective justice system of the country. In Battambang, Cambodia, the law does not have great authority hence the people are not afraid to commit crimes. For example, those who commit rape offences in Battambang do not have to face jail but only pay an amount of compensation fee. Those who are arrested are often set free because of loopholes in the proof. Consequently, they are not afraid of the punishment. Hence, a poor justice system leads to the increase in crime rates. Therefore it is obvious that the lack of proper education, large differences among social classes and a justice system that is weak are the main causes of the dramatic increase of crime rates in cities. This issue needs a combined effort by the society and the government to overcome. The government can start by offering free education for the society, enforce stricter laws and also find a solution to decrease the social inequalities in order to curb this issue as it will have a major negative impact on the growth of a country.

Essay on “The Red Scarf Girl” by Ji Li Jiang

â€Å"The Red Scarf Girl† â€Å"Many friends have asked me why, after all I went through, I did not hate Chairman Mao and the Cultural Revolution in those years. The answer is simple: we were all brainwashed. †p. 276 The book â€Å"The Red Scarf Girl† is a memoir written by author Ji Li Jiang recounting what it was like to grow up during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, taking place in China from 1965 to 1968.During this time, a political leader named Mao Zedong convinced the people of China that the â€Å"four olds†, or the old ways of China, were wrong and that the only way for their country to move forward was to completely revamp their beliefs and ways of life; basically creating a whole new culture for the Chinese. By ways of torture as well as basically brainwashing the people into thinking whatever he said was true, Chairman Mao single handedly shaped China’s culture by removing all anti-communist beliefs.During the first part of th is book, little things that Ji Li Jiang witnesses and says hints that Chairman Mao was forcing change onto the people of China. For example, in chapter 2, Ji Li helps destroy a sign for the Great Prosperity Market, saying that names like this are four olds. Many other words and phrases such as â€Å"fortune† and â€Å"innocent† were also considered four olds, and were not to be used. But this was just the first step of Chairman Mao’s plan.He also convinced his workers, called â€Å"the red guards†, to publicly humiliate people for various anti-Communist acts. These public humiliations got more and more violent as time went on; in the beginning of the Cultural Revolution, people were mainly humiliated for their clothing. On page 30, a man’s clothing is cut apart while he is standing in the middle of a street because the tight pants and pointed shoes he wore were considered four olds; â€Å"†¦tight pants and pointed shoes are what the Western b ourgeoisie admire.For us proletarians, they are neither good looking nor comfortable† said the Red Guard preforming this act. But as the story progresses, people are forced to wear dunce caps and signs with horrible messages written about them around their neck. They were then paraded around while people yelled horribly mean things at them, sometimes even throwing things. Many people were treated this way because of their, or someone in their family’s occupation; if you or anyone in your family was a landlord, you would definitely be treated this way.Landlords were believed to be â€Å"black welps†, meaning that they were evil people, because they would take land from the poor if they did not pay their taxes, and also often were wealthy enough to afford housekeepers. Many teachers were also treated harshly if the Red Guards had any reason to believe that they were teaching their students anti-communist ideas. The people of China did not think twice about this beh avior, however, because Chairman Mao had convinced them that people like this should be treated harshly. To us Chairman Mao was god. He controlled everything we read, everything we heard, and everything we learned in school. We believed everything he said. Naturally, we knew only good things about Chairman Mao and The Cultural Revolution. Anything bad had to be the fault of others. Mao was blameless. † (p. 276) Certain people were treated even more severely. Struggle meetings (gatherings within the workplace where people were publicly humiliated) were very common and often used physical violence to correct people.During one struggle meeting, a woman is beaten and forced to climb the chimney of a factory as a punishment, for she was believed to be a teacher pushing anti-communist beliefs on her students. Ji Li Jiang’s father is forced to partake in these daily because he was believed to be conspiring against the communist party. Even if The Red Guards did not have substa ntial evidence to torture these people, they had full permission to anyway under the power of Chairman Mao. â€Å"When I started to write this book, I asked An Yi’s mother if she had hated Mao when she was forced to climb the factory chimney. I didn’t hate him’ she told me. ‘I believed that the Cultural Revolution was necessary to prevent revisionism and capitalism from taking over China. I knew that I was wronged, but mistakes happen under any system. If the country was better for the movement that persecuted me, I was still in favor of it. It was only after Mao’s death that I knew I was deceived. † For Ji Li Jiang, it was not until her father was tortured that she realized that the Cultural Revolution may not have been great as it sounded. Before then, Ji Li Jiang actively participated in these events.So did all of her siblings and classmates. They all believed whole heartedly that Chairman Mao was doing this for the good of the people. Bef ore the Cultural Revolution, people had big ceremonies for their ancestors, and for the Chinese New Year. They believed in many superstitions, such as not sweeping the floor on New Year’s Day as to not sweep out the god of wealth, and eating spring rolls to â€Å"roll in the money†. People were not ridiculed because they were wealthy; wealth was admired and people strived for it. People collected stamps and other valuable things and cherished them with all their hearts.They kept photographs of themselves and their family members. They wore fancy clothes on special occasions, and the elderly kept elaborately decorated trunks containing all their families heirlooms and passed them down from generation to generation. People were allowed to hire housekeepers to help them around the house and with taking care of their children. But during the Cultural Revolution, none of these things were allowed. They were all considered four olds, and people’s houses were searched and pillaged to make sure that none of these things were going on.Years after the Cultural Revolution, Chairman Mao was proven guilty of unleashing this chaos onto the people of China purely to protect his own political position. â€Å"It was only after Mao’s death in 1976 that people woke up. We finally learned that the whole Cultural Revolution had been part of a power struggle at the highest levels of the Party. Our leader had taken advantage of our trust and loyalty to manipulate the whole country. This is the most frightening lesson of the Cultural Revolution: without a sound legal system, a small group or even a single person can take control of an entire country. This is as true now as it was then. †

Crew Resource Management. Report(2000 words)- Using the model designed Essay

Crew Resource Management. Report(2000 words)- Using the model designed by Professor James Reason, write a report on the - Essay Example and information about the dangers of Pump A had been misplaced, through the change of staffing which occurred overnight, thus the cause of the explosion when Pump A was turned on and gas began to leak out of the network of piping on the rig. Professor James Reason developed a model known as the Reason Error Prevention Model or the Swiss Cheese Model which suggests that gaps in process or management can lead to on-the-job hazards or accidents (in an environment such as Piper Alpha), with these gaps requiring closure in order to provide effective management and successful adherence to process guidelines. This report identifies certain managerial and process breakdowns which occurred in 1988 on Piper Alpha in order to highlight how better to manage organisational risks, especially in an environment prone to dangerous hazards. Reason’s model suggests that human error is a natural evolution in any business environment and should be considered when creating a leadership or management model. Lack of concentration, carelessness or forgetfulness are human failings and are going to be present in the organisational design, thus leading to undesirable business outcomes. Further, Reason claims that â€Å"adverse events are the product of latent conditions (pathogens) within the organisational system† (Reason, 2008, p.7; Jeffries, 2005). By this, Reason means that even the most detailed and sophisticated management models, maintaining a strong focus on safety and adherence to policy, can still be interrupted by humans or organisational pathogens and lead to workplace hazards. At Piper Alpha, the disaster cost the company $1.4 billion in USD (Peterson, 1991). The pathogen which existed during this time period was failure for safety workers and managers to perform follow-up with on-duty managers after changing shifts overnight. Even though the permit system had been established to ensure that machinery experiencing maintenance was isolated and closed off, shift leaders did

Homosexuality in Vietnam Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Homosexuality in Vietnam - Essay Example Gay marriage was banned in Vietnam in 1998 by the country’s national assembly. This ban was placed right after two lesbian marriages had taken place even though the local officials had tried their level best to stop them. The marriages not only happened, but were also publicised. The national assembly thought it better to stop gay marriages there and then before other LGBTs got the nerve to follow example. Gays were openly discriminated and there was no law that could stop that. There has now come a change in the country regarding LGBTs. The views are changing and the government is taking steps to protect the LGBT persons. LGBT people in Vietnam are treated separately from the non-LGBT. While those having a straight orientation have no problems whatsoever, same-sex sexual activity is not what one can say legal and same-sex couples are not given the same protection from law as the non-LGBT persons. The Vietnamese culture is such where homosexuality is a taboo. However, with time the things are changing in Vietnam and now LGBT rights have started being recognized, all thanks to the LGBT community and some civil rights unions that have worked together to bring about this to happen. Awareness groups are trying their best to protect such people. In fact, the government is trying to make same-sex marriages legal. In 2012 the minister of Vietnam, Ha Hung Cuong, revealed that the government is contemplating on whether same-sex marriages should become lawful or not. He pointed out, and rightly, that the LGBT should also be given protection and therefore, in order to protect their individual freedoms the government should allow them to marry a person of their own gender. The Ministry of Justice submitted a bill for revoking the ban placed against same-sex marriage in the Marriage and Family Law in 2013. By October the National Assembly was supposed to debate over it. In November it was decided that Vietnam would legalize gay weddings, but not gay marriages (Morgan). By this it means that same-sex couples can organize weddings and can live together as a couple, but these weddings will not be officially considered a legal marriage. Still, the gay rights campaigners do consider it something that they have accomplished and believe that it is this way. only by taking small steps that they can one day live in a society where gay marriages are legal and allowed, and LGBT persons are not persecuted or stereotyped. â€Å"Vietnam is advancing rights for same-sex couples, but still needs to take the final step to guarantee marriage equality for all,† said Brad Adams (Human Rights Watch). One of the reasons for the government interfering in this matter an d allowing gay weddings is because a gay and lesbian couple had been previously fined for organizing their marriage. Since the Law on Marriage & Family did not allow marriage between same sex people, these two couples had to pay a penalty because they contradicted the habits and customs of Vietnam. Therefore, the government had no choice but to allow the organisation of such weddings in order to provide somewhat protection to the LGBTs – whether straight or gay, the people are the responsibility of the country. They have lifted the ban on same-sex weddings but these marriages aren’

Meaning of Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Meaning of Life - Essay Example Besides these tortures, he encountered constant threats of being thrown into the gas ovens probably because of his physical appearance. However, in spite of the experiences he faced in the three camps that he served, he emerged as a visionary person. His reason for being optimistic was that human beings hold the freedom of choosing the manner in which they view the circumstances they undergo on a daily basis. Therefore, they create meaning from such circumstances. Frankl outlined three experiences that the prisoners went through after their arrival at the concentration camps, during their stay there and after they were freed from the camps. After realizing where they had been taken to and the reason for their transfer, the first experience that the prisoners felt was the shock. Later, the shock would be replaced by a second experience. The experience would be the phase of psychological reaction as well as apathy. These were the necessary methods that the prisoners would use to cope with the abuse that they received from their supervisors. During this stage, the fear of death was no longer the prisoners’ concern. On the contrary, the part that was most painful was the insults that they received. The prisoners would be given uniforms that were more of rags (Frankl, 7-26). Also, they would be issued with shoes most of which did not fit them. Those who had reported with better shoes had no choice but to give them to the SS guards or risk s evere punishments. At a time, the prisoners were forced to walk bare footed on the snow since their shoes had been worn out. The author describes a twelve-year-old boy who he saw being taken to the sickbay. The boy had been forced to stand attention on the snow bear footed for hours because there were no shoes for him at the camp. The results were that the boy’s toes got some frostbites. Frankl writes that there was a frequent

Security Policy Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Security Policy Analysis - Essay Example The successful executives value business information and strive to improve and maintain it using latest technologies at the expense of the organizations to promote the cyber security (Van der Zwaan et al 2010) Since lack of implementation of cyber, securities to any organization pose threats to the breach of the confidential company information and database attack. There is legislation permitting the criminal charges against the responsible personnel’s under the federal information Security Management Act of 2002 also called E-Government Act. The incessant failure to protect the firms against cyber attack would lead to the involvement of the Government. Information is an important entity of any well-run organization and failure to protect it is a crime. Cyber security being an important segment of the organization to maintain and keep data safe, the IT security applications alone is not sufficient to protect the cyber attacks and threats. The frequency of cyber crime is increasing its size and sophistication with specialized professionals involved that technology alone cannot stop cyber crime. The attacks increase because of the creation of malware by criminals to steal information, and the breaching of Firewalls to reach the organizational important data. The cyber security is no longer a technical issue because

Modern and Contemporary Asian Art Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Modern and Contemporary Asian Art - Article Example Marko Mori was born in 1967, in Tokyo Japan. Her father was an inventor and real estate manager. On the other hand, her mother was a historian of European art. Mori started working as a fashion model in 1980 while studying at Bunka Fashion College in Tokyo. She later on moved to London to study at the Chelsea College of art and design. She studied there until 1992 when she moved to New York and took part in the independent program at the Whitney Museum of American art. Mariko currently resides in New York and Tokyo. Marko Mori was born in 1967, in Tokyo Japan. Her father was an inventor and real estate manager. On the other hand, her mother was a historian of European art. Mori started working as a fashion model in 1980 while studying at Bunka Fashion College in Tokyo. She later on moved to London to study at the Chelsea College of art and design. She studied there until 1992 when she moved to New York and took part in the independent program at the Whitney Museum of American art. Ma riko currently resides in New York and Tokyo. In 1996, Marko Mori released a video titled, link of the moon. In the video, the five aspects of humanity get clearly illustrated (Bailey 2000, p.4). These are birth, death, love, sex and beauty. The video uses DVD on five screens to display the movements involve in martial arts. In the video, Marko Mori holds a crystal ball which symbolizes transformation and transportation. There are curious passers-by who seem less concerned with Marko Mori. They pass by her. The passers-by can be symbolized in the capsule as colorful distortions. Marko Mori started her large scale self portrait in the mid 1990’s. She used multimedia techniques to establish herself with performances and videos of the traditional Japanese rituals. Her themes illustrate everything in the modern Japan while showing the trends in fashion experienced in Japan. One can hardly point out on a style used by Mori. Hers is a collection of many styles blended together. Her belief, which is neither Buddhist nor Shiro, comes out clearly in her artworks (Smith et al 2008, p.6). Her belief seems to stem from technology. Technology in some aspects can be described to be Mori’s religion. Her use of technology in an artwork is quite well blended. She manages to integrate the two, technology and art, to bring out the ideas she wants to express. In Nirvana, which got released in 1997, Mori transforms into a flying divinity. This can be said to have been borrowed from the Buddhism religion. She, however, does not recreate a symbol with this art. She rather manages to express a divinity of the future. This is the extent to which Mori manages to use technology in her artistic work (Wu et al 2010, p.1).

Dq3-Terence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Dq3-Terence - Essay Example Departmental efforts can be described as the shared responsibility that comes with teams working together to the many parts of the organization to achieve a universal goal (Freeman, 2012). For instance, in many cases within the organization, one department may predominantly be aware of the company project as the project exists within their ranks. In this regard, the other units within the organization are rendered idealess regarding the same. Due to the sense of shared enterprise, leaders must then coordinate the various teams to provide awareness and help so that the objective achieved. Business Intelligence is an information system that organizations adopts to enable them perform their function with ease. The company can collect data from both internal and external sources. Through the enterprise intelligence, it can be analyzed in the process as it comprises of many applications and tools of methodology (Reddy,Reddy & Hebseeba,2013). The executive and other departmental heads can then make informed decisions. Business intelligence has the capability to increase the organization revenue, provide a competitive advantage over the rivals. It also leads to efficiency in the operation while the management has the power to detect current market trends and outline any problem that requires urgency. Due to the immense benefits of the business intelligence, many organizations have embraced their usage within the body as it relatively eases operation and makes the organization achieve their target. But the systems are used by staffs who works from the many departments within the organization (Reddy,Reddy & Hebseeba,2013). Its foundation implementation must then be a concern to any department level. First the management must develop a clear and vivid vision for the organization of all the departments before they can lay its foundation within the organization. The outlined goals of

MODERN LAND LAW Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

MODERN LAND LAW - Essay Example Trusts of this nature are ‘created by a transaction between the trustee and the cestui que trust in connection with the acquisition by the trustee of a legal estate in land, whenever the trustee has so conducted himself that it would be inequitable to allow him to deny to the cestui que trust a beneficial interest in the land acquired. And he will be held to have so conducted himself if by his words or conduct he has induced the cestui que trust to act to his own detriment in the reasonable belief that by so acting he was acquiring a beneficial interest in the land.’2 The case giving way to Lord Diplock’s observations, Gissing v Gissing involved a scenario where matrimonial property was held in the name of the husband only. The questions for determination were: Did the husband hold the legal title upon trust for the benefit of both he and the wife. And if so, how were the beneficial interests to be divided? In cases such as this, Lord Diplock opined that court must satisfy itself on the evidence that it was ‘the common intention of both spouses that the contributing wife should have a share in the beneficial interest and that her contributions were made upon this understanding.’3 In many cases, the intention or common understanding of the parties will have to be inferred as there is not always going to be statements of intent from either or both parties. Lord Diplock went on to explain that this inference might also be a mere matter of fact. In many cases he explained and husband and wife purchase a matrimonial home by virtue of a mortgage, the capacity of each spouse to contribute to the monthly mortgage payments will usually come out of their separate earnings. However, a woman’s income might be altered by the introduction of children into the marital union. This, Lord Diplock stated should not operate to negate the common intention of both parties to acquire a

A letter To My Distant Friend Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

A letter To My Distant Friend - Essay Example Though my mates were ready for the performance, I was still not comfortable. My instructor gave me no option and so I had to face the lion in front of me. The performance made me gain courage and also strengthened the bond that attracted me to dancing. First, dancing helps people to express their feelings about something and this is seen under the types of dances they do and the moves they make while dancing. An example I the expressionist dance that the Germans did to express their bitter feelings about the growth of Nazism that was being pioneered by Hitler. So from that example, dancing helps a society to confront the wrongs people always do. It has also enabled me to understand that people do not always dance for leisure but also to achieve their targets. This happened and I witnessed it during an international festival hosted in Kenya when one dancer made some moves that directly touched a woman he had fallen in love with and know what? The moves helped him to win the heart of the lady, a thing that left almost everybody amazed. As per the common understanding of the people, discipline is a crucial aspect of the virtues of the community and must be maintained in order to allow people to stay in harmony. I know you must be wondering how dancing which is just an art is related to discipline which is a virtue. Dancing especially the cultural dances equips dancers with good moral values since they convey some messages of warnings and consequences of some behaviors.

Mark Twain - Racism †Huckleberry Finn Essay Example for Free

Mark Twain Racism – Huckleberry Finn Essay Mark Twain depicts an apprehension to racisms through the character Huckleberry Finn. He is a white young boy who comes in contact with the conditions of slavery at a relatively early age. The author allows him to feel uncomfortable with the very process by which humans are classified in civil society. This view is based on how Twain created the institution of slavery to be established at the time. Twain in emphasizing his views allow his character to be confronted by situations which would force him to think about slavery and the face of racism. The young man is pressured by his own father’s harsh racist belief as depicted in the election scene, â€Å"It was ‘lection day, and I was just about to go and vote myself if I warn’t too drunk to get there; but when they told me there was a State in this Country where they’d let a nigger vote, I drawed out. † (Echeat, 2010)Twain creates the paradox between father and son to highlight where he stood on racism. Mark Twain-Racism-Tom Sawyer Surprisely, even though Mark Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer includes a character named Huckleberry Finn as is represented in The Adventures of HucleburyFinn the role designation is entirely different. Huckleberry Finn plays a supportive role in allowing Tom to complete his mischiefs. The author displayed very little interest of projecting a race issues his that society. Its only emergence was flashed as a minor development in the story was in the killing of Dr Robinson by a Native American, However, there were no direct racial insinuations in the account, ‘ In the scuffle, Injun Joe stabs Dr. Robinson with Potter’s knife†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Native-American â€Å"half-breed† Injun Joe. ’(Sparknotes, 2010) To conclude It can be presumed that the time when Huckleberry Finn was written racism was Mark Twain’s major sociological concern. On the other hand with Tom Sawyer he was viewing morals from the perspective of parental authority and how social groups interact. REFERENCE Racism in Huckleberry finn. www. echeat. com. N. p. , n. d. Web. 29 May 2010. http://www. echeat. com/essay. php? t=33441. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. www. sparknotes. com. N. p. , n. d. Web. 29 May 2010. http://www. sparknotes. com/lit/tomsawyer/summary. html.

Frankenstein and Darkness by Lord Byron

Frankenstein and Darkness by Lord Byron The Romantic period is probably one of the most significant periods of change in literature. It is during this period that a lot of high quality works were produced be it in literature, art or music. Apart from being rich in poetry the period can be seen as an exaltation of the imagination. This was replacing the rational thought which had overcome Europe at the time. The Romantics also saw themselves as prophets and used their works to prophesise about the future of mankind. Due to this it is interesting to investigate whether these prophesies of the future of mankind have actually come true. The essay will look at how exactly the two romantic writers of Frankenstein (Mary Shelley) and the poem Darkness (Lord Byron) and what these two writers prophesised in their works. Also in the end see whether what the writers are trying to portray in their texts can be applied to modern day. References to other romantic works by William Wordsworth and William Blake also aid in this investigation. The essay reaches a conclusion that the various themes displayed in the texts can be applied to modern day and do serve as a warning as most of which these writers feared would happen to mankind is actually taking place to this day. As a final point, that indeed their warnings are justified. Introduction Throughout the ages it can be observed that they were a lot of periods of change that happened throughout the history of literature. These include the Victorian era. One of the most influential periods of change happens to be the Romantic era. The word suggests that this era was based on peoples appreciation of love and romance. All the same, though love was a common theme during works of the time the Romantic of era was in actual fact a movement in the creativity of artists and writers of the time. This movement was not just a shift in the mind sets of those involved with literature but it also involved art and music. The movement began in the late 1700s in Western Europe and continued towards the mid 1800s. In the 1700s there were a lot of advancements being made by the European people including advancements in science and social changes such as the Industrial Revolution. Majority of these changes were brought forth by the Age of Enlightenment that went through the 18th century which saw the awakening of scientific thought, the overthrowing of the conquering religious knowledge and the change in European philosophy as a means of finding reason in the world. It also saw the beginning of the Industrial Revolution which took over Europe during the 18th century. The Romantic era was basically a rebellion against the scientific and rational thought that gripped Europe during the previous age of enlightenment. This rebellion saw the shift from rational thought to more concentration on emotions, passion for life and nature. Other important themes of the Romantic era were nationalism, freedom and liberty. These themes formed the ideals of most Romantics and they displayed them through all their works. Romantics also concerned themselves with using their works as a means of displaying human society and its link with nature often spoke of the future of mankind. They saw themselves as prophets of the future and used heir works as warnings of the future. One of the most influential works of literature written at the time is the poem Darkness by Lord Byron. The poem was written in 1816 in the midst of very strange events which people thought at the time were signs of the apocalypse. That year was known as the year without a summer due to darkness which had over shadowed the land which originated from the volcanic ash cloud of the eruption of Mount Tambora a volcano situated in Indonesia the previous year. Unfortunately the people in Geneva did not know this and went into a panic believing the apocalypse was near. The chaos and activity of the time were the inspiration behind Byrons poem. In addition he wrote his poem as a means of writing about the calamity which will take over mankind if immoral behaviour is continued. Another important work is Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Mary Shelley was the wife of another famous poet by the name of Percy Shelley. The book was written while on a visit to the Swiss Alps with Percy at the Lord Byrons home. Here due to the unseasonal rain they had to remain indoors and entertained themselves with ghost stories. Due to the urging of the Lord himself a competition was set to see who would write the creepiest story and Mary took the prize through the writing of her book Frankenstein; Or The Modern Prometheus which is the full name. The book is based on the story of a young ambitious scientist who sets out to create life but ends up creating a monster. This book is a metaphor for what would become of mankind if they continue to tamper with nature. The theme of nature and its destruction is a common theme in a lot of Romantic works. In this paper the manner in which these two writers warn the reader of the misfortune that will take over mankind by looking at various themes and methods the authors use to expose them. Also reference will be made to other works of the Romantic period to show the similarities and differences of the works. Chapter 1: The Theme of Nature in the Works The theme of nature was very prominent in many Romantic works. It was believed that nature possesses an ability to revitalize the mind and help man escape from the constraints of civilisation. The root of these beliefs also come from the fact that the Romantic period arose from the time when Europe was undergoing the Industrial Revolution which saw the destruction of forests and beautiful scenery to make space for factories and mills for industrial purposes. According to them, nature was viewed as a sublime Godly creation which was to be appreciated and not destroyed. This is portrayed through the setting of the texts and the many creative ways the writers made lucid descriptions of nature. In Frankenstein, Shelley uses elaborate description of the scenery to display this. Looking at the first letter from Richard Walton, he describes sensations he feels as he walks through the streets of St Petersburg, I feel a cold northern breeze play upon my cheeks, which braces my nerves and fills me with delight. The beauty of the environment around him inspires him to continue his voyage to the north pole and increases his excitement about the beauty of the north pole which is he is so eager to see. Throughout the novel it can be noted how nature uplifts and provides some healing for both the monster and Victor Frankenstein. Another famous work is the poem Daffodils also known by the title I wondered lonely as a cloud by William Wordsworth, a celebrated Romantic poet. Wordsworth wrote this poem after taking a walk with his sister admiring the daffodils in the fields surrounding him. Similar to Mary Shelley, he paints an ostentatious image of the beauty of the flowers their ability to invite him to enjoy them through use of language. He describes the flowers as fluttering and dancing as if to say the movements of the flowers are as gentle as the fluttering of butterflies and birds in the breeze and their motions graceful as if they were dancing. The use of imagery was also very important tool for the Romantics to exhibit their message and aid the reader in appreciating the beauty of nature they often portray. There, Margaret, the sun is for ever visible; its broad disk skirting the horizon and diffusing a perpetual splendourà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Here, Walton describes in his first letter to his sister Margaret, how the sun spreads over the horizon at the North Pole. The words perpetual splendour further enhance the beauty of the region. In Daffodils, Wordsworth also refers to the power of nature to enlighten his heart from sadness, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦For oft, when on my couch I lie/ In vacant or in pensive mood,/They flash upon that inward eye/Which is the bliss of solitude;/And then my heart with pleasure fills,/And dances with the daffodils. The words vacant and solitude describe his empty state of mind. The daffodils flash appear brightly within his inward eye which is his imagination filling his heart with pleasure. These are all demonstrations of the power nature has over the individual as portrayed by the Romantic writers. Chapter 2: The Consequences of the Pursuit of Knowledge One of the major themes in Frankenstein is the pursuit of knowledge and its consequences. The prior to the Romantic period was the Age of Enlightenment which saw a rise of rationalism and continuous significant scientific advancements. These concerned Mary Shelley and other Romantic writers. The concern was they saw this rationalist movement as man trying to meddle with the laws of nature. This is the foundation of the character of Victor Frankenstein. At the age of 17, Frankenstein goes off to university where he meets many intellectuals and wise professors who inspire him to pursue natural science. Sadly, this inspiration eventually turns into an obsession. I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation. From this we see how Frankenstein aspires to achieve greater accomplishments than philosophers before him. He also aims to overcome nature. This means he aims to overcome God himself for God be the creator of nature. Due to this obsession, he sacrifices all his time, energy and health to create life, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦with unrelaxed and breathless eagerness, I pursued nature to her hiding places. It was on a dreary night of November, that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils. This opening line of Chapter Five sets a dark, depressing, and cold scene which gives a feeling of foreboding as a means of warning of events to come. Words such as anxiety, agony depict the depressing scene of the coming to life of the monster. Shocked at the hideousness of his creation he laments, How can I describe my emotions at this catastropheà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ as a part of reinforcing his shock there is a use of exclamation marks as he says, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Beautiful! Great God! This is ironic, in that Frankenstein had sought to create life as a means of being able to uncover nature and certifying himself to be greater than God. Ironically, he calls upon God upon his failure though he never mentions God before. The monster is described to have yellow skin, lustrous black hair and pearly white teeth which form a horrid contrast with his watery eyes, dun white sockets his shrivelled complexion and straight black lips. This image painted of the monster depicts how he was created to have beautiful features yet upon his awakening, they come together to form a hideous being. The eyes in their sockets also give a sense of sadness within the monster. The monster is therefore an unnatural being with human features. Unable to bare the being he had created he runs of to his room. He begins to develop fever like symptoms. He recalls the monster as, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the wretch the miserable monster I had created. The use of the word I demonstrates his selfishness and how he does not even consider how the monster feels. The fact that he does not give the monster a name and refers to it as the creature or the wretch, demonstrates his disappointment and dislike for that which he has created. Through these different devices Mary Shelley allows the reader to visualise the scene and have a share in the experiences of the characters. Nonetheless, it may be possible that the monster is a metaphor for scientific creations created with the intention of beauty going horribly wrong. This can be paralleled to the pursuit of knowledge and how it can have dire consequences for in the story it can be seen that the monster brings death and destruction. Chapter 3: The Consequences of the Immorality of Mankind The poem Darkness, creates grisly apocalyptic images of the earth and mankind at their demise. The opening line of the poem Darkness by Lord Byron along with the title of the poem already prepares the reader of the grim mood displayed in the poem. I had a dream, which was not at all a dream. Here the narrator of the poem describes having an experience similar to a dream which but turns out to be more of a nightmare not in his mind but in reality. Basically, Byron speaks as though he had a premonition of the grave future ahead for mankind. This opening just as the opening of chapter five of Frankenstein, It was on a dreary night of Novemberà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ is foreboding and gives a sense of grief and impending doom. The inspiration behind this poem was not only due to the very strange events of the time which made people believe in the coming of the apocalypse but also immoral acts of mankind. The Industrial Revolution had also provoked a lot of social unrest. Countless underprivileged European citizens moved from their rural countryside homes to work in factories. They worked under very harsh conditions and were paid vey low wages. This exploitation was all in the name of greed and the pursuit of wealth and prosperity in the advancing European societies. These inhumane acts in the name of gaining wealth and gaining status were part of the inspiration behind another famous Romantic works. One such work is Jerusalem by William Blake which was inspired by the writers condemnation of the products of the Industrial Revolution. Written in 1804 Jerusalem later became a patriotic hymn during the First World War and is used as a national anthem for England at certain sporting events. This piece speaks of England being a special land and a possible candidate for the building of a New Jerusalem given the possibility that Jesus Christ visited the land as a boy. In essence, the poem Jerusalem gives hope to the society where as lord Byrons poem speaks of death and destruction giving no sign of optimism of a brighter future. The poem has no obvious structure. It is an 82 lined poem of free verse. It is not divided into any stanzas and is therefore continuous but there is a large use of punctuation marks to break this continuality. This is very evident through lines 78 and 79. The waves were dead; the tides were in their grave, /The moon, their mistress, had expird before; These repetitive breaks portray the disturbance of he natural flow of nature and life during this catastrophe hitting the world. They also help vary the tone and speed of the poem. At the beginning it is slow and calm displaying the gloom of the world, then fast and chaotic and finally slow and calm again to portray the doom taking over the earth. Nature is also at a standstill and seemingly dead as the lightless world. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦The winds were witherd in the stagnant air/ And the clouds perishdà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and The rivers, lakes and ocean all stood still/ And nothing stirrd within their silent depths. It seems nature too has died due to the disappearance of light. Byron uses a lot of interesting words to expose the pure gloom and doom he experiences in the events of the poem. The poem itself is centred on the disappearance of light from the earth. Words which accentuate this theme are, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦swung blindà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ blackened dull gloomà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ In addition, the light is described as despairing. In other words, it is as if it is non existent. Fear is also exposed as he talks of how it has overcome the people and how even the toughest of animals were tame and tremulous. Onomatopoeic words such as shrieked, gnashed, howled, hissing, describe the sounds. The fact that there are a lot of sounds creates a certain degree of chaos. Furthermore, the sound of the forests crackling as people try to make fire to light up shows the desperation. The main image in this piece is that of mankind turning into beasts due to the desperation to find light. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the wildest brutes/ Came tame and tremulousà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The more frightening creatures are also consumed by fear to the point that they began to pose no danger and instead the humans became the monstrous ones. Images used to enhance this are, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦vipers crawldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Hissing, but stinglessthey were slain for foodà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The vipers which were now harmless were being slain. The word slain puts an emphasis on the cruelty now consuming the humans. The images used in Darkness can also be linked to apocalyptic images used in the bible. Matthew 24:29 reads, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦immediately after the distress of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken. This is similar to Byrons imagery of, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦The bright sun was extinguishd, and the stars/ Did wander darkling in the eternal space, Rayless, and pathless, and the icy earth/ Swung blind and blackening in the moonless air. In the desolation and men becoming beasts Byron adds, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦there was no love leftà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ which can be a reference to Matthew 24:19, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. The disturbance in the peace is enhanced when the writer states, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦And War, which for a moment was no more/ Did glut himself again: a meal was bought/ With bloodà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ This demonstrates that war had arisen again with man fighting and killing each other just for food. This can be compared to the war referred to in Jerusalem by William Blake. Firstly, a sense of evil of the unjust is also displayed in Wordsworths poem. The dark satanic mills the poet describes are a reference to the mills and factories built during the Industrial Revolution causing all the social unrest which he protested against. The word satanic fully highlights how Blake views the mills as sinister due to the unjust manner in which workers were being treated. In the 3rd stanza he speaks of gathering up arms in order to fight against the evil brought forth by the mills. On the other hand, it turns out the war he refers to is more of a mental fight for he says, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦I will not cease from mental fight, / Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand/ Till we have built Jerusalem/ In Englands green and pleasant land. In effect, Jerusalem is a tool in restoring peace and tranquillity in England. The poem itself is more of a call to the English people to rally against the iniquitous acts done to them due to Industrial Revolution. It also gives a sense of hopefulness that freedom and harmony can be restored to the human race. In contrast, Lord Byrons poem does not speak of hope that in the end light which is seen from the last line, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Darkness had no need/ Of aid from themShe was the Universe. This line is as if to say nothing can save the human race from the cruel end they have subdued themselves onto by their immoral acts. Darkness is finally personified and the fact tat it is compared to the universe shows the vast degree to which darkness has taken over the world. Chapter 5: The Symbols of Light and Fire in the Two Texts Symbolism is a very important literary tool used to convey different messages and present ideas and emotions to the reader. The most important symbol in the texts is the symbol of light. In Frankenstein light symbolises knowledge and discovery. This is first illustrated when Richard Walton asks, What could not be expected in the country of eternal light? Walton is clearly vey optimistic about reaching the north pole and looks forward to the enlightenment which will be brought forth by the voyage. The light is a positive object both Walter and Frankenstein try to reach in the hopes of gaining knowledge and enlightenment. Lord Byron uses light to represent life and the balance between nature and the human race. It also represents morality and discretion of man. The disappearance of light means, firstly, the loss of morality of people, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ men forgot their passions in the dread/ Of this their desolationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Secondly, a break in the balance with men turning into beasts and beasts becoming tame. The end result is chaos, gloom and the destruction of nature. This is what the darkness represents in the poem; consequences of mans loss of morality. Likewise, the scene set for the opening of Chapter five of Shelleys book is dull and cold taking place under half-extinguished light giving a foreboding effect of the consequences of Frankensteins work. Fire is a more dangerous version of light which can be created by man. Although fire provides light it also burns and causes pain as discovered by the monster while he was by himself in the forest in Chapter 11. How strange, I thought that the same cause should produce such opposite effects. Normally, to create a fire there must be a spark. Frankenstein collects his materials and then infuses à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦a spark of being into the lifeless thingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ This spark could symbolise the starting of a dangerous fire. In Darkness, the disappearance of light causes the world to become void/à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ a lumpà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ in other words, an empty place. This results in people becoming desperate for light and they try to create their own light, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦The habitations of all things which dwell/ Were burnt for beaconsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Forests were set on fire. The desperation only causes more destruction as they destroy nature by setting it to fire all in the search of light. The symbol is further enhanced through the full name of Mary Shelleys Book which happens to be, Frankenstein: Or the Modern Prometheus. In context, the Greek God Prometheus was assigned by Zeus, the god of the sky and the king of the Greek gods, to form man out of water and Earth. However, against the orders of Zeus, he gives man the knowledge of fire. He was then severely punished for this deed and defying Zeus by being tied to a stake where everyday an eagle came to eat his liver. Victor Frankenstein can be compared to Prometheus, as his attempt to acquire more knowledge for himself and mankind only brought dire consequences resulting in the deaths of the ones he loved. Though he did not give fire to humanity he gave the gift of the secret of life, the spark of being but withal it still remains unknown exactly what this spark really is. Similar to Prometheus defying Zeus, Frankenstein tries to defy God and he too is punished for it. CONCLUSION Romantic writers prided themselves with being individuals and Mary Shelley and Lord Byron clearly pay testament to that. These two texts are all very unique though there are some similarities the main one being the ability of the writers to warn of the future. Other writers vey well known woks which waned of the fall of mankind In Frankenstein, the monster is basically an unnatural being. The coming to life of the monster brings an aftermath of death and destruction. In addition the anxiety which Frankenstein experiences could be an illustration of the anguish mankind will suffer from due to these scientific advances. The use of religion i.e. the defiance of God in Frankenstein and apocalyptic imagery in Darkness further enhance their warnings. The question is. were the Romantic writers correct? The answer is yes. The world has changed with wars and global warming, terrorism, corruption and immense poverty being just some of the troubles of the world.

Descartes’ Special Causal Principle Essays -- Philosophy essays

Descartes’ Special Causal Principle      Ã‚  Ã‚   In his Meditations, Rene Descartes attempts to uncover certain truths about existence.   In his Third Meditation, he establishes his "special causal principle" (SCP).   Descartes uses this principle to explore the origin of ideas, and to prove the existence of God.   I agree that there is much logic to be found in the SCP, but I disagree with Descartes method of proving God's existence, and in this essay I will explain why.   I will begin by explaining the SCP, and will then demonstrate how Descartes applies this principle to prove that God exists.   I will then present my critique of the SCP, and expose the flaws in both of Descartes proofs with regards to the principle.   A conclusion will then follow.    In Descartes Second Meditation, he established that because he is a thinking being, he exists.   In the Third Meditation, Descartes attempts to build upon this foundation by questioning whether or not anything exists outside of him.   In order to do so, he must distinguish between those of his thoughts that come from outside, and those which only seem to.   The method Descartes uses for this differentiation is the special causal principle (SCP).   At its core, the SCP is a basic cause and effect argument.   Descartes begins his rationale for the SCP as follows:    Now it is manifest by the natural light that there must be at least as much reality in the efficient and total cause as in the effect of that cause.1    There are two major outcomes of this logic.   Firstly, that something cannot come from nothing, and secondly that what contains more reality (or is more perfect) cannot come from something that contains less reality (or is less perfect).   To illustrate this argu... ...clusion, there is undeniable logic in the SCP.   Once the SCP is explained to be founded on the ability to recognize self-evident truths, it becomes a reliable principle through which to explore the existence of God.   But the SCP becomes unclear and less distinct when dealing with metaphysical objects such as ideas.   By extending the SCP to ideas, Descartes ventures too far away from his notions of "clarity" and "distinctness."   Had Descartes chosen not to limit himself to his own thoughts as the sole vehicles for exploring whether or not God exists, he would likely have met with much more success.    BIBLIOGRAPHY: Cottingham, John [ed].   Meditations on First Philosophy.   Cambridge University Press.   Great Britain; 1997    Notes 1 Paragraph 41 2 Ibid. 3 Ibid. 4 Paragraph 43 5 Paragraph 45 6 Paragraph 42 7 Paragraph 51    Descartes’ Special Causal Principle Essays -- Philosophy essays Descartes’ Special Causal Principle      Ã‚  Ã‚   In his Meditations, Rene Descartes attempts to uncover certain truths about existence.   In his Third Meditation, he establishes his "special causal principle" (SCP).   Descartes uses this principle to explore the origin of ideas, and to prove the existence of God.   I agree that there is much logic to be found in the SCP, but I disagree with Descartes method of proving God's existence, and in this essay I will explain why.   I will begin by explaining the SCP, and will then demonstrate how Descartes applies this principle to prove that God exists.   I will then present my critique of the SCP, and expose the flaws in both of Descartes proofs with regards to the principle.   A conclusion will then follow.    In Descartes Second Meditation, he established that because he is a thinking being, he exists.   In the Third Meditation, Descartes attempts to build upon this foundation by questioning whether or not anything exists outside of him.   In order to do so, he must distinguish between those of his thoughts that come from outside, and those which only seem to.   The method Descartes uses for this differentiation is the special causal principle (SCP).   At its core, the SCP is a basic cause and effect argument.   Descartes begins his rationale for the SCP as follows:    Now it is manifest by the natural light that there must be at least as much reality in the efficient and total cause as in the effect of that cause.1    There are two major outcomes of this logic.   Firstly, that something cannot come from nothing, and secondly that what contains more reality (or is more perfect) cannot come from something that contains less reality (or is less perfect).   To illustrate this argu... ...clusion, there is undeniable logic in the SCP.   Once the SCP is explained to be founded on the ability to recognize self-evident truths, it becomes a reliable principle through which to explore the existence of God.   But the SCP becomes unclear and less distinct when dealing with metaphysical objects such as ideas.   By extending the SCP to ideas, Descartes ventures too far away from his notions of "clarity" and "distinctness."   Had Descartes chosen not to limit himself to his own thoughts as the sole vehicles for exploring whether or not God exists, he would likely have met with much more success.    BIBLIOGRAPHY: Cottingham, John [ed].   Meditations on First Philosophy.   Cambridge University Press.   Great Britain; 1997    Notes 1 Paragraph 41 2 Ibid. 3 Ibid. 4 Paragraph 43 5 Paragraph 45 6 Paragraph 42 7 Paragraph 51   

Shakespeares Othello - Loving Desdemona :: Othello essays

Loving Desdemona  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   William Shakespeare, in his tragic drama Othello, creates a most exquisite character in the person of Desdemona. Her many virtues clearly require that she be given detailed consideration by every Christian member of the audience.    David Bevington in William Shakespeare: Four Tragedies describes the depth of virtue within this tragic heroine:    We believe her [Desdemona] when she says that she does not even know what it means to be unfaithful; the word â€Å"whore† is not in her vocabulary. She is defenseless against the charges brought against her because she does not even comprehend them, cannot believe that anyone would imagine such things. Her love, both erotic and chaste, is of that transcendent wholesomeness common to several late Shakespearean heroines [. . .]. Her â€Å"preferring† Othello to her father, like Cordelia’s placing her duty to a husband before that to a father, is not ungrateful but natural and proper. (221)    Blanche Coles in Shakespeare’s Four Giants interprets the protagonist’s very meaningful four-word greeting to Desdemona which he utters upon disembarking in Cyprus:    Othello’s four words, â€Å"O, my soul’s joy,† tell us that this beautiful Venetian girl has brought great joy, felicity, bliss to the very depths of his soul. This exquisitely beautiful love that has come to a thoughtful, earnest man is indescribably impressive. For him it is   heaven on earth. And all the while, almost within arm’s length, stands Iago, the embodiment of evil, like the serpent in the Garden of Eden. (87)    In Act 1 Scene1, Iago persuades the rejected suitor of Desdemona, Roderigo, to accompany him to the home of Brabantio, Desdemona’s father, in the middle of the night. Once there the two awaken him with loud shouts about his daughter’s elopement with Othello. In response to Iago’s vulgar descriptions of Desdemona’s involvement with the general, Brabantio arises from bed and, with Roderigo’s help, gathers a search party to go and find Desdemona and bring her home. The father’s attitude is that life without his Desdemona will be much worse than before:    It is too true an evil: gone she is;   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   And what's to come of my despised time   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Is nought but bitterness. (1.1)    So obviously the senator has great respect for his daughter, or at least for the comforts which she has afforded him up the beginning of the play.

A Step Into The Unknown :: Literary Analysis, Dark Star

In his novel, Dark Star, Alan Furst creates an atmosphere that supports the depressed and beat down setting surrounding Europe before the onset of World War II. He is able to capture our attention by immediately creating anxiety in the depressed and broken down country of Belgium. Furst is able to draw us into the mind of Andre Szara as he enters Ostend, Belgium, describing the atmosphere as unpleasant and anxiety-driven. He presents this atmosphere through the old and rusted freighter, Nicaea, the setting in Ostend, and the assignments that Szara must complete while staying in Ostend. The thirty year old tugboat, Nicaea, represents an unforeseen road and ultimately places uncertainty in the eyes of Andre Szara. In the beginning, the atmosphere is immediately set with a dark and fearful outlook because of the depiction of the â€Å"tramp freighter† (Furst 3) that moves through the water with a distinctive roar of the engine, over powering the sound of clashing waves. The history of the Nicaea identifies the elements used by Furst to display atmosphere. It’s deep description indicates it has spent â€Å"blistering summers and drizzling winters† (3) over the years to be ruined by salt and rust. Old age has the ship â€Å"[creaking] and [groaning] sorrowfully† (4). The unhealthy environment creates an undesirable atmosphere that makes use of uncertainty as to whether the ship can carry on. Salame 2 The weather plays a major role in shaping the atmosphere in Ostend. The weather can be used effectively when presenting a certain atmosphere because it can dictate the mood. While travelling on the North Sea, Szara and Khelidze were accompanied by â€Å"rain† (3) and â€Å"darkness† (3), unaware of what lies ahead. With darkness, comes the idea of fear because its leading to the unexpected. The Nicaea has also been at sea for nineteen days through an â€Å"eternity of icy, seawater showers† (5). The weather foreshadows a dark future and maintains the uncertainty of what lies ahead. Equally important, Andre Szara is given an assignment but does not know why, further adding to the suspense and obliviousness for any consequences. Szara’s assignment is to find out where his fellow passenger on the tugboat, Grigory Khelidze, is staying in Ostend. Szara has no idea why he must find out where this man is staying, thus creating a sense of bewilderment. It is as if Szara has been set out on to a winding and unforgiving path that leaves no indication or signs as to where it will lead him.

Imaginative Experience in a Music Concert Essay

I believe everyone’s been through a stage of life where you eat, sleep, dream, walk, talk, breath and hear your favorite artist or the band you love [well, would be an understatement] play their number in front of millions of people, amides which you stand singing the lyrics sung on stage without a thought of what may happen tomorrow, it’s just the song and you at the moment. Oh! Just the thought of it makes me want to quiver. But that didn’t last long until last November, few weeks after my birthday, my father came home with the brightest smile on his face and those twinkling eyes which I think would light up the street that I was living on. He said, â€Å"Guess what† and my heart started running at the speed of Usain Bolts 100 meter sprint. Then he finally spoke those magical words, which till date brings a smile to my face, â€Å"I GOT YOU TWO TICKETS FOR THE MUMFORD – AND – THE – SONS CONCERT.† My heart at the very moment crept inside my mouth with the outburst of such excitement. I think I passed out for a minute or two but quickly re-collecting myself I asked him how? He then explained, it was a small gesture of appreciateation from the people from Delhi whom he had helped in their short stay in Gangtok. Those long explanation didn’t really matter much as I was taken back to what would I wear, whom would I take? Which reminded me that I had to make a phone call to my friend? On the phone was my best friend Pema and with such difficulty to hide my excitement I busted out in giggles asking her to join me for this trip to Goa, where the concert was happening. She, at first couldn’t believe what she was hearing but after all we are diehard fans of the Mumfords so she happily agreed. After few days of packing and bickering we were on our flight to Goa. My inner goddess was doing back flips and dancing with pom- poms in her hand. Soon we were good to go and ready to check in a hotel near the beach where the whole set up was going to take place. The show was the day after we arrived so we had enough time to chill in the beach and arrange our already arranged outfits for The Day! All of it seemed like a vague dream to me, nothing seemed real and when the day finally arrived my body started to get really numb every passing second. Soon it started getting really dark in the horizon and the view from the hotel window was breathtaking with the sun slowly being swallowed by the ocean in the far distance. I heard my heart pumping louder than ever making the last few countdowns for the show to start. Pema was standing beside me looking at the picture perfect moment, we stood there saying nothing rather just inhaling the fresh ocean breeze and preparing for our dream to shortly turn into reality. From a distance we saw groups of youngsters approaching towards the stage and we noticed we were getting late to mark our sports. So Pema ran out of the door and I quickly followed her locking the door behind me. Moments later we were out of the hotel and on the golden sand beneath our bare foot trying to surpass those ahead of us, straight towards the peak of where the golden sand drew its line and the stage was set up. We stood panting right before the youngsters whom we had noticed from our hotel window, it felt like a great victory to stand before then although soon we were on our knees tired after the run we had made. After regaining our breath we noticed the different colored lights, instruments and people running around the stage for their final touch up and in seconds they were good to go. I looked down at my watch and it was 6:30 and the whole sandy area was filled with blondes’, brunettes, red heads, mow hawks, bald and every possible look that a human can pull off the runway. The music kept filling our ears and soon there was a man on stage with a mike on his hand doing the usual check 1-2-3. The exquisite melody faded but continued to play in the background. The man then introduced himself as the host for the night and thanked us for being a part of such a wonderful project to raise fund for the children in Africa and India and no doubts we were in high spirits to be there. He then called on stage the band we had been waiting our whole life to see them play for us. Oh and that was the moment! My inner goddess with much excitement did a triple back flip and cartwheels all around the stage. The whole waiting was done with and the very next moment they were on stage The Mumford, leaving trails of goose bumps along my skin despite the heat. It was a bittersweet feeling over all, melancholy and a great deal of joy for having the opportunity to stand and watch the beauty of Indie. They started the night by singing their number on hit song on iTunes- I will wait. Although, my voice not so soothing and heavenly like theirs I closed my eyes and sang along. I thought to myself, â€Å"Surely, life in the clouds feels unreal.† Just as they sang the last verse I opened my eyes to see light everywhere, bright warm, piercing lights, endeavoring it, I kept it at bay for a few more precious minutes. Soon they played numerous amounts of tracks and we tried keeping up with the high spirited people just having to fail every time. Nevertheless, it was a night to be remembered and cherished throughout my life and be grateful to my father without whose generosity toward people got us to this days. So be kind to one another

How does Steinbeck use setting in the novel as a whole to convey important ideas about society and theme? Essay

Setting plays a pivotal role in Steinbecks Of Mice and hands, and it is apply frequently to portray primaeval thoughts, ideas and moods without the halt to the reader in a subtle understated way. He does this through, for example the prospect of the book which is on the ranch. As readers we dont go anywhere other than the ranch (and the brush) which summarises the guts of seclusion and isolation enhanced by the towns name of Soledad kernel solitude. This shows an example of the setting being used to underline mavin of the get a line themes of isolation and loneliness throughout the whole book. Steinbeck applies this descriptive formula to other locations in the book manage the bunkhouse and the group B.The bunkhouse is supposed to display the object glass and tool-like constitution active the ranch, and also reveals facts nigh the lifestyles of the ranch hands on it. The bunkhouse is precise elemental and the b be necessities attributes it holds emphasises this tool like attitude towards the ranch hands. The description of the anatomical structure is that the walls were whitewashed and unpainted salutary a protective coating on the walls to foreclose it structurally intact, not for decoration, but for the necessities of care the structure whole. The windows, for example are draw as small and square, to skip over the costs of expensive glass, and to hint at the idea of an enclosed space, like a prison, which signals the lack of hope associated with the itinerant players, of which Lennie and George twain are examples. But, all these cost preservation measures add up to an attitude of utilitarianism utterly no excess or lavishness.This theme can be associated with the migrants who were treated as tools as they were in huge supply, with less job vacancies than job seekers. Each father a go at it has an apple box seat shelf nub that the shelves to house the migrants possessions have been created out of discarded apple crates. This shows the commutation theme of absolute cost cutting, as well as signalling the proletarians lack of possessions they have only a few essential possessions because they move about all the time, and have no authentic opportunity to obtain and collect a large occur of items.Crooks Room is another(prenominal) very clear example of Steinbeck apply a setting to identify a central theme in his novel. Crooks elbow dwell is a masterpiece of understatement, and its very nature shows how Crooks is different from the other ranch hands. The setting of Crooks room in contrast to the bunkhouse shows that life is different for him because of lodge and because he isnt an itinerant hold outer hes a changeless segregated plumper. This requisition is obviously shown through the fact that his room is in a separate room from the other ranch hands, reflecting segregation laws at the time.His amount of possessions is larger in quantity to those of the itinerant worker or ranch workers, covering the fact hes a more permanent worker than the others befuddled about the floor were a number of personal possessions. His loneliness is shown through a number of features in the room galore(postnominal) of his possessions are work related items, exhibit his work influence and the importance of work to him, and the loneliness of his character as work is more important than his livelihood. The close connective with the horses also reflects the main theme of loneliness.The room itself is just a shed dispatch of the horse group B, his bed was a huge box filled with straw frequently like a manger, his apple box contained a range of medicine bottles, both for himself and for the horses. All of this shows the loneliness of Crooks because of racism and segregation that at the time was the social norm and perhaps Crooks was seen as being on a similar level of heed to the horses. The setting of Crooks and his room is a microcosm for the k in a flashledge domain and the setting of the room thitherfore becomes a pivotal role in acquiring across these key themes.The setting of the evict in Chapter 5 is also momentous for several reasons. Steinbecks description of the barn in Chapter 5 immediately follows the exposure in which Curleys Wife argues and tries to spiel with Crooks, Lennie and Candy in Crooks Room. This creates contrast to the old scenes atmosphere of disputation and irritation, with the description of the light filtering through the barns cracks. It is a sunny, restful solar day for most of the men a sunshine afternoon, the lazy afternoon humming. kinda of hours in the field, most of the workers are playing horseshoes outside. This peaceful, crisp, soporific vox populi is in contrast to the violent crash between Lennie and Curleys wife which occurs ulterior in the chapter. The contrast between Lennie seance in the coolness of the barn with his impudently killed puppy contributes to the other view of the barn, and contribute s to Steinbecks light and dark motif or idea.The brush also plays a central role in the microcosm of the book, ext balanceed metaphors and world(a) themes across the novel. It shows the cycle of settings all which lapse on the ranch or in the brush the novel ends where it starts. Despite this the value of the settings have changed. or else of a repoint of sanctuary, the Garden of Eden, the pool is now a place of death. Instead of animals such as rabbits playing in the brush, the heron is now swallowing the water snake devouring it. Instead of green leaves and a gentle breeze, there are brown dying leaves and a gush of wind hallmarks of a storm.Instead of safety for Lennie, there is death, and for George, a prospective of loneliness without his companionship shared with Lennie. The key themes and motifs built up by preceding scenes in the novel are tie up here the microcosm of life, the loneliness, selfish, cruel loudness of the world. The fact that the cycle of setting s is used, that theyre back up in the brush at the end as they were in the beginning shows that aught has changed for the better in George and Lennies life, such(prenominal) the same as itinerant workers just like them. It shows the microcosm of life everyone is selfish and wants to defecate it on their own that no one actually in the end ends benefiting in short, if this attitude is held, everyones a looser.

Minority Cultures in Mississippi Essay

The purpose of this paper is to develop a better realizeing of African American and Mexican American horti coatings in my region and their importance to united adduces society, as swell as relating their similarities and differences to distri altogether whenively new(prenominal) and my own civilisation. This go away be d angiotensin-converting enzyme in an suit to develop skills that give ear me in providing my approaching students the opport champion to value diversity and over practise ethnic prohibitions and biases. This paper covers miscellaneous cases of totally(prenominal) culture, beginning with the beliefs and traditions of distributively culture.In addition to those electron orbits, the facets of religion, holi daylights, and foods of gr play out significance to each culture be explored. Fin eithery, the more or less meaningful theater in relation to my watching success is analyzed. The ara of mull is considered, focusing on program lineal aspi rations as well as the professions of members of these cultures out-of-pocket to their educational okaygrounds. aft(prenominal) examining all of the locutions, the cultures forget be comp ard and contrasted in an suit to learn how to overcome cultural differences. African American Family Life Family feel is integrity of the or so distinguished aspects in the African American culture.This belief stems from twain their African roots and early sla precise. Keeping family members be quiet was substantial in both(prenominal) tribal Africa and among slaves. Your family is believed to enforce you strength and support this belief is still widely practiced today. African American families ofttimes yack away both prompt as well as ex beed family. In fact, neighborhood barbeques and set revealies ar a universal occurrence. African American families wish clean make pris integrityr family reunions formly, which include several(prenominal) surnames of families who may be close related or as distant as fourteenth cousins or more.Often times, non-relatives atomic number 18 as well invited and treated as family. umteen African American neighborhoods argon close-knit communities who a great deal spend oft of their sp be time socializing with geniusness an new(prenominal). Beca exercise of this closeness, some non-relatives become know as period of roleplay family. These play family members pretend become such(prenominal) approximate friends to the family that they are treated as members of the extended family. The senior(a) are regarded as the head of the family and are given the goal jimmy. To the African American culture, living a grand life means the person is very wise and is a great deal the first source for advice.An elder is believed to hold take a fulfilled life and the funeral, thitherfore, is often renowned as a joyous occasion. To the African American culture, decease is simply passing from one realm of life to an oppos ite. They believe their love one is leaving the evils of this serviceman behind for a utopia, so there is often a party by and by the sepulture service. African American Hairstyles and Names galore(postnominal) African American beliefs and traditions can be traced back to their original African roots. Locks and braiding are deuce of these. They are widely practiced hairstyles among African Americans today. twain types of hairstyles were started by tribes in Africa.Locks, comm sole(prenominal) called d necessitate-locks, are leafy vegetable among the tribes of South Africa. Be private road water is scarce and dust is dominant in that area, locks are favorite due to their relieve of maintenance. Braiding, on the other hand, is an aspect of worth among horse opera African tribes. Often, the men of tribes there receive a braided lock for achieving a substantial accomplishment. twain of these tralatitious African hairstyles made their way to the join cites with the slaves a nd are still of great importance to African American culture today, as a mode of displaying primp in their historical roots.Another aspect of African American culture with ties to Africa is naming children. Children are often given names with African roots. However, the members of the African American culture engender in like manner naughtyly-developed a set of names, which are uniquely African American. They often add the prefixes of La-, Le-, and Da- to their childrens names, which is exclusive solitary(prenominal) to their culture. African American Music African American culture has given coupled body politics society respective(a) styles of music in the form of religious hymns and spirituals, jazz, blues, and hip-hop.Spirituals began with slaves on the plantations. They were often used to send secret messages betwixt each other because the plantation owners could not understand their meanings. These songs were religious folk songs based on African music styles and were improvisational. The spirituals used various musical aspects from calm flowing styles, which led to the sensual sounds of jazz, to sadness and despair, which led to the blues, to spoken-word singsong, which eventually led to hip-hop.Ethnomusicologists trace hip-hops roots to the dance, drum, and song of West African griots, or figmenttellers, its pairing of word and music, and the manifestation of the painful go of slaves who survived the middle passage (McBride, 2007, p. 102). African American nomenclature The American side language was alike greatly influenced by the African American culture, especially in the Southern joined States. African American buzzword slope (AAVE) is a variation of the American position language closely associated with the speech of African Americans (Coulmas, 2005, p. 177).AAVE is considered by many an(prenominal) as slang, and it is in prevalent use by African Americans, as well as other cultures, all over the United States today. African Amer ican godliness The opaque Church has historically been a source of hope and strength for the African American union. Religion is an ingrained and integral part of their awake(p)s, with approximately 85 percent of African Americans be to a Protestant denomination. In the African American society, God is viewed as the source of both good health and serious illness. The just most common system of treating illness in the African American culture is in rumpleing.It is expected in most churches that an individual should redeem their best appearance for worship. African American women in particular are known for wearing vivacious dresses and suits. The Black Church is one of intense ardor and high emotion. African American author W. E. B. DuBois possibly captured the spirit of the Black Church best by stating, Even in the midst of preaching, the worshipers carried on a dialogue with the preacher by shouting approvals or calling out remarks aimed at encouraging him to nomina te harder to reach his point (DuBois, 2005, pp. 184 185).It is not uncommon to uplift an African American congregation shouting Amen or Preach it, Brother or You tell em, elevated in agreeance with their pastor or to hear the consort echoing Well? behind the pulpit to produce the pastors next words. The entire world could learn from the African American cultures passion for Christ. African American Holidays The African American culture has several vacations which not single function its members connect to their historical roots but assist the rest of society in identifying the prodigious encroachment African Americans contrive had on shaping the United States.One way this is done is through Black History Month. Each February, television networks and grooms throughout the United States hold the contributions of various African Americans to the world. One of the individuals c oncentrate on during Black History Month is Martin Luther great power Jr. , whose quest for e woodland, peace, and civil rights was so regent(postnominal) in shaping American society that his natal day is another important pass in the African American culture. Now recognized as a national federal vacation, Martin Luther King Jr.day is far-famed nationwide on January 15. Another remarkable pass is Juneteenth. The news of the Emancipation Proclamation subscribe reached the slaves of the South on June 19, 1865, and the slaves responded by having a vast celebration. Today, Juneteenth allows African Americans the opportunity to celebrate freedom and is celebrated all over the United States with food, storytelling, games, music, and African American culture. Each year, over thirteen million African Americans celebrate Kwanzaa (Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, 2003, p.57). This holiday uses impost from the harvest celebrations of Africa and was developed to attention African Americans celebrate their heritage. This holiday lasts septenary days and focuses on s even-spot principles of the Swahili people. Upon a unity mat sits a candleholder with seven candles, and one candle is lit each day to represent one of the principles. Christmas is another important holiday for African Americans because of the Black parthenogeny play performed in many churches.Originally written by Langston Hughes, it is a retelling of the classic nativity story, moreover with an entirely African American cast and gospel style Christmas carols. A major performance of this play is held yearly in Boston at Tremont Temple by The field of study marrow of Afro-American Artists (NCAAA), who refer to Black Nativity as, a legendary Christmas event and the Black communitys Christmas gift to the world (NCAAA, 2008). African American Foods The foods of the African Americans also play an important portion in most cultures of the United Stated.These foods, commonly referred to as soul food, dedicate become widely popular throughout the United States. umpteen of these food s such as black-eyed peas, cornbread, greens, sweetness potatoes, macaroni and cheese, and deep fried foods were originally eaten in Africa and made their way to the United States with the slaves. While others, such as chitlins, neck bones, and ham hocks, were created by the slaves out of necessity. During their time in captivity, they were only fed the junk that their owners would not eat, ant they had to discover methods of grooming these items in such a way that they would be edible.African American Education and Employment African Americans in Mississippi calamitously live in one of the poorest states in the country, and their education is influenced by that factor. The poor frugal state of Mississippi greatly hinders the public take system here due to lack of funding. In the Mississippi Delta, where the macrocosm is almost entirely African American, the economy is so depleted that obtaining a quality education is extremely difficult (U. S. cathexis on genteel Rights, 2 001, p. 36).The lack of a quality education hinders Mississippis number of high prepare and college graduates, but for African Americans the number is extremely grave. except 47. 3 percent of African American students in Mississippi impart earn a high school diploma, and of that plowshare, only 8. 8 percent of them ordain go on to earn a lives full point or higher (U. S. focussing on Civil Rights, 2001, p. 36). It is a widely known fact that not graduating high school greatly influences a persons financial and passe-partout future.With less than half of the African American population of Mississippi graduating high school, the poverty level among these individuals is manifestly high. The number of African American families living down the stairs poverty level is tremendous, especially in majority-black communities the like one would find in the Mississippi Delta. The percentage of black families with incomes below the poverty level runs from a low of 46. 4 percent in up per-case letter County to a high of 68 percent in Tunica County, and most Mississippi counties are label by double-digit un concern rank (U. S. Commission on Civil Rights, 2001, p.1 2). The individuals who are employed are most likely employed in a sentiment that imparts the federal minimum lock rate, such as fast food or retail chains, due to the low high school graduation rate. Overall, the African American culture in Mississippi is at a great disadvantage when it comes to educational and schoolmaster success. Mexican American Family Life Family closeness is an important aspect of Mexican American culture, as well. non only do the members of this culture spend a great deal of time with their families, but they often all live together under one roof.It is not uncommon for grandparents, parents, children, cousins, aunts, and uncles to all live in the same foundation. The entire family is involved in all aspects of each others lives, with the elders being the most respected and revered members of the family. Children are expected to delight in their families no enumerate the circumstances. Their actions must(prenominal) never engage shame to their family, and traditional Mexican American families are very strict on their children in an effort to oblige them from participating in dishonorable acts.These value of honor, respect, and family endearment are carried out in death as well. When a love one passes away, they are dressed to the cardinals(p) in special c attractorhing and stay in the family home overnight. While in the family home, a airstream is held, and friends and family bring food to serve at the wake. alone the family then accompanies the body to the grave. No service is held, but the family members sing religious Spanish hymns. Most significant is the perspective on death held by many Mexican American Catholics that, rather than an end, death is seen as a new beginning (Diaz-Stevens & Stevens Arroyo, 1998, p.73). Because of this vi ew, for years afterward the original wake, on the same date, those who attended it will reunite to celebrate the life and passing of their love one. Mexican American Names and Language For the most part, Mexican Americans stay true up to their original Mexican heritage and culture. While a few Mexican American families choose to name their children more traditional American names, the majority of parents choose names with Mexican ties and meanings, like Javier, Joaquin, Carmen, and Rosa. Another way, Mexican Americans stay affiliated to their heritage is through their language.Even fluent English speakers tend to speak Spanish with other members of their culture, as opposed to English. Mexican American parents who choose to teach their children to speak English teach them Spanish as well and most often speak to them in the Spanish language. Mexican Americans also choose to hold in Spanish music and television into their daily lives. In fact, the interest is so high among Mexican Americans to have Spanish television in the United States that personal credit line and satellite providers have special packages created especially for the Hispanic people, which include channels from Mexico such as Telemundo and Univision.Mexican American Quinces Another tradition of Mexican American families is a quince. No matter how Americanized a Latina is, chances are she will look forward to her quince. No matter how economically tight her parents might be, they will defy the tradition (Figueredo, 2002, p. 152). A quince is the Mexican alike to a sweet sixteen party unite with a debutant ball. The quince takes swan on a young womans fifteenth birthday and is very formal. The birthday girl has several fe anthropoid maids and male escorts in her court.The court makes its grand entrance, and the birthday girl and her father begin to waltz. Soon, the entire court joins in, and once the waltz is complete, the party continues, as would an American sweet sixteen party. Mexica n American Religion Religion and orison are very important to the Mexican American culture. Approximately 80 percent of the Mexican American population is of the Catholic faith (Figueredo, 2002, p. 166). Mexican Americans are a very superstitious people, frequently wearing medallions or amulets for protection.The prevention of illness and unfortunate events is believed to be accomplished with in gathering, wearing religious relics, and tutelage religious charms in the home. Many homes have shrines for prayer in them these shrines contain religious statues, pictures of various saints, and prayer candles. The family members gather at these shrines, light the prayer candles and rigorously pray. Mexican American Holidays Holidays are of great significance in the Mexican culture, and many of the holidays celebrated in Mexico are still celebrated by Mexican Americans in the United States.Semana Santa celebrates the Christian holiday of easter and runs from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday . The most essential aspect of this holiday is attending mass on both Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Live representations of rescuer Christs crucifixion take place in many communitiespeople from the communities assume the roles of Jesus, arrant(a) Mary, St. Peter, St. John, and many other tones (Michigan State University, 2008). Cinco de Mayo is celebrated yearly on May 5 and commemorates the pommel of the French army by the Mexicans at The difference of opinion of Puebla in 1862.This victory gave the Mexican people pride in their country and the spirit of freedom and is celebrated in various parts of Mexico and in U. S. cities with a significant Mexican American population (Michigan State University, 2008). The Day of the Dead is a celebration that represents the unity between life and death. On October 31, relatives decorate the gravesite of their love ones in preparation for the return of their loved ones soul. They also decorate an altar at their home with p ragingos of the loved one and some of the loved ones favorite items.The Feast of Our gentlewoman Guadalupe is a very important religious holiday among Mexican Americans. It is believed that a female appeared to an Indian, outside of Mexico City, and verbalize she was the mother of God. She left an image of herself on his cactus-cloth. It the cloth should have deteriorated in twenty years but shows no sign of decay 477 years later (Michigan State University, 2008). She has become a prestigious religious double for Mexican American Catholics, and her holiday is celebrated on declination 12 each year by attending a special mass service.The Christmas holiday season for the Mexican American culture runs from December 16 through February 2 each year and is combined with traditional Christian aspects as well as special Mexican festivities. The first of these is Las Posadas, which is nine consecutive days of candlelight processions and parties. Neighborhood families gather to reenact the holy familys night in Bethlehem. The debunking of the pinata is a very important aspect of this holiday. The second of these is Noche Buena, which is the peak of holiday festivities, with the celebration of a midnight mass on Christmas Eve.After the mass, the families enjoy a traditional Christmas supper, common to the United States, of turkey, ham, and other common Christmas dinner items. The family then opens gifts and celebrates with a pinata and sparklers. Christmas Day is traditionally set aside for rest. The last of these celebrations occurs on January 6 and is called Dia de Los Tres Reyes Magos. This day celebrates the arrival of the Wise Men in Bethlehem. Mexican American children wake up to toys and other gifts.Rosca de Reyes is served on this day, which is a crown-shaped sweet bread alter with jewel-like candied fruits and a tiny plastic cosset hidden privileged. Whoever finds the baby in their piece is necessitate to host a party before the Christmas holiday season ends on Febru ary 2. Mexican American Foods Tex-Mex is a term used to describe a regional American cuisine that blends food products available in the United States and the culinary creations of Mexican Americans influenced by the cuisines of Mexico (Barrios Trevino, 2002, p. 3).Many dishes such as chili, fajitas, salsa, quesadillas, burritos, and nachos are not true Mexican dishes but were invented in the United States by Mexican Americans. Even dishes cooked here that originated in Mexico, like tacos, are not wide-awake in the same manner they would be in Mexico. While Mexican American Tex-Mex dishes are cooked to be hot, topped with dozens of cheese, and served in large portions, true Mexican dishes are exactly the opposite. Therefore, Mexican Americans coined their own style of cooking and created some of the United States most loved dishes.Mexican American Education and Employment Unfortunately, the graduation rates for Mexican Americans are very low. The language barrier between the Mexica n American culture and the English speaking population of the United States combined with the province on many Mexican Americans to work to protagonist support family in Mexico no doubt pass on to this. Only about half, 48. 7 percent, of the Mexican American population complete their high school education, and a mere 15. 4 percent of those students earn at least a bachelors degree (U. S.Dept of Commerce thorax of the Census, 2003 p. 5). The majority of Mexican Americans get in employment at blue-collar jobs such as construction or in the restaurant industry. Many Mexican Americans come to the United States illegally, which causes them to look for employment with employers who will look past their status. Being here illegally or working a blue-collar job means that most Mexican Americans must settle for low wages of minimum wage or slightly higher. Similarities Between the Two Cultures Conducting this question led to the surprising discovery of several similarities. both(preno minal) cultures desire to remain close to their families, both immediate and extended, by not only seeing each other often but also demoralize having parties and get-togethers. Both cultures rely greatly on the elderly members of their culture for their knowledge and advice and treat them with the utmost respect and endearment. While the actual proceedings of the funeral are kinda different, the cultures are the same in that they see death as a new beginning and, therefore, a cause for celebration. Both cultures are also steep of their heritage.This can be seen in everything from their celebratory traditions during trustworthy holidays to giving their children names, which are unique to their culture. Another similarity is the strong part religion and prayer play in the lives of the members of each culture. In both cultures, prayer is believed to provide comfort and protection. Finally, the most disheartening beginning which is common among both cultures is the high dropout ra te among high school students and the fact that most members of each culture are employed in low salaried positions either due to a lack of education or opportunity.Differences Among the Two Cultures As suspected, the research also led to the discovery of many differences among the cultures as well. As previously mentioned, the burial process of a loved one is quite different among the cultures. African Americans tend to have elaborate, celebratory services honoring the life of their loved one and invite all friends and family members to the burial service. The body is usually sent to a funeral home for preparation and burial. Mexican Americans, on the other hand, keep the body in their home and invite friends and family to pay their respects during a wake.The body is initially prepared by the family for the wake, and only family members attend the actual burial. Although African American families work hard to keep their families close, only their immediate family lives in the home with them unless circumstances cause otherwise, plot Mexican Americans quite often live in a home with many relatives of both their immediate and extended family. Their religions and religious practices are also very different. Most all African Americans are of a Protestant denomination, succession most all Mexican Americans are Catholic.The Catholic services of Mexican Americans tend to be very quiet and solemn, while African American services are very loud, emotional affairs, with frequent shouts of praise and singing. Shrines are also very important to Mexican American prayer, while African Americans choose to pray almost anywhere. They do not feel the need to pray at a particular place or some particular items. Another major difference is in the types of foods each culture consumes. African Americans tend to eat a lot of vegetables and fried foods, heavy in salt.Mexican Americans, however, eat meals, which include a lot of meat and tortillas with very few vegetables, which i nclude tomatoes, onions, and hot peppers. Applying the Project to the Classroom Recognizing the characteristics of each culture, along with the similarities and differences in each culture, will assist one in overcoming cultural barriers and biases. The information in this project will prove to be very useful inside a classroom. It could be used in several ways, the first being to teach students about each culture. The second way would be to teach students how the cultures are alike or different.The final way would serve students compare the cultures to their own. One way this information could be applied is by teaching students about a holiday unique to one of the cultures. For example, on or close to December 16, the teacher could ask the students to come to school dressed as a character from the nativity story such as an angel, a Wise Man, or a shepherd. Then, after perusal about Las Posadas and even having a Mexican American student tell a story about the holiday if possible, the students could parade up and down the hallways of the school and end their festivities by taking turns trying to break a pinata.Another way this information could be applied is to have the children write a story about a family celebration or gathering and then having each student read their story aloud. By doing this, each child will have the opportunity to see similarities and differences between each cultural group represented in the classroom. This would also help minority groups such as African Americans and Mexican Americans identify with majority students and move toward forming bonds. A final way this information could be applied is by studying the foods eaten by both cultures.The teacher could read a story about the foods of both cultures and apologize the origins of each cultures foods. During this lesson, the students should sample various foods from both cultures. By doing this, the students will not only be learning about another culture and receiving the opportunit y to try something new but will also most likely discover that they have already had many of the foods from both cultures but were unconscious(predicate) of it. Each culture has aspects, which are unique only to that culture. However, both cultures also have aspects, which can be related to ones own culture.In any event, both cultures are uniquely good-looking and contribute to the United States society and culture as a whole and should therefore not only be respected but also treasured. In its own way, each culture, combined with all of the other cultures of the United States people make our nation the greatly extraordinary country that it is. ? References Barrios Trevino, D. (2002). Los Barrios family cookbook Tex-Mex recipes from the heart of San Antonio. unseasoned York, NY Villard Books. (Primary Source) Coulmas, F. (2005). Sociolinguistics The study of speakers choices.Cambridge, MA Cambridge University Press. (Secondary Source) Diaz-Stevens, A. M. & Stevens Arroyo, A. M. ( 1998). Recognizing the Latino resurgence in U. S. religion. Boulder, CO Westview Press. (Secondary Source) DuBois, W. E. B. (2005). The souls of black folk. bran-new York, NY Simon and Schuster. (Primary Source) Figueredo, D. H. (2002). The complete retards guide to Latino history and culture. New York, NY Alpha Books. (Secondary Source) McBride, J (2007, April). Hip hop planet. study Geographic, 211(4), 100-118. (Secondary Source)Michigan State University Teaching Hispanic Cultures of the Americas make for (2008). Learning about Hispanic cultures through the study of Latino and Mexican holidays, celebrations and traditions. Retrieved June 28, 2009, from http//www. educ. msu. edu/teachglobal/Americas/module1. html (Primary Source) National Center of Afro-American Artists (2008). Black nativity. Retrieved June 27, 2009, from http//www. blacknativity. org/about/index. html (Secondary Source) Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences (2003). Guide to exploring African Americancul ture. Retrieved June 28, 2009, from http//pubs. cas. psu. edu/FreePubs/pdfs/agrs92. pdf (Primary Source) U. S. Commission on Civil Rights (2001). Racial and ethnic tensions in American communities Poverty, inequality, and discrimination the Mississippi delta report. Retrieved June 28, 2009, from http//www. usccr. gov/pubs/msdelta/main. htm (Primary Source) U. S. Dept of Commerce Bureau of the Census (2003). We the American Hispanics. Retrieved June 26, 2009, from http//www. census. gov/apsd/wepeople/we-2r. pdf (Primary Source)