Snowflakes free essay sample

Life, associated with nature, likewise takes its course throughout time, and is influenced by the environmental influences that it undergoes. If I could metaphorically compare anything in nature similarly with the life I am living now, I would definitely choose a snowflake, because of its cyclic and indifferent pattern, relating to the experiences that I faced so far in my life. It is also one of the things that I can associate with people all around the world, who through my own eyes, are each unique and one of a kind. I remember back in that November day, when I had gone to Chicago with my grandmother in hopes of finding a new path to a brighter future in America, but at the same time, saying my last goodbyes to the people that brought me up as a child and cared for me when my mother was away. It was the first time I have met my mother in a long time and had witnessed snow, a moment which I could cherish and relive forever. We will write a custom essay sample on Snowflakes or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Since then, I have always loved snow, and not a day passes by that I would smile just at the sight of seeing the snow covered streets, and people frolicking and making use of their free time playing with family or friends. The only regret I had was that most of my loved ones couldn’t share these special occasions with me together. Thankfully, I was surrounded by people that helped me get through the struggles I had in communication and by their encouragement, I overcame anxiety and shyness as my confidence grew stronger each day. As a boy growing up without a father figure to fall upon during times when my mother was busy coping to find a decent job she would come to enjoy, it was frequently hard to deal with many things correlating with my schoolwork. Often I’d get stressed out and become too worried of what I should do to ease the pains I faced in times of hardship. Even though it was difficult to confront, it was what built up my courage to carry on the hopes and dr eams I was willing to surpass. At the time my mom decided to live in New York, where we were lucky to have some family, whom all greeted and welcomed us with open arms. Again, a day could not have been anymore perfect, as I gazed at each snowflake glistening in the parting rays of the sun. Wherever I went, I felt that I have met different people who have positively affected me, as I am directed on a path to an even brighter future, just as snowflakes each pass by one another, falling to wherever they are lead by the wind. From then on, I started to profoundly believe in myself and became ready in doing anything I put my mindset onto. Learning to never give up and do the best you can do are by far some of my many favorite morals given to me by the people I am thankful for all throughout my life. United and limitless as snow, I can always count on family and friends to help me even in the hardest of times, into a life I am proud to live.

Doubt, a Play by John Patrick Shanley

Doubt, a Play by John Patrick Shanley Doubt is a drama written by John Patrick Shanley. It is about a strict nun who believes that a priest has done something terribly inappropriate to one of the students. The Setting of Doubt The play is set in the Bronx, New York in 1964, and takes place mostly in the offices of a Catholic school. Plot Overview Based upon a few circumstantial details and a lot of intuition, the stern nun, Sister Aloysius Beauvier believes that one of the priests at the St. Nicholas Catholic Church and school has been molesting a 12-year-old boy named Donald Muller, the schools only African-American student. Sister Aloysius recruits a young, naive nun (Sister James) to assist her in monitoring the suspicious yet charismatic Father Flynn. She also addresses her concerns to Donalds mother, who, surprisingly, is not horrified or even shocked by the allegations. (Mrs. Muller is more concerned about her son getting into high school and avoiding a beating from his dad.) The play concludes with a one-on-one confrontation between Sister Aloysius and Father Flynn as she attempts to get the truth out of the priest. The Character Sister Aloysius: What Does She Believe? This nun is a diligent taskmaster who firmly believes that subjects such as art and dance class are a waste of time. (She doesnt think much of history either.) She contends that good teachers are cold and cunning, creating a bit of fear within the hearts of the students. In some ways, Sister Aloysius might fit the stereotype of the angry Catholic school nun who slaps the hands of students with a ruler. However, playwright John Patrick Shanley reveals his true motives in the plays dedication: This play is dedicated to the many orders of Catholic nuns who have devoted their lives to serving others in hospitals, schools, and retirement homes. Though they have been much maligned and ridiculed, who among us has been so generous? In the spirit of the above statement, Sister Aloysius seems so harsh because she ultimately cares about the well-being of the children in her school. She is ever vigilant, as apparent in her discussion with the innocent teacher Sister James; Aloysius seems to know more about the students than the young, naive nun. Eight years before the beginning of the story, Sister Aloysius was responsible for detecting a sexual predator among the priesthood. After she went directly to the monsignor, the abusive priest was removed. (She does not indicate that the priest was arrested.) Now, Sister Aloysius suspects that Father Flynn has made a sexual advance on a 12-year-old boy. She believes that while having a private conversation, Father Flynn gave the boy wine. She doesnt state exactly what she thinks happens next, but the implication is that Father Flynn is a pedophile who must be dealt with immediately. Unfortunately, because she is a woman, she does not have the same level of authority as the priests; so instead of reporting the situation to her superiors (who will probably not listen to her), she reports her suspicions to the boys mother. During the plays finale, Aloysius and Flynn confront one another. She lies, claiming that she has heard about previous incidents from other nuns. In response to her lie/threat, Flynn resigns from the school but obtains a promotion becoming the pastor of a different institution. The Dubious Priest of Doubt The audience learns much about Father Brendan Flynn, yet most of the information is hearsay and conjecture. The early scenes which feature Flynn show him in performance mode. First, he is speaking to his congregation about dealing with a crisis of faith. His second appearance, another monologue, is delivered to the boys on the basketball team he coaches. He gives them instruction about developing a routine on the court and lectures them about their dirty fingernails. Unlike Sister Aloysius, Flynn is moderate in his beliefs about discipline and tradition. For example, Aloysius scorns the idea of secular Christmas songs such as Frosty the Snowman appearing in the churchs pageant; she argues they are about magic and therefore evil. Father Flynn, on the other hand, likes the notion of the church embracing the modern culture so that its leading members can be seen as friends and family, and not just emissaries from Rome. When he is confronted about Donald Muller and the alcohol that was on the boys breath, Father Flynn reluctantly explains that the boy was caught drinking the altar wine. Flynn promised not to punish the boy if no one else found out about the incident and if he promised not to do it again. That answer relieves the naive Sister James, but it does not satisfy Sister Aloysius. During the plays finale, when Sister Aloysius falsely tells him that nuns from other parishes have made incriminating statements, Flynn becomes very emotional. FLYNN: Am I not flesh and blood like you? Or are we just ideas and convictions. I cant say everything. Do you understand? There are things I cant say. Even if you imagine the explanation, Sister, remember there are circumstances beyond your knowledge. Even if you feel certainty, it is an emotion and not a fact. In the spirit of charity, I appeal to you. Some of these phrases, such as There are things I cant say, seem to imply a level of shame and possibly guilt. However, Father Flynn firmly claims, I have not done anything wrong. Ultimately, it is up to the audience to determine guilt or innocence, or whether or not such rulings are even possible, given the sketchy bits of evidence delivered by Shanleys drama. Did Father Flynn Do It? Is Father Flynn a child molester? The audience and readers never know. At its heart, that is the point of John Patrick Shanleys Doubt- the realization that all of our beliefs and convictions are part of a facade we build to protect ourselves. We often choose to believe in things: a persons innocence, a persons guilt, the sanctity of the church, the collective morality of society. However, the playwright argues in his preface, deep down, under the chatter we have come to a place where we know that we dont know...anything. But nobodys willing to say that. One thing seems certain by the end of the play: Father Flynn is concealing something. But who isnt?

A Look at James Joyce’s Display of the Challenges of Stephen as Described in His Book, A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Man

A Look at James Joyce’s Display of the Challenges of Stephen as Described in His Book, A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Man Children are constantly asked about their dreams and aspirations. This never-ending stream of directed questions can only lead to the disillusionment that everyone has some great destiny awaiting them. In James Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, the protagonist Stephen is struggling through inner turmoil between the man Irish society and institutions want him to be, and the man that he thinks he wants to be. This definite piece of Irish literature is so dependent upon both the politically historical and religiously centered social background that every reference is crucial to the overall feeling of the novel. However, astonishingly the overlying message surpasses the barriers of time and place to give meaning to a reader from any culture or era. Because people think there is a great destiny awaiting them, they are in constant search of a secure home to nourish their dreams and give comfort to the individual soul. The political debacle over Irish independence shined through Stephen, who although ironically was dissatisfied with his country, embodied its basic elements of individualism. Consider the Christmas dinner where Dante defended herself by stating â€Å"a priest would not be a priest if he did not tell his flock what is right and what is wrong†(31). The underlying sense of anger in this scene originates from how Mr. Casey and Mr. Dedalus are contempt with the lack of Irish independence from England. This political background is key to Stephen’s approach in his journey of becoming an artist. A parallel can be drawn to the theme of independence, and following one’s own journey rather than the road others lay out. Furthermore, as a young adult Stephen finds himself rather discontent with Ireland as his ancestors â€Å"allowed a handful of foreigners to subject them†(203). This again references Ireland’s lack of independence. Stephen eventually opts to dep art his home because Ireland’s lack of freedom was not propelling him towards his singular destiny of becoming an artist. Here Stephen was so dissatisfied with his home that out of frustration for an individually compelling environment, he leaves. These political references to emphasize independence and freedom in both the country and individual soul render late 19th century Ireland as essential to generating Joyce’s arguments. Joyce’s mockery of hypocritical religious institutions that ruled Irish society at the time emphasizes Stephen’s struggle over whether or not society was to feed his destiny or not. To begin with, society stressed upon him the indisputable influence of religion. Therefore Stephen became contrite over his sins with women. After â€Å"he had confessed and God had pardoned him, his soul was made fair and holy once more, holy and happy†(145). Stephen felt a false sense of security by the institution of religion as well as society that he was now going to be all right. Even with going though the motions of a pious Catholic, Stephen could not feel completely at home. This sheds light on how many â€Å"devout† religious beings may actually feel on the inside. Their actions are rather mechanical Not all religiously active people feel holy on the inside. Ultimately, Stephen faced the unavoidable decision to either join the priesthood or follow his â€Å"destinyâ⠂¬  to become an artist. This further ridicules the process of selecting higher religious figures. It is based on sheer outward appearance, quantity, and frequency of religious endeavors rather than the quality of religious work. Stephen realizes that Irish society is not contributing to his destiny when he comes to the consensus that â€Å"he was destined to learn his own wisdom apart from others or to learn the wisdom of others himself wandering among the snares of the world†(175). Consequently Stephen again departs his past â€Å"home† for the university that becomes his new â€Å"home† for the time being. Joyce clearly wanted to depict the oppressing and shallow nature of Irish society that revolved around religion. The Irish background adds on to the void feeling Stephen has even upon technically doing all that he was told by the institutions. Although the setting served to build the background to concepts Joyce wanted to portray, the actual ideas manifested throughout the novel are relevant to human nature regardless of generation and location. To begin with, Stephen never truly grasps the concept of â€Å"home.† As a young child he was sent to boarding school, and after returning he was constantly moving from house to house. Gradually â€Å"a vague dissatisfaction grew up within him as he looked on the quays and on the river and on the lowering skies†(66-67). From a young age Stephen grows up in a home that lacked stability. He was never able to find comfort in his own home. This dissatisfaction is universal to humans, for people find discomfort in trying to not only find their identities, but also find their destiny to where they fit in to the universe. This abstract concept is applied to Stephen as his search for identity is paralleled to truly finding his â€Å"home,† a place of security and feeli ng of belonging. It is only human nature to want to have a rightful place. Throughout the novel, Joyce masterfully takes advantage of incorporating Ireland into all aspects of the novel from its setting to character names to society. These compel the novel to be exactly that – an Irish novel. However when taking a step back, one can see that as a Bildungsroman, the theme of ones journey in search of ones destiny or place in the universe is applicable to all. Humans have an innate desire to feel at â€Å"home.† Joyce urges the reader to notice the ups and downs to hunting down what one believes is his or her destiny regardless of the rest of one’s community rather than rationally thinking through what is best for the situation.

Create your own christian demonology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Create your own christian demonology - Essay Example The purpose of this paper is to create a new Christian demonology within a particular period and context. The Christian demonology discussed in this paper belongs to the Medieval Period between the 5th to 15th century around the European region, where the belief in the power of demons and grimoires were widely existent during that era. This demonology evolved from the old Christian tradition, on basis of the scriptures, mentioning that the demons were the rebel angels that were cast down from the heaven by God. Though they are spiritual, immortal and immutable, like the good angels, these demons are not omniscient or omnipotent. As per the Christian demonology, the demons were intended to induce sin into the world by possessing and tormenting people in the world. The ultimate mission of the demons was to abandon the faith of God from the people and turn them into adversaries of God. The demonology of the Medieval Period identified demons as evil supernatural beings, who take control over the departed souls of men or their bodies for executing their evil schemes on earth. According to the biblical notion, they are the inhabitants of the Hell and whoever is possessed by these evil spirits are destined to do whatsoever the demons wish to. The demons were considered as the ‘elements of the world’ as supernatural being living in the air and ruling the entire universe. Paul writes in Galatians 4:3, we were in bondage under the elements of the world, which means that both the physical and spiritual cosmos comes under the power of these demons. What distinguishes this demonology is that the medieval demonology held a demonic plurality comprising not only the fallen angels as demons but also the evil spirits and souls of dead humans, in general. This is far from this demonology, as it takes the stand that the entire demonic world comprises of the fallen rebel angels, taking control over the whole world and the universe, for their evil possessions, after bei ng cast away from the Heaven to Hell. The demons exercised power over the world including the wind, water, air, sand as well as the stars and the entire universe. The peasant communities in this medieval period were particularly concerned of these demons as they hindered the nature. They comprised of various occults, witchcrafts, ritual magic and more for either abolishing or inducing the evil acts of the demons for various purposes. These demons also hold influences over the passions of mind, sexual, mania and melancholy by inflicting pain and pleasure. The witches and occultists make use of these demonic powers to perform their actions, choosing the demon with power of Hell that well suits their operations like seeing the future, seducing the object of lust, finding hidden treasure, etc. As the demons have control over the world, it possesses the humans and takes various physical forms for deceiving the world. In this Medieval Period the demons were believed to be the reason for t he pagan cults and other religious practices. It was thought that these rituals would help to expel the demons, by diminishing their evil acts and possession in the lives of humans. According to them, these cultic practices and rituals were the cause for their worshiping of demons which was indeed viewed as rebellious among the Church and Christian beliefs. Â  However, demonic administration used for handling magic, astrology, and mantic arts

The Slaves Trade in Africa Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Slaves Trade in Africa - Assignment Example Slaves were taken to do manual works; some were taken as wives and mistresses. Furthermore, slave owners acquired slaves to facilitate their position and status. Slaves were taken as captives; some were kept in homes while others were taken to distant places1. Slavery was not only a practice of acquiring armies for warfare, but it was also a means of acquiring wealth by local people. Not individuals, but the community did own land. Each family was allocated land in accordance with the size and its laborers. Therefore, families acquired more slaves in order to increase their rate of production. The slaves who survived had to create wealth to the community2. Slavery was a method of contributing wealth to the people3. Hence, to enable further creation of wealth, slavery was conducted by societies in distant places and village. Slavery involved children, women, and men. Women performed variety of activities ranging from farming and various tasks associated with agriculture, trading activ ities, yielding, and cotton spinning. Women did other house chores such as cleaning, cooking among others; moreover, many practiced herding and farming. This paper is a discussion on the slave trade in Africa. The Trans-Saharan and East Africa slave trade was initiated by the entry of Arabs, who practiced Islamic religion, in Africa. Before the foundation of the Islamic religion, Arabs had been practicing slave trading. As they conquered western parts of North Africa, their leaders took the locals into captivity whom they initiated into their armies4. The Arab Muslims spread religion to the camel herders located in the Sahara Desert. The camel herders who were in contact with the black Africans, did trade in black slaves on a small scale. The Arabs continued to buy and capture slaves in West Africa and crossing them to North Africa for sale. Thereafter, the slaves were taken to other countries in regions like; India, Arab, Persia. Transportation routes across the Sahara connected the

Adolescent Behaviors and the Challenges in Society Today Essay Example for Free

Adolescent Behaviors and the Challenges in Society Today Essay Increased awareness needs to be established so that adults can be aware of adolescent behaviors and challenges in our society today. Some issues as simple as adolescents are being ostracized because of obesity, mothers work schedule causing risky behaviors, children being raised by depressed mothers, parent stress causing adolescents not to have good self-concept, and adolescents being involved in risky behavior in order to be accepted by peers. All of these actions are causing behaviors such as teen pregnancy, self-injuries, suicide, and eating disorders. Research states many of these behaviors have high statistics coming from the home environment. The United States having the highest teen pregnancy rate all around, what are parents doing wrong and how can society be educated so that behaviors can change with adolescents in the world today. With increased awareness of what adolescents are doing, adults can be helpful to adolescents who are so desperately in need of attention? A family needs to raise their children in a Christian setting so they will have a solid foundation when they grow into adolescents because, they need to be strong enough to face the challenges, peer pressures, and behaviors of our adolescents who are not raised to know right from wrong in their environment. Because of reality of society all adolescents will be challenged to deal with other adolescent behaviors. Adolescents can’t be put into a bubble and be protected from what society has to offer. Society is proof that there is lack of guidance for adolescents in the world today. Is society proof that there is lack of guidance for adolescents in the world today? Research proves lack of guidance is evident. In this study research says that adolescent problems can stem from weight problems, peer pressure, parents work schedule, and parent stress, causing many different behaviors in adolescents. See more:  The Story of an Hour Literary Analysis Essay The discussion in one of the articles researched says that social status for adolescents depend on how your body is developed. Girls and boys are not being accepted or are not popular by peers if they are overweight. â€Å"Adolescent girls are more popular if they have the â€Å"perceived body size† and the boy’s popularity depends on the â€Å"overall muscularity† of his body† (Wang,S.S., Houshyar, Prinstein, 2006). The research in this article is based on â€Å"522 students in grades 11 and 12.† (Wang, 2006) â€Å"The research was discovered by students choosing popular kids and not so popular kids and results being those popular kids, having the perceived bodies being popular and the not so popular kids being overweight† (Wang, 2006). This research states â€Å"Messages within the media or family promoting ‘idea’ body shapes may be reinforced within adolescents’ own peer groups and associated with social rewards that are particularly salient during this developmental stage† (Wang, 2006). â€Å"Adolescents who desire to achieve high levels of status among peers may be motivated to engage in behaviors that will help them achieve an â€Å"ideal† body shape. (Wang, 2006) Do adolescents have to be socially ostracized by peers to be motivated to look the same as others to be accepted? Are we accepting these behaviors from adolescents, that they should ostracized by anyone? With appropriate guidance and education, we can help adolescents with weight problems instead of adolescents wanting to lose weight to be accepted by peers. The cultural idea for adolescents is to be slim and trim and when they are not slim and trim they react with different kinds of eating disorders. â€Å"Psychological consequences may be particularly severe during a time of life when body image is of special concern† (Feldman, 2011). Anorexia is a disorder when the person refuses to eat because they are afraid of getting fat. ( 2011) When our adolescents don’t get the proper diet it can cause health problems and psychological problems in our children. Feldman states obesity is the most common problem with our adolescents stating that, â€Å"One in 5 adolescents is overweight, and 1 in 20 can be formally classified as obese† (Feldman, 2011) Our text states why our children are becoming overweight and not getting the exercise they need to burn the calories they are eating.(2011) It is a challenge to go past a fast food place because of the affordable prices and availability. It is a challenge for family’s to eat at home. The text also states a disorder called bulimia which adolescents eat large amounts of food and then they vomit it out of their system.(2011) These disorders are very serious and can lead to many health problems. The challenge for adolescents to have the perceived body weight is hurtful to those who are considered overweight or obese. This idea of perceived body weight is causing depression which causes risky behaviors for adolescents. Another example that shows guidance is vital is in this article about peer pressure and friend influences. The article states how our adolescents are being influenced by peer pressure. Do our adolescents have to join the group norms to be accepted or are they strong enough to say no and still be liked by the group? In this research there are two categories of friends called stable friends and unstable friends. Who influence who? According to research â€Å"the more accepted friend had greater influence than the less accepted friend after the friendship was established† ( Laursen, 2012). When the stable friends were paired up with the unstable friends, the stable friends were influencing the unstable friends. (2012 ) â€Å"The stable friends being the popular group and the unstable friend being the less popular group the unstable group was being pressured by the stable groups† (Laursen, B., Hafen, C. A., Kerr, M., Stattin, H† (2012). Research stated that the unsta ble friends did not influence the stable friends. (2012) The stable friends were influencing to the unstable friends because of their status in who they were and the unstable friends were being accepted. The research shows how â€Å"adolescents alter behaviors so that they will fit in even when it comes to alcohol consumption and other deviant behaviors† (Laursen, 2012). This is a challenge even for the stable friends to be able to say no to the alcohol and other deviant behaviors. If parents would teach their children about peer pressure, use the word as something happens, the children would know when an issue comes up and they said they did it because everyone else did, let them know they allowed themselves to do the wrong thing because of peer pressure. How something as simple as parental work schedules cause risky behaviors in adolescents. Why are parental work schedules vital when it comes to adolescent risky behaviors? What are adolescents doing while parents are at work? The article provides â€Å"new evidence on the pathways linking parental work schedules with adolescent risky behaviors†( Han, W.-J., Miller, D. P., Waldfogel, J. (2010). The research states that years of night shift work for mothers indicate that the relationship between their children are not developed as to mothers who work day time jobs.(2010) Parents working to make a living are having to sacrifice having a relationship with their children. As these parents work it allows more freedom for risky behaviors. Also, while parents are working different shifts research indicates that parents don’t know what their children are doing or where their children are.(2010) â€Å"Effects were particularly evident when parents work such schedules during children’s middle childhood years but were also evident during preschool years and early adolescence†(Han, 2010). Our analyses by children’s developmental stage suggest that the number of year’s parents worked nonstandard hours at various stages of childhood influence adolescent outcomes, but in different ways depending on the stage when nonstandard shift work occurred. These results make sense given that children face very different developmental tasks during these different stages. In the middle childhood years mark a time of important changes related to school transitions, developmental advances that establish children’s sense of identity, and developing relationships with parents and peers. These years serve as a foundation for later development, and experiences during these periods can have lasting effects. (Han, 2010) The risky behaviors focused on in this article while parents are working was, â€Å"cigarette smoking, alcohol use, drug use, delinquency, and sexual behavior. With evidence of all these behaviors in adolescents because of parents work schedule, parental guidance is vital in our society today so that these behaviors will be recognized by parents so they will know that their adolescent needs some attention. This article provides facts about how much parent stress is apparent toward parenting behavior and how it reflects adolescent’s self-concept? According to the findings in this article, parent behavior reflected on their stress that they deal with daily? How does the parent behavior affect the adolescent’s self-concept? The article debates how the lax parents and stern parent’s reactions are toward adolescent’s self-concept. The parent’s relationship to the child contributes to the child’s â€Å"self-concept and well-being.† Without self-worth how can adolescents achieve what they need to accomplish in their life as they grow into adulthood. Putnick, D.L., Bornstein, M. H., Hendricks, C., Painter, K.M., Suwalsky, J.T. D.Collins, W.A. (2008)† Why is society having so many problems with adolescents? Appropriate parental guidance is vital so that adolescents can grow into healthy men and woman. However, we have adolescents growing up and being exposed to many different challenges. Being raised by a mother who has dealt with depression, the article states that the children are the caretakers of the siblings and the house. (2009) The authors stated that they observed â€Å"a 13-year old boy talked about regularly preparing dinner for his mother and younger sibling (instrumental caretaking) and a 9-year old girl offered suggestions to her mother for ways to feel better and reduce her stress at work, including setting up and appointment to talk with her boss. (Emotiona l caretaking)† (Champion,Jaser, Reeslund, Simmons, Potts, Shears,Ccompas, (2009). â€Å"Emotional and instrumental caretaking were significantly correlated with greater self-reported anxiety-depression symptoms only among adolescents whose mothers had a history of depression† (Champion, 2009).The research states that â€Å"mothers think there children are more capable if they are preforming emotional caretaking however the children feel more anxiety and depression when they are preforming those task† (Champion, 2009). How do these children stand a chance to grow and develop their needs if they are caring for depressed mother? The challenges these children face are tremendous as they grow into adult hood. They totally missed childhood and all their lives saw their mother cry, take overdose and the many other behaviors that depressed people do. These children grow cold of emotions. They don’t know how to express except the way their mother expressed. How do we expect them to grow up as good citizens? The United States having the highest teen pregnancy rate of all other countries is not making a good statement of how adolescents are seeking to get the attention they need. The authors in this article state that a â€Å"disturbing discovery that the percentage of apparently involuntary sex among female teens is a significant social problem, around 13% for ages 15-19 by one estimation† (Thomas and Dimitrox, 2007). Also another alarming fact discovered is that â€Å"over half of teens ages 15-19 have had oral sex, including roughly 25% who have not engaged in vaginal sex (2007). Seeing it as a strategy to avoid pregnancies, many teens believe that oral sex avoids the prospect of STD’s including HIV/AIDS. (Thomas, and Dimitrox (2007).† Research detects that direct effects of teen pregnancy are coming from background variables such as family poverty, early school failure, and dysfunctional family systems. â€Å"Some research suggests that most of the economic consequences of early childbearing can be explained by family background variables.†(Thomas and Dimitrox, 2007) However, research is not saying that all teen pregnancies are coming from these variables. â€Å"Recent data suggest that the number of children living in poverty in the United States would have risen by 8.3% if the teen birth rates had not declined as they did for the years 1991-2003† (Thomas , 2007). Education to adolescents and parents is vital. There are so many grandparents raising the adolescents’ babies. The adolescents never have to take responsibility for their action because they have someone to raise their child. What do they do but go have another child for their parents. Even more hurtful than teen pregnancy, would be facing a knock on the door telling you you’re adolescent tried to commit suicide or even worse committed suicide. â€Å"The institute of Medicine defines a suicide attempt as a nonfatal, self-inflicted destructive act with the explicit or implied intent to die.† (Hausmann, C., Kuhlberg, J., A., Zayas, L.H., Nolle, A., P., Cintron, S., L. 2012) We often think that these things can’t happen to us until we are faced with the issue at hand. Research says that â€Å"depression is the number one disorder diagnosed among adolescents†( Hausmann, 2012). Research also states that depression is associated with the greatest risk of suicide attempts.(2012) â€Å"Adolescents are using objects in their homes to commit suicide such as, drug overdose, knives, pieces of glass, nail files, and guns† (Hausmann, 2012). Less common attempting methods were â€Å"jumping off buildings, suffocating by placing plastic bags over their heads, and trying to hang themselves† (Hausmann, 2012). The majority of adolescents in this study had a lifetime history of two to more than six previous suicide attempts† (Hausmann, 2012). The authors state that the â€Å"Latino population adolescents are at high risk for attempted suicide† (Hausmann, 2012).† Latino population for the youth is up to 41% in the US†(Hausmann,2012). The 76 adolescents in this study have already tried suicide 2 or 3 times. The article states that adolescents will try suicide in the next 3 or 4 months and may continue trying suicide up to the next 12 years. (Hausmann, 2012) `Talk about a heartbreaking behavior for parent, siblings, whom ever involved. If parents could get some education on some of these behaviors, to reinforce that there is a problem with Adolescents growing up in society today. â€Å"The structure of the family for the last couple decades has changed in many ways. With an increase in the number of parents who both work outside of the home, soaring divorce rate, and a rise in single-parent families, the environment faced by children passing through middle childhood in the 21st century is very different from that faced by prior generation† (Feldman, 2011 pg.332). Conclusion is that a family needs to raise their children in a Christian setting so they will have a solid foundation when they grow into adolescents because, they need to be strong enough to face the challenges, peer pressures, and behaviors of adolescents today. Adolescents who go to church are not free from this kind of behaviors but have a solid rock to stand on if they know the Lord. Is society proof that there is lack of guidance for adolescents in the world today? Reference Champion, J. E., Jaser, S. S., Reeslund, K. L., Simmons, L., Potts, J. E., Shears, A. R., Compas, B. E. (2009). Caretaking behaviors by adolescent children of mothers with and without a history of depression. Journal of Family Psychology 23(2), 156-166 . Feldman S.R., (2011). Food, and Eating Disorders: Fueling the Growth of Adolescence, Development across the Life Span, Pg.365. Grella, C. E., Stein, J. A., Greenwell, L. (2005). Associations among Childhood Trauma, Adolescent Problem Behaviors, and Adverse Adult Outcomes in Substance-Abusing Women Offenders. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 19(1), 43-53. Han, W.-J., Miller, D. P., Waldfogel, J. (2010). Parental work schedules and adolescent risky behaviors. Developmental Psychology, 46(5), 1245-1267. Hausmann-Stabile, C., Kuhlberg, J. A., Zayas, L. H., Nolle, A. P., Cintron, S. L. (2012). Means, intent, lethality, behaviors, and psychiatric diagnosis in Latina adolescent suicide attempters. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 43(3), 241-248. Laursen, B., Hafen, C. A., Kerr, M., Stattin, H. (2012). Friend influence over adolescent problem behaviors as a function of relative peer acceptance: To be liked is to be emulated. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 121(1), 88-94. Nock, M. K., Holmberg, E. B., Photos, V. I., Michel, B. D. (2007). Self-Injurious Thoughts and Behaviors Interview: Development, reliability, and validity in an adolescent sample. Psychological Assessment, 19(3), 309-317. Putnick, D. L., Bornstein, M. H., Hendricks, C., Painter, K. M., Suwalsky, J. T. D., Collins, W. A. (2008). Parenting stress, perceived parenting behaviors, and adolescent self-concept in European American families. Journal of Family Psychology, 22(5), 752-762. Thomas, C.L., Dimitrov, D. M. (2007). Effects of a teen pregnancy prevention program on teen’s attitudes toward sexuality: A latent trait modeling approach. Developmental Psychology, 43(1), 173-185.

Comparison of Westminster Bridge by William Wordsworth and London by Wi

Comparison of Westminster Bridge by William Wordsworth and London by William Blake Throughout the coursework I will refer to William Wordsworth as Wordsworth and William Blake as Blake. The poems of Wordsworth and Blake are both about London however, Wordsworth’s poem was written when he came to visit London whereas Blake lived in London. Wordsworth’s poem is about the finery of London one can see this as he writes in line 1; â€Å"Earth has not anything to show more fair:† Whereas in Blake’s poem he does not write about the praise of London although he loved London we are told he sees that London has its bad points. In Wordsworth’s poems there is an absence of people whereas in Blake’s poem it talks about people a lot of the time. In Wordsworth’s poem he refers to London as a person this is a personification. We see him referring to London as a person when he says at the end of the poem although there are other references to this; â€Å"And all that mighty heart is lying still!† In Wordsworth’s poem he is not saying that London is more beautiful then other cities he says that it is as nice as other cities. When Wordsworth says; â€Å"Dull would he be of soul,† This shows that he thinks some people are insensitive. As well when Wordsworth says; â€Å"This City now doth, like a garment, wear,† This is a simile he talks about London as if it is a person. When Blake’s writes his poem he sheds light on the problems of London although he is a major fan of London. Most of the people at this time could not read and so Blake thought that if he wrote a poem people who could read wo... ...horical the soilders are standing by the palace and sighing thinking about th rich people who don’t suffer in war hence the words â€Å"Runs in the blood†. In line 15 the word; â€Å"†¦Harlot†¦Ã¢â‚¬  is showing that it is pitiful. The harlot is cursing because if she becomes pregnant it is like a millstone around her neck. In line 17 the word â€Å"hearse† is used as a car to take the bride to the wedding hall here it would be sad because the harlot would only be getting married because she became pregnant it was not a wanted child. Nowadays we use a hearse a car to carry a coffin, now to hear the word hearse is sad whereas then it was a happy thought. Perhaps when it says in line 16; â€Å"†¦Infants tear,† It is saying that the cry is because maybe the father is already married.

Individual Learner Difference In Second Language Acquisition Education Essay

SLA ( Second linguistic communication acquisition ) is a procedure through which an person learns a 2nd linguistic communication as an extra linguistic communication after holding learned a native linguistic communication already. SLA involves wide research and is considered a subdivision of applied linguistics. The construct is besides related to instruction, neuroscience sociolinguistics, and psychological science. Learning a 2nd linguistic communication is non an easy undertaking, this is a pattern that involves committedness, survey, dedication, patient every bit good as clip in order to develop. Peoples who learn a 2nd linguistic communication do non make it because is merely a compulsory topic at school, but because they feel encouraged to larn it, sing factors such us, communicating with aliens, academic surveies and better chances to happen a good occupation. Research has shown that there are differences among 2nd linguistic communication scholars that significantly affect linguistic communication acquisition success. As a consequence, the survey of single differences ( IDs ) particularly in linguistic communication acquisition motive and linguistic communication aptitude has been attributed to researches on L2 surveies dating back to the sixtiess. Motivation is what guides people to carry through and be successful in all countries of life. Sing the schoolroom environment, this term is the footing of how enthusiastic or unwilling pupils are to larn and the counsel force to keep the extended and sometimes boring learning procedure. Both the grade of motive and educational success often seem to travel manus in manus, which can be clearly observed throughout the instruction pattern. This essay seeks to research and discourse in item one person scholar difference in 2nd linguistic communication acquisition, which is motive. Apart from specifying the term, sing different writers, the essay will besides include the analysis of the assorted types of motive, every bit good as, the function motive plays in 2nd linguistic communication schoolrooms. And eventually, ways of furthering motive will be proposed. The term Motivation in SLA One of the single scholar differences in SLA is motive, which is a term hard to specify, since its significance could depend on the persons and their civilizations. Dornyei ( 2002: 1 ) says that motive â€Å" is best seen as a wide umbrella term that covers a assortment of significances † , but at the same time this writer besides describes motive as the factor in charge of finding why persons decide to transport out an action, the sum of attempt people invest in the undertakings every bit good as the rate of doggedness people put when finishing assorted activities. Alike Dornyei, Passer and Smith ( 2004: 327 ) perceive motive as â€Å" a procedure that influences the way, continuity and energy of purposive behavior † . Harmonizing to Gardner ( 1985 ) , motive is what makes people to move towards a given state of affairs. Taking into consideration all these definitions which province what the term of motive is, it can be deduced that the construct refer to some type of energy that guides persons to set about a undertaking in their lives. The motivated linguistic communication scholar Lightbown and Spada ( 2002 ) point out that motive is a factor that plays an of import function in linguistic communication acquisition success. In the context of linguistic communication acquisition is what pushes a student to derive cognition of the English linguistic communication. The importance of motive in relation to accomplishing the ends of larning English as a Second Language harmonizing to Naiman et Al, ( 1978 ) is that it gives the scholar the ability to digest ambiguity ; a demand for accomplishment ; a positive orientation towards the undertaking ; high aspirations ; ego engagement ; doggedness and end orientation. Therefore, a motivated linguistic communication pupil is a individual who has positive attitudes towards the mark linguistic communication. These attitudes are shown when the 2nd linguistic communication scholar makes attempts to get the linguistic communication and has a consistent desire of analyzing and detecting new and extra stuff. Furthermore, looking f or chances and ways where he or she will be able to set in pattern the mark linguistic communication. An extra manner of specifying a motivated scholar is when larning the 2nd linguistic communication is a comfy state of affairs for the learner, taking pleasance in the undertakings involved. Furthermore, a student that experience a high degree of motive will doubtless experience pleased about larning the linguistic communication. Research workers have arisen several accounts of what encourages scholars to analyze a foreign linguistic communication ; they have found that motivational factors are cardinal at the clip of talking about 2nd linguistic communication success. Types of motive As it was mentioned earlier, there are diverse significances for motive in SLA, irrespective of the words they fundamentally refer to the same impression. Besides, there are different factors which slightly vary depending on the writers ‘ points of position. I will mention in this essay to the different types of motive, taking into consideration different writers. Extrinsic and Intrinsic motive: The words extrinsic and intrinsic are to some extent complicated, given that both footings do non look to hold a clear definition in the field of 2nd linguistic communication acquisition. Passer and Smith ( 2004 ) citation extrinsic and intrinsic motive, even though Noels ( 2002 ) uses the footings extrinsic and intrinsic orientations. For these writers, Passer and Smith and Noel, extrinsic signifies that people carry out an action to carry through an external end or evade penalty, while by intrinsic motive the writers wholly mean that pupils do activities, due to the satisfaction they get from the undertakings themselves. Activities that motivate pupils per se are likened to gratifying activities, merriment, or things that pupils do out of their ain pick. Some of the conducted surveies assert that per se actuating activities lead to improved acquisition by the pupils. The difference between Passer & A ; Smith ( 2004 ) and Noels ( 2002 ) is merely the impression motive and orientatio ns, in position of the fact that both footings involved different attacks of motive. The initial term proposes that the motive itself comes from outside or within ; while the term orientation suggests that it is instead the different triggers of motive that comes from outside or within. Although, Glasser ( 1996 ) does non utilize the footings intrinsic and extrinsic, he provides a 3rd path to see where motive comes from. He states that motive is produced seeking to fulfill the indispensable desires which all human existences own. For case, the demand of amusement. He points out that even if a individual is influenced by the environment, all motive still comes from inside the person, because it is he or she who truly choose whether or non and how to transport out an activity. Though I concur with Glasser that merely the persons are the 1s who make their ain determinations, I think that what motivates people, are factors which can be both external and internal. Alternatively, Garden and Lambet ( 1972 ) coined the undermentioned footings to sort motive. Integrative Motivation Garden and Lambet ( 1972 ) depict this term as the desire that the scholars have to familiarise themselves with the civilization of the cultural group that speaks the linguistic communication they intend to larn. Gardner ( 2002 ) himself perceives Integrativeness as one of the factors that conduct to motive for 2nd linguistic communication acquisition, and by this he suggests that whether scholars have the hope to come nearer the L2 community they will hold existent desire in larning and analyzing the 2nd linguistic communication. Besides, the term besides refers to the grade at which the scholar desires to understand the mark community. Basically, integrative motive refers to a scholar ‘s desire to spread out their association with the community that they are aiming. Saville – Troike, ( 2005 ) affirm that the chief triggers of this type of motive are emotions or affectional factors. For case, a Chilean male child who come to populate in London for a clip, run into an En glish miss and autumn in love with her. He will hold the desire and motive to larn English in order to pass on with his girlfriend and integrate into the new civilization and go portion of the community. As Chile is chiefly a monocultural society, opportunities to use the 2nd linguistic communication in day-to-day conversations are reasonably limited. Therefore, scholars do non experience motivated to larn the 2nd linguistic communication to go portion of the community, since they merely need their first linguistic communication to interact. It can be discussed that integrative motive is an intrinsic factor, because it implies that larning a 2nd linguistic communication is more a concluding purpose itself instead than a mean to carry through a concluding end, due to the reliable desire on the acquisition undertakings ( Noels ( 2002 ) . Instrumental Motivation: One more term that Gardner and Lambert made up is instrumental motive which Lightbown & A ; Spada ( 2002: 56 ) introduce as â€Å" linguistic communication acquisition for more immediate or practical ends † . Very similar to integrative motive, instrumental motive besides sees linguistic communication acquisition as an instrument to carry through a end instead than the satisfaction in the action itself. However, what distinguishes both footings is the concluding purpose, which in integrative motive is the interaction in the L2 community while in instrumental motive the ultimate end is more practical, for case, obtaining a better occupation, calling developmental or go throughing tests. For most Chilean scholars of English instrumental motive is the cardinal component at the clip to larn English as a 2nd linguistic communication. For Lightbown & A ; Spada ( 2002 ) both types of motive are of import, they say that whether the pupils feel the necessity to interact in the 2nd linguistic communication in assorted societal state of affairss or to carry through academic and professional aspirations, the communicative value of the foreign linguistic communication will be perceived and hence, they will experience encouraged to acquire proficiency in the linguistic communication. I agree with the writers that both types of motive are of import to get a 2nd linguistic communication, However for Chilean people integrative motive is far to be seen as a ground to analyze the 2nd linguistic communication due to the fact that Chile, as I mentioned earlier, is a monocultural and monolingual society. Classroom Learning Motivation V. Language Learning Motivation When sing 2nd linguistic communication acquisition and motive, it is of import to set two motivational concepts into consideration. Research has shown that there are two classs of motive that should be put into history when discoursing SLA. This mainly trades with the difference that exists between schoolroom larning motive and linguistic communication learning motive. Language learning motive refers to the desire to larn a 2nd linguistic communication. Language learning motive includes evaluated 2nd linguistic communication acquisition, socio-educational representation ( Gardner, 1985 ) , the readiness to discourse theoretical account ( Clement, Dornyei, MacIntyre & A ; Noels, 1998 ) among others. It is the cosmopolitan type of motive that applies to any context of larning a linguistic communication. The cosmopolitan properties of the scholar relate to the demand to larn the linguistic communication. Clement ‘s ( 1980 ) societal context theoretical account, Gardner ‘s ( 1985 ) SLA social-education theoretical account among others, agree that the motive or desire to larn a 2nd linguistic communication is a characteristic that has considerable effects on the single although they are different when it comes to assessment, correlatives and ancestors. The other type of motive is the larning motive in a schoolroom. Harmonizing to Heckhausen and Kuhl ( 1985 ) , classroom-learning motive is the general educational psychological science as described by Dornyei ‘s theoretical account of post-actional, actional, and pre-actional motive theoretical account. Although it is seen to be an of import portion to motive as a whole, the SLA socio-educational theoretical account by Gardner, ( 1985 ) , characterizes it. The chief focal point is the individual ‘s position on the mission to be achieved and to a big extent, it is province oriented. This means that a figure of issues that are related to the linguistic communication category will impact the person ‘s perceptual experience. As a consequence, the ambiance in the category, the instructor, the contents of the class, installations and stuffs combined with the pupil ‘s personal properties will impact the individual ‘s motive when it comes to classroom acquisitio n. It is difficult to distinguish between the two classs of motive because they control the person at any peculiar clip. Therefore, it is of import to see both categories of motive operative. Merely every bit difficult as it is to specify motive, it is every bit hard to give an account to the significance of larning a 2nd linguistic communication. Harmonizing to Gardner, the motivational strength can merely be estimated from questionnaires based on an person ‘s attitude and is considered to be a concealed psychometric feature. Other educational patterns have applied the usage of indexs that have been observed from person ‘s behaviour in response to a given undertaking. This depends on the individual ‘s choice of undertakings, which is determined by the degree of trouble, the doggedness of the scholar to undertake the job at manus, the extent at which an person participates in a group or category activities, the span of attending and focal point, or the qualitative info rmation available on spoken studies of self-regulation and self-monitoring. The new research plan by Crookes and Schmidt ( 1991 ) includes the promotions made in the cosmopolitan educational, which has narrowed to the field of linguistic communication larning motive. This directs its focal point on persons, the attacks that the scholar might implement in the acquisition procedure, the acquisition contexts, and the discernible behavior of category members. Following the origin of the new lineation, the countries of involvement have shifted to the scholar as an person. In Covington ‘s self-worthy theory ( 1998 ) , the importance of the scholar ‘s thoughts were emphasized, their ain beliefs, the scheme they use, and the degree of their desire to cover with the undertaking at manus. The self- efficaciousness construct by Bandura ( 1997 ) is a really of import related characteristic which assesses the degree at which scholars gauge their possible and their ain direction. Persons who have this ability come up with an efficient motivational thought sche me and are able to cut down the hazard of failure and increase their opportunities of success while depending less on outside obligatory steps and schemes. Motivation: Individual Learner Difference in Chilean Culture Clement and Noels ( 1996 ) indicate that the cultural scenes present different linguistic communication acquisition and single scholar differences. In the Chilean cultural scene, the motive to larn the English linguistic communication offer some challenges to the scholars due to most of the pupils who attend Chilean public schools are in societal hazard. In add-on, many of the scholars may be discouraged to set personal attempt in larning the linguistic communication because of the fact that they may non happen the linguistic communication utile outside the educational scene. Others may be of the sentiment that their opportunities of going to a state where English is spoken as a native linguistic communication are instead minimum. Furthermore, challenges that come with learning a category that has many pupils may impact the effectivity of the instructors and the quality of the lesson. This together with the small involvement towards larning the English linguistic communication may ac t upon negatively the motive to learn every bit good as the motive to larn. Fostering Motivation The best ways to further motive is to make a good environment, which is good for 2nd linguistic communication acquisition. This can be done by cut downing the figure of pupils per category to guarantee that the direction given by the English instructors is of good quality. The instructors should besides come up with programs that apply to both slow scholars and fast scholars so as to guarantee that those who do non hold on rapidly are non left far behind because this may demotivate them to go on larning. The schools may see originating exchange plans with schools where English is the native linguistic communication. This would give pupils the feeling that analyzing English is non an attempt in vain but a measure in the right way since it would assist them in procuring occupations and touring other parts of the universe. Furthermore, instructors should come up with a timetable that gives us adequate clip to fix for our categories by acquiring the necessary stuffs every bit good as ref lecting on the success of the plan. This would assist us in coming up with a better program to learn hence bettering our learning methodological analysis. It would besides assist instructors find ways of actuating their ain pupils. With the relevant governments guaranting that, schools are good equipped to learn English as a 2nd linguistic communication, pupils will be motivated to larn and instructors will be motivated to learn. Decision The above treatment has provided an analysis of motive as an single scholar difference. There have been legion research surveies researching single scholar differences, which have indicated that the chief ground why many L2 pupils fail while others win effortlessly is the presence of different pupil features such as linguistic communication aptitude, motive, or personality traits. The motive of the pupil is really of import in the acquisition procedure and is regarded as the cardinal factor that contributes to the success of SLA. Research has revealed that intrinsic motive is more successful than external or extrinsic motive over the long term. Some pupils ‘ larning rate is higher as compared to others. Some scholars are able to hold on rapidly and they go on to the degree of making near-native competency while slow scholars experience troubles in the early phases of the acquisition procedure. Recently conducted research has shown that this disparity is caused by the peculiar s cheme adopted by the scholar, motive, anxiousness, personality, every bit good as social and societal influences. Research has clearly shown that the strength of the pupil ‘s motive to its highest degree, including the cognitive, affectional, and behavioural constituents are the most of import facets towards success in SLA. Since the integrative motivation incorporates the facet of being unfastened to cultural designation as portion of the procedure, it tries to connote that integrating may be more affiliated to accomplishing highest degree of accomplishment as compared to other types of motive that do non hold this constituent. Classroom larning motive seems to be a system that encourages persons to get specific linguistic communication elements but for the pupils to be Masterss of the linguistic communication, more is needed. In my sentiment, the integrative motive provides the pupils with a better platform for SLA. A instructor ‘s function in the procedure of larning a 2nd linguistic communication is instead complicated but really of import. It surpasses the proviso of wages since the whole experience is dependent on the self-efficacy of the pupil. The instructor ‘s function entails supplying disputing yet supportive environment to let the pupils to larn and research their possible. The instructors are besides supposed to assist their pupils to develop their ain motivational thought by detecting their original orientation. The most ambitious facet in all of this is seeking to avoid anything that may de-motivate the pupils. Although it is really much possible to conceive of other signifiers of motive, the type of motive does non count really much. The difference that emerges between instrumental and integrative motive, or between extrinsic and intrinsic motive does really small in assisting us to understand the function that motive dramas in 2nd linguistic communication acquisition.

Race and Racism Essay

In comparison to the almighty universe in which people all live in, human beings are merely a speck of dust at the size of it all. Then here are these beings on planet earth, with all 7 billion people under the same moon, divided. No longer are human equals as beings, but separate because of the system of ignorance, exploitation, and power used to oppress people on the basis of ethnicity, culture, mannerisms, and culture (Marable 1). Racism is the issue Americans have swept under the rug; the problem is being ignored, leaving cultures in the dark of their own history causing blame to be shifted on to all sorts of hosts, and it’s time to pick up the rug to dust. Society as a whole seems to have broken down what makes a person unique, dehumanizing them and leaving them susceptible to oppression (Marable 2). One must not be so quick to forget that every single human being is made up of the same genetic material, to forget something so broad is to undermine the gift of thinking itself. Manning Marable writes in Racism and Sexism that stereotypes are at the heart of every form of racism today. Racism is not a topic that sits around at the front of everybody’s brain. Racism does not twist on the tip of your tongue begging to be talked about. Racism is something that is ignored and denied. Shocking statistics from Tim Wise’s On White Privilege were discussed, stating that in 1962, 80% of white folk believed that racism was not even a problem. In the same year, 90% of white folk believed that colored children had equal education opportunities as white children. To believe that racism was not even a problem would be to say that over the 750 race riots 228 people were not actually killed, 12,741 people were not critically injured, and that the 15,000 acts of arson did not leave black urban neighborhoods in ruins, in the same year of 1962 (Postrel). White people are completely unburdened by race; where as colored people constantly feel their capabilities are always being second guessed. However, Charles M. Blow, author of Escaping Slavery, explains to the reader that apparently white people think their actions are justified! And Blow goes as far as to say that â€Å"the idea that progress toward radical harmony would or should be steady and continuous is fraying† (Blow 1). In On White Privilege, the speaker Tim Wise pointed out that white people were asked in 2009 if they believed that racial discrimination is still a problem and only 6% said ‘yes. ’ To put that into perspective: more people would believe that Elvis is still alive than to believe that racial discrimination is still a problem (Wise). Perhaps the density of the universe compromised the carrying capacity of the human brain causing a malfunction making it so the only thing people can think about is them self. Definitely not progress (Blow 2). The white system of ignorance and exploitations is causing the cultures of color to completely lose track of their own histories (Marable). People who are oppressed themselves begin to lose touch with their own traditions of history, community, love, celebrations, struggle, and change (Marable). Tim Wise reminds viewers whose history we are truly learning in school- text books are filled only with white history; people of color are forced to regurgitate white history, white literature, white art, white theater, etc. , while if a white person does not know an ounce of black history, it can go virtually unnoticed in this country (Wise). Actions speak louder than words and people seem to continue to prove their ignorance. As part of the Civil Rights Movement and an effort to create a solution to unlawful discrimination in housing based on race, color, sex, nation origin, or religion, the Fair Housing Act was passed in 1968 (Russell). Fast forward 38 years later where 2006 showed the highest level of discriminating housing complaints based on race (Wise). 38 whole years later and the only thing society can show on terms of progress is the lack of acceptance being distributed around the country. There is not enough change taking place as a country in order to move forward into truly being the United States of America; home of the Brave but we still fear what we do not know. It is always easier to accuse other forces for a problem than to admit that you are actually making the mess yourself. It has been said that if one is not a part of the solution then one is a part of the problem; however, some people are purely unburdened by race, they don’t know racism because they have never had to experience it- people are completely surrounded by and completely oblivious of the problem. Failure to talk about racism feeds the denial (Wise). The finger can be pointed in any direction, and instead of calling it â€Å"blame† the word â€Å"cause† is used instead because that is more constructive, and let’s face it, we need as much progress as we can get. However, progress seems to be unbearably intangible when Blow points out that the pillars of the institution- the fundamental devaluation of dark skin and stained justifications are for the unconscionable- have proved surprisingly resilient (Blow). The ignorance and lack of education only feeds the pillars’ strength. Completely blinded by utter fear, America seems to be in a standstill of progress towards the issue on racism. Starting with Charles Blow’s work in Escaping Slavery, down to Manning Marable’s Racism and Sexism, and what Tim Wise said in On White Privilege, it can be assumed that progress will always need to be made to bring this country closer to unity. Breaking down racial barriers and stereotypes have proven to be an especially lengthy process, however that does not justify the slothfulness of it all. Open minds and hearts is what it is going to take to shatter the structure that leaves this country divided. Word Count: 1,100 Works Cited Blow, Charles. â€Å"Escaping Slavery. † New York Times 4 January 2013. Marable, Manning. â€Å"Racism and Sexism. † Race, Class, and Gender in the United States, 5th ed. Ed. Paul Rothenberg. New York: Worth Publishers, 2001. 124-129. Pring. Wise, Tim. On White Privilege: Racism, White Denial, and the Costs of Inequality. The Media Education Foundation, 2008. DVD. Postrel, Virginia. â€Å"The Consequences of the 1960’s Race Riots Come Into View. † The New York Times. N. p. , 30 Dec. 2004. Web. 18 Feb. 2013.

The Pursuit Of Knowledge in Frankenstein essays

The Pursuit Of Knowledge in Frankenstein essays During the nineteenth century, romance was a basis of many stories for many authors. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley expresses the ideas of life during this age in her gothic romance, Frankenstein. A theme is a major idea displayed in a work that is connected to the work in many ways. Many themes are found throughout this novel, one of which is the pursuit of knowledge. Throughout the story, the three major characters display a strong need to accomplish their goals in order to gain fame. Robert Walton is in search of the north pole for fame, Victor Frankenstein is in thought of creating a human-like monster for fame, and his monster is able to learn by observation for First, the pursuit of knowledge is shown through Robert Walton in his journey to the North Pole. As a strong ship captain, Walton feels this trip will provide him with fame among all in his home land. Because of his high ambitions and need for accomplishment, Walton becomes lonely and longs for an associate. While trapped on the ice, Walton finds a man and allows him to tell his story of why he is lost so far north. With Waltons Second, the pursuit of knowledge is displayed in Victor Frankenstein. This brilliant science student dreams of creating the first living being in his laboratory. With his strong drive, his dream is accomplished, he said, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart. (55) Due to his dream, and the horror of his monster, Victors hope for everlasting fame is turned against him and the monster kills his friends and family. Due to all of the stress from continual work, Victors pursuit eventually leads to his death. Just before his death however, Victor tells Walton important advice, seek happiness in tranquillity and avoid ambition, even if it be only ...

Analyzing Visual Media Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Analyzing Visual Media - Case Study Example In this ad, there are several techniques being used by the company to promote their cigarettes. The first and primary motivator is the transfer technique which suggests that men who smoke Marlboro are as rugged and as ‘real’ as the man shown in the picture. This is, in fact, the strongest message since the advertisement does not actually say anything about the positive values of the cigarettes (not that there are too many of those) and the ad does not give a price point or other selling point for the product. A secondary tone which can be connected to the ad is the plain folks' technique since the age of cowboys is certainly a nostalgic image. Admittedly there may still be cowboys in America but the general idea of cowboys for me remains connected with the old west. I was certainly impressed by the look of the man and the cold stare that he has for the audience but at some level, it is also scary. Finally, the warning at the bottom of the page tells us that smoke contains carbon monoxide which is somewhat cryptic but still effective in breaking the card stacking technique. The second advertisement is from Apple Computer’s Think Different campaign which was critically acclaimed as one of the best campaigns in modern print advertising. The ad shows a black and white picture of John Lennon and Yoko Ono both holding flowers in their hand and looking towards the viewer. In the top right corner, the Apple Logo is present with the words â€Å"Think Different† underneath them and on the bottom left corner, the words www.apple.com invite the viewer to visit Apple’s website. Again there are several techniques being used by the company to project its image of being different and unique. First of all, the unspoken celebrity endorsement of Lennon is enough to make many people think ‘differently’ about apple as more than a computer manufacturer.  Ã‚  

Internet Banking Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Internet Banking - Research Paper Example As to the exposure to the internet is concerned almost all those who said they did have exposure to internet for over a year also said that they had internet banking exposure for over a year which is very welcome since most of the people who are on the internet seem to be more inclined towards using internet for this purpose. Most people (40%) felt that the internet banking enabled them to do their job quickly and only 20% felt that it does not help them do their job quickly. Others felt neither or did not comment. This indicates there is an overall speed increase in the process. This has also resulted in 40% of the people saying that their productivity has gone up and 45% said that their effectiveness in utilizing the services have gone up. The same is not the case with the utilization of banking services, which the respondents seem to feel is more towards disagreeing. 40% said the internet banking has NOT improved their services. Around 35% said they perceived an improvement in the service. Nearly 45% of the respondents also felt that it was not easy to use the internet banking facility. This implies that the sites are not really user friendly and the usability factor of the websites has to be analyzed. The overall banking usefulness as percei... The overall banking usefulness as perceived was checked and was found to be more in favor of yes as shown above. The number of people who perceived that the internet banking is not useful was just 15%. This implies that the overall reaction of the people is towards satisfactory internet banking. The above pie chart shows that there are also undecided people of almost 45% of the surveyed lot who could be turned positive with a little effort. Trust From the analysis of the survey results, it is found that the overall satisfaction levels in the case of trust is also in favor of the bank. However, some of the important questions in this regard, 'I feel trustworthy towards my bank' and 'Using internet banking is secure' has evoked a strong neutral stand from the respondents. This indicates that the majority of them are still in a dilemma as to use the internet banking or not to use it. This dilemma can easily be turned positive by suitable promotion and clarifications for the clients of the bank. Another interesting point to note is the fact that nearly 40% of the people have said they may not trust the bank with their private information. This possibly stems from the idea that the respondents might be getting from the bank that they are sharing their personal information with others merchants. But the overall trust in the bank has not diminished as per the figure below. There are more people who are saying they trust their bank without any holds. There is also 40% of people who say that they are neutral; not saying no but at the same time not saying yes either. This is a group that needs further analysis by the bank as to why this is happening and may be efforts to be taken to set this right. Perceived Ease