“Good People” Essay

Love is one of the only words in this world that can’t be adequately described in words. Yet it is the strongest human emotion and most powerful force in the universe that conquers all, makes our lives worth living, and chooses our direction. In the two short stories the authors use their style, symbolism and point of views to best portray two different scenarios that both revolve around love. In â€Å"Good People† by David Foster Wallace 19 year old college student impregnates a girl he’d been seeing and is plagued with many uncertainties of life and love and is forced to make a difficult decision in the case of an abortion. In â€Å"What We Talk About When We Talk About Love† by Raymond Carver two couples sit around a table and attempt to discuss which knows more about true love while they drink gin. In the end, they both share a common theme; that love is ambiguous. In the stories, the author’s style of writing delivers the tones for which the ch aracters are feeling. Read more: Good people david foster wallace essay Effectively you also share some of the same emotions the characters are facing. In â€Å"Good People† there is a dense and intentionally clumsy style which adds to the story’s depth to portray the uncertainty and anxiousness that Lane is feeling. This style greatly immerses you into the circulating mind of teenaged Lane’s ambivalence of his love, religion, and self. Wallace uses the means of a third person narrator telling the story to capture Lane’s struggle and introverted thoughts. It is when he first told his girlfriend Sheri that he would go to the appointment with her to console her that his guilt starts to eat away at him†¦ â€Å"The worse he felt, the stiller he sat. The whole thing felt balanced on a knife or wire; if he moved to put his arm up or touch her the whole thing could tip over. He hated himself for sitting so frozen.† (Wallace 891). In the other story the authors tone is one of a darker, more mature subject matter with a fee l of â€Å"dirty realism†. Carver uses mainly dialogue to tell the story in a way that feels like an ordinary conversation but at the same time pries deeper into the unpleasant truths of the mundane world. Half way through the story, Mel makes a comment which changes the direction from the casual to the more dense subject matter. â€Å"And the terrible thing, the terrible thing is, but the good thing too, the saving grace, you might say, is that if something happened to one of us tomorrow, I think . . . the other person, would grieve for a while,  you know, but then the surviving party would go out and love again, have someone else soon enough.†(Carver 852) In the first story, Lane is constantly beating himself up and questioning himself of whether or not he’s making the right decision throughout the story at every turn. He even asks â€Å"What would even Jesus do?† (Wallace 893), revealing that this dilemma is one too complex for a mere human to make a proper judgment. The story is almost one long repeated question, where at the end even still the answer isn’t definitively answered. In the second story, Mel stumbles over his words often when discussing â€Å"love† not from the gin but from the complexity of pinpointing the meaning of love. When he tries to come to a coherent conclusion to the meaning of love he instead digresses into a convoluted meditation and becomes angered in trying to wrap his head around it. He too looks towards a higher power for guidance due to a lack of comprehension. Symbolism comes into play within these two stories where the adequacy of words isn’t enough. It gives more depth to the stories without being too blatantly obvious, keeping the reader thinking. In â€Å"Good People† there is symbolism carefully hidden throughout which Lane notices but doesn’t quite seem to entirely pick up on, it is more there for the reader to make an inferred decision at the end. The geography around him and the lake are the symbols which apply to his life and relationship with God, himself, and Sheri. It is when they are both sitting on the picnic table at the park near the lake when after realizing he was unintentionally praying with his hands that he notices the lighting has changed and it resonates with him. â€Å"†¦everything seemed distinctly lit, for the circle of the pin oak’s shade had rotated off all the way, and they sat now in sun with their shadow a two-headed thing in the grass before them† (Wallace 893). Likewise in the second story, symbolism is used for the same reason to enhance the plot, except in a more negative way. When the story begins the bottle of gin is full and the sun is bright and everyone is in a great and giddy mood. As the story progresses, the bottle of gin diminishes along with the brightness of the sun, leaving them at the end with a complex and increasingly dark conversation figuratively and a dark room literally. â€Å"He’s depressed,† Terri said. â€Å"Mel, why don’t you take a pill?† â€Å"Listen,† Mel said. â€Å"Let’s finish this fucking gin. There’s enough left here for one shooter all  around. Then let’s go eat. Let’s go to the new place.† (Carver 853) Mel sees finishing the bottle of gin as a way to finally end the conversation brought up on love and get him out of the frustration that the conversation had provoked within him. In this story the sun set and the gin was all drank yet th ey still hadn’t been able to conclude the true meaning of love from a relationship standpoint. In â€Å"Good People† the symbolism leads me to decide that Lane didn’t go through with the abortion, however in the end the two are still unsure whether or not things will work out for them and if it was the smart choice. The personal point of views of the authors feelings on love are reflected through the mediums of the characters in their stories. For example, in â€Å"Good People† Lane is a kid who is struggling with the challenge of understanding his place in the world and is constantly questioning the unknown. He wants to think of himself as a good person, but his skepticism of his belief in God, the questioning of his morals, and his â€Å"love† for Sheri weighs him down. Similar to the story, David F. Wallace was a writer known for taking the challenge of communicating what it meant to be human through writing whilst battling clinical anxiety and depression. When in deep thought, Wallace’s personal views and struggles with the belief in God are voiced through Lane’s inner thoughts†¦ â€Å"He promised God he had learned his lesson. But what if that, too, was a hollow promise, from a hypocrite who repented only after, who promised submission but really only wante d a reprieve?† (Wallace 894). Likewise in the second story, some of the rougher experiences of Raymond Carver’s life shine through directly in parallel to the story. Carver presents Mel’s heavy drinking in an understanding way, the way that only one who has witnessed the inner workings of alcohol and how it unknowingly deteriorates oneself can. Mel represents Carver in the story, his second wife Terri represents Raymond Carver’s real second wife (Tess Gallagher) who had a first husband herself both in the story and in real life, only in the story his name was Ed and in life was (Larry Edward Gallagher). In the story Terri claims Ed and she loved each other, Mel claims she is wrong, but Terri persists despite the fact he hit her sometimes and was disturbed and shot himself. In real life, Larry was MIA in the Vietnam War as a pilot and must have meant a lot to his wife seeing how  she kept his last name. The bigoted representation of Ed in Carver’s story represents the jealousy he had of his wife’s never ending love of her first husband. Carver’s first wife is also presented abstractly into the story. Carver had two kids with his first wife, (MaryAnn), who he later fought with and disliked. In the story MaryAnn’s name is Marjorie and he voices his dislike for her while still wanting to see his kids. As you can see the author’s lifetime experiences greatly influence their perspectives which is presented and passed down through their works of literature. Both writers struggle to capture the meaning of love in their own sentimental ways, however neither come up with a definitive answer. How true it is today that love really is ambiguous no matter how well we try to capture it in its natural human habitat. No matter how many years go by or how technologically advanced a society we become, the question will always at its roots remain.

Politics & Watchmen Essay

Comic books have long held the fascination of young and adult alike. Their social commentary on politics and cultural integration of societies along with their charismatic protagonists pitted against the forces of evil become a gateway into self-reflection – whether or not that self be a person or a government. In Alan Moore’s graphic novel The Watchmen such policy questions and the ambiguity of evil come to the forefront of the story. The Watchmen is a graphic novel with takes place in the United States in the 1980’s but facts about history have changed in order to give the reader a more amoral society: Nixon is still president, America won the Vietnam War and the future looks like a bright place full of peace thanks to Dr. Manhattan’s element introducing new engineering feats to even new fabrics (as seen with Rorschach’s mask that had once been a lady’s dress). All of these elements combine to enlighten the reader and to cause them to question a static government whose lines of good and evil are nonexistence in the face of progress as Moore stated in 1986, â€Å"[I] was consciously trying to do something that would make people feel uneasy. † (Stewart Synchronicity and Symmetry 1987). This paper will seek to develop an analysis of Alan Moore’s classic graphic novel including commentary from other sources that will support and deny the brilliance of this novel and its social commentary on American culture. Alan Moore presents the reader with passages throughout his text which aid the reader in subplots of his story. Some sections are dedicated to Nite Owl while others are dedicated to the tragedy of a pirate shipwrecked in Tales of the Black Freighter. The point of these small diversions from the main story is to give the reader a more comprehensive look into the morals of the story at hand. Moore is giving his readers an idea about heroes and their obligations to justice paired with their personal identities as Singh states, And we meet the protagonists, each with his or her own set of personal demons – including the amoral Edward Blake/The Comedian (a character about whom I would have liked to learn more) whose death sets the plot in motion and the two erstwhile Nite Owls who meet on Saturdays to reminisce about glories past. The only character in the book who actually has supernormal powers is Dr Manhattan/Jonathan Osterman, who developed extraordinary control over matter following a laboratory accident. While the classic superhero comic might have used Dr Manhattan to great effect in action scenes, his function here is different: he serves as a dispassionate observer/commenter on human affairs. (Of course, he is also being used as a weapon by the US – a dubious move, since his very presence in the world encourages the possibility of mutually assured destruction. ) (Singh How Superheroes Fade 2006). Through Moore’s writing the reader discovers that the hero’s battle for justice is being underwritten by the government, especially with the enforcement of the Keene Act: An act which requires masked avengers to give the public their true identity. While some heroes do in fact acquiesce to this new law (i. e. the Silk Spectre/Laurie Juspeczyk, and Ozymandias/Adrian Veidt) or not (Rorschach/Walter Kovacs), or simply retire (the second Nite Owl/Daniel Dreiberg) the fact that the government is requiring for their heroes to divulge their identity and thereby become more of a target to their enemies is part of that running dialogue of government policies that serve no purpose, and definitely no good purpose that Moore was adamant about writing into his story. This idea about heroes begets the ideas about Greek and Roman culture (indeed many comic book heroes have their origins with ancient gods and goddesses) and with this connotation comes another Greek route: That of a hero’s flaw as Bradford Wright writes about Moore’s concept of the graphic novel that The Watchmen is, â€Å"Moore’s obituary for the concept of heroes in general and superheroes in particular. † (Wright 272). There is one hero in this story which allows for the bending of good into the realm of evil to play a dynamic role in the book: Ozymandias/Adrian Veidt seeks to become like Alexander the Great. Alexander the Great conquered the known world- and he did this in order to unite the world and thereby eliminate opposition and evil. In Adrian’s mind, in order to become a great hero he must accomplish a united world in order to have global peace. Thus, he decides to fake a global threat in the form of an alien attack toward the close of the novel. This attack succeeds in uniting the United States with Russia and other leaders (remember this was a time when the Cold War was a serious issue, and even though Moore chose to change the face of the president for his graphic novel, the impending doom of the world is something he still kept in as a fact for his story). As most heroes have flaws, Ozymandias’ flaw may be considered to be his ego – for he wants to be greater than his own personal hero Alexander the Great. Tragic heroes begin their stories with aplomb of luck, or ego, or a rosy view of the world. With literature or drama the tragedy of the unmistakable truth found in the character’s own self-realization is typically the denouement. The writer’s tragic heroes have survived in life under false pretences, thus they are doomed to suffer from their one flaw of ego as Iain Thomson writes,†developing its heroes precisely in order to deconstruct the very idea of the hero and so encouraging us to reflect upon its significance from the many different angles of the shards left lying on the ground†. (Thomson Deconstructing the Hero 101). What is different in Moore’s novel is that Ozymandias doesn’t succumb to his ego – at least not in the written pages of the novel (for Rorschach’s novel does reach the attention of the Frontiersman newspaper and the reader is left to assume its pages will be printed and the truth about the alien hoax will be publicized). Thomson goes on to state â€Å"†¦ develops its heroes precisely in order to ask us if we would not in fact be better off without heroes†¦[and the story’s deconstruction of the idea of a hero] suggests that perhaps the time for heroes has passed [which further illustrates] this postmodern work from the deconstructions of the hero in the existentialism movement. † (Thomson 111). Thus, with the hero turned bad guy (for the cause of world peace) and not being punished by the ultimate superhero of the book, Dr. Manhattan, the reader is left wondering Where is justice? It is this question which spurns on the plots and subplots of the novel. With the Keene Act masked avengers are forced to reveal their identity but The Comedian/Edward Blake does not have to do this as he is an agent for the government. His work for the government is similar to a mercenary soldier – he goes into American occupied territories and takes care of local uprisings. The part of the book dedicated to Blake’s story shows him in Vietnam with a flame thrower killing soldiers. The next scene is of Blake in a bar with a pregnant woman asking him to take of her now that the war is over. Blake laughs at her and she then grabs a bottle and breaks it then attacks him brutally slashing his face as Reynolds states of Blake’s personality, â€Å"[he is] ruthless, cynical, and nihilistic, and yet capable of deeper insights than the others into the role of the costumed hero†(Reynolds 106). The justice of the novel in this scene takes place when Blake takes out his pistol and shoots her in the stomach. The underlining commentary on this scene is further developed as the reader realizes through Blake’s dialogue with Dr. Manhattan that Manhattan could have turned the gun into anything he wanted, but he didn’t, he simply allowed events to play through. So, the characters’ amoral personalities and their ability to follow their government as soldiers and kill villagers then kill a pregnant woman, or even to allow a pregnant woman to be killed when one could have done something to prevent it, layer the story with what are the definitions of good and evil and these traits applications to men who claim to be fighting for justice. Does guilt make evil actions less amoral? This is a question which plagues through Moore’s commentary on the government. The United States government sent Dr. Manhattan to annihilate small villages in order for them to surrender to the U. S. all in under the guise of peace as Klock states, â€Å"[l]ike Alan Moore’s kenosis, [Veidt] must destroy, then reconstruct, in order to build ‘a unity which would survive him. ‘† (Klock 75). Does a government feel guilt over the thousands that die on the opposition’s side? And, if they do feel guilt, how does a feeling make recompense for the harm that is done? Indeed, Moore’s novel about ambiguous feelings gives all of the contradictions of the American government (Sabin 165). In the world of graphic novels, the cut and dry interpretation of the hero fighting side by side with its government and government agencies such as cops, it would seem then that the government would become a hero in association with the protagonists of the story. In Moore’s novel, the reader sees the development of the anti-hero in full climax with the character of The Comedian. The Comedian is a social commentary on how governments, different agencies and countries are a joke – they promise to help the people but when the government sends Blake and Dreiberg to control the rioting in the street all it takes it one person from the crowd to throw a beer bottle at the Archimedes (Nite Owl’s flying device) for Blake to go into the crowd shooting his gun at the people he’s supposed to be protecting. All throughout the novel Moore has Dave Gibbons illustrate the phrase â€Å"Who Watches The Watchmen† written in graffiti all over the city. At this pivotal scene in the novel, when the crowd disperses one lone soul is spray painting this phrase on the side of a building when Blake comes up to them. This is main theme of the graphic novel – who controls the hero when the hero becomes evil? This question comes to a climax with Ozymandias’ character along with (to an extent) Blake’s character.

CROSS-CULTURAL NEGOTIATION RESEARCH PAPER Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

CROSS-CULTURAL NEGOTIATION - Research Paper Example They intend to discuss a joint venture in which the softwares provided by FEC will be integrated with the hardware of Zhang & Co and will be marketed globally. It should be noted, that I have been hired as a consultant only by Mr. Wang. All the recommendations mentioned in the consulting document are meant for my client only. Mr. Ansel or his team would not have any access to my document. I would like to express my gratitude for your consideration to seek my help in order to devise your negotiation strategy with your French counterpart Mr. Ansel. I have put in a lot of effort to ensure that this consulting document proves to be helpful for you in order to identify the differences and similarities which lie between French and Chinese negotiating styles. After reading the provided comprehensive view of both the cultures, which entails detailed analysis of business culture, communication styles, societal culture and many other important aspects, you would be able to identify and understand the key distinctions and would have a fair idea of Mr. Ansel’s negotiating strategy. After provision of this basic comprehension of differences, I have identified various potential challenges that you might have to face while your negotiating process. The problems have been identified and listed so that you are cautious and pre-notified of potential pitfalls and can respond to them efficiently during actual settings. Lastly, I have listed specific recommendations for you, so that you can build a long-term relationship with Mr. Ansel which would ultimately benefit your joint venture. Tan pan is the Chinese word for negotiation, and is a combination of character meaning â€Å"to judge† and â€Å"to discuss† (Neidel). Most of the Westerners are often advised to speak short sentences, wear conservative suits or to bring their own interpreters to ace negotiations with Chinese counterparts. These advises might prove to be handy to get a

Congress Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Congress - Essay Example The CES was claimed to have unilaterally enacted a series of rules and regulations that required all students to undergo a search of their clothes, backpacks, lockers, and desks each morning. The rules also permitted random searches to take place. A hidden provision in the regulation allowed for enforcement officials to target their investigations more towards female students than male students, since studies had shown that females talk on cellular phones more often than males. Penalties for violating CES rules and regulations include the following: for a first offense, no hearing is held and the student receives a written warning; for a second offense, a hearing conducted by school officials is held and an automatic suspension is handed down; for a third offense, a full hearing is held by a board for the CES, after which a guilty finding results in expulsion, arrest, and incarceration for 30 days. School officials are also permitted, under the regulations, to permanently keep any cellular phones they confiscate. It is alleged that there were no notice was given or hearings held prior to the enactment of the rules and regulations. Lastly, there was an incident where a student was immediately expelled from school, arrested, and incarcerated without the opportunity to appear and defend herself against the charges, and that the cellular phone was taken by the authorities, never returned to such student nor her parents. The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution provides that there shall be no violation of the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, and that no warrants shall issue, except upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized (U.S. Const. amend. IV.). The Fifth Amendment of the US Constitution further

An Unforgettable Experiences Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

An Unforgettable Experiences - Essay Example Watching a movie together is always fun, we sat holding hands, watching each other more than the movie. He said, After dinner, we went to the Johns bull store so that he would buy me a gift of my choice. This is the quality I value most about him, his acceptance. He never ever imposes his choice on me, be it clothes, or the movie we are going to watch or anything else. He always puts me first and then thinks about himself, what else could I ask for? Seriously, I never expected him to propose me, even though we are going around for some years and we enjoy each other’s company a lot. But whatever happens, happens for good, so, I thanked god in my heart for such a pleasant surprise. Hence, in order to mark this day I chose a promise ring for my self and a David Yurman jewelry set. We walked together hand in hand towards the car both of our hearts full with love and hope. Although I still couldn’t believe he proposed to me, really proposed? We never talked about it before. â€Å"He is going to set up a new branch in Paris as an expansion of his business, and he needs someone whom he can trust, to help him. He has even promised me that if I gain a good understanding about the branch’s operations and management he may make me the manager.† That was the last sentence I spoke that night. He held me while I continued to shed my tears on his shoulder. He assured me that everything will be alright and we can hope for a bright and beautiful future ahead. Then he took my hand and kissed the promise ring, which I was wearing and told me to have faith in our love. In this way, my birthday which has stared with a note of happiness and hope, ended with a note of promise and faith. And now, I can never forget that day, as the memory inspires me to keep going, with faith and makes me strong. Our love grows with each passing day and each passing

Hooke's Law Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Hooke's Law - Lab Report Example The tables, Table 1a,1b,1c,1d gave way for constructing a table for change in length as result of applied force for the 5 rubber bands. The tables 2A, 2b, 2c, 2d show that as the forces are increased so does the length of stretch increase. 12N force when applied causes more stretch than the rest of the force, for all the trials. The averages for the change in length caused by the forces were also calculated as shown in Table 3: Averages. These averages in length change were used to build Plotting table, Table 4, as a basis for producing a graph for the relationship. Graph 1 show that all the five rubbers did not exhibit a straight line when the change in length was plotted against force. Graph 2 shows that the relationship between average change in lengths and force does not produce a straight line. This is indicative of presence of outliers in the graph as shown by the dark straight line. The results indicate that despite increased changed in length as force is increased, rubber does not fully respect Hooke’s Law. The presence of outliers in graph indicates that rubber band does not respect the concept of Hooke’s law, â€Å"a graph of force against extension produces a straight line that passes through the origin† (Wilson & Hall, 2009). The inconsistency witnessed results from the nature of rubber’s elasticity, which makes it stress dependent and easily affected by temperature. Intuitively, any slight change in temperature might have interfered with the measurement. This implies that rubber band does not follow Hooke’s law because of the inconsistency in change in

Memory retention and retrieval in aging adults Term Paper

Memory retention and retrieval in aging adults - Term Paper Example Aging can affect both long term and short term memories of a person. Long term memories can act like the hard disk of a computer whereas short term memories can function like the Random Access Memory (RAM) of a computer. When the computer switches off all the information in the RAM will be lost whereas the information stored in the hard disk will be saved for future use. In the case of old people, both long term and short term memories can be exhausted if proper precautions are not taken. Long term memory consolidation occurs in human brain with the help of complex interactions among multiple brain systems like neurohormones. In the case of old people, these interactions among brain systems will be exhausted along with the exhausting of the body. Same way, short term memories may disappear once an old person completes a sleep cycle. Memory retention is essential for old people to conduct a normal life. Loss of memory may prevent them from identifying the objects or forgetting about t heir daily routine works. Thus their life becomes miserable when they approach their end of life period. Medical science has developed a lot and it is possible to reduce the pace of memory exhaustion among old people. In some cases, it is possible to regain the lost memory of the old people. This paper reviews the literature with respect to memory retention and retrieval among old people. Memory loss among old people There are many theories and views about the beginning of memory decline. Many people are of the view that memory mays started to decline from the age of sixty onwards. On the other hand many other are of the view that memory declining starts as early as thirty years of age itself. These contrasting views are the result of unawareness about the memory systems. Craik (2008) has succeeded in explaining these contrasting views with the help of the architecture and functioning of memory. He has explained that every human has at least five major memory systems and these syste ms show very distant rate of declining in the course of aging. â€Å"Episodic memory (memory for specific events) and working memory exhaust rapidly whereas memory for perceptual information, for highly practiced habits and procedures and for general knowledge (semantic memory) hold up relatively well†(Craik, 2008, p.343). In other words, some memory systems start to exhaust even in the early ages of thirties or forties whereas other memory systems exhaust only at a later period. People will take episodic memory loss and working memory loss as natural and less seriously than other types of memory loss and that is why these memory losses are often not catching the attention of people. Older people have relatively less abilities in keeping specific information in the memory compared to the younger generation. However, most of them are capable of retrieving general information. This is purely because of the dependency of various memory systems to age for the active functioning. Cognitive abilities such as attention, executive control, learning and problem solving etc can exhaust in the course of normal and pathological aging†. This is because of the growing inefficiency of the neurophysiological systems, blood supply, neural connectivity,

Export and Import Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Export and Import - Research Paper Example The culture of instating clear regulations has been in the United States for a long time. This is done to ensure the safety of all the citizens of the country. Therefore, a business that will not consider such regulations is likely to flop. For example, the United States has clear regulations on any imports that pose a threat to the environment (Manresa, 2010). This is a culture that has been developed to ensure the nation does not pose environmental threats to its citizens. Apparently, the issue of globalization has enhanced the regulations that are deemed to limit the influence on the environment. In the previous years, the regulations on imports were not stringent, which was an easy task for importers and exporters. As such, there is a need to take a closer reflection on these regulations before embarking on the import and export business. Culture of a country determines the way of life of the citizens. Therefore, this is likely to affect the import and export business as it is likely to affect the demand of supply of the products in the country (Cook, 2012). For example, the issue of junk foods is prevalent in the United States. This is an issue that has caused uproar between concerned parties especially in regard to health concerns. It is estimated that many young citizens of the country have health issues which emanate from the consumption of junk foods. These are fast foods that are consumed frequently in the United States. ... In order to reduce such instances, there is a dreaded reduction on the production of such foods. This would be a setback to businesses that would wish to import and export foodstuff. Lastly, there is the culture of consumption of particular products. This should also be considered since the demand market will affect the business. Governmental, compliance management, and security requirements There are various institutions that are put in place to deal with the import and export business in the United States. These are institutions that ensure the business is conducted in a legal and safe manner (Manresa, 2010). First, there is the Border Compliance Assistance Center which is instrumental in regulating transport of products on the United States’ border. This is a body that is obligated to safeguard any products that are transported to the United States with special focus on solid and hazardous wastes. The United States is focused on reducing entry of waste materials into the co untry as this will cause environmental threats. Any business that wishes to transport products from the border into the United States has to comply with the regulations that are highlighted by the Border Compliance Assistance Center. Similarly, this is an instrumental center where businesses gather information regarding transport from other places, which includes Mexico. Secondly, a business that would wish to import products into the United States has to comply with the Code of Federal Regulations (Weiss, 2011). These are the stated regulations that should be adhered to before starting any importation and exportation business in the United States. Compliance with the regulations requires massive preparation since they restrict

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Essay Example for Free

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Essay Being a parent is not only about providing a roof over ones head, clothes on their back or food in the belly, it is about responsibility and lessons learned. Huck had never had an adult male to talk to; Jim was a very smart black man and Huck realized he could learn a lot from him. Huck finally had someone he could look up to. â€Å"We catched fish and talked, and we took a swim now and then to keep off sleepiness. It was kind of solemn, drifting down the big, still river, laying on our backs looking up at the stars, and we didnt ever feel like talking loud, and it warnt often that we laughed—only a little kind of a low chuckle. We had mighty good weather as a general thing, and nothing ever happened to us at all—that night, nor the next, nor the next† (Twain 12). As Mark Twain’s character Jim shows us in â€Å"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn†, being a parent is about being there during good and bad times throughout life’s adventures. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain identified several major flaws in Southern culture, including the â€Å"culture of decadence,† the gullibility of people and the treatment of slaves. Through the experiences of Huck Finn he was able to provide the reader with a â€Å"panorama of American life (Microsoft Encarta 2000) before the Civil War. † The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is told in the first person perspective; the story has 43 chapters. In the first section, the main character â€Å"Huck† lets you know who he is and how he feels about his adventures from beginning to end. During the second section Huck meets Jim and starts down the river and lands on Uncle Silas’ farm. The third and final section takes place at the farm and continues to the end of the book (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn). Huck introduces you to several characters early on such as The Widow Douglas and Judge Thatcher. Both of these characters appear to have Huck’s best interest at heart, but do not go about things the right way. For example Huck tells us â€Å"The widow she cried over me, and called me a poor lost lamb, and she called me a lot of other names too, but she never meant no harm by it. She put me in them new clothes again, and I couldn’t do nothing but sweat and sweat, and feel all cramped up (Twain). † The widow was determined to bring Huck up to society standards, to be respectful and have manners. The Widow’s sister Miss Watson was an old maid who was set on teaching Huck about religion. She simply could not understand why anyone would want to go anywhere but the â€Å"good place†. â€Å"Miss Watson she kept pecking at me, and it got tiresome and lonesome (Twain). † The Widow Douglas had enrolled Huck into school; â€Å"At first I hated the school, but by and by I got so I could stand it (Twain). † School had become easier for Huck as time went by and he was finding the Widow less annoying as well. Judge Thatcher was determined to look after Huck’s money. Huck tried to give him all of the money, but the Judge set it up in a fund for him and made certain it went into the bank for safe keeping. However, after discovering Huck’s father was still alive, he mistakenly thought it would be good for Huck and his father to make amends. Huck soon knew the real reason his father reappeared into his life and that was simply for his new found money. Huck’s father referred to in the story as Pap is a harsh character. He had been very abusive to Huck in the past and Huck feared the future with him would not be any better. Unfortunately for Huck he was correct. Pap was not happy when he found Huck living a better life with the widow. He thought Huck was putting on airs and that did not please him. He ordered Huck to quit school as he did not want Huck to become smarter than he was. Pap was extremely jealous of Huck’s good fortune; a nice bed, carpeted floor and roof over his head. Although the Judge and widow tried to end Pap’s parental rights the courts would not agree, they did not believe in separating families. The new judge tried to civilize Pap, but Pap just went back to getting drunk around town and stirring up all kinds of problems. Pap was a racist, alcoholic who was only after one thing and that was money. After a while Pap decided to steal Huck away from the widow. The next character we are introduced to is Miss Watson’s slave Jim. Once Jim discovered that Miss Watson was going to sell him, further separating him from his family, he decides to run for his freedom. After Huck decides he can no longer take the abuse from his father, he fakes his own death and he and Jim end up traveling down the Mississippi River together. Jim was a large well spoken black man whom Huck enjoyed listening too. Upon Jim’s departure from Miss Watson, he is immediately sought on suspicion of Huck’s murder. Jim just wanted to get away, earn some money and come back to buy his family’s freedom. It was during this time period that slavery was being abolished in the northern states. While hiding on Jackson’s Island, Huck and Jim meet up with each other. Huck faces moral conflict as he decides whether or not to turn Jim over to the law. Since society at that time dictates that black people are supposed to be slaves and cannot run free, Huck is concerned about helping Jim to escape. However, they set out together towards the Ohio River on a raft that they built together. â€Å"Before they leave Jackson’s Island, they find a dead man – but Jim won’t let Huck look at the guy’s face on account of it being â€Å"too gashly† (Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Summary). † This is the first time Jim shields Huck from the identity of the man in the shack; it is Huck’s father. Jim’s gesture is that of a man trying to protect Huck from seeing his dead father. He is the first person in the story to show a real interest in what is best for Huck. As Jim and Huck’s adventure continues they meet up with three robbers while climbing around on a wrecked steamship. Two of the robbers are trying to kill the third robber and Huck wants to get help, eventually all three of the robbers die and Huck and Jim get away. This is Huck’s first real experience with murder. After traveling south on the Mississippi River, Huck goes ashore to find out where they are. It is now that he realizes that he could be suspected of stealing Miss Watson’s property. â€Å"Huck discovers he just can’t â€Å"harden himself† against Jim to turn him in and so concludes he’ll just â€Å"go to hell and take up wickedness again† by keeping his friend liberated. Huck’s moral tension seems to be between his head and his heart. He knows what is right what the law says but can’t bring himself to do it (Marklerch). † When he returns to where Jim is, Huck must let him know they missed Cairo; their exit that they were looking for. At this point they are nearly ran over by a steam ship and both thrown from the raft. â€Å"Huck’s decision to rescure Jim is expedient and humane simultaneously (Blair and Fischer). † At one point in the story Huck feels ashamed for lying to Jim in the name of a joke. Huck finally begins to realize Jim is a real person just like himself. He had always been told that Blacks were not people, just animals to be used as whites see fit. Huck is then taken in by a wealthy family called the Grangerfords. The Granergfords are fighting with their neighbors the Shepherdsons. The Grangerford’s son is named Buck, he is around the same age as Huck. During the fighting with the Shepherdsons Buck is shot. Huck finds this behavior ridiculous and leaves as quickly as possible. Here again is another lesson about people and society that shows Huck bad behavior. The next criminals that Huck befriends are referred to as â€Å"The King and the Duke† (Humanities UCI). Niether of the men previously knew each other prior to this chance encounter, but immediately start plotting their new con. This is where Huck learns the meaning of gullible; many townspeople give the two con artists money for a play that is performed badly. The townspeople are trusting and of religious nature and the two men make off with almost ninety dollars. When the two cons attempt to scam three ladies out of their inheritance by pretending to be the Uncle’s brothers, Huck gets to feeling guilty and tries to think of a way to give the money back. He manages to steal the money back and hides it in the casket of the ladies uncle. After the uncle is buried he lets the ladies know where the money is and manages to flea before the real brothers’ show up. Unfortunately the two con men are still with Huck and Jim. Once the two cons realize they have no money they steal and sell Jim. Huck is determined to get Jim back and luckily runs into his old buddy Tom Sawyer who is glad to help. During the escape attempt and Tom’s silly hi-jinks; Tom ends up being shot in the calf of his leg. Once back at the raft Jim hides in the bushes and Huck goes to find a doctor. Jim is re-captured and the doctor stands up for Jim saying that he assisted with Tom’s care, so instead of killing Jim they decide to enslave him once again. Upon Tom’s recovery he informs those holding Jim that upon Miss Watson’s death she set Jim free in her will, so they no longer can hold Jim as a slave. Jim is set free and finally admits to Huck that the man in the shack was his father, Pap and he no longer needs to worry about him. Instead of going back to the widow’s, Huck decides to set out west so he can have more adventures. Huck’s character was made to witness a large amount of cruelty. â€Å"Huck perceives that â€Å"human beings can be awful cruel to one another† (262). Huck has seen the worst conceivable forms of behavior. But his awareness means that, no matter how much cruelty he witnesses or who perpetrates it, he will remain compassionate towards all human beings (Burg). † Like the Huck Finn character in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain faced emotional growth during his writings. As he experienced life, Twain reminisced in his books by focusing on his hometown and era in which he grew up. â€Å"Although Adventures of Huckleberry Finn contains some very poignant critiques of slavery, discrimination, and society in general, it is also important as the story of Huck’s journey from boyhood to manhood (History of Hannibal, Missouri, Back to Marion County). †As an impressionable boy growing up in Hannibal, MO Twain had many of the same types of experiences has Huck. There was swimming, fishing, climbing and cave exploration. He spent much of his time watching the steam ships sail on the river carrying their wares. In Hannibal there were also murders, slaves being whipped and gangs who preyed on river towns (Twains Aurthor Series – Chapter Display). â€Å"Mark Twain â€Å"agreed with Huck that environment determines morality. † All morality is merely relative. Mark Twain wrote in the margin of his copy of Lecky, â€Å"All moral perceptions are acquired by the influences around us; these influences begin in infancy; we never get a chance to find out whether we have any that are innate or not (Blair and Fischer). † Twain shows us through Huck’s adventure that he has grown up on the inside to appreciate his freedom and the people around him. Huck has learned to see all people as human and no longer just by their skin tone, black or white. â€Å"I knowed he was white inside (Twain)†. This statement clearly shows that Huck views Jim as a close and personal friend and confidant. Throughout the story you see the influence Jim has on Huck. â€Å"Jim becomes a father figure –the first Huck ever had in his life. Jim teaches Huck right and wrong, and an emotional bond develops through the course of their journey down the river. By the last segment of the novel, Huck has learned to think like a man instead of a boy (about). † As Mark Twain’s character Jim shows us in â€Å"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn†, being a parent is about being there during good and bad times throughout life’s adventures. Citations 2011 http://classiclit. about. com/od/adventuresofhuckleberry/fr/aa_huckfinn. htm. Blair, Walter and Victor Fischer. March 1990. 22 January 2011 http://www. jstor. org/stable/2926787. Burg, David F. December 1974. 17 January 2011 http://www. jstor. org/stable/2933172. History of Hannibal, Missouri, Back to Marion County. 20 January 2011 http://www. rootsweb. ancestry. com/~marion/hannhist. htm. Humanities UCI. 2005. 20 January 2011 http://www. humanities. uci. edu/mclark/HumCore/CoreF2005/WebCoreF05/F)5TTwa.

Life Philosophy Essay Example for Free

Life Philosophy Essay The meaning of life is to give life meaning Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do. Life Philosophy of John Wooden Even a fool knows you cant reach the stars, but that doesnt stop a wise man from trying. You cant make someone Elses choices. You shouldnt let someone else make yours. Life Philosophy of Gen. Colin Powell Man is not the creature of circumstances, circumstances are the creatures of men. We are free agents, and man is more powerful than matter. Life Philosophy of Benjamin Disraeli When an affliction happens to you, you either let it defeat you, or you defeat it Life Philosophy of Rosalind Russell A life lived in fear is a life half lived. To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong. It is better to be hated for what you are then to be loved for what your not There are always two choices. Two paths to take. One is easy. And its only reward is that its easy. Positive thinking will let you do everything better than negative thinking will. Life Philosophy of Zig Ziglar You will never achieve what you never begin The measure of a man is the way he bears up under misfortune. Dont wait for your ship to come in, swim out to it. Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore. Philosophy of Life by Andre Gide If one seeks advice, give them direction, not correction. Sooner or later, those who win are those who think they can. Philosophy of Life by Richard Bach Do the things you know, and you shall learn the truth you need to know. Philosophy of Life by George Macdonald Let us not be content to wait and see what will happen, but give us the determination to make the right things happen. Philosophy of Life by Peter Marshall It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation. Dont take life too seriously. no one gets out alive, anyways. Before you talk about what you want appreciate what you have. A man either lives life as it happens to him, meets it head-on and licks it, or he turns his back on it and starts to wither away. Life Philosophy from Gene Roddenberry You see, in life, lots of people know what to do, but few people actually do what they know. Knowing is not enough! You must take action. Life Philosophy from Anthony Robbins If you believe you can, you probably can. If you believe you wont, you most assuredly wont. Belief is the ignition switch that gets you off the launching pad. Life Philosophy from Denis Waitley You can do what you think you can do and you cannot do what you think you cannot Life Philosophy from Ben Stein Find something you love to do and youll never have to work a day in your life. Life Philosophy from Harvey Mackay You can do what you want to do. You can be what you want to be. Life Philosophy from R. David Thomas Philosophies in Life PHILOSOPHY may be defined as the study and pursuit of facts which deal with the ultimate reality or causes of things as they affect life. The philosophy of a country like the Philippines is made up of the intricate and composite interrelationship of the life histories of its people; in other word, the philosophy of our nation would be strange and undefinable if we do not delve into the past tied up with the notable life experiences of the representative personalities of our nation. Being one of the prominent representatives of Filipino personalities, Jose Rizal is a fit subject whose life philosophy deserves to be recognized. Having been a victim of Spanish brutality early in his life in Calamba, Rizal had thus already formed the nucleus of an unfavorable opinion of Castillian imperialistic administration of his country and people. Pitiful social conditions existed in the Philippines as late as three centuries after his conquest in Spain, with agriculture, commerce, communications and education languishing under its most backward state. It was because of this social malady that social evils like inferiority complex, cowardice, timidity and false pride pervaded nationally and contributed to the decay of social life. This stimulated and shaped Rizal’s life phylosophy to be to contain if not eliminate these social ills. Educational Philosophy Rizal’s concept of the importance of education is clearly enunciated in his work entitled Instruction wherein he sought improvements in the schools and in the methods of teaching. He maintained that the backwardness of his country during the Spanish ear was not due to the Filipinos’ indifference, apathy or indolence as claimed by the rulers, but to the neglect of the Spanish authorities in the islands. For Rizal, the mission of education is to elevate the country to the highest seat of glory and to develop the people’s mentality. Since education is the foundation of society and a prerequisite for social progress, Rizal claimed that only through education could the country be saved from domination. Rizal’s philosophy of education, therefore, centers on the provision of proper motivation in order to bolster the great social forces that make education a success, to create in the youth an innate desire to cultivate his intelligence and give him life eternal. Religious Philosophy Rizal grew up nurtured by a closely-knit Catholic family, was educated in the foremost Catholic schools of the period in the elementary, secondary and college levels; logically, therefore, he should have been a propagator of strictly Catholic traditions. However, in later life, he developed a life philosophy of a different nature, a philosophy of a different Catholic practice intermingled with the use of Truth and Reason. Why the change? It could have been the result of contemporary contact, companionship, observation, research and the possession of an independent spirit. Being a critical observer, a profound thinker and a zealous reformer, Rizal did not agree with the prevailing Christian propagation of the Faith by fire and sword. This is shown in his Annotation of Morga’s Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas. Rizal did not believe in the Catholic dogma that salvation was only for Catholics and that outside Christianity, salvation was not possible even if Catholics composed only a small minority of the world’s religious groups. Nor did he believe in the Catholic observation of fasting as a sacrifice, nor in the sale of such religious items as the cross, medals, rosaries and the like in order to propagate the Faith and raise church funds. He also lambasted the superstitious beliefs propagated by the priests in the church and in the schools. All of these and a lot more are evidences of Rizal’s religious philosophy. Political Philosophy In Rizal’s political view, a conquered country like the Philippines should not be taken advantage of but rather should be developed, civilized, educated and trained in the science of self-government. He bitterly assailed and criticized in publications the apparent backwardness of the Spanish ruler’s method of governing the country which resulted in: 1. the bondage and slavery of the conquered ; 2. the Spanish government’s requirement of forced labor and force military service upon the n natives; 3. the abuse of power by means of exploitation; 4. the government ruling that any complaint against the authorities was criminal; and 5. Making the people ignorant, destitute and fanatic, thus discouraging the formation of a national sentiment. Rizal’s guiding political philosophy proved to be the study and application of reforms, the extension of human rights, the training for self government and the arousing of spirit of discontent over oppression, brutality, inhumanity, sensitiveness and self love. Ethical Philosophy The study of human behavior as to whether it is good or bad or whether it is right or wrong is that science upon which Rizal’s ethical philosophy was based. The fact that the Philippines was under Spanish domination during Rizal’s time led him to subordinate his philosophy to moral problems. This trend was much more needed at that time because the Spaniards and the Filipinos had different and sometimes conflicting morals. The moral status of the Philippines during this period was one with a lack of freedom, one with predominance of foreign masters, one with an imposition of foreign religious worship, devotion, homage and racial habits. This led to moral confusion among the people, what with justice being stifled, limited or curtailed and the people not enjoying any individual rights. To bolster his ethical philosophy, Dr. Rizal had recognized not only the forces of good and evil, but also the tendencies towards good and evil. As a result, he made use of the practical method of appealing to the better nature of the conquerors and of offering useful methods of solving the moral problems of the conquered. To support his ethical philosophy in life, Rizal: 1. censured the friars for abusing the advantage of their position as spiritual leaders and the ignorance and fanaticism of the natives; 2.counseled the Filipinos not to resent a defect attributed to them but to accept same as reasonable and just; 3. advised the masses that the object of marriage was the happiness and love of the couple and not financial gain; 4. censured the priests who preached greed and wrong morality; and 5. advised every one that love and respect for parents must be strictly observed. Social Philosophy That body of knowledge relating to society including the wisdom which mans experience in society has taught him is social philosophy. The facts dealt with are principles involved in nation building and not individual social problems. The subject matter of this social philosophy covers the problems of the whole race, with every problem having a distinct solution to bolster the people’s social knowledge. Rizal’s social philosophy dealt with; 1. man in society; 2. influential factors in human life; 3. racial problems; 4. social constant; 5. social justice; 6. social ideal; 7. poverty and wealth; 8. reforms; 9. youth and greatness; 10. history and progress; 11. future Philippines. The above dealt with man’s evolution and his environment, explaining for the most part human behavior and capacities like his will to live; his desire to possess happiness; the change of his mentality; the role of virtuous women in the guidance of great men; the need for elevating and inspiring mission; the duties and dictates of man’s conscience; man’s need of practicing gratitude; the necessity for consulting reliable people; his need for experience; his ability to deny; the importance of deliberation; the voluntary offer of man’s abilities and possibilities; the ability to think, aspire and strive to rise; and the proper use of hearth, brain and spirit-all of these combining to enhance the intricacies, beauty and values of human nature. All of the above served as Rizal’s guide in his continuous effort to make over his beloved Philippines.

Incarceration Rates of Minorities in the US

Incarceration Rates of Minorities in the US With law enforcement poised to eliminate crime and the people who commit it, the building of new jails and prison seem to be the likeliest answer to the problem. Throughout American history, minorities have always been portrayed as dark and evil to name a couple of stereotypes. With the help of television and other means of media the focus has been set to create a mental consciousness to presume every black, Hispanic, and anyone closely related as armed and extremely dangerous. This has cause an unfair disadvantage for people of color, but has left the perception of the white race crystal clean. Just as there are bad people everywhere, there are bad cops, judges, and politicians in every police department, court house, and legislative branch that forge evidence to meet arrest quotas that the system needs to have in place; setup by the elitist to fund their need to have slave labor for their manufacturing companies. Some minorities have been falsely accused and persuaded by police bru tality in order to coerce false confessions, and the judges fall in their place to announce the sentencing. Throughout years of focusing on media events that always place blacks and other minorities in a position of being the bad guy. Today the jail and prison population is primarily made up of blacks. Although there are Hispanics, as well whites, the main overcrowding comes from blacks being locked up on frivolous charges. But there’s a deeper reason behind why this injustice is happening to blacks, and it all stems from the system’s need of the incarceration of minorities. To test the influence of local county politics on minority incarceration rates, data are collected at the county level in most states to create a pooled cross-sectional data set. OLS regression models predicting black, Hispanic, and white incarceration rates in state prison are used in the analysis. Counties ideological orientations and racial and ethnic contextual characteristics significantly impact minority incarceration rates. Greater ideological conservatism within counties is associated with higher rates as a proportion of their population of both black and Hispanic incarceration. Consistent with racial threat theory, results show counties with greater racial and ethnic diversity are more likely to incarcerate blacks and Hispanics. Tests for interaction effects indicate that greater county diversity decreases the punitive effects of ideological conservatism on minority incarceration. Political forces nested within states systematically shape how state government incarceration p ower is distributed across different racial and ethnic groups. (Bridges and Crutchfield, 1988; Greenberg and West, 2001; Western, 2006; Yates, 1997), The punitive paradigm that has characterized U.S. crime policy over the past three decades has led to important concerns about the distribution of one of government’s most intrusive powers; the ability to deprive citizen of their liberty through imprisonment across different racial and ethnic groups. It has been well documented that blacks are six to eight times more likely to be incarcerated relative to whites. (Western, 2006). Hispanics are over three and one-half times more likely to be incarcerated than whites. Blacks and Hispanics, together, account for nearly two-thirds of the state prison population. Disparities such as these within the criminal justice system have long engendered heated debate about principles of equality and civil rights. Imprisonment rates between the states are shown to be a function of a variety of state-level political and legal factors. From this research, there is clear evidence that political forces cause states to incarcerate at widely different rates, with minorities living in a particular state either more or less likely to be imprisoned, depending in part, on the politics within. Yet, while these studies have significantly advanced our understanding of the politics of incarceration, state-level studies often mask the fact that a state’s ‘‘use’’ of incarceration is largely a byproduct of political processes found at the local (county) level of government. When analyzing the politics of incarceration from the bottom up, top-dow n political forces like the partisan control of state-level institutions or state sentencing laws effectively become standardized, suggesting that local politics retains significant leverage over how a state’s imprisonment powers are allocated Given this, however, we know little about the extent to which incarceration rates are systematically tied to local environments and whether local politics systematically shape the imprisonment ratesof racial and ethnic minority groups. Two primary questions motivate this research: Do political forces shaped by the local ideological and racial and ethnic environment affect incarceration rates in ways that are disproportionately detrimental to racial and ethnic minorities? Second, to what extent does the racial and ethnic context interact with localized Ideological orientations to affect minority incarceration rates? Or, put another way, can diversity levels in a given jurisdiction work to strengthen or weaken the propensity of those who might, because of their ideological beliefs, be already more inclined to incarcerate minorities? Conservatives tend to view criminal activity as a matter of personal choice and focus on deterrence and incapacitation based policy responses. Beckett and Western (2001). Conservatives have been more likely to use incapacitation as a means to control a marginalized ‘‘underclass’’ of citizens that threatens the economic and political interests of elites. (Scheingold,1984), In contrast, ideological liberals tend to view crime as a function of structural impediments to success and place more emphasis on crime prevention policies rather than punishment after the fact. Beckett, and Sasson (2004). If ideological conservatives are more inclined to incarcerate, these orientations might also be expected to influence the target of those policies with racial minorities more likely to be targeted relative to whites. (Edsall and Edsall, 1992; Weaver, 2007), Republicans used crime and punishment as an effective tool to realign the political electorate by pursuing law and order policies that linked financially secure fiscal conservatives and middle to lower class conservatives who had little else in common, while blaming street crime and other social ills on a racial (black) underclass, conservative. Republicans made veiled appeals to anti minority hostilities among some lower income conservative whites by enacting punitive crime policies that were implemented in ways that put more blacks in prison, but invoked greater support at the ballot box. Insofar as these political pressures retain their influence on criminal justice policy making at the local level of government, as well as to minorities other  than blacks (i.e., Hispanics), it can be predicted that more conser vative counties will be more likely to incarcerate blacks and Hispanics (as a proportion of their respective population) in state prisons than are more liberal counties. Racial politics shaped by the local racial and ethnic contextual environment are also expected to influence minority incarceration rates. In racial politics literature, significant attention has been paid to social conflict or ‘‘racial threat’’ theory, which offers a ‘‘contextual’’ explanation for minority imprisonment. Dating back to the work of Key (1949), the main idea behind the theory is that when a minority population is small, it represents a relatively minor threat to the interests of the majority. However, as the number of minorities grows, they begin to threaten the economic and political interests of the majority population, increasing hostile attitudes toward minority populations among majority group members. Blalock (1967) argued that a majority groupà ¢â‚¬â„¢s repression of a minority group’s interests was based on two types of perceived threats those motivated by economic competition and those driven by competition over political power. A growing body of research has found evidence of a racial threat effect across a variety of institutional settings. (Hurwitz and Peffley, 1997). If racial hostilities increase in more diverse environments, there are more reasons to predict that these hostilities will spill over to influence criminal justice policy making. ‘‘Old-fashioned’’ white racism often concentrated on a perceived genetic inferiority of blacks to whites. Today, more common white stereotypes involve the perception of blacks as a violent, criminal underclass. These stereotypes, along with the assumption that objective demographic data which show blacks to be disproportionately linked to the U.S. penal system permeates the public’s consciousness to believe that most blacks are violent tha n whites. To a meaningful degree, likely increase the probability that whites associate crime and the criminal justice system with race. In conclusion; this research provides convincing evidence of ‘‘racialized’’ crime policy in the United States. The tendency among some whites to connect race with crime has important implications for state punitiveness and imprisonment of blacks more specifically. Whites who view blacks as violent have been shown to be more supportive of punitive policies like the death penalty and longer prison sentences. Following arguments associated with the racial threat idea, a more racially diverse environment is likely to trigger more negative stereotypes among whites living there, who, as a result, may be more apt to support punitive crime policies, particularly if there is the perception that the target population is black. However, existing tests of the racial threat hypothesis on black incarceration rates have brought mixed results. In so me state-level studies, once black arrest rates and other socioeconomic conditions are controlled, the racial threat hypothesis provides little predictive power (Bridges and Crutchfield, 1988; Yates, 1997). Others have found the proportion of blacks in a state does matter, but in the opposite direction predicted by the racial threat idea black imprisonment rates decreased in states with a greater black population (Yates and Fording, 2005). This mixed set of findings brings the possibility that a more appropriate test of a racial threat effect on imprisonment should be conducted at the local level. Measuring the influence of state racial composition on imprisonment has proven useful because it allows comparisons across jurisdictions; however, these efforts often gloss over the fact that state imprisonment rates are a function of decisions made by county law enforcement officials. If, indeed, incarceration rates are influenced by racial politics, it might be expected that county prose cutors, judges, or public defenders those with authority over prosecuting, sentencing, or defending offenders to/from state prison are most likely to be subject to racial ‘‘effects.’’ Assessing the influence of a racial threat on minority incarceration can also be advanced by considering whether political forces resulting from whites’ exposure to a variety of ethnic and racial minorities, rather than simply their exposure to larger black populations, affects minority imprisonment rates. References Percival, G. L. (2010).Ideology, Diversity, and Imprisonment: Considering the Influence of Local Politics on Racial and Ethnic Minority Incarceration Rates. Social Science Quarterly (Wiley-Blackwell), 91(4), 1063-1082. doi:10.1111/j.1540-6237.2010.00749.x Bridges, George S., and Robert Crutchfield. 1988. ‘‘Law, Social Standing and Racial Disparities cin Imprisonment.’’ Social Forces 66(3):699–724. Western, Bruce. 2006. Punishment and Inequality in America. New York: Russell Sage  Foundation. Beckett, Katherine, and Theodore Sasson. 2004. The Politics of Injustice: Crime and Punishment  in America. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications. Edsall, Thomas B., and Mary D. Edsall. 1992. Chain Reaction: The Impact of Race, Rights,  and Taxes on American Politics. New York: W.W. Nortan Company. Scheingold, Stuart A. 1984. The Politics of Law and Order: Street Crime and Public Policy.  New York: Longman. Blalock, Hubert M. 1967. Toward a Theory of Minority Group Relations. New York: Wiley. Key, V. O. 1949. Southern Politics in State and Nation. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. Hurwitz, Jon, and Mark Peffley. 1997. ‘‘Public Perceptions of Race and Crime: The Role of  Racial Stereotypes.’’ American Journal of Political Science 41(2):375–401. Yates, Jeff. 1997. ‘‘Racial Incarceration Disparity Among the States.’’ Social Science Quarterly  78(4):1001–11. Yates, Jeff, and Richard Fording. 2005. ‘‘Politics and State Punitiveness in Black and White.’’  Journal of Politics 67(4):1099–1121.

The Continuant Domination of The Aboriginal People Essay -- Canada Can

The Continuant Domination of the Aboriginal People In any Canadian history class we learnt about how the Europeans settled in Canada to build a new life. Furthermore, as kids we have always learnt that Christopher Columbus had discovered Canada as an empty piece of land, with no habitants whatsoever. (Flashback Canada, 1994) These statements are false. Native Canadians had already been living in Canada, and the European settlers basically just moved tight in regardless. Setting up their own Government, and being the aggressor in the country took control of everything the aboriginals had. It was said that to the aboriginals it looked like â€Å"mercantilists wanted our furs, missionaries wanted our souls, colonial governments, and later, Canada, wanted our lands.† (Razack, 2002) The purpose of this paper is to show how the government of Canada, also known as the majority has taken advantage of the native peoples of this country. This has happened in many ways, but one of the most important techniques is land control. In addition, the treatment of the aboriginal people in Canada demonstrates how the dominant group utilizes the technique of land control to dominate the minority group. This is can be seen though the forcing of the native people to relocate, how the government responds to land claims made by the natives, and how the aboriginals have to settle for insufficient land. Throughout history in Europe, there was a concept of inalienability of sovereignty, meaning that people who were inhabitance of a colony firstly, did not have to adapt to ways and laws of other settlers. (McNeil, 2002) This was not the case when European settlers came to Canada, and forced the concept of assimilation upon the aboriginals who already resided in the country. The dominant group forced them to relocate to reserves, and as well forced them to abide by their laws, even though it was not based on the political philosophy of Europe. Reasoning being, the government wanted to have control of the land that was occupied by the Indians, because the government could use the land to develop business which can help them build the economy. (Aboriginal Rights Coalition, 1999) In addition, any resources that were available would be controlled by the dominant group, because they wanted to have control of the resources, because it could be used in trade with other countries. (Abor... ... great financial affect upon the aboriginals. This was just another technique used, by the government to stay on top. Even though they were given some land by the state, it was insufficient land to live on and the natural resources that the aboriginals required to have a good state of living were altered purposely, and nothing the aboriginals could do about it. In addition, even though things are getting a little bit better for the aboriginals, it will take a lot of compensation to make up for the years and years of dreadful treatment. Works Cited McNeil,Kent. "Self-government and the inalienability of aboriginal title." McGill Law Journal 47 (n.d.). Moore, Doorathy. UN doc. York University, Toronto. 9 Feb. 2005. Moore, Dorathy. Dimentions of Racism. York University, Toronto. 13 Oct. 2004. Razack, Sherene. "Race, Space and Law: Unmapping a White Settler Society." Between the Line (2002): 26-30. Redbird, Duke. "A Metis View of the Development of A Native Canadian People." Rev. of Aboriginal Rights and Land Claims. Usher, Peter. "Environment, race and nation reconsidered: reflection on Aboriginal land claims in Canada." The Canadian Geographer 47 (2003).

My Cinematic Version of Macbeth :: Macbeth essays

My Cinematic Version of Macbeth In filming my own version of Macbeth, I would choose a traditional route to capturing the essence of Shakespeare’s classic. In keeping with Shakespeare’s idea, I would film the piece in the great lands of Scotland. Using one of the famous castles of the land, I would make the time period somewhere around the 11th century. This means that things will be a little primitive, but historically correct. A re-occurring theme in Macbeth is death so the time of year would be fall, because the leaves are falling, and the plants are dying. The season is considered a time symbolic of dying. The costumes in the movie would anything but glamorous. Of this time period, most people would be wearing heavy woolen tunics with fur trimming. To keep warm in cold weather, they could wear animal skins around their legs with leather strapping. The royalty will of the movie will only wear the finest of these materials and the best looking pieces of clothing. Women would wear a heavy wool garment to keep with the chronological fashions. Now, although I would be filming the movie in a 11th century setting, that doesn’t stop me from using the latest technology and ideas. Makeup is an important part in the film industry today so of course I would use it to in my picture. The witches would require the most makeup. They would all have long, crooked noses, with facial hair and moles all over their face. Each would have long black or gray stringy hair. I would not have the witches standing tall. Two if not all three would have a humpback and be about five feet in stature. Young Siward will be a young boyish figure. Macbeth’s rage and overaggressive ambition are brought out by the slaying of Young Siward; therefore, Young Siward would look like a young innocent boy of the age of 12. Another modern idea would be the special effects involved. Special effects would be used in the scenes of bad weather. Lighting and thunder will be used for the witches’ scenes as well as Duncan’s Murder. The major special effect as well as the most dramatic will be the appearance of the ghost of Banquo. A holographic image of a white transparent figure resembling Banquo will have stab wounds and blood oozing from his disheveled body. My Cinematic Version of Macbeth :: Macbeth essays My Cinematic Version of Macbeth In filming my own version of Macbeth, I would choose a traditional route to capturing the essence of Shakespeare’s classic. In keeping with Shakespeare’s idea, I would film the piece in the great lands of Scotland. Using one of the famous castles of the land, I would make the time period somewhere around the 11th century. This means that things will be a little primitive, but historically correct. A re-occurring theme in Macbeth is death so the time of year would be fall, because the leaves are falling, and the plants are dying. The season is considered a time symbolic of dying. The costumes in the movie would anything but glamorous. Of this time period, most people would be wearing heavy woolen tunics with fur trimming. To keep warm in cold weather, they could wear animal skins around their legs with leather strapping. The royalty will of the movie will only wear the finest of these materials and the best looking pieces of clothing. Women would wear a heavy wool garment to keep with the chronological fashions. Now, although I would be filming the movie in a 11th century setting, that doesn’t stop me from using the latest technology and ideas. Makeup is an important part in the film industry today so of course I would use it to in my picture. The witches would require the most makeup. They would all have long, crooked noses, with facial hair and moles all over their face. Each would have long black or gray stringy hair. I would not have the witches standing tall. Two if not all three would have a humpback and be about five feet in stature. Young Siward will be a young boyish figure. Macbeth’s rage and overaggressive ambition are brought out by the slaying of Young Siward; therefore, Young Siward would look like a young innocent boy of the age of 12. Another modern idea would be the special effects involved. Special effects would be used in the scenes of bad weather. Lighting and thunder will be used for the witches’ scenes as well as Duncan’s Murder. The major special effect as well as the most dramatic will be the appearance of the ghost of Banquo. A holographic image of a white transparent figure resembling Banquo will have stab wounds and blood oozing from his disheveled body.

Account for the success of pop music in Britain

Pop music is music charted by the number of sales, plays, etc that the song receives. It is not a particular genre or style of music, but simply the most popular for the tracked period of time, and usually targets a wide audience. To begin with I am going to discuss the history behind pop music from mid 1950's to the 1970's. In the mid-1950s, Britain was still feeling the pain of the war, with food and money shortages, and difficulty still part of daily life. Britain as a country was also in financial trouble, the economy was in bad shape. This was a grey time, and young British people/ British ‘kids' had no dreams, and they could only copy the images which they saw on television or in the media from the life of kids in America. These young Americans would be driving their own cars, and wearing the latest fashionable clothes. The British youth would watch and hear the latest ‘Rock ‘N Roll' music sounds from the States with artists such as Elvis Presley. During the 1950's British children had no a separate youth culture from their parents. The transition between child and adult was nothing huge or spectacular. The way that young people dressed was almost the same as their parents. They were not a separate group with their own values and customs. British youth culture was small, and was totally dominated by American trends and styles. The British music industry in the 1950's relied heavily on American music which led to British copies, of American-style music. The music industry was controlled from London but was out of touch with the needs and wants of the youth of Britain. However, even in this atmosphere, a uniquely ‘British' musical trend emerged in late 1956-57; this was called ‘Skiffle', (a kind of simple folk music played by a small group (friends), mainly with rhythmic accompaniment, usually a washboard to a singing guitarist). This simple style was easy for teenagers to play, just one guitar, and someone who could vaguely keep a rhythm on a washboard. Skiffle was made famous by Glasgow-born Lonnie Donegan. Lonnie was hugely popular and, an inspiration to the musical youth of Britain. There are many famous musicians and groups e.g. Eric Clapton (is an English blues-rock guitarist, singer, songwriter and co mposer. He is one of the most successful musicians of the 20th centuryy) who all say that Lonnie Donegan was a big influence on them. Music was different between the South of London compared to the North. In the cities outside of London, especially Liverpool, but also Birmingham, Manchester, and Newcastle had a musical revolution. In Liverpool, a ‘music culture' very different and separate from London was happening. In the North, the kids loved Rhythm ‘N' Blues, and Rock ‘N Roll, not the easy listening music that they had in the south. By the early 1960's northern cities had a large and highly competitive band scene emerging in which hundreds of ‘local' bands tried to find and perform the latest imported songs from America. Indeed it is often said that American Blues music, the music of black people, was originally from America but was found not popular but when it came over to Britain it succeeded to be popular and that's when Americans accepted it and then began to like it. In Liverpool, the music they played was a mix of the American music with a touch of the ‘Mersey' and ‘Liverpool' individualism. The concept of a ‘Mersey beat' was born. By the 1960's there were so many great groups in this Mersey scene such as ‘The Beatles' and everyone young in Britain decided they were number one. The Beatles went to America, and once The Beatles had ‘cracked' the American market, their success just kept flowing. Suddenly Britain, (mainly London), was ‘swinging', in the ‘swinging 60's'. Britain became the centre of the music and fashion world. There was a genuine energy, creativity and optimism which was totally the opposite of the mood of a few years before. The economy that influenced the music industry; in the early 1960's, the economy of Britain took off. Britain became a rich country; everybody had jobs and money, including the young people. In particular the youth of Britain had started to get more money, and acquire spending power and became independent. This meant that they bought more clothes and records. Young people became big business, and record companies and fashion companies wanted young people to buy their products and so advertising the message of youth. Britain succeeded largely when the US president John F. Kennedy was assassinated and it left America in a state of shock, without a sense of direction and vulnerable. The Americans looked to England for musical and artistic inspiration, and so Britain became dominant within the music industry. The impact of US films and music inspired a series of spectacular and distinctly British youth subcultures from the mid-50's to the late-70's. Many groups decided to drop out of British society. They decided to make their own small societies in Britain. Some wanted to change the whole country as well. In 1953 became the creation of ‘Teddy Boys/Girls' this was the first youth group in Britain. They dressed with a Rockabilly' style and with ‘quiffs', influenced by Elvis Presley, accessories such as flick-knives, crepe sole shoes, and they were typically from working-class London. They were not so revolutionary but rather violent. Therefore in Britain in the 1950's there was no real pop or rock music however in 1960's pop and rock music in Britain was the biggest, or second biggest revolution in the world. The culture of the 1960's was the hippies. The hippy values were a reaction to ‘money' and ‘normality'. These values were peace and love. The music of their interest was ‘The Beatles', ‘The Who', and ‘Jimmy Hendrix'. In 1963 became the ‘Mods' a Jamaican-rude boy/Italian-cool style, and US soul. The music that interested them were; ‘The small faces', ‘The who' and ‘Scooters'. This group were typically from a working-class background in London. The type of fashion they led was Fashion-Green army parkas, and Italian suits. In 1976-1979 became ‘The Punks', their interest was of artists such as ‘Sex pistols', ‘The clash' and ‘Bondage'. Their led a fashion of leather jackets and trousers with a ripped effect held back with safety pins. The 1980's was the return influences of pop which was having a greater impact in this decade than ever before. Hits in the US charts came from the UK, from artists such as â€Å"George Michael -Careless Whisper†, â€Å"Wham-Wake Me Up Before You Go Go† (both 1984), â€Å"George Harrison-Got My Mind Set on You† and â€Å"Rick Astley-Never Gonna Give You Up† (both 1988). The rock genre delivered a good number of pop hits this decade, with bands otherwise protective of their roots delivering briefly into commercialism. An example is a British-American rock band â€Å"Foreigner- I Want to Know What Love Is† (1985). One of the big trends in UK pop music this decade was the success of the boy band and girl band's, with early successes being Manchester's Take That and Ireland's Boyzone. The Spice Girls had their first hits in 1996 and dominated the next few years with many hit singles, and by the end of the decade there were many others, from boy bands Westlife and Five to girl bands B*Witched and All Saints. Many popular songs came from female artists. A few of the most significant are ‘Sinead O'Connor- Nothing compares to you' (1990), and the ‘Spice Girls- Wannabe' (1996). Following-up on the positive results of the eighties, songs from movie soundtracks continued to be popular. Defining hits of the genre include ‘Bryan Adams- Everything I do (I do it for you)' for Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves (1991). Pop became truly international in the nineties, with hits coming from diverse and distant locations but from Britain was; ‘Chesney Hawkes- The one and only' (1991), and ‘Babylon Zoo- Spaceman' (1996). Plus one of the best selling singles of all time, ‘Elton John- Candle in the Wind' (1997); Other British success was of the Spice Girls who have since become Pop icons, with Global hits such as â€Å"Wannabe† and â€Å"2 Become 1†. In the first decade of the twenty-first century Female singers have had a big successful influence on the pop music, with rhythmic ballads, hip hop pieces and dance tracks, some include; ‘Dannii Minogue- I begin to wonder', and ‘Sophie Ellis Bextor- Murder on the dance floor' both in 2001. A female band called ‘Girls Aloud' created by ITV1 talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. Have become one of the most successful British pop groups of the decade, with a record-breaking 18 consecutive Top 10 singles (including three number ones) and five platinum albums (including a number one). They are Smash Hits poll winners, have won a TMF Award and have been nominated for two BRIT Awards. Girls Aloud hold the record for the shortest time between formation and reaching number one in the UK Charts (with their platinum-selling dà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½but single â€Å"Sound of the Underground†), and have since become one of the few reality television groups to achieve continued success. For a contemporary pop group manufactured on reality television they have received unprecedented praise from broadsheet newspapers and the rock music press, with publications including the Observer Music Monthly and the NME giving their music rave reviews. The Observer has referred to â€Å"Bio logy† as the single of the decade. Traditional rock and modern rock made forays into pop with consecrated artists and newcomers both introducing songs to the pop music, ‘Franz Ferdinand-Take me out' was a good example. Franz Ferdinand is an indie rock band that formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 2001. The band first experienced chart success when their second single â€Å"Take Me Out† which I mentioned above reached #3 in the UK Charts, followed by their debut album Franz Ferdinand which debuted on the UK album chart at #3. Entirely digital productions integrated new technology and sounds, and as electronic (electro) dance music entered the mainstream, pop artists started using producers and re-mixers which contributed their styles to the genre an example were the ‘Gorillaz-Feel good inc'. Britain hit the pop charts with artists such as ‘Robbie Williams-feel good' (2003), ‘James Blunt- You're beautiful' (2005), and ‘James Morrison- You give me something' (2006). I conclude that Britain have been very successful within pop music, but with a very competitive competition against America. I personally felt that for each decade Britain increased their success within pop and it was down to many aspects but mainly to the talented artists in Britain and the individuality within the music itself.

Implementing School Vouchers Program

Most Americans believe that improving our system of education should be a top priority for government at the local, state, and Federal levels. Legislators, school boards, education professionals, parent groups, and community organizations are attempting to implement innovative ideas to rescue children from failing school systems, particularly in inner-city neighborhoods. Many of these groups support the voucher program. The standard program proposed in dozens of states across the country would distribute monetary vouchers (ranging in values between $2,500-$5,000) to parents of school-aged children, usually in troubled inner-city school districts. Parents could then use the vouchers towards the cost of tuition at private schools, including those dedicated to religious indoctrination. School vouchers might seem a relatively great way to increase the options poor parents have for educating their children, when in fact, vouchers pose as a serious threat to values that are vital to the health of American democracy. These programs subvert the constitutional principle of separation of church and state and threaten to undermine our system of public education. Implementation of voucher programs sends a clear message that we are giving up on public education. Even though vouchers would help some students, they will not help all. Public education is for all children, regardless of their religion, academic talents or their ability to pay. This policy has made public schools the backbone of American democracy, helping young people grow into responsible citizens. Supporters of the voucher program, include that the program offers parents a choice. In fact, vouchers only guarantee that some parents will have some taxpayers money to put towards a child†s private school tuition. No voucher system will cover the total cost of tuition, when tuition in a private school averages $10,000 per year, and the voucher totals less than $5,000. This leaves the parents still having to pay thousands of dollars, and most families cannot come up with the rest of the money to cover tuition costs. Voucher systems do not guarantee that every child who applies will be selected to attend the private school. Many religious schools currently reject two of every three children who apply. The only thing that vouchers guarantee is that taxes will go up. Taxpayers will be forced to foot the bill for the vouchers, but they will have to pick up the tab for a whole new bureaucracy, including hidden costs like transportation. Vouchers will also force taxpayers to support two entire education systems, public and private. To make things worse, no extra money will be given to the schools that desperately need taxpayers support. Being one of the most diverse countries in the world, the public school system stands as an institution that unifies Americans. Under the voucher program, our educational system, and our country would become more separated than it already is. With the help of taxpayers† dollars, private schools would be filled with wealthy and middle-class students, and the motivated students from inner cities. Some public schools would be left with fewer dollars to teach and the poorest of the poor and other students who, for one reason or another were not private school material. All these situations would hardly benefit public education. Many studies suggest that vouchers are good for public schools yet, there is little evidence that they will ultimately improve the quality of public education for those who need it most. Proposition 38 would change public education statewide without first experimenting to determine what type of state subsidy would lead to high quality education for most children. California†s public school enrollment exceeds 6 million, and the number of students willing to leave public schools in unknown, but there is an even smaller percentage of the number of spaces existing in private schools for these students willing to leave. (â€Å"Draper Initiative†) Proposition 38 is a huge and costly experiment that hold little accusations of improving student achievement, and does not provide real education choice. In conclusion, school voucher programs undermine two great American traditions, universal public education and the separation of the church and state. Instead of embracing vouchers, communities across the country should dedicate themselves to finding solutions that will be available to every American school aged child. Voucher programs will not allow the parent to make the choice of what school their child attends, but the voucher school will make the choice in which what school students can attend. Voucher schools get the money that taxpayers† are paying for, these children to attend these private schools, but these children are still being rejected for many reasons. The end argument should be whether or not vouchers will lead to full educational freedom, and most likely it will not.

Feminism and Sexuality in Eudora Welty’s Delta Wedding Essay

Eudora Welty’s Delta Wedding is a very complex novel, in spite of the apparent simplicity of the plot: at first sight, the story only describes the family life of the Fairchilds in the Mississippi Delta. The book only covers approximately one week of the year 1923 and revolves around the preparations for the wedding and the wedding itself of the prettiest daughter of the family, Dabney Fairchild to Troy Flavin. Although the plot is quite simple, the book is crammed with numerous characters and the intricate web of relations between them, and has a rich symbolism. First of all, the text reveals Welty’s ideas about knowledge and the perception of reality: the numerous voices in her fiction have different ways of looking at reality and of knowing, and the author emphasizes these differences. Ellen and George seem to be the characters that have a way of looking at the world which comes very close to that of Welty herself. Her fiction imitates the same pattern of knowing, by leaving out reason and systematic thought, and apprehending the surrounding universe in its wholeness, as when one contemplates a landscape without thinking of anything else, as nine year old Laura does, when she looks out of the window of the train: â€Å"Thoughts went out of her head and the landscape filled it.†(Welty, 1946, p. 4) Thus, Welty’s fiction seems to borrow the technique of photography by capturing in a single shot both the apparent reality and the essence of this reality. As Welty notices in her essay, Writer’s Beginnings quoted by Carson (1992), the role of writing is to make one single picture of the inner and external aspect of every thing, or as Carson puts it, to put two pictures in a single frame: â€Å"A lamp I knew of was a view of London till it was lit; but then it was the Great Fire of London, and you could go beautifully to sleep by it. The lamp alight is the combination of internal and external, glowing at the imagination as one; and so is the good novel. Seeing that these inner and outer surfaces do lie so close together and so implicit in each other, the wonder is that human life so often separates them, or appears to, and it takes a good novel to put them back together.†(Carson, 1992, p.17) The world of the Fairchilds, as described in Delta Wedding, is rich and complex precisely because the reader constantly gets the impression he is looking at more pictures in a single frame at the same time, or at more layers of reality: the glimpses into the inner lives of all the characters which seem to appear on the scene all at once plus the picturesque descriptions of the Southern world, with its customs and traditions make up a very complex tableau, which perfectly imitates the impressions we may have when reviewing our day-to- day lives. The world of the Fairchilds which seems to be so particular and impermeable as to be a world in itself, with its own spirit, can be extended in fact as a picture of human societies in general. The world of the plantations is a world dominated by women, by their culture and femininity, which resemble that of Virginia Woolf. This is not to say however, that the women actually have the power in since their rule is limited to the life of the household and the family, while being completely separated from the rest of the world. Still, the limited universe of the household is like a matriarchy, in which motherhood, nursing and all the trivial affairs related to daily life, like cooking are the most potent symbols. It is very important to note thus that Welty’s feminism consists precisely of maintaining the traditional in her fiction and, at the same time opening the ways to freedom for the women, be that sexual or intellectual. There are many signs of the assertion of female sexuality, especially in Robbie’s relation to George for example, or in Shelley’s rejection of marriage and implicitly, of male domination. Sexuality, as the affirmation of the female body, best represents the idea of freedom and liberation of the woman, who no longer avoids her own identity. Robbie’s desire of finding her place in her own marriage through her sexuality is very significant for Welty’s presentation of the women. Thus, Welty represents a powerful feminine world, in which, although all the traditional patriarchal patterns are still preserved, the women impose their own modes of thinking and their own identity through the very traditions which are considered to be the reason for their enslavement. Thus, in many parts of the story the traditional way of thinking of the aunts imposes itself over and over again. For example, although the aunts know that Dabney is probably pregnant and is forced to rush into the marriage with Troy, they keep silent on the theme, not being willing to inquire further than the mere surface of facts, as Dabney complains:   Ã¢â‚¬Å"They don’t make me say if I love Troy or if I don’t, Dabney was thinking, clicking her heels in the pantry. But by the time she came back to the porch, the flowers in a Mason jar of water, she knew she would never say anything about love after all, if they didn’t want her to. Suppose they were afraid to ask her, little old aunts.† (Welty, 1946, p.48) As Carson comments, the aunts’ attitude is cause exactly by the way in which the Fairchilds are used to look at the world: they always stay on the surface of things and relations, seeing happiness and love everywhere, without really being aware of their or of the others’ identity as individuals: â€Å"One of the reasons the family fails to know each other as individuals [†¦] is that they are so conscious of each other as part of the family.†(Carson, 1992, p. 78) This way of knowing seems to be proper of the Fairchild spirit, and is the same as Carson (1992) describes as ‘tyrannical’, attempting at categorizing and dividing everything, instead of looking for the essence of reality:   Ã¢â‚¬Å"The knowledge that deals only with facts; the knowledge that aims at control and manipulation; the knowledge that puts things and people into boxes and bottles and categories–this is tyrannical knowledge, and it is the way of knowing that most people settle for. George’s knowing is different. He â€Å"could have lifted a finger and touched, held the butterfly, but he did not† (p. 37): without possessing the butterfly–and thus perhaps killing it–he makes it part of himself.† (Carson, 1992, p. 83) As Ellen perceives it, the essence of life consist of the repetitions and the cycles and even the monotony of everything: â€Å"The repeating fields, the repeating cycles of season and her own life–there was something in the monotony itself that was beautiful, rewarding–perhaps to what was womanly within her. No, she had never had time–much time at all, to contemplate [†¦] but she knew. (Welty, 1946, p. 240) This negation of reasoning, and the impressionist way of looking at reality are again a sign of the femininity that dominates the world Welty describes. It is clear then, that in this restricted social circle the women are powerful precisely because they dominate through their pattern of thinking as well as through their mastery of the household: â€Å"[†¦]the women of the Fairchilds who since the Civil War, or – who knew? – since the Indian times, ran the household and had everything at their fingertips – not the men.†(Welty, 1946, p.8) Ann Romines who discuses feminism in Delta Wedding emphasized the recurrence, among the other symbols for the household, of the cakes and recipes, which are somehow blended with the women’s thoughts: â€Å"To read Delta Wedding, one must follow the cues suggested by the Delta women’s culture: one must read the cakes. The novel’s women are practiced in such reading. Next day, when offered a slice of Ellen’s completed cake, Aunt Tempe takes one bite and exclaims, â€Å"Oh, Mashula’s coconut!† (Romines, 1997, p. 603)Thus, the recipes which blend with women’s thoughts in the text signal a strong female culture, which does not however deny the traditional role of the woman in society. The feminism of the novel is constructed thus without departing from tradition and Welty points thus to the fact that a feminine culture has always existed, even if it manifested itself differently from the male culture. Reference List: Carson, B. H. (1992). Eudora Welty: two pictures at once in her frame. Troy: Whitston. Romines, A.(1997). Reading the cakes: ‘Delta Wedding’ and the texts of Southern women’s culture. The   Ã‚  Ã‚  Mississippi Quarterly, 50 (4) 601-609 Welty, E. (1946). Delta wedding. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World.