Housewives and Prisioners: Chopin, Colette, Godwin Essay -- essays re

Housewives and Prisoners in their World All three writings, â€Å"The Story of an Hour,† â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman† and â€Å"The Hand† portray the long led belief that women are obligated to carrying the burden’s of a household. The belief that they should surrender their own desires and needs to care for the needs of their families still lingers in society today. Similarly, the women are in a marriage they will not leave, bare the burden of submission, have a love and dislike for their spouses, and desire freedom from the imprisonment they feel in their life. While all three marriages are alike they do have some differences. In the same way â€Å"The Hand† portrays the life of a newly married bride, â€Å"The Story of an Hour† vividly describes Mrs. Mallard as young which would lead one to believe that both women are young in age. The description, â€Å"She was young, with a fair calm face, whose lines bespoke repression.† Describes a woman that has been married to her husband long enough to have realized her unhappiness. Also, none of the women ever speak of ending their marriage. Mrs. Mallard realizes the one joy of the death of her husband is she will never have to entertain the idea of leaving him. It comes to her as her way out. She would not have to take responsibility for the failed marriage because it has been taken care of for her. In a different manner, the woman in â€Å"The Hand† decides that her husband’s strength’s, which are represented by the description of his hair, eyes, build and arms, are enough for her to deal with his flaws, which are represented by the horrific hand. â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman† depicts the wife’s need to stay even though she moves to a different room apart from her husband and child. Another similarity is the submiss... ... He allowed her to tend to her needs in order to keep her in his life. One could ponder the outcome of Mrs. Mallard’s marriage had she been open to her husband about her feelings. Some could say it would not have made a difference and some could say it would. This shows the differences in the views of marriage. In conclusion, a marriage should be an alliance between two people. It should be a tie that bids a woman and a man but does not imprison them. While marriage and the social view of it has come along way many women still feel as these three did. Women feel obligated to stay in a marriage for multiple reasons, submit to their husbands in one way or another, tend to love their man one minute but dislike them another and desire freedom of the lifestyle when it is comfortable conditions. These authors showed different views but portrayed many similarities.

Night World : Witchlight Chapter 8

Keller was tempted to check the wards, but she knew it wouldn't do any good. She wasn't sensitive enough to the witch energies to gauge them. They'd been put up by Grandma Harman and checked by Winnie, and she would have to trust to that. The wards were keyed so that only the Dominick family and ordinary humans could come inside. No Night Person could enter except Nissa, Winnie, Keller, and Galen. Which meant, Keller thought with a grim smile, that any lost witch relatives of Iliana's mother who came by were going to get quite a surprise. An invisible wall was going to be blocking them from crossing the threshold. As long as nobody on the inside removed the wards, the house was safer than Fort Knox. Grandma Harman had also taken the limo, Keller found. Sometime during the night, it had been replaced by an inconspicuous Ford sedan parked at the curb. The keys had been in a manila envelope dropped through the mail slot in the front door, along with a map of Lucy Lee Bethea High School. Circle Daybreak was efficient. â€Å"I didn't finish my hair,† Iliana complained as Nissa hustled her to the car. â€Å"It's only half done.† â€Å"It looks terrific,† Winnie said from behind her. And the thing was, it was true. There was nothing that could make that shimmering waterfall of silvery-gold look anything less than beautiful. Whether it was up or down, braided or pinned or falling loose, it was glorious. I don't even think the little nitwit has to brush it, Keller thought. It's so fine that she couldn't make two hairs tangle if she tried. â€Å"And I left my scarf† â€Å"Here it is.† Keller lassoed her. The scarf was ridiculous, crushed velvet in muted metallic colors, with a six-inch fringe. Purely decorative. Iliana choked as Keller wound it around a few times and pulled it tight â€Å"A little aggressive, Boss?† Winfrith asked, extricating Iliana before she could turn blue. â€Å"Worried about being late,† Keller said shortly. But she saw Nissa eyeing her, too. Galen was the last to come out of the house. He was pale and serious-that much Keller saw before she shifted her eyes past him. Iliana's mother actually remained standing at the door with the baby in her arms. â€Å"Say bye-bye to your sister's friends. Bye-bye.† â€Å"Kee-kee,† the baby said. â€Å"Kee-kee!† â€Å"Wave to him,† Winfrith stage-whispered. Keller gritted her teeth. She half-waved, keeping her senses opened for any sound of an impending attack. The baby held out his arms toward her. â€Å"Pui!† â€Å"Let's get out of here.† Keller almost shoved Iliana into the backseat. Nissa took the wheel, and Galen sat up front with her. Winnie ran around to get in the back on the other side of Iliana. As they pulled out, Keller saw the outside of the house for the first time. It was a nice house-white clapboard, two and a half stories, Colonial Revival. The street was nice, too, lined with dogwoods that would be a mass of white when they bloomed. The sort of street where people sat outside on their rockers in spring and somebody was bound to have a stand of bees in the side yard making sourwood honey. Although Keller had been all over the United States, sent from one Circle Daybreak group to another, the hospital where she'd been found had been near a neighborhood like this. I might have grown up someplace like this. If they'd kept me. My parents†¦ Do I hate her? Keller wondered suddenly. I couldn't. It's not her fault. Oh, no, of course not, the voice in her mind said. Not her fault that she's beautiful and perfect and has parents who love her and blue fire in her veins and that she is going to be forced, whether she wants it or not, to marry Galen†¦ Which I don't care about, Keller thought. She was shocked at herself. When had she ever let emotion interfere with her job? She was allowing herself to be distracted-she had allowed herself to be distracted all morning-when there was something vitally important at stake. No more, she told herself fiercely. From now on, I think about nothing but the mission. Years of mental discipline came in handy now; she was able to push everything to the side and focus with icy clarity on what had to be done. â€Å"-stopped a train in its tracks,† Winfrith was saying. â€Å"Really?† There was faint interest in Kiana's voice. At least she'd stopped talking about her hair, Keller thought. â€Å"Really. It was one of those BART trains in San Francisco, Like a subway train, you know. The two girls were on the tracks, and the Wild Power stopped the train dead before it could hit them. That's what the blue fire can do.† â€Å"Well, I know I can't do anything like that,† Iliana said flatly. â€Å"So I can't be a Wild Power. Or whatever.† The last words were tacked on quickly. Nissa raised a cool eyebrow. â€Å"Have you ever tried to stop a train?† While Iliana bit a fingertip and pondered that, Winnie said, â€Å"You have to do it right, you know. First, you have to make blood flow, and then you have to concentrate. It's not something you can expect to do perfectly the very first time.† â€Å"If you want to start practicing,† Nissa added, â€Å"we can help.† Diana shuddered. â€Å"No, thank you. I faint when I see blood. And anyway, I'm not it.† â€Å"Too bad,† Nissa murmured. â€Å"We could use the blue fire on our side today.† They were pulling up to a charming old brown brick high school. Neither Galen nor Keller had said a word throughout the ride. But now Keller leaned forward. â€Å"Nissa, drive past it. I want to check the layout first.† Nissa swung the car into a circular driveway that went past the school's oversized front doors. Keller looked right and left, taking in everything about the surroundings. She could see Winnie doing the same thing-and Galen, too. He was focusing on the same danger spots she was. He had the instinct for strategy. â€Å"Go around the block and circle back,† Keller said. Iliana stirred. â€Å"I thought you were worried about me being late.† â€Å"I'm more worried about you being dead,† Keller interrupted. â€Å"What do you think, Nissa?† â€Å"The side door on the west. Easy to pull up reasonably close, no bushes around it for nasty surprises to hide in.† â€Å"That's my pick, too. Okay, everybody, listen. Nissa's going to slow the car down in the right place. Slow down, not stop. When I give the signal, we're all going to jump out and go directly to that door. We are not going to pause. We are going to move as a group. Iliana, are you paying attention? From now on, you don't go anywhere unless Winnie's in front of you and I'm beside you.† â€Å"And where's Galen?† Iliana said. Keller cursed herself mentally. She wasn't used to working with a fourth team member. â€Å"Hell be behind us-okay, Galen?† She made herself look his way. â€Å"Yes. Whatever you say.† There wasn't the slightest hint of sarcasm in his face. He was dead serious. Absolutely miserable, earnest, and dead serious. â€Å"And Nissa, once you've parked, you join us and take the other side. What room's your first class in, Iliana?† â€Å"Three twenty-six,† Iliana said dismally. â€Å"U.S. History with Mr. Wanamaker. He went to New York to try to be an actor, but all he got was some disease from not eating enough stuff with vitamins. So he came back, and now he's really strict unless you can get him to do his impressions of the presidents-â€Å" â€Å"All right,† Keller broke in. â€Å"We're coming to the door.† â€Å"-and he's actually pretty funny when he does Theodore Roosevelt-or do I mean the other one-â€Å" â€Å"Now,† Keller said, and pushed her as Winnie pulled. They all made it out smoothly, although Iliana yelped a little. Keller kept a good grip on her arm as they hurried to the door. â€Å"I don't think I like this way of coming to school.† â€Å"We can turn right around and go back home,† Keller said. Iliana shut up. Galen kept pace behind them, silent and focused. It was Nissa's usual position when the team wasn't heading for a car, and Keller couldn't help feeling the difference. She didn't like having someone behind her she couldn't trust absolutely. And although the enemies didn't seem to know yet that Galen was important, if they found out, he'd become a target; Face it, she thought. This setup is a disaster, security-wise. This is a horrendous accident waiting to happen. Her nerves were wound so tightly that she jumped at the slightest sound. They shepherded Iliana to her locker, then up a staircase to the third floor. The halls were almost empty, which was exactly as Keller had planned it. But of course that meant they were late for class. Nissa slid in beside them just as they opened the door. They entered as a group, and the teacher stopped talking and looked at them. So did everybody else in the room. Quite a few jaws dropped open. Keller allowed herself a grim inner smile. Yeah, they were probably a bit of a shock for a small town. Four Night People-well, former Night People, anyway. A witch who was almost as small as Iliana, with a mop of vivid strawberry-blond curls and a face like a pixie on holiday. A vampire girl who looked like cool perfection straight out of a magazine, with cropped mink-colored hair and a strangely penetrating gaze. A shapeshifter boy who could have taken the place of any prince in a book of fairy tales, with hair like old gold and classically sculptured features. And, of course, a panther. Which happened to be walking on two feet at the moment, in the guise of a tall girl with a tense, wary expression and black hair that swirled witchlike around her. And, of course, there was Iliana in the midst of them, looking like a ballet dancer who had blundered in from the Nutcracker Suite. There was a silence as the two groups stared at each other. Then the teacher snapped shut his book and advanced on them. Keller held herself ready. He had a neatly trimmed beard and a dangerous expression. It was Iliana who took him on, though. She stepped forward before Keller could draw a breath to speak. â€Å"Mr. Wanamaker! These are my cousins! Well- some of them are my cousins. They're from†¦California. Hollywood! They're here to†¦ do research for . . â€Å".† â€Å"We're really just visiting,† Keller cut in. â€Å"A new show about a high school. Not like that other show. It's more of a reality-based-â€Å" ‘It's just a visit,† Keller said. â€Å"But your dad is a famous producer,† Iliana said. She added in an undertone to Mr. Wanamaker, â€Å"You know, like that other producer.† All eyes, including the teacher's, fixed on Keller. â€Å"Yes-that's right,† Keller said, and smiled while clenching her teeth. â€Å"But we're still just visiting.† She nudged Winnie with her elbow, but it wasn't necessary. Winnie was already staring at the teacher, brainwashing him with witch power. Mr. Wanamaker bunked. He weighed the book he was holding as if he were Hamlet holding Yorick's skull. He looked at it, then he looked at Winnie and blinked again. Then he shrugged and looked at the ceiling. â€Å"Okay. Whatever. Sit down. There are some chairs at the back. And I'm still marking you tardy.† But Keller noticed that as he returned to his desk, his posture was very erect. She did the best she could to glare at Iliana without drawing any further attention to them. â€Å"A famous producer?† she whispered through her teeth. â€Å"I don't know. It was more interesting than just saying you're friends.† You don't need life to get any more interesting, Bubblebrain, Keller thought, but she didn't say anything. She found one thing out that surprised her, though, and she found it out quickly. Her job was made harder by the fact that everyone at the school was in love with Iliana. It was strange. Keller was used to getting attention from guys-and ignoring it. And Nissa and Winnie both were the type that had to beat them off with sticks. But here, although the guys looked at her and Nissa and Winnie, their eyes always seemed to return to Iliana. At break, they crowded around her like bees around a flower. And not just guys, either. Girls, too. Everyone seemed to have something to say to her or just wanted to see her smile. It was a bodyguard's nightmare. What do they see in her? Keller thought, frustrated almost beyond endurance as she tried to edge Iliana away from the crowd. I mean, aside from the obvious. But if all this is about her looks†¦ It wasn't. It didn't seem to be. They weren't all hitting on her for dates. â€Å"Hey, Iliana, my granddaddy loved that get well card you made.† â€Å"Illie, are you going to tie the ribbons this year for the Christmas benefit bears? Nobody else can make those teeny-weeny bows.† â€Å"Oh, Iliana, something awful! Bugsy had five puppies, and Mom says we can't keep them. We've got to find them all homes.† â€Å"Iliana, I need help-† â€Å"Wait, Iliana, I have to ask you-† Okay, but why come to her? Keller thought as she finally managed to detach the girl from her fan club and steer her into the hall. I mean, she can hardly be the best problem solver in this school, can she? There was one guy who seemed to like Iliana for the obvious. Keller disliked him on sight. He was good-looking in a carefully manicured way, with deep chestnut hair, deep blue eyes, and very white teeth. He was wearing expensive clothes, and he smiled a lot, but only at Iliana. â€Å"Brett,† Iliana said as he accosted them in the hall. Brett Ashton-Hughes. One of the rich twins who were having the birthday party on Saturday night Keller disliked him even more, especially when he gave her a coolly appreciative once-over before returning his attention to Iliana. â€Å"Hey, blondie. You still coming Saturday?† Iliana giggled. Keller stifled the urge to hit something. â€Å"Of course, I'll be there. I wouldn't miss it.† â€Å"Because, you know, it would kill Jaime if you didn't come. We're only inviting a few people, and well have the whole west wing to ourselves. We can even dance in the ballroom.† Diana's eyes went dreamy. â€Å"That sounds so romantic. I always wanted to dance in a real old-fashioned ballroom. I'll feel just like Scarlett O'Hara.† No, Keller thought. No, no, no. No way is she going there. She's going to the Solstice Ceremony, where the shapeshifters and the witches are meeting, even if I have to drag her by the hair. She caught Nissa's eye and saw that Nissa was thinking the same. Galen and Winnie were simply watching Brett with troubled looks on their faces. â€Å"Yeah, and I can be Brett Butler,† Brett was saying. â€Å"Plus, the indoor swimming pool will be heated. So if you get tired of being Scarlett, you can be a mermaid for a while.† â€Å"It sounds wonderful! Tell Jaime I said so.† Winnie bit her lip. Keller got a fresh grip on Diana's arm and started guiding her away. â€Å"So it's a promise, right?† Brett called after her. Keller squeezed. â€Å"Yes, but-oh.† Iliana managed to smile and wince at the same time, her arm limp in Keller's grasp. â€Å"Oh, Brett, there's one thing. I've got my cousin and her friends staying with me.† Brett hesitated an instant, giving each girl on Keller's team the appraising look. Then he shrugged and flashed a smile. â€Å"Hey, no problem. Bring them all. Your friends are our friends.† â€Å"That wasn't what I was trying to tell you,† Keller said when they were away from Brett. Iliana was rubbing her arm with an aggrieved expression. â€Å"Then what? I thought it would be fun for you to go.† â€Å"What do you mean, ‘then what'? You're going to the Solstice Ceremony that night, so you shouldn't have promised him.† â€Å"I am not going to the Solstice Ceremony that night, because I'm not the one you're looking for.† It wasn't the time to argue. Keller kept her moving down the hall. Keller wasn't happy. Her nerves were all prickling, and she felt like a cat with its fur standing on end. Very soon, Iliana wasn't happy, either. ‘I always eat lunch in the cafeteria!† â€Å"Not today,† Keller said, knowing she sounded as brusque and tired as she felt. â€Å"We can't risk it You've got to be in a room, alone, someplace where we can control access to you.† â€Å"The music room,† Winnie said helpfully.  "I saw it on the map and asked a girl about it in English class. It's open during lunch, and there's only one door.† â€Å"I don't want to-â€Å" â€Å"You don't have a choice!† Iliana sulked in the music room. The problem was that she wasn't very good at sulking, and you could only tell she was doing it because when she offered her cookies to Nissa, she only insisted once. Keller paced nervously in the hallway in front of the door. She could hear Winnie and Galen inside talking. Even Galen's voice sounded white-faced and strained. Something's wrong†¦ I've had a bad feeling ever since we got to this school†¦ and it isn't any easier having him around. Part of her was worried that he might take this opportunity to come and try to talk to her. And part of her, a very deep inside part, was furious because he wasn't doing it. Goddess! I've got to get my mind clear. Every second that I'm not in control of my emotions means an opportunity for them. She was so absorbed in yelling at herself that she almost missed the girl walking past her. Keller was almost at the end of the hall, and she had to do a double-take to realize that somebody had just calmly slipped by. â€Å"Hey, wait,† she said to the girl's back. The girl was medium-sized and had hair the soft brown of oak leaves, slightly longer than shoulder-length. She was walking fast She didn't stop. â€Å"Wait! I'm talking to you, girl! That door is off limits.† The girl didn't turn, didn't even pause. She was almost at the door to the music room. â€Å"Stop right there! Or you're going to get hurt!† Not even a hesitation in the girl's step. She turned into the door. A thousand red alerts went off in Keller's head.

Tips for Effective Teacher to Teacher Communication

Effective teacher to teacher communication is vitally essential to your success as a teacher. Regular collaboration and team planning sessions are extremely valuable. Engaging in these practices has a positive impact on teacher effectiveness. Education is a highly difficult concept for those outside the field to understand. Having peers that you can collaborate with and lean on during tough times is essential. If you find yourself in isolation and/or always having a conflict with your peers, then there is a reasonable chance that you may need to make some changes yourself. What to Avoid When Talking to Fellow Faculty Here are seven things to avoid when trying to build positive relationships with faculty and staff members at school. Do not talk about or discuss your co-workers with your students.  It undermines the authority of that teacher and additionally taints your credibility.Do not engage in conversation or discuss your co-workers with a parent. Doing so is unprofessional at best and will create significant problems.Do not talk about or discuss your co-worker with other co-workers. It creates an atmosphere of divisiveness, mistrust, and animosity.Do not isolate yourself on a regular basis.  It is not a healthy practice.  It serves as a hindrance to your overall growth as a teacher.Avoid being confrontational or combative.  Be professional.  You may disagree with someone engaging them inappropriately is juvenile at best which undermines your role as a teacher.Avoid starting, spreading, or discussing gossip and hearsay about parents, students, and/or co-workers. Gossip has no place in a school and will create long-term problems.Avoid being critical of your co-workers.  Build them up, encourage th em, offer constructive criticism, but never criticize how they do things. It will do more harm than good. How to Build Positive Relationships With Staff Members Here are eleven things to keep in mind when trying to build positive relationships with faculty and staff members at school. Encourage and show kindness and humility. Never let an opportunity to show kindness or encouragement to others to pass. Praise exemplary work, regardless of the person that did it. Sometimes you can turn even the most hardened of your fellow workers into real softies once they realize that you are not afraid to compliment them or give encouraging words, despite how they may perceive you ordinarily. At the same time, when giving criticism, do it helpfully and gently, never spitefully. Show concern for anothers feelings and well being. You will benefit immensely from even the smallest kindness shown.Be happy. Every day you go to work, you need to make a choice to be happy. Making a choice to be happy on a day to day basis will make people around you more comfortable on a day to day basis. Don’t dwell on negatives and maintain a positive attitude.Refuse to engage in gossip or hearsay. Dont allow gossip to rule your life. In the workplace, morale is vitally essential. Gossip will tear apart a staff faster than anything else. Do not engage in it and nip it in the bud when it is presented to you.Let the water roll off your back. Don’t let negative things said about you get under your skin. Know who you are and believe in yourself. Most people that talk negatively about other people do so out of ignorance. Let your actions determine how others see you, and they will not believe the negative things said.Collaborate with your peers – Collaboration is vitally essential among teachers. Don’t be afraid to offer constructive criticism and advice with a take it or leave it approach. Also of equal importance, don’t be afraid to ask questions or to ask for help in your classroom. Too many teachers think this is a weakness when it is truly a strength. Finally, master teachers share ideas with others. This profession is truly about what is best for the students. If you have a brilliant idea that you believe in, then share it with those around y ou.Watch what you say to people. How you say something counts for just as much as what you say. Tone does matter. When confronted with a difficult situation, always say less than you think. Holding your tongue in a difficult situation will make it easier for you in the long run because it will create confidence among others in your ability to handle a similar situation.If you make a promise, you better be prepared to keep it. If you intend to make promises, you had better be prepared to keep them, no matter what the cost. You will lose the respect of your peers quicker than it took you to gain it by breaking promises. When you tell someone that you intend to do something, it is your responsibility to see to it that you follow through.Learn about others’ outside interests. Find a common interest that you have with others (e.g. grandchildren, sports, movies, etc.) and spark a conversation. Having a caring attitude will build trust and confidence in others. When others are joyfu l, rejoice with them; when troubled or in mourning, be sympathetic. Make sure each person around you knows that you value them and know that they are important.Be open-minded. Do not get into arguments. Discuss things with people rather than argue. Being combative or disagreeable is likely to put others off. If you don’t agree with something, think your response through and don’t be argumentative or judgmental in what you say.Understand that some peoples’ feelings are hurt easier than others. Humor can bring people together, but it can also tear people apart. Before you tease or joke with a person, make sure you know how they are going to take it. Everyone is different in this aspect. Take into account another persons feelings before you poke fun.Don’t worry about accolades. Do your best. Its the best you can do. Let others see your work ethic, and you will be able to take pride and pleasure in a job well done.

Essay on Follow Your Dreams - 1914 Words

Dreams are aspirations that reflect a human’s wants and desires in life. They are a fundamental element that drives human beings to achieve the impossible. Dreams have the ability to motivate oneself to set goals and ideals for the future. Each person in some part of their life has had desires that they would like to accomplish. Without these desires, there is nothing to motivate one’s actions and attitude. However, most people believe that satisfaction only exists once a dream is achieved. Louisa Alcott, an inspirational novelist in the 1880’s once stated â€Å"Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead. † In this†¦show more content†¦This is displayed in the following quote â€Å"Its furnishings are typical and undistinguished their primary feature now is that they have clearly had to accommodate the living of too ma ny people for too many years - and they are tired†¦ † This quote reveals the harsh conditions of these apartments, the younger’s home being one of them. They were often described as old, dirty unsafe and overcrowded. The fact that the narrator describes the furniture as worn out confirms that the Younger’s are a large and poor family. The narrator also mentions that they are tired of their surroundings and of accommodating so many people in such a small area. This displays the family’s discontentment with the surrounding area, and their need to move to a different estate. In addition, the condition of the apartment addresses the long period of time the Younger’s has inhabited the apartment. This is revealed in the following quote â€Å"Weariness has, in fact, won in this room. Everything has been polished, washed, sat on, used, scrubbed too often. All pretenses but living itself have long since vanished from the very atmosphere of this room. † The use of physical features of the apartment establishes its significance in the Younger’s lives. In fact it was originally Mama’s temporary stand-in for her dream house. It is seen as a place of unity, where the family is able to bond with oneShow MoreRelatedSpeech: Follow Your Dreams Essay445 Words   |  2 PagesSpeech: Follow Your Dreams Opens with Impact: â€Å"There is no strife, no prejudice, no national conflict in outer space as yet†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (John F. Kennedy Speech) Clear Preview: Dreams are important for all people. 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As you drag your wearing body up the stairs to the loft duringRead MoreTheme : Follow Your Dreams, And Never Give Up1457 Words   |  6 Pages Arielle Theme: Follow your dreams, and never give up â€Å"School is so boring† i said to myself. I wish i could go out to the beach again and help the baby turtles out to sea again. That is the only thing that makes me happy. Not my friends, not my family, not even books, and I love books. â€Å"Arielle† my teacher called my name. â€Å"Yes† I said. â€Å"Please stop daydreaming and listen to what I m saying, you have been failing this class so you should be listening or you won t be able to get into collegeRead MoreEssay on The Last Lecture1064 Words   |  5 Pageschild hood dreams, I admit, it wouldn’t be very impressive. I never wanted to be a firefighter or a policeman. I never had the urge to be a millionaire, and I never even thought of being a G.I Joe or Army Man. If you could see my list, you would see only two words scribbled down in that chicken scratch hand writing of mine. But only one of those words would follow me out of that first grade class room and stick with me to this present day. By now, curiosity must be coursing through your veins, justRead MoreRandy Pauschs Last Lecture Essay1011 Words   |  5 PagesPausch’s Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams You would think a man dying of cancer would not be so happy and willing to spend the last few months of his life giving a lecture. But, Randy Pausch, who has 10 tumors in his liver, does not want people to pity him for having cancer. Rather, he wants to teach people how to follow their childhood dreams. Looking at the seven elements of communication we see how he is so effective in his last lecture. The lecture has affected me personallyRead MoreThe Last Lecture By Randy Pausch862 Words   |  4 PagesLast Lecture, Randy Pausch teaches his recipe for a happy and successful life. His main ingredient to this is working toward and achieving your childhood dreams. Pausch gives several examples of wisdom he has used to guide his life throughout the book. All of the advice he gives comes from the experiences he has had while working toward his various childhood dreams. The name The Last Lecture comes from the actual last lecture Pausch gave at his alma mater, Carnegie Mellon. He was asked to give theRead MoreA Lecture Series For Students1424 Words   |  6 Pagesliving out dreams. Starting with his youth, he showed how his own dreams came to fruition. Randy also went on to show how he was privileged enough to help others achieve their dreams, also. He highlighted lessons he learned along the way and offered advice to students on how to live life to the fullest. He also highlighted people who helped him achieve his dreams. He spoke about how much his parents meant to him and how wonderful they were. They encouraged him to research and to dream. They alsoRead MoreThe Worth Of A Book By Randy Pausch And Jeffrey Zaslow1116 Words   |  5 Pagesaway from it (James Bryce). If measured by the rule of the quote, The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch and Jeffrey Zaslow has tremendous worth. Randy Pausch, a professor dying from pancreatic cancer, gave his last lecture titled â€Å"Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams† at Carnegie Mellon in 2007. In the book, he reflects upon the lessons of his life experiences mentioned in the lecture. The lessons addressed ways to lead a fulfilled life. At first, his experiences seemed to be entertaining stories from his

The Problem Of Youth Unemployment - 1391 Words

The objective of this paper is to use the triangle model of social analysis to further analyze the issue of youth unemployment. After having a group discussion we have come to a conclusion that this model will allow us to get a deep understanding of the impact that social institutions have on our dominant ideologies and how they are framed through the influence of different institutions. Youth unemployment is an extremely important issue in today’s society and time because over the past decade, youth unemployment has been rapidly increasing and is starting to become a serious, economic and social problem for Canada and other industrialized countries. Since the 2008 financial crisis and the recession that followed in 2009 there has been a high unemployment rate among the youth. Canada’s unemployment rate is sitting at an all high time of 11.8%. (TD Economics) The unemployment rate specifically for youth aged 15 to 24 years old has climbed approximately 24.4%. (TD Economi cs) The impact of youth unemployment is long lasting and can harm an individual’s career opportunities. Economists have conducted a research which determines that the period of unemployment in an individual’s life will negatively impact them in the future because they will earn lower wages. For example, if you are a college or university graduate in Canada who is in a recession the unemployment rate will rise by about 5%, that implies a loss in earnings of about 9% annually. (TD Economics) If the socialShow MoreRelatedEssay on The Problem of Youth Unemployment1834 Words   |  8 Pageskey to how we define ourselves and to our sense of self-worth. In the UK the unemployment rate stands at 6.9% now and from the figures 19.1% are between ages 16-24. Almost one in five young people unable to find a job. Youth employment has become a long-term problem in the UK, with over a quarter of million young people have been looking for work for a year or more (Mirza-Davies 2014). A nd increase of youth unemployment slow down the speed of UK economic recovery, although the financial crisis ofRead MoreThe Problem Of High Youth Unemployment3121 Words   |  13 PagesIntroduction Securing and obtaining jobs has become extremely difficult for young Americans between the ages of 18-25. Youth unemployment rates have been in the double-digits for the past seven consecutive years. This problem comes with many underlying factors that will be addressed briefly in the future paragraphs; such as the stray from past historical patterns. For example, the lower percentage rates of home buying among millennials. 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Unemployment happens when a man who is effectively looking for employment is not able to find some kind of employment. Unemployment is regularly utilised as a measure of the economy’s wellbeing. The most regularly referred to gauge of unemployment is the unemployment rate. This is the quantity of unemployed persons divided by the quantity of individuals in the work force. The unemployed are those individuals capable, accessible and willing to work at the goingRead MoreThe Impact Of Youth Unemployment On The Society992 Words   |  4 PagesThe Impact of Youth Unemployment in the Society One of the most important stage of development in an individual’s life is the days of their youth. At this stage, the society expects much from the individual, and also determines the achievement such a person has reached. However, due to the high expectation, the youths are yet to actualize their potentials. 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Investment rates are currently low, furthermore the legacy of apartheid is evident in the persistent distortions in all factor markets: for labour, as evident in the scale and persistence of unemployment and inadequate investment in human capital; for capital, in the low savings/investment rates (Lewis, 2012). The current challenge that the country faces relates to the problem areas of growth, jobs, and povertyRead MoreUmemployment Conditions in Pakistan1514 Words   |  6 Pagesindividuals actively seeking jobs remain unhired. Unemployment is expressed as a percentage of the total available work force. The level of unemployment varies with economic conditions and other circumstances. Unemployment describes the state of a worker who is able and willing to take work but cannot find it. As indicated by the unemployment rate and other yardsticks, unemployment is an important measure of the economys strength. A high unemployment rate generally indicates an economy in recession

The Many Faces of American Identity Free Essays

Since the Civil War, America’s identity and the identity of its citizens has gone through multiple transitions, each building upon or rejecting the ideas and principles of those issues which had come before. From the racial segregation and discrimination of African Americans from the time of Reconstruction through the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, the plight of the poor and the politically disenfranchised, the struggle for equal rights for women and homosexuals, and the post-Cold War issues of globalization and economic viability in a changing world, the concept of what it means to be American has adapted to both the successes and failures of each. At the basis of each of these struggles is the idea that at periods throughout American history each of these groups have felt the need to be heard and represented, having been marginalized by social and political injustices and ideologies that at each turn represented a hypocrisy over the basic tenets of freedom and liberty. We will write a custom essay sample on The Many Faces of American Identity or any similar topic only for you Order Now Unrepresented and kept outside of the political process and the mainstream social identity, these groups have sought to alternately belong to a concept of the American identity and to redefine it. In examining each of these developments, from Jacob Riis 1890 expose of the New York City slums to the new freedoms and challenges of the post-Cold War America of presidents Clinton and G. W. Bush, I will illustrate how each social and political revelation combine to create an American identity that is uncertain of its future while carrying an awareness of its past. Jacob Riis 1890 book How The Other Half Live gave the average, middle-class American room for pause. In his description of the slums and challenges faced by the economically and socially handicapped masses of New York City, show an underbelly to the American dream. The poverty and inequality that pervade the plight of the tenement dweller, both black and white, is at odds with the ideals of freedom. In particular, Riis makes a case for African-Americans who having recently been emancipated had fled the institutionalized racism of the South to come work and live in New York. However, they have escaped one kind of bondage, clearly and legally defined, to be forced into a socially ambiguous but no less prevalent form of degradation and discrimination. But even as Riis decries the struggle of the newly arrived blacks, who based upon their skin color alone are placed at the bottom of the social ladder, his own views speak of a different kind of discrimination. While at once condemning the landlords who profit by courting black tenants due to the ability to charge more money, Riis explanation of the character of blacks is simplistic and demeaning, likening them more to children than adults equal in every respect to their white counterparts, â€Å"If his emotions are not very deeply rooted, they are at least sincere while they last, and until the tempter gets the upper hand again†(Riis, p. 155). He also expresses a desire to maintain a level of segregation, calling the mixing of races on Thompson Street where the â€Å"this co-mingling of the utterly depraved of both sexes, white and black, on such ground, there can be no greater abomination† (p. 156). Despite the shortcomings of his viewpoint, influenced by the historical relationship of whites and blacks in the U. S. , Riis nevertheless realizes that blacks are being pushed away from the very equality promised to them as citizens, as Americans. Additionally, the poor native New Yorkers and immigrants who people the tenements, share a similar burden. Reduced by economic and social circumstance to merely subsist on the scraps of a society which has turned a blind eye to them, the â€Å"pauper† is in a position devoid of hope, He is as hopeless as his own poverty† (Riis, 1890, p. 246). Immigrants such as the Irish fared no better in Riis opinion, being particular vulnerable to the moral deterioration of slum life being the â€Å"soonest and most thoroughly† (Riis, 1890, p. 249) corrupted. The kind of separation between economic and racial portions of society, as well as the defense of one while the other remains degraded, is a common thread that runs throughout the changes of the last century in America’s identity. The 1896 Supreme Court ruling in the case of Plessy vs. Ferguson legalized this type of segregation with the â€Å"separate but equal† predecent, providing a constitutional basis for Jim Crow laws to flourish and plant deeper roots in the American South. Though struck down over a half a century later by the Court’s decision in Brown vs. Board of Education, the realization of equality as American citizens regardless of race, religion, sexuality, gender, or economic status proved to not be so easy. While in 1881 Chester Arthur hoped to assimilate the Native American population into the broader scope of white society through re-education and removal of tribal affiliation and heritage, no such policy was established in regard to African Americans. As with the struggle for women’s and gay rights, the struggle for African American equality culminated within the community itself. The refusal of Southern lawmakers to rise out of the era of racism and embrace a new concept of American, as non-white and white side-by-side, created a necessity to action. As Martin Luther King Jr. ’s 1962 â€Å"Letter From a Birmingham Jail† attempted to explain this need to the black power structure which both supported and chastised him for his actions in Birmingham and across the South, â€Å"â€Å"unfortunate that demonstrations are taking place in Birmingham, but it is even more unfortunate that the city’s white power structure left the Negro community no alternative. † More importantly, King understood the concept of the â€Å"mutuality† of the American community, whether it be black or white, male or female, which was picked up again by the youth culture that grew to embody a sense of change and challenge, as embodied in the Port Huron Statement. King noted in 1962 that, â€Å"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. † There is truth still in that statement, as well as in the ideals placement within other struggles for equality. It is a concept that not only did the student protesters understood but was an equal basis for Betty Friedan’s Feminine Mystique and the rise of the feminist movement and later the push for gay rights and better federal programs to combat the AIDS crisis. Like the inequalities of the previous century, the poverty described by Riis and the racism inherent to the continued racial discrimination, the gender and sexuality issue that has come to a head over the past fifty years have effectively acted to undermine the idealized definition of American while also harming the fabric of society. Disenfranchised people are left to stagnate rather than grow and instead of reasoned change it boils over in emotion and uncertainty. The women in Friedan’s Feminine Mystique cannot name the hypocrisy of the country’s national values and the gender roles programmed into their psyche and are bowed under an enemy they cannot see. The hypocrisy of American identity has not evaporated but instead become more difficult to understand and identify; to be American has built upon the ideals established by King and Friedan, whose spirit of questioning and rebellion have become part of what it is to be American even as new and more complex cracks have appeared in the facade of such a delicate but no less no dream of freedom and liberty. Both President Bill Clinton and George W. Bush illustrate this new era of a globalized identity with in their respective inaugurations. Each faced challenges during their presidencies, differing on a wide-array of social and political issues. However, on the cusp of their first term they express the optimism and unfailing double-blindness of a nation which tries to steer its hope to the future while alternately cowering against and celebrating its past. Constantly aware of our differences, America has attempted to celebrate this difference even as we continue to marginalize along the lines of race, religion, politics, social status, and gender. It is a cycle of self-hate and self-love that has become as much a part of the American identity as the mythological concept of the American dream. Bibliography Arthur, C. (1881). Indian Policy Reform. PBS. Retrieved 30 April 2010 from http://www. pbs. org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/seven/indpol. htm. Brown vs. Board. (1954). Find Law. Retrieved 30 April 2010 from http://caselaw. lp. findlaw. com/scripts/getcase. pl? court=USvol=347invol=483. Friedan, B. (1962). Feminine Mystique. H-Net. Retrieved 1 May 2010 from http://www. h-net. org/~hst203/documents/friedan1. html. King, M. L. Jr. (1963). Letter From a Birmingham Jail. The Martin Luther King Jr. Research Education Institute. Retrieved 1 May 2010 from http://mlk-kpp01. stanford. edu/kingweb/popular_requests/frequentdocs/birmingham. pdf. Plessy vs. Ferguson. (1896). Find Law. Retrieved 30 April 2010 from http://caselaw. lp. findlaw. com/scripts/getcase. pl? court=USvol=163invol=537. Riis, J. (1890). How The Other Half Lives. New York: Charles Schribner Sons. Google Books. Retrieved 1 May 2010 from http://books. google. com/books? id=zhcv_oA5dwgCdq=How+the+Other+Half+Livessource=gbs_navlinks_s. How to cite The Many Faces of American Identity, Papers

English Paper Joy Luck Club free essay sample

A Look at the Concept of Double-Life Amy Tan’s  The Joy Luck Club  is a narrative mosaic made up of the lives of four Chinese women and their Chinese American daughters. Because of its structure, the book can only loosely be called a novel. It is composed of sixteen stories and four vignettes, but like many novels, it has central characters who develop through the course of the plot. The daughters struggle with the complexities of modern life, including identity crises and troubled relationships, while the mothers reflect on past actions that were dictated by culture and circumstance. The lives of the older women are bound together through their similar situations as immigrants and their monthly mah-jongg games at Joy Luck Club meetings. Each of the stories is a first-person narration by one of the Joy Luck Club’s three mothers or four daughters. Each narrator tells two stories about her own life, except for Jing-mei (June) Woo, who stands in for her deceased mother, telling a total of four stories. The tales are arranged in four groups, with a vignette preceding each group. The first group is told by mothers (plus June), the second and third groups by daughters, and the fourth by mothers. Jing-mei’s final story, in which she learns her mother’s history, concludes the book. â€Å"The Joy Luck Club† is the title of both the novel and this story. Author Amy Tan introduces and explains the concept of â€Å"joy luck† by showing two different Joy Luck Clubs in action. The first Joy Luck Club, in Kweilin, shielded the women’s spirits against the harsh living conditions and constant threat of war. Suyuan had dreamed of visiting Kweilin, a place of great natural beauty, where she thought she would be perfectly happy. Instead, she and the other refugees lived with bad food, disease, overcrowding, and uncertainty. To combat their fear, the women played mah jong once a week. â€Å"Each week we could hope to be lucky. That hope was our only joy. And that’s how we came to call our little parties Joy Luck† (Tan 25). The second Joy Luck Club, in San Francisco, offered hope to women with a common bond. Jing-mei says: â€Å"My mother could sense that the women of these families also had unspeakable tragedies they had left behind in China and hopes they couldn’t begin to express in their fragile English†(Tan 20). The second Joy Luck Club becomes an investment group and social gathering by the time Jing-mei is an adult, and the women have formed strong friendships. â€Å"Joy luck† then becomes a concept the women would like to pass on to their American-born daughters, who do not understand the tragedies their mothers experienced. The mothers are afraid they will have â€Å"grandchildren born without any connecting hope passed from generation to generation† (Tan 31). Accordingly, Tan uses the device of the Joy Luck Club meeting to introduce the mothers and the daughters. She offers initial insight into the mothers’ characters by giving Suyuan’s opinion of them and develops the characters of Jing-mei (June) and Suyuan. The conversation about black sesame-seed soup in the first few paragraphs reveals that Jing-mei understands some Chinese, but imperfectly. Her statement, â€Å"I can never remember things I didn’t understand in the first place,† begins the development of two conflicts. In the first, Jing-mei struggles with understanding her Chinese heritage. Not until the final pages does she come to terms with it. The second conflict, overcoming language problems, affects all the characters to greater and lesser degrees. Later in the story, Jing-mei states she felt as though â€Å"my mother and I spoke two different languages, which we did. I talked to her in English, she answered back in Chinese† (Tan 23). Mothers and daughters struggle with their imperfect understandings of one another, seeking reconciliation. In addition to this, this story also introduces a continuing motif, the idea of seeking balance. Suyuan’s criticism runs along the lines of â€Å"Something was always missing. Something always needed improving. Something was not in balance† (Tan 31). Auntie Lindo explains that Jing-mei will take her mother’s place at mah jong because without her the women are â€Å"like a table with three legs, no balance† (Tan 33). These are minor examples of what will be a significant concept in the novel. Surely, in  The Joy Luck Club, Tan intermingles the thematic treatment of intercultural conflict with that of intergenerational conflict. The mothers who immigrated to the United States from China still have very strong cultural ties to their old home and want to raise their children in the traditional Chinese way. Their Chinese American daughters, however, feel that they are trapped in the conflict between traditional Chinese culture and mainstream American society, between their aspirations for individual freedom and their sense of familial and social obligations, and between their false and their true identities. Paradoxically, the conflict is both frustrating and constructive. The daughters are eventually led to conclude that they must embrace what they cannot culturally reject, and that they are as American as they are Chinese. Thus, The Joy Luck Club  highlights the influence of culture on gender roles. The Chinese mothers in the book, all born in the 1910’s, grew up in a hierarchical society in which a woman’s worth was measured by her husband’s status and his family’s wealth. When they were young, the women were taught to repress their own desires so that they would learn to preserve the family honor and obey their husbands. The difficulties in marriage encountered by Lindo and Ying-ying as well as by An-mei’s mother emphasize how few options were open to women in a tightly structured society in which their economic security and social standing were completely dependent on men. Consequently, when the mothers immigrate to the United States, they want their daughters to retain their Chinese character but take advantage of the more flexible roles offered to women by American culture. The postwar baby-boomer daughters, however, are overwhelmed by having too many choices available. They struggle to balance multiple roles as career women, wives or girlfriends, and daughters. The materialistic focus of American culture makes it difficult for the daughters to internalize their mothers’ values, particularly the self-sacrifice, determination, and family integrity that traditional Chinese culture stresses. In addition to gender roles, mother-daughter relationships are an important focus of the book. Mothers are shown to have profound influence over their daughters’ development, yet their influence is constrained by the surrounding culture. As girls, the Chinese women wanted to be like their mothers, whereas the American-born daughters are estranged from their mothers. This contrast is consistent with a difference between cultures: Americans expect their children to rebel against parental authority, while the Chinese promote obedience and conformity. The daughters in  The Joy Luck Club  think that their mothers are odd because they speak broken English and miss the subtleties of American culture pertaining to dress and social behavior. They also tend to see their mothers as pushy. Waverly and June rebel against their mothers’ expectations without understanding that Lindo and Suyuan are trying to give their daughters the opportunities that they never had themselves. As adults, Waverly and June struggle with the conflicting desires of pleasing their mothers and developing their own individuality. Because they perceive their mothers’ guidance as criticism, they are slow to understand the depth of their mothers’ love and sacrifice for them. Indeed, Peter Tavernise in â€Å"Fasting of the Heart: Mother-Tradition and Sacred Systems in Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club† asserts that â€Å"just as in the Confucian ritual system, very little of the mother-tradition in the text is told explicitly from mother to daughter: ritual actions are supposed to be observed, absorbed, read, and understood in order to be transformed, preserved and handed down in turn. † All in all, despite such generational and cultural gaps, the author suggests that daughters resemble their mothers in character as well as in appearance.