Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Importance of saying No in Antigone Essays

Importance of saying No in Antigone Essays Importance of saying No in Antigone Paper Importance of saying No in Antigone Paper Essay Topic: Antigone In the play Antigone saying No is very significant. All the major characters did refuse to do something or the other all throughout the play. All the major characters like Antigone, Creon, and Ismene did say no a lot in this play. Saying no can be seen as a sign of stubbornness. All the characters said no as they had an obvious reason One of the most significant event in the book is when Ismene said no and decided not to help Antigone in burying Polynices. Ismene believed that women should not fight with men and she was also scared that Creon might kill them. This helps to bring about the character of Ismene in the book. She was seen as more of a girl type as compared to Antigone and she believed that men are the only one who dies for ideas and women should not. Ismene was in a state of confusion throughout the play. At first she refused to help Antigone in burying Polynices, and then she finally decided to join with Antigone, but she was already too late as Antigone rejected her company. Ismene tried to help and she conveyed to her that what she wanted to do was wrong, she tried to help Antigone but Antigone was too stubborn and didnt listen to Ismene. Ismene knew that if Antigone had done her deed she would be killed. Antigone was also the one that said no to almost everything. Antigone was a very strong headed girl and she was very focused and determined to bury her own brother Polynices. One of the most significant event was that when Antigone said no to the king and insisted on burying Polynices. She didnt follow the secular law, the law that the king uphold and followed. This brings out her character and also it helps in the plot development. This showed that Antigone believed that what she was doing was right. She had all the reasons to bury Polynices and she was not scared to face her own death. Antigone cant hate but love, this was one of the most important reason why she tried to bury Polynices. Although she knew that she was going to be killed but she believed that she owed it to him to give him a good burial. This was the reason in which Antigone was finally killed. I didnt say yes. I can say no to anything I say vile, and I dont have to count the cost. But because you said yes, all that you can do, for all your crown and your trappings, and your guards-all that your can do is to have me killed, this whole line shows that Antigone said no to all that was vile, King Creon didnt actually want to execute Antigone but he had to as it was his own rule that anyone that tries to bury the body of Polynices will be put to death. Another event which is significant is when Antigone said no to her nurse. Her nurse was like a mother to Antigone. She had been taking care of Antigone the whole time. She serves as a comfort for Antigone, I can hold your calloused hand, your hand that is so prompt to ward off evil, this line shows that Antigone needed her nurse and that she helps her to ward off all the evils. But then the nurse accused her of going out at night to meet a lover and Antigone didnt tell her the truth. Antigone was repeatedly asked what was wrong with her, but she never told her nurse the truth. Where is your pain, the nurse asked Antigone but she didnt reply and just replied nowhere. Antigone constantly said no to her nurse and didnt tell her what she had done. Then Antigone told her nurse to promise to take care of her dog. This event shows that Antigone knew that she was going to be killed, but then she was not afraid. She was very sure that whatever she has done was the right thing to do and she did not regret and was not sorry for whatever she has done. King Creon was also very persistent believed and couldnt say no to the law he has made. His tragic flaw was that he was self- righteous and he believed that the divine law can be replaced by the human law and he believed that every women like Antigone should be killed or put to death so there will be natural balance and that no woman can ever best a man. One of the most important conversation in the play was when Antigone said no to you, and die, then Creon replied by saying that it is very easy to say no(pg 51). This whole conversation shows the state of confusion that Creon and Antigone Is in and it also shows the grudge Antigone had. Saying no in the play Antigone is very significant in giving or revealing the character of each of the character and also it helps in the plot development. It also gives us an account of each of the character attitude towards life.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Advantages and Disadvantages of a Marketing Plan

Advantages and Disadvantages of a Marketing Plan A well-written, comprehensive marketing plan is the focal point of all business ventures because marketing describes how you plan to attract and retain customers. This is the most crucial aspect of a business. Having a marketing plan is essential to any successful business. In fact, it is the heart of the business and the basis from which all other operational and management plans are derived. Marketing can give inventors a wealth of information that, if applied correctly, can virtually ensure your success. Therefore, it is important that you, as a first-time business owner, develop a comprehensive, effective marketing plan. If you need assistance in accomplishing this task, contact your local SBA office. You can find them by looking through the local telephone directory under U.S. Government for the telephone number and address of the office nearest you. You can also get that information by going to the U.S. Small Business Administrations website and entering your zip code in the section local assistance.   An effective marketing plan will certainly boost your sales and increase your profit margins. You must be able to convince customers that you have the best product or service for them at the best possible price. If you cannot convince potential customers of this, then you are wasting your time and money. This is where the marketing plan comes into play, and this is why it is so important. There are numerous advantages you can extract from the marketplace if you know how. And the marketing plan is an excellent tool for identifying and developing strategies for putting these advantages to work. Business Advantages Identifies needs and wants of consumersDetermines demand for a productAids in the design of products that fulfill consumers needsOutlines measures for generating the cash for daily operations, to repay debts and to turn a profitIdentifies competitors and analyzes your products or firms competitive advantageIdentifies new product areasIdentifies new and/or potential customersAllows for testing to see if strategies are generating the desired results Business Disadvantages Identifies weaknesses in your business skillsCan lead to faulty marketing decisions if data isnt analyzed properlyCreates unrealistic financial projections if information isnt interpreted correctlyIdentifies weaknesses in your overall business plan Review Its always good to review what goes into a marketing plan. Write down what you can remember on a blank sheet and then compare it to this quick fact sheet. The marketing plan offers numerous advantages; however, as you can see, there can be drawbacks. Keep in mind that the advantages outweigh the drawbacks and you can always seek professional assistance when you are developing the marketing section of your business plan. It may be worth the investment.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

The Causes of Crime Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Causes of Crime - Term Paper Example    One of the well-known researches that applied the Sociological Theory was made by a French Sociologist named Emile Durkheim. He conducted a classic study of suicide, with an attempt to explain the difference between the sociological from psychological intentions of individuals. According to Durkheim, there are four main types of suicide: Egoistic suicide – committed by people who do not feel attached to a group or community that commands their loyalty and participation, for example, foreign students in America who are away from their family and friends. Altruistic suicide – committed by people who have excessive loyalty to his group than himself, for example, soldiers compared to the individual. Fatalistic suicide – occurs when people believe that there is nothing they can do to alter their living conditions. Anomic suicide – people depend on social guidelines to order their lives and they commit these suicides to have one consequence when rules of behavior are conflicting (Encyclopedia of Death and Dying, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In arriving at his conclusions, Durkheim identified few factors relating to the issue and applied theories one at a time to the data until they fitted. He concluded that â€Å"suicide rate varied from group to group† (Gelles and Levine, 1999, p.25). It means to say that there is no exact causal pattern for suicide and the tendency that people may or may not commit suicide depends upon the attributes of the group he belongs to. For example, Japanese soldiers were most likely to take their lives than other members of armed forces; â€Å"unmarried people had much higher rates than married people did† (Schaefer, 2001, p. 11). Though Durkheim offered a more scientific explanation to the causes of suicides compared to other findings, his conclusions were still weak. A theory is not a final explanation of events, like human behavior. That is why sociologists continue to determine other factors that will explain why people commit suicide (summarized based f rom Shaefer, 2001, p.11; website reference containing closely similar facts at http://www.hewett.norfolk.sch.uk/CURRIC/soc/durkheim/durkw2.htm)

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Social media Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Social media - Research Paper Example Since social media is broad topic and contributes to our lives differently. From the uprisings and revolts seen in the Arab countries between 2010 and 2012, is correct to say that social media plays a role in uprisings. This paper shall seek to explain how social media sites and networks contribute to revolts and uprisings, what are the possible strategies that can be put into use to minimize the use of social media to propagate revolts and uprisings, and lastly, it will also examine if there is any link between access of social media sites with uprisings and revolts. The Arab Spring explained as the revolutionary wave of protests, civil wars, and demonstrations began taking place on 18 December 2010 in the Arab world (Merlini and Roy 67). These revolts were triggered by dissatisfaction in the manner in which the local government were ruling, human rights violations, extreme poverty, unemployment, political corruption, economic decline, and several other demographic structural factors. In conducting their demonstrations and protests, the youths used Twitter and Facebook to communicate to their fellow protesters in other cities, as well as the whole world. They formed Facebook pages which they used to communicate with other protesters (Beaumont). These pages gave them a platform to unite together as well as share their opinions and views on how the revolt was progressing. They also uploaded pictures of themselves demonstrating against the dictatorial regimes that they were against. These pictures informed the whole world what was happening in Egyp t and Libya. Additionally, the protesters also made Facebook and Twitter updates on the situation on the ground (Beaumont). This played an instrumental role since they could warn other protesters in other small towns of imminent attack by the government soldiers. BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) also assisted the rioters since it helped them send coded messages to plan attacks,

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Glmaorizing Teen Pregnancy Essay Example for Free

Glmaorizing Teen Pregnancy Essay Media, specifically television has taken the issue of teen pregnancy to a whole other level. The shows 16 and Pregnant, Teen Mom, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager document the lives of young teenage girls facing the issue of being a pregnant teenager. Originally created to show the controversial subject of teen pregnancy, all of these shows soon began to change. As the seasons continued in all three of these shows, the controversial subject of teen pregnancy soon became a glorifying concept. What was first viewed as just a fantasy is now becoming a reality for many teenagers. Viewers of these shows are now seeing that teen pregnancy isn’t all that bad; it may even be considered normal according to MTV and ABC Family. The â€Å"teenage celebrities† on these shows are making it through life just fine; portraying that anyone else can too. Yes, these teenagers may have faced hard times in the beginning, but at the end of the day, their lives are unrealistically viewed as ordinary. Both MTV and ABC Family depict the lifestyle of being a pregnant teenager to be somewhat glamorizing. The reality television show 16 and Pregnant was first aired on MTV on June 11, 2009. This show follows the stories of four pregnant teenage girls [Farrah, Maci, Amber and Catelynn] that are in high school dealing with the hardships of teenage pregnancy. â€Å"Each episode follows a five to seven month period in the life of a teenager as she navigates the bumpy terrain of adolescence, growing pains, rebellion, and coming of age; all while dealing with being pregnant† (MTV. com). During the first few episodes of season one, the struggles of dealing with teenage pregnancy seemed difficult and nearly impossible. MTV portrayed each girl as if they were not going to make it through this crisis they were about to face, and their lives were soon coming to an end because being a pregnant teen was not acceptable. As the show continued and episodes passed, these so called â€Å"hardships†, no longer seemed to be that difficult. With all the support from their families and/or boyfriends that they received, these teenage girls were able to get through this bump in the road pretty well. Not only did they get support from people they knew, they received the most of their support from MTV. While teenage pregnancy might have started out rough, becoming an MTV celebrity could not have been too bad. According to Arienne Thompson, author of â€Å"16, Pregnant †¦ and Famous: Teem Moms Are TV’s New Stars†, â€Å"All four women are mainstays on USA TODAYs Celebrity Heat Index, which measures media exposure; Portwood [Amber] topped the list for October, beating out Angelina Jolie and Prince William. The moms are regularly on the covers of People and Us Weekly and have Facebook fan pages dedicated to them† (USA Today). Putting the stars of these reality shows on a magazine cover puts them in the same place as any other famous person. The message that is being sent out to girls is that if they get pregnant as a result of being sexually active, then they too can end up on TV or on a magazine cover. Being sixteen and pregnant may not be the most ideal lifestyle, but becoming more popular than an experienced, well-known actress at the age of sixteen is another story. Viewers of 16 and Pregnant now see that if they become pregnant at a young age, they also can have the chance to become famous alike Farrah, Maci, Amber and Catelynn did. MTV did not decide to stop there though. As if these girls were not famous enough, as a continuation of 16 and Pregnant, MTV aired Teen Mom on December 8, 2009, only six short months after the broadcast of 16 and Pregnant took place. This show takes the four teenagers from 16 and Pregnant, and documents their first few years of motherhood. Receiving more attention than before, MTV has millions of viewers watching Teen Mom each week, making these â€Å"teenage celebrities† even more famous. Teen Mom executive producer Morgan J. Freeman says, â€Å"The concern for teens, however, is what else they may see in the show. While the Teen Mom stars have their share of struggles on the small screen each week, paparazzi shots and tabloid covers manage to rip them out of the context of MTV and place them in the realm of celebrity† (USA Today). Even celebrities agree that the characters on these shows are becoming too idolized. â€Å"Kim Kardashian boldly states that â€Å"It seems like shows like ‘Teen Mom’ are all of a sudden making teen pregnancy look cool in the eyes of young girls. She even goes a step farther and says that the girls from the shows â€Å"have become almost like celebrities, but girls these are not people you should idolize! †Ã¢â‚¬  (Jadebt13). Along with MTV, ABC Family decided to air a show following the life of a pregnant teenager. On, July 1, 2008, ABC Family aired the show, The Secret Life of the American Teenager, which became the network’s most watched series in the 12-34 demographic (McKay 1). This show follows the character Amy Jergen through her pregnant life, and also through her life of being a mother. In the first season, Amy realizes that she has become pregnant, and does not know how to tell her friends or family. This season shows the struggles that Amy faces while being pregnant, but as the season comes to an end, life become simpler to Amy. The Secret Life of the American Teenagers glamorizes her teen pregnancy by having the schools marching band play their instruments as Amy first returns back to school after finding out that she has become pregnant [which is a little unrealistic]. Not only does this event take place, but also Amy’s boyfriend, which is not the father of her soon to be son, proposes the idea of getting married and helping her take care of the baby. At the start of the second season, Amy has her baby boy, named John. With the birth of John everything soon turned into a fairytale ending, and her life completely turned around; her boyfriend problems fall into place, and she started to receive support from her family, friends and community. This season sent out the message to its viewers that if you become pregnant as a teenager, you will have support from surrounding people, when that is not always the case. In conclusion, television is glamorizing the lifestyle of pregnant teenagers. The shows 16 and Pregnant, Teen Mom, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager all have different story lines to them, but in the end, they all show that some good can come out of being a pregnant teen. 6 and Pregnant and Teen Mom are both reality television shows that idolize the glamour of being pregnant by the publicizing these girls not only on MTV, but also in outside sources such as magazines. The Secret Life of the American Teenager on the other hand, is a scripted television show that depicts teen pregnancy as being a joy, fun, and simple by showing how great life can be having a baby at such a young age. Both MTV and ABC Family chose to air similar concept shows around the same time period that glamorized teen pregnancy when r ealistic having a baby in your teen years is not ideal, nor a pleasure.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Heroics of Women in Ibsens A Dolls House Essay -- A Dolls House Essays

Heroics of Women in Ibsens A Dolls House The Heroics of Women Henrik Ibsen’s â€Å"A Doll’s House† is a play about a young wife and her husband. Nora and Helmer seem to be madly in love with one another and very happy with their lives together. Yet the conflict comes into this show when Nora brags to her friend Ms. Linde about how she had forged her father’s name to borrow money to save her husband’s life and how she had been secretly paying off this debt. Helmer finds out about this crime and is furious, until he finds that no one will ever know about it. This entire conflict is written to bring to light the ridiculous social expectations demanded of both women and men. Ibsen expertly leads the audience into accepting that these social expectations are foolish and wrong. The audience buys into this so much that in the end when Nora stands firm and refuses to bow down to what society demands of her, we see her as the hero. The social expectations of men in the late nineteenth century was of a more patriarchal thought-line then it is today. The man of the house was expected to be the sole provider. This works best for the families of that time, because they believed that by natural design men alone were capable of managing money wisely and carefully. The first scene of the show we see Helmer and Nora acting out this belief. Helmer comes in and he and Nora argue over how much can be spent for Christmas. â€Å"Has the little spendthrift been out throwing money around again? (Ibsen 1569)† He naturally assumes that Nora, being a woman, is out frivolously wasting money. This belief comes very naturally to Helmer. He is the model man of his time, as well as this one. He has a bright future ahead, cares for his family, is kind to his w... ...e door of the apartment she begins her journey to find the truth and to leave the lies and illusions behind (Hemmer 82). She sets out to cure her childishness by going out to learn of life without someone coloring it to their pleasing for her. Nora’s faults that are present throughout the play are evidence of her childlike nature. Nora constantly is munching on and subsequently hiding candy, she off-handedly lies, and also can’t resist bragging to Ms. Linde about what she has done (Boyesen 214). Nora walks out the door to find herself and to learn of life. She leaves the audience much as Ms. Linde met them. She has no hope or future and is alone. She is paralleled to Rank by his exiting his life into the unknown of death completely alone, and she exits her life to enter the unknown of the real world, the world that had been hidden and kept from her (Northam 108)

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

The Hunters: Phantom Chapter 8

â€Å"It was seriously creepy,† said Bonnie. They had al bundled into Matt's car, Elena hopping onto Stefan's lap and Meredith onto Alaric's (which, Bonnie had noted, Dr. Celia had seemed less than thril ed by). Then they'd hurried back to the boardinghouse, looking for counsel. Once there, they'd al crowded into the parlor and spil ed out the story to Mrs. Flowers, talking over one another in their excitement. â€Å"First Celia's name – in my blood – appearing out of nowhere,† Bonnie went on, â€Å"and then there's this weird accident that could have killed her, and then Meredith's name appears, too. It was al just real y, real y creepy.† â€Å"I'd put it a bit more strongly than that,† Meredith said. Then she arched an elegant eyebrow. â€Å"Bonnie, this is no doubt the first time I've ever complained you weren't being dramatic enough.† â€Å"Hey!† Bonnie objected. â€Å"There you go,† Elena joked. â€Å"Keep looking on the bright side. The latest insanity is making Bonnie low-key.† Matt shook his head. â€Å"Mrs. Flowers, do you know what's happening?† Mrs. Flowers, seated in a cozy corner chair of the parlor, smiled and patted him on the shoulder. She'd been knitting when they came in, but had laid the pink bundle of yarn aside and had fixed her calm blue eyes on them with her ful attention as they told their story. â€Å"Dear Matt,† she said. â€Å"Always straight to the point.† Poor Celia had been sitting on the couch by Alaric and Meredith, looking stunned since they'd arrived. It was one thing to study the supernatural, but the reality of a vampire, mysteriously appearing names, and a brush with death must have been a shock to her system. Alaric had a reassuring arm around her shoulders. Bonnie thought maybe the arm should have been around Meredith's shoulders. After al , Meredith's name had just shown up in the scarf's folds. But Meredith was just sitting there, watching Alaric and Celia, her face composed, her eyes unreadable. Now Celia leaned forward and spoke for the first time. â€Å"Pardon me,† she said politely, her voice shaking a bit, â€Å"but I don't understand why we've brought this†¦ this issue to†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Her voice trailed off as her eyes flickered to Mrs. Flowers. Bonnie knew what she meant. Mrs. Flowers looked like the epitome of a sweet, dotty elderly lady: soft flyaway gray hair drawn back in a bun, a politely vague expression, a wardrobe that leaned toward pastels or shabby blacks, and a habit of muttering quietly, apparently to herself. A year ago, Bonnie herself had thought Mrs. Flowers was just the crazy old woman who ran the boardinghouse where Stefan lived. But appearances could be deceptive. Mrs. Flowers had earned the respect and admiration of every one of them by the way she had protected the town with her magic, Power, and good sense. There was a lot more to this little old lady than met the eye. â€Å"My dear,† said Mrs. Flowers firmly, â€Å"you've had a very traumatic experience. Drink your tea. It's a special calming blend that's been passed down in my family for generations. We wil do everything we can for you.† Which, Bonnie observed, was a very sweet and ladylike way of putting Dr. Celia Connor in her place. She was to drink her tea and recuperate, and they would figure out how to solve the problem. Celia's eyes flashed, but she sipped her tea obediently. â€Å"Now,† Mrs. Flowers said, looking around at the others, â€Å"it seems to me that the first thing to do is to figure out what the intention is behind the appearance of the names. Once we do that, perhaps we wil have a better idea of who might be behind their appearance.† â€Å"Maybe to warn us?† Bonnie said hesitantly. â€Å"I mean, Celia's name appeared, and then she almost died, and now Meredith†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Her voice trailed off and she looked at Meredith apologetical y. â€Å"I'm worried you might be in danger.† Meredith squared her shoulders. â€Å"It certainly wouldn't be the first time,† she said. Mrs. Flowers nodded briskly. â€Å"Yes, it's possible that the appearance of the names has a benevolent intention. Let's explore that theory. Someone may be trying to get a warning to you. If so, who? And why do they have to do it in this way?† Bonnie's voice was even softer and more hesitant now. But if no one else was going to say it, she would. â€Å"Could it be Damon?† â€Å"Damon's dead,† Stefan said flatly. â€Å"But when Elena was dead, she warned me about Klaus,† Bonnie argued. Stefan massaged his temples. He looked tired. â€Å"Bonnie, when Elena died, Klaus trapped her spirit between dimensions. She hadn't ful y passed away. And even then, she could only visit you in your dreams – not anyone else, just you, because you can sense things other people can't. She couldn't make anything happen in the physical world.† Elena's voice trembled. â€Å"Bonnie, the Guardians told us that vampires don't live on after death. In any sense of the word. Damon's gone.† Stefan reached out and took her hand, his eyes troubled. Bonnie felt a sharp stab of sympathy for them both. She was sorry she'd brought Damon up, but she hadn't been able to stop herself. The thought that he might be watching over them, irascible and mocking but ultimately kind, had briefly lifted the weight from her heart. Now that weight came crashing back down. â€Å"Wel ,† she said dul y, â€Å"then I don't have any idea who might be warning us. Does anybody else?† They al shook their heads, baffled. â€Å"Who even knows about us now that has this kind of power?† Matt asked. â€Å"The Guardians?† said Bonnie doubtful y. But Elena shook her head with a quick decisive motion, blond hair swinging. â€Å"It's not them,† she said. â€Å"The last thing they'd do is send a message in blood. Visions would be more their style. And I'm pretty sure the Guardians washed their hands of us when they sent us back here.† Mrs. Flowers interlocked her fingers in her lap. â€Å"So perhaps there is some as yet unknown person or being looking after you, warning you of danger ahead.† Matt had been sitting ramrod straight in one of Mrs. Flowers's daintier chairs, and it creaked alarmingly as he leaned forward. â€Å"Um,† he said. â€Å"I think the better question is, what's causing that danger?† Mrs. Flowers spread her smal , wrinkled hands. â€Å"You're perfectly right. Let's consider the options. On the one hand, it could be a warning for something that was natural y going to happen. Celia's – you don't mind if I cal you Celia, do you, dear?† Celia, stil looking shel -shocked, shook her head. â€Å"Good. Celia's scarf getting caught in the train doors could have been a natural accident. Forgive me for saying so, but those long, dramatic scarves can be very dangerous. The dancer Isadora Duncan was kil ed in just that way when her scarf caught in the wheel of a car many years ago. Perhaps whoever sent the message was simply raising a flag for Celia to be careful, or for the rest of you to take care of her. Perhaps Meredith merely needs to be cautious over the next few days.† â€Å"You don't think so, though, do you?† asked Meredith sharply. Mrs. Flowers sighed. â€Å"This al feels rather malevolent to me. I think if someone wanted to warn you about the possibility of accidents, they could find a better way than names written in blood. Both of these names appeared as the results of rather violent incidents, correct? Bonnie cutting herself and Stefan ripping the scarf from Celia's neck?† Meredith nodded. Looking troubled, Mrs. Flowers continued. â€Å"And, of course, the other possibility is that the appearance of the names is itself malicious. Perhaps the names' appearance is an essential ingredient in or targeting method for some spel that is causing the danger.† Stefan frowned. â€Å"You're talking about dark magic, aren't you?† Mrs. Flowers met his eyes squarely. â€Å"I'm afraid so. Stefan, you're the oldest and most experienced of us by far. I've never heard of anything like this, have you?† Bonnie felt a bit surprised. Of course, she knew that Stefan was much older than even Mrs. Flowers – after al , he'd been alive before electricity, or running water, or cars, or anything they took for granted in the modern world, while Mrs. Flowers was probably only in her seventies. But stil , it was easy to forget how long Stefan had lived. He looked just like any other eighteen-year-old, except that he was exceptional y handsome. A traitorous thought flickered at the back of her mind, one she'd had before: How was it that Elena always got al the best-looking guys? Stefan was shaking his head. â€Å"Nothing like this, no. But I think you're right that it may be dark magic. Perhaps, if you spoke to your mother about it†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Celia, who was starting to take more of an interest in what was going on, looked at Alaric quizzical y. Then she cast a glance toward the door, as if expecting a hundredyear-old woman to wander in. Bonnie grinned to herself, despite the seriousness of the situation. They had al gotten so matter-of-fact about Mrs. Flowers's frequent conversations with the ghost of her mother that none of them blinked when Mrs. Flowers gazed off into space and started muttering rapidly, eyebrows lifting, eyes scanning unoccupied space as if someone unseen were speaking to her. But to Celia it must have seemed pretty strange. â€Å"Yes,† said Mrs. Flowers, returning her attention to them. â€Å"Mama says there is indeed something dark stirring in Fel ‘s Church. But† – her hands lifted, palms empty – â€Å"she cannot tel what form it takes. She simply warns us to be careful. Whatever it is, she can sense that it's deadly.† Stefan and Meredith frowned, taking this in. Alaric was murmuring to Celia, probably explaining what was going on. Matt bowed his head. Elena pushed on, already working on the next angle. â€Å"Bonnie, what about you?† she asked. â€Å"Huh?† Bonnie asked. Then she realized what Elena meant. â€Å"No. Nuh-uh. I'm not going to know anything Mrs. Flowers's mother doesn't.† Elena just looked at her, and Bonnie sighed. This was important, after al . Meredith's name was next, and if there was one thing that was true, it was that she and Meredith and Elena had one another's backs. Always. â€Å"Al right,† she said reluctantly. â€Å"I'l see if I can find out anything else. Can you light me a candle?† â€Å"What now?† Celia asked in confusion. â€Å"Bonnie's psychic,† Elena explained simply. â€Å"Fascinating,† Celia said brightly, but her eyes slid, cool and disbelieving, across Bonnie. Wel , whatever. Bonnie didn't care what she thought. She could assume that Bonnie was pretending or crazy if she wanted to, but she'd see what happened eventual y. Elena brought a candle over from its spot on the mantel, lit it, and placed it on the coffee table. Bonnie swal owed, licked her lips, which were suddenly dry, and tried to focus on the candle flame. Although she'd had plenty of practice, she didn't like doing this, didn't like the sensation of losing herself, as if she were sliding underwater. The flame flickered and grew brighter. It seemed to swel and fil Bonnie's field of vision. Al she could see was flame. I know who you are, a cold, rough voice suddenly growled in her ear, and Bonnie twitched. She hated the voices, sometimes as soft as if they were coming from a distant television, sometimes right beside her, like this one. She somehow always managed to forget them until the next time she began to fal into a trance. A faraway child's voice began a wordless off-key humming, and Bonnie focused on making her breathing slow and steady. She could feel her eyes slipping out of focus. A sour taste, wet and nasty, fil ed her mouth. Envy twisted, sharp and bitter, inside her. It's not fair, not fair, something muttered sul enly in her skul . And then blackness took over. Elena watched apprehensively as Bonnie's pupils widened, reflecting the candle flame. Bonnie was able to sink into trances much more quickly now than when she had begun having them, which worried Elena. â€Å"Darkness rises.† A flat, hol ow voice that didn't sound anything like Bonnie's came from her friend's mouth. â€Å"It's not here yet, but it wants to be. It's cold. It's been cold for a long time. It wants to be near us, out of the darkness and as warm as our hearts. It hates.† â€Å"Is it a vampire?† asked Meredith quickly. The not-Bonnie voice gave a harsh, choking laugh. â€Å"It's much stronger than any vampire. It can find a home in any of you. Watch one another. Watch yourselves.† â€Å"What is it?† asked Matt. Whatever it was that spoke through Bonnie hesitated. â€Å"She doesn't know,† said Stefan. â€Å"Or she can't tel us. Bonnie,† he said intently, â€Å"is someone bringing this thing to us? Who's causing it?† No hesitation this time. â€Å"Elena,† it said. â€Å"Elena brought it.†

Sunday, November 10, 2019

All the Pretty Horses novel

The novel All The Pretty Horses, written by Cormac McCarthy, is filled with much sorrow and negativity. The main character, John Grady Cole, faces plenty of hardships throughout his journey from his home in Texas to Mexico. On the other hand, McCarthy writes this award-winning book in a positive way, demonstrating the balance between optimism and pessimism in our world. He shows how John Grady Cole has matured and grown substantially because of this negativity he faces. The reader can clearly see the negativity not only in the first page of the novel, but also in the first paragraph.McCarthy begins the book with, â€Å"†¦ he looked at the face so caved and drawn among the folds of funeral cloth, the yellowed moustache, the eyelids paper thin. That was not sleeping†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (3). The funeral described in the first page is John Grady’s grandpa’s funeral. Starting a book off in this way (with a dead body) obviously points the reader towards the opinion that this book is a long, dreadful ride with much death and destruction. The image of the coffin, the yellowing moustache, and the deceased person clearly shows the negativity that fills this book.Throughout the book, John Grady Cole faces many challenges and much adversity and learns to live with it. After leaving their home in Texas, John Grady and his best friend Rawlins travel hundreds of miles deep into the heart of Mexico on horseback until they reach a ranch offering work called La Purisima. Both of these boys are skilled at working with horses and spend most of their time at the ranch taming and taking care of the many horses there. While working at La Purisima, John meets the ranch owner’s daughter, a beautiful girl named Alejandra, and falls in love.Alejandra’s father absolutely does not appreciate this; in fact, he orders for John Grady and Rawlins to be arrested because of John’s interactions with Alejandra. The hardships that these boys face are relentless, h owever, John Grady refuses to hang his head and give up. On their way to the jail, John Grady says to Rawlins, â€Å"I can’t back up and start over. But I don’t see the point in slobberin over it† (155). At this point, McCarthy reveals how John Grady has matured and has learned to live with the sorrows he faces.With this new found maturity, and as John Grady Cole overcomes this terrible journey of negativity, he has learned to live with the pessimism and has found out how the negatives go side by side with the positives. Nearing the end of the book John Grady Cole realizes that â€Å"the world’s pain and its beauty moved in a relationship of diverging equity† (282). John Grady has learned the skill of searching for the light in a dark room, constantly refusing to dwell on the negative aspects of his many horrible situations.He has a new wisdom of the world and has learned how it works. In conclusion, McCarthy writes All The Pretty Horses with much negativity and at the same time he delivers a lesson of how positivity is hidden in every situation, journey, and life. McCarthy demonstrates how John Grady Cole learns maturity the hard way: through hardships, sorrow and death. This book leaves the reader with a tear in their eye and a smile on their face, for they know that sorrow is sitting on the doorstep of happiness.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

A Critical Evaluation of Jonathan Demmes Philadelphia Essay Example

A Critical Evaluation of Jonathan Demmes Philadelphia Essay Example A Critical Evaluation of Jonathan Demmes Philadelphia Essay A Critical Evaluation of Jonathan Demmes Philadelphia Essay Essay Topic: Film Philadelphia Here I Come The mass media (i.e. film, television and newspapers) is for the mainstream, perhaps the most important source of information about homosexuality and AIDS. Consequently how these subjects are portrayed in the mass media will heavily influence societys understanding of these issues. Jonathan Demmes Philadelphia (1993), a film produced by TriStar is Hollywoods first attempt to confront AIDS and homosexuality. This film deals with how Andrew Beckett, a gay man copes with AIDS, discrimination and the stigmatisation of homosexuality. During this essay I will analyse how AIDS and homosexuality are constructed in Philadelphia by using two opposing strands of argument which show the mechanisms through which the films narrative both reinforces prevailing mainstream cultural values and how it problematises them. I will address five questions that the film prompts: 1) Are the images of the gay men in this film fair and representative of the gay population? 2) Is the innocent victim/guilty victim paradigm addressed adequately and does the film challenge or reinforce this mainstream ideology? 3) Does the film accurately represent AIDS? 4) How is gay sex addressed, implicitly, explicitly or not at all? 5) How is homophobia dealt with in this film? Finally I will summarise my arguments and in conclusion give my personal opinion of the films capabilities and deficiencies. In order to make the issues of homosexuality and AIDS in this film accessible to straight people, Andrew Becketts/ Tom Hanks character has been toned down. Andrew Beckett is portrayed as charming, masculine and non- threatening. He is normal, white, middle class, a successful lawyer and an all round nice man. In fact Beckett is so unassuming that it is not until he is rushed to hospital to be treated for AIDS (about 20 minutes into the film) that we know he is gay because we meet his same sex partner, Miguel Alvarez/Antonio Banderas. The problem with Philadelphias cleaned up, positive images of gay men is they are not truly representative or an accurate portrayal. Gay men come in all shapes and sizes, colours and creeds and have individual sexual persuasions. As Alan Sinfield said in his book Gay and After: 1 The pervasive images of white, upper-middle class, straight looking people is at the expense of those more distanced from and threatening to the mainstream, such as the poor, ethnic/racial /sexual minorities, drag queens, and butch lesbians The deal is acceptance for the straight-acting at the price of dumping embarrassing brothers and sisters. Hence this film potentially alienates any gay person that is not white, clean-cut and middle-class and it implies to a largely homophobic audience that anything other than a gay man who is virtually indistinguishable from a straight one is unacceptable. However in the films favour it must be said that Philadelphia was not made for a gay audience and it was produced at a time when the social climate was aggressively anti-gay due to the onset of AIDS. As this was Hollywoods first attempt to address AIDS and homosexuality the filmmakers must have felt they needed to present a non-threatening, watered down version of the truth in order to reach and educate a mainstream audience. Another problem with Philadelphia is that it does not address the guilty victim/innocent victim paradigm adequately enough. During the film a courtroom scene takes place where Andrew Beckett is prosecuting the law firm that sacked him because he was ill with AIDS. In this scene a former employee of Becketts law firm is being questioned by a lawyer who asks her how she contracted AIDS. She tells him through a blood transfusion when giving birth. The lawyer then says So in other words, in your case there was no behaviour on your part which caused you to be infected with the virus, it was something that you were unable to avoid, isnt that correct? The former employee replies, I guess, I dont consider myself different from anyone else with this disease. Im not guilty, Im not innocent, Im just trying to survive. Although the film attempts to address the innocent/guilty paradigm it leaves the message open to interpretation. Viewers could either agree with the lawyer, believing the former employee to be innocent because she contracted the virus through a blood transfusion and not gay sex thus implying that anyone who contracted AIDS through gay sex is guilty. Alternatively, the viewer might agree with the former employer who thinks of herself as not innocent or guilty, just a human being person trying to survive an illness. The film should have been more explicit in delivering its intended message that there are no guilty victims just people whom have HIV and are dying of AIDS. In this instance, Philadelphia fails to challenge the mainstream ideologies instituted in the1980s and 1990s by many of the straight population and people in the medical establishment who blamed AIDS on gay men and branded it the 2 gay cancer, a divine retribution delivered by God to punish deviants and perverts. A further deficiency within this film is that it could be accused of making AIDS look heroic and sweet because many aspects of Philadelphia are far too idyllic. As illustrated earlier Andrew Beckett is an ideal man, he is charming, good-looking educated etc. and he miraculously wins his court battle against a huge law firm. Andrews family are wonderful, loving and understanding and even his boyfriend, Miguel is ever devoted, even when Andrew has cheated him on in a cinema with an unknown man. The same kind of unrealism is true of the films portrayal of AIDS, as Jefft says in his film review on the Gay.Net website: 3 It isnt like a Tom Hanks movie you dont get hugged by Antonio Bandaras and gently expire while Joanne Woodward weeps for you in the corner. It takes forever, and you wont win an Oscar for putting yourself through it. Instead, youll turn into a skeleton slowly, achingly over time, and lose your job, your money, your lovers, your eyesight, your appetite, your bowel control, your memory, your mind. Youll rage and scream, youll alienate all of your friends and family and ruin their love for you and destroy your regard for yourself. I would rather step on a land mine in Vietnam and die with my body parts hanging in a tree. A more true-to-life and less ideal representation of the issues surrounding AIDS in this film would have helped to give the mainstream a more real understanding and perhaps helped them to examine their ideological beliefs concerning AIDS and homosexuality. The most striking problem with this film is its refusal to address gay sex. The relationship between Andrew and Miguel is so chaste it is difficult to tell that they are lovers. In fact Andrew is more intimate with his mother and sisters than with his own boyfriend, he hugs kisses and dances with his family whereas the only affection he shows for Miguel is a quick peck on the cheek and a slow dance which is anything but intimate. This failure to show intimacy is deeply problematic and reinforces the misconception that homosexual sex is something to be ashamed of and hidden. It compounds the ideology that homosexual contact is deviant and perverted and thus too offensive to show on film. Philadelphia should have depicted intimacy between Andrew and Miguel, it could even have shown them using a condom, this may have been more useful to a homophobic audience than having no sex scenes at all and would have delivered the message that there is absolutely nothing wrong with gay sex. The filmmakers management of homophobia is very complicated in this film because Philadelphia clearly denounces civil rights discrimination. This can be seen in the fact that Andrew Beckett wins the court case against his previous employers who sacked him because he has AIDS. Yet, Philadelphia does not totally damn the social bigotry and prejudices that can be seen clearly in Jo Miller/Denzel Washingtons character. In this film Andrew Beckett decides to take his previous law firm to court and attempts to hire Jo Miller a homophobic, black lawyer who is very reluctant to take the case. However Jo is won over only because he witnesses Andrew being treated badly (as black people have been treated) by an embarrassed librarian who urges a very ill looking Andrew out of public view. To its merit, the film draws a clear parallel between discrimination against blacks and discrimination against people with AIDS because it is Jos identification, as a black man, with Andrew that leads him to represent Andrew in court. Throughout the court case Joe Miller who is a raging homophobic is gradually seen to shift his point of view as he works with and gets to know Andrew Beckett. However, Joes transformation is very uncertain because he never really gets to the point of being comfortable with Andrews homosexuality or his illness. He only reaches a stage where he can identify with Andrew on the level of a person who has been discriminated against. In fact one scene towards the end of he film still shows just how homophobic he still is. Joe is in the bar and one of his friends is jibbing him that he must be gay because he is representing a gay man. Joe retorts Hey, let me tell you something, these people make me sick, Philko, but a law has been broken. You remember the law, dont you? So in the end this film delivers the message that gays especially those with AIDS should be entitled to equal civil rights but homosexuality is still an abomination that is not to be condoned. In conclusion, there are some major problems with the film: the images of the gay men are not fair or representative of the gay population, it fails to adequately challenge the mainstream ideology that gay men have AIDS because of their deviant behaviour, it idealises and glamorises AIDS, completely denies gay sex and a fails to clearly define its position on homophobia. However having said all this I still believe considering the social climate and that it was a first attempt to broach these subjects by Hollywood that it was groundbreaking. Director Jonathan Demme did not make this film for people already educated about AIDS. He made it for an ignorant public that does not know the difference between HIV and AIDS, that thinks it can catch HIV from touching an infected person and that still brands gay men as perverts. It is for people such as these that Philadelphia, with all its shortcomings, helped to increase their general understanding of AIDS and may have forced them to examine their fear of AIDS and dogmatic and intolerant treatment of gay people.

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Take Care with Dysphemisms

Take Care with Dysphemisms Take Care with Dysphemisms Take Care with Dysphemisms By Mark Nichol You probably know what a euphemism is: putting lipstick on a pig, as in using the expression â€Å"pass away† in place of the word die, or â€Å"enhanced interrogation† instead of torture. Is dysphemism essentially, the opposite concept any more problematic? Just as a euphemism cloaks a disagreeable or offensive concept with an innocuous or vague label, dysphemism assigns a mildly or scathingly pejorative term to a concept or person that may be considered neutral or positive or may already have a negative connotation or reputation. For example, doctors are sometimes called quacks, and psychiatrists and psychologists are often referred to as shrinks. (Quack derives from quacksalver, from a Dutch word meaning â€Å"seller of salves,† or ointments; quack is equivalent to hawk, a verb meaning â€Å"to sell by calling out.† Shrink is a truncation of â€Å"head shrinker,† from the idea that mental health professionals are no more knowledgeable about the mind than witch doctors who shrink human heads for ritualistic purposes.) Shrink is often used inoffensively, even by psychiatric patients or by psychiatrists themselves. But quack denotes an unscrupulous doctor or someone posing as a doctor or otherwise fraudulently offering to heal others and is rarely used jocularly. Because of the variable connotations among dysphemisms, writers should take care when considering whether to use them. Such terms are unlikely to appear in formal writing, but they may show up in more casual prose, especially in opinionated comments. An accountant might, in jest, refer to himself as a bean counter, but the connotation is of an excessively meticulous person unable to focus on anything other than saving money, and the term is generally offensive. An attorney, on the other hand, would never call herself a shyster, even in a moment of levity, and the word is provocative. â€Å"City slicker†? I’m a relative newcomer to a rural area from a metropolitan one, and I might jokingly self-identify as such, but for anyone else who might think of calling me that, as the (mis)quote from a Gary Cooper movie goes, â€Å"Mister, smile when you call me that.† The same policy applies to tree-hugger or redneck, bookworm or â€Å"frat boy,† â€Å"pencil pusher† or â€Å"talking head†: Use with caution. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Business Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Comparative Forms of AdjectivesTop 11 Writing Apps for iOS (iPhone and iPad)Ebook, eBook, ebook or e-book?

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Western Society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Western Society - Essay Example For instance, the creation of unions such as the National Union of Womens Suffrage Societies which advocated for peaceful approaches (Harrison, 2012). At the time most people, especially men, were opposed to the groups citing the inferior nature of women in the society. The role of the woman at the time was limited to the household setting where they played a lesser role to that of women (Harrison, 2012). From this perspective, the women right to vote was not considered as an option. In addition, women in support of the movement groups were viewed as rebellious and morally and ethically wrong. As technology advanced, the perception on war was based on the assumption that the better a country was technologically equipped with weapons, the more likely they were to win the war. This was a shift from the preference of the proper use of military action. For instance, the invention of nuclear weapons changed the perspective of war (Hopkins, 2007). A country well supplied with nuclear weapons could easily match any conventional military action. For this reason, many countries sort to align themselves with the best and deadliest nuclear weapons. In addition, nations with the resources to develop nuclear weapons were the only parties to enjoy its benefits. Consequently, these changes increased the aims and objectives of imperialism. Rich and more technological advanced nations were able to control and command poor nations. On most occasions, poor nations feared instances of war which they knew they could lose. For instance, the technology available for the United States and the So viet Union increased their global superiority reign (Hopkins, 2007). The escalation of the cold war was in three phases. The first phase began two years after the end of the Second World War. The USSR ensured it controlled states in Eastern Europe while the United States created a global strategy to minimize the significance of the soviets. The U.S supported countries in Western

Friday, November 1, 2019

Greenhouse gas emissions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Greenhouse gas emissions - Assignment Example Fluorinated gases in combination with chlorinated gases form chloro-fluoro carbon or CFC which are the major factors responsible for deteriorating the quality of Earths atmosphere. They are responsible for the depletion of Ozone layer, paving the way for harmful uv radiation in the planet. Green house gases take up and give off radiations in the thermal infrared range and hence lay the foundation for green house effect, a rise in temperature. Therefore, Green house gases greatly affect the temperature of the earth, causing an exponential rise in the planets temperature. This has resulted in alteration in surface climate, precipitation, famine and surface hydrology, transformation in the open environment, modifications in tropics, subtropics and in the monsoons, conversions in atmospheric conditions, climatic variations and melting of glaciers causing elevation of the sea level. The temperature of the planet is severely affected by these green house gases and the situation has become alarming. In view of this various countries have joined hands to reduce the use of those commodities which are responsible for the emission of GHGs. It is still only the beginning and we have a long way to march down to prevent the further deterioration of the