The Handmaids Tale Analysis Essay Example

The Handmaids Tale Analysis Paper The science fictions novel of Margaret Atwoods The Handmaids Tale portrays how the Republic of Gilead, a totalitarian state, oppressively rules its people because of the dangerously low birth rate. In the perspective of a Handmaid named Offred, Offreds role in society, bearing children for elite couples, is disagreeable and insignificant to her and only abides with the government to save her neck. The authors style of writing conveys vivid images to the mind of the readers and thus, aids in the understanding of the whole situation as the story progresses. In the extract from page two of chapter two, a manifold of literary elements is used to effectively introduce the main themes and issues of the novel. The use of metaphors and similes, many adjectives and punctuations, references to the Bible, and how the passage is structured as a whole are all key factors to consider in order to comprehend even the vague, but equally significant, connotative definitions of the words the author has specifically chosen to use in this extract. This extract teaches the readers about the narrators lifestyle from the very first paragraph. The biblical reference to nunnery announces metaphorically that time here is measured by bells, as once in nunneries and that as in nunnery, there are few mirrors. The negative connotation of the word nunnery hints the cloistered and systematic lifestyle of a nun, who has only one purpose in life: to be devoted to God, avoid being involved in the materialistic world and push away human desires. Therefore, this biblical reference to nunnerysuggests to the readers that the narrator also lives a careful, abstaining, and restricted life with only one purpose in life. We will write a custom essay sample on The Handmaids Tale Analysis specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Handmaids Tale Analysis specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Handmaids Tale Analysis specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The physical appearance is unimportant and thus, as in a nunnery too, there are few mirrors. In this extract, the name of the narrator nor the narrators one purpose in life in the society is not mentioned. However, later on in the story, it becomes more evident that her role in the society is to give birth as service to her Commander and his wife. As in the first paragraph, the rest of the extract consists of long sentences divided into shorter ones by punctuation marks. Commas are the most common forms of punctuation throughout the whole novel. The punctuation marks create a hesitant atmosphere to the extract which correlates with the narrators unsecure state of mind. The language itself is simple and descriptive. For example, the color of blood, red, is a common adjective used throughout the passage: red shoes, red gloves, red cloak, etc. Red describes the pieces of apparel the narrator is wrapped in. The narrator being fully wrapped from head to toe in red leads the readers to hypothesize that this is the narrators state of being every day: tied up by the laws of the Republic of Gilead which has full authorities to control her life. The strong color of red may be tied with the emotions of anger and rebellion the narrator is experiencing. It is hinted that she doesnt enjoy being in this emotional state as she says that I never looked good in red, its not my color. The color blood which defines us may also define the color of love, true love the narrator may have experienced in the past, and birth/reproduction, the narrators only role in society. Also, the references to this color may have the role of revealing the physical and mental states of the narrator which represent the physical and mental states of the rest of the population oppressed by the the Republic of Gilead. The metaphors concerning the nunnery, the similes, like a path, like a carpet for royalty, it show me the way, like the eye of a fish, and myself in it like a distorted shadow, and towards a moment of carelessness that is the same as danger all help convey vivid images to the readers minds by referring to specific colors. The white wings which symbolize the apparel covering the face of the narrator and the lack of mirrors in the house hinder the act of looking at her physical appearance and looking forward. This fact proves that the physical appearance of a person should no longer be valued among the handmaids and thus, creates a forbidding mood to the passage. Despite the dull and melancholy descriptions made by the narrator, the place in which the narrator walks around is described as a model house: polished hallway, like a path through the forest, like a carpet for royalty, late Victorian, the ancient grandfather clock in the hallway, and a motherly front sitting room in which I never sit, but stand or kneel only. These sentences accentuate the wealth of the family of the house as well as the pitiful state of the handmaid and her low social status. This contrast emphasizes the gap in the social status that exists between the family of the house, and the narrator. Even when the narrator does manage to look into a mirror on the hall wall, the sight is only more depressing: like a distorted shadow, a parody of something, some fairytale figure in red cloak. The distorted shadow adds a grey color to the minds of the readers and thus helps in increasing the gloomy mood. The reference to some fairy tale figure in a red cloak suggests how unreal the narrator is feeling at the moment. This may be due to her reluctance to accept the reality and her longing to return to her past life. The last sentence, a sister, dipped in blood is another biblical reference and also a metaphor which explains how she is red from head to toe as if dipped in blood. There is a sense of exaggeration in this description which is linked to imagery which purposefully aids in the understanding of the readers. The extract begins with alternating descriptions of the narrators surroundings and the narrator herself, and ends with an intensified mood in the last sentence: a sister dipped in blood. The main theme introduced in this extract is Gileads role in society. This totalitarian government is superior towards its people in an excessively oppressive way, and the readers can understand the influences Gilead has on the narrator in the society, physically and mentally. Without directly pinning down the main issue, the author has successfully managed to describe Gileads role and influence in the society in the eye of a handmaid who strongly describes everything in a vigilant and disagreeable manner.

camaro essays

camaro essays 1968-1972 Chevrolet A-Body Production Totals A few years after becoming the owner of a pair of SS El Caminos and a GMC Sprint, I became interested in the production totals for these cars. I soon discovered that Chevrolet did not compile complete production records. There was some data available, but it was limited to three basic types. 1. Model totals. This showed the production totals for each of the different models. 2. RPO totals. At the end of each model year, Chevrolet would compile reports that showed how many of each Regular Production Option (RPO) were installed on the mid-size A-body assembly lines. 3. Tonawanda totals. The Tonawanda engine plant is where all the big-block motors were manufactured. These records show how many such motors were built for each model year. The number of motors built was usually more than the number of cars built (by about 2% to 20%) because some extra engines were normally built for service replacements. These totals were broken down by transmission type (automatic or manual), so they can be used to generate accurate estimates of the number of big-block cars with automatics and manuals. Separate totals were also recorded for the 2-speed automatic cars in 1968, as well as the heavy duty 3-speed manual cars in 1971-72. This may sound fairly complete, but it does not answer the type of question that is frequently asked, such as: "How many 1970 SS-396 Chevelle coupes were built". The answer to this and other similar questions will probably never be known for certain. The reason is that in any given year (after 1968) there is no way to know how many of the SS options were applied to coupes, how many were applied to convertibles, and how many were applied to El Caminos. All that is known is the total number of SS options (on all models) for the year. This same situation exists when trying to determine how many of a certain model were built with the various engine/transmission types. I ha...

On Virtue and Happiness, by John Stuart Mill

On Virtue and Happiness, by John Stuart Mill English philosopher and social reformer John Stuart Mill was one of the major intellectual figures of the 19th century and a founding member of the Utilitarian Society. In the following excerpt from his long philosophical essay Utilitarianism, Mill relies on strategies of classification and division to defend the utilitarian doctrine that happiness is the sole end of human action. On Virtue and Happiness by John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) The utilitarian doctrine is, that happiness is desirable, and the only thing desirable, as an end; all other things being only desirable as means to that end. What ought to be required of this doctrine,what conditions is it requisite that the doctrine should fulfill, to make good its claim to be believed? The only proof capable of being given that an object is visible, is that people actually see it. The only proof that a sound is audible, is that people hear it; and so of the other sources of our experience. In like manner, I apprehend, the sole evidence it is possible to produce that anything is desirable, is that people do actually desire it. If the end which the utilitarian doctrine proposes to itself were not, in theory and in practice, acknowledged to be an end, nothing could ever convince any person that it was so. No reason can be given why the general happiness is desirable, except that each person, so far as he believes it to be attainable, desires his own happiness. This, however, being a fact, we have not only all the proof which the case admits of, but all which it is possible to require, that happiness is a good, that each persons happiness is a good to that person, and the general happiness, therefore, a good to the aggregate of all persons. Happiness has made out its t itle as one of the ends of conduct, and consequently one of the criteria of morality. But it has not, by this alone, proved itself to be the sole criterion. To do that, it would seem, by the same rule, necessary to show, not only that people desire happiness, but that they never desire anything else. Now it is palpable that they do desire things which, in common language, are decidedly distinguished from happiness. They desire, for example, virtue, and the absence of vice, no less really than pleasure and the absence of pain. The desire of virtue is not as universal, but it is as authentic a fact, as the desire of happiness. And hence the opponents of the utilitarian standard deem that they have a right to infer that there are other ends of human action besides happiness, and that happiness is not the standard of approbation and disapprobation. But does the utilitarian doctrine deny that people desire virtue, or maintain that virtue is not a thing to be desired? The very reverse. It maintains not only that virtue is to be desired, but that it is to be desired disinterestedly, for itself. Whatever may be the opinion of utilitarian moralists as to the original conditions by which virtue is made virtue, however they may believe (as they do) that actions and dispositions are only virtuous because they promote another end than virtue, yet this being granted, and it having been decided, from considerations of this description, what is virtuous, they not only place virtue at the very head of the things which are good as means to the ultimate end, but they also recognize as a psychological fact the possibility of its being, to the individual, a good in itself, without looking to any end beyond it; and hold, that the mind is not in a right state, not in a state conformable to Utility, not in the state most conducive to the general h appiness, unless it does love virtue in this manner- as a thing desirable in itself, even although, in the individual instance, it should not produce those other desirable consequences which it tends to produce, and on account of which it is held to be virtue. This opinion is not, in the smallest degree, a departure from the Happiness principle. The ingredients of happiness are very various, and each of them is desirable in itself, and not merely when considered as swelling an aggregate. The principle of utility does not mean that any given pleasure, as music, for instance, or any given exemption from pain, as for example health, is to be looked upon as means to a collective something termed happiness, and to be desired on that account. They are desired and desirable in and for themselves; besides being means, they are a part of the end. Virtue, according to the utilitarian doctrine, is not naturally and originally part of the end, but it is capable of becoming so; and in those who love it disinterestedly it has become so, and is desired and cherished, not as a means to happiness, but as a part of their happiness. Concluded on page two Continued from page oneTo illustrate this farther, we may remember that virtue is not the only thing, originally a means, and which if it were not a means to anything else, would be and remain indifferent, but which by association with what it is a means to, comes to be desired for itself, and that too with the utmost intensity. What, for example, shall we say of the love of money? There is nothing originally more desirable about money than about any heap of glittering pebbles. Its worth is solely that of the things which it will buy; the desires for other things than itself, which it is a means of gratifying. Yet the love of money is not only one of the strongest moving forces of human life, but money is, in many cases, desired in and for itself; the desire to possess it is often stronger than the desire to use it, and goes on increasing when all the desires which point to ends beyond it, to be compassed by it, are falling off. It may, then, be said truly, that money is desired not for the sake of an end, but as part of the end. From being a means to happiness, it has come to be itself a principal ingredient of the individuals conception of happiness. The same may be said of the majority of the great objects of human life:power, for example, or fame; except that to each of these there is a certain amount of immediate pleasure annexed, which has at least the semblance of being naturally inherent in them- a thing which cannot be said of money. Still, however, the strongest natural attraction, both of power and of fame, is the immense aid they give to the attainment of our other wishes; and it is the strong association thus generated between them and all our objects of desire, which gives to the direct desire of them the intensity it often assumes, so as in some characters to surpass in strength all other desires. In these cases the means have become a part of the end, and a more important part of it than any of the things which they are means to. What was once desired as an instrument for the attainment of ha ppiness, has come to be desired for its own sake. In being desired for its own sake it is, however, desired as part of happiness. The person is made, or thinks he would be made, happy by its mere possession; and is made unhappy by failure to obtain it. The desire of it is not a different thing from the desire of happiness, any more than the love of music, or the desire of health. They are included in happiness. They are some of the elements of which the desire of happiness is made up. Happiness is not an abstract idea, but a concrete whole; and these are some of its parts. And the utilitarian standard sanctions and approves their being so. Life would be a poor thing, very ill provided with sources of happiness, if there were not this provision of nature, by which things originally indifferent, but conducive to, or otherwise associated with, the satisfaction of our primitive desires, become in themselves sources of pleasure more valuable than the primitive pleasures, both in permanency, in the space of human existence that they are capable of covering, and even in intensity. Virtue, according to the utilitarian conception, is a good of this description. There was no original desire of it, or motive to it, save its conduciveness to pleasure, and especially to protection from pain. But through the association thus formed, it may be felt a good in itself, and desired as such with as great intensity as any other good; and with this difference between it and the love of money, of power, or of fame- that all of these may, and often do, render the individual noxious to the other members of the society to which he belongs, whereas there is nothing which makes him so much a blessing to them as the cultivation of the disinterested love of virtue. And consequently, the utilitarian standard, while it tolerates and approves those other acquired desires, up to the point beyond which they would be more injurious to the general happiness than promotive of it, enjoins and requires the cultivation of the love of virtue up to the greatest strength possible, as being above all things important to the general happiness. It results from the preceding considerations, that there is in reality nothing desired except happiness. Whatever is desired otherwise than as a means to some end beyond itself, and ultimately to happiness, is desired as itself a part of happiness, and is not desired for itself until it has become so. Those who desire virtue for its own sake, desire it either because the consciousness of it is a pleasure, or because the consciousness of being without it is a pain, or for both reasons united; as in truth the pleasure and pain seldom exist separately, but almost always together- the same person feeling pleasure in the degree of virtue attained, and pain in not having attained more. If one of these gave him no pleasure, and the other no pain, he would not love or desire virtue, or would desire it only for the other benefits which it might produce to himself or to persons whom he cared for. We have now, then, an answer to the question, of what sort of proof the principle of utility is susceptible. If the opinion which I have now stated is psychologically true- if human nature is so constituted as to desire nothing which is not either a part of happiness or a means of happiness, we can have no other proof, and we require no other, that these are the only things desirable. If so, happiness is the sole end of human action, and the promotion of it the test by which to judge of all human conduct; from whence it necessarily follows that it must be the criterion of morality, since a part is included in the whole. (1863)

Managing Information Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Managing Information Technology - Essay Example In addition, it does not require professional installation on the other hand it requires a local phone line and accessibility is restricted to upgraded telecommunication areas (Brown, DeHayes, Hoffer, Martin, & Perkins, 2009), (FastSurf, 2011), (Beal, 2010), (Miller, 2011) and (BroadbandInfo, 2011). Second high-speed internet connection option for homeowners is cable internet connection that allows the user to establish an internet connection using digital (coaxial) cables. Additionally, the speed of this connection varies from 500 Kbps up to 2,000 Kbps that is approximately 30 times quicker as compared to standard dial-up communication service. However, such kind of internet connection requires professional installation as well as internet speed is not for all time reliable. In addition, it is extensively available at reasonable price. Moreover, a lot of cable connection provides offer special packages if we sign up for cable internet connection (Brown, DeHayes, Hoffer, Martin, & Pe rkins, 2009), (FastSurf, 2011), (Beal, 2010), (Miller, 2011) and (BroadbandInfo, 2011). Another high-speed internet connection option for homeowners is satellite internet connection that allows the user to establish an internet connection via satellite dish. This type of connection offers the speed of 500 Kbps downstream that is still much quicker as compared to dialup.

The economics of End Stage Renal Disease Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The economics of End Stage Renal Disease - Essay Example as enabled the government to control the costs they incur by revision of the delay of treatment services to patients who are not covered by the medical scheme (Kovner, Knickman and Weisfield, 2011). An organization providing ESRD treatment is likely to increase their earnings before deducting the interest they attract on borrowed finances, taxation, depreciations and amortization. With the control of the CMS, it intends to exert on achieving a breakdown of the costs, the organizations will tend to suffer losses. The eventual close down of the service providers will come as a result along with a decline of the quality they dispense. The financial burdens of the disease are also given to commercial and private dispensers to reduce the authorities cost (McKenzie, Pinger and Kotecki, 2011). The major purpose of having the legislation is to ensure that the rates of reimbursement equal the costs incurred in the provision of these services. The patients of the chronic disease are required to join government-sponsored schemes such as Medicare and Medicaid services for them to attain cheaper and subsidized treatment. They can also go for treatment in authorized institutions that dispense the treatment. By joining these schemes, they will be able to acquire the necessary treatment easily, and increase the costs they will incur due to the profits the organization requires. This is because of the governments regulation and subsidies that affect the provision of treatment. Joining of insurance schemes is also another way that patients can be assisted to acquire affordable, high quality and accessible treatment (Milstead, 2004). This is because the companies direct the patients to the best facilities and assist in covering the costs they incur. The provision of the medical facilities by the government ensures that all the patients in their population requiring treatment for the disease get it cheaply and easily. However, patients who are over sixty-five years of age will not

Poland Springs Advertisement Campaign Failure Essay Example for Free

Poland Springs Advertisement Campaign Failure Essay Poland Spring’s recent advertisement puts its viewers in a serene natural environment; a nice sunny day overlooking a crystal clear spring on a green field. In the center of this field is a giant plastic bottle, one that is â€Å"environmentally friendly.† The bottle is praised and pointed out for using â€Å"less plastic,† â€Å"less paper,† and the very important â€Å"dye-free cap.† The bottle is called the â€Å"Eco-Shaped bottle† and is designed to have less impact on the earth. The entire scene is under the giant caption that tells of how Poland Spring is doing â€Å"less† to the environment. The company is selling water in a disposable plastic bottle yet the advertisement seems to be trying to convince people that by consuming their disposable product they are some how helping the environment; that because they drink Poland Spring water they are doing â€Å"less to the environment. This advertising strategy however is not uncommon. According to Julia B. Corbett â€Å" ‘green advertising’ has focused on ads that promote environmental sensitivity toward†¦ a corporate image of environmental sensitivity† (Corbett 148). The recent ad campaign may seen to be about Poland Spring’s new â€Å"Eco-Shaped† bottle, but it is really about diverting attention from the pollution the bottle generates to instead creating a pro-environmental view of the company and its product. The Eco-Shaped bottle by Poland Spring is marketed with a few selling points the company points out directly in their advertisement. The bottle uses â€Å"30% less plastic†, â€Å"less paper† and a â€Å"dye-free cap†. These improvements are  better for the environment then the original bottle used by Poland Spring. However the problem lies in the fact that the product is still harmful to the environment. Last time I checked less of a bad thing is still a bad thing. According a recent article by Hope Molinaro, the California Department of Conservation (CDOC) stated, â€Å"in California, more than a billion plastic water bottles wind up in the trash each year† and that total is only the amount of bottles in the state of California (Molinaro, 64). The total amount equates to 3 million empty water bottles per day disposed of in just one state (Molinaro, 64). That large amount of plastic has many detrimental effects to the environment. The materials used to make the bottles consist of a tremendous amount of resources and are difficult to dispose of if not recycled. There is an overwhelming amount of evidence to make the claim that a good portion of the plastic bottle waste generated in the United States is produced by the Poland Spring Company. Not only is the plastic filling our landfills, but there is evidence that the water bottle company is polluting its own town. According to a 2008 study of pollution demographics of Androscoggin County in Maine, where Poland Spring’s headquarters is located, the particulate matter is 62% higher there than the United States average (Unknown). It’s also 61% higher then the state of Maine’s average particulate matter found (Unknown). Particulate matter is a complex mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets. Particle pollution is made up of a number of components, including acids (such as nitrates and sulfates), organic chemicals, metals, and soil or dust particles. Poland Spring’s advertisement does not show any of this particulate matter when depicting how green and lush the springs it gets its water from are. One aspect of the Poland Spring’s advertisement that I find different and contradictory to traditional green thinking is that in the ad the plastic Poland Spring water bottle, is shown in nature. Normally when a plastic water bottle is found laying in a field or any natural setting for that matter, it is viewed upon as pollution. In this ad the bottle is sitting in nature and is supposed to be appealing to the human eye. The bottle is shown in a way that it blends into the natural setting and tries to convince people that it almost belongs there, in the midst of nature; that the  unnatural belongs with the natural. It is easy to relate the bottle as being positive to the environment however as it blends in with the incredible sunrise in the background on a beautiful day with a clear sky. The bottle is featured sitting in a field where the growth of the field is doing outstanding and there is not one dead or even one imperfectly grown plant. The land is doing so well it is almost portrayed as being happy and at peace with a giant, unnatural, plastic water bottle sticking out of it. This scene does not just occur in the ad however as pollution is a huge issue when there is a â€Å"disposable† factor to the product. A second contradiction in the ad is that Poland Spring is a water bottle company whose ad features more lush, green field then the body of water in which their product comes from. The ad is trying to make the product fall into the American consumers mind as a green product hence the green field is more affective then a view of the lake or spring containing the water Poland Spring is selling. Poland Spring is really trying to hammer in the point that it’s product is green and eco-friendly, and the more green in the picture the more green the consumer sees. Contradiction number three this ad uses is the slogan that titles it. In the current green revolution sweeping across America the constant theme is doing more for the environment. Under Poland Springs fancy, flower-laden font reads the words â€Å"doing less†. This is a clear indication that Poland Spring is not being beneficial to the environment by saying they are â€Å"doing less† harm to the planet we live on. Over the serene sunset, over laying the clear blue sky, and lush green field, lies an admission of pollution and guilt by the company. Poland Spring’s methods however are not so uncommon in today’s advertising market. Many advertising campaigns are seen now featuring nature in one way or another and one of the more common ways to do this is through and advertisements backdrop. According to Julia B. Corbett, â€Å"Using nature merely as a backdrop whether in the form of wild animals, mountain vistas or sparkling rivers-is the most common use of the natural world in advertisements.† (Corbett 150) So when Poland Spring sets it’s water bottle in the green field, with little purple flowers swaying in the wind, the peaceful sunset over looking the bluest clear sky the world has to offer,  followed by beautiful green hills rolling off to the distance there is a purpose to it. The purpose according to Julia could be that the company is trying to promote a â€Å"corporate image of environmental responsibility.†(Corbett 148) This is very well one if not the main initiative of the advertisement and it is even so less of an advertisement as it is a rebuttal. Recently, as our country starts to become more â€Å"green† and environmentally aware, there has been some recent campaigns against the consumption of bottled water. One major campaign against bottled water has been â€Å"Think outside the bottle†. Even the mayor of Miami, Manny Diaz along with a dozen or so mayors, is calling on municipal governments to phase out bottled-water purchases in a resolution to be presented at the U.S. Mayors Conference (Barnes). Poland Spring is trying to distract the average consumer from believing the hype that the bottle are bad for the environment and tries to prove that they are doing something about it. Poland Spring’s advertisement is focusing on green aspects of its product and is trying to make the company appear to have a green initiative, however the Poland Spring’s target audience is not the hardcore environmentalist. Any person who puts some research into what they buy and cares about the environment is going to know that consumption of disposable plastic water bottles is not going to help the environment. The ad however does target the average consumer who does sort of care about the environment but does not research into what they consume. A consumer might see the recent anti-water bottle campaigns and generate a negative view of the disposable, plastic water bottles that Poland Spring sells. That is why Poland Spring’s ad was created in the first place, to turn the average consumer’s view of the water bottle and the Poland Spring Company from a negative one to a positive one. In times of environmental awareness that the United States is currently facing, many unenvironmentally friendly companies are finding it harder and harder to promote sales for their products. Poland Spring is no different in that respect but tries a different approach that is gaining in popularity, green advertising. Poland Spring uses nature to show a pristine and beautiful backdrop for their hazardous product. The ad is focusing on deterring the public’s view of Poland Spring from environmentally damaging  to environmentally caring. As shady and undermining the ad is to not only the people but the earth its self, the ad creates a pro-environmental image of a company that does not practice what is preaches. Works Cited Barnes, Tayler. Anti Bottled Water Campaign Enlists Mayors to Cause. Corporate Accountability International. Miami Herald. Web. 07 Nov. 2011. http://www.stopcorporateabuse.org/MiamiHeraldTOTB. Corbett, Julia B. †Faint†Green: Advertising and the Natural World.† Communicating Nature: How We Create and Understand Environmental Messages. Island, 2005. Web. Molinaro, Hope. Plastic Water Bottles Go to Waste, Says Calif. Conservation Agency. Plastics Engineering 59.7 (2003): 64-. ProQuest Research Library. Web. 7 Nov. 2011. Unknown. Poland Spring Pollution Indexes. Raw data. Androscoggin County. CLRSreach.com

René Magritte Essay -- Arts Paintings Art History

Renà © Magritte Belgian Surrealist artist Renà © Magritte was a master not only of the obvious, but of the obscure as well. In his artwork, Magritte toyed with everyday objects, human habits and emotions, placing them in foreign contexts and questioning their familiar meanings. He suggested new interpretations of old things in his deceivingly simple paintings, making the commonplace profound and the rational irrational. He painted his canvasses in the same manner as he lived his life -- in strange modesty and under constant analysis. Magritte was born in 1898 in the small town of Lessines, a cosmopolitan area of Belgium that was greatly influenced by the French. Twelve years later, Magritte, along with his parents and two younger brothers, moved to Chà ¢telet, where the future artist studied sketching. On vacations with his grandmother and Aunt Flora during the summer months, Magritte frequented an old cemetery at Soignies. In this cemetery, Magritte often played with a little girl, opening trap doors and descending into underground vaults. This experience would prove a great influence upon his later artwork, as wooden caskets and granite tombstones recur in many of his paintings. Magritte also developed a fascination with religion around this time, often dressing up as a priest and holding mock mass services in complete seriousness. In 1912, Rà ©gina Bertinchamp, Magritte's mother, committed suicide by drowning herself in the Sambre River. The night of her suicide, the Magrittes followed Bertinchamp's footprints to the river, where they found her dead with her nightgown wrapped around her face. Magritte was 14 at the time. He would claim years later that his only recollection of his mother's death was his pride at being the center of attention and his subsequent identity formation as the "son of a dead woman." Some critics point out that several of the subjects in Magritte's paintings are veiled in white sheets as a reference to his mother's suicide. A year later, Magritte's father moved the family to Charleroi. It was in Charleroi that Magritte would meet his future wife Georgette Berger on a carousel at the town fair. However, the two would not see one another again until a chance meeting in Brussels years later. In Charleroi, Magritte quickly lost interest in his studies and asked his father for permission to study at the Acadà ©mie des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. ... ... Faubourg in Paris. The exhibition caused much scandal, but won few admirers. Soon after, Magritte resigned to his original style, though he bitterly attributed this retroaction to his desire to please Georgette, who preferred his earlier paintings. He continued to acquire much success all over the world with paintings such as L'Empire des Lumià ¨res (The Empire of Lights, 1954), which employed standard Surrealist techniques and precise Magritte lines. On August 15, 1967, Magritte died in Brussels. Unlike many of his Surrealist counterparts, Magritte lived quite humbly and incon uously. He did not draw much attention to himself, and he lived life relatively uneventfully. Despite his unassuming lifestyle, though, Magritte managed to leave an artistic legacy of transforming the ordinary into the fantastic. While some art historians attribute Magritte's art to his desire to oppose and combat the triviality of everyday life, others suggest that his work goes beyond escapism and serves to reveal some of the murkier and complex aspects of the human condition. Whatever the impetus was for his art, it is certain that Magritte's works are at once hauntingly beautiful and deeply provocative.

Argument for the Gettysburg Address

What was the real message Abraham Lincoln was saying in his famous Gettysburg Address? His message was that everyone is equal. During the Civil War, almost everyone living in our country was affected. Lincoln also practiced his speech by including everyone, who died in the devastating war. We still practice that important message today in America. When the war between our nations began, everyone was affected in one way or the other. It didn’t matter if you were rich or poor you would be affected in some way. Even if you didn’t have to go battle yourself, you could easily loose family relative of yours.If you survived the war you could become deeply depressed by all of the bloodshed and our temporarily divided country. This war was to decide if we were a free nation or a country that would allow slavery to be practiced. That decision would affect every single man, woman, and child in our nation. If we had chosen slavery, America would not be the country it is today. In h is famous speech Lincoln honored the dead soldiers, who died in the brutal war. He didn’t just honor the Union soldiers, who died in the war. He didn’t just honor white people, who gave their lives, either.Abraham Lincoln also honored black people and Confederate soldiers, who gave their lives for what they thought was right. Lincoln decided not to be bias in his speech and just honor the people, who died, for the Union Army. How do we still practice the equality of people today? Black, white, Hispanic, and other races of children in America attend the same school. If you were a Hispanic, black, or any other race you can go to any college in the United States. It doesn’t matter if you are rich or poor you can get a job, because most Americans care whether or not you are a hard worker.If you lose your job you can go to an unemployment center to look at opened jobs. If a person becomes homeless in America, they can go to shelters for help. If that happened to you in another country, you would have to fend for yourself. Whether you are higher class, middle class, or lower class you are generally treated the same by everyone. Hispanic, back, and other different people can have an office in the government. You can practice any religion without being persecution by the government. You are allowed to buy the same brand of food as wealthy people buy at about the same amount of price as they get it.People in the United States have a right to own property, and they don’t have to worry about the government taking it away from them. Americans do not have to worry about being spied on by someone. Almost every person living in America is not afraid of getting arrested if they say something insulting about the American government. America is a nation that offers freedoms the no other country in the world has allowed. Even though Abraham Lincoln didn’t use flowery language, like Edward Everett, his address was remembered as one of our most f amous speeches in American history.Many people were affected by the tragic Civil War. Lincoln honored everyone, who died fighting the war, in his very short, ten-sentence speech. We still follow Abraham Lincoln’s message to day in this country. Not very many people know what important message was delivered on November 19, 1863. The message was just three simple words â€Å"people are equal. † We should always follow Abraham Lincoln’s message to the United States of America. The Gettysburg Address is a speech that we should never forget.

Influence of Culture Versus Communication

First of all, defining â€Å"organizational culture is what employees perceive and how this perception creates a pattern of beliefs, values, and expectation (Matteson, 2002)†.Of course, any group or organization or human beings which gets together for a purpose has a kind of assumption invented, discovered or developed to learn and cope any issues/problems of external adaptation and internal integration that has a valuable to be thought to new members as a correct way to perceive, to think and to feel in relation to those issues/problems. At the other hand, communication is glue that holds organization together. Without this valuable interaction, nothing can be perceived, created and everyone in the organization would act as differently with no control for an unsustainable result. The two have a relationship because, for the organization to be effective, it has to have an effective communicator in the group who must understand not only general interpretation communication concepts, but also the characteristic of interpersonal communication within the organization or organizational communication. Since influencing is the process of guiding the activities of the organization members in the right and appropriate directions with effectiveness, there is ample coloration between both, the organizational culture and communication. Without the communication, nothing can be considered, encouraged, motivated, leaded, thought, understood and leaded. For and an appropriate organization. For a formal or informal culture within an organization, the input portions are: people, money, raw materials, and machines. The process seems to be the influence process where the consideration of the group, the motivation of the group, leading as managers to supervision, encouraging the group who after all understood through the communication.

Gregory The Great Essay

Gregory The Great Essay Gregory The Great Essay Gregory the Great (c.540–604), pope, apostle of the English, one of the most important popes and influential writers of the Middle Ages. Gregory was the son of a Roman senator and entered the service of the State as a young man. But in 573 he sold his enormous properties, founding six monasteries in Sicily and a seventh in Rome, and giving generously to the poor. The next year he entered his own monastery of St. Andrew's on the Celian Hill as a monk and was distinguished for his austere life, which both filled him with nostalgia in later years and caused some of the ill-health which he suffered so constantly. Pope Benedict I, however, called him out of the monastery to become one of the seven deacons of Rome, and his successor, Pelagius II, made him apocrisiarius (ambassador) in Byzantium. After six years of distinguished service Gregory returned to Rome to become abbot of St. Andrew's, seemingly convinced that the future of Christianity lay with monasticism rather than with t he declining Eastern Empire. But his own choice of monastic life was destined to be frustrated. He had hoped to lead some missionaries to bring the Gospel to the Anglo-Saxons- he had been specially impressed by some Anglo-Saxon slaves on sale in the Roman market- but he was elected pope during an outbreak of plague. Reluctantly he accepted and was confirmed by the emperor. He was at once faced with a state of crisis. Floods, famine, plague, a Lombard invasion, all called for urgent attention, while in

Characterization of Macoute in The Dew Breaker

Characterization of Macoute in The Dew Breaker The Dew Breaker, a novel by Edwidge Danticat that tells of Jean-Claude Duvalier’s inherited dictatorship in Haiti, appears to be a novel about two things. On the one hand, it documents the life and trials of a Tonton Macoute, a government sanctioned torturer; on the other hand, it also tells of the cowardice of weak men with great power. The ‘dew breaker’ that is the eponym for the book is constantly characterized by his cowardice, his desire for forgiveness but his inability to ask for it. This conflict that the ‘dew breaker’ has within himself also tends to inspire conflict within the reader. Should one hate him or pity him? Is he unforgivable because of what he has done or is his own fear, coupled with circumstance, truly to blame? After examining the characterization of the ‘dew breaker’ and the situations in which he was placed, it can be inferred that while he may not deserve forgiveness, this man’s obvious pusillanimity make s him pitiable. The novel begins with the story of Ka, an aspiring young artist and the daughter of the ‘dew breaker’. The ‘dew breaker’ is presented as a simple Haitian barber, an escaped military prisoner with a devotedly Catholic wife and loving daughter. The reader easily falls into step with Ka and her father as they travel to Florida to sell one of Ka’s sculptures. This sculpture is inspired by the bent and broken prisoner Ka believed her father to be. Besides relating parts of her father’s â€Å"past† in Haiti, Ka also tells of a jagged, horrifying scar that has nearly ruined her father’s face. She easily recounts the story he told her as a child: that a guard working for the regime of Jean-Claude Duvalier sliced open her father’s face in a random act of cruelty. It later becomes apparent that this tale is indeed a lie told to Ka for over thirty years. Towards the middle of the chapter, Ka’s father finally opens up with the t ruth after destroying his daughter’s sculpture, saying, â€Å"†¦ Ka, your father was the hunter, he was not the prey†¦ I was never in prison† (21). In one instant, everything that Danticat has told the reader about Ka’s father seems to be untrue. This man, who was known in Haiti as a Tonton Macoute, an infamous ‘dew breaker’, finally speaks the truth to his daughter and in the process destroys the innate trust Ka has in him. The idea that he kept such a secret from her for so long is surely an example of his infinite cowardice. However, it also proves he wants nothing more than love for the man he is, not hate for the man he had been. Another point of interest in The Dew Breaker is the main character’s demand that he be allowed to wear civilian clothes. In the last chapter, â€Å"The Dew Breaker†, the protagonist simply states that â€Å"he didn’t like the uniform† (196). The idea that he feels he is above other Macoutes and has the right to make demands is perfectly absurd and also cowardly. A Macoute walking home alone in standard denim runs the risk of being attacked and possibly killed; the ‘dew breaker’s’ refusal to wear the uniform proves he is a coward, a man who cannot stand the idea of imminent physical harm. This basic denial of Macoute custom sets the main character apart from all others: he is not in imminent danger because he is allowed to dress normally, he can avoid unwanted attention, and his lack of uniform saves him later when he runs into Anne outside Casernes. Had he been wearing the denim of his station, I doubt Anne would have reacted so charita bly. Incidentally, â€Å"The Dew Breaker† also presents the same conflict as seen in the beginning of the book. It offers no real resolution as the last chapter but it does leave the reader with a feeling of modern day catharsis. This chapter flashes back to the ‘dew breaker’, an active and senior member of Duvalier’s Macoutes while in Haiti. Danticat opens by describing the main character in a soft but insistent way. He is an important and self-indulgent man in the Tonton Macoutes who has been sent to kill an outspoken preacher. The ‘dew breaker’ voices a disdain of this job in the beginning of the chapter, saying that, â€Å"He wanted a perfect view of the church entrance in case the opportunity came to do the job from inside his car†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (183). This obvious lack of courage produces a key moment in the novel: the Macoute is afraid to take a chance with the preacher’s unrestrained congregation. It is doubtless that, if the ‘d ew breaker’ was alone during the public assassination of the preacher, the entire situation would have resulted in his own death. To protect himself, the ‘dew breaker’ chooses to bring along a group of other Macoutes. The preacher is roughly but quietly taken away, giving the illusion that he has â€Å"disappeared† like all the rest. The quiet, subtle way in which the preacher was taken to Casernes helps to exemplify the main character’s inflated concern for himself. He is not willing risk his life in any way, even to execute a duty given to him by the faction he so loves. The concern mentioned above is also present pages later, after the preacher has been taken to Casernes for questioning. Though it is surprising that the preacher was not restrained during interrogation, this small oversight by both the main character and Danticat serves a great purpose. In a marvelous last act of heroism, the preacher reaches for a splintered piece of wood from his broken chair and stabs ‘dew breaker’ â€Å"in [his] right cheek and [sinks] it in an inch or so† (226). Danticat goes on to further wound the ‘dew breaker’, saying that, â€Å"The fat man’s shock worked in [the preacher’s] favor, for it allowed him a few seconds to slide the piece of wood down the fat man’s face, tearing the skin down his jawline† (226). The action itself earns the preacher the quick death he so desires: he is immediately shot in the chest by the ‘dew breaker’, a man who cannot stand the idea of bruised pride. This m agnificent show of valor on the preacher’s part forever damages the ‘dew breaker’; it also contributes greatly to a weakness in character that will be present for the rest of his life. With the blood of the preacher on his hands, the ‘dew breaker’ becomes completely terrified. A huge gash in his face and dripping with blood, he stumbles out of Casernes, pushing aside his superior’s assurance of asylum. The fact that he did not stay to face the consequences of his actions shows his cowardice yet again. He cannot bear the thought of punishment or reprimand even from an institution he has devoted his life to. Whenever there is a chance he might endure harm, the ‘dew breaker’ is quick to withdraw from the situation, either by blaming it on others or by running away. The constant theme of cowardice and fear in The Dew Breaker is important to the story’s plot and also to the characterizations within. The ‘dew breaker’ as presented by Danticat is a man who evoked terror in the people; there mere mention of his name could send a Haitian into a fit of shivers or a bout of unwanted memories. It is ironic, then, that he should ultimately be the one who is most afraid and the one who would have to flee for his life. The ‘dew breaker’ was such a contradictory mess of both fear and courage, weakness and power, that one could not help but feel sorry for him. It is heart wrenching to think that a human being could do such terrible things and then struggle so completely with those facts afterwards. It’s the story every person wants to hear: the story of a man battling his inner demons and his past to become more than he ever was before. While the ‘dew breaker’ does fall short of forgiveness and absolution, he also doe manage to achieve a kind of pitiable half-life, his attempt to be a good man despite his history of bad deeds. Ultimately, it is the ‘dew breaker’s’ cowardice and lack of strength that makes him so close to the reader’s own heart. After all, we are all vulnerable in our own way.

Optimal physical and mental health Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Optimal physical and mental health - Assignment Example from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that approximately 78.6 million of adults in the United States are obese that is 34.9%. Obesity in the United States became an epidemic and the second cause of preventable death. Also, medical treatment of obesity is highly expensive. For example, medical expenditures for obesity were 11.1 billion of dollars in 2009. Appropriate preventable and controlling actions of public medical health care systems may help to decrease the rate of obese people, save hundreds of dollars and increase overall life expectancy.(Ð ¡DC,2014) Formation of the appropriate community environment that promotes and maintains healthy food and beverage intake. Increase the availability of the healthy food that meet the requirements of communities; decrease the level of sugary beverage consumption, making clean and potable water available in different public places. The Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity Program (NPAO) is an example of state and local program that focuses on implementation of healthy nutrition and physical activity among Americans that helps to prevent obesity and other related chronic diseases. NPAO is a cooperative agreement between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity Program (DNPAO) and 25 health departments. The main purpose of the DNPAO function is maintenance of the healthy way of life that involve healthy eating, regular physical activity and reduction of increased obesity rate in the United States. DNPAO performs their main goals through development healthy child care centers, hospitals, schools and worksites; conduction of different investigations related to the obesity or other chronic diseases. DNPAO`s three main goals include: improvement of the dietary quality to decrease the rate of chronic illness and control healthy child development; in crease physical activity for people of all ages; reduce the rate of obesity through