Nothing But The Truth Essay Essay

In the novel Nothing but the Truth, many differences are seen between Thando and Mandisa. These differences are seen through their different cultural understandings and their relationships with their fathers. Thando and Mandisa both also have very different views on the Truth and reconciliation commission (amnesty) hearing. In the play, the character of Thando is presented to us as a loving and caring character. Her father, Sipho, in South Africa, raises her. He is very traditional and has instilled the same teachings into Thando. Thando’s cultural roots are present throughout the play. You can see this in the way she mourns her uncles death and refuses at first to go out with Mandisa to Johannesburg. Sipho and Thando also arrange for a cultural funeral which includes the slaughtering of an ox. Thando’s hospitality towards Mandisa and her constant use of African phrases(â€Å"Ndyintombi†¦,†tata†, â€Å"malome†) displays her traditional African roots throughout the play . Labola is also mentioned which is part of traditional African culture. Mandisa, however, is presented to us as almost the opposite to Thando. Mandisa is shown to us as an modern fashion designer who can be selfish. She, unlike Mandisa is outspoken and isn’t afraid to express her opinions even when she is in a home with people she just met. Mandisa is also insensitive to cultural, South African way of living. This is seen in the play when she says to Mandisa: â€Å"Girl! He won’t allow you!† when Thando turns her down when she was asked to accompany her to Johannesburg. She also turns her â€Å"Makhaya† surname to â€Å"Mckay† and does not understand isiXhosa(she keeps asking Thando to translate what her uncle says). It is evident that her cultural roots are lost. Her fathers body had been cremated which was not typical of South African tradition and Mandisa only mourns her fathers death for 2 weeks. Mandisa does not understand that South Africa is not England and is insensitive to the Sipho when he feels violated that his brothers body had been created. She responded to him by insensitively saying : â€Å"that’s what everybody does in England.† Mandisa and Thando both however  love to be called â€Å"African Princess† The relationship that Thando has with Sipho is that of a very obedient daughter who carries out her duties. She rejects Mandisa’s invitation to Johannesburg because her father wouldn’t allow it and never does anything without the consent of Sipho(â€Å"I’ll have to ask tata first†). The duties that she carries out are seen when she doesn’t leave the house without preparing a meal for her father first. She values her traditions and explains the traditions of mourning to Mandisa saying that her father would expect them to â€Å"show some respect for atleast a month as children†. Her obedience is also shown when she says : â€Å"I live under his roof and for as long as I live here, I have to live by his rules.† Her attitude towards her father is respectful and obedient. Mandisa, having being brought up In Engand, away from her cultural roots is very different from Thando. She is not affected by Sipho feeling violated by his brothers cremation and retorts: â€Å"Oh this is ridiculous!, I didn’t come to argue about the ashes.† Mandisa also tries to change Thandos mind about not going to Johannesburg with her â€Å"You don’t have to do what pleases him.† Her independence and tendency of speaking her mind and not caring about others perception of her, makes her seem to be insensitive and disrespectful towards the older generation. Thando and Mandisa also have different views of the TRC hearing and don’t agree on how the amnesties were being dealt with. Mandisa’s views are unsympathetic towards the TRC because she is angry at the fact thatsomeone can commit murder and still be forgiven without being given justice. Her view is cynical and her talk of revenge shows an unsympathetic side to her character. She thinks that the concept of Ubuntu is â€Å"giving in too easily† and that the amnesty process is too lenient. Her vengeful side is shown when she agrees with Sipho when he says that the minister of security should be judged by a black judge and that he should serve prison for many years when Sipho was drunk. Her answer was always : â€Å"yes†, â€Å"that’s more I like it†, â€Å"Exactly.† Mandisa believes that the government has ‘sold out’ for ‘international approval’ and has not considered the peoples need for revenge  and that full disclosure was not given at the amnesty hearings(she points out that it is still not known who gave Craig Williomson his order) and argues that there was an â€Å"outcry against him receiving amnesty.† Thando on the other hand, works at the TRC and has a very positive behavior towards the process although she can see the dirt to it . â€Å"One gets confused sometimes especially when so many lies are told.† She believes that it was the wrong thing to do to be vengeful-â€Å"Where would revenge get us besides more violence?† She personally believes that re-building the nation is what matters most. Thando embraces forgiveness: â€Å"If all those who suffered can forgive, so can you.† She also contradicts to Mandisa’s accusation of the TRC being too easy by reminding her that some people such as Derby-Lewis had been punished. Although there are many differences between Thando and Mandisa, the sisters also share many similarities. African heritage is important to both of them- they both enjoy being called African princess by their fathers and Mandisa refers to SA as â€Å"home† – â€Å"I am happy to be home.† She also speaks of listening to stories about home. Thando’s defensive and quick response to Mandisa when she disrespects their lifestyle â€Å"show some respect for our tradition† shows her protective and possessiveness of her African roots. Like Mandisa, Thando is also an independent thinker. This is present throughout the play when Thando is always contradicting to whatever Mandisa says about the amnesty â€Å"Some people like Derby-Lewis have been punished† and her open-mindness is shown when she explains to her father that some black people in SA are also practicing cremation in todays times. Both sisters are so different, yet so alike.

Atlantic Charter and Its Affect in Wwii Essay

The Atlantic Charter was an incredibly important policy that would have an impact on the entire world from the moment it was drafted by Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt in August of 1941 to the present day and beyond. The two men met in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, hence the name Atlantic Charter, during World War 2. While it is called the Atlantic Charter, it was technically a joint declaration by the two world leaders and as such not a formal legal document. A few months later the Charter would be agreed upon by all the Allied Nations. It was important both for the specifics included in the document as well as the symbolism of Roosevelt producing the Charter with Churchill. It was more of a set of goals than a specific blueprint and it contained 8 key principles: 1. Renunciation of territorial aggression 2. Opposition to territorial changes without consent of the peoples concerned 3. Support for the right of people to choose their own government 4. Access to raw materials for all nations 5. Support of efforts to improve the economic condition of people throughout the world 6. Freedom from fear and want 7. Freedom of the seas 8. Disarmament of aggressors The Atlantic Charter was completely opposite the actions of the Axis Powers, who were expanding their territory and conquering territory all across the world. The principles set out in the Atlantic Charter would provide a basis for international cooperation and international law. It would also provide a foundation for important economic agreements throughout the world that were strong enough to withstand times when countries might oppose each other on one matter but still need to trade. It would also help in creating boundaries and dealing with the aftermath of the war. From the start of the war in Europe, the United States had maintained a neutral stance. While Franklin D. Roosevelt himself was openly sympathic to the Allies, the American public was opposed to getting involved in a war in Europe. In order to support the Allies without violating neutrality Roosevelt redefined the actual neutrality act in the United States. Roosevelt sympathized in particular with Britain, who was having an increasingly difficult time dealing with the Germans. A few months before the Atlantic Charter was written, Roosevelt had gotten an important piece of legislation through congress that allowed the United States to give material support to Britain without charging them for it, called the Lend-Lease Act. This had greatly pleased Winston Churchill, the co-author of the Atlantic Charter, because while he appreciated the support of the US, he needed help in the war. The Atlantic Charter provided the philosophical foundation for the Allies in World War 2 and a blueprint for the post-war world. The principles outlined in the Atlantic Charter are still important in the interactions of nations to this day.

Media Culture in Canada Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Media Culture in Canada - Assignment Example Canada has two primary languages English and French. Canada has a very unique blend of customs and traditions because of migration into its country; therefore, because of the cultural diversity it’s very necessary for the Canadian government to promote its own culture. The Canadian government faces many challenges because of its influx of citizens from European cultures and an extensive migration between America and Canada. Canada struggled immensely to protect its identity in 1920(Media Awareness Network 1). At that time, Canada introduced commercial radio broadcasting but some politicians were concerned about U.S radio programming. This concern introduced the hybrid system of broadcasting. The policy makers split this system into two parts public and private. The reason behind this division was that Canada wanted its own traditions; as time passed the Canadian government made its own broadcasting law. History Media plays one of the most powerful and important roles in buildi ng nations. Reginald Aubrey Fessenden was the first radio broadcaster in Canada; he is known as the â€Å"Father of Radio Broadcasting†. In 1906, Fessenden broadcasted his first official program. The era of media culture in Canada started in 1906 and noticeable improvements were seen within the next few years. In 1929, the government of Canada took remarkable efforts. The Arid Commission on public broadcasting suggested the establishment of a national radio broadcast network. In Canada, there was an increasing trend of listening to radio broadcast and because they didn’t have any national broadcasting station, they would listen to American radio. This was a major concern for the Canadian government and therefore, they launched their own national broadcasting radio. In 1932, Canadian Radio Broadcasting was founded under the administration of R.B. Bennet’s government. CBC was mainly responsible for innovation in Canadian media culture and all the broadcasting stat ions were under the control of CBC. CBC, Crown Corporation, was based on the model of the BBC. In 1940, an association was founded and named as Radio Artists of Toronto Society. This society was basically established for the radio performers and they were responsible for securing the rights of radio artists (James Lorimer & Company 24). The Association of Canadian Radio Artists was formed in 1943 and it was a flexible, national alliance of a variety of groups of actors. In 1946, FM radio was introduced in Canada but distinct FM service was launched later in the 1960s. In 1952, the era of television broadcasting was started with the launch of stations one after another in Montreal (CBFT) and then in Toronto. The first privately owned station of CBC was a television station in Sudbury and they owned it in 1953. In 1962, the English language radio network was divided into two different services (i.e. Dominion Network and Trans-Canada Network); Dominion Network was dissolved in 1976. Th e Trans-Canada Network was simply known as CBC. Over the next few decades, CBC was known to be the second English language FM Radio network and in 1976 its’ name was changed. It was now known as CBC Stereo (The Wendy Michener Symposium 65). According to the Canadian Broadcasting Act, it is mandatory for the broadcasters to ensure that they are broadcasting authentic information that reflects the points of view of the different cultures living in

Sustainable management futures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Sustainable management futures - Essay Example 86). When Prime Minister says that â€Å"no true conservative wants to sit back and let capitalism rip†, he is making a contradictory and incorrect statement. The main premise of capitalism is to ensure that the government sits back and â€Å"let it rip†. Whenever the government intervenes, not only it distorts the market equilibrium but it also ensures that the public sector grows larger in size, as compared to the private sector. There are no doubt in the fact that the resources in the market are limited, in terms of human and financial capital, and when these resources are devoted to the public sector, which is the inefficient sector, economies fail to realize their economic potential (Bishop, 2000, p. 86). More importantly, when governments intervene and prohibit capitalism from â€Å"letting it rip†, it is creating a cost on all parties with its intervention. Quite understandably, governments would have to finance their power and intervention with two possib le sources. First, it would tax people to fund the intervention, something that violates the basic principles of liberty and freedom and decreases the disposable incomes of people, which then goes on limit the number and size of investments (Isbister, 2011, p. 76). More importantly, as mentioned earlier, the public sector is the inefficient sector, therefore, the amount of taxes are never able to generate returns what they should have generated had they been transferred to the private. Furthermore, as governments accumulate more money though taxes, they see more incentives and opportunities for corruption. Second, the governments might decide to print more money for financing these interventions and â€Å"preventing capitalism from ripping† (Aras & Crowther, 2010, p. 67-68). Injecting more liquidity in the market might boost the demand in the short term but in the medium term, it will increase the inflation, which is disastrous to any economy. The cash reserves, savings and c apital of people would hold lesser value than they did before thus depriving people to buy the same amount of goods and services that they intended to buy with their money since it would hold lesser value. It would decrease the disposable incomes of people, which would reduce the savings. Reduction in savings would mean reduction in the overall capital, which is available in the market thus discouraging future investments and economic growth. Consider the example of how under the Bush Administration, the Federal Reserve Chairman, Alan Greenspan, although, a libertarian decided not to â€Å"let capitalism† rip† and intervene by disturbing the equilibrium of the market. In the wake of the dotcom bubble and 9/11 attacks, he decided to set the interest rates at a record low level of 1 percent so that capitalism and free markets could not â€Å"rip† investments due to the above mentioned events. It appeared that the strategy worked, as investors went on to invest in m ore risky projects and sectors, which would not have received investment had the interest rates been determined by market. Too many investments in the housing market created a housing bubble, which then

Management Accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 6

Management Accounting - Essay Example Secondly, the fear of under-budgeting, which will have the impacts of causing financial crisis for the department in the coming year, also affects the way she is going to deliver the budgeted amount. Anticipated future rise in costs is yet another factor that she has to consider in her decision making regarding the budget she is going to submit, since the costs may rise out of the anticipated new expenditures. Finally, the financial situation of the city affects her decision making, since the revenues collected by the city were down, meaning the possibility of the city cutting down the budgets presented, thus reducing the amounts given to Paxton, as the manager of the waste disposal firm. The analysis of the ethical dilemma under this case presents various ethical issues. First, Paxton is working towards satisfying herself interests, which is highly unethical (Rhodes, 1986 p11). She has the personal interest of being promoted from the department, which she does not appear like. Therefore, she wants to impress her employer by ensuring that she funds the operations of the department to the very best, at the expense of the financial situation that the city is facing. Paxton understand very well that the city’s tax collection for that year were down. Therefore, she anticipates that the city may not have sufficient funds to cater for all the financial needs raised by the departments. This notwithstanding, she wants to ensure that she is not affected by the bad financial situation, through inflating her budget, so that even if it is cut, she will have no shortages. This is selfish on her part, since she does not care about the other departments and their financial n eeds, which is unethical (Harding, 2010 p55). Having understood the financial situation facing the city, she is supposed to be concerned about the other departments,

The Anthropological view of Religion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Anthropological view of Religion - Essay Example For example, when an individual is terminally ill, religions perform established practices where they often utter secret words to get rid of the sickness. This is said to be a means which religions resort to in order to meet psychological needs such as alleviating anxiety. Symbolism is another important element in religions because they are used to explain thee intangible such as love, hope and joy or those which are important emphases in the religion. For the Christians, the bread and wine are examples of symbolism of the body and blood of Jesus. Lastly, ritual is done by the different religions to fulfill psychological and social needs just like how the Shamans represent the removal of a disease by taking a feather and acting like it has been taken from the sick person’s body. Religion is an interesting aspect of life because it does not only portray wisdom about observable things but also reflects on the things that are not observable. Indeed, the arguments of science are based from observable facts and could be easily understood. It could also be said that science can easily convince people to believe in it because the proofs can be seen. However, religion delves in to the matters which are difficult to explain and thus, difficult to understand. These things are considered difficult because in comparison to what science can explain through evidence, some of the beliefs in religions are explained through imperceptible thoughts and ideas. For example, a person is infected with a disease which science claims to be hereditary or could be due to environmental conditions. However, the patient is observed to have no familial history of the disease, has healthy eating habits, has a job which allows her to be physically active and lives in a rural area where the re is not much air, water and noise pollution. In other words, science cannot explain how the individual contracted the

Agricultural Tourism in Cameroon Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Agricultural Tourism in Cameroon - Assignment Example It has beautiful rain forests in the south eastern part of the country and desert at the northern end in addition to this it has regular rainfalls which makes travelling through the country even more attractive for tourists (West). However despite of all the beautiful location and tropical crops available throughout the country tourism is comparatively very low. People are usually unfamiliar with the hidden beauty of the place or they do not have sufficient guidance to travel there. This project on Agricultural Tourism in Cameroon is based on the objective of increasing tourism in the country by a significant percentage which will ultimately result in increased economic growth. Initially the hidden adventure of visiting Cameroon shall be unveiled in order to attract tourist (Fund). For this purpose the project will limit its scope only at the Tropical Crops and Landscapes of the country as these are the major components which influence tourism. Cameroon is blessed with immense natura l resources in addition to cultural heritage and inhabitants of majestic characteristics. It has the unique ecotourism sites of the world with Kapsiki summits in the North and in Kibri located in the Atlantic Ocean which directly falls in to the sea portraying a beautiful scene for the tourists. Building Agricultural Tourism Project in Cameroon is a challenging task because there is no cultural of tourism in the country, people do not like many foreigners roaming around them neither they encourage to build tourism supportive organization either on public or private level. Additionally it is very difficult for tourists to reach there and find accommodation for them since Africans of Cameroon do not provide accommodation services to the tourists coming to their land. Animals found in the forest are extremely dangerous and tourists cannot risk traveling without a proper tourist guide (West). The most important landscape open for tourism in Cameroon are (West): Mountains: They are usual ly found on the western part of the country. They provide extensive activities and sports to tourist such as mountain hiking, etc. Deserts: The famous Sahara desert is present in the north of the country. Forests: Rainforests are present in the southern and eastern parts which are primarily responsible for the overall climate of the country. National Parks: Various national parks are located at different places with in the country some of them are centuries old and attract great many tourists from all around the world. Following are most attractive tropical crops for tourist visiting Cameroon (Atangana) : Banana: Cameroon produces more than 400,000 tons of bananas which are far more than the actual needs of the population. The bananas of Cameroon are famous because of their distinctive characteristics including their smell and size which is very attractive to the tourists visiting the country. Coffee: It is produced from the Western highlands of the country. The sweet aroma of coffe e, its flavor and the real qualities of Boyo Arabica coffee makes it a part of the tourist packages which is highly attractive for all the coffee lovers. Sugar: Cameroon is active in trade of sugar. There are several mills within the country which produce and exports sugar to other parts of the world. Tourists who also travel for the purpose of identifying business opportunities then Cameroon is the most suitable place for them. Time Period The Project will start by the mid of 2013 and will be completed within one year i.e. by the mid of 2014. It is a team based work consisting of five core team members and a group of 10 members acting as supporters to the project. Plan The project will perform its

INTERCULTURAL RESEARCH PROJECT Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

INTERCULTURAL PROJECT - Research Paper Example Similarly, culture consists of other components such as language, values, as well as symbols. Alternatively, these components of culture play a critical role in changing the perceptions of people in terms of their dress code, mode of communication and habits such as eating and working methods among others. In addition, religious beliefs and ethnic patterns of certain culture affect food preparation, as well as their eating mode. There are different effects of culture in eating habits. For example, in the western nations thinness and significance of shape is given high priority in term of maintaining low weight. This is caused by the emergence of popular culture especially in advertising, movies, magazines, books and magazines in which slim people are depicted as happy and contented with life. Additionally, most cultures believe in a change in diet when an individual is sick. Furthermore, in the African culture children are not allowed to eat with adults. On that note, certain meals are a preserve for elder people and the others for women and children. Similarly, there are certain foodstuffs that are eaten according to gender in African societies (Anderson, 2005). For instance, in the traditional African societies, women were not permitted to consume proteins such as chicken, eggs, and meat. However, this was healthy for pregnant women as they were forbidden from eating carbohydrates such bananas and potatoe s because of health effects upon the unborn baby. Therefore, such cultural effects in eating are what results to various eating difficulties such as bulimia nervosa, anorexia athletica, and orthorexia to obesity among others. That brings us to the next thesis: There are several cultural effects resulting to an eating disorder such as obesity. For example, in the Mauritania, overweight shape is respected and girls are given food by force until they attain the obese

Gender determination Essay Example for Free

Gender determination Essay When an individual is born, he or she has male or female sexual organs and this determines the sex of that individual and consequently how the society expects that person to behave. Gender is different however, in that it transcends the simple biological explanation of why one is a boy and another is a girl. This paper will focus on what makes one a girl putting aside the fact that one was born one. It will also look at the possibility of an individual being born a girl but changing to become a boy. How and why this is done is also part of the discussion. Gender is described as â€Å"the socially constructed roles, behaviour, activities and attributes that a particular society considers appropriate for men and women† (http://www. who. int). This means that to be masculine or feminine depends on a society and not only on the sexual organs that one is born with. Once an individual is born, the society teaches him or her how to behave according to the expectations that specific society has for an individual belonging to his or her particular sex. Every society has some roles that are assigned to male and female members of the society and this determines whether one is male or female. The question then becomes whether one is born with his or her gender or this is learned from the society that one grows in. In my own case, attending a girl’s school determined my becoming feminine and thus becoming a girl despite the fact that I was born a girl. In the school, only girls were around and thus were the only role models that I had. This meant that I only had other girls to emulate in my behaviour and my peers were also girls so together we all aspired to be better girls. The teachers we had were also keen on ensuring that we were trained on how girls should behave in certain occasions and also which aspects were to be admired in a girl and which were abhorrent in a female. This shows that one can be trained to become feminine or masculine but it is important to note that it is not always so. This can be demonstrated by the number of girls who would get into trouble with the teachers for playing truant yet this was supposed to be an undesirable trait for girls and hence was dissuaded. These girls were given the same training as all their peers yet tended to behave differently causing one to question whether gender is completely determined by the society (Morrow 1991). Despite the question that is posed above, it is clear that girls who are educated in girl’s only schools are usually more feminine than those who attend mixed schools. This is because those in mixed schools are not controlled as much as those in girls only schools. The environment they are reared in leans more towards femininity and thus tends to discourage any behaviour that is seen to be masculine. The lack of an alternative form of behaviour leads to their feminine behaviour although some will try deviate by doing what they think others are doing elsewhere (Askew Davey 2005). This then leads to the question whether or not one can change from being a girl into a boy? Apart from the biological way, culture has two different ways of changing an individual’s gender. This can either be done by changing the culture one has been brought up in or by being brought up in an environment that emphasises the behaviour of the opposite sex (Watney 1994). Since gender is determined by the roles that a society assigns to each sex, ones gender can change depending on the culture one finds him or herself in at a particular time. Roles assigned to the sexes by different cultures differs and are interchanged whereby roles assigned to women in one culture may be assigned to men in another culture. In this way a male in one culture may be seen to be feminine in another thus changing a male into a female or vice versa. Another way that one can change ones gender is by rearing a girl in a male environment. The girl tends to adopt the masculine behaviours exhibited by her male counter parts as has been witnessed by the women who venture into fields assumed to be the male domain. This is in politics and business where women who succeed in these environments are seen to be more masculine than feminine thus changing their gender to becoming more male than female (Miller, Lewy Peckham1997). In conclusion, it is correct to say that an individual’s gender is not only determined by his or her sex but also by the culture that they have grown in. the roles that a culture assigns to an individual are used to determine femininity and masculinity of members of the society. It is possible for ones gender to be changed depending on which community one is in. Roles assigned depending on an individuals sex change according to the society. Furthermore, the environment one is in influences the behaviour one has thus influencing the gender that one belongs to. Reference 1. Askew J. Davey M. 2005, Sex Acts: Practices of Femininity and Masculinity, Archives of Sexual Behaviour Vol. 34, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks 2. Gender, World health organization retrieved on 13th April 2009 from http://www. who. int/topics/gender/en 3. Miller J. B. , Lewy J. Peckham E. 1997, Context Effects on Self-Perceptions of Feminine and Masculine Quantities, Sex: A Journal of Research Vol. 37 4. Morrow F. 1991, Unleashing Our Unknown Selves: An Inquiry into the Future of Femininity and Masculinity, Praeger Publishers 5. Watney S. 1994, Aphrodite of the Future, Artforum International Vol. 32

Athena in the Odyssey vs. Virgil in the Inferno Essay Example for Free

Athena in the Odyssey vs. Virgil in the Inferno Essay Two of the greatest works ever written, The Odyssey by Homer and The Inferno by Dante, are detailed, multi-sectioned poems about the journey’s of two men. In each story, the main character is given some sort of guidance by another character in order to aid them in their travels. In The Odyssey, Athena is portrayed as the protector to Odysseus on his journey back home from the Trojan War to his family in Ithaca. In The Inferno, Virgil is requested to lead Dante through the depths of Hell in order to save his soul. Many similarities can be seen between the two characters as they both served as advice givers, protectors, and guides for the main character. While the two guides seem very alike in the way’s they help, it turns out that many differences can be observed between their ways. Athena and Virgil can both be perceived as escorts in the main characters’ journey, but they both are leading their pupils towards different endings and these endings can be representative of a much larger purpose that describes the two authors’ views on life at the time each poem was written. In Greek mythology, Athena is regarded as the goddess of Wisdom. She uses her wisdom to aid Odysseus on his journey back home to his family, through various trials and tribulations. Athena’s guidance can be seen when Odysseus is finally being allowed to leave Calypso’s island, which outraged Poseidon. Poseidon sends a great wave to wreck Odysseus’s ship and possibly drown him in the vast ocean but instead Athena helps him survive. â€Å"But Zeus’s daughter Athena countered him at once./ The rest of the winds she stopped right in their tracks,/commanding them all to hush now, go to sleep./ All but the boisterous North-she whipped him up/ and the goddess beat the breakers flat before Odysseus,/ dear to Zeus, so he could reach the Phaeacians,/ mingle with men who love their long oars/ and escape his death at last.† (Ody. 5. 421-427). Another example of Athena protecting Odysseus is during the great battle in the hall when Odysseus finally confronts his wife’s suitors. Athena appears to Odysseus in the form of Mentor and tries to motivate Odysseus to kill all the suitors off with threats and accusations. She even commands the suitors to through their spears at Odysseus all at once. â€Å"At his command,/ concentrating their shots, all six hurled as one/ but Athena sent to whole salvo wide of the mark†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Ody. 22. 267-269). Odysseus sees that all of his men are untouched by the suitor’s spears, and this action propels him to take charge and lead an attack on the suitors. Each time Athena guides or protects Odysseus, it’s in order to save his life. She desperately wants Odysseus to get home because Odysseus is a war hero and a King, very much deserving of a safe return home. Athena thinks very highly of Odysseus because he is such a great warrior and she feels he exemplifies the virtue of excellence. It’s easy to see how the ideals of society on life and death in Homer’s 7th Century BC times are portrayed through Athena’s help. The people of this time were most concerned on how you lived your life during the time you had. For them there was no glorious afterlife, so there was no need to try and save your soul to reap the prize of a great time after death. Homer uses Athena as Odysseus’s guide to get back home and live out the rest of his life the way he pleases. He’s spent his time as a warrior and won his most important battles before the beginning of the poem, so now he deserves to live out the rest of his l ife in peace with those he loves the most. Once he arrives home and fights off his wife’s suitors (with the help of Athena of course) he will finally be free in a sense to enjoy his life. In Dante’s The Inferno, Virgil serves as a guide for Dante through the depths of Hell. Virgil is widely considered an allegory for human reason. Reason is needed in a Christian worldview in order to control emotion and desire from taking control allowing for acts of sin. Reason is God’s gift to mankind, a way of staying on the right path and avoiding the dark side of life, if it is used properly. Virgil was requested to help a lost Dante save his soul by Dante’s departed love, Beatrice, who represents God’s grace. Virgil leads Dante through Hell in order for him to learn the descriptions of sins and their consequences. Virgil is with Dante through out his entire journey, unlike Athena who only appears to Odysseus in The Odyssey every once in a while. One example of how Virgil is always there to lead Dante is when Dante faints before entering the First Circle of Hell. Dante faints at the shine of a bright light and awakens already in the next circle. â€Å"With rested eyes, I stood/ and looked about me, then fixed my gaze/ to make out where I was./ I found myself upon the brink/ of an abyss of suffering/ filled with the roar of endless woe.† (Inf. 4. 4-9). This type of situation occurs many times throughout the poem, as Dante proves many times too weak to carry on, and Virgil takes care of him, protects him, and moves them along on their journey. Another situation is when Dante and Virgil arrive at the center of Circle 9 of Hell. They come to the great body of Lucifer, and Virgil throws Dante on his back to continue their upward climb out of Hell. â€Å"At his request I clasped him round the neck./ When the wings had opened wide enough/ he chose the proper time and place/ and took a handhold on those hairy flanks./ Then from hank to hank he clambered down between the thick pelt and the crusted ice.† (Inf. 34. 70-75). While Virgil leads Dante physically in many ways, he also serves as a voice of reason and leads through his words. An example of this is back as they are entering the First Circle. Dante says, â€Å"My master (Virgil) began: ‘You do not ask about/ the souls you see? I want you to know,/ before you venture farther,/ ‘they did not sin. Though they have merit,/ that is not enough, for they were unbaptized,/ denied the gateway to the faith that you profess./ ‘And if they lived before the Christians lived,/ they did not worship God aright./ And among these I am one.† (Inf. 4. 31-39). In this situation, Virgil not only instructs Dante on what he needs to do, but also reveals a little more information about himself as well. Although Virgil seems to guide Dante in almost the exact same way Athena guides Odysseus, Virgil is working towards an all-together different purpose. In Dante’s 14th century AD Christian society, it was imperative to ensure that you lived a good life on earth and repented for all your sins so that you would be in God’s presence in the after-life. Dante uses Virgil as a way for his audience to see that the most important thing is to save one’s soul, even if a little guidance is required to do so. Dante needed to travel through the depths of Hell to be able to wake up and realize how reason should control emotions and desires so that life can be lived in God’s name allowing for a magnificent afterlife. By showing Dante the different circles of Hell, Dante learns the nature of sin and it’s consequences. Virgil teaches Dante a most important lesson; when reason is not in control, it is more likely to commit harsh sins, sins worthy of an afterlife in Hell and not in God’s good grace. Virgil steers Dante toward the light of God once again, saving him from his impending doom, had he not been able to save his wandering soul. Athena and Virgil are considered to be a form of guidance to their poem’s main characters. In Homer’s The Odyssey, Athena helps to ensure Odysseus’s safe return home, but also allows him to live out the rest of his wonderful life on earth by saving him from various dangers including Poseidon and his wife’s suitors. In Dante’s The Inferno, Virgil serves as Dante’s escort through the circles of Hell, but also pilots Dante back into God’s grace by saving his soul. Each can be seen as not only a physical chaperon but also a spiritual one that illustrates society’s point of view on life or afterlife at the time each poem was written. Works Cited Alighieri, Dante. Inferno. Trans. Robert Hollander and Jean Hollander. New York: Anchor, 2002. Print. Homer. The Odyssey. Trans. Robert Fagles. New York: Penguin, 1997. Print.

Love in the Time of Cholera | Analysis

Love in the Time of Cholera | Analysis Gabriel Garcia Marquezs Love in the Time of Cholera can be interpreted as a romance novel in which star-crossed lovers meet, are then torn apart, and half a century later fall into bed with one another re-igniting the flame that fate stole from them. However, the romance of Florentino Ariza and Fermina Daza is not one of those stories. What may have initially appeared to be an innocent story about love may not be. M. Keith Booker has demonstrated that the novel provides warnings against gullibility in reading, and indeed, there are several incidents early in Love in the Time of Cholera that inform the reader that appearances can be deceiving. In the novel, love is a sickness; a virus that eats away the substance of a man. The falsehood of love that Florentino Ariza feels is a decaying illness destroying his physical and mental form; turning him into an apparition of welted camellias. The illness was injected into Florentino Ariza as he walked into the Dazas house. It was â€Å"half in ruins,† â€Å"with weeds in the flowerpots and a stone fountain with no water,† (54) standing in front. The house signified the sickness to come to Florentino. Flowers throughout the rest of the novel take the impression of the love between Florentino and Fermina, but to miss the setting of the first meeting of the two lovers is to misinterpret the entirety of the novel. The â€Å"weeds in the flowerpots† is the false love they share, the weeds are a valueless plants growing wild, those that grow on the cultivated ground and add injury to the desired crop; which in this case is the love between Florentino and Fermina. The fountain once again represents the emptiness of Florentino and Ferminas love as well as Florentino himself. From first seeing Fermina in the house on Florentino â€Å"began his secret life as a solitary hunter† in which he sat underneat h â€Å"the shade of the almond trees.†(56, 56) The scent almonds is the scent â€Å"of the fate of unrequited love,† (2) the scent that is associated with Jeremiah de Saint Amours death, and the scent of Fermina Daza. The suicide of Jeremiah de Saint Amour sets up the foreshadowing of Florentinos love and what it will ultimately do to him. It is no wonder that the scent of â€Å"bitter almonds† (2) is compared to that of cyanide, as well as the smell of Fermina. The intoxicating aroma of Fermina fills Florentinos heart with crystals ultimately killing him there in the park as he endows her with â€Å"improbable virtues and imaginary sentiments.† (56) In other words, he idealizes her. It is this unrealistic conception of Fermina that leads to a half-century of waiting, watching and stalking, infected by the weeds of love. Marquez wrote: â€Å"When he began to wait for the answer to his first letter, his anguish was complicated by diarrhea and green vomit, be became disoriented and suffered from sudden fainting spells, and his mother was terrified because his condition did not resemble the turmoil of love so much as the devastation of cholera† â€Å"..he had the weak pulse, hoarse breathing, and pale perspiration of a dying man†Ã¢â‚¬ He prescribed infusions of linden blossoms to calm the nerves and suggested a change of air so he could find consolation in distance, but Florentino Ariza longed for just the opposite: to enjoy his martyrdom.† (61, 62, 62) Florentino Ariza literally takes on the sickness of love, as if Fermina had infected him with a bacterial disease known as Cholera. Marquez purposely parallels the sickness of cholera and Florentinos love sickness to exploit the falseness of the love felt by Florentino. The fact that Florentino enjoys his suffering points out the reality of his feelings for Fermina, that he does love her; that he is in love with the suffering caused by the idea of loving her. Fermina is an independent, headstrong person who is sophisticated and capable; Fermina prides herself on her unfaltering, haughty composure. Marquez depicts her as a level headed woman whose ideals are realistic, therefore it is of no concern when she writes to Florentino saying â€Å"When I saw you, I realized that what is between us is nothing more than an illusion.†(102). although, critic ___________ believes that Fermina is â€Å"impulsive† based off her sudden realization, in actuality she is only grown. The time apart from Florentino has taught her that the love between them was truly an illusion that was built up in their minds. She came to the conclusion that the love was nothing more than a childhood crush. However, Florentino did not have the option to grow from Fermina because the separation was nothing new to him. The Fermina Daza he loved was not a physical woman but a sickness running through his veins, she was a phantom of â€Å"improbable virtues and imaginary sentiments.† (56) Fermina the phantom was always with Florentino, she was in his mind and no amount of time could take that away from him. From the moment he gave his letter to Fermina he locked himself into a prison counting the days until he could be free from his self made prison. The virus of Fermina did not break even after the â€Å"fifty-one years and nine months and four days† (103) of waiting, for the prison he built was solely a monument to Fermina. He based the entirety of his life on her and achieving her as if she was a â€Å"golden† prize to win. When Florentino sees her for the first time from her honeymoon, he re-iterates his vow for her. Marquez writes: â€Å"The day that Florentino Ariza saw Fermina Daza in the atrium of the Cathedral, in the sixth month of her pregnancy and in full command of her new condition as a woman of the world, he made a fierce decision to win fame and fortune in order to deserve her.†(165) Florentino based the rest of his life on solely reaching Fermina, not even to marry her as Marquez makes sure not to mention but to â€Å"deserve her† once again suggesting that the love he felt was one of falsehood. Any chance of Florentino of living his life for him in the chance of happiness is shattered here. Any substance that could be squeezed from him is abolished once again in seeing Fermina from a distance â€Å"six months pregnant,† the fact that he saw her pregnant from a distance reinforces that Florentino does not perceive of Fermina as an actually person but rather that woman in his mind. His â€Å"fierce decision† was beyond the thought of a rational man, for Fermina was married and was pregnant to represent that marriage. However, this point in Florentinos life is when he will stop at nothing to reach his dream of Fermina. He devotes his life to the river company until the day he can reach Fermina. Florentino becomes a man in the background to walk the dark city nights; he lives his adult life in the shadows of women. Feeling that sex â€Å"eases the pain of Fermina Daza† (). (( He puts himself in to affairs with other woman whether they are married or not. The narrator only describes a very small fraction of his six hundred and twenty-two long-term affairs, but of the ones he does relate, several offer a picture of a man less than deserving of Ferminas — or any womans — love. One of Florentinos lovers, Olimpia Zuleta, is murdered by her husband when she inadvertently shows him the possessive inscription that Florentino painted on her belly. It is also revealed late in the novel that Florentino is a rapist who, after impregnating a maid behind his house, bribes her to put the blame on her innocent sweetheart. Perhaps most condemning is Florentinos seduction of Amà ©rica Vicuà ±ia, his fourteen-year-old blood relative who is entrusted to him while she att ends secondary school. What is most disturbing in his relationship with this girl is the manipulation he uses to create the illusion of acquiescence. When he meets her, she is still a little girl with the scrapes of elementary school on her knees, but Florentino spends a year cultivating her with ice cream and childish afternoons, until finally winning her confidence and affection. These are love affairs not one night stands, Florentino had feelings for these women (some of them anyway), this love life points out the falsehood of Florentinos love for Fermina. He manipulates woman, all of them. From the time he receives Ferminas letter of insults, Florentino begins to devise a new strategy — a new method of seduction.() He plans everything down to the last detail, as if it were the final battle.() He departs from his usual imitative writing style and composes an extensive meditation on life which he disguises in the patriarchal style of an old mans memories. The letters help Fermina find new reasons to go on living, but Florentinos cunning plans complicate what she interprets as heartfelt emotions. He is also dishonest with her in person; when she asks him why he never competed in the Poetic Festivals, he lies to her () and says that he wrote only for her.() It is true that part of his intention is to give Fermina the courage to discard the prejudices() of society, and to think of love as a state of grace,() but his contemptible past makes it impossible to differentiate his good motives from his selfish, destructive ones.)) Marquez expels Florentino and Ferminas false love during the final pages of the book. He depicts a forsaken country on the river were the elderly couple float down. â€Å"The river became muddy and narrow[†¦] flatlands stripped of entire forests that had been devoured by the boilers of the riverboats [†¦] there were no more wars or epidemics, but the swollen bodies still floated by.†(336) Florentinos relationship with Fermina was not as full but rather a narrow and muddy. The life he led with the sole purpose of being with Fermina and the illusion that followed striped the forest of his life bare leaving nothing but â€Å"flatlands.†(336) The monomaniac idealism of Florentino leads him to strip away everything in his life other than the â€Å"muddy and narrow† (336) river that is his relationship with Fermina. Even though he defeats all the â€Å"wars† and â€Å"epidemics† (336) in order to reach Fermina there are still corpses that float by, the corpses of falsehood and past lovers. The love between them is as narrow as the river. Florentino is as dead and bare as the country side. The ultimate contradiction comes in the very last words of Florentino in which he tells the captain to sail the â€Å"New Fidelity† (343) to sail â€Å"forever.†(348) The impossibility of that statement at first glance seems as the perfect way to end a romantic novel. However, this is not Marquez intention. The wood that is needed to fuel the ship has been depleted to none, due to Florentinos mismanaging of the river company because his mind only grasped the falsehood of Ferminas love. Eventually the elderly couple will have to come to realize the impossibility of their love and come to the truth that â€Å"Its dead.†(340) Florentino will have to come to the truth that Fermina has poisoned his mind and body and that she is and was only an illusion in his mind.

Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy :: Thomas Hardy

Far From the Madding Crowd is considered the first great novel of Thomas Hardy. Margaret Drabble, editor and novelist, cites the novel as "the first of Thomas Hardy's great novels, and the first to sound the tragic note for which his fiction is best remembered" (Hardy xiii). Hardy was born in 1840 and began life as an architect. He wrote his first novel, The Poor Man and the Lady, in 1867. It was not received well. Four years later he wrote three more novels, two anonymously and one bearing his name; they were received slightly better then the first. His popularity and fame did not bloom until the release of his fifth novel, Far From the Madding Crowd. This novel launched him into the public eye and helped him to become the amazing writer and creator of the Wessex novels, as we know him today. The major turning point in Hardy's life was the reception of his novel, Jude the Obscure. Because of the major conflict concerning the book and it's readers, Hardy swore to never write fiction again. Approximately thirty years later, after writing some poetry and short stories, Hardy dies and is buried next to Dickens in Westminster Abbey. His heart is buried in the Wessex countryside in the parish churchyard at Stinsford. Far From the Madding Crowd is the first of Hardy's notorious Wessex novels. The main characters in the novel are Bathsheba Everdene, Gabriel Oak, Sergeant Troy and Farmer Boldwood. The novel begins with Oak and Everdene being introduced and Oak asking for Everdene's hand in marriage. She, of course, says no. After Oak's sheep are killed in a freak accident, he must venture out and look for new work and winds up on Everdene's farm in Weatherby where he becomes head shepherd. Everdene continues to flirt with Oak and also with the neighboring landowner, Boldwood, whom ends up proposing to her as well. Again, her reply is, no. Finally we are introduced to the young Sergeant Troy, who also asks for Bathsheba's hand in marriage and this time we are shocked to find out the her reply was, yes! Towards the end of the novel we find out that Troy has also seduced and impregnated a young milkmaid who has died in childbirth. Boldwood goes crazy and kills Troy because of his passion for Bathsheba and her refusal of him, and Bathsheba ends up betrothed to Oak.

Fighting Kerry Keenan :: Film Movies

Fighting Kerry Keenan Theme: This film is loosely based on the story of Lola Bardem, who as a student at Sarah Lawrence college was convicted of killing her lover and roommate, Sara Shield with a compound bow. Lola, an All-American archer, and three time cover-model for Sports Illustrated was the defendant in the case brought against her by the victim's family. The case, which I'm sure we all remember was important for many reasons, not only due to the strange nature of Sara's death, but also for the evidence brought against, and in support of Lola, including issues concerning her upbringing in a low-income neighborhood, her sexual orientation, and her gender. Although Lola's case has been closed for almost five years now, the ramifications of the suit are still being felt. Since then, many of the nations colleges and universities have cut funding for sports that are considered "out-dated" and "dangerous", although many traditional sports like football, ice-hockey, track and field, and sailing still continue to receive a large sum of funding—often being cited as sports that are associated with the identity of the school, and therefore untouchable due to pressure from alums and television networks that broadcast the games nationally. However, and perhaps more importantly, the film will mainly be concerned with the case itself, and the uproar it caused in the media. Protagonists: For our purposes, Lola's name has been changed to Kerry. Although the film is ultimately constructed temporally along the events of Kerry's case, the main protagonist is an 18 year old high school senior named Darby Brennan, who is at the time of the case is being pursued by elite universities to join their basketball team. The news that we as viewers gather about the case is filtered to us through Darby's perspective. Although initially naà ¯ve with respect to the world of competitive women's sports, Darby's experience watching the case ultimately influences her decision about playing sports in college. Other than her testimony, Kerry herself doesn't have much of a main part. Rather, it is the media's portrayal of Kerry's case that occupies much of the narrative, and should lead the viewer to question the portrayal of women in sports. Often scenes in the movie will be filmed to give the viewer the feeling of being the audience of news telecasts. However, in order to emphasize narrative perspective, Darby will often comment on the information we receive, questioning how her own life could possibly be construed by the media, and her own activities misinterpreted in the interest of television ratings.