What different challenges did the U.S. face fighting in the Pacific versus fighting in Europe? War In The Pacific

In the Pacific,
we also did not really have a forward base from which to stage invasions, like we did in Europe
with England against Germany, and the bombing raids against Japan had to assemble B-29's from
many bases so coordination was difficult.

All of our supplies had to be
moved by sea, which put huge demands on shipping and it was hard to protect all of those supply
ships over such a big ocean as the Pacific.  The Japanese were very well dug in to the islands
they...

Can you summarize the text "Where I Lived, and What I Lived for" and explain it? What are the topics you find interesting to highlight?

The famous
book , originally published as Walden; or, Life in the
Woods tells of an experiment in living that , the author, undertook by the shore of
Walden Pond in Massachusetts. In the book, Thoreau condenses two years, two months, and two days
of actual residency into one year. He divides the book into chapters on various themes relevant
to his sojourn by the pond.

In chapter 2, "Where I Lived, and What I
Lived For," Thoreau elaborates on some of the basic themes he touched on in the first
chapter, "Economy." He begins by sharing an anecdote about his interest in purchasing
a local farm, the Hollowell farm. His initial attraction to the place was its isolation, as
"it was two miles from the village" and "half a mile from the nearest
neighbor." However, he is ultimately glad that he didn't buy it; he doesn't want to be tied
down to the financial obligation of a farm. He can get the solitude that he craves on the shores
of Walden Pond, for free.

Thoreau describes...

In 1984, what finally convinces Winston that O'Brien is a member of the Brotherhood?

is finally
convinced thatis a member of the
Brotherhood in Part Two, Chapter Eight.  In this chapter,
Winston andare
invited to O'Brien's apartment. Initially, Winston feels nervous that his

invitation to the apartment might be a ruse, but once he arrives, O'Brien
turns
off the telescreen (as a means of providing some
privacy), and this convinces
Winston that he is indeed genuine.

Moreover, Winston is further convinced in
the conversation that
follows. O'Brien tells Winston and Julia that the servant is

"one of us." This phrase implies that they are all of the same

philosophy, that they are united by their desire to overcome Big Brother.

As
their conversation continues, Winston
is...

Besides Odysseus, who is the other hero in The Odyssey?

Telemachus could also
be counted as a hero in . He stands up to the suitors, men who are quite
contented to exploit the rules concerning hospitality and plot Telemachus's death. He is also
brave enough to sail out, away from home, to go in search of news of his father, Odysseus. The
dutiful son who helps to avenge the wrongs done to his father is very much a hero to the ancient
GreeksOrestes, the son of Agamemnon who slays his mother and her lover after they killed his
father, is also revered as a hero.

It's true that Athena helps Telemachus
quite a...

Role Of Chorus In Oedipus Rex

Like
thein many Greek tragedies, thein
represents the voice of the greater
society. The elders
of the chorus are considered to represent men of Thebes who honor and
respect
the king and the gods. Their odes show both knowledge of religious culture as well
as
strong loyalty to the king. The chorus' role is to provide a broader
context for the action of
the play as a whole: the chorus has the ability to
pass judgment on the actions of the other ,
& comment on the morality of
such.

The Greek...

How does the character Hester Prynne triumph over evil? The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

's triumph
over evil comes not in the wearing of the scarlet letter that fails to do "its
office," but in her prevailing over the stigma of the letter and the evil adversary , who
violates the secrets of the human heart as he pursues his revenge--"he will be
mine"--against Hester's lover, the Reverend .

Hester wears her scarlet
letter under her own terms as she tends the ailing and the dying, becoming an angel of mercy to
the community.  Her many acts of altruism and her humble acceptance of her ostracism lead
people to perceive the significance of the letter A as that of
"Angel."  Thus, she triumphs over the evilof adulterer.

But, above
and beyond the stigma of the scarlet letter, Hester triumphs over evil in the form of Roger
Chillingworth.  Even the incarnation of Hester and Dimmesdale's sin of passion, little,
recognizes the evil in Chillingworth, calling him the "Black Man," a term meaning the
Satanic man who...

What are the advantages and disadvantages of standardizing the product offerings for a branded hospitality chain?

Major
branded hotel chains have the choice of standardizing their offerings across the brand or of
letting individual properties customize their offerings to meet the needs of local
markets. 

The most obvious advantage of standardization is quality control,
guaranteeing the customer of a uniform experience across the brand, irrespective of the
ownership of the individual franchise. A second advantage is that it can reduce costs by
enabling all hotels in a chain to take advantage of economies of scale and negotiate lower
prices from suppliers. 

The main disadvantage to standardization is that it
reduces the flexibility of a chain to cater for regional tastes and expectations. As hotel
chains increasingly rely on global revenue, this becomes a problem, as the needs and tastes of
customers in areas as diverse as Nigeria, India, China, Dubai, Canada, Germany, and Chile, for
example, are quite different. 

How is moral blindness present in the play Oedipus the King? How is moral blindness present in the play Oedipus the King?

There is a sense in
which bothand , to a greater extent, willingly blind themselves by refusing to acknowledge the
truth of various prophecies and omens regarding the true identity of the killer of Laius, the
former King of Thebes. This is of course something that Jocasta in particular is rebuked for by
theas they are very concerned about her attitude towards prophecy and omens and the gods in
general.

Social Causes Of The American Revolution

Some of the
social factors simply grew out of the colonies and their inhabitants beginning to lose the ties
to their "mother country" as they spent more time and more generations were begun in
America that simply had no allegiance, or significantly less allegiance to a King that
ruled...

How did the Second Industrial Revolution (1870€”1920) change the landscape of America economically, intellectual, culturally?

I think
that one of the distinct ways in which America was impacted with the Second Industrial
Revolution was through the introduction of wealth into different aspects of society.  The
massive proliferation of wealth helped to change the landscape of economic power in America.
 The movement of the nation from farms to factories triggered a consolidation of wealth in the
nation's cities, as urbanization accompanied rapid industrialization.  There was an embrace of
economic notions of the good as being the dominant force in American society.
 Carnegie's Gospel of Wealth affirmed the allure and power of wealth.
 Speeches from industrialist advocates like Russell Conwell, such as his Acres of
Diamonds, stressed that it was an individual's "duty to get rich." Popular
literature espoused the Horatio Alger story of "rags to riches."  

These ideas manifested themselves culturally, as millions of Americans believed that
they, too, could become wealthy through the rapid development of the nation.  The presence of
wealth was undeniable and permeated itself into as many spheres as possible. The consolidation
of wealth and the desire to ensure that wealth production, through what Zinn termed as
"blood, sweat, politics and thievery," was a driving force in the Second Industrial
Revolution of the United States.  To ensure that an economic focus entered as many aspects of
life is where the revolution element was most notable.  It is here where the economic power of
the time period manifested itself into as many spheres of American society as possible.
 

href="https://americanhistory.si.edu/presidency/timeline/pres_era/3_657.html">https://americanhistory.si.edu/presidency/timeline/pres_e...

In The Bronze Bow, how is Rosh comparable to Simon?

Simon is an
old friend of Daniel's, but they have not seen each other in years. When Simon meets Daniel
again, Daniel is living with Rosh and the bandits on the hill; Daniel is consumed by his anger
and driven by revenge, and Simon is worried about him. Simon explains how he feels about
Rosh:

"...Rosh and I don't see eye to eye. For one
thing, I prefer to earn my own bread and meat. [...] There will be need for warriors. But just
now there is always a need for a...

class="gray-bar php-paywall-exclude-count" style="width:
98%">

href="https://books.google.com/books?id=Mzit9hqyTyAC&printsec=frontcover&hl=en">https://books.google.com/books?id=Mzit9hqyTyAC&printsec=f...

What are some consequences of our imprisonment binge?

Tatiana Balayan, M.S.

The consequences of mass incarceration in the United States are far-reaching. Over
two million American citizens are in prison, thus contributing toward the highest prison
population around the globe. In addition to the astonishing cost of keeping inmates behind
bars$60,000 a year per inmatethere are harmful effects for US citizens individually and the
nation as a whole.

Imprisonment affects not only
the individual, but families and society in general. Once prisoners are released, they are two
times more likely to be unemployed because of their record. Even if they are able to secure a
job, they receive less earnings per hour than other workers without a record.

Aside from job instability, children of ex-convicts also
sufferover seven million children in the country have a parent in prison or who was once
incarcerated. While their parents were in prison, these children missed out on discipline, love,
and guidance, which may contribute to their own path toward criminal behavior...
href="https://www.prisonstudies.org/">https://www.prisonstudies.org/]]>

Discuss if the quality of art is subjective. Discuss if the quality of art is subjective.

If art is so
subjective, how is it that some paintings have been recognized by multitudinous countries and
ages as superb?  Art is not absolutely or totally subjective.  If it were, there would not be so
many people responding to it in similar ways.  Granted, there is subjectivity to art as the
personal expression of the artist and there are personal preferences for one style or another. 
But with form and line and perspective and different schools or thought that establish certain
criteria, there are degrees of objectivity. 

 

 

How does the young Elie change in his appearance, perspective, and relationship to his father as a result of his stay in the concentration camp in

When Eliezer
Wiesel was freed from the
Buchenwald concentration camp in April 1945, he had nothing but the
memories
of his family, his home, and his country.  Everything had been taken from him in
the
Holocaust.
 is
the
story of Ely Wiesel surviving Nazi concentration camps as a teenager. Interestingly,
Wiesel
waited ten years before he wrote about his survival; consequently,
this is a memoir based on
Wiesels reflections ten years after his nightmarish
experiences.  

Eliezer is
the main character in
Night.  The reader follows his experiences as not
only
theby the narrator as well. His first person narration places the reader inside the
camps
with the young boy who is the only character in the story that survives
the camps
horror.

With the death of his mother and sister,
Eliezer began to have doubts
that God existed, and his faith decreases when
he was taken to the concentration camp. He could
not understand nor believe
how God could let something so horrible happen to him and his

family.

Everywhere the boy looked there were dead bodies.  Where was
God in
this terrible place?  These corpses symbolize to Elie a spiritual
death.

When
the camps are liberated, Eliezer looks at
himself for the first time in many months. He sees a
corpse in the mirror.
The look in his eyes as he stares at himself never leaves him. It speaks
of
the horror he has experienced and seen which stole his childhood innocence and his faith
in
Gods mercy and justice.

When Elys father is dying, he
searches for someone to
help him.  One of the guards tells Elie  that there
is no one to help:

In this place, it is
every man for himself, and you cannot think of
others.  Not eveyone is your
father. In this place, there is no such as father, brother,
friend.  Each of
us lives and dies alone. 

Elies

observation of his father dying is too much for the teenager.  He gets in his bunk above
his
father and sleeps.  When he awakens the next morning, his father has
already been taken to the
crematorium.  He was unable to cry for him. The
father that he loved and admired was gone, yet,
he had the feeling of relief:
both he and his father were free at last. 

After the death
of his father, he became completely idle. His only mission was to eat
to
survive.  He no longer even thought of his mother or father, only of his survival.  He
had
lost his way; and he only felt numbness.  This was the way it was even
when the camp was
liberated.   

However, the human spirit
has the ability to rise again.  After
he gained his freedom, Wiesel knew that
he had to devote his life to the cause of human rights. 
He decided to speak
for those who had no voice and for those who suffered from injustice.  That

is what this young boy did with his life. became the man of which his father would
be
proud. 

 

Monday, March 19, 2012

Identify a key structural choice the author made in this story, and explain its effect on readers.

There are
several interesting and key structural choices thatmakes in this story. The first is to begin
the story by making the reader aware of Framton Nuttel's nervous condition. In the second
paragraph, for example, we learn that Framton is visiting a "rural retreat" to aid
"the nerve cure which he (is) supposed to be undergoing." It is important that the
reader should be aware of this at the beginning of the story because, later in the story, it
makes the practical joke played upon him, by the mischievous Vera, all the more cruel.

Another interesting and key structural choice is to keep the reader in the dark about
the practical joke until the end of the story. Vera tells Framton that her aunt's husband and
two young brothers disappeared one day, three years ago, when crossing the moor. She also tells
him that her aunt still "thinks that they will come back someday." When they do
return, at the end of the story, the reader is, momentarily, as surprised as Framton.

We then learn that the story about the men disappearing was a lie. Vera knew that the
men had left to go hunting only that morning, and she knew too that they would return that
evening. Because Saki decides to keep this information from the reader until the end of the
story, the reader is better able to empathize with the , Framton Nuttel. The decision to only
reveal the truth at the end of the story also ensures that the story concludes with a very
dramatic, satisfying .

How does A Streetcar Named Desire fit the American dream, and which characters achieve it?

The term
"American Dream" was coined by James Truslow Adams (October 18, 1878, to May 18,
1949), an American journalist, in his 1931 book The Epic of America in
which he stated:

The American Dream is that...life should
be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or
achievement....It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social
order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest
stature...regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position.

This notion of an American Dream was set up in opposition to the
aristocratic society of Europein which a person's birth determined their social and economic
fortune in life.

In a sense, Blanche DuBois, with her dreams of the Belle
Reve plantation, represents a European dream of a hereditary aristocracy with a role in life
determined not by her abilities or efforts but one to which she is entitled by birth. Even her
efforts to fantasize...

Sunday, March 18, 2012

In "The Witch of Blackbird Pond", what was found in Hannah's house that incriminates Kit? This is for chapters 17-18

While Kit is
trying to save Hanna from the mob the people in the community go to Hanna's home and Kit sees it
burning.  Kit gets Hanna safely on the boat and she returns home to find that her cousins are
feeling better and will survive.  Just as Kit starts to relax and get on with her life things
get worse.  "Later that day, four visitors from the village come to the Wood house to
arrest Kit for witchcraft. Goodwife Cruff claims that the reason Hannah got away is because Kit
helped her and that Hannahs cat carried her away in the form of a mouse. Matthew is unimpressed,
and Kit is about to laugh, until the constable reveals the Silver Hornbook
Kit had been using to teach Prudence to write. When Matthew asks Kit if it was
hers, Kit says yes and that she used to visit Hannah and bring her gifts. The fact that Matthew
did not know this was happening gives the visitors an opening, and they insist on taking
her."

This is a problem because Matthew was the head of the household and
he should have known what was going on in his own house.  The fact that Kit didn't tell anyone
she had befriended Hanna makes her look guilty.

Friday, March 16, 2012

How might this concept play out in "The Minister's Black Veil?" Hawthorne (who is a Puritan) shows the ultimate consequence for the mistrust and...

Very interesting
question! You are completely right in identifying the context in which Hawthorne was writing.
However, it is also important to identify how Hawthorne in his writings challenges and questions
tenets of Puritanism through the themes and messages of his work. "" is a classic
example as it exposes the hypocrisy and judgemental attitude of many Puritans. It does this
through pointing out that

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

What were two major changes in British policy toward the colonies that led to the Revolution?

There
were two major changes in British
policies that led to the Revolutionary War. One change was the
British
decision to begin to enforce some of the trade policies that they had generally
ignored.
The British often looked the other way when the colonists smuggled
items into the colonies. They
also looked the other way when the colonists
used the ships of other countries instead of using
British ships. When the
British passed the Sugar Act, it lowered the tax on molasses. This
eventually
reduced colonial trade with the French West Indies and some other places, harming
the
economy of the colonies. The British navy began to enforce the Sugar Act
much more closely than
they had...

href="https://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentations/timeline/amrev/amrev.html">http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentati...


href="https://m.landofthebrave.info/causes-of-the-american-revolutionary-war.htm">https://m.landofthebrave.info/causes-of-the-american-revo...


href="https://www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/sugaract.html">https://www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/sugaract.html

Discuss Jane Austen's attitude towards love and marriage demonstrated in Emma.

Central to understanding
this excellent and
witty novel is recognising the very different way in which marriage was

though of in Austen's day. Marriage was linked inextricably to social status. Marriage
was one
way in which women in particular could raise their social status, as
they were unable to raise
their status through a profession or personal
achievement. Thus the novel is based around a
series of marriages that have
either just happened or are eagerly anticipated. However, the
novel seems to
suggest, marrying too far above your own social sphere is something that can

bring sadness and strife. Mr. Weston's first marriage to Miss Churchill represented a
rise in
social status for him, but also resulted in a rather unhappy marriage
due to the inequality of
social position between them. Mr. Weston's second
marriage is much happier because both come
from a similar social position.
This is of course also something seen by 's misguided attempts
to match
Harriet with Mr. Elton, which other characters see as foolish, and which Emma
herself
recognises was the wrong thing to do. Note how Mr. Elton responds to
Emma's suggestion that he
liked Harriet:

Miss Smith is a very good sort of girl; and
I should be happy to see
her respectably settled. I wish her extremely well and, no doubt, there
are
men who might not object toEverybody has their level but as for myself, I am not, I
think,
quite so much at a loss.

Mr.
Elton is very clear about
the "level" of Harriet and his own level, which do
not, in his perspective, connect in
any way. Emma's affection and
determination blind her to the social realities of Emma's
position. Austen
seems to suggest therefore that marriage is best when it is between two
social
equals, as is the case between Emma and Mr.
Knightley.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

What are the different interpretations of the bus drivers parting advice: Be careful?

In
chapter three, Stanley Yelants rides to Camp Green Lake on a bus with a driver and an armed
guard while he thinks about his family's bad luck. At the beginning of chapter four, Stanley
arrives at Camp Green Lake after an eight-hour trip and the bus driver offers him a piece of
advice by saying, "Be careful" (Sachar, 5). There are several different
interpretations of the bus driver's parting words of advice. One could argue that the bus driver
is familiar with Camp Green Lake and its surrounding area, which he understands is dangerous and
hostile. The bus driver may be aware of the poisonous yellow lizards, extremely hot desert, and
treacherous terrain, which is why he advises Stanley to be cautious of his
surroundings.

The bus driver may also be familiar with the Warden, Mr. Sir,
and Mr. Pendanski. All three characters are selfish, threatening individuals, who control and
manipulate the boys. He may have heard about the Warden's violent nature and recognizes that she
may harm Stanley. Another interpretation of the bus driver's advice could be that he is warning
Stanley to be cautious of the other boys at camp. The driver is aware that other juvenile
delinquents pose a threat to Stanley, who is overweight and seems like a passive individual.
Overall, the bus driver's parting advice can be interpreted as a warning for Stanley to avoid
the Warden and counselors, be cautious of the other juveniles, or be aware of the threatening
natural environment.

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Which of the following does the electorate consist of? a. citizens eligible to vote. b. the people who vote in an election. c. people who...

It would be a
good idea for you to look in your textbook or in your lecture notes for this answer.  The reason
for this is that electorate is a term that can be used in many ways, depending on the
context.

Of the choices that you have given here, both A and B show
definitions of electorate that can often be seen in American political writing.  For example,
href="https://www.voterparticipation.org/our-mission/the-rising-american-electorate/">in
this link, we can see a discussion of the rising American electorate.  This source
goes on to tell us that much of the rising American electorate is not registered to vote.  That
means that B is clearly not the sense in which they are using the term.  Instead, they are using
the term to refer to all those who would be able to vote if they registered.  On the other hand,
we can see in this link a use of the term electorate to mean those people who actually voted
in the election.

Thus, the term can be used in both ways.  It is likely that
your book or teacher uses it in one of these two ways and you will need to determine which of
those it is.

Monday, March 12, 2012

What does the quote below from Sophocles' Oedipus Rexmean, and who does it relate to? Chorus: You saw him swept away. so, being mortal, look on that...

This
passage refers to , but it can also be interpreted as
philosophically referring to all of mankind. When thesays what can
be translated as, "You saw him swept away," or, "How deep the sea of dire
misfortune that has taken him!," theis clearly referring to Oedipus (1556). Oedipus has
been "swept away" by his misfortunes, or the terrible things that he has been through
and that have been revealed to him. He is no longer the man he once was but is now instead
racked with pain and full of shame over the sins he has unknowingly committed against both his
mother and father.

However, the chorus continues to make a generalization
about mankind. The chorus warns that no one should think that a man is "blessed," or
fortunate until that man's life is over. The reference to the end of a person's life can be seen
in the line, "Until he's crossed life's bounds," which can also be translated as,
"Until he has reached the limit of life" (1558-59). The chorus further argues that
once a man has reached the end of his life and is still happy, content, and blessed and has not
known any suffering, then someone can consider that person to be "blessed." This idea
is seen in the phrase "unstruck by ruin still," which can also be translated with the
phrase "suffering nothing grievous" (1559). In short, the chorus is arguing that no
one can be considered happy and fortunate until that person has passed through life without
experiencing any suffering. While this statement is meant to apply to all of mankind in general,
it especially applies to Oedipus because the chorus saw him as a lucky, virtuous man. He was
lucky to have been made their king, and he was lucky to have had such a happy marriage, but now
all of Oedipus's happiness has been proven to be a .

Sunday, March 11, 2012

In what way would Betty's fear of her father have accounted for her behavior after the incident in the woods?

Betty's
fear of punishment from either or both
her father and Salem society motivates her behavior after
the incident in the
woods.  This becomes clear when specifically referencing her illness.  If

Betty's illness is seen as legitimate, then her body shutting down is a physical
response to the
internal state of panic she is experiencing.  Parris' own
insecurities about his position,
title, and wealth have been transferred down
to his child, who...

Saturday, March 10, 2012

What is the main message of The Travels of Marco Polo?

From a
historical point of view, the message seemed to be one of self- glorification and spiking the
age of exploration that ended up defining much of world history.  Polo's writing reflects the
interest in the exploration of "the Orient" and the areas that were not located in
Europe.  His work was read by the likes of Christopher Columbus and other explorers.  The
message that comes out of...

Friday, March 9, 2012

What led to the separation of colonists in the late 1700s?

When
talking about the lead up to the American Revolution, it is important to remember that colonists
supporting independence did not make up a majority or even a plurality of all colonists.
Colonists seeking independence made up less than one-third of all colonists, so the grievances
of the colonists were either not sufficiently widespread or not sufficiently serious to drive
the majority of colonists toward independence.

The underlying causes of the
Revolution were somewhat long-running. England passed legislation, like the Molasses
Act,...

In "The Open Window," why is Framton Nuttel taking a trip?

Mr. Nuttels
peculiar name is very descriptive of the nervous condition from which he suffers. He seems to
have some sort of mental disorder that keeps him anxious and unable to handle stress. When he
describes his illness, he says, "The doctors agree in ordering me complete rest, an absence
of mental excitement, and avoidance of anything in the nature of violent physical exercise. Mr.
Nuttels sister suggests that he go to the country home of Mrs. Sappleton and soak in the fresh
air to relax his nerves. Unfortunately,...

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

What is a summary of the the poem "Breaking Out" by Marge Piercy?

This
powerful narrative poem expresses the speaker's first rebellious act. She introduces the subject
as if in reply to the question: "What was your first political act?" In reply she
states what she perceived and how she responded to the circumstances in which she found
herself.

The first stanza, in the present continuous tense, effectively
conveys the immediate nature of her recollection. She is reliving her memories as if they are
happening at the time of recall. This suggests their power and the impact they have made on the
speaker. The fact that she refers to two doors that are usually open suggests that they offer
her an unrestricted escape route: a journey she is unable to undertake at the time since she is
subjected to her parents' will.

Doors are commonly seen as symbols of either
freedom or oppression, depending on whether they are open or shut. These doors are personified
and compared to "gossips" almost as if they are leaning towards each other to whisper
scandal and rumor, either about the household or the speaker. The fact that they form a closet
enhances the element of secrecy and mystery. This is further emphasized by the use of the word
"corner," which suggests something inappropriate and secretive.

It
soon becomes evident why the speaker expresses suspicion of the doors. It is as if they, along
with other objects around the house, are symbols of domestic oppression. The speaker refers to a
number of instruments of domesticity. It becomes clear, though, that these objects are utilized
to perform acts of overzealous domesticity. The mangle, for example, is used to iron items which
ordinarily would not need such treatment. This powerfully conveys the idea of how much her
mother takes to the commission of her housewifely duties.

The vacuum cleaner
is also personified and seems to be clearly tired and exasperated by the repetitious and
unending nature of domestic work. The speaker uses it as a symbol of herselfshe has also grown
tired of performing these duties. She expresses how much she hates the fact that her mother so
willingly submits to the completion of her tasks and affirms that she has decided never to
subject herself to such punishment once she finds independence (leaves home).

Theto Sisyphus, a character in Greek mythology who was sentenced to forever roll a huge
boulder up a hill only to see it roll down again, reminds her of her mother, who, she believes,
is suffering the same fate.

In the second part of the poem, from stanza 5
onward, the speaker relates the punishment she has to endure at the hands of both her parents.
They use a yardstick to mete out punishment whenever they believe that she is disobedient. The
stick, which her mother uses in her occupation as a dressmaker, becomes a reviled instrument of
torture to the speaker. She cries out loudly when beaten, but the beatings continue.

The speaker states that her mother's beatings are much fiercer than those of her
father, but that his punishment is prolonged and tougher. After such punishment she explores the
welts from the blows in a mirror and sees in them blue and red mountains, which become symbols
of her desire to be free of the harsh and restricted life she is subjected to. Her veins and
arteries become tokens of the routes she will take once she has escaped her life of drudgery and
abuse.

The speaker states that she has reached a turning point at age
elevenon the cusp of adolescence. She takes the despised object of torture and breaks it into
little pieceswood that can be used to start a fire. This act also becomes afor her rebellion.
She is surprised that the object, which has been used to oppress and suppress her will, can
break so easily. Its power has been diminished to nothing. It is at this point that the speaker,
emotionally and intellectually, emancipates herself from the oppression that she has been
enduring as a child. She has advanced into the first stages of adulthood and freedom. She has,
symbolically, started a fire which will burn, fiercely and forever, within her.

This is strongly affirmed in the final stanza: 

This is not a tale of innocence lost but power
gained: I would not be
Sisyphus, 
there were things that I should learn to break.

The speaker states that she has empowered herself when she commits
this act. She proclaims that she will not be a slave to drudgery and hard labor and that she has
to learn how to break from convention. Her freedom lies in the fact that she has started a
journey in which she will shatter society's expectations and demands that she should be
submissive, subservient, and obedient just because she is a woman. 

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

At the end of Act 3, Scene 3, why didn't Hamlet kill Claudius when he had the chance?

tells
himself that he can't kill the King while he is praying. But the real reason is probably thatcan
never make up his mind. Coleridge said that Hamlet "thinks too much." Hamlet sees too
many sides to any question. When he does act, it is always on impulse, before he has had a
chance to think. For example, he acts very courageously and decisively when his ship bound for
England is attacked by pirates. Coleridge's diagnosis of Hamlet's character is probably the best
that has ever been attempted. The answer by rishakespeare at this link below gives another
perspective on Hamlet's actions. See what he says about "a harsh reality
of an immoral world with his idealistic Christian
reality."

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Animal Farm: Satire, Fable and Political Allegory? Do you interpret the novel Animal Farm by George Orwell to be a satire, fable or a political...

Clearly, there
are all three elements in 's .  With such characters such as , who
represents Stalin, and , who is representative of Lenin, Orwell's narrative in anof the
communist Soviet Union.  In this allegory, Orwell examines and satirizes the subversion and
manipulation of the meaning of words that Communist Russia promulgated.  , who "could turn
black into white," is the propagandist.   

The "fairy tale" is
really a masque for the biting politicalof the Communist regime.

1) how does setting function in a story? 2)What is the theme of the story? What in the story suggests this theme? 3)What role does setting play in...

Here are some
additional observations on setting and theme:

Setting:

The significance of the setting of
Hemingway's story is certainly suggested in the fact that it is given the priority of being the
title. The "clean, well-lighted place" serves the lonely old man as a refuge from the
nothingness of life and the bleakness of his own life. He is reluctant to leave the cafe because
he feels sheltered from the "nada" while he is in the lighted and clean cafe, and he
can forget temporarily his alienated condition. This condition the old waiter understands as he,
too, has nothing as a way of life:  

It was a nothing that
he knew too well. It was all a nothing and a man was nothing too. It was only that and light was
all it needed and a certain cleanness and order.

He tells
the young waiter, "Each night I am reluctant to close up because there may be some one who
needs the cafe." For, cleanliness, light, and order act as defenses against the horror of
the "nada," the nothingness to life. And, coming to the "clean, well-lighted
place" as a routine gives some meaning to the old man.

Certainly,
setting is the most important element of this story since it carries implications that extend to
both character and theme. 

Theme:

After the disillusionment and destruction of World War II, Hemingway feels that the
future can only find value if new and better values, purer values could be established from the
disorder of the world. This is the meaning of theof the "Our Father":

Give us this nada our
daily nada and nada us
our nada as
we nada ournadas and nada us not
into nada but deliver us from nada; pues
nada. Hail nothing....

Out of nothing,
perhaps, ethical conduct and order can be re-established. For, without attachments, humanity may
be able to attain a level of virtue, and thus, nothing can become the only
"order."

Another interpretation of the old man is that he is
symbolic of the old values and psychology. Now effete and in despair, like the Germans and
Allied Forces alike, the old man comes to the well-lighted place in order to clear his mind of
the dark confusion of thought in the aftermath of war. Unable to make sense of the horrors of
war, all that the old man (the war-weary countries) can do is hold at bay the
"nada"--the negative experiences--that threatens to disillusion and overcome
him.

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Foreshadowing In Of Mice And Men

In
bythat the one woman in the narrative is going to be trouble is clearly
suggested in .  Here are some examples of :

1. One day as the men glance up,
they see a girl standing in the doorway.  Her posture indicates that she is flirtatious, and her
manner suggests that she is looking for more than Curley when she repeatedly comes
around.

She put her hands behind her back and leaned
against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward.  "You're the new fellas that
just come, ain't ya?"...

She smiled archly and twitched her body. 
"Nobody...

From Spinelli's Stargirl, what qualities about a person make them attractive? Why do you think Stargirl is attracted to Leo?

There are
usually two reasons for why people are attracted to each other: either they find a lot of
similarities in one another's characters and/or personalities, or opposites simply attract. For
Leo,is attracted to him because she knows he is similar to her. They are both non-conformists;
that is to say, they are unique individuals and not followers. For example, the student body of
Mica Area High School ebs and flows with whatever or whomever is popular at the time. They are
fair-weather fans, one might say. When someone hates Stargirl, for instance, people treat her
without respect, but she doesn't care. Also, when everyone seems to hate Stargirl, Leo doesn't
share their disgust with her. Leo is the only one who can see past the prairie dress and the odd
name. For example, when Stargirl says she will go on the interview show called Hot
Seat, Leo says the following:

"First I was
surprised. This didn't fit my impression of her. I didn't know that this was an early glimpse of
something I was soon to see much more of: behind the dazzling talents and differentness, she was
far more normal than I had realized" (43).

Stargirl,
therefore, must be attracted to Leo because she knows that he can see her for who she is.
Everyone in the student body can't get over the fact that she dresses differently and doesn't
live according to the majority's way of thinking. Leo understands this to a certain point, which
allows his heart to be open to her invitations to be friends. It's not until classmates shun Leo
and Stargirl for dating that Leo loses some of his individualistic tendencies. But in the
beginning, not only is Stargirl attracted to Leo's looks, but she is attracted to his open,
although somewhat shy, personality.

In 1984, who is Goldstein?

According
to the Party, Emmanuel Goldstein was a former member who left to form what is referred to in
hushed tones as the "Brotherhood," a sort of dissident organization. Goldstein, as a
former insider, supposedly wrote a book called The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical
Collectivism, which explained how the Party exerts its control over the people, and
suggested a means by which it might be overthrown.reads the book after finding it in a shop
among the proles. Much like Big Brother, it seems that Goldstein is a fabrication of the Party
itself. His face is held up as a figure for derision during the daily Two Minutes of Hate, and
much of the "theory" described in his supposedly subversive book is exposed as a lie
by , who tells Winston that the Party is without ideology except that of power for its own sake.
Goldstein is portrayed to the Party members as a constant threat, always plotting against the
Party, and it is likely that this supposed threat is a means to create the constant sense of
crisis that sustains the Party. In any case, the hope that Winston feels after reading
Goldstein's supposed book is quickly crushed.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Why is Meg the most suitable person to go to Camazotz?

When Charles
Wallace is left behind on Camazotz under the power of the evil IT, Meg realizes that she is the
most suitable person to try to retrieve him and bring him back home. This is because she knows
him better than anyone else and also because she has been to Camazotz. Her father has been gone
so long that he and Charles Wallace don't really know each other anymore. Calvin only recently
became involved with the Murry family, so he hasn't had enough time to get to know Charles
Wallace all that well either. Meg, therefore, is the one person left with knowledge of Camzotz
who is close to Charles Wallace. Charles Wallace also understands her well. If anyone is going
to be able to break through IT's mind control to reach the real Charles Wallace, Meg has the
best chance. As she says:

it has to be me. It can't be
anyone else. I don't understand Charles, but he understands me. I'm the one who's closest to
him. Father's been away for so long, since Charles Wallace was a baby. They don't know each
other. And Calvin's only known Charles for such a little time.

Compare the characterization of Ulysses and Telemachus in Tennyson's "Ulysses."

For
Tennyson, the most evident mode of comparison between both figures is that they are both
leaders. It becomes evident in the poem that Tennyson sees both figures as leaders of Ithaca. is
the traditional leader of the island, while Telemachus has been elevated to a point where he is
now leader, as well.  Yet, it is here where there is some pivot.  In his words, Ulysses sees
Telemachus as more equipped to handle the administrative and...