Movie Review The Return Of Superfly - 1457 Words

The film American Gangster was released on November 2nd, 2007 and was directed by Ridley Scott. The movie was based on the book The Return of Superfly by Mark Jacobson. Some of the principle actors in the movie were: Russell Crowe as Detective Richard â€Å"Richie† Roberts, Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas, and Cuba Gooding Jr. as Leroy Nicholas â€Å"Nicky† Barnes. The film is well-known as a mobster film because it based on the true story of Frank Lucas and the drug rings in Harlem. In the film, both the local level individuals (growers or producers of cocaine) and the higher (syndicate) individuals were portrayed. These two groups were in the trade for one reason: money. The lower level producers were primarily based out of countries with extreme poverty; the cocaine business brought in a huge influx of income for the workers. This provided incentive to continue, though the work was hard. The higher-level syndicate individuals received a massive profit off the produc t sales. It allowed them to live comfortable lives and pay off other high ranking individuals for protection. However, there is another reason why these higher-level individuals are in the business. In American Gangster, Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) commandeered the market on cocaine with his product Blue Magic. This gave him enormous powers over the streets of Harlem, along with his presence as a philanthropist. Power means money; the more power Lucas had, the more money he made. When Bumpy, the original leader

Essay on Symbols, Symbolism, and Allegory in Hawthornes...

Symbols, Symbolism, and Allegory in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Symbolism is a literary technique that is used to clarify the authors intent. Sometimes it is used to great effect, while other times it only seems to muddle the meaning of a passage. In Young Goodman Brown, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses objects and people as symbols to allegorically reveal his message to the reader. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses different people as symbols throughout Young Goodman Brown. The largest symbolic roles in the story are goodman Brown and his wife Faith. Both of the characters names are symbolic and representative of their personalities. With Heaven above and Faith below, I will stand firm against the devil! cried goodman Brown, is†¦show more content†¦Hawthorne does an excellent job of turning the main characters into symbols that are prominent throughout the story. Nathaniel Hawthorne also uses different objects in the story as symbols. One of these is the staff of the devil : But the only thing about him, that could be fixed upon as remarkable, was his staff, which bore the likeness of a great black snake . . . (185). This symbol shows the reader the evil that is involved with the devil character because the serpent is an archetype of the devil, or some sort of evil, which is prominent in many different cultures. Another object Hawthorne uses as a recurring symbol is the pink ribbon. The pink ribbon symbolizes the purity and innocence involved with Faith. And Faith . . . thrust her own pretty had into the street, letting the wind play with the pink ribbons in her cap, is a great example of how Hawthorne correlates Faith with the pink ribbons of innocence (184). The pink ribbons are mentioned later on in the story as they fall from the sky: But something fluttered lightly down through the air, and caught on the branch of a tree. The young man s eized it, and beheld a pink ribbon. (189). This symbolizes Browns loss of his Faith, referring to both his wife and his faith in mankind, as she hovers over toward the devils gathering. Another element in Young Goodman Brown that is related to symbolism is allegory. The story is an excellent example ofShow MoreRelatedYoung Goodman Brown Analysis876 Words   |  4 PagesHawthorne’s story, â€Å"Young Goodman Brown,† appears to be a story about original sin with a lot of symbolism tied in to make it an allegory. An allegory is a story that can be interpreted in different ways to find the hidden meaning behind the symbolism in the story. The three things focused on throughout the short story is Faith, the forest that Goodman Brown takes his journey through, and the staff, which the old man who leads Goodman Brown on his way carries. The short story, â€Å"Young Goodman BrownRead MoreAllegory in Young Goodman Brown Essay1008 Words   |  5 PagesNathaniel Hawthornes short story Young Goodman Brown is an excellent example of an allegory. Allegories use events, characters or symbolism as a bizarre or abstract representation of ideas in the story, and thro ughout Young Goodman Brown, Hawthorne uses a heavy amount of symbolism, as well as his characters and the events of the story line to develop a religious allegory. A large symbolic role is played by protagonist Goodman Browns wife, Faith. Also, the main event in the short story, BrownsRead More The Symbolism of Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Essay2725 Words   |  11 PagesThe Symbolism of â€Å"Young Goodman Brown†Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚   Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story, â€Å"Young Goodman Brown,† shows the reader the author’s power as a symbolist.    Frederick C. Crews in â€Å"The Logic of Compulsion in ‘Roger Malvin’s Burial’† explores the symbology that prevails in Hawthorne’s best short stories:    . . . I chose this one tale to analyze because it illustrates the indispensability, and I should even say the priority, of understanding the literal psychological dramasRead More Symbolism in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Essay examples2488 Words   |  10 Pages     Ã‚   Nathaniel Hawthorne’s tale, â€Å"Young Goodman Brown,† is rich in symbolism, as this essay will amply illustrate. Hugo McPherson in â€Å"Hawthorne’s Use of Mythology† explains how the author’s â€Å"inner drama† may be expressed in his symbolism: The imaginative foundation of a writer’s work may well be an inner drama or ‘hidden life’ in which his deepest interests and conflicts are transformed into images or characters; and through the symbolic play of these creations, he comes to ‘know’ the meaningRead More Deep Allegory in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Essay2351 Words   |  10 PagesDeep Allegory  in Young Goodman Brown  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   Herman Melville in â€Å"Hawthorne and His Mosses† (The Literary World August 17, 24, 1850), comments on the deep allegory found within Nathaniel Hawthorne’s tale, â€Å"Young Goodman Brown.† Young Goodman Brown? You would of course suppose that it was a simple little tale, intended as a supplement to Goody Two Shoes. Whereas, it is deep as Dante; nor can you finish it, without addressing the author in his own words--It is yours to penetrate, inRead MoreEssay The Allegory of Young Goodman Brown2233 Words   |  9 PagesThe Allegory of Young Goodman Brown      Ã‚   Nathaniel Hawthorne’s â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† is an allegory, though an allegory with deficiencies, with tensions existing between the reader and the story.    Peter Conn in â€Å"Finding a Voice in an New Nation† explains Hawthorne’s style of allegorizing and how it creates unwanted tensions for the reader:    He once planned to call a group of his stories â€Å"Allegories of the Heart,† and in that unused title he summed up much of his method andRead More Symbolism in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Essay2380 Words   |  10 PagesSymbolism in Young Goodman Brown  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚      Edmund Fuller and B. Jo Kinnick in â€Å"Stories Derived from New England Living† state: â€Å"Hawthorne’s unique gift was for the creation of strongly symbolic stories which touch the deepest roots of man’s moral nature† (31). It is the purpose of this essay to explore the main symbolism contained within Nathaniel Hawthorne’s tale, â€Å"Young Goodman Brown.†    Stanley T. Williams in â€Å"Hawthorne’s Puritan Mind† states that the author was forever â€Å"perfectingRead More Symbolism in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Essay example2781 Words   |  12 PagesIn Nathaniel Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown the use of symbols contributes to the development of the storys plot. Symbolism is used as a means to uncover the truth about the characters. The author, in an attempt to manifest the moral aspects of his society, uses many kinds of symbols to support his points. When analyzing an allegory like Young Goodman Brown, the reader must realize that the story is in its entirety, a symbol. Hawthorne, through his writing is trying to convey the contradictingRead MoreNotes On Self Reliance By Ralph Waldo Emerson Essay1441 Words   |  6 PagesJournal #1: Self- Reliance Self-Reliance is a transcendentalist essay by Ralph Waldo Emerson. The essay was published in 1841 during the transcendentalist movement. It was a way for writers to respond to or protest the general state of intellectualism and even spirituality. He speaks in this essay about ways to avoid conforming and also how each person should follow their own instincts and ideas. Emerson split many of the topics in this essay into different sections. In one of the sections he speaks ofRead MoreNotes On Self Reliance By Ralph Waldo Emerson Essay1508 Words   |  7 PagesJournal #1: Self- Reliance Self-Reliance is a transcendentalist essay by Ralph Waldo Emerson. The essay was published in 1841 during the transcendentalist movement. It was a way for writers to respond to or protest the general state of intellectualism and even spirituality. He speaks in this essay about ways to avoid conforming and also how each person should follow their own instincts and ideas. Emerson split many of the topics in this essay into different sections. In one of the sections he speaks of

The Great Gatsby. Type of Work Free Essays

Type of Work . The Great Gatsby is a novel of tragedy. In ancient Greek literature, a tragedy involved the downfall of a noble character with a tragic flaw (called hamartia). We will write a custom essay sample on The Great Gatsby. Type of Work or any similar topic only for you Order Now The Great Gatsby records the downfall of two characters with at least some noble characteristics: Gatsby and American society. Their tragic flaws are naive idealism and corrupt behavior. The Great Gatsby was Fitzgerald’s third novel. Previously, he had published This Side of Paradise (1920) and The Beautiful and the Damned (1922). Year of Publication The Great Gatsby was published in New York in April 1925 by Charles Scribner’s Sons. Setting . Place The story takes place in the wealthy Long Island communities of West Egg and East Egg (both fictional), about twenty miles east of Manhattan. Author Fitzgerald once lived on Long Island in the village of Great Neck, Nassau County, on the north shore of the island. Time The year is 1922, a time of economic prosperity and epochal social change. The workday has shortened while take-home pay has increased. Old social and cultural conventions are dying and new ones taking their place. Many women, for example, retain their jobs in the work place after the Great War (World War I) had forced them into the labor force. And all women now have the right to vote, causing them to view themselves as the equals of men. Some women even adopt masculine fashions and ways. Prohibition of alcoholic beverages–which begins in 1920 by government mandate after being pushed by religious fundamentalists–has spawned a vast illegal trade in bootleg whiskey, thereby incubating organized crime. The advent of mass-produced automobiles changes the way people travel and where they live and work. At the same time, racism and jingoism are on the rise to counteract gains by non-whites and the assimilation of foreigners. Among the major events of 1922 were the following: Teapot Dome Scandal, in which the U. S. Secretary of Interior, Albert Fall, received a kickback for secretly granting Mammoth Oil Company the rights to the Teapot Dome oil reserves in Wyoming. †¢Dedication of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D. C. †¢First use of laboratory-prepared insulin for the treatment of diabetes. †¢Publi cation of the first issue of Reader’s Digest. †¢Start of Construction on Yankee Stadium in The Bronx, New York City. †¢Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini’s takeover of the Italian government in Rome. †¢Archeologist Howard Carter’s discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamen, an Egyptian pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty. Characters . Jay Gatsby: The main character of the novel, who has made a fortune selling illegal whiskey. He was born James Gatz to a poor farm couple in North Dakota. At seventeen, he changes his name to Jay Gatsby as he severs ties with his humble beginnings and dreams of a better day. His job with a millionaire yacht owner teaches him how to make money. While serving in the U. S. Army, he falls in love with Daisy Fay, but she marries the scion of a wealthy family after Gatsby goes overseas. After Gatsby returns, he pursues his dream: to make a fortune that enables him to reclaim Daisy Fay (now Daisy Buchanan). Nick Carraway: The narrator of the novel. A Minnesota native, he is imbued with Midwestern values and relocates to the New York area to work in the bond business. He is Daisy’s cousin and becomes entwined with her life and Gatsby’s. Daisy Fay Buchanan: Beautiful young woman who rejects Gatsby and marries wealthy Tom Buchanan, then has an affair with Gatsby. She is shallow and immature, although Gatsby thinks she is the ideal woman. Daisy seems bored with life, saying, â€Å"I’ve been everywhere and seen everything and done everything. † Although unhappy in her marriage and her privileged lifestyle, she is unwilling to give up either. Tom Buchanan: Daisy’s boorish and bigoted husband, who comes from a fabulously wealthy Chicago family. He is arrogant and condescending. At Yale, where he was an outstanding football end, many of his fellow students despised him. Jordan Baker: A professional golfer and friend of Daisy. She is cynical and independent, an emancipated woman of the 1920’s. Myrtle Wilson: Tom Buchanan’s sensuous mistress who lives in a lower-class section of Queens. She is envious of Daisy. George Wilson: Myrtle’s husband. He runs an auto shop over which he and his wife live in an apartment. Tom Buchanan treats him condescendingly. Eventually Wilson discovers that his wife is having an affair, but he is not sure with who. Meyer Wolfsheim: Notorious mobster who befriends Gatsby and apparently is involved with Gatsby in illegal enterprises. Gatsby based Wolfsheim’s character on that of the real-life mobster Arnold Rothstein (1882-1928), a bootlegger and shady businessman who was said to have fixed the 1919 World Series between the American League’s Chicago White Sox and the National League’s Cincinnati Reds. Henry Gatz: Father of Jay Gatsby. When he arrives in New York to attend his son’s funeral, he says, â€Å"If he’d of lived he’d of been a great man. A man like James J. Hill. He’d of helped build up the country. Dan Cody: Millionaire who owns a yacht on which Gatsby worked when he was a teenager. From Cody, Gatsby learned how to make money. Cody is referred to in the novel but does not appear as an active character. Catherine: Myrtle Wilson’s sister. She attends a small get-together at Tom Buchanan’s apartment in New York City. Also there are Tom, Myrtle, Nick Carraway, and Mr. and Mrs. McKee, who live in the building. When the conversation focuses on Gatsby, Catherine says she heard that he is a cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm. Mr. and Mrs. Chester McKee: Residents of a New York City building where Tom Buchanan has an apartment. McKee, who describes himself as being â€Å"in the artistic game,† is a photographer. Walter Chase: Friend of Tom Buchanan who made money in one of Gatsby’s bootlegging operations. Chase is referred to in the novel but does not appear as an active character. Michaelis: Witness at the inquest inquiring into the death of Myrtle Wilson. Negro: Man who identifies the color of the car that struck Myrtle Wilson. Klipsinger: Man who calls Nick Carraway after Gatsby’s death and says Gatsby had his tennis shoes. He wants them back. Visitors to Gatsby’s House: Various businessmen, entertainers, politicians, most of whom are mentioned but do not appear as active characters in the novel. Point of View Nick Carraway tells the story in first-person point of view. In describing and analyzing the characters, he sometimes relies on second-hand information, or hearsay, that he is unable to verify. For this reason, analysts of the novel sometimes refer to him as an unreliable narrator. However, he seems to do the best he can. His account, his commentary, and his interaction with the characters make him resemble the chorus in an ancient Greek tragedy. Plot Summary By Michael J. Cummings†¦ 2003 . In the spring of 1922, after serving in World War I (then called the Great War) and graduating from Yale University in New Haven, Conn. , Minnesota native Nick Carraway moves to a cottage in West Egg, Long Island, a New York City suburb about twenty miles east of Manhattan. West Egg is home to nouveaux riches families unwelcome in the inner circles of old-money aristocrats in nearby East Egg, located across a narrow bay jutting down from Long Island Sound and separating the two Eggs. But lack of pedigree does not prevent the West Egg residents from ostentatious displays of wealth. Nick–instilled with the Midwestern values of honesty, loyalty, and sincerity–is embarking on a career in the bond business in New York. He is a new breed of American pioneer–one who travels east, not west, to build a life. In contrast to the West of the nineteenth century, however, the east of the twentieth century is hardly virgin territory; rather, it is a great plain of concrete, steel, motor cars, smoke, wealth, corruption, deception. Unlike other West Egg residents, Nick can move in East Egg society, for his cousin, the beautiful socialite Daisy Fay Buchanan, resides in East Egg with her husband, Tom, himself a Yale graduate. The Buchanans live in a Georgian colonial mansion with a front lawn that runs a quarter mile down to the bay. Tom, who inherited his wealth, is a pushy ex-football player (one of the best ends in Yale history) who believes in class distinctions and the subjugation of non-whites. When Nick dines with the Buchanans in their elegant home, he meets an intriguing guest, Jordan Baker, a friend of Daisy. Jordan, a professional golfer, is cynical and self-centered and once cheated to win a golf match, but she is also intelligent and attractive. Nick is drawn to her. During small talk, she mentions Nick’s neighbor. â€Å"You must know Gatsby? † Before Nick can answer, the dinner bell summons everyone to a candlelit table on the porch. Tom mentions a book he has been reading–The Rise of Coloured Empires–and declares that the white race must be on guard lest â€Å"these other races† overstep their boundaries. After the butler calls Tom to a phone in the house, Daisy follows him and Jordan cocks a prying ear toward their hardly audible conversation inside. Nick says, â€Å"This Mr. Gatsby you spoke of is my neighbor–. † â€Å"Don’t talk,† Jordan says. â€Å"I want to listen. When Nick asks why she wants to eavesdrop, Jordan tells him that â€Å"Tom’s got some woman in New York. † Her name is Myrtle Wilson, who lives in a shabby New York suburb near railroad tracks. Apparently it is she who called Tom. Shortly after Tom and Daisy return to the table, the phone rings again a nd Tom answers it. Meanwhile, Daisy, who speaks in a â€Å"low, thrilling voice,† tells Nick that since she last saw him she has become â€Å"cynical about everything. † When Nick asks about her three-year-old child, Daisy talks about the day the baby was born, when â€Å"Tom was God knows where. When she found out it was a girl, she says, this was thought that crossed her mind: â€Å"I hope she’ll be a fool–that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool. † Daisy is primarily a supervisor or guardian in her child’s upbringing, for her servants tend to the routine but important tasks of daily child care. After Nick returns home and parks his car, he sees Gatsby standing in his yard gazing out over the water at a distant green light. One Sunday afternoon, Tom persuades Nick–in fact, almost forces him–to accompany him on a train trip to Manhattan . When the train stops in the borough of Queens to take on passengers, Tom insists that they get off so Nick can meet Myrtle Wilson, who lives nearby. They are in â€Å"the valley of the ashes,† an industrial district whose houses huddle under layers of soot from passing trains. Near a billboard advertisement displaying the glaring eyes of T. J. Eckleberg, an ophthalmologist, they enter a yellow brick building housing the auto-repair shop of Myrtle’s husband, George B. Wilson. The Wilsons live in an apartment above the shop. While Tom and George discuss a car Tom plans to sell him, Myrtle slinks down into the shop. She is in her thirties and has a sensuous–if somewhat stout–figure. When George goes to get chairs for his guests, Tom tells Myrtle to meet him down the road for a trip into city. After they leave, Tom tells Nick that her husband has no idea Myrtle’s having an affair, saying George believes she is visiting her sister in New York. â€Å"He’s so dumb he doesn’t know he’s alive,† Tom says. At Tom’s apartment in Manhattan, Tom, Nick, and Myrtle rendezvous with Myrtle’s sister, Catherine, and Mr. and Mrs. McKee from an apartment below. There is talk of the mysterious Gatsby. Catherine, who attended one of his parties, says, â€Å"They say he’s a nephew or a cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm’s. That’s where all his money comes from. † Gatsby’s parties are wildly extravagant, and his guests–who seldom meet him face to face–conjecture about how he made his fortune. As time wears on and whiskey loosens tongues, Myrtle and Tom argue about Daisy. Apparently, Myrtle is defying Tom by mentioning his wife’s name. â€Å"Daisy! Daisy! Daisy! † shouts Myrtle. â€Å"I’ll say it whenever I want to. † Tom breaks her nose and the party breaks up. Eventually Nick receives an invitation to one of Gatsby’s grand soires. An orchestra plays, old men dance with young girls, a tenor sings Italian songs, a contralto sings jazz, and champagne arrives in glasses â€Å"bigger than finger bowls. † While seated at a table with Jordan Baker, a man comes over and says he recognizes Nick. â€Å"Weren’t you in the Third Division during the war? † â€Å"Why, yes,† Nick says. â€Å"I was in the Ninth Machine-gun battalion. † The man tells him he was in the Seventh Infantry until June 1918. After they talk for a while about â€Å"gray little villages in France,† Nick discovers he is speaking with Gatsby, a handsome man who smiles â€Å"with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. Jay Gatsby is young–not much more than thirty–and something of an oxymoron–an â€Å"elegant . . . rough-neck,† as narrator Nick describes him–and he speaks with a British accent, referring often to his interlocutors as â€Å"old sport. † Gatsby, who met Da isy in Louisville in 1917 and fell in love with her, yearns to be reunited with her. His conspicuous lifestyle and lavish parties are designed to show Daisy that he can move in the same lofty social plane as the Buchanans and the other East Egg residents. When Gatsby later visits Nick at his home, he tells Nick that he is from a ell-to-do San Francisco family, that he studied at Oxford University in England, that he lived for a while in the capitals of Europe, that he collected jewels and hunted big game, and that he served in the Great War, earning a medal for valor in Montenegro. After the visit, Nick has lunch in New York with Gatsby, and Gatsby introduces him to Meyer Wolfsheim, a shadowy character who may have mob connections. Gatsby gets up to make a phone call, and Nick and Wolfsheim talk at length–about Gatsby and about trivialities, including Wolfsheim’s cuff links, which he says are human molars. After Wolfsheim leaves, Gatsby tells Nick that Wolfsheim is a gambler and is the man who fixed the 1919 World Series. He didn’t get caught, Gatsby says, because â€Å"He’s a smart man. † Later that afternoon, at a tea garden in the Plaza Hotel, Jordan Baker tells Nick about Daisy and her marriage to Buchanan. Afterward, while Nick and Jordan are riding in a carriage in Central Park, Jordan talks about Gatsby’s love for Daisy. He bought his mansion, she says, just so he could be close to her. What’s more, he wants Nick to invite Daisy to tea. Unknown to Daisy, Gatsby will be there. He wants to show her his house. As the carriage drives on, Nick puts his arm around Jordan and draws her close to him. Gatsby reunites with Daisy at Nick’s, and he escorts her through the mansion and shows her his possessions. The meeting is uncomfortable, awkward. Nevertheless, they fall in love all over again. To Gatsby, Daisy is perfect, flawless. He fails to realize that she is timorous, hesitant, and well ensconced in her East Egg lifestyle. To Daisy, Gatsby is a welcome change from her churlish husband. They carry on an affair and, for a short time, they are happy. Meanwhile, Nick finds out that Jay Gatsby is actually James Gatz, who was born and reared in North Dakota by no-account farm folk but changed his name when he was seventeen and worked as a clam digger and fisherman along the shore of Lake Superior. After attending St. Olaf’s College for two weeks, he returned to Lake Superior and landed a job on the yacht of Dan Cody, who had made millions in Nevada silver, Montana copper, and Yukon gold. For five years, young Gatsby served as Cody’s factotum, working as a steward, mate, secretary, and skipper while the yacht–the Tuolomee–sailed to the West Indies and the Barbary Coast. Under Cody, Gatsby learned how to make money. When the Buchanans host Gatsby, Nick, and Jordan at a luncheon in their home, Daisy, restless, suggests that they all go into New York City. While the women go upstairs to get ready, Tom fetches a bottle of whiskey to take along. When Tom suggests that he and Gatsby switch cars, with Tom driving Gatsby’s â€Å"circus wagon† and Gatsby driving Tom’s coupe–Daisy decides to ride with Gatsby while Nick and Jordan ride with Tom. Before getting in with Gatsby, Daisy runs her hand over his coat. It is a small but revealing gesture. After Tom drives off he says, â€Å"Did you see that? When they react as if they don’t know what he’s talking about–which they do, of course, for they were the ones who set up the affair between Gatsby and Daisy–Tom says, â€Å"You think I’m pretty dumb, don’t you? † Then he says he has been investigating Gatsby and begins criticizing him as a phony. Jordan asks why he invited Gatsby to lunch. â€Å"Daisy invited him,† Tom says. â€Å"She knew him before we were married–God knows where! † Because Gatsby’s car is low on gas, Tom pulls in to get some at George Wilson’s garage. When Wilson pumps the gas, he tells Tom that he plans to go West with Myrtle. At that moment, Gatsby and Daisy pass by in the coupe. Nick realizes why Wilson wants to leave the New York area: He has discovered that Myrtle has been having an affair, although Wilson does not know with whom. Tom is crestfallen. In a single afternoon, he appears to have lost his wife and his mistress. After Tom drives off and catches up with Gatsby, Gatsby pulls over and Daisy waves Tom to the roadside. They discuss possible destinations and end up going to the Plaza Hotel, where they rent the parlor of a suite situated over a ballroom where a wedding is in progress. After Tom brings out the whiskey bottle and they send out for ice, Tom questions Gatsby about his past and then says, â€Å"What kind of a row are you trying to cause in my house anyhow? † Daisy tells Tom he is out of order and he should have â€Å"a little self-control. † Tom says, â€Å"Self-control! â€Å"I suppose the latest thing is to sit back and let Mr. Nobody from Nowhere make love to your wife! † Gatsby says, â€Å"I’ve got something to tell YOU, old sport–† Daisy interrupts and suggests they all go home. But Tom asks Gatsby to speak his mind. â€Å"Your wife doesn’t love you,† says Gatsby. She’s never loved you. She loves me. . . . She only married you because I was poor and she was tired of waiting for me. † Tom insists that Daisy loved him when they married and that she loves him now. He admits that he sometimes goes â€Å"off on a spree† but says that he always comes back. Daisy denies that she ever loved Tom, then later recants: â€Å"I did love him once. † Tom says, â€Å"There’re things between Daisy and me you’ll never know. † Gatsby asks to speak to Daisy alone, but she says, â€Å"Even alone I can’t say I never loved Tom. † â€Å"Daisy’s leaving you,† Gatsby says. Tom says he knows Gatsby has connections with Meyer Wolfsheim, saying Gatsby and Wolfsheim sold bootleg grain alcohol in New York and Chicago. Gatsby defends himself, but Daisy begins to withdraw from him into an emotional cocoon. After the â€Å"party† breaks up, Gatsby and Daisy drive back to East Egg, this time in Gatsby’s car. Daisy is at the wheel. In the other car, Nick, who has just turned thirty, is happy to have Jordan Baker beside him leaning against his shoulder. She is too smart to put faith in wild dreams from one year to the next, he believes. Meantime, George Wilson has been beating Myrtle. She runs out of the garage and into the path of Gatsby’s yellow car. It strikes and kills her. Later, when Tom is driving back to East Egg with Nick and Jordan, he sees a crowd gathering at the scene of the accident. He stops. When he investigates, he discovers the body of Myrtle on a work table inside the garage. A policeman is writing notes. After Tom arrives home, his butler calls a taxi for Nick. While Nick is waiting for it outside, Gatsby steps out of the bushes and tells Nick what happened. Although Daisy was driving the death car, he says, he will say he was. He is waiting there on the Buchanan property in case Tom tries to give Daisy trouble. She will turn the light on and off in that event. Nick checks the house and finds that Daisy and Tom are sitting quietly together, with Tom’s hand covering Daisy’s. The next day, George Wilson–distraught and disoriented–goes to Gatsby’s house. Gatsby is in his swimming pool lounging on a pneumatic mattress. Wilson shoots and kills Gatsby, then turns the gun on himself. Nick later discovers that it was Tom Buchanan who told Wilson that Gatsby was the driver of the car. Daisy never does anything to correct the lie or salvage Gatsby’s reputation. Nor does she attend Gatsby’s funeral. Only Gatsby’s father and several servants are there. Meyer Wolfsheim, however, sends his condolences in a message, saying â€Å"This has been one of the most terrible shocks of my life. . . .If there is anything I can do a little later let me know. † Months later, when Nick meets Tom on a street, he pries the truth from Tom–that it was indeed he who told Wilson that Gatsby was driving the car that killed Myrtle. Actually, Tom says, he told Wilson that Gatsby owned the car, but it was the same as if he had told Wilson that Gatsby was the driver. ) Nick cannot forgive Buchanan for what he did, but he does believe that Buchanan thinks he was entirely justified in blaming Gatsby. Nick also observed, â€Å"They were careless people, Tom and Daisy–they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their v ast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made. Nick returns to the Midwest, disheartened by the corrupt values of easterners–including Jordan Baker–and the false dreams that occupy them. Themes The Death of a Dream Gatsby dreams of one day being reunited with Daisy Buchanan. To win her back, he makes a fortune–apparently through dealings with mobsters–so that he can compete in the moneyed world of Daisy. But though his wealth buys him a place in elite society, it cannot buy him Daisy. Ultimately, he becomes a man who has everything but ends up with nothing. The Death of an Ideal After Europeans colonized America, the New World offered them the dream of a better life if they worked at honest jobs and held fast to noble goals and ideals. Everyone had a chance to fulfill his dream, for everyone was equal. In The Great Gatsby, the central characters achieve wealth and social status. But their craving for material possessions and high living overcomes the desire to aspire to noble ideals. Racism and snobbery obviate equality. Selfishness undermines selflessness. .Corruption in Capitalist America The First World War made America a powerful nation, not only militarily but also economically. Factories mass-produced cars, radios, telephones, kitchen appliances, and other goods. Jobs opened at home, and markets for American-made products opened abroad. Hollywood and the entertainment industry flourished. Even gangsters thrived, thanks in part to the Volstead Act, a new law passed to enforce the 18th Amendment prohibition of the manufacture, sale, and distribution of alcoholic beverages. Mobs circumvented the law, making and selling booze on a large scale at speakeasies (nightclubs that served the liquor) and bribing many police officers to look the other way. In the meantime, America’s well-to-do bought what they wanted: new homes, fast cars, the latest fashions. And they threw parties, like those at Gatsby’s, where they consumed illegal gin and whiskey, danced to the hottest jazz, gossiped, met paramours, and made shady business deals. It is this self-indulgent, materialistic, corrupt society that Fitzgerald holds up to public view in The Great Gatsby. What Money Cannot Buy: Happiness Gatsby and the Buchanans have everything that they want materially but little, if anything, spiritually. Gatsby tries to buy the one thing that will make him happy, the love of Daisy, but fails. Meyer Wolfsheim (representing the real-life Arnold Rothstein) attempts to buy the 1919 World Series, bribing Chicago White Sox players to throw the series. Although the novel does not discuss at length the series and its outcome, readers of Fitzgerald’s novel well knew all the details. After the series, suspicions of a fix surfaced, and four of the eight players who reportedly accepted bribes admitted their guilt to a grand jury. In a trial, the accused players were acquitted because key evidence could not be found. However, the baseball commissioner forbade all eight players–including one of the greatest players in the history of baseball, Shoeless Joe Jackson–from ever playing professional baseball again. Irresponsibility Tom Buchanan, Daisy Buchanan, and Jordan Baker all act irresponsibly. Born into wealthy families that saw to their every need, they expect others–such as servants and friends–to look out for their welfare while they go their merry way. Jordan Baker drives carelessly and expects others to get out of the way. Daisy shirks her responsibility as a mother. Tom cheats on his wife with Myrtle Wilson and openly crows about his affair. Nick Carraway says of the Buchanans, â€Å"They smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back to their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they made. † Near the end of the novel, Daisy strikes and kills Myrtle Wilson in a hit-and-run accident while driving home from New York in Gatsby’s car. Gatsby is in a passenger seat. But Daisy never admits that she was at the wheel when the accident occurred. Tom Buchanan, who knows all the details of the accident, implicates Gatsby when talking with Myrtle’s husband, George Wilson. So Gatsby takes the blame–and dies at the hands of Wilson. Bigotry Many Americans of the 1920’s were openly bigoted against blacks, Jews, Roman Catholics, and other racial, ethnic, and religious groups. When Nick Carraway is a dinner guest at the Buchanan home, Tom Buchanan exhibits bigotry when he discusses a book he is reading,The Rise of the Coloured Empires. Of the author, he says, â€Å"This fellow has worked out the whole thing. It’s up to us who are the dominant race to watch out or these other races will have control of things. † At a small party in Tom’s New York City apartment, Mrs. Lucille McKee, one of the guests, observes, â€Å"I almost married a little kyke who’d been after me for years. I knew he was below me. Everybody kept saying to me: ‘Lucille, that man’s way below you! ‘ But if I hadn’t met Chester, he’d of got me sure. † Kyke (or kike) is a deeply insulting slang term for a Jew. Climax The climax of the novel occurs during an argument between Gatsby and Buchanan over Daisy, who admits that she once loved Tom. Gatsby says he wants to speak to Daisy alone, but Daisy immediately says â€Å"Even alone I can’t say I never loved Tom. † Writing and Plotting .. Fitzgerald’s prose is brilliant–poetic at times, making use of metaphor and simile to paint images of people and places. The opening paragraph of Chapter 2 compares the â€Å"valley of ashes† to a wheat field: About half way between West Egg and New York the motor-road hastily joins the railroad and runs beside it for a quarter of a mile, so as to shrink away from a certain desolate area of land. This is a valley of ashes–a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens where ashes take the forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke and finally, with a transcendent effort, of men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air. Occasionally a line of grey cars crawls along an invisible track, gives out a ghastly creak and comes to rest, and immediately the ash-grey men swarm up with leaden spades and stir up an impenetrable cloud which screens their obscure operations from your sight. Many critics praise the tight plot structure of The Great Gatsby. However, the story line is not without contrivances, such as the accident in which Myrtle Wilson runs in front of Gatsby’s car–conveniently driven by Daisy–at precisely the right moment. Here, Fitzgerald’s puppet strings are entirely visible. Irony, Paradox, and Oxymoron In addition to metaphor and simile (see â€Å"Writing and Plotting,† above), Fitzgerald uses irony, paradox, and oxymoron effectively throughout the novel. Gatsby, for example, is â€Å"elegant,† but he is also a â€Å"rough-neck. † Another example of paradox is this observation by Jordan Baker: â€Å"I like large parties. They’re so intimate. At small parties there isn’t any privacy. † Although many people attend Gatsby’s parties–which are indeed large–few attend his funeral. Tom, an upper-class snob, keeps a lower-class mistress. In the climactic scene in a hotel room in which Gatsby and Tom exchange verbal thrusts and parries, the relationships between Gatsby and Daisy, Nick and Jordan, and Tom and Myrtle end. Meanwhile, in the room below, a wedding is taking place, representing a new beginning. An implied oxymoron is that Daisy Buchanan is a â€Å"free prisoner†Ã¢â‚¬â€œthat is, she has the money and opportunity to do anything she wants but is unable to liberate herself rom her unhappy marriage and circumscribed lifestyle. Gatsby’s Lavish Parties Gatsby’s lavish parties the lengths to which he will go to impress others–in particular Daisy Buchanan. They also serve to underscore the dissipation of the young people who come to feed at the Gatsby trough. In the beginning of Chapter 3, narrtor Carraway describes what it was like at Gatsbys’s when people gathered there to drink and romp through all hours of the day and night. There was music from my neighbor’s house through the summer nights. In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars. At high tide in the afternoon I watched his guests diving from the tower of his raft or taking the sun on the hot sand of his beach while his two motor-boats slit the waters of the Sound, drawing aquaplanes over cataracts of foam. On week-ends his Rolls-Royce became an omnibus, bearing parties to and from the city, between nine in the morning and long past midnight, while his station wagon scampered like a brisk yellow bug to meet all trains. And on Mondays eight servants including an extra gardener toiled all day with mops and scrubbing-brushes and hammers and garden-shears, repairing the ravages of the night before. Several paragraphs later, Carraway says, At least once a fortnight a corps of caterers came down with several hundred feet of canvas and enough colored lights to make a Christmas tree of Gatsby’s enormous garden. On buffet tables, garnished with glistening hors-d’oeuvre, spiced baked hams crowded against salads of harlequin designs and pastry pigs and turkeys bewitched to a dark gold. In the main hall a bar with a real brass rail was set up, and stocked with gins and liquors and with cordials so long forgotten that most of his female guests were too young to know one from another. Many of the partygoers don’t even know Gatsby; they’re there just to take advantage of his freely given bounty. Carpe diem rules. Carraway notes, I believe that on the first night I went to Gatsby’s house I was one of the few guests who had actually been invited. People were not invited–they went there. They got into automobiles which bore them out to Long Island and somehow they ended up at Gatsby’s door. Once there they were introduced by somebody who knew Gatsby and after that they conducted themselves according to the rules of behavior associated with amusement parks. Sometimes they came and went without having met Gatsby at all, came for the party with a simplicity of heart that was its own ticket of admission. One partygoer, Lucille, says, â€Å"I like to come. I never care what I do, so I always have a good time. When I was here last I tore my gown on a chair, and he asked me my name and address–inside of a week I got a package from Croirier’s with a new evening gown in it. † Symbols . Among the symbols Fitzgerald uses in the novel are these: East Egg, Long Island: This community, where the Buchanans reside, represents the long-established aristocrats, or â€Å"old money. Its residents generally are corrupt and jaded. West Egg, Long Island: This community, where Gatsby and Nick Carraway reside, represents the nouveaux riches, or â€Å"new money. † Its residents tend to be regarded as upstart outsiders by the East Egg crowd. The Green Light: It represents Gatsby’s dreams and gives him the go-ahead to pursue th em. The Valley of the Ashes: This lower-class section of Queens is so named because of the soot deposited there by passing steam locomotives. The valley represents the corruption that the upper-class characters inflict on society. The Eyes of Dr. T. J. Eckleberg, Ophthalmologist: Displayed prominently on a billboard, they apparently represent the eyes of God watching the characters play out the drama. The Weather: It represents the shifting moods of the characters. For example, Gatsby and Tom angrily confront each other in a hotel room on the hottest day of the year. .Author Information F. Scott Fitzgerald (full name: Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald), the son of Catholic parents, was named after Francis Scott Key, one of his ancestors. He attended Catholic schools and considered becoming a priest before entering Princeton University. He drew upon his own background to mold the characters in The Great Gatsby. Like the narrator, Nick Carraway, Fitzgerald was born and reared in Minnesota, attended an Ivy League university, and moved to the northern shore of Long Island, New York. Like the protagonist, Gatsby, he served in the U. S. Army, fell in love while stationed in the South, and traveled abroad. Like Gatsby’s antagonist, Tom Buchanan, an outstanding football player at Yale University, Fitzgerald liked football. However, because he was too short and too light, he could not play for Princeton. Like the partygoers at Gatsby’s mansion, Fitzgerald–and his wife, Zelda–lived the high life, drinking to excess, traveling, and moving among the chic and sophisticated. Fitzgerald was both repelled by and attracted to the fast life of the Roaring Twenties. Celebrated American playwright Tennessee Williams wrote a stage drama, Clothes for a Summer Hotel (1980), about Zelda Fitgerald and her life. John Peale Bishop, who attended Princeton when F. Scott Fitzgerald was there, wrote an elegy, â€Å"Hours,† about Fitzgerald. How to cite The Great Gatsby. Type of Work, Essay examples

Alcohol and Drug Abuse Among College Students Essay Example For Students

Alcohol and Drug Abuse Among College Students Essay Alcohol and drug abuse has been an active habit among college students sense the 1960s. The immediate cause of this behavior was the youths need to rebel against the overly conservative American society. This rebellion led to a since of freedom for the young adults, which caused them to continue acting in these unintelligent manners. After a short period of time, late teens just did not belong if they were not participating in the mischievous acts. Substance abuse quickly became a way of life for many young adults. As a result, this inapt behavior still continues today. To first-time college students, acting in a way that parents would disapprove somehow exhibits breaking from the womb. This Mom cant control me now attitude greatly contributes to substance abuse among undergraduates. These students have been taught throughout their entire lives exactly what not to do; but they now have the ability to decide for themselves. Naturally, the late teenagers are intrigued about what has been forbidden to them in the preceding years. This inquisition results from inexperience. The growing strictness of parents greatly interferes with the maturing of adolescents. Consequently, teenagers enter the final stages of growth at the college level instead of high school. The college campus provides a vast learning environment in which students easily break from parent limitations. Students perplexity intensifies as the parents role of guiding is omitted. The naive young adults, now forced come to their own conclusions, often make poor choices. Costly mistakes prevail as the underdeveloped adults lack the proper preparation of which the university environment requires. This college environment proves to be a very trying atmosphere to the young adults. Confusion and hardship inevitable follow departure of the home. Thus, the college years have developed into a time for finding oneself. Alcohol and drug abuse provide a means to conceal feelings of insecurity that arise from the students uncertainty of themselves. Substance abuse acts as a stress reducer through the beginning stages of college. The most common characteristic of a human being is the necessity to adapt to a given surrounding. This trait consists of both good and bad aspects. Certain adaptations are positive while others can be destructive. Many students enter college with extensive education on substance abuse. Unfortunately, these students receive a hands on lesson from peers that indicates using is inconsequential. Fraternity parties and dorm room gatherings overcome the students. Some of these students even disapprove of these social functions at first. However, they quickly become immune to the atmosphere. The end result is the participation of these once pure students in the conventional behavior. The facts and statistics are quickly forgotten and washed away. The students who do not adapt and choose to abstain are immediately labeled negatively. By choosing not to participate in the universal activity on campus, these students limit their social life. This is a tremendous sacrifice. College supposedly represents the best years a persons of life. No one wants to miss out due to being perceived as overwrought and uptight. For this reason, students compromise their high ethics and beliefs in order to belong. By relinquishing, they rid themselves of the undesirable depiction, and they become normal. These students end up joining right into the excitement and promptly show disregard for the beliefs that had previously held such importance. Other students begin with just a couple beers and move on to harder drugs. The same logic and reasoning that justifies drinking is incorporated into the decision to try drugs. More than not, students are under the influence of alcohol when experimenting with a drug for the first time. Once the initial defensive shields are let down the students morals and limitations quickly deteriorate. This leads to continuous substance abuse thereafter. With friends partaking in the unhealthy acts themselves, guidance away from such behavior is difficult to come by. Students fail to notice the negative effects of the abuse due to their surroundings. .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 , .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 .postImageUrl , .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 , .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15:hover , .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15:visited , .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15:active { border:0!important; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15:active , .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15 .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u3b8015dd1844261a0df0568d664ddb15:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Technology for specialty education Essay As long as grades are maintained and classes are accredited for, students are capable of justifying this wild way of life. The dangers of this behavior are easily overlooked when responsibilities are being met. The undergraduates .

Kroger Company

Introduction This paper will provide an overview of the Kroger Company. The first part of the paper will provide the basic information about the company such as its mission, vision, and values.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Kroger Company specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The second part will highlight the company’s business strategies that enable it to achieve its objectives. The last part will shed light on the workforce planning approach used by the Kroger Company. Company Profile Mission, vision, values Kroger is one of the largest grocery retailers in the US. The company sells a variety of food products in 2,640 stores worldwide (Kroger, 2014). Kroger’s vision is to be the preferred provider of high quality grocery and personal care products in the world. In order to achieve this vision, the company has focused on expanding its operations by joining new markets and aligning its products to cus tomers’ needs. The company’s mission is â€Å"to be a leader in the distribution and merchandising of food, pharmacy, health/ personal care items, seasonal merchandise, and related products† (Kroger, 2014). This mission enables the company to establish long-term relationships with its suppliers and customers in order to achieve its vision.  The company’s core values include honesty, integrity, respect, diversity, safety, and inclusion (Kroger, 2014). Kroger’s employees believe in being truthful to customers and suppliers to ensure high standards of integrity. In addition, they demonstrate respect by appreciating other people’s values, cultures, and beliefs. Demographics Kroger’s workforce consists of nearly 375,000 full-time and part-time employees (Kroger, 2014). Majority of the employees are members of international labor unions. Diversity is an important characteristic of the company’s labor force. Specifically, the workfo rce consists of old and young employees who are from different cultures, ethnic, and racial backgrounds.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Organization Kroger operates supermarkets, convenience stores, and jewelry stores. The supermarkets have different formats, which include combination stores, price impact stores, and multi-department stores (Kroger, 2014). The use of different store formats helps the company to retain its customers by enhancing their shopping experience. Kroger uses a decentralized organizational structure that consists of its headquarters and 20 operating divisions. This structure enhances decision-making processes by giving authority to the heads of the operating divisions to make merchandising decisions. Key Strategies Kroger’s business strategy is to maintain cost leadership while generating good financial returns. However, Kroger’s prices are often not as low as those of major retailers such as Wal-Mart. Kroger focuses on reducing its operating costs in order to sell its merchandise at a low price. This helps in increasing sales, which in turn improves the company’s profits. Kroger prioritizes customers’ needs in order to achieve its profit and market share objectives. This strategy involves listening to customers and using their feedback to enhance the company’s operations. The feedback enables the company to provide excellent services to customers, stock the right products, set affordable prices, and create a memorable shopping experience (Kroger, 2014). The rationale of prioritizing customer needs is twofold. First, it enables the company to improve its brand loyalty by retaining its customers. Second, Kroger achieves economies of scale as its customers increase due to excellent service quality. As a result, Kroger is able to sell its merchandise at low prices without compromising its financi al results. Investing in advanced technologies and innovation is central to the company’s strategy of creating competitive advantages by prioritizing customer needs. The core roles required by the company to achieve the desired innovation include technology innovators and customer service experts. For instance, in 2013 the company’s technology innovators developed a real-time temperature monitoring system that enables the company to provide the freshest food products in its stores. Generally, innovation enables Kroger to improve the quality of its products and services beyond customers’ expectations.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Kroger Company specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Current Workforce Planning Approach Currently, Kroger uses a strategic approach to workforce planning. The company aligns its workforce planning initiatives to its overall business strategy to improve its performance . Additionally, Kroger links workforce planning objectives to employee development needs, recruiting/ staffing processes, and contingent labor requirements. Kroger’s workforce planers focus on determining the talent gaps in the company by performing job requirement analysis in collaboration with line managers to identify the existing skill shortages and redundancies. The planers also forecast talent gaps to enable the company to understand its future labor requirements. Reducing labor costs and hiring the best talent are key elements of Kroger’s workforce planning policy (Kroger, 2014). The company believes in reducing labor costs by hiring only the right number of employees. Having the right workforce size also ensures that various business processes in the company are executed effectively. Kroger hires only the individuals with the right skill set to enable it achieve the highest level of performance. Overall, strategic workforce planning helps Kroger to access adequ ate talent to provide customer-centric services. Conclusion Kroger aspires to be the leading grocery retailer in the world. In this respect, the company focuses on providing high quality merchandise and customer services. The company also sells its products at low prices to increase sales and profits. Generally, Kroger improves its competitiveness by aligning its operations to market needs. Currently, the company uses a strategic approach to workforce planning to access the right quantity and quality of talent. References Carre, F., Tilly, C. (2010). Competitive strategies in the US retail industry: Consequences for jobs in food and consumer electronics stores. Boston, MA: Center for Social Policy.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Kroger. (2014). Fact book. Retrieved from https://www.thekrogerco.com/ Kumar, R. (2010). Human resource management: Strategic analysis. New Delhi, India: International Publishing House. Reinvestment Fund. (2011). Understanding the grocery industry. New York, NY: CDFI Fund. This essay on Kroger Company was written and submitted by user Dust to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Historic and Contextual Studies

Historic and Contextual Studies Abstract The medieval period focuses on interesting fashion trends in clothing. It is also connected with the social and political influences shaping the vision on clothing and its role in history. In the paper, two historic styles are discussed to define the role of medieval history and gothic style in understanding modern interpretation of the garment.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Historic and Contextual Studies specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The revival of the historic styles is predetermined by its functionality, aestheticism, and occurring fashion trends. In particular, the revival of tunic as the garment for females is discovered by its functionality whereas the gothic dress is more connected to the upheaval of the romanticism. In this respect, the paper is divided into two parts discussing the garment and explaining its modern interpretation and purpose. More importantly, it also highlights descriptions a nd historic context within which the clothing styles have been formed. Medieval Period: Tunic Description of the Garment The medieval tunic looks like a large T-shirt. It was the most common type of clothing for both women and men originating from artisan classes. Male tunics reached crotch and thing in length; older men wore knee-length tunics (Diehl Donnelly, 2011). Women’s tunic length can range from thigh to knee, but older women prefer wearing longer tunics. Issues to be Discussed:Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More History of emergence of tunic; Different forms and fabrics used in tailoring the garment (Netherton Owen-Crocker, 2012); Social status and appropriateness of the tunic for the season; Other meanings and applications of the garment; Modern Interpretation of Medieval Tunic Description of the Garment Although the garment does not have similar soc ial and historic context, the tunic is popular in the fashion world, particularly among women. The changing context also refers to the style and fabric used for making this item. Despite the shifts in trends, women’s tunic can still have elements reminding of the medieval epoch. Specific attention should be given to loose sleeves and forms concealing the silhouette. Issues to be Discussed Highlighting the differences between the medieval concept and context and the modern vision of the tunic; Discussing reasons and underpinnings for the revival of historical style; Impact of new fashion style: aestheticism vs. practical importance; Gothic Dress for Women Description of the Garment Despite the fact that the Gothic style is well distinguished from other historic styles, it contains eclectic elements (Taylor, 2004). In particular, it skillfully combines sensibility, beauty, and simplicity of the dress due to the employment of sumptuous fabrics, such as brocades and velvets. I n addition, the gothic garment was usually presented in a black color pallet, which also introduces a specific meaning and style during this period.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Historic and Contextual Studies specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Issues which need to be discussed: Gothic style as represented in various countries; Understanding the main concept of Gothic garments; Exploring the changing concepts from fifteen to seventeenth century; Modern Interpretation of Gothic Dress Description of the Garment The influence of revival of historical style constitutes the main reason for the emergence of the gothic style at the modern time (Brill, 2004). However, unlike the historical gothic style, the modern waives are more concerned with aesthetics and the revival of the romantic movements (Spooner, 2004). Issues to be discussed: Revolution and revival: exploring the shifts in fashion styles; Fashioning the self ; The related concepts: style and politics of anti-conclusion. References Brill, D. (2008). Goth Culture: Gender, Sexuality, and Style. Germany: Berg. Diehl, D., Donnelly, M. P. (2011). Medieval Celebrations: Your Guide to Planning and Hosting Spectacular Feasts, Parties, Weddings, and Renaissance Fairs. US: Stackpole Books.Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Netherton, R., Owen-Crocker, G. R. (2012). Medieval Clothing and Textiles. US: Boydell Press. Spooner, C. (2004). Fashioning Gothic Bodies. UK: Manchester University Press. Taylor, L. (2004). Establishing Dress History. UK: Manchester University Press.

Process vs Product Drama in Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Process vs Product Drama in Education - Essay Example According to the paper the intrinsic, imaginative of the student was part of learning and was based on the intrinsic needs of the individual. A new student-centered approach became a primary and secondary method of approaching process vs. product drama in education in England†¦ the exploration of intrinsic, imaginative needs from the ‘mind’s eye’ or inner visualization of the student was the basis of discussion and practice for production and performance moving into the 20th century. Thus, many of the ‘product vs. process drama’ perspectives were based on the intrinsic processes of the student-centered learning experiences. Teacher and drama education practitioner, Harriet-Finlay Johnson   claimed freedom of expression concerning ‘aesthetic valuation’ of product, production and performance of plays†¦a student’s aesthetics and perspective should be the diverse ‘lens’ through which the value of dramatic proce ss or theatrical experiences be judged. Analysis of the research literature is a predominant method by which this thesis.

English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 11

English - Essay Example Following her introduction to this organization during a stay in Europe, Clara Barton was the sole advocate for starting Red Cross chapters in America. She often stood alone in this quest. But standing alone for something she believed in was not a new experience for Clara Barton. Her first job in Washington D.C. was a clerk in the patent office, where she worked side-by-side with men. She caused scandal by being so proficient in her labors that her boss rewarded her with the same pay as her male co-workers. This made Clara Barton the target of what we would refer to today as sexual harassment (Stivers). She stood up to her male detractors and earned the respect of her boss. This was an incredible achievement and required a lot of dedication and persuasion during this period of time. She was given the title â€Å"Angel of the Battle Field† because she took care of the wounded soldiers during Civil War. She served on some of the bloodiest battlefields, including Antietam, Fredericksburg, Petersburg and the Battle of the Wilderness (Oates). She risked everything, including her own life to care for the injured and dying soldiers she tended to. This shows her selfless attitude towards other human beings. She did not even care for her own life because she was so dedicated to serving others. Clara Barton was a very human individual, however. She was not perfect in her interactions with others and in her personal relationships. Some feel that par of her drive to succeed and accomplish great things was rooted in the fact that she was often given to bouts of depression when she was not fighting for a cause (Burton). This depression did not keep her from greatness. In 1861 Clara Barton, she was appointed as the Superintendent of Nurses and in the year 1869 she again served the soldiers in the Franco- Prussian War. The year 1873 saw her return to United States where she began to organize the Red Cross. It took almost seven years for her to start the Red

Gender and Educational Achievement Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Gender and Educational Achievement - Case Study Example The discussion here will bring out the sociological reasons to show why girls in recent years have performed better than boys in typical school curriculum. Many studies and surveys on school performance have showed a correlation between gender and achievement. A study by Hubbard (2005) has been based on a survey involving 30 successful African American high school students. The gender based experiences and results defy traditional patterns of educational underachievement associated with a minority group and challenge the notion that minority students show a resistance to schooling. However the study indicated gender based variations in strategies and college aspirations as well as methods of gaining success suggesting variations on the basis of ethnicity and gender especially in the context of diverse American population. Peer interactions, school practices and community experiences are crucial in shaping educational outcomes of individuals although gender forms the central factor in determining achievement. Hubbard (2005) suggests that intertwining of school, family and community cultures construct attitudes dependent on gender and beliefs. Despite the sharing of common racial or class identity, gender variations ca mediate and change pe rceptions and behavior and this is reflected in social situation inside and outside school. In a related study Demie (2001) suggested that raising levels of achievement among students would be vital element of any school improvement focus. The extent and reasons of underachievement have been examined here and the statistical trends and patterns of performance are also analyzed to show whether gender ad ethnic factors play a role in academic achievement. The differences in attainment according to Demie are largely related to gender and ethnicity and could have implications for school improvement and general level of performance of students as well. However as Demie argues, there could be no simple explanation for ethnic or gender differences in educational achievement as ethnic heritage would not presuppose any kind of underachievement or higher achievements in any field. Studies have indicated that certain ethnic minority groups like the Asians, Indians and Chinese have levels of achievement above the white population whereas the Caribbean, Portuguese and Africans would be underachievers and achievement is considered as largely dependent on language skills, levels of English and gender differences as well. Better English speakers or people with advanced levels of knowledge in English would naturally perform better and Demie's study (2001) indicated that no matter what the origin of pupils is, girls always tend to perform better and at higher levels than boys in key stages and programs. However apart from gender there may be other factors that seem to have an influence on performance and could be understood by focusing on contextual analysis and analysis of factors that affect educational achievement. The teachers' perceptions on how gender identity seems to impact achievement have been studied by several researchers and Jones and Myhill (2004) carried out a similar study to understand the impact of gender on achievement. They

How Modern And Ancient Military Conflict Differs History Essay

How Modern And Ancient Military Conflict Differs History Essay How does modern military conflict differ from ancient military conflict? What accounts for these differences? Ancient warfare began before history was recorded to the end of the ancient period. Ancient warfare was more centered on organization than technology. During Ancient warfare, mass was the key element for battles. Modern warfare is the methods, concepts, and technology that came out of World War II. As a result total war created the need to develop war policy with changed the awareness of tactical, operational, and strategic information. Ancient and modern warfare are different from the make-up of the armies, the tactics and weapons, and the transition to total warfare. In Ancient Warfare, the beginnings of modern armies began to rise. There were four main ways the armies were in ancient times, infantry, cavalry, chariot and naval. Infantry was the beginning of armies. It allowed for many countries to win by accumulated mass. Then the use of horses allowed for cavalry to be created. Further development created the use of the chariot as a device both of transportation and of battle became the central weapon. The naval power also began during ancient times as the method to control the seas. There are several types of modern warfare. It also includes a similar setup that ancient warfare used. The types of modern warfare are: asymmetrical, biological, chemical, electronic, ground, guerrilla, psychological, naval, and nuclear. Asymmetrical warfare is also known as terrorism. Biological warfare is fought by using germs. Chemical warfare is the use of toxic substances. Electronic warfare is cracking the enemyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s code or jamming their system s. Ground warfare includes the infantry, armor and artillery. Guerrilla warfare if fought with irregular troops. Psychological warfare is used to instill fear and terror to support the achievement of national objectives. Naval warfare is fought on a larger scale in the oceans and nuclear warfare uses nuclear weapons. The development of technologies created what is known as modern warfare today. With these technologies tactics, strategy, and weapons were also developed. During ancient times, the ancient strategy focused broadly on two goals. To convince the enemy that continued war was more costly than submitting, and make the most gain from war as possible. Forcing the enemy to submit generally consisted of defeating their army in the field. Once the enemyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s force was routed, the threat of siege, civilian deaths, and the like often forced the enemy to the bargaining table resulting in gaining simple profit. In modern warfare, the goals are simply to stop one from controlling the entire world. The use of tactics in ancient times depended on the sizes and skill levels of both armies, the unit types of both, terrain and positional advantages of both armies, and the weather. In a modern sense, the battles are always fought no matter what the opposition has, the terrain, nor the weath er. Ancient weapons consisted of the bow and arrow, the sling; pole arms such as the spear and javelin; hand-to-hand weapons such as swords, spears, clubs, maces, axes, and knives. Catapults, siege towers, and battering rams were used during sieges. Modern weapons consist of more missile type weapons such as the gun. There are also grenades, mines, missile launchers, and many other systems. During Ancient times, Greek warfare was a limited and ritualized form of conflict. Armies of hoplites would meet on the battlefield and decide the outcome in a single day. During the Peloponnesian War, however, the fighting lasted for years and consumed the economic resources of the participating city-states. In modern times, the United States underwent total mobilization of all national resources for the Second World War. Previously untouched sections of the nation mobilized for the war effort. Academics became technocrats; home-makers became bomb-makers, massive numbers of women worked in heavy industry during the war; union leaders and businessmen became commanders in the massive armies of production.  The great scientific communities of the United States were mobilized as never before, and mathematicians, doctors, engineers, and chemists turned their minds to the problems ahead of them. There is a big evolution from ancient warfare to modern warfare. Ancient warfare was mostly centered on organization, such as the use of the phalanx, and modern warfare focuses on technology and the use of information. During ancient times, the goals of the civilization were to have personal gain of simple profit and in modern times the goals are to stop one person from controlling the entire globe. Also ancient warfare focused on hand-to-hand combat while modern warfare focuses on the use of missiles and information. There was also the transition from limited warfare to total warfare to develop technologies need for a countries goal. Overall, ancient and modern warfare are different from the make-up of the armies, the tactics and weapons, and the transition to total warfare. OVERALL GRADE: 86.5/100 CONTENT: 40/50 You did an average job explaining some of the differences between ancient warfare and modern warfare. But, you got some of it wrong. Also, you did not adequately tell me WHY these differences occurred. I realize that this paper was written in a 2 hour time period, but I certainly hoped that you would have done a slightly better job at organizing your thoughtsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Remember, this type of writing is relatively simple. Step 1: come up with your thesis (opinion). Step 2: state three facts that support you thesis. Step 3: conclude your paper by telling me your opinion, again, and quickly reviewing your supporting arguments. Spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc: 46.5/50

Essay --

A major concern of environmentalists is the impact and wellbeing of Alaska’s environment. The picture in Source E, gives the impression that we are destroying the last pristine place on Earth for no profit, nor for the good of the people. It makes the idea of drilling in ANWR seem ridiculous and even damaging to the country. However, the comic is misleading. As Doc Hastings, a US Congressman, says in Source A,† The North Slope of ANWR, a tiny section of the 19 million acre refuge, was specifically set aside by President Jimmy Carter and congress for potential energy production. . . We can harness the potential of ANWR by using less than 3% of its acreage.† Their ability to access billions of oil while only using a small percentage of land proves that the â€Å"last pristine place on earth† will remain natural and rural. It has to remain that way; the vast majority of ANWR is permanently off to any exploration. Another major issue that hits hard with a lot of people is the impact the oil fields will have on the wildlife. Native animals such as the caribou, bring up large opposition due to ...

Al Capone Does My Shirts

He has an autistic sister called Natalie. They move to an apartment at â€Å"The Rock† after their father is able to work as an electrician at Alcatraz. What follows after are the series of escapades that Moose experiences which exposes him to several scrupulous deals making him compromise his integrity.Moose is intrigued that Al Capone lives in one of the prison cells where he lives and so are the other children. They eagerly pay money to have their clothes laundered by Scarface. He still has connections with other people behind bars of Alcatraz and he is able to help Moose.Moose reasoned in a manner that proves quite helpful in the sense that there is a cognitive behavior that the child manifests through obvious exploring and reconstruction of past events. Most of the children there are receptive to new learnings once new opportunities present themselves.The presence of these dangerous criminals in the midst of children, even if these dangerous elements are locked up, give a sense of inner exhilaration to readers who never know what to expect next. Moos Flanagan himself is witty and funny, which makes his character blend well with the other characters in the story.The family experiences several difficulties as it tries to balance their day revolving around Natalie who is afflicted with autism and their other child.   Thus, there is a strange kind of blending between the children of the prison guards and a story that elicits compassion for a children’s story book. It may seem to be quite heavy on the criminal side of the men in prison, but the author gives us a natural, almost necessary kind of kindness for these men who also manage to show kindness to these people.Delinquent activities is not really a normal process of growing up but it is most of the time an impact of a different kind of peer pressure that young people experiences. Young people have different experiences of puberty and adolescence and this experience is in part influenced thr ough the support systems that surround young people.Most of the time, the family or other support systems would not be able to provide effective support system in terms of development of self-image; young people acquire affirmation through peers and other groups. In their wish to feel that they ‘belong’ to a group they commit deviant behaviors (Juvenile Crime).This means that in general, it is not really a normal process, but rather an impact of the difficulty of the family structures to support young people at this important stage of development towards adulthood. Children act like sponges in terms of imbibing information and acquiring knowledge—a generalization that seems to hold whether they are learning how to speak or how to display emotions.It is not a curse for Moose to be responsible as he is wont to think. It balances with his family and environment so he still grows up well-rounded. It has been mentioned that families who are mentally and physically hea lthy are fundamental to a child's optimal growth and education.The kindness of prisoners melts the hearts of readers as Al Capone himself arranges for the help he is going to give readers. Natalie is brought to other families where she learns to interact like any normal child would do. Even if the daughter of the warden is presented as manipulative, yet the author manages to give him a soft heart for the punishment.Of course, we cannot discount the fact that some children have become more aggressive, which is directly correlated with the escalating prominence of violence among adults. Moose’s father warns him to do good for his sister but Piper, the warden’s daughter makes his life miserable by involving him in a moneymaking scheme to have their schoolmates’ clothes laundered by convicts.Piper even goes to the extent to telling schoolmates that Al Capone, the great gangster, may even be the one to wash their clothes.The story is heart-rending as readers are affo rded a glimpse of the relationship between Moose and his sister. We see the concern he has for his sister and is worth emulating. The setting of the story, even is quite serious for a children’s book prepares young readers for more serious themes as they grow up.Children acquire abilities to aggression more readily through constant exposure because they tend to imitate what they constantly see or read. Without doubt, the story plays a potent role on how children respond to different circumstances that they may have watched, read, or listened to.Oftentimes, the behaviors depicted in this story are extremely aggressive. Yet, this story breaks the belief that children believe that aggression is the only solution to a particular situation they are in.Living in a time and culture in which violence infuses numerous facets of society in both fiction and reality—verbal, visual, overt, and implied—and considering the ubiquity and prevalence of all forms of violence aroun d us, exposure to serious themes through the children’s books evidently casts some negative impact upon children. Yet, this book becomes a compassionate read that makes children want to emulate the kindness shown by the main character, Moose.REFERENCECholdenko, G. (March 30, 2004). Al Capone Does my Shirts. Putnam Juvenile   

Vocab In Context Questions and Strategies for ACT Reading

Vocab In Context Questions and Strategies for ACT Reading SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips What exactly are vocab in context questions, and what are the best ways to approach answering them? In this article, I'll start by going over the basics of what vocab in context questions are, then segue into an in-depth discussion of each of the two types (complete with examples). Finally, I'll wrap it up by suggesting strategies to use when tackling these types of questions. feature image credit: 7dc_b188407-zuleikha-reading by Wolfgang Lonien used under CC BY-SA 2.0/Cropped from original. What Are Vocab In Context Questions? Vocabulary in context questions are the questions on ACT Reading that question you directly about vocabulary in the context of a paragraph. While having vocab knowledge can help you with other types of questions, for the purposes of this article I've focused on the types of questions where knowing vocabulary is essential to being able to get the right answer. From my reviewing of dozens ofofficial ACT practice tests, I've come to the conclusion that there are two types of ways the ACT Reading will question you on vocabulary: Based on how the word is used in the passage, what does that word mean? How would you sum up the meaning of a few lines or a paragraph, using one word as your answer? Read on for a more in-depth look at each of these types of vocab in context questions. Question Type 1: What’s The Meaning Of The Word In Context? These questions are probably among the most straightforward of all the ACT Reading questions. I like to think of them as asking â€Å"Here’s the word – what’s the definition?† Just because the questions are straightforward doesn’t mean that they can't be tricky, but the way the questions are phrased themselves are pretty simple. In fact, they are almost always asked in the following way: As it is used in line [number], the word [X] most nearly means... Or, to give a concrete example: As it is used in line 42, the word howled most nearly means†¦ Why does the ACT always use the phrase "most nearly," rather than just straight up asking "what does this word mean?" I believe there are two reasons: the phrase is designed to trick you into picking an answer that kind of works (after all, howled only has to NEARLY mean the answer choice, right?) it's the ACT’s way of covering its butt (nope, you can't just pick AN answer that works, you have to pick the BEST answer out of the available choices). Most often, these "Here's the word, what's the definition?" questions are about words that have multiple meanings. Since the ACT wants to trick you into rushing into thinking you know the answer, the test often will include an answer choice that is accurate for SOME definition of the word, just not the way it’s used in the passage. Here’s an example, taken verbatim from an official ACT practice test. Off the top of my head, the word read can be used to mean any of the answers, with the possible exception of choice C. In order to figure out which way read is being used in line 45, you'll have to go back to the passage. The source sentence is as follows: â€Å"Scientists determine an eel’s age using a microscope to read the growth rings of its otolith – a small, hard calcium deposit at the base of its skull.† (lines 44-47; italics mine) So how would you solve this question? First, rephrase the word or phrase in questionto make answering the question easier: â€Å"Scientists figure out how old an eel is using a microscope to look at and decipher the growth rings on the thing.† As you can see, the rephrasing does not have to be super elegant, just accurate. Next, substitute answers into your rephrased sentence – for this question, only â€Å"observe† makes sense (Scientists figure out how old an eel is using a microscope to observe the growth rings on the thing). Want another example? Not a problem! Here’s a trickier example I’ve modified from an ACTual ACT (I could only hold out on that wordplay for so long). Practice Example A: â€Å"The lycanthropic virus story is really nailed down,† says Giles. â€Å"The epicenters that have been mapped over thousands of years are likely the spots where werewolves are concentrated.† As it is used in this line, concentrated most nearly means†¦ (A) extracted (B) paid attention to (C) gathered together (D) directed to one topic If you replaced the word â€Å"concentrated† with any of the answer choices, it COULD make thematic sense. After all, werewolves could be extracted from a place, or be paid attention to (although it seems unlikely that the ACT would have you pick an answer choice that means ending a sentence with a preposition). Also, doesn’t â€Å"concentrated† sometimes have something to do with things being directed to one topic? Danger! Danger! This is all part of the ACT’s Cunning Planâ„ ¢ (NB: not actually trademarked) to trap you! It’s a trap by Mike Knell, used under CC BY-SA 2.0/Cropped from original. Do NOT answer the question based on things that â€Å"could be right,† depending on information you do not know. Imagine you're a cranky English teacher, grading student interpretations of a book read for class. You're not a generous teacher who’s looking for reason to give a student points any way you can because she argued the point. No, you're looking for reasons to mark answers as WRONG. Take that mindset into the ACT Reading with you: Only the answer that is directly supported by the context of the passage is acceptable. In the case of example A above, the answer is (C) gathered together: the centers of the lycanthropic virus infection are likely the spots where werewolves are gathered together. None of the answer choices come even close to fitting into context of this sentence. On occasion, rather than asking about specific words, ACT Reading will instead ask about multiple words, making the question more like "Here's the phrase, what's the meaning?" See example B: Example taken from ACT website. In either case, these questions should be approached in the same way: always, always go back to the line in which the word or phrase appears – don’t let the ACT fool you into answering without checking! Question Type 2: What Word Is Defined By The Passage? These questions ask you to recognize the definition in the passage and relate it to the answer choice that matches it. In contrast to the previous question type of vocab-in-context questions, I think of these as asking â€Å"Here’s the definition, what’s the word?† The ACT has more varied ways of asking these questions than the â€Å"here’s the word, what’s the meaning?† questions. I've listed below just a few examples that I came across in my reviewing of ACT practice tests. Disclaimer: I have edited the questions so that they all refer to the same subject matter; these are not how the questions appeared on the actual ACT. Sample "Here's the definition, what's the word?" questions: Which of the following words best describes the narrator’s father working as he prepares for the full moon? Which of the following best describes how the victim referred to in the fifth paragraph (lines 58-71) is said to have started to transform into a werewolf? Lines 42-53 suggest that, prior to W. Rosenberg’s research, medical researchers had thought of the werewolf as†¦ Halloween Duck: Werewolf Duck by Joshua Smith, used under CC BY-SA 2.0/Cropped from original. Answer to the last question: Apparently as round, yellow, and half-wolf, half†¦duck in a shirt? "What word is defined by the passage?" questions can actually be easier than the "here's the word, what's the definition?" questions. Why? Because since the definitions are in paragraph form, you may be able to gather more information to help answer the question. Here's another actual ACT sample question: Example taken from ACT website. If you know the definition of the word â€Å"discernment,† you have an easy shortcut to the answer: â€Å"The problem with reevaluating and devaluing men poets is that it’s difficult to be sure you have good judgment when you’re doing it. How SHOULD you do it? With caution, or by being cautious.† Even if you don’t know exactly what discernment means, however, the author goes on to explain further in the rest of the paragraph: "The author thinks that taking men poets down a peg too immediately, or quickly, is a problem†¦that means that people who do it should be cautious." Using that clue, you could solve the question, even if you didn'tknow what"discernment" meant. Strategies To Master Vocabulary In Context Questions So what strategies can you use to master these two types of ACT Reading questions? I've put together a 3-step strategy guide below. Strategy 1: Rephrase the information given For questions that ask about words in context, define the word first in your head (or on scrap paper, whichever is easier) in the context of the sentence or paragraph, without looking at the answer choices. Remember, your rephrasing does not have to be elegant as long as it conveys the meaning. For instance, take a look at example C: "She thinks I have a power that she doesn’t have and this brings out her envy and bad humor." In this line, humor most nearly means†¦ My thought process: Let me replace the word with one that keeps the meaning of the sentence. â€Å"She thinks I have a power that she doesn’t have and this brings out her envy and bad state of mind.† Okay, that makes sense and is what the original passage said. For questions that ask you to take a paragraph and choose the best answer that describes it, answer the question in your own words before looking at the answer choices. See example D: My thought process: Question is asking about what researchers thought about the brain. Okay, what does the paragraph say? We need a "new view of the brain" that includes the idea that the brain is "dynamic", "active", and "adaptive," NOT "programmed and static." So medical researchers used to think the brain didn’t change, but now they think it does. Okay, got it, now what're my answer choices? Strategy 2: Cross out answers that clearly don’t fit Sometimes, you can get to the right answer just by knowing what the wrong answers are. This is an especially useful strategy if there's an answer choice with a word that you don't know the meaning of. If you know that the other three answers are definitely wrong, it doesn't matter that you don't know what the meaning of the fourth answer is; by process of elimination, it must the correct choice. Let's take a look at this strategy in the context of example C, from before: My thought process: Choices are personality, whim, mood, and comedy. I rephrased the sentence asâ€Å"She thinks I have a power that she doesn’t have and this brings out her envy and bad state of mind.† Which choice is closest to â€Å"state of mind?† Personality: not really. Whim: No. Mood: yes. Comedy: no. The answer must be C. mood. This strategy still works if you are trying to sum up the meaning of a paragraph in one word. I'll copy and paste example D again, so you don't have to scroll back up: My thought process: The choices are dynamic, unchanging, paradoxical, or creative. My rephrasing of the paragraph was that medical researchers used to think the brain didn’t change, but now they think it does. Which of the choices are closest to meaning "didn't change" or "not changing"? Well, unchanging, obviously. What about the others? Dynamic is what they say the NEW view should be, so no. Paradoxical: there’s nothing about that in the text. Creative: nothing about that in the text. Answer must be B. unchanging. Strategy 3: (Optional) Plug the definition back in This strategy works best for the "here's the word, what's the meaning?" questions, because word-for-word substitutions are a lot simpler than word-to-sum-up-entire-paragraphs-of-information substitutions. Let's take one more look at example C, a "here's the word, what's the meaning?" question: "She thinks I have a power that she doesn’t have and this brings out her envy and bad humor." In this line, humor most nearly means†¦ My thought process: â€Å"She thinks I have a power that she doesn’t have and this brings out her envy and bad mood.† Yeah, that seems right. But I’ll double check: â€Å"She thinks I have a power that she doesn’t have and this brings out her envy and bad personality.† That doesn’t really make sense – why would your personality need to be brought out? No. Especially when â€Å"mood† works better in this sentence. Get Plugged In by Rennett Stowe, used under CC BY 2.0. Whew. Where Do I Go From Here? Are these strategies fine in theory, but you always run out of time on real ACT Reading sections? Discover how to avoid that terrible fate here. Want more in depth guides like this? Read our other guides on Big Picture, Detail, Function, and Inference ACT Reading questions, as well as our deep dive into ACT Reading paired passages. And subscribe to this blog on the upper right. What are the other types of questions you’ll find on the ACT, and what’s the best way to read the passage to answer them? We have strategies for reading passages effectively. Want a breakdown of all the skills you’ll need to excel on the ACT Reading? Read about what's actually tested on ACT Reading. Want to improve your ACT score by 4 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes what you study to your strengths and weaknesses. If you liked this Reading lesson, you'll love our program.Along with more detailed lessons, you'll get thousands ofpractice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Check out our 5-day free trial:

The Long Voyage by Jorge Semprun

The Long Voyage by Jorge Semprun In his narrative, Jorge Semprun often switches from external to internal setting. Such tool plays an outstanding role in the plot presentation. For instance, it gives a chance for the author to compare and contrast general information and specific details, outlook and internal state of things, image and feelings, etc. Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Long Voyage by Jorge Semprun specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In addition, Semprun tries to show the interdependence of the global things and some particular notions. Indeed, showing that a person is just a small detail in the enormous system of the world, the author later transfers to the inner world of one individual, showing that it can be as great as a separate Universe. While it may seem from the first sight that the rapid changes of setting from internal to external add needless complications in the narrative, each of them conveys a special message. In fact, th e nature of human consciousness suggests that people think with images, and their order is never chronologically or logically organized. Thus, Semprun tried to express the stream of those images in his narrative, showing the importance of every thought, emotion, feeling, or vision. What is more, the readers tend to focus on some impressive moments of the plot; in contrast, reading Semprun’s book keeps a reader in constant tension, as the general switches to the very specific and back. By these means, the author teaches us to think globally. The mentioned tool also serves as a intensifier of author’s testimony. As an example, in one of the episodes Semprun first describes the setting outside the boxcar, then switches to the inside, describing how many people are there; next, the author tells how unbearably it is to be one of them, and finally describes the pain in his knee. Such development of descriptions from general to specific allows the author analyze every level of the reality, showing the inconveniences, pain and fear on each of them. This method is often applied in the book. The reflections of the inside and outside change the traditional positions of both the writer and the reader. In some cases, the writer seems to discover the development of plot together with the reader. Indeed, in some scenes the author builds the narration in a way that shows his uncertainty in the situation, and the change of external and internal seems to help the narrator to find the solution. Advertising Looking for essay on literature languages? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In other cases, the author seems to be watching the situation on the neutral situation, just like the described events are not happening to him. He also uses statements, which were apparently made by him, but which are familiar to everyone who might read them: â€Å"What carries the most weight in your life are the peop le youve known† (Semprun, 29). This makes the reader and the writer much closer than in traditional setting. When the author tells about the experience of fifteen years, the reader gets the feeling of being of the same age with author. Apparently, such effect is due to proper use of the mentioned tools. The relationship between inside and outside in the narration reflect various important notions. For instance, the notion of survival is presented in the contrast: in the most strict conditions people can be filled with desire to live, and this helps them to survive; on the other hand, even when a human has freedom, their inner world not always survives. This can be supported by the example of the German woman who was released: her both children were dead, and her own survival therefore was of no value to her. Similarly, the author presents the notion of return. Having told about his will to return, he turns back to the global understanding of what is happening, and assumes th at â€Å"perhaps one cant take this voyage back in the opposite direction† (Semprun, 23). All in all, switching of the inner and outer is an effective tool used in the narration. In addition, it can be viewed as the author’s personal philosophy of world perception.