A Close Critical Reading of Elizabeth Bishop’s “The Fish” Essay

Humans do not only learn from each other’s experiences. Sometimes, things in nature create within an observer or participant of a phenomenon in nature, a profound realization about life. Elizabeth Bishop’s â€Å"The Fish† shares to the reader a said effect. The poem describes a simple fishing experience, but the event, prompted by a particular fish that the speaker catches, awakens within him a sense of awe as to the worth of the otherwise everyday sea creature. The narrative poem has a simple story. It is about someone who goes fishing one day. After the speaker catches the fish, however, it becomes an object of curiosity for him. The introspection begins an internal struggle as to whether he should keep the fish or not. In the end, he chooses to throw it back into the sea. Using a number of literary devices, however, Bishop is able to dramatize through words the internal struggle and in the process, illuminates and heightens the ordinary experience. The fish, for one, is not described as an object. It is referred to as a â€Å"he†. This personification, however, is not to give the fish human attributes but to clue the reader that the poem is about more than catching a fish. The fish remains a fish all throughout the poem, but it is in the speaker’s mind that it becomes symbolic and therefore to be treated as an ordinary fish by the reader. More than this, it is actually the imagery, the similes and metaphors, which the writer uses to physically describe the fish that appeals the reader’s senses and sympathy for the fish which, in turn, lifts the poem to its higher meaning. â€Å"He (the fish) didn’t fight† (5) when the speaker catches him. Its skin is like â€Å"like wallpaper†¦stained and lost through age† (13-15). On its jaw â€Å"hung five old pieces of fish-line†¦all their five big hooks/grown firmly in his mouth† (51, 54-55). This set of imagery suggests that this particular fish is old and has fought a lot of battles already. Its body has suffered the scars of past struggles and is battle-worn. The simile of the five fish hooks as being compared by the poet to â€Å"medals with their ribbons†¦a five-haired beard of wisdom† (61, 63) recalls to the reader’s mind the medals on the suit of a five-star general who has fought wars and come out of them battle-scarred yet proud of every ribbon and scar. There is a tone of respect upon the speaker for the fish. At this point in the poem especially, the second half of the long single-stanza, there is an irony in the transformation of the creature from ordinary fish in the first line to the revered creature in the latter part of the poem. This reverence is what convinces the speaker to â€Å"let the fish go† (76). The act of letting go, too, is another ironic event in that any fisherman would not let go of something he has worked hard to get. But to the poet, it is not a waste of effort because it is a show of his respect for the fish. After staring at the fish for a long time, â€Å"victory filled up/ the little rented boat† (65-66), the speaker expresses. It is a score of victory for the fish because its scars have convinced the speaker that this fish has fought all its life and now deserves respect for being a survivor. Ultimately, the poem could be seen as an allegory to the beauty of a survivor’s ugly scars and physical deformities. The fish, with its rough skin â€Å"infested with tiny white sea-lice† (19) hanged with â€Å"rags of green weed† (21) and â€Å"five old pieces of fish-line† (51) stuck in its mouth, has grown ugly with age. Yet, these marks are not simply brought about by age but from years of struggling and freeing itself from past attempts of other fishermen to catch it. Those are its own marks of beauty and honor. Reference: Bishop, Elizabeth. â€Å"The Fish†.

The Walt Disney company, as well as its subsidiaries, are focused on a diversified worldwide entertainment market

The Walt Disney Company has a rich selection to produce its own products and attractions, making the company a highly competitive industry to expand into new markets and products lines. Their domestic and international market share demonstrates its great expansion and its location between the top players in its industry. The Walt Disney Company has multiple challenging threats that could lead to a negative impact of the business in the future. The company major threats come from its national and global competitors. The high competitions have sometimes imposed problems for the company to sustain its entertainment leadership. A new challenge emerged with the acquisition of Marvel; new acquisitions could affect the development of a company at its beginning by having unprofitable sales. Disney’s pressure in terms of creativity and innovation is other threat that must be surpassed to stay in this competitive market, and which Disney has done well so far. With the economic recession that is faced in this country now a days another common challenge might be employee retention. If you let go your employees they might leave and work in a competitor within the industry, giving out crucial information from the company. Walt Disney Company goal has been and will always be â€Å"To make people happy† and â€Å"to be creative† Since 1923 to the present the company has been producing films and contents for different age people. The company’s ability to invoke a feeling of â€Å"eternal youth† is clearly present in all of its content; so generally I can say the company has been doing an excellent job fulfilling both of their goals! hat The Walt Disney Company is a global leader in the industry of entertainment; it is a company that is continuously growing. The company always demonstrates its highly centralized and organized managerial decisions. From the previous table you can see the profits margin calculations, which is a profitability ratio calculated as operating income divided by revenue. Walt Disney Company’ s Profit Margin also deteriorated from 2008 to 2009 and slightly improved from 2009 to 2010 Thanks to the recent launch and growth of the company’s game development, new growth avenues are expected.

Describing people Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Describing people - Assignment Example Be sure to describe for each one their physical appearance, demeanor and positive or negative image. The New Wife: Marc’s new wife Alice is described as dark-skinned and plump, an earthy blue eyed blond, fragile with wavy hair. She is over-indulgent and exuberant, pleased and happy with her husband and his caring attitude. She is naturally curious about her husband’s ex-wife and asks him about the reasons for the breakup, as anyone would naturally want to know. She is positive but nevertheless curious to know what the ex-wife found lacking in Marc. The Ex-Wife: Marc’s ex-wife is described as the woman in white, with dark smooth, lustrous hair and blue eyes. She appears to be a sophisticate and is hard to please, as Marc has told Alice. Alice might have found her superior for a while but can rest content in the knowledge that she is the one with Marc now, while his ex-wife dines alone. 2. Write an essay describing which of the following statements you think best d escribes the character of Alice, the second wife. Provide the number of your choice and briefly defend it. Use at least one example from the selection to support your ideas: 1. She is a thoughtful person beginning to question the wisdom of her decision. 2. She is a shallow person easily swayed by the opinions of others. 3. She is a happily married person exhibiting natural curiosity. 4. Other - Describe Alice in your own words and then defend your statement. In my opinion, (3) Alice is a happily married person exhibiting natural curiosity. She is quite respectful of her husband and a part of the story has her looking him over and wondering what made his first wife leave him†¦ â€Å"She was looking with furtive attention at her husband's face, with its good color and regular shape, at his thick hair with its occasional thread of white silk, at his small, well-cared-for hands. She felt dubious for the first time, and asked herself: "What more did she want, then?" (Colette, 1) an d â€Å"She showed overwhelming gratitude to her husband. She was immodest without knowing it and her entire person revealed over-conspicuous signs of extreme happiness.†(Colette,1). It is human nature to be curious about her spouse’s ex-wife and why they divorced and following her husband’s explanation, this makes Alice wonder why the ex-wife- ‘the woman in white’ -was so hard to please. Nevertheless, Alice would have been pleased to see that she was dining alone, as it would validate her husband’s statement. 3. List three experiences that Sasaki relates in her anecdote. After each experience, describe her reactions to the experience. Then, describe the point you think Sasaki is trying to make by relating this anecdote. One experience that Sasaki relates in ‘Another Writer’s Beginnings’ is that her sister was not as overly concerned with outward appearances as she was. In contrast, Sasaki considered herself an ugly specim en of humanity right from the very beginning. She measures her beauty according to her suitability to being a Mousketeer at age five, while her sister who is three years older than her was realistic enough to know that it is hard for a Japanese to look like a Mouseketeer anyway (Sasaki,1). Secondly, Sasaki is hugely disappointed by her school picture taken at 5 years old and even her mother who was normally a positivist let out a sigh of disdain after viewing the picture. Even she could not find any words of encouragement (Sasaki, 1). Thirdly, at times Sasaki even wished that she could be like her friend Marilyn who was cute and looked as good as Shirley Temple in pictures. She thought at least that would comfort her parents and spare them the embarrassment of having such an

The Development of Travel and Tourism On Mozambique Literature review

The Development of Travel and Tourism On Mozambique - Literature review Example In order to attain this end, the following objectives will be explored: This literature review critically evaluates and analyses elements and aspects of tourism development and how it can be applied to an African country – Mozambique. The study will critique various elements of the current situation of tourism which is steeped in mass tourism and provide an exegesis on the future development of tourism by integrating sustainable tourism and other approaches of tourism planning and development. Tourism is widely viewed as the movement of persons from their normal place of habitation to another place for a range of activities within a short period of time (Beaver, 2013). This include various activities like vacationing, leisure travel and business travel with the view of staying in a new environment and visiting places of interest (Varley, et al., 2013). Tourism provides some kind of leisure and relaxation to individuals in a given area. In the larger scope, tourism is a process through which local businesses in a tourist destination are likely to sell their products and services to persons from other countries (Wehrli, et al., 2013). This brings about some form of foreign exchange that can be used to develop a given nation or community. The differences in the way tourism benefits and revenues are distributed relates to the arrangements in the community or society. This difference is highly accentuated in relation to the tourism approach used in a community – whether there is a mass tourism system or an alternative tourism system. Sustainable tourism developed as a part of sustainable development which is a concept that examines the moderate and reasonable usage of the earth’s resources in order to ensure that future generations will also benefit from the earth’s resources (Miller & Twining-Ward, 2013; Pigram & Wahab, 2014; Pender & Sharpley, 2012).

Theory and Practice of Leadership Research Paper

Theory and Practice of Leadership - Research Paper Example Thus, the managers require identifying the leadership approaches which can help in the integration of marketing activities and also help the employees in achieving their personal and professional goals. Leadership has been defined â€Å"essentially contested concept† (Godwin, Neck & Houghton, 2000, p.161). The concept has been regarded very different from management and not for the reasons employee think but because of its exotic and charismatic traits. Traditional theorist regarded leadership as integrated approach which laid emphasis on team work and had the ability to influence its followers. Traditionally, the relationship between employer and employee resembled almost to man servant relationship which has been replaced by superior subordinate relationship. The leadership theories occurred in various groups which helped in the emergence of various innovative ideas and also in the improvement of the existing features. A high quality relationship between the employer and emp loyee is actually a result of the dyadic approach between the leaders and subordinates. The dynamic relationship between the management and subordinates would lead to positive interactions between the employers and employees. Innovativeness is closely related to leadership as it is regarded as the key goal of the organization. It helps in the accomplishment of goals and objectives through proper and innovative methods and has a positive impact on the organizational performance. As per traditional theorists leadership helps in creation of a congenial organizational climate. There are various facets of leadership theories and one of them is the leader member followership relationship which helps in constructing problem solving solutions. These also help in enhancement of follower efficacy and in inculcating innovativeness among the organizational members. Situational Leadership Although, several theorists introduced the concept of leadership and various other leadership styles, situat ional leadership was the first theory which focused on the effectiveness of leadership style. Presently, no theorist believes that there is a singular leadership theory which can contribute effectively in managing various situational crises. Several situational theories were developed to highlight the leadership style which is apt for every manager under various managerial circumstances. These situational theories are highly dependent upon factors like the particular situation, task, people, environmental variables and organization. Fiedler had proposed a situational theory which proposed that there is no singular way of handling particular situation (Bolen, 2004). He proposed that a particular leadership style should be selected as per the managerial situation (Bolen, 2004).A distinction should be made between the task and relationship oriented managers. Task oriented manager’s lays emphasis on the present tasks in hand than on the enhancement of the leader member relationsh ip. These kind of managers focus on the organizational structure, task delegated to the members and the position and power of the employees. Relationship oriented managers excel in most of the situations and their managerial style resembles participative style of leadership. According to theorists Hersey

Personality Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Personality Development - Essay Example While some psychologists believe that cognition is the only way to explain or predict personality differences within people, others believe that our personalities develop in differing ways. Whichever theorist you side with, however, it remains that cognition does play a part in the development of the personality, how big a part depends on your views. Cognition, being the mental process of knowing, and dealing with such things as awareness, perception, and reasoning, among others, is an important part of who we are and how we develop. Our personalities come from this perception of our world, what we think, what we feel, how we cope; it all stems from our awareness and how we put this awareness to use. Environmental factors, such as where you live, what you eat, the quality of the air that you breathe, etc, and biological factors, such as your genetic makeup and your pre-natal development play a part in how you process your environment and therefore play a part in the makeup of your personality development. If you happen to have been born prematurely, for example, and your parents both carried a lot of recessive genes and they were passed on to you, and you lived in an area of town close to smokestacks or a lot of overhead wires, your development, and that of your personality would differ from someone born at full term, with no genetic problems, living out in the fresh country air. How you are raised and where you are raised, and your genetic blueprint all have a bearing on how you perceive your world, and hence, how your personality has formed. Evolutionary, biological and environmental factors can result in the development of an aggressive personality. In the study of evolutionary psychology, we learn that it is a combination of a lot of

International Trade Meets Intellectuall Property Essay

International Trade Meets Intellectuall Property - Essay Example These policies include the granting of trademarks, copyrights and patents. Patents protect inventions that are novel, not obvious to those in the field, and useful. Trademarks are commercial symbols that producers use to identify their services and products. Copyrights protect authorship works, such as books, from the time of their creation. The protection extends to integrated circuits lay outs designs, trade secrets, geographical indications and industrial design (Bainbridge 100). The stakes in protecting intellectual property were high for many companies in the US. Not only in the product development is cost, in the knowledge-based and artistic industries, but success rarely guarantee. Before TRIPS, the completion of TRIPS, US International Trade Commission estimates were that American companies lose between $50 and $70 billion annually to inadequate intellectual property protection abroad. Most affected of this are Pharmaceuticals, films, publications, chemical products, sound recording and software. For example, international markets were of growing significance to the US film and television business. However, as videocassette recorders became readily available the level of film piracy increased (Idris 241). The position IP-based industries were not universally accepted, however. Many developing nations oppose the idea of strengthening international intellectual property rights. Moreover, not only the developing countries opposed to it but also some industrialized countries. These nations, traditionally did not allow patents on food and medicines holding that monopolies should not be permitted on products so essential to consumer welfare. Developing countries argue that increasing IP protection brings no significant, dynamic gains but inflicts considerable static costs: price increases, harm to consumer welfare and more royalties to foreigners (Goldstein 150). Many developing countries did not that intellectual property

Franchise law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Franchise law - Essay Example Therefore, each of the renewal terms raised by Joe must be examined in terms of whether or not, the proposed conditions and terms constitute good faith and fair dealing grounds for refusing renewal of the expiring franchise contract. In general, Joe takes issue with the requirement to purchase meat and cheese from Hoagie Land in Philadelphia when it is more convenient for him to purchase the same from Hoagie Land in New York, the payment of what Joe considers an excessive legal fee, the payment of a renewal fee, the installation of a point of sales systems, adoption of a new sign and remodelling. The question for consideration is whether or not each of these terms and conditions can be characterized as inconsistent with the concept of fair dealing and good faith. The concept of fair dealing and good faith was considered in the case of Payne v McDonald’s Corp. In this case, the franchisor’s renewal was conditional upon the franchisee’s consent to rebuild the resta urant. The court held however, that the requirement for rebuilding was not inconsistent with the concept of good faith and fair dealing (Payne v McDonald’s Corp.). However, the facts of Joe’s case can be distinguished from the facts of Payne v McDonald’s Corp. ... The ruled in Payne that since there was no express right to renewal, the franchisor was not under a duty to renew the franchise and in deciding to do so could condition renewal on requirements that suited its business ends (Payne v McDonald’s Corp.). Some guidance is found in the case of Bresler’s 33 Flavors Franchising Corp. v Woksin. In the case, the court ruled that in order to satisfy a claim that a refusal to renew on terms and conditions that were inconsistent with the concept of fair dealing and good faith, the claimant must show that the terms and conditions were only applied to the claimant and not to any other franchisor. Specifically, when the renewal term was for remodelling, the claimant must also show that to the satisfaction of the court that remodelling would have a negative impact on profitability (Bresler’s 33 Flavors Franchising Corp. v Woksin). I would therefore advise Joe to provide as much evidence as possible demonstrating that remodelling would negatively impact profitability and that purchasing meat and cheese from Philadelphia rather than from New York would negatively impact profitability. In looking at the requirement to purchase meat from Philadelphia as opposed to New York, it is unlikely that Joe can excise this term as it appears to be applicable to all franchisees and is stated to be for quality control and for economies of scale. To begin with, it may be argued that purchasing from the Philadelphia suppliers may be more convenient for Joe since his restaurant is located in Cherry Hill, New Jersey which is nearer to Philadelphia than it is to New York. Moreover, the requirement to purchase meat and cheese from the Philadelphia supplier applies to all franchisees and does not discriminate

Police administration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Police administration - Essay Example In addition, the paper explores whether the course has helped me, in preparing to face the modern-day challenges facing the police. The main challenges facing the police force include governance. For a long time, the tripartite structure of the force that encompasses a home office, chief constable and police authority is largely non-operational. The structure is characterized by gross confusion over the roles that different policing agents should play; there is a replication of roles and responsibilities. Therefore, there is a need to address the inconsistencies in the governance of the force (VanHulle, 2011). For instance, the bureaucratic nature of the current police structure needs to be addressed with an aim of effective utility of the potential in the police force. There is also an issue with the skills and the expertise held by the different departments, which needs to be explored, and where possible consolidated in order to ensure the achievement of maximum value from the avai lable personnel (VanHulle, 2011). The satisfaction expected in the area of police governance includes coherence of command, which eliminates the availability of conflicts in orders and commands. Furthermore, satisfaction in this area will include the delivery of services in a way that ensures that confusion levels are low (VanHulle, 2011). Through the adoption of an effective police administration, there will be the avoidance of replication of roles and responsibilities. In effect, this establishes a reward system that recognizes the roles of all officers regardless of their rank. There is a challenge of cost cuts in instances where the police force is under pressure to show that they are operating in a financially efficient manner (COPS, 2011). One possible solution, in this case, would be investing in a common procurement and a common service administration model. Some of the cuts that may help in realizing this include the sharing of resources and using smarter volume purchasing. For instance, instead of the 43 forces having 43 HR centers, they could invest in a central HR administration (COPS, 2011). Price cuts could also be realized in the areas of procuring services and equipment as central procuring could reduce the overall cost of policing, by millions. The satisfaction expected from this challenging area is that the operations of the police force should be managed and administered in a professional manner. Furthermore, the deployment of funds and roles should be based on the strategic employment of resources – both human and financial (COPS 2011). There is a challenge that the police are expected to depict a reduction in crime, which could be realized through increasing the detection of crime at all areas of coverage. The changing nature of crimes, where new models and styles of crimes replace the existing ones, further escalates this problem. In effect, this calls for newer models to detect crime and realize the overall objective of crime redu ction (PERF, 2012). For instance, there is a need to improve stitching on instances where criminal activities of small or large magnitude can be investigated with the criminals subsequently subjected to penal action (PERF, 2012). The satisfaction expected in this area is that the police should remain updated on new patterns and the technologies used by criminals. For example, police investigations should be able to expose information –

Promotion of Liberal values by states Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Promotion of Liberal values by states - Essay Example Further it also presents the idea that the spread of liberalism will not necessarily result in shape of complete peace and prosperity in the world. In order to understand the prescribed role of the liberal states by the Liberalism theory it is important to understand the theory. "Liberalism is an ideology, philosophy, and political tradition that holds liberty as the primary political value. Broadly speaking, liberalism seeks a society characterized by freedom of thought for individuals, limitations on power, especially of government and religion, the rule of law, the free exchange of ideas, a market economy that supports relatively free private enterprise, and a transparent system of government in which the rights of minorities are guaranteed. In modern society, liberals favor a liberal democracy with open and fair elections, where all citizens have equal rights by law and an equal opportunity to succeed." (Wikipedia, 2006) The essential characteristic of the liberal theory of the state is the doctrine of jurisdiction. The liberalism theory emphasizes on the limited area of power and authority for the state. Liberalism provides specified boundaries to the state beyond which the state cannot trespass. The principle of the limited power of state is the characteristic, which signifies the theory of Liberalism from Socialism in which the power of state is unlimited and Anarchists, according to whom the state does not have any significance. According to the neo socialist theory the most important factor is the economic efficiency rather than that of individual liberty and limited government. In order to undertake a discussion of the extent to which the use of power in the spreading the Liberal values is justified we will analyze the principles of Liberalism. The first and the foremost important principle of liberal theory are that the state is not superior to all the institutions. In fact state is also a social institution as other social institutions. All the institutions related to the specified field have relatively more power concerning the field as compare to other institutions. State has its own limitations and boundaries. It has to act in those boundaries. (Cooray) War has remained an issue of concern for most of the countries and nations. The formation of the international institutions such as League of Nations and the UN is the part of efforts of the nations towards establishing peace in the world. But still the notion of war is present in shape of the process of fighting terrorism and intervention to establish democracies. In case of the attack of U.S and its allies at Iraq and the refusal of the United States to follow the suggestion of United Nations to resolve the matter through peaceful talks, denies the first role of the superiority of the institutions on the state. United States used her economic dominance and military superiority in the world to make all the countries, including its enemies and allies to support the decision of war against Iraq through using force. "The second principle of the liberal theory of the state is that the state ought to respect the fault principle." (Cooray) According to the fault principle the state cannot punish an individual or cause him any harm with

Crucible Analyzing John Proctor Essay Example for Free

Crucible Analyzing John Proctor Essay Analyzing John Proctor as a Tragic Hero In the Crucible, a play by Arthur Miller, John Proctor is the tragic hero. A tragic hero is defined as someone who has great courage that ends up dying at the end of the story. The reason John Proctor is the tragic hero of this play is because he has so much to lose. John Proctor fulfills my requirements of a tragic hero throughout the play. He decides to go to court and expose the girls. The girls turn on him and he gets accused. He is only trying to do well, but gets falsely accused. John Proctor is also a very intelligent man who can detect others as being fraudulent, however he questions his own moral. He questions himself because of his affair with Abigail which was his only flaw throughout the play. In spite of this I still consider him an honorable man. Another thing he did was save his wife from being put to death, and also refusing to confess practicing witchcraft. He proves he is a tragic hero when he explains to the judge that since he gave his soul to leave his name. With this plea, Proctor has eliminated all hopes of living and has established himself as the tragic hero. John Proctor is a man of sufficient stature in that he is given the choice to save himself at the end of the play, but does not. He does keep his affair secretive, but that is only thing that made him seem like the villain. He did not deserve to die at the end of the play, but that is one of the requirements to make him considered a tragic hero. Proctor serves as the voice of justice in the play. He came out and told everyone about Abigail falsely accusing others of being witches. He also came out and ripped the warrant and told the men to leave. In the end, he comes close to confessing being a witch but realizes it disgraces his good name, which is all his children will know him by. The issues leading to John Proctors death are not universal. I believe that he should not have been the one getting the punishment in the end, but that is why he is the tragic hero. Throughout the play he was a man of integrity and nobleness. He confessed to practicing witchcraft, in which he really  didnt. This is why he died; saving his wife from death.

The criminal history of Richard Ramirez

The criminal history of Richard Ramirez California was terrorized in the mid-1980s by a serial killer proclaimed the Night Stalker by the media. The over a dozen victims of this killer didnt understand nor question the underlying criminological underpinnings of these acts and his bizarre courtroom outbursts were fodder for a sensationalizing media that is attracted to gruesome details. The prosecutor Deputy District Attorney Phillip Halpin provided a lay assessment of his mental state by commenting on his latest outburst after receiving a sentence of death, . . . [Ramirez] is a pathetic human being who is grasping at some structure in his life . . . (Court, 1989, p.1). While albeit Halpin was a skilled prosecutor in maneuvering the legal system and obtaining a satisfactory outcome for the State of California, he certainly is not qualified to make sociological or psychological prognostications. The combination of social and behavioral science makes attempts to explain the interaction between criminal and society through criminological theories, numbering more than a dozen (DeMelo, 2001, p.5). The explanation of vicious acts of torture, rape and murder may defy explanation but the question of why? persists and some light may be shed by reviewing the life experiences and their manifestations through criminal activity through one of these theories. Richard Ramirez was born in 1960 in Texas and spent his youth in El Paso (Mayo, 2008, p.281). The childhood of Ramirez was unremarkable but at an early age he began to experiment with drug, mainly marijuana and glue sniffing. His fascination with death began at the hands of his cousin a Viet Nam veteran that related tales of raping, torturing and killing Vietnamese women during his tour of duty by showing the teenage Ramirez Polaroid photographs of the victims and the sadistic results of his actions (Mayo, 2008, p.281). The tales of his exploits in Southeast Asia may have been embellished and the graphical and sadistic acts may or may not have been true, but he did introduce his teenage cousin to truly violent behavior. Ramirez was reported to be only a few feet away from his cousin when he shot and killed his wife, providing a live demonstration of the sadistic and violent behavior he had bragged about (Mayo, 2008, p.281). These anecdotal reports of an early introduction to violent sexual torture killing may or may not be entirely factually accurate, however the witnessing of his cousins murderous act are attributed to whetting his appetite for such acts of unconscionable violence and depravity. Ramirez became a loaner and a drifter and moved to Los Angeles where he started to build a criminal record. He committed burglary and auto theft to support his drug habit that had progressed include cocaine as well as his use of marijuana and reports of other drugs as well for which is also was arrested for possession (Mayo, 2008, p.281). It was reported by his sister Rosa Flores that he used harder drugs such as PCP and phencyclidine hydrochloride and suffered epileptic seizures periodically (Satanic, 1985, p.1). Ramirez had an extensive arrest record for these petty crimes but did not exhibit any personal tendencies toward violence. This all changed in May of 1984. A young Vietnamese-American girl, Mei Leung, was found murdered and hanging over a pipe in the basement of her apartment and it was later determined that she had been sexually assaulted (Worth, 2009, p.2). She was walking home form school with her brother engaged in an argument as to who would take the elevator and who would take the stairs, Mei elected to take the stairs and was found a half hour later raped and murdered. The suspect was described as a thin Caucasian male with shaggy brown hair parted in the middle wearing a brown leather jacket (Worth, 2009, p.2). This case initially generated publicity but went unsolved. The first murder for which Ramirez was convicted occurred nine months latter. This was the killing of the 79 year old Jennie Vincow found in her Los Angeles apartment with her throat slashed (Worth, 2009, p.2). Ramirez had entered the apartment at night and burglarized the home before raping and killing the elderly occupant. This pattern of entering at night and raping the female occupants and killing the males took on a macabre aspect when Ramirez began leaving behind satanic symbols either scrawled in the victims blood or carved into the victims bodies (Satanic, 1985, p.1). After several similar violent murderous incidents the unknown at the time assailant was dubbed The Night Stalker by the police and fueled the local media frenzy. Ramirez continued on his nightly exploits amassing more than thirteen murder victims that he would be eventually convicted of killing and numerous other counts of rape, attempted murder, aggravated assault, ninety criminal allegations proven in court (C ourt, 1989, p.1). The city of Los Angeles was truly terrorized by the serial killer and when reports possibly linking the same killer to the Bay Area, the near panic spread statewide. The police were finally able to link Ramirez to the killings through a finger print left at one of the crime scenes matching those form Ramirezs extensive arrest record (Chambers, 1985, p.1). The officials promptly released his photograph as a suspect in the Night Stalker killings and less than twenty four hours later he was cornered by an angry mob in East Los Angeles. Ramirez was arrested before most likely being beaten to death by the crowd of more than one hundred when he either boasted or spontaneously confessed by stating, . . .I did it . . . you know . . you guys got me, the Stalker . . . (Mayo, 2008, p.282). These bizarre and spontaneous outbursts would signify the entire court proceedings and his subsequent encounters with authorities, at his initial hearing he shouted, Hail Satan and flashed a pentagram, a satanic symbol, to the gathered media just prior to his lawyers entering a not guilty plea with the court (Chambers, 1985, p.1). A four year trial followed culminating in Ramirez being convicted of thirteen murders and was sentenced to death in the California gas chamber, who reacted with an inaudible statement to the court ending with the exclamation, . . . Lucifer dwells within us all. . . (Court, 1985, p.1). He concluded with the rant, You dont understand. You are not expected to. You are not capable of it. I am beyond your experience. I am beyond good and evil. Legions of the night, night breed. Repeat not the errors of the Night Prowler and show no mercy. I will be avenged. (Court, 1985, p.1) He concluded his courtroom diatribe by answering reporters queries as to his impressions of his fate by stating that, . . . its no big deal . . . Im going to Disneyland . . . (Court, 1985, p.1). His taunting of victims and their families by his cavalier attitude was further exemplified when a San Francisco detective went to interview him regarding several unsolved Bay Area murders that had been more recently linked to him through DNA evidence. San Francisco Police homicide Inspector Frank Falzon was escorting Ramirez to a holding cell when he smiled with his near toothless grin and chided, Hey Falzon, I bet youd love to know about those two old ladies wouldnt you? (Worth, 2009, p.1). Inspector Falzon later surmised that Ramirez was referring to Christina and Mary Caldwell whose mutilated bodies were discovered in their Telegraph Hill apartment in February of 1985. During the course of the trial it was uncovered that Ramirez was infatuated with satanic worship and imagery. It was uncovered that his favorite music was from the 1979 AC/DC album Highway to Hell and fancied himself the Night Prowler from the song of the same name on the album (Mayo, 2008, p.282). There are reports of attending satanic services in East Los Angeles but these are unsubstantiated (Satanic, 1985, p.1). What can be garnered from the reported facts and evidence presented that Ramirez was highly sociopathic and his propensity for sadistic cruelty, sexual deviation, and murderous tendencies almost defy explanation. There begins the difficult task of trying to assess the why? and fit this into a relevant criminological theorem to attempt to explain this abhorrent behavior. The beginning of the study of psychology followed the advent of modern criminal theory by nearly a century. Regarding criminal behavior prior to the latter part of the eighteenth century the actions of an individual was deemed as the totality where harsh punishment was meted out to deter others from following in the ill-advised ways (Hollin, 2002, p.145). The Classical School of criminological theory originates with the writing of Cesare Beccaria and Jeremy Bentham following the human rights and free will movements that coincided with the advent of the Declaration of Independence reflecting the contemporary progressive thought of the era (DeMelo, 2001, p.7). The free will approach was supplanted in the later part of the nineteenth century with the Positive School of thought, were Positivists saw behavior determined by biological, psychological and social traits, meaning that certain individuals were just born bad (DeMelo, 2001, p.8). This was also reflected in the growing field of ex perimental psychology that was in its infancy describing all human behavior in much the same manner (Hollin, 2002, p.146). The behaviorist led by Skinner in the 1930s felt that human interactions were governed by environmental setting and consequences (Hollin, 2002, p.146). This is similar to the Chicago School that sees the surroundings and social disorganization as the precursors to criminal behavior and as byproducts of an individuals upbringing and social environment (DeMelo, 2001, p.9). This nature versus nurture argument is seen throughout the evolving criminological theories, seeing crime as a manifestation of greater societal ills or socioeconomic inequalities, and modern feminist theory is interjected into the fray. These competing theories often fall short of exactly determining the precise why? for the high degree of violence exhibited by Ramirez. The Positive Theory would expound that Ramirez was just born bad, wired wrong and almost preordained for a life of crime. The influence of drugs in his life may have contributed to this and using the Chicago school with the social ills may be used to explain the influence of his cousin to develop a new norm within the mindset of Ramirez. The criminal history of Ramirez is signified by a disjointed leap from petty thief and drug abuser to serial killer. Unlike the need for a triggering event that sets off the mass killer to embark on a rampage leaving scores of dead in their wake, the serial murder begin a slow progression of amassing victims in a methodical and systematic approach (Dietz, 1986, p.483). This is contrasted with the Sensational Homicide theory where news reports of the killings begin to influence the turn of events, like the Manson Family killings of the late 1960s were the perpetrators achieve a cult hero status (Dietz, 1986, p.489). The progression of the criminal history of Ramirez would follow the Sensational Homicide theory, but also have elements of the serial killer as well. But where the typical serial killer such as John Wayne Gacy or Ted Bundy kept within the social norms during their non-killing activities, Ramirez remained a social outcast living as a transient on the fringes of society (Dietz, 1986, p.483). Ramirez is believed to have not begun his murderous ways until he first raped, murdered and mutilated Mei Leung in 1984 almost a decade after witnessing his cousins murderous act at the culmination of his tutelage of his young cousin in sexual violence. The criminological theory needs to fit the sudden flip of the switch that begat Ramirezs murderous undertaking with no prior violent incidents. Many of the criminological theories involve isolation from society and the economic benefits, seeing society as stratified between the haves and the have nots driving youths to delinquency and into the criminal justice system. This may be used to explain why a young Hispanic in El Paso with middle class parents may devolve into drug abuse and petty crimes associated with supporting his habit. However there is little foundation in the criminological theories that can be used to explain the veering into the fascination with the occult and basing ones criminal actions on perceived satanic content of rock music. This is abhorrent behavior far beyond the norm that is used to explain most crimes. Ramirez was demonstrable self delusional seeing himself as an outsider aligned with Satan embarking on near religious undertaking. Serial killers and mass murderers defy normal explanations, it would be akin to finding a universal theory that could explain the exploits of Hitler or Stalin whose ri se to power was based upon the systematic extermination of an entire race of people. These are extreme examples of criminal behavior that is a very, very rare occurrence and as in all mass, serial or spree killers can only be viewed as a perfect storm of internal ill will, missed opportunities by society to deter them from their aspirations, and a progression of murderous behavior that was only stopped through fortunate turns of events that lead to their police apprehension. Richard Ramirez has managed to gain a near mythic reputation from his sadistic murderous activities. He is viewed as a cult anti-hero along with Charles Manson succeeding in gaining notoriety. While no criminological theory reflects the need for attention and fame through criminal activity, perhaps a limited theory could be developed to explain these rare instances. Deputy Prosecutor Halpin may have made the correct off the cuff assessment, maybe Ramirez is just a pathetic human being . . . grasping for some structure in his life . . . defying all other explanation.

Maxis Business Level Strategy

Maxis Business Level Strategy Business model is plan or diagram for how it competes, uses its resources, structures its relationship, interfaces with the customers, and creates value to sustain itself on the basis of the profits its generates. It had included all the activities that define how a firm competes in the marketplace. Core strategy Mission statement Maxis missions are to be simple, trustworthy and creative. Maxis want everything they do is simple for everyone; it must be straightforward and easy to understand by their customers. Maxis believe that trust between customers and it is the key to successful relationship. All good relationships are built on trust which inspires confidence, and, assurance, conviction and reliance. Creativity is important and defines them; this is how Maxis differentiate from their competition. (Maxis is about life enablement, www.maxis.com.my, ND) Product/Market Scope Maxiss market scopes are telecommunication and networking sectors. They are the mobile communications service provider and recently they are also providing wireless broadband services. Their services include prepaid call plans, monthly subscription plans, international roaming, MMS, WAP, Resident Fixed Line services and the recent one Broadband internet plans. Maxis also are offering VSAT services and Blackberry based mobile services for their business customers.(Maxis website, 2010) Basis differentiation The basis differentiation of Maxis are based on the calling plans and pricing structure to appeal to different customer segments. The value-added services in Hotlink Prepaid had make Maxis differentiate from other competitors such as ring-tones, background ring tones, Voice SMS, fb2me, tweet2me, voice portal and etc. (Hotlink easy menu, 2010) Strategic resources Core Competencies What serve as core competencies for Maxis are customer service and their strong brand name. Maxis always emphasize on what can be done best to their customers and provide their best customer services as after the subscription of their plans. To enhance the customer satisfaction, Maxis had announced there are 70 Maxis Authorized service agents outlet are available in customer concentration are in Malaysia opens (Maxis Authorised Service Agents Outlets to Enhance Customer Satisfaction, www.maxis.com.my, 7th July 2001) and continue increasing in the following year. The outlets provide real time services similar to Maxis Centers such as customer registration, payment, IDD and Direct Debit application, and reinstatement of mobile line. With the availability if the shops that strategically located, Maxis clients can look forward to extended service hours, weekend services and easier access. There are more over than RM 500 000 are used for dealers and staff training annually to ensure the best possible service to Maxis customers. This is a part of Maxis core strategies to enhance the value in their existing relationships with key dealers. Maxis had established a strong brand name since 1995 for their wide coverage of signal and reliability. Strategic Assets There are several strategic assets owned by Maxis which let them continue to leading among the mobile service providers. Firstly, Ananda Krishnan, the founder of Maxis communications owned a satellite tv- Astro in Malaysia. It is the ASEAN leading satellite TV that always plays the important role in promoting the plans and services by Maxis. Moreover, Maxis have the huge database of customers information and can be used to make adjustment in their plans, packages and their marketing strategies base on the poll SMS that sent to the subscribers. In addition, one of the most valuable assets Maxis owned is their highly qualified and experienced staffs, such as, the executive director and chief executive officer of Maxis, Sandi Dap. Before he joined Maxis in 2007, he had been served as deputy managing director of Vodafone Essar Limited, one of the largest mobile operators in India since 1994. Jean Pascal is a Chief operating officer, he has 20 years of experience, of which he spent 13 yea rs with France Telecom group in France and Orange in UK. Others like Rossaba Annizah, Mark Dioguardi, Matthew Willsher, Mohamed Fitri and many more (Maxis senior management webpage, 2010). Partnership network Suppliers Maxis main suppliers are consist of SIM card suppliers and broadband wireless thumb drive suppliers. Other partnership network like strategic alliance such as Nokia, Apple and Blackberry are supplying Maxis theirs products to cope with Maxiss various kind of plans and packages. Other Key Relationships Many companies in diverse range of industries such as telecommunications, media and broadcasting, leisure, power generation, property development and management are directly or indirectly controlled or connected with Usaha Tegas, which is owned by Ananda Krishnan. As such, many of these companies and other related parties also subscribe to Maxis Mobiles mobile service and Maxis Broadband s fixed line services due to the relationship with Ananda Krishnan. Customer Interface Target Market Maxis has good customer interface which enable their service reach their customer easily and successfully. Maxis target their market on the telecommunication and networkings consumers market. For the target customer like students maxis come out with Maxis Youth Club. By using this service students can get a lot of benefits. On of them is Point Rewards; under this service students need to collect points as much as they can which enable them to get free talking time. If students top up twice in a week, they will get 100 points which equal anent RM 1.00 of free talking time. Besides that, students also can enjoy free calls to any maxis numbers on their birthdates. Apart from that, maxis also come out with service called subliners for the specific group of people who love to talk with their loved ones or couples everyday for a longer time of period. The subliners need to register their name under the mainliner. By doing this the subliners can enjoy less price. For the specific group of p eople who like to use internet, the maxis come out with broadband services. Maxis has four types of broadband plan which are 1.5GB,3 GB,6 GB and 12 GB. Fulfillment and Support Maxis communication companys service and product reaches it customers. For example, customers of maxis can go to maxis center to get some help like lost the SIM cards, problem of the deduct balance of prepare and postpaid, and the unclear of the new maxis plan package. Besides this, maxis center was build on city to make customers easy to pay the fees of postpaid and internet fees. (Find a Maxis Centre or MEPs, www.maxis .com.my, ND) Pricing structure Maxis are focus on aggressive pricing strategies to compete with other service providers. Apart from that, maxis also has different price depending on their target market. For the students under Youth Club service they can enjoy sending SMS only for 1sen per SMS. They also can enjoy free calls to any maxis numbers from 6pm to 6am.For the target market like line users, the subliners who register their name under main liners only need to pay RM 30 per month compare to RM 80 which is the actual rate for line users. Maxis offer the cheapest broadband services which only need to pay RM48 for 1.5GB. (Wireless Broadband, www.maxis.com.my, ND)

Flipping Pages While Drinking Coffee Essay -- Personal Narrative Books

Flipping Pages While Drinking Coffee I never really got into the world of coffee shops – especially a coffee shop/bookstore all in one. When I used to think of Barnes and Noble, I thought of people like my cousin who is somewhat snobbish and would spend her evenings there reading and drinking her coffee. The other type of person that seemed like they would fit there is, I guess what one would call, a â€Å"bookworm† or â€Å"nerd.† I know that seems a bit harsh, but one tends to get stereotypes of things that are unfamiliar to them. Through visiting Barnes and Noble I realized that my assumptions were entirely wrong. There were very few snobbish-looking people there. A gentleman who works at Barnes and Noble said that one of the main reasons he likes working in the coffee shop is because of the huge diversity among the people that go there. By visiting Barnes and Noble I realized that the atmosphere and the many things that they offer are what draw in a wide variety of patrons. The first time I went was to meet with a group of fellow students to work on a project. We went around 9:30 at night. After I entered their wooden doors, I looked around. Off to my right was an area that contained magazines, to my left - the checkout counters, and straight ahead was a multitude of books followed by Barnes and Nobles most distinguishing feature, the Starbucks coffee shop. My friend and I walked to the coffee shop and purchased a juice. I then said I would go find a place for us to sit. I figured this would give me a chance to look around. The first thing I noticed was the children’s books area. It is a large area in the back corner of the store. Of course I had to walk through it. It contained many books, but also a small ta... ...are like neighbors. The experience of coffee and music is the conduit, with the environment being the foundation. But it comes to life by the connection between our people and the customer.† As you can see by this quote Barnes and Noble stresses the idea of their environment being conducive to a place where really anyone can come and feel comfortable. It is a place that offers many things. In my eyes it offers a place where one can go, simply to buy a book, or to sit and read it while they drink a cup of coffee, if that is their fancy. It offers an atmosphere that is friendly and relaxing, while also offering a feeling of refinement. The atmosphere pulls you in, and allows you to let yourself be comfortable there. Once you combine all of their features, it becomes a place where anyone, no matter what they are looking for can go to enjoy themselves.

Candida by George Bernard Shaw Essay -- Candida George Bernard Shaw Es

Candida by George Bernard Shaw This isn't necessarily a negative thing; they're all well suited to each other, and create a sort of synergy that drives the play. But they're each quite different in their own respect. The main ones, Candida, Eugene and James are all written to be strong characters, and the way they were portrayed in the production our class saw lived up to this classification. However, this doesn't apply to everything. Some of the characters were stretched to make the play appeal to a newer generation in a newer day and age, at the expense of the dignity of at least one of the characters. Eugene. Eugene is a disowned poet who falls in love with Candida, the wife of Reverend James. He's a brilliant artist and spews nothing but truisms from beginning to end. However, the words don't really match the performance. Eugene uses a level of language that connotes a dignified, noble upbringing, which is supported within the context of the story. However, the actor, and director, inevitably, felt that to modernize the play they needed to make him more undi...

Medea as Woman, Hero and God in Euripides Play Essay -- Euripides Med

Medea as Woman, Hero and God In Euripides' play the title role and focus of the play is the foreign witch Medea. Treated differently through the play by different people and at different times, she adapts and changes her character, finally triumphing over her hated husband Jason. She can feasibly be seen as a mortal woman, Aristotle's tragic hero figure and even as an exulted goddess. Medea's identity as a weak woman is emphasised at the very start of the play. It is made very clear that she has come to misfortune through no fault of her own and is powerless in her problem ("her world has turned to enmity"). Being unable to change her situation is an example of her portrayal as a weak woman figure. We are told that she has been crying for days ("lies collapsed in agony"). Soon after these descriptions of her weeping, the Tutor arrives and informs us that yet more bad news is coming her way ("not heard the worst" "banish them"). At this point all the pity is directed towards Medea, shunned by her husband and unable to control what is happening around her, instead crying uncontrollably ("shouting shrill, pitiful accusations"). Behind this weak figure however, we have the warnings of the Nurse, shadowing this pity. She describes Medea's fury brewing from the grief and how powerful it is ("not relax her rage" "like a mad bull or a lioness"). Her appearance as a woman in grief is well depicted but very soon Medea emerges from the house, shaking off this grief and instead focusing on revenge. Her speech when she leaves the house gives us some evidence of her sour temper. While talking she comes across as submissive ("I accept my place") and describes the unenviable position of women in society ("we women are the most wretc... ...tion for what they perceive to be justice. Works Cited Bates, William Nickerson. Euripides. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Press, 1930. "Euripides." Image-Nation. http://www.imagi-nation.com/moonstruck/clsc4.htm Lucas, F.L. Euripides and His Influence. NY: Cooper Square, 1963. Euripides.   "Medea."   The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces.   Ed. Sarah Lawall.   New York and London:   W. W. Norton & Company, 1999.   642 - 672. Hamlyn, Paul.   Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology.   Westbook House, Fulham Broadway, London.   Paul Hamlyn Limited 1959. McDermott, E A (1989) Euripides' Medea: The Incarnation of Disorder. Pennsylvania State University:USA Oxford Companion to Classical Literature. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989. Zissos, Professor.   Classical Myth Lecture Notes.   July 20, 2001.   http://ccwf.cc.utexasz.edu/~paz/myth/notes.html

Introduction to the Network Communication Devices Essay

In this tutorial you will learn get the basic introduction to network devices such as nic adapters, routers, hubs, switches, modems, communication cables, lan/wan routers, gateway and other devices. A network is consists of a larger number of the communication devices. The simplest device that is used in the communication is the NIC adapter which is attached with the every computer in a network. If you want to build a LAN, you will need to have computers, hubs, switches, network adapters, UTP/STP cables, routers, internal/external modems, connectors, cable testers and clipping tool. On the other hand if you need to build WAN, you will need to have routers, switches, dedicated or leased telephone lines such as ISDN lines, frame relay connection and other types of wan communication connections. There are different communication mediums such as Ethernet cables, copper wire, coaxial cable, fiber optic cables, leased telephone lines and ever air is also a communication medium for the sate llite communication. The most common networking medium is the LAN is the Ethernet cable (UTP/STP), which is used in the star topology. Hub is a central device of a network and every computer in a network is directly connected with the hub. If the hub fails to work, the communication between the computers stops till the hub again starts working. Hub broadcasts the data to its every port, and then finding the destined computer, the data sent toward it. The switch is an advance form of the hub similar in functions but the advanced switches has a switching table in them. A advanced switch stores the MAC address of every attached computer and the data is only sent to the destined computer, unlike the hubs where data is sent to all ports. A router is a key device in the internet communication and wan communication system. A router has software called routing table and the source and destination addresses are stored in the routing table. | A router connects two logically and physically different networks. Router finds the IP address of the next hop (next router) and the data is sent toward it and so on. The well known routers developing companies are Cisco systems, Nortel, DLink and others. Every ISP, banks, corporate offices and multinational companies use routers for LAN and WAN communications and communication in their private networks. A gateway can be device or software in a network. A gateway device connects the LAN with the internet. A gateway is directly exposed to the internet so it should be securely configured and in and out traffic should be monitored. If you are using DSL connection, you must need a DSL modem in your network. The telephone line is connected with the DSL modem and UTP/STP cable attaches your computer with the DSL modem. Modems are the devices that are used to modulate and demodulate the data. They convert analogue signals to digital and digital signals to analogue so that signals can travel on the telephone lines. There are certain types of the cables that are used to connect two or more computers in a network. Fiber optic cable acts as a backbone between the ISPs and corporate offices. Data travels at the speed of light on the fiber optic cables. The cost and the installation cost of the fiber optic cable is very high but it is becoming very popular in the home networking and LANs also. In the local area networking, 10baseT/CAT5 cable is most commonly in use. A server is a computer in network that provides services to the client computers such as logon requests processing, files access and storage, internet access, printing access and many other types of services. Servers are mostly equipped with extra hardware such as plenty of external memory (RAM), more data store capacity (hard disks), high processing speed and other features.

Succubus on Top CHAPTER 3

â€Å"You're such a dork, Doug!† â€Å"Fuck, that hurt!† Doug Sato, the other dysfunctional assistant manager here and one of the most entertaining mortals I knew, pulled off the rubber mask he'd been wearing, revealing the beautiful features he'd inherited from his Japanese ancestors. He rubbed his forehead, giving me a wounded scowl. Upon closer inspection, I saw that the mask was not that of a demon but rather Darth Maul from The Phantom Menace. I should have known. No self-respecting demon would have had that many horns. â€Å"What are you doing?† I leaned down to pick up my scattered belongings. â€Å"Halloween was, like, a week ago.† â€Å"Yeah, I know. Everything's on sale. I got this for three dollars.† â€Å"You got ripped off.† â€Å"Boy, you're one to nag, Miss I-Show-Up-When-I-Feel-Like-It. You're lucky it's just me here.† â€Å"Why are you here?† Doug and I held the same position. On days when we overlapped, we usually worked different shifts, not identical ones. It was for the best. We usually distracted each other enough to accomplish the work of one person. Sometimes less. He grabbed the back of the rolling desk chair and impressively flipped his body into it, the impact of which caused the chair to roll half-way across the office. â€Å"Paige called me in. She's sick.† Paige, our manager, was about six months pregnant. â€Å"Is she okay?† â€Å"Dunno. If she gets better, she'll come in later.† He spun around the room a few times, then rolled up to the desk and beat out a fast rhythm on it with his hands. I presumed the cadence was from one of his band's songs. â€Å"Jesus, you're wound up today. You get lucky last night?† â€Å"I get lucky every night, Kincaid.† â€Å"Whatever. Your demon mask was more believable than that.† â€Å"Okay, maybe I'm not getting lucky every night right now, but that's going to change. The group's getting fucking amazing.† â€Å"I've always thought you guys were fucking amazing,† I stated loyally. Doug shook his head, dark eyes almost feverishly bright. â€Å"Oh no. You can't even believe it now. We got this new drummer, and suddenly†¦it's just like, I don't know†¦we're doing things we've never done before.† I frowned. â€Å"Because of one drummer?† â€Å"No, I mean, it's all of us. He's just one of the good things that's happened. It's like†¦everything's just clicking into place. You ever have days like that? When everything is perfect? Well, we're having weeks like that. Songs. Gigs. Style.† His enthusiasm was palpable, and it made me smile. â€Å"We're even playing the Verona.† â€Å"Seriously?† â€Å"Yup.† â€Å"That's a major venue. I mean, it's not like the Tacoma Dome or anything, but then, they wouldn't let you play there anyway if you didn't have a monster truck worked into the act.† He spun the chair around again. â€Å"You should come see it. A bunch of the other staff is. It'll be the greatest night of your life.† â€Å"I don't know. I've had a lot of great nights.† â€Å"Second best then. Unless you're thinking of joining my groupies. I'd let you be their leader, you know. You could always have first dibs on me.† I rolled my eyes, then turned pensive as the sex jokes reminded me of my recent Seth issues. â€Å"Hey Doug, do you think men and women can date without having sex?† He had been tipping way back in the chair and suddenly snapped forward. â€Å"Oh my God. You are thinking of joining the groupies.† â€Å"I'm serious. Two people dating without sex. Fact or fantasy?† â€Å"Okay, okay. For how long? A week?† â€Å"No. Like, months.† â€Å"Are they Amish?† â€Å"No.† â€Å"Are they ugly?† â€Å"Er, no.† â€Å"No.† â€Å"No what?† â€Å"No, they can't do it. Not in this day and age. Why do you want to know?† â€Å"No reason.† He cut me an arch look. â€Å"Of course not.† He didn't know about Seth and me, but he did know me. Our phone's intercom came to life just then, asking for backup on the registers. â€Å"Paper rock scissors?† Doug asked, spinning the chair around again. â€Å"Nah, I'll go. I should make up for my tardiness. Besides, I think you need to come down from your caffeine high. Or your megalomania high. Not sure which.† He flashed me a grin and turned to the paused game of Tetris on our shared computer. Truthfully, I didn't mind going out anyway. I worked for the fun of it, not the money. Immortality was long, and vocation and daily work sort of regulated human existence, even if I wasn't technically human anymore. It just felt right to be doing something, and unlike so many other unfortunate souls in this world, I actually liked what I did for a living. I checked in on Seth a few times as I worked throughout the day, drank a lot of white-chocolate mochas, and dealt with what was becoming a heavy flow of business as the holiday season grew ever closer. At one point, I finally did have to pull Doug out with me. I found him in our office, still playingTetris. I opened my mouth to make a joke about his work ethic and then caught sight of the computer screen. He played Tetris on a regular basis, so I was familiar with the game and his prowess, but what I saw now blew my mind. His score was the highest I'd ever seen, and he was at such an advanced level now that the pieces zoomed down the screen. I couldn't follow them. Yet, he caught and placed them all, never missing a beat. â€Å"My God,† I muttered. There was no way his hands and reflexes could be responding like that. The computer would probably implode at any moment. â€Å"I guess everything really is clicking into place for you lately. â€Å" He laughed, either at my pun or my astonishment. â€Å"Need me out there?† â€Å"Yeah†¦though it seems so wasteful now compared to this†¦mastery. Like interrupting Michelangelo.† Doug shrugged obligingly, shut down the game, and followed me out. I think the computer was relieved. He and I worked together cheerfully for the rest of my shift. His good mood over the band's success kept him chipper and lively, making the day fly by. When it was time for me to go, I offered to close for him since he'd had to come in unexpectedly early. He waved me off. â€Å"Forget about it. Go do something fun tonight.† As I was leaving the store, I passed a rack of magazines and saw a copy of the latest issue of American Mystery. In big letters, one of the headlines read: Cady and O'Neill Return! Seth Mortensen gives us an exclusive novella. Eek. What a bad girlfriend I was. Seth had told me about this story's upcoming appearance, and I'd completely forgotten about it. It had just come out yesterday. Apparently being with him regularly was distracting me from his art. Before the publication of his last novel, I'd literally marked off days on my calendar until its release. Longing washed over me, but I knew I couldn't read this story tonight. Bastien had left me a cell phone message saying he'd stop by my place later, and I had a feeling he'd distract me for most of the evening. Tomorrow, I promised myself. I'd read the story tomorrow. I'd just settled in back home when Bastien showed up bearing Thai food. â€Å"How was the literary world today?† he asked as we had a picnic on my living room floor. Aubrey watched sharply from a discreet distance, her eyes fixed covetously on a container of green curry. Pad Thai did nothing for her. â€Å"Weird,† I reflected, recalling sleeping in late, Doug's behavior, and the frenetic pace of early holiday shopping. â€Å"Yours?† It was clear from his expression he'd been dying to tell me this from the moment he'd cleared my door. â€Å"Fantastic. I moved into the house today. You should see the neighborhood. It's the American Dream and then some. Big appliances. Manicured lawns. Three-car garages.† â€Å"Three cars? Do you even have a car?† â€Å"Sure do. Company car.† â€Å"Hmphf. No one ever gave me a company car.† â€Å"That's because you aren't on the verge of the Seduction of the Century. I even met her already.† â€Å"Dana?† â€Å"First day, and she comes to me! Can you believe it? It's like I don't even have to do anything. This operation just runs itself. I am its tool. Its plaything even – or rather, Dana's plaything.† â€Å"I don't know about that,† I noted dryly, â€Å"unless you're going to add that she jumped on you and ripped your clothes off today too.† â€Å"Well, no. She actually just came by to welcome me to the neighborhood. But, she did also invite me to a party she's hosting. ‘A Barbecue in November.' Charming, huh?† â€Å"Adorable. Nothing I love better than eating hot dogs in the cold.† He elbowed me. â€Å"It's a theme, Fleur . It's fun. And it's all indoors. You know, you're turning into a regular cynic lately.† â€Å"Not cynical. Just still skeptical of this whole thing. It seems overly elaborate for what it is. A lot of work for one lay.† â€Å"One lay?† He tsked me and shook his head. â€Å"Let me see your laptop.† I retrieved it from my bedroom and returned to find Aubrey licking the edges of my plate. I shooed her away and handed Bastien the computer. A few quick clicks, and he soon had the Committee for the Preservation of Family Values' website open. Dana's organization. Most of her radio broadcasts were archived and available for download. He picked one, and we finished the rest of our meal to the sound of her rich, melodic voice. The first broadcast concerned homosexuality. The CPFV maintained an appearance of sugarcoated goodness, a desire to help people and improve American life. Consequently, because being openly racist or sexist was not good for one's image anymore, the organization only espoused views slanted in those directions in subtle ways. Blatantly condemning homosexuality, however, was not entirely taboo yet – unfortunately – and the bulk of this broadcast involved Dana oozing on about the importance of â€Å"helping† those people to understand the true way both nature and God intended love to be. Toleration of such misguided lifestyles, she claimed, would lead to a breakdown in our families. The children. For God's sake, think of the children. Her next broadcast damned the abominable state of today's clothing. School uniforms and fashion censoring were the only ways to go. How could we expect young girls to grow up with any self-respect when they walked around dressed like sluts? It led to sexual acts they weren't ready for, not to mention instilling in them the idea that their value came from appearance, not character. I thought of the lacy purple thong I wore under my jeans just then. What was wrong with character and sex appeal? The third one we listened to concerned the futility of teaching teenagers about safe sex and contraception. Abstinence training was the way to go. Keep them in pure ignorance. End of story. â€Å"Enough,† I said at that point. Her shallow, prejudiced values cloaked in so-called love and kindness unsettled the food in my stomach. Bastien grinned. â€Å"Still think it's just one lay?† I stretched back on my carpet, resting my feet on his lap. He massaged them for me. â€Å"I hate hypocrites, good or evil. Doesn't matter what they're touting.† â€Å"You should hear some of her background, some of the past issues she's advocated for with her group. Lovely stuff there – I researched her all day. I can pull it up for you. â€Å" I held up a hand. â€Å"No, please. I believe you. The bitch must fall, okay? If I had a sword, I'd tap your shoulders and send you off with my blessings.† He lay down beside me. â€Å"Well, why don't you take a front-row seat then? Come to the party with me. I'm sure no one would mind if Mitch brought his sister.† â€Å"Party on the Eastside? My blessing only goes so far.† â€Å"Oh, come on. Admit it. You have a perverse desire to meet her in the flesh. Besides, it's been a while since you've seen me in action. You might pick up on a few things. Get some pointers.† Laughing, I rolled over on my side to better study him. â€Å"Like I need pointers from you.† He rolled to his side as well, smirking. â€Å"Yeah? Then prove it. Let's go out tonight. Let's go hunting.† My smile diminished. â€Å"What?† â€Å"Just like the old days. We'll find some club, work up a sweat, then tag respective fixes for the night.† Bittersweet memories flashed into my brain, recalling the French cabarets of the nineteenth century. Bastien and I would go out in fine form, separate, and meet back in the morning to laugh and brag about our conquests. The game no longer held much appeal. â€Å"I don't do that anymore. I told you that.† â€Å"Yeah, but you've still got to survive.† â€Å"I am surviving. I got a fix just a couple days ago. I'm set for a while. â€Å" Bastien scowled. â€Å"A few days ago? Bleh. This writer guy's making you boring. â€Å" â€Å"Hey, it has nothing to do with him. It's my choice.† â€Å"Sure.† â€Å"What's with the tone?† â€Å"Not sure. I mean, I thought the whole writer-dating thing was amusing at first – even if he seems kind of dull and will probably only end up causing you pain. But now I'm starting to think it's indicative of a larger issue with you. I mean, there's the whole nice guy hang-up to begin with. Then you're, what? An assistant manager at a bookstore? Not to mention the fact that you have a cat.† Aubrey glared, and so did I. â€Å"There's nothing wrong with having a cat. And Seth isn't dull.† â€Å"I suppose you'd know better. He just didn't really strike me as much, that's all. If you wanted to obsess about a mortal, I could find you a better one.† â€Å"I don't want a better one. I mean, there is no better one. I want him.† â€Å"Suit yourself. You're just becoming ordinary, that's all. You used to be extraordinary.† â€Å"Ouch. All this because I won't go out with you tonight?† Bastien shrugged. â€Å"Okay then. We'll go. But no victim for me.† â€Å"Fair enough.† We went down to a club in Pioneer Square, both of us groomed to the kind of sexy, beautiful perfection that only an incubus and a succubus could achieve. I had pulled my hair up in messy, sex-kitten glory and wore a baby blue tank top with a V-neck that almost went to my belly button. The opening was covered in very sheer lace and made wearing a bra utterly pointless. So I didn't. The tension between us evaporated as we hit the dance floor. The rhythm pulsed through me, the movement and sweat intoxicating. Bastien and I danced together for a while, both of us aware of the admirers we drew, even in a packed room like this. Physical attraction was about so much more than just superficial appearance. It was about eye contact, outgoingness, and movement too. Incubi and succubi learn this early on, and the good ones move with a grace few mortals can match. I, who had danced well before becoming a succubus, knew I was among the best when it came to body language. Watching us was irresistible. A turn-on in itself. After a while, we split up. The results of the succubus game distressed me sometimes, but the game itself was fun. Very fun. I moved from partner to partner, thriving on the effect I created, on the desire I could see mounting in those whose bodies mine toyed with. It was why, despite my frequent bitching, I had given up my mortal soul for this vocation. I confess, that the thought of going home with someone grew tantalizing, my body warming to the idea of someone's hands upon me, but then I thought about Seth and his determined adherence to the arrangement we'd entered into. No. No superfluous victims for me tonight. I could be good. I wanted to be good. I'd wait until I actually needed a recharge. From across the room, Bastien inclined his head to me when he left the club, his arm around a small, entranced blonde. When he turned, I noticed a brunette in his other arm. Overachiever. It was two in the morning when I finally made it home. I woke aching and tired the next day, the weather making me feel worse. Rain formed a steady gray curtain as I walked to work. Everything seemed colder. I had been raised in a warm Mediterranean climate; I could never quite accept these kinds of temperatures. When I showed up at the bookstore, it had once again opened without me. Oddly, though, despite exactly the same staff working today, I didn't get the same boisterous greetings as yesterday. Casey and Janice, on the registers, paused in their work to watch me walk in, their expressions enigmatic. Janice leaned over, murmuring something in the other woman's ear. When they noticed my curious look, they both forced smiles. â€Å"Hey, Georgina.† â€Å"Hey,† I responded, puzzled and slightly uncomfortable. Passing by the information desk a moment later, I found Beth regarding me with an equally peculiar look. â€Å"How's it going?† I asked when she didn't say anything. â€Å"Fine.† She hastily turned to the computer screen in front of her. Now, I'd been subjected to my share of strange looks upon coming into work before, but this was weird even for me. Sometimes, after being with a lover, their absorbed life energy gave me a glamour that unconsciously attracted mortals. It was the same glow that Hugh had teased me about during poker. That was not to blame now, however. My last fix, as I'd told Bastien, had occurred a few days ago. The glow would have weakened by now. Besides, I know entranced looks when I saw them. These were not it. These were curious, what-is-she-doing looks. The kind of looks you get when you have food on your face or a missing button. The likelihood of either of those seemed low, but I ducked into the restroom anyway, just to check. Nope. Flawless. A long denim skirt and a navy, off-the-shoulder sweater. Both smooth and perfect. Makeup in place. Unbound hair hanging to the bottom of my shoulder blades. A typical look for me. Nothing to warrant this attention. Assuming I was reading too much into things, I continued on to thecafe,getting a friendly nod from Seth as he worked in his corner. At least he was behaving normally. A new barista bustled at the espresso bar, and she nearly dropped the cups she held upon seeing me. â€Å"H-hi,† she stammered out, wide-eyed, looking me over from head-to-toe. â€Å"Hi,† I returned. This woman didn't even know me. Why was she acting weirdly too? â€Å"Medium white-chocolate mocha.† It took her a moment to churn into action, writing my order on a cup. As she rang it up at the register, she asked curiously, â€Å"You're Georgina, right?† â€Å"Um, yeah. Why?† â€Å"Just heard of you, that's all.† She looked back down. She said no more to me after that, simply making and handing me the mocha. Taking it, I walked over to Seth and sat across from him. The barista continued watching us with interest, though she immediately turned away upon catching my eye. â€Å"Hey,† Seth greeted me, eyes and fingers busy. â€Å"Hey,† I returned. â€Å"Everyone's acting really weird today.† He glanced up. â€Å"Are they?† I immediately recognized the thrall he fell into when his writing seized him. He became even more distracted and scattered than usual under such conditions. A succubus should be so lucky to have that kind of effect on a man. â€Å"Yeah. Have you noticed anything? I feel like people are staring at me.† He shook his head, stifling a yawn before returning to typing. â€Å"Things seem the same to me. I like your sweater. Maybe it's that.† â€Å"Maybe,† I conceded, slightly mollified by the compliment, even if I didn't believe it. Not wanting to distract him further, I stood up and stretched. â€Å"I should get back to work.† Glancing over at the espresso bar, I noticed Andy, one of the cashiers, buying coffee. â€Å"There!† I hissed to Seth. â€Å"Did you see that?† â€Å"See what?† â€Å"Andy just smirked.† â€Å"No he didn't.† â€Å"He did. I swear it.† When I went downstairs, back to the main part of the store, I passed Warren. Mid-fifties and strikingly handsome, the store's morally questionable owner had once been a regular for me before I'd promised Jerome I'd go back to seducing good men. Warren and I had not had sex in some time. Considering my current regiment of decent souls, I kind of missed having an occasional guilt-free one. â€Å"Hello, Georgina.† I was relieved to see he at least didn't give me any of those gaping looks. â€Å"Been up talking to Mortensen, I presume?† â€Å"Yes,† I agreed, wondering if I was going to be chastised for not getting to work right away. â€Å"Pity you had to take the stairs. We do have an elevator, you know. â€Å" Now I stared open-mouthed. Of course we had an elevator. It was key operated, there for handicapped customers and shipment transport, and was almost never used otherwise. â€Å"Yes. I know that.† Warren winked at me and continued on his way upstairs. â€Å"Just making sure.† Shaking my head, I went back to the main floor and took over a register, giving Andy his lunch break. Janice and Casey remained stiff with me at first, eventually warming somewhat as time progressed. Other staff, moving in and out around me, continued to give me wondering looks, occasionally whispering to each other when they thought I wouldn't notice. When Seth passed by at one point to tell me he had to run errands but would see me later, I thought Beth – dropping off a book – might pass out. â€Å"All right,† I exclaimed once Seth was gone, â€Å"what's going on here?† Casey, Beth, and Janice all turned sheepish. â€Å"Nothing, Georgina, honest.† Beth gave me what was apparently supposed to be a winning smile. The others remained silent, faces perfectly innocent, nigh angelic. I didn't believe any of it, of course. Something weird was going on. Weirder than usual. I needed answers, and there was only one person in the store candid enough to give them to me. Shutting down my register, I stormed back to my office where Doug sat occupied by the computer. Bursting in, I opened my mouth, ready to rant and rave. He jumped about two feet in the air at my sudden arrival, reflexes kicking in with astonishing speed so as not to slosh coffee from the cup he had just raised to his lips. There was a funny look on his face, almost like guilt. No doubt another Tetris game was in progress. But it wasn't that that delayed my tirade. A strange feeling was creeping along my flesh – a feeling that brushed my immortal senses, rather than the usual five that accompanied a human body. It felt weird, almost uncomfortable. Like nails raking down a chalkboard. Nothing I could identify or had even ever felt before. I looked around the room, half-expecting to find another immortal lurking, even though that strange sensation didn't quite touch me like the signature I'd usually feel off of an individual. Doug drank from the cup and then set it down, watching me with bemused calmness. â€Å"Something I can help you with, Kincaid?† Blinking, I gave the office another once-over and then shook my head. The feeling disappeared. What the hell? I could have blamed it on stress-induced imagination, but after over a millennium of succubus life, I doubted my immortal senses would start falling prey to hallucinations now. And yet the only thing in here that could possibly be construed as supernatural or divine was Doug's Tetris mastery. That, I thought wryly, had more to do with hours of skirting work than any sort of magic. Remembering my righteous fury, I pushed aside that momentary weirdness and ratcheted my anger back up to the other weirdness in my life. â€Å"What the fuck is going on?† I exclaimed, slamming the door. â€Å"My sweet Tetriss kills?† â€Å"No! With everyone! Why is everyone treating me so strangely today? They keep staring at me like I'm a freak or something.† Doug's expression stayed baffled, and then I saw understanding flood his face. â€Å"Ah. That. You really don't know?† I could have grabbed his neck and shook him. â€Å"Of course I don't know! What's going on?† Casually, he moved some papers around on the desk and lifted up a copy of American Mystery. â€Å"You read Seth's story yet?† â€Å"I haven't had time.† He tossed me the magazine. â€Å"Do it. Go take your dinner break somewhere – not here – and read. I won't leave until you get back.† Looking at the time, I realized his shift was nearly over. â€Å"But what's that got to do with – â€Å" He held up a hand to silence me. â€Å"Just read it. Now.† Scowling, I took the magazine and left the store, settling myself at one of my favoritecafesdown the street. With clam chowder secured, I turned to the first page, wondering what in the world Doug expected me to find. As Seth had explained a few weeks ago, the story was more of a self-contained mystery, dealing little with the overarching psychology and development of his characters. Cady and O'Neill worked for a fictitious institute based out of Washington, D.C., one that researched and secured archaeological and artistic relics. Thus, the two often found themselves liberating art from international thieves or uncovering mysterious code on a piece of pottery. In traditionally gendered styles, Bryant O'Neill worked as a sort of field agent, doing most of the physical work, getting into a lot of fist-fights and whatnot. Demure Nina Cady focused on the research, often staying up late to unravel some key piece of evidence in an ancient text. This particular story contained a lot of those same elements, but like always, Seth's beautiful writing and quick, witty dialogue kept the material captivating. In another trend consistent with his characters' behavior, O'Neill almost always got involved with some beautiful woman, though Seth's last book had turned this pattern on its head, letting Cady finally see some action. The story I read today fell into old ways, and O'Neill, in his ever suave manner, made the moves on a stunning museum curator: Genevieve sauntered through the halls, a queen among subjects, surveying people and displays with both calculation and command. With those green-flecked hazel eyes, she put him in mind of a cat sizing up its next meal. He felt exactly like prey as she paused in front of him, favoring him with a languid look that oozed over his body, her tongue lightly moistening bee-stung lips. Oh God, to be a mouse, he thought. â€Å"Mr. O'Neill,† she purred, brushing a lock of that shining hair away from her face. Faint streaks of honey laced those pale brown strands, like gold veins in ore. He wanted to bury his face in it. He wanted to taste it. â€Å"You're late.† Despite nearly a foot separating their heights, he felt like the underling here, like he should do penance for his tardiness and kneel in her presence. Not that he would mind that so much, he decided, trying not to stare at the way her dress's thin material molded itself to her hips and full breasts. Those breasts, he decided, were perfect. Definitely impressive in size, but not grotesquely out of control. And their shape†¦ah, even a master sculptor could never have duplicated those exquisite curves†¦ Realizing she expected a response, he filed his base thoughts away under L for Later and gave her an unruffled smile. â€Å"My apologies.† Now probably wasn't the time to mention the attack back at his hotel. â€Å"But I never rush anything. At least not when a woman's involved. â€Å" With that being only the mildest of the suggestive dialogue, I wasn't surprised when things escalated between them near the end of the story. After all, I thought dryly, it wouldn't be a true Cady and O'Neill experience if someone didn't score. And man, did he score. The feline comparisons were right on because Genevieve was a cat in heat. She ended up tying O'Neill up in an elevator, performing an array of kinky acts on him that made even me raise an eyebrow. I was surprised American Mystery hadn't edited them out, though I'd be lying if I said it wasn't sort of a turn-on to realize such sordidness had come from mild, complacent – Elevator? We do have an elevator, you know, Warren had told me. Light brown hair. Hazel-green eyes. Petite. Nice breasts. â€Å"Ahh!† I cried, dropping the magazine as if it might bite me. It landed next to my now-empty bowl, and a passing waitress gave me a startled look. Hastily leaving a wad of cash on the table, I grabbed my coat and purse and sprinted back to the bookstore. Doug was still playing Tetris in our office, but I was too upset to speculate much on what was again an amazing performance. All those looks. The whispers and smirks. It all made sense now. â€Å"They think it's me!† I told him, making him jump for the second time that day.† Genevieve. They all think I'm some sort of horny, rope-wielding, elevator-fetish dominatrix!† Doug raised an eyebrow. â€Å"You mean you aren't?†

Edward Scissorhands Question Sheet

Discussion Questions on Edward Scissorhands As you watch the movie you will need to take notes to answer these questions. The purpose of this film is to get you ready for the next role we will look at in depth which is that of the artistic designer. You need to consider the needs of the director and work with set designers, costuming and other professionals in the film industry for this job. I would like a rough copy of your answers to these questions to be given to the teacher at the end of Friday’s class. 1. a The entire neighborhood is constructed, describe the colors used in the neighborhood scenes? . b What could be the desired effect in this use of color? 2. As the woman drives up to the haunted house there is background music playing. What is the desired effect of this music? Describe two other places in the film where the soundtrack or film score affected your viewing of that scene. 3. How does the costuming set the main character, Edward apart from the other community members and why do you think Edward is meant to be so visually different? How does this help the actor portray his role? 4. What is Tim Burton (Director) saying about the nature of conformity in this film?How does he use color and visual imagery to drive home this point? 5. Is Edward a tragic figure? Why or why not based on the outcome of the film. 6. What are some of the highlights, twists and turns of the story? Create a brief treatment for this film and hypothetically cast the roles of three characters in the film. Explain why you choose them for these roles. 7. Research online what people Tim Burton consistently works with for his productions and list three here. Discuss why creatively this might be important for a Director.

Purpose of Life Essay

Are you really contented with your life? Do you even know the real purpose of life here on Earth? What is your purpose for waking up everyday? Why can you hear, see, smell, talk and think? What are you here for? Every life here on Earth has their own purpose of existence. The plants, they play a huge role on maintaining the cleanliness of our planet and the air we breathe. The animals, they serve as our food and source of life. But us humans, do we know our purpose? Of course, many would say yes, but then again is that our real purpose for living? According to the book â€Å"40 days of purpose† by Rick Warren, there are consequences of not knowing your purpose. One is, without knowing your purpose life will seem tiresome. Because if you do not know your purpose and so confusion will take control of you, and when that happens you just go with the flow like the river flowing into the sea. You just go round and round and back again. Second, without knowing your purpose life will seem unfulfilling. Like the saying goes history merely repeats itself because there is no contentment, no satisfaction at all. No matter how much we have we still ask for more. Third, without knowing your purpose life will seem uncontrollable. We often do things we think is right, but actually we are being deceived by the knowledge the world has put into us and not by our own knowledge that God has given us. But on the other hand, if you will know your purpose of living, there are also benefits from it. First, knowing the purpose of your life will give your life focus. Just like in a team, every team has one purpose and that is to attain a certain goal. Next is, knowing the purpose of your life will simply your life. In here comes fulfillment, contentment, joy and satisfaction. Third, knowing the purpose of your life will increase motivation in your life. Every good and bad things that happen in this world has a reason and a purpose, and it’s for us to find out. We only need to strive, work and be patient to discover it. Lastly, knowing the purpose of your life will prepare you for eternity. We all know that nothing is permanent in this world, we will all die in the future. But the question is are we ready when that time comes? Are we able to comply with the purpose where God has placed us? If you feel tired, unfulfilled and uncontrollable then it means that you are still in the process of knowing your purpose. But, if you are focused, living a simple life, motivated and prepared for the future, for eternity then you are living the purpose of God in your life. And so are you living with the purpose or are you leaving your purpose? Thank you! And God bless!

How do E. Ann Kaplan and Kaja Silverman define historical trauma Essay

How do E. Ann Kaplan and Kaja Silverman define historical trauma - Essay Example In the following, Ann and Silverman employ surrealism and realism to present different social injustices, traumas, and the impact of culture to the immediate society (Kaplan & Ban 56). Historical trauma is a possessive attribute that overcomes different people in large numbers. The fact is that, historical trauma is not a dream or a tale. It rules over emotional, psychological characters of given people in different societies. The way these different people perceive different situations and likeliness of reactions reveal the extent of historical trauma. It results from social injustices, unethical, practices at other attributes that leave permanent scars to the witnesses. In most cases, historical trauma results from genocides and massacres whereby the immediate society witnesses inhuman acts (Kaja 70). Cultural trauma in the book ‘Spellbound’ depicts the psychological distress that an individual undergoes. The haunted individuals seek consultations for salvation from th e ties of dead spirits. In the book of Spellbound, the writer narrates of a doctor and a patient who is seeking consultancy on how to handle a committed murder (Kaplan & Ban 67). Dr Constance Peterson, a psychoanalyst has the duty to help Gregory Peck out of the psychological trauma he faces after accusations recoiling over a murder case in which he is accused of involvement. She further ascertains that Gregory served the army during the Second World War and his trauma results from the turn of events in the battlefield. Drama occurs when Dr Constance slowly falls in love with the man who faces murder accusations (Kaja 78). Guilt conscience befalls the doctor; she cannot contemplate the turn of events leading to the love indulgence with a patient rather keeping it professional. Further, the problem arises that the patient at hand is a person facing murder charges and unacceptable in the society that is trying to heal from unsocial deeds that see many lose their lives to shelling of m ortars and ricocheting of guns, a period after the second world war (Kaja 98). The man reveals his haunted background in phases at a time when he lived with others in the organization, and different behaviors resulting from their different upbringings. At the long run, he reveals of the current situation, but the doctor can relate the past and the present to elaborate on the occurrence of the murder. Dr Constance realizes that she loves the convict but then feels with the society at the mention of murder. This causes her severe trauma, as she is a dilemma on whether to hide the truth or spill it to the society (Kaplan & Ban 78). In the book, ‘Let There Be Light’, the author shows how different characters are involved in imaginary thinking as their spouses and friends talk to them. In the book, men of different classes, professions, and expertise depict feminine character in their societal roles. They are more of subjection to objection as they do not show their masculin e characters or retaliation on whatever grounds arising. This causes imaginary thoughts to readers as they try to understand whether such a trait of men can happen considering it to the world we are living in. Silverman argues out that some the character traits; depict more of