Bradstreets An Author to Her Book :: essays papers

Bradstreets An Author to Her Book It is hard to sympathize with someone when you have no idea where they are coming from or what they are going through. It is similar experiences that allow us to extend our sincere appreciation and understanding for another human being’s situations and trials of life. Anne Bradstreet’s â€Å"The Author to Her Book† expresses the emotions that Bradstreet felt when her most intimate thoughts were published to the world without her consent. The average person would not see the cause for distress that Bradstreet feels in this situation. She had written a collection of near perfect poetry, which expressed her feelings in a way that the majority of women during that time did not have the talent or training to do. Many would wonder why she would be disturbed about these works being printed when they had brought many people pleasurable reading and had brought Bradstreet herself much personal fame. Therefore, Bradstreet can not just write a straightforward poem to t ell how she feels about her stolen thoughts. Unless her reader happens to be a writer, he or she would not be able to sympathize with Bradstreet in this matter. Instead, she had to use a situation in which her readers could comprehend the many emotions she experienced. No doubt, many women read her poetry, and the majority of women during that time were, or would one day be mothers. This similarity opened a door for understanding. By comparing her writing to a child, Bradstreet is able to win the compassion of her readers and help them understand the feelings that she experiences. Bradstreet sees herself s the â€Å"mother† (line 23) of this work, which she calls an â€Å"ill-formed offspring† (line 1) and she gives the work many human characteristics to enhance the effect of the conceit. She says that the â€Å"child† had been by her side until â€Å"snatched from thence by friends, less wise than true† (line 3). Bradstreet’s works would probably never have been published had it not been for her brother-in-law. A person she thought she could trust saw fit to take her works back to England and have them published without her consent. He took her most intimate thoughts and placed the future of them in his own hands and she was never consulted. She shares an intimacy with her work like that of a mother and child and that intimacy was infringed upon when her work was â€Å"exposed to public view† (line 4).

Daycare: The Effects On Children Essay -- essays research papers

With the successes of welfare reform and the high turnout of female college graduates mothers are increasingly, entering the workforce. As affirmed by the Wilson Quarterly (Autumn 98, Vol. 22 Issue 4), â€Å"Ben Wildavsky, a staff correspondent for the National Journal (Jan. 24, 1998), provides statistical background. In 1997, nearly 42 percent of women with children under six were working full-time, 5 percent were looking for work, 18 percent had part-time jobs, and 35 percent were not working outside the home† (p.115). Using these figures it is said that 65 percent of women with children aged younger than six are working or would like to be. Daycare is a necessity for the majority of working American mothers. Within the past 20 years child social developmentalists have accumulated evidence to show that unless children gain minimal social competence by the age of six years, they have a high probability of being at risk throughout life. (Denham & Burton, 1996) Thus peer relationships contribute a great deal to both social and cognitive development and to the effectiveness with which we function as adults. Others suggest that the number of caregivers and the amount of time children spend away from parents’ harms parent-child relationships thus, weakening cognitive and emotional development (Kelly, 2000). This paper will discuss the effects of daycare on children and how to choose one of high quality. Many daycare opponents believe bonding, a strong emotional attachment that forms between a child and parent, is disrupted when mothers and fathers rely on others to be substitute parents. Children who are securely bonded to parents are more confident in their explorations of their environment and have a higher sense of self-esteem than children who are insecurely bonded to their parents. Dr. Stanley Greenspan, a professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at George Washington University Medical School, who has authored several books including the recent book, The Irreducible Needs of Children says, â€Å"A warm, loving human relationship is very important for intellectual development. Children form their capacity to think and self-image based on these back-and-forth interactions. Fewer of these are happening, because families are so busy and more care is being done outside the home. Studies [show] that for all ages, 85 percent of day care is not high quality† (Kelly, 200... ...ay Setting. Child Study Journal, 28(3) (1998). 225-245. Kelly, K. (2000, October 30). Child Docs to Parents: Stay Home and Save your Kids. U.S. News & World Report, 129(4), 65 Oesterreich, L. Childcare Checklist for Parents: PM 1805 <a href="http://www.extension.iastate.edu/Pages/pubs/">http://www.extension.iastate.edu/Pages/pubs/. (December 1999) Schuetze, P., Lewis, A., & DiMartino, D. Relation Between Time Spent in Daycare and Exploratory Behaviors in 9-month-old Infants., Infant Behavior & Development 22(2) (1999), 267-276 Schumacher, R. B. & Carlson, R. S. Variables and Risk Factors Associated with Child Abuse in Daycare Settings., Child Abuse & Neglect, 23(9) (1999) 891-898. â€Å"The Battle Over Child Care,† Wilson Quarterly Autumn 98, 22(4), 115-116 Waterman, J., Kelly, R. J., Oliveri, M. K., & McCord, J. (1993). Behind the Playground Wall: Sexual Abuse in Preschool. New York. Guilford Press. Wilson, E. and Tweedie, P. S. Selecting Quality Child Care. National Network for Child Care: <a href="http://www.nncc.org/Choose.Quality.Care/select.care.html">http://www.nncc.org/Choose.Quality.Care/select.care.html. (December 1996).

Baptism :: essays research papers

Baptism is a religious ritual that some people choose to practice. Baptism is a belief that once done you start a new spiritual life. There ways to perform this ritual, which is considered sacred among the people that follow the religion of Christianity. Baptism has three processes. The first process is preparation. The second process is performing the Baptism. The last process is the conclusion of the baptism.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In order to perform a baptism, you have to prepare. The preacher has to see why the individual wants to commit their self to the Lord. Next, the individual has to inform the preacher why they want to give their self to the lord. Committing yourself to the lord is an important decision. Once the preacher agrees that the individual is true to their self and the Lord, the preacher sets aside a date for which the person shall be baptized.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Once the date is meet, the baptism proceeds. In order for a baptism to happen the individual must have on garments they won’t mind getting wet. Also, the preacher gives the individual white robs as a ceremonial garment ; the white garment must be worm over the person’s clothing. Once the garments are in place, the pastor then performs the baptism ceremony. The pastor first gives the individual a name of a saint, which the name shall be his example and protector. Next, the pastor dips water upon the individual’s head three times. The pastor then anoints the individual on the head, this practice symbolizes true love and peace. The individual then receives a taper to mark that he become a child of God.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Lastly, the conclusion of the baptism is performed. The pastor says a few words of inspiration to the individual or individuals that has been baptized. There is also a celebration to celebrate the rebirth of the newly reformed Christian.

Gender Roles in a Streetcar Named Desire

Gender Roles in A Streetcar Named Desire Throughout history empowerment and marginalization has primarily been based on gender. In the play A Streetcar Named Desire, this idea of empowerment is strongly flaunted. Tennessee Williams’ characters, primarily Stanley, Blanche, Mitch, and Stella, conform the expected roles of men and women at the time. Although World War Two temporarily allowed women a place in the work force, they were dismissed from such empowerment when the war came to a close. Characters in A Streetcar Named Desire are accurate representations of the social historical context of that time. The power struggle between Stanley and Blanche conveys dominant ideas about gender such as the primitive nature, aggression, and brutality of men and the vulnerability and physicality of women. The establishment of traditional gender stereotypes is almost instantly provided when Stanley is highlighted as the ‘provider’. His physical masculinity and power is conveyed through a package of raw meat he ‘heaves’ carelessly at Stella and his abusive nature is shown at once through the use of blood imagery involving the ‘red stained package’. This immediately associates Stanley with brutality, foreshadowing his violence and cruelty in the play. Although Stanley is empowered by his gender, he feels threatened when approached by Blanche, who is of higher class than him. Due to Blanche’s social standing, Stanley is unsure of controlling her. As the play progresses the struggle for power between the two becomes increasingly obvious. At first, Blanche appears victorious in the struggle. The physical proof of the tragedies in her past stop Stanley from arguing. Here all of them are, all papers! I herby endow you with them! † His failure to exert power threatens his pride and he is inspired to reject Blanche. Segregation between men and women is clearly defined during the poker night in scene three. â€Å"Poker shouldn’t be played in a house with women. † This reflects the social norms and the dominant belief that women should be disassociated from masculine activities. Stella and Blanche are excluded from this form of masculine boding, and their early return causes chaos in the house. In addition to segregation, dominance is seen once again when Stanley is unable to prevent Mitch’s desertion of the game. His violent outbursts are desperate attempts to exert his dominance. â€Å"Stanley gives a loud whack of his hand on her thigh. † it becomes apparent that his threatening words are not enough, and he begins using violence as a physical means of controlling Stella and frightening Blanche. Although Stanley’s power works mainly to downgrade Blanche, his violent and aggressive nature also disempowers Stella. She is abused during poker night, a moment of masculine bonding. Following the poker night she is made powerful when she retreats to Eunice’s Flat. However, she returns to disempowerment when she leaves Eunice’s flat and Stanley ‘bears her into the dark flat’. Stella’s decision to stay with Stanley is not based on choice, but rather on the fact that she must. This enforces the dominant belief that women are unable to support themselves, emotionally and financially. Similar to Stanley, Blanche also faces a power struggle. Her ultimate downfall is a result of Stanley’s cruelty and lack of understanding for human fragility. Comments about Stanley’s ‘animal habits’ and ‘sub-human’ nature act as the agent of Blanche’s downfall. Stanley cannot deal with her mocking him in his own home and is fed up with her lies. During the final scenes his behavior conveys the male dominant ideas of cruelty and brutality. Blanche’s refusal to deal with Stanley’s rough nature causes her to retreat further into her fantasy world where she becomes increasingly vulnerable. Stanley violates Blanche in the most personal way and initiates the ultimate act of cruelty and abuse of power. His final act of brutality acts as the climax of power struggle between Stanley and Blanche as well as all males and females. This leaves the male empowered and the female lowered and completely destroyed. Blanch Dubois’ empowerment comes purely from her class. Her southern tradition and wealth made her a woman of importance and propriety. However, in Elysian Fields her traditions and former wealth hold significance. Although her wealth was lost with the death of Belle Reve, she desperately attempts to hold on to remains of her previous life and creates a fantasy world. Her ‘incongruous appearance’ and ‘southern tradition causes Stanley to reject her, as he cannot relate to her in anyway. The lack of impact on Stanley reflects the context of time, when tradition was being overpowered by industrialization. As Blanche begins to understand that her class has no impact on Stanley she assumes the role of a temptress. â€Å"I was flirting with your husband Stella! † In order to gain some form of authority, Blanche uses her sexuality and physicality in effort to control Stanley. Blanche uses her sexuality frequently to overpower others. She ‘depended on the kindness of strangers’ regularly in Laurel and her use of physicality landed her in trouble on various occasions. Following her encounter with the paperboy she states, â€Å"I’ve got to be good and keep my hands off children†. This foreshadows her frequent use of physicality as means of empowerment. Although Blanche is notorious for her use of physicality, she has no authority over Stanley and is constantly reminded of this through emotional and physical abuse. As a representation of all females, Blanche is completely disempowered after Stanley rapes her. She creates a fantasy world to escape the harsh realties of Elysian Fields Her marginalization and downfall reflects vulnerability and reliance of females on males for stability. The dominant ideas and beliefs about gender, such as the reliance of women on men and the primitive nature and brutality of the masculine are conveyed by Tennessee Williams’ in A Streetcar Named Desire through the empowerment and marginalization of Stanley, Blanche, Mitch and Stella. Stanley’s role as the ‘alpha male’ empowers him in almost all situations. Blanches’ tradition and social status empowered her past but her physicality empowers her present. Williams’ characters accurately portray the gender stereotypes in the time they were created, and function today to convey the dominant ideas about gender and how they work to empower and disregard people in our society today.

Explore the significance of the witches and the supernatural in the play Macbeth Essay

King James I strongly believed in witchcraft, and Shakespeare used this idea to appeal to him. Shakespeare used the ideas of witchcraft, kingship, and the moral order to develop the play, as these themes were greatly admired in the Jacobean ere. The opening of the play contains many subtle links to the supernatural. The three witches open the scene in an open place with thunder and lightning, which was believed in superstitious times that fierce storms released forces of evil, and were omens of unrest in individual people and whole countries. I will be investigating the significance of the witches and I will be looking at the supernatural effects they have on the play ‘Macbeth’. Nowadays Macbeth is referred to by many people as ‘The Scottish Play’ and within the theatres it would be considered bad luck to mention the name of ‘The Scottish Play’ whilst there are plays taking place on stage. So this goes to show that the supernatural aspect of the play has been carried forward to this very day. Shakespeare’s tragedy is about Macbeth’s bloody rise to power, including the murder of the Scottish king, Duncan, and the guilt-ridden path of evil deeds generating still more evil deeds. As an integral part of this thematic web is the play’s most memorable character, Lady Macbeth. Like her husband, Lady Macbeth’s ambition for power leads her into insomnia and madness. But while Macbeth responds to the prophecies of the play’s famous trio of witches, Lady Macbeth goes even further by figuratively transforming herself into an unnatural, desexualized evil spirit. The witches themselves are a major part of supernatural, and the play, as they can be seen as starting it all off. In the first scene, we see them establishing a link with the supernatural. Their words also link them to Macbeth, and show that right from the start, he has an influence from them. ‘Fair is foul, and foul is fair†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ The witches say this in a chant like way, and you can tell it is a mischievous way of saying it. It shows things will be confused, and moral order will be changed. It also shows that the witches believe that evil is good, and good they find repulsive. This shows their attitude to life, but it could also be a warning to the audience that things to follow are not what they may have seemed, and will be confused. This could also associate them with the disruption of both the natural and social order, as later when Macbeth kills Duncan, many things are affected, and the witches could be blamed for this. The witches in the play of Macbeth are the most powerful characters in the play. â€Å"All hail Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Glamis† â€Å"All hail Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor† â€Å"All hail Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter† (Act 1 Scene 3) The witches start off the play by hailing Macbeth and I believe that if the witches didn’t start off by saying this, then the play wouldn’t have gone ahead. These quotes set out the storyline of the play and give structure of events. The play wouldn’t have been interesting if they hadn’t hailed Macbeth. The appearance of the witches is very much supernatural and something to be feared. â€Å"So withered and so wild in their attire† (Act 1 Scene 3) Banquo in the play refers to the witches as withered, wild and attire; I think this is because in the Jacobean times people who were ugly or didn’t have a husband were labelled as witches. People feared witches in those times possibly because mixing with these witches could have possibly resulted in your death. As many witches in those days were either beheaded or thrown from cliffs to see they could fly. â€Å"Are ye fantastical, or that indeed† (Act 1 Scene 3) This is referring to the supernatural element of the witches in the play, which is again said by Banquo. The main word in the quote that is referring to the supernatural element of the witches is â€Å"fantastical†. In those fantastical didn’t mean fantastic as it does today, but instead it meant ludicrously odd and lots of imaginary around them.

The Freedom Writers Diary

The Freedom Writers Essay- Chloe Taylor How are different cultures represented in Freedom Writers? What values and attitudes do we draw from the film and its background? Cultures are shown and exposed to us in various ways everyday. Different cultures are represented in different ways in the Western Society. In the movie Freedom Writers, we witness this cultural conflict on a first hand basis. Urban youths in Freedom Writers heavily rely on respect to judge others. They also judge based on each other’s cultural back ground.Later in the film, these same teenagers begin to value education and the sense of belonging in school, rather than belonging in gangs. Gangs and groups are a part of the Western Society that we have had to learn to accept in our lives. In the feature film Freedom Writers, we are shown gangs divided up into cultures and cultural backgrounds. This has built up a lot of tension between cultures and attitudes towards other gangs. The scene in which all the stude nts enter room 203 and take seats into their separate corners of the room divided into their certain corners of the room shows the division between students in a real life.We see a long shot of the whole classroom showing its layout and the segregation between gangs. Then multiple mid-shots are shown of the gang itself and its individual members to decipher the multiple gangs, their attitudes towards school and their way of life. Even though the students start their school year with an attitude of ignorance towards other cultures they begin to learn the value of each individual and change their point of view and their gangs and cooperate with their cultures. People may argue that respect is something that has to be earned, it is not automatic.In the 1992 Los Angeles’s race riots, respect was something that was taken for granted, as it was essential for their society. In Freedom Writers, Ms Gruwell demanded respect immediately. Not surprisingly the students refused to give it to her and why should they of, they didn’t know anything about Ms Gruwell. Towards the end of the film we see that Ms Gruwell has gradually gained the respect she wanted from her class. We are shown this in a first hand basis as Andre, a gang member, calls Ms Gruwell ‘Mam’.She takes this as an offence and claims she is not anyone’s mother; Eva soon corrects her and states that it was a ‘sign of respect to you’. This scene is shown to us by a series of close up shots of Andre, Ms Gruwell and Eva. This is purposely done to capture the changing emotion in the characters face. The students of room 203 value Ms Gruwell not only as a teacher and a person and this is reflected in their attitude and behaviour. We all know what racism is and have most likely been subjected to it or witnessed it at one time in our lives.Racism is more prominent in schools and work places although random attacks of racist acts can also be seen in the streets or at public places where the offender and the victim may not even know each other. In the feature film Freedom Writers, every student at Long Beach either dishes out racist comments or receives them. When all of the ‘unteachable’ students get integrated into the same class we see this clash of cultures collide. A racist caricature is drawn of one of the African-American students and the rest of the students find it amusing.Ms Gruwell takes the picture and compares it to the Jews during the holocaust. Erin was greeted with dumb-founded looks only to find out the kids didn’t know what the holocaust was yet they acted out their lives in a similar racist manner. This scene is shown by using close ups of Ms Gruwell and the victim of the caricature, Jamal. We see Ms Gruwell looking horrified and Jamal’s expression looking embarrassed. We are also shown mid-shots of the whole class to show their expressions and they seem amused and proud of themselves.Towards the end of the movie the students do not lash out any forms of racism at one another and instead treat each other as good friends. At the end of Freedom Writers, the students have accepted and value each other as individual people not of their cultural back ground. Ms Gruwell gained the respect she earned from devoting her life to teach these children. During this essay I have explored the movie Freedom Writers and how factors like gangs, respect and racism can have such an impact on peoples lives. It can change peoples values on life and their attitudes and behaviours towards things and that is what we draw from the film.

On the legacy of Elliot Liebow and Carol Stack: Context-driven fieldwork and the need for continuous ethnography Essay

Ethnographic Research Introduction Reading response            The study reveals that ethnographic research is used to study people’s culture in different geographical locations and or occupations. Most research are concerned with the studies of people in either schools or communities. Hence, it can be concluded that ethnographic research are the major approach to the study groups of people. The studies also revealed that ethnographic studies obtain data using two main research methodologies, which include observations and interviews. Some studies combine both interviews and observations as the tools of data collection for example Duener, (2007). Few studies rely on only one type of data collection tool where interviews dominate. However, the two data collection tools are inseparable in most studies.            Ethnographic research involves studying a group of people or their cultures that can be done in schools or other fields. For example, it can involve studying of the performance of students in school and how they interact during their studies or communities interactions (Valenzuela, 2005; Fine, Centrie, & Roberts, 2000).The study is one of the most preferred research approaches since it allows observe and record data in an interactive session with participants (Gilmore, & McDermott, 2006). As a result, the study generates detailed and accurate data about the study subjects. The research approach is simple and cheap and thus it is suitable to study wide variety of populations and geographical locations.            Ethnographic research involves interactions between participants and researchers. During these interactions, the researchers use various methodologies to obtain data from the participants. Observations and interviews forms the major methodologies used to carry ethnographic research. For example, Heath, (1983) Flowers, (2000) and Fine et al., (2000) uses interviews to obtain information from the study populations. Interviews help the researcher to obtain data from the participant through question and answer session. Duneier, (2007) used observations to obtain data about how kinsmen are brought up during their childhood. According to the observations, the study revealed that family members and not their mothers kept at least one-third of the target subjects, kinsmen. Reflection            The data collected from ethnographic studies may give descriptions of how people lived in the past or in day-to-day life and how explains their behavioural interactions. Hence, it makes it easier to study people in the different communities and their behaviour. The results obtained from these studies gives insight or deeper understanding of the people of a given community. For example, ethnographic study carried out by Duneier, (2007) gave insight on how families and parents relates with their kinsmen. This helps to give broader understanding how the society brings up their relatives. In addition, the data obtained from ethnographic studies can be used to give insights on various social processes in a given field. For example, a number of studies involved data collection from schools and helped the research to understand how various performances are related to other factors that children interacts with for example repeating of classes.            In addition, the ethnographic studies help one to have a deeper understanding of the societies in terms of what they do, how they behave, and how they interact socially. Understanding of such issues is an important factor in developing an area of interest in any field of study. For example, since most ethnographic studies involve groups of people in either school and out of schools field, it would be appropriate adopt ethnographic studies in the field of education and study how children interacts and perform in school. In addition, the interactions between teachers and children may be studied to understand whether there is relationship with their performances. This is because, in a group of people, it would be easier to carry out observations when they are interacting together. Moreover, it would be appropriate to carry out interviews. Description of the final topic            The topic of the final paper will be how children’ behaviour impacts on their academic performance in local schools. The study will involve studying children’s behaviour at school and home and then relating it to the academic performances. Some studies argue that bad behaviour detracts children from academic activities and thus affecting their performances negatively. On the other hand, studies argue that children behaviour has no impact on their academic performance in schools. Hence, the study will try to establish whether there is a correlation of behaviour and academic performance.            The study will involve observations of children in school and homes and their behaviours recorded as good or bad. Some features such as how they interact with other children in schools and homes, obedience, and respect to adults and their teachers will be used as major observational characteristics. In addition, interviews will be conducted to both parents and teachers top evaluate the behaviour of their children. Academic performance will be retrieved from the schools’ achieve databases. This will then be related with the performance of the children and conclusion reached.            The study will help to prove the current contentious findings on the impacts of children’s behaviour on the academic performance. The information obtained from this study will help parents and teachers to understand whether children’s behaviour affects their performances in school. As a result, they will be able to make appropriate decisions and implement appropriate measures. Reference Duneier, M. (2007). On the legacy of Elliot Liebow and Carol Stack: Context-driven fieldwork and the need for continuous ethnography. Focus, 25(1), 33-38. Fine, M., Weis, L., Centrie, C., & Roberts, R. (2000). Educating beyond the borders of schooling. Anthropology & Education Quarterly, 31(2), 131-151. Flowers, D. A. (2000). Codeswitching and Ebonics in Urban Adult Basic Education Classrooms. Education and Urban Society, 32(2), 221-36.Gilmore, P., & McDermott, R. (2006). † And This Is How You Shall Ask†: Linguistics, Anthropology, and Education in the Work of David Smith. Anthropology & education quarterly, 37(2), 199-211.Heath, S. B. (1983). Ways with words: Language, life and work in communities and classrooms. cambridge university Press. Valenzuela, A. (2005). Subtractive schooling, caring relations, and social capital in the schooling of US-Mexican youth. Beyond silenced voices: Class, race, and gender in United States schools, 83-94. Source document