Why must the House (the literal house as well as the symbolic house, the ancestral line, the lineage) of Usher be destroyed? Edgar Allan Poe's "The...

In Edgar Allan Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher," both the mansion and the family line of the Ushers have degenerated to the point that they can no longer sustain themselves.  After so long, when people do not expand their gene pools, the genetic code becomes deficient.  Such is the case with Roderick and his sister.  She has an odd condition that causes her to become paralyzed--"Partially cataleptic"--and he complains of oversensitivity to noises and "nervous agitation." The narrator describes Roderick's art, readeings and playing of the guitar as having "an excited and highly distempered ideality [that] threw a sulfureous luster over all." Like the Usher house that has a "fissure, which, extending from the roof of the buiding in fron made its way down the wall...," the Usher siblings are somewhat deranged, physically aberrant, and jaded by their thin blood lines which have weakened by their geneology:

All time-honored as it was, had put forth, at no period, any enduring branch; in other words, that the entire family lay in the direct line of descent, and had always, with very trifling and very temporary variation, so lain.

Like Madeleine Usher's "emaciated frame" and Roderick's "nervous affection," the fissure in the House of Usher "widened" and the once "mighty walls" give way to destruction. Thus, the House of Usher may be interpreted as a metaphor for the family line of the Usher family.

Read as an allegory, Poe's story may be read as a figurative journey into the human mind.  In fact, Poe himself said that the poem "The Haunted Palace" is meant to suggest a disordered brain." For instance, in Stanza V, Roderick's state of mind appears to be deteriorating as he speaks of "evil things, in robes of sorrow/Assailed the monarch's high estae."  He feels that there is a foreboding presence surrounding his ancestral home that threatens him and his sister. And, in the final stanza, the "hideous throng [that] rush out forever" may be the ghosts of his ancestors who flee the house. Believing that all living and nonliving things are sentient, Roderick perceives all his environment as endangering his family and as acting in complicity in their demise.

What is the relationship between religion and law in Puritan New England?"The Scarlet Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne

It is, indeed, ironic that a people who have fled England for religious freedom build a prison when they arrive in New England.  This prison is constructed for the punishment of anyone who sins against the strict doctrines of Puritanism.  In a sense, the Puritan religious culture is a totalitarian one, subjecting any offenders to the scaffold and other public ignominy. 

In Chapter 2 of "The Scarlet Letter," the sanctimonious women condemn Hester and suggest more violent torture for her; this hypocritical attitude of supposed Christians is what Hawthorne found so objectionable in early American Puritanism.  Hawthorne writes in Chapter II that Hester's anticipated appearance could be mistaken for the same as the hanging of an old witch:

In either case, there was very much the same solemnity of demeanour on the part of the spectators; as befitted a people amongst whom religion and law were almost identical, and in whose character both were so thoroughly interfused, that the mildest and the severest acts of public discipline were alike made venerable and awful.

And, while the women want more punishment for Hester,

'This woman has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die.  Is there not law for it?  Truly there is, both in the Scripture and the statue-book...'

 the beadle proclaims the virtue of a society in which sin is exposed and punished:

'A blessing on the righteous Colony of the Massachusetts, where iniquity is dragged out into the sunshine!  Come along Madam Hester, and show your scarlet letter in the market-place!'

The cruelty of the Puritans who expose Hester to shame is shocking when one considers their flight from England for the harsh treatment given them.  As Hester stands upon the scaffold, Hawthorne writes that a papist would see some of the Madonna in the beautiful woman with her babe, but the Puritans "had not yet passed beyond their simplicity."  Clearly, here Hawthorne expresses his disgust with the hypocrisy of the Puritans.

Can anyone identify all or some of the following items and explain the significance:-chicken man -tateh -chicken man -"mameh was his meal to...

Since I am Jewish, I can certainly handle "sitting shiva."  In Judaism, when people die, they are generally buried within 24 hours.  Jewish people do not embalm their dead, so a body really cannot sit around for very long!  Also, because Judaism arose in the Middle East, where it was very warm, there would have been good reason to bury someone quickly. I believe that followers of Islam, which also originated in the Middle East, have the same custom.

If you bury someone very quickly, there is not much time to for people to visit and console the family. Things are just moving too quickly. So, after the burial, there is a seven-day period called "shiva."  The word "shevah" means "seven" in Hebrew.  During that period, the mourning family stays at home and people come to call and say prayers with the family.  There are many rituals surrounding this custom.  For example, many families cover all the mirrors in the house during the seven-day period, because they are supposed to focus on their mourning and not on their appearances.  Family members are expected to sit on low, uncomfortable chairs, so they can focus on their mourning and not lounge in enjoyment.

Now, what does this have to do with The Color of Water?  It is my recollection that when Ruth married, her family sat shiva. Why?  Because when a Jewish person married out of his or her faith in those days, and sometimes even today, a very religious Jewish family would consider that person dead to them.  This probably sounds rather horrible, and it is, but in the past, many families frowned upon a child marrying out of the religion, whether it was Judaism, Catholicism, or any other religion.  I know of families who opposed marriages outside of their ethnic group, even though the religion was the same.  Now, given that atmosphere of intolerance, imagine Ruth's family when she not only married someone who was not Jewish, but she also married someone of another race who was a clergyman in another religion.

This was a world that was different from the world we live in today.  At least I hope so! 

Is there an accurate physical description of Daisy Buchanan or Jay Gatsby in the novel The Great Gatsby?

The simple answer to your question is "no."  There isn't one accurate description anywhere in the novel.  Let me tell you, I tossed and turned over your question.  This is my very favorite book to teach, and I was floored that I was stumped by this.  You see, for me, Daisy will always be Mia Farrow and Gatsby will always be Robert Redford.  I suppose my mind clung to the visage from the movie because of the purposeful lack of description in Fitzgerald's novel of genius.  But I digress . . .

Let's focus on what is said about the two characters.  Then perhaps we can approach that analytical one for both that you need so desperately.  In regards to Daisy, I think Fitzgerald does a good job with his original physical description:

Her face was sad and lovely with bright things in it, bright eyes and a bright passionate mouth, but there was an excitement in her voice that men who had cared for her found difficult to forget: . . . a promise that she had done gay, exciting things just a while since and that there were gay, exciting things hovering in the next hour. (9)

Further, there are numerous times in the book where Daisy's face is described as "white."  One example is the flowing and billowing white curtains surrounding Daisy as Nick first sees her.  Another is the flashback where Daisy and Gatsby first kiss.  Here is yet another example where white is used in regards to Daisy:

Sometimes she and Miss Baker talked at once, unobtrusively and with a bantering inconsequence that was never quite chatter, that was as cool as their white dresses and their impersonal eyes in the absence of all desire. (12)

Gatsby, of course, is another story.  In regards to the purely physical, I would suggest a few short sentences in Chapter 3 when Nick finally meets Gatsby (and right after he uses his very prominent "Old Sport" phrase to describe Nick as well as anyone else):

He smiled understandingly--much more understandingly. . . . Precisely at that point it vanished--and I was looking at an elegant young roughneck, a year or two over thirty, whose elaborate formality of speech just missed being absurd.  Some time before he introduced himself I'd got a strong impression that he was picking his words with care. (48)

In my opinion, the best description of Gatsby is a few pages into Chapter 4:

This quality [balancing himself on the dash board of his car with resourcefulness of movement] was continually breaking through his punctilious manner in the shape of restlessness.  He was never quite still; there was always a tapping foot somewhere oar the impatient opening and closing of a hand. (64)

In regards to Gatsby's words or, even better, how Gatsby speaks, there is light on the very next page:

He looked at me sideways--and I knew why Jordan Baker had believed he was lying.  He hurried the phrase "educated at Oxford," or swallowed it, or choked on it, as though it had bothered him before. (65)

In regards to every single example quoted here, I keep asking myself, "Is this even a physical description?"  You see, this is the beauty of Fitzgerald's genius:  to add one small idea, one small step at a time so that our image of these characters is continually shaped by the formless wealth around them.  Furthermore, the longer I think on this subject the more I think that Fitzgerald has us playing right into the palm of his hand, . . . ironically Fitzgerald spent his life playing right into the palm of Zelda.

What were Santiago's thoughts as he sailed home in Old Man and the Sea?

Santiago is beat up by the ordeal of catching the fish, and tries to keep his head clear as he begins the trip home.  For a moment he wonders if it is he bringing in the fish, or the fish bringing in him, as the huge fish, bound to the side of the boat, seems to sail alongside as an equal.

Only an hour into his return trip, sharks attack.  The old man's head is clear now and "he is full of resolution but he (has) little hope".  As he engages in mortal battle with the shark, he knows that he must think, use his sense of reason in fighting, because it is the only advantage he has over the shark.  He then ruminates about the nature of sin, going back and forth in his mind on whether or not it was a sin to kill the fish.  He knows that he loved the fish when it was alive, which would make his action in killing him not a sin, but he also knows that he killed to fish partly out of pride.  Santiago does not fully understand about the nature of sin, but concludes that he killed the fish in order to survive, out of self-defense in a way, and that he "killed him well".

Santiago resolves to fight to the end, even when it is clear that the battle with the sharks is lost.  When the fish is all but gone, he for awhile "sail(s) lightly...and (has) no thoughts nor any feelings of any kind...he (is) past everything now and he sail(s) the skiff to make his home port as well and as intelligently as he (can)".  He then begins to think about the wind and the sea, and his friends and enemies in the sea, and realizes that it "is easy when you are beaten".  He wonders for a moment what it was exactly that had beaten him, and concludes that he was not beaten at all, he had just "(gone) out too far".

"My heart grew sick - on account of the dampness of the catacombs." How would you describle the narrator's reliability/objectivity? What does...

Well, the narrator is, to put it quite simply, mentally unbalanced, and certainly not operating with a full grip on reality.  Here he is, having planned this elaborate revenge, leading a costumed drunk guy down through the catacombs with the intention of chaining him to the rock and barricading him in with bricks, before leaving him to die, for some offense that has been yet unstated.  So there's two ways to look at this:  A)  either his heart actually feels "sick" because deep down he has a conscience and he's really sickened by what he's planning to do, in which case his conscience apparently isn't quite strong enough because he does it anyway, or B) the narrator's actually feeling ill in the damp atmosphere of the  catacombs, with no real thought about the impending murder, in which case he's even more of a cold-hearted killer than what might have been supposed.  This narrator does not qualify as being reliable or objective in any sense of the word; creating characters with "a screw loose" was one technique Poe used effectively in his horror stories, as these type of people are not constrained by logic or reason, which adds to the frightening tone. 

What is the conflict and solution in The House on Mango Street?

The conflict in the House on Mango Street is Esperanza's struggles to find her true identity, and her independence from the otherwise dragging and pulling circumstances that keep her stranded among a group of women much different than herself. These women include her aunts, her sister, her best friend Sally, and other Chicanas who approach love, sex, and relationships in a co-dependent way whereas Esperanza (whose English translation of her name is "Hope") tries to counteract those behaviors by reasserting herself as an independent woman who is in control of her own destiny, and who has wants and needs that she can meet for herself instead of expecting a man to fulfill them.

The resolution of this conflict  was that after she made the hard decision of leaving Mango Street (despite of it being the only reality she knew) she instead listened to her aunts and returned. She did not return because she needed to be in Mango St., butt because she did not want Mango St. to define her as a person, nor to become a Nemesis in her life. If anything, she will want to explore her feelings about the place through writing and helping other women (by becoming a role model of independence) and by making sure she is in charge of her circumstances, rather than the circumstance of living in Mango St. be the maker of her persona.

What are examples of figurative language such as metaphor, simile, imagery and parallelism in Animal Farm?

There are many comparisons in Animal Farm, and Old Major's speech in chapter 1 has several examples. The reader becomes engrossed with the animals' predicament and soon realizes that "the life of an animal is misery and slavery." This is a comparison between the animals' existence and slavery or misery and is therefore a metaphor. 

Imagery as a literary technique in itself creates visual pictures using the senses to inspire the reader. A good example from Major's speech is "the very instant that our usefulness has come to an end we are slaughtered with hideous cruelty." This comment leaves nothing to the imagination and although the reader may be used to eating meat and so slaughtering animals is actually commonplace, he cannot help but be moved by this comment (and perhaps feel guilty) which humanizes the animals and makes the practice seem quite barbaric. 

Parallelism in literature uses structure to stress important information, and is purposefully quite repetitive with a familiar beat. In Old Major's speech, there is much parallelism as Major must express himself clearly because the animals are not particularly intelligent and his words need to inspire them not scare them. The structure of his speech therefore contributes to the animals' confidence. Here are some examples:

"I have had a long life, I have had much time for thought" (chapter 1)

"We are born, we are given just so much food... we are slaughtered with hideous cruelty."

"No animal in England knows the meaning of happiness or leisure... No animal in England is free"

"He (Man) does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to pull the plough, he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits." Here, even though the words may differ, the rhythm remains the same, almost like a chant. There is a definite warning contained in these words, as despite all this, Man "is lord of all the animals." 

If x+y=30 and x-y=2, Find x and y. i know the answer but lets see how many ppl can answer this. (Level: Novice)Hint: Solve using...

No algebra!

First equation means like:Two people x and y get a sum of 30 dollars.

The second of the equations means x, one of the two persons, gets 2 dollars more than  the person y.

x and y are names of two persons chosen from your equations. Dollar is only for  making a meaningful practical example of your equatios.

Solution:Keep the 2 dollars, that x should get more than y, separate. The rest of the 30-2=28 dollars, then, have to  be shared equally between x and y : So, 28/2 = 14 that is the value for y.

x should be 2 more than y . So give that 2dollars separated  to x which makes his share : x=14+2=16. This is a commonsense or a method of logic.

******************

Algebraically you can do by elimination of y from the two given simultaneous equations:

x+y=30      (1)

x-y=2        (2)

There are 2 equalities (or equations). By the postulate that equals can be added to equals and the equality remains we perform the following:

Adding the  given two equations we get 2x=30+2=32.

Therefore,x=32/2=16.

Subtracting  the equation  (2) from (1), we get x  eliminated and only  yor ys  remains on the left:

2y=30-2=28

y=28/2=14.

*********************

Also x +y =30 and x  - y = 2 means that on a number line x is the middle of the stretch  of 2 to 30 and so, x = 16, is the middle. The equidistance on either side of (x=16) is 14 , for  this equal distance from x=16, we get 2 on left and 30 on right. By this interpretation x=16 and y=14 are the solution of these two simultaneous equations. Here is a rough  picture for the imagination only but please do not try measuring it.

line:  |-----y-----------|       |---------y--------| line

(x-y)=2|----------------(x=16)-----------------30=(x+y)

***************************

You can use graph to solve the two equations.

x+y=30 is a many valued equation,representinga straight linecutting x axis at 30 and y axis at 30 units from the origin.

x-y=2 also represents an equation with many solutions, representing a straight line cutting x axis at x=2 and y axis at y=-2.

Both straight lines you can plot and they are perpendicular to each other intersecting at x=16 and y=14 which is the common (or simutaneous unique solution for both equations)

Please plot the following and see where the two graphs cut.

x+y=30 or y= x-30

x=00 02 04 06 08 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30

y=30 28 26 24 22 20 18 16 14 12 10 08 06 04 02 00

x-y=2 or y=x-22:

x=+00 02 04 06 08 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30

y=-02 00 02 04 06 08 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28

*******************

By trial and error way we can come around the solution.

Choose any two numbers such that their sum is 30. Say 10 and 20.The difference gap is 10. Then try reducing their gap by inreasing the smaller. You  increase the smaller ,10 by one , i.e 10+1 =11 and decrease 20 by one , i.e to 19. Now the  gap is reduced from 10 to 9. Inrease by one by one the lower number and decrease the greater number one by one  till their difference  of two  resulting number become 2. The number finally is 14 and 16. 16 is ,therefore, x and cosequently, 14 is y

Hope this helps.

How would you define Philosophy?Describe the nature of philosophical questions with special focus on how philosophical questions differ from...

Philosophy is the study of basic nature and purpose of the universe and the individuals life. It is sometimes described as science of all sciences, as it is not content with examination of understanding the cause and effect of different physical physical realities observed in isolation, instead it aims to unravel the truth of the reality behind all realities.

The explanation of philosophy given in previous paragraph deals with the its pure objectives. In quest of such objectives it does adopt some common identifiable approaches. Thus it tries to deal with subjects like:

• principles of all real knowledge


• Study of most general causes and principles of universe.


• Relationship of humanity with the nature.


• Relationship of individual with society.


• The basic nature of life and consciousness.


• The relationship between physical nature of the world and its perception by individual.

Philosophy is not just a theoretical field of study. It not only tries to identify the purpose of individuals life but also seeks means of enabling individuals to fulfill its ultimate purpose. In this ways it also lays down principles of conduct for the individual. In such attempts the philosophy, sometimes, overlaps the field of religion and religious beliefs.

Though philosophy can address itself to study of any subject, we can identify some common areas of philosophical enquiry such as metaphysics, logic, ethics, and aesthetics.

In The Outsiders, when and how did Ponyboy's parents die ?

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton traces the difficulties faced by Ponyboy and his brothers after the tragic death of their parents which the reader learns makes life very challenging, especially as the eldest brother, Darry is only twenty years old himself. The story begins when Ponyboy comes out of a movie theater and talks about his brothers. The reader is alerted to the fact that Pony's brothers dominate his thoughts. In chapter 1, Ponyboy says that he loves his brother Soda "more than I've ever loved anyone, even Mom and Dad." He also mentions that Darry is strict and has "gone through a lot in his twenty years, grown up too fast."  

Ponyboy and his brothers are members of The Greasers, a gang from "the East Side" and Ponyboy begins to wish he had not gone to the movies alone as a rival gang, The Socs, "the West-side rich kids," threaten to "jump" him as he is walking home. Ponyboy, as the narrator, discusses with the reader how the Socs have no boundaries and "wreck houses" and do other destructive things just for the sake of it whereas the Greasers "have a gang fight once in a while...and wear our hair long" but are more like "hoods." Ponyboy is quick to tell the reader that he and Sodapop try to stay out of trouble or at least don't get caught because he is aware that "since Mom and Dad were killed in an auto wreck" the boys can only stay together if they "behave."

Ponyboy mentions his parents occasionally and in chapter 4 he talks about how he used to go to church, "even after Mom and Dad were gone;" that is until Sodapop and some other Greasers cause a disturbance, and since then, Ponyboy has never been back. After the fire in the church, Ponyboy is shocked that he sees Darry crying and Pony remarks that Darry hadn't cried for years, "not even when Mom and dad were killed" (chapter 6).  

Pony fondly remembers his mother in chapter 8 when he and Two-Bit are talking about Johnny's neglectful mother. Ponyboy's mom was "beautiful and golden... wise and firm..." and Ponyboy admits that Darry is very hard with him, even more so than Pony's own parents but, as Ponyboy points out, Darry has had no practice bringing up a child whereas his parents "raised two boys before me."

All of these references suggest that the parents have probably been dead for about two to three years. 

How was Shylock punished by the law? How did Antonio prove his generosity to the Jew in The Merchant of Venice?

1. At the beginning of Act 4, Shylock believes that Venice's adherence to the letter of the law will help his case.  He insists on Antonio's sentence being carried out exactly as the bond states.  He will not accept substitute monetary payment, etc., because he wants Antonio's humiliation and life.  However, Portia uses Shylock's stubbornness to her advantage.  She reads over the bond and points out that it states that Antonio's payment is to be a pound of flesh.  Since it is impossible to remove a pound of someone's flesh without also removing blood, Portia insists on the letter of the law and warns Shylock that he can proceed with his retrieval of payment but that he must not take anything other than a pound of flesh.  If he does, then he will violate the law.

In addition to Shylock not getting his payment because of the law, he could have been put to death because he sought another's life, but his punishment is to convert to Christianity, put half of his fortune in a trust for Lorenzo and Jessica, and bequeath his entire fortune to his son-in-law upon his death.

2.  Your second question does not have such an objective answer.  When Shylock faces the death penalty and the loss of everything he owns at the end of Act 4, Antonio steps in and recommends the punishment above.  By doing so, Shylock gets to keep some of his possessions, including his house, until his death.  However, one could argue that this is a form of manipulation on Antonio's part. If he gets Shylock to convert to Christianity, then he doesn't have to worry about Shylock charging other people interest because Christians cannot practice usury.  This benefits Antonio because it might make more people dependent upon him, and he gets to realize the business downfall and religious humiliation of his enemy.  Moreover, Antonio suggests that half of Shylock's fortune be put in a trust under his (Antonio's) care to be eventually bestowed upon Lorenzo.  Antonio knows that Shylock disdains Lorenzo as a Christian and as the man who stole his daughter and his jewels; so this is still a painful punishment for Shylock. One could argue that at least Antonio spares Shylock's life and makes it possible for him to live in his house until his death, but what kind of life would that be for such a man as Shylock?

In The Crucible, what does Reverand Hale hope to accomplish by examining Betty?

Reverend Hale is one of the few clergyman that is actually looking for true signs that the girls are bewitched by Satan. When he examines Betty, he is looking for a sign that it is Satan or demons that are affecting the girl and not some superficial or physical affliction. Unlike the other prominent members of the town and the neighboring towns, Hale does not immediately assume that they girls are being attacked by witches just because they say that they are. He looks for, in his view, very real signs of the devil on the girls, and makes judgments based on his studies and observations and not on hearsay or one-sided testimony.

Given sin=35andcos=45 find tan.

Kindly allow us to rewrite the question:

(i)"Given sin35 and cos45, find tan35 and tan45".

Or

(ii)Given sin A =3/5 and cosA =4/5 find tan A.

Let us start with the basics which explains why we corrrected as above:

Definition: Consider a right angled triangle ABC with right angle at B. Then,

sineA = opposite side/hypotenuse=BC/AC,

cosine A=adjascent side/hypotenuse=AB/AC and

tangent A = opoosite side/adjascent side=BC/AB.

Note: the sineA can take values 0  to 1  when A takes values from 0 to 90 deg , sinA from  1 to 0 for A =90 deg to 180 deg, sinA from 0 to -1 for A=180 to 270 deg and  -1 to 0 for A=270 to 360 degree. Similarly the cosine and tangent ratios of an angle take values are as below:

A           =    0 to    90, 90 to   180 , 180 to  270, 270 to 360

cosA      =    1 to     0 ,   0 to   -1,   -1   to     0,   0   to     1

Tangent A= 0+infinite,  -infinte to 0,   0 to infinite,  -infinite to 0.

From the above we see that -1<=sin of an angle<=+1 and -1<=cos of an angle<=+1 and -infinite <=tan of an angle<= infinite. The sine and cosine curves are continuous, where as the graph of tangent of an angle is discontinous at 90 deg and 270 degree with infinite gap.

Therefore, the sine of an angle  cannot be 35 . Similarly, the   cosine of an angle cannot be 45. Therefore, the given question  to be meaningful should read  like :

Given sin35  and cos45,  find,   tan 35 and tan 45.

and we proceed for on the method to reach the solution:

We, know by trigonometry: (sin X)^2+(cos X)^= 1, is an identity and since (3/5)^2+(4/5)^2=1, We can say: "Given sinA=3/5 and cosA =4/5, find tan A". This is solved in second part below:

(i)

Therefore, tanx = sinX/cosX= sinX/sqrt[1-(sin X)^2]strong> or

tanX=sqrt[1-(cosX)^2]/cosX.

Let sin35 = x,

Tangent 35 = sin35/cos35 =sin35/sqrt[1-(sin35)^2]= x/(1-x^2). = 0.573576436sqrt/(1-0.573576436^2) =0.700207538

Given cos45=y,say.

Then, tangent 45 = sin45/cos45

=y/y=1.

As y=sin45 =cos45 = 1/sqrt2

(ii)

Given sinA =3/5 and cosA =4/5 , find tanA.

By trigonometry,

tanA = sinA/cosA. Substitute the given values of sinA and cosA to get the value of tan A.

tan A = (3/5)/(4/5) =3*5/(4*5) =3/4 =0.75

Hope this helps.

What is the message which author wants to give and how in the essay, "On Saying Please" by A. G. Gardiner.Elaborate on the following quote: "AND...

I will answer the second part of the question first. The quotation refers to the fact that while the law is very definite about how individuals should act, it does not have much to say about the issues of courtesy and kindness/ politeness to others. The law speaks to individuals who have been wronged, whose rights have been taken away at the hands of another. Yet, it cannot legislate manners or civility in acting towards one another. The reality is that while it is not a perfect state, this state of law is a reasonable one because it does not enter the realm of emotions. The quote is suggesting that if the law gave into this level of emotional subjectivity, then individuals would be carrying out acts of violence each time someone demonstrated rudeness to them. Apply this to our own settings:  If the law permitted us to act with violence towards the people who were rude to us on a daily basis, what would the consequences be?  Indeed, they might be a situation where "the gutters of the city would run with blood all day" because of the violent actions towards rude people.

The theme of the essay revolves around the issues of manners and while we might be frustrated with the rudeness around us, individuals can counter it with demonstrating good manners to one another and brightening one another's day.

What is the meaning of this extract in the John Steinbeck's novel The Pearl?"...but I wonder if you will find it any different in the capital?"...

It is Kino's friend Juan Tomas who says, "but I wonder if you will find it any different in the capital".  This statement illustrates the isolation in which the village exists.  The people who live in the village have no idea what life is like beyond their immediate surroundings.

Kino had just presented his pearl to the pearl buyers in the village.  The price they had offered him was ridiculously low;  it is obvious even to Kino that they are out to cheat him in order to make money for themselves, or for their bosses.  The buyer's eyes are "as steady and cruel and unwinking as a hawk's eyes, while the rest of his face smile(s) in greeting...and secretly, behind his desk, his right hand practice(s) with (a) coin". 

The people in the village know that they "are cheated from birth to the overcharge on (their) coffins", but have long accepted this reality as a fact of life.  To venture beyond the borders of their narrow world "is new ground", and they "do not know the way".  Kino himself is "terrified of that monster of strangeness they (call) the capital", but he does not want to be cheated either.  As Juan Tomas advises him, Kino does not know "what prices are paid in other places", so he cannot really know what is a fair price.

Kino resolves to take his pearl to the capital, a bold and potentially dangerous undertaking.  The people are taught by the church that to try "to leave their station" is an act "against religion" that will be met by punishment, and so the villagers are afraid to venture out to widen their horizons.  Kino does not know what life in the capital is like; as Juan Tomas warns him, things may be the same there as they are at home in the village.  Still, Kino is determined, having left the old ways in his heart already.  He feels that he has no choice but to venture forth on "new ground", even if it might be little different in its corruption and oppression from the world as he knows it (Chapter 4).

What role, physical description, and attributes do these characters have in Ethan Frome? Ethan Frome, Zeena, Mattie, narrator, Harman Gow, Mrs....

In the book Ethan Frome, Ehan is a broken man.  He was once a university student who had to return home to care for his sick mother.  He is responsible and dependable.  He is also resolved to his fate and punishment for his actions with Mattie Silver.

When Ethan was younger he married Zeena out of obligation.  He stayed by her in a miserable existence until Mattie Silver came along.  Ethan began to find joy with Mattie around.  He laughed and danced, rode the sleigh with her, and found love.  After their accident he endures a lifetime of self-inflicted punishment as a twist of fate.

Zeena is needy and sickly.  She appears to be more of a hypochondriacthan really ill.  She is bitter and fearful of being put out by her husband.  However, she is also strong and manipulative.  Zeena has a narrow face with a thin nose.  In the beginning of the story she has brown hair but as she ages she gets gray hair.

Mattie Silver has bright eyes and is frail and pale.  She has a cheerful childlike disposition.  She wants to please but is clumsy and not a very good cook.  She is also lonely and poor.  She brightens after she falls in love with Ethan.  By the end of the book she has become paralyzed by a broken spine.  She is gray haired and dependent on Zeena and Ethan for all of her care.

How was witchcraft viewed in Shakepeare's time?

In the sixteenth century, witchcraft was certainly perceived to be a reality.  People throughout society believed witchcraft existed and was being practiced to varying extents.  That being said, how witchcraft was viewed is something entirely different.  Views of magic and witchcraft throughout the Middle Ages and into the early modern period are anything but consistent.  Even in the more "enlightened" period of the sixteenth century, some placed value in magic and witchcraft as worthwhile endeavors.  Degrees of magical practice were seen as less problematic than others.  Astrology and alchemy, while not always deemed the most appropriate activities, were typically seen as less of an issue than other forms of magic.  Some magic (i.e. "black" magic), which sought to control human will, was perceived as evil, and this is generally where witchcraft falls in the early modern worldview.

The majority, however, and specifically those in the Church, handled the question of witchcraft very severely.  The Church certainly believed witchcraft existed, and, guided by this belief, it actively pursued those thought to be witches, interrogated them to force them to confess their evil ways, and would even provide them the opportunity to recant.  Generally, the view of witches and the punishment of them fell under very similar guidelines as those regarding heretics.  If found guilty, the most common form of punishment was to be burned at the stake.  Depending on the level of superstition, however, the punishment was more elaborate.  In some cases, the witch's head was severed before the body was burned.  Ultimately, the ferocity of the Church's attitude toward witches is very illustrative of its view of them, and by extension those of the general population.

What was the New Deal?Please cite your sources.

Following the example of the American experience during World War 1, Franklin Delano Roosavelt's administration pursued a Keynesian policy of active government intervention in the economy that came to be the New Deal.

Initially, the New Deal attempted to restore prosperity by creating the National Recovery Administration (NRA), which required government, labor, and industrial leaders to work out regulations for each industry. Declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 1935, the NRA was soon superseded by other efforst collectively known as the Second New Deal.

Why does Hrothgar decide to build a mighty hall in "Beowulf"?In the epic Beowulf, why does Hrothgar decide to build the great hall?

Hrothgar built Heorot (Herot, depending on translation) for the "best and bravest of his men." It is an honorable king who seeks to reward his soldiers for their bravery. The building was beautiful, both inside and out. Extravagant in decor (it was covered in hammered gold), the hall was supposed to be a tribute of Hrothgar's pride in his men, but Grendel, who could not stand the idea of happiness, made it a place of horror.

What is the significance of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451?

Ray Bradbury, the author of "Fahrenheit 451" said,

You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture, all you have to do is get people to stop reading them.

In Nazi Germany, Hitler ordered his SS men to burn books that did not support the ideology of the Germany of the late 30s and early 40s.  In this way, history was virtually erased, and the recordings of the German heart burned with the books.  Likewise, the futuristic society of Bradbury's novel reflects the author's concerns about censorship and conformity, two very relevant concerns today.  Bradbury's work is a social criticism of the cultural decline in an America that is more concerned with consumerism than free expression of thought and the preservation of ideas. Indeed, "Fahrenheit 451" is very significant as a novel to cause its readers to reflect on the dangers of restrictions on free speech and ignorance of one's cultural history.

What are Tony's questions about death in Bless Me, Ultima?

Antonio is a young boy, and is learning what it means to be Latino as well as Catholic.  One of the more troubling questions about death for Antonio is what happens to babies who die before they are baptized?  In the Catholic tradition, especially in those days, babies were thought to go into "limbo", neither in heaven nor hell. While this is somewhat reassuring to Antonio, it is difficult for him to get past the idea that babies who are innocent, and had no role in their own death cannot get into heaven.

Early in the book Tony witnesses the death of Lupito, who is hunted down by a posse of vigilantes for killing the Sheriff.  While it is commonly accepted by the townspeople that Lupito, who is suffering from mental illness, has to die, Tony naturally feels sorry for him, and is forced at such a young age to contemplate death once again.

In "Fahrenheit 451" what information does Beatty reaveal to Montag when he didnt show up for work?

Beatty makes an unusual home visit to Montag when Montag doesn't show up for work.  While he is there, he gives a very detailed history of how it came to be that firemen burned books.  Beatty probably sensed Montag's underlying crisis with his job, so showed up and said,

"Every fireman, sooner or later, hits this.  They only need understanding, to know how the wheels run.  Need to know the history of our profession."

Beatty goes on to relate that censorship, mass production of media, people's need for instant gratification, and government's need for control as the main causes behind why society evolved into one that allowed books to be banned at such a large and extreme level.  He mentioned that the first "firemen," or "book burners" probably started to gain momentum when "things began to have mass," meaning, there were SO many people out there, that books really only appealed to a very few.  More and more forms of media were getting information out there much more quickly and efficiently, like movies, radio and television.  So, people could get information without reading.  So, simple mass production and distribution of information wasn't friendly to books.

Then, there was the fact that people got lazy and didn't want to read them anymore:  "Classics cut to fifteen-minute radio shows then cut again" until you could get just the plotline and feel smart for knowing about a book without actually reading it.  Also, was censorship.  People were offended by the content in books, so people starting censoring what was him them, and then just stopped writing them or printing them because too many people were offended by its contents.  Lastly, the government jumped on board, realizing that "slippery stuff like philosophy or sociology" were just ways that people became "thinkers," which led to independent thoughts, and rebellion against an overbearing government.  So, government jumped on the bandwagon and made books truly a bad thing and gave them tons of stuff to keep people busy instead, so that they wouldn't think too much.  So, Beatty relates the details of how firemen who burn books came to be.

I hope that those thoughts help a bit; good luck!

Where does Montag stash his latest book in "Fahrenheit 451"?Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, is a story that begins with Guy Montag's curiosity...

Guy Montag's curiosity about books and why they must be burned begins before the opening of the story. Even though he thought "[It] was a pleasure to burn," he collected nearly 20 books and hid them in the grille of the air-conditioning system of his house. The final book he stole was from a fire where he watched a woman die with her books. He knew there had to be something of value in them, so he determined to read the ones he had collected.

Before Montag had an opportunity to read the most recent "theft," Beatty came for a visit. Montag stashed the book under the pillow he was using while he recovered from being ill. The book stayed there during a long monologue from Captain Beatty, where the history and rationale of book burning was a central theme.

What are your thoughts about Lord Capulet's behavior towards Juliet?Act IV of "Romeo and Juliet"

In "Romeo and Juliet," Lord Capulet's behavior is inconsistent at best.  In the streets of Verona he is as impetuous as the youths, calling for a sword to run through his enemy Lord Montague at the opening of the play.  Then, in Scene 2 as he speaks wisely with Paris he tells the nobleman,

But Montague is bound/as well as I [to keep peace],/In penalty alike, and 'tis not hard, I think,/For men so old as we to keep the peace. (I,ii,1-3)

Then, in Scene 5 of this same act, Capulet again becomes choleric as Tybalt points out Romeo, calling him a "villain."  Capulet tells Tybalt that Romeo "shall be endured" (I,v,75-76).

Regarding his daughter, Lord Capulet exhibits the same inconsistency.  When, for instance, he speaks with Paris who wishes to marry Juliet, Capulet is the voice of patience and wisdom, asking Paris to give Juliet two more years before considering her as a bride:  "...too soon marred are those so early made (I,ii,13). But, in Act 3, scene 5, Capulet irately demands that Juliet marry Paris.  When his daughter refuses, Capulet tells her that if she does not go, he

will drag thee on a hurdle thither./Out, you green-sickness carrion! Out, you baggage!/You tallow-face!...God's bread!  It makes me mad.

Lord Capulet calls Juliet "a wretched puling fool," a "whining mammet," and tells her if she does not obey, she can "starve, die in the streets" (III,v, 185-194).

Of course, Capulet rues having said such things after Juliet is dead, for then he displays his expansive love for his daughter.  Thus, it would seem that Lord Capulet is concerned with his social position and lets his love for his family become secondary in situations involving prestige and pride.

Write a short note on Jane Austen and the development of the realist novel.

Jane Austen was a 'realist' novelist who wrote and published most of her novels during the Regency period (1811-20). She has given us minute descriptions of the daily routine, and the lifestyle of the middle and upper middle classes of her time - Elizabeth's stay at Netherfield in "Pride and Prejudice" would be a good illustration of this feature. But more than the superficial descriptions of the daily routine and lifestyle, she exposes the tensions of the different social classes which are contrasted in all her six novels.

"Pride and Prejudice"(1813) like all of Jane Austen's novels reflects faithfully the socio-economic conditions of what historians term as 'Regency England'(1811-20).

Since women of this period had no right to ownership of property they were financially dependent on their husbands,and hence the urgency and anxiety throughout the novel for the ladies to get married to "young men of large fortune" (ch. 1).

Mr.Bennet's estate is 'entailed' to Mr. Collins because Mr.Bennet does not have a son. In 'Regency England' only male heirs could inherit the title and the estate of their fathers. The third paragraph of chapter 50 clearly reveals the 'economic' necessity of having a son and the disappointment at not being able to have one and the consequent predicament which Mr.Bennet faces in not being able to personally meet the financial demands of Wickham.

In Ch.33 Col.Fitzwilliam tells Elizabeth "I may suffer from the want of money. Younger sons cannot marry where they like." Clearly hinting at her impoverished status.

The central theme of the novel--how much money is necessary for a successful and a happy marriage--is explicitly stated by Elizabeth in in Ch.27 : "Pray, my dear aunt, what is the difference in matrimonial affairs, between the mercenary and the prudent motive? WHERE DOES DISCRETION END, AND AVARICE BEGIN?"

Was Col. Fitzwilliam Darcy 'discreet' or 'avaricious'?

The contrasting lifestyles of different social groups is structurally central to a Jane Austen novel. In "Pride and Prejudice" the landed gentry represented by Darcy  is contrasted with the newly rich trading class represented by Bingley and his sisters.

The novel was written against the background of the threat of an  invasion by Napoleon. The militia was a temporary voluntary force raised especially during times of a national emergency. Wickham was a member of this militia. Col.Fitzwilliam Darcy the younger son of an earl, on the contrary, is a fully commissioned officer of the regular army. In those days only an aristocrat or a member of the gentry could afford to purchase a commission in the army. In "Pride and Prejudice" Darcy purchases a commission for Wickham so that Wickham agrees to marry Lydia.

Jane Austen  portrays only the elegant aspects of Regency England. The seamy side,however, is  sometimes hinted at. Discipline in the army was very harsh and there is a report of a private being whipped. Similarly the prevailing poverty of the lower classes is revealed by the reference to poor feeding.

But most importantly the harsh reality of a bleak future  for a dependent unwed old woman is hinted at when Charlotte Lucas' brothers are relieved that Collins  is going to marry their sister, for otherwise they would have to look after her in her old age.

What is the scene that is brought to the reader's mind on reading the first 4 lines of the poem?

I leant upon a coppice gate
     When Frost was spectre-gray,
And Winter's dregs made desolate
     The weakening eye of day.

To get an emotional feel for the tone of the poem, try reading the four lines aloud several times, and exaggerate the stressed and unstressed syllables. This way you may detect which words stand out because of the stresses.  Look at the stressed syllables below:

I LEANT u-PON a COP-pice GATE

when FROST was SPEC-ter GRAY

and WIN-ter's DREGS made DES-o-LATE

the WEA-kening EYE of DAY.

Note the vowel sounds in the last word of each line: gate, gray, desolate (with emphasis on "--late"), and day--what vowel sound do they all have in common? These vowel sounds seem to elongate, or to draw out the words, and thus slow the rhythm of the poem, enhancing its serious, sombre, and, yes, desolate tone.

If you don't know any of the words, look them up. What is a coppice gate, you ask? Well, a coppice is a small grove, or a small enclosed thicket or growth of trees. The speaker establishes a point of view as he draws us into the scene: he leans upon a gate, looking at the grove. There is a sense of separateness and loneliness of the onlooker gazing at the scenery before him, and the reader joins him in this lonesome perception.

Secondly, "when Frost was specter gray"--we have figurative language here because frost is capitalized. Thus the speaker elevates frost as a natural phenomenon by personifying it, capitalizing it as a proper name. Frost is specter gray.  What feeling does a specter evoke in you? We are talking about a ghost--ghostly gray.  Frost resembles death in the way it wipes out anything living in its presence.  Anything Frost touches turns into gray ghostly nothingness just like Frost itself--its presence is ominous.

And then pay attention to syntax, or sentence structure. Who is doing what? Who is the subject of the sentence? What is he doing? To whom?  "And winter's dregs made desolate the weakening eye of day" Turn this around to a normal sentense order: Winters dregs made the weakening eye of day desolate. Better.

Look up "dregs" if you aren't sure what it is. It is the last remaining part of something, so the last parts of winter may be the ending of it, the last days of that period or season. 

"Weakening eye of day" is a metaphor, that is comparing two unlike things, or saying that the day has an eye. The sun is compared to a day's eye, and it is weakening because the daylight is coming to an end, or it is the late winter evening when the sun is going down.  Therefore, the last remains of winter are making even the last rays of sunlight seem sad, lonesome, desolate, desperate.

There is lots of information in these four lines. Take the images one at a time and see what feeling they create. It's not just a cold winter day. It is gloomy, hopeless, dead as if no life can ever spring from the vast, dark, gray desolation.

Good luck.