What is a short explanation of "On His Having Arrived at the Age of Twenty-Three" by John Milton?

Milton's sonnet is a reflection about himself at the age of twenty-three. In it, he assesses himself in terms of his personal maturity, suggesting that he doesn't appear to be as mature as others of his age, but that he may be more mature than he appears. Maturity here can be interpreted in terms of achievement and accomplishment, as well as in personal growth and understanding.

The sonnet ends by bringing in the idea of divine guidance, "the will of Heaven." Milton writes in conclusion:

All is, if I have grace to use it so,

As ever in my great Task-Master’s eye.

All that he is and all that he might become, he hopes, will be a fulfillment of God's will.

Milton is thought to have written the sonnet shortly after graduating from Cambridge University, and the poem is very consistent with the thoughts of a young man who has completed the early phase of his life and is about to move into a wider world.

Give explanation of, "Mend your speech a little, lest it mar your fortunes," from King Lear.

Lear has asked his three daughters to tell him how much they love him, promising to give the most desirable one-third of his kingdom to the one who expresses her love most convincingly. The old man is, in effect, trying to get his daughters to compete with one another in exaggerating their love. He thinks he can buy love. Both Goneril and Regan try to outdo each other in expressing the love for their father which neither of them feels. When Cordelia's turn comes to speak, she refuses to exaggerate the genuine affection she really feels for her father.

Lear really loves Cordelia too. He doesn't want to penalize her for not flattering him. When he says, ". . . mend your speech a little / Lest it mar your fortunes," he is offering her a chance to preserve her one-third share of his kingdom by expressing at least "a little" affection for him. He is also revealing that she is making him a bit ashamed of himself for trying to make his daughters look grasping and dishonest. But Cordelia refuses to lie about her true feelings. This enrages her father, and he disinherits her completely, giving her one-third of his kingdom to his two daughters to share.

Cordelia's obdurate and self-destructive behavior is hard to explain, since she really and truly loves her father, as she proves later in the play. Leo Tolstoy wrote a polemic against Shakespeare, and his "King Lear" in particular, in which the great Russian writer expresses the view that Cordelia seems to be deliberately trying to "vex" her father. Perhaps Shakespeare expected the viewer to assume that Cordelia is shamed and offended by the old man's vulgar mistreatment of his children in making them compete in describing their "love" for him in front of his entire court. She has already  heard Goneril's and Regan's fantastic and implausible descriptions of their filial devotion, and seen all the passionate gestures that accompanied their speeches, and she cannot bring herself to behave like these two shameless women.

What killed the Dinosaurs?

While there have been many theories on what caused the extinction of the dinosaurs--excessive size, the greenhouse effect, egg predation, non-viable eggs, replacement by mammals, disease, etc.  But, recently, scientists theorize that a meteor collided with the earth, ejected dust and debris to such thickness that the sunlight was blocked for a long time, so long that the plants died.  Without food, the herbivores died.  While the carnivores could subsist on the carcasses, once all these carcasses were gone, they, too, starved to death.

In the 1980s the father-son team of Luis and Walter Alvarez discovered a layer of iridium in the K-T Boundary.  They theorized that a hug asteroid struck the earth.  Not only would there be dust, but forest fires would create smoke as well.  The earth would be cooled as the sunlight could not penetrate it and tremendous climatic changes would occur.

Compare the reactions of Jess and Leslie to the Easter church service. How does each reaction expand your understanding of the character?please...

When Leslie accompanies Jess and his family to the Easter church service, the two friends react quite differently. Jess has lived in their small, working-class town his whole life, and has been raised in the church. Leslie, whose family has just recently moved into town, obviously comes from a more secular background. It seems she has rarely, if ever, attended a church service, and finds the whole thing fascinating, like attending a festival.

Jess and his sister May Belle are puzzled by Leslie's reaction. May Belle in particular becomes distressed when she learns that Leslie does not believe the Bible, saying, "'Cause if you don't believe the Bible...God'll damn you to hell when you die." And in a clever bit of foreshadowing, the chapter ends with May Belle's plaintive question to Leslie, "But Leslie..What if you die? What's going to happen to you if you die?"

How can "The Good-Morrow" be critically interpreted?

"The Good Morrow" is one of Donne's most famous poems, the subject of much literary interpretation and criticism. Its numerous allusions to seventeenth-century philosophical and scientific beliefs can be confusing to modern readers, but the poem itself develops a singular theme: the expression of romantic love between two lovers.

The title, translated to mean "the good morning," suggests the poem's setting. The narrator has awakened and speaks to his lover, after they have spent the night together. In the first stanza, he asks her questions about what their lives had been before they met. As the stanza ends, he concludes that all his previous experiences in love were insignificant:

If ever any beauty I did see,

Which I desired, and got, 'twas but a dream of thee.

In the second stanza, the narrator moves from the lovers' past to their present; he also moves from the physical, superficial aspects of their love to its deeper spiritual nature:

And now good-morrow to our waking souls,

Which watch not one another out of fear;

For love all love of other sights controls,

And makes one little room an everywhere.

Because their love is profound, with one soul loving the other, neither will be attracted to anyone or anything beyond themselves. "One little room" (any room they are in together) becomes "everywhere." Together, they become a world of their own.

The third stanza develops the idea of two melding into one entity, two "hemispheres" to be "mix'd equally." The concluding lines look to their future together:

If our two loves be one, or thou and I

Love so alike that none can slacken, none can die.

The narrator believes that the love they have found with each other, if preserved, will be immortal.

Sergius appears to me a gallant officer. Why is he ridiculed or jilted by Raina, having convinced herself previously of her love for him?

It's clear from the first time we see Sergius and Raina together that they are far more in love with the idea of being in love than they are actually in love with each other.  They are both of the same social class, and it is probably a fond wish of both of their parents that they marry each other.  They are suitable for each other ; Raina is beautiful and young and the daughter of a prominent Bulgarian, and Sergius is a rich and gallant soldier.  By romantic notions the two should be perfect for each other.  But their meeting is strained and syrupy, when they spout only platitudes toward each other.  Raina makes the riculous protestations of her virtue to him, while she is actively deceiving him

 I think we two have found the
higher love. When I think of you, I feel that I could never do a
base deed, or think an ignoble thought. (Act II)

And the minute Raina is out of the room Sergius is making advances toward Louka.  It is evident that both Raina and Sergius have reasons to keep up the pretense of loving each other, although neither of them seems to feel it.  Sergius has flirted with Louka before, and Raina had made quite a connection with Bluntschli when he was hiding in her bedroom.  But the pretense of the "higher love" (Act 2), which is against both of their own feelings, must be kept up -- for appearance's sake.  But Sergius even confesses to Louka that it is "very fatiguing" to do so; it is a duty, and not a feeling.  Therefore, if Raina and Sergius had been married it would have been a loveless marriage.

Also, Sergius is a whole-hearted soldier, and Raina has found that her sympathies are far more pacifist.  She has discovered these feelings while talking to Bluntschli who, though a soldier himself, knows the folly of war.

In the end, the conniving Louka and Sergius are much better suited to each other, and the more thoughtful and pacifist Blunschli and Raina belong together.  Or at least this is what Shaw seems to imply! 

I need two adjectives to decribe Ponyboy, Johnny, Soda and Darry in The Outsiders.Can you tell me where you can prove it in the book?

    These boys are the main characters in the Susan E. Hinton teen novel, The Outsiders. Pony, Soda and Darry are the three Curtis brothers, and Johnny Cade is their best friend. Pony loves to read and shows talent for writing. Soda is a drop-out who works in a gas station. Darry, a roofer, is the oldest brother and former football star. Johnny is the favorite of the gang and is still reeling from a beating he earlier took from a group of Socs. Below are quoted adjectives from the novel and their chapter.

PONYBOY CURTIS. "Sweet," (Chapter 2); "brainy," (Chapter 1).

SODAPOP CURTIS.  "Happy-go-lucky," "movie-star handsome," (Chapter 1).

DARREL CURTIS.  "Broad-shouldered," (Chapters 1 and 9); "muscular," (Chapter 1).

JOHNNY CADE.  "Black-haired," (Chapter 6); "nervous," (Chapter 1).

How does the recognition of patterns make it easier to read complicated literature?

A complicated novel will often include many characters, one central plot, and numerous sub-plots.  Pattern recognition allows us to see the relationships between characters, actions, and ideas within the book and also allows us to connect a particular literary work to works or ideas outside the story. Since literature does not exist in a vacuum, seeing these patterns and connections enriches our reading experience.

A good example of internal patterns and external connections may be found in The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd, a book sometimes assigned to high school students.  I don't want to say too much that would give away any surprises in the book, in case you have not read it, but let's discuss some patterns and connections that I have seen in the story.

As the story opens, we learn that Lily, the central character, lost her mother when she was very young.  An African-American woman, Rosaleen, takes care of Lily and the household.  Lily has a few items that belonged to her mother, and when she is alone, she takes them out and goes over them.  One of the items is a photograph of her mother.  Rosaleen's mother is no longer living, and she has a little spot where there is a photograph of her mother and some items that are important to her.  This is a kind of pattern in the story because both Lily and Rosaleen are engaging in a kind of "mother worship" at their respective "altars." This similarity is also a reflection of a two larger themes in the story, our search for our mothers and our search for spirituality within a religion where there is a "God" more like us than the "God" of male-dominated societies. Another pattern that I can see in the story is that there are two central incidents in which an African-American person and a Caucasian person experience unpleasant encounters with the police, but in which the Caucasian person is let go and the African-American person remains incarcerated.  These patterns lend a kind of balance or symmetry to the novel that is part of its effectiveness.  There are many other kinds of patterns in the story.

An example of an external connection I have observed is a connection to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.  In Huckleberry Finn, a young Caucasian boy and an older African-American slave set forth on a journey, both looking for a kind of freedom, in Huck's case, a freedom from "civilization," and in Jim's case, freedom from slavery.  In the Secret Life of Bees, Lily and Rosaleen, a young Caucasian woman and an older African-American woman, also set forth on a journey, each of them looking for different forms of freedom.  Lily, on a quest for information about her mother, is looking for freedom from her father, who is an unpleasant character, to put it mildly.  Rosaleen want to exercise her freedom to vote, a freedom that African-Americans in the rural  South found very difficult to exercise in the Sixties, when the book takes place.

If I were unable to recognize patterns, my experience of this book would be impoverished.   Keep your eyes open for repetition or "echoes" of actions and idea as you read.  You will find that your reading experience is enhanced exponentially!

What are the most important changes in Lear throughout the play?Any quotes that may be useful?

When the play opens, King Lear is at the point where he wants to retire and divide his kingdom between his daughters.  What is interesting, however is that he wants to be retired, but also wants to retain his authority.  So effectively, he does not want to have to do the job, but wants the benefits of the job.  Think of it as if he wants to keep getting paid for a job he no longer has, wants to still have authority to boss people around, and make all the decisions, even though he is no longer in the office.

"Lear's expectations about his life in retirement are unrealistic. Lear, who uses the royal "we" to refer to himself, announces that

'tis our fast intent
To shake all cares and business from our age;
Conferring them on younger strengths, while we
Unburthen'd crawl toward death."
(I.i.38-41)

I think it is safe to say, that at the beginning of the play King Lear has a perception problem.  He does not see reality, but rather an idealized, whitewashed, fantasy world according to his design.  For example, his two daughters, Goneril and Regan, he wants them to declare their love for him.

"Tell me, my daughters,- / Since now we will divest us both of rule, / Interest of territory, cares of state,- / Which of you shall we say doth [does] love us [King Lear] most? That we our largest bounty may extend / Where nature doth with merit challenge" (Tell me my daughters since I will now divest my rule, assets and responsibilities of state, which of you shall say you love me most that my largest bounty or reward may extend or go where nature meets with merit or is deserving)", (Lines 50-55).

When Cordelia will not pledge her total love for her father like her sisters, who have said what he wanted to hear and really feel nothing for him, she is punished, given nothing, and Lear becomes angry at her.  He has decided to stay with his two other daughters, alternating locations.

Plunged into a depth of despair by the rejection and disrespectful behavior of Goneril and Regan, King Lear experiences a degree of madness, it is defined by a deep sadness and feelings of loss and isolation.  

"When Lear emerges from his mad state, through the gentle ministrations of Cordelia's doctors, he seems to have a different image of himself. In response to Cordelia's request that Lear bless her, he says, "Pray, do not mock me: / I am a very foolish fond old man" (IV.vii.58-59). He has learned to be weak."

His pride and arrogance gone, Lear appears to be a broken man, now realizing the Cordelia is the only daughter that really loved him.  

"Lear's character flaw is a variation of the classical notion of hubris, or excessive pride, and like many of the heroes of ancient Greek tragedy (Oedipus, for example), Lear is blind to this fatal fault. To be sure, Lear acknowledges that he is not in his right mind." 

What are three of the difficulties that Farquhar seems to overcome while he is in the stream?

Ok, first of all Hughjazz I looked up the answer to this question also, not because I didn't read the story but it is hard to stay focused and sometimes people need help. Who are you to tell someone that they are going to pretty much fail in college because they needed help. I am not retarded and got accepted at the University of Denver and I am getting help with this "easy" question, so get a life and let people do their work however they need to in order to get it done. If you didn't need help for this question why read it then give stupid remarks that a 2nd grader would give. Apparently you read this question because you needed help or don't have a life so you have to put other people down.

Good luck in college buddy...

What is the point of view in "A Worn Path" and what evidence supports this answer?

Eueora Welty's "A Worn Path" is told from the third-person objective point of view.  Welty employs this point of view which does not reveal as much of the character as do first and omniscient points of view so that the reader may perceive Phoenix less as a person and more as a symbolic, even mythical, character.

That she is a symbolic and myth-like character is evidenced, first of all, by her name which suggests the mythological bird that continues to live by rising from its ashes.  As the old woman traverses fields and streams, she falls again and again, but gets up each time so that she can continue her "worn path" and procure the medicine for her grandson. 

Lest the objective point of view be too plain and not convey the symbolic meanings of this story, Welty employs language rich with metaphor and symbolism.  For example,

But she sat down to rest.  She spread her skirts on the bank around her and folded her hands over her knees.  Up above her was a tree in a pearly cloud of mistletoe.  She did not dare to close her eyes, and when a little boy brought her a plate with a slice of marble-cake on it she spoke to him.  'That would be acceptable,' she said.  But when she went to take it there was just her own hand in the air.

The old woman's talking to herself also aids in characterization without revealing her inner reality as does first-person and omniscient narrator:

'You scarecrow,' she said.  Her face lighted. 'I ought to be shut up for good,' she said with laughter. 'My senses is gone.  I too old.  I the oldes people I ever know.  Dance, old scarecrow,' she said, 'while I dancing with you.'

This objective point of view also serves to indicate the old woman's simple acceptance of her condition in life.  She is "too old," but she will continue going the "worn path" as long as her grandson lives, for she is simply the only one that he has to care for him.

Is the scene in which the hunters re-enact the pig hunt a foreshadowing to Simon's death?

In a word, yes.

The boys group together and perform a 'mock-hunt', with Robert used as the unfortunate 'mock-pig' at the center of everything. And the passage has lots of key similarities to Simon's murder, not least that Ralph - the Everyman, the boy we think of as the one most like us, the reader - joins in. And he wants to join in more. This is the 'darkness of man's heart' in action.

Here's the passage you're referring to:

Jack shouted.
“Make a ring!”
The circle moved in and round. Robert squealed in mock terror, then in real pain.
“Ow! Stop it! You’re hurting!”
The butt end of a spear fell on his back as he blundered among them.
“Hold him!”
They got his arms and legs. Ralph, carried away by a sudden thick excitement, grabbed Eric’s spear and jabbed at Robert with it.
“Kill him! Kill him!”
All at once, Robert was screaming and struggling with the strength of frenzy. Jack had him by the hair and was brandishing his knife. Behind him was Roger, fighting to get close. The chant rose ritually, as at the last moment of a dance or a hunt.
“Kill the pig! Cut his throat! Kill the pig! Bash him in!”
Ralph too was fighting to get near, to get a handful of that brown, vulnerable flesh. The desire to squeeze and hurt was over-mastering.

What are the similarities to Simon's death here, directly?

• The boys form a circle, under the leadership of Jack and close in.


• A boy stands in for a 'pig', or 'the beast'.


• Ralph finds himself, against his will and better judgement, involved with the pig hunt.


• Someone gets hurt - Robert screams here in 'real pain'.


• The boys act as a group hunting down an individual.


• The boys seems to know that they are hurting another human.

Hope it helps!

How successful was Wilson in elisting the forces of humanity to help child labores, farmers, and railroad and federal workers?U.S. History

Assuming you mean US progressive President Woodrow Wilson.  while he was certainly a progressive, Wilson was also quite distracted during his two terms by a World War, and his desire for a permanent peace afterwards.  On the domestic front, workers did make some gains, there were child labor laws put in place, a minimum wage (of sorts) established, but worker safety did not improve much, nor did unions make significant gains.  In fact, Wilson allowed a backlash against communism during the First Red Scare that drug some union workers and leaders into the net of the Attorney General's office, wrongfully so. I don't give him very high marks.

What thematic idea is embodied in Hawthrone's use of a "magic circle" or "circle" surrounding Hester and Pearl throughout the novel?This reference...

In Chapter II of "The Scarlet Letter," Hawthorne writes,

Those who had before known her [Hester], and had expected to behold her dimmed and obscured by a disastrous cloud, were astonished, and even startled, to perceive how her beauty shone out, and made a halo of the misfortune and ignominy in which she was enveloped.  It may be true, that, to a sensitive observer, there was something exquisitely painful in it.

One of Hawthorne's themes is the Individual vs. Society.  By the use of this "halo" or "circle" around Hester and her child, the conflict of the individual against a restrictive society becomes apparent.  As a child born of Nature--"worthy to have been brought forth in Eden"(Ch. VI)--and not within the restrictive Puritan society, Pearl does not get along with the other children who are cruel to her:

Pearl was a born outcast of the infantile world....the destiny that had drawn an inviolable circle round about her; the whole peculiarity, in short, of her position in respect to other children....the little Puritans, being of the most intolerant brood that ever lived...

And, as she plays, Pearl sometimes makes a circle herself; that is, she surrounds the scarlet A with weeds, a reminder to her mother of her terrible isolation.

Later, in Chapter XXII, "The Procession," as Dimmesdale in his ethereal state passes Hester without recognition, Hester senses within herself

that her whole orb of life, both before and after, was connected with this spot [the scaffold] as with the one point that gave it unity.

So the circle is represented here as the circle of the round scaffold which isolates and defines Hester.  Isolated from the community by her sin, Hester has come to be defined by the letter that she wears upon her bosom.  True, the meanings of the A change, but the end result is Hester's aloneness and conflict with society.  Yet, although the readers' sympathies are attached to the individual's freeing him/herself of the circular constraints of society --Dimmesdale's exposure of his letter and his confession, Hester's going to England after Dimmesdale dies--Hester returns to the humble cottage and picks up the scarlet A and willingly replaces it upon her clothing. Evidently, Hester cannot break free of her misfortune and ignominy imposed upon her by the restrictive Puritan society.

What are the definitions of: Connotation, Denotation, Imagery, Hyperbole, Imperative, Paradox, Parable, Juxtaposition?

Connotation refers to the implied meanings that words/statements have.  Much of modern slang relies on connotation for its meaning, because the literal meanings do not make sense. For example, "home" usually implies more than a place of residence.  Its connotation could be "a place of warmth, security, or safety."  The connotation goes beyond the literal meaning.

Denotation, on the other hand, refers to the actual literal definition for a given term.  It is stripped of any additional cultural (or idiomatic) meaning.  The denotation of "home" would be a place of residence.  Anything else that is implied by the term would not be included in its denotation.

Imagery refers to the figurative description or illustration in rhetoric.  Essentially, it is a rhetorical description that creates an image in the reader's mind.  Imagery often surfaces more than once within a given literary work.

Hyperbole refers to an intentional exaggeration or overstatement.  Hyperboles are not meant to be taken literally; instead, they serve to create added emphasis.  For example, "to wait an eternity" rather than "to wait a long time."

Imperative refers to an obligatory statement, often used to emphasize a point.  It is generally stated very directly, most often in the form of a command.

Paradox is a term that refers to a statement, person, or situation that is self-contradictory,false, or runs counter to popularly-held assumptions.

A Parable is a story designed to illustrate or teach a lesson of some kind, whether it is moral or religious.

Juxtaposition refers to the placing of two ideas, people, or things next to each other as a means of comparison.

Please list the platitudes used in "Good Country People". "Good Country People" by Flannery O'Connor

Here are some more flat, dull remarks from the dull Mrs. Hopewell (isn't her name ironically perfect!):

"Everybody is different"

"It takes all kinds to make the world."

"Nothing is perfect."

"...not the kind that you would want to be around you for very long."

"people who looked on the bright side of things would be beautiful even if they were not."

"she didn't have a grain of sense."

"a smile never hurt anyone."

"You said a mouthful." (the Bible salesman utters this one)

"overflow with hospitality"

"we all have work to do"

"His breath was clear and sweet like a child's"

These platitudes demonstrate the torpid mind of Mrs. Hopewell who is deceived by the Bible salesman.  They also throw into sharp contrast the grotesque ending to O'Connor's "Good Country People" after the utterance of a platitude by Mrs. Hopewell: "I guess the world would be better off if we all all that simple" in reference to the Bible salesman.  Mrs. Freeman then remarks, "Some can't be that simple...."

In Ethan Frome, what makes Ethan a tragic hero?

Ethan's tragedy lies in what his life could have become had he been able to free himself from Starkfield, first as a very young man and then later at the age of 28. When he was very young, Ethan was intellectually curious and full of dreams; he was very sociable. He wanted to move away from tiny, isolated Starkfield to live in a busy city where life was exciting and full of possibilities. This was not to be, for Ethan's adult life would be largely determined by chance and circumstance.

He was born into poverty, the only child of farm people who worked hard but never got ahead financially. The Frome farm provided only a bare existence, but it was the family farm handed down through generations. Ethan was tied to the farm by tradition and by responsibility. When his father died and his mother became ill, he had to give up school and return. It never occurred to him he had a choice.

The farm was located miles from Starkfield, a small New England village. When winter came, those who lived on outlying farms were sentenced to months of cold, silent isolation by the heavy snowfalls that descended every year. Transportation was crude; roads were impassable. Loneliness arrived along with the blizzards. It was his fear of the overwhelming loneliness that prompted Ethan to marry Zeena after his mother died. He could not bear to spend a winter alone on the farm. If his mother had died in the spring, Ethan later realized, he would not have married Zeena. The timing of his mother's death effectively determined the remainder of Ethan's life.

Through chance and circumstance, Ethan meets Mattie Silver. She just happened to be available to come to care for the sickly Zeena because of her own difficult family circumstances. Once Mattie comes into Ethan's life, the tragedy of what his life had become intensifies. Had he never met Mattie, Ethan most likely would have lived out his life, numb to his own misery, and died to be buried next to his wife in the Frome family cemetery. After loving Mattie, though, Ethan cannot endure the thought of living as he had lived before her arrival. Again, chance and circumstance determine his fate. He is too poor to provide for Zeena and take Mattie away, and his suicide attempt fails when he does not succeed in driving the sled directly into the big elm tree. Consequently, he is crippled, Mattie is paralyzed, and Zeena becomes her caretaker. The three of them remain trapped together on the farm.

Ethan's tragedy is that his life was wasted; the future he could have had was unfilled. All he could have become was lost. He found love, but he found it too late, and the memory of the girl Mattie had once been surely tortured him. His spirit became as cold and barren as the Starkfield winters. Heroically, some would say, Ethan struggled against forces he could not defeat, and once he was defeated, he endured.

What is Dee's idea of heritage in the story "Everyday Use" by Alice Walker?

Dee's idea of heritage involves things.  In contrast, Maggie's and Mama's idea of heritage involves people.  Dee wants the quilts and anything else that she thinks she can connect back to her African or early American roots to display or show people.  When Mama asks Dee why she wants the quilts, she tells her that she wants to "hang them" and says with disgust:

"Maggie can't appreciate these quilts! . . . She'd probably be backward enough to put them to everyday use. . . . They're priceless! . . . Maggie would put them on the bed and in five years they'd be in rags. Less than that!"

For Dee, things such as clothing, name changes, even boyfriend choice represent her heritage--her desire to "go back to Africa."  She does not realize that those things have nothing to do with who she was or who she has become.

For Mama and Maggie, their heritage is wrapped up in the people who created it.  Maggie wants the quilts because they represent not only the work of her own hands but also time spent with her loved ones--those who had gone on before her.  There is sentimental value to their heritage because of its personal connection to humans.  Dee's heritage is purely materialistic, and therefore, changeable.

Why might Percy Bysshe Shelly have capitalized the words King of Kings, Works, Mighty, and Wreck in his poem "Ozymandias"?

In his poem "Ozymandias," Shelley uses capitalization to point out one main thing, and that is that egotism and pride have short shelf lives; they don't last very long, and no matter how grand or powerful you were in your lifetime, eventually, everyone forgets and your power wanes.  If you take note of the words you listed above, and how they are capitalized, Shelley is emphasizing how Ozymandias thought himself quite grand and royal at one point.  He was not just a king, he was a King of Kings!  He did not just accomplish many works in his lifeteime, he accomplished Works of great significance and importance.  He challenges not only the mighty to worship him, but the Mighty; he is greater even than the mightiest of the Mighty.  Adding capitalization to these words is a way to show how the ruler had grandiose assumptions about himself.  He capitalizes his own titles, giving himself supreme importance.  One has to assume that he instructed the inscription to be placed on the sculpture, so his selective capitalization reveals his own high opinion of himself.

Then, Shelley throws in the curve ball when he capitalizes Wreck.  All of the greatness, the Mightiness, the Kingliness of this man, is now a Wreck.  Not just a tiny wreck, not just a minor wreck, but a capital Wreck.  Just as the ruler considered himself mighty in life, so is his demise, the Wreck that is now the ruins of his domain, and the nothingness that remains of his kingdom.  I hope that those thoughts help; good luck!

Question about The Lady of the Barge by W.W. JACOBS.A FRIEND OF MINE JUST BROUGHT ME A BOOK THAT SHE PURCHASED 35 YEARS AGO TITLEDTHE LADY OF THE...

Interesting question.  The Lady of the Barge is actually a collection of short stories.  It is important in the sense that it includes Jacobs' most famous work, the short story "The Monkey's Paw."  That story is widely anthologized, even though W. W. Jacobs fell into obscurity before his death in 1943.

The story which gives the book its title, "The Lady of the Barge," does not mention a swastika.  The original cover of the book depicts a rather plump lady on a barge (ironic, huh!) but no swastika.  Because Jacobs is British and passed away in 1943, the swastika has nothing to do with the negative connotation the Nazis gave it.  Additionally, the original version of the book was published in 1902.  The swastika might be connected to its original meaning of good luck or victory, because most of Jacobs stories are set near the shore or involve seafarers who are normally depicted as a superstitious bunch.  In fact, "The Monkey's Paw" deals with a paw which is supposed to bring its owner good luck; so the swastika could represent luck in general since several of the stories in the anthology discuss luck.

As far as your copy's worth, you might have a chance at getting a decent price for it.  I don't deal in collectibles, but if you have the 1943 publication, it's difficult to obtain; so some collectors may be interested in it.  Although Jacobs is not that popular of an author, because your book contains his most popular work, that might also be a selling point.

I hope that this helps!

Can you please help me write an essay on the topic "Lonliness" from "Of Mice and Men" in my own words?Thank you very much for all your help.

I think that in examining the characters in the novel, you might be able to derive some valuable information about the topic of loneliness.  I would start off with George.  Where is he lonely?  How can we see loneliness in his heart and spirit?  Certainly, you can start off with the ending and having to put down Lennie in the face of the lynch mob.  Pay attention to how Steinbeck describes this and the feelings George experiences afterwards.  It would be appropriate to argue that Lennie and George always travelled together and there was a relationship between the two of them predicated on George's care (There are plenty of quotes where George says this, where Lennie believes this, and where Steinbeck asserts this.)  If this is true, when Lennie is gone, George must experience a physical and emotional sense of emptiness.  Finally, I would suggest that George is also lonely because his hopes and faith that things will work out for him are dashed significantly.  The weakness of Curly's wife and the cruelty of Curly and the mob prove to George that social harmony is not possible in the life he is leading.  This contributes to a sense of loneliness.  I think you could also extrapolate this to talking about how George is animated and inspired by his dreams.  Both big and small, owning a farm with Lennie or skipping work to go to a ball game, George believes in the motivating power and the successful element of his dreams.  When they are dashed, when he does not make it big, and when success is not evident, there might be a feeling of loneliness here, too.  When dreams are all one has and they are dashed, despair and abandonment are quite natural feelings.  You can find some evidence and thoughts from the book in this realm, as well.

How does Montag feel about losing his old burnt-in smile?

If you've ever stood near an open fire, especially when it's cold outside, you've felt the "fiery smile" to which you refer. It's that feeling like the expression on your face is going to be fixed in place by the heat from the fire.  The narration refers to this smile on Montag's face in the book's third paragraph.  Montag feels this burnt-in smile because he's been a fireman for a long time and as the opening sentence states, "it was a pleasure to burn", meaning that Montag liked his job.  It was what he was trained to do and all that he knew to do.  He'd been indoctrinated, as had most of the people in his society, to believe that what he was doing was the only right thing to do.  He'd been brainwashed to believe that their society was the correct society.  It wasn't until after he met Clarisse that he really started to think about things.  His curiosity was always present (we know that because he's already had books hidden before he met Clarisse since when he got home after having met her for the first time, he looks up at his ventilator grille where the books are hidden), but he never did anything thinking about it or about why he was curious.  Once Clarisse planted that seed in him though, with the question, "Are you happy?", Montag does begin to question his life and his society.  When he starts this questioning and he starts to look at life through clearer eyes, he sees their society for what it is.  He understands that they are all blind and isolated because they don't think, they don't read, they don't interact with one another on a personal level.  By the time Montag goes to Faber to enlist his help in getting copies of books made and in bringing down their society, Montag is pleased that the burnt-in smile is gone. He knows that now, if he smiles, it is not fixed in place by the heat of the flames.  He knows that any smile he makes now is made from freedom and not fire.

What are the emerging sectors in Indian economy?

There will be multiple answers to this question, as different individuals will have divergent approaches to the issue of economy.  I would say that an emerging sector of the Indian economy would be energy development and the realization of energy alternatives.  India is a nation that is consuming a great deal of energy, such as traditional oil and burning of fossil fuels for factories.  I think as the demand, both in India and worldwide, increases, there will be a need to explore energy alternatives such as solar, biofuel, and wind energy, where sector emergence could transpire. The growing demand for products from abroad might create the import/ export sector as one of growth.   Certainly, Information Technology as well as telecommunications represent growth sectors in the economic structure, and there is little reason to believe that these domains will not continue their increase.  Additionally, real estate development and speculation might experience growth because of the population demands and the need for more property development in cities.  Since a large portion of India is rural, agriculture should continue to be a growth industry, and if more innovations in research can reach these areas, growth in farming and agriculture can constitute a growth sector.

What was Holden’s attitude towards the teachers? Compare his opinion about Spencer and Antolini.

Holden has done well in one subject, English, at Pencey Prep, because he had the same assignments at his former school. Holden considers Mr. Antolini, his former English teacher at Elkton Hills, the best teacher he ever had.

Holden has great respect for Mr. Antonili, he looks up to him, when he has no place left to go, when he is in NYC, he calls him and ends up sleeping on his couch.

It is clear that Holden also had feelings for his History teacher at Pencey Prep, Mr. Spencer, because once he knows that he is not coming back to school after the holiday vacation, he goes to Spencer's house to say goodbye, because the older man is home sick with the grip.

Spencer is an older man than Antolini, and when Holden goes over to visit him, he can hardly stand looking at him in his pajamas, the smell of Vicks ointment is overpowering. He has failed Mr. Spencer's class, but still cares about the teacher, so much so that on his exam, instead of answering the question in full, he writes Mr. Spencer an apology note about being sorry for not knowing enough about the Ancient Egyptians. He respects Mr. Spencer, but once the older man starts to lecture Holden about taking life seriously and performing academically, he makes a quick exit from his house.

Holden calls Mr. Antolini, who he thinks is really cool, when he has no place else to go while in NYC. Once he gets to the Antolini apartment, he realizes that they have been drinking and partying with friends. Mr. Antolini scares Holden a little bit here, but he is so exhausted, that he accepts the offer to sleep on his couch.

Suddenly, Holden wakes up with a start to discover his teacher, Mr. Antolini stroking his face while he slept. He jumps up and runs out of the apartment, frightened that Antolini was making homosexual advances at him.

Holden sees Mr. Spencer more like a grandfather, an older man, someone he respects. Mr. Antolini is a cool swinger to Holden, until he appears to make advances at him, then he runs for his life.

What is the outcome in "The Tell-Tale Heart"? Is there a value or a moral we should be getting from this story?

If you have read the story, hopefully you know what the outcome of it is; if you haven't read it, I recommend it.  It's one of Poe's most engaging and interesting stories, and it isn't very long.  The ending is awesome; I provided a link to the story below.  To sum up, the cops come by asking questions about the old guy that disappeared, and the narrator, so cocky about his cleverness in the murder, sits them all down right on top of the floorboards that old man is buried under.  Then, the narrator starts thinking that he hears the old man's heart beating.  It gets louder and louder and the narrator assumes the cops must hear it too, and after a few minutes, in a fit of desperacy, he confesses his murder.

The lessons or morals that we can take away from this story are several.  1.  Guilt is our worst tormentor, and will always drive us to do what is right.  The narrator thought he was above guilt, but it manifested itself in the form of the beating heart, and drives him to confession in the end.  2.  Pride goes before the fall; the narrator was so cocky and proud that he brings the cops right to the scene of the crime.  Poe doesn't let his pride win though; in the end, he confesses.  3.  This is rather trite, but don't murder people.  So, those are a few lessons that one can take away from this story.  I hope that those thoughts help; good luck!

How did Eddie Carbone in View From the Bridge cause his own tragedy?What is the reason behind Eddie Carbone's problems?

It is clear from the play that Eddie is constantly engaged in creating and protecting his own personal world of illusion where he can remain blind from the significance of his actions and his own true feelings. This is what motivates Eddie: supreme self-interest. Because of the success of his imagined world he never is truly aware of his feelings for Catherine and the only outlet he has for his feelings are invested in suspicion and hatred of Marco and Rodolpho, which causes him to commit completely irrational and unforgiveable acts. It is this that is so tragic about Eddie, and what ultimately causes his tragic end. His inability to recognise and accept the bubble world he has created causes it to turn into a prison from which he is fated never to escape. The irrational actions he starts to "protect" (as he sees it) Catherine from the attentions of Rodolpho then lead to a vain quest to regain his honour by challenging Marco, which ends in his death.

What is white revolution?please can you give me answer in detail like when it happen for what reason did it happen.

One can tell by the previous answers that there is a question as to which White Revolution is referred to by this question.  Since the Iranian White Revolution is expanded upon nicely by the most recent answer, let me take the Indian White Revolution a bit further for you.

The Indian revolution in the title is "white" because of one important, nutrient-rich product:  milk.  In the mid 20th century, India increased its milk production.  It originated with Dr. Verghese Kurian at Anand in Gujarat State (otherwise known as "Amul") of District Co-operative Milk Producers Union.  Further, "Operation Flood" was set forth in 1970 due to the request of the National Dairy Development Board.  This was important in that it made India the largest producer of milk in the entire world, even surpassing the United States!  As a result, dairy farming increased employment in India by leaps and bounds!

What is interesting is it's not just milk that increased in production, but many agricultural commodities.  Therefore the term "Green Revolution" in India is actually more common. 

Is Saul Bellow's "Seize the Day" an American novel? Why? What does the title of the novel tell you about the American strategy of success in life?

There is much in Bellow's work that represents what it means to be America.  The title of "seizing the day" is a very American concept, as part of the supposed American dream is this idea of taking ownership of opportunity and acting within the moment to make one's dreams a reality.  Yet, the interesting aspect about Bellow's take on the American dream is his examination of its failure.  When we envision the American Dream, the images conjured up are those of success:  Self made, self initiated paragons of success, skill, and a bit of luck. For every one of these visions, there has to be at least ten others that failed and these stories lack publicity.  Bellow's work seems to be devoted to these stories in Tommy Wilhelm.  His "seizing the day" moments, where he sought to live out his dream, have resulted in successive failures.  His desire to go to Hollywood to become an actor, his commitment to it for years, his dream of playing the market, even his dream of being with another woman outside of his wife have all resulted in futility.  Each separate action is an integral part of American conceptions of success and happiness, actions that require a person on some level to "seize the day."  Yet, where Bellow's work is uniquely American is to examine the failure in striving for the American dream.  When one envisions "seizing the day," the image is not a mid life crisis waiting to happen, yet that is the result in Bellow's work.  Perhaps the only time where we see Tommy embody the creed of "seizing the day" in an effective manner is at the end of the work when we weeps openly at the funeral for he is not weeping at the corpse in front of him, but rather at his own attempts at the American dream.  In this moment, Tommy has taken the moment and owned it.  The American strategy success for life of instant fame and wealth, unparallelled success fueled by endless optimism is called into question when Tommy weeps for his own American dreams.

Is Dorcas in Jazz by Toni Morrison a black girl? If so, why does Morrison call her "the cream at top of the milk"?

In Toni Morrison's Jazz, Dorcas Manfred is an 18-year-old black girl with whom Joe falls in love.  She is described as "the cream at the top of the milk" because she has a light complexion.  Moreover, Joe is married to Violet and obviously he should not be having an affair with another woman--particularly one who is just a girl--yet Joe finds Dorcas irresistable.  Dorcas is highly motivated to explore her sexuality, so she enters the affair with Joe to see what it will bring.  Joe is happy to be with Dorcas because she is young and beautiful, and he goes to all ends to hide the affair and keep it going.  He is so taken by Dorcas that a jealous rage causes him to shoot her one night at a party.  So Morrison's description of Dorcas is intended to portray her and beautiful and desirable.

What are the scenes where you can see obviously Jack's characterization/features?

In chapter 1, when we first meet Jack, we can see that he likes to be in charge and he likes to exert his authority as he makes the choir boys wear their long, dark robes and hats and march to the beach despite the heat.  He is head chorister and he uses that position to make the boys do what he wants.  At the end of the chapter, when he hesitates and does not kill the pig, he says, "Next time..." and this shows us that he is ashamed of his humanity in the hesitation to kill.  At the start of chapter 2, Jack breaks in on what Ralph is trying to say at their first official meeting and declares that an army of hunters is needed.  This is typical of Jack, asserting his ideas and being insistent with those ideas.  Almost every scene Jack is in shows us aspects of his personality, especially the negative aspects.  A bit later, in that same meeting at the beginning of chapter 2, Jack excitedly declares they need to have rules and it is clear that he is more interested in what will happen to the rule-breakers than he is in the rules themselves.  His violent, dictatorial nature is evident from the very start of the novel.  At the beginning of chapter 3, we have a vivid description of Jack as he goes through the hunting process.  His savage nature is evident in his hunting method.  In the middle of chapter 3, an argument occurs between Ralph and Jack that shows the developing animosity between these two which continues to grow throughout the story.  In chapter 4, when Jack paints his face and realizes that it creates the perfect mask for him to hide any civility he does not want to emerge, we see that he has become a savage.  Again, almost every time he appears, more of his personality is shaped.

Which are the raw materials for manufacturing ceramic products and cement?

The raw materials required for manufacturing of cement are calcium carbonate, silica, alumina and iron ore. Due to environmental concerns industrial by-products and solid wastes like Pulverised Fly Ash (PFA) are also used as additives or to replace some natural  raw materials in the process. The process of manufacture is energy intensive and there are environmental concerns due to the particulate emissions involved.
The ceramics are of various types but mainly consists of aluminium oxide, zirconium oxide, silicon dioxide although metal, composite based varieties are also in use. Special classes with carbides, titanates, ferrites and nitride bases are processed for specific applications.

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Please give as much information you can about Mrs. Dubose in "To Kill a Mockingbird."I have a newspaper article project, and I need help with...

If you are writing an obituary for Mrs. Henry LaFayette Dubose of "To Kill a Mockingbird," you will need to make up some things such as her age, to whom she was married, the names of any surviving relatives such as children and what towns/cities they are from as well as who the pallbearers are. (Atticus Finch, e.g.)  For, these are always included in the obituaries of small town newspapers.

That Mrs. Dubose battled a long illness would also be included; also, she was known throughout the town for her beautiful camellias.  Because she was a staunch Southern woman in her opinions, she was probably a member of the Daughters of the Confederacy. And, with the name Lafayette Dubose, her husband may have been related to the Marquis Lafayette who fought in the American Revolutionary War.

Use your imagination to fill in information not provided, but be sure to make this information "in character" with Mrs. Dubose.  Remember that Scout described her as the "meanest old woman who ever lived" because she scolded the children as they walked down the street.

What does it mean when president Jefferson says that "slavery is a wolf America holds by the ears?"I read this on page 168. I also would like to...

Simile of holding wolf by the ears to describe Americas position in relation to slavery was used by Jefferson several times. For example, the website referred below gives the following two quotations.

But as it is we have the wolf by the ears, we can neither hold him, nor let him safely go. Justice is in one scale, and self preservation in the other.  - Thomas Jefferson to John Holmes, 1820.

We have the wolf by the ear and feel the danger of either holding or letting him loose.  - Thomas Jefferson to Lydia Huntley Sigourney, 1824.

Clearly Jefferson was pointing to the fact that it is undesirable and very difficult for America to hold on to slavery because of the consideration of justice and equality, which were central to the concept of America as a nation. Jefferson also felt that pressure of growing opposition to slavery within America. At the same time he felt that abolition of slavery will create other problems, which he likened to the problems of letting the wolf go. The wolf will not just go away. Once released it will harm the person holding him by ears. By this Jefferson was pointing out to the economic problems that will be faced by doing away with the cheap labour available through the institution of slavery.

How is Ender considered a hero in "Ender's Game"? Give two examples from the book.

Ender was a hero to the people because he was able to not only destroy the "Buggers" but he also destroyed their home planet.  Ender had saved the world and the people loved him and worshiped him as a hero, but they also were afraid of him and he was unable to return to earth.  After the final battle Card writes:

"Men in uniform were hugging eachother, laughing shouting; others were weeping; some knelt or lay prostrate, and Ender knew they were caught up in prayer."

"Colonel Graff detached himself from the others and came to Ender.  Tears streamed down his face, buth he was smiling.  He bet over, reached out his arms, and to Ender's surprise he embraced him held him tightly, and whispered, "Thank you, Thank you Ender.  Thank God for you Ender." (pg 255)

In "The Crucible" what would Elizabeth Proctor write in a letter to her condemned husband John Proctor?The letter should detail her grievances, any...

The best source for ideas on this one can be found in the play itself, at the end of Act Four, when Elizabeth and John talk.  In this poignant exchange between the two of them, John expresses a desire for forgiveness for what he has done.  Elizabeth states,

"I have sins of my own to count.  It needs a cold wife to prompt lechery...I counted myself so plain, so poorly made, no honest love could come to me."

In that vulnerable and touching confession, Elizabeth admits that she had been cold and unkind to her husband, and that certainly didn't help matters.  She was cold and unkind because she was insecure; she thought she was too plain and unlovable to have his affection.  Her own self-loathing drove her to turn from him.

If you look at that conversation as a guide for her letter, it will help a lot.  I would start the letter off with general news of how she is doing in the jail, how her pregnancy is going.  Then, move on to the topic of her feelings that she refers to above:  how she regrets her behavior towards him, how she wishes she had been more kind.  I would also have her express remorse for their lives that are lost, but also, as she does in real conversation in the play, try to offer him support in whatever decision he decides to make.  Elizabeth, in the end of the play, doesn't force her will on him.  Rather, she states,"As you will I would have it," and lets him go to the gallows, because he had chosen to do so.  So, in the letter, I would have her express encouragement to him, coaxing him to trust himself and believe in himself to do the right thing.

I hope that those thoughts help a bit; it's an interesting assignment, and gratefully, the play provides a lot of clues as to what was on her mind during those hard times in prison.  Good luck!

What techniques has the author used to emphasize racial prejudice in "To Kill a Mockingbird"?

Racial prejudice and its terrible effects are emphasized in the novel through Harper Lee's development of plot and character. The main plot, Tom Robinson's trial and its aftermath, shows the ugliness and tragic injustice of racism. Tom is a good man, a kind man who tries to help Mayella Ewell. As a result, she accuses him of rape to avoid the shame of having been attracted to a young black man. Atticus raises serious questions in court that a rape ever occurred, shows that Tom could not have beaten Mayella, and establishes that Bob Ewell most likely had beaten his daughter. Despite the evidence, Tom is convicted of a capital crime; he is a victim of racism and centuries of Southern culture. In his desperation at the prison farm, he breaks down, runs with nowhere to go, and is shot and killed. The cruel injustice of the destruction of Tom Robinson serves as the novel's strongest and most compelling condemnation of racism.

Racial prejudice is also addressed through the development of the character of Atticus Finch. Through Atticus, the evils of prejudice are clearly and consistently brought into the novel. Atticus speaks often to his children of the prejudice that surrounds them, trying to protect them from Maycomb's "usual disease." By example, he teaches them that a good person will stand up against it. The most dramatic example of this is the scene at the jail when Atticus faces a lynch mob to prevent Tom from being lynched. His taking Tom's case is another example. He makes Jem and Scout understand that he must help Tom because taking his case and doing his best to defend him is a matter of moral principle. Atticus knows that his fighting for Tom will not be without consequence, and he is right. The manner in which most of his neighbors condemn him shows the prejudice he opposes. Also, Bob Ewell's attack on Jem and Scout show the near-tragic results of Atticus' hatred of racial prejudice and his devotion to justice.

What is the theme of "The Masque of the Red Death"?

There are several themes in "The Masque of the Red Death". The central theme is that no man escapes death. The other central theme is that time passes no matter what one might attempt to do thereby causing death to come no matter what.

The other theme is madness or insanity. It is insane to have a ball in the middle of the plague ravaged country. Prince Prospero may be the narrator of the story, and as such may also be the madman. Poe is the genius of the disturbed interior monologue. The ball may simply be a figment of the disturbed mind of a madman.

At the stroke of midnight, the partygoers are confronted with a newcomer to the party. This person is costumed in such a manner that he appears to be a victim of the "red death" a type of plague that causes bleeding from the pores of the body. One might now call it a type of Ebola virus based on the symptoms given in the story.  The partygoers have not escaped the red death, it has come to visit them.

The passage of time is also noteworthy as each of the guests pause as the clock strikes the hour proving that they have escaped death and this plague for a measurable period of time. They breathe a sigh of relief and return to their revelry. This works until midnight when a previously unnoticed guest arrives clad in the death robes and smeared with blood. This costume is so like the appearance of a victim of the red death that Prince Prospero and the guests are shocked and then angered. However, the guest is the red death.  The guests have not escaped the plague, and time stops for each one of them as they die.

What is the theme of A Great and Terrible Beauty?

According to Libba Bray herself, the central theme of A Great and Terrible Beauty is the power of choices, repression versus liberty, and understanding the right and wrong of power itself.

The choices that Gemma makes as she experiments with her newfound powers help her understand about consequences, and the fine line between good and bad when power is involved.

What is the conflict of Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry?person vs. society etc.

The conflict in the novel is primarily racial. Even though the text begins much later, it has it's roots with the Logan's acquisition of part of Mr. Granger's land which he had to sell during reconstruction to cover the taxes for the rest of his land.

Historically speaking, land symbolized political emancipation and agency in America. At the founding stages of the country, only land-owning, white males were allowed to vote.

The Logan family's land thus gives them roots, history and symbolic rights. The conflict arises because whites attempt repeatedly to undermine those rights, but they do so in subtle ways and quite often outside the confines of the law. The incident when Cassie bumps into Lillian Jean is a good example. In the 1930, even the the Jim Crow Laws were quite intact and segregation well enforced, there was certainly no written protocol to follow when a black girl accidentally bumps into a white girl on the sidewalk. Mr. Simms gets involved in what is essentially a  scuffle between two children. He literally puts Cassie in her place by pushing her into the road, something he would never do to a white child. The racial conflict is thus overarching and pervasive in the narrative, but this incident also illustrates that it grows out bounds and breeds a hatred that knows no boundaries. Other examples are the burning of Mr. Berry and the threatened lynching of T.J.

How does the town of Maycomb function as a character with its own personality, rather than just a backdrop for the story's events?

Have you ever seen the movie, The Music Man?  There is something about the functioning of Maycomb as a town in To Kill a Mockingbirdthat always reminds me of the function of the town in the movie.  I guess the best question to ask yourself about Maycomb's role in the book is to ask whether the plot of this story could have occurred in another kind of town.  For me, the answer to that question is that it would have been a very different story. 

Maycomb represents the best and worst of small-town America, in my opinion, and certainly represents the best and worst of small Southern towns in that era. As in many small towns, people are closely connected.  Scout tells us, "Atticus was related by blood or marriage to nearly every family in town (5).  People are more interested in the doings of others in the town because this is a source of entertainment.  Scout says everyone in the town was slow-moving because there was nowhere in particular to go. There isn't even a "picture show."  Church was Maycomb's "principal recreation" (9).  In a town like this, racial and class divisions are clear and important, and because everyone is closely connected to everyone else, whatever anyone does becomes everyone's business.  Of course, in a town like this, the close connections also provide an incredibly supportive network for people, who help one another and watch out for one another. 

Now, suppose for a moment that the events in the story had taken place in New York City, or even in Atlanta, which was a fairly large city even in the time in which the story is set.  People would not have been so involved with one another.  They would have minded their own business. They might not have even known the names of their neighbors.  Atticus would not have been paid in farm produce, the children would not have been permitted to roam at will, and nobody would have reported their activities to Atticus.  A trial might not have been of much interest to anyone. The racial and class divisions would not have been as apparent, since people in large cities tend to not be as connected to one another. 

Those are just a few differences that would have existed in a different setting.  I am sure you can think of at least a few more for yourself.  All of these differences support the idea that the kind of place Maycomb is is central to this novel. 

What role do GOALS play in any company's planning for recession?please explain me in detail..thanks!

Recession or boom, goals play a very important and similar role in a company's planning.

Simply put, goals are the results a company wishes and tries to produce, and planning is the process of deciding the means and methods of achieving the goals. Unless there are goals to be achieves, there is no basis for deciding what course of action is appropriate and what is not. Unless we know where we want to go, we cannot decide if a road we take is the right or wrong one.

The only difference in relevance of goals in time of recession and boom is the nature of goals. In boom time the goals may be more growth oriented, whereas in time of recession it might be better on goals of consolidating the business and tiding over the difficult times.

In "The Gift of the Magi", how do Jim and Della prove themselves the wisest? What do you think of their love and sacrifice?

In The Gift of the Magi, Jim and Delia express their love in the total sacrifice they make in order to buy each other a special gift for Christmas.  Each gives up his or her most prized possession, of which they have only one, in order to obtain money to buy the other a special gift.

O Henry illustrates the nature of sacrificial love through the couple's behavior, and when they discover that they have each bought a useless gift for the other, now in light of their original sacrifice, they are content to bask in the love expressed by the others action to provide a special gift for the one they love.

Their love is pure, true and deep.  Jim and Delila love each other not because of material wealth or for what the other owns, but for the depth of love that each possesses for the other.  The fact that Jim and Delia are capable of making such a great sacrifice for love indicates that their union, their marriage is based on a lasting virtue, and not on superficial or temporary grounds.

Jim and Delia share a love that is both timeless and eternal, and O Henry uses the couple to illustrate the depth of love that is expressed by the three wise men who knelt at the foot of the manger that bore the Christ child.

He compares the love of this couple to the all powerful love that is expressed in the birth of the Savior in the Christian tradition of Christmas when the three wise men paid homage to him.

In "To Kill a Mockingbird" in what ways is Jem "coming of age"?

In chapter 23, there is a passage where Scout notices that Jem is changing in appearances lately.  She notices that

"his eyebrows were becoming heavier, and...a new slimness about his body.  He was growing taller."

Then, Jem proudly shows Scout his first chest hair, and tells her that he's "goin' out for football next year" also.  So, there are the physical changes that are mentioned in that chapter.  He is hitting a growth spurt, and starting the track to becoming more of a man in appearances.

Other ways that Jem "comes of age" throughout the novel are that he understands intricate human situations, like how his dad doesn't want to brag about being a good shot, and how, even though it upsets him, people can make the wrong decisions out of fear.  He is processing the world and figuring things out for himself.  He even analyzes people in Maycomb, and figures out that what separates people from each other is how long they've "been readin' and writin'", and concludes with some wisdom:

"I think I'm beginning to understand why Boo Radley's stayed shut up in the house all this time...it's because he wants to stay inside."

Jem has figured out that the world isn't an ideal place where everything fits nicely; he is losing that childhood naivety where kids think everything is happy and perfect.  He is coming of age in the sense that he is developing a more realistic view of people and the world around him.  I hope that those thoughts help; good luck!

In the final chapter Estella says to Pip: "Suffering has been stronger than all other teaching". Discuss the theme of suffering in this book,-...

1. Pip: Pip suffers both physically and emotionally from the beginning of the novel till its end. The novel begins with Pip being physically manhandled by Magwitch who holds him upside down. Throughout the novel Pip is physically and verbally and emotionally abused and humiliated by several people - his sister, Pumblechook, Miss Havisham, Bentley Drummle. In ch.9 we read of how all the adults bang poor Pip's head against the wall to make him relate what exactly he saw in Miss Havisham's house: "whitewash on the forehead hardens the brain into a state of obstinacy perhaps." And in ch.4 we find Pip summing up the pathetic state of his life:

"I was always treated as if I had insisted on being born, in opposition to the dictates of reason, religion, and morality, and against the dissuading arguments of my best friends."

This suffering continues till the end of the novel when he falls hopelessly in love with Estella only to be rejected by her, and to add insult to injury she marries his enemy Bentley Drummle.In ch.44 he pours out his heart to Estella and concludes mournfully:

"the rhapsody welled up within me like blood from an inward wound and gushed out."

In ch.49 he is almost burnt to death by trying to save Miss Havisham and till Joe comes and takes care of him he is in severe pain.

2. Miss Havisham: Miss Havisham suffers because she is cheated by her false lover Compeyson on her wedding day. Compeyson together with Arthur Havisham the half brother of Miss Havisham swindle all her money with the false promise that he will marry her. But on her wedding day he fails to turn up. Miss Havisham from that day locks herself up in her room and gradually disintegrates both physically and mentally. In Ch.8 Pip compares her to a 'living' corpse:

"now waxwork and skeleton seemed to have dark eyes that moved and looked at me."

In Ch.49 she is injured in a fire accident and in spite of Pip's best efforts she later dies.

3. Estella: Estella is the daughter of Magwitch and Molly. She is separated at birth from her mother by Jaggers and handed over to Miss Havisham her foster mother.  But unfortunately Estella instead of enjoying the love and affection of her "mother by adoption," ch.38  is used by her as an instrument of revenge against all men. She is constantly, mentally and emotionally abused by Miss Havisham and she reveals her mental anguish  in Ch.33:

"you did not gradually open your round childish eyes wider and wider to the discovery of that impostor of a woman."

Finally, she marries Bentley Drummle who abuses her physically and mentally and is relieved when he finally dies in an accident. Ch.59:

"I had heard of her as leading a most unhappy life and as being separated from her husband, who had used with great cruelty."

To conclude, suffering is indeed an important theme in "Great Expectations," especially in the lives of its three most important characters.

Name a place where two plates are sliding past each other.this is extrely important and would needed to be answerd right away so pleasr help!

One of the most important places in the United States where two plates are sliding past each other is in California along the San Andreas Fault. This fault line slices California in two. It begins in Cape Mendocino and runs south to the Mexican border. The fault is where the Pacific Palate and the North American Plate meet. The Eastern part of the plate which goes through San Diego, Los Angeles and Big Sur are on the Pacific plate and it is sliding North. The Western part of the plate which includes San Francisco, Sacramento and the Sierra Nevada mountain range are on the North American plate. It is sliding south. The movement is usually rather small, about one two two inches a year. However, once in a while, there is a large and/or fast movement which can result in an earthquake. The following link has a map of the fault line and more information.

In Beowulf, how long does it take Beowulf to reach the bottom of the lake before the fight with Grendel's mother?

The exact amount of time is not specificed:

He leaped into the lake, would not wait for anyone's

Answer; the heaving water covered him

Over. For hours he sank through the waves;

At last he saw the mud of the bottom

It took Beowulf several hours or perhaps even more to reach Grendel. Deeds such as this one develop Beowulf as mythical hero, emphasizing his great strength, endurance, and resolve.

In Of Mice and Men, who are the protagonists and antagonists and why?

While there are two major characters who serve to drive the action forward, and about whom the novel is mostly written, I think there is only one true protagonist in this story.

George is the character who undergoes a change from his idealism and belief in a dream to the acceptance of the grim reality in which the weak are victimized by the strong.  He tells the story of the ranch to Lennie over and over again to calm his friend and make him happy.  He is, after all, the protector, the "parental figure" to this large, overgrown child-man.  He admits to Candy that being with Lennie has changed him, as well.  He once picked on Lennie for his own amusement, but grew to appreciate Lennie's innocence and purity in a fallen world.  It is the ultimate "protection" that George offers Lennie at the end of the novel.  The protection from a life filled with meanness and cruelty.

Curly's wife, I believe, is the antagonist in the novel.  More complex than the other characters, she is portrayed as a "tart" or a "bitch" who seeks out the attention of other men while looking for her husband.  It is her loneliness and unhappiness with her situation that drives her to prey upon the weakness in Lennie and exploit his innocence for her own gain.  Curly is another antagonist, although he undergoes no significant change from the beginning of the novel to the end.

Curly's wife uses her looks and feminine nature to encourage the men, which sends Curly into rage.  It is the possessive jealousy he feels concerning his wife that overtakes him and leads to her demise. Together, Curly and his wife are the antagonistic forces which thwart George's attempts to succeed at fulfilling his dream with Lennie.

The depression era itself is another antagonist in the novel.  The hopelessness and desperation felt by many who were merely trying to survive is evident again and again.  It is the time in history--the combination of economic, cultural, and geographical events--that place obstacles in the path of reaching the American Dream.

What general idea does "Ode to a Nightingale " develop?

John Keats's "Ode to a Nightingale" presents the general idea of the conflicted nature of life:  pain/joy, pleasure/numbness, life/death, mortal/immortal, real/ideal.

The nightingale acts almost as a muse for the poet's reflections as he moves from his initial response to the song of the nightingale to the poet's distancing of himself from the bird in the final stanza.

For instance, in Stanza I the poet, whose

heart aches and a drowsy numbness pains/My sense, as though of hemlock

is touched by the bird's song, causing him to wish that he could reach a state of numb astraction with the bird and

,,,leave the world unseen, And with thee fade away into the forest dim

by becoming numb through drinking "a beaker full of the warm South."

As a transition into the next stanza, Keats repeats the word fade; however, fade moves into dissolve as Keats contemplates death, not just a numbness to pain as he moves to Stanza IV in which he tells the "darkling" that he has been

half in love with easeful Death," and "Now more than ever it seems rich to die,/To cease upon the midnight with no pain,/while thou art pouring forth thy sould aborad/In such an ectasy!

Here Keats separates himself from the nightingale as he realizes that the "immortal Bird" is not meant for death:  There is a continuum for it as the "self-same song" has been heard by Ruth and others of the ages.  He bids "Adieu!" to the bird as is "tolled" by the song back to his "sole self" and reminded of his mortality. With all these conflicting musings,  Keats wonders in the last line of the ode if his thoughts are merely illusionary, "a waking dream."

In The Giver by Lois lowery, what does it mean to be "politically correct" in the society?In "The Giver" by Lois Lowry, what does it mean to be...

The society Lowry depicts in this novel is one of complete conformity. Every citizen knows his or her role, complies with the society's expectations in all things, and has no opportunity for individual expression. Rituals such as Ceremonies at specific ages regulate every aspect of life, including the very personal such as sex and death.

A "politically correct" citizen, then, is simply one who conforms. The novel traces Jonas' development from a typical conformer to that of questioner, and finally, rebel. He learns through his training with the Giver that to see colors, hear music, feel love and desire, and most importantly, to save the infant Gabriel from Release (euthanasia for lack of conformity), he ultimately must leave the society for the unknown.

Please identify figures of speech in Percy Byshee Shelley's poem "To a Skylark."

A representative examination of the first three stanzas of "To a Skylark" by Percy Byshee Shelley shows that the poem has an abundance of figures of speech. Figures of speech come in many forms and are words or phrases that have either a figurative nonliteral meaning that enhances the concepts and images of the text along with having a literal meaning that fits the context of the narrative or word patterns that have an affect on the conceptual meaning and literal text through the word patterns.

Figures of speech are categorized under literary devices designated by the term trope. Schemes, which are figures of speech that similarly enhance meaning but are not tropes with nonliteral meanings, are also used by Shelley in "To a Skylark," but shemes deal with patterns of words, not literal and nonliteral meanings of words. For instance the type of word scheme called antimetabole occurs in the last line of the second stanza, which says,: "And singing still dost soar, and soaring ever singest." Note how the pattern of words appears in reverse order in the two halves of the line: descending to the middle of the line is, in a paraphrase, singing still soars, while ascending away from the middle is soaring still sings.

The poem opens with the trope figure of speech called an apostrophe in which an object or a nonhuman entity--in this case, the skylark--is spoken to as though it were a living human [apostrophes are also addressed to people who are absent or deceased]: "Hail to thee, blithe Spirit!" Don't be confused by the apostrophe being addressed in a metaphor to "Spirit!" The skylark is still being addressed as though it were a human being. There follows in the fourth line of the opening stanza a synecdoche in "thy full heart," wherein a physical object (i.e., "heart") is used to represent the whole (i.e., skylark). A  metonymy occurs in the fourth line of the second stanza: "The blue deep thou wingest." The "blue deep" is a suggestive specific object that represents a larger whole or general concept: In this case the metonymy of "blue deep" is standing for the Earth's physical atmosphere, or sky.

There are two similes, "Like a cloud of fire"--being also a Biblical allusion to the Hebrew tribe wandering in the desert after fleeing Egypt--and "Like an unbodied joy" in stanzas two and three, respectively. There is also one metaphor opening stanza three, "golden lightening," which paints a picture, an image, of rays from the sunset's "sunken sun" splaying out in golden rays to the clouds above and around.

How is the writing in The Road by Cormac McCarthy in some ways more like poetry than narrative prose?need examples

McCarthy's The Road is more like poetry than narrative prose for a couple of reasons, at least. Firstly it is entirely meditative. We see this post apocalyptic world through the meditations of the father and this is characteristic of any good poetry.

Secondly, it is not divided up like traditional novels are. There are sections, but these are more like flashbacks and such. Again, this is like poetry, specifically John Ashbery poetry as we see in "The System."

What are the themes presented in the book A Man For All Seasons?

There are multiple themes present in A Man for All Seasons including corruption, law and ethics. Corruption is observed by Richard Rich who  sells out his moral doctrine and his friend Thomas More for wealth and power. At first he is hesitant about offering his innocence for exchange with a position but at the end becomes dull and unconscious of his moral wrongdoings. Thomas More faces a dilemma between the King and the higher power of God. Despite Henry VIII's efforts to convert the entire country to Protestant, individuals like Thomas More decided that their religious belief trumped the order from the King and suffered the consequences of doing so.

In "The Cask of Amontillado," why does Montresor vow revenge on Fortunato?

The answer to this question can be found in the first few lines of the story itself, and more fully fleshed out with a little bit of inference, or guessing.  Montresor opens the story by stating that he had planned revenge, and he stated that he was upset at Fortunado for two main reasons.  He states:

"THE THOUSAND INJURIES of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge."

So, here he states two reasons:  1.  "Thousand injuries," and 2.  "insult".  So, apparently, Fortunado had inflicted thousands of injuries upon Montresor.  He probably doesn't mean literal physical injuries, probably more injuries to his pride, teasing, taunting, mocking, things of that sort.  So, for some reason that is not clear nor stated in the text, Montresor felt that Fortunado had slighted and injured him over and over again.  We don't know exactly what he did, but can guess that Fortunado probably just made Montresor feel offended or slighted--whether intentionally or simply from being clueless.  The second reason, insult, was probably a more direct insult directed at Montresor, but, they two seem like pretty good pals when the meet to discuss the wine, so Fortunado can't hold too much of a grudge against him.  But, Montresor feels insulted nevertheless, and vows revenge.

The revenge he enacts is cruel and vicious indeed, and one has to wonder whether or not the bumbling Fortunado actually deserved it.  I hope that those thoughts help a bit; good luck!

In act 4, what motivation does Proctor have for confessing?In act 4, what motivation does Proctor have for confessing? At the same time, why does...

John Proctor decides to confess his adultery with Abigail Williams to prove to the court that she has a motive for wanting to accuse Elizabeth Proctor of witchcraft.  Proctor wants to make very clear to the court that Abigail's desire to get rid of his wife is what has driven her to accuse Elizabeth and others of witchcraft.

Another reason that Proctor decides to confess is because he thinks that by bring the light of truth into the court with the hope that his startling confession, which is a charge that will jail him, will jolt the judges back to reality and stop the hysteria as it relates to the witch trials.

Another reason that Proctor decides to confess is to discredit Abigail in the eyes of the court.  Once Proctor brings the information to light about his affair with Abigail, a violation of the Puritan religious code of behavior, the judges look at her differently.

"A man may think God sleeps, but God sees everything, I know it now. I beg you, sir, I beg you—see her what she is. . . . She thinks to dance with me on my wife’s grave! And well she might, for I thought of her softly. God help me, I lusted, and there is a promise in such sweat. But it is a whore’s vengeance." (Miller)

An unmarried woman having an adulterous affair with a married man is a big no no.  She would definitely lose credibility in the eyes of the judges and they would question her truthfulness after such a discovery.

"His determination to expose Abigail's false accusations eventually leads him to admit his own adultery to the court. He is at his most self-aware in his final speech when he realizes the importance of maintaining his integrity."

This does actually happen to Abigail that is why she runs away, because she realizes that she no longer has the power to control the judges in the court and, that Proctor is lost to her forever.

In the play "The Glass Menagerie," how is sexuality portrayed?Tennessee Williams's "The Glass Menagerie"

In "The Glass Menagerie" by Tennessee Williams, Amanda, who alludes constantly to all her "gentleman callers," thrawts the sexuality of her son.  She conficates his copy of D. H. Lawrence's novel, saying that she will not permit it in her house:

That hideous book by that insane Mr. Lawrence.  BUT I WON'T ALLOW SUCH FILTH BROUGHT INTO MY HOUSE!

Lawrence, like Tennessee Williams himself felt that sexuality was a powerful and important force in one's life.  So, the confication of the Lawrence novel indicates the emasculation of Tom by his mother; she treats him as though he were yet a boy.  That Tom is sexually frustrated as he cannot get out much is indicated in Scene 3 when Tom becomes enraged after Amanda takes his book.

Laura, too, is treated as a girl in Scene 6 as Amanda tends to her dress before the gentleman caller arrives.  The stage directions state that

Amanda crouches before Laura, adjusting the hem of a new dress, devout and ritualistic.  Laura looks like a piece of translucent glass touched by light, given a momentary radiance not actual, not lasting

In contrast to Tom whom Amanda finds a bit perverse with D. H. Lawrence, Laura appears virginal. Her mother stuffs her bosom with handerchiefs, calling them "The Great Deceivers," indicating that sex is to be  used to entice and deceive men:

All pretty girls are a trap, a pretty trap, and men expect them to be.

Amanda's use of the floor lamps gives Laura a "fragile, uneartly prettiness." And, later stage directions are that "The holy candles in the altar of Laura's face have been snuffed out." The religious allusions indicate the sensitivity and innocence of Laura 's personality, in contrast to the potent energy of Tom an energy that he must have inherited from his wayward father.

In Beowulf what are the 2 things Grendel's mother took from the great halls of the Danes? What two things did Grendel's mother take from Heorot...

Grendel's mother came to Heorot for revenge and to reclaim her son's dignity. There really is nothing "noble" from any perspective from death by amputation. Grendel did not go down fighting, but he rather ran away, leaving his arm behind. He made his way back to momma, bleeding as he went. The wound was fatal, and Grendel's memorial was in his humiliation at the hand of a mere mortal.

Grendel's mother, then, in her rage, went to Heorot for two things: retaliation and reclamation. Retalitation came when she killed Esher and kept his body. (She later floated his head on the lake for the soldiers to see, thus ensuring retaliation for both the death and the humiliation.) Reclamation came when she took Grendel's arm down from the rafters and carried it home with her.

What is the theme on which the poem "Remember," by Christina Rossetti, is based?

The theme of imperfect love is also present in Rossetti's  "Remember."  A very religious poet, Rossetti here seems to realize the imperfection of human love against that of the divine.  Thus, her relationship with her lover may not be as sincere as it first appears in the first eight lines of this Petrarchan sonnet. For, in the last six lines, Rossetti's attitude seems to change to one of nonchalance:

Yet if you should forget me for a while/And afterwards remember, do not grieve:

Rossetti tells her lover that the imperfection of their love allows for forgetting:

For if the darkness and corruption leave/A vestige of the thoughts.../Better by far you shoul forget and smile/Than that you should remember and be sad.

Also, because the opening lines do not clarify why the speaker is leaving--is it separation or death?--the ending lines seem all the more nonchalant if the reader considers that the speaker may simply be leaving.

Please quote three ideas or actions which show the sophisticated world of changing social manners in "Bernice Bobs Her Hair."

This short story by Fitzgerald is a parody of the social moeurs of the rising social class in the New England states more than anything else. The author intentionally makes his characters rather ridiculous when such banal decisions as what to wear to a party and how to wear one's hair take on giagantic proportions.

Remember that Fitzgerald, issue of the upper class, was disgruntled with the superficiality of values of the nouveau riche and even seemed to be obsessional about what he considered to be the loss of the American Dream. His unhappy marriage didn't help matters either, as he spent a lot of time, money and energy to help his wife who was neurotic.

This short story is quite light-hearted in tone and is meant to be taken as a spoof or joke. Along the same themes, Fitzgerald gets much more serious in his novel The Beautiful and the Damned in which the main characters follow the course of self-destruction much as in Flaubert's Madame Bovary.

How does chapter 32 of "Great Expectations" further connect vegetation imagery with prison imagery?

Chapter 32 describes how Pip, having some time to kill before meeting Estella when she arrives in London, is given a tour of Newgate prison by Wemmick. This Chapter is interesting for a number of reasons, but chiefly because it shows Wemmick carrying out his official business as Jaggers' agent. He is clearly professionally detached from his business, and the use of the gardening imagery that runs through the passage underlines this. It is highly significant that after this tour, Pip is troubled by what happened in the marshes - his criminal assocations through Wemmick recall us to his former criminal associations and his own crime at the beginning of the story.

The vegetation imagery is a key feature of this passage:

It struck me that Wemmick walked among his plants. This was first put into my head by his seing a shoot that had come up in the night, and saying, "What, Captain Tom? Are you there? Ah, indeed?"

Thus reference is made to a new prisoner who has just been brought into prison, providing Wemmick and Jaggers with a new case. This is continued in the passage when Wemmick says farewell to a prisoner who has lost his case and now is to be hung:

With that he looked back, and nodded at his dead plant, and then cast his eyes about him in walking out of the yard, as if he were considering what other pot would go best in its place.

This prisoner, having lost his case, is now a "dead plant" to Wemmick - nothing more can be got out of it. Such imagery highlights the self-serving nature of the business of Wemmick and Jaggers - they look for "plants" they can "nurture" and "grow" to get money out of. When the prisoners have lost their case, they "die" as plants in the sight of Wemmick and Jaggers, once all "portable property" has been extracted from them.

Why should same sex marriage be illegal in the U.S.?

With all due respect to the previous response, I have a different take on this issue.  The question assumes that same-sex marriage should be illegal in the United States, and that suggests a questioner who has already made a decision. 

First, we need to example what we mean when we say "illegal in the United States."  Presently, the United States Constitution does not allow the federal government to make same-sex marriage illegal. So the question posed also assumes a possibility that is non-existent. Legislation on marriage is left exclusively to each state, and as you are aware, some states have chosen to make same-sex marriage legal.  In order for the United States to make same-sex marriage illegal, there would have to be a Constitutional amendment proposed and passed.  This is exceedingly difficult to do, and I have provided a link that explains the process. 

Now, while I agree that marriage is a social construct, it is an odd hybrid today in that it is a social, legal, and religious construct.  In the United States, one can be married as a civil matter, a marriage sanctioned by the state, and never have a religious ceremony at all.  Some people do one or the other, while some people do both.  Given this situation, people who are opposed to same-sex marriage can certainly prevent these from being performed within their own religious institutions, which are exclusively private.  Since most of the opposition to same-sex marriage is religiously based, and since the First Amendment prevents the government from interfering with the practice of one's religion, whatever the religious reasons are, they must be respected within the confines of the religion.  The government can never force any religious institution to perform same-sex marriages, and that is as it should be.  People's religious beliefs must be respected and upheld in the United States. But that is not quite the same thing as allowing people's religious beliefs to dominate state matters. 

I must say that I do not understand what any of this has to do with the state allowing same-sex marriages.  Traditionally, society allowed slavery, child labor, domestic abuse, and any number of other social constructs that are now seen as abominable.  So, to argue that a social construct should continue because it has existed is not a compelling to me.