In "Bartleby the Scrivener, A Tale of Wall Street," how would you explain the appropriateness of Nipper's nickname?

The definition of "nip" is to pinch or to steal. Apparently, Nippers has a couple of pastimes that have to do with taking a pinch of something and possibly dealing with people who take a pinch of something else. An established informal usage of "nip" is to mean to take a small amount of alcohol to drink, which Nippers does at lunch thereby steadying his nerves and his focus, which are apparently unsteadied by more than nipping t alcohol during the night. The "clients" who come to see him who look like "bill collectors" could be people he places gambling bets with thereby trying to nip a little good luck on the side. Based on these two circumstances relating to the meaning of "nip," Nippers is very well suited to his nickname.

What is the definiton for the moment of final experience when dealing with literature? What is an example from Romeo and Juliet?

By final "experience" I take it you mean "climax." Climax in literature is the moment at which the conflict and the complicating problems are finally conquered and the resolution is set in motion. To use sports as an example, the climax might be likened to the last inning of a baseball game at the moment a short stop catches a fly ball. This catch puts the batter out of play and gives the short stop time to throw to home plate so the third base runner can't score.

This catch by the short stop is the climax because the resolution (conclusion) of the game is set in motion with very little possibility of interference or change. In other words, the ball team fans know how that inning will end. In literature, the climax is like the fly ball catch: It is the moment that determines how the story will conclude.

Sometimes, the climax in literature is the most emotional moment in a story, like the fly ball catch may have been the most emotional moment of the baseball game. But it is not necessarily the most emotional moment. For instance, what if in a story, the protagonist's conflict is with her- or himself, with a decision that must be made. The climax could be a moment like the following hypothetical scene: Frankie stood at the backdoor at the kitchen of the old farmhouse with a finger on the light switch. Looking back over her shoulder at the darkening interior, she finally understood and, in that instant, she knew what it was right to do. Inside her, the courage to do it began to sprout like a seedling that would grow and be her strength when needed.

This scene I have just made up for a nonexistent story is the climax because it is the moment that determines the resolution of the conflict and all the problems--we know this moment has determined the outcome of the story--even though there was no emotion involved. Frankie only paused and look back at the house and, in a moment of revelation, made a decision.

In Romeo and Juliet, the climax--the moment when the resolution is determined--comes in the tomb when Romeo drinks poison, followed by Juliet's awakening and death. The resolution is begun at that point and is ushered in by Juliet's death. In Romeo and Juliet, the climax is indeed the most emotional moment.

In chapter 3:What was Elie's first impression of Auschwitz after leaving Birkenau?

I am not precisely clear to which part of the novel you are referring to, but actually the first reference of the camp comes at the very end of Chapter two, when the Jews finally are able to leave their trains:

As the train stopped, this time we saw flames rising form a tall chimney  into a black sky... We stared at teh flames in the darkness. A wretched stench floated in the air. Abruptly, our doors opened. Strange-looking creatures, dressed in striped jackets and black pants, jumped into the wagon. Holding flashlights and sticks, they began to strike at us left and right, shouting....

What is important though is when Elie is confronted with the infamous words that adorn the gate to the Auschwitz camp - Arbeit Macht Frei - work makes you free:

First impression: better than Birkenau. Cement buildings with two stories rather than wooden barracks. Little gardens here and there.

So, it is described as being more pleasant. Note too how the commander of the camp, a Pole, speaks the first "human words" to them since their arrival at the camp.

Can someone please write a summary about The Face on the Milk Carton?

The Face on the Milk Carton is the story of a teen age girl who sees her picture on a school milk carton and realizes that she is a missing child that had been kidnapped.  Janie is a well-adjusted red-haired teen who has been raised by loving parents who she trusts and adores.  She has been raised as an only child. 

Janie begins to question when her parents had her and why there were no baby pictures of her.  While snooping she comes across the dress she had worn in the milk carton picture.  She begins to have long lost memory recall. 

Janie struggles to come to terms with her kidnapping and her parent's involvement in the incident.  She shifts between moods and the desire to reveal the situation to her parets while trying to cope on her own.  She has the support of Reeve, her neighbor, to love and help guide her in telling her parents the truth.

In the end Janie has come to terms with what had happened and is ready to contact her natural parents.  The parents who had raised her believe they are her grandparents and that they had taken her to safety away from their daughter who was trying to escape from a cult.  It turns out that their daughter had kidnapped Janie when Janie was 3 and 1/2.

The story ends with Janie calling her natural parents and telling them who she is on the phone.

Who are the characters in the "Vampire Diaries" saga?

The protagonist of this story is Elena Gilbert, a high school senior as the first novel begins, living in Virginia.  She is beautiful and popular and happy, though perhaps a little bit shallow.  Here is a description from the first book:

Elena Gilbert, cool and blond and slender, the fashion trendsetter, the high school senior, the girl every boy wanted and every girl wanted to be.

She is a somewhat of an archetype - the popular cheerleader with the football player boyfriend.  That is Matt Honeycutt, a nice guy who unfortunately loses out on this pretty girl.

What causes Matt to lose Elena is the entry of the book's leading man and secondary protagonist, Stefan Salvatore.  He is a new boy at school, but the bigger story is that he is a vampire and he is tormented by his past.  His relationship with Elena will eventually be a source of salvation for him.

As far as antagonists go, enter Stefan's older brother, Damon Salvatore.  He isn't a true villian, but his arrogance and his impulsiveness cause many problems, particularly as he tries to steal Elena's affections from Stefan - just as he did hundreds of years before.

Which leads to the next character, Katherine, a beautiful and seductive vampire that the vampire brothers knew and were involved with in Renaissance Italy.  They believe she committed suicide, but this turns out not to be true and she reenters their life in the present.

Klaus is a true villian - he is the vampire that created Katherine and who brings evil and strange occurrences to the small Virginia town.

Bonnie McCullough is Elena's best friend and confidante, and has her own supernatural powers - she is a psychic.  Her foil is another friend of Elena's, Meredith Sulez, a level-headed and practical young woman who counteracts the passions of many of the other characters.

Caroline Forbes is another potential antagonist, but of the high school world as opposed to the supernatural world.  She is a pretty and manipulative rival of Elena's. 

In "Sonny's Blues", how does society (Harlem) influence (positive or negative) the two brothers? What is Sonny's biggest vice?

This is a complex question. The narrator makes clear that Harlem is a place of darkness, with temptations for any child brought up there, and he notes that the same temptations still exist for the students he teaches.  But Sonny's brother also remembers a support system  when "old folks were talking after the big Sunday dinner" (444) and Sonny knows there is darkness and joy when he says, "All that hatred down there, all that hatred and misery and love" (458). 

Sonny's brother has managed to stay in Harlem and become a "solid citizen" with a teaching career and a family.  He has escaped the temptations of Harlem.  But do you see anything lacking in him?  Does he have any soaring joy in his life? He is not always the most sympathetic figure in the story. His wife is more comfortable talking to Sonny than he is, and there he is often lacking in empathy. He had written his brother out of his life.  He has succeeded in not getting caught up in a life of drugs and crime by holding himself apart, but this makes him a somewhat rigid figure. This is the tradeoff for the narrator.

Sonny, on the other hand, has succumbed to the temptations but in the final scene in the story, the reader can see that he has great depth and that there is great joy as well.  This, too, is a tradeoff, isn't it? In order for Sonny to "fly," he has endured great sorrow, and he talks about a woman singing the street to make his point, saying, "...it struck me all of a sudden how much suffering she must have had to go through - to sing like that" (456).  

As for Sonny's biggest vice, it is clearly his drug addiction, likely an inherited addiction, since we are told that the father had a drinking problem.  If Sonny had been raised on Long Island, would he have become a heroin addict?  Maybe not, but he probably would have become an alcoholic.

Why was it so threatening for the white community if a black man raped a white women?

A black man didn't actually have to rape a white woman to qualify for a lynching in the post-Civil War South.  Even the perception of sexual interest on the part of a black man toward a white woman, whether it be through overly familiar conversation, or any sort of action that could be perceived as flirtatious, could be a dangerous proposition.  Emmett Till, the young man who was murdered while visiting his uncle in the South, was kidnapped, beaten and killed simply because someone thought they heard him whistling at a white woman.

Prior to the Civil War, in the world of large plantations and wealthy owners, the plantation owner's wife's primary functions were to oversee the household, take care of slaves who might become ill, and function as a gentle, well-dressed trophy at the occasional ball or barbecue.  Fast forward past the Civil War into the era of Jim Crow laws, and then into the early 20th century, and there was still a perception in the South that white women were to be protected, and black men to be feared. Additionally, the perception of the black male as being inherently dangerous probably dated back to the era when slaveowners lived in constant fear of slave revolts.  The Southern ideal of the pure, genteel white woman, an ideal that dated back to before the Civil War, was at the root of the accusation by Bob Ewell against Tom Robinson.  When Ewell wanted to cover up the beating of his daughter, he chose an accusation that would play upon these entrenched cultural assumptions; he accused a black man, Robinson of assaulting a white woman, his daughter, knowing full well that most of the people of the community would automatically perceive Robinson as guilty.

As ambitious and powerful as Lady Macbeth is in Macbeth, as a woman, she cannot bear the guilt which drives her insane. Comments?

Lady Macbeth is ambitious and, may be, even wicked, but she is definitely ambitious and wicked with a difference. In her second soliloquy in act1 sc.5, she apostrophises to the powers of darkness and evil in order to be cruel enough so that she can stand by the side of her husband in fulfilling his ambition for the throne. In act 1 sc.6, when King Duncan arrives at Inverness, Lady Macbeth plays the role of the hostess with all the studied and affected idiom of hospitality. In act1 sc.7, when the unsettled Macbeth tells her--'We will proceed no further in this business', she remonstrates him with all indignation and sarcasm. She goes to the extent of showing her cruelty in a strained violence of language:'I have given suck, and know/How tender 'tis to love the babe that milks me:/I would, while it was smiling in my face,/Have pluck'd my nipple from his boneless gums,/And dash'd the brains out....'

But in the scene of Duncan's murder, we find Lady Macbeth in visible nervous tension, very apprehensive and appalled by the noises of the night. She is apprehensive whether Macbeth can make the heinous attempt; she is appalled by the owl's cry. She has taken a dose of wine to make her strong, and yet she feels unnerved. She claims that 'Had he not resembled/My father as he slept, I had done 't'. But the conditional claim is doubtful because a woman/mother who could have killed her own child in the most gruesome manner should have killed Duncan all by herself. In act 2 sc.3, Lady Macbeth faints and she is carried out. That seems to be the first manifestation of her mental degenaration ultimately leading to sleep-walking and suicidal death.

Lady Macbeth is very much a woman whose selfless ambition to see her husband on the throne motivates her to invoke the powers of darkness. She invites a moral backlash of remorse and guilt which is manifest in her words of regret in act3 sc.2:'Nought's had, all's spent./Where our desire is got without content:/'Tis safer to be that whichwe destroy/Than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy'. In the scene of her sleep-walking, we find a an agonised woman constantly rubbing her hands to remove the imaginary stain and smell of blood. She mutters her sufferings, her doubts, fears, desperation and anguish. No throughly wicked person would have gone through such a mental hell. She dies soon thereafter; dies a pathetic suicidal death.

What element of Shakespearean tragedy do the witches represent in "Macbeth"? What evidence is there for this?

While there have been extensive discussions of the Elizabethan preoccupation with the supernatural and Shakespeare's use of this element to appeal to his audiences (refer to other questions and answers in this Macbeth group), the witches do contribute to the tragedy.  For, they provide the impetus to Macbeth's tragic flaw of his unreasoning drive for power.  With the predictions of the "weird sisters" Macbeth rationalizes,

If chance will have me King, why,/chance may crown me,/Without my stir (I,iii,144-146).

As the witches all chime together,

Fair is foul, and foul is fair./Hover through the fog and filthy air (I,ii,10-11),

Macbeth readily enters this fog of superstition and magic as his means to rise meteorically to power.  With his acceptance of the preternatural order of events, Macbeth can commit his heinous acts more readily and without compunction. 

And, to further the tragedy, his wife is snared into the preternatural world as she unsexes herself to aid in Macbeth's heinous acts:

Come, you spirits/That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,?And fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full/Of direst cruelty!Make thick my blood,/...And take my milk for gall, you mrd'ring ministers,...(I,v,40-48)

  Tragically it is not until she commits suicide that Lady Macbeth returns to her human and feminine self, proving again that it is a fateful power that the evil witches hold in "Macbeth," a power that evokes the tragic flaws of both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.

On the night before the battle at Philippi, over what do Brutus and Cassius argue in the play Julius Caesar?

Brutus and Cassius engage in a series of arguments on the night before the battle of Philippi.  When he arrives at Brutus' camp, Cassius begins the exchange immediately by saying,

"Most noble brother, you have done me wrong" (IV,ii,37)".

Cassius is angry because Lucius Pella, a friend of his, is being punished for taking bribes.  Cassius has written letters defending his friend, but Brutus has ignored them.  Brutus, in turn, chastises Cassius for defending Lucius Pella, and questions Cassius' own reputation as it relates to the matter of taking bribes.  The two men almost come to blows with their swords, but Brutus defuses the situation by reminding Cassius that they killed Caesar in the name of justice and not for their own personal gain.

Brutus then expresses his anger at Cassius, because he has requested money from Cassius to help pay his troops and been refused.  Cassius denies the charge with such vehemence that Brutus is appeased, and the two shake hands, reaffirming their friendship.  The two men then turn their attention to the coming battle, where, again, they disagree.  Cassius thinks they should wait for the enemy to come to them, explaining,

"'Tis better that the enemy seek us.  So shall he waste his means, weary his soldiers, doing himself offense, whilst we, lying still, are full of rest, defense, and nimbleness" (IV,iii, 198-201).

Brutus, on the other hand, thinks they should advance and strike the enemy first, arguing,

"There is a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune...and we must take the current when it serves or lose our ventures" (IV,iii, 217-218, 222-223).

It is significant that Cassius accedes to Brutus' plans, following a pattern of submission to the younger man's decisions, despite the fact that Brutus has made a fatal error in choosing to let Mark Antony live and speak at Caesar's funeral.  The course of events will soon sadly reveal that Brutus' judgment in the matter of the battle against Philippi is also flawed, and will lead to disaster.

What is the message in the stories The Rocking-Horse Winner and The Lottery, and how is it carried to us?

You will of course need to expand the brief analysis of the theme of these two fascinating stories by unpacking the style of the author in conveying the message.

"The Rocking Horse Winner" is clearly a fable about greed and in particular its dangers. The mother in the tale is consumed by greed, to the point where it alienates her from her children and her son is driven to desperate lengths to help his mother. It is important to note that even the temporary relief provided by Paul's "winnings" only serves to augment the sense of greed and the voices in the house that drives the children wild. In the end, in this didactic short story, D. H. Lawrence shows us the danger of greed by allowing the mother to gain the wealth she desires, but only at the expense of the death of her son.

In "The Lottery", one of the central themes of the story is the violence and cruelty inherent in even the most civilised of societies. A big part of the message of this story is conveyed by the twist of the tale only revealed at the end - we never find out the "prize" of the lottery until the very end, where the chilling significance of the piles of stones made by children at the beginning is brought home. Even the most advanced societies are able to commit and perpetrate hideous acts against one of their own, even an innocent member, and linked to this is the inability of the group depicted in the story to stand up as individuals and protest against the violence. In the end, all participate in the grim act of violence that brings the tale to its close.

Analyze the character of Aunt Polly and her relationship to Tom in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

Ah, Aunt Polly:  tenderhearted, loving, but usually misguided Aunt Polly.  She is the caretaker of Tom Sawyer (after Polly's sister, Tom's mother, died) and is always desperate to understand Tom.  Her favorite charge, however, is Tom's brother, Sid.  Aunt Polly is always asking Tom to look to Sid in regards to how to behave. 

Aunt Polly is usually seen either quoting scripture, asking Tom to be more like Sid, warning Tom to be more civilized, or hitting Tom over the head withe her thimble.  Tom is not a fan of this type of treatment, so for all of Aunt Polly's tries, ... she fails to win Tom over. 

Aunt Polly is also the glue that cements the rivalry between Sid and Tom as well.  Polly is always trying to figure out Tom's doings.  Tom is always trying to give her some kind of convoluted explanation (and usually succeeds).  Sid prides himself in helping Polly note the inaccuracies in Tom's descriptions.  (Thus, Tom gets another thump with the thimble.)  In my opinion, Aunt Polly's relationship with Tom is summed up here:

In another moment he was flying down the street with his pail and a tingling rear, Tom was whitewashing with vigor, and Aunt Polly was retiring from the field with a slipper in her hand and triumph in her eye.

But of course, we KNOW what happens in regards to Tom's whitewashing the fence.  Aunt Polly never seems to have the upper hand!

In The Giver, how does Jonas feel about sameness?

At first, Jonas sees the logic in sameness.  It is even a source of concern for him, at times, that he is one of the few people in the community with light eyes instead of dark ones.  He sees that with sameness, there isn't competition over appearance, or any other issues that cause conflict.  However, as he begins to feel the depth of the various emotions in the memories, and he begins to see colors and things from the outside world, he realizes that diversity is important.  He understands that being unique isn't bad, it's actually good. 

An example of this is illustrated in Jonas's opinions on releasing.  At first, when he doesn't know the true nature of the release, he thinks that anyone who doesn't fit in with the sameness of his community can go and live somewhere else where their personality will be more suited to the personalities of the other people in their new community.  He believes that sameness helps people get along with one another, and that releasing someone who is different is actually helping that person find friendships and connections elsewhere.  Once he realizes that the release is actually a lethal injection, he begins to understand that part of the reason people are released is because they do not fit in.  Anyone who does not fit in, or presents an abnormality, is killed (like Rosemary or the twin baby his father releases).  He realizes then that the community controls the sameness with lethal force, and he questions the cost of this sameness.

Why has Bernard achieved the American Dream? What do Willy's mood swings mean?

Bernard achieved economic success.  Although he was viewed as a "nerd" in high school, he studied, went through law school, and was on his way to argue a case before the Supreme Court when Willie runs into him in his Dad's office.  Bernard was supposed to be a failure because he wasn't "well liked."  This provides an antithesis to Willyh's argument that being "well liked" will get you far in the business world.

Willy's mood swings indicate that he is losing it.  We know that he will commit suicide at the end of the play; his ever changing mood swings suggest at the mental instability that will lead him to make the decision that the best thing that he can do for his sons is commit suicide for the insurance money they will never receive.

In Death of a Salesman, what is the importance of "being liked" in the play?

The idea that being popular is important is the philosophy by which Willy lived his life and conducted his career as a salesman, and the one he passed on to his sons, unfortunately. Willy believed that a man succeeds by making a good appearance and winning friends with his smile and personality. These misconceptions Willy drills into Biff and Happy all their lives, even at the end of his own life when his sons' lack of success can no longer denied.

Willy's conversation with the adult Bernard shows that he really does not understand how Bernard had succeeded whereas Biff had failed. In Willy's thinking, Bernard's great success is impossible to understand since as a boy he was always so unpopular and wasted so much time studying instead of playing sports to make people admire him. Willy asks Bernard directly about his success: "What's the secret?" Because of his skewed belief, Willy cannot see the relationship between education and success (Bernard), between risk-taking and success (Ben), or between business innovation and forward-thinking (Charley). Instead, success remains elusive for Willy even in his last hours. He plants vegetable seeds in a garden that will never see the sun. Even in this, Willy cannot see the relationship between cause and effect.

Willy kills himself to gain the proceeds of his life insurance for his family, but he contemplates even his own death in terms of his popularity:

[My] funeral will be massive! They'll come from Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire! All the old-timers with the strange license plates . . . . Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey--I am known . . . .

In one of the play's final ironies, Willy's funeral is not well attended.

In Linda Pastan's poem, "Ethics" what is the meaning of "the browns of earth, though earth's most radiant elements burn through the canvas."?

As with a lot of poetry, these lines can have many different meanings, depending on the reader, and what they bring to the reading of the poem from their own personal background.  In this poem, the writer describes how a philosophical question from college years ago-do you save the old lady or the painting in a museum fire?- later comes back to her as an old lady, and she finally finds a conclusive answer to it, because she is experiencing it herself.  So, as she stands before the painting, it is moving and incredible to her.  She describes how

"The colors /within this frame are darker than autumn,/darker even than winter—the browns of earth,/ though earth’s most radiant elements burn/ through the canvas. I know now that woman/ and painting and season are almost one/and all beyond saving by children."

These lines could symbolize how the painting itself is like old age; the colors are darker than autumn or winter.  Autumn and winter symbolize the dying of the earth's life that was so abundant in spring and summer.  This is like her-she is old and in the "autumn" or "winter" of her life.  So, she connects to the dark colors of the painting because they feel similar to the closing of her own life.  Then, the next lines could mean that in real life, the earth is the most "radiant" element because it gives so much life, it supplies nutrients and sustenance for most of life on earth, in the painting, seems even more intense.  It "burns" through the canvas.  This could be the speaker indicating that the painting feels real, alive, important, and worth saving.  It too gives life and sustenance, and she feels a connection with it.  She emphasizes this meaning in the next lines where she says that she feels one with the painting and with the seasons, and all are vibrant, united, and the same.  You cannot separate them when trying which to decide; it's all part of life and its cycles, and no one-children included-can alter the circle of life.

I don't know if that helped at all; this explanation is just one of many possibilities, but hopefully it can get your gears turning a bit.  I included links to other possible interpretations.  Good luck!

In Chapter 2 of Night, what do some of the passengers do to quiet Madame Schachter?

Wiesel uses Madam Schachter to demonstrate yet another warning the Jews received early on and yet chose to ignore.  As Madame Schachter screams repeatedly in the crowded boxcar, no one seems to be able to subdue her.  Several finally resort to hitting her in order to quiet her screams.  When the boxcar arrives in Auschwitz, the deportees report Madame Schachter to the guards.

She is an important character for several reasons.  Not only does she represent the Jews' continued disbelief early on in the book, but she also demonstrates the theme of self-preservation v. family commitment.  Her son, who has accompanied her on the boxcar, does not step in when his mother is being beaten.  He chooses to protect himself rather than defend his own mother.  She also serves as an eerie prophetess of the literal flames that Elie witnesses a short time later which consume his faith.

How does Hosseini develop his theme of redemption in The Kite Runner?This question pertains to the book "The Kite Runner. "

While Khaled Hosseini presents several strong themes in The Kite Runner, the idea of redemption dominates the novel.  Almost all of the main characters, with the exception of pure Hassan, need redemption.  Baba tries to redeem himself from his affair with Sanuabar and the betrayal of his friend and servant Ali by building an orphanage and by treating Hassan, his illegitimate son, better than Amir.

Rahim Khan has lied to Amir for years about his blood relation to Hassan and attempts to redeem himself by telling Amir the truth and by getting Amir to focus on his own path to redemption.

Of course, Amir, the novel's protagonist and narrator, struggles with the concept of redemption throughout the entire novel.  His horrific betrayal of Hassan haunts him and dominates his actions and thinking.  Until he is able to rescue the innocent (Sohrab) and defeat evil (Assef), he cannot live in peace.  Even after he brings Sohrab to the United States, Amir struggles with this past actions and is just beginning to see himself as redeemed.

What are some events that happen in the story Sweetgrass?

These are some important events that happen in the story.

In early summer, Pretty Girl learns she is to be married to Five Killer.  Even though she is in love with Shy Bear, her father has chosen Five Killer for her because he has many horses to offer.

Eagle Sun, the boy Sweetgrass loves, returns from a raid.

Pretty Girl goes to her husband's tipi.  She will be a slave wife, as Five Killer has many wives already.

The Blackfoot village is attacked.  While the men go to fight, the women and children huddle in the tipis.  Sweetgrass is wounded while leading her family to safety in the woods.

The tribe goes to the Sun Dance, an annual gathering of the Indian nation.  Eagle Sun tells Sweetgrass that he has asked her father if he can marry her.

In the autumn, Eagle Sun returns from a trading expedition with no horses.  He brings news that smallpox, the white man's sickness, has come to the neighboring Piegan camp.  Eagle Sun tells Sweetgrass that her father has denied his request to marry her, saying that Sweetgrass has not yet grown strong enough to be a wife.

Sweetgrass lets her anger and disappointment be known to her father.  He says that she must prove herself by preparing twenty-eight buffalo hides over the winter alone.

It is winter and there is no food.  Sweetgrass's father leaves the family in search of game.

Little Brother, the baby, Almost Mother, and Sweetgrass's brother Otter contract smallpox.  Sweetgrass alone is spared, but she must nurse the others.  The baby and Little Brother die, and Sweetgrass must find food for Almost Mother and Otter when they begin to recover.  The hides she has been working on are ruined by the mess of the sickness.

Father returns, and is amazed at how Sweetgrass has cared for the family.  Even though the hides have been spoiled, she has proved herself to be a strong woman.  There is hope that father will allow Sweetgrass to marry Eagle Sun when he returns again.

Define the concept of ''manhood,'' according to Malcolm, Macduff, and Lady Macbeth in Macbeth.

Malcolm defines the kind of man he is, his character, in this excerpt from his conversation with Macduff in Act IV, Scene iii:

[I] scarcely have coveted what was mine own,

At no time broke my faith, would not betray

The devil to his fellow, and delight

No less in truth than life.

Malcolm defines manhood in terms of personal integrity.

For Macduff, however, manhood is a matter of strength and responsibility. When he learns his family has been slaughtered, he is overcome by grief. Malcolm tells him to "[d]ispute it like a man." Macduff says he will be strong, but he cannot ignore his feelings: "I must also feel it as a man." Macduff's family was murdered as a result of his opposition to Macbeth, and he takes responsibility for their deaths:

Sinful Macduff,

They were all struck for thee! Naught that I am,

Not for their own demerits but for mine

Fell slaughter on their souls. Heaven rest them now!

Unlike Macduff and Malcolm, Lady Macbeth does not define manhood in terms of very positive traits of character. For her, being a man means being cruel, this idea made plain in her desire to gain masculine traits to replace her own feminine nature:

Come, you spirits

That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,

And fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full

Of direst cruelty! Make thick my blood,

Stop up th' access and passage to remorse

That no compunctious visitings of nature [pity]

Shake my fell [savage] purpose . . . .

Later, she fears that Macbeth will not be cruel enough to follow through with Duncan's murder, and she shows contempt for Macbeth, "so green and pale," when he expresses fear for what they are planning to do.

What is the plot, setting and symbolism in "Young Goodman Brown"?

Although it is hard to nutshell YGM, you can summarize the plot as a man's journey from good through evil, the question of WHAT is good and evil, and the realization of one's own feelings towards it.

The setting is in Salem, where Goodman is about to go out at night to take care of something, to the distress of his wife Faith (that is a symbol, moving from "faith)- Faith is a prudish woman, all the way down to what she wears (pink ribbon on her hair, a symbol of innocence).

When he goes anyway, he meets a stranger in the forest with whom he walks along and whom he suspects of being evil.

We know that this stranger symbolizes sin, or the devil himself, and here's Goodman is walking with him. Along the journey, the man tells him how he's known Goodman's family and other things that start freaking out Goodman, and he starts deciding to go back to Faith. But, its too late b/c in the end of the road there is a Satanic-like ritual taking place in which he sees his dead father, and even Faith herself partaking in it. When the stranger tells him that "everyone" is evil, Goodman loses it and starts screaming, and the entire moment faded in front of him as if it had been an illusion.

However, when he is back in town, in Salem, he doubts everyone, shuns away Faith, and distrusts all the people he once thought were good. He sort of lost his mind, and died a recluse.

So, the symbols include Faith (her name), her pink ribbon, the night to day change of scenery (shadow vs. light), the stranger, Goodman's name itself (good man)- There are many many more symbols, however, since Hawthorne is heavy on them in all his works.

How does the Ceremony of Twelve start?

In Chapter 7 we see the beginning of the Ceremony of Twelve. The new twelves swap places with the new elevens, and then an initial speech is given by the Chief Elder. This speech is described as being pretty much the same each year, touching on:

recollection of the time of childhood and the period of preparation, the coming responsibilities of adult life, the profound importance of Assignment, the seriousness of training to come.

After this speech the Chief Elder goes on to say that what happens as part of this ceremony is an acknowledgement of differences. She then describes the group in general. Then the Assignments begin.

Should Brutus join the conspiracy against Caesar? What are some arguments for and against Brutus's joining the conspiracy?

CON:

• In retrospect, of course, the joining of Brutus in the act of conspiracy is unwise. In the final act, at the battle of Phillippi, Brutus has his forces attack those of Octavius and they are defeated. Of course, after his death, his successors, the triuimvirate of Octavius, Antony, and Lepidus become much more tyrannical than Caesar has been.  For, the only evidence of corruption on the part of Caesar is his having Flavius and Marullus is their "pulling scarves off Caesar's images."  Other than this incident, there is no evidence of Caeasr's tyranny.


• Brutus allows himself to be deceived by Cassius. For, Cassius's motives for enlisting Brutus are purely selfish:  (a)  He forges letters from the Romans that "testify" to Caesar's acts of tyranny, and he leaves them where Brutus will find them. (b) He flatters Brutus,

...you have no such mirrors as will turn/Your hidden worthiness into your eye,/That you misght see your shadow...I, your glass/Will modestly discover to yourself/That of yourself which you yet know not of....honor is the subject of my story (I,ii,56-70).

• Brutus is flawed in his judgments.  In Act I, scene ii, hearing the shouting of the crowd and flourish of trumpets, he tells Cassius, "I do fear the people/Choose Caesar for their king." At Sardis, when he and Cassius quarrel, critics have suggested that Brutus's judgment, clouded by the love he has for Cassius, demonstrates his inability to distinguish his own motives from his noble principles.  Ironically, Brutus's remark about the "tide in the affairs of men" (IV, iii) becomes tragically true for him.


• His moral judgment is flawed.  Often he confuses his own motives in his idealism and his devotion to the principle of republicism.  In his soliloquy of act II, Brutus deceives himself into believing that he is solely concerned about the public good: 

Th'abuse of greaness is when it disjoins/Remorse from power; and, to speak truth of Caesar,/I have not known when his affections swayed/More than his reason.  But 'tis a common proof that lowliness is young ambition's ladder,/Whereto the climber upward turns his face;/But when he once attains the upmost round,/He then unto the ladder turns his back,/...scorning the base degrees...(II,i, 18-27)   

• Later Brutus becomes guilty of what he suspects in Caesar.  In his quarrel with Cassius at Sardis, Brutus is guilty of this very pride, especially when he manipulates his troops, telling them they can leave if they do not believe in his "noble" causes. 

Truly, as Marc Antony declared after the assassination of his beloved Caesar, in Brutus, as in the other conspirators,

O, judgment, thou art fled to brutish beasts (is it not interesting brutish looks much like Brutus?)/And men have lost their reason!...(III,ii,105-106) 

How does the director of the 1995 movie Sense and Sensibility use film techniques to explore the theme of betrayal?

Because space is too limited to enable a discussion of all three themes, I had to shorten your question to just one theme.

One technique used to show Edward's emotional betrayal of Elinor is framing. At Norland, when Edward makes a sorry attempt to tell Elinor about his engagement, the scene is framed by the stables. Specifically, when Elinor says the line "Your education?" the lines of the stable that are framing her are vertical, horizontal, and diagonal. Vertical lines in framing show that the characters will soon be experiencing trouble; the situation is "closed" with no way out. The vertical lines behind Elinor are the largest, the thickest, and the heaviest of all the lines, foreshadowing for us that her feelings for Edward are about to be betrayed, or disappointed, by Edward's actions. However, the stables are also composed of horizontal lines, and you can see one diagonal line just behind her. The horizontal lines foreshadow that her problems will be resolved, while the diagonal shows that there will be a difficult and emotional progression leading to her resolution. This is confirmed by the round globes on top of the vertical posts.

The techniques of framing and lighting are also used to introduce us to Willoughby, again foreshadowing that he will soon betray Marianne. When we first see Willoughby on the downs after Marianne has fallen, we see his horse rear. The action shows aggression, but the diagonal line made by the horse also foreshadows that there will be difficult and emotional trouble ahead but that it will be resolved for Marianne. The lighting is significant. Willoughby is introduced in complete shadow, showing us that he is a completely untrustworthy character, despite appearances.

A final technique used to portray Willoughby's betrayal of Marianne takes place at the ball in London. After Marianne cries out "Willoughby!," as she rushes to him, we are given a high extreme long shot of the entire ballroom and all the people in it that are, not only turning to state at Marianne, but also separating Marianne from Willoughby. This distancing long shot signifies that Marianne will absolutely never be joined with Willoughby, due to his betrayal.

Are there Bibilical allusions to Jesus's life in "The Glass Menagerie"?

Religious symbols and allusions are fairly subtle in Scene 5 and 6 of "The Glass Menagerie."  For one, the "gentleman caller" announcement by Tom begins with the legend "Annunciation," an allusion to the angel's Gabriel's announcement to Mary that she would bear a son, Jesus.  Of course, the gentleman caller is perceived by Amanda as a savior for Laura who has no skills and must be dependent upon a man's care.  As her mother puts the finishing touches on Laura's dress, Laura is seen with uplifted arms and a light shines on her "unearthly prettiness" in this "momentary radiance." Production notes describe Laura as having "a peculiar pristine clarity, such as light used in the early religious portraits of female saints and madonnas." Amanda is described as crouching before her--as one in worship?--"adjusting the hem...devout and ritualistic." 

In Christian scriptures Jesus as the savior is presented as the light of the world, so the use of lighting can suggest religious overtones.  For instance, when Jim lights a cigarette and leans back, smiling at Laura, Williams describes her as being light "inwardly with altar candles." Later, these "holy candles in the altar of LAURA'S face have been snuffed out" when Jim informs her that he is engaged.

Thus, Jim is unable to serve as savior.  Instead of offering Laura the bread and wine of the sacraments, he offers her wine and chewing gum.  His sermon is not religious; instead, he preaches a secular gospel of self-help.  Finally, he abandons Laura for another, leaving her alone to blow out the candles of her altar.  These religious symbols and allusions, therefore, serve subltely to add to the false hopes of the characters, thereby enhancing the pessimism of the play.

Why does Holden say he is leaving Elkton Hills in Catcher in the Rye?

Holden says that he "didn't exactly flunk out or anything" at Elkton Hills; he "just quit, sort of".  He says that one of his biggest reasons for leaving was because he was "surrounded by phonies...that's all...they were coming in the goddamn window".  As an example of what he is talking about, he describes the headmaster, Mr. Haas, who was "the phoniest bastard (he) ever met in (his) life".  On Sundays, Mr. Haas would greet the students' parents when they drove up to the school, but if a boy had "old funny-looking parents", he would spend little time with them and quickly go to talk to someone else" (Chapter 2).

Elkton Hills, along with the other prep schools Holden has attended, is representative of the corruption and hypocrisy inherent in the educational system and in the world at large.  While places like Pency Prep declare that their objective is "to mold splendid, clear-thinking young men" (Chapter 1), in reality, they are institutions rife with cruelty and pretence.  Elkton Hills in particular exemplifies the prep school environment at its worst.  Holden remembers an incident in particular when a classmate, James Castle, "a skinny little weak-looking guy", would not take back something he said about a very conceited guy, Phil Stabile.  What James Castle said was tactless but true, and when Phil Stabile and a group of his friends accosted James and did horrible things to him in a locked room to try to force him to retract his words, James resisted, and finally jumped out of a window to his death.  Holden remembers vividly seeing James' bloodied body, clothed in a sweater he had borrowed from Holden.  James' death may be seen as being symbolic of lost innocence - his own and Holden's - and the inevitable fate of those who dare to decry phoniness to speak the truth (Chapter 22).

What is the plot of the story "Moonlight" by Guy de Maupassant?The plot that includes the Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, and Falling Action

"The Moonlight" is the account of a conversation between Madame Julie Roubere and her elder sister Henriette Letore.

During the exposition, the author tells the reader that Madame Roubere is waiting at her home for her sister, Madame Letore, who has just returned from a trip to Switzerland.  Madame Letore has come to Paris to visit alone, her husband having returned to their estate early to take care of some business.

When Madame Letore arrives, the action begins its rise.  The sisters embrace, and Madame Roubere is astonished to see that Madame Letore has "two large locks of white hair".  When Madame Roubere presses her sister to tell her what is the matter, Madame Letore reveals tearfully that she has a lover.  Madame Letore explains that she is fond of her husband, "but he is mature and sensible, and cannot even comprehend the tender vibrations of a woman's heart".  Madame Letore herself is a woman of deep feelings and emotions, and she has for quite awhile longed for more passion in their lives.  Madame Letore had never meant to deceive her husband, but the final straw came during the time they had just had, traveling together. 

In the climax of the story, Madame Letore describes how she had been walking with her husband one morning, and had been overcome by the beauty of the landscape around them.  She had exclaimed about the scene, and asked her husband to kiss her, but he had responded with "chilling kindness" that the fact that she liked their environs was no reason for a kiss.

A few nights later, Madame Letore was walking alone by the lake, as the falling action begins.  A full moon was showing, and the scene again was sublime, evoking strong emotion in the passionate woman.  She sat by the lake and was sobbing "like a crazy woman", and a man appeared, a "young barrister" with whom she and her husband were distantly acquainted.  They talked for awhile, and he commented on the sights they had seen on the trip and recited some verses of poetry.  Seized with "indescribable emotion" that the young man should so clearly understand what she was feeling, she made love with him.

Madame Roubere consoles her sister as the older woman shrieks in anguish at the turn her life has taken.  Gently, she tells her that it is not the man she loves, "but love itself", her "real lover that night" having been the the idea of love as represented by the moonlight.

Who are the Mrunas, and what themes do they support in To Kill a Mockingbird?

In Chapter 24, the Mrunas (at least, that's what their name sounded like to Scout) are the topic of discussion for Alexandra's missionary circle as they meet in Scout's living room. According to Mrs. Merriweather's report, the Mrunas are non-Caucasian natives who live in huts, lead squalid lives, abuse their children, suffer disease, and practice disgusting customs. When Scout asks Mrs. Merriweather what the missionary circle ladies had studied that afternoon, Mrs. Merriweather (the most devout Christian in Maycomb) explained:

Oh child, those poor Mrunas . . . . Living in that jungle with nobody but [missionary] J. Grimes Everett . . . Not a white person'll go near 'em but that saintly J. Grimes Everett.

Mrs. Merriweather's ignorance and arrogance are obvious and become even more pronounced when she moves on to the subject of Helen Robinson, whose husband Tom has just been convicted of a crime he didn't commit and who has been shot to death in prison. In discussing Helen and the other black citizens of Maycomb, Mrs. Merriweather also reveals her hateful racism and hypocrisy. She thinks the "darkies" will settle down if they know that the white people have "forgiven" them (of what she does not specify):

If we just let them know we forgive 'em, that we've forgotten it, then this whole thing'll blow over.

Mrs. Merriweather had become tearful when she talked about the "poor Mrunas"  because "her large brown eyes always filled with tears when she considered the oppressed." But she had no tears for Tom Robinson, his widow, his family, or any other black person who suffered in her own community. Because of ignorance, arrogance, racism, and hypocrisy, neither Mrs. Merriweather nor any of the other ladies in her missionary circle could recognize the oppression that occurred every day in Maycomb, and they did not recognize themselves as oppressors, which they certainly were. This scene with the missionary circle, therefore, emphasizes several of the novel's themes.

Define the conflicts between Cory and Troy in Fences, showing how they develop.

The first conflict between Troy and Cory is in regards to chores. Rose reminds Troy that he has said he would complete the fence in the yard and Troy insists that he will get it done, but Cory needs to put some effort into helping. 

When Cory leaves home on a Saturday morning for football practice without finishing his chores first, Troy is waiting when he gets back home. Troy reprimands Cory for leaving without doing his chores. 

In this conversation, Cory states his interest in playing football and Troy says he will not allow Cory to quit his job at the A&P.

This is the moment Cory asks why Troy doesn't like him. Troy responds that as his father, he does not have to like his son. The only demand he feels in relation to Cory is to raise him properly and to provide for him. 

The confrontation ends with Troy telling Cory to get back down to the supermarket and get his job back.

The themes of the trouble between father and son are established in this scene. Troy refuses to yield to his son in any way, showing no affection, offering no reassurance, and setting down absolute rules of behavior. For his part, Cory expresses his need for some sign of approval from his father and gets nothing of the sort. 

Troy is locked into a mode of parenting learned from his own father.

His father was brutal and controlling, and although Troy loves Cory, he knows of no other way to bring up a son.

As the play goes on, Cory defies Troy's order to quit the football team and get his job back. When Troy finds this out, he confronts his son and tells Cory that this defiance is the first strike. He warns his son not to take more steps in this direction. 

Strike two comes when Troy and Rose have an argument and Cory steps in to protect his mother, knocking Troy to the ground. Troy refrains from retaliating physically, but warns Cory again, warning him that this is his second strike and telling him not to strike out.

This episode is similar to one that Troy relates about his own childhood. When Troy was fourteen years old, he fought with his father over a young woman. That episode caused a permanent break between Troy and his father, launching Troy into the world to fend for himself. When Cory accosts his father, we see the potential for a similar break between these two men. 

When Troy is at his lowest point, having lost his mistress, Alberta, when she dies during childbirth, and losing his wife's respect and affection at the same time, the conflict between Cory and Troy comes to its climax. 

Cory comes home and tries to step around his father to get into the house. Troy refuses to move and the two scuffle and fight. Troy's refusal to move can be read symbolically, as he has continued to alter his behavior over the course of the play. 

The nature of the conflict between Cory and his father can be seen as stemming from Troy's inability to change, to move, or to depart from the mode of behavior set by his own father (a man who Troy himself dislikes intensely).

By the end of the play, Cory has realized that Troy will never yield or change. Cory no longer hopes for approval from his father. When Cory tries to physically move his father, the final break is made between father and son. 

In the end, Cory leaves the house for good, and Troy ends the scene with a taunt for death to come.

Why did Zeus not want Prometheus to give man the gift of fire?

Zeus' primary fear of giving man fire was that he didn't want man to be in equal standings with the gods.  Zeus believed that fire, and its mystery, was one of the elements that allowed humans to stand in reverence of the gods.  His belief was that as long as human remained in "darkness" (fire= light), they would be submissive to the gods' will.  He believed that giving man fire would cause the gods to have lost some of their "lustre" in the eyes of man.  In some respects, he was right, for once Prometheus gave fire to man, he also told them how to trick Zeus using fire and animal sacrifice.  For his part, Zeus did not take too kindly to be ridiculed and punished both man and Prometheus in a very swift and brutal manner.

In Elie's book Night, what does he mean when he says, "that turned my life into one long light seven times sealed"? What does "seven times sealed"...

In Jewish customs, the number seven is a very important number. It number represents purification and mourning. The number seven is the symbol for all association with God, and they see the number seven as the Divine number of completion. Elie Weisel's Night is the account of his time in Auschwitz during the Holocaust. As a young boy, Elie studied the Torah and became interested in the Kabbalah, which is Jewish mysticism. Being sealed is a big part of the Kabbalah teachings. You have to be sealed to move on to the next spiritual plain to reach God. A soul must be sealed to get through the seven gates on the journey. 

In Night, we see Elie go through his own spiritual journey, one of faith to one of losing his faith to the horror he witnessed. Elie and his father have survived the first night and Elie realizes what the smoke he saw really is. He doesn't know how God could allow these things to happen. He questions everything he once believed. The journey that he goes through is a heart wrenching one. He writes about the things he will never forget during his time there.

"Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget smoke. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky. Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever. Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire to live. Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never."

In Twilight, I read that Alice was sent to a mental rehabilitation center. Why did she get sent to a mental rehabilitation center?

We don't know for certain why she was sent there, since her parents (presumably the ones who had her committed) are dead now.  This is introduced toward the end of Twilight, when James and Bella meet at the ballet studio.  He explains to her that Alice was another big hunt for him, but the vampire who watched over her changed her into a vampire so that James wouldn't be able to kill her. 

Up until that point, Alice's earliest memories were as a vampire; she couldn't remember anything of her human life.  We can infer to a certain extent that her talent for seeing the future might have been a reason that she was committed to the asylum in the first place, since we know that the vampires with special talents brought those talents with them from their former lives as humans.  Perhaps Alice's parents looked at her talent as a sign of psychosis, and had her committed for it.

During New Moon, Alice searches for clues to her past, but she comes up with little new information.

Piggy suggest that they let the signal fire go out at night and relight it every morning. Why? How does Ralph react?

Thsi incident occurs in Chapter 10 of the novel, and it is after Jack has effectively seized power of the boys, and Ralph is left with Sam and Eric and Piggy, and they are trying to keep a signal fire going on the beach themselves. However, they face a number of problems. Firstly, there are only 4 of them, and Piggy with his asthma is not able to help collecting wood. Secondly, all the wood they can find is wet and rotten, which means that to keep the signal fire going involves constant attention and a constant search for more timber, which is more than they can do. Sam and Eric are clearly exhausted and they protest that they are unable to find any more wood, especially at night.

Piggy therefore suggests that they light the fire every morning, because, as he says, "Nobody ain't going to see smoke in the dark." Ralph's reaction to this is one of acceptance. Although he wishes for a fire for comfort at night, he agrees with Piggy and the twins: "Ralph stood up, feeling curiously defenseless with the darkness pressing in." Arguably, this feeling that Ralph has could be considered a foreshadowing of the attack of Jack and his tribe when they seize Piggy's glasses - and very significantly, they completely ignore the conch.

Write in detail, the significance of the appearing of the ghost in "Hamlet".make it very much big

The ghost of King Hamlet is the one who sets the action for the rest of the play.  The ghost appears in the first scene of the play letting the audience know that the story is going to have a supernatural element and creating a question in the minds of the audience because we are not told why this ghost is appearing.  We are told that Denmark is preparing for war, but that still does not seem to fully explain the appearance of the ghost.  Next we find out that Hamlet is upset that his mother remarried so soon after his father's death and that she married her brother-in-law.  Still, none of this gives the audience an understanding of why the ghost appears.  When Hamlet speaks to the ghost, he is at first both horrified and curious.  His dead father wishes to speak to him after all.  Then when the ghost says that his own brother, Hamlet's mother's new husband, murdered him and that he wants Hamlet to avenge this murder, the audience knows what the main plot is going to be - Hamlet carrying out his father's wishes. This information is finally given to us in the last scene of the first act.  The ghost is essential.  If Hamlet had simply uncovered the murder of his father through investigation, we would not have the same impact and mysteriousness that we do with the news coming from the murder victim himself.  The ghost also helps to explain Hamlet's sluggishness toward action.  He finally decides at the end of Act 2, to use the play to determine whether or not the ghost was telling the truth.  This lets us know that he's been doubting what the ghost said, or if he even really saw the spirit of his father.  The ghost's reappearance at the end of Act 3, further establishes the fact that Hamlet  has not acted yet on his father's wishes, and reminds Hamlet, and the audience, that Gertrude is not to be included in Hamlet's quest for revenge.  Without the ghost, we would simply have a detective story with an element of revenge in it.  With the ghost, we have the question surrounding the veracity of the ghost, why it only speaks to Hamlet and is not even visible to Gertrude, and the spookiness of a ghost itself.

How does a semiconductor diode function in an electrical circuit?

A diode acts as a rectifier, permitting current to flow only in one direction. A diode has two electrodes, one marked as positive and the other negative. The diode allows current to flow from positive to negative terminals, and blocks any curent in the reverse condition. A diode with a higher voltage on the negative terminal is known as a reverse biased diode, and no current flows until the voltage is so large that the diode breaks down (typically, a non destructive repeatable condition).

There is a minimum voltage necessary for the diode to allow current to flow, known as a threshold voltage, and a small voltage drop across a diode when current is flowing. For silicon semiconductor diodes, this voltage is near 0.7 V.

There are a large variety of diode types. Common types are schotckey diodes, Zener diodes, and PIN diodes. Diodes can be made to be radiation sensitive (photodiodes) or light emitting. LEDs are light emitting diodes, and there are also laser diodes.

Some applications of diodes are AM radio demodulation, power conversion of AC to DC current, over-voltage protetion, logic gates, radiation detection, or as a temperature gauge.

I need 3 quotes regarding the nature of race relations in "To Kill a Mockingbird."

1.  Look at the very end of chapter 9 (our versions of the book are probably different, so page numbers won't be the same), when Atticus is talking to Uncle Jack about the trial.  He states,

"I hope and pray I can get Jem and Scout through it without bitterness, and most of all, without catching Maycomb's usual disease.  Why reasonable people go stark raving mad when anything involving a Negro comes up, is something I don't pretend to understand."

In this quote, Atticus is saying that he hopes that he can set a good example for his children as he defends Tom Robinson, and that by setting that example, they can grow up without being racist.  He says that normal people just go crazy and act completely irrationally when it comes to black people--racism is a disease that alters judgment, kindness, logic and decency.  In chapter 16, when the mob comes for Tom, and Scout talks to Mr. Cunningham, we see this concept in action, so check out that chapter for some more quotes.

2. When Jem is asking Atticus about the things that Mrs. Dubose said about him, one of the questions is whether or not Atticus is a "nigger-lover" like Mrs. Dubose claimed to be.  Atticus responds,  "I certainly am.  I do my best to love everybody."  This quote is about 4 pages before the end of chapter eleven.  This quote is short, but very important, because it relates Atticus's entire attitude about people--not only black people, but all people.  He says that he strives to love everybody, despite their appearances, station in life, background, or class.  And, he does a pretty good job of living by that standard in this book.

3.  About four pages into chapter 12, Cal has brought Jem and Scout to her church, and Lula protests them being there by saying,

"You ain't got no business bringin' white chillun here--they got their church, we got our'n."

Here, we see a bit of discrimination coming from the black side of the issue; Lula doesn't want white people coming into her church, just like white people don't want black people coming to theirs.  This quote is significant because it shows that racism exists on both sides of the aisle, and that all people are subject to its meanness.  Of course, most of the people at Cal's church were very nice, but Lula showed how racism can exist in all forms.

There are just so many quotes that could be used, and these are just a few; I am sure that other editors will have some great ideas too.  I hope that they helped a bit; good luck!

What are Chapters 5 and 6 about in Hatchet?

Chapter 5

Brian wakes up and is surprised by his unquenchable hunger and thirst.  He drinks water from the lake and realizes that he is surrounded by vast wilderness, but hopes that he will be rescued on that very day.  Brian remembers his English teacher who taught lessons about the power of positive thinking, and takes that advice to the fullest.  Brian notices the difference between the silence of the wilderness and the loud sounds of the city.  Suddenly, Brian remembers knocking the wheel when reaching for the headset, possibly making the plane veer off course which would deter rescue efforts.  Brian desperately tries to calm himself when he suspects panic setting in; therefore, he tries to find some food and some shelter.

Chapter 6

Brian thinks of a pleasant memory:  playing in the park with Terry.  Brian misses his friend and wishes Terry were in the wilderness, too.  Brian uses their past adventures to inspire him to find an ideal spot for a shelter.  He finds a perfect place and gathers the necessary materials, but he recognizes the seriousness of his situation.  Brian knows he needs to find food, something very easy to do in the city.  Brian's thoughts turn again to his parents' divorce and he decides to tell his dad "The Secret" once he gets home, as he eats some bitter red berries to ease his hunger.  Brian focuses his thoughts on building a fire without matches and improving his shelter with sticks.  Brian finally falls asleep amid nausea from the bitter berries.

Explain "Realism" in drama as introduced by Ibsen in A Doll's House.

Ibsen's play stands as an example of modern realism because portrays truthfully the characters and the conflicts. The play lacks sentimentality and romance of any kind. Nothing is glorified. There is no "happy ending." The ending instead is rather shocking, given the society in which Nora lives, but it is consistent with the way in which her character has been developed throughout the drama.

The marriage between Nora and Torvald is presented realistically for what it is: a sham. Nora points this out to her husband in the play's conclusion, explaining that they have been "playing" at marriage rather than living in an authentic partnership of mutual caring and sharing. Their home has been only "a doll's house." Ibsen shines a strong light on the Torvalds' relationship, softening none of its aspects.

Torvald's character is treated realistically, as well, revealing his arrogance, authoritarianism, and selfishness. His "concern" for his wife is not romanticized. Torvald does not "take care" of Nora because he loves her; he "takes care" of her only because he treats her as his inferior. In truth, he does not take care of her at all. He only controls her, exercising his power over every detail of her daily life.

The play's conclusion is also realistic. As a genre, realism does not specifically demand an "unhappy" conclusion, but it does demand a concusion that is consistent and reasonable, given the circumstances. Nora's leaving Torvald is consistent with her character as she has grown in self-awareness. The play does not offer a sudden "happy ending" with Nora and Torvald falling into each other's arms. Even when Torvald swears he will change and begs Nora to stay, she looks truth in the face and rejects his promises, placing no faith in his integrity.

Ibsen does not glorify or romanticize Nora's leaving. She will be separated from the children she loves, and she will have to make her way in the world alone. Nothing in her life has prepared her for what lies ahead. Her future will not be an easy one. There is no glory or sentimentality in A Doll's House," only painful choices.

Where can I get free books by Enid Blyton?I am asking about e-books.

Unfortunately, the demand for Blyton's work is still high enough that not even Amazon.com offers her works for free while other classics are often provided freely as e-books by Amazon. The prices Amazon charges for Blyton books, however, are sometimes next to free:

• 
  Naughtiest Girl In The School by Enid Blyton -- $2.99


• 
  Magic Faraway Tree (The Faraway Tree) by Enid Blyton -- $3.99


• 
  Five On A Treasure Island (Famous Five Series) by Enid Blyton -- $4.33


• 
  The Sea of Adventure (Adventure Series) by Enid Blyton -- $5.00

Blyton had some experiences early in life such as rarely occur, which provide the rich material for the books she was later to write. One experience in particular came from her father who not only nursed her through a life threatening illness but also taught her all about birds, plants and wild animals on the nature walks they would take in Beckenham, England. Another was a house she was invited to share with George and Emily Hart after graduating as Head Girl of her school in Beckenham. The Hart home of Seckford Hall in Woodbridge in Suffolk, England, was old and had secret passageways and haunted rooms that fed her avid storytelling propensities (i.e., natural inclinations).

Blyton's storytelling propensities showed up every night when she lay her head down to sleep. Instead of being greeted by sleep, she would be greeted by a whirl of stories in her head, each independent of the others but each a full narrative in its own right. At one point, Blyton had thought she would enroll at the Guildhall School of Music to continue her studies in piano but decided, undoubtedly in part because of the stories in her head, that she was better suited to be a writer of stories. In order to support herself, since she no longer lived in her parents' home, she took the advice of Ida Hunt, who let Blyton live on her farm in Woodbridge with her, and trained to be a teacher. Her first teaching experience was with kindergarteners from whom she learned that she had a deep affinity with and understanding of children. Blyton turned her early failures at securing a publisher for her submissions into an opportunity to gain "determination, character, self-reliance" since, as she saw it, "it is partly the struggle that helps you so much, that gives you determination, character, self-reliance—all things that help in any profession or trade, and most certainly in writing."

While Blyton wrote in early years on many subjects, including history, Greek and Roman mythology, nature and animals, religious topics and even drama, it is perhaps her children's stories for which she is most loved. The first story for children she`wrote that was published appeared in England's teaching periodical Teacher's World and was called "Peronei and his Pot of Glue." It is interesting to note that the "peronei" are a set of leg muscles in the outer side of the calf that allow for foot movement and allow the ankle to turn outward. One has to wonder about the symbolism this indicates for Peronei and his pot of gold. Though Blyton's books are not free e-books at this juncture, it is still possible to enjoy the adventures of The Secret Seven, The Famous Five or the character Noddy for a reasonable price with a free Desktop Kindle or Cloud or reading App for mobiles Androids or other devices from Amazon and a $3 to $5 Amazon e-book to read on it.

How is setting used to emphasize differences between social classes?

Setting is incredibly important in this novel, & each setting reflects the status & morality of those inhabiting it. for example, the first chapter offers a comparison between West Egg and East Egg, as well as Gatsby's house and Daisy's house. The descriptions of West Egg and Gatsby's house emphasize "new money" ideals- enormous mansions, flashy cars, huge number of servants, while East Egg and Daisy's house reflect "old money"- stylish, sophisticated, classy without being garish. Yet West Egg also comes off as closer to the pioneer idea of the Old West, while East Egg remains smug and superficial.

These two settings, while underscoring the different values of those living within, are more similar when contrasted with the Wilson's garage. The description is heavy with dark, lifeless imagery. The building is behind a “low whitewashed railroad fence,” and is seen as "a small block of yellow brick sitting on the edge of the waste land.” George Wilson, a pale spiritless man veiled with “white ashen dust,” wiping his hands on a “piece of waste,” embodies the struggle of the working class to achieve the American Dream. The garage itself is situated within the Valley of Ashes. After the vibrant colors of Daisy and Gatsby's houses, the valley is almost obscene in its dullness. It is “a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens" and “ash-gray men” appear. It is clearly where the debris of the wealthy has accumulated, leaving ordinary Americans literally in their dust.

Another important setting is Myrtle's apartment in New York. Paid for by Tom, it is a step up from the garage, but because Myrtle inhabits it, it reflects her social status. All furniture & art in the apartment are too large, creating a continuing feeling of claustrophobia. She is as unable to move about in her apartment as she is in the social hierarchy. The drunkenness, haze, and heat all combine to generate an overwhelming sense of despair and futility that permeates all attempts to transcend class within the novel.

In Act III, why is Macduff in disgrace with Macbeth?

Macduff has been suspicious all along of Macbeth's role in the death of King Duncan. When Macduff does not attend the banquet dinner that the Macbeths give at the castle, Macbeth notices the conspicuous absence. He inquires where Macduff is and is told that Macduff went home to Fife. Macbeth is becoming more and more paranoid, and he goes to see the three witches again. The "weird sisters" warn him to "beware the thane of Fife."

Therefore, both Macduff's failure to attend the royal banquet and the warning given by the three witches are what causes Macbeth's displeasure with Macduff in Act III.

I need examples of foreshadowing and historical fiction-you can use any book as long as you tell me what it is.

I have provided a link below to a very short story that uses foreshadowing.  It is called "The Story of an Hour" and it is about a woman who has heart problems, and she is told that her husband has just died in a railroad disaster.  She weeps and goes up to her room and looks out the window.  The sky is blue, the birds are singing, and she starts to feel an emotion coming to her that she is afraid of.  Eventually, she gives in to this emotion-it is happiness, and a feeling of freedom.  She is happy to be free from marriage, and to be able to live for herself.  So, instead of mourning her husband's death (she is sad for him, a bit), she is happy to not be married anymore, because it allows her greater freedom.

There is foreshadowing in the following lines.  She looks out the window to see:

"the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life. The delicious breath of rain was in the air. In the street below a peddler was crying his wares. The notes of a distant song which some one was singing reached her faintly, and countless sparrows were twittering in the eaves."

The scene of beautiful springtime, with sunshine and birds singing, and trees alive with "new life" all foreshadow her coming feeling of happiness at the news that she is no longer married.  The spring represents the new life she will have, alone.  Foreshadowing comes again when she describes her feelings:

"There was something coming to her and she was waiting for it, fearfully. What was it? She did not know; it was too subtle and elusive to name. But she felt it, creeping out of the sky, reaching toward her through the sounds, the scents, the color that filled the air.  Now her bosom rose and fell tumultuously. She was beginning to recognize this thing that was approaching to possess her."

This sense of foreboding at a hovering emotion foreshadows her feeling of elation that comes over her.  She is afraid of that emotion, because it is awful, considering her husband just died, but she is excited for it too, because she will finally feel free for the first time.

I recommend reading through the story, looking at the passages I have included, and seeing if they make sense for foreshadowing.  For historical fiction, try submitting another question, as this website allows for one question a day.  I hope that helps a bit!  Good luck!

Does Greg overcome his conflicts at the of the story Slam!?I know that Greg faced many problems throughout the story. Some dealt with...

The story ends with the clear message that conflicts are and always will be a part of life.  Of the many problems that Greg faces throughout the narrative, none have reached a positive conclusion that is definite and lasting. 

As far as his education is concerned, Greg has refused the help of the volunteer tutor offered by the school and is instead working with the help of his studious girlfriend Mtisha.  Mtisha is unyielding and challenges Greg to do his best even when he reacts with anger and frustration; the author gives the reader the sense that, although he is trying, academic achievement will always be a struggle for Greg.

Greg's relationship with Mtisha seems to be moving in a positive direction by the end of the book, but it is by no means certain that things will work out for them.  Mtisha has made it clear that she plans to go away to college and do something positive with her life.  Although she is obviously drawn to Greg, she has made it clear to him that her education comes first, and has told him up front not to fall in love with her.  The future of Greg's relationship with his best friend Ice is even more questionable.  Greg has just found out that Ice has been lying to him and is dealing drugs, and Greg feels hurt and betrayed.

Things are looking better for Greg on the basketball team by the end of the book.  He is slowly beginning to understand what it means to be a team player, and has at long last earned the respect of his coach.  Ironically, however, basketball now seems unimportant in the face of Greg's realization that his best friend has made some hugely damaging choices in his life.

Greg is completely aware at the end of the story that his life will always be a struggle.  He says,

"What I wished was that things would stop for awhile and maybe we could all catch a breath and check out the score or something.  That wasn't happening.  What was happening was that the clock was still running...and we had to keep on keeping on the best way we could" (Chapter 21).

Is Paul a static or a developing character? If the latter, at what points does he change? Why?

Considering that the character of Paul in Willa Cather's Paul's Case is, as the whole title states A Study in Temperament, it is implied that his behavior has either changed all of a sudden, or has changed and remained in a certain manner. This manner is what serves as the focus of the study.

We know that Paul is a misfit. He cannot adapt to his surroundings and has lived his life in denial of his reality. The story does not readily tell us when exactly Paul's dissatisfaction with life begins, but it is arguable that this is a gradual change that only gets more and more intense. So intense, indeed, that it ends with Paul's suicide.

This being said, Paul arguably is a dynamic character because he changes with his circumstances. Since Paul's case is so unique, however, we can see that the changes occur within a very defined scenario from Cordelia Street to the Waldorf Astoria: The transformation from Paul, the private school boy, into Paul, the dandy.

What were the typical methods of progressive reformers? (US history: era of progressive reform 1890-1920.)

The progressive movement was born out of the emerging middle class in America. Reform by definition is to make something better. In this case rais the quality of life for many Americans. The industrial Revolution in America was met face to face with a seemingly endless suply of unskilled laborers in the form of immigrants. Essentially those who were lowest on the economic scale were pushed upward because of the influx of immigrants. The new middle class people who didn't have to work seven days a week anymore had time to think and look at the ills that industrialization caused. Literacy rates grew and the 'muckraker' was born. If compared with today they would be 'investigative journalists'. Upton Sinclair, Jacob Riis, and Ida Tarbell exposed the worst industrialization was responsible for in American society, labor and health conditions, living conditions, and wages so low a man that worked 15 hours a day could not feed his family and keep a roof over their heads. Their publications were so powerful, even presidents were swayed. Other methods were education and sheer public outcry. Margaret Sanger and Jane Addams are fine examples of progressives attempting to facilitate change through education be it birth control, domestic problems, rent, and education itself. The suffrage movement was filled with protest marches through the streets. Women were going to exercise their Constitutional rights as citizens to attain political power which was finally realized by the 19th Amendment...a woman's right to vote.

In what ways are Zaroff and Rainsford similar and different in The Most Dangerous Game?

Rainford and Zaroff have more in common than Rainsford would probably want to admit, but they are different in one important way. 

As the story opens. Whitney and Rainsford are having a conversation about hunting.  Rainsford agrees that it is "the best sport in the world."  But when Whitney points out that it is great sport for the hunter and not for the jaguar, Rainsford responds:

The world is made up of two classes -the hunters and the huntees. Luckily, you and I are hunters.

When Rainsford encouters Zaroff, Zaroff says,

I have but one passion in my life, Mr. Rainsford, and it is the hunt.

So we know that Zaroff and Rainsford love the thrill of the hunt.  But that is where they part company.

As we read along, we learn that Zaroff and Rainsford do not agree on what constitutes "fair game."  Zaroff hunts men, and this is where Rainsford draws the line, calling Zaroff's action "murder."  He declines to take part in a hunt with Zaroff, not realizing, of course, that he is to be huntee, not the hunter. 

I have often wondered whether Rainsford, after the story ends, decides to stop hunting.  Does he gain any insight into the feelings of the hunted as a result of his experience, or does he continue to believe that his hunting is moral?  What do you think? 

Discuss Romeo's overtures towards Rosaline in the opening scene of Romeo and Juliet.

What a great way to describe Romeo's words in the first scene as "overtures"!  That, my friend, is truly what they are.  They form a perfect precursor to Romeo's exposition and prove him to be incurably romantic in nature!  At first, Romeo deals so far into abstraction that any audience member should be a bit befuddled as to what he means:

O me!  What fray was here?-- / Yet tell me not, for I have heard it all. / Here's much to do with hate, but more with love. / Why then, O brawling love!  O loving hate! / O anything of nothing first create!  (1.1.176-180)

Your guess is as good as mine.  Still, it isn't long before we get more specifics as Benvolio prods Romeo further.  We learn that Rosaline will "not be hit / With Cupid's arrow" (1.1.215-216).  In other words, Romeo is in love with Rosaline, but Rosaline is not in love with him.  In my opinion, there is also a bit of controversial tone when Romeo responds to Benvolio's question about whether Rosaline has vowed to "live chaste."

She hath, and in that sparing makes huge waste; / For beauty, starved with her severity, / Cuts beauty off from all posterity. /She is too fair, too wise, wisely too fair, / To merit bliss by making me despair. / She hath forsworn to love, and in that vow / Do I live dead that live to tell it now. (1.1.225-231)

Hmmmm, is Romeo talking about marriage here?  Or is he just talking about sex?  Ha!  I venture to say he's thinking of the latter.  I can't help thinking of Billy Joel's "Virginia" lyrics:  "Come out Virginia, don't let me wait.  Catholic girls start much too late.  Sooner or later, it comes down to fate.  I might as well be the one. . . ." 

In these "overtures," in my opinion, Romeo truly proves himself to be an adolescent in the purest sense of the word.  He shows no maturity whatsoever, but puts his whole heart and soul into the moment.  This does not change one iota, even to his death.  Further, these "overtures" sound so very similar to those which he croons at Juliet, it makes one long for further study to try and prove how Romeo's love for Juliet was greater.  Well, at least his actions spoke even louder than his words, eh?

In Chapter 5 of Night, why didn't Elie fast on Yom Kippur?

Elie’s arrival at Auschwitz led him to the realization that the holocaust was unfolding before his eyes. He wondered how such heinous crimes were being committed as the world watched. He saw the burning of babies at the crematoria and witnessed the loss of hope among his people. The men were reciting Kaddish for themselves and this angered him because he believed God had turned away from them. These early events forced Elie to question his faith in both God and humanity because the assistance he expected never arrived.

"Yisgadal, veyiskadash, shmey raba…May His name be celebrated and sanctified…" whispered my father. For the first time, I felt anger rising within me. Why should I sanctify His name? The Almighty, the eternal and terrible Master of the Universe, chose to be silent. What was there to thank Him for?

Elie’s first night in the barracks confirmed his loss of faith. He had just been separated from his mother and sister, who were likely burned at the crematoria. Father and son only survived because an older inmate asked them to lie about their age.

Never shall I forget those flames that consumed my faith forever.

Never shall I forget the nocturnal silence that deprived me for all eternity of the desire to live.

Never shall I forget those moments that murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to ashes.

In Chapter Five, most of the inmates were fighting for survival. They faced starvation and the idea of fasting during Yom Kippur made no sense because they were starved most of the time while at the camp. It was because of this that Elie’s father asked him not to observe the fast because he wanted his son to survive. On the other hand, Elie had lost his faith in God and by not observing Yom Kippur, he was rebelling against God.

I did not fast. First of all, to please my father who had forbidden me to do so. And then, there was no longer any reason for me to fast. I no longer accepted God's silence. As I swallowed my ration of soup, I turned that act into a symbol of rebellion, of protest against Him.

And I nibbled on my crust of bread.

Deep inside me, I felt a great void opening.

Though the greasers won the rumble, are their problems with the Soc's over in "The Outsiders"?

Of course not.  The Greasers have accomplished nothing that will make any real difference in their lives by winning the fight.  They may feel better temporarily by having 'beaten' their social enemies, but nothing has been done that will effect the social and economic inequalities of society at large.  The social attitudes that seperate the Greasers from the Soc's are not surmountable by punching one another.  Ponyboy grasps this instinctively, as does Johnny when he hears the news.  The only things that will change one's life are decisions made internally, the decision to "stay gold."

What are the political implications of Robert Frost's poem "Mending Wall"?

The political implications of Robert Frost’s poem “Mending Wall” can be variously interpreted.  For example, the very first line of the poem – “Something there is that doesn't love a wall” – might at first seem a subtle condemnation of private property. By the second line, however, the poem’s attention seems to shift from political reactions to the actions of nature. Yet by the fifth line, attention has returned to human beings, particularly to hunters who have damaged the speaker’s wall:

I have come after them and made repair
Where they have left not one stone on a stone,
But they would have the rabbit out of hiding,
To please the yelping dogs. (5-9)

Should we sympathize with the speaker, whose private property has been damaged? Or should we sympathize with the hunters, who ignore what might be considered illegitimate encroachments on common human rights, on property that should belong to everyone? Should we sympathize with the speaker, whose property has been vandalized and who has to work hard to repair the damage?  Or is he merely a self-interested landowner whom Marxists might condemn? In either case, it is surprising that he does not seem angrier about the vandalism.

The fact that the neighbor helps the speaker walk the wall to inspect the damage suggests an admirable cooperation between the two of them – a kind of political compact based on equality and shared concerns. But it seems, of course, in the mutual interests both of them that the wall be maintained. Still, although they own land, they hardly seem rich or greedy or interested in oppressing anyone else. They are not mere overseers of hired labor. Instead, they have to work hard themselves to replace the stones (“We wear our fingers rough with handling them” [20]).

Moreover, the two landowners are never likely to engage in any kind of angry power struggle, especially since

My apple trees will never get across
And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him.
He only says, “Good fences make good neighbors.” (25-27)

What should we make of the neighbor’s reply? Does it suggest that a respect for individual property rights is the basis of any truly civil society? When the speaker replies by saying,

“Something there is that doesn’t love a wall,

That wants it down,” (35-36)

is he suggesting some sort of socialistic ideal?  His own actions seem to contradict such an interpretation. Meanwhile, the neighbor’s view seems rooted in tradition – perhaps mere, irrational tradition: “He will not go behind his father’s saying” (43). Although the speaker has challenged that saying, he has also conceded that the relationship between him and his neighbor is a special case (30-31). The poem ends, then, by having raised political question without having offered any simple propagandistic answer to them.

“Twelfth Night is like a good meal ruined: the main course is tasty, but the sweetness at the end is spoiled by a sharp unexpected bitterness."Do...

Very funny quote! However I would have to say that I do agree with it. Like a number of Shakespeare's comedies, there is often a sharp taste in the tongue alongside the sweetness. In fact, you might want to think about the genre of Comedy and Tragedy and how often his plays seem to lie in the middle ground between both of these categories. Merchant of Venice for example, seems more tragic in parts than comic, and equally Othello has a number of ingredients for a hilarious comedy - over-jealous husband etc.

However, in Twelfth Night, the major "sharp taste" comes from the character of Malvolio and his treatment at the hands of Sir Toby Belch and his cohort. Although his "punishment" for his arrogance and self-love can seem to be fitting and is something that the audience can enjoy and laugh at, it does seem to have been pushed too far - the punishment does not fit the crime. If it had stopped at the ridiculous yellow stocking event that would have been punishment enough, but to lock Malvolio up and to make him doubt his own sanity smacks of sadism, and does not "fit" easily into the standard happy ending of this comedy.

However, through his punishment Malvolio is a character who we come to respect and admire. He has dignity in the way he stubbornly clings to his sanity, despite being goaded by Feste. It appears that he, the character who represents order and Puritanism, must be locked away to enable the other characters to enjoy the riotous disorder of the Twelfth Night festival. Malvolio remains true to himself, and although he receives no recompense at the end of the play (he doesn't even receive a proper apology) we respect him all the more for that. He exits out of darkness into a celebration where he is excluded, and he stalks out, presenting a dischordant jarr to the festivities with his final words: "I'll be revenged on the whole pack of you!".

What is the symbolism behind "la mar" in The Old Man and the Sea?

La mar is Spanish for "the sea".  The sea can be seen as a symbol of life itself in this story, as both good and bad come from it.  Santiago alludes to this at more than one point during the story as well.  On good days, the sea provides him with many fish.  He then sells the fish to maintain his livelihood.  He sells them for money, and uses money to provide for his modest needs.  Other times, he cannot catch any fish.  These bad days result in hard labor without reward.  So, I see the sea as symbolic for life; some days are very good to us, while other days are not.  However, we are part of life, and life is part of us, just as the sea, or "la mar", was the biggest part of Santiago's life.  For better or worse, we must get through each day, hopefully catching the proverbial fish, rather than letting it get away.

Describe Gatsby the first time Nick sees him in The Great Gatsby.

Nick first sees Gatsby at the end of Chapter I.  He describes him as "standing with his hands in his pockets...."(25).  Nick is about to talk to call out to him, but decides not to when "he stretched his arms together toward the water in a curious way..."(26).  Nick then says, "...I could have sworn he was trembling" (26). Nick tells us that he is simply assuming this is Gatsby, but this does turn out to be a correct assumption.  Nick does not actually need Gatsby until the end of Chapter III, and there are a few passages that describe Gatsby, particularly very famous description of Gatsby's smile.

What is Twain's intent in showing the blackmailing scene between the constable and the woman in Prince and the Pauper?It is in between Chapters 22...

Twain's intent in showing the blackmailing scene between the constable and the woman appears to have two components.  The first is to advance the structure of the story, and the second is to illustrate his point that the common people are completely at the mercy of those who are in power.

Structurally speaking, the blackmailing scene between the constable and the woman provides the means for Miles Hendon to use in securing the little king's release a little further on in the story.  Miles has witnessed the exchange between the poor peasant woman and the law officer, and uses this information to engage in a little blackmail of his own in convincing the constable to let young Edward escape.  Miles makes the suggestion to the constable, and threatens to tell the judge exactly what he has seen if the man does not cooperate with his scheme.  Although the constable balks at doing what Miles wants at first, he is convinced when Miles explains to him the exact nature of the crime he has committed in his dealings with the poor woman, a crime for which the penalty "is death by the halter, without ransom, commutation, or benefit of clergy" (Chapter 24).

Twain also shows the blackmailing scene between the constable and the woman to further his theme of how completely the common people are at the mercy of those in power.  The woman, who has exhibited deep sympathy and kindness in lowering her estimate of the value of her goods before the court so that the little king will not hang for allegedly stealing from her, is forced to sell what she has at that same low price to the unscrupulous constable who is quick to take advantage.  The constable threatens to expose the woman for lying under oath in devaluing her goods, even though she only did it out of mercy for the boy accused of robbing her.  The woman represents the peasant class, who are good at heart but will always find themselves helpless and at a disadvantage under the ridiculously harsh laws of the land and those who enforce them (Chapter 23).

Where can i find the actual poem "The Black Walnut Tree" by Mary Oliver?I need it for my homework

Well, I don't think that it is available on the web; I looked, and had no luck.  I actually have a copy of the poem, because I own the book "New and Selected Poems:  Volume One" by Mary Oliver, and the poem is in there.  This book was published by Beacon Press in Boston, in 1992, on pages 201-202, just so you have the information for a full citation for it. Here are the first few lines (the back-slashes indicate a line break):

"My mother and I debate:/we could sell the black walnut tree/to the lumberman,/and pay off the mortgage."

I hope that helps with your homework a bit; it's a great poem about the powerful memories and familial ties that trees and other great structures built by strong hands can have, and a tribute to respecting the work and cares of those that have gone before us.  I hope that you enjoy it!  I also provided a couple great links to some discussions of Mary Oliver's style and themes, which might help with your homework too.

What New York City commission was created in 1970?

This is taken from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's website:

On April 22, 1970-the first Earth Day-legislation was signed creating the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation-one of the first government agencies specifically formed for the purpose of overseeing all environmental concerns through one organization. The legislation provided for a melding of the duties of the old Conservation Department, with responsibility for some programs from the Department of Health and some state commissions to DEC, and the creation of entirely new disciplines within the agency.

DEC opened its doors on July 1, 1970, and immediately began to wrestle with the urgent problems of the day-such as pesticides, mercury pollution, solid waste, and recreational access-and with the need to create an organization structured to deliver services across the state.

How was Elizabeth Freeman involved in the revolutionary war?

Elizabeth Freeman played an important role in American history.  While we usually think of the northern states as being against slavery, before and after the Revolutionary War, there were plenty of slaves in the north, and Elizabeth Freeman was responsible for the end of slavery in those northern states.  She was born a slave in the state of New York and when she was purchased, became a slave in the state in Massachusetts.  Her hsuband was killed in the Revolutionary War, so she had good reason to be interested in what he had died for.  Her interpretation of the Bill of Rights and the Massachusetts Constitution led her to the conclusion that slavery should not exist in the new country, that the freedoms guaranteed by these documents applied to slaves.  She sued and won her freedom, creating a path for freedom for slaves in the northern states.  I have included one source of information about Elizabeth Freeman, and there are others. One interesting question that might be investigated is whether she took this name because of her freedom or whether her husband took this name because he was fighting for freedom in the Revolutionary War.