My Brother Sam Is Dead free essay sample

Sam is DeadELA During the American Revolution Soldiers weren’t the only ones who were at high risk of death. For example in the small town of Redding, Connecticut there was a variety of different opinions on war. Unlike like most happy stories and fairytales there was no good side, there might have been a good cause but no side was considered innocent. The Patriots were killing someone for a crime they did or looked like they were committing even if they were fighting for their side. The British were exaggerating situations to get a chance to execute a fellow loyalist or Patriot. In the book My Brother Sam is Dead by, James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier, the Meeker Family is displayed as the typical family during 1775-1779. Tim Meeker has a rebellious brother who was raised as a Loyalist but joins the Patriots to fight against his own king’s army. We will write a custom essay sample on My Brother Sam Is Dead or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page From the beginning of the books on through the end Tim exhibits different character traits. A series of events cause these changes. In the beginning of the novel Tim displays lazy and laggard behavior. Tim didn’t bother to fix the broken basket in the barn. â€Å"I did fix it, but it broke again†¦I was to lazy to fix it again. Laziness was sloth and sloth was a sin† (PG16) Occasionally he seems to has and I could care less attitude. Tim is the youngest Meeker son. Being the youngest can sometimes lead to depending more on your siblings and parents to do or fix your work. However, Tim is quiet; he holds back when it comes to opinions. This trait make Tim hold back and think his opinion means nothing to his family or whoever would listen. Tim isn’t outspoken like Sam. â€Å"Children ought to keep a civil tongue in their heads, I guess he was right children are suppose to keep quiet and not say anything even when the know the grownups are wrong,.. Sometimes I have trouble keeping quiet myself. † (PG8and9) Growing up with a brother who is out spoken and a role model it is easy to be hard on yourself when you compare yourself to them.

Account for Lloyd Georges fall from office in 1922 Essays

Account for Lloyd Georges fall from office in 1922 Essays Account for Lloyd Georges fall from office in 1922 Essay Account for Lloyd Georges fall from office in 1922 Essay Lloyd George became Prime Minister in 1916, with the formation of a coalition government, between the Liberals, Labour and the Conservatives. Unfortunately, the outbreak of World War One had divided the liberals. The then Prime Minister, Herbert Asquith had begun to loose his grip as a formidable political figure and when the option of creating a coalition government was forced upon him, he chose to retire. In his place, Lloyd George was appointed. He was radical and charismatic and therefore, just what the country need at this difficult time. After Britains victory in the war, a general election was called in 1918, which Lloyd George, as the hero from the war, won with a landslide victory. Although Lloyd George had just achieved a great election victory, his political position was still very vulnerable. After Asquiths depart from office, the Liberals had been split, with about half of liberal MPs supporting the old Prime Minister instead of the new. Lloyd George had tried to repair this growing rift in his party by offering Asquith the post of Lord Chancellor, but Asquith, rather foolishly, refused this generous offer. There was no longer any hope of re-uniting the party and Lloyd George had become a Prime Minister without a party. So, Lloyd George, not only had to run a struggling coalition, he had to do it, in effect, without the support of a party. Many factors were contributing to the problems of the coalition. The labour party, led by their coalition representative Arthur Henderson had left the coalition in 1917, leaving it comprised of mainly Tories, with an ex-liberal Prime Minister. The conservatives were perfectly happy to continue with the coalition. They had not won an election since 1902 and they had lost all their self-confidence. They hoped to profit at the coupon election from the Prime Ministers popularity. The coalition had no apparent or coherent philosophy and was in some respects, incapable of effective action. It had too much confidence in itself to listen to the pessimists. In fact, had they paused to consider the warnings they received, many problems wouldnt have arisen. During the war, a common enemy had united the coalition. All their personal differences and policies were unimportant and disregarded in the light of the situation. After the war, the key question was, could the two elements of the coalition co-operate together successfully. All this rested on how long Lloyd George could retain the support of the Tory Backbenchers. The conservatives, if they withdrew from the coalition, would have a comfortable majority and therefore Lloyd George had to maintain his popularity with the voting public to convince the Conservatives that the depended on him. Lloyd George could not delegate important tasks to his colleagues because he had to seem personally responsible for the successes. This was dangerous as it also meant that he would seem personally responsible for the failures also. It caused many fellow ministers to consider him as too dominant. As both the cabinet and the coalition, were conservatives dominated, Lloyd George had to follow their lead in many respects. He relied on the Conservative Party leader, Andrew Bonar Law as a mediator between the Prime Minister and Backbenchers. He was a man of great ability but his most important skill was not in leading the Tories, but in understanding them. This was essential for Lloyd George who had to please these ministers and not to be seen to neglect them. Unfortunately, this arrangement was not to last indefinitely. Although Lloyd George, revelled in political security, he saw the need for political realignment and wanted to form a new centre party with his liberals and all but the very extreme right-wing Tories. These groups had had a natural and effective co-operation for years. In March 1920, many Tories petitioned for this single united party, but Lloyd Georges plans were spoiled by the coalition liberals who were unwilling to be tied to the conservatives permanently. Lloyd Georges ideas became known as the fusion and despite the lack of liberal support, he kept trying, undeterred, but he never got any closer to his ideal party. The failure of the fusion did not mean the end of the coalition but it did leave Lloyd George vulnerable and reliant on Bonar Law. In 1921, Bonar Law resigned due to ill health. This was a huge blow for Lloyd George. His replacement, Austen Chamberlain was no substitute for Bonar Law. He was deficient where Bonar law had excelled, out of touch with party feeling and very aloof. The root of his trouble was his vanity. He would not wear glasses, although he was very shortsighted. He insisted on wearing a monocle in a vain attempt to look like his famous father. This meant that her could only recognise people at a distance of a few feet. His Backbenchers were annoyed and felt that their leader was ignoring them. He also failed to communicate well and didnt tell his Backbenchers of his critical views of Lloyd George. He was therefore seen as Lloyd Georges creation. The results of all this political uncertainty and tension was that problems began to multiply for Lloyd George and his coalition. The strain was beginning to show. All these problems were heightened by public expectations. These were very high and too much was expected of the coalition. In return for this faith, their disappointment in this failure was bitterer. In 1918, after the war, Lloyd George inherited a changed and damaged Britain. During the war, it had become essential that the government were more involved in peoples lives. This meant that the old policy of Laissez-faire was effectively over. Also, ministers became more accountable to the people they represented. The Representation of the People Act of 1918 gave the vote to more people than ever before. Britain was at last becoming the true democracy and proper democracy it had the potential to be. With this change, not only ministers, but also all political figures and institutions became answerable to the people that voted for them. Public opinion at last held more weight and influence. Lloyd George, as well as the rest of the country had to become accustomed to these changes, but at the same time pressing problems with the economy had to be dealt with. The end of the war brought with it a natural slow-down economically. Fewer raw materials, food were needed, as Britain was no longer forced into self-sufficiency. This meant that a slump occurred in many industries. This was natural and expected as the war had stimulated the economy to a level no longer required. Despite its predictability, there was little the government could do. They were forced to relinquish their former policy of non-intervention in a vain attempt to control l the slow-down. To contribute to the situation, British goods were no longer competitive on the international export market. She had been the first country to industrialise and other countries had now followed her example, only they had the benefit of heignsight and could learn for Englands mistakes. They perfected the long-established techniques of this country and forced Britain out of the market. She could no longer compete. Reconstruction had begun during the war and was continued but Lloyd George after it. In a speech delivered on 12th November 1918, he outlined his ambitions and hopes for the future. He wanted to raise standards in health and housing, a minimum wage, shorter working hours and agriculture reform. Basically, he wanted a land fit for heroes. These were the expectations of the people. Dr Christopher Addisons housing act of 1919 placed the obligation upon local authorities to see that all citizens were provided with decent homes. Private housebuilders were given subsidies to build the houses. The government offered to meet the costs of all municipal housing. This act has been and was criticised for being extravagant but over 200000 new houses were built with this aid between 1919 and 1923. This is a huge achievement, under the circumstances. The unemployment act of 1920 extended unemployment insurance to millions more workers, covering the majority of the wag-earning population. Benefit was to be paid for the first 15 weeks of unemployment, but unemployment continued to rise and the scheme needed constant modifications. Despite this, the principal of comprehensive protection of unemployed workers had been addressed and without these measures, the unemployment situation would have been much worse. In 1920, the agriculture act had maintained a previous system of price guarantees for wheat and oats. Greater protection was also given to agricultural wages and the protection of tenure was given to tenant farmers. All the above mentioned reforms were curtailed when the slump began in April 1921. Lloyd Georges solution was to set up a committee of businessmen, under the direction of Sir Eric Geddes. This commission was to investigate the economic problems and they produced their first report in February 1922. It recommended sweeping cuts in public spending. Addisons housing program had cuts imposed on it, causing Dr Addison to resign and defect to he labour party. Also, the new agriculture act was repealed only a year after it was first enforced, as the wheat priced plummeted and the cost of subsidising the farmers rose steadily. The provisions made by the unemployment act were extended and the unemployment fund could borrow up to 30 million from the treasury to finance the unemployment benefit. Due to the sorrowful conclusion to Lloyd Georges reconstruction policies, many people considered them to be a complete failure, but they were, in fact, a relative success. Much was achieved, as the situation would have been worse without the efforts of Addison and other similar policies. People now saw that the land fit for heroes that they had been promised couldnt be delivered by Lloyd George. All the problems outlined so far have been long-term trends or short-term causes, but without a trigger, Lloyd George might not have fallen. In this case, there were several triggers, each heightening the problems and contributing to the crisis. One of these triggers was the Irish policy adopted by Lloyd George. Ireland was and had been for many years, under the control of Britain, as part of the empire. Members of Sinn Fein wanted an independent Ireland and so they refused to take up their seats in the House of Commons in 1918 and instead, formed their own government. This new Irish government was not recognised as legitimate by the British government and so the nationalists used force to try and influence their legitimacy. In response to this violent outburst, Lloyd George set up the Black and Tans, a military unit who fought the violence with violence. In Britain, these aggressive tactics made the Prime Minister unpopular, not only among the British people, but also among his fellow ministers. Eventually talks began with the Irish nationalists, but Lloyd George knew that he must, under any circumstances retain the largely industrialised are of Ulster in the north of the country. He used his great negotiating power with the nationalists and a deal was finally reached which entailed that the unionists could rule all Ireland with the exception of Ulster and Ireland could become a dominion. Under these rules, Ireland was still within the empire. This point was crucial for Lloyd George, as he had to retain the support of the unionist conservative party in his government. Ireland also, under the deal, still had to swear allegiance to the crown and monarch. This treaty became known as the Anglo-Irish treaty and was signed by both sided in 1921. As a short-term solution to the problem of Ireland, this treaty was successful. Although, many Tories were not pleased as they saw it as sign that they were going to loose the empire, overall Lloyd George had succeeded in meeting all the political demands made of him. In Ireland, the treaty was treated as a scandalous deal. The unionists had achieved none of the demands that they had initially presented and they still had to swear allegiance to the monarch, they had not the independence they wanted. Ultimately, the treaty had the expected effect. Lloyd George knew that the division would result in an inevitable civil war in Ireland, but he also knew that while Ireland was fighting itself, it could not fight England and in that respect he was safe and the Irish question was resolved. In the long term, the division of Ireland by this treaty has caused and is still responsible for the ongoing conflict in Northern Ireland. The Irish question increased Lloyd Georges unpopularity both because of the harsh methods of dealing with the violence and because of the new treaty. Despite this, it was not this issue that was Lloyd Georges greatest error in foreign policy. After the First World War, Lloyd George had helped to negotiate the Treaty of Sevres with Turkey, where most of the Ottoman Empire was parcelled out around Europe. The terms of the treaty were harsh, so harsh in fact that they provoked a nationalist revolt. Mustapha Kemal led a war of liberation. He wanted to regain Smuma from the Greeks. The area of Chanak was guarded by allied troops when the trouble began and all but Britain withdrew their troops. Instead of withdrawing his troops, Lloyd George gave the order that an ultimatum was to be delivered by General Harrington. Fortunately, Harrington disobeyed the order and instead entered into peace negotiations. Finally and amicable settlement was reached. Lloyd George had offended the traditional pro-Turk stance of the conservatives and a feeling of political rest stirred among the coalition government. The whole affair appeared that the Prime Minister was recklessly risking war in a time, only 4 years after the Great War and in a climate of great war-weariness. This incident greatly damaged his public standing and heightened his unpopularity. The other treaty, for which Lloyd George had been responsible in the aftermath of the war, was the Treaty of Versailles. Here, his role had been as a moderator between the USA and France. At home, he also had to act as a moderator. The conservatives feared that the treaty would be too lenient, yet the Liberals were worried that it was too harsh. Unfortunately, he couldnt please both. Also, Maynard Keynes book made it fashionable to condemn the treaty and Lloyd Georges part in bringing it about. Lloyd George attended many meeting but still his policies would not work. He could not overcome Frances resentment of Germany or the USAs isolationism. His work appeared to be meaningless. The next nail in Lloyd Georges coffin, as it were, was the honours scandal. If it had come at a time of political stability, it would not have had much influence or impact, but coming, as it did, no top of the Irish settlement and the Chanak incident, it had both. It seemed to show the moral bankruptcy of Lloyd George. He was accused of selling knighthoods and peerages. He had never had a reputation for honesty or orthodoxy; he rarely visited the commons, leaked secrets to the press, had a wife and mistress and was unfaithful to both and had once summoned the entire cabinet up to Inverness for a cabinet meeting because it was more convenient to him and his holiday plans. The Tories, who were very moralist, were appalled with his attitude. The money raised from the sales went into Lloyd Georges personal fund. In fact the conservative hypocrisy was shown by this scandal as they pocketed half of the profits from the sales and then complained. It was not a new thing for honours to be sold in this way, but Lloyd George bestowed peerages on three very disreputable characters and it was this that caused the outrage. As a result of the scandal, a committee or privy councillors was set up to consider all political candidates for honours. Finally, on the 19th September, Austen Chamberlain called a meeting of the conservatives in the Carlton Club in London. Here he lectured backbenchers that they must maintain the coalition as they couldnt win an election without its support, but he was inept and failed to make it clear that he wanted a reconstructed coalition, with a different leader. Most Tories would have agreed that Lloyd George was no longer a desirable leader of the coalition. Stanley Baldwin made an excellent speech. He picked up on an earlier comment about Lloyd George being a dynamic force, and illustrated how a dynamic force can be a terrible and dangerous thing. Bonar Law was Lloyd Georges former partner and his speech was more moderate, but still, it was clear that he no longer thought Lloyd George should lead the coalition. Bonar laws presence was vital, as he was needed to rally the discontented Tory majority. A motion was passed saying that the conservatives would fight the next election alone. Chamberlain, a constant supporter of Lloyd George, resigned as leader the next day and later that evening; Lloyd George resigned as Prime Minister. He had at last fallen. As I have shown above, there were many factors that contributed to the fall of Lloyd George. He ascended to the role of Prime Minister of the country in a time of economic and political instability and unrest. He had not only these problems to deal with, but he had to appease a conservative-majority coalition government and all without a party of his won. The triggers that led directly to his down fall all heightened public dissatisfaction with him as a person and as a leader and all, because they came together, contributed to his fall from power, so soon after winning a huge majority in the general election of 1918. Public expectations were too high and any man would fail to meet these high demands made of him. It is therefore not surprising that Lloyd George fell from power, it is perhaps a wonder that he lasted so long.

Philosophy Functionalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Philosophy Functionalism - Essay Example Its core idea is that mental states can be accounted for without taking into consideration the underlying physical medium (the neurons), but instead attending to higher-level functions such as beliefs, desires, and emotions. For (an avowedly simplistic) example, a functionalist theory might characterize pain as a state that tends to be caused by bodily injury, to produce the belief that something is wrong with the body and the desire to be out of that state, to produce anxiety, and, in the absence of any stronger, conflicting desires, to cause wincing or moaning. According to this theory, all and only creatures with internal states that meet these conditions, or play these roles, are capable of being in pain. Suppose that, in humans, there is some distinctive kind of neural activity (C-fiber stimulation, for example) that meets these conditions. If so, then according to this functionalist theory, humans can be in pain simply by undergoing C-fiber stimulation. But the theory permits creatures with very different physical constitutions to have mental states as well: if there are silicon-based states of hypothetical Martians or inorganic states of hypothetical androids that also meet these conditions, then these creatures, too, can be in pain. ... satisfy the descriptions - then it's also logically possible for non-physical states to play the relevant roles, and thus realize mental states, in some systems as well. So functionalism is compatible with the sort of dualism that takes mental states to cause, and be caused by, physical states. Still, though functionalism is officially neutral between materialism and dualism, it has been particularly attractive to materialists, since many materialists believe (Lewis, 1966) that it is overwhelmingly likely that any states capable of playing the roles in question will be physical states. If so, then functionalism can stand as a materialistic alternative to the Psycho-Physical Identity Thesis, the thesis that each type of mental state is identical with a particular type of neural state. This thesis, once considered the dominant materialistic theory of the mind, entails that no creatures with brains unlike ours can share our sensations, beliefs, and desires, no matter how similar their behavior and internal organization may be to our own. This is a consequence that many regard as implausible. Thus functionalism, with its claim that mental states can be multiply realized, is widely regarded as providing a more inclusive, less "(species-) chauvinistic" (Block, 1980) - and thus mo re plausible - theory that is (at least arguably) compatible with materialism. Within this broad characterization of functionalism, however, a number of distinctions can be made. Functionalism has three distinct sources. First, Putnam and Fodor saw mental states in terms of an empirical computational theory of the mind. Second, Smart's "topic neutral" analyses led Armstrong and Lewis to a functionalist analysis of mental concepts. Third, Wittgenstein's idea of meaning as use led to a version of

The central dilemma of macro-economic policy is not the choice between Essay

The central dilemma of macro-economic policy is not the choice between using monetary or fiscal policy but whether to intervene - Essay Example The macro-economic policy is concerned with carrying out certain economic objectives. These objectives aim to eradicate the main macro-economic problems within an economy. These include unemployment, inflation, and negative balance of payments position, a low rate of economic growth and inequitable distribution of wealth (Stan lake, Grant, pp.499, 1967). Macroeconomics conventionally has two governing views on policy; these are interventionist and laissez-faire (Dixon, pp.2, 2000). The paper, before examining these two views in details, will describe monetary and fiscal policy. Monetary and fiscal policies are the two instruments that the government uses to tackle the amount of expenditure floating in the economy. This is because levels of expenditure highly affect the level of inflation, growth, and unemployment. There are varieties of different forms of government macroeconomic policies. However, the best known and the widely used are fiscal policy and monetary policy. These belong to the demand-side economy that is these policies have the aim of affecting the level of aggregate demand in the economy. In a concise form, aggregate demand of a country is as follows: AD= C+I+G-T+(X-M) Where C=Consumption I=Investment G=Government Expenditure T= Taxes X=Exports M=Imports (Universitip, N.p., N.d). Both fiscal and monetary policies are part of the ‘Keynesian’ school of thought that will be discussed in the paper. These two policies can ‘fine-tune’ various economic problems within the economy such as inflation and output growth (Langdana, pp. 10, 2009). Fiscal policy caters to the two components within the economy i.e. Government expenditure and taxes. If there are inflationary pressures within the economy, then the government can increase the level of direct or indirect taxes, or it might also decrease government spending. Both these measures will reduce inflation in the economy. However, during times of recession, the government can incre ase the government spending. This will cause an injection of money into the economy, bringing it out of the recession. In addition, during war years, various countries especially USA saw massive increases in government spending, thus increasing the growth rate. The increase in spending was to due to the funding of the war. The level, the timing, and the composition of taxation and government spending can have an important effect on people’s lives (Stan & Grant, pp. 503, 1967). Monetary Policy also affects the level of aggregate demand. The tools that are used are either the rate of interest or the supply of money. In many countries, it is an acceptable view that the control of the money supply is probably the most significant tool to affect the level of demand in the economy (Stan & Grant, pp. 521, 1967). An increase in the level of interest will mean less spending, because people will tend to save more in such times, because the return on saving will be higher. However, when the interest rate is low, the cost of borrowing will be less, meaning that there will be an increase in borrowing and hence consumption. Therefore, the monetary policy is very important because it affects the level of aggregate demand. One very recent example of the importance of monetary policy is that during the Crash of 2008 in United States, for two years, the interest rate was maintained at 1% (New Work, 2008), which meant that the level of consumption was

Developing a Philosophy, Goals, and Objectives Term Paper

Developing a Philosophy, Goals, and Objectives - Term Paper Example tatement and it points out the principles and attitudes that guide decision making, then the health centers philosophy should read: We recognize the needs of our poor and diverse community and offer care reverential of our clients traditions, culture, economic status, and religious conviction. According to Kenny (2012, p. 43), "In practice, organizational objectives are what the organization wants from its key stakeholders". The major stakeholders of Mountain View Health Center include patients, the community, and community based organizations (Laureate Education, 2013b). In this respect, the objective should read: To create a health care delivery system that encourages and supports high quality and affordable care to the community and migrant workers. On the basis of the needs of the community and migrant workers, the goal should read: To recognize electronic medical records as a fundamental factor that could improve health care quality at lower costs. In terms of insights, I have learnt that achieving projected outcomes is dependent on the way goals and objectives are formulated and implemented. This is due to the fact philosophy, goals, and objectives of an organization provides direction (Lorenzi, 2011). In other words, the organization is able to identify areas to direct resources as well as attention in order to achieve the intended results. In a nutshell, organizational philosophies, goals, and objectives guides the decision making process as it helps the organization identify where to direct

The Concept Of Identity And Cultural Identity Media Essay

The Concept Of Identity And Cultural Identity Media Essay This literature review will start by introducing the concept of identity and cultural identity. It will then move to talk about how the British colonialism influenced Hong Kong in the past. It will followed by discussing how cultural imperialism, globalization affected the formation of peoples identity in Hong Kong. The literature review will then end by talking about how states influence affect peoples identity in Hong Kong. Introduction of the concept of identity and cultural identity The word identity is rooted from a Latin idem same which also mean identical (Lawler, 2008: 2). Identity suggests that people share the sameness as human but at the same time people are unique that make them different from others (Lawler, 2008: 2). Richard Jenkins (1996) defined identity as our understanding of who we are and of who other people are, and reciprocally, other peoples understanding of themselves and of others (which includes us) (Jenkins, 1996 cited in Kidd, 2002:25). The individual and collective forms of identity are closely linked with ideas of family, local and national history and tradition; the sense of history and tradition is learnt from the family, through media, school, National anthems, flags, costumes and holidays, state rituals, national sports teams, pageantry museums, heritage centres, buildings and monuments, historical novels, drama, films, documentaries, etc which create and sustain who we are and where we come from (Weeden, 2004:24). Different forms o f identity can be found on a person therefore they should be seen as interactive and dynamic with each other (Lawler, 2008:3). However, there are forms of identity that mutually exclusive from each other. As Stuart Hall argues: Throughout their careers, identities can function as points of identification and attachment only because of their capacity to exclude, to leave out, to render outside, abjected. Every identity has at its margin, an excess, something more. The unity, the internal homogeneity, which the term identity treats as foundational is not a natural, but a constructed form of closure, every identity naming as its necessary, even if silenced and unspoken other, that which it lacksà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦So the unities which identities proclaim are, in fact, constructed within the play of power and exclusion, and are the result, not of a natural and inevitable or primordial totality but of the naturalized, over-determined process of closure'(Hall, 1996: 5, emphasis in original cit ed in Lawler, 2008:3). It demonstrated that identity is not exist naturally or people born with it but constructed by closing and exclusion. Hall (1990) identified two versions of views on cultural identity (Hall, 1990 cited in Barker, 1997:192). The first version of view of cultural identity claiming that cultural identity in terms of one, shared culture, a sort of collective one true self, hiding inside the many other, more superficial or artificially imposed selves, which people with a shared history and ancestry hold in common (Hall, 1990: 223). This reflects the common historical experiences and shared cultural codes which provide us, as one people, with stable, unchanging and continuous frames of reference and meaning, beneath the shifting divisions and vicissitudes of our actual history (Hall, 1990: 223). This version of view of cultural identity is known as essentialism because it assumes that social categories reflect an essential underlying identity (Barker, 1997:192). From the words of Hall, it can be seen that this version of claiming of cultural identity is based on the common history, culture that shared wit hin a particular group from the past, and it looks at cultural identity without changing and flexibility. Halls second version of view of cultural identity claiming that cultural identity is not seen as a reflection of a fixed, natural state of being but as a process of becoming, cultural identity is not an essence but a continually-shifting position, and the points of difference around which cultural identities could form are multiple and proliferating (Barker, 1997:194). Hall argues (following Derrida), meaning is never finished or completed and so identity is a cut or a snap-shot of unfolding meanings; it is a strategic positioning which makes meaning possible (Barker, 1997:194). This second version of view of cultural identity is an anti-essentialist position, which shown the political nature of identity production and to the possibility of multiple and shifting identities (Barker, 1997:194). It can be seen that the second version of looking at cultural identity as much more fle xible, changeable. Stuart Hall (1990) claimed that Identity is not as transparent or unproblematic as we think. Perhaps instead of thinking of identity as an already accomplished fact, which the new cultural practices then represent, we should think, instead, of identity as a production, which is never completeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦, so Identity is in a moving, fluid, dynamic form in Halls view (Hall, 1990 cite in Kidd, 2002:26). The above two versions of viewing cultural identity are very different. It will be interesting to know how people see their cultural identity in reality. The history and influence of Hong Kong under the British colonialism Colonialism refers to the establishment by more developed countries of formal political authority over areas of Asia, Africa, Australasia, and Latin America (Scott Marshall, 2005:88). Britain and The Qing government signed three treaties stating that the Qing government to give up sovereignty of Hong Kong which includes Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and New Territories and Outlying islands (Thomas, 1999:47). Since then, Hong Kong had become a British colony from 1842 to 1997. In this hundred and fifty year time, the people who lived in Hong Kong experienced differently with those in mainland China. Hong Kong has its own history and cultural identity. How does this distinct Hong Kong identity formed? From 1842 to 1997, Hong Kong was under British colonial rule and British colonial government had adopted an economic laissez-faire and social non-interventionist policy that it just treated Hong Kong as a commercial entre-pot (Ma, 1999:23). First, it wanted to avoid conflict with the Chinese government, second, it wanted to maintain a commercial, apolitical place for economic and diplomatic reasons (Ma, 1999:23). In the late 1940s, there were huge amount of newcomers went from mainland to the British colony Hong Kong and these people sought to escape from the civil war, economic crisis, and the ruling of the rigid communist, etc and this brought a large number of labour force and manufacturing base to Hong Kong (Thomas, 1999:79-80). In the late 1940s, among the refugees there were experienced entrepreneurs, who brought capital and technical knowledge with them (Wong, S.L., 1988 cited in Ma, 1999:25). In 1950s, Hong Kong established a solid light industrial sector; in 1960s, it shifted to plastic industry; in 1970s, it transformed to manufacturing industry of clocks, watches, electronic toys; in 1980s, Hong Kong started to develop a tertiary industrial sector, emphasis on financial and human resources sectors, and this created a large group of middle class (Thomas, 1999 :80-81). On the education side, the Anglicised education system had reduced the Chinese identity of the local people in Hong Kong (Ma, 1999:29). The British colonial government was seriously concerning about the content of Chinese studies and it deliberately did not create a sense of national identity to the students (Luk, 1989 cited in Ma, 1999:29). Students didnt learn much about the modern Chinese history and development since the colonial government just emphasized and focus on the economic value of Hong Kong as a middle person between the trade of China and Britain (Lane, 1994; Sweeting, 1992; Tang, 1994 cited in Ma, 1999:29). The colonial government also aimed at making a Hong Kong Chinese who can speak both the languages of China and Britain but at the same time without any strong sense of belonging to either country, as well as local history was ignored to prevent Hong Kong to become independent itself politically (Ma, 1999:29). On the social policy side, the development of the public housing policy carried out by the British colonial government in the 1950s created collective experiences of mobility and resettlement and social memory for the HK people (Ma, 1999:30). The resettlement process was often showed in the mass media: children running along corridors of the government estates; parents coming back from work; residents watching TV together after dinner, and these familiar images on TV dramas and government-produced documentaries formed of a home in HK mentality (Lui, 1988a cited in Ma, 1999:30). These collective memories of the residents indirectly reinforced the sense of belonging to Hong Kong and enhancing the HongKongese identity. As a British colony, Hong Kong was imported a lot of cultural products from the Great Britain and also from other western countries. It can be seen that in post Second World War period, Hong Kong was modernizing by incorporating Western lifestyles; it was attuned to a hyb rid, cosmopolitan cultural environment which was increasingly receptive to imported cultural products like Hollywood movies (Ma, 1999:27). The capitalist ideology of Hong Kong and the communist ideology of Mainland China generated the us vs. them identification between both sides and this assisted that development of the distinct Hong Kong identity with demonstrating the difference between Hong Kong community and Mainland China (Thomas, 1999:83). The above factors leaded to something unique emerged in Hong Kong which is the Hong Kong Man. The Hong Kong Man is go-getting and highly competitive, tough for survival, quick-thinking and flexible, also he wears western clothes, speaks English or expects his children to do so, drinks western alcohol, has sophisticated tastes in cars and household gadgetry, and expects life to provide a constant stream of excitement and new openings, however, he is not British or western, at the same time, he is not Chinese in the same way that the citizens of the Peoples Republic of China are Chinese (Baker, 1983:278 cited in Ma, 1999:32-33). It can be seen that a distinct Hong Kong identity was developed under the British colonial rule. Although the Great Britain adopted a non-interventional attitude for the colony Hong Kong, it surely still had impact on shaping the cultural identity of Hong Kong in the past as colonialism produced new losses and gains, allowed new forms of identity to ascend, and debased or crushed others (Papastergiadis, 2000:180). For instance, the British colonialism brought the western capitalist ideology, the language of English, fashion, etc to Hong Kong. The style of ruling also helped to create the indigenous identity and sense of being HongKongese to the people who lived in Hong Kong. However, how much influence of the British colonialism in shaping the cultural identity of Hong Kong still remains today? Is this still a strong element in shaping cultural identity of Hong Kong now? Or it has already been replaced by other factors? Cultural imperialism, National Identity, Globalisation and Hybrid identity Cultural imperialism may play a part in shaping Hong Kongs cultural identity. Cultural imperialism refers to the domination of one culture over another, most commonly posed in terms of nationality, so cultural imperialism is understood in terms of the imposition of one national culture upon another and the media are seen as central to this process as carriers of cultural meanings which penetrate and dominate the culture of the subordinate nation (Barker, 1997:183). This theory stresses the homogenization of global culture through the spread of capitalist consumerism; also it stresses the loss of cultural diversity and the growth of sameness (Barker, 1997:185). Is this homogenization of culture under the cultural imperialism implying Hong Kongs cultural identity is being more like other countries in the globe which following the American and the West but lost its own distinct characteristic of identity? However, Tomlinson (1991) argues there are problems that related to the cultural a utonomy inherent in the cultural imperialism (Tomlinson, 1991 cited in Barker, 1997:187). He argues that cultures are not bounded entities but consist of changing practices and meanings; one cannot legitimately endow an amorphous set of practices with ontological identity and agency (Tomlinson, 1991 cited in Barker, 1997:187). The above demonstrated the problem of cultural imperialism theory that the nationally-based cultural domination is problematic (Barker, 1997:187). This thesis didnt explain the formation of collective identities in general, and cultural and national identities in particular, also, in this theory a national cultural identity is assumed as a finished product rather than a process which is constantly emerging and changing (Barker, 1997:188). For the development of national identity, as Benedict Anderson (1983) argues that national identity is an imagined and constructed one assembled in relation to a territorial and administrative category taking as its reference symbols and rituals intend by administrative authorities to enlist identification which the nation is an imagined community (Anderson, 1983 cited in Barker, 1997:189). It can be seen that national identity isnt come innately or people born with it but is socially constructed by social action and activities. Both the cultural imperialism thesis and Andersons conception of national identity posit the subject as a whole person and national identity as a unified position so that diversity and difference are subsumed beneath the sign of the nation (Barker, 1997:190). Stuart Hall saw that national identities as potentially in decline and replaced by new hybrid identities (Barker, 1997:191). Globalization is the main factor that leads to the forming of this hybrid identity. Population movement and settlement, during the periods of colonial and post-colonial globalization, and globalization of electronic communications have made the juxtapositioning, meeting, mixing available, therefore, globalization enhanced the production of hybrid identities by providing the range of sources and resources for identity construction (Barker, 1997:191-192). Hybrid identities prevent a person with a fixed or given identity, but let a person to change or choose to adopt different identification according to different circumstances (Barker, 1997:195). For instance, a young Asian woman may have identifications with being Bengali, English, a woman, with youth culture and with rap, an American-Caribbean hybrid, Anglo-Bengali at the same time (Barker, 1997:195). What we c an see from the above example is that this young Asian woman can shift and adopt the different identifications above in different circumstances. Moreover, the above example also demonstrated a hybrid identity by picking and adopting multiplying global resources (Barker, 1997:195) like rap culture from the Caribbean, etc. Pieterse claimed that Introverted cultures, which have been prominent over a long stretch of history and which overshadowed translocal culture, are gradually receding into background, while translocal culture made up of diverse elements is coming to the foreground (Pieterse, 1995:62 cited in Barker, 1997:197). It may imply that the national identity that formed by culture that bounded or tied to place is declining. In contrast, the hybrid identity that formed by culture that learnt trans-locally is enhancing. However, there are limitations of the thesis of hybrid identity. It was claimed by Parker that the hybrid identities are limited by the number of empirical evi dences despite there is theory to support that (Barker, 1997:196-197). So, how about the situation in Hong Kong at the moment? As Hall argued that hybrid identity is replacing the national identity under the globalization process, it seems that the hybrid identity should be winning in Hong Kong. However, there is an opposite view from Gordon Mathews. He argued that Hong Kongs international character in belonging to the global cultural supermarket and its national character in belonging to the Chinese state are presented as opposites, and it seems to be the latter which is winning (Mathews, 2001:308). He also claimed that Hong Kong is one of the few places in the affluent world today in which the market is giving way to the state, and in which international identity is being eroded by national identity (Mathews, 2001:309). So, is the national identity in belonging to the Chinese State winning or the hybrid identities that draw from the global cultural market winning in Hong Kong? The influence of state to Hong Kongs cultural identity: British colonial state and Chinese state The word state refers to the body politic or the political community; it is the major locus of power and authority in every modern society (Thomas, 1999:43). State is a concept that against the global cultural supermarket, by shaping people to believe not that they can pick and choose who they are from all the world, but rather that they belong to a particular culture, whose values and traditions they must uphold (Mathews, 2001:291). Practically state moulds cultural identity by school education and mass media; train their citizens to believe that they must defend their cultural tradition and their way of life (Mathews, 2001:291). The concept of state contradicts to the concept of cultural supermarket since state ask people to treasure and protect their own country and culture; however, global cultural supermarket ask people to pick things that you like around the world (Mathews, 2001:291). Hong Kong has never become a nation-state, not in the period of colony nor after the hand-over (Tse, 2006:55). During the colonial period from 1950s to 1980s, Hong Kongs civil education was a-political and a-nationalistic; students at that time were just being taught as residents or subjects who live in a colonial state, but nothing about nationality and citizenship (Morris 1992b; Tsang 1994, 1998 cited in Tse, 2006:56). From 1984 to 1997 was the transitional period of the civil education in Hong Kong. Since the sense of Hong Kong-centeredness and Hongkongese identity were being established under the different mode of governing by Hong Kong and Mainland China (Lau and Kuan 1988; Choi 1990, 1995a cited in Tse, 2006:57), reform of civil education to foster the national identity and unity were needed for preparing the time after 1997. After 1997, the new Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government focused a lot on the civil education. It aimed to create unquestioning political commitment and strengthen social order through the promotion of a unifying Chinese identity and values to the exclusion of a distinctive Hong Kong cultural identity and individual rights (Tse, 2006:61). The actual measures that being carried out under the HKSAR government included reintroduction of independent civics as a school subject, revisions of school syllabuses, the strengthening of Chinese history as a school subject, textbooks changed to reflect the new political reality, wider use of Putonghua as the medium of instruction, more schools displaying the national flag and singing the national anthem, exchange activities with mainland to boost nationalism and sense of social responsibility, etc (Tse, 2006:62). The above demonstrated that Chinese state has been influencing the Hong Kongs cultural identity by commanding the HKSAR government to use different strategies in civil education in order to reinforce the national identity and Chineseness of Hong Kong people. However, how much influence does the Chinese state itself and its policies play a part in shaping the cultur al identity of the people in Hong Kong actually?

Grapes Of Wrath: Summary :: essays research papers

Grapes of Wrath: Summary The book Grapes of Wrath tells about the dust Bowl people's troubles they had coming to California. It tell about the Joad's trip from Oklahoma to California. There are twelve people in the Joad family. The one person that stood out the most between thee family was Ma. Ma's great strength, and smart thinking is what keeps the Joad family together and going. Ma's strong suites are shown through out the book. Nancy Reagan once said, "A women is like a tea bag-only in hot water do you realize how strong she is." I don't know how Nancy Reagan did this but she described Ma Joad to you exactly. The first time that Ma's strength was showed was when grandma died. She lied to an inspector telling him, "We got a sick ol' lady. We got to get her to a doctor. We can't wait." The inspector bought the story and let them pass on their way to California. Even then Ma didn't tell the family that grandma was dead, instead she laid there next grandma's dead carpus until they got to California. "She looked over the valley and said , Grandma's dead." She keeps the family together when they want to split up. The first time that this was showed in the book when they pulled over to help the Wilsons with the car. Tom suggested that him and Casey stay and fix the car while the rest of the family go's on to Bakersfield and that they would meet them there. Ma then let out her fury, she held up a tire iron and demanded that they all stick together and that they will go to Bakersfield together. Ma is also very smart. Her common sense is a higher then the rest of the family's. When Tom gets hit under the eye by a officer Ma devises a plan to get Tom out of that government camp. She says, "We'll put one mattress on the bottom, an' then Tom gets quick there, an we take another mattress an' sort of fold it so it make a cave." She really puts her foot down with what she wants

Korean College Students Reading Strategies Essay

1. INTRODUCTION Korean universities take a variety of different approaches to ensure college students obtain a strong level of English proficiency during their education. This is why many university English classes use authentic literature written for native English speakers. There are a variety of used resources; journal articles, research reports, thesis, online catalogues, databases, and internet materials. The number of English professors and universities that prefer to use authentic material is increasing. Reading authentic English text can be a burden for EFL learners. Kern (1994) mentioned that understanding texts written in a foreign language is a significant challenge for most students. To understand texts,a majority of readers not only translate a foreign language into their mother tongue, but also use translation to grasp the whole meaning of the content, and content related to their prior knowledge. When learners encounter authentictext, they tend to take the text for granted, not questioning the text or thinking about it in other ways. Many college students have previously been taught to read in order to solve the question without understanding the deeper meaning of the textand what influences the writer. In English education in Korea, reading is regarded as decoding the meaning of a written text to get knowledge and information. Thus, it is natural that reading activities in English textbooks focus on just getting information and grasping the content of the textbooks. That is why instructions from the teacher, reading strategies, and the classroom English reading textbook play important roles in training the learner how to read critically and gaining a full comprehension of what they read. Many studies in second or foreign language reading have investigated how second or foreign language readers deal with texts when reading in the target language (Block, 1996; Sheorey&Mokhtari, 2001). Meanwhile, the cognitive processes involved in reading comprehension in a second or foreign language are equivalent to those in the first language (Cummins, 1994), though constructing meaning in the second language is more demanding. While second language (L2) readers may think cognitively in reading, they generally face more difficulties in L2 reading because of their lack of grammar knowledge, limited vocabulary, or different cultural backgrounds, all of which impede comprehension. Many researchers like Chesla (1998), Cunningham and Stavonich (1997), Eskey (2005), and Hudson (2007) are interested the cognitive ocessesinvolved in reading comprehension, and have conducted a lot of research on effective reading lessons, reading materials, and students’ reading attitude. Ko (2005)found that students need to employ certain kinds of strategies in order to improve their reading skills: (1) They need to improve reading through extensive reading; (2) they need to find interesting content for motivation; (3) they need to enhance content knowledge in various areas; (4) they are willing to improve their spoken skills; (5) they want to improve their general writing skills; and (6) they need to increase their vocabulary knowledge. In this research, I will analyze whether Ko’s (2005) strategies and activities that teachers think are effective can be applied to gain reading comprehension. Reading strategies are referred to as the mental operations that are involved when readers approach a text effectively and make sense of what they read as well as what they do when they are lost while reading (Barnett, 1998; Block, 1986). As a part of helping readers to better comprehend L2 texts, some techniques or skills associated with reading proficiency have been examined. Many researchers have been making experiments about reading strategies. Some of these reading strategies range from skimming, scanning, contextual guessing, activating schemata, and identifying text structure, all of which are considered to be effective in enhancing comprehension (Block, 1986; Kern, 1994). Moreover, the Survey of Reading Strategies,known as SORS, introduced by Mokhtari and Sheorey (2002) will be adapted for use in this research project. This SORS has three major strategies: global reading strategies, problem solving strategies, and support strategies. For the students’ reading strategies, Korean college students tend to use the support reading strategy when they read; the global reading strategy is least preferred.However, research findings do not find a substantial gap among the three major strategies of SORS. This indicates that Korean students are not afraid of using different reading strategies, and do not limit themselves from receiving other perspectives. Teachers, who teach reading strategies, prefer one of the three main SORS strategies more. They use the global reading strategy most; meanwhile, they areunlikely to use the support reading strategy in the classroom, or even to recommend it to students. In this study, the researcherfocuses on Korean college students’ attitudes and preferences for using reading strategies, and the native English teachers’ attitude towards teaching reading, and the teacher’s preferences of reading strategies for teaching reading. Moreover, the researcher also investigates student’s reading difficulties and their expectations. The main research questions are as follows: For Korean college students: 1. Which reading strategies do Korean college students like to useand think effective in helping them to improve their reading comprehension skill? 2. What are the difficulties and problems that inhibit their effective reading comprehension? For native English teachers: 3. Which reading strategies do native English teachers like to teach and think are effective in helping students to improve their reading comprehension skill? 4. What are the difficulties and problems that inhibit you from teaching reading strategies effectively? 2. LITERATURE REVIEW Reading is an all-important language skill that is now in more demand than in any time in our history. With the exposure of the Internet in a global arena, students need to master reading in order to understand the vast knowledge the world embraces them with. It has been said that the literate adult today is reading more in one week than their great-grandfather did in a whole year (Swalmand Kling, 1973). This fact places pressures on the student to perform reading at a higher level than the student before them.Reading is the best way to absorb content materials and to increase critical thinking skills. It is also a hidden process that often goes unnoticed in the language classroom. In addition, reading is also a complex activity, where the goal is ‘to construct text meaning based on visually encoded information’(Anderson andNunan, 2007). In the first language (L1) reading, readers use only one language, whereas in the second language (L2) reading, learners have at least two languages to deal with. On the contrary, readingin a first or second language contextinvolves the reader, the text, and interaction between the reader and the text (Rumelhart, 1977). Although reading in the L1 shares numerous important basic elements with reading in a second or foreign language, the process also differs greatly. Intriguing questions involve whether there are two parallel cognitive processes at work, or whether there are processing strategies that accommodate both first and second language. Although on the surface first language and second language are different, readers can apply visual linguistic and cognitive strategies that they readily use in their first language reading to assist in their L2 reading. Whether the readers are reading in their first or second language the reading strategy operates in the same way: the readers look at the page and the print, then use their knowledge of sound or symbol relationships, order, grammar, and meaning to predict and confirm the meaning. In short, when readers have well-developed first language reading strategies, they can learn a second language more easily and rapidly.Students should have effective reading skills in their first language to assist their reading comprehension in a second language. 2.1. L1 Reading L1 reading is reading in the reader’s mother tongue. Reading contexts in general require knowledge of content; formal and linguistic schema. Reading is also a meaning-making process which involves an interaction between the reader and the text. Recent theories in second language reading stress that the L2 learners’ first language skills are very important when they learn a second language (Hakuta, 1986; Krashen, 1982). One of the main reasons supporting this claim is that when students have well-developed first language skills, they can acquire second language skills more rapidly. Concepts which were readily and strongly developed in their first language acquisition become accessible skills to learn a second language. This process is what is known as common underlying proficiency as described by Cummins, 1994. Although on the surface the two languages are different, readers can apply visual linguistic and cognitive strategies that they also use in their first language reading, to read in an L2 (Ovando, 2005). This means in both languages readers look at the page and the print, and then they use their knowledge of sound or symbol relationships, order, grammar, and meaning to predict and confirm meaning. There are four elements that are important in reading comprehension in either in L1 or L2: (1) whether the readerreads a lot and is familiar with reading in another language; (2) the length, type, and language difficulty of the text; (3) whether the reader uses the global reading, problem solving, or support strategies; and (4) fluency. In L1 reading, researchers have emphasized two factors potentially influencing readers’ processing strategies: the type of material that will be read and the purpose or goal for which a text will be read. 2.2. L2 Reading Second language reading is one of the four skills in mastering a foreign language. Seond language reading is gathering the syntatic and semantic processes as well as vocabulary, which include speed of letter naming, phonological processes, orthographic processes, and working memory. In addition, background knowledge also takes part in L2 reading comprehension (Malley, 1990). Moreover, based on Bernhard and Kamil (1995), second language reading comprehension processes have two main crucial variables; they are L2 vocabulary and L2 grammatical skills. In addition, there are six elements that intereact and blend together in forging the construct of L2 comprehension. The six elements are the phonemic/graphemic features, syntatic feature cognition (grammatical ability), word recognition, vocabulary, prior knowledge, and metacognition. Reading in an L2 is different from reading in an L1, in that L2 reading is influenced by a variety of factors that are normally not considered in L1 reading (Bernhardt andKamil, 1995). Among these factors, the two most frequently used ones to explain L2 reading fluency are readers’ L1 reading ability and L2 language proficiency. According to Teillefer (1996), these two factors significantly affect L2 reading comprehension, but to a different extent depending on different reading styles. With regard to importance and actual contribution of the above-mentioned two factors to L2 reading, there are two conflicting hypotheses: The Linguistic Threshold Hypothesis and the Linguistic Interdependence Hypothesis. The first hypothesis, also known as the Short-Circuit Hypothesis (Clarke, 1979), states that in order to read in an L2, a certain level of L2 linguistic ability is required. In another definition, the L1 reading ability can be transferred to L2 reading only when L2 proficiency is higher than the linguistic threshold. Therefore, a certain amount of linguistic ability is a prerequisite for the transfer to take place. That is, a certain amount of knowledge of L2 grammatical or linguistic skills is necessary in order to allow L1 reading knowledge to assist L2 reading (Bernhardt andKamil, 1995). Based on this hypothesis, it is assumed that without some L2 skills, the L2 readers’ limited language proficiency prevents their good L1 reading skills from being transferr ed to L2 reading (Lee, 2000). The second hypothesis is the Linguistic Interdependence Hypothesis, also known as Common Underlying Proficiency (Lee, 2007 and Cummins, 1994),which states that the reading performance in L2 is largely influenced by L1 reading ability, so L1 reading ability transfers to L2 reading. Therefore language skills such as reading and writing in the L1 are interconnected and transferable to L2. This hypothesis proposes that L1 skills and L2 skills are not so different, but at some fundamental core they are interdependent or even the same (Bernhardt andKamil, 1995). Hence, once a set of language skills has been acquired, it can be adapted to enhance reading in the L2 context. Despite the conflict of the two hypotheses, it has been acknowledged that each hypothesis is accurate to some extent that both L1 reading ability and L2 language proficiency are important factors to increase L2 reading fluency, and that the product of reading refers to the level of understanding, which is considered to be achieved by one’s reading ability and various reading strategies that the reader uses. Another finding from August (2006) states that learning to read in a second language is an entirely different process from learning to read in the first language, and the methods used to teach adult second language learners should be somewhat different from those that are used to teach children. August also mentions that L2 readers can build reading proficiency by using previously developed L1 reading skills and knowledge to support newly developing L2 language skills. So, in effect, L2 readers need less academic training to advance their skills in L2 reading. In other word s, the adult L2 learner needs to acquire most of the requisite academic skills from L2 instruction itself rather than from the transfer of the skills. Although some degree of skill transfer occurs from L1 to L2 for all second language readers, the academic goals of an individual with a weak L2 background are more dependent upon the newly acquired L2 language skills. Therefore, the L2 leaner requires a curriculum which provides a highly intensive focus on L2 language and reading skills. Transfer of L1 skills has a very powerful influence on the acquisition of L2 skills, but many adult second language readers need a great deal more thantransferred skills to achieve their academic goals. A well-developed L1 reading skill can be automatically transferred to L2 reading, and L2 readers as well as L1 readers contribute to the reading process in a constructive manner. However, there are other aspects that can limit the L2 readers’ contribution in reading second language material or text, which are language misinterpretation, lack of both background knowledge, and limited resources (Berhardt andKamil, 1995; Block, 1992; Koda, 1989). Therefore, one cannot simply assume that L2 readers will be able to interpret text in the same manner as competent L1 readers do (Gass, 1987). 2.2.1. Process of Reading Reading processes such as bottom-up, top-down, and interactive, can be used before, during, and after reading (Goodman, 1976; Rumelhart, 1977; Smith, 1971). According to Carell andGrabe (2002), L2 readers use different reading processesthan L1 readers do because (1) they are limited in their linguistic knowledge; (2) they do not have enough cultural and social knowledge that is common in the English content; (3) they do not necessarily retrain prior knowledge, which is the basis of understanding English materials; (4) they study English for a variety of reasons, including making themselves familiar with English speaking countries, and (5) they use both their first and second language. That is why knowingL2 learners’L2 reading ability and the type of texts will help in choosing reading processes which can make the text better understood. 2.2.2.1. Bottom-up processing Bottom-up processing is a type of reading process where reading comprehension starts with the fundamental basics of letter and sound recognition, then later builds up to letters, letter clusters, words, phrases, sentences, and longer text, and finally meaning in the order to achieve comprehension. Beginner learners need a strong bottom-up component, which includes phonics instruction. In bottom up reading, students start with the basics of letter and sound recognition, move from morpheme recognition to word recognition, grammatical structures, and sentences in order to achieve basic comprehension. According to Iwai (2007), in bottom-up processing readers focus on letters, sounds, syllables, words, phrases, sentences, and paragraphs. The process of constructing the meaning begins with written words. These learners view reading as beginning with the printed page, proceeding linearly from visual data to meaning by a series of processing stages. The most typical type that applies to bottom-up processing is intensive reading. Intensive reading involves a short reading passage followed by textbook activities to develop comprehension and/ or a particular reading skill. In an English lesson or in an English language course, this type of reading is often applied for sharpening students’ L2 knowledge and ability. 2.2.2.2. Top-down processing Top-down processing is a reading process where readers use background knowledge to predict meaning of the text. They search text to confirm or reject the predictions that they made. Within the top-down processing, the teacher should focus on meaning-based activities rather than on mastery of word recognition. By using this process, the reader builds comprehension skills by first applying general information already learned (larger elements) and moving down towards the specifics of the language (smaller elements). In top-down processing, readers make and evaluate experience and background knowledge. Coady (1979) wrote that the top-down processing model makes readers use their background knowledge schema and connects the schema with conceptual abilities and processing strategies to accomplish comprehension. University students have to do lots of research which requires lots of reading. This requires extensive reading and top-down reading processing. Extensive reading is also called pleasure reading, free voluntary reading, sustained silent reading, and supplementary reading (Bamford and Day, 2004; Nunan, 2003). In extensive reading, readers read as many books as they can outside of the classroom, to broaden their comprehension skills in order to get the main ideas or key points they need to imply top-down reading processing. The primary purpose of using extensive reading as a tool is to encourage students to enjoy reading in English, and thereby increase their motivation to improve their English skills by focusing on the understanding of broader and longer texts rather than the processing of a particular academic text. 2.2.1.3. Interactive Processing Reading is an interactive process that goes on between the reader and the text, resulting in comprehension. The text presents letters, words, sentences, and paragraphs that encode meaning. The reader uses knowledge, skills, and strategies to determine what that meaning is. This strategy is known as interactive processing; it is a combination of bottom-up and top-down processing which assumes that ‘a pattern is synthesized based on information provided simultaneously from several knowledge sources’ (Nunan, 2003), and it would include aspects of both intensiveand extensive reading. When put into practice, it is assumed that knowledge acquired from one strategy can compensate for the lack of knowledge from the other strategy. Fluent readers are considered to be those who can efficiently integrate both bottom-up and top-down strategies (Dubin, 1986; Grabe 1991; Murtagh, 1989). Aspects of interactive reading that help readers to interpret the author’s meaning are: 1) u sing their prior knowledge, 2) having a purpose for reading, 3) monitoring their understanding, and 4) working within the constraints of the situational context (Walker, 2001). The first aspect is that readers combine what they already know with the information from the text to figure out the author’s meaning (JohnandPrice, 2001). This textual information is comprised of pictures, letters in words, and headings, and the structure of sentences is used combined with prior knowledge (Kerringan, 1979). The second aspect is that readers tend to elaborate on what they read. They make connections using previous knowledge or experience to help them remember and interpret what they are reading. These new connections become part of thereaders’s knowledge base. The third aspect of interactive reading is that readers will continually monitor their understanding to see if it makes sense. These readers actively monitor their understanding through self-questions and various fix-up strategies to repair their comprehension. The fourth aspect is that readers use the situational context (elements given at a present time) to form ideas and adjust their purpose to each reading. 2.2.1.4. Interactive-compensatory model The interactive-compensatory model of reading was mainly developed to show how word recognition during reading can be affected by developmental and individual differences in the use of context (Stanovich, 1980). It is different from the bottom-up or top-down model in that in this model, readers process information simultaneously, not step by step. So, it seems that understanding of written and spoken language relies on a balanced combination of top-down and bottom-up processing. The readers have to pay attention to features in the text, orthographic knowledge, semantics, syntax, and lexical (vocabulary) knowledge when reading (Nutall, 2000). Thus, the perceptual-automatic recognition skill noted by Grabe (1992) seems psychologically real and theoretically possible, both in terms of Stanovich’s statement. Underwood (1982) asserted that when learners have achieved comprehension through practice, attention can be deviated. This interactive-compensatory theory states that all read ing skills develop independent of each other and in a different span of time. The purpose of the interactive-compensatory model is to provide a framework for understanding and improving L2 reading. The interactive-compensatory model includes 5 main components: cognitive abilities, knowledge, strategies, meta-cognition, and motivation. Knowledge and regulatory skills such as strategies and meta-cognition are combined into one category because of their close relationship among the components. There are three interrelated components within the model: cognitive ability, knowledge and regulation, and motivation (Underwood, 1982). Each of these components could be divided into further subcomponents. For example, the motivation component would include self-efficacy and attribution beliefs. It is assumed in the model that each of the components leads either directly or indirectly to learning.Since all components lead to learning, if a student is lacking in a particular skill (for example, knowledge) it could be compensated by greater strengths in other areas.

Biography of William Still, American Abolitionist

Biography of William Still, American Abolitionist William Still (October 7, 1821–July 14, 1902) was a prominent abolitionist who coined the term Underground Railroad and, as one of the chief conductors in Pennsylvania helped thousands of people get free and settled away from slavery. Throughout his life, Still fought not only to abolish slavery, but also to provide African-Americans in northern enclaves with civil rights. Stills work with runaways is documented in his seminal text, The Underground Rail Road.  Still believed that the book  could encourage the race in efforts of self-elevation. Fast Facts: William Still Known For: Abolitionist, Father of the Underground RailroadBorn: October 7, 1821 near Medford, New JerseyParents: Levin and Charity (Sidney) SteelDied: July 14, 1902 in PhiladelphiaEducation: Little formal education, self-taughtPublished Works: The Underground Rail RoadSpouse: Letitia George (m. 1847)Children:  Caroline Matilda Still, William Wilberforce Still, Robert George Still, Frances Ellen Still Early Life Still was born a free black man in near the town of Medford, in Burlington County, New Jersey, the youngest of 18 children born to Levin and Sidney Steel. Although he gave his official birthdate as October 7, 1821, Still provided the date of November 1819 on the 1900 census. Still was the son of people who had been enslaved laborers on a potato and corn farm on the eastern shore of Maryland owned by Saunders Griffin. William Stills father Levin Steel was able to purchase his own freedom, but his wife Sidney had to escape enslavement twice. The first time she escaped she brought along her four oldest children. However, she and her children were recaptured and returned to slavery. The second time Sidney Steel ran away, she brought two daughters, but her sons were sold to slave owners in Mississippi. Once the family was settled in New Jersey, Levin changed the spelling of their name to Still and Sidney took a new name, Charity. Throughout William Stills childhood, he worked with his family on their farm and also found work as a woodcutter. Although Still received very little formal education, he did learn to read and write, teaching himself by extensive reading. Stills literary skills would help him become a prominent abolitionist and advocate for freed African-Americans. Marriage and Family In 1844 at the age of 23, Still relocated to Philadelphia, where he worked first as a janitor and then as a clerk for the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society. Soon he became an active member of the organization, and by 1850 he served as the chairman of the committee established to help runaway slaves. While he was in Philadelphia, Still met and married Letitia George. Following their marriage in 1847, the couple had four children: Caroline Matilda Still, one of the first African-American women doctors in the United States; William Wilberforce Still, a prominent African-American lawyer in Philadelphia; Robert George Still, a journalist and print shop owner; and Frances Ellen Still, an educator who was named after the poet Frances Watkins Harper. The Underground Railroad Between 1844 and 1865, Still helped at least 60 enslaved African-Americans escape bondage. Still interviewed many of the enslaved African-Americans seeking freedom, men, women, and families, documenting where they came from, the difficulties they met and help they found along the way, their final destination, and the pseudonyms they used to relocate. During one of his interviews, Still realized that he was questioning his older brother Peter, who had been sold to another slaveholder when their mother escaped. During his time with the Anti-Slavery Society, Still put together records of more than 1,000 former enslaved people, keeping the information hidden until slavery was abolished in 1865. With the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act in 1850, Still was elected chairman of the Vigilance Committee organized to find a way to circumvent the legislation. African-American Civic Leader Since his work with the Underground Railroad had to be kept secret, Still kept a fairly low public profile until slaves were freed. Nonetheless, he was a fairly prominent leader of the African-American community: in 1855, he traveled to Canada to observe enclaves of former slaves. By 1859, Still began the fight to desegregate Philadelphias public transportation system by publishing a letter in a local newspaper. Although Still was supported by many in this endeavor, some members of the African-American community were less interested in gaining civil rights. As a result, Still published a pamphlet entitled, ​A Brief Narrative of the Struggle for the Rights of the Colored People of Philadelphia in the City Railway Cars in 1867. After eight years of lobbying, the Pennsylvania legislature passed a law ending segregation of public transportation. Still was also an organizer of a YMCA for African-American youngsters; an active participant in the Freedmens Aid Commission; and a founding member of the Berean Presbyterian Church. He also helped establish a Mission School in North Philadelphia. After 1865 In 1872, seven years after the abolition of slavery, Still published his collected interviews in a book entitled, The Underground Rail Road. The book included more than 1,000 interviews and was 800 pages long: the tales are heroic and harrowing, and they illustrate how people suffered deeply and sacrificed much to escape slavery. Notably, the text underscored the fact that the abolitionist movement in Philadelphia was primarily organized and maintained by African-Americans. As a result,  Still became known as the Father of the Underground Railroad. Of his book, Still said, we very much need works on various topics from the pens of colored men to represent the race intellectually. The publication of The Underground Rail Road  was important to the body of literature published by African-Americans documenting their history as abolitionists and former slaves. Stills book was published in three editions and went on to become the most circulated text on the Underground Railroad. In  1876, Still placed the book on exhibit at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition to remind visitors of the legacy of slavery in the United States. By the late 1870s, he sold an estimated 5,000–10,000 copies. In 1883, he issued the third expanded edition that included an autobiographical sketch. Businessman During his career as an abolitionist and civil rights activist, Still acquired considerable personal wealth. He began purchasing real estate throughout Philadelphia as a young man. Later, he ran a coal business and established a store selling new and used stoves. He also received proceeds from the sales of his book. To publicize his book, Still built a network of efficient, entrepreneurial, college-educated sales agents to sell what he described as a collection of quiet examples of what fortitude can achieve where freedom is the goal. Death Still died in 1902 of heart trouble. In Stills obituary, The New York Times wrote that he was one of the best-educated members of his race, who was known throughout the country as the Father of the Underground Railroad. Sources Gara, Larry. William Still and the Underground Railroad. Pennsylvania History: A Journal of Mid-Atlantic Studies 28.1 (1961): 33–44.Hall, Stephen G. To Render the Private Public: William Still and the Selling of The Underground Rail Road. The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography 127.1 (2003): 35–55.Hendrick, Willene and George Hendrick. Fleeing for Freedom: Stories of the Underground Railroad as Told by Levi Coffin and William Still. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 2004Khan, Lurey. William Still and the Underground Railroad: Fugitive Slaves and Family Ties. New York: iUniverse, 2010.Mitchell, Frances Waters. William Still. Negro History Bulletin 5.3 (1941): 50–51.Still, William.. The Underground Rail Road Records: With a Life of the Author. Philadelphia: William Still, 1886.William Still: An African-American Abolitionist. Still Family Archives. Philadelphia: Temple University.

A Beginners Guide to the Enlightenment

A Beginners Guide to the Enlightenment The Enlightenment has been defined in many different ways, but at its broadest was a philosophical, intellectual and cultural movement of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. It stressed reason, logic, criticism, and freedom of thought over dogma, blind faith, and superstition. Logic wasn’t a new invention, having been used by the ancient Greeks, but it was now included in a worldview which argued that empirical observation and the examination of human life could reveal the truth behind human society and self, as well as the universe. All were deemed to be rational and understandable. The Enlightenment held that there could be a science of man  and that the history of mankind was one of progress, which could be continued with the right thinking. Consequently, the Enlightenment also argued that human life and character could be improved through the use of education and reason. The mechanistic universe – that is to say, the universe when considered to be a functioning machine – could also be altered. The Enlightenment thus brought interested thinkers into direct conflict with the political and religious establishment; these thinkers have even been described as intellectual â€Å"terrorists† against the norm. They challenged religion with the scientific method, often instead favoring deism. The Enlightenment thinkers wanted to do more than understand, they wanted to change for, as they believed, the better: they thought reason and science would improve lives. When Was the Enlightenment? There is no definitive starting or ending point for the Enlightenment, which leads many works to simply say it was a seventeenth and eighteenth-century phenomena. Certainly, the key era was the second half of the seventeenth century and almost all of the eighteenth. When historians have given dates, the English Civil wars and revolutions are sometimes given as the start, as they influenced Thomas Hobbes and one of the Enlightenment’s (and indeed Europe’s) key political works, Leviathan. Hobbes felt that the old political system had contributed to the bloody civil wars and searched for a new one, based on the rationality of scientific inquiry. The end is usually given as either the death of Voltaire, one of the key Enlightenment figures, or the start of the French Revolution. This is often claimed to have marked the downfall of the Enlightenment, as attempts to rework Europe into a more logical and egalitarian system collapsed into bloodshed which killed leading writers. Its possible to say that we are still in the Enlightenment, as we still have many of the benefits of their development, but Ive also seen it said were in a post-Enlightenment age. These dates do not, in themselves, constitute a value judgment. Variations and Self-Consciousness One problem in defining the Enlightenment is that there was a great deal of divergence in the leading thinkers views, and it is important to recognize that they argued and debated with each other over the correct ways to think and proceed. Enlightenment views also varied geographically, with thinkers in different countries going in slightly different ways. For instance, the search for a â€Å"science of man† led some thinkers to search for the physiology of a body without a soul, while others searched for answers to how humanity thought. Still, others tried to map humanity’s development from a primitive state, and others still looked at the economics and politics behind social interaction. This might have led to some historians wishing to drop the label Enlightenment were it not for the fact that the Enlightenment thinkers actually called their era one of Enlightenment. The thinkers believed that they were intellectually better off than many of their peers, who were still in a superstitious darkness, and they wished to literally ‘lighten’ them and their views. Kant’s key essay of the era, â€Å"Was ist Aufklrung† literally means â€Å"What is Enlightenment?†, and was one of a number of responses to a journal which had been trying to pin down a definition. Variations in thought are still seen as part of the general movement. Who Was Enlightened? The spearhead of the Enlightenment was a body of well-connected writers and thinkers from across Europe and North America who became known as the philosophes, which is the French for philosophers. These leading thinkers formulated, spread and debated the Enlightenment in works including, arguably the dominant text of the period, the Encyclopà ©die. Where historians once believed that the philosophes were the sole carriers of Enlightenment thought, they now generally accept that they were merely the vocal tip of a much more widespread intellectual awakening among the middle and upper classes, turning them into a new social force. These were professionals such as lawyers and administrators, office holders, higher clergy and landed aristocracy, and it was these who read the many volumes of Enlightenment writing, including the Encyclopà ©die and soaked up their thinking. Origins of the Enlightenment The scientific revolution of the seventeenth century shattered old systems of thinking  and allowed new ones to emerge. The teachings of the church and Bible, as well as the works of classical antiquity so beloved of the Renaissance, were suddenly found lacking when dealing with scientific developments. It became both necessary and possible for philosophes (Enlightenment thinkers) to begin applying the new scientific methods - where empirical observation was first applied to the physical universe - to the study of humanity itself to create a â€Å"science of man†. There was not a total break, as the Enlightenment thinkers still owed a lot to Renaissance humanists, but they believed they were undergoing a radical change from past thought. Historian Roy Porter has argued that what in effect happened during the Enlightenment was that the overarching Christian myths were replaced by new scientific ones. There is a lot to be said for this conclusion, and an examination of how science is being used by commentators does seem to greatly support it, although thats a highly controversial conclusion. Politics and Religion In general, Enlightenment thinkers argued for freedom of thought, religion, and politics. The philosophes were largely critical of Europe’s absolutist rulers, especially of the French government, but there was little consistency: Voltaire, critic of the French crown, spent some time at the court of Frederick II of Prussia, while Diderot traveled to Russia to work with Catherine the Great; both left disillusioned. Rousseau has attracted criticism, especially since World War 2, for appearing to call for authoritarian rule. On the other hand, liberty was widely espoused by Enlightenment thinkers, who were also largely against nationalism and more in favor of international and cosmopolitan thinking. The philosophes were deeply critical, indeed even openly hostile, to the organized religions of Europe, especially the Catholic Church whose priests, pope, and practices came in for severe criticism. The philosophes were not, with perhaps some exceptions like Voltaire at the end of his life, atheists, for many still believed in a god behind the mechanisms of the universe, but they railed against the perceived excesses and constraints of a church they attacked for using magic and superstition. Few Enlightenment thinkers attacked personal piety and many believed religion performed useful services. Indeed some, like Rousseau, were deeply religious, and others, like Locke, worked out a new form of rational Christianity; others became deists. It was not religion which irked them, but the forms and corruption of those religions. Effects of the Enlightenment The Enlightenment affected many areas of human existence, including politics; perhaps the most famous examples of the latter are the US Declaration of Independence and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen. Parts of the French Revolution are often attributed to the Enlightenment, either as recognition or as a way to attack the philosophes by pointing to violence such as the Terror as something they unwittingly unleashed. There is also debate about whether the Enlightenment actually transformed popular society to match it, or whether it was itself transformed by society. The Enlightenment era saw a general turn away from the dominance of the church and the supernatural, with a reduction in belief in the occult, literal interpretations of the Bible and the emergence of a largely secular public culture, and a secular â€Å"intelligentsia† able to challenge the previously dominant clergy. The Enlightenment of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries era was followed by that of a reaction, Romanticism, a turn back to the emotional instead of the rational, and a counter-Enlightenment. For a while, in the nineteenth century, it was common for the Enlightenment to be attacked as the liberal work of utopian fantasists, with critics pointing out there were plenty of good things about humanity not based on reason. Enlightenment thought was also attacked for not criticizing the emerging capitalist systems. There is now a growing trend to arguing that the results of the Enlightenment are still with us, in science, politics and increasingly in western views of religion, and that we are still in an Enlightenment, or heavily influenced post-Enlightenment, age. More on the effects of the Enlightenment. There has been a lean away from calling anything progress when it comes to history, but youll find the Enlightenment easily attracts people willing to call it a great step forward.

Paraphrase Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 21

Paraphrase - Essay Example Moreover, the type of load has an effect on bending. Uniformly balanced loads have less bending effect compared to non-uniformly distributed loads. This is attributed to the fact that in uniformly distributed loads, the stress and pressure is distributed throughout the beam. In non-uniform loads, the loads are concentrated at a single point, thus stress is bigger and more bending occurs. Errors in this experiment are both systematic and random. They include error due to parallax and zero error where the sensitivity of the meter gauge was not factored in reading the values. Unwanted movements at the set-up could also have led to random errors. Such errors caused the results to slightly vary with the theoretical results. The behavior of different shaped beams and their deflections were studied and understood. The deflections varied with height, shape and the type of load; hence, the objective of the experiment was

JULIAN OF NORWICH & MICHAEL HARNER Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

JULIAN OF NORWICH & MICHAEL HARNER - Assignment Example So while Julian talks about Christ being â€Å"the foundation, he is the substance, he is the teacher, he is the end†, Harner talks about the matter of fact aspects of the tsentsak and non-drug forms of shamanism in ordinary, factual language (Harner 57-68; Julian of Norwich 43). Both sources narrate forms of spiritual quests, and a common element in both is a sense that both are honest and sincere in their quests and in the way they tried to make sense of their experiences and visions. This is important because both are narrating extremely subjective experiences whose validity cannot be experienced or confirmed by an external party, but only felt as genuine and believable from an intuitive point of view. The integrity of the narrators can make or break the narratives. One gets a sense of the integrity of Harner’s narratives especially with regard to the subjective experience of ayahuasca, confirmed by a blind shaman for instance. For Julian, her reputation and the internal consistency of her message attest to the sincerity and the genuineness of her narratives and religious insights (Harner; Julian of Norwich). Julian contextualizes her sufferings in the context of Christ’s own suffering and death, couched in language tied to compassion and love. She learns from a desire to suffer the bodily pains and sufferings of Christ also of the internal reality of the compassion that exists in men as a spark too of the divine in men, of the Christ in men. Her key insights are with regard to the love of God shown through the Christ’s own passion, so that she and all who love God and desire to follow the will of God may experience that love as well (Julian of Norwich). The sacred drink ingested by Harner is ayahuasca. When he ingested this he had visions of another dimension, including that of a creature that is reptile-like, who reveals to him an inner reality tied to the nature of man’s past, of the way man had evolved