A Comparison of To Kill a Mockingbird and The Withered Arm Essay Example

A Comparison of To Kill a Mockingbird and The Withered Arm Essay Example A Comparison of To Kill a Mockingbird and The Withered Arm Paper A Comparison of To Kill a Mockingbird and The Withered Arm Paper Essay Topic: In Love and Trouble Stories of Black Women Literature To Kill a Mockingbird Thomas Hardy wrote The Withered Arm in 1874, and Harper Lee wrote To Kill a Mockingbird in 1960. In both texts outsiders form the basis of the plot. The dictionary definition of an outcast, or outsider, is a person who is rejected or excluded from a social group. There are many causes that make people outcasts: class, colour, disability, or any difference from the majority of the social group in which they are supposedly meant to be included. In each text, outsiders are presented as people with obvious differences from the norm for example, in The Withered Arm, Rhoda is presented as an outsider by Their course lay apart from the others, to a lonely spot. This immediately shows that other people see Rhoda and her illegitimate son as outsiders, or that they isolate themselves from society and this makes them outsiders. This isolation from society is also shown by the Radley family in To Kill a Mockingbird. Both Rhoda and the Radley family choose to separate themselves from other people, but for different reasons. Rhoda does it because of her son and the rumours that surround her, whereas the Radley family stays away from Maycomb life for religious reasons so busy worrying about the next world theyve never learned to live in this one. In the later stages of the book, Scout is seen as an outsider by Jem and Dill this is shown by the quote He was now positively allergic to my presence in public. The role outsiders play in each of the texts varies. They can provide valuable insights into the attitudes and opinions of other characters; they can highlight prejudice; they increase tension and interest and help develop the storylines. For example, the abuse aimed at Tom Robinson shows us how prejudiced the majority of Maycombs society is. In The Withered Arm, the townsfolk are quite sympathetic towards Rhoda Tis hard for she, which shows us that Farmer Lodge is seen as a bad character in the book. Both these factors add to Gertrudes plight. Gertrude is isolated by her class and her disability. This heightens Rhodas guilt and adds tension to the text. Also, it strengthens the relationship between Gertrude and Rhoda, making it even more dramatic when Gertrude realizes that it was Rhoda that cast the curse on her arm. The Withered Arm is set in the early 19th century, whereas To Kill a Mockingbird is set in the 1930s. Class has a big effect on how characters in the texts behave, think and say. The classes in The Withered Arm are defined by material wealth and status, and could almost be compared to a caste system. In To Kill A Mockingbird, the class distinctions are defined by colour or gender. This generally aims to make the readers feel sympathy towards the outsiders, because (hypothetically) all men and women are equal in our multicultural society. These differences also shock and sometimes anger the reader for example, the verdict in Tom Robinsons trial, although expected, still evokes anger because of the injustice and prejudice towards the outsider. Harper Lee aims to shock and increase tension for the reader, but Thomas Hardy shows less of this. I think this because of the time differences between the texts. Harper Lee purposely set the novel in the 1930s for this reason, whereas Thomas Hardy does not move the time period, so, at the time the text was written, the prejudice in the book would have been seen as normal. The Withered Arm bases its tension on superstition, which the literate people of the early 19th century would have been suspicious of. In The Withered Arm, pre-1900 language is used for example twill, whereas in To Kill a Mockingbird, modern language is used. Both texts use dialects an example in The Withered Arm would be He hant spoke, and an example in To Kill a Mockingbird would be moseyin along. This adds realism to the texts and shows the place and time period of the setting. It also shows the class and, sometimes, the colour of the person speaking. Both texts use some very delicate and beautiful similes to describe women, such as like the light under a heap of rose petals and like soft teacakes with frostings of sweet talcum. The first simile is used to describe Gertrude; it portrays her young, fresh complexion, and I think the rose petals could show the softness of her skin. The second simile seems to refer to much older ladies, because of the reference to teacakes. It can also be linked to the quote it was a tired old town, because Scout feels she is bored of Maycomb to her everything seems too old and slow Atticus was feeble he was nearly 50. The description in The Withered Arm is delivered by Hardys voice, and because of this the vocabulary is very sophisticated for instance dark countenance. However, in To Kill a Mockingbird, the description uses simple vocabulary, because it is the voice of Scout. These different techniques give different impressions to the reader. Hardy creates detailed images with very few words, but Lee shows a realistic childhood view of the events in Maycomb with her use of vocabulary. Superstition forms the main source of prejudice in The Withered Arm, but in To Kill a Mockingbird, colour and race form the major source of discrimination. Both the settings in the texts are quite similar. Both texts are set in small towns that are geographically isolated I feel this is because it helps move the storyline along people only enter the text if they have a purpose in the text. This also makes both communities in the texts introverted. I think this helps the reader to get to know all the characters well. It also helps show the relationships between them. We also know that, if a character is introduced later on in the book, they will have a role to play in the plot. Rhoda Brook is initially shown as a thin worn milkmaid. This immediately shows the reader of her physical appearance and class. We also know that she is middle aged made her dark eyes seem handsome anew and that she was beautiful when she was younger. This also refers to her past involving her affair with Farmer Lodge and her illegitimate son. There is some evidence to her being a witch, though she does not know it or wish this to be so something greater in the occult world than she had ever herself suspected. In certain ways, Rhoda Brook can be compared to Boo Radley. Both characters are isolated by imposing male figures (Boos father and Farmer Lodge), then isolate themselves Boo because of his hermit-like ways, Rhoda because of her illegitimate child. Both characters are feared by society, and both are subjected to rumours. However, there is some evidence that Rhoda does have supernatural powers; whereas Scout fears Boo because of stories she has heard from Jem and adults. Boo adds fear and tension to the beginning of the novel, but as Scout grows older, she fears him less, and when she finally meets him she feels no fear at all Hello Boo. I feel this relationship could also represent, or be a result of, Scouts changing outlook on the world. As she learns more about the Tom Robinson trial, and listens to people like Atticus and Ms Maudie, the influences on her life become much less prejudiced and her attitude towards other outsiders in the book changes. She refers much more to Atticus philosophy: You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view, which increases her empathy with outsiders in the text. Rhoda Brook can also be compared to Gertrude Lodge, because both characters suffer a great amount of pain in The Withered Arm. They both struggle unsuccessfully to gain Farmer Lodges love. Neither manages to actually do this, although both go to great lengths to try to win his love. I think that both Rhoda and Gertrude suffer almost continually throughout the storyline, which is ironic as they cause most of each others suffering. I feel that Hardys portrayal of the suffering of the characters is quite sarcastic and cynical, because both characters never win Lodges love and both come to unhappy ends Gertrudes death and the death of Rhodas son. After reading the story it is obvious that suffering and unrequited love are themes in the text. This love is present in both the characters. At the start of The Withered Arm, Gertrude is described as having a face as comely as a live dolls and being A lady complete. This immediately lets the reader know of her social status and her beauty. She is very young almost, indeed, a girl and very attractive in both body and nature kindly innocent. Farmer Lodge seems only to love her for her looks my pretty Gertrude, and this is further proven when her looks begin to fade and the curse begins to take hold. As soon as Rhoda learns about Gertrude, she tries to learn as much as possible about her. I feel that this is because she wants to compare herself to her. She interrogates her son on Gertrudes appearance see if she is dark or fair although she is too proud to view her herself. At first she is interested in Gertrude purely for jealousy but her views change after she becomes friends with Gertrude. After Rhodas dream, she feels immense guilt because of Gertrude. She is remorseful and angry with herself because she harboured such feelings towards Gertrude, which unconsciously caused this ailment she did not wish to inflict pain. Rhoda is torn between two feelings her feeling of bitterness towards her rival and deep repentance towards her friend. She also has trouble with her adoration of Gertrude, the light, and what her secret heart feels: unconscious usurpation. This need to take control because her successor had rendered impossible any reparation between her and Lodge is not obvious to Rhoda in her conscious mind; however, her dreams shows us of this deep resentment towards any rival for Lodges love. As Gertrudes arm slowly shrivels, she is caused mental pain as well as physical. She is seemingly discarded by Farmer Lodge, which seems to have also happened to Rhoda during her previous affair with him. I feel that this conveys how alike Gertrude and Rhoda are, which leads the reader to believe that the story shall take form in much the same way Gertrude losing his affection. She is annoyed at her husbands lack of enthusiasm for trying to cure her arm. This leads to Gertrude becoming isolated from her husband by experimenting with every quack remedy she came across and bottles, packets and ointment pots. It becomes an obsession for Gertrude, more so after all her attempts fail miserably at achieving her goal, turning her into an irritable, superstitious women. In this section of the text, Gertrude is blinded from Farmer Lodges detestation of her condition, showed by the prosiness of their marriage. It also becomes apparent from hearing how Gertrude has grown out of favour with her husband. This is reinforced when he promised her a ladies horse in one of the stables when they were wed but never bought one. I feel that the fact she has to ride a draught animal rather than a ladies horse shows her changing outlook on her life. She feels that by marrying Lodge she would have had a good life, but that she is now saddled with a cursed arm and an isolated lifestyle. I feel that Hardy wanted to create a short story that was filled with excitement and tension, but that was of no great consequence. Harper Lee, however, wanted to put across many of her own ideas through characters, such as Scout, and wanted people to learn from her book. There is much excitement and tension in To Kill a Mockingbird, but in The Withered Arm, the excitement is much more concentrated, because of the shortness of the text. This creates very different effects in the two storylines. To Kill a Mockingbird is very subtle, bringing outsiders in gradually and hinting at different ideas before coming to a culmination (the trial). The Withered Arm introduces the two main outsiders very quickly, as they play major roles in the development of the plot. The outsiders in To Kill a Mockingbird are still very important and play a key role in developing the plot, but are generally not seen as major roles. Conjuror Trendle is an outsider that can be, in some ways, compared to Tom Robinson. Both characters are isolated from society. Conjuror Trendle is isolated because of the superstitions surrounding witchcraft in the early 19th century, and also geographically she nearly got lost on the heath. Tom is isolated because of his colour, his disability, and the fact that he lives in the slums (black peoples housing of the period). Both characters are very helpful, and will do jobs for nothing. Higher-class members of society use them for their skills. This makes Trendle and Tom quite similar underneath, though not so upon the surface. Trendle can also be compared to Boo, because both are outsiders that shape the final outcomes of the storylines. Both outcomes relate strongly to the social and historical contexts of the plots, and both seem to have morals. In The Withered Arm I feel that one of the main morals is treat others as you would like to be treated because Rhoda is punished for her malicious intent with the unneeded death of her son. Gertrude is also punished for her wishing for a person to die Oh I hope not (for the hanging not to go ahead), even when she knows that the person is innocent, with her own death. In To Kill a Mockingbird I think that the main moral is, of course, Atticus philosophy, which is based on the idea of empathy. From this empathy, Scout learns to be honest, kind and unprejudiced to everyone she meets. Scout also learns how to be a lady, but this is more to do with Alexandra teaching her about etiquette rather than specific morals in the plot. Both texts use pathetic fallacy: weather was unusually warm and the wind howled dismally. However, Harper uses hot weather to show tension, whereas Hardy uses wind and wet weather. This shows the climate differences in the texts, but it also shows the different preferences in the authors styles of writing. Hardy shows an omniscient approach in the description. Because he is the narrator (no character is used), he knows everything that is going to happen in the plot. Harper uses a character to tell the story, which makes it harder to predict what is going to happen, but makes the reader feel more included in the action. The vocabulary used is also much easier to understand, which allows the text to be read by a much wider range of readers. One author is male and the other female, but both use females as the main characters we see things mainly from a female perspective. The hangman can be compared to Dolphus Raymond in some ways. Both characters live away from normal society, and both give normal people reasons for their seclusion: Raymond pretends to drink and the hangman is labeled as a hermit. Raymond is seen as a degrading person in Maycomb society, but Davies is admired. I think this is because of the way people enjoyed hang fair(s) during that period and is also shown through the admiration for the rope Tis sold by the inch. Both Miss Caroline and Aunt Alexandra are physical outsiders in To Kill a Mockingbird, but they are also quite different. Aunt Alexandra fits into Maycomb life very well for example, she is part of the Missionary Circle, whereas Miss Caroline doesnt find it so easy to fit in. I think this is because she is more ignorant of Maycombs traditions and ways than Alexandra she also appears less prejudiced to begin with, although this lessens as she settles into Maycomb life. Dill is also a physical outsider, but he is accepted because he is a child. Scout admires his intelligence he could read two books to my one and Jem sees him as a pocket Merlin, a source of entertainment and knowledge of other places. They also like his carefree attitude laugh my head off. Because Dill is not prejudiced, people are not prejudiced towards him. This seems to be true in Atticus as well in spite of Atticus shortcomings people were content to re-elect him. It seems that both Hardy and Harper base their books on childhood experiences, and use children to get their points across (Scout and Rhodas son). Both the main children in the texts have one-parent families, which was highly unusual in both periods the texts were set in. In The Withered Arm this helps to isolate Rhoda and in To Kill a Mockingbird it allows Alexandra to enter the text and gives Calpurnia a larger role as a mother figure in the plot. Outsiders are incredibly important in all aspects of these two texts they provide humour, add interest, convey emotions of the authors, highlight prejudice, create tension and, ultimately, provide the culminations of the plots. Outsiders such a Scout and Dill provide humour Scout by some of the things she says there wasnt much left for us to learn, except possibly algebra. This provides humour because algebra is insignificant when compared to the ordeals the children have been through and the life lessons they have learnt that they will take with them throughout their lives. It also emphasises how young Scout actually is. Dill provides humour through his carefree attitude Ill go and join the circus. He makes fun of the hypocrisy of the Maycomb citizens, which also adds humour because he is touching upon a taboo subject. Interest is added through outsiders such as Trendle and Boo. They also add tension, because of their mystery and rumours that surround them. The tension from Conjuror Trendle is implied to be much more serious than that of Boo, because witchcraft was truly feared by people during the 19th century. Boos rumours are unrealistic and dismissed by adults, but the childrens imaginations make this squirrel eating monster seem quite threatening. I think that when they are acting out the Boo Radley play, they are trying to think about Atticus philosophy but do not have the empathy to do this properly. Atticus makes them stop to show them that this is not the way to empathise, and through his careful teaching and love they learn how to understand true compassion and empathy. Scout is the main character that conveys the emotions of the author Harper uses Scout as a tool to put forward her own ideas. Atticus is also used in a similar way. I think that Rhoda and Gertrude put across (perhaps unintentionally) Hardys cynical views on love and beauty. Outsiders that highlight prejudice include Gertrude and Tom. Tom is used by Atticus to highlight prejudice during the trial, and Gertrude is judged by her physical appearance and well-being, rather than her personality. Boo and Gertrude provide the culminations of the storylines, coming in early on in the plots and ending the storylines too. This adds structure to the texts and also makes the reader feel satisfied once they have read the books, because characters that they know well and are present throughout the storylines with them, tie up loose ends and provide the final climax and conclusion.

Thetis - More than Achilless Mom

Thetis - More than Achilless Mom Thetis was the nymph who was mother to the Trojan War hero Achilles. But she was more than just one guys mother. Background Thetis  Ã‚  and one of the 50 Nereid daughters of Nereus (son of Gaia [Earth] and Pontos [Sea]; whom Hercules seizes in order to extract information pertinent to his labors) and Doris (daughter of the Titans Oceanus and Tethys). She might not have been Achilles mother, if things had gone differently, though. At one time, the king of the Greek gods, Zeus, had been wooing her, but a prophecy that the son would be greater than the father made Zeus give her up. After all, he didnt want a repeat episode of what happened with his own dad. As Prometheus prophesied in Aeschyluss play  Prometheus Bound, the god  plans a marriage that shall hurl him into oblivion from his sovereignty and throne; and then immediately the curse his father Cronus invoked as he fell from his ancient throne, shall be fulfilled to the uttermost. Thankfully, Zeus averted that by marrying Thetis off to another man... Marriage Instead, Thetis married a mortal king,  Peleus, at the command of Zeus. It was at this wedding that Eris, goddess of discord, tossed an apple for the most beautiful goddess of them all into the crowd and kicked off the events precipitating the Trojan War. The bride and groom produced a son, Achilles, whom Thetis tried to make immortal. She dipped her infant son into the River Styx, holding him by the ankle, according to tradition. This made him invulnerable, except at the one weak spot where Thetis had held him. Peleus didnt agree with this risky treatment and Thetis left him.   Thetis also shows up in Homers Iliad where she offers to get Achilles a new and better suit of armor and shield from the blacksmith of the gods, Hephaestus. Hephaestus was in her debt because Thetis and her sisters had cared for him when Hera threw him down from Olympus. As mentioned in the  Homeric Hymn 3 to Apollo, But silver-shod Thetis the daughter of Nereus took and cared for him with her sisters†¦ In the  Iliad, Homer says that Thetis also rescued Dionysus  from folks pursuing him: But  Dionysus  fled, and plunged beneath the wave of the sea, and  Thetis  received him in her bosom, filled with dread, for mighty terror gat hold of him at the mans threatenings. During the war, Thetis gave her son good advice, but he still tragically perished. -Edited by Carly Silver

Comparing State Constitutions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Comparing State Constitutions - Essay Example This paper will focus on the similarities and differences in the constitution of Texas and Alaska. The Texas Constitution and that of Alaska have various similarities. The major substantive similarity between the constitution in the case of of the State of Alaska and that of Texas is that both have the bill of rights incorporated as their first articles. It is a formal review of the liberties and rights that are considered essential to a group of people or individuals. In both the constitutions, the rights of the individual provide various restraints on the political authority and power to protect the people against abuses and intrusions that are unwarranted. In both the constitutions, the powers of the government are outlined in every listed department. In reference to both constitutions, they are on taxation, suffrage and revenue, as well as the general provisions, and the mechanism of having the constitution amended. Both the Constitution of Alaska and that of Texas describe the function and structure of the government of the United States of America. In addition, both constit utions are used as either implied laws of United States or an embodied fundamental document that governs the state functions and roles at all departmental levels. The two constitutions function as a limiting document which dictates the powers granted to each particular state. On the other hand, there are significant differences between the two highlighted constitutions. The major substantive difference is that the constitution of Texas has seventeen articles in a given order. The first one is the conspicuous bill on Rights. The next is on the power vested on the government. The third article is on the Legislative Department while the fourth is on Executive Department. There is an article on Judicial Department, a proceeding one on Suffrage and another on Education as well as Taxation. The constitution also includes articles on revenue, counties, as well as railroads. These are some

Experiences of Community-Based Children's Nurses Providing Pallative Essay

Experiences of Community-Based Children's Nurses Providing Pallative Care - Essay Example These keyword were selected so that I could focus the search on the nurses’ group who worked with children and with the community in providing palliative care. As it is the child cancer patients who are in need of community-based palliative care more than any other child patient groups, I included ‘cancer care’, and ‘onchology’ into my keyword list. I could locate many UK sources from this database but majority of articles that I found on this database were non-UK sources. There were also a limited number of post-2004 articles on this topic in this database. The next database that I searched for articles was CINAHL. I could locate many British journals on nursing here. Internurse.com was a very useful nursing article archive that I found more user-friendly as well. In Internurse.com, I could find plenty of UK sources. Medline database was accessed by me through PubMed and became the source of many UK-sources for this study. I used CASP QUALITATIVE as my critiquing tool for this research because this tool gave me a comprehensive framework to locate my research in. Using this tool, I could address oft-faced research issues like clarity about the aim of the research, the appropriateness of the selected methodology, effectiveness of the research design, data collection and analysis related issues, ethical concerns, and the validity of the research. Especially, the qualitative approach was relevant because this research concerns directly with the experiences of the subjects being studied and hence should be anchored in their own first person accounts of those experiences in the form of interviews. Findings- General Overview As WHO (2003) has observed, palliative care â€Å"Improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing the problem associated with life-threatening illness, through the prevention and relief of suffering by means of early identification and impeccable assessment and treatment of pain and other probl ems, physical, psychosocial and spiritual.† (as cited in Quin et al., 2005, p.5). (WHO, 2003)Neilson, Kai, Macarthur, and Greenfield (2011) have done a community-based qualitative study in West Midlands region to investigate the experience of GPs and community-based nursing practitioners who were working with children having cancer in their homes. The findings of this study (Neilson, Kai, Macarthur, and Greenfield, 2011) are relevant to this paper because it proved that more than the general practitioners, it were the community nurses who could play an active role in the treatment and palliative care of such children (p.551-553). Another study done by the same authors in 2010 was also located from this database which showed that community  children's nurses (CCNs) and  children's  palliative care  nurses (CPCNs) needed to be imparted further skills and knowledge regarding palliative care of children and suggested that more funds be allocated for the same (Neilson, Kai, Macarthur, and Greenfield, 2010). This was a qualitative study that employed one-to-one interviews for data collection. Grounded theory approach was the method by which data was analysed. There was another UK-based study that I could find in this database. In this study, Beringer, Eaton and Jones (2007) have carried out a qualitative analysis of the

We Must Raise the Minimum Wage Essay -- Increase Minimum Wage Essays

Minimum wage is the lowest wage an employer can pay their employees. There is a Federal minimum wage and in some cases a State Minimum wage. The current Federal minimum wage is $7.25. An employee who makes $7.25 an hour and works 40 hours a week, will earn about $14,000 per year. The Federal government deemed that the poverty line is anyone who makes less than $17,000 a year (â€Å"Federal Minimum†). Therefore anyone that makes minimum wage lives below the poverty line. As president Obama said in his state of address, "In the wealthiest nation on earth, no one who works full-time should have to live in poverty† (â€Å"Federal Minimum†). This essay will examine the problem of low minimum wage and explore ways to resolve this issue. There are two types of minimum wage in the United States. The first type of minimum wage is a Federal minimum wage. Federal minimum wage is established by the Federal government and is the lowest set amount of money an employer can pay its employee (â€Å"Federal minimum†). On the other hand, an individual State may set its own minimum wage. The States under the Tenth Amendment have the right to accept the federal minimum wage, or states may set their own minimum wage. Roughly 20 or more states have set their own Minimum wage laws. Some states set their own minimum wage because some states have higher cost of living. An example of cost of living is the price of gasoline. Gasoline in the state of Hawaii cost just about four dollars per gallon, where as the state of Oklahoma cost roughly three dollars a gallon ("Update: Minimum Wage"). Economists point to inflation as the main cause for low minimum wage. Inflation is described as â€Å"a general increase in prices and fall in the purchasing value of mone... ...e Minimum Wage Is Stuck at $7.25; It Should Be $21.16 — or Higher." Inequality.org. Inequality, Facts On File 24 July 2012. Web. 16 Oct. 2013. Berfield, Susan. "Fast-Food Wages Come With a $7 Billion Side of Public Assistance." BloombergBusiness. N.p., 15 Oct. 2013. Web. 16 Oct. 2013. "Federal Minimum Wage." Issues & Controversies. Facts On File News Services, 13 May 2013. Web. 15 Oct. 2013 Henderson, David R. "Raising the Minimum Wage Will Not Reduce Poverty." Poverty. Ed. Viqi Wagner. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2007. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "The Negative Effects of the Minimum Wage." National Center for Policy Analysis, Brief Analysis. Vol. 550. 2006. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 6 Nov. 2013. "Update: Minimum Wage." Issues & Controversies On File: n. pag. Issues & Controversies. Facts On File News Services, 15 July 2009. Web. 3 Nov. 2013.

God’s Long Summer

God’s Long Summer The novel Siddhartha and God’s Long Summer both show commonalities of religion as being an important part in the main characters of both books. In God’s Long Summer, each of the main individual characters in the first four chapters like the character Siddhartha, all were consistent with the statement, â€Å"What we believe matters. † All of the characters from both books used religion for giving them the strength to speak their minds, move on in their lives, and fight for what they believed in or wanted to accomplish.Also, in this book there is the statement of, â€Å"What we believe affects out vocation in relation to culture† and this pertains to the religious ideas and people’s courses of action through their faith and experiences they have went through. A person’s background determines his or her perspective on faith, so this shows how everyone is different. The statement, â€Å"What we believe matters† is the first point that sticks out to me. It is portrayed in the novel Siddhartha multiple times when Siddhartha goes through his different phases of being the son of a Braham, to living with the Samanas, to finally living on his own.He needed to try out different paths, so he would be about to find his own enlightenment or meaning of life. He would not feel whole as a person or have peace, until he found a path that caused him to experience enlightenment. The characters in God’s Long Summer were the same way. Fannie Lou Hamer, Sam Bowers, Douglas Hudgins, and Ed King all were fighting for something, and did not want to give up until they were successful. An example of this is when Mrs. Hamer was being beat in the county jail after trying to vote. Even after being beat, Hamer still used God as her guide to influence other people.She never backed down, but instead was comforted by God and instilled her faith for strength and acted in what she believed. Hamer was different than Si ddhartha though, because she was out to change the world, and he was more focused on himself. The second important point that I found relevant of my understanding of the people and issues in God’s Long Summer was the way the characters in the books went about accomplishing their goals and got past obstacles they were faced with. Hamer was a selfless person who used God as her strength to change things. She puts herself out there, just as Siddhartha had when he lost himself.Siddhartha had to lose himself to accomplish his goal of enlightenment. Hamer knew that if she wanted to win the fight for her voting rights that she would have to have others band together too, by using biblical stories and freedom songs to sell her cause. She believed that others like herself could be empowered by God and if whites and blacks could both believe in such a high power, and then they can believe and get along when they are on the Earth. To accomplish Hamer’s goal, she needed to improve the world, and Siddhartha wanted to escape the world to reach his goal.Sam Bowers and Siddhartha are also examples of obstacles being thrown their way. Bowers hit rock bottom just like Siddhartha did after almost killing himself by the river. In the book, God’s Long Summer written by Charles Marsh, Marsh provides input in his first statement in the book pertaining to, â€Å"What we believe affects our vocation in relation to culture. † This whole idea is explaining how everyone has there a different way of thinking about a higher power and Marsh wants people to be able to explore and accept the different types of faith.In the book these varieties of faith cause blacks and whites to have disagreements on issues such as the civil rights movement. The first four chapters of the book support the illustration of what Marsh’s claim and task was. Hamer can see that the people who are discriminating against African American’s have a much different perspective on faith than she does. Bowers looks at his faith in a different way as Hamer because he doesn’t even believe that Jesus can be a Jew because if he were then he would be a part of the inner racial mix, which he was completely against. Ed King and Douglas Hudgins were also different from each other.King had been accused of straying beyond proper bounds of the Christian faith, and Hudgins had been accused of narrowing the bounds of Christianity. Hudgins was all about the understanding of Christianity through the cultural environment, while King thought you had to be prophetic and take action even if it was through just words. I believe that Fannie Lou Hamer is the best example of what Marsh is attempting to demonstrate about the various perspectives of faith. The example that comes to mind when explaining this is when Hamer was in the county jail and was talking to the jailor’s wife about faith and religion.Hamer used the verses from the Bible to go against the jailor†™s wife and her own feelings and ideas on faith. Hamer can see that the jailor’s wife thinks she is a Christian believer, but has a different way of acting as one of God’s children. Another example I found in the first chapter about Hamer was when she was in a disagreement with her pastor. She scolded him for not being willing to adopt her stance on the subject. This shows how you think someone who is interacting with your same faith, but when it comes down to it and his or her own lived experience, people react differently.I also found an example in Hamer’s chapter when Lyndon Johnson was running for office and he tried to tamp things down and shut up Hamer. Johnson was even supposed to be a civil rights activist and a believer in faith, but because of his the experience that he was having at the present time in his life, he was not able to be consistent with his beliefs. He said and acted, as he wanted, just so he could get elected into office. Fannie Lou Ha mer’s vocation is using God as her guide to influence other people. She feels like God appointed her, and this gives her a sense of closeness to him. She uses God as her strength to change things.Her goal is to improve the world, and help African American’s have an equal chance in the world as everyone else. Hamer is dedicated and relied on her faith for everything. The church and Christianity is a way for people to come together. Hamer feels that if both whites and blacks can believe in such a high power then they can believe and get along when they are on Earth. A contemporary social issue in which people use religion in opposing ways to support their views would be the topic of abortion. There are many similarities and differences between the issue of abortion and the civil rights issue detailed in Marsh’s book.Some similarities between the two issues are that people have very strong opinions on the issues and there are people out there that are fighting for one side or the other on the topics. People are having meetings on abortions talking about why it should be legal or not, and in the case of the civil rights movements there were meetings happening all the time like the meeting with the Credentials Committee in God’s Long Summer. There are also politicians out there like Lyndon Johnson who claim they are all for an issue such as the civil rights movement, but when it comes down to it they may have some restrictions about the issue.Johnson really did not want to have African American’s voting and having these kinds of rights because he didn’t want to make the larger population of people out there getting mad at him, so he could be elected into office. A difference between the two issues is the way people fight for what they want. During the civil rights movement many white people would go as far as abusing or killing blacks, so they could keep them as the lower class that is not as important. I have not heard abo ut people who are for or against abortion going to the extent of killing to get their way or point across.A person’s vocation usually shapes the way they think or feel about an issue. The issue of abortion means different things to different people because of their vocation. If a person feels that they have been put on this Earth to protect people and think that everyone should have an equal chance for living, then they are more likely to be against abortion. I am a Christian, and have been brought up by my parents to believe that everyone should be treated equally and can make their own choices. This means that I am not against abortions, and feel that it is the woman’s choice to make the decision.Reading Siddhartha and God’s Long Summer has brought a lot of insight to my beliefs in religion. I am more aware of other people’s feelings and the reasons for why they believe in what they do. Beliefs are formed from a person’s past experience. I also l earned how God or a person’s faith can play such a big role in being someone’s strength to fight as hard as they can in what the believe in, even when the greater population feels the complete opposite on an issue. Like in Siddhartha, everyone has different paths, and deciding on the right path is up to the person taking it.

A Brief Note On The Suicide By Firearms - 1348 Words

Cause of Death Research Paper Suicide by Firearms Hailey Sable Florida Gulf Coast University Crime Scene Investigation CCJ 3670 Professor Zinn March 20th, 2017 Emile Durkheim defined suicide as any death which is the immediate or eventual result of a positive or negative act accomplished by the victim himself (Emile Durkheim’s Four Types of Suicide, 2014). Emile Durkheim began his studies on suicide in 1897. He thought that economic, religious, and military factors would greatly influence his findings. After he concluded his study he found that there were four different types of suicide. The first type of suicide is Egoistic suicide. This type of suicide occurs when the degree of social interaction a person has is low.†¦show more content†¦An example of this could be when the market crashes or spikes (Emile Durkheim’s Four Types of Suicide, 2014). The last type of suicide is Fatalistic suicide. People generally commit this type of suicide are people whose lives are kept under tight regulation. These people often live their lives under extreme rules. These types of people are left feeling like they have no sense of sel f (Emile Durkheim’s Four Types of Suicide, 2014) . Every year there are at least 20,000 firearm suicides in the United States. That s more than 50 every single day. That s more than half of all suicides and two-thirds of firearm deaths. Research has shown that guns in the home make suicide three times more likely. There are many reasons why the presence of a firearm in the home can t be a risk factor for suicide. Having a firearm in the house provides impulsivity for suicide at times. Also, firms are also so much more lethal than any other method. Most people who survived a suicide attempt do not go on to die by suicide, but only one in 10 people who attempt suicide by gun get that second chance (Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence). Typically, firearms are divided into two categories, there are handguns and long guns. Handguns are firearms such as pistols that are designed to be held and fired with one hand. The most common types of handguns are single shot handguns, revolvers, and semiautomatics (Saferstein, 2016, p. 192-193). All handguns can be classified as either single action orShow MoreRelatedArgument Supporting Increased Gun Control in the United States772 Words   |  4 Pagesthe security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.† Some critics of gun control believe that the second amendment should be absolute, and any and all arms should be legal. First, it is important to note that no right is absolute. For example, even though the first amendment guarantees me the right to free speech, the right is limited. I cannot publish a newspaper article, which I claim that Mr. Mercandante is a child molester, if that fact is knownRead MoreGun Control795 Word s   |  4 Pagesthe security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed. Some critics of gun control believe that the second amendment should be absolute, and any and all arms should be legal. First, it is important to note that no right is absolute. For example, even though the first amendment guarantees me the right to free speech, the right is limited. I cannot publish a newspaper article, which I claim that Mr. Mercandante is a child molester, if that fact is knownRead MoreThe Laws And Restrictions Of Gun Owners1773 Words   |  8 Pagesmurder, suicide and accidents) to other states and countries in order to show you as a reader how responsible gun usage is a benefit to the community as well as to the individual and should be encouraged more than it is feared because it ensures not just personal safety, but the safety and liberty of our nation. In the U.S. Federal law has many requirements for licensed firearms dealers but the two that are most important for our purposes here are the requirement of any licensed firearm dealer toRead MoreSuicide Among African Americans Today3552 Words   |  15 PagesSuicide Among African Americans Today I ask myself, â€Å"What is something that has an effect on African Americans today?† After days of much thought and coming up with nothing I said, â€Å"Well, I’m an African American†¦ What’s something that has been effecting my life?† SUICIDE†¦ Whether it be committed or attempted, suicide is something that I see to be a growing issue among the African American culture. I believe this to be brought on by either 1. Depression 2. Fear or 3. Mental Illness SuicideRead MoreEssay on Causes of Mass Murder1731 Words   |  7 Pageswho commits mass murder is usually described as a person who kills several or numerous victims in a single incident. Mass murder, is often misjudged as a spree killing. For example, spree killing involves two or more murders that occur within a brief period in multiple locations. According to Dr. Park Dietz (1986) mass murder is defined as an offenses in which multiple victims are intentionally killed by a single offender in a single incident (p. 479). Recently, Levin and Madfis (2009) describedRead MoreBowling for Columbine2360 Words   |  10 PagesGeneral Bowling for Columbine Notes SYNOPSIS: The Academy Award winning documentary film â€Å"Bowling for Columbine† by Director Michael Moore attempts to find a reason for the Columbine High School, Colorado shootings and leads to an investigation into gun laws and gun violence. Through a series of interviews, stunts, cartoons, commentary and media pieces, we are left at the end of a blunt and revealing journey wanting the answers to the various moral and ethical questions raised. Moore travelsRead MoreWhy Guns Should Be Banned9306 Words   |  38 Pagesin the news a lot lately. This is because of the recent shooting in Newtown, Connecticut where 20-year-old Adam Lanza shot twenty children, six adult staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School and his mother at their home. Later on he committed suicide. Since the mass shooting, there’s been an explosive discussion about whether the US has to tougher their laws or even ban civilians from having guns. Some say the culture of permissiveness is now so out of cont rol, that something has to change. TheRead MoreWhy Guns Should Be Banned9315 Words   |  38 Pagesin the news a lot lately. This is because of the recent shooting in Newtown, Connecticut where 20-year-old Adam Lanza shot twenty children, six adult staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School and his mother at their home. Later on he committed suicide. Since the mass shooting, there’s been an explosive discussion about whether the US has to tougher their laws or even ban civilians from having guns. Some say the culture of permissiveness is now so out of control, that something has to change. Read MoreHas the Nature of Terrorism Changed over the Last Thirty Years?2896 Words   |  12 Pagesan historical analysis of contemporary terrorism and its changing nature by focusing on three specific terrorist campaigns over the last thirty years. The essay will begin by first presenting a definition of terrorism and will move on to provide a brief account of the geographical shift in terrorism by discussing the movement from territorial based terrorism to more ideological focused campaigns. In addition, it will give a concise discussion on the theory of globalisation in relation to terrorism