Gone With The Wind Essay -- Summary Book Review Essays

Gone With the Wind The novel being summarized is titled Gone with the Wind, written by Margaret Mitchell. It was published in 1936, after it took her seven years to write, and won a Pulitzer Prize in 1937. Gone with the Wind was the only book Ms. Mitchell wrote and is an American Classic. Gone with the Wind was a story of men and women living in the south during the war between the states and of the south’s transformation after the war. The novel began in about 1861 at Tara and Twelve Oaks, two southern plantations in Georgia. We were given a glance of the hospitality and generosity of plantation life. When the men went off to war, the women moved to Atlanta. While in Atlanta, they worked as nurses as they awaited the return of their men. Sherman’s troops marched in and burned Atlanta, so the women were forced to leave. They returned to Tara, where we observed the destruction and desolation of the land. After the war, the story shifted back and forth between Atlanta and Tara. We experienc ed the struggles to save Tara, rebuild Atlanta, and the effects of the carpetbaggers. The story continued until about 1871 as the main characters began to regain the security and grace of the days before the war. There were four main characters in the story. They were Scarlett O’Hara, Ashley Wilkes, Melanie Hamilton-Wilkes, and Rhett Butler. Scarlett, Ashley, and Melanie were raised together, and Rhett Butler was an outsider who came from Charleston. Scarlett was the daughter of a wealt...

Man and Woman

Sam Keen is an American author, philosopher and professor born in the year 1931 whose writings and teachings have explored areas such as religion, philosophy and psychology. Sam Keen's writings have been focused on the countless questions of love, life, religion, and being a man in a modern society; which he discusses in his book ‘Fire in the Belly: On Being a Man' (1991). From the book ‘Fire in the Belly' the essay ‘Man and WOMAN' was extracted. Along with these literary pieces, popular books such as Apology of Wonder (1969), Faces of the Enemy (1986), and Learning to Fly: Trapeze- Reflections on Fear, Trust, and the Joy of Letting Go (1999) are all products of Keen's literary works of art. After Keen's academic pursuit of graduating from Ursinus College in 1953 with his undergraduate degree. Keen obtained obtained his graduate degrees from Harvard University and Princeton University. Keen was then a professor of the philosophy of religion at a seminary known as the Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary for six years. Keen later became an editor for Psychology Today magazine and thereafter ventured in to the field of writing. The focus of this essay will be on the extract ‘Man and WOMAN'. Man and WOMAN as was mentioned before, was extracted from Keen's book ‘Fire in the Belly: On Being a Man' that is based on the examination of the stereotypical perceptions and myths surrounding the idealistic concepts of man and WOMAN, and the roles both sexes play. This essay will discuss what is required of a man to attain true manhood as they examine their trinomial views of WOMAN as Goddess and Creatrix, WOMAN as Mother and Matrix, and WOMAN as Erotic-Spiritual Power. The concept of ‘manhood' has been falsely identified for several generations now. The qualities believed to be possessed by a male in order to be considered a ‘man' are commonly those that are contrary to the characteristics actually possessed by a true man. In past generations and even more so today, being manly involves being ‘macho' – in full control of any and everything, being Mr. Know It All, being strong and mighty, fierce, and a cocky braggart. However, these traits in no way contribute to manhood. In Man and WOMAN, Keen expresses that ‘men' in fact are those responsible for their struggles in reaching the state of true manhood. Keen mentions that â€Å"one of the major tasks of manhood is to explore the unconscious feelings that surround our (men's) various images of WOMAN, to dispel false mystification, to dissolve the vague sense of threat and fear, and finally to learn to respect and love the strangeness of womankind† (Verburg, 2000, pg. 332 ). However, without a doubt, more than half the males in society that regard themselves as ‘men' are no way near even sharing the same opinion or train of thought as Keen's in regards to evaluating one's self and validating and embracing the being of a woman to reach the destination of true manhood. In fact, their efforts of becoming a man is focused solely on themselves. The input or significance of woman in the opinions of males today have no relevance whatsoever throughout the course of them becoming true men. In Keen's essay, he opposes the idea of males solely becoming men. Keen argues that in order for a child; who later becomes a man-child, to evolve into that of being a man, he must first purge his mind of the misconceptions of a WOMAN, and the â€Å"unconscious feelings† (Verburg, 2000, pg. 32 ) that surround those misconceptions. The first of the three views on WOMAN males must address in the journey of becoming a man is WOMAN as Goddess and Creatrix. As the title WOMAN as Goddess and Creatrix would imply, it is referring to the fact that women are the sex that brings about creation. Only females possess the ability to bring forth a child, which males often times feel threatens their significance and importance as ‘men'- the sex believed to be the dominant ly essential. However, what ‘men' fail to realize as what Keen expresses as the challenge ‘WOMAN as Creatrix' presents to a man to â€Å"justify his existence† (Verburg, 2000, pg. 334), is that both sexes are equally important. It is impossible for a female to impregnate herself without the sperm of a man. Women are actually knowledgeable of the impossibility of self-conception as well, and would readily accept that the participation of man is equally important in procreating. Though, the ‘macho' aspect of males that drive them to desire preferable superiority over women wouldn't allow males to freely accept equal importance to females. The reason the conscience of males constantly haunts them is that, hands down, child bearing is dumbfounding and an honorable thing which males cannot deny nor carry out. Thus, males constantly feel inferior to females in regards to creation and continue to believe that the males' participation in procreating is still inadequate. Therefore, males resort to trying to find every possible justification of their existence which is not the manliest thing to do. Keen expresses the males justification efforts in the essay as he stated â€Å"much of the meaning men attribute to their work is a response to the question posed to us by WOMAN'S capacity to give life† (Verburg, 2000, pg. 334 ). Instead of competing with the importance of women's existence, men should not only become aware of the significance of women as child bearers but rather wholeheartedly embrace the divine capability of women and accept, and respect the worth of both women and men. Secondly, in regards to WOMAN as Mother and Matrix, Keen describes the roles of a WOMAN as the mirror through which a child starts seeing themselves, as the initial teacher that molds the child's eventual thoughts, opinions, and perspectives, as nurturer, and as an information system through which the child begins to view and understand the world, the surroundings, and last but not least themselves. WOMAN as Mother and Matrix is the first influential person encountered by a child with whom a strong bond is established; if not the strongest. Keen's support of how critical the relationship between mother and child is was established as he made the statements â€Å"She exists; therefore I am. Within the warp of her womb our bodies are woven- flesh of her flesh† (Verburg, 2000, pg. 335). The child delivered after nine months of pregnancy is literally a part of the mother, a part of her being, was developed and nurtured within her body. Thus, there is an immediate bond that comes into existence even before the child is delivered. Hence, the instant attachment between a mother and child is inevitable. However, it is the extent to which the attachment prevails that becomes a concern. Keen's focus on the attachment issue between mother and child was based on the parental situation involving a son. Because of the very important and fundamental role a mother plays in raring her son; there comes a point in her son's life that he falls in love with his mother and disregards the role and significance of a father (Freud, 1899, pg. 296). However, according to Keen the son eventually â€Å"renounces his desire to be his mother's lover and makes common cause with his enemy- the father† (Verburg, 2000, pg. 336). Reestablishing a relationship with the father then provides the opportunity for the son to become exposed and grasp the qualities and values of being a man. The fact of today's family oriented reality however, lacks that of a father figure in the household. Numerous homes in today's society are composed of single mothers and their child/children. In order to emphasize on the imagery of lacking a father in modern families, Keen went on to say â€Å"where once there was a father, there is now a vacuum† (Verburg, 2000, pg336). A vacuum is defined as the â€Å"absence of a normal or previous content of a place, environment, etc. (Oxford, 1982, pg. 1185). Thus, Keen could not have compared the lack of a dad to anything better that that of a vacuum. The emptiness left in a family as a result of lacking a father is in fact like that of a vacuum. The empty space is the absence of a father figure (the previous content) that had formerly played a role in the family. As a result, Keen a rgues that lacking a dad leads the son to become and remain a mama's boy, and that the son therefore becomes disconnected from an exemplary person who would guide him to manhood. Keen stated â€Å"The powerful father has been all but replaced by the powerful mother. Dad is no longer present to teach his sons how to be men. † (Verburg, 2000, pg. 336). Mothers have boldly taken on the challenge of working, maintaining a household, raring their children, and paying the bills. Women are no longer dependent on a male partner as bread winner and provider in a home. And the strength and courage mothers display by being both mother and father in the homes is what results in sons becoming more attached to their mothers. The sons admire and greatly appreciate the efforts and responsibilities taken on by the mother to meet their needs. Therefore sons begin to live their lives with the ultimate purpose of pleasing mom and being the ideal son. Though, growing up in a single-parent home with only a mother and greatly respecting and honoring her is no excuse for a son not to be able to develop into a fully fledged man. A father figure might be absent in the home, but there are uncles, grandfathers, older male cousins, and even exemplary male figures in society that the sons can look up to for guidance to achieve manhood. Achieving manhood in such a modern family might in fact make the task even more challenging, but in no way it makes reaching manhood impossible. Lastly, men's view of WOMAN as Erotic-Spiritual Power is focused on the argument that ultimately, a woman is the â€Å"prime mover† (Verburg, 2000, pg. 338) in the sexual aspect of life. Based on Eastern mythology â€Å"the female principle is seen as active and the male as responsive† (Verburg, 2000, pg. 338). Whether the woman out rightly suggests sexual intercourse or seduces a man into the act by her attire, the woman is considered the sexual initiator. Even in extreme situations such as rape, the rapist would justify his act with the defense that the woman was the initiator of the act. The rapist would make claims such as the woman tempted him, and that â€Å"she wanted it† (Verburg, 2000, pg. 338). However, in a consensual situation or an unfortunate one such as rape; no one individual is responsible for the actions taken by the other person but of themselves. Hence, the WOMAN as Erotic-Spiritual Power is free of any connection whatsoever to the train of thought or moral decision a man would make in regards to his sexual perception of the WOMAN'S behavior or intention. Manhood entails taking responsibility for your own actions, each and every one of them. A true man dominates his thoughts and opinions. A man knows what he wants, and knows exactly why he does what he does. A woman, regardless of how provocative she might dress, or how appealing she might be, has no responsibility or dominating sexual influence on a male who's achieved manhood. In essence, Keen's opinion on achieving true manhood involved exorcizing the numerous â€Å"archetypical creatures† (Verburg, 2000. pg. 332) men have of women in their heads, understanding and embracing the existence and being of womankind, and evaluating themselves as men and the unconscious feelings attached to their many imageries of women. Unlike what many would believe, manhood is not obtained by nature but is rather nurtured (Denee, 2005). Keen concluded his essay with frank statements such as â€Å"As ‘men' we need to recollect our experience, reown our repressed knowledge of the power of WOMAN, and cease to establishing our manhood in reactionary ways. So long as we define ourselves by our reactions to unconscious images of WOMAN we remain in exile from the true mystery and power of manhood† (Verburg, 2000, pg. 339).

“The Importance of Bees”

Barnett, Misty Carl W Simpson COM 100- section 107 4 November 2010 â€Å"The Importance of Bees† General Purpose: to inform Specific Purpose: to inform my audience of the importance of bees, and the recent decline in their numbers due to the colony collapse disorder. Central Idea:I hope my audience walks away with the knowledge that we are dependent on bees for a variety of things, and of their unexplained deterioration in numbers. Introduction I’m sure everyone in this room enjoys eating.Maybe you like eating foods like kiwi, oranges, apples, blueberries, carrots, cherries, broccoli, onions, brazil-nut, watermelon, cantaloupe, squash, pumpkin, zucchini, macadamia, passion fruit, vanilla, or honey? Did you know that all of these foods are reliant on pollination from bees to produce more food? Since the 1980’s habitat destruction of pollinating insects has made these crops reliant on honey farms to bring in bees to pollinate their crops, but since 2007 we have had some of the largest decline in bee numbers on record.As I have mentioned in my first speech, I have my own bee hive. This is my second year with my hive, it’s doing pretty good, and this last year I was able to collect 6 gallons of honey. I have worked around bees since I was knee high to a grass hopper, and bee keeping is a hobby I hope to always able to have. I have several friends that also have hives, and we get together to socialize and help each other work with our bees. The small group of friends I have has even seen a decline in bee population.Last year my friend Johnse lost four of his five hives, and Tom lost all 5 of the hives he had. Body I) The colony collapse disorder, and its affects. A) Drs. Buchmann and Nabhan stated that bees pollinate about 75% of the world's crop plants. B) Large losses for US. a) It was reported in 2007 to have killed 32 percent of America’s honeybees. And in 2008 another 36 percent—more than a million hives— were re ported dead. C) Not just the US affected. ) According to Bernard Vaissiere, a pollination specialist with the French National Institute for Agricultural Research, â€Å"the situation for bees in Europe is no better than for bees in North America. † D) The presents of losses in different countries. c) A report by the European food Safety Authority estimates that the UK lost 30% of its honeybees in 2007, while Italy lost 40 to 50 percent. II) Theories about causes of the CCD. E) Cell phones not the culprit. F) Genetically modified crops not the culprit.G) Pesticides, viruses, fungi, and poor colony nutrition are the new theories. d) Dewey Caron, a University of Delaware entomologist who co-authored a recent report on CCD's toll, â€Å"I'd bet it's a virus that's fairly new or one that's mutated to become more virulent. † e) Entomologist, Lynn Royce, says â€Å"I think we brought this on ourselves. † III) Congresses gets involved. H) Congress has earmarked a few mi llion dollars for research to get to the heart of the problem, but the money has yet to start trickling out, and results are years away.The bees might be able to wait that long, but we can’t. Conclusion So in conclusion I hope you are can now walk out of this room with a little more understanding about the important of bees, and are now more aware of how their numbers are drastically declining.Works Cited Stipp, David. Flight of the honeybee. 156th ed. New York: time inc. , 1992. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. Jesiolowski, Jill. Get bugs to boost your yields. Vol. 43. N. p. : n. p. , n. d. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. Curmmins, Coroline. Silent Spring. Vol. 17. N. p. : The Environmental Magazine, 2006. Web. 13 Nov. 2010

Mr Posgais Biology II Class Lab essays

Mr Posgais Biology II Class Lab essays Mr. Posgais Biology II class often pondered the thought of insects attraction to certain colors on flowers. Well, on September 14, 1999, we decided to experiment and figure out which colors on flowers were more dominant over others. Our Biology class divided up into groups of two and three people. Each group took a different colored piece of poster board. One person in each group applied Tangle Trap to the twelve by nine inch area and stapled each board to a piece of lattice. We then took the lattice outside, about fifty feet from the school building and left it outdoors for about forty-eight hours. When we retrieved our lattice, we counted the number of insects on each board and proved our hypothesis, that insects prefer yellow flowers and white flowers over the other colors, to be During the week of September 13, through September 17, Mr. Posgais Biology II class carried out an interesting experiment involving insects and their Pollination is vital to insect and flower reproduction. Birds and insects drift from flower to flower, selecting the appropriate flavor of their choice to carry on their necessary task of nature. With the way nature works, this process sounds to be simple; however, it is much more complicated and in a sense, more unbelievable than you could ever imagine. A bird or insect flies or walks up into the flower to reach the pollen. As time moves o, that same bird and/or insect will move on to something else and carry the pollen with it. The pollen being transferred like this is a major factor in the flower reproduction system. My class came up with the hypothesis that the insects would be most attracted to the colors of yellow and white. Our hypothesis was proved to be true when we brought in the lattice containing all of the individual colored poster board ...

The History of Port Royal, Jamaica

The History of Port Royal, Jamaica Port Royal is a town on the southern coast of Jamaica. It was initially colonized by the Spanish but was attacked and captured by the English in 1655. Because of its excellent natural harbor and critical position, Port Royal quickly became a significant haven for pirates and buccaneers, who were made welcome because of the need for defenders. Port Royal was never the same after a 1692 earthquake, but there is still a town there today. The 1655 Invasion of Jamaica In 1655, England sent a fleet to the Caribbean under the command of Admirals Penn and Venables to capture Hispaniola and the town of Santo Domingo. The Spanish defenses there proved too formidable, but the invaders did not want to return to England empty-handed, so they attacked and captured the lightly fortified and sparsely populated island of Jamaica instead. The English began construction of a fort on a natural harbor on the southern shores of Jamaica. A town sprang up near the fort: at first known as Point Cagway, it was renamed Port Royal in 1660. Pirates in Defense of Port Royal The administrators of the town were concerned that the Spanish could re-take Jamaica. Fort Charles on the harbor was operational and formidable, and there were four other smaller forts spread around the town, but there was little manpower to defend the city in the event of an attack truly. They began inviting pirates and buccaneers to come and set up shop there, thus assuring that there would be a constant supply of ships and veteran fighting men on hand. They even contacted the infamous Brethren of the Coast, an organization of pirates and Buccaneers. The arrangement was beneficial for both the ​pirates and the town, which no longer feared attacks from the Spanish or other naval powers. A Perfect Place for Pirates It soon became apparent that Port Royal was the perfect place for privates and privateers. It had a large deepwater natural harbor for protecting ships at anchor, and it was close to Spanish shipping lanes and ports. Once it started to gain fame as a pirate haven, the town quickly changed: it filled up brothels, taverns and drinking halls. Merchants who were willing to buy goods from pirates soon set up shop. Before long, Port Royal was the busiest port in the Americas, primarily run and operated by pirates and Buccaneers. Port Royal Thrives The booming business done by pirates and privateers in the Caribbean soon led to other industries. Port Royal soon became a trading center for slaves, sugar and raw materials such as wood. Smuggling boomed, as Spanish ports in the New World were officially closed to foreigners but represented a huge market for African slaves and goods manufactured in Europe. Because it was a rough-and-tumble outpost, Port Royal had a loose attitude towards religions, and soon was home to Anglicans, Jews, Quakers, Puritans, Presbyterians, and Catholics. By 1690, Port Royal was as large and important a town as Boston, and many of the local merchants were quite wealthy. The 1692 Earthquake and Other Disasters It all came crashing down on June 7, 1692. That day, a massive earthquake shook Port Royal, dumping most of it into the harbor. An estimated 5,000 died in the quake or shortly after that of injuries or disease. The city was ruined. Looting was rampant, and for a time all order broke down. Many thought that the city had been singled out for punishment by God for its wickedness. An effort was made to rebuild the city, but it was devastated once again in 1703 by a fire. It was repeatedly hit by hurricanes and even more earthquakes in following years, and by 1774 it was essentially a quiet village. Port Royal Today Today, Port Royal is a small Jamaican coastal fishing village. It retains very little of its former glory. Some old buildings are still intact, and it’s worth a trip for history buffs. It is a valuable archaeological site, however, and digs in the old harbor continue to turn up interesting items. With increased interest in the Age of Piracy, Port Royal is poised to undergo a renaissance of sorts, with theme parks, museums and other attractions being built and planned. Famous Pirates and Port Royal Port Royals glory days as the greatest of the pirate ports were brief but noteworthy. Many famous pirates and privateers of the day passed through Port Royal. Here are some of the more memorable moments of Port Royal as a pirate haven. In 1668, legendary privateer Captain Henry Morgan departed for his famous attack on the city of Portobello from Port Royal.In 1669, Morgan followed up with an attack on Lake Maracaibo, also launched from Port Royal.In 1671, Morgan made his greatest and final raid, the sacking of the city of Panama, launched from Port Royal.On August 25, 1688, Captain Morgan died in Port Royal and was given a send-off worthy of the greatest of the privateers: warships in port fired their guns, he lay in state at the Kings House, and his body was carried through town on a gun carriage to its final resting place.In December of 1718, pirate John Calico Jack Rackham captured the merchant ship Kingston within sight of Port Royal, infuriating local merchants, who sent bounty hunters after him.On November 18, 1720, Rackham and four other pirates who had been captured were hanged at Gallows Point at Port Royal. Two of his crewmates -   Anne Bonny and Mary Read  - were spared because they were both pregna nt.On March 29, 1721, infamous pirate Charles Vane was hanged at Gallows Point in Port Royal. Sources Defoe, Daniel. A General History of the Pyrates. Dover Maritime, Paperback, Dover Publications, January 26, 1999. Konstam, Angus. The World Atlas of Pirates. Guilford: the Lyons Press, 2009.

Lab DSP Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Lab DSP - Essay Example Table 1 indicates that expected values are the same with program’s values. Rectangular window function was utilized to design low-pass filters in MATLAB with window length M=2, 45, 65 and ω=0.2 as cut-off frequency. The graphs for impulse response, pole-zero, and magnitude function (linear as well as dB) were drawn. In the first experiment, three LPFs of varying lengths, length M = 25, 45, 65 as well as a 0.2π cut-off frequency were designed. Many observations were made during filter design process. The rectangular function’s main lobe width is 4π/M. The main lobe’s width narrows as M increases, affecting transition width and increasing its gradient. Increasing M reduces a large transition width, which is an unwanted effect. The area below the side lobes remain unchanged with signals retaining the ripples. High side lobe as well as stopband attenuation of -13 db and -21 dB respectively makes the rectangular function undesirable to use. Using a different window function with lower side lobes as well as stop band attenuations is the only way to overcome. Poles-zeros plot significantly affect response frequency when ascertaining the poles/zeros position in the unit circle, thus remain very crucial for the experiment. Unit circle zeros make response to move towards zero, which are components of stopband range. Zeros that are components of passband range produce ripples during passband frequency, thus impact the signal, which consequently affects filter accuracy. Zeros ranging 0-π are crucial because those that are outside do not have impact on the filter response. The poles at zero only have impact on the height of the passband. All window functions, including rectangular, hamming and Blackman, were used in MATLAB to design low-pass filters where length, M was 25 and cut-off frequency was ω=0.2. The graphs for impulse response,

GREAT EVENTS IN HISTORY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

GREAT EVENTS IN HISTORY - Essay Example My beliefs on matters of justice and injustice I developed a belief that the world is still divided on issues to do with religion on matters relating to justice and injustice. As a female Muslim student, studying in a Christian dominated country, I have severally passed through thorough scrutiny, as compared to the rest of my American counterparts, when it comes to security checks when I visit some shopping malls in the city. I realized that some people relate Islam to terror and violence, thus, treating Muslims with utmost keenness. It made me develop a belief that the world is not fair to Muslims on issues relating to segregation based on terrorism and violence. I feel that the world treats Islamic religion unfairly because not all Muslims are terrorists. There is injustice in the treatment of Muslims by Christians in other countries that are not Islam dominated. This leads to isolation as a course of the discrimination. Whenever such happens to me, I feel it is a religious injusti ce and maybe even racial because, it is easy to recognize a Muslim who is of Arabic descent, as I am, from other Muslims in the USA. Matters of justice and injustice The death penalty It is an injustice to deny someone the right to live simply because of committing a capital crime; this is from my school of thought as an individual. The Sharia law advocates for death as a punishment to a heinous crime committers, Islam as a religion does support it basing on Sharia laws. The punishment for a crime like murder in Saudi Arabia is death by beheading in public; therefore, I believe that the death penalty is an injustice since it goes against everyone’s right to life, despite the mistake he or she has done. This is because, the penalty deprives the victims a chance to learn from the previous crimes they committed, so to me it serves no meaning at all. My religion, Islam, condones death penalty for various crimes committed, but, as an individual, I totally disagree with the stand. In Saudi Arabia, which is my country, death penalty, also called capital punishment, bases on Islamic Sharia law and has a wide range of crimes. The offences leading to its use vary from rape, murder, armed robbery, adultery and purported witchcraft. I do not support any of these crimes but I feel it is not right for a human being to lose a life for having committed any of these crimes. Criminals can undergo punishment in various ways apart from facing the death penalty in various ways. I strongly disagree with the Sharia law for necessitating capital punishment as a punishment for a capital crime. Many countries across the world do not subscribe to the use of capital punishment/death penalty as a means of punishing criminals. This is because; it is an injustice to humanity and a deprivation of an individual’s right to life. Gay rights Secondly, the issuance of gay rights is an injustice to the moral virtues and a defilement of my beliefs as a Muslim. I do not subscribe to ho mosexuality, lesbianism or bisexuality because, all this go against the teachings of the Quran. The Quran prohibits homosexuality because it goes against the natural order, ruins marriages, and makes individuals disregard God in other spheres of life (Stein & Marc 57). I think gays should not have the right to practice this dirty act anywhere in the world. As a Muslim, I feel like it is absolute immorality and going against the societal values and expectations. Gay