I have a Seminar and I finished everything in it but I failed to make the introduction and conclusions . " The scarlet Letter"Hello, I...

href="http://thinkexist.com/quotation/adultery-usually-follows-a-law-of-diminishing/762392.html">Adultery
usually follows a law of diminishing returns.”   Quote

Nathaniel Hawthorne is closely
identified with the Puritan era in his fiction, and notably in his novel The Scarlet
Letter. The Puritan era in American history left a rich and complex legacy that
continues to this day. The Puritan ethic included a provision regarding hard work as a
way of life and as proof of dedication to God that has been seen as one of the primary
reasons for American business success, and the term is still used today to refer to the
work ethic which infuses manufacturing, business, and other sectors in the American
economy. The other arm of Puritanism that had great power was a form of asceticism and
prudishness supposedly embodied in the New England idea of "banned in Boston," for
instance. The legacy of Puritanism also created a good deal of guilt over sins real and
imagined, and the excesses of the Puritans, seen in the Salem witch trials, would become
an important literary theme in writers like Nathaniel Hawthorne. Puritanism also
involved a good deal of hypocrisy and self-righteousness against which the new American
society would rebel.

Nathaniel Hawthorne was a product of
a Puritan family and was very familiar with the history of New England and with the
nature of the Puritan era. He was born in Salem, Massachusetts in 1804, and his first
American ancestor, William Hathorne (as it was then spelled) came to Massachusetts Bay
with John Winthrop in 1630. William was a magistrate and ordered the whipping of a
Quakeress in Salem. William's

His book “The scarlet letter”
offers extraordinary insight into the norms and behavior of 17th-century American
Puritan society.

The scarlet letter is famous
for presenting some of the greatest interpretive difficulties in all American
literature. After it was published in 1850, cities hailed it as initiating a distinctive
American literary tradition. The narrative describes the effort to resolve the torment
suffered by Hester and her co-adulterer.

 While reading
Hawthorne’s the scarlet letter the reader will consider the issue of crime and
punishment, morality vs. legality, and personal responsibility. Also the reader will
demonstrate his understanding of the text on four levels: factual, interpretive,
critical and personal. In addition the reader will gain a better understanding of
puritan theocracy and its effects on ordinary
citizens.

Hawthorne was masterful in the use of symbolism,
and the scarlet letter “A” stands as his most potent symbol, around which
interpretations of the novel revolve. At one interpretive pole the “A” stands for
adultery and sin, and the novel is the story of individual punishment and
reconciliation. At another pole it stands for America and allergy, and the story
suggests national sin and its human cost.

 ...............................................................

 please
see this if good as introduction or not
.

thank u so
much.

How does voting benefit young people: what can they get out of voting?What can they get out of voting and how does it benefit them?

There is, of course, no direct and tangible benefit for
voting.  A young person who votes does not personally receive any money or anything like
that.  Therefore, the benefits have to be either A) intangible and/or B)
indirect.

An intangible benefit is the feeling of having
done your duty.  Young people who vote might feel as if they have done something to help
their country.  This might make them feel better and more
responsible.

An indirect benefit might be that politicians
would pay more attention to the needs of the young.  Right now, the old vote in much
greater numbers than the young so the needs of the elderly are often put ahead of the
needs of the young.  If more young people voted, this might change because politicians
would know that they had to do things to satisfy young voters as well as older
voters.

What is the significance of the railway tracks and the river at the of the novel in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451?

In Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, the
tracks and the river at the edge of the community symbolize not only change and hope,
but also a new way of thinking.

In the novel, people have
been encouraged to cease thinking on their own. Books are burned and those who read or
collect books, are punished. Montag is a fireman who does this burning, but he is
clearly not entirely dedicated to the sentiment of this brainwashed culture, as he has
been hiding books. Clarisse, a new neighbor, notices things the rest of the desensitized
society does not, including dew on the morning grass. She is a free-thinker, one who
uplifts the value of original thought. Later when she is allegedly killed by a speeding
car, the reader questions whether or not it was an
accident.

However, as Montag listens to Clarisse, his value
of reading and learning increase. Later, when Montag witnesses a woman who would rather
burn with her books than leave them, he begins to actively question the wisdom of his
leaders, searching out another man such as himself, Faber. With Faber he has the
opportunity to discuss his changing ideas.

However,
Montag's wife, Mildred, turns him in as a book owner, and Montag must burn his own house
in the company of his boss, Beatty. Beatty, seemingly with a death wish, mentally and
emotionally attacks Montag over and over, until Montag snaps, killing his
boss.

Now a fugitive, Montag must cross the tracks,
symbolic of taking the last literal step that will once and for all separate him from
his oppressive society. The river will not only mask his scent from the avenging Hound,
but will "baptize" Montag in his new beliefs, and carry him on to a place very unlike
what he has known, so that he can grow with the knowledge of books, among other people
who wish to read, learn and remember. It is from this new location that Montag and his
new companions witness the total destruction of their society, even while hoping that
they will one day be able to build a new community from this destruction—much like the
mythical phoenix Montag's new acquaintance, Granger,
notes:

There
was a silly damn bird called a phoenix back before Christ, every few hundred years he
built a pyre and burnt himself up...But every time he burnt himself up he sprang out of
the ashes, he got himself born all over again. And it looks like we're doing the same
thing, over and over...

The
tracks and water represent the beginning of a new kind of life for
Montag.

What are five quotes that tell us something about Piggy's character in Chapters 1-4 of Lord of the Flies.

At the very beginning of the story, Piggy tells Ralph that
he has asthma and that he's "been wearing specs since [he] was three."  His willingness
to reveal this, his weakness, so readily helps us to see right away that he lacks almost
all social skills but is trusting of people, particularly anyone who appears to have
authority.  This is only reinforced when he says "They used to call me
'Piggy'..."

A bit later, while telling the group that they
screwed up and didn't do things in the right order he says "the first time Ralph says
'fire' you goes howling and screaming up this here mountain.  Like a pack of kids."  In
this way he begins to differentiate himself from the boys.  We start to understand as
readers that he is intellectually on a different level than the rest of
them.

Why does Macbeth seek the witches in Act III?

Macbeth wishes to seek out the witches, in Act III (scenes
i and iiii). Macbeth discusses the reasons as to why.

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Upon my head they placed a fruitless crow, And
put a barren sceptre in my gripe, Thence to be wrench'd with an unlineal hand, No son of
mine succeeding. (Act III,
i)

Here, Macbeth discusses
the part of the witches' prophecy that has come true.  Macbeth has become king. But, he
worries about what else he must do to keep his crown given that he will not have any
sons to pass the crown to.  Another part of the prophecy states that the crown will go
to someone outside of Macbeth's lineage.

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And betimes I will, to the weird sisters: More
they shall speak, for now I am bent to know, By the worst means, the worst. (Act III,
iii)

Here, Macbeth states his
intent to go back to the witches and ask them of his future.  He is concerned about what
he has done to this point to gain the crown; his concern, now, lies in what he must do
to keep the crown.

Why did European nations agree to follow the Open Door policy proposed by the U.S?

Most scholars believe that the Open Door policy that the
US proposed had very little impact on anything.  The European nations never really
agreed to it in any formal way.  To the extent that the  European nations agreed to the
policy, they did so because it was a way of reducing conflict between
them.

During the early part of the 1900s, the major
European nations had more to worry about than spheres of influence in China.  World War
I was rapidly approaching and European nations were more concerned with affairs closer
to home, both in Europe and in Africa.  Because of this, it was not worth their while to
come into conflict with the US or with each other by trying to expand their control over
"their" parts of China.

So, when the European nations eemed
to be agreeing to the Open Door policy (and remember, they never did so formally), it
was because it was in their interests to reduce conflict in China so they could
concentrate on the problems brewing in other, more important, areas of the
world.

I need help Tracing the relationship between slave rebellions and legal restrictions on slaves in the colonies.

Slave Codes were originally written to define the nature
of slavery and which persons should/could be held in slavery. Early slave codes
determined that a newborn child was either slave or free dependent on the condition of
the mother; if she were free, so was the child and vice versa. Other codes provided that
Christians at the time of their arrival could not be
slaves.

Restrictive slave codes came into being after the
slave revolt in Santo Domingue (present day Haiti), the only successful slave revolt in
North America; and the Stono Rebellion in South Carolina which was inspired by events in
Haiti. Both events sent fear through the white communities in the colonies, particularly
South Carolina which had a black majority. Although armed rebellion was always a great
fear, a greater fear (and more successful method of revolt) was poisoning the master.
Slaves' knowledge of the forests, roots, berries, etc., made this a particularly deadly
method of revenge.

Colonial slave codes prevented slaves
from learning to read or write, and provided punishment to the master or other person
who violated the code. Any slave who struck his master and drew blood would be put to
death. Any slave who taught another to read or write was lashed. Finally, any master who
killed his slave was presumed guilty of no crime, because no man would willingly destroy
his own property, so it must have been an accident. The link below offers more specific
detail on specific slave codes.

What purpose does Baptism have?

Baptism serves as an
initiation of purification for most Christian churches. In earlier times, it was
considered an essential act in order to receive salvation, and it is a
sacrament which

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conveys divine grace, blessing, or sanctity upon
the believer who participates in it, or a tangible symbol which represents an intangible
reality.

It is often symbolic
of cleansing of sins, or even of original sin, a reason that infant baptism, or
christening, is so popular. It is also symbolic of dying
and a rebirth with Christ, and baptism is also tied to the acts of both burial and
resurrection. Some churches acknowledge that baptism represents a supernatural
transformation symbolic of Biblical events such as that of Noah and the great flood, and
Moses' parting of the Red Sea that allowed the passage of the
Israelites.

According to Martin
Luther,

To put it most simply, the power, effect,
benefit, fruit, and purpose of Baptism is to save. No one is baptized in order to become
a prince, but as the words say, to "be saved". To be saved, we know, is nothing else
than to be delivered from sin, death, and the devil and to enter into the kingdom of
Christ and live with him forever.

What is the plot of "The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky"?

Jack Potter, the town marshal of Yellow Sky, is returning
home with a surprise for the rest of the townspeople: He has gotten married and is being
accompanied by his new bride. They are a bit overwhelmed by the train's opulence, to
which neither of them are accustomed. Meanwhile, in Yellow Sky, the men drinking at the
Weary Gentlemen Saloon get the word that Scratchy Wilson is near. The bartender
immediately closes the bar, for Wilson is known to be quick with a gun when drunk. When
Wilson cannot get inside, he decides to head to Potter's home, because Potter is the
only man who will face him when he is in this dangerous mood. When Potter and his new
bride arrive, Wilson faces off with Potter. Potter tells Scratchy that he has no gun,
and Wilson demands that the marshal draw down. Finally, Potter tells Scratchy that the
reason he has no gun is because he has just gotten married. When Wilson sees the new
bride, he walks away, declaring in disgust,

"I
s'pose it's all off now."

Why does Lady Capulet think that Benvolio is lying to the prince when he tries to explain the fight that happeneded between Romeo and Tybalt?

Since Lady Capulet and Tybalt are blood relatives, she
would obviously, out of loyalty, defend his honour and be less believing about what
Benvolio reports. Although he reports as accurately as he can, it is the terms that
Benvolio uses when referring to Romeo's part in the fracas that makes Lady Capulet
believe him even less.

Benvolio
states:

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"Romeo that spoke him
fair, bade him bethink
How nice the quarrel was,
and urged withal
Your high
displeasure: all this
uttered
With gentle breath, calm look, knees
humbly
bow'd,"

He is
saying that Romeo was not aggressive at all and used gentle, conciliatory terms to calm
Tybalt down, even telling him about the Prince's displeasure about fighting in the
streets. Romeo was humble, calm and gentle in his manner. Tybalt was, however, "deaf to
peace" and attacked Mercutio,  stabbing him when Romeo
intervened:

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"...underneath whose arm
An
envious thrust from Tybalt hit the
life
Of stout
Mercutio."

Tybalt
then flees but returns later. Romeo knows at this point that Mercutio has died and
he has sworn revenge. He fights with Tybalt, killing him. Romeo then
flees.

Lady Capulet obviously does not believe Benvolio's
version of events, saying:

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"He is a kinsman to the
Montague;
Affection makes him
false; he speaks not
true:
Some twenty of them fought in this black
strife,
And all those twenty could but kill one
life."

She
suggests that because Benvolio and Romeo are related he would, of course, lie. She
states that the brawl had been a cowardly act and that Tybalt had been outnumbered
twenty-to-one. It took twenty of them to kill Tybalt, suggesting Tybalt's bravery when
he was grossly outnumbered. It is ironic that she takes this stance even though she had
not even witnessed the encounter.

A further incentive for
Lady Capulet's disbelief could be that, since she knows that the Prince and Tybalt are
also related, that he would take her side, which the Prince does. He queries who should
be punished for Tybalt's death and ignores Lord Montague's suggestion
that:

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"Not Romeo, prince,
he was Mercutio's friend;
His fault concludes but what the law
should end,
The life of
Tybalt."

In
other words, "a life for a life" - the score had been settled. The Prince commands
that:

"And for
that offence
Immediately we do exile him
hence:"

and:

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"I will be deaf to pleading and
excuses;
Nor tears nor prayers shall purchase out abuses:
Therefore
use none: let Romeo hence in
haste,
Else, when he's found, that hour is his
last."

He
clearly displays favouritism.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, what are some examples (including quotes if possible) of equality in socioeconomic status?Please list about 4...

Although there are references to the hard times that
people experienced in Maycomb during the Great Depression, Scout really doesn't give us
much information concerning the financial status of many of the main characters. We know
that times were hard for everyone.

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A day was twenty-four hours long but seemed
longer. There was no hurry, for there was nowhere to go, nothing to buy and no money to
buy it with...  (Chapter
1)

Even
professional men like Atticus and Dr. Reynolds were forced to accept trade for their
services.

"...
Dr. Reynolds works the same way... He charges some folks a bushel of potatos for
delivery of a baby."  (Chapter
2)

Unlike most
attorneys today, Atticus wasn't a wealthy man.

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During his first five years in Maycomb, Atticus
practiced economy more than anything. 
(Chapter1) 

One
of the more affluent members of Maycomb, Dolphus Raymond nevertheless chooses to live on
the wrong side of town--with his black mistress.

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"... He owns all one side of the riverbank
down there and comes from a real old family to boot." (Chapter
16)

Atticus has to
wipe away tears when he receives gifts of food from Tom's supporters on the morning
after the trial.

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"Tell them I'm very grateful," he said. "Tell
them--tell them they must never do this again. Times are too hard..." 
(Chapter 22)

Please provide a background for Langston Hughes.

James Mercer Langston Hughes was born on February 1, 1902,
and died on May 22, 1967. He was of "African American, European American and Native
American descent."

As well as an African-American poet
who...

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...influence[d]...three generations of African
American writers...

…he was
also a "novelist, playwright, short story writer, and columnist." Overall, he "is
best-known for his work during the Harlem Renaissance."

His
early life was influenced a great deal by his maternal grandmother, and then his mother,
who struggled to support her children when her husband left them. After high school,
Hughes spent time with his father in Mexico, and had several pieces accepted for
publication. His first book was published before he attended college, and was generally
well-received by the white community.

Hughes graduated from
Lincoln University, in Pennsylvania, in 1929. A fellow-classmate, Thurgood Marshall,
would one day be Supreme Court Justice. Hughes' first novel was published a year later.
While his father wanted him to be an engineer, Hughes decided he wanted to be a writer;
he visited several black colleges in the South to present his writings to the
public.

...the
exposure helped to establish him as the major poetic voice of black
America.

Hughes wrote some
plays that were performed by African-American theatrical groups he established in Harlem
and Chicago. His writing would meet resistance from whites and black, and over the
years, his work drew attention, but slowly. Hughes' poetry was musical. He brought
the…

...rhythm
of jazz, the vernacular of his people, and the social concerns of the day to his
verse.

Hughes is now
considered an inspiring African-American author who influenced several generations of
readers and writers through his novels, plays, poetry and short
stories.

Explain Synecdoche and Metonymy ... please give examples

Metonymy is a figure of speech in which a thing or a
concept is called not by its own name but by the name of something that is closely
related to it. For example, we might see the following sentence in a newspaper: "The
White House has decided to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay." We know that the
physical White House did not make this decision but that the President of the United
States did. Because the White House is so closely associated with the president, we
sometimes use the words interchangeably.

Synecdoche, then,
is a specific type of metonymy in which the name for a part of something is used in
place of the name for the whole thing. For example, the common Navy phrase "All hands on
deck." This phrase means that all people (not just their hands) should report to the
deck of the ship. Another example might be "you have hungry mouths to feed." Obviously,
you are feeding more than the mouths, you are feeding the entire
person.

In The Great Gatsby, which characters are growing in maturity and insight if this is a coming-of-age story?Please support the answer to this...

The novel is an initiation story rather than a classic
coming-of-age narrative, since Nick Carraway is clearly an adult at the beginning of the
novel. He has graduated from college, served in combat in World War I, and gone east to
begin his career. During the story he has his thirtieth birthday. Even though he is an
adult, however, Nick does grow in maturity and insight throughout the course of the
novel as he is drawn into a lifestyle and a culture completely foreign to him. Nick is,
in fact, the only dynamic character in the novel.

Since the
novel employs a retrospective point of view, Nick as narrator begins the story in his
mature voice. He has experienced much and learned from it; it has affected him deeply.
Once a very non-judgmental person, Nick has developed deeper insights into human
behavior; he has defined for himself a moral code:

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And, after boasting this way of my tolerance, I
come to the admission that it has a limit. Conduct may be founded on the hard rock or
the wet marshes but after a certain point I don't care what it's founded on. When I came
back from the East last autumn I felt that I wanted the world to be in uniform and at a
sort of moral attention forever . . .
.

In regard to Gatsby's
behavior, Nick says Gatsby "represented everything for which I have an unaffected
scorn," but he has determined that "Gatsby turned out all right at the end . . . ." The
more mature Nick has realized that people are complicated, and their value lies deeper
than their social roles or appearances.

As the story
develops, the change in Nick occurs slowly but steadily. When he first went to the East,
he was impressed with the beauty, glamour, and vast wealth in which Tom and Daisy lived.
By the conclusion of the novel, his opinion has changed dramatically. Meeting Tom on the
street, Nick does not want to even shake his hand, but
does:

I shook
hands with him; it seemed silly not to, for I felt suddenly as though I were talking to
a child.

Nick is no longer
impressed with Tom Buchanan or his great wealth. He feels nothing but contempt for Tom
and Daisy:

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They were careless people, Tom and Daisy--they
smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast
carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up
the mess they had made . . .
.

Nick has changed a great
deal from the young man who first drove over to have dinner with the Buchanans at their
gorgeous estate in East Egg.

When Nick returned from the
war, the Midwest had seemed like "the ragged edge of the universe," and when he first
arrived in the East, he found it exciting and was "keenly aware of its superiority to
the bored, sprawling, swollen towns beyond the Ohio." By the conclusion of the novel,
however, he chooses to go home:

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That's my middle-west . . . I am part of that, a
little solemn with the feel of those long winters, a little complacent from growing up
in the Carraway house in a city where dwellings are still called through decades by a
family's name.

Nick turns his
back on the East and goes back to the Midwest; he now knows where he
belongs.

A word that describe the mood of the carnival in "The Cask of Amontillado"?

The carnival was a time of drunkenness and masked
identity. It sounded a lot like Mardi Gras to me. In the evening, costumed people took
to the streets for merrymaking. There was much drinking, food, laughter, and music. It
was a noisy, wild scene. If people did not show up the next day, the assumption was they
were sleeping the alcohol off. People did things they wouldn't ordinarily do because
their identity was masked. Since Italy was primarily a Catholic, the carnival probably
took place just before Lent, a time of giving up the pleasures of life to prepare for
Easter.

Explain the boy's seemingly calm acceptance of his hanging.Elie comments that "I never saw a single one of the victims weep" Why do you think this...

There are a lot of things that you must consider when you
look at this piece, not the least of which is the degree of horror that all the Jews
faced who were caught up by the Holocaust. Presumably, this passage is one that is
significant because it asks the question of where God was in all of this tragedy. The
boy is calm because he has accepted his fate. Even at such a young age, he knows that
there is nothing that he can do to change what is going to happen to him. Weeping will
not solve it. On another level, however, if you continue on in the passage, it is the
witnesses who weep and who mist ask the question of where God is and why he has forsaken
his ostensibly chosen people. The answer, then, becomes clear in the shape of a small
boy, too light to die immediately, who instead, like Christ on the cross, lingers on to
die slowly hours later. From the audience, one man answers the question, indicating that
God is right there in front of them on the gallows in the shape of that boy. Just a
Christ calmly accepts his own fate, so does this boy, dying with as much dignity as he
can is the ultimate denial of the torture being perpetuated against the Jews. It is the
understanding that God has some other plan, and that to accept his plan willingly and
without making a scene, is the ultimate in respect for self and
God.

What is a good thesis for Macbeth? Is Macbeth more to blame than Lady Macbeth for his downfall, or is she more to blame?

Many critics hold Lady Macbeth responsible for Macbeth's
downfall and destruction, citing her ambition, which seems at times to be deeper than
her husband's. Much is also made of her coldness and deliberate manipulation of Macbeth
when he wavers in his intent to kill King Duncan and assume power. However, the drama is
named The Tragedy of Macbeth, and Macbeth is one of Shakespeare's
tragic heroes, a once good man who is destroyed by a fatal flaw within himself. A
stronger argument can be made that Macbeth alone is responsible for his destruction,
since it is his personal ambition that makes him vulnerable to his wife's demands, as
well as to the deceitful prophecies of the witches.

As he
is introduced in the play, Macbeth is a brave general, battle tested; he holds a
respected position in Scotland and enjoys King Duncan's favor; he has wealth and power
of his own. He did not achieve his status by being a weak and malleable man. It is only
when his ambition, the fatal flaw in his character, is engaged that Macbeth makes the
choices that lead directly to his destruction. He chooses to embrace evil. Were it not
for that fatal flaw, Macbeth would not have been seduced by the witches and influenced
by Lady Macbeth.

Find 10 songs that relate to the book 1984 and explain why you chose that song.

What an interesting
assignment!

Since there is an ongoing war among Oceania,
Eurasia and Eastasia, you could use some anti-war
songs:

Eve of
Destruction, by Barry
McGuire

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War, What is it Good for? by Edwin
Star

There is a Ministry of
Truth in 1984 that "controls" information and, so it is really a ministry of anti-truth,
so you could use some songs about truth:

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Truth, by DC Talk (Christian
Rock)

Brain Washing, by Bob
Marley

David Bowie actually
wrote a song about truth that was about the novel 1984. It depicts the final
brainwashing of Winston.

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Big Brother, by David Bowie (from the album
Diamond Dogs)

1984, by David Bowie
(from the album Diamond
Dogs)

Many songs
written by Bob Dylan could work because they apply to what would happen if we ever had a
world like the one depicted in
1984:

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Eve of Destruction, by Bob
Dylan

Blowin' in the Wind, by Bob
Dylan

Anything by Rage
Against the Machine - i.e. Township
Rebellion

George Harrison of the Beatles wrote a
song called Brainwashed which would be really
good.

Good luck!

How does The Great Gatsby convey Fitzgerald's message about the American Dream in the 1920's?

The hollowness that is conveyed in most of the characters
seems to be one way that Fitzgerald conveys his thoughts about the Jazz Age and the
1920s.  The development of characters' whose pursuits are selfish, at best, and
misguided, at worst, helps to enhance this.  The characters in the novel are not
necessarily concerned about anything socially redemptive or anything that would broaden
the reach of social institutions to ensure democratic progress.  Rather, they are driven
by their own desires and needs, as well as the accomplishment of individual dreams that
do not extend outside the realm of the subjective.  It is in this condition that the
American Dream is corrupted in that it seeks only to enfranchise the subjective, never
reaching outside to socially redemptive elements.  Fitzgerald is arguing that the
American Dream in this particular setting is more resembling a nightmare in that
destruction, whether individual or social, seems to be the only absolute.  There is a
great deal of uncertainty around this vision for how the promises and possibilities of
America will be recognized.   The future of American society in the hands of a Jordan
Baker or Tom Buchanan is a grave state indeed, evidence of where Fitzgerald sees the
society of the 1920s America.

What is the plot resolution of A Thousand Splendid Suns?

After Mariam's tragic and horrific death by public
execution in one of the infamous stadiums in Afghanistan that are used for such
executions, Laila and Tariq run away with both of Laila's children and live for a while
in Pakistan as refugees. However, in a novel that is dominated by such a fierce
passionate love of Afghanistan, as symbolised by the poem where the title is taken from,
they yearn to return to their homeland. The US invasion of Afghanistan gives them this
opportunity and they return to Kabul. The novel ends on a hopeful note as we are shown a
couple that genuinely loves and is committed to each other and their country, in spite
of all of the many sufferings, cruelties and the harshness of life in Afghanistan. This
gives us hope of a brighter future as such individuals work to try to restore something
of Afghanistan's fabulous past in the bitter, war-torn present.

Was Rahim's maneuvering in The Kite Runner to suit his own needs or was it for the good of those he was trying to manipulate?Explain your answer.

I see no evidence in The Kite
Runner that Rahim made any of his decisions for his own benefit. He seems to
act as the moral conscience of the novel: a genuinely thoughtful and caring man. Though
he loves Baba, he also loves Amir; but unlike Baba, Rahim accepts Amir for who he is,
along with all of his shortcomings. When Rahim moves into Baba's home following his
departure to America, he does so in order to maintain the home--not to live in more
luxurious surroundings. Rahim seeks out Hassan and invites him back to Baba's
home because he knows that Baba would approve of his helping his old friend's son (who
is actually Baba's son, which Rahim knows). When Rahim sends for Amir and then reveals
the secrets that Baba has kept from his son, Rahim does so because he knows that the
information is necessary for Amir to better understand his late father; and because he
realizes (as Amir comes to see) that retrieving Sohrab is the only chance for Amir to
atone for his past misdeeds.

In the poem "The Creditor to His Proud Debtor," what literary terms does George Moses Horton use?

In George Moses Horton's poem, "The Creditor to His Proud
Debtor," there are several literary devices used.

The
following includes a metaphor, comparing the debtor to a bird, that struts about in his
finery, referring to his "feathers" and "crowing"
days.

...strut
and boast, 
But think of what your feathers cost; 
Your crowing days
are short at most...

The
second stanza refers to the "jingle" in his pocket, which might be an example of
onomatopoeia.

Repetition is used with some semblance of the
line "debts were paid," or "your accounts paid," as well as "with a sheriff at your
back." Repetition generally is used to drive an important idea or symbolic message home
to the reader.

Imagery is provided especially in the last
stanza where the speaker describes how he would look, bringing a
picture to the mind of the reader. He will wear a "light cravat," "a bell-crown hat,"
sitting as a man of means would, "cross-legged on my chair / Within the cloister
shade." The word "creaning" in the line…

readability="5">

…And creaning wear my bell-crown
hat...

…may
refer to an archaic use of the word "creancer" which refers to a
creditor.

Can you give a description of the Aged Parent and Miss. Skiffins in Chapter 37 of Great Expectations?

Both of these excellent characters are flat characters, in
that they only have two or three attributes and never develop or change as the novel
progresses. The Aged Parent is noted for his deafness and his love for his son and the
pride he has of him. This of course results in hilarious scenes when his audience has
but to nod to communicate with him and the difficulties that anyone has in engaging him
in any topic of conversation. Consider the difficulties that Pip
experiences:

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As I could not sit there nodding at him
perpetually, without making some other atttempt to interest him, I shouted an
inquiry...

Miss Skiffins is
presented as another larger-than-life Dickensian character who is notable for her
woodeness and her fondness for garish colours in her
dress:

Miss
Skiffins was of a wooden appearance, and was, like her escort, in the post-office branch
of the service. She might have been some two or three years younger than Wemmick, and I
judged her to stand possessed of portable property. the cut of her dress from the waist
upward, both before and behind, made her figure very like a boy's kite; and I might have
pronounced her gown a little too decidedly orange, and her gloves a little too intensely
green.

She is thus introduced
as another flat character in this chapter who is notable only in terms of her
relationship with Wemmick and the happiness that he manages to attain outside of his
work.

In "An Essay on Criticism," Alexander Pope defines the use of wit, stating that a poet should use plain language and restrict the use of ...

In Alexander Pope's "The Rape of the Lock," the "rules,"
as he describes them in "An Essay on Criticism," would not apply at all because "The
Rape of the Lock" is not serious, but lightly satirical and humorous; the brilliance of
the piece comes directly from Pope's choice regarding how to handle a strong
disagreement between two families because a young man stole a lock of a young woman's
hair. Plain language is used to convey ideas in a serious manner. People feuding over a
snip of hair is ridiculous, and the topic begs for a playful hand,
so much more in keeping with satire than plain language, and Pope provides
this.

While the use of heroic-couplets is a serious and
worthwhile tool of the poet, Pope's "The Rape of the Lock" uses something different. The
word "mock," of course, sheds light upon Pope's attitude in writing this
piece.

Modern
critics consider The Rape of the Lock to be the supreme example of
mock-heroic verse in the English
language.

Although the two
parties involved took the situation very seriously, Pope was encouraged to write the
piece to restore goodwill between both families; he decided he would point out the
silliness of the argument in a gentle way and have some fun with it. The blending of
"heroic" and "comedy" allows the true nature of Pope's intent to shine through from the
start. And structuring it as a great epic— comparing the simple act of snipping a lock
of hair to the great epics of the past—allows one to gauge the true
severity—or lack thereof—of this insignificant act.

readability="9">

The poem was intended to restore harmonious
relations between the estranged families. Subtitled “an heroi-comical
poem,” The Rape of the Lock treats the petty matter in full-blown
epic style, which results in a great deal of
humor.

While Alexander Pope's
intent in using wit by employing plain language would create a more serious note in a
written piece— especially where metaphors were not employed (therefore the writing would
stand on its own merit without the artistry that metaphors allow)—the intent and subject
of "The Rape of the Lock" could not possibly be written in plain language without
sacrificing the satirical tone of the writing.

In Hard Times, why does Louisa have an emotional breakdown?

The chapter you want to focus on is Chapter Twelve in Book
the Second, entitled "Down." This of course details the way in which Louisa has sunk to
her lowest point and is completely unsure about which way to go. She feels some passion
in her heart for the coldly manipulative Harthouse, but at the same time feels deeply
confused. The method of education which has been strictly used to bring Louisa up,
focusing on facts alone, has not served her at all well, and she herself says to her
father that she "curses" the hour that resulted in her life being the way that it is.
Note the emotive language she uses in describing to her father what he has done to her
through his fact-based educational philosophy:

readability="15">

"How could you give me life, and take from me
all the inappreciable things that raise it from the state of conscious death? Where are
the graces of my soul? Where are the sentiments of my heart? What have you done, O
father, what have you done, with the garden that should have bloomed once, in this great
wilderness here!"

She struck herself with both her hands
upon her bosom.

Thus we can
see that Louisa experiences an emotional breakdown at this stage of the novel precisely
because she realises how woefully unprepared she is to face life through the impact of
her father's teaching upon her. She describes her life, that has had every emotion and
natural fancy carefully and callously bred out of it, as a "state of conscious death."
She has no "graces" of her soul, nor "sentiments" of her heart. Carefully tended, her
soul and heart should have been a blooming and beautiful "garden," but thanks to her
father, it is only a "great wilderness." It is this realisation, triggered by the
advances of Harthouse and her own mixed feelings, that have initiated her own breakdown.
She is a character to be pitied tremendously.

What were the Cold War "hot spots" of the 1950s?The Cold War

There were hot spots all over the place in the Cold War of
the 1950s.

Perhaps the most obvious hot spot was in Asia. 
The decade of the 1950s started off with the Korean War from 1950-3.  This was very much
a Cold War conflict as it involved a communist country trying to invade a non-communist
one.  There was also the beginning of the conflict in Vietnam, with the communists
ousting the French in 1954.

There were also hot spots in
the Middle East.  The US helped to overthrow the government of Iran in the 1950s.  There
was a major crisis in the Suez in 1956.  Both of these were linked to the Cold War as
well.

These are probably the two hottest spots, but there
was conflict in practically every corner of the globe in the
'50s.

Solve for x on the interval [0, 2pi]: 4cos(2x)sin(2x)=1

4*cos(2x)*sin(2x) = 1

First
we will divide by 2 .

==> 2cos(2x)*sin(2x) =
1/2................(1)

Now we will use trigonometric
identities to solve.

We know that: sin2x =
2sinx*cosx

==> sin4x =
2sin(2x)*cos(2x)

Then we will substitute into
(1).

==> sin(4x) =
1/2

But we know that if sin(a)= 1/2 ==> a = pi/6 ,
and  5pi/6.

==> 4x = pi/6 ==> x =
pi/24

==> 4x = 5pi/6 ==> x =
5pi/24

Then the answer is:  x= { pi/24,
5pi/24}

What are 2 traditional parts of crime?

There are typically said to be two parts, or elements, to
a crime.  Both of the elements must be present in order for a person to have committed a
crime.  The elements are the act and the
intent.

In order to have
committed a crime, a person must have actually done something.  A person cannot commit a
crime simply by thinking about it.  Wanting very badly to steal something is not a
crime.

However, the act itself is not enough.  There must
be intent (unless something is a "strict liability" offense like selling alcohol to a
minor).  If, for example, you take someone else's bicycle from a rack because it is
identical to yours and you have mistaken it, there is no criminal intent and therefore
no crime.

What effects does Protista have on humans?

Protista are an important kingdom to all life on Earth.
Protists include algae. They produce most of the oxygen on Earth via the process of
photosynthesis. Besides that, the chemical energy that they produce is available to
primary consumers in ocean food chains. Without algae, there would be no ocean food
chains and all the fisheries in the world would die off. Protists make up the plankton
in the ocean that other organisms rely on as a source of nutrition. Some protists are
important as disease vectors. For example, amebic dysentery is a serious illness that
affects and kills humans. The protist Plasmodium falciparum causes malaria is a disease
that kills millions of people every year in the tropics and is carried by Anopheles
mosquitoes.

Why did Tom try to escape from prison in To Kill a Mockingbird?To Kill a Mockingbird *Chapter 24* - Answer the following questions completely using...

Harper Lee doesn't really give much information about why
Tom tried to make his escape in Chapter 24 of To Kill a
Mockingbird. According to Atticus, he considered Tom's chances for a
successful appeal "good"; however, Atticus adds that Tom was probably " 'tired of white
men's chances' " and decided to take a chance on his own. Tom must have figured that he
would have a better chance of escaping while he was in the prison yard during his
exercise period. It was then that he broke into a dead run and started climbing the
fence. He nearly made it, the guards told Atticus, before they riddled him with 17
bullet holes.

What are the advantages of children's stories being adapted into films, stageplays and other mediums?I would also like to know some...

From an English teacher's point of view, I immediately
think of one good reason for and against adapting children's literature into other
mediums such as plays and movies.  First, let me say that anything that gets kids to
read, I am supportive of it...including the Captain Underpants
series.  Having said that, it brings me to the biggest disadvantage of producing
alternates to the actual books:  If the child can watch it on TV, on stage, or in the
movie theatre instead of reading it, most kids today will opt for that.  It is instant
gratification and doesn't take as much time as the actual reading.  So, they get the
story, but they don't get the discipline, the language, the sentence structure, and the
overall benefits that reading brings.  Research proves that the more you read, the
better you write (hence the exposure to more words and the correct sentence structure on
the page), and the smarter you are in general. 

On the
other hand, seeing the story on film might inspire kids to actually read the book.  Or,
the movie/play could be used as an incentive to get kids to read first then go see the
film, etc. as a reward.  It is always good to compare the two afterward, since kids will
almost always see that the film can never be as good as the book.   Take, for example,
the Harry Potter stories.  The films are excellent in terms of special effects, etc.,
however, you can not effectively mash 300-500 pages of material into a 2-hour film. 
Something pivotal will be left out, rearranged, or otherwise destroyed or altered.  The
book allows time for readers to consider what they would do in the character's shoes,
and it allows for the character's thoughts and motives to be played out in a way the
stage and screen are lacking.  In addition, seeing the film/play through a director's
eyes does take away from the imagination side of it.  I can't tell you how many times I
have been disappointed that the main character on film looks completely different than
how I pictured him or her.

What are some quotations that show a character displaying compassion in To Kill a Mockingbird?

DOLPHUS RAYMOND.  The
irascible Mr. Raymond first shares his secret of the paper sack with Scout and Dill
before later telling them about how passionate he feels about the treatment of black
people.

"Cry
about the simple hell people give other people--without even thinking. Cry about the
hell white people give colored folks without even stopping to think they're people,
too."  (Chapter
20)

MISS
MAUDIE.  Following the trial, Jem despairs that Atticus has no supporters
in Maycomb. Maudie explains that it isn't so.

readability="6">

"I simply want to tell you that there are some
men in this world who were born to do our unpleasant jobs for us. Your father's one of
them."  (Chapter
22)

SCOUT. 
Like Sheriff Tate, Scout agrees that charging Boo with killing Bob Ewell would be cruel
punishment. She explains why to Atticus.

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"Mr. Tate was right... it'd be sort of like
shootin' a mockingbird, wouldn't it?"  (Chapter
30)

ATTICUS
FINCH.  Perhaps the most compassionate moment of the novel comes during
Atticus' final summation to the jury at the end of the trial of Tom
Robinson.

"...
come to a decision and restore this defendant to his family. In the name of God, do your
duty... In the name of God, believe him."  (Chapter
20)  

What was the Anoconda Plan during the Civil War?

There were four main parts to the Anaconda Plan, which,
incidentally, was a very sound military strategy by the North to win the war. The
problem was, it would take four years for them to achieve the four parts, when they
should have been able to finish it much earlier.

Part 1
called for blockading the South with the Union navy, preventing them from selling cotton
to England or getting needed war materials from other
countries.

Part 2 called for occupation of the entire
length of the Mississippi River, denying the South its only waterway for transportation
and splitting the South effectively in two.

Part 3 called
for a drive through the Shenandoah Valley into Georgia and to the ocean, splitting the
South yet again.

The final part called for the occupation
of the capital city of Richmond, and with it, the Confederate
government.

What is the the significance of the following quote by Oliver Cromwell?Oliver Cromwell at Charles I's Trial: "I tell you we will cut off his head...

The quote indicates Cromwell's predisposition to have
Charles I beheaded for treason and, at the same time, bring an end to the monarchy. His
intention was not only to dispose of Charles but also to dispose of the monarchy
altogether.

Charles I and the English Parliament had
experienced a long and bitter disagreement; primarily because of Charles's attempt to
rule absolutely without incorporating Parliament's representation. However, Charles
could not raise taxes without the consent of Parliament and was forced to reopen it. In
1641, Parliament passed the Grand Remonstrance calling for reforms
and complained that Charles had attempted to subvert English law. The English Civil War
resulted, which was more a war of words with over 2,000 pamphlets issued than an actual
war of weapons. Charles's forces were ultimately defeated and he attempted to surrender
to the Scots, with whom England was also at war; but they delivered him to Parliament by
which he was held prisoner. Cromwell had Parliament pass a motion that no further
addresses to the King would be made. To Cromwell, the monarchy had effectively come to
an end even while Charles was still alive.

The so called
"Rump Parliament," which consisted of only one fifth the normal number of members,
appointed a high court to try Charles. Charles refused to defend himself, and was
condemned; he was executed by beheading on January 30, 1649.

Discuss the extent to which moral or political concerns are successfully dramatised in Shakespeare's play Richard III in relation to the context of...

Shakespeare’s play Richard III
concerns a time in English history when the roles of the monarch, the monarch’s family,
and the aristocracy were far more important than they are today.  The monarch was
expected (ideally) to be both morally and politically virtuous – to set a good ethical
example and to be a worthy political model. Indeed, all members of the powerful
aristocracy were expected (ideally) to live up to high ethical and political standards.
However, everyone realized that because (according to Christian teachings) all people
are sinners, neither moral nor political perfection was ever likely to
exist.

Shakespeare almost immediately raises important
moral and political issues in the very first scene of the play.  Thus Richard, the Duke
of Gloucester, quickly reveals to the audience that he has been plotting against his
brother George, the Duke of Clarence, by helping to make another brother, King Edward
IV, suspicious of Clarence. Right after line 41, Clarence enters the stage, under guard,
on his way to the Tower of London, where the king plans to confine him. The ensuing
discussion between Gloucester and Clarence highlights many moral and political issues,
including the following:

• Gloucester tells
  Clarence that “the fault is none of yours” (47) when Clarence is being led to the tower
  – an immoral, deceptive statement, since Gloucester has, just a few lines earlier,
  revealed to the audience that the fault largely results from Gloucester’s own plotting.
  A lying, hypocritical member of the royal family would have been a cause for great
  concern in the middle ages and Renaissance.


• Gloucester
  pretends not to “know” (51) why Clarence is being confined – another
  lie.


• Clarence alludes to the fact that the king has a
  mistress even though the king is married (73) – another example of immoral behavior by
  the standards of the day.


• Gloucester also alludes to this
  example of royal immorality (99).


• After Clarence is taken
  away to the Tower, Gloucester says,

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Simple plain Clarence, I do love thee
so

That I will shortly send thy soul to heaven . . .
(118-19)

This, of course, is
just one more piece of evidence of Richard’s immorality: not only is he plotting the
death of another person, but that other person is his own
brother!

Political matters are equally emphasized in this
scene, as the following examples (among others)
suggest:

• Gloucester tells Clarence that in the
  current political climate “we are not safe” (70), although it is Gloucester, of course,
  who most immediately threatens Clarence’s
  safety.


• Gloucester claims that recently the “Lord
  Chamberlain [got] his liberty” (77; emphasis added) by appealing to
  the king’s mistress.


• Gloucester asserts that the queen
  and the king’s mistress have both become “mighty gossips in our monarchy” (83), thus
  referring to the reigning political system of the
  time.


• Gloucester denies (to a third person) that he and
  his brother are guilty of speaking “treason” (90) – a serious political
  offense.


• Gloucester pretends political loyalty: “We are
  the Queen’s abjects, and must obey” (106).

Thus
the opening scene of the play, like the rest of the work, successfully dramatizes many
important political and moral issues – issues especially important in the contexts of
the historical eras in which the play is set and in which it was
written.

Im supposed to discuss Jane Eyre as a feminist text... what do I talk about? Any good quotes?

Jane Eyre’s
first person narrative allows the narrator to emit explicit opinions and judgements
about women’s concerns. For example, in chapter XII, the auto diegetic narrator, clearly
advocates that women have the same intellectual needs as their consorts. In addition,
the spiritual journey the protagonist undertakes, from poverty to economic
independence, confirms this idea.

Although the novel depicts some
female Victorian stereotypes-Helen Burns, as the self-sacrificing character and Blanche
Ingram as the typical upper- class seductress, the role of Jane refutes the idea of the
submissive Victorian woman. In fact, in the novel, the binary oppositions male/female
and active/passive are subtly inverted. Hence, even though, Rochester holds positions of
authority and influence, Jane, by being Rochester’s spiritual guide and
adviser, upholds power and control. Furthermore, the narrative voice rejects the idea of
a male norm of thinking and behaviour as, for instance, when Jane refuses to become
Rochester’s mistress and chooses to undertake another path. Afterwards, she shows she is
able to survive alone against a hostile world, and the happy ending happens because she
finally has achieved her journey: she has become Rochester’s social and economic
equal.

Conclusively, being a governess novel,
Jane Eyre is of particular interest to women.
Additionally, Jane Eyre’s transcendental journey demonstrates that a female character
can succeed by showing courage and perseverance and by displaying an independent
attitude in relation to the male characters.

Prove that limit of the function (a^x-1)/x=lna,x->0,using two methods.

We have to prove that lim x-->0 [(a^x - 1)/x] = ln
a

First, if we substitute x = 0, we get the indeterminate
form 0/0. This allows the use of l"Hopital's rule and we can substitute the numerator
and the denominator by their derivatives

lim x-->0
[(a^x) * ln a ]

substitute x = 0, we get ln
a

Next we can write : a^x - 1 =
h.

=> a^x = 1 + h

=> x =
log(a) ( 1 + h )

=>x = [ln( 1 + h )]/( ln
a)

As a^x - 1 = h , x--> 0 => h -->
0

So we have lim h-->0 [h /(ln(1 + h)/ln
a)]

=> lim h-->0 [ln a/(ln(1 +
h)/h)]

=> lim h-->0 [ln a/(ln(1 +
h)^(1/h))]

=> ln a * [ 1/ lim h-->0 [(ln(1 +
h)^(1/h))]

=> ln a * ln
e

=> ln a * 1

=>
ln a

This proves lim x-->0 [(a^x -
1)/x] = ln a

In The Great Gatsby, how are the differences between new money and old money shown?

The perception of Gatsby is one way in which the
difference between old and new money is shown.  The folks of old money, such as Tom and
Daisy and Jordan, are going to consistently use Gatsby as the host of elegant and
elaborate parties in order to give him some level of acceptance.  However, the
acceptance given is one that is predicated upon him being conscious of his place.  The
forces of old money will never be able to fully embrace him because of his status as new
money.  For his part, Gatsby understands this and covets only this acceptance.  It is in
this light that he pursues Daisy and envisions himself in the manner he does.  Gatsby's
dreams revolve around the idea of being considered, at some point, part of the accepted
old money clique.  This motivation or desire is something that is fruitless, yet is
something that does not deter Gatsby.

What were the differences between the leaders of Federalists and the leaders of Anti-Federalists?I would also like to know who were the supporters...

I agree mostly with the answer above, except for the
geographic breakdown of who lived where.  The geographic split between federalists and
anti-federalists tended to be living followed a much more east-west line than
north-south one.  Federalists were much more likely to be coastal and urban, while
anti-federalists were much more likely to be from the interior, rural
regions.

A rich merchant from New York or Charleston, then,
was more likely to support the Federalists.  A yeoman farmer from Appalachia or western
Pennsylvania was more likely to support anti-federalists.  Massachusetts was cut in half
by these sentiments, with Boston and the Cape heavily Federalist, and all of the western
farm country on the anti-federalist side.

Federalists also
tended to be wealthier and better educated, more organized and had control over most of
the newspapers of the time.

Well known Federalists included
George Washington, Ben Franklin, John Adams and Alexander
Hamilton.

Famous anti-federalists included Thomas
Jefferson, James Madison, Thomas Paine, James Madison and Patrick
Henry.

Prove that f(x)=2square rootx(lnx-2) is the antiderivative of f(x)=lnx/square rootx , x>0

To prove that the function F(x) = 2(sqrt x)(lnx-2) is the
antiderivative of f(x) = lnx/sqrt x, we'll have to differentiate
F(x).

F'(x) = f(x)

We'll
differentiate F(x) using product rule:

F'(x) = 2(sqrt
x)'*(lnx-2) + 2(sqrt x)*(lnx-2)'

F'(x) = (lnx-2)/sqrtx +
(2sqrt x)/x

We'll multiply the 1st term by
sqrtx:

F'(x) = (sqrtx)(lnx-2)/x + (2sqrt
x)/x

F'(x) = (sqrtx)(lnx - 2 +
2)/x

F'(x) =
(sqrtx)(lnx)/x

F'(x) = (lnx)/sqrt x =
f(x)

We notice that differentiating F(x),
we've get f(x). Therefore F'(x) = f(x): [2(sqrt x)(lnx-2)]' = ln x/sqrt
x.

Determine the point of intersection of the lines y=-x+14 and y=4x-11?

To determine the intercepting point of the given lines,
we'll have to solve the system of equations of the
lines.

We'll re-write the equations, keeping the variables
x and y to the left side.

In the first equation, we'll
shift x to the left, changing it's sign:

x + y = 14
(1)

In the second equation, we'll shift x to the left and
we'll re-arrange the terms:

4x - y = 11
(2)

We'll solve the system using
substitution:

x = 14 - y
(3)

We'll replace x in the 2nd equation by the expression
from (3):

4(14 - y) - y =
11

We'll remove the
brackets:

56 - 4y - y = 11

-5y
= 11 - 56

-5y = -45

We'll
divide by -5:

y = 9

We'll
substitute y in (3):

x = 14 -
9

x = 5

The
solution of the system represents the intercepting point of the lines, whose coordinates
are given by the pair: (5 ; 9).

What is the purpose of "How to Become a Writer"?

Francie, the speaker of Moore’s "How to Become a Writer,"
comments a number of times about how she has been told, by teachers and fellow students,
that the plots of her stories are weak. Superficially, the same comment might be made
about "How to Become a Writer." Therefore it is important to note that the story does
indeed have a plot. One may perceive that the time lapse may be as much as seven or
eight or more years, from high school to the period after college graduation. The period
is that of the Vietnam War (1965–1975), for Francie describes a brother who has served
in Vietnam, has been wounded, and has returned home. Despite the episodic nature of "How
to Become a Writer," and despite its lack of direct narrative presentation, the story
also dramatizes a conflict. On the one hand, Francie adheres to the view that writing is
an irresistible outgrowth of either nature or affliction (writing is "a lot like having
polio" [paragraph 41])—the idea being that a writer is born, not made (poeta nascitur,
non fit). On the other hand, the "how to" title seems committed to the opposing view
that writing is a learned skill or science.

Why was Nixon's policy of détente successful?

Nixon's policy of detente was broadly successful. 
Tensions between the US and the Soviet Union eased significantly during the early
1970s.

One of the major reasons for this was the fact that
Nixon was successful in his efforts to open diplomatic relations with China.  By doing
this, Nixon put more pressure on the Soviet Union to relax its attitude towards the US. 
The Soviets had to do this for fear of a US-Chinese alliance that would have endangered
Soviet security.

A second reason for this comes not from
Nixon but from the Soviet Union.  The Soviet leaders during this time were not notable
for their hard line attitudes.  This made it much more likely that the policy of detente
would succeed.

What is the point L if the point P(2,-1) is the midpoint of TL and it is given that T is (-3,-7).

The point P(2 , -1) is the mid point of TL where T is (-3,
-7)

The mid-point of two points ( x1, y1) and (x2, y2) is
given by [(x1 + x2)/2 , (y1 + y2)/2]

Let L be (x ,
y)

Here we have 2 = (x - 3)/2 and -1 = (y -
7)/2

=> 4 = x - 3 and -2 = y -
7

=> x = 7 and y =
5

The point L has the coordinates (7,
5)

Why was France so successful in fighting against powerful countries in the late 18th century?

From 1792 to 1802, revolutionary France fought a series of
wars with other European powers.  By the end of that time period, it had achieved
territorial gains that the kings of France had wanted for centuries but had not
achieved.  There are at least two major reasons for
this:

First, there is the fact that the French armies were
quite large and quite well motivated.  The French were, for the first time, fighting for
their own country as opposed to fighting for the dynastic ambitions of their kings.  The
French Revolution is credited with creating nationalism as a major emotional and
political force.  By creating and playing on nationalism, the Revolution was able to put
larger and more motivated armies in the field than the autocracies that were fighting
France.

Second, there is the importance of military
leadership.  Though Napoleon was not yet emperor, it was during these wars that he
became the leader of France's military and eventually of France.  Some amount of credit
must be given to Napoleon's military abilities.

We can say,
then, that this French success was due to the size and motivation of its armies and to
the quality of its military leadership.

Length exceeds width by 2 feet. When each dimension is increased by 2 feet the area increases by 48 square feet. Find the dimensions.

We'll put the width as
x.

We'll put the length as x +
2.

The area of the rectangle is theproduct of length and
width.

A = x(x+2) (1)

We'll
increase dimensions by 2 feet:

The length will become x + 2
+ 2 = x + 4

The width will become x +
2.

The area is increasing also by 48 sq.
feet.

48 + A = (x+2)(x+4)
(2)

We'll substitute A by
(1):

48 + x(x+2) =
(x+2)(x+4)

We'll move all terms in x to the left
side:

x(x+2) - (x+2)(x+4) + 48 =
0

x^2 + 2x - x^2 - 6x - 8 + 48 =
0

We'll combine and eliminate like
terms:

-4x + 40 = 0

-4x =
-40

x = 10

The
width is of 10 units and the length is of 12 units: l=12 units; w=10
units.

Why do the doctor and the gentlewoman observe Lady Macbeth?

In the last scene in which Lady Macbeth appears in person,
she has seemingly gone mad with guilt. It is a jarring juxtaposition between her
previous state of being--unflinchingly cruel, powerful, ambitious, and ruthless--and her
now vulnerable madness. Her emotions have gotten the better of
her. 

Lady Macbeth's servant, the
gentlewoman/lady-in-waiting, convinces the palace doctor to watch Lady Macbeth as she
sleepwalks. In her sleep, she makes crazed references to the murder of King Duncan. The
gentlewoman does not want to repeat the words she says out loud, because she is afraid
she might be charged with treason if she utters what Lady Macbeth is saying. Thus, she
urges the doctor to hear the words for himself. As he observes her madness, he tells the
gentlewoman that there is nothing he can do for a malady of the mind. He becomes very
worried about her health and safety, but thinks that only God can help her. He instructs
the gentlewoman to watch Lady Macbeth closely. 

This scene
shows the ending of Lady Macbeth. The tragedies that have happened will have preyed on
everyone involved, especially the cunning and conniving Lady Macbeth. Even though she
got angry with Macbeth for showing signs of remorse and weakness, she succumbs to these
things in the end. 

In Frankenstein By Mary Shelley. What French city do the De Laceys live in?

The DeLaceys do not live in a city. As the creature
relates his story about what has happened to him to Victor Frankenstein, he tells
Victor,

 A few months before
my arrival they had lived in a large and luxurious city
called Paris [France], surrounded by friends, and possessed
of every enjoyment ...." (Chapter 14)  But now, they are exiled because Felix was
present at the unjust trial of a Turk, and he became implicated in this man's escape. 
Consequently, the DeLaceys had to flee France. The creature
says,

"They
found a miserable asylum in the cottage in Germany where I
discovered them." (also Chapter
14)

It is while Felix takes
a "long country walk" that the creature enters the cottage and talks to the old
man.  Also, if the DeLaceys were living in Paris, it would be extremely difficult for
the creature to remain hidden or to find the berries and game on which he
survives.

Why does Junior say, "it was like something out of Shakespeare" (142) when he discovers their first game is against Wellinpit?In The Absolutely...

The reason that Junior says this because Shakespeare's
plays are full of surprise twists and conflicts.  You have lots of examples of people in
those plays being put in situations that are very emotionally charged.  Junior is in
such situation when Reardan has to play Wellpinit.

Junior
has left the reservation to attend school Reardan.  This causes conflict between him and
the Indians who think that he has abandoned his people.  Basketball is a huge deal among
Indians today and so playing basketball against the people he has "abandoned" will be an
emotional experience for all involved.

Where do you suppose the gum and the pennies are comming from?

This is really a question that you should answer
yourself.  The reason I say that is because everyone who answers questions on here knows
where the gum and pennies are coming from.  So it's hard for us to wonder where they're
coming from.  From the sound of the question, I think your teacher is more interested in
your thinking than in the actual answer -- who actually puts them
there.

Jem and Scout seem to think that they belong to
someone who rides the bus to school.  That person has stashed them and forgotten them. 
This makes sense because who else would hide stuff like that in a
tree?

I guess you might want to consider that question. 
What kind of person would leave stuff in a tree other than a kid?  I suppose it would
have to be someone a bit strange, right?   And think to yourself where the tree is. 
Maybe between those, you can figure out who it is.

Discuss Twelfth Night as a satire on the idea of love at first sight.ANSWER

Very interesting question. Of course, you need to remember
that this play is all about characters falling strangely, suddenly and inexplicably in
love with other people - often apparently against their better judgement in a way that
drives them to folly or absurdity. Just consider the way that "love at first sight" is
introduced by the love-sick Orsino:

readability="16">

O, when mine eyes did see Olivia
first,

Methought she purged the air of
pestilence.

That instant was I turned into a
hart,

And my desires, like fell and cruel
hounds,

E'er since pursue
me.

Note similarly what
Olivia says when she falls in love with Caesario:

readability="11">

Even so quickly may one catch the
plague?

Methinks I feel this youth's
perfections

With an invisible and subtle
stealth

To creep in at mine
eyes.

What is interesting in
both of these quotes is how love is described. Orsino describes his sudden love for
Olivia in a very violent manner - he becomes subject to his desires, so much that they
constantly haunt and dominate him. The metaphor of the pack of dogs hunting the deer
(the "hart") suggests that there is something out of control in his love - just as a
pack of dogs when they have the scent go crazy and pursue their quarry, so we see a
love-stricken Orsino in Act I scene i, who is mastered by his emotions and out of
control. Similarly Olivia describes her "love" as something insidious, "creeping" and
overpowering. She is not able to control her response but describes what is happening to
her in terms that relate love to a thief or an assassin that creeps up on us with
"invisible and subtle stealth" to overpower us.

Both these
metaphors stress how love comes upon us like a "plague" or a "sickness" as it is
described by other characters. We have no control over it and it just happens to us,
seemingly apart from any conscious choice of our own. Thus love at first sight is a
central theme of the play, but it speaks more of infatuation, of how dangerous it can
be, and how it can rule us, and and how it can cause us to make fools of ourselves in
the name of "love".

In the poem "Same Song" by Pat Mora, what theme, or message, do you think the poem conveys? Is that message true only for young people?...

This poem applies to adults as well as children. It is
about superficial beauty. Depending on the society, certain physical features are
accepted (endorsed and ‘passively’ accepted) as beautiful. Typically, these are things
like symmetry and athletic or curvaceous (females) body types. And although beauty is
subjective, there are clearly certain types of beauty that dominate because media,
artists and advertisers endorse iconic images that many passively accept as “essential”
or the best idea of beauty.

The “same song” means that both
of his children have been affected by this anxiety of living up to society’s “majority
rule” of physical beauty. It is also a "same song," because this is a recurring
historical situation. Both children “frown” despite their best efforts. The images of
beauty that bombard us (via media, art, internet, etc.) are impossible to live up to.
This is certainly true in the age of air brushing and Photo Shop, but it has always been
the case, especially with external beauty, that people go to great lengths to live up to
these impossible standards. The pursuit of external beauty is bound to affect the child
or the adult psychologically unless he/she can accept the superficiality of it
all.

What are some rhetorical devices used in "The Myth of Sisyphus"?

Albert Camus' essay "The Myth of Sisyphus" uses
allusion, analogy, ethical appeal (ethos), juxtaposition, and
imagery:

Allusion:
he obviously alludes to the Greek myth of Sisyphus, as well as
Oedipus and Dostoevsky's Kirolv as other absurd
heroes:

Then
a tremendous remark rings out: "Despite so many ordeals, my advanced age and the
nobility of my soul make me conclude that all is well." Sophocles' Edipus, like
Dostoevsky's Kirilov, thus gives the recipe for the absurd victory. Ancient wisdom
confirms modern
heroism.

Analogy:
he compares Sisyphus to the absurd hero, the rock to work, and the gods to deterministic
external forces which limit
freedom.

Ethos: he uses moral
argument and counterargument to show how Sisyphus loves life, hates death, and scorns
the gods, thereby getting victory over his fate and
punishmnet.

Juxtaposition: he
contrasts man vs. god, freedom vs. punishment, life vs. punishment, sun and water vs.
Hades.  All of his juxtaposed imagery supports life over death and freedom over
punishment.

Imagery: he uses
natural, visual imagery to create an emotional response for the reader: "mountain,"
"sun," "water"--all of which affirm life on earth instead of death and
suffering.

vectors u = & v= , find angle between u & v and projection where proj(v)u=(u*v/|v|^2)v thank you for help!

We are asked to find the angle between vectors u and v and
the projection where proj(v)u = (u*v/|v| ^ 2)v.

u=
<5,8> and v = <20,5>.

We will
first find the angle between vectors u and v.

The formula
is cos(theta) = (u *v)/(|u| *|v|)

=> cos (theta)
=

(5*20) + (8 * 5)/ [(sqrt 5^2 + 8 ^2) * (sqrt 20 ^ 2 + 5 ^
2)]

=> cos (theta)
=

(100 + 40)/(sqrt 25 +64) *(sqrt 400 +
25)

=> cos (theta) = (140) /(sqrt 89) *(sqrt
425)

=> cos (theta) = (140) / (sqrt
37825)

=> cos (theta) =
(140)/(194.4865)

=>  The angle between
the two vectors is approximately 43.96
degrees.

To find the projection we use the
following formula which we  were given:

=>
projection  (v)u =  (u * v/ |v| ^2) v

=> projection
(v)u =

{[(5 * 20) + (8 * 5)/[sqrt  (20 ^2 + 5 ^2)] }* (20,
5)

=> projection (v)u = [(140)/(sqrt 425) ] *
(20,5)

=> projection(v)u  = 6.79 * ( 20,
5)

=> projection(v)u = ( 135.8, 33.95
)

The angle between the two
vectors is approximately 43.96
degrees.

The projection(v)u =
( 135.8, 33.95 ).

Does arrests made on TV, MOVIES, COPS, affect the general public's perception on what constitutes a legal arrest in an investigation?fact

I believe it is true that television somewhat shapes
public opinion of what is legal and what is illegal and how matters are
handled.

Another aspect of this is region. For example, a
television show may display certain events which may be handled in a certain way. How it
is handled legally may be true in one area but not necessarily another. Basically, laws
vary from city to city, state to state, etc.

I do think
that it is important for people to realize that what they see on television is usually
for entertainment purposes only. Unfortunately, people do not always realize
this.

What were the sources of Senator Joseph McCarthy's popularity? What brought about his downfall?

Joseph McCarthy became popular because many Americans
(especially conservatives) were very suspicious of communists and thought that
communists were likely to try to take over the US from within.  Because McCarthy seemed
to be a regular guy who was fighting elites who were probably communists, he was quite
popular.  This was especially true at first when the Korean War and the "fall" of China
were still fresh in people's minds.

McCarthy fell largely
because he overreached.  He started to claim that people within the army were
communists.  When he did this, he ran up against a part of the government that most
people respected.  So now, instead of attacking egg headed elites, he was attacking
respected military people.

what purpose do the first paragraphs serve in chapter 1

The opening paragraphs, in addition to being exquisitly
written, help to establish for the reader two main things: Nick's narrative style and an
aura of mystery about Gatsby.  We can learn from Nick's "voice" that he is an educated
person with a solid family background.  His sophisticated vocabulary and his manner of
speech clearly indicate a person of good breeding.  The lengthy description of his
family history gives him a sense of history and authority.  If you read this section
carefully, you will notice that Nick's family history parallels the development of
America.  They came over from Europe, established themselves in the East and than
migrated to the Midwest.  The fact that he uses the word "snobbishly" twice is also a
clue to where his family sees itself.  The point is that we, as readers, clearly
understand Nick's background.  We do not, however, have much to go on when it comes to
Gatsby.

The second major point of these initial paragraphs
is what we learn about Gatsby.  We understand, first and foremost, that Nick is
conflicted about his own judgment of Gatsby (and someone who says he "reserves judgment"
at that).  Gatsby is someone who represents "everything for which [he has] an unaffected
scorn," yet "there was something gorgeous about him."  We also learn that Nick admires
Gatsby's "gift for hope" and "romantic readiness," and that he "turned out all right in
the end."  I urge my students not to forget these main characteristics of Gatsby,
because it is this, plus what Nick says about him in Chapter 8 ("They're a rotten
crowd.  You're worth the whole damn bunch put together) that make Gatsby
great. 

Armed with this knowledge, readers can begin to see
how Nick will become our guide through the sordid events of summer 1922 in New York, and
Jay Gatsby will be our misguided romantic hero. 

What was the impact of The Joy Luck Club?

I think that the greatest impact of Tan's work was to
increase voice in the literary lexicon.  Tan's work increased awareness to what it meant
to be Chinese, Chinese- American, and helped to spawn the part of the literary
experience that spoke to Asian- Americans and the cultures from which their identity is
formed.  The work did much to increase voice in this
domain:

readability="10">

Reviewers have referred to the common sense with
which Tan writes about Chinese culture. Tan explores areas of Chinese life that most
other writers have not attempted. Many critics note that this novel, as well as others
Tan has written, stimulates cross-culture appreciation. Readers of all cultures are able
to be objective about their own predicaments while at the same time making connections
between themselves and Tan's Chinese
characters.

The bringing out
of Chinese culture, the issues of identity attached to it, and also to explore the
hyphenated American experience at the time was one of the most profound elements to
Tan's work.  It helped to impact society in a demonstrative way in that the increase of
voice was a result of the novel.

explain the concept of gravitional field in space and its effects on our universe?i want to know the clear concept of gravitional field in...

It is indeed one of the reasons the LHC at CERN was built:
to find the Higgs boson.

The Newtonian idea is that for
some reason (no one knows) all masses exert a pulling force on each other, for every
mass in the universe.

The Einsteinian idea is that space is
distorted by a mass. You have surely seen the model of a flat, stretched, infinitely,
endlessly elastic rubber sheet with a massive sphere at its center. Put a very small but
massive sphere in the center. A neutron star. Increase the mass but make it much smaller
(and denser). The dent in the rubber is very narrow and deep. For a black hole the mass
can be finite (measurable) but the depth of the dent is infinite. This is a black hole
gravity well. Try now to imagine the same situation but in 3D.

How did John F. Kennedy exemplify integrity in his presidency?

The Cuban Missile Crisis was the first (and possibly the
last) time John F. Kennedy showed what he might be able to accomplish as a leader.  Much
has been made of the efforts of his father Joseph P. Kennedy's efforts to get him into
the presidency, and while that may be the main reason Kennedy ran, and maybe even won,
there is no arguing with his skillful handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis.  While his
war-obsessed military advisers leaned hard on him to respond to the Soviet missile
installations on the island of Cuba with aggression, Kennedy refused to be pressured
into a hasty decision that surely would have yielded tragic results.  Kennedy's handling
of this crisis brought to the forefront one of his major strengths:  the willingness to
listen to, even seek out, opposing opinions.  Kennedy didn't see opposing ideas as a
threat; he saw them as an opportunity to gain insight and make the best decision
possible in a situation.  Night after night during the Cuban Missile Crisis, Kennedy and
his advisers debated, discussed, argued, and weighed the ramifications of every decision
they made.  Kennedy was determined that he would not blow up the world if it could
possibly be avoided, and in the end Khruschev followed his lead.  The Soviets took their
missiles out of Cuba, and American missiles were removed from
Turkey. 

Why do some people oppose the influence of American culture on their society?

This is so, primarily because of what is called 'cultural
resistance'. American culture or Americanism is looked upon as heterogeneous, having no
clear unified identity. That's the reason why many tradition-bound societies find
American culture and cultural standards suspect. America has been a land of all nations
and races, highly urbanised and technologised, with supposed moral  libertarianism, an
epitome of socio-cultural amorphisity.

The oldish,
traditional societies, trying to stick on to their nativist/nationalist beliefs and
practices, tend to ward off whatever is American. A bit too frank & open, too
independent American life is not acceptable to many societies.

How do I analyze a text with feminist theory?

Depending on the text, you will want to look at the roles
of females in the novel and compare them with the roles of
males.

In particular, you will look for these main points
of criticism:

1.
 Differences between men and
women: "The basic assumption is that gender determines values and
language."  Notice the differences in topics that men and women talk about and how they
discuss them.  According to Deborah Tannen, for instance, men are "report talkers" (they
announce things for show), while women are "rapport talkers" (they speak to foster
intimacy).  She also says that all women are marked: by appearance (makeup, hair,
clothes, body) and language (topic, tone, cues).  In other words, women must battle
these markings in every day roles and conversations, and it is tough to do
so.

2.  Women in power or power relationships
between men and women: "Note and attack the social, economic, and
political exploitation of women."  Notice the division of labor in marriage, the home,
and work place.  Are men doing men's work only (segregation of gender roles)?  Or, are
men and women sharing the work (integration of gender
roles)?

3.  The female
experience: is the speaker, author, or protagonist female?  If so, how is
her point-of-view determined?  How are her experiences different from other females and
males?  How does she treat others?  Does she celebrate femininity and the roles of
mothers, wives, and independent women?

So says one feminist
author and critic:

readability="25">

So, what has feminism taught me about literary
studies? That it is not "artistic value" or "universal themes" that keeps authors' works
alive. Professors decide which authors and themes are going to "count" by teaching them,
writing scholarly books and articles on them, and by making sure they appear in
dictionaries of literary biography, bibliographies, and in the grand narratives of
literary history. Reviewers decide who gets attention by reviewing them. Editors and
publishers decide who gets read by keeping them in print. And librarians decide what
books to buy and to keep on the shelves. Like the ancient storytellers who passed on the
tribes' history from generation to generation, these groups keep our cultural memory.
Therefore, we gatekeepers, who are biased humans living in and shaped by the
intellectual, cultural, and aesthetic paradigms of an actual historical period must
constantly reassess our methods, theories, and techniques, continually examining how our
own ethnicities, classes, genders, nationalities, and sexualities mold our critical
judgements.