All characters in the novel Of Mice and Men are lonely Essay Example for Free

All characters in the novel Of Mice and Men are lonely Essay All characters in the novel Of Mice and Men are either lonely, bored or in need of escaping from the soulless existence of the itinerant labour. It is based on a society of men leading empty lives, trapped in a lonely life, consisting mainly of hard physical work. There was not enough happiness, love and affection in their lives. The novel is set in California, the Southern states of America, in the 1930s around the time of the Great Depression. The ranch is based in Soledad; which is the Spanish word for Loneliness. The bunkhouse that the men sleep and live in is a long and rectangular building. The walls are white washed and the floor unpainted. In three of the four walls are small, square windows. In the fourth one was a solid door with a wooden latch. There are eight bunks, all with a nailed apple box over them with the opening forward. This made two small shelves for the personal belongings of each ranch hand occupying the certain bunk. On these shelves were little articles, soap, razors, talcum powder, Western magazines, medicines, little vials, combs and a few neckties. There was also a black cast iron stove, and a big square table in the centre of the room, with scattered playing cards across it, and surrounding the table were boxes for the men to sit on. The bunkhouse also had lice and roaches in it! Carlson and the other ranch hands all dream of owning their own land and living and working from this, resulting in wealth and happiness. This was known as the American Dream, this is shown as an opportunity to all people no matter how rich or poor they are. There is a lot of government propaganda, informing people that if they work hard and push their ambitions to the limit, they can make this dream reality. However they all knew, no matter how hard they worked or how successful they were, it was very unlikely of this dream ever becoming reality. Their way of escaping this disappointment was to collect their fifty bucks at the end of the month and of a weekend spend all of it on women and alcohol, usually at the nearest cat-house. During the week they play cards games or horseshoes. Crooks is very lonely, this is due to the fact that he is coloured and everyone knows him as a nigger! He is treated completely differently to all the others, an outsider. He is also crippled, after a horse kicked him and severely damaged his back. In the 1930s it was very racist in America and the coloured people werent allowed to speak up or were too scared to defend themselves in fear of what the white people would do to them. This is the situation Crooks is in. However he is the only coloured person at the ranch, so he has to accept all racial comments on his own. He has his own separate room, which isnt even a room it is a shed that leans off the side of the barn wall. He is isolated from everyone else, therefore unable to socialise. On one occasion Lennie entered the barn to see his pup. He saw Crooks light shining and stood in the doorway of Crooks room. Crooks saw him and said sharply you got no right to come in my room. This heres my room. Nobody got any right in here, but me. He then followed with I aint wanted in the bunkhouse and you aint wanted in my room, they play cards in there, but I cant play because Im black. They say I stink. Well, I tell you all of you stink to me. Crooks reads to amuse himself when he has nothing better to do. This keeps his mind off of the atmosphere and situation he is surrounded by in his everyday life. Curleys wife is perhaps one of the loneliest characters, trapped in her strict and original womans/wifes role. Her daily routine only ever consists of her doing housework, such as cooking Curleys dinner, washing Curleys clothes, making Curleys bed, cleaning Curleys house, etc. If Curley catches her talking to the ranch hands he is always very annoyed by it, she is to stay in the house. She is known as Curleys wife, no one knows her name so they cannot call her by it. One time when she enters the bunkhouse and begins to talk to the ranch hands, Crooks suggests Maybe you better go along to your own house now. We dont want no trouble. It is this idea that she is trouble that makes Curleys wife so upset and angry. Well, I aint giving you no trouble. Think I dont like to talk to somebody ever once in a while? Think I like to stick in that house alla time? Having a husband even makes her loneliness worse, because Curley is so strict about whom she socialises with and what she does. She calls him sarcastically a Swell guy, who Spends all his time sayin what hes gonna do to guys he dont like, and he dont like nobody. Curleys wife tries to escape her loneliness and sadness by dreaming of being an actress or a model. She had been offered the chance before I tell you I could of went with shows An a guy tol me he could put me in pitchers. Curleys wife is also very good at flirting, this attracts male attention. Therefore just for a moment she is listened to and is the centre of attention, this moment matters so much to her because she is being paid attention to for once, that she makes a very bad habit of it. However the ranch hands have got used to her scheming ways and do not want to risk getting canned because of a tart. However Lennie and George are different to the other ranch hands, they may live a lonely existence, but they have each other. Other than the other ranch hands expressing their feelings about their hopes, dreams, lonely lives etc, George and Lennie are the only characters we really get to know. All other ranch hands havent got a family or anything to look forward to, but it is different with George and Lennie; they believe they have a future and as long as they have got each other, it doesnt matter whether they have a family or not. These men love each other. They talk to each other and know that the other cares for them, because George looks after Lennie, and Lennie looks after George. However, George has a much greater job in looking after Lennie, than Lennie has in looking after George. Lennie is a bit of a dunce and is always forgetting things, but George has the brains. They both are physically well built, but Lennie does not realise his own strength sometimes, he is dangerously strong. Lennie is the physical side of the pair, whereas George is the mental. The fact that they have each other gives them more of a chance of success, than the other ranch hands. Lennie loves George to tell him what; one-day things will be like. Their dream is to one day buy a little house, with a ten acres, a winmill, a kitchen, an orchard to grow cherries, apples, peaches, cots, nuts, and a few berries, a section on the land to grow alfalfa that Lennie will use to feed the rabbits with, hutches and pens full with pigs, chickens, cows, goats, cats, pigeons, a dog and rabbits that Lennie could pet, a smoke house so they could kill the pigs and then smoke it, for smoked ham and bacon etc, and for them to literally live off the fatta the lan'. They would only work six or seven hours a day. Lennie likes to pet, smooth, soft, furry things, as a kind of comfort. Other than for George and animals, love and affection are withheld, not only from Lennie, but also for all the ranch hands. This is why they have their own individual comfort or way of escaping from the repetitive daily routine and loneliness. Candy is a dissimilar character from the other ranch hands. He is very lonely and sad. He has no hand, but a very old dog that he cares for very much. This dog is similar to Candy. They are both very old and when Carlson shoots the dog, because it smells, has no teeth, he cannot eat, is stiff with rheumatism, is nearly blind and Carlson thinks it will be better to put the dog out of his ageing misery. Candy wants people to treat him once he is canned like this. This is because he wont have no place to go, an he cant get no more jobs. The other ranch hands say that he can replace the dog with one of Lulus pups, but of course that wouldnt be the same, never is anyone or anything the equivalent, everyone and everything is unique. Candy seems to think that when he is dead, people will say the same thing about him. When a new ranch hand comes and replaces him, hell be forgotten. For obvious reasons Candy is upset and hurt by this. It is as if the characteristics of his dog and the way the other men treat the dog, symbolises Candy. Candy wants to join George and Lennie in their dream. Candy has already got three hundred bucks and another fifty coming at the end of the month, when the men get paid. He explains that he aint much good, but I could cook, tend the chickens, and hoe the garden some. Then when George and Lennie get their fifty bucks each at the end of the month, they will have four hundred and fifty bucks, and although the woman wants six hundred bucks, George thinks she will accept their offer as a deposit and then George will get a job and start to collect the rest, while Candy and Lennie could work on the land as well as sell eggs etc, making more money. This is Candys route of escaping. Everything seems to be falling into place and their dream looks like it could become reality. This is everything a man wants and Candy is thrilled he is part of it. However much their dream looks real, it all ends when Curleys wife tries her old tricks with Lennie. Curleys wife enters the barn, as Lennie sits there mourning over his pup, he has just accidentally killed! George has already warned Lennie about Curleys wife, says she is trouble, so Lennie refuses to talk to her, George says I aint to have nothing to do with you- talk to you or nothing. Curleys wife says in a innocent voice, All the guys got a horse-shoe tenement goin on, so Why cant you talk to me? She eventually persuades Lennie that it is safe to talk to her. They talk for ages and Lennie tells her how he likes to pet nice things with my fingers, sof things. She tells Lennie to feel right here, on her hair. Lennie was enjoying stroking her hair until she warned him not to muss it up. She then got angry because Lennie wasnt listening to her. She went to pull away and Lennie clasped his fingers tightly in her hair and wouldnt let go. She began to shout, you let go. Lennie began to get scared because he thought George would hear and go mad. He covered her mouth and nose to prevent her screaming, and continued to beg her to be quiet. She continued to struggle and he shook her. Suddenly her body flopped like a fish. She was dead! Lennie ran to the brush that George had told him to hide in when they first arrived in Soledad if he ever got into trouble. When Candy found Curleys wife dead and told all the ranch hands, they all knew it was Lennie! Most of the men wanted to kill Lennie, but George got there first. George knew that Lennie would be scared if half a dozen men ran towards him shooting, but if George was to do it at the back of his head, just like Candys old dog it would be pain free. When George found him, Lennie asked for the story of their dream to be told to him and questioned George why he wasnt mad at him, but obviously if this was Georges last moments with Lennie he didnt want to be mad at him. As George told the story and paused every so often, Lennie would say go on or Gonna do it soon as if he knew what George was about to do and was encouraging George to get it over and done with. George finally shot Lennie. Lennie jarred forward and the settled peacefully as he lay on the sand. George just sat stiffly and silently n the bank, looking at his hand that had just pulled the trigger disgustedly. George knew it was for the best, where ever they were to go Lennies unrecognised strength would lead to trouble; it had already, both in Weed and Soledad. Lennie was trapped by his strength. Although, Lennie has now been released from pain by no longer being able to kill others and from not getting shot by half a dozen men cruelly, but peacefully by George. The upsetting thing is, that Lennie was so afraid of being alone and away from George, and now he was just that. It was all over!!! George is now free; he is no longer trapped by his want of freedom, of constantly looking after Lennie. I think the novel tries to give us the message that people try to lead their lives as successfully as possible, in order to result in the best possible outcome. However this is very hard to succeed. The ranch hands wanted the American Dream to become reality, but is very unlikely and as shown does not happen. The novel gave a very positive view of the American dream, but this is erroneous and does not come true. The chances of finding true, lasting friendship and happiness are also very unlikely as it is always spoilt by misfortune, arguments, inconveniences and sometimes death, as in this case.

Short history of literature Essay Example for Free

Short history of literature Essay The purpose of this course is to encourage you to gain an insight into, and broad awareness of, the development of English literature from its perceived origins in the ninth century until the end of the nineteenth century. Attention will be paid not only to influential writers and movements, but to themes such as the influence of Greek mythology, religion, politics, and the rà ´le of Ireland. Some writers, poets and playwrights considered are Langland, Chaucer, Malory, Marlowe, Shakespeare, Pope, Swift, Wordsworth, Keats, Byron and Dickens. I apologise to the many superb but deceased writers whom I cannot include in this all too brief summary, and even to those whom I have included, for treating them somewhat summarily. The course takes the form of a series of lectures, which form but the tip of the iceberg, providing you with a door to your own research and study. You are encouraged to share the results of your studies, helping not only your fellow students, but the lecturer. We are, after all, in the same boat, even if I am at the helm. Evaluation will be by unseen short written essays. I shall provide some examples of examination questions at the end of this hopefully helpful guide. The course kicks off by considering English literature’s fairly late entry into the world of writing, a fact explained by the destruction of Roman Britain by barbaric German tribes, and a series of subsequent invasions that made it difficult to standardise the language and create high-level writing until the late Fourteenth Century. Naturally, once the area later to be known as England began to settle down during the reign of Alfred, priests began to translate Latin texts into Anglo-Saxon/Old English. Churchmen had an advantage, since they were literate. Gildas, born around 500, wrote The Destruction and Conquest of Britain in Latin, while Bede (who died in 735) wrote the Eclesiastical History of the English People, also in Latin. They cannot therefore be included as writers using Old English exclusively, although their works were later translated into Old English. Although the story of Beowolf is the longest known epic poem in Old English, it is a Scandinavian tale dating fro m the Eighth Century. English literature begins to define itself more clearly following the Norman invasion, which resulted in a minor transmogrification, with the importation of thousands of French words. By 1150, we can therefore identify the result, known as ‘Middle English’. Here we have two superb works, one by the poorish priest, William Langland (1332-1400), Vision of William concerning Piers the Ploughman, which is a religious journey through morality, mentioning the seven Deadly Sins of sloth, avarice, anger, gluttony, lust, envy and pride, concluding that it is better to be good than rich. In contrast, his counterpart, Geoffrey Chaucer (1343-1400), was well off, working in senior government and as a diplomat, going on various European trips. He is said to have met Petrarch or Boccaccio. Certainly, his renowned Canterbury Tales seems to betray elements of Boccaccio in its earthiness and methodology. He wrote several works, including Troilus and Cressida, and The Legend of Good Women. The next well-known piece of work with which we deal is Mallorys (c. 1405-1471) Morte d’Arthur, extrapolated from old French and some English tales, and written in early modern English. One can truly say that it has been impregnated in the British national consciousness. Many scholars think that Arthur was a Romanised Briton who fought against the German invaders. He probably was, but in the centuries of literary Chinese Whispers since then, the tale has probably been considerably embellished. Before now moving into the Sixteenth Century, let us mention that the invention of printing, which was taken up by William Caxton in 1476, had a big impact on literature, in that it became more widespread among the ordinary population. Edmund Spenser’s (1552-1599) Faerie Queen is an example. Notwithstanding criticism that he wrote it to gain favour with Queen Elisabeth (he was awarded some good positions), it is a thrilling piece of work, as the following shows: ‘The steely head stucke fast till in his flesh, Till with his cruell clawes he snatcht the wood, And quite asunder broke. Forth flowed fresh A gushing river of blacke goarie blood, That drowned all the land, whereon he stood; The streame thereof would drive a water-mill.’ Spenser was educated at the Merchant Taylors’ School (which my school, St. Pauls, founded in 1509, used to beat at rugger) and Cambridge, living most of his professional life in Ireland, where he was Secretary to the Lord Deputy. His home was burnt down in the 1598 rebellion, so at least some of his life was exciting. One is inclined to wonder whether the Celtic throb of Ireland influenced, and stimulated, his writing. And then of course we come to William Shakespeare (1564-1616), prolific writer of plays and sonnets, son of a dealer in gloves and wool, who had his own theatre company. He was well versed in the classics, having attended Stratford Grammar School. It was indeed the introduction of Grammar Schools during the reign of Henry VIII that had stimulated literature and learning, as well as the influence of the Renaissance, already visible in Chaucer. Consider this, from the Merchant of Venice: ‘All that glisters is not gold; Often have you heard that told: Many a man his life hath sold But my outside to behold: Gilded tombs do worms unfold.’ Shakespeare, so very influenced by classical Greece and Rome (as were many before and after) invented thousands of new words and phrases such as ‘tower of strength’ and ‘assassination’. It was not until the German Romantics elevated him to an almost godlike literary status that he was to become known world-wide. He has generated controversy as well as fame. Samuel Johnson wrote: ‘Shakespeare is so much more careful to please than to instruct that he seems to write without any moral purpose’, while the great Tolstoy wrote of ‘repulsion, weariness and bewilderment’. Strangely, no original work by Shakespeare is known to have survived. Some even think that he may not have existed. Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593) is hewn from the same literary stone as Shakespeare, even having contributed to some of the latter’s plays. A sort of literary version of Caravaggio, he was stabbed to death at the age of twenty nine, not long after the issuing of an arrest warrant, possibly for blasphemy. It is possible that, had he lived longer, he would have been at least as well known as his homologue Shakespeare. Consider this, from his Dr. Faustus: ‘Was this the face that launched a thousand ships, And burnt the topless towers of Ilium? Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss. Her lips suck forth my soul: see where it flies!’ It is not difficult to see why, with writers such as Marlowe and Shakespeare, the Sixteenth Century was that of the dramatists.   As we move on to the end of the Sixteenth Century and into the Seventeenth, we come to Ben Jonson (1572-1637 (not to be confused with Samuel Johnson).Although he was a pupil at Westminster School, he managed to be a bricklayer for a time, like his father, as well as a soldier. He is best known for his masques, which induced a gay atmosphere of humour, costume, dancing and music. Drama then went into decline, owing to the rise of Cromwellian Puritanism. In the meantime, the essay had begun to flourish as a literary form, in the guise of, inter alia, Francis Bacon (1561-1626), also considered to be an early empiricist philosopher. Although this senior government figure, awarded a lordship, was considered by some to be a bit of a toady, like Spenser, he really was rather good. His most famous essay is The Advancement of Learning. He seems to have believed that knowledge is power. Now we bring in Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), who studied at Oxford. His most well-known epithet is that Man’s life is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short, and his ‘Leviathan’ is a good treatise on political philosophy. He has been claimed, unfortunately in my view, by many international relations theorists to have been a promoter of political realism/power politics, when in fact his main interest was in how to best run a country at national level. He was a true intellectual, translating Thucydides’ Peloponnesian Wars, and the Iliad and Odyssey. Like so many English literary people, he was almost helplessly influenced by Greece. We now come to a spot of poetry (although Shakespeare’s sonnets surely also qualify as such). Let us sum up John Donne, an ex-Roman Catholic, Cambridge man and lawyer, (1572-1631) with the following: ‘Tis time, ‘tis day; what though it be? O wilt thou therefore rise from me? Why should we rise because ‘tis light? Did we lie down because ‘twas night? Love, which in spite of darkness brought us hither, Should despite of light keep us together.’ Then along came the ‘Cavalier poets’, one of whom, Robert Herrick, wrote Counsel to Girls: ‘Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, Old time is still a-flying. And this same flower that smiles today Tomorrow will be dying.’ These gay and carefree chaps had a hard time during the Cromwellian dictatorship. Old Pauline poet John Milton (1608-1674), a Cambridge man, thrice married, torn between freedom and convention, is perhaps best known for Paradise Lost. Like many a well-heeled Englishman, he went on the ‘Grand Tour’ of Europe, even meeting Galileo. His works are clearly influenced by Greece. Like Chaucer and Spenser, he held senior positions, but was caught in the crossfire of Puritanism (he worked for Oliver Cromwell) and the Restoration. Let us sum up this sensitive and perhaps tortured man with the closing words of one of his sonnets, in which he describes a dream about one of his dead wives: ‘Her face was veil’d; yet to my fancied sight Love, sweetness, goodness, in her person shined So clear, as in no face with more delight, But oh! As to embrace me she inclined, I waked – she fled – and day brought back my night.’ He clearly loved her and missed her. You will probably have begun to see that there is often a relationship between politico-religious developments and literature. Milton, for example, was imprisoned for a while at the Restoration, for having been close to the despised Cromwell, while the poet John Dryden (Westminster and Cambridge) also lost his stipend under William of Orange, for having converted to Roman Catholicism. Now we move to prose and the diary writers, the most famous of whom is Samuel Pepys (1633-1703), whose description of the Fire of London in 1666, as well as life in the Seventeenth Century is realistic. But let us not forget John Evelyn, who wrote a much longer diary. Now we come to a quintessential English book, by Isaac Walton (1593-1683), The Compleat Angler, one of the best books about angling ever written. It is somehow about much more than angling, about the pleasures of leading a contemplative life, as can be seen from its alternative title. John Bunyan (1628-1688) was a very different kettle: the son of a tinker, he had a meagre schooling, and learnt to write thanks mainly to the Bible. Because he was a bit of a Christian fundamentalist (a Baptist) and preacher, he was imprisoned for twelve years at the Restoration. His most well-known work is The Pilgrim’s Progress, full of morality, but also humour. So we now leave the Seventeenth Century, and come to another of the giants of English literature, Jonathan Swift (1667-1745), born in Dublin of English parents, a man influenced by religion, politics and Ireland, and even women. He was a trained priest, spending much of his life in Ireland, ending up as a champion of freedom for Ireland. He was a superb political satirist, making the political pamphlet almost an art form. He is best known for Gulliver’s Travels, a scathing attack on political hypocrisy. Edmund Burke (1729-1797) is our next choice. He was an important political philosopher, and is considered to be the founder of English Conservatism. Although a supporter of Irish and American independence, he turned against the French Revolution, because of its excesses. His contemporary, Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) was a professional writer (he also married a rich widow) and a witty man, writing for example, that he who made a beast of himself got rid of the pain of being a man. Another very witty literary chap was Alexander Pope (1688-1744) who, as a Roman Catholic, was not allowed to vote or hold public office. His best known work is the poetic Essay on Man, a sensitively written moral tract on how Man should accept God’s mysterious ways. As regards Pope’s pithiness, consider this: ‘A little learning is a dang’rous thing; Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian Spring’. We can see from this, that like so many writers, he was influenced by ancient Greece. He also translated the Odyssey. Let us mention (I wish that we had more space) the group of poets known as the ‘Transition Poets’, such as James Thompson, Thomas Grey, William Collins and William Blake. They tended to concentrate on Nature and the metaphysical. As for the amazing Scotsman, Robert Burns, he is not easy to categorise, but certainly he was of a Romantic bent, and usually wrote his poetry with Scottish pronunciation. Several of his poems were used as lyrics for songs. Drama was popular: the Irishman Richard Sheridan (1751-1816), for example, wrote The Rivals, which includes a character by the name of Mrs.Malaprop, who had problems with finding the correct word. Thus today, ‘saying ‘alligator’ instead of ‘allegory’ (because one does not really know!) is a ‘malapropism’. The novel was now coming into being, the seeds having been sown by the likes of Bunyan and Swift. Daniel Defoe’s (1660-1731) Robinson Crusoe (based on a true story, as are many novels), about a castaway, is still very popular. He wrote various other, more fictional, novels, as well as various pamphlets. He was also a journalist. Another good novelist of the time was Henry Fielding (1710-1768), with his somewhat naughty and bawdy Tom Jones, about a young servant being wooed by his lady employer. It is nevertheless a good reflection of life at the time. The Industrial Revolution then began to make its social impact on the country. Factories were being built, coal mine mines dug, and people dragooned into working mechanically for hours on end, with a good deal of exploitation of women and children. The so-called ‘Protestant work ethic’ ran rampant. The Seven Years’ War had resulted in an enormous and expanding British Empire. For many, greed became the order of the day. It is now that the Romantics came to the fore. Romanticism probably has its origins in the Sturm und Drang movement, which was a reaction to the excesses of the Enlightenment, with its over-interpreted Classical forms, and the Age of Reason, which lacked wild and free spirituality in its scientific, rational pedantry. Some of the ideas behind the French Revolution helped. Most of the British Romantics traveled in Europe, and were clearly heavily influenced by Greek mythology. In Britain, it also manifested itself as a reaction to the greed of the Industrial Revolution. William Wordsworth (1770-1850) was surely one, but more conservative and controlled in nature than some of his homologues, such as Byron. He was a Cumbrian who loved nature, and a Cambridge man attracted by the ideas of the French Revolution, who was good enough in his day to become Poet Laureate. Consider this (if you feel like it): ‘She dwelt among the untrodden ways Beside the springs of Dove A maid who there were none to praise And very few to love. A violet by a mossy stone Half hidden from the eye! Fair as a star, when only one is shining in the sky. She lived unknown, and few could know When Lucy ceased to be; But she is in her grave, and, oh, The difference to me!’ William’s friend, Samuel Coleridge (1772-1834) was also rather good, and is best known for The Ancient Mariner. Here is an extract: ‘Day after day, day after day, We stuck, no breath nor motion; As idle as a painted ship Upon a painted ocean. Water, water everwhere, And all the boards did shrink; Water, water everywhere, Nor any drop to drink.’ Our next three Romantics all died young, and not exactly naturally, in their good time, the fate of many a fast liver. John Keats (1795-1821) had women problems, nevertheless qualifying as what one would think would be a down-to-earth ) apothecary-surgeon. Here are two lines from Ode to a Nightingale: ‘My heart aches, and a drowsy numbness pains My sense, as though of hemlock I had drunk.’ The poem is laden with references to Greek things. He is also well-known for Ode to a Grecian Urn. His father died when falling off a horse when Keats was eight, and his mother when he was fourteen. Percy Shelley (1792-1822), who supported freedom for the Irish, managed to struggle on until he was thirty, then drowning in a sailing accident in Italy. Like several Romantics, he left the – for them – intellectually stifling shores of England for Italy. He had various colourful relationships with women (one of whom drowned herself). Here are two of his lines: ‘ Drive my dead thoughts over the universe Like withered leaves to quicken a new birth!’ And so we come to Lord Byron (1788-1824), educated at Harrow and Cambridge. He was the epitomy of freedom, a scourge of the hypocritical part of the English Establishment, and was loved more in Europe than England. He found England too insular and was an embarrassment to bigots and the small-minded. Leading a very colourful life with women, he divorced, but managed to sire a daughter. Known for, inter alia, Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage, and Don Juan, some of his scintillating lines are: ‘I stood in Venice, on the Bridge of Sighs, A palace and a prison on each hand: I saw from out the wave her structures rise As from the stroke of the enchanter’s wand: A thousand years their cloudy wings expand Around me, and a dying glory smiles.’ Apart from infuriating the English Establishment with an attack on the barbaric removal of the ‘Elgin Marbles’ from the Parthenon (see The Curse of Minerva), he died of a violent fever fighting for Greek independence. It was not until 1969 that his remains were buried in Poets’ Corner of Westminster, an example of considerable pettiness on the part of the tawdry part of the Establishment. You may by now have noticed that no females have been mentioned. This is because women do not appear to have been that hot at writing, for many socio-economic reasons. Mind you, let us not forget the inimitable Sappho! Jane Austin (1775-1817) is surely one of the greatest English writers, with her Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Emma, Mansfield Park, and Persuasion. Her expertise was in handling rough and passionate topics, usually about relationships between men and women in the higher classes, with tact and delicacy. I think that she managed to combine precision with lightness, a rare gift. Pride and Prejudice begins: ‘It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife. However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering a neighbourhood, the truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families, that he is considered as the rightful property of some or other of their daughters.’ The Bronte sisters, Charlotte (1816-1855), Emily (1818-1848 and Anne (1820-1849) were influenced by Byron, and managed to slightly shock the Establishment, with their passionate descriptive writing about, inter alia, love affairs. Charlotte is best known for Jane Eyre, Emily for Wuthering Heights, and Anne for Agnes Grey. They were veritable pace-setters, since there are today a number of female writers who concentrate on stories of romances, albeit not at the same high literary level as the three sisters. Moving well into the Victorian Age, we come to (Lord) Alfred Tennyson, famous for his epic The Charge of the Light Brigade, a depiction of a bad military decision in the Crimean war. Here is an extract: ‘Cannon to right of them, Cannon to left of them, Cannon in front of them Volleyed and thundered; Stormed at with shot and shell, Into the jaws of death, Into the mouth of hell Rode the six hundred.’ We begin to end this overview with a monument, Charles Dickens (1812-1870), an amazing fellow, who even spent some time when a boy in the workhouse, while his father was in debtors’ gaol. The experience left a lasting impression, and he was most critical of the affects of the Industrial Revolution. Like many writers of the day, his novels were often serialized in cheap magazines, which meant a wide readership. He was an expert in description, especially of people. George Orwell was to write that he seemed to have succeeded in attacking everybody and antagonizing nobody. It could be that his sometimes humorous approach helped. He did however irritate the Americans with his American Notes and Martin Chuzzlewit, by mentioning their lawlessness and rapacity. He was a prolific writer: who has not heard of Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, David Copperfield and A Tale of Two Cities? Consider this extract, from Hard Times: ‘It was a town of red brick, or of brick that would have been red if the smoke and ashes had allowed it; but as matters stood, it was a town of unnatural red and black like the painted face of a savage. It was a town of machinery and tall chimneys, out of which interminable serpents of smoke trailed themselves for ever and ever, and never got uncoiled.’ Penultimately, we have Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936), of Jungle Book fame. It is he who spoke of ‘the White Man’s burden’ (meaning black and maybe brown people), thus attracting accusations of racism many years later. But that’s the way it was in those days when Britain was on top of the world, and when various rational types, such as Buffon and Darwin, had rather strongly suggested that black chaps were inferior to white ones. I am unsure as to their views on whether the same applied to women. We end with the ‘Pre-Raphaelites’, a group of writers led by the Anglicised Italian Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882), influenced by early Sixteenth Century Italian painting and literature.   That, students, is the end of our brief glimpse at the history of English Literature. Clearly, knowing about developments in Britain throughout the period with which we have dealt will help you to see the relationship between political, religious, social and cultural life. My Britain: Country and Culture courses should help there. One thing to remember is that the vast majority of writers read other writers, and that in a sense they are often influenced, perhaps without realising it. Beware of over-categorisation: if we escape from it, we may spot traces of romanticism far earlier than the main movement began: ‘I walked along a stream for pureness rare’, wrote Marlowe, while Donne wrote: ‘A teardrop that encompasses and drowns the world’. Typical questions from my past examination papers have been: ‘ â€Å"English Literature of the Sixteenth to Nineteenth Centuries cannot be understood except in the light of Greek mythology.† Explain this contention.’ ‘What, in your view, were the chief characteristics of the Romantics, and why did they have such characteristics?’ ‘What do you think influenced Jonathan Swifts work?’ ‘Was Lord Byron the same kind of Romantic as Wordsworth?’ It goes without saying, almost, that merely learning the above few pages, parrot-fashion, will not be sufficient to pass the examination: they represent only a skeletal outline. I shall immediately see through any examination paper that appears to rely only on this brief guide. Most marks will be awarded for evidence of originality and thinking, as well as of knowledge. Have fun!

The operational issues affected by organisations

The operational issues affected by organisations The following essay looks at discussing the operational issues affecting the organization and identifying the strategic implications Terror Tubes. After read this case study, Terror Tubes is the Australian motor racing industry, they designs and manufactures custom-made high performance automotive exhaust system for Australia motor industry. The business was established by two time motor racing driver Sam Peters in 1974. The first place of business operated in Homebush; in 2000 they relocated to Blocktown. The company manufactures both custom performance and standard system, each being specifically tailored to engine in question. After the company become more famous and sales increased, therefore, company start focus on customer. Terror Tubes start making more popular items private to normal motorists wants to improve their performance. Terror Tubes quickly become Australian car industry distributor. Many problems still occur in Terror Tubes. The finance situation not as good as we s ee, furthermore, Terror tubes made contract with super car have initial stocking and companys reputation grew and sales increased, Terror Tubes got both side supplier and racing industry respected. Thus, few months later the sales of supper car continue increased. The customer systems were always very sensitive on problems on higher sales. However, Sam and Phil look over all the process of terror tubes, customer still would like to buy sales products, in other hand, customer designed system steadily increased, thus, the relative cost keep increase, and costs associated is continue increasing, from accounting found out the company cannot make any good profit as they expected. expensive public warehouse space has been rented, however, Sam is very concerned with increased lead time for custom and standard orders, it going to take long time to delivery, capacity is being pushed, and between both side they have contract. In other side, Phil is also very worried the company is going to ve ry hard to achieve the demand created. Thus , the effect of the new contract with super car , all overall impact this new demand for new systems for the customer. Therefore, the following essay will analyse the production process used by Terror Tubes, and the advantages and disadvantages of new contract for super car and Terror Tube, after will discuss the daily operational decisions required to current operating conditions for the company. Final, the essay will cover the producing financial structure will be discussed. Discussion According to (Gardiner D, 2006) the production process can be defined as the process of converting inputs into outputs. The inputs could be materials, customers, labour, energy, components, ideas, machines or requirements. In other hand, the outputs could be finished products, satisfied customers, or unsatisfied customers, components, subassemblies, developed ideas. The foundation of production process is to find something necessary to add into process that take inputs and transforms them into outputs, if this transformation is performed well so customer will satisfy. The production process is happened various industries ,the inputs include any starting position for a product or service, as an example, a bakery manufacture would have flour,sugar,flavourings,packaging,energy,and people skills, the production process is people mixing ingredients, baking, after cooked packing the bakery, finish all the process distributing to the manufactures, output after all the production process all the flour become buns, bread, muffins, delivered to warehouse or retail stored. This is very simple examples of inputs into outputs process same as service industries. As seen in this case, Terror tubes relocated twice and now the Blocktwon which is currently address is double bigger than old factory in homebush, for the company originally was conceived to supply to motor racing industry specialty exhaust system, after the company focused on custom-built system. Therefore the factory layout group member tube cuters working together, tube bonder in another, a separate sledding section, also the craftspeople will use high tech engineer equipment to provide the flexibility needed for producing custom system. The quality of the finished product reflects the craftsmanship of the individual workers. Both of standard system and custom processing in the same time on same equipment by the sam craftspeople. (Morrroni M, 1992)Furthermore, in Terror Tubes, the quality and demand is very important for this company. Thus, the production process needs to have better support from outside to make this process more successful. Between the Terror Tube with Super Car created new contract, the effective contract involved advantages and disadvantages on Terror Tubes operations, firstly, Terror Tube was originally supply specialty exhaust systems to the motor racing industry, and Super Car is a big distributor and they supplied very high exhaust systems. Therefore, Terror Tubes operation after have the effects of the new contract with Super Car they may need to produce more exhaust systems provided to the Super Car, both of company can have long term trade relationship. The advantage of Terror Tube signed the new contract with Super Car, Terror Tube can make more profit, and make sales increase, and also the productivity will improve as well. Thus, Terror Tubes reputation will grew, more and more demand maybe come from other company. The disadvantage of Terror Tube signed the new contract with Super Car happened in this case is Terror Tube did not achieving the day line, they overtime production ¼Ã…’in addition, Super Car cannot have product to give to the customers, so both side will be not happy with each other including the customer will not satisfied with the supplier. In other hand, Terror Tubes rented very expensive warehouse space, therefore, in this side, the company have to pay lots of money for the rent, they cannot finish the production of the product so they loss profit, cannot make any money, the companys profit margin is very low. Compare both side advantage and disadvantage effects the new contract between Super Car and Terror Tubes ¼Ã…’it is very important for the people working in the company to over read the disadvantages and try to help the company can reach the goals make more advantages. The daily operational decisions required under current operating conditions for the companys operational to run effectively, also Terror Tube leaders need to make lots of decisions to adjust this company. Before make decision the leaders have to very clear what company goals after to achieve goals effectively. First of all, Terror Tubes involved many things to concern such as make daily product decisions. According to (Gardiner D.2006) operations managements are the activities for creating, implementing, and improving process that production process resources, such as raw materials, technologies and labour. And it is to set of decisions across the value chain the support the implementation of higher level business strategies. Therefore, employees should make lots of improvement and try to not waste anything. It is very important for all the employees should know the company roles, and company will be increase the production standard or custom serves (Kim B Oh H, 2005). In addition, before the manufacture start making products. They have to very clearly about all the product, equipment, customer demand, or quantity of the production, be preparing everything to avoid over the due day. (Puig F et al,2009) in this case, Terror Tubes need to operation run effectively, the factory have to prepare all the material, all the equipment is safe also have enough employees come to work for the company. For Terror Tubes this case, they still have engine problems. Rather than with new standard systems no as good we can see, how many product you produce is depends on the markets, somehow, some emergency situations maybe happened the companies have to take seriously concern about. (Fransoo J, 1993) Thus, market price change every day, and more competitors, this is also very important operational decisions for the company in the future. In other hand, we should very careful about market price no matter material or any relate price has increase the price, then Terror Tubes has t o increase the price to maintain make more profit. According to (Seppa R,2007)there more operational decision for the companys operations, for instance, make more advertisements or promotion decision, we can spent little bit money on the advertisements like TV show, magazine, news paper and so on, to promote our product. Furthermore, there is one more operational decision is focusing on different type of group people and trying to sale in different age, gender, different levels, for the company, we have to find very good marker, which is the people sale lots of products. (Seppa R, 2007)One more I think is the most useful one is, find more investor like shareholders or some customer whom interest in this type of investment. Make agreement with them,they may not very good operational decision, but more people more money help the company more successful, the company can reduce and more control the expenses , from another point of view it might lost control, loss profit, or more problem coming up. For instance, in this case, Terror Tubes had really serious problem, they overtime production, most money cannot use, and lots of cost continually increase, so if the Terror Tube found more people join in company, it may reduce the risk of compensation of over time, the company might hire more employees, bring in more equipment to help the factory produce more products. So overtime will not happen in the fureture. And Terror Tube can make more profit, and more demand will keep increase.(Mughal H Osborne R,1995). Last one is effect the move to producing standard systems has had on the companys financial structure. Firstly, the company has not been operating good as we can see, their financial position was very low, they spend lots of money buy a material, and associated expense has increased. Also Terror Tubes rented very expansive warehouse have big space. Therefore, this company financial position not good at all. In this case, as Terror Tubes was supply specialty exhaust systems to the motor racing industry, after they change the line to produce the products to normal cars and had agreement with Super Car, this is advantage for the Terror Tubes, because Super Car is national car industry, might effects on the Terror Tubess financial structure.(Spina G Verganti R,2002).Terror Tubes at beginning keep increase the products on sales, that is attract a lot of customer to buy the products made very good profits. According to (Walters D,2004) in this case, Terror Tubes had start producing differ ent products, so they have to pay the taxes every year. This is not good as they are in bad situations. Therefore, Terror Tube might join other enterprise; it may help the company and increase the financial problems. Conclusion Finally, this essay has been talk about Terror Tubes current production processes, is a manufacture in Australian produce the car exhaust systems to motor racing industry, after the companys reputation grew, more and more demand from customers. Also this essay discussed the advantages and disadvantages on Terror Tubes and Super Car made new contract. It is good when they signed new contract, Super Car have big demand for the products, and help the Terror Tubes make more profit, more promotion. In other hand, many disadvantage happed after this contract, because many demand form customer, manufactory can not finish producing all the products to the customer, which is not good, for instance, Terror Tubes has to produce those products as fast as possible, to keep good relationship between the demand and supplier. Furthermore, the daily operational decisions required under current operations conditions for the companys operations, the decision making by the managers ,production decision should be more quickly, more prepare and price depends on raw material, thus, I gave some of my personal suggestion to this company, find investor whom interest in this kind of business, and make good profit, join in the company help the company to reduce the problem, for example, put more advertisement etc. finally , this article talk about the producing start systems on positive way and negative way, also the companys financial structure. As I mentioned many problems happened in financial position, if Terror Tube might join other enterprise, it may help the company saving the problems, and start makes profit.

The Future of Scholarship Essay -- Education Technology Electronics Es

The Future of Scholarship Introduction: The development and rapid movement in the field of technology has changed the face of modern society from what it was twenty years ago. Information and communication technologies have changed dramatically even in the last ten years. Electronic mail, listservs, and the Internet, to name a few, are all parts of the new technology that is re-defining scholarly communication. In her article entitled â€Å"Scholarly Communication† Christine Borgman states that â€Å"[r]esearch was clustered around three variables: producers of the communication . . ., artifacts of communication . . . and communication concepts.† (146) The impact of the new communication technologies to scholarly communication cannot be understated. While the benefits are extensive, it also raises a number of questions. Kahin notes that â€Å"the digitization of information and the growth of research networking raise a distinct set of issues: How should the flow of research information be managed in the interests of scholarship and technological progress?† (1) In part because of this new technology as well as the ease and speed with which communication can take place and information can be disseminated, there is a trend within the scholarly community towards interdisciplinarity, collaboration, and disintermediation. In many ways, these three concepts overlap with one another creating an entirely new landscape for scholarly communication, research and education. When discussing interdisciplinarity it is first necessary to come to an understanding of what constitutes a discipline, its purpose and its function. In â€Å"Interdisciplinarity: The Road Ahead for Education in Digital Libraries†, Anita Coleman states that â€Å"[a]cademic disci... ...es. University of Arizona. 5 May 2003. Cronin, Blaise and Helen Barsky Atkins, eds. The Web of Knowledge: A Festschrift in Honor of Eugene Garfield. Medford, New Jersey: Information Today, Inc., 2000. Davenport, Elizabeth and Blaise Cronin. â€Å"The Citation Network as a Prototype for Representing Trust in Virtual Environments.† Cronin and Atkins 517-534. Frazier, Kenneth. â€Å"The Librarian’s Dilemma: Contemplating the Costs of the â€Å"Big Deal†.† D-Lib Magazine. 7.3 (2001). 5 May 2003 . Kahin, Brian. â€Å"Scholarly Communication in the Network Environment Issues of Principle, Policy, and Practice.† 18 Feb. 1992. 5 May 2003 . Webopedia. Jupitermedia Corporation. 5 May 2003. .

The Power Sruggle in the Film, Matewan :: Film Movies Business Management

The Power Sruggle in the Film, Matewan The film Matewan brings to life the workings of a small West Virginia coal-mining town in the 1920's. Stone Mountain, as the town was called, existed for mining exclusively. Every resident of the town worked for the Stone Mountain Coal Company. The company was the dominant force in the community, acting as a feudal lord. It owned all the land, residential areas and restaurants. In this particular town residents had no other choice than to work for the Coal Company because it had monopoly control over all the resources thus creating a feudal economic system. The miners were forced into a bondage contract with the company, because of the lack of choice they had regarding their employment, which is a fundamental element in a feudal system. The owners of the Stone Mountain Coal Company who profit from the coal generated never actually stepped foot on the Stone Mountain mine land. They had no idea who worked for them and what their situations were. The workers never knew their employer instead the owners sent two representatives to ensure the excavation of the coal happened. The representatives became a third force necessary for the existence of feudal economy in Matewan. They were sent from the company to manage the organization and production of the mine. The representativesÕ primary job was to enforce the rules that the company had established in order to maintain power of the town, mine and essentially the workers. They used threats to induce fear in the miners as a way to stimulate and motivate them to work, because the miners had little significant reason to work besides basic survival. The Coal Company exploited the workers by underpaying them and restricting their freedom as consumers. The miners were forced to buy their own tools, clothes, food, etc. from the Ôcompany storeÕ many times at higher prices than necessary. This created circulation of money from the company to the laborer back to the company. The miners worked for obvious reasons: to supply themselves and their families with shelter, food and clothing. They relied on company power to supply a means of employment. However, the company in turn relied on the laborers, because without them the company would have no means by which to excavate the coal and continue the production process.

Facing Death Again :: Graduate College Admissions Essays

Facing Death Again I've been having adventures this summer. In July I cranked my new new car up to 110 mph and flew alone for two days in the desert, saw a dead polar bear in a coffee shop, marched in a parade, and scattered Dad's ashes in an open meadow. For the most part, though, my adventures have been internal. I am making a feeble attempt at a teenage life crisis, but so far it hasn't amounted to much - just a lot of pacing, brooding, and long, exhausting mental hikes down roads not taken. My mom has been patient throughout. One of my melancholy realizations is that my remarkable network of teenage friends, once so closely-knit, are now scattered to the wind and so deeply entangled in their own lives that I have very few people left to talk to. At school I have a first-rate cadre of friends, and long lunches every day, but we keep each other, always, at a certain distance. Other old friends are reachable by phone, and I've reached, but there are always parties or impatient girlfriends in the background. It takes great resourcefulness, and much juggling of schedules, to pry loose a few precious minutes on the phone, and in those minutes there are bridges to be built and private languages to be rediscovered before any real conversation can take place. And my dearest friend, is off somewhere in the easternmost Alps, drinking Viennese coffee and nibbling on Viennese pastries, as far away as she could possibly be. "Midway this way of life we're bound upon, I woke to find myself in a dark wood, Where the right road was wholly lost and gone." My own attempt at a teenage life crisis is not near so dark or fraught with peril as was Dante's. In fact it's all so by-the-book and so perfectly on schedule as to be dreary: I turn eighteen, my father dies, and I'm on my way. With my father's death I now advance to the plate. I am up next. It is now officially my turn to face the reaper. Being the morbid, romantic fellow I am, I actually faced (embraced!) all this mortality business long ago. As a young lad I used to write "Respice Finem" on snowbanks and dusty windowshields: "Consider Your End." Death itself hasn't bothered me for a long time, and I'm old enough now to understand what Mark Twain said about death, that it becomes our best friend. Facing Death Again :: Graduate College Admissions Essays Facing Death Again I've been having adventures this summer. In July I cranked my new new car up to 110 mph and flew alone for two days in the desert, saw a dead polar bear in a coffee shop, marched in a parade, and scattered Dad's ashes in an open meadow. For the most part, though, my adventures have been internal. I am making a feeble attempt at a teenage life crisis, but so far it hasn't amounted to much - just a lot of pacing, brooding, and long, exhausting mental hikes down roads not taken. My mom has been patient throughout. One of my melancholy realizations is that my remarkable network of teenage friends, once so closely-knit, are now scattered to the wind and so deeply entangled in their own lives that I have very few people left to talk to. At school I have a first-rate cadre of friends, and long lunches every day, but we keep each other, always, at a certain distance. Other old friends are reachable by phone, and I've reached, but there are always parties or impatient girlfriends in the background. It takes great resourcefulness, and much juggling of schedules, to pry loose a few precious minutes on the phone, and in those minutes there are bridges to be built and private languages to be rediscovered before any real conversation can take place. And my dearest friend, is off somewhere in the easternmost Alps, drinking Viennese coffee and nibbling on Viennese pastries, as far away as she could possibly be. "Midway this way of life we're bound upon, I woke to find myself in a dark wood, Where the right road was wholly lost and gone." My own attempt at a teenage life crisis is not near so dark or fraught with peril as was Dante's. In fact it's all so by-the-book and so perfectly on schedule as to be dreary: I turn eighteen, my father dies, and I'm on my way. With my father's death I now advance to the plate. I am up next. It is now officially my turn to face the reaper. Being the morbid, romantic fellow I am, I actually faced (embraced!) all this mortality business long ago. As a young lad I used to write "Respice Finem" on snowbanks and dusty windowshields: "Consider Your End." Death itself hasn't bothered me for a long time, and I'm old enough now to understand what Mark Twain said about death, that it becomes our best friend.

Christian Service Reflection Paper

Christopher Leveratto May 26, 2012 Scripture: Christian Service Reflection Paper Through the course of five weeks I have tutored a third grader by the name of Willy one hour each Thursday. Willy is a high-spirited kid who loves to learn. He goes to a school named Corpus Christi, a school I spent my sixth through eighth grade years at, and is also the organization I volunteered for. I chose this particular work because I love working with kids considering I have 4 younger brothers and sisters. This also gave me an opportunity to put my knowledge to good use and to be a good role-model towards Willy.What I gained from this experience is satisfaction from helping a young student cope with his academic struggles and learn to surpass them in order to be successful. I most definitely would do this project again if I had the chance. For the remaining five hours that I needed to serve I had a close friend of mine shadow me during school. I chose this particular work because I’ve alway s regretted not getting to know what school at Bishop Ireton was like so I offered my friend the opportunity to do so.What I gained from this experience is happiness from seeing my close friend again and the guarantee that she’ll be coming to our school next year. I would love to do this again so I may encourage as many students to come to our school so they may be a part of our Salesian community. Moses the prophet was a very loyal servant of God and he was the one who set the example for the Israelites while they were on his journey to the Holy Land. Since his encounter with God in the burning bush he was chosen to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt.In this encounter God says to him, â€Å"I have indeed seen  the misery  of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned  about their suffering. So I have come down  to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land,  a land flowing with milk and honey  Ã¢â‚¬â€the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites  and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing  them.So now, go. I am sending  you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt. † (Exodus 3:7-10) Once Moses rescued the Israelites he took them on a journey of 40 years to the Holy Land. The Israelites grew tired and started to regret coming with Moses. God then sent the 10 comandments to establish a guide line for the Israelites to follow. God explained these guidelines by saying, â€Å"I am the  Lord  your God,  who brought you out  of Egypt,  out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other gods before  me.You shall not misuse the name of the  Lord  your God, for the  Lord  will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. Remember the Sabbath  day by keeping it holy. Honor your father and your mother,  so that you may live long  in the land  the  Lord  your God is giving you. You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not give false testimony  against your neighbor. You shall not covet  your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor. (Exodus 20) Moses was an example of a person who followed God’s every word and kept faith when all was lost. He guided those who needed him and were having trouble learning the ways of the Lord. This person inspired me to help others like Willy and my close friend so they may adapt to what they’re learning and have an opportunity to experience something new so they would be more comfortable when they do it. I continue to strive to be like Moses so I also can be a messenger of God who spreads kindness and knowledge to those arou nd him. I strive to be a prophet of God.