In Edgar Allan Poe's The Masque of the Red Death, how do the chimes of the clock affect the guests?

In his short story The Masque of the Red Death, Edgar Allan Poe devotes considerable time to physical descriptions of Prince Prospero’s abbey, specifically, the adornments of the seven rooms that collectively comprised “the imperial suite.” Each of the seven rooms features a different color. It is the seventh room, decorated in black with windows the glass of which were “scarlet—a deep blood color”—that contains an imposing clock, described by Poe’s omniscient narrator as “a gigantic clock of ebony” with a pendulum that swings, as the narrator notes:

“. . .to and fro with a dull, heavy monotonous clang . . . a sound which was clear and loud and deep and exceedingly musical, but of so peculiar a note and emphasis that at each lapse of an hour, the musicians of the orchestra were constrained to pause, momentarily, in their performance, to hearken to the sound; and thus the waltzers perforce ceased their evolutions; and there was a brief disconcert of the whole gay company; and, while the chimes of the clock yet rang, it was observed that the giddiest grew pale, and the more aged and sedate passed their hands over their brows as if in confused revery or meditation.”

Prince Prospero’s clock plays a prominent role in the progression of Poe’s story. The swinging pendulum, reminiscent of the giant pendulum from his short story The Pit and the Pendulum, represents an ever-foreboding presence amidst the merriment that defined the prince and his friends’ carefree demeanor. While the music plays and the partyers dance and the magicians and “fools” entertain the assembled elite of this fictional society, the gaiety is interrupted every hour by the clock’s ominous chimes, each occasion immediately followed by a resumption of the merriment.

It is the clock’s chiming that, at the stroke of midnight, signals the story’s most prominent and irreversible shift from its emphasis on partying to an atmosphere of impending doom. Once again, as Poe’s narrator describes the scene:

“ . . .now there were twelve strokes to be sounded by the bell of the clock; and thus it happened, perhaps, that more of thought crept, with more of time, into the meditations of the thoughtful among those who revelled. And thus too, it happened, perhaps, that before the last echoes of the last chime had utterly sunk into silence, there were many individuals in the crowd who had found leisure to become aware of the presence of a masked figure which had arrested the attention of no single individual before.”

The chiming of the clock, as it had regularly, every hour on the hour, causes a momentary lapse in the debauchery and gaiety that has stood in stark contrast to the wide-spread misery occurring outside the castle walls. This time, however, it is different; this time, the ominous tone that has descended upon the partyers with the clock’s chiming is different. It is accompanied by the realization that a masked  intruder walks among the gathered throngs and that this interloper represents a threat to the tranquility and security the revelers had enjoyed. In short, the chimes affect the guests by interrupting their fun and replacing the light-hearted atmosphere that otherwise prevailed with an ominous sense of foreboding.

Do you think it is odd that the speaker in "The Night of the Scorpion" does nothing but stand and watch his mother suffer from the scorpion sting?...

At first it does seem very odd that the speaker does nothing to help his mother when she is suffering so violently, but when we consider the implications of the speaker’s age as well as the nature of the village and the other members of the speaker’s family, it does not seem such a heartless reaction.

We do not know how old the speaker is when the incident occurs, but we can assume he is young, because he does nothing but watch the action unfold.  “They searched for him [the scorpion],” the speaker says, and “They sat around/On the floor with my mother in the center.”  The child watches his “father, sceptic, rationalist,/trying every curse and blessing.”  They refers to the people who come from the village to care for the mother – the adults in the room.  If the child were older, he would most likely be asked to help the adults in searching, and yet, if we assume he is young, we can imagine that he has been told to stand on a chair or something and stay out of the way, for his own safety.  And so, given that the speaker is a young child when the incident occurs, it does not seem at all odd that he does nothing to help his mother – what could he do?  As a child he is helpless, and must be kept safe and out of the way himself.

In addition to this, the villagers in the poem are very religious, and their beliefs make them calm before the suffering of the speaker’s mother.  They “buzzed the name of God a hundred times” to better catch the scorpion, and they explain the incident away with the ideas of reincarnation and karma:

May the sins of your previous birth
be burned away tonight, they said.
May your suffering decrease
the misfortunes of your next birth, they said.
May the sum of all evil
balanced in this unreal world

against the sum of good
become diminished by your pain.
May the poison purify your flesh

of desire, and your spirit of ambition

The village clearly has a religious philosophy that places such human suffering as the mother’s into a larger context of universal good and evil, as well as the balance of these opposites within the individual.  Though the speaker’s father is a skeptic, and tries as best he can to ease his wife’s pain as the rest of the villagers sit and watch the poison run its course, we do not know to what tenets the speaker himself is espoused.  The child – and the mother, for that matter – could be of the same mind as the rest of the villagers, and are content that this pain is part of the way of the world, and must simply be endured for the bettering of the soul.  Or in any case, the speaker could be so young that he hasn’t formulated any opinions on the matter for himself; he could be at an age where he takes everything at face value.  In which case there is no point in intervening; one should not mess with the universal balance of good and evil.

And whatever the reason, no one in the room seems to expect anything more or less of the speaker than his watchful absorption of the scene.  This would lead us to believe that the speaker is fulfilling his role within this society, by merely sitting and watching, which substantiates the assumption that he is quite young – young enough to know to stay out of the way as the adults handle the problem, and young enough to be an accepting conformist to the religious assumptions at the root of the villagers’ inaction.

What impact did the Mongols have on the development of Europe and Asia?

Europeans feared and loathed the Mongols and their inevitable excursions west. Despite the contemporary sense of doom that was felt, the Mongol excursions into eastern Europe had a profound effect on the future of both Europe and Asia. The Mongol conquest of eastern Europe brought about a period of peace that has been dubbed by historians as the Pax Mongolica. Tribes of people that were traditionally at war with one another were now unified under...

Europeans feared and loathed the Mongols and their inevitable excursions west. Despite the contemporary sense of doom that was felt, the Mongol excursions into eastern Europe had a profound effect on the future of both Europe and Asia. The Mongol conquest of eastern Europe brought about a period of peace that has been dubbed by historians as the Pax Mongolica. Tribes of people that were traditionally at war with one another were now unified under a powerful central ruler. This allowed a renewed vigor in the area of trade along routes that were established centuries before. Trade between Europe and China allowed stimulation in both economies. The exchange of culture and technology were other corollary effects of the renewed interest in trade routes. This had a very strong benefit for western Europe.

The Mongols also brought a very serious disease to Europe known as the Bubonic Plague. The disease mercilessly wiped out up to a two-thirds of the population of Europe. The destruction of the plague and the wealth brought on by trade with the East hastened the demise of the Feudal system in Europe. The influence of the Roman Catholic Church declined as well in the period after Mongol rule.

What Is Eco-Criticism? Use Helon Habila's novel Oil On Water as a textual example.

Ecocriticism is a field of inquiry that first developed in the 1970s. It refers to the study of literature, and the arts generally, from an environmental perspective.

There are two waves of Ecocriticism. The first wave mainly concerned itself with local conservation. The second wave concerns itself with globalization, and looks at how environmental concerns impact poor communities and communities of color (e.g., environmental racism).

Helon Habila's "Oil on Water" is part of the second...

Ecocriticism is a field of inquiry that first developed in the 1970s. It refers to the study of literature, and the arts generally, from an environmental perspective.

There are two waves of Ecocriticism. The first wave mainly concerned itself with local conservation. The second wave concerns itself with globalization, and looks at how environmental concerns impact poor communities and communities of color (e.g., environmental racism).

Helon Habila's "Oil on Water" is part of the second wave of Ecocriticism. It looks at the ways in which the environmental destruction of the Niger Delta, due to greed for petrodollars, has warped human relationships. 

Two men, Rufus and Zaq, journey upriver, observing the destruction that oil companies reap on the ecosystem along the delta: "dead birds draped over tree branches, their outstretched wings black and slick with oil; dead fishes bobbed white-bellied between tree roots". 

Initially, villagers are excited to receive a contract with the oil companies (the novel probably mirrors Nigeria's relationship with Royal Dutch Shell), but the result of such an alliance is not prosperity; instead it results in the loss of their homes. Once water becomes contaminated, fields become non-arable, causing villages to be abandoned. Survivors of this environmental crisis are given jobs at the oil company -- a means of keeping them quiet and ensuring loyalty -- while others turn to crime for profit.

Ecocriticism, particularly the second wave, looks at the connections that human beings have to their environment and how those connections, even at seemingly minor levels, are necessary in maintaining a sustainable environment. Habila's novel is a work with an Ecocritical context because it examines these connections, and shows what happens when ecosystems no longer function.

During gym class, four students decided to see if they could beat the norm of 45 sit-ups in an hour. The first student did 64-sit-ups, the second...

Accuracy and precision are words used to describe measurements. Accuracy describes the closeness to a known or accepted value/measurement while precision refers to the closeness of repeated measurements.

If we look at the data given (norm of 45 sit-ups and experimental data of 64, 69, 65, and 67 sit-ups) out of any context, then we would say that the experiments were not accurate (as they deviate substantially from the accepted value) but that they were relatively precise as the repeated experiments had about the same value.

If your refrigerator was known to be set at 35 degrees F, but a thermometer measures the temperature at 42 degrees, then the thermometer is not accurate (perhaps it was not calibrated correctly). If you repeated the measurements and got results of 41, 42, 41, 43, 40 then the measurements are precise, but not accurate.

If, on the other hand, you got readings of 32, 35, 36, 34, 34, 37 then your measurements are accurate (close to 35) but not very precise.

Another example is shooting at a target: a tight cluster represents precision (even if you are off center), many shots in the center are accurate (even if spread out), while a tight cluster in the center is accurate and precise, and shots spread all over the target are neither accurate nor precise.

There are a number of things wrong with the problem as stated. We are given a "norm" (mean, median, mode?) of 45 situps per hour. The experimental data does not give a time, so perhaps we are comparing different things so the data would not be accurate, because we do not know the expected value.

We aren't really repeating the experiment, as different people are doing the sit-ups. I would imagine that an athletic team might do better than the general public, and individual abilities will vary, so we cannot measure the precision. If we took the average of the four boys results we could compare that average to the "norm" and decide that it was not accurate (perhaps because of additional time given or allowing "cheats") but then we have only one comparison so we cannot discuss the precision. The boys would have to repeat the experiment and compare the averages of each trial to check for precision.

What is the importance of the fairy tale mode in Great Expectations?

This story is very similar to a fairy tale because an outside force sweeps in and changes the character’s life.

In some ways, Pip’s story is a Cinderella story. Cinderella was abused and forced to stay out of normal life and society. Pip was also abused and secluded. Cinderella received supernatural intervention in the form of a Fairy Godmother.  Pip also received intervention, although there was nothing supernatural about it. Consider it fate.

Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother transformed her into a princess worthy of marrying her prince. In a way, Magwitch did the same thing with Pip. He was impressed with Pip’s generosity to him when he was an escaped convict. He also wanted to prove that anyone could be a gentleman. Pip was whisked away to London to be trained for high society. Like Cinderella, this involved new clothes. I guess the clothes really do make the man!

Just as Cinderella’s fairy godmother prepared her to meet her prince, Pip’s fairy godfather prepared him for his princess. Pip assumed that he was being groomed to marry Estella. Of course, what really happened is that Estella had no interest in him, and Miss Havisham was not his benefactor.

Even Pip compares his and Estella’s story to a fairy tale.

She had adopted Estella, she had as good as adopted me, and it could not fail to be her intention to bring us together. She reserved it for me to restore the desolate house, admit the sunshine into the dark rooms, set the clocks a going and the cold hearths a blazing, tear down the cobwebs, destroy the vermin—in short, do all the shining deeds of the young Knight of romance, and marry the Princess. (Ch. 29)

In this fairy tale, there is no happy ending. Estella and Pip are unhappy, and will remain unhappy. Neither of them knows how to love in the normal sense. Pip is obsessed with Estella, and Estella is irrevocably broken. Pip was transformed by his fairy godfather, but his princess was not ready to marry him.

The importance of the fairy tale for this story is that Dickens is telling us that you can't transform yourself for the one you love. It is a rather pessimistic love story that Pip and Estella share. The people who are in love in the normal, simple way are much happier. Joe and Biddy, Herbert and Clara, and Wemmick and Miss Skiffins all live happily ever after, but Pip and Estella will be forever mourning the lives they could have had.

Discus the interrelationship of different business functions and how it helps to enhance business success

Given that the business environment of the 21st century is defined by rapid changes and innovation, it is essential for any organization, regardless of size, to create interrelationships between its different business departments. In fact, several leading business figures argue that the key to remaining competitive in today's marketplace is to create synergy. The only way to essentially create synergy in an organization is to allow different business functions to share information and collaborate with...

Given that the business environment of the 21st century is defined by rapid changes and innovation, it is essential for any organization, regardless of size, to create interrelationships between its different business departments. In fact, several leading business figures argue that the key to remaining competitive in today's marketplace is to create synergy. The only way to essentially create synergy in an organization is to allow different business functions to share information and collaborate with one another. However, this idea must be preached from top-level executives in order for it to trickle throughout the organization and take effect.

While most of us are familiar with the classic "hierarchy model", this particular structure is becoming less effective for many corporations as it isolates business functions and consequently, prevents the creation of synergy. As a result, more and more organizations are adopting "flatter" structures that enable their various departments to share resources and enhance overall organizational performance. For example, while departments such as Finance and Marketing were traditionally viewed as polar opposites, many organizations are now creating interrelationships between these two departments to improve the efficiency of their marketing methods (e.g. using financial tools to analyze the return on investment of particular marketing campaigns, assessing the financial viability of certain products). 

How does Edith Wharton explore the theme of marriage in The House of Mirth?

Wharton explores and critiques marriage primarily through her main character,  Lily Bart. Lily is beautiful, gracious, intelligent and has been raised in high society, but has very little money. She has been groomed for one destiny alone, to make a "good" marriage. A good marriage involves wedding a wealthy man of her social class. While she "was beginning to have fits of rebellion" against this path, and while "she longed to make an independent life...

Wharton explores and critiques marriage primarily through her main character,  Lily Bart. Lily is beautiful, gracious, intelligent and has been raised in high society, but has very little money. She has been groomed for one destiny alone, to make a "good" marriage. A good marriage involves wedding a wealthy man of her social class. While she "was beginning to have fits of rebellion" against this path, and while "she longed to make an independent life for herself," Lily simply cannot overcome her social indoctrination of seeing marriage as the only legitimate "career" goal for a woman. Much of the novel explores her struggle with this. She sees that married society women, like Judy Trenor and Bertha Dorset, wield a great deal of money, power and status through marriage. Lily wants that, but she also has a sense of integrity that prevents her from jumping heedlessly into a loveless marriage just for money and status. 

Lily is trapped between her own integrity, which society does not encourage her to develop, and her desire for a rich, comfortable, easy life. For example, Wharton explores  the dilemmas the marriage market creates for Lily's integrity as she is on the verge of snagging the wealthy Percy Fryce, but veers away from him because she doesn't love him and doesn't merely want to manipulate him into marriage.

Wharton does depict at least one woman, Gerty Farish, who is single and finds success as a social worker. Wharton's prmary marriage theme, however, shows that being trained, as Lily was, to sell yourself on the marriage market warps and destroys women. 

What are the advantages and disadvantages of development?

The question does not identify if the term “development” is referring to the development of land, economy, or technology. Therefore, at least one advantage and disadvantage for each of the three categories have been identified below.

Development of Land

The development of land will draw people into a region. This is beneficial because it will spark the economy of that area.

The development of land can have adverse effects on the environment. One of the most...

The question does not identify if the term “development” is referring to the development of land, economy, or technology. Therefore, at least one advantage and disadvantage for each of the three categories have been identified below.

Development of Land

The development of land will draw people into a region. This is beneficial because it will spark the economy of that area.

The development of land can have adverse effects on the environment. One of the most immediate consequences of deforestation is erosion. Erosion is the movement of soil to a new location. Without the roots of the trees to hold the soil in place, the soil becomes free and loose to move by wind, animals, or rain. This movement of the earth can cause the forestry that does remain in a deforested location to become unsettled. The unsettlement of these trees could affect their root systems and prevent the trees from absorbing the needed nutrients. Even worse, the trees may become so unsettled that they become uprooted, fall, and die.

When deforestation occurs, the habitat(s) of many organisms is disheveled. Thus, deforestation can also cause a decrease in the biodiversity as the organisms emigrate to other habitats in order to survive.

Development of the Economy

A developed economy is able to compete with other countries. According to BenefitOf.net, a developed economy leads to increased employment rates, an increase in the standard of living, an enhancement in tax revenues, and better public services.

Increased production of goods is often associated with economic development. Industrialization can have an adverse effect on the environment. For example, factories may emit pollutants into the air or water.

Technology Developments

Technologies can increase the speed and precision in which products are developed, thus improving the economy of an area.

Technology development may hurt smaller local businesses that do not have the financial means or know-how to convert their existing businesses methods into more tech-savvy strategies.

What is Macbeth's tragic flaw in Act I?

In Act 1, Scene 7, Macbeth delivers a soliloquy in which he considers all of the reasons he has not to commit the murder of Duncan as well as the onereason he has to move forward with this crime. He says, "I have no spur / To prick the sides of my intent, but only / Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself / And fall on th' other--" (1.7.25-28). So, while he has a great...

In Act 1, Scene 7, Macbeth delivers a soliloquy in which he considers all of the reasons he has not to commit the murder of Duncan as well as the one reason he has to move forward with this crime. He says, "I have no spur / To prick the sides of my intent, but only / Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself / And fall on th' other--" (1.7.25-28). So, while he has a great many reasons to justify not committing the murder, he has only one reason to go through with it: ambition. However, when Lady Macbeth enters the room, just at this moment, he immediately says to her, "We will proceed no further in this business" (1.7.34). Thus, it seems to me that ambition alone is not enough of a catalyst to prompt him to take action because almost as soon as he identifies it, he tries to cancel their plans.

It is only when Lady Macbeth wounds his pride, mocking his bravery and manhood, that he relents. She insists that, if he will not murder Duncan to take the throne, he will have to "live a coward in [his] own esteem," and that when he made the promise to her that they would proceed with their plan, "then [he was] a man" (1.7.47, 56). She implies that he is not a man if he breaks this promise and swears that she would be willing to kill her own child if she had promised him to do so. Thus, it is only when his pride is wounded that Macbeth finally commits fully to the plan to murder Duncan, and so I argue that pride is his true tragic flaw, not ambition.

What is the relationship between the narrator and her mother in the short stories "Caroline's Wedding" and "New York Day Women" and "Nineteen...

The short story collection Krik? Krak! by Edwidge Danticat is a collection of nine short stories, most of which deal with mother/daughter relationships of Haitian immigrant women.

The short story "Nineteen Thirty-Seven" deals with Josephine, a young woman whose mother, Manman, has been imprisoned for being a witch. In this story, Josephine struggles with loving her mother, but being frustrated by her mother's actions. When Josephine visits Manman in prison, Josephine is overcome with guilt...

The short story collection Krik? Krak! by Edwidge Danticat is a collection of nine short stories, most of which deal with mother/daughter relationships of Haitian immigrant women.

The short story "Nineteen Thirty-Seven" deals with Josephine, a young woman whose mother, Manman, has been imprisoned for being a witch. In this story, Josephine struggles with loving her mother, but being frustrated by her mother's actions. When Josephine visits Manman in prison, Josephine is overcome with guilt at her relationship with her mother and cannot speak. This becomes a source of frustration for Manman because even though she enjoys seeing her daughter, she is frustrated that Josephine is silent.

In "New York Day Women," Suzette, a Haitian woman, tries to assimilate to American life, often against her mother's wishes. Suzette's mother, an immigrant from Haiti, is often critical of Suzette, harboring some resentment because Suzette does not hold to old customs.

"Caroline's Wedding," the last short story in the collection, follows Grace and Caroline, the daughters of Ma, an immigrant from Haiti who is disappointed in Caroline's choice of not marrying another Haitian. In this story, Ma is firmly rooted in her Haitian traditions and culture, Caroline is trying to assimilate to American culture, and Grace is stuck in the middle, trying to be both American and Haitian.

In each of these stories, the mother is usually a symbol for Haiti and Haitian culture, while the daughter is an immigrant struggling with retaining her Haitian culture and identity, while forging new ones.

I need a summary for chapters 4 and 6; can you help me with this?

Chapter Four summary:

In this chapter, the Adventure Club members are hoping to hike along Levy or Levart Lake at night. To get there, they have to make their way through Tony's woods. As they walk, Q pipes up that he is afraid the woods might contain spiders, and Hooter is sure that the place is crawling with snakes. Tony assures them that they have far more to fear from the legend of the lake.

He contends that the lake has the reputation of being haunted and that people would often disappear at the lake, never to be heard from again. Tony admits that some people did return after their disappearance, but they were never the same again, often exhibiting strange habits upon their return. Many of them also had fantastic stories to relate about their disappearance. Tony cites his grandfather's best friend, Adam Hibbs, who disappeared during a camping trip. 

Accordingly, Tony's grandfather awakened one night to find Adam in a rowboat on the lake. Although he called to his friend, Adam never gave any indication that he heard the call. After Adam's disappearance, five more people disappeared within the space of fifty years. The story was the same each time: a strange rowboat was always involved, and all disappearances occurred under a three-quarter moon.

Chapter Six summary:

This chapter finds all the children in the middle of the lake in a strange rowboat. In the previous chapter, Katie disappears without warning. When the boys find her climbing into a strange boat, they frantically call out to her. However, she does not hear them, and the boys, caught in the same trance, soon follow her into the same boat.

All are soon awakened to find themselves in the middle of a raging river during a snowstorm. While everyone is holding on for dear life, Katie suddenly stands up in the middle of the boat.

Matt and Hooter try to grab on to Katie, but she soon disappears completely. When the boys' desperate cries yield no answer, Matt fears the worst. Visibility is almost non-existent, as they drift dangerously along the icy river. Matt worries about how he will break the news to his parents. Meanwhile, Q's flashlight illuminates the inscription on the inside of the boat: Emit Levart. Tony reminds the other boys of his grandfather's words, that this name is tied up in the mystery of Levart or Levy Lake.

I need to write an argumentative essay on whether the government is ever justified in withholding information from its citizens. I need help with...

Your thesis statement makes an arguable claim that offers a unique way of thinking about the topic. First, identify the problem, which is the controversy over the government withholding information from its citizens.

Second, state your claim. One way to present a thesis that is thoughtful and nuanced is to use an "Although" statement. You might say "Although citizens have the right to know about the activities of their elected government, certain situations require that...

Your thesis statement makes an arguable claim that offers a unique way of thinking about the topic. First, identify the problem, which is the controversy over the government withholding information from its citizens.

Second, state your claim. One way to present a thesis that is thoughtful and nuanced is to use an "Although" statement. You might say "Although citizens have the right to know about the activities of their elected government, certain situations require that the government withhold information for the sake of national security."

Third, explain exactly what you mean by "national security" and identify specific situations in which withholding information would be justified. Explain why the cost of releasing information would outweigh the benefits. For example, are there situations in which releasing information to citizens would also allow terrorists to access that information, which would put citizens in danger?

Fourth, consider counter arguments and respond to them. For example, should the government withhold information in order to prevent citizens from protesting, which could lead to a revolution? At what point does government protection become government oppression?

How do the colonial subjects repay their masters in "The White Man's Burden?"

According to Rudyard Kipling in his pro-imperialism poem “The White Man’s Burden,” the colonial subjects of imperial powers repay their “masters” by hating and resenting them and by destroying all of the things the masters are trying to create. Some of this they do on purpose, but other things they do because they are ignorant.

The first place we see the imperial masters being repaid poorly is in Stanza 3. There, Kipling says that when...

According to Rudyard Kipling in his pro-imperialism poem “The White Man’s Burden,” the colonial subjects of imperial powers repay their “masters” by hating and resenting them and by destroying all of the things the masters are trying to create. Some of this they do on purpose, but other things they do because they are ignorant.

The first place we see the imperial masters being repaid poorly is in Stanza 3. There, Kipling says that when the masters have just about accomplished their goals, they will

Watch sloth and heathen Folly

Bring all your hopes to nought.

 In other words, they are being repaid by having everything they work for get destroyed. The subjects are so lazy and foolish that they destroy the masters’ work.

The other place where we see the masters being poorly repaid is in the 5th Stanza. There, Kipling tells us that the subjects will hate their masters for trying to improve their lives and make them more civilized.  He says that the masters will get

The blame of those ye better,

The hate of those ye guard—

 The reason for this is that they are trying to improve their subjects.  The problem is that their subjects do not want to be improved and civilized.  Instead, they will complain, saying

Why brought he us from bondage,

Our loved Egyptian night?"

 In other words, the subjects like being ignorant and uncivilized and will hate and resent those who try to change them.

 In these ways, Kipling  is saying that the imperial masters will be repaid poorly by their colonial subjects.

In Of Mice and Men, how does Steinbeck show dreams and the American Dream in chapters 1-2?

In both chapters, George and Lennie dream of owning their own home, a key component of the American dream. This dream of living on their own small farm encompasses achieving autonomy, dignity, independence and sense of roots, all the opposite of their wandering, insecure life as migrant workers, at the mercy of the whims of their employers. In chapter 1, George paints for Lennie a picture of the place they dream of owning:

We’ll have...

In both chapters, George and Lennie dream of owning their own home, a key component of the American dream. This dream of living on their own small farm encompasses achieving autonomy, dignity, independence and sense of roots, all the opposite of their wandering, insecure life as migrant workers, at the mercy of the whims of their employers. In chapter 1, George paints for Lennie a picture of the place they dream of owning:

We’ll have a big vegetable patch and a rabbit hutch and chickens. And when it rains in the winter, we’ll just say the hell with goin’ to work, and we’ll build up a fire in the stove and set around it an’ listen to the rain comin’ down on the roof ...

In chapter 2, George again paints a vivid picture of the life he and Lennie will lead on their own land. Candy, a ranch hand in their bunkhouse, sad because his old dog has just been shot, overhears and asks to be part of it, offering to put in his savings. He explains that because he's been injured and lost a hand, he expects to be fired soon, but that he has the $250 the ranch gave him to compensate for losing the hand. For him, the farm Lennie and George dream of is a place where he could retire with dignity, and help with the hoeing and cooking and chickens. A home, some independence, a dignified retirement: these are the dreams and American Dream of these three men.

In the Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, what were some quotes said by Darry that revealed what he was like?

Darry acts like a father to his two younger brothers, because their parents have died. He's a bit rough with them, saying things like, "You're both nuts," because he's still young himself, only 20 years old, but he uses parenting language when necessary: "Yeah, since it ain't a school night" (pg 13) is almost like something a parent would say, except that Darry uses slang, "ain't" instead of "isn't," showing that he's actually a young guy trying to be parental.

On page 44, Darry shows again that he really cares about his brothers:

I reckon it never occurred to you that your brothers might be worrying their heads off and afraid to call the police because something like that could get you two thrown in a boys' home so quick it'd make your head spin. And you were asleep in the lot? Ponyboy, what on earth is the matter with you? Can't you use your head? You haven't even got a coat on.

Although Darry's angry and shouting at Ponyboy, it's obvious that he cares deeply about his brother and feels responsible for him, by phrases like, "brothers...worrying their heads off," and "You haven’t even got a coat on." He cares enough about Ponyboy to notice things like whether he's dressed properly.

Darry works hard to look after his brothers, but he doesn't resent it and woudln't want them to be removed from his care ("thrown in a boys' home"). Ponyboy realizes this on page 84, when Darry says to him, "Oh, Pony, I thought we'd lost you... like we did Mom and Dad..." This was the first time Ponyboy saw Darry cry. He hadn't even cried at their parents' funeral. For the first half of the novel, Ponyboy is scared of Darry and thinks Darry hates him, but he discovers Darry really does care about him at this moment.

The course of events in the novel cause Ponyboy and Darry to become closer and closer. On page 142, Darry says, "Maybe you can be a little neater, huh, little buddy?" He has always called Sodapop 'little buddy,' but this is the first time he calls Ponyboy 'little buddy.' It shows that Darry feels closer to his youngest brother, Ponyboy, as they have a few close calls through the events of the novel.

Darry keeps his feelings for Ponyboy hidden most of the time, but near the end of the novel, Darry shows that he respects Ponyboy. He tells Ponyboy to stay in school because he is intelligent: "You're not going to drop out. Listen, with your brains and grades you could get a scholarship, and we could put you through college." (pg 148) Then again when he tells Ponyboy to catch Sodapop, knowing that even out of shape, Ponyboy is the fastest runner: "Circle around and cut him off." (pg 149) Finally, Darry shows that he's very insightful for his age, and has empathy for the other boys when he talks about Sodapop's failed relationship with Sandy: "He told me he loved her, but I guess she didn't love him like he thought she did..." (pg 148)

Darry is a pretty complex character. A young orphan raising his two little brothers, he seems at the beginning of the novel to be an angry, scary guy, but he shows by the end of the novel that he's empathetic and loves his little brothers deeply.

In Act 2, Scene 4 of Julius Caesar, Portia is worried. Why?

In Act 2, Scene 1, Portia is begging her husband Brutus to tell her what is going on. Brutus is acting extremely strangely, and he is receiving all sorts of mysterious callers at odd hours. He does not want to tell her that he is taking part in a conspiracy to assassinate Julius Caesar because that would make her a co-conspirator. In other words, if the assassination attempt should fail, he would undoubtedly get killed along with all the others, but Portia might be spared and allowed to keep her home and possessions if it were felt she knew nothing about her husband's plans. However, Brutus finally succumbs to her insistence that she has a right to know all his secrets because she is his wife. Towards the end of Act 2, Scene 1, he agrees to tell her everything, but not right then and there because he has visitors to consult with. He tells her:

Portia, go in a while,
And by and by thy bosom shall partake
The secrets of my heart.
All my engagements I will construe to thee,
All the charactery of my sad brows.
Leave me in haste.

We never hear Brutus explain anything to his wife. But in Act 2, Scene 4, it is quite obvious that he has told her everything, just as he promised. Shakespeare did not feel it necessary to show Brutus imparting all this information to his wife because the audience already knows it. There is a big difference in Portia's feelings and behavior now that she had learned the terrible truth. This only adds to all the other tension Shakespeare has been building up as a prelude to the actual assassination. Portia knows that her husband is involved in an extremely dangerous situation which could cost his life, and perhaps even her own. As a woman, she is confined to her home. She can't go to the Capitol to see what is going on. She can only send a messenger--but she can't tell the messenger, Lucius, what she wants him to do. She can't trust Lucius or anybody else. She feels she must not do or say anything that would reveal her guilty knowledge, but she is naturally anxious to know whether the assassination attempt will come off successfully and, if so, what will happen after that. 

She has in fact become a co-conspirator. She wants Julius Caesar to be killed. She may not have wanted that before, but Brutus has brought her into the conspiracy by telling her everything she wanted to know.

There are many men in this play. Shakespeare welcomes an opportunity to show a couple of female characters just for the sake of contrast. One is Caesar's wife Calpurnia, who has a good role as she tries to persuade her husband to stay at home because of her foreboding dreams. The other is Portia, who appears in several scenes and has the leading part in Act 2, Scene 4. Shakespeare undoubtedly had males in his company who specialized in being female impersonators, and he wanted to make some use of them.

Which quote from Romeo and Juliet shows that Friar Laurence is to blame for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet?

Even though Friar Laurence warns Romeo not to move so quickly with his love for Juliet, he marries them anyway. This isn’t the only time that the Friar makes a hasty decision. In fact, the Friar makes several decisions throughout the course of the play that can be connected to the deaths of Romeo and Juliet - for example, he supports Romeo in his banishment, he sends a letter to Romeo that Romeo never receives, he covers up the “death” of Juliet, he leaves Juliet alone in the tomb, just to name a few.

However, the one quote that really connects the Friar to their deaths is in Act IV, Scene I.

“Take thou this vial, being then in bed,

And this distilled liquor drink thou off,

When presently through all thy veins shall run

A cold and drowsy humor, for no pulse

Shall keep his native progress, but surcease.

No warmth, no breath shall testify thou livest.

The roses in thy lips and cheeks shall fade

To paly ashes, thy eyes’ windows fall

Like death when he shuts up the day of life.”

Juliet has just learned that Tybalt has died, Romeo is banished, and that she must marry Paris on Thursday. Desperate for a solution or she’ll commit suicide, she pleads for the Friar to help her. The Friar then realizes what a mess this hasty marriage between Romeo and Juliet has caused. In an attempt to cover his tracks, he comes up with an elaborate plan: Juliet will drink a potion that makes her appear dead so that she is buried in her family’s tomb, and when she wakes up the Friar and Romeo will be waiting for her so that they can run away together in Mantua. Supposedly, Romeo will hear of all of this through a letter.

I chose the quote in which Friar hands Juliet the vial of potion as the quote that is to blame for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet because it is that vial that causes confusion and suicide. Upon making it to the tomb (without receiving the Friar’s letter), Romeo believes that Juliet is in fact dead. This is reason enough for him to commit suicide and drink the last of the potion. When Juliet wakes up from the potion, she sees Romeo and uses a sword to kill herself. Without that vial of potion from the Friar, the deaths of Romeo and Juliet could have been avoided.

Can you briefly review and summarize The Beak of the Finch?

Many books can be described as "good"; but it is the rare book that really deserves the title of great. In my opinion, The Beak of the Finch deserves to be considered in the latter category. It is not simply a good book worth reading; it is a great book that should form a model for scientific nonfiction for decades to come. It has won half a dozen awards in both science and literature and deserves to win many more.

Writing in a very accessible style that is nonetheless not dumbed-down or oversimplified, Weiner describes the time he spent with Rosemary and Peter Grant, two eminent experimental evolutionary biologists who also happen to be a married couple. He listens to the scientists and faithfully reproduces their research, rather than narrowing it or sensationalizing it as many journalists would.

Yes, experimental evolutionary biologists. The Grants don't simply analyze evolution based on paleontological finds or mathematical theories like most evolutionary biologists—they go out in the field and watch evolution happen, carefully observing and controlling for different variables in actual field experiments. The Beak of the Finch is about this marvelous empirical project.

Before the Grant project, many biologists thought that evolution could not be observed on this timescale, particularly not among what we call metazoa, that is, complex multicellular animals, animals in the usual sense of the word (rather than the much broader concept of Animalia biologists use). The thinking was that evolution could only occur on timescales of at least thousands if not millions of years—but through years of painstaking research, the Grants observed it over years and decades.

It's difficult to overstate the importance of this result; it's a difference of between two and six orders of magnitude. It would be as if we suddenly discovered that snails were outpacing Olympic sprinters.

There is a somewhat informal unit of the rate of evolution, the darwin, which is a 1% change in some trait over 10,000 years; named by Haldane in honor of Darwin, this is about the rate at which Darwin believed evolution should occur. The Grants observed changes on the order of 1% every year—meaning that those finches are evolving at a rate we'd have to measure in kilodarwins.

This fundamentally changes our understanding of how evolution happens—it's not a slow, gradual process in one direction, but a constant rapid oscillation around a slowly-changing equilibrium. Animals can therefore potentially adapt to environmental changes much faster than previously believed—which makes mass extinctions that much more terrifying.

I cannot recommend this book emphatically enough. If you read one book on evolution, read On the Origin of Species. If you read two, read The Beak of the Finch. (If you read three, read The Selfish Gene.)

Do you regard Montresor as a reliable or unreliable narrator?

I regard the narrator, Montresor, as unreliable because he very much wants his auditor to think his crime is somehow justified. He seems to be speaking to a member of the clergy, and he is probably on his deathbed making his last confession. He initially claims that his audience "so well know[s] the nature of [his] soul," and, in the last lines, he says that it has been "half of a century" since he committed...

I regard the narrator, Montresor, as unreliable because he very much wants his auditor to think his crime is somehow justified. He seems to be speaking to a member of the clergy, and he is probably on his deathbed making his last confession. He initially claims that his audience "so well know[s] the nature of [his] soul," and, in the last lines, he says that it has been "half of a century" since he committed this crime, so he is clearly now an old man. After keeping his secret for so long, why would he now tell unless he urgently needs to clear his conscience?  

Montresor begins the story with an overstatement when he says, "The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge." It is unlikely that Fortunato had injured Montresor a "thousand" times, but it is notable that Montresor feels that he had. He seems to be trying to build his case, so to speak, against Fortunato so that the murder seems more defensible. Thus, Montresor has strong motive to influence his audience, a priest, to agree with him that Fortunato was a bad person and so, in some way, deserved what he got. Montresor's motives to inflate Fortunato's bad qualities render him unreliable.

In the reaction between ethanol and oxygen, which element is reduced and which element is oxidized, and why?

The balanced chemical reaction between oxygen and ethanol can be written as:

`C_2H_5OH + 3O_2 -> 2CO_2 + 3H_2O`

Here, 1 mole of ethanol reacts with 3 moles of oxygen to generate 2 moles of carbon dioxide and 3 moles of water. 

To determine which element has been reduced and which has been oxidized here, we need to calculate the oxidation number of each element in this reaction. The element which has lost electrons is...

The balanced chemical reaction between oxygen and ethanol can be written as:

`C_2H_5OH + 3O_2 -> 2CO_2 + 3H_2O`

Here, 1 mole of ethanol reacts with 3 moles of oxygen to generate 2 moles of carbon dioxide and 3 moles of water. 

To determine which element has been reduced and which has been oxidized here, we need to calculate the oxidation number of each element in this reaction. The element which has lost electrons is termed "oxidized" and the one which has gained electrons will be term "reduced". 

The oxidation number of carbon in ethanol is

= 1/2 x (0 - 6 x 1 + 2) = -2

and in carbon dioxide = 0 - 2 x (-2) = 4

Thus, carbon has lost 6 electrons and is the element that has been oxidized.

The oxidation number of oxygen in oxygen gas is 0 and in water or carbon dioxide, it is -2. Thus, oxygen has gained 2 electrons and is the element that has reduced. 

Therefore, carbon is oxidized and oxygen is reduced in the reaction between ethanol and oxygen.

Hope this helps.

In Night, why was the doctor who treated Elie very kind?

The doctor who treated Elie's foot in Auschwitz was Jewish, and a prisoner just like Elie was. Within the concentration camps, inmates were assigned different types of forced labor. If the prisoner had a certain skill (ie if they were a doctor, a musician, etc.), they would often be utilized for that skill.

The kind Jewish doctor forms a contrast to the Nazi doctors (including Dr. Josef Mengele) who, rather than healing the sick, were...

The doctor who treated Elie's foot in Auschwitz was Jewish, and a prisoner just like Elie was. Within the concentration camps, inmates were assigned different types of forced labor. If the prisoner had a certain skill (ie if they were a doctor, a musician, etc.), they would often be utilized for that skill.

The kind Jewish doctor forms a contrast to the Nazi doctors (including Dr. Josef Mengele) who, rather than healing the sick, were the ones who decided which prisoners would live and which would be sent to the gas chambers.

How does the banker’s attitude toward the bet change as the years wear on?

The story is told with a long flashback, so the banker's changes in his feelings and thoughts about the bet are not described in any chronological development. We know mainly how he feels about the bet just before the lawyer's fifteen-years of solitary confinement are about to end. The story opens on the night before the lawyer will be free to leave his confinement and free to collect the two million rubles.

It was a dark autumn night. The old banker was walking up and down his study and remembering how, fifteen years before, he had given a party one autumn evening. 

By this point in time the banker's attitude has changed completely. He bitterly regrets having made the bet, partly because he thinks it is going to cost him two million rubles, partly because the outcome proves nothing, and partly because he believes the two men were terribly foolish to have made such a bet in the first place.

And this wild, senseless bet was carried out! The banker, spoilt and frivolous, with millions beyond his reckoning, was delighted at the bet.....And now the banker, walking to and fro, remembered all this, and asked himself: "What was the object of that bet? What is the good of that man's losing fifteen years of his life and my throwing away two million? Can it prove that the death penalty is better or worse than imprisonment for life? No, no. It was all nonsensical and meaningless. On my part it was the caprice of a pampered man, and on his part simple greed for money...."

The narrator does not tell us how the banker's attitude evolved over the years. Only that he was amused and delighted when the bet was first made and that he is suffering mental agony at the end of the fifteen years. After the men make the bet, the story focuses on what the lawyer appears to be doing in his self-imposed captivity. Presumably the banker begins to feel a little bit worried when the lawyer does not give up and sacrifice the two million rubles after he has been imprisoned for longer than the banker expected he would be able to stand it.

"Think better of it, young man, while there is still time. To me two million is a trifle, but you are losing three or four of the best years of your life. I say three or four, because you won't stay longer."

The reader starts off with the knowledge that the lawyer was indeed able to stand it, not only for three or four years, but for the full fifteen years. But the reader's interest is held by the question of how the lawyer was able to stand it. Perhaps the reader wonders whether he would be able to stand such an ordeal himself and, if so, what he would do to get through his long, solitary days and how he could keep himself from going insane.

We can imagine that the banker's attitude over the years changes from confidence and amusement, to doubt, amazement, concern, fear, dread, and finally to desperation. Perhaps he loses a lot of his capital because his prisoner's endurance has made him anxious and caused him to lose his nerve. In other words, perhaps he becomes afraid to make other bets, which is what his and all speculations on the stock market really amount to. He was confident he would win the bet with the lawyer because he had confidence in his judgement, but the lawyer's adjustment to solitary captivity has made the banker lose his self-confidence, and that loss of self-confidence has adversely affected his ability to play the market successfully.

Fifteen years before, his millions had been beyond his reckoning; now he was afraid to ask himself which were greater, his debts or his assets. Desperate gambling on the Stock Exchange, wild speculation and the excitability which he could not get over even in advancing years, had by degrees led to the decline of his fortune and the proud, fearless, self-confident millionaire had become a banker of middling rank, trembling at every rise and fall in his investments.

Analyze the parade of religious leaders in "Young Goodman Brown."

The first spiritual leader Goodman Brown sees in the woods is Goodwife Cloyse, an old and pious woman who taught him his catechism along with the minister and deacon of Salem.  Brown assumes that she has some godly purpose for being in the woods so late at night, and he wishes to avoid being seen by her.  However, when the devil approaches her, she recognizes him immediately and converses with him as a friend.  Brown...

The first spiritual leader Goodman Brown sees in the woods is Goodwife Cloyse, an old and pious woman who taught him his catechism along with the minister and deacon of Salem.  Brown assumes that she has some godly purpose for being in the woods so late at night, and he wishes to avoid being seen by her.  However, when the devil approaches her, she recognizes him immediately and converses with him as a friend.  Brown is shocked.

Later, feeling guilty about his reason for being in the woods, Brown hides again when he hears horses coming.  Although he cannot see them, he hears the voices of the minister and deacon discussing a meeting with some local "'Indian powows'" who "'know almost as much deviltry as the rest of [the Salemites].'"  Brown is shocked, again, to learn that some of the most seemingly righteous religious leaders are, in fact, witches. 

It all begins to make more sense when he arrives at the Witches' Sabbath, where he sees that known sinners and people he's always believed to be good and pious folk sit together as equals.  Then the Devil himself says that "'Evil is the nature of mankind.'"  Thus, no matter who we are -- no matter how seemingly righteous or sinful -- we are all sinners alike: this is our human nature.  This explanation, then, accounts for the religious leaders' participation: leaders or no, they are human, and humans are sinners. 

In chapter 27 of To Kill a Mockingbird, what is the point of the Halloween pageant?

The Halloween event at the school was created to keep local children out of trouble. The previous year, some mischievous children snuck into the house of two deaf sisters and played an elaborate prank on them. The children hid all of their downstairs furniture in their cellar. The sisters woke up to find their furniture missing.

The Halloween event was held inside the auditorium of the high school in Maycomb. This event was for both...

The Halloween event at the school was created to keep local children out of trouble. The previous year, some mischievous children snuck into the house of two deaf sisters and played an elaborate prank on them. The children hid all of their downstairs furniture in their cellar. The sisters woke up to find their furniture missing.

The Halloween event was held inside the auditorium of the high school in Maycomb. This event was for both parents and children to attend. Parents were able to keep a close eye on their children in the auditorium, and therefore keep them out of trouble on Halloween night.  

There was also a pageant in the auditorium. The pageant was created to keep the adults entertained. Scout explained what the pageant was about:

Mrs. Grace Merriweather had composed an original pageant entitled Maycomb County: Ad Astra Per Aspera, and I was to be a ham. She thought it would be adorable if some of the children were costumed to represent the county's agricultural products: Cecil Jacobs would be dressed up to look like a cow; Agnes Boone would make a lovely butterbean, another child would be a peanut, and on down the line until Mrs. Merriweather's imagination and the supply of children were exhausted (Chapter 27).

Scout was not keen to play the role of a ham. She also did not have much of an interest in the agricultural industry in Maycomb.

How are rule breakers positive influences to our society? Explain by using examples from "Letter from Birmingham Jail," "Antigone," and "Malala."

Rule breakers come in a variety of forms. Possibly the first kind of rule breaker that comes to mind is a basic criminal. The connotation of criminality is that the laws being broken are in place for a good reason: to protect people or property, or enforce a level of decorum in society. Your question suggests that rule breakers can be a positive influence in society, and I agree that they can be. In the...

Rule breakers come in a variety of forms. Possibly the first kind of rule breaker that comes to mind is a basic criminal. The connotation of criminality is that the laws being broken are in place for a good reason: to protect people or property, or enforce a level of decorum in society. Your question suggests that rule breakers can be a positive influence in society, and I agree that they can be. In the cases mentioned above, each of the rule breakers (two of whom are real people, and one of whom is a fictional character) break rules in a non-violent way in an effort to force changes in their societies.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., in his "Letter from Birmingham Jail," makes what will later be seen as one of the most compelling written arguments in support of desegregation. The pivotal distinction that he makes is between just and unjust laws. While just laws are rules that should be obeyed because they honor human personhood, unjust laws should be challenged for the sake of the community of humanity. Antigone makes a similar case. By burying Polyneices after his death in spite of his errors, she emphasizes the importance of treating all humans with a certain level of dignity. Now in our time, Malala Yousafzai has advocated education for girls in Pakistan (and everywhere) with exceptional bravery.

Rule breakers can be hugely positive influences in society because they break unjust rules with the goal of making changes. Rules and laws that do not treat all humans with dignity need to change, and rule breakers help us see the error of these types of regulations.

What does Heck Tate wear to the trial in To Kill a Mockingbird?

Heck Tate, the sheriff, puts more care than normal into his outfit to wear on the day of the trial. Normally, his clothes are very informal and unpolished. His typical outfit consists of "high boots, [a] lumber jacket, and [a] bullet-studded belt" (Chapter 17). When Scout sees Mr. Tate dressed in "an ordinary business suit," she finds him more approachable than he ever had been before. Previously, Mr. Tate frightened her. Scout thinks Mr. Tate's...

Heck Tate, the sheriff, puts more care than normal into his outfit to wear on the day of the trial. Normally, his clothes are very informal and unpolished. His typical outfit consists of "high boots, [a] lumber jacket, and [a] bullet-studded belt" (Chapter 17). When Scout sees Mr. Tate dressed in "an ordinary business suit," she finds him more approachable than he ever had been before. Previously, Mr. Tate frightened her. Scout thinks Mr. Tate's business suit makes him seem more ordinary. For once, he looks like any other man in Maycomb. He no longer looks threatening to Scout without his belt full of bullets.

The fact that Mr. Tate dresses up in a suit shows how important he thinks the trial is. Even though he is only wearing a simple business suit, it is a vast difference from his normal attire.

What are the differences between Romeo and Juliet and Pyramus and Thisbe?

The main difference between the plays is that Pyramus and Thisbe’s parents hated each other, but there was no feud.

It is a tale as old as time.  Boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, boy and girl are forbidden to be together.  Shakespeare uses Pyramus and Thisbe as a play within a play in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, so he was obviously familiar with it.  There are some similarities to Romeo and...

The main difference between the plays is that Pyramus and Thisbe’s parents hated each other, but there was no feud.

It is a tale as old as time.  Boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, boy and girl are forbidden to be together.  Shakespeare uses Pyramus and Thisbe as a play within a play in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, so he was obviously familiar with it.  There are some similarities to Romeo and Juliet, but also some clear differences.

Pyramus and Thisbe lived next to each other, which is different.  Their parents were feuding, but it does not seem to be one of those town-splitting feuds where everyone is on one side or the other.  Their parents just didn’t like each other and didn’t want their offspring marrying.  In Romeo and Juliet, however, the families just live in the same town and the feud is tearing the town apart.

Rebellious subjects, enemies to peace,
Profaners of this neighbour-stained steel,--
Will they not hear? What, ho! you men, you beasts,
That quench the fire of your pernicious rage
With purple fountains issuing from your veins … (Act 1, Scene 1)

The difference is a significant one, because it is really the prince's proclamation that leads to Romeo and Juliet's deaths.

The prince gets fed up with the feud and orders the families to stop killing on pain of death.  This is a difference between the stories, because this doesn’t happen in Pyramus and Thisbe.  It is actually because of this proclamation that Romeo and Juliet die.  Romeo is banished when he kills Tybalt, which leads Juliet to fake her death to avoid marrying Paris.

Pyramus and Thisbe looked at each other and kissed through a wall.  However, it is a misunderstanding that leads to their deaths too.  There is no intentional death-faking.  It is an accident.  Pyramus thinks that Thisbe got mauled by a lion when he sees a lion with her shawl, and Thisbe returns and finds Pyramus has stabbed himself with his sword.  (Romeo drank poison.)  Thisbe then takes the same sword and kills herself.  That part is the same—they both end up dead!

Why does Nick move to New York?

In chapter 1, Nick introduces himself to the reader by providing a little background. He tells the reader that he participated in World War I:

I enjoyed the counter-raid so thoroughly that I came back restless. Instead of being the warm centre of the world, the Middle West now seemed like the ragged edge of the universe—so I decided to go East and learn the bond business. 

As with many of the men who participated...

In chapter 1, Nick introduces himself to the reader by providing a little background. He tells the reader that he participated in World War I:

I enjoyed the counter-raid so thoroughly that I came back restless. Instead of being the warm centre of the world, the Middle West now seemed like the ragged edge of the universe—so I decided to go East and learn the bond business. 

As with many of the men who participated in that war, when they returned home, things had changed, either in themselves, in their community, or both. This restlessness that Nick describes is a theme in Fitzgerald's book because it was a theme of that era. So Nick decides that he needs a change of scenery and moves to the East coast, New York specifically, to try working on Wall Street. He has no background in the bond business, but as he says, "Everybody I knew was in the bond business, so I supposed it could support one more single man."

Nick also makes this move because he seems to be trying to figure out what to do with his life and who he is as a man. Besides the bond business, he talks about "the high intention of reading many other books besides . . . and now I was going to bring back all such things into my life and become again that most limited of all specialists, the 'well-rounded man.'" Fitzgerald also symbolically shows this beginning of a new life by setting the story in the spring, when life typically starts fresh. Nick sees his move as a fresh start as well, and does not anticipate all the tragedy that is to come that summer.

Analyze the poem "Rebellion Against the North Side."

There will be no monograms on our skulls.You who are training your daughters to check for the words“Calvin Klein” before they look to see if there are pocketsare giving them no hands to put in those pockets.

Naomi Shihab Nye, an Arab-American writer, wrote the poem "Rebellion Against the North Side" as a critique of materialism and consumerism.  She believes that we are doing our children harm by teaching them to value...

There will be no monograms on our skulls.
You who are training your daughters to check for the words
“Calvin Klein” before they look to see if there are pockets
are giving them no hands to put in those pockets.

Naomi Shihab Nye, an Arab-American writer, wrote the poem "Rebellion Against the North Side" as a critique of materialism and consumerism.  She believes that we are doing our children harm by teaching them to value material things. Children are being accustomed to look for the name brand of an object rather than the quality.  Paying top dollar for a brand or "monogram" is done only to be included in the "in crowd."  She makes the argument that doing this teaches children to be followers who are not able to think for themselves.  

You are giving them eyes that will find nothing solid in stones.
No comfort in rough land, nameless sheep trails.
No answers from things which do not speak.

The reference to "sheep trails" is meant to exemplify the blindness by which consumers follow the leader when it comes buying consumer goods.  She directs parents to remind their children that for generations, people spun their own clothing and wore it "till they fell apart."  Nye also believes that these fashions are fleeting and children should be taught to revere the natural world more than the material world.  

Why did Belle break up with Scrooge?

In addition, Belle also seems to intuitively understand that, if she marries Ebenezer, he will never truly value her. He asks her in what way he had ever sought to be released from their engagement, and she says,

"In a changed nature; in an altered spirit; in another atmosphere of life; another Hope as its great end. In everything that made my love of any worth or value in your sight."

Ebenezer has not explicitly...

In addition, Belle also seems to intuitively understand that, if she marries Ebenezer, he will never truly value her. He asks her in what way he had ever sought to be released from their engagement, and she says,

"In a changed nature; in an altered spirit; in another atmosphere of life; another Hope as its great end. In everything that made my love of any worth or value in your sight."

Ebenezer has not explicitly stated that he wishes to end his relationship with Belle, but the way he seems to privilege money over everything else—including her—makes Belle realize that, in marriage, he will not find her love to be a worthwhile or valuable treasure. He has eyes only for one treasure: gold. I think it is fair to extrapolate an idea of Belle's own sense of self-worth; Ebenezer may not know her value anymore, but she knows her own. She understands that they now have different goals in life, goals that are incompatible. She will not settle.

Furthermore, she tells him, "I release you. With a full heart, for the love of him you once were." In other words, she no longer loves him. She says that she loves the man Ebenezer used to be but is no longer. He has changed too much, while she has remained the same. It was not this new Ebenezer with whom she fell in love, and, in parting from him, she seems to admit it.

How do music and song add to the storyline of The Pearl?

The way Steinbeck discusses music in The Pearl allows readers to believe that there is almost a "soundtrack" to this story. If you imagine any movie you've watched and pay attention to the background music, or score, you'll realize that when things are going well the music tends to be light and happy. However, when something horrible is about to happen the music turns ominous and suspenseful.

In The Pearl, readers are introduced to...

The way Steinbeck discusses music in The Pearl allows readers to believe that there is almost a "soundtrack" to this story. If you imagine any movie you've watched and pay attention to the background music, or score, you'll realize that when things are going well the music tends to be light and happy. However, when something horrible is about to happen the music turns ominous and suspenseful.

In The Pearl, readers are introduced to the songs in Kino's head at the beginning of the story. These songs are always there, passed down from generation to generation and creating what Kino refers to as the "whole." Every piece of his day is a piece of his song.

The first song that is mentioned by name is the "Song of the Family." This is the tune he hears in his head as his wife is cooking breakfast, as waves lap gently on the shoreline, and as his baby sleeps. It indicates his happy and peaceful life and connects him to his ancestors.

Later he hears "The Song of Evil" which starts when he realizes that there is an immediate threat to his child's life. It indicates danger and anything that might be a threat to his family's welfare. When he identifies this danger as a specific threat (the scorpion), the song turns even more telling, "The Song of the Enemy." When he hears this song, it is about something that must be immediately destroyed.

Kino also hears these songs later in the novella when he is threatened yet again. You can see the summary of the story  

Why did Jem destroy Mrs. Dubose's flower garden?

One day, Scout and Jem walked by Mrs. Dubose's house. She was sitting on her front porch and she called to them. First, she accused them of playing hooky from school. Then she accused Jem of damaging Miss Maudie's scuppernong arbor. She also told Scout that she should be wearing a dress. Jem encouraged Scout to ignore Mrs. Dubose and go home.

Mrs. Dubose then called out again, talking about Atticus defending Tom Robinson. She...

One day, Scout and Jem walked by Mrs. Dubose's house. She was sitting on her front porch and she called to them. First, she accused them of playing hooky from school. Then she accused Jem of damaging Miss Maudie's scuppernong arbor. She also told Scout that she should be wearing a dress. Jem encouraged Scout to ignore Mrs. Dubose and go home.

Mrs. Dubose then called out again, talking about Atticus defending Tom Robinson. She used a derogatory term to describe Tom. Jem became enraged that anyone would say such a thing and speak of his father negatively. He stormed off.

Later, Jem walked down the street with Scout's baton. They walked by Mrs. Dubose's house. Then Jem did something that shocked Scout. It was something she knew Atticus would be appalled by:

We had just come to her gate when Jem snatched my baton and ran flailing wildly up the steps into Mrs. Dubose's front yard, forgetting everything Atticus had said, forgetting that she packed a pistol under her shawls, forgetting that if Mrs. Dubose missed, her girl Jessie probably wouldn't. He did not begin to calm down until he had cut the tops off every camellia bush Mrs. Dubose owned, until the ground was littered with green buds and leaves.

What is the name of the economic collapse that happened in the 1920's and 1930's and how did it lead to the rise of fascism?

The name for the economic collapse of the 1920's and 1930's was the Great Depression. The Great Depression occurred as overproduction of goods caused prices to fall in the United States. In response, manufacturers laid off workers which ultimately hurt the market for consumer and agricultural goods. The weaknesses in the United States economy came to a head on October 29, 1929, when the stock market crashed and the economy headed into deep recession.

Germany...

The name for the economic collapse of the 1920's and 1930's was the Great Depression. The Great Depression occurred as overproduction of goods caused prices to fall in the United States. In response, manufacturers laid off workers which ultimately hurt the market for consumer and agricultural goods. The weaknesses in the United States economy came to a head on October 29, 1929, when the stock market crashed and the economy headed into deep recession.

Germany was crippled by the sanctions leveled against it by the Treaty of Versailles. World War I had plunged Germany into massive debt and the reparations from the treaty further harmed its economy. In response, they tried to solve their problems by printing more money. This effort resulted in massive inflation and rendered the German currency useless. American banks helped the Germans temporarily fix their economy with loans, but were no longer able to assist after the stock market crash. This caused further inflation and unemployment in Germany that the democratic government was unable to fix.

As a result of the economic despair that existed in Germany after World War I the people lost complete confidence in their new democracy. They looked for a strong leader with a plan for recovery. That leader was Adolf Hitler, a man that presented a brand of fascism known as Nazism. His oratory and organization skills convinced the German people that fascism would make Germany great again. Fascism in Germany and Italy developed as a response to the economic woes that existed in their respective nations.

In the book, The Great Gatsby, does Daisy have difficulty agreeing to Gatsby's wish? Why or why not?

Gatsby's great wish or dream is that Daisy will run off with him, leaving Tom behind and marrying him, Gatsby. He wants Daisy to say she never loved Tom. He wishes, essentially, to erase the last five years of both their lives and to go back to 1917, when they were in love before the war, as if nothing ever happened. Daisy has a great deal of difficulty agreeing to this wish and ultimately can't...

Gatsby's great wish or dream is that Daisy will run off with him, leaving Tom behind and marrying him, Gatsby. He wants Daisy to say she never loved Tom. He wishes, essentially, to erase the last five years of both their lives and to go back to 1917, when they were in love before the war, as if nothing ever happened. Daisy has a great deal of difficulty agreeing to this wish and ultimately can't do it. She has had a daughter and is settled into her marriage with Tom. She no longer loves Gatsby alone: whatever their problems, she and Tom have a history together now, and she depends on him. On top of that, Daisy is a weak person, who goes whichever way the wind blows. Tom is strong and domineering and he wants her married to him. When push comes to shove, Daisy won't leave him. We see her torn between the two men during their confrontation at the Plaza hotel near the end of the novel, but despite all Gatsby's urgings, Daisy can't agree that she never loved Tom. She can't give Gatsby what he wants, and arguably no woman could. As Daisy wavers in the Plaza, Tom realizes he has won and can safely send Daisy back home in Gatsby's car, setting up the final tragedy. 

Why does the speaker of "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" tell us more than once that the women "come and go / Talking of Michelangelo"? Also,...

The speaker of "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T. S. Eliot tells us more than once that the women "come and go / Talking of Michelangelo" because he wants to convey to the reader that while the speaker/narrator is pondering life in a serious way, these women are, somewhat flippantly at a social gathering, lightheartedly moving from room to room and discussing art and may not be attuned to deeper, more important issues (or don’t care if they are attuned to them).

T. S. Eliot inserts the phrase, “In the room the women come and go / Talking of Michelangelo" at two critical junctures of the poem. The first is after the first English stanza. In the first stanza, the speaker talks of streets “that follow like a tedious argument," and also the evening spread out and likened to “a patient etherized upon a table." Therefore, it is apparent that the speaker is tired with life and even the evening about him makes him think of a person under ether on an operating table, possibly in a life-threatening situation. This sets the somewhat somber mood of this poem as the speaker, a man, thinks about his life—the past and his mistakes, the present and his inertia, and his less-than-enthusiastic view of the future. This is a counterpoint to the pleasant and cheerful evening the women are having.

The second use of the phrase is after the speaker talks about putting on a façade to ready himself to meet people in different situations. This shows the man’s misanthropic and cynical view of life and personal interactions and relationships.

The speaker also talks about there being time for “a hundred indecisions." As such, he is saying that he cannot commit to taking a stand or being resolute. It is as if he’s just rolling through life without enthusiasm and verve or the mindset to be purposeful and clear-sighted enough to make quality decisions. Therefore, he is somewhat like the women who "come and go” and engage in gentle banter as they enjoy a night out with somewhat light conversation. So, in one case the speaker is different than the women. In the other case he is a little like the women.

J. Alfred Prufrock longs to ask, essentially, “What is life all about?” In other words, “What is our purpose in all this theater or drama here on earth?” He looks at life and all its situations and relationships and strivings and wonders if it is all worth it in the end if one doesn’t have a strong purpose and a hope for the future.

The speaker wants to be bolder and more daring. He states that he is really the following type of person: “Deferential, glad to be of use, / Politic, cautious, and meticulous.” Consequently, he longs to ask the above-mentioned questions, as well as, “How can I live a less fearful life?”

What are the euphemisms used in The Giver, other than release?

Euphemisms used include Stirrings, Elsewhere and Sameness.

There are many words in this book that are used differently than we might use them. Some are euphemisms.  A euphemism is a word used to replace another word, usually a word that is considered unpleasant.  Release is a euphemism for killing.  It is a more sensitive way to describe the concept.

The most significant euphemism other than release is Stirrings.  Stirrings stand for sexual feelings.  The community is so concerned with preventing emotions and controlling the population that it trains parents to identify the first signs of puberty in their children, which they refer to as Stirrings.

He remembered that there was a reference to the Stirrings in the Book of Rules, though he didn't remember what it said. And now and then the Speaker mentioned it. ATTENTION. A REMINDER THAT STIRRINGS MUST BE REPORTED IN ORDER FOR TREATMENT TO TAKE PLACE. (Ch. 5)

As soon as Stirrings are identified, the adolescents begin taking a pill to prevent them.  This pill keeps them childlike.  It is some kind of hormone blocker, and as soon as you stop taking it the Stirrings come back.

Another euphemism related to release is Elsewhere.  When a person dies, he or she goes to Elsewhere.  Elsewhere is a euphemism for death.  The community’s citizens do not really seem to understand this.  Jonas thinks that Elsewhere is an actual place.

If he were released, they would not see him again. Ever. Those who were released--even as newchildren—were sent Elsewhere and never returned to the community. (Ch. 6)

As release and Elsewhere demonstrate, Jonas’s community has no concept of death.  They do not seem to understand that people are being killed, and they have no idea what happens to them when they are released.  Elsewhere is nowhere, unless it is the afterlife.

These euphemisms are part of the community’s efforts toward Sameness, which is a major concept.  Sameness is a euphemism for societal control.  It includes surveillance, eugenics (genetic modification to control race) and control over every aspect of a person’s life.

There was a time, actually--you'll see this in the memories later--when flesh was many different colors. That was before we went to Sameness. Today flesh is all the same, and what you saw was the red tones. (Ch. 12)

This seems to indicate that everyone in the community is white, since there are no other skin tones and The Giver refers to skin as having shades of red, which seems to refer more to white skin tones.

Part of Sameness is the population control, which means that family units are carefully constructed based on predetermined parameters.  Another part is climate control and the modification of the landscape.  Everything is designed to maintain the optimum control over the community.

In "Lord of the Flies", which boys were the most successful leaders? For those who were poor leaders, what factors caused them to struggle?

Defining "successful leadership" is a task all of its own; Jack and Ralph were both successful leaders, but in very different ways. A good generalization would involve establishing the goals for a group, and/or the means of achieving those goals, and then actually achieving them. A less goal-oriented but no less powerful definition would involve simply the appearance or social status associated with leadership, in the form of social dominance such as being able to...

Defining "successful leadership" is a task all of its own; Jack and Ralph were both successful leaders, but in very different ways. A good generalization would involve establishing the goals for a group, and/or the means of achieving those goals, and then actually achieving them. A less goal-oriented but no less powerful definition would involve simply the appearance or social status associated with leadership, in the form of social dominance such as being able to direct and control conversations, represent the interests of others, and hold responsibility for critical tasks. 

Jack and Ralph are clear candidates for successful leaders by any of the definitions above, but Jack is definitely the more successful of the two; were it not for the intervention of the naval captain, Ralph probably would have died, and this pretty much disqualifies him as "successful". Ralph was a successful leader at the outset of the story because he was able to rely on the inherent restraint that the boys had learned via "civilized" influences, but his leadership was ultimately more of a title and posture than a practice; he was unable to actually get others to do what he wanted on a consistent basis.

Piggy and Simon are good candidates for "failed" leadership. Piggy was clearly the most intellectual of the boys, but the combination of his awful social skills and the boys' immaturity ensured that Piggy could not be appreciated for his more abstract qualities; it didn't help that he aggravated his own ostracism by failing to take social cues or improve himself in that regard. Instead, he often doubled-down on his insistence that he was right; this culminates in his statement about his glasses, that giving them back is "the right thing to do"; in Piggy's mind, morality is not abstract or relative, and his attempts to enforce this on others without the power to back it up simply make him look foolish.

Simon could have been a leader because he was an intellectual counterpart to Piggy, but a less obstinate one; he was a more humble and reasonable voice, but his timid nature prevented him from asserting himself in the face of the mockery the other boys threw at him for his difficulty in public speaking. Simon is often compared to the "prophet" archetype, and it should come as no surprise that young boys would be unable to appreciate or respect the concept of prophecy or foresight. Like Ralph and Piggy, Simon's greatest problem was the fact that his better qualities were not sufficiently developed, and those around him could not appreciate them for their own sake.

Explain the differences in men and women as both victims and offenders in terms of deviance and crime. Are the rates of victimization and crime...

In general, men are far more likely to commit crimes than women. Men constitute 98 percent of those arrested in the United States for rape and over 90 percent of those arrested for homicide. Males are also far more likely to be perpetrators of violent crimes than females. It is only in larceny-theft.and 51.3% embezzlement that we approach gender equality in criminal behavior. Similarly, in Canada, men are four times more likely to be arrested...

In general, men are far more likely to commit crimes than women. Men constitute 98 percent of those arrested in the United States for rape and over 90 percent of those arrested for homicide. Males are also far more likely to be perpetrators of violent crimes than females. It is only in larceny-theft.and 51.3% embezzlement that we approach gender equality in criminal behavior. Similarly, in Canada, men are four times more likely to be arrested for crimes than women and commit over 85 percent of felonies.

In terms of victimology, men are over twice as likely to be victims of homicide or assault then women, but are far less likely to be victims of rape, kidnapping, or criminal harassment (e.g. stalking).

Criminologists have attempted to explain these gender differences using various different models including evolutionary biology, social norms, and gender inequality. Evolutionary biologists argue that the history of the human race has predisposed men to violent and competitive behaviors and women to cooperative ones due to the needs of child rearing and the different demands of hunting and plant gathering. Next, women are socialized in North America to exhibit more self control and less aggression. Also it is theorized that traditionally female lifestyles provide less opportunity for criminal behavior. 

In what literary time period was the book Something Wicked This Way Comes written?

Something Wicked This Way Comes was written in 1962, which puts it near the end of modernism, or what is sometimes referred to as "late modernism." It also falls into the broad category of existentialism.

It should be noted that, while it ended up being a novel, Something Wicked This Way Comes was initially written as a screenplay, which makes it hard to categorize in literary terms.

Despite being grouped into these categories based on...

Something Wicked This Way Comes was written in 1962, which puts it near the end of modernism, or what is sometimes referred to as "late modernism." It also falls into the broad category of existentialism.

It should be noted that, while it ended up being a novel, Something Wicked This Way Comes was initially written as a screenplay, which makes it hard to categorize in literary terms.

Despite being grouped into these categories based on when it was written, Something Wicked This Way Comes doesn't easily fit the definition of modernism or existentialism. As a literary category, modernism is broadly defined by the author's desire to reject the classical rules of writing and produce something new or experimental. Something Wicked, on the other hand, is a fairly straightforward story told in a rather classical prosaic form. There is, however, one exception in which an entire chapter consists of a single sentence: "Nothing much else happened, all the rest of that day."

Given the fatalistic perspective of Will, Jim, and Will's father, the book also defies classical existentialism for the majority of the story. It is only towards the very end of the novel that the characters embrace their free-will and take control of their actions and circumstances.

Despite the heavy use of magic and other elements of fantasy common in modern and postmodern literature, Something Wicked is a very nostalgic story. Rather than rely on modern themes that were common in Bradbury's other stories, Something Wicked grapples with classic themes like friendship, coming of age, and the relationship between a father and son. For that reason, this story can be considered a mix of realism, modernism, and postmodernism.   

At the end of My Side of the Mountain did Sam's family stay with him?

In the book My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George, Sam’s family eventually came to stay with Sam. Although Sam spent much time alone in the wilderness, his family travelled to the wilderness to live with Sam.

When Sam first saw his family arrive, he was elated. Sam was quite surprised to see his whole family in the wilderness. Initially, he thought that only his father returned to visit him, but he soon...

In the book My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George, Sam’s family eventually came to stay with Sam. Although Sam spent much time alone in the wilderness, his family travelled to the wilderness to live with Sam.

When Sam first saw his family arrive, he was elated. Sam was quite surprised to see his whole family in the wilderness. Initially, he thought that only his father returned to visit him, but he soon realized that his whole family was there. As the text reveals:

“Then I jumped in the air and laughed for joy. I recognized my four-year-old brother’s pleasure song. The family! Dad had brought the family!”

After reuniting with his family, Sam was shocked to discover that his family planned on living in the wilderness with him. Sam had become self-sufficient and accustomed to living without his family. However, his mother decided that they would live with Sam. As his mother states:

“When you are of age, you can go wherever you please. Until then, I still have to take care of you, according to all the law I can find.”

Thus, Sam’s family came and stayed with Sam in the wilderness. Although Sam lived independently for many months, his family eventually came to join him.

In Chapter 19 of The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, what are good quotes that use literary devices to help characterize Bilbo?

Chapter 19 of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbitconcludes one of the most influential fantasy stories of all time. As such, we can expect to find some significant indications that the formerly prudish and meek hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, has matured significantly (one cannot emerge triumphant from encounters with fire-breathing dragons without getting a boost in self-esteem, after all). Below, you'll find some quotes from the chapter that use literary devices to show Bilbo's growth as a...

Chapter 19 of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit concludes one of the most influential fantasy stories of all time. As such, we can expect to find some significant indications that the formerly prudish and meek hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, has matured significantly (one cannot emerge triumphant from encounters with fire-breathing dragons without getting a boost in self-esteem, after all). Below, you'll find some quotes from the chapter that use literary devices to show Bilbo's growth as a character.

"'But our back is to legends and we are coming home'" (page 282). In this quote, Bilbo uses a mild form of personification with the word "legends." Though legends are an abstract concept, Bilbo references them here as if they were a physical, geographical location on a map. He does so in order to illustrate the fantastic places he has been to and the incredible adventures he has been through. By marking "legends" as a physical place on the map, Bilbo efficiently describes the mythic qualities of his quest. It also suggests that Bilbo has become a stronger, more confident individual, as he's gone from hiding in his kitchen to participating in legendary adventures.

"If Balin noticed that Mr. Baggins' waistcoat was more extensive... Bilbo also noticed Balin's beard was several inches longer..." (page 286). In this phrase, Tolkien uses a mild form of euphemism to describe the aging process of his characters. Rather than saying that Bilbo and Balin were getting older, he alludes to Bilbo's expanding girth by referencing a more generous waistcoat, while he takes note of Balin's more abundant facial hair. By doing so, he uses gentle phrases to illustrate a process that tends to make some folks uncomfortable (i.e., getting older and fatter). However, it's worth noting that Mr. Baggins' waistcoat size also lets us know that Bilbo has gotten quite rich, as his prosperity has provided him with plenty of exquisite food. Thus, we're given a subtle insight into the development of Bilbo's character.

List three of the legal rulings that ended segregation in the United States.

There were several rulings that ended segregation in the United States. One of these rulings occurred in 1946. It was the case of Morgan v Virginia. This Supreme Court ruling said it was illegal to segregate on buses that crossed state lines. Another Supreme Court ruling that ended segregation was Norris v Alabama. In this ruling, the Supreme Court said it was illegal to exclude African-Americans from being considered for serving on juries.

...

There were several rulings that ended segregation in the United States. One of these rulings occurred in 1946. It was the case of Morgan v Virginia. This Supreme Court ruling said it was illegal to segregate on buses that crossed state lines. Another Supreme Court ruling that ended segregation was Norris v Alabama. In this ruling, the Supreme Court said it was illegal to exclude African-Americans from being considered for serving on juries.

One of the most famous cases that ended segregation was Brown v The Board of Education. In this case, the father of Linda Brown sued because his daughter couldn’t go to the same school as other kids who lived in her neighborhood. Linda Brown was African-American and had to attend a school for African-Americans. The Supreme Court ruled that separate but equal schools were not legal in the United States. This led to a series of desegregation cases throughout the country, at first in the South and then in the North. These were three cases that ended some aspect of segregation in our country.

What is the similarity between the H.D. poems "Oread" and "The Pool"?

One major similarity between H.D.'s two poems "Oread" and "The Pool" is that both pieces involve a speaker actively engaging with the natural world, specifically with bodies of water. In "The Pool," we get the sense of a speaker either contemplating the nature of a pool of water itself ("What are you - banded one?" (5)), or something lying within a pool of water. In "Oread," we encounter a speaker forcefully addressing the tumultuous waves...

One major similarity between H.D.'s two poems "Oread" and "The Pool" is that both pieces involve a speaker actively engaging with the natural world, specifically with bodies of water. In "The Pool," we get the sense of a speaker either contemplating the nature of a pool of water itself ("What are you - banded one?" (5)), or something lying within a pool of water. In "Oread," we encounter a speaker forcefully addressing the tumultuous waves of an ocean, comparing them to falling pine trees. In both poems, it seems like the speaker is engaging with and defining bodies of water in some fashion. 

The major difference between the two poems is tone. While "Oread" has a forceful quality that implies the speaker is actively controlling a tempestuous sea, "The Pool" is quieter and more contemplative, and, in some ways, more unsettling. That opening question "Are you alive?" (1) brings to mind the image of a corpse, and so the poem's quiet interrogation of its subject is much more menacing than the exuberant action of "Oread."