Ronald Takaki a Different Mirr - 936 Words

American identity has been created by many events throughout the course of history. This country was founded on the clashing and mixing of many different cultures and lifestyles. One of the most important periods of time for this country was during the period of conflict between Americans and Native Americans over land rights. Americans had an idea of manifest destiny and that this land was theirs for the taking. The Americans were going to walk through anyone who opposed them in this quest for land. The treatment of the Indians during this time period was harsh, cruel, and violent to say the least. It is in this treatment that Americans came to view the Indians as a racialized other and where race began to matter. This early†¦show more content†¦They proceeded to kill thousands and thousands of Indians in the result of progress. Indians had become a racial minority on lands they had occupied for thousands of years (Takaki, 104). The thinking of early Americans lead to the culture that we have today which is purely based on race. The early Americans created an identity for the Indians, they were thought as a racialized other. They were seen as being uncivilized and a weaker people. This created an us versus them appeal to the situation. The English could not come over here and live together with the Indians. The Indians were a group that was unholy and beneath them. They had to progress their culture and their beliefs and mark out that of their opponents. Americans sought to cleanse the land of these savage beasts and further their own society. Their view of the Indians as a racialized other is what dominates our society today. Today were are still impaled by the thinking of men centuries ago that there is a us versus them culture. Race still in this country is still the top factor in life. Riots and violence are fought over racial issues. The thinking that people in this land should be divided by color and class is based on what ha ppened with the Indians. The actions taken in dealing with the Indians is what lead to the development of our culture

How do Bennett and Chaucer present women in ‘The Outside Dog’ in ‘Talking Heads 2’ Free Essays

The main female characters in these two texts are Alison in ‘The Miller’s Tale’ and Marjory in ‘The Outside Dog. ‘ However, it may also be possible to consider the prominent feminine qualities in Absolon, and also Tina, the dog in the Talking Heads 2’ monologue. It can also be said that Stuart’s victims are presumably female. We will write a custom essay sample on How do Bennett and Chaucer present women in ‘The Outside Dog’ in ‘Talking Heads 2’? or any similar topic only for you Order Now Alison, in ‘The Miller’s Tale’ is largely presented as the stereotypical young wife, which follows the genre of the tale itself. The Miller says, ‘fair was this yonge wyf,’ so the reader immediately sees her as the attractive and beautiful stereotype, which is intensified by the fact that the Miller does not give her a name until line 258, effectively objectifying her as a character, giving her no individuality. Also, the repetition of this title reduces her own personality and makes her seem almost like the property of her husband. Alison’s two-dimensional image is furthered by Chaucer’s frequent references to colour, in this case, black and white. The colours usually describe what she is wearing, for example, ‘a bamcloth eek as whit as morne milk’ and ‘of col-black silk. ‘ Chaucer sees Alison, and possible women in general, as a contrast of black and white; the white of her apron is contrasted to the black of her hair and eyebrows. White is traditionally seen as a pure colour and black’s a dark, mysterious colour. This shows that on the surface Alison may be beautiful, but she is not so pure and loyal to her husband at the end on the tale. Chaucer may be generalising this to all women, suggesting they can ‘put on a front’ and be something they are not. However, the simple, plain nature of the two colours presents her as a two-dimensional character with little depth. In the same way, the character of Marjory is presented as being quite weak and obedient towards her husband. It is obvious to Marjory that her husband is guilty for the murders, but she does not say anything to the police, and she hides his slacks, which would have been crucial evidence, ‘I sneaked in and got a bin bag and fetched them inside. Marjory seems quite a passive wife, and accepts what her husband tells her, often without questioning him directly, ‘He took the van over to Rawdon last night. Said it was Rawdon anyway. ‘ The distrust here is evident, but as she is not presented as a particularly strong character, this distrust is not voiced, or acted upon. This may suggest generally that women are the weaker, more passive sex, and should be obedient towards their husbands, in the same way that Marjory is. Marjory’s obsession with cleaning says a lot about the ‘role of women’ in the home. She is portrayed as the hardworking housewife, which seems to be her main and most important role, ‘the police said not to touch anything but I wasn’t having the place left upset like that so I set to and cleaned down†¦ ‘ This is also emphasised by the way Stuart considers the role of his wife. He says, ‘You’re lucky I do it at all’ when talking about washing his own clothes. Like in ‘The Miller’s tale,’ the female character is presented as the typical wife, However, Marjory is the stereotypical obedient wife. The physical description and physiognomy of the character of Alison is extensive, and Chaucer seems to be parodying poetic portraits of the subjects of courtly lovers. He uses similes to compare Alison to the domestic and everyday where the courtly poets would have chosen exotic and valuable comparisons. For example, she is repeatedly compared to animals, such as ‘Winsinge she was, as is a joly colt. ‘ These descriptions, although they sometimes express positive qualities, such as her liveliness, may also portray a negative image of the ‘yonge wyf. ‘ For example, it may be inferred here that she is quite immature. Alison’s outward appearance is concentrated on, and as a reader we do not learn a lot about her personality and characteristics, suggesting that she has little more than her looks in her favour. For example, ‘as any wezele hir body gent and small. ‘ This portrays Alison as being slim bodied in appearance. Chaucer presents women as being an object of sexuality, and the tale may be predominantly for the amusement of a male audience. This compares to Marjory and Stuart in ‘The Outside Dog’ as Marjory is used as a sexual ‘object’ by her husband, seen in the tome and language used, ‘he wakes me up and he has another go. The tone here is quite dismissive, with no feeling involved, but Marjory also seems quite resentful of her husband, as she is treated like it is her duty as a wife to obey her husband. She does not refer to Stuart by name, and by repeatedly using the pronoun ‘he,’ she shows him no recognition, intensifying her resentment of her husband, and the distant relationship the two characters have. Chaucer uses strong adjectives when presenting Alison as a sly lover, she is said to have a ‘likerous ye’ portraying her as being provocative and sexy. She is also described as a ‘wench’, which is a very uncomplimentary term for a woman. This contrasts to her appearance and wealth. Her willingness to commit adultery is seen in her encounter with Nicholas and at first her seeming unwillingness to engage in any such behaviour with Nicholas, ‘I will nat kisse thee, by my fey! ‘ However, within five lines of the tale, she has ‘changed her mind’ and has been persuaded by Nicholas. This portrays her as having few morals or determination, and almost ‘teasing Nicholas. ‘ Overall, the character of Alison is not one in which a reader can sympathise with, as she is largely portrayed in a negative light. However, I feel that a reader is more likely to sympathise with the character of Marjory, as Bennett does not portray her as being a particularly ‘bad’ or blameworthy character, and we may feel sorry for her because of the treatment she encounters by her husband. It also works in her favour that the text is written in the form of a monologue, therefore the reader is essentially encouraged to relate to the character, as she describes events from her own point of view. However, like with Alison, as a reader we do not really agree with her actions, and may feel that she should be more of an active, rather than passive character. The character of Absolon is given very feminine qualities by Chaucer. His description is very precise and extensive in detail, for example, ‘crul was his heer, and as the gold it shoon. ‘ His description is rather unusual for a man, and strictly contrasts to the strong, manly portrait of the Miller. Absolon’s character is largely mocked and treated as a figure of fun due to these effeminate qualities that he possesses. This again portrays femininity in a bad light, diminishing the importance and status of women in society, particularly in the period in which Chaucer wrote the tales. The fact that the dog in Bennett’s monologue is female may also portray women in a negative manner. Dogs are typically viewed as being obedient towards their ‘masters. ‘ This suggests that the master-servant relationship should be extended to the husband and wife, as Marjory is in competition with Tina for her husband’s recognition, ‘That dog’s not inside is she? ‘ The victims in this monologue are also women, which again presents women as being ‘helpless victims’ and open to abuse from men. Again, the underlying theme of the passive nature of women is explored, as Stuart takes advantage of this. How to cite How do Bennett and Chaucer present women in ‘The Outside Dog’ in ‘Talking Heads 2’?, Papers

Marijuana Essay Paper Example For Students

Marijuana Essay Paper Marijuana is a drug that has been used for thousands of years. Marijuana wasused in ancient China, as far back as 5000 B.C. The Incans and Mayans usedmarijuana in religious ceremonies. Marijuana also has roots in this country. TheIndians of the plains used marijuana in their peace pipes as a sign offriendship and peace. After prohibition there was a sharp rise in the use ofthis drug in America, but after prohibition was repealed the use went down. Inthe 1920s and 30s the use of marijuana was primarily by the minorities. Inthe 1930s it was common belief that minorities where inhumane and violent,and people believed that marijuana was part of the cause. Then in 1937 marijuanawas declared illegal. This was done with no research. It was just assumed thatmarijuana caused psychological dependence, provoked violent crimes, and led toinsanity. People were told that marijuana would make people want to take a gun,knife, or weapon and kill someone. Prohibition on marijuana was established dueto a misunderstanding. Prohibition has not achieved its goal, and goes againstan American philosophical approach. I believe it is time to look at the factsand benefits, and to reconsider marijuana prohibition. Marijuana has a positiveeffect on patients with certain diseases. AIDS victims are sometimes prescribedmarijuana to help increase their appetite. Victims of AIDS do not want to eatand thus they do not get the nutrients they need. Marijuana helps them to eat,and thus enabling them to get the nutrients they need. Marijuana also helps toincrease the appetite in cancer patients. People who get glaucomas also usemarijuana. It helps to ease the pain for many glaucoma patients. Marijuana isvery helpful to these people. This is just one example of why marijuanaprohibition should be reconsidered. When comparing tobacco, alcohol, andmarijuana, there is evidence that marijuana has the least addictive power. During the Nixon administration, the government concluded that marijuana did notposses any physically addictive traits. The University of California did a studyon the power of heroin, cocaine, nicotine, alcohol, caffeine, and marijuana interms of power to induce psychological dependence. Nicotine was first, marijuanalast. Marijuana was deemed least likely to produce signs of withdrawal uponquitting, and last in terms of producing a physical tolerance to the drug. Marijuana is less addictive than two legal drugs in this country. This does notmake sense, and so prohibition should be reconsidered. The United Statesgovernment spends too much money each year on prohibition of marijuana. The DEAspends 1.3 billion fighting marijuana, and that does not include thecost of prison management and construction. Overall, the government has spent 30billion of the taxpayers money. Of felons convicted of crimes related tomarijuana possession, production and trafficking through 1980-1992, 58% had noprior arrest history, 91% were not identified as organizers, leaders, managersor supervisors of drug-oriented organizations, and 92% did not own or posses agun. In other words, the government is spending millions of dollars puttingnon-violent otherwise law-abiding citizens in jail and making the taxpayers paythe bill. The amount of money spent on war on marijuana is unreasonable. This is not worth it, and is another reason why prohibition of marijuana shouldbe reconsidered. The original motivation for marijuana prohibition was based ona lack of knowledge, and should be reconsidered. Even after research showing thedrug to be much better than originally thought, people will not change theirview on the matter. And so billions of dollars will continually be spent onpersecution and enforcement, while is does not change anything. The patterns donot change and the use does not decline, and the government will not changetheir view on the subject. The prohibition on marijuana is costly, does notwork, and should be reconsidered. It is time that we see and end to theprohibition of marijuana. .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a , .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a .postImageUrl , .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a , .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a:hover , .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a:visited , .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a:active { border:0!important; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a:active , .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u40e41b55257934ec9e29109768e0e42a:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Child care and observation EssayEnvironment