The topic can be proposed by the writer Movie Review - 2

The topic can be proposed by the writer - Movie Review Example voices of peasants, students, political prisoners, and revolutionaries as they seek to air their grievances after the death of Mao Zedung (Lyman Film). Numerous student movements and party crackdown at Tiananmen Square defined resistance against the values of communism in China during this period. The film shows the dramatic flowering of the arts by campus students. Moreover, the civil movements resisted the inefficiencies of the Cultural Revolution and advocated for democratic reforms (Lyman Film). Clearly, the film defines China under Deng Xiaoping’s leadership. According to the film, China experienced fundamental economic and social changes within a controlled political environment established by the Communist party (Lyman Film). The Chinese government allowed its citizens to present their grievances but suppressed their quest to criticize the Communist Party. Moreover, China made peace with the Soviet Union when Mikhail Gorbachev visited Beijing (Lyman Film). The film adopts a clear footage, pictures, and references to the Chinese citizens who drove and witnessed the transformation. The radical redistribution of communal land and the definition of China as a special economic zone reflected the transformation in China. The film shows how China began to attract foreign direct investments from Japan and Hong Kong defining its economic transformation. The film shows the signing of an agreement by British and Chinese leaders that implied Chinese dominance over Hong Kong ( Lyman Film). Ideally, the film is the third part of a â€Å"China: A Century of Revolution† trilogy. Indeed, just like the previous parts of this trilogy, the film, â€Å"3 Born under the Red Flag 1976 1997† runs for 120 minutes (Lyman Film). The film defines a unique economic transformation of a nation. Indeed, it depicts modern China’s epic journey that defined its pursuit of economic growth and political control under the Communist Party. The narration introduces first hand experiences of the

Lower middle class Essay Example for Free

Lower middle class Essay This passage is an extract from M.T. Anderson’s dystopian novel of consumerism and corporate America. The passage is a dialogue between two key characters, Titus and Violet, who each represent contrasting views of the cyber mentality and advertising control. Unlike the passage the novel depicts humanities descent into a decaying society which has no redemption. This passage opens with a short, sharp dialogue between two characters, no names are mentioned and we really don’t know who they are. Yet we sense there must be a bond between them because of the acquiescence of the second character (eg. â€Å"I did†, â€Å"I listened†). We realise that the â€Å"chat† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97) is between the two key characters, Titus and Violet, on their visit to a mall. Clearly the narrator is also the protagonist, Titus, teenager from an upper middle class family, who for the most part is content with his consumer lifestyle. In this conversation Violet is forcing him to question and â€Å"resist the feed† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97) but he is clearly too entrenched within the program to resist. Although he helps her create wild consumer profiles while at the mall, his background helps him resist her strong push to break away from â€Å"those† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97) people. Titus is brainwashed to accept the trademark marketing of the feed because he was â€Å"chipped† as an infant. Although he appears compliant in this passage, it is obvious that he is only doing it to please Violet, â€Å"alright†¦ok† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97). Just like in the rest of the novel Titus is blind to Violet’s urgency in escaping the feed. It is clear he is unaware of the environmental disasters that are happening around him globally and as the passage suggests he is prepared to accept the status quo and conform because in his words â€Å"that’s the feed so what† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97). He is so oblivious of the dangers around him, he doesn’t even realise that her resistance is causing her slow death. The â€Å"she† in the passage, is obviously Violet. She is the one directing and controlling the dialog between the two teenagers. It is clear that she has a sense of desperation and perhaps paranoia, because she recognizes that they are watching us â€Å"right now† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97). Her ramblings sound ridiculous to Titus despite the fact that he does exactly as she says. Violet’s plan in this passage is to resist the feed by tricking them into thinking that she has a wide and random assortment of interests in advertising. The reader is reminded that Violet is not a mainstream teenager, she has been raised by an eccentric parent and was home schooled. Making her different to Titus and his friends, who got their implant at infancy she received hers at the age of seven. Violet views the feed negatively, different from Titus and his friends, perhaps because she comes from a lower middle class background. Anderson creates her to challenge the system she is living under, as she says in the passage â€Å"they tried to figure out who you are†¦make you conform†¦it’s like a spiral† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97). Her disgust and her rebellion against this social norm that everybody else accepts will eventually shut down her body parts and because her father cannot afford repairs, her body will go into malfunction and she will eventually die. In fact the book ends with Violet dying and the feed saying â€Å"everything must go† (Anderson, 2002). This death creates a voice from Anderson suggesting a society of apathy and hopelessness. The narrative of this passage positions the reader to take sides. It is unclear just how contrasting the belief of the two characters is. The narrator is clearly submissive and the reader is eager to find out why. Why does he do as she asks? Why does he listen as she asks? One is keen to find out the reason behind her pushiness. The passage opens with â€Å"she said† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97) and in the first two lines, he â€Å"looks around† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97) as she tells him to, he â€Å"listens† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97) as she instructs him, but it is clear at the end of the passage that he does not necessarily agree, as he says â€Å"so what?† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97). The mall is used symbolically and metaphorically to represent the social demographic of these two teenager’s lives and it is here that Violet is trying to convince Titus to distance himself from the tentacles of the cyber octopus that is the feed. In fact, the telepathic closeness that this feednet creates between people is obvious in the first couple of lines of this passage, where one character agrees with the suggestions of the other. The passage is structured with a combination of sentence lengths, it opens and closes with very short sharp phrases, almost building up into a vortex of explanation. In the middle of the passage sentences are longer because there is so much more to explain, making meaning difficult to understand. There is a distinct pattern of alliteration used as a force of reinforcement, â€Å"she said† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97) and â€Å"wanting, watching, waiting† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97). The tone of the passage begins with a casual conversation between two teenagers and develops almost into a political rhetoric. The conversation is almost childlike, simple, about â€Å"toys† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97), about â€Å"things† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97), about â€Å"games† (Anderson, 2002, pp. 96-97), hiding a more sinister and psychological message. The passage replicates Anderson’s overall view of society. He uses the language of youth culture, presenting the novel/passage in the first person narrative through Titus who is often unlikeable and unpredictable. In the passage the reader is positioned to accept Violet’s (her) view of the world because we cannot trust Titus’ biased point of view. Nevertheless, Anderson has created authentic adolescent voices, sometimes humorous but always honest. Titus represents the apathetic accepting team and Violet of course incites the reader’s admiration for her challenge to a society, which is overlooking the dangers of overpowering consumerism. We cannot fail but see Anderson’s satire through Violet’s voice and his criticism of wealth, status, consumerism, corporate America, messaged advertising, conglomerates, and a society falling into a universal disaster of its own making. The passage is short but captures the essence of Anderson’s meaning and criticism of societies obsessed with consumerism.

Ellen Foster Essay -- Essays Papers

Ellen Foster "When I was little I would think of ways to kill my daddy." [P.1], says eleven-year-old Ellen. Thus the young narrator begins her life-story, in the process painting an extraordinary self-portrait. â€Å"Ellen Foster† is a powerful story of a young girl growing up in a burdensome world. As one reads this work presented by Kaye Gibbons, a chill runs down their back. Ellen, the main character is faced with a hard life dealing with endless losses, with the deaths of both her parents and her grandmother being included. Why would one get a chill you wonder? This individual has thoughts and feelings that many have never experienced and cannot express. Ellen is merely a child no older then the age of ten but if not knowing this fact, readers would think she was an aged woman who has lived their life sufficiently. In this book Ellen refers to herself many times as "Old Ellen." I believe that she uses this name because throughout the book Ellen is always taking care of someone beside herself: her colored friend, Starletta, and her dying mother. Ellen's parents die, and her grandmother dies, but this isn’t really a great loss for Ellen. Her mother was a frail and sick woman whom Ellen was constantly protecting from her drunken father. For a time, Ellen’s Art teacher, Julia, and her husband move Ellen into their home. She feels, for the first time, that she is apart of a loving family. She describes, in the book, â€Å" the three of us could pass for a family on the street...

The City and Its Workers

Chapter 19 The city and its workers (1870-1900) Jump Start: March 14, 2011 As the 19th century closes and the 20th century begins, different technologies help spur the many changes taking place. What symbolism can we take from the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge? It is a marker of time periods (separates this time period from that time period) March 16,2011Why did some immigrant groups decide to stay in the United States after arriving, while other groups only stayed long enough to make some money? March 17, 2011 What were Jim Crow Laws? Give an example of how they were applied. March 18, 2011 Who was Jacob Riis? What did he produce? Why was it important? March 21,2011 Explain the new emerging class systems, which were based upon occupation. White collar blue collar- largely unskilled( jobs require more physical than intellectual) United states emerged as a major industrial power by the end of the 19th century * Large scale immigration, urbanization, and technological innovation help out great promise for future, even as these dramatic changes led to social dislocation, urban squalor, labor strife, and death. * Constructed between 1869-1883, the Brooklyn bridge stood as a testament to the wonders and horrors of America at the close of the nineteenth and opening of the twentieth century * Its construction cost the lives of wenty men and it was considered both a work of art and an engineering marvel upon completion The rise of the city * By the end of the nineteenth century, the emergence of the modern city represented the most dramatic demographic development in the united states * From New york to Chicago to Los Angeles, cities exploded in size, fed in part by the rapid pace of global migrations, especially from southern and eastern Europe * BEFORE 1880 immigrants came from the northern and western Europe * AFTER 1880 immigrants came from southern and eastern Europe.Racism and the cry for Immigration Restriction * Workers often found themselves pitted again st one another, with ethnic rivalry dividing the skilled northern European workers and the unskilled southern and eastern European workers. * Even among educated people of the nineteenth century, the ethnic and religious differences of immigrants were perceived as racial characteristics. * The idea of social Darwinism further supported â€Å"white† society’s claim to racial superiority. African Americans in the North African Americans began their migration north in search of equality * In an effort to leave behind the segregation and Jim Crow Laws of the south, they found jobs on the bottoms rung of the occupational ladder. Asian Americans * Asians= scapegoats of the changing economy A new king of racism * Many Americans saw newcomers as impossible to assimilate * Trade Unions and old-stock aristocrats criticized America’s Immigration policies * A literacy test for new European immigrants passed through Congress but was vetoed by President Grover Cleveland.Jacob Riis * His How the Other Half Lives (1890) graphically showed the poverty of the ghettos * The nouveaux riches (new rich) provided the grandeur and splendor of the age with their magnificent mansions and ostentatious costume parties. * With 1% of the populations owning more than half of the property in America. Plessy v. Fergoson -Separate but equal is ok Brown v. Board of education Topeka, Kansas * Separate but equal is unconstitutional With industrialization and urbanization came both great poverty and great wealth within the cities. * In the outer circles of the cites, people had more money, lived in single family homes, and commuted to work on streetcars. What types of workers were there? * Workers in American industry in the late nineteenth century worked in a variety of settings , ranging from: * Skilled occupations in factories * Piecework that was contracted within the home * construction White-collar office work. * Backbone of the American labor force were the common labor ers. * These â€Å"human machines† stood at the bottom of the country’s economic ladder and generally am recent groups * At the opposite end of the labor spectrum were skilled craftsmen * Employers attempted to end the control that skilled works had ove their. work by bearjng slmalled oarts andtrokcadin the skiled workers with the unskilled * Women typically earned less money than their male counterparts, many oung worjubg men sought hear in dance halls, social clubs, and amusement park after exhausting. America’s diverse workers * Although such efficiencies meant that a greater variety of goods at lower * Boys who lived in the cites some as young as 6 years old, plied their trades as bootblacks and newsboys; Many of the boys were homeless, orphaned or cast off by their families The family economy : women and children * In new york city, the children’s aid societiey tried to better the situation of these, the city’s youngest works=er

Words of Encouragement

Patrick Draughn Words of Encouragment From the outgoing class of 2012 to the incoming class of 2013 we would like to say congratulations to you all, you made it. It has been a long and the finish line is gradually approaching. This upcoming year will be the best and worst time s of your high school experience. There will be times when you can’t wait to get to school to show off your new outfit or to attend homecoming week. There will also be times where school is just not where you want to be today and your body will go but your mind stays at home.These times will come and these times will go but the one thing you must remember is not to forget why you come to school. Do not forget why you are attending high school. Don’t forget about the test on Monday because you were out with your friends this weekend and didn’t feel like studying. Don’t forget about the paper due next week because you were too busy deciding what to get Brittany or bobby something for t heir birthday. Don’t be late to class because you couldn’t decide what to wear with your fresh outfit or what accessories will match your dress.No this is not the time to slack off now is not the time to conduct the infamous virus known as senioritis. Now is the time to focus on your studies, guide your way through the path to graduation, and if you decide start figuring out what college you would like to attend if you haven’t decided already. To the prospective college students now is definitely not the time to get behind on your studies but to get a study plan started. Trust me it will be a necessity. I know there will be times where you feel like giving up and wanting to quit.I’ve been there, I’ve been up all night typing papers and having to get up at the crack of dawn the next morning for class. I’ve been beaten up in practice and having to come home to chores, siblings, and homework. I had the job where you had to work on weekends and homework was due Mondays instead of Wednesdays. I never said the road to graduation was easy but I promise it will be worth it, and after that road ends many more roads will begin to form. It’s always wise to plan your next destination and whether it may be college, military, workforce, or etc. make sure you’re making the right decision for yourself and no one else.You have control of your own destiny. I remember my senior year I was commander of the entire ROTC at my high school, captain of two sports teams, and I also had a job. Although there were times when giving up felt like the easiest thing to do I had to sit back and think was it the RIGHT thing to do. I received many rewards; honor roll, medals, even a state championship ring so it’s say to say I have accomplished many things throughout my high school experience but my biggest achievement was walking across that stage looking my principal in his face and shaking his hand while he gave me my diploma.I k new that I was finally finished everything was complete. I remember sitting down with my grandmother who is is a big influence on my life. We sat down and talked about college she told me how no one in our family has ever been to college and if I decided to go id be the very first. That was more than enough motivation for me to choose the right path for me so hopefully the right path for you students will be easy as well. In choosing your path I want you to remember one thing that my grandmother always told me.My grandmother was a very wise woman and although we had many conversations I never remember them all but I do remember that specific conversation over the rest because she told me something that has been engraved in my mind ever since that night. She said people can take a lot of things from you money, cars, clothes, homes, even your life; but there’s one thing no one will never be able to take from you and that’s your education. So to the upcoming senior class of 2013 I say good luck congratulations and may your road or path guide you to your destiny.

Reasons for Women’s Vanity Essay Example

Reasons for Women’s Vanity Essay Example Reasons for Women’s Vanity Essay Reasons for Women’s Vanity Essay This seems to be the trend nowadays because of the role of women in the professional field which is continuously changing. Efforts to dismantle former barriers to opportunities and old misconceptions based on gender stereotypes give way to more objective and unbiased view of professional women. Yet the adage that women have to work twice as hard and perform twice as better than men in order to be accorded the same recognition and respect still holds true in several occasions.Just recently, academes and professionals alike observed the considerably low number of women relative to men in the areas of sciences and engineering. Studies regarding this disparity have been conducted, theories have been proposed. And in the end, everything is traced back to the old issues that have been plaguing aspiring and ambitious women. These issues emphasize women’s gender as a debilitating attribute not because women are inherently inferior but because the once male-dominated structural systems of education and workplace viewed them as such.Nevertheless, along with the realization of the remaining subtle inequality towards women comes the effort to finally close the gap and hence tap the promising talent and skills that women have to offer in the field of science and engineering. Women Power During Tough Times After World War II, particularly during the 60s and 70s, the women’s movement was revitalized. The National Organization for Women was formed in 1966. This organization fought not just for the equality of men and women in the fields of employment, education and others, but also a national change in gender thinking and gender roles.They lobbied and were successful in enacting laws that prohibited discrimination of any form to women in any field, especially that of education, employment and credit access. This movement coincided with the Afro-American race revolution that advocates the equality among men and women, with no discrimination between races or ethnic origins (Women’s Movement 386; Women’s Rights Movement 109; Feminism and Women’s Studies The Women’s Movement). In addition, the sexual revolution of the 60s fought for women’s reproductive rights.The Pill became available during this time. The Pill, though, wasn’t originally sold to single women, but was only sold to married women. There were issues of safe, accessible, and affordable contraception and women also voiced out these concerns (Dellolio ch 10; Feminism and Women’s Studies The Women’s Movement). In his administration, President Roosevelt created multiple programs to give relief, create jobs, and stimulate economic recovery for the U. S and labeled these programs alphabet soup as well as the New Deal (Gupta and Lee 1996 New Deal Programs).Roosevelt’s New Deal also refers to the first biggest government investment in cultural development (Adams and Goldbard 1986 New Deal Cultural Programs). He introduced this program in the 1930s in the hope of restoring cultural advancement in the country, and at the same time to ease unemployment during the Great Depression. One New Deal Program was the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) that funded environmental conservation work programs for 8,500 women. Many of his programs antagonized laissez faire groups, who believed that the market should freely operate on its own so that they will fully progress, without government intrusions.

Song of Soloman - Self Seeker essays

Song of Soloman - Self Seeker essays As shown in the novel Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison through the main character Milkman, some people spend their entire lives trying to figure out who they are. In Milkmans search for self-discovery, his thoughts and beliefs are clouded by societys expectations. The impact that civilization has on the way he acts or thinks is profound. By ignoring the strong hold of humanity and going on a quest for distinctiveness, he discovered the true implications of life. The discovery of the fact that what was once believed to be the impossible, is in actuality a capability if you believe it to be so, is empowering. This enlightenment is shown through Milkman at then end of the book. For the majority of Milkmans life, he has done what other people told him to do, and became what other people wanted him to become. However, he slowly comes to the realization that he has been letting all the stories he has heard shape his character. He immediately embarks on a trip to find out the truth about his past for himself, and accidentally finds out the truth about life. Milkman, who once let his past and the stories of the people around him create his character, rebirths into his own self after learning that his grandfather could fly. From an early age, Milkmans dreams have been placed out of reach by society. Like many children Milkmans age, Milkman had a curiosity with the thought of flying For Milkman, flying was a method of escape in which he could flee from his problems. He wanted to leave behind the people who labeled him from his previous actions. Morrison writes, When the little boy discovered at four, the same thing/ Mr. Smith had learned earlier- that only airplanes/ and birds could fly- he lost all interest in himself (Morrison pg 9) This quote shows how society can oppress peoples ideas and force them to conformity. Since Milkman thought that flight was the only was to ref ...