House of Usher Essay

The fall of the House of Usher is a menacing story filled with fantastic imagery. Edgar Allen Poe is a genius at the craft and it is no surprise that this story is considered one of his masterpieces. Poe carefully chooses his vocabulary, making each word create a dark and spooky image. Through exposition, Poe spends a great deal at describing the surroundings through the narrator. Also, Poe uses symbolism to his advantage by creating a house that mirrors a main character, Roderick Usher. Edgar Allen Poe uses imagery to further the plot, of The Fall of the House of Usher by utilizing these three avenues; vocabulary, exposition, and symbolism. In the first paragraph alone, the reader has entered a world full of doom and despair. Poe uses words to paint a picture such as in the first sentence, â€Å"During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in autumn†¦Ã¢â‚¬  paints a portrait of cold and despair as indicated by the cold of autumn and using the word â€Å"soundless† indicates that he is alone. While some may think that Poe’s word choice may seem too overdone and cartoon-like, Maurice Beebe of the University of California Press talks about how this vocabulary is needed to create a classic Poe universe. J. O.  Baily of the University of North Carolina writes, â€Å"Poe intended the story to do what it does, to arouse a sense of unearthly terror that springs from a vague source, hinted and mysterious. † This is all found within Poe’s vocabulary. Poe uses dark words such as â€Å"phantasmagoric† meaning a shifting series of phantasms, illusions, or deceptive appearances, as in a dream or as created by the imagination, and not found in everyday language. Poe spends a great deal of time describing the House of Usher, but does he spend too much time? The answer is no if you are thinking in terms of him building exposition. Exposition is defined by DiYanni as â€Å"where plot begins and provides background information we need to make sense of the action, that describes the setting, and that introduces major characters. † Poe does just this, in extensive detail. Poe spends what may seem as an absurd amount of time describing the house and the tarn in the beginning of the story but you later can see how it all relates. The description of the house is in all actuality is a description of the main character, Roderick Usher. Poe writes carefully about coming upon the House of Usher, about the tarn located near he house, and even about the letter that was written to the narrator so we know many things upon the beginning of the story. As stated before, Poe wrote of the House of Usher relating to the character, Roderick Usher. This is a grand use of symbolism, for example, Poe writes about the big, dark windows of the house and this can be related to the big empty eyes of Usher. Not only does the house symbolize Roderick but Baily of Duke University Press claims that if Poe was written into the story he would not be the narrator; he would Roderick Usher himself. Knowing this is the biggest symbol of all, for Roderick Usher is a symbol of the one and only Edgar Allen Poe. Kendall goes even further to explain that Roderick and his sister are actually vampires. That both brother and sister are suffering from anemia and are both very sickly symbolizes a vampirism theme to the story. â€Å"During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Poe wrote a massive story that invoked many dark themes. Together through vocabulary, exposition, and symbolism, Edgar Allen Poe creates a wonderful scene of gloomy imagery and uses it to further his plot. Reference http://www.poedecoder.com/essays/usher/

Problems with Education Essay

What is it that’s making our nation suffer from excelling in education? Not many would argue about the importance of excellence in education. Problems such as teacher attrition, lack of parent involvement, and teaching high-stakes testing may hinder progress in education. An education is an indispensable and essential tool, unfortunately, with all the jaded judgments; our students aren’t valuing or able to value their education. An Education can open the doors to opportunities that would have never been possible if it had not been for the knowledge and preparation that one received while in school. With the fluctuating economy and hesitant times, it is more important than ever for our nation’s children to receive the proper education and training that will allow them to acquire a good job and produce the revenue needed to live. Unfortunately, there are many problems facing our education system today, and several of them are having negative effects on the quality of the education our students are receiving. Would one feel comfortable fifty years from now, when the children who are victim of the disadvantages of teacher attrition, lack of parent involvement and a majority of their education being how to take a high stakes test, are running this nation? How soundly can one sleep knowing that their decisions on a bill deciphering how much of a pension someone will receive or what’s legal and what’s not is at stake? Should these problems be quietly swept under the rug and addressed again in another five years, or is it best bite the financial bullet and at the very least, acknowledge there is an issue? A serious problem that is attacking the education system in America is the alarming attrition rate of teachers. Only those not involved with education at all will argue that it is an undemanding profession; in actuality, it is a very demanding profession with an often overwhelming amount of pressure and responsibility tied to it. However, it can also be a very rewarding profession. Unfortunately, many teachers simply cannot overcome the immense responsibilities well enough to stick with the profession for any length of time. Jalongo and Heider (2006) present staggering statistics in their article, saying that forty-six percent of new teachers in this country quit teaching after five years or less, with that percentage growing to fifty percent in urban areas. Even more shocking is the fact that ninety percent of teachers who are hired in this country are replacements for teachers who have left teaching for some reason other than retirement (p. 379). There are many reasons that the rate of teachers leaving the profession is so high. Anhorn (2008) very concisely sums up some of the major problems in her article when she says, â€Å"Difficult work assignments, inadequate resources, isolation, role conflict, and reality shock are some top reasons for the horrendous attrition statistics with the widespread â€Å"sink or swim† attitude that is prevalent in so many schools† (p. 15). It is easy to see why the beginning teacher attrition rate is so high. There is simply so much to do these days, between extracurricular responsibilities and high-stakes testing, it is easy to get overwhelmed. In her article, Sitler (2007) sums it up quite nicely when she says, No one expects the first years of teaching to be easy. No one expects that Teaching assignments will never change. But no one expects either that One’s first years of teaching will be compromised by administrative Systems that make instability and disillusionment routine occurrences Rather than exceptions. (p. 22) If teachers received more support from the administration and less of the strong arm effect, educators wouldn’t be so timid in teaching and instead bring more value to the classroom. Many of us probably remember our parents being very involved with our education, whether they were part of the PTA or just asked about your grades and homework every day when you got home. Unfortunately, today, parental involvement seems to be waning. While there still is a good deal of involvement at the elementary level, middle school and high school, when children really need that parental guidance, it’s almost nonexistent. It is our responsibility to try to involve parents who seem hesitant and reluctant to be a part of their child’s education. No matter what the hesitation is from the parent, be it a language barrier,  fear of school itself, whatever might be causing a parent to be stand offish about their child’s education and being an active part of it, not only the teacher, but administration should use every opportunity to pull a parent in and allow them to become and active part in their child’s education. When parents are involved in education, teens typically have higher grade point averages, higher test scores on standardized and classroom assessments, enrollment in more rigorous academic courses, more classes passed, more credits earned toward graduation, and higher graduation rates. Parents are not performing their duties as first teacher to their kids in education. Many parents left their kids behind and keep putting the blame on the teachers due to their misunderstanding of the No Child Left Behind Act. These parents concerned are the ones who left their kids behind and not the schools; teachers are secondary to kids’ education. Unfortunately so many educators feel such pressure to prepare students for the TAKS test that they fail to ever demonstrate the relevance of what they are teaching. They fail to teach the items within the curriculum that are useful outside of the walls of the school. So, we have students who graduate and can solve quadratic equations, classify living organisms and distinguish between a plant and an animal cell but don’t know how to budget money, complete a financial aid form, solve a real-world problem, think for themselves, or apply the testing information beyond what was taught. I have heard people say the purpose of the exams is to make sure our students do not graduate before they know basics skills†¦ like Physics? Most of the arguments I hear come from people who have never even looked at the test; people who just blindly adhere to the regulations because it is a law. Which leads me to the most frustrating and most often argument I hear which is, â€Å"We need to hold students accountable because it is the law? † Well, there have been lots of bad laws over the years. Does anyone remember the Jim Crow laws? If as a country we were to have blindly followed these laws, then blacks and whites would still be segregated. There is no denying the fact that the problems mentioned, are not going to go away over night. They are major issues facing American education, and educators simply must do everything in our power to conquer them. An education is such a valuable and necessary tool, and we must do everything we can to get our students to value their education. I personally do believe there is hope for a positive change. Problems don’t fix themselves, and if admitting that we need help in going about the way our nation views the importance of education is what needs to be done, then it’s time to slap on the â€Å"HELLO MY NAME IS †¦Ã¢â‚¬  sticker and start being honest and start fixing the problems of teacher attrition, lack of parent involvement and teaching children how to take a state issued test. References Jalongo, M. R. , & Heider, K. (2006). Editorial teacher attrition: An issue of national concern. Early Childhood Education Journal, 33(6), 379-380. Anhorn, R. (2008). The profession that eats its young. The Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin, 74(3), 15-26. Sitler, H. C. (2007). The lived experience of new teachers, or why should I stay in this profession? Phi Kappa Phi Forum, 87(4), 22.

Comic Violence in the Advertisement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Comic Violence in the Advertisement - Essay Example The case for displacement was made early on, wherein it was shown that it is a psychological determinant which is required to harness energies. It was given as a defense mechanism, which would actually redress the anxieties of the viewers, and help them appreciate reality in a better way. They endeavored to make a case advocating catharsis that this displacement helps ease things vis-Ã  -vis anger. This is incorrect because ironically, aggression itself is a venting-out mechanism and is unconsciously used by humans in response to an uncomforting stimulus. Now having a defense mechanism for a defense mechanism is just too perplexing for the cause of this simplistic thesis statement!Here is where the second issue of ‘anxiety’ comes in question. There are other defense mechanisms apart from displacements which are used by humans to put their anxieties to rest. Freud and other psychoanalysts have added since long to this list, and major mentions include sublimation, rationa lization, repression, regression, and actualization etc. Thus, giving total credit to ‘displacement’ as the sole caretaker of anxiety as an emotion is scientifically incorrect. Anxiety itself is not a psychological problem, and many specialists say that it is normal and recommended to have a bare minimum of it at given times. It is actually imminent whenever adrenaline is secreted, and hence its presence is unavoidable. However, the presentation does not appropriately study and tackle the incidence of anxiety itself, what causes it, what may be the remedies. It has been wrongly mixed with ‘frustration’ and ‘fear’ that is prevalent these days after the 9/11 scenario.‘Slapstick humor’ has sadly been confused with ‘violence’ many times in their presentation. They are very different entities, and cannot and should not be psychologically put at par. Also, its link to likeness (or otherwise) of a brand has not been scientifi cally established in their study. There has been no research which can directly prove that one is the cause of the other on their part.

Topic is going to be given in the word file Essay

Topic is going to be given in the word file - Essay Example In the course of the last two centuries, the global national incomes have significantly increased resulting in exceptionally his living standards at least as compared to retrospective civilizations. The main reason behind this exponential increment in the quality of life can be attributed to among other things the efficiency in the extraction of energy from the environment. Humanity has achieved unprecedented level of efficacy owing to technological advancement, which makes it easy for people to easily convert raw resources into inputs. Various Geologic processes and atmospheric systems such as ecosystem and animal or human societies are inherently tied together through a series of transformational energy activities operating through a complex series of feedback mechanisms that allow them to be self-regulating. The process of energy transformation thus functions throughout the biosphere so that energy can be degraded and materials can be organized in hierarchical systems of constantl y increasing spatial temporal scales (Odum and Odum, 2001). The first and cardinal rule of energy conservation states that one can either neither create nor destroy energy, at the end of the day, the energy lost is directly proportional to the among that is gained. The underlying supposition is that one cannot get anything for nothing and the consistency of energy is often described in diagrams in which the energy flowing must be accounted for within the boundaries either in form of output or storage. Secondly, the energy in an isolated system at equilibrium will investable increase over time, the key transformative agent for energy is work; therefore, dispersed energy is incapable of doing any work thus resulting to degradation in the system. The connection between energy efficiency and economic growth has been demonstrated and restated for centuries in the world’s economic arena, as the countries that exploit and

Cultural and Historical Geography, Anthropogenic Change in the Research Paper

Cultural and Historical Geography, Anthropogenic Change in the Ethiopian Highlands - Research Paper Example The northwest portion that covers the Amhara and Tigray Regions, encompass the Semien-Mountains, in which a part of it is a national-park. Lake Tana, where Blue Nile springs from, also lies within the northwest part of the Ethiopian-Highlands. The Bale Mountains are situated in the Southeast of the Ethiopian Highlands, also allocated a national-park (Alemneh 6). This paper will discuss the anthropogenic change in the Ethiopian Highlands. Indigenous People Ethnically the south-western highlands, particularly in Kefa as well as to the southern Gemu Gofa, form a shatter-belt of varied ethnic factions. They encompass Omotic populaces who carry out hoe cultivation plus the plough cultivators-Oromos who inhabited the region in the 17th era (Blaikie 57). The dichotomized lowlands and valleys are occupied by a range of Sudanic and Omotic hunter gatherers, agro-pastoralists and cultivators (Alemneh 6). On top of the ethnic factions whose home lands are within this expanse, in-migration in the last 100 years has introduced numerous small groups, largely Amharas and Gurages from northern and eastern part of southwestern highlands. Majority of this in-relocation has been linked tocoffee development and land alienation (Hutchinson 34). Conflict The ethnic multiplicity of the Ethiopian Highlands creates a possibility potential for conflict since these factions have diverse interests of the resource-base, hold diverse expertise through which to employ them, and claim privileges over diverse areas and resources (Sutcliffe 44). The factions that have interests concerning the south-west resources include the local-communities and native ethnic groups, the central government and non-local ethnic factions who have relocated into this area, the novel regional administrations of Kefa and Oromia, communities from outside the area who rely on a number of the expanse's resources like irrigation water (Hutchinson 45) and (Alemneh 6). Natural Resource Use/History The Ethiopian-Highlands started to emerge 75m ages ago, as molten rock from the Globe's mantle elevated a broad roof of the African Craton ancient rocks. The Great Rift Valley opening split the roof of the Ethiopian-Highlands into 3 parts; the southern Arabian-Peninsula Mountains are geographically part of the primeval Ethiopian-Highlands, divided by the rifting that created the Gulf of Aden and Red Sea, and detached Arabia from Africa(see figure 2) (Blaikie 57) and (Alemneh 6). Ethiopian highlands are very rich with respect to natural reserves. The region can be viewed as among the last reserve frontiers within the country that is being utilized with boosted intensity whilst the population swells and deforestation ensues (Blaikie 57). The sources to this reserve prosperity are the great and consistent rainfall plus the forest-cover. The cover from the forest, by shielding the loams from wearing away, has assisted the red-clay soils of this region develop to above 2 meters in profundity. The rainfall and s oil resources afford the southwestern highlands an extremely considerable agricultural prospective for an extensive variety of crops, together with coffee, whereas the dependability of crop produces is great unlike in several other regions of Ethiopia (Gedion 95) and (Alemneh 6). Owing to the environmental settings, the southern-west highlands possess a strong relative advantage in production of timber. They contain roughly half of Ethiopian’s remaining high forestry that produces quality wood for furniture (Blaikie 57). The consumption of

The Gender Roles And Working Culture In The Nursing Industry Essay - 4

The Gender Roles And Working Culture In The Nursing Industry - Essay Example Workplace culture and gender roles have been changing very radically in the past few decades. For instance, workplace roles traditionally associated with men or those ascribed to females have seen a shift in acceptance of the opposite gender. More women are taking up roles that were traditionally reserved for men (Mills, 2002). At the same time, men are also venturing into career lines that were assumed best suited for women. For instance, nursing was for a long time considered the preserve of women. Recently, more men have taken up nursing as a profession and can be found in many health facilities across the world (Cross & Baglihole, 2002). Meanwhile, it is not always easy for men to venture in professions culturally considered the preserve of women such as nursing. This essay explores the gender roles and working culture in the nursing industry with regards to sharing of roles among male and female nurses. The traditional nursing industry has been stereotyped in favour of women. Un known to many quarters, this was not always the case. In fact, the domination of women in the nursing profession only began to emerge in the 1800s with largely unskilled female nurses providing the essential medical services. As early as 250 B.C. E nursing schools existed but admitted only men for training (Thompson, 2014). The oldest documented nursing school is believed to have been set up in India, which also recruited male students to care for the sick. In continental Europe, nursing services were provided by Christian organizations such as churches. For instance, when the Bubonic plague broke out in Europe, church organizations took over the role of caring for the sick and disposing of the dead. The Benedictine Nursing Order established by St. Benedict, as well as the Knights Hospitallers, are some of the earliest nursing institutions.

Stressors and Stress Management Mechanism Among First Year Principals Essay

Stressors and Stress Management Mechanism Among First Year Principals - Essay Example Therefore, they need to be adequately prepared intellectually, physically, and psychologically for these tasks. When principals are mandated to run a new school, these challenges are exemplified by the fact that they are still new to the work environment. Meeting all the above obligation in a new school is indeed challenging particularly in the first year when they have not adapted to the new work environment. Assisting them adapt swiftly and smoothly into the new school environment will greatly reduce the stress levels and therefore enable them expedite their duties as principals in an efficient and effective way. Once they have a good start, then it becomes possible to run the institutions effectively and efficiently thereby meeting the rising demands of higher academic standards. This research will therefore investigate the following: First year principals face many challenges due to the demands of a new institutional environment. The transition period to the new work environment predisposes the principals to new and unique set of stressors such as high levels of expectation on performance, new set of institutional values and traditions, uncooperative teachers, dealing with failed school performance especially when transfer was made to resuscitate the school, among others. Lack of adequate preparedness, support and empowerment causes stress and in extreme cases, burnout. No matter the cause of transition from one school to another, challenges are always present. This calls for an investigation into the problem of transition of principal ship with the aim of coming up with a new set of more efficient coping mechanisms. Being new in a school set up presents a set of stressors that are otherwise not present when the principals have worked on the school for quite some time. The new work environment has different cultural, economic, social, and

Legal Drinking Age Has No Effect Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Legal Drinking Age Has No Effect - Essay Example News such as â€Å"a girl was raped by two drunk guys† (Almasy) or â€Å"car crashed with two drunk teenage drivers inside† (Taylor) are horrible to hear about. It is such accidents that help us rethink the advantages and disadvantages of the alcohol consumption underage. According to a lot of people, the age limit can help reduce life-threatening risks and binge drinking that could cause a threatening problem for the young generation. On the other hand, a lot of people believe that drinking risks are more related to personal choices than age limits, therefore the law must be changed. According to the essays by Chafetz and Toomey, there was a similar discussion on these topics, each expressing his own verdict about the drinking age and whether it should be reduced to eighteen from twenty-one or not. Toomey is in the favor for the legal age limit, while Chafetz is against the law. According to Toomey, the age limit helps define a limitation on the alcohol consumption and this effective law enforcement can help reduce the cases of drunk accidents and binge-drinking cases. Toomey intelligently uses statistical data, scientific researches and international studies to support his point of view. He also uses statistics about the world-wide age limits on consumption of alcohol and how this can be used for improvement within the United States. Chafetz on the other hand, emphasizes on the eradication of the age limit of twenty one years, and calls the reduction more effective and reasonable option.

Role of Environment in Learning Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Role of Environment in Learning - Research Paper Example Accommodation is the process by which children learn things through the process of failure. It changes the mental representation of the things through new experiences. On the other hand, assimilation is the process through which children get to absorb new things and experiences into their already present framework. Environment is one factor that cannot be ignored in any way as through the presence of the environment, people gain newer experiences and they also learn things that they were never aware of. Learning styles are different from culture to culture and from country to country. It has been seen that people from some country are very good in numbers or very quick to comprehend things that they are not aware of, while some people have very good oratory skills and are very fluent in languages and can even learn them easily. Learning methods that are used in Asia and Africa are very strict and controlled as children are not allow questioning the teacher or their teacher’s v iews. While in European countries people tend to be freer in knowledge sharing and questioning teachers. This is in serious contrast with the methods that are used in Asian countries. The environments in US and other counter parts are all quite less controlled and thus children are freer in their decision making and questioning. The methods of learning are far more interactive in the European countries and the teacher and student are all quiet confident in interacting with each other. In Asian countries the process of learning is very less interactive and children tend to be more quiet and the teachers are the ones who only talk and share the knowledge. The children hardly interact with their mentors or teachers. The kinds of environment that people belong to also play a very crucial role. If the people belong to an environment where learning is preferred and newer knowledge encouraged then people from such environments are very willing to learn newer things and impart it as well. H owever, in environments where learning is not an encouraged process and where learned people are treated as aliens or as people who should be avoided, then people are less receptive of such knowledge. It’s a common understanding that children who come from developed countries are more willing to learn newer things and adopt them while children coming from less developed countries are shy and not keen in learning new things as they might be in clash with their own traditions and culture. A major factor that affects learning is the facilitation that is present in the environment. If the environment is helpful and promotes learning then people tend to learn quickly. The other factors that are present in the environment are distractions that affect the learning process of the people. The most disastrous distraction that can be there in a child’s life and that can affect the learning process is that of family life. If a child grows in a negative environment then he will be very distracted and will never be able to learn properly. On the contrary, if he grows up in a family that has a positive environment then the child will be able to grasp things easily and will also be able to apply them positively in his life.