...Essay 4. Marien Lara Orbezo Lira FYW 100-C November 30th Courage led Saima to fulfill her dreams. This is the story of an Afghan girl whose life had a change she always dreamed of. Saima, the main character, relates the story. Since the moment when Saima´s father stated that his daughter would be stronger than a thousand Pashtun boys, and different than any other Pashtun girl, Saima´s firm ideas became even stronger. The story starts in a country where women are treated poorly and abused. Saima tells how she made her life different than the one a normal Pashtun woman would have. A huge opportunity was presented when Saima and her siblings and cousins moved to America to get a better education. Moving to a western country was a big help for Saima in order to live in a different and better environment than the one she was used to. Going through some cultural adaptations didn’t stop Saima from reaching her dream of both going back to Afghanistan and living a life full of freedom. Saima´s return to Afghanistan was not a normal one. She went back as an American and Pashtun interpreter for the U.S. Army. It was definitely a life full of excitement, emotions and lots of different experiences when Saima traveled to different parts of Afghanistan, and even to America for a short time. Everyone has different dreams. Saima´s dream was to have a better life than the one she would have had if she stayed in Afghanistan. Her idea of success was not to become famous and known everywhere...
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...years hence, Afghanistan will be as vital and important a question as it is now1 Lord Cuzon, speaking at the annual dinner of society, London, 1908 Governance of Pakistan is to God alone, it is up to Pakistan to carry out God’s commands2 Qazi Hussain Amhed, leader of Jamiat-e-Islami, Islamic political party in Pakistan INTRODUCTION 1. The rise of Islamic militancy or the jihad culture in Pakistan was directly sponsored by the security forces of Pakistan and is a legacy of Pakistan’s creation as an Islamic state and Pakistan’s involvement in the creation of the Taliban and its rise to power in Afghanistan. Since the arrival of the United States in the region post-9/11 and its support for Pakistan in its fight against Islamic extremism, Pakistan’s home-grown insurgent forces have turned its fight against the state itself in its resistance against a stable and democratic government. This conflict has led to a growth in Islamic extremism in Pakistan’s border regions which have turned into safe-havens for fighters in Afghanistan in their war against the US and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GoIRA). Evidence shows that these fighters still receive covert support from Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) agency and elements of the Pakistani military. 2. Scope. This essay will first explain the roots of Islamic militancy in Pakistan including Pakistan’s involvement in the rise of the Taliban and home-grown extremist groups. This essay will then examine...
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... After a long and exhausting battle in Iraq we have unfortunately entered into conflict with rebels in Afghanistan. All of this fighting and time spent in theater has taught military members many lessons. Maybe the biggest lesson learned is that we need more cultural awareness among all branches of the military. In this paper we will analyze this cultural issue and how it affects the United States military along with the people of that country. We will also identify ethical perspectives in the organization and compare these ethical perspectives across cultures involved in military operations. The purpose of this essay is to identify the cultural issue and try to understand how cultural awareness can help the military as an organization. According to the United States Army, culture is a system of shared beliefs, values, customs and behaviors that members of a society use to contend with their world and with one another. It is believed by many military leaders that cultural awareness is the key to faster and more accurate decision making. On the belief that future wars will be similar to the last two we must spend more resources on getting to know the culture and the people that soldiers are interacting with everyday. For example, how would you react if you were walking down the street and someone sticks their middle finger up at you? Well for anyone used to American culture this would be derogatory. Now the same situation in a middle eastern country, such as Iraq, would not be...
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...Brian Smith 12/6/13 Professor Books Afghanistan Afghanistan is arguably the most eye-opening, controversial country we have covered this year in our class. According to Roozbeh Shirazi’s Schooling in Afghanistan, Afghanistan can be described as “an amalgam of ethnicities, languages, and cultures resulting from the rise and fall of various historic empires”. Tamim Ansary goes on to describe the country as a “laboratory”. “So many currents have flowed through this territory from so many places over so many centuries.” (Ansary 2) Ansary then goes on to say that Afghanistan is “rife with contradictions”. It is those three words that strike me the most when Afghanistan is described: “rife with contradictions”. How can a country that is compared to a laboratory be so contradictory with itself? Let us look no further than the modern history of Afghanistan to find the answers. When looking at the modern history of Afghanistan, one cannot help but to start in 1878 when the British forces left Abdur Rahman Khan in charge as the Emir of Kabul. Khan’s goal was to “break down the feudal and tribal system and substitute one grand community under one law and one rule”. (Norton 48) Resistance was shown by the local chieftains and clan leaders. There was some participation in a succession of national councils, called loya jirga, in order to legitimize royal claims for ceremonial leadership. Later on in 1953, Prince Mohammed Daoud Khan...
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... After a long and exhausting battle in Iraq we have unfortunately entered into conflict with rebels in Afghanistan. All of this fighting and time spent in theater has taught military members many lessons. Maybe the biggest lesson learned is that we need more cultural awareness among all branches of the military. In this paper we will analyze this cultural issue and how it affects the United States military along with the people of that country. We will also identify ethical perspectives in the organization and compare these ethical perspectives across cultures involved in military operations. The purpose of this essay is to identify the cultural issue and try to understand how cultural awareness can help the military as an organization. According to the United States Army, culture is a system of shared beliefs, values, customs and behaviors that members of a society use to contend with their world and with one another. It is believed by many military leaders that cultural awareness is the key to faster and more accurate decision making. On the belief that future wars will be similar to the last two we must spend more resources on getting to know the culture and the people that soldiers are interacting with everyday. For example, how would you react if you were walking down the street and someone sticks their middle finger up at you? Well for anyone used to American culture this would be derogatory. Now the same situation in a middle eastern country, such as Iraq, would not be...
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...The essay “Calling Home,” written by Jean Brandt was about her experience as a child on a family trip to the mall to do last-minute Christmas shopping. The fun family trip ended when she stole a Snoopy pin from a general store in the mall. After stealing the pen, she is arrested and faces an embarrassing phone call to her parents. Jean Brandt, in her essay, “Calling Home,” addresses the issues of the quick thinking minds of children. Brandt’s purpose is to convey the message to her audience that while justice should be served it should not cause a child to be locked behind bars. She adopts an empathetic tone in order to obtain more sympathy from her readers. While many examples of suspense, allusions, and tension are present in Brandt’s essay, her use of imagery proves to be the most powerful influence over her audience. Brandt rapidly establishes the basis of children’s minds through the use of descriptive wording, such as, “I was thirteen years old at the time, and things like buttons and calenders and posters would catch me attention” (19). The strong use of imagery present throughout her essay gives her audience vivid detail. In the excerpt from “An American Childhood,” Annie Dillard explains a situation a few neighborhood boys and herself got themselves into. Dillard and her friends had typically...
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...and ever since wars and battles have continued between different tribes, races and countries. In a nutshell we could say that almost all of the wars were fought to dominate and gain superiority over your opponents. In the 20th century a new terminology termed as “Global Leadership” has emerged onto the global scenario. This policy has been one of the most crucial yet the most secrete policy of America. Ever Since United States of America won the World War 2, the desire to control and dominate has been constantly increasing among the Americans. The question of whether the United states should act as a policeman for other countries has been long debated over the past couple of decades, On one side there are people who support the quest of Usa being given the role of the world peace maker and on the other majority are those who question; “Who is USA to control or act as a policeman for other countries?” History of wars to dominate other cultures, creeds, races and nations goes back to thousands of years. As over the centuries resources have become limited and the fight and the desire to control the world’s resource has intensified. Relations between countries has defoliated and has brought the world to the levels of mass destruction in the form of World War 1 and World War 2. At the time of both WW 1 and WW 2 there were not many genuine reasons to fight except to control, dominate and show superiority over the others. The first WW1 was won by Germany followed by the dominance...
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...with the collapse of the Soviet Union. The war was the stage for the West's struggle against communist ideas and changes. This long wearing conflict brought to pass an increase in production and trade of arms and an appearance of a new world order formed by America. The main principle of the cold war can be seen as the East-West competition in ideas, arms and spheres of influence. (REF) After Afghan terrorists dramatically attacked the United States on September 11, 2001; America declared a war on terror and flew its troops into Afghanistan in pursuit of avenging their nation and capturing al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Again America found itself in opposition to the East, nevertheless this time a different region. And Again the East was fighting against this new world order and America's quest for world domination in a globalising world. The aim of the essay is to explore the relationship between the cold war and the ‘war on terror' in Afghanistan and to find similarities in political patterns and warfare, in order to answer the question Main Body - History Main question - Relationship The cold war marked the struggle between America and the USSR after the Second World War. The war influenced international affairs majorly. It influenced the way conflicts were handled, the way countries were divided up and the increasing growth in weaponry production. The United States of America as well as the USSR had weapons of mass destructions in nuclear form, which formed a global...
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...Ethics Essay Franklin G. Hisole ETH / 316 April 20, 2015 Robert Gennette Ethics and Morality Moral and ethics defines the nature of our society and culture today. They are both complimentary in nature but different in some ways. Moral determines person’s character when an individual interacts in social and personal relationship and Ethics are the philosophical study of morality or moral standards. Utilitarian theory, Virtue ethics, and Deontological are some of the examples of major ethical theories that covered in this essay. Collaboration on personal experiences added as well by explaining the relationship between virtue, values, and moral concepts. Virtue Ethics The virtue theory approach centered on a belief that a person is responsible for their ethical choices and decision. The central feature of virtue ethics is the focus on decision’s outcome, as supposed to following and setting up specific rules for every scenario. One is responsible for making the best possible choice that morally coincides with his or her beliefs whether it’s breaking the law. One example commonly accepted in the community is the “Robin Hood” method. A person will steal food, money or essential things just to support or give it away to people in need. The act clearly violates the law and may seem like an immoral or unethical act to some people, but that individual believes that an act was virtuous since he helps poor people by providing their needs. The...
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...Review: The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid BY ABHIMANYU CHANDRA · AUGUST 2012 The question “who is to be blamed” wafts uneasily through the entire tapestry of Changez’s tale. The Reluctant Fundamentalist, by Mohsin Hamid, leaves the reader disturbed and questioning. Why does Changez adopt the rabid path that he does? Who really is the quiet and muscular American sitting across the table from Changez, sharp and cautious, with a metallic object by his chest, for which he repeatedly reaches upon sensing a threat? Who is the waiter, formidable and terse, serving Changez and the American at the café, and why does he seemingly pursue them through the dark alleys of the Pakistani city of Lahore? And what happens after the novel ends, late at night, as the waiter signals to Changez to stop the American, Changez cryptically pronounces—“we shall at last part company”—and the American reaches for the metallic object under his jacket? The novel, a dramatic monologue, follows Changez from Pakistan to America and back to Pakistan. Changez recounts his tale when he sees an American at a Lahore café and initiates a conversation with him. Born and brought up in Pakistan, Changez matriculates at Princeton, graduating summa cum laude. He begins work, thereafter, with a dauntingly selective and boutique valuation firm, Underwood Samson, based in New York. Just as his professional career is about to start, he forms an intimate friendship with the enchanting and well-placed Erica. Content...
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...*Daryoosh Hayati Lecturer of English Language, Lamerd Branch, Islamic Azad University, Iran Journal of Subcontinent Researches University of Sistan and Baluchestan Vol. 3, No.7, summer 2011 (p.p 31-52) East meets West: a Study of Dual Identity in Mohsin Hamid’s the Reluctant Fundamentalist Abstract This essay will present a postcolonial study of how Eastern identity and Western identity clash in The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid, the Pakistani- American novelist, and make the character of the protagonist a glocal one, (A mixture of global and local), a term newly coined by Postcolonial scholars to show the ever clashing mixture of global and local dualities in immigrants’ personalities. The basis for this research paper is the postcolonial theories of Edward Said, Fanon and Homi K. Bhabha. The aim is to question simply and sardonically the human cost of empire building, moreover it is discussed how the people in a totally alien culture are faced with different cultural predicaments, dilemmas as well as contradictions threatening their identity. Identity is supposed to be stable, while as this novel indicates, it is more of glocal identity which is at risk due to the cultural conflicts, as a result of which identity and ethnicity are subjected to change for the benefit of the hegemony. In line with Edward Said’s: “the East writes back” it is shown how this novel is a reaction to the discourse of colonization from the Pakistani side (which stands for the East)...
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...Rhetorical Analysis of the “Ballot or the Bullet” and “Somebody Blew Up America” The purpose of this essay to compare and contrast the rhetoric in Amira Baraka’s “Somebody Blew up America” and Malcolm X’s “The Ballot or the Bullet in regards to ethos, pathos, and logos. Amiri Baraka, born Everett LeRoi Jones, was an African-American writer of poetry, drama, fiction, essays, and music criticism. Baraka read his poem “Somebody Blew up America?” on the September 11th attacks and was heavily criticized for anti-Semitism and attacks on public figures. His poem is free verse and has no set structure but maintains its rhythmic elements for oral sharing. The poem was meant to be shared orally so that Baraka would be able to emphasize and share lines specifically for an audience. Malcolm X, born Malcolm Little, was an African-American Muslim minister...
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... • Saint John’s Catholic Prep, Frederick, Maryland A Catholic, co-educational, college preparatory high school, Jan.2010 - June 2012 • Carthage High School, Watertown, NY, Sept.2009-Dec.2009 • Ramstein American High School, Germany- Sept.2008-June 2009 Academic Record – Advanced Courses • Grade 12 – Honors English - Honors World History • Grade 11 – Honors Spanish 3 - Honors American Themes English 11 - A.P. U.S History • Grade 10 – Honors Modern History Extra-curricular Activities • St. Johns University Freshman/Sophomore years - Art Club: Learned about all aspects of art including music, drawings, paintings, sculptures, poetry. Each week we discussed new topics and optionally brought in our own pieces of art to show to the club. - African Students Association (ASA): Represented some of the best students on campus by focusing on the current issues facing Africa today as well as the influence on African culture in our American world. Meetings were held at least once a week, in which the organization would...
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... An Essay by Charles Ebeling Presented at the Chicago Literary Club Election Eve, November 5, 2012 Copyright 2012 Charles Ebeling Dedicated to the memory of my good friend and neighbor Marshall J. Goldsmith Who was my guest at the Literary Club, October 24, 2011 Some us recall a great 1986 film called “The Color of Money,” and no, cynics, it wasn’t about politics. That film earned Paul Newman the Oscar for Best Actor as a pool hustler and stakehorse, who enjoyed a glass or two of J.T.S. Brown Kentucky bourbon, my favorite beverage from college days. But, unless I’ve missed a documentary or foreign film along these lines, I haven’t yet seen a dramatization called “The Color of Politics.” Yes, there is such a thing as “The Politics of Color,” but as social commentary, not as a film title. “The Color of Politics” is equally real though, and has a long history. I first dabbled in the palette of politics on election eve, 2008, when I presented before the club on that occasion an essay I’d titled “One Collage Too Many,” painting a picture of the many problems inherent in the Electoral College system for electing American Presidents, an issue...
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...The protagonist of Mohsin Hamid’s novel The Reluctant Fundamentalist is a deeply introspective character whose story is an emotional rollercoaster. Changez is a Pakistani man who comes to America in pursuit of his own “American Dream,” and while working to achieve his dream he slowly begins to hate himself. Hamid’s novel is the story of the rise and fall of Changez’s relationship with America. The novel takes the form of a dramatic monologue, with Changez as the speaker addressing a mysterious American man, whom we learn very little about except that he is suspicious, and that he may be hiding something under his shirt. His story addresses his time in America from the beginning to the end. He watches himself turn into a modern day janissary of the American Empire, and this sickens him to the point where he can no longer live in America. The pressure of being a Pakistani man living in a post 9/11 United States drive Changez to the point of self loathing, where nothing but the comforts of home and family could repair his internal damage. Changez has the inability to overcome the nostalgia that follows with traumatic events in his life, and for this reason he becomes a reluctant fundamentalist, unable to live in America and follow the American principles of greed and capitalism. The late Benjamin Franklin once said, “The U.S Constitution doesn’t guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up with it yourself.” Changez understands this truth and works...
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