...Journal on Chapter 73-80 Through the last nine chapters, we can clearly see Bao-yu’s rebellious attitude towards the feudal Chinese system. From the previous chapters, we know that Bao-yu is very talented at poetry things, however, he stands aloof from worldly success. He doesn’t want to like his father. All he wants to do is to stay out of the officialdom. As Cao writes in chapter 73, “He had always detested this style of writing in any case. The Sage himself didn’t write that way, he argued, so how could one hope to expound the inner meaning of his teachings through such a medium” (Cao, 437). From this excerpt, we know that Bao-yu really despises the traditional test system. He thinks all the tests are mediocre. They are not comparable to those Sages’ works. Also, as Cao writes, “Before he left, Jia Zheng had selected a hundred of these essays for him to read; but Bao-yu had only glanced at them occasionally, reading a paragraph here and a paragraph there as some particularly felicitous expression or the extravagance. He had never settled down to the serious analytical examination of even a single essay” (Cao, 147). In ancient China, the writing test for official selection is really vital, but Bao-yu seems to be reluctant on it. Bao-yu wants to be whom he is instead of imitate other people. Moving onto chapter 74, lots of things take place in this chapter. Wang Shan-bao and his wife are not happy with Skybright. So they decide to set up a trap in order to kick Skybright...
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...The Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allan Poe The "Red Death" had long devastated the country. No pestilence had ever been so fatal, or so hideous. Blood was its Avatar and its seal--the redness and the horror of blood. There were sharp pains, and sudden dizziness, and then profuse bleeding at the pores, with dissolution. The scarlet stains upon the body and especially upon the face of the victim, were the pest ban which shut him out from the aid and from the sympathy of his fellow-men. And the whole seizure, progress and termination of the disease, were the incidents of half an hour. But the Prince Prospero was happy and dauntless and sagacious. When his dominions were half depopulated, he summoned to his presence a thousand hale and light-hearted friends from among the knights and dames of his court, and with these retired to the deep seclusion of one of his castellated abbeys. This was an extensive and magnificent structure, the creation of the prince's own eccentric yet august taste. A strong and lofty wall girdled it in. This wall had gates of iron. The courtiers, having entered, brought furnaces and massy hammers and welded the bolts. They resolved to leave means neither of ingress nor egress to the sudden impulses of despair or of frenzy from within. The abbey was amply provisioned. With such precautions the courtiers might bid defiance to contagion. The external world could take care of itself. In the meantime it was...
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...believed that this novel was not only talking about salaciousness, it was also insulting the nobles’ life. However, the government’s decisions cannot change the reputation of the novel among the readers. In the late Qing dynasty, there were already studiers of the novel who were discovering the allusions of the novel, the real end of the story and the true identity of the author. Till today, there are more than five different categories of the studiers who held different views and opinions of this novel. After three hundred years, the secret of Dream of the Red Chamber has yet to be found. The government could not ban its fame and the fire of war could not burn its reputation (Encyclopedia). How can a novel be so well know and so undestroable? Not only this novel has its unique way of writing, it also contains new idea and implied history. Despite its disapproval and banish of the government, the impact of Cao Xueqin’s novel Dream of the Red Chamber has impacted literature, sociology and historical of the old Chinese...
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...celebrations. It’s encouraging to see people from all walks of life coming together to connect with their parliament. We’re a very proud nation and this day is a day for the people just as the Scottish Parliament is a parliament for the people.” The public will begin gathering along the Royal Mile from early this morning, anticipating what promises to be a fantastic day of festivities. Following the procession of the Crown of Scotland from the Castle to the Parliament, the ceremony in the Chamber will begin. Introduced by the Presiding Officer, The Queen will begin the day by welcoming Scotland’s new Parliament with an address to the debating chamber. The First Minister of Scotland will then thank The Queen for her remarks. Reflecting the rich multi-cultural make-up of Scotland , school children, community groups, ‘local heroes’, performers and representatives from all corners of Scottish society will walk down the Royal Mile before being joined by MSPs and guests from the debating chamber in the Riding procession. The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh, accompanied by the Presiding Officer and the First Minister, will watch the Riding as it progresses down the Royal Mile. The public, guests of the Parliament, MSPs and others will come together for the Picnic at the Parliament concert and festivities in Holyrood’s landscaped gardens after the Riding procession. Concert-goers will enjoy a spectacular programme of free...
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..."wordsmith." Through carefully chosen diction he is able to create a psychological effect on his reader. What effect did his description of "Red Death," in the very first paragraph of the story, have on you? Quote those details that provoke this response from you. I thought about some type of plaque. “Sharp pain…dizziness... Bleeding at the pores…” 2. Why does Poe rely heavily on imagery to provide a detailed description of Prospero's hall? To show how specific and how much great detail paid into decorating the place. 3. "He had come like a thief in the night." Where in literature is this allusion taken from? What is the significance of the allusion? You may need to put the expression into a search engine in order to find the source of the allusion. Both verses are from the bible and are referring to the coming of Jesus. 4. The most featured word throughout the story is blood, yet Poe has carefully chosen it to represent horror. Find two passages in the story, where the word blood is used to describe the color. Substitute a word of your choosing and write the passage. Is the passage as effective with your substitution? Why or why not? But in this chamber only, the color of the windows failed to go (correspond) with the decorations. The planes here were scarlet- a deep blood color. But within the western or black chamber the effect of the ire-light that streamed onto the dark hangings through the blood-tinted panes, was ghostly (ghastly) in the extreme, and produced...
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...Presence of Poe Edgar Allan Poe is regarded as one of the great American writers in history. He had a unique way to present his stories, his imagination stretched into the darkest corners of his mind. One can say his characters were developed from personal experiences in his life. His use of writing techniques was ingenious and unsurpassed. These are just a few reasons why he is a permanent reminder whenever horror stories come to mind. Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston on January 19, 1809. His parents were David and Elizabeth Poe. He was one of three children including his brother Henry and his sister Rosalie. His mother separated from his father when he was about two years of age and took her children with her. She died about a year later, when he was two years of age. He was separated from his siblings and was adopted by Mr. and Mrs. John Allan; this is where his name became Edgar Allan Poe. John Allan was a successful merchant, so Poe grew up in good surroundings and attended excellent schools. When he was six, he was sent to school in England and attended for five years. He then returned to the United States to continue his studies. At seventeen, Poe went to the University of Virginia but dropped out less than a year later because he could not support himself. John Allan shunned him. He enlisted in the Army because he had no money and nowhere to go at the age of eighteen. He did reasonably well attaining, the rank of sergeant-major, and got accepted to...
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...The Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allan Poe 1. Plot. The story takes place at the castellated abbey of the "happy and dauntless and sagacious" Prince Prospero. Prospero and one thousand other nobles have taken refuge in this walled abbey to escape the Red Death, a terrible plague with gruesome symptoms that has swept over the land. Victims are overcome by convulsions and sweat blood. The plague is said to kill within half an hour. Prospero and his court are indifferent to the sufferings of the population at large. They intend to await the end of the plague in luxury and safety behind the walls of their secure refuge, having welded the doors shut. One night, Prospero holds a masquerade ball to entertain his guests in seven colored rooms of the abbey. Each of the first six rooms is decorated and illuminated in a specific color: blue, purple, green, orange, white, and violet. The last room is decorated in black and is illuminated by a scarlet light, "a deep blood color". Because of this chilling pairing of colors, very few guests are brave enough to venture into the seventh room. The same room is the location of a large ebony clock that ominously clangs at each hour, upon which everyone stops talking or dancing and the orchestra stops playing. Once the chiming stops, everyone immediately resumes the masquerade. At the chiming of midnight, the revelers and Prospero notice a figure in a dark, blood-splattered robe resembling a funeral shroud. The figure's face resembles...
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...Omens, portents, visions. A character may have a disturbing dream vision, or some phenomenon may be seen as a potent of coming events. Ex: “I used to rush into strange dreams at night: dreams many-coloured, agitated, full of the ideal, the stirring, the stormy – dreams where, amidst unusual scenes, charged with adventure, with agitating risk and romantic chance, I still again and again met Mr. Rochester,” (373) This dream happened when she was just beginning to teach the children in the village that Mr. Rivers employed her. She is dreaming of Mr. Rochester, which can only mean that she is having second thoughts on her decision to leave Thornfield hall. She must be missing him and the adventure and mystery of living there with him, the love of her life. Mr. Rochester has been unparalleled in her eye and mind. Mr. Rivers is the only man who has come close to capturing her heart the way Mr. Rochester did. By saying ‘full of the ideal’ I think she means that the love that he bestowed her was quintessential. 5. Supernatural or otherwise inexplicable events. In some works, the events are ultimately given natural explanation, while others are truly supernatural. Ex: The whole red room incident with her gothic and macabre visions symbolize her tormented state of mind at that...
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...switch in narration. At this point, the reader can associate with Paul’s violent problems. Paul undergoes external and internal conflict, causing him to be a puzzling character. From the perspective at his family and teachers, Paul seems abnormal. From society’s perspective Paul is a misfit juvenile. From his perspective; however, he seems misunderstood and lost. In the beginning of the story Paul seems to be a typical teenage boy who happens to be in trouble for causing violent outbursts at school. As the story progresses the reader can infer that Paul is very withdrawn and would rather live in his fantasy world rather than face reality. Paul dreaded coming home after the Carnegie Hall performances. He located his “ugly sleeping chamber with the yellow walls;” but, most of all, he feared his father. This intense fear of his father figure was the first sign of his troubled home life. Paul no longer has a mother in his life because of a long illness. Pauls’ father continuously compares and holds Paul’s to the standards of the neighbor boy as a “model.” His father would have outbursts that would cause Paul to avoid home as much as possible. The lack of affection Paul received at home forced him to search elsewhere for the affection he so eagerly craved. Society frowned upon Paul. He was bullied at school for his homosexuality and harassed because of his violent history. He could never escape the internal suffering that consumed him. However, he did have one escape method...
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...know the narrator is saying they’re coming from beyond the grave so it’s probably a ghost or spirit. Because of the word kiss, we would assume a romantic relationship between the two. But the narrator uses the term ‘quench’. The dictionary definition of the word quench is to satisfy a thirst by drinking. If the narrator would kiss the subject to make him feel satisfied it’s possible that they didn’t love each other at all. The subject could have possibly loved the narrator but the narrator did not return those feelings. In Annable Lee the the narrator creates this atmosphere of a day-dream. The opening lines a god example; “It was many and many a year ago, in a kingdom by the sea”(1-2). It’s a similar opening to that of a fairie tales “Once upon a time, in a far away land”. And this state if reverie continues even after the death of his beloved. “For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams of the beautiful Annabel Lee”(33-34). Both of these poems have a careful choice in words to allow the reader to understand how each narrator feels about their lost...
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...Conventional Gothic gender roles are challenged by Carter through the tongue in cheek nature of some of the stories in ‘The Bloody Chamber’ most notably, Puss in Boots in which the supposed ‘innocent’ and ‘naïve’ female wants to kill her husband in order for new love. Not only this, Carter also uses the theme of feminism to challenge stereotypical female roles in stories which inadvertently also happens to challenge the roles of women in Gothic literature. Her use of feminism seems to be a result of her upbringing where she was heavily influenced by the first and second wave of feminism that achieved gains in gender equality giving way to more sexual liberation and freedom for women. One of the stories where conventional gothic gender roles are most notably challenged is ‘The Tiger’s Bride’ where the female, the daughter of a man who gambled her away to a beast, is the protagonist of the story and seemingly in charge of her fate, whether it be sexual or in loyalty. This mirrors ‘The Taming of the Shrew’, where Katherina is initially in charge of her fate and her sexual fate before she is “tamed” by Petruchio, the story also juxtaposes ‘The shrew’ as it is her who is tamed, while in ‘The Tiger’s Bride’ the protagonist is the one who tames the beast by choosing him over her own father. The contrast in storylines emphasises how gender roles in general have been severely challenged by Carter, giving the effect of female empowerment especially contrasting the male empowerment in ‘Taming...
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...College of Tourism – Varna Cultural Heritage of the Thracians [pic] Written by: Tsvetan 2010 Bulgarian treasures Once upon a time the Thracians inhabited Bulgarian lands. Millennia after, their ancient and mysterious culture revealed its true magnificence. In the last few decades a number of significant collections of Thracian treasures have been discovered in present-day Bulgaria, providing much of our present knowledge of ancient Thrace. Golden mask of a Thracian king Bulgaria’s ancient Thracian heritage was thrust into the spotlight in 2004 with a number of key archaeological discoveries in the so-called Valley of the Thracian Kings. A team of Bulgarian archaeologists, led by Professor Georgi Kitov, discovered a 2400-year old golden mask in the tomb of an ancient Thracian king on August 19. The mask bears the image of a human face and is made of 500 grams of solid gold. The discovery was made near the town of Shipka, in the heart of the Stara Planina Mountain. Dozens of Thracian mounds are spread throughout this region, which archaeologists have called ‘the Bulgarian valley of the kings,’ a reference to the Valley of the Kings near Luxor, which is home to the tombs of Egyptian Pharaohs. “The unique mask looks even better than the famous image of King Agamemnon, the Greek anti-hero described by Homer in the Iliad,” Kitov said after making the discovery. “This is the first Thracian mask of solid...
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...Even in the worst of conditions for example in the text Viktor talks about the men who would go tent to tent comforting people and giving their last piece of bread away. They found their meaning in life to help people even if that involved them starving as long as they were helping improve someone else’s situation it gave their life meaning. This idea of meaning turned into Logotherapy helping people find a meaning in life. Pivotal Juncture The pivotal juncture in the book to me was Viktors conversation with the senior block warden. During this conversation the warden told Viktor about a dream he had of a voice asking him to ask any question he desired. His question was when would the camp be liberated and the voice answered “March thirtieth”. That man still had hope and as soon as march 29th came the man became very ill. On march 30th the day he was told he would be liberated in his dream he died. This goes along with Logotherapys idea of man needing a meaning in life you need something to look towards in order to properly function. When this man lost his final hope for a future his body gave...
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...become scared? Well on two occasions, there were situations in which the society of the United States fell victim to fear. This fear brought two separate movements to try and keep the “Boogeyman” from trying to get into the United States. These movements were both commonly known as the Red Scare. This scare was willing to take anyone as it’s victim. Celebrities, politicians, or common Americans were all vulnerable to this phenomena that brought forth a Salem Witch Trial type of environment. The government of the United States of America tried to take many precautions, whether it was a success or failure, to try and prevent the spread of Communism in a country that is considered the greatest country on the Earth. Whenever there is a moment in history that brings on a mass hysteria, it shows what kind of people are really out there lurking around. This moment in history illustrates what happens during hysteria and what it makes people do in a time in which a common fear is shared amongst individuals of a society. “The scariest moment is always just before you start.” - Stephen King (269) This quote illustrates the moment in time just before the second Red Scare. Unlike the first Red Scare, this Red Scare had many components that provided more fear to the United States citizens. The citizens were not only in fear of the spread of communism, but they were also fearful of the United States Government coming to knock at their door. Let’s backtrack to how this whole event came about...
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...with the hand of a writer, John Steinbeck’s career sparked great political controversy, and greatly influenced the writings of his time. Widely considered one of America’s greatest novelists, his books are still frequently studied in school. Among his many accomplishments is the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the Nobel Prize in Literature. With notable works such as The Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men, he expressed his dissatisfaction with capitalism and his sympathy for the struggle of the common worker in a way that captured the world’s attention – which resulted in some of his work even being banned. In the novel Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck explores the pervasive theme of loneliness and illustrates the fallacy of the American Dream. Widely considered his masterpiece, however, is The Grapes of Wrath which depicts the struggle of a family of Oklahoman farmers who are forced into a migratory existence due to the drought and dust storms following the Great Depression. When considering both The Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men, it is clear Steinbeck drew from his own personal experiences as a laborer when writing each of these novels. On February 27, 1902 in Salinas, California, John and Olive Steinbeck welcomed their third child and only son, John Ernst Steinbeck. John Ernst Steinbeck, Sr. was a county treasurer and Olive Hamilton Steinbeck was a schoolteacher. By all accounts, Steinbeck enjoyed a happy childhood. It was his mother’s influence that led to his love of...
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