...In Bill Mckibben’s article, he argues that consumerism has brainwashed the masses to believe that their love is represented by the amount of wealth they spend on their love ones. The argument is targeting the period of time around the holidays, where lavishing family, friends, and significant other is most evident and suggestive advertising is at its highest. Advertising depicts a perfect Christmas as: a happy family eagerly rushing down stairs to a Christmas tree with mountains of presents laying underneath. The message from this is one of is that the worth of interpersonal relationships is measured by the amount of gifts one receives. Since the gift giving has become tradition, people expect to be given expensive gift or a large amount. Other...
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...LITERARY ANALYSIS ESSAY THE GIFT OF THE MAGI The Gift of the Magi is one of the most popular short stories by O. Henry, a pen name for William Sydney Porter - a renowned American author. Originally published in 1906, in O. Henry’s second collection of short stories, The Gift of the Magi which displays all of the major O. Henry traits in abundance has given him credit for his genuine talent. It has been retold in various forms since then, especially at Christmas time. The story is about a young poor couple, Jim and Della Dillingham Young, who each sells their most precious possession in order to buy a Christmas gift for their partner, but in doing so, they end up making each others gift worthless. The profound philosophy about love, generosity and gift-giving is successfully delivered to readers by O. Henry in part through a compelling plot and a unique point of view. A simply inspiring storyline with a clever twist ending, for which O. Henry is well-known, helps bring the short story a huge success. Despite some different attitudes on fundamental plot elements which should be included in a great story, Freytag’s idea of five key parts – exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and denouement, is predominant. These factors are also apparently demonstrated in The Gift of the Magi. In the phase of exposition, James Dillingham Young, also called Jim, and his wife, Della, are introduced as a poor young couple living in New York. Even so, there are...
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...Converting Ideas to Third Person for College Level Writing by Professor Adri-anne Jones In most instances, college freshmen enter college knowing how to write their ideas in first person, I and second person, you but have had little if any experience with third person writing. Therefore, many first-year college students are not prepared to write the typical academic essay and research paper. For the most part, the purpose of writing in the academic environment is to inform, to report, and to persuade. Therefore, the writing style is expected to be formal since students will be engaged in writing research papers, essays, book reports, critiques, proposals, and responses to literary writings. In these formal and academic writing situations—in most cases—the focus is on the subject and not the writer. Therefore, it is crucial that college freshmen learn to master third person writing before they complete their course requirements for freshman composition. Even though argument and persuasive writing is based on the writer’s personal opinion or position on an issue, the writer’s opinion is most often presented in third person. Rather than to write I think . . . or I believe . . . or I feel . . ., the writer should simply state his or her opinion without making a first person reference. For example, the academic writer should avoid such statements like I feel that the restoration of prayer in public schools could likely remedy the lack of discipline in classrooms...
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...“The Gift of the Magi” – Deciphering the Theme Scott Cole ENG 125 Introduction to Literature Professor Patricia Vineski 6 Oct 2013 The theme of a story, as I’ve learned, is much more than what happened; this is the plot. Instead, the theme is much more; it “tells you what the story is about” (Clugston, 2010, para. 7.1). In order to decipher what the theme is, our text tells us to ask the question “how” a few different ways in order to come to a final conclusion. “How does the writer use setting to narrow the underlying idea? How do characters make particular aspects of the underlying idea clear? How does conflict reveal the strength or worth of the underlying idea?” (Clugston, 2010, para. 7.1). So, throughout this essay, I will be asking these questions, in order to come to a final conclusion as to what the theme of “The Gift of the Magi” really is. I will also discuss the plot, as well as some symbolism in the story that expands on the theme of the story. The plot, for The Gift of the Magi, is a short story about a couple, housed in a tiny apartment, living paycheck to paycheck. Christmas is just a few days away, and the Della, whom is the wife in the story, is struggling to find the perfect gift for her husband. Finally, after searching all over town, she comes across a fancy watch chain that is $20, and decides she must have it; the dilemma is she only has $1.87 to spend. After careful thought, she decides she will cut off her long, beautiful hair...
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...think the conflict is very significant as Jig is looking for a connection regarding the baby and clearly there is little hope for one as the insensitive American is frustrating her. I find from the text there are very similar elements of symbolism, metaphor, allusion and allegory apply sort of mixed and sprinkled into most of the stories I have read. I really enjoyed the symbolism and how the Hills stood for life giving and yet highlights her aloneness and emotional disconnect to the American. Ernest Hemingway writing style leaves hints throughout the scene and yet never directly states the plot of the story. “The Gift of Magi” by William Sydney Porter invigorates the mind and redefines irony. I very much enjoyed this story as it is about two very selfless people sacrificing for the other to get a Christmas present. The core conflict in the story is that it's Christmas Eve and Della and Jim...
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...Name: Laura Blumberg Class: ENG 101 Professor: Kristin Sheldon Date: 06/10/2012 Audience Paragraph The audience for this essay: “Some aspects of myths, rituals, and religious beliefs of Orthodox and Baptist communities” is addressed to the people who are educated, and often meet to discuss approaches in regards to similar, yet different things. Most of these people, men and women of differing ages, have at least finished high school, while a great majority went to college. They are from all social classes, and through education, they have achieved good knowledge and understanding of the topic. Their beliefs and religious practices show that they share the same ideas, however, some differences can be found among them. Some aspects of myths, rituals, and religious beliefs of Orthodox and Baptist communities It is said that mythology is different from religion, because mythology has prepared the appearance of religion or other forms of culture and, unlike religion, mythology remains an anonymous work. From the begging, the church spread quickly its influence throughout most of the Roman Empire, despite much of the opposition. The Orthodox churches revert back to what was seen as original forms of worship, while the Baptist church, on the other hand, had a much slower path of evolution. It is important to make a distinction between three short words: mythology, religion, and Christianity....
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...The Psychology of Gift Exchange Mayet, C. & Pine, K. J. University of Hertfordshire Internal Report 2010 Gift giving is a social, cultural and economic experience; a material and social communication exchange that is inherent across human societies and instrumental in maintaining social relationships and expressing feelings (Camerer, 1988, Joy 2001). Research within different disciplines to gain insight of gift giving behaviour has continued for over forty years. Gifts are bestowed in celebration of key life events, a medium for nurturing personal relationships, to encourage economic exchange and to socialise children into appropriate behaviour patterns (Belk, 1979). Obligations within a community require that individuals are required to give, receive and to reciprocate (Mauss, 1954). In his essay the French anthropologist-sociologist Marcel Mauss (1954), presented a theoretical analysis of the gift-giving process, that was based on his examination of giftgiving amongst various primitive, secluded, or ancient societies. He concluded that giftgiving is a self-perpetuating system of reciprocity and summarised three types of obligations which preserve gift-giving: 1. The obligation to give. 2. The obligation to receive. 3. The obligation to repay. The requirement to give may be ingrained in religious or moral necessities, with a strong need to recognise and maintain a status hierarchy and to establish or maintain peaceful relations, or merely the expectation of reciprocal giving...
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...chemical or physical force” (Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 1999, p1603). Lawrence’s championing of the philosophy persisted right up until his death in 1930: indeed, as Daniel Fuchs comments, “The voice of romantic vitalism speaks with intransigent integrity in Lawrence to the last" (Fuchs, 2011, p156). In the early twentieth century, romantic vitalism, as Lawrence conceived of it, championed the view that people’s intellectual development had taken precedence over their spiritual and emotional development. This brief essay will examine how the metaphysical concept of romantic vitalism is explored through the treatment of human love and human weakness within the institution or marriage, and how individuals should behave towards one another within D.H.Lawrence’s early short story “The White Stocking”. “The White Stocking” is a narrative about desire and more specifically about repressed desire: as the very title of the story implies, it is about the idea of repression of sex and sexuality as being injurious to the spiritual and mental well being of the subject. It explores in tangential form a conflict between the physical nature of the body on the one hand, and the external pressures of social convention and an unexpressed, yet omniscient Christian morality which is supposed to govern people’s external conduct. At surface level, the story is about the relationship between a married couple, in this instance the Whistons- Ted and Elsie- and about a husband and wife at the...
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...Sister Flowers vs. Fish Cheeks Lakisha M. Couch English 121: Composition I January, 10 2014 Instructor: Brad Trolly The story of Sister Flowers by Maya Angelou and Fish Cheeks by Amy Tan gives us two different examples of how two young ladies manage to overcome embarrassment and cultural differences. Although both have labeled their situation as “embarrassing”, it is clear that both situations are coming from two different aspects. The story Sisters Flowers depicts educational differences, whereas Fish Cheeks describes a young lady facing the embarrassment of pride and cultural differences. According to our text book, the idea of descriptive writing is the kind of writing that describes person, place or thing in such a way that is forms a picture in the readers head. In order for one to capture such an event one would have to pay close attention to each detail by using their five senses. As I read the story of Sister Flowers, I felt as though this story definitely follows the guidelines of a good descriptive story. For example: Sisters Flower by Maya Angelou discloses a revelation of an important mentor in the life of Marguerite. The character, Sister Flowers, is painted as an individual who was kind, respectful, educated, and inspirational. She was an aristocratic and highly cultivated person who had the ability to reach out and bring forth a positive impact on the lives of those that resided in her community. Marguerite was a young girl who was trapped in her...
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...Fiction Essay APA Thesis Statement The themes of the short stories “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson and “The Rocking- Horse Winner” by D.H. Lawrence are similar in the way that they both use a game of chance or gambling in the presentation. Both of these stories are based on luck but instead of happiness being the ultimate prize for winning, death is the tragic outcome. Outline Introduction/Thesis paragraph I. Underlying message from the stories about the problems not directly addressed a. Lottery i. Conforming to traditions even when they are wrong or outdated b. Rocking Horse Winner i. Love or worship of materialistic things instead of each other II. Objects used by the author for symbolism a. Lottery i. Black box even though all other items have been forgotten b. Rocking Horse Winner i. Wooden rocking horse to symbolize the horses in the race III. Authors use of the gamble a. Lottery i. Being drawn means the prize is getting stoned to death b. Rocking Horse Winner i. Although the prediction of the race winner is correct Paul ends up dead and still without his mother’s love IV. Conclusion a. Restate and reword thesis and close. Playing the lottery or betting on horse races is a game of chance where the ultimate prize is money and fortune. The themes of the short stories, “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson and “The Rocking- Horse...
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...leave it there. Think back to when you were a child and your parents told you that a man in a red suit named Santa Clause came down your chimney on Christmas and brought you presents if you were good. The agenda behind this lie was so that you would be good. Adults use lies for various reasons. Sometimes it’s so you don’t have to face consequences. Other times it’s to invoke a specific behavior. In the case of “Salvation” by Langston Hughes, lying to the children by telling “them they would see a light and something would happen to them inside wasn’t meant to be literal but was meant to evoke a response of willingness to come to God. Some parents feel that it’s not ok to lie to children. They believe a child should know truth as soon as they can distinguish right from wrong, good from bad, and fantasy from reality. This would bring the child into adulthood sooner and gives them a more realistic view of the world. In the case of Santa Clause, parents will tell their children that there is no Santa Clause, that its mommy and daddy who bring presents to you and that Christmas is not really about gifts as much as it is about the birth of Christ. Parents will save the child from seeing the holiday as a financial endeavor and see the holiday as a religious or spiritual holiday thus detaching the child from the financial aspect of Christmas. Children are smart; they pick things up sometimes before we think they do whether it is from their friends or from schoolmates. This...
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...EN1320 Composition I | Christmas in Colorado | Module 4 Essay: Write a Memoir | | Jeff Stucker | 4/29/2014 | | Last year my family and I decided to do something different for Christmas and go to Gunnison, Colorado to go skiing for a family Christmas trip. This would include me, my brother, my mom, my dad, and my grandparents. I was so excited ever since I had heard the news in October. I had only been to Colorado in the summer before and I had never spent Christmas away from home before. My grandparents had retired to their summer home in Colorado the year before to live full time. My story begins at the threshold of my trip the night before we left for Colorado. We were all at my house so we could open our presents from each other, but my brother and I would not open our presents from our parents until Christmas morning in Gunnison even though we had opened the presents from the rest of our family that night. This was one of my favorite parts of Christmas, opening presents. I got a lot of cool stuff including a new be spread, a new bed comforter, some new books, some new VHS tapes and a lot more. Finally, it was time for the big present which was from my dad. It was huge! My mind raced with ideas of what it could have been. But to give me and my brother a hint of what it was, they brought us out a smaller present. It was an Atari controller! So that must have meant…yes! It was an Atari 2600! After that, my brother and I decided to try it out and then we...
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...THE COMMUNICATION OF WINDOW DISPLAY - H&M - UNIQLO YAN14434663 CHIH LING, YANG ABSTRACT This research presents a comparison of the window displays in two different high-street fashion retail brands. H&M is one of the best-known western fashion retailers, while UNIQLO is a fashion retail brand from Asia which has successfully accessed the western market. This research will focus on these two brands’ different visual merchandise strategies and their window layouts during different periods. The results show how these two fashion brands from different cultural backgrounds convey their message to customers. INTRODUCTION The designer creates the product, while visual merchandising gives the product new life. In the sales terminal, window displays not only deliver the brand culture to the customer, but they are also responsible for increasing sales for the company and attracting potential customers. In an aesthetic point of view on display throughout the product content, value and performance, but also presents the brand itself. The purpose of visual merchandising is to promote the store image—to let people know what the store is, where it stands on fashion trends, what one can expect from it, to whom it appeals, its price range, and the caliber of its merchandise and merchandising (Martin M. Pegler 2012, p.3). Nowadays, the high-street fashion market has become more competitive, and every fashion brand has its own brand identity, so it is important to...
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...Compare and Contrast Germany and America Europeans and Americans have much more in common than most people think, making adjustments to life in a new country easier. Many customs are similar to practices in the United States. Germans have their own way of being German. Germany is a relatively small and densely populated country. Unlike the United States, which is a large, densely populated country. The greatest shock to Americans is the speed at which Germans drive. The roads and freeways are quite narrow. Speed limits in cities are strictly enforced, but on much of the Autobahn there is no limit on how fast drivers can go. Although it is against the law, impatient Germans may also tailgate at high speeds and/or flash their headlights when they want to pass your vehicle. If you are driving for the first time in Germany, keep right. Left lanes are for passing only. Unlike when you are driving in America; Americans tend to travel in the lane that is meant for passing and the faster drivers. Americans tend to think “ I am going the speed limit, so I am going to stay in the left lane”, the Germany way of thinking is that if you are not passing anyone or if you are going too slow, your car needs to be in the right hand lane. Unlike in the United States, train travel is a German way of life. You can get on at train at any bahnhof (train station) and travel to any destination in Europe you would like. The Germans use the train as their main mean of travel due to pollution...
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...ESSAY FORMAT Introduction with three ideas First paragraph with topic sentences followed by reasons and personal examples to support view Second paragraph with topic sentence followed by reasons and personal examples to support view Third paragraph with topic sentence followed by reasons and personal examples to support view Conclusion of three ideas Write a 250 word essay explaining why you feel this way. Provide reasons and examples to support your opinion in each paragraph. • Decide whether you agree or disagree with one of the following statements. • Proof read your work when you are finished writing. • Did you state your opinion in the first paragraph and briefly give your reasons? • Did you support your position in each of the next paragraphs? • Does your last paragraph tie the essay together by briefly reviewing what you have said? • Have you checked your punctuation, capitalization, and spelling? • Have you looked for run on or incomplete sentences? Native American Essay Topics to Choose from 1. Some people feel that tribally controlled schools are more responsive to Indian students’ needs, while others feel that the “melting-pot” theory of public schools is more beneficial in the long run. Select a side in this discussion and support it with 250 words. 2. Some people favor legalizing gambling on the reservation to increase tribal revenue and create employment opportunities. Others oppose it. Their...
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