... Would you believe that the tiny island of Malta was recently voted by CNN's travel editors to be the one of the best places in the world to celebrate Christmas? Malta consists of 3 islands; Malta, the biggest, (11 by 12 miles), Gozo (5 by 6 miles), and Comino (1 by 1 mile). Malta is located in the Mediterranean Sea between Sicily and the African Coast. Besides Christmas, Malta also has amazing celebrations of other holidays throughout the year, including Easter and religious feast days. Malta’s population is currently a little over 425,000 people and it is one of the most densely populated countries in Europe with 1,320 people per .4 square miles. But for this relatively small country, the holidays are very unique. Easter is an important holiday for Malta because Malta's population is almost entirely Roman Catholic. On Holy Saturday in the evening, around 8pm, there is special celebration to commemorate Christ's rising from the dead called the Easter Vigil. The Easter Vigil is a celebration in honor of Risen Christ. It starts in pitch darkness, lighted only by candle lights. Finally there is an explosion of light where churches are suddenly illuminated with large candles and other bright lights. Music plays and breaks night's silence in order to announce Christ's resurrection. On Sunday morning, the ringing of church bells announces the Resurrection of Christ yet again. A Mid-morning procession with statue of the Risen Christ moves though streets with festive tunes playing...
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...Angel. Throughout the novel, Laurence illustrates Hagar Shipley’s, lifelong journey of unscrambling her inner problems, in order to find her true identity. Hagar’s search for identity consists of three main stages throughout the novel, each equally important to her search. She undergoes the “guilt” stage, but it is not until Hagar is nearing the end of her long life that she enters the “wilderness” stage and then finally the “reality” stage. After a lifetime of searching, Hagar Shipley was successful in finding and accepting her true identity. Hagar undergoes the “guilt” stage as both her birth and childhood were marked by tragedy and death. Early in the novel, Hagar reveals that her mother died at her birth as well as retells the events of her older brother Dan’s death. It is important at this point to point out that although there is a sense of tragedy for both their deaths, but the real tragedy is Hagar felt guilty connecting to the deaths. When Hagar’s older brother Matt tells Hagar that their dying brother Dan misses the love of their dead mother, Hagar reflects “Matt was almost apologetic, as though he felt he ought to tell me he didn’t blame me for her dying when in his heart he really did” (24). Whether Matt truly did blame Hagar for his mother’s death or not, Hagar still believes that he does and his statement makes her feel guilty. Matt then requests that Hagar pretend to be their dead mother to comfort Dan, in which Hagar refuses to do. “I was crying, shaken by torments...
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...people’s daily decisions. Pride shapes many of their most beloved characters in many of their most beloved stories. Not only pride uses to rationalize the decisions that they make regarding themselves. Pride can also be derived from many of the decisions they make that impact their relationship with others. People often let pride mask their true feelings. Pride is defined as the quality or sate of being proud. This definition can't be more applicable than it is to Hagar's character in the short story “The Stone Angel”, by Margaret Laurence. Throughout “The Stone Angel”, it is clearly apparent that whether it being negative or positive, pride has a significant effect on many of Hagar's relationships with other characters. The main character is Hagar Shipley refused to compromise which shaped the outcome of her life as well as the lives of those around her. “Pride was my wilderness and the demon that led me there was fear… [I was] never free, for I carried my chains within me, and they spread out from me and shackled all I touched.” (Laurence, 292). Hagar’s pride and stubbornness were the causes of her failed relationships and lack of love in her life. Her excessive pride destroyed her relationships with her father, brother and husband. It also led to the death of her son John. Her stubbornness caused her marriage to dissolve, Marvin to be unhappy, her daughter-in-law’s frustration, and her own death. Hagar’s overwhelming pride was the reason she could not show love or affection to...
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...peace, one must accept the inevitability of death. Often when death becomes a reality, regret begins to consume the person. In the novel The Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence, Hagar never seems to be able to grasp an acceptance of death. Hagar is constantly characterized as being a stubborn person, which results in her continually fighting her fate and persistently disregard the fact that she is going to die. Also, throughout many distinct settings in the novel, Hagar tends to deny death which is reflected through the different settings in the novel. Finally, due to the fact that Hagar has had so many missed opportunities throughout her life, she ends up being overwhelmed with the feeling of regret which is demonstrated through the narration of the novel. Hagar is a very complex and stubborn character, and as a result she is never able to accept her death. Hagar is portrayed as being a very obstinate individual who can never grasp the fact that she will eventually die. Throughout the novel, there are many occasions where we see Hagar trying to change the outcome of her own fate. We first see this when Hagar is brought to Silver Threads. Hagar being the stubborn woman that she is says “’you’ll not see me here,” I blurt. “Oh—I don’t mean to be rude. But you’ll not see me coming here to stay’” (Laurence 104). Hagar says this when she is consulting with Mrs. Steiner, and even though she enjoys speaking with her, Hagar’s fear of staying in the nursing home completely overturns the pleasure...
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...Stone Angel Be Considered a Tradgedy? "With her life nearly behind her, Hagar makes a bold, last step towards freedom and independence." This synopsis of Margaret Laurence's novel, The Stone Angel, essentially reveals Hagar's tragic journey through life. A tragedy can be defined as such that the protagonist is brought to ruin or immense sorrow most often due to a tragic flaw or lack of ability to cope with unfavourable circumstances. Throughout her life Hagar strives for independence and freedom from a controlling father to an embarrassment of a husband. Unfortunately each attempt only leads her further into captivity and evokes pity upon her. Through the controlling reign of her father Hagar develops her tragic flaw of pride. This proud attitude puts Hagar on a parallel course with King Lear and this misstep ultimately leads them both to ruin. Therefore Arthur Miller's words ring true when he stated that Hagar is, "ready to lay down [her] life, if need be, to secure one thing-[her] sense of personal dignity," as Hagar is willing to venture to hell and back in order to solidify her proud nature. This evidence beautifully illustrates how The Stone Angel is considered a classic tragedy filled with sorrow and despair. Jason Currie proves to be a man of authority and power. A proclaimed self made man, Hagar's father is controlling and domineering over his children and rules with an iron fist. As Hagar states her intentions to marry Bram her father quickly dismisses the notion...
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...Hagar, in the Stone Angel, struggles with her true identity. Her lifelong battle is between head and heart. Hagar can be described as a stone angel. She becomes the angel when she stays true to herself; a kind, loving and compassionate person. She becomes the rock when she strays away from who she really is and takes on her father’s identity. This is when Hagar doesn’t show any emotion and becomes rigid and hard. Hagar looks at John as the son who she relates with the most, but in actuality he is the complete opposite of her. John takes after Bram, a carefree man who gets into trouble constantly. This marginalizes Hagar from Marvin; the son who is actually like her. She de-marginalizes herself when she drops down her guard and hugs Marvin when he joins the army. The “female” side of her empowers her at this moment. Hagar is also marginalized when she realizes that they are poor and old friends are very rich. She knows she could have have had that fortune if she had followed her father. Hagar gets angry and takes it out on Bram because of her short comings. However, she originally de-marginalized herself when she married Bram. She disobeyed her father and followed her heart. Bram saw her and loved her for who she really was. Hagar opened up, became a wife and empowered herself in doing so. She could do nothing to be loved by her father because he didn’t have the means to love. When she tried to please him, she weakened herself, but when she loved Bram and her children it strengthened...
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...went beyond the social boundaries associated with females, in fact, “it was the black mother who often protected the children and family as far as they could be protected during the slavocracy.” The stereotype of the strong black woman began in this period, as female slaves were expected to work in the fields and also see to, “the tasks of protecting, providing for, resisting oppression, and liberating,” of their children and families. This issue of protection and how far a mother can be pushed to offer her children a sense of safety and security is dramatically addressed in the characters of Setha, Baby Suggs, and Denver from Toni Morrison’s novel Beloved. To begin, Setha’s story has many associations with the biblical narrative of Hagar – whose story acts as a symbol of the...
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...Eve, the Mother of All Living Bible Ref: Genesis 2:4b and 3:1-24 God created Adam and found him wanting. Enter Eve, formed from Adam’s rib, made of the same raw materials as he, and given the power to choose between good and evil?. In the creation story we find a strong, interdependent Eve, fully engaged with the world around her. She explored the Garden, dialogued with a serpent, decided on the forbidden fruit, and liked it enough to share the experience with Adam. Hagar, the Stranger Welcomed by God Bible Ref:Genesis 16:1-16 and 21:1-21 After God promised He would make of Abram a great nation, Sarai, past childbearing age, suggested he impregnate her maid Hagar. Be careful what you ask for. Once Hagar was pregnant, Sarai regretted her scheme, and heaped so much abuse on Hagar that the weary woman fled. There, in the wilderness, the slave, whose name means, “stranger,” received a comforting message. “The Lord has heard you. God has answered you.” Hagar returned to her abusive mistress with a promise that her own son’s descendants would be too many to count Rahab, a Harlot with a Heart of Gold Bible Ref: Joshua 2:1-24 Centuries before the tart with a heart became Hollywood fodder there was Rahab’s story. She single-handedly saved two of Joshua’s spies by hiding them, lying to the authorities, and helping the pair to escape. As shrewd as she was gorgeous Rahab knew an opportunity when she saw one. “Swear to me by the Lord, that since I am showing kindness to you, you...
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...Paul tells the story of Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar. In this story, “Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the freeborn woman” (Gal. 4:22); the slave woman was Hagar and the freeborn was Sarah. God proposed that Abraham would have a child with Sarah, his wife. Instead, he committed an action that went against God’s wishes of having a child with Sarah. Abraham, had a child with Hagar; with this action, Abraham wanted to make God’s promise through his own works and by this it would lead to slavery. The child with Hagar wouldn’t be free because it was not God’s promise being completed. Therefore, “for the son of the slave woman shall not share the inheritance with the son of the freeborn” (Gal. 4:30); Sarah’s son would have...
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...community thinks it was a victory by him going through the “escape of segregation and racism of the world”, but then it leaves a “plague on the families” stated by Jill Matus. By leaving the wife to raise the kids alone in an already bad environment in the ghettos of New York. Morrison reveals the theme through multiple different ways; another one being through the use of biblical allusions; which she uses in character’s names giving them not only their own history, but makes they carry the biblical past as well. One character’s name is Hagar like Hagar was Abraham’s maid in the Bible who bore his children, but received no love from him. This is much like what happened to Hagar by Milkman who didn’t receive love from him and was left while he went in search of the his inheritance and hurt her to the point she died. Morrison would sort of exaggerate the feelings of the women in the novel who got abandoned by their companions, as shown through Hagar; who died from Milkman leaving. Even though the feelings are exaggerated, they are not untrue; they help emphasize the importance of the negative effects of abandoning those you love. Morrison used other techniques to put the themes on display. Another technique used, would be the use of symbols and the main symbol that Morrison uses in the Song of Solomon is - flight it shows a “transcendence and escape” to the community. Solomon and Sugarman both had their flight and escaped from their situation. Although through their deaths it “plagues”...
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...Hagar, the Stranger Welcomed by God Bible Ref:Genesis 16:1-16 and 21:1-21 After God promised He would make of Abram a great nation, Sarai, past childbearing age, suggested he impregnate her maid Hagar. Be careful what you ask for. Once Hagar was pregnant, Sarai regretted her scheme, and heaped so much abuse on Hagar that the weary woman fled. There, in the wilderness, the slave, whose name means, “stranger,” received a comforting message. “The Lord has heard you. God has answered you.” Hagar returned to her abusive mistress with a promise that her own son’s descendants would be too many to count Rahab, a Harlot with a Heart of Gold Bible Ref: Joshua 2:1-24 Centuries before the tart with a heart became Hollywood fodder there was Rahab’s story. She single-handedly saved two of Joshua’s spies by hiding them, lying to the authorities, and helping the pair to escape. As shrewd as she was gorgeous Rahab knew an opportunity when she saw one. “Swear to me by the Lord, that since I am showing kindness to you, you will in turn show kindness to my Deborah, the Warrior Princess Bible Ref: Judges 4 and 5 In a time in which it was improper for a woman to be alone in a house with a man, Deborah sat outside beneath a palm tree and judged Israel. After 20 years of oppression, it was she who summoned the military general Barak to take ten thousand soldiers and storm Mt. Tabor against their enemy Sisera. Barak answered, “If you go with me.” Deborah agreed, but told Barak he’d receive...
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...Although Sarai was pure and completely faithful to God, God had made her barren which indicated a punishment for Sarai. She never turned away from God, however. Instead, she put down her pride and made her servant, Hagar, have Abram’s son to continue his legacy. Sarai was an ideal maternal figure because according to Josephus, Sarai showed an unlimited ability as a mother and truly loved Ishmael. All the good deeds of Sarai led to the turning point of her life. God finally rewarded Abram and Sarai by giving Abram his new name Abraham and giving Sarai her new name Sarah, which meant “the princess”. With a spiritual capacity given by God, she finally gives birth at an age of ninety years old. Many people including Abraham and Sarah were doubtful of this possibility but was God showing Sarah that she was truly worthy and that she was able to overpower the limitations of aging. When Hagar showed arrogance and disrespect and Ishmael caused trouble, she felt the need to send Hagar and Ishmael away. She was afraid to see Ishmael’s growing jealousy and resentment towards Isaac. Although Abraham was hesitant, Sarah was firm with her decision but never acted it out until she had the permission from Abraham. When Abraham asked God for advice with the conflict between Sarah and Hagar, God told Abraham “whatever Sarai tells you to do, listen to...
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...Abraham, also known as Abram is most commonly known for being the Father of the Jewish people. The majority of the information found on Abraham is located in the Old Testament’s Book of Genesis. Other than that, there are no real historical records on the life of Abraham, so the history of his life was passed by word of mouth, and were there after made into biblical stories. There is also the question if Abraham really lived, do to the little information available on his life. Abraham is most famous for making his Covenant with God. Abraham would have lived somewhere between the years of 2000 and 1500 BC. He was born in the city of Ur. Abraham’s real name was Abram. The father of Abram , Terach, had two other sons , Haran and Nachor. While living in the city of Ur , Abram married his half-sister, Sarai who later took on the name of Sarah. The newlyweds later learned that Sarai was sterile. They then traveled north to Charan, accompanied by Abraham’s father Terach. While in Charan Terach died. It was in Charan where God made his first of a series of revelations to Abram. God spoke to Abram, and told him that he would promise to bless him and make a great nation of him. Abram willingly decided to follow God to the city of Canaan. Abram not only traveled with his wife on this journey, but he also picked up his nephew, Lot. He lived his life in Canaan as a Nomad. Famine eventually struck the land of Canaan , forcing Abram and his family to move on to Egypt. In Egypt, Abram was...
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...While reading, the graphic novel adaptation of Octavia Butler’s book, “Kindred”, I had to recognize the fact that it is not a story without a genre. In fact, the story is considered a neo-slave narrative, which is a story about the wounds slavery left on America. An example of these wounds is within the epilogue of the story when the main character, Dana, attempts to search for the truth about what happened to the people she met on her journey to the past; however, she is unable to find anything that would give her reassurance that she was not crazy. Dana’s inability to find proof shows how blacks lost their history while they were slaves, since no one recorded the life of a slave unless they were sold or “found” by the slave catchers....
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...named Abram, declaring that Abram would be the “father of all nations”. Through this covenant is when Sarai became Sarah and Abram became Abraham. Abraham was to birth a nation, meaning that he was to bore a son. But Sarah was barren…as well as impatient and even doubtful of God’s promise. How could she birth a child at her old age? Determined to give her husband the fated child that God promised, she allowed Abraham to impregnate their slave, Hagar. This plan backfired, for Sarah became extremely jealous of Hagar and the two women quickly became adversaries. Sarah later banished Hagar and her son by Abraham, Ishmael, from their household. At age 90, Sarah finally bore Abraham’s son according to God’s will, a boy named Isaac. God did not forget His promise to Abraham and He especially did not forget Sarah, even when she decided to take matters into her own hands. Sarah’s story perfectly reminds us that what God has promised for you, it is especially for you! Even despite her doubt and the pain and conflict she caused by taking advantage of Hagar, God still came through with His promise for her, making her the “mother of all nations.” Ruth The book of Ruth author was anonymous, but some believe it was written by Samuel the prophet. Written about 1046-1035 B.C. and intertwined during the period of the Judges, the book of Ruth is written as a story of love and loyalty. Key personalities include Ruth, Naomi, and Boaz. During the book of Judges, there was a famine and...
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