It is hard to imagine a fourteen-year-old girl springing' her nanny from a hospital where she was taken after being beaten for the crime' of trying to vote. It is hard to imagine that her parents wouldn't be on TV looking for her and trying to get her back and trying to get the nanny arrested for kidnapping. But this is what happens in The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. It is fiction, of course, but something like it might have happened at the time of the novel's setting, 1964. Back then, equality under the law was a new fact of life for American blacks and whites, and some in each race, but whites especially, had a hard time accepting it. Lily Owens, the fourteen-year-old, is caught right in the middle of all that. In addition, she has an abusive father and a deceased mother, not the best way for a child to grow up. But Lily is grown up, much more than most girls her age. She had to grow up fast, despite the care of her nanny, Rosaleen.

The American Dream is a vision with diverse sense and meaning to many Americans since the previous generations up to the generation of today. Even in other parts of the world, the American Dream is aspired to be reach by many people who want something new and better compared to how their lifestyles and cultures currently go. Sometimes, the American Dream becomes the measure of a competitive way of living. To many Americans, and to other nationalities as well, the American Dream is a change for the better. It involves changes and improvements in a number of aspects such as in economy, traditions, social status, and lifestyles. It is a transformation from a standard and general status into a stable progress, growth, and advantage. A few decades ago, the American Dream is a simple dream of having a stable living where one has a job and is able to feed his family. However, the civilization of America revolutionized at a fast pace. The economy rises through the faci

At the bottom of Maslow's needs are the physiological needs. Since Bin Laden's family was extremely wealthy, it can be assumed the he has never had to focus his personality needs on food and shelter. Married and surrounded by dedicated followers, it seems likely that he has not been deprived of sexual expression. Once those basic physiological needs have been met, most people concern themselves with other life needs: safety, security, a stable home life, an orderly environment that makes sense to them. Certainly Bin Laden grew

Like all animals, human beings receive pertinent information about the world through sensory perception: seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, and tasting. This raw data is then analyzed and interpreted by the brain, and thus conceptions of the universe are formed. Most of our definitions and judgments about reality are dependent upon sensation and perception. In fact, science is largely based on sensory data, and science greatly informs our definitions of reality. Moreover, our definition of r

Emotions have helped humans evolve and survive by changing the way we react to and think about our environment. Positive and negative emotions create patterned responses in both individuals and in whole societies. Emotions can help people understand the world, including other human beings, better; they can also distort perceptions. Fear probably influences human evolution more than any other emotion. For example, early humans quickly learned that some larg

Millions of Americans suffer from the negative behavior of compulsive shopping. Whether it is a learned behavior from their family, socially imposed, or an emotional void filler, the drive to overspend is a problem that can lead to financial and personal disaster. However, with treatment, sufferers of this affliction have hope of overcoming the disorder.

Pop-fiction captures the modern relationship and holds it up for scrutiny. It is what causes it to become pop-fiction because the relationships it explores come with all of the modern societal beliefs which throughout history have changed with the whims and desires of those who live in its time. Current pop-fiction works often address the very real insecurity of women where men are concerned. It is an interesting phenomenon because the last four decades have been devoted to females becoming equal in th

If you ever wondered what happens to those with an abusive childhood when they enter adulthood, then Affliction is the book to read because it has all the answers that you might ever need in this connection. The cinematic version of the book also does complete justice to the dark and negative themes that are highlighted by Russell Banks. These themes have been very effectively transformed on the screen and the credit for this goes to Paul Schrader. The book deals with the life of a complete failure Wade Whitehouse, who is almost forgotten by his family like a very painful memory. His brother is the narrator who chooses to speak about Wade in a distant cold manner thus avoiding a direct connection with a man who was major source of embarrassment for his family and friends. The narrator says in the opening passage: "It is almost as if he never existed, or as if he were a member of some other family or from some other place and we barely knew him and never had occasion to speak of him. So

The issue of whether overseas manufacturers of U.S. products employ child labor in their factories is of great importance to marketing departments not only because the practice is abhorrent but because when exposed, such practices reflect negatively on both the company's management and its products. While most consumers around the world agree that they do not want the merchandise they purchase produced by child laborers who are underpaid and working under harsh or otherwise unacceptable conditions, companies who find that they have directly or indirectly used such child laborers can find it a difficult problem to manage. McDonald's found this out after charges that the give-away toys they use to market their "Happy Meals" to children were created by child laborers in China working under near-slavery conditions (AP, 2000). McDonald's argued that they did not know child laborers were used. They had contracted with a supplier by the name of "Simon Marketing

"Papa, they're foggin' it up again..." Thus begins the play "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," by Dale Wassermann. (Wasserman & Kesey, 1974) The person uttering these words is Chief Bromden, a Native American inmate of an institution for the mentally unstable. The best-selling novel by Ken Kesey inspired this play. (Kesey, 2002) The contents of the novel can be viewed at several levels. Some of them Orwellian ("Animal Farm" (Orwell, 1974) and "1984" (Orwell, 1984)), some a metaphor for the free-spiritedness of the 1960-70s; other interpretations are biblical. (Perry et al., 1990) Most interpretations of "One Flew..." however, do not take into account the literal interpretation. Perhaps Ken Kesey, based on his personal experiences during the time of the novel, did indeed want to indicate the sign of the times and the antiestablishmentarianism of the prevalent and burgeoning Flower Culture. (Whitmer, 1987) In that Kesey was

So much has been said and written about the achievements of Steven Spielberg and his brand of cinema, that the moment we hear about a new Spielberg film being made, we know what to expect. A high quality action movie falling in the genre of science fiction- but when Schindler's List came out, it turned out to be visual treat of a different kind. Schindler's List was unlike most Spielberg films. And it was this aspect of the film that took everyone by surprise and the whole cinema world by storm. A holocaust Drama by Steven Spielberg! Since when did Spielberg get interested in this genre of movie making' And even if he had actually shown interest in history, does he actually know something about capturing historical events on screen' Schindler's List release in 1993 answered all those questions and silenced the critics for once and all. It proved that Spielberg wasn't the king of science fiction alone, he was a master movie maker who knows his j

Pop fiction is extremely popular with readers in the USA and also in Britain. Surprisingly, the sales statistics reveal that 33% are thrillers, 28% romance and 5-6% are written on science fiction, horror and fantasy. Pop fiction makes a good read because they ask the reader to read the book with suspense and disbelief. The subject matter for these books is derived largely from magazines, films, and the television. It also takes into account the technological advances that are transforming society and is often blamed for negative changes. Pop fiction is often twisted because it highlights the image of the product far more than the product itself. In terms of literature, the plot is often a formula with a specific type of setting and a restricted number of lines and action, a typical cast with hackneyed dialogues. The conclusions are often superficial so it's always better to study the genre instead of the individual textbook. The backgrounds are normally taken from real life famous

In the history of the world, Industrial Revolution was first started in England in the 18th century. Beginning of the machine age, small firms produced most of their needs by hand and by hand made tools. During the second half of the 18th century, changes took place, which gave a new turn to the techniques of production, with industrial based economic- system being the result of industrial revolution. The agrarian revolution provided sufficient number of laborers required for the working in the factories. The stable Government and the control of the Government in hands of the capitalist class thus resulted in the growth of the industry in England. During the period of infancy of the Industrial Revolution, England was considered to be a place where whatever statistics available showed that the production of all commodities increased tenfold. The volume and amount of sales increased considerably and the profits to the o

The content of music lyrics should be censored because the content has a major influence on people. This is especially true because music lyrics are influencing individuals who are at an age where they are not capable of making informed decisions, but are in the process of forming their opinions. It is also important to note that music itself is less a form of free speech, and more a form of advertising. The music produced is intended to convince people to purchase records and so can be considered as being designed to be influential. Since advertising is required to be censored, music lyrics should also be censored. This purpose of music also means that the argument that censoring lyrics prevents free speech is not valid. These issues related to the censorship of lyrics will now be discussed in more detail. The first important point to note is that the lyrics of music are influential, with the lyrics of pop, rock and rap music

ESL: The Concept of Immersion In ESL immersion has been subject to some controversy. On the one hand it is felt that immersion is a good way to force learners into the intricacies of the new language. In a school context immersion means teaching the entire school curriculum by means of the second language. The program was initiated in Canada to help English speakers with their proficiency in French, the other official language of the country. The program has been adopted in various forms in the United States as well. Apart from English, immersion programs are available in French, German, Spanish, Japanese, and Chinese (ERIC 1995). Proponents of the program have researched the various ways in which immersion can most effectively be accomplished. Content appears to play a central role in creating a favorable environment for the immersion program. Content should be integrated in the instruction process,

This Master's paper on Ethical decision making focuses on the importance of ethics involved in making sound decisions. This paper describes the ground rules, which should be considered in ethical decision-making. The paper also gives a real life example of how a moral dilemma in a working environment may be handled with ethics. Consequences of an ethical decision are also listed.

Interest groups abound in the United States thanks to several factors. First and foremost, our own Federalist government, with many centers of power, in combination with the freedom secured by our Constitution, encourages the forming of interest groups. As constituents see wavering political parties, with blurred political lines, interest groups are created to ensure strong stands are taken on issues. And lastly, interest groups proliferate, in part, due to "the great number of social cleavages along income, occupational, religious, racial, and cultural lines." ("Interest Groups") With all of this activity, why is the Board of the Consumers' Association having difficulty attracting new members' It is understandable that the Boar

This paper presents a detailed examination of same sex marriages and their impact on society. The writer takes the reader on an exploratory journey of the history of the topic, as well as recent changes. The writer focuses on the impact such marriages have had on society.

As November approaches each year, political parties begin to intensify their campaigning. Some candidates have been making campaign efforts for years prior to an election, some, it would seem, a lifetime. All political parties urge their constituents to get out there and vote on election day, yet it appears these parties select candidates who really aren't the most desirable prospects to begin with, disheartening some of the most loyal party affiliates, and driving them away from the polls. There are three possible answers to this troubling paradox. The first scenario is one that is the simplest; there simply are no truly attractive candidates out there. It is absolutely possible that the role of politician only attracts a certain "t

Federalism is one way that governments choose to solve the problem of governing large populations and/or diverse cultures. Federalism works by dividing its authority and responsibility, as opposed to a unitary government, in which the central government controls everything. Examples of federalism operating successfully include the United States, Switzerland, and India. One advantage of federalism is that by allowing

The Epic of Gilgamesh and the Bible In comparing the Epic of Gilgamesh to the Bible, it is best to analyze The Book of Genesis. These two works have many similarities, and their basic ideas are very similar. Some of the smaller details in the works are also remarkably similar to one another. However, when they are analyzed closely, readers who pay strict attention to the differences in the two works, instead of just the similarities can easily tell that they are really not about the same event after all. The snake is one of the representations that appear in both of the stories. In Gilgamesh, the snake confronts him while he is looking for everlasting life, which is contained within a flower. Even though he finds the flower, he drops it when the snake appears. The snake also confronts Adam and Eve in The Bible, and Eve is tempted by the snake to eat the fruit that makes her aware of sin. Adam also eats the fruit, and because of th

This paper is on Reservation Blues By Sherman Alexie. The paper focuses on Sherman Alexie's most esteemed novel based on the cultural lives of the Native Americans. This paper concentrates primarily on the character of Michael White Hawk and his importance in the novel.

Immigrants and their children are one of the fastest growing segments of the United States population. In addition, there is also a growing awareness of populations within the United States who have a first language other than English. This includes the residents of Southwest border towns as well as Native American nations with languages such as Cherokee, Apache, Crow and Navajo. This paper holds that English as a Second Language (ESL) and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) fulfill an important need for this large segment of the American population. Thus, federal and private funding should be allocated to ensure the continued existence of ESL programs. In the year 2000, an estimated 1.1 million adults were enrolled in federally-funded ESL programs. However, ESL programs are often constrained by a lack of funding and limited slots. In Massachusetts, for example, more than 15,000 people signed up for government-paid English classes. Wh

Effective communication is essential in any business role, including being able to use different communication methods. As a sales person, communication is even more important, because of the interaction the role requires and because the intent of many communications will be to persuade. The following paper will outline the common methods of communication that a sales person would utilize, while explaining how they can each be used effectively. This will focus especially on persuasive communication, since persuasion is the major goal of the sales person. The modes of communication that will be covered include: face to face presentations, speeches, email, phone, fax, and letters. Face to Face Presentations Face to face presentations are common in sales and generally involve speaking to a small group of individuals, generally anywhere from three people up to around twenty. These are different than a speech because they are directed s

Violence in the media has become a commonplace affair. Does television violence result in more aggressive or deviant behavior' Is such behavior likely to lead to criminal behavior' Recent studies have indicated that even the most seemingly benign programs on television, such as cartoons, are filled with violence. Violence in the media influences human behavior in a negative manner. Hundreds of studies have been conducted in recent years evaluating the effects of violence in the media. The results are at best, daunting and somewhat alarming. Some have raised enough question about the effects of media violence to cause researchers to claim the results are inconclusive. However others prove strongly enough that media violence can lead to criminal behavior, and many sociologists have concluded that violence in television media impacts viewers in a negative manner. Television violence impacts youths and adolescents much more frequently than it impact adults. Human b