Women Before And After The Iranian Revolution Cultural Studies Essay

Women Before And After The Iranian Revolution Cultural Studies Essay Current Iranian women must adhere to strictures of dress and regulation, including the veil (hijab) and full body covering (chador). Yet this was not always the case. Prior to the Iranian revolution the Shah began modernising the state of Iran and introducing womans rights. However, many religious factions strongly disagreed with what they saw as a violation of Islamic culture. When the Islamic Republic took over the monarch in 1979, they began to abolish the changes made to womens rights. This essay hopes to explain how education has contributed to the awareness of many urban Iranian women to their oppressive state. It will explain Iranian women both pre and post Iranian revolution and will draw upon the different viewpoints Iranian women have of Islam to emphasise the current state of Iranian society. Finally it will touch upon the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and discuss how scholars of gender view the topic of Iranian Woman. As noted by Elton Daniels, in Iran, strict cultural rules and religious regulations dictate and govern the actions of Iranian woman in the public arena. This is because Iranian women, especially married women, are seen as upholding the honour of a family; therefore, individual desires are often sacrificed to centre the husband and children as primary responsibility. The Islamic Republic takes this role seriously and to ensure that women do uphold family honour, Iranian women must be chaperoned by their husbands or male relatives at all times, lone women are either fined or imprisoned. Women are seen as the guardians of Irans moral code and therefore there is much less freedom allowed to them and they must be constantly monitoring their public behaviour. Many urban Iranian women feel themselves restricted by oppressive attitudes and blamed for any misfortune that befalls Irans patriarchal society. This tension is developing mainly in urban womens circles and is likely due to the incre ase of educated women who are becoming progressively aware of their situation. According to Daniels, in a bid to open itself up to the rest of the world during the 1930s (Pre-Iranian revolution), Iran was becoming an increasingly modernised state, therefore relaxing the religious and social strictures that bound and alienated Iranian women. More schools and higher forms of education and governmental employment (especially in hospitals and schools) were being introduced to urban women and even after the Islamic Republic took over, they could not quell the growing education of women. Urbanisation and the expansion of education offered women, mostly urban women, the opportunity to send their daughters to school. In 1936, the chador was banned in public places, which provided the change that was necessary for encouraging women to participate openly in public life. Political developments began to follow, including that of the White Revolution (1963), in which an act was passed that allowed Iranian women to participate politically. Furthermore, in the years between t he White Revolution and the Iranian Revolution, several women were elected to the parliament and ministry of education. However, there was unrest between the growing modernising ideologies and the more traditional rural Islamic views. The Shah was ruling autocratically and had alienated many sectors of society; this eventually leading to his overthrow. The bourgeois continued to feel restricted by the lack of career and intellectual opportunities available to them and the religious sectors of Iran ruled by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini began to accuse the Shah of a corruption and distilling Islamic beliefs. The unhappiness that Iranians felt against the Shah led to a religious revival among Iranian society and the destruction of the modernisation of Iranian culture. During revolt against the Shah, secular urban women and tradition rural women worked together to protest absolute monarchy and many urban women donned the Chador out of respect for the traditional women. Yet, when the Iranian Revolution (1979) proved successful, and Islamic Republic took over as the existing form of government, the budding rights and freedoms for women were smothered. Khomeini decreed that wearing the Chador was now law; many women lost their government jobs and it also became mandatory to segregate both males and females in the public arena. Morality police were put in place to ensure that such laws were stuck to. This marked a significant change for Iranian culture because before the Iranian revolution Islamic modesty was adhered to as religious sympathy, never before had such commands been made law. The current attitudes faced by many urban Iranian women are dictated by the edicts put in place post- Iranian Revolution. Many urban Women feel stifled by these laws and still remember a time when their life was not mandated. Although there have been cases of women receiving political seat between 1979 and 2011, many of those women were set up to appease the feminist movement and have no power within the government. Realising this, an increased number of Iranian women deploy secular feminist movements such as protesting their grievances through public mediums like the media and press, and civil insubordination. For example, deliberate improper wearing of the veil and Chador is practised by many young Iranian Women and is called bad hejabi. Bad hejabi consists of wearing the veil differently than society norms, such as brightly coloured Chadors and crooked hijab, with hair showing. An interview with a young Iranian women explains the nature of bad hejabi; Because of these (conservativ e) people and their aggressive thinking, I believe I am vulnerable to attack if I dont wear the hijab. If I was living in a place where people could respect individual choice and not do me any harm, certainly I wouldnt wear it. I want to show I dont approve. Wearing bad-hejabi proves the desire felt by many young Iranian women to be free of their restricting patriarchal establishment and the religious control that they feel has no place in their lives. Contrary to bad-hejabi are the traditional women who see wearing Islamic dress as a matter of pride and representation of their religious society. Women that are pro-Islamic Republic believe that the laws surrounding women were based around the teachings of Mohammed in the Koran. Questioning these laws would be questioning the foundations upon which many Iranian women live their life. The female Professor Barzin Maknoun in charge of woman issues at the Institute for Cultural Research and Studies states in Iran; The problems have come up because women in the west are trying to be the same as men. Women work outside the home, but they also have to take care of the children, because by nature shes the one who bears the children. The whole burden rests on women now, because theyre trying to be equal to men. But Islam says no to all this. Islam says the best thing for a woman is to be a wife and mother. That doesnt stop her having a job or a profession- she can do that if her husband agre es, but her first job is to take care of her children. And its the job of the man to take care of her. Professor Maknoun represents the views held by many conservative Iranian women. However, the Islamic Republics attitude toward women seems to contradict the rights for women stated in Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The point of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was to ensure that every persons dignity was upheld worldwide. In relation to this view, many scholars of gender are mostly working in the west and there seems to be more interest in pro-feminism in academic circles. Pro feminist studies include Rebecca Barlows article, prospects for feminism in the Islamic Republic of Iran, or from a analysis point of view similar to Mahnaz Koushas article, predictors of life satisfaction among urban Iranian Women and Mitra K Shavarinis article, the feminisation of Iranian Higher Education which deals with overall unhappiness and dissatisfaction of Iranian women. This research indicates an interest in the feminisation and oppression of Iranian women and less interest on the Islamic Republic as a legitimate form of government. Professor Marknoun was the on ly pro- Islamic Republic scholar found. In conclusion many urban Iranian women feel restricted by the hijab and chador due to the oppressive society they represent. Although there are circles of traditional women who view these forms of dress as a symbol of honour and family, wearing the hijab and chador, was originally a personal choice. However, this was before the Islamic Republic made many religious traditions into law upon the conclusion of the Iranian Revolution. A study of Iranian women pre and post Iranian revolution shows that the progressive education of women has contributed to the urban dissatisfaction of a Womens place in Iranian Society and that many scholars of Iranian Women take pro feminist angles.

Business Development Policy of the Post-Socialist States of Central and

Business Development Policy of the Post-Socialist States of Central and Eastern Europe DISSERTATION PROPOSAL 1. Title of Dissertation: Small & Medium Business Development Policy of the Post-Socialist States of Central and Eastern Europe in their Transition to an Open Market Economy: Lessons and Applications for Cuba. 2. Aim of Dissertation & Motivation for Research: The objective of this dissertation is to study the small and medium business policies developed in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) as a result of their transition to an open market economy. The experience gained from the extraordinary process of transition, still under way in CEE and in the former Soviet Union (FSU), is rich with lessons that could guide policy making and action in a Cuba of the future. This dissertation attempts to distill some of these lessons and to explore those, which would facilitate the growth of small and medium size enterprises, the so-called SMEs, when transition finally unfolds in the island. Many years after the initiation of transition in the former command economies of CEE and the FSU, one thing is certain: the process of transformation is far more complex and it takes far more time and resources than envisioned in 1989. The reason is that transition involves changing institutions, practices, and behaviors that have taken root in society during decades of centralized control and political repression. Another certainty is that it is possible to transform economic and political systems radically and end up with market economies and political democracies. Many years after the Berlin Wall fell; most production in countries in transition originates in the private sector and is transacted under free market conditions. In addition, most of the people live under democratic rule, where the people can vote governments out of office and have done so. The decision to change came about at different times in different countries in the region. In fact, Hungary, Poland, and Yugoslavia had already started some reforms by the late 1980s, before the destruction of the Wall. In 1990, COMECON, the Soviet dominated free trade area, was dissolved as members decided to start trading in hard currency and at world market prices. The disappearance of the Soviet Union, where Gorbachev had started a re-structuring program under socialism, witnessed in 1992 the start of transiti... ...Achievements in Transition Economies, 1989-1999,† London School of Economics, Centre for Economic Performance Discussion Paper No. 475. Lavigne, M. (1991). The Economics of Transition (New York: St. Martin’s Press). Lipton, D., and Sachs, J. (1990). â€Å"Creating a Market Economy in Eastern Europe: The Case of Poland,† Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Vol. 1990, No. 1, pp. 75-133. Poirot, C. (1996). â€Å"Macroeconomic Policy in a Transitional Environment: Romania, 1989-1994,† Journal of Economic Issues, Vol. 30, No. 4, pp. 1057-75. Przeworski, A. (1991). Democracy and the Market: Political and Economic Reforms in Eastern Europe and Latin America (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press). Roland, G. (1994). â€Å"The Role of Political Constraints in Transition Strategies,† The Economics of Transition, Vol. 2, No.1, pp. 27-41. Sachs, J. (1992). â€Å"The Economic Transformation of Eastern Europe: The Case of Poland,† The American Economist, Vol. 36, No. 2, pp. 3-11. Shleifer, A. (1997). â€Å"Government in Transition,† European Economic Review, Vol. 41, No. 3-5, pp. 385-410. UN Statistics Division Social Indicators, http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/social/default

Dostoevsky and Psychology :: Biography Biographies Essays

Dostoevsky and Psychology "A sick man's dreams are often extraordinarily distinct and vivid and extremely life-like. A scene may be composed of the most unnatural and incongruous elements, but the setting and presentation are so plausible, the details so subtle, so unexpected, so artistically in harmony with the whole picture, that the dreamer could not invent them for himself in his waking state. . . "1 Fyodor Dostoevsky's remarkable insight into the psychology of man is seen here in the development of Raskolnikov's dream on the beating of a horse by drunken peasants. The dream is significant on several planes, most notably in the parallel of events in the dream with Raskolnikov's plan to murder the old pawnbroker. It also serves as perhaps the most direct example of the inseparable tie between events of the author's life with the psychological evolution of his protagonists, as well as lesser characters, through the criminal minds of Raskolnikov, Rogozhin, Stavrogin, and Smerdyakov, and into the familial relationships of The Brother's Karamazov.2 Traditional interpretation of literature from a psychoanalytic standpoint has relied extensively upon the work of Sigmund Freud. In the case of Dostoevsky, however, this method is both anachronistic and inadequate. Dostoevsky's great works, considered individually or holistically, though fictional, established him as one of the forefathers of psychoanalysis, and a predecessor to Freud.3 Indeed Freud himself acknowledged that "the poets" discovered the unconscious before he did,4 stating further in a letter to Stefan Zweig, "Dostoevsky 'cannot be understood without psychoanalysis- i.e., he isn't in need of it because he illustrates it himself in every character and every sentence.'"5 There is, however, a complementary relationship between Dostoevsky and Freud brought about through the striking clinical accuracy of psychological traits exhibited both individually in Dostoevsky's characters, as well as in reflecting the author's own mental processes. Thus, it is necessary first to exami ne Freud as a point of departure before looking at modern alternatives of psychoanalytical method. Freud on the Oedipus complex Epileptic seizures plagued Dostoevsky throughout the last thirty-four years of his life, occurring about once a month on average, and consisting of "A brief, intensely exalted, premonitory sensation, loss of consciousness, convulsions, and a lingering depression with vague feelings of criminal guilt for three to eight days."6 Freud delves into the psychological roots of this illness in his essay "Dostoevsky and Parricide", calling into question Dostoevsky's "alleged epilepsy". "It is highly probable", he states, "that this so-called epilepsy was only a symptom of his neurosis and must accordingly be classified as hystero-epilepsy- that is, as severe hysteria.

Main computer network system Essay

An overview of the system requirements (hardware, software, data, personnel, procedures and ethical issues). ? Hardware We need computer hardware and communications hardware for our business. Base on that, we need: 1. Main computer network system controls main business operations of the supermarket 2. Sub computer network system for advertising activities for advertising activities such as creating a homepage, making fliers, and direct emailing to the customers. 3. Security system monitors gates and the inside of the supermarket. We need to purchase operating system software and other application software we need for our company such as: 1. Supermarket application package (for the main computer network system) large scale business computer application designed for supermarket retailers developed by high technology computer companies such as Microsoft and IBM. Including these systems and functions: Operation systems and networking systems e. g. Windows NT and IBM OS 2. 0 Security function e. g. password for entering databases Front-end operation system e. g. cashiers Store opening and ending system. Accounting and financing system Inventory control system and sales analysis system Human resource information system Correcting errors, updating and supporting system by the software company 2. Publishing software and homepage builder for advertising activities such as creating fliers, managing a homepage of the supermarket, and creating html based e-mails for the customers. 3. Operation system (for the security system) Runs the security system for the supermarket. We need it but it is usually already installed and included when we purchase the security system.

The Vampire Diaries: The Struggle Chapter Seven

â€Å"Next time,† Stefan said quietly, â€Å"I won't leave.† Elena knew he meant it, and it terrified her. But just now her emotions were quietly coasting in neutral, and she didn't want to argue. â€Å"He was there,† she said. â€Å"Inside an ordinary house full of ordinary people, just as if he had every right to be. I wouldn't have thought he would dare.† â€Å"Why not?† Stefan said briefly, bitterly. â€Å"I was there in a ordinary house full of ordinary people, just as if I had every right to be.† â€Å"I didn't mean that the way it sounded. It's just that the only other time I've seen him in public was at the Haunted House when he was wearing a mask and costume, and it was dark. Before that it was always somewhere deserted, like the gym that night I was there alone, or the graveyard†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She knew as soon as she said that last part that it was a mistake. She still hadn't told Stefan about going to find Damon three days ago. In the driver's seat, he stiffened. â€Å"Or the graveyard?† â€Å"Yes†¦ I meant that day Bonnie and Meredith and I got chased out. I'm assuming it must have been Damon who chased us. And the place was deserted except for the three of us.† Why was she lying to him? Because, a small voice in her head answered grimly, otherwise he might snap. Knowing what Damon had said to her, what he had promised was in store, might be all that was needed to send Stefan over the edge. Then he'll never know, she promised herself. No matter what I have to do, I'll keep them from fighting each other over me. No matter what. For a moment, apprehension chilled her. Five hundred years ago, Katherine had tried to keep them from fighting, and had succeeded only in forcing them into a death match. Butshe wouldn't make the same mistake, Elena told herself fiercely. Katherine's methods had been stupid and childish. Who else but a stupid child would kill herself in the hope that the two rivals for her hand would become friends? It had been the worst mistake of the whole sorry affair. Because of it, the rivalry between Stefan and Damon had turned into implacable hatred. And what's more, Stefan had lived with the guilt of it ever since; he blamed himself for Katherine's stupidity and weakness. Groping for another subject, she said, â€Å"Do you think someone invited him in?† â€Å"Obviously, since hewas in.† â€Å"Then it's true about – people like you. You have to be invited in. But Damon got into the gym without an invitation.† â€Å"That's because the gym isn't a dwelling place for the living. That's the one criterion. It doesn't matter if it's a house or a tent or an apartment above a store. If living humans eat and sleep there, we need to be invited inside.† â€Å"But I didn't invite you intomy house.† â€Å"Yes, you did. That first night, when I drove you home, you pushed the door open and nodded to me. It doesn't have to be a verbal invitation. If the intent is there, that's enough. And the person inviting you doesn't have to be someone who actually lives in the house. Any human will do.† Elena was thinking. â€Å"What about a houseboat?† â€Å"Same thing. Although running water can be a barrier in itself. For some of us, it's almost impossible to cross.† Elena had a sudden vision of herself and Meredith and Bonnie racing for Wickery Bridge. Because somehow she had known that if they got to the other side of the river they'd be safe from whatever was after them. â€Å"Sothat's why,† she whispered. It still didn't explain how she'd known, though. It was as if the knowledge had been put into her head from some outside source. Then she realized something else. â€Å"You took me across the bridge. You can cross running water.† â€Å"That's because I'm weak.† It was said flatly, with no emotion behind it. â€Å"It's ironic, but the stronger your Powers are, the more you're affected by certain limitations. The more you belong to the dark, the more the rules of the dark bind you.† Stefan looked at her. â€Å"Yes,† he said, â€Å"I think it's time you knew. The more you know about Damon, the more chance you'll have of protecting yourself.† Of protecting herself? Perhaps Stefan knew more than she thought. But as he turned the car onto a side street and parked, she just said, â€Å"Okay. Should I be stocking up on garlic?† He laughed. â€Å"Only if you want to be unpopular. There are certain plants, though, that might help you. Like vervain. That's an herb that's supposed to protect you against bewitchment, and it can keep your mind clear even if someone is using Powers against you. People used to wear it around their necks. Bonnie would love it; it was sacred to the Druids.† â€Å"Vervain,† said Elena, tasting the unfamiliar word. â€Å"What else?† â€Å"Strong light, or direct sunlight, can be very painful. You'll notice the weather's changed.† â€Å"I've noticed,† said Elena after a beat. â€Å"You mean Damon's doing that?† â€Å"He must be. It takes enormous power to control the elements, but it makes it easy for him to travel in daylight. As long as he keeps it cloudy, he doesn't even need to protect his eyes.† â€Å"And neither do you,† Elena said. â€Å"What about – well, crosses and things?† â€Å"No effect,† said Stefan. â€Å"Except that if the person holding onebelieves it's a protection, it can strengthen their will to resist tremendously.† â€Å"Uh†¦ silver bullets?† Stefan laughed again shortly. â€Å"That's for werewolves. From what I've heard they don't like silver in any form. A wooden stake through the heart is still the approved method for my kind. There are other ways that are more or less effective, though: burning, beheading, driving nails through the temples. Or, best of all – â€Å" â€Å"Stefan!† The lonely, bitter smile on his face dismayed her. â€Å"What about changing into animals?† she said. â€Å"Before, you said that with enough Power you could do that. If Damon can be any animal he likes, how will we ever recognize him?† â€Å"Not any animal he likes. He's limited to one animal, or at the most two. Even with his Powers I don't think he could sustain any more than that.† â€Å"So we keep looking out for a crow.† â€Å"Right. You may be able to tell if he's around, too, by looking at regular animals. They usually don't react very well to us; they sense that we're hunters.† â€Å"Yangtze kept barking at that crow. It was as if he knew there was something wrong about it,† Elena remembered. â€Å"Ah†¦ Stefan,† she added in a changed tone as a new thought struck her, â€Å"what about mirrors? I don't remember ever seeing you in one.† There was nothing to do but hold on to him, and Elena did. â€Å"I love you,† she whispered. It was the only comfort she could give him. It was all they had. His arms tightened around her; his face was buried in her hair. â€Å"You're the mirror,† he whispered back. It was good to feel him relax, tension flowing out of his body as warmth and comfort flowed in. She was comforted, too, a sense of peace infusing her, surrounding her. It was so good that she forgot to ask him what he meant until they were at her front door, saying good-bye. â€Å"I'm the mirror?† she said then, looking up at him. â€Å"You've stolen my soul,† he said. â€Å"Lock the door behind you, and don't open it again tonight.† Then he was gone. â€Å"Elena, thank heavens,† said Aunt Judith. When Elena stared at her, she added, â€Å"Bonnie called from the party. She said you'd left unexpectedly, and when you didn't come home I was worried.† â€Å"Stefan and I went for a ride.† Elena didn't like the expression on her aunt's face when she said that. â€Å"Is there a problem?† â€Å"No, no. It's just†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Aunt Judith didn't seem to know how to finish her sentence. â€Å"Elena, I wonder if it might be a good idea to†¦ not see quite so much of Stefan.† Elena went still. â€Å"You, too?† â€Å"It isn't that I believe the gossip,† Aunt Judith assured her. â€Å"But, for your own sake, it might be best to get a little distance from him, to – â€Å" â€Å"To dump him? To abandon him because people are spreading rumors about him? To keep myself away from the mudslinging in case any of it sticks on me?† Anger was a welcome release, and the words crowded in Elena's throat, all trying to get out at once. â€Å"No, Idon't think that's a good idea, Aunt Judith. And if it were Robert we were talking about, you wouldn't either. Or maybe you would!† â€Å"Elena, I will not have you speaking to me in that tone – â€Å" â€Å"I'm finished anyway!† Elena cried, and whirled blindly for the stairs. She managed to keep the tears back until she was in her own room with the door locked. Then she threw herself on the bed and sobbed. She dragged herself up a while later to call Bonnie. Bonnie was excited and voluble. What on earth did Elena mean, had anything unusual happened after she and Stefan left? The unusual thing was their leaving! No, that new guy Damon hadn't said anything about Stefan afterward; he'd just hung around for a while and then disappeared. No, Bonnie hadn't seen if he left with anybody. Why? Was Elena jealous? Yes, Elena immediately deduced that Alaric Saltzman's eyes were hazel. She got off the phone at last and only then remembered the note she'd found in her purse. She should have asked Bonnie if anyone had gone near her purse while she was in the dining room. But then, Bonnie and Meredith had been in the dining room part of the time themselves. Someone might have done it then. The very sight of the violet paper made her taste tin at the back of her mouth. She could hardly bear to look at it. But now that she was alone shehad to unfold it and read it again, all the time hoping that somehow this time the words might be different, that she might have been mistaken before. But they weren't different. The sharp, clean block letters stood out against the pale background as if they were ten feet high. I want to touch him. More than any boy I've ever known. And I know he wants it, too, but he's holding back on me. Her words. From her diary. The one that had been stolen. The next day Meredith and Bonnie rang her doorbell. â€Å"Stefan called me last night,† said Meredith. â€Å"He said he wanted to make sure you weren't walking to school alone. He's not going to be at school today, so he asked if Bonnie and I could come over and walk with you. â€Å"Escort you,† said Bonnie, who was clearly in a good mood. â€Å"Chaperone you. I think it's terribly sweet of him to be so protective.† â€Å"He's probably an Aquarius, too,† said Meredith. â€Å"Come on, Elena, before I kill her to shut her up about Alaric.† Elena walked in silence, wondering what Stefan was doing that kept him from school. She felt vulnerable and exposed today, as if her skin were on inside out. One of those days when she was ready to cry at the drop of a hat. On the office bulletin board was tacked a piece of violet paper. She should have known. Shehad known somewhere deep inside. The thief wasn't satisfied with letting her know her private words had been read. He was showing her they could be made public. She ripped the note off the board and crumpled it, but not before she glimpsed the words. In one glance they were seared onto her brain. I feel as if someone has hurt him terribly in the past and he's never gotten over it. But I also think there's something he's afraid of, some secret he's afraid I'll find out. â€Å"Elena, what is that? What's the matter? Elena, come back here!† â€Å"Okay,† said Meredith loudly, â€Å"senior privilege. You!† She rapped on the only closed door. â€Å"Come out.† Some rustling, then a bewildered freshman emerged. â€Å"But I didn't even – â€Å" â€Å"Out. Outside,† Bonnie ordered. â€Å"Andyou ,† she said to the girl washing her hands, â€Å"stand out there and make sure nobody comes in.† â€Å"But why? What are you – â€Å" â€Å"Move, chick. If anybody comes through that door we're holding you responsible.† When the door was closed again, they rounded on Elena. â€Å"Okay, this is a stickup,† said Meredith. â€Å"Come on, Elena, give.† Elena ripped the last tiny shred of paper, caught between laughter and tears. She wanted to tell them everything, but she couldn't. She settled for telling them about the diary. They were as angry, as indignant, as she was. â€Å"It had to be someone at the party,† Meredith said at last, once they had each expressed their opinion of the thief's character, morals, and probable destination in the afterlife. â€Å"But anybody there could have done it. I don't remember anyone in particular going near your purse, but that room was wall-to-wall people, and it could have happened without my noticing.† â€Å"But why would anyonewant to do this?† Bonnie put in. â€Å"Unless†¦ Elena, the night we found Stefan you were hinting around at some things. You said you thought you knew who the killer was.† â€Å"I don't think I know; Iknow. But if you're wondering if this might be connected, I'm not sure. I suppose it could be. The same person might have done it.† Bonnie was horrified. â€Å"But that means the killer is a student at this school!† When Elena shook her head, she went on. â€Å"The only people at that party who weren't students were that new guy and Alaric.† Her expression changed. â€Å"Alaric didn't kill Mr. Tanner! He wasn't even in Fell's Church then.† â€Å"I know. Alaric didn't do it.† She'd gone too far to stop now; Bonnie and Meredith already knew too much. â€Å"Damon did.† â€Å"That guy was thekiller ? The guy thatkissed me?† â€Å"Bonnie, calm down.† As always, other people's hysteria made Elena feel more in control. â€Å"Yes, he's the killer, and we all three have to be on guard against him. That's why I'm telling you. Never, never ask him into your house.† Elena stopped, regarding the faces of her friends. They were staring at her, and for a moment she had the sickening feeling that they didn't believe her. That they were going to question her sanity. â€Å"Yes. I'm sure. He's the murderer and the one who put Stefan in the well, and he might be after one of us next. And I don't know if there's any way to stop him.† â€Å"Well, then,† said Meredith, lifting her eyebrows. â€Å"No wonder you and Stefan were in such a hurry to leave the party.† Caroline gave Elena a vicious smirk as Elena walked into the cafeteria. But Elena was almost beyond noticing. One thing she noticed right away, though. Vickie Bennett was there. Vickie hadn't been to school since the night Matt and Bonnie and Meredith had found her wandering on the road, raving about mist and eyes and something terrible in the graveyard. The doctors who checked her afterward said there was nothing much wrong with her physically, but she still hadn't returned to Robert E. Lee. People whispered about psychologists and the drug treatments they were trying. She didn't look crazy, though, Elena thought. She looked pale and subdued and sort of crumpled into her clothing. And when Elena passed her and she looked up, her eyes were like a startled fawn's. It was strange to sit at a half-empty table with only Bonnie and Meredith for company. Usually people were crowding to get seats around the three of them. â€Å"We didn't finish talking this morning,† Meredith said. â€Å"Get something to eat, and then we'll figure out what to do about those notes.† â€Å"I'm not hungry,† said Elena flatly. â€Å"And whatcan we do? If it's Damon, there's no way we can stop him. Trust me, it's not a matter for the police. That's why I haven't told them he's the killer. There isn't any proof, and besides, they would never†¦ Bonnie, you're not listening.† â€Å"Sorry,† said Bonnie, who was staring past Elena's left ear. â€Å"But something weird is going on up there.† Elena turned. Vickie Bennett was standing at the front of the cafeteria, but she no longer seemed crumpled and subdued. She was looking around the room in a sly and assessing manner, smiling. â€Å"Well, she doesn't look normal, but I wouldn't say she was beingweird , exactly,† Meredith said. Then she added, â€Å"Wait a minute.† Vickie was unbuttoning her cardigan. But it was theway she was doing it – with deliberate little flicks of her fingers, all the while looking around with that secretive smile – that was odd. When the last button was undone, she took the sweater daintily between forefinger and thumb and slid it down over first one arm and then the other. She dropped the sweater on the floor. â€Å"Weird is the word,† confirmed Meredith. Students crossing in front of Vickie with laden trays glanced at her curiously and then looked back over their shoulders when they had passed. They didn't actually stop walking, though, until she took off her She did it gracefully, catching the heel of one pump on the toe of the other and pushing it off. Then she kicked off the second pump. â€Å"She can't keep going,† murmured Bonnie, as Vickie's fingers moved to the simulated pearl buttons on her white silk blouse. Heads were turning; people were poking one another and gesturing. Around Vickie a small group had gathered, standing far enough back that they didn't interfere with everyone else's view. The white silk blouse rippled off, fluttering like a wounded ghost to the floor. Vickie was wearing a lacy off-white slip underneath. There was no longer any sound in the cafeteria except the sibilance of whispers. No one was eating. The group around Vickie had gotten larger. Vickie smiled demurely and began to unfasten clasps at her waist. Her pleated skirt fell to the floor. She stepped out of it and pushed it to one side with her foot. Somebody stood up at the back of the cafeteria and chanted, â€Å"Take itoff! Take itoff!† Other voices joined in. â€Å"Isn't anybody going to stop her?† fumed Bonnie. Elena got up. The last time she'd gone near Vickie the other girl had screamed and struck out at her. But now, as she got close, Vickie gave her the smile of a conspirator. Her lips moved, but Elena couldn't make out what she was saying over the chanting. â€Å"Come on, Vickie. Let's go,† she said. Vickie's light brown hair tossed and she plucked at the strap of her slip. Elena stooped to pick up the cardigan and wrap it around the girl's slender shou lders. As she did, as she touched Vickie, those half-closed eyes opened wide like a startled fawn's again. Vickie stared about her wildly, as if she'd just been awakened from a dream. She looked down at herself and her expression turned to disbelief. Pulling the cardigan around her more tightly, she backed away, shivering. The room was quiet again. â€Å"It's okay,† said Elena soothingly. â€Å"Come on.† At the sound of her voice, Vickie jumped as if touched by a live wire. She stared at Elena, and then she exploded into action. â€Å"You're one of them! I saw you! You're evil!† She turned and ran barefoot out of the cafeteria, leaving Elena stunned.

People of different races, immigrate to a different country Essay

What are the feelings of those exiles? Many people immigrate out of their country of origin to a different country everday. Whilst some may feel excited at the prospect of discovering a new World, others may feel alienated and strange about their new environment. In the poems ‘Search for my Tongue’ and ‘Island Man’, the poets Sujata Bhatt and Grace Nichols talk about their feelings towards immigration and what they felt when they experienced a great change of culture and environment in their lifes. This essay will analyse how both poets make their feelings apparent throughout their poems. The first poem is Grace Nichols’ ‘Island Man’, her use of colours can show what she feels about both the Carribean and London. Nichols uses colour to reflect Island mans feelings in the poem ; she uses the words ‘dull’ and ‘grey’ to describe London. But in contrast she calls the Carribean Island Mans ‘small emerald island’, to show how precious the island is to Island Man, like an actual emerald diamond. She compares Island Mans life in London with his life in the Carribean. She also makes clear where Island Man would rather be. This is shown through Nichols’s choice of words ‘ defiantly’ and ‘heaves’. It suggests the difficulty in which Island Man has to drag himself out of Bed after dreaming about his Homeland. How angry he feels when the ‘sun surfaces defiantly’ to disturb his dreams. Another word that proofs shows how Island Man feels about london is ‘another’, its is used in the context that it suggests a never ending chain of days which are routine to Island Man. It aslo suggests a growing sense of boredom Island Man feels with his daily ‘dull’ and ‘gray’ surrounds. These colours bring up an image of grey concrete floors, a ‘surge of wheels’, a metaphor which refers to the small compact cars of today in the ‘grey metallic soar’, another metaphor used to describe Londons futuristicness. Nichols also used repetition on the words ‘come back’ to add emphasis on how island man always returns to the harsh reality of London. The effect Nichols is trying to create of her imagery of both ther Carribean are so that she can illustrate an image of London and an image of the Carribean, in which the differences are greater than the personalities. The Carribean is described as the ideal place to live, quiet fishermen ‘going out to sea’ the sounds of ‘wild seabirds’ and the sound of the gentle ‘breaking and wombing’ of the sea in his head. Usually, for many people the sounds of steady sea is associated with calmness and serenenity, relaxing and quiet. It is apparent which Island Man would choose. When the image contrasts are that of a ‘dull’ and depressing London Day surrounded by more ‘dull’ and ‘grey’ concrete buildings, and the bright and beautiful Caribbean Island, it is clear that Island Man, and therefore Nichols prefers the Carribean, and feels happier living in the Carribean. Another poem in which the theme of immigration, culture and identity is apparent is the poem written by Sujata Bhatt, ‘Search for my tongue’. In this Poem, Bhatt spoke of her struggle to fit in, in her new Home in America. She also speaks of her fear of losing her roots in India. ‘Search for my tongue’ is a personal and emotional poem about losing ones language and identity. It is about her own experience and her initial grief of having lost a part of herself that was a key of who she saw herself. In the first part of the poem, the writer explores the idea of having two tongues in your mouth. The word ‘tongue’ can refer to both the body organ which we use for speech, and the language we speak with it. She includes this ambiguous word in her title, suggesting that she lost her ability to talk the language she used before her arrival in the new country. ‘I ask you, what you would do if you had two tongues in your mouth’ is used to include the reader in her poem, to make the reader feel empathetic of her situation. She talks about how problems arise when speaking her mother tongue in an environment where the ‘foreign tongue’ is used so frequently that the mother tongue will ‘rot and die in your mouth’ from no use. The third part of the poem is an extended metaphor, written in Gujurati. This can be to show how hard it is living in a country where you couldnt speak or read the language. She uses the words ‘rot’, ‘die’ and ‘spit’ frequently, to emphasise how negative Bhatt felt about having lost her ‘tongue’. Bhatt uses these strong words to show the strong feelings of loss she felt at that time of identity crisis. She also adds an anglicised transcript to indicate sounds of the gujurati words, to help you read it. It also shows how the two ‘tongues’ are different. Which adds more emphasis on how Bhatt felt because it shows the great difference between the languages. This explains what she ment when she had said ‘ you could not use both of them together even if you thought that way.’, because their difference would make it hard for people to speak both languages together. The last part of the poem is by far the most interesting part, it is the part where Bhatt describes her dream in which her mother tongue ‘buds out of her mouth’ and ‘pushes the other tongue aside’. This fact is also supported as the Gujurati is positioned at the core with English either side of it. This demonstrates that the English and Gujurati language are able to function together in the poem, and therefore are able to function together in her life. She put the Gujurati language in the core of the Poem to show that it is the center of her culture, and as if the gujurati really did push the english language ‘aside’. She did this show that both tongues can work together, contradicting her earlier statement about how they couldnt work together ‘even if you thought that way’. As Bhatt describes rediscovering her lost tongue, feelings of Joy are very apparent. She describes her tongue to ‘bud’ out of her mouth, like a Flower, she talks about how it ‘grows strong veins’ that will help it implant itself in her mouth. Her mother ‘tongue ‘blossoms’ out of her mouth, after re-growing from a stump. Her ending, ‘Everytime I think I’ve forgotten, I think I’ve lost the mother tongue, it blossoms out of my mouth’, leaves a positive imprint on the readers minds, because at the end, she did find that even when she felt she was losing herself, she knew she can never really forget her culture. As comparison to both, in each poem, alienation and cultural identity is the main theme. Both poets use startling imagery to illustrate their point and get their feelings across. In ‘Island Man’ Nichols talks about how he seems to dream of his ‘small emerald island’, and in ‘Search for my Tongue’, Bhatt discovers her true culture is brought alive in her dreams. This suggests that even though both writers felt that they have lost their culture completley, in their subconscious dreams it always returns. The similarities occur in both poems. To conclude, both Bhatt and Nichols have clearly shown their feelings about immigration and about their new and strange surroundings they have to live in, and how they have to change to adapt to them. This change ment to Bhatt that her mother tongue slowly dwindles until she feels she cant speak it anymore. Nichols’ Island Man being forced to spent his live in a country he doesnt like, after dreaming of his homeland the Carribean. In my opinion, both poets semi-autobiographies tell alot about all the negative feelings people may harbour towards immigration. Since such a big part of this Country has at some point of their or their Parents live have lived in a whole different country. It shows the people who have lived here all their life how it felt to lose something so precious, it is described a ‘tongue’ in Bhatts poem and an ’emerald’ in Nichols’s. The themes of cultural and personal identity were apparent throughout both poems and both poets had put their feelings across for the reader to understand. The idea of identity crisis is also beautifully potrayed by both writers, and in the end the motive of the poems was put across to show the reader how it really feels to lose something that identifies you with yourself.

The Importance of Having an Identity

Henry Lawson’s poem Second Class Wait Here (Second Class) shows that when an identity is forced upon an individual (an outcome of class labelling) they may struggle to feel a positive sense of belonging. Gordon Bennett’s three-panel canvas artwork Triptych: Requiem, Of Grandeur, Empire (Triptych) exemplifies how strongly accepting one’s identity under difficultcircumstances leads to a deep and enriching sense of belonging that may extend out to others. Through the shepherd Corin, Shakespeare shows that a strong sense of identity can overshadow the derogations made by others.When Touchstone claims in Act Two that he is one of Corin’s ‘betters,’ Corin replies contentedly ‘Or else are they very wretched. ’ Further on in the play, Touchstone uses simile to describe Corin ‘like an ill roasted egg, cooked all on one side’ when claiming Corin to be ‘wicked’ having never been to court. Corin, happy with his bucol ic lifestyle, shrugs off each remark stating ‘Thou have too courtly a wit for me – I’ll rest. ’ Contrastingly, Lawson in his poem Second Class shows how a lack of acceptance to one’s identity leads to a negative outlook on one’s circumstances.At the railstation Lawson works he feels surrounded and held back by signboards stating ‘Second Class wait here. ’ To Lawson, the signboards become metaphors for social labelling and cause him†¦ At suburban railway stations – you may see them as you pass – There are signboards on the platform saying ‘Wait here second class': And to me the whirr and thunder and the cluck of running gear Seems to be forever saying, saying ‘Second class wait here' – https://www. oppapers. com/join. php? join_type=free