Stephen A. Douglas :: essays research papers

Stephen A. Douglas was born in Brandon, Vermont on April 23, 1813. His father, a young physician of high standing, died suddenly when Stephen was two months old, and the widow with her two children retired to a farm near Brandon. This is where Stephen lived with her until he was fifteen years old. He attended school during the three winter months and working on the farm the remainder of the year. He wanted to earn his own living so he went to Middlebury and became an apprentice in the cabinetmaking business. This trade he followed for about eighteen months, when he was forced to stop his work because of impaired health, after this he attended the academy at Brandon for about a year.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the autumn of 1830 he moved to New York State and attended the academy at Canandaigua where he began his study of law. Realizing that his mother wouldn’t be unable to support him through his courses, he was determined to go to the west, and on June 24, 1833, he set out for Cleveland, Ohio, where he was dangerously ill with fever for four months. He then visited Cincinnati, Louisville, St. Louis, and Jacksonville, Illinois, but failed to receive any employment. Feeling Discouraged, he walked to Winchester. Here he found employment as clerk to an auctioneer at an administrator's sale, and was paid six dollars. He studied law at night, and on Saturdays practiced before justices of the peace. In March 1834, he removed to Jacksonville, obtained his license, and began the regular practice of law. Two weeks after that he addressed a large Democratic meeting in defense of General Jackson's administration. In December 1840, he was appointed secretary of state of Illinois, and in the following February elected a judge of the Supreme Court. In 1843 Judge Douglas was elected to congress by a majority of 400, and he was reelected in 1844 by 1,900, and again in 1846 by over 3,000: but before the term began he was chosen U.S. senator, and took his seat in the senate on March 4, 1847. The bill for organizing the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, which Douglas reported in January 1854 reopened the whole slavery dispute and caused great popular excitement, as it repealed the part of the Missouri Compromise of 1820 which excluded slavery from the regions of the Louisiana Purchase north of the Mason-Dixon line, and declared the people of any state or territory free to form and regulate their domestic institutions in their own way, subject only to the Constitution of the United States.

Magic :: Free Essays

Magic Magic and wizardry is often associated with chivalry and Medieval times, and is often found in literature of that time, including the stories of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. One familiar character is Merlin the Magician, King Arthurà ­s friend and advisor. Merlin advises Arthur on several occasions, such as at the celebration of Arthurà ­s wedding when the woman on a white horse rides into the court, crying to Arthur for help. Merlin tells Arthur not to take this so lightly, and Arthur agrees that "all be done by your advice." Merlin is a well-respected magician and advisor to the King. Magic is defined as "The use of means (as ceremonies, charms, spells) that are believed to have supernatural power to cause a supernatural being to produce a particular result (as rain, death healing) considered not obtainable by natural means." There are two kinds of magic, White and Black. White Magic is considered sacred and respects the earth and is good magic. White Magic is practiced by "Good witches". Black Magic, however, is considered to be power derived from demons and is very bad if it is practiced. This kind of magic is practiced by wizards and sorcerers. Wizards, like Merlin, are men of wisdom and knowledge. Usually, they are associated with Black Art or witchcraft. Some wizards are good, like Merlin, or evil, such as Jafar in the tales of Alladin. Merlin is one of the best known wizards in literature and is a central character in the stories of King Arthur. It seems, then, that magic played an important role in the court, at least in literature. As far as historical use of magic in the courts, it is hard to find evidence of it. Is magic only a custom in fiction, or was it really used in Medieval times? This question remains to be answered.

Multicultural Literature Essay

During this semester in Prose class, I have learned many kind of short stories by writers of various background. I also learn how to analyze the text critically, especially about structuralism and culture studies. There are 8 short stories that I have discussed with the class and written in one-page journal response. First, A Short Happy Life of Conat by Mochtar Lubis , Rising Flood by Riem Eng, First Confession by Frank O’Connor, Wings by Catriona McKenzie, Ta-Na-E-Ka by Mary Whitebird, Indian Camp by Ernest Hemingway, Bali by Putu Setia, and Because My Father Always Said He Was the Only Indian Who Saw Jimi Hendrix Play â€Å"The Star-Spangled Banner at Woodstock by Sherman Alexie. Moreover I learned about what Prose is and Intrinsic element of literature, such plot, character, theme, point of view,setting, etc. Then I learn about structuralism in literature, such as binary opposition, the sequence of the event, unequal treatment of time, etc. On the other opportunities I also learn about symbolism, narration, multicultural literature and Indonesian multiculturalism. Because My Father Always Said He Was the Only Indian Who Saw Jimi Hendrix Play â€Å"The Star-Spangled† at Woodstock is a story that does not only focus on Indian people who are marginalized but it contains how the modern Indians life is. In this story, we could find some of multiculturalism. First, from the narrator,Victor’s point of view, he shows the mix culture between traditional Native−American values from his mother and the dependence to American influences from his father. There also some multiculturalisms about the difference treatment towards Indian fathers who leave their children compare to white fathers and how Indians family live such as the difference of Victor’s friend experience about how their parents making love and Victor’s parents who are Indians . In the beginning of the story, the mixture of the culture is shown by Victor’s father. â€Å"During the sixties, my father was the perfect hippie, since all the hippies were trying to be Indians.† There is an irony here that Victor’s father does not like the perfect hippie. He wear bell-bottom, flowered shirt and holds a riffle above his head that represented American, not the hippies. He use red peace symbols splashed across his face and there is a sign â€Å"MAKE LOVE NOT WAR† in his demonstration but he seems does not stand for peace. â€Å"The caption under the photograph read DEMONSTRATION GOES TO WAR FOR PEACE. The editor capitalized on my father’s Native America identity with other headline like ONE WARRIOR AGAINST WAR and PEACEFUL GATHERING TURN INTO NATIVE UPRISING†. Then his obsession with pop music America icon, Jimi hendrix, damage his family relationship and affects the values of his Indian culture. â€Å"Only the good die young,† to his mother replied, â€Å"No, only the crazy people choke to death on their own vomit.† So Victor’s father asked â€Å"Why you talking about my hero that way?† In this case, Victor saw their parents argue just because of different perception of the death of Jimi Hendrix. So indirectly Victor’s father obsession on Jimi Hendrix make him having arguments with his wife. In addition, on page 32 â€Å"A hundred years ago, an Indian marriage was broken easily. The woman or man just packed up all their possessions and left the tipi. There were no arguments, no discussion. Now, Indians fight their way to the end, holding onto the last good thing, because our whole lives have to do with survival.† It also indicates that by â€Å"fighting† stage, an Indian family problem now becomes clear since both wife and husband spill out their feeling and thought that might become the solution of the problem. On the other hand, Victor’s mother still involved with Native−American traditions, such as her dancing. As soon as her husband does not need her when he was sick in a hospital, â€Å"she went back to the life she had created. She traveled to powwows, started to dance again.†. In this case I could see that Victor’s mother as a woman have to make hard decision. Even though she still loves him, she can not follow the lifestyle of the man. Culture will always influence the characteristic of the society. Victor’s father’s dependence on music, alcohol, and other American influence separates him from his wife and son. In addition, when his marriage get worse, Victor’s father does not follow tradition that inspires the Indians about survival or the importance of family . It bring the multicultural further that is about the difference treatment towards Indian fathers who leave their children compare to white fathers. â€Å"On a reservation, Indian men who abandon their children are treated worse than white fathers who do the same thing. It’s because white men have been doing that forever and Indian men just leraned how.† In this matter, we could see that white people who indicate as more individual people, give influence Native-American to leave the children. There is also multiculturalism about how Indians family live such as the difference of Victor’s white friend experience about how their parents making love and Victor’s parents who are Indians. â€Å"Some night I lay awake and listened to my parents’ lovemaking. I know white people keep it quite, pretend they don’t ever make love. My white friends tll me thay can’t even imagine their own parents getting it on.† I think in this occasion, it would be positif knowledge for Indian’s children that their parents still love each other although sometimes they have fight. For the conclusion, we could see that multiculturalism can be the mixture culture between one culture to another. It could give positif affect or even negatif affect. Especially when we look at Victor’s father, the influence of acceptance of white American pop culture with Jimi Hendrix ironically contributes to his family breakup. However, for Victor, an Indian boy these sound of American pop culture (not always Jimi Hendrix but also Roberst Johnson) offer the hope that maybe someday his father will return home. These sounds are an inspiration for this Indian boy to go on. â€Å"Until the sun rose so bright that I knew it was time to go back inside to my mother †. So he knew when the sun comes up and shines brightly.

Tennyson Close Analysis

Tennyson was published in 1830 and is the text I have chosen to do closely analyze. The subject matter of the poem was taken from one of Shakespearean plays titled â€Å"Measure for Measure†, and the line: â€Å"Marina in the mooted grange,† gave Tennyson the inspiration to write of a young woman waiting for her lover. The two texts share a common theme of abandonment, as in Shakespearean play the young woman is also diligently awaiting the return of her lover Angelo after his desertion upon discovering her loss of dowry.Similarly to Shakespearean text, Marianne lacks action or any narrative movement, the entire poem serving as an extended depiction of the melancholy isolation a young woman experiences whilst pining for her vacant lover. The language, meter, format and tone of the poem contribute to the inherent themes of isolation, death and decay, which I will closely examine in this close reading exercise. Unlike some of Tennyson other works such as Ulysses, Marianne doesn't have a dramatic monologue although it does feature a refrain.This method isolates Marina from us, and the poem being written in a third person lyrical narrative makes the title guru unable to linguistically control her own poem. The refrain is the only part within the poem in which Marina is able to speak out directly to the reader as well as the only form of dialogue: in the first stanza, line's 9-12 â€Å"My life is dreary/He cometh not' she said:/She said, ‘l am areaway, areaway, I would that I were dead! Her desperation is evident to the reader, and ‘she said' being written in past tense is significant since we are left wondering of her fate as a result of her misery. The refrain undergoes minor changes throughout the poem, giving a small fragment of pope to both the reader and Marina who is stuck in a monotonous cycle of despair. In the second, third and fourth stanza she alternates between ‘day, night and light', in the final 9-12 lines of the stanz a, emphasizes that nothing really changes since her feelings of being ‘areaway continue regardless of the time of day.In the final stanza, in the 9-12th lines, the refrain changes dramatically from the continuous and unchanging refrain the reader had become accustomed to. Marina now Weeps' instead of ‘says' and asks ‘God' to end her misery, thus the plea is no longer a wish but a prayer and an appeal, signifying the end to all hope. She is now sure that ‘he' will never return and her recognition of this show that she accepts it. The use of the pronoun ‘he' in the refrain is interesting. We never learn ‘his' name or of his existence therefore his presence in the poem is very ambiguous.It could be that Marina is just waiting for a lover who has deserted her, or that ‘he' could be symbolic of a male dominant society that doesn't help her. The refrain shapes majority of the poem as it allows the reader to understand Marina's feelings, whereas th e language and the setting only serve as a metaphor for her internal anguish and isolation. Although the poem is static, meaning it involves no action, the pathetic fallacy and personification of the setting is a reflection of Marina's psychological decay as well as the world that she inhibits.In the first stanza, from lines 1 to 7, Marina's surroundings are described as ‘blackest', ‘rusted', ‘broken', Weeded and worn', and ‘lonely. Everything that is man-made is in a state of decay, symbolic for Marina's personal deteriorating and dissatisfaction of men. The iambic tetrameter, which sets the rhythmic, repetitive tone of the poem, is constantly interrupted by the refrain at he end of each stanza, symbolic to how Marianne can never feel at ease and is always in a state of psychological unrest.The three four-line rhyme units pattern of ABA CDC BEEF entrap the reader, since the E and F essentially remain the same in each stanza, which parallels with Marina's own entrapment. Words such as ‘shrieks and ‘cricked' in the sixth stanza between on line 2 and 5, are Tennyson use of onomatopoeia to further involve the reader in how Marina is feeling by using harsh and penetrating sounds. Through close analysis there are signs of hope Marina instills in us for both her fate and the return of her lover.In the first stanza on line 6, it is described that ‘unlisted was the clinking latch' emphasizing her hope for his return, and in the second stanza on line 8, when she ‘glanced athwart the gloaming flats,' although the use of ‘gloaming' is a morbid foreshadowing, Marina watches her surroundings as if she is waiting for a soldier to return from the battlefield and into her open arms. But as Marina deteriorates and hope fails her, so does the language in the poem.In the sixth stanza between lines 6 and 8, Marina descends into madness as her house becomes haunted by ‘old faces, glimmered thro' the doors, [old toasters, trod the upper floors, [old voices called her from without. ‘ The use of past tense with ‘glimmered' and ‘called' signifies that Marianne is still living in the past, as her libido flows backwards. She remembers happier times because she is haunted, and the psychological reversions as well as physical deterioration move in parallel order, creating overwhelming sense of degeneration and loss.In the last stanza, the sparrow's chirrup on the roof, [the slow clock ticking,' this first and second line stood out. ‘The sparrow is symbolic because it is a sign of impending death, in Christian homeboys the sparrow was seen as offering made by person without any means. As for the ‘slow clock ticking, this can be interpreted for the lack of time and the poem's constant circular motion before reaching its climax in the final stanza. However, because the clock is about to come to a halt it could also have the double meaning for Marina's impending death.Another liter ary symbol that Tennyson uses to draw up on Marina's yearning for her lover is the polar tree. The polar tree is a classic symbol of the renegade lover and his broken promise; it can be interpreted as a phallic symbol since it provides he only break in the otherwise barren and flat landscape. Within classic mythology the poplar tree is used in the text Metamorphoses, where Ovid describes how None, deserted by Paris, addresses the poplar on which Paris has carved his promise not to desert her. This interpretation is relevant to the reoccurring theme of abandonment and isolation within the poem.In the fourth stanza, the fifth line introduces the poplar tree as the ‘Hard by a poplar shook alleyway's silver-green with gnarled bark also making it's existence sound temperamental and deteriorating through the use of ‘gnarled bark and ‘silver-green', these adjectives making it unappealing in the mind of the reader. Marina lusts for the company of her previous lover, so whe n she sees the gusty shadow sway,' in the following fourth line of the fifth stanza, this is the remainder of the sexual dominance her lover had over her and his absence in her life which has been replaced by this desolate tree.The fact that she is still pining over his vacancy shows that he still holds power over her and is able to manipulate her, which could be said of women in society being under the control of men during Tennyson time. The poplar tree's isolation haunts Marina even in sleep, because it eternally serves as a remainder of the one who will never come. Death is also a prominent motif throughout the poem, as ‘dead' is repeated in the last line of every stanza in the refrain.In the climaxing, last stanza of the poem, Tennyson wrote on the sixth line ‘but she loathed the hour/When the thick-mooted sunbeam lay, this phrase is emphasized by the caesura directly prior to it, and the comparatively period lacking punctuation which follows. The words thick and â €˜lay give the reader the impression that Marina's world is coated in dust, suggesting that it is morality which weighs her down since her life is bleak and oppressive. This idea is further emphasized by the day drawing to a close when Tennyson wrote in the last stanza on the 8th line, ‘and the Dallas sloping toward his western bower. The imagery here is suggestive of the sun setting and her moving towards Angelo since the connotation of light has to do with living and mortality. The ending of the day, and the drawing of the poem can be interpreted as the ending of Marina's own life. In conclusion, much of Tennyson formation of the character Marina can be seen as a projection of his own psychological issues. His powerful use of imagery and pathetic fallacy illustrates the struggle Marina faces between life and death as she diligently awaits her lovers return.

Discuss the letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discuss the letter - Essay Example However reading the opening part of the letter, the author seems to be rational in his ideas as he quotes concrete evidence of whatever that he perceives. The author has based his understanding of the situation upon hardcore facts and not mere assumptions. In this case it can be said that the argument presented by the author is rationally strong as it provides the readers with a reason to believe. However as we move to the next passage of the letter, it can be observed that though the author has build up his argument in a rational manner once again, but this argument contradicts the preceding one. In this case, though, the readers have strong evidence and reasons to believe in what is being communicated, but the contradiction in the overlapping passages may go on to bewilder the readers and lead to a state of irresolution (Sellnow 185). The penultimate passage is followed by a conclusive one. Ironically, the conclusive part of the letter leaves the readers with a question, unanswered. In this paragraph, the author has used his rhetorical power to get his message across to the audience. The author incorporates a personalized tone to the message and indicates the inception of personal influence in the conclusion that the author has drawn himself, inspired by his personal experiences and perceptions to various stimuli in the world. The final lines of the letter are analyzed to be rhetoric because the author does not provide solid evidence or basis to the reader to believe in what is being said. The reader is left with the freedom to either believe in what is being said or simply leave it. This is the specified characteristic of rhetorical arguments; they leave the reader in an indecisive state and let them make their own opinions. However there is a strong likelihood of readers agreeing to what is being communicated and base their opinions as per those of the author, but this depends upon

DUI class eassy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

DUI class eassy - Essay Example However, Americans still drink alcohol and drive despite the DUI prevention efforts through DUI laws. This is so as alcohol is deeply rooted in the American culture and way of life. Considering this, there is astonishingly large gap in scientific knowledge regarding the drinking under the influence among the American citizens (Bracken, 2012). It is for this reasons that I have decided to undertake a course in DUI laws. Through this class, I intend to partake in the implementation and formulation of traffic policies within my country. More so, I intend to undertake research on the inconsistencies between law and ethics. Personally, I have been a victim of drunk driving and the incidence nearly landed me in prison. I drove through a police checkpoint before the officers stopped my car and requested me to pull to the side of the road. At first, I was hesitant since I felt that this type of laws should not be applied in a free country. I saw this inspection as an invasion of my privacy and a collapse of American democracy. Before I could explain my case, the officers requested me to get out of the car and asked me several questions before they suspected me of drunk driving. Nonetheless, I was adamant that I had not taken any alcohol. According to my own understanding, being drunk is a personal issue and levels of drunkenness vary across different individuals. Before this incidence, I considered drunk driving an imposition that is meant to invade or violate people’s privacy. The officers requested me to undertake certain tests such as balancing my body on one leg before I took a breathalyzer tes t. Through these tests, the officers concluded that I was drunk and that I had violated the drunken driving laws according to state’s regulation. I was detained in the police station for the night. In addition, my driving license was confisiticated. Although I had never had any

Agency Analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Agency Analysis - Research Paper Example On production of a guideline concluding that back pain operation was potentially harmful and unnecessary, a lobbying campaign backed by Congressmen with back surgeries had the name of the policy changed and would later pull down the program’s guidelines. The mission of AHRQ is conducting and supporting studies of effectiveness and outcomes of therapeutic, preventive and diagnostic health care procedures and services (Shi & Singh,2012). For over 4 decades, the federal government has been funding research in health services so as to recognize how to enhance the value and quality of health care together with delivery of public health. The AHRQ was established by Congress so as the singular research agency having the sole objective of coming up with evidence of making health care more equitable, accessible, safer, affordable, is of high quality and ensuring that the evidence is well understood and utilized well. This means that AHRQ is tasked with funding health care enhancement and health services research programs particularly in medical centers, universities, research institutions as well as medical practices aimed at transforming people’s health care and health in various communities in each state. For the past 15 years AHRQ has a long and rich history of offering critical evidence of enhancing health care and health. One of the key achievements of AHRQ is the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) which b asically is the singular source of domestic information on costs and utilization of medical care services. Nevertheless, MEPS has been utilized in counting and measuring the uninsured and insured, their service costs, characteristics and use. Basically, no other dataset exists like it. Indeed, if every key health policy is examined from 1977, MEPS has been effectively employed to predict and model effects. Research from AHRQ has, for instance, been used in Virginia by Health and Human Resources in 1992-2002 particularly for its Medicaid program