Friday, November 1, 2019

Medieval ages and Modern time Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Medieval ages and Modern time - Essay Example However, the period laid most of the foundation in modern time professions and beliefs that still persists in most rural and indigenous societies around the globe. Among the trained people who defended the medieval societies were archers, foot soldiers, and the most explicit group referred as the knights. The knights were ranked the richest of all soldiers in the time, and were equipped with more expertise than others. Any knight had to pass through a session of training, and could only become one through his valor prior or after battles, or if he was a son of a noble family (â€Å"Becoming a knight,† thinkquest.org). This selection criterion is quite different in the modern society for individuals desiring to pursue military. Of course, it did prevent individuals in the society who would have liked to be come one, but since they were not from noble families or could not express their courage, they missed out the chance. The knights dressing code was rather heavy and uncomfortable especially under the hot sun. Apart from their linen shirt and a pair of pants, they wore woolen pads underneath the metal ringed tunic, which was later repla ced with metal plates, covering most of their body parts (â€Å"The Medieval knight,† thinkquest.org). They highly used swords, knives and spears as defense weapons and held tournaments to exercise their loyalty in service while acting as mock battles in front of audience. Basically the knight was purposefully skilled to protect his lord and the castle against external attacks more than the entire society. In the modern society, military selection is open for individuals who qualify to a certain level, without being biased to social status not unless the system is corrupt, it doe not matter whether one comes from poor or rich background, but the procedure follows strictly and individuals who qualify can specialize in the profession. The purpose for the military is to serve the area of jurisdiction by ensuring its

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Assignment 1 Reflective Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Assignment 1 Reflective Report - Essay Example One approach that employees use to fight for their rights is the formation of unions that advocate for the rights of the people within a specific industry. In this regard, the contemporary society has witnessed the formation of powerful trade unions that advocate for the rights of the people that they represent in order to obtain better working conditions and remuneration. The empowerment of employees, by these trade unions and other measures such as legislations that protect them from their employers, has been partly due to the current systems of governance that underlines the need of rebelling against ruling bodies that commit offences. Therefore, these power-related organisations are a way of the employees asserting their authority. Through the activities of trade unions, in organisations, employees assert their power by maintaining checks on their employer’s activities and ensure that the employer did not infringe on their rights. For example, most organisational policy on improvement of the working conditions and remuneration are not consistent with the law. ... Ward (2010) identifies Locke’s central idea of freedom based on the ability of individuals to intellectualize phenomena based on ideas. In this case, organisations and people in the contemporary society identify power as contestable. Consequently, this has been the reason why employees in organisations have the ability to contest decisions made by their bosses following down the laid down procedures by using courts or other legal avenues. On the other hand, various stakeholders contest for power in the contemporary societies especially in instances whereby they felt that the organisation was not being managed in the right away. Therefore, these power-related struggles between various stakeholders in an organisation are a result of the view that power can be contested with the rebellion replicating Locke’s view that people who are in authority may be deposed if they offended the natural law. In effect, this makes Locke’s theory of power the most relevant to explai n power-related phenomena in the modern world. Question 2 In the contemporary society, it is evident that the ruled rely on their rulers to make decisions that affect their daily lives. In this regard, the subjects identify the ruling class as the people who are responsible for provision of important resources in their lives. In fact, this supports Weber’s contention that the ruling elite make decisions that affect the people, which is against the premise that power is exercised by the people (â€Å"Elite Theories† 2013). It is a common occurrence for the ruling class to ask for power from the people they ruled while making promises on what they are going to accomplish to these people. In this case, the ruling elite

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Durkheim: Types of suicide in society

Durkheim: Types of suicide in society Once he discovered that certain types of suicide could be accounted for by anomie, he could then use anomic suicide as an index for the otherwise unmeasurable degree of social integration. This was not circular reasoning, as could be argued, but a further application of his method of analysis. He reasoned as follows: There are no societies in which suicide does not occur, and many societies show roughly the same rates of suicide over long periods of time. This indicates that suicides may be considered a normal, that is, a regular, occurrence. However, sudden spurts in the suicide rates of certain groups or total societies are abnormal and point to some perturbations not previously present. Hence. abnormally high rates in specific groups or social categories, or in total societies, can be taken as an index of disintegrating forces at work in a social structure. Durkheim distinguished between types of suicide according to the relation of the actor to his society. When men become detached from society, when they are thrown upon their own devices and loosen the bonds that previously had tied them to their fellow, they are prone to egoistic, or individualistic, suicide. When the normative regulations surrounding individual conduct are relaxed and hence fail to curb and guide human propensities, men are susceptible to succumbing to anomic suicide. To put the matter differently, when the restraints of structural integration, as exemplified in the operation of organic solidarity, fail to operate, men become prone to egoistic suicide; when the collective conscience weakens, men fall victim to anomic suicide. In addition to egoistic and anomic types of suicide, Durkheim refers to altruistic and fatalistic suicide. The latter is touched upon only briefly in his work, but the former is of great importance for an understanding of Durkheims general approach. Altruistic suicide refers to cases in which suicide can be accounted for by overly strong regulation of individuals, as opposed to lack of regulation. Durkheim argues in effect that the relation of suicide rates to social regulation is curvilinearhigh rates being associated with both excessive individuation and excessive regulation. In the case of excessive regulation, the demands of society are so great that suicide varies directly rather than inversely with the degree of integration. For example, in the instance of the Hindu normative requirement that widows commit ritual suicide upon the funeral pyre of their husbands, or in the case of harikiri, the individual is so strongly attuned to the demands of his society that he is willing to take his own life when the norms so demand. Arguing from statistical data, Durkheim shows that in modern societies the high rates of suicide among the military cannot be explained by the deprivations of military life suffered by the lower ranks, since the suicide rate happens to be higher for officers than for enlisted men. Rather, the high rate for officers can be accounted for by a military code of honor that enjoins a passive habit of obedience leading officers to undervalue their own lives. In such cases, Durkheim is led to refer to too feeble degrees of individuation and to counterpose these to the excesses of individuation or de-regulation, which account, in his view, for the other major forms of suicide. Durkheims discussion of altruistic suicide allows privileged access to some of the intricacies of his approach. He has often been accused of having an overly anti-individualistic philosophy, one that is mainly concerned with the taming of individual impulse and the harnessing of the energies of individuals for the purposes of society. Although it cannot be denied that there are such tendencies in his work, Durkheims treatment of altruistic suicide indicates that he was trying to establish a balance between the claims of individuals and those of society, rather than to suppress individual strivings. Acutely aware of the dangers of the breakdown of social order, he also realized that total control of component social actors by society would be as detrimental as anomie and de-regulation. Throughout his life he attempted to establish a balance between societal and individual claims. From Coser, 1977:132-136. At the end of the 19th century a French sociologist, Emile Durkheim, recorded an apparent link between high suicide rates and a breakdown in social structure and organisation. He coined the term anomie for this state. This link has since been recorded many times in places outside France and appears to be real. However, its true significance has only recently begun to be understood with the development and exploration of the concept of social capital and its link, not just with suicide, but with health generally. (Stronger Communities One of 28) He wanted to demonstrate and establish sociologys scientific status by providing a sociological explanation of that seemingly most individual of acts-suicide. In order to do this he had to define suicide as a social fact that would require explanation in terms of other social facts (social structures and forces as conceptualized in his multi-layered model). The social fact to be explained was not the individual act of suicide, which might be better accounted for by a case study method where, in favourable instances, there might be enough evidence to make inferences about the victims mental state-motives and intentions. It was suicide rates, as disclosed by statistics, that constituted the social fact to be explained as an effect of an imbalance of social structural forces. Consequently, he proceeded to define suicide with the least possible reference to mental elements, excluding any reference to intentions but allowing for the need to distinguish between accidental death and suicide : the term suicide is applied to all cases of death resulting directly or indirectly from a positive or negative act of the victim himself, which he knows will produce this result. Comparative statistics for countries and categories of people within each country showed that suicide rates were relatively constant; therefore, it must be a social fact that a collective tendency towards suicide existed. These collective tendencies could be related to sets of causes to produce a classification of types of suicide. The sets of causes were theoretically postulated on the basis of Durkheims conception of possible imbalances between centrifugal forces (too much individualism) and centripetal forces (too much social pressure). Two pairs of imbalances of forces are defined; one pair refers to the degree of integration or interaction in a group (egoism and altruism), the other pair refers to the degree of moral regulation (anomie and fatalism). The two continua of integration and regulation, and the four types of suicide, can be illustrated in Fig. 3.2 and summary: The first type of suicide, at the low extreme of the integration continuum, was egoistic suicide. Here rates of interaction in egoistic groups were low, and so values, beliefs, traditions, and sentiments were not held in common by all members. The result was that they weakened each other whenever they came into conflict. The collective life was diminished and individual interests were asserted. The individual lost the beneficial effects of group membership, such as support and revitalization, and consequently found little meaning in group life. Thus suicide rates were higher for Protestants than Catholics, both in comparisons between predominantly Protestant countries and Catholic countries, and between Protestants and Catholics in the same society. It was not the case that one religions beliefs condemned suicide and the other did not, as suicide was severely condemned by both Protestantism and Catholicism. The difference was that Protestanism encouraged individual free inquiry and, unlike Catholicism, it did not offer priestly and sacramental supports. Where a Protestant church did offer more of those supports, as in the Church of England, which had kept some of the Catholic emphasis on priesthood and sacraments (and had more clergyman per head of population than Protestant countries) the suicide rate was mid-way between that of the Catholic and Protestant countries. A further example of egoistic suicide was the higher rate to be found among adults who were unmarried compared with married people of the same age. And the larger the family, the lower was the chance of suicide occurring. Finally egoistic suicide varied inversely with the degree of political integration, the rate fell in wars and political crises. Altruistic suicide was the result of too much integration. The individual absorbed and controlled by the group had an under-developed and so under-valued sense of individuality. Such a person could not resist the pressure to sacrifice the self for the groups interests, even if it me ant committing suicide. Durkheim pointed out the similarity of the modern army and primitive society in this respect; in both there was a lack of individuality and a strong pressure towards self-sacrifice. Examples of suicides in primitive societies included suicides of the old or very ill, suicides of women on their husbands death, and suicides of followers or servants on the death of their chiefs. The much higher rate of military suicides compared with civilians in modern suicide was explained by Durkheim in terms of military morality being a survival of primitive morality, predisposing the soldier to kill himself at the least disappointment, for the most futile reasons, for a refusal of leave, a reprim and, an unjust punishment, a delay in promotion, a question of honour, a flush of momentary jealousy, or even simply because other suicides have occurred before his eyes or to his knowledge [1] p. 239. The next type of suicide, at the low extreme of the regulation continuum, was anomic suicide. Anomie was the consequence of social change resulting in a diminution of social regulation. He discussed two forms of economic anomie-acute and chronic, and then chronic domestic anomie. They were all cases of an imbalance between means and needs-states of disequilibrium, where means were inadequate to fulfil needs. Durkheim did not believe that needs were given in mans biological, psychological, or individual nature. Indeed, that was one of his main criticisms of the economic, psychological, and utilitarian theories of his time, because they ignored the socially-derived and variable nature of human needs. Passions, desires, appetites, ends, and goals could all become needs, and if such wants were not restrained they would bring unhappiness. The individuals wants were boundless unless a limit was set on them by an external moral authority. Acute economic anomie occurred in booms and slumps. In both circumstances old rules relating means to ends were inapplicable, and individuals were freed from social restraint, creating disequilibrium, unhappiness, and leading to an increase in suicides. Chronic economic anomie was a product of a longer term diminution of social regulation of the relation between means and ends. For over a century there had been an erosion of the influence of agencies that had exercised moral restraint over economic relations, particularly religious and occupational groups, and instead of being regarded as a means, industry had become an end in itself. Not surprisingly, suicide rates were higher in manufacturing and commercial occupations than they were in agriculture, because the latter still had traditions and customs that exercised constraint. (Not that Durkheim wanted to revert to older forms of organization, although he believed new occupational associations should be formed that would have some of the same functions as the old guilds.) Constant economic striving after limitless goals could not bring happiness, as was shown by the fact that the higher socio-economic strata had higher rates of suicide than the poor. Acute domestic anomie was exemplified by widowhood, which represented a crisis for the surviving husband or wife, who would not be adapted to the new situation and so offered less resistance to suicide. Chronic domestic anomie was discussed by Durkheim in terms of the way in which marital regulation affects the means-needs balance in men and women. He defined marriage as: A regulation of sexual relations, including not merely the physical instincts which this intercourse involves but the feelings of every sort gradually engrafted by civilization on the foundation of physical desire [1] , p. 270. Civilization had produced a multiplicity of triggers of mans passions, and only marriage could channel those needs within attainable bounds; bachelors, however, experience limitless horizons, which lead to unrestrained passions that create a disjunction between means and ends, and a state of chronic anomie. Consequently, bachelors had a higher suicide rate than married men. Ease of divorce had a similar effect on married men, producing higher suicide rates. Women, who had long been more restricted within the domestic sphere, had not had their sexual aspirations raised to the same level, and so they required less regulation. Marriage served to over-regulate them, particularly if it was difficult to secure a divorce (they had a lower rate of suicide in societies where divorce was easier than in those where it was difficult). As distinct from family life with children, marriage itself offered no protection against suicidal pressures so far as women were concerned. The interests of the two sexes were in conflict: Speaking generally, we now have the cause of that antagonism of the sexes which prevents marriage favouring them equally: their interests are contrary; one needs restraint and the other libertyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Women can suffer more from marriage if it is unfavourable to her than she can benefit by it if it conforms to her interest. This is because she has less need of it [1] , p. 274-275. Fatalistic suicide was at the high extreme of the regulation continuum. He only discussed this condition of excessive regulation once, and that was restricted to an eight-sentence footnote. Examples were the situation of childless married women (presumably where divorce was difficult), young husbands, and slaves. He described it as the suicide of persons with futures pitilessly blockedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦or all suicides attributable to excessive physical or moral despotism. For some reason, not specified, he decided that it has so little contemporary importance, and examples are so hard to find aside from the cases just mentioned, that it seems useless to dwell upon it [1] , p. 276, footnote 25. Although Durkheim used the categories of egoism, altruism, and anomie (not so much fatalism) to distinguish suicidogenic currents, and collective tendencies, he admitted that in practice it was very difficult to separate the currents of egoism and anomie as they flowed from a single source-the loss of mechanical solidarity and the failure to develop a genuine organic solidarity. A moderate amount of egoism and anomie was necessary for progress. A certain amount of individualism was necessary for the growth of the division of labour; it was excessive egoistic tendencies that produced a pathological level of egoistic suicides. Similarly, with anomie, among peoples where progress is and should be rapid, rules restraining individuals must be sufficiently pliable and malleable; if they preserved all the rigidity they possess in primitive societies, evolution thus impeded could not take place promptly enough [1] , p.364. The language of forces and currents in states of disequilibrium was symptomatic of Durkheims effort to demonstrate that a sociological explanation of suicide could reveal hidden causes-in this case social forces that were as real as physical forces. Although his references to suicidogenic currents sound like an over-drawn analogy with electrical currents, in fact they refer to phenomena specified in his multi-layered model.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Societal Needs:Diversity and Equity Essay -- essays papers

Societal Needs:Diversity and Equity The purpose of this paper is to examine diversity and equity issues regarding education. More specifically, this research paper will take an in-depth view of affirmative action and its policies. A non biased view was enacted to present the pros, cons, and hotly debated issues regarding affirmative action at the university level. Additionally, the paper will examine the validity and possible biases in alternatives to affirmative action that have recently been issued. Simply stated, affirmative action is an active commitment to enhance employment and educational opportunities for minorities and women. Affirmative action’s origins stem back to the 1960s when the government began to progressively take steps in redressing decades of racial discrimination against blacks (â€Å"affirmative action†). Women and minorities, mostly Hispanic and Native Americans, subsequently were covered in this new remedy. Affirmative action forced private as well as public institutions of higher education to alter their traditional ways regarding the recruitment and admission of students (Lowe 13). Colleges and universities developed organized methods to help attract black students. Increased representation of black students on campus now became a commitment at all schools. Admission and financial aid were altered to help eliminate existing barriers to access. As a result, numerous minorities who previously may not have been admitted to institutions of higher learning were now being accepted in increasing numbers (Fullinwider). This new commitment and responsibility of institutions, however, was not welcomed by everyone. At what cost would universities go to wh... ... â€Å"Universities Need to Take A Stand and Defend Affirmative Action.† Black Issues in Higher Education 17.4 (2000): p42 Lowe, Edward, Jr. (1999). Promise and Dilemma. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. McClafferty, K. â€Å"Challenges of the New Sociology of Urban Education.† Albany: State University of New York Press, 2000. 3-15 Pg. 9 Miller, Geralda. â€Å"Study: Racial Prejudice is Reason For Affirmative Action Resistance† Black Issues in Higher Education 17.2 (2000): p14. Plous, S. (2003). Ten Myths about Affirmative Action. In S. Plous (Ed.), Understanding Prejudice and Discrimination (pp.206-212). New York: McGraw-Hill. Symonds, William C. â€Å"College Admissions: The Real Barrier Is Class.† Business Week 3828 (2003): p66. Zwick, Rebecca. â€Å"Eliminating Standardized Tests in College Admissions.† Phi Delta Kappan (1999): 320-325.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Tyler Perry’s the Family That Preys

This is a good family movie that can show the viewer’s how some people prey on one another. This movie reminded me of the times my brother and I didn’t get along. It shows how different families are and how they treat one another. Sadly this movie also shows how family members can be so cold blooded. This movie duplicates real life situations where innocent People get hurt, family loyalty gets divided and couples end up in divorce. This movie is centered on two main couples and a few supporting characters. Chris & Andrea This couple is different than most in many ways. Andrea, the wife character is all about money and power and thinks only about herself. Chris is a hard working husband who works as a construction worker for Cartwright inc. the same company his wife works for. Chris and Andrea were right out of college when they married. As time goes on, you can see that neither Chris nor Andrea lived their life for the lord, both allowed themselves to become too busy to go to church. Chris still hung onto his morals remaining a faithful husband and a loving father. However Andrea, unlike Chris was flirting from the day they got married with Mr. Cartwright who became their boss. During the four years of their marriage she was getting large bonuses for carrying on an affair with Mr. Cartwright. These three characters obviously live without God and do things of a secular nature in their life. I think Chris and Andrea could have had a blessed marriage and a good life had they let God lead them. Andrea behind her husband Chris’s back is hiding the money that Mr. Cartwright has been giving her over the years. Chris while at the bank one day finds out that his wife Andrea has a separate account with 286. 00. 00. This is example is a lesson on trust within a marriage. This couple is shown to be the opposite of Chris and Andrea. Ben and Pam are loving and close, they work on their marriage and communicate and often talk about â€Å"GOD†. They have traditional values and both work hard for their money and the things they have. Ben, like Chris is a hard working construction employee for the Cartwright’s. Ben’s wife Pam work for her mother Alice at the family business, a place called â€Å"a  wing and a prayer diner. Pam is a good supportive wife to Ben and she works hard and has great respect for her mother. Pam is a faithful devoted wife to her husband Ben. They have problems of their own, both work long hours laboring hard with little pay but, they trust in the Lord to solve their problems and see them through. Their marriage and their life shows they have deep faith and are grateful for what blessing they have, and you can see that they are satisfied. Alice & Charlotte These are the two mothers of the movie. Alice is the mother of two daughters â€Å"Pam†, â€Å"Andrea†. At one point you see Alice and Pam talking to Andrea when Chris confronts her about the money in the account and he learns of her affair with William Cartwright, her mother and sister try to explain that nothing good can come out of hurting others. Andrea believes that because of her affair William loves her and will leave his wife and choose a life with her. Her mother Alice warns her that he won’t leave his wife and wonders out loud where she went so wrong with Andrea. Charlotte, who is mostly called Mrs. Cartwright, is the mother of William Cartwright, the son that is having the affair with Andrea. Alice tries to live right and goes to church and choir practice and carries her Bible with her everywhere she goes. Through the movie Alice and her daughter Pam are shown helping out this down and out man whose name is Nick. They provide him with clean clothes, free meals and a place to wash up. When asked by her daughter why they do this for this man, Alice reminds her daughter Pam â€Å"You Never When You Might Be Entertaining an Angel†. Charlotte, Mrs. Cartwright finds out she has a problem that the doctor tell her about. The doctors tell her she had early onset â€Å"Alzheimer’s†. Without sharing her health information she asks Alice to take a trip across the United States heading west. She buys a 1959 Cadillac to drive on the trip. She wants to feel alive and have fun before the Alzheimer’s sets in. They travel through many states during their trip. While it’s her turn to drive Alice stops by a river and encourages Charlotte to get saved by being baptized in a river. Charlotte stops by a bar and has fun drinking and dancing, but Alice being a Christian doesn’t want anything to do with that stuff. The trip ends when Charlotte has an episode and Alice learns she has Alzheimer’s and wants to go home. While away Charlotte’s son William tries to stab his mother in the back and retire her early from her own company. This is a sad example of power and money being a priority more than family love and loyalty. William is definitely controlled by the secular world. Charlotte has a surprise her friend Alice has been buying stock from Nick, who although is now going through a rough time once was a stock investor for Cartwright’s inc. and William fired him. Nick, Pam and Alice attend a board meeting, the very same one William is using to try and retire his own mother. Alice announces that with Nick and Alice’s share she has again controlling interest and fires her back stabbing son William. Pam learns at this meeting in a round- about way that her mother Alice who is hard working isn’t poor but actually a millionaire. It sadly shows Charlotte near the end of the movie taking her medication out of the bathroom cabinet and we gather that she takes an overdose as the movie shows Alice crying and it goes to Charlotte’s funeral. Alice being a true friend she toughs it out and sings at her friend’s funeral a song about â€Å"if given a chance to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance. † This movie brought a lot of stuff to my attention that had gone on in my family growing up. Alice had two daughters that didn’t see eye to eye on anything. It made me stop and think about how my brother and I were with our mother. This movie held so much feeling in it offering the viewer a wide range of emotions. I think if more families would sit together and watch many of Tyler Perry’s movies they would get a great deal of family value out of them. Not only does Tyler Perry make movies for entertainment and enjoyment he can take a viewer to the heart of the real issue. I have watched a lot of Tyler’s movies but this hits home for me because it uses things like â€Å"Secular Humanism†, â€Å"Suffering†, and turning your back on a loved one like a evil person. I could pick up on many of the world’s issues today, in this movie. This movie meant so much to me personally I had to share it with my family. I stopped to think about the suffering some families go through in life trying to get ahead and how sometimes it’s because they step on one another to do it, like William trying to retire his mother behind her back. What happened to the old days when people like Alice and Pam were raised to do for those less fortunate than you, even if they might be your own family. When did the world become so self centered, selfish and uncaring of humanity like Andrea. I really relate to what Alice shared with her daughter Pam, â€Å"you never know when you could be entertaining an Angel. It might be a stranger or it could even be a member of your family, you should be respectful and considerate of all people. I wish more of the families today could go back to the time when families really cared for each other. More and more of today’s family members help one another only to expect something in return or they use it against you. It hurts when I look at what has happened to familyâ₠¬â„¢s values today. In many families kids have no respect for their parents, brother and Sisters fight sometimes carrying it on for years. I see how people today don’t care about feelings or what will happen to the other person. People of today are all about getting that almighty dollar, they let their lives and attitudes be obsessed with money. Many people, like some of the characters in this movie think that the more money you have the more power you will have. Andrea in this movie was snooty and acted as if she was so much better than her sister or her mother, William assumed that because Charlotte was his mother and he was her son that he would one day be the leader of her company like she owed the position to him. If more people would read and live by the â€Å"Bible† families would have less trouble than they have. God and prayer have to be the foundation for a family to be and remain close, loving and respectful of each other. Those that choose to live for God think and act more righteously, out of their love and respect for God comes love and respect for others. I was raised very old fashioned where families were families and you cared, loved, and watched out for each other. I have seen a lot people say that they are helping their family are there staying with them.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Soldier’s Home

In Ernest Hemingway’s short story, â€Å"Soldier’s Home†, a young man named Krebs is unable to relate to his mother and home life after he returned from the First World War. After Krebs saw death and destruction in the wars most bloody battles, he returns home where his parents try to get him back to his normal routines. His view of the world has changed drastically since the war. He no longer feels love in his heart and cannot lie to his mother when she asks if he loves her. One of the famous lines Hemingway wrote, â€Å"Krebs looked at the bacon fat hardening on his plate.† Like bacon his heart has been hardened by what he had seen in World War I and he knew he must get far away from his parents to be able to get his life back in order. Harold Krebs after graduating from a Methodist college in Kansas enlisted in the Marines in 1917 and did not return to the United States until 1919. While at war he saw many tragedies that changed his life forever. When he returns home he does not get a heroes welcome because many had returned before him. At first Krebs did not want to talk about the war but later on when he felt the need no one would listen. He spent his days reading, walking and admiring the girls but a lot had changed since he had been gone. He thought about going out with some of the girls he used to know and remembers the girls he knew overseas but finds, â€Å"the young girls had grown up. But they lived in such a complicated world with already defined alliances and shifting feuds that Krebs did not feel the energy or courage to break in it.† Krebs has a hard time relating to his parents and he finds himself not wanting to go watch his sister play ball. The climax to the story is when Krebs's mother asks, â€Å"Don't you love your mother, dear boy?† and he answers, â€Å"No†. Even though he had been feeling unhappy, useless, and out of place since he had returned from the war, he had been drifting along, going through the motions. He had been stagnating, spending his time sitting on the front porch, reading, trying â€Å"to keep his life from being complicated†. The final conflict with his mother forces Krebs to face the fact that he cannot stay. He lies to his mother to make her feel better after he has hurt her with the truth, but is â€Å"sick and vaguely nauseated† by his duplicity. As his mother prays over him at the end of the story, Krebs resolves to go away to Kansas City and start his life again, away from the home and family to which he can no longer belong. In the story, â€Å"Soldier’s Home† it is told from the third person narrator point of view. Hemingway, having been a former journalist is able to show how distant Krebs is because of being the type of journalist who is detached just like Krebs was detached by his experience in World War I. As Hemingway writes he shows how Krebs holds his emotions in that he knows his mother will not understand. When Krebs calls his mom â€Å"Mummy† he is trying to comfort her by acting like a child. At the end Krebs makes a decision to leave and go to Kansas City because he feels he may not ever reconnect with his family. Harold Krebs is a man who has gone through a life-changing event and has experienced many consequences made by his own choices and decisions. He then has to come to the understanding that he has to try and rebuild his life as he knew it. Things weren’t working out at his family’s house so he decided to move to Kansas City where he would get a job. This war was a hundred years ago and Krebs came back and had no clue what to do with his life when he got back. The same thing goes for the soldiers of the war in Afghanistan they see so much that traumatizes them that they do not know how to act when they are around their families. Soldier’s Home In Ernest Hemingway’s short story, â€Å"Soldier’s Home†, a young man named Krebs is unable to relate to his mother and home life after he returned from the First World War. After Krebs saw death and destruction in the wars most bloody battles, he returns home where his parents try to get him back to his normal routines. His view of the world has changed drastically since the war. He no longer feels love in his heart and cannot lie to his mother when she asks if he loves her. One of the famous lines Hemingway wrote, â€Å"Krebs looked at the bacon fat hardening on his plate.† Like bacon his heart has been hardened by what he had seen in World War I and he knew he must get far away from his parents to be able to get his life back in order. Harold Krebs after graduating from a Methodist college in Kansas enlisted in the Marines in 1917 and did not return to the United States until 1919. While at war he saw many tragedies that changed his life forever. When he returns home he does not get a heroes welcome because many had returned before him. At first Krebs did not want to talk about the war but later on when he felt the need no one would listen. He spent his days reading, walking and admiring the girls but a lot had changed since he had been gone. He thought about going out with some of the girls he used to know and remembers the girls he knew overseas but finds, â€Å"the young girls had grown up. But they lived in such a complicated world with already defined alliances and shifting feuds that Krebs did not feel the energy or courage to break in it.† Krebs has a hard time relating to his parents and he finds himself not wanting to go watch his sister play ball. The climax to the story is when Krebs's mother asks, â€Å"Don't you love your mother, dear boy?† and he answers, â€Å"No†. Even though he had been feeling unhappy, useless, and out of place since he had returned from the war, he had been drifting along, going through the motions. He had been stagnating, spending his time sitting on the front porch, reading, trying â€Å"to keep his life from being complicated†. The final conflict with his mother forces Krebs to face the fact that he cannot stay. He lies to his mother to make her feel better after he has hurt her with the truth, but is â€Å"sick and vaguely nauseated† by his duplicity. As his mother prays over him at the end of the story, Krebs resolves to go away to Kansas City and start his life again, away from the home and family to which he can no longer belong. In the story, â€Å"Soldier’s Home† it is told from the third person narrator point of view. Hemingway, having been a former journalist is able to show how distant Krebs is because of being the type of journalist who is detached just like Krebs was detached by his experience in World War I. As Hemingway writes he shows how Krebs holds his emotions in that he knows his mother will not understand. When Krebs calls his mom â€Å"Mummy† he is trying to comfort her by acting like a child. At the end Krebs makes a decision to leave and go to Kansas City because he feels he may not ever reconnect with his family. Harold Krebs is a man who has gone through a life-changing event and has experienced many consequences made by his own choices and decisions. He then has to come to the understanding that he has to try and rebuild his life as he knew it. Things weren’t working out at his family’s house so he decided to move to Kansas City where he would get a job. This war was a hundred years ago and Krebs came back and had no clue what to do with his life when he got back. The same thing goes for the soldiers of the war in Afghanistan they see so much that traumatizes them that they do not know how to act when they are around their families.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

45 Idioms About the Number One

45 Idioms About the Number One 45 Idioms About the Number One 45 Idioms About the Number One By Mark Nichol English is replete with idiomatic expressions featuring numerical values, including dozens pertaining to the number one alone. Here’s a list of most (if not all) of the idioms in the latter category. 1. all in one breath: said of something spoken excitedly without pause 2. all in one piece: safely 3. all rolled up in one: combined 4. all-in-one: with all required features 5. as one: as if a group were one entity 6. at one with: in agreement or solidarity with another 7: do (someone) one better: do something that is an improvement on what someone else has done 8. for one thing: said to introduce one of two or more reasons (though the phrase might follow the statement) 9. for one: a qualifier expressing that someone represents an example 10. hole in one: said of a significant achievement, in reference to achieving a goal in golf with a single hit of the ball 11. if it’s not one thing: part of a saying (with the rest, â€Å"it’s another (thing)† often not said but implied) expressed when one is exasperated by the latest in a series of inconveniences 12. in one ear and out the other: said of advice or information that is not heeded or retained 13. in one fell swoop: all at once or within a short period 14. it’s been one of those days: said when multiple things have gone wrong in succession 15. it’s just one of those things: said of something unfortunate that must be accepted 16–17. look after/take care of number one: said in reference to focusing on one’s own safety or concerns over that of others 18. not one iota: not even a bit 19. number one: oneself (see â€Å"look after number one†) 20. on the one hand: from one point of view (sometimes paired with â€Å"on the other hand†) 21. one and all: everyone 22. one for the (record) books: said of a significant achievement 23. one good turn deserves another: an expression about the importance of reciprocity 24. one-hit wonder: an artist who achieves only one commercial success 25–26. one heck/hell of a (something): a reference to someone being markedly bad or good at something 27. one in a million: rare or unique, often said about someone with a distinctive quality 28–29. one jump/step ahead: said of someone who anticipates or innovates 30. one man’s meat is another man’s poison: something one person likes may not be suitable for another person 31. one-night stand: an activity or encounter that lasts only one night 32. one-note: said of something lacking variety 33. one of a kind: unique 34. one of the boys: someone accepted into or part of a group 35. one of these days: said of an expected event that will occur someday or soon; also, sometimes expressed as a threat, with the consequence implied but not stated 36. one of those things: said of something unwelcome but inevitable 37. one person’s trash is another person’s treasure: something of no value to one person may be valuable to another 38. one that got away: a missed opportunity 39. one-track mind: said of someone with a single-minded focus 40. one-trick pony: someone or something with only one distinguishing feature, skill, or talent 41. one up on: said of having an advantage over someone 42. one way or another: somehow 43. square one: the starting point of developing something or solving a problem (often in the phrase â€Å"back to square one†) 44. the one and only: said of something unique 45. there is more than one way to skin a cat: more than one procedure will work or more than one solution is available Other number-oriented idioms, including those that mention the number one but in which the focus is on another number, such as â€Å"Two heads are better than one,† will follow in a later post. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:75 Contronyms (Words with Contradictory Meanings)Time Words: Era, Epoch, and EonLetter Writing 101