(Second Industrial Period) - What is stock and why do corporations sell stock?This was the time during the Second Industrial Period.

Stocks, also called shares, represent the right of
ownership in a joint stock company.  The joint stock companies are a form of business
organization in which the ownership of the company is separated from the function of
managing and conducting the business. The company is owned by people who buy shares or
stocks issued by the company representing part ownership in the company. In this way the
ownership of the company is divided in large number of shares. The number of shares
issued by a big company may can run into millions for big companies. For smaller
companies these may be as low as a few thousand shares.

The
people buying the shares of a company become part owners of the company in proportion of
the stocks held by them, and have a right to share the profits of the company in the
same proportion. The stockholders do not directly manage the company. They appoint
directors to manage the company. The they also take some major decision about management
of the company. The right of shareholders in deciding in these matters is also
proportional to their shareholding. These decisions are taken by the shareholders based
on majority. These decisions are taken in periodic meeting of the shareholders of a
company. In normal circumstances such meetings are held once a
year.

The shares held by a person or a company can be
traded on stock markets at ruling market price. In this way the ownership of the company
represented by the stocks also gets transferred with sale and purchase of stocks. The
price of the stocks is determined by the current and expected performance of the company
as well as by the interplay of demand and supply of their stocks in the
market.

Companies or corporation issue or sell stocks to
obtain finances for running a business. In this way the investors and shareholders can
invest money in a business without need to be involved in the day to day management of
the business. Also their liability for loss is limited to the money invested by them in
form of shares. Facility of selling and buying shares on the stock market gives the
shareholders greater liquidity of their funds invested. Because of all these advantages
the corporations can attract a large number of investors to invest in the company,
enabling them to obtain large sums of money for major business
ventures.

(Second Industrial Period) - What is stock and why do corporations sell stock?This was the time during the Second Industrial Period.

Stocks, also called shares, represent the right of ownership in a joint stock company.  The joint stock companies are a form of business organization in which the ownership of the company is separated from the function of managing and conducting the business. The company is owned by people who buy shares or stocks issued by the company representing part ownership in the company. In this way the ownership of the company is divided in large number of shares. The number of shares issued by a big company may can run into millions for big companies. For smaller companies these may be as low as a few thousand shares.

The people buying the shares of a company become part owners of the company in proportion of the stocks held by them, and have a right to share the profits of the company in the same proportion. The stockholders do not directly manage the company. They appoint directors to manage the company. The they also take some major decision about management of the company. The right of shareholders in deciding in these matters is also proportional to their shareholding. These decisions are taken by the shareholders based on majority. These decisions are taken in periodic meeting of the shareholders of a company. In normal circumstances such meetings are held once a year.

The shares held by a person or a company can be traded on stock markets at ruling market price. In this way the ownership of the company represented by the stocks also gets transferred with sale and purchase of stocks. The price of the stocks is determined by the current and expected performance of the company as well as by the interplay of demand and supply of their stocks in the market.

Companies or corporation issue or sell stocks to obtain finances for running a business. In this way the investors and shareholders can invest money in a business without need to be involved in the day to day management of the business. Also their liability for loss is limited to the money invested by them in form of shares. Facility of selling and buying shares on the stock market gives the shareholders greater liquidity of their funds invested. Because of all these advantages the corporations can attract a large number of investors to invest in the company, enabling them to obtain large sums of money for major business ventures.

What are examples of metaphor, external/internal conflict, mood, climax, tension, and resolution in "Lamb to the Slaughter"?

We don't have room here for me to cover them all, but I will get you started.

Internal conflict is best shown in Mary.  She is at war with herself when she finds out her happy home is not happy and about to disappear all together.  She solves this conflict by killing her husband.  Then she has to figure out how to hide the evidence, also an internal conflict.

The external conflicts are Mary vs. her husband and Mary vs. the police.  In both situations, Mary must defend herself against what she views as an attack.  When her husband says he is leaving, she fights back by killing him.  When the police arrive to investigate, she fights back by deceiving them.

A metaphor in this story is in the title itself.  Mary is a lamb due for slaughter - her happiness is slaughtered by her husband, even though she is innocent.  The lamb that she uses to kill her husband is a metaphor for herself.

The tension in this story comes from dramatic irony - we as readers know that Mary is guilty, and are concerned that the police will find out.  We also know that the police are eating the murder weapon, even as they discuss what the murder weapon is - more tension and more irony.

What are three characteristics of Arthur Dent from The Hitchhickers Guide to the Galaxy?

Arthur Dent is a strange mixture of action and passivity.
While content to go along with his Earthly routine in a passive and accommodating
manner, he is nonetheless capable of energetic and earnest activity on behalf of his
home and way of life. This is proven when he takes on the battle against the bulldozers
poised to strike just outside the garden gate of his quite village home in England. Yet
when his friend, Ford Prefect, tells him that the dolphins have spoken and that he needs
a bath towel and must travel with him, he falls into his characteristic passivity and
oddly enough is so awed and befuddled that he allows himself to be carried along. Added
to this, is his willingness to accept people at face value, so when he is given an
explanation for something, no matter how odd it seems, he always finally goes
along.

What are three characteristics of Arthur Dent from The Hitchhickers Guide to the Galaxy?

Arthur Dent is a strange mixture of action and passivity. While content to go along with his Earthly routine in a passive and accommodating manner, he is nonetheless capable of energetic and earnest activity on behalf of his home and way of life. This is proven when he takes on the battle against the bulldozers poised to strike just outside the garden gate of his quite village home in England. Yet when his friend, Ford Prefect, tells him that the dolphins have spoken and that he needs a bath towel and must travel with him, he falls into his characteristic passivity and oddly enough is so awed and befuddled that he allows himself to be carried along. Added to this, is his willingness to accept people at face value, so when he is given an explanation for something, no matter how odd it seems, he always finally goes along.

In "Death of a Salesman," how does Willy's home function as a metaphor for his ambitions?

Willie's house is from another time, and almost another world.  He remembers the times when he could plant a garden and even goes out to buy some seeds toward the end of the play.  But Willie's house is now surrounded by tall buildings (apartments?), and there isn't enough sun for him to grow anything.

Just as Willie's home no longer allows him to grow a garden, so Willie is no longer able to "grow" in his dreams ... and probably hasn't been able to for some time.  His belief in the cult of personality, that business is based on friendship and contacts,  belongs to another era, just as his garden has long been an impossibility.  Sadly, Willie cannot adjust to these changes, but continues to believe in his vision of what the world is like.

There is also irony in the fact that Willie's home is paid for only after he is dead.  He spends his whole life working his way out from under the debt, but never really takes possession of his home.  His dream is a failure in business; it's also a failure in his home life.

In Chapter 19, how well does Mr. Gilmer prove Tom's guilt in the eyes of the reader and the just, and can you suggest why these might be different?

(I believe you are discussing Horace Gilmer's
cross-examination of Tom Robinson in Chapter 19.)

I believe
Gilmer makes no impact upon the reader's decision about Tom's guilt during his
cross-examination. Atticus' prior questioning of Tom firmly establishes Tom's innocence
in the mind of most readers, and Gilmer does little to change that view. Gilmer's racist
remarks only make it clearer that Tom is a second-class citizen in the eyes of the court
(remember, Judge Taylor did nothing to stop Gilmer's use of the word "boy"). I believe
there is no differentiation between the reader's viewpoint and "the just" nature of the
testimony. Nearly all readers recognize that the Ewells are untruthful and that Tom is
telling the real version of events. Obviously, Tom's treatment and final verdict are
unjust.

In Chapter 19, how well does Mr. Gilmer prove Tom's guilt in the eyes of the reader and the just, and can you suggest why these might be different?

(I believe you are discussing Horace Gilmer's cross-examination of Tom Robinson in Chapter 19.)

I believe Gilmer makes no impact upon the reader's decision about Tom's guilt during his cross-examination. Atticus' prior questioning of Tom firmly establishes Tom's innocence in the mind of most readers, and Gilmer does little to change that view. Gilmer's racist remarks only make it clearer that Tom is a second-class citizen in the eyes of the court (remember, Judge Taylor did nothing to stop Gilmer's use of the word "boy"). I believe there is no differentiation between the reader's viewpoint and "the just" nature of the testimony. Nearly all readers recognize that the Ewells are untruthful and that Tom is telling the real version of events. Obviously, Tom's treatment and final verdict are unjust.

How does Eliot use form and structure in his presentation of love in "The Wasteland"?My premise is that he presents love negatively in the poem. ...

In T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land" love is not a benign
force. The poet alludes to its effect in ancient love stories rewritten by
renowned dramatists - to Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, to
Shakespeare's Cleopatra, and to the myth of Tereus and and Philomela - suggesting that
it is often, but not always,destructive. That these allusions respectively in the
first section of the poem, “The Burial of the Dead,” and in the second section, “A Game
of Chess,” suggest that in his landmark 1922 poem Eliot wanted to present this view of
love in a mythopoeic framework. The question is
'why'?

Eliot's poetry, especially "The Waste Land" is
marked by frequent recourse to allusion and quotation. A few critics have seen in this
extreme pedantry. But Eliot himself believed that the increasing complexity of modern
life necessarily demanded difficult poetry. More importantly, like the Matthaean master
of the house, Eliot brings from his treasure "things both old and new." The 'new and
old thing' the poet presents in "The Waste Land" is the sterility and necrotic state of
modern life. In the second stanza of "The Burial of the Dead", quoting the prophet
Ezekiel, the poet searches in vain among the dry stones, the dead trees and the "broken
images" for some sign of life. Then, suddenly, Eliot turns to Wagner's Tristan
und Isolde, where an operatic watchman tells the dying Tristan that the ship
of his love, Isolde, is nowhere to be seen on the horizon. In the second section the
reader encounters a woman sitting on a chair with the appearance of a "burnished
throne," an allusion to Shakespeare's Cleopatra. Nevertheless, even in the royal chamber
the lethalness of love, imaged in the painting that depicts Ovid's mythopoeic tale of
the rape of Philomela by King Tereus intrudes. This is followed immediately by verses
describing the grubby details of modern life - aimless, neurotic, and
childless.

Eliot's poetic calling, here presenting the
destruction and hopelessness endemic to love, was to plumb the depth of our modern
affiction in the works of bygone ages.

How does Eliot use form and structure in his presentation of love in "The Wasteland"?My premise is that he presents love negatively in the poem. ...

In T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land" love is not a benign force. The poet alludes to its effect in ancient love stories rewritten by renowned dramatists - to Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, to Shakespeare's Cleopatra, and to the myth of Tereus and and Philomela - suggesting that it is often, but not always,destructive. That these allusions respectively in the first section of the poem, “The Burial of the Dead,” and in the second section, “A Game of Chess,” suggest that in his landmark 1922 poem Eliot wanted to present this view of love in a mythopoeic framework. The question is 'why'?

Eliot's poetry, especially "The Waste Land" is marked by frequent recourse to allusion and quotation. A few critics have seen in this extreme pedantry. But Eliot himself believed that the increasing complexity of modern life necessarily demanded difficult poetry. More importantly, like the Matthaean master of the house, Eliot brings from his treasure "things both old and new." The 'new and old thing' the poet presents in "The Waste Land" is the sterility and necrotic state of modern life. In the second stanza of "The Burial of the Dead", quoting the prophet Ezekiel, the poet searches in vain among the dry stones, the dead trees and the "broken images" for some sign of life. Then, suddenly, Eliot turns to Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, where an operatic watchman tells the dying Tristan that the ship of his love, Isolde, is nowhere to be seen on the horizon. In the second section the reader encounters a woman sitting on a chair with the appearance of a "burnished throne," an allusion to Shakespeare's Cleopatra. Nevertheless, even in the royal chamber the lethalness of love, imaged in the painting that depicts Ovid's mythopoeic tale of the rape of Philomela by King Tereus intrudes. This is followed immediately by verses describing the grubby details of modern life - aimless, neurotic, and childless.

Eliot's poetic calling, here presenting the destruction and hopelessness endemic to love, was to plumb the depth of our modern affiction in the works of bygone ages.

In "The Rules of the Game," when did Waverly start playing chess?

We are told that Waverly's family receives the chess set
when they went to the annual Christmas party held at the First Chinese Baptist Church.
There was a Santa there with a sack of presents, and it is when Waverly goes to Santa to
receive her present that we find out how old she was. Note how the narration gives yet
one more example of the complex, hybrid world that Waverly inhabits, for she is not sure
how to answer the question:

readability="9">

When my turn came up, the Santa man asked me how
old I was. I thought it was a trick question; I was seven according to the American
formula and eight by the Chinese calendar. I said I was born on March 17, 1951. That
seemed to satisfy him.

This
clearly shows how confusing the position of someone like Waverly is when you belong to
two different worlds but aren't sure of how to position
yourself.

However, even though it is Waverly's older
brother Vincent who gets the chess set, it is when Waverly was seven (according to the
American formula) that she started to learn how to play chess.

In "The Rules of the Game," when did Waverly start playing chess?

We are told that Waverly's family receives the chess set when they went to the annual Christmas party held at the First Chinese Baptist Church. There was a Santa there with a sack of presents, and it is when Waverly goes to Santa to receive her present that we find out how old she was. Note how the narration gives yet one more example of the complex, hybrid world that Waverly inhabits, for she is not sure how to answer the question:

When my turn came up, the Santa man asked me how old I was. I thought it was a trick question; I was seven according to the American formula and eight by the Chinese calendar. I said I was born on March 17, 1951. That seemed to satisfy him.

This clearly shows how confusing the position of someone like Waverly is when you belong to two different worlds but aren't sure of how to position yourself.

However, even though it is Waverly's older brother Vincent who gets the chess set, it is when Waverly was seven (according to the American formula) that she started to learn how to play chess.

Is Jocasta of Oedipus Rex a flat, generalized queen character or an individual with a distinctive personality?

Jocasta is certainly a very dynamic character.  She is strong-willed, confident, and persuasive.  She feels deeply about the health of both her family and  her country, and she holds herself to very high standards.  Consider the power she exerts over others.  When Oedipus and Creon argue, Jocasta does not hesitate to reprimand them:  "Poor foolish men, what wicked din is this?/With Thebes sick to death, is it not shameful/That you should rake some private quarrel up?"  She is able to put an end to the argument.  As strong-willed as she is, she is not always consistent.  She puts faith and encourages faith in the oracles only so far as it suits her own purpose.  By trying to shield Oedipus from the truth, she further shows complexity to her character.  She is not simply dutiful for truth and to her king; she is a woman trying to preserve the sanity of her husband, the sanctity of her marriage, and the integrity of her country.

What is the meaning or theme of the story "Harrison Bergeron" and how are the characters relevant to that meaning?

I assume by meaning that you want the main theme of the story. I would say that Vonnegut, the author, is showing us what happens in a society where competition is no longer allowed because the government has decided what is "normal" and what isn't. Anyone who is considered to be above normal, like Harrison and his father, is handicapped. No one who is less than normal should ever feel bad about him/herself. Society has become one of mediocrity, keeping everyone as close to the same both physically and mentally. Hazel, Harrison's mother, illustrates those in society who are below average, and she doesn't have to wear any handicaps. Harrison is, of course, the superman of society, both physically and mentally. He cannot be allowed to live once he tries to overthrow the government's control.

Vonnegut also shows the effect of the broadcast media on society. The Handicapper General uses radio signals to punish those who think the wrong thoughts or say the wrong things. He depicts television as having a numbing effect on people, to the point that they are desensitized by what they see. Hazel can't even remember that her son has been killed right in front of her.

For more examples, go to the link below.

What are the symbols in this passage from "Macbeth"? (Act V, scene 1)LADY MACBETH: Out, damned spot! Out, I say! One- two -why then 'tis time to...

The dominant symbol in this scene is blood, or the imagined blood that Lady Macbeth sees on her hands which represents the guilt that she feels over the murders, the blood that she refers to is Duncan's, "the old man".  But she is also stricken by the deaths of Banquo and especially that of Lady Macduff and her children, the most senseless and illogical of the murders that Macbeth commits.

She is constantly washing her hands, trying to rid herself of the blood, but she cannot.  She also experiences the smell of blood, which she says all the perfume in Arabia cannot mask.  The blood, like the guilt, is permanent.

She has descended into madness, dragged down by her conscience and her sense of overwhelming guilt.  She actually confesses to the murders when she sleepwalks and talks in front of her servant and the doctor.

Her guilty conscience frees itself when the sub-conscious takes over during sleep.  Then, as the servant has said, she says all kinds of things that she should not say. 

What are the ethical theories that can be used against using child labour?

The theory of Least Harm contradicts child labor.  Children who are working are not able to get an appropriate education, and are at greater health risks.  This creates harm not only for the child, but for society as a whole.  Uneducated and unhealthy children, who then become uneducated and unhealthy adults, are likely to continue the cycle of poverty.

Child labor also goes against a Respect for Autonomy.  "This principle states that an ethical theory should allow people to reign over themselves and to be able to make decisions that apply to their lives."  We can not assume that children in the work force have reign over themselves or are making the decisions that apply to their lives.  Child labor is the result of coercion or severe economic hardship and thus squashes free will.

Most of all, child labor goes against the Rights theory.  This states that all members of a society have certain rights set forth by that society.  In most societies around the globe, it has been clearly established that children have the right to childhood - a period of time in which they are nourished, educated, and given the proper conditions in which thrive.  Child labor does not provide these conditions.

What way are both Chillingworth and Dimmesdale to be pitied in "The Scarlett Letter"?

Both Chillingworth and Dimmesdale let emotions like guilt or revenge take away their joy in life.

Dimmesdale spent much of his time doing secret penance for his sleeping with Hester and fathering her child. While he begged her to reveal him as the father, he himself could not make himself come forward with the truth. His inability to confront his fear led to his body wasting away under the burden of guilt. The quality of his life would have been better if he had confronted the fear and faced the public disdain. Hester had survived, and even earned respect over the years after her public humiliation. Dimmesdale is to be pitied for suffering silently, when the truth would have led to a more peaceful life.

Chillingworth allowed a single-minded pursuit of revenge to take away any resemblance of humanity to his person. By refusing to let it go, he transformed into a dark and malevolent creature. His life was destroyed b y his rage and need for revenge.

Both men destroyed their lives by allowing their guilt and revenge to overtake their lives.

In Chapter 29, what things foreshadow Mr. Ewell's attack?To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

One very strong hint of Bob Ewell's vindictive act is in
his insulting actions and words in front of the post office:  "Mr. Ewell approached him,
cursed him, spat on him, and threatened to kill him "if it took the rest of his life." 
The reports of this incident occur at the end of Chapter 22 and the beginning of Chapter
23 of To Kill a Mockingbird.

Also,in
Chapter 17 Scout narrates that Robert E. Ewell, "a little bantam cock of a man"--which
indicates his attitude--takes the stand and regards Atticus with "haughty suspicion." 
And, while Bob Ewell in on the stand during the trial of Tom Robinson, he is asked to
write upon an envelope.  Unknowingly, he complies, but when he looks up, he discovers
the judge staring at him as though he were "some fragrant gardenia in full bloom on the
witness stand," and the jury watching him.  Sensing that Atticus Finch has somehow
acquired an advantage over him. Ewell becomes angry and declares that Atticus Finch is
taking advantage of him.  This anger of Ewell's and embarrassment in front of the
courtroom crowd is not to be forgotten by Ewell. He tells the judge that "tricking
lawyers like Atticus Finch took advantage of him all the time with their tricking
ways." Even Atticus later mentions that Bob Ewell will not forgive him for exposing his
ignorance.

On the night of the attack upon the children by
Bob Ewell, there are foreshadowing of the danger.  For instance, Scout notes
that

a
solitary mocker poured out his repertoire in blissful unawareness of whose tree he sat
in...[the whippoorwill sang] Poor will, Poor
Will.

Like the mockingbird,
Scout is unaware of what will soon happen; she trips on a root growing in the road as
her costume impedes her movements.  then, when she and Jem turn off the road and enter
the schoolyard is "pitch black."  Scout tells Jem, "You should have brought the
flashlight."  And, Cecil jumps out at them, and asks them if they are not "scared of Boo
Radley?"  During the performance, little Scout falls ill. As she and Jem leave the
auditorium, "it was still black dark," but they walk toward home even though Scout has
trouble in her cumbersome costume.  When Scout feels pressure on her neck, she thinks it
is Cecil teasing again as they hear a sound like leaves blowing in the wind "only there
wasn't any wind, and there weren't any trees beside the big oak behind them.  At this
point,they are attacked.

Later, in Chapter 29, Scout
remarks,

readability="8">

Somehow, I could think of nothing but Mr. Bob
Ewell saying he'd get Atticus if it took him the rest of his life.  Mr. Ewell almost got
him, and it was the last thing he
did.

Those remarks of Bob
Ewell's coupled with the dark, sinister night and the haunting sounds of the mockingbird
and the whippoorwill, certainly suggest that ill is going to befall the
Finches.

In Chapter 29, what things foreshadow Mr. Ewell's attack?To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

One very strong hint of Bob Ewell's vindictive act is in his insulting actions and words in front of the post office:  "Mr. Ewell approached him, cursed him, spat on him, and threatened to kill him "if it took the rest of his life."  The reports of this incident occur at the end of Chapter 22 and the beginning of Chapter 23 of To Kill a Mockingbird.

Also,in Chapter 17 Scout narrates that Robert E. Ewell, "a little bantam cock of a man"--which indicates his attitude--takes the stand and regards Atticus with "haughty suspicion."  And, while Bob Ewell in on the stand during the trial of Tom Robinson, he is asked to write upon an envelope.  Unknowingly, he complies, but when he looks up, he discovers the judge staring at him as though he were "some fragrant gardenia in full bloom on the witness stand," and the jury watching him.  Sensing that Atticus Finch has somehow acquired an advantage over him. Ewell becomes angry and declares that Atticus Finch is taking advantage of him.  This anger of Ewell's and embarrassment in front of the courtroom crowd is not to be forgotten by Ewell. He tells the judge that "tricking lawyers like Atticus Finch took advantage of him all the time with their tricking ways." Even Atticus later mentions that Bob Ewell will not forgive him for exposing his ignorance.

On the night of the attack upon the children by Bob Ewell, there are foreshadowing of the danger.  For instance, Scout notes that

a solitary mocker poured out his repertoire in blissful unawareness of whose tree he sat in...[the whippoorwill sang] Poor will, Poor Will.

Like the mockingbird, Scout is unaware of what will soon happen; she trips on a root growing in the road as her costume impedes her movements.  then, when she and Jem turn off the road and enter the schoolyard is "pitch black."  Scout tells Jem, "You should have brought the flashlight."  And, Cecil jumps out at them, and asks them if they are not "scared of Boo Radley?"  During the performance, little Scout falls ill. As she and Jem leave the auditorium, "it was still black dark," but they walk toward home even though Scout has trouble in her cumbersome costume.  When Scout feels pressure on her neck, she thinks it is Cecil teasing again as they hear a sound like leaves blowing in the wind "only there wasn't any wind, and there weren't any trees beside the big oak behind them.  At this point,they are attacked.

Later, in Chapter 29, Scout remarks,

Somehow, I could think of nothing but Mr. Bob Ewell saying he'd get Atticus if it took him the rest of his life.  Mr. Ewell almost got him, and it was the last thing he did.

Those remarks of Bob Ewell's coupled with the dark, sinister night and the haunting sounds of the mockingbird and the whippoorwill, certainly suggest that ill is going to befall the Finches.

In Chapter 5 of "Lord of the Flies," why shouldn't the littluns go near the fruit?

It's not that the littluns shouldn't go near the fruit at all, but that they need to stay away from it when they go to the bathroom. Ralph reminds them that they need to use the rocks that get washed by the tide when they are "taken short." The littuns are being lazy and going wherever they want, another sign that the boys' civilization is deteriorating.

What should be written in a formal outline?

Here is my "outline" of a formal
outline:

Thesis:

I. Topic
Category 1
A.  Topic Sentence 1
1. 
fact/support/example
2.  fact/support/example
B.  Topic Sentence
2
1.  fact/support/example
2. 
fact/support/example

II. Topic Category 2
A. 
Topic Sentence 3
1.  fact/support/example
2. 
fact/support/example
B.  Topic Sentence 4
1. 
fact/support/example
2. 
fact/support/example

III. Topic Category 3
A. 
Topic Sentence 5
1.  fact/support/example
2. 
fact/support/example
B.  Topic Sentence 6
1. 
fact/support/example
2. 
fact/support/example

Understand that in the above, A,B,C
etc., are complete sentences introducing the body paragraphs which support your thesis.
 Use as many as is necessary.  Also, 1, 2, 3, etc., is the concrete detail that proves
the topic sentence. When you translate the outline into your paper, you need to
synthesize the concrete detail with commentary or explanation of the relevance to the
thesis.

What should be written in a formal outline?

Here is my "outline" of a formal outline:

Thesis:

I. Topic Category 1
A.  Topic Sentence 1
1.  fact/support/example
2.  fact/support/example
B.  Topic Sentence 2
1.  fact/support/example
2.  fact/support/example

II. Topic Category 2
A.  Topic Sentence 3
1.  fact/support/example
2.  fact/support/example
B.  Topic Sentence 4
1.  fact/support/example
2.  fact/support/example

III. Topic Category 3
A.  Topic Sentence 5
1.  fact/support/example
2.  fact/support/example
B.  Topic Sentence 6
1.  fact/support/example
2.  fact/support/example

Understand that in the above, A,B,C etc., are complete sentences introducing the body paragraphs which support your thesis.  Use as many as is necessary.  Also, 1, 2, 3, etc., is the concrete detail that proves the topic sentence. When you translate the outline into your paper, you need to synthesize the concrete detail with commentary or explanation of the relevance to the thesis.

Where can I find/make a handbill like the one that brings the Joads to California in The Grapes of Wrath?

Unfortunately, precious few examples of handbills survive.  A selection can be found in the historical archives of Oklahoma State University, Stanford, and Princeton. 

However, Steinbeck's documentation in The Grapes of Wrath comes directly from handbills he knew to exist, the wording voiced by a disillusioned migrant worker who tells the still-hopeful Joads:

Now, how many of you all got them handbills?... There you are, same yellow handbill. 800 Pickers Wanted. All right, the man wants 800 men, so he prints 5,000 handbills and maybe 20,000 people see 'em. And maybe two or three thousand people start West on account of that handbill. Two or three thousand people that are crazy with worry headin' out for 800 jobs. Now does that make sense?"

Although Steinbeck never traveled to Oklahoma, he tirelessly researched the plight of the "Okies" in his homestate, California.  The "Tom" of the dedication of Grapes ("To Tom, Who Lived it") is Tom Collins, the real-life director of the "Weedpatch Camp" where the fictional Joads find refuge.  Check out the pamphlet Steinbeck created with renowned photographer Dorothea Lange, Their Blood is Strong for examples of how you might word your reproduction and get a feel for the era.  

The third link will take you to "myfonts" and help you create a proper Depression-era typeface.   See second link for a selection of Lange's work with the Oklahoma migrants in California. 

What are the main themes developed by Whitman in the poem, "O Captain"?Please explain each one

Whitman wrote "O Captain My Captain" to honour the memory of the American president Abraham Lincoln who was assasinated on 14.4.1865. He mourns the gruesome murder of a noble leader whom he loved and respected.

The Captain  is Abraham Lincoln and the ship is the United States of  America. Lincoln has steered his ship (country) safely into the harbour after enduring the trials and tribulations of the Civil War. He has succeeded in putting an end to the inhuman practice of slavery, but unfortunately the Captain, Abraham Lincoln, has sacrificed his life in this noble endeavour:"O Captain my Captain!our  fearful trip is done;/The ship has weather'd every rack,the prize we sought is won;.........But I, with mournful tread,/Walk the deck my captain lies,/Fallen cold and dead."

The main theme of the poem is that a noble leader-the Captain-  must be ready to lay down his life in the struggle for justice. Courage, both physical and mental, and integrity of purpose are the hallmark of a true leader.

Is weather used symbolically in "The Great Gatsby"?

In the first chapter, Nick describes the leaves coming on the trees, the sun shining, and says that he had "...that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer."  A little later in that chapter, when he enters the Buchanan house for the first time, he describes the soft breeze causing the curtains to gently billow like pale flags.  The conviction that Nick speaks of and the favorable weather at the beginning of the summer and the beginning of the story symbolizes the promise that lies ahead.  Just like there was so much promise in Jay's life.  Jay had the talent and the drive to become whatever he wanted to become.  Toward the end of the story, in chapter 7, the heat is intense and so is the tension between the characters in the story.  When Tom, Daisy, Jordan, Nick, and Jay are in the suite at the Plaza hotel, Fitzgerald dwells on the description of the extreme heat.  Tension among the characters rises with the heat until the explosion occurs that carries Daisy out of the hotel and Jay following her.  In the next chapter, the day after Myrtle was killed, the gardener mentions emptying the pool soon before the leaves fall and clog the drain.  This hint of autumn and dying leaves comes just before Jay is shot and killed while in his pool.  The weather follows the action in the story.  There is freshness and possibility at the beginning, then things heat up and explode, finally, there is death.

How does the final paragraph of the essay "A Modest Proposal" contribute to Swift's rhetorical purpose?

The final paragraph of Swift's "A Modest Proposal," first,
serves the usual purpose of a final paragraph in an essay by providing the conclusion. 
He summarizes the benefits of his proposal, for
instance:

• it's for the public
  good


• will advance
  trade


• will provide for
  infants


• will relieve the poor of their
  poverty


• will give some pleasure to the
  rich

Beyond that, the final paragraph
establishes that the speaker is not making this proposal so that he can profit
financially from it.  He has no children that are not already too old, and his wife is
past child-bearing age. 

In general, in addition to these
specifics, the paragraph contributes to the irony of the piece, as well as the humor. 
The speaker presents his proof that he is not trying to get rich off of his proposal as
if it is a serious proposal, continuing the irony used throughout the
piece.     

How does the final paragraph of the essay "A Modest Proposal" contribute to Swift's rhetorical purpose?

The final paragraph of Swift's "A Modest Proposal," first, serves the usual purpose of a final paragraph in an essay by providing the conclusion.  He summarizes the benefits of his proposal, for instance:

• it's for the public good


• will advance trade


• will provide for infants


• will relieve the poor of their poverty


• will give some pleasure to the rich

Beyond that, the final paragraph establishes that the speaker is not making this proposal so that he can profit financially from it.  He has no children that are not already too old, and his wife is past child-bearing age. 

In general, in addition to these specifics, the paragraph contributes to the irony of the piece, as well as the humor.  The speaker presents his proof that he is not trying to get rich off of his proposal as if it is a serious proposal, continuing the irony used throughout the piece.     

How does the term lost generation appear in "The Great Gatsby"? Through which characters?

The term lost generation is expressed through the characters of Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan. The term refers to the loss of innocence in society after WWI.  The great war changed everyone's perception of life.

Life was dominated by the pursuit of material wealth and social position, with a great abandon of morality. 

James Gatz from a poor family in the Mid-West transforms himself into a millionaire, through questionable means, bootlegging, and other illegal activities, to create a new life. 

Jay Gatsby's life is a great illusion, empty of true substance, dominated by lavish parties and his tireless pursuit of Daisy. 

Although Gatsby has transformed his humble early life into that of a dazzling millionaire, he remains unfullfilled and miserable.

Daisy Buchanan, a debutante, who marries Tom because he is rich, eventually becomes Gatsby's lover.  However, she is cold, and indifferent to him. She cares for nothing. 

"Daisy's voice is the voice of money. Her whole careless world revolves around this illusion: that money makes everything beautiful, even if it is not."

"Daisy flirts with Gatsby enjoying his obsessive interest until she commits murder and he takes the rap. Then, she hides behind the protection of her husband, a cruel brute, who uses and abuses people."

The lack of a moral center in any of the characters in this book, except for Nick Carraway, depicts the nature of the society in the period dubbed the Jazz Age.      

Provide an example in which Twain uses weather as a motive and a contributor to the mood in this novel.The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by...

In Mark Twain's American classic, The Adventures
of Huckleberry Finn, weather is certainly employed to
portend the danger in which Jim and Huck find themselves in the company of the King and
the Duke.  And, nefarious as they are, the King and the Duke use the weather as an
excuse for their own selfish motives, investigating the
raft:

Towards
night it begun to darken up and look like rain; the heat lightning was squirting around,
low down in the sky, and the leaves ws beginning to shiver--it was going to be pretty
ugly, it was easy to see that.  So the duke and the king went to overhauling our wigwam,
to see what the beds was
like.

The two men, who
represent life on the road (and sometimes a raft) in which innocents are taken advantage
of and just about anything can happen, also exploit Jim and Huck by sleeping in their
beds and telling them that they must keep watch on the raft. As they do so, Huck and Jim
are nearly killed by the storm by being struck by lightning or by being swept off the
raft.  Huck narrates,

readability="7">

The waves most washed me off the raft,
sometimes....the lightning was glaring and flittering around so
constant....

Provide an example in which Twain uses weather as a motive and a contributor to the mood in this novel.The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by...

In Mark Twain's American classic, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, weather is certainly employed to portend the danger in which Jim and Huck find themselves in the company of the King and the Duke.  And, nefarious as they are, the King and the Duke use the weather as an excuse for their own selfish motives, investigating the raft:

Towards night it begun to darken up and look like rain; the heat lightning was squirting around, low down in the sky, and the leaves ws beginning to shiver--it was going to be pretty ugly, it was easy to see that.  So the duke and the king went to overhauling our wigwam, to see what the beds was like.

The two men, who represent life on the road (and sometimes a raft) in which innocents are taken advantage of and just about anything can happen, also exploit Jim and Huck by sleeping in their beds and telling them that they must keep watch on the raft. As they do so, Huck and Jim are nearly killed by the storm by being struck by lightning or by being swept off the raft.  Huck narrates,

The waves most washed me off the raft, sometimes....the lightning was glaring and flittering around so constant....

How would you describe the Hagar-Lottie relationship in the novel The Stone Angel?

Lottie and Hagar did not get along when they were young.  Lottie was born out of wedlock and therefore, was known as No-Name Lottie.  The other kids, including Hagar made fun of her.

It is a twist of fate then, when John, Hagar's son gets involved with Lottie's daughter, Arlene. 

Hagar is very upset that her son wants to marry No-Name Lottie's daughter.  They seem destined to make a terrible mistake, acting recklessly.  This behavior forces Hagar to seek out an alliance with Lottie in an effort to protect their children from making a mistake by marrying without any money or ability to care for themselves.

Hargar and Lottie see each other after many years, and Hagar suggests, in a sly roundabout insult, that Arlene, Lottie's daughter, does not look like her.  Hagar is determined to bring up their shared past, but Lottie has no memory concerning the incidents that Hagar thrusts at her.

Who are the Olinka in Alice Walker's book The Color Purple?

The Olinka in Alice Walker's book The Color Purple are a ficticious people. Nettie and the other missionaries travel to Monrovia, Liberia--a country on the West coast of Africa. From there, they travel by foot and canoe for four days until they come to the site of the ficticious Olinka village. Ms Walker does not tell in which direction they travelled.

There is no indication that Ms Walker based the Olinka on any particular African tribe. She herself states that she was influenced greatly by the oral tradition of her own family*. It is likely that at least some of the characteristics, customs and traditions of the Olinka are based on an amalgamation of these stories.

Instead of expending effort on what will most likely prove to be a wild-goose chase, the reader should instead seek to understand the underlying message behind the Olinka by asking him or herself such questions as:

How were the Olinka similar to Americans, either white or black of the early- to mid-twentieth century?

How were they dissimilar?

Were any of the Olinka's actions or beliefs similar to any specific characters from Nettie's past or present?

How did either the Olinka's beliefs or actions effect Nettie or Celie's children? What actions or changes did these effects have on any of them?

In the historical context, it says it is obvious that the story is set in Edwardian England. What are some clues are in the story that this is...

The author, Saki, was born at the height of British imperialism.  As a child, he travelled with his parents all over Europe, and may have come in contact with people like Mr. Nuttel or the Sappletons.  In this time period, the wealthy class played host to strangers, or acquaintances of friends who were introduced into their homes with a letter, especially at their palatial country estates. 

So the practice that Mr. Nuttel uses as an invitation into the Sappleton home is the key to understanding the time period that the story is written in, and also having some knowledge of Saki's background and favorite subjects of his writing.  

"Saki is most widely known as a satirist of the English ruling classes, and his best known short story is "The Open Window."

"The formal nature of Nuttel's visit is typical of the wealthy classes of the Edwardian age. His use of a letter of introduction so as to meet people in his new community was a common practice among the upper class of the time."

In what ways are figures such as the fallen woman reinterpreted in The French Lieutenant's Woman?

The figure of the fallen woman, initially clearly captured in the figure of Sarah Woodruff, is transformed as the novel progresses and both Charles and the reader try to establish the identity of Sarah and who she actually is. What is so fascinating about her character is the way she is shrouded by mystery. The reader, and Charles, are never fully aware of her full identity and story, and it is only possible to try and piece, jigsaw-like, the various elements of her character together that are presented in the novel. Sarah initially is presented as the traditional fallen woman who is an outcast from society because of her relationship with the French lieutenant named in the title. However, as the novel progresses, she becomes associated not with shame and being an outcast, but freedom and a resistance to living one's life in accordance with the role given to one by society. Note what she represents to Charles:

He said it to himself: It is the stupidest thing, but that girl attracts me. It seemed clear to him that it was not Sarah in herself who attracted him--how could she, he was betrothed--but some emotion, some possibility she symbolized. She made him aware of a deprivation. His future had always seemed to him of vast potential; and now suddenly it was a fixed voyage to a known place. She had reminded him of that.

Sarah therefore comes to symbolise freedom from society's restrictions, and this is something that Charles himself comes to identify with greatly. Sarah therefore is used to reinterpret the role of the fallen woman through presenting her not as a character who is trapped in that role but as a character who refuses to accept the role that society presents her with. Sarah, through her determination to live her own life and to get what she wants, presents herself as an empowered individual rather than a disempowered figure, which is traditionally the way that fallen women have been perceived.

What did Phillip really mean when he asked Timothy,"Are you still Black?"

In the beginning of the novel before Phillip lost his eyesight he was very judgmental of Timothy based solely on the fact that he was black. He was raised by his mother to think that he was somehow superior to black people because he was white.

After Phillip loses his eyesight he begins to get to know Timothy as a person instead of just as a color and he begins to see Timothy as a friend. Now that Phillip is blind he can begin to let go of the prejudices that sighted people have. When he asked Timothy, "Are you still black?" he is stating how surprised he is by how close they have become. Phillip never dreamed his best friend and protector would be a black man. He never dreamed that his survival would be in the hands of a black man. He is surprised at how much he has changed on the inside in such a short amount of time and it took losing his eyesight to see Timothy for the person he really was.

In Animal Farm, how does Napoleon control the food supply?

Napoleon sets up a system of rations to control the dwindling food supply. He also designs the food troughs to appear full and abundant, yet in reality, he is filling them with sand and topping it off with meal. Napoleon wants to give the impression that food is plentiful.

Napoleon also uses the food supply to control the other animals. By withholding rations, he maintains power.When the chickens refuse to allow their eggs to be sold, Napoleon cuts off their rations, and declares any that provide them with food will be put to death.

What did Caesar do after refusing a crown for the 3rd time, as reported by Casca in "Julius Caesar" Act I, scene 2?

Casca, talking with Cassius in Act I scene 2, gives a hostile account of how Antony has offered a crown to Caesar, three times, only to have it refused each time. Casca clearly thinks that these refusals were insincere:

I saw Mark Antony offer him a crown...he put it by once: but...to my thinking, he would fain have had it. Then he offered it to him again: then he put it by again: but... he was very loath to lay his fingers off it. And then he offered it the third time; he put it the third time by....

Caesar was so moved, according to Casca, that he "offered them his throat to cut" following the third refusal, triggering still louder cheers. The strain of the occasion, and the emotion of the crowd roaring its approval, finally triggered an attack of epilepsy in Caesar:

CASCA.
He fell down in the market-place, and foam'd at mouth, and was speechless.

BRUTUS.
'Tis very like: he hath the falling-sickness.

CASSIUS.
No, Caesar hath it not; but you, and I,
And honest Casca, we have the falling-sickness.

Thus Cassius turns Caesar's infirmity into another rhetorical attack -- Caesar's rise has given them a true "falling sickness."

The incident shows the intensity of popular feeling for Caesar, increased still further when he apologizes for his "infirmity" after regaining consciousness. Brutus fails to notice it, but he will soon find out that the Romans feel the same way about Caesar even after he falls to the knives of the plotters.

Why does Miss Havisham invite Pip to Satis House?

The correct answer why Miss Havisham wants Pip to visit
her at 'Satis House' is found in
Ch.7.

Mrs.Joe
Gargery, Pip's sister tells her husband Joe,

readability="6">

`She [Miss Havisham]
wants this boy [Pip] to go and play there [Satis House]. And of course he's going. And
he had better play there.'

When
Joe asks her how Miss Havisham came to know of Pip, she replies that Pumblechook who was
a tenant of Miss Havisham recommended Pip's name to Miss Havisham when she asked him if
he knew of some boy who could amuse her by coming to Satis House and play
there:

Isn't
it just barely possible that Uncle Pumblechook may be a tenant of hers, and that he may
sometimes -- we won't say quarterly or half-yearly, for that would be requiring too much
of you -- but sometimes -- go there to pay his rent? And
couldn't she then ask Uncle Pumblechook if he knew of a boy to go and play there?
And couldn't Uncle Pumblechook, being always considerate and
thoughtful for us -- though you may not think it, Joseph,' in a tone of the deepest
reproach, as if he were the most callous of nephews, `then mention this boy, standing
Prancing here' -- which I solemnly declare I was not doing -- `that I have for ever been
a willing slave to?'

Why does Miss Havisham invite Pip to Satis House?

The correct answer why Miss Havisham wants Pip to visit her at 'Satis House' is found in Ch.7.

Mrs.Joe Gargery, Pip's sister tells her husband Joe,

`She [Miss Havisham] wants this boy [Pip] to go and play there [Satis House]. And of course he's going. And he had better play there.'

When Joe asks her how Miss Havisham came to know of Pip, she replies that Pumblechook who was a tenant of Miss Havisham recommended Pip's name to Miss Havisham when she asked him if he knew of some boy who could amuse her by coming to Satis House and play there:

Isn't it just barely possible that Uncle Pumblechook may be a tenant of hers, and that he may sometimes -- we won't say quarterly or half-yearly, for that would be requiring too much of you -- but sometimes -- go there to pay his rent? And couldn't she then ask Uncle Pumblechook if he knew of a boy to go and play there? And couldn't Uncle Pumblechook, being always considerate and thoughtful for us -- though you may not think it, Joseph,' in a tone of the deepest reproach, as if he were the most callous of nephews, `then mention this boy, standing Prancing here' -- which I solemnly declare I was not doing -- `that I have for ever been a willing slave to?'

What california law passed in 1943? How did it affect papa and other isseis?in farewell to manzanar

The law that was passed in California in 1943 (the one
that is relevant to this book) said that isseis (the Japanese who were actually born in
Japan and then came to America) could not hold commercial fishing
licenses.

This was hugely important because Papa and many
other isseis had owned fishing boats.  If they could not have a commercial fishing
license, they could obviously not be fishermen any more.  This led to Papa staying in
camp as long as he could since he no longer had anything to do once he got
out.

What california law passed in 1943? How did it affect papa and other isseis?in farewell to manzanar

The law that was passed in California in 1943 (the one that is relevant to this book) said that isseis (the Japanese who were actually born in Japan and then came to America) could not hold commercial fishing licenses.

This was hugely important because Papa and many other isseis had owned fishing boats.  If they could not have a commercial fishing license, they could obviously not be fishermen any more.  This led to Papa staying in camp as long as he could since he no longer had anything to do once he got out.

What is the central conflict of Dracula?

There are obvious conflicts between characters; however, the central conflict is between man and his fears.  Dracula truly represents evil; he is an imposing character who is frightening in both appearance and in his deeds.  The other characters who come in contact with him realize how evil and frightening he is.  Everyone who comes in contact with him is intimidated and frightened by him.  However, Harker has seen too much of Dracula's evil and finds the courage to kill him once he chases him from England to Transylvania.

What facts are presented in Act One of "The Crucible" by means of exposition?

Miller's play diverges from traditional expository material in that we get a great deal of information on how to interpret the text before a line is ever uttered.

For example, Miller flat out states in the preface to his work,

"This play is not history in the sense in which the word is used by academic historians...However, I believe that the reader will discover here the essential nature of one of the strangest and most awful chapters in human history."

So, those who look for a true document of the Salem Witch Trials will inevitably find themselves disappointed. Miller's point is not mirrored recreation, but the deeper problem of the capacity of human beings for evil.

The introduction to Act 1 also gives more than the usual amount of clues about interpretation. We learn Reverend Parris has a persecution complex, of the town's position on the "edge of the wilderness," of its people's proclivity toward snobbery.

But the larger message is in the transcendence of these historical details and seeing how people change little, if at all, and a history unlearned is doomed to repetition. Miller's intent was to compare this witch-hunt to the witch-hunt of his own era, the McCarthy black-listings of the 1950s, in which artists were persecuted for having allegedly Communist beliefs. Miller warns:

"When one rises above the individual villainy displayed, one can only pity them all, just as we shall be pitied some day."

Discuss the difference between Baba and Ali and between Amir and Hassan in "The Kite Runner". Discuss the difference between Baba and Ali and...

I see both betrayals as being very similar.  Baba betrayed Ali in a very different way than Amir betrayed Hassan, but the cause of the betrayal is the same:  both men could, and did, get away with it due to the social hierarchy in their society.  What's interesting about this similarity is it demonstrates similar flaws in both father and son, despite the fact that Amir sees himself as so different from Baba.

Why did Granger propose that a mirror factory is the first order of business in a new society?

The mirror factory must be understood as a metaphor. To be able to change the attitude of society, they need a reflection of what they have done. In contrast to the parlor walls, mirrors are made for that. They reflect the person who is looking inside as they are. The parlor walls of Fahrenheit 451 just showed the humans what they wanted to see without giving them the possibility to see the real world.By entertaining them all tht time, they make them losing the reality of life.

The unconcealed look of a mirror would be necessary for the society of Fahrenheit 451 to have a chance to change something after the war.

With self-reflection, they should be able to avoid the repetition of former society catastrophes, a system which is described by Karl Marx in his state-theory.

Granger wants to try to change this circle of history by showing the humans their mistakes, like a mirror shows a human itself.

In Chapter 7 of "Lord of the Flies", why do the boys run from the dead chutist?

The dead pilot is still attached to his parachute which billows in the wind and looks other worldly. It appears to be "bulging" and then the wind blows and he appears to be looking at them with his "ruin of a face". The boys have been so affected by tales of the "beast" that they become terribly frightened and don't take the time to really look at the body. So, they never recognize its human form. They simply run down the mountain so fast that they even leave their weapons behind. This is an indication of the immaturity of the boys and their lack of rational thought in a moment of so-called crisis. Their decision to run instead of looking closely at the figure will have severe consequences for all the boys.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, how does Atticus explain the mob's actions to Scout?

This is an excellent question. This incident is one of the most important points in the book, in my opinion. Here Atticus confronts a mob. The mob, led by Mr. Cunningham, approaches Atticus to harm Tom Robinson - probably to kill him. Atticus stands in the way, and they are about to harm him as well. The mob will do what it takes to do what they want to do.

This is when Scout enters the picture and innocently strikes up a conversation with Mr. Cunningham. 

As the two talk, Mr. Cunningham is ashamed that he would even attempt such a thing. It took a child to quell this mob, and the mob comes to its senses. Eventually they depart. 

When the mob leaves, Atticus explains to Jem that Scout made the men in the mob see things from the perspective of another, in this case, Atticus' perspective. In other words, Mr. Cunningham walked in the skin of Atticus for a while. More importantly perhaps, a child was able to curb the rabid instincts of people. 

Here is the dialogue:

He might have hurt me a little,” Atticus conceded, “but son, you’ll understand folks a little better when you’re older. A mob’s always made up of people, no matter what. Mr. Cunningham was part of a mob last night, but he was still a man. Every mob in every little Southern town is always made up of people you know— doesn’t say much for them, does it?”

“I’ll say not,” said Jem.

“So it took an eight-year-old child to bring ‘em to their senses, didn’t it?” said Atticus. “That proves something—that a gang of wild animals can be stopped, simply because they’re still human. Hmp, maybe we need a police force of children... you children last night made Walter Cunningham stand in my shoes for a minute. That was enough.”

What evidence indicates that "To His Coy Mistress" is a carpe diem poem?

Many elements in the poem indicate that the speaker is urging his beloved to seize the day. Look, for example, at the first two lines:

"Had we but world enough, and time,
This coyness, lady, were no crime."

This says IF we had all the time, you could be coy.

Then look at the start of the second stanza:

 

"But at my back I always hear
Time's winged chariot hurrying near…"

But we don’t have all the time, he's saying. Not only is our time limited, he feels and hears it rushing on. Therefore, the third stanza says, let's make love while we're still alive.

Describe which two events the title "The Sieve and the Sand" refers to, and list what Faber thinks is missing from society as one of them.

The "Sieve and the Sand"  refers to two incidents: one from Montag's childhood and one from the present.  In the incident from his childhood, a cousin challenged Guy Montag to fill a sieve with sand in exchange for a dime.  Of course, the more sand that the child Montag put into the sieve, the more sand fell through the holes in the sieve.  This frustrated Guy, causing him to cry.  The other incident involves Montag's attempts to memorize.  He is trying to commit to memory the Book of Ecclesiastes from the Bible, but the jingle from the advertisement for Denham's Dentrifice that keeps playing while Montag is on the train is interfering and the words to Ecclesiastes fall through his memory just like the sand went through the sieve all those years ago.  Just as he was as a child, Guy Montag is frustrated at his inability to hang onto the words he's trying to memorize.  Guy's modern world counts on this inability to concentrate.  This world he lives in without books has encouraged people to live for the immediate moment; it's a world of sound bites and expediency.  By filling every place with mindless sound such as the advertisement jingle, people can't concentrate and do any serious thinking.  If people can't think, they are much more easily controlled.  This is just where society, and the government in the book, want people. By banning books, people's minds have been turned into sieves unable to hold thought.

Why does Amir call his birthday gifts "blood money"?

I a sense there are two meanings behind his reference to
having the birthday gifts as blood money.    In the book
The Kite Runner,  Amir wants his fathers love and support.  He
knows that he is a disappointment to Baba.  He wries and reads his stories to his
father, but nothing he does demonstrates to him that his father accepts him for who he
is. 

The day of the kite tournament is a turning point in
the story.  Amir and Hassan attend the kite tournament in Kabul.  Amir for once
demonstrates aggression during the tournament and wins by cutting the other kite's
string.  As a result he wins the tournament. 

Baba finally
sees some hope that his son can stand up and be aggressive.  He showed he can be a
winner.  When he gives such magnificent presents to Amir, the boy knows that he got hem
because he had won.  He also recognizes that he is only appreciated by his father at
this moment in time because he did win.

The second reason
that it is blood money is because after the tournament Hassan had run for the kite.  He
ran into the alley and Assef and his friends accosted him.  Hassan would not give Assef
the kite which angered Assef.  As a result Assef raped Hassan while Amir hid behind a
wall evident of the events.  He was unable to stand up for Hassan.  As Hassan left he
still had the kite and gave it to Amir.  The blood from the rape that was shed by Hassan
was the other reason those gifts felt like blood
money.

Why does Amir call his birthday gifts "blood money"?

I a sense there are two meanings behind his reference to having the birthday gifts as blood money.    In the book The Kite Runner,  Amir wants his fathers love and support.  He knows that he is a disappointment to Baba.  He wries and reads his stories to his father, but nothing he does demonstrates to him that his father accepts him for who he is. 

The day of the kite tournament is a turning point in the story.  Amir and Hassan attend the kite tournament in Kabul.  Amir for once demonstrates aggression during the tournament and wins by cutting the other kite's string.  As a result he wins the tournament. 

Baba finally sees some hope that his son can stand up and be aggressive.  He showed he can be a winner.  When he gives such magnificent presents to Amir, the boy knows that he got hem because he had won.  He also recognizes that he is only appreciated by his father at this moment in time because he did win.

The second reason that it is blood money is because after the tournament Hassan had run for the kite.  He ran into the alley and Assef and his friends accosted him.  Hassan would not give Assef the kite which angered Assef.  As a result Assef raped Hassan while Amir hid behind a wall evident of the events.  He was unable to stand up for Hassan.  As Hassan left he still had the kite and gave it to Amir.  The blood from the rape that was shed by Hassan was the other reason those gifts felt like blood money.

How is Gatsby different from his guests? What are the rumors told about Gatsby? What roles does Meyer Wolfsheim play in the novel?

Here you have given a three-part question about The Great Gatsby.  Let's take each part in turn.

First, Gatsby is first very different from his guests because he is never seen as his parties.  Everyone else who attended, or who "went there" according to Nick, went there specifically TO be seen. 

In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars.

Gatsby didn't care to be seen.  All Gatsby cared about was enticing Daisy to come to the parties, but she never came.  Gatsby is also of the upper class, unlike many of his guests.  For example, when one woman ruins a dress at Gatsby's party, he makes sure to order her a new one, a BETTER one.  It is also significant here to mention that Gatsby is one of the "new rich" and as such lives in "West Egg."  (This is in comparison with the middle class who live closer to the city, in the Valley of the Ashes in Queens, and also in comparison with the "old rich" who live in "East Egg.")  Here let me provide one more important quote about Gatsby's parties:

Laughter is easier minute by minute, spilled with prodigality, tipped out at a cheerful word. The groups change more swiftly, swell with new arrivals, dissolve and form in the same breath; already there are wanderers, confident girls who weave here and there among the stouter and the more stable, become for a sharp, joyous moment the centre of a group, and then, excited with triumph, glide on through the sea-change of faces and voices an colour under the constantly changing light.

Second, there are many rumors about Gatsby that are started at his parties.  They are started precisely because of the answer to the first question:  Gatsby is never seen and can never defend himself.  There is a rumor that he is "an Oxford man."  There is a rumor that "he killed a man once."  There are MANY rumors, some of them true (like the one that he was "in the war"), some of them half-true, some of them false, and some of them that might become true.  (After all, Gatsby does play a role in killing Myrtle near the end of the book, even though it was Daisy driving.)

Third, Meyer Wolfsheim plays an interesting role in the novel. He proclaims himself to be Gatsby's "friend," and yet refuses to come to Gatsby's funeral, even when Nick begs him to do so. Meyer Wolfsheim is Nick's first real clue that Gatsby isn't all that he says he is.  Meyer Wolfsheim even has cufflinks made of "the finest specimens" of human molars.  (Who has cufflinks of human molars?!?)  Nick is with Gatsby one day as he meets with Meyer Wolfsheim.  Meyer Wolfsheim believes Nick is looking for "a business gonnection," but Nick is most certainly NOT.  Nick recoils precisely because Meyer Wolfsheim seems to be involved in something shady.  We learn later that the two are involved in an intense bootlegging scheme.

In "That Was Then, This Is Now," how does Mark fit Bryon's description of him as a "golden lion"?

Mark's physical appearance reminds Bryon of  "friendly lion".  He is blonde and has "strange golden eyes", and has deceptive strength - "he is stronger than he looks" (Chapter 1).  There is also something menacing about him, an energy barely restrained, that is reminiscent by the end of the book of "an impatient, dangerous, caged lion" (Chapter 11).

Mark's "golden" quality might also be used to describe his personality.  Until Bryon turns him in, Mark is virtually always positive, energetic, and upbeat, almost blithe, like sunshine.  Also, he has the maddening capability to charm even the most hardened soul, and the ability to get away with just about anything with a facility that might be described as "golden".

In the poem "The Listeners", were the phantoms very close friends with The Traveller that was knocking on their door?

The phantoms are indifferent and completely unresponsive to the Traveller that is knocking at their door - "Never the least stir made the listeners, though every word he spake fell echoing through the shadowiness of the still house" (lines 29-31).  The phantoms can hear the Traveller's cry, but they do not answer, and if we assume that friendship by its very definition involves communication and sharing, then we would have to say that, no, they are not friends at all. 

The theme of the poem is man's inability to connect with others in either the social or the natural world.  With this being the author's message, it is not likely that the phantoms ever were close friends with the Traveller.  Man's ultimate state is isolation, and as such, he has no friends.  Despite his best efforts to establish ties, through the performance of duty as indicated in the lines "Tell them I came...that I kept my word" (lines 27-28) or through other means, man is destined to be alone in a world he does not understand.

In The Pearl, what lessons should be learned from Kino's actions?

The overt, moral lesson is that "money can't buy happiness." Before finding the "Pearl of the World," Kino's family is poor but content. Their basic needs (food, shelter) are met. Kino and Juana have a network of friends upon whom they can rely.

The discovery of the gem changes all that; suddenly, Kino is no longer satisfied with having base needs fulfilled. He becomes more and more obsessed with the idea of how wealth can change their lives, thinking money will be able to ensure a better life for his family

But the pearl has insidious effects. It separates Kino from his people. When Juana asks, "Who do you fear?"

Kino searched for a true answer, and at last he said, "Everyone. " And he could feel a shell of hardness drawing over him.

Juana sees how the pearl is destroying her husband's integrity. She begs him to rid them of the supposed treasure; she foresees the horrific consequences: "It will destroy us," she cried. "Even our son."

Juana is right. It will take the death of Coyotito to shake Kino out of his money-tinged reverie. Steinbeck's moral seems to be that money, instead of happiness, frequently purchases misery.

Can you tell me the meaning of every line in the poem "Ode on a Grecian Urn"?

Stanza 1, the speaker is addressing the urn itself.  He mentions it is timeless and has lasted for a long time and asks questions of the message on its side--who are these lovers? These gods? The story behind the chase and the piper? Stanza 2, he says he can imagine the tune the piper plays and it is sweeter than one actually heard simply because everyone who imagines the tune will imagine one that would sound sweet to him...therefore the imagined tune is sweeter to everyone.  He also mentions the trees whose leaves will never fall and the lover always on the verge of that first kiss. The girl will always be lovely, it will always be Spring. How wonderful to be stuck in that position. Stanza 3, he continues with the idea of being stuck in the good part of love and weather.  The lovers will never experience vengence or hurt, and the spring weather wil always be balmy, not hot and parching. Stanza 4, he speaks of the cow decorated with flowers being led by a priest to the sacrifice.  The town is deserted and no one will ever know why since it's not on the urn...the water is ever present and the streets are forever silent.  The people can never return home since they were not painted onto the urn's story. Stanza 5, he mentions the shape of the urn and the stories etched there forever.  He bemoans that after we are dead the urn will still exist.  Cold, hard beauty and truth remains. It is all we need to know.

What is the tone and mood of the writer in The Stranger?

The writer of The Stranger is Albert Camus. His tone, and I do believe the tone of the narrator Mersault, could be argued to be that of acceptance and satisfaction. The Myth of Sisyphus shows Camus believes that regardless of the events in our lives, we have a choice and we must accept our choices with a conscious understanding of our situation. 

Sisyphus had as he following the stone down the hill knowing he will roll it back again says we can be happy in the middle of our often absurd lives. Taken from The Myth of Sisyphus by Camus:

"That hour like a breathing-space which returns as surely as his suffering, that is the hour of consciousness. At each of those moments . . . he is superior to his fate. He is stronger than his rock. "

In The Stranger, Mersault almost always accepts everything and everyone around him and over time becomes satisfied, if not happy- with his life and even his seemingly absurd death he is accepting with complete understanding of life, "for the first time, . . .  I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world. Finding it so much like myself-- so like a brother, really-- I felt that I had been happy and that I was happy again" (123).

I'm uplifted by both Camus and Mersault's tone. It's not what one would call entusiastic, yet it has taken a positive attitude toward the pessimistic idea that life is meaningless and society is simply trying to make meaning for us.

What can Roma learn from Levene's plight in Glengarry Glen Ross?

David Mamet's play Glengarry Glen Ross is perhaps the closest examination of the life of salesmen since Death of a Salesman. The aging Levene is in despair throughout the narrative, while Roma seems to be calm and in control of his situation. Roma sits at the top of the sales board, exactly the position Levene did many years before. Levene can't procure any good leads, ends up stealing new leads from the office, and is caught when he gives himself away. Roma should be able to look at how far Levene has fallen and see that his future can and probably would end up the same. The life a salesman leads is nice, as long as he is making sales. The minute Roma loses his touch, gets a string of bad leads, or drops a huge sale (as happens in the play), he will be standing in Levene's shoes glancing across the room at a young lion who has taken his place.

Determine the common point of the lines 2x+y-5=0 and -3x+4y-9=0.

To determine the crossing point of the 2 lines, we have to
solve the system formed from their equations:

2x+y=5
(1)

-3x+4y=9 (2)

We'll
multiply the relation (1) by 3 and the relation (2), by 2, and after that, we'll add (1)
to (2). We'll obtain:

6x+3y-6x+8y = 15 +
18

After reducing similar terms, we'll
get:

11y = 33

y =
33/11

y=3

We'll
substitute y by 3, into the relation (1):

2x+3 =
5

2x = 5-3

2x =
2

x =
1

The crossing point is A
(1,3).

Determine the common point of the lines 2x+y-5=0 and -3x+4y-9=0.

To determine the crossing point of the 2 lines, we have to solve the system formed from their equations:

2x+y=5 (1)

-3x+4y=9 (2)

We'll multiply the relation (1) by 3 and the relation (2), by 2, and after that, we'll add (1) to (2). We'll obtain:

6x+3y-6x+8y = 15 + 18

After reducing similar terms, we'll get:

11y = 33

y = 33/11

y=3

We'll substitute y by 3, into the relation (1):

2x+3 = 5

2x = 5-3

2x = 2

x = 1

The crossing point is A (1,3).

What is a symbol in "Rebecca"?

Rebecca is symbolic of evil. The face she portrays to the world is very different from her real self. She shows her evil side only to her husband, flaunting her affairs and misdeeds to his face. Manderley, the house that Rebecca created, is also representative of evil, and in the end, this evil is burned to the ground. Happy Valley still stands, however, representing that good wins out over evil. Happy Valley is considered a paradise that Max and his second wife lose when Manderley is set on fire. The characters who remain loyal to Rebecca are also forces of evil who try to destroy Max's marriage to the protagonist. With the loss of paradise comes the narrator's loss of innocence, which symbolizes ignorance and even danger for the narrator. Du Maurier feels knowledge and experience are necessary for her survival. The narrator goes from innocence and ignorance to knowledge and experience, and this is how she endures her ordeal at Manderley and wins out over Rebecca's "ghost".

In the play, "Trifles," what does Mrs. Hale discover about the kind of life Mrs. Wright led? How does this make her feel?

Though its plot focuses on a single moral choice, that of Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters deciding whether or not to expose why Mrs. Wright killed her husband, Trifles is thematically complex. It addresses the abiding issue of justice and contemporary issues of gender and identity politics. Susan Glaspell’s power comes from the way she interweaves these issues until they are impossible to separate. When they enter the farmhouse, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters are there as wives, adjunct to their husbands’ roles in society.

However, through the process of attempting to help another woman by gathering items from her household that might comfort her in jail, they learn to identify themselves first as women and only secondarily as wives. Each woman recognizes her own life in Mrs. Wright’s suffering, and each comes to see that given the wrong circumstances, she, too, would have killed the man that so damaged her.

These women symbolize all women, and this growing awareness suggests the possibility of personal transformation that decades later emerged in feminist consciousness-raising groups. When they decide to hide the evidence of Mrs. Wright’s motive for the murder, the two women are condoning the crime, or declaring that it is not a crime, but justice for the suffering that John Wright inflicted on his wife.

Solve the inequality step by step. Explain, please, each step! -7-3x

First, we have to subtract 5x, both sides of the
inequality:

-7-3x-5x<5x-5x+29

-7-8x<29

Now,
we'll keep the unknown to the left side of the inequality and we'll multiply the
inequality, both sides, by -1. Because of the negative value, the sign of the inequality
will be changed, after
multiplying.

7+8x>-29

Now,
we'll subtract 7, both sides of the inequality, and we'll
get:

7-7+8x>-29-7

8x>-36

Now,
we'll divide the inequality by
8:

x>-36/8

x>-9/2

The
solution of the inequality consists in all x values from the interval (-9/2,
inf).

Solve the inequality step by step. Explain, please, each step! -7-3x

First, we have to subtract 5x, both sides of the inequality:

-7-3x-5x<5x-5x+29

-7-8x<29

Now, we'll keep the unknown to the left side of the inequality and we'll multiply the inequality, both sides, by -1. Because of the negative value, the sign of the inequality will be changed, after multiplying.

7+8x>-29

Now, we'll subtract 7, both sides of the inequality, and we'll get:

7-7+8x>-29-7

8x>-36

Now, we'll divide the inequality by 8:

x>-36/8

x>-9/2

The solution of the inequality consists in all x values from the interval (-9/2, inf).

What happens to the pigs' appearance in Animal Farm?

Animal farm is all about power and wealth. In the book, think of the animals as 'poor working people'. And think of the humans in the book as 'rich powerful people' (the owners of property, money, power etc).

After the worker's revolution on Manor Farm, the pigs begin as normal animals, (ie poor workers) but they become the leaders on the new Animal Farm and the advantages of power changes them. Little by little they begin to change from animal to human (ie from poor to wealthy elite)

They separate themselves from the other animals and move into the farmhouse. Gradually they betray their animal comrades and adopt a human lifestyle. By the end of the book, while the normal animals are cold and hungry, the pigs are wearing clothes,  sleeping in beds, fat and learning to walk on two legs. At the very end of the book they have dinner with humans at the farm's dinnertable and the pigs and humans look the same. In other words the pigs have completely changed from animals (poor workers) to humans (rich owners). 

What moral or other conflicts between different characters and different value systems bring about the tragic ending of Le Morte d'Arthur?

One conflict arises from the simple miscommunication of action.  Both Mordred and Arthur, not trusting one another wholly, have instructed their men to fight to the death if any warrior on the opposing side should draw his sword.   They distrust one another being that Mordred is Arthur's illegitimate son by his sister, Morgan Le Fay.  Since Mordred is not claimed, he is unable to be the sole heir of Arthur's titles and lands.  There is much bad blood and conflict there.

Of course, a warrior pledged to Arthur draws his sword to kill a snake that has bitten him during the feast.  The miscommunication is that the sword is not drawn in malice, but simply for self-defense of the creature of nature.  Unfortunately, the snake has caused the death of many men, including the famed Arthur, although some argue that since he was last seen floating on a barge with many beautiful women clad in black that he didn't die.  Therein lies some of the mystery of the "Once and Future King" and the grave Bedivere later comes across which is tended to by a hermit.

What details suggest the dehumanizing effects of Dr. Manette's captivity in "A Tale of Two Cities"?

In the chapter entitled "The Shoemaker", there are several indications that Dr. Manette's captivity has been dehumanizing.  The most significant is revealed when he is asked his name and responds with "One Hundred and Five, North Tower". His captivity has robbed him of his identity and left him with his location as his only claim.  Another indication of his lost humanity is his inability to answer questions.  When asked if he will finish the shoe he is working on, he does not know.  When asked what kind of shoe he is making, he forgets the questions before he can answer it.  When asked if he can bare more light, he resignedly responds that he must if more light is let in. In all cases, he reveals an inability to hold basic conversation, display intelligence, or share his personal opinion. Those who care for him as he leaves prison, specifically his daughter, must initially treat him as a child because his ability to deal with anything more is gone. The author tells us that he acted "in the submissive way of one long accustomed to obey under coercion". His imprisonment had, for a time, taken his intelligence, opinions, physical strength, and most importantly, his will.

Discuss how Childe Harold's Pilgrimage and Don Juan reflect the Romantic characteristic that places emphasis on the value of the unique...

I can give you background on Byron's emphasis on the
individual, which you can apply to the homework (the reading of the two
works):

Both works focus on the Bryonic Hero, which is a
very close persona of Byron.  Here are his qualities:
notorious…condemned…defiant…brooding…melancholic…voracious…unusually handsome, or
inextricably attractive, often to both sexes...wounded or physically, disabled in some
way...moody, mysterious, and/or gloomy...passionate (both in terms of sexuality and deep
emotions generally)...remorse laden (for some unnamed sin, a hidden curse, or
crime)...unrepentant (despite remorse)...persecuted by fate...self-reliant (often
rejecting people on both physical and emotional
levels)

Here's the background: In 1815, a radical
aristocratic poet, Lord Byron, married, had his first child, and published
Hebrew Melodies, a commercial success which included "She walks in
beauty." Like Napoleon, Byron had become a national romantic hero and champion of the
working class [his first speech in the House of Lords was to grant pardon to English
weavers].  In fact, Byron even welcomed Napoleon's Hundred Days rule and said of his
defeat at Waterloo: "I'm damned sorry for it."  That same year also brought defeat for
Byron: the separation of his wife and rumors of "insanity, incest, and sodomy" by
English critics, politicians, and poets alike. In April 1816, Byron exiled himself from
England, later saying to those who opposed Napoleon and
revolution:

O
ye! who teach the ingenious youth of nations, Holland, France, England, Germany or
Spain, I pray ye flog them upon all occasions, It mends their morals, never mind the
pain (Don Juan, Cato
II).

This is
Byron's Weltanschauung,
or cultural view of the world: he sees a world
in which Byron himself was exiled and morose, alienated from wife, child, and
home.

Andrew Rutherford, in his book,
Byron: A Critical Study, indicts Byron for "artistic slight of
hand," saying that Child Harole is a flawed Byronic Hero, but he never admits to his own
faults in his soliloquies. In effect, Byron is "having it both ways": to avoid
criticism. Since he was an artist in exile, since some critics and certainly the public
were more concerned with tabloid than his works, Byron wrote exiled art forms of poetry
and drama that are intentionally ambiguous and equivocal, all without realistic moral
grounds, to spite critics.  So says Rutherford:

readability="14">

All his heroes in the early verse tales had
paradoxical virtues of good and evil, vice and virtue, but their more unpleasant crimes
were never fully presented in the poems, so that the reader--like the author--could
enjoy the romantic villainy without ever facing its real implications. Something of the
same kind happens in Manfred, for the hero's sinful past is emphasised to make him seem
more interesting and awe-inspiring, but the more objectionable qualities (like hypocrisy
or delight in others' pain) are excluded from the actual portrayal of his character, by
an artistic sleight of hand amounting to
dishonesty.

Discuss how Childe Harold's Pilgrimage and Don Juan reflect the Romantic characteristic that places emphasis on the value of the unique...

I can give you background on Byron's emphasis on the individual, which you can apply to the homework (the reading of the two works):

Both works focus on the Bryonic Hero, which is a very close persona of Byron.  Here are his qualities: notorious…condemned…defiant…brooding…melancholic…voracious…unusually handsome, or inextricably attractive, often to both sexes...wounded or physically, disabled in some way...moody, mysterious, and/or gloomy...passionate (both in terms of sexuality and deep emotions generally)...remorse laden (for some unnamed sin, a hidden curse, or crime)...unrepentant (despite remorse)...persecuted by fate...self-reliant (often rejecting people on both physical and emotional levels)

Here's the background: In 1815, a radical aristocratic poet, Lord Byron, married, had his first child, and published Hebrew Melodies, a commercial success which included "She walks in beauty." Like Napoleon, Byron had become a national romantic hero and champion of the working class [his first speech in the House of Lords was to grant pardon to English weavers].  In fact, Byron even welcomed Napoleon's Hundred Days rule and said of his defeat at Waterloo: "I'm damned sorry for it."  That same year also brought defeat for Byron: the separation of his wife and rumors of "insanity, incest, and sodomy" by English critics, politicians, and poets alike. In April 1816, Byron exiled himself from England, later saying to those who opposed Napoleon and revolution:

O ye! who teach the ingenious youth of nations, Holland, France, England, Germany or Spain, I pray ye flog them upon all occasions, It mends their morals, never mind the pain (Don Juan, Cato II).

This is Byron's Weltanschauung, or cultural view of the world: he sees a world in which Byron himself was exiled and morose, alienated from wife, child, and home.

Andrew Rutherford, in his book, Byron: A Critical Study, indicts Byron for "artistic slight of hand," saying that Child Harole is a flawed Byronic Hero, but he never admits to his own faults in his soliloquies. In effect, Byron is "having it both ways": to avoid criticism. Since he was an artist in exile, since some critics and certainly the public were more concerned with tabloid than his works, Byron wrote exiled art forms of poetry and drama that are intentionally ambiguous and equivocal, all without realistic moral grounds, to spite critics.  So says Rutherford:

All his heroes in the early verse tales had paradoxical virtues of good and evil, vice and virtue, but their more unpleasant crimes were never fully presented in the poems, so that the reader--like the author--could enjoy the romantic villainy without ever facing its real implications. Something of the same kind happens in Manfred, for the hero's sinful past is emphasised to make him seem more interesting and awe-inspiring, but the more objectionable qualities (like hypocrisy or delight in others' pain) are excluded from the actual portrayal of his character, by an artistic sleight of hand amounting to dishonesty.

In "A Christmas Memory", why are Buddy and his older cousin such good friends?

As Capote writes on pg 4: " The person to whom she is speaking is myself.  I am seven; she is sixty-something.  We are cousins, very distant ones, and we have lived together- well, as long as I can remember.  Other people inhabit the house, relatives; and though they have power over us, and frequently make us cry, we are not, on the the whole, too much aware of them.  We are each other's best friends."

"She calls me Buddy in memory of a boy who was fomerly her best friend.  The other Buddy died in the 1880's, when she was still a child.  She is still a child." pg 4.

The two are best friends because the older cousin is simple minded and child-like. She has fun with Buddy and he with her.  They are powerless in their lives and have no one else to hold on to.

Define the realism of presentation. How does Jane Austen solve the problem of realism in "Pride and Prejudice"?

C.S.Lewis in his book "An Experiment in Criticism" (1992) defines Realism of Presentation as:"the art of bringing something close to us, making it palpable and vivid, by sharply observed or sharply imagined detail."(P.57).

The best example for Presentational Realism would be Ch.43 of "Pride and Prejudice" in which Jane Austen presents to her readers a very realistic description of  the Pemberley estate and Pemberley House. The precise measurement of the extent of the estate is specified: "it was ten miles round."

In p.59 of his  book Lewis  emphasizes the subtle difference between Presentational Realism and Realism of Content. He defines Realism of Content as, "a fiction is realistic in content when it  is probable or 'true to life' "(p.59).

Thus Presentational Realism would, according to C.S.Lewis,  be the 'how' and Realism of Content the 'what' of a novelist's craft.

Needless to say, the universal appeal of "Pride and Prejudice" is mainly due to the fact that the incidents and characters are 'probable' and 'true to life.'

In "Pride and Prejudice" Jane Austen deals with the universal institution of marriage and all its related issues-reasons for marrying; the importance of money, status and prestige; happiness or lack thereof in marriage.

According to Montresor, what type of person is Fortunato in "The Cask of Amontillado"?

According to Montresor, Fortunato is a man who has caused him a "thousand injuries" and who has wronged him numerous times.  He never details, though, what Fortunato has supposedly done to him.  We do know that Fortunato is a powerful man who is respected and also feared.  He is competitive and always wants to be first in everything he does, so he is foolish when he wants to rush to the catacombs to be the first to taste the Amontillado. His pride and his single-mindedness helped contribute to his death.

What are adjectives that can describe Ralph in Lord of the Flies?

I believe that Ralph changes drastically during his stay
on the island. He does not start out as mature--in fact, every time he becomes excited
about being alone on a "good island" without adult supervision, he can't even find the
words to express himself, so he stands on his head to express his enthusiasm, which is
quite immature.

He is
certainly not accepting and tolerant at the beginning,
either, as he appears to be quite prejudicial against the
fat boy with thick specs named "Piggy." He tries to sneak away from Piggy at first, but
then, realizing that Piggy will not be left behind, Ralph
grudgingly puts up with his company. After Piggy asks Ralph
not to tell the others of his humiliating nickname, Ralph goes right ahead and tells
them anyway (again displaying the immaturity he arrives with on the island).
Noble at this point is out of the
question.

Ralph tries to be
somewhat responsible up to a point, but he's not that
interested in responsibility--that is Piggy's forte. A list is supposed to be made of
all the kids on the island, but it does not come to fruition. Then there is the fire on
the mountain, and the boy with the mulberry birthmark is killed--and they can only
account for his death because of the noticeable birthmark. This is when Ralph takes a
more serious turn.

As the other kids lose their sense of
civilization, Ralph tries more and more to be responsible and
noble, even though he, too, at times, lapses, such as in the killing of
Simon.

The traitorous and violent turn that Jack takes
makes Ralph very fearful for the boys who are still on his
side and for himself, especially at the end when he is being hunted. As they are
rescued, this fear has its catharsis in the weeping that Ralph is finally able to give
in to.

What are adjectives that can describe Ralph in Lord of the Flies?

I believe that Ralph changes drastically during his stay on the island. He does not start out as mature--in fact, every time he becomes excited about being alone on a "good island" without adult supervision, he can't even find the words to express himself, so he stands on his head to express his enthusiasm, which is quite immature.

He is certainly not accepting and tolerant at the beginning, either, as he appears to be quite prejudicial against the fat boy with thick specs named "Piggy." He tries to sneak away from Piggy at first, but then, realizing that Piggy will not be left behind, Ralph grudgingly puts up with his company. After Piggy asks Ralph not to tell the others of his humiliating nickname, Ralph goes right ahead and tells them anyway (again displaying the immaturity he arrives with on the island). Noble at this point is out of the question.

Ralph tries to be somewhat responsible up to a point, but he's not that interested in responsibility--that is Piggy's forte. A list is supposed to be made of all the kids on the island, but it does not come to fruition. Then there is the fire on the mountain, and the boy with the mulberry birthmark is killed--and they can only account for his death because of the noticeable birthmark. This is when Ralph takes a more serious turn.

As the other kids lose their sense of civilization, Ralph tries more and more to be responsible and noble, even though he, too, at times, lapses, such as in the killing of Simon.

The traitorous and violent turn that Jack takes makes Ralph very fearful for the boys who are still on his side and for himself, especially at the end when he is being hunted. As they are rescued, this fear has its catharsis in the weeping that Ralph is finally able to give in to.