What are the main symbols in "The Chrysanthemums" and how are those symbols related to the theme "passion"?

The main symbol is Elisa's flowers (the chrysanthemums).  They symbolize Elisa's passion and love of aesthetic beauty, which her husband cannot see in the flowers OR in Elisa.  Elisa tends to her chrysanthemums with great care and effort, which symbolizes how she longs to have her husband share her love for them and how she wishes he could recognize both their beauty and her own beauty. 

Another symbol is the fence that surrounds her flowers/garden/property.  Elisa is isolated from the rest of the world; however, she wants to venture out and see it.  This is part of the reason she becomes interested in the Tinker who tries to get her to give him some pots to mend.  He has traveled all over the area and has seen places Elisa would like to see, so the fence is a border between Elisa's world and the outside world she will never truly be a part of.

In "To Kill a Mockingbird," how does economic class divide the people in Maycomb into four different groups?

To answer this question appropriately, one must consider several different families:

1. The Finches. Not poor, not necessarily wealthy. Atticus tells the children that they are, in fact, poor, but they are not as destitute as --

2. The Cunninghams. A poor family that "had probably never seen three quarters together in (their) life," the Cunninghams are poor, but proud. They refuse to accept charity, and choose to get by in a meager fashion.

3. The Ewells. Both poor and uneducated, the Ewells keep their children out of school to do field-hand labor, poach game off others' property (despite the fact that the "rules are bent" for them), and exhibit other qualities of low living.

4. The African-American community at large: Calpurnia's people and Tom Robinson's people are just as financially strapped as everyone else in Maycomb County, AL, but their community helps one another out and supports each other in times of need. This is best exhibited in the "church" scene, where Calpurnia takes the children to her church.

In "To Kill a Mockingbird", why does the Idlers' Club outside the courthouse object to Atticus's defending Tom Robinson?

Page 174..."thinks he knows what he's doing,"one said.  Oh-h now, I wouldn't say that," another said.  "Atticus Finch's a deep reader, a mighty deep reader."  "He reads all right, that's all he does." The club snickered.  "Lemme tell you something not Billy," a third said, "you know the court appointed him to defend this nigger."  "Yeah, but Atticus aims to defend him.  That's what I don't like about it."

The Idler's club is a group of men who are caught up in the race hatred of the era.  They will give Atticus the benefit of the doubt because he has been appointed to defend Tom, but they don't want him to do his job.  They just want him to go in and throw the case.  They don't like the idea of a black man getting a defense.  In their minds he is guilty and should not even get a trial.

Why are dreams so important in the novel Of Mice and Men?

In Steinbeck’s novella the focal theme of dreams is central in providing the characters with a sense of hope. Nevertheless, the futility of these aspirations is immediately expressed in the title, “Of Mice an Men”. The origin of which is from the Robert Burns poem, “To a Mice”. In this poem the core idea presented is that the dreams of men always go wrong, consequently bringing about tragedy. This is expressed in the opening line, “The best laid schemes o’ mice and men gang aft agley”; consequently establishing a sense of tragic inevitability.

Throughout the book, George talks wistfully about his mental picture of the farm and this has an extraordinary effect over his companion Lennie. When George is recollecting his prophesy, Lennie sits “entranced” and is overcome by a childlike enthusiasm. Steinbeck uses George’s dream like descriptions, which are the very opposite of their present existence, to slow down the pace of the novel and provide a period of calm before the storm. Due to the clear ambition he holds dear to himself, the dream of owning his own “little house”, he perseveres to stay out of trouble and responds with a determined tone, “I ain’t puttin’ out no two and a half”, when Whit encourages him to go out and witness a possible brawl.

Steinbeck shows the power of their dream when Candy is inspired to join them and the characters experience a moment of hope, as they sense the real possibility of an existence, in which they can “live off the fatta the land”. Their dream mirrors the Jefferson Agrarian Myth, which was a redeeming aspiration, held by many of the itinerant workforce, who were treated appalling, as a result of the social and economic problems caused by the Great Depression. Candy recognises that owning a piece of land, along with the status and self-esteem it would provide, is a dominating thought of the majority of his fellow ranch workers when he proclaims, “sure they all want it”.

It is not just the men who are transfixed by aspirations of an improved existence, Curley’s Wife also dreams of stardom. When she gets the chance to interact with Lennie, she reveals her dream of being “in the pitchers” in what amounts to a soliloquy. She appears to star-struck and despite her attempts at sophistication she seems pathetically naïve, notably when she is convinced that her “ol’ lady” stole the letter from Hollywood.

Tragically, in the end, the men’s dream is crushed by Lennie’s actions. The loss of hope has a profound effect on the men, as they realise their prospects are now no better than those of all the other itinerant workers. Candy’s immediate concern is that the heavenly future has disappeared and his fear is conveyed in the timid question, “you an’ me can get that little place, can’t we, George?” As a result of his pain he shows no pity towards Curley’s wife, claiming she “messed things up”.

In "The Black Cat", what did the second cat (with the patch on his neck) remind the narrator about?The black cat,

The white mark on the second cat takes the shape of the gallows and reminds the narrator of the hanging of the first cat. The gallows is the place where a person is executed by hanging. The narrator actually hung the cat, which he had mutilated by gouging out one eye, from a tree. Being reminded of this perverse act stings his conscience, he begins to be paranoid about the second cat. He believes it is tormenting him.

3/4 miles is equal to how many yards?

This is proportional math.

1760 yards = 1 mile

X yards   =  .75 mile

We agree that 3/4 is equal to .75? So X is then number we are missing?  With proportions, you cross multiply, and then divide by the number left, in our case that is one...which makes this easy!

All that is left is to multiply 1760 and .75 for your answer!

Is 1320 reasonable?  Are you looking for less than one mile?

I love proportional reasoning!  It takes the guess work out of conversion...just make sure you line up the same words on each side....

What is the literary term for this technique of hinting at things to come, such as when Aaron smiles up at Hannah in The Devil's Arithmetic?

Aaron’s smile is an example of foreshadowing, when an author hints at the future.

During the reading of the four questions, Hannah’s little brother Aaron is nervous.  He thinks he is going to forget something.  Hannah remembers how she used to be nervous the first time she did it, and she tries to distract him.  During the remembrance, she gives him encouragement.  When a page gets flipped, she helps him.

Hannah reached out and smoothed it back for him and he smiled up at her gratefully.  He has the greatest smile, Hannah thought… (ch 2, p. 14)

This incident demonstrates that Hannah is caring and forgiving.  She worries about her brother, and has empathy for him.  His fear and her reaction foreshadows the coming events, because Hannah is the only one who knows what is going to happen in the Holocaust during the book.

What does this quote by Antony in "Julius Caesar" mean? "...let me not stir you up to such a sudden flood of mutiny.."

In this quote Marc Anthony is speaking to the crowd at Caesar's funeral.  He has told the people how much Caesar loved them, he has told them that even though the men who killed him were "honorable" men,( he then begins to prove they are traitors), they stabbed Caesar because he was ambitous.  The crowd begins to listen intently to Marc Anthony when he tells them that Ceaser refused to take the crown three different times.  Marc indicates the he should not read Caesar's will because the crowd will become too angry when they hear how much their Caesar loved them.  They demand revenge and begin becoming unsettled and shouting angry replies.  It is then that Marc Anthony says,

"Good friends, sweet friends, don’t let me stir you up
To such a sudden flood of rebellion.
They who have done this deed are honorable.
What private sorrows they have that made them do it,
Alas, I don’t know,
They're wise and honorable,And will, no doubt, answer you with reasons."

Could I have an explanation of the poem "Channel Firing?"

Channel Firing, by Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) is a dialogue among the dead who are awakened by the naval "great guns" firing artillery in the English Channel. The central theme of the poem suggests that warfare has gotten so destructive that  Armageddon, the final battle at the end of the world, is at hand, and the dead are awakened for Judgment Day. God reassures them that no, it's just the living engaging in "redder" warfare; a skeleton that used to be the parson states that his lifetime would have been better spent enjoying himself  ("I wish I had stuck to pipes and beer,") rather than preaching, since apparently it had had no positive effect on the subsequent generations. The last stanza suggests the enemy's "return fire" with shells landing far inland. What's interesting is that Hardy was writing about the First World War, but the intensity of the destruction he conveys in his poem more accurately describes the destruction during and at the conclusion of World War II, when the most destructive weapon of all was set upon the world.

What dramatic conventions does Shakespeare use to establish characters and begin to lay out his tragedy?This in Act 1 scene 3.

Shakespeare uses witchcraft for one thing.  In the 17th centruy, many European Christians believed in witchcraft.  James I of England executed hundreds of accused witches in Scotland for acts that are very similar to the acts of these Shakespearean witches. 

He uses thunder in this scene as well.  This sets up the tragedy when they give the prophesies to Macbeth and Banquo. The witches then vanish. After they vanish, Ross and Angus appear to share the great news of Macbeth's new title as Thane of Cawdor.  This then moves the plot of the tragedy to new heights.  The asides let the reader/audience know how they feel about these prophesies coming true, and the asides by Macbeth alone lets us know his excitement and possible ambition of someday being king.  These dramatic conventions help to set up and deliver the basis for the tragedy of Macbeth.

Why does Scout get to stay during the explicit testimonies and where do Scout and Jem sit during the trial?help will be great, thanks

There are really two reasons that Scout gets to stay.  First of all, she really doesn't understand what "rape" is.  Atticus gave her a point blank definition, but she doesn't understand what it is or what it is about.  (she's too young to understand sex)  Second, they were in the balcony the whole time (with Reverend Sykes and the black community) and they saw all of the witnesses testify before they were caught.  So since they'd already been through it all, Atticus let them come back after some dinner to see the verdict.

In "Hamlet", do you think Gertrude knows that the cup of wine is poisoned? Was her death accidental or a suicide?

After enduring the insults of her son earlier and having witnessed the play performed in adherence to the instructions of Hamlet, Gertrude is asked by Horatio to speak to the grieving Ophelia in Act IV, scene v. 

In an aside, Gertrude remarks, "To my sick soul, as sin's true nature is,/Each toy seems prologue to some great amiss (17-20).

These words see to presage her actions in Act V, scene ii.  When Claudius, whom she must suspect of killing her husband, says "Gertrude, do not drink," she responds, "I will, my lord; I pray you pardon me"(268)  Gertrude here may be asking forgiveness for her forthcoming exposure of him as murderer.  In motherly fashion, she wipes the face of Hamlet as he prepares to duel Laertes, lovingly touching her son for the last time.  When Hamlet rushes to her after she falls having drunk the poisoned wine, she does not mention Claudius; instead, she says, "O my dear Hamlet!  The drink, the drink! I am poisoned" (289).  As she dies Gertrude expresses her love for her son and implicates Claudius, hoping that Hamlet will avenge her death as well as her husband's.  She must reason, too, that Hamlet will come out of his melancholia and feel again in charge of his fate. 

Clearly, there are indications that Gertrude has willingly poisoned herself in order to save her child from further tragedy.

In "To Kill a Mockingbird", why does Lee use Miss Maudie to explain Atticus’ role in the community?Chpt 22

By chapter 22, Miss Maudie is firmly fixed in the mind of the reader as a reliable person. She is the female version of Atticus. Miss Maudie does not react with emotion; she reacts with reason and intellect just like Atticus does. No one understands Atticus better than she does, not even Atticus' children or his sister. When she tells Jem that Atticus is one of those men who are chosen to do our unpleasant tasks for us, we believe that she knows precisely what she is talking about. She goes on to explain to Jem that Judge Taylor chose Atticus to represent Tom, knowing that Atticus would lose the case, but also knowing that Atticus would try his best to do the job and do it right.

How is Young Goodman Brown a romantic hero?

In F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, The Great Gatsby, I think that Gatsby is both in love with and obsessed with Daisy. Though it has been years since she married, Gatsby still seeks out Daisy's company, and pursues the idea that one day they might be together.

Daisy is unhappy, and Gatsby knows this. He believes that this is enough to make her leave her marriage so that they can be together, as if they have never been separated.

However, Gatsby is living in a world that revolves around Daisy, that he himself has constructed.

Almost five years! There must have been moments even that afternoon when Daisy tumbled short of his dreams—not through her own fault, but because of the colossal vitality of his illusion. It had gone beyond her, beyond everything.

It would seem as though he is chasing a ghost, a dream: a remnant of the past that lives only in the past. And though he seems to sense this, he still cannot let the "idea" of Daisy go. Daisy still cares about Gatsby, perking up at the mention of his name at a dinner party, even admitting that she still loves him, but for her it is not a simple case of leaving one man and picking up with another.

As they finally come face-to-face, he hearts things that surprise him:

“Oh, you want too much!” she cried to Gatsby. “I love you now—isn't that eough? I can't help what's past.” She began to sob helplessly. “I did love him once—but I loved you too.”

Gatsby's eyes opened and closed.

“You loved me too?” he repeated.

For Gatsby, the idea that Daisy loved him also, is a surprise. But there is no indication on her part that she is willing to start where they left off: that what is past is not "now."

Gatsby loves the Daisy of years past, but he is obsessed now with the dream that he has created about that woman of the past, not grounded in reality, and it is impossible, it would seem, for him to reconcile the two.

What has the secret committee of Poker Flat decide to do? How has this decision carried out?

In the beginning of “The Outcasts of Poker Flat” the reader is told that the town has created a secret committee that was in charge of ridding the town of all of the evil and “bad people” who have been causing problems to the other townspeople.  There have been a number of murders and robberies; therefore, the committee has decided that there are certain people who must be taken out of the town in order to preserve the peace and serenity of Poker Flat.  Those who have been deemed evil or bad are escorted to the outskirts of town and must fend for themselves until they reach the next town.  In the instance of this particular story, the outcasts are on their way to Sandy Bar.

In "The Scarlet Letter" what happens to Chillingworth after Dimmesdale dies and why?

Chillingworth died "within the year".  Before this, Hawthorne states that "all [Chillingworth's] strength and energy-all his vital and intellectual force-seemed at once to desert him; insomuch that he positively withered up, shrivelled away, and almost vanished from mortal sight."  So, he became almost non-existent, shriveling and losing all health and vitality.  Hawthorne states that this is because Chillingworth was a parasite, feeding off of Dimmesdale himself.  And any parasite that is separated from its host has no way of living, so shrivels and dies.  It states that he "had made the very principle of his life to consist in the pursuit...of revenge; and...was left with no further material to support it."  When anyone becomes completely consumed and obsessed by something that is entirely dependent on someone else, if that someone else leaves, then what is there left to live for? The good news is that he DID die; Hester was free from him at last, AND he left his entire fortune to her and Pearl.

How does Whit refer to Curley's wife? What does this do for our (the audience's) perception of Curley's wife?

Whit says to George that it "seems like [Curley's wife] can't keep away from guys." Curley's wife is regarded as trouble by all of the men, not just Whit. She is referred to as a "tramp", a "bitch" and a "tart" - her physical description, described as "heavily made up" and lips painted red, certainly supports this belief. In particular, her actions likewise get the men into trouble by her attempts to find friendship with the men. She, like many other characters in this novel, craves company and friendship, but this is misinterpreted. Especially with her conversations with Lennie, she shows herself to be incredibly vulnerable, and to have a dream just like other characters in the story. Her treatment at the hands of the men and her husband help the audience to feel pity at her situation, whilst at the same time she does not help herself by her actions.

In "The Crucible" how does John feel about Reverend Parris?

John is fairly open about his feelings for Parris.  In the first act, he gets into arguments with Parris, and some of his feelings come out.  One issue he has with Parris is his preaching style.  Of it, Proctor states, "I have trouble enough without I come five mile to hear him preach only hellfire and bloody damnation...there are many others who stay away from church tese days because you hardly ever mention God anymore."  So, he feels that Parris' preaching style is much too intense, negative, and critical.  Proctor also feels that Parris is unusually worldy and materialistic.  When Parris demands to outright own the house that the church provides for him, Proctor says, "to ask ownership is like you shall own the meeting house itself," voicing his dismay that a preacher would need that ownership.  In act two he adds to his opinion of Parris' materialism by mentioning of Parris that "for twenty week he preach nothin' but golden candlesticks until he had them."  He feels that Parris is a petty, negative man, and he "sees no light ofgod in that man."  He feels so strongly that Parris isn't a good minister that he jokingly says that he is going to "find and join" the faction or party that is forming against Parris, and, his youngest son isn't baptized because John doesn't want Parris to "lay his hand upon my baby."

I hope that gives you a feel for how John feels about Parris; it certainly isn't warm and fuzzy, and John has no qualms expressing it.

Do vampires have sex in "Twilight"?I was reading "Breaking Dawn" and I know that they can't have babies, but can they still have intercourse? I was...

Since vampires are mythical creatures, authors have the freedom to make them do just about anything. Note that in the Twilight books, vampires can come out into the daylight without harm. In most other stories, vampires burst into flames when exposed to sunlight. In Charlaine Harris's books, not only does sunlight kill vampires, but it also causes them to fall into a deep sleep, making them doubly vulnerable. Another series in which a vampire becomes pregnant is the "Underworld" movies/books. In the first movie, a werewolf named Lucian falls in love with the vampire daughter of Victor, and she becomes pregnant. When Victor finds out, he lets his daughter burn to death and tortures Lucian. This leads to a war between vampires and werewolves. In the "Blade" movies, the character Blade becomes a half-vampire because his mother was pregnant when she turned.

In F. Paul Wilson's book "Midnight Mass," vampires are pure evil and make fun of humans who pretend to be vampires or who think vampires are sexy.

Use your imagination!

Consider that the Mad Trist narrative parallels the actual sounds in the house. Do the characters fall victim to self-fulfilling prophecies?"The...

As long as we consider it true that Usher did in fact bury his twin sister alive, then it is safe to say that there is more at work here than a simple self-fulfilling prophesy.  Yes, while the narrator is reading Mad Trist to Usher, he thinks he hears a "cracking and ripping sound," a "screaming or grating sound," and a "distinct, hollow, metallic, and clangorous . . . reverberation."  Are these self-fulfilling prophesies in themselves?  Perhaps.  There is no denying, however, the actual appearance of Madeline with "blood upon her white robes, and the evidence of some bitter struggle upon every portion of her emaciated frame." Could these sounds have been Madeline ripping her burial robes, screaming in terror at being buried alive, and exiting her tomb?  Most certainly! Considering that Madeline has absolutely nothing to do with the recitation of Mad Trist (and the fact that she most likely had no idea it was even being read at all), her appearance, while not exactly proving that the stated coincidences actually happened, proves that there are circumstances here that are beyond the control of both the narrator and of Usher himself.

What does the vulture eye represent and why do you think it is termed 'vulture eye' in "The Tell-Tale Heart"?

One explanation given by critics about the old man in "The Tell-Tale Heart" is that he is a "doppelganger" for the narrator, a double for him, and the narrator's hatred for the man represents his own self-loathing.  If this be the case, then the focus of the mad narrator goes to the eye that is bluish in its clouding as the object of his problems.  Perhaps, he may believe, it is the eye that is a curse upon him, making him so "nervous."  This eye that resembles a vulture's eye, that has a film which can cover it at times, stares at the narrator as the vulture looms over its prey in anticipation of death.

The fixation upon an object as the curse or reason for one's agony is not uncommon.  Lady MacBeth's fixation on the "damned spot" is the focus of her agonized mind, for example.  So, in order to relieve his psychological torment, the character must rid him/herself of this cursed object. Likewise, the narrator fixates upon the eye. Of course, the horror lies in the old man's realization that the narrator is mad and perceives his eye as this object, for he cries out before he is attacked.  The reader senses horror in the grotesqueness of the bizarre reasoning of the narrator. 

In "My Heart Leaps Up," the speaker of the poem sees his life as existing in 3 stages.What are these different stages?

In Lines 3-5 of "My Heart Leaps Up" William Wordsworth sees his life in three parts, as a young child ( "when my life began"), as a man ( "So is now I am a man) and as an old man "( So be it when I shall grow old") . As he says in the poem, he hopes he will always see nature as something beautiful and can retain that mystical wonder when his "heart leaps up" when he sees a rainbow, or something beautiful in a natural setting.

What are some examples of Holden acting insecure or becoming paranoid that people are judging him in "The Catcher in the Rye"?

There book is full of examples of this. Holden tends to judge other people so they can't get close to him and judge him or hurt him. When he visit Old Spencer in the beginning of the book, rather than listening to what Spencer has to say, he just judges Spencer because Holden doesn't want to hear that he's doing anything wrong.

Throughout the book, Holden participates in activities that would make him seem older: drinking, smoking, living on his own, hiring a prostitute (even though he admits that he's confused about sex). Holden wants to seem more like an adult--in a superficial way--so that others around him don't judge him as being "too young". He's insecure about where he fits in the world, so he tries to act older, when he's really less mature than he needs to be.

When Holden is on his date with Sally, he becomes insecure when she meets up with George at intermission. Holden may be truly distasteful of phony conversations and meetings, but Sally and George represent people who grew up in the "right way", as phony as they may be. At the end of the date, when Sally turns down Holden's plan to run away, he begins to insult her in order to save his feelings. He opened up to her in a way that he hasn't opened to anyone else, and she completely shoots him down. In order not to feel hurt, he needs to put her down to show that her opinions weren't worth anything in the first place.

What is the setting in Ralph Ellison's"Battle Royal" from The Invisible Man?

The major setting of "Battle Royal" by Ralph Ellison is the ballroom of the hotel where the narrator and his schoolmates go to participate in a boxing match.  In the ballroom, a temporary boxing ring has been erected and there are seats around the ring.  There are many white spectators in the crowd, and the atmosphere in the room is tense. 

In other parts of the story, however, the action takes place in the narrator's home and in the realm of his dreams.

What is microcapsules?

Micro-capsules represent a sub-category of microparticles that have the following structure:

- nucleus

- coating material

The nature of material of nucleus is different from the nature of material of outer layer. The size of a microparticle can vary from the smallest value of 50nm to 2000 mu m.

The material of the nucleus depends on the purpose that needs to be reached, while the material of coating is selected be with respect to its ability to form a film that is connected to the material of nucleus. The material of the coating must not develop reactions with the nucleus and it has to have chemical affinities with the material of nucleus. The material of the coating can be either hydrophobic polymers or hydrophilic polymers.

What happened when the Southern states seceded? Did they dissolve their ties to the US, and nullify results of the 1860 election?Or did they...

Neither answer above is fully correct. South Carolina, and all other states, participated in the 1860 election and supported John Breckenridge. They feared that Lincoln would abolish slavery, a subject that had been very touchy for South Carolina since 1830. Unhappy with the election results and expecting Lincoln to enact anti-slavery laws, South Carolina seceded from the Union, with 6 other states quickly following. Eventually, the states in the Confederacy would total 11.

Delegates from the original 7 states met in Alabama and voted to form the Confederate States of America on February 8, 1861.

Lincoln was inaugurated on March 4.

The Confederate states quickly amassed an army, and focused on Fort Sumter in South Carolina, which the Union army still occupied. The Confederates demanded the surrender of the fort, which was denied. On April 12, the Confederates fired on the fort, taking it by force 34 hours later.

Lincoln never acknowledged the Confederate government and argued against their right to secede. Therefore, in his eyes, the attack on Fort Sumter constituted armed insurrection, and led to the Civil War. The battle that would ensue lasted 4 years and resulted in 620,000 deaths among soldiers on both sides. The final battle ended on May 13, 1865.

In "Romeo and Juliet, " instead of returning home, where does Romeo go after the ball?

The ball is where Romeo and Juliet have each learned the name of the other.  Romeo has left Capulet's house after being threatened by Tybalt, so he has made a fairly hasty exit, most unwelcome at this party.  But he only pretends to leave.  Benvolio and Mercutio both call for him, encouraging him that he should continue to pursue Rosaline (or other women who might not be such a challenge.)

 I conjure thee by Rosaline's bright eyes, By her high forehead and her scarlet lip, By her fine foot, straight leg and quivering thigh And the demesnes that there adjacent lie, That in thy likeness thou appear to us! 

But Romeo ignores this bawdy summons, jumps the Capulets' garden wall, and goes to Juliet's balcony.

Why was Doodle considered a disappointment at birth in "The Scarlet Ibis"?It would be so mean if his parents actually said that to his face.

The great sadness in this story lies in the fact that Doodle's family failed to cherish him as the wonderful little boy he was. Doodle was sensitive and compassionate, brave and loving. Nobody may have told Doodle he was "a disappointment" in those exact words, but he knew. Throughout his short life, Doodle tried with all his might to live up to his brother's unreasonable expectations of him.

Doodle's birth was difficult. He was physically misshapen with a big head and a shriveled body. His family expected him to die; his father made a coffin for him. His mother cried, saying that Doodle might not be "all there," meaning that he might be mentally impaired. At one point, Doodle's brother makes plans to kill him.

Today, Doodle would be diagnosed as a special needs child. His development was delayed. He didn't crawl until his third winter. At the age of five, he could not walk. Since Doodle's brother was embarrassed to have a brother start school without being able to walk, he set about teaching him to walk, pushing him very hard. This led  to Doodle's tragic death at the end of the story.

Doodle was considered to be a disappointment when he was born because he was different. His family did not realize what a special gift he was to them.

In "The Crucible", what does Danforth think Mary Warren’s appearance in the court might be?it's is in actIII in crucible

In Act III of "The Crucible", Mary Warren initially goes to court to tell Judge Danforth that the girls are lying and have been lying from the very beginning. When she tries to give this information to Danforth he thinks that she is bewitched by someone who is forcing her to lie to the court by telling him that the girls had been lying. Therefore, Danforth thinks that Mary Warren's appearance in court might be due to a witch or the devil forcing her to tell him that the girls are lying.

Why does Mars have a longer year than Earth?

The Earth and Mars are both planets that orbit round our Star, The Sun. This means they travel round the sun in a circle.

A Year is the time a planet takes to go round the Sun ONCE.

The Earth is nearer to the Sun than Mars. So if you imagine the circle that the Earth makes as it travels round the sun, it is smaller than the circle that Mars makes because Mars is further away from the sun.

Imagine you drive round and round the Indianapolis circuit (which is not quite a circle but pretend it is). Now imagine, at the same time, your friend drives round a smaller circle track on the field INSIDE the real Indianapolis track. His lap times will be much quicker than yours because his lap is much shorter.

Same with Mars and Earth. Mars has a much longer lap than Earth's lap. Mars has further to travel on his big circle. So it takes longer to complete. Almost twice as long.

A Martian Year is 1.88 Earth Years.

In The Monkey's Paw," what effect does the setting have on the plot at the beginning of the story?

The setting of the story has a dual effect of establishing that the Whites are a close family, they are cozy and content in their home. 

"Without, the night was cold and wet, but in the small parlour of Laburnum villa the blinds were drawn and the fire burned brightly." (Jacobs) 

But, the Whites also seem a little bored by their simple life.  Outside the home, the location of the home relays a sense of isolation and remoteness.  Mr. White gets mad thinking that Sargeant Major Morris is unlikely to come for a visit because of the weather and because of the condition of the road. The Whites live in a rural area, they don't get many people walking outside in their neighborhood. They believe that they have been forgotten by the town or village in which they live.  They have been cut off from civilization and are alone.  It is a little spooky.

"That's the worst of living so far out," balled Mr. White with sudden and unlooked-for violence; "Of all the beastly, slushy, out of the way places to live in, this is the worst. Path's a bog, and the road's a torrent. I don't know what people are thinking about. I suppose because only two houses in the road are let, they think it doesn't matter." (Jacobs)

The remoteness of the location also helps the reader understand that the knocking on the door that occurs after Mr. White makes the second wish is most definitely their son, Herbert risen from the grave.  The reader does not know who is knocking on the door for sure, but because of the rural area in which they live and the fact  that it is unlikely that anyone would be walking near their home, the Whites believe and so does the reader the knocking is from Herbert. 

"He stood motionless, his breath suspended until the knock was repeated. Then he turned and fled swiftly back to his room, and closed the door behind him. A third knock sounded through the house."

If you wanted to use the inbuilt square root function in the C programming language, what would you have to do?

In the C programming language, the square root functionality is included in a library. To use this function, you must include the following compiler directive at the top of your program:

#include <math.h>

Having done so, the square root functionality is invoked using the "sqrt" function. For example,

y = sqrt(x);

would compute the square root of the value stored in variable x and store the result in variable y.

If you wish to use this C language functionality in the C++ language, the compiler directive is a bit different:

#include <cmath>

and the usage is the same as above.

What does Antony ask of the conspirators if they plan to kill Caesar in Act 3, Scene 1 of Julius Caesar?

 Antony asks that they allow him to take the body to the marketplace and, further, that he be allowed to orate at the funeral.

Here are the lines Antony delivers to the Servant (who is to take the news to the conspirators): 

Post back with speed and tell him what hath chanced.

Here is a mourning Rome, a dangerous Rome,

No Rome of safety for Octavius yet;

Hie hence, and tell him so. Yet stay awhile,

Thou shalt not back till I have borne this corpse

Into the market-place. There shall I try,

In my oration, how the people take

issue of these bloody men,

According to the which thou shalt discourse

To young Octavius of the state of things.

Lend me your hand.

(3.1.307-317)

In The Scarlet Letter, why doesn't the governor intercede when his sister is condemned as a witch? Governor Bellingham was brother to Mistress...

Although Gov. Richard Bellingham and Ann Hibbins were real historical characters, Nathaniel Hawthorne does not include every detail of their relationship in his novel. Ann Hibbins was the sister of Gov. Bellingham and married to William Hibbins. All of them came to Boston about 1634. Both men became prosperous and well-known from their arrival. However, Ann was a very strong minded individual and became involved in a quarrel with a fellow church member. The quarrel escalated until finally Ann was excommunicated from the Puritan church. However, he husband was still alive so she was protected even though she was known as a difficult woman. Unfortunately, her husband, William suffered a series of financial misfortunes and then died in 1654. This left Ann a poor widow, who did not fit the stereotype of pious widow. Instead, she was argumentative, and troublesome to her neighbors. With her husband's death, she was left no real legal protection. Her prominent brother ,Richard Bellingham, who is curiously left out of the accounts of the time, was either unwilling or unable to help her. Her real crime seemed to be that she was difficult to get along with and therefore, disliked. Thus, she was executed as a witch in 1656. A contemporary minster, John Horton commented "Mistress Hibbins was hanged for a witch only for having more wit than her neighbors."

During the combustion of methane,CH4,shown by: CH4(g) + O2(g)-->CO2(g) + H2O(g), what is the balanced equation?

CH4(g) + O2(g)-->CO2(g) + H2O(g)

When you balance out an equation you get the same amount of each element on both sides of the equation.

In this problem we have 1 carbon on both sides, 4 hydrogen on the right and 2 on the left, and 2 oxygens on the left and 3 on the right side.

We need to balance out the hydrogens therefore we add a two to make it equal:

CH4(g) + O2(g)-->CO2(g) + 2H2O(g)

Now we have 1 carbon, and 4 hydrogen on both sides but 2 oxygen on the left and 4 on the right, so we have to balance that out.

We do so by putting in another 2:

CH4(g) + 2O2(g)-->CO2(g) + 2H2O(g)

Now we have 1 carbon, 4 oxygen, and 4 hydrogen.

It is now balanced.

What does this quote mean and who said it? "I come to do the Devil's work. I come to counsel Christians they should believe themselves."Who is...

The speaker of the quote is Rev. Hale in Act IV, Scene I.  You do have a typo in the quote though.  It should read, "I come to do the Devil's work.  I come to counsel Christians they should belie themselves."  Hale is speaking to Danforth telling him that he has returned to convince those Christians who stand accused to lie and save their lives.  The circumstance behind the quote is that Rev. Hale sees the truth behind the girls' pretense in crying witchcraft on innocent people.

This quote is important in revealing Rev. Hale's character as coming full circle from the beginning of the play.  When he first entered Salem, he came with the "weighty authority of his books."  Now, he has returned to reverse the damage caused by his knowledge of witchcraft.  Hale has returned with the same energy that he had when he first entered Salem Village.  Even though he is a Christian, he feels just in counseling other Christians to lie to an unjust court system.

In "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" when Huck leaves the river, he sees complications of society. Discuss 3 lessons he learns.

1. That violence is real, it exists everywhere, and it is scary. He learns this specifically after encountering the Grangerfords and the Shepherdsons and the huge battle they have in the woods.  He and Tom used to plan heists and murder with their gangs, but when he sees it really happening, Huck is greatly disturbed.  When he gets back out onto the river raft, states,

"I was powerful glad to get away from the feuds...there warn't no home like a raft, after all...you feel mighty free and easy and comfortable on a raft."

2.  That lying to good people to get gain from them is not a good thing.  He learns this after each and every town that he goes to with the duke and king; they scam people over and over again, and he sees all sorts of unsavory types of people along the way.  He especially learns it when the duke and king mimick being the Wilks brothers and con the entire family into it.  At this point, Huck is getting fed up with these two sordid characters.  Before this occasion, he was willing to coast, to go with the flow, but as soon he finds out what they are planning with the Wilks family, it is soon after that he leaves those two behind.

3.  Don't trust most people; but you can trust a true friend.  The duke and the king scam Jim in the end, betraying all of the kindness and trust that Huck and Jim had given them.  The people in the towns seem gullible and kind at first, but can turn on you in a second.  He encounters angry mobs from what used to be docile crowds, death threats, and betrayals.  But Jim is his friend through it all, and if they stick together, it is okay.

Those are just a few ideas; I hope they help you to get started!

What comes after the exposition and what is exposition?

The exposition is the beginning part of a story.  It is where we meet the characters, find out the setting, and get the background about the story line.  It is the material that sets up whatever will be the central conflict in a story.  

After the exposition, you have a rising action. After that comes the climax, falling action, and then resolution.  

Hope this helps!

What are the ironies in the title of the short story "Good Advice is Rarer than Rubies"?clearly structure the answer with reference to the...

There are several ironies in the title. The first is that for all that good advice may be rarer than rubies, Muhammad Ali is willing to sell his advice for much cheaper than this. A second is that in being attracted to Miss Rehana's beauty, he's hoping to be paid in something other than money (or jewels). A third is that he then tries to give his advice away, making it clear that this advice really isn't that valuable. A fourth and larger irony is found in the story's resolution. Because Miss Rehana declines the false passport he offers, she has to answer the questions. Because she is honest, she is turned down—and that means she gets to stay in India, rather than having to go to England. In not getting what she's trying to do, she gets what she wants: very ironic.

In the poem "Those Winter Sundays" from what point in time does the speaker view the subject of matter of the poem? In the poem "Those Winter...

Those Winter Sundays is a wonderful poem by Robert Hayden, one of the most influential Harlem Renaissance poets. Next to Langston Hughes, Hayden may be the best-known poet of the Harlem Renaissance, even though his collection of work is not as extensive.

In the poem, Hayden retrospects to his childhood, and recalls the small acts of kindness that his father performed. There is a bittersweet essence about the poem, as the author recalls how he was never grateful toward his father for the generosity displayed.

The closing lines of this poem are most frequently discussed in literature classes: "What did I know, what did I know of love's austere and lonely offices?"

The author here expresses the realization that his father was instrumental in his success, and that his father labored in a solitary and quiet way to ensure that success.   

In Act III of "The Crucible," what is Mary Warren's lie in court?

Mary Warren, in Act III, after she submits testimony to the court, telling the truth for the first time, she is unsuccessful.  The court does not believe her, the judge warns her that if she has lied to the court at all, she will hang.

Mary Warren gets scared, terrified as a matter of fact, she turns and accuses John Proctor of being in league with the Devil and of trying to get her to join him. She lies.

She continues to lie, she claims that he has threatened her, she says.  She lies and tells the court that he has threatened to kill her if she did not lie in court to get Elizabeth Proctor free.

Mary Warren dooms John Proctor.  She lies about him to save herself.  She is responsible for getting him arrested and ultimately executed.

In Chapter 6 of "Witch of Blackbird Pond", what was the argument between Matthew Wood and Reverend Bulkeley over?

Reverend Bulkeley is a staunch loyalist who believes that the colonists should give their total allegiance to the Crown and its appointee, Governor Andros.  He gets into a heated argument with Matthew Wood because Matthew "(does) not favor knuckling under to this new King's governor".

The Reverend begins the exchange by asking Kit if she is "a loyal subject" like her grandfather before her, and cautions her to "keep her allegiance".  Matthew Wood takes umbrage to his implication, and declares that "her allegiance is in no danger in (his) house", and that he is "no traitor".  The Reverend replies that he did not intend to imply that Matthew is a traitor, but maintains that Matthew is "mistaken...(although) not a traitor - yet".  Matthew responds angrily that "we here in Connecticut will never recognize" Andros' appointment, and asks rhetorically, "Do you think we have labored and sacrificed all these years to build up a free government only to hand it over without a murmur?"  Reverend Bulkeley reiterates that Matthew is mistaken in his beliefs, and warns that his obstinancy can only have "evil results".  The Reverend emphasizes that "this stubbornness can lead only to revolution (Chapter 6).

What is a redshift and how does it work?

"Red Shift" is a measure of the Doppler Effect.  Light waves have are more red when they have a lower frequency and more blue when they have a higher frequency.  If the source of a wave is moving away from us (e.g., a distant star or galaxy), the wave frequency of its light appears lower.  Although sound waves are very different from light waves in space, it is a good analogy to think of how a siren sounds when it is approaching:  The pitch is higher (higher frequency sound waves) as it approaches us, but after it passes, the pitch decreases.  This is the Doppler Effect for sound waves.  

When we talk about a celestial object being "red shifted" we mean it is travelling away from us.  Because we observe a red shift in the distant galaxies, it is evidence that the universe is expanding.  

What are some examples of symbolism in That Was Then, This Is Now?

Most of the characters in Susan E. Hinton's novel, That Was Then, This Is Now, receive some sort of symbolic treatment. Mike Chambers refers to himself as "making like Sir Galahad"--a white knight coming to the rescue of Connie, the black girl hounded by white teens. "M&M" is named after the candy he constantly eats, and the candy itself is symbolic of the boy's addictive personality. Charlie symbolizes the would-be hero: He is drafted but cannot serve militarily because of his past arrest record; the police respect him for the way he runs his business; and he comes to the rescue of Bryon and Mark, saving their lives at the cost of his own. Ponyboy Curtis symbolizes the intelligent gang member:  He is introspective, brainy and successful at school; he is smart enough to avoid Angela Shepard and eventually hook up with Cathy Carlson; and he has a reputation as a strong fighter in spite of his small size. Dirty Dave symbolizes the dark side of bar life--an outsider, a bad loser and a murderer. Mrs. Douglas is symbolic of the Good Samaritan: She picks up every stray cat available; she takes in Mark as a foster son; and she convinces the boys to be friendly with Mike Chambers. When Bryon turns Mark over to the police, she tells him that "you'll just have to make him understand that it was wrong and that what you did was for his own good."

How did the strategy of containing communism evolve during the Truman and Eisenhower administration?

The cornerstone of the policy of containment came when George F. Kennan sent his "long telegram" from the U.S. embassy in Moscow in 1946.  The document contained a clear message that the Soviet Union was inherently insecure and expansionist, and that ultimately Soviet leaders wanted to control their neighboring countries to shield themselves from traditional enemies. Ultimately, Kennan argued, the Soviets wanted to overthrow western governments.

The thesis laid out by Kennan took hold in Washington, where the Truman administration began to take a bolder stance against the Soviet Union.  For example, he promised aid to all those countries who worked to resist communist influence.

The idea of containment, as Kennan argued later in his life, was eventually expanded beyond what he had argued. Kennan was a believer in diplomatic and political containment and pressure, not necessarily military containment. But when Eisenhower reached office, he began a huge build up of nuclear weapons, aimed squarely at containing the Soviet Union.

It was remarkable, at the time, how quickly after the war ended that the United States and the Soviet Union became locked in a cold war that would last for decades.

What is Mathilde Loisel's vice/flaw in "The Necklace"? Two specific proofs from the story are needed to support it.

Madame Loisel has many flaws, but the two most obvious are 1)her greed or lust for material things and 2) her inability to confess the truth about what happened to the necklace.

Pride is also a huge fault which plays into both of these reasons.  Her pride makes her feel that she is entitled to the "good" life of balls, gowns, fancy jewelry, and servants to wait on her every whim.  It is also the reason that after the night of her life, she can not bring herself to admit to her school friend, Madame Forestier, that she has lost the necklace which Madame Loisel borrowed.

Because of her greed, she borrowed a necklace to add sparkle to her attire for the ball.  The pride has kept her from confessing the truth, and has forced her into a decade of hard labor and debt in order to replace the cherished jewels.  She has also lost her youth and beauty due to her pride and refusal to admit the truth.

Her friend, Madame Forestier, is still young and lovely and barely recognizes Madame Loisel years later when they meet again.  Upon hearing the story, Madame Forestier confesses that the necklace was only paste...not real at all.  Had Madame Loisel told her friend the truth, she could have saved her husband and herself much suffering.

What final plans are arranged in Act 4, Scene 7 of "Hamlet"?

Simply put, Claudius receives a letter half-way through the scene that Hamlet is to return to Denmark. Agreeing with Laertes (Hamlet, remember, has killed Laertes' father, Polonius) that Laertes should be the one to kill Hamlet, Claudius devises a plot to murder Hamlet. Here's the summary he makes of it at the end of the scene:

When in your motion you are hot and dry—
As make your bouts more violent to that end—
And that he calls for drink, I'll have prepared him 
A chalice for the nonce, whereon but sipping,
If he by chance escape your venom'd stuck
Our purpose may hold there.

Laertes and Hamlet will fight in a fencing match: when the two become "hot and dry" (throated!), Hamlet will call for a drink. Claudius will have prepared a poisoned chalice for Hamlet to murder him: that is, if the poison on the point of Laertes' sword does not kill him first.

The subject of a sentence may be what parts of speech?

I always told my students that the subject of a sentence had to be a noun or a pronoun. Pronouns didn't usually bother them, because the basic subject pronouns are so familiar to us: I, you, he, she, it, we, and they.

Concrete nouns were no problem: tree, desk, pencil.

Sometimes they had problems with abstract nouns: freedom, anger, seriousness, difference

To make it really simple, I told them the following: If it isn't a what or a who, it isn't a noun and can't be a subject.

For instance, freedom is what we want, anger is what we sometimes feel, seriousness is what we need when taking a test, and difference is what sometimes exists between two thing.

When we started studying dependent clauses, it still worked in finding subjects.

"Who will be speaking is a mystery." What is the mystery???

Who will be speaking is the thing that is the mystery.

A noun = a what or a who           A pronoun = a who

 I hope this helps you with your grammar.

What do the first two paragraphs in Chapter Four of "Lord of the Flies" add to the story?

These two descriptive paragraphs serve lots of interesting purposes. Firstly, they serve to add to the establishment of the island as a tropical paradise: 

The glittering sea rose up, moved apart in planes of blatant impossibility; the coral reef and the few, stunted palms that clung to the more elevated parts would float up into the sky...

There is always something - I think - slightly ominous about the richness and ripeness of the description. And (and here is the other key point) the natural island itself is starting, even at this early stage of the novel, to take on negative, ominous connotations: 

Towards noon... the heat - as though the impending sun's height gave it momentum - became a blow that they ducked, running to the shade and lying there, perhaps even sleeping. 

The key theme of the novel - that there is a natural evil in people - is also borne out by the suggestion that there is a natural evil in nature. Golding pushes this further:  

Strange things happened at midday... land loomed where there was no land and flicked out like a bubble as the children watched. Piggy discounted all this learnedly as a 'mirage'... At midday the illusions merged into the sky and there the sun gazed down like an angry eye.

Mirages - imagined terrors - are seen by the boys. Of course, this foreshadows the imagined "beast", which later provokes the savagery on the island. Natural imagination looms above them in the novel just as the sun does. 

How are racism and the institution of slavery presented through the characters by the symbolism associated with Beloved in Toni Morrison's Beloved?

Beloved represents various ways of healing from the wounds of slavery and racism.  Sethe caters to Beloved, trying to establish a relationship with this ghost, to overcome her guilt of killing her daughter to save her from the horrors of slavery at Sweet Home.  Beloved becomes Sethe's obsession and in some ways satisfies Sethe's need to atone for what she has done.  As Beloved grows bigger, however, Sethe weakens.  The community with Denver's help save Sethe by forgiving her.

To Paul D, Beloved is a release from the pent-up emotions that he is sealed in a "tobacco tin."  Paul D, too, suffered at Sweet Home, with a bit in his mouth used for punishment, where even the rooster had more freedom than he did.  He has suppressed these memories along with those of working on the Georgia chain gang.  When he makes love to Beloved, he is finally able to release these emotions and begin to heal.

To Denver, Beloved is a needed playmate.  Denver has been isolated from the community as the daughter of a crazy woman who would kill her own children.  Denver shows the repercussions of slavery on the second generation.  Denver was born free, has not experienced slavery directly, but has suffered from her mother's actions.  Denver becomes absorbed in the sister she never had, and when she is able to relinquish Beloved, she is able to interact with the community once again.

Why is Creon so surprised when the sentry brings in Antigone?

No one expected the that a family member, especially a woman, would be responsible for breaking Creon's edict. Antigone is Creon's niece and she is also engaged to his son. Creon would expect Antigone, of all people, to obey his wishes. Instead, Antigone says she is obeying a higher law, that of the gods. This puts Creon is a very difficult situation. So he follow through with his edict and put Antigone to death. This would mean Oedipus' would have only one heir left, Ismene, since her two brother killed each other and Antigone would be executed. It would also mean killing the woman his son loves. However, if he breaks his word, as a new king, people might lose respect for him and not believe him when he issues the next edict.

How is dialogue used in Acts I and II to establish plot and character? What do we learn of happenings and relationships through them?Illustrate...

Because this is a play and is meant to be acted out on stage, the dialogue is used to establish plot and character throughout the entire play, not just in Acts 1 & 2.  However, specifically in Act 1, each of the main characters are introduced and the words that they use establish who they are as characters in the play.  For example, most of the dialogue used by Rev. Parris establishes that he fears his congregation and does not want anything to ruin his reputation.  Almost every time he speaks he mentions or eludes to this.  Similarly, the Putnams are hostile towards everyone and everything throughout Act1; this personality trait continues for these characters throughout the play.  In Act 2, the same is true for the Proctors.  This act gives the audience a view of the lives of the Proctors and tells the audience just how distant the relationship is between John and Elizabeth Proctor.  Just as the dialogue in these two acts establishes the character development, it does the same for the plot, since the characters’ personalities and ideologies forward the plot. 

What are the components of the endomembrane system and what is its function?Cell biology

The endomembrane system produces lipids and proteins and transport them to specific cellular compartments.

The endomembrane system consists of the following two compartments called endoplasmic reticulum and the Golgi apparatus.

The endoplasmic reticulum consists of two membranous tubular compartments, called the smooth endoplasmic reticulum and the rough endoplasmic reticulum, that are found near the nucleus of the cell.

The smooth endoplasmic reticulum can be recognized as the compartment without ribosomes and it is also the place where the cells complete the detoxification process, hence, the liver cells contain more smooth endoplasmic reticulum  than the other organs.

The rough endoplasmic reticulum can be recognized as the compartment that contains ribosomes and it is the place where the process of synthesis of proteins occurs . These proteins are transported to particular cellular compartments.

The Golgi apparatus is involved in the process of formation of new lysosomes, in transport of lipids and, most of all, in sendiing the synthesized proteins within the cell or out of the cell, through exocytosis process.

What is the plot of the short story "Through the Tunnel"?

"Through the Tunnel" is a coming-of-age story about a young boy on vacation with his mother in a foreign country. He encounters some of the native boys who know how to swim through a hidden tunnel and get to another side of a beach. The boy decides to learn how to get through the tunnel and in the process, matures.

Explain the properties of elasticity.

Elasticity is the property of recovery of an original size or shape of matter exposed to a force.  Something is considered "more elastic" if it restores itself more precisely to its original configuration. The property's namesake, the "elastic" or rubber band, has a high degree of elasticity but can be permanently deformed if too much force is applied in stretching.  This property allows the study of the "strength of materials," and compressibility, and is usually described through the Bulk Modulus formula (to determine the amount of deformation and reformation) and Young's Modulus (to determine the amount of elongation and contraction)

What are the characteristics/purpose of Macbeth, Banquo, Lady Macbeth, the three witches, Ross and Angus, Duncan, and Malcolm?

Characteristics: Macbeth is noble and brave in the beginning of the play.  He is rewarded by King Duncan for "unseeming a man from the nave to the chops" in battle, so he is certainly not unfamiliar with killing.  However, as someone who is noble, Macbeth's virtue is not at ease with murder.  Lady Macbeth says he has ambition, but lacks the "illness" that must attend it, suggesting he lacks a kind of selfish, Machiavellian ambition that she feels is necessary for forcing the fate told to him by the witches into fruition.  She is certainly more power hungry than Macbeth.  She is unphased by the bloody scene left after Macbeth kills Duncan, as seen by her callous words suggesting that looking at the dead body is no different than looking on a painting, or someone asleep.  He is so disturbed he refuses to return the daggers.  She confidently returns them herself. Macbeth returns saying that the blood on his hands could turn the entire sea incarnadine, but Lady Macbeth says "a little water will cure us of this deed" showing her insouciant attitude toward Duncan's murder.  Unfortunately though, Macbeth grows accustomed to killing as he willingly says he'll kill Macduff's family himself, and right away- no hesitation.  "Brave Macbeth" returns at the end of the play again, when he chooses to face Macduff man to man, despite the fact he knows he will die.

Compare and contrast Brutus from Julius Caesar and Lady Macbeth from Macbeth.

I must admit to being rather surprised at seeing these two characters juxtaposed in a question like this. This is because I don't think there are really many similarities between them at all, and what defines them in relation to each other is their profound difference. If we think about it, perhaps it would be more apt to compare a character like Lady Macbeth to Cassius, for it is Lady Macbeth who plays the role of temptress to her husband, just as surely as Cassius tempts Brutus.

It is Lady Macbeth who commits herself, body and soul, to the cause of making her husband king, and uses every resource that is at her command to ensure that this becomes reality. She is the one who browbeats and cajoles her husband into killing Duncan, even going as far herself as to make the plan and then finish putting it into action, smearing the sleeping grooms with Duncan's blood because her husband finds he is unable to do it. She is the character who shows strength and determination that is not impacted by the reality of murder--until the end of the play.

Brutus, on the other hand, is presented as a man whose devotion to the concept of honour is his definining characteristic. This is something that Cassius exploits greatly to his advantage, as he argues that Brutus would be honourable to join the conspirators, but throughout the play, Brutus continues to view himself and to try to be a man who is ruled by integrity and honesty. Of course, whether Brutus is in fact blind to his own ambition and the way that power clouds his judgement is another matter. He does play a part in the assassination of Caesar, but he believes he is doing it for the "right" reasons, and goes to the grave with these principles in tact.

In Things Fall Apart, what did Chielo want with Ezinma?

Ekwefi does not follow Chielo and Ezinma in the cave but sits on a stone ledge outside, to be joined by Okonkwo.

Reading guides suggest Chielo takes Ezinma to the cave to cure her of her sickness, but her iyi-uwa (evil charm) has already been dug up and Okonkwo has cured her last illness. Here Ezinma is vivacious, listening to folk tales, and is about to start another she has learned--an example of Ibo "schooling" where one woman teaches a girl of the next generation. This and other hints have led many of my classes to conclude that Chielo is beginning to initiate Ezinma in the secret knowledge of Agbala, preparatory to her becoming the next priestess.

Several clues support this conclusion, although it goes no further due to Okonkwo's exile. Chielo calls Ezinma "my daughter" and clearly has an interest in her. Second is the reference to an earlier generation's priestess, Chika, who Unoka visits. This suggests that each generation needs to find the next priestess, who would certainly undergo a lengthy apprenticeship to learn the oracle's esoteric knowledge. Third is Ezinma's nature; she is a quick learner, wise beyond her years, and clever. Then comes the announcement that Agbala wants to see her, the ritual touring of the nine villages and the entry into the cave on one of the darkest nights of the month.

Ironically, there is no follow-up to this possibility, yet it does make sense and makes the repercussions of Okonkwo's exile even more tragic.

How many people are on rooftops in "The Sniper?"

At the beginning of the story "The Sniper," there is one sniper on the roof top." The Sniper has been positioned atop a roof in Dublin. His role in the battle is not clear, but the streets of Dublin are awash with fighting, and he likely has been assigned to shoot enemy targets in the streets below." He is careless and his cigarette gives away his position.  A soldier climbs up on the roof across from the sniper.  When the sniper shoots a soldier and an older woman in the street below, the soldier on the roof across from him is able to get a bead on him and shoots.  The sniper is wounded and must figure a way out of his situation.  Altogether there are two people on the rooftops.

How does Lady Macbeth compare with her husband at this point in the play? Cite evidence to support your opinion.This is in reference to Act 2.

In Act II, Macbeth is beginning to think and plot on his own.  Up until now, Lady Macbeth has made all the plans (the murdering of Duncan, the way to received the guests knocking at the door, "a little water clears us of the deed," and so on).  She has been the coach--both drawing up the plays and directing the players for the greatest success.  Macbeth followed her guidance.

Now, Macbeth does not consult his wife.  He simply hires people to kill Banquo and Fleance.  He sees Banquo's ghost at the banquet table.  His wife still thinks it's the guilt of Duncan's murder weighing heavy on her husband's heart, but she is not in the know.  Macbeth is plotting behind her back, and he is withdrawing from her.  They are not the close-knit couple we saw in the beginning of the play, and she is losing her control--both of her husband, and later, as we will see, of her own faculties.

In essence, they change roles.  She was more the man wearing the pants in the beginning of the play.  She called the shots, and he followed her lead.  Act II is the beginning of the gender role reversal (or back to its "natural" place) where she takes the more submissive female role, completely unaware of Macbeth's dealings, and he steps into the pants where he makes the plans and calls the shots without consulting her or informing her of his evil plotting.

I need some Geometry help with Triangles.Name the three triangles that are classified by their sides. Name the four triangles that are classified...

The types of triangles classified by their sides are as follows:

1) Scalene- a triangle with no congruent sides. Congruent sides are the legs of a triangle that are of equal length.

2) Isosceles- a triangle with two congruent sides.

3) Equilateral- a triangle with three congruent sides.

The four types of triangles classified by their angles are as follows:

1)Acute- all interior angles measure less than 90 degrees

2)Right- one interior angle is 90 degrees

3)Obtuse- one interior angle measures more than 90 degrees

4)Equiangular- all interior angles are equal.

Unless you are using non Euclidean geometry (Not to worry, you are using Euclidean geometry.) the sum of the interior angles of any type of triangle is ALWAYS 180 degrees. 

Since we know that the sum of the interior angles of any triangle equals 180 degrees, we can find the sum of the acute angles of a right triangle by simple subtracting what we know (a right triangle has an angle equal to 90 degrees) from the total.

180=90+(a+b)

180-90=(a+b)

90=(a+b)

where (a+b) is equal to the sum of the acute angles of any right triangle

Does the alien in "Bloodchild" have any connection to human nature?

In "Bloodchild" Butler asks, “Who knows what we humans have that others might be willing to take in trade for a livable space on a world not our own?” In the story she explores one such possibility, according to which a human society agrees to join into familial relations with an alien species and to offer some of their own members to carry alien eggs.

Gan, is a Terran — a human — living on an alien planet among its powerful insect-like hosts, the Tlic, some time in the future. T’Gatoi is powerful but is also both nurturing and dependent. She chooses Gan as her future mate when he is just a baby.  She does show the human characteristics of nurturing and compassion, but she also considers the Terrans to be the property of the Tlic.  In fact the ownership of Terrans has become a status symbol for many of the Tlic.  Somewhat like slavery in our early US History, some Tlic were kind and loving to their Terrans and some were not.  T'Gatoi made sure that her humans were well taken care of and enjoyed sleeping with them.  She states,"I like your body warmth next to me."

What is the best summary of what Teiresias tells Creon?

The blind seer tells Creon that his actions are willful and prideful and defy the gods. He is warned that his behavior is so full of pride, a grave sin in Ancient Greek culture, that the gods will in fact not hear the prayers of Thebes.

 In fact, the actions of the King suggest that he feels superior to the will of the gods.  Teiresias tells Creon that he is responsible for the trouble in Thebes.  Warned that he will bring untold misery down upon his house, Creon feels frightened by the prophecy. 

He decides to bury Polyneices and he rushes to rescue Antigone from the tomb, but is too late, she is dead.   

How did the Souls effect Mrs. Olinski in View From Saturday?

The Souls enable Mrs. Olinski to overcome her handicap and rediscover her identity and her confidence as a teacher.  They make a conscious effort to "give her a lift" when she needs one, and fulfill their objective through simple acts of kindness.

Mrs. Olinski is a paraplegic, paralyzed from the waist down in an automobile accident.  She has just returned to teaching as the instructor of the sixth grade at Epiphany School and moderator of the sixth grade Academic Team.  Sixth grade is a tough grade to teach under the best of circumstances, and Mrs. Olinski sees right away that some of her meaner students, such as Hamilton Knapp, are going to put her to the test because of her disability. 

Mrs. Olinski is not the only one who is aware of the difficulties she is going to have to overcome to regain her confidence and establish her place at the head of the class.  The Souls - Noah, Ethan, Nadia, and Julian - perceive what is happening too, and resolve to do something about it.  Through their friendship in school and their inclusion of her at Sillington House, they do what "all the king's horses and all the king's men" could NOT do for Humpty Dumpty after his "great fall" -  the Souls help Mrs. Olinski find her place in the world again (Chapter 11).

Why is the concept of pain beyond Jonas' comprehension in the book The Giver?

Because Jonas’s community tries to eliminate all discomfort, it is not a good idea for people to be in pain.  The community uses strong painkillers for even the smallest types of physical pain.  Choices are tightly controlled, so that people will not feel emotional pain.

Jonas describes the life he left at the end of the book.

The life where nothing was ever unexpected. Or inconvenient. Or unusual. The life without color, pain, or past. (ch 21, p. 165)

Interestingly enough, the exception to this rule is when the community wants to cause pain in order to punish someone.

The punishment used for small children was a regulated system of smacks with the discipline wand: a thin, flexible weapon that stung painfully when it was wielded. (ch 7, p. 54)

Apparently, it is ok to spank a child and cause pain, but it is a process only used by trained Childcare workers.  However, the punishment does escalate.  Asher is beaten so badly when he is three that it leaves marks on the back of his legs.

When Jonas is chosen as the Receiver of Memory, they tell him he will be in pain for the first time, and will not be able to ask for relief of pain medication.

"You have never experienced that. Yes, you have scraped your knees in falls from your bicycle. Yes, you crushed your finger in a door last year." (ch 8, p. 62)

With pain, he will acquire the wisdom he needs to advise the community.  The Giver demonstrates this when he explains to Jonas that the Committee comes to him when they need advice.  When they wanted to increase the population, The Giver advised them not to because he had memories of food shortages and the pain they caused, but no one else did because there is no history.

When Jonas experiences pain during the memories, he asks for medication at first.  He is denied it, so he just continues to learn to live with it.

Lowry, Lois (1993-04-26). The Giver (Newbery Medal Book). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Kindle Edition.

What does Hamlet ask from Laertes?

In Act V, Hamlet asks for Laertes forgiveness. He says he knows he has done Laertes wrong by killing Polonius but Hamlet claims he has an illness which causes him madness as times. His exact words are:

"Give me your pardon, sir. I have done you wrong;
But pardon't, as you are a gentleman.
This presence knows,
And you must needs have heard, how I am punish'd
With sore distraction. What I have done
That might your nature, honour, and exception
Roughly awake, I here proclaim was madness.( V,ii,217-223)

Laertes grudgingly accepts the apology but says he will also wait for an official inquiry into the death of his father. He says,
"I am satisfied in nature,
Whose motive in this case should stir me most
To my revenge. But in my terms of honour
I stand aloof,. . ."

Then the sword fight between Laertes and Hamlet begins. As the fight progresses, Laertes realizes he has been wrong about Hamlet, and as he is dying he asks Hamlet "to exchange forgiveness with him."

What was Denton Deere's diagnosis when Mr. Hoo claims that the tea might be poisoned in "The Westing Game"?

When Mr. Hoo claims that the tea might be poisoned, Dr. Denton Deere diagnoses "paranoia".  His diagnosis in this case is rather obvious, as the doorman, Sandy McSouthers, who is "pacing the room" at the time of Deere's comment, points out.  McSouthers rejoins that "anyone who (is) not paranoid, after being told that the murderer would kill again, (is) really crazy" (Chapter 24).

Dr. Deere has the habit of offering unsolicited diagnoses throughout the narrative.  He does this to try to impress people with his medical knowledge.  The first time he sees Chris Theodorakis, he gives the opinion that the boy's disability stems from "pyramidal tract involvement", showing off his facility with complicated medical terms to get his fiancee Angela's notice.  Sometimes, Dr. Deere's pronouncements are entirely made-up, as when he observes Sydelle Pulaski's unusual limp and suggests "traveling sporadic myositis", even though he does "not have the least notion" about what is wrong with her (Chapter 5).

Dr. Deere's diagnoses at times are meaningless in their banality.  When Edgar Jennings Plum clears his throat before speaking to the game players, Deere whispers "nasal drip", to Chris's amusement (Chapter 8), and when the duplicity of Westing's plot begins to be revealed, Deere proclaims that "the man (is) insane" (Chapter 24).

What are examples of irony in part one of Fahrenheit 451?

The main irony is Part I of Ray Bradbury's science fiction novel Fahrenheit 451 lies in its premise.  The opening sentence of Bradbury's novel reads: "IT WAS A PLEASURE TO BURN."  That the reader will soon be introduced to the story's protagonist, Guy Montag, and Montag's profession, firefighter, is supremely ironic. That opening sentence is immediately followed by this passage:

"IT was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed. With the brass nozzle in his fists, with this great python spitting its venomous kerosene upon the world, the blood pounded in his head, and his hands were the hands of some amazing conductor playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down the tatters and charcoal ruins of history."

We still do not yet understand the precise meaning of these descriptions. Bradbury's opening suggests the ravings of a pyromaniac, a deranged psychopath against whom brave firefighters will have to contend.  That these thoughts are the product of the mind of a firefighter, and of his colleagues, and that these thoughts will be revealed as official government policy, lends Fahrenheit 451 an irony that places his novel among the most important in the history of the genre.  

Another bit of irony involves Montag's new friend, Clarisse McClellan, the seventeen-year-old teenager who befriends him and who will come to represent a window through which Montag can begin to view an alternate and infinitely more humane reality.  Early in Part I, when Clarisse introduces herself to Montag, and noting his profession, she states, "So many people are. Afraid of firemen, I mean. But you're just a man, after all..."  That people should be "afraid of firemen" is another example of irony, as people the world-over associate firemen in an extremely positive light.  It is the fire department to which we turn when our lives and possessions are threatened by fire.  In Bradbury's novel, as noted, the world has been turn upside down by an autocratic regime that fears the people over whom it rules, with books and the knowledge they contain the greatest threat to regime stability.

What are the significant diferences between the techniques of Meisner, Strasberg and Adler, since they all stem from Group Theatre?Stanislavskian...

Thanks for asking this great question!  I wrote my thesis on this and it's great to think about it again!

 It's easiest to see the the distinction between Strasberg and Adler.  Their disagreement over the interpretation of Stanislavki's system was one of the main causes of the Group's closing.  Strasberg focused more on the first theory of Stanislavski -- dealing with the recreation of believable emotion through the use of emotional recall.  Actors use personal memories to dredge up emotions that their character needs to feel.

Adler was unhappy with this technique, feeling it was personally invasive, so she went to see Stanislavski, who told her he had changed his mind about the use of emotional recall and had switched to the Method of Physical Actions.  The U.S. was slow to receive the new information because of the lag of news out of Russia because of the two Russian Revolutions.  Adler's technique focused on what a person DOES when they feel an emotion; through the repeating of that action, believable emotion will be portrayed.  

Meisner focused more on the physical aspects of acting as well, dealing a great deal with the ideas of sense memory.  Through the use of sense memory, an actor may be able to find that most elusive concept of "being in the moment".  If you take a Meisner class, one of your first exercises will be the Cup of Coffee exercise, in which you endow a cup of water with the qualities of hot coffee.

What is the plot of the story Hope Was Here?

Having been left behind by her irresponsible mother as an infant, Hope has been raised by her Aunt Addie, a diner cook of some reknown.  The two of them have moved around a lot, and the story opens with Addie and Hope having just arrived in the small rural town of Mulhoney, Wisconsin, from their last place of employment in New York.  Hope had loved New York and was unhappy to leave.  She has unresolved issues with her mother and dreams of her father, whom she has never met.

Hope spends the summer waitressing at the "Welcome Stairways Diner", where she gets to know a variety of interesting characters.  Most significant of these is G.T. Stoops, the owner of the diner and an exceptional man who lives his Quaker beliefs in every aspect of life.  Despite the fact that he has cancer, G.T. challenges the corrupt mayor of the town for his office.

Supported by Hope and a large part of the town's high school population, G.T. loses the election but is awarded the position when it is discovered that the incumbent mayor won unfairly.  G.T. holds office during an idyllic two years of remission from his illness, during which time he makes much needed reforms, marries Addie, and offers to adopt Hope.  Although G.T. dies right before Hope goes off to college, his relationship with her helps her to let go of her grief over her real parents.  Hope accepts that it is Addie and G.T. who have shown her the love her parents should have, and through them she finds she has the strength to live her life fully and without regret.

In "Great Expectations", what does Pip learn from the two convicts he overhears on the stagecoach?

Pip overhears one of the convicts (the one he recognizes from the Three Jolly Bargemen bar years ago) talking about a convict who (from the marshes in the beginning) asked him to deliver two one-pound notes to a kid by the name of Pip.  The money was for his "service."  At this point, Pip knows that it was the first convict who gave him the money, not Havisham.  He also learns that the first convict was again tried and was given a life sentence for breaking out of prison.  Upset at his findings, Pip jumps off the stagecoach as soon as possible.

Who is Bernard in "Death of a Salesman"? Compare Willy's view of him in Act I and II.

Bernard is the son of Charley, Willy's neighbor. When Bernard is a teenager, he tries to help Biff with his math, but even then Willy is contemptuous of Bernard because he isn't an athlete. Willy calls him "an anemic." Bernard contrasts sharply with Willy's sons because he is a good student and works hard in school.

As a young man, Bernard becomes a lawyer. Willy is impressed when he discovers in Act II that Bernard is going to argue a case before the Supreme Court. Bernard has become quietly successful while Biff has accomplished nothing in Willy's view. The former "anemic" is now the winner.

How do Odysseus's Epic Epithets tell a tale in Homer's Odyssey?

Epithets are descriptive phrases used in place of a name or place, most commonly, and often are metaphors.  Homer uses stock epithet's meaning that he refers to the same person over and over again with a phrase that made sense the first time he introduced it, but does not necessarily anymore.  Hector is the "breaker of horses" throughout the Iliad even though the reference to horses only applies early on; it just becomes who he is. 

These should not be confused with epic or Homeric similes, which are long and involved similes.  Homer often creates a simile that is quite complex and can go on for 10-15 lines. 

Although both can be metaphors, epithets are used in place of a name and are only a few words, while epic similes add to the poetry of the piece.

How are Tom and Huck alike and different, and what is special about each boy?

Here is how the boys compare:

They are both approximately the same age and grew up in the same area in MO. They are best friends and both have a strong liking for adventure. On one adventure, they found treasure, and now each of them has $6000 apiece! Very wealthy young men!

Here is how they contrast:

Tom is a reader; in fact, all of his hare-brained schemes he concots throughout the book are based off of things that he reads in novels. Tom is more concerned with adventure than how the adventures may affect those involved (the trick he plays on Jim with his hat and the 5 cents for the candles). Tom is also from a loving, stable family.

Huck, on the other hand, is barely literate because he has had no family to enforce his going to school. He'd rather be wild and free than be forced to follow any rules. Huck is very concerned about those around him and grows emotionally attached to several of the characters in the book. Huck is very logical and rational--a real 'cut-to-the-chase' kind of guy--no fluff, no extra stuff, just do what you have to do to get it done!

Huck is very influenced by Tom--he stops to help the shipwrecked steamboat because Tom would've done it, when he fakes his death he says he wishes Tom were there to put on the flair and extra touches, and he follows through w/ Tom's ridiculous and insane 'escape' plan!

Tom represents Romanticism (the literary era that is much mocked and satirized throughout the book) and Huck represents Realism (the literary era in which Twain is writing--Romanticism came first).

What kind be some similarities or contrast between The Gift and The promise?

In the book "The Red Pony" the part of the book called the Gift, is about the belief that Jody has in Bill's abilities.  Jody identifies Bill as being able to do anything.  He looks up to Bill.  Jody's father gives him a very special gift.  It is unexpected.  It is a red pony.  Jody is thrilled with his pony and names him Gabilin after the mountains. 

Jody is very proud of his pony.  He has to leave for school one day when the weather is wet.  He wants to leave the pony in the stall.  Billy assured him that the colt did not want to be cooped up and to leave it outside.  Billy assures him that rain was not going to fall and that if it did, that the colt would be fine.  The colt becomes sick as a result and goes off dies.  Jody has lost his belief in Bill.  He is devastated by the loss of his pony.

In the part of the book called The Promise, Jody is a little older.  His father surprises him by telling him that he is willing to pay for an unborn colt that was due and Jody can work the money off in the summer.  Jody gets the pony but nly after the mare dies.

•  The red pony was a gift.


•  The second colt Jody has to earn.


•   In the Gift Jody believes in Billy.


•   In the promise Jody doubts Billy.


•   In the Gift Jody has never experienced death.


•   In the promise he has already experienced    death.


•   In the gift Jody does not realize the level of care the pony needs.


• In the promise Jody is more mature. 

Similarities:

• In both book parts the pony is the central element.


•  Jody cares about Billy.


• Jody dreams of what it will be like to ride his colt.


• Jody cares for his colt.

In what book does Bella become pregnant?

Bella becomes pregnant in Breaking Dawn, the fourth book of the Twilight saga. While Edward and Bella are on their honeymoon after they got married, Bella and Edward... "did it" and she became pregnant, like any other human. It is possible and here is why: Bella mentions the myths she read online when she first discovered Edward was a vampire. The word INCUBUS comes to mind. The definition of incubus is: the ability to father children with his hapless pray. From more detailed definitions, it leads to this: certain people (in this case, vampires) have the DESIRE to be able to produce children. So like in the passage below from the book Breaking Dawn, it is obvious that Edward wishes to have that ability. Well, lucky for him, he does. But it doesn’t mean all vampires do. It’s kind of like his mind reading. It was a gift chosen for him, not all vampires have it. This also explains why Edward has the ability to get Bella pregnant even though he is not human.

Passage-

(Some stuff about Edward making sure Bella’s okay with staying eighteen forever.)

“Never changing… never moving forward.” (Edward)
“What does that mean?” (Bella)
He answered slowly. “Do you remember when we told Charlie we were getting married? And he thought you were… pregnant?" (Edward)
“And he thought about shooting you,” I guessed with a laugh. “Admit it-for one second, he honestly considered it." (Bella)
He didn’t answer.
“What, Edward?” (Bella)
“I just wish…well, I wish that he’d been right.” (Edward)
“Gah,” I gasped. (Bella)
“More that there was some way he could have been. That we had that kind of potential. I hate taking that away from you, too.” (Edward)
It took me a minute. “I know what I’m doing.” (Bella)
“How could you know that, Bella? Look at my mother, look at my sister. It’s not as easy a sacrifice as you imagine.” (Edward)
“Esme and Rosalie get by just fine. If it’s a problem later, we can do what Esme did-we’ll adopt.” (Bella)
He sighed, and then his voice was fierce. “It’s not right! I don’t want you to have to make sacrifices for me. I want to give you things, not take them away from you. I don’t want to steal your future." (Edward)

But because Edward wants and option of having a child he has the ability to make one. That's what happened to Bella and Edward, that's how they made Renesmee.

If Edward never wanted the option to get Bella prego then it would have never happened. It was his choice. Edward didn't know he had a choice though or he would have never agreed to "try."

While Bella is pregnant Edward is begging to get the baby out of Bella but she keeps telling him "No," Bella loves the baby. But the baby is killing Bella, the baby is drinking all of Bella's blood because it is half vampire (explaination below).

And-incubi (Edward) have their own special form of sperm depending on what kind of a creature they are. For Edward, it just happened to be venom since he is a vampire. There are legends and stuff about horse blood being the sperm therefore the baby is half horse. So if Edward’s sperm is vampire venom, then clearly the baby will end up half vampire and half human.

When Bella is giving birth it is too hard on a human and Edward had to bite Bella so she could live.

How do I write a compare and contrast essay? I need step-by-step details if possible. I also need a good, interesting opener.The subject i choose...

Do you mean a comparison/contrast essay?  This is an essay that compares two topics, telling the reader both how they are alike and how they are different.

A compare/contrast essay is usually a MINIMUM of four paragraphs long.  The first paragraph is the lead in, where you identify the topic(s) and state your thesis.  The second and third paragraphs deal with the similarities and differences.  The final paragraph is the conclusion/summary.

Start with the introduction.  The second paragraph would then include several ways in which the two topics are alike, the similarities they have, etc.  I would suggest having at least three or four connections between them.  The third paragraph would include the differences between them, again citing at least three or four differences.  The summary paragraph would then emphasize the most important factors that support your thesis.

A second choice is a bit longer. It would start with your introduction again. However, the second paragraph would only talk about one of the topics, listing as many details about it as you can that relate to your thesis. You would not mention the second topic at all. The third paragraph would then discuss the second topic only. This format would then include an additional paragraph where you analyze the two topics, choosing specific details that support your opening statement. Your final paragraph would be your closing.

In "Winter Dreams," how does Dexter Green come to realize the "American Dream" is an illusion?

From the time he is a poor boy caddying for rich people at the Sherry Island Country Club, Dexter's version of the American Dream is to live a life of  beauty and glamour that he believes he can achieve through money. He wants to be wealthy--to escape his ordinary life and the social class into which he was born. These are his romantic winter dreams.

Dexter works hard to achieve his dream. He scrimps to attend a college more expensive than he can really afford. He graduates, starts a business, expands it, and then sells out, making a lot of money. He is wealthy. Along the way, he has learned to speak and act and dress like members of the upper class. Dexter has money, but he does not have beauty and glamour in his life until he meets Judy Jones, whom he had known when she was a child.

After one gorgeous evening on the lake, Judy becomes Dexter's dream, all the beauty and glamour he has hungered for since he was a boy. His affair with Judy does not last long because her love was an illusion. Despite his pain, Dexter does not regret having loved her. He carries his memories of Judy with him always, still cherishing her beauty and reliving their affair. His memories are all that he has left of her. He lives for them.

The story ends when Dexter learns that Judy is no longer beautiful. She is unremarkably ordinary. His memories of her dissolve as he tries desperately to keep them. Her love had been an illusion. His memories have been lies. He is left with nothing.

What attempts were made to cure people?This question came out of a Elements of Literature" book. The name of the story is called "A Journal of the...

Mostly, people ran away.  Those who could afford to settled in pastoral settings and hoped it would pass them by.  Since the plague spread rapidly and killed animals as well as people, this didn't always work so well.

Doctors advised burning aromatic substances to purify the air.  They also used bleeding, purging with enemas or laxatives, hot plasters and lancing the swellings.  Medicines were made of stag horn, rare spices, myrrh, saffron, and powdered pearls or gold (apparently on the theory that the more expensive the ingredients the better the effect).  Floors were sprinkled with vinegar and rosewater, and people were advised to wash their hands and mouths with the same.  Mild exercise, bland diets, and avoiding anger or excitement, especially at bedtime were prescribed.  None of these worked at all, except that Pope Clement VI was ordered to sit between two large fires in his apartments during the summer.  That probably did work, since the heat apparently kept fleas away.

Although medicine was far more advanced at the time than we usually realize today, doctors had no idea of germs and believed astrology and the humors (sanguine, phlegmatic, choleric and melancholic) were responsible for all human activities.  The "scientific" explanation of the time was that the disease was caused by a triple alignment of Saturn, Jupiter and Mars in Aquarius.

In "Everyday Use," what do Dee's new name and costume and her concern for her heritage have in common regarding social movements?

Yes, Dee's clothes, name, and concern for her heritage reflect the Black Pride movement of the sixties.  Dee wants to celebrate her African roots, a desire that  Alex Haley's Roots inspired in Americans throughout the decade.  And yet, Dee's new interests are portrayed as whims and fads, and somewhat materialistic.  She is not really interested in the butter churn as a butter churn but as a center piece for the table.  She wants the churn for display, not for use.   She suddenly wants the quilts because she knows that they are handmade and therefore valuable.  She is not interested at all in the woman who made the quilts.  She has no true interest in her own family or relatives, but only in a created past.  She takes on an African name because she does not want the name of a slave owner, yet she was named after her grandmother. 

Through Dee, Walker seems to be satirizing the sudden interest in African heritage while neglecting  and not appreciatiing the history of one's own family and relatives.   It is Maggie who remembers her Grandma Dee, who knows her true roots, and who knows the true value of the churn and the quilts--not their monetary or aesthetic value but as representative of her family members who made and used them.  It is Maggie who therefore rightfully deserves the quilts. 

Who does Atticus think caused Bob Ewell’s death? Why does Heck Tate insist that Bob Ewell’s death was self-inflicted? In what way is this...

1) Atticus believes that Jem is the one who killed Bob Ewell; this is why he is so adamant that the letter of the law be followed in documenting Ewell's death.  He doesn't want anyone to believe Jem was given special treatment because he is Atticus's son. 

Heck Tate understands the truth of the situation, which is that Boo Radley killed Bob Ewell.  Heck Tate also understands that to publicize this information would bring a lot of attention on Boo Radley, something Boo himself would never want.  To protect Boo's privacy, Heck Tate insists that Bob Ewell's death be reported as accidental; they will say that Ewell fell on his own knife.

It could be said that Bob Ewell's death was his own fault, since he died in an attempt to attack children.  Boo Radley was only defending Scout and Jem; had Bob Ewell left the Finch kids alone, he would not have died in this manner.

What are the Character sketches of Mathilde and Madame Forestier in "The Necklace"?20 characters

In order to do a proper character sketch, focus mainly on how a character changes from beginning to end. The change should be substantial. In other words, focus the character's values, beliefs, and worldview.

Typically, the change is marked by how a character reacts to conflict. There are mini-conflicts (also known as complications) leading up to and following the major conflict of losing the necklace.

Consider Mathilde's original values that led to each conflict. Had she been happy with her original situation and not looked for superficial social standing, there would be no conflict at all. Mathilde's inner conflict of who she is and who she wants to be is central to the plot of the story. Because of her significant changes, she is known as "dynamic character."

Monsieur Loisel, the static character, never changes sunstantially and thus can be used to measure the Mathilde's changes as the two interact. Think of when you go to see an old friend for the first time in a while. You can learn a lot about how you changed if that person is the same as you remembered him or her.

Dill lies about his father—and many other things. What is probably his motivation? What does Dill add to the children’s lives?

At the outset of this story, Dill describes his father as having a long black beard. When the children begin playing and describing someone with a beard, Dill recants his statement, lying again and saying that his father had shaved it off "last summer." He also says that his father allowed him to help the conductors of a famous railroad, and that he had been sent money by him. None of the above are true.

Dill's reasons for lying boil down to the issue of attention: He is not affectionately tended to in the same way the Finch children are, and therefore feels the need to invent or justify his family's actions. And while Dill may not be as well-parented as the Finches, he does have a way with persuasion and imagination; Dill is the instigator of most of the mischief experienced by Jem and Scout, in fact. He is a friend, cohort, and fellow conspirator in most situations.

A treasure hoard usually symbolizes spiritual death/ damnation in Old English lit. How does this add significance to Beowulf's last fight with the...

This fact suggests different interpretations. When the dragon's hoarded treasure is violated, the dragon inflicts punishment on many, not just the thief. The hoarded treasure, then, and the evil that came of it could indeed symbolize spiritual death and damnation. By helping Beowulf slay the dragon, Wiglaf and Beowulf together overcome this evil. Both warriors act in a way that is morally consistent with their cultural values and religious beliefs.

Beowulf, mortally wounded and knowing his own death is imminent, commands Wiglaf to build a tower by the sea to hold Beowulf's remains and to stand as a monument to him and a guide to sailors coming over the ocean. Beowulf further commands that the treasure be buried in the tower, not shared by his warriors as was the custom. Beowulf's men, with the exception of Wiglaf, had forfeited their right to the treasure by betraying their king in the last battle. When the dragon had defeated Beowulf and was about to kill him, only Wiglaf fought to save his king. The others ran away in cowardice. The treasure, then, also could be interpreted as a symbol of the warriors' betrayal of their Christian duty (as the epic came to include elements of Christianity) and their heritage as Geats.

Why is "The Minister's Black Veil" a parable?

The Minister's Back Veil is a parable or allegory because is contains a moral message. When Hooper first puts on the black veil, everyone expects it just to be a prop for his sermon. The subject [of his sermon] had reference to secret sin, and those sad mysteries which we hide from our nearest and dearest. The effect the sermon had on the parishioners was extraordinary.

A subtle power was breathed into his words. Each member of the congregation, the most innocent girl, and the man of hardened breast, felt as if the preacher had crept upon them, behind his awful veil.

However, the people expect him to take off the veil at some point that day. The day ends and Hooper continues to wear the veil. His fiance even says she will not marry him if he continues to wear the veil. Hooper replies, "There is an hour to come,'' said he, "when all of us shall cast aside our veils. Take it not amiss, beloved friend, if I wear this piece of crape till then.'' In other words, he intends to wear the veil until he dies. So she breaks their engagement but he still wears the veil. On his deathbed, he still refuses to take off the veil but says instead, "I look around me, and, lo! on every visage a Black Veil!" In other words, the moral message that Hooper was trying to make is that everyone has some kind of secret sin that they try to hide. That moral message, coupled with a symbol ( the black veil) makes this story a parable.

Why does Mrs. Meeker refuse to let Tim help Captain Betts in "My Brother Sam Is Dead"?Chapter 11I would love to find out - thank you so much for...

The war has torn the Meeker family apart, and Mrs. Meeker is not about to let Tim, her only remaining son, get involved in it too.  The Meeker family is entangled in both sides of the war - Tim's brother Sam is fighting for the rebel cause, while his father, Life Meeker, is a loyalist.  Eventually, Life Meeker is arrested by the very army that his son Sam is fighting for, and with his disappearance and possible death, Mrs. Meeker is left with only Tim, and the tavern the family had long struggled to maintain.  Mrs. Meeker has tried to be the peacemaker in the family, but when her husband is taken away and she realizes that Sam is not going to return to help the family, she becomes embittered.

When Captain Betts asks Tim to go ring the church bell to call the rebel troops to order, Mrs. Meeker inequivocably tells him,

"No, no...not my boy.  You don't involve anymore Meekers in this terrible war.  Send your own child out to play soldier if you want, Stephen Betts, but no more of mine".

When Betts questions her patriotism, Tim's mother retorts,

"Bah, patriotism.  Your patriotism has got my husband in prison and one of my children out there in the rain and the muck shooting people and likely to be dead any minute, and my business half ruined.  Go sell your patriotism elsewhere, I've had enough of it...leave my boy alone' (Chapter 11).

How did the girls get Marshall to play "The Egypt Game"?

April and Melanie get Marshall to play the Egypt Game by telling him that his part will be to play "a king...a terribly important kind of king...everybody (has) to bow down to him and do exactly what he (says)".

Marshall is quietly playing in the dirt when April and Melanie come up with the idea of having Marshall be a "young pharaoh, heir to the throne of Egypt".  They themselves will play the parts of the "high priestesses who are going to offer him as a human sacrifice on the crocodile altar" to the evil god Set.  When they start chanting about presenting "the bloody heart of the young Pharaoh...Marshamosis", Marshall stands up and quickly tries to escape.  When the girls stop him, he defiantly asserts, "Leave my bloody heart alone!"  When April and Melanie assure Marshall that "it's just a game, just pretend...we wouldn't really hurt you", Marshall is still reluctant.  When they explain that he will get to be "a king...king of all the Egyptians", he then decides it might be fun to play after all (Chapter 5).