In "Games at Twilight" by Anita Desai, what causes Ravi to lose the game even though he wasn't caught?

He stayed in the garage for too long. He was delighted with his awesome hiding place; there are a couple moments when he almost decided to bolt and take his chances, but then he heard kids screaming as they were found in succession, so he decided "to hold out a bit longer."  He then started daydreaming about how great it was going to be when he emerged victorious, the last one not found.  He though about "what fun if they were all found and caught—he alone left unconquered! He had never known that sensation...that would be thrilling beyond imagination."  This daydream lead him onto others; time passed, and he still wondered if he heard the kids playing and screaming, and thought he did.  But then, with a cold start, he realized that he had forgotten that he needed to touch home base to win.  So, "with a whimper he burst through the crack... he flung himself at the white pillar and bawled, 'Den! Den! Den!'" but he was much too late.  The kids had stopped playing a very long time ago, and had forgotten him.  And then, the tragic end:  "The ignominy of being forgotten—how could he face it? He felt his heart go heavy and ache inside him unbearably. He lay down full length on the damp grass, crushing his face into it, no longer crying, silenced by a terrible sense of his insignificance."

So Ravi loses because he stayed too long in his spot, and the other kids moved on, forgetting him, not even acknowledging his feat.

What role does Candy play in helping George and Lennie try to buy land?

Candy has alot of money saved up.  He was given $250 as compensation when he lost his hand on the ranch.  He has another $50 saved from working and expects another $50 at the end of the month.  So, he had $350.

Candy very much wants a dignified and comfortable way to live out his life once he can no longer work, which he expects to be soon.  He offers to contribute his $350 toward the $600 needed to buy the land, and says he'll write a will so his interest in the land will pass to George and Lennie when he dies.  With the $100 George and Lennie would get at the end of the month, they would be able to get the land.  George and Lennie would move to the ranch and get it started, and George would get a job to earn the balance of the $600.

Candy's financial contribution makes the dream of buying the land seem really possible for the first time.

In "The Gift of the Magi," what is the moral lesson of the story?

The lesson of the story concerns the true meaning of love and its value. In the story, Jim and Delia are a young married couple who are, by all appearances, very poor. When Christmas comes, both give up something that is meaningful in order to bring joy to the other. Because they do this out of love, what each one really gives the other is the greatest gift, the gift of love. In possessing the one thing that matters most, Jim and Delia are very rich indeed.

Why should I choose "Sonnet 18" for an oral recital on Shakespeare's Sonnets?

1) Because you like it.

2) It represents a good challenge when reciting its iambic pentameter structure.

3) Shakespeare's sonnets are some of the most influential poems in the history of poetry.

4) Sonnet 18 discusses the eternal theme of aging and the relentless passage of time. It considers the idea that the only permanent beauty is art (and therefore the only true beauty?)

5) It will lend gravitas and cultural worth to the recital and reassure the listeners in the sophistication of the occassion.

6) It is one of the best loved poems of all time.

7) It may awaken a member of the audience to the wonder of Shakspeare's work and so encourage another person to discover his priceless work.

8) The 'value' of a poem is not empirically quantifiable. A poem is not a government form. It is not be necessary to 'justify' the worth of art to the authorities (ie. your proctor). This hierarchical approving of art leads to artistic stagnation and censorship. Ultimately, you wish to recite the poem because its recital will mean something to you. If your rector wishes to understand that meaning, he should come to the recital, not set himself up as an artistic police officer. ;-)

What does the opening paragraph of "The Tell-Tale Heart" imply about the narrator's reliability?

When the narrator opens with the words that he is "very,very dreadfully nervous" and asks the reader why he thinks he is "mad", this obviously produces some doubt in the narrator's reliablity. The narrator continues by saying that he "heard all things in the heaven and in the earth." That comment alone casts doubt about his sanity because no one hears everthing, especially everything in heaven. Finally, the narrator has to call our attention to "how calmly I can tell you the whole story." By this time we are convinced that something is dreadfully wrong with the speaker because he is implying that he is usually not calm, but agitated.

Why did Matthew Wood and Dr. Bulkeley suspend their feud in "Witch of Blackbird Pond"?

Matthew Wood and Dr. Bulkeley suspend their feud because Mercy's life is at stake.  Mercy has fallen gravely ill with fever, and although the community's doctor has ridden out from Hartford to "bleed her" twice, she is not getting better.  The young doctor has no further remedies to try, and Matthew Wood is desperate as he watches his daughter lie, near death, "on some remote borderland between sleeping and waking".

On "the fourth morning of Mercy's illness...Matthew (sits), turning the pages of the Bible, searching in vain for some hope to cling to".  He finally announces that he is "going out for a time", but as he is leaving, the Reverend Bulkeley appears at his door.  The Reverend and Matthew had been feuding about Matthew's political leanings in wanting to stand up to the British Crown for the colony's rights, but in this time of crisis, both men, sincere and loving men at heart, are more than willing to put their differences aside.  Reverend Bulkeley tells Matthew, "you're a stubborn mule and a rebel, but this is no time for politics...time was your Mercy was like my own daughter...let me do what I can, with God's help, to save her", to which Matthew responds with a cry, "God bless you...I was coming to fetch you!" (Chapter 17).

In the novel To Kill a Mokingbird, describe the church service at Calpurnia's church.

Although there is so much more to this chapter than the actual church service you are inquiring about, the service itself does give us a very personal window into the "Negro world" of the Finches' beloved Calpurnia.  As they approach the churchyard "the warm bittersweet smell of clean Negro welcomed us" (118) followed by it being "dim inside, with a damp coolness slowly dispelled by the gathering congregation" who gathered, of course, even without hymn books (120).  Without an organ, piano, or instrument of any kind, Reverend Sykes begins the service simply "stands behind the pulpit staring the congregation to silence" (120).  His first item of business is to welcome the Finch children, foreshadowing his future efforts in taking care of them.  Some announcements are read, and prayer/collection requests reviewed.  Most significantly, the Finch children notice the collection requested for Tom Robinson.  The first hymn is sung, much to Scout's surprise (who is astounded at the voices singing with no hymn-books).  Scout describes it best when she says, "music again swelled around us . . . voices followed in simple harmony until the hymn ended in a melancholy murmur" (121).  Reverend Sykes calls upon God to cure the sick and suffering, naming specific names.  Then came the sermon.  The Reverend Sykes' sermon "was a forthright denunciation of sin, an austere declaration of the motto on the wall behind him: he warned his flock against the evils of heady brews, gambling, and strange women" (122).  Scout noticed only one difference about the familiar sermon:  Reverend Sykes mentioned people by name who had fallen from grace.  Everything so far leads to our knowledge of a far more personal church service as opposed to a service in the typical white church.  The collection is taken up, and Reverend Sykes announces the amount immediately (which again surprises the children) and demands more from the congregation (which surprises them even more).  With ten dollars collected, the church service ends with the Finch children brimming with questions.  Ah, but that's another story . . . .