Symbolism in the Short Story Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Symbolism in the Short Story - Essay Example Mr. Summer, who runs a coal business, represents life, while Mr.Grave symbolizes death. The lottery itself symbolizes the cruel traditions that the society holds. The author suggests a three legged stool that the black box is set upon. From the story death is symbolized by the black box, and the black dot on the slip of paper. This paper shall major on the symbols of tradition and culture that everyone is used to thus symbolism has been used in The Lottery. The Lottery, is a story of a small village destroying members of its community who cannot question the rituals of their tradition. The author indicates that members of the community would meet every year for this ritual. The author uses this setting to outline the cruel traditions that the society still holds on that is dangerous to human life. This ritual takes away one member to serve as a ransom for the remaining members of the community. From the story, Tessie suffers as a scapegoat being stoned, and her blood used to purify a nd protect the remaining part of the community. A ritual was practised yearly with human blood as a libation in these ceremonies. This indicates how different traditions sacrifice human effort, vision, and even life so as to survive and be preserved. The author has used this setting to describe how death is caused by culture and tradition. One loses life for the safety of others. Secondly black has been used majorly in the story. Black is associated with sorrow, tears, disappointment, and other negative issues. The author has used black color in the story to symbolize death. From the story, black box is set on a three legged stool (Jackson 7). Death itself is the black box resting on stool. Literally a stool has four legs, but the author presents a three legged stool, which shows one of the legs is missing. The black box set on a stool that is missing one leg indicates the purpose of death, to destroy one of the members of the community. The author indicates that Mr. Summer ran the coal business. Coal is a black mineral which is related to the black box that Mr. Summer carried. The author describes the killing of community members as a coal business. The coal industry has been used symbolically to indicate death practice of people. This box, the author suggests that it was old (Jackson 8). This symbolizes tradition, and the duration this practice has taken. The box has been carrying slips of black papers. Mr. Summer who hasn’t b been in charge for the ritual practice is related to the coal business of death. At the end every ritual, one member would be stoned leaving the society as the stool without one leg. The author has used the black color to indicate death. Member of the community that picked a black dotted slip of paper was entitled to death. The author describes Tessie, who picked the dotted paper that led her to death. She was stoned by everybody present regardless of her complains or cries. The black spot on the paper symbolized death. Once a p erson picked it,, he or she was entitled to death. The author suggests the craftiness of the traditions to trap human beings causing pain and misery. The author indicates Tessie, as an example suffering as a scapegoat to save the rest. She complains saying it was not fair, but that did not protect her from the stoning crowd. This therefore, shows that the author has used black color to symbolize death and tradition. The author has used names symbolically in the Lottery in describing the characters. From the story Mr. Summer has

Human Natures Tragic Flaw Essay Example for Free

Human Natures Tragic Flaw Essay Do you believe there is a beast within man that tempts us to do wrong and commit sin? Or is it just human nature to be sinful? In the bible, book of Genesis, it shows how God created Adam and Eve. These two beings had everything one could possibly imagine, food, water, shelter, and the protection of our heavenly father. Their only rule in The Garden Of Eden was to not eat from the forbidden fruit tree in the center of the garden, but Adam and Eve were flawed and soon fell into temptation from the serpent, and ate the fruit. They went against God’s only command and made the human species sinners. In the novel, The Lord Of The Flies, a plane crashes on an uninhabited island leaving numerous boys stranded. These boys had to learn to survive without adults to make their food and provide shelter for them. At first they all agree to a chief, Ralph, and are willing to work together to build shelters, but as the novel reaches its climax, they turn savage which soon leads to the death of three boys. The author â€Å"William Golding† portrays that it is not human nature within ourselves that makes us act out, but when times are rough, violence and sin leads us away from the path of righteousness. Symbolism is used throughout the novel to show that things put in this world tempt us to act out. The biggest illustration of symbolism in The Lord Of The Flies is in relation to â€Å"the beast†. The Beast was introduced on the very first day on the island. A little boy with a mulberry-colored birthmark on his face educated everybody of a so called Beast, which he had apparently seen on the previous night. At the time, this was overlooked by the older boys as something in his imagination. As the story advances it becomes evident that the older boys begin to believe in this Beast. One evening Simon was spotted when returning from one of his nature walks, and Jack persuaded the others that he was the Beast. Each boy began pouncing on Simon, stabbing and beating him to death. This shows that a small thing, such as the serpent in the Garden of Eden, can cause fear and tempt us to do wrong, and in this case commit murder. Another example that holds much symbolic value throughout the story is the usage of the word scar. † When the plane crashes on the lush island, it disrupts the balance and harmony of nature untouched by mans influence. The twisted wreckage of the plane creates an imperfection in the peacefulness of nature, and leaves the beach a scar of what it used to be, stunning and unharmed by mans vicious impulse. An object which also attains much symbolic relevance as the story unfolds is the conch shell. Delicate, fragile, and white, the conch is what brings the boys together on the first day at the beach. It is used throughout the story as an object of high importance and tradition, as it calls meetings together and determines who has the right to speak, depending on who is holding it at the time. It can be seen as a representation of law and order amongst the boys, as it unites them and prevents chaos from arising. As the book progresses, however, characters like Jack and his hunters put less and less importance in the sensibility and order in the concept of the conch, and finally disregard it altogether as chaos erupts over the island. This symbolizes the struggle of civilization and savagery, as Jacks hatred of Piggy and Ralph grows and he and his boys resort to primal urges like hunting and killing. It is shown throughout the novel that although it is man’s natural instinct to cause destruction, it is not human nature to sin. We are tempted into sin by those around us, and even our own mind sets. â€Å"William Golding† beautifully portrays that it is not human nature within ourselves that makes us act out, but when times are rough, violence and sin leads us away from the path of righteousness.

Analysing Sunnis And Shiites Split Religion Essay

Analysing Sunnis And Shiites Split Religion Essay The difference between Sunni and Shia sects of Islam are not to the gigantic proportions as most Western literature assume. It is true that there are minor variations in the way they take their respective religious heads and attribute meaning to the history of the family of Muhammads, however, cultural and political differences hold the most divisive power over the religious forces. It is therefore significant to note that both sects believe and put emphasis in the Five Pillars of Islam, believe in and read same Holy Quran, and furthermore consider each other Muslims. The five pillars that form the core of their spiritual sanctity are Testimony of faith (Kalima), Prayer (Salat), Almsgiving (Zakat), Fasting (Sawm), Pilgrimage (Hajj) (Huda, 2010). The split between the Sunnis and Shia can be traced back to the death of the Prophet Muhammad, and the dilemma of the successor of Muhammad as the leader of the Muslim nation. Prophet Muhammad died in the evening of June 8, 632 A.D. (the twelfth of Rabi al-Away) at the age of sixty-three. There after, the Sunni Muslims were in agreement with the stand taken by most of the Prophets companions that the new head should be chosen from among those deemed competent of the job. This is the position that was adopted and implemented. The Prophet Muhammads close acquaintance and counselor, Abu Bark, consequently became the first Caliph of the Islamic nation. It is worth noting that the word Sunni is an Arabic word meaning one who follows the traditions of the Prophet. Contrary to the Sunni belief over the succession, some Muslims hold the idea that leadership should have been from the Prophets own family, handed over to those specifically appointed by him, or amid Imams chosen by God Himself. These were the Shia Muslims. They believed that after the death of Prophet Muhammad, leadership ought to have been passed on directly to his cousin/son-in-law, Ali. Since those historical years, Shia Muslims have not acknowledged the power and authority of elected leaders. The Shia Muslims instead opted to recognize and obey the Imams they believed were chosen by the Prophet Muhammad or by God Himself. The word Shia is an Arabic word for a group or supportive party of people. It is short form of Shia-t-Ali, or the Party of Ali. Shias are also referred to as followers of Ahl-al-Bayt or People of the Household (of the Prophet) (Huda). Majority of the Muslims are the Sunni Muslims at 85% of all the Muslims allover the world. A tangible number of Shia Muslims are found in Iraq and Iran, with some large minority communities in Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, Bahrain etc. Having looked at the brief history of the split of the two sects and the reasons behind the split, it is fundamental therefore, to look at the differences in religious belief s, leadership, texts, and any other that may be. From the historical differences in political leadership, some spiritual life aspects were consequently changed and since diverge between the two groups. However, as note hitherto, the Shia and Sunni Muslims hold in common the fundamental articles of Islamic belief and are brethren in the Islam faith. As a matter of fact, rarely or never at all will a Muslim identify themselves as Shia or Sunni Muslim but rather as Muslim (Austine Cline). Shia Muslims believe that the Imam is naturally sinless since his authority comes directly from God. From this, the Shia Muslims revere and adore the Imams as saints and strive to perform pilgrimages for divine intervention to their shrines and tombs. Countering this is the Sunni Muslim belief that there is no foundation in Islam for a hereditary advantaged category or rank of religious leaders. They therefore have no place for the pilgrimage to the saints shrines. Sunni Muslims argue that control of the community is not hereditary or a birthright, but a trust that must be earned and therefore can be given or taken away by the people themselves. Another difference comes in the sanctity of religious texts. Shia Muslims have some resentment to some of the contemporaries of the Prophet Muhammad. This sprouts from their stands and deeds in the historical years of discord about leadership among the Muslim nations. It is said that Abu Bakr, Umar, Aisha, etc (Sunnis) narrated much about the Prophet Muhammads life and spiritual encounters, practice and journey. The Shia Muslims reject these Hadith do not take them as a basis for their religious practices. This accordingly informs divergence in religious practice between the Sunnis and Shias. The differences concern aspects of religious life: prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, and so on and so forth. For instance Shiites can condense the five daily prayers into 3 or 4 yet Sunnis dont, Shiites might pay their alms (Zakat) directly to the poor, yet Sunnis pay to the state. Shiites also promotes a provisional marriage (muttah) for men travelling far from home while Sunnis dont ascribe to this (Sunnis vs. Shiites). The Shias place their forehead onto apiece of natural material while praying (clay tablet, soil or sand from Karbala(where Imam Hussain was martyred), rather than onto a prayer mat. The Sunnis however recommend that one should not prostrate on a natural surface. Shias hold their hands at their sides while praying while Sunnis on the other side their arms-right over left- and clasp their hands, though either is acceptable. Religious Shia women black like the male religious leaders. Conventional Sunni women cover around the perimeter of the face with the hijab but only to below their chin such that the chin can show in part while the Shia women will cover the perimeter of the face and the chin completely. Shias more often than not derive their name from the name or titles of saints. They often draw their lineage from to Ali and Fatimah. The three Sects of Shiites Although, through history there were several branches of Shia Muslims, currently only three are predominant. The Ashariyyah, profoundly called the Twelvers, the Ismaili and the Zaidi. Ashariyyah or Twelvers as the adherents are called believe in the twelve divinely ordained leaders, known as the Twelve Imams. These were the successors of Prophet Muhammad and were spiritual and political leaders. On average 85% of Shia are Twelvers. Ismaili is the second largest sect of the Shia Islam after the Twelvers. They derive their name from their acceptance of Ismail ibn Jafar as the divinely-appointed spiritual successor to Jafar as-sadiq, they differ from the Twelvers, who accept Musa al-Kizim, the younger brother of Ismail, as the proper Imam. Zaidi are followers of the Zaidi fiqh and they identify with the first four of the Twelve Imams but they accept Zayd ibn Ali as their Fifth Imam, in place of his brother Muhammad al-Baqir. After Zayd ibn Ali, the Zaidi recognize other descendants of Hasan ibn Ali or Husayn ibn Ali to be Imams. Among the well known Zaidi Imams are Yahya ibn Zayd, Muhammad al Nafs az-Zakiyah and Ibrahim ibn Abdullah.

Childhood Conduct Disorder Essay -- Diseases/Disorders

Introduction: A History and Brief Overview of Conduct Disorder Conduct Disorder has been a part of the American Psychological Association’s Diagnostic Statistical Manuel (DSM) since its original release date in 1994. Although, there is new information about the disorder that was previously unknown, Conduct Disorder is distinguished by a â€Å"repetitive and persistent pattern of behavior in which the basic rights of others or major age-appropriate norms or rules are violated† (American Psychiatric Association, 1994.) This mild, moderate, or severe antisocial behavior begins to appear either in childhood, categorized as early-onset conduct disorder , or in adolescence after ten years of age, classified as adolescent-onset conduct disorder (Passamonti et al., 2010.) The criteria to meet to be diagnosed with this disorder are separated into four subgroups: aggressive conduct, nonaggressive conduct, deceitfulness or theft, and serious violations of the rules. Three or more incidents must be present in the past twelve months with at le ast one of the characteristics being present in the past six months. This disorder causes severe impairment of functioning across a variety of situations so it is important to keep in mind society and individual situations because this diagnosis may be â€Å"misapplied to individuals in settings where patterns of undesirable behavior are sometimes viewed as protective† (American Psychiatric Association, 1994.) For example, a patient that has recently relocated from a war torn country would most likely not be a candidate for Conduct disorder even though he or she may exhibit some of the characteristics. An interesting distinction between the two subcategories is that those diagnosed with early-onset Conduct Dis... ...004). Childhood Adversity, Monoamine Oxidase A Genotype, and Risk for Conduct Disorder. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 738-744. Lahey et al. (2004). Predicting Future Antisocial Personality Disorder in Males from a Clinical Assessment in Childhood. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 389-399. Maughn et al. (2004). Prenatal Smoking and Early Childhood Conduct Problems. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 836-843. Milich, R., Widiger, T. & Landau, S. (1987). Differential Diagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder Using Conditional Probabilities. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 726-767. Miller, G. E. & Prinz, R. J. (1990). Enhancement of Social Learning Family Interventions for Childhood Conduct Disorder. Psychological Bulletin. Passamonti et al. (2010). Neural Abnormalities in Early-Onset and Adolescent-Onset Conduct Disorder. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 729-738.

Career Goal Essay Essay

What is a goal? Is it the golden destination of one’s life, or a distinctive pathway that leads to this longed trophy? Or is it the ideas and sentiments behind this sought out milestone? For myself, the goal of what path my life should take has changed many a times throughout my childhood and young adulthood; but the idea behind this goal, or should I say these goals, has forever remained the same. As a little girl running around my neighborhood streets, all I could ever think of becoming when I grew older was a doctor. At any gathering, countless relatives would ask me of what I wanted to be when I grew up, and the answer was always the same: a doctor. I never fully understood at the time what it was about becoming a doctor that made it such an aspiration for me, but the picture became clearer as I aged. Moving through the staircase of life, I felt my aspirations shift a tiny bit. Although, the tiny little girl inside me was still determined to be the doctor that would save countless lives, a larger part of me pictured myself standing in front of a classroom parting wisdom on to younger minds. I imagined creating lectures and inspiring little children into doing big things for their society. Yet still, my mind had not completely settled. As I grew older still and entered University, I started finding myself more and more interested in the issues of the social work and the criminal justice system. I found myself drone towards not only crimes and their victims, but also towards what created circumstances fit for the formation of a criminal. The entire world surrounding the criminal justice system engulfed me, and this is where I decided to change my major to Criminal Justice. I found myself more and more keen to study about criminals not only to keep our society safe from criminals, but also to prevent flowers of our own society from wilting and turning into criminals. I wondered why my career choices were so sporadic, and what caused me to be pulled towards them. By pondering over this, I realized that although these career choices may be far separated from each other, the idea behind them all was the same. My goal in life was not to become a doctor, or a teacher, or anything else; but my goal in life was to help people. What I wanted most out of my life was to positively affect as many people’s life as I could through my line of work in addition to my everyday activities. This realization has helped me shape my career goals in an effective manner. I aspire to use my studies to not only help stop and prevent crime, but also to understand the causes behind

Quebec should not separate essays

Quebec should not separate essays Quebec should remain in Canada for numerous reasons. Not all Quebecers wish to separate from Canada, only portions of Francophones do. A unilateral declaration of independence would ignore the wishes of the immigrants, natives and Anglophones to remain in Canada. This is unfair and undemocratic. The Supreme Court of Canada ruled against unilateral declaration of independence as well. Quebec separatists argue about the province being underprivileged while it receives more funding than any other province and that the French culture and language are in danger of assimilation. The separatists leave out those who are not Francophone. Their desire to separate is undemocratic by including those who wish to stay in Canada in a unilateral declaration of independence. Northern Quebec has its own native population comprising of Cree, Inuit and Innu. When the Quebec native Inuit held their own referendum asking, "do you agree that Quebec should become sovereign?" 95% of them voted no to that question. (Makivik) Clearly, the natives are against Quebec sovereignty. The Innuit have declared that they will use their legal rights to remain in Canada in the event of a Quebec separation. In 1996, Zebedee Nungak, leader of the Inuit of Nunavik (northern Quebec) delivered a speech representing the Innuits view regarding Quebec sovereignty. The Innuit prefer a strong Quebec within a united Canada. (Makivik) He hinted that if Quebec votes to separate from Canada, Inuit will remain in Canada. Furthermore, Nungak claims that the Inuit signed the James Bay and Northern Q uebec Agreement with Quebec in Canada. If Quebec leaves, then no one can ascertain the Inuits position on Quebec. Furthermore, the Cree natives wish to remain in Canada in the event of a Quebec separation. The Cree feel that they are a people with a right to self-determination recognized under international law. They maintain that their territory will n...