... the thinking of its founder, as aggressively monotheistic as, for instance, Judaism or Islam, it does represent an original attempt at unifying under the worship of one supreme god a polytheistic religion comparable to those of the ancient Greeks, Latins, Indians and other early peoples. Its other salient feature, namely dualism, was never understood in an absolute, rigorous fashion. Good and Evil fight an unequal battle in which the former is assured of triumph. God’s omnipotence is thus only temporarily limited. In this struggle man must enlist because of his capacity of free choice. He does so with his soul and body, not against his body, for the oppo ...
... the boys have a career of their own. Wesley is described as a thin, bald, intellectual who did not like anything. He drove twenty miles everyday to a second-rate university where he taught, which he did not like. Now his brother Scofield is the total opposite of Wesley, it is said that the only thing they did have in common was neither cared about what happened to the farm. Scofield was a business man, he sold insurance, not just any insurance but he sold insurance that only Negroes bought. He was known as the “policy man” by the black community. His mother was very disgruntled by this fact, knowing this he would loudly shout to company that he was the “best ...
... impacts and shapes the future. Experience and observation are then key to living life to the fullest. One must take full advantage of his/her life by fulfilling every instinct and learning a lesson from every blunder. Most important, though, is that every person maintains some semblence of truth in all they say and do. This idea contrsts with the American dream presented in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The Great Gatsby examines an American dream based around material wealth and social status. His/her wardrobe, occupation, and income determine the value of one's life. The idea is that a person work endlessly to accrue a substantial sum of money for ...
... Gareth pulls him off. If Gareth had not been there, Gawaine very well might have killed his younger brother. Gawaine even kills a women when worked up to a rage. These rages are a product of the unhealthy childhood he endured. The next child, Agravaine, is probably the least well adjusted of the four. He tends to be sadistic and self-centered. The children were told the tale of the King of Ireland by St. Toirdealbhach; the tale where the king gets a head wound and can not be excited, but then he dies while trying to defend his savior. Agravaine does not see any point in putting one's self in danger to protect any one else. He says “It was silly, it did no ...
... The central conflict of this book is Jethro changing from a boy to a man during the Civil War. Minor Conflicts: Eb, Jethro's brother, fights the war for the North's side, while his other brother fights war for the South's side. Their father, Matt, is generally for the North. Southern Illinois is divided, and the few people for the North do not like the fact that Matt allows Tom to fight for the south. Resolution: The war ends and the family is brought back together. V. Style. Descriptive ...
... while “breaking social patterns that are morally reprehensible, taking conscious control of one’s place in the environment, and readjusting the world one lives in based on personal integrity and honesty.” The concept of not-learning, being something that can be learned is an interesting phenomenon to me that is explored by Kohl in the title essay of his book. Sometimes a teacher may mistake a student for having a learning disability or a behavior problem, when rather the child is actually making a conscious choice to “not learn” certain values or morally unfavorable material that is being imposed on them. In Kohl’s own words, “To agree to learn from ...
... between whites and blacks made outside of Huck Finn; for instance when he said, “One of my theories is that the hearts of men are all alike, all over the world, whatever their skin complexion may be”. This brings into question the reason for Twain’s frequent use of the word “nigger”, not to mention the exceedingly racist views harbored by most characters. It is true that the book is peppered with racist stereotypes, lewd remarks belittling blacks, and the use of the word “nigger” over 200 times, but it is all part of the irony. Twain wrote this book not only to challenge the system of slavery, but also to do so with the most effective of lite ...
... of the Pencey School, Holden decides to leave early. Before he leaves, though, he visits his teacher, Mr. Spencer. Mr. Spencer and Holden talk about his direction in life: “‘Do you feel absolutely no concern for your future, boy?' ‘Oh, I feel some concern for my future, all right. Sure. Sure, I do.' I thought about it for a minute. ‘But not too much, I guess,'” (14). After leaving Pencey, he checks into a hotel where he invites a prostitute up to his room. He gets cold feet and decides not to have intercourse with her, though. Later, Holden decides to take his old girlfriend, Sally Hayes, to the theater. After taking her to the theater, Holden form ...
... actually been invited." (Gatsby, p.41) He said this because most of the people at Gatsby's parties just invited themselves. This is the time when Nick's character is showing some development of genuineness. Another time that Nick shows his development into a more genuine person is when he helps rekindle the love between Jay Gatsby and Daisy. He does this by setting up a surprise meeting at his house. Gatsby knew of this because he had asked him to do it. At this time in the novel is when Nick says "I'm going to call Daisy tomorrow and invite her over here to tea." (Gatsby, p.82) This shows that Nick is genuine because he is trying to rekindle the love betwe ...
... the other horses in the collection, Laura too, does not fit in with the people of her time. Laura exhibits very negative thoughts and feelings about herself. Laura assumes that everyone notices her flaws and dislikes her because of them. Laura fears that she will grow up to be an old maid. She does not relate to other people well because of her shyness and unpopularity. Her only pleasures consist of being home with her family, her glass collection, and her father's records. Laura's insecurities are manifested whenever she confronts an unfamiliar situation and that causes her to become physically ill. Laura can not handle being around other people or in crow ...
