Impact of Online Learning on the Education System

Impact of Online Learning on the Education System Topic Area Education for all Can online learning replace our current model of education? Introduction We live in a world where access to most resources (thanks to the internet) are just a click away. The only resource that seems to be struggling to reach to the majority of the world through this method is schooling or education. Is it possible for education to remove the walls around our schools? Can our current model of education be replaced by online learning? Global How has online learning affected our world? Online learning has been out there since search giants like Google, Yahoo and Bing were set up. The only difference between now and then is that earlier it was difficult to prove that you had knowledge about a subject because there was very little proof of what you knew unless you could demonstrate it. Earlier all organizations mandated proper certification or documents of qualifications. Its only now that online learning offers proper certification. And in accordance to that online learning is slowly getting accepted in companies and organizations with the proof of the certificate(s) achieved by doing so. Online learning offers courses on everything from counting on your fingers to university level Astrophysics. As of 2013, the number of people in Colleges 183 million Secondary School 568.5 million Primary School 713.6 million Total number of students 1.436 billion (20.5% of the total population in 2013) The laws that govern population growth entail that these numbers would have grown in the past 4 years and would be approximately 1.501 billion people (20.5% of 7.461 billion {total population}). According to EdSurge the number of learners on the big 3 online learning sites (edX, Coursera and Udacity) were a stunning 24 million. United States of America Several universities like Harvard even encourage their students to view video lectures so they can use the time for the lecture for doing something else and when they are free they can simply view the lecture. According to Udacity CEO, Sebastian Thrun, some 4 million registered users worldwide, and about 60,000 working on nanodegrees at anyone one time. In several schools in USA, the teachers use Khan Academy to aid/conduct their daily classes. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has put almost all of its courses online on MIT OpenCourseWare for all student regardless of their nationality, or the college/university they attend. This really helps students a lot since most of the material for math and science is almost the same as their universities/schools/colleges. India In countries like India where students are pushed to their mental and physical limits to achieve grades that yield are a 100 percent average or the equivalent, these certificates show another stairway to success to these students. Students now turn to websites like edX, Coursera, Udacity and Khan Academy to learn whatever they need to or in several cases want to. This also allows the students to excel in their studies, and get better career opportunities in their future, as online learning shows an effort to learn beyond what is expected of a student. The Rajasthan state government is going to add Khan Academy lessons as part of their day to day school curriculum to provide their students with a platform with universally accepted teaching-learning models and techniques. But due to other problems like poverty and availability of electricity (which I will address later) it is difficult to switch over to online education. China In China the number of universities and colleges offering online learning platforms has skyrocketed in the past years. 30 out 110 of Chinas well-known universities have an online learning platform. Chinas ministry of education has been encouraging a lot of students to take online courses, however no university is allowed to give out degrees. Another advantage to online learning is that you can view videos/lectures as many times as you need to. You can ask for help on forums on many online learning sites. Online learning also offers a lot of different perspective and immense exposure. Google was one of the first multi-national organisations to employ people not based on their qualifications or proof of knowledge/learning rather based on their skills and experience. There is an option for the learner to avail for the Honour Code Certificate but courses offering these certificates are extremely few and when a learner presents an honour code certificate as part of their CV or rà ©sumà ©, they are looked at with suspicion as the terms of the honour code are literally honouring your word. The reason honour code certificates and statements of achievement (based on the honour code) were stopped is because of misuse of the fact that there was no way to verify (branching out to Verified Certificates) that the person doing the course is the person whose name is on the certificate. On the other hand, verified certificates use a government issued ID to function and the name on the certificate has to match the one on the ID. This reduces chances of someone else doing your work for you. A problem with certification for online learning and online courses is that almost all the verified certificates on the most online learning platforms are now paid and the se prices are very high. A lot of the paid/verified certificates on edX are for $50 and quite a few of them are for a hundred dollars. As a matter of fact, Udacity has a minute number of free courses and all other courses on Udacity are paid. This makes it difficult for a learner to get these certificates because of the cost of these certificates. This reduces the number of learners completing the course, contary to what is said by edX when a user enrols into a course Its a proven motivator to complete the course. These prices can create a barbed-wire around the school we are trying to render wall-less. Another fact worth considering is, that in a lot of countries schooling/college is expensive and using free, online resources can help you save all that money. For the world as one, I think the developed countries (like the United States) should start by using online education to enhance and ultimately replace their current models of education. By doing so, they would set an example and would encourage other countries to be like them. National Is replacing the current model of education with online learning feasible in my country? According to the Indian Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment 27.5% of Indias population is below the poverty line, which is roughly 367.48 million people (Population of India à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 1,336,286,256 * 27.5/100 = 367478720). I believe, asking students/people who are underprivileged to learn using online resources, is inappropriate because having an internet connection is expensive and without one online learning is impossible. So its almost like saying the water is free but the way to get to the water is paid (and expensive). So I do not think it is feasible to replace my countrys current model of education with online learning. Local Is replacing the current model of education with online learning feasible for the students in my school/community? According to a survey I conducted among my friends on my social networking circles (Link to responses available in the bibliography below) à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 98.3% of the people use the internet for learning something, studying and/or work. Most people use the internet for 5-8 hours a day. 22.4% of the people use google and/or other search engines to learn what they want to. 5.1% also use Khan Academy and use search engines. 1.7% use Khan Academy and similar websites for studying. 6.9% do the points mentioned above and also use edX, Coursera and similar platforms for studying. 3.4% use Khan Academy and edX/Coursera and other platforms for studying. 11.9% use the internet for college/university work and use all of uses mentioned above. 49.2% use all/some of the tools mentioned above and also work. Keeping the above points in mind I believe that my friends circle can depend on the internet for schooling/education or can use the internet to enhance this essential process. Personal As an individual I believe I can switch over to the Internet for my education as I have no problems with Internet access, and the colleges/universities I am considering for my further education accept and even encourage online learning and certification, which again is not a problem with me. I find that I can fit into that group of people who can and should turn to online learning. I find that using E-Books and E-Lectures is more convenient and environmentally friendly (using E-Books rather than books). I can also get my hands on to material that sometimes teachers in class might not be able to cover. I think that replacing the current model of education with online education is possible for me, although I might require a teacher to guide me at times. Personal Response My research and essay were partly inspired by Salman Khans (educationist) Ted Talk (in 2011) and I had turned to online resources for learning. Salman Khan tells us how the traditional academic model is not cut out for the extremes of the Bell Curve the students who find a topic/subject easy, and the ones who dont, but the system is rather suited for the average student. He says that, just like in Music or Martial Arts, you only move onto a further skill once youve mastered the basic. But as all of us know, most of our schools cannot compensate for the students who lag behind in a subject/concept and the class simply has to move on. He uses the cheese-block analogy and demonstrates to us how minor gaps in our knowledge can make the cookie crumble (the cheese in this case!). So I see myself working on Khan academy to do the best I can and learn all I can because according to Sal Khan You only need to know one thing You can learn anything. This will help me and can also inspire othe r people to be like me. Possible Future Scenarios The world needs to realise that traditional schools and curricula will not be able to cope with our rapidly changing world. Getting the world to accept online resources as instead of/to enhance our education, we need a little amount struggle to overcome the natural resistance to change that we have, monetary funding and support from governments of the world (in terms of providing cheap internet access and pushing learners to use online resources). After taking these steps the world would slowly but surely be a better place. The world can simply ignore the fact that online education holds the key to our future and would not embrace online learning, which would cause problems several other problems (like availability of space for schools, teachers and staff required to run the school and availability of books etc). It would also cause a rise in illiteracy and poverty (since it would restrict learning and schooling to schools and colleges only). Taking into account my research, I think that this scenario is not very likely to occur. The world can realise this fact now and can help our future generations to focus on keeping up high in the sky rather than getting out of problems like illiteracy and poverty. Considering what I learnt through the course of my research, this scenario is very likely to occur. The world can move toward Scenario 2 but might not be able to make enough progress due to problems like poverty, illiteracy and lack of access to the internet. This would cause these problems to grow further. This scenario is highly likely to occur. __________________________________________________________________ Bibliography https://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=number+of+students+in+the+worldhttps://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-09-08-udacity-coursera-and-edx-now-claim-over-24-million-students https://support.edx.org/hc/en-us/articles/215167977-Does-edX-offer-free-certificates https://www.google.co.in/about/careers/how-we-hire/http://www.tatatrusts.org/article/inside/rajasthan-tata-trusts-elearning-mouh http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2015/9/3/cameo-cheating-method-mooc/ https://edx.readthedocs.io/projects/open-edx-building-and-running-a-course/en/named-release-birch/running_course/discussions.html http://socialjustice.nic.in/UserView/index?mid=76672 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_India https://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1_fipGX3VASNtGMSbY4uyMGgTY1QlpVwhH1pFuAGmT80/edit?usp=sharing (Responses for survey) http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/ http://www.ted.com/talks/salman_khan_let_s_use_video_to_reinvent_education?language=en https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MTRxRO5SRA http://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1966969/more-online-education-start-ups-china-expected-close-down-2016 https://internationaleducation.gov.au/News/Latest-News/Pages/Online-education-in-China.aspx https://internationaleducation.gov.au/News/Latest-News/Pages/Online-education-in-China.aspx http://www.whatsonweibo.com/10-hottest-chinese-online-education-companies-2016/ http://www.ted.com/talks/sal_khan_let_s_teach_for_mastery_not_test_scores/transcript?language=en https://www.khanacademy.org/youcanlearnanything#

The Half Brothers By Elizabeth Gaskell and My Oedipus Complex By Frank

The Half Brothers By Elizabeth Gaskell and My Oedipus Complex By Frank O'Connor These two stories are very different upon first glance. For example one is about a pair of half brothers set in Victorian times and the other is about a small child named Larry who thinks he's a lot wiser then he is. However, if you look deeper you can start to find similarities between the two. They have similar themes, and links can be made between them. A big difference between them is the titles. For example 'The Half Brothers' is a very self evident title but 'My Oedipus Complex' is a little more obscure. 'My Oedipus Complex' is ironic because although Larry does have a strong attachment to his mother it is an exaggeration to call it an Oedipus Complex. The title is almost as if the narrator is mocking himself. 'The Half Brothers' is indeed about two half brothers. Another difference between the titles is that they make they reader react in different ways. For example 'My Oedipus Complex' is an intriguing title whereas 'The Half Brothers' is simple and obvious. The reader would be more drawn towards 'My Oedipus Complex' because the word 'Oedipus' is unknown and the word 'complex' makes the story seem interesting and almost mysterious. The title of "The Half Brothers" wouldn't catch the reader's eye because it is boring and the words are all familiar. When looking at the general themes of the two stories it becomes clear that they are very similar. For example both have the theme of jealousy. In 'The Half Brothers' it is William Preston's jealousy of Gregory and in 'My Oedipus Complex' it is Larry and his father's jealousy of each other first and then of Sonny. In both stories it is jealousy of a mother's love, ... ...the ending of 'The Half Brothers' makes the reader think, because of it's regretful conclusion whereas the ending of 'My Oedipus Complex' doesn't give the reader a lot to ponder on as it is a simple happy ending. This makes the stories suitable for different types of reader. If they want a light-hearted book 'My Oedipus Complex' is more suitable but if they want a book that teaches them a lesson then they should choose 'The Half Brothers'. Overall I preferred 'My Oedipus Complex' to 'The Half Brothers'. This is because it is set more recently and the language is easier to understand, I found it easier to relate to. Also it was humorous. 'The Half Brothers' also had good points such as it made me think and gave me a greater understanding of Victorian language. 'The Half Brothers' is a more educational story whereas 'My Oedipus Complex' is light reading.

Union Organizing

Labor Relations Week 6 Final Paper Union Campaigning Process Campaigning is something that is done in many aspects of life. It breaks down to basically creating arguments to sell yourself or your company to a group of people. President hopefuls set out on a campaign trail every four years to try and get people to vote for them. I always thought that this was the only form of campaigning, but I was incorrect. Employers and Unions both use campaigning to get workers to either avoid, or join a union. Each side has their own tactics and goals to achieve. I plan to analyze both sides and show the pros and cons of each. Employer campaign tactics start with four key factors that determine voting decisions. These factors are job dissatisfaction, union instrumentality, general union attitudes and collective social identity. Employers try to provide information to employees consisting of pro-company, anti-union information. Employers use many tactics during their campaign process to attempt to get their workers to avoid joining a union. Some of these include sending out letters or email messages with negative aspects of the union organization, or supervisors meeting with employees individually or in small groups. Another tactic that works to the advantage of employers is utilizing its private property rights to prohibit outside organizations from entering the workplace and interacting with their workers. A drawback to that tactic is that they have to maintain the rule for all organizations, and not just unions. One of the more common tactics is the captive audience meeting. This is typically a group meeting held in the workplace during work hours, where employees listen to management describe their antiunion and pro-company presentations. These meetings are completely legal as long as they are not within 24 hours of an election. Employers need to be careful not to cross lines in regards to their tactics. Some of them can be considered illegal if they are overly aggressive or threatening. Some of these employer tactics are heavily debated due to their difficulty to measure and observe, so that kind of has the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) keeping an eye on employer tactics, and how they run their campaign. They want to ensure that there is no threatening of workers, or any other funny business going on. Union campaign processes also target the four key factors of worker complaints within a company. Union organizers use a vastly different set of tactics to get their information out, and attempt to get a union organized within a workplace. No matter how closely labor laws attempt to regulate the balance of rights during union and employer campaigning processes, the employers always seem to have more power over their property, and their employees. Unions need to get creative with their campaigning. Unions have some disadvantages against them because they cannot show workers instant results. Instead they make a lot of what seems like empty promises that they need to fulfill if they are successful during their campaign. One of their tactics that they use to get in contact with workers is by accessing the Excelsior List. The Excelsior List is simply a list of the names and addresses of employees eligible to vote in the election. Employers must provide this list to the union organizers to comply with a rule the NLRB established in 1966. Unions then utilize the list to send out mailings or set up home visits by a union representative to speak with the worker directly. A distinct disadvantage to using this list is that a lot of workers may view it as an invasion of privacy, and choose not to speak with the union representative. Alternatively, with the advance of technology, unions are now utilizing the Internet and web pages to help distribute information without violating an employee’s privacy. In comparison with employer campaigning, unions definitely have a more passive approach. Unions also have to recognize that different campaign tactics work better for different sets of workers. There is a lot to consider when establishing a campaign. Now, there can be significant problems with each side of the campaign process. Each side has to maintain their role while providing the necessary information desired, and stay within the legal guidelines set forth by the NLRB. Employers must be careful not to make any of their statements seem like threats of unemployment or wage deduction. Our textbook explains this perfectly. â€Å"Predictions based on objective facts that some events will likely occur because of forces beyond the employers control are legal; statements that convey the impression that these events are inevitable or at the discretion of the employer are threats. (McGraw-Hill, page 246) Employers tend to be watched more closely in these circumstances, since they have a more direct access to their workers, obviously. While the NLRB cannot monitor everything, the workers can report any inappropriate behavior should it occur. For instance, while a campaign is in process and an election is approaching, employers are not allowed to question workers on their stance regarding unions. This could lead to an employee giving his or her stance, and the employer terminating the employment to avoid them voting for the union, which is not allowed. Also, if employers choose to activate their privacy protection, and choose not to allow solicitors, they must remain active and apply that rule to all organizations, not just unions. Employers tend to have the advantage in the campaign process, since they can hire consultants and reach the workers directly, as stated. Some of these consultants can make matters worse, by starting rumors, telling lies and blowing things out of context. Our text outlines a particularly extreme case in which â€Å"a 17 year employee with no record of violence challenged his plant manager to let the employees talk to a union organizer. The following day the employer notified the local sheriff that this employee was threatening workers so the sheriff’s deputies surrounded him at gunpoint on his way to work and forcibly took him to the local hospital. Based on what the employer told the sheriff, the employee was involuntarily committed to a mental hospital. He was held for two weeks against his will and forcibly injected with anti-psychotic drugs until a lawyer could obtain his release. This happened in 1999, in South Carolina. † (McGraw-Hill, p. 248) Reading that is a real eye-opener to how serious this subject can get. The union side of campaign runs into fewer issues, mainly because of their lack of contact with workers. They are only permitted certain things, and often lack the funds to do much more than their mailings and home visits. One thing that they do have to their advantage is anonymity. Some unions are so bold as to send some of their paid union organizers into an employer to try to get hired as employees! They are referred to as â€Å"salts†, since the union thinks they â€Å"salt† or enrich the workplace by spreading news about union in non-work areas to attempt to organize the workers. I think this is actually a brilliant idea to get in under the radar and make some headway if you’re a union trying to organize. And actually, it is considered legal, after the Supreme Court ruled that they are employees protected against discrimination in hiring and firing. (McGraw-Hill, p. 247) Some states are considered at-will, or right to work states, and there are special rules for them regarding unions. â€Å"The Taft-Hartley Act outlawed the ‘closed-shop’ rule regarding unions. Closed shop referred to employees at unionized workplaces being required to join the union as a condition of employment. The Act did permit a new ‘union shop’, which required all new employees to join the union after a minimum period of time after their hire. Under ‘union shop’ rules, employers are obliged to fire any employees who have avoided paying membership dues necessary to maintain membership in the union; however the union cannot demand that the employer discharge an employee who has been expelled from membership for any other reason. † (Wikipedia) Some people think that there should be limits set forth to campaigning and union organizing. I agree that there should be some limits set to both sides of this debate. I think that unions should not be allowed to make home visits and invade their privacy. I also think that there should be more strict rules enforcing policies for the employers. I think that it is unfair for employers to discipline their workers simply for getting information on other options for their benefits and happiness. I don’t know how they can enforce these things in the future, but it simply is not fair for employees to be discriminated against, or put in fear of their jobs or benefits. That could be considered bullying. I think that maybe when it comes to union elections, the NLRB should send in more representatives, and maybe they can have a debate with employer management, and a union organizer, to allow both sides of an argument to be heard in a fair and dignified way, as opposed to simply campaigning, and talking bad about the other side. References: Wikipedia: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Taft-Hartley_Act Textbook: Budd, Labor Relations: Striking a Balance, Second Edition. McGraw-Hill 2008.

Technology and economy

In his book Nomads of South Persia, Frederik Barth (1967) descibes the social, political and economic structure of the Basseri tribal group. This essay aims to summarize the details on the environment, technology, shelter, transportation, economy, and distribution and consumption of goods and services of the Basseri tribe as explicated by Barth (1961).First of all, the Basseri tribe of the Khamseh Confederacy occupies the region from the Persian Gulf to the desert ranges of Lar. The climate in these areas is hot and dry. However, during winter it is cold in the highlands while it is slightly cold in the grasslands. There are four seasons of the year such as winter, spring, summer, and fall in this part of the world.The geographical structure of the land is mountainous from 2,000 to 3, 000 feet above sea level and its mountains are as high as 13, 000 feet. Water in this area comes from rainfall. The amount of rainfall is higher during the winter unlike the amount of rainfall during sp ring. This water causes vegetation such as sugar cane, dates, fruits and vegetables to grow. These foods together with flour are consumed by the Basseri people.As nomads, the Basseri tribe raises animals such as sheep, goats, donkeys, camels and horses. This animal husbandry causes them to move from one place to another based on the needs of their animals. These animals have varied uses for the tribe. Goats and sheep are useful to the Basseri people for their milk, meat, wool and skin. On the other hand, camels, horses and donkeys are used for transportation especially during the time of migration. In addition to this, camels share a part of the tribe’s source of wool.Even when the Baserri ethnic group is nomadic, it uses technology in the form of its tools and systems. One system is in making butter and buttermilk out of sour milk. This process is done by storing milk in a goatskin placed on a tripod to churn milk into sour milk. Next is the use of wool in weaving and making of ropes. Another is when wool is processed by spinning it on spindle whorl. Lastly, a technology they utilize in continuously producing healthy milk is by placing a small stick through the mouth of a lamb to press down its tongue and is stuck in place with stings (Barth, 1961, 7).Likewise, the Basseri people live in tents which are considered the basic social and economic unit of the tribe. The tents are well-made and are woven out of wool. Tents are usually made when a man and a woman gets married. The mothers of the couple are the ones who weave the tent. Then, the couple begins their lives as a separate unit when they live in the tent.In addition, the Basseri use donkeys, horses and camels for transportation. Donkeys are used to carry women and children. Horses are ridden by men. Camels transport heavy objects or things. Consequently, when it is time for the Basseri to move out from one location to another, they use animals as means of transportation. These animals are the came ls, horses and donkeys. When they migrate, the family members ride on the donkeys, camels or horses which are already laden with the family’s belongings while one family member walks by foot in order to guide their herd of animals. Barth (1961) does not mention about the Basseri tribe travelling on water maybe because they are basically land-based.Furthermore, the Basseri’s economy is based on their cyclical migratory patterns. They are known to be â€Å"pastoralists† for they move to the high lands during the summer season and they transfer to the plains during the winter season due to the presence or absence of pasture that their animals need (Microsoft Student). As previously mentioned, they raise sheep, goats, camels, donkeys and horses which are done by the male members of the tribe.The women, alternatively, are the ones who plant vegetation. The division of labor in the tribe is grounded on the age and sex of the person. However, there are certain tasks wh ich are stereotypical to gender. Domestic work in the form of household chores is the task only for the girls and women of the tribe. These tasks may be preparing food, washing dishes, washing clothes, spinning wool and weaving tents. On the other side, boys and men are mainly assigned to provide water and wool, and to repair damaged equipment and tents. They also watch over the herd and they lead their animals and their family when migrating. They might be allowed to help prepare food, or wash clothes but are not allowed to participate in spinning or weaving.Just like any economic system, the people of the tribe distribute goods and services within its constituents. It employs a system of reciprocity where everyone works and contributes for the mutual benefit of everyone in the tribe. The distribution of goods and services similar to the division of labor starts within each household. In the family, each member, depending on the gender, has a task to accomplish and this task has an implication to economy. For example, when women or men milk the sheep, there is an effect to their economy or when the men look after the herd. There is also distribution of goods or services to outsiders as they trade off externally to other tribes and other markets. They also purchase or trade clothing materials, ready-made clothing and footwear, cooking tools, and glass (Barth, 1961, 9-10).Finally, the Basseri ethnic group is an egalitarian society because they do not put emphasis on material goods or wealth especially that they do not have a permanent place to stay. Their concept of wealth and property is focused on the livestock that a family possesses. They consume the meat of sheep and chicken and milk from the sheep.To sum it up, the Basseri tribal people dwell in areas where their animals can find pasture and they move out when this is no longer available. They have their own economic system and they use low technology. They are also not too concerned about their economic status due to their migratory life.ReferencesBarth, F. (1961). Nomads of South Persia. Waveland Press: Long Grove, IL.Pastoralism. (2007). Microsoft ® Student 2008 [DVD]. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation.

Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” and Steinbeck’s “The Chrysanthemums Essay

â€Å"The Chrysanthemums† by John Steinbeck and â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† by Charlotte Perkins Gilman are short stories which have a female protagonist struggling through a suffocating marriage and living in a society that says that women can not exist outside of marriage. â€Å"The Chrysanthemums† written by John Steinbeck is a story about a woman worn and oppressed by a male dominated world. A world which breaks a woman’s will, strips away their humanity, and obscures who they really are and what they really want out of life. Eliza, a married woman forgotten by her husband and the world, has found a bit of happiness in her garden. It is here that she finds solace and comfort. The flowers are her companions. Similarly, in The Yellow Wallpaper, written in the century before The Chrysanthemums, is also about the oppression of women in society by men. On the surface it was the story of a woman who has a child and suffered from depression. Her husband, who is also her doctor, prescribed the â€Å"The Mitchell Treatment†. This was a standard treatment for all mental disorders during this time which consisted of isolation and rest. The woman, the main character, was placed in an attic for a month of recovery. Her only companion was the peeling yellow wallpaper. In the end, both women find, brief as it may be, freedom. Though written decades apart, both Steinbeck and Gilman use symbols and character development to develop a theme of female oppression and survival. The major symbol in Steinbeck’s short story is the Chrysanthemum flower. Chrysanthemums are hearty flowers which need specific care, patience, and tending. Like children, they must be cared for daily, treated with delicate and gentle hands. Within her garden paradise she hides herself, as a woman. Steinbeck describes her as a woman that wears â€Å"a man’s black hat pulled low down over her eyes, clodhopper shoes, a figured print dress almost completely covered by a big corduroy apron†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (1). Eliza, who is childless, takes pride and comfort in her ability to grow these amazing flowers. They represent for her the children she was never able to have. She is extremely protective of these flowers caring and feeding them like mother nursing her baby. She creates a â€Å"crib† of wire to ensure that â€Å"[n]o aphids, no sowbugs or snails or cutworms† are there. â€Å"Her terrier fingers [destroy] such pests before they [can] get started† (1). Like pointy corners of tables and light sockets, Eliza protects her â€Å"children† from the hazards of life. She cares for this flowers like she wishes someone had cared for her — gentle fingertips caressing her own blooms. These flowers inspire the only intimate moments that occurred between Eliza and her husband in the entire short story. He husband stops by her garden and tells her how lovely her flowers are. She blushes and Steinbeck observes â€Å"on her face there [is] a little smugness†(1). Eliza gives â€Å"birth† to these amazing creatures which bring so much beauty to the world, and supplies Eliza with her only taste of motherhood (Demott 3). Similarly, Gilman uses the symbol of yellow wallpaper. The Yellow Wall-Paper† is a small literary masterpiece. For almost fifty years it has been overlooked, as has its author, one of the most commanding feminists of her time. Now, with the new growth of the feminist movement, Charlotte Perkins Gilman is being rediscovered, and â€Å"The Yellow Wall-Paper† should share in that rediscovery. The story of a woman’s mental breakdown (Gilman 37). A major symbol in ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’ is the wallpaper itself. The â€Å"Yellow wallpaper was a familiar character in realist fiction and was often found to be distasteful.† (Roth). The narrator is annoyed and eventually repulsed by her only companion, the yellow patterned wallpaper. The evolution of what the wallpaper symbolized parallels the mental state of the narrator. When the narrator first settled down to her month’s worth of rest in the attic of her house, it is the wall paper she hated most. It was old, tattered, and a dirty yellow color. She commented that the worse part of the wallpaper was the dull pattern. She pondered about the wallpaper : It is dull enough to confuse the eye in following, pronounced enough to constantly irritate and provoke study, and when you follow the lame uncertain curves for a little distance they suddenly commit suicide–plunge off at outrageous angles, destroy themselves in unheard of contradictions. The color is repellent, almost revolting; a smouldering unclean yellow, strangely faded by the slow-turning sunlight (Gilman 24). The pattern became the focus of much of the narrator’s time. She attempted on many occasions to figure out what the pattern was with no success. â€Å"She is mad, of course, by this time, reduced to a paranoid schizophrenic who writes, â€Å"I’ve got out at last †¦ in spite of you and Jane. And I’ve pulled off most of the paper, so you can’t put me back!† (36).†(Bak). After several days of trying she began to see a sub pattern which can only be seen at certain parts of the day depending on the amount of light being filtered through the windows. She decided that the sub pattern is that of a woman who is creeping along the floor on her knees, not even being able to stand. She states â€Å"There is a recurrent spot where the pattern lolls like a broken neck and two bulbous eyes stare at you upside down† (Gilman 25). This woman was imprisoned by the main pattern and wished only to escape her cage. The main pattern became clear to the narrator. She believed the main pattern were heads of those women who attempted to escape but were caught between the bars. It was clear that as the month passed the mental state of the narrator became increasingly unstable. The wallpaper and it’s pattern also represented the societal chains (treatment, family, and marriage) which have imprisoned her for so long. The yellow wallpaper has become synonymous with the domestic bars which trapped women in their inferior roles as wives and mother in the 1800s. Through the use of both symbols, Steinbeck and Gilman track the internal conflict of their respective protagonists. In Steinbeck’s short story, it is the Chrysanthemum which are indirectly responsible for Eliza awakening. The chrysanthemums create a situation in which Eliza meets a man which stimulates and re-ignites her female sensuality, that has been long forgotten. Steinbeck describes Eliza stripped of her female side and like her home, that she was â€Å"hard-swept and hard-polished† (1). Henry fails to notice and takes for granted the feminine qualities which Eliza brings to the relationship. His love for her did not exist anymore. The couple lives like strangers. Eliza, submissive and loyal, does not addresses her discontent with her husband and their relationship remains empty. He remarks, to her about her chrysanthemums, â€Å"I wish you’d work out in the orchard and raise some apples that big† (1). She is resentful and unhappy which causes her to hide in her garden. One afternoon while she is attending to her flowers she meets a traveling salesman who stops and admires her flowers. Steinbeck describes the stranger in the following way: Elisa saw that he was a very big man. Although his hair and beard were graying, he did not look old. His worn black suit was wrinkled and spotted with grease. The laughter had disappeared from his face and eyes the moment his laughing voice ceased. His eyes were dark, and they were full of the brooding that gets in the eyes of teamsters and of sailors. The calloused hands he rested on the wire fence were cracked, and every crack was a black line. He took off his battered hat. (1) When he flirts with her indirectly, she melts. She is thirsty for the attention a man gives to a woman. The stranger visually caresses the flowers, commenting that the flowers were like delicate â€Å"quick puff[s] of colored smoke,†(243) and she can feels his fingers like they were on her skin. Chrysanthemums represent Eliza long last sensuality and her need to be fulfilled physically and emotionally. Eliza quickly responds and â€Å"[tears] off the battered hat and [shakes] out her dark pretty hair†(1). The cold Elisa suddenly becomes the image of perfect femininity soft and flowing, contrasting against the strong male. She is attracted to him and offers him the only gift she can, a singe red chrysanthemum — a symbol of her sacred femininity. Through this stimulation, Eliza is inspired to again get in touch with her body and soul (Wilson 34). After a dinner eaten in silence with a man who does not love her, Eliza is forced to endure the car trip home. Weeping, and staring out the window she sees her bloody red chrysanthemums tossed on the side of the road, and she feels her soul die once again. Gilman utilizes her symbol of the yellow wallpaper in the same way, her protagonist is first imprisoned and then awakened by the wallpaper. Gilman actively asserts through her use of symbolism and the mental deterioration of the narration that women, at the turn of the century, suffering from mental illness were mistreated. Her husband, who is also her doctor, prescribed the â€Å"The Mitchell Treatment† (Hume). This was a standard treatment for all mental disorders during this time which consisted of isolation and rest. The woman, the main character, was placed in an attic for a month of recovery. Her only companion was the peeling yellow wallpaper. Slowly the unnamed narrator slipped into deep depressive psychosis. It is not until she shirked off the treatment and the invisible societal chains that she becomes well again. The theme of oppression is overwhelmingly present in both short stories. Eliza’s gift of the chrysanthemum represents the physical interaction between a man and a woman. After the stranger leaves, with quicken breath, she almost floats into her house and draws herself a hot bath. She finds her â€Å"little block of pumice† and literally scrubs her body — â€Å"legs and thighs, loins and chest and arms, until her skin was scratched and red†(1). She urgently washes, symbolically bringing blood back into her lifeless body and soul. She dresses slowly finding her best lingerie and dress. She applies makeup and prepares to go out on a â€Å"date† with her husband. She patiently awaits for her husband to come in from the fields. She hopes her husband will feel romantically toward her again. She hopes that he provide her with the same sensual stimulation that those few brief moments with the stranger. Unfortunately, her hopes are not fulfilled. When Henry finally sees his wife, he casually comments â€Å"You look strong enough to break a calf over your knee, happy enough to eat it like a watermelon† (1). Eliza laments her husband’s lack of charm, as if he is intentionally trying to crush her soul. She slowly loses the woman that she had found hours before. After a dinner eaten in silence with a man who does not love her, Eliza is forced to endure the car trip home. Weeping, and staring out the window she sees her bloody red chrysanthemums tossed on the side of the road, and she feels her soul die once again. Gilman’s narrator is also mistreated by her husband and society in general. John, her husband, a â€Å"wise† man of medicine, inflicts a loutish and gender-biased â€Å"cure† on her–and this tale, as Gilman claims, exposes such boorish barbarism. However, Gilman’s mad narrator unveils not only the ills of the rest cure treatment and a repressive domestic culture filled with Johns and Jennies, but also her hatred for a domestic (and maternal) role she has no desire to assume. â€Å"The Yellow Wall-Paper† not only rejects, as Gilman intended, the gender-biased rest cure of the nineteenth-century, but also indicts, less successfully, gender-biased definitions of mental illness. Married women during this time were â€Å"’freed’ from the necessity of contributing to society outside the home, presumably because marriage befit her for motherhood and motherhood required all of her energies.†(O’Donnell). Despite her triumphant unmasking of medical (predominantly male) gender bias in this tale, Gilman’s narrator falls apart so completely in the end that she tends, unfortunately, to reinforce the common nineteenth-century gender stereotype of the emotionally and physically frail nineteenth-century woman. Steinbeck through the use of chrysanthemums asserts that women are oppressed and imprisoned by world that was built for men. Through intricate detail, wit, and symbolism Steinbeck breathes life into the story of a woman completely controlled by her husband, and suffocated by world. She experiences momentary awakening during a brief interaction with a stranger. Steinbeck uses chrysanthemums evoke the feeling of rebirth, renewal, autonomy, and femininity. Eliza completely broken down and she crumbles â€Å"crying weakly-like an old woman†(X). Her husband takes her granted and does not notice that she is woman with needs and desires. Not only does her husband ignore her but so does the world. The stranger which seemed to admire all of Eliza’s qualities represents the world. Just as that man tossed away Eliza’s beautiful flowers because they were unnecessary. Steinbeck’s point is that is exactly the male dominated world views and treats women. Society is oppressive to women, allowing them not to â€Å"bloom†, keeping women submissive and docile. Eliza is not valued by the world because she is female. She meant only to exist for her husband and family. Eliza tries to be a woman in world where her womanly charms are ignored by her husband and the world in general. To survive she forgets about who she truly is and finds happiness in her garden. When she is briefly re-awakening, she attempts again to find her true self. However, her husband and the world will not let her and she must once again, for the last time, suppress who she is and what she wants. Through the use of similar literary devices the theme of female oppression and liberation is explored differently in â€Å"The Chrysanthemums† and â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper.† The oppression of women in a male dominated world has plagued society for centuries. The stories of women are often left untold and considered unimportant. To fully explore this theme both authors use symbolism and careful character development. The main symbol found in The Yellow Wallpaper is that of the decaying yellow wallpaper that is in the attic where the narrator is sent for isolation. It’s decay parallels the decay of the narrator. In addition, Gilman details this decline and explores the inner workings of the narrator through the character development leading up to the narrator’s decision that she did want to live. Similarly, Steinbeck uses the symbol of the Chrysanthemum to represent Eliza’s life, isolation, liberation, and emotional death. There is only a small set of literary tools available to authors, of any genre, through which themes like oppression can be examined. It is through the unique manipulation of these tools, and the intense expertise of great American authors that such a varied approach to survival can be interrupted, demonstrated, and shared. Works Cited Bak, John S. â€Å"Escaping the Jaundiced Eye: Foucauldian Panopticism in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper.†.† Studies in Short Fiction 31.1 (1994): 39+. DeMott, Robert. Steinbeck’s Typewriter: Essays on His Art. Revised ed. Troy, NY: Whitston Publishing, 1997. Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. The Yellow Wall-Paper. Revised ed. New York: Feminist Press, 1996. Hume, Beverly A. â€Å"Managing Madness in Gilman’s â€Å"The Yellow Wall-Paper†.† Studies in American Fiction 30.1 (2002): 3+. O’Donnell, Margaret G. â€Å"A Reply to â€Å"Charlotte Perkins Gilman: Reassessing Her Significance for Feminism and Social Economics.† Review of Social Economy 54.3 (1996): 337+. Roth, Marty. â€Å"Gilman’s Arabesque Wallpaper.† Mosaic (Winnipeg) 34.4 (2001): 145+. Steinbeck, John. â€Å"The Chrysanthemums.† Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. Ed. Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs. 4th Compact ed. New York: Prentice Hall, 2007. Wilson, Edmund. The Boys in the Back Room: Notes on California Novelists. San Francisco: Colt Press, 1941. Questia.

The Man Who Loved Flowers – Short Essay

Describe the setting and atmosphere. The story takes place in May 1963. The summer Is Just around the corner and everybody is smiling to the man in the gray slut because he exudes, he Is hopeless in love with the girl Norma. After he bought the tea roses for Norma, the afternoon turns to evening and the bright atmosphere Is replaced by darkness and gloomy cityscape when he makes his way to he's loving Norma. 2. Characterize the young man HIS hair was dark and cut short. HIS complexion was fair, his eyes a light blue.Not an extraordinary face, but he was beautiful. When he takes his hammer from his coat pocket and stats smashing her, he see he's reel Identity, the series-killer from the radio. 3. What does the other characters think of the young man, and how do Owe learn about it? 4. What news are we told on the radio, and what effect does it have on Dust as readers? It poured out bad news, a hammer murderer was still on the sass. 5. Who is Norma? She is the woman the character buy fl owers. 6. How does King develop suspense in the story, and what element of ;surprise is here? 7. Give your interpretation of the statement â€Å"His name was love† 8.Theme and message? 9. Compare It to â€Å"The Bogeyman – can you find cellmates between the two stories? 10. Compare Stephen King's short stories to Edgar Allan Pope's â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart and consider how horror Is created In the two stories (are there differences)? The Man Who Loved Flowers – Short Essay By hinderer The story takes place in May 1963. The summer is Just around the corner and everybody is smiling to the man in the gray suit because he exudes, he is hopeless in urns to evening and the bright atmosphere is replaced by darkness and gloomy His hair was dark and cut short.His complexion was fair, his eyes a light blue. Not an pocket and stats smashing her, he see he's reel identity, the series-killer from the 4. What news are we told on the radio, and what effect does it have on U s as 6. How does King develop suspense in the story, and what element of Surprise is 9. Compare it to â€Å"The Bogeyman – can you find similarities between the two stories? And consider how horror is created in the two stories (are there differences)?

Issues of poverty in U.S Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Issues of poverty in U.S - Essay Example In the year 2003, the rate stood at 63 percent from a previous 42 percent in the mid 1990s.Research by OECD indicates that with the formation of the coalition government, the GDP growth rose to 7.8 percent in 2011 as a result of the economic recovery in the country. Uganda has seen a lot of improvements with the poverty rates declining to 31.1% in 2006 as compared to 56% in the early 1990s. World Bank (2011) indicates that the country is likely to attain the millennium goals set by the year 2015. As compared to U.S.A. the poverty levels in India have decreased. This is according to World Bank (2011) who indicates that in India, through the process of poverty reduction has been slow; the government is doing its level best to hasten the pace of poverty reduction. This work also emphasizes that the reduction of poverty in India has improved as contrasted to the earlier periods. Even though the country is rated as one of the poorest in the globe, poverty cutback is an explanation of the fact that the proviso of services will get better, ranging from health services to