Robert Frost’s “choices” in ‘A Road Not Taken’ Essay Example for Free

Robert Frost’s â€Å"choices† in ‘A Road Not Taken’ Essay Making a right choice is not always simple and easy. Though it is a task that everyone comes across many times every day, sometimes this â€Å"everyday† task becomes very meaningful, and affects a person’s entire life. This is the theme of Robert Frost’s â€Å"The Road Not Taken†. In the poem, Frost uses a variety of literary devices to bring out this theme, such as metaphor, images, diction, tone, repetition, rhyme scheme and structure.   The most striking use of literary device in this poem is Frost’s use of the extended metaphor. The entire poem is a metaphor comparing life and its choices to a journey through the woods, and about having to decide what choice to make. It is an apt analogy, because in life, one does move forward, like on a road. Similarly, sometimes life is easy-going without any major difficulties, but sometimes life has big problems—and this is appropriate in the road comparison because roads, too, are sometimes smooth and easy to ride on, while at others, they have potholes and ruts which make it a rough ride. Also, when the poem begins with â€Å"Two roads diverged†¦Ã¢â‚¬  it gives the impression that this is the first fork in the road the speaker has come to. This points to the fact that in every person’s life a time comes when s/he has to make a major choice. The comparison continues throughout the poem where one of the roads is described as â€Å"grassy and want[ing] wear†, and â€Å"less traveled by† representing an option which people had not often taken up. Similarly, when the speaker says, â€Å"Knowing how way leads on to way†, it is appropriate to a real-life setting, where, after making a choice in a certain direction, it is hard to think of â€Å"com[ing] back†, just as the poem suggests. Frost also makes important use of images, especially visual ones, which add to the poem’s influence on its readers. He describes the diverging roads in the â€Å"yellow† wood, the â€Å"grassy† road which â€Å"wanted wear† and the leaves which â€Å"no step had trodden black†. With such images as these, the reader is able to visualize with clarity what is being described, and this makes the poem more effective. It further places the poem in a true-to-life setting and makes it easier for the reader to understand and identify with the speaker. Another literary device which Frost uses in this poem to give it a real-life touch, and emphasize the importance of choices in our life, is his use of diction. The common everyday words that he uses, give the poem a realistic quality, and while this relates it to peoples’ everyday experience, also gives it a serious feel. For example, his choice of words such as â€Å"sorry†, â€Å"perhaps† and â€Å"really about the same† are important in conveying the simple, yet serious matter he is talking about, because he is speaking in a simple, yet serious way. Along with the diction, tone also plays an important role in the poem. A conversational tone is adopted throughout, and this lends great credibility to the words that are spoken. The conversational tone is a positive one, because though the speaker is talking about the past, he is not nostalgic. The tone serves to reinforce the theme, of making choices and their effects on later life, in a very positive way. The speaker is happy, and realizes that his decision earlier in life is what has influenced his later life. He conveys his satisfaction through his tone, especially in the second stanza and when he says â€Å"I shall be telling this with a sigh† (a sigh, most probably, of contentment). Such a tone is often achieved by repetition—not of a kind in which entire lines are repeated, but in which certain words recur. For example, the word ‘traveler’ occurs in line 3, right after ‘travel’ in line 2. Other examples include ‘way leads on to way’, ‘ages and ages’, and the recurring ‘I’ in the last stanza. Such repetition gives validity to speech, because it seems normal, with a word being spoken again just to emphasize, or starting a sentence, then breaking off, then beginning again. This happens in everyday speech, and thus this technique helps in developing the conversational tone. The repetition is, however, not only found in the recurrence of words. It is also felt in the steady a, b, a, a, b rhyme scheme, which, though different in each stanza, retains its similar quality throughout. Such deliberate rhyming does not, as it would seem, give artificiality. To the contrary, it serves to re-enhance the smooth, steady pace of the poem and helps bring out the theme even more—the theme of understanding and accepting that our choices greatly affect us. Frost’s ‘choice’ of a definite structure, as felt through the rhyme scheme is also an important literary device he makes use of. The poem is divided into four distinct stanzas, but there is also another sort of division. The first three stanzas are fused together as one part, with the second and third stanzas joined to the preceding one with the words â€Å"Then† and â€Å"And† respectively. Stanza 4, however, constitutes the second part of the poem itself. The last stanza is very obviously set apart from the rest of the poem, and this is to emphasize its importance. It is in this stanza that Frost tells about his choice and how â€Å"it has made all the difference†, and thus gives us his (implicit) statement about the choices one makes and the effects they have on a person’s life. The realization that his choice has influenced his life to such an extent, is also apparent in the title Frost has chosen for his poem. â€Å"The Road Not Taken†, as the name itself suggests, is about the option which he did not take up, when making a decision. This is evident in the poem too, when he contemplates upon the road that he did not take, â€Å"look[ing] down† it as â€Å"far as [he] could†, and then suddenly (he abruptly uses the word â€Å"Then†) takes the other. On the whole, the poem conveys the theme of choices bearing a strong effect on a person’s later life, very effectively. Though each line or each stanza might not lead to an immediate understanding of this theme, all the devices Robert Frost uses in his poem contribute to the readers’ appreciation of it. Appreciation is, after all, the first step to understanding, and this appreciation was, after all, brought on by Frost’s â€Å"choices†.

A Reflective Paper On The Importance On Teamwork Nursing Essay

A Reflective Paper On The Importance On Teamwork Nursing Essay What is a team work? Team work can be defined as when actions of individuals are brought together for the purpose of a common goal. Each person in a team puts his efforts to achieve the objectives of large group. Teams make efforts to achieve the success but not necessarily the success is achieved every time. Within a team every member plays a role to achieve the teams objectives. These roles add new and important dimensions to interactions of team members. Bruce Tuckmans team development theory provides a way to tackle the tasks of making a team through the completion of the project. On the part of the team every member played an important role to achieve the success at the end of semester. Our planning (or worrying about) whats happening next gives us little opportunity or inclination to examine what has just passed (Wallace, 2005). Writing from the angle of teacher student and team member relationships, it was appropriate to look then above quote. I believe that many students in a team hesitate to step further for their next action during the proceeding of project. I need to be reflective in my action for the future performance in a team. Groups of employees who have at least some collective tasks and where the team members are authorised to regulate mutually the execution of these collective tasks (Delarue, 2003). Group work is defined by a common task requiring interdependent work and successive or integrative action (Hacker, 1998). Belbin (1981) developed a model on team roles which was extended in Belbins (1993) publication. On the basis of the Belbins model the team performance can be observed when a winning or losing task is set for the team. Each member with assigned role balances the team role in a group and strong representation of all roles is predicted with high performance. I have experienced the same the role of every member in my team. Belbin makes a difference between two terms team role and functional role. It is necessary for a team to keep the optimum balance both in functional roles and team roles. On the other hands the Tuckmans theory describes the four stages of small group development as forming, storming, norming and performing. However a fifth stage of adjourning was added which involves the completion of tasks, termination of roles and dissolution of groups. Belbins theory is helpful to identify the different types of the teams; the characteristics define the work of the four categories. This model explains that during the team developments conflicts and interpersonal issues are found there and team development is dependent on the quality communication and relationship maturity with better performance. In traditional setting this model is useful for many practitioners and team leaders. According to this model all members work at the same place and are engaged in predefined work. This model works at the micro level of teams when new tasks are introduced and people involved have worked together not for long time. Belbin (1981) saying that not a single individual may have all the qualities to accomplish the total corporate role is totally right. An individual in a team is assigned his role of his choice and is avoided to perform the roles which are not in his abilities. Belbin also formulated the concept of roles in a team and their contribution of characteristic personalities and abilities in a team. The success of a team is the result of combination of team roles in it. The roles identified by the Belbin are lesser or greater extent shape the individual roles in a team. I am agreed with these nine roles explained by Belbin; all the nine roles are not necessary to achieve the success. I think that five roles are sufficient to achieve the success as some roles are doubled up for example a specialist role can be performed by a Plants role included in nine roles of Belbin. A project in beginning needs the ideas, concept and contacts so the roles of Plants and Resource are more valued at that oc casion. When the project is completed the roles of implementers and completer have their own place in a team. The Belbin theory allows every role to play a secondary role in a team. The secondary role possesses the second higher skills in results. In this way a role can perform more than one function to become a secondary role player in a team. In this work I want to reflect the situation taken place during the last semester to develop and utilize my personal skills needed to maintain the relationships with other team members. Gibbs (1988) Reflective cycle is used to reflect in an effective way. I am using this model because it is a recognized framework for my reflection. Gibbs (1988) contains six stages to complete the cycle which improves my personal skills continuously and learning for the best practices in future. As Gibbs cycle moves forward the first stage describes the situation where the team members work together, next stage looks the feelings of members about the work and third stage involves the analysis of the feelings of team members. The fourth stage is the analysis to make the sense of experience, 5th stage includes the outcome of team work and the final stage involves the action plan for the situation if it arose again. This kind of reflection generated the practice knowledge which assisted me to work with m y team members and adapt the new situation during the work. The team work generated a sense of satisfaction and developed professional practices. My team work encouraged me to learn from the mistakes and behavior and looked at the perspectives of other members in team. It was important for me to build the team member relationship with other team fellows. I established a mutual understanding and trust with other team members. Bound (1996) has stated that reflection is prompted by its positive states. He gives examples of a completion of a task which was thought impossible previously. I think that I have showed this sort of reflection during my last semester. Team work faces many challenges as the Watson (1995) says that teamwork is not a smooth path individualistic behavior, competitive, personality imbalances and cultural, philosophical, gender differences are all risks. I have seen these negative aspects of teamwork provided me learning opportunities when I was asked to do a differ ently next time. There existed the cultural and language differences among the team members. Therefore many learning activities were organized as a group but the challenges of language and cultural differences resisted producing the expected results. Students in a group varied due to academic levels and many of them were unable to embrace the other cultures. Language differences also impacted our teamwork due to language handling conflicts. The positive points of teamwork are enormous as being a team member I have shared the resources, success glory and burden failure. We have talked on various topics relevant to our project during the last session. I have respected my team members, their ideas and feelings. At the start of the project,t team members agreed upon the team objectives and enabled us to make consensus on the aims, and minimized distraction from other issues. An agenda was prepared before every meeting and circulated to every member of the team during the session. It inc luded the venue, time and duration of the meeting and discussed the supporting materials at the meeting. It was impossible to solve the problems lonely. I inter-acted my team members which was vital for the team success. Our team leader addressed the team dynamics and created a culture of the creativity. I was a big part of my team to remove the barriers to generate the new ideas and encouraged all members and also supported them. Conclusions In this reflective paper the pros and cons of a team member are discussed with perspectives of Belbin and Gibbs theories. One very positive spin-off from this reflective essay is that now I am able to get further insights into processes and deliberations of each team. Overall it has been very learning experience for me and I have welcomed every my team members with different cultures and languages. A comparison of Belbins theory and Tuckmans theory is part of this paper. Belbins model is based upon the team roles while Tuckmans model tells us about team development process. Gibbs Reflective cycle is a role model to work within team and is described with its stages to improve my personal skills for the future work in a team. To keep the team more effective I must provide more opportunities and challenges and help my team members to plan their careers based on the projected organizational needs. By creating an organizational environment, openness and energies I can expect to attract th e vital team members which are major part of the keys to my future. Teamwork allows me to be involved and participate in equal ways, sharing equal ideas. This helps to broaden my thinking to achieve the best outcomes.(Griffith Graduate, 2003).

Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS)

Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS) Nguyen Ngoc Gia Linh Case Study the Wasp Sting Wasps are the order Hymenoptera family which contain venom and poisonous substance can have transmitted to human through a sting (Carl and Max 2016). A 10- year- old girl in the case was stung by a wasp while playing at school. For approximately 20 hours, she had an asymptomatic that includes sharp pain, burning in the initial sensation, redness, swelling and itching. Because the wasps venom contains phospholipase A, phospholipase B and mastoparan peptide which effect directly to mast cell degranulation and also release of histamine. In addition, ischemia increases the inflammatory response with subsequent vasodilation and increases capillary permeability with redness at the site of the sting to the patient (Carl and Max 2016). Unfortunately, the patient passed away on day 5 due to systemic inflammatory response syndrome and hypersensitivity. This report will focus on explanation of the innate immune reaction which can disrupt the normal function of each the several stated physiologi cal systems during the development of systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS). An innate immune system is the adaptive immune responses which can be maintained activation of a pathogen and made of defences against infection (KhanAcademy 2014). There are many types of cell in the innate immune system in order to work together for defendant and protection human body. However, the progression requires in both elements of cellular immunity and humoral immunity. The cellular components consist of lymphocytes with both T cells (CD4+ and CD8+) and B cells; macrophages; and mast cells. On the other hand, the humoral factors include immunoglobulin E (IgE) and cytokines (Carl and Max 2016). Moreover, the group of blood protein act as disruption of the membranes microorganism to produce an inflammatory response and to arrange the forces of the adaptive immune system (Alberts et al. 2002). In this situation, the most influence is mast cells which are found in mucous membranes, connect tissues to heal wound and defence the pathogens via the inflammatory response. Basically, when mast cells are activated, the particle cytokines are released during this process which contains chemical molecules such as histamine, phospholipases, and neurotoxins to produce an inflammatory cascade and act as messenger service or warning for circulating threats (Zhang and An 2009). Some of the venoms of hymenopterous insects include bees, wasps which contain some of the enzymes such as small proteins and peptides; phospholipases and histamine (Voronov et al. 1999). Histamine is going to play a pathophysiological regulatory role in cellular for binding four subtypes of G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCR). Furthermore, histamine produces many of the effects of inflammatory and hypersensitivity that affect increased vascular permeability and smooth muscle contraction. Some above classic symptoms lead to the signs of allergic reaction which cause inducing increased blood flow from capillaries into the tissues and vasodilatation (Benly 2015). In addition, smooth muscles are arou nd the trachea that is contracted by histamine to make difficulty breathe or suffocation (Lauren 2012). However, the dangerous circumstance with the patient makes lots of IgE antibodies in response to wasp toxins that can cause triggers degranulation of mast cells. In such a case, the release blood fluid into the tissues reduces the blood volume that the heart induces inefficiently pump and create a heart attack. The innate immune response such as systemic inflammatory response syndrome-SIRS disrupts the homeostatic function of following three main systems that include respiratory system, cardiovascular system and renal system. Firstly, a girl patient was diagnosed with SIRS that include reference to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) or acute lung injury (ALI). ALI and ARDS occur on hypoxia, hypercapnia, acidosis and pulmonary hypertension. These were defined a pulmonary endothelial dysfunction that caused alveolar oedema because of high protein secretion and phagocytic immune cells (Janet et al. 2014). The activity of neutrophils are increased the high concentrations of pro- inflammatory cytokines to migrate damaged endothelium that influence alveolar denudation damage the basal membrane (Janet et al. 2014). Neutrophils are in the lungs which effect of IL-8 and the concentration of cytokine in patients with ARDS is correlated with mortality. Blood carries oxygen and other essential substances to your organs and tissues. However, when the gas exchange functions are failed in oxygenation and carbon dioxide elimination, these are classified hypoxia and hypercapnia. Hypoxia is characterised by an arterial oxygen tension (PaO2) which is lower than 60 mm Hg. Hypercapnia respiratory failure is characterized by a PaCO2 that is higher than 50 mm Hg (David 2000). On the other hand, the decreased blood supply to various cells and tissues due to tissues hypoxia that leads increase in respiratory rate to take in more oxygen. Consequently, the patient was increased respiratory rate of 59 breaths per minute (normally breath rate is 15- 30 breaths per minute with 6- 10 years old) (Edward 2015). Normally, the blood oxygen saturation is 95%- 100%, but the patient got below 90% oxygen. There must not be able to take up the oxygen for inhaling and carbon dioxide for exhaling. In addition, the lungs in ARDS also affect to brain functions that the patient becomes confused and disor iented. In this conditions, concentrating ability are impaired and it also lost awareness of time and place because blood flow significantly reduce and the ability of oxygen absorption is also limited. In this case, the girl administrated of chlorpheniramine maleate which had some of the side effects such as drowsiness, dizziness, or headache. Moreover, certain human disorders are attributed to the activity of the immune system that is commonly known as hypersensitivities. Both the heart and blood vessels are sensitive to cause vasodilatation in SIRS that act on histamine H1-receptors of dilation in blood vessels. In hypovolemia, tachycardia is initiated as a response in acting on H2- receptors where the blood volume decreases (Benly 2015).When the patient suffers around 124 beats per minute in heart rate and the vasoconstriction decrease which is moderate tachycardia or known as stage 3 of hypovolemic shock. As a result, the patients exhibited a weak peripheral pulse and an unrecordable blood pressure because the ventricles do not have enough time to fill with blood before heart contracts. In systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), organ dysfunction and high- risk factors for multiple organ failures influent renal failure. The circulatory dysfunction of acute renal failure is involved both vascular and tubular factor that reduce in renal blood flow with falling oxygen and substrate delivery to the tubule cells (Robert et al. 2004). On the other hand, the creatinine will be released by the muscle cells and transported to the kidneys to be excreted from the body in urine. The kidney failure causes high urinary creatinine level and obstructions within the urinary tract. Base on all the symptoms, the girl is immediate hypersensitivities, which is severe response to an antigen. Sensitization to an allergen during the initial exposure leads to the production of large immunoglobulin E (IgE) which is mediated release of histamine and other mediators from mast cells and basophils (Frederic et al. 2015). Moreover, the patient used two kinds of drugs: chlorpheniramine maleate and dexamethasone, which did not work with patients symptoms. Chlorpheniramine maleate is the most widely used of the classical antihistamine that used in allergic reactions. And, dexamethasone is investigated that the effect of glucocorticoids and blocked a natural chemical during an allergic rejection. However, hypersensitivity is a contraindication in both dexamethasone and chlorpheniramine maleate, so the patient should not take these when she has serious symptoms (TabletWise). Basically, there is no cure for hypersensitivity disease but the treatment strategy is controlling the symptom. Although type I hypersensitivity reactions can cause significantly inconvenience in terms of their signs and symptoms. However, the most important medication has been shown to use along with emergency medical treatment of hypersensitivity that is epinephrine (Becky 2015). Epinephrine is in a class of medications called ÃŽÂ ±- and ÃŽÂ ²-adrenergic agonists which it works by relaxing the muscles in the airways and tightening the blood vessels. Normally, it is injected at the first sign of a serious reaction subcutaneously (under the skin) or intramuscularly (into the muscle). It should inject when patient is suspected about some serious signs of allergic reaction include itching, swelling, skin redness, fast heart beat, weak pulse, confusion, and losing control of urine (Epinephrine Injection). References: Alberts, B., Johnson, A., Lewis, J., et al. (2002) Innate Immunity. in Molecular Biology of the Cell. 4th edition. [online] available from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK26846/ > [22 March 2016] Benly, P. (2015) Role of Histamine in Acute Inflammation Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research [online] avalible from http://www.jpsr.pharmainfo.in/Documents/Volumes/vol7Issue06/jpsr07061526.pdf > [22 March 2016] Becky, B. (2015) Immediate Hypersensitivity Reactions Treatment Management. Medscape [online] available from http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/136217-treatment > [22 March 2016] Carl, A., and Max, V. (2016) Wasp Stings: Background, Pathophysiology, Epidemiology. Medscape.com. [online] available from http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/169324-overview#a6 > [22 March 2016] Edward, C. (2015) Normal Vital Signs Medscape [online] available from http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/2172054-overview > [22 March 2016] Innate immunity (2014) KhanAcademy [online] available from https://www.khanacademy.org/test-prep/mcat/organ-systems/the-immune-system/a/innate-immunity > [22 March 2016] Janet, M., Mark, J., Yen, C., Antonio, B., Karim, B., Elizabeth, J., Leo, K., Paul, K., Richard, J. (2014) The systemic immune response to trauma: an overview of pathophysiology and treatment. The Lancet [online] available from http://thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(14)60687-5/fulltext > [22 March 2016] Zhang, J and An, J. (2009) Cytokines, Inflammation and Pain. HHS Public Access [online] available from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2785020/ > [22 March 2016]

Explain the formation and the break down of the First Triumvirate :: Ancient Rome Roman History

Explain the formation and the break down of the First Triumvirate The formation of the First Triumvirate took place because of the political motives and the personal motives of the three ruthlessly ambitious power brokers in Rome. These men required the co-operation of the other two in order to further their political careers. During the time of the First Triumvirate many extraordinary powers where obtained and in some cases these where unprecedented. There are some key factors that have to be considered towards the break down of the Triumvirate. The most powerful and influential people, the Optimates became increasingly dis empowered, and a sense of desperation to regain power is felt with the use of Pompey in an a final attempt to restore power to the Senate. "By uncompromising refusal to meet the demands of Pompey, Caesar and Crassus the senate naturally drove them into each others arms. The three men agreed to form a political amicitia ....." Pompey upon return from his successful campaign in the East, disbanded his army probably to diffuse tension in Rome and prove to the Optimates in Rome he had no intention of over throwing the Government. This suggests Pompey's political naivety and the fact that Pompey thought he had done enough in order to get recognition and acceptance from the Optimates to gain land for his veterans and to have his innumerable arrangements in the East ratified. Cato also refused Pompey's offer of marriage to one of his nieces. According to Bradley "Cato was a staunch conservative, and distrusted Pompey's motives" Crassus had a problem with his supporters. He supported a request from a company of tax gatherers (Equites), that after realizing Asia had been economically raped, and virtually un-taxable due to the Mithradatic campaign, could not possibly make money from taxes, so the request he supported is that the Senate should adjust the bad bargain to on a third rebate which they had made in contracting for the taxes of Asia. This request according to Scullard was rejected under Cato's leadership which had led to the stagnation of Crassus' political career. Thus Crassus needed some support of Pompey and Caesar to kick start his career and eventually lead to the formation of the First Triumvirate. Caesar, who had been Propraetor in Spain during, 61BC, hoped to return to Rome in 60BC and stand for the consulship for the following year.

Theories of Post-Coloniality: Edward W. Said and W.B. Yeats :: Essays Papers

Theories of Post-Coloniality: Edward W. Said and W.B. Yeats (Citations from Said’s essay â€Å"Yeats and Decolonization† as published by Bay Press, not the Field Day pamphlet) Post-colonial theory, a mode of thought which accepts European Imperialism as a historical fact and attempts to address nations touched by colonial enterprises, has as yet failed to adequately consider Ireland as a post-colonial nation. Undoubtedly, Ireland is a post-colonial nation (where ‘post-’colonial refers to any consequence of colonial contact) with a body of literary work that may be read productively as post-colonial. Although colonialism, as a subject for Irish criticism and theory, has been tentatively broached (for example, see Celtic Revivals (1985) by Seamus Deane) Edward Said’s lecture â€Å"Yeats and Decolonization†, published as a pamphlet by Field Day in 1988, was an important catalyst for post-colonial study of Irish literature and culture. The premise of this now seminal study is that Yeats was a poet of decolonisation, a muse expressing the Irish experience of the dominant colonial power of Britain. Rather than reading Yeats’s poetry from the conventional perspective of high European modernism Said explains that â€Å"he appears to me, and I am sure many others in the Third World, to belong naturally to the other cultural domain† (3). Using this as his point of departure, Said enters into a line of argument which claims that Yeats was a central figure in debating and asserting an overt drive towards the construction of a national Irish identity as a vital act of decolonisation. Further, Said places Yeats within a global framework of anti-Imperialism, drawing parallels between the Irish poet and Third world writers and theorists such as Fanon, Neruda and Achebe. Though an incredibly influential essay, the reverberations of which may still be felt in Inventing Ireland and other texts, it is also a work that demands close analysis and is replete with short-sighted and ill-informed ideas. Said locates Ireland among territories like India, South America, Africa and Malaysia as a site of colonial contention. In doing so he emphasises Ireland’s role, and thus Irish literature, in colonial history as a member of the peripheral (from a Eurocentric viewpoint) Third World. According to this â€Å"bog dwellers† are paralleled as the Irish counterpart to â€Å"innumerable niggers, .... babus and wogs† (6). Yet, this argument, in retrospect, does not hold. Denis Donoghue (â€Å"Confusion in Irish Studies†) has explicitly condemned post-colonial theory for adopting a global paradigm of colonial experience as a discourse which treats all Empires as homogenous.

Reflection on Beauty Practices

Beauty has been defined in many ways. In some cultures beauty is everything, its what makes them who they are and in some cases represents where they come from. For example in America white teeth and pink gums are desired to fulfill a beautiful smile; however the women of Senegal and the Philippines believe this is not true. To beautify their smiles, Senegalese tattoos their gums black, and the women of the B’laan tribe file and blacken their teeth. These women also convinced themselves that they are not only beautifying their smiles, however they are also maintaining dental hygiene.Some cultures are willing to go through pain to fulfill their idea of beauty. For example the women of china bound their feet to be more desirable to men. This process was extremely painful, their toenails were cut very short and their toes were curled under the sole of their feet until they were broken. This procedure limited women in their daily tasks. Tattooing of the gums in Senegal is also an extremely painful procedure. In order to achieve black gums one must go through excruciating pain, needles are repeatedly inserted in a rapid pace with black ink.About seven layers are ideal to achieve this desired look. Viewing these videos has giving me a better understanding of beauty in different cultures, and even though beauty is mostly shown on the outside it can also have a huge mental affect on people. I have also learned that cultural beauty tactics that has been passed down from generation to generation can also come to an end at times. It can be rather upsetting to the older generation, however it cannot be avoided, for generation can also change with time.

Discuss Naturalism and the Importance of the Dog to Understand the Theme in “To Build a Fire”

Chad Mead April 5, 2013 ENGL-227 World Fiction Discuss Naturalism and the Importance of the Dog to Understand the Theme. The author of this short story is none other than Jack London. One of the most influential novelists of his age, Jack London was the author who wrote â€Å"Call of the Wild† and â€Å"White Fang†. Both books were excellent and even share some similarities with the story, â€Å"To Build a Fire†, which is the story we are going to discuss. â€Å"To Build a Fire† is a story of a man fighting the harsh weather of the Yukon with only his dog, where he is ultimately defeated by it. Also read The Story of an Eyewitness Essay AnalysisThis story has a strong Naturalistic presence in it, and shows it primarily through the means of the man’s dog. Through this style of writing, we begin to understand that this story is about survival in the wilderness using one’s instinct rather than sheer will. Naturalism is a type of writing style that is direct, no sugarcoated words, and shows us the harsh realities of daily life. Jack London used naturalism, the most realistic literary movement, to show how violent and uncaring nature really is, and how no matter what you do- nature will always be there. This is where the dog comes in as naturalism’s main contributor.The first time the dog is introduced in this story, it was described as submissive yet questionable, in regards to the man’s unwonted actions towards not building a fire or not finding shelter from the cold. The reason the author gives us as to why the dog is questionable is because  "the brute had its instinct. † (Jack London 655). Just from that one line the author gave, it showed that the dog and the man would have two contrasting roles to play in his story. The dog embodies pure instinct, who only wants to survive the harsh, cold weather by lying next to a fire or in a shelter.The man, adversely, shows us willpower because he does not wish to build a fire or find a shelter, but only seeks to push through the cold weather to get to his camp and â€Å"The Boys†. This shows us the beginning of the differentiation between instinct and will, and it only gets stronger from then on. The second appearance of the dog is when the man stops for the first time to build a fire and eat his lunch. When the man finished eating and smoking his pipe, he started along the trail back to his camp again, with the dog, leaving the fire behind. As soon as this happens the dog is mentioned in a long dialogue about how it earns to return towards the fire, and how the man did not know what real cold was. The line that really identifies with naturalism was that, â€Å"The dog knew cold; all its ancestry knew, and it had inherited the knowledge† (658). Through the dog’s environment and instinct, it knew what to do to survive a climate that it had known its entire life, and then some. The man, however, was described as the polar opposite of the dog, as â€Å"the man who did not know cold and possibly all the generations of his ancestry had been ignorant of cold† (658). This distinction between the two is now very evident, which brings up the turning point in the story.The last appearance of the dog with the man is when the man is at the point of freezing to death, because he had dropped into water and did not succeed in building a fire. The man starts up a plan to kill the dog and use its entrails to warm himself up. This is the part of the story where it truly becomes survival of the fittest, because the man is on the verge of dea th so he starts to depend more on his instinct to survive rather than his willpower. The man decided to carry out his plan and began calling to the dog, however, in the man’s voice, there was fear.As soon as we read that the man is so afraid that it can be heard in his voice, the dog recognizes it immediately. â€Å"Something was the matter, and its suspicious nature sensed danger-it knew not what danger, somewhere, somehow, in its brain arose an apprehension of the man† (662). Throughout the whole story, the dog follows the man, even if sometimes it did not wish to. With one sudden change in the man’s behavior, the dog instinctively knows that something is amiss. The man also realizes that the dog is scared of him because of his new attitude, so he tries his best to remain calm and calls for the dog once more.This time the man tricked the dog, however it was already too late for the man to rely on his instinct rather than his will; he could no longer clutch any thing with his frost-bitten fingers to try and kill the dog with. In the end, through the naturalistic story telling of the famous author Jack London, we can ascertain that when it comes to survival in the wilderness, it is best to survive on instinct rather than ones willpower. Mother Nature will not accept the will of fools who are not afraid of, or do not respect her power.