Life of Pi (Unabridged) by Yann Martel Essay -- Life of Pi Unabridge

The son of a zookeeper, Pi Patel has an encyclopedic knowledge of animal behavior and a fervent love of stories. When Pi is sixteen, his family emigrates from India to North America aboard a Japanese cargo ship, along with their zoo animals bound for new homes. The ship sinks. Pi finds himself alone in a lifeboat, his only companions a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra, and Richard Parker, a 450-pound Bengal tiger. Soon the tiger has dispatched all but Pi, whose fear, knowledge, and cunning allow him to coexist with Richard Parker for 227 days while lost at sea. When they finally reach the coast of Mexico, Richard Parker flees to the jungle, never to be seen again. The Japanese authorities that interrogate Pi refuse to believe his story and press him to tell them "the truth." After hours of coercion, Pi tells a second story, a story much less fantastical, much more conventional — but is it more true? Pi, short for Piscine Molitor Patel, is a young Indian boy growing up in South India in the 1970's. His father owns a zoo and, with increasing political unrest in India, decides to sell up and emigrate to Canada. They accompany the wild animals on board the ship on their journey to the new zoos in North America. The ship sinks and Pi finds himself the only human survivor onboard a life raft that contains, rather remarkably, a zebra, a large motherly orangutan, a frenzied hyena and a 450-pound Bengal tiger. Of course, the law of nature eventually rules and Pi ends up as the tiger's last remaining occupant. He must use all his knowledge of zoology and animal behavior to create boundaries and survive. Which he does for 227 days. In Pondicherry, India, Piscine â€Å"Pi† Patel enjoys his childhood as the son of the local zookeeper means plenty of fun things to do. In that role, Pi learns a great deal about the wild beasts that his father keeps. Though a Hindu, Pi also finds pleasure in learning about Christianity and Islam and willingly practices the three belief systems over the objections of his family and religious leaders. Now sixteen, Pi's father decides to relocate to Canada. His dad sells most of the animals, but takes a few with them on their sea voyage. However, disaster strikes with the ship sinking. Pi accompanied by a hyena, an orangutan, a zebra and Richard Parker the 450-pound Bengal share a raft. Richard eliminates the other animals leav... ...mingly endless sea. Soon after, at long last, he reaches land. He attains Enlightenment. The tiger bounds off into the jungle-- Pi's suffering is released completely. He is nursed back to health and lives a relative normal life, with the distinction that his experience has fully awakened him. He walks as a true adult among the many spiritual children of the world. He still has the normal problems, challenges, and disappointments of life; Enlightenment does not mean everything is perfect. But Pi can bring forth what is needed in each moment, and does not suffer from the pains, failures, and sorrows of being human. He lives through them without getting caught in them. (Similarly, he is fully awake for all the wonderful pleasures and intimacies of life. And in all occurrences, he brings a deep compassion and love for all beings). The best part of the story is the end. (Stop reading if you don't want to know). This is a true story. It doesn't need all the longwinded interpretation you just read. It stands on its own as truth. Maybe it's just a story of a boy and a tiger on a boat. Either way, Pi Patel shows us the compelling power of the human spirit in the face of deep suffering.

Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Chapter 18

Chapter 18 I have been out among you, eating and talking and walking and walking and walking, for hours without having to turn because of a wall in my way. The angel woke me this morning with a new set of clothes, strange to the feel but familiar to the sight (from television). Jeans, sweatshirt, and sneakers, as well as some socks and boxer shorts. â€Å"Put these on. I'm taking you out for a walk,† said Raziel. â€Å"As if I were a dog,† I said. â€Å"Exactly as if you were a dog.† The angel was also wearing modern American garb, and although he was still strikingly handsome, he looked so uncomfortable that the clothes might have been held to his body with flaming spikes. â€Å"Where are we going?† â€Å"I told you, out.† â€Å"Where did you get the clothes?† â€Å"I called down and Jesus brought them up. There is a clothing store in the hotel. Come now.† Raziel closed the door behind us and put the room key in his jeans pocket with the money. I wondered if he'd ever had pockets before. I wouldn't have thought to use them. I didn't say a word as we rode the elevator down to the lobby and made our way out the front doors. I didn't want to ruin it, to say something that would bring the angel to his senses. The noise in the street was glorious: the cars, the jackhammers, the insane people babbling to themselves. The light! The smells! I felt as if I must have been in shock when we first traveled here from Jerusalem. I didn't remember it being so vivid. I started to skip down the street and the angel caught me by the shoulder; his fingers dug into my muscles like talons. â€Å"You know that you can't get away, that if you run I can catch you and snap your legs so you will never run again. You know that if you should escape even for a few minutes, you cannot hide from me. You know that I can find you, as I once found everyone of your kind? You know these things?† â€Å"Yes, let go of me. Let's walk.† â€Å"I hate walking. Have you ever seen an eagle look at a pigeon? That's how I feel about you and your walking.† I should point out, I suppose, what Raziel was talking about when he said that he once found everyone of my kind. It seems that he did a stint, centuries ago, as the Angel of Death, but was relieved of his duties because he was not particularly good at them. He admits that he's a sucker for a hard-luck story (perhaps that explains his fascination with soap operas). Anyway, when you read in the Torah about Noah living to be nine hundred and Moses living to be a hundred and forty, well, guess who led the chorus line in the â€Å"Off This Mortal Coil† shuffle? That's where he got the black-winged aspect that I've talked about before. Even though they fired him, they let him keep the outfit. (Can you believe that Noah was able to postpone death for eight hundred years by telling the angel that he was behind in his paperwork? Would that Raziel could be that incompetent at his current task.) â€Å"Look, Raziel! Pizza!† I pointed to a sign. â€Å"Buy us pizza!† He took some money out of his pocket and handed it to me. â€Å"You do it. You can do it, right?† â€Å"Yes, we had commerce in my time,† I said sarcastically. â€Å"We didn't have pizza, but we had commerce.† â€Å"Good, can you use that machine?† He pointed to a box that held newspapers behind glass. â€Å"If it doesn't open with that little handle, then no.† The angel looked perturbed. â€Å"How is it that you can receive the gift of tongues and suddenly understand all languages, and there is no gift that can tell you how things work in this time? Tell me that.† â€Å"Look, maybe if you didn't hog the remote all the time I would learn how to use these things.† I meant that I could have learned more about the outside world from television, but Raziel thought I meant that I needed more practice pushing the channel buttons. â€Å"Knowing how to use the television isn't enough. You have to know how everything in this world works.† And with that the angel turned and stared through the window of the pizza place at the men tossing disks of dough into the air. â€Å"Why, Raziel? Why do I need to know about how this world works? If anything, you've tried to keep me from learning anything.† â€Å"Not anymore. Let's go eat pizza.† â€Å"Raziel?† He wouldn't explain any further, but for the rest of the day we wandered the city, spending money, talking to people, learning. In the late afternoon Raziel inquired of a bus driver as to where we might go to meet Spider-Man. I could have gone another two thousand years without seeing the kind of disappointment I saw on Raziel's face when the bus driver gave his answer. We returned here to the room where Raziel said, â€Å"I miss destroying cities full of humans.† â€Å"I know what you mean,† I said, even though it was my best friend who had caused that sort of thing to go out of fashion, and not a moment too soon. But the angel needed to hear it. There's a difference between bearing false witness and saving someone's feelings. Even Joshua knew that. â€Å"Joshua, you're scaring me,† I said, talking to the disembodied voice that floated before me in the temple. â€Å"Where are you?† â€Å"I am everywhere and nowhere,† Joshua's voice said. â€Å"How come your voice is in front of me then?† I didn't like this at all. Yes, my years with Joshua had jaded me in regard to supernatural experiences, but my meditation hadn't yet brought me to the place where I wouldn't react to my friend being invisible. â€Å"I suppose it is the nature of a voice that it must come from somewhere, but only so that it may be let go.† Gaspar had been sitting in the temple and at the sound of our voices he rose and came over to me. He didn't appear to be angry, but then, he never did. â€Å"Why?† Gaspar said to me, meaning, Why are you talking and disturbing everyone's meditation with your infernal noise, you barbarian? â€Å"Joshua has attained enlightenment,† I said. Gaspar said nothing, meaning, So? That's the idea, you unworthy spawn of a razor-burned yak. I could tell that's what he meant by the tone in his voice. â€Å"So he's invisible.† â€Å"Mu,† Joshua's voice said. Mu meaning nothing beyond nothingness in Chinese. In an act of distinctly uncontrolled spontaneity, Gaspar screamed like a little girl and jumped four feet straight in the air. Monks stopped chanting and looked up. â€Å"What was that?† â€Å"That's Joshua.† â€Å"I am free of self, free of ego,† Joshua said. There was a little squeak and then a nasty stench infused us. I looked at Gaspar and he shook his head. He looked at me and I shrugged. â€Å"Was that you?† Gaspar asked Joshua. â€Å"Me in the sense that I am part of all things, or me in the sense of I am the one who poofed the gefilte gas?† asked Josh. â€Å"The latter,† said Gaspar. â€Å"No,† said Josh. â€Å"You lie,† I said, as amazed at that as I was at the fact that I couldn't see my friend. â€Å"I should stop talking now. Having a voice separates me from all that is.† With that he was quiet, and Gaspar looked as if he were about to panic. â€Å"Don't go away, Joshua,† the abbot said. â€Å"Stay as you are if you must, but come to the tea chamber at dawn tomorrow.† Gaspar looked to me. â€Å"You come too.† â€Å"I have to train on the poles in the morning,† I said. â€Å"You are excused,† Gaspar said. â€Å"And if Joshua talks to you anymore tonight, try to persuade him to share our existence.† Then he hurried off in a very unenlightened way. That night I was falling asleep when I heard a squeak in the hall outside of my cell, then an incredibly foul odor jolted me awake. â€Å"Joshua?† I crawled out of my cell into the hall. There were narrow slots high in the walls through which moonlight could sift, but I saw nothing but faint blue light on the stone. â€Å"Joshua, is that you?† â€Å"How could you tell?† Joshua's disembodied voice said. â€Å"Well, honestly, you stink, Josh.† â€Å"The last time we went to the village for alms, a woman gave Number Fourteen and me a thousand-year-old egg. It didn't sit well.† â€Å"Can't imagine why. I don't think you're supposed to eat an egg after, oh, two hundred years or so.† â€Å"They bury them, leave them there, then dig them up.† â€Å"Is that why I can't see you?† â€Å"No, that's because of my meditation. I've let go of everything. I've achieved perfect freedom.† â€Å"You've been free ever since we left Galilee.† â€Å"It's not the same. That's what I came to tell you, that I can't free our people from the rule of Romans.† â€Å"Why not?† â€Å"Because that's not true freedom. Any freedom that can be given can be taken away. Moses didn't need to ask Pharaoh to release our people, our people didn't need to be released from the Babylonians, and they don't need to be released from the Romans. I can't give them freedom. Freedom is in their hearts, they merely have to find it.† â€Å"So you're saying you're not the Messiah?† â€Å"How can I be? How can a humble being presume to grant something that is not his to give?† â€Å"If not you, who, Josh? Angels and miracles, your ability to heal and comfort? Who else is chosen if not you?† â€Å"I don't know. I don't know anything. I wanted to say good-bye. I'll be with you, as part of all things, but you won't perceive me until you become enlightened. You can't imagine how this feels, Biff. You are everything, you love everything, you need nothing.† â€Å"Okay. You won't be needing your shoes then, right?† â€Å"Possessions stand between you and freedom.† â€Å"Sounded like a yes to me. Do me one favor though, okay?† â€Å"Of course.† â€Å"Listen to what Gaspar has to say to you tomorrow.† And give me time to think up an intelligent answer to someone who's invisible and crazy, I thought to myself. Joshua was innocent, but he wasn't stupid. I had to come up with something to save the Messiah so he could save the rest of us. â€Å"I'm going to the temple to sit. I'll see you in the morning.† â€Å"Not if I see you first.† â€Å"Funny,† said Josh. Gaspar looked especially old that morning when I met him in the tea room. His personal quarters consisted of a cell no bigger than my own, but it was located just off the tea room and had a door which he could close. It was cold in the morning in the monastery and I could see our breath as Gaspar boiled the water for tea. Soon I saw a third puff of breath coming from my side of the table, although there was no person there. â€Å"Good morning, Joshua,† Gaspar said. â€Å"Did you sleep, or are you free from that need?† â€Å"No, I don't need sleep anymore,† said Josh. â€Å"You'll excuse Twenty-one and I, as we still require nourishment.† Gaspar poured us some tea and fetched two rice balls from a shelf where he kept the tea. He held one out for me and I took it. â€Å"I don't have my bowl with me,† I said, worried that Gaspar would be angry with me. How was I to know? The monks always ate breakfast together. This was out of order. â€Å"Your hands are clean,† said Gaspar. Then he sipped his tea and sat peacefully for a while, not saying a word. Soon the room heated up from the charcoal brazier that Gaspar had used to heat the tea and I was no longer able to see Joshua's breath. Evidently he'd also overcome the gastric distress of the thousand-year-old egg. I began to get nervous, aware that Number Three would be waiting for Joshua and me in the courtyard to start our exercises. I was about to say something when Gaspar held up a finger to mark silence. â€Å"Joshua,† Gaspar said, â€Å"do you know what a bodhisattva is?† â€Å"No, master, I don't.† â€Å"Gautama Buddha was a bodhisattva. The twenty-seven patriarchs since Gautama Buddha were also bodhisattvas. Some say that I, myself, am a bodhisattva, but the claim is not mine.† â€Å"There are no Buddhas,† said Joshua. â€Å"Indeed,† said Gaspar, â€Å"but when one reaches the place of Buddhahood and realizes that there is no Buddha because everything is Buddha, when one reaches enlightenment, but makes a decision that he will not evolve to nirvana until all sentient beings have preceded him there, then he is a bodhisattva. A savior. A bodhisattva, by making this decision, grasps the only thing that can ever be grasped: compassion for the suffering of his fellow humans. Do you understand?† â€Å"I think so,† said Joshua. â€Å"But the decision to become a bodhisattva sounds like an act of ego, a denial of enlightenment.† â€Å"Indeed it is, Joshua. It is an act of self-love.† â€Å"Are you asking me to become a bodhisattva?† â€Å"If I were to say to you, love your neighbor as you love yourself, would I be telling you to be selfish?† There was silence for a moment, and as I looked at the place where Joshua's voice was originating, he gradually started to become visible again. â€Å"No,† said Joshua. â€Å"Why?† asked Gaspar. â€Å"Love thy neighbor as thou lovest thyself† – and here there was a long pause when I could imagine Joshua looking to the sky for an answer, as he so often did, then: â€Å"for he is thee, and thou art he, and everything that is ever worth loving is everything.† Joshua solidified before our eyes, fully dressed, looking no worse for the wear. Gaspar smiled and those extra years that he had been carrying on his face seemed to fade away. There was a peace in his aspect and for a moment he could have been as young as we were. â€Å"That is correct, Joshua. You are truly an enlightened being.† â€Å"I will be a bodhisattva to my people,† Joshua said. â€Å"Good, now go shave the yak,† said Gaspar. I dropped my rice ball. â€Å"What?† â€Å"And you, find Number Three and commence your training on the posts.† â€Å"Let me shave the yak,† I said. â€Å"I've done it before.† Joshua put his hand on my shoulder. â€Å"I'll be fine.† Gaspar said: â€Å"And on the next moon, after alms, you shall both go with the group into the mountains for a special meditation. Your training begins tonight. You shall receive no meals for two days and you must bring me your blankets before sundown. â€Å"But I've already been enlightened,† protested Josh. â€Å"Good. Shave the yak,† said the master. I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised when Joshua showed up the next day at the communal dining room with a bale of yak hair and not a scratch on him. The other monks didn't seem surprised in the least. In fact, they hardly looked up from their rice and tea. (In my years at Gaspar's monastery, I found it was astoundingly difficult to surprise a Buddhist monk, especially one who had been trained in kung fu. So alert were they to the moment that one had to become nearly invisible and completely silent to sneak up on a monk, and even then simply jumping out and shouting â€Å"boo† wasn't enough to shake their chakras. To get a real reaction, you pretty much had to poleax one of them with a fighting staff, and if he heard the staff whistling through the air, there was a good chance he'd catch it, take it away from you, and pound you into damp pulp with it. So, no, they weren't surprised when Joshua delivered the fuzz harvest unscathed.) â€Å"How?† I asked, that being pretty much what I wanted to know. â€Å"I told her what I was doing,† said Joshua. â€Å"She stood perfectly still.† â€Å"You just told her what you were going to do?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"She wasn't afraid, so she didn't resist. All fear comes from trying to see the future, Biff. If you know what is coming, you aren't afraid.† â€Å"That's not true. I knew what was coming – namely that you were going to get stomped by the yak and that I'm not nearly as good at healing as you are – and I was afraid.† â€Å"Oh, then I'm wrong. Sorry. She must just not like you.† â€Å"That's more like it,† I said, vindicated. Joshua sat on the floor across from me. Like me, he wasn't permitted to eat anything, but we were allowed tea. â€Å"Hungry?† â€Å"Yes, you?† â€Å"Starving. How did you sleep last night, without your blanket, I mean?† â€Å"It was cold, but I used the training and I was able to sleep.† â€Å"I tried, but I shivered all night long. It's not even winter yet, Josh. When the snow falls we'll freeze to death without a blanket. I hate the cold.† â€Å"You have to be the cold,† said Joshua. â€Å"I liked you better before you got enlightened,† I said. Now Gaspar started to oversee our training personally. He was there every second as we leapt from post to post, and he drilled us mercilessly through the complex hand and foot movements we practiced as part of our kung fu regimen. (I had a funny feeling that I'd seen the movements before as he taught them to us, then I remembered Joy doing her complex dances in Balthasar's fortress. Had Gaspar taught the wizard, or vice versa?) As we sat in meditation, sometimes all through the night, he stood behind us with his bamboo rod and periodically struck us on the back of the head for no reason I could discern. â€Å"Why's he keep doing that? I didn't do anything,† I complained to Joshua over tea. â€Å"He's not hitting you to punish you, he's hitting you to keep you in the moment.† â€Å"Well, I'm in the moment now, and at the moment I'd like to beat the crap out of him.† â€Å"You don't mean that.† â€Å"Oh, what? I'm supposed to want to be the crap I beat out of him?† â€Å"Yes, Biff,† Joshua said somberly. â€Å"You must be the crap.† But he couldn't keep a straight face and he started to snicker as he sipped his tea, finally spraying the hot liquid out his nostrils and collapsing into a fit of laughter. All of the other monks, who evidently had been listening in, started giggling as well. A couple of them rolled around on the floor holding their sides. It's very difficult to stay angry when a room full of bald guys in orange robes start giggling. Buddhism. Gaspar made us wait two months before taking us on the special meditation pilgrimage, so it was well into winter before we made that monumental trek. Snow fell so deep on the mountainside that we literally had to tunnel our way out to the courtyard every morning for exercise. Before we were allowed to begin, Joshua and I had to shovel all of the snow out of the courtyard, which meant that some days it was well past noon before we were able to start drilling. Other days the wind whipped down out of the mountains so viciously that we couldn't see more than a few inches past our faces, and Gaspar would devise exercises that we could practice inside. Joshua and I were not given our blankets back, so I, for one, spent every night shivering myself to sleep. Although the high windows were shuttered and charcoal braziers were lit in the rooms that were occupied, there was never anything approaching physical comfort during the winter. To my relief, the other monks were not unaffected by the cold, and I noticed that the accepted posture for breakfast was to wrap your entire body around your steaming cup of tea, so not so much as a mote of precious heat might escape. Someone entering the dining hall, seeing us all balled up in our orange robes, might have thought he stumbled into a steaming patch of giant pumpkins. At least the others, including Joshua, seemed to find some relief from the chill during their meditations, having reached that state, I'm told, where they could, indeed, generate their own heat. I was still learning the discipline. Sometimes I considered climbing to the back of the temple where the cave became narrow and hund reds of fuzzy bats hibernated on the ceiling in a great seething mass of fur and sinew. The smell might have been horrid, but it would have been warm. When the day finally came for us to take the pilgrimage, I was no closer to generating my own heat than I had been at the start, so I was relieved when Gaspar led five of us to a cabinet and issued yak-wool leggings and boots to each of us. â€Å"Life is suffering,† said Gaspar as he handed Joshua his leggings, â€Å"but it is more expedient to go through it with one's legs intact.† We left just after dawn on a crystal clear morning after a night of brutal wind that had blown much of the snow off the base of the mountain. Gaspar led five of us down the mountain to the village. Sometimes we trod in the snow up to our waists, other times we hopped across the tops of exposed stones, suddenly making our training on the tops of the posts seem much more practical than I had ever thought possible. On the mountainside, a slip from one of the stones might have sent us plunging into a powder-filled ravine to suffocate under fifty feet of snow. The villagers received us with great celebration, coming out of their stone and sod houses to fill our bowls with rice and root vegetables, ringing small brass bells and blowing the yak horn in our honor before quickly retreating back to their fires and slamming their doors against the cold. It was festive, but it was brief. Gaspar led us to the home of the toothless old woman who Joshua and I had met so long ago and we all bedded down in the straw of her small barn amid her goats and a pair of yaks. (Her yaks were much smaller than the one we kept at the monastery, more the size of normal cattle. I found out later that ours was the progeny of the wild yaks that lived in the high plateaus, while hers were from stock that had been domesticated for a thousand years.) After the others had gone to sleep, I snuck into the old woman's house in search of some food. It was a small stone house with two rooms. The front one was dimly lit by a single window covered with a tanned and stretched animal hide that transmitted the light of the full moon as a dull yellow glow. I could only make out shapes, not actual objects, but I felt my way around the room until I laid my hand on what had to be a bag of turnips. I dug one of the knobby vegetables from the bag, brushed the dirt from the surface with my palm, then sunk in my teeth and crunched away a mouthful of crisp, earthy bliss. I had never even cared for turnips up to that time, but I had just decided that I was going to sit there until I had transferred the entire contents of that bag to my stomach, when I heard a noise in the back room. I stopped chewing and listened. Suddenly I could see someone standing in the doorway between the two rooms. I drew in my breath and held it. Then I heard the old woman's voice, speaking Chinese with her peculiar accent: â€Å"To take the life of a human or one like a human. To take a thing that is not given. To claim to have superhuman powers.† I was slow, but suddenly I realized that the old woman was reciting the rules for which a monk could be expelled from the monastery. As she came into the dim light from the window she said, â€Å"To have intercourse with anyone, even down to an animal.† And at that second, I realized that the toothless old woman was completely naked. A mouthful of chewed turnip rolled out of my mouth and down the front of my robe. The old woman, close now, reached out, I thought to catch the mess, but instead she caught what was under my robe. â€Å"Do you have superhuman powers?† the old woman said, pulling on my manhood, which, much to my amazement, nodded an answer. I need to say here that it had been over two years since we had left Balthasar's fortress, and another six months before that since the demon had come and killed all of the girls but Joy – thus curtailing my regular supply of sexual companions. I want to go on record that I had been steadfast in adhering to the rules of the monastery, allowing only those nocturnal emissions as were expelled during dreams (although I had gotten pretty good in directing my dreams in that direction, so all that mental discipline and meditation wasn't completely useless). So, that said, I was in a weakened state of resistance when the old woman, leathery and toothless as she might have been, compelled me by threat and intimidation to share with her what the Chinese call the Forbidden Monkey Dance. Five times. Imagine my chagrin when the man who would save the world found me in the morning with a twisted burl of Chinese crone-flesh orally affixed to my fleshy pagoda of expandable joy, even as I snored away in transcendent turnip-digesting oblivion. â€Å"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!† said Joshua, turning to the wall and throwing his robe over his head. â€Å"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!† I said, roused from my slumber by the disgusted exclamation of my friend. â€Å"Ahhhhhhhhhh!† said the old woman, I think. (Her speech was generously obstructed, if I do say so myself.) â€Å"Jeez, Biff,† Joshua stuttered. â€Å"You can't†¦I mean†¦Lust is†¦Jeez, Biff!† â€Å"What?† I said, like I didn't know what. â€Å"You've ruined sex for me for all time,† Joshua said. â€Å"Whenever I think of it, this picture will always come up in my mind.† â€Å"So,† I said, pushing the old woman away and shooing her into the back room. â€Å"So†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Joshua turned around and looked me in the eye, then grinned widely enough to threaten the integrity of his ears. â€Å"So thanks.† I stood and bowed. â€Å"I am here only to serve,† I said, grinning back. â€Å"Gaspar sent me to look for you. He's ready to leave.† â€Å"Okay, I'd better, you know, say good-bye.† I gestured toward the back room. Joshua shuddered. â€Å"No offense,† he said to the old woman, who was out of sight in the other room. â€Å"I was just surprised.† â€Å"Want a turnip?† I said, holding up one of the knobby treats. Joshua turned and started out the door. â€Å"Jeez, Biff,† he was saying as he left.

President Richard Nixon s The War On Drugs - 1335 Words

Starting in 1971, President Richard Nixon declared the War on Drugs. He stated, â€Å"America’s public enemy number one in the United States is drug abuse. In order to fight and defeat this enemy, it is necessary to wage a new, all-out offensive.† The War on Drugs aimed to fight against a supply and demand epidemic that had America at its knees. Nixon’s policies blatantly reflect society s attitude regarding the trafficking of illegal narcotics. In 1973, Nixon initiated an interdiction effort in Mexico. The United States spent millions of dollars tightening border control, which led to a standstill in trade between the two countries. The standstill devastated Mexico’s economy due to the lack of commerce and tourism in and out of the country. Despite the War on Drugs mission to cease the trade of drugs in and out of the United States, it has proved â€Å"ineffective in stopping the use, manufacture, or trafficking of drugs. The War on Drugs has also create d a whole host of subsidiary problems. Including the lack of education throughout Mexico and the highest incarceration rate the United States had ever witnessed. The War on Drugs has devastated Mexico’s socio-economic infrastructure while failing to stop the manufacturing and trafficking of drugs, both domestically and internationally. The War on Drugs attempts to solve the supply side of narcotics with crude and unnecessary punishments for a demand side issue. The United States fails to realize that Mexico is not the problem,Show MoreRelatedCombating Drug Use in America1096 Words   |  5 PagesThe use of illegal drugs has plagued society for thousands of years. Illicit drugs use can be found all around the world. The War on Drugs is a term applied to a campaign on the prohibition of drugs of drug use, with the effort to reduced illegal drug trades. The current War on Drugs has affected our society physically and emotionally, and should end for the better of our society immediately. When the War on Drugs began, it was â€Å"The expectation that drug trafficking in the United States could beRead MoreDrug Abuse Prevention And Control888 Words   |  4 PagesThursday June 17, 1971, United States President Richard Nixon gave a press conference to publicize the publication of the special message that was given to Co ngress on Drug Abuse Prevention and Control. During this he declared drug abuse public enemy number one (Nixon, 1971). In the message to Congress Nixon states that the United States should dedicate more federal resources to â€Å"the prevention of new addicts, and the rehabilitation of those who are addicted† (Nixon, 1971). This part did not receiveRead MoreRichard Nixon : The Silent1491 Words   |  6 PagesRichard Nixon was a president that dealt with many problems while he was in office, such as Vietnam, China, and civil rights. Nixon was a great politician and appeared to want the best for America. In Nixon s silent majority speech he wanted to end the war in vietnam while sparing the â€Å"democratic† citizens in southern Vietnam, but for him to do this he needed to bargain with the citizens of America and the leaders of the western world in order to accomplish his goals without too many problems, suchRead MoreThe Harrison Narcotic Act Of 1914881 Words   |  4 PagesThe history of drug use dates back for thousands of years with diverse purposes throughout humanity. According to Levinthal (2012), the drug-taking behavior gained federal awareness in the early 1900s, due to the lack of drug control regulations. Moreover, Levinthal (2012) mentions four major drug control laws which were established, including: (1) The Harrison Narcotic Act 1914, (2) The Marijuana Tax Act 1937, (3) The Boggs Act 1951, and (4) The Controlled Substance Act 1970. The drug control lawsRead MoreThe Legalization Of Illegal Drugs1262 Words   |  6 PagesBefore President Richard Nixon declared drug abuse as America’s number one public enemy in 1971, the United States already had a long history of combating the use of illegal drugs. The first of its kind was the legislation that passed in San Francisco in 1875. This newly passed legislation banned the smoking of opium. However, this legislation seemed to be racially motivated. San Francisco citizens believed that Chinese men who resided in the community, and who were highly regarded as opium smokersRead MoreThe War on Drugs1580 Words   |  7 PagesThe war on drugs began in the United States in 1971 when President Richard Nixon declared war. President Nixon increased the number of federal drug control agencies, increased mandatory sentences for drug offenders, and utilized no-knock warrants in attempt to get the problem under control. It has been over forty years since President Nixon declared a war on drugs. Did America win the war on drugs? Is it time to legalize illicit drugs in this country? What are other countries doing in referenceRead MoreThe Presidential Election Of 2016 Essay1169 Words   |  5 Pagesquestions people had in the election of 1968 with Nixon, as the options they were left with to choose was not one of which many were enthused about. Richard Milhous Nixon born on January 9, 1913 in Yorba Linda, California. (Biography.com Editors, paragraph 2) Donald John T rump, born in June 14, 1946, in Queens, New York. Both were one of five Children of their families. (Biography.com Editors, paragraph 2). In both of their of biographies, Nixon attended Duke University and earned a degree in lawRead MoreEssay on The Drug Enforcement Administration 1712 Words   |  7 Pagesof the Agency The Drug Enforcement Administration has a long history that marks its significance and succession. Much had been going on during the late nineteen-sixties and early seventies that shaped the years between such as: the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., the Hippie movement, the closing days of the Vietnam War, the disbandment of the Beatles, Woodstock, the first man on the moon, and the beginning of the Watergate scandal (to name a few). President Richard Nixon took office in 1968Read MoreThe Forgotten Civil War : A War On Minority Communities Essay1731 Words   |  7 Pages The Forgotten Civil War There is a war going on. It is a war that has targeted, jailed, and killed millions of Americans. To see its profound impact, one does not even need to leave our nation s borders. It is a civil war, that Consists of the U.S. Government, versus our country s minority communities. It has spanned multiple generations and numerous presidential administrations. Declared by President Richard M. Nixon in June, 1971, the war on drugs has been one lost at great cost. In thisRead MoreThe Department Of Alcohol, Tobacco, And Firearms1036 Words   |  5 PagesFor our third assignment for Criminal Justices we must answer questions about the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, U.S. Marshals Service, and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. We must answer the following question: What are the mission or goal of these agencies? When were they established? Briefly discuss each of the agencies history. Discuss some of the difference between these agencies. The first agency is called the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. The mission for the ATF

The War Of The American War - 1209 Words

In June 1775, Congress ordered General George Washington to take command of the Continental Army besieging the British in Boston. Despite having little practical experience in managing large, conventional armies, Washington proved to be a capable and resilient leader of the American military forces during the war. While he lost more battles than he won, George Washington employed a winning strategy that included signal victories at the Battle of Trenton in 1776 and Yorktown in 1781 . Washington’s greatest wartime legacy was his decision to surrender his commission to Congress, affirming the principle of civilian control of the military in the new United States.The revolutionary war was a result of the conflicts between the original†¦show more content†¦The mother country became weary and revoked the act, then placed the stamp act upon them. The colonist had little control over this and had to accept it. The Stamp act is an extra tax placed upon all printed legal or c ommercial documents. Over the next 5 years many new laws were placed upon the colonies to squeeze any money they could to pay for the war and just to be richer in general. On March 5th 1770 the Boston Massacre commenced it was a bloody war against the colonists and the soldiers placed in their towns to basically control them . A town meeting was called demanding the removal of the British and the trial of Captain Preston and his men for murder. At the trial, John Adams and Josiah Quincy II defended the British, leading to their release. Later, two of the British soldiers were found guilty of manslaughter. The Boston Massacre was a signal event leading to the Revolutionary War. It led directly to the Royal Governor evacuating the occupying army from the town of Boston. It would soon bring the revolution to armed rebellion throughout the colonies . George Washington born February 22, 1732 in Westmoreland County Virginia. He was born in to a family of farmers with his father, Augustine Washington, and his mother, Mary Ball. When George was six his family moved to one of their farms in Potomac. When young George was 11 his father began ill and died, over the next few years George would spend his life traveling to

Adolescence Developmental Psychology and Social Work...

Module Title: Human Growth and Behaviour. Assessment Title: What are the advantages and disadvantages of viewing behaviour through the life-span perspective for social practise? ADOLESCENCE The author’s aim is to outline the advantages as well as disadvantages in adolescence behaviour and human development processes across people life span, and particular adolescence. This essay will look at the different models, theories of social work and the factors that may have influence social work practice. The physical, psychological, socio-cultural, environmental and politico-economical are the factors that Bowlby (1999), Erikson (1995), Freud and Piaget (1977) have mentioned in their theories and the author will explore, discuses and†¦show more content†¦Piaget (1977) the author of cognitive development theory believed that the child seeks to understand and adopt into the environment. In doing so, the child undertakes certain actions as it moves through stages of development. Another approach to understand the human life course from a developmental psychology perspective is presented trough theories that focus on behaviour and how behaviour and actions influenc e our learning. (Piaget, 1977) Skinner’s (1953) behaviourism explained human development as the acquisition of behaviourism that is learned through responses to experiences. Skinner did not see the individual’s thoughts or conscious mind as influencing their behaviours, but rather behaviour as a response controlled by the rewards or punishments in the individual’s environment. (Skinner, 1953) Albert Bandura (1977) also emphasised in his social learning theory the importance of behaviour and the environment, but he saw cognition or thoughts as being a significant factor in the person’s development. Therefore, the social learning theories consider the influence of values, beliefs, self-determination, emotions and thought on the learning process. Psychosocial theories arise from a combination of two perspectives psychology and sociology disciplines. David Howe describes psychosocial as being created by the interplay between the individual’s psychologicalShow MoreRelatedThe Process of Adolescent Development Essay1566 Words   |  7 PagesIntroduction Adolescence is a transition which has no fixed time limits. However, the changes that occur at this time are so significant that it is useful to talk about adolescence as a distinct period of human life cycle. This period ranges from biological changes to changes in behavior and social status, thus making it difficult to specify its limits exactly (Damon, 2008). Adolescence begins with puberty, i.e. a series of physiological changes that lead to full development of the sexual organsRead MoreWhat Is the Significance of Adolescent Psychology and Is It Important for an Educator to Be Knowledgeable of It?830 Words   |  3 PagesSpring 2014 Adolescence is a transitional period we will all come to experience. What makes adolescence stand out is that it is a period in our lives that links what we have experienced in our childhood to developing and shaping the individuals we will become during adulthood. This particular field in psychology calls for a focus on young people’s abilities, strengths and developmental needs. There is an extensive amount of research that focuses on adolescent development and how it impacts an individualRead MoreEarly Life Experiences Impact The Person Across Their Lifespan930 Words   |  4 Pagesthe Jane Piaget theory ‘Stages of cognitive development’ (1936) and Erik Erikson theory ‘Psychosocial stages’ (1950). Piaget argued that children develop knowledge by constructing their experience and observe with their own ideas about how the thing works.(Burton, L.J., Westen, d. Kowalski, R.M. 2015) He developed 4 stages of his theory: Sensorimotor Stage, Preoperati onal Stage, Concrete Operational Stage and Formal Operational Stage. At the same time, Erik Erikson proposed a psychoanalytic theoryRead MoreHuman Behavior And Inner Emotion1329 Words   |  6 Pagesestablished throughout history to help analyze social behavior in both animals and people. Psychologists use the six main perspectives to better rationalize human behavior and motivation: these perspectives are (but not limited to) the biological, social-cultural, cognitive, developmental, psychodynamic, and behavioral perspectives. These approaches helps psychologists and individuals further their understanding of social behavior and inner emotion. In psychology, a biological perspective is imperativeRead MoreHuman Development Is The Roots Of Work Essay2284 Words   |  10 Pagesthe selected topic LIFE SPAN and subtopics of infant care, childhood, adolescence, adult and gerontology. Research is important in psychology as it can provide professionals like psychology professionals, guidance counselors, and marketing executives with a baseline of typical and atypical in human behavior . Understanding the aging process is important to a Psychologist, to do this one must research developmental psychology. The research presented in Lifespan theory has led to propositionsRead MoreResearch Intervention And Prevention Programs867 Words   |  4 Pagesaffected the children these children, who ranged in age from infancy to adolescence. However, I was impacted by the fact that many of these children were not receiving the intervention services they likely needed to promote their social, emotional, and academic growth, even though th eir family was recently and is possibly still in crisis. While this was upsetting to me, it motivated me to pursue a career in developmental psychology where I could impact children in need of effective intervention and preventionRead MoreDevelopmental Skills : Childhood And Social Emotional Development Essay1530 Words   |  7 PagesDevelopmental Skills Domain in Early Childhood Social-Emotional Behavior. Social-emotional development includes the child’s experience, expression, and management of emotions and the ability to establish positive and rewarding relationships with others (Cohen and others 2005). It encompasses both intra- and interpersonal processes. The core features of emotional development include the ability to identify and understand one’s own feelings, to accurately read and comprehend emotional states in othersRead MoreMy Paper On Is Educational Psychology1545 Words   |  7 Pages The topic pertinent to psychology that i chose to do my paper on is educational psychology. Educational psychology is the study of how humans learn and retain knowledge, primarily in educational settings like classrooms. This branch not only involves just the learning process of early childhood and adolescence but it also involves the social, emotional, and cognitive learning processes that are involved in humans throughout their entire lifespan. Educational psychology combines numerous amountsRead MorePsychology And Sociology And Psychology1612 Words   |  7 PagesWhen we think of society or people, and their behavior, psychology and sociology come to our mind. This is because they are academic fields that posses the same main idea, which is the study of the behavior. Although these two sciences have enormous differences, for those whom never had read anything about this topics it would seem the same. Despite bearing some superficial similarities, the differences between sociology and psychology are pronounced. Actually the main contrast between them isRead MorePhysical and Cognitive Development1246 Words   |  5 PagesPhysical and Cognitive Development PSY/ 103 Introduction to Psychology This paper is will focus on the influences of physical and cognitive development in adolescence from 12 to 18 years of age. This part of the developmental stage has many factors that affect the physical development as well as the cognitive development in adolescence. In addition to influences of physical and cognitive development this paper will also focus on the hereditary and environmental influences that make

Explication the gift Free Essays

This poem is written in free verse, separated into four stanzas each with a varying number of lines and syllables. There is no precise rhyming pattern, but there Is a pattern within the usage of words. The speaker uses bodily words such as palm, hands, face, and head at the ends of lines In the second stanza when describing, In the literal form, when the speaker Is talking about the experience he went through getting the metal sliver pulled from his palm. We will write a custom essay sample on Explication: the gift or any similar topic only for you Order Now The speaker repeats those words when he Is describing performing the same process on his wife; remaining Just as calm ND tender as his father was with him. This poem follows a sequence of events, almost Like a timeline. This Is true for the literal reading as well as the metaphorical reading of the poem. The â€Å"gift† that Is passed down from the speakers father to him, and then utilized on his wife, Is a life lesson. At the age of seven, the speaker takes mental notes of his father and the actions that he made, and uses them when he Is about 20 years older. This poem acts as the path the speaker had to take to get where he is today. The entire poem follows a route; gradually the speaker goes wrought life learning from his father. This has one exception: the third stanza. This stanza, directly in the middle of the poem, acts as a dividing line between the younger and older years of the speakers’ life. It has 7 lines, (also the age of the speaker in the beginning) and it also doesn’t really flow in the poem. The 2 stanzas prior talk about what happened to him when he was 7, and then the last line of the 3rd stanza and the last stanza talk about life when the speaker was approximately 20 years older. In my opinion this was a smart decision to have these sections divided cause it shows how there is a difference between learning something and using it to your advantage later on. The central metaphor for this poem is that the â€Å"gift† that the speakers’ father passes down to him is a life lesson. The speaker learns this lesson at an early age and uses it throughout the rest of his life. The â€Å"metal splinter† is a problem that the speaker has faced once when he was a child and that his wife faced later on. The gift that his father passes onto him is the solution to that returning problem. His father teaches him the solution to this obviously important problem and cherishes it. When the speaker says, â€Å"l did what a child does/ when he’s given something to keep,† it’s clear that the speakers’ father wanted his son to have and use this lesson as much as the speaker wanted to be seen as an Image of his father. Explication: the gift BY Nannette Explication #2 â€Å"The Gift† By Lie-Young Lee number of lines and syllables. There is no precise rhyming pattern, but there is a hands, face, and head at the ends of lines in the second stanza when describing, in he literal form, when the speaker is talking about the experience he went through he is describing performing the same process on his wife; remaining Just as calm almost like a timeline. This is true for the literal reading as well as the metaphorical reading of the poem. The â€Å"gift† that is passed down from the speaker’s father to him, and then utilized on his wife, is a life lesson. At the age of seven, the speaker takes mental notes of his father and the actions that he made, and uses them when he is and use this lesson as much as the speaker wanted to be seen as an image of his How to cite Explication: the gift, Papers

Nicole and the others steal the show Essay Example For Students

Nicole and the others steal the show Essay Chilling performances by Nicole Kidman and Fionnula Flanagan have propelled this critically acclaimed Oscar winning film straight to the top of the box office. This film is billed as a horror film, but unlike many blockbuster Hollywood films, it isnt repeated frights with a very weak plot linking them; instead the director has worked very closely with the writers to create a very clever film which makes you think, not jump. The film uses lighting and music to build up suspense. The film is set in a typical gothic horror house on the mist-strewn island of Jersey. The writers have presented the director with a gift; the children of the house where the film is set are allergic to light, the means the house curtains have to always be closed and the house for ever shrouded in darkness. The only light is cast by the old lanterns which create eerie shadows and play tricks with the eyes. The director has used this very effectively to make the audiences eyes play tricks on them and make them see things, which arent really there. This has been used very effectively as can be seen in the wardrobe scene, a full technical analysis of this scene can be f ound later in the magazine. This film lets you build your own ideas about ghosts and death instead of thrusting Hollywoods interpretations of them into your face. Before this film was even released one of the main talking points is the certificate of the film, it is a 12. As appose to normal horror film which are of a much higher certificate. The main reason for this is the fact that the film is a completely different genre to any film seen before. It is a clever film which builds up suspense by using music and lighting. The main reason this film isnt as 15 or 18 is that there isnt any gore in the film, you dont see and evil happenings they are all imaged. You can make this film as scary as you like, if you believe in ghosts than this film can be very scary because you get completely engrossed in the film. If you detach yourself from the film and watch it as an outsider then you can find the film very entertain but not scary. The best played parts of this film are the two main characters, Grace Stewart Nicole Kidman and Mrs Mills Fionnula Flanagan; they are both very different characters. Nicole Kidman has been very well cast because Grace, her character is a very straight laced and everything about Nicole fits this role. Everything from her posture to her voice is exactly how the character should be played. Grace is a very restrained person who wears very tight restraining clothes, and talks in a quite high pitched, but quiet voice. As Nicole Kidman is a tall thin she wears long dresses that are tight and very high  necked. These clothes are very restricting and they give you any insight to the personality of whom is wearing them. Everything about Grace is a very controlling, in fact she is somewhat of a control freak, and when the ghosts do invade Graces houses, and she loses control of the house, and what is going on around her then she goes mad because she can on longer control her surroundings. On the other hand there is Mrs Mills who is a completely different character. She is by for more of a mother to the children than Grace is. She is a very maternal women, she always dresses in very Victorian black servant clothes. This is a very clever pointer to the outcome of the film, because at the dÃÆ' ©nouement of the film you realise that the clothes are Victorian and they match the age in which Mrs Mills lived. Unlike Grace, Mrs Mills has a very calming soft voice, whereas Graces voice is a complete contrast, it is a sharp, high pitched monotone voice. Mrs Mills is also much more motherly towards the children, for example when Grace shouts at Anne and sends her to her room she instead runs to Mrs Mills who comforts her. This shows up the stark contrast between the childrens relationship with their mother and their nanny. Mrs Mills has also accepted the fact that she is a ghost, and doesnt have a problem with it, so she is much calmer about all the sounds and strange happeni ngs around the house. .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 , .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 .postImageUrl , .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 , .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1:hover , .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1:visited , .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1:active { border:0!important; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1:active , .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1 .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ud29592fbae71f45bb7427892407b46a1:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Jewel: Pieces Of A Shattered Dream EssayOn the whole this is a quiet complex film with many turns in the plot, it will take a quick whited viewer to keep up, but if you want more than your normal Hollywood horror film then this is a must see. Here is a technical analysis of the wardrobe scene in The Others. Black text is the camera shot. Red text is the sound. The children are running away from the intruders. They go and hide inside a wardrobe. ï‚ · Silence apart from a quick whispered conversation between Anne and Nicholas building tension and fear ï‚ · Big Close Up B.C.U on Anne ï‚ · Cut to B.C.U of Nicholas ï‚ · Two cuts between close ups of Anne and Nicholas ï‚ · Lots of rapidly cuts between Anne and Nicholas following their conversation ï‚ · Silence except from breathing ï‚ · There is the sound of frightened breathing and the audience cant tell if it is inside, or out of the wardrobe ï‚ · Close up of both Anne and Nicholas ï‚ · Audience and children wonder who is breathing, It appears as if it is Nicholas. Audience and children cant decider if it is inside or outside the wardrobe. Voice outside wardrobe saying come with us, it is a very calm quiet voice. Audience think it is one of the intruders ï‚ · The breathing becomes heavier, everyone is listening intently to the breathing ï‚ · Slight tracking shot from Nicholas to Anne ï‚ · Sudden high pitched loud scream from Anne and banging of wardrobe door ï‚ · Cut to low angle, point of view shot from Anne and Nicholas of the old woman that is the medium that has flung open the wardrobe doors. ï‚ · Four zoom shots from point of view of Anne and Nicholas one after the other, this maximises the dramatic effect. ï‚ · Cut to medium close up of old woman ï‚ · Close up of a screaming Anne ï‚ · Tracking shot of Anne ï‚ · Grace gasping in shock reacting to Annes scream ï‚ · Cut to high angle shot of Grace from the top of the stairs