The Secret Life of Walter Mitty :: essays papers

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty The story is about Walter Mitty, a henpecked and daydreaming urban man, who often depends on daydreaming to escape real life. As the story begins, Walter Mitty is driving his wife to town for an appointment at a beauty shop. Triggered by the wild storm, he begins to imagine himself as the commander of a Navy hydroplane. He dreams that the plane is in trouble but the members of the crew have complete faith in his ability. One member of the crew says, â€Å"The Old Man'll get us through†. Mitty is brought back from this daydream by his wife's voice, as she says, â€Å"Not so fast! You're driving too fast! What are you driving so fast for?" His second daydream is activated by his wife’s suggestion to see Dr. Renshaw and put on gloves. In the second daydream, he fancies that he is helping several famous physicians save a millionaire by fixing a complicated machine that no one in the East can fix. He even envisages that he finally acts as operator. He is pulled back into reality by the shouting of a parking-lot attendant. Annoyed by the embarrassment at the parking lot and the failure of his memory and stimulated by the shouting of a newsboy about the Waterbury trial, Mitty sets off the third daydream in which he is on trial for murder. In the trial, he accurately recalls and valiantly admits that he has killed Gregory Fitzhurst despite the efforts of his attorney to prove his innocence. He was aroused to reality by his subconscious murmuring of puppy biscuit and the laughing of a passing woman. Sitting into a big leather chair in the lobby, he starts his fourth daydream by looking at the pictures of bombing planes and of ruined streets in an old copy of Liberty.

The Struggle For Social and Economic Equality in America

Discrimination The struggle for social and economic equality of Black people in America has been long and slow. It is sometimes amazing that any progress has been made in the racial equality arena at all; every tentative step forward seems to be diluted by losses elsewhere. For every â€Å"Stacey Koons† that is convicted, there seems to be a Texaco executive waiting to send Blacks back to the past. Throughout the struggle for equal rights, there have been courageous Black leaders at the forefront of each discrete movement. From early activists such as Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, and W. E. B. DuBois, to 1960s civil rights leaders and radicals such as Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and the Black Panthers, the progress that has been made toward full equality has resulted from the visionary leadership of these brave individuals. This does not imply, however, that there has ever been widespread agreement within the Black community on strategy or that the actions of prominent! Black leaders have met with strong support from those who would benefit from these actions. This report will examine the influence of two â€Å"early era† Black activists: Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. DuBois. Through an analysis of the ideological differences between these two men, the writer will argue that, although they disagreed over the direction of the struggle for equality, the differences between these two men actually enhanced the status of Black Americans in the struggle for racial equality. We will look specifically at the events leading to and surrounding the â€Å"Atlanta Compromise† in 1895. In order to understand the differences in the philosophies of Washington and Dubois, it is useful to know something about their backgrounds. Booker T. Washington, born a slave in 1856 in Franklin County, Virginia, could be described as a pragmatist. He was only able to attend school three months out of the year, with the remaining nine months spent working in coal mines. He developed the idea of Blacks becoming skilled tradesmen as a useful stepping-stone toward respect by the white majority and eventual full equality. Washington worked his way through Hampton Institute and helped found the Tuskeegee Institute, a trade school for blacks. His essential strategy for the advancement of American Blacks was for them to achieve enhanced status as skilled tradesmen for the present, then using this status as a platform from which to reach for full equality later. Significantly, he argued for submission to the white majority so as not to offend the power elite. Though he preached appeasement and a â€Å"hands off† attitude toward politics, Washington has been accused of wielding imperious power over â€Å"his people† and of consorting with the white elite. William Edward Burghardt DuBois, on the other hand, was more of an idealist. DuBois was born in Massachusetts in 1868, just after the end of the Civil War and the official end of slavery. A gifted scholar, formal education played a much greater role in DuBois's life than it did in Washington's. After becoming a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Fisk and Harvard, he was the first Black to earn a Ph. D. from Harvard in 1895. DuBois wrote over 20 books and more than 100 scholarly articles on the historical and sociological nature of the Black experience. He argued that an educated Black elite should lead Blacks to liberation by advancing a philosophical and intellectual offensive against racial discrimination. DuBois forwarded the argument that â€Å"The Negro problem was not and could not be kept distinct from other reform movements. . . † DuBois â€Å"favored immediate social and political integration and the higher education of a Talented Tenth of the black population. His main interest was in the education of ‘the group leader, the man who sets the ideas of the community where he lives. . . † To this end, he organized the â€Å"Niagara movement,† a meeting of 29 Black business and professional men, which led to the formation of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The crux of the struggle for the ideological center of the racial equality movement is perhaps best exemplified in Mr. DuBois's influential The Souls of Black Folk. In it, he makes an impassioned argument for his vision of an educated Black elite. DuBois also describes his opposition to Booker T. Washington's â€Å"Atlanta Compromise† as follows: â€Å"Mr. Washington represents in Negro thought the old attitude of adjustment and submission†¦ † According to DuBois, Washington broke the mold set by his predecessors: â€Å"Here, led by Remond, Nell, Wells- Brown, and Douglass, a new period of self-assertion and self- development dawned†¦. But Booker T. Washington arose as essentially the leader not of one race but of two–a compromiser between the South, the North, and the Negro. † DuBois reported that Blacks â€Å"resented, at first bitterly, signs of compromise which surrendered their civil and political rights, even though this was to be exchanged for larger chances of economic development. DuBois's point and, according to him, the collective opinion of the majority of the Black community, was that self- respect was more important than any potential future economic benefits. Before Washington's conciliatory stance gained a foothold, â€Å"the assertion of the manhood rights of the Negro by himself was the main reliance. † In other words, DuBois resented what he saw as Washington â€Å"selling† Black pride: â€Å"†¦ Mr. Washington's programme naturally takes an economic cast, becoming a gospel of Work and Money to such an extent as apparently almost completely to overshadow the higher aims of life. The compromise included, in DuBois's words, â€Å"that black people give up, at least for the present, three things,– â€Å"First, political power, Second, insistence on civil rights, Third, higher education of Negro youth,–and concentrate all their energies on industrial education, the accumulation of wealth, and the conciliation of the South. † The final point comprised the centerpiece both of Washington's strategy for the ultimate redemption of Black Americans and of DuBois's condemnation of that strategy. Indeed, Washington backed up his assertions by founding the Tuskeegee Institute as a trade school for young Black men. DuBois could not abide this type of appeasement. In his mind, this step was tantamount to the Black community telling the white community that, henceforth, Blacks would cease pretending to be equal to whites as human beings; rather, they would accept an overtly inferior social status as being worthy of maintaining the white majority's physical world, but unworthy of true equality, of conducting socio-cultural discourse with the mainstream society. The paradox must have been maddening for both men, especially Mr. Washington. He no doubt understood that, as a group, Blacks could never hope to progress to the point of equality from their position of abject poverty. Moreover, without skills, their hopes of escaping their economic inferiority were indeed scant. Washington's plan for blacks to at least become skilled artisans and tradesmen must have seemed logical to him from the standpoint of improving the economic lot of the average Black man. At the same time, he must have realized that, by accepting inferiority as a de- facto condition for the entire race, he may have broken the black spirit forever. In considering this matter, the writer is reminded of more recent events in American history–the affirmative action flap that occurred after Clarence Thomas's appointment to the U. S. Supreme Court, for example. Mr. Thomas, clearly a beneficiary of affirmative action, announced that he was nonetheless opposed to it. His argument was that if he had not been eligible for benefits under affirmative action programs, he would have still achieved his current position in the inner circle of this society's white power elite. Similarly, Booker T. Washington enjoyed access to the power elite of his time, but one must wonder whether President Roosevelt, for example, in his interactions with Mr. Washington, was not merely using the situation for public relations value. â€Å"[Mr. Washington] was ‘intimate' with Roosevelt from 1901 to 1908. On the day Roosevelt took office, he invited Washington to the White House to advise him on political appointments of Negroes in the south. † After all, he did not become a popular president by being oblivious to such political maneuvering. Perhaps Mr. DuBois was the more prescient visionary. Perhaps he understood what Mr. Washington did not, that after the critical historical momentum toward social acceptance that had been established prior to the late nineteenth century, if political pressure were not maintained, the cause of true equality would be lost forever. Moreover, DuBois understood that equality would not be earned through appeasement. From our perspective of over 100 years, we must admit that he may have been right. For example, in the aftermath of the â€Å"Atlanta Massacre† of September 22, 1906 and a similar incident in Springfield, Illinois, â€Å"it was clear to almost all the players that the tide was running strongly in favor of protest and militancy. â€Å"For six days in August, 1908, a white mob, made up, the press said, of many of the town's ‘best citizens,' surged through the streets of Springfield, Illinois, killing and wounding scores of Blacks and driving hundreds from the city. † However, it later turned out that DuBois was considered to be too extreme in the other direction. For example, as the NAACP became more mainstream, it became increasingly conservative, and this did not please DuBois, who left the organization in 1934. He returned later but was eventually shunned by Black leadership both inside and outside of the NAACP, especially after he voiced admiration for the USSR. In the political climate of the late 1940s and 1950s, any hint of a pro-communist attitude–black or white–was unwelcome in any group with a national political agenda. We can see, then, that neither Washington's strategy of appeasement nor DuBois's plan for an elite Black intelligentsia was to become wholly successful in elevating American Blacks to a position of equality. However, perhaps it was more than the leadership of any one Black man that encouraged African Americans to demand a full measure of social and economic equality.

Conflict Between The Political Factions Of Palestine

PART II THE INTRACTABLE CONFLICT AMONG THE POLITICAL FACTIONS OF PALESTINE CHAPTER 3 AN INTRACTABLE CONFLICT: SOCIAL CLEAVAGES WITHIN THE POLITICAL STRUCTURES OF PALESTINE The Intractable Conflict: What It Is How Does it Correlate with the Political Factions of Palestine? Intractable Conflicts go by many names, such as the Protracted Social Conflicts or the Identity Related Conflicts. These are long conflicts that are self-sustaining, deep-rooted and the product of long-lasting hatreds and wars; since WWII, which has made international politics unpredictable and unstable.[footnoteRef:1] Most of these prolonged conflicts (not all) have had international interventions or have involved superpowers that have made efforts to end the conflict through diplomatic, mediatory, peacekeeping, humanitarian development assistance and in extreme cases, military intervention means. However, some of these conflicts have resisted any kind of settlement and/or resolution, which can complicate the situation further.[footnoteRef:2] [1: Chester A. Crocker, Fen Osler Hampson, and Pamela Aall Ed., Grasping the Nettles: Analyzing Cases of Intractable Conflict, (United Stat es Institute of Peace Press: Washington, D.C., 2005), 4.] [2: Ibid. ] The intractable conflicts or the protracted social conflicts have various unique components such as religious, cultural, or ethnic communal identities; they may be functioning of the fundamental needs of security, communal recognition, andShow MoreRelatedIsrael Is A Small Democracy At The Eastern End Of The Mediterranean1349 Words   |  6 Pagesdistinct population of Arabs living in Palestine, the territory between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, that predates Israeli independence. Arabs living in Palestine began developing a distinct ethnic identity at least two centuries prior to World War II, although until the founding of Israel, the term â€Å"Palestinian† was used by most of the world to denote all the inhabitants of Palestine, including Jews. Before World War I (1914–18), however, Arabs in Palestine began using the term to describeRead MoreEssay about The Palestinian Liberation Organization1147 Words   |  5 Pagesaims in the period of 1964-1974, had a significant and enduring effect on the events in the Middle East. Created in 1964 on the initiative of Egyptian president Nasser, the PLO would soon become one of the most influential bodies of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Born out of a desire to liberate the Palestinian homeland in an ‘armed struggle’, it was largely responsibly for the fedayeen raids that contributed to the outbreak of the 1967 war. Following the 1967 war, Palestinian nationalism grew, and a strongerRead MoreSources of Conflict BetweenPalestine and Israel 2374 Words   |  9 PagesThe conflict between Palestine and Israel stems from disagreements about the land, differences in the opinions of historical change of boundaries, differences in religion and also disagreements among international actors that have influenced how the conflict has played out since the boundaries of Israel were drawn up after World War II. This paper will focus on the armed conflict between Palestine, specifically the Hamas-backed Gaza strip and the state of Israel that has led to the loss of manyRead MoreAnalysis Of Street Art Of Israel And Palestine1370 Words   |  6 PagesBefore the study of street art in Israel and Palestine can begin, first, one must understand why these artworks are there - a basic principle in any art theory. For instance, taking Picasso’s Guernica (see fig. 1.1) as an example, it appears at first glance to be a disturbing painting, very abstract in style and chaotic in its composition. The appeal of abstract art is that it is less superficially explicit. I would argue that this conveys deeper meaning to the viewer because of the personal journeyRead MoreAn Analysis of the Islamic Resistance Movement: Hamas Essay example3513 Words   |  15 PagesBackground: Radical Islamism in the Middle East Throughout the course of history, particularly over the last century, the Middle East has been identified as a growing source of hostility and violence due to its extensive involvement in religious conflict, ethnic rivalry, territorial dispute, and war. Poor governance, as well as the absence of an effective civil society and the lack of the rule of law, has led to the demise of several states within the region. Such instability has fostered the growthRead MorePower, Ideology, and Terror in the Atomic Age Worksheet1675 Words   |  7 Pagesfollowing questions with a short sentence or phrase: 1. Why were many Palestinians angered by the creation of Israel in 1948? Palestinians who lived in Palestine before 1848 thought that they had rights over the entire country and not just half. The State of Israel was proclaimed on May 14 1948, but the Arab states rejected the partition of Palestine and the existence of Israel. In 1948 Palestinians were driven out of the new Israel into refugee camps in Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon and other regions. Read MoreEthnic And Religious Division Of The Lebanese Civil War1227 Words   |  5 Pagesand family (Angrist). This shows that despite the cohesiveness and threads that attach us, it has the power to pull people, families, and in some cases countries apart. This conflict comes to a head when religion and ethnicity are interwoven. Hence when divisions occur, this can lead to violent wars that destroy trust between individuals. This can ingrain a sense of uneasiness and distrust that plagues people’s ideas and leaves a country divided. This is particularly evident in Lebanon. Ethnic andRead MoreEffects Of Religion On The Northern Africa And Southern Asia1171 Words   |  5 Pagesgroups have been fighting to have control of the specific regional sites such as the Western Wall, Dome of Rock and the Church of Nativity (Rowntree et al., 2011). For example, there have  been conflicts between Israel versus Palestine for Jerusalem to protect their sacred grounds; and the Israeli- Iranian conflict that would spur trouble even to the US. Earlier in history, the religious trends involved the Judeo-Christian practices of monotheism until after A.D 622 when the advent of Islam saw the regionRead MoreAnalysing the Israel-Palestine Conflict in International Relations Perspective1976 Words   |  8 PagesAnalysing the Israel-Palestine Conflict in International Relations Perspective Introduction to International Relations Analysing the Israel-Palestine Conflict in International Relations Perspective Background Since the early 20th Century, Israelis and Palestinians have been fighting over the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. With the assumption that Palestine is a state to facilitate discussion, this report sketches out the most significant elementsRead MoreThe Palestinian And Israel Conflict2619 Words   |  11 PagesPeace negotiating can be an extremely daunting task. The demands of opposing factions can create a list of the perfect ingredients to an impossible comprise which leads to a recipe of everlasting quarrels. Throughout history, there has been many nations with internal conflict that has been a victim of the recipe of quarrels time and time again. In my paper I will focus on two different conflicts, one in which who has been able to create a recipe for successful peace in the land, and another in which

Heroins Price Drops; Use Soars Essay - 1447 Words

Heroins Price Drops; Use Soars BOSTON—Drug traffickers have figured out ways to import heroin to Boston that is so cheap and pure even 14-year-olds can get their hands on it. â€Å"It’s everywhere,† said Peter Curran, a Norwood Police Department detective and a member of the Norfolk County Police Anti-Crime task force. â€Å"Every town has it whether they recognize it or not. It has nothing to do with economics.† Since the heroin is so pure, it can be easily snorted; therefore, it is losing the stigma that was once associated with using a needle. Many people are trying it, especially teenagers, without realizing it is easy to become addicted. According to Thomas Mitchell, the Chief Probation Officer of the Norfolk County Juvenile Court, 10 to†¦show more content†¦Law enforcement officials believe that more females are selling heroin than males. What is more shocking is that a local eighth-grader told the Boston Globe that she believes that it is more likely that the girls trade the heroin for sexual favors, rather than sell it, according to the article entitled â€Å"Police, schools cite new threat in war on drugs.† Also, a sophomore at Norwood High School, who wishes to remain anonymous, said that students using heroin at her school get it by giving sexual favors. â€Å"I think that approximately 10 percent of the students at my school use heroin, and 7 percent of the students sell heroin,† she said. â€Å"These numbers have significantly jumped higher over the years.† According to Monitoring the Future, which is an ongoing study by the University of Michigan on teenager behaviors including drug use, statistics show that the amount of teenagers in the 10th and 12th grade using this drug increased approximately .25 percent from the year 2001 to 2002. Furthermore, when twelfth-graders were asked in 2002 about the availability of heroin, approximately 30 percent said that it was fairly or very easy to get. Teenagers do not realize how easy it is to become addicted to heroin. â€Å"Heroin builds a tolerance. It takes more and more to get high,† said Brooks. â€Å"It becomes an issue of an illness if they don’t do it.† According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, based in Maryland, heroin is a highly addictive drug and is a serious

Offline and Online Marketing Strategies, Radio and Television, Print A Coursework

Essays on Offline and Online Marketing Strategies, Radio and Television, Print Advertisement, Business Cards, Social Networking, and Blogs Coursework The paper â€Å"Offline and Online Marketing Strategies, Radio and Television, Print Advertisement, Business Cards, Social Networking, and Blogs† is an impressive example of coursework on marketing. There is a common adage that the only bad marketing is no marketing at all. What comes next to no form of marketing is aimless marketing with no strategy or a plan for that matter. Working without a strategic marketing plan is like trying to navigate a ship without a compass (Varadaraja 2009, p.123). It can be done and it has been done but chances are that you will not like your final destination. With a compass, a sailor knows exactly where he is and where he is heading. Likewise, with a well thought out marketing strategy, a company can charter ahead with confidence knowing exactly how to get to your final destination. A strategic marketing plan permits an organization to clearly define where they are at the moment, where they want to be and the steps they are going to take to ge t there. The basis of strategic planning is that essentially the plan becomes a template for speedy and effective decision-making for both routine and high-level issues.The focus of this paper is Vivid Creations; a midsized I.T. company has not been performing well in terms of profitability. After an analysis of its operations, it was discovered that it had an inefficient marketing department that was underperforming and operating without a clear strategic marketing plan. If this trend continued in this way, Vivid Creations might be forced to shut down its operations. A strategic marketing plan might be the only thing that can rescue it from closure. There are numerous marketing strategies that the company can make use of to increase their competitiveness and at the same time remain relevant and profitable. This paper broadly looks at offline and online marketing strategies that Vivid Creations might make use of.Offline Marketing StrategiesThese are the marketing strategies that dea l directly with the public (Varadaraja 2009, p.124). Any marketer knows that people are always busy. Finding catchy ways to make the most use of their little attention span will be to the marketer’s benefit. Below are some of the ways that this can be done.Viral MarketingThis strategy is also known as word-of-mouth advertising. The marketer tells people about his business and persuades them to pass the word. Within no time, the marketer might hook them and people within their circle of influence.Radio and TelevisionEven with the ever-changing technologies, people still tune on their radios when they are driving and flip on their television on getting back home. Though expensive, these two media of communication are very effective when it comes to advertising.Print AdvertisementThis tried and tested method has brought goods and customers together for eons. Contrary to evolving technologies, people still read newspapers and advertisements; this is still a viable and feasible wa y to advertise one’s business.Business CardsThe goodness of business cards is that they are little and they can be carried anywhere and everywhere. Any chance that presents itself is an equal opportunity to hand out a business card as well. Though little, they are an effective way of reaching out to the world.

Flannery o conners writings Free Essays

Writings For readers why are not familiar with Flannels O’ Connors writings, they tend give the reader emotional devastation because If all the gothic elements such as the violence and the messed up religious elements. The short stories that she creates give off an uncongenial feeling and possesses the readers feelings towards the stories. Many of these stones have both violence and religious aspects to them. We will write a custom essay sample on Flannery o conners writings or any similar topic only for you Order Now Fate plays a big role In the stories climaxes. Either the mall character or the antagonists encounter what seems to be fate and start off violent but end up as If they saw the errors of their ways or felt as of a higher power has accepted them. In the end of AGAINST the characters encounter the misogynist right after they crash. They meet him by fate. Fate is not always a good thing. Later on the violence in the story happens when the whole family is murdered by them. The antagonist in this story understands that what he did is not right and he can act as a Christ figure because he brought the thoughts of people out of them as if they were confessing something to him. In The Circle in the Fire the antagonists violently burn down everything around the barn, and then danced around it as if they felt like they needed to do and if a higher power has accepted them. The impact her endings give off are disastrous and thought provoking leaving the reader in awe. How to cite Flannery o conners writings, Papers

Why People Migrate from One Country to Another free essay sample

He had developed asthma when he was five months old. The former treatment consisted of three different types of drugs, including  cortisone  and an inhaler. The boy’s condition worsened steadily and he developed herpes and other symptoms of high toxicity. Six months before his visit to me, Tim had caught a cold, which was treated with antibiotics. Since then his lungs showed strong signs of congestion. He complained about being tired all the time and unable to run or play with his friends. Kinesiology muscle testing revealed that Tim was highly allergic to milk or milk products. His parents confirmed that by the age of five months he was no longer breastfed but was instead given infant milk formula. Tim’s asthma was caused by his body’s inability to break down the protein of cow’s milk. The fragments of undigested protein caused a strong immune response aggravating the entire mucus lining from the anus to the lungs. We will write a custom essay sample on Why People Migrate from One Country to Another or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page His condition was chronic because he consumed large quantities of animal protein, including milk and dairy products throughout his young life. After two weeks of abstinence from these foods, his asthma and herpes subsided and have never recurred since. Could it be that cow’s milk is meant only for calves just as cat’s milk is meant only for kittens? Would we consider feeding our babies with, for example, dog’s milk instead of human breast milk? The ratio of nutrients contained in dog’s milk does not suit human requirements. Yet the same applies to cow’s milk. Cow’s milk contains three times as much protein, and almost four times as much calcium as human mother’s milk. These amounts are unsuitable for the human physiology at any age. Cow’s milk is designed to contain the exact amount of calcium and rotein necessary to feed a calf that will end up being at least 3-4 times larger than the human body is. If we gave human breast milk to a calf, it would not grow strong enough even to survive. By contrast, human babies require more carbohydrates in the beginning stages of their lives than calves do. For this reason, in comparison to human mother’s milk, cow’s milk cont ains only half the amount of carbohydrates. Calves on the other hand require much more salt than human babies do; naturally, salt content in cow’s milk is three times higher than in human milk. It is for a good reason that most of the original populations living in Asia, Africa, Australia, and South America don’t regard cow’s milk as a food fit for human consumption. Once weaned, mammals no longer look for milk to satisfy their hunger or thirst. If human babies, who have been breastfed for 14-18 months, were given the option of choosing from various types of natural and suitable foods, two out of three would no longer want breast milk as a food, according to classic study. Babies who are fed with cow’s milk tend to look puffy, bloated and fat.