Describe and explain the traits of Irene Redfield. To what extent do the traits permit you to judge her? What is your judgment of her and why?

Irene Westover Redfield (often referred to as simply "Rene") has many traits as a major character in Passing, by Nella Larson.  What I find ironic is that most of Irene's traits are so important to the story that very few of them are minor.  The only minor trait that I can think of in regards to Irene is her age:  the early thirties.  (I suppose you could also say that another minor trait is that this young thirty-something lives in the 1920s in Harlem). All the other traits of Irene are quite major and important to the story.

Irene is quite complacent about her status in life as a "black" resident of Harlem as she craves safety above all else.  One of her major traits is something that, in any other story, a reader might consider as minor:  her olive skin.  Because Irene has olive skin, she can pass for white when she wants to.  Irene uses this trait to her full advantage.  We see this in many instances in the book:  when purchasing tickets to the theater, when hailing a taxi, or when eating at a restaurant.  Irene, of course, doesn't consider these things as a "betrayal" of her race, but only using her race to get what she deserves. 

In conclusion, it is interesting to consider how these traits lead to the reader's possible judgement.  This mostly has to do with what happens at the end of the book:  Clare's death after "falling" out of a building on the sixth floor.  Because we know Irene considers Clare to have betrayed her race, the reader must wonder not whether Clare fell but whether she was pushed out of the window by Irene.  Even though the ending is ambiguous, the reader is correct in wondering about Irene's involvement.

What happens to end the Witches' Sabbath in "Young Goodman Brown"?

Young Goodman Brown sees his wife, Faith, and she him at the Witches' Sabbath.  The Devil welcomes them to the "communion of their race," implying that what characterizes the human race is our propensity for sinfulness (a common Hawthorne theme).  They both stand, hesitating about whether or not they will allow themselves to join everyone else in the village and be "baptized" by Satan into this depraved congregation.  It is at this moment that Young Goodman Brown cries, "'Faith! Faith! [...].  Look up to Heaven, and resist the Wicked One!'"  However,

Whether Faith obeyed, he knew not. Hardly had he spoken, when he found himself amid calm night and solitude, listening to a roar of the wind, which died heavily away through the forest. He staggered against the rock, and felt it chill and damp, while a hanging twig, that had been all on fire, besprinkled his cheek with the coldest dew.

As soon as he implored Faith not to give in to the Devil, the entire Witches' Sabbath vanished around him and Goodman Brown was alone in the calm night.  A branch that had, a moment before, been alight was now wet with dew.  It was his appeal to Faith (the person, and also the concept) that removed him from the Hellish Sabbath.  In asking her to resist, he, too, resists the Devil, and so the Devil disappears.

Who is the main character in Jerry Spinelli's Stargirl?

The main character is Leo Borlock who narrates the story, even though he focuses mostly on how he and his high school get to know Stargirl, how they treat her, and how his relationship with her develops. The conflict for Stargirl is person vs. person and person vs. society; but mostly, it's Leo vs. himself. Both Stargirl and Leo struggle to find themselves within their community and at MAHS--Mica Area High School. They discover what each other is willing to sacrifice in order to make their relationship work. For example, Leo is willing to date Stargirl even if she is the most unpopular girl at school. Then she shows her devotion to their relationship by dropping the name "Stargirl" and going back to her real name--Susan Caraway. She goes back to using it so Leo won't be ostracized for dating her as "Stargirl." As a result, Stargirl loses herself in the role as Susan. She becomes unhappy and realizes that giving up on who she is in order to make a boyfriend happy isn't worth it. Then, out of embarrassment for dating her, Leo eventually dumps her by not taking her to the school dance.

In the end, it is better for Stargirl to move away than keep going to MAHS. Because Leo is the main character, he is left behind to analyze his behavior along with his professor friend Archie. Archie makes sure that Leo understands some things after Stargirl leaves town. First, he reminds Leo in chapter 32 that Stargirl really liked him. Then he makes sure Leo knows that she changed her whole lifestyle and personality just so he would feel better about being with her in public. In fact, Archie says the following:

"Gave up her self, for a while there. She loved you that much. What an incredibly lucky kid you were" (178).

Leo claims that he knows he was lucky to have dated Stargirl, but Archie claims that he really couldn't know now, but someday, maybe he would. Leo responds inwardly by thinking the following:

"I knew he was tempted to say more. Probably to tell me how stupid I was, how cowardly, that I blew the best chance I would ever have. But his smile returned, and his eyes were tender again" (178).

This conversation between Leo and Archie validates that Leo is the main character because it is he who has the biggest struggle to overcome, not Stargirl. Leo is the one who must learn the most from his relationship with her and it is he who must conquer his own insecurities among his peers regarding social status, conformity, and acceptance.

What are some of the social and cultural contexts to keep in mind when reading A Doll's House?

For me, the most important cultural contexts to keep in mind when reading Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House is the patriarchal norms and standards concerning female agency and the institution of marriage. More specifically, Ibsen provides poignant critique of the unfair standards that patriarchal society imposes upon women. Ibsen subverts and challenges these standards through Nora Helmer's voluntary dissolution of her unhappy relationship with her narrow minded husband Torvald.

Marriage was considerably different in the Nineteenth Century from how we perceive the institution today. Indeed, marriage was less about romantic love and more about making familial connections. Women in this time were viewed much like children; they were seen as less than men, and were ascribed to be moralistic compasses in the home, and charged with the rearing of culturally acceptable children. Therefore, while it may seem innocuous by today's standards, Ibsen's A Doll's House had radical implications upon its debut.

In 1984, describe the scene from the war film that Winston recounts.

In 1984, Winston goes to see a war film characterized by graphic violence. He writes about it in his journal in great detail. In one scene, a ship of refugees is being bombed and a fat man, trying to escape, is chased by a helicopter and shot "full of holes," while the sea around him turns pink. Winston records the audience "shouting with laugher" as the man sinks.

Winston then recounts a scene in which a mother on the same refuge ship under attack tries to protect her screaming three-year-old boy from the helicopter. The helicopter bombs her and the child, and Winston describes "a wonderful shot of a child's arm going right up in the air." Winston notes that in the Party member section of the theater, many people cheer at this sight, but that a female prole has to be dragged out for protesting that they shouldn't show such a scene in front of children.

Winston's journal account of the film shows how callous and dehumanized people, especially Party members, have become, taught to applaud graphic violence and to channel their aggressions into watching innocent people suffer. 

Using two direct quotes, what are the negative effects of colonization in Achebe's Things Fall Apart?

Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart portrays the tragic story of Okonkwo, a strong-willed warrior who is unwilling to adapt to the changing social conditions that are the result of colonialism. White Christian missionaries enter Umuofia and their influence rapidly changes the face of the region. Tribal elders initially treat Christian missionaries derisively, but soon see the error in their ways:

“And even in the matter of religion there was a growing feeling that there might be something in it after all, something vaguely akin to method in the overwhelming madness” (178).

Along with Christianity, white settlers also bring in European models of government into Umuofia. The District Commissioner quickly alters the judicial system of the area. The European judicial system disregards the customs of the natives, and imposes an arbitrary set of rules on the tribes of the area. Okonkwo grows increasingly frustrated at these elements of the community, and this drives him to suicide. Obierika blames the District Commissioner, and white settlers in general, for Okonkwo’s death

“That man was one of the greatest men in Umuofia. You drove him to kill himself, and now he will be buried like a dog” (208).

Thus, the negative elements of colonialism are pervasive and alter the customs and traditions of Umuofia.

What is the dramatic significance of Act 1 of Arms and the Man?

George Bernard Shaw's play Arms and the Man is a play about both love and war. In a sense, Shaw sees these two themes as connected, in that romantic attitudes, which glamorize war and relationships rather than looking at them realistically, lead to bad outcomes in both the relationships among individuals and nations.

The first Act of Arms and the Man sets up the major conflict in the play between romantic ideals and reality, a conflict that plays out in the growth of the central character, Raina. At the opening of the play, Raina's mother is presented as enthralled with the glamour of war and of Sergius, the young hero to whom Raina is engaged. Raina is somewhat more ambivalent, but has no alternative models of either military or romantic ideals with which to compare her mother's views.

With the intrusion of Captain Bluntschli, not only does Shaw introduce a romantic alternative but also an ideological one. Thus the first act not only introduces the main characters and conflicts of the play, but also the ideas about war that Shaw wants to investigate through the vehicle of the play. Captain Bluntschli will serve almost as a mouthpiece for Shaw in the play.

What is friction?

Friction can be defined as the resistance to the relative motion of surfaces. These surfaces could be solid surfaces or liquid layers, etc. A common example of friction is force that develops between the road and the tire of cars (or other vehicles). This friction resists the motion of tires on road and generates heat, which causes the wear of the tires. Frictional force acts along the interacting surfaces and its direction is opposite to the applied force (that's how it resist motion). Frictional force is directly proportional to the normal force exerted by interacting surfaces on each other and is given as:

`F = muN`

where, `mu` is the coefficient of friction. 

We make use of friction in designing vehicle braking systems. Friction can be reduced by use of lubricants or oils. 

Hope this helps. 

What did Jess make for the children's supper?

The book you are referring to is The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner, a children's book first published in 1924. The oldest sister is named Jess, and she has to make quite a few dinners to feed her siblings. The four children, Henry, Jess, Violet, and Benny run away after their father dies when they realize they will be separated.

The first night they eat bread that Jess has taken from their house. By the next night they have found the boxcar (and a dog). Henry goes to town and brings back milk, brown bread and cheese. The children have also found blueberry bushes.

Later in the story, Henry has found various odd jobs. Jess at one point makes a stew with meat, turnips, onions, and carrots. The children become good at scavenging scraps from others' kitchens, become cherry pickers/eaters, and in general are well-fed despite being on their own and living in a boxcar.

What is the meaning of Sharper than serpents tooth is ungrateful child from King Lear?

This quote comes from Act 1, scene 4 of William Shakespeare's King Lear as the titular Lear laments that his children, more specifically his daughter Goneril, are inherently ungrateful. Lear abdicates power to his daughters, only for them to disregard his wishes. He poignantly uses the image of a serpent's tooth and bemoans the fact that his power hungry children have no sense of gratitude or familial loyalty. While Lear is referring directly to Goneril and attacking her lack of character, the metaphor extends to his squabbling family. Lear wants his family to be respectful, and their general apathy toward his well being in conjunction with their greed for power make them ruthless entities. Therefore, he compares them to dangerous serpents, which carries an additional evil connotation in that the serpent in Western culture is often associated with Satan.  

How does Mary Shelley use the hints and suspense before things happen? What are the techniques she uses?

Throughout the novel of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, hints and suspense are used to captivate the reader and allude to the events to come. Although there are numerous techniques utilized in the novel, some of the most significant are foreshadowing and flashbacks.

In the beginning of the novel, Shelley utilizes foreshadowing to illustrate and hint about the coming events with Victor and his creature. In the beginning, the Walton finds Victor. Victor sees how Walton is arduously pursuing the acquisition of knowledge and warns him about the pain this might cause. As a result, he begins to speak vaguely of his own experiences saying:

You seek for knowledge and wisdom, as I once did; and I ardently hope that the gratification of your wishes may not be a serpent to sting you, as mine has been.

With this, Shelley utilizes foreshadowing to hint to the readers about the agony that Victor experienced due to his zealous ambition with knowledge.

Additionally, Shelley utilizes the techniques of foreshadowing with the death of Justine. With this, Justine seems to realize that she will be convicted of the murder and already seems to accept her fate. As Justine herself states, "I commit my cause to the justice of my judges, yet I see no room for hope.” 

Lastly, Shelley also utilizes flashbacks to create suspense. After bring the creature to life, Victor abandons his creation. As the story progresses, we know little about what is happening to the creature until Victor and the creature finally converse and the creature reveals his previous experiences. With this, Shelley utilizes suspense in her novel by having readers question or wonder what happened to the creature during his time of absence from the novel.

Consequently, Shelley utilizes hints and suspense to incite the readers to be curious about future events. With these techniques, Shelley captivates and motivates her readers to continue reading due to their intrigue and interest.

In Paul Zindel's The Pigman, what was the only thing John did that made his dad proud?

The kids portrayed in Zindel's The Pigman have unique family issues. Lorraine lives with her single mother, who projects her own fears about men and life onto her daughter. As a result, Lorraine declares that she is an official paranoid person. John, on the other hand, lives with his parents, but they are older, and his older sibling is all grown up and has moved away. John does not get along with his father very well. It's as if they are from two different planets because they just do not understand each other. At one point in the book, John becomes introspective and wonders how he became a teenager who makes trouble, smokes, and drinks. The memory that he connects with on this subject is of when his dad used to give him sips of beer when he was ten years old. John also remembers the following:

"He got a kick out of it when . . . I'd go around emptying all the beer glasses lying around the house.

'That kid's going to be a real drinker,' he'd say in front of company, and then I'd go through my beer-drinking performance for everybody, and they'd laugh their heads off. It was about the only thing I ever did that got any attention.

What were the major differences between the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson and that of Ronald Reagan? Any similarities?

There were some differences between the Johnson and the Reagan presidencies. The main difference was the role government would play in our lives. President Johnson wanted to launch a series of programs as part of the Great Society. These programs expanded the role of the government. Programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, Head Start, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act were ways President Johnson increased the role of government. President Reagan, on the other hand, believed the government played too big of a role in our lives. He proposed cutting social programs and lowering taxes. There were fewer government rules and regulations as deregulation was common during the Reagan years. Less money was provided for school lunch programs, and some student loan programs were cut.

Both presidents fought communism. President Johnson was far less successful than President Reagan. Vietnam became a very unpopular war while Johnson was president. There were major protests against our involvement in the Vietnam War. Reagan believed we needed to increase our military strength and power to fight communism. President Reagan’s “peace through strength” philosophy was one that he felt the Soviet Union couldn’t afford to match. He was far more successful in dealing with communism than President Johnson. President Reagan laid the groundwork for the collapse of communism.

Both President Johnson and President Reagan wanted to be known as great leaders. President Johnson’s Great Society program was modeled after President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal program. President Reagan wanted to be known as the president who restored American prestige and military might throughout the world. Both presidencies had differences, yet, at the same time, some similarities.

What is the message of the poem "The White Man's Burden"?

The message of the poem "The White Man's Burden" can be understood in part by looking at its historical context. Its author, Rudyard Kipling, was British, and had spent much of his life in British colonies. The poem was written in the immediate aftermath of the Spanish-American War, when a major debate was raging in the United States over the question of American annexation of the Philippines. The island nation, long a Spanish colony, had been taken from Spain as a result of the war. Some Americans argued for granting independence to the Philippines, others that the United States should make the Philippines an American territory. Kipling's poem was published in an American magazine, and it argued that the United States, as a nation of people allegedly superior in technology, culture, and political systems, should take up the "burden" of spreading these blessings to supposedly primitive people in the Philippines. Kipling does not think that the people of this nation, who he views condescendingly as "half devil and half child" will appreciate this sacrifice, and they will indeed hate and resist the Americans. Hence his use of the term "burden". But he claims that taking up this responsibility is one of the things that makes a great nation great. Kipling's poem does not consider that the the native people in question might have been capable of deciding what their future should be, and is often synonymous with the racism that underlay imperialism.

What are 5 quotes about the social status of Bob Ewell in To Kill a Mockingbird?

Bob Ewell and his family are social outcasts in Maycomb.

The first example of Bob Ewell’s social status is when his young son Burris appears in Scout's class.  It is through Burris that we are introduced to the priorities and conditions of the Ewell family.  The teacher Miss Caroline is upset when she finds lice in Burris’s hair.  She tells him to go home and take a bath.  He laughs at her and says he has done his time for the year—she is not sending him home, he was about to go home himself.  Scout and one her classmates decide to explain the Ewells to her flustered teacher.

“He’s one of the Ewells, ma’am,” and I wondered if this explanation would be as unsuccessful as my attempt. But Miss Caroline seemed willing to listen. “Whole school’s full of ‘em. They come first day every year and then leave. (Ch. 3)

This quote demonstrates that the Ewells have a reputation.  Everyone expects them to be dirty, ornery, and illiterate.  We learn that there are a lot of Ewell children, but they are all pretty much like little Burris, who has been in first grade for three years.  Little Chuck Little stands up for the teacher and forces Burris to leave, and he responds by calling the teacher a “slut.”

Even Atticus, who seems willing to offer respect and compassion for anyone, appears to have none for the Ewells.

Atticus said the Ewells had been the disgrace of Maycomb for three generations. None of them had done an honest day’s work in his recollection. … They were people, but they lived like animals. (Ch. 3)

Atticus tells Scout that the Ewells prefer to live this way, and there is no way to make them change.  They do not work within the system, and the system just allows it.  Exceptions are made for them because they are unable or unwilling to exist within the civilized world.  Scout says that she has never heard her father talk about anyone else the way he talks about the Ewells, whom he called “trash” (Ch. 12).

Although having been a member of the town for the longest time usually gains a person respect, this is not the case with the Ewells.  Their family is not respected.  Their ways are passed down from generation to generation.

The tribe of which Burris Ewell and his brethren consisted had lived on the same plot of earth behind the Maycomb dump, and had thrived on county welfare money for three generations. (Ch. 13)

The town is used to its opinion of the Ewells, and the Ewells are used to the town’s opinion of them.  However, as poor and disparaged as the Ewells are, they are still higher than the blacks in the town’s hierarchy.  Racism requires people to stand up for the Ewells rather than the Robinsons, because they are white and the Robinsons are not.

All the little man on the witness stand had that made him any better than his nearest neighbors was, that if scrubbed with lye soap in very hot water, his skin was white. (Ch. 17)

The Ewells live near the town dump.  They subsist on welfare and hunting rabbits and squirrels.  The children are uneducated, dirty, and infected.  Mayella is the only Ewell that attempts to keep herself clean and have pretty things in the yard.

Bob Ewell is known to be a drunkard, and is portrayed as ignorant and abusive.  Scout reflects during the trial that the Ewells are outcasts among their own people, white people, because they live “among pigs,” but blacks are not supposed to associate with them because they are white.

Nobody said, “That’s just their way,” about the Ewells. Maycomb gave them Christmas baskets, welfare money, and the back of its hand. (Ch. 19)

The Ewells exist outside of the society of Maycomb.  Other than with a few token efforts, no one attempts to help them because they do not help themselves.

What act and lines is the number of English and French soldiers killed at the battle of Agincourt located in Shakespeare's "Henry V"?

This seems like a simple question, but it isn’t: there is no agreement among different Shakespeare editions about how acts, scenes, and lines are numbered. Each edition has its own system. Line numbers especially can greatly differ from edition to edition, because for instance any scene with prose in it means that the lines of prose are numbered according to how they break on the pages of the physical book, and therefore they and any lines of verse thereafter can be numbered very differently from edition to edition. So where is it? Well, in the edition I just grabbed from the shelf, the Herald’s line “Here is the number of the slaughtered French” (incidentally, the legendary Sir John Gielgud’s one and only line in his London debut) appears as Act 4, scene 8, line 75, and Henry’s reading of the tally begins at line 81 – but your edition may differ.

Please provide some quotes relating to George killing Lennie and it being the wrong decision?

Lennie has a debate with an imaginary rabbit before George kills him. In this debate the rabbit poses all of the reasons for George to "beat the hell" out of Lennie with a stick. The rabbit also says the following:

"You ain't worth a greased jack-pin to ram you into hell. Christ knows George done ever'thing he could to jack you outa the sewer, but it don't do no good" (102).

Lennie responds by saying that George would never beat him with stick because, "I've knew George since--I forget when--and he ain't never raised his han' to me with a stick. He's nice to me. He ain't gonna be mean" (102). This comment shows that George is not the type of person to hurt anyone else. Therefore, killing Lennie would be a wrong decision because George is nice and has never hurt Lennie before. If George kills or hurts Lennie, it would be going against who he is inside.

The rabbit then tells Lennie that George will at least leave him if he isn't going to hurt him, so that puts him in a frenzy screaming for George. When George emerges, he tells Lennie he won't leave him; but he has Carlson's gun with him and has him sit down next to the river.

Nature seems to chime in to tell George it is the wrong decision to kill Lennie as well because of the following omen:

"On the wind the sound of crashing in the brush came to them. . . George had been listening to the distant sounds. For a moment he was business-like" (105).

But then George hears the other men searching for Lennie getting closer. The question at this point is if it is better for George to allow the others to kill him, or for George to kill Lennie himself. George clearly struggles with the decision to kill Lennie himself because he can't get the hand that holds the gun to stop shaking.

"George raised his gun and his hand shook, and he dropped his hand to the ground again" (105).

The fact that George doesn't go through with the first attempt to shoot Lennie shows that he is having a tough time making the decision. He knows that he will have to live with this decision for the rest of his life, so it better be the right one. As the men get closer to Lennie, George makes his decision for good or bad.

"George shivered and looked at the gun, and then he threw it from him, back up on the bank, near the pile of old ashes" (106).

Stunned that he actually killed Lennie, George looks at the gun and probably wonders how he was able to do such a thing. It doesn't really matter at this point, though, because there's no bringing Lennie back to life, now. When Slim gets to George, he tries to let him know that he had no choice and it was all for the best; but Carlson, wonders what Slim and George are so upset about by saying the following:

"Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?" (107).

What does Miss Maudie mean when she says "Atticus Finch is the same in his house as he is on the public streets" in Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird?

Miss Maudie is saying Atticus is a good person who doesn’t hide anything. Some people pretend to be good people, or harass other people with their supposed values, when they are really hypocrites. This is why Miss Maudie does not like the people she calls “foot-washing Baptists,” because they accuse her of being sinful for having beautiful flowers.

When discussing the Radleys, Miss Maudie also says she is not sure what went on behind the closed doors of their house to make Boo Radley behave so strangely.

Miss Maudie shook her head. “If he’s not he should be by now. The things that happen to people we never really know. What happens in houses behind closed doors, what secrets-” (Chapter 5) 

Scout protests that Atticus would never do anything to them in the house that he would not also do in the streets, and that is why Miss Maudie tells Scout her father is the same on the streets as in the house. He has nothing to hide. He does not present a façade to the world. With Atticus Finch, what you see is what you get.

Atticus is definitely not perfect, but he is a good father and role model. He shows his children that he cares. He tells them to treat others well, and he also treats people well regardless of their skin color or class. Atticus has integrity, which is why when is assigned the Robinson case he tries his best to win even if it seems impossible.

How did England get China to trade with them?

England’s first attempt at trading with China failed miserably when Captain Weddell met resistance from the locals. England sought to engage China through the East India Company, but due to Chinese restrictions the initial contact did not materialize. After failing to directly enter the market in China, England made a successful move to Taiwan in 1672. From Taiwan the English East India Company was able to trade directly with the Chinese.

The English traders were allowed to reach Canton, Chusan and Amoy however trade was restricted to dealing with the Hongs, a special class of Chinese merchants charged with the responsibility of trading with the English. Dealing with the Hongs was problematic because of the tax burden shifted wholesomely to the foreign merchants. This made trading in China very expensive for the English who sought alternative channels through negotiations with the Chinese Imperial Court.

The English sent a number of envoys to secure better trading terms and lift some of the restrictions. However, these overtures failed at convincing the Emperor and his advisers. The English first sent Lord George Macartney in 1793 followed by Lord Amherst in 1816. Throughout this period the East India Company held the monopoly with regards to English-Chinese trade. In 1833, China abolished the monopoly by the East India Company and opened up trade for private English traders, who mostly traded in opium. The Chinese administration recognized the detrimental effects of opium and this forced them to confiscate the drug. This offended the English administration leading up to the first opium war. This resulted in a treaty that opened up five Chinese ports to unconditional foreign trade in 1842.

Why does Professor Herbert want to cancel the debt? Find the words in the text where he explains this.

The text doesn't fully explain why Professor Herbert wants to cancel the debt. However, we may be able to deduce why he wants to do so from the context of the story.

First, let's look at the text where Professor Herbert talks about canceling the debt.

"I'm going to cancel the debt," says Professor Herbert. "I just wanted you to understand, Luster."

"I understand," says Pa, "and since I understand he must pay his debt fer th' tree, I'm goin' to hep 'im."

"Don't do that," says Professor Herbert. "It's all on me."

It looks like Professor Herbert wants to cancel the debt because he means to completely absorb the cost of Dave's debt. If you look back at the beginning of the story, you will read that Professor Herbert had chosen to pay forward Dave's dollar to Mr. Crabtree, the owner of the cherry tree. Therefore, the debt Dave currently owes is not to Mr. Crabtree, but to Professor Herbert.

In showing Luster Sexton (Dave's father) around the school and in explaining the high school science curriculum to the blustery farmer, Professor Herbert is educating Dave's father about changes in education. From the story, Luster appears to enjoy his time with Professor Herbert. The teacher's friendliness quickly disarms Luster, and soon, both are discussing the concept of germs in the study of biology.

So, Professor Herbert wants to cancel the debt because he has decided to absorb the cost of Dave's debt. But, why does he do this? Likely, he realizes that this goodwill gesture may ensure Luster's continuing support for the new changes in education the school has been implementing.

What powerful thoughts and feelings are conveyed in the William Butler Yeats' poem "The Lake Isle of Innisfree?"

Yearning for peace in the company of nature is the most powerful thought in the poem.

The poet is a man of city. What troubles him in the city is not specified. However, it’s understood that the poet wants to escape from the drab urban setting to a pristine world of nature.

The poem takes up the common Romantic theme of return to nature. The period around 1888, when this poem was composed, saw rapid industrialization and urbanization all over England and Europe. It resulted in man's distancing away from the idyllic natural world.

The poet desires to transcend all the worries that saddle and depress him in the city. Nature seems to be the only refuge that could guarantee him the solace he’s seeking.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight’s all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet’s wings.

For the upsetting urban environment, the poet turns to Innisfree, a small island at Lough Gill in Sligo County. It had been Yeats’ childhood haven. He would frequently visit the place with his family and enjoy a lot.

So, we see nostalgia is another significant feeling expressed in the poem. Innisfree is a symbol for perfect idyllic setting, where the poet is sure to discover internal peace.

Besides, the strong dislike for modern settlement is another very important feeling expressed in the poem. The description of his imagined cabin suggests his distaste for modern lifestyle.

And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;

The cabin that he would set up would be made of "clay and wattles," both of which are naturally available. There’s no mention of anything that’s factory-made.

The only image borrowed from the city is that of “roadway” and “pavements,” and interestingly, they look “grey.” The choice of color speaks amply about the poet’s opinion about urban lifestyle.

So, we see that the poet wants to run away from the stifling city life and seclude himself in the soothing world of nature.

Explain simply what the Binomial System of Classification is

Binomial Nomenclature is the international system of giving each species of animal and plant its own, individual, two-part name. It originated with Carolus Linnaeus in the 18th century. The name consists of the genus and the species of the organism; in other words, the two most specific areas of grouping organisms. The names are usually derived from Latin or Greek. This is standardized world-wide so that species can be identified with certainty, and to help when a new organism is discovered. The characteristics that are common to those in the same Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus and Species can be used to see if a newly discovered organism is indeed new, or if it is a species that is already known.

When writing the scientific name of an organism, it is written as the genus, which is capitalized, and the species, which is not. It is also either italicized or underlined. For example, the scientific name of the common house mouse is Mus musculus. If a scientific study using mice is done in one area of the world, it can be repeated elsewhere using the correct species of mouse; this may not sound important, but when doing experiments it is important to keep all aspects the same except for the one being tested.

How many grams of water are produced from 52 g of C3H8? C3H8 + 5O2 → 3CO2 + 4H2O

The balanced chemical reaction is given as:

`C_3H_8 + 5O_2 -> 3CO_2 + 4H_2O`

This is the oxidation reaction of propane (C3H8). On reaction with oxygen, propane produces carbon dioxide and water. 

The molar mass of propane = 3 x atomic mass of carbon  + 8 x atomic mass of hydrogen = 3 x 12 + 8 x 1 = 44 g/mole

Similarly, the molar mass of water = 2 x atomic mass of hydrogen + 1 x atomic mass of oxygen = 2 x 1 + 1 x 16 = 18 g/mole

Using stoichiometry, 1 mole of propane reacts with 5 moles of oxygen and produces 3 moles of carbon dioxide and 4 moles of water.

Here we are given with 52 g of propane. 

since 1 mole propane produces 4 moles water

or, 44 gm propane produces 4 x 18 = 72 g water

or, 52 gm propane produces 72/44 x 52 g of water

= 85.1 g of water. 

Thus, 52 gm of propane will produce 85.1 g of water.

Hope this helps. 

How do you know that Jimmy has truly changed?

O. Henry provides many proofs that Jimmy Valentine has changed. The entire story is about how Jimmy changes from a criminal into a solid citizen. The first direct proof of his change is stated in plain words by the author.

A young lady crossed the street, passed him at the corner and entered a door over which was the sign “The Elmore Bank.” Jimmy Valentine looked into her eyes, forgot what he was, and became another man. 

Is this possible? Well, it happened pretty fast, but many young men change when they fall in love. They grow up. They realize that there is a serious purpose in life, and for most men this involves getting married, having a family, becoming a provider, having a legitimate and secure profession or a trade, assuming a respectable place in society. All of this happens to Jimmy, as O. Henry illustrates, because of his love for the beautiful and high-principled Annabel Adams.

Early in the story O. Henry describes Jimmy's suitcase in detail. It is full of his specially designed safecracking tools. The suitcase is mentioned regularly right up to the end. It is really a symbol. It identifies him as an expert safecracker, but it is also a heavy burden. When he goes straight he wants to get rid of that burden. He offers to give it to a friend and tells him the following in a letter.

Say, Billy, I've quit the old business—a year ago. I've got a nice store. I'm making an honest living, and I'm going to marry the finest girl on earth two weeks from now. It's the only life, Billy—the straight one. I wouldn't touch a dollar of another man's money now for a million. 

Then at the climax Jimmy is still burdened with his heavy suitcase and his old identity. He makes a noble sacrifice by opening the suitcase inside the bank and rescuing a little girl who has accidentally gotten locked inside the supposedly burglar-proof vault. In doing this, he knows he is losing his new identity, the girl he planned to marry, his reputation as a solid citizen, and surely going to prison for a long stretch. This is the most solid evidence that he has really become a "another man." Fortunately, Ben Price the bank detective has seen Jimmy noble deed and is himself convinced that Jimmy has changed and is no longer a threat to society. Instead of arresting Jimmy and getting him sentenced to what could be twelve years in prison for three bank jobs, Ben lets Jimmy keep his new identity. When Jimmy resignedly and despondently offers to give himself up to the law, Ben Price responds:

“Guess you're mistaken, Mr. Spencer,” he said. “Don't believe I recognize you. Your buggy's waiting for you, ain't it?”

Jimmy really has become a different man in every way, including his name. He is no longer Jimmy Valentine but Ralph Spencer, respectable small-town businessman and pillar of the community.

Who attracts the children to the smithy?

It is the blacksmith himself who attracts the children after school to stop by and watch him work. The speaker states, "They love to see the flaming forge, / And hear the bellowsroar, / And watch the burning sparks that fly" (21-23). Longfellow's imagery also attracts the reader with the senses of sight, sound, and touch--the flames, the roar, and the burn. As well, one can imagine that the children are also attracted by the might of the blacksmith, as that is the description that starts the poem:

The smith, a mighty man is he,

   With large and sinewy hands;

And the muscles of his brawny arms

   Are strong as iron bands. (3-6)

Children are often impressed by feats of strength and bravery, and a man who works with heat and fire to bend and mold metal items would be the very picture of those qualities.

In Animal Farm, what are the original commandments and how have they changed at the end of the story?

In Chapter Two of Animal Farm, the animals come together and create their own set of commandments which are written on the side of the barn "in great white letters that could be read thirty yards away." These seven commandments represent the animals' attempt at organising their new and liberated society and are based on the principles of equality and separation from humans:

1. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
2. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.
3. No animal shall wear clothes.
4. No animal shall sleep in a bed.
5. No animal shall drink alcohol.
6. No animal shall kill any other animal.
7. All animals are equal.

But, by Chapter 10, the commandments (and the animals) have taken a very different turn as Clover and Benjamin find that a single commandment has replaced the original seven. It simply reads:

"All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others."

This dramatic change in the commandments represents the destruction of the animals' utopian society. This idea is also supported in the change from Animal Farm to Manor Farm. Furthermore, this change in the commandments also corresponds with the animals' adoption of human characteristics. We find Squealer, for example, walking on two legs and Napoleon drinking alcohol and playing cards with Mr Pilkington. The animals' utopia is lost and the pigs have truly become the new masters.  

What is frame of reference and how does it affect the description of an object’s motion?

Frame of reference, in simplest terms, describes the state of motion of the observer. The frame of reference may also be described by using a set of coordinates, time and motion. We formulate all our equations and solve them using the frame of reference.

The frame of reference determines how the motion is perceived. For example, if the observer A is stationary and a car moves towards right at a speed of 10 m/s; we will describe the speed of car as 10 m/s to the right. However, if A starts moving towards right at a speed of 4 m/s, then the speed of car will only be observed as 6 m/s (= 10-4 m/s). If A is moving towards left at 5 m/s, then the speed of the car will be observed (by A) as 15 m/s (= 10+5 m/s) towards right.  Hence the motion of an object will be perceived differently depending upon the frame of reference.

Hope this helps.  

What new goal does John set for the Hill People after he returns home?

When John returns from the Place of the Gods, he tells his father all about his journey and is anxious to tell the other Hill people. His father, however, convinces him that there is a reason why they were kept ignorant of the city and the Dead Places all those years.  He says that too much knowledge could be destructive. John thinks that “perhaps in the old days, they ate knowledge too fast.”  In order to avoid what happened in the past, John introduces the knowledge he has learned slowly.  He says, “It is not for the metal alone we go to the Dead Places now—there are the books and the writings.”  John realizes that a society must advance slowly and deliberately in order to survive, and his goal is that his people discover the truth on their own through the books and artifacts they collect in the Dead Places. 

Is there a quote that describes Zeebo in To Kill a Mockingbird?

In Chapter 12, Calpurnia takes Jem and Scout to First Purchase African M.E. Church for Sunday service. After a short run-in with the ornery Lula, Zeebo appears from the crowd and kindly welcomes the children to the church. Scout recognizes Zeebo because he is their garbage man. After everyone is seated, Zeebo gets up from one of the pews and begins to lead the church in singing the hymn "There's a Land Beyond the River." Scout is astonished to find out that in the African American church they have no hymnals and use a technique called "lining." Lining is when the leader sings one line of the hymn, and the choir repeats the line back. Scout describes Zeebo by mentioning,

"Zeebo was Calpurnia's eldest son. If I had ever thought about it, I would have known that Calpurnia was of mature years---Zeebo had half grown children---but then I had never thought about it." (Lee 166)

Calpurnia taught Zeebo how to read using only the Bible and Blackstone's Commentaries, which is a very difficult book to read. Jem and Scout are impressed that Calpurnia taught him using those books, and begin to look at Cal in a new way. The children enjoy their time at First Purchase African M.E. and gain valuable perspective into the lives of the black members of their community.

According to Gandalf, what lay hidden somewhere not too far ahead of the travelers in The Hobbit?

Gandalf is going to Rivendell, the home of the elves.

Bilbo and company are on a journey to take back the dwarves treasure from the dragon.  When the travelers are done fighting the trolls, they continue on their journey.  Gandalf has not told them exactly where they are going, so they ask him.

"You are come to the very edge of the Wild, as some of you may know. Hidden somewhere ahead of us is the fair valley of Rivendell where Elrond lives in the Last Homely House. I sent a message by my friends, and we are expected.” (Ch. 3)

Rivendell is the home of the elves.  It is a very special place, and well hidden.  There they can take shelter, be protected, and get some food and rest.  They also need advice from Elrond, the king of the elves.

Bilbo has never been to Rivendell and has never seen elves, although he has long wanted to.  He finds Rivendell a literally enchanting place.

Bilbo never forgot the way they slithered and slipped in the dusk down the steep zig-zag path into the secret valley of Rivendell. The air grew warmer as they got lower, and the smell of the pine-trees made him drowsy… (Ch. 3)

Once there, they can get advice on how to get inside the Lonely Mountain.  Elrond helps them interpret the runes on the map.  It turns out they say that they can get into the mountain when the thrush knocks and “the last light of Durin's Day will shine upon the key-hole.”

This turns out to be the key to getting into the mountain, but the travelers still have trouble getting in.  They are about to give up when the moonlight shines on the keyhole and they are able to enter.

Why do you think the poet uses the word "He" to describe the bird?

I think Tennyson is trying to do one of two things by using the pronoun "he" to describe the bird.  He could be trying to elevate and equate the bird with humans, or Tennyson could be trying to illustrate to his readers that mankind and birds (animals) are equivalent.  By using "he," Tennyson makes mankind and the bird equivalent, because the pronoun is now being used for both species (instead of "it" for the bird).  

The pronoun usage makes sense when you think about Tennyson being a Victorian author.  Victorian authors are writing their stuff at the same time that Charles Darwin published his Origin of Species.  The book was a breakthrough piece and extremely controversial, because it showed humans as completely interrelated with other animals.  The book showed that we are descended from a common ancestral species.  Tennyson's poem gives the bird the same quality as humans, because he uses a human pronoun to describe the bird. 

Why were the Populists' attempts to form a coalition of white and black farmers and industrial workers ultimately unsuccessful?

There are at least three reasons why the Populists’ attempt to form this coalition was ultimately unsuccessful.

First, it is not necessarily easy to form a coalition between farmers and factory workers.  While some people might think that both of these groups are working class and therefore share the same interests, values, and goals, that is not really true.  Factor workers are urban people.  Many of them in those days were immigrants.  Farmers are rural people, most of whom were not immigrants.  Farmers worried about things like the prices that railroads charged while workers worried about working conditions and pay.  These differences meant that they did not really see one another as natural allies.

Second, we have to remember that this was a time when racism was the norm in the United States.  Whites all over the country, but particularly in the South, saw themselves as superior to African Americans.  They wanted to maintain white supremacy.  They did not feel that it was right for them to ally with people who were their inferiors.  In addition, many Southern whites did not want to abandon the Democratic Party for fear that this would harm the power of white supremacy in the South.  (The Democrats were the party more associated with white supremacy in those days.)  Thus, racism and the desire to maintain white supremacy helped to weaken the Populists’ attempted coalition.

Finally, the Democratic Party saw the Populists as a threat.  Because of this, they tried to attract people from the Populists.  They took some of the Populists’ ideas as their own.  By doing so, they attracted people who might otherwise have joined the Populists.  This, too, weakened the Populists.

These three factors all contributed to the ultimate failure of the Populists’ attempt to form this coalition.

If a ray hits a plane mirror at an angle of incidence of 35 degrees, what is the angle between the incident and reflected rays?

According to the law of reflection, the incident ray (that falls on the mirror), reflected ray (that is reflected off the mirror) and the normal to the mirror, all lie on the same plane. More importantly, the angle of incidence and angle of reflection are equal, or

angle of incidence = angle of reflection.

Angle of incidence and angle of reflection are the angles that incident ray and reflected ray, makes with the normal (to the mirror), respectively.

In this case, the angle of incidence is given as 35 degrees, thus the angle of reflection is also 35 degrees. As stated earlier, the incident and reflected rays make this angle with the normal. Thus, the angle between the incident and the reflected rays is the sum of angle of incidence and angle of reflection, that is, 70 degrees (= 35 + 35 degrees).

Hope this helps.

What do you think the poet is trying to say about choices in Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken"?

I don't believe the poet intended to write an essay about choices but was only thinking about one specific choice of his own which he made a long time ago. I believe he must have been thinking about a very important choice and that it was a career choice. Robert Frost knew he had poetic talent and that he wanted to devote his life to writing poetry. However, he also knew that it is so difficult to make a living writing poetry that it is nearly impossible. Shakespeare himself couldn't do it. He had to get into show biz, and he always felt a little ashamed of the way he made his money. Any kind of creative work is risky. Even if a person has one success, that means nothing. He could still find it hard to make a living for an entire lifetime. And what if his inspiration deserts him? A man who wants to get married and have children is not only risking his own welfare but those of the people he gets involved with. He will find that he has to choose between art and money, or else become a hack, like so many others. Many creative people think they can compromise. They think they will get some kind of tolerable job and then devote as much of their free time as possible to their creative work. It is very difficult. It is like trying to travel down two roads at once. Frost was a hard-headed Yankee. He decided to live a spartan life, not unlike that advocated by Henry David Thoreau in Walden, and devote his full time to his poetry. Eventually Frost became famous, but it took him a long time, and he seems to be wondering in "The Road Not Taken" whether it was worth it. He may have won the battle. He was recognized as America's leading poet. But that doesn't mean what he did would be right for everybody!

How has Scrooge changed in A Christmas Carol?

Ebenezer Scrooge changes completely from the beginning of the story to the end. Transformation is a very important theme to the story, in fact. The ways in which he changes are many, but the most significant is probably in terms of his generosity. 

At the beginning of the story we know that Scrooge is a miser. This means he is a penny-pinching, miserable, greedy man who cares of nothing other than his money. This love of money has cost him all of his personal relationships, his social life, and any any empathy he might have ever had.

At the end of the story, however, he is a generous and kind man who wants to help others. He is no longer selfish and greedy. We see this best displayed in the final stave where he so completely transforms.

"He became as good a friend, as good a master, and as good a man, as the good old city knew, or any other good old city, town, or borough, in the good old world. Some people laughed to see the alteration in him, but he let them laugh, and little heeded them; for he was wise enough to know that nothing ever happened on this globe, for good, at which some people did not have their fill of laughter in the outset; and knowing that such as these would be blind anyway, he thought it quite as well that they should wrinkle up their eyes in grins, as have the malady in less attractive forms. His own heart laughed: and that was quite enough for him" (Stave V).

It is important to note that he has not just become generous with his money, but with his feelings. Before he seemed so filled with anger that he was incapable of even seeing others, let alone feeling compassion for them. We see at the end of the story that he is freely sharing with friends and family and has become generous with his love and kindness as well as his money.

How does race play a part in The Great Gatsby? How do you read Nick, finally? How sympathetic do you think he is toward Tom? Does Nick share or...

From the early pages of the novel, Tom's racism provides a backdrop to the action. When Nick visits him for the first time after moving to Long Island, Tom says he believes the "Nordic" races, to whom he attributes the development of civilization, are in danger of being overrun by nonwhites. 

This is important because Gatsby, originally named Gatz, may well have a Jewish or Semitic background, meaning he would not be Nordic. We learn early in the novel that Tom has a narrow idea of who qualifies as "Nordic" when he hesitates for a moment even before including Daisy, his own wife, in that group. 

In this passage at the Plaza, Tom insinuates that Gatsby is not Nordic. At this point, he understands that Daisy and Gatsby have been having an affair. He says he won't "sit back and let Mr. Nobody from Nowhere [Gatsby] make love" to Daisy. Immediately after this, he makes his remark about racial intermarriage, which he thinks is a terrible idea. To Tom, breaking up Daisy and Gatsby is about more than saving his own marriage: it is saving society from racial destruction. 

Nick and the novel both reject Tom's racism. This is clear because the person Nick, and the novel, most romanticize is Gatsby, the man Tom overflows with contempt for to the extent he can hardly stand to be near him. For Nick, however, Gatsby is the heroic, if flawed and tragic, emblem of the American Dream, a figure he admires in spite of himself. He says of Gatsby, "there was something gorgeous about him, some heightened sensitivity to the promises of life."

Nick, on the other hand, dislikes Tom intensely. He continually casts him as brutal, unintelligent, hypocritical, snobbish, entitled and racist, and early in the book dismisses him with one the classical disses in American literature: "one of those men who reach such an acute limited excellence at 21 that everything afterward savors of anti-climax." Nick continually portrays Tom as the quintessential buzzkill: to be around Tom is to be in misery. From the start, Nick describes his old college friend as having "arrogant eyes" and "effeminate swank ... a cruel body." 

In the end, Nick is an unreliable narrator who lacks the self-awareness to understand that his "cardinal virtue" is not his "honesty." We can't know for certain whether or not he is too hard on Tom, but Tom's own actions tend to bear out Nick's subjective feelings that Tom is a repugnant human being.  

How does Shakespeare present Lord Capulet in the play as a whole and in Act I, Scene 2?

Lord Capulet is Juliet's father and a well-respected man of Verona. He does nothing to seek peace with the Montagues, but he is also not one to ruin his own party because a few of his enemy's youth crash it. He seems like a reasonable man, but one who also takes his status in the community and role as husband and father seriously. He believes in what the law allows, which is marrying off his daughter to whomever he chooses. He also expects his wife, daughter, and employees (such as the nurse) to do their duties to support him and to do what he says. When he doesn't get what he wants, though, he can be very mean. For example, when Juliet tells him that she doesn't want to marry Paris, he threatens to cast her off into the streets. He can have a very heated temper when disobeyed. And when he believes that Juliet is dead, he is still selfish because he says the following:

"Death is my son-in-law, Death is my heir;

My daughter he hath wedded. I will die

And leave him all; life, living all is Death's: (IV.v.41-43).

Basically, Lord Capulet is sad for her death, but he's still selfish because he also mentions having no heirs and not getting what he wanted.

As far as the first act is concerned, we see Lord Capulet not wanting to marry his daughter off because of her youth. He tells Paris the following:

"My child is yet a stranger in the world;

She hath not seen the change of fourteen years.

Let two more summers wither in their pride,

Ere we may think her ripe to be a bride" (I.ii.8-11).

Then Capulet tells Paris to go to the party that night and meet some other girls. Paris can play until Juliet matures and then Capulet will marry her off to him. So what changes his mind? Tybalt's death. Lord Capulet sees Juliet crying over Tybalt and wants to make her happy again. He thinks that by marrying her off she will be distracted by a joyful wedding and his family will have cause to be happy, too. It seems as if rash decision-making runs in the family. If Tybalt had not died, Lord Capulet would not have had cause to push his daughter into marriage; but again, he wanted to distract everyone with something happy rather than see Juliet and the family crying over Tybalt's death.

How does Jackson start to foreshadow the ending in paragraphs 2 and 3 of "The Lottery"?

In the second and third paragraphs of "The Lottery," there are the beginnings of hints of how the plot will develop as the children and adults assemble near piles of stones.

Shirley Jackson's foreshadowing is so subtle that readers are often greatly stunned by the climax of her short story. Nevertheless, Jackson plans her story with enough hints that the narrative has verisimilitude.

• In the second paragraph, for instance, Jackson writes that the children "tended to gather together quietly...." The use of the verb "tended" indicates that the children's actions have been repeated before. Later, the reader understands that the gathering occurs every year for the lottery.


• Also, in the second paragraph, there is foreshadowing of the stoning that will take place as Bobby Martin fills his pockets with stones, and Harry Jones and Dickie Delacroix make:

...a great pile of stones in one corner of the square and guarded it against the raids of the other boys.

• In the third paragraph, the men gather, standing together, but "their jokes were quiet and they smiled rather than laughed." That the men are not relaxed enough to laugh aloud, or that they feel it is inappropriate to laugh, foreshadows a dark event.


• As the women gather and call to their children, many of the children come reluctantly after having been called four or five times. Bobby Martin eludes his mother and runs laughingly back to his pile of rocks. This action suggests that Bobby eagerly anticipates something that connects with his stones, and it is something he enjoys.

Because this foreshadowing, seemingly insignificant, hints of actions to come, the shock of what occurs in the climax is all the more horrifying. 

Why did the US economy lurch from boom to bust between 1920 and 1930?

The economy went from "boom" to "bust" during the Twenties because of a number of factors. In short, most of them had to do with the fact that the prosperity of the 1920s was for many people a bit of a mirage. In reality, the economy was weak in several key areas.

For one thing, the farming sector, which still represented a significant portion of the American economy, was faltering throughout the Twenties. This was due, in short, to declining farm prices after World War I. Having borrowed heavily to invest in equipment and land during the war (when prices were high) farmers faced ruin when they fell rapidly after the war. The pattern of foreclosures and farm failures that many associate with the Depression of the 1930s actually began a decade earlier.

Also, industries that had been the bedrock of the American economy were foundering. Railroads in particular shed jobs as it struggled to compete with the emerging automobile industry, and the coal and steel industries, tied to railroad construction, slowed accordingly. 

This pointed to another cause of the economic collapse. The economic expansion of the Twenties was based largely on consumer consumption and the manufacture of consumer goods. This in turn was fueled by consumer credit, where individuals borrowed money to purchase items such as automobiles and household appliances. Retailers, backed by banks, offered installment plans to consumers, who piled on considerable debts even as real wages declined. 

Finally, the consumption economy of the Twenties masked a reality about the economy. Free of regulation and largely free of significant taxation, a gap between the nation's wealthy and the rest of Americans developed. A very small percentage of the nation's people controlled a very large portion of its wealth, a situation that would prove untenable. Ordinary people just didn't have the spending power to sustain the new consumption economy. 

How long had Marley been dead in A Christmas Carol?

Marley has been dead for seven years.

When the story begins, Scrooge is asked about his partner Marley by the men collecting money for charity.  Scrooge’s counting house is still named “Scrooge and Marley.”  He even answers to both names.  When the men ask about his partner, Scrooge tells them that he is dead.

“Mr. Marley has been dead these seven years,” Scrooge replied. “He died seven years ago, this very night.” (Stave 1)

Although Marley’s death might be a reason to not like Christmas, since his dying on Christmas Eve might bring back bad memories to associate with the holiday, that is clearly not so.  Scrooge was bitter and lonely even before his partner died.  When he is visiting the past, the Ghost of Christmas Past shows him the Christmas Eve that Marley died.

“…I passed his office window; and as it was not shut up, and he had a candle inside, I could scarcely help seeing him. His partner lies upon the point of death, I hear; and there he sat alone. Quite alone in the world, I do believe.” (Stave 2)

The fact that Scrooge would not sit with his partner as he was dying, and decided to work instead, shows that he did not think much of other people even then.  Marley was the person that mattered most to him in the world, and he was not there for him.  When Marley’s ghost appears to Scrooge, Scrooge is happy to see him, once he gets over the shock.  He tells Marley that he was always a good friend.

Marley became a ghost, and watched over his friend Scrooge even in death.  He decided that he could not stand back and watch Scrooge commit the same mistakes he did.  He was unable to rest in death, watching the poor and suffering and not being able to help them.  So he decided to help them through Scrooge.  First he helped Scrooge see the error of his ways, and then Scrooge made it his business to celebrate Christmas by helping others.

Do today's Tea Party advocates share similar values with those who advocated for the Populist movement 100 years ago?

While there might be similarities in their calls to action, I think that there are significant policy differences between the Tea Party movement and the Populist movement of a century ago.

The Populists in the late nineteenth century believed that government was not listening to the needs of farmers.  Some of the language in the platform of the Populist party called for uniting "the farmers of America for their protection against class legislation and the encroachments of concentrated capital."  This protection came in the form of governmental action.  The Populists called for a regulation of railroads and communication.  They sought to increase governmental control in order to make government more responsive to the needs of farmers.

The Tea Party advocates do not favor more governmental control.  Their platform is motivated by the belief that there is too much governmental intrusion and regulation.  The Tea Party membership wishes to decrease the role of government.  Members of the Tea Party believe that governmental spending is far too much and needs to be curtailed.  Accordingly, Tea Party members do not support the widening of government or the nationalization of industries under the government.  It is for this reason that so many Tea Party advocates are against government- sponsored initiatives like health care.

The shared anger and outrage at the way government is being run is one common link between the Tea Party and the Populists.  They both share a dislike for how government is functioning.  However, the policy implications of each are fundamentally different.  The Populists wanted greater governmental control over privately held industries, while the Tea Party seeks to reduce the role of government.

When did Scout and Jem fight ?

I believe you are referring to Jem and Scout's brawl in Chapter 14. This chapter starts out with Scout asking Atticus what rape means. When it emerges that Scout had already asked Calpurnia for an explanation prior to approaching her father, Aunt Alexandra is less than pleased. She is even less pleased when she discovers that Jem and Scout have attended church with Calpurnia. In a testy discussion which foreshadows Jem and Scout's physical tussle, Aunt Alexandra warns Atticus that Calpurnia would prove a bad influence on Scout in the long run. Atticus stubbornly defends his housekeeper and refuses to release Calpurnia from the household.

He reasons that Calpurnia has done well in raising his children and asserts that his children love and need her too much for him to let Calpurnia go. The tension is high as the argument continues, so Jem calls Scout away to his bedroom in order to give the adults some space. He tells Scout not to antagonize their aunt; here, he is referring to the episode in the living room when Scout briefly challenges her aunt's refusal to let her and her brother attend church with Calpurnia on a future Sunday.

At Jem's words, Scout flies into a rage. Due to her overwrought emotions, she fails to recognize the evident concern in Jem's request. Jem, for his part, is worried about Atticus' ability to hold up in the Tom Robinson trial. To Scout, Jem's maddening tendency to classify himself with the adults while relegating Scout to the status of one who needs to receive 'edification and instruction,' upsets her. The last straw comes when Jem proclaims that he will spank her if she continues to antagonize Aunt Alexandra.

At this, Scout flies at Jem in a rage.

He was still on the bed and I couldn’t get a firm stance, so I threw myself at him as hard as I could, hitting, pulling, pinching, gouging. What had begun as a fist-fight became a brawl. We were still struggling when Atticus separated us.

As punishment, Atticus sends both his children to bed. However, it doesn't take long before both recover their good graces in time to welcome the inimitable Dill into their home.

Neither the Articles of Confederation nor the Constitution directly addressed social equality. This was a deficiency that did not promote the...

The Articles of Confederation and Constitution did not attempt to provide voting or other rights to women, the poor, or slaves. The Constitution, for example, counts slaves as three-fifths of a person for the purposes of levying taxes and proportioning representation in the House of Representatives, but slaves could not vote. Slavery was not abolished until after the Civil War, and consideration of the slave trade was put off until 1808 (the Constitution was ratified in 1788). In addition, women were not allowed to vote, and voting rights were extended to white men with property.

The failure of the Constitution and Articles of Confederation to address inequality affected the structure of our government. For example, as stated above, slaves only counted for three-fifths of a person in figuring out how many representatives were elected from each state. In addition, in the original Constitution, senators were chosen by state legislatures (composed generally of wealthier white men in those days) rather than directly by the people. People only began to directly elect senators with the passage of the 17th Amendment in 1913.

It would take a long time for disenfranchised groups to be represented in the national government. The Constitution allowed slavery to continue, and it did continue until the end of the Civil War and the ratification of the 13th Amendment in 1865.  African-American men gained the right to vote in 1870 with the 15th Amendment, but in many places in the South, most African-Americans were denied the right to vote until the 1960s. In addition, women did not gain the right to vote in national elections until the 19th Amendment was ratified in 1920. 

What did the House Committee on Un-American Activities and Joseph McCarthy share in common? Why did they gain so much attention after WWII?

What the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and Senator Joseph McCarthy had in common was that they both worried about communism subverting the United States and they were both willing to intimidate and bully people who they suspected of wrongdoing.  Both HUAC and McCarthy got a great deal of attention soon after WWII because Americans were very concerned about the potential spread of communism and the danger it posed.

Both HUAC and McCarthy were obsessed with the idea that communists were infiltrating the US.  McCarthy claimed that there were many communists in the State Department.  He claimed that communists were corrupting the Army.  HUAC investigated Hollywood moviemakers, believing that they were using the movies to try to win people over to communism.  They were both willing to bully people and to use questionable tactics.  McCarthy claimed to have lists of confirmed communists that he never shared with anyone.  HUAC would grill witnesses, trying to get them to admit to being communist and trying to get them to finger others.

Both HUAC and McCarthy fed off of popular fear of communism.  After WWII, many people worried that communism was spreading and becoming more threatening.  They saw the USSR take control over Eastern Europe.  They saw China become communist and they saw North Korea invade South Korea.  They saw the Soviet Union get atomic bombs.  They worried that communism would spread and so they supported demagogues who promised to prevent the spread by exposing alleged communists within the US.

How is the hydrosphere endangered?

The hydrosphere includes the total amount of water we have on this planet, including the surface water (in rivers, lakes, ponds, oceans, snow etc.), subsurface water (groundwater) and atmospheric water (water vapor, etc.). Our water is endangered due to two primary reasons: pollution and over-exploitation. We are polluting our water sources at a very rapid pace by discharging municipal and industrial liquid and solid wastes into them without treatment (or with little treatment). The rivers in many countries are so polluted that they resemble drains and are a health hazard either through consumption of their water or through contact with skin (during bathing, etc.). Our water resources are also over-exploited because of our increasing population, especially in developing and underdeveloped countries. Ownership and sharing of water is another cause of worry in many such areas. Thus, our hydrosphere is under severe threat and unfortunately we cannot make new water (unlike electricity). Someone has wisely suggested that water is going to be the chief cause of the next world war.

Hope this helps. 

How are radioactive isotopes used to determine the absolute age of igneous rock? Name 2 radiometric methods that are used.

Radioactive isotopes by their nature are unstable and break down (or decay) over time. This can be measured in half-lives. The half-life of a radioactive isotope is how long it takes for half of the nuclei in any given sample to decay. This process goes on at a steady, constant rate for each isotope and scientists are able to use that rate of decay to determine how long the process has been going on (how old the rock is). 

Two radiometric methods used for igneous rocks are uranium-lead dating and potassium-argon dating. Both act on the same principal of radioactive decay. Uranium-lead dating uses the decay of two isotopes of uranium, 238U and 235U into isotopes of lead. The closer in agreement the measurements for these separate isotopes are, the more exact and certain the date of the rock. Potassium-argon dating uses the breakdown of an isotope of potassium, 40K, into argon. This can date the rock back to when it first crystallized for an igneous rock or how much time has passed since metamorphosis in a metamorphic rock. 

What did FDR promise to the American people when he took office?

Franklin Roosevelt promised the American people a "new deal," a pledge he made actually before he was elected, at the Democratic National Convention in 1932. What he was promising, in effect, was government action to combat the effects of the Great Depression which gripped the nation in 1932. The phrase, which recalled his distant relative Theodore Roosevelt's promise of a "Square Deal" for working people, stuck, and was used by the media and Roosevelt himself to describe the vast array of government programs implemented after he became President in 1933. He immediately took action upon his inauguration by addressing the bank panic that broke out in the aftermath of the 1932 election. Announcing a bank holiday, he told the nation that banks would remain closed until their capital reserves had been deemed safe for reopening. Later, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insured bank deposits to promote investor confidence. His response to the banking crisis was the beginning of what was known as the "Hundred Days," during which a number of programs intended to create work, stabilize agricultural prices, and pump money into the industrial and financial sectors went into effect.

In the Odyssey, who does Telemachus call father and why?

Referring to Book XVI, Telemachus comes to the hut of Eumaeus, the swineherd, and finds a beggar there. He talks about his long search for his father but because his father had left when he was an infant, he doesn't know who he is looking for. The beggar reveals himself as Odysseus, telling Telemachus who he is. Telemachus doesn't believe him at first, but understands the truth as Odysseus asks about the suitors to his wife and Telemachus' mother, Penelope. They then begin to plan the destruction of the suitors. Athena plays an important role in this whole process, as she advises Telemachus to oust the suitors (which he was unable to do), then advises him to leave to seek his father, protects and brings him home, and then advises Odysseus to disclose his identity to Telemachus. 

What clothes did Scout forget and leave at school?

Scout does not leave any clothes at the school following the Maycomb Halloween festival, but she does leave her shoes behind the stage. In Chapter 28, Scout sleeps through her part during the Maycomb pageant and walks onto the stage late. Mrs. Merriweather is upset at Scout for her untimely appearance and tells her that she ruined the pageant. As Jem and Scout leave the auditorium to walk home, Scout remembers that she left her shoes behind the stage. Jem attempts to go back and get her shoes until he sees the auditorium lights turn off. He tells Scout that she can come tomorrow and get her shoes. Scout tells Jem that tomorrow is Sunday, and he says the janitor will let her in. Moments later, Jem tells Scout that he hears something. They think that Cecil Jacobs is following them, but in reality, Bob Ewell is stalking them.

Why was the Cratchit family still content?

In Stave Three of the story, we meet the Cratchit family as part of Ebenezer's tour with the Ghost of Christmas Present.  While the family of eight (Mom, Dad, and six children) are poor, and while their Christmas "feast" does not feature much food, Dickens states that the family is "still content."  This is so because they have each other, and it is evident from what Scrooge sees that they all have a strong relationship.  While they do not have as much materially as they would like, their relationships, which mean more to them than money, are sound, and they find joy in each other.  This is jarring to Scrooge, who has earlier made statements about the joylessness of the poor.  This also confuses Scrooge because it causes him to question his own value system.  He has all the money in the world, but is not happy, while this poor family wants for material possessions, but manages to be "content" nonetheless.

`cos(pi - theta) + sin(pi/2 + theta) = 0` Prove the identity.

You need to use the formula `cos(a-b) = cos a*cos b + sin a*sin b` and `sin(a+b) = sin a*cos b + sin b*cos a,` such that:

`cos (pi - theta) = cos pi*cos theta + sin pi*sin theta`

Since `cos pi = -1` and `sin pi = 0` , yields:

`cos (pi - theta) = - cos theta`

`sin(pi/2 + theta) = sin(pi/2)*cos theta + sin theta*cos(pi/2)`

Since `sin(pi/2) = 1` and `cos(pi/2) = 0,` yields:

`sin(pi/2 + theta) = cos theta`

Replacing `- cos theta` for `cos (pi - theta)` and `cos theta` for in `(pi/2 + theta)` yields:

`cos (pi - theta) + sin(pi/2 + theta) = - cos theta + cos theta = 0`

Hence, checking if the identity is valid yields that `cos (pi - theta) + sin(pi/2 + theta) = 0` holds.

The shortage of food led to tension in the annex. Discuss.

In the Annex, many reasons existed for the constant tension.  One of the most difficult reasons was the shortage of food.  Food was controlled with ration cards which were very difficult to obtain, and the number of people hiding in the Annex added to the problem.  People such as the butcher who would save bits of meat to give to those in hiding were often arrested, and the supply of food became even more scarce. 

What really added to the tension in the Annex was that some of their precious food was disappearing in the night. Everyone was so hungry that disappearing food was a desperate thing.  At first, rats and mice were blamed for the missing food.  Then one night, Peter's father was caught stealing food, and the group almost came apart.  Anne's father calmed down the situation, but because others were so hungry also, the tension of so little food remained. 

How successful was the New Frontier ?

The New Frontier was President Kennedy’s program for dealing with domestic and with foreign issues. Many things were accomplished under the New Frontier, but more might have been accomplished if he wasn’t assassinated.

In foreign policy, President Kennedy called on the American people to serve in underdeveloped countries to help the people in those countries improve their ways of living. The Peace Corps was created to help make this happen. President Kennedy also set a goal for our country to be the first country to put a man on the moon. This was accomplished in July 1969.

Domestically, Kennedy accomplished several things as part of this program. Minimum wage increased to $1.25 an hour. President Kennedy worked to help women gain more opportunities. The Equal pay Act was signed in 1963. An executive order ending gender discrimination in civil service jobs was signed. The Presidential Commission on the Status of Women was established.

Unfortunately, other issues of President Kennedy were held up in Congress at the time of his assassination. He wanted more money for schools, and he proposed a program that would provide health care for the elderly. These ideas eventually became reality when President Johnson became President.

The New Frontier had some successes. If President Kennedy wouldn’t have been assassinated, more things might have been accomplished.

How did Brabantio react to the marriage of Othello and Desdemona?

Brabantio is extremely displeased at the idea that his daughter has married the Moor. He had a good relationship with Othello and often spent time with him and loved to hear the stories of his campaigns and the wars in distant places. Brabantio was very happy with Othello in the role of general of Venice's armies, but he was absolutely not prepared to have his daughter marry the man.

He goes so far as to suggest that Othello must have used some kind of witchcraft to convince his daughter to marry him. He feels that it is unnatural for a Venetian woman (white) to marry the Moor (black) and makes it very clear that he does not approve. He appeals to the Duke for justice in the matter, suggesting again that Othello used witchcraft to win his daughter's hand.

Only after Othello and Desdemona explain the story of their courtship does Brabantio relent, and even then it is with hesitation. He even warns Othello that Desdemona is not to be trusted, since she tricked him, she might also deceive Othello.

What is indirect characterization?

Indirect characterization is an excellent example of what we are taught about effective writing, which is "Show; don't tell."  How that is borne out in the treatment of characterization should be clear, I hope, with some examples.

If I want to have a villain in a short story, I can write,"He was a very bad man." That would be direct characterization. I am telling the reader, directly, that this is the villain of the story.  But if I show the reader that this character is behaving badly, that is indirect characterization. I might show him being cruel to his wife and children or to the people who work for him. I might show him committing some dishonest act, embezzling funds he is entrusted with. I might show him kicking the dog. I need not tell the reader he is the bad guy. I can show the reader, and this is generally far more effective.  I might dress the character in dark clothing, which is another form of indirect characterization.  I might give him dialogue that shows he is evil.  I might indirectly characterize him by showing how other characters respond to him, moving away from him in conversation. There is a movie, the name of which I cannot remember right now, in which the bad guy in the story dies, and everyone leaves him lying there, simply stepping over him and ignoring him.  That is indirect characterization at its finest! 

A novel that contains mostly indirect characterization of its hero is The Great Gatsby. In the first chapter, Nick describes his first sight of Gatsby as Gatsby "...stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way" (25).  We have no direct characterization of Gatsby here, but we know he is yearning for something, and this yearning quality defines him without our ever being told that directly.  We learn of Gatsby's character through his actions, through the responses of the other characters, and through details such as the descriptions of his parties. When Gatsby's father appears, at the end of the novel, and shares with Nick Gatsby's self-improvement list from Gatsby's childhood, we see Gatsby's character without anyone telling us anything direct. 

As you read, take note of which authors directly characterize their characters and which do so indirectly.  This is an important aspect of the appreciation of a literary text. It is also a valuable lesson in how to present characters in your own writing. Remember to show, not tell. 

How were the Americans affected by westward expansion in the 1800's?

Americans were impacted by westward expansion in the 1800s in several ways. In 1862, the government, with the passage of the Homestead Act, offered people 160 acres of land in the Great Plains if they lived on it for five years. Some Americans went to the west to get this land.

The westward expansion allowed people to move west to mine, to farm, and to raise sheep or cattle. When minerals were found in the west, many people moved to the west in order to strike it rich. While most didn’t get rich, some people remained in the west. People also moved west because there were plenty of lands to farm or on which to raise sheep and cattle. As people moved to the west, both the railroads and the businesses expanded to these regions where people were moving.

Americans also encountered attacks by the Native Americans. The Native Americans didn’t trust the Americans because of previous actions in the 1830s. Now that Americans were again moving into areas where the Native Americans lived, more conflict was bound to occur. As Americans killed the buffalo, and the Native Americans were forced onto reservations, there were many battles between the Native Americans and the Americans, especially with the army.

The westward expansion also increased the tensions regarding the spread of slavery. As more people moved west, new states eventually wanted to join the Union. The North and South fiercely debated whether some of these territories would become free states or slaves states. 

Westward expansion affected Americans in many ways.

What were Howard Zinn's main ideas in Chapter 4 and 5 of "A People's History of the United States"?

In Howard Zinn's recount of American history, A People's History of the United State, Chapters 4 and 5 are dedicated to the American Revolution. Zinn characterizes the revolution as a struggle of the colonial elite with the King of England over the issue of taxation. Zinn's main idea in Chapter 4 is that a large proportion of the colonial population, especially the lower classes, were unhappy with the socio-economic conditions in the colonies. This discontent manifested itself with a number of rebellions of the poor against the landowning Colonial elite. The war for independence against England tended to quell the social unrest, which may have been the point of colonial aggression against England.

In Chapter 5, Zinn continues to discuss the American Revolution. He frames the war in terms of a social and cultural context. The main idea of the chapter is that after declaring a war on a tyrannical king, the end result was a tyrannical congress. The Continental Congress designed a government system that endorsed the unfair class structure that had existed while the people were governed by colonial governors. Some of the complaints that were levied at King George were actions that the new government practiced. In the end, the elites were victorious at the expense of the underclasses.