Saturday, August 22, 2020

Description of The Green Man by Tim Burton Essay

Portrayal of The Green Man by Tim Burton - Essay Example The unpredictable shapes are appeared through the head, neck and shoulder parts just as the shirt. The work of art drawn on peddle with oil and acrylic utilized various lines and shapes to make the general type of a mutilated figure of a man. Short lines were utilized to depict join on the essence of the man notwithstanding the rosy foundation. The painter utilized the essential hues blue, red and yellow just as auxiliary hues like orange and green. Darker shades were utilized around the picture while various tints of various hues were utilized in the picture just as those which are close to pictures that the painter appeared pull in the audiences’ consideration regarding like the nose. Around it are clearly more splendid shades of the foundation, appearing as though a light is coordinated to it. Reinforcing the shade of the nose and eyes, Burton utilized various shades of blue on the shirt, demonstrating it to take after attire that had been worn for quite a while. The red and white covering of the neck pulls in the observers’ eyes to it as well as adds to the diffe rentiating hues and underscores the utilization of the essential hues. In its general structure, the image may not be lovely to take a gander at yet its message can draw in crowds to what could be passed on through

Friday, July 31, 2020

What have you been doing lately

What have you been doing lately So its mid July, Summer is well underway, all the major Holidays have passed (read: the 4th) so whats your favorite blogger up to? I dont know, Ill go ask Yan. But if youre interested in what your 4th or maybe 5th favorite blogger is up to, I can tell you! Besides traveling (and consequently starting several blogs I havent finished) Ive been working on some personal projects like learning objective-C, planning some super cool surprise projects for when I get back to school, and watching lots of How I Met Your Mother, Arrested Development, and Big Bang Theory. Ive also been hiking and exercising a lot, and trying my best not to get burned by the wildfire burning 13 miles south of me. Im also looking forward to being more involved in non-class things this year, like clubs, sports, and teaching classes over IAP. Ive also acquired a pair of skis so I can now freely go and do my favorite outdoor activity! To be honest, Im feeling really MITsick if you can believe it. (Im sure the upperclassmen just vomited in their mouths a little). I miss waking up and looking out and feeling like I could go out and do anything there, I could go make new friends because wed have something in common to talk about or do. Of course when I get back to campus itll be back to IHTFP, but in some weird masochistic way, I miss the tooling until early morning learning all of Multivariable Calculus before I took the final (true story, dont ask, dont do it). But before I know it, sophomore year will be right on top of mestarting next weekend Ill be doing nothing but traveling until I end up back at MIT. So thats pretty much it, doing stuff I cant say, and a lot of programming/designing for cool things for school. Other than that, enjoying the sun, the outdoors, and traveling.

Friday, May 22, 2020

`` I Have A Dream Speech `` By Martin Luther King Jr.

The cynical cycle of enslavement has ravaged on throughout the history s great civilizations; the victor holding reign over the defeated, the enslaved succumbing to the forces of bondage. There has always been, and always will be, a discord between peoples of different groups. Until the advent of modern democracy, the distraughted had no voice which to be heard by the masses. Democracy has paved a way for all citizens to have equality. In 1863, the United States of America joined other nations by emancipating those in bondage. Slavery had begun it’s way out in the modern world. However, due to years of indoctrination and social appropriation, there was a discord between those who were white and those who were colored. One hundred years after the emancipation proclamation was given, there was still social and systemic oppression and discrimination against colored people in American Society. Martin Luther King Jr. was an advocate during the Civil Rights Era who fought for the eq ual treatment of all people. In 1963 MLK gave his timeless â€Å"I have a Dream Speech† that sought to both help bring the end of systematic discrimination in America and to unify the country through love and peace. The two most controversial subjects include politics and religion as these two topics are the pillars which shapes the worldview of every human. Attacking, disagreeing, or attempting to modify one’s political views can entirely disrupt an individual for you are not just attacking an idea, butShow MoreRelatedI Have A Dream Speech By Martin Luther King Jr. Essay1115 Words   |  5 PagesActivist and leader in the Africa American Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King Jr, speaks at the Lincoln Memorial to more than 200,000 people where he gives his famous â€Å"I have a Dream† speech, where he calls for the need of equal rights between blacks and whites. King’s purpose is to convince the American people that segregation is wrong and should be changed for future generations, encourage all African Americans into fighting until the end, and that segregation is wrong. He effectivelyRead MoreI Have A Dream Speech By Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.926 Words   |  4 PagesEquality of Some A little over 50 years ago, Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his â€Å"I have a Dream Speech† in front of thousands addressing the racism in America. Though racism was a big issue in the United States during the 20th century, and may still be in a few areas today, he was not only addressing the problem of it, but the equality of men. In his speech he quoted words directly from the Declaration of Independence stating, â€Å"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live outRead MoreI Have A Dream Speech Written And Spoken By Martin Luther King Jr.1208 Words   |  5 PagesHave you ever wondered why or how politicians, motivational speakers, ministers, teachers and even parents get their message, lesson, or point across? The reason why is rhetoric, the way people chose to convey their message in a persuasive way. The use of different methods to get a message across is what makes politicians, speakers, minister, teachers and parents so successful in wha t they want people to think or do. When a certain person uses rhetoric they use what they know the people in the audienceRead MoreAnalysis Of Martin Luther King Jr s I Have A Dream Speech1480 Words   |  6 PagesMovement, Martin Luther King Jr s I Have A Dream speech was broadcasted across the nation and heard by millions of Americans on August 28, 1963. Throughout the decades, many have promoted the importance of racial equality in America. Leaders such as William J. Clinton, Barack Obama, and George W. Bush have contributed to modern social movements by, doing as Dr. King himself, giving speeches to varying audiences concerning the issue of racial inequality. Above all, Martin Luther King Jr made the strongestRead MoreMartin Luther King Jr: I Have a Dream Speech Critique Essay1251 Words   |  6 PagesI HAVE A DREAM SPEECH CRITIQUE This speech took place on August 28, 1963 millions of citizens, children, law and policy makers attended while 250,000 watched on TV as a Baptist Preacher ,a Boston University Graduate Dr, Martin Luther King stood behind a podium. He established an immediate rapport with an ever changing audience and communicated on a meaningful level, by appealing to moral conscience of Americans standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. He gave the rhetorical demandsRead MoreMartin Luther King Jr.s I Have a Dream Speech Essay1988 Words   |  8 PagesFigures of Speech, (4) Logos: Nobile Diction, and (5) Logos: Arrangement. Notably, blacks for year’s fought hard to receive equal rights to those whites had. The late 1950s, early 1960s was a turning point for African-Americans with the establishment of the Civil Rights Era. The Civil Rights Era represented a social movement for blacks in hopes of ending racial segregation and discrimination, especially in the Jim Crow Deep South. At th e forefront of this movement was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who soughtRead MoreI Have A Dream Speech Delivered By Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.1016 Words   |  5 Pagesracial discrimination have torn country apart and denied our God-given rights. It’s got to the point where Black people could not stand it anymore, so they fought back for their rights. In 1963, with the event in Birmingham, and the famous â€Å"I Have A Dream† speech delivered by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which captured the world’s attention and had become the turning point of the Civil Rights Movements. There are many thoughtful citizens who recognize that race relations have shaped and defined ourRead MoreRhetorical Analysis of the I Have a Dream Speech by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.1219 Words   |  5 Pagesthroughout Washington D.C. August 28, 1963 as Martin Luther King Jr. paved the path to freedom for those suffering from racial segregation. It was the day of the March on Washington, w hich promoted Civil Rights and economic equality for African Americans. In order to share his feelings and dreams with the rest of the nation, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his speech encouraging all to overcome racial segregation. Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech was very effective due to the use of metaphorsRead MoreAnalysis of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.s I Have A Dream Speech619 Words   |  3 Pages28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered one of the most famous speeches of all time to an audience of more than 200,000 civil rights supporters on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. In his, â€Å"I have a dream† speech, King addressed his encouragement of white and black people working together to achieve racial peace and harmony. He especially wanted to teach the young blacks that equality could be gained through the use of non-violence. The main reason King used nonviolenceRead MoreObservations On The s I Have A Dream Speech By Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.881 Words   |  4 Pages5 years ago, Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his I Have a Dream Speech on the Washington Mall 47 years ago, and Mother Teresa was born a century ago. Monday: Katrina; Tuesday: I Have a Dream; Today: Mother Teresa After spending a great deal of time on and devoting a good deal of space to the two previous subjects in this series on recent anniversaries, 2005 s devastating Hurricane Katrina and the world-changing 1963 I Have a Dream speech by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., I had looked forward

Sunday, May 10, 2020

Selma Book Vs Movie Essay - 1640 Words

As Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, â€Å"The nonviolent approach does not immediately change the heart of the oppressor. It first does something to the hearts and souls of those committed to it. It gives them new self-respect; it calls up resources of strength and courage they did not know they had†. (King) The conflicts met between the Civil Rights Movement protesters and the white people of the South were incredibly gruesome. While peace and equality for African Americans was the driving force of the protests, violence and inhuman resistance was the force of the white people. In the March Trilogy Books, written by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, and in the movie Selma, written by Paul Webb and directed by Ava DuVernay, we are given a†¦show more content†¦Twenty-one children were injured and four young girls lost their lives that day. [Figure 1] Lewis asked, â€Å"How could our quest for human dignity spawn such evil?† (3:16). Another example that they both showed in common was the tension portrayed at the time of the first attempt to march across the Edmond Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. Lewis and Hosea Williams led the marchers. As they were walking across the bridge, Williams asked Lewis, â€Å"Can you swim?† (Lewis and Aydin 3:197) as if to insinuate that going over the bridge may be what was to come, not knowing what they were to face at the end of the bridge. Where a crowd of resisters was waiting for them. Even though the marchers faced violent opposition and met with conflict, they continued their demonstrations. The books and the movie displayed controversy throughout. One example is during the first attempt to cross the bridge, when the marchers were met by the Alabama State Troopers. It went very dark, very quick, as the troopers barged towards them, making this day known as â€Å"Bloody Sun day†, March 7, 1965. When asked for his comments in the movie by the press after the merciless attack on the marchers, King says â€Å"While rageful violence continues towards the unarmed people of Selma, while they are assaulted with tear gas and batons like enemy in a war, no citizen of this country can call themselves blameless, for we all bear a responsibility for our fellow man. I am appealing to men and

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Not Legal, Not Advisable Free Essays

Matthew is planning to open a manufacturing facility. He is considering a â€Å"Christian-only† hiring policy whereby he would determine to hire only professing, evangelical Christians to work in the facility. He asks you for your advice on the following questions: 1. We will write a custom essay sample on Not Legal, Not Advisable or any similar topic only for you Order Now Would such a policy be legal? If so, under what terms and what might the restrictions be? 2. From a Great Commission perspective, would this policy be advisable? 3. How would your answers change, if at all, if they planned to open a Christian school rather than a manufacturing facility? Not Legal, Not Advisable There are few organizations that are allowed to consider the faith of employees when hiring. Manufacturing facilities is not one of them. Our Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination of religion. As U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (n. d. ) states, the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 â€Å"prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin† (para. 1). Organizations such as faith-based schools and some charitable organizations are not able to use government funding to assist in their activities if the result advances religion. Education Law Center (2010) states that the First Amendment to the U. S. Constitution â€Å"prohibits Congress and all levels of state and local government form enacting laws respecting an establishment of religion. † Public funds can only be used to support the non-religious services they provide. Opening a manufacturing facility that discriminates against race is also not advisable from a Great Commission Perspective. Romans 2:11 states that â€Å"God shows no favoritism† (NIV). God has created the governing facilities for us to use as needed. Christians would not want others to discriminate against them. There also should not be laws that prohibited the teaching of religious beliefs, therefore I think allowing certain organizations and schools to teach their religion should continue to be allowed. Education Law Center. (2010, June). Integrating Faith-Based Organizations into State-Funded Pre-K Programs. Retrieved from http://www. edlawcenter. org/assets/files/pdfs/publications/IntegratingFaithBasedOrganizations. pdf U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (n. d. ). Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Retrieved November 23, 2012, from http://www. eeoc. gov/laws/statutes/titlevii. cfm How to cite Not Legal, Not Advisable, Essay examples

Wednesday, April 29, 2020

Trends in Consumer Buying Habits

Digitization = Customization Trends in consumer buying habits There are various changing trends in consumer buying habits. This has been seen in recent years as people become more knowledgeable and demanding (Joshi, 2005, p. 12). Consumer trends have changed and become unpredictable because the current consumer is more informed and knows what he is supposed to get. Information has been spread by various mediums of communication. This has enlightened consumers on their rights as far as choice is concerned. It means that consumers are choosier.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Trends in Consumer Buying Habits specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In our case, the approach to marketing has been changing in recent years. This is because companies are supposed to develop products and services that meet the needs of these consumers in both perspectives (Joshi, 2005, p. 15). The marketing concept that has been adopted is not likely to change in any given case because this trend is expected to continue taking shape. Although consumers are distinct in what they prefer, companies are supposed to offer them various versions and models of products so that they do not complain. These concept is not expected to change any time soon because technology is moving forward and allowing companies to customize products and services as per their customers needs (Joshi, 2005, p. 11). Because of this, there are various changes that are expected to take centre stage as far as marketing is concerned. Such changes might include paying more attention to consumers so that one can tell what they are likely to demand. This means that marketing will have to be redefined for consumers to get the right information because they rely on it to make informed decisions in relation to buying goods and services (Joshi, 2005, p. 14). In a broad perspective changes must be made on how companies relate with consumers. Shifts in behavi ors have an impact on the marketing strategy that companies will settle on. These changes in consumer behavior have different impacts. For instance, more technological shifts in behavior will demand that companies embrace the same practice (Joshi, 2005, p. 18). As consumers become more informed about the products that they need to consume, companies should ensure that these specifications and likings are catered for to avoid any disappointments. More consumer changes might demand that companies choose sophisticated ways of marketing their products so that they can reach as many people as possible (Joshi, 2005, p. 14). This means that they have to be more committed in their marketing activities for enhanced sustainability. The shifts in behavior and its impact on overall market strategy There are products that can not allow for product customization. This therefore means that traditional market segmentation and targeting will be more applicable (Joshi, 2005, p. 22). An example of suc h products is some medicinal drugs or the medical industry. A given drug is meant to take care of all patients and there are cases where they can not be compromised to suit a given individual.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This therefore demands that they are supposed to suit the market as they were made rather than them being customized in a given scenario. Although there are trends in consumer buying habits, the fact still remains that patients need these drugs as they are so that they can get well. Customization can only be allowed in small incidences but it is practically impossible. Changing consumer patterns might only be met by engaging in more research to come up with good drugs. This means that consumers are expected to cope up with what has been developed for them as they have no capacity to dictate (Joshi, 2005, p. 24). In this case, consumers will be expec ted to be consistent with what is offered. Changes might be expected in relation to how these drugs are marketed but this will be minimal. It means that marketing will be factual (Joshi, 2005, p. 31). This will occasionally be changed in relation to the drug that is being offered. Marketers will need to be vigilant and ensure that consumers get all the information in relation to a given drug. Shifts in demand for a given drug will make companies to change the way they market their products. Shifts will also be necessitated by increased information about drugs and their importance or the situation at hand and the mood on the ground. Watching MMs Grow MM had developed a new version that targeted adults. This was done by coming up with new appealing colors that were to specifically appeal to the adults (Thompson, 2005, p. 3). Segmentation is mostly done after a good research has been conducted to determine if it is viable to undertake the exercise. It is only through this that a given company will be able to tell if it is in the right basis to do so. These types of research design include; exploratory, casual and descriptive. Exploratory research unearths all the important points, attitudes, behaviors and perceptions in the market about a given situation. This goes into a deep analysis that ensures that there is concrete information. Descriptive research lays more emphasis on the occurrence of a given issue in the market with an aim of carrying out a good analysis’s (Holliday, 2007, p. 5). With this approach, the company can be able to predict the likelihood of an occurrence recurring. Casual research is majorly concerned with knowing the cause- effect relationship in relation to a given market issue. It can be used to test the various market scenarios that a company wants to engage in (Holliday, 2007, p. 14). More so, it can be used to tell if a given change in the design of a product will likely result to an increase in sales. The use of research design in each case is supposed to help the company choose the best decision that will optimize what they had projected to achieve.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Trends in Consumer Buying Habits specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More For instance, with exploratory design, the company will be able to get the right facts about an undertaking that they would wish to undertake. This helps to take care of all precautionary issues. For a company to make informed decisions about its marketing strategies they are supposed to be well acquitted with what is necessary (Holliday, 2007, p. 8). Descriptive research will help the company to make sound decisions about products and services based on past analysis. This will look at the past history for such activities that other companies have been involved in to tell if the company might be successfu in its endeavors. If they are able to tell the likelihood of a given strategy being successful or not they will be in a good position to enhance success. Causal research will be used by companies to know the relationship (Holliday, 2007, p. 15). This will help it to tell the impact of coming up with changes in a particular way. The company will ultimately be able to tell the expected changes in relation to sales should it decide to make any changes about its product. In order for the company to make the final decision about a given option, it must use the most appropriate research design. Consumer habit analysis is very demanding and as such needs the best research design. Therefore, the most appropriate research design method to use in consumer analysis is exploratory research. As much as other methods are efficient in one way or another, exploratory research tends to give out the right information in relation to attitudes, behaviors and attitudes in a given market (Holliday, 2007, p. 17). These are very important as they ultimately form a habit. Any habit that co nsumers form about a given product will influence their consumption patterns in a large perspective. If a company understands these habits well, it will be in a good position to satisfy their demands. MM might have decided to develop a new version targeting adults after doing a good and extensive consumer habit analysis (Holliday, 2007, p. 13). Though the company saw this as a good strategy, it was not a good segmentation strategy for it to develop a new version targeting adults. Those products have not succeeded as it is very hard to find them in stores or mass merchandisers (Thompson, 2005, p. 5). This implies that the strategy has not helped to make customers demand the products more often than they used to do before. On the other hand, it confirms the held notion that these products are not moving in any way.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Therefore, the company needs to develop a good marketing strategy that will appeal to every consumer and ensure that they are comfortable. In this argument, it is better if they pursued a mass marketing approach to reach a wide base rather than just targeting adults alone. Reference List Holliday, A. R. (2007). Doing and Writing Qualitative Research. London: Sage Publications. Joshi, R, M. (2005). International Marketing. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Ross, J. (2005). Product placement for the whole family. New York: New York Times. Thompson, S. (2005). MM’s Gain Weight, Get New Dye Job. New York: Advertising age. This assessment on Trends in Consumer Buying Habits was written and submitted by user Leyla L. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Friday, March 20, 2020

The American Dream

The American Dream Abstract Since those times when America was discovered, many people overflowed to this continent in search of a better life. Those emigrants who hoped to find in America better political, economic, or private life, wanted to realize American Dream. The word â€Å"movement† has a figurative meaning connected with those emigrants from Africa, England, Ireland, Mexico, etc., who arrived in the USA, chasing American Dream.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The American Dream specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More What is American Dream? It is a phenomenon that symbolizes the ideal life of the USA population. American freedom includes success and prosperous life for everyone, regardless from the person’s origin or a social class. This idea is based on the United States Declaration of Independence which states that all people are equal, and have equal rights. The practical realization of this dream is one’s ow n house, built on a private land. American Dream is tightly connected with the concept of â€Å"self-made person† that means a person who, with the help of individual hard work, achieves success in his/her life (Schnell 2). Most of the emigrants, who arrived to the USA chasing their American dream, faced hard life, full of challenges and difficulties. Their American Dream was not realized, and they either died or resigned themselves to the dreadful way of life. Thesis: The evasive American Dream rouses people to the unfulfilling reality. Introduction The American Dream is United States’ national ideal. It offers freedom and a promise of prosperity in which life should get better and richer for everyone. It promises a fair chance for everyone with ability, without regard of social class or birth. Jennifer Hochschild succinctly defines the American dream as a set of â€Å"tenets about achieving success†. According to President Bill Clinton, the American dream requ ires an individual to work hard to get a chance at advancement. Simply put, it is a persons’ attempt to achieve wealth and success through hard work and thrift. However, the American dream has remained difficult for many to achieve for a wide variety of reasons (Cullen 124).Advertising Looking for essay on american literature? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Living the American dream is the ultimate dream for most of the American citizens and those aspiring to acquire American citizenship. However, the American dream has turned out to be a nightmare for them. For many nowadays, the American dream has been rendered dead. Many who opted to get decent jobs better housing better health facility formal education etc. have languished to deteriorated living standards. Wages for many of the citizens have stagnated or fallen. Many authors have expressed failure of the American dream in their works. This theme is also v ery common in many contemporary works. Education, Employment, Healthcare, Housing and the American dream Many of those who sought better education resorted to working instead of studying. Financing education for many of the American citizens has become a heavy burden for them. US has the best education facilities and the best education system together with high technology, hence accessing this is quite an uphill task to those wishing to access this. Unemployment has been the nature of the day many American citizens facing layoffs due to economic recessions. In addition, they are left to seek casual jobs to meet their end needs. With the minimal income of up to $40000 per year, they are unable to keep up with the high taxation bills and mortgage. This is due to the difficulty in economic mobility in the US. Many employed citizens have stagnated and unable to climb the economic ladder. Nevertheless the rise in economic inequality has contributed too many citizens missing out on the ec onomic reward that comes with success. Health services are also a serious concern. Even though America has the best health facility in the world, health care is a chronic problem to many American citizens. For those who are uninsured it has been a nightmare accessing these health facilities. Very few citizens are provided with this basic necessity by their employment companies. This has resulted to the sprouting of two health care systems for the haves and the have-nots (Bloom 93). Housing is another factor that makes the American dream hard to achieve. Hunger and homeless is increasing every day street families are on the rise daily. As a result, they sleep and depend on the garbage sites. The state has constructed home for the poor to cater for these street families. This has done little to reduce their ever growing numbers Poor housing state has hit almost one quarter of the US citizens. It is extremely difficult for the US citizens to own homes; this has prompted them to rely on mortgages. Many of them are unable to keep up with the mortgage hence face being evicted from their homes. Others spend the rest of their lives paying up the mortgage. The housing policy in the US has failed to provide a level ground for all citizens and those aspiring to acquire citizenship there to acquire this basic need.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The American Dream specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More American dream and the works of Denis Johnson and Raymond Carver Jesuss Son Denis Johnson Jesus Son is an anthology of eleven interlinked short stories, which are all narrated by the same character; a broken alcohol and heroin addict. The narrator (and protagonist) interacting with disturbed, drug addicts. Ultimately sympathetic characters of these linked stories. We follow the narrator through eleven short stories that revolve around wild incidents under the influence of drugs. Car Crash While Hitchhiking This is the opening story in the book. The narrator is involved in a traffic accident while hitchhiking. This bleak story takes a positive turn when the narrator rescues a baby trapped in a wrecked vehicle. He ends up in hospital. Work The narrator describes a fight with his girlfriend at the start of this story. He then meets an interesting character named Wayne in a bar. He goes on a job with Wayne to tear down the walls of his old house to take out the copper wires and sell them. While so engaged, they see a naked red headed woman hang gliding. She is Wayne’s wife. Beverly Home This is the last story in the collection. This story follows the narrator’s life after he has undergone drug rehabilitation. The narrator works as a newsletter writer in a nursing home. With all the patients suffering in some way, the narrator seems to have found a place to fits in. He is obsessed with a Mennonite woman he overhears singing. As a result of his occupation at the home and his relat ionship with the Mennonite lady, the narrator finds acceptance. The narrator seemed destined for an incongruous ending. The story has an interesting and poignant ending. Through all of these stories, we see a hidden spirituality in the characters and so the ending of the book, while surprising, is inevitable. The stories take place in different settings and give the reader a detailed description of the narrator’s outcast friends. We see him in myriad predicaments and at all stations of his life. The characters in these stories are all addicts in some way. These drugs and alcohol are the only certain factors of the narrator’s life. The settings of the stories are as varied as the narrator’s friends. The settings cover from Iowa, to Seattle to Phoenix. The narrator does not reveal anything about his past to the reader. The narrator only divulges aspects of his self through his words and his many incarnations. He surrounds himself with a coterie of lowlifes who dwe ll in a bleak and violent American reality. The surreal quality, the intense fragility, of the narration is striking in Jesus’s Son. This voice does not seem to alter even when narrating the violent episodes that litter the stories.Advertising Looking for essay on american literature? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Cathedral -Raymond Carver This narration short story opens with the narrator anticipating his wife’s blind visitor. He has many reservations about the visit. His narration reveals his prejudiced nature. He does not make any effort to engage the blind man, Robert, in conversation, and choses to remain aloof. Not unlike the characters in Carvers stories, the main character in Cathedral is subconsciously alienated and lonely. The narrator is unsatisfied with his occupation, and has petty resentments towards his wife. He does not get attached to people. The narrator is essentially blind, unaware of his actions and their effect on others. He lives in unique oblivion, isolated from others by his prejudice and beliefs. The narrator disdains his visitor for no other reason but his sightlessness. He carelessly throws rude stereotypes into the conversation. This bias, to the extent that he refers to the visitor simply as ‘the blind man’, reveals his misplaced feelings of s uperiority. The narrator betrays his opinion that Robert’s life must be far inferior since he has no sight. The narrator finally comes to realize that he, and not Robert, is actually blind. Despite his handicap, Robert has made the most of life. He has travelled and educated himself by listening to educational television programs and reading books. Robert continues to better himself, unlike the narrator who has stagnated in his smug self-satisfaction. The narrator appears unmotivated, is a habitual drug user and does not seek to improve himself. The narrator sees Robert as a temporary imposition on his life, a trifling inconvenience. Robert, however, enables him to become self-aware. The narrator attempts to describe a cathedral he has just seen on TV to Robert. Robert asks him to draw it with him instead. It is here, with narrator closing his eyes and Robert holding his hand, that the narrator experiences an epiphany. By drawing the cathedral with Robert, the narrator has be come open to a completely new world. Before the drawing, the narrator had a strong bias towards Robert. Yet this time the narrator feels a difference between the two. The narrator feels liberated saying, â€Å"I didnt feel like I was inside anything (Carver 13). The narrators experience with Robert allows him to view his life from an entirely new vantage point. When the drawing is complete, the narrator keeps his eyes closed and continues to use the experience as an awakening. The narrator now realizes that life is really something (Carver 13) and he would benefit from changing his lifestyle. Ironically, it is through his experience with a visual impaired man, that Robert is introduced to an entirely new perspective on life. Raymond Carver’s â€Å"Preservation† and the American dream. Preservation by Raymond Carver is a story about working class white Americans who are bemused and fed up with the American dream that they see on the television. These working class Amer icans have always hoped to achieve this dream, although so far in their toil they have never even set their eyes on it. The characters in this story have never protested against these disappointments and disillusionment in the American dream. Instead, they channel their views and anxieties of the dream to drugs and alcohol. They have focused their attention to the day-to-day details of their lives as opposed to struggling to achieve the American dream. In Caver’s story, Preservation, lacking a job in America implies lacking a name. The unnamed husband in the story, who is also unemployed, has recently been retrenched form his job that involves putting up roof tops on new houses. He was having difficulty finding a new job â€Å"His face began to sweat as he tried to describe to Sandy the milling crowd of men and women down there in the unemployment office (Carver 36). The husband in this story becomes numb, and Sandy, his wife, just stands there helpless. She observes her hus band as a compilation of body parts that are becoming less powerful by the minute: Her husband’s bare feet stuck out from one end of the sofa. At the other end, on a pillow which lay across the arm of the sofa, she could see the crown of his head. She saw his head down on the pillow that lay across the arm of the sofa. He adjusted the pillow under his head and put his hands behind his neck. Then he lay still. Soon she saw his arms move down to his sides†¦. His eyes were shut. His chest seemed to rise and then fall (Carver 44). Each time Sally looks at her husband, repetition of the words hands, sofa, head, feet, and TV occur. These words together with the husband’s body parts are depicted like having equal weight. His arms or eyes’ depiction is not any different with the sofa or the newspaper. This lack of distinction between her husband, who she sees as body parts, and the nonliving objects around him is the leading conflict in this story. â€Å"Her husba nd- who is almost reclining, living now in the living room- is becoming a vegetable, an object, separated into parts, in the field of their home† (Carver 46). Sandy’s memories, of men who contribute nothing in the lives around them, are used metaphorically to relate to her husband who is slowly getting into that category. She recalls of her friend’s story about an uncle who went to bed at 40 and was still alive 63 years later. The uncle used to cry each day winning about his fear of getting old. She also recalls he father, who after divorcing her mother, bought a car in an auction and later died in it after inhaling carbon monoxide from the car (â€Å"He stayed in the car until someone found him a few days later.†) These memories follow one another and put emphasis on the failure of the American dream, making men useless in front of their families. The husband in this story is preserved by lying on the sofa, although he has no job. His wife realized just h ow useless he has become, how apart they are drifting from each other, and how his job, Freon and energy has been lost. In as much as families have gained a massive amount of disillusionment in the American dream, they still hope that something will happen and make that dream a reality. Sally hopes that someone might turn up and offer her husband a job, or that she might buy a new refrigerator before everything in the house spoils. Conclusion The American dream is a public vision that involves America’s identity. The American dream has turned into a myth that is inconsequential as far as the socioeconomic identity of America is presently concerned. The American dream refers to the act of pursuing happiness by every person as shown in the Declaration of Independence. The American dream is more of an ideology that is rooted in the mind of people. With thus the American dream is just a mere mirage to the many people aiming for it around the world (Palecek 58). Bloom Harold. The American dream. Kansas: Infobase Publishing, 2009. Print. Carver, Raymond. Fires: Essays, Poems, Stories. New York: Random, 1972. Cullen, Jim. The American dream: A short history of the idea that shaped a nation. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004. Print. Palecek, Mike. The American Dream. New York: CWG Press, 2006. Print Schnell, Hildegard. The American Dream. GRIN Verlag, 2010. 1-3.