Analyzation paper on the Novel the bluest eye by Toni Morrison Essay

Analyzation paper on the Novel the bluest eye by Toni Morrison - Essay Example At the beginning of the story she is ruled by two desires. The first one is to understand love and to know how makes people love her. And the second is considered not to observe parent’s quarrels that make her feels horrible. She has been interested in the feeling of love, and her life experience gives her an opportunity to face with the special and even strange manifestation of love. The matter is that Pecola has been raped by her father Cholly Breedlove. This man has problems with the alcohol that may be predetermined by his hard childhood. He loves his daughter and reflects this love in a brutal and violent form. The feelings, that he is experienced in the moment of raping Pecola, may be described as love and hatred. His character has been cruel and alcohol helps him to become mad. Still, that is considered to be the only form of love that Pecola knows in her life, and as it is suggested in the novel â€Å"wicked people love wickedly, violent people love violently, weak people love weakly, stupid people love stupidly, but the love of a free man is never save† (Morrison, 163). Her father’s freedom in love is considered to be dangerous and it reflects on a daughter. Pecola is represented as fragile and delicate child through the entire story. Her life is suffering with no positive implications in reality. She is in need to endure the boys who tortured her after school, the classmates who ridicule her, or Mr. Yacobowski who rejects to touch her hand. Pecola is a true victim of the entire society in general and of her own views in particular. The matter is that this girl is considered to be sure in her ugliness and uselessness in this world. Her black skin is interpreted by her as a huge drawback in her life and in all the society. Black means ugly for Pecola and nothing can change her vision. Her dream is represented as a desire to have blue eyes and white skin. Pecola has an imaginary illusion

Exodus and the hardening of Pharaoh's Heart Essay

Exodus and the hardening of Pharaoh's Heart - Essay Example As such they are without blemish and without any partisan attitude. Bible does not distinguish between Israelites and non-Israelites. Spiritual revelations are not bound by or confined to geographical boundaries. All arguments and counter-arguments originate below the mind level, and once an individual transcends the mind, one practically understands what divinity is! It is beyond words as such it cannot be expressed through speech. â€Å"All human beings are created in the image of God† (Magid) and at the same time God has blessed them with his free-will. They have the ability to act as per their volition and possess the capability to atone for their sins. Free will is the fundamental aspect of divine play. â€Å"Therefore, God’s removing the possibility of repentance (hardening Pharaoh’s heart) fairly raises the question of ethical reciprocity and just desserts.†(Magid) If this is agreed, the next question is God hardening anyone’s heart that â₠¬Å"challenges God’s relationship to humanity in Scripture† (Magid). This is the root cause of the â€Å"philosophical problem.† If Bible is taken for granted as a scripture of literature limited to the cultural and historical aspects, then the problem of hardening Pharaoh’s heart turns out to be the secular problem, and not of the Bible. Another way to sidestep the â€Å"problem† of Pharaoh’s hardened heart is to view Pharaoh as one who will not repent because he cannot repent. In Exodus 3:20 God ordains that He will bring plagues (wonders) upon Egypt as a rejoinder to Pharaoh’s disinclination to free Israel. In Exodus 4:2, God will â€Å"stiffen Pharaoh’s heart† to enable Him to engulf Egypt with plagues. In the first verse plagues are mentioned as an essential ploy for accomplishing the desired objective, i.e., liberation of Israel. In the second verse, the plagues are a crucial portion of the Exodus. God desires Pharaoh to uninterruptedly

Grant Proposal Essay Example for Free

Grant Proposal Essay There are many steps to writing a grant proposal and it’s has to be written very well with all the grammar and spelling done correctly. You have to have a Request for Proposal this is a notice to the public will be generally be distributed and applicant agencies usually have 6 to 8 weeks to respond to the request for proposal. Then you have the Abstract which is the summary and its 45 single space lines. Table of Content which is the road map for the reader to understand the structure of the applicant proposal. Specific Aims/background and significance this is the present the rational and basis for the development. Needs and Problem Statement this is where they show the urgency of the problem. Target Population is where they are target the population that needs the most help. Approaches and Method is kind of like the elder lady would say where’s the beef. Long- and short-term goals can be anything form the vision to mission, goals, objectives, and the activities is term that proposal writers program. Process, outcome, and impact objectives this is where they will show the objectives and the outcome of the proposal. Activities plans and scheduling which is the same as the timeline for everything taking place. Evaluation plan. This is where they assesses the achievement of a specific program. Agency Capacity and Project Management this is the creditability of the agency which is the same as with us in trying to get a credit card. Budget and budget Justifications this is where they are going to try to get the funding besides the grants. The purpose of a grant proposal is so that the human service can get the grant needed to help the community. The grant proposal and program plan help each other and as close to being the same.

The Inspiration Of Art In Architecture

The Inspiration Of Art In Architecture The essay investigates the inspiration of art in architecture and the links and interchanges between them in the late sixties and early seventies with emphasis on the exchanges between conceptual art and architecture. The basic assumption of the essay is that the rigorous conceptualisation that characterised conceptual artist was transferred into some advanced architectural practices during the late sixties and early seventies. It also discusses about the parameters on which the inspirations are carried further to design process in terms of project conditions. During this process of transforming the art to a design, it passes through the process of adding architectural characteristics. So the essay seeks, how further is the design taken and if it still has the essence of the original art from which it was inspired. The text examines relations and differences between artist Sol Lewitt and architect Peter Eisenman in reference with a few of Eisenmans past works and argues that this dis cussion is still relevant to current practices exploring the potentials of digital based design through the use of parametrics, scripting etc. INTRODUCTION Design should do the same thing in everyday life that art does when encountered : amaze us, scare us or delight us, but certainly open us to new worlds within our daily existence. 1 Aaron Betsky While both art and design can perform a similar role, there is a distinct difference between the two. Art is unladen by boundaries, whereas design takes on the added responsibility of performing a function. The challenge of design is to try and meet the lofty ideals of art while remaining utilitarian. The artists work freed from practicality is more agile and able to freely explore concepts and ideas that will open us to new worlds. Artists are the scientists who research and test concepts; designers are the engineers who translate those discoveries into everyday life. Architects, as designers of spaces, can learn valuable lessons from artists. The same principles that have been tested and found successful in art can become a part of the built environment. Why not have colorful buildings that explode organically like Dale Chihulys glass works? i1 If nothing else, looking at art should remind architects of the artistic possibilities of architecture. This is especially important today, when architecture tends too heavily toward utility. CONCEPTUAL ART I will refer to the kind of art in which I am involved as conceptual art. In conceptual art the idea or concept is the most important aspect of the work. When an artist uses a conceptual form of art, it means that all of the planning and decisions are made beforehand and the execution is a perfunctory affair. The idea becomes a machine that makes the art. This kind of art is not theoretical or illustrative of theories; it is intuitive, it is involved with all types of mental processes and it is purposeless. It is usually free from the dependence on the skill of the artist as a craftsman. It is the objective of the artist who is concerned with conceptual art to make his work mentally interesting to the spectator, and therefore usually he would want it to become emotionally dry. 2 Sol Lewitt By Conceptual art I mean work that firstly makes the immaterial ideas that define its artistic concepts and than secondary its object status and method of production. By conceptual architecture I mean that work which tries to do what conceptual art does while retaining some of the distinctive characteristics of architecture. Sol Lewitt (1928-2007) was a painter and sculptor who helped establish Conceptualism as a dominant art movement in the post war era. He was chosen for this study, first and foremost, because he had a similar relationship with his works that an architect does; he planned the pieces but entrusted their execution to others. This distance meant his works were less dependent on rendering techniques to be successful. In this regard, his works are a step closer to architecture than many artists. Another reason LeWitt was selected was his interest in a conceptual art, rather than a perceptual art. The way his pieces looked was important, but not as important as the concept that created them. Architecture deals with environments, which are inherently perceptual, so moving to a conceptual understanding of architecture, seemed to be an interesting challenge and worthwhile pursuit. Many of Sol LeWitts works were never seen by the artist until their exhibition. As an artist he was revolutionary in that he rarely executed his own works, simply because it was unnecessary. Sol LeWitts written instructions for his wall murals are specific about how they are to be produced. For LeWitt, the role of the artist is to create the concept not the object, or in other words, the concept is the art. Applying the idea of a conceptual art to architecture can be a significant challenge. The wellknown American architect and theorist Peter Eisenman explains the challenges succinctly: It is possible to say that while a conceptual art and a conceptual architecture could be similar in an idea state, there is an inherent difference when it comes to the realized object. Where a conceptual art object can remain in a more pure state, for example as a mathematical notation, built architecture takes on cultural, pragmatic, and semantic references. Thus the conceptual aspect of an architecture cannot be defined by what is conceptual in, say, painting and sculpture.11 These thoughts are mirrored by Sol LeWitt: Architecture and three-dimensional art are of completely opposite natures. The former is concerned with making an area with a specific function. Architecture, whether it is a work of art or not, must be utilitarian or else fail completely. Art is not utilitarian. When three-dimensional art starts to take on some of the characteristics, such as forming utilitarian areas, it weakens its function as art.12 Is it then inappropriate to create architecture based solely on concept? Especially when the utility of the space is compromised? If utilitarian concerns are allowed to alter or compromise a space, both Eisenman and LeWitt would agree that work is no longer conceptual. To avoid compromising the artistic concept both LeWitt and Eisenman have decided to make art instead of architecture. The difference being that Eisenman insists on using buildings as his medium; buildings which must to some extent lend themselves to the uses for which they were constructed. By turning his back conceptually on utility, and yet allowing it to happen, his concepts are polluted by the interference. Conceptual art is not necessarily logical. The logic of a piece or series of pieces is a device that is used at times, only to be ruined. Logic may be used to camouflage the real intent of the artist, to lull the viewer into the belief that he understands the work, or to infer a paradoxical situation (such as logic vs. illogic). Some ideas are logical in conception and illogical perceptually. The ideas need not be complex. Most ideas that are successful are ludicrously simple.16 The interesting thing is that this irony is really the only meaningful substance behind the work. When LeWitt talks about wanting the viewer to understand the concept behind the work, it appears that the concept is simply the set of rules that guided the actions. Discovering the rules is certainly mentally interesting, but only represents another layer of subjective decisions front loaded into the project. This superficial level of meaning can be seen in the work of several contemporary architects including Peter Eisenmans superimposed lines of influence. Conceptual arts focus on process during the 60s was an attempt to banish a number of conventions around the work of art: art as reified totem, art as static shape, aesthetic formalism, the manual contribution of the artist to the work, and so on. However, the invocation of art in architecture had a rather different series of concerns. For instance, Peter Eisenmans citation of process art practices in his early house projects, while invoking LeWitts ideas, was ultimately attempting to mimic his forms. Conceptual architecture during the 70s thus neatly overlapped the International Style, minimalist aesthetics, and conceptual art strategies. Borrowing from Sol LeWitts and Lawrence Weiners arguments on the primacy of the generating idea over its material properties, Eisenmans notion of an autonomous architecture privileging form over construction gained currency in critical and academic circles. Sol LeWitt here describes his distinction between art and architecture: Architecture and three-dimensional art are of completely opposite natures. The former is concerned with making an area with a specific function. Architecture, whether it is a work of art or not, must be utilitarian or else fail completely. Art is not utilitarian. When three-dimensional art starts to take on some of the characteristics of architecture such as forming utilitarian areas itweakens its function as art. When the viewer is dwarfed by the large size of a piece, this domination emphasizes the physical and emotive power of the form at the expense of losing the idea of the piece. In other words, art that becomes utilitarian does not make it architectural, only less convincing as art; similarly, architecture that denies its utilitarian, practical nature is weak architecture. In answering these questions I have sought to investigate and elaborate upon a previously recognised correlation between Eisenmans work and that of conceptual artists, Sol LeWitt in particular. The introduction of conceptual art raises issues of value in respect of the finished piece. That is it would seem that in work of a conceptual nature, the idea, can only be hindered by the existence of a final piece. The question that often arises is why, given the conflict it causes, bring the idea to a physical reality? If, as is usually the case, it is deemed necessary to realise the object what, if anything, should accompany the work to facilitate its understanding? During this period we find a particular fruitful exchange of ideas between artist and architects that is still relevant to current aesthetic thinking. The focus here is mainly on the architectural consequences and potentials of these exchanges (1). It is possible to argue that an unbroken lineage of architectural thinking and designing runs right up to today. A number of current architectural practices that explores digitally based working methods seems to face some of the same conceptual and aesthetic challenges that conceptual artist such as for instance Sol Lewitt was exploring. The article will attempt to point out some of the still active and relevant questions. The aim of this investigation is not only to give an accurate account of a historically situated set of ideas. It is just as much a starting point for an artistic development work that is fuelled by the investigations. This work is briefly presented at the end of the article. It is not to be seen as a solution or a concl usion to the questions that is raised during the article. The aim is rather to suggest an approach to architectural research that includes academic as well as design based research without one part being seen as a justification for the other, but hopefully rather instigates a productive gap between the two. What makes architecture conceptual is that unlike art, it demands not only the primacy of intention to take something from the sensual to the intellectual realm, but also that this intention be present in the conceptual structure; again, whether it is built or not, is not at issue. 1 Peter D. Eisenman Design Quarterly, No. 78/79, Conceptual Architecture (1970), pp. 1-5Published by: Walker Art Center This section explores three concepts integral to the work of Sol LeWitt: Concept, Series, and Reductivism. In conceptual art the idea or concept is the most important aspect of the work. When an artist uses a conceptual form of art, it means that all of the planning and decisions are made beforehand and the execution is a perfunctory affair. Sol LeWitt Ulrik Schmidt has described the characteristics of minimal art as objectivity, non-illusionism and reality, an abstract-concrete appearance as well as non-expressionism and non-anthropomorphism using principles of unity and uniformity, non-relationalism, instrumentalisation and, more profoundly, repetition. (2) Schmidt traces a desubjectivation in minimalist art. he describes an approach to the work of art where the artist withdraws from directly influencing the work of art, creating, as Lewitt states it, a situation where all of the planning and decisions are made beforehand and the execution is a perfunctory affair. Through much modernist thinking runs an interest in objectivisation. Minimal art could be seen as the logicand extremeconclusion of some of modernisms basic assumptions, as well as an inherent criticism of these assumptions. (3) To a certain extent one might claim that this separation of conceptualisation and execution is how architects have been working at least since the academisation of architecture in the renaissance, when architects became detached from the directly involvement in the realisation of the works they designed. obviously the minimal arts movement investigates the consequences of this separation of conception and execution much further than the average architect, but it might still be one of the reasons for the prolific transfer of ideas from minimal art to architecture. Another reason could be that the formality and use of geometry that one find in the practices of artist such as Sol Lewitt or Robert Morris might have certain affinities to architecture. In any case there seems to be a parallel interest in conceptually articulated, systematic manipulations of form of these artists and the architectural designs of Peter Eisenman and likeminded architects such as John Hejduk, Michael Graves and Richard Meier during the late sixties and early seventies. There are for instance obvious common traits between Lewitts art and Eisenmans ar chitecture (Werner Petersen 1990: 19). Lewitts drawings and sculptures are generated through rule based, straightforward transformations of simple geometrical figures. The series of transformed figures are systematically organised in matrixes that conclusively describes all the possible combinations of the operations. In this way the works of Lewitt seems to explore a dilemma between the transparent logic of the formal operations and the apparent purposelessness of the result. Everything about the process is explained and understandable and yet the result seems to be without inherent meaning, at least if meaning is understood as a specific insight or sensibility expressed through the work. Something similar characterises Peter Eisenmans early projects. They are perhaps less abstract, as they are based on a recognisable modernistic vocabulary utilising the formal analyses Eisenman made of modernist architects such as Terragni (Eisenman 2003). But the complex decomposition of Eisenman basically explores a similar and deliberate lack of inherent meaning, even though the projects are at once paraphrasing, praising and mocking their modernist heritage. It seems to be an important point that the processes and transformational logic is readable in the work. In Sol Lewitts Variations of incomplete open cubes from 1974, every possible combination of the open cube is constructed and presented in a comprehensive scheme that makes it possible for anyone who would care to check, that all variations are present. This inclusive logic, where every possible variation of a finite series of possibilities is present without differentiation, is a way to eliminate any form of subjective choice or design decision from the realised work. One finds a similar logic in Eisenmans early architecture. house II from 1969-70 uses a nine-square grid that allows for a highly systematised series of transformations and superimpositions of columns, walls and volumes within the grid. Eisenmans design process is obviously more complex than Lewitts. In Lewitts art pieces the ordering principle is mostly immediately readable. It points didactically to the logic that has constructed the piece. Eisenmans process is more convoluted and probably only directly traceable by referring to the laborious complex drawings that accompany the published project, even though the realised project displays obvious traces of the process. This complexity might be partly relating to the requirements of a habitable structure. But more importantly it is probably related to an exploration of the syntax of architectural space. For Eisenman geometry is not an abstract spatial system. It is already imbedded within an architectural tradition and Eisenman uses the systematic spatial transformations to break down preestablished notions of spatial organisation in architecture. (4) Sol Lewitt seems to employ a more innocent notion of geometry. In his work geometry seems to be perceived as an abstract system devoid of connotations. It mainly serves as a vehicle that allows general conceptual ideas to enter into physical form. The properties and rules of geometry make it possible to develop and translate general principles. Lewitts frequent use of cubes might be understood as part of this approach. The orthogonal angles and equal length of the sides of the cube does not refer to an idealised geometry, but is rather considered as a default option uninfluenced by specific conditions or contexts. The white colours and anonymous materials further support this idea, hinting at standardisation and industrialised production. But even if this idea is easily understandable one could question whether Lewitt is successful in completely breaking any connotations and relations. The cubes might after all still refer to previous notions of a relation between ideal geometries an d meaningful forma frequent belief throughout the history of architecture. Even if these connotations are unintended by Lewitt, the vague recognisability might still be an important part of the fascination of his work. (5) The project that accompanies this article is part of an ongoing research by design project by the author. It could be thought of as a conclusion to the text. In this case it would of course not be understood as a summation of the findings of the paper and putting these findings into perspective of already existing research. It would rather be a conclusion in terms of trying to establish a relation between an analysis of and reflection on an existing body of work and a new work that tries to explore and expand some of the findings of the analysis. In this way the accompanying project could be considered as a continuous exploration of some of the conceptual and formal questions raised in Lewitt and Eisenmans works. The work is based on a formal exploration of a nine-square grid. This exploration is structured on a combinatory series of objects based on an adapted menger spongeprinciple (Fig. 1)6. Instead of removing the central cube of each nine square grid in each step as in the origi nal menger sponge, the project removes a different number of cubes in every iteration. This logic can be explored in different ways. Fig. 2 describes a transformative series based on three iterations where the first iteration removes two cubes, the next four and the last one. In this case it is possible to remove four cubes in 12 different ways from the nine-square grid (with the precondition that the variations are limited to those that are symmetrical along a vertical axis). This produces a series of 12 different cubic objects (Fig. 3) that unfolds the possible variations. This series is then in turn one of a series of the six possible ways the three iterative levels can be combined (1-2-4, 1-4-2, 2-1-4, 2-4-1, 4-1-2 and 4-2-1) resulting in 72 different objects (see Figs. 4-6 for examples). It is using the didactic approach of Lewitt where the formative logic is immediately accessible and readable. Instead of Peter Eisenmans critical dissection of the formal syntax of modernist architecture or Lewitts exploration of the concept as artistic motor it attempts to explore the proliferation of formal organisations made possible by systematised processes. The resulting objects are just as purposeless as Lewitts sculptures. But at the same time the cubic shapes and hierarchically nested geometries hopefully hint at architectural or perhaps rather protoarchitectural potentials. - CASE STUDIES Peter Eisenman You would be better qualified to answer that question than I would. The energy of Terragni permeated my early work; House I is certainly Terragni, but House II is much more influenced by, say, Rosalind Krausss writing on contemporary art at the time and the idea of sculpture in the expanded field and the work of minimalist sculptors Robert Morris and Sol LeWitt. By House II, Krauss and I were working closely-she eventually wrote Notes on the Index in October 3 and 4, which became key to House IV. The Wexner Center at Ohio StateUniversity by Peter Eisenman is an exam-ple of a building that exhibits characteris-tics motivated by the framework of thekit-of-parts problem. It is a spatially com-plex building that discounts the materialfacts of the architecture except as they serve as signs. The richly overlappingspaces, whether implied by frames orplanes, are all defined by painted gypsumboard and off-the-shelf acoustic ceilingsystems. Brick is selectively deployed to al-lude to pre-existing buildings on the site(in a series of faux ruins), but not for itsmaterial qualities and uses. The programcontent of the building is not the driver of design development; the form of thebuilding is instead a result of the selectivemapping of physical forces on the site,resulting in an itinerary that is choreo-graphed both outside and inside the build-ing. The overlap of competing spatialsystems is generated by two axes that existon the campus; the program/content andthe constructional logic pla y relatively mi-nor roles in the design. Perhaps it is therelative disregard for the quality of thebuilding materials and details that makesthe Wexner Center so decidedly postmod-ern in character today.Whether the underlying moti Series Serial compositions are multipart pieces with regulated changes. The differences between the parts are the subject of the composition. If some parts remain constant it is to punctuate the changes.22 Sol LeWitt The primary method of communicating the concept in Sol LeWitts work is the use of series. By presenting objects in series, any difference between the objects immediately becomes the focus of the piece. If three forms are equal in all aspects, with the exception of height, the viewer automatically assumes that the height is the focus. Works in series can really only be appreciated when viewed together as a series. A direct application within architecture therefore would most naturally happen with a group of buildings in close proximity. This may be on the scale of a college campus, a business park, or several small structures on a residential lot. The difficulty is that most architecture is developed on the basis of a single building at a time. Where more than one building is employed the scale of projects may make it difficult to discern the variations. It may be necessary to introduce smaller scale elements, such a building details, which provide clues about the larger moves within the grouping.

The Chicano Movement: Struggles, Goals, and Accomplishments Essay examp

In American history, civil rights movements have played a major role for many ethnics in the United States and have shape American society to what it is today. The impact of civil rights movements is tremendous and to an extent, they accomplish the objectives that the groups of people set out to achieve. The Mexican-American Civil Rights Movement, more commonly known as the Chicano Movement or El Movimiento, was one of the many movements in the United States that set out to obtain equality for Mexican-Americans (Herrera). At first, the movement had a weak start but eventually the movement gained momentum around the 1960’s (Herrera). Mexican-Americans, also known as Chicanos, began to organize in order to eliminate the social barriers that prevented them from progressing in American society (Bloom 47). Throughout the years of the Chicano Movement, Mexican-Americans had a â€Å"desire to integrate into the mainstream culture while preserving their own identity† (Bloom 47) . The Chicano Civil Rights Movement was a progressive era when Mexican-Americans had goals that they wanted to accomplish and sought reform in order to be accepted as a part of the United States. The Chicano Movement, like many other civil rights movements, gained motivation from the everyday struggles that the people had to endure in the United States due to society. Mexican-Americans, like many other ethnicities, were viewed as an inferior group compared to white Americans. Mexican-Americans sought to make a change with the Chicano Movement and â€Å"the energy generated by the movement focused national attention on the needs of Mexican-Americans† (Bloom 65). The Mexican-American Movement had four main issues that it aimed to resolve and they ranged from â€Å"restoration of la... ...tory: Postwar United States, 1946 to 1968, Revised Edition (Volume IX). New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2010. American History Online. Facts On File, Inc. Web. 12 February 2012. Tejada-Flores, Rick. "Fight in the Fields - CESAR CHAVEZ | PBS." PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. Web. 12 February 2012. Tenes, Angel. "SYLVIA MENDEZ GETS HIGHEST U.S. AWARD & HONOR."MENDEZ V. WESTMINSTER. 25 February 2011. Web. 10 March 2012. United States and Mexico. "Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo." From Treaties and Other Agreements of the United States of America, 1776-1949. Compiled by Charles I. Bevans. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1968-76. American History Online. Facts On File, Inc. Web. 10 March 2012. Woo-Sam, Anne. "Mexican Americans and the Chicano Movement." Encyclopedia of American Social Movements. Sharpe Online Reference. 2012. n. pag. Web. 12 February 2012.

Willa Cathers Death Comes for the Archbishop :: Willa Cather Death Comes for the Archbishop

Willa Cather's Death Comes for the Archbishop In a 1927 letter, Willa Cather wrote that her book, Death Comes for the Archbishop, that "many of the reviews of this book begin with the statement: 'This book is hard to classify.' Then why bother? Many more assert vehemently that it is not a novel. Myself, I prefer to call it a narrative." (On Writing 12). The questions pertaining to whether or not it is a novel or why does Cather herself call it a "narrative" can be strange ones. First, breaking down the question of if it was or wasn't a novel. According to Webster's New World College Dictionary, a novel means "a relatively long fictional prose narrative with a more or less complex plot or pattern of events, about actions, feelings, motives, etc. of a group of characters." This definition of a novel pertains in every way to DCA, which leads the reader to question why would Cather say that it isn't a novel? Was she being sarcastic when she wrote this? In my opinion, the definition alone classifies DCA as a novel from the aspect that 1) it is a "relatively long fictional prose," 2) it has a complex plot and pattern of events about a group of characters. However, if one was to look at Cather's view from another angle, one could see that DCA is not a novel through a variety of ways. One of these reasons is that DCA is broken down into ten "books" (including the prologue) ranging from 15-38 pages. When it is set up like this, the reader may interpret them to be read into a common day serial and take each "book" as a different story, even though Cather incorporates most of her characters throughout the book. Another question that the reader must ask herself about DCA is why is it a narrative? For one, the reader is able to act as the narrator by putting herself in the story. Cather is brilliant at using explicit details and descriptions that make the reader feel as though she is getting a first-hand look at what is going on.

Level 3 Diploma in Health and Social Care, Children and Young People Unit 11 Essay

Poverty can have a huge impact on a Young Persons life. A family living on a low –income or benefits might not be able to provide for their children as they would like or as is necessary. Accommodation may be poor and inadequate, with not enough space or functioning essential home items. Money may not be available to pay the energy bills. The children’s dietary needs may be affected by low income. The local community in low-income areas may be impoverished. This may lead to a higher crime rate, vandalism of local amenities, reducing the Young Person access to local parks and playgrounds and affecting them being able to play outside of the house at leisure time. The prospects of a lack of continued higher education after school and fulfilling employment in impoverished areas could affect the Young Persons outlook on life causing fear and insecurities and a lack of motivation. In some research carried out by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation in 2007 into the impact of poverty on young children’s experience of school, the key points found from interviewing 220 children aged Four to Eleven as well as parents and teachers were The level of disadvantage they face determines how most children experience school. Poorer children in the study accepted that they were not going to get the same quality of schooling, or the same outcomes, as better-off children. Children and parents identified the main costs of school as uniform (including shoes), lunches and school trips. Children in disadvantaged schools were very aware of all the costs and of the difficulties parents faced in finding as little as 50 pence or a pound for school events. The experiences of school for children from poorer families were narrower and less rich. For example, children in disadvantaged schools had limited access to music, art and out-of-school activities that children in advantaged schools generally took for granted. Boys as young as nine in disadvantaged schools were disenchanted with school and starting to disengage. They are being particularly failed by the education system due to the interaction of: educational disadvantage faced by children growing up in poverty; the difficulties faced by teachers in disadvantaged schools; and differences in the ways that boys and girls are socialised. Social Issues – Divorce introduces a massive change into the life of a child no matter what the age. Witnessing the loss of love between parents, having parents break their marriage commitment, adjusting to going back and forth between two different households, and the daily absence of one parent while living with the other, all create a challenging new family circumstance in which to live. In the personal history of the boy or girl, parental divorce is a life-changing event. Life that follows is significantly changed from how it was before. For the young child, divorce affects the trust of the parents who can now behave in an extremely undependable way due to their own problems and life changing circumstances. This can produce anxiety, aggression and rebellious behaviours in a child. Cultural – I have chosen to look at one aspect of Culture and that is Religion and it’s positive effects on young people. Religious practice is usually done in a  group context and thus involves social relationships. These relationships can provide friendship and social support in times of emotional needs. Religious participation can have beneficial psychological effects. Religion can improve psychological health through increased self-esteem, producing a sense of belonging to the immediate religious group and an interconnection with the world, which is so lacking in modern times, and can help a young person to find meaning in life. Family participation is typical in religious activities, as distinct from other groups that family members may individually participate in (e.g., sports clubs, after school clubs, book clubs) that tend to separate people by age, sex, and personal interest. Thus, if the whole family practices the same religion, religious activities can serve to strengthen ties among family members. 3. 2.3 The choices young people make can have immediate and long-term effects on their lives. As adults and support staff we have to ensure we empower young people to make the right decisions. Children and young people can be seen as experts in their own lives; they often know what it feels like to be in their situation and to have had their personal experiences. Children and young people know something different to adults. It has ben said that adults follow paths, children explore. Treating children and young people as experts in their own lives means showing respect for what they say or communicate. This is not to say that children and young people always know what is in their best interests and they often want adults to help them make important decisions. Sometimes it is the role of adults (parents, family and professionals) to set boundaries and to identify the best course of action. Yet this needs to be done with children and young people who may know best how they feel. Some of the choices young people face making are – academic, career pathway and lifestyle choices i.e. smoking, drinking and drug taking. Children and young people with disabilities may need parents and support staff to make decisions for them if they are unable to due to their conditions. This always needs to be done in the best interests of the child and within international and local law and guidelines. Learning outcome 2 – Understand how practitioners can make a positive difference in the outcomes for children and young people 1. 2. Every child is an individual with individual needs and their own potential that they should be encouraged to develop. As support staff we should try to get to know the young people we are caring for as best as is possible to be able to achieve this. Sometimes the positive outcomes for a young person are seemingly small, but because of varying disabilities these small steps can be massive. One of the young people I am supporting has many issues with diet. I recently through much hard work encouraged him to try a new food. This addition to his diet is the first new foodstuff he has eaten in Three years. We should be constantly striving to help our young people to be all they can be through the person centered approach to caring. With the help of the multi-disciplinary team working holistically each young person can actuate to the best of their abilities. Each young person has their own care plan, which is constantly updated through the feed back from all staff supporting that YP. These care plans are in place so each member of staff is aware of the specific needs of the individual. The person centered approach to care means we are supporting and treating the individual and not the disability.