In The Hobbit, how does Smaug know that Bilbo is different?

Smaug knows Bilbo is different because he smells him.

Smaug is the dragon that lives under the mountain in the Lonely Mountain.  He sleeps on a pile of treasure, actually.  The dwarves want this treasure back, and they take off on a mission to get it.  They need a burglar, so the wizard Gandalf recruits Bilbo.

There was a most specially greedy, strong and wicked worm called Smaug. One day he flew up into the air and came south. The first we heard of it was a noise like a hurricane coming from the North, and the pinetrees on the Mountain creaking and cracking in the wind. (Ch. 1) 

Since Bilbo is the burglar, he is elected to go into the dragon’s lair and get Thorin’s treasured Arkenstone.  Bilbo is actually just a hobbit, but by this time he has already been through enough to show that he is definitely brave.  Bilbo is witty and intelligent, and this shows in his interaction with the dragon. 

Bilbo sneaks in and grabs a cup.  He thinks everything will be fine, but the dragon knows any little thing disturbed or missing.  Bilbo goes back to get the Arkenstone, thinking that he is small and can walk so quietly that the dragon will not know he is there.  Bilbo “had forgotten or had never heard about dragons' sense of smell.” 

Indeed, Smaug immediately knows that Bilbo is there. 

"Well, thief! I smell you and I feel your air. I hear your breath. Come along! Help yourself again, there is plenty and to spare!" (Ch. 12) 

Bilbo speaks very politely to the dragon, but the dragon is not fooled.  He does not immediately eat Bilbo or burn him up, because Bilbo is different.  He has never smelled a hobbit before. 

"You seem familiar with my name, but I don't seem to remember smelling you before. Who are you and where do you come from, may I ask?" (Ch. 12) 

Bilbo is able to get away, with the Arkenstone, because he actually is small and very fast.  However, the dragon gets angry.  He takes off to the lake to attack the people in revenge.

What happened at the pageant in To Kill a Mockingbird?

The action at the pageant is some of the most harrowing in To Kill a Mockingbird. The narrative starts innocuously enough; Jem accompanies Scout to her Halloween pageant. While backstage, Scout falls asleep in her costume, so she misses her cue to come on stage and arrives late. The director of the pageant is very angry at Scout for her error, and she accuses her of ruining the entire play. Scout is so ashamed that she refuses to leave the pageant until almost everyone has gone.

Jem and Scout walk home alone, and they begin to hear noises. They think it is their friend, Cecil, trying to scare them. Eventually, they can hear someone running after them, so they realize it is not Cecil. The pursuer, who we eventually learn is Bob Ewell, attacks them, but is killed by Boo Radley. The attack leaves Jem unconscious, so Boo picks him up and carries him home.

In the past, why did Harry and his friends visit Mr. Tillian after school?

Since Mr. Tillian owned a candy and nut shop, Harry and his friends visited Mr. Tillian after school to sample the available confections. The boys either bought roasted peanuts or penny candy from the huge bins.

Mr. Tillian enjoyed having Harry and his friends at the store after school hours. As time progressed and the boys reached junior high, however, Mr. Tillian began to see less and less of the boys at his store. Since the boys were now older and had more pocket money, they chose to spend their money on video games, records, and fast food.

Later, Mr. Tillian bought himself a parrot in order to stave off his loneliness. Interestingly, the parrot became the means for Harry to eventually realize how much his father had missed his presence at the store.

In "The Most Dangerous Game," what are reasons that support the idea that Zaroff is a psychopath?

A psychopath is a person with a mental disorder highlighted by abnormal or violent social behavior. That General Zaroff hunts down and kills men for no good reason other than his own pleasure is evidence enough to label him as a psychopath. Moreover, he has gone to great lengths to indulge in his sick hobby by buying his own island in a remote area and building a "palatial chateau." Zaroff might also be considered a sociopath in his utter lack of remorse and his extreme egocentric perspective of the world. Up to the very end of his life, Zaroff never seems to realize that what he is doing is wrong and actually believes that it is his right to hunt men. He tells Rainsford,

"The weak of the world were put here to give the strong pleasure. I am strong. Why should I not use my gift? If I wish to hunt, why should I not hunt? I hunt the scum of the earth: sailors from tramp ships—lassars, blacks, Chinese, whites, mongrels—a thoroughbred horse or hound is worth more than a score of them."

This total lack of regard for the feelings and fears of others definitely marks Zaroff as a deeply disturbed individual and makes the label psychopath relevant in any discussion of his character. Ironically, in other ways Zaroff is highly cultured and civilized. He even reads from the "works of Marcus Aurelius," the Roman emperor who wrote about ethics and how men should be judged by their treatment of other men.

What literary device is used in the phrase "with crooked hands" in "The Eagle" by Lord Tennyson?

In this brief poem, "crooked hands" is being used to describe an eagle's crooked claws. The eagle, often described as a noble and regal creature, is old and decrepit. The eagle still sits high on a crag (a steep rocky cliff), so it still appears to be in a "lofty" position. But it's age is significant here. The eagle is still high ("close to the sun") but it is about to fall, presumably to its death. This notion does conjure the myth of Icarus. But in paying more attention to the subject of age, the poem shows how even the strongest, most regal of creatures inevitably ages and dies. With that aging, the eagle's strength diminishes and its appearance and abilities decay as well. Although this is downright pessimistic, one could infer that an additional theme is how fleeting life is. Therefore, one should appreciate life because, as the poem shows, nothing is permanent. 

When the speaker uses "crooked hands" to describe the eagle's arthritic claws, he is using personification. This is a literary device in which a writer gives human qualities to an animal, some other object, or an idea. By using personification, the writer suggests that a human being will suffer the same fate as the eagle. No matter how noble or strong one may be in life, aging affects everyone. 

How does the novel The Outsiders show readers that being a hero is more than simply being brave?

S.E. Hinton illustrates how characters who are considered heroes in the novel are more than just brave individuals. Characters like Darry, Dally, Johnny, and Ponyboy selflessly help others. Each of these characters sacrifices something for the benefit of other people. Darry sacrifices an athletic scholarship and a college education to keep his family together, while Johnny and Ponyboy risk their lives saving children from the burning church. Dally is considered a hero because he not only helps Ponyboy and Johnny hide from the police but also saves Johnny's life by dragging him from the burning building. In each instance, the characters put other people's needs in front of their own. Although each of the characters are brave, Hinton suggests that a hero is also someone who sacrifices something for the benefit of others. Darry, Dally, Ponyboy, and Johnny are all selfless individuals who help others even when it does not benefit them.

How would the story be different if the man in the yellow suit had not died?What might have happened to the Tucks?

If the man in the yellow suit had not died, the Tucks would have continued their existence with no one knowing about them except Winnie.

When Mae Tuck kills the man in the yellow suit, the Tucks become on the radar of the local constable.  If this had not happened, there is no reason to assume anyone would have ever found out about them.  As it is, the constable does not know they are immortal.  Winnie breaks Mae Tuck out of jail so they won’t find out when they try to hang her.

Mae Tuck explains to Winnie that the family has gotten adept at hiding what they are.  They live on the outskirts of the community, travel to different towns to sell their wares, and move on once they have been in a place for a decade or so.  This way, no one ever really gets to know them.

“… So Jesse, he does what strikes him at the moment, working in the fields, or in saloons, things like that, whatever he comes across. But they can't stay on in any one place for long, you know. None of us can. People get to wondering." (Ch. 10) 

She does not mean to kill the man in the yellow suit.  He was being very persistent about finding them. Once he did, he wanted to sell the spring water.  This worried and angered Mae, and she acted when he threated to use Winnie as a demonstration.  She hit him a little too hard, and the constable saw. 

The Tucks knew that if Mae was hanged, she would not be able to die.  This would give up her secret, and maybe the entire Tuck family’s.  For this reason, Winnie agreed to help break Mae Tuck out of jail so the Tucks could disappear and no one would ever know.

The one other possible ending would be that the man in the yellow suit would find the Tucks later, and force them to tell about the water.  That would be a very different ending, because he would try to sell it and everyone would know.  

Why is water said to have a V shape?

Water has a v shape because the hydrogen atoms form an angle with each other.

While many 3 atom molecules form a bar, such as carbon dioxide, hydrogen monoxide is bent. The reason has to do with valence electrons and the bond types between the atoms.

Carbon dioxide will be our example of a bar shape. Carbon has 4 valence electrons, or 4 electrons in it's outer shell. Oxygen has 6 electrons in it's valence shell. All atoms but hydrogen and helium are going to want a full octet in the valence shell, or 8 electrons (except hydrogen and helium, as they have an outer shell of 2 possible electrons). Luckily, they can share electrons in what is called a covalent (co-valent, or in the same valence) bond. In this case, the carbon will form a double bond with both oxygen atoms, meaning it is sharing 2 electrons with one oxygen and 2 with the other. Because of this, there are no weird forces on the molecule, and the atoms form a bar.

In water, or dihydrogen monoxide, you have 2 hydrogen atoms and 1 oxygen atom. The oxygen has 6 valence electrons and each hydrogen has one. Together, they have 8 valence electrons. The hydrogen will form single bonds with the oxygen, and as the oxygen gets it's two, they each get one. 

However, there are still 4 electrons that are not in bonds. These two electrons on the oxygen form what are called lone pairs; the four electrons will split up into groups of two. In an attempt to get away from each other, as negative charges tend to do (think the similar ends of magnets repelling each other), the lone pairs and hydrogen atoms will form a tetrahedron  around the oxygen atom. 

Because we only show the hydrogen atoms and not the lone pairs around atoms, the models of hydrogen monoxide are all bent.

`e^(2x) = sinh(2x) + cosh(2x)` Verify the identity.

`e^(2x)=sinh(2x)+cosh(2x)`

Take note that hyperbolic sine and hyperbolic cosine are defined as

• 
  `sinh(u) = (e^u-e^(-u))/2`

• 
  `cosh(u)=(e^u+e^(-u))/2`

Apply these two formulas to express the right side in exponential form.

`e^(2x)=(e^(2x)-e^(-2x))/2 + (e^(2x)+e^(-2x))/2`

Adding the two fractions, the right side simplifies to

`e^(2x) = (2e^(2x))/2`

`e^(2x)=e^(2x)`

This proves that the given equation is an identity.

Therefore,  `e^(2x)=sinh(2x)+cosh(2x)`  is an identity.

In books 9-12 of The Odyssey, name one of Odysseus's strengths and one of his weaknesses. Explain your answer.

In book IX, Odysseus shows how clever he is.  He realizes that if he kills Polyphemus, the Cyclops, he and his men will perish inside the cave because they will have no way to move the stone from the door.  He comes up with a plan, instead, to blind the monster so that he will still be able to move the stone but he will not be able to see the men, and this will make it easier to evade him.  Further, he cleverly tells Polyphemus that his own name is "Nobody" so that, when other Cyclopes come to their brother's aid, he will have to tell them that "Nobody is hurting [him]!"  Pretty ingenious.  Certainly, his cleverness is a major strength.

However, at the end of this same book, Odysseus shows how proud he is, and it spells danger for him.  As his ship races away from the Cyclopes' island, he shouts back at Polyphemus and tells the monster that his real name is Odysseus.  He is gloating, and he wants the Cyclops to be able to tell people who it was that bested him.  However, Poseidon, the god of the sea, is Polyphemus's father, and Polyphemus prays to his father to avenge his injuries, and, because Odysseus revealed his identity to the monster, Polyphemus knows exactly whose name to give his daddy.  Thus, Odysseus's pride results in a lot more trouble for him on his way home and is a serious weakness.

`int x sqrt(1 - x^4) dx` Evaluate the integral

You need to solve the integral using substitution method, such that:

`x^2 = t => 2xdx = dt => xdx = (dt)/2`

Replacing x by t, yields:

`int x*sqrt(1 - x^4) dx = (1/2)int sqrt(1 - t^2)*dt`

You need to use the next trigonometric substitution, such that:

`t = sin u => dt = cos u du`

`u = arcsin t = arcsin x^2`

`(1/2)int sqrt(1 - t^2)*dt = (1/2)*int sqrt (1 - sin^2 u)*cos u du`

You need to use the fundamental trigonometric formula `1 - sin^2 u = cos^2 u`

`(1/2)*int sqrt (1 - sin^2 u)*cos u du = (1/2)*int sqrt (cos^2 u)*cos u du`

` (1/2)*int cos u*cos u du =  (1/2)*int (cos^2 u) du`

Using the half angle formula, yields:

`cos^2 u = (1 + cos 2u)/2`

`(1/2)*int (cos^2 u) du = (1/4)*int (1 + cos 2u) du`

`(1/4)*int (1 + cos 2u) du =(1/4)*intdu + (1/4)*int (cos 2u) du`

`(1/4)*int (1 + cos 2u) du =(1/4)*(u + (sin(2u))/2)`

`int x*sqrt(1 - x^4) dx = (1/4)*(arcsin (x^2) + (sin(2arcsin (x^2)))/2) + c`

Hence, evaluating the indefinite integral yields `int x*sqrt(1 - x^4) dx = (1/4)*(arcsin (x^2) + (sin(2arcsin (x^2)))/2) + c.`

A right circular cone is generated by revolving the region bounded by `y=3x/4, y=3, x=0` about the y-axis. Find the lateral surface area of the cone.

Surface area (S) obtained by rotating the curve x=g(y), c `<=`  y `<=` d about y-axis is,

S=`int2pixds`

 where, ds=`sqrt(1+(dx/dy)^2)dy`

We are given `y=(3x)/4 , y=3 , x=0`

`y=(3x)/4`

`=>x=(4y)/3`

`dx/dy=4/3`

`S=int_0^3(2pi)xds`

`S=2piint_0^3((4y)/3)sqrt(1+(4/3)^2)dy`

`S=2piint_0^3(4y)/3sqrt(1+16/9)dy`

`S=2piint_0^3(4y)/3sqrt(25/9)dy`

`S=2pi(4/3)(5/3)int_0^3ydy`

`S=(40pi)/9[y^2/2]_0^3`

`S=(40pi)/9[3^2/2-0^2/2]`

`S=(40pi)/9(9/2)`

`S=20pi`

So the Lateral surface area of the cone is `20pi`

What is the recommendation in The Story of My Life?

Captain Keller, Helen's father, sought help from Mr. Anagnos of the Perkins Institution.  Helen's father desired to find a teacher who could help his deaf and blind little girl.  Mr. Anagnos recommended Miss Anne Sullivan.  Miss Sullivan had suffered from partial blindness, but her sight had been restored through surgery.  Mr. Anagnos later said that "she showed from the very start that she had in herself the force and capacity which insure success."  

Dr. Howe's research and findings helped Miss Sullivan to prepare for the challenges of teaching Helen.  She had also occupied the same house as Laura Bridgman for several years.  Laura Bridgman was deaf and blind and had learned to communicate.

The recommendation of Miss Sullivan by Mr. Anagnos turned out to be an excellent one.  She worked tirelessly and with determination as she taught Helen.  The child soon was communicating and learning.  Miss Sullivan remained Helen's teacher and companion for the rest of her life.

What are examples of good decisions and bad decisions Scout makes in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird?

Most of Scout's poor decisions in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird reflect her hotheaded temper and tomboyish nature. However, by the end of the novel, she has come to associate being a girl with bravery, and her acceptance reflects in her good decisions.

Early in the novel, Scout's hotheaded temper is first reflected when she attacks Walter Cunningham Jr., blaming him for her having gotten herself into trouble on the first day of school. After she gets into trouble for explaining to her first-grade teacher, Miss Caroline, why Walter doesn't have any lunch and is unable to pay back borrowed lunch money, Scout accosts Walter in the playground and rubs "his nose in the dirt" but is stopped by Jem, who, after hearing what happened, invites Walter home for lunch. Scout's attack on innocent Walter, as well as her treatment of him during lunch, certainly count as poor decisions.

Scout takes to heart Atticus's warning that she must start fighting with her head, not with her fists. Plus, upon the influence of role model ladies in her life, like Calpurnia, Miss Maudie, and Aunt Alexandra, Scout begins to accept her role as a girl. She particularly accepts her role when she observes her aunt and Miss Maudie put on brave smiles and continue entertaining their guests in the face of the news of Tom Robinson's unjust and untimely death; she decides that if they can be brave by acting like ladies, so can she:

I carefully picked up the tray and watched myself walk to Mrs. Merriweather. With my best company manners, I asked her if she would have some. After all, if Aunty could be a lady at a time like this, so could I. (Ch. 24)

Scout's observations of Miss Maudie's and Aunt Alexandra's ladylike behavior at a time when they must be brave shows us that Scout has come to associate being a lady with being brave, since it takes a great deal of bravery to be able to put others first at a time when you only want to think of your own distressed emotions. Scout makes a good decision in deciding she can be a lady if the role is associated with bravery.

What does the novel Lyddie reveal about the lives of the "factory girls" at the textile mills in Massachusetts?

Kate Paterson's novel reveals that although "factory girls" at the Lowell, Massachusetts, textile mills could earn enough money to dress well and worked shorter days than household or tavern servants, they still endured very difficult working conditions, were at the mercy of factory owners and management, and could suffer grave and even deadly illnesses. At the factory where Lyddie works, and in the other factories in town as well, girls put in 12-hour days. They went to work before breakfast, came back to the boarding house to eat, and then returned to the factory, often working until after the sun went down. In addition, the air in the factory was thick with fibers; girls inhaled these strands and could develop severe coughs and lung conditions that could turn deadly. Girls often had to leave factory work after a year or two because of the health hazards. Long hours and poor air quality were not the only dangers. The unsanitary practice known as the "kiss of death" allowed spreading of disease because girls put their mouths on a part of the machine. This is probably what resulted in Lyddie contracting a life-threatening fever. Working with the machinery could also result in injuries; Lyddie received a hard blow to the head when she was hit by part of the loom, and "one of the little Irish girls in the spinning room had caught her hair in the machinery and was badly hurt."

The factories had all the power over the workers, and the workers were powerless. The factories could speed up the machinery and cut wages with impunity. Workers either put up with the changes or quit. Betsy explains that "our real wages have gone down more often than they've gone up." Many girls couldn't keep up with the pace when the machines got faster and left the factory. The factories made sure the girls knew that "if you can't do the work ... there's many a girl who can and will." They took advantage of Irish immigrants who would work for low wages and put up with poor conditions while living in slums. 

The management of the factory could fire a girl for a concocted reason, and if they failed to provide a letter of recommendation, no other factory in town would hire the girl. A male supervisor could take advantage of a young girl, and if she accused him or fought back, she could be fired, which happens to Lyddie. If girls were known to support the ten-hour day petition, they could be fired and blacklisted. 

Although the factories provided the opportunity to make more money than women could make in many other positions, they nevertheless were demanding, at times demeaning, and even dangerous places for young women to work. 

Outside their working hours, the factory girls often lived in boarding houses where they ate their meals and socialized in the evenings. Some girls used their free time to read and study or have their heads "read" by phrenologists. They were required to attend church services on Sundays.

Why were the Americans justified in fighting the British?

The Americans were justified in fighting the British. There are several reasons why this is true. One reason was that the British began to violate the rights of the colonists. When the British passed the Stamp Act and the Townshend Acts, the colonists didn’t have representatives in Parliament that could speak about and vote on these taxes. This is a right all British citizens have. However, the Parliament still passed these laws without the colonists having representation in Parliament.

The colonists were concerned that the British were trying to control them. The Proclamation of 1763 restricted the colonists from moving to the new lands that the British had gained from France in the French and Indian War. The British also required the colonists to provide housing for the British troops that were enforcing this unpopular law.

Eventually, events became more violent. Five colonists were killed in the Boston Massacre in March 1770. When the colonists destroyed the tea that was on the ships in Boston Harbor by throwing the tea into the harbor, the British responded with the Intolerable Acts. The Intolerable Acts were designed to punish the colonists, mainly those in Massachusetts, for the Boston Tea Party. The colonists began to form their own militias. When the British marched to Lexington and to Concord in April 1775, fighting occurred with both sides suffering casualties. After this event, many colonists believed it was only a matter of time before they would declare their independence from Great Britain. This would lead to the Revolutionary War.

The colonists were justified in fighting the British.

What do you predict would have happened if the Berlin Airlift had failed and West Berlin had been left on its own?

If West Berlin had been left on its own, it would quickly have fallen to the communists.  West Berlin was isolated inside of East Germany and could never have held out. The question, then, is what impact this would have had.  As in any “what if” situation, there are many possible answers and we can never know which would have actually happened. Let us look at two possible scenarios.

In one scenario, very little would have changed.  West Berlin would have fallen, but that would have had no impact on the Cold War as a whole.  West Germany would still have not wanted to become communist.  It would have remained in the Western camp. Communism would still have been a bad economic and political system and its shortcomings would have caused its people to hate it, just as they did in real life.  The US would have won the Cold War because capitalism and democracy clearly give people better lives (and allow countries to be stronger and more stable) than communism.

In the other scenario, the fall of Berlin would have had tremendous consequences. When Berlin fell, people across Europe would have lost faith in the US.  They would have felt that the US was unwilling or unable to help its allies. This would have made them more likely to go to the Soviet side.  In addition, the communists would not have looked as bad as they did in real life. In real life, the presence of West Berlin made the communists look bad because people in East Berlin could see how much better things were in the West.  They fled East Germany in such large numbers that the communists eventually had to build the Berlin Wall.  This became a tremendous symbol, showing that communism was so bad that it had to build walls to keep its people from escaping.  Without West Berlin, this would never have happened. In this scenario, more of Europe would have gone communist, or at least would not have allied strongly with the US. Communism would have been strengthened, the US weakened. The Cold War, in this scenario, might still be going on today because the US would not have seemed clearly superior to the communist bloc.

Either of these scenarios is possible, but we cannot know which one (or what other scenario not mentioned here) would have occurred.

In Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, how does Tybalt insult Romeo when he arrives on the scene?

The third act in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet starts with Tybalt searching for Romeo among his friends, Benvolio and Mercutio. Mercutio is giving Tybalt a difficult time when Romeo approaches them. Tybalt turns to Romeo and says the following:

"Romeo, the love I bear thee can afford
No better term than this: thou art a villain" (III.i.59-60).

Tybalt is basically saying that there's no way he could ever be Romeo's friend because he thinks Romeo is a villain. Today, Tybalt may have called him a jerk, or a party-crasher, because not only is Romeo a Montague (a rival family), but he crashed the Capulet party the night before and Tybalt wants revenge for that. He feels that it was the greatest insult for enemies to come uninvited to his uncle's party. Tybalt wanted to throw Romeo and his friends out of the party the night before, but Lord Capulet wouldn't allow the disruption during his party. As a result, Tybalt shows up the next day to deal out Romeo's punishment. In order to get a fight going, then, Tybalt calls Romeo a villain with the hopes that this will entice him to fight.

Which of the ladies at the missionary circle luncheon treat Scout with the most respect in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird? How is that respect...

In Chapter 24 of Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout, the narrator, clearly describes Miss Maudie as being the lady who shows her the most respect at Aunt Alexandra's missionary circle meeting.

Miss Maudie shows Scout the most respect by being the first to speak to her, saying, "You're mighty dressed up, Miss Jean Louise ... Where are your britches today?" Most importantly, when Scout replies, "Under my dress," the other ladies in the room laugh even though she hadn't meant to be funny, except for Miss Maudie. Scout grows very embarrassed when she realizes her faux pas as the other ladies laugh, but Miss Maudie only "look[s] gravely down at [Scout]," meaning very seriously. Scout notes that Miss Maudie "never laughed at [her] unless [she] meant to be funny." The fact that Miss Maudie feels it is important to treat children seriously shows that she feels it is important to treat children with the same amount of respect adults warrant, just as Atticus treats his children. In addition, the fact that Miss Maudie does not laugh at Scout shows she thinks laughing at anyone is disrespectful, even laughing at children, contrary to what the rest of the ladies present think.

Miss Maudie further shows respect to Scout by helping her to control her emotions. Immediately after laughing at Scout for wearing her trousers under her dress, Miss Stephanie Crawford begins teasing Scout by asking her what she wants to be when she grows up, even asking, "Don't you want to grow up to be a lawyer?" The question obviously serves the function of teasing Scout because young girls in this time period, who are real ladies, grew up to be nothing but true ladies who do nothing more than entertain and tend house like Aunt Alexandra. However, Scout states that Miss Maudie touched her hand to remind her of her manners. Scout's mild, well-mannered response, "Nome, just a lady," saves Scout from any further embarrassment because it saves her from further ridicule. When Miss Stephanie pursues the teasing subject by telling Scout she won't make much progress in becoming a lady if she doesn't "start wearing dresses more often," Miss Maudie further saves Scout from any more embarrassment by tightly gripping her hand. The firm touch reminds Scout not to say anything impertinent, and Scout is saved from further embarrassment by not saying anything in reply at all to Miss Stephanie. Soon, the teasing subjects are dropped, and other ladies, like Mrs. Grace Merriweather, begin conversing with Scout.

The weekly demand for DVDs in Suva is given as follows: Qd = 750 - 50P , where Qd represents the weekly demand and P is the price per DVD. What...

Though it may seem daunting if you're not used to working with demand curves, this question is very straightforward.

We are given that the weekly demand is Qd, the price is P, and the two are related by this equation:

Qd = 750 - 50 P

We are asked to find the weekly demand, so that's Qd. We are given that the price is $5. So all we need to do is substitute in $5 for P everywhere it appears in the equation. It only appears once, so that gives us:

Qd = 750 - 50 (5)

Now it's just arithmetic; remember your order of operations though. Multiplication occurs before addition. 50*5 = 250, so:

Qd = 750 - 250

Then, finally, 750 - 250 = 500, so

Qd = 500

The weekly demand at a price of $5 is 500 units.

What are the current government systems in the United States of America?

There are a number of ways to answer this question, depending on what you mean by a government system.

One answer is to say that the United States as a whole has a republican form of government.  In addition, each of the 50 states that make up the United States each has its own republican government.  A republican government is one in which the people elect representatives to make laws for them.  Because it would be practically impossible to have everyone participate in the lawmaking process, we vote for representatives who do that work for us. 

Another answer is to say that the United States as a whole has a federal system of government whereas states tend to have unitary systems.  A unitary system of government is one in which the central government has all the power and only gives whatever powers it wishes to the lower levels of government.  States are like this as state governments only give city and county governments whatever powers they wish to give.  By contrast, the US as a whole has a federal system where some powers are given to the national government and other powers are given to the state governments.  Neither level of government can take powers away from the other level.

Finally, you can say that America has a presidential system of government.  (The states also have such a system, though their chief executives are called governors).  In a presidential system, there is a separation of powers between the legislative and the executive branches.  (In the US and the 50 separate states, there is also a judicial branch.)  The chief executive is elected separately from the legislature.  This is in contrast to a parliamentary system of government in which the legislative branch elects the chief executive from among its members.

All of these are systems of government that exist in the United States as a whole and/or in  its 50 states.

How does the conflict in Lord of the Flies represent World War II in microcosm? Does Jack represent Hitler?

In pre-World War II Germany, the economy was in shambles and inflation was so out of control that people’s savings were worthless. Even buying food was a struggle. People faced starvation. They were looking for some sort of salvation. Many found it in Hitler, who put hope and pride back in their hearts at the same time that he put food in their stomachs. In the same way, the boys looked to Jack for protection and survival. He used that need to manipulate them into gaining power over them. Some of them, like Piggy and Ralph, believed that self-control, self-determination, and cooperation were their salvation, refusing to look to one single person beyond themselves for leadership. The conflict of fascism (like Nazi Germany and Jack’s leadership) with democracy (symbolized by the conch in Lord of the Flies) shows that the two systems cannot exist side by side.

In Mrs. Dalloway, why did Clarissa reject Peter Walsh and marry Richard? Does she regret her decision? Is theirs a successful marriage? How has her...

The relationship between Clarissa Dalloway and Peter Walsh is one of the most important components of Mrs. Dalloway. 

Peter and Clarissa had once been good friends. They were very intimate and familiar with each other. Apparently, Peter could "see through" Clarissa, an extremely powerful trait in a novel in which everyone is constantly positioning, posturing, and performing in a complex social milieu. Clarissa, a high-society woman, is particularly adept at playing this game. 

Peter remembers of their friendship: 

"They had always had the queer power of communicating without words. She knew directly he criticized her. Then she would do something quite obvious to defend herself... but it never took him in, he always saw through Clarissa." 

It is suggested in the book that this was the reason Clarissa rejected Peter: he made her feel vulnerable, by "seeing through" her performances.

Clarissa instead chose to marry Richard Dalloway, a reliable, if unimaginative, man. In the novel, they don't share the intimacy that she shared with Peter, which is something she both longs for and fears, as that intimacy also makes her vulnerable. 

Clarissa continues to be affected by her memory of Peter. She thinks of him the morning of her party, when she believes he is still in India and hasn't seen him for many years, wondering what it would have been like to marry him. When he visits her, unannounced, that afternoon, she thinks to herself, "Now of course... he's enchanting! perfectly enchanting!", before becoming annoyed at him again, and then becoming emotional when he tells her that he's going to marry a woman he met in India. 

Peter, similarly, continues to be affected by his memory of Clarissa. He revisits in his mind the moment when he first saw her together with Richard Dalloway, and he had the "sudden revelation... 'She will marry that man'... He didn't even know his name." When he visits her, he breaks into tears.

Paris has gone, and Juliet has endured his "holy kiss." How has the conflict escalated?

The conflict has escalated for two reasons. First, Romeo has killed Tybalt and has, as a result been banished to Mantua just one day after his wedding to Juliet. This is why Juliet's face is, in the words of Paris, "abus'd with tears." But the real issue that gives added urgency to the Friar's plot, and which causes Juliet even more grief, is her father's decision that she is to be married to Paris on the following Thursday. Juliet cannot marry Paris (and the Friar couldn't marry them) even if she wanted to, because she is married to Romeo, her real love. With the deadline swiftly approaching, the Friar hatches a desperate, even reckless, scheme. Juliet will take a potion that causes her to appear dead, which will allow her to avoid the impending marriage to Paris. This seems to the Friar to be the only possible resolution, and Juliet is desperate enough to try anything:

O, bid me leap, rather than marry Paris,
From off the battlements of yonder tower,
Or walk in thievish ways, or bid me lurk
Where serpents are; chain me with roaring bears...
And I will do it without fear or doubt,
To live an unstain'd wife to my sweet love.

What is the role of the character Clarisse, and why is she important to the narrative of Fahrenheit 451?

Clarisse McClellan is an anachronism in the world of Fahrenheit 451; she becomes a reminder to Montag of what has been lost. Furthermore, she becomes an agent of change for the fireman. 

In Part One, when Montag turns the corner and meets the girl

...who seems to have a kind of gentle hunger that touched over everything with tireless curiosity,

he is subtly reminded of what is missing in his life. Unlike his desensitized wife, Clarisse possesses eyes that are dark and "shining and alive." In fact, these eyes cause Montag to feel that he has said something "quite wonderful" to her. Then, Montag even sees himself in her eyes in a "brief hour of rediscovery."

Clarisse asks Montag probing questions such as if he has ever read any of the books that he burns and if he ever stops to think about what she asks him before answering. Further, she informs Montag of things that he has never noticed or talked about.

After Clarisse departs, Montag reflects upon what this girl has asked him. Then, he realizes,

He wore his happiness like a mask and the girl had run off across the lawn with the mask and there was no way of going to knock on her door and ask for it back.

Therefore, it is with different eyes that Montag looks around his house now, as Clarisse has awakened some deadened feelings in him.

In The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin, what do the other heirs think when Turtle is caught with exploding fireworks in the elevator?

Judge Ford thinks that Turtle set off the fireworks to divert suspicion from the real bomber, Angela. 

Turtle set off the fireworks in the elevator to protect her sister, Angela.  Theo called Turtle and told her that he saw Angela at the hospital.  Then he told her to let him have her bike.  The implication was obvious.  He was blackmailing her. 

Turtle hung up the phone. If Theo knew, others knew.  Angela had set off those fireworks wanting to get caught, but it was different now. Now she was confused, now she was just plain scared. They could force a confession out of her in no time, the guilt was right there staring out of those big blue eyes. (Ch. 21) 

Turtle's solution was dangerous, but she was desperate.  When the police come to investigate the “bombing” they find Turtle still in the hallway.  The police assure her mother that it was just a childish prank.  Turtle's mother is clueless about what both her daughters are up to.  The policeman found Turtle’s essay in the elevator, on the back of a sign that said, “THE BOMBER STRIKES AGAIN!!!” 

The police do not want the paperwork of taking Turtle in, so they take her to Judge Ford instead.  Judge Ford thinks she knows why Turtle would set off explosives in an elevator. 

She was protecting someone. She had set off the fireworks in the elevator to divert suspicion from the real bomber. But who was the real bomber? Nothing to do but drag it out of her, name by name, starting with the least likely. “Are you protecting Angela? (Ch. 21) 

Judge Ford is surprised at the empathic denial she gets from that suggestion.  It seems unlikely that someone like Angela would be the bomber, after all. She seems harmless.  Realizing she has underestimated Angela, as everyone else has, Judge Ford makes Turtle promise not to set off fireworks again.

In Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, why does Mayella blame Tom Robinson for raping her?

In chapter 20 of Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch, defense attorney for the defendant, calls Mayella Ewell the guilty party in his closing arguments. He declares that his client is not guilty because not only did Mayella lie about what happened to her at the hands of Tom Robinson, but she did it to cover up the fact that she kissed a black man. In 1930s Maycomb, Alabama, a white woman who kissed (or became otherwise romantically involved with) a black man violated social mores. Mayella invited a black man into her home to do chores for her without her father's knowledge and decided to kiss him one day. Her father, disgusted and furious, beat her up to make it look like Tom Robinson raped her. Atticus declares Mayella's guilt in the following passage:

"She has committed no crime, she has merely broken a rigid and time-honored code of our society, a code so severe that whoever breaks it is hounded from our midst as unfit to live with. She is the victim of cruel poverty and ignorance, but I cannot pity her: she is white. She knew full well the enormity of her offense, but because her desires were stronger than the code she was breaking, she persisted in breaking it" (203).

When Atticus refers to breaking a code, he means that their society doesn't believe in interracial relationships. The community is completely segregated by prejudice and racism. Therefore, Mayella claims that Tom Robinson raped her so her reputation, what little of it there might have been, would be saved. The only way to save her reputation was to blame the crime on a black man rather than take responsibility for it herself. As a result, Tom is convicted of a crime he never committed.

How does the boss react to Lennie's silence in Chapter Two?

In Chapter Two of Steinbeck's novella Of Mice and Men George and Lennie report to the boss of the ranch for work. They are late because George was content to sleep in the clearing next to the Salinas River the night before. Because Lennie is mentally challenged and has trouble thinking for himself George has instructed him to stay quiet while they speak to the boss. George is afraid that if Lennie speaks the boss will not allow them to work. Above all, George wants to make money in order to buy a small farm. When George does all the talking for the two men the boss grows suspicious:

The boss pointed a playful finger at Lennie. "He ain't much of a talker, is he?"

George quickly explains that Lennie is a "hell of a good worker" and "strong as a bull." Lennie temporarily forgets himself and repeats George's words, bringing more questions from the boss which Lennie struggles to answer. When George answers for him, the boss becomes even more suspicious and accuses George of taking Lennie's pay. George assures him that's not the case, but at the end of the interview the boss says,

"But don't you try to put nothing over, Milton. I got my eye on you...I seen wise guys before."

When the two men leave George immediately scolds Lennie for talking and worries that they will eventually get "canned" by the boss. As usual, Lennie is apologetic for his slip.

Why is sulfur yellow?

The element sulfur is found in salt domes and is also found in volcanic rock, at hot springs and even in meteorites. 

Sulfur has a deep yellow color which is one of its unique physical properties. Because sulfur can combine with other elements, it can be found in various forms, including galena, cinnabar, gypsum, and many others.

It produces a yellow streak when it undergoes a streak test and has a strong yellow color unless there are impurities, in which case it can be reddish or greenish.

Using its color is a method of identifying sulfur in the field, along with its hardness of only 2 and its odor when it combines with water (some of it produces hydrogen sulfide gas--which smells like rotten eggs).

Sulfur is yellow is because yellow wavelengths of light are reflected or transmitted to the eyes and we perceive this element as the color yellow. All other wavelengths of visible light are absorbed by the material. The yellow color is an identifier of sulfur, which was known as brimstone in ancient times. When it burns, it emits a blue light.

Sulfur is an important element found in various compounds including proteins, penicillin, and pollutants that cause acid rain.

What's the process of gas transport in the human body?

Gas transport in humans commences with the process of respiration. This process has two phases, the inspiratory phase in which air is inhaled into the lungs and an expiratory phase during which gas is expelled from the lungs.

Inspiration starts with the expansion of the lungs brought about by the contraction of the diaphragm and the intercostal muscles. This creates a negative pressure in the lungs which causes air from the atmosphere to enter the lungs through the nose.

The air passes into the wind pipe (trachea) through the larynx. At its lower end, the trachea divides into two pipes called the bronchi, each bronchus supplying its air content to each of the two lobes of the lungs where exchange of gases actually takes place.

To facilitate gaseous exchange in the lungs, each bronchus further divides into thinner tubes called bronchioles. The bronchioles empty their gas content into grape-shaped air sacs called alveoli which are covered by blood capillaries. This is the point at which exchange of gases actually takes place in the lungs.

Oxygen is extracted from the air in the alveoli and passes into the blood in the capillaries while carbon dioxide extracted from the blood in the capillaries passes and mixes with alveoli air for expulsion through the second phase of respiration called expiration.

At expiration, the diaphragm and the intercostal muscles relax, decreasing the volume of the chest cavity and increasing the air pressure in the lungs. This pushes air in the lungs into the two bronchi, through the trachea and finally taking its exit through the nose.

In the human body, only about 1.5% of the oxygen which crosses the alveolar membrane in the lungs gets transported through the body by mixing directly with blood. The remaining 98.5% of the oxygen is transported bound to a protein in the blood called hemoglobin.

On the other hand, carbon dioxide is transported by three methods. As carbon dioxide is more soluble in water, about 5 to 7% of it dissolves directly in blood. About 10% of the carbon dioxide is transported bound to hemoglobin but the majority of the carbon dioxide is transported through the bicarbonate buffer system in which an enzyme, carbonic anhydrase, converts the carbon dioxide into carbonic acid inside the red blood cells.

From To Kill a Mockingbird, what does Tom's running away from the Ewells' house suggest?

When someone runs away from a crime scene, it usually suggests that he or she feels guilty about something, doesn't want to get caught, or both. But being black in the South in 1935 doesn't award any benefit of the doubt in any criminally difficult situation--especially the one Tom finds himself in on the night of the alleged rape. In other words, no matter what Tom decides to do, run or stay to face the consequences, he would have ended up arrested, in jail, and standing trial for rape anyway. This topic is discussed between Tom and Mr. Gilmer in chapter 19. Mr. Gilmer asks Tom if Mr. Ewell ran him off of his property that night. Tom says that Mr. Ewell could not have run him off because he ran away before Ewell could do anything other than yell. The following passaged shows Mr. Gilmer posing the standard question in most people's minds when someone runs from the scene and Tom answering:

"'If you had a clear conscience, why were you scared?'

'Like I says before, it weren't safe for any ni**** to be in a--fix like that. . . I's scared I'd be in court, just like I am now.'

'Scared of arrest, scared you'd have to face up to what you did?'

'No suh, scared I'd hafta face up to what I didn't do'" (198).

Tom reveals the paradox that black people face when getting caught in a sticky situation with white people. It only takes one white person to accuse a black man of villainy to be believed and the offender arrested without question. Therefore, if Tom stays to face Bob Ewell, he's bound to wind up in a worse situation! At best, Ewell would have waltzed Tom into the sheriff's office, but Tom would still have been arrested. Tom's natural instincts told him to run and not look back, but that doesn't mean he is guilty, it only looks like it.

What is your reaction to Zaroff's statement, "We try to be civilized here"?

This statement, which comes while Zaroff and Rainsford are having dinner in the general's chateau, should be considered highly ironic. Even though Zaroff's island is in a remote area off the coast of South America, he prides himself on procuring the finest food and drink, including Russian soup and the best champagne. Zaroff is also, as Rainsford labels him, quite the "cosmopolite." His clothes are made by a premier London tailor, and his reading material includes the works of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius (much of Aurelius's work had to do with ethics). During the conversation, Zaroff reveals to Rainsford that he has invented a new type of hunting. He actually hunts the men who shipwreck on the island. This gruesome practice clashes with his seemingly civilized and cultured demeanor. In reality, Zaroff is a sociopathic murderer and is far from civilized. As expected, Rainsford reacts negatively to the general's disclosure:

"I have electricity. We try to be civilized here."

"Civilized? And you shoot down men?"

Although the general attempts to argue that it is his right to hunt men, Rainsford is repulsed and ultimately becomes Zaroff's prey in "The Most Dangerous Game."

One of the most common responses of nationalist leaders in developing countries where unrest was common and poverty and ethnic tensions were at...

The correct answer to this question is Option A.  None of the other options make sense.

Option B has the nationalist leaders establishing boundaries to separate the ethnic groups.  This is not something that nationalist leaders ever do.  Leaders do not like the idea of breaking up their countries. It reduces their power and definitely reduces their prestige.  It makes them look bad because it looks like they cannot keep their countries together.

Option C is definitely not correct.  No nationalist leader would ask the European colonizers to return. Any leader who did so would surely face a rebellion.  This goes against everything that nationalists want.

Option D is possible, but it is not what happened. In general, leaders wanted to keep power at all costs.  They did not want to risk losing power in an election. This is why so many developing countries ended up with dictators.

This brings us to Option A.  This is the typical pattern for developing countries like those you describe.  The first leaders want to keep power so badly that they turn to military dictatorships.

How did the secretive marriage of Romeo and Juliet cause the death of others?

Since Tybalt is unaware that Romeo and Juliet are married, he does not consider Romeo a kinsman. Upon coming across Romeo in the street, Tybalt challenges Romeo to a duel. He does so because he previously witnessed Romeo and Juliet kiss at the Capulet ball, and he feels insulted that Romeo would 1) sneak into the ball despite the feud between their families and 2) kiss Juliet. Had Tybalt realized the extent of their love, his anger may have been mollified. Tybalt remains unaware of their marriage, however, and though Romeo does not accept the challenge, Mercutio does. Tybalt kills Mercutio, and Romeo kills Tybalt. 

Later in the play, Paris also dies as a result of their secret marriage. After Juliet takes the sleeping potion, Paris believes she is dead. While mourning at her grave, Paris observes Romeo, who also believes Juliet is dead, and Paris erroneously assumes Romeo has come to the grave to vandalize it. Romeo and Paris battle. Romeo kills Paris, then commits suicide.

`y = sinh(1-x^2) , (1, 0)` Find an equation of the tangent line to the graph of the function at the given point

First check that the given point `(x_0, y_0)` belongs to the given graph, i.e. that `y(x_0) = y_0.` Yes, `sinh(1-1^2) = 0.`

Then the equation of the tangent line is

`(y - y_0) = (x - x_0)*y'(x_0)`

(this line goes through `(x_0, y_0)` and has the required slope).

The derivative of `y` is `cosh(1 - x^2)*(-2x),` here we use the chain rule and the known derivative of `sinh.` Thus `y'(x_0) = y'(1) = -2*cosh(0) = -2.`

So the equation of the tangent line is  `y = (x - 1)*(-2) = -2x +2.`

How does Gatsby try to repeat the past?

Gatsby tries to repeat the past by continuously pursuing Daisy. Gatsby and Daisy first meat when Gatsby is in the army. Gatsby comes from a lower-class farming family, while Daisy's family is very wealthy. The two fall in love, but Gatsby cannot marry Daisy because of his position in the army and his financial situation. After leaving the army, Gatsby amasses a vast personal fortune and relocates to West Egg. He throws lavish parties in the hopes of coming back into contact with Daisy, who lives nearby. Gatsby uses Nick Carraway, Daisy's cousin, as an intermediary to reintroduce him into Daisy's life. At this point, however, Daisy is married to Tom Buchanan, with whom she has a child. Gatsby nevertheless manages to meet with Daisy, and the two begin a brief affair. Gatsby attempts to convince Daisy to leave her husband and continue their previous relationship, and this almost works out until Tom intervenes and reality sets in. At this point, Gatsby's whole purpose of being is to win Daisy back. His repeated attempts to win Daisy back are the way in which he lives in the past, and it ultimately results in his premature death. 

How did capitalism impact the working class in the early Twentieth Century?

"At the bar of world opinion, I charge the English middle classes with mass murder, wholesale robbery, and all the other crimes in the calendar."  --Friedrich Engels, The Condition of the Working Class in England

Unbridled capitalism of the early Twentieth Century had a terrible effect on the working class people.  The unquenchable thirst of the industrialists for profits allowed for the exploitation of workers in the factories. Factory workers were forced to work long hours doing very difficult work. There were not laws to regulate the number of hours worked per day or week.  Overtime pay was unheard of.  The conditions for workers in the factories were dangerous in every industry.  If a worker was hurt, they were still expected to perform and could not be compensated for time off to heal.  While performing their job, the workers had to work at a hurried pace to increase productivity and profit. The jobs were menial and boring.  

The greatest injustice of capitalism in this era was the uneven distribution of wealth.  While industrialism created enormous revenue, only those at the top benefited.  The working class wages were meager and plunged workers into deplorable poverty and despair.  Laborers struggled mightily to provide for their families.  

In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, how does Arnold show traits of determination?

In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Arnold shows determination when he insists on transferring to Reardan.

The roots of Arnold's decision to leave starts off at anger at unfairness.  When his geometry teacher passes out textbooks, Arnold is dismayed to find that he is given the book his mother used:  "My school and my tribe are so poor and sad that we have to study from the same dang books our parents studied from. That is absolutely the saddest thing in the world."  Arnold voices his displeasure as he throws the book at his teacher's face.  Arnold speaks out against a system that would have him use books that his parents used.

Arnold moves his anger to a more constructive level in his determination to leave Reardan.  After his talk with Mr. P, Arnold realizes he might be destined for something better than the world of the reservation.  Arnold knows if he stays on "the rez," he will succumb to the world of broken dreams and dispelled hopes that have afflicted so many Native Americans.  Arnold is determined to not let this happen.  He directly tells his parents what he wants:  "I want to go to Reardan,' I said again. I couldn't believe I was saying it. For me, it seemed as real as saying, 'I want to fly to the moon."  His determination is underscored when he tells his parents that "[i]f I don't go now, I never will. I have to do it now."  Arnold is determined to leave the reservation in the hopes of something better for his future.

Why would a family want a mongoose in their house?

A family might want a mongoose as a pet for the same reasons a family might want a dog or a cat for a pet. A mongoose is soft and cute-looking (in my opinion). A more objective reason to have a mongoose as a pet is because they do not become that large. A typical mongoose is under ten pounds. My family has a 100-pound black lab. That's a lot of pet to have in the house. By comparison, a mongoose would do much better indoors. A mongoose is naturally energetic and curious, so it could be fun to have around. The animal is also a natural predator and typically hunts small rodents. Mongooses are also known to eat earthworms, insects, and lizards.  A mongoose would be a useful pet for critter control. The family in Kipling's story also likes the idea of having a mongoose around for protection from snakes, as mongooses are very good snake killers.

How does Amy Tan choose to develop Waverly Jong from beginning to end?

Amy Tan's short story "Rules of the Game" bears witness to the psychological growth and development of young Waverly Jong, who evolves over the course of three years from an ordinary six-year-old growing up in Chinatown to a nine-year-old chess prodigy with a mind of her own.

As a young girl, Waverly assumes the traditional role of a young Chinese girl under the fierce watch of her mother, Lindo Jong. Waverly must help her mother with chores, obey all the rules of the household, and fit the mold of "Meimei," the "little sister." She occasionally tests her mother's boundaries--like when she asks Lindo about Chinese torture--but is mostly attentive to the woman's instruction, particularly as it relates to "the art of invisible strength" and the uses of silence. 

Waverly changes dramatically once she begins to learn the rules of chess. After her brother Vincent receives a used chess board for Christmas, Waverly's interest in learning the "American Rules" is sparked. Waverly researches strategies and moves in the library and by practicing with old men in the park, and for the first time, she has an outlet for her intellectual curiosity. She begins to shed the stereotypes and gender roles of being a girl. Even her mother, who at first proclaimed that these wins are merely a matter of "luck," begins to take pride in her daughter's accomplishments. While Waverly is allowed plenty of free time to practice her chess strategies, her brothers must take on her chores. Waverly eventually becomes a national champion.

Despite this success, Waverly still struggles with her mother's habits, particularly her propensity for bragging about Waverly's wins as if they were her own. This prompts Waverly to tell her mother not to use her to "show off." Although Waverly tries to run off in order to assert her independence, it becomes very quickly evident that she won't be able to survive on her own. At the end of the story, it's clear that although Waverly has grown tremendously in her abilities, she is still at the mercy of Lindo's superior "invisible strength." 

What's an example of a creative poem about a work of literature like Animal Farm?

Word has gone round the farm during the day
That Old Major dreamed of living a new way.
He wants all animals to meet in the barn this night,
And they are willing to hear what he has to say.

The majestic old pig has a wise appearance in his stance.
The other animals enter and hear from him of their only chance:
Freedom! They must revolt against Man, their enemy.
Rebellion is the answer! All animals are equal in every occurrence.

The song is sung, the rules are made for Animalism, a new system.
The next day, Jones and others enter the barn, and the animals attack them.
Defeat chases them all away, and the animals sing in triumph.
Now the name is "Animal Farm," and there are seven commandments for them.

Boxer and others work hard day after day; Snowball plans for a windmill,
Men try to reclaim the farm; Snowball,Boxer, and others defeat them still.
But Napoleon wants the power and drives away Snowball. He is cruel.
Squealer convinces the animals that things are not what they seem at all.

The lives of the animals become miserable, much as in the past--even more.
The pigs have changed the rules, and they walk on two legs as never before.
The name is returned to "Manor Farm," and man and pig are seen together.
Once the animals look in the house, and pig and man seem to differ no more.

What are the reasons John offers for considering confession in The Crucible ?

To answer the question correctly, one needs to understand that there are two parts to John's confession. The first is the confession itself, which is obviously made verbally and written down. The second is when he has to sign it to make it binding.

John tells his wife, Elizabeth, that he is prepared to tell a lie by confessing in order to save his own life. He is clearly tortured by the difficulty of this task and seeks Rebecca's advice. She tells him that she cannot judge him but whatever decision he wishes to make is one that only a good person can. She tells him to do as he wishes. He replies that he knows that she would never, even under extreme torture, do what he is about to do. He says that it his confession is evil but that he will do it. 

His announcement is greeted with great relief and gratitude by judge Danforth who asks that the confession be written down. John questions the necessity thereof and says that it is enough if he verbally confesses. Danforth tells him that it is for good instruction to the villagers and that his confession will be posted on the church door. He is then asked a number of questions about his dealings with Satan and he admits to all, essentially dictating to Cheever who writes down what he says.

However, when Danforth starts asking about people who John had seen with the devil, he refuses to implicate them. Different names are put to him but he refuses to budge. Danforth is insistent but John tells him that he refuses to name such people because: 'They think to go like saints. I like not to spoil their names' and further asserts that he can only speak for his own sins and cannot judge others.

The written confession is accepted as is by the court and John is asked to sign it. He bluntly refuses, saying that his confession has been witnessed by all present. They do not need his name for verification. Danforth commands that he sign it or it would not be deemed a valid confession. Proctor, clearly under great pressure, signs the confession which provokes loud praises from reverend Parris.

When judge Danforth reaches for the paper, John snatches it up. Danforth beseeches him to hand it over but he refuses, stating that they have all seen him sign it and God has witnessed him confessing to his blackest sins. They do not need a written and signed document to prove his guilt. When Danforth wants to tell him that he had not confessed, he interjects and shouts:

I have confessed myself! Is there no good penitence but it be public? God does not need my name nailed upon the church! God sees my name; God knows how black my sins are! It is enough!

John insists that he will not allow his confession to be nailed to the church door. He refuses to be used by the court. He realises that his confession will beused to encourage others to confess or to blacken the names of those who refuse to do so, such as Rebecca, and implicate them even further. Danforth asks him whether it is not the same if he signs or he reports that John has confessed, and John says it is not. It is different. He says:

What others say and what I sign to is not the same!

When he is asked whether he will deny his confession when he is free, John says that he won't. When Danforth asks him why he would then not hand over the confession, he passionately cries out:

Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name! 

It is evident that John is not prepared to die with his name besmirched and in tatters. Danforth asks him if his confession is a lie but John remains silent and then rips the confession to pieces, crying. Danforth calls on the marshal to rearrest him. Hale tells him he cannot do what he has done, he will surely hang. John, who has clearly reconciled himself with his destiny, tells him that in that lies the miracle - that he can die. He, in a moment of illumination, accedes that there is at least some goodness within him, a goodness which cannot be exploited by the animals (dogs) who want it.

It is this action that seals his fate. He is led away, with others, to be hanged. Parris and Hale plead with Elizabeth to speak to him but she cries out:

  He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him! 

What are some good ideas for a travel brochure for Animal Farm?

You will want your visitors to be able to tour the places important to the history and current running of Animal Farm, so I would include the following in a travel brochure, with lots of color photos:

The grave of Old Major at the foot of the orchard is a must see, as he was the visionary behind the concept of Animal Farm.

The store shed where the original rebellion broke out is another important destination: this is where it all began. 

The big barn is a highlight of the tour, as here the animals have their weekly Meeting.

Naturally, visitors need to see the pig barn, where the Seven Commandments--or maybe now just the one commandment of Animalism--have been painted. 

The cowshed, scene of the Battle of the Cowshed, where the animals fought off the attack of Farmer Jones and his men, is another must see.

Finally, the tour will end at the windmill, a triumph of Animal Farm, rebuilt after being dynamited by Farmer Jones and his men. Here the corn is milled and sold at a high profit. Here, a tour guide might mention the plans for a second windmill to provide power for the animals to have stalls with electric lights and hot water, but then again, that project is endlessly delayed, so perhaps it's best not to bring it up. Instead, the tour might end with the luxurious quarters in the farmhouse where the pigs live as the humans once did. 

What are the origins, immediate causes, course of phenomenon and the consequences of Fascism?

Unlike socialism and communism, which were explicitly ideological and based on political philosophy (particularly Marx), fascism didn't really formulate itself as a coherent ideology. It wasn't presented as a list of ideas or principle, so much as rallied by meaningless patriotic slogans. Where communism appealed to logic with detailed, coherent ideas (sometimes dangerous ones), fascism appealed to gut feelings of patriotism, nationalism, and xenophobia. Whereas socialism made sense to some on an economic level, fascism rarely even tried to make sense; it simply bypassed the rational mind entirely and dug straight into strong emotions, especially anger.

In many ways fascism emerged as a counterreaction to socialism, particularly in Italy where Mussolini presented himself as a strong leader who would break the corruption and deadlock that had set in, as well as restore Italy from a state of economic crisis.

Hitler likewise emerged from economic crisis---in the aftermath of WWI Germany had been left with unpayable debts and reparations, which the Weimar government tried its best to pay by printing money, though it only ended up triggering hyperinflation and economic collapse. Then the Great Depression hit worldwide. Hitler was never actually elected by popular vote, but used shrewd political maneuvering to rise in the ranks and assume power.

Fascist governments assumed power in several countries in Europe, then launched WWII to try to conquer the rest. Fascism was tied with attitudes of nationalistic superiority and the glory of war, which no doubt contributed to why fascist nations were so aggressive militarily. Hitler's explicit goal was to conquer all of Europe and turn it into a vast fascist empire. And for a time, it looked like he might succeed---German forces did capture most of Europe and held it for a few years.

But after the bloodiest war in human history, with millions of deaths for Germany, Japan, and especially the Soviet Union, and hundreds of thousands for China, the US, and the UK (and thousands more in other smaller countries), the fascist governments in Germany and Italy were finally conquered. Europe was divided in two, and even Germany itself was split in two parts: West Germany, taken by the US and UK and governed by democratic capitalism, and East Germany, taken by the USSR and governed by totalitarian socialism.

In the end, Western Europe turned out quite well. With the help of the US, Western Europe rebuilt itself from the quite literal rubble and now has some of the most prosperous nations in the world. Except for East Germany (which unified with West Germany to be once again just... Germany), Eastern Europe did not fare as well; they stagnated economically under the USSR and when the USSR fell they were thrown into chaos. There are still stark differences between Eastern and Western Europe in terms of health, standard of living, and overall welfare. In that sense, the consequences of fascism were not as dire as those of communism, because fascism was quickly toppled while communism persisted for decades and stagnated nations with millions of people. And of course fascism launched a global war that killed some 20 million people, not to mention the Holocaust of 10 million civilians by Nazi Germany---so while it was brief, it did an enormous amount of damage in that short time.

Yet fascism may still rise again; those deep, strong emotions remain in the human brain, and it might only take a severe economic crisis combined with another opportunistic, psychopathic demagogue to throw any nation back into fascism.

Americans pride themselves on their democracy despite its tendency to hinder efficiency. But democracy was far from the accepted norm in early U.S....

The Founding Fathers had no intention of making America a direct democracy, especially Federalists, who thought that only men who did not have to work for a living had the ability to look after the nation's interest and not their own--this disinterestedness was called "virtue."  The Federalists such as Washington and Adams sought to give these great men more power--this is why only the state legislatures could vote for senators until 1913 and the Electoral College exists today.  As the businessmen and craftsmen of America gained wealth, they also sought a larger political voice.  They did not want a static class system that existed in Britain; rather, they wanted their children and grandchildren to do better than they did in life.  They sought more of a voice, and by 1800 many states had taken away the property requirements one needed to vote.  Intellectually, newspapers also fueled the growth in democracy, as the industry exploded as even small hamlets having at least a weekly paper by 1800.  America had one of the most literate populations in 1800, as public education was available to nearly all by that time.  Since there was no Associated Press, many papers picked up stories from the major hubs of New York and Philadelphia and reprinted them.  Newspapers were often read aloud at bars and pubs as well, giving yet more people time with the news.  Editors had partisan leanings, and many people read the news just for the arguing between editors, so it made for good drama as well.  

When Washington took office, it was considered an ungentlemanly thing to actively campaign for office, but most observers could see that by 1800, one would have to mobilize one's supporters in order to attain to any office.  As all white men over 21 could vote by the early nineteenth century and most of them could read, this meant that politicians had to remember to cultivate American democracy and even talk to people who during the Revolutionary days would not have been involved in the process.  

What four major changes and/or accomplishments do you predict for Randy's future in The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton?

Randy is different from the other Socs because he is willing to talk to Ponyboy, a greaser, and because he decides to stop fighting. He will likely not participate in any more gang activities and will go on to be a respectable citizen. Compared to other Socs, he will probably not drink as much and will be more accepting of greasers.

Randy is one of the Socs who attacks Johnny and Pony in the park. He makes a pretty dramatic turnaround after Johnny kills Bob. He asks to talk to Pony before the big rumble. He is impressed by Pony, Johnny, and Dally’s efforts to save the children at the church.

Randy tries to help Johnny and Pony by telling the police that Bob is the one who provoked the attack in the park.

Cherry Valance, and she said Bob had been drunk and that the boys had been looking for a fight when they took her home. Bob had told her he'd fix us for picking up his girl. His buddy Randy Adderson, who had helped lump us, also said it was their fault and that we'd only fought back in self-defense (Chapter 7). 

When Randy first wants to talk to Pony, he doesn’t want to talk to “the tall guy that had almost drowned” him. He listens to Randy, though, because he seems sincere. 

I'm sick of all this. Sick and tired. Bob was a good guy. He was the best buddy a guy ever had. I mean, he was a good fighter and tuff and everything, but he was a real person too. You dig (Chapter 7)? 

Randy feels terrible about what happened to Bob. He likely will not get drunk as often as he used to. He says what Bob did was wrong, but his parents were overindulgent.  This leads me to infer Randy will stop engaging in the behaviors he blames Bob’s parents for accepting, such as drinking too much, staying out late, and fighting.

How could I formulate a thesis for an essay on Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451? My topic is censorship. I want to talk about Beatty's role in...

It seems like you are showing how each of these three characters reacts to censorship. Being a fireman, Montag takes part in censoring (burning) books and literature. His wife, Mildred, is complicit with the idea of censorship. Therefore, she represents those in the population (perhaps the majority) who passively agree to live in this oppressive state. 

Clarisse, on the other hand, does not accept the status quo. She doesn't actively engage in a public or political revolution. But she does rebel in her own way. She questions things. She would rather have interesting conversation than watch the mind-numbing shows that Mildred loves so much. 

Later in the novel, Montag recalls a prior meeting with Faber. This may have been one of the first eyeopening moments for Montag. But he does not really start to question things until he meets Clarisse. His conversations with her spark an awakening in him. Perhaps, you might formulate a thesis about how Clarisse helps catalyze this awakening in Montag. Using all three characters in a statement, one might say: Ignoring censorship of thought, Clarisse awakens something in Montag that Montag tries but fails to awaken in Mildred. 

In "Shooting an Elephant", what are your impressions of the officer, the crowd, and the elephant and how are these impressions created?

The officer is self-aware and has enough of a sense of morality to recognize the fundamental evils of colonialism. But he is also filled with a deep contempt for the colonial people. In short, he is an instrument of colonialism, and his personal choice to shoot the elephant (which he describes as an immoral act) is carried out reluctantly. He creates this impression through his own words. He says that "imperialism is an evil thing," and that he had seen the "dirty work of empire at close quarters." But he also calls the Burmese people "dirty little beasts." In short, he gives the impression that he has been corrupted by empire, and that he knows it. The crowd, on the other hand, is full of contempt for the officer and what he represents. They are also agitated by the horrific scene they have just witnessed (though the officer seems to think they are just interested in a bit of fun) and, as he says, "wanted the meat." This suggests that they are very poor, perhaps even desperately so. Even still, the most compelling thing about the crowd is the extent to which the officer feels bound to do what they expect of him. They expect him to be an instrument of violence, and so he must be, to avoid, he says, "looking a fool." As for the elephant, the impression the reader gets is that the poor beast is caught, in a way, in a situation created by the inhumanity of imperialism.

What was Mr. Gilmer's closing argument in To Kill a Mockingbird (because it was never in the book)?

When Scout asks about Mr. Gilmer's cross examination and/or closing argument, Jem says "Sh-h. Nothing new, just the usual. Hush now." We can expect that Mr. Gilmer's closing argument would reiterate some of the points he tried to make during his sessions with Mayella, Bob, and Tom Robinson. Gilmer would probably bring up that Tom had once served thirty days for disorderly conduct. He might try to suggest that this shows Tom's tendency to be violent. Gilmer calls Tom "boy" when he questions him. This either shows Gilmer's inherent racist attitude or his attempts to put Tom in an inferior position. 

In his summation, Gilmer would probably make Mayella as sympathetic as he can, making her look like a helpless victim. He might also appeal to the jury's own biases and suggest that Tom was acting on his own simplistic instincts and urges. In other words, Gilmer might use loaded language in order to suggest that Tom, a black man, was doing what black men are predisposed to do. This is a racist tactic but it is something Gilmer might employ to appeal to the racist attitudes of the jurists. 

Why are chemosynthetic iron and sulfur bacteria thought by some scientists to be the first organisms on earth?

There are several reasons for this, but they mostly have to do with the way these organisms metabolize, and the ecological composition of the early Earth.

Today, the great majority of organisms use aerobic respiration reactions to generate ATP, and those reactions require fuel, typically glucose or some related carbohydrate. In turn, those carbohydrates tend to be synthesized by organisms that can perform photosynthesis. Both of these reactions are fairly complex and have some irreducible aspects which indicate that a highly simplified precursor would not have been as likely as an alternative reaction, such as chemotrophy, which provides much less ATP but is capable of being sustained in anaerobic or nutrient-poor environments, such as thermal vents at the ocean floor, where we observe modern-day organisms metabolizing iron and sulfur in a context analogous to that of the early Earth.

We know from fossil records that the oxygen content of the early Earth was exponentially lower than it is today; the great majority of our free oxygen is actually the result of photosynthetic organisms saturating the crust and atmosphere with it. Therefore, the first life would not have been able to utilize reactions that depended on carbon in order to generate energy. Chemotrophs fit this criteria and therefore seem more likely to have been, or at least more closely resembled, the first life.

`arccos(1/2)` Evaluate the expression without using a calculator

`arccos(1/2)`

Let this expression be equal to y.

`y = arccos(1/2)`

Rewriting this in terms of cosine function the equation becomes:

`cos(y) =1/2`

Base on the Unit Circle Chart, cosine is 1/2 at angles pi/3 and (5pi)/3.

`y=pi/3, (5pi)/3`

Then, consider the original equation again.

`y = arccos(1/2)`

Take note that the range of arccosine is `0lt=ylt=pi` . Between `pi/3` and `(5pi)/3` , it is only `pi/3` that belongs to this interval. So the solution to the original equation is:

`y = arccos(1/2)`

`y=pi/3`

Therefore, `arccos(1/2) = pi/3` .

What are main themes in Jeanne DuPrau's The City of Ember?

The central theme in Jeanne DuPrau's The City of Ember concerns the need to act against oppression. Ember was established as a city of refuge to preserve the human species in the event of an atomic war or other apocalyptic event. But it was only designed by scientists to last about two hundred years. After that, the citizens would need to leave the city, and the Builders needed to be sure to leave instructions for the citizens to find their way out. However, as time passed, the instructions were lost, and the government became corrupt, tyrannical, and oppressive. The people particularly suffer under the current mayor, who is hoarding provisions for himself rather than finding a way to help the citizens. Throughout the story, DuPrau explores multiple responses to oppression and promotes Lina's and Doon's response as the most needed and most successful.

DuPrau shows that most citizens of Ember are willing to do nothing so long as they continue to have what they need to survive. She also creates the Believers to show that others approach oppression by establishing optimistic yet inactive belief systems such as the belief that the Builders will return to the city to rescue the people, as we see when Captain Fleery explains to Lina:

I know it in [my heart]. ... And I have seen it in a dream. So have all of us, all the Believers. (Ch. 7)

In contrast to those citizens who take an inactive response towards the situation, Lina and Doon rebel against the government by feeding their curiosity. Neither character is content to simply accept the government's word that everything will be alright. Instead, they explore their surroundings to look for a solution on their own. Doon is especially convinced the solution can be found in the Pipeworks and uses every spare minute he can to explore on his own. Because Doon and Lina are willing to actively rebel against the oppressive government, they are the ones who successfully rescue themselves and the citizens, underscoring DuPrau's theme concerning acting against oppression.

Does low hemoglobin contribute to high blood glucose levels?

Low hemoglobin does not cause high blood glucose—in fact, there is a relationship between glucose and hemoglobin in the opposite way! Glucose in the blood bonds to the hemoglobin protein in red blood cells. People with high glucose levels (blood sugar) are more likely to have higher glycohemoglobin (sugar which is bonded to hemoglobin) because of the availability of sugar in the blood. Here we see that the cause is a high glucose level, which occurs with diabetes, and the effect is a high glycohemoglobin. Please bear in mind that this doesn't refer to just the hemoglobin itself and that a high blood sugar will not necessarily cause high hemoglobin. The relationship here is between high levels of blood sugar and high levels of sugar which is bonded to hemoglobin.

A low hemoglobin count should not be the cause of high blood glucose, though it is possible that with less hemoglobin to bond to, sugars may remain in the plasma of blood. Every body is different, and there may be a number of factors involved in either one or both of these symptoms.

Which parts of the human circulatory system are xylem and phloem most similar to?

The xylem and phloem of plants are most similar to veins, arteries, and capillaries.

In a plant, xylem are used to transport water, while the phloem are used to transport nutrients via sap. Xylem are deep into the plant, around the core of a branch, while the phloem are near the surface behind the bark. Inside the circulatory system, arteries and veins are deep in the body, beneath layers of protective flesh, whereas capillaries are found closer to the surface in many areas, such as the surface of skin and the surfaces of organs. Here, I would compare the xylem to arteries and veins, and the phloem to capillaries.

In the circulatory system, however, there is no system that distributes just water. Rather, all parts of the system distribute blood. In this sense, xylem are completely unlike the circulatory system. Even the sap that flows in a tree has no transport cells like red blood cells and white blood cells; it is a fluid containing loose sugars and nutrients.

Finally, I would comment on how the circulatory system uses the heart to pump blood through the body. Xylem and phloem use gravity, transpiration, and root pressure to move things through the plant, expending no energy in the process.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, what is the relationship between Scout and Atticus?

Atticus and Scout have a traditional father-daughter relationship in some aspects, but in other aspects they interact more like friends. Atticus has expectations and rules for Scout. He teaches her about respect and good manners. Atticus trusts Scout and speaks to her like an adult. He shows that he respects her. Scout goes to her father with difficult questions, and he speaks to her without censoring his words.

The relationship Atticus has with Scout it a combination of parent and friend. Scout describes her father as someone who "played with us, read to us, and treated us with courteous detachment" (Chapter 1).

Scout trusts and admires her father. Atticus admires Scout's courage and willingness to confront problems. Scout feels safe when her father is around. She knows that he loves her. Atticus gives Scout and Jem space to play and explore. He rarely gets involved with their playtime.

What is the idea or belief that people have a fixed nature that makes them who they are and fully defines them?

The general philosophical term for this is "determinism." Philosophers have, since the very origin of the discipline in classical Greece, debated the question of the degree to which we are determined by external circumstances or some fixed aspects of our natures versus the degree to which we are autonomous and have free will. Religious thinkers are also concerned with the problem of how humans can have free will if God or gods are omnipotent and omniscient and predestine us to salvation or damnation. 

The question of free will versus determinism is especially important when we think about ethics. For example, if someone is mentally ill and commits a crime, we might argue that the person is not in control of his or her actions and thus is not legally culpable. As biology, psychology, and medicine make new discoveries about the nature of our brains and behaviors, increasingly it can be argued that psychopaths or other types of criminal may be hardwired to act in certain anti-social ways, while other people may equally be predisposed to what we view as morally good forms of behavior. If our actions are determined by genetic and environmental factors rather than free will, we need to rethink our ethical systems to somehow take these issues into account. 

In Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, what is the purpose of bringing the Nurse and Friar Laurence together in Act 3, Scene 3? Could it have been...

The reason for bringing the Nurse and Friar Laurence together in Act 3, Scene 3 depends upon the reading of the play. Let's examine a couple of possible reasons these characters interact, and you can determine whether or how the scene could have been different.

One reason the Nurse and Friar Laurence meet in Act 3, Scene 3 speaks to the theme of fate in the play. Throughout the play, Shakespeare reinforces the idea that these "star-crossed lovers" are doomed. Therefore, the Nurse and Friar Laurence must meet in order to set the action of the finale in motion. The Nurse comes with assurances that Juliet still loves Romeo, and Friar Laurence chides Romeo for wailing like a girl when his Juliet lives and still loves him. The Nurse and Friar Laurence aid in reconciling the young lovers, sealing their fate.

Another reason the Nurse and Friar Laurence meet could be an instance of dramatic irony. Though it's become popular to view Romeo and Juliet's marriage as normal for the Elizabethan era, the opposite is true. Historians agree that men and women typically did not marry until their 20s or even 30s -- even nobles. It's critically important to understand that Romeo and Juliet are children, as Shakespeare shows both of them exhibiting the best and worst qualities of children (impetuousness, devotion, forgiveness, lack of control).

In bringing the Nurse and Friar Laurence together, Shakespeare brings together the two adult characters that have enough sway over Romeo and Juliet to put an end to the highly emotional fallout of Tybalt's death. Alas, the adults do not step in and protect the children, but instead conspire to bring them together. Because the children achieve their own desires, and no adult steps in to guide them, the play ends tragically.

What is Black Beauty's character in Anna Sewell's story?

Black Beauty is the dynamic narrator and protagonist of Anna Sewell's story. A dynamic character is one who changes throughout the story. Though Black Beauty's character traits never change in the story, as the story progresses, he is shaped as he gains new understandings of the nature of the world and of the men who inhabit it.

In the opening chapter of the story, as a young colt, Black Beauty's mother informs him that he is "well-bred and well-born" and further gives him the following advice:

I hope you will grow up gentle and good, and never learn bad ways; do your work with a good will, lift your feet up well when you trot, and never bite or kick even in play. (Ch. 1, Pt. 1)

Black Beauty takes his mother's speech very much to heart, and it forms the basis of his character throughout the story. No matter how cruelly Black Beauty is eventually treated, he maintains his integrity by maintaining his gentleness, goodness, and devoted work ethic. One example is seen after he is sold to his second household, the household of a Duchess very fond of the fashionable check-rein that pulls horses' heads up, preventing them from being able to move them on their own. At one point, when being fixed into the check-rein, Ginger, his carriage partner, throws a fit. Black Beauty reflects that he had been angered by the people's treatment, and "if I had ever been used to kick or rear I am sure I would have done it then"; but, he restrains himself no matter how angry he becomes (Ch. 23, Pt. 2).

Beyond having strong integrity, he is also a very respectful and understanding horse. His respectful and understanding nature is seen when he meets other horses who do not have the same good natures as he has, but he does not pass judgement on those horses. For example, Ginger has a poor temper, but he soon admires and even loves her, fully understanding that it was the way she was treated by men that gave her her poor temper.

As the story progresses, Black Beauty learns more and more about the dual good and evil nature of the world and of its people. What he learns shapes and changes his character because his knowledge transforms him from a young, carefree, naive horse into a worldly-wise, compassionate, and understanding horse. Author Anna Sewell, a devout, gentle, and humanitarian Quaker, created a horse character with a very Christlike nature, for the more he suffers, though innocent, the more he maintains his loving gentleness.

How does Abner Snopes in William Faulkner's "Barn Burning" view the world around him and his place in it? What motivates his rebellious actions to...

Abner Snopes of William Faulkner’s short story ‘Barn Burning’ is a despicable character who views the world through a lens of violence and cruelty, and he lives solely to mete out vengeance on any whom he perceives has slighted him. He views himself always as a victim rather than a criminal. He has no loyalty except to himself, he has no love for anyone, not even himself, and his distorted view of the world eventually destroys him.

‘Barn Burning’ opens in a store that doubles as a courtroom where Snopes is on trial for burning Mr. Harris’s barn. Mr. Harris tells the judge that Snopes’s pig got out of its pen and into his cornfield. He caught and returned the pig. When the pig got out again, Mr. Harris again returned the pig to Snopes along with a spool of wire for fixing the pen out of which the pig keeps escaping. He also tells the judge he warned Snopes that if the pig escaped again, he was going to keep it. The pig does, Mr. Harris pens it up, rides to Snopes’s place and tells him he has his pig and is charging him a ‘dollar pound fee’ to get it back (Faulkner, 1939, p. 1). While there, Mr. Harris notices ‘the wire [he] gave him still rolled on to the spool in his yard’ (p. 1). That evening a ‘nigger’ comes with the dollar, takes the pig, and leaves Mr. Harris with a message from Snopes: that ‘wood and hay kin burn’ (p. 1). That same night, Mr. Harris’s barn burns down.

What is most significant in this opening scene is that we can see Snopes’s view of himself as a victim rather than a criminal playing out. We learn that his neighbor fairly warns Snopes, not once but twice, to keep his pig properly penned and out of his corn. He even provides Snopes with the wire, without charge, necessary to repair and strengthen the pen. Snopes refuses to fix the pen, and when Mr. Harris follows through with his threat to keep the pig next time it ravaged his crop, Snopes, without remorse, seeks revenge rather than resolution and burns down Mr. Harris’s barn. When Snopes is told to leave the country, his response is ‘unprintable and vile, addressed to no one’ (Faulkner, 1939, p. 2). Rather than admitting his guilt and taking responsibility for both the pig and the barn, Snopes is a man totally unwilling to accept responsibility or admit culpability for the consequences that result from his actions. Why should he? He is the victim here, or so he thinks.

Snopes is a cold man, violent and cruel, a character without any real depth, and Faulkner (1939) repeatedly describes him in terms that reflect this: ‘[H]e could see his father against the stars but without face or depth—a shape black, flat, and bloodless as though cut from tin in the iron folds of the frockcoat which had not been made for him, the voice harsh like tin and without heat like tin’ (p. 3). Faulkner describes Snopes as being ‘flat,’ ‘without depth,’ ‘bloodless,’ ‘like tin,’ all terms that show us Snopes lacks human warmth. We see this play out in his interactions with his son Sarty, particularly when he believes Sarty was going to ‘betray’ his barn burning to the judge:

‘You were fixing to tell them. You would have told him.’ He didn't answer. His father struck him with the flat of his hand on the side of the head, hard but without heat, exactly as he had struck the two mules at the store, exactly as he would strike either of them with any stick in order to kill a horse fly, his voice still without heat or anger. (p. 3)

Snopes hits Sarty hard, but not any differently than he would hit a mule or kill a fly. There is no love for his son, no nurturing guidance, no emotion other than his disgust at the possibility of being betrayed. Faulkner (1939) also tells us that Snopes has a ‘wolflike independence’ (p. 3) and later compares him to a stinging wasp and a house fly (pp. 5,6). He also describes his hand as a ‘curled claw’ (p. 6) and the sound of his stiff foot as ‘a sort of vicious and ravening minimum’ (pp. 5-6). These animal-like characteristics further serve to dehumanize Snopes.

In the same scene in which Snopes hits Sarty, he tells him,

You got to learn to stick to your own blood or you ain't going to have any blood to stick to you. Do you think either of them, any man there this morning would? Don't you know all they wanted was a chance to get at me because they knew I had them beat? (p. 3)

There are two issues in evidence here, and both are deeply ironic. First, we see again Snopes’s victim mentality. He is unconcerned with and indeed perhaps ignorant of his own culpability for his pig or in burning Harris’s barn. He sees the trial as a personal attack on him, as an attempt to get even with him for 'beating' Harris even though he was the one who attacked Harris by burning his barn. Snopes views burning the barn as justified by the perceived slight against him. The second irony lies in his advice to Sarty to stick to his own blood because Snopes is a man who did not do that when he fought in the Civil War. Being a Southerner, Snopes should have fought for the Confederate side—or defected and fought for the Union—but we learn that Snopes spent ‘those four years in the woods hiding from all men, blue or gray, with his strings of horses (captured horses, he called them)’ (p. 3, emphasis mine). We learn that Snopes only fought as a mercenary, only fought when there was something in it for him personally. We also learn that his ‘captured horses’ are stolen horses, and his limp is a result of being shot in the foot while escaping on a stolen mount. So although Snopes advises his son to be loyal, Snopes himself has never been.

This victim mentality later plays out again when Snopes burns down Major de Spain's barn in revenge for having been found guilty of and fined for intentionally destroying de Spain's rug. Again, Snopes has no recognition that he is culpable for his actions, and he feels wholly justified in burning the barn as retribution for the slight against him.

As we see, then, Snopes's view of the world is one in which he is a victim, and he makes himself feel better about his lowly position in the world by burning the barns of those who 'make' him feel bad. His view of the world eventually, however, costs him his life when de Spain shoots him down while Snopes is trying to burn his barn.

Who is Boo Radley in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird?

Arthur "Boo" Radley is a reclusive citizen of Maycomb who lives in a rather dreary looking home down the road from the Finches. He is a shy individual who unfortunately is the subject of many mean-spirited rumors. Boo's father was a religious fanatic who did not allow Boo to leave the house which severely impacted Boo's social development. The majority of the community is prejudiced towards the Radley family, and any small crime that happens in Maycomb is automatically blamed on Boo. The children of Maycomb fear Boo Radley, and they believe the untrue rumors and legends surrounding his identity. Jem and Dill are fascinated with the idea of seeing the mysterious Boo Radley. They think of various ways to get a look at him, and even create a game that they name "One Man's Family" which is their rendition of what they assume went on in the Radley home.

Initially, Scout fears Boo Radley, but as the novel progresses, she learns that he is a kind individual. Boo communicates with the children by leaving them gifts in the knothole of his tree and even puts a blanket over Scout's shoulders while she is watching Maudie's house burn. At the end of the novel, Boo heroically saves the children from Bob Ewell's attack and carries Jem home. Scout meets Boo for the first time while she is telling Sheriff Tate about the attack. After sitting on the porch with Boo, Scout walks him home. Scout finally gains perspective and views Boo as the compassionate, shy person that he truly is.