From lines 33-44 of “A Mother in Mannville,” what can you infer about the boy from his reaction to the narrator's praise?

In Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings' short story "A Mother in Mannville," the narrator recounts her relationship with Jerry, a young boy from the orphanage near where she rents a cabin for a time.

Rawlings tells this story in such a way as to leave the readers many opportunities to make inferences. In lines 33-44, the narrator has left the state for the weekend, leaving her pointer dog Pat in the care of Jerry. She is delayed in returning due to fog, and during this section of the text, Jerry is assuring her that he took care of the dog even in her extended absence. He says: 

"'The superintendent said nobody would drive in the fog,' he said. 'I came just before bedtime last night and you hadn't come. So I brought Pat some of my breakfast this morning. I wouldn't have let anything happen to him.'

'I was sure of that. I didn't worry.'

'When I heard about the fog, I thought you'd know.' He was needed for work at the orphanage and had to return at once. I gave him a dollar in payment, and he looked at it and went away. But that night he came in the darkness and knocked at the door."

In this passage, the narrator has praised, or validated Jerry with her confidence in his ability to take care of the dog in her extended absence. She also gives him a dollar in payment for the job that he's done--a substantially higher amount than the ten cents he earned for chopping wood. 

Before making inferences about this passage, one must consider the context. Rawlings' story was first published in 1936. It follows that the story is set in about 1936, as well. Orphanages would have been common during that time. The Great Depression began in 1929 and continued through 1939, so this story is also taking place at a time when there was a lot of financial suffering and ruin.

When the author gives Jerry a dollar in payment, it may seem odd that he only stares at it. Upon closer examination, however, one can infer that the amount of money he held caused him to stare in shocked silence. Using an inflation calculator, one can learn that a dollar in 1936 adjusted for inflation would be equal to $17.32 in 2015. It is reasonable to infer that Jerry had never seen that amount of money before, let alone earned it.

When the author shows her confidence in his ability to care for the dog longer than expected, he replies, "When I heard about the fog, I thought you'd know." Readers can infer that he meant that he figured out she'd be late returning due to the fog, and he thought she'd understand that he would take care of the dog until she returned. One can also infer based on the love Jerry shows the dog that he would likely find a way to care for the dog even if the narrator had been unable to return.

What are three quotes that show what other people think of Tom Robinson in To Kill a Mockingbird?

Tom Robinson is a peace-loving black man who works hard, is polite, and just wants to get along with people. For this reason, he is considered a figurative mockingbird.

While there is much talk about Tom, he does not appear on the scene until the trial, but he is talked about a great deal beforehand. For instance, while Atticus in is Montgomery for the summer legislative session, Calpurnia takes the children with her to her...

Tom Robinson is a peace-loving black man who works hard, is polite, and just wants to get along with people. For this reason, he is considered a figurative mockingbird.

While there is much talk about Tom, he does not appear on the scene until the trial, but he is talked about a great deal beforehand. For instance, while Atticus in is Montgomery for the summer legislative session, Calpurnia takes the children with her to her church, the First Purchase African Methodist Episcopalian Church in the Quarters. During his sermon, the Reverend Sykes reads from a paper:

"You all know of Brother Tom Robinson's trouble. He has been a faithful member of First Purchase since he was a boy. The collection taken up today and for the next three Sundays will go to Helen—his wife, to help her out at home" (Chapter 12).

This quote points to Tom's character—he regularly attends church and is a good Christian.  

During his testimony in court, Bob Ewell accuses Tom of raping his daughter, Mayella. When Mayella testifies, she lies, saying,

"'fore I knew it he was on me. Just run up behind me, he did. He got me round the neck, cussin' me an' sayin' dirt—I fought'n'hollered, but he had me round the neck. He hit me agin' an' agin--. . . he chunked me on the floor an' choked me'n took advantage of me" (Chapter 18). 

Mayella cruelly portrays Tom as a predator, although he has been nothing but kind to her. 

As Tom takes the stand, Mr. Link Deas, his employer, stands up in court and says, 

"I just want the whole lot of you to know one thing right now. That boy's worked for me eight years an' I ain't had a speck o'trouble outa him. Not a speck" (Chapter 19).

Of course, Mr. Deas should not have spoken out in court, so he is ordered to be removed from the room by Judge Taylor, who does not want to declare a mistrial. Further, he instructs the reporter to expunge anything that Mr. Deas has said.

After Tom is shot trying to escape, Mr. Underwood, the editor of the Maycomb Tribune, writes an editorial in which he "simply figured it was a sin to kill cripples, be they standing, sitting, or escaping. He likened Tom's death to the senseless slaughter of songbirds [like mockingbirds] by hunters and children" (Chapter 25).

How did the National Recovery Administration attempt to improve the economy in the United States?

The National Recovery Administration (NRA), was created by an executive order by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in response to the conditions during the Great Depression. The NRA was designed to combat two aspects of the economy seen as significant factors hindering progress - poor working conditions and wages and plummeting prices. The way that these were dealt with was by forming codes to be adopted by all industries. These included the allowance of unions as...

The National Recovery Administration (NRA), was created by an executive order by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in response to the conditions during the Great Depression. The NRA was designed to combat two aspects of the economy seen as significant factors hindering progress - poor working conditions and wages and plummeting prices. The way that these were dealt with was by forming codes to be adopted by all industries. These included the allowance of unions as well as limiting the work week and paying employees a reasonable wage. Also, prices were fixed by the government in the hopes that it would stabilize the economy and prevent prices from dropping further. 

The NRA was not viewed as a success. The first reason was that all of the codes forced onto businesses by the NRA were difficult and cumbersome for the business owners to follow and implement. Ultimately, it was a business owner who took the NRA to the Supreme Court where it was ruled unconstitutional. The second reason that it failed was that the pricing practices of the government took hold way before the union and workforce wage programs took effect. This meant that workers were not seeing increased wages while the cost of goods was rising. This lead to a worsening of the situation instead of leading to more stability. 

The National Recovery Administration was an intervention that had some solid ideas about how to help the nation recover from the Great Depression, but it did not deliver. While the NRA is regarded as a failure, some of its innovations remain to this day. Unions are still in place and sanctioned by the government, forty hour workweeks are still the norm and there are now child labor laws as a result of the legislation.

Before Romeo and friends enter Capulet's party, what hint is given that something tragic will happen in Romeo and Juliet?

In Act I, Scene 4 Romeo, Mercutio, Benvolio and the other Montague men are on their way to crash Capulet's party. Romeo has learned that Rosaline, the girl he is in love with, will be at the party and Benvolio has urged Romeo to compare Rosaline to the other women of Verona. After enduring some light hearted chiding about his love life from Mercutio, Romeo reveals he has had a dream, but before he can...

In Act I, Scene 4 Romeo, Mercutio, Benvolio and the other Montague men are on their way to crash Capulet's party. Romeo has learned that Rosaline, the girl he is in love with, will be at the party and Benvolio has urged Romeo to compare Rosaline to the other women of Verona. After enduring some light hearted chiding about his love life from Mercutio, Romeo reveals he has had a dream, but before he can describe it, Mercutio launches into his Queen Mab speech. Mercutio holds court with his fantastical story for most of the scene but in the end, as the other men are on their way, Romeo, in an aside says,

I fear too early, for my mind misgives
Some consequence yet hanging in the stars
Shall bitterly begin his fearful date
With this night’s revels, and expire the term
Of a despisèd life closed in my breast
By some vile forfeit of untimely death.

Romeo's aside foreshadows later events in the story as he meets Juliet in the next scene at the party, putting in motion the events which will ultimately lead to the double suicide of Romeo and Juliet. Of course, the tragic events should come as no surprise because Shakespeare announces the tragic ending of the play in his opening Prologue: 

From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life

That Romeo should reveal these feelings reinforces the theme of fate in the play. Romeo is ruled by some force which he can neither understand nor avoid. 

How does one draw a plot diagram of Anna Sewell's Black Beauty?

A plot diagram is shaped much like a triangle or a mountain. As we see in "Mrs. Welty's Guide to Literary Elements," to draw a plot diagram, we begin with the exposition at the base of the triangle, in the bottom left-hand corner. The exposition is generally found at the beginning of the story and includes the setting, the characters, and the central conflicts, all the elements needed to tell a story. At the top of the triangle is the climax. The climax is the turning point in the story, the most intense moment of the conflict in which the rising action turns into falling action. Along the left-hand side of the triangle, we draw the rising action, which refers to all events related to the conflict that help bring the story to its climax. After the climax, we draw the falling action along the right-hand side of the triangle. The falling action includes all events that leads to the story's resolution; the resolution is, of course, the way in which the problem pertaining to the conflict is solved, bringing the story to an end. The resolution is drawn in the bottom right-hand corner of the base of the triangle.

In Black Beauty, exposition is found primarily in the beginning of the novel, but author Anna Sewell creates exposition any time she introduces a new character that is important to either the conflict or resolution and relays that character's background information. Through exposition within the first four chapters, we learn quite a few details: (1) the story is first set in a country village in England; (2) the protagonist and narrator grew up as a colt in an open meadow overlooking his master's house; (3) the protagonist's mother's name was Duchess; (4) the protagonist was first called Darkie by his master, whom we later learn is Farmer Grey; (5) he is later renamed Black Beauty when he is sold to Squire Gordon of Birtwick Park; and (6) since he is a thoroughbred, his mother has advised him to "grow up gentle and good" and to have a strong work ethic. As the book progresses, through exposition, we learn details of the homes he is sold to, the various masters he works for, the various grooms who tend to him, and about other horses he meets.

The conflict concerns Black Beauty's struggles against the cruel and foolish natures of his human caretakers. Since he is battling against other characters, we call this a character vs. character conflict. But, his battle is completely determined by fate, and he has absolutely no control over the outcome of his battle; therefore, this is also a character vs. fate conflict. The climax of this conflict occurs when he is finally mistreated to the point that he collapses while working and believes himself to be dying. The rising action leading to this conflict include all the various homes he is sold to, all the different kinds of care he receives, and all the different kinds of work he does that leads up to his collapse. The resolution occurs the moment he is sold to Miss Blomefield and Miss Ellen, who offer him a good and nurturing home under the care of one of his previous grooms, one of the best he has ever known.

What does Hamlet's failed attempt to kill Claudius reveal about his nature?

In Carl Jung's excellent book Psychological Types (1921) he identifies four conscious functions: sensation, intuition, thinking, and feeling. And he emphasizes that thinking and feeling are mutually exclusive.

Naturally only those functions can appear as auxiliary whose nature is not opposed to the dominant function. For instance, feeling can never act as the secondary function alongside thinking, because it is by its very nature too strongly opposed to thinking. Thinking if it is to be real thinking and true to its own principle, must rigorously exclude feeling.

This would seem to explain Hamlet's problem. It isn't just that he thinks too much but that thinking, as Jung says, excludes feeling. Hamlet cannot kill someone in cold blood. He has to feel anger and hatred. We see that he is charged with such emotions when he does finally kill Claudius. But when he encounters Claudius at his prayers, he cannot bring himself to kill him because he doesn't feel anger and hatred at that point. 

Hamlet can act decisively when he isn't thinking, as when he kills Polonius. He acts decisively and courageously when he leaps aboard the pirate ship and attacks their whole crew singlehandedly. He also acts decisively and "rashly" when he breaks open the letter that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are taking to England and forges a substitute letter in which he has Claudius ordering the immediate execution of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern instead. As Hamlet tells Horatio after returning to Denmark:

Rashly—
And praised be rashness, for it let us know,
Our indiscretion sometime serves us well
When our deep plots do pall; and that should learn us
There's a divinity that shapes our ends,
Rough-hew them how we will

Whenever Hamlet acts decisively or impulsively it is because he is motivated by strong feelings, and whenever he fails to act decisively, it is because his habit of thinking—no doubt acquired during all his years at Wittenberg—excludes feeling. Hamlet can't understand himself, as he shows in his soliloquy at the end of Act 2, Scene 2, where he asks:

What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba,
That he should weep for her? What would he do,
Had he the motive and the cue for passion
That I have? 

It is to be noted that Laertes does not have Hamlet's problem. Laertes is strongly motivated by his feelings. But, as Jung would point out, Laertes' feelings interfere with his thinking just as Hamlet's thinking interferes with his feelings. It would appear that Claudius is able to manipulate Laertes in Act 4, Scene 7, just because Laertes is not a thinker.

How can I find the new intercept and point values for transformations of a graphed function?

This question looks like exercises in transformations.  When you have subtraction inside the parenthesis, the graph moves that many units to the right.  So, for the first one, f(x-3), the entire graph moves 3 units to the right.  So, all the intercepts (x intercepts, where the graph cuts the x axis) move 3 units to the right.  So, the x intercepts become (1,0), (7,0), and (10,0).

For the second one, the graph gets twice as...

This question looks like exercises in transformations.  When you have subtraction inside the parenthesis, the graph moves that many units to the right.  So, for the first one, f(x-3), the entire graph moves 3 units to the right.  So, all the intercepts (x intercepts, where the graph cuts the x axis) move 3 units to the right.  So, the x intercepts become (1,0), (7,0), and (10,0).

For the second one, the graph gets twice as tall, i.e grows in height.  But, this means the x intercepts would still stay the same.  So, the x intercepts  are still (-2,0), (4,0), and (7,0).

On the third one, the graph flips around the x axis, from top to bottom, bottom to top.  However, this also means the intercepts would stay the same.  So, the x intercepts are still (-2,0), (4,0), and (7,0).

For the 4th one, the graph would flip around the y axis.  So, then, the intercepts get "mirrored" around the y axis.  For example, (-2,0) becomes (2,0).  So, the x intercepts here would become (2,0), (-4,0), and (-7,0)

The 5th one has addition outside the parenthesis. As opposed to the first one (subtraction on the inside of the parenthesis), the entire graph now moves up that many units.  So would the maximum turning point, or the highest point.  So, (2,5) would become (2,8)

In the last one, the graph again flips about the x axis, or upside down.  So, all the maximum points becomes minimum points, and all the minimum points become maximum points.  So, for this one, the maximum point would be (5,1).

What are the benefits and drawbacks of using organic molecules like ethene and ethanol?

Organic molecules are the molecules that contain carbon; they are wide-spread in various aspects of our life. Our food, beverages, fuels, medicines, etc. are all organic molecules. Without such organic molecules, we cannot survive. They are also part of our bodies and those of animals and plants, and also form many rocks. The wide-spread presence and wide variety of applications (such as transportation, etc.) are some of the biggest pros of using organic molecules. 

The...

Organic molecules are the molecules that contain carbon; they are wide-spread in various aspects of our life. Our food, beverages, fuels, medicines, etc. are all organic molecules. Without such organic molecules, we cannot survive. They are also part of our bodies and those of animals and plants, and also form many rocks. The wide-spread presence and wide variety of applications (such as transportation, etc.) are some of the biggest pros of using organic molecules. 

The biggest drawback of using organic molecules is the generation of carbon dioxide on their combustion. Carbon dioxide is a known greenhouse gas and its elevated levels are considered to be the main reason for climate change. 

Ethanol is a fuel additive and reduces the greenhouse gas emissions (as compared to fossil fuels). There are a large number of industrial applications of ethanol as well. However, one big concern is should we divert our food crops (such as corn) for making ethanol? 

Ethene or ethylene, apart from industrial applications, is used in agriculture for fastening the growth of fruits and flowers, though this shortens their shelf life. 

Hope this helps.

Is change inevitable in any business environment?

Change is inevitable for all businesses because of the dynamic nature of the market environment. There are a number of factors that necessitate these changes in the environment which are felt and replicated in all businesses.  For instance, the entry of strong competitors in the market would force existing businesses to review their practices in order to ensure that they remain profitable. The businesses may be required to improve their customer service or reduce prices...

Change is inevitable for all businesses because of the dynamic nature of the market environment. There are a number of factors that necessitate these changes in the environment which are felt and replicated in all businesses.  For instance, the entry of strong competitors in the market would force existing businesses to review their practices in order to ensure that they remain profitable. The businesses may be required to improve their customer service or reduce prices among other measures to ensure that they remain competitive.

Government policies are also another factor that would lead to changes in business. For instance, the new emission standards in the automotive industry have forced car manufacturers to adopt new manufacturing practices in accordance with the regulations.

Businesses may also be forced to change due to developments in technology. A number of businesses have included E-commerce in their operations taking advantage of opportunities offered by the internet. Businesses gravitate towards new technology because they expect improvements in their operational efficiency and cost effectiveness. Adoption of such technologies may lead to streamlining of the business and changes in its internal and external structures which affect all stakeholders. 

In summary, changes in the micro and macroeconomic factors forces businesses to change in order to survive, adapt or thrive. Thus, businesses have no choice but to respond to changes in the market environment to meet their common objectives, which include profitability and increased shareholder value.

On what island was Odysseus trapped in The Odyssey?

In one sense, much of The Odyssey concerns the hero, Odysseus, being trapped on several different islands over the course of his adventures on his way back from the Trojan War. 

The first island on which he is trapped, and the captivity of the longest duration, is Ogygia, where the nymph Calypso traps him through her magical abilities. Her purpose in this is satisfying her lust, wishing him to be her husband. During the seven year...

In one sense, much of The Odyssey concerns the hero, Odysseus, being trapped on several different islands over the course of his adventures on his way back from the Trojan War. 

The first island on which he is trapped, and the captivity of the longest duration, is Ogygia, where the nymph Calypso traps him through her magical abilities. Her purpose in this is satisfying her lust, wishing him to be her husband. During the seven year period when he is trapped there, they do have a sexual relationship but Odysseus still wishes to return home to his wife, Penelope, and he asks Athena to petition Zeus to have him freed. Zeus sends the messenger god Hermes to command Calypso to free Odysseus. Calypso complains that this reflects a double standard, as Zeus himself has had affairs with many mortal women, but nevertheless, she lets Odysseus go. 

Odysseus and his men also are trapped on and escape from the islands of Circe, the Lotus-Eaters, and the Cyclopes. 

What are the rules for the Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session in A Separate Peace?

Finny is the one who invents the Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session. To become a member in the first place, you have to jump out of the tree (once) and into the river below. Finny and Gene do this in the novel, together, and thus the society is born.

As for rules, Finny sort of makes them up as he goes along—which is how he does a lot of things throughout the novel....

Finny is the one who invents the Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session. To become a member in the first place, you have to jump out of the tree (once) and into the river below. Finny and Gene do this in the novel, together, and thus the society is born.

As for rules, Finny sort of makes them up as he goes along—which is how he does a lot of things throughout the novel. For one, every meeting opens with the boys each jumping out of the tree. The boys also have to meet regularly, because Finny calls the society a "club," and clubs are naturally supposed to "meet regularly." For this particular club, at Finny's urging, this means every night. 

What is the history behind the blood stain?

In the first chapter of "The Canterville Ghost," the Otis family moves into Canterville Chase and are welcomed to the house by the housekeeper, Mrs. Unmey. Shortly after their arrival, Mrs. Otis notices a "dull red stain" on the floor in the library which she thinks is a spillage. Mrs. Unmney informs her that the stain is, in fact, the blood of Lady Eleanore de Canterville, who was murdered on "that very spot" by her husband,...

In the first chapter of "The Canterville Ghost," the Otis family moves into Canterville Chase and are welcomed to the house by the housekeeper, Mrs. Unmey. Shortly after their arrival, Mrs. Otis notices a "dull red stain" on the floor in the library which she thinks is a spillage. Mrs. Unmney informs her that the stain is, in fact, the blood of Lady Eleanore de Canterville, who was murdered on "that very spot" by her husband, Sir Simon, in 1575. 

The motivations for this murder are revealed to the reader in Chapter Five during a conversation between Sir Simon and Virginia Otis:

My wife was very plain, never had my ruffs properly starched, and knew nothing about cookery.

In other words, Sir Simon murdered his wife because she was not attractive and poor at housekeeping. In retaliation, Lady Eleanore's brothers starved Sir Simon to death and he has haunted Canterville Chase ever since.

The blood stain, therefore, functions as a visual reminder and a symbol of Sir Simon's crime against his wife. It cannot be removed until Sir Simon has sought redemption and this is demonstrated by its daily renewal, despite the use of strong cleaners, like Pinkerton's Stain Remover. But all this changes when Sir Simon seeks forgiveness from God, in Chapter Five, and is granted eternal rest in the Garden of Death. Canterville Chase is finally free of his ghost and, presumably, the blood stain has vanished along with him.

How would I calculate the relative mass of an element?

All the atoms of an element may or may not have the same atomic mass. The atoms that have the same atomic number but different atomic mass are known as the isotopes. All the isotopes of an element may not have the same abundance. Once we know the relative abundance of each isotope of an element, we can calculate its relative mass.

The relative mass or relative atomic mass of an element is the average...

All the atoms of an element may or may not have the same atomic mass. The atoms that have the same atomic number but different atomic mass are known as the isotopes. All the isotopes of an element may not have the same abundance. Once we know the relative abundance of each isotope of an element, we can calculate its relative mass.

The relative mass or relative atomic mass of an element is the average mass of its isotopes weighted according to their relative abundance. So, if we have an element with 3 isotopes that have atomic masses m1, m2 and m3 and relative abundance levels of a1 %, a2 % and a3 % (remember, a1 + a2 + a3 = 100%); its relative mass can be calculated as:

M = (m1a1 + m2a2 + m3a3)/(a1 + a2 + a3)

Oxygen has 3 isotopes, O-16, O-17 and O-18, with relative abundance levels of 99.762%, 0.038% and 0.200%. Thus, its relative mass is

= (99.762 x 16 + 0.038 x 17 + 0.200 x 18) / (100) = 16.008.

(Note that actual relative mass may be slightly less than these calculations, due to conversion of a small amount of mass into nuclear binding energy.)

Hope this helps.

When Scout is lectured by Calpurnia about her table manners, Calpurnia tells her that she is a disgrace to her family. What does she mean by this?

In chapter three, Jem invites young Walter Cunningham over for lunch on the first day of school in an effort to make peace after Scout roughs him up in the school yard. While at lunch, Walter asks for maple syrup and then pours it all over his vegetables and meat. Scout freaks out by asking very excitedly what the "sam hill" he was doing (24). Walter becomes embarrassed and Calpurnia pulls Scout into the kitchen...

In chapter three, Jem invites young Walter Cunningham over for lunch on the first day of school in an effort to make peace after Scout roughs him up in the school yard. While at lunch, Walter asks for maple syrup and then pours it all over his vegetables and meat. Scout freaks out by asking very excitedly what the "sam hill" he was doing (24). Walter becomes embarrassed and Calpurnia pulls Scout into the kitchen for a lecture. Calpurnia strongly explains that Scout's job as a hostess is to allow her guest to do whatever he wants. Being a good hostess means not making a guest feel uncomfortable in any way. Specifically, Calpurnia says the following:

"Don't matter who they are, anybody sets foot in this house's yo' comp'ny, and don't you let me catch you remarkin' on their ways like you was so high and mighty! Yo' folks might be better'n the Cunninghams but it don't count for nothing' the way you're disgracin' 'em--if you can't act fit to eat at the table you can just set here and eat in the kitchen!" (25).

First of all, Calpurnia doesn't say that Scout is a disgrace, she says that by the way Scout is acting, she is disgracing the Finch name and reputation. In a way, Scout is dishonoring her parents by not showing more respect to Walter who is a guest in their home. Calpurnia, in her own way, is saying that just because the Finch family might be socially and economically better off than someone else, it doesn't account for anything honorable if she can't act with compassion and grace. Another way to say it is for people who have a lot of opportunity and fortune in life, they aren't worth much if they can't also be kind and graceful to others who are socially and economically "beneath" them. 

In "The Machine that Won the War" by Isaac Asimov, what is Multivac's expected role in the war?

The title of Isaac Asimov's short story is ironic. The machine of the title is a large computer (in Asimov's day a computer might fill an entire building) named Multivac. Multivac is expected to provide strategy for the war effort against the Denebians, who do not have such a computer. The Chief Programmer Henderson says that everyone expected Multivac to "circumvent" any enemy attacks. He admits, however, that important data was missing and therefore Multivac...

The title of Isaac Asimov's short story is ironic. The machine of the title is a large computer (in Asimov's day a computer might fill an entire building) named Multivac. Multivac is expected to provide strategy for the war effort against the Denebians, who do not have such a computer. The Chief Programmer Henderson says that everyone expected Multivac to "circumvent" any enemy attacks. He admits, however, that important data was missing and therefore Multivac compromised. He suggests that the data fed to Multivac was "meaningless." He also tells Swift and Jablonsky that he altered the data to come up with an outcome which he believed was correct based on educated guesses. Swift and Jablonsky also use their personal judgement in the analysis of the information given to them by Multivac. Swift, the director, even admits that in many instances he simply flipped a coin, which he refers to as the earliest of computers. His coin flips actually win the war. Thus, what is thought to be a fabulous victory predicated by wondrous advancements in technology is actually a product of sheer luck.   

What do you think Fitzgerald is saying about the American dream in the 1920s?

Fitzgerald is saying that those who pursue the American Dream can never be satisfied, because the American Dream entails always striving for something more than what we already have. Gatsby embodies this in the decadent wealth that he is always accumulating, and also in his pursuit of Daisy. Even when Gatsby succeeds in seducing Daisy, and even when she wants to run away with him, he does not feel satisfied. He wants her to say she never loved Tom and to live in his house with him as if she had been married to him all along; this is impossible for her to do. Because of this, Gatsby will always be unsatisfied, and this destroys him. This can be seen as representative of the frustration all those who try to pursue the American dream feel.

Specifically in terms of the time period, the 1920s were a time of great economic growth, especially in the stock market. The theory of the stock market was that wealth is infinite; that is, if you work hard (keep up with your investments), your income will always grow. The belief was also that anyone could become a part of it, even if they were born poor (like Gatsby). This was the crux of the American Dream in the 1920s and is a common theme in the novel; however, this idea of infinite growth turned out to be untrue, as the economy crashed in the 1930s and America went through the Great Depression, which left people frustrated with the illusion of the American Dream. While the novel was published before the Depression, Fitzgerald may have been savvy enough to know this was not all it was cracked up to be. In that respect, Gatsby’s story arch can be seen as a metaphor for this.

These ideas are summed up well in the closing of the novel:

Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter—tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther. . . . And then one fine morning—
So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.

Those who follow the American Dream always believe a bigger, brighter future is ahead of them, and no matter what they do or what they gain, the future is (of course) always ahead of them; that is, they believe they can always strive for something better. If they “run faster, stretch out [their] arms farther,” then there will eventually be that “one fine morning” – yet Fitzgerald pauses there with no concrete description of what will happen then, because in reality, it is a vague desire that those caught up in the American Dream can’t even fully imagine for themselves. For example, it’s likely that even if Daisy did what Gatsby wanted, he would still not be satisfied somehow. Then Fitzgerald goes on to say that those who follow this dream are really beating against the current, always being pulled into the past; that is, they’re fighting a losing battle that will not just leave them stagnant, but will actually make them regress, and so no real progress is made.

In "Lamb to the Slaughter," what are some ways that Mary Maloney could have been caught?

This is a super fun question, because imagination is your only limit.  

Let's start with the highly unlikely.  Mary could have been caught, if she confessed to her crime in front of the police.  That's not completely impossible.  After all, that's what happened to the narrator in the "Tell-Tale Heart."  His guilty conscience got the better of him, and he confessed.  Mary might have felt the same way and confessed her crime.  It's not...

This is a super fun question, because imagination is your only limit.  

Let's start with the highly unlikely.  Mary could have been caught, if she confessed to her crime in front of the police.  That's not completely impossible.  After all, that's what happened to the narrator in the "Tell-Tale Heart."  His guilty conscience got the better of him, and he confessed.  Mary might have felt the same way and confessed her crime.  It's not likely though since she was giggling at the fact that the detectives were eating the murder weapon.  

"It's probably right under our noses. What do you think, Jack?" And in the other room, Mary Maloney began to laugh.

I think a more likely possibility for her capture though is a thorough medical examiner combined with a nosy neighbor.  The medical examiner would be able to narrow down the time of death to a small window. A nosy neighbor might have seen Mary leave the house to go to the store and marked the time.  The detectives would then be able to combine those two facts, and they would realize that Mary had to be home at the time of Patrick's death.  In fact, a nosy neighbor isn't completely necessary.  The detectives could check out Mary's alibi and get a rough timing of the situation and realize that Mary was likely home when Patrick was killed.  

How does the lottery change over time in "The Lottery"?

The lottery has changed very little since it started.

Tradition is important in the village where the story takes place.  In fact, it is so important that no one ever wants to make any changes of any kind.  They do not even want to change the box or the stool that are used for the lottery.  They only replaced the black box when it was falling apart, and that was with pieces of the other...

The lottery has changed very little since it started.

Tradition is important in the village where the story takes place.  In fact, it is so important that no one ever wants to make any changes of any kind.  They do not even want to change the box or the stool that are used for the lottery.  They only replaced the black box when it was falling apart, and that was with pieces of the other box.  The stool has three legs.

Some minor changes have happened over the course of the years in this particular village.  Since they know everyone in the town and everything happens the same way every time, they have gradually done away with some of the formality.

There was the proper swearing-in of Mr. Summers by the postmaster, as the official of the lottery; at one time, some people remembered, there had been a recital of some sort, performed by the official of the lottery … but years and years ago this part of the ritual had been allowed to lapse.

The town dispenses with the chant and the ritual salute.  They used to have a formal greeting to each person as they approached, but since the town has only three hundred people it no longer seems necessary. During the ceremony, things proceed in much the way they always have because everyone is so used to it.

The people had done it so many times that they only half listened to the directions: most of them were quiet, wetting their lips, not looking around. Then Mr. Summers raised one hand high and said, "Adams." A man disengaged himself from the crowd and came forward. "Hi. Steve." Mr. Summers said. and Mr. Adams said. "Hi. Joe." They grinned at one another humorlessly and nervously.

The conversation about another village ending its lottery is a good example of how very little has changed.  The older people in the village seem to think that it is a ridiculous idea to cancel the lottery.  The lottery is tradition, and you don’t mess with tradition.  If they won’t get another box or stool, the chances of them cancelling it are pretty slim.

In "The Sniper," how do we react when we realize he has shot his brother? Why do we react that way to begin with?

The reaction to the sniper's realization underscores war's destructive nature.

O'Flaherty's story is one of distance.  The sniper is at a considerable distance from his target. He maintains his emotional distance by focusing solely on the successful completion of his mission.  At the end of the story, the sniper has come into close proximity with war's end result: "Then the sniper turned over the dead body and looked into his brother's face."  

Our reaction...

The reaction to the sniper's realization underscores war's destructive nature.

O'Flaherty's story is one of distance.  The sniper is at a considerable distance from his target. He maintains his emotional distance by focusing solely on the successful completion of his mission.  At the end of the story, the sniper has come into close proximity with war's end result: "Then the sniper turned over the dead body and looked into his brother's face."  

Our reaction to this realization is to immediately acknowledge the unlimited scope of war's destruction. The war made the sniper kill his own brother while his brother sought to kill him. Upon reading the story, we recognize that war has forced family members to kill one another. This revelation makes us feel that war's destruction makes social unity impossible.

To a great extent, we react the way we do because the story's ending confirms our beliefs about war. "The Sniper" does not valorize war. Even though we do not know what will happen to the sniper, the destruction of war had become painfully clear.  As a result of the sniper's actions, a family has been ruined.  Our reaction to what the sniper discovers validates our worst fears about war.  

War takes so much in the way of human life that we can become desensitized to it.  However, when we see a personal story about what happens in the course of a war, we are reminded of its brutality.  The sniper's realization at the end of the story reminds us of this fact.

How did Prohibition contribute to the idea of the 1920's as the "Roaring" 20's?

One reason why the 1920s are sometimes called the Roaring 20s is because this was an exciting time.  It was a time when people were doing more things for fun than they ever had before.  It was a time when American culture was changing from its old, staid, rural ways to ways that were newer, more urban, and more exciting.  Prohibition was, oddly enough, part of this change that made the 1920s “roar.”

You might...

One reason why the 1920s are sometimes called the Roaring 20s is because this was an exciting time.  It was a time when people were doing more things for fun than they ever had before.  It was a time when American culture was changing from its old, staid, rural ways to ways that were newer, more urban, and more exciting.  Prohibition was, oddly enough, part of this change that made the 1920s “roar.”

You might think that Prohibition would have made America less fun and exciting.  After all, it made things like bars illegal and so there was no way to consume alcohol legally in public places.  However, this is not what happened.  Instead, people continued to drink.  Instead of drinking in prosaic, legal bars, they drank in illegal speakeasies.  For many people, this made drinking seem even more fun and more daring.  People were no longer just going out and drinking.  Now, they were actually having to break the law.  This made drinking much more exciting than it would have seemed before Prohibition. In this way, Prohibition actually helped make Americans feel that this was an exciting decade.  It made going out and having a drink seem much more like a rebellious adventure than it would have before.  This helped make the 1920s a “roaring,” exciting, and rebellious time.

What quotes show that Macbeth is a hero?

When the play begins, Macbeth is considered a hero. He has fought and defeated the enemy with bravery, strength and skill. The wounded sergeant reports the victory to King Duncan. He declares that Macbeth has ended the battle by killing Macdonwald and has his bloody sword to prove it:

For brave Macbeth—well he deserves that name—
Disdaining fortune, with his brandish'd steel,
Which smoked with bloody execution,(20)

Till he unseam'd him from the nave to the chaps,
And fix'd his head upon our battlements.(25)

King Duncan expresses his admiration for Macbeth's heroic qualities. In fact, he honors Macbeth with a new title. King Duncan declares that Macbeth will be the new Thane of Cawdor. King Duncan uses heroic adjectives to describe his cousin:

O valiant cousin! Worthy gentleman! 

King Duncan continues to exalt Macbeth. He refers to the previous Thane of Cawdor as a man who has lost his title. Now, Macbeth is the Thane of Cawdor. In the King's eyes, Macbeth is noble and honorable:                                    

What [Macdonwald] hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won.

Macbeth is a true hero. He has heroic qualities. When King Duncan describes Macbeth, he states that his kinsman is incomparable. On the battlefield, Macbeth's character speaks for itself through his bravery and determination to defeat Macdonwald. King Duncan states that Macbeth cannot be compared to any other.

It is a peerless kinsman. (65)

Clearly, King Duncan holds Macbeth in high esteem. When the King of Scotland has so much respect for a soldier and relative, that proves Macbeth has the qualities of a hero.

Of course, Macbeth changes and becomes a power-hungry murderer, but he was a hero at the beginning of the play.  

What role might the Jim Crow Laws play in To Kill a Mockingbird? Knowing that the father in the story is a lawyer, how might this come into play as...

Although Jim Crow Laws had a profound influence on the lives of most African-Americans in the South, it's difficult to say whether or not they are significant in To Kill a Mockingbird. It is clear that segregation has a strong influence on the white supremacist perspective of many white characters and their ability or willingness to believe that Tom is capable of having committed the crime. Atticus, Scout, and Jem, on the other hand,...

Although Jim Crow Laws had a profound influence on the lives of most African-Americans in the South, it's difficult to say whether or not they are significant in To Kill a Mockingbird. It is clear that segregation has a strong influence on the white supremacist perspective of many white characters and their ability or willingness to believe that Tom is capable of having committed the crime. Atticus, Scout, and Jem, on the other hand, have more engagement with the African-American community through Cal and other members of the black community, which ostensibly influenced their slightly more liberal opinions of the black community in Maycomb.

As for the role of Jim Crow in Atticus' story, it is likely that it had little influence. Atticus is a man that is fiercely dedicated to upholding the equal application of the law, regardless of race. His decision to defend Tom, for example, is motivated by his belief that every person deserves fair and unbiased representation, as is stated in the Constitution. When it comes to the "separate but equal" lives that whites and blacks lead, he more or less accepts it as the way things are and doesn't let it influence his job as a defense attorney.

Which line of Emily Dickinson's "A Bird came down the Walk" marks the poem's climax?

This is a matter of interpretation. We could offer different lines as candidates for the climax, or we could claim that there are multiple ones, or none.

Personally, I'm not convinced that the poem contains enough of a standard story structure to really have a specific climax, but we can make some interesting guesses.

Looking for the most exciting or most tense part of the poem, you might say that this line is the climax:

...

This is a matter of interpretation. We could offer different lines as candidates for the climax, or we could claim that there are multiple ones, or none.

Personally, I'm not convinced that the poem contains enough of a standard story structure to really have a specific climax, but we can make some interesting guesses.

Looking for the most exciting or most tense part of the poem, you might say that this line is the climax:

"I offered him a Crumb"

There, the speaker moves from simply observing the bird to actually reaching out and trying to interact with it, which in the universe of the poem is a major upheaval.

Alternately, the climax could be here:

"And rowed him softer home—"

In that line, the bird leaps into beautiful motion after having only made small movements on the ground. There's the action of the bird suddenly revealing its grace and power of locomotion (and not just its skill in eating or looking around) which could be interpreted as the most important, most tense moment.

Let's take a different approach, also. The fact that the poem has five stanzas invites consideration: does each stanza match up with the five main sections of a typical story, like a Shakespearean play often does with its five acts? If so, then we should find the climax in the third stanza (and the exposition in the first, the rising action in the second, the falling action in the fourth, and the resolution in the fifth). Looking into the third stanza, here's an option for the most exciting line:

"They looked like frightened Beads, I thought—"

It's here that the speaker realizes that the bird appears to be scared, which is one of her most intense and human observations of the creature. Is it the true climax? Again, we can't say for certain.

Explain the theme of Seamus Heaney's "Digging."

In "Digging," Seamus Heaney draws a parallel between the manual labor of his forebears--his father and grandfather before him--and his own work as a poet. He is proud of his family, even if they were mere subsistence farmers, and admits he doesn't have what it takes to eke out a living like they did ("I've no spade to follow men like him"). He sees what he does, however, as another form of "digging," complete with...

In "Digging," Seamus Heaney draws a parallel between the manual labor of his forebears--his father and grandfather before him--and his own work as a poet. He is proud of his family, even if they were mere subsistence farmers, and admits he doesn't have what it takes to eke out a living like they did ("I've no spade to follow men like him"). He sees what he does, however, as another form of "digging," complete with similar dangers and tribulations to potato farming. 

As a writer, he must dig for material, just as his fathers dug for potatoes. This is hard work--it's just another form of hard work, mental instead of physical. Just as his father digs "stooping in rhythm," he writes with rhythm. His father must work through gravel and go "down and down / For the good turf," so must his son the writer: a writer doesn't just tell stories; he finds and exposes the meaning of those stories. That is, he digs until he finds "the good turf." 

He also realizes that he might have to hurt the living to do his job right. His father must cut through living roots sometimes, and the son will sometimes hurt those he loves in his own work. 

Where is Holden at the beginning of The Catcher in the Rye?

As the novel opens, Holden is standing beside a Revolutionary War-era cannon on top of Thomsen Hill, looking down at the football field where "practically the whole school except me was there." This is an appropriate setting for the opening because it shows how Holden is symbolically isolated from his school and, by extension, the whole world. Holden explains he has been "ostracized" by the Pencey fencing team because he lost their equipment on the...

As the novel opens, Holden is standing beside a Revolutionary War-era cannon on top of Thomsen Hill, looking down at the football field where "practically the whole school except me was there." This is an appropriate setting for the opening because it shows how Holden is symbolically isolated from his school and, by extension, the whole world. Holden explains he has been "ostracized" by the Pencey fencing team because he lost their equipment on the subway while they were on their way to a match with a school in New York City. Holden talks about Pencey Prep in his usual tone of adolescent pseudo-cynicism. The reader can tell this boy is unhappy and that his critical view of almost everything is due to his loneliness and feeling of being "ostracized." He shows his interest in girls by his description of the students attending the football game.

There were never many girls at all at the football games. . . . I like to be somewhere at least where you can see a few girls around once in a while, even if they're only scratching their arms or blowing their noses or even just giggling or something.

This explains that Pencey is for boys only. The football game in progress establishes that the time of year is fall. Holden tells us it is December and the weather is extremely cold. The cold weather and Holden's isolation set the tone for the entire novel. He has been kicked out of Pencey and is literally and figuratively out in the cold. He will spend most of the novel in Manhattan trying to find relief from his loneliness by talking to strangers and looking up the few people with whom he has some tenuous relationship. This big city is hardly a good place for a stranger to find a friend.

Holden has a combination of intelligence and naïveté. He doesn't know what he wants or where he is going. He seems to be lost in the city's looming, intimidating buildings. Even though Holden feels "ostracized" by the whole school, it is still a sanctuary compared to Manhattan. Salinger devotes the first seven chapters of The Catcher in the Rye to a description of what appears to be a typical upper-class prep school to show its contrast with the Manhattan jungle. When Holden leaves Pencey, he will be making a great leap into adulthood. Manhattan will become his "school" for the rest of the novel.

How would you describe The Giver in The Giver?

The Giver is old, with a beard and pale eyes. 

To a certain extent, everyone in Jonas’s community looks alike.  They all have the same haircuts and the same clothing.  There are a few people who are just a little different.  The Giver and Jonas have one of these differences in common — they both have light colored eyes. 

Jonas never really paid much attention to the Receiver of Memory.  He was reclusive, rarely...

The Giver is old, with a beard and pale eyes. 

To a certain extent, everyone in Jonas’s community looks alike.  They all have the same haircuts and the same clothing.  There are a few people who are just a little different.  The Giver and Jonas have one of these differences in common — they both have light colored eyes. 

Jonas never really paid much attention to the Receiver of Memory.  He was reclusive, rarely attending community events.  He did not even normally attend the Ceremony day. On the day of Jonas’s Ceremony of Twelve, however, The Giver was there and watched Jonas intently: 

The Committee of Elders was sitting together in a group; and the Chief Elder's eyes were now on one who sat in the midst but seemed oddly separate from them. It was a man Jonas had never noticed before, a bearded man with pale eyes. (Ch. 8) 

As an Elder, the Giver was dressed in “special clothing that only Elders wore” (Ch. 10). When Jonas first meets him, he is impressed by the fact that they both have the same pale eyes. The man is old and Jonas describes him as wrinkled, but he also seems older than he really is.  The process of keeping all of the community’s memories ages a person.  The Giver seems tired. 

The Giver explains to Jonas why the job has aged him.  He also tells him that no one in the community really lives a full life, saying

"It's just that ... without the memories it's all meaningless. They gave that burden to me. And to the previous Receiver. And the one before him." (Ch. 13) 

If Jonas had continued in the job of Receiver of Memory, The Giver eventually would have been released and Jonas would have taken his place and probably would have soon looked just as old and tired as The Giver.

What is a summary of Diary 1 from The Freedom Writers Diary by Erin Gruwell?

In The Freedom Writers Diary, Diary One entry offers some unique insights into the writer’s perception of the new teacher and the classroom.

In Diary One, the writer illustrates multiple components, such as the description of the new teacher. The writer believes that the new teacher is not prepared for the class she is about to teach. The writer further seems to believe that the teacher is privileged and cannot relate to her students.

...

In The Freedom Writers Diary, Diary One entry offers some unique insights into the writer’s perception of the new teacher and the classroom.

In Diary One, the writer illustrates multiple components, such as the description of the new teacher. The writer believes that the new teacher is not prepared for the class she is about to teach. The writer further seems to believe that the teacher is privileged and cannot relate to her students.

“She probably drives a new car, lives in a three story house, and owns like 500 pairs of shoes.”

And:

 “Too young and too white to be working here.”

Not only does the writer discuss the teacher, but the writer also examines the other students. For example, the writer illustrates that most people in the class are “rejects” according to the school. The writer reveals that many do not even believe that the students in the class can read or write. Additionally, it appears to the writer that some students might not even belong in this class. For example, there is a white student who does not seem to fit into the classroom. Furthermore, the writer also does not feel a sense of belonging in the class either.

Thus, the chapter discusses the new teacher and the students. This student writer does not believe that the new teacher will survive in this classroom. The writer also discusses the students, such as how many are “problem” students or do not seem to belong in the classroom.

How does Jem use stereotypes about gender to influence Scout?

Jem often uses the male superiority stereotype against Scout when he does not want her included, or when he wishes to quell his feelings of guilt.

In Chapter 4 of To Kill a Mockingbird as Jem, Dill, and Scout begin their new dramas during the summer, Atticus watches them one day. Noticing scissors and that Jem has been tearing a newspaper, he asks if the skit has anything to do with the Radleys and warns Jem...

Jem often uses the male superiority stereotype against Scout when he does not want her included, or when he wishes to quell his feelings of guilt.

In Chapter 4 of To Kill a Mockingbird as Jem, Dill, and Scout begin their new dramas during the summer, Atticus watches them one day. Noticing scissors and that Jem has been tearing a newspaper, he asks if the skit has anything to do with the Radleys and warns Jem against creating dramas about these neighbors.

Now worried that they can no longer dramatize the tale of Boo Radley, Dill asks Jem if they can play any more. "Atticus didn't say we couldn't," Jem notes. But Scout is not so certain about the situation. When she expresses her feelings, Jem tells her she is 

... being a girl, that girls always imagined things, that's why other girls always hated them so....

Further, Jem tells Scout that if she begins to behave like a girl, she needs to go somewhere else to play. 

In Chapter 5 Atticus again scolds Jem, whom he catches in the act of holding a fishing pole with a note on it that he plans to put on the Radley windowsill. Atticus tells Jem and the others to "stop this nonsense, every one of you." So the children halt their pursuit of communication with Boo. But on Dill's last day in Maycomb, Jem and he begin to walk down their street. Scout protests that they are not to go near the Radleys; Jem dismisses her in a "sweet" voice: "You don't have to come along, Angel May." His ridicule is a disguise for his knowing that he should not do what he is going to do. Then, when she realizes that the boys are going to approach the Radley house in the dark, Scout protests again.

"Scout, I'm tell' you for the last time, shut your trap or go home--I declare...you're gettin' more like a girl every day!" (Ch. 6)

Again, Jem excuses his behavior by accusing Scout of just being a frightened girl as he tries to delude her about what he and Dill are going to do as well as ease his own conscience.

What problems existed in the western lands?

There were problems in the western lands. The main problem was dealing with the Native Americans. After the Native Americans were forced to move to the west in the 1830s, the Native Americans weren’t happy to see the Americans expanding west of the Mississippi River in the 1850s and beyond. New policies were developed to deal with the Native Americans, and these policies didn’t consider their needs. Native Americans were forced onto reservations, and their...

There were problems in the western lands. The main problem was dealing with the Native Americans. After the Native Americans were forced to move to the west in the 1830s, the Native Americans weren’t happy to see the Americans expanding west of the Mississippi River in the 1850s and beyond. New policies were developed to deal with the Native Americans, and these policies didn’t consider their needs. Native Americans were forced onto reservations, and their way of life was disrupted. This led to many conflicts between the government and the Native Americans that resulted in many casualties on both sides. There were battles that were constantly occurring in the second half of the 1800s between the army and the Native Americans.

Another problem with the western lands was that the land was very difficult to farm. The farming methods used east of the Mississippi River wouldn’t work west of the Mississippi River. The land was much more difficult to plow, and new farming techniques were needed. Steel plows were used to plow the land because the wooden plows would break because of the tough soil. Seeds had to be planted deeper in the ground because there was less moisture in these lands. The winters could be brutal, and the summers could be incredibly hot. Farming was more challenging in the western lands.

The western lands offered Americans new opportunities but also created new challenges.

How does Atticus respond when he suspects what Scout, Jem, and Dill are doing?

Jem comes up with the idea to play a game about Boo Radley and his family.  The game is based on a basic script with roles.  Scout plays Mrs. Radley, Dill plays Old Mr. Radley, and Jem plays Boo.  The key scene in their game is when Boo stabs his father in the leg with a pair of scissors.  When Calpurnia is not looking, they take a pair of sewing scissors from the drawer where...

Jem comes up with the idea to play a game about Boo Radley and his family.  The game is based on a basic script with roles.  Scout plays Mrs. Radley, Dill plays Old Mr. Radley, and Jem plays Boo.  The key scene in their game is when Boo stabs his father in the leg with a pair of scissors.  When Calpurnia is not looking, they take a pair of sewing scissors from the drawer where the sewing supplies are kept.  Jem pretends to stab Dill in the leg with the sewing scissors.

One day, they are playing their game outside the house and they do not notice "Atticus standing on the sidewalk looking at [them], slapping a rolled magazine against his knee" (To Kill a Mockingbird, Chapter 4).  He sees them playing their game with Jem holding the scissors.  Atticus asks the children what they are doing, but Jem evades his father's question.  Atticus asks about the scissors, but Jem continues to evade the question.  Atticus is suspicious:

"Give me those scissors," Atticus said.  "They're no things to play with.  Does this by any chance have anything to do with the Radleys?"

"No sir," said Jem, reddening.

"I hope it doesn't," he said shortly, and went inside the house.

Atticus suspects that the game is about the Radleys, but he does not know for sure.  He chooses not to accuse the children, though he expresses his disapproval of a game about the Radley family.

`int_(pi/4)^(pi/2) cot^3(x) dx` Evaluate the integral

`int_(pi/4)^(pi/2)cot^3(x)`

Let's evaluate the indefinite integral by rewriting the integrand as,

`intcot^3(x)=intcot(x)cot^2(x)dx`

Now use the identity:`cot^2(x)=csc^2(x)-1`

`=intcot(x)(csc^2(x)-1)dx`

`=int(cot(x)csc^2(x)-cot(x))dx`

`=intcot(x)csc^2(x)dx-intcot(x)dx`

Now let's evaluate `intcot(x)csc^2(x)dx` by integral substitution,

Let `u=cot(x)`

`=>du=-csc^2(x)dx`

`intcot(x)csc^2(x)dx=intu(-du)`

`=-intudu`

`=-u^2/2`

substitute back `u=cot(x)`

`=-1/2cot^2(x)`

Use the common integral `intcot(x)dx=ln|sin(x)|`

`:.intcot^3(x)dx=-1/2cot^2(x)-ln|sin(x)|+C` , C is a constant

Now let' evaluate the definite integral,

`int_(pi/4)^(pi/2)cot^3(x)dx=[-1/2cot^2(x)-ln|sin(x)|}_(pi/4)^(pi/2)`

`=[-1/2cot^2(pi/2)-ln|sin(pi/2)|]-[-1/2cot^2(pi/4)-ln|sin(pi/4)|]`

`=[-1/2*0-ln(1)]-[-1/2(1)^2-ln(1/sqrt(2))]`

`=[0]+1/2+ln(1/sqrt(2))`

`=1/2+ln(2^(-1/2))`

`=1/2-1/2ln(2)`

`=1/2(1-ln(2))`

`int_(pi/4)^(pi/2)cot^3(x)`

Let's evaluate the indefinite integral by rewriting the integrand as,

`intcot^3(x)=intcot(x)cot^2(x)dx`

Now use the identity:`cot^2(x)=csc^2(x)-1`

`=intcot(x)(csc^2(x)-1)dx`

`=int(cot(x)csc^2(x)-cot(x))dx`

`=intcot(x)csc^2(x)dx-intcot(x)dx`

Now let's evaluate `intcot(x)csc^2(x)dx` by integral substitution,

Let `u=cot(x)`

`=>du=-csc^2(x)dx`

`intcot(x)csc^2(x)dx=intu(-du)`

`=-intudu`

`=-u^2/2`

substitute back `u=cot(x)`

`=-1/2cot^2(x)`

Use the common integral `intcot(x)dx=ln|sin(x)|`

`:.intcot^3(x)dx=-1/2cot^2(x)-ln|sin(x)|+C` , C is a constant

Now let' evaluate the definite integral,

`int_(pi/4)^(pi/2)cot^3(x)dx=[-1/2cot^2(x)-ln|sin(x)|}_(pi/4)^(pi/2)`

`=[-1/2cot^2(pi/2)-ln|sin(pi/2)|]-[-1/2cot^2(pi/4)-ln|sin(pi/4)|]`

`=[-1/2*0-ln(1)]-[-1/2(1)^2-ln(1/sqrt(2))]`

`=[0]+1/2+ln(1/sqrt(2))`

`=1/2+ln(2^(-1/2))`

`=1/2-1/2ln(2)`

`=1/2(1-ln(2))`

What are the most important similarities and differences between the poems "Kubla Khan" and "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" by Samuel Taylor...

"Kubla Khan" and "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" are similar in their lyrical qualities, their use of imagery, and their faux historical subject matter. They are different in their state of completion, their structure, and their genre.

Both poems reflect Coleridge's skill with rhythm, meter, and rhyme that produce a lyrical quality immensely pleasing to the ear. Lines such as "In Xanadu did Kubla Khan / A stately pleasure-dome decree" and "Day after day,...

"Kubla Khan" and "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" are similar in their lyrical qualities, their use of imagery, and their faux historical subject matter. They are different in their state of completion, their structure, and their genre.

Both poems reflect Coleridge's skill with rhythm, meter, and rhyme that produce a lyrical quality immensely pleasing to the ear. Lines such as "In Xanadu did Kubla Khan / A stately pleasure-dome decree" and "Day after day, day after day / We stuck, nor breath nor motion; / As idle as a painted ship / Upon a painted ocean" seem to roll off the tongue and are some of the classic lines of English poetry for their sheer beauty of language. Both poems rely on sensory descriptions to help the reader see, hear, and smell what the author is writing about. Lines 8 - 11 of "Kubla Khan" and lines 59 - 26 of "Rime" are just two examples of Coleridge's masterful imagery. Both poems develop a seemingly historical incident: "Kubla Khan" is based on the historical founder of the Mongol dynasty in China in the 13th century, and "Rime" purports to be the account of a sailing expedition, which, while obviously fictional, Coleridge attempted to portray as factual by the use of academic "glosses" in its second printing. 

Despite these similarities, the poems are quite different overall. One obvious difference is that "Kubla Khan" is a fragment, while "Rime" is a full poem that Coleridge studiously worked on and revised for publication. "Kubla Khan" was composed in a "sort of reverie brought on by two grains of opium taken to check a dysentery," according to Coleridge. He dreamed the poem, and tried to record it when he woke, but was unable to recall the entire piece and never finished it. "Rime" was conceived while Coleridge was on a walking trip with William Wordsworth, and Wordsworth gave him some ideas for the poem. Coleridge completed it for publication in the first issue of Lyrical Ballads, and then revised it, adding the explanatory glosses for a later printing. 

The poems are quite different in their structure. "Rime" consists of many stanzas, most with four or five lines, in either iambic tetrameter or trimeter (shorter lines). "Kubla Khan" uses a variety of line lengths, and the stanzas are longer with varying numbers of lines. The rhythm is not strictly iambic but contains extra syllables or fewer syllables in many lines, creating a less consistent rhythm.

Finally, the genres of the two poems are different. Although "Kubla Khan" may have been intended to be a narrative poem, if it had been completed, the fragment is primarily descriptive, with almost no action. "Rime," however, is a ballad, a narrative poem, and contains a complete story arc.

Although Coleridge's lyricism, imagery, and love for history are displayed in both poems, the circumstances of their composition, their structure, and their genres are quite different.

Discuss the significance of "the woman" in the play Death of a Salesman.

"The woman" is a woman in Boston who Willy had an affair with when he was a travelling salesman and his sons were in high school. Read more on "the woman" . 

In the play, Willy's infidelity is revealed through flashbacks, and his guilt is symbolized by stockings: Linda works hard to mend her stockings because Willy can't afford to buy her new ones, but he once bought a pair of new...

"The woman" is a woman in Boston who Willy had an affair with when he was a travelling salesman and his sons were in high school. Read more on "the woman" . 

In the play, Willy's infidelity is revealed through flashbacks, and his guilt is symbolized by stockings: Linda works hard to mend her stockings because Willy can't afford to buy her new ones, but he once bought a pair of new stockings for his mistress.

Later in the play, it is revealed (through flashbacks) that Willy's son Biff discovered his affair. That's what made Biff lose faith in his father and forget his dreams and ambitions. So since Willy's depression is caused by his son's failures as well as his own, the audience could blame his affair with "the woman" for all his problems.

Why did Willy have an affair, then? Willy always considered popularity to be the hallmark of success. Throughout the play he insists that he is "well-liked." The attention of another woman made him feel well-liked, and therefore successful.

However, it also led to his feelings of extreme guilt, partly because he cheated on his wife who has always loved and supported him, and partly because his affair caused his son's downfall.

It could be said that "the woman" represents poor choices or bad decisions. If Willy had been able to resist the temptation to have an affair with an adoring young woman, perhaps Biff would have retained his admiration for his father and gone on to succeed in college and his career, and perhaps Willy would not have felt so ashamed of himself and been a better salesman, or been able to keep up with the changing times and get on with his life after getting fired. 

What reason does Anne Frank give for starting a diary?

Before Anne goes into hiding, she starts her diary because she needs someone or something in which she can confide, as she does not feel that she can confide in other people. She writes: "I have never been able to confide in anyone, and I hope you will be a great source of comfort and support" (page numbers vary by edition). She received the diary for a birthday present when she turned 13 in June...

Before Anne goes into hiding, she starts her diary because she needs someone or something in which she can confide, as she does not feel that she can confide in other people. She writes: "I have never been able to confide in anyone, and I hope you will be a great source of comfort and support" (page numbers vary by edition). She received the diary for a birthday present when she turned 13 in June of 1942. 

She later writes that "paper has more patience than people" (page numbers vary by edition) and that she doesn't have a true friend. While she is surrounded by many people, including her family, she says she "can't bring myself to talk about anything but ordinary everyday things" (page numbers vary by edition). She concentrates on having a good time with her friends, but she wants to reveal her deeper thoughts in her diary, which she names Kitty. At the time she started her diary, she couldn't imagine that anyone would be interested in reading the thoughts of a thirteen-year-old girl, but she enjoys writing and needs somewhere to record her many thoughts. 

With the seeming decline of heroic literature, the central conflicts in literature might be described as less physical and combative and more...

These three stories do certainly embody a shift in emphasis towards more psychological, social and spiritual concerns. Certainly it can be said that changing attitudes about human potential and an expansion of learning were in part responsible for this shift within the literature of the period. 

In Othello, the Moor is admired for his bravery as a military commander, and his powerful physicality is a quality that is not only mentioned by others, but...

These three stories do certainly embody a shift in emphasis towards more psychological, social and spiritual concerns. Certainly it can be said that changing attitudes about human potential and an expansion of learning were in part responsible for this shift within the literature of the period. 

In Othello, the Moor is admired for his bravery as a military commander, and his powerful physicality is a quality that is not only mentioned by others, but implies a threatening quality that underlies his problem with rage and aggression, resulting in the murder of Desdemona. But this physical intimidation is secondary to the idea that it is jealousy that provokes Othello's anger, and this jealousy is aroused by the psychological manipulation of Iago. In this way, Othello's prowess as a warrior is less significant than his poor impulse control and his tendency to bow to the social convention of men's control over women. In other words, it is the flaw in Othello's thinking and emotions that causes this violence, and not his involvement in combat or status as a warrior. This theme is underlined further when we see that other characters in the play who are not connected to the military also experience jealousy (such as Bianca).

The plight of women as portrayed in Oroonoko is subject to psychological and social interpretations. While Oroonoko's actions against his beloved wife, Imoinda, might seem violent and combative, the story portrays them as arising from his deep love and respect for her and his concern for her honor and reputation. This may be an ironic point made by the author, Aphra Behn, who was herself no doubt struggling with writing about the plight of women in the social order of the day. The justification for the prince's violent murder of his wife is justified by his desire to not see her die in shame if she is raped by their captors; and she is grateful to him for his devotion and love. But his actions convey the idea of women as possessions, and also suggests that women's actions can impact the social status of their husbands, making it necessary for them to be controlled. This oppressive social practice is portrayed as connected to the idea of romantic love, but the story's extreme outcome points out how barbaric such attitudes are.

Paradise Lost is clearly more concerned with the spiritual expression of social change. This epic work explores the narrative contained in the Bible and its implications for society. The main idea conveyed in the poem's portrayal of the fall from Eden is that disobedience to God is the cause of human suffering. The quest for knowledge that leads Eve to taste of the apple, and to convince Adam to share her knowledge, is seen as less offensive to God's judgment than their arrogance in disobeying his orders. The theme of free will is strongly conveyed here, and the idea that free will is not possible for humans who choose to live their lives under the structures of religious doctrine. There is also a psychological implication, in that Eve's own decision making, and Adam's devotion to her that causes him to make the same decisions (i.e., eat the apple and engage in "sinful" activities), are the source of deep guilt. This guilt causes negative emotional feelings, which causes a psychological dilemma between desire and duty: a dilemma that can be said to be at the root of the challenge of creating and maintaining a civil society.

As a sequel, how does Jurassic World use repetition? Discuss Jurassic World in light of the concept of imitation (copying, past hits or sequels)...

The argument can be made that Jurassic World plays almost entirely as a remake (as opposed to a sequel). Closely mimicking the plot of Jurassic Park (1993), Jurassic World (2015) also utilizes very similar character types and establishes nearly identify relationships between characters as depicted in the original.

An identical problematic/narrative ethos animates both films. 

"The message is that the proper role of the scientist is not to dominate and manipulate nature but to learn how people can better fit into the ecosystem."

Beyond this, there are so many repetitions and hold-overs that Jurassic World can best be seen as a remake instead of as a sequel, reinventing the characters, conflicts, surprise heroes and even some of the disappointing casting elements of the original film. 

Similarities:

• The overseer of the park is related to the children who are imperiled in the park.


• Raptors are a focal element of the film, discussed while off screen and shown on screen substantially.


• The business of science is shown to be fraught with ethical problems.


• The male protagonist is a shining example of practical dinosaur know-how, ethical behavior and compassionate wisdom.


• The female protagonist is a capable professional but still needs to be rescued.


• All the main characters are white and, of the principal cast, only the Caucasian characters survive.


• The problem “fixes itself.” The most deadly dinosaur eliminates the dinosaur that threatens the protagonists. With help from an aquatic dinosaur, raptors save the day and there is a T-Rex chase (where in the original the chase depicted a T-Rex running at many miles an hour behind a speeding jeep, Jurassic World depicts a chase featuring a woman in high heels who incredibly manages to outrun the same dinosaur).

The most obvious hold-over from the first film, however, is the music. This film uses a very memorable score. This particular element is not “repetition” as the above elements are. The music is a standard aspect of the franchise, helping to situate the audience in the particular atmosphere of the first film and its proper sequels.

The use of a recognizable score is a standard method of establishing continuity of atmosphere from one film to another, evoking remembered feelings. The repetition of narrative and character elements in the film would seem to be governed by a slightly different strategy.

Released twenty-two years after the original, the filmmakers may have wanted to establish a “new original” to “re-boot” the Jurassic Park franchise, employing the identical story elements in a not-so-subtle homage to the original-original and similarly creating a set of characters that might return for another set of sequels.

In fact a sequel to Jurassic World is in the works and may even be called Jurassic World 2, further suggesting that the 2015 movie was more of a re-boot than it was a sequel and so intended to revive the franchise by actually remaking the original.

Generally speaking, the use of repeated devices can be seen as a way to (1) orient an audience in a fictional world, (2) deepen an audience relationship and investment in a film franchise by increasing familiarity and (3) “brand” a film series.

Turning film franchises into branded products is not new. George Lucas created an empire (excuse the pun) out of Star Wars in the 1970s, with marketing partnerships across the corporate landscape, with action figures and dolls, and with costumes, etc. The success of branded film franchises has been an increasing reliance on serial films. 

This trend has been reported and commented on widely. The not-surprising yet still kind of stunning decisions to turn The Hobbit into a trilogy and to split the final episodes of The Hunger Games and Harry Potter into two films demonstrates the depth of this serializing strategy. 

The budget for "tent pole" films like these leans heavily toward marketing. In this area, we can see a simple strategy at work. The marketing that goes into the first film in a series is capitalized on when the second film is released. There is a compounding effect as the films become more and more recognizable as products.

Perpetuating certain elements within the films themselves seems to be a natural echo of this commercial strategy of steadily increasing market saturation.  

Why did the Soviets occupy Eastern Europe at the end of World War II?

At the end of World War II, the Soviet Union occupied the countries of Eastern Europe. They had reasons for wanting to have influence over these countries.

The Soviet Union knew they were going to have conflicts with the United States and with Great Britain over the spread of communism. The Soviet Union wanted to spread communism throughout the world, and they were prepared to do that, even if it meant breaking agreements they had...

At the end of World War II, the Soviet Union occupied the countries of Eastern Europe. They had reasons for wanting to have influence over these countries.

The Soviet Union knew they were going to have conflicts with the United States and with Great Britain over the spread of communism. The Soviet Union wanted to spread communism throughout the world, and they were prepared to do that, even if it meant breaking agreements they had made with the United States and with Great Britain. As a result, the Soviet Union viewed the Eastern European countries as a buffer against any possible attack by the noncommunist world. The Soviet Union understood the Eastern European countries could serve as a form of protection if a war occurred in the future.

The Soviet Union took actions to be sure that Eastern Europe was communist. For example, the Soviet Union pressured the King of Romania into having a communist government, even though it violated the Declaration of Liberated Europe. The Soviet Union also didn’t hold free elections in Poland to include some members of the pre-war Polish government in the post-war Polish government. The Soviet Union was determined to have a buffer against a potential attack by the noncommunist world. They also were determined to spread communism wherever they could do that.

Who is Pinkeye and for what is he employed in Animal Farm? Why has this become necessary?

Pinkeye is Napoleon’s food taster because there are supposed plots to murder Napoleon. 

Napoleon was in negotiations with both neighboring farms of Frederick and Pilkington to sell a pile of lumber.  Frederick really wanted the wood but would not offer a “reasonable price” and there were rumors that his men were getting ready to storm the farm and destroy the windmill. 

In the middle of the summer the animals were alarmed to hear that three hens had come forward and confessed that, inspired by Snowball, they had entered into a plot to murder Napoleon … (Ch. 8) 

Snowball was the farm’s scapegoat.  Whatever the pigs wanted to stir the animals up about, they would say that Snowball was against them and working with the enemy.  Getting animals to falsely confess was just the next move.  Part of the propaganda campaign was to take steps to guard Napoleon’s safety. 

Four dogs guarded his bed at night, one at each corner, and a young pig named Pinkeye was given the task of tasting all his food before he ate it, lest it should be poisoned. (Ch. 8) 

The propaganda runs high.  There are rumors about Frederick and Pilkington, and Squealer tells the animals “to avoid rash actions and trust in Comrade Napoleon's strategy.”  The pigs are thrilled with Napoleon’s cunning when he sells the wood to Frederick, after appearing to sell it to Pilkington, and then horrified when he is paid with counterfeit money.  Frederick and his men storm the farm to destroy the windmill.

Pinkeye's presence is partially propaganda, because Napoleon wants to demonstrate his importance and how irreplaceable he is to Animal Farm.  He is important enough to have a guard of dogs and a food tester.  It also demonstrates the real paranoia that comes with being a tyrannical leader and having sneaky dealings with the humans.

How can I understand the distinction between public goods (non rivalrous and non excludable) and primary goods (as defined by John Rawls)? I...

Pollution would be a "negative public good", sometimes called a "public bad"; but that's not really the fundamental distinction here.

Public goods, as you note correctly, are any goods that are nonrival (they can be used by many people at once) and nonexcludable (it's difficult to stop anyone from using it if they want to).

Public goods can be directly compared to private goods, which are typical goods that are rival and excludable (e.g. shoes), club goods, which are nonrival but excludable (e.g. nightclubs, toll roads), and common goods, which are rival but nonexcludable (e.g. water supply). Common goods are really the worst; they are what give us the Tragedy of the Commons.

These are all economic concepts with clearly defined descriptive meaning.

Primary goods are a more philosophical concept with a more normative sense behind them; John Rawls uses the term to describe anything that is intrinsically valuable to humans, anything that would be desirable from the "original position" behind the "veil of ignorance" in which we know nothing about what sort of person we'll be.

He gives some examples such as intelligence and health; presumably everyone wants to be intelligent and healthy, there aren't a lot of people who want to be stupid and sick.

He also considers rights to be primary goods; everyone wants to be free, everyone wants to have a say in their government.

Examples of things that would not be primary goods are anything that varies based on culture or taste. Not everyone wants to eat vanilla ice cream, some people don't like vanilla; not everyone wants to live in a big city, some people prefer the countryside.

The idea is that primary goods are what we should be trying to get if we're in the veil of ignorance, while goods that we'd only want once we knew something about ourselves or our position in society would not be primary goods. We decide how to make a just society under the veil of ignorance, so only primary goods are important in that judgment.

You're right that a lot of primary goods are public goods---fresh air, free speech. But some primary goods are private goods---Rawls includes wealth as a primary good. Still others are hard to place, like health: Is health rival? Is it excludable? Healthcare seems like mostly a private good (a doctor can only treat one person at a time, and can always choose not to), but then there are considerations of public health (such as vaccination and herd immunity) that make it more like a public good. But health is definitely an example of a primary good in the sense Rawls intends.

To be honest, I find this concept a bit tendentious. It's pretty hard to clearly define what everyone would want, especially in some deep sense of fundamental desirability to all rational persons. Maybe not everyone wants a say in their government, for example; perhaps some would prefer to be left alone and let people who know what they're doing make the decisions. That's not incoherent at least, even if we might disagree with it. Nor is it clear to me that a society could deny people taste goods at will---banning chocolate, say---without being unjust or imposing upon liberty.

Indeed, if that example seems silly, try this one: Banning homosexuality. This is something a great many countries around the world have done, and sex with people of the same gender can't be a primary good since not everyone wants it---but it certainly seems like a fundamental violation of liberty to ban it. Maybe we can justify this by some broader primary good like love or sexual freedom; but at least for me it raises some serious doubts about whether primary goods are doing any useful work for our judgments about justice and injustice.

The speaker addresses "you" several times in the poem, "Still I Rise." Who is meant by "you," and how can we tell?

The speaker in the poem is a black woman, either an emancipated slave, or, more likely from the date of the poem, a descendant of former slaves. We can tell this because of her reference to being sexy, to dancing with "diamonds at the meeting of my thighs," and to the "huts of history's shame," that is, institutional slavery. She also calls herself "a black ocean." Knowing who the speaker is helps identify the "you"...

The speaker in the poem is a black woman, either an emancipated slave, or, more likely from the date of the poem, a descendant of former slaves. We can tell this because of her reference to being sexy, to dancing with "diamonds at the meeting of my thighs," and to the "huts of history's shame," that is, institutional slavery. She also calls herself "a black ocean." Knowing who the speaker is helps identify the "you" she addresses in the poem.

It is evident that the "you" is someone who has oppressed the black race. She says the "you" has revised history to record things that are not true about the speaker, or more broadly, about the speaker's people. The speaker believes the "you" she addresses wants to see black people broken and is upset by their "sassiness." The people being addressed speak to and look at blacks with unkindness and even hate them. Taking all these clues from the poem, we can assume that the "you" being addressed is a white racial culture whose ancestors practiced slavery and who still harbor prejudices against blacks. The "you" can apply to a racist society, such as the deep South in the 1960s and even beyond, or it can apply to any person who is racist toward blacks. 

In "The Old Woman's Message" by Kumalau Tawali, what does the speaker order the addressed to do in the first five lines?

"Stick these words in your hair

and take them to Polin and Manuai

my sons:

the ripe fruit falls and returns

to the trunk - its mother."

These are the first five lines of the poem "The Old Woman's Message" by Kamalau Tawali. These particular lines can be read separately from the rest of the poem, as they stand as a cohesive sentence.

As you can see, in these lines, the speaker is ordering the...

"Stick these words in your hair

and take them to Polin and Manuai

my sons:

the ripe fruit falls and returns

to the trunk - its mother."

These are the first five lines of the poem "The Old Woman's Message" by Kamalau Tawali. These particular lines can be read separately from the rest of the poem, as they stand as a cohesive sentence.

As you can see, in these lines, the speaker is ordering the listener to take a specific message to her two sons, named Polin and Manuai. The message is that "ripe fruit falls and returns to the trunk," which is its mother. Meaning, probably, that children should come back to their mother when she needs them: it's the natural thing to do, just like fruit falls naturally beneath the tree that has grown it.

The rest of the poem reveals that the speaker is growing thin and weak and is close to death, and she needs her sons to be near her. It seems to her that Polin and Manuai have forgotten about her, "like fruit borne by birds," and that they've drifted far away from her. The situation is frustrating to the speaker, who observes that other women's sons stay near their own mothers. A sense of longing and desperation fills the poem, which you can feel in those initial lines as the speaker gives the order to carry the message so heavy with imagery.

What three incidents concerning Bob Ewell occur in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird? From these incidents and from Atticus, what do we learn...

In Chapter 27 of Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout describes three "small things out of the ordinary" that happened in Maycomb, all three pertaining to Bob Ewell. Two out of three incidents show just exactly how much Bob Ewell is bent upon revenge due to his extremely antagonistic nature. The remaining incident paints Ewell as the sort of lazy degenerate who is completely incapable of improving his own situation.The first incident...

In Chapter 27 of Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout describes three "small things out of the ordinary" that happened in Maycomb, all three pertaining to Bob Ewell. Two out of three incidents show just exactly how much Bob Ewell is bent upon revenge due to his extremely antagonistic nature. The remaining incident paints Ewell as the sort of lazy degenerate who is completely incapable of improving his own situation.

The first incident Scout describes for us is that Bob Ewell was hired for a job through President Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration (WPA) but promptly lost the job "in a matter of days." In her narrative, Scout notes the following reflection she made about Ewell when she heard the news about his getting fired:

[Mr. Bob Ewell] probably made himself unique in the annals of the nineteen-thirties: he was the only man I ever heard of who was fired from the WPA for laziness. (Ch. 27)

Scout's comment about his actions underscores just how much of a lazy degenerate Ewell truly is.

The second incident Scout describes concerns Judge Taylor, who has a well-known habit of staying home from church on Sunday night. While home alone as usual, reading, he began hearing "an irritating scratching noise" coming from the back of the house. Judge Taylor went to the back porch to investigate and found the "screen door swinging open." Scout further narrates, "A shadow on the corner of the house caught his eye, and that was all he saw of his visitor." Though we don't know for certain the prowler was Bob Ewell, we can speculate it was Ewell since we know Ewell felt humiliated in Judge Taylor's court under Atticus's cross-examination; therefore, we can speculate Ewell was there to annoy Judge Taylor as a means of revenge, or he was there to carry out a more dastardly deed but lost his nerve and ran off. The fact that Ewell would attempt to intimidate or harm Judge Taylor shows us Ewell has a revengeful, antagonistic nature.

What is the summary of "The Forsaken Merman" by Matthew Arnold?

The Merman is grieving because his wife has left and not returned. In the first stanza, he calls to his children to return to the sea with him. In the second stanza, he tells them to call out to their mother. He thinks that if their mother, Margaret, hears their "dear" voices, she will be compelled to return to them (and him). This continues in the third stanza. In the fourth stanza, the Merman cannot...

The Merman is grieving because his wife has left and not returned. In the first stanza, he calls to his children to return to the sea with him. In the second stanza, he tells them to call out to their mother. He thinks that if their mother, Margaret, hears their "dear" voices, she will be compelled to return to them (and him). This continues in the third stanza. In the fourth stanza, the Merman cannot wait any longer. He tells the children to stop calling for their mother and they leave the land and return to the sea.

The Merman is so sad that he can't recall how long it's been since his wife has been gone. In the sixth stanza, he recalls the time she went on land for spiritual reasons: Easter. In the seventh stanza, the Merman recounts how he and the children left the sea and went on land to find her, but Margaret is too focused on spiritual matters by this point. In the eighth stanza, he and the children reluctantly return to the sea without her.

In the next stanza, Margaret is singing to herself while sewing. She drops her spindle and goes to the window. She looks longingly at the sea, an indication that she does miss her family. In the next stanza, the Merman tells the children that Margaret will continue to be haunted by the sounds of the sea.

Margaret has chosen life on land because it is the place where she connects with religion. Her faith has led her back there. However, she will continue to be conflicted about this decision, so the poem isn't just a statement about a woman choosing a religious life over a magical or romantic one. It also shows Margaret's uncertainty about the choice and therefore her uncertainty about her faith.

In the final stanza, the Merman foresees times in the future when he and his children will gaze at the town. He suggests that this feeling of being abandoned will emerge each time they look upon the land:

"There dwells a loved one,

But cruel is she! 

She left lonely for ever 

The kings of the sea."