High School English Courses Needed for College

English is perhaps the only high school subject for which colleges almost universally require or recommend a full four years of study. The college admissions officers will expect you to have strong writing and reading skills since these are at the heart of college success whether youre an engineer or a history major. This is also why many colleges require students to take courses in writing as part of a general education requirement—strong writing and communication skills are important for nearly every major and career. In fact, many high schools require students to take four years of English classes for exactly that reason. Samples of Different English Requirements Different colleges word their English requirements differently, but as the examples below illustrate, nearly all want to see four years of high school English: Carleton College: The strongest applicants will have completed four years of English, and at a minimum the college wants to see three years of coursework with an emphasis on writing.MIT: The institute wants to see applicants who have a strong academic foundation in high school that includes four years of English.NYU:  The university notes that the best prepared students have taken four years of English with an emphasis on writing.Stanford: Stanford does not have any requirement for English preparation, but the university states that the best prepared applicants have completed four years of English with a significant emphasis on writing and literature.UCLA: The universitys admissions folks will be looking for four years of college preparatory English that include the reading of classic and modern literature along with frequent and regular writing. Like many schools on this list, UCLA doesnt want to see more than one year of ESL-type course work.  Williams College: Williams has no absolute requirements for English study, but the admissions folks tend to admit students who have a distinguished record in a four-year sequence of English coursework.   Notice that many of these colleges specifically emphasize writing-intensive English courses. There is no exact definition of what makes a high school English course writing-intensive, and your school may not have denoted their courses as such. If a large part of your high school English course was focused on developing writing techniques and style, it will probably count toward a colleges writing-intensive course requirement. English Requirement vs. Recommendation It is also important to remember that, while many schools may recommend four years of English rather than require it, colleges look more favorably upon applicants who have met or exceeded the recommended guidelines. A strong high school record is the best indicator of your potential performance in college, and it almost always the most important part of your entire college application. Admissions officers are looking for students who challenge themselves in their coursework, not those who simply meet the minimum recommendations. The table below summarizes the recommended or required English coursework for a range of colleges and universities. School English Requirement Auburn University 4 years required Carleton College 3 years required, 4 years recommended (emphasis on writing) Centre College 4 years recommended Georgia Tech 4 years required Harvard University 4 years recommended MIT 4 years required NYU 4 years required (emphasis on writing) Pomona College 4 years recommended Smith College 4 years required Stanford University 4 years recommended (emphasis on writing and literature) UCLA 4 years required University of Illinois 4 years required University of Michigan 4 years required (at least 2 rigorous writing courses are recommended) Williams College 4 years recommended Requirements for Non-Native Speakers of English If you attended all four years of high school at an institution where all of the instruction was conducted in English, you will have fulfilled the English admissions requirement for most colleges. This assumes you took an English class every year  and those classes were not remedial. Thus, even if English is not your first language, you will have successfully demonstrated your proficiency without further testing.   If your high school instruction was in a language other than English, you will most likely need to demonstrate your proficiency through standardized testing. One of the most common and popular options is the TOEFL,  the Test of English as a Foreign Language. A good score on the TOEFL will be necessary to demonstrate that you have mastered English enough to succeed in college. The TOEFL, however, is rarely the only option for proving that your English language skills are satisfactory. Many colleges and universities will also accept scores from the IELTS, International Language Testing System. Scores from AP, IB, ACT, and SAT exams are also used by some colleges to help them assess an applicants language proficiency. Sources:Carleton College: https://www.carleton.edu/admissions/apply/steps/criteria/MIT:  http://mitadmissions.org/apply/prepare/highschoolNYU:  https://www.nyu.edu/admissions/undergraduate-admissions/how-to-apply/all-freshmen-applicants/high-secondary-school-preparation.htmlStanford University:  https://admission.stanford.edu/apply/selection/prepare.html  UCLA:  http://www.admission.ucla.edu/Prospect/Adm_fr/fracadrq.htm​  Williams:  https://admission.williams.edu/apply/​

Is Biology A Role For Caring For The Elderly - 1630 Words

Literature Review: Biology: Biology is one of the disciplines that will discuss elderly patient care. Biology means the study of life, but it also has much more to the definition. â€Å"Biology stresses the value of classification and experimental control. The latter is the means of identifying true causes, and therefore privileges experimental methods over all other methods of obtaining information† (Repko, 2008). There are many ways that show how biology plays a role in caring for the elderly. Age has been a good indicator of health. The elderly face additional disease and injuries than other age groups. A study was done that compared fatality rate of those older than 65 with those who were younger. The categories that were studied†¦show more content†¦Also, the molecular changes cancer has on the geriatric patient s brain, is less responsive to the treatments that are available (2011). The elderly s body is fighting against them getting better. Not only does the older patient have an incre ased risk of injury of disease, there is also an increase risk with side effects. A study was done to see if certain medication would produce an increased risk of falls in the elderly (Hartikainen, Lonnroos, Louhivuori, 2007). The study showed that drugs that targeted the central nervous system such as psychotropic increased the risk of falls (2007). Biology has shown through several studies that the elderly are more likely to have injuries, disease, and have increase side effects to current treatment or are resistant. The elderly have a lot going against them, looking at it through a biological standpoint. Psychology: Another discipline that one can look at the problems that elderly are facing and looking at their treatment is through psychology. Psychology is defined as, â€Å"The epistemology of psychology is that psychological construct and their interrelationship can be inferred through discussions and observations, and applied to treatment (clinical) or a series of experiments with slight variation (experimental). A critical ingredient of a good

My Hobby Free Essays

My Hobby My hobby Everybody has different hobbies that we enjoy and do it for fun or relaxation. They can be either physical activities like jogging, playing football, swimming, †¦ or mental activities like reading, watching movies, playing computers†¦ and it depend on    personality. My bobby is football because it’s part of my life and I cannot live without it and I have playing this sport since I was a litle boy. We will write a custom essay sample on My Hobby or any similar topic only for you Order Now Nowdays looks like everibody is playing football and it most popular sport in the world, many of the boys like me who is dreaming to be a good football player one day. My childrenhood has grown up with the ball and nothing has changed. My parents    told me that I liked kicking the ball around when I was only    two years old and had so much fun. Since then playing football is my favorite thing to do and I go everiday to traning so I can enjoy myself. It is interestingMy Hobby My hobby Everybody has different hobbies that we enjoy and do it for fun or relaxation. They can be either physical activities like jogging, playing football, swimming, †¦ or mental activities like reading, watching movies, playing computers†¦ and it depend on    personality. My bobby is football because it’s part of my life and I cannot live without it and I have playing this sport since I was a litle boy. Nowdays looks like everibody is playing football and it most popular sport in the world, many of the boys like me who is dreaming to be a good football player one day. My childrenhood has grown up with the ball and nothing has changed. My parents    told me that I liked kicking the ball around when I was only    two years old and had so much fun. Since then playing football is my favorite thing to do and I go everiday to traning so I can enjoy myself. It is interestingand amazing especially when I have a ball under my feets or score a goal. I like to go myself and sooting on a goal when I‘m not on traning than helps me to relax and clear my mind I have stress or other problems. For instant after school or studying I feel boring or tired however having fun whith the ball shooting it on goal or trying to do some tricks, all of my tirenes die out. Football is not only about passing and kicking the ball but also required a lot of thoughts, and some basic skills. Ioftenpractice and I feel healthy and stronger. Besite that football have also taught me very much like be teamplayer, athletes, healthy and much more. I don‘t only playing a football I also enjoy watching    football games on TV. My favorite team is Internazionale from Milano. I am so happy when Inter wins but I will get angry when they lose, and I love to watch them playing. How to cite My Hobby, Papers

Disadvantages of Female Leadership free essay sample

W hy do men tend to fare better in competitive environments than women do? It is a question researchers have long pondered. More than a decade ago, two economists —Claudia Goldin of Harvard and Cecilia Rouse of Princeton—found sex-based discrimination in the hiring of orchestra musicians. Beginning in the 1970s, many orchestras in the United States, hoping to remedy a dearth of women in their ranks, began conducting blind auditions. Musicians performed behind a screen so the selection committee could not see them. Goldin and Rouse compared several orchestras before and after the change—and  found that women were selected 30 percent more often when auditions were blind. For Paola Sapienza, a professor of finance at the Kellogg School of Management, the finding was fascinating—yet it did not explain the reason for the bias to begin with. Was the gender bias a result of â€Å"belief-based discrimination,† in which the judges assumed that women are le ss competent; of â€Å"taste-based discrimination,† in which the judges simply preferred men for reasons other than competence, such as a belief that the audience prefers male musicians; or of â€Å"statistical discrimination,† in which  gender confers some other valuable information (e. g. , men are preferable because they presumably do not take as much time off)? â€Å"The data in the paper were able to establish a bias,† says Sapienza, â€Å"but they could not distinguish between the three of them. † Distinguishing Between Types of Discrimination So Sapienza, along with Ernesto Reuben, an assistant professor at Columbia University; Pedro Rey-Biel, an associate professor at the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona; and Luigi Zingales, a professor at the University of Chicago, set out to look more closely at gender bias in competitive They wanted to know why organizations might fail to select high- performing women for jobs at which the women would excel. They devised an experiment that eliminated the possibility of discrimination based on taste or statistics, to test whether belief-based discrimination could account for gender bias on its own. They divided MBA students into teams and had each team select a leader to represent them in a competition, which involved doing a series of calculations. The subjects in the study had all previously performed the same task, two years earlier, so they could use  their past performance as a means of predicting their chances of winning this time around. Before the selection took place, the students were asked to recall how well they had done in the same task two years ago. They were also asked to predict how well they would do on the same task again. Members of the team whose leader won the competition all received a cash prize, so everyone on the team had a clear incentive to choose the best leader; the leader received no more money than anyone else. Teams had five minutes in which each participant could make the case for how well they  thought they would do in the competition, and then to choose a leader based on that information. â€Å"Barring any explicit discrimination against women—which would be unlikely in an experiment with university students— groups should aim to select their most talented individual irrespective of gender,† Sapienza and her colleagues wrote. But that is not what happened. Instead, women were selected as group leaders 33. 3 percent less frequently than they should have been based solely on how well they did in the earlier competition. â€Å"Women are selected much less often as leaders than. Is suggested by their individual past performance,† the researchers wrote. â€Å"There is big evidence, even among women MBAs, that ten years out women tend to earn 60 percent less than men,† Sapienza explains, â€Å"even when they start in the same field with very similar salaries. The question is, Why do women lag behind over time? To what extent is it the result of evaluation that’s done outside, and how much does it interact with the self- promotion of men and women? † Boastful Behavior To understand what was driving their results, Sapienza and her colleagues tested three possible. Theories as to why women may be less frequently selected as leaders. The first was a difference in the way men and women judge their own abilities. The second was a difference in how men and women describe their own abilities. And the third was a difference in how men and women deal with what the researchers call â€Å"agency problems,† or how they â€Å"respond to conflicts of interest between their own interest and the group’s. † The answer turned out to be theory number two. By far the most important reason why women were being underrepresented as team leaders was how they portrayed their abilities. Relative to men’s. Both men and women in the study were inclined to overstate how well they had done in the earlier competition and how well they would do in the future, but men were far more willing to do so. What troubled Sapienza and her colleagues, though, was not that women tended to overstate their abilities less than men. It was that the people evaluating candidates for leadership did not discount men’s tendency to boast more. â€Å"The fact that men tend to overstate, that’s not a surprise,† Sapienza says. â€Å"But if everyone knows that, why don’t they just say, ‘If men say 5, it must. Be 3. ’ There is some discounting, but it’s very minimal. † These biases are a cause for some concern—in the real world, companies and organizations that can identify and choose their best members have an advantage over those that cannot. On a personal level, to overcome this, women are typically coached to boast more, Sapienza says. But that does not help companies and organizations, which would then face a field of candidates who greatly inflate their reported abilities. The solution, Sapienza suggests, is to handicap the biggest braggarts, leveling the playing field for everyone..

The Moral Progression Of Huckleberry Finn Essays -

The Moral Progression Of Huckleberry Finn The Moral Progression of Huckleberry Finn The main character of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn undergoes a total moral transformation upon having to make life defining decisions throughout his journey for a new life. Huck emerges into the novel with an inferiority complex caused by living with a drunken and abusive father, and with the absence of any direction. It is at this point where Huck is first seen without any concept of morality. Fortunately, Huck is later assisted by the guidance of Jim, a runaway slave who joins him on his journey and helps Huck gain his own sense of morality. Throughout Huck's adventures, he is put into numerous situations where he must look within himself and use his own judgement to make fundamental decisions that will effect the morals of which Huck will carry with him throughout his life. Preceding the start of the novel, Miss Watson and the widow have been granted custody of Huck, an uncivilized boy who possesses no morals. Huck looks up to a boy named Tom Sawyer who has decided he is going to start a gang. In order for one to become a member, they must consent to the murdering of their families if they break the rules of the gang. It was at this time that one of the boys realized that Huck did not have a real family. They talked it over, and they was going to rule me out, because they said every boy must have a family or something to kill, or else it wouldn't be fair and square for the others. Well, nobody could think of anything to do? everybody was stumped, and set still. I was most ready to cry; but all at once I thought of a way, and so I offered them Miss Watson?they could kill her (17-18). At this moment, Huck is at the peak of his immorality. A person with morals would not willingly sacrifice the life of someone else just in order to be part of a gang. It is at this point where Huck can now begin his journey of moral progression. Huck encounters his first major dilemma when he comes across the wrecked steamboat and three criminals. When Jim and Huck take the skiff for themselves, leaving the three robbers stranded, Huck realizes that he has left them to die. Now was the first time that I begun to worry about the men? I reckon I hadn't time to before. I begun to think how dreadful it was, even for murderers, to be in such a fix. I says to myself, there ain't no telling but I might come to be a murderer myself yet, and then how would I like it? (76). This is the first time that Huck questions the effects of what he has done on other people. After he realizes that he could now be considered a murderer, he makes a plan to get a captain to go investigate the wreck in order to save the men's lives. Even though the men he would be saving are murderers and robbers, he can not justify being responsible for their death, and makes it a point to correct what he has done wrong. This is the first major step in Huck's moral progression. At that point, he establishes a set of standards that considers leaving the men to die as immoral. Throughout the book there is the recurring theme of Friend v. Society. This is a main moral decision that Huck is forced to make a few times in his journey. Upon arriving at Cairo, Huck must decide if he should go along with society and turn Jim in as a runaway slave, or keep his promise to his friend, and see him through to freedom. Huck feels guilty not turning Jim in when he hears him talking about hiring an abolitionist to steal his family. He does not think it is right to help take away slaves from people that he doesn't even know. To turn Jim in for these reasons would be the influence of society on Huck. Huck's decision on this matter marks another major step in Huck's moral progression, because he decides not to turn in Jim on his own. This is the first time he makes a decision all on his own based on his own morality. Both this incident and the Wilkes Scheme represent Huck's ultimate realization and rejection of society.

Gay Marriage Rights essays

Gay Marriage Rights essays Gay rights have been an issue for many years. Although there is much progress being made on the discrimination of gays, one issue still remains: marriage. Society has become more accepting of same sex marriages, however they are still illegal in Canada. This report will discuss the laws in various countries which affect same sex marriages, as well as personal opinions, status of laws, cases, and the first gay marriage in Canada. In Canada, there are two laws prohibiting same sex couples from obtaining a marriage license. These are the Ontario Marriage Act and The Federal Marriage Act. The Federal Marriage Act specifically restricts marriage to one man and one woman. In other words, gays can still get married, just not to each other. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms states that a person cannot be discriminated against because of their gender. This is very contradictory considering our laws on marriage. In addition, the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled repeatedly that individuals in Canada cannot be discriminated against on the basis of their sexual orientation. Therefore, it is upheld that gays should not be discriminated against, but the laws do clearly discriminate by taking away certain rights that heterosexuals are entitled to. Another example of a possible law is Bill S-9. Bill S-9 is currently in its first reading. It states: Marriage has the meaning declared in 1866 decision of Hyde v. Hyde in the Courts of Probate and Divorce in the United Kingdom, and as understood in sections 91 and 92 of the Constitution Act, 1867, being a voluntary union of one man and one woman as husband and wife to the exclusion of all others. (CITE) Similarly in the United States, Bill Clinton signed Defense of Marriage Act (1996).This act states that marriage is a legal union of one man and one woman as husband and wife (CITE) So far it seems as If our laws pertaining to same sex marriages are still outdated, and are ...

Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tui Na Massage and regular massage for Article

Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tui Na Massage and regular massage for the treatment of pediatric and adolescent issues - Article Example healing philosophies, approaches, and therapies that mainstream Western (conventional) medicine does not commonly use, accept, study, understand, or make available.† It also stated that CAM on its own can be an alternative to orthodox therapies or as a supplement to mainstream medicine whit the purpose of alleviating conditions and/ or promote healthy lifestyle. A good example of CAM would be Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) that has its beginnings in China for more than thousands of years. According to the National Institutes of Health, TCM â€Å" is considered is considered part of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in the United States†. TCM employs different treatments such as massage, herbal remedies, moxibustion, cupping and acupuncture. However, the purpose of this discussion to enlighten the public on the role of TCM in addressing pediatric and adolescents issues, particularly musculoskeletal problems. The developmental stage of childhood up to adolescence presents a challenge to Orthopedic practitioners. The National Center for Health Statistics, in its National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey in 2003 revealed that â€Å"no less than 8 million children under 20 musculoskeletal injuries in 2003 â€Å". It is no wonder then that childhood musculoskeletal injuries are seriously considered as a major problem by The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS). The musculoskeletal problems can be grouped into two categories: congenital or developmental. Developmental conditions are usually attributed to injuries which stems from childhood obesity and lack of inactivity. On the other hand, excessive physical activity from sports activities can also cause problems. Moreover, diseases and infections can also contribute to the development of musculoskeletal problems in children and adolescents. For some years now, TCM has contributed in aiding pediatric cases as well as adolescents with musculoskeletal problems. The following areas of

International HRM Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

International HRM - Term Paper Example Consequently, it also enhanced its sustainability and competitive advantages among other apparent competitors in the market substantially assisting the organization to retain its market share and brand fidelity. Under the leadership and control of Adelia Adolfo, the productivity and profitability level in Calidad was enhanced to a significant extent, making headlines in a leading tourism industry publication of Yucatan's in the year 2010. Calidad became successful in the attainment of 14 new car-rental sites, which facilitated the enlargement of its brand image and its uniqueness in the market among other competing firms. In addition, acquisition of new rental sites also enhanced the efficiency and profit margin of Calidad, thereby amplifying its sustainability in the long run. Moreover, the management also decided to operate internationally, by purchasing the Belizean Auto Rentals (BAR), situated in the neighboring country of Belize. Therefore, to maintain the varied sites of BAR in an efficient and effective way, employing numerous skilled site-managers has become quite essential for Calidad. By employing skilled site-managers, the company intends to facilitate Calidad in broadening its market value and supremacy among other organizational players of the specific region. Due to this fact, the management of Calidad has made an attempt to recruit 10 site-managers, who will be responsible for supplementing the site operations, leading towards the improvement of its corporate image and revenue as it is extremely essential for Calidad to execute its operations in an effective way. The job responsibilities offered for the position of a site-manager will encompass the decision-making as well as strategic designing aimed at facilitating the company’s expansion and thereby will require highly skilled and experienced professionals. It will be a permanent job with 10 vacancies, comprising the liability of handling diverse types of site-related issues and client l iaisons. It is an urgent vacancy and the interested candidates should possess the below mentioned Knowledge Skills and Abilities (KSAs) along with other personal and desired abilities to fulfill the assigned Tasks, Duties and Responsibilities (TDRs). Tasks, Duties and Responsibilities (TDRs) Management and supervision of the day to day actions of a particular site Controlling labor related issues in that particular site Maintaining vigilance over the number of cars, hired by the tourists Maintaining a record of all the tourists, hiring vehicles from the site of Belizean Auto Rentals (BAR) Providing the customer with every piece of requisite information as per their desires and requirements Maintaining both hard and soft copy of the charges of all cars, hired by tourists Preparation of balance sheets and profit and loss statements at the end of each month Knowledge Skills and Abilities (KSAs) Must possess excellent communication skills in English and Spanish An engineering degree in any discipline is mandatory Additional degree such as MBA or any other professional course will be preferred The candidate must have a minimum of 5-10 years experience in a similar field The candidate must have adequate local knowledge regarding the hiring rates of the rented vehicles Desirable Skills Excellent mastery of Microsoft Word and Excel along with other

The level of the different agencies in the administrative structure of Term Paper

The level of the different agencies in the administrative structure of the Federal Government - Term Paper Example The United States of America has different categories of agencies which ease the operation of the federal government given the nations’ size and population. Each of the agencies has its own line of operation which makes a significant contribution the government duties. It also provides support to the department of defense under which it is formed. The US Bureau of Land Management is an executive department agency found within the Department of The Interior. This agency is responsible for administering public lands in the United States of America. It has an office of law enforcement and security which is also a Federal Law enforcement agency in the federal government of the United States. The Environmental Protection Agency of the United States is an independent agency of federal government. This agency is responsible for protecting both the environment and human health. It does this through writing and also enforcing regulations derived from the laws made by the US congress. T he United States Secret Service Agency is an executive agency. It is also a law enforcement agency which is found in the department of Homeland Security of the United States as suggested by Gaines (2001). Appropriation Subcommittees Responsible for Jurisdiction over Each Agency’s Budget Request The Appropriation subcommittees usually work off the budget request of the administration and the previous year’s bills expenses while including any of the upcoming congress priorities. There are twelve appropriation subcommittees each comprising of twelve members. ... Each year it is the mandate of the congress to pass appropriation bills for water and energy development. This budget incorporates funding, studies maintenance and the construction of particular projects. The House Interior and Environment Appropriations subcommittee is responsible for the budget request of the bureau of Land Management as suggested by Congress (2003). The Interior and Environment appropriations Committee has jurisdiction over the Environment protection agency of the us regarding the age n cy’s budget request. The Interior and Environment appropriation committee is under the chairmanship of Mike Simpson. The committee constantly criticizes the agency’s budget to ensure that it is in line with planned projects. It hand les issue such as handling interior bills as it is one of the tough bills the congress needs to pass. The homeland and security appropriations committee is responsible for jurisdiction over United States Secret Service agency’s budg et request. The committee is also responsible for other agencies related to homeland d security such as transport security administration, United States coast guard among others. It is also responsible for fun ding state and other local preparedness efforts. The budget from the subcommittees usually forms approximately twelve percent deduction of the President’s budget proposal. The homeland security appropriation subcommittee is currently chaired by Mary Landieu who is a democrat from Louisiana. The Environment Protection agency is also under Interior and Environment appropriation committee chaired by Mike Simpson. The subcommittee here approves annual spending bills of he environment al protection agency.

The Writing Style Of Mark Twain English Literature Essay

The Writing Style Of Mark Twain English Literature Essay Mark Twain once said when asked how to write, Write what you know about. His work of Life on the Mississippi is a great representation of his advice to aspiring writers. It is written in true realistic style, providing the reader with many elements. Likewise, The Lost Phoebe is written in true naturalistic style, showing elements of mans struggle with society and himself. Both works are true to the form they are written in and have many stark contrasts in comparison. Twains writing style not only brings great descriptions of the world he presents to the reader, but he adds elements of humor to make his points. The focus of both works is on two poor characters. Twains character is fixated on the adventure and romanticism he believes that life on the Mississippi River will offer him. Twain incorporates truthful treatment of life surrounding his character. In describing the daily life in the town, he writes, Once a day cheap, gaudy packet arrived upward from St. Louis, and another downward from Keokuk. Before these events, the day was glorious with expectancy; after them, the day was a dead and empty thing. Twain continues to breathe life into his story by describing the town and some of its inhabitants, leaving the reader a well-shaped image of life in the town. In reading the text it seems that most people in the town trudge on in their daily lives and have lost hope or sight of what they once dreamed. They seemed to fall into a quasi-catatonic st ate in which their entertainment hinged on a steamboat berthing at the dock. Once gone, the town returned to regular humdrum. Even Twains character abandons most of his dreams: These ambitions faded out, each in its turn; but the ambition to be a steamboatman always remained. Dimmed hope, to be certain, but not gone, Twains character backs his ears and chases down what he considers the American Dream: freedom and adventure. Twain makes it clear throughout his work that even though one may have a love for something, and romanticize it to the point of exhaustion, doesnt mean it will be easy by any stretch of the imagination. Finding that he was treated poorly by those who didnt consider him one of them, Twain points out, Months afterward the hope within me struggled to a reluctant death, and I found myself without an ambition. Ashamed to return back home because of failure in chasing his dream, he makes an even more bold decision to travel to the Amazon. As the chapters unfold, Twain points out what life on the Mississippi is like and maybe not as romantic as once thought. I believe he was making a point that all dreams can be this way, so be prepared for what you ask for. After all his ambitions of life on the Mighty Mississippi, the prestige of friends and family envying his position as a steamboat pilot, Twains character can not even remember simple navigation lessons taught to him. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦my memory was never loaded with anything but blank cartridges. In the end, it appeared that Twains character simply wanted the status of being a glorious steamboatman without having to learn the true nature of it. Twain shows the follies of chasing dreams without true desire to learn, because by doing so, romanticism of the dream is replaced by the reality of it. Twain also points out how society reacts to those with aspiring dreams. Twains character was mostly rejected by those he was attempting to emulate. There was little help and forgiveness for him. He ties the se realistic elements together by inserting humor at optimal points. In stark contrast to using humor to make a point, The Lost Phoebe is a dark representation of man versus himself, nature, and society. It begins, depressingly, describing the poor conditions of the setting. There is not one bright element in the description of the house or land around it. Indeed, the only happy element is when Dresier writes, Old Henry Reifsneider and his wife Phoebe were a loving couple. Even with this happy element, Dresier even later takes a dump all over that, too, when he writes, Old Henry and his wife Phoebe were as fond of each other as it is possible for two old people to be who have nothing else in this life to be fond of. This work is concerned more with the description of how dismal the surrounding is rather than the true nature of Henry or his wife. Any good qualities either may have possessed are void and irrelevant in this naturalistic style of writing. Whatever Dresiers intent was in writing this work, it is clear that the circumstances involving the p eople Henry Reifsneider encounters, and nature, and even the nature of man, are the antagonists here. As for this reader, this piece of literature throws cold water on any ambition to marry for fear of losing my spouse and wandering around seeing apparitions of them until one day all hope is lost and his life is ended by falling off of a cliff. Every aspect of this work is dark and dismal. Reifsneider encounters the first antagonist with the death of Phoebe: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦in a fog of sorrow and uncertainty, followed her body to the nearest graveyard, an unattractive space with a few pines growing in it. The second encounter followed immediately thereafter with Reifsneider struggling against people suggesting he come to live with them. But he wanted to stay near his dead wife. Soon he found himself seeing apparitions of Phoebe that would eventually lead him to his own demise, but not before his struggles with people he encountered. Hes clean outn his head. That poor old fellers bee n livin down there till hes gone outen his mind. Ill have to notify the authorities. one man remarked as he observed Henry. Dreiser amplifies the Naturalism style in that impact of Henrys environment is clear, and is vividly motivated by this, in animalistic fashion, to find his wife. This story is a classic example of Naturalism style in that it is dark, lonely, and full of descriptors about a working-class environment. Arguably, the ending to this story could be construed as a happy one. Henry does find his wife through his own death, and was seemingly happy to leap. But from the first line to the last, this story is a dark tunnel that continually spirals downward. It is full of true Naturalism style and there is absolutely no real humor contained within. From the way the characters talk, to the way they are dressed, and how they interact is a snapshot of this dark theme Dresier attempts to convey. Both works provide great descriptions of the environment of which they are trying to convey aspects of their works. However, where Dresier chooses to gain some type of sympathy for his characters by describing the outward circumstances, Twain conveys his ideas by examining some real aspects of the character as well as the real life around him. Twain makes his points more subtle than those of Dresier, but both are equally true to their form of styles.

A Night with Alberta Essay -- Personal Narrative Descriptive Essays

A Night with Alberta On a cold winter Saturday night, a wind whips across Washington Square into the canyons of Manhattan. Near New York University’s main dormitory is a small jazz club. The large tinted front windows at street level and the subdued lighting might make a visitor think of an abandoned storefront. However, this small place is where magic can happen. The Cookery is a portal between the present and the past. Entering the club, the host finds my new wife and me a seat. This is both polite and practical for the fresh snow renders the newest patrons blind at first. Once seated at the postage stamped sized tables, the eyes begin to adjust. The cold weather and the premium for space has made it very cramped. Fur coats, down parkas, wool trench coats and the occasional sweatshirt battle for space between chairs. The jazz lovers here run the gamut of New York’s elite to the students of NYU, with all stops in between. Businessmen in two-piece double-breasted business suits sit next to students in neat flannel shirts and jeans. The bodies of the lucky front row patrons shield the stage area from the arctic blast from the door. The stage area lies vacant. An acoustic bass, upright piano and a set of speakers stand as sentinels guarding the stage area. The lighting bathing these silent talismans seems more appropriate to a museum than that of a performance. As we all wait for the music to begin, the room fills with that subdued buzz of countless private conversations. My wife and I order a seemingly appropriate micro-brewed beer, Brooklyn Beer. The mild bitterness and light sparkle of the beer fits the time just right. The beers come in two bottles, each with a complimentary tall glass. The beer and glasses produ... ...hint of a sweet wine. To my pleasant surprise, I find the coffee is a Martini. A sip of the tea reveals Brandy, orange and lemon. The tea is a Sidecar. We sip our contraband beverages as the singer segues into a blues song that is beyond her years. She sings it though with a feeling that only familiarity should provide. The song finishes, and the band takes a break. I take a last sip of my beer as the tobacco aroma seems to fade from my nostrils. I am asked what I would like for my next drink. I open my eyes. The table is again small. Alberta is walking by me to get back to her stairs. I change my drink to a Martini and my wife’s drink to a Sidecar. Somehow, I know it is best to have a drink from the correct era. Alberta stops when she hears my order. She looks at me and says, â€Å"I thought I saw you with us. We’ll be back in ten minutes sonny. I’ll see you there.†