Gender Struggle in a Thousand Splendid Suns Essay

â€Å"Women like us. We endure. It’s all we have.† Mariam, the child of a wealthy man and his house maid, lived by this quote all her life. The quote also applies to Laila, a woman who was raised in a modern household with education. An analysis of the hardships of women in Khaled Hosseinim’s, A Thousand Splendid Suns, would reveal that the injustices of society are coped with differently throughout several generations of women. Although Laila’s upbringing allowed her to be the stronger of the two women, both Mariam and Laila triumphed after enduring so much evil and cruelty. Their mothers on the other hand did not. Mariam’s mother, Nana, was at one point the house maid of a wealthy man named Jalil. She later on mothered his child, Mariam. Both Mariam and her mother had become outcastes and were sent to an isolated area as a consequence for the intolerable act. Mariam’s mother resents Jalil for it, and she also often complains about it to her daughter, ultimately trying to discourage Mariam from not trusting him. Ironically, Mariam’s mother did not openly express her resentment towards Jalil while he was around, nor did she ever attempt to change the situation. In using the inner strength that a woman contains Nana could have strived to make a better life for both she, and her child. Laila’s mother, Fariba, had a seemingly happy household, yet she often found herself immersed in overwhelming grief. When her sons Ahmad and Noor leave to fight in the jihad, and are later on killed in action Laila’s mother stays in bed mourning their loss. When the opportunity presents itself for the family to leave she wishes to stay in Afghanistan in order to see the freedom of the land that her sons died for. Fariba may have a more optimistic view in this sense. A look at the greater picture would reveal that she too lacks the effort to change the situation she is in, in similarity to Mariam’s mother. Fariba stayed in bed living in the past, letting everything take its course in hopes of justice, instead of solidifying her future by making a difference. Mariam and Laila are years apart by age, and come from two entirely different life styles, what brings these women together is one man, Rasheed. They are forced to marry this man through loss and heartache. Their marriages to Rasheed consist of emotional and physical abuse that is legally acceptable under fundamentalist Islamic governments such as the Mujahedeen and the Taliban. In addition to domestic violence, Laila and Mariam have to deal with senseless war, in which many of their closest loved ones lost their lives. Mariam and Laila endure because with their mentality it is simply the only choice they have. Neither of them would have been willing to just give up so they persevered and tried to make the best of the situations they faced. They both tried to have an optimistic view in a life that seemed to have little joy. Laila’s mother was never able to let go of the past and allow herself to move on from her son’s deaths. She was unable or unwilling to see her daughter and her husband as a way to make a happier future. Mariam’s mother became a bitter woman – perhaps many would say she had no choice, but we all have a choice in how we react and behave. She had decided to take her own life when Mariam because she felt she had nothing left to live for. These choices were something that Mariam and Laila would have never made, not because they were better than their mothers, but simply because they chose to never give up and never lose hope. In conclusion, Laila and Mariam overcame several accounts of injustice, evil, and extreme cruelty, unlike their mothers whom fell short upon effort. Despite their seemingly opposite upbringings both women far surpassed the efforts of their mothers. To endure is to continue or to last despite hardships, pain, and loss. Laila and Mariam clearly have endured through a series of injustices. It was their only choice. Bibliography Hosseini, Khaled. A Thousand Splendid Suns. New York: Riverhead, 2007. A Thousand Splendid Suns The history of Afghanistan is marked by death and loss and unimaginable grief. Ultimately, this is more than a story of survival in the face of what seem to be insurmountable odds. It is a story of the unconquerable spirit of a people and individuals seen through the eyes of two indomitable women. A Thousand Splendid Suns is told eloquently through the eyes of Laila and Mariam.

Spirit Bound Chapter Twenty-Seven

WALKING INTO THE COURTROOM was one of the most surreal experiences of my life–and not just because I was the one being accused here. It just kept reminding me of Victor's trial, and the idea that I was now in his place was almost too weird to comprehend. Entering a room with a troop of guardians makes people stare–and believe me, there were a lot of people packed in there–so naturally, I didn't skulk or look ashamed. I walked with confidence, my head held high. Again, I had that eerie flashback to Victor. He too had walked in defiantly, and I'd been appalled that someone who had committed his crimes could behave that way. Were these people thinking the same thing about me? On the dais at the front of the room sat a woman I didn't recognize. Among the Moroi, a judge was usually a lawyer who had been appointed to the position for the purposes of the hearing or whatever. The trial itself–at least a big one like Victor's–had been presided over by the queen. She had been the one to ultimately decide the final verdict. Here, the Council members would be the ones to decide if I even reached that stage. The trial makes it official. That's where they pass the verdict and dole out the punishment. My escort took me to the front seating of the room, past the bar that separated the key players from the audience, and motioned me toward a spot next to a middle-aged Moroi in a very formal and very designer black suit. The suit screamed, I'm sorry the queen is dead, and I'm going to look fashionable while showing my grief. His hair was a pale blond, lightly laced with the first signs of silver. Somehow, he made it look good. I presumed this was Damon Tarus, my lawyer, but he didn't say a word to me. Mikhail sat beside me as well, and I was glad they'd chosen him to be the one who literally didn't leave my side. Glancing back, I saw Daniella and Nathan Ivashkov sitting with other high-ranking royals and their families. Adrian had chosen not to join them. He sat farther back, with Lissa, Christian, and Eddie. All of their faces were filled with worry. The judge–an elderly, gray-haired Moroi who looked like she could still kick ass–called the room to attention, and I twisted around to face forward again. The Council was entering, and she announced them one by one. Two sets of benches had been arranged for them, two rows of six with a thirteenth in back raised. Of course, only eleven of the spots were filled, and I tried not to scowl. Lissa should have been sitting there. When the Council was settled, the judge turned to face the rest of us and spoke in a voice that rang through the room. â€Å"This hearing is now in order, in which we will determine whether there is enough evidence to–â€Å" A commotion at the door cut her off, and the audience craned their necks to see what was going on. â€Å"What's this disturbance about?† the judge demanded. One of the guardians had the door partially open and was leaning out, apparently speaking to whoever was in the hall. He ducked back into the room. â€Å"The accused's lawyer is here, Your Honor.† The judge glanced at Damon and me and then delivered a frown to the guardian. â€Å"She already has a lawyer.† The guardian shrugged and appeared comically helpless. If there had been a Strigoi out there, he would have known what to do. This bizarre interruption of protocol was beyond his skill set. The judge sighed. â€Å"Fine. Send whoever it is up here and let's get this settled.† Abe walked in. â€Å"Oh dear lord,† I said out loud. I didn't have to scold myself for speaking out of turn because a hum of conversation immediately filled the room. My guess was that half were in awe because they knew Abe and his reputation. The other half were probably just stunned by his appearance. He wore a gray cashmere suit, considerably lighter than Damon's grim black. Underneath it was a dress shirt that was so bright a white, it seemed to glow–particularly next to the brilliant crimson silk tie he wore. Other spots of red were scattered about his outfit–a handkerchief in the pocket, ruby cuff links. Naturally, it was all as perfectly tailored and expensive as Damon's outfit. But Abe didn't look like he was in mourning. He didn't even look like he was coming to a trial. It was more like he'd been interrupted on his way to a party. And of course, he sported his usual gold hoop earrings and trimmed black beard. The judge silenced the room with a hand motion as he strutted up to her. â€Å"Ibrahim Mazur,† she said, with a shake of her head. There were equal parts amazement and disapproval in her voice. â€Å"This is†¦ unexpected.† Abe swept her a gallant bow. â€Å"It's lovely to see you again, Paula. You haven't aged a day.† â€Å"We aren't at a country club, Mr. Mazur,† she informed him. â€Å"And while here, you will address me by my proper title.† â€Å"Ah. Right.† He winked. â€Å"My apologies, Your Honor.† Turning, he glanced around until his eyes rested on me. â€Å"There she is. Sorry to have delayed this. Let's get started.† Damon stood up. â€Å"What is this? Who are you? I'm her lawyer.† Abe shook his head. â€Å"There must have been some mistake. It took me a while to get a flight here, so I can see why you would have appointed a community lawyer to fill in.† â€Å"Community lawyer!† Damon's face grew red with indignation. â€Å"I'm one of the most renowned lawyers among American Moroi.† â€Å"Renowned, community.† Abe shrugged and leaned back on his heals. â€Å"I don't judge. No pun intended.† â€Å"Mr. Mazur,† interrupted the judge, â€Å"are you a lawyer?† â€Å"I'm a lot of things, Paula–Your Honor. Besides, does it matter? She only needs someone to speak for her.† â€Å"And she has someone,† exclaimed Damon. â€Å"Me.† â€Å"Not anymore,† said Abe, his demeanor still very pleasant. He had never stopped smiling, but I thought I saw that dangerous glint in his eyes that frightened so many of his enemies. He was the picture of calm, while Damon looked like he was ready to have a seizure. â€Å"Your Honor–â€Å" â€Å"Enough!† she said in that resounding voice of hers. â€Å"Let the girl choose.† She fixed her brown eyes on me. â€Å"Who do you want to speak for you?† â€Å"I†¦Ã¢â‚¬  My mouth dropped open at how abruptly the attention shifted to me. I'd been watching the drama between the two men like a tennis match, and now the ball had hit me in the head. â€Å"Rose.† Startled, I turned slightly. Daniella Ivashkov had crept over in the row behind me. â€Å"Rose,† she whispered again, â€Å"you have no idea who that Mazur man is.† Oh, didn't I? â€Å"You want nothing to do with him. Damon's the best. He's not easy to get.† She moved back to her seat, and I looked between my two potential lawyers' faces. I understood Daniella's meaning. Adrian had talked her into getting Damon for me, and then she had talked Damon into actually doing it. Rejecting him would be an insult to her, and considering she was one of the few royal Moroi who'd been nice to me about Adrian, I certainly didn't want to earn her dislike. Besides, if this was some setup by royals, having one of them on my side was probably my best chance at getting off. And yet†¦ there was Abe, looking at me with that clever smile of his. He was certainly very good at getting his way, but a lot of that was by force of his presence and reputation. If there really was some absurd evidence against me, Abe's attitude wouldn't be enough to make it go away. Of course, he was sly, too. The serpent. He could make the impossible happen; he'd certainly pulled a lot of strings for me. That did not, however, change the fact that he wasn't a lawyer. On the other hand, he was my father. He was my father, and although we still barely knew each other, he'd gone to great lengths to get here and saunter in with his gray suit to defend me. Was it fatherly love gone bad? Was he really all that good a lawyer? And at the end of the day, was it true that blood ran thicker than water? I didn't know. I actually didn't like that saying. Maybe it worked for humans, but it made no sense with vampires. Anyway, Abe was staring at me intently with dark brown eyes nearly identical to mine. Trust me, he seemed to say. But could I? Could I trust my family? I would have trusted my mother if she were here–and I knew she trusted Abe. I sighed and gestured toward him. â€Å"I'll take him.† In an undertone, I added, â€Å"Don't let me down, Zmey.† Abe's smile grew broader as shocked exclamations filled the audience, and Damon protested in outrage. Daniella might have had to persuade him to take me on in the beginning, but now this case had become a matter of pride for him. His reputation had just been sullied by me passing him up. But I'd made my choice, and the exasperated judge would hear no more arguments about it. She shooed Damon away, and Abe slid into his seat. The judge began with the standard opening speech, explaining why we were here, etc., etc. As she spoke, I leaned toward Abe. â€Å"What have you gotten me into?† I hissed to him. â€Å"Me? What have you gotten yourself into? Couldn't I have just picked you up at the police station for underage drinking, like most fathers?† I was beginning to understand why people got irritated when I made jokes in dangerous situations. â€Å"My fucking future's on the line! They're going to send me to trial and convict me!† Every trace of humor or cheer vanished from his face. His expression grew hard, deadly serious. A chill ran down my spine. â€Å"That,† he said in a low, flat voice, â€Å"is something I swear to you is never, ever going to happen.† The judge turned her attention back to us and the prosecuting lawyer, a woman called Iris Kane. Not a royal name, but she still looked pretty hard-core. Maybe that was just a lawyer thing. Before the evidence against me was laid out, the queen's murder was also described in all its grisly detail. How'd she'd been found this morning in bed, a silver stake through her heart and a profound look of horror and shock on her face. Blood had been everywhere: on her nightgown, the sheets, her skin†¦ The pictures were shown to everyone in the room, triggering a variety of reactions. Gasps of surprise. More fear and panic. And some†¦ some people wept. Some of those tears were undoubtedly because of the whole terrible situation, but I think many cried because they'd loved or liked Tatiana. She'd been cold and stiff at times, but for the most part, her reign had been a peaceful and just one. After the pictures, they called me up. The hearing didn't run the way a normal trial did. There was no formal switching back of lawyers as they questioned witnesses. They each just sort of stood there and took turns asking questions while the judge kept order. â€Å"Miss Hathaway,† began Iris, dropping my title. â€Å"What time did you return to your room last night?† â€Å"I don't know the exact time†¦.† I focused on her and Abe, not the sea of faces out there. â€Å"Somewhere around 5 a.m., I think. Maybe 6.† â€Å"Was anyone with you?† â€Å"No, well–yes. Later.† Oh, God. Here it comes. â€Å"Um, Adrian Ivashkov visited me.† â€Å"What time did he arrive?† asked Abe. â€Å"I'm not sure of that either. A few hours after I got back, I guess.† Abe turned his charming smile on Iris, who was rustling through some papers. â€Å"The queen's murder has been pretty accurately narrowed down to between seven and eight. Rose wasn't alone–of course, we would need Mr. Ivashkov to testify to that effect.† My eyes flicked briefly to the audience. Daniella looked pale. This was her nightmare: Adrian getting involved. Glancing farther over, I saw that Adrian himself seemed eerily calm. I really hoped he wasn't drunk. Iris held up a sheet of paper triumphantly. â€Å"We have a signed statement from a janitor who says Mr. Ivashkov arrived at the defendant's building at approximately nine twenty.† â€Å"That's pretty specific,† said Abe. He sounded amused, like she'd said something cute. â€Å"Do you have any desk staff to confirm that?† â€Å"No,† Iris said icily. â€Å"But this is enough. The janitor remembers because he was about to take his break. Miss Hathaway was alone when the murder took place. She has no alibi.† â€Å"Well,† said Abe, â€Å"at least according to some questionable ‘facts.'† But no more was said about the time. The evidence was admitted into the official records, and I took a deep breath. I hadn't liked that line of questioning, but it had been expected, based on the earlier conversations I'd heard via Lissa. The no-alibi thing wasn't good, but I kind of shared Abe's vibe. What they had so far still didn't seem strong enough to send me to trial. Plus, they hadn't asked anything else about Adrian, which left him out of this. â€Å"Next exhibit,† said Iris. There was smug triumph all over her face. She knew the time thing was sketchy, but whatever was coming up, she thought it was gold. But actually, it was silver. A silver stake. So help me, she had a silver stake in a clear plastic container. It gleamed in the incandescent lighting–except for its tip. That was dark. With blood. â€Å"This is the stake used to kill the queen,† declared Iris. â€Å"Miss Hathaway's stake.† Abe actually laughed. â€Å"Oh, come on. Guardians are issued stakes all the time. They have an enormous, identical supply.† Iris ignored him and looked at me. â€Å"Where is your stake right now?† I frowned. â€Å"In my room.† She turned and glanced out over the crowd. â€Å"Guardian Stone?† A tall dhampir with a bushy black mustache rose from the crowd. â€Å"Yes?† â€Å"You conducted the search of Miss Hathaway's room and belongings, correct?† I gaped in outrage. â€Å"You searched my–â€Å" A sharp look from Abe silenced me. â€Å"Correct,† said the guardian. â€Å"And did you find any silver stakes?† asked Iris. â€Å"No.† She turned back to us, still smug, but Abe seemed to find this new information even more ridiculous than the last batch. â€Å"That proves nothing. She could have lost the stake without realizing it.† â€Å"Lost it in the queen's heart?† â€Å"Miss Kane,† warned the judge. â€Å"My apologies, Your Honor,† said Iris smoothly. She turned to me. â€Å"Miss Hathaway, is there anything special about your stake? Anything that would distinguish it from others?† â€Å"Y-yes.† â€Å"Can you describe that?† I swallowed. I had a bad feeling about this. â€Å"It has a pattern etched near the top. A kind of geometric design.† Guardians had engraving done sometimes. I'd found this stake in Siberia and kept it. Well, actually, Dimitri had sent it to me after it had come loose from his chest. Iris walked over to the Council and held out the container so that each of them could examine it. Returning to me, she gave me my turn. â€Å"Is this your pattern? Your stake?† I stared. It was indeed. My mouth opened, ready to say yes, but then I caught Abe's eye. Clearly, he couldn't talk directly to me, but he sent a lot of messages in that gaze. The biggest one was to be careful, be sly. What would a slippery person like Abe do? â€Å"It†¦ it looks similar to the design on mine,† I said at last. â€Å"But I can't say for sure if it's the exact same one.† Abe's smile told me I'd answered correctly. â€Å"Of course you can't,† Iris said, as though she'd expected no better. She handed off the container to one of the court clerks. â€Å"But now that the Council has seen that the design matches her description and is almost like her stake, I would like to point out that testing has revealed†Ã¢â‚¬â€œshe held up more papers, victory all over her face–â€Å"that her fingerprints are on it.† There, it was. The big score. The â€Å"hard evidence.† â€Å"Any other fingerprints?† asked the judge. â€Å"No, Your Honor. Just hers.† â€Å"That means nothing,† said Abe with a shrug. I had a feeling that if I stood and suddenly confessed to the murder, he would still claim it was dubious evidence. â€Å"Someone steals her stake and wears gloves. Her fingerprints would be on it because it's hers.† â€Å"That's getting kind of convoluted, don't you think?† asked Iris. â€Å"The evidence is still full of holes,† he protested. â€Å"That's what's convoluted. How could she have gotten into the queen's bedroom? How could she have gotten through the guards?† â€Å"Well,† mused Iris, â€Å"those would be questions best explored in trial, but considering Miss Hathaway's extensive record of breaking into and out of places, as well as the countless other disciplinary marks she has, I don't doubt she could have found any number of ways to get inside.† â€Å"You have no proof,† said Abe. â€Å"No theory.† â€Å"We don't need it,† said Iris. â€Å"Not at this point. We have more than enough to go to trial, don't we? I mean, we haven't even gotten to the part where countless witnesses heard Miss Hathaway tell the queen she'd regret establishing the recent guardian law. I can find the transcript if you like–not to mention reports of other ‘expressive' commentary Miss Hathaway made in public.† A memory came back to me, of standing outside with Daniella while I ranted–with others watching–about how the queen couldn't buy me off with an assignment. Not a good decision on my part. Neither was busting in on the Death Watch or complaining about the queen being worth protecting when Lissa had been captured. I'd given Iris a lot of material. â€Å"Oh yes,† Iris continued. â€Å"We also have accounts of the queen declaring her extreme disapproval of Miss Hathaway's involvement with Adrian Ivashkov, particularly when the two ran off to elope.† I opened my mouth at that, but Abe silenced me. â€Å"There are countless other records of Her Majesty and Miss Hathaway sparring in public. Would you like me to find those papers too, or are we able to vote on a trial now?† This was directed at the judge. I had no legal background, but the evidence was pretty damning. I would have said that there was definitely reason to consider me a murder suspect, except†¦ â€Å"Your Honor?† I asked. I think she'd been about to give her declaration. â€Å"Can I say something?† The judge thought about it, then shrugged. â€Å"I see no reason not to. We're collecting all the evidence there is.† Oh, me freelancing was not in Abe's plan at all. He strode to the stand, hoping to stop me with his wise counsel, but he wasn't fast enough. â€Å"Okay,† I said, hoping I sounded reasonable and wasn't going to lose my temper. â€Å"You've put up a lot of suspicious stuff here. I can see that.† Abe looked pained. It was not an expression I'd seen on him before. He didn't lose control of situations very often. â€Å"But that's the thing. It's too suspicious. If I were going to murder someone, I wouldn't be that stupid. Do you think I'd leave my stake stuck in her chest? Do you think I wouldn't wear gloves? Come on. That's insulting. If I'm as crafty as you claim my record says I am, then why would I do it this way? I mean, seriously? If I did it, it'd be a lot better. You'd never even peg me as a suspect. This is all really kind of an insult to my intelligence.† â€Å"Rose–† began Abe, a dangerous note in his tone. I kept going. â€Å"All this evidence you've got is so painfully obvious. Hell, whoever set this up might as well have painted an arrow straight to me–and someone did set me up, but you guys are too stupid to even consider that.† The volume of my voice was rising, and I consciously brought it back to normal levels. â€Å"You want an easy answer. A quick answer. And you especially want someone with no connections, no powerful family to protect them†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I hesitated there, unsure how to classify Abe. â€Å"Because that's how it always is. That's how it was with that age law. No one was able to stand up for the dhampirs either because this goddamned system won't allow it.† It occurred to me then that I had strayed pretty far off the subject–and was making myself look more guilty by slamming the age law. I reined myself back in. â€Å"Um, anyway, Your Honor†¦ what I'm trying to say is that this evidence shouldn't be enough to accuse me or send me to trial. I wouldn't plan a murder this badly.† â€Å"Thank you, Miss Hathaway,† said the judge. â€Å"That was very†¦ informative. You may take your seat now while the Council votes.† Abe and I returned to our bench. â€Å"What in the world were you thinking?† he whispered. â€Å"I was telling it like it is. I was defending myself.† â€Å"I wouldn't go that far. You're no lawyer.† I gave him a sidelong look. â€Å"Neither are you, old man.† The judge asked the Council to vote on whether they believed there was enough evidence to make me a viable suspect and send me to trial. They did. Eleven hands went up. Just like that, it was over. Through the bond, I felt Lissa's alarm. As Abe and I rose to leave, I looked out in the audience, which was starting to disband and buzzing with talk over what would happen now. Her light green eyes were wide, her face unusually pale. Beside her, Adrian too looked distressed, but as he stared at me, I could see love and determination radiating. And in the back, behind both of them†¦ Dimitri. I hadn't even known he was here. His eyes were on me too, dark and endless. Only I couldn't read what he was feeling. His face betrayed nothing, but there was something in his eyes†¦ something intense and intimidating. The image of him ready to take down that group of guardians flashed through my mind, and something told me that if I asked, he would do it again. He would fight his way to me through this courtroom and do everything in his power to rescue me from it. A brushing of my hand distracted me from him. Abe and I had started to exit, but the aisle ahead of us was packed with people, bringing us to a halt. The touch against my hand was a small piece of paper shoved between my fingers. Glancing over, I saw Ambrose was sitting near the aisle, staring straight ahead. I wanted to ask what was going on, but some instinct kept me silent. Seeing as the line still wasn't moving, I hastily opened the paper, keeping it out of Abe's sight. The paper was tiny, its elegant cursive almost impossible to read. Rose, If you're reading this, then something terrible has happened. You probably hate me, and I don't blame you. I can only ask that you trust that what I did with the age decree was better for your people than what others had planned. There are some Moroi who want to force all dhampirs into service, whether they want it or not, by using compulsion. The age decree has slowed that faction down. However, I write to you with a secret you must put right, and it is a secret you must share with as few as possible. Vasilisa needs her spot on the Council, and it can be done. She is not the last Dragomir. Another lives, the illegitimate child of Eric Dragomir. I know nothing else, but if you can find this son or daughter, you will give Vasilisa the power she deserves. No matter your faults and dangerous temperament, you are the only one I feel can take on this task. Waste no time in fulfilling it. –Tatiana Ivashkov I stared at the piece of paper, its writing swirling before me, but its message burning into my mind. She is not the last Dragomir. Another lives. If that was true, if Lissa had a half-brother or half-sister†¦ it would change everything. She would get a vote on the Council. She would no longer be alone. If it was true. If this was from Tatiana. Anyone could sign her name to a piece of paper. It didn't make it real. Still, I shivered, troubled at the thought of getting a letter from a dead woman. If I allowed myself to see the ghosts around us, would Tatiana be there, restless and vengeful? I couldn't bring myself to let down my walls and look. Not yet. There had to be other answers. Ambrose had given me the note. I needed to ask him†¦ except we were moving down the aisle again. A guardian nudged me along. â€Å"What's that?† asked Abe, always alert and suspicious. I hastily folded the note back up. â€Å"Nothing.† The look he gave me told me he didn't believe that at all. I wondered if I should tell him. It is a secret you must share with as few as possible. If he was one of the few, this wasn't the place. I tried to distract him from it and shake the dumbstruck look that must have been on my face. This note was a big problem–but not quite as big as the one immediately facing me. â€Å"You told me I wouldn't go to trial,† I said to Abe. My earlier annoyance returned. â€Å"I took a big chance with you!† â€Å"It wasn't a big chance. Tarus couldn't have got you out of this either.† Abe's easy attitude about all this infuriated me further. â€Å"Are you saying you knew this hearing was a lost cause from the beginning?† It was what Mikhail had said too. How nice to have such faith from everyone. â€Å"This hearing wasn't important,† Abe said evasively. â€Å"What happens next is.† â€Å"And what is that exactly?† He gave me that dark, sly gaze again. â€Å"Nothing you need to worry about yet.† One of the guardians put his hand on my arm, telling me I needed to move. I resisted his pull and leaned toward Abe. â€Å"The hell I don't! This is my life we're talking about,† I exclaimed. I knew what would come next. Imprisonment until the trial. And then more imprisonment if I was convicted. â€Å"This is serious! I don't want to go to trial! I don't want to spend the rest of my life in a place like Tarasov.† The guard tugged harder, pushing us forward, and Abe fixed me with a piercing gaze that made my blood run cold. â€Å"You will not go to trial. You will not go to prison,† he hissed, out of the guards' hearing. â€Å"I won't allow it. Do you understand?† I shook my head, confused over so much and not knowing what to do about any of it. â€Å"Even you have your limits, old man.† His smile returned. â€Å"You'd be surprised. Besides, they don't even send royal traitors to prison, Rose. Everyone knows that.† I scoffed. â€Å"Are you insane? Of course they do. What else do you think they do with traitors? Set them free and tell them not to do it again?† â€Å"No,† said Abe, just before he turned away. â€Å"They execute traitors.† Many thanks to all the friends and family who have lent their considerable support to me as I worked on this, especially my amazing and patient husband. I know I couldn't get through this without you! Special thanks also to my pal Jen Ligot and her eagle eyes. On the publishing side, I'm always grateful for the hard work of my agent Jim McCarthy, as well as everyone else at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management–including Lauren Abramo, who helps spread Vampire Academy around the world. Thank you also to the gang at Penguin Books–Jessica Rothenberg, Ben Schrank, Casey McIntyre, and so many others–who work a lot of magic for this series. My publishers outside the U.S. are also doing wonderful things for getting the word out about Rose, and I'm constantly amazed to see the growing international response. Thank you so much for all you do. A last shout-out to my readers, whose continued enthusiasm still overwhelms me. Thank you for reading and loving these characters as much as I do.

Albert Nobbs (2011) Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Albert Nobbs (2011) - Movie Review Example Albert worked as a hotel waiter for thirty years during which she exhibited extreme dedication, and was known for her introvert nature. The hotel appointed Joe Mackins for repairing of boilers, who soon went into a relationship with the flirtatious maid Helen Dawes. However, Joe proved to be a drunk and extremely dominating man. Albert then narrates her life story to Hubert Page who is a housepainter and a fellow transvestite. Albert had chosen her present life out of economic needs after she was gang raped at the age of fourteen. However, Albert refrains from revealing her true name since she considers herself as a man. Seeing that Hubert is married and has a wife, Cathleen who is a dressmaker by profession, Albert too dreams of having a life partner. Albert’s objective in life is to open a tobacco shop with her savings and for that she offered Helen to stay with her. In spite of her reluctance, Joe insists Helen to agree since he thought Albert would give her the money that he needed to leave Ireland for America with Helen. During this time, typhoid epidemic broke out in Dublin for which hotel business began to drop thus calling financial problems for Albert. Soon she learns that Cathleen has died of the epidemic. In memory of Cathleen, Albert and Hubert dress up as women wearing the clothes made by Cathleen. During a walk together, although they manage to overcome their initial uneasiness, Albert soon trips and falls which returns her to reality. They then revert to their old lives, i.e. playing the role of men. Immediately after this Albert learns that Helen is pregnant with Joe’s child. In response to Helen’s fear that Joe may abandon her and leave for America, Albert offers to marry her. Later that eveni ng, Helen and Joe get involved in a fight in which Albert intervened and physically attacked Joe. Joe, in a fit of rage, pushes Albert

Project management of aproject that i will give Essay

Project management of aproject that i will give - Essay Example resources and effort used and discounts the proficiencies of the project manager, thereby providing a rigid and accountable project management method. It establishes clear dependencies and facilitates identification of the critical path of the process. However, the method tends to be tedious when the number of paths and activities is large in number. It is also difficult to monitor the pace of the project using this method. WBS: WBS enables the identification of all the tasks required to complete the project and enables the project manager to move around things easily. Adding, deleting and modifying activities is a simplified process. However, it does not provide an exhaustive picture and is does not provide a chronological sequence of occurrence of the activities. A work package is a set of activities that can be assigned to an individual participant in a project. A work package helps plan a group of related activities that provide a common end result. Estimates from the parameters of work packages help determine the pace of the project as a combined set of all such estimates of related work packages. WBS is used to decompose a complex activity into a set of individual and discrete activities. An organizational breakdown structure help define the hierarchical constitution of the project’s and responsibilities. CPA is a mathematical approach to enabling the scheduling of projects. The structure of a WBS is communicated between a project manager and those responsible for each of the discrete activities. OBS is used by the project team to have an understanding of the report and command mechanism between different team members. CPA is used by the project planner, who estimates the time required for each activity and transition from one activity to another. Without a WBS, there would be no possibility to decompose a complex project into a set of simple activities. Without OBS, team members would not know whom to report to and whom to take orders from. Without a

The role of divorce and single-parenting in creating poverty among Essay

The role of divorce and single-parenting in creating poverty among children - Essay Example The task of deciding how to engage fathers with their families is primarily under the purview of the provinces. Most provinces offer classes, mediation, and information for fathers and mothers on how fathers can maintain contact and be a positive influence in the lives of their children even after a divorce. Most provinces also offer such things as mental health services for children of separated or divorced parents. Although unstated, the policy of most provinces seems to be to try to keep the father mentally and physically involved with children even if they are not married or in a relationship with the mother. Unfortunately, the services offered to fathers seem to be almost an after-thought. Especially given the uphill battle unmarried fathers face in the Divorce Act. The primary target of the various departments is the single mother. Like most social welfare programs, the target of these policies is poor families. The Divorce Act complicates the relationship of poor faterhs with their children because poor fathers are more likely not able to meet the demands of their divorce or child-support decrees. At the same time, while not having a father affects all children, the results are especially damaging when the mother is poor. Similarly, tax benefits and allowances at the national and local levels (e.g. Canada Child Tax Benefit and national Child Benefit Supplement) are exclusively for the primary custody holder of the child. Meaning that although he is financially responsible for his children, fathers, even the very poor fathers, do not receive any support in trying to care for their child. This paper will show that while these efforts at engaging fathers are good and noble, the programs don't go far enough in encouraging parental involvement or assiting fathers who want to do the right thing for their children. Furthermore, those policies that try to encourage fathers to be more involved with their children are targeted primarily toward poor families, when in fact children of all economic classes would benefit from having fathers who better knew how to parent. Method In order to figure out provincial policies on educating and engaging fathers in the parenting process, I looked at reports published by various local governments. I also looked at what services were available to parents and specifically to fathers and to divorcing or separated families. There is a large amount of literature in the journals on the role of fathers in contributing to or helping to eliminate child poverty. The literature nearly universally agrees that the financial and parental contributions of a father are one of the most effective ways or reducing the number of children in poverty. Some of the literature is strongly in support of marriage, suggesting that the way to bring down the numbers of children living in poverty, it would be best to encourage unmarried mothers to marry and to help couples that are married stay that way. Others suggest that it would be far better to teach fathers how to be good parents and to provide them with support so that they can help provid e for their families whether or not they live with them. The governments seem to take this line. While many of the provinces offer some sort of marriage counseling, the vast majority of the services offered do not take into account whether or not the parents are married. Issues Addressed by the Policy The primary issue addressed by

Credit Crunch and Its impact on UK's Real Estate Market Dissertation

Credit Crunch and Its impact on UK's Real Estate Market - Dissertation Example Bernanke and Lown (1991) define a credit crunch as a decline in the supply of credit that is abnormally large for a given stage of the business cycle. Credit normally contracts during a recession, but an unusually large contraction could be seen as a credit crunch. The credit crunch is the result of multiple factors. These multiple factors adversely affect the ability of the banks to supply credit at a time when banks’ ability to adjust to these factors was unusually limited. A credit crunch that continues for a long time is actually opposite of easily available and plentiful lending practices .These cheap lending practices are sometimes called â€Å"Easy Money† or â€Å"Loose Credit† .As it been stated earlier that credit crunch is a cyclic process . During the upward phase in the credit cycle it is seen that the prices of the assets undergo lot of fervent competitions .Upward credit cycle is also marked by the presence of leveraged bidding with inflation in a p articular asset market. These all situation can then lead to formation of a speculative price bubble. During the upswing of the cycle increase in the money supply happens because of new large debt creation. This in turn stimulates the economic activities. Finally there is also chances of temporarily raise in economic growth and development.(Cooper,2008) The reason of credit crunch can be diverse. Few of the reasons are given below: 1. If there is an anticipation about the decline in the value of the collateral. The collateral is used by the banks to secure the loans that are taken. If the decline in value continues then it will lead to credit crunch.(Bizer ,1993) 2. If there is perception in the market about the risk of insolvency of other banks in the banking system. In this situation the traditional financial institutes will tighten the credit lending regulations (Kleege and Stephen,1992) 3. When the central government is imposing direct credit controls or are implementing monetar y changes then lending of the loans will be done very warily by the goverment. (Grant,1993) 4. When there is a prolonged carelessness in lending the loans. The process of lending the loans is inappropriate and doesn’t take into account the intricacies of market and interest rate. This leads to losses to the lending institutions. The debtor is not able to pay the debt and finally the financial institutions will reduce the availability of credit. The prolonged defaults by the debtors leads to credit crunch.(Peek ,Joe and Eric,1993). 5.When the assets which were overpriced, before ,suddenly sees a sharp fall in their prices then it leads to financial crisis because of price collapse. If this price collapse continues then many banks and investors will face insolvency and bankruptcy. The financial institutions will become more alert .As the result the financial institution restore to restrict the regulations for lending the loan and as a result the market will face the credit crun ch.( Rosenblum.1991) The last two points were the main reason for the recent credit crunch that struck the world’s economy. This was caused due to the bursting of housing bubble in

Financial Management Discussion Week 7 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Financial Management Discussion Week 7 - Essay Example Prototyping being the first stage requires entrepreneurs to keenly listen to prospective customers. Cheap and simple prototypes, however, should be built for the purpose of acquiring customer feedback. This level advocates for invested labor and credit card borrowing to finance the venture. At this stage trying to produce any venture capital would be fruitless except when the business can prove that it may make profits at early stages (Brooks, 2012). A vivid business model should follow the proof to offer a powerful bargaining upper hand with a venture capitalist. Customer base is useful especially after finding a customer who is willing and capable of paying for the final prototype. Also if one might want to ask capital from angel investors or family members who might want to buy a lesser stake in the particular company. At this level, the business or entrepreneur can raise money from many people who cannot scheme to oust the founder. Some Companies start g capital at this level even though it is advisable to wait and proceed with the activity at the third stage (Lawrence, 2010). Expansion is another process implemented after acquiring a trivial share of the market segment and surprisingly when also the growth of the company becomes stunted. Acquiring a new market becomes a vital activity while developing and updating products. At this level the startup CEO is in a position to discuss with capital providers because the venture is lucrative. The exit is the final process where the entrepreneur sells the business to a customer or gives a public offering (Baron, 2011). Sadly after the initial public offer is done most entrepreneurs leave their business because of the boredom brought about by the administration of a sluggishly growing publicly traded business. A company can raise capital using various ways for different uses depending on the financial necessities or on the size and nature

Writing Assignment - DRAMA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Writing Assignment - DRAMA - Essay Example It is largely through this element which Shakespeare examines the power which love can have over those it touches, even when that love is clearly not merited. However, even before the potion makes its appearance, the lovers are thoroughly obsessed with one another. When Demetrius tells Helena that he â€Å"cannot love her,† she replies with: These lines show how powerful a grip love has on her. She does not even care whether or not her love is returned—in fact, that it is not returned only makes her more in love. Once the love potion is applied to the various lovers, the situation worsens: first Lysander, then Demetrius both fall for Helena, who becomes so unhappy that she accuses them of being â€Å"bent / to set against me for your merriment,† so convinced is she that they both love Hermia and are mocking her love for Demetrius. (ibid. III.ii.146-147) This shows another aspect which the love potion obviously deals with: the illusion of love. By making the men in the play both fall for the woman that neither of them actually love at the plays start, Shakespeare points out that often what we think is â€Å"love† is nothing of the sort. This is driven home by the mens bombastic exclamations of love for Helena, with Lysander claiming that she â€Å"more engilds the night / than all yon fiery Os and eyes of light.† (ibid. III.ii.187-188) Furthermore, both Lysander and Demetrius are determined that their love for Helena will last â€Å"until death† (ibid. III.ii.168) or that it has returned to her â€Å"to remain† (ibid. III.ii.173). This is â€Å"love† is nothing more than illusion, as the ending of the play shows. However, because of the humorous incident of Titania falling for the ass-headed Bottom and the generally light treatment in this comedy of errors, love still comes out ahead in the end as a great unifying force. Strindbergs The Stronger portrays matters

Long Term Care Facilities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Long Term Care Facilities - Essay Example Food service standards include setting the centralized and decentralized systems, food service stations, and accuracy of each dining procedure. Food service standards must be set for the food safety and sanitation, implementation of patient dining rights and preferences, and dining experience categories (Singh, 2010). Next, management must ensure the dining experience employees understand their benchmarks (Puckett, 2012). The dining employees are allowed to ask clarification questions. The questions will eliminate any gray or vague standards or polices. For example, nurses clarify what to do if the patient has a seizure during the dining experience. Third, management must report the actual performance of each dining employee. Management must collect data on the employees’ performance outcomes. Data includes the patients’ dining experience feedbacks. Data also includes the supervisors’ feedbacks of the subordinate dining employees’ performances. The employees’ meeting benchmark requirements ensure the patients receive quality dining experiences (Daft, 2008). Lastly, management must present the consequences of the concerned dining employees’ actual performances. The effects may include either the stick or carrot method. Under the carrot method, dining employees who meet standards are given rewards, citations and promotions. Under the stick method, the company penalizes dining employees who do not meet standards. Penalties include warnings, fines, suspensions, or terminations (Daft, 2008). Why the value of the dining experience is so important Dining experiences have important values (Singh, 2010). Dining has socializing value. During the dining experience, patients spend time in the company of other patients. Dining offers relaxation value. Special dining comfortable tables allow the use of wheelchairs. Soft music, table skirting, table cloths and folded table napkins brighten the

The life AND death of Tiberius Gracchus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

The life AND death of Tiberius Gracchus - Essay Example Tiberius began his military carrier during the Third Punic war when he was appointed in a military tribune attached to Scipio Aemilianus (his brother in law) staff. The period he served under Aemilianus as a military tribune built his status making him popular, thanks to his bravery and discipline. He is remembered as the first of his kind to scale the enemy walls. His outstanding performance earned him another significant appointment in 137 BC as the questor to consul Gaius Hostilius Mancinus. This position saw him serve in Numantia , a region found in the Hispania province. Here, he was among the army that took part in the botched Numantine that saw mancinus army suffer major defeats. During this war Mancinus made an unwise decision of withdrawing his army at night causing not only the defeat but also loss of their possession as their camp was looted. Seeing the danger that lingered, particularly on the army, Tiberius took advantage of his position as quaestor to sign a peace treat y with the Numantines against the general requirement that required a legate to complete the signing. During the negotiation, Tiberius revisited the adventures of Tiberiu Elder (the father), who equally fought in Spain but negotiated a peace accord with (Numantines, 24). This move caused him be regarded highly by the Numantines so much that when they discovered their army had taken his ledger in the process of despoiling the Roman camp, they made arrangement to have him get it back. Such is the case that they invited him in person, throwing a banquet in his honor and allowed him not only to recover his ledger but also take any other thing he wished to have from the spoils. Tiberius integrity could not permit him to do as they asked but instead he took back his ledger and only accepted some incense used for sacrificial rituals. There was so much frenzy in Rome on account of this

Biological Personality Perspective by William Sheldon Essay Example for Free

Biological Personality Perspective by William Sheldon Essay According to William Sheldon, an American psychologist, personality of persons and their temperaments are developed according to the type of physical appearance the person has. Sheldon became to believe that there are three fundamental elements that contributed to person’s actual physique. He devoted his time trying to find the relationship between one’s physique and one’s character and personality. The process he underwent is examining photographs of various people, of various cultures and of various body types. He examined photographs by front, back and side views and generated information which he believes could determine one’s personality. After careful study, he generated the 3 body types which are: endomorphy, mesomorphy, and ectomorphy. According to Sheldon, those persons with endomorphic body are those with soft bodies, underdeveloped muscles, round-shaped and over-developed digestive system. It is said that persons with this type of body are usually tolerant, sociable, relaxed and has the need for affection. On the other hand, persons with mesomorphic body are those with hard, muscular body, overly mature appearance and usually are in upright posture. Characteristics associated with the person with this type of body are being adventurous, courageous, assertive, bold and has love for physical activities and risks. Persons with ectomorphic bodies are physically characterized by being thin, flat-chested, tall, lightly muscled and with delicate built. Usually they are self-conscious, introvert, artistic and emotionally restrained. Dissociative Disorder Reference: www.mayoclinic.com/health/dissociative-disorders/DS00574 Dissociative   disorder is a psychiatric condition in which the person chronically escape in involuntary, unhealthy ways ranging from suppressing memories to assuming alternate identities. (Mayo Clinic, 2007). For a normal person, we tend to daydream when we watch movies, imagining we are one of the characters and enjoy the escape from reality for a short while and as the movie comes to an end we slowly get back to reality. For a person with dissociative disorder, he gets totally lost in his imaginations and has difficulty snapping out from the situations running in his mind. Treatments of this mental disorder include psychotherapy, hypnosis and medications.

English Literature Essays Shakespeares King Lear

English Literature Essays Shakespeares King Lear Select either two or three major speeches from the play King Lear (Shakespeare) and demonstrate, by close analysis, their relevance to issues in the play as a whole The two speeches I have selected from the play to conduct close analysis on are Lears speech in Act I Scene I (Lines 121 139) and Cordelias speech of Act V Scene VII (Lines 31-43). These two speeches are reflective of some of the strongest themes of the play: familial love, anger, wrath and, most of all perhaps, pride. The first speech is placed at the very beginning of the play just after Cordelia has refused to praise her father in the same over-effusive manner as her sisters, and Shakespeare conveys in a few short lines the almost uncontrollable anger of Lear: Lear: Peace kent! Come not between the dragon and his wrath. I love her most, and though to set my rest On her kind nursery We can note here the evocation of the dragon which, as Harold Bloom (1987: 90) tells us, is not only symbolic of the male, paternal anger but of the monarchy itself and recalls the Englishness of St. George. As if metonymic with the entire play, this symbol of royal wrath and anger is twinned with an image of childish reliance the nursery. The next lines however reverse this image juxtaposition as the aggressor, in the form Lear the dragon, is painted as the victim: Hence, and avoid my sight! So be my grave my peace, as here I give Her fathers heart from her.! The knot of guilt and innocence is one that recurs throughout the entire play but it is first suggested in this speech; for instance in the lines: Call Burgundy, Cornwall and Albany, With my two daughters dowers digest this third: Let pride, which she calls plainness marry her. We witness here what Freud called projection (1991: 213) or the imbuing of an emotion or character trait onto another person; it is Lears pride that we really see here, and Lears anger that dominates the entire first section of the play but the character himself deflects that onto the figure of his youngest daughter. Linguistically, the speech is suffused with exclamations (especially the first six lines) and the rhythms and lines themselves are short and staccato. There is also an alliterative use of harsh consonant sounds, for instance in the line my two daughters dowers digest this third (Act I, Scene I, Line 128) or The sway, revenue, execution of the rest (Act I, Scene I, Line 137). This sets Lears character as one that is unbending and proud; an important facet of the plays later narrative where his harmartia (to use Aristotles (1965) term) in the form of his paternal pride, is revealed and reversed. The speech ends with a foreshadowing of the narrative of the whole play: Beloved sons, be yours; which to confirm, This coronet part betwixt you. Here, Lear unconsciously evokes the rending apart of territory as he sets in motion the fissures and fractures in the fabric of the monarchy that the play examines. The speech by Codelia in Act V in many ways represents the reverse of Lears. It is here that Shakespeare underlines the notion of familial loyalty, of constancy and of love and comes after Cordelia has reiterated her dedication for her father. Had you not been their father, these white flakes Had challenged pity on them. Was this face To be opposed against the warring winds Straight away we can notice the change in tone here, the repetition of Ds, Vs and Rs in Lears speech has been changed to Fs and Ws, creating a more sonorous timbre evocative of Cordelias gentle nature and the spirit of reconciliation that runs throughout her speech. The imagery Shakespeare uses here is reflective of the mimetic use of Nature throughout the rest of the play; Cordelia mentions the winds, the dread-bolted thunder (Act I, Scene VII, Line 34), and the quick, cross lightening (Act I, Scene VII, Line 36) all of which reminds us of Lears exile on the moors and the suggestion that this represents, for Shakespeare, the uncontrollable forces of fate. As Jay Halio (2001: 37-38) suggests, the loss of control that is symbolically evoked by the image of Nature, is a result of the splitting of the Kingdom, that we have already looked with the Lear speech of Act I and only resolves itself at this precise point in the play. The latter parts of the speech hint at Cordelias role as a restorative force; she literally makes her father human again after the treatment he is given by her sisters: Mine enemys dog, Though he had bit me, should have stood that night Against my fire; and wast thou fain, poor father, To hovel thee with swine, and rogues forlorn, In short and musty straw? Here Shakespeare layers image upon image of baseness and animality to suggest not only how far the King has been reduced but also how true and loyal Cordelia is. In the two speeches we have looked at here, we have seen many of the themes of King Lear and also some the plays complexity. The play is, at once we could assert, concerned with both pride and constancy, anger and gentleness, wrath and restoration and the two speeches I have selected show this in microcosm. Each one also represents important points in the character development of Lear himself; his initial rebuke of his daughter evoking the false pride of the all too powerful monarch and Cordelias speech prompting his character reversal. A close analysis of these two speeches reveals just how Shakespeare weaves grand themes and narratives into the very fabric, the very minutiae of his text, evoking in an audience an almost subconscious appreciation of philosophical and thematic intents. Works Cited Aristotle (1965), The Poetics, London: Penguin Bloom, Harold (1987), William Shakespeares King Lear, New York: Random House Freud, Sigmund (1991), The Essentials of Psychoanalysis, (London: Penguin Halio, Jay (2001), King Lear: A Guide to the Play, London: Greenwood Press Shakespeare, William (1982), King Lear, published in The Tragedies, London: Aurora pp.218-239

Banning Smoking in public places

Banning Smoking in public places Banning Smoking in public places Have you ever stopped to think about the dangers of smoking? Did you ever put in your consideration about other people who are affected by your smoking? Many people think that smoking gives them the feeling of satisfaction and happiness. Other people thinks that smoking makes the to calm down when they are angry, but all of this is nonsense. Smoking is a picked up as a habit by the youth in an unusual way. This habit risks their life and makes them prone to dreadful diseases. So if you are keen to kill yourself, then its your own choice, but, your freedom ends when other peoples freedom begins. Smoking is a very dangerous activity done by most of the people around the world which causes several health, environmental, and social problems. As a result, the WHO decided to pass a law to prohibit smoking in public places to protect people and the environment from the dangers of smoking. Heavy smokers are likely to health problems which they cant figure it out until it reaches a late stage. Researches made by scientists proofed that tobacco is one of the most addictive substances on earth. Every cigarette a smoker smokes supplies the body with great amounts of carcinogen and hazardous chemical substances. â€Å"A heavy smoker, who usually consume from 1 to 2 packs of cigarettes per day inhales 150,000 dose of poisonous smoke yearly.† [1]These Toxic compounds are formed when tobacco reacts with fire. Therefore Nicotine and the other dangerous chemicals formed while smoking are the most harmful things in cigarettes which causes severe health problems. Another Dangerous health problem caused by smoking is Lung Cancer. This is because cigarettes contain over 80 different cancer-causing substances. Scientists showed that these substances could damage the bodys DNA and change their characteristics. This process leads the cells to grow and multiply out of control causing blockage in vital areas in the lung. A smoker could avoid all of these problems and live at ease just by giving up smoking. The pollution caused by cigarettes does not stop in our bodies or the air; it also affects the land we live on and the water that we drink. Millions of cigarette butts are thrown onto the ground every day. They finally end up in the rivers and lakes where fish and animals -by mistake- eat them and quite often die from it. The rest are left on the ground to decompose which will take an average of 25 years while all of the chemicals and additives leach into the ground and pollute the soil and the plants. If you are going to smoke please consider this information before your throw your cigarette butts on the ground. It looks unattractive, it is a major fire hazard in dry weather, and it is extremely harmful to the environment. Another impacting aspect of cigarettes is in producing them. The land used for growing the tobacco all over the world could be used for planting trees or food for starving children in the 3rd worlds countries. Tobacco plants are often sprayed with great amounts of harmful pesticides and chemicals as tobacco is very fragile plant and likely to pick up disease. A lot of trees are also used in producing and packing cigarettes. They use 4 miles of paper an hour just for rolling and packaging cigarettes. Every 100 cigaratte produced waste in the other hand a tree. The trees used in the cigarettes could be filtering out the pollutants found in the air instead of being chopped down for manufacturing a new cigarette. Cigarette smokers have a common belief between them. They think that they only hurt themselves, in fact they hurt all the people surrounding them, people they love and the environment. Your freedom ends when the freedom of others begins. This say delivers the meaning directly. It means that its prohibited to go beyond others scope. This means smokers cant take the action of smoking only if he isnt going to hurt anyone around him. As a result, some countries governments decided to completely ban smoking in public areas to protect the environment and people from the dangers caused by the smokers. A great number of mostly developed countries have enacted bans on smoking in public places or workplaces since the early 2000s. The first building in the world to have a smoke-free policy was the Old Government Building in Wellington, New Zealand in 1876. In 1990, the city of San Luis Obispo, California, became the first city in the world to ban indoor smoking at all public places, including bars and restaurants. Arguably by allowing smoking in public places it is the freedom of non-smokers that is being restricted. By smoking in public the smoker is forcing everyone in the vicinity to smoke too, perhaps there should be signs everywhere reading ‘public smoking area only. This banning prohibition law was in the interest of non-smokers as they are able now to go to public buildings and finish their official transac tions without being hurt by smokers around them. There are 3 million victims yearly in the world die on account of cigarette smoking. Why dont we all start from today to reduce the numbers of smokers to protect our lives from the slow killing substance called tobacco? Why dont we start living green and stop affecting ourselves and our environment from the smoking circumstances? A problem that needs to pause and re-calculations so that we would not target and regret for what happened as a result of smoking. [1] http://healthcare-guidance.blogspot.com/2009/11/effect-of-cigarette-in-our-health.html

Agriculture: Evolution or Devolution? Essay -- Environment Environment

Agriculture: Evolution or Devolution? Considering that the alarming excess and continuing growth of the current world population (of humans) is directly tied to food production and availability, the question of how and why we even developed the technology of agriculture in the first place is becoming more and more relevant to human survival as we collectively continue to destroy the environment in which we live due in part to these very agricultural techniques and strategies that we are continuing to employ today. Current estimations show that at around the same time that agriculture was beginning to develop and thrive, the population of our ancestors started to double at a rate that was far higher than what it had been previously for the more than 2 million years of prior human existence. What does this then mean, and what does it say about humans and their attitude towards the environment? This hinges largely on the viewpoints to which we allow ourselves to be open. The most common view taken is that most (if not all) technologies we create mark an "advance" for humankind. Perhaps because they are prized so much either for their practical or symbolic value, it has become difficult to regard the technologies without a bias towards their immediate effects on human society as opposed to the overall compatibility with the rest of the natural world. Within this mindset, it is very hard to put aside the very "advanced" tools that seem to form the foundation of what a complicated, sophisticated, intelligent human is supposed to be. In this light, a complex process like agriculture cannot be anything but an advance, and any lifestyle that dates prior to the agricultural advent must, by subtle implication, be inferior. This infe... ...e technologies we created, from market economy and weapons of mass destruction to the simpler-scale household appliances. This suggests that many do not really see the frictions such technologies impose on our surroundings as problems, but rather according to their perception of the way things are, the tools they use are only doing exactly what they were supposed to and it cannot be helped. And moreover, this is so ingrained in most modern human cultures that the constituents of said cultures do not even see a problem with that. Sources Ehrlich, Paul R. "Human Natures: Genes Cultures, and the Human Prospect". Island Press, 2000. Cipolla, Carlo M. "The Economic History of World Population". The Harvester Press, 1978 Ponting, Clive. "A Green History of the World: The Environment and the Collapse of Great Civilizations". St. Martin's Press, New York, 1991.

Personal Narrative- Learning Essay examples -- Personal Narrative

Personal Narrative- Learning As the dull scent of chalk dust mixes imperceptably with the drone of the teacher's monotone, I doodle in my tablet to stay awake. I notice vaguely that, despite my best efforts in the shower this morning after practice, I still smell like chlorine. I sigh and wonder why the school's administration requires the students to take a class that, if it were on the Internet, would delight Mirsky (creator of Mirsky's Worst of the Web), as yet another addition to his list of worthless sites. Still, there was hope that I would learn something that would make today's first class more than just forty-five wasted minutes... It wouldn't be the first time I learned something new from the least likely place. I have three reasons to continue hoping. They are: my freshman physical science class, the manner in which I came to take calculus in junior year and my experiences with high school swimming. These incidents have, despite the odds against it, added to my confidence in my academic ability and have shown me that there is something to be learned from even the...

Internet Security Essay -- Internet Privacy Security Web Essays

Internet Security Internet Security is the most important aspect of information technology. It has been years since computer has been invented and to keep the information confidential we have to safeguard this information. The importance of integrating security measures into systems development. Every business has their own security systems to reach their goals of information security. The computer world created security systems in order to reduce risk, maintain confidentiality, ensure the reliability of data resources, and compliance with national security laws and privacy policies and laws. SECURITY STANDARDS There are several types of standards when integrating security measures into new systems. Some companies developed their own application that has their own standards; others usually follow well-established national or international standards especially if the systems they developed are to be used by government agencies or contractors. Two major standards developed by the United States government and the other by the International Standard Organization. The U.S. used of the information security standard not only for businesses but also for our homeland security. Ever since the September 11 incident we have developed a tighter security for every branch of the government. The new standard is being used most especially for our military from the Internet worldwide and others has to follow. The most important one is the issuance of immigration visas. Our land, air and water transportation has been the first one to put this into action and intelligence officer’s tract criminal ’s activities through these measures. These are the Standards from the Orange Book: Trusted Computer System Evaluation Criteria (TSE... ...rmation security but not people security. Sometimes people’s value diminished because of business. We are so lucky to have live in the United States of America knowing that our security is the first priority of our government. Through the use of information security our government was able to tract down some of the most dangerous people in the world who were also involved in the September 11 incident. We are the world’s leader in the military and democracy. To live in a secure world is to live in peace! Reference: Management Information Systems, Third Edition Effy Oz, http://www.jeis.co.jp/ http://www.alw.nih.gov/Security/security-www.html http://www.alw.nih.gov/Security/security-prog.html http://www.alw.nih.gov/Security/security-groups.html/ http://www.sans.org/resources/glossary.php http://www.firewallguide.com/newsletter.htm.

Anne Boleyn-Her Life and Downfall

Anne Boleyn's life and conflicts- historical background and the presentation in the film â€Å"the other Boleyn girl† What caused her downfall? Gliederung: | Titel | | 1. 0 | Introduction | | 2. 0 | Anne's life | | 2. 1 | Youth and education | | 2. 2 | At the court | | 2. 3 | Queen of England | | 2. 4 | Downfall and Execution | | 3. 0 | Film â€Å"The other Boleyn Girl† | | 3. 1 | Plot | | 3. 2 | Analysis | | . 3 | Special Feature: The birth order | | 3. 4 | Cast and crew | | 3. 5 | Settings: Location and release | | 3. 6 | Scene analysis | | 3. 7 | Comparison grid | | 3. 8. | My personal review | | 4. 0 | Relationships | | 4. 1. 1 | Anne and Mary: In the film | | 4. 1. 2 | Anne and Mary: In reality | | 4. 2. 1 | Anne and Henry: In the film | | 4. 2. 2 | Anne and Henry: In reality | | . 3. 1 | Henry and Mary: In the film | | 4. 3. 2 | Henry and Mary: In reality | | 5. 0 | Conclusion of Anne's conflict:What caused her downfall? | | Anne Boleyn: Introduction: Once there w as a time between 1499 and 1507, somewhere in England , a girl was born. This girl was thought to be so insignificant and small, that nobody bothered to record the date, place or details of her birth. It was not until she was twelve that something at all was recorded about her. However, this girl was named Anne Boleyn, and even though she started small and powerless and destitute, she became one of the greatest influences on King Henry VIII. Anne Boleyn was one of the first non-royal women to become Queen of England, which caused quite a turmoil in those times. She was also the mother of Elizabeth I, one of the greatest monarchs in the history of England and of the world itself and a co-founder of the new English Church. In my opinion history is written by winners. Like any visionary Anne Boleyn lived on the success – as long she was successful. But also like all visionaries, she moved her life on thin ice. What she wanted to achieve and achieved, was not backed up by experience or role models. So far, there were always a risk, and ultimately she failed. Of course after her failure, her opponents tried to reinterpret her successes as the result of devilish machinations. In the end she was not the winner. Instead, she became the devilish witch who enchanted the king to disunite the English church. In the following I am going to consider Anne's life, always trying to understand why such a brilliant and well educated woman had to die so early. So the question I am asking here is,what caused her downfall? For that I will regard her life and the different relationships she had. So, I decided to do my paper on Anne Boleyn, because for me, she was an intelligent woman who â€Å"became one of the principal figures in a hideous melodrama, a corrupt and involute series of intrigues,in which the mores of her contemporaries are now difficult to assess† (S. 15, Hester W. Chapman, Anne Boleyn, London, 1974). It was not really her fault, that she, or possibly Henry VIII could not produce a male heir. I think Anne was neither a saint nor a devil,but she was a human being like everyone else with virtues and faults. That's probably why I admire her so much and tend to dislike critics who usually only see her faults. She was a modern woman in her own time and I bet if she lived in the 21st century she would have fit right in. 2. 0 Anne's Biography: 2. 1 Youth and Education: The tradition says, that Anne Boleyn was born in the Henver castle in the Weald of Kent. (Eric Ives, The life and death of Anne Boleyn, London, 2004). Nevertheless most historians believe that Anne was born at the Blickling residence, because it was their location around 1500. Assuming, that Anne was born around 1500, the historians could be right with their presumption, but if you start with a birth date around 1507, one would assume Henver Castle may well be the birthplace. (The Encyclopedia Britannica and the Dictionary of National Biography give the date of Anne's birth, as do several other historians, as 1507. ) Anne Boleyn was the daughter of Thomas Boleyn and Lady Elizabeth Howard and Anne was the maternal niece of the Duke of Norfolk. Anne's education began very early. Just with a few years Anne and her siblings had to learn what it means how to behave in the society. Their daily schedule was very well structured, so that there was not many time to play or doing nothing. Their daily practice includes learning several languages, for instance French, Italian and Latin, practicing dancing and playing instruments. â€Å"Music was the most important accomplishment, comprising the practice of lute, harp, ciol and virginals† (Hester W. Chapman, Anne Boleyn, London, 1974, p. 1) It was very important to the parents that Anne got a good education, so that she will get a good and hopefully noble husband. And Anne did well in her education. Her French was fluent at just a very early age. When Henry VIII's younger sister Mary Tudor got married to king Louis XII of France, Anne was allowed to accompany the young princess as a lady-in-waiting. The great change, made in October 1514, was a big step for her education. Meanw hile her sister Mary Boleyn, who was close to her sister in age, was educated at the Court of the Hapsburg Archduchess Margaret in Brussels. After a while Mary is sent to the french court, as well, so that both sisters became ladies-in-waiting. The sisters were taught impeccable manners and elegance, but music, poetry and dance, as well. (Wyatt, Extracts from the Life of the Virtous, Christian and Renowned Quenn Anne Boleyn, p. 2 ) During her early years in France Anne Boleyn acquired elegance and the sophistication of the French court. She also acquired her taste for beautiful and elegant clothes. Anne Boleyn returned to England after 7 years, which gave her a grand advantage in front of all the English ladies-in-waiting and mistresses. There she could impress with her new witty, intelligent and ambitious behavior. 2. 2 At Henry VIII's court (1522-1533): Hier fehlt eine Seite von ihrer Biografie. Die musst du nicht korrigieren :)!! 3. 0 Film: 3. 1 Plot: The romantic-drama movie â€Å"the other Boleyn Girl† portrays the famous era in England history during the reign of Henry VIII. The King desperately tries to get a male heir and not being terrified from divorce or execution, he plays with several lives to fulfill his wishes. At the same time there are the two Boleyn sisters, who reveals for the favor of the king. The Boleyn sisters were firstly important when Thomas Howard, the Duke of Norfolk and his brother in law and at the same time father of Anne and Mary Boleyn, plan to install Anne in the court and life of Henry VIII of England, because his own wife Katherine of Aragon fails to give England a male heir. The intention of the plan is easy: Becoming the King's mistress and potential mother of his son would further their own political ambitions. At first Anne refuses because she knows being a mistress can damage her reputation, but then she agrees to the plan. Meanwhile Anne's younger sister, Mary Boleyn marries William Carey, although he had asked for Anne's hand. Her father thought Anne could marry somebody of noble and offered Mary as a substitute. While visiting the Boleyn residence, Henry is injured in a hunting accident, which was indirectly caused by Anne, and is nursed by Mary. While being in Mary's care, Henry gets fascinated by her and invites her to his court. After some reluctance, Mary and William agree, because they know what is expected of her. Anne and Mary become Queen Katherine's new mistresses and Henry sends William away on an assignment for the royal court. Separated from her husband, Mary finds herself falling in love with Henry. Meanwhile Anne secretly marries the nobleman Henry Percy, who was already engaged to Mary Talbot. Anne is exiled to France in disgrace, because Mary tells their father and uncle to rescue the life and reputation of her sister. The men confront Anne, who argues that â€Å"what has been done before God can't be undone and that the marriage has been consummated†. Nevertheless the marriage is annulled and she is exiled to France in disgrace. Feeling that Mary betrayed her to increase her own status, Anne vows revenge. Mary becomes pregnant and of course the status of the family improves abruptly. However, Lady Elizabeth warns her family that favors of the king can be easily taken away, but nobody is listening to her. Thomas Boleyn becomes Earl of Wiltshire and George becomes Viscount Rochford and he against his will, George has to marry Jane Parker. When Mary is bedridden, her uncle Norfolk recalls Anne to England to keep Henry's attention to the Boleyns. With big successes Anne ensnares Henry and shows him that she is finally grown up. Henry so is fascinated by her, that he agrees to her request which includes that Henry is not allowed to neither see or speak to Mary or his own wive. Anne even gets Henry to break from the Roman Catholic Church when the Pope refuses to annul his marriage to Queen Katherine so that Henry can marry Anne. Finally Henry agrees with Anne's demands, breaks from the Roman Catholic Church. After that a new church is needed, so he declares himself Supreme Head of the Church of England, and gets Thomas Wolsey to annul his marriage to Katherine. The scandal of Anne's brief marriage to Henry Percy threatens her upcoming marriage to Henry until Mary, the only one Henry really trusts, returns to court and lies on Anne's wish, by telling the king that the marriage with Percy was not consummated. Being married to the King of England and pregnant, Anne needs every help which she can get, so her sister Mary is re-ordered to the court. Anne and Mary reach kind of a reconciliation and Mary stays with her sister at court trying to support her. Meanwhile Mary meets William Stafford, a brave soldier in the English army, and the two fall deeply in love. Although Anne gives birth to a healthy daughter called Elizabeth, Henry is mad at Anne's failure to deliver a son and legitimate male heir to the throne. For Anne's slowly decaying psyche his secret meetings with Jane Seymour are not helpful. After she loses a son after birth, a hysterical Anne begs her brother George to impregnate her since her own husband will not lie with her. First he is shocked, but knowing the fact, how important this son is for his sister, he agrees. When he accepts to help his sister, Mary runs away, because she is disgusted by them. However, George is not strong enough to make it and begins to cry before the siblings sleep with each other. So Anne decides that they should not sleep with each other. Nevertheless, George's wife, Jane, witnesses enough of their try to reports what she has seen and both Anne and George are arrested. Despite a lack of evidence, the two are found guilty and condemned to death for adultery, incest and treason. Mary returns to court to bed for her siblings' lives. Arriving too late to save her brother's life, who was already executed, she begs Henry to spare her sister, referring to Anne as part of herself. The king calms and tells her he would never harm any part of her. Believing that Henry would spared her sister, Mary leaves to see her sister. The two sisters embrace each other and truly reconcile with one another. Before she leaves, Anne asks Mary to promise to take care of Elizabeth if anything should happen to her. Mary watches from the crowd as Anne makes her final speech, waiting for the execution to be cancelled as Henry promised. A letter from Henry is given to Mary, which reveals he has decided not to stop the execution and save Anne. It also tells Mary that she was only spared because of his respect for her and warns her never to come to court again. Horrified, she watches as her sister is beheaded. Mary then fulfills her last promise to Anne and leaves court with the toddler Elizabeth. The closing captions reveal that Thomas Boleyn, disgraced and alone, died two years after Anne and George's executions. Elizabeth Boleyn died a year after her husband while The Duke of Norfolk was later imprisoned in the tower. The next three generations of his family – son, grandson and great-grandson were all executed for treason. True to her word, Elizabeth Boleyn never saw or spoke to her husband and brother again. Henry's break from the Roman Catholic Church changed the face of England forever. Meanwhile, Mary married William Stafford and lived happily with him and their children away from the royal court for the rest of her life. The captions also reveal that Henry should not have been concerned about leaving England with a strong heir because, in fact, he did: An heir who would rule England for forty-five years and transform it into one of the most powerful nations in Europe. However, it was not the son he desired, but the strong red-haired girl Anne gave him: Queen Elizabeth I. 3. 2 Analysis: In the following I will discuss some aspects in more detail, but not all, because most things as the plot or the individual relationships already occurred in the other texts. As the title of a film is always found at the beginning, I'll start with the consideration of it. The most special part of the title is that its meaning changes during the film. The term the ‘other' Boleyn girl is very vague and so the viewer has a 50:50 chance to guess who of the Boleyn sisters is meant by this term. In one of the first scenes, Mary's wedding, the audience gets to know who is the ‘other' of the sisters and it is Anne, because she says to her sister shortly before the ceremony that Mary is younger than her and more beautiful than Anne, as well. Moreover, Mary is married before her sister. That leads Anne to the conclusion that she is just the ‘other' Boleyn Girl. But during the film the owner of this term changes because soon after Mary got pregnant and Anne returned from France, the king has directed his attention to Anne. So Mary is sent away and becomes just the ‘other' Boleyn girl. But regarding the whole film it is obvious, that mainly Mary is meant by this description. That matches with the author's opinion towards the sisters. For Gregory it is too bad that most people have forgotten Mary Boleyn, just because she was pushed away through the other Boleyn girl. That was the reason why she wrote the novel from Mary's angle, as well. (http://www. philippagregory. com/work/tudor/the-other-boleyn-girl/philippas-quest-for-the-truth-about-mary-boleyn/). Nevertheless the film makers considered Natalie Portman and that means Anne as the first leading actress. Now I am going to describe the opening credits and how it is relevant for the whole. The film starts with a little race of the siblings when they were young. At the beginning Mary is first and Anne second, followed by their brother George. Then with a ploy that Anne cannot run so fast, Mary slowed her pace and Anne overtakes her sister and becomes first in the race. This little incident perfectly shows the history of the sisters' power relations. First Mary is the one who gets all the attention of Henry VIII, but that changes during the film when Anne appears at court and attracts all the attention. If you look at the two aspects again, one can easily see that it's actually all about Henry. If he feels attracted to Mary, Anne is the ‘other' Boleyn girl and after Anne appears again in his life, Mary takes over this term. That leads me to the film's theme. The main theme in the film is definitely power corruption. Both, King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn have such a drive for power that it becomes destructive for them in the end. The king would do anything, even murder, for getting a male heir and his wife Anne is not better. She even ruins the life of her siblings just to get what she wants. It is amazing enough that she really tries to become Queen of England and achieves it, as well. In a way both ultimately failed because Anne was executed for her not customizable lust for power and crazy ways and the king failed in producing a male heir. So actually he produced one and Jane Seymour gave birth to him in the end, but it was not the long-awaited successor. This part was already reserved for little Elizabeth, Anne's daughter. Blessed with all the good qualities of her family she ruled England to a whole new era and becomes the most important Queen of England in the entire history. 3. Special Feature: The birth order of the siblings: The most significant aspect of the comparison between the reality and the film would definitely be the order of birth. We can never really be sure about the real birth order, but through the years a number of different sources were found from which we can define the approximate dates of birth of the sisters. The parents of the siblings marrie d in 1500, so the two could not be born before that date. (Vgl. David Starkey, Six Wives, The Queens of Henry VIII, Random, 2003. ) Later historians tried to establish her birth date, but they always varied from the earliest possible date: 1500 (Vgl. Gregorio Leti(1630-1701), 1693. Historia overo Vita di Elisabetta, Regina d'Inghilterra. ) to 1507 (Vgl. :William Camden (1551-1623), The history of the princess Elizabeth, Flower-de-luce, 1675). It is handed, that Anne Boleyn had to be nearly thirty when she was executed in 1536 (Vgl. ) which would support the 1507 date, and when her body was exhumed in the Victorian period the archaeologists then thought she had been between twenty five and thirty at the time of her death. (Alison Weir, S. 167, The six wives of Henry VIII,1991, Groove Press), which would suggest a birth date of 1511. So we have a range of possible birth dates for Anne, in the eleven years from 1500 to 1511. We have no date of birth for Mary Boleyn at all, but since she was married in 1520, she would have been sexually mature at that age, so she could not have been born after 1508 (vgl. S. 40 ;Mary Boleyn-the true Story of Henry VIII's favorite mistress, Josephine Wilkinson, 2009). So the specific birth dates of the siblings are unknown, as is the order of their births. We only know that all three Boleyn siblings were close in age. (http://englishhistory. net/tudor/monarchs/boleyn. html). 3. 4 Cast and Crew: One of the leading role, Anne Boleyn, is played by Natalie Portman who was attracted to the role describing Anne as â€Å"strong yet she can be vulnerable and she's ambitious and calculating and will step on people but also feels remorse for it. â€Å"One month before filming began, Portman started taking daily classes to master the English accent under dialect coach Jill McCulloch. Ironically, Anne spoke with a French accent because she was raised in France. (http://www. girl. com. au/natalie-portman-the-other-boleyn-girl-interview. htm). Anne's sister Mary Boleyn is the other leading role and played by Scarlett Johansson. For the young actress the film was a big hurdle, because for her it is â€Å"such a melodramatic tale†. (http://www. dailymail. co. uk/debate/columnists/article-403137/Scarletts-Royal-scandal. html) The third leading role is taken by Eric Bana, who plays Henry VIII of England. For Bana this role was a great offer, because he describes the character of Henry as â€Å"a man who was somewhat juvenile, and driven by passion and greed†, and that he interpreted the character as â€Å"this man who was involved in an incredibly intricate, complicated situation, largely through his own doing† (http://www. ilmmonthly. com/paul_fischer_exclusive/bana_takes_on_kings_and_icons. html) Other characters (http://www. fandango. com/theotherboleyngirl_v353424/castandcrew): Jim Sturgess as George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford Kristin Scott Thomas as Elizabeth Boleyn, Countess of Wiltshire and Ormond Mark Rylance as Thomas Boleyn, 1st Earl of Wiltshire David Morrissey as Thomas Howard, 3 rd Duke of Norfolk Benedict Cumberbatch as William Carey Oliver Coleman as Henry Percy, 6th Earl of Northumberland Ana Torrent as Katherine of Aragon Eddie Redmayne as William Stafford Juno Temple as Jane Parker Iain Mitchell as Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex Corinne Galloway as Jane Seymour Bill Wallis as Archbishop Cranmer Crew: The film â€Å"The other Boleyn Girl† was directed by newcomer Justin Chadwick and the screenplay was adapted by Peter Morgan from the 2001 bestselling-novel â€Å"The other Boleyn Girl† by Philippa Gregory. Historical circumstances – by Gregory told in detail over 600 pages – can be reduced by screenwriter Peter Morgan on several obvious scenes. Even though, it reveals how women have been abused, but at the same time possessed of more power than many men had. http://www. cineman. de/movie/2008/TheOtherBoleynGirl/review. html) 3. 5 Settings: Most of the shooting took place in Kent, England, although the real Hever Castle was not used, which was the original household of the Boleyns from 1505-1539. For the Tower of London the Baron's Hall at Penshurst Place and the Knole House in Sevenoaks were used in some scenes, The home of the Bol eyns was represented by Great Chalfield Manor in Wiltshire, and other scenes were filmed at locations in Derbyshire, including Cave Dale, Haddon Hall, Dovedale and North Lees Hall near Hathersage. http://www. visitpeakdistrict. com/be-inspired/boleyn-girl. aspx). The world premiere was at the 58th Berlin International Film Festival held on February 7-17, 2008, but the film was released in theaters on February 29, 2008. The combined worldwide gross of the film was $75,598,644 more than double the film's $35 million budget. (http://www. boxofficemojo. com/movies/? page=intl&id=otherboleyngirl. htm) 3. 6 Comparison grid: The film | The reality | -Historical fiction | -Reality | Emotional | -Neutral and objective | â€Å"loose, airy fantasy-novel mentality † | Serious historical events | William Carey just disappears | William Carey dies of the sweat fiver | Characters and relationships are decorated and filled | Real behavior and characteristics of the characters are just assuma ble | Boleyn lineage: badge of honor (why? ) | Personal pride and historical importance | Mens' will: sexiness and power | Not handed | Incest relationship with George B. Inappropriate relationships with others, too | The spending time of the sisters in France is not mentioned | The time in France was very important for the education of the sisters | Anne is the older sister | The birth order is not proven | Mary is presented as a shy country girl | Mary is a lively girl | Mary had just an affair with the king | Mary had several affairs with some kings | Anne: not interested in religion | Supporter of the religious reforms | Anne's accusations seem to be right | It is proven hat they were wrong | Kind of â€Å"soap opera† | Real history | 3. 7 Scene analysis of the banquet scene: In the banquet scene from â€Å"The other Boleyn girl† the audience is introduced into the English court. To begin, I am going to present the plot of the scene. It is the first evening at cour t, so Anne and her siblings are going to the court's banquet. First Mary is nervous and unconfident but talking to her friend Stafford helps her to relax. Anne is still mad at her sister and family for deciding Mary to be the king's new mistress. It would not be Anne, if she would sulk for a long time. After a while, she has already chosen someone new to bewitch and enchant. So she tries to find a way back to be admired and for the admirer she picks no one else than the already engaged Henry Percy. They both flirt with each other. Meanwhile she is dancing with her brother, who has his own little problems. Jane Parker, a sneaky, insane and very loyal lady-in-waiting of Katharina of Aragon, has her eye on him. The problem is that he feels exactly the opposite. The harmon dance and flirty scene gets interrupted, when the king appears on the scene. He paves his way to Mary, just to tell her that he is expecting her tonight. Mary becomes pale and seems to be depressed. Moreover, Anne has observed the scene. Being hurt and mad by the behavior of the king and her sister she suddenly has no more desire to flirt with Henry Percy. In the banquet scene you can group the different persons. First, there are Mary and Stafford, who are talking to each other. Then there are Anne and her brother where one must add Anne flirting Henry Percy, flirting with Anne, and George observing Jane Parker. Of course you cannot forget the majesty, the king, but he is presented as a sole ruler without anyone around him, but guardianship. Less important and without text, you can notice Sir Thomas Boleyn, the father of the siblings, the Duke of Norfolk, their uncle and of course Mary's husband, William Carey. Now I am going to present the scene's function. One the one hand there is the obvious aim of introducing the court's world to the audience but the actual intention of this scene is definitely to show all the different relationships. This scene includes many prospects, as well, so that the audience can imagine for themselves what will further happen. First, there are Mary and Stafford. They will marry later in the film and move to the countryside again. Then there are Anne and Henry Percy. They will marry, as well, but in contrast to her sister's marriage this one will be annulled by Anne's father and Anne gets exiled for that. Then there is George, who will marry, as well, but different to his sisters, he is forced to that act by his family and the choice fell on none other than Jane Parker, the only woman he loathes. Now I will place the scene in the overall context. Being showed after half an hour, you cannot really say that it is at the beginning, but nevertheless it is the opening scene for the second part of the film, the time at the English court. As you can imagine, this scene is followed by the first night of Mary and Henry. Furthermore the balance of power will change soon, when Henry loses interest in Mary and turns himself to the ‘other' Boleyn Girl, Anne. Now I am going to present the cinematography of the scene. It starts with a close up of Mary Boleyn, whose face shows a curious expression and glides into a tracking movement which changes into a medium shot, because Mary walks deeper into the room and finally disappears in the crowd. The camera angle changes into a high angle camera to give the audience an impression of the whole banquet. Simultaneously it still tracks Mary. Then there is a close up of Sir Thomas Boleyn, because Mary meets him during her way through the crowd. She implies a bow and goes out of the shot, leaving a desperate Thomas in the picture. Turning into a medium shot, because Mary paused, the camera reverse-angel shot to show what Mary sees, and that are her siblings who talk to each other. Then there is a fast change of medium shots between Anne and George and Jane Parker, The siblings are talking about her, so the shot shows her as well, to give the audience an impression of her. Turning away from Jane, the shot changes to Mary again, whose finally stopped her way and is found by Stafford. The shot changes from medium to close on an eye-level shot, because there are too many dancing people around them. Talking about Anne and her flirting with Henry Percy the camera tracks Anne and shows close-ups of her smiling and Henry's fascinated face. The scene gets interrupted by a knock which announces the king's entry. It starts with a long shot, which changes into a medium, because the king walks towards the camera. Between the shot a close up of Anne's bewildered face is shown. Then the laughing Mary and her friend Stafford are shown in a close up. The laughing stops right away, when Mary discovers the king. After telling her the word â€Å"tonight† he walks away again and Mary's scared face is shown in a extreme close up. The camera changes again to show the audience Anne's reaction of this act. She seems composed, but with her behavior and her body language, which is shown in the medium shot, the audience gets to know that she is totally upset inwardly and leaves the stage. Then it changes to a close up of Mary's husband and her uncle. Both of them react completely differently. The Duke is proud that his plan starts to work and smiles but William Carey drinks the rest of his wine with one gulp and seems to be very desperate. The last shot is a close up of the satisfied face of the king. As he walks out of the shot the audience can notice a completely anxious and scared Mary. Her face is the last shot of the scene. The scene, like the whole film, uses an actually normal language. Of course, there is no colloquial language but also no real ancient language. To sum up, you can say that I have chosen this scene because I think that it is a good scene to get a good overview of all the different relationships. 3. 8 My own review: As far as I can see, the makers of the film did very well by adapting the novel written by Philippa Gregory. So, one can say that it is not their fault that the novel is more like a romantic drama, which consists mostly of sexual and emotional relationships. Every relationship goes through ups and downs and the entire movie consists of them. It presents how different relationships are established to each other and stand in the way of another. For me, the several relationships were implemented well and you could follow the course of the individual relationships very easily. What I dislike about the film is, that people who have no foreknowledge can not understand the film right away. There are too many names or incidents which stay unexplained. For example, the missing introducing of Stafford and the lack of explaining the family's rejection towards him. Or the fate of Mary's husband. I know it because I read the novel but most of the viewers can only guess that he died. One could assume that they skipped them because they are not important for the main plot but for me a good film somehow brings in all the details and guides the audience, so that it does not lose the track. All in all, one can say that the film is actually made very well because we still have to remember that this is fiction and made to be entertaining and keep the readers interest. As far as I can see one of the things that is most enjoyable about historical fiction is learning about characters and events we think we know and getting a completely different angle. Novelists have always had artistic license and should be allowed to interpret things in ways that entertain. If you want straight facts you shouldn't expect to get it from a work of fiction like this novel and the resulting film. That is what I learned through the work with the film and the novel. Having said that, Gregory knows her history and I for one trust her interpretations. It's also her right as a novelist to either stick rigidly to known facts or play with it as much as she likes. So I cannot criticize that the facts are actually totally different. I just can compare them. Peter Morgan, for his part, did his job very well by adapting the novel, because he neither changed the weight of the informations Gregory wanted to give her audience nor changed the period of the novel. The only thing he changed, and what could be criticized is the point of view. In the novel the story was told from Mary's point of view, but the film was more about everyone in the plot to get ahead using the sisters. To sum up, I can tell you that the film has succeeded really well and has remained the spirit of Gregory's novel. It is and remains a historical fiction so we have to look at it that way. 4. 0 Relationships: 4. 1 Anne and Mary: 4. 1. 1 in the film: Like we already concluded, the whole film is made on a very emotional level. The relationships of the different characters are definitely in the center of the film. Especially Mary's and Anne's. In the following I'm going to describe and analyze the totally different characters. On the one hand you can say, that there are characteristics, which do not change in the whole film, but on the other hand particularly Anne's behavior towards her sister changes from acceptance to jealousy, from love to hate. Of course, Mary is not so naive so that she does not customize her behavior but in the end you can notice that Mary still loves her sister and never stopped it. But let's start at the beginning. Mary's wedding with William Carey is the first incident which caused a breach in the relationship. For that you have to know, that in the film the birth order is arranged like this: George is the oldest, then comes Anne as the oldest sister and Mary was the last of the three surviving Boleyn children. So of course it is an insult and a humiliation for Anne that her younger sister is marrying before she is married. What Anne does not know, is that it was the aim of her father that his favorite daughter Anne marries somebody of noble. Through his eyes the viewer gets to know a lot of characteristics. To the father, Anne is smarter and stronger than her sister. Whereas Mary is the one with the friendly and uncomplicated behavior. For those days, she had all the properties a good and honest wife had to have. With her open-minded and naive ways, it is obvious that Mary loves Anne more than Anne loves her sister. Anne is always driven by jealousy because Mary is definitely the prettier one of them. The relationship gets another little break when Mary becomes Henry's mistress after Anne tried so hard to get his attention. Like the incident with Mary's marriage, it is so humiliating for Anne. Being at the Court just as ‘the other Boleyn Girl', is something which Anne can not accept. She focusses on other things and without the knowledge of her family she marries Henry Percy. Doing an inappropriate act like this, takes consequences with it. Anne is sent to France because her sister Mary betrayed her by telling their father about the marriage. Not because she wanted to be mean but more for trying to rescue the life and reputation of her beloved sister. The whole power relations changes in the middle of the film, where Mary gets pregnant and Anne's exile in France ends, so that she could come back to court to entertain the king and always remembering him of Mary. From that moment everything changes for Anne. With her new education she knows, how to act. She becomes provocative in a very amusing way, which pleasant the king. Mary is not longer necessary and the relationship of the two sister breaks totally when Henry does not take any note of his own son. When Anne becomes the Queen of England and Mary's presence at court is not longer important, she is sent to the countryside. Now and then she is re-ordered to court when Anne needs her help and each time she comes without being mean. She is always there to help. On the day of Anne's execution she even goes to Henry to beg for her sister's life. That shows, that Mary loved her sister until the end. After Anne's execution, Mary takes her niece Elizabeth with her to countryside to raise her so that she could fulfill Anne's last wish. Their relationship, how it is presented in the film, is the perfect one to show us, that it does not matter what you are doing to your sister or brother, you are always forgive them. Mary's whole life was taken by Anne and nevertheless she still stands there at Anne's execution to give her hope and take her fear away. 4. 1. 2 In reality: It is obvious, that the film just created this whole relationship's ups and downs. There are not any proven documents which include all this. (†¦ In reality of course everything is different. Like it is always. There was not this close relationship like it was presented in the film. For most historians Mary Boleyn was not such an important person in Anne's life. Phillipa Gregory, the author of the novel â€Å"the other Boleyn Girl† has a different opin ion. (Vgl: Seite meiner Facharbeit) Nevertheless, there are not so many facts about the relationship of the sisters but you can probably say that their relationship was not something spectacular because they did not spend so much time together. When Anne was at the french Court together with Mary Tudor, her sister still lived with her family. She moved to the court alone and then after several years (? ) Anne appeared there, too. I do not think that there was the whole rivalry like it was presented in the novel and in the film. That's probably because they never really shared the King. When Mary was his mistress, Anne was not even interested in him, but more in increasing her french education. After the liason Henry dropped Mary and searched for a new mistress. We do not know, if there were one or even more than one mistresses between Mary and Anne, so their paths have never really crossed (Vgl. ). After Anne became Queen of England nobody took care of Mary anymore. And that increases when Mary married her love Stafford. Knowing the fact, that it was forbidden for Mary coming to the court again, we can definitely say that she never returned. Not to convince Henry of Anne's innocence and virginity and not for her execution. That was just made up in the film ( ). Surprisingly, some characteristics stayed almost the same. From what we know, or I should say, from what we assume, Mary was the prettier sister of them but Anne could compete against her with her uniquely french education upon fashion and flirtation. She was a cultivated musician, singer and dancer. ((http://englishhistory. net/tudor/monarchs/boleyn. html). I can imagine, that their relationship was probably really close when they were young. The age difference was very small, so they were apparently educated together. Another instance could be that their family status in the society and at the court was not so high. The Boleyns were not destituted or poor, but not a member of the bourgeois society at all. (Vgl: S. 4 The life and death of Anne Boleyn, Eriv Ives, 2004). Knowing this fact, we can assume, that the children lived closely together in one house without having so much staff. Nevertheless, you can not say that Anne and Mary were best friends. But it is possible and assumable as well, because it is handed that Anne was the only person of the Boleyns who still loved Mary after all her liasons. Erlauterung: Mary had a not really confirmed affair with King Francis I of France and several others in France; the unauthorized marriage to William Stafford) From what I've gathered from various history books, Mary Boleyn was certainly not the enlightened 21st century woman that Gregory made her out to be. Mary was political ly simple and selfish. You could actually say, that there was a role reversal. In the reality Anne is the solicitous and protective one, whereas Mary takes over the part of the care-free and still fun-seeing sister. 4. 2 Henry and Anne: 4. 2. 1 in the film: Actually you have to split the relationships in the one between the King and his mistress Anne and the one between a husband and his wife. But I will regard the relationships as one to show who combining this two relationships ultimately leads to their fail. But let's start at the beginning. Henry first meets Anne at a visit in her father's house. There he is more disinclined because in his opinion she is too emancipated. On the chase he tries to be brave and had an accident which was caused by Anne. With her male behavior she reaches the opposite of what she actually wanted to get. All in all, her overtures ended when Mary is sent to the court to be Henry's mistress. After her secret marriage with Henry Percy, Anne was sent to France to learn how to behave as a young unmarried woman. Being back at court, Henry gets to know a whole new side of Anne. Now she learned how to use her strong emancipation, so that Henry is fascinated of her fresh, all new ambitious and strong kind. She acts as a very well behaved and educated woman. So you can really say, that she enchantes him in a fascinating way. Being the King of England, Henry can gets whatever he wants and is allowed to rule above everything. But Anne wants to be free and denies him. So I think, for the first time in his life, Henry had to chase after a woman so hard, but in the end he did not win Anne as mistress which was his actual aim, but as wife, which is actually hard to believe for those days. One can hardly imagine that a man who is so powerful and always seems so incorruptible, was so crazy after a woman that he separated a whole nation from the catholic church just to marry her just to sleep with her. I think there was never any kind of love, but more envy and desire and maybe a kind of affection. 4. 2. 2 in reality Anne is first noticed at the English court and from Henry when she played a part of Perseverance in the Shrove Tuesday pageant of 1522. (compare Anne Boleyn, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography,London, 1885). Henry fell passionately in love with Anne, and expected her to become his mistress. But rebellious Anne refused, which started a chain of events which ended in England's break with the Roman Catholic Church. Throughout history, people always have wondered why Anne held out for so many years before marrying Henry. It must have been a challenge, as Henry was King of England and very powerful. What made Anne behave so differently? There are several possible explanations. One involves Anne's love for Henry Percy. Another factor in Anne's refusal to become Henry's mistress was her sister Mary's involvement with the King. But Henry ended the affair when Mary became pregnant. All in all, Mary did not benefit noticeably from her relationship with Henry VIII. This undoubtedly was a factor in Anne's decision to withhold her favors from the King. Henry was determined to divorce Catherine and marry Anne. Catherine refused to give him a divorce, and the Catholic Church would not support Henry's position. So Henry founded the English Church. I doubt that there were a greater declaration of love in the entire world history. After achieving their goals, Henry and Anne expected to be happy. Unfortunately, this did not happen. They were both tired and edgy from the stresses of the past several years. In addition, Henry started losing interest in Anne shortly after he fully attained her favors. Henry also finally realized how much his marriage to Anne had cost him. A number of good people, including friends and associates of Henry's, had lost their lives due to loyalty and treason issues stemming from the English church's break from Rome. After a