To what extent and in what ways is Fitzgerald purely critical of Gatsby’s dreams?

One of the main themes of ‘The Great Gatsby' is that of dreams, none of which is more noticeable than Gatsby's own dream of five years in his pursuit of Daisy. What is less obvious is how Fitzgerald wants us to react to these dreams, and whether he is being purely critical of them or whether he in fact does also reveal some good in them. In this essay I aim to show that although in a lot of ways Fitzgerald is critical of Gatsby's dreams, for example by ensuring that Daisy can never live up to the vision of herself which Gatsby has created, he is not entirely disapproving and in several cases even goes as far as to suggest that dreaming is what makes us human. One way in which we may be unsure about Fitzgerald's presentation of Gatsby's dreams is whether they are meant to appear romantic or slightly pathetic. At face value it can seem to be extremely romantic that Gatsby has waited these five years and remained so loyal to Daisy, and I think that it this way Fitzgerald wants us to be on Gatsby's side. Gatsby himself is portrayed as being a very romantic character and this can be seen in his speech when he talks about the past, for example telling Nick that â€Å"His heart beat faster as Daisy's white face came up to his own. He knew that when he kissed this girl, and forever wed his unutterable visions to her perishable breath, his mind would never romp again like the mind of God†. Fitzgerald clearly is making Gatsby appear to be very wistful and dreamlike, and also is making us more sympathetic to him by making his affair with Daisy and his dreams appear to be very romantic. This would obviously cause the reader to sympathise more with Gatsby later in the book when everything falls apart, and I think that it is clearly true that Gatsby believes that his love of Daisy is very perfect and beautiful. However, this quotation could also be read that Gatsby is going too over the top and is trapped in the past by his dreams. Another good place to see this occurring is when Nick warns Gatsby that he cannot recreate the past and Gatsby replies with â€Å"‘Can't repeat the past? Why of course you can! ‘†. This seems like a very irrational thing for Gatsby to say and it begins us questioning what he really wants from his dreams, whether it is Daisy or just to have the past back as it was. Fitzgerald may be doing this to show Gatsby as a man who is just clutching at a past he no longer has and this may make him appear slightly pathetic. The exclamation mark gives him a sense of panic and questioning makes him appear to be almost incredulous to any other way of seeing the situation, which I think is more critical of Gatsby's dreams as they have blinded him to reality. Overall however, when it comes to romanticism or a slightly pathetic appearance, Fitzgerald remains quite ambiguous and leaves it more up to the reader to reach a decision by themselves. , Whichever way it is viewed however, I think in both situations we still have sympathy for Gatsby when his reality doesn't quite live up to the vision. When Fitzgerald comments that â€Å"no amount of fire or freshness can challenge what a man can store up in his ghostly heart†, I think that he is making the quite depressing point here that dreams will always disappoint in the end because reality can never live up to what you can dream of. This is quite a negative view of the outcome of dreams but is perhaps not entirely critical of the idea of having dreams and something to strive for in the first place. Although it may appear that Fitzgerald is condemning dreaming, I actually believe that in this case he may be more positive about it than it seems at first. The character of Gatsby is portrayed as a dreamer, and these aims and human feelings which he possesses ensure that he is much more of an attractive character than for example, Jordan, who has no such dreams or ambitions for the future and is often associated with words such as â€Å"lazy† and â€Å"cool†. This makes her seem a lot less human than Gatsby and we empathise with him far more, which I think Fitzgerald wants us to do. This suggests that Fitzgerald is supportive of ‘the dreamer' and tells us that he is not opposed to the idea of dreams in general. In fact he associates the illusion with the phrase â€Å"colossal vitality† which again evokes the idea that dreams are linked with the essence of being human and that Fitzgerald views Gatsby's dreams with something other than pure criticism. One of the main criticisms which Fitzgerald does have of Gatsby's dreams is the materialism inherent with them. To gain Daisy's affections, Gatsby accumulates extortionate wealth and belongings to attract her, and Daisy herself represents something of the materialistic upper class which Gatsby strives to become a part of. This is very concisely put when Gatsby says of Daisy â€Å"her voice is full of money†. Daisy's voice has particular prominence as a motif throughout the book but at this point it is almost a leit motif as it gains meaning. All we can judge Daisy by is her voice, we never know her thoughts or what she is really thinking as what she says is usually quite empty. By saying that her voice is full of money, Gatsby is pinpointing that superficial charm which she has and perhaps even that in being entranced by her voice he has actually fallen for her wealth. This is an extremely critical way of looking at Gatsby's feelings and we probably don't want to believe it of him, but I think we can see it very clearly in Daisy, especially when she sees his Gatsby's house for the first time. In her exclamation of â€Å"that huge place there? † and her reaction to the extravagant wardrobe, we can see that Fitzgerald is showing Daisy as well as Gatsby to be very focussed on the material and the possessions. I think that this is a point Fitzgerald wants to make on the subject of ‘The American Dream', of which Gatsby's own dream is quite symbolic. As Americans, the characters would have been brought up to believe that they could strive to achieve anything and, in short, that nothing was out of their reach. Fitzgerald is not only questioning the belief in this, but also the means of getting to it and is making a point about how society has taken this dream to be something materialistic and to do with what you can own, rather than more spiritual or meaningful dreams. In respects to materialism I think that Fitzgerald is almost purely critical of Gatsby, as what he appears to be searching for is not just Daisy but the entire social and economical class which she represents. Another interesting way in which Fitzgerald portrays Gatsby's dreams is by making Daisy seem quite an unworthy person to long for. Although, as said in the previous paragraph, she is superficially very beautiful and rich, there appears to be very little under the surface and she tends to talk in quite empty and fantastical phrases such as â€Å"I'd like to just get one of those pink clouds and put you in it and push you around. † In that case Fitzgerald's alliteration of ‘pink', ‘put' and ‘push', as well as the polysyndeton, make her phrasing seem childish and simple – not really that of someone who could be relied on for a long lasting relationship. In some ways we may think that Fitzgerald is criticising Gatsby's dreams at this point, after all it seems worthless that he would have spent all this time loving someone who is in fact not worth it at all. This is incredibly clear to us after we see Daisy's awful behaviour after the accident when she drives away without stopping, and in a way we can see her treatment of Gatsby as quite similar to this, driving along with him, leaving destruction in her wake and escaping away as fast as she can. In this way Fitzgerald is being very critical and it could seem as if his message is that no matter how much you love someone and dream about them, they could just as easily let you down and run away. I think that there is also a slight positive side to Fitzgerald's choice of making Daisy an unworthy dream, as it shows that everybody can be loved by someone, however this is not very strong as Gatsby does not love Daisy with her faults, and rather it seems that he is just immune to seeing her flaws. Fitzgerald in fact, is probably somewhere in between these views; he is not directly attacking dreams or even Gatsby's dreams, but he is more in this case attacking Daisy's character. Although it may be a large lack of judgement skills on Gatsby's side, we cannot blame him entirely and again we still feel sorry for him when Daisy does eventually let him down. Overall I think that it is clear that there is a strong sense of ambiguity when it comes to Fitzgerald's attitude to Gatsby's dreams. However, I feel that the main point he wishes to make is that there is nothing wrong with dreaming, you just have to be careful when choosing your dreams that what you are longing for is actually worthwhile and won't end up hurting you more than it can make you happy. In Gatsby's case his aim appears to be more to make us feel sorry that he was so misguided in his choice of dream, rather than to berate him for dreaming at all.

My School and Its Teaching Environment Essay

In my school, the teaching environment is very good for teachers and especially for the students. When you see the school, at first you will say â€Å" wow! Excellent facilities, playground for teachers and students, cozy cafeteria and a library with good ambience where you can study comfortably, all classrooms are air-conditioned, enough computers for students with the ratio of 1:1 with internet connection. Each student has internet password as well as the teachers and staffs. The school used Fiber Optic line for internet (this is part of my work where I maintain the internet connection for the whole school). In my first 2 years in this school, I was assigned in Middle School but this year I was transferred to Elementary Department as Head of Information Technology including repair and maintenance with 24 hours a week teaching load for students from grade 1 to 5 (too many works hehehe) forgot to mention at the same time I am one of the administrators for TOEFL (Test of English as Foreign Language) exam. Every year, especially year-end everybody is waiting for contract renewal, thinking who will be renewed and who will say goodbye. If someone will leave then we are thinking who will replace them. Why? Simply because we are waiting for another teacher who will introduce another technique in teaching or I simply put it this way for new teachers: If you can’t beat us, then join us†¦ hahahahaha! The Culture of this country (Thailand) is almost the same in our country (Philippines) when it comes to being hospitable and respecting other people. They have great respect with each other especially with the old ones. In my school, students develop respect and tolerance for all others, regardless of religion, race, or class. One of the most distinctive Thai customs is the wai. Showing greeting, farewell, or acknowledgement, it comes in several forms reflecting the relative status of those involved. Generally, the salutation involves a prayer-like gesture with the hands, and it also may include a slight bow of the head. This salutation is often accompanied by a serene smile symbolizing a welcoming disposition and a pleasant attitude. Thailand is often referred to as the â€Å"Land of Smiles† in tourist brochures. There are a number of Thai customs relating to the special status of monks in Thai society. Due to religious discipline, Thai monks are forbidden physical contact with women. Women are therefore expected to make way for passing monks to ensure that accidental contact does not occur. A notable social norm holds that touching someone on the head may be considered rude. Pointing at or touching something with the feet is also considered rude. In every activity we do whether it is curricular or extra-curricular, we always align it to their culture if this is acceptable or not. But since we do have native speakers, sometimes they don’t even care about the culture. They always say that â€Å"Everybody knows what Thailand is† (for them most of the Thai women are slut, people have already changed) but somehow these native speakers must learn how to adapt into this environment. Yes, maybe that is their perception in this county and they forgot that they are Teachers. Teachers should give moral values and educate them in proper way. One of the problems of this school and even this country, discrimination between Asian and English Native speakers are very obvious. Sometimes they just use these native speakers as front of the school but most of the teachers are Asian who are more dedicated to work and yet under paid compared to these native teachers. Our administrators are composed of Executive Director (owner), Associate Executive Director, Business Director, Curriculum Coordinator, Student Support Coordinator, Principals and PTA. PTA in this school is very active in every. If we have activities either curricular or extra-curricular, the parents are always there to support us. Just to name a few for extra-curricular activities: 1. Students vs Teachers and Staff football match 2. Teachers and Staff vs Parents football match 3. Teachers, Staff and Parents vs Military Personnel Football Match 4. Teachers and Staff Football Match These are some interesting extra-curricular activities that everybody loves to see. Because even the owner of the school also plays in this event. We do have some curricular activities such as: 1. Debate in English(I’m the coach) 2. Debate in Thai 3. Public Speaking 4. Spelling 5. Story Telling 6. Quiz bee

A Study of factors affecting moving forward

To properly critique this article, many guidelines are considered which include: data analysis and findings, discussion of the implication/recommendations, the statement of he problem, a literature review, hypothesis or research questions, description of conceptual/theoretical framework, research designs, sample and population, explanation of data collection and measurement, and explanation of procedures. Introduction Spinal cord injury (SIC) is a traumatic and devastating event in any person's life (Chem., 2013).Spinal cord injury might be partial or total, but whichever type can cause impairment of physical mobility leaving those affected with challenges of coping with rehabilitation. However, current treatment entities to focus in the provision of care in the acute stage and the prevention and (Chem., 2013) treatment of complications (Chem., 2013). SIC continues to impact the lives of those affected and their families socially, physically, mentally, and spiritually. Independence t o the greatest ability of the patient is a long-term goal.By providing a multi-disciplinary team to treat a patient, it gives additional professional support to allow a more rounded, stronger, and more positive recovery. Although many scientists are studying nerve regeneration and conducting stem cell research (Chem., 201 3) for the retirement of SIC but the cure is still a long way off (Chem., 2013). However, self-perception, age, self-efficacy are factors influencing individuals with SIC to successfully moving forward without withdrawing from the society.Patients who effectively learn to cope and work with disabilities can then have a positive self-perception and achieve optimal self-efficacy. Today, asking questions, seeking answers, and implementing evidence-best practices will advance and guide how care is provided for the SIC patient with the goal of a more enriched life post-injury. Rehabilitation assists the individual to achieve he highest possible level of self-care and in dependence. This study was conducted in Taiwan, so it is vital to study the behaviors, cultures, and definitions when reviewing the literature.Varying health beliefs on illness and behavior are expected. The difference does not mean that the study is invalid or negative. The research design for this quantitative article Was a descriptive-correlation, cross-sectional study. They studied the relationships between â€Å"moving-forward behavior† and how it relates to age, demographics, and disease characteristics (Chem., 2013). Three characteristics were combined o define â€Å"moving-forward behavior: self-efficacy, self-perception, and social support.

Business letter Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Business letter - Assignment Example The duties of my current project include maintaining the road and infrastructure in the town (including the tasks of road repairing, snow clearing, grinding gravel roads in summer, cutting grass on town property, etc.). My team has been working very honestly in my supervision, but some problems have been encountered in the management of the work load effectively resulting in getting over budgets and hiring more labors. Firstly, the winter season of the town is very severe for the laborers, as some of them belong to warm regions leading to their inefficiency at the work place and frequent medical issues specially reporting high fever and cold. To fill the gap of absent laborers, new laborers could be hired to replace them. Secondly, the Christmas event is very near, but the work load is more than expected because of more snowfall in this season than before. To complete the projects before the Christmas event, overtime shifts are introduced, which has caused over budget expenditures. Thirdly, the provided machinery for weather related problems was not working efficiently to control the freeze drainage culverts related issues. There was the need of high pressure steam machine, which was not available. So, the extra expenditures were spent on the purchase of new steam pressure parts for freeze drainage and ice on the

Response to the Discussion by Tamika Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Response to the Discussion by Tamika - Case Study Example It is essential to develop trust and partnership with the wife of the patient for strengthening and supporting that family through expected and unexpected life events. Therefore, it is important to help Maureen in supporting the interest of the family and she should be given the right guidelines regarding cancer communication. "The family is a significant factor in the health and well-being of individuals, and promotion, maintenance, and restoration of families are important to society's survival." (Registered Nurses Association of Ontario, 2006). Thus, as a nursing practitioner, I would help the wife of the patient to understand the relevance of effective cancer communication and I will collaborate with her in determining the most impeccable resolution regarding this communication. I will convince Maureen not to rush to any futile conclusions and that we will support her in every possible way to offer the best solution to the issue. Thus, after the collaborative discussions and eval uations of the possible courses of actions and their consequences, I will help Maureen to take the right decision regarding the information being withheld from her husband. In her discussion of the specific case provided, Tamika makes some essential points regarding effective cancer communication to the patient and the issues related. At the very start of the discussion, Tamika mentions the possibility of the errors in the decision of Maureen to withhold the information from the patient, while she accepts the situations leading to the wife’s decision.  Ã‚  

Homosexuality - Nature versus Nurture Research Paper

Homosexuality - Nature versus Nurture - Research Paper Example The truth is in understanding the nature concept; this is a concept that looks at how it is a specific gene combination within the body of a human being that makes him the way he is when he is born. It is these genes at the time of birth of a person that decides his sexual orientation rather than anything else. Therefore, people are born queer or gay rather than becoming gay during the course of their lifetime. In keeping with the statements and views made by the American Psychological Association, it has been noted that â€Å"Research suggests that the homosexual orientation is in place very early in the life cycle, possibly even before birth. It is found in about ten percent of the population, a figure which is surprisingly constant across cultures, irrespective of the different moral values and standards of a particular culture.† Therefore it is the belief of such associations as well as some independent scientists, that it is the gene make of different factors within the body, linked with the hormone secretions of a particular fetus that determines the final orientation of the baby at the time of its birth (or even before, when it is in the womb). On the other hand, the nurture concept talks about an entirely different aspect of being a homosexual. According to this concept, some people become gay during the course of their lifetime. They change their sexual preferences according to the kind of environment they live in, and according to the kind of surroundings and atmosphere they are subject to. For example, it is very likely for a young boy raised by only women (May it be in foster care, or lesbian parents, or simply having more women family members than male) to start behaving like women around him. By the time the boy is an adolescent or even older, all his preferences and tastes develop according to the likes of the women he has grown up with, and thus he begins to give rise to feelings of being effeminate. Therefore, this is how a person is ‘made’ gay rather than being born gay, all because of the influence of his outer surroundings and the external atmosphere.  

Political Scandal - Power and Visibility in the Media Era Literature review

Political Scandal - Power and Visibility in the Media Era - Literature review Example In contemporary politics and wider society, the story of a reputation or career undone by the publication of a scandal is familiar, but a key question is whether or not this phenomenon should be left to the tabloid journalists. I am inclined to agree with Thompson that the field deserves serious study. He was writing in the aftermath of the Bill Clinton sex scandal, and given the huge implication of that affair on American confidence in the President, and the way in which it gripped the attention of readers and watchers worldwide, the presence of the political scandal as a cultural phenomenon is worthy of study. Thompson acknowledges that for many academics, scandal constitutes ‘the froth of social and political life’ (2009, p.5), and can obscure the ‘real’ political and social events – the things really worthy of study. As he goes on to argue, scandal is one of these events, and should be considered ‘a social phenomenon in its own right’ (2000, p.6). From this solid starting point, Thompson embarks on a survey which ranges widely chronologically, if not, and this is to be regretted, geographically, and raises important questions about the role of media outlets in shaping contemporary political and public debate, and the changes in communication media that have brought scandals to the forefront on political life. What could have dissolved into an encyclopaedic treatment of notable political scandals ends up as a tight and thoughtful analysis, as the author undertakes a thorough analysis of the nature and importance of political scandals, and develops some theories as to their consequences. In the first three chapters he deals with the nature of scandal, and for the duration of the work he analyses scandal as a phenomenon and tries to explain their prevalence. In doing so, Thompson is to be commended for the wide range of sources used. His research was clearly exhaustive, covering not only traditional print media, bu t also biographies and autobiographies of key players in scandals, and television broadcasts, committee reports, and historical works. His scholarship is formidable and evident throughout. Thompson openly concedes that his account is limited, by and large, to scandals in the Anglo-American world, but gives little justification for this. He certainly remains within his area of expertise at all times, but this study could have benefited from parallels drawn between scandals in the UK and America and those which have unfolded elsewhere. Certainly, the Anglo-American political scene seems peculiarly susceptible to political scandal, perhaps because of the nature of its intrusive media. However, the second part of this book, in which Thompson develops an analytical framework and reflects on the issues raised, would have benefited from some comparisons with scandals elsewhere. Perhaps the role of scandal in post-war Italian political instability, or its role in discrediting some African p residents, would have been pertinent subjects for further exploration. Nevertheless, within the parameters he sets for himself, Thompson produces an effective and comprehensive work, and the framework he sets out for classifying, identifying and theorising about political scandal could doubtless be applied beyond the Anglo-American experience. Thompson traces back the etymological origins of ‘scandal’ to its Judaeo-Christian roots, and carries it through to its first appearances in English in the 16th

Shopping For Theoretical Perspectives at Wal-Mart Essay

Shopping For Theoretical Perspectives at Wal-Mart - Essay Example However, delving on Wal-Mart’s vision reveals its latent function of improving the well-being of consumers. A few centavo savings while seem so small and unnoticeable, may substantially accumulate in time and contribute to â€Å"the prosperity pool† (Kennon). Controlling the market, however, implies power over the consumers. Wal-Mart’s ability to decide what goods they sell appears to be a social dysfunction because of its discretion to discard locally produced services and goods (Preet). However, this dysfunction becomes itself a trigger for social change as it challenges the smaller stores and local producers to compete, thereby improving the quality of goods and services. Wal-Mart has likewise been viewed as implicating a class struggle. The lower, middle and higher classes maintain their status not because of the price factor but because of Wal-Mart’s control over their workers. If you try to examine the employees inside Wal-Mart, you cannot help but n otice the workers as the force that runs the entire establishment, yet outside you will hear how the company keeps them non-unionized. Low prices equate low wages for its employees, thus creating a continuous cycle of exploitation of the workforce, which in turn reinforces social inequalities. While Wal-Mart tapped into a fertile market for high profit—the poor (Heyer 2), it has simultaneously contributed to class conflict as the â€Å"poor gets poorer and the rich richer†Ã¢â‚¬â€the lower class being its source of low-wage manpower. It is, therefore, Wal-Mart’s social responsibility to improve conditions of employment and raise the level of social aid to the poor: starting with its workers. Ameliorating inequities begins with modifying its ways: welcoming unionization as a key to social change.  

Similarities and differences in Crane and Dreiser's practice of Essay

Similarities and differences in Crane and Dreiser's practice of realism - Essay Example It is therefore pertinent to analyze the similarities in Crane’s practice of realism and that of Dreiser, while showing the differences that exists between them in the process. The two authors try to show the reality of living in an urban setting and the experiences of people living in the cities. The two of them usually talk about the experience and challenges faced by women living in the society and in the case of Maggie: A Girl of the Streets and Sister Carrie, they talk about the experience of women living in the urban society and the consequences that comes with them living in the urban society. The two authors depict life as a normal process. It is pertinent to note that the two authors have shown that one basic principle to live in the urban world is to be fit as they show the animalistic survival of the fittest principle in their works. The difference that exists between the works of Crane in Maggie: A Girl of the Streets and Dreiser in Sister Carrie is in the ability of one of the authors to integrate emotions into his work.While Crane took cognizance of the people living in the urban settings with a consideration for their yearning for sympathy (Crane), Dreiser does not in any way consider any form of pleadings for sympathy or moral judgment (Dreiser), and this is the major difference between the depiction of realism by the two writers in the works considered.

Social work- serious case review practice issues Essay

Social work- serious case review practice issues - Essay Example ppened, it would also be that such events occurred because these guardians themselves were mentally-incapacitated to provide comfort and support to the children (Lyons-Ruth, et al., 2004, p.70). In this regard other agencies could have mitigated the effects of the debilitation of the parents or caregivers of children, by having them assess the capability of these adults to provide care and support (Phillips, 1997, p.609). Most often agencies such as social welfare, schools, health practitioners and other authorities are able to give provide the necessary assistance to children in high-risk families or neighbourhoods, and the help are able to give positive results, especially when the children in question are provided with proper medical attention as well as psychiatric counselling (Faver, et al., 1999, p.90). However, there are also times when these same agencies are unable to work together in solving cases of child maltreatment or neglect, especially when the parents or guardians involved are rather resistant to any outside help, which could result to the children getting injured or even ending up dead (Rzepnicki & Johnson, 2005, p.393; Wulczyn, et al., 2010, p.5). Such events are likely to be the result of the miscommunications or the lack of correspondence among agencies, as well as not understanding how the interrelationships between welfare agencies could prevent occurrences of children getting injured inside the home. Such a case has been documented by the Birmingham Safeguarding Children Board, when a child in a rather problematic family died due to onset of infections that were attributed to lack of proper nourishment, among other things (Radford, 2010, p.5). In hindsight, the problem could have been alleviated if the agencies which were attending the family were much more proactive in truly finding out the state of the family, as well as the ability of the mother and the partner adult to care for the children. However, the communication gaps between the

Forensics as a Crime Scene Investigator Essay Example for Free

Forensics as a Crime Scene Investigator Essay Thesis Statement Forensic is a field of that deals with psychology and the law. Forensic is defined as the intersection of psychology and the law. Forensics is the application of science to questions which are of interest to the legal system. For example, forensic pathology is the study of the human body to determine cause and manner of death. Introductory Paragraph Forensics will be my area of study where I will have to determine the cause and manner of death. As a Crime Scene Investigator, I will be scouring a crime scene for evidence. This is a science, and a field that has a growing in importance. Michigan State University has the nation’s oldest and largest forensic science program. As a Crime Scene Investigator you have to collect, analyze, walk through a virtual crime scene where a murder has occurred, and estimate when the victim was murdered. Then construct a report dealing what I have uncovered and offer an estimated time of death. After I graduate from EVC University I will pursue a career as a Crime Scene Investigator. I will be in charge of investigating Crimes scenes, collecting and analyzing evidence and testifying in court in when needed. I will have to go through law enforcements organizations that have been trained or gone through special certification courses. As a CSI investigator I will be specializing in areas of forensic science. Crime Scene Investigators have to be able to collect and analyze evidence. CSI have to be able to work in a stressful environment hazardous work conditions. You must be available at all times no matter what time of the day. CSI have to perform technical forensic analysis. I will have to be thorough and accurate to document a crime scene including evidence that I have collected so that officers and attorneys can use that evidence for solving and prosecuting crimes. CSI has to work regular hours sometimes they have to work longer hours if not overnight to solve a crime scene. (Hineman, 2011) Crime Scene Investigators annual salary $55,040 which means they make $26.46 hour. Some agencies offer bonuses which mean that another $5,000 can be added to your salary. Some agencies require a four year degree but not all. CSI requires educational requirements in chemistry, and anatomy, and criminal law. (Hineman, 2011) References Merriam-Websters Dictionary with Thesaurus. (n.d.). Zane . Zane Publishing. Google. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.wikipedia.com Hineman, G. (2011, July 10). MSN. Retrieved from ehow.com: http://www.ehow.com/info_8715626_forensic_scene investigator-job description

American Japanese Internment Camps Essay Example for Free

American Japanese Internment Camps Essay 1.0   Introduction Japanese Americans refer to all Americans of the Japanese heritage who were born in Japan or the descendants of those who were born in Japan. Initially, they were the largest Asian American group but currently they are sixth largest group in those of mixed race and mixed ethnicity. The largest group of these people is found in California while others are distributed in other states such as Washington, New York, Illinois and Hawaii.   Although every year there is quite a considerable number of Japanese immigrants who enter United States, the net migration still remains low since the older Japanese Americans still leave United States and go back to their original country, Japan. Japanese Americans have a long history in the United States since history records that the first group arrived American in the late 1800s.   In the year 1942, the United States government forced all the Japanese Americans and the Japanese who had settled along the Pacific Coast to relocate to war relocation camps which were referred to as internment camps.   Since the internment camps resulted from the presence of Japanese Americans, this research shall first focus on their history and later discuss about the internment camps. 2.0   History of Japanese Americans in the 19th Century United States has ever been known as the country of immigrants as a result of war, food shortages and political persecutions in other countries where the immigrants hail from. Japanese people happen to make a large percentage of the immigrants, and as highlighted earlier, they began to migrate in to the United States from the late 1800s.   The main cause of the immigration of the Japanese was to work in the sugar plantations which were established along the Pacific by traders who had settled in the Hawaiian Kingdom. The sugar industry had grown tremendously as it was aided by the Americas civil war in the year 1861-1865, and that called for more workers after the Hawaiian population was decreasing due to disease. Other workers were leaving the plantations for better work, and as a result the Hawaii’s foreign minister sought more workers from Japan. Consequently, in the year 1868, the first one hundred and forty nine Japanese immigrants arrived in Hawaii.   Since they were not used to the harsh conditions in the region and all the hard work in the sugar plantations, about forty of them returned to Japan. The rest went ahead and even intermarried with the Hawaii residents. The first Japanese immigrants in to the Hawaii gave formed the Japanese American community.   In the year 1886, the Japan and the Hawaii signed labor convection after which a lot of Japanese migrants arrived to Hawaii as contract workers and some went to California as student laborers.   According to the studies of Niiya and Japanese American National Museum-Los Angeles, Calif. (1993), the Japanese migration to Hawaii was mainly labor migration which intensified following Chinese exclusion from the United States in the year 1882.   It also involved emigration back to Japan and also to West Coast. It was halted by the Gentlemen’s Agreement in the year 1908 and finally by the Exclusion Act in the year 1924. 2.1   Reasons for the Japanese Migration to America Although most of the Japanese went to America for the contract labor, some still had others reasons. For instance, some just followed their parents like the case of one teenage girl who narrates that she just followed her dad. In another case, a woman followed her spouse after he had stayed for quite some time without returning back to Japan. Though she had thought that they would make enough money and return home, they ended up settling there permanently. Student’s immigrants also made a good number of Japanese Americans especially in San Francisco. In the year 1890, there were about three thousand Japanese students in America. Since they did not have enough money for their upkeep and studies, they resulted in to working in the plantations to earn extra money. Consequently, they ended up living in very poor conditions and one newspaper described them as â€Å"poor students and youths who have rashly left their native shores. Hundred of such are landed every year, with miserably scant funds in their pockets†¦Their objection is to earn with labor of their hands, a pittance sufficient to enable them to pursue their studies in language, sociology and politics† (Niiya Japanese American National Museum (Los Angeles, Calif.) 1993 pp. 3). 2.2   Japanese Americans Life in the Early 20th Century Contrary to what most Japanese had expected, life in America was quite hard for any one else other than the Native Americans.   The life and the work were made difficult by the banks, labor recruiters, and the immigration agents who used to charge Japanese immigrants extortion fees. In addition to the economic exploitation, the Japanese Americans also used to face racial discrimination. The social attitude, laws, and practices limited and excluded them from enjoying life fully, liberty, and also property. The salary that they were getting was barely enough to sustain them, leave alone saving money to enable them go back to Japan.   Most of them wished they were back in Japan like one worker who used to be paid fourteen dollars a month and out of those dollars, he used to pay more than half for the sleeping quarters. The rest was spent in buying food and other personal use.   In such a situation, it was practically hard for such a person to save enough money that would have enab led him to go back to Japan. As a result, majority were eventually forced to settle completely in America (Niiya, Japanese American National Museum (Los Angeles, Calif.) 1993). 2.3   1941-1945 The harsh living conditions of Japanese Americans continued to worsen as the years progressed.   In the year 1941, the situation worsened further especially after the Japan attacked and damaged the Pearl Harbor. The Americans accused the Japanese Americans of collaborating with Japan and as a result, they betrayed America. Since every one had started spreading rumors of how the Japanese Americans had helped Japan in the war, the whole of the American population started to have a bad altitude towards them.   As a result, many people started to propose for their removal from the Western States, as they feared Japan might attack them from West Coast although Japan did not have such plans. However, other Americans had other reasons for their removal since some coveted their farms. The groups who were pressing for the Japanese Americans removal from the West Coast continued to increase as groups like Anti-immigration Organizations, Chambers of Commerce from every city, and the American Legion joined the rest who were pressing for the same. The major reason why the Americans wanted the Japanese Americans removed was mere hatred other than the reasons that they were giving initially. Henry McLemore, one of the San Francisco Examiner was quoted to have said that â€Å"let us have no patience with the enemy or with any one whose veins carry his blood.† He continued to say that â€Å"I personally hate Japanese† (Spickard 2009 pp. 106). Still, some politicians continued to express their sentiments towards Japanese as some said that it was impossible to know whether they were loyal or not and were often referred to as inscrutable Orientals. With such hatred, it was obvious that the Japanese Americans were not going to escape relocation. The decision of relocating or imprisoning the Japanese Americans was made in the Washington D.C. by the administration of Roosevelt guided by the military leaders. They were arguing that it was of military necessity to do so, though they were not able to demonstrate that necessity. The military leaders believed that Japanese were dangerous regardless of whether they are loyal or not. Moreover, they continued to argue that even giving them citizenship was not to help in any way, since that would not change their nature. Despite the fact that there were a few protests who argued that they had already jailed all the dangerous Japanese Americans, the administration went ahead and made the decision to remove all of them from the West Coast. Studies of Spickard (2009) record that on 19th February 1942, President Roosevelt issued executive order 9066 that empowered the Secretary of War, Henry Stimson, to designate military areas with an aim of excluding Japanese Americans from the West Coas t. As a result, Arizona, Washington, Oregon and California were divided in to two military regions and the Japanese Americans were prohibited from western parts of the states and some inland sections. Following the order, some of the Japanese Americans started to move towards east with their belongings and family. However, moving with such a short notice was almost impossible for them and many American did not want them to settle in their territories. They were continuously harassed, and due to this, they continued to move to the east.   One governor from Idaho was quoted to have said that â€Å"The Japs live like rats, breed like rats, and act like rats. We do not want them buying or leasing land or becoming permanently settled in our state† (Spickard, 2009 pp.107). When voluntary migration failed to produce desirable results, on March 27, DeWitt stopped it and put travel restrictions on the Japanese Americans in the military zone. In addition, the army decided to move all of them in the concentration camps. 3.0   Concentration Camps The concentration camps were the barbed wire enclosures where the Japanese Americans were moved to after the executive order was issued in the year 1942, to bar them from residing in the West Coast parts of America. Though there had been camps earlier in the history of America, these camps were exceptional because a whole ethnic group was forced to reside there. Since Japanese Americans were passive by nature and accepted anything that was imposed on them, as some people argue, they did not resist moving in to the camps neither did they move out of the same without an order. Some people planed to resist legally though much was not derived from the same, since it did not stop them from being evacuated from their places. Studies of Spickard (2009), record that during the evacuation day, one hundred and twelve thousand Japanese Americans were taken to the evacuation camps. The camps were of very poor conditions since it is recorded that even the ground was wet especially on the day of evacuation. There was no adequate light and the rooms were very small. The environment was not favorable either since it was hot during the day and very cold at night. Whichever the case, they had no alternative but to stay in the barbed wire enclosures. The ten camps were located at different locations particularly in the interior west, in the isolated desert areas. Some of the camps were located at Amache, Minidoka, Poston, Manzanar California, Jerome, Tula lake California and Heart Mountain. After evacuation, only six Japanese Americans remained in the local hospitals since they were seriously sick.   Since they were living communally, all facilities were being shared by about two fifty people. Given that the conditions in the camps were not conducive at all, around one thousand and two hundred left the camps when they were given the chance of joining the US Army. Although many of the Japanese Americans had become desperate and frustrated at first given that some of them even attempted suicide, they later decided to adapt to the life of the camps. Each camp had a government owned farm land that was leased to them; they engaged in agricultural activities and produced poultry and dairy products. The cost of food was not high and other services like the medical cares were provided free of charge. Education was also offered free of charge up to the high school level and majority of the internees were recruited as teachers and others were trained to fit in the employment programs that were available at the camps. 3.1   Japanese Americans Life after Relocation from Concentration Camps After January 1945, all people were finally allowed to leave the internment camps.   The Japanese Americans were given the identification card and they were told that once they presented them to the authorities, they would be allowed to go back to their homes. However, though the government had allowed them to leave, they were still afraid of the Americans for they were still hostile towards them. Even the people who received them were similarly harassed by the rest.   One man who had returned to California in May after the executive order was removed was quoted to have said â€Å"Everybody was afraid of being attacked by the white people. The war was still going on at that time and prejudice and oppression were very severe† (Niiya Japanese American National Museum-Los Angeles, Calif., 1993 pp. 19) as he described the situation. Moreover, on top of racial discrimination and other forms of harassment, the Japanese Americans still went through a lot trying to rebuild their lives once again. 4.0   Conclusion The Japanese Americans are among the many immigrant groups found in the United States. Since the late 1800s nearly half a million Japanese immigrants have settled in America and more than twice of that number today claim Japanese ancestry.   Although they went to America being optimistic that they would work hard and establish themselves, some of these dreams were never realized. Some thought that after making some money, they would go back to their motherland which never came to be since life in America was characterized by a lot of economic hardships. In addition, they faced a lot of prejudice and were discriminated against. The worst came to worst during the Second World War when all the Japanese Americans were forced in to camps with no apparent reason –other than being of the same ancestry with the America’s enemy, Japan. The relocation camps which were located far from the West Coast were characterized by the poor living conditions.   Since the year 1942 when the Japanese Americans was relocated to the internment camps, they were able to go back after the year 1945 when the executive order was finally removed.

Psychotherapy with Franco Americans: Ethnicity Analysis

Psychotherapy with Franco Americans: Ethnicity Analysis I have always been detached from my bloodline, my heritage, my multi cultural experience. I have always felt like a mixed breed without strong cultural identity or tradition. I have been told that I have Native American, French Canadian, Scottish, Irish, and German ancestors. I always held on to that 1/16 Native American Cherokee line that passes through my maternal grandfather by his ‘full blooded’ Cherokee grandmother. The medieval Conwy Castle in Wales that traces my namesake, Conway, to a Welsh castle built for Edward I in 1280s has always sent me dreaming of a royal heritage. Yet my white identity development requires my racial self-awareness. To be a competent multi cultural counselor is to know thyself and ask, â€Å"What does it mean to be white?† In beginning my white identity research, I reconnected with family members and have found that actually I am not the queen of a castle or Cherokee princess but that the majority of my heritage is recorded as far back as 1400 France. My father recorded the long line of French ancestors and then settlers that travelled from France to New France. Franco American cultural identity presents an opportunity to explore the construction of white ethnicity in North America (Langellier, 2002). I am Acadian. The name Acadia was first used by the French to differentiate the eastern side of New France (Nova Scotia) from the west which began with the St. Lawrence valley and was named Canada (Doughty, 1922). Where Acadia ended and Canada began was never clearly defined and thus became the cause of French and English conflict for several decades. The Francois Coste family of my paternal grandmother, hails from the Martigues, Maraseille area of France. The Coste family migrated to Port Royal, Nova Scotia between 1672-1695 according to family documents. The family of Jean Fougere, with wife Marie Bourg, a branch from the same paternal grandmother came from the Diocese of Orleans, France, migrating to Cape Breton Island between 1691-1720. Prior to my ancestors travel towards Acadia, settlements appeared to thrive, â€Å"In 1667 Acadia was restored to France from English rule and by 1685 the population had doubled† (Doughty, 1922). In 1670, the King of France designed a law to increase the population of New France: â€Å"any household who had ten living children all under one roof would receive a yearly pension of 300 pounds from the government†. The population doubled every two decades and the legacy of the large French family endures (Langellier, 2009). Peace wasn’t to last, 1690 saw the outbreak of another Anglo-French war and in 1702 Queen Anne of England declared war against France and Spain. Despite war, the population of Acadia had grown to about 2,100 people by 1710, and â€Å"they were a strong, healthy, virtuous people sincerely attached to their religion and traditions. The most notable singularity of their race was stubbornness. The Acadians were content with the product of their labor and having few wants, they lived in perfect equality and with extreme frugality† (Doughty, 1922). In 1713, The Treaty of Utrecht set at rest the question of the ownership. Cape Breton, Prince Edward Island and the other gulf islands were in the hands of the French while Nova Scotia or Acadia was passed to the British crown† (Doughty, 1922). The Great Diaspora of 1755 left Acadians completely unprepared for the devastation to come. â€Å"By the King’s orders you are convened to hear His Majesty’s final resolution in respect to the French inhabitants of this his province of Nova Scotia†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Thus it is peremptorily His Majesty’s orders that all the French inhabitants of these districts be removed; and through His Majesty’s goodness I am directed to allow you liberty to carry with you your money and as many of your household goods as you can take without discommoding the vessels you go in. I hope that in whatever part of the world your lot may fall, you may be faithful subjects, and a peaceable and happy people.† -given at Grand-Pre, 2nd September 1755 John Winslow (Doughty, 1922) Now deprived of all they held dear, the French were sent adrift as wanderers and exiles (Doughty, 1922) and my ancestors were sprinkled throughout the Acadian province in Port Royal, St. Peter’s, Cape Breton Island, Annapolis Royal, Ile Royale, and Port Toulouse. Some were brutally deported from eastern Canada to the Atlantic coast of the United States (McGoldrick, Giordano, Pearce, 2005). Deportation and exile did not bring peace to Nova Scotia. The Acadians who sought refuge in the forests and in Cape Breton joined with their Indian allies in guerilla warfare against the British and there became more killing and destruction from Indian raids than ever before (Doughty, 1922). The Acadians suffered severely. Families and colonies were separated and torn apart, spread among New England and as far south as Louisiana, an estimated 6,000 peoples deported and scattered among British colonies and merged into the general population with a lost identity (Doughty, 1922). The history of Franco Americans is described as â€Å"silenced, forgotten, lost, sold, abandoned, translated into English, absorbed, deported, or conquered, still often too poor or working-class, keeping to ourselves, staying out of sight, on the move. And ashamed of ourselves† (Langellier, 2009). In Canada, the French were admonished to ‘speak white’ by British who overheard them using their mother tongue in public, a racist form of ethnic shaming. (Langellier, 2009).Characteristic of oppressed people in colonized countries and with significant parallels in the developed world is the ‘culture of silence’; oppressors in the dominant culture attempt to ‘silence ’ through education and other institutions (Hanna, Talley, Guindon, 2000). Yet in Nova Scotia, the Acadians were missed by the oppressive British. In 1761, then lieutenant-governor wrote ‘it appears necessary that the inhabitants should be assisted by the Acadians in repairing the dykes for the preservation and recovery of the marsh lands, as the Acadians are the most skillful in the country’ (Doughty, 1922). The Treaty of Paris, in 1763, brought about peace between France and England and put an end to French power in America. The Acadians were no longer considered a menace and many were able to descend home. The persecution and exile from Nova Scotia required the French Canadians to hide from the English in a psychological sense. â€Å"They lived apart and turned in upon themselves in isolated rural settings, dominated culturally as well as religiously by the Catholic Church, they led simple lives and had minimal education† (McGoldrick, Giordano, Pearce, 2005). My Fougere and Coste families settled for over 200 years in Atlantic Canada between 1670-1890s. â€Å"Some Acadians were to wander as exiles in many lands for many years, separated from their children and from their kind, while others, more fortunate, were soon to regain their native soil† (Doughty, 1922). The earliest movement in my family history documents a return to Nova Scotia recorded in 1784, 30 years after the English had exiled the French. My great grandfather, Jeffrey Elias Levangie, was born in Havre Boucher, Nova Scotia in 1885; he the family heir that migrated to Boston, Massachusetts in the early 1900s to raise his Franco American family. â€Å"The people of Massachusetts loved not Catholics and Frenchmen; nevertheless, they received the refugees with especial kindness† (Doughty, 1922). Franco American neighborhoods became known as ‘little Canada’‘les petits canadas’, the safe community where French Canadians congregated upon emigrating to the United States. Les petits canadas were barricades against assimilation, especially the against the English language, Protestantism, and the dominant Irish Catholic hierarchy (Langellier, 2009). Franco Americans have been shaped by Catholicism, by their language, by dedication to family and work, and by a conservatism that arose from their rural roots (McGoldrick, Giordano, Pearce, 2005). They kept their faith, language, and culture as an ethnic victory. Their ethnic survival is named la survivance, the passionate effort to maintain French identity in North America. Through sheer stubbornness, French pride, and a long memory, la survivance focused on language retention, strict allegiance to the Catholic Church, parochial schooling and ethnic social organizations (Langellier, 2009). Church power secured French identity through its hold on education, by parochial schools unifying language, faith and customs. These schools anchored the neighborhoods, reproducing rural villages in urban settings to create resistance in assimilation (Langellier, 2009). This devotion to the French language and Catholic faith made Franco Americans the targets of religious hostility and racist attacks. In the 1880s and again in 1920s, French Catholics were the target of cross burnings by the Ku Klux Klan (Langellier, 2009). Always a hardworking group, even the British could not deny their resilient efforts. The French would â€Å"do and make do†. It was said â€Å"in our lives nothing is thought, everything is done† (Langellier, 2009). By the 1940s, the Franco community was largely working class in the United States (Langellier, 2009). Despite their work ethic, if we were to take the state of Maine as a relative sample, we would see that Franco Americans lag the rest of the population in earnings and education according to the 2010 census data. Among older French Americans, there is a strong connection between pride in culture and economic success (Long, 2012). Today, Maine’s largest ethnic populous is of French descent, however more than 98 percent of Mainers classified as Franco-American were born in the United States, and â€Å"the French language is no longer central to Franco identity (Long, 2012). Of those coming of age Franco Mainers 82% expressed doubts about the value of c ollege and yet 19% identified themselves as unemployed. One clear poll showed how having one family member attend college, spurred others to value education. This has increased emphasis on programs that honor Franco-American heritage and culture toward economic benefits (Long, 2012). The North American French embodies a cultural identity that has persisted for 400 years, enduring as a ‘quiet presence’ of Franco Americans. Franco Americans are twice immigrants, first from France to New France and then from Canada to the U.S. (Langellier, 2009). 200 years of discrimination, oppression, and poverty have shaped the Franco American culture and character that ‘yokes ethnic pride with ethnic shame’. Within the white ethnic hierarchy, Franco Americans have been at the bottom (Langellier, 2009). As recently as the 1980s, young children were place in speech therapy to ‘correct’ their accents writes langellier. Franco Americans tend to distrust even other ethnic groups that have been the target of prejudices as they have suffered abuse and discrimination, the survival of Franco Americans is in their spirit of endurance (McGoldrick, Giordano, Pearce, 2005). President Clinton’s race advisory board concluded that racial legacies of the past continue to haunt modern policies and practices that create unfair disparities between minority and majority groups (Sue, et al., 2007). Franco Americans have experienced distinct racial disparities and micro aggressions including: alien in one’s own land, ascription of intelligence, denial of individual racism, anthologizing cultural values, communication styles, second class status and environmental invalidation. â€Å"Oppression is related in some way or another to most of the problems presented to counselors† (Hanna, Talley, Guindon, 2000). For effective counseling to occur, states Sue, et al (2007), a positive coalition must develop between the counselor and client and working with clients who differ from the therapist in race, ethnicity, religion, culture and sexual orientation can pose special challenges. Franco Americans emphasize conformity, respect for authority and institutions, family loyalty, religious traditions, hard work and emotional self-control (McGoldrick, Giordano, Pearce, 2005).Anger is often a hidden emotion within the family and is either not allowed or vented passive aggressively; when anger does erupt, silence, slamming doors, or self punishment are common expressions(McGoldrick, Giordano, Pearce, 2005). Today the French speaking population in this country is concentrated in mainly the northeast and in Louisiana, yet it is the third language group in the united states. Counselors in these areas have a primary need to raise their cultural consciousnesses about the French American experience(Hagel, 1978). In France, counseling looks very different than in the US. Professionals in the fields of counseling have different qualifications and often act as either vocational counselors or counseling psychologists (Bernarud, Cohen-Scali, Guichard, 2007). The word ‘counseling’ in French is often misunderstood. The closest translation is ‘conseil’ which literally means advice. For the French, counseling is far removed from the idea of therapy. Counseling is sometimes scorned and absent from some mental health manuals, at times presented as a quick fix remedy. (Bernarud, Cohen-Scali, Guichard, 2007)and Counseling psychology textbooks commonly referenced do not exist in the French language. (Bernarud, Cohen-Scali, Guichard, 2007) Little has been published on psychotherapy with Franco Americans. (McGoldrick, Giordano, Pearce, 2005) The increasing federal support for French bilingual education programs and dissemination of Franco oriented publications point to the need for the study of Franco American culture. This study can greatly enrich the cross cultural experience of the counselor and client as well as foster renewed self awareness and pride. (Hagel, 1978) The French have a long history of self help. Personal problems were considered too intimate to share with a therapist ‘stranger’. Working the problem out on one’s own or tolerating it is still a common ethic. Franco Americans are tentative in therapy and interventions may take time. The more pragmatic a therapists advice is, the more likely the client will return. Given the family’s apprehension and resistance, the therapist’s ability to establish rapport is paramount. Franco Americans have traditionally led private lives, characterized by persistence, â€Å"a spirit of independence and resourcefulness† (McGoldrick, Giordano, Pearce, 2005) The most common defense mechanisms are denial, displacement, sublimination and rationalization. They may have a tendency to scapegoat, assume the martyr. the therapist may begin ‘intensive brief therapy’ only by the third or fourth session when the qualities of ‘survivance’ persistence, endurance and tenacity have been invested in the therapeutic bond. Crisis brings a need for practical behavioral solutions and A cognitive behavioral approach tends to be effective. (McGoldrick, Giordano, Pearce, 2005) Most French ancestors rarely wish to discuss their ethnicity in treatment, according to mcgoldrick,et al. (2005). And reject an early emphasis on ethnicity in family therapy. However, if the therapist refuses to acknowledge the significance of racism or ethnicity in treatment, the alliance between therapist and client will breakdown. The willingness to discuss racial matters is of central importance in creating a therapeutic alliance. (Sue, et al., 2007) it is often pointed out that when clinician and client differ from one another along racial lines, the relationship may serve as a microcosm for troubled race relations in the us. (Sue, et al., 2007) often unintentional micro aggressions occur that pose the biggest challenge to the majority of white mental health professionals that have not developed their own white identity and are unintentional an unconscious in expressing their bias. Cultural competence requires racial self-awareness. (Sue, et al., 2007) As a result of having litt le or no awareness of their ethnic history, Franco Americans ‘make family sized stories into group sized stories† an over generalizing that takes away from their history and cultural identity. (Langellier, 2009) There is a correlation between cultural pride and success, With traditional institutions — such as the church, workplace and family — that passed along cultural knowledge from generation to generation losing influence, integrating studies of Franco-American cultures, would be beneficial because â€Å"having a strong sense of who you are and where you come from means you’re more likely to be successful,†(Long, 2012) Being cognizant of white racial identity development to identify racial micro aggressions as nearly all interracial encounters are prone. (Sue, et al., 2007) Bibliography Bernaud, J., Cohen-Scali, V., Guichard, J. (2007, January). Counseling Psychology in France: A Paradoxical Situation.Applied Psychology,56(1), 131-151. doi:10.1111/j.1464-0597.2007.00281.x Doughty, A. G. (1922).The Acadian Exiles, A Chronicle of the Land of Evangeline(Vol. 9, pp. 1-161). Toronto, Canada: Glasgow, Brook Company. Hagel, P. L. (1978, April). Resources for the Teaching of Franco-American Culture.The Modern Language Journal,62(4), 182-186. doi:10.2307/324353 Hanna, F. J., Talley, W. B., Guindon, M. H. (Fall 2000). The Power of Perception: Toward a Model of Cultural Oppression and Liberation.Journal of Counseling Development,78(4), 430-439. doi:10.1002/j.1556-6676.2000.tb01926.x Langellier, K. M. (2009, May 22). Performing family stories, forming cultural identity: Franco American Memere stories. Communication Studies,53(1), 56-73. doi:10.1080/10510970209388574 Long, R. (2012, September 25). Franco-American Mainers lag rest of state in earnings, education, new analysis shows.Bangor Daily News. Retrieved from http://bangordailynews.com/2012/09/25/news/state/franco-american-mainers-lag-rest-of-state-in-earnings-education-new-analysis-shows/ McGoldrick, M., Giordano, J., Pearce, J. K. (Eds.). (2005).Ethnicity and family therapy(3rd ed., pp. 545-553). New York, NY: The Guilford Press. Sue, D. W., Capodilupo, C. M., Torino, G. C., Bucceri, J. M., Holder, A. B., Nadal, K. L., Esquilin, M. (May-June 2007). Racial Microaggressions in Everyday Life: Implications for Clinical Practice.American Psychologist,62(4), 271-284. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.62.4.271 Figure 1: https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/Acadiensis/article/view/18761/20563

Economics of Tobacco Sales :: Economics Essays

H1 States with Smoking Bans and Cigarette Sales Each year 440,000 people die, in the United States alone, from the effects of cigarette smoking (American Cancer Society, 2004). As discussed by Scheraga & Calfee (1996) as early as the 1950’s the U.S. government has utilized several methods to curb the incidence of smoking, from fear advertising to published health warnings. Kao & Tremblay (1988) and Tremblay & Tremblay (1995) agreed that these early interventions by the U.S. government were instrumental in the diminution of the national demand for cigarettes in the United States. In more recent years, state governments have joined in the battle against smoking by introducing antismoking regulations. In a research article by Gallet (2004), several aspects of the clean indoor-air laws were closely examined. Set apart from other literature on the same topic, Gallet (2004) proposed that the degree of enforcement of these laws was just as important as the laws themselves. States that maintained the most restrictive clean-air laws encouraged much more competition within the cigarette industry; hence prices were adjusted closer to marginal cost which caused the availability of supply to increase (Gallet, 2004). Conversely, Keeler, Barnett, Manning, & Sung (1996) concluded that the price adjustment closer to marginal demand could be explained as an attempt to compensate for the reduction of demand caused by the antismoking laws. Regardless of the opinions of the papers on this aspect of the clean indoor-air laws, both agreed that state regulations that prohibit or limit smoking in public places decreased the cigarette demand. Extraneous variables, excluding state smoking restrictions, may influence state cigarette sales. State cigarette sales may be influenced by â€Å"bootlegging,† identified as the crossing of state lines to purchase cigarettes in a state that sells cigarettes at a less expensive price (Gallet, 2004; Meier & Licari, 1997). Gallet (2004) identified â€Å"bootlegging† as Nprice, or the minimum neighbor state price ($). As stated previously, Gallet (2004) examined not only states with clean indoor-air laws, Clean1, but also the degree to which these laws were enforced within the individual states, Clean2. The consensus of the reviewed literature, those both including and excluding the extraneous variable, found that the institutions of state smoking bans affect cigarette sales. Discussion The results of this study are consistent with the overall literature’s findings (Gallet, 2004; Meirer & Licari, 1997) that states with smoking bans have a decrease in cigarette sales. However, caution is warranted in the true reliability of the data presented in this study, because of the nature of the data.

Free Essays On Shakespeares Sonnet 118 :: Sonnet essays

Analysis of Sonnet 118 Like as, to make our appetites more keen, With eager compounds we our palate urge; As to prevent our maladies unseen We sicken to shun sickness when we purge: Even so, being full of your ne'er cloying sweetness, To bitter sauces did I frame my feeding; And, sick of welfare, found a kind of meetness To be diseas'd ere that there was true needing.j Thus policy in love, to anticipate The ills that were not, grew to faults assur'd, And brought to medicine a healthful state Which, rank of goodness, would by ill be cur'd: But thence I learn, and find the lesson true, Drugs poison him that so fell sick of you. This is another sonnet that Hieatt found to share certain similarities with Spencer's _Ruines of Rome: "In Sonnets 118 the conceit of health 'rank in goodness' anticipating and thus precipitatin sickness mirrors, first, Ruines 10--the 'rank seed' who destroy themselves--and, second, Ruines23--the Roman people 'impatient of pleasure's faint desires,' becoming the matter of their own fimes, 'as in a vicious body gross disease / Soon grows through humor's superfluity'." Having a possible source for this sonnet, we will now move to a paraphrasing of the sonnet. 1-2: 'In order to make our appetites more aware (of taste), we convince our palate by ingesting stimulating dishes'; 3-4: 'In order to prevent unforeseen sickness, we purge ourselves [Ingram/jRedpath note, "The old-fashioned purges were very powerful, and could indeed make people feel extremely ill"], to make that sickness feign, yet become sick by doing so'; 5-6: 'As this is, I apportioned my diet to unsavory dishes [base company] from being (so) full of your substantial sweetness'; 7-8: 'And, overindulged in happiness, I found a [requisite] jusxtaposition of becoming diseased (from the purging) because I was in need of, 1) the sickness, or 2) your love [or both]'; 9-10: 'Thus, it is a sly [almost overly-sly] strategy in love, to anticipate the malefactors that are not always thought of, which grow into affirmed faults'; 11-12: 'And make a "healthful state" of me available to medicine which, gross [almost with a sense of glutton] with goodness, would be cured by the malefactors:' 13-14: 'But from this I learn, and find the lesson [moral] true, that the drugs that poisoned him [identity unknown; possibly in general] are the same ones that made me fall (love) sick for you'.

Timeline 1945-1964 :: essays research papers

1945 Ho Chi Minh and his People's Congress create the National Liberation Committee of Vietnam to form a provisional government following the surrender of Japan to Allied forces and Japan transfers all power to Ho's Vietminh. President Roosevelt dies Making good on his threat to unleash "...a rain of ruin the like of which has never been seen on earth...," President Harry Truman authorizes the dropping of two atomic bombs on Japan -- one on Hiroshima on August 6, and a second on Nagasaki on August 9. The Japanese surrender. Ho Declares Independence of Vietnam. British Forces Land in Saigon, Return Authority to French.1946 France recognizes Vietnam as a "free state" within the French Union. French troops replace Chinese in the North. Negotiations Between French and Vietminh Breakdown. Indochina War begins. 1947 Vietminh move north of Hanoi. Marshall Plan announced. French General Etienne Valluy attempts, and fails, to wipe out the Vietminh in one stroke. 1949 Bao Dai and President Vincent Auriol of France sign the Elysee Agreement. As part of the agreement the French pledge to assist in the building of a national anti-Communist army. NATO formed. Volkswagen introduced in US. 1950 Chinese and Soviets offer Weapons to Vietminh. Record heist in Brink's robbery. When Communist forces from North Korea invade the Republic of South Korea on June 25, President Truman appeals to the United Nations to take action. The UN quickly brands North Korea the aggressor, and Truman follows up by sending US air and naval support to Korea immediately thereafter. The United States sends $15 million dollars in military aid to the French for the war in Indochina. Included in the aid package is a military mission and military advisors. 1951 Ho Chi Minh creates Workers' Party. Truman dismisses General Douglas MacArthur . Worst floods in US History inundate Kansas and Missouri. 1953 France grants Laos full independence. Rosenbergs executed for Espionage. Vietminh forces push into Laos. 1954 A force of 40,000 heavily armed Vietminh lay siege to the French garrison at Dienbienphu. Using Chinese artillery to shell the airstrip, the Vietminh make it impossible for French supplies to arrive by air. It soon becomes clear that the French have met their match. Supreme Court rules on Brown v. Board of Education. Responding to the defeat of the French by the Vietminh at Dienbienphu, President Eisenhower outlines the Domino Theory: "You have a row of dominoes set up.

ABC Healthcare Company Essay

Healthcare companies, like ABC Healthcare, that operate as for-profit entities, are facing a multitude of challenges. The regulatory environment is becoming more restrictive, viruses and worms are growing more pervasive and damaging, and ABC Heathcare’s stakeholders are demanding more flexible access to their systems. The healthcare industry is experiencing significant regulatory pressures that mandate prudent information security and systems management practices. Furthermore, the continued pressure to reduce cost requires that management focus on streamlining operations, reducing management overhead and minimizing human intervention. The regulatory focus at ABC Healthcare is on the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX). Both pieces of legislation highlight the need for good systems administration and controls, but focus on different aspects of the business. The main focus of HIPAA is to protect personally identifiable health information while SOX is concerned with data that impacts financial reporting. Violations may be met with both civil and criminal penalties. Therefore, the company must be ever watchful of new threats to their systems, data, and business operations. The most prevalent security related threat to on-going business operations is the continued development and propagation of viruses and worms. Virus and worm prevention or containment is a vital component to the overall risk mitigation strategy. Virus and worm outbreaks have multiple cost aspects for the company including lost patient charges due to system unavailability, lost productivity because of recovery efforts due to infection, and potential regulatory impacts depending on the virus or worm payload. However, the company must balance risk with opportunities in order to serve the stakeholders and grow the business. ABC Healthcare’s stakeholders include multiple groups that depend on or need access to clinical and/or financial systems in order to help support and grow the company. The access requirements and associated risk model varies by user group. The main access groups are internal only users (i.e. nurses, hourly employee, etc.), internal/remote users (i.e. salaried employees, doctors, etc.), and business partners (i.e. collection agencies, banks, etc.). Risk mitigation solutions must be developed for each user group to help ensure that the company recognizes the benefit that each group brings and to minimize the risk to business operations. The high-level management goals of the network design implementation are as follows: †¢Support the business and balance security requirements without introducing significant overhead and complexity; †¢Maintain and enhance security without significantly increasing management overhead or complexity; †¢Implement systems that are industry supported (standards where appropriate), scalable, and fault-tolerant; †¢Ensure that the design is implemented to help ensure compliance with any and all applicable regulations; †¢Proper management of access control for legitimate users and malicious users is of the utmost importance for the security of the ABC Healthcare management system. The threat is not limited to outside malicious users but also legitimate users engaged in illegitimate activity. Based on the above description you are to provide a recommendation of how you would address each of the following ABC Healthcare’s computer network security requirements. Note, whereas cost is typically an important factor, this is not a consideration for this case analysis. Therefore, you do not need to include cost estimates. Your solution should have the â€Å"right feel†, despite the lack of depth or details necessary to be accepted by upper management. Be specific in your answers. Write them as if you were writing a proposal to your boss. You do not need to include citations. Since you are developing a solution to a specific circumstance, material that is copied from an outside source will not likely fit so everything should be in your own words. 1.Describe your vision for addressing the security requirements in the  overall technical design of the ABC Healthcare network. This should include both internal and external (untrusted and trusted) aspects. Untrusted would include user connectivity to the Internet. The â€Å"trusted† network has the main purpose of supporting the business functions of known entities (i.e. partners, suppliers, etc.) which have a business relationship with the company. Note that you are to concentrate on the high level, and you are not expected to provide low level details for your recommended design. (40 points) A threat is defined as â€Å"a potential for violation of security, which exists when there is a circumstance, capability, action, or event that could breach security and cause harm† (Stallings & Brown, 2008, p. 13). In essence a threat is a possible danger that may reveal vulnerabilities. There are many threats associated with online services especially when you add in personal information. The first threat to ABC Healthcare that should be identified is the â€Å"continued development and propagation of viruses and worms† In the development phase of the network design program managers has to ensure not only that there will be antivirus software which will be ran continuously (maybe a network scan done daily after hours) but also ensure there are intrusion prevention and intrusion detection systems (IPS/IDS) in place that would identify network intrusions. A simple antivirus software like McAfee is easy to use and will not drastically increase their budget which in my opinion would be the first balanced approach. Although they may have to pay a little more for other services to ensure a proper IPS or IDS many companies (including the Navy, uses SNORT which is an open source product). Another area that will have to be identified deals with both trusted users and untrusted users and that is unauthorized disclosure which in essence is the ability for someone to gain access to information which they shouldn’t be allowed to view. This does not always have to be malicious in nature as it could simply be a glitch in the system which allows a user the ability to view others information indirectly. We also can’t rule out the threat of deception, when dealing with medical information you want to ensure a patients privacy is kept as just that, private. To gain access hackers can pose as someone who should have access to a system. This could be accomplished by simply calling a help desk and providing them with  information and having them reset your password (which is one reason why I am glad we finally did away with the infamous â€Å"mothers maiden name† security question†¦well for the most part). The third threat would be disruption which would challenge system availability and in some cases the integrity of the system. This threat could be carried out in numerous ways; one would be a denial of service attack which would prevent users from accessing the website. Some more basic disruption techniques could be simply damaging network devices or even theft. Overall to prevent or reduce such threats ABC Healthcare will have to take the different defense-in-depth strategy (people, technology, operations) into consideration. Vulnerability is â€Å"a flaw or weakness in a system’s design, implementation, or operation and management that could be exploited to violate the system’s security policy† (Stallings & Brown, 2008, p. 13). One example of a vulnerability to this system would be system performance. A slow running network is just a useless as one that is unavailable and as such will usually result in users opting to find other means to conduct business. Although I can understand the importance of keeping the cost of network security low at times you will have to remind yourself that you get what you pay for. It is paramount that ABC ensures they have well trained and qualified IT personnel to run their networks (hence my further education into the cybersecurity field) Not only do you have to ensure you have qualified and well trained IT support personnel you have to ensure that each user (employee) that is operating the system is well trained. The biggest threat to a network system is the end user as such they should be trained as to what to look out for such as social engineering. Social engineering could be simple questions asked to a user that they feel are innocent in nature but really provide information to someone who they think would be using the information to help them but in essence be using the information to deceive the user to gain access to network resources or patient information. Additionally, I would first ensure there is some type of disclaimer provided that the user would have to acknowledge stating something to the effect of: the passing of medical records or privacy information is not recommended  unless you can for certain ensure the person you are passing it to will use the information as agreed. Though I am sure it could be written a tad bit better it’s important that users know even though they’re on a secure site their information could still be leaked and disseminated. By having this in place, if something were to happen IT personnel can refer back to this acknowledgment page as issues arise. To protect patients or other groups that utilize the network outside of the ABC Healthcare organization such as collection agencies and banks, along with the above disclaimer I would ensure that the website utilized port 443 for secure connectivity. Although it can still be breached and users can still become victimized, it adds an extra level of security and prevents sniffer attacks. 2.Discuss the way you will address requirements for system monitoring, logging, auditing, including complying with any legal regulations. (15 points) The first thing ABC Healthcare IT personnel should consider when conducting security checks is starting with a checklist. This will allow the administrator to ensure they are able to catch all necessities. This is where risk management should come into effect. According to Kathy Schwalbe, there are six major processes involved in risk management: †¢Planning risk management involves deciding how to approach and plan the risk management. †¢Identifying risks involves determining which risks are likely to affect a network and document the characteristics of each. †¢Performing qualitative risk analysis which involves prioritizing risks based on their probability and impact of occurrence. †¢Performing quantitative risk analysis which involves numerically estimating the effects of risks on objectives. †¢Planning risk responses involves taking steps to enhance opportunities and reduce threats. †¢Monitoring and controlling risk involves monitoring identified and residual risks, identifying new risks, carrying out risk response plans, and evaluating the effectiveness of risk strategies. (Schwalbe, 2010, p.427). With auditing it is a good practice if using Microsoft to utilize the â€Å"Event Viewer† which would allow you to track events that occur on your system. Eckert and Schitka states that â€Å"events that occur on a system are tracked and recorded in different log files, and you can use Event Viewer to view  the contents of these logs. For example, you can use Event Viewer to view the contents of the Systems log to determine when and possibly why, a specific service failed to start† (Eckert, J. & Schitka, M. 2006). It would also be a good idea to have a disclaimer on the login screen informing all users that they are subject to monitoring when using the IT asset that way the user (although it may not always help) will be aware that what they do on the network can be traced and the user has the potential to be brought up on disciplinary charges if the matter warrants. Another thing ABC Healthcare IT administrators should be doing is reviewing files and folders for accuracy. All common server operating systems provide the capability to specify access privileges individually for files, directories, devices, and other resources. By carefully setting access controls and denying personnel unauthorized access, ABC Healthcare IT personnel can reduce intentional and unintentional security breaches. For example, denying read access to files and directories helps to protect confidentiality of information, and denying unnecessary write (modify) access can help maintain the integrity of information. Limiting the execution privilege of most system-related tools to authorized system administrators can prevent users from making configuration changes that could reduce security. It also can restrict an attacker’s ability to use those tools to attack the server or other hosts on the Healthcare’s network. 3.Describe how the system will identify and authenticate all the users who attempt to access ABC Healthcare information resources. (15 points) ABC Healthcare administrators should consider Group Policies. According to Microsoft (2003) â€Å"Group Policy is an infrastructure that allows you to implement specific configurations for users and computers.† Additionally, Microsoft (2003) states that: Group Policy settings are contained in Group Policy Objects (GPOs), which are linked to the following Active Directory service containers: sites, domains, or organizational units (OUs). The settings within GPOs are then evaluated by the affected targets, using the hierarchical nature of Active Directory (Microsoft, 2003). Active Directory in this case would be an added benefit to ABC Healthcare as it allows for the deployment of the Group Policy feature which in turn will allow network  administrators the ability to manage each user and computer object. By creating security GPOs an administrator can apply settings to affect the whole network and not just a standalone computer. This saves time and allows an administrator to affect multiple computers. Another benefit to using GPOs is the ability to define settings for wireless network connectivity. GPOs allow you to configure which wireless networks’ workstations can connect to, and automatically configure Wireless Encryption Protocol (WEP) (Aubert & McCann, 2006). If ABC Healthcare ensures GPOs are set up and followed correctly, users will not be allowed to alter many functions without having advanced administrator privileges and with auditing in place if foul play is suspected it will be quickly noticed. The best form to ensure that a site is available to authorized users would be to enforce the use of a username and password. This would ensure that the right person is accessing their appropriate material. Some security concerns would be that a hacker may try to access a user’s account without the appropriate credentials. There would be steps in place that would prevent access from repeated incorrect password attempts; many times this is covered by having a lockout function. Additionally the ability for users to be able to utilize the â€Å"forgot username and password† function will be readily available. Another option that can be utilized (much like that in the military) would be the use of Common Access Cards (CAC) and Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) which will carry the â€Å"non-repudiation† clause that states that what is sent or uploaded is indeed authenticated by the user and as such cannot be disputed. 4.Discuss how the system shall recover from attacks, failures, and accidents. (15 points) In order to safely ensure that you will be able to maintain information that is stored on your network it is key to ensure IT personnel are conducting backups. Backing up the system is another quality assurance feature that should be viewed by the management personnel. It is paramount that IT management personnel ensure administrators are conducting daily, weekly, and monthly backups of their network. A full backup should be conducted at least once a week with daily differential backups and, with maybe an incremental backup being performed mid-week. This will ensure that in the  event of a data loss IT personnel can restore lost material with minimal downtime. Ensuring there is a baseline in place that has all the original configurations is another way to ensure data safety. When looking at attacks if the system has the IPS/IDS and antivirus software installed the risk could be minimized. Michael Goodrich and Roberto Tamassia also states that administrators should ensure to have checksums and data correcting codes in place. â€Å" Checksums are the computation of a function that maps the contents of a file to a numerical value. A checksum function depends on the entire contents of a file and is designed in a way that even a small change to the input file is highly likely to result in a different output value. Checksums are like trip-wires, they are used to detect when a breach to data integrity has occurred. Data correcting codes are methods for storing data in such a way that small changes can be easily detected and automatically corrected. These codes are typically applied to small units of storage, but there are also data –correcting codes that can be applied to entire files as well† (Goodrich & Tamassia, 2011). 5.Discuss how the system will address User Account Management and related security improvements. (15 points) ABC Healthcare would have to ensure they had proper polices, procedures, standards and guidelines in place to ensure user account management and the improvement of their network security. Although many times in conversation we tend to think that policies, procedures, standards, and guidelines are coupled together. Policies are set rules established by a company or organization. A policy usually is the stepping stone for the creation of standards, guidelines and procedures. A policy would not have to incorporate the other three whereas it would be virtually impossible to create standards, guidelines or procedures without the reference of a policy which is your governing documentation. Having a standard in a way would be a rule used to measure as to how something should be. In the military we have what is called ‘Standard Operating Procedures’ which are rules that provide step-by-step instructions as to how to accurately operate equipment. This  prevents users from using the â€Å"I didn’t know excuse†. ABC Healthcare would have to have policies in place if they want to create a governing document that should be followed. This would establish rules that are to be followed by the organization. In order for a policy to be changed it must first be approved by leadership personnel. Having something like the military’s standard operating procedures wouldn’t be a bad idea either. The procedures would be the instructions that a user would follow to ensure something is operating appropriately. Like stated in question 4 for base-lining they should also have standards. So it would be understood how something is to be completed. For security improvements ABC healthcare can for example create a policy stating that the use of USB drives on computer systems are no longer authorized (as evident by military policy). This is a governing documentation that if not followed could have punitive damages associated with it. References Aubert, M. and McCann, B. (2006). MCSE Guide to Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Active Directory, Enhanced. Boston, MA: Course Technology. Eckert, Jason W. and M. John Schitka. (2006). Linux+ guide to linux certification (second edition). Boston, MA.: Course Technology. Goodrich, M.T. & Tamassia, R. (2011). Introduction to Computer Security. Boston, MA: Pearson Education INC. Microsoft TechNet. (2003). Windows Server TechCenter. Retrieved Nov. 29, 2012. from: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc779838(WS.10).aspx Stallings, W. and Brown, L. (2008). Computer Security: Principles and Practices. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Educations, Inc. Schwalbe, K., (2010). Information Technology Project Management (sixth edition). Boston, MA: Course Technology.

The Indigo Spell Chapter Seventeen

ALTHOUGH OUR MAGICAL PLANS had been derailed, Ms. Terwilliger had asked me to come by her room before classes started in the morning so that we could talk strategy and future assignments. I had just enough time to swing by the cafeteria for breakfast and found Jill, Eddie, and Angeline sitting together. It felt like it had been a long time since we'd all been together in some kind of normal setting, and I welcomed this small moment of bonding. It was a refuge in the storm that had been my life recently. Jill was grinning about something that Eddie didn't seem to find so funny. â€Å"He didn't say anything about it to me,† he said. â€Å"Of course not.† Jill laughed. â€Å"He's too embarrassed.† I sat down with my tray. â€Å"Who's too embarrassed?† I assumed any â€Å"he† they were talking about must be Adrian, though it was hard to imagine Adrian embarrassed about anything. â€Å"Micah,† said Jill. â€Å"I talked him into modeling for our sewing club again. And then he got Juan and Travis to do it too. â€Å" â€Å"How'd you manage that?† I asked. Jill had originally gotten involved with Lia through the school's sewing club. Back when Jill and Micah had dated, she'd convinced him to model some very badly made clothes. He'd done it out of adoration, though I wasn't sure he'd really enjoyed it. Jill leaned forward, an excited sparkle in her eyes. â€Å"Claire guilted him into it! It was hilarious. But I don't know how he talked Juan and Travis into it. Maybe they owed him a favor.† â€Å"Maybe they have ulterior motives,† said Eddie. His tone surprised me until I remembered his lesson about the latest social developments around here. What was it? Claire was Micah's new girlfriend. Juan and Travis were his friends, who liked Jill. Eddie didn't like that they liked her. Got it. Apparently, Eddie hadn't kept his opinions to himself because Jill rolled her eyes. â€Å"Will you stop worrying about that?† she asked. She was still smiling but sounded just a little annoyed. â€Å"They're good guys. And I'm not going to do anything stupid. You don't have to lecture me about humans and Moroi. I get it.† Her jade eyes flicked over to me, and her smile faltered a little. She studied me for several long, troubled moments, and I wondered what she was thinking about. Was she still hoping for some romantic resolution between Adrian and me? Was she wondering why Adrian and I kept getting into intimate situations? I kind of wanted to know that too. She finally dragged her gaze away, letting her happy mood return. â€Å"I'm just looking out for you,† Eddie said obstinately. â€Å"You look out for assassins. I can handle these guys. I'm not a child, and besides, these are the most male models we've ever had. It's great. If we could score a couple more, our club could do a whole project on men's clothing.† Eddie still looked way too serious for this discussion. â€Å"Maybe Eddie would volunteer,† I suggested. â€Å"I bet guardian posture would be great on the catwalk.† He blushed, which even I had to admit was adorable. If Jill had been irritated by his earlier overprotectiveness, it was no longer obvious. From her dreamy expression, you'd think Eddie blushing was the most amazing thing she'd ever witnessed. I think he was too overwhelmed at the thought of strutting down a runway to notice. Angeline had been completely silent so far. I glanced over at her, expecting her to have something funny to say about her boyfriend being encouraged to model. But to my surprise, she wasn't paying attention to the conversation at all. She had a geometry book open and was furiously trying to draw some circles freehand. It killed me to watch, but after Kristin's comment about Angeline stabbing someone with a compass, freehand might be best. â€Å"What do you think, Angeline?† I asked, just to see how engrossed she was. â€Å"Do you think Eddie would make a good model?† â€Å"Hmm?† She didn't look up. â€Å"Oh, yeah. You should let Jill try some clothes on you.† Now Jill blushed. Eddie's deepened. Just when I thought this meal couldn't get any more surreal, Trey stopped by. He nudged Angeline's chair with his toe. â€Å"Hey, McCormick.† He nodded toward her graph paper. â€Å"Time to check out your curves.† Rather than answering with some biting response, she looked up instantly, a big smile on her face. â€Å"I've been working on them all morning,† she said. â€Å"I think they're pretty good.† â€Å"They look good from where I'm standing,† said Trey. They were actually the worst circles I'd ever seen, but I guessed Trey wanted to encourage her. I was amazed at how seriously she was treating this math grade. It seemed to me that she was putting it above everything else, even her personal life. She gathered up all her things so that she and Trey could go to the library. Eddie looked disappointed but couldn't protest, lest it give away the truth about Angeline and him. Trey knew we weren't all actually related, but Eddie and Angeline's relationship was still kept secret. I realized then that it was almost time to meet Ms. Terwilliger. I hurriedly finished a banana and told Eddie and Jill I'd see them later. Whether they would talk about male modeling or Jill's dating life, I couldn't guess. I showed up right on the dot for my meeting but found Ms. Terwilliger's room locked and dark. Even in crisis mode, I supposed she was entitled to run a little late now and then, so I settled down on the hallway floor and read ahead for my English class. I grew so absorbed that I didn't realize how much time had passed until I heard the warning bell ring and realized students were starting to fill the halls. I glanced up just as the same harried substitute teacher from before came scurrying up to the door with a set of keys. I scrambled to my feet. â€Å"Ms. Terwilliger's out today?† I asked. â€Å"Is she okay?† â€Å"They don't tell me the reasons,† the sub said brusquely. â€Å"They just ask me to be here. I hope she left an assignment this time.† Knowing Ms. Terwilliger, I had a feeling it was going to be another â€Å"homework† day. I shuffled into the classroom after the sub, feeling a knot of anxiety in my stomach. The next hour was agonizing. I barely heard as the sub told us to work on homework. Instead, I kept sneaking glances at my cell phone, hoping a text would come from Ms. Terwilliger. No such luck. I went from class to class but was too distracted to give anything my full attention. I even shocked myself in English when I nearly mixed up Henry IV with Henry VI while answering an essay question. Thankfully, I caught myself before committing that embarrassing mistake to paper. When I returned to Ms. Terwilliger's classroom for my independent study at the day's end, I was expecting the sub to tell me I could leave early again. Instead, I found Ms. Terwilliger herself, rifling through papers on her desk. â€Å"You're back!† I exclaimed. â€Å"I thought something had happened to you.† â€Å"Not me,† she said. Her face was pale and drawn. â€Å"But someone else wasn't so lucky.† â€Å"No. Not again.† I sank into a chair, and all the fears I'd been carrying around today came crashing down on me. â€Å"I'd hoped we'd protected those girls.† Ms. Terwilliger sat down opposite me. â€Å"It wasn't one of them. Last night, Veronica targeted one of my coven members. Alana.† It took me several moments to truly process that. â€Å"Your coven . . . you mean, like a full-fledged witch?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Someone like you?† Her face gave me the answer before she spoke. â€Å"Yes.† I was reeling. â€Å"But you said she only went after young girls.† â€Å"Normally she does. That way she can capture youth and beauty along with power.† Ms. Terwilliger didn't look like she had to worry about someone stealing her youth anytime soon. Fatigue and stress were taking their toll on her, making her look older than she was. â€Å"Now, some magic users who perform this spell are only concerned about power, not getting younger. That's never been Veronica's style, though. She's vain. She always wanted the superficial benefits – not to mention easier victims. Someone like my coven sister would be more difficult to take, so this is surprising behavior.† â€Å"It means you could be a target,† I said. â€Å"You've been saying all this time that you're safe, but now everything's different.† Ms. Terwilliger shook her head, and a bit of steely resolve flashed in her eyes. â€Å"No. Maybe she did this to throw me off, to make me think it's someone else behind the spells. Or maybe to make me think she's not interested in you. Whatever the reason, she won't target me.† I admired Ms. Terwilliger for thinking so well of her sister, but I couldn't share her confidence that sisterly affection would overcome an evil quest for youth and power. â€Å"No offense, ma'am, but isn't there a slight chance you could be wrong about her coming for you? You said she'd only go after young novices, but obviously, that's not the case. She's already doing things you didn't expect.† Ms. Terwilliger refused to back down. â€Å"Veronica may do any number of terrible things, but she won't face me unless she's absolutely forced to.† She handed over a new spell book and a small drawstring bag. â€Å"Just because she went after an older witch, it doesn't mean you're out of danger. I've marked some pages I want you to go over. There's a spell there I think will prove particularly useful. I've gathered some components for you, and you should be able to cast the rest yourself – just make sure you do it somewhere remote. Meanwhile, I still need to make you that secondary charm. There's just so much to do lately.† A mix of emotions swirled within me. Once again, I was amazed that Ms. Terwilliger would go to such lengths for me. Yet I couldn't shake my fear for her. â€Å"Maybe you should make one for yourself, just in case.† She gave me a wan smile. â€Å"Still pushing that, hmm? Well, once I've secured yours, I'll see about another. It may take a while, however. What I have in mind for you is particularly complex.† That made me feel even worse. She always looked so worn out lately, and all these things she was doing for me were only intensifying the situation. But no matter how many arguments I made, she refused to listen. I left her classroom feeling upset and confused. I needed to vent to someone. Obviously, my choices were limited in this matter. I texted Adrian: V attacked a real witch last night. Ms. T won't protect herself. She's only worried about me. As usual, I received a quick response: Wanna talk about it? Did I? I wasn't the type to sit and analyze my feelings, but I did actually want company. I knew I shouldn't spend more time around Adrian than I had to when my feelings for him were already so mixed. But he was the only person I wanted to talk to. I have to cast some spells for her now. Want to pick me up and come along? My answer was a smiley face. She'd told me to go somewhere remote, so I picked Lone Rock Park again. When Adrian and I arrived, it was smoldering in the late-afternoon heat, and I found it hard to believe Christmas was only a couple weeks away. I'd dressed in layers, just like before, and took off my Amberwood hoodie as Adrian and I trekked across the rocky terrain. He took off a coat as well, and I had to do a double take when I saw what he was wearing underneath. â€Å"Really?† I asked. â€Å"Your AYE shirt?† He shot me a grin. â€Å"Hey, it's a perfectly good shirt. I think I'm going to see if I can start a chapter on Carlton's campus.† Carlton was the college he took art classes at. It was pretty small and didn't even have fraternities or sororities. â€Å"A chapter?† I scoffed. â€Å"Don't you mean the only chapter?† â€Å"Gotta start somewhere, Sage.† We reached the same spot where I'd practiced with Ms. Terwilliger, and I tried to ignore the scorch marks on the ground. Adrian had decided to turn this into a desert picnic and had brought along a basket containing a blanket and a thermos of lemonade. â€Å"I figured we could stop at Pies and Stuff on the way back since I know how much you like that place,† he explained, deadpan, as he poured me a cup. â€Å"Hopefully this'll tide you over after the spell.† â€Å"I wish this was over,† I said, running my hand over the weathered leather of Ms. Terwilliger's latest book. It was an old handwritten one called Summonings and Conjurations. â€Å"I hate living with the uncertainty, worrying that Veronica's lurking behind every corner. My life's already complicated enough without witches coming after me.† Adrian, face serious, stretched out on the blanket and propped his head up with his elbow. â€Å"If she's even coming after you.† I sat down cross-legged, careful to keep a lot more distance than in the Velvet Suite. â€Å"Ms. Terwilliger won't listen to me. She just keeps stressing over me.† â€Å"Let her,† he suggested. â€Å"I mean, I totally get why you're worried about her. I am too. But we have to accept that she knows what she's talking about. She's been involved with this stuff a lot longer than we have.† I couldn't help but smile at that. â€Å"Since when are you involved with magic?† â€Å"Since I started looking after you and being all manly and brave.† â€Å"Funny, I don't remember it that way.† I worked to keep a straight face. â€Å"If you think about all the rides I gave you, me getting you into college . . . well, it kind of seems like I'm looking after you.† He leaned toward me. â€Å"I guess we look after each other.† We locked eyes and smiled, but there was nothing sensuous about it. There was no trick here, no sly move on Adrian's part to advance on me. And there was no fear on my part. We were just two people who cared about each other. It reminded me of what had initially drawn us together – before all the romantic complications. We connected. Against all reason, we understood each other, and – as he said – we looked out for each other. I'd never had a relationship quite like that with anyone and was surprised at how much I valued it. â€Å"Well, then, I guess I'd better get to work.† I glanced back down at the book. â€Å"I haven't had a chance to look at what she wants me to do. It doesn't sound like a defensive book.† â€Å"Maybe you're graduating from fireballs to lightning bolts,† Adrian suggested. â€Å"I bet it'd be a lot like throwing ninja stars. Except, well, you could incinerate people.† When I found the page Ms. Terwilliger had marked, I read the title aloud: â€Å"Callistana Summoning.† â€Å"What's callistana mean?† asked Adrian. I scrutinized the word, making sure I was deciphering the elaborate script correctly. â€Å"I don't know. It's kind of like the Greek word for ‘beautiful,' but not quite. The spell's subtitle is ‘For protection and advanced warning.'† â€Å"Maybe it's some kind of shield, like the one Jackie had,† suggested Adrian. â€Å"An easier one.† â€Å"Maybe,† I agreed. I wouldn't mind a little bit of invulnerability. I opened up the bag Ms. Terwilliger had given me. Inside, I found dragon's blood resin, a small bottle of gardenia oil, branches of juniper berries, and a glittering smoky quartz crystal, rutilated with lines of gold. Although she'd provided the ingredients, the spell's directions required that I use and measure them in a very specific way, which made sense. As usual, it was the caster's work that powered the magic. Adrian sat up and read over my shoulder. â€Å"It doesn't really say what happens when you cast it,† he pointed out. â€Å"Yeah . . . I'm not really excited about that part.† Presumably, the caster was supposed to just know what she was doing. If this was some kind of protective shield, then maybe the shield would materialize around me, just as it had for Ms. Terwilliger. â€Å"Well, no point in wasting time. We'll find out soon enough.† Adrian chuckled as he watched me walk over to a clear piece of land. â€Å"Am I the only one amazed that you now perform magic blindly?† â€Å"No,† I assured him. â€Å"You're not the only one.† I had to pluck the juniper berries off one by one and make a small ring with them, saying, â€Å"Fire and smoke,† each time I placed one on the ground. When I finished, I anointed each berry with a drop of the oil and recited, â€Å"Breath and life.† Inside the circle, I lit a small pile of the resin and rested the smoky quartz on top of it. Then I stepped back and reread the spell, committing the words and gestures to memory. Once I was satisfied I knew it, I handed it to Adrian and shot him a hopeful look. â€Å"Wish me luck,† I said. â€Å"You make your own luck,† he replied. I tried not to roll my eyes and turned toward the circle. I recited the spell's complex Greek incantation, pointing in the four cardinal directions as I spoke, per the book's instructions. It was startling how quickly the magic welled up within me, filling me with that blissful power. I spoke the last words, pointing at the juniper circle as I did. I felt the magic pour from me and into the quartz. Then I waited for something to happen. Nothing did. I looked back at Adrian, hoping he noticed something I hadn't. He shrugged. â€Å"Maybe you did it wrong.† â€Å"It worked,† I insisted. â€Å"I felt the magic.† â€Å"Maybe you just can't see it. At the expense of getting myself in trouble here, you should know how amazing you look when you do that stuff. All graceful and – † His eyes went wide. â€Å"Um, Sydney? That rock is smoking.† I glanced back at the circle. â€Å"That's just the resin that's – â€Å" I stopped. He was right. Smoke was coming out of the quartz. I watched, fascinated, and then slowly, the quartz began to melt. Rather than dissipate into a puddle, though, the liquid began to re-form into a different shape, one that soon hardened into something new and unexpected: a crystalline dragon. It was small, able to fit in a palm, and glittered just like the dark brown quartz had. The dragon looked more like the serpentine kind usually associated with Chinese culture rather than the winged types of European myth. Every detail was meticulously carved, from the tendrils of its mane to the scales on its hide. It was stunning. Also, it was moving. I screamed and backed up, running into Adrian. He put an arm around me and held me as protectively as he could, though it was clear he was just as freaked out. The dragon opened its crystal eyelids and peered at the two of us with tiny golden eyes. It elicited a small croak and then began walking toward us, its small claws scraping against the rocks. â€Å"What the hell is that?† Adrian demanded. â€Å"Do you really think I know?† â€Å"You made it! Do something.† I started to ask what had happened to him looking out for me, but he had a point. I was the one who'd summoned this thing. No matter where we moved or backed up to, the dragon continued to follow and make a small, high-pitched screeching noise that sounded like nails on a chalkboard. I groped for my cell phone and tried to dial Ms. Terwilliger, but there was no reception out here. Darting over to the blanket, I grabbed the spell book and then hurried back to Adrian's side. I flipped to the index, looking up callistana. There I found two entries: Callistana – Summoning and Callistana – Banishing. You would've thought the two would be near each other in the book, but they were pages apart. I flipped to the latter and found the instructions brief and to the point: Once your callistana has been fed and rested, you may summon and banish it at will for a year and a day. A short incantation followed. I looked up at Adrian. â€Å"It says we have to feed it.† â€Å"Will that make it shut up?† he asked. His arm was around me again. â€Å"I honestly don't know.† â€Å"Maybe we can outrun it.† All my instincts about hiding the supernatural world kicked in. â€Å"We can't just leave it for some hiker to find! We have to get it some food.† Not that I had any clue what to feed it. Hopefully humans and vampires weren't on the menu. A look of determination crossed Adrian's features. In a great show of bravery he lunged for the picnic basket and actually managed to scoop the dragon up in it. He slammed down the lid, and the mewling faded but didn't stop. â€Å"Wow,† I said. â€Å"Manly and brave.† Adrian regarded the basket with dismay. â€Å"I just hope that thing doesn't breathe fire. At least it's contained. Now what do we do?† â€Å"Now we feed it.† I made a decision. â€Å"We take it to Pies and Stuff.† I didn't know if dragons ate pie, but that was the closest food source we had. Besides, I was pretty sure I'd be able to get a cell phone signal there. So, Adrian drove us back to the little diner while I gingerly held the noisy basket. He went inside, and I stayed in the car and tried to call Ms. Terwilliger. I was sent to voice mail and didn't even bother with formalities. Was she never near her phone anymore? â€Å"Call me now,† I said through gritted teeth. The dragon's screeching was really starting to get to me. Adrian returned in about ten minutes carrying two bags. I stared in amazement as he got in the car. â€Å"Did you buy out the store?† â€Å"I didn't know what kind it wanted,† he protested. Between the two bags, we had half a dozen slices of different kinds of pies. Each one's container was neatly labeled. â€Å"I really don't know either,† I said. Adrian sifted through the bags and pulled out a slice of coconut cream. â€Å"If I were a dragon, this is what I'd go for.† I didn't argue, mainly because that statement had no logical argument. He took the lid off the pie and then looked at me expectantly. With a gulp, I opened the basket's lid and prayed the dragon wouldn't climb out and claw my face off. Adrian quickly set the pie down in the basket. Nervously, we both leaned forward to watch. At first, the dragon looked as though it really would climb out after us. Then it noticed the pie. The little crystal creature sniffed at the slice, circled it a few times, and then began gnawing at the pie in teeny-tiny bites. Best of all, the screeching stopped. We watched in wonder as the dragon made its way through a third of the coconut cream pie. Then, without warning, it rolled over onto its back and began to snore. Adrian and I sat there, frozen, and then finally dared to look at each other. â€Å"I guess you were right about the flavor,† I said. â€Å"Do you think you can banish it now?† he asked. â€Å"Is it fed and rested enough?† I retrieved the spell book to double-check the incantation. â€Å"Time to find out.† I recited the words. Smoke fluttered from the dragon's body. He began to shimmer, and within moments, we were looking at an inert piece of smoky quartz. In another valiant display, Adrian picked it up but held it as far away as possible as he studied it. The ringing of my phone startled both of us, and he dropped the crystal back into the basket. I looked at the phone's screen and saw Ms. Terwilliger's name. â€Å"You made me summon a dragon!† I exclaimed. â€Å"I most certainly did not,† she responded. â€Å"Callistanas are a type of demon.† I froze. â€Å"A demon.† â€Å"Well,† she amended. â€Å"A very minor and generally benign kind.† I didn't reply for a while. â€Å"Sydney? Are you still there?† â€Å"You had me summon a demon,† I replied, voice stiff. â€Å"You know how I feel about evil and the supernatural. You've spent all this time trying to convince me that the magic we do is all for some greater good in the battle against evil, and yet you made me summon a creature of hell.† â€Å"Creature of hell?† She snorted. â€Å"Hardly. You know nothing about demons. I told you it's benign, didn't I? Callistanas can be very useful. They'll warn you if dark magic is nearby and will even try to defend you if you're attacked – not that they can do much damage.† I wasn't buying it. â€Å"If they're so useful, then why don't you have one?† â€Å"Oh, well, I'm at a level where I can sense dark magic on my own. That, and – if you'll forgive my language – callistanas are a real pain in the ass. They make the most irritating noise when they're hungry. Cats are more than adequate for my needs.† â€Å"Yeah,† I said. â€Å"I kind of noticed the noise part. I fed it some pie and turned it back into a rock.† â€Å"There, you see?† She sounded happier than I'd heard her in days. â€Å"Look at the progress you've made already. No matter what comes of this mess we've found ourselves in, I'm more convinced than ever that I made the right choice in guiding you on the magical path.† I had too much going on to really appreciate the compliment. â€Å"So what do I do now?† â€Å"It'll disappear on its own after a year and a day. Until then, you can call it when you need it. You can try to train it. And of course, you'll have to feed it. Whatever you choose to do, it will be loyal to you. It bonds with the first person it sees and will need to spend time with you . . . Sydney? Are you there?† I'd gone silent again. â€Å"The first person it sees?† I finally managed to ask. â€Å"Not the caster?† â€Å"Well, usually they're one and the same.† I glanced over at Adrian, who was eating a piece of blackberry pie while listening avidly to my side of the conversation. â€Å"What happens if there were two people there when it opened its eyes? Adrian was with me when I summoned it.† Now she paused. â€Å"Oh? Hmm, well, I probably should've said something before you cast the spell.† That had to be the understatement of the century. â€Å"You should've told me a lot of things before I cast it! What does it mean that the dragon – demon, whatever – saw both of us? Did it bond with both of us?† â€Å"Look at it this way,† Ms. Terwilliger said, after several moments of thought. â€Å"The callistana thinks of you two as its parents.†