Many controversial issues storm the world today. Everyone has opinions about how they view these issues. Some of the most popular issues are; legalizing marijuana, abortion, interracial relationships, gun control, and homelessness. The issue of discussion here is that of interracial relationships. This was chosen because everyone in the world is affected by or is around them. This issue is also something that can be discussed by everyone. Some people do not mind dating outside of their race and some people are highly against dating those of a different race. There are logical arguments that favor and disfavor both opinions. This is why it is so controversial. The topic of interracial relationships can be reasonably discussed by giving background descriptions of it, analyzing formal literary elements, and by a persuasive discussion.
The world has many different races. The most common are white Caucasians, black African Americans, Mexican/Spanish, Asians, Native American Indians, and islanders. The world in the far past was extremely segregated in that each race/ethnic group lived in with each other and had very little relations to other groups. Now that the world is rapidly growing it is becoming more difficult to keep the different races separated. For instance, in the United States, each of the races described above reside here freely. The Caucasian race has always been the more overpowering of the races. Whites held African Americans slaves years ago as well as forced the Indians of America to give up their land. These activities are heavily present in the minds of these effected racial groups, and this causes great friction between the races when people believe it is harmless to associate sexually in a biracial way.
The issue of interracial dating is controversial because it joins two races and in many eyes brings back past memories of how minority races were unequally treated. Also, Whites, more often than not, disapprove of interracial relationships because of the resulting appearance of the children. For example “Parents fear how their children will be treated as a result of the relationship.”(Burnette, 2) This is saying that the parents of the interracial couple are worried about their children having children together because of how the child would be treated. When a White woman or man has a child with an African American woman or man, the child appears more Black than White. To clarify where this is going, “Families also argue that interracial couples re selfish for getting married because their children will have identity problems.”(Burnette, 2). This is said because of the fact that the children born do not resemble their mother or father. Also, the child does not look white at all and this is a common argument for why white people oppose interracial relationships. Many say that the white race diminishes because of this. Furthermore, many argue that the only reason a person of color marries a white person is to move up in social status. “Black men will trade certain personal assets, for example, money and physical attractiveness, for the status of a union with a white woman in compensation for her higher racial caste.”(Yancey, 2) This is an example of how a Black man may be perceived in his motives.
On the other side, millions of people believe that dating outside of their race is okay. Usually people of color do not mind dating others of a different ethnic background as opposed to Whites, who are more against the idea. However, there is still a large number of whites that do not mind. Presently, many people that are in an interracial relationship are actually in it for the love. For instance, “The fact is that individuals in interracial couples are attracted to each other for the same reasons that individuals in same race couples are, they consistently state that they get married because they like and love each other.”(Burnette, 2) this is evidence that there are biracial couples in the relationship for more than just to gain something out of it, they are in the relationship for love. Many of the people that approve of interracial mixing are the younger people of the world, the teenagers because they are surrounded by it early on whereas the older people of society were not exposed to different races being in a relationship because it was not as accepted as it is now. This idea is strongly supported by the statement “I think people are getting used to growing up with different races, and you feel a lot more comfortable now, says Vertice Duke.” (Peterson, 2)
Furthermore, the fact remains that the human race is continuing to change and this includes all nationalities. Therefore, interaction rates among nationalities increases. So, many people understand that the frequency of races mixing is going to increase and it is accepted with these people. For these reasons, the issue of interracial relationships is very controversial because each side has strong reasons for either accepting or opposing it.
The second way of discussing the issue of interracial relationships is by analyzing several different articles on the issue and the specific rhetorical elements that they contain. To start off, the most common rhetorical element that is used amongst all four articles is appeal to emotion. The issue of interracial relationships can be a very touchy subject sometimes and when speaking to someone whose opinion is different from yours, it is very beneficial to appeal to his/her emotions. Every human has emotions and this characteristic can be helpful and can sometimes be harmful in certain circumstances. In this case it is harmful because people are vulnerable to persuasion if the fact given to them appeals to their emotions. Therefore it is not surprising that all four authors used this appeal to emotion device. For example, the author of the article Interracial Sex uses appeal to emotion to get the reader to sympathize with white women and their reasons for dating a man of color by saying “Such a woman naturally falls from the good graces of other White folk, but the pedestal is a small price to pay for her hard-won sexual fulfillment.”(Monroy, 1) Similarly, Karen Peterson, the author of USA Today’s article Interracial Dating uses appeal to emotion to touch younger people by saying “Pocahontas is an interracial dating story in a cartoon for children.”(Peterson, 4) Children can be persuaded more easily and playing on their emotional side has a very successful effect.
An article in the magazine Ebony by Lynn Norment titled Wesley Snipes On His Hot Career, Black Women, Interracial Relationships And His Multimillion-Dollar Hideaway really acts on the emotions of any admirers because when someone admires someone, he/she tries hard to be like that someone. The author uses Snipes’ experiences to strengthen her argument on interracial dating and this appeals to the emotions of his admirers. To clarify, Norment writes “Continuing with his openness, Snipes says he’s had his heart broken more than once, and at times by Black women.”(Norment, 6) She says this because when she was speaking to Snipes, he declared that when he dated someone of his own race he had his heart broken, and those that cherish Wesley Snipes do not want that at all. Lastly, the rhetorical element of appeal to emotion was exhibited also an article on the web entitled The Strengths of Mixed-Race Relationships. This author chose to strengthen the opposing party of interracial relationships. The author Erin Burnette wants the reader to sympathize with the parents of the interracial couple by saying “Parents fear how their children’s children will be treated as a result of the relationship.”(Burnette, 2) Grandparents have the image of being very wise and as the author portrays this, people really listen.
The second rhetorical element commonly displayed is that of a statistical element. Using statistics to move an audience in a certain direction is very successful in the results. People will believe cold, hard, proven facts over just about anything else. Also, just the idea that some individual or group of people took the time to research a certain topic gives the audience confidence in the results laid before them. For example, USA Today has an article that gives statistical evidence on how interracial relationships are becoming more accepted. The article Interracial Dating by Karen Peterson emphasizes this by the statement “They also credit increasing acceptance and frequency of interracial marriage: There were nearly 1.3 million married interracial couples in 1994, the Census Bureau reported, four times the number in 1970.”(Peterson, 2) This statistical element represented in this article gives the readers a stronger more believable perspective on how Peterson is trying to reveal interracial relationships. In the article The Strengths of Mixed-Raced Relationship by Erin Burnette, statistical devices are also used. “Within 50 years, half of the U.S population will be people of color, said Christine Iijima Hall, PhD.”(Burnette, 1), this statement not only was said by a woman with an advanced education, but it reveals facts about how the population will increase. Ms. Hall, a psychologist is known for her research in this field and just about everything she is known to say comes from her findings which are, in every aspect, factual statistics. It is much easier to believe something that has been proven and demonstrated than believing just opinion-like words from someone.
The last rhetorical element used in the discussion of interracial relationships is that of scientific tone. Of the four articles examined, only one shows evidence of this element. To some that might demonstrate that adding a twist of science into an argument is not as persuasive considering many people today do not believe in scientific methods or practices. However, Burnette, the author of The Strengths of Mixed-Race Relationships believes it helps capture the audience. Burnette probably uses a scientific method because some would understand why interracial relationships last if they saw that certain actions have reactions. For instance, she says “Despite the inherent difficulties of mixing two cultures into one romantic union, some mixed-race couples actually have stronger relationships as a result of the unique experiences they endure.” (Burnette, 1) The key phrase in this is “as a result” because it is much like a scientific experiment in its own sense. All in all, using a touch of science might persuade some people because they would better understand the reasons of interracial success if they knew what caused it to be a success.
Before I actually researched this topic, I had my opinion formulated beforehand. I have nothing other than complete support for two people of different racial backgrounds dating one another. There are so many negative vibrations all over the world because of violence and hatred that it hurts very much when someone puts another down for loving someone. It should be enough that someone gives a certain other great happiness in life and that happiness is what the world needs more of. Additionally, people might think that biracial couples are a mismatch; well, what can people say about a white man and a white woman marrying and then divorcing a month later? Is this not a mismatch as well? Marriage is a very honorable thing to do and is disrespected by the act of divorce more often with same race couples than mixed race couples.
The human race is all one species and therefore humans are all related somehow just as all birds are related in some way. Some may argue that the children of a biracial couple have to go through many dilemmas and must cope with negative societal acceptance. These incidents occur in small numbers in today’s world and people dwell on these few scenarios, well what about the big picture? Members of the Caucasian race are more opposed to interracial relationships because the children that result are supposedly not “white” in their appearance. Well, anyone who agrees with this is and still advocates that image is not everything is a hypocrite. The reason I say this is because I have noticed that society is pushing hard against the “image is everything” notion and is trying to persuade society into judging a person by who he/she is inside. Interracial relationships are usually formed for the same reasons as same race relationships are, because each person in the relationship adores the other. Yet, this biracial couple is still despised by many because the one of them is a little darker or a little different than the “common” image of the other.
I have grown up with this issue eating me up because my parents are a biracial couple. My mother is Caucasian (German) and my father is African American-Caucasian mixed, so I am 25% African American. I know I am going to become a benefit to society and if interracial relationships were banned, the world would never be able to benefit from what I can offer. The future is curious to many and if we were allowed to see, say, ten years ahead and we saw that a biracial child found the cure for AIDS, would people then accept interracial mixing? The point is that there is a reason for the interaction of different races, if it is for the greater good, then interracial relationships should not be argued about.
To sum up, interracial relationships is a very controversial issue that is discussed here by first describing the issue, then analyzing it rhetorically, and later revealing an opinion in a persuasive manner. Everyone has an opinion about biracial couples and there are valid and logical arguments for both sides. There are some situations that occur when two people are trying to persuade one another to believe their side. Situations like this should be handled in formative and logical ways not by arguing. Society is full of debatable issues that need resolving and we tend to do this violently. The world will always have controversy but how it is handled is what matters in the long run.
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Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Peer Pressure
A human being has his or her certain traits or personalities. There are several types of personalities, but it is only classified as either positive or a negative personality. Some people are kind, gentle, loving, caring, thoughtful. These are just several of the ones in the positive side. Others are cruel, rude, careless, irresponsible. Now these ones are just a few of the negative side. Through life a person experiences many things in life like how to survive or how to communicate. At the earliest times of life a person learns through his surroundings and then applies that experience through the society. People then say things like, “ah, that boy is really annoying!” or “that daughter of yours is a smart one.” The society comments on one’s personality. From my experience, one of the most vital points of learning was when I was a young teenager and I must say that friends really do make an impact on my personality. Among all, my peers were the ones who influenced me the most.
As early as 5th grade, I have met so many kids at school and made tons of friends. I was always shy and quiet most of the time, but my friends gave me the strength to just go out there and be myself. By then, I was playing with all the kids at my classroom and some on other neighboring classes. After school I’d rather stay a little longer because we were just having so much fun. We’d play basketball for more than an hour or just chat by the court or just hang-out anywhere. My friends would call me at home and then invite for a stroll around a nearby park. Sometimes I get grounded because of spending too much time with my friends causing me to forget about homework and my studies. If that happens, I would sneak out through the back gate of our house and call my friends to go play somewhere. Also, music was then realized. Whatever my friends would listen to I would also. I would buy the same tapes, bring a walkman at school, even get some of those rock band t-shirts.
It was graduation and now welcome to my years of high school. My friends have grown and so have I. We tried many different new things. We now would more likely to talk with girls. It was new and enjoying. My friends would wear signature clothes and if you had those insanely prized signature clothes you are now one of the “cool” kids. So I did. My mother was also fond of these signature clothes so it was alright for me to also wear a few. Another new experience was people were divided into groups. They are sort of labeled. The cool ones, the musicians, the playboys, the sporty ones, and nerds or just a little too intelligent and smart for the other groups. I was one of the musicians. My friends are very talented when it comes to music. They inspired me to just learn a deep side of music. Sometimes all the groups would mix up and there wasn’t much of a conflict. The only problem is the “nerds” were a little too “uncool.” They remained isolated from mostly everyone. There are also bad things I learned when I was in high school. Some of my friends were smoking cigarettes and we thought it was “cool” to smoke. I smoked a few sticks and I thought I was cool. For the first few weeks it was all about being cool, but later on it became a bad habit. My friends also drank alcohol and then again so did I. It didn’t become a habit, but instead it became more of a socializing with people.
I became senior in high school. After school me and my friends would hang-out at our nearby friend’s house and just relax and have a chat. We would have a couple of drinks and a few smokes. At night, my friends would then take me to parties or clubs. There was so much pressure between school and friends. I almost flunked one subject and almost didn’t graduate. Other times, my friends would be really of great help. We would set up a “group talk” to know how we can help each other. It’s just a matter of controlling your responsibilities between friends, school, and family. I treat my friends like brothers or sisters. To me they are family. I think peer pressure would probably last for some time. Friends are always there in good and bad times. Their influence is unquestionable. I have spent most of my time with them. It’s just how you would handle your responsibilities as an individual.
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As early as 5th grade, I have met so many kids at school and made tons of friends. I was always shy and quiet most of the time, but my friends gave me the strength to just go out there and be myself. By then, I was playing with all the kids at my classroom and some on other neighboring classes. After school I’d rather stay a little longer because we were just having so much fun. We’d play basketball for more than an hour or just chat by the court or just hang-out anywhere. My friends would call me at home and then invite for a stroll around a nearby park. Sometimes I get grounded because of spending too much time with my friends causing me to forget about homework and my studies. If that happens, I would sneak out through the back gate of our house and call my friends to go play somewhere. Also, music was then realized. Whatever my friends would listen to I would also. I would buy the same tapes, bring a walkman at school, even get some of those rock band t-shirts.
It was graduation and now welcome to my years of high school. My friends have grown and so have I. We tried many different new things. We now would more likely to talk with girls. It was new and enjoying. My friends would wear signature clothes and if you had those insanely prized signature clothes you are now one of the “cool” kids. So I did. My mother was also fond of these signature clothes so it was alright for me to also wear a few. Another new experience was people were divided into groups. They are sort of labeled. The cool ones, the musicians, the playboys, the sporty ones, and nerds or just a little too intelligent and smart for the other groups. I was one of the musicians. My friends are very talented when it comes to music. They inspired me to just learn a deep side of music. Sometimes all the groups would mix up and there wasn’t much of a conflict. The only problem is the “nerds” were a little too “uncool.” They remained isolated from mostly everyone. There are also bad things I learned when I was in high school. Some of my friends were smoking cigarettes and we thought it was “cool” to smoke. I smoked a few sticks and I thought I was cool. For the first few weeks it was all about being cool, but later on it became a bad habit. My friends also drank alcohol and then again so did I. It didn’t become a habit, but instead it became more of a socializing with people.
I became senior in high school. After school me and my friends would hang-out at our nearby friend’s house and just relax and have a chat. We would have a couple of drinks and a few smokes. At night, my friends would then take me to parties or clubs. There was so much pressure between school and friends. I almost flunked one subject and almost didn’t graduate. Other times, my friends would be really of great help. We would set up a “group talk” to know how we can help each other. It’s just a matter of controlling your responsibilities between friends, school, and family. I treat my friends like brothers or sisters. To me they are family. I think peer pressure would probably last for some time. Friends are always there in good and bad times. Their influence is unquestionable. I have spent most of my time with them. It’s just how you would handle your responsibilities as an individual.
Our professional custom writing service can provide you with a 100% non-plagiarized custom essay, research paper, term paper, thesis, dissertation or other assignment of high-quality. All custom papers are written from scratch by professional academic writers. Any topic, any discipline, any deadline. Feel free to order a custom written paper now.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Criminology
Offender profiling is a set of techniques used to try and identify perpetrators of a serious crime. Offender profiling will tend to use the expertise of a professional psychologist, although profilers come from different types of backgrounds because there is no specific training for the job. The profiler will draw on his knowledge of personality theory to attribute personality traits to the offender. The profiler will consider many elements when carrying out a profile, such as the crime scene, the offence, the sex of the victim and offender, body deposition site and the interaction style. These are just a few of the issues the profiler will consider. There are many different definitions of offender profiling today; according to Turco (1993) offender profiling is Сthe preparation of a biological sketch, gathered from information taken at a crime scene, from the personal history and habits of a victim, and integrating this with known psychological theory". However, other psychologists are much more sceptical of offender profiling, for example according to Harrower (2000), offender profiling is seen as the sexy speciality of forensic psychology largely as a result of Fitz in Cracker (TV drama). But the poetic license allowed in that TV series hasnТt been particularly helpful to psychology as a discipline".
Offender Profiling is popular both in the UK and the USA, but like many things the UK and USA use their different methods. The USA uses what we call a "top-down" approach and the UK uses a "bottom-up approach", which contrast quite significantly.
The "bottom- up approach" is where information is gathered and conclusions are drawn strictly from the evidence, with previous knowledge or experience not being used.
Boon and Davies (1992) suggested that the British approach to offender profiling is "bottom up" as the profiler only uses information gathered from the scene of the crime, and information about the crime itself, and from this information a picture of the criminal is suggested. Conclusions are tentative, being formed from what has been observed.
In the UK a psychologist called David Canter who works at Liverpool University dominates offender profiling. It was while at Surrey University, he was asked by the Metropolitan police if he could help them, or tell them anything about a serial rapist, who was later found to be a serial murderer. David Canter gave a remarkably accurate profile of the killer John Duffy, who was convicted in 1988 of the rapes and murders.
Canter further suggested that criminals, like all people act in a consistent way and that all actions are linked no matter the setting, and therefore an analysis of their behavior can offer clues as to their lifestyle during a non-offending period, thus aiding possible detection and arrest. Canter thought that because people live in a social context there would be an implicit relationship between offender and victim, which could also help to offer clues to the offender's life. Canter's approach to offender profiling is much more scientific than that of the FBI's, as it based more on psychological theories and methodologies. Canter thought criminals left certain psychological traces after committing a crime; СЕ.tell-tale patterns of behavior that indicate the sort of person he is. Gleaned from the crime scene and reports from witnesses, these traces are more ambiguous and subtle than those examined by a biologist or physicist". They are more like shadows which can indicate where investigators should look, and what sort of person they should be looking for". (Canter 1994)
Canter believes the way he can help police in investigations is by using sets of data to look at correlation's between things like time and location of offence, choice of victim, and analysis of speech, and develop trends and patterns. Canter claims this method is more valid than sensational interviews whose validity is suspect.
Canter has lead to the arrest and convictions of very dangerous serial killers such as John Duffy and serial rapists such as Adrian Babb, along with other offender profilers such as Paul Britton.
When making a profile for the police, Canter found that interpersonal coherence between the offender and victim is an important factor, this means for example how violent the offender was in a rape, in that was he apologetic or was he very abusive and controlling. This may reflect the way the criminal treats other women, in his non-criminal life. Also the type of victim may also reflect the sub-group to which the criminal belongs. For example Ted Bundy killed over 30 students, when he himself was a student. The time and place of the crime may also be significant when making a profile. The precise location of the crime and the map of the relationship between the places in which a series of offences took place, may relate to where the offender is living and to his past experience. Forensics are important when making a profile. For example if a rapist has been questioned previously by the police, their crimes may leave indications of this, this can be shown by some rapists who make their victims bathe to get rid of forensic evidence, so a check of police records is always worthwhile. According to Boon and Davies (1992) Canter and his colleagues identified five aspects of criminal behaviour which is very significant and revealing; the location, criminal biography, personal characteristics, domestic and social characteristics and occupational history. Another important aspect is geography, where criminals may feel comfortable committing the crime.
By contrast the "top down" approach to offender profiling, involves using previous knowledge and information to draw conclusions about a current situation, and is reliant on subjective conclusions that come from investigative experience of crimes and criminal interviews. The American method of offender profiling is called a "top-down" approach.
The FBI and its behavioural science unit have received much attention compared to Canter and Britton through the years, possibly due to fictional films and characters such as Agent Starling in "The silence of the lambs", although these movies do not illustrate the real aspects of offender profiling. In the USA, the NCAVC (National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime) is responsible for handling around 1500 cases a year, and helped convince the UK to make a profile to catch the Yorkshire Ripper. In 1970's USA there was a huge increase in the number of murders and rapes, the work of serial killers such as John Wayne Gacey, David Berkowitz and Ted Bundy. In 1979 the Behavioral sciences unit (BSU) was set up, initially a team of 9 whose task was to continue the work pioneered by James Brussel, the profiler who produced a very accurate profile of "the mad bomber".
The BSU started by building up a library of interviews with the countries worst convicted serial killers and rapists, including Charles Manson and Ted Bundy. From this the BSU gained a valuable insight into the mind of a killer and became known as "the mind hunters". Also the collection of detailed information from the BSU who were experienced in the area of sexual crime and murder, was combined with the interviews to give psychological clues and predictions to the crime, for example the age of the offender, marital status and the occupation of the offender.
The FBI then developed a classification system for serious crimes, where by murderers were classified as organised, meaning they are very meticulous, planning their crime very well and leaving no forensic evidence, usually intelligent, have skilled jobs, probably married and are sexually competent. It is quite possible they acted out this crime when they was angry or depressed, maybe affected by reports of crime in the media. In contrast, murderers could also be classified as disorganised, meaning the crime was very unplanned and haphazard, therefore more likely to leave clues. Disorganised murderers are more likely to be unskilled, socially-inadequate individuals, with sexual problems and at the time of the crime would probably be frightened, as it is more likely they know the victim.
After this classification system was established the FBI detailed what should happen when a serious offence occurred, outlined by Jackson and Bekerian (1997):
Data assimilation is the first stage where information from as many sources as possible is collected, such as photographs of the scene of the crime or letters etc. Then the crime has to be classified, where the crime is put into a particular category based on the data collected. The third stage is crime reconstruction where hypotheses are developed about the behaviour of victims and the modus operandi of the criminal based on a reconstruction of the crime. Finally a profile is generated about the perpetrators physical appearance, demographic characteristics, habits and personality.
The use of previous knowledge is why the American approach is referred to as "top-down", although nowadays the approach is more rigid and profiling is likely to include intuition and investigative experience.
According to Holmes (1989), the aims of profiling in this approach are to reduce the scope of an investigation by providing social and psychological information about the offender's personality, allow some prediction to future offences and their location, provide a psychological evaluation of any belongings found in the offender's possession and to provide strategies for interviewing offenders.
There are differences within the two approaches which make it hard to be precise about the differences between "bottom-up" and Сtop-down approaches to profiling. For example in the UK Paul Britton makes a profile using both evidence from the crime scene and likely behavioural patterns of the offender. Canter uses evidence from past crimes, which may be seen as "top-down", but he mainly collates his data from empirical, Сbottom-upТ sources.
David Canter argues that relying on interviews of convicted murderers is not sensible, as serial killers are known to be manipulative and sensation seekers, although nowadays profiling in the USA uses information from the scene. The FBI now trains profilers worldwide, and have found that profiling is most useful when there is evidence of psychopathology.
There is no doubt that Canter's work and approach to profiling owes more to psychology than that of the FBI.
In the UK Copson and Holloway (1997) surveyed detectives who worked on 184 cases in which offender profiling had been used. They believed it had produced identification of offenders in less than three per cent of cases and helped to solve the crime in 16per cent. They concluded Сprofiling can work very well, but certainly not in the way some practitioners, or dramatists would have you believe. There is nothing in our findings to support the notion that complex offender characteristics can be predicted with any great accuracy. In fact with some people you would be better off tossing a coin". In contrast, according to Harrower (1998), offender profiling has undoubted potential if used properly by trained professionals, as in the USA "192 cases of offender profiling led to 88 arrests".
However the aim of both the British and American processes is to identify areas that will help in the investigation leading to arrest of the offender, and it is clear that when both methods are combined together, the more likelihood of catching an offender there is.
Our professional custom writing service can provide you with a 100% non-plagiarized custom essay, research paper, term paper, thesis, dissertation or other assignment of high-quality. All custom papers are written from scratch by professional academic writers. Any topic, any discipline, any deadline. Feel free to order a custom written paper now.
Offender Profiling is popular both in the UK and the USA, but like many things the UK and USA use their different methods. The USA uses what we call a "top-down" approach and the UK uses a "bottom-up approach", which contrast quite significantly.
The "bottom- up approach" is where information is gathered and conclusions are drawn strictly from the evidence, with previous knowledge or experience not being used.
Boon and Davies (1992) suggested that the British approach to offender profiling is "bottom up" as the profiler only uses information gathered from the scene of the crime, and information about the crime itself, and from this information a picture of the criminal is suggested. Conclusions are tentative, being formed from what has been observed.
In the UK a psychologist called David Canter who works at Liverpool University dominates offender profiling. It was while at Surrey University, he was asked by the Metropolitan police if he could help them, or tell them anything about a serial rapist, who was later found to be a serial murderer. David Canter gave a remarkably accurate profile of the killer John Duffy, who was convicted in 1988 of the rapes and murders.
Canter further suggested that criminals, like all people act in a consistent way and that all actions are linked no matter the setting, and therefore an analysis of their behavior can offer clues as to their lifestyle during a non-offending period, thus aiding possible detection and arrest. Canter thought that because people live in a social context there would be an implicit relationship between offender and victim, which could also help to offer clues to the offender's life. Canter's approach to offender profiling is much more scientific than that of the FBI's, as it based more on psychological theories and methodologies. Canter thought criminals left certain psychological traces after committing a crime; СЕ.tell-tale patterns of behavior that indicate the sort of person he is. Gleaned from the crime scene and reports from witnesses, these traces are more ambiguous and subtle than those examined by a biologist or physicist". They are more like shadows which can indicate where investigators should look, and what sort of person they should be looking for". (Canter 1994)
Canter believes the way he can help police in investigations is by using sets of data to look at correlation's between things like time and location of offence, choice of victim, and analysis of speech, and develop trends and patterns. Canter claims this method is more valid than sensational interviews whose validity is suspect.
Canter has lead to the arrest and convictions of very dangerous serial killers such as John Duffy and serial rapists such as Adrian Babb, along with other offender profilers such as Paul Britton.
When making a profile for the police, Canter found that interpersonal coherence between the offender and victim is an important factor, this means for example how violent the offender was in a rape, in that was he apologetic or was he very abusive and controlling. This may reflect the way the criminal treats other women, in his non-criminal life. Also the type of victim may also reflect the sub-group to which the criminal belongs. For example Ted Bundy killed over 30 students, when he himself was a student. The time and place of the crime may also be significant when making a profile. The precise location of the crime and the map of the relationship between the places in which a series of offences took place, may relate to where the offender is living and to his past experience. Forensics are important when making a profile. For example if a rapist has been questioned previously by the police, their crimes may leave indications of this, this can be shown by some rapists who make their victims bathe to get rid of forensic evidence, so a check of police records is always worthwhile. According to Boon and Davies (1992) Canter and his colleagues identified five aspects of criminal behaviour which is very significant and revealing; the location, criminal biography, personal characteristics, domestic and social characteristics and occupational history. Another important aspect is geography, where criminals may feel comfortable committing the crime.
By contrast the "top down" approach to offender profiling, involves using previous knowledge and information to draw conclusions about a current situation, and is reliant on subjective conclusions that come from investigative experience of crimes and criminal interviews. The American method of offender profiling is called a "top-down" approach.
The FBI and its behavioural science unit have received much attention compared to Canter and Britton through the years, possibly due to fictional films and characters such as Agent Starling in "The silence of the lambs", although these movies do not illustrate the real aspects of offender profiling. In the USA, the NCAVC (National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime) is responsible for handling around 1500 cases a year, and helped convince the UK to make a profile to catch the Yorkshire Ripper. In 1970's USA there was a huge increase in the number of murders and rapes, the work of serial killers such as John Wayne Gacey, David Berkowitz and Ted Bundy. In 1979 the Behavioral sciences unit (BSU) was set up, initially a team of 9 whose task was to continue the work pioneered by James Brussel, the profiler who produced a very accurate profile of "the mad bomber".
The BSU started by building up a library of interviews with the countries worst convicted serial killers and rapists, including Charles Manson and Ted Bundy. From this the BSU gained a valuable insight into the mind of a killer and became known as "the mind hunters". Also the collection of detailed information from the BSU who were experienced in the area of sexual crime and murder, was combined with the interviews to give psychological clues and predictions to the crime, for example the age of the offender, marital status and the occupation of the offender.
The FBI then developed a classification system for serious crimes, where by murderers were classified as organised, meaning they are very meticulous, planning their crime very well and leaving no forensic evidence, usually intelligent, have skilled jobs, probably married and are sexually competent. It is quite possible they acted out this crime when they was angry or depressed, maybe affected by reports of crime in the media. In contrast, murderers could also be classified as disorganised, meaning the crime was very unplanned and haphazard, therefore more likely to leave clues. Disorganised murderers are more likely to be unskilled, socially-inadequate individuals, with sexual problems and at the time of the crime would probably be frightened, as it is more likely they know the victim.
After this classification system was established the FBI detailed what should happen when a serious offence occurred, outlined by Jackson and Bekerian (1997):
Data assimilation is the first stage where information from as many sources as possible is collected, such as photographs of the scene of the crime or letters etc. Then the crime has to be classified, where the crime is put into a particular category based on the data collected. The third stage is crime reconstruction where hypotheses are developed about the behaviour of victims and the modus operandi of the criminal based on a reconstruction of the crime. Finally a profile is generated about the perpetrators physical appearance, demographic characteristics, habits and personality.
The use of previous knowledge is why the American approach is referred to as "top-down", although nowadays the approach is more rigid and profiling is likely to include intuition and investigative experience.
According to Holmes (1989), the aims of profiling in this approach are to reduce the scope of an investigation by providing social and psychological information about the offender's personality, allow some prediction to future offences and their location, provide a psychological evaluation of any belongings found in the offender's possession and to provide strategies for interviewing offenders.
There are differences within the two approaches which make it hard to be precise about the differences between "bottom-up" and Сtop-down approaches to profiling. For example in the UK Paul Britton makes a profile using both evidence from the crime scene and likely behavioural patterns of the offender. Canter uses evidence from past crimes, which may be seen as "top-down", but he mainly collates his data from empirical, Сbottom-upТ sources.
David Canter argues that relying on interviews of convicted murderers is not sensible, as serial killers are known to be manipulative and sensation seekers, although nowadays profiling in the USA uses information from the scene. The FBI now trains profilers worldwide, and have found that profiling is most useful when there is evidence of psychopathology.
There is no doubt that Canter's work and approach to profiling owes more to psychology than that of the FBI.
In the UK Copson and Holloway (1997) surveyed detectives who worked on 184 cases in which offender profiling had been used. They believed it had produced identification of offenders in less than three per cent of cases and helped to solve the crime in 16per cent. They concluded Сprofiling can work very well, but certainly not in the way some practitioners, or dramatists would have you believe. There is nothing in our findings to support the notion that complex offender characteristics can be predicted with any great accuracy. In fact with some people you would be better off tossing a coin". In contrast, according to Harrower (1998), offender profiling has undoubted potential if used properly by trained professionals, as in the USA "192 cases of offender profiling led to 88 arrests".
However the aim of both the British and American processes is to identify areas that will help in the investigation leading to arrest of the offender, and it is clear that when both methods are combined together, the more likelihood of catching an offender there is.
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Biological Diversity
Through assessing a 5 by 5 meter plot of land in Cameron Park, an urban ecosystem, I obtained a better understanding of the natural stresses present in an environment and the resulting biological diversity that is affected by these stresses. My plot of land was located on a slope of medium steepness leading down to a small creek towards the Northwest and a path to the Northeast. The aspect of this plot was 330 degrees northwest. The soil was rich, noted by its dark and damp appearance and texture. The soil was deep as well, which allowed for plants with extensive roots to grow in that particular area. Dead leaves and moss-covered logs blanketed the soil, most likely contributing to its rich texture. Most of the greenery in this plot was low to the ground with several accompanying taller trees. There were 3 trees that reached about 45 feet tall, but the rest of the landscape was covered with younger, smaller trees, shrubs, and floor greenery.
After taking note of these characteristics I was able to propose my hypothesis: The biodiversity of my real estate is high because the soil appears to be rich and moist, the slope is not extremely steep which would promote erosion, and the presence of decaying plant parts suggests that the soil will continue to be fertile. Furthermore, the ground and plants seemed fairly undisturbed, which would allow for a greater survival rate from more plant varieties. These factors, as well as others, do have an influence on the diversity of this plot. The slope is not extremely steep, but it most likely does pose a problem for new, small shrubs whose roots do not hold them into the ground. When it rains, some of these smaller, younger plants have a chance of being washed into the creek below. Another factor to consider is that the tall trees provide shade for the smaller plants. This may hinder or improve the plants’ growth, depending on each plants preferred environment. I also noticed that most of the plant leaves were eaten away by insects. Almost all of the leaves contained several holes. There has obviously been a bug infestation within this area which probably affects the survival rate of young plants. This factor is important to take into account when assessing the ecosystem of this area. Since this park is an urban area, it probably is affected by man-made factors as well, such as pollution. I did find a glass bottle in the brush on my plot, so there was evidently human contact at some time in this area or surrounding areas.
The predominant plant inhabitants of this site consisted of shrubbery and low greenery but there were several young trees and vines along with 3 larger trees as mentioned before. I was able to identify 2 Carolina Snailseed (Cocculus carolinus) among the greenery, along with 1 Chinese Privet (Ligustrum lucidum), and 1 small tree, which I was unable to identify, characterized by smooth bark and light green pointed leaves. There were also 4 cedar elm (Ulmus crassifolia), 3 of which were the largest trees on the plot. I noted the presence of two Texas White Ash (Fraxinus texensis). I found that there were several plants in this area, but few appeared to be the same species. As for animals, I saw two brown moths, 3 black ants, a white spiral snail, a large black bumble bee, and three beetles each of a different color. Just as with the plants, there were several varieties of insects present, but few were from the same species.
Once I plotted the data I obtained regarding the different plants and animals in existence on this plot, I calculated the Simpson’s Diversity index. The total number of living species, both plants and animals, present in this plot was 20, 12 of which were different species. Using the following equation and the numbers as stated on my Plot Data sheet, I found the Simpson’s Diversity index to be 0.9368.
Ds = 1.0 – [total column D / (total column B x (total column B-1.0))]
Ds = 1.0 – [24 / (20 x (19))] = 1- (24/380) = .9368
The closer this Simpson’s Diversity index is to 1, the more diverse the area is. My index, 0.9368, is close to 1.0 and therefore suggests that there is a large biodiversity in that specific area. Due to this index value, I know that this area contains a variety of plants and animals and can be considered a fairly natural and organized environment. The ecology is fairly extensive in this particular area. Furthermore, this diversity index indicates that the external stresses affecting this ecosystem are limited. The medium-steep slope is obviously not so extreme as to result in serious erosion. Exposure to natural stresses, including exposure to sun, wind, and rain, are evidently at beneficial levels. If the slope was steeper, this 5 by 5 meter ecosystem may have been exposed to too much run-off water. However, the land in this area of Cameron Park slopes in several directions, preventing the run-off water from flushing away the organisms of a particular plot. My plot could have also been damaged by being overly exposed to the sun had its slope been facing directly East or West instead of Northwest. Obviously, there are many natural resources affecting the ecosystem, such as those mentioned above as well as the decaying material on the ground responsible for improving the quality of the soil. These natural resources are the reason for a high diversity index in this area. Without them, the ecosystem would fall apart and the biodiversity would fall. Only certain organisms would be able to survive in a different environment. Using counting techniques and the Simpson’s Diversity Index in Ecology allows for a standard to be used in comparisons. Describing an ecosystem using numbers makes the information more understandable to other people. Otherwise, the biodiversity of an ecosystem would appear to be an opinion rather than a standardized measurement.
This Simpson’s Diversity index value proves my hypothesis to be correct; there is a high biodiversity in my real estate. When making my initial hypothesis I was influenced by the general appearance of the ecosystem; it was fairly well covered in greenery and other forms of life, but few of the organisms looked the same. I was also influenced by the soil’s rich appearance. I thought that since the soil was deep and dark brown, it could provide nutrition and stability for a variety of plants.
Although the ecological system in this plot seems to be thriving, external stresses continue to exist and influence the environment. The diversity I calculated is close to 1.0, but it could be even more diverse. External stresses are the reason for this plot not reaching its potential diversity. First of all, natural disturbances act as a natural selection agent. Plants that need more sun than this plot is provided with, due to its aspect and location, will not survive here. Some plants may need less water than they would receive here and would therefore die. Plants and animals that cannot naturally survive in this environment are “weeded out” by natural stresses. Man-made stresses, however, result in a different type of destruction. Since this plot is part of an urban park, the ecosystem is susceptible to pollution, trash, and human contact. All of these factors may result in the killing off of organisms that would have naturally survived had there been no man-made disturbances. These too result in the lowering of the plot’s biodiversity.
Through ecology, I have attained a better understanding of the effects external stresses can have on an ecosystem. Both nature and man provide stresses on an environment, therefore determining its diversity. Overall, my particular plot was quite diverse. Hopefully future man-made disturbances do not change this, but as I have learned from this lab, man’s stresses have a great influence on environment and will continue to impose changes upon ecosystems.
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After taking note of these characteristics I was able to propose my hypothesis: The biodiversity of my real estate is high because the soil appears to be rich and moist, the slope is not extremely steep which would promote erosion, and the presence of decaying plant parts suggests that the soil will continue to be fertile. Furthermore, the ground and plants seemed fairly undisturbed, which would allow for a greater survival rate from more plant varieties. These factors, as well as others, do have an influence on the diversity of this plot. The slope is not extremely steep, but it most likely does pose a problem for new, small shrubs whose roots do not hold them into the ground. When it rains, some of these smaller, younger plants have a chance of being washed into the creek below. Another factor to consider is that the tall trees provide shade for the smaller plants. This may hinder or improve the plants’ growth, depending on each plants preferred environment. I also noticed that most of the plant leaves were eaten away by insects. Almost all of the leaves contained several holes. There has obviously been a bug infestation within this area which probably affects the survival rate of young plants. This factor is important to take into account when assessing the ecosystem of this area. Since this park is an urban area, it probably is affected by man-made factors as well, such as pollution. I did find a glass bottle in the brush on my plot, so there was evidently human contact at some time in this area or surrounding areas.
The predominant plant inhabitants of this site consisted of shrubbery and low greenery but there were several young trees and vines along with 3 larger trees as mentioned before. I was able to identify 2 Carolina Snailseed (Cocculus carolinus) among the greenery, along with 1 Chinese Privet (Ligustrum lucidum), and 1 small tree, which I was unable to identify, characterized by smooth bark and light green pointed leaves. There were also 4 cedar elm (Ulmus crassifolia), 3 of which were the largest trees on the plot. I noted the presence of two Texas White Ash (Fraxinus texensis). I found that there were several plants in this area, but few appeared to be the same species. As for animals, I saw two brown moths, 3 black ants, a white spiral snail, a large black bumble bee, and three beetles each of a different color. Just as with the plants, there were several varieties of insects present, but few were from the same species.
Once I plotted the data I obtained regarding the different plants and animals in existence on this plot, I calculated the Simpson’s Diversity index. The total number of living species, both plants and animals, present in this plot was 20, 12 of which were different species. Using the following equation and the numbers as stated on my Plot Data sheet, I found the Simpson’s Diversity index to be 0.9368.
Ds = 1.0 – [total column D / (total column B x (total column B-1.0))]
Ds = 1.0 – [24 / (20 x (19))] = 1- (24/380) = .9368
The closer this Simpson’s Diversity index is to 1, the more diverse the area is. My index, 0.9368, is close to 1.0 and therefore suggests that there is a large biodiversity in that specific area. Due to this index value, I know that this area contains a variety of plants and animals and can be considered a fairly natural and organized environment. The ecology is fairly extensive in this particular area. Furthermore, this diversity index indicates that the external stresses affecting this ecosystem are limited. The medium-steep slope is obviously not so extreme as to result in serious erosion. Exposure to natural stresses, including exposure to sun, wind, and rain, are evidently at beneficial levels. If the slope was steeper, this 5 by 5 meter ecosystem may have been exposed to too much run-off water. However, the land in this area of Cameron Park slopes in several directions, preventing the run-off water from flushing away the organisms of a particular plot. My plot could have also been damaged by being overly exposed to the sun had its slope been facing directly East or West instead of Northwest. Obviously, there are many natural resources affecting the ecosystem, such as those mentioned above as well as the decaying material on the ground responsible for improving the quality of the soil. These natural resources are the reason for a high diversity index in this area. Without them, the ecosystem would fall apart and the biodiversity would fall. Only certain organisms would be able to survive in a different environment. Using counting techniques and the Simpson’s Diversity Index in Ecology allows for a standard to be used in comparisons. Describing an ecosystem using numbers makes the information more understandable to other people. Otherwise, the biodiversity of an ecosystem would appear to be an opinion rather than a standardized measurement.
This Simpson’s Diversity index value proves my hypothesis to be correct; there is a high biodiversity in my real estate. When making my initial hypothesis I was influenced by the general appearance of the ecosystem; it was fairly well covered in greenery and other forms of life, but few of the organisms looked the same. I was also influenced by the soil’s rich appearance. I thought that since the soil was deep and dark brown, it could provide nutrition and stability for a variety of plants.
Although the ecological system in this plot seems to be thriving, external stresses continue to exist and influence the environment. The diversity I calculated is close to 1.0, but it could be even more diverse. External stresses are the reason for this plot not reaching its potential diversity. First of all, natural disturbances act as a natural selection agent. Plants that need more sun than this plot is provided with, due to its aspect and location, will not survive here. Some plants may need less water than they would receive here and would therefore die. Plants and animals that cannot naturally survive in this environment are “weeded out” by natural stresses. Man-made stresses, however, result in a different type of destruction. Since this plot is part of an urban park, the ecosystem is susceptible to pollution, trash, and human contact. All of these factors may result in the killing off of organisms that would have naturally survived had there been no man-made disturbances. These too result in the lowering of the plot’s biodiversity.
Through ecology, I have attained a better understanding of the effects external stresses can have on an ecosystem. Both nature and man provide stresses on an environment, therefore determining its diversity. Overall, my particular plot was quite diverse. Hopefully future man-made disturbances do not change this, but as I have learned from this lab, man’s stresses have a great influence on environment and will continue to impose changes upon ecosystems.
Our professional custom writing service can provide you with a 100% non-plagiarized custom essay, research paper, term paper, thesis, dissertation or other assignment of high-quality. All custom papers are written from scratch by professional academic writers. Any topic, any discipline, any deadline. Feel free to order a custom written paper now.
Friday, April 10, 2009
O. Henry
Authors of short stories use elements of style to make their stories interesting. There are many elements of style used by authors. Irony and theme are often used in short stories. This is clearly shown in O. Henry’s short stories such as: “The Gift of the Magi,” “The Lickpenny Lover,” “The Midsummer Knights Dream,” “The Cop and the Anthem,” and “Ships.” The short stories of O. Henry use the element of theme to bring about ironic endings.
In “The Gift of the Magi” there are elements of theme throughout the entire story. One example of theme in the story is that poverty affected both the main characters Jim and Della. Jim and Della both lived in a poor neighborhood with very little money. They both wanted to get each other a very meaningful Christmas present. Another element of theme in this story is that Jim and Della realize how much they love each other. Eugene Garcia fines that “In this trite little tale of mutual self-sacrifice between husband and wife, O. Henry crystallized dramatically what the world in all it’s stored up wisdom knows to be of fundamental value in ordinary family life”(short story criticisms 192). The theme of this story should always be kept in mine that love is more important then money.
Another example of an element of style is irony. Each person selling something valuable to them shows irony in “The Gift of the Magi”. Della had only saved up one dollar and eighty-seven cents to get Jim a Christmas present. Since she did not have enough money she went to a store and sold her hair. Jim at the same time went to a store to sell his watch for money for Della. They both got each other gifts with the money they had gotten from selling their items. The gifts that they sold each had something to do with what they had gotten each other. Della had gotten Jim a medallion for his watch, while Jim had gotten Della beautiful combs for her hair. Arthur Voss finds that it is ironic in “O. Henry’s famous story of the young married couple, each of whom sells a treasured possession to obtain money to buy a Christmas present for the other” (short story criticisms 114). The ironic conclusion of the story is that both Della and Jim were unable to use the gifts they had gotten each other.
The short story “A Lickpenny Lover” had a similar theme to “The Gift of the Magi.” The reoccurring theme in “A Lickpenny Lover” was that money was not everything. Masie is a young shop girl who is attractive and hardworking. Irving Carter a millionaire asks Masie on a date. He had tried to impress her with his money. Instead Masie did not think of Carter as a different person because of the money he had. She still saw him as a regular man who asked her on a date. Masie saw Carter as a wealthy man who did not like to use his money. Masie on the other hand did not like him more instead she liked him less for not being more generous with it.
Irony had played a big role in the story “A Lickpenny Lover.” One example of irony that occurs often was the misunderstanding of honest love. Garcia stated that in the story “Maize is incapable of knowing honest love from dishonest, and she is in consequence one of his least interesting women”(short story criticisms 193). When Masie was asked by Carter to get married she did not take him seriously. Garcia thought that “Masie even with her eyes open, rejects, her wealthy suitor because she thinks that his promise to take her to faraway places only means that he wanted her to marry him and go down to Coney island for a wedding tour”(short story criticisms 192). Masie only thought that Carter was using a come on line towards her. This just shows how ignorant masie was when judging Carter for being cheap, when he really was planning to take her to Europe.
The Theme that is identified in the story “The Midsummer Knights Dream” is that Mary married for love and not for money. This is shown throughout the entire story by the letter that Marry wrote to her husband describing how much she had missed him. Garcia points out that in the story “There is a contrast between Gaines dream of his courtship days in a mountain resort and the letter he receives from his wife as he sits sweating in a hot office building”(short story criticisms 191). Gaines is in the office rather than in the country because he can not afford it. He knows his wife enjoys it so he saves up to send her there. Since Gaines could not have what he wanted he made it less important to him. An example of this occurs when he is saying that he “hates the country in the summer and that the city is a much nicer resort”. He only says this because he is unable to go there.
The irony in “The Midsummer Knights Dream” is that Gaines really liked the country and missed it. Gaines missed the country because he used to enjoy fishing, but now since he can not go to the country he says he does not miss fishing. He only stayed in the city because could not afford to go to the country. Gaines decided to make the best of the situation by saying that the city was the best summer resort in the world to his assistant Adkins. Adkins could not understand that Gaines felt this way because he was unable to have something he wanted. He was used to getting what he wanted and a perfect example of this was his wife Mary.
Another story “The Cop and the Anthem” has shown a similar theme throughout the story. A important lesson learned in this story is that if you wish for something bad enough it might just come true. The main character of Soapy shows this. Donald Peel finds that in this story “in which a hobo tries unsuccessfully to get arrested so that he can get food and shelter and then is arrested after he decides that he will give up his vagabond ways”(The American Consciousness 230). This shows that Soapy could not change because of the circumstances he was surrounded by. He really wanted to change for the better, but he was unable to because he was homeless and had a poor look about him.
In the story “The Cop and the Anthem” the ironic element which is shown is that when Soapy is ready to change he got what he originally wanted which was to get arrested and go to jail. Ironically Soapy was in a church when he had decide to change his mind about his direction of his life. Then all of a sudden a policeman had arrested him for trespassing and gave him six months in jail. Soapy had got arrested unintentionally, when at first he wanted to get arrested. He finally got what he really wanted, which was to go to jail, to eat and have a place to live for six months. This proves that a person who wants to change can not always have the power to do it at that particular moment. In order to change it usually takes time; Soapy had found it out the hard way.
In the story “Ships” an example of theme is how the main character Johnny tries to overcome his poverty and change his position in life. He devises a plan to get rich quick for himself and the shop owner Mr. Hemstetter. Kent Bales explains that “In order to sell shoes, for example, a character imports cockleburs into the near paradise of Anchuria, O. Henry’s fictional Honduras”(American Writers Supplement 409). The cockleburs were at one point not selling to anyone and Johnny was loosing money. O. Henry would use made up places in his writings to help develop the theme as he did in “Ships”. Therefore that is why he had chose a poor fictitious country in Central America. He shows how this can possibly happen in real life to people who want to get rich.
The Irony in the “Ships” is that Johnny who is poor and the factory owner, who is also poor soon, become rich in a short amount of time. When a company carrying cockleburs come to the island looking to sell them. The factories owner buys them, then realizes know one is going to buy them. Bales states that “The enterprising exporter of the original barrel of cockleburs shows up with two ships full of the no longer necessary seeds, expecting to sell them to the factory he imagines must somehow use them”(American Writers Supplement). Johnny and the factory owner pout the cockleburs down on the beach. They put them down on the beach in order for people to buy shoes. After they make a lot of money Johnny leaves the island. The guy who grows the cockleburs now was stuck with much to many of them. Johnny now out of the country, because he realized that there was no more demand of shoes so he got out while he still would make money. Now everybody in they country had shoes to walk around in so there feet would not hurt.
Elements of style are important devices in helping authors put great emphasis on important issues in their stories. It also helps prove an author’s point while writing a story. This is shown throughout many of O. Henrys short stories by the example of poverty. O. Henry has put great emphasis on the two important elements of style in his short stories, which is theme and irony. In the stories written by O. Henry many of them have shown different examples how the element of theme came to bring about ironic endings.
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In “The Gift of the Magi” there are elements of theme throughout the entire story. One example of theme in the story is that poverty affected both the main characters Jim and Della. Jim and Della both lived in a poor neighborhood with very little money. They both wanted to get each other a very meaningful Christmas present. Another element of theme in this story is that Jim and Della realize how much they love each other. Eugene Garcia fines that “In this trite little tale of mutual self-sacrifice between husband and wife, O. Henry crystallized dramatically what the world in all it’s stored up wisdom knows to be of fundamental value in ordinary family life”(short story criticisms 192). The theme of this story should always be kept in mine that love is more important then money.
Another example of an element of style is irony. Each person selling something valuable to them shows irony in “The Gift of the Magi”. Della had only saved up one dollar and eighty-seven cents to get Jim a Christmas present. Since she did not have enough money she went to a store and sold her hair. Jim at the same time went to a store to sell his watch for money for Della. They both got each other gifts with the money they had gotten from selling their items. The gifts that they sold each had something to do with what they had gotten each other. Della had gotten Jim a medallion for his watch, while Jim had gotten Della beautiful combs for her hair. Arthur Voss finds that it is ironic in “O. Henry’s famous story of the young married couple, each of whom sells a treasured possession to obtain money to buy a Christmas present for the other” (short story criticisms 114). The ironic conclusion of the story is that both Della and Jim were unable to use the gifts they had gotten each other.
The short story “A Lickpenny Lover” had a similar theme to “The Gift of the Magi.” The reoccurring theme in “A Lickpenny Lover” was that money was not everything. Masie is a young shop girl who is attractive and hardworking. Irving Carter a millionaire asks Masie on a date. He had tried to impress her with his money. Instead Masie did not think of Carter as a different person because of the money he had. She still saw him as a regular man who asked her on a date. Masie saw Carter as a wealthy man who did not like to use his money. Masie on the other hand did not like him more instead she liked him less for not being more generous with it.
Irony had played a big role in the story “A Lickpenny Lover.” One example of irony that occurs often was the misunderstanding of honest love. Garcia stated that in the story “Maize is incapable of knowing honest love from dishonest, and she is in consequence one of his least interesting women”(short story criticisms 193). When Masie was asked by Carter to get married she did not take him seriously. Garcia thought that “Masie even with her eyes open, rejects, her wealthy suitor because she thinks that his promise to take her to faraway places only means that he wanted her to marry him and go down to Coney island for a wedding tour”(short story criticisms 192). Masie only thought that Carter was using a come on line towards her. This just shows how ignorant masie was when judging Carter for being cheap, when he really was planning to take her to Europe.
The Theme that is identified in the story “The Midsummer Knights Dream” is that Mary married for love and not for money. This is shown throughout the entire story by the letter that Marry wrote to her husband describing how much she had missed him. Garcia points out that in the story “There is a contrast between Gaines dream of his courtship days in a mountain resort and the letter he receives from his wife as he sits sweating in a hot office building”(short story criticisms 191). Gaines is in the office rather than in the country because he can not afford it. He knows his wife enjoys it so he saves up to send her there. Since Gaines could not have what he wanted he made it less important to him. An example of this occurs when he is saying that he “hates the country in the summer and that the city is a much nicer resort”. He only says this because he is unable to go there.
The irony in “The Midsummer Knights Dream” is that Gaines really liked the country and missed it. Gaines missed the country because he used to enjoy fishing, but now since he can not go to the country he says he does not miss fishing. He only stayed in the city because could not afford to go to the country. Gaines decided to make the best of the situation by saying that the city was the best summer resort in the world to his assistant Adkins. Adkins could not understand that Gaines felt this way because he was unable to have something he wanted. He was used to getting what he wanted and a perfect example of this was his wife Mary.
Another story “The Cop and the Anthem” has shown a similar theme throughout the story. A important lesson learned in this story is that if you wish for something bad enough it might just come true. The main character of Soapy shows this. Donald Peel finds that in this story “in which a hobo tries unsuccessfully to get arrested so that he can get food and shelter and then is arrested after he decides that he will give up his vagabond ways”(The American Consciousness 230). This shows that Soapy could not change because of the circumstances he was surrounded by. He really wanted to change for the better, but he was unable to because he was homeless and had a poor look about him.
In the story “The Cop and the Anthem” the ironic element which is shown is that when Soapy is ready to change he got what he originally wanted which was to get arrested and go to jail. Ironically Soapy was in a church when he had decide to change his mind about his direction of his life. Then all of a sudden a policeman had arrested him for trespassing and gave him six months in jail. Soapy had got arrested unintentionally, when at first he wanted to get arrested. He finally got what he really wanted, which was to go to jail, to eat and have a place to live for six months. This proves that a person who wants to change can not always have the power to do it at that particular moment. In order to change it usually takes time; Soapy had found it out the hard way.
In the story “Ships” an example of theme is how the main character Johnny tries to overcome his poverty and change his position in life. He devises a plan to get rich quick for himself and the shop owner Mr. Hemstetter. Kent Bales explains that “In order to sell shoes, for example, a character imports cockleburs into the near paradise of Anchuria, O. Henry’s fictional Honduras”(American Writers Supplement 409). The cockleburs were at one point not selling to anyone and Johnny was loosing money. O. Henry would use made up places in his writings to help develop the theme as he did in “Ships”. Therefore that is why he had chose a poor fictitious country in Central America. He shows how this can possibly happen in real life to people who want to get rich.
The Irony in the “Ships” is that Johnny who is poor and the factory owner, who is also poor soon, become rich in a short amount of time. When a company carrying cockleburs come to the island looking to sell them. The factories owner buys them, then realizes know one is going to buy them. Bales states that “The enterprising exporter of the original barrel of cockleburs shows up with two ships full of the no longer necessary seeds, expecting to sell them to the factory he imagines must somehow use them”(American Writers Supplement). Johnny and the factory owner pout the cockleburs down on the beach. They put them down on the beach in order for people to buy shoes. After they make a lot of money Johnny leaves the island. The guy who grows the cockleburs now was stuck with much to many of them. Johnny now out of the country, because he realized that there was no more demand of shoes so he got out while he still would make money. Now everybody in they country had shoes to walk around in so there feet would not hurt.
Elements of style are important devices in helping authors put great emphasis on important issues in their stories. It also helps prove an author’s point while writing a story. This is shown throughout many of O. Henrys short stories by the example of poverty. O. Henry has put great emphasis on the two important elements of style in his short stories, which is theme and irony. In the stories written by O. Henry many of them have shown different examples how the element of theme came to bring about ironic endings.
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Obsession
Obsession is the persistent idea dominating a person’s mind. The act of obsession can have both negative and positive outcomes for the person with the obsession and those around them. In Wuthering Heights there are two main obsessions, revenge and love, both of which has negative outcome for the person with the obsession and those around them. The desire for revenge extending throughout the novel had a very destructive nature. The idea of love in the novel also had negative effects, which caused most of the relationships to end in tragedy. Similarly, in the cartoon Garfield, the obsession with food and self-assessment also have negative impacts on the characters. In a recent newspaper article, it accounted frequent obsession with fitness in the busy everyday world. Again, this obsession has a negative outcome. The film, A Knight’s Tale, talks about the life of a common peasant in search of his own identity and his obsession to change the course of his life. This obsession, unlike the others has a positive impact on the characters of the film.
Love is usually a positive emotion enjoyed and cherished by those who are involved. However the portrayal of this theme in Wuthering heights was in form of an obsession, which led to a tragic ending. In the novel, four characters submitted themselves to the obsession of love.
Firstly there was Hindley who is the eldest son of Mr Earnshaw. After the death of his father, Hindley returned home with a wife, Frances, who he is madly in love with. His obsession with her altered him physically and mentally after her death. The death of Frances left Hindley alone with their son Hareton. Unable to cope with the loss of Frances, Hindley became heartbroken and and instead of transferring his love for his wife to his son, he neglected and despise him. Hindley grief for his wife soon also became an obsession. He did so with a violence and wholeheartedness, which led him to seek other outlets for his emotion such as drinking and gambling. His actions due to his obsession were harmful to himself physically and dangerous to those around him, as it can be seen when he tried to throw Hareton over the banister in his state of drunkenness.
Catherine Earnshaw was not only obsessively in love with Heathcliff but was also in love with her self. This obsession caused her to have a false illusion about herself. As the only daughter of Mr Earnshaw, Catherine too was undeniably spoilt. She always wanted to be in the centre of attention and always thought of herself to be higher than everyone else. Her tantrums and high self-esteem cause others around her to keep their distance however she assured herself that ‘no matter how everybody despised each other, they could not avoid loving me.’
The obsessive love triangle between Catherine, Heathcliff and Isabella also caused negative outcomes for the characters. Catherine and Heathcliff were brought together when Mr Earnshaw adopted Heathcliff and made him a member of the family. However, their love developed as Catherine began to feel sympathy towards Heathcliff as a result of Hindley’s cruel treatment towards him. As the characters matured, Catherine and Heathcliff’s passion for each other dominated their lives. It can be seen that neither can live without the other when Catherine said ‘his and mine (soul) are the samel’. However as class and social status divided the couple, other emotions, such as jealousy entered the relationship and the obsession with one another negatively influenced the people around them. As the obsession manifested further, the outcome became devastating, as the couple could not be together, and as death struck Catherine, the negativity of the outcome was intensified. Years after mourning her death, Heathcliff is still madly in love with Catherine. His obsession continued growing and led to distorted behaviour to an extend that he uncovered her coffin just to see her face again and ‘bribed the sexton’ to bury him next to her when he dies. Throughout the novel, Heathcliff’s obsession consumed him slowly, stopping him from moving on.
Another victim of the destructive influence of the obsession is Isabella. Isabella was also obsessive about her love for Heathcliff. Her love however was disillusioned as she was only used as a piece in Heathcliff plan for revenge. Her obsession with him only allowed her to see what she wanted to see in Heathcliff as she ignored all his faults. This was bad for her as she was cheated into a loveless marriage and was brutally abused.
Overall the obsession of love in Wuthering Height had a destructive outcome for the characters. It consumed them and caused them pain, suffering.
Similar to the obsessions of Wuthering heights, the cartoon Garfield also has obsessions that cause negative effects to the characters.
Firstly, the effect of Garfield’s obsession with food can be seen through the appearance of the character. The well known cat is chubby and has the thought of food consistently on his mind. The length Garfield goes through to get the food he wants are very humorous but also has negative effects on the people around him as he is sometimes very annoying. In the cartoon, the obsession with food is emphasised by the repetitions of actions and the exaggerated movements of the character. The obsession is also emphasised by the use of colour. The colours are very bright which indicates the lively and excited emotions of the character. As Garfield’s action and thoughts are similar to those of a human being, the cartoon is comparing him to many people in the world. It suggests that many people in the world are also obsessed with food, and that they are often very desperate and specific and would do anything to get what they want.
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Love is usually a positive emotion enjoyed and cherished by those who are involved. However the portrayal of this theme in Wuthering heights was in form of an obsession, which led to a tragic ending. In the novel, four characters submitted themselves to the obsession of love.
Firstly there was Hindley who is the eldest son of Mr Earnshaw. After the death of his father, Hindley returned home with a wife, Frances, who he is madly in love with. His obsession with her altered him physically and mentally after her death. The death of Frances left Hindley alone with their son Hareton. Unable to cope with the loss of Frances, Hindley became heartbroken and and instead of transferring his love for his wife to his son, he neglected and despise him. Hindley grief for his wife soon also became an obsession. He did so with a violence and wholeheartedness, which led him to seek other outlets for his emotion such as drinking and gambling. His actions due to his obsession were harmful to himself physically and dangerous to those around him, as it can be seen when he tried to throw Hareton over the banister in his state of drunkenness.
Catherine Earnshaw was not only obsessively in love with Heathcliff but was also in love with her self. This obsession caused her to have a false illusion about herself. As the only daughter of Mr Earnshaw, Catherine too was undeniably spoilt. She always wanted to be in the centre of attention and always thought of herself to be higher than everyone else. Her tantrums and high self-esteem cause others around her to keep their distance however she assured herself that ‘no matter how everybody despised each other, they could not avoid loving me.’
The obsessive love triangle between Catherine, Heathcliff and Isabella also caused negative outcomes for the characters. Catherine and Heathcliff were brought together when Mr Earnshaw adopted Heathcliff and made him a member of the family. However, their love developed as Catherine began to feel sympathy towards Heathcliff as a result of Hindley’s cruel treatment towards him. As the characters matured, Catherine and Heathcliff’s passion for each other dominated their lives. It can be seen that neither can live without the other when Catherine said ‘his and mine (soul) are the samel’. However as class and social status divided the couple, other emotions, such as jealousy entered the relationship and the obsession with one another negatively influenced the people around them. As the obsession manifested further, the outcome became devastating, as the couple could not be together, and as death struck Catherine, the negativity of the outcome was intensified. Years after mourning her death, Heathcliff is still madly in love with Catherine. His obsession continued growing and led to distorted behaviour to an extend that he uncovered her coffin just to see her face again and ‘bribed the sexton’ to bury him next to her when he dies. Throughout the novel, Heathcliff’s obsession consumed him slowly, stopping him from moving on.
Another victim of the destructive influence of the obsession is Isabella. Isabella was also obsessive about her love for Heathcliff. Her love however was disillusioned as she was only used as a piece in Heathcliff plan for revenge. Her obsession with him only allowed her to see what she wanted to see in Heathcliff as she ignored all his faults. This was bad for her as she was cheated into a loveless marriage and was brutally abused.
Overall the obsession of love in Wuthering Height had a destructive outcome for the characters. It consumed them and caused them pain, suffering.
Similar to the obsessions of Wuthering heights, the cartoon Garfield also has obsessions that cause negative effects to the characters.
Firstly, the effect of Garfield’s obsession with food can be seen through the appearance of the character. The well known cat is chubby and has the thought of food consistently on his mind. The length Garfield goes through to get the food he wants are very humorous but also has negative effects on the people around him as he is sometimes very annoying. In the cartoon, the obsession with food is emphasised by the repetitions of actions and the exaggerated movements of the character. The obsession is also emphasised by the use of colour. The colours are very bright which indicates the lively and excited emotions of the character. As Garfield’s action and thoughts are similar to those of a human being, the cartoon is comparing him to many people in the world. It suggests that many people in the world are also obsessed with food, and that they are often very desperate and specific and would do anything to get what they want.
Our professional custom writing service can provide you with a 100% non-plagiarized custom essay, research paper, term paper, thesis, dissertation or other assignment of high-quality. All custom papers are written from scratch by professional academic writers. Any topic, any discipline, any deadline. Feel free to order a custom written paper now.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Immigration Law
Over 500,000 people waiting to learn whether they will get into Canada will face revised, retroactive selection rules that are much tougher than before. A new point system for education, language skills, occupation, and work experience will apply to the new applicants. The rules are so tough that most Canadians would find themselves not up to standard for Canada. Many people complain that tough rules could scare away first-rate newcomers. It is my belief that immigration law should be easier and allow more newcomers getting into Canada to improve social diversity, keep the economy growing, and keep the population balanced.
More immigrants will improve society diversity that has been a fundamental characteristic of Canada since its beginnings. Canada is a nation of immigrants. Diversity allows each of us to bring varied and unique talents, backgrounds, needs, expectations, perspectives and experiences to this country. Approximately 200,000 immigrants a year from all parts of the globe continue to choose Canada, drawn by its quality of life and its reputation as an open, peaceful and caring society that welcomes newcomers and values diversity. (Canadian Heritage, 2002) Meanwhile, Canada continues to benefit from the right kind of immigration, economically and culturally.
More immigrants will improve economy growth by providing human resources and increasing social purchasing power. More immigrants is one of the most important solutions for shortages of a wide range of skills in Canada. According to governmentsтАЩ reports, in industries such as construction, textiles, trucking, plastics, auto mechanics, clothing, aviation mechanics and mining, employers are facing current and future shortages. A shortage of workers means that economy of this country may grow more slowly. Companies may plan future investments in places where they can find sufficient workers. In these fields, immigrants constitute 70 per cent of the net increase in the workforce and soon will contribute 100 per cent. (Crane, 2002) At the same time, more immigrants will consume more social product, thereby increasing social purchasing power and improving economy growth.
More immigrants will keep Canada from depopulation and make the population balanced and stable. According to Statistics Canada 2001 census, the median age of the country's population had reached a record high of 37.6 years, up sharply from the 35.3 years recorded in 1996. The agency noted that although 2.2 million immigrants arrived in Canada between 1991 and 2001, compared with 1.4 million in the previous decade, the median age had increased by four years in both 10-year periods. Population aging will definitely result in depopulation. While immigration brings additional support to the labor market, it has limited impact on population aging. (Ljunggren, 2002) Introducing more immigrants should be a quick result solution to these problems, and thereby prevent a scenario whereby a shrinking number of taxpayers ended up supporting more and more pensioners.
The new immigration law that came into effect last June is so tough that thousands of immigration applicants may find themselves disqualified. It is doubted that the new regulations could attract younger and more educated immigrants who would be able to quickly adapt to Canada's mobile workforce. Canada is part of a global competition for immigrants. The best and the brightest will go elsewhere if the Canadian system is too stringent, slow and complicated. In order to keep attracting the target of about 300,000 newcomers every year, government will have to water down current immigration law.
In conclusion, immigration law should be revised allowing more qualified people to enter Canada. Current system that is too tough for most applicants should be made easier as long as success applicants are able to start their new life without too much difficulty. Constant immigration flow is absolutely necessarily, and will benefit this country by improving social diversity, keeping the economy growing, and keeping the population balanced and moderately growing.
Our professional custom writing service can provide you with a 100% non-plagiarized custom essay, research paper, term paper, thesis, dissertation or other assignment of high-quality. All custom papers are written from scratch by professional academic writers. Any topic, any discipline, any deadline. Feel free to order a custom written paper now.
More immigrants will improve society diversity that has been a fundamental characteristic of Canada since its beginnings. Canada is a nation of immigrants. Diversity allows each of us to bring varied and unique talents, backgrounds, needs, expectations, perspectives and experiences to this country. Approximately 200,000 immigrants a year from all parts of the globe continue to choose Canada, drawn by its quality of life and its reputation as an open, peaceful and caring society that welcomes newcomers and values diversity. (Canadian Heritage, 2002) Meanwhile, Canada continues to benefit from the right kind of immigration, economically and culturally.
More immigrants will improve economy growth by providing human resources and increasing social purchasing power. More immigrants is one of the most important solutions for shortages of a wide range of skills in Canada. According to governmentsтАЩ reports, in industries such as construction, textiles, trucking, plastics, auto mechanics, clothing, aviation mechanics and mining, employers are facing current and future shortages. A shortage of workers means that economy of this country may grow more slowly. Companies may plan future investments in places where they can find sufficient workers. In these fields, immigrants constitute 70 per cent of the net increase in the workforce and soon will contribute 100 per cent. (Crane, 2002) At the same time, more immigrants will consume more social product, thereby increasing social purchasing power and improving economy growth.
More immigrants will keep Canada from depopulation and make the population balanced and stable. According to Statistics Canada 2001 census, the median age of the country's population had reached a record high of 37.6 years, up sharply from the 35.3 years recorded in 1996. The agency noted that although 2.2 million immigrants arrived in Canada between 1991 and 2001, compared with 1.4 million in the previous decade, the median age had increased by four years in both 10-year periods. Population aging will definitely result in depopulation. While immigration brings additional support to the labor market, it has limited impact on population aging. (Ljunggren, 2002) Introducing more immigrants should be a quick result solution to these problems, and thereby prevent a scenario whereby a shrinking number of taxpayers ended up supporting more and more pensioners.
The new immigration law that came into effect last June is so tough that thousands of immigration applicants may find themselves disqualified. It is doubted that the new regulations could attract younger and more educated immigrants who would be able to quickly adapt to Canada's mobile workforce. Canada is part of a global competition for immigrants. The best and the brightest will go elsewhere if the Canadian system is too stringent, slow and complicated. In order to keep attracting the target of about 300,000 newcomers every year, government will have to water down current immigration law.
In conclusion, immigration law should be revised allowing more qualified people to enter Canada. Current system that is too tough for most applicants should be made easier as long as success applicants are able to start their new life without too much difficulty. Constant immigration flow is absolutely necessarily, and will benefit this country by improving social diversity, keeping the economy growing, and keeping the population balanced and moderately growing.
Our professional custom writing service can provide you with a 100% non-plagiarized custom essay, research paper, term paper, thesis, dissertation or other assignment of high-quality. All custom papers are written from scratch by professional academic writers. Any topic, any discipline, any deadline. Feel free to order a custom written paper now.
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