What are the main themes of Everyman?

One theme is alienation and loneliness. Everyman discovers that when he faces death and God's judgment, he must do so alone.

Another theme is atonement and forgiveness. Everyman seeks atonement for his sins and then is given God's forgiveness for his sins.

Everyman also discovers that earthly friends and family will ultimately betray you because they are selfish. Everyman is forced to look for greater truths when he's abandoned by others.

Everyman isn't prepared to go with death to meet God, and he asks for extra time to get ready. He uses this time to look at how he's spent his life.

The importance of God and religion is also shown. Religion provides the way to get God's salvation.

It's believed that good deeds will get a person to heaven. Family, friends, or any earthly possessions aren't important.

Knowledge gives Everyman the help he needs to recognize and understand how he has sinned. This knowledge leads him to confession and salvation.

Sin is the main theme of the play. Sin causes man to stray from God, and he must renounce his sins in order to be saved. 

For more details, go to the link below.

What are some examples of symbolism in The Kite Runner?

I think that there are many examples of symbolism in the Kite Runner.

1- The kite represents the freedom and bonding of Amir and Hassan, both at the beginning and end of the book.

2- The slingshot represents devotion. In the beginning, Hassan used it to stand up to Assef in the alley, and then at the end, Hassan's son Sohrab used it to protect Amir against Assef after returning to Afghanistan.

3- Assef's brass knuckles represent fear. Everytime that Assef would come up to Hassan or Amir, he would have his hands up and be ready to fight them. In the end, this is really in effect. This happens when Assef beats up Amir when he comes back to Afghanistan.

4- The Ford car given to Amir by Baba symbolizes their changing relationship.

What is the complication in Maupassant's "The Necklace" that sets up the conflict?

The complication that causes the conflict in "The Necklace" is for Madame Loisel to find the things in life that will make her fit into a higher social class.  This is based on material things.  In her mind she feels that she was deprived the life of a socialite and that she deserves to have whatever it takes to get her there.  Mr. Loisel begins to take her on this journey by getting her a ticket to a very prestigious event that only "the  finest" are invited to.  Once she has the invitation, she now pouts because she has nothing to wear.  When  her husband gives her the money, he has been saving for a rifle, it still is not enough.  She then complains that she has no jewelry to wear, so her husband tells her to ask her wealthy friend, Madame Forestier, to borrow a bauble to wear.  Based on these three problems, the conflict is set.  From the time she borrows the necklace, to the end of the story, her life is all downhill, reducing her to a lower social class than when she started. It just goes to show you, be happy with what you have because the grass isn't always greener on the other side. 

Reference:  The Literature and Language Book by McDougal Littell

Did Jonas die in The Giver?

Karen MacPherson, writing for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, includes further quotes from author Lois Lowry as to why she succumbed to readers who loved “The Giver” but hated the ending.  The book ends on an ambiguous note, as Lowry leaves it up to readers to decide what happens to Jonas. "I saw it as an optimistic ending. I didn't feel the need to further explain it, or go on with a sequel," Lowry said. "What I like about provocative books in general is that they allow readers to bring their own beliefs, political as well as religious, to the fiction, to fit, to find the symbolism." But she also received a torrent of complaints from readers, both children and adults, who wanted her to write a sequel. Although she was at first adamantly opposed to the idea, Lowry eventually decided to do a companion book, in which readers get a sense -- however vague -- of how Jonas ended up. "Now, I don't generally cater to the reading public's whims and wishes. But their reaction affected me, I think, in that it made me want to sort out things for myself," Lowry said. ("Lois Lowry’s Newberry-winning ‘Giver’ still ignites debate”).

The undeniable proof that Jonas and Gabrielle survived their ordeal is revealed in Los Lowry’s third book in “The Giver” trilogy, “The Messenger.” The following are excerpts from that book: In the schoolhouse, Mentor, the schoolteacher, gently tutored a mischievous eight-year-old named Gabe, who had neglected his studies to play and now needed help. (Lowry 17).

From a window, the tall young man known as Leader looked down and watched the slow and cheerful pace of Village, of the people he loved, who had chosen him to rule and guard them. He had come here as a boy, finding his way with great difficulty. The Museum held the remains of a broken sled in a glass case, and the inscription explained that it had been Leader's arrival vehicle. There were many relics of arrival in the Museum, because each person who had not been born in Village had his own story of coming there. (18).

What is bureaucracy? What are the advantages and disadvantages of bureaucracy?

Bureaucracy is also meant to allow an organization,
governmental or private, to carry on its day to day business through changes in power. 
This is a tremendous advantage since if all of the people involved with day to day
operations were let go when a new administration or CEO came in, it would completely
disrupt the operations of the entity.  The institutional history and intelligence would
be completely lost in a change in power at the top.  New people would have to be hired
and trained, causing significant down time for any organization, which would be
completely impractical.  If I need a passport and there is a new president in January, I
do not want to wait for new people to be hired and trained in the interim. And that is a
fairly trivial example.  Image a complete turnover in the Defense Department for each
new administration! For the most part, in government and in private industry, a change
at the top effectuates not all that many personnel changes, so the bureaucracy can carry
on.  As much red tape as they seem to generate, we would be even less pleased without
them. 

Who betrayed the ten Booms in The Hiding Place?

The name of the man who betrayed the ten Booms was Jan
Vogel.

Jan Vogel worked with the Gestapo, exposing members
of the Resistance to them. He was responsible for sending a great many individuals to
prison and worse; he had aided the Gestapo from the first day of the occupation of
Holland, having operated in Ermelo before coming to Haarlem. On the day of the raid at
the Beje, Vogel had come to the establishment and insisted on speaking with Corrie, who
was ill. When Corrie came down from her sickbed to meet him, he told her that his wife
had just been arrested because they had been hiding Jews, and asked for money with which
he would be able to bribe a policeman to be lenient with her, or perhaps let her go.
Corrie sensed that something was not right with the "small sandy-haired man;" there was
something suspicious in his demeanor, in the way "his eyes seemed to make a circle
around (her) face," and yet, she did not want to risk being wrong. She told the man she
would get the money and that he should "come back in half an hour." Shortly thereafter,
the Beje was raided and Corrie and her family were
arrested.

Corrie and Betsie are incarcerated at Vught when
they learned the identity of their betrayer. Corrie, thinking about how Vogel had caused
the death of her father and no end of suffering to the rest of her family, was filled
with rage, but Betsie reacted with forgiveness, and actual sympathy for a man who must
be so miserable with so much on his conscience. Guided by the boundless love of her
sister, Corrie prayed to be forgiven for her bitterness towards her betrayer, and was
blessed with a deep sense of acceptance and peace (Chapters 9 and
12).

What is the significance of Constance's red tongue?

Red is color traditionally associated with these symbolic meanings:  passion, aggression, desire, love.  The association of these traits with Constance are very important.  Although she begins the plays as a passive woman, unlucky in love, her true nature proves to be self-assured and passionate woman who goes after what she wants.  Her red tongue, along with her red cap, are hints to her inner nature.

How does food play a role in The Importance of Being Earnest?

Like the previous answer to this question stated, food is
used in different ways, but mostly as a symbol of attachment and
status.

The foods most well known for their cultivated
taste, the crumpets and the cucumber sandwiches that Algernon eats after promising them
to his aunt, are a symbol of detachment from his responsibility towards
her.

The huge meals in which he indulges and never pays for
in restaurants are also a symbol of detachment from his responsibilities towards society
in general.

The requirement of a meal when he went to meet
Cecily against Earnest's will was his way of making a bond and attaching Cecily to
him.

The showdown between Cecily and Gwendolyn over their
respective "Earnests" had its insults thrown around in the form of
food:

Cecily's offering of cake and sugar lumps for the tea
denoted her lack of sophistication according to Gwendolyn, who was devoted to bread and
butter, and unsweetened tea: She finds these more "fashionable" and even "honorable."
And the offer that Cecily made of cake and sugar was met with haughtiness as ammo for
insults.

The final food mention in the story shows Algernon
and Earnest eating THE VERY FOOD that Cecily and Gwendolyn were fighting over. This may
be another symbol of their overall detachment to THEM. We know that Oscar Wilde was not
only homosexual but he did show a specific disdain for marriage and the idea of it, in
general. In his plays, he likes to present the idea of a man ignoring their nagging
female companions.

Perhaps when Algernon and Earnest ate
the all-important cake and tea and bread and butter, they were basically telling off the
very angry women, and indulging instead of the company of food, used here as a symbol of
detachment.

What is the point of view of "The Gift of the Magi"?

To add to the answer below, in this particular story the narrator's use of "you" may be confusing. This is simply a stylistic device that is used to draw the reader into the story. At several points in the story, the narrator directly addresses the reader, sometimes offering comments, other times asking the reader to consider some observation.

Explain the significance of the term "moth-hour" in W.B.Yeats' poem "The Ballad of Father Gilligan."

W.B.Yeats' "The "Ballad of Father Gilligan" is a moving
story of how God comes to the rescue of a sincere priest whose only concern is the
salvation of the souls of his
impoverished parishioners.

Father Gilligan who was
exhausted in fulfilling his priestly duties day and night during an epidemic in the
Irish countryside,  either  in giving the last communion to his poor parishioners who
were dying in large numbers or conducting funeral services for them,  was at home one
evening taking a well deserved rest
and had dozed off in his chair.

Yeats very poetically
refers to the approaching twilight that evening as,

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At the moth-hour of the
eve

in
order to emphasize the rural background of his ballad. The traditional ballads belonged
to the illiterate  rural folk and were passed on from one generation to the next by word
of mouth. The poor illiterate villagers never possessed a clock or a watch and they
always told time by the changes which took place from time to time in
Nature.

In the Irish countryside,
both at dusk and at dawn the countryside would swarm with moths. The villagers would
ascertain that it was either dusk or dawn by the presence of the
moths.

Just as Father Gilligan
had dozed he was disturbed from his sleep by the urgent call of another dying
parishioner. Wearily, Father Gilligan began to grumble and murmur about his lack of
rest:

'I have
no rest, nor joy, nor peace,
For people die and
die;

But the very next
instant he checks himself seeks God's forgiveness and kneels down by the side of his
chair and begins to pray. However, shortly Father Gilligan is completely overwhelmed by
sleep. Soon, it is night and once the stars appear in the sky the moths
disappear,

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And the moth-hour went
from the
fields.

The
tired Father Gilligan slept the entire night kneeling down by the side of his chair.
Early in the morning, at dawn he woke up to the cheerful sound of the chirping sparrows
and once again the moths which appeared in the twilight reappeared at
dawn:

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Upon the time of sparrow
chirp
When the moths came once
more,

Poor
Father Gilligan realized his mistake and rushed off to the house of the dying
parishioner, only to be greeted by the dead man's widow with the news that he had
actually come earlier on and had ministered the last communion to the dying man and by
doing so had ensured the salvation of his soul:

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The sick man's wife opened the
door,
'Father! you come
again!'

It is then that he
realizes that God the Creator had taken pity on him who had worn himself out completely
in His service, had sent an angel to minister the last communion to the dying
man:

'He Who
is wrapped in purple robes,
With planets in His care
Had pity on the
least of things
Asleep upon a
chair.'

How does Jerry change throughout the course of the story "Through the Tunnel"? For example, does he mature from a frustrated little boy to a...

At the beginning of the story, Jerry is on the brink of puberty, trying to separate himself from his mother and prove himself as a young man. He's also a lonely young man who has no male role model or male friends in his life. He feels like he's a "mama's boy", and he wants to become a man.

By the end of the story, Jerry has matured because he's able to swim through the tunnel by himself, showing he is ready to venture into the world as a young man. Because he was willing to face the dangers of the tunnel, he has proven to himself that he's ready to separate himself from his mother. His desperation to be with the other boys at the beginning reflects his loneliness, but by the end, he doesn't care about the boys.

Based upon Animal Farm, what deductions can a reader make about the kind of political system of which Orwell would approve?Whay kind of system did...

This is a great question! Based solely on the novel, I
believe Orwell would like to see a society in which people are treated fairly, rules are
orderly and applied, and leaders are held accountable for their
actions.

After reading about Orwell, it is known that he
supported the idea of socialism, but socialism only works when everyone buys
in.

Satire and allegory are done on purpose to exaggerate
problems. He demonstrates the problems of the dictator, the unknowing people, the power
of propaganda, and the mistreatment of people. I think Orwell would want to see all of
the opposites: humble leadership, a honestly informed society, and human
rights.

Except for capitalism, every once in a while we see
this type of society in America depending on our president.

Why is Parris reluctant to tell anyone that Betty may be bewitched?

There are several reasons.  First, as a minister, how would it look to his congregation if his daughter is bewitched?  Second, his standing in the community is tenuous.  Some, like John Proctor, have stopped going to church services because of their dislike for him.  He doesn't want to give others more reasons to stop attending.  Remember too that he was not the first choice for minister, Mr. Putnam wanted someone else, so he does not have the most support from the Salem community.  He is also the third minister (I believe) in a rather short period of time.  So again he is not overly anxious to give the townspeople reason to turn against him.  Third, he is worried that people will start a witch hunt and bring in Mr. Hale, thereby taking away some of his authority.

What do you think Hawthorne’s purpose was for writing this story?

Like his great novel, "The Scarlet Letter," Hawthorne uses "Young Goodman Brown" to illustrate the hypocrisy of the Puritans. This likely stems from the guilt he felt over having an ancestor who served as a judge for the Salem witch trials.

Notice as Brown enters into the wilderness how all of the people he once thought pure and dear to him, Goody Cloyse, Deacon Gookin, and the minister, as well as his own father and grandfather, seem to have an evil and dark side to them. Yet, back in Salem, these same people are the most pious and righteous. Notice too how the devil is able to bring all of the people, regardless of race, social standing, religious beliefs, and past reputations, in the area together at the dark mass, where they are welcomed to the communion of their race. The point is clear, the Puritans used religion as a means to segregate their society. Only through the human propensity for sin can the devil bring them all together without fighting or bickering or ridiculing one another. At the black mass the devil urges them to look upon each other and know they are equals in their sin. Everyone is guilty. Throughout his story, Hawthorne illustrates the hypocrisy evident in the Puritan society that was responsible for the Salem witch trials.

What is the official phrase for altering records in 1984?

In 1984, people like
Winston rectify old records that have been proven false, or in other words the
government does not agree with them.

Winston
lives in a dystopia where every citizen is watched constantly by the government of Big
Brother, children spy on their parents, and thinking is a crime.  The country of Oceana
is perpetually at war with Eurasia.

 Winston works for the
Records Department, which is a department of the Ministry of Truth.  His job is to
rectify records so that they match what the government wants them to
say.

Today’s
issue contained a statement of the actual output, from which it appeared that the
forecasts were in every instance grossly wrong. Winston’s job was to rectify the
original figures by making them agree with the later ones. (part 1, ch 4, p.
23)

Orwell shows us a world
where people have no freedoms, and the government says whatever it likes and does
whatever it likes.  This is Orwell’s vision of the future, where we are watched
constantly by Big Brother Government.  It is a world of doublethink and doublespeak,
where nothing that is said can be trusted.  Let this story be a warning to us
all.

Shelly is a Romantic poet but his beliefs differ from those of other Romantic poets. Comment with examples?

A very important thing to know about Shelley is that he
was an athiest.  This immediately changes how he saw the world and how he expressed his
poetic vision. While religion shouldn't be the basis for judging a poem, in this
particular case it is a vital aspect.  Think of William Blake, an early Romantic, whose
work was substantially Christian-based and Biblically influenced.  His beliefs are not
only found in his work, but they actually create his work and its
message.

With Shelley, then, we see someone who does not
believe that God is in nature, or that Christ is in a flower, but as someone who views
life as a fleeting thing.  This is beautiful in its own right.  It approaches the
Romantic's favorite subject, nature, with new eyes.  Is God
in nature, is nature God, or is nature simply a beautiful
accident? 

Shelley's work deals greatly with nature and
natural imagery.  This is true for all of the great Romantics.  Shelley's beliefs on
what nature is, and how it came to exist, steer away from religion.  That is probably
the most concise way I can express the difference between Shelley and other
Romantics. 

Consider what Romanticism is: nature v.
culture, with culture being negative and nature being positive.  There is a
contradiction: one cannot write about nature without first having culture; however, this
is mostly overlooked when analysing Romantic poetry.  Romanticism is also about the
outsider v. the insider, with the outsider being the ideal human.  Poets such as Lord
Byron (Shelley's best friend) break that rule by being of a noble class, while poets
such as John Keats (another close friend of Shelley) embrace it with their lower class
backrounds.  Shelley automatically becomes an outsider due to his lack of religion: a
very serious issue in the 1800s. 

I encourage you to browse
through the victorianweb's Shelley page, as well as glance through Shelley's Prometheus
Unbound.  Both will give you further insight into this great
poet.

I hope this was of help.  Good
luck!

Summarize what happened the night at the jail. How does it end? Does she mean to do it? How do you know?Please keep in mind that this IS all one...

I disagree with the first response that Scout makes the
men "realize what they're doing is wrong."  I think this is rather, a classic case of
"mob mentality."

Scout goes into great detail to describe
what the men are wearing: long sleeved shirts despite the evening heat; those who were
typically in hats wore no hat as evidenced by the tan line seen around their
neck.

What Scout unwillingly accomplishes when she strikes
up a casual conversation with Mr. Cunningham is she identifies him BY NAME.  Suddenly he
is no longer just a face in the mob.  He is in individual.  Granted, everyone knew
everyone in the samll town of Maycomb, certainly Atticus himself recognized the majority
of these men.  But it wasn't until Scout identified him that he realized he was caught. 
Atticus was one man and it would have been his word against a mob.  But the
identification by a child is pretty hard to deny.

This
scene is written to parallel real life activity of the KKK.

Why is quality important in a president? Give an example of a president that demonstrated quality. help

Quality is a very broad concept, so I first suggest that
you have a more specific answer.  You can ask what type of qualities do people look for
in a president?  Or you can ask what are charater traits in a president?  Ask to have
the editors list examples, but it be very time consuming, and there is not enough space
to list every president and their qualities, and it really would not be that helpful to
you since it would be a lot of information.  Here is an example answer to the question:
What are the qualities people look for in a president? Give an
example:

People look for honesty, compassion, cooperation,
intelligence, and a true sense of justice.  For example, FDR showed complete compassion
for his country when he created the New Deal to help pull America out of the Great
Depression.  He did not have a political agenda, but honestly knew it was his calling at
that time to be the leader America needed in time of such torment.  I also see this in
President Barack Obama, and I can only hope he can be as successful as
FDR.

Why are chrysanthemums rather than another flower like a rose used in this story?

There are several possibilities:

Steinbeck could've used Chrysanthemums because they are such a popular flower that bloom in the fall and have long lived blooms (which is why florists love them).

But I think more is going on here. First is the fact that Chrysanthemums require attention -  they need fertile, well drained soil and sunshine. To Elisa her flowers are like her children, and she mothers over them carefully. When the tinker asks her about her flowers, she responds like a proud parent. But Elisa is like the Chrysanthemum herself - she also needs a fertile, sunny environment in which to bloom. But she finds herself trapped, a potted flower in poor soil and dim light.

At the end of the story, she does try to dress up to impress her husband, putting on a bright and pretty dress. But Henry doesn't really appreciate her efforts, doesn't appreciate her pretty bloom.

Finally, Chrysantheums bloom in the fall - they are a like a lingering hope, a fading echo of spring, the last gasp of flowering life before the cold darkness of winter. This may also reflect Elisa's desire to bloom, but is also may foreshadow the coming winter in their relationship. Henry just isn't a gardener, not in real life, and not metaphorically with his wife.

In chapter 22, what does Jem mean by his "caterpillar in a cocoon" image?

Jem was suddenly forced to recognize that not everything in life is fair and not everything works out the way we expect it to.  He had spent his entire life believing that the people in his community were, overall, pretty decent people.  When the jury found Tom Robinson guilty, it was like a caterpillar being forced out of its warm, safe cocoon into the harsh light of day - the cold, real world.  Jem never believed the jury would find Tom guilty - he believed Atticus could convince them to see the truth.  What he did not realize until the verdict came in is that even knowing the truth, which the jury probably did, they still were not going to side with a black man against a white woman.

In Chapter 4, what reasons does Chillingworth give for not taking vengeance against Hester?

Chillingsworth will not take vengeance upon Hester because he can think of no better punishment than that she wear the scarlet "A" for the rest of her life.  Also, he takes a little of the responsibility for her sin upon himself, saying he should have never thought that it could work for an old, misshapen man like himself to have married a young and vibrant girl like Hester.

Chillingsworth will not take vengeance on the innocent child either, satisfying his thirst for revenge by plotting against Hester's partner in sin, Dimmesdale.

What impact does the setting have in "The Cask of Amontillado"?I don't understand what "impact" means...

In this sense 'impact' means what effect or impression does the setting give the reader.

Poe's writing is considered to be in the Gothic genre, therefore his setting is similarly Gothic.  The two men go deep down into the dungeon or cellar and all the words used to describe the setting give the reader a creepy feeling.  The fact that they are in a crypt is scary enough but Poe continues to 'scare' the reader by describing in detail the thick stones, the dampness of the room and so on.  

In this way the 'impact' on the story and the reader is very strong.  The story would not be as strong if it were set in a living room.  He could have just as easily chained Fortunato up in a bedroom hidden away, but he did not.  He brought him into a tomb alive, which makes the story much scarier. 

How did Thoreau's individualism affect his attitude toward nature and politics?Thoreau and nature Thoreau and politics

To use his own words, Henry David Thoreau "marched to the
beat of a different drummer."  A veritable individual and original thinker, Thoreau went
into the woods in order to ponder the meaning of his existence; he went deliberately in
order to learn from Nature, and to

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front the essential facts of life, and see if I
could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had
not lived.

While in the
woods, Thoreau observed warring ants and praises their "pertinacity."  During his
encounter with a loon, Thoreau is outsmarted by
nature: 

But
why, after displaying so much cunning, did he invariably betray himself the moment he
came up by that loud
laugh?

He left the woods, he
declared, for much the same reason; he had begun to fall into the most trivial
of pursuits:

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It is remarkable how easily and insensibly we
fall into a particular route, and make a beaten track for
ourselves.

On political
issues, Thoreau was thoroughly an independent thinker, as well.  This independence and
fearlessness of Thoreau's nature led him to speak out actively according to his moral
sensibilities.  For instance, he supported the Abolitionists long before doing so had
any popularity.  In 1845, following the example of Louisa May Alcott's father, Bronson
Alcott, Thoreau went to prison rather than pay a poll tax to a government that
"countenanced war and slavery."  His quiet resistance to what he considered an
oppressive government influenced great leaders such as Mohandas Gandi and Martin Luther
King, Jr. who practiced the same passive
resistance.

Clearly ahead of his times, Thoreau was not
appreciated for his thinking until after his death.  To this day, there is a Thoreau
society that works toward the preservation of Walden and other natural
areas.

Pro's & Con's of Using Extreme Interrogation Techniques?

The previous thoughts were quite right in suggesting that
political beliefs have much to do with this.  Some argue that extreme interrogation can
be a very precise manner of gaining intelligence and information.  This is the
fundamental position of the pro side.  It continues to extrapolate that if one knew that
a suspect had information that could stop an attack of some kind and time was of the
essence, extreme or "enhanced" interrogation techniques could be used to procure such
vital information, helping to save many lives.  On the other hand, there is little to
indicate that the more a person is beaten, the more valuable the information results. 
There is little to indicate that this is a direct correlation:  The greater a degree
that suspect is beaten, the greater of value information is revealed.  On many levels,
the suspect might simply be giving information that is useless in order to stop the
beating.  Additionally, some would argue that, especially in the American legal setting,
the 8th Amendment to the Constitution does forbid "cruel and unusual" punishment and
such techniques move law enforcement close to a precarious Constitutional line that
really should not be broached.  At the same time, there is a level of losing moral and
political stature when the nation that has long stood for humane treatment of even its
worst embraces techniques that go against such a principle.

What are the characteristics of Naturalism in Crane, Jewett,and Wharton writings.

Regardless of the author, to be considered a Naturalistic
writer one must adhere to the characteristics aligned with the period. Therefore, to be
considered a Naturalistic author, writers needed to include specific theologies and
ideologies in their works.

Influenced by Herbert Spenser
and Charles Darwin, Naturalists looked at their writings as a scientific experimentation
through which they simply recorded their observations. Many of the works, including
those of Crane, Jewett, and Wharton, included the following themes: survival,
determinism, and violence. Without these ever-present themes the works could not be
truly considered Naturalistic.

Nature was considered all
powerful. Mankind was left to fight the typically personified Nature. Artificial and
natural objects were given human or, more typicaly, animalistic qualities to which man
was required to fight against.

Therefore, to be considered
a Naturalist, authors had to include the following in their
texts:

1.  The text is written from an objective
point-of-view. This means that the author writes from a scientific perspective similar
to that of an experiment. The author states that they are simply describing the action
of what is happening- they do not attempt to change or influence the character or the
action of the text in any way.

2. The characters described
are typically deterministic. The protagonist simply sees a problem with the
circumstances that they have found theme selves in, or other characters in, and wishes
to change them.

3. Given the text is written from an
objective point-of-view, the text is also pessimistic and emotionally cold. The author
is, again, only describing what they are "seeing" from a observers point-of-view. They
wish to have no compassion for the characters because it would force them to interfere
with the action of the story.

4. The setting is one you
would find in everyday life. There are no spectacular scenes in regards to elaborate
castles or upper-class niceties. The settings are typically set in lower-class homes and
workplaces.

5. The characters described are typical, like
the settings. Walking around a mine would allow one simply pick any worker and place
them into a Naturalistic text.

What is the exposition of the book?

The term "exposition" refers not only to the setting of a story, but to the background information provided by the author so that the conflict to be developed has some context to it.  Therefore, you should state the characters, their setting, and their position in their own world in order to fully answer the question.

What & How did the author develop the mood and go about it?

I think there is a mood of depression and sadness throughout "A Rose for Emily."  One way Faulkner does this is by the story's structure.  He begins with Emily's death.  Then he flashes back and forth through time illustrating the bleak nature of Emily's life (how she refuses to pay property taxes, how her love abandons her, how her father monopolizes her life and dies leaving her with next to nothing, her defiance of kowtowing to the ways of the town and its people).  Then he brings the story full circle with the final segment in which we learn that Emily has - most likely - murdered her love and kept his corpse in her bedroom all of these and slept beside him.

The point of view, told from an unidentified first person narrator, also influences the mood of desperation and sadness.  For it is through this narrator that we learn how people feel sorry for Emily, yet she is never aware of this.  We also learn how pathetic her plight really is, yet Emily doesn't feel this way nor is she aware of it.  All of these tie into the mood. 

How does Emily Dickinson use feminism in literature in her poems?

Emily Dickinson has many personas in her poetry.  Cynthia
Griffin Wolff, in "The Many Voices in Dickinson's Poetry"
says:

One poem
may be delivered in a child's Voice; another in the Voice of a young woman scrutinizing
nature and the society in which she makes her place.  Sometimes the Voice is that of a
woman self-confidently addressing her lover in a language of passion and sexual desire.
 At still other times, the Voice of the verse seems so precariously balanced at the edge
of hysteria that even its calmest observations grate like the shriek of
dementia.

She goes on to to
say:

No
manageable set of discrete categories suffices to capture the diversity of discourse,
and any attempt to simplify Dickinson's methods does violence to the
verse.

So, just as Dickinson
wrestles with complex notions of God, giving no consistent view of religion, so too does
she wrestle with gender, giving no consistent feminist
views.

Her work is paradoxical: it looks like the terse
verse of a male.  Women, I guess, we supposed to be chatty social butterflies back then.
 With all the dashes and ellipses and telegraphic lines, her poetry seems a far cry from
anything from this planet, let alone gender.  All in all, her great theme in her poetry
was that of mystery, and I think she would like it best if her socio-political views
remained as such.

What are the two powerful metaphors in the e.e.Cummings poem "since feeling is first?"In his lyric poem, Cummings expresses his feelings about love...

In the poem "since feeling is first," E.E. Cummings
intertwines two powerful metaphors to express his belief that emotion is a more reliable
perspective from which to examine issues of life and death than reason. The two
metaphors he uses are the written word and the idyllic scene of sharing kisses with a
lovely lady.

Cummings evokes the image of words on a page
to stand for reason, using words like "the syntax of things," "paragraph," and
"parenthesis." These images represent "wisdom," "the best gesture of my brain," and
Cummings suggests that a person who relies on a rational approach to understanding the
world is "wholly to be a fool." Cummings prefers to "pay attention" to his feelings, the
passions in "my blood," the beauty of "Spring," his lady's "eyelids' flutter." These
things enable him to be "wholly kiss(ed)," to "laugh," and to experience fully what is
important in life and ultimately more powerful than death, which "is no parenthesis."
Beauty and love are more significant to Cummings than wisdom as it is traditionally
defined by the rational mind - "feeling is first," and in the end, the most
important.

What does the pig's head represent in Lord of the Flies?

it symbolizes evil that is in every human because no matter how rotten and old the pig head got, the remains still was left.

while it was breaking down and getting worse, it had a disgusting look and horrible smell. this symbolizes evil. something that isn't welcomed.

also when the pig head started breaking down, the author described the skull as a laughing face. evil never leaves and it also teases because it's so hard to get rid of.

i think that's what the pig head mainly was suppose to symbolize.

the evilness in every human that wil never go away once it sets in.

In Animal Farm, what technique does Orwell use to cast doubt on the likelihood of a successful revolution?

The fact that George Orwell refers to Animal Farm as a "fairy story" already prepares the reader for what they might read. The reader expects exaggeration and certainly a story with embellishments and vivid character representations. He uses anthropomorphism to emphasize his point as animals take on human characteristics and history repeats itself when power is exposed as an over-riding force allowing for exploitation, regardless of who or what is driving it. The very fact that "some animals are more equal than others," alludes to what will be a less-than-successful rebellion, although those in power would, ironically, disagree as Napoleon is very proud of his ability to walk on two legs at the end and the mantra becomes, "four legs good, two legs better."     

Making use of animals as his main characters also allows Orwell, cleverly, to simplify his version of The Russian Revolution allowing the reader to step away from casting immediate judgment and allowing the subversion to, hopefully have an even bigger impact on the reader. Orwell also, presumably, reaches more readers as he is not restricted by those interested in the historical aspects of the clashes between Trotsky, Lenin and Stalin and can expose younger readers and those who would otherwise avoid the potentially, challenging nature of such proceedings to the damaging effects of the abuse of power. The style and tone which Orwell uses ensures that readers are able to draw their own conclusions, not only from the Marxist ideals of equality and the unfortunate reality of rules and "Commandments" which are subject to change but also from any form of control, about which Orwell himself became so disillusioned.   

What were the results of Hitler's and Mussolini's ruling?

The first answer is absolutely correct with respect to the
impacts of their rule on their respective countries.  I want to talk a bit about their
impact on the world.

Hitler, in particular, had a huge
impact in that he (more or less) started WWII.  Because of this, you can say that the
result of his rule was nothing less than the whole second half of the 20th century (and
aspects of today).

For example, without WWII, Western
Europe is not devastated and the US and USSR do not become rival superpowers in the Cold
War.  Instead, you have various powerful countries, including Germany, France, and Great
Britain.

WWII totally shaped the world we live in and that
is an important result of the rule of these two men.

How did the presidency change during the progressive era?

In general, the presidency as an office came to be much
more important during the Progressive Era than it had been
before.

In the late 1800s, the Presidency was very weak. 
Presidents did not exert themselves very much to try to affect policy.  Congress pretty
much ran the country.

Starting with Theodore Roosevelt,
this changed.  TR was the one who described the office as a "bully pulpit."  "Bully"
meant "really good."  He believed the office gave him the chance to really push the
people and Congress towards various ideas and
policies.

Because of this, and because the Progressives
wanted government to enact a lot of reforms, the Presidency got much stronger during
this time.

What are Boxer's character traits, personality, and interactions? include supporting details.

Boxer was a loyal, hard-working, and caring member of the
animal society. Here is how we see each at work:

Loyalty:
Regularly Boxer would say "Napoleon is always right." This shows his commitment to his
leader. Moreover, he would rise early and work longer on the windmill because he had the
strength to and he knowing so, he did this to relieve other animals who were weaker from
more work.

Hard-working: Boxer also regularly said, "I will
work harder." This maxim was a true statement reflecting his commitment and he worked
himself to death. After hauling for years, his body aged and finally gave out. The
commitment to work more hours of the day at each announcement of the need for more work
demonstrated this trait as well.

Caring: I think Boxer saw
a better future and believed in the false visions given by Snowball and Napoleon. I
believe this because of his loyalty and hard work. I think he saw a better life for his
friends.

Can you summarize Juliet's soliloquy in act 3?

Juliet is anxiously awaiting her wedding night with Romeo. She wants the darkness to come quickly - she wants the sun god, Phoebus, to quickly get out of the sky, to "bring in cloudy night immediately." Her impatience is demonstrative of her youth:

"So tedious is this day As is the night before some festival To an impatient child that hath new robes And may not wear them." (Act III, scene ii)

In The Scarlet Letter, how has Roger Chillingworth changed in the past 7 years?

Hester notes in chapter 14 that the calm, quiet, and studious demeanor of Chillingworth is now gone.  Instead he has an "eager, searching, almost fierce, yet carefully guarded look."  She notes that it looks like there is fire in his soul and he seems filled with blackness.  Basically, because Chillingworth has committed himself to revenge and to studying a man whose heart was full of torture (Dimmesdale), he has transformed into an evil man.  The novel describes him as being a fiend or devil.

How do the sirens lure travelers to their destruction? How does the danger posed by the sirens compare to that posed by the lotus-eaters?

The sirens lure men to their death by singing to them. 
Their songs are so beautiful that the men are unable to resist coming over to
them.

The danger from the sirens is much greater than that
from the lotus eaters.  However, they are both equally dangerous if your goal is to get
to your destination.

The reason i say they are both equally
dangerous is that they will both keep a traveler from getting home.  But the sirens do
it by killing the traveler and that seems rather worse than just staying with the lotus
eaters for your whole life because you like eating lotuses.

What are some examples of direct and indirect characterizations of George and Lennie in Of Mice and Men?John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men

Most authors use indirect
characterization which
includes

• physical
  descriptions

"The first man was
smalland quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features.  Every part
of him was defined:  small, strong hands, slender arms, a thin and bony nose.  Behind
him walked his opposite, a huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, with
wide, sloping shoulders; and he walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a
bear drags his paws.  His arms did not swing at his sides, but hung
loosely."

• characters'
  actions

His huge companion
dropped his blankets and flung himself down and drank from the surface of the green
pool; drank with long gulps, snorting into the water like a horse.  The small man
stepped nervously beside
him.

• characters' thoughts,
  feelings, and speeches

"'Guys
like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys n the world.  They got no family. 
They don't belong no place....With us, it ain't like that. We got a future."
[George]

"For the first time Lennie became conscious of the
outside. He crounched down in the hay and listened.  'I done a real bad thing,' he said.
'I shouldn't had did that.  George'll be mad. An'...he said...an'hide in the brush till
he come....'"

• the comments and
  reactions of other
  characters

"Crooks interrupted
brutally. 'You guys is just kiddin' yourself.  You'll talk about it a hell of a lot, but
you son't get no land.  You'll be a swamper here till they take you out in a box.  Hell,
I seen too many guys.  Lennie here'll quit an' be on the road in two, three, weeks. 
Seems like ever' guy got land in his
head.'"

• Direct
  characterization occurs with statements by the author, giving his/her
  opinion of the character(s). [e.g. Steinbeck writes that Slim has "God-like
  eyes."]

Steinbeck writes that Lennie drags
his feet the way "a bear drags his paws."

Describe The Hoodhood home in The Wednesday Wars. Why does Holling call it the "Perfect House?"

The Hoodhood home is "like every other house on the block,
except neater." Holling's father is very concerned about appearances, and has the
dwelling painted "perfectly white every other year." The cement squares leading up to
the house are also "perfectly white," and devoid of a single crack, while the walkway
leading to the front door is "bordered by perfectly matching azalea bushes, all the same
height, alternating between pink and white blossoms." The house is adorned with fake
aluminum shutters, and an aluminum screen door. The key word here is fake -
although Holling's father takes great care to make the house look perfect, it
is all a facade, hiding the fact that the people in the house live in isolation from
each other beneath Mr. Hoodhood's controlling hand.

Inside
the "Perfect House," as Holling calls it, there is a "Perfect Living Room, where no one
ever (sits) because all the seat cushions (are) covered in stiff, clear plastic." The
carpet looks as if it has never been walked on, and the grand piano has never been
played. The whole effect of the house is artificial and uninviting. There is no love
there; everything is arranged to impress others of the "perfect life of an architect
from Hoodhood and Associates." The "Perfect House" represents the values of Holling's
father, values which are shallow, materialistic, and ultimately unfulfilling (Chapter 1
- "September").

How does Dr. Manette react to Charles Darnay after the trial?It is the trial in Book Two Chapter 4 when Darnay is released because he looks like...

At this point in the book, Dr. Manette does not know that Charles Darnay is a relative of the Marquis St. Evremonde.  He does seem to recognize him, and gives a look of distrust and concern, but his daughter Lucy is glad that Charles is released because she did not believe he was guilty of the crime with which he was charged.  Later, after Charles asks for Lucy's hand in marriage and Dr. Manette begins to suspect who Charles really is, Dr. Manette begins to fall back into the madness caused by his imprisonment.

Check the links below for more information.  Good luck!

How does "The Seafarer" reveal the Anglo-Saxon ideal of loyalty and tragedy of separation or exile from one's lord?

This is an excellent question.  The seafarer isn't quite like other Anglo-Saxon literature like Beowulf where there is a definite king and a warrior willing to give his life to protect the king.  However, the key ideas of loyalty and separation do apply when you think of the sea as the seafarer's lord.  The sea is his life--his heart.  When on the sea, the seafarer is his happiest, regardless of the cold, the wind, the icy bands, and the harsh weather that cause his body to age prematurely.  When he is on land, all he can think of is getting back to the sea.  He should be his happiest on land...the comforts of home, the fire, the food, drink, the company of women, but his heart aches for the sea, and he can't wait to get back to it.  Part of the separation anxiety he must feel is the realization that his body will give out eventually, and his separation from the sea will be permanent at some point in the future.  All that having been said, he is most at home on the water and would just as soon give his life at sea than to spend it comfortably on land mourning his love from afar.

Could black people testify in court during Frederick Douglass's time?

There are two prefaces to the book.  The answer to this
question can be found in the one written by William Lloyd
Garrison.

He does not specifically say if blacks could ever
testify in court.  For example, he does not say if blacks could testify against other
blacks in a court of law.  And he does not say if a black person could testify if, for
example, one white man was suing another.

What he does say
is that no master could be convicted of cruelty based on black testimony because black
people were not allowed to testify against white
people.

As to why not, it's because they're
not really seen as people.

What is important about the dyer in The Canterbury Tales?

The dyer is one of five guildsmen--tradesmen.  Together they are considered "new money" and their wives expect the things this money will buy. They are "henpecked" so to speak; their lives are controlled by their greedy wives and the money they make.

In "The Bet", by Anton Chekhov, what does the banker's decision to lock the lawyer's letter in the safe convey about his character?

These characters and the plot were invented by the author
Anton Chekhov. No doubt Chekhov wanted to finish the story with the reader feeling
assured that the lawyer would not change his mind about forfeiting the money and come
back to claim it. There is plenty of evidence in the lawyer's own handwriting that he
has forfeited the bet and cannot claim the money, in spite of the fact that he actually
spent the full fifteen years in confinement. The most important words in the lawyer's
farewell letter, as far as the banker is concerned, are
these:

"To
prove to you in action how I despise all that you live by, I renounce the two million of
which I once dreamed as of paradise and which now I despise. To deprive myself of the
right to the money I shall go out from here five hours before the time fixed, and so
break the compact ..."

We are
in the banker's point of view throughout the story. Although we can sympathize with his
feelings, we do not respect him. He is not a good man. He was actually planning to
commit a murder and then try to blame it on one of his servants. The banker may feel
ashamed of himself, but he is still a selfish businessman, and he wants to keep that
letter as evidence that he cannot be compelled to honor the bet, either by the lawyer or
by anyone else connected to him, such as a relative. As readers we have to stay in the
banker's point of view because that was the way Chekhov decided to tell the story. But
our real sympathies are with the man who became saintlike through suffering fifteen
years of solitary confinement. The banker won the bet technically, but the lawyer won it
morally. The banker's character deteriorated over the fifteen years, while the lawyer's
character improved.

Sonnet 19, what uses of imagery does the poet intend, in which style: impressionistic, realistic, naturalistic? Why?For symbols, I found that...

I'm not sure I understand the question you've been asked, so I'm trying this but...

My understanding of these terms is that with naturalism and realism the artists are attempting to accurately represent reality with all of its ugly truths revealed. Impressionism attempts to capture the quality of a moment. These terms are more frequently applied to visual art than literature, and I'm wondering if the symbol you mention refers to "symbolism" (which would mean it would be more concerned with subjective realities than with social justice).

The imagery seems to involve both an acknowledgement of and a rejection of realism, almost an assault. He says Time can destroy all of nature: blunt the lion's claws, make the earth eat her young (devour her sweet brood), and extract the tiger's teeth--all acknowledgement of the reality that everything dies. He even says that Time can destroy myths--the phoenix can be burned in her own blood. These all seem to be in a realistic vein. He seems to reject reality in the last sestet when he says that he forbids Time the crime of aging his lover. This is a cry against, but also an accurate rendition of what happens to us: Time writes his lines on us, we age, and we die. Most of the imagery accurately represents reality. The last two lines are symbolist in the artistic sense, because his subjective reality predominates: she may be destroyed on the outside, but she will remain immortal because he writes of her.