Why is it so essential to find out who the speaker is in a poem?Introduction to English literature.

First, I think it is important in poetry NOT to assume the
poet is the speaker.  Just as in a novel the author is not
necessarily the narrator, poetry can be told from any perspective.  Perhaps the reason
it is more emphasized is due to the brevity of most poems and their lack of typical
narrative elements.  Even narrative poetry as compared to a novel is going to leave a
lot out.  Many readers tend to default to the author and speaker being one and the same
as it is often the easiest.

Important aspects of the
speaking voice: I think it depends on the poem.  The basics I like to run most poems
through are are male/female, age, cultural background (if present), experience (if
present), and overall feeling.  Again, beware of putting a picture of the author in any
of these.  Often there is not one correct answer to any of these criteria, but by
choosing, it at least gives you a narrower scope through which to analyze the poem.  At
the very least, ask how YOU connect with the ideas in the poem, then put the speaker
through a comparison of yourself.  Do you tend to agree with him or her?  Have you had
similar thoughts/ideas/feelings/experiences?

It is always
interesting when two people read and adequately defend two completely opposite ideas for
who the speaker might be.  I hope this at least gives you a place to
start.

Japans industrialization was greatly helped bya.large mineral deposits in hokkaido b. a growing support for democracy c.a centralize pro-buisness...

Of these, I would say that the best answer is C -- a
centralized government that was friendly to business.

This
centralized government was the government of the Meiji Emperor.  This government held
all power in Japan after the civil wars had ended.  It was very concerned with making
sure that Japan could become a modern country.  Because it was concerned with
modernizing, it helped businesses so that Japan could have an industrial economy that
would allow it to be as strong as the European countries
were.

There were some mineral deposits on Hokkaido, but I
do not believe they were as important as the support of the Meiji
government.

What is ironic about Smiley’s losing?

Well, for one, it's ironic that Smiley looses because Dan'l Webster really IS the better jumping frog, but probably you are referring to the DRAMATIC IRONY element here.

One form of dramatic irony occurs when the reader knows something the characters do not.  We know that the stranger has cheated by filling up Dan'l Webster with birdshot so that he is too heavy to jump.  But Smiley doesn't realize this until he has lost and the stranger leaves with his money.

Calculate the sum 1 + 1/2 + 1/2^2 + 1/2^3 + 1/2^4 + 1/2^5

I have the highest regard for Giorgiana - she answered a
real tough question of mine  in an outstanding
way.

However, I disagree with this
answer.

I have both an algebraic way and a non-
algebraic way to do this.

Note that each sum
gets you half way between a starting point of first starting with 0 and
2

case in point 1 is 1/2 way between 0 and 2 and
you have 1 to go.

add 1/2 to 1 you are half way between 1
and 2 and only have 1/2 to go.

Sum = 2 - 1/2^5 =
1
31/32

-------------

another
way:

consider sum*2 = 2 + 1 +1/2
+.....1/2^4

subtract sum     =      1 + 1/2
+..............1/2^5

2 - 1/2^5 what I just said
a different
way.

---

clearly
the sum is greater than 1 since that is your first term and you add positive numbers to
it.

How does Athena help Telemachus prepare for Nestor and why is it important for the two to meet?

Athena helps Telemachus prepare for meeting Nestor in several ways.  First in her first meeting with Telemachus, she helps to give him the confidence and assertiveness to take action against the suitors and to begin a search for his father.  Secondly, she does obtain the ship, men, and supplies for him to use while making the suitors sleep.  Thirdly, she went with him disguised as Mentor giving him encouragement and advice along the way.  When they arrive at Pylos, Telemachus did not want to leave the ship, and Athena, as Mentor, gives him advice and nearly has to push him off the ship to overcome his diffidence in approaching Nestor.

I think he needs to see Mentor not only because he one of the last to see Odysseus alive, but also because Athena knows the experience of the search and of questioning Nestor as well as hearing his answers will help Telemachus grow and achieve manhood. 

What is the main plot of Beowulf (edited by M. A. Roberts)?

The plot of Beowulf is the heroic quest. In Beowulf's case, that quest is to claim his place in eternity. In Norse mythology, however, to gain admittance to "heaven" (Valhalla), the warrior must die in battle. Hrothgar should be the one to protect his own kingdom, but Beowulf, the outsider, has to do it for him. The fact that Beowulf fights the monster alone and unarmed makes his victory that much greater. You can think of Beowulf as the Viking equivalent of the Greek Heracles or the Roman Hercules.

What was the intent of the Roosevelt administration's New Deal basically about

The intent of the New Deal was to get the United States's
economy out of the Great Depression.  That was really its only
goal.

The thing that made it a "new" deal was that fact
that this was the first time that the government had decided that it needed to help
ensure that the people were able to get by -- that they would not be too
poor.

Up until this point, the government pretty much just
kept out of the way and let the economy do its own thing.  But now, FDR decided that
there should be a new deal -- one where people could expect that the government would
help to protect them from hard times.

The play Hamlet is full of deceit. Who attempts to deceive whom?

In Hamlet, Denmark is a prison and a
police state full of spies.  The King and Prince vow revenge against each other, and en
entire family gets caught in the crossfire.  The Prince only appears to be mad, but his
girlfriend really is.  There is one true friend of the Prince (Horatio), fake friends
(Rosencrantz and Guildenstern), and friendly players and clowns who tell the truth in
riddles.  In sum, no one is who he appears to be.  Or not to
be.

Some choice lines that deal with
deception:

Hamlet tells R &
G:

I
tell you,
must show fairly outward, should more
appear like
entertainment than
yours. You are welcome: but my
uncle-father and aunt-mother
are
deceived.

AND

Hamlet
tells Ophelia, "I loved you not."  Ophelia
responds:

I was the
more
deceived.

Hamlet
writes to Ophelia:

readability="0">

Doubt truth
to be a
liar;

And
the Player Queen says:

readability="0">

That I
distrust you. Yet, though I
distrust,
Discomfort you, my
lord, it nothing must:
For women's fear and love holds
quantity;
In neither aught, or in
extremity.

• Hamlet
  deceives all by appearing to be mad, even the Ghost.  The Prince was instructed to leave
  Gertrude to heaven, but he still threatens violence against his
  mother.


• Claudius deceives all, except Hamlet.  His
  behavior at the Mousetrap is a confession brought on by art.  "The play's the thing to
  catch the conscience of the king."


• Polonius deceives his
  family by using them as pawns for spying.


• Gertrude is
  deceived all men, even Hamlet.  She thinks he's
  crazy.


• Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are deceived by
  Hamlet.  The Prince switches the letter of execution, and they die
  instead.


• Ophelia is deceived by all men, especially
  Hamlet, who misdirects his anger toward his mother onto her in the "get thee to a
  nunnery speech."


• The Ghost deceives Hamlet for a while.
   The Prince cannot tell if he is a demon or a soul trapped in
  Purgatory.

When the money supply increases why do interest rates fall?This is in reference to monetary policy.

The reason for this is that the interest rate is,
essentially, the price of money.  As you know from basic economics, the price of a good
or service is determined by the supply of and demand for that thing.  Money is no
different.

This means that when the supply of money
changes, the price of money will change too (if demand does not change).  When the
supply of something goes up, its price goes down.  When supply goes down price goes
up.

The reason behind that is that if there is more money
available, lenders cannot charge as much because there is more competition to
lend.

Name 3 important and intriguing quotes that refer to noses in Midnight's Children.

In describing his grandfather's nose, Rushdie uses vivid imagery.  This quote also is an example of simile and metaphor - "My grandfather's nose:  nostrils flaring, curvaceous as dancers.  Between them swells the nose's triumphal arch, first up and out, then down and under, sweeping in to his upper lip with a superb...flick".

Grandfather's nose is symbolic of his role as patriarch of a dynasty, and all his descendants bear this identifying mark as well - "Doctor Azia's nose...established incontrovertibly his right to be a patriarch...a nose to start a family on...there'd be no mistaking whose brood they were".

Rushdie also uses some delightful play on words in describing Grandfather's nose - "You could cross a river on that nose...its bridge was wide".

(All quotes from Chapter 1)

In act 4, scene 1 of Macbeth, what four things do the witches show Macbeth, and what does each say?

Macbeth was shown three apparitions by the Witches.

The first one was that of an 'armed head' that warned him to 'beware of the Thane of Fife! Macduff!'. The second was that of a 'bloody child' that told him to 'laugh at the powers of other men' since he had something noone else did. The child told him that no one born of a woman could ever hurt him. The third apparition was that of a crowned child holding a tree in one hand, that said Macbeth would not be defeated unless Birnam Wood comes marching to fight him at Dunsinane Hill.

On further probing regarding the future of Banquo's sceptre's as kings of Scotland, the Witches hesitatingly showed him a procession of 8 kings, the last one holding a mirror, in which were reflected several other king. The last king was also followed by the 'blood-clotted', and smiling Banquo who was 'pointing to' the kings 'as his'.

How might Walter Mitty's personality trigger his last daydream?

Mitty's last daydream is one where he is shot before a firing squad while he is smoking a cigarette. In this daydream he has the ultimate escape from his domineering wife-through his death.  The smoking of the cigarette, which seems to make this death somehow more casual and more macho, underscores Mitty's desire to "be a real man" - an idea which shows up in all of his previous daydreams as well.  It is important to note that his other daydreams are interrupted - only this one where the end is his death, goes all the way to the end. In his imaginary life, Mitty is all those things he cannot be in reality - brave, courageous and the stereotypical male.

What is it that makes "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love" by Christopher Marlowe an example of pastoral literature?

A major theme of pastoral literature is that true
happiness can be found in rural areas.  The city is a bad place, but the country is pure
and good.  I think you can see this (at least the part about the country being good) in
this poem.

Look at what the shepherd is offerring.  It is
all pretty much rural stuff.  The only thing that doesn't sound rural is the buckles of
gold for the slippers.

In general, then, the idea seems to
be that the shepherd and his love can be made happy by all this rural stuff.  This
implies that rural life is good and satisfying.

How is Catcher in the Rye a serious novel?

Despite it's clear ironic humor, how is Catcher
in the Rye NOT a serious novel?  It epitomizes the tragic rebellion and
ultimate depression of an overprivledged teenager who has finally hit the ceiling on his
dislike for "the system."

After working in both public and
private schools, I've seen that Holden Caulfield is not entirely unique (a fact which,
had he realized it, might have helped him).  He certainly isn't common, but too many
kids stuck in a private education feel the pressure of school administrators, parents,
and peers for so long, they forget, or worse, never come to know their own
identities.

This is Holden Caulfield in a nutshell.  While
the book is written from his own sardonic view of his world, the seriousness lies in the
truth behind his emotions, which are largely due to an upbringing he neither asked for,
nor had any support in.

How does Amir's infertility relate to the theme of fatherhood in The Kite Runner?

Through-out the book the relationship between Amir and his
father has been a significant theme.  Amir loves his father but can find no approval
from him until he is an adult and in college. 

Amir had
spent his whole life trying to be like his father.  In a way his inability to have a
conceive a child reflects as another way that Amir is not able to be the man or son his
father wants him to be.  His father often looked at Amir as being different from him ad
not living up to his expectations of him.

Baba was prolific
and had been able to have two sons, but Amir can not produce one.  It is only through
taking on the child of his half brother, and his father's sin, that he is able to become
a parent and also redeem his own soul.

how is miss emily dysfunctional?i am writing a literary analysis comparing a rose for emily with a present for a good girl and one of my...

In addition to Rene's answer, I would say that Emily probably suffers from some parental anxiety issues.  Her father, the famous Confederate war hero, has left his daughter with a legacy to which few can live up to, for which his offspring are resented and for which Emily arguably does not deserve. 

Further contributing to her "dysfunction" is the alienation she experiences as a refult of her father's legacy.  Emily, from birth, is identified as "the other" as "not us."  This distinction makes it nearly impossible for Emily to develop real friendships; it is an "us" and "them" mentality over which poor Emily really has no control.

The one way she dysfunctionally tries to gain control is through her captivation (quite literally) of Homer.  Rat poison and sleeping with your lover's corpse is not generally considered the picture of mental health...but nothing in Emily's existence has allowed her to experience life as her townspeople do...

What one animal makes the connection between squealer's acts and the commandments?

After Squealer is found near the barn with paint everywhere, obviously drunk, the animals wonder about the commandment forbidding alcohol. But when they check it, it has been amended to say that animals cannot drink to excess.

Benjamin is the only animal to realize that the commandments change whenever Squealer has an "incident".

He refused to read the sixth commandment at the beginning of this chapter because he did not think it was any of his business and not his place.

But it is apparent that Benjamin has known all along what is really happening on Animal Farm, and has just made the decision to not say anything.

What does Mrs.Dubose say about the children's mother? How does Jem feel about this ?chapter 11 of To Kill a Mockingbird

She insults the Finches. On page 102 as Jem and Scout are walking home, Mrs. Dubose begins hurling commentary at them. Lee observes, " . . . we were followed up the sidewalk by a philippic on our family's moral degeneration, the major premise of which was that half the Finches were in the asylum anyway, but if our mother were living we would not have to come to such a state" (102). This is just too much for Jem, who has already put up with Mrs. Dubose telling him that his father is no better than the black people he defends. When Mrs. Dubose implies that Atticus is doing a poor job as a parent and that his mother would never let him defend Tom Robinson, Jem loses it.

What is a good essay topic that will explain the heroic story of Beowulf?

Consider as well, instead of identifying the details of an epic hero, identifying the details of an epic and developing an essay in which you explain how Beowulf fits the definition of an epic.

The definition of an epic can be found here: 

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epic_poetry

You could make a critical essay in which you explain why Beowulf is a good epic hero or why he is an unsuccessful hero.

what's your definiton of a hero? do you think the three boys prove themselves heros accodring to your defintionthe three boys are dally ponyboy and...

In my mind, a hero is someone who is willing to sacrifice himself with no hesitation for the good of someone else.  I do believe that each of the three characters named qualifies as a hero.

Even despite any other events that take place in the book, the boys' reactions to the fire at the church near Windrixville qualifies each of them as heroes.  Ponyboy charges into the burning church based on the sheer knowledge that there are children inside, which is heroic even if he feels responsible for the disaster.  Johnny follows Ponyboy into the fire, then shoves him toward the window, putting himself last, when the building begins to collapse.  Dally first puts out the fire on Ponyboy's back, then goes into a collapsing, burning building to save Johnny, and gives no thought to his own well-being.  Those three individual acts make each of the boys a hero.

There are other examples throughout the novel that provide more material upon which to base the belief that Dally, Johnny, and Ponyboy are heroes.

How many murders were committed in Macbeth, and were all of them Macbeth's fault?

*Macbeth kills King Duncan

*Macbeth kills Duncan's two doormen

*Macbeth hires three murderers to kill Banquo

*Macbeth hires the murderers to kill Lady Macduff

*Macbeth hires the murderers to kill Macduff's son along with his other children (unknown how many he had)  (this can be determined because Macduff asks if all his pretty chickens were killed which indicates the presence of more than one child)

*Macbeth also killed Young Siward

*Lady Macbeth killed herself (committed suicide)

*Last but not least Macduff kills Macbeth

So more than 9 murders were committed in Macbeth

and all but two of them were Macbeth's fault (Lady Macbeth's death and Macbeth's own death)

What insight is the reader given into the social and cultural implications of the New York Metropolitan Opera House?My need for information is more...

The part of the novel to which you are referring is
Chapter One, when Madame Nilsson's appearance in the Opera House has drawn a
"particularly brilliant audience", in the words of the society pages.  There is much
discussion of the habits and behaviors of the very wealthy and high-born people of New
York at that time -- not the least of which is their eagerness to leave their amusements
"even more
quickly than they want to get to
it."

The American "aristocracy" arrive in their personal
coaches, or in a respectable hired carriage from Brown's.  They sit in boxes high above
the orchestra floor, which not only gives them the advantage of a superior viewpoint per
the crowd of relative rabble below, but also gives them a better view of the action
onstage and, most importantly, of the comings and goings and activities of
each other.  The boxes provide a level of privacy, if engaged by a
small group, family, a club (such as Newland Archer's) or an individual, and they also
allow a level of publicity to this privacy, because everyone has opera glasses (fancy
binoculars) to peer at each other.  Every aspect of dress, appearance, and behavior is
noted and commented on in this elite group.

The main
character, Newland, arrives late, because it was not "the thing" to arrive on time to
the Opera in New York in those days.  "and what was or was not "the thing"
played
a part as important in Newland Archer's New York as
the
inscrutable totem terrors that had ruled the destinies
of his forefathers
thousands of years ago."

Newland watches the opera,
arriving at his favorite moment, and the arbitrary nature of the rules that governed
some of the social conventions of Newland's class are commented on my Wharton: "since an
unalterable and unquestioned law of the musical world required that the German text of
French
operas sung by Swedish artists should be translated
into
Italian for the clearer understanding of English-
speaking
audiences."

This commentary on the scene and the people
continues throughout the chapter, especially when the arrival of Countess
Olenska causes a stir.  She is an example of an exception to all the social rules,
primarily because she has a strong family behind her to flout convention.  Newland, who
up until this moment had been a slave to the conventions of his class, becomes
fascinated with the Countess, and the main conflicts of the novel stem from this moment
of her appearance at the Metropolitan Opera.

Source: 
Literature Network href="http://www.online-literature.com/wharton/innocence/1/">http://www.online-literature.com/wharton/innocence/1/  

1.What mistake do Fili and Kili make when finding a cave for shelter? 2.What is Gollum's birthday presents?3.Why were the Wargs and goblins...

First, the mistake that Fili and Kili make is that the cave in which they seek shelter when a storm approaches has a passage that opens in the back and through the passage, goblins capture the dwarves.

Second, Gollum's birthday present, as he calls it, is the ring - the ring the renders the wearer invisible.  Bilbo stumbles upon the ring when he is in Gollum's lair and he isn't aware, at first, of the ring's power.

Third, the goblins and the Wargs meet before they join forces in the battle of 5 armies.  They are in opposition to the dwarves, the men and the elves.

Which countries had the Axis Powers, Germany and Italy, taken over by 1939?

If you are using a textbook for this, I would strongly
advise you to consider the information in this source before all else.  With that in
mind, I would suggest that much of the European continent remained in Axis control at
the point of 1939. In looking at a map of Europe, the Allied powers of England and
Russia bookended a great deal of Axis control.  Moving from West to East, France,
Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Finland, the Baltic
Nations, Poland, Romania, and Bulgaria were all under allied control.  Spain and
Portugal were neutral, although the former was under the control of the dictator Franco,
and Sweden, Switzerland, and Ireland were neutral.

What happens at the end of "The Most Dangerous Game"?

At the end of "The Most Dangerous Game", Rainsford wins the game.  Although the hunt was the initial challenge, when the two men come face to face in Zaroff's bedroom, he issues another challenge to Rainsford.  This time, the winner gets to Zaroff's comfy bed, while the loser will be fed to Zaroff's hungry dogs.  At the very end of the story, Rainsford is obviously sleeping in Zaroff's bed.

What type of literary devices are used in "Arise fair sun and kill the envious moon" and "Parting is such sweet sorrow"?They are both in Act II.

Personification is used in "Arise fair sun and kill the envious moon" as Shakespeare was giving human actions to inanimate objects, the sun and the moon.  "Parting is such sweet sorrow" is antithesis - "sweet" and "sorrow" are antithetical, or opposite to one another, which was a common literary device used by Shakespeare to give more emphasis to the words he is contrasting.

Check the links below for more information on both personification and antithesis, as well as other literary devices.

What is a summary of the book Sarny: A Life Remembered?

Sarny is a sequel to Nightjohn (please see separate entry), also narrated by Sarny. In Nightjohn, Sarny is a twelve-year-old girl who is taught to read and write by an imposing man named Nightjohn. According to Paulsen, he has been asked many times about what happens to Sarny after the ending of Nightjohn, and Sarny is an answer to the questions.

Sarny is an historical novel about the end of slavery in America and the years in the South thereafter, and it is narrated by Sarny, who is ninety-four years old and living in a convalescent hospital to which she committed herself several years before when she realized she could no longer take care of herself. Her story is about the horrors of slavery and the Civil War, yet also fortitude, determination, and intelligence. She is a memorable figure, devoted to her friends, as well as to Nightjohn's mission to bring literacy to African Americans.

What did the positions of the candidates in the 1912 election reveal about the range of progressives reform ideals?election

I agree with the first answer, but I think that a full
answer to the question needs to include the differences between Roosevelt's New
Nationalism and Wilson's New Federalism.

Both candidates
wanted the basic progressive goal of taking power from the rich and the big companies
and giving it to the middle classes.  But the two of them disagreed on the proper way to
do this.

TR believed that big business was a permanent
thing and so there needed to be big government to regulate it.  Wilson believed that big
government should exist only for as long as it took to break big business and create an
economic system that emphasized smaller businesses.

This
shows that there were at least a couple of different ways to pursue Progressive
goals.

How and why did Flavius and Marullus die in Rome, and at what time did they die?This is for a school obituary.

It is assumed that they were executed for having the decorations for Caesar's victory taken down from the statues of Caesar. This is mentioned in Act I, scene ii, when Casca reports:

"I could tell you more news too. Marullus and Flavius, for pulling scarves off Caesar's images, are put to silence."

Some scholars believe that "put to silence" means they were imprisoned or forced out of office, including the notes for David Bevington's The Necessary Shakespeare.

The time of day this occurred is unclear. If it was an execution, it would have to have been during the day sometime as it was public enough for Casca to be reporting the news alongside the news of Caesar's thrice refusal of the crown. If it was imprisonment or removal from office, it probably could have occurred at anytime.

Check the links below for more information, and good luck!

When and why does Goodman Brown abandon all faith?

In my own opinion, I believe that through out the story Brown starts to give up on faith. There are many symbolic themes in this story involving religion, the inner self, and death. Each category expands itself in the story. Faith is a symbol in itself. Not only is Faith his wife, but faith is also his belief in good. His name in general young Goodman Brown is also a symbol. One is his innocence because of his youth, but also that he is good natured. Faith is the same. One symbol that must not be overlooked is Faiths pink ribbon. I quote, "My Faith is gone!" cried he, after one stupefied moment. "There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name." This quote shows that in giving up what he loved or desired most, he had lost all faith in himself, while caring only for his love. Thus, his dying hour is truly gloom, because he was never himself again. He had given up on himself, and realized he couldn't change the world and its dangers. He couldn't save his love, and he lost himself. It wouldn't matter what happened after this point, because he had changed. There was no going back to faith, because he had lost his will to resist urges, the devil, and his sanity. This is a sad but powerful realization, that dooms him.

Please please help me and answer that question.Please answer that question too this is a completion: suppose 15 light bulbs were connected and one...

When all the bulbs are connected or wired in parallel,
burning out of fusing of one of the bulb will not affect any other bulbs. The circuit
for other bulbs will still be closed and they will continue to function normally. In
this case it is easy to spot the defective bulb by just switching on the circuit and
observing all the bulbs to find out which one is not lighting
up.

However, when all the bulbs are connected in series
then burning out of any one bulb will cause the entire circuit to become open. In this
case none of the bulbs will light up in spite of the fact that these are still in
working order. IN this case we will need to examine each of the bulb to find out if it
is burned out. Once we locate the defective bulb we can either replace the bulb with a
good one, or directly connect outgoing wire from previous bulb to the incoming wire of
the next bulb. If there are no other defective bulbs in the circuit all the bulbs will
light up when the circuit is switched on.

The examination
of each bulb to locate the defective bulb may be done in several ways. One way is to
visually examine the filament of the bulb to see if it is burnt out or broken.
Alternatively we can test the continuity of the circuit upto each bulb, we can start
with first bulb in the series after the source of electricity and then continue testing
one additional bulb in each test. When test shows continuity of circuit, all the bulbs
included in the test are OK. When the test shows discontinuity, the last bulb included
in the test is defective.

The government spends more on public libraries and individuals buy fewer books at bookstores. Is this crowding out?

This phenomenon is definitely the phenomenon called
"crowding out" in economics. Perhaps the phenomenon could have been describes as
something like crowding out, if sale of books had resulted in increasing the prices of
books sold to individuals. However there appears to be no reason to believe that this
actually happens.

I do not have the statistics on value of
sale of books to individuals and to libraries. But if the value of sale to the libraries
is more than the sale to individuals, it simply means that, on average, the value
delivered to ultimate consumer, the reader, by a book kept in library is more than the
same book purchased by an individual. The obvious reason for this is that one copy of a
book in a library is accessed and read by many more people than a copy purchased by an
individual. This difference more than offsets generally higher price of hardbound books
kept in libraries, and the cost and efforts the readers incur for referring to and
borrowing books from libraries.

Another related explanation
of higher volume of sale of books to libraries is that a very large number of
specialized books are published that are costly to be purchased by most individuals.
Frequently one person may only want to refer to a small part of the book. Further, the
total number of books one person may be required to refer  for a specific project or a
task like writing a paper or a dissertation may be too large. A typical person may find
it beyond his or her means to buy and keep all such books. In addition, the the
libraries make a large number of books readily available to the readers, including many
books that may be currently out of print.

Why do people like light-skinned people more than dark-skinned people?

Basically, it comes down to these
facts...

1. The world has been dominated by European people
for the last few centuries

2. Money, power and success are
very important social markers and humans make very quick conclusions about peoples'
wealth and status based on their appearance.

3.
Everyone wants to be associated with
success and wealth.

So, for the last 300 years, Europe and
her descendants have completely dominated the world. Europe's values, preferences and
fashions have been unopposable. For 3 centuries, success has been associated with white
skin.

Also, rich, wealthy succesful people work
indoors and stay pale. Poor people work in the fields and their skin darkens during
their labour. In Europe 100+ years ago, rich women avoided getting a suntan at all costs
because it was associated with the peasantry. In India today, this simplistic division
of social roles still exists (see link below) and dark skinned people spend a lot of
money to bleach their skin.

In essence, everybody wants to
be on the winning team, and, generally speaking, dark-skinned people have not
experienced dominant power for the last few centuries. With the new rise of China as a
super power, perhaps the 'image' of success is about to
change.

href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8546183.stm">http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8546183.stm

Methanogens, Halophiles, and Thermoacidophiles are the 3 groups in what kingdom?

Methanogens, Halophiles, and Thermoacidophiles are found
in the Archaea kingdom.  They once believed to be a form of bacteria,
but are no longer classified as bacteria. They live in extreme environments and are stll
sometimes classified under archaebacteria.  They are thought to be the oldest form of
life found on earth.

Halophiles are found in environments
with a high salt count.  They change their structure in order to
survive.

Thermoacidophiles like it acidic and
hot.

Methanogens live in anerobic environments such as
swamps where muck abounds.  They thrive off of conditions that other bacteria would not
be able to live in.

In Into the Wild, how does Chris McCandless feel about his family, and how does Chris' family feel about him? Are there any differences?

In the book, “Into the Wild”, by American writer Jon Krakauer, it is shown that Chris McCandless is essentially indifferent to his family, except possibly for his sister, Carine, one of nine children in the family. His parents were Walt and Billie McCandless.

What is notable, concerning his feelings for his family, is that Chris never really spoke of them. In addition, it is an indication of his thoughts on his family that he concocted a new moniker for himself, “Alexander Supertramp”, deciding to no longer go with the family name as he traveled.

As stated in the first answer above, it is revealed in the book that Chris believed his parents were too controlling. Chris, like his father, had a stubborn streak in him and a penchant for losing his temper. Quite revealing, regarding his feelings about his family is that they held to and practiced middle-class traditional values, while Chris became increasingly antagonistic to these values his family held dear. This is a prime example of a major difference between him and his family. Chris McCandless began to put away materialism and eventually virtually dispensed with it altogetherwhen he hitchhiked to Alaska and walked unaccompanied into its vast wilderness.

Walt and Billie McCandless had high hopes for their son. They believed he would further his life ambitions through enrolling in law school. They wanted the best for their son and no doubt were positive about this hope. Eventually, as Chris’ journey went on and he was not heard of, or to be found, Walt and Billie did engage the services of a private investigator to find Chris. They loved him. Chris, deep down, may have loved them, but did not ascribe to their traditional way of life any longer.

The major difference between Chris and his family was philosophical and based on different world views of what one needs to do to be happy in life.

What impressions of Antony surprise you during Act 4?Antony, Act 4 Shakespeare's Julius Caesar

In Act IV of Julius Caesar, Antony,
who has seemed so loyal to Caesar, and a loving friend, shows himself an exigent man as
he marks Publius, borther of Lepidus, the third member of the triumvirate formed after
Caesar's death.  While Lepidus has agreed to his brother's death, he only does so on
condition that Antony agree to sacrifice his nephew.  This Antony does. Then, Antony
shows that he is willing to use even Lepidus to achieve his political objectives by
having him fetch Caesar's will so that they can reduce some of the legacies that
he mentioned in his funeral oration.  When Lepidus has departed, Octavius accuses Antony
of treachery, saying that he has just gone along with Lepiudus in our "black sentence
and proscription" of Publius.  To this Antony counters that he is older and knows more. 
Lepidus is only given honors so that he will carry out important errands for
them.

This is
a slight unmeritable
man,

readability="13">

Meet to be sent on errands; is it
fit,

The threefold world divided, he should
stand

One of the three to share it?
(IV,i,13-16)

Octavius is
incredulous; he accuses Antony, pointing to his treachery in taking Lepidus's side in
their "black sentence and proscription."  But, Antony dismisses this accusation by
implying that he is wiser by saying he is older,
explaining,

To
ease ourselves of divers sland'rous
loads,

readability="18">

He shall but bear them as the ass bears
gold,

To groan and sweat under the
business,

Either led or driven, as we point the
way...

Then take we down his load, and turn him
off,....(IV,i,22-27)

 But,
Octavius still demurs, telling Antony that he may do what he wishes, but Lepidus is a
"tried and valiant friend."  Heartlessly, Antony
retorts,

So
is my horse, Octavius, and for that

I do appoint him store
of provender.

It is a creature that I teach to
fight,

To wind, to stop, to run directly
on,

His corporal motion governed by my
spirit.

And, in some taste, is Lepidus but
so....

Do not talk of him

But
as a property.
(IV,i,32-43)

After Lepidus
runs the errand Antony has sent him on, Antony will sacrifice him because, he
says, Lepidus is unfit to have so much power.  Ironically, Antony has become what Brutus
was concerned about in Caesar:  hungry himself for power. 

What is Jefferson's last name?

I don't think Gaines gives the character Jefferson a last name in A Lesson Before Dying. His godmother is named Emma Glenn, but she is not a blood relative. I've read the book and several critical essays, but I cannot find a last name. Perhaps that was intentional. One of the things Grant uses as an argument against teaching Jefferson to read is that he has no relationship to Jefferson; he has no obligation to him. By not having a last name, perhaps Jefferson could be said to "belong" to everyone and is everyone's responsibility. Just a thought.

Why did the Vietnam War influence congress to pass the War Powers Act?

The entire war was basically fought under the
authorization of the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, which, while it passed by a combined vote
of 504 - 2, the members of Congress likely did not envision they were signing off on a
nine year war with nearly 60,000 American deaths and hundreds of billions of dollars in
expenditures.  If they had, they probably would have voted
differently.

At the time the War Powers Act passed in 1973,
the Vietnam War was very unpopular and elected officials were trying to appear against
it as well, even when many of them had already supported it with funding for
years.

Korea and Vietnam also set a dangerous precedent we
still live with that allows Presidents to engage us in wars without exit strategies
without the Constitutional permission of a formal declaration of war, essentially
eroding the Legislative Branch's power.

Why does Michael choose to stay back and retrieve Rachel rather than go with the Sealand woman?

Michael's primary reason for staying back to retrieve
Rachel is that they love each other. While it is a secondary plot line, the romantic
relationships between David/Rosalind and Michael/Rachel have been mentioned throughout
the novel. While David and Rosalind's relationship is more in the forefront of the
novel, there is a lead up to Michael and Rachel's:

readability="16">

Rachel's afraid. She's crying inside. She wants
Michael.'

' Did she tell you that?' I
asked.

Petra shook her head. 'No. It was a sort of
behind-think, but I saw it.'

' We'd better not say anything
about it,' I decided. ' It's not our business. A person's behind-thinks aren't really
meant for other people, so we must just pretend not to have noticed them. (Chap
16)

It could also be argued
that Michael understand he and Rachel have a special bond because of their telepathic
powers and the experience of the group. As we saw Michael explain in chapter
10:

Michael
told her it'd be like pretending to have only one arm because the person one wants to
marry has only one arm. It wouldn't be any good -- and you couldn't keep it up,
either.'

Michael understand
Rachel, loves her, and doesn't want her to suffer
alone.

She's
quite alone,' said Michael. 'Would you leave David alone there, or
would David leave you?'

There was no answer to that. (Chap
17)

Is the benefit of an additional glass of water greater or lesser than an additional 1ct diamond? Why? Water is essential for life and Diamonds...

This depends on the condition a person finds themself in
when this choice is presented to them.  The marginal utility of a thing is solely in the
"eye of the beholder."  Therefore, the marginal utility of these things will vary with
the condition of the "consumer."

For a person who is very
thirsty, the marginal benefit of the water is greater than that of the diamond.  If a
person is truly dying of thirst, the marginal utility of the water is almost infinite
while the diamond would be useless.

To a person who wants
to propose marriage, however, the situation is reversed and the marginal utility of the
diamond is much higher.

This is because marginal utility is
defined as how much satisfaction a given person gets from consuming the object in
question.  This amount will vary with the situation.

What does Scout see clearly for the first time when she reads Underwood's claim that Tom's death was senseless killing?Chapter 23

The quote you are referring to is at the end of Chapter 25 -

""Mr. Underwood's meaning became clear: Atticus had used every tool available to free men to save Tom Robinson, but in the secret courts of men's hearts, Atticus had no case.  Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed."

Scout understands how deeply the roots of prejudice run.  She sees that you can change the laws and courts and go by all the rules, but unless there is change in the hearts of men, racism and stereotypical behavior will continue.  Tom Robinson outwardly had a fair trial, and Atticus did all he could for him, but because of deeply-ingrained attitudes of inequality in Maycomb, Tom Robinson was doomed from the start.

What is the plot of "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe?

Edgar Allan Poe's poem The Raven is considered a classic of gothic literature.  A man, probably of middle age, sits alone in his well-adorned library one cold, "bleak December" evening, and contemplates the dissolution of his relationship with "the lost Lenore."  He is clearly heartbroken, but becomes uneasy when a mysterious tapping on his chamber door captures his attention.  Attempting to ignore it, the unidentified source of the unwelcome noise continues to distract him.  As he focuses on the possible nature of this disturbance, his mind goes back to the source of his sorrow, "the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore."  Poe's poem continues with its haunting theme, the narrator unable to grasp the meaning of this persistent intruder:

"Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing, Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortals ever dared to dream before; But the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token, And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, “Lenore!” This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, “Lenore!”— Merely this and nothing more."

The intruder, of course, is a large black raven, which moves about the library, responding to the narrator's queries regarding its purpose with the phrase "Nevermore."  The raven's continued presence and repetitive use of that phrase proves increasingly maddening to the narrator, who only wants the large bird to leave.  As the bird perches atop a bust of the mythological figure of Pallas, the reader is left to conclude that this bizarre interloper signifies the narrator's emotional demise.

In the poem A child said, what is the grass? from Leaves of Grass, What are examples of metaphor and imagery ?Is there any relation to the...

The speaker’s answer to the child is replete with metaphor and imagery for the speaker finds the question too complex, too philosophical, and yet too simple for a straightforward answer. An example of metaphor: he says a leaf of grass is “the flag of my disposition, out of hopeful green stuff woven.”  Here he compares the grass to himself in that he is part of nature; in being the “flag of his disposition,” it represents who he is, and woven “out of hopeful green stuff” refers to the vitality of nature that always continues through its courses as we see it in life and death as well as the seasons of the year. “Sprouting alike in broad zones and narrow zones, / Growing among black folks as among white” provides a beautiful image of color and equality, allowing us to “see” the green growing naturally, spontaneously, and without effort among black people and white people (and then he goes on to mention other groups of people). Here he uses the blade of grass to create a visual image of equality.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, what is unusual about how long it takes the jury to reach a verdict? Is the verdict predictable or not?

It is very unusual how long it took the jury to reach a verdict because the case involved a black man. Even more, the case involved an attack by a black man of a white woman. The fact that it took as long as it did shows that Atticus scored a few points and made the jury consider all the evidence.

While the jury does convict Tom, in some ways it can be seen as at least promising that they considered the evidence that Atticus presented during the trial.

The conviction  itself is not surprising, because even Atticus knew that he would most likely lose the case. Racial inequality was a theme in this novel, and Tom really never had a chance at a fair trial.

What happens to Macbeth in Act 3 and why?

In Act 3 of Macbeth, a change happens which affects the whole course of the play and leads to Macbeth’s downfall.  The couple begin to drift apart. Together they have achieved a result:

“Nought’s had, all’s spent.” mourns lady Macbeth.

Macbeth invites Banquo to attend his banquet and elicits the information that Fleance will accompany Banquo on his ride that day. He hides his murderous intentions towards them in pleasantries and tells his wife to pay special attention to Banquo, hinting at bloody deeds to come. Now troubled that things are going too far, she tries to soothe him......

“You must leave this...”

But Macbeth is beginning to slide away from her sphere of influence. The banquet displays, for all to see, the divide between them--and Macbeth’s outer representation of madness. Up until now, the couple have worked as a team albeit with one partner more dominant than the other as Lady Macbeth has been the power behind the throne.

Macbeth’s peace of mind is now destroyed however, and guilt-ridden nightmares have stolen his ability to sleep. The restorative properties of a good night’s sleep can soothe a troubled mind but a person who lacks sleep for long enough will surely lose his sanity: he will lose the power of rational judgement.

What impression do you form about astrologer after the study of story by R.K Narayan?

The astrologer really knows nothing about any man’s future
and simply plays the part of a fortune-teller to earn a living. The astrologer developed
strong skills in telling people what they wanted to hear and dressed somewhat
mysteriously to attract customers. To a certain degree, the life he lives is a
lie.

The astrologer, as the narration tells us, should be
living a comfortable life on the family farm.  However, after a fight in which the
astrologer brutally assaulted someone, he had to flee his region. The astrologer
believed that he had killed the man and therefore had to make a new life for himself. At
the end of the story, the astrologer learns his victim did not die all those years
ago.

What is the major conflict of The Old Man and the Sea?

The central conflict of Hemingway's novella is man vs. nature.  Santiago is at odds with nature because he makes his living by it, as a fisherman.  However, the sea is not providing him with enough catch to survive on.  He is able to catch the large marlin, but the sea will not allow him to have it, and he returns to shore with nothing but the skeleton.

Symbolically, however, the conflict is representative of man's conflict with overpowering forces in society, and man's resilience against those forces.  Despite being beaten by the sea, Santiago goes to sleep dreaming of more adventures.  He may have been physically beaten, but he is not emotionally beaten.

I need help with finding a good title for my essay...My essay is about how supernatural events drive Macbeth to rely on his ambition and neglect...

As you have said that your subject matter is all about the
influence of the supernatural on Macbeth which distracts him through instigation, I
would suggest you two titles. These are as follows:

1.
Evaluation of the role the supernatural plays in
Macbeth

or,

2.
How far the supernatural is responsible for the tragic consequence in
Macbeth?

You can, now,
choose either. Just make sure the thesis statement does contain the key phrases of your
title.

Good luck!

In The Kite Runner, Amir thinks, "I wanted to be just like Baba and I wanted to be nothing like him." What does he mean?

Amir wants to be like Baba as a father in
several ways.

-He would like to command
respect as Baba always did because other people's approval is obviously very important
to Amir.

-He would like to be willing to sacrifice for his
child as Baba sacrificed for him.  While Baba does not seem to give up much for Amir in
the first 8 chapters of the novel, when he leaves Afghanistan, he sacrifices
everythingfor Amir (wealth, status, comfort, recognition, home,
etc.).

However, Amir certainly does not want
to emulate Baba's

-inability to show
approval toward a child who longs for it

-secrets which
harm his children (Hassan's true origin, Amir's feeling of
betrayal)

-emotional distance

What are the features that make this play an absurdist or avant garde play?What characterizes this play as absurdist drama?

Some of the characteristics of absurdist drama, or theatre of the absurd, are a general sense that life has no meaning, a lack of belief in any kind of god, and absurd or unusual characters set in absurd or fantastic situations.

Cloud Nine can be called absurdist, first of all, by the fact that its characters serve more as caricatures, or types of people, rather than fully developed people. Each one serves as a type to portray the ills of colonialism. Just as the characters serve as stereotypes of colonialism, so also they embody elements of the absurd: Edward is played by a woman; Joshua, the black African servant, is played by a white man; Cathy, the four-year-old daughter, is played by a man. Her mother is also played by a man. The play has the element of the fantastic as well in that in Act 2, while being set one hundred years in the future, the characters have aged only twenty or thirty years.

The author uses these absurd elements to make a statement about gender and racial oppression, making them to be what is the true aburdities.

How does Roger Chillingworth change during the course of the novel?

At the beginning of the novel, Chillingworth is an intelligent older man who has been held captive by the Indians for over a year. When he sees Hester and finds out what she has done, he is shocked, angry, as well as regretful for what he feels is his part in causing the affair. He seems to be a rational, reasonable older man. After meeting with Hester however, he vows to discover and take revenge on the man who had an affair with Hester. As he continues to seek revenge against Dimmesdale, the novel says he becomes more and more evil looking. His entire life revolves around this revenge, and he becomes bound by it. The book even says that at times he looks like the very devil. His appearance becomes more ugly and misshapen. By the end of the novel, when Dimmesdale confesses, Chillingworth has no option except to die, because his whole life has been centered around revenge, and the revenge is no longer possible.

How will you use the concept of transactional analysis to solve dysfunctional behaviour in your organisation.explain with example.

Transactional Analysis (TA) works from the premise that 3
ego states - Parent, Adult, Child - govern our
behavior.

• When we express major emotion, we are
  working from the Child state.


• When we are working
  without major emotions, we are working from the Adult state.
  


• When we are treating other adults like children, we are
  working from the Parent state.

Let's say that I
supervise 3 people and have asked them to help with the physical redesign of our office
space to accommodate a shift in our function and activities.  Two staff start discussing
possible layouts while the 3rd sits with his arms folded across his chest and says
nothing.  When asked for his input, he says it's my job, not his, to redesign the office
layout.

At this point, the three of us engaged in the
discussion are having an Adult-to-Adult transaction.  Our egos are in check and we are
directing our efforts toward a group goal of making our environment more
effective.

The 3rd staffer is having a Child-to-Adult
transaction by acting childlike in his reaction to the task.  If I respond by treating
him like a Child - scolding or yelling - then I am taking on the Parent
state.

The goal is for me to respond from the Adult state,
treating him like an Adult, despite his acting like a Child.  I could point out that
having a say in the decisions about layout will make the workplace more suitable for his
needs and that I'd like everyone's ideas before moving on.  If he responds from an Adult
ego state, we can move on.  If he stays in the Child ego state, I must remain in the
Adult ego state and continue without him; reserving a meeting time for him later where
we can discuss his inappropriate work behavior.

TA
encourages Adult-to-Adult transactions for a more effective work environment.  While
there is much more to TA than this simple example, it is a start.  Many supervisors
forget that they must set the example and work from the Adult ego state.  In this
example, I would have to get more into the sub-layers of the ego states if the 3rd
staffer needed further follow-up on his lack of participation.

What are two personal qualities Granny values and possesses?

Granny values hard work.  She remembers "all the food she had cooked, and all the clothes she had cut and sewed, and all the gardens she had made...she had fenced in a hundred acres once, digging the post holes herself and clamping the wires with just a negro boy to help".  Looking back at all the work she did gives her a sense of pride, and she says, "Well, I didn't do so badly, did I?"

She is also a mother-figure and nurturer.  She raised four children who seek her advice even in their adulthood, and she recalls "riding country roads...when women had their babies...sitting up nights with sick horses and sick negroes and sick children and hardly ever losing one."

How do the animals' lives become harder after the windmill is blown up?

The Chapter you want to examine to answer this question in
Chapter 7. It paints a grim scene of desperate animals working in bitter conditions in
winter to try and re-build the windmill whilst also trying to support themselves. Thus
their lives are made much worse by the destruction of the windmill and they suffer
greatly. Note though that they try to keep on pretending to the outside world that they
are a "success", so they try to hide the shortage of food from the human farmers
surrounding them in case they think that Animal Farm is failing. Comically, the
criticism of the humans that the windmill fell down because its walls were not thick
enough instead of Snowball's destruction is ignored, yet the animals build the walls
twice as thick this time, obviously adding to the work.

The
parallel here is that Russia came up with ever more elaborate schemes and stratagems to
conceal their incompetence from the rest of the world as they felt that it would judge
their enterprise as a failure. The symbol of the windmill therefore is very important to
the pigs as it shows that they are a forward-thinking, technologically sound farm with
advanced methods, which perhaps explains why so much effort is put in to completing it
again.

In Act 1, Scene 1 of The Merchant of Venice, what is the importance of the ships and the setting of Venice?I want to know how these create impact...

What's important about the setting of Venice and ships in
the opening scene of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice is that
they set up the characterization of the characters and the plot of the
drama. 

Antonio's livelihood is trade.  This involves ships
and the city of Venice, which is known for its trade and shipping.  His wealth is tied
up in ships at sea.  His money is not liquid, as we would say today, he cannot get at it
if he should need it.

This situation helps to characterize
him when Bassanio needs financial help to pursue the women he longs for.  Antonio is in
a position of risk, yet he does not hesitate to allow his friend to borrow money on his
own credit.  This puts him at terrible risk, and the venture Bassanio wants to borrow
money for is not even a money-making venture.  Antonio has nothing to gain.  Yet he
immediately and willingly allows Bassanio to use his name to
borrow. 

The situation fuels the plot of the play, then,
when Antonio's ships don't arrive safely as anticipated.  It is Bassanio's need and
Antonio's willingness to fulfill that need that create the situation and the conflict of
the play. 

The quotes are easily found, and the scene is
not particularly long.  Just look for quotes that indicate Antonio is at risk and
waiting for his "ships to come in," so to speak, and look for the part of the scene
during which Antonio agrees to help Bassanio. 

In chapters 30 and 31 of To Kill a Mockingbird, what were Mr. Tate and Atticus arguing over?

They are arguing over Bob Ewell's death.  Tate wants to concoct a story about it being an accident.  But Atticus knows what happened and he will not go along with the falsehood.  Here is an exerpt of their exchange (my edition Ch 30, pg. 315-318). 

"Mr Finch."  Mr. Tate was still planted to the floorboards. "Bob Ewell fell on his knife.  I can prove it."

Atticus wheeled around.  His hands dug into his pockets.  "Heck, can't you try to see it my way?  You've got children of your own, but I'm older than you.  When mine are gorwn I'll be an old man if I'm still around, but right now I'm -- if they don't trust me they won't trust anybody.  if they hear me saying downtown something different happened -- Heck, I won't have them any more.  I can't live one way in town and another in my home."

***

As Atticus has already painfully learned, right doesn't equal justice.  Tate replies, "I may not be much, Mr. Finch, but I'm still sherrif of Maycomb County and Bob Ewell fell on his knife.  Good night, sir."

Atticus is forced to ask Scout, "Can you possibly understand?"  Scout does.  She runs to him, hugs and reassures him. 

The children have not lost their respect for Atticus.  Having witnessed the injustice of the trial, they now know the injustice of the world.  And though they can no longer view him as a god, they can view him as a man who consistently acts morally. 

In To Kill a Mockingbird, how is the culture of the negroes in Maycomb different from the culture of the white people that Jem and Scout...

When attending the Zion church, Scout and Jem first notice the different speech of Calpurnia.  When she is around the Finches, Calpurnia speaks with a traditional white and educated dialect.  However, amongst her fellow negroes, she slips into slang that is more common there.  During the service, the children become aware of the poverty that the church suffers from.  There are not enough hymnals, so everyone has to echo the lyrics of the hymns from another.  The church displays a sense of community that Jem and Scout have been unfamiliar with.  There is a lively atmosphere and a strong reliance on the aid of neighbors.  No one is allowed to leave the church until money has been raised for the Robinsons.  Scout and Jem have been used to a more formal setting, and enjoy the sociable air of the Zion church.  Lee uses this chapter to display the negro community as strong and united, very positive; this will control the reader's attitude as she begins to unfold details of the trial.

Explain the role of the U.S. in the emerging global community?

Global community implies a world in which barriers and
differences between people based on nationalities are diminishing. These barriers have
not been lowered because of  planned attempts of any big and powerful countries to
create a global community. The global community has emerged as a result of evolving
technology and the resultant increase in global trade and
interaction.

Global community has emerged because people
exposed to a wide range of concepts, and cultures have accepted and adopted what they
liked best, irrespective of the the source of such practices. This has enabled people to
choose what is best suited or liked by them irrespective of the constraints of their own
community and culture. This has enriched lives of individuals, and at the same time
developed better understanding among people of different
countries.

What the U.S. or any other country can do to
promote global community is to not to encourage any actions that tend to isolate their
people from rest of the world by creating a false sense of their superiority over
others. Development of global community is because of the free choice given to people by
the technology. The best way to speed up this process is to not to create new barriers
between people.

How does Walton describe his expedition when his new passenger asks about the ship's destination? Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Interestingly, after Frankenstein is satisfied by Walton's
response that he is "on a voyage of discovery towards the
northern pole," he talks with Walton about the expedition, expressing curiosity and
sympathies about this venture:

readability="14">

He entered attentively into all my arguments in
favour of my eventual success, and into every minute detail of the measure I had taken
to secure it.  I was easily led by the sympathy which he evinced to use the language of
my heart; ...and to say, with all the fervour that warmed me, how gladly I would
sacrifice my fortune, my existence, my every hope, to the gurtherance of my
enterprise.

However, as
Walton continues, saying,

readability="6">

One man's life or death were but a small price to
pay for the acquirement of the knowledge which I
sought

"a dark gloom" comes
over Victor's face.  Here, clearly, is an example of foreshadowing as the reader later
learns.  Of course, the irony, too, is that Walton does not realize how much his words
sound like those of the idealistic Victor who would create his own being.  To Walton,
Victor speaks in "broken accents":

readability="7">

Unhappy man!  Do you share my madness!  Have you
drank [sic] also of the intoxicating draught?  Hear me--let me reveal my tale, and you
will dash the cup from your
lips!"

This fourth letter
also furthers the completion of the frame around Victor's history as it gives reason to
the
telling.

What does Lady Macbeth's character and behavior say about the role of women in Elizabethan England?

In Shakespeare's Macbeth, Lady
Macbeth is a woman with the intelligence and aggressiveness to lead, who is kept from
leading.  She is a capable woman in a male dominated world.  She can only operate behind
the scenes, so to speak.

We never even see her leave the
castle.  Like Lady Macduff, she is kept at home while her husband runs around performing
momentous actions.  Lady Macbeth is responsible for and relegated to domestic duties,
like preparing for Duncan's arrival. 

Furthermore, she is
only even allowed to participate in decision-making before Macbeth is crowned king. 
Once Macbeth has the crown, he shuts her out of the decision-making
process.

In short, then, if we assume Elizabethan attitudes
toward women are reflected in the play, the character of Lady Macbeth suggests that
women in Elizabethan England:

• were thought
  inferior to men and kept out of politics and the making of major decisions, unless they
  were somehow able to contribute behind the scenes


• were
  supposed to stay at home and cook and clean and prepare for
  guests

That is of course, with the exception of
one woman:  Queen Elizabeth, herself, although she had died by the time
Macbeth was performed.

In the story, "The Gift of the Magi", how are Della and Jim said to be the Magi who started the trend of exchanging gifts?I need really very...

The Magi, or 3 Wise Men, brought gifts to the infant
Jesus.  They traveled long distances to bring what were considered very precious gifts
of exotic oils and spices.  These were things that only the very wealthy could afford
and Mary and Joseph certainly were not wealthy.  Their gifts were meant to honor the
baby who was called the Messiah.  In the short story by O'Henry, Della and Jim each
sacrifice their prized possession to give a precious gift to the other.  Jim bought
beautiful combs for Della to put in her crowning glory, her splendid hair.  To get the
money for the combs, Jim sold his most valuable possession - his pocket watch.  Della
bought Jim a beautiful chain on which Jim could put his pocket watch because she knew
how much that watch meant to Jim.  To get the money to buy the watch chain as a
Christmas gift for her husband, she cut off her hair and sold it.  The gifts showed
self-sacrifice and thoughtfulness, just as the gifts the Magi brought Jesus showed the
same.  To go even further with the comparison - the gifts brought by the Magi to the
baby Jesus weren't gifts that were necessities, they were luxuries meant to show honor. 
The gifts exchanged by Jim and Della were also not necessities but luxuries meant to
show Jim and Della how much love each one had for the other.

In Beowulf, from whom specifically is Grendal descended?

The poem also mentions various and sundry other undesirables such as giants and monsters, but Cain is the most ominous ancestor.  This is ancestor is chosen to make more clear the Anglo-Saxon loyalty to family and kings.  Those to whom you are related and to whom you pledge your life are bonded...however, Cain is considered the most evil because he rebuked that bond.  Anyone who commits this crime in Anglo-Saxon times and literature is usually considered an outcast...therefore, Grendel, being descended of this murderer, is the ultimate miserable outcast.  And so, the setting/background info is laid for the remainder of the poem.  Good Luck, and happy reading!

What news does Mrs.Joe bring at the end of Chapter 7?Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

With great excitement, Mrs. Joe returns from shopping with
the pompous Uncle Pumblechook and unwraps herself hastily, throwing her bonnet onto her
back where it catches since the ribbons remain around her neck.  She pronounces the name
of Miss Havisham with pomp since Miss Havisham is known
as

an
immensely rich and grim lady who lived in a large and dismal house barricaded against
robbers, and who lived a secluded
life.

Because Miss Havisham
is rich, Mrs. Joe anticipates that her asking Pumblechook for a boy to come and play is
portentous:

readability="5">

...this boy's fortune may be made by his going to
Miss Havisham's....

Here, in
Chapter 7 there is foreshadowing that Pip's life at the forge is about to change.  In
addition, Dickens demonstrates how social status overrides any eccentricities.  For, it
does not matter that Miss Havisham lives alone and has a mansion in decay that is barred
from the outside world.  Mrs. Joe is simply excited that Pip is going to go to the house
of a rich woman.

What details in the lover's last meeting foreshadowed a sinister, threatening reunion?

The flashback in this sinister and disturbing short story
provides many details that should make the alert reader sit up and predict a terrifying
ending for poor Mrs. Drover. Notice the almost ghostly way in which her fiance is
described in the flashback - she seems to almost doubt his
existence:

readability="14">

The young girl talking to the soldier in the
garden had not ever completely seen his face. It was dark; they were saying goodbye
under a tree. Now and then - for it felt, from not seeing him at this intense moment, as
though she had never seen him at all - she verified his presence for these few moments
longer by putting out a hand, which he each time pressed, without very much kindness,
and painfully, on to one of the breast buttons of his
uniform.

Note how the younger
Mrs. Drover seems to need to check that he is still there, he is so ethereal and
shadow-like. Also note how the man responds to these "checks" and his lack of empathy
and the pain he inflicts on her - this surely indicates his ability to cause her more
pain in the future. This is surely indicated when the narrator
comments:

That
cut of the button on the palm of her hand was, principally, what she was to carry
away.

The pain and scar of
this wound seems to symbolise there relationship. The ghostly comparisons continue as
the girl imagines "spectral glitters" in place of her fiance's eyes and his lack of
emotion and sensitivity and his refusal to embrace or kiss her reinforce his complete
lack of care or concern for her.

Then, finally, note how
the dialogue introduces another chillingly spooky threat. The man tells her that he is
going "not so far as [she] thinks" and then his final speech expresses his promise which
is uttered more like a warning:

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"I shall be with you," he said, "sooner or later.
You won't forget that. You need do nothing but
wait."

All of these points
indicate and foreshadow the terrible ending of this story where Mrs. Drover and her
first fiance are reunited and he keeps his promise.

What exactly is the scholarship boy in Hunger of Memory?

In the Hunger of Memory, Richard Rodriguez uses the construct of the ‘scholarship boy’ to put his own experiences into context. In discussing the concept, he examines what it means to be a scholarship boy both in a general sense as well as in his own specific situation. In this way, he helps the reader understand the tensions and contradictions that afflict him during his education and his early employment.

In general, a scholarship boy, according to Rodriguez, is a student torn between two worlds. Such students at once feel the pull of family and tradition while also trying to fit an academic ideal. They are often self-conscious of both aspects of their life, and the introspection that comes from this causes them to doubt themselves. They are not, he believes, good students even though they may be able to perform well on academic tasks. They focus on regurgitating knowledge rather than true learning:

For although I was a very good student, I was also a very bad student. I was a "scholarship boy," a certain kind of scholarship boy. Always success­ful, I was always unconfident. Exhilarated by my progress. Sad. I became the prized student - anxious and eager to learn. Too eager, too anxious - an imitative and unoriginal pupil.  

Rodriguez also explores the sense of loss, especially with respect to his place in his family, that he felt as a scholarship boy:

The scholarship boy reaches a different conclusion. He cannot afford to admire his parents. (How could he and still pursue such a contrary life?) He permits himself embarrassment at their lack of education. And to evade nostalgia for the life he has lost, he concentrates on the benefits education will bestow upon him.

As Rodriguez recounts his academic life, he sees his successes and failures through the eyes of the scholarship boy that he believes he was. He finds that his self-doubt follows him to college, where he attempts to balance his academic performance with concerns that he is not deserving of his success. He fears that he is a mere product of affirmative action, not his own merits, and that the interest that professors and other students show in him is a result of novelty, not his ideas. These self-doubts follow him into his professional life, leading him to avoid employment that he feels is based on his ethnicity rather than his accomplishments.

Why does Betty cry for her mother after she is awake in Act One of The Crucible? She is not witched, is she?

Betty is

readability="6">

aged ten... lying on the bed,
inert.

A
ten-year-old is going to be pretty freaked out by taking part in something a bunch of
teenagers were doing in an effort to conjure up spirits. Betty criticizes Abigail for
drinking blood, and for drinking a charm to get Elizabeth Proctor. This is heavy stuff
to participate in and watch at age 10.

I don't think she
was witched, but scared... yes. Wanting to stay silent on purpose to not have to
report... yes. If you listen to the words she says to Abby, she has a mixture of
emotions about what has happened. I sense anger and fear mixed together. Who do all
children cry for during a fear emotion? Their mommy. It makes complete
sense.

Why is "The Last Leave" by O. Henry ironic?Could you include a topic sentence as well?

To me, this story is ironic because of the fact that Mr.
Behrman dies from pneumonia.  This is ironic because that is exactly what he is trying
to save Johnsy from.  She is dying of pneumonia and because she does not believe that
she will be able to live once that last leaf falls.

So
Behrman goes and paints a leaf on the wall.  It convinces her to live, but painting it
kills him because he went out in such bad weather to do
it.

So my topic sentence would be something like "The Last
Leaf is ironic because Mr. Behrman dies of pneumonia because he was trying to prevent
that same thing from happening to Johnsy."

Act IV:Why has Hale returned? How and why has he changed?How and why does Giles die? Why wasn't he hanged?

Hale has returned in an attempt to fix what he helped cause. On his arrival into town, he seemed boastful of his ability to take care of the situation. As the panic and hysteria grew to new heights, Hale has realized that innocent people are dying, and justice is not being served. He attempts to get those imprisoned to lie and "confess" to save their lives, and he has attempted to get the court to postpone any further executions, but he is having no luck.

Giles Corey is not hanged. He is pressed to death using heavy stones. He was given this sentence because he went to court and accused Putnam of getting the girls to accuse people he had issues with, and those who he could profit from their imprisonment. When he refused to name his source for information, he was jailed for contempt of court. He was pressed to death to get a confession from him, and if he confessed, he would have been hanged. In historical transcripts, they say the last words he ever said was "more weight".

Why does Ralph call a meeting? chapter 5

Ralph calls the meeting after the fire was allowed to go out, and their chance at rescue ruined. However, Ralph is not doing a great job of holding a constructive meeting. He has important ideas, but does not express them well. He tries to get the boys to see that their survival and rescue should be the top priorities, instead of hunting for meat.

Ralph maintains that the huts need to be fortified, fresh water must be attained, a fire needs to be constantly nurtured, and some sort of bathroom facilities need to be structured for hygiene's sake.

Jack grows impatient with this meeting, and leads the boys into  a disruption with his boasts of being a great hunter, and belittling Ralph's concerns.

I need to find examples of light and dark imagery in Romeo and Juliet that are easy to understand.

Traditionally, light has symbolized good and dark evil, or at least not-so-good.  While this is sometimes the case with Romeo and Juliet, the standard interpretation is not always true.  In the traditional sense, the balcony scene fits the criteria, for Juliet hopes for the sun to banish the "envious moon" and turn night into day.

But on the other hand, when the lovers spend their first full night together as man and wife, day is shunned for the pleasures that night has delivered.  Both the young lovers try to try to pretend that it is still night, and that the light is actually darkness.  Romeo hears the call of the lark, a bird of the morn, but Juliet desperately wants to pretend it is a nightingale they've heard (thus meaning it is still evening): 

 She says: Wilt thou be gone? it is not yet near day: / It was the nightingale, and not the lark, /  That pierced the fearful hollow of thine ear; / Nightly she sings on yon pomegranate-tree: / Believe me, love, it was the nightingale.

And Romeo replies:  It was the lark, the herald of the morn, / No nightingale. Look, love, what envious streaks / Do lace the severing clouds in yonder east (3.5.1-9)

What is the character motivation for the narrator in "Blues Ain't No Mockin Bird"?

Character motivation is by definition the force that drives a character to act or react, which includes behavior actions, thoughts, or feelings. Action, resulting from motivation (reasons), can do several things. It can unleash activity; it can reveal character traits; it can reveal plot points; it can drive the conflict, etc. There may be active motivation or two kinds of passive motivation.

Active motivation results from the inner qualities of the character in question and is when the character acts. S/He is motivated to give her/is last few coins to a poor mother of two children because of a deep sense of compassion, as was the case more than once with Raskolnikov in Crime and Punishment. Active motivation reveals the inner qualities of the character and usually renders energetic action in the story.

Passive motivation results from external influences and is when a given character reacts, not acts. Passive motivation requires an influence to which the character can react. The influence may be either direct or indirect.

Direct influence is when something occurs directly to the character. For example, a brick falls from the top of a building and lands on Her easel, to which She reacts.

Indirect influence is when something occurs indirectly to the character. For example, She hears that Her brother's fiance is a jewel thief, to which She reacts.

In "Blues Ain't No Mockin Bird" the narrator is a passively motivated character who is reacting to indirect influences. The indirect influence to which she is reacting is the encroachment of the filmmakers on their quiet family life. The narrator's reaction is to take note of every detail that comes to her attention and write it in a narrative.

By way of contrast, Granny is also a passively motivated character, but she is reacting to direct influence: the filmmakers are attempting to persuade her; they are disregarding her; they are trespassing on her property and trampling her flowerbed.

In To Kill A Mockingbird, who are the Mrunas and who is J. Grimes Everett?

This is a good question. The Mrunas are an African tribe. J. Grimes is the missionary who is working among them. 

In chapter 24, Mrs. Merriweather is speaking to her missionary women's group about the work that J. Grimes is doing. On the one hand, this shows that Maycomb is a Christian town. It even shows compassion and charity to some extent. But the import of the chapter is really about the blindness of Mrs. Merriweather and the other women, who are representative of the people of the town.

Within this conversation, Mrs. Merriweather shows her true colors as a woman of little compassion and great blindness in her hypocrisy. I quote at length to show what kind of person she is.

Mrs. Merriweather faced Mrs. Farrow: “Gertrude, I tell you there’s nothing more distracting than a sulky darky. Their mouths go down to here. Just ruins your day to have one of ‘em in the kitchen. You know what I said to my Sophy, Gertrude? I said, ’Sophy,‘ I said, ’you simply are not being a Christian today. Jesus Christ never went around grumbling and complaining,‘ and you know, it did her good. She took her eyes off that floor and said, ’Nome, Miz Merriweather, Jesus never went around grumblin‘.’ I tell you, Gertrude, you never ought to let an opportunity go by to witness for the Lord.”

The juxtaposition shows that Mrs. Merriweather and the others in Maycomb are blind to their sins and issues. If they did a little more for their own community (instead of far off places), Maycomb would be a better place. 

Explain why permanent tax cuts are likely to lead to bigger increases in consumer spending then temporary tax cuts do.if you can, try to explain a...

In terms of the consumption function, a permanent tax cut
is likely to lead to people having a higher marginal propensity to consume than a
temporary tax cut will.

The reason for this is that people
will be able to count on having the tax cut continue for a long time.  They will know
that the money is going to keep coming so they will be able to plan
ahead.

If the tax cut is temporary, people won't know if it
will last.  So they're more likely to save the money rather than spending it.  This
lowers the MPC.

Why does George tell Leanie to remeber the spot where they are camping?no

If I recall correctly, George tells Lennie to remember the spot so that he will know where to meet should he get into any trouble.  George wants Lennie to have a safe place to hide until he can help him.

Ironically, it is in this safe place that Lennie meets his end, and George is the one who takes Lennie's life.  He does this to help protect his friend from an even worse fate--being caught by Curley and the lynch mob.

What held the community of Umuofia together in Things Fall Apart?

Religious and social customs, along with familial responsibility and tradition all contribute to the community's cohesion in Things Fall Apart. What is important to understand is that what holds the community of Umuofia together are the very same things that hold together the communities of the missionaries...That is, Achebe wants us to see that the Umuofian society is intact; it has social traditions, a complex language, judicial systems, and a committment to family, not unlike any other organized and civilized community, regardless of what the colonizers might believe.

Describe how does Jody gains maturity.

Jody has become adept at watching the animals, as they prepare to give birth. He must endure tragic life lessons, like the pain and death that happens in life. He applies the lessons he has learned with the animals to his own family.

By keeping his grandfather's secret, he understands that death is a part of life.

Do you agree with the message in Thornton Wilder's play Our Town that most people don't appreciate the beauty and wonder of life? Why or why not?

I think to a large extent this message is accurate.  It is similar to Whitman's poem, "The World is Too Much With Us."  We are busy, overwhelmed with work and school and family, and we tend to become to familiar with the flowers, the sky, a simple blade of grass.  We tend not to see these wonders of nature after a while since our minds are on the bills, the kids, the sports, and getting dinner on the table.

Wilder gives lots of examples of this in the play where the dead are speaking to one another and even with some of the instances of the speech of the living.  The subject of daily life becomes to some a ritual and one that is not all that interesting...filled with hum-drum routine.  Even Mrs. Soames comments from the grave,  "My, wasn't life awful--and wonderful." 

Emily's comments to the Stage Manager also reiterate this message. Speaking about her twelfth birthday party, she says, "We don't even have time to look at one another." After one last look at Grover's Corners and being alive, Emily tells the Stage Manager she is ready to go back to the graveyard. She asks, "Doesn't anyone ever realize life while they live it? Every, every minute?"

What happened to the house in the final hours?

Before the house burns, it makes breakfast for the family and asks the mother, want she wants to listen to, then it reads a poem of "Sara Teasdale".

The house begins to burn, because a falling tree crashes into the ktichen window on the stove. It tries to rescue/save itself but without success.

Then it dies.

How does the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale intercede on behalf of Hester?I am reading chapters 6-11.

In chapter 3, when Hester is on the scaffold serving her
public punishment, Rev. Dimmesdale offers Hester a chance to share the name of her lover
as a means of saving her own soul and somehow diminishing her guilt and punishment.  He
knows, however, that her love is strong and she would never betray him--especially since
the usual punishment for the crime of adultery was death.  He could have interceded for
her then she neither asked nor wanted him to do so.

The two
meet again in chapter 8 at the Governor's mansion, and now she is forced to ask for his
intervention and help.  Hester has gone to deliver a pair of embroidered gloves, but her
real mission was to ensure that she would not lose her child.  There she meets Governor
Bellingham, the Rev. John Wilson, Roger Chillingworth, and the Rev. Arthur
Dimmesdale.

Rev. Wilson asks Pearl a few questions in an
effort to determine whether or not Pearl has been appropriately taught about the things
of God by her mother, a "sinner."  The young girl gives foolish answers, causing the men
to question Hester's ability to be a godly parent to this young soul.  When several of
them agree that perhaps Hester is not a fit mother for Pearl, Hester makes an appeal
directly to Dimmesdale.  "Speak thou for me!  Thou knowest--for thou hast sympathies
which these men lack--thou knowest what is in my heart....  Look thou to it!  I will not
lose the child!  Look to it!"

A nervous and emaciated
Dimmesdale is stricken by her passion, as well as his own guilt, and steps forward to
plead her case to the men who have the power (and apparently the intent) to remove Pearl
from her mother.  Despite his weakened condition, he is an eloquent speaker and his
argument is simple:  God gave this child to Hester as both a daily reminder of her past
sin and a hope for her future redemption. "To remind her, at every moment, of her fall
but yet to teach her... that, if she bring the child to heaven, the child will also
bring her parents...."

The argument, as well as the passion
with which it is delivered, is a compelling one.  Without hesitation, Governor
Bellingham agrees that Pearl should remain with her mother.  As a direct result of
Arthur Dimmesdale's intercession (help), Hester is allowed to keep her child, the only
thing she has in this world to love and cherish as her own.

In the Scarlet Ibis, who is the protagonist and who is the antagonist?

A protagonist is the main focus of the story. While in many works of fiction, the protagonist is the hero or inherently good, this does not always have to be the case.

The antagonist is the opposition to the protagonist.

In this story the protagonist is Brother. He is both the narrator and character. We are not told his real name, just that Doodle calls him Brother. Brother is ashamed of his crippled brother, and does not want to be embarrassed by him. He does love him, but does not think about anything other than his challenges. Brother pushes him to walk, then run, and this eventually kills him from the strain.

Brother is heartbroken by the death, and finally realizes that Doodle was a miracle.

At first, it would seem that Doodle is the antagonist to Brother. He causes Brother a lot of unease and trouble. Brother wanted a brother that could do the things all boys can, and was a constant embarrassment.

However, after Doodle's death, it can be seen that Brother was his own antagonist. He was unable or unwilling to see Doodle's wonderful qualities until after he had died.

Why couldn't Macbeth withstand his ambition to do wrong.

Macbeth could not withstand his ambition for doing wrong
because of his lack of brutality and his inert
humanity.

William Shakespeare's Macbeth depicts Macbeth as
a man who has a hidden ambition to be the king, but this is just like dream to him. He
never thinks to execute his plans until the "weird sisters" foretell him that he, once,
would be the king, and his wife poured oil into the fire of ambition. He seems to have
desire, but no wicked motive to achieve his goal. And, this is clearly expressed through
Lady Macbeth's speech: "yet do I fear thy nature, / It is too full o'th'
milk of kindness/ To catch the nearest way.../ What thou wouldst highly, /Thou wouldst
holily" (Act 1, Scene 5).

Later, once
prvoked and instigated, Macbeth is deeply drowned into the bloody sea of crime. He can
not be called a coward for not withstanding his ambition to do wrong, rather it is his
sense of morality which resists him from doing so. His ambition needed a spur, and after
getting it, he begins to lose that sense.

What is the significance of the characters' names in the novel Jane Eyre? How does the name affect the way readers view the reader?

Your question petains to the "rhetorical" power names:  the sound of a character's name or perhaps its origin or what it might allude to--all of these convey meanings that add to our understanding of the character. Mrs. Reed’s name suggests her strictness, a “reed” being a tool that punishes children by whipping them. Mr. Brocklehurst’s same, with the “k” sounds in the middle, also sounds harsh, but it also sounds pompous, which in fact he is. Helen Burns is a passionate girl; in some ways she “burns” with life, and of course she dies from a fever as well. Blanche might sound elegant, but the name half-rhymes with “bland,” which she certainly is, for she lacks the strong moral compass that guides Jane. As for Jane, yes, her name is plain, but “Eyre,” although it too sounds plain in that it consists of a simple syllable, also conveys an ethereal quality in that it is a homonym with “air.” Insofar that “eyre” is also a system of justice in Medieval England, perhaps her name brings with it suggestions of the fairness and the sense of right she seeks and represents. Bertha originates from a German word that means “bright,” which is ironic in terms of the way Rochester has locked her up so that she now lives in the dark. Try using the OED (Oxford English Dictionary) or other online dictionaries to search for meanings of these words. I provide a link below.

What would the story be like if we knew the details of the invalid son at the beginning of the story?

If we knew the details about the invalid grandson right at
the start, the story would necessarily be different. The actual details of Phoenix’s
journey might be the same, but the emphasis would focus on her mission rather on her
frailty and character, which the present structure brings out to a high degree. Thus,
her encounter with the hunter might be shown to be a threat to her grandson as well as
to her. The same would apply to her falling in the ditch. Without such knowledge, Welty
concentrates our attention exclusively on Phoenix until the story’s
end.

What does pink ribbon symbolize, and how does it relate to faith?

The most common answer to your question is that the pink hair ribbons symboize Faith's innocence and when she loses it so that Brown finds them on the ground it signifies her loss of innocence.  But I wonder if the symbolism is as simple as that.  Pink hair ribbons would have been frowned upon if allowed at all in the austere of Puritan New England.  Most women, married or unmarried would have covered their hair with a cap.  So here goes my explanation which may or may not be right.

I believe that one of the theme's of Hawthorne's story is that there is sin in all of us no matter how pious we are on the outside.  This is what Brown realizes in his trip (or dream) to visit the devil.  Even though these people have claimed salvation, Satan still rules their flesh.  Thus the pink ribbons rather than symbolizing purity (they would have been white if that were the case), symbolize the mixture of good and evil (with white for good and the red of Satan for evil) in all of us, including Faith. They, I think, also symbolized the uncertainty of Brown's faith so that when he found them on the ground they represented his loss of faith, and Faith's apparent abandoment of the good half of her for the pure evil of Satan.  The fact that the ribbons are in Faith's hair upon his return would signify that she rejected Satan's total controll and signify Brown's still mixed faith.