The primary objective of this course has been to prepare your writing Essay

The primary objective of this course has been to prepare your writing skills for academic success in the university's net-level - Essay Example One of the most difficult parts in writing an essay is how one starts. For this problem, one can save so much trouble by making a draft. This is the skeletal view of the essay which simply shows how one is to go about the essay. First, there should be an introduction which contains the hook or lead sentence. This is very important because as they say, â€Å"first impressions last† and since this is the first sentence, it should catch the attention of the reader. Informative sentences should follow which are related to the lead sentence as well as the thesis statement. The thesis statement is often the last sentence and it states what is supposed to be discussed in the following paragraphs. The next paragraphs should have definite topics and if needed, they should also contain subtopics. The importance of each topic can be arranged from the least important to the most important depending on how the writer wants to present his ideas. The most important thing to consider in makin g a draft is to write the lead sentence and thesis statement in complete sentences. The other information could be phrases or just words. This will serve as a guide for the writer, making his task a lot easier. Sentence construction is another important thing that I have learned in writing. In this area, I could say that I improved a lot and I know that I need to improve further because I can use this skill in my future writing experiences. Before this class, I had very bad sentence constructions. They were often short but others had difficulty understanding me. However, through hard work and determination, I improved on my grammar and I could say that the people I deal with are now able to understand me better. I am now very careful with my subject and verb agreement as well as with other rules that I should follow in making my sentences. I also use vary the length of my sentences, using short and long sentences alternately to make a better paper. In addition, I also improved in my vocabulary. I am have grown the number of words I know and I try to gain more by using the new words I learn in my daily dealings not only in school but also at home. Equally important that I have learned is the making of paragraphs. I understand that this is not simply a group of sentences that make up a formatted paragraph. Rather, they are sentences which are related to each other. Therefore, it is important that a writer’s ideas should be well-organized in order for the sentences to give a clear picture of what is being discussed. I have learned to organize my thoughts with the help of the draft and also through critical thinking. I also bear in mind that the sentences should give a smooth flow of ideas so that readers will be able to follow my train of thought. Moreover, I learned that transition sentences are important in making paragraphs because they help readers expect that the writer is about to change the subject matter. With the help of this class and the Interna tional Writing Community, I have improved with my writing skills and I could say I am now competent in this area. I have learned to make a draft to make my task easier. I also learned to write my sentences correctly with the use of the right words in order to effectively communicate my thoughts. My paragraphs are now substantial, containing informative sentences that have a smooth flow of transitioning from one topic to another. I believe that I am now ready

Enduring Love: An Analysis

Enduring Love: An Analysis Ian McEwan in the novel ‘Enduring Love depicts the theme of obsession in many diverse forms. McEwan uses different styles of language to portray the characters and their many types of â€Å"unhealthy obsessions†. By exploring the ways McEwan presents each character, we can clearly observe the extremely obvious obsessions, yet that is not the case, lying below the surface there are yet more delicate and subtle obsessions that each character exhibits. The most evident obsession in this work of fiction is Jed Parrys obsession with Joe Rose. As the reader, we find this most disturbing because of the intensity that it is presented to us within the novel. At the opening of the narrative, directly after the misfortune accident, Joe Rose proceeds down the hill to inspect John Logans body, closely followed by Jed Parry. McEwan utilizes his use of language with talented effect to get across Jed Parrys obsession with religious conviction and Parrys dialogue to show his zeal to pray. ‘I dont think you understand. You shouldnt you know, think of this as some kind of duty. Its like, your own needs are being answered? Its got nothing to do with me, really, Im just the messenger. Its a gift. In addition to the first, quote ‘ I mean, you dont have to believe in anything at all, just let yourself do it and I promise you, I promise Jeds reiteration within the sentence and the word ‘promiseshows Jed Parry pleading with Joe Rose an d expresses his heartfelt beliefs. There is also a ‘weirdness as Joe Rose makes the decision to tell Jed Parry the insensitive truth about his religion ‘Because, my friend, no ones listening. Theres no one up there. ‘Parrys head was cocked, and the most joyous of smiles was spreading across his face. This is a significant moment in the novel as we soon uncover, that the source of the story and Jeds obsession unfold after the fateful meeting following the tragic accident of John Logan. McEwan uses religious imagery to convey the embarrassment felt by Joe and passion of Jeds beliefs. ‘†¦, as I saw it, to deliver me from the radiating power of Jed Parrys love and pity. The use of the verb ‘deliver has staunch religious overtones and suggests deliverance in the same Christian sense of Jesus ‘delivered mankind. McEwan also makes use of the phrase ‘radiating power. This is for the most part an effective use of imagery as it conveys the idea of Jed Parry being the source of the obsession, which spreads out and has an effect on those around him. Jeds obsession with religion and his growing obsession surrounding Joe Rose are interlinked. Jeds strange behaviour towards Joe intensifies with his religious zeal. McEwan expresses this in their second meeting; we begin to understand Jeds reasoning and motivation for needing Joe to pray. ‘To bring you to God, through love. Youll fight this like mad because youre a long way from your own feeling? But I know that the Christ is within you. At some level you know it too. Thats why you fight it so hard with your education and reason and logic and this detached way you have of talking, as if youre not part of anything at all? You can pretend you dont know what Im talking about, perhaps because your want to hurt me and dominate me, but the fact is I come bearing gifts. The purpose is to bring you to the Christ that is in you and that is you. By placing importance on the word ‘purpose this shows Jeds intent and in due course the motivation behind his pursuit of Joe. In a strange twisted logic, Jed is using his faith as rationalization for his obsession. McEwan symbolizes Jeds necessitate for Joe through the quotation ‘He was watching my face with a kind of hunger, as desperation. ‘Hunger and ‘desperation give the reader a sense of the voracious passion that Jed feels for Joe.   McEwan also presents Jeds obsession through the letters that he sends to Joe. The letters act rather like a soliloquy in a theatre would and we are able to see the character of Jed without Joes perception as the narrator. The letters are perhaps the most disturbing part of the obsession as McEwan reveals Jeds raw emotion and obsession with Joe Rose. ‘Joe, Joe, Joe†¦.Ill confess, I covered five sheets of paper with your name. The use of repetition emphasises Joe as the subject of Jeds obsession and the action of writing his name over sheet of paper is a sign of immaturity. ‘Does it horrify that I can see through you so easily? A rhetorical question appeals directly to the reader as we see events through Joes eyes and reveal an insidious side to Jeds character.   Yet there could be deeper obsessions such as Clarissa with children or even Keats.

The negative impact of telecommunication on society :: essays research papers fc

"Watson, come here; I want you." This was the first sentence which was transferred by Alexander Graham Bell to his assistant (Reiman). When Graham succeeded in transferring a human voice throw a machine, he realized that he invented a new instrument which will make communication between people easier and faster. Day by Day, scientists started to improve and develop what Bell started and tried to make matters of communication easy to use and available to all people. Recently, mobile phones, short message (SMS) and multimedia message (MMS) services, and the Internet have become available to most people in developed countries almost all time. Such new communication means have unconsciously affected behavior of most people, especially the young, as they depend heavily on them in their daily life. Many sociologists have started the notice that human behavior in society has been affected negatively. Therefore, many sociologists have carried out extensive research to study the im pact of new communication means on the way we behave and act. Some people disagree and believe that the new means of communication have made life easier and helped human beings to save time. However, communication through mobile phones, SMS and the Internet is not as effective as face to face interaction; people who depend mainly on technological means in communication might acquire many bad habits and become isolated, persons who could weaken family bonds and, consequently, negatively affect society in the long term. Some people believe that the new means of communication have a very effective role in our lives. Mobile phones have made communication between people much easier. It is very easy to arrange a holiday, change an appointment or ask about family by calling. Moreover, using the short messages has become very popular. It is a very cheap and fast way to communicate. In addition, many people believe that telecommunication devices do not only allow us to communicate with people that we know, but also the new means of communication allow us to make new friends and get to know about other cultures around the world via the Internet. People nowadays spend hours chatting with friends around the world; Many Internet users deem that text and voice chatting have made people open minded and social. Despite the fact that Communication through technological means is easy and fast, it is not as effective as the face to face interaction. Some people deem that making a call can make you in touch and replace meeting someone and talking to him; yet, meeting face to face has another taste.

History of La Cosa Nostra

Running Header: {History of La Cosa Nostra} History of La Cosa Nostra UNK Dr. Neal CJ 380 12. 01. 2011 Envision a world where crime is king; a world where mobsters were more influential than political figures, controlled law enforcement, and ran cities to line their own pockets. They stole from whom they wanted and murdered those that got in their way. While it sounds like something out of a movie, it actually happened here in the United States in the first half of the 20th century. The American Mafia has evolved over the years as various gangs assumed and lost dominance: the Black Hand gangs around 1900; the Five Points Gang in the 1910s and ‘20s in New York City; Al Capone’s Syndicate in Chicago in the 1920s. Since the 1900s, thousands of Italian organized crime figures, mostly Sicilian Mafiosi, have come illegally to this country. The Italian Immigrants crowded into older lower class neighborhoods of American cities, sometimes given names such as â€Å"Little Italy†. These neighborhoods suffered from overcrowding and poor sanitary conditions. Living together in such closed communities created little more than a microcosm of the society they had left in Europe (par. 3, Black Hand). Some criminals exploited this fact, and began to extort the more prosperous Italian’s in their neighborhood creating a crime that would eventually snow-ball into an epidemic known as ‘The Black Hand’ (par. 3, Black Hand). The extortions were done anonymously by delivering threatening letters demanding money, signed with crudely drawn symbols, such as a knife or a skull. People paid the Black Hand extortionists in the fear that American law had no understanding, or power, to help them (par. , Black Hand). Many who fled here in the early 1920’s helped establish what is known today as La Cosa Nostra or the American Mafia (par. 10, FBI). La Cosa Nostra, or the LCN as it is known by the FBI, consists of different â€Å"families† or groups that are generally arranged geographically and engaged in significant and organ ized racketeering activity (par. 30, FBI). The LCN is most active in the New York metropolitan area, parts of New Jersey, Philadelphia, Detroit, Chicago, and New England. It has members in other major cities and is involved in international crimes (par. 1, FBI). During the 1920s Prohibition era, when the 18th Amendment to the U. S. Constitution banned the sale, manufacture and transportation of alcoholic beverages, Italian-American gangs along with other ethnic gangs entered the booming bootleg liquor business and transformed themselves into sophisticated criminal enterprises, skilled at smuggling, money laundering and bribing police and other public officials (par 2, History Channel). By the end of the ‘20s, two primary factions had emerged, leading to a war for control of organized crime in New York City. The murder of faction leader Joseph Masseria brought an end to the gang warfare and in 1931 Sicilian-born crime boss Salvatore Maranzano crowned himself the â€Å"capo di tutti capi,† or boss of all bosses, in New York (par 3, History Channel). Two of the most powerful La Cosa Nostra families, known today as the Genovese and Gambino families emerged from Maranzano’s restructuring efforts. Maranzano named Luciano the first boss of what would later be known as the Genovese family. Unhappy with Maranzano’s power grab, Lucky Luciano had him murdered that same year (par 3, History Channel). Charles â€Å"Lucky† Luciano became the new leader. Luciano then masterminded the formation of a central organization called the Commission to serve as a sort of national board of directors for the American Mafia, which by then consisted of at least 20 crime families across the country (par 3, History Channel). New York, which had become America’s organized-crime capital, had been divided into five main Mafia families; everywhere else the Mafia operated, there was just one crime family per city. The Commission’s role was to set policies and mediate disagreements among the families (par 3, History Channel). In 1936, Luciano was sentenced to 30 to 50 years in prison. Ten years later, he was released from prison and deported to Italy, never to return. When he was convicted, Frank Costello became acting boss (par. 49, FBI). Costello led the family for approximately 20 years until May of 1957 when Genovese took control by sending soldier Vincent â€Å"the Chin† Gigante to murder him. Costello survived the attack but relinquished control of the family to Genovese. Attempted murder charges against Gigante were dismissed when Costello refused to identify him as the shooter (par. 50, FBI). In 1959, it was Genovese’s turn to go to prison following a conviction of conspiracy to violate narcotics laws. He received a 15-year sentence but continued to run the family through his underlings from his prison cell in Atlanta, Georgia (par. 51, FBI). The Genovese family went through a succession of bosses until Lombardo, his two captains in prison and his health failing, turned full control of the Genovese family over to Gigante, the man who tried to kill Costello 30 years earlier (par. 56, FBI). Gigante ran the family from behind the scenes while pretending to be mentally ill until he was convicted of racketeering and murder conspiracy in December 1997. Gigante’s odd behavior and mumbling while he walked around New York’s East Village in a bathrobe earned him the nickname â€Å"the Odd Father† (par. 58, FBI). The other powerful New York mafia family was the Gambino Family. The Gambino family was named for its most powerful boss, Carlo Gambino, a smart, cunning individual with a fascination for the works of Prince Machiavelli. His sharp business sense, and traditional values, earned him the respect of his allies. Don Carlo was never arrested during his career as boss, and he died of natural causes in 1976, leaving brother-in-law Paul Castellano in charge of operations. From 1976 until his assassination by John Gotti in 1985, Castellano would come to be known as the â€Å"Boss of Bosses†. Big Paulie Castellano was never a mobster in the classic sense, but rather a racketeer. He didn't even hang out with other gangsters, preferring the company of businessmen, and other â€Å"important† individuals. Castellano had few enemies, but John Gotti believed Aniello Dellacroce should have been made boss, and he had often been chastised by Castellano for dealing drugs and conducting operations without prior consultation. When Big Paulie was arrested by the FBI after bugs planted in the mobsters home had provided several hours of recorded evidence, rumors began to circulate as to whether he would rat out fellow Gambino Family members, John Gotti, now acting in lieu of Dellacroce who had recently died of brain cancer, decided it was time to plan Big Paulie's retirement (par. 1, Gambino Family/Paul Castellano). Castellano was gunned down outside Sparks Steakhouse in Manhatten as Gottie and Sammy the Bull Gravano watched from a nearby car. Throughout the 80s, Gotti earned the nickname, the â€Å"Teflon Don†; for none of the charges brought against him would stick†¦ At least until the early 90s, when he was indicted and tried on a RICO (Racketeer Influenced, and Corrupt Organizations) case; this time facing a prosecution armed with mobster turned informant Sammy â€Å"The Bull† Gravano, who had been Gotti's own underboss, and who provided damning testimony against his former boss, particularly about about the Castellano murder. Gotti was sentenced to life imprisonment, and later made several attempts at a second trial, all of which were denied. John Gotti died of cancer in the Springfield, Missouri federal prison hospital, on June 10th, 2002 (par. 1, Gambino Family/ John Gotti). Another of the five families is the Bonanno crime family, originally headed by then twenty-six-year-old Joseph â€Å"Joe Bananas† Bonanno, Sicilian-born and one of the youngest bosses of all time. The Bonanno War or â€Å"Banana Split† occurred when the Commission demoted Bonanno to underboss, sparking fervent family in-fighting among those who sided with Bonanno and those who sided with the new boss, Paul Sciacca. The fighting continued until 1968, when Bonanno suffered a heart attack and retired, though by this point the Commission had stripped the Bonanno family of its seat (par. 3, Investigation and Discovery). Troubles with the law have plagued the family, leading one newspaper to report that 75 of its 150 members have been indicted on various charges (par. 5, Investigation and Discovery/ Bonanno). The Columbo Family is the fourth of the five families. Following the Castellamarese War of 1929-1931, the family emerged as the Profaci family. It was headed by Joseph Profaci, without much threat to his leadership, until the 1950s. After Profaci’s death, Joseph Magliocco took over for a short time before the family was handed over to Joe Colombo, and the family bears his namesake to this day (par. , Investigation and Discovery/ Columbo). The family has been greatly depleted from its heyday, and continues to be ruled by Carmine Persico, now 73 years old, from prison with help from those family members who remain on the ground (par. 6, Investigation and Discovery/ Columbo). The Fifth Family, the Lucchese crime family, as it is known today, emerged out of the Castellamarese War of 1929-1931 , with Gaetano â€Å"Tommy† Gagliano serving as the appointed boss and Gaetano â€Å"Tommy† Lucchese as the appointed underboss. The family was known for its successful forays into industries such as trucking and clothing. Following Gagliano’s death in 1953, Lucchese took over and successfully ran the organization for many years with an excellent reputation. He never received a criminal conviction in his 44 years in the Mafia (par. 1, Investigation and Discovery/ Lucchese). By the mid-20th century, there were 24 known crime families in America, comprised of an estimated 5,000 full-fledged members and thousands of associates across the country. Prior to the 1960s, some government leaders, including FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, voiced skepticism about the existence of a national Italian-American organized crime network and suggested instead that crime gangs operated strictly on a local level. As a result, law enforcement agencies made few inroads in stopping the Mafia’s rise during this period (par. 6, History Channel). Since its beginnings La Cosa Nostra has been involved in a variety of rackets including gambling, loan sharking, labor union corruption, prostitution, and drug trafficking to name a few. Labor unions provide a rich source for organized criminal groups to exploit: their pension, welfare, and health funds. There are approximately 75,000 union locals in the U. S. , and many of them maintain their own benefit funds. In the mid-1980s, the Teamsters controlled more than 1,000 funds with total assets of more than $9 billion (par. 66, FBI). Labor racketeers attempt to control health, welfare, and pension plans by offering â€Å"sweetheart† contracts, peaceful labor relations, and relaxed work rules to companies, or by rigging union elections (par. 67, FBI). Labor law violations occur primarily in large cities with both a strong industrial base and strong labor unions, like New York, Buffalo, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, and Philadelphia. Senator Estes Kefauver’s Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime did not out rightly expose the complete, brutal reality of the Mafia to the American public. Nor did the Appalachian incident ignite immediate action on the part of the federal government. However, something changed when dozens of Mafia bosses met one 1957 November day at Joseph Barbara’s estate to select Vito Genovese as the boss of bosses. The response by law enforcement of the past had been to try to take down the bosses. But what became evident with the realization of the existence of such a â€Å"syndicate† was that even if Mr. Big were removed, his family would remain intact; it would simply transfer hands, usually resulting in the family being renamed. New legislation would have to be of an entirely different mold in order to be of any use to law enforcement, and such a campaign wouldn’t come into play until after the death of FBI Director Edgar J. Hoover (par. 9, The Mafia and American Law). In 1970, Congress passed the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, this proved to be a powerful tool in the government’s war on the Mafia, as it allowed prosecutors to go after crime families and their sources of revenue, both legal and illegal. During the 1980s and 1990s, RICO laws were used to convict numerous high-level mobsters. Some Mafiosi, faced with long prison sentences, broke the once-sacred code of omerta and testified against their fellow mobsters in exchange for a place in the federal witness-protection program. At the same time, Mafia membership declined as insular Italian-American neighborhoods, once a traditional recruiting ground for mobsters, underwent demographic shifts and became more assimilated into society at large (par. 7, History Channel). References GangRule. com, The Black Hand. (2011). Retrieved 6:52, December 7, 2011, from http://www. gangrule. com/gangs/the-black-hand Italian Organized Crime, (2011). The Federal Bureau of Investigation website. Retrieved 2:32, December 7, 2011, from http://www. fbi. ov/aboutus/investigate/organizedcrime/italian_mafia Mafia in the United States. (2011). The History Channel website. Retrieved 5:25, December 7, 2011, from http://www. history. com/topics/mafia-in-the-united-states. The Five Families. (2011). The Investigation Discovery website. Retrieved 2:32, December 7, 2011, from http://investigation. discovery. com/investigation/mobs-gangsters/five-families-03. html The Gambino Family. (2002). The Gambino Family website. Retrieved 6:52, Dece mber 7, 2011, from http://www. gambinofamily. com/carlo_gambino. htm

Oedipus/Antigone Response

Annie February 19, 2013 Oedipus / Antigone Response 1. What factors contributed to Antigone’s downfall, and does the end of the play satisfy the audience’s demands for justice? There are different factors that contribute to the downfall of Antigone. Firstly, the fact that two of her brothers have been fighting to death for the throne has had a negative impact on her life. She has lost both of her brothers at the same time. Secondly, Antigone believed that her decision was following divine justice. For example, she once said to Creon â€Å"Your order was outrageous. And lastly, she has been arrested and put into a cave for following her sense of justice has led to the downfall of Antigone. Despite the fact that Creon has taken back his words and fix what he did, everyone has died and hence, the audience’s demand for justice is not satisfied. 2. Referring to at least three tragic elements, determine whether Creon or Antigone is the more tragic hero(ine). According to â€Å"Once upon a Greek stage†, we can determine that Creon is definitely the more tragic hero than Antigone via some elements: hamartia, hubris and catharsis.First, hamartia is basically when Creon suffered greatly because of his actions. That caused the lost of his family and the support of his country. Next, the tragedy concept of hubris is largely demonstrated through Creon. For instance, as the king of Thebes, the people all looked to him for the answer. This made him believed that he was always right and everything had to go in the way he wanted to: â€Å"I am King of Thebes, Antigone. I have a duty as a monarch. Moreover, he also believed that his decision was right in the punishing of Antigone, despite that fact that she was engaged to Haemon, Creon’s son. â€Å"A broken law is a broken law, and lawbreakers must be punished. Antigone will be no exception. † In this case, his sense of pride was the tragic flaw that led him to his downfall. At the end , Creon finally realized that his pride has brought everything down, and also was the cause of his family’s death. Comparing to Antigone, in the end of the story, she still did not realize her faults and thought everything she did was following divine justice.About Creon, he was able to realize his mistakes at least, and this showed the tragedy of catharsis. The moment when he lost his wife and his son, it responded the sense of pity. Not only that, the sense of divine justice performed when he announced burying Polynices. Eventually, the conflict of the play developed him to be the more tragic hero than Antigone. 3. What universal truth is discussed within the play â€Å"Once upon a Greek stage†, and what implications result from this message? The play â€Å"once upon a Greek stage† contains a couple of universal truths.The fight between two blood brothers for the throne points out that family may not always support each other. Furthermore, Creon, uncle of Anti gone, has acted cruelly to Antigone and Polynices; once again justify the truth above. Both Polynices and Eteocles have done wrong but only Eteocles was buried. It points out the universal truth that life is not always fair. It implies that sometimes, you might not get what you deserved, and that luck plays a vital role in life. In conclusion, â€Å"Drama is a fine way of teaching a universal truth. † – Aristotle.