English and Vietnamese Language Comparison

English and Vietnamese Language Comparison Name: NGUY N HOÀI NHI A Contrastive Analysis of Metaphors Relating to Some Upper Parts of Human Body between English and Vietnamese Abstract This paper presents the results of a study on metaphors relating to some upper parts of human body between English and Vietnamese. There are four upper parts of human body consists of eye, nose, ear and mouth are chosen for data analysis. Nguyen Hoa (2004) classification of metaphors are based on their degree of unexpectedness. The results show that living metaphors, faded metaphors and dead metaphors are three main types of metaphors. Also, metaphors are varied from one language to another due to peoples life experience, world views or peoples cognition of the outside world and the language users culture. Introduction One of the most vital functions of language is to name the world or express human thoughts through a system of concepts. In any case, the concepts expressed through language do not exist in seclusion from each other. Or maybe, they exist cooperatively in the language and make up a giant network with numerous interconnections and relationship among the different subparts. A good example of these interconnections includes metaphor, the comprehension of one concept regarding another. Metaphor is not only used in literary or poetic language but also utilized in everyday conversational language. It can be seen that metaphor is used to express ideas sensibly and vividly as it has great expressive power. Furthermore, it also convey more of the human feeling, emotion and attitude towards what is said rather than the non-metaphorical. One interesting idea in the language is that people got to know their own body and gave names to its parts. And then the human beings began comparing the surrounding things with their own body and finding common features in the process of cognition of the world. So the names of some upper parts of human body are transferred to refer many other things in the real world. They are personified to possess the same names with the some upper parts of human body. For instance, in English the word foot denotes to the lowest part of the human and then on it is metaphorically used to denote to the lowest part of many things, for example, the foot of the hill. Not only in English but also in Vietnamese also use of metaphors, in such a way, many words referring parts of human body are also used metaphorically. For instance, the word chà ¢n in Vietnamese equivalent to the word foot in English is used as a metaphor to denote to the lowest part of the hill: Chà ¢n Ä‘Ã ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬Å"i. The way individual words, however, are used is not always the same in both languages. For instance, the word eye in English is metaphorically used to denote to the hole of the needle, while the word mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t in Vietnamese is not used in such a way. It is metaphorically, however, used to denote to holes of a woven basket in another case. E.g. Eye of the needle vs Mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t rà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¢. It can be inferred that the words denoting some upper parts of human body are used metaphorically in English and Vietnamese and the way each word is used is varied in both languages. The way metaphors are used is because of peoples life experience, world views and the language users culture. So metaphors are varied from one language to another. There are some questions arise: How are the words denoting upper parts of human body used metaphorically in both English and Vietnamese?, How much are they similar? and How much do they differ from each other?. For this reasons, the study titled A contrastive analysis of metaphors relating to some upper parts of human body between English and Vietnamese will be answer the questions mentioned. Literature review 2.1. What is metaphor? Metaphor that comes from the Greek for transference. According to Vo Dai Quang (2003, p.33), metaphor is word meaning transference based on similarity between two things as regards function, character, size, shape, age, colour, etc. As the following example: E.g. She is a snake. That is, the word snake has negative connotation because it is thought to be very dangerous and poisonous to people. Basing on this meaning, it is transferred to mention to the character of a person to imply that she is a dangerous person. The similarity in this situation between an animal and a person is about the character. Hence, this definition is clear and parabolic. However, there is a question to be posed why do people have to use such an implicit way to convey the idea?. According to Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary (1995, p.734), metaphor is defined as the imaginative use of a word or a phrase to describe somebody/something as another object in order to show that they have the same qualities and as to make the description more forceful. This definition is not as cleared as the above -mentioned definition about the association of similarity, however, it takes the use and the effect of metaphor into consideration. If we say She is a dangerous person, it is not as forceful to the hearer as we say She is a snake. Likewise, metaphor can convey the imagination of the language users so it is clearly more powerful and effective in communication. Metaphor also be defined as follows an extension in the use of the word beyond its primary meaning to describe referents that bear similarities to the words primary referent(Language-its structure and use,1994). The term extension mentions to the meaning of the word that can be extended beyond its literal meaning. So metaphor here is dealt with as a means of creating and expanding meaning to depict other referents which are similar to the words primary referent. Look at the above once more. The primary referent of the word snake is one type of animal and in this metaphor, it mentions to another referent that is a risky person. This should be possible on the basis of the resemblance between the two referents. The definition given by Barcelone (2000, p.3) in which metaphor is defined as Metaphor is the cognitive mechanism whereby one experiential domain is partially mapped or projected onto a different experiential domain so that the second domain is partially understood in terms of the first one. In this definition, metaphor is understood as a conceptual projection whereby one experiential domain is understood regarding another. The character of a person, in the above example, is understood regarding a character of a snake. Generally, metaphor mentioned above is viewed from different angles. Basically, it is the way we call one object by the name of another because we compare these objects and pick up some common features between them. It is necessary to distinguish metaphor, simile and metonymy because they are closely related. To begin with, metaphor and simile are forms of comparison. We compare two unlike things together in two ways. Metaphor, however, is hidden comparison and simile is the open comparison. Take the following examples: E.g. Tom is the head of the department. Tom is like the head of the department. The word head implies one part of human body that comprise the brain and can control the activity of the rest of the body. In this above example, the word head means to the people taking the controlling function as the leader in the department. It can be understood implicitly in the first example and in the second one, it can be understood explicitly. Putting it on the scale, metaphor is an equation and simile is an approximation. Obviously, they take different values and effects to the hearer. Metaphor and metonymy are two types of transference of meaning. One object is named and understood regarding another. Metaphor, however, is based on the association of similarity while metonymy is based on the association of contiguity. Look at the two following examples: E.g. She is the head of the department Two heads are better than one In the first example, the word head refers to the leader and it is can be understood regarding the similarity of function; the head of human body and the leader of the department carry the mission to control the rest parts of the whole. In contrast, the word heads in the second example refers to people because they are related to each other- head is one part of human body. It can be done on the basis of part-whole relation in which the name of the part is used to refer to the whole. Obviously, metaphor is related to simile and metonymy but it is quite distinguished from them. In addition, how metaphors function in language and they are classified will be showed as follow. 2.2. Functions of metaphors Metaphors are diverse in terms of values and functions in language, however, in this study only three basic functions given by a Vietnamese language specialist, Dinh Trong Lac(1994, p.53), are mentioned. According to him, there are three basic functions of metaphors namely naming, cognitive and symbolic functions and basing on this he can group metaphors together. 2.2.1. Naming function Firstly, the function of metaphors talked about is to name things. This is only the technical means to utilize the ready- made vocabulary to offer names to different things basing on the similarity between them. For instance, the lowest part of the mountain is known as the foot of the mountain as the foot on the human body is the lowest part. These metaphors are of almost no or very little rhetoric value but they can reflect the way in which things on the planet are seen together. They are just planned to offer names to things basing on the experience with the existing vocabulary. 2.2.2. Cognitive function Secondly, the function of metaphors is to cognize or conceptualize things. These metaphors do not offer new names to things however conceptualize them as far as another. These metaphors operates between two domains, one domain is conceptualized regarding another. For instance, in the domain of weather, when it is sunny, the sun is sparkling and brings charming climate that can make people cheerful and agreeable. So the word sunny has positive value and it is exchanged to discuss the mood of people as in the following illustration. E.g. By the time he visited the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, John was in a sunny mood. That is, John felt exceptionally cheerful and optimistic. Hereby, the human mood is conceptualized and comprehended under the words about weather. These metaphors are likewise conventional and of little rhetoric impact. 2.2.3. Symbolic function Lastly, the function of metaphors is to symbolize things. This function is usually thought to be the conventional function of metaphors. For example, the flower regularly symbolizes for the beauty. So it is frequently compared to the womans beauty. E.g. Beauty is a flower which wrinkles will devour. In the above illustration, the flower is compared to the beauty of woman that will devour like the flower. This kind of metaphors reflect the imaginative and creative way individuals assess and explain things, which can make their language more expressive and persuasive. They are extremely popular in poetic language. All in all, metaphors convey three major functions in language which are naming, cognitive and symbolic functions. Basing on that, metaphors relating to upper parts of human body are in the first group which are used to give names to things in the world. 2.3. Kinds of metaphors Metaphors can be classified basing on their degree of unexpectedness. According to Nguyen Hoa (2004, p.109), there are three main kinds of metaphors namely living metaphors, faded metaphors and dead metaphors. 2.3.1. Living metaphors When a word is unexpected and quite unpredictable is called living metaphor. It is used in unusual meaning and metaphor is easily recognized by the hearer. It is created and used by individuals. E.g. She is my sun It can be seen that the sun lights our earth by day, which can makes peoples life brighter and more joyful. Hence, when a people who is thought to make the others life brighter and more joyful is viewed as the sun. These metaphors are called creative or poetic metaphors as it reflects the creative use of language and they are appended to the symbolic functions as mentioned above are especially utilized in literature and poetry. They are not common in everyday language usage. They are sometimes called genuine metaphors becauseit is the common sense when people discuss metaphors and they have great rhetoric effect on the hearer. 2.3.2. Faded metaphors Metaphor which lost its freshness because of long use and traditional use and became habitual in daily language usage. For example, gold is one sort of very valuable material and when people mention the adjective golden, it implies that something made of gold. Besides, it is say that golden youth, it means that the adolescent in a mans life is likewise as valuable as gold. Metaphors are so normal in everyday language that they are sometimes not felt as metaphors. These metaphors can bring about polysemy of so many words in language. Among the functions examined, they are attached to the naming and cognitive functions. 2.3.3. Dead metaphors Dead metaphor- where metaphoric sense is not felt at all because they have lost their indirect meaning and are used only figuratively. For instance, the word capital in English used to mean the head which is considered as the most critical part on the human body. So it was metaphorically used to refer to the most important city or town of a country which is usually the center of government. Hence, it was metaphorically used to refer to the most important city or town of a nation which is generally the center of government. But now the word capital is not utilized literally as the head of the human body, however, it just means the capital of the country as in the sentence: Paris is the capital of France. These metaphors do not make up many in language. Indeed, these metaphors are difficult or almost impossible to be recognized as metaphors. In general, there are three principle sorts of metaphors which are living, faded and dead metaphors. In short, metaphors relating to parts of human body are called faded metaphors since they become the means of everyday language to give names to things in the world. Aim and objectives of the study This study is conducted with the aims of theoretical and practical. Theoretically is proposed to give a profound and methodical review on the metaphorical uses of words meaning upper parts of human body in both English and Vietnamese and attempt to clarify the reasons why the words are utilized as a part of such ways. Meantime, it is gone for finding the features that English and Vietnamese impart to and vary from each other in the utilization of metaphors relating to upper parts of human body. Practically is proposed to empower learners of English to have an understanding into metaphors relating to upper parts of human body in English and additionally in their mother tongue so they can improve their vocabulary of the language they are learning and decipher them effectively in communication or translate them well into their own mother tongue and vice versa. Research methodology 4.1. Approach intended for the study Here the two languages to be specific English and Vietnamese are compared and contrasted. In this contrastive analysis, English is dealt with as the instrumental language and Vietnamese is the target language. In this manner, any instances of metaphors relating to upper parts of human body in English will be recorded and analyzed first and after that they will be compared and contrasted with Vietnamese to discover the similarities and differences between the two languages. 4.2. Methods of the study This study is conducted with a combination of the comparative and contrastive. Firstly, the theoretical background of metaphors will be given talked about through the basic readings of related materials. Besides, once general theories are given, the data about specific cases of metaphors relating to upper parts of human body in two languages utilized for illustration will be gathered from different sources of data, for example, dictionaries, books, daily papers, magazines furthermore practical observation. Thirdly, it is to choose the typical examples and analyze them. In the meantime, comparative and contrastive techniques will be used to discover the common and the distinguished features in the utilization of metaphors relating to upper parts of human body between English and Vietnamese. Finally, some conclusions will be made about what has been analyzed and compared. 4.3. Metaphors relating to some upper parts of human body in English and Vietnamese 4.3.1. Metaphors relating to eye in English and mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t in Vietnamese We can easily find some common features in the metaphorical use of the words denoting eyes between the two languages. Firstly, our eyes are round and small in shape, in two languages, the two words eye and mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t imply to the shape of a potato. It has many circled and many small spot on it. For example: In English: Eye of the potato In Vietnamese: Mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t khoai tà ¢y (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993, p.581) Moreover, the word mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t in Vietnamese is refer to many small and rounded-shaped things on the peel of many sorts of fruit and things. In contrast, the word eye in English is not refer to these cases. Look at the table below. Table 1: In English In Vietnamese None in English Mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t tre, mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t mà ­a, mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t lÆ °Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ºi, mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t dà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ©a, mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t xà ­ch, mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t rà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¢, etc.. However, the word eye in English denote the eye-shaped spots on the tail of the peacock and piece of metal used together with a hook in order to fasten clothes. For example, Eye of the peacocks tail (Vocabulary, p.26), Hook and eye of the dress (Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary, 1995, p.410) In English and Vietnamese, when we see into a persons eyes and the central position of the eyes when we see around, the words eye and mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t refer to the centre of the cyclone and wind blows. For example, in English: Eye of the storm, Eye of the wind while in Vietnamese: Mà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¯t bà £o (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993, p.581) Another interesting point is that the world becomes bright and clear when we open our eyes and see and when the sun rises and opens on a day, the world is also sheeny. Hence, the British calls the sun the eye of the day. Similarly, the British also calls the private eye when our eyes has function of observing others secretly to get information. However, Vietnamese has not these interesting features as in English. 4.3.2. Metaphors relating to nose in English and mÃ…Â ©i in Vietnamese First of all, the nose which is the front part pointing in shape so it used to refer to the front pointed part of an airplane. For instance, in English: He brought the aircrafts nose up and made a perfect landing, whereas in Vietnamese Anh ta là ¡i mÃ…Â ©i mà ¡y bay là ªn và   thà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ±c hià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡n vià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡c hà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¡ cà ¡nh hoà  n hà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ £o (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993, p.1140) Another interesting is that Vietnamese used the word mÃ…Â ©i in order to denote to part of some tools or objects. In contrast, the word nose in English is not used in such a way. To understand clearly about the lexemes nose and mÃ…Â ©i, the below table will be illustrate. Table 2: In English In Vietnamese nose of an airplane none in English nose of a car none in English mÃ…Â ©i mà ¡y bay mÃ…Â ©i Cà   Mau none in Vietnamese mÃ…Â ©i kim Especially, the word mÃ…Â ©i in Vietnamese is figuratively used to refer to the forward direction of the attack of the soldiers. But English does not share this interesting feature as in Vietnamese. 4.3.3. Metaphors relating to ear in English and tai in Vietnamese The ears are of organ of hearing, they are the small and curved parts that locate at the sides of the head. The two lexemes ear and tai in both languages are used in metaphors to denote to the parts of things which have the similar features. However, they are used to denote to do not the same in some cases. The table below will be illustrate. Table 3: In English In Vietnamese none in English none in English none in English ear of a corn ear of a newspaper ear of the jug tai nà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¥m tai bà ¨o tai cà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬Ëœi xay none in Vietnamese none in Vietnamese tai bà ¬nh Ä‘Ã ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ±ng nÆ °Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ºc In the above table, there are some similar in both languages in the way that the words referring the ear are used to denote to the small and curved part on the side of a container such as jug and cup. But the word tai in some cases Vietnamese is used to denote to the two parts on both sides of the mortar in the expression tai cà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬Ëœi xay. In contrast, the word ear in English is not used to share this. Similarly, the word tai in Vietnamese is used to denote to the bud of a mushroom while the word ear in English is not used to share it. However, in the same way, it is used to denote to the small part of a corn in the expression ear of a corn. Another interesting is that the word ear is used to denote to the minor and short piece of a newspaper in the expression ear of a newspaper but the equivalent do not exist in Vietnamese. Generally, there are some common and distinguished features in the metaphorical use of the words denoting the mouth between the English and Vietnamese. 4.3.4. Metaphors relating to mouth in English and mià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ng in Vietnamese In both in English and Vietnamese, there are numerous common features in the metaphorical use of the words denoting the mouth. It can be seen that when we open the mouth, it can work as the passage for the nourishment or drink to go in. So, the word mouth and mià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ng, in both languages, are used to refer to the open part of something especially containers through which we can place things in. For example, in English: A decorative pattern round the mouth of the bag. (Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary, 1995, p.760) That is, the bag is one kind of containers and we place something in it through the open and front part of it called the mouth. Similarly, the word mià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ng tà ºi in Vietnamese is equivalent to this case in English. However, the equivalents of the two words mouth and mià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ng do not exist in both English and Vietnamese. For instance, the word mouth in English is used to denote to the open part of a cave or river, whereas the word mià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ng in Vietnamese is used to denote to the open part of an injury. And here are some examples: Table 4: In English In Vietnamese none in English mouth of the river none in English mouth of the architect mouth of the box mià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ng ăn none in Vietnamese mià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ng và ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¿t thÆ °Ãƒâ€ Ã‚ ¡ng none in Vietnamese mià ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ng hà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â€ž ¢p In short, there are some similarities and differences in the use of the words denoting the mouth between the two languages. Results and discussion All in all, the discoveries about the similarities and differences in the metaphors relating to upper parts of human body has clearly demonstrated the common and distinguished features in the way in which English and Vietnamese think and view the world surrounding them. In both countries, people all comprehend parts of their body well in shape, position, function, etcà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦and relate these features to features of things in the world to name them by utilizing the names of upper parts of the body. In the specific cases, however, they utilize a certain word about a part of human body to refer things are not always the same as they think and view the world differently. In addition, people in each nation have their own way and habitat of utilizing the language creatively so this prompts to the distinctions in the metaphors in the both languages. For these reason, the existence of similarities and differences in the metaphors relating to upper parts of human body in two languages are reasonable and understandable. Moreover, metaphors relating to upper parts of human body can help to create new meanings that enrich the vocabulary in two languages. Another interesting is that metaphor is one kind of personification (Nguyà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¦n Văn Chià ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¿n, 1992) because everything in the world is not seen in but in the relationship with human beings. It means that things in the world are always found in the associative eye of people. I hoped that the findings about the basic metaphors relating to upper parts of human body in this study will help students not only to acquire these interesting and popular use of the words but also to motivate them in their further language study. Summary This study has provided a systematic and clear view on metaphors relating to upper parts of human body in English and Vietnamese. First and foremost, words denoting upper parts of human body are popularly used in metaphor in both languages. Secondly, the metaphors, in most cases, relating to them depend on the similar associations of their semantic features. The referents, however, they are used to refer in specific cases are not always similar. Last but not least, the more frequently the words are used in metaphors, the more similar features metaphors relating to them in English and Vietnamese share. If I have an opportunity in the future, my future research could be conducted to study the metaphorical use of the words denoting lower, medial and internal parts of human body and the different metaphorical use of the words referring human body parts when they function in other parts of speech such as verbs, adjectives, etc. I hope that this scope will become more various and meaningful and the reader will have a broader view about this interesting subject between the two languages. Implications The results of this study can help to suggest the following implications: In teaching English, understanding metaphors relating to some upper parts of human body can help student discover the connection between the metaphorical meaning and the literal meaning of the word to find the new meaning for themselves. As discussed above, there are many similarities and differences in the metaphorical use of words denoting some upper parts of human body between English and Vietnamese, hence the translators need to be aware of this in the process translation. That is, translators ought to keep away the word-for-word translation while translating these lexemes as they are differently utilized in each language, by people in each nation. References English: Barcelona, Antonio(2000).Metaphor and metonymy at the crossroads.Berlin and New York: Mouton de Gruyter. Crowther J. (1995).Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary.Oxford University Press E. Finegan. Language: Its Structure and Use, 2nd ed. Harcourt Brace, 1994. Quang, Vo Dai(2003).Semantics.Vietnam National University, College of Foreign Languages. Hoa, Nguyen(2004).Understanding English Semantics.Vietnam National University, College of Foreign Language.

Lighting Candles :: Personal Narrative Essays

Lighting Candles Albert Einstein once said, "The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious," His words echo in my mind as I constantly make many choices in my life. First, I chose to leave the state and live with my father in South Carolina, then I came back to my hometown, and now I'm planning to study abroad in France. Change apparently enthralls me. The beauty of change and mystery is not only the excitement of seeing and learning new things but the way in which I can explore my true self and make advancements in personal growth. Sometimes the only way to do that is to test myself by trying new adventures. As a high school student, I have been provided with many and academic opportunities. This has allowed me to develop a stronger sense of who I am, where my strengths lie, and what profesion would best fit my interests and abilities. The greatest blessing has been the leadership organizations that have come into my life. Both in South Carolina and here, I have been honored to be selected as one of the schools emerging leaders. Here, the Emerging Leader Institute has nurtured the challenge of self-exploration. Each forum looked at an important aspect of leadership in a creative and interactive manner. There was rarely a dull moment! From analyzing my personality, to communication exercises, to looking at a real human brain, ELI allowed me to realize my skills in organization, creativity, and communication. But the greater task at hand was both the group and individual leadership projects. As a group, we decided to landcape the Bob Brown House, a home for disabled adults. At first, I felt as though the idea was ludicrous. I didn't think that a group of wimpy high school kids could pull it off successfully. I was wrong. Not only did I see students shine as they prepared for the day by getting many donations of presents, trees, and plants, but I saw the apprectiation in the eyes of the adults whom we helped. I felt grateful and proud to be part of the group. However, the individual project was not as cut and dry. It was truly up to me to decide what to do and to actually do it. I didn't struggle finding a topic. Lighting Candles :: Personal Narrative Essays Lighting Candles Albert Einstein once said, "The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious," His words echo in my mind as I constantly make many choices in my life. First, I chose to leave the state and live with my father in South Carolina, then I came back to my hometown, and now I'm planning to study abroad in France. Change apparently enthralls me. The beauty of change and mystery is not only the excitement of seeing and learning new things but the way in which I can explore my true self and make advancements in personal growth. Sometimes the only way to do that is to test myself by trying new adventures. As a high school student, I have been provided with many and academic opportunities. This has allowed me to develop a stronger sense of who I am, where my strengths lie, and what profesion would best fit my interests and abilities. The greatest blessing has been the leadership organizations that have come into my life. Both in South Carolina and here, I have been honored to be selected as one of the schools emerging leaders. Here, the Emerging Leader Institute has nurtured the challenge of self-exploration. Each forum looked at an important aspect of leadership in a creative and interactive manner. There was rarely a dull moment! From analyzing my personality, to communication exercises, to looking at a real human brain, ELI allowed me to realize my skills in organization, creativity, and communication. But the greater task at hand was both the group and individual leadership projects. As a group, we decided to landcape the Bob Brown House, a home for disabled adults. At first, I felt as though the idea was ludicrous. I didn't think that a group of wimpy high school kids could pull it off successfully. I was wrong. Not only did I see students shine as they prepared for the day by getting many donations of presents, trees, and plants, but I saw the apprectiation in the eyes of the adults whom we helped. I felt grateful and proud to be part of the group. However, the individual project was not as cut and dry. It was truly up to me to decide what to do and to actually do it. I didn't struggle finding a topic.

Analyzing Single Effect “Hop-Frog” Essay

Edgar Allan Poe believed that a short story should be written to create a single effect. He believed that every detail or incident of the story should contribute to the effect. The overall effect of â€Å"Hop-Frog† is the theme of revenge that is seen throughout the story. There are certain details and situations in the story that add to creating this effect. At the beginning of the story, Poe shows us how Hop-Frog has been mistreated by the king just to get a laugh, and how the poor dwarf just puts up with it, again and again. He does this when he forces Hop-Frog to drink wine [http://search.targetwords.com/u.search?x=5977%7C1%7C%7C%7C%7Cwine%7CAA1VDw], even though it makes him almost mad. However, Hop-Frog gets his idea for his own â€Å"jest† for the masquerade party. He explains every detail of his plan to dress the king and his advisors up as the Eight Chained Ourang-Outangs. When the part about covering the men with tar is mentioned, the reader may become suspicious, as this seems a little bit strange. However, the king is none the wiser, and so the men are all outfitted in their costumes. Hop-Frog has planned everything carefully, but no one has suspected anything, which is probably the way Poe planned it. At the masquerade, Hop-Frog appears behind the group of men after pushing them towards the middle of the room and puts h is fateful plan into action. Upon setting the men on fire, he has sought his revenge. Poe develops the themes of revenge and evil throughout the story by setting the stage for a character whom has been mistreated and may just snap and seek their revenge. It becomes obvious that Hop-Frog is this character as Poe describes the king repeatedly making jokes with him as the target. In â€Å"Hop-Frog†, Poe’s single effect is not laid out as clearly as it is in one of his other works, â€Å"The Masque of the Red Death.† In this story, there are certain descriptions that make the theme of evil stand out to the reader.

Essay on Ethnic Literature - 1266 Words

The Power in a Name The term â€Å"ethnic† when in conjunction with the word â€Å"literature† in the academic discourse community of students, often brings out mixed feelings of excitement and dread. On the one hand, students understand that they will be getting away from the canonical American literature – which can equal boring in their eyes; on the other hand, students interpret the term â€Å"ethnic literature† to mean distinctive – which can equal confusing or ambiguous – and perhaps at times not relatable because it is outside their scope of experiences. Perhaps before jumping into why it matters, the term â€Å"ethnic literature† should be defined first and because I am still learning how to interpret this term myself, I searched for a suitable†¦show more content†¦At this deeper level I am trying to get at, I find John M. Reilly’s article â€Å"Criticism of Ethnic Literature: Seeing the Whole Story† helpful in acquiring th is. He states that, â€Å"the assertion of ethnicity in literature can be made only through a procedure by which the writer resolves formal problems... what moves from recognition of identity to creation of a strategy for handling reality still is not literature until the individual author sustains her or his ethnic identity through a sequence of formal choices† (4). I am interpreting this to mean that as a reader of this literature, I should see and feel throughout the story (perhaps subtlety) that in some way, the characters mindset (and perhaps actions) in the story differ from my own specifically because of the culture they have grown up in in, which has shaped that character’s thinking. There are thoughts and feelings – ideas, I don’t understand without further explanation from the author, which is sometimes provided, and sometimes not. An example of this is in Brando Skyhorse’s novel The Madonnas of Echo Park, I find myself wondering what the significance of the jacaranda trees mentioned in different parts of the book. Looking up what they are, it becomes apparent to me as jacaranda trees are native toShow MoreRelatedEthnic Literature : Ethnic American Literature1381 Words   |  6 Pagesto introduce and analyze the topic of Ethnic American Literature. Specifically it will discuss the meaning and definition of Ethnic American literature. Ethnic American literature is a rich and varied treasure of poetry, fiction, drama, and much more. Written by some of America s greatest authors, this ethnic legacy opens up a world of diversity to readers, but it also illustrates the struggles and prejudice that still exist in our country today. Ethnic authors use their own experiences to illustrateRead MoreEssay on Ethnic Literature959 Words   |  4 PagesAmerican Literature Paper Randy Hale University of Phoenix ENG.301 American Ethic Literature Michael Cromwell December 24, 2012 American Ethic Literature Paper What makes American literature American? American literature is just that American literature. American literature is stories of people lives that are based on American standards. Early American standards where based around slavery and oppression but now they are based on freedoms like freedom of speech and press. America hasRead MoreAmerican Ethnic Literature Differs From American Literature1378 Words   |  6 PagesAmerican ethnic literature differs from American literature. The author’s background is considered to determine which category is fitting. American ethnic authors include immigrants who have arrived in the United States and become a citizen or first-generation Americans. American ethnic authors write in English, but sometimes use original language and speech. American ethnic literature often depicts life before America, as well life after arriving. American ethnic literature is important becauseRead MoreWhat Does Ethnic Literature Mean?994 Words   |  4 Pagesdoes ethnic literature mean? We all have some ethnicity in us that is different than the rest, so doesn’t that mean that all of our literary contributions make up that of American ethnic literature? Before the Civil War, many of the minority people of America started writing poems, songs, and other types of literature that helped describe what life was like in America as an outsider in the â€Å"white† world. These writings became the beginnings of what is now called American ethnic literature. EarlyRead MoreEssay on Why Read Literature?671 Words   |  3 Pages nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Nothing teaches us better than literature to see, in ethnic and cultural differences, the richness of the human patrimony, and to prize those differences as manifestation humanity’s multi-faceted creativity. Reading good literature is an experience of pleasure, of course; but it is also an experience of learning what and how we are, on our human integrity and our human imperfection, with our actions, our dreams, and our ghosts, alone and in a relationship that linkRead MoreCritical Analysis Skills Developed Through Writing a Reflection Paper870 Words   |  4 Pagesfeelings down about what I had learned in a class that I had to read literature and then interpret those readings into journal entries addressed to my fellow students. This left me a little intimidated. So to start the ideas flowing, I went back to the beginning. I looked up the â€Å"Week One Letter† to the student and re-read the description and goal of the course. Dr. Doe stat ed in the letter that, â€Å"we will be reading a variety of literature for a better understanding of the ideals, values, and attitudesRead Morephilippine literature1582 Words   |  7 Pagesenough to dry up the --- sea.   No matter how deep the   --- stream, its depth can be fathomed; the really difficult task is to find a good heart. Before the Christianization of the Philippines, Filipinos had established a heritage of precolonial literature consisting of epics, tales, songs, riddles, and proverbs. With the earliest discoveries dating back to 50000 years ago, this period of Philippine literary History is considered the longest. ---It is often forgotten that the tribal Filipinos hadRead MoreSocial Groups : An Essential Part Of Humanity1074 Words   |  5 Pagesactually an understatement. Social groups are practically omnipresent. It’s already possible to speak of a social group when two or more humans interact with each other and share similar characteristics. Think about women, immigrants, professions, ethnic minorities but also families, friends and church members. Only someone who lives as a recluse in complete isolation from society can be considered ‘non-member’. The importance of social groups is clearly present when you take a look at the mediaRead MoreReflecting on Literature and Community in The Lesson† by Toni Cade Bambara1101 Words   |  5 Pages Also, it is not uncommon for people to write about a fictional community that is based from their own community. As community affects how we write, writing can also affect the community. In other words, communities influence authors of literature and literature can also influence communities. Language is how we express ourselves. There are many different languages in our world. Within those languages there are different dialects. Those dialects are affected by the communities that use themRead More Personal, Social, and Cultural Contexts Established by the Frame Story in MAUS1635 Words   |  7 PagesPersonal, Social, and Cultural Contexts Established by the Frame Story in MAUS  Ã‚      The use of the frame story, an overarching narrative used to connect a series of loosely related stories, pervades literature. An example of a frame story on a large scale - tying together a whole book-length work, not a simple short story - can be found in Art Spiegelmans graphic novel MAUS. Each of the narratives six sections is framed with snatches of the interaction between Vladek and Art during the interview