The Reality of Ethan Brands Unpardonable Sin :: Ethan Brand Essays

The Reality of Ethan Brand's Unpardonable Sin The relentless obsession of one man becomes the theme of Nathaniel Hawthorne's haunting tale, "Ethan Brand." A lime-burner by trade in the hills of Western Massachusetts, Brand passes the lonely hours of the night staring into the intense flames of the kiln, contemplating the theological doctrine of the unpardonable sin. What sin could be so totally evil that even the great God of Heaven could not forgive? I remember as a child, listening to my father, as he stood in the pulpit and expounded to his congregation the very same subject that had so totally mesmerized Hawthorne's character, Ethan Brand. I remember the many questions I had about this horrible sin. What was it? Could I commit the unpardonable sin? Maybe I already had. That was the most disturbing of all. It seems that literary critic R. P. Blackmur has experienced something of the same when he writes: I do not know how it may be now, but when I was a boy the unpardonable sin, the unforgivable sin, or--as I was taught in church, the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Ghost--was a major though intermittent attraction in the short times that seem so long just before sleep. It was a frightening possibility that I might find what it was and how to do it: the frightening thing was that I might then have to do it, as if discovery was actual commission of the sin. The verse in St. Mark (3:19) contained as much potential horror as anything I have ever read...so when I read "Ethan Brand" I knew where he was....(179). Since that time, I have taken my place in the pulpit of a church like my father before me. And on occasion, I too address the subject and receive the same questions that I, and others like me, pondered so long ago: the very same question that haunts, possesses, and ultimately ruins Ethan Brand. Driven by his insatiable desire to uncover the deep truth of this frightening possibility, Ethan Brand left his lonely lime kiln on a quest, a quest that would send him the world over in search of the unpardonable sin. For eighteen years he studied and researched the idea that slowly took him over. When his search began, Brand was a kind and gentle man concerned for the well-being of others. The narrator describes him as .

Macbeths Numerous Atmospheres :: Free Macbeth Essays

Macbeth's Numerous Atmospheres       The atmospheres in William Shakespeare's Macbeth are numerous, but begin as one surrealistic atmosphere initially with the witches' appearance at the outset. From there the atmosphere is incrementally added to regularly.    Charles Lamb in On the Tragedies of Shakespeare comments on the atmosphere surrounding the play:    The state of sublime emotion into which we are elevated by those images of night and horror which Macbeth is made to utter, that solemn prelude with which he entertains the time till the bell shall strike which is to call him to murder Duncan, - when we no longer read it in a book, when we have given up that vantage-ground of abstraction which reading possesses over seing, and come to see a man in his bodily shape before our eyes actually preparing to commit a muder, if the acting be true and impressive as I have witnessed it in Mr. K's performance of that part, the painful anxiety about the act, the natural longing to prevent it while it yet seems unperpetrated, the too close pressing semblance of reality,give a pain and an uneasiness [. . .]. (134)    D. F. Bratchell in Shakespearean Tragedy record's Charles Lamb's consideration of   Macbeth's atmosphere as essential to the purpose of the play:    For Lamb the essence of the tragedy in Macbeth lies in the poetically suggested atmosphere of horror and evil impulse, readily seized upon by the imagination of the perceptive reader, whereas stage representation concentrates the mind on the action. (133-34) Roger Warren comments in Shakespeare Survey 30 , regarding Trervor Nunn's direction of Macbeth at Stratford-upon-Avon in 1974-75, on opposing imagery used to support the opposing atmospheres of purity and black magic:    Much of the approach and detail was carried over, particularly the clash between religious purity and black magic. Purity was embodied by Duncan, very infirm (in 1974 he was blind), dressed in white and accompanied by church organ music, set against the black magic of the witches, who even chanted 'Double, double to the Dies Irae. (283) L.C. Knights in the essay "Macbeth" mentions equivocation, unreality and unnaturalness in the play - contributors to an atmosphere that may not be very realistic:    The equivocal nature of temptation, the commerce with phantoms consequent upon false choice, the resulting sense of unreality ("nothing is, but what is not"), which

Apathy and the Living Dead :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

Apathy and the Living Dead It’s nothing to die; it’s frightful not to live. - Victor Hugo The word â€Å"Apathy† has its origin in Greek and literally means "without feelings." Isn’t that a description of the dead? That was what Victor Hugo was referring to when he wrote, "It’s nothing to die; it’s frightful not to live." In other words, we should not be afraid of dying, but not living. The apathetic are alive, but without feelings, so they are not living. They are the living dead. Here’s what the psychoanalyst Erich Fromm (1900-1980) had to say about the subject, "... In the 19th century the problem was that God is dead; in the 20th century the problem is that man is dead ..." He calls apathy a problem for a good reason. It is a double-edged sword that wounds both the apathetic and the society in which they live. For example, although nuclear weapons cannot destroy democracy, voter apathy can! Such is the horrific negative power of apathy. As the world’s leading democratic country, The U.S., prepares to go to the polls, voter turnout is expected to be about 36%. Wouldn’t you call that a wakeup call? What is the cause of apathy? It is often frustration and a sense of powerlessness that causes people to withdraw from life. However, the ultimate cause is their attitude, the way they react to the changing world. Let’s take a look at a specific example. Jan has recently learned that her company has been bought by another company. Within a month, she and her coworkers will learn who among them will be hired by the new company and who will lose their jobs. Overnight their sense of security has been shattered. They are experiencing apprehension and frustration. They feel that they have lost control over their lives. They complain and disengage from activity. "If the company doesn’t care about me, why should I care about it? What’s the point of working when I’m probably going to lose my job anyway?" This is an example of worker apathy. The staff has been reduced to a bunch of zombies. No one is doing their job. They are just putting in their time until that fateful day when they learn whether they have a job in the new company. There is one exception, however. And that is Jan. She is different. She has a different attitude and is living proof that apathy is not caused by events, but by our reaction to events.

The USPS Problem

It has come as no surprise that the United States Postal Service lost money in the first two quarters of 2010. $8. 5 billion to be exact. Next year they, plan to lose even more. Somewhere in between $9 billion to $10 billion dollars. The problem will not be as simple to fix, but it is a problem that can be resolved with a few simple implementations and cost cutting options. Overspending and undercharging has led to needing to cut cost and raise prices. The USPS is trying to do both, but it requires Congressional approval and some simple economics. Here is what should be done in solving this problem. 1. Raise prices.  Allow modest price changes without Congressional approval. If the prices change within the cost of living change or close the USPS should be able to implement them without wasting time and taxpayer money on a Congressional approval. The United States Postal Service does not charge enough for the service they provide. It does not cost 44 cents to move a letter from San Antonio, Texas to Hawaii, Alaska, or Puerto Rico. It does not cost 44 cents to move a letter to the next town let alone cross country with today’s raising fuel cost. Even with today’s new Postal pick up service the cost of fuel outweighs the cost of flat rate packaging. 2.  Service. Service is part of the United States Postal Service name. End the Casual implantation of temporary workers. To many times customers complain to me that they saw a worker delivering mail without a uniform, and do not trust them in picking up the mail or package. Mail carriers should promote the business and make every interaction with its customers a positive one. I do many routes at my station and time and time again customers complain of the grumpy old letter carrier acting rude when approached, this has to come to a halt and management should be more involved in implementing ways to improve customer interaction and promote it. If a station manager gets complaints on a mail carrier, the station manager should make a note of it and speak to the mail carrier at the end of day or first thing in the morning. Allow private business to run kiosk machines. Co-location works, and it is what the customers want, pay flat rate prices and do so fast and quickly, not waiting 20 to 30 minutes in line at the local Post Office. 3. Either end the retirement and health care pre-funding or make all government agencies abide by the same rule the United States Postal Service does. Although this has little impact on mail delivery, it has a huge impact on postal profitability. The United States Postal Service officials think if given the same approach as other government agencies, they would save $5. 6 billion a year in revenue. If it weren’t for the cost of pre-funding future retiree’s health care benefits the service would have seen a profit of more than a quarter billion dollars. In other words, from an operational standpoint, the United States Postal Service made money. Understanding that the United States Postal Service is to break even, and any profits gain are to be made into the retirement and health care fund. Pre-funding is a Congressional candy jar anyway. 4. Cut money wasting ideas. Management time and time again has cost the United States Postal Service revenue. Looking at some ideas management came just make no sense, like the idea to emplace a GPS system in every United States Postal Service vehicle. This idea was implemented to track and follow where the letter carrier goes during his delivery route. Along with that comes the idea to emplace 12 barcode scan points along the delivery route which the carrier must scan in increments of 45 minutes. Rather than spend that kind of money and ways to spy on the letter carrier, someone in upper management should have suggested the idea that most of the United States Postal Service competitors have, which is continuous visibility of parcels. A idea that can make the United States Postal Service prove to their customers and competitors, that the United States Postal Service can provide the same service if not better than the other agencies. Currently the United States Postal Service cannot show the time of delivery of any package until the letter carrier returns to the office and downloads the information into the system. Also batteries on the scanners fail and data is lost as well as the cost of a scanner brought to the letter carrier to be replaced. Instead of a GPS in every truck it would wise to spend revenue on something the United States Postal Service can improve its operational needs and improve visibility for every parcel scanned. After all it is what the business side of customers wants to see. The United States Postal Service is established so that every citizen could have an affordable means to move packages, and letters and to ensure timely delivery of mail to each home is delivered. The Postal Service has tremendous business potential in the future, but Congress has to allow the United States Postal Service to use its own money in a businesslike fashion to get over the short term challenges,† NALC President Fredric Rolando said. With the ever-changing market the United States Postal Service must focus on the parcel side of business mailing, and ensure every interaction with its customers is a positive one. After all it is the United States Postal Service customers that can fix the revenue problem the service is having.

Significant Effects of Music

The study entitled SIGNIFICANT EFFECTS OF MUSIC aims to determine the factors that causes the youth to get involved to music, the significant effects, whether would be positive or negative, that it brought to them, the comparative effects it take them to music while studying, between listening and reviewing. Specifically it sought to answer the following questions: I. What are the factors that influence and cause the youth to get involved into music? II. What are the significant effects of music? III. a. What are the desirable effects of getting involved into listening music? b. ) What are the undesirable effects of getting involved into listening music? IV. How does music affects their performance in school? The study made use of the descriptive method to determine the desirable and undesirable effects of music. The data were gathered through survey questionnaire given to some junior students. This respondent of the study were roughly 72 students selected using the Proportional Stra tified Random Sampling method. The students were chosen carefully so that the samples represent the population. The study made use of previous researcher, interview, music manuals, research books, related literature on the book from the library and other on formations through the internet. Data gathered were the basis of the research in drawing the conclusion. The researcher problem focuses on the significant effects of music on junior students. After gathering and summarizing data the researchers come up to the following results. That junior student perceived that the psychological/emotional factor obtaining a total evaluated score of 133 ranks as number one factor that drives them to listen to music. Second and third, mental and social respectively. Total evaluated score higher than zero (0) on statements on the desirable and undesirable effects of music presented on the survey questionnaire would mean that evaluated statements were accepted to be true. On the other hand total evaluated score less than zero (0) would indicate that there is no significant evidence to show that the evaluated statement manifest such effect. Junior students perceived DS3 as the most desirable effect of music. That is music makes them happy, relaxed, and energized. Junior students perceived US3 as the most undesirable effect of music. That is music makes them lose track of time enabling them to accomplish their work and household chores. Junior students perceived that music has something to do with regards to their performance in school. Majority agreed that music improves their learning ability while reviewing. (DS1). Music plays an important part of an individual. People listen and engage into music because of many reasons such (1) to fulfill own satisfaction (2) to enjoy (3) to express feelings (4) to relax (5) to produce sense of participation (6) to lighten burden/work easier etc. Based on the survey results, it is the psychological or emotional factor that drives the junior students most to listen to music which is in congruence and in relation to the most perceived desirable effect that is music makes them happy, relaxed and energized. Even so, there is still a great variability to the extent of engagement. Although findings show that music offers a wide selection of pleasant effects since all statements presented were shown and proven to be true, careful considerations must be given to the negative effects for result show that from among 5 presented statements on undesirable effects of music, 3 were evidently true. No matter how little or significant it is, take into account that there is always a risk. When it comes to their performance in school findings prove that majority of the junior students agreed that music enhances their learning ability when reviewing.

History of the Funeral Industry

Funerals and burial rituals have been practiced for centuries. From mummification in the ancient Egyptian times to the extremely regimented practices of Muslims across the world, burial rituals differ greatly across the world’s societal bounds. The American funeral industry was never really established until after the civil war. Before the civil war, families would bury the bodies of relatives themselves. Messing with the natural course of decomposition by embalming the body was frowned upon during colonial times, but eventually began to gain popularity (Laderman). Although the practice of embalming corpses of the dead has been practiced for centuries, the U.S. began embalming the bodies of dead soldiers to prevent them from decomposing on the trip home. The person in charge of arranging and performing the embalming process was then known as an â€Å"undertaker† (funeralwise.com). After the war, the popularity of undertakers began to skyrocket; thus, forming an industry. The rapid spread of embalming practices and urbanization in the early twentieth century led to undertakers starting up funeral homes. Instead of the undertaker traveling to the home of the deceased, bodies were transported to the funeral home to be embalmed – relieving the families of having to deal with the logistics of death (Laderman). Although funeral directors, originally called â€Å"undertakers,† are well regarded professionals, the funeral industry has continually been tarnished by bad press, economic factors, and ugly controversies (Laderman). The most prevalent attack has been economic. Society has always considered the profession as a â€Å"swindlers paradise† because funeral homes often take advantage of grieving families by outrageously pricing their services. This is a constant uphill battle facing funeral directors of our day. The funeral industry has increasingly adapted to consumer demands, developing ways to cohere to the traditions of various societal groups. Although many ethnic/societal groups have specific funeral directors to take car of their dead, the rapidly emerging industry has become more ethnicity friendly and can adapt to any burial practice desired (funeralwise.com). This industry is looking at facing an economic boom as we reach the end of our â€Å"baby-boomer† generation, and they have come up with a plethora of creative ideas in order to cater their future.

One of the reasons the author must have written the book

One of the themes of the book is that outcome of the war was not determined by technology nor tactics. Victory in the South Pacific absolutely depended on human judgment and will. This is the tool that drives home the reality of the battle.One of the reasons the author must have written the book is to show just how much the human will and judgment can achieve. This makes the book the more relevant today because we live in a world that gravitates around Technology. We have slowly turned from Master to Slave and Sea of Thunder is a good way to show its readers that indeed the human being is still capable of achieving whatever is desired.The book is bound in the era of the early 1930s were the industrial revolution had taken off but its impacts had not fully been experienced around the whole world. This is one of the reasons why they battle was mainly depended on Human will power and judgment. It was also the era of the Pacific War and the book centers on its progression and centers on the Battle of the Leyte GulfOne of the subtopics could be inner conflict on the part of the officers especially the Japanese. They had dived loyalties to the Throne, the IJN and the fellow soldiers under their command.Another subtopic is Evans breaking all the Racial Barriers by gaining entrance into the Naval Academy. This is because commander Evans was a Cherokee Indian and it was absolutely rare of some one of Evans heritage to be accepted into the U.S Naval Academy.However according to Hal M. Friedman one of the reviewers of Thomas work, â€Å"Thomas mentions these things but without developing them. One would like to know more about factors in Evans’s family background that helped him in his education, motivated him to join the Navy, and enabled him to overcome the prejudices in the fleet to obtain an Academy appointment. Again, these are all mentioned by Thomas but not in as thorough a manner as the rarity of the accomplishments requires.† This could possibly be one of the shortcomings of the book.Another possible subtopic could be Kuritas decision not to sacrifice thousands of lives. Had he not made this choice then the Americans would totally have been destroyed. This gives us a point to ponder about. Why did he do it?The author supports his theme/thesis firstly by making it known that these men had inner conflicts that would have deterred them from achieving their goal. This is actually where the fact of will power comes in because had it not been due to this self convincing then they would have failed in their missions by simply giving upThe other support for the theme is that without any support, Sprague's forces puta shockingly fierce fight   in which Evans   strongly featured. This shows the human body being put to the test of time and it cleverly brings out the fact about human judgment for the Sprague’s could simply have seen their enemies then decide to run for cover. But on the contrary they perceived the situation in a different perspective (Judgment) then decided to give them the Japanese a very hard battle.Moving away from the dimension of the themes purpose in the winning of the battle, we realize that again it was will power that enabled the Japanese endure fifty long hours in shark infested waters of the ocean after their ship sunk.   It took a lot of self will to choose to hold on in this situation for many a people would have simply given up.Does the author successfully support his theme? Well according to these three examples and other numerous ones in the book I think he does. He just does not implicitly express his theme but he goes right ahead and gives evidence to emphasize his theme