William Shakespeare s The Tempest - 886 Words

In The Tempest, by William Shakespeare, there is a main issue of whether Prospero or Caliban have the better claim to control the island. In act 1, scene 2, we learn that Prospero, Miranda (his daughter), and Caliban are all located on an island. Caliban states, â€Å"This island’s mine by Sycorax my mother, (1.2.331), which means that he has inherited this island from his mother. However, critic Stephen Orgel has argued that â€Å"Power, as Prospero presents it in the play, is not inherited but self-created. . . . it derives from heaven† (208). On the other hand, critic Peter Hulme argues that Prospero’s only response to Caliban’s claim to the island is to call him a liar. This brings us to question who actually has the better claim to the island. In act 1, scene 2, Prospero refers to Caliban as â€Å"Thou poisonous slave, got by the devil himself† (1.2.319). One who is â€Å"devils-child† should not have the authority over an island. There fore, Prospero seems to be better fit for the job. At the same time, Caliban is pictured as a slave, which makes Prospero the master, or the upper hand. This too boosts Prospero’s argument. Prospero confronts Caliban by stating â€Å"In mine own cell till thou didst seek to violate / The honor of my child† (1.2. 346). Here we come to understand that Caliban had attempted to rape Prospero’s daughter, Miranda. Although Prospero never uses Caliban’s crime against his claim to the island, it is seen as an imperfection that a leader would not have. In act 1, scene 2,Show MoreRelatedWilliam Shakespeare s The Tempest1267 Words   |  6 Pagesaudience. During the Enlightenment Era, William Shakespeare’s writing were a form of social commentary on the English Government. Endorsed by the king, Shakespeare’s works told tales of tragedy and whimsy, incorporating both fiction and nonfiction elements. One trademark of Shakespeare s plays were the subtle allusions to the concurrent events in the English government. This is evident in his well known and final play, The Tempest. The story of The Tempest tells the tale of Prospero, a fallen dukeRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Tragicomedy The Tempest1935 Words   |  8 Pagesstand alone, frequently including elements from other influences. William Shakespeare’s tragicomedy The Tempest (c:1611) is a play that uses intertextuality to enhance ideas about natural order. Banished to an island, Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, conjures up a tempest that brings him his usurping brother, Antonio in an attempt to restore his Dukedom. The play’s amalgamation of tragicomedy and the pastoral genre allows Shakespeare to warn his audience about unbalance, criticising the lavish lifestyleRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Tempest1256 Words   |  6 PagesWilliam Shakespare’s The Tempest introduces a dynamic and colorful protagonist, Prospero. Throughout the play, he establi shes himself as a multi dimensional character. Prospero’s interaction with other characters in the play is vital in uncovering the many different sides of his personality. Prospero displays a different part of his personality when he interacts with Caliban, Ariel, and Ferdinand, all of whom are ploys in his master plan to regain his crown. Prospero assimilates his personality toRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Tempest1229 Words   |  5 Pages William Shakespeare most definitely did not reference Jeffrey Jerome Cohen’s Seven Monster Theses when writing his play, The Tempest. One of Cohen’s theses though - thesis four â€Å"The Monster Dwells at the Gates of Difference† - appears quite prominently in Shakespeare’s work. The thesis articulates that monsters are divisive and often arise in a culture to make one group seem superior to another. Further, societies devise monsters in order to create a scapegoat for social and political inequitiesRead M oreWilliam Shakespeare s The Tempest Essay1019 Words   |  5 PagesStephen Greenblatt, believes that antagonists such as Caliban from The Tempest represent more than a source of evil. Some theorists argue that Caliban should been seen as a â€Å"colonial other.† I agree, and in this paper I demonstrate and give prime examples as to why Caliban is misunderstood and depicted as a monster when in fact he should be viewed as a native of the island. According to Greenblatt’s argument, in The Tempest, Caliban should be viewed as a colonial other rather than a universal evilRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Tempest947 Words   |  4 PagesIn Shakespeare’s The Tempest, Caliban is the primitive monster who belongs to the bottom of the power hierarchy on the island claimed by Prospero. Caliban, the original inhabitant of the island, unwillingly becomes Prospero’s slave as he uses magic to take control of the island. Prospero sees Caliban as the savage and mons ter who does not acknowledge the order of civilization despite his efforts to educate him. Caliban appears as an inferior and beast-like figure from nature in the eyes of the civilizedRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Tempest Essay987 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"The rarer action is in virtue than in vengeance† (5.1.35-36). This quote from scene five of the Tempest gives the reader a glimpse of Shakespeare’s message regarding humanity. To be human means more than to have two feet, breathe in your lungs, and the ability to communicate. To be human is a choice. Being human means showing compassion and love for those around you. In the play the Tempest, Prospero struggles with his humanity. He possesses inhuman abilities that cause him to lose sight of theRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Tempest1499 Words   |  6 PagesShakespeare’s play â€Å"The Tempest† outlines many complex characters. One of which was Prospero, former Duke of Milan and powerful sorc erer. Prospero initially portrays a self-involved personality and God-complex but then throughout the course of the play this personality trait transpires into a more pragmatic approach to his life. All of these traits of this character makes it difficult to analyze the true character of Prospero. In the first Act of the play, we see Prospero using sorcery to drum upRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Tempest1469 Words   |  6 PagesThe Tempest brings out the discussion of rule, in this play the theme of rule is prominent, especially in the beginning of the play where the conversation between Prospero and Miranda (his daughter) lead the actions of Prospero, this paper will be analysing the hierarchy of the characters, the definition of justice for Prospero and who’s the king of Milan. Prospero has magical powers which is seen later in the play, the play starts off by the telling the story of the current king and his crew onRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Tempest843 Words   |  4 PagesWilliam Shakespeare was one of the world’s greatest Renaissance era playwrights. His plays were a part of culture in Renaissance England. Everyone from King James to peasants came to see his works. However, his reign was coming to an end. With thirty eight plays written, Shakespeare decided that ‘The Tempest’ was to end his illustrious, prolific career. It is known that throughout this play the word ‘cell’ is used more frequently than in any of Shakespeare’s works. The uses of the word ‘cell’ throughout

Hypertension Monitoring System Business Analysis

Project #2: Hypertension Monitoring System Business Analysis: Hypertension, or high blood pressure (HBP), is categorized by long-term force of the blood against the patient’s artery walls that is substantially high enough that it may lead to health problems such as heart disease. Blood pressure is the measurement of the amount of blood pumped out of your heart and the resistance to blood flow in the patient’s arteries. If the heart pumps out more blood and arteries are narrower, blood pressure will be higher. Symptoms do not always present themselves, but hypertension can still lead to significant health problems. Home monitoring for hypertension is never to be used in place of external doctor’s visits. However, home monitoring can be extremely beneficial to patients with the following problems: patients starting HBP treatment in order to determine the effectiveness, patients requiring closer monitoring than intermittent office visits (especially higher risk patients, i.e. individuals with coronary heart disease, diabetes of kidney disease), pregnant women whom are susceptible to preeclampsia or pregnancy-induced hypertension, people who have high blood pressure readings in the office in order to rule out white-coat hypertension (false readings), elderly patients, and anyone suspected to have masked hypertension. People who should not turn to home monitoring include: people with atrial fibrillation or other arrhythmias because the home measurements may not be accurateShow MoreRelatedEssay On Big Data1200 Words   |  5 Pages(known as ‘big data’) hold the promise of supporting a wide rangeof medical and healthcare functions, including amongothers clinical decision support, disease surveillance and population health management Reports say data from the U.S. healthcare system alone reached, in 2011, 150 exabytes. At this rate of growth, big data for U.S. Healthcare will soon reach the zettabyte (1021 gigabytes) scale and, not long after, the yottabyte (1024 gigabytes) [6].Kaiser Permanente, the California-based healthRead MoreImproving Health Care Standards Of The United States957 Words   |  4 Pagesobjective evaluation method that can benefit health care organizations through the measurement and monitoring of their achievements. These methods improve upon performance standards. The committee’s focus is primarily on important patient, individual, and organization functions that are vital to providing innocuous, high quality care. The Joint Committee’s ultramodern standards set expectations for business performance that are reasonable, achievable and shown to be equitable. The improvement processRead Moreskaktel Essay2775 Words   |  12 Pagessenior director of marketing for SaskTel was given a responsibility to develop a marketing plan to launch LifeStatâ„ ¢ which is health monitoring system into the Canadian ma rketplace. She has to present to the executive committee and in order to create the plan; Tulloch would need to quickly make some distribution and promotion decisions and conduct a financial analysis of the product’s potential profitability. Tulloch faced a challenging task to get these products ‘of the ground’. She wondered whatRead MoreHypertension : The Silent Killer2523 Words   |  11 PagesHypertension is sometimes referred to as the silent killer (Aycock, Kirkendoll, Gordon, 2013). Today it is a public health problem. According to the American Heart Association 2013 Statistical Fact Sheet (2013), one out of every three adults has high blood pressure, which is estimated at 77.9 million people (AHA, 2013). High blood pressure is also referred to as hypertension. Hypertension is a prevalent medical condition that carries with it the risk factor for increased chances of heart diseaseRead MoreCardiovascular Disease ( Cvd )2244 Words   |  9 Pages2. Introduction Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is caused by disorders of the heart and blood vessels, and includes coronary heart disease (heart attacks), cerebro-vascular disease (stroke), raised blood pressure (hypertension), peripheral artery disease, rheumatic heart disease, congenital heart disease and heart failure. CVDs are the number one cause of death globally. Blood pressure (BP) is the pressure applied by circulating blood upon the dividers of blood vessels. At the point when utilized withoutRead MoreDescription And Summarization Of Two Zip Codes Zip Code 956611649 Words   |  7 Pagesa limited of choices to choose from when compared to the city of Roseville. As a matter of fact, most stores in Grass Valley are not within walking distance of any residential homes. Within the city of Grass Valley, there is a bus transportation system that only runs within the city limits, thus not accessible to those living outside the city limits. Demographics and Health Indicators Zip code 95945 in Grass Valley has a poverty level of 11.7%, which is almost double of zip code 95661 in RosevilleRead MoreStrategic Review of Medtronic Inc.1686 Words   |  7 PagesProject This paper is about a strategic overview of Medtronic Inc. Medtronic is a global leader in medical technology- alleviating pain, restoring health, and extending life for people with chronic conditions around the world. Medtronic conducts business in more than 120 countries developing and manufacturing a variety of products and therapies with emphasis on providing a complete continuum of care to diagnose, prevent and monitor chronic conditions. Mission Statement The mission statement ofRead MoreA Survey On The Healthcare System Essay1574 Words   |  7 PagesIntroduction Some believe the healthcare may be the most scrutinized industry out there today (Ashrafi, Kelleher Kuiboer, 2014). As the government continues to reform the U.S. healthcare system away from a fee for service to a value based model, many institutions are turning to business intelligence (BI) and analytics for assistance. Moving forward providers of healthcare are responsible for the overall care of patients from admission, discharge and now if the patient returns for the same issueRead MoreImplications Of Health Economic Concepts Of Health Care.1313 Words   |  6 Pagesunderstand that health economics has a valuable part in healthcare. Health supply and demand is one of the concepts that ought to be scrutinized continuously to reinforce that they meet the requirements of the consumers. According to Hicks (2014), an analysis is essential to determining the number of good or services that are in demand, which provides the ability to increase or decrease the volume based on the cur rent demand. Moreover, this valuable data will ensure that an adequate amount of goods orRead MoreNurse Practice Registered Nurses3962 Words   |  16 Pageshealth. Presented is a business plan for a start-up family nurse practitioner private practice clinic that addresses the importance of the cultural awareness on managing Hispanic population and the market opportunity that this Hispanic market niche represents for Hispanic family nurse practitioners of Illinois who wants to make a difference in their communities. Executive Summary Family Total Care (FTC) will be a startup family nurse practitioner private practice business that plans to open in

Night World Huntress Chapter 6 Free Essays

Me? Hugh nodded. â€Å"I’m supposed to stop the end of the world? How?† â€Å"First, I ought to tell you that it’s not just me that believes all this about the millennium. It’s not even Circle Daybreak that believes it. We will write a custom essay sample on Night World : Huntress Chapter 6 or any similar topic only for you Order Now It’s the Night World Council, Jez.† â€Å"The joint Council? Witches and vampires?† Hugh nodded again. â€Å"They had a big meeting about it this summer. And they dug up some old prophecies about what’s going to happen this time.† â€Å"Like?† Hugh looked slightly self-conscious. â€Å"Here’s one. It used to rhyme in the original, I think, but this is the translation.† He took a breath and quoted slowly: ‘In blue fire, the final darkness is banished. In blood, the final price is paid.† Great, Jez thought. Whose blood? But Hugh was going on. â€Å"Four to stand between the light and the shadow, Four of blue fire, power in their blood. Born in the year of the blind Maiden’s vision; Four less one and darkness triumphs.† Jez blinked slowly. â€Å"What’s blue fire?† â€Å"Nobody knows.† â€Å"‘Four to stand between the light and the shadow†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Meaning to hold off the end of the world?† â€Å"That’s what the Council thinks. They think it means that four people have been born, four Wild Powers who’re going to be instrumental in whatever’s coming, whatever battle or disaster that’s going to destroy us. Those four can stop the end of the world-but only if all of them fight together.† â€Å"‘Four less one and darkness triumphs,† Jez said. â€Å"Right. And that’s where you come in.† â€Å"Sorry, I don’t think I’m one of them.† Hugh smiled. â€Å"That’s not what I meant. The fact is, somebody around here has already reported finding a Wild Power. Circle Daybreak intercepted a message from him to the Council saying that hell hand the Wild Power over to them if they make it worth his while. Otherwise hell just sit tight until they’re desperate enough to agree to his terms.† Jez had a sinking feeling. She said one word. â€Å"Who?† Hugh’s expression was knowing and regretful. It’s one of your old gang, Jez. Morgead Blackthorn.† Jez shut her eyes. Yeah, that sounded like Morgead, trying to shake down the Night World Council. Only he was crazy and nervy enough to do that. He was stubborn, too-perfectly capable of letting disaster come if he didn’t get his way. But of all the people in the world, why did it have to be him? And how had he found a Wild Power, anyway? Hugh was speaking again softly. â€Å"You can see why we need you. Somebody has to get to him and find out who the Wild Power is-and you’re the only one who stands a chance of doing that.† Jez pushed hair off her face and breathed slowly, trying to think. â€Å"I don’t need to tell you how dangerous it is,† Hugh said, looking into the distance again. â€Å"And I don’t want to ask you to do it. In fact, if you’re smart, you’ll tell me to get lost right now.† Jez couldn’t tell him to get lost â€Å"What I don’t understand is why we can’t just let the Council take care of it. They’ll want the Wild Powers bad, and they have a lot more resources.† Hugh glanced back at her, startled. His gray eyes were wide with an expression that Jez had never seen before. Then he smiled, and it was an incredibly sad smile. â€Å"That’s just what we can’t do. You’re right, the Council wants the Wild Powers. But not so they can fight the end of the world. Jez†¦ they only want them so they can kill them.† That was when Jez realized what his expression was. It was gentle regret for innocence-her innocence. She couldn’t believe how stupid she had been. â€Å"Oh, Goddess,† she said slowly. Hugh nodded. â€Å"They want it to happen. At least the vampires do. If the human world ends-well, that’s their chance, isn’t it? For thousands of years the Night People have had to hide, to live in the shadows while the humans spread all over the world. But the Council wants that to change.† The reason Jez had been so slow was that it was hard for her to imagine anybody actually wanting to bring on the Apocalypse. But of course it made sense. â€Å"They’re willing to risk being destroyed themselves,† she whispered. â€Å"They figure that whatever happens, it’ll be worse on the humans, since the humans don’t know it’s coming. Hell, some of the Night People think they’re what’s coming. Hunter Redfern is saying that vampires are going to wipe out and enslave the humans and that after that the Night World is going to reign.† Jez felt a new chill. Hunter Redfern. Her ancestor, who was over five hundred years old but looked about thirty. He was bad, and he practically ran the Council. â€Å"Great,† she muttered. â€Å"So my family’s going to destroy the world.† Hugh gave her a bleak smile. â€Å"Hunter says the Old Powers are rising to make vampires stronger so they can take over. And the scary thing is, he’s right. Like I said before, the Night People are getting stronger, developing more powers. Nobody knows why. But most of the vampires on the Council seem to believe Hunter.† â€Å"So we don’t have much time,† Jez said. â€Å"We have to get the Wild Power before Morgead makes a deal with the Night World.† â€Å"Right. Circle Daybreak is fixing up a safe place to keep the Wild Powers until we get all four. And the Council knows we’re doing it-that’s probably why that ghoul was following me. They’re watching us. I’m just sorry I led it here,† he added absently, with a worried look around the room. â€Å"Doesn’t matter. He’s not telling anybody anything.† â€Å"No. Thanks to you. But we’ll meet someplace different next time. I can’t endanger your family.† He looked back at her. â€Å"Jez, if the Night World manages to kill even one of the Wild Powers-well, if you believe the prophecy, it’s all over.† Jez understood now. She still had questions, but they could wait. One thing was clear in her mind. â€Å"I’ll do it. I have to.† Hugh said very quietly, â€Å"Are you sure?† â€Å"Well, somebody has to. And you were right; I’m the only one who can handle Morgead.† The truth was that she thought nobody could handle Morgead-but she certainly had a better chance than any Circle Daybreaker. Of course, she wouldn’t survive the assignment Even if she managed to steal the Wild Power out from under Morgead’s nose, he’d hunt her down and kill her for it That was irrelevant â€Å"He hates me, and I hate him, but at least I know him,† she said out loud. There was a silence and she realized that Hugh was looking at her oddly. â€Å"You think he hates you?† â€Å"Of course. All we ever did was fight† Hugh smiled very faintly-an Old Soul look. I see.† â€Å"What’s that supposed to mean?† ‘It means-I don’t think he hates you, Jez. Maybe he has strong emotions for you, but from what I’ve heard I don’t think hate is one of them.† Jez shook her head. â€Å"You don’t understand. He was always gunning for me. And if he found out I’m half human-well, that would be the end. He hates humans worse than anything. But I think I can fool him for as long as it takes to get the Wild Power.† Hugh nodded, but he didn’t look happy. His eyes were bruised and tired. If you can pull it off, you’ll save a lot of lives.† He knows, too, Jez thought. That I’ll die doing this. It was some comfort that he cared-and more comfort that he didn’t understand why she was doing it. Sure, she wanted to save lives. But there was something else. The Council had tried to mess with Hugh. They’d sent a stinking ghoul after him. They would probably send something different tomorrow-certainly, they’d keep trying to kill him. And for that, Jez was going to wipe the floor with them. Hugh wasn’t any kind of fighter. He couldn’t defend himself. He shouldn’t be a target. She realized that Hugh was still looking at her, with pain in his eyes. She smiled to show him that she wasn’t afraid of dying. â€Å"It’s a family affair,† she told him-and that was true, too. â€Å"Hunter’s my great-great-great-great-great-grandfather. It’s only right that I stop him. And if anything happens to me-well, one Redfern less is probably a blessing to the world.† And that was the last part of the truth. She came from a tainted family. No matter what she did, who she saved, or how hard she tried, there would always be vampire blood running in her veins. She was a potential danger to humanity by her very existence. But Hugh was looking horrified. â€Å"Don’t you ever say that† He stared at her for another moment and then took her by the shoulders, squeezing. â€Å"Jez, you’re one of the best people I know. What you did before last year is-â€Å" â€Å"Is part of me,† Jez said. She was trying not to feel his warm grip through her T-shirt, trying not to show that his little squeeze sent a shock through her entire body. â€Å"And nothing can change that. I know what I am.† Hugh shook her slightly. â€Å"Jez-â€Å" â€Å"And right now, I have to get rid of that ghoul. And you’d better be getting home.† For a moment she thought he was going to shake her again; then he slowly let go of her. ‘You’re officially accepting the assignment?† The way he said it sounded as if he were giving her one last chance not to. â€Å"Yes.† He nodded. He didn’t ask how she planned on getting back into a gang that she’d abandoned, or getting information from Morgead, who hated her. Jez knew why. He simply trusted that she could do it â€Å"When you know something, call this number.† He dug in a different pocket and handed her a square of paper like a business card. â€Å"I’ll give you a location where I can meet you-someplace away from here. We shouldn’t talk about anything on the phone.† Jez took the card. â€Å"Thanks.† â€Å"Please be careful, Jez.† â€Å"Yes. Can I keep the articles?† He snorted. â€Å"Sure.† Then he gave her one of those sad Old-Soul smiles. â€Å"You probably don’t need them, though. Just look around. Watch the news. You can see it all happening out there.† â€Å"We’re going to stop it,† Jez said. She reconsidered. â€Å"We’re going to try.† Jez had a problem the next morning. The problem was Claire. They were supposed to drive to school together, to ensure that Jez didn’t cut school. But Jez had to cut school to go find Morgead. She didn’t want to imagine the kind of trouble that was going to get her in with Uncle Jim and Aunt Nanami-but it was crucial to get to Morgead as soon as possible. She couldn’t afford to waste time. At the first major stoplight-and there weren’t a lot of them in Clayton-she smacked her forehead with her palm. â€Å"I forgot my chemistry book!† She unfastened her seat belt and slid out of the Audi just as the light turned green. â€Å"You go ahead!† she shouted to Claire, slamming the door and leaning in the open window. â€Å"Ill catch up to you.† Claire’s expression showed her temperature was reaching the boiling point. â€Å"Are you crazy? Get in; I’ll drive back† â€Å"You’ll be late. Go on without me.† She made a little fluttery encouraging motion with her fingers. One of the three cars behind Claire honked. Claire opened her mouth and shut it again. Her eyes were shooting sparks. â€Å"You did this on purpose! I know you’re up to something, Jez, and I’m going to find out-â€Å" Honk. Honk. Jez stepped back and waved goodbye. And Claire drove off, as Jez had known she would. Claire couldn’t stand the peer pressure of cars telling her to get moving. Jez turned and began to jog for home, in a smooth, steady, ground-eating lope. When she got there, she wasn’t even breathing hard. She opened the garage and picked up a long, slim bundle that had been concealed in a corner. Then she turned to her bike. Besides Hugh, it was the love of her life. A Harley. An 883 Sportster hugger. Just twenty-seven inches tall and eighty-seven inches long, a lean, light, mean machine. She loved its classic simplicity, its cold clean lines, its spare body. She thought of it as her steel and chrome thoroughbred. Now she strapped the long bundle diagonally on her back, where it balanced nicely despite its odd size. She put on a dark full-face helmet and swung a leg over the motorcycle. A moment later she was roaring away, heading out of Clayton toward San Francisco. She enjoyed the ride, even though she knew it might be her last one. Maybe because of that. It was a dazzling end-of-summer day, with a sky of September blue and a pure-white sun. The air that parted for Jez was warm. How can people ride in cages? she thought, twisting the throttle to shoot past a station wagon. What good are cars? You’re completely isolated from your surroundings. You can’t hear or smell anything outside; you can’t feel wind or Power or a slight change in the temperature. You can’t jump out to fight at an instant’s notice. You certainly can’t stake somebody at high speed while leaning out of a car window. You could do it from a bike, though. If you were fast enough, you could skewer somebody as you roared by, like a knight with a lance. She and Morgead had fought that way once. And maybe will again, she thought, and flashed a grim smile into the wind. The sky remained blue as she continued west, instead of clouding up as she approached the ocean. It was so clear that from Oakland she could see the entire bay and the skyline of San Francisco. The tall buildings looked startlingly close. She was leaving her own world and entering Morgead’s. It was something she didn’t do often. San Francisco was an hour and fifteen minutes away from Clayton-assuming there was no traffic. It might as well have been in another state. Clayton was a tiny rural town, mostly cows, with a few decent houses and one pumpkin farm. As far as Jez knew, the Night World didn’t know it existed. It wasn’t the kind of place Night People cared about. Which was why she’d managed to hide there for so long. But now she was heading straight for the heart of the fire. As she crossed the Bay Bridge and reached the city, she was acutely aware of how vulnerable she was. A year ago Jez had broken the laws of the gang by disappearing. If any gang member saw her, they had the right to kill her. Idiot. Nobody can recognize you. That’s why you wear the full-face helmet. That’s why you keep your hair up. That’s why you don’t custom-paint the bike. She was still hyper-alert as she cruised the streets heading for one of the city’s most unsavory districts. There. She felt a jolt at the sight of a familiar building. Tan, blocky, and unlovely, it rose to three stories plus an irregular roof. Jez squinted up at the roof without taking off her helmet. Then she went and stood casually against the rough concrete wall, near the rusty metal intercom. She waited until a couple of girls dressed like artists came up and got buzzed in by one of the tenants. Then she detached herself from the wall and calmly followed them. She couldn’t let Morgead know she was coming. He’d kill her without waiting to ask questions if he got the jump on her. Her only chance was to jump him first, and then make him listen. The building was even uglier inside than it was outside, with empty echoing stairwells and faceless industrial-sized hallways. But Jez found her heart beating faster and something like longing twisting in her chest. This place might be hideous, but it was also freedom. Each one of the giant rooms behind the metal doors was rented by somebody who didn’t care about carpets and windows, but wanted a big empty space where they could be alone and do exactly what they wanted. It was mostly starving artists here, people who needed large studios. Some of the doors were painted in gemlike colors and rough textures. Most had industrial-sized locks on them. I don’t miss it, Jez told herself. But every corner brought a shock of memory. Morgead had lived here for years, ever since his mother ran off with some vampire from Europe. And Jez had practically lived here, too, because it had been gang headquarters. We had some good times†¦. No. She shook her head slightly to break off the thought and continued on her way, slipping silently through the corridors, going deeper and deeper into the building. At last she got to a place where there was no sound except the humming of the naked fluorescent lights on the ceiling. The walls were closer together here. There was a sense of isolation, of being far from the rest of the world. And one narrow staircase going up. Jez paused, listened a moment, then, keeping her eyes on the staircase, removed the long bundle from her back. She unwrapped it carefully, revealing a stick that was a work of art. It was just over four feet long and an inch in diameter. The wood was deep glossy red with irregular black markings that looked a little like tiger stripes or hieroglyphics. Snakewood. One of the hardest woods in the world, dense and strong, but with just the right amount of resilience for a fighting stick. It made a striking and individual weapon. There was one other unusual thing about it. Fighting sticks were usually blunt at either end, to allow the person holding it to get a grip. This one had one blunt end and one that tapered to an angled, narrow tip. Like a spear. The point was hard as iron and extremely sharp. It could punch right through clothing to penetrate a vampire heart. Jez held the stick in both hands for a moment, looking down at it. Then she straightened, and, holding it in a light grip ready for action, she began up the stairs. â€Å"Ready or not, Morgead, here I come.† How to cite Night World : Huntress Chapter 6, Essay examples

The Latino Complex What Defines Our Culture free essay sample

Growing up in a Latino household, I was taught both English and Spanish, and I was fluent in both. My parents would use English and Spanish in the same sentence, and I developed an ear for thick accents and mixed verbiage. When I entered my teen years, however, I lost that connection to my family. I learned French in middle school and lost interest and fluency in speaking Spanish. I lost that connection to my family, but that does not make me any less Latin. I hear it from my parents all the time: â€Å"You should learn Spanish so you can talk to your grandma;† â€Å"You should learn Spanish; it’s part of your culture.† I feel distanced from them, and I feel like I’m valued less as a member of my family. While not speaking Spanish does create a barrier between me and my family, it does not diminish my connection to my heritage or my experience as a hispanic woman. Heritage is not something that you can lose: you’re born with it, and I was born a Latina. I feel guilty for letting go of something that brings me closer to my family, but my understanding of what it means to be a Latina is still valid. Having this broken link is like being a wallflower at a party. I was invited to the party, so I’m present and involved, but not entirely comfortable socializing. There’s something separating me from the rest of the party, and it’s language. The pillars of Latin culture are rooted in the following: family, community, and tradition. My background with these outweighs the language barrier. Of these, family is number one, every Latin will tell you that. Family teaches you everything you know: if not your mom or dad, then your aunt, or third cousin, or great uncle will gladly step in to instill any missing knowledge, with added Latin flair. Family members are always around to give you advice, even when you don’t want it; ESPECIALLY when you don’t want it. These are the people that invited me to the party, the people that make me feel comfortable and welcomed. I grew up surrounded by the warmth and comfort unique to Latin families. Family means being involved and being available to each other. In any culture, family is important, but Latino families not only include immediate family members, but they invite friends and neighbors to create an extended, invaluable support system. I am lucky enough to be apart of such a family. I inherited the tenderness, compassion, and loving nature that came from being brought up where these traits are valued. When I think of the importance of the Latin community, I think of a congregation of people who share history and core values. A Latin community can be a community of Mexicans, a community of Hondurans or Puerto Ricans, or a community of all these people. I cannot tell you how excited Latinos are to meet other Latinos, no matter where they’re from. When I moved into my dorm, I connected with my roommate almost immediately. We are both Latin women; her family is Mexican while my family is mixed Honduran and Puerto Rican. Regardless, we bond over gossip, television, food, and experiences from our youth. The one thing I can’t relate to her with is Spanish, because she speaks it fluently with her family. Despite this, we identify in our Latin heritage and see each other as supportive, close friends. She is part of my community, and I connect with her beyond our national heritages. Latinos share this connection and bond with each other and use it to build welcoming and excit ing communities wherever they are. Traditions are a central concept in Latin culture. They can be massive like religion, or personal, like Sunday barbeques; the point is, tradition is experienced by every Latin person. We inherit tradition from our family and community, and it is often rooted in religious and social gatherings. I’ve experience older, larger traditions: baptism, going to church with my family, taking communion. I’ve also experienced newer, smaller traditions: learning to cook Sopa de Olla, bonding with tispy aunts and uncles over dinner, yearly christmas parties. Then there are traditions that manage to be both old and new. My Quinceanera, for example, tied the religious importance of old Latin values with the exciting and lax standards of modern Latin-American culture. A compromise between old and new; where a church service proclaiming me â€Å"the salt of the earth† was followed by morally questionable dance moves and elaborately decorated cupcakes. These traditions make me a L atina. The old ones have been passed down over generations, others that are fairly new have been adopted to keep us close together as times change. Another pillar, which most Latinos will likely deny, is pride. Pride is at the core of the Latin identity. Being Latin includes being proud of who you are, and more importantly, where you come from. I could not be more proud of my mother, a Puerto Rican entrepreneur who has taught me about perseverance and determination in the face of adversity. I could not be more proud of my father, a Honduran immigrant who came to the United States to get an education, chase a career opportunity he didn’t have back home, and raised me to value discipline and loyalty. I could not be more proud of myself for accepting my heritage and embracing what it means to be Latina despite losing my Spanish tongue. I understand the value of language and how it can bring me closer to my culture, and losing it adds distance between myself and my family, community, and our traditions. However, I shouldn’t have to defend my Latin identity because I’m missing it. I may be dancing offbeat at thi s party, but I’m dancing to a Latin rhythm.