Age of Exploration Essay Question Writing Prompts

Age of Exploration Essay Question Writing PromptsThe age of exploration is here again. In fact, we have new age archeological age of exploration essay question writing prompts out there, too.Ancient times were filled with mystery questing. People traveled from place to place in search of information about the world, new peoples, or other civilizations. Travel was one of the major necessities in those days, and people had to see how far they could travel in order to get to their destination.Archaeology - the study of ancient times - was new and developing. When people discovered that rocks had many chemicals and mineral ores inside them, they started to believe that these ores may have some importance in the long term. This new process of discovering new and unknown information was one of the major changes in history, as it created a better understanding of the world.The age of exploration now brings us to the present day and age of inventions and new explorers. And, since many of the inventions that scientists make, are deadly, we have to get information on the world from anywhere we can find it. These new explorations are of two kinds: traditional and modern.Traditional explorers will travel back in time to get information is the primary thing, as they will be carrying a lot of it. However, this travel is going to cost them, and probably most explorers have retired from adventuring. Therefore, new age explorers will be traveling through new and unknown ways to get to new destinations. They will be using their creativity to try to create the best method of travel that will produce the best results for the explorer.New generation explorers will always take into account the resources and necessities that are needed for the explorer's journey. Resources that might be used in this journey are the way, means, and many other things. For example, a rope is needed for an explorer to go up a mountain.New age explorers may try to learn how to bring down the weather by ta king advantage of new ways of producing energy. Although the process is complex, the outcome might be worth it in the long run. The cost of energy and materials can easily become so high that they prevent some of the people from using it.

The Indisputable Truth About Best Personal Essay Samples That No One Is Sharing With You

The Indisputable Truth About Best Personal Essay Samples That No One Is Sharing With You Whispered Best Personal Essay Samples Secrets When you've got to grips with the intricacies of personal statements, have a look at our private statement examples here. An excellent sample, outline, or excerpt ought to be comprehensive, interesting, and thoroughly helpful. Additionally, there are personal statements that arrive in the shape of a list, like the personal financial statement. Once you are in possession of a sufficient amount of information and lots of personal statement samples to reference you are able to then sit down and start to put down your thoughts for your statement. A personal statement provides the selection committee more info about you that isn't captured in different documents. It is not a confessional booth. It is one of the most important. A high-quality personal statement is a crucial part of your UCAS application. So, once you are sitting down to compose an essay, you want not to forget that you need to express your personality there. You have to do something to set yourself apart, and the personal statement is among the few areas you experience a chance to do that. Keep in mind, the most important goal for your own personal statement is for it to further your work search. It needs to be tailored to your specific skills and achievements. As with other articles and writing texts, the author focuses on a single subject, while the events and story are written chronologically in the event the personal essay is to produce sense. Try to remember, an admission essay sample may be good way to find out more about the writing procedure and understand the task better. An essay involve a great deal of thinking and self-analysis. A prosperous personal essay is in somewhere to station powerful and strong messages to the reader. You have to read over your essay once you've written it and make certain that you have preformed and grammar and spelling check too. In case you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact ProfEssays.com. For those who haven't written one before, you should start with reading our tips about how to compose a personal statement. What You Need to Do About Best Personal Essay Samples Beginning in the Next Ten Minutes Good personal essay topics are simple to follow, and deciding upon a terrible topic is potentially problematic as such writing is not as likely to be reader friendly. Among the points to take into account when trying to find a sample essay about yourself is the caliber of the paper. All you need to do is specify if you'd like your essay to be sent. Don't forget that there's a third significant sort of private essay. When composing various essay examples, you will encounter plenty of ideas that you might have rarely thought about before. Indeed, essay topics can fluctuate. Some personal essays are supposed to entertain, some are intended to inform, and others are supposed to support or oppose a particular position. A personal narrative essay is just one of the greatest tools to stop social issues which are often disregarded. Today's tips concentrate on the personal essay. Your life story can likewise be regarded as an excellent topic in writing your private essay. Getting the Best Best Personal Essay Samples Before starting, the very first thing you ought to understand is that the personal statement is easily the most significant part your admissions package. One of the absolute most important things when it has to do with applying for a college is your capacity to be successful to your graduate school admission essays. Your aim is to get into a great law school and its my job that will help you attain that objective. The aim of your sociology personal statement is to become into the graduate school of your selection. Your own personal statement must grab the interest of the admissions committee. It is limited to only 4,000 characters in which to convince a university to accept your application. Like a college essay, your private revenue statement needs to have a layout. A number of the most effective personal statements are concise when providing insight to the applicant for an individual.

The United States Of America - 1603 Words

The United States of America: Land of the free! Home of the brave! A place where opportunities are endless and equality is everlasting. Speaking on behalf of others in my generation, I believe it is safe to say many of us have seen a lot of selfish and outrageous acts develop drastically. From white cops killing innocent black citizens, to people supporting the evil Donald Trump, to ostracizing ourselves from the LGBT community and looking down upon them, it is quite obvious that the saying â€Å"America: the greatest country in the world† isn’t so accurate. We are naà ¯ve to the destruction that occurs daily and have a habit of sugarcoating our mistakes. The matter of the truth is: our generation is distorted and unethical, which is why in 200†¦show more content†¦If that alone doesn’t support the fact that the shootings that occur frequently in our society partake in the malicious country we live in, I’m not sure what will. Another factor is t hat simply purchasing a firearm isn’t too difficult. This means that if one really desired to shoot up a place, they wouldn’t mind the little steps it took to be capable of obtaining one. Many can get a gun illegally by simply knowing people who can easily pass it on. These factors contribute immensely to our shootings that take place in our country. On the topic of shootings, I will now discuss the shooting issues that our cops our involved in. Just like the mass shootings, it seems as if the topic of a white cop killing or demeaning a black male or female is a part of our daily conversations. In particular, I will use the very well-known â€Å"Michael Brown† shooting. Many are familiar with the story of the 18 year old who was fatally shot by Darren Wilson, a white cop. This event took place on August 9, 2014 in Ferguson, Missouri. Brown stole a few packages of cigarillos and had the cops called on him as he fled from the gas station and walked back to his gra ndmother’s home. Dorian Johnson accompanied Brown when suddenly a cop car with Darren Wilson, as the driver, backed up his cruiser and blocked them. An altercation broke out and the two teenagers struggled with the police officer for his gun. The two teens then fled

Work-life conflict Free Essays

Abstract Work-life conflict is among the human resource challenges that adversely affects the productivity of employees and leads to physical and psychological health issues. This paper provides an in-depth discussion of this issue, addressing its causes and consequences. It also refers to psychological theories on work-life balance to provide a more in-depth understanding of the issue. We will write a custom essay sample on Work-life conflict or any similar topic only for you Order Now To ensure that there is a work-life balance; organisations have to implement strategies that help employees to cope with their family and workplace responsibilities. Some of these strategies, as well as legal requirements for employers, have also been discussed in this paper. Introduction Employees play a vital role in any organisation. Thus, it is vital for human resource managers to ensure that employee productivity is optimal. One of the factors that may affect employee productivity is work-life conflict (McNamara, et al., 2011). It is defined as an inter-role struggle, where work and family burdens are conjointly incompatible, such that the demands on one end make it difficult to fulfil the demands on the other end (Messersmith, 2007). For organisations that intend to maintain their competitive advantage, it is vital for them to create a work environment allows for a balance between family or life responsibilities and workplace responsibilities. Whereas this is known by many employers across the globe, there are still many cases of work-life conflicts in many organisations. Employees also play a role in ensuring that they have a balance between their work and families (Yuileet al., 2012). For instance, there are employees who are excessively obsessed with their wo rkplace. This therefore limits the time for their family and social life (Rantanen, et al., 2011). This paper discusses the issue of work-life conflict, its common nature, the causes and consequences of the challenge, the psychological understanding of the challenge as well as key policy and legal consequences from the occurrence. Work-life Conflict As aforementioned, this conflict occurs as a result of an incompatibility of demands that work and family place on an individual (Messersmith, 2007). This conflict is bi-directional, meaning that it the productivity of employees at the workplace and also adversely impacts on the delivery of family responsibilities (Rantanen, et al., 2011). According to Robbins and Judge (2012), work-life conflict has two main components. One of these is the practical component that comprises of scheduling issues, where individuals cannot be in more than one place at a time. The other component is the stress that occurs as a result of overloading employees with many responsibilities (Robbins Judge, 2012). The issue of work-life conflict can be classified into several categories. These include role overload, family to work interference and work to family interference (Turner et al., 2014). Role overload is experienced when demands in terms of energy and time – both in their families and at the workplace – are too much for an employer to handle comfortably (Lapierre et al., 2012). Work to family interference occurs when workplace commitments make it challenging to fulfil family responsibilities. Family to work interference refers to the interference of family responsibilities with workplace productivity (ten Brummelhuis et al., 2010). Commonness of Work-life Conflict Even though the technological developments that have taken place within the past decade are expected to have made organisations more flexible in scheduling to reduce work-life conflict, this issue is still rampant in the United Kingdom. For instance, the maximum working hours per week in the UK are 48. However, as established by Crush (2011), there were more than four million Britons working for more 48 hours in 2011. It was also established that more than five million Britons work for an average of more than seven hours per week without payment. In a survey that was carried out by Robert Walters, a recruitment agency, it was found that approximately 30% of human resource professionals, lawyers and financial risk professionals work for more than 50 hours weekly (Crush, 2011). Even though it is impossible to estimate the commonness of all forms of work-life conflicts in the United Kingdom, the mentioned statistics indicate that this issue affects many companies. In terms of gender, Ly ness and Judiesch (2014) argue that women are faced with more work-life conflict issues as compared to men based on the fact that they typically have more family roles than their male counterparts. Causes of Work-life Conflict The different types of work-life conflicts have different causes. One of these is an overload of roles both at their workplaces and in their families, which may be too heavy and taxing to an employee. This makes it practically impossible for the employee to satisfy the role demands on either side of the conflict (Makela Suutari, 2011). Whereas employers are responsible for overloads at the workplace in most cases, it may also be as a result of an increased ambition by employees, who may take up a lot of work-related responsibilities to achieve certain monetary goals or promotions (Yuile et al., 2012). Conflicts may also occur due to the interference of an individual’s work by family demands and responsibilities, where tasks emanating from the family infiltrate into the responsibilities that are demanded from the employee at the workplace (Yuile et al., 2012). This often happens to single parents who end up having so many responsibilities to their children such that it often l eads to their arriving at work late or having to think more about their families while at work than they concentrate on their jobs. This may drain the employee’s energy, time and financial resources (Inman et al., 2014 ). Consequences of Work-life Conflict There are many effects that arise from work-life conflict, which all lead to reduced performances in both family and workplace responsibilities. Several researches that have been carried out on of work-life conflict have established that it has a negative impact on both physical and psychological health of individuals. For instance, McNamara et al., (2011) established that work-life conflicts cause burnouts that are more related to emotional exhaustion. They also established that it leads to physical health issues like fatigue, poor appetite and high blood pressure, among others. In another research that was carried out by Makela and Suutari (2011), it was established that increased work-life conflicts increase depression and stress. Even though many researchers argue that there work-life conflict has adverse impacts on employees, Sullivan, Yeo, Roman, Bell Jr, and Sosa (2013) argue that the intensity of these impacts varies with the individuals being subjected. For instance, he esta blished that married people are more affected than those who are single. Psychological Theories relating to Work-life Conflict Based on the interest that this subject has elicited in researchers, several theoretical frameworks that can be used to understand work-life conflict and work-life balance have been suggested. One of these is overall appraisal and components approach (Tyson, 2012). The overall appraisal approach is referred to as a general assessment of an individual’s life situation. It explains work-life balance as a â€Å"satisfaction and good functioning at work and home, with a minimum of role conflict† (Clark, 2000, p751). It also considers work-life balance as the sufficiency of family and work resources to facilitate effective participation on both sides. Though it has helped in understanding work-life conflict of balance, this theoretical approach has been criticised for being too general in addressing this issue without pointing out the specific components of work-life conflict. The components approach, on the other hand, is based on an understanding that work-life conflict oc curs as a result of several facets, which include involvement, satisfaction and time (Grzywacz Marks, 2000). Thus, for there to be a balance, there has to be a balance in time devotion, psychological investment and satisfaction, both at the workplace and at home. How to Prevent Work-life Conflict Based on the theoretical frameworks that have been mentioned above, it can be argued that it is vital to ensure a work-life balance (Clark, 2000). The management has a role to play in this regard in improving the lives of their employees so as to improve the results of the organisations that they work for. One approach that can be used is introducing alternative working arrangements for employees. This may be done through the introduction of flexibility at work, such as the times of arrival and departure, or even occasionally shuffling work schedules for employees (Ford et al., 2007). This reduces the stress caused by boredom and routines that easily culminate in work-related stress, and get into new and positive changes of their new roles at work (Lyonette et al., 2007). There is however a possibility that the initial stages of routine change might reduce employee productivity as employees may need some time to adjust into their new schedules and roles. Organisations can also provide work-life benefits to employees, so as to enable them have ample times with their families and consequently produce better results for the organization as they perform better at work (Inman et al., 2014). Such employer benefit mechanisms may include being given personal days off especially when the employee has been consistent at work for a long time and has achieved greatly for the firm, as an appreciation (Tyson, 2012). It may also include the provision of facilities that would enable persons to carry out their work responsibilities while at the same time having the confidence that their family matters are well taken care of such as the provision of day care facilities in the office, or the creation of a gym at the gym (Yuile et al., 2012). Besides the mechanisms that organisations may lay in order to aid their suffering employees from mental problems brought about by work-life imbalances, employees may themselves also create measures that may enable them create effective work-life balances (Grzywacz Marks, 2000). For instance, employees may create the social support systems or programs that enable colleagues to guide, support and counsel each other. Key policy and legal requirements that employers must consider Employers in all organisations are bound by legal mechanisms and government policies that obligate them to do certain things and sanction them against doing others (Sanseau Smith, 2012). For instance, with reference to the Employment Rights Act 1996 c. 18 Part V, employers are legally bound by the fact that they are meant to create conducive atmosphere for their employees as they carry out their duties (Legislation.gov.uk, 1996). All employees have a right to work under surroundings that augur well with their trade of work and they must be protected from physical and emotional harm that may emanate from their duties (Lyness Judiesch, 2014). Another legal binding is the ‘working hour directive’ (Directive 2003/88/EC). Employers are bound by the legal provisions that require working hours to be at a maximum of 48 hours a week, unless employees willingly choose to work for more (European Parliament, 2003). Any employer who requires his employees to work beyond these hours time must provide overtime remuneration. Such working hours must also be understood to include breaks in between them to allow employees to work better (Yuile et al., 2012). This provision was enacted to ensure that workers are able to even out and balance their work and private lives, where more time is left for the workers to spend with their families in order to improve their psychological situations (European Parliament, 2003). There is the holiday entitlement act requires employers in the UK to allow their employees to take a 5.6 week annual leave every year (Gov.uk, 2014). In addition to this, there are also paternity and maternity leaves that employees are entitled to. These leaves allow them to keep off work to rejuvenate their minds (Hill et al 2010). Employers must therefore ensure that such leave is adhered to and consequently the employees are in a better position to improve their work-life conflicts as they spend more time with their families. Certain organisations go to the extent of paying for holiday for their employees, especially their top management employees, during these periods of leave (Makela Suutari, 2011). Conclusion This paper has addressed several aspects of work-life conflicts at the workplace. These include its causes, consequences and approaches that companies can use in overcoming this challenge. It has also referred to some theoretical frameworks to help in creating an understanding of this subject. As argued in this paper, work-life conflicts have a major impact on the productivity of employees. This conflict is brought about by several factors which include the heavy workloads that individuals may be accustomed to at their homes and workplaces, work to family interferences and family to work interferences. All these affect the physical and mental capacities of employees, affecting their ability to handle their workplace and family responsibilities. In order to avoid these adverse consequences, organisations need to adopt various mechanisms to ensure that there is a work-life balance among employees. Employers are also legally bound to ensure that their employees are not overworked at the expense of their families. References Armstrong, M. (2008). Strategic Human Resource Management: A Guide to Action. London: Kogan Page. Clark, S. (2000). Work/family border theory: a new theory of work/family balance. Human Relations, 53, 747-770. Crush, P. (2011, 6 18). What happened to our work-life-balance. The Guardian . European Parliament. (2003). Directive 2003/88/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 November 2003 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time. Retrieved 6 19, 2014, from http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:32003L0088:EN:HTML Ford, M. T., Heinen, B. A., Langkamer, K. L. (2007). Work and family satisfaction and conflict: a meta-analysis of cross-domain relations. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92 (1), 57. Gov.uk. (2014). Holidays, time off, sick leave, maternity and paternity leave. Retrieved 6 20, 2014, from https://www.gov.uk/browse/working/time-off Grzywacz, J. G., Marks, N. F. (2000). Reconceptualizing the work-family interface: an ecological perspective on the correlates of positive and negative spillover between work and family. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 5, 111-126. Inman, M., O’Sullivan, ?N., Murton, ?A. (2014 ). Unlocking Human Resource Management. New Jersey: Routledge. Lapierre, L. M., Hammer, L. B., Truxillo, D. M., Murphy, L. A. (2012). Family interference with work and workplace cognitive failure: The mitigating role of recovery experiences. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 81 (2), 227-235. Legislation.gov.uk. (1996). Employment Rights Act 1996. Retrieved 6 20, 2014, from http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/18/part/V Lyness, K. S., Judiesch, M. K. (2014). Gender egalitarianism and work–life balance for managers: Multisource perspectives in 36 countries. Applied Psychology, 63 (1), 96-129. Lyonette, C., Crompton, R., Wall, K. (2007). Gender, Occupational Class and Work–Life Conflict: a Comparison of Britain and Portugal. Community, Work and Family, 10 (3), 283-308. Makela, L., Suutari, V. (2011). Coping with work?family conflicts in the global career context. Thunderbird International Business Review, 53 (3), 365-375. McNamara, M., Bohle, P., Quinlan, M. (2011). Precarious employment, working hours, work-life conflict and health in hotel work. Applied ergonomics, 42 (2), 225-232. Messersmith, J. (2007). Managing work?life conflict among information technology workers. Human Resource Management, 46 (3), 429-451. Rantanen, J., Kinnunen, U., Mauno, S., Tillemann, K. (2011). Introducing theoretical approaches to work-life balance and testing a new typology among professionals. In Creating Balance(pp. 27-46). Berlin: Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Robbins, S. P., Judge, T. A. (2012). Organizational Behavior. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Sanseau, P. Y., Smith, M. (2012). Regulatory change and work-life integration in France and the UK. Personnel Review, 41 (4), 470-486. Sullivan, M. C., Yeo, H., Roman, S. A., Bell Jr, R. H., Sosa, J. A. (2013). Striving for Work-Life Balance: Effect of Marriage and Children on the Experience of 4402 US General Surgery Residents. Annals of surgery, 257 (3), 571-576. ten Brummelhuis, L. L., Bakker, A. B., Euwema, M. C. (2010). Is family-to-work interference related to co-workers’ work outcomesJournal of Vocational Behavior, 77 (3), 461-469. Turner, N., Hershcovis, M. S., Reich, T. C., Totterdell, P. (2014). Work–family interference, psychological distress, and workplace injuries. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 3(8), 57-71. Tyson, S. (2012). Essentials of Human Resource Management. Oxford: Routledge. Yuile, C., Chang, A., Gudmundsson, A., Sawang, S. (2012). The role of life friendly policies on employees’ work-life balance. Journal of Management and Organisation, 18 (1), 53-63. How to cite Work-life conflict, Essay examples

To Clone Or Not To Clone Essays (1149 words) - Cloning,

To Clone Or Not To Clone Cloning is an issue that has been evolving during time. At the begining, cloning was been researched and was described as something that was hard to reach. Even science fiction movies, such as Multiplicity, were produced about cloning. As the time went through, cloning became a reality. In 1996 Dolly, the first mammal, a sheep was born. Dolly was created by Ian Wilmut, an embryologist of the Rosling insitute ( World Book, http://www.worldbook.com ). Since then, many mammals, such as mice and calves were created. Right now, there is a fear, that humans might be the next to be cloned. Ruth macklin and Charles Krauthammer discuss this matter in two essays were they state whether cloning is right or wrong. Ruth Macklin, a professor of Bioethics, wrote an essay about this issue. Human Cloning? Don't Just Say No is the title of her article. Her essay discusses the negative response of the people to Human Cloning. As the title of the essay says: Human Cloning? Don't Just Say No, Macklin believes that cloning deserves a chance to be developed in humans. Macklin talks about Human Clones not being accepted as human beings. She states that an ethicist said once, that human cloning would be a violation to the right to genetic identity (Perspectives of Contemporary Issues, pg. 508). Macklin doubts about the exsistence of this right. She explains many points about Human Cloning and about ethics. One of the points she mentiones, is about the violation to human dignity. Theologians say that cloning would be a violation to dignity and also that cloned humans would be treated with less respect than other human beings. Another issue she discusses is the fact that Human Clones could be used as human farms or organ donors. Macklin gives many examples about the cases where human cloning might be accepted. Mothers that can not have children, families that have children that are sick to death or also couples that may have genetic defects (Perspectives of Contemporary Issues, pg. 508). In conclusion, Macklin thinks, that human cloning should be accepted or at least an opportunity should been given to develop Human Cloning. On the other hand, Charles Krauthammer, the author of the second essay Of Headless Mice.....And Men is totally against Cloning in every way. His essay talks about the cloning that was made in mice. Researchers have been able to locate different genes and than delete some genes, just to see what comes out. They erased the clone that creates the head and produced headless mice that obviosly died when the were born. Krauthammer does not understand, how humans can create such type of mice. He talks about the chance of creating humans with no heads. He says, that the goal of these production of headless humans, could be kept as an organ farm. He also gives examples of Cloning, such as the possibility to create models, and geniuses (Perspectives of Contemporary Issues, pg. 510). Krauthammer mentiones that President Bill Clinton banned cloning, but it won't be long until it is accepted. Krauthammer cloncusion is the prohibition of Human cloning and every type of cloning. These essays are a clear example of what cloning is and what the responses might be. As Macklin is in favor of Cloning, Krauthammer is not. Macklin's essay talks more about cloning as having a twin, a person that will be living with us and form part of the family. A companion that will be there to live life as it is. There are other terms for cloning such as carbon copy. On the other hand, Krauthammer's essay describes human clones with no heads. Human farms that will be there in case something goes wrong with the original. These half human beings would be different, they would be kept alive, like an organ reserve if the original loses a hand, then the clone gives that person a hand. What kind of thoughts are those? Is it possible that scientists have come to a point were they want to create Monsters? This would really be a violation to human dignity. A harm to the cloned person that might not have a brain to think, but he sure will have the same arms, legs, hands, etc... as the original. He might not have the same face as the original, but he will have a heart and I am sure that he would not like to live headless. If cloning will be this way, than it should be completly banned. Both essays are very persuasive, but there is a difference in both. The examples given by the

About Lois Lowrys Controversial Book, The Giver

About Lois Lowry's Controversial Book, The Giver Imagine living in a society of sameness where you find no color, no family connections, and no memory- a society where life is governed by rigid rules that resist change and resent questioning. Welcome to the world of Lois Lowrys 1994 Newbery award-winning book The Giver, a powerful and controversial book about a utopian community and young boy’s dawning realizations about oppression, choices and human connections. The Storyline of The Giver Twelve-year-old Jonas is looking forward to the Ceremony of Twelves and getting his new assignment. He will miss his friends and their games, but at 12 he is required to set aside his child-like activities. With excitement and fear, Jonas and the rest of the new Twelves are bid a formal â€Å"thank you for your childhood† by the head elder as they move into the next phase of community work. In The Giver’s utopian community, rules govern every aspect of life from speaking in precise language to sharing dreams and feelings at daily family councils. In this perfect world, climate is controlled, births are regulated and everyone is given an assignment based on ability. Couples are matched and applications for children are reviewed and assessed. The elderly are honored and  apologize, and the acceptance of apologies, are mandatory. In addition, anyone who refuses to follow rules or who exhibits weaknesses is â€Å"released† (a gentle euphemism for killed). If twins are born, the one weighing the least is scheduled for release while the other is taken to a nurturing facility. Daily pills to suppress desires and â€Å"stirrings† are taken by citizens beginning at age twelve. There is no choice, no disruption, and no human connections. This is the world Jonas knows until he is assigned to train under the Receiver and become his successor. The Receiver holds all the memories of the community and it’s his job to pass on this heavy burden to Jonas. As the old Receiver begins to give Jonas the memories of ages past, Jonas starts to see colors and experience new feelings. He learns there are words to label the emotions that are erupting inside him: pain, joy, sorrow, and love. The passing of memories from aged man to boy deepens their relationship and Jonas experiences a powerful need to share his newfound awareness. Jonas wants others to experience the world as he sees it, but the Receiver explains that letting loose these memories all at once into the community would be unbearable and painful. Jonas is weighed down by this new knowledge and awareness and finds solace in discussing his feelings of frustration and amazement with his mentor. Behind a closed door with the speaker device turned to OFF, Jonas and the Receiver discuss the forbidden topics of choice, fairness, and individuality. Early in their relationship, Jonas begins to see the old Receiver as a Giver because of the memories and knowledge he is giving to him. Jonas quickly finds his world shifting. He sees his community with new eyes and when he understands the real meaning of â€Å"release† and learns a sad truth about the Giver, he begins to make plans for change. However, when Jonas finds out that a young child he’s grown fond of is being prepared for release, both he and the Giver quickly alter their plans and prepare for a daring escape full of risk, danger, and death for all involved. Author Lois Lowry Lois Lowry wrote her first book, A Summer to Die, in 1977 at the age of 40. Since then she’s written more than 30 books for children and teens, often tackling serious topics such as debilitating illnesses, the Holocaust, and repressive governments. The winner of two Newbery Medals and other accolades, Lowry continues to write the types of stories she feels represents her views about humanity. Lowry explains, â€Å"My books have varied in content and style. Yet it seems that all of them deal, essentially, with the same general theme: the importance of human connections. Born in Hawaii, Lowry, the second of three children, moved all over the world with her Army dentist father. Awards Over the years, Lois Lowry has accumulated multiple awards for her books, but the most prestigious are her two Newbery Medals for Number the Stars (1990) and The Giver (1994). In 2007, the American Library Association honored Lowry with the Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Contribution to Young Adult Literature. Controversy, Challenges, and Censorship Despite the many accolades The Giver has garnered, it has met with enough opposition to put it on the American Library Association’s most frequently challenged and banned books list for the years 1990-1999 and 2000-2009. Controversy over the book focuses on two topics: suicide and euthanasia. When a minor character determines she can no longer endure her life, she asks to be â€Å"released† or killed. According to an article in USA Today, opponents of the book argue that Lowry fails to â€Å"explain that suicide is not a solution to life’s problems.† In addition to the concern about suicide, opponents of the book criticize Lowry’s handling of euthanasia. Supporters of the book counter these criticisms by arguing that children are being exposed to social issues that will make them think more analytically about governments, personal choice, and relationships. When asked for her opinion on book banning Lowry responded: I think banning books is a very, very dangerous thing. It takes away an important freedom. Any time there is an attempt to ban a book, you should fight it as hard as you can. Its okay for a parent to say, I dont want my child to read this book. But it is not okay for anyone to try to make that decision for other people. The world portrayed in The Giver is a world where choice has been taken away. It is a frightening world. Lets work hard to keep it from truly happening. The Giver Quartet and the Movie While The Giver can be read as a standalone book, Lowry has written companion books to further explore the meaning of community. Gathering Blue (published in 2000) introduces readers to Kira, a crippled orphan girl with a gift for needlework. Messenger, published in 2004, is the story of Mattie who is first introduced in Gathering Blue as Kira’s friend. In fall 2012 Lowrys Son was published. Son represents the grand finale in Lois Lowrys Giver books.

Biography of Willa Cather, American Author

Biography of Willa Cather, American Author Willa Cather (born Wilella Sibert Cather; December 7, 1873–April 24, 1947) was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American writer who gained acclaim for her novels capturing the American pioneer experience. Fast Facts: Willa Cather Born:  December 7, 1873 in Back Creek Valley, Virginia, USADied:  April 24, 1947 in New York City, New York, USAOccupation:  Author and journalistEducation: University of Nebraska–LincolnSelected Works: My ntonia (1918), O Pioneers! (1913), Death Comes for the Archbishop (1927), One of Ours (1922)Key Accomplishment: 1923 Pulitzer Prize for One of OursFamous Quote:  There are only two or three human stories, and they go on repeating themselves as fiercely as if they had never happened before. (from O Pioneers!) Early Life on the Prairie Willa Cather was born on the farm of her maternal grandmother, Rachel Boak, in the poor farming region of Back Creek Valley, Virginia, on December 7, 1873. The oldest of seven children, she was the daughter of Charles Cather and Mary Cather (nà ©e Boak). Despite the Cather family having spent several generations in Virginia, Charles moved his family to the Nebraska frontier when Willa was nine years old. After spending about eighteen months attempting to farm in the community of Catherton, the Cathers moved into the town of Red Cloud. Charles opened a business for real estate and insurance, and the children, including Willa, were able to attend formal school for the first time. Many of the figures in Willa’s early life would appear in fictionalized form in her later novels: most notably her grandmother Rachel Boak, but also her parents and her friend and neighbor Marjorie Anderson. As a girl, Willa found herself fascinated by the frontier environment and its people. She developed a lifelong passion for the land and befriended a wide array of the area’s residents. Her curiosity and interest in literature and language led her to forge connections with immigrant families in her community, especially older women who remembered the â€Å"Old World† and who delighted in telling young Willa their stories. Another of her friends and mentors was the local doctor, Robert Damerell, under whose guidance she decided to pursue science and medicine. Student, Teacher, Journalist Willa attended the University of Nebraska, where her career plans took an unexpected turn. During her freshman year, her English professor submitted an essay she had written on Thomas Carlyle to the Nebraska State Journal, which published it. Seeing her name in print had a huge impact on the young student, and she shifted her aspirations immediately towards becoming a professional writer. While at the University of Nebraska, Willa immersed herself in the world of writing, particularly journalism, although she also penned short stories. She became the editor of the university’s student newspaper while also contributing to the Journal and to the Lincoln Courier as a theatre critic and columnist. Quickly, she gained a reputation for her strong opinions and sharp, intelligent columns, as well as for her dressing in masculine fashions and using â€Å"William† as a nickname. In 1894, she graduated with her B.A. in English. In 1896, Willa accepted a position in Pittsburgh as writer and managing editor for Home Monthly, a women’s magazine. She continued to write for the Journal and the Pittsburgh Leader, mostly as a theatre critic, while running Home Monthly. During this period, her love for the arts brought her in contact with Pittsburgh socialite Isabelle McClung, who became her lifelong friend. After a few years of journalism, Willa stepped into the role of teacher. Fom 1901 to 1906, she taught English, Latin, and, in one case, algebra at nearby high schools. During this time, she began publishing: first a book of poetry, April Twilights, in 1903, and then a short story collection, The Troll Garden, in 1905. These caught the eye of S.S. McClure, who, in 1906, invited Willa to join the staff of McClure’s Magazine in New York City. Literary Success in New York City Willa was extremely successful at McClure’s. She ghostwrote a notable biography of Christian Science founder Mary Baker Eddy, which was credited to researcher Georgine Milmine and published in several installments around 1907. Her position as managing editor earned her prestige and the admiration of McClure himself, but it also meant that she had significantly less time to work on her own writing. On the advice of her mentor Sarah Orne Jewett, Willa left the magazine business in 1911 to focus on fiction. Although she no longer worked for McClure’s, her relationship with the publication continued. In 1912, the magazine published, in serial, her first novel, Alexander’s Bridge. The novel was well-reviewed (although Willa herself would, later in life, consider it a more derivative work than her later novels). Her next three novels cemented her legacy. Her â€Å"Prairie Trilogy† consisted of O Pioneers! (published in 1913), The Song of the Lark (1915), and My ntonia  (1918). These three novels centered on the pioneer experience, drawing on her childhood experiences of life in Nebraska, the immigrant communities she loved there, and her passion for the untamed land. The novels included some autobiographical elements, and all three were celebrated by critics and audiences alike. These novels shaped her reputation as a writer who used plain but beautiful language to write thoroughly American romantic literature. Dissatisfied with her publisher’s lack of support for her novels, Willa began publishing short stories with Knopf in 1920. She would eventually publish sixteen works with them, including her 1923 novel One Of Them, which won the 1923 Pulitzer Prize for the Novel. A subsequent book, 1925’s Death Comes for the Archbishop, also enjoyed a long legacy. At this point in her career, Willa’s novels were beginning to move away from epic, romantic tales of the American prairie to stories that leaned into the disillusionment of the post-World War I era. Later Years As the 1930s rolled around, literary critics soured on Willa’s books, criticizing them for being too nostalgic and not contemporary enough. She continued to publish, but at a much slower pace than before. During this time, she received honorary degrees from Yale, Princeton, and Berkeley. Her personal life also began to take a toll. Her mother and the two brothers with whom she was closest all passed away, as did Isabelle McClung. The bright spot was Edith Lewis, the editor who was her closest companion from the early 1900s until her death. Scholars are divided as to whether or not the relationship was romantic or platonic; Willa, a deeply private person, destroyed many personal papers, so there is no certain evidence either way, but scholars of queer theory have often interpreted her works through the lens of this partnership. Willa’s personal life remained something she kept closely guarded, even after her death. Willa despaired over the coming conflicts of World War II, and she began to have issues with an inflamed tendon in her writing hand. Her final novel, Sapphira and the Slave Girl, was published in 1940 and marked a significantly darker tone than her previous works. In 1944, the National Institute of Arts and Letters awarded her the gold medal for fiction as a mark of her lifetime of literary achievement. In her final years, her health began to decline, and on April 24, 1947, Willa Cather died of a cerebral hemorrhage in New York City. Legacy Willa Cather left behind a canon that was both plainspoken and elegant, accessible and deeply nuanced. Her portrayals of immigrants and women (and of immigrant women) have been at the center of much modern scholarship. With a style that encompassed sweeping epics along with realistic depictions of frontier life, Willa Cather’s writings have become iconic pieces of the literary canon, both in America and worldwide. Sources Ahearn, Amy. Willa Cather: A Longer Biographical Sketch. Willa Cather Archive, https://cather.unl.edu/life.longbio.html.Smiley, Jane. Willa Cather, Pioneer. The Paris Review, 27 February 2018, https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2018/02/27/willa-cather-pioneer.Woodress, James.  Willa Cather: A Literary Life. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1987.