The Tired Old Town Of Maycomb Society English Literature Essay

The Tired Old Town Of Maycomb Society English Literature Essay At the start of the novel, Scout describes Maycomb as a tired old town with lazy habitants. This gives us the impression that nothing much happens in Maycomb and that the area is dull. She describes it as being a small laidback town where everyone knows each others business. Scout also describes to us how there are few things to do in Maycomb: there was no hurry, for there was nowhere to go, nothing to buy and no money to buy it with, nothing to see outside the boundaries of Maycomb County. This sets the scene and justifies from a childs point of view how there is nothing to do and that Maycomb is a rather boring town. The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird is set in the southern town of Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s. At this time there were many background problems in the USA caused by the economic downturn. At the height of the Depression in 1933, nearly 25% of the countrys total population, roughly 12,830,000 were unemployed. As poverty increased, people looked for someone to blame. They told themselves that things would be better without the ethnic minorities, and that it was their fault. At this point in history, prejudice and racial discrimination was at its greatest causing segregation between the blacks and the whites; they lived separately and had different benches, churches and bus priorities. In 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected as the countrys president. He tried to clean up the economy and improve it but, despite all his efforts and the courage of the American people, the Depression hung on until 1941. The novel was written in 1959 and published in 1960. It is likely that many of its c ontent were based on the effects of the great depression, thus including the Scottsboro trials which formed the basis of Tom Robinsons trial in the novel. The novel also draws influences from the effect of the Civil Rights Movement, which was determined to establish racial equality. Although initially Maycomb may seem to have negative aspects, there are in fact, several positive aspects to be explored. Maycomb regards itself as a very religious town. Everything is kept in simplest form to prevent distraction from God. Jem tells Dill that they: Dont have any picture shows here, except Jesus ones in the courthouse sometimes. This shows how Maycomb does not want its inhabitants to become distracted and less faithful to the church. Throughout the novel there are many references to God, I couldnt go to church and worship God if I didnt help that man. This emphasises the relationship that the citizens of Maycomb have with the church. We also learn that the people spend a lot of their time at church during the week: In the long hours of church this reminds us of what a strong, religious community Macomb is, as its inhabitants are faithful and honest to the church. Church-going is described as Maycombs principle recreation. Maycomb is a close, strong bound community and everyone helps when there is a crisis. We see this during the fire at Miss Maudies house: the men of Maycomb, in all degrees of dress and undress, took furniture from Miss Maudies house to a yard across the street. This shows how Maycomb can be a supportive community and that most people help out when someone is in trouble. We see how many of the people act in a heroic way as they risk their lives to save some of Miss Maudies belongings: I saw Atticus carrying Miss Maudies heavy oak rocking chair, and I thought it sensible of him to save what she valued the most. Atticus seems to understand what is important to Miss Maudie and this shows how many of the neighbours are close friends since it is a very small community. Even though they do not get along terribly well, Miss Stephanie helps out by offering hospitality to Miss Maudie since she has nowhere to go. Towards the end of this chapter, it appears that even Boo Radley may have helped d uring the fire. Having watched the fire from in front of the Radley gate, Scout is appalled when she discovers that Boo may have helped by wrapping a blanket around her shoulders whilst she was freezing cold: I looked down and found myself clutching a brown woollen blanket I was wearing around my shoulders my stomach turned to water and I nearly threw up when Jem held out the blanket and crept towards me. This reveals how the rumours about Boo Radley may be untrue as he seems to help by showing kindness during the fire. We also notice how the community helps one another when Tim Johnson, the rabid dog, comes towards the inhabitants houses down the road. Calpurnia is very quick-to-think as she informs everyone on the street not to go outside. She even runs back outside to warn the Radleys not to come out. Also, despite the fact that neither of them want to shoot the dog, both Atticus and Mr Tate arrive quickly to deal with the situation, in order to keep the rest of Maycomb safe. Maycomb has many respectable citizens. Throughout the novel, we admire Atticus for his polite, modest and respectful behaviour. He sees people for who they truly are and does not judge them according to rumours and myths: you never really understand someone until you climb into their skin and walk around in it this is his method of understanding people and it is an important message in the novel. He is courteous to everyone, including those he does not get along with: Good evening, Mrs Dubose! You look like a picture this morning. This demonstrates how Atticus is a charming gentleman as he uses his politeness to deal with uneasy situations. Atticus understands Mrs Dubose and her condition and despite her demanding manners he remains pleasant and we think highly of his respectable manners, as he seeks to find the best in everyone. Miss Maudie is a kind, gentle, respectable person. She believes that everyone deserves to be treated fairly and equally and does not wish to gossip about people. She is very respectful towards everyone; when Scout asks her if Boo is still alive, she corrects him by saying: His names Arthur. This shows that Miss Maudie does not believe he should be treated any differently from anyone else, just because of the rumours, and deserves to be addressed by his real name. When Aunt Alexandra arrives in Maycomb, everyone is very kind and welcoming to her: Miss Maudie Atkinson baked a Lane cake so loaded with shinny it made me tight; Miss Stephanie Crawford had long visits with Aunt Alexandra, consisting mostly of Miss Stephanie shaking her head and saying, Uh, uh, uh, Miss Rachel next door had aunty over for coffee in the afternoons, and Mr Nathan Radley went so far as to come up in the front yard and say he was glad to see her. This shows that the people in Maycomb are very polite and friendl y towards the right types of new citizens, giving pleasant first impressions. We also see this when we are told that Aunt Alexandra fitted in the world of Maycomb like a hand into a glove. It shows how everyone has helped to settle her in and make her feel like part of their community. In Maycomb, there are rarely occasions where people are forced to face their fears, as the town is usually very quiet and nothing much happens. However there are some moments in the novel where we do witness some examples of courage. Chapter 6 shows an example of physical courage when Jem returns to the Radley house to collect is trousers. Previously in the scene, we notice how Jem is in fact the scared character of the children: Jem leaped off the porch and galloped towards usJems breath came in sobs- fence by the school yard! hurry, Scout!', this emphasizes the frightening atmosphere as he is the one who we would expect to be the bravest. We admire Jem for his courage and bravery when he returns to get his trousers and face his fears. Chapter 10, Atticus is reluctant to shoot the dog as he has not shot a gun for 30 years since he believes that he has been given an unfair advantage, he realized that God had given him an unfair advantage over most living things. This shows that he i s a civilised person and does not want to use his talent to destroy innocent living things. As he has not used a gun in such a long time, Atticus is slightly anxious as he is told miss and youll go straight into the Radley house. There is also the possibility that if he is inaccurate, he may wound the dog rather than killing it. All of these factors increase tension: Atticus pushed his glasses to his forehead; they slipped down, and he dropped them in the street. In the silence I heard them crack. This increases the tension and makes us feel sympathy for him. We respect him for the courage he has to shoot the dog for the benefit of Maycomb, despite the anxiety and problems he encounters. Despite Maycombs racial prejudice, Atticus agrees to represent Tom Robinson in the trial. He knows that it will cause difficulty for his family: when summer comes youll have to keep your head about far worse things its not fair for you and Jem, I know that we notice that he is foreshadowing the tria l and this tells us that things are going to get bad. We can sense it will be difficult as there will be added pressure created by the communitys attitudes. This is where we see courage: Ive got to live with myself. The one thing that doesnt abide by majority rule is a persons conscience, Atticus is making a stand which shows that he is determined to get through the difficult situation yet to be. Another member of Maycomb, who exhibits courage, is Mrs Dubose. This is where we see that although her physical state was weak, underneath she was strong and focused on what she wanted to achieve: her whole mind and body were concentrated on that alarm clock. This shows how determined she was to free herself form the morphine addiction. Atticus admires her for her bravery she said she meant to break herself of it before she died, and thats what she did this is a very powerful example of real courage in the novel as it shows independence and it brings to mind that with determination, almost anything can be overcome. We see how Maycomb values tradition as its inhabitants do not wish to develop or change their ways. Although at the time the North was becoming quite developed, many Southern states did not develop, and remained mostly farmers with their fields: stripped of everything but their land, yet the tradition of living on the land remained unbroken. This shows how they were quite happy with their usual, traditional methods of living. Maycomb is a simple town and there is little to do or to buy as it does not want any of the new modern technology: Dont have any picture-shows here, this shows how Maycomb is behind its time as other areas such as Meridian, Mississippi, where Dill comes from, have moved on from this stage and are more advanced with technology. Maycomb County is very proud of itself and people such as Mr Cunningham do not want to change their poor ways of living: Mr Cunningham could get a W.P.A. job, but his land would go to ruin if he left it, and he was willing to go hungry to keep his land and vote as he pleased. This shows how Maycomb values tradition as they are proud of it. However, there are also many negative aspects of Maycomb which we encounter. Maycomb is a divided society and suffers from class prejudice so everyone is treated differently. The Finches and Miss Maudie are both respectable whites and give the impression that they live pleasant easy-going lives. Although, later in the novel we find out that this is not the case as we see that Atticus is faced with many difficult challenges causing corruption in the neighbourhood. We therefore admire him for his talent at hiding his true emotions and feelings by misleading others to believe that he has an easy-going life. The majority of the community respect the Finches and Miss Maudie for their kind nature and pleasant personalities as they understand people and see them for who they truly are. We see that there are characters in the community who think themselves as respectable but do not behave in the correct manner, that they should. Mrs Dubose is rude and strong-minded when we come across her in the novel: Dont you say hey to me, you ugly girl! You say good afternoon Mrs Dubose!. Though she is impolite she has manners and demands people to behave in the same way. Aunt Alexandra is obsessed with the superiority of the Finch family. She bosses Calpurnia from the minute she arrives:-put my bag in front of the bedroom, Calpurnia. She does not seem to show any respect to members of the lower class as she believes she is far superior and therefore does not need to. She is also bossy to the children and wants them to live up to their name: she asked me to tell you that you must try to behave like the little lady and gentleman you are. this shows how she is unsatisfied with how Jem and Scout behave and wants them to do as she says to change their ways. We notice there are two types of people suffering from the effects of poverty in the novel. The Cunninghams are very poor farmers who have been affected by the depression. They do not have the money to buy things, they own very few possessions and most of the time they are hungry. We admire them for their integrity as they never borrow things that they cannot pay back. The Ewells are also poor though they are also uneducated. The Ewells [are] members of an exclusive society made up of Ewells. They take the law into their own hands because they are incontrollable so no one can stop them. In chapter 3, we learn more about the Ewell family and begin to understand what their home life is like. Since they are poor, they are also very dirty as they do not have enough money to clean themselves and do not care. We first encounter this when Scout describes Burris Ewells appearance during school: he was the filthiest human I had ever seen. His neck was dark grey, the backs of his hands were rusty, and his finger-nails were black deep into the quick. He peered at Miss Caroline from a fist-sized clean space on his face. This tells us that he does not live a particularly healthy life at home and it is likely that his father hits him. We also see that he is very rude and cruel, due a tough family life. We see this put into action when Burris Ewell insults Miss C aroline: Aint no snot-nosed slut of a teacher ever born cn make me de nothin! You aint makin me go nowhere, missus. This emphasises the cruel, heartless characters the Ewells all inherit as they seem to enjoy insulting people and making them upset. We find out that Mr Bob Ewell is a very irresponsible father and we see this when he spends his relief cheques on green whisky his children have a way of crying from hunger pains. This shows how he neglects his children- he is an alcoholic so he is often drunk and takes his violence out on the children by hitting them, he doesnt make them go to school and does not feed them properly so they starve. We see from this how the Cunninghams are a much better class of people than the uneducated Ewells. However even the Ewells are not regarded as low as the black community, who are automatically seen as the bottom of the class system. They live beyond the town rubbish dump, which shows they are treated like rubbish, behind the Ewell residence and are kept away as far as possible. The black community are completely demonised and anything that goes wrong is always their fault, this is similar to how Boo is treated. When the children sneak into the collard patch everyone automatically assumes that it was one of the Negroes: Mr Radley shot at a negro at his collard patch. This shows how no matter the consequences, people will always accuse a member of the black community. In chapter 12, when Jem and Scout go to the first purchase church with Calpurnia, we are told that Negroes worshipped in it on Sundays and white men gambled in it on weekdays this shows that the white community do not show any form of respect and we see it as a disgrace, especially since it is a church. We also notice that it is challenging the stereotypes. The First Purchase church has a very humble nature: he stood beside a table in front of the pulpit and requested the morning offering. We see that they have good intentions as they plan to raise enough money to help Tom Robinsons wife and family, so we admire their humility, devotion and inspiration. We also see that the church really respects Atticus, This church has no better friend than your daddy. It shows that they really appreciate what he is doing for Tom, despite the difficulties and problems it is causing. Maycomb is a very prejudiced community and there are many racist citizens. Mrs Dubose tells the children that their fathers no better than the niggers and trash he works for! this shows how strongly opinionated some of the people are. Scouts cousin Francis says that Atticus is ruining the family and we see how Aunt Alexandra does not like to talk about important matters in front of Calpurnia and them these examples all show how Maycomb does not have any respect for the black community and are unwilling to understand that they deserve to be treated the same. However, we also see another form of prejudice: I wants to know why you bringin white chillun to nigger church. This is a new form of prejudice where we see black people being prejudiced to white people and also to one another: stop right there, nigger. It is possible that they are trying to devalue the meaning by using it to call one another. However, we notice how the black community act immediately on any form of prejudice and deal with the problem as they feel it is inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour. This is a different reaction from the white people as they do not try to control the prejudice and racial discrimination as they do not seem to care about it. This is an important chapter which the writer has included. It emphasizes how the black and white community differ in the way that they respond to prejudiced behaviour. We learn that the black community have a much more respectable and honourable way of dealing with uneasy situations as they are willing to solve any arising problem. We observe how Miss Caroline does not understand that the Maycomb children are tough and know how to do most of the things, that she has come to teach, already. She is oblivious to the fact that they come from a different world to her and are more experience than she thinks. We notice how the children are suspicious of outsiders and are prejudice and judgemental to begin with, since she has arrived from a different p art of the country. Maycomb is a very intolerant community and expects people who are different to conform. They are harsh and do not accept people for who they are, like Boo. Most of the community spreads rumours and gossip about Boo Radley, portraying him as a Malevolent phantom. They demonise him and blame him for morbid nocturnal events: Although the culprit was Crazy Addie, who eventually drowned himself in Barkers Eddy, people still looked at the Radley Place, unwilling to discard their initial suspicions. As he is different from everyone else, the inhabitants fear what might be and are very superstitious: the Radley chickenyard tall pecan trees shook their fruit into the schoolyard, but the nuts were left untouched: Radley pecans would kill you. They do not treat him the same as everyone else as they feel since he is an outcast from the community, he means danger. We see that Maycomb is very prejudiced, in chapter 5 when we learn about the Foot-washing Baptists. The author cleverly uses foot washers as a way to bring the intolerance of Maycomb into the story. They believe that anything that is a pleasure is a sin and that if people do not follow the correct ways of living, by staying inside and reading the bible, they might as well just go to hell: they thought I spent too much time in Gods outdoors and not enough time inside the house reading the bible and told me me and my flowers were going to hell. This is an example of intolerance taken to an extreme. It shows how the foot-washin g Baptists do not accept other peoples differences and it exaggerates the intolerant attitude that they have towards others. When Aunt Alexandra comes to stay, we see that she stereotypes people in Maycomb. She believes that everyone had a streak: Everyone in Maycomb it seemed had a streak: a Drinking streak, a Gambling streak, a Mean streak, a Funny streak. This shows how she is very judgemental of other people and their families. She is very different from Atticus- who sees people for who they are and does not judge people. She also has very traditional views of how women should behave and the appropriate clothing one should wear. We see several examples of this and one is when she tells Scout: it would be best for you to have some feminine influence. It wont be many years before you are interested in clothes and boys this shows how Aunt Alexandra has high expectations for how a lady should behave. We also see how she is prejudice and does not see Calpurnia as an appropriate sourc e of feminine influence. She does not approve of Scouts personality or behaviour and describes her as sluggish. Throughout the novel, we learn about the attitudes of Maycomb from a childs point of view. Scouts naivety encourages us to look at the injustices from a new angle and to question the values of the town. The innocent six year old, questions the meaning of issues, like rape, which develops our social awareness of the novel. To begin with, on the surface of Maycomb, we see it as a friendly, harmless place where nothing much happens. Children play on the streets and ladies bathed before noon, after their three-oclock naps which creates an easy-going, innocent, trouble-free picture. However, the more we learn about it the more concerned we become about the serious problems with prejudice and racism that Maycomb holds. The author cleverly makes us realise that there is much more to Maycomb than what we thought at the beginning of the novel.

Chechnya Essay -- essays research papers

The National Anthem Of Chechnya Death or Freedom came onto this earth when the wolf cubs began to whine under the she-wolf’s feet. Our names were picked for us at day-break while the lion roared. Our gentle mothers nurtured us in our eagle nests. And our fathers taught us to tame the oxen of the forests. Our mothers dedicated us to our Nation and our Homeland. And we shall rise up to the last one if our nation needs us. We grew up free as the eagles, princes of the mountains. There is no threshold from which we shall shy away. Sooner shall cliffs of granite begin to melt like molten lead than any one of us shall lose in battle the honor of our noble nature. Sooner shall the earth begin to crack in silence from the heat than we shall lie under the earth, having lost our honor. Never to bow our heads to anyone, we give our sacred pledge. To die or to live in freedom is our fate. Our sisters heal our brothers’ bloody wounds with their songs. Our loving women see us off on our campaigns. If we shall be forced to starve from famine, we shall gnaw the roots of trees. If we shall be deprived of water, we shall drink from the dew of the grass. We came onto this earth when the wolf cubs began to whine under the she-wolf’s feet. We pledge our lives to God, our Nation and our Homeland.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The methods that Russia has used to deal with the break-away Republic of Chechnya has caught the eye of the world media, and not without good cause. This dynamic portion of the former Soviet Union is seen as a predecessor of things to come from other pieces of the dead communist giant. So many different peoples and cultures were pulled into the grasp of Russia for economic or tactical reasons. Now that Russia is waning in power, these peoples may chose to seize the opportunity to regain their independence, hundreds of years lost in some cases, and reestablish their own ethnic identity.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As we will see, Chechnya’s history with Russia and the Soviet Union is a long and checkered past. The Chechen people suffered numerous degradations and humiliations at the hands of their conquerors. Throughout their history the Chechens have attempted in some form to resist the Russians, but time and time again, the Russians held them down to have access to what they perceived as a key piece of land. It would be absurd to say that the sol... ...rude oil to be processed into fuels. Oil continually flowed in from Russia, allowing the Chechens to process it and usually turn around and sell it as their own. Whether oil was legally acquired or not, the Chechens had little difficulty selling it back to the Russians, proving that Russians had a hand in criminal activity in Chechnya as well. Literally millions of tons of military grade firepower and ammunition, as well as tanks, planes, and other vehicles were hijacked from Russian trains during this time. What the press failed to point out at this time was that Yeltsin never rerouted the trains, and no investigation went into discovering how the information of train manifests and cargo was being released to the Chechens. The Chechen airport also operated without law at this time. Russia proclaims that planeloads of narcotics flew in and out of Groznyi each day, providing money to fuel other criminal operations. This all went on for quite awhile, and while criminal activity was rampant in Chechnya, many say that it was no worse than in Russia herself. By the spring of 1994 though, Dudayev was being formally challenged for his power. Since one of the candidates against Dudayev wa

Somthing That Annoys You

Everyone in life has something that annoys them, I have a thousand things that bother me. One thing that annoys me the most is when people litter their cigarette butts. Cigarette butts are the most commonly discarded piece of waste worldwide. The sight of disposed cigarettes is not only an unpleasant sight but disposing butts into the environment does a lot more damage than people realize. Most people are aware of the health risks involved in smoking, few seem to realize that cigarettes are also bad for the environment.Cigarette butt littering has an environmental, economic and social impact on the community. The most noticeable is the impact that butts have on our environment. There is a lot of misinformation out there regarding cigarette butt litter. People who smoke think that because butts are so small, they are relatively harmless. Cigarette filters are specifically designed to gather together particulate smoke components, including toxic chemicals such as cadmium, lead, arsenic and zinc. The biggest myth is that cigarette filters are biodegradable. Cigarette butts are not biodegradable.It's estimated that trillions of filters, filled with toxic chemicals from tobacco smoke, make their way into our environment as discarded waste yearly. The plastic filters can take many years to decompose. Smokers may not realize that their actions have such a lasting, negative impact on the environment. Absolutely everything about cigarettes can threaten life on our beloved planet. They pollute the ground we walk on and the air we breathe. And if we smoke, cigarettes poison us slowly, stealing our quality of life long before they kill us.Cigarette butts may seem small, but with several trillion butts littered every year, the toxic chemicals add up! Three side effects of littering cigarette buts that annoy me the most are, our polluted water, endangered wildlife and the fires caused due to cigarette littering. Cigarette smoke contains up to 4,000 chemicals so each second t he butt is left alight, dangerous toxins are released into the environment. Many people don’t realize that when it rains, water flowing through our streets, down our drains and through our storm water pipes ends up in our harbors, beaches and rivers.Storm water is not treated so all litter and cigarette butts carried by storm water are dumped directly into these waterways. When cigarette butts are discarded on the ground, many of the toxic chemicals will leach out of the cigarette and will run in to the lakes and oceans. Cigarette butts can leach chemicals such as cadmium, lead and arsenic into our marine environment within an hour of contact with water. Cigarette butts can take up to 12 months to break down in fresh water and up to 5 years to break down in seawater. According to the Audubon Society, smoke-free beach laws help reduce butts on beaches by 45%.Cigarette waste accounts for almost a third of the total amount of litter found on US shorelines alone. Cigarette butts are not just ugly, they also present a threat to wildlife. Plastic pieces have been found in the stomachs of fish, birds, whales and other marine creatures that mistake them for food. Cigarette butts have been found in the stomachs of fish, whales, birds and other marine animals which leads to ingestion of hazardous chemicals and digestive blockages. The pieces can get lodged in an animal's intestinal tract or build up in its stomach, which can often lead to the animal's death.This litter reduces water quality and potentially harms our precious marine life. Ingestion of plastic cigarette filters is a continuing threat to wildlife. Chemicals in cigarette butts easily leach out of the butts, and are deadly to small but important animals that live in most freshwater lakes and streams as well as the ocean. Discarded cigarette butts pose a significant threat to our environment in terms of fire. Every year, forest fires bring heavy destruction to areas, killing off wildlife and vegetation that take years to return.Some of those fires are started by natural causes; drought, and lightening. But according to the National Fire Protection Agency, upwards of 90,000 fires every year in the United States alone are caused by cigarettes. Cigarette-induced fires claim hundreds of lives in the United States each year, and injure thousands more, not to mention the millions of dollars that go up in smoke in property damage. Flicked butts can cause fires. When thrown from a motor vehicle into dried grass butts can start a grassfire or even a bushfire. Fires destroy habitats for animals, and homes.According to the American Burn Association, about 900 people in the United States die each year in fires started by cigarettes, and about 2,500 are injured. About 100 of the fire deaths each year are children and nonsmokers. Nationally, annual human and property costs of fires caused by careless smoking total about $6 billion. In 1997, there were more than 130,000 cigarette related fires. A cigarette-caused fire is currently responsible for one of the largest forest fires in Canadian history. The smoker has been identified, but Canadian authorities are trying to determine whether he should be charged with a crime.People who throw cigarette butts out of cars while driving are completely clueless to the deathly accidents they can cause. It has been suggested that cigarette butts represent the biggest litter problem facing the world today. There are many reasons why cigarette butts are such a huge environmental issue. First of all, most people don't think of them as litter. Cigarette butts contain all the carcinogenic chemicals, pesticides, and nicotine that make tobacco use the leading cause of preventable death worldwide, yet they are commonly, unconsciously dumped by the trillions (5. trillions and counting) into the global environment each year. A recent study showed that cigarette waste easily meets standardized tests for city and state agencies to label a substan ce as toxic waste. Smokers are now spending most of their time smoking outdoors and tossing their butts away on the concrete rather than putting them in to a receptacle. It is very common for highly littered items such as soda cans, snack wrappers, and fast food containers to have a simple â€Å"Please Don't Litter† message. You won't find such a message on cigarette packs.Tobacco companies used filters as a marketing tool in an effort to allay fears about the harm caused by cigarettes, even after the companies knew that filters did not reduce risk. Plastic bags have been banned in a number of communities, and plastic tampon inserters have been considered for regulation by several states as environmental hazards and beach blight. The plastic cigarette filter could also be banned to reduce a huge source of unsightly, non-biodegradable plastic waste. Prohibitions on smoking in enclosed spaces have reduced indoor air pollution and related health risks for millions.Certainly, pro hibitions on smoking in outdoor public places, including parks, beaches and even outdoor urban areas will prevent some butt waste flowing into our aquatic environments. Cigarette butt waste is the last socially acceptable form of littering in what has become an increasingly health and environmentally conscious world. The best way to educate the public about this serious environmental problem is to start with people you know. If someone you know litters their cigarettes it is important you educate them on the deadly harm they are causing to themselves and to the environment. Somthing That Annoys You Everyone in life has something that annoys them, I have a thousand things that bother me. One thing that annoys me the most is when people litter their cigarette butts. Cigarette butts are the most commonly discarded piece of waste worldwide. The sight of disposed cigarettes is not only an unpleasant sight but disposing butts into the environment does a lot more damage than people realize. Most people are aware of the health risks involved in smoking, few seem to realize that cigarettes are also bad for the environment.Cigarette butt littering has an environmental, economic and social impact on the community. The most noticeable is the impact that butts have on our environment. There is a lot of misinformation out there regarding cigarette butt litter. People who smoke think that because butts are so small, they are relatively harmless. Cigarette filters are specifically designed to gather together particulate smoke components, including toxic chemicals such as cadmium, lead, arsenic and zinc. The biggest myth is that cigarette filters are biodegradable. Cigarette butts are not biodegradable.It's estimated that trillions of filters, filled with toxic chemicals from tobacco smoke, make their way into our environment as discarded waste yearly. The plastic filters can take many years to decompose. Smokers may not realize that their actions have such a lasting, negative impact on the environment. Absolutely everything about cigarettes can threaten life on our beloved planet. They pollute the ground we walk on and the air we breathe. And if we smoke, cigarettes poison us slowly, stealing our quality of life long before they kill us.Cigarette butts may seem small, but with several trillion butts littered every year, the toxic chemicals add up! Three side effects of littering cigarette buts that annoy me the most are, our polluted water, endangered wildlife and the fires caused due to cigarette littering. Cigarette smoke contains up to 4,000 chemicals so each second t he butt is left alight, dangerous toxins are released into the environment. Many people don’t realize that when it rains, water flowing through our streets, down our drains and through our storm water pipes ends up in our harbors, beaches and rivers.Storm water is not treated so all litter and cigarette butts carried by storm water are dumped directly into these waterways. When cigarette butts are discarded on the ground, many of the toxic chemicals will leach out of the cigarette and will run in to the lakes and oceans. Cigarette butts can leach chemicals such as cadmium, lead and arsenic into our marine environment within an hour of contact with water. Cigarette butts can take up to 12 months to break down in fresh water and up to 5 years to break down in seawater. According to the Audubon Society, smoke-free beach laws help reduce butts on beaches by 45%.Cigarette waste accounts for almost a third of the total amount of litter found on US shorelines alone. Cigarette butts are not just ugly, they also present a threat to wildlife. Plastic pieces have been found in the stomachs of fish, birds, whales and other marine creatures that mistake them for food. Cigarette butts have been found in the stomachs of fish, whales, birds and other marine animals which leads to ingestion of hazardous chemicals and digestive blockages. The pieces can get lodged in an animal's intestinal tract or build up in its stomach, which can often lead to the animal's death.This litter reduces water quality and potentially harms our precious marine life. Ingestion of plastic cigarette filters is a continuing threat to wildlife. Chemicals in cigarette butts easily leach out of the butts, and are deadly to small but important animals that live in most freshwater lakes and streams as well as the ocean. Discarded cigarette butts pose a significant threat to our environment in terms of fire. Every year, forest fires bring heavy destruction to areas, killing off wildlife and vegetation that take years to return.Some of those fires are started by natural causes; drought, and lightening. But according to the National Fire Protection Agency, upwards of 90,000 fires every year in the United States alone are caused by cigarettes. Cigarette-induced fires claim hundreds of lives in the United States each year, and injure thousands more, not to mention the millions of dollars that go up in smoke in property damage. Flicked butts can cause fires. When thrown from a motor vehicle into dried grass butts can start a grassfire or even a bushfire. Fires destroy habitats for animals, and homes.According to the American Burn Association, about 900 people in the United States die each year in fires started by cigarettes, and about 2,500 are injured. About 100 of the fire deaths each year are children and nonsmokers. Nationally, annual human and property costs of fires caused by careless smoking total about $6 billion. In 1997, there were more than 130,000 cigarette related fires. A cigarette-caused fire is currently responsible for one of the largest forest fires in Canadian history. The smoker has been identified, but Canadian authorities are trying to determine whether he should be charged with a crime.People who throw cigarette butts out of cars while driving are completely clueless to the deathly accidents they can cause. It has been suggested that cigarette butts represent the biggest litter problem facing the world today. There are many reasons why cigarette butts are such a huge environmental issue. First of all, most people don't think of them as litter. Cigarette butts contain all the carcinogenic chemicals, pesticides, and nicotine that make tobacco use the leading cause of preventable death worldwide, yet they are commonly, unconsciously dumped by the trillions (5. trillions and counting) into the global environment each year. A recent study showed that cigarette waste easily meets standardized tests for city and state agencies to label a substan ce as toxic waste. Smokers are now spending most of their time smoking outdoors and tossing their butts away on the concrete rather than putting them in to a receptacle. It is very common for highly littered items such as soda cans, snack wrappers, and fast food containers to have a simple â€Å"Please Don't Litter† message. You won't find such a message on cigarette packs.Tobacco companies used filters as a marketing tool in an effort to allay fears about the harm caused by cigarettes, even after the companies knew that filters did not reduce risk. Plastic bags have been banned in a number of communities, and plastic tampon inserters have been considered for regulation by several states as environmental hazards and beach blight. The plastic cigarette filter could also be banned to reduce a huge source of unsightly, non-biodegradable plastic waste. Prohibitions on smoking in enclosed spaces have reduced indoor air pollution and related health risks for millions.Certainly, pro hibitions on smoking in outdoor public places, including parks, beaches and even outdoor urban areas will prevent some butt waste flowing into our aquatic environments. Cigarette butt waste is the last socially acceptable form of littering in what has become an increasingly health and environmentally conscious world. The best way to educate the public about this serious environmental problem is to start with people you know. If someone you know litters their cigarettes it is important you educate them on the deadly harm they are causing to themselves and to the environment.

Hamlet Character Analysis - 918 Words

In the play Hamlet, Shakespeare raises the question regarding deception and the differences between â€Å"seeming† and â€Å"being†. Each character is trying to decipher what each other are truly thinking, contrary to what they are pretending to think. Shakespeare sets Hamlet up to illustrate the complexity of how one must deceive others to reveal the truth.  ¬Ã‚ ¬The coexistence of appearances and reality develops as the Danish court gets engulfed in a web of corruption, lies and deception. Through how Shakespeare develops his characters, specifically Hamlet, it reveals the tension between reality and illusions which allows the reader to question what is real and what is a product of our illusions. Regarding character development, Shakespeare really†¦show more content†¦From a reader’s perspective, there should be no doubt to the artificiality of his insanity. Hamlet’s â€Å"antic disposition† reveals Hamlet’s wit in which even Po lonius recognizes when he claims, â€Å"through this be madness, yet there is a method in t’† (II.ii.195). A truly mad person does not have a method to his madness, which is a result of a force other than will. Even though Hamlet initially has control over his madness, as the play progresses Hamlet gradually loses the power to control his â€Å"antic disposition†. Hamlet explains how â€Å"thus conscience does make cowards of us all, and thus the native hue of resolution is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought† (III.i.84-86) and how his conscience is holding him back from getting revenge, but his obsession with killing Claudius only serves to pull Hamlet away from his conscience. His obsession for revenge only serves to exacerbate his madness therefore, controlling Hamlet. Shakespeare also begins to question the extent in which a lie can possibly become the truth if acted on for long enough, establishing dramatic tension in Hamlets fate. Sha kespeare utilizes Ophelia to describe Hamlet’s â€Å"antic disposition† as well as how it affects her character. An important scene that affect’s Ophelia is when Hamlet tells her to â€Å"get thee to a nunnery† (III.i.138). Hamlet denies ever having love Ophelia after revealing that he did love her once. It is ambiguous if this is just a gameShow MoreRelatedAn Analysis of the Characters in Hamlet Essay1592 Words   |  7 PagesAn Analysis of the Characters in Hamlet Hamlet by William Shakespeare has been considered by many critics as one of the best plays in English literature. It has also been considered as one of the best tragedies among the many Shakespeare wrote. It is a story which revolves around this person called Hamlet, prince of Denmark. It is set in the Elizabethan times in the 16th century. It is a tragedy because it results in the deaths of many characters either accidentallyRead MoreHamlet Character Analysis Essay1014 Words   |  5 PagesNicole Ventzke Crystal Jensen 1102 T/H 2/14/11 Hamlet Character Analysis: Hamlet One aspect that makes William Shakespeare’s Hamlet alluring is how he broke the limiting mold of the one-dimensional character by representing characters in all of their human complexity. Hamlet, for example, is a compelling character because he is complicated. As Hamlet himself observes early in the play in, â€Å"Tis not alone my inky cloak/nor customary suits of solemn black, /Nor†¦forced breath/No, nor the fruitfulRead MoreCharacter Analysis Of Hamlet1065 Words   |  5 Pageswill be explaining where and when Hamlet talks about certain characters, to help explain how he thinks about them (ex: King Hamlet, Claudius, and Gertrude). This essay will help to explain Hamlet as well as his thought process throughout the book (story). In Act 1, Scene 2 (Gertrude) (Lines 141-145) Quote â€Å"That he might not beteem the winds of heaven Visit her face too roughly.—Heaven and earth, Must I remember?† In this first part from line 141 to 143 Hamlet says â€Å"Oh God, do I have to rememberRead MoreThe Analysis of the Character Ophelia on Hamlet Essay1297 Words   |  6 PagesIn William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Ophelia is the most static character in the play. Instead of changing through the course of the play, she remains suffering in the misfortunes perpetrated upon her. She falls into insanity and dies a tragic death. Ophelia has issues surviving without a male influence, and her downfall is when all the men in her life abandon her. Hamlet’s Ophelia, is a tragic, insane character that cannot exist on her own. In Elizabethan times, Ophelia is restricted as a woman. SheRead MoreHamlet Character Analysis Essay1408 Words   |  6 Pagesout at the bond of brotherhood with a lethal blow is to tear at the foundations of an entire family, as members scramble in reaction to the completely distorted dynamic. The Bard’s magnum Opus, Hamlet, attempts to deal with the effects of such a blow after Claudius, the proverbial Cain, slays King Hamlet, the stand in for Abel. However, the familial relations affected are significantly more complicated, being elevated to the political stage and invlovling a perverted inscet. Furthermore, after killingRead MoreAnalysis of Ophelias Character in Shakespeares Hamlet Essay1159 Words   |  5 PagesIn the English play Hamlet, Shakespeare incorporates deep analytical thought in his writing by the use of character, symbolism, and motifs. Specifically, readers can find these characteristics through analytical reading of the character Ophelia. While initially r eading the story, Ophelia represents a character that is typical of the women in the 1600s, one who is too submissive and directed by the people around her. First impressions of Ophelias character seem much too simplistic- one that is emotionallyRead MoreEssay about A Character Analysis of Hamlet1897 Words   |  8 PagesHamlet fascinates many readers and the first thing to point out about him is that he is mysterious. Shakespeares work demonstrates Hamlets dilemma as the role of revenger showing a man of thought forced to be a man of action. Hamlet is extremely philosophical and introspective. He is particularly drawn to difficult questions or questions that cannot be answered with any certainty. Faced with evidence that his uncle murdered his father, Hamlet becomes obsessed with proving his uncles guilt beforeRead MoreCritical Analysis of Hamlet: Character Analysis and the Themes of Revenge and Manipulation1851 Words   |  8 PagesThe play Hamlet is a text that despite its age and Elizabethan linguistic style is still resoundingly relevant to today’s modern audience due to its ability to move past time related contextual barriers and capture the universality of the human condition with its infinite confusion as evident in the character of Prince Hamlet, its ability to influence and manipulate as well as its reaction to such manipulation, revenge. The character of Hamlet himself is very relatable today especially to youngRead MoreCharacter Analysis of Gertude in Shakespeares Hamlet607 Words   |  2 PagesI do believe that Gertrude is still a mother to Hamlet as well. 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Her dreams were all about the young prince Hamlet; she believed he was the