Analyzing Notes of a Native Son Essay -- James Baldwin

Analyzing â€Å"Notes of a Native Son† James Baldwin is a highly renowned African-American essay writer who is best known for his ability to interweave narrative and argument into concise well-written essays. He had his first book published at the early age of 19 and has published some astounding literature during the time of civil rights activism. He succeeded himself to rise out of his poverty to become an amazing writer through self-determination and courage. In his essay entitled, â€Å"Notes of a Native Son†, Baldwin does an excellent job making use of binaries and repetition of words and phrases as well as switching back and forth from narrative to analysis. He also cleverly connects his progressively raising maturity and understanding of the world to the unique style in which Baldwin writes throughout his work. We will now dissect this essay and see how Baldwin uses special writing techniques to make for a very powerful and meaningful composition. The essay starts strongly with Baldwin providing insightful narrative in order to set the stage of his writing. By the second page of his essay, Baldwin has already developed his first binary. He emphasizes the black/white relationship. He continually refers to the â€Å"blackness† of his father and how his father was a proud, beautiful and powerful black man in his day (Baldwin 64). He then tells of his discovery of how â€Å"white people† helped to kill his father (65). Soon after, Baldwin addresses another binary, this one being life and death. His mother realizes that it was James’ father who â€Å"kept the family alive† (66). All the while, Baldwin’s father is slowly dying. Another example of the life/death binary occurs when Baldwin acknowledges that his â€Å"father had spent too much of his ener... ...ather really is as a person and is ready to express his inner feelings to his father. At the end of the essay, a strong message is conveyed. Baldwin learns that love, which is synonymous to his constant use of the word hatred, must prevail and that with love, acceptance and equal power can finally be attained (84). He also says that bitterness is pointless and that life and death are far more important and significant than the black/white power struggle. The end of the essay closes gracefully because Baldwin has now revealed the use of his writing techniques of â€Å"Notes of the Native Son† and he has also fully matured and is now able to see his father in a positive light for the very first time in his life. Works Cited Baldwin, James. â€Å"Notes of a Native Son.† 1955. James Baldwin: Collected Essays. Ed. Toni Morrison. New York: Library of America, 1998. 63-84.

Culture Studies for Fashion Essay

This essay discusses how fashion helps convey the social identity of the rich and wealthy. Status includes class, gender, and ages. Status is important in today’s society. As Coco Chanel said, †women should dress as plainly as their maids† (Davis 1992:57). A person who is wealthy is a symbol of a person who is successful and of high income in the society. Being wealthy can upgrade one’s status to a higher class, and to be associated with the upper class society. Being wealthy will bring about better lifestyle and standard of living, which allows one to move to a better place and area of residence. Naturally, it creates a bigger opportunity to mingle with societies of a different class. This essay will discuss about status and wealth followed by the history of fashion and how important the type of fabric is in differentiating status and classes. We will then discuss about how technology in the 21st century has helped in the development of fashion. In the late 13th and 14th century, the fabric and gem trade brought back from the east started and spread throughout Europe. These fabric and cloths could only be afforded by the rich, thus wearing these clothes showed the status in the society. This was as Davis (1992; 58) said, ‘Wearing one’s wealth on one’s back’. Different classes of people had very different lifestyles and attended different activities. For example the upper class people went shopping, had afternoon tea, attended evening balls, and were presented the chance to have an education in school. The standard of living was very vastly different as lower class people had to suffer, go through hunger, and possess no extra money for anything other than their basic necessities. Their source of income were either by working day and night in the factory, working as maids for the rich or operating small business stalls. Aristocrats and upper class people communicated their wealth by wearing luxurious brands, expensive accessories, jewelry, and unique apparels from famous designers, and the men talk about business, cars, property, and women. In the eighteenth century, male and female of the aristocracy, and of the upper Bourgeoisie who emulated it, were equally partial to ample display of lace, rich velvets, fine silks, and embroideries, on appease. To highly ornamented footwear, to coiffures, wigs, and hats of rococo embellishment, and to lavish use of scented powders, rouges, and other cosmetics (Los Angeles Country Museum of Art 1983 in Davis 1992). In the twentieth to twenty first century, technology started to become more and more advance. People started to be more reliant on computers. Internet has become a very useful gateway to immediate information. The mass public has fast and direct access to information through the Internet, as an example they can also now browse luxury brands website, watch fashion shows, and do online shopping. Therefore with the ease of access to information, marketing and publicity of a product can reach the consumer level faster than ever before. When a jewelry or luxury brand’s product is worn, people can easily recognize the product and have an idea of a person’s wealth through the worth of their attire. According to Arvanitidou and Gasouka ‘Dressing is an important and controllable way to communicate one’s values, particularly rich in emotional and psychosocial consequences’. People are willing to pay for luxury brand as the brand name is associated with fashion, elegance, class and value. Some example of the designer brands under the luxury category are such as Louis Vuitton, Prada, Chanel, Gucci, Salvatore Ferragamo, Hermes, Versace and others. These luxury brands have been well known in the fashion retail market for a long time. Buying branded goods is like insurance for women as it can easily be sold in the second hand market apart from it being fashionable and trendy. The other reason luxury brands sell well is due to is timeless, evergreen design. Some classic designs will stand the test of time. Shopping to women has a therapeutic effect, be it in shopping malls, luxury shops, or department stores. They indulge in the moment and make themselves happy, especially when buying from luxury brands. Upper class people have the financial capability to purchase most of the things that they like. They also like to compare amongst themselves, so they are ometimes under peer pressure to have the latest and the most fashionable product in order to show off and convince people of their status in the society. With this, they would be able to show that they are wealthy enough to enjoy the luxury brand’s quality products and prove their status. Drama and television advertisement has become a major influence in marketing and publicity of products, especially to the young people. Young people in the twenty first century like to idolize film stars, celebrities, and Korean pop stars, following closely their news, styles, actions, and lifestyles. As the Internet now is very advanced, young people can see live news on the Internet and share the news out to their circle of contact. The standard of living today has changed globally and young people today have higher disposable income. This allows them to chase after branded goods as we are living in a much commercialized world today. We are hit with commercials and advertisements in every direction, from the television, to the radio, magazines, billboards, sponsors of sports, etc. Therefore young people today are also chasing after luxury brands to be associated with status and class. Young children in the twenty first century are more matured thinking; they use make up, wear sexy dresses, and make themselves looks like an adult. They make up a big portion of market share for new technology products which is in trend such as Ipad mini, Iphone5, and Samsung note two. Possessing either one of these product, people will easily recognize their wealth through the product’s worth. In conclusion, wealth is an important factor complementing status. Historically, there was a big difference between aristocracies, upper class people and lower class people in terms of lifestyle and attire. Wearing the right clothes, the appropriate dress for the occasion, fitting in rather than standing out, is the dominant concerns of most people’ (Twigg 2009: 4). Wearing a classic, elegant gown in an evening party is very important in forming the impression of yourself on status and class. Internet and the latest technological products are very useful in helping people receive firsthand information. The products of latest technology are most of the time expensive, and holding the latest items will show that one is wealthy.

Quotations by King Alfred the Great

Alfred was extraordinary for an early medieval king in several respects. He was a particularly wily military commander, successfully keeping the Danes at bay, and he wisely shored up defenses when the enemies of his kingdom were occupied elsewhere. At a time when England was little more than a collection of warring kingdoms, he established diplomatic relations with his neighbors, including the Welsh, and unified a substantial portion of the heptarchy. He displayed remarkable administrative flair, reorganizing his army, issuing important laws, protecting the weak, and promoting learning. But most unusual of all, he was a gifted scholar. Alfred the Great translated several works from Latin into his own language, Anglo-Saxon, known to us as Old English, and wrote some works of his own. In his translations, he sometimes inserted comments that offer insight not only into the books but into his own mind. Here are some notable quotations from the notable English king, Alfred the Great. I desired to live worthily as long as I lived and to leave after my life, to the men who should come after me, the memory of me in good works. From  Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius Remember what punishments befell us in this world when we ourselves did not cherish learning nor transmit it to other men. From  Pastoral Care by Pope Gregory the Great Therefore he seems to me a very foolish man, and very wretched, who will not increase his understanding while he is in the world, and ever wish and long to reach that endless life where all shall be made clear. From Blooms (aka Anthology) Very often it has come to my mind what men of learning there were formerly throughout England, both in religious and secular orders; and how there were happy times then throughout England; and how the kings, who had authority over this people, obeyed God and his messengers; and how they not only maintained their peace, morality, and authority at home but also extended their territory outside; and how they succeeded both in warfare and in wisdom; and also how eager were the religious orders both in teaching and in learning as well as in all the holy services which it was their duty to perform for God; and how people from abroad sought wisdom and instruction in this country; and how nowadays, if we wished to acquire these things, we would have to seek them outside. From the preface to Pastoral Care When I recalled how knowledge of Latin had previously decayed throughout England, and yet many could still read things written in English, I then began, amidst the various and multifarious afflictions of this kingdom, to translate into English the book which in Latin is called Pastoralis, in English Shepherd-book, sometimes word for word, sometimes sense for sense. From the preface to Pastoral Care For in prosperity a man is often puffed up with pride, whereas tribulations chasten and humble him through suffering and sorrow. In the midst of prosperity the mind is elated, and in prosperity a man forgets himself; in hardship, he is forced to reflect on himself, even though he be unwilling. In prosperity a man often destroys the good he has done; amidst difficulties, he often repairs what he long since did in the way of wickedness. ― Attributed. In recent years, the veracity of Alfreds authorship has been called into question. Did he really translate anything from Latin to Old English? Did he write anything of his own? Check out the arguments in Jonathan Jarretts blog post, Deintellectualising King Alfred.

The Top 10 Wildlife Conservation Organizations

A Book Based On Experiences And Life Of Dr. Otis Brawley

How we do harm is a book based on experiences and life of Dr. Otis Brawley’s life as a practicing oncologist at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, and researcher for the National Cancer Institute. This book is based on many issues and facts that our medical system is facing now. He pulls back the curtain on how medicine is really practiced in America. This book shows us every aspect of the complicated triangle relationship between patients, disease and doctors. This book starts with a patient Edna Riggs who was carrying her detached breast in a bag waiting for doctors to get operated on; she was suffering from advanced stage of breast cancer which in turn resulted in infection and eventual auto mastectomy. This sheds light on the†¦show more content†¦Brawley calls for rational healthcare, healthcare drawn from results-based, scientifically justifiable treatments, and not just the peddling of hot new drugs. He also expressed his thoughts on racism in medicine . He explains reasoned analysis of racially driven information, why black people are afraid of taking medical aid and about his experience as a black doctor practicing, and his interactions with black and white patients, where black people are afraid of doctors where as white not trusting a black doctor. He explains about project LEAD a breast cancer advocacy group founded by Dr. Susan where all the members in this group are trained with a special curriculum using science, statistics and epidemiology. They teach about latest treatments of breast cancer and all about it. Author repeatedly refers to audience in many occasions to fight for the cause of right information and better health care. This book refers a single point that all cancer patients die because of poor medical care. According to author neither rich nor poor are getting close to optimum care considered by him. He says rich suffer from over medicating and unnecessary treatment while poor suffer from inability to access health care. Brawley’s efforts to address the workings of the â€Å"cancer industry† and the ways in which it fails patients. This, to me, is the real

Communication in Teamwork free essay sample

In most things that humans do there is some level of teamwork needed to successfully accomplish tasks in everyday life. Exemplary communication is essential to a team’s success because without it there would be no way of coordinating efforts to accomplish a goal. Making the project seem like one cohesive piece would be impossible if members could not communicate well enough to figure out what needs to be done in order to complete any considerable feat. There are seven characteristics of effective teamwork; â€Å"these characteristics are productive conflict resolution, mature communication, role clarity, accountable interdependence, goal clarification, common purpose and psychological safety (Bianey, para. 6). † The most significant action anyone can take to putting together a good team requires communication. The communication needed is not your everyday nonchalant greetings and pleasantries. While a smiling face and friendly demeanor will appease most people, working with a team requires more value in the work you are able accomplish despite your dental work. Trust must be built and organization must be established if the task at hand is to be resolved. Having a decent attitude is the best way to approach teamwork, but without ample communication from all involved then there is no way of identifying the best skills of each member to appropriately dole out the work load. Members must be able to communicate well within the group to be successful because there is really no other way to properly coordinate aspects of the project that everyone is to be a part of. A nationwide survey of employee attitudes found that workers see teamwork declining throughout their organizationsas well as between departmentsand that communications between departments also has fallen off since last year (Anonymous, para. 1). † To make an assignment cohesive, though many people worked on the same project, it is important to communicate the tone that all members agree would be best for the intended audience. â€Å"On the brighter side, workers rated their com mitment to quality extremely high (but even that declined 0. %). Employees said they would continue to recommend their workplaces to friends and family looking for a job, although with a bit less certainty (Anonymous, para. 5). † Without everyone doing their part and communicating discrepancies within the team there can be no hope of peaceful cooperation and it is almost certain that the project in question will fail to meet the mark of excellence. If there is a failure to communicate properly then there is little hope of resolving questions within the team structure. While reading and writing are absolutely essential to the academic success of any student, the aspect of speaking skillsor effective communication skillsis often considered ancillary instruction, something to do if there is enough time, since speaking is assumed to be an innate skill. (Tuleja, para. 1)† Having other team members who may be able to assist with questions or concerns, which is part of the basi s of team work, then it will build communication skills and knowledge. There is little doubt that any one could complete some assigned goal without the assistance of a team, but the reasons team work is incorporated is that the work will go much faster if multiple people contribute to the issue at hand and they all attempt to work well together through communication. Communicating with each other also attributes to a broader range of experience, intelligence, and creativity. By enhancing performance in the area of communication, the team will have a better chance at success in any situation, from work to school and your home life in general as well. Oral communication is the most important competency for college graduates entering the workforce, and that the oral skills most important for entry level graduates are: following instructions, listening, conversing, and giving feedback (Weldy, para. 1). † Some examples of techniques that may be helpful to establishing communication within the team might include: †¢Organize a short â€Å"Meet and Greet† for team members that are unfamiliar with each other. Decide how each member’s schedule will work with completing the required time constraints for the project at hand. Determine a leader for the duration of the project or for each stage of the task depending on specialties. †¢Discuss the value of each member’s expertise and how to apply it to each task for the project. †¢Break the work load down into small goals of accomplishment depending on the task schedule. †¢Keep in close contact with each member so all feel the support of the group as a whole. With communication it is more than possible for any number of people from different backgrounds to effectively make the most out of a team situation. â€Å"Both the team leader and team members must isk making mistakes and even failing occasionally. Although no one should be encouraged to make mistakes, implementing creative ideas does carry the risk of failure (Temme, para. 15). † All it really takes is some understanding and diligent work. If everyone h as a part to play then everyone should play their part. In summation, the common theme is that communication is the key to successfully relating to other people. â€Å"You cannot demand teamwork. It must be discussed and understood by everyone involved (Temme, para. 5). For example, Surgeons must communicate well in the operating room or people could die. Sometimes, â€Å"team members have disparate perceptions about how well they are communicating or collaborating with each other (Mills, para. 16). † In more ways than one, communication carries what could be a disaster to a beautiful reconciliation. â€Å"Consequently, assessment of communication effectiveness in surgical teams will enable timely problem solving and potential interventions in the provision of surgical care (Mills, para. 15). † This goes for any sort of team; a swimming club, for example, or the boy scouts, even a marriage requires teamwork and with it communication is key. When you communicate, you win, and even if you do not win (these things do happen) at least you will know why. Your team members conveyed their concerns and the project was accomplished to the best of all your abilities. â€Å"The main point here is that calling a team a team does not make it a team! Teambuilding must become a way of life a behavior change on the part of management and its employees. (Temme, Para. 6). † Life is also unpredictable and the value of team work in life with your loved ones can create stability and keep relationships friendly through strong communication and a bit of organization and compassion.

Tax and Reagan free essay sample

At the end of the Carter presidency, the nation’s idealistic dreams of the 60’s was worn down by inflation, foreign policy turmoil and rising crime rate, the nation was troubled by the late 70’s. Due to this many Americans were ready to embrace a new conservatism in social, economic and political life in the 80’s. In the 1980 bid for President, Reagan won the Republican nomination after two failed attempts in 1968 and 1976. Although Ronald Reagan once held Democratic views, he grew more conservative and he official took the side of the Republicans in the 1960’s. Reagans domestic views were the change Americans were looking for and Reagan, along with his running mate George H. W Bush, won the 1980 election. In his 1981 inauguration, Reagans famous words about the economy were, â€Å"In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problems; government is the problem. † After only 71 days in office Reagan survived an assassination attempt and gained even more support from Americans. We will write a custom essay sample on Tax and Reagan or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page So he initiated his domestic policies by advancing a set of policies, also known as Reaganomics, his policies were launched as a three prong assault on taxes, social welfare spending and regulatory bureaucracy. Reagan organized his cabinet, and with the release of the Iranian hostages the day he was inaugurated, freed Reagan and his cabinet to dig right in to come up with a solution to fix the economy. Two major components of the solution was to reduce taxes and budget cuts. Reagan emphasized the importance of supply side economics and the importance of investments to bolster the economy. To boost investments, after just a few weeks in office Reagan submitted a tax reduction plan to congress which would reduce taxes by 23 percent over three years and trim the budget by 41 billion. Reagan won approval of the Economic Recovery Tax Act. Due to the act passing, the tax rate for wealthy American dropped from 70 percent to 50 percent. This freed up money for the wealthy to invest in productive enterprises. Corporate income tax rate was also reduced from 70 percent to 34 percent. Also under this tax plan individual tax brackets were indexed for inflation and the poor were exempt from individual income tax. The most important aspect of Reaganomics is the major reversal of the tax treatment of business income. In 1981 a set of investment incentive was approved, the tax bill the Accelerated Cost Recovery System as part of the Economic Recovery Tax Act was put in place. The ACRS idea was to increase the tax deduction for the depreciation of property, this freed up more cash for business to expand. And since this was put into place during a recession, it released a copious amount of cash flow and expected to add between $50 and $100 billion to the incomes of businesses and individuals income. This expansion would increase government revenues and offset the loss of tax dollars stemming from the original tax cut. The investment incentives would gradually be reduced over the period of 1981 to 1985, in 1996 the tax laws broadened what businesses and individuals could claim as a tax deduction. A culmination of this as well as tax cuts reduced the federal revenue GDP from 20. 2 percent in 1981 to 19. 2 percent in 1989 at the end of the Reagan presidency. Reagan wanted to turn our nation back into the once leader of capitalist societies after we had helped rebuild Germany and Japan, their industry thrived due to newer more productive technology taking America out as the leader. America was stuck with old equipment that was not as efficient as Germany and Japan. Reagan understood that providing companies with tax breaks that the extra money in tax breaks would allow companies to restore their companies with newer more efficient technology to gain the leadership back. But cutting taxes was not going to be enough to put the economy back into place, the budget needed to be balanced and with that came cutbacks To balance the budget Reagans budget director, David Stockman, hoped to offset the tax reduction with comparable cutbacks in federal expenditures. To try to obtain this goal, Stockman proposed cutbacks in Social Security and Medicare. These measures seemed too ambitious as Congress and the President rejected the notion, not wanting to cause hostile feelings among the middleclass who views their benefits as sacred. Reagan was a firm believer that the less involved the government was in the lives of individuals and affairs of businesses, the more prosperous we would become. He scaled back government spending on programs such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children and school lunch programs and pushed the responsibilities onto each state. Reagan called this the â€Å"new federation†, where others called it cold-hearted Hooverism. As some charged that the economic program attacked the lower class, Reagan recalled his own impoverished child hood and still stood firm that the less fortunate were not going to thrive by taking handouts, rather help themselves by creating a thriving private sector where employment is available. The budget cuts affected the fastest growing programs in the 1960’s they included; food stamps, comprehensive employment and training act, federal guaranteed loan programs for higher education, these programs saw the highest cuts. Although all categories except for the defense budget, were affected by budget cuts, the two highest were income security and education, training, employment and social service. With some 21 million people receiving food stamps, Congress was very cautious on the cutbacks and although the cutbacks did occur most of the welfare programs were preserved due to their importance. The hardest hit were families with a low mean census income, or households only ran by one parent, typically the mother. The majority of these households that were affected were African American. Their assistance was either completely cut off because they were now considered above the poverty line or their assistance was cut back. This discouraged many women from working because non-working women were making more dispensable income per month relying on welfare benefits. Another class that these cutbacks affected were the nearly poor. They were the ones who were barely above the poverty line with the aid of food stamps and unemployment benefits, but because of their income level, were deemed that they did not need assistance and access to higher education and housing were restricted with this group. This group however struggled to make ends meet living off of just their incomes. Although Congress cutback welfare benefits, they continued to lavish huge subsidies and tariff protection to the huge business corporation and the rich farmers. Critics dubbed this â€Å"welfare for the rich†. And even though cut backs happened, the administration fell short of its goals and the deficit increased. This put our country into a severe recession, Reagan often received letters from impoverished Americans about their standard of living and Reagan would often respond with a handwritten note of encouragement and put a personal check in with it. His plan was that by giving too the corporations that their prosperity would trickle down to the lower class. By the middle of his first term, Reagan proved that his method was working, with decreased inflation and increased employment, his stimulus package was improving the economy. He showed Americans that government does not have to be relied on in order to make a living. Beginning in the late 1982’s Americans were enjoying the longest economic peacetime and by 1984 had more faith about the current economic system, and Reagan was credited for making it happen. But it is often overlooked that Reagan and his domestic policies created record debt and accumulated more debt than the government had seen in its entire history. This was partially because Reagan knew the importance of defense and was known to say, â€Å"Defense is not a budget item, you spend what you need. † Reagan along with his Defense Secretary, Casper Weinberges, pushed thru a 1. 2 trillion, 5 year military spending program. In this program, Reagan brought back to life some of the projects that were initiated during the Carter administration. He revived the B-1 program which Carter had cancelled due to the expense. But the most aspiring plan was the Strategic Defense Initiative dubbed the â€Å"Star Wars Initiative†. This plan was to devise satellites that were laser equipped so that it could detect and destroy incoming nuclear ballistic missiles, and destroy them before they could impact the United States. Regan made nuclear arms control one of the keynotes of his administration and called upon the nation’s scientist to use their talents to help make this plan become reality. With talks with the Soviet Union over weapons control, a meeting between Reagan and Gorbachev ended bitterly when Gorbachev demanded that talks of arms control were contingent of the US abolishing the SDI program. Regan continued with the program, Congress allowed the funding which reached to 30 billion dollars and did not have anything to show for it. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, by the mid 1990’s the SDI was forever put on hold. The Regan administration gave our nation hope. He was able to reduce inflation and increase employment. His defense plan however put the nation into the largest debt it had ever seen. Reaganomics to this day is still debated, supporters point out the 118 million jobs that it created along with the increase of trade. While critics say that his cutting of funding was irresponsible resulting in threats to public health and safety. When Reagan left office after 8 years he had the highest approval rating of any President since Roosevelt and the highest of any president since him as well.