Richard Morris Hunt : Administration Building Chicago 1893 :: Architecture History

missing image Richard Morris Hunt: Administration Building, Chicago, 1893 This 11 by 14 inch photogravure of the great Administration Building at the Chicago World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 was taken from a set of 25 drawings of the exposition buildings. It was the main focus of the fair, and one of the masterpieces of its architect, Richard Morris Hunt (1827-1895). With its fine classical detailing and sweeping scale, this large building was integral to the "White City" concept of the fair. To this day it remains one of the most recognizable landmarks associated with the Columbian Exposition . The Administration Building was conceived by a board of architects led by Daniel Burnham as part of the scheme for the Court of Honor, the major public space at the fair. As director of architecture and construction for the entire Columbian Exposition, Burnham was responsible for selecting designers for all the major buildings. After much debate, this group of mostly east coast practitioners decided that all the major buildings were to be cast in a pristine and highly decorative classical style based on the architecture of Antiquity. Burnham assigned the task of designing the most prominent building to arguably the most prominent man of the group, the New York architect Richard Morris Hunt. By the time Hunt was selected to design the Administration Building, he was near the end of his distinguished career. The first American architect to attend the prestigious Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, Hunt had acquired the status of "dean of American architecture" (Stein 3). His reputation was supported by his large output of fine eclectic buildings such as the Breakers in Newport (1892-95) and Biltmore House in Asheville, North Carolina (1888-95), both estates for the wealthy Vanderbilt family. These two stylistically different buildings exhibit the quality of Hunt's architecture known as the "grand manner," where he achieved monumentality by combining different sources of classical architecture. This quality was what attracted the fair organizers, and it would be carried to its furthest expression in the Administration Building. As the focal point of the fair, the Administration Building had an important symbolic function. Although not intended for anything related to the fair other than housing offices, the picture shows that it was much larger than necessary for administration purposes. Its great size related to its function as triumphal gateway into the fair. The large majority of visitors arrived by train at the station located directly behind the Administration Building.

Mercantilism & economic school Essay

Mercantilism was a dominant economic school on Europe in XVI-XVIII century. The theory suggests that the global turnover of international trade is constant and the prosperity of a nation depends on the government ability to support a positive balance of trade with other nations. Mercantilism considers economic assets as a set of stock including gold, silver and trade value (bullion). The way for the government to increase the capital is to intervene into economy through the system of tariffs and restrictions aimed on increase of export and decrease of import. There are several basic flaws in mercantilism. The first one is that is assumes that the turnover of international trade is stable. Thus, in case one state constantly benefits and another one constantly misses from trade the trade would very soon stop because the missing state would either become bankrupt or stop trading, leaving the advantageous state without income so both nations would loose. The second gap of mercantilism is that it does not consider costs of trade race. In case nations start to compete in increasing their export and reducing import this will cause them produce even the goods which are cheaper to buy in other countries. So, in case one nation would specialize in producing one commodity and other nation would produce another commodity, they would both benefit from exchanging those commodities. The third disadvantage of mercantilism is that it does not take into account the influence of gold on the financial system. Endless accumulation of gold and silver ruined the financial system of Spain in the XVII century, as the nation suffered from enormous inflation. The entire branches of home economy were ruined resulting in dramatic reduce of export and collapse of mercantilist economy. Absolute Advantage Theory Originally proposed by Adam Smith, this theory relies on the ability of one nation to produce commodities with fewer costs and exchange those commodities to the ones other countries produce at lower costs. The need for less resources to produce a particular good results in its lower and attractive price on the international market and allows nations to specialize in production of some exact commodities both for home market and export thusly reviving global economy. The first flaw of the absolute advantage theory is that it reviews isolated commodities. It says â€Å"in case we produce A better than another nation and another nation produces B better than we, so we would exchange†, but it does not consider relative expenses of such production. In his famous example with wine and wool produced by Portugal and Scotland Ricardo proved that although Portugal produced both with fever relative costs, it would be more advantageous for Portugal to produce only wine and let England produce wool to exchange for wine with Portugal as the relative expenses of production of wool in England are lower than of wine. The second gap of the theory is that it excludes countries which have no absolute advantage in any commodity out of global economy thus reducing the global turnover and excluding workers and financial resources of that nation out of global economy. In case this theory is applied, economy would turn into a club of nations which have certain absolute advantage in comparison to all other nations. Comparative Advantages Theory Originally proposed by David Ricardo, this theory suggests that every nation would benefit from production and export of only those goods and commodities which are produced with lower marginal costs than in other countries. Given that all the goods can be produced inside one country with an absolute advantage, this country would still benefit from import of goods which are produced with lower marginal costs in the other countries. The first remarkable disadvantage of the theory is that in case every nation would hypothetically specialize in only one commodity this would result in elimination of competition in production of this commodity and let the producing nation speculate. The lack of both home and international competition would make nation strive to reduce costs in production of this commodity reducing its quality. Other countries which are economically dependent on the import of this commodity would not be able to combat such a development. The second disadvantage which is especially obvious in the modern economy is that the relative advantages theory does considers only the flow of goods, but not capitals, investments and debts. For example, producing debts costs nothing, so it would be absolutely economically advantageous to produce debts. Yet this gives an advantage only for a very short term, while soon the nation would face a huge demand for currency to pay for the assets, and as a result the export would be ruined while the import would boost devastating the economic grounds for prosperity. The third gap is that short-term advantages can turn into long-term disadvantages. Sometimes it can be necessary for a nation to launch new industries which would become effective in a long term, so it has to give up on the comparative advantage theory to make profits in future. The Theory of Factor Endowment This is a mathematical theory of international trade proposed by Heckscher-Ohlin. Further developing Ricardo’s comparative advantage theory Heckscher-Ohlin offered to predict patterns of commerce based on endowments of a trading region. Comparative advantages are determined by the country’s funds like land, labor and natural resources. Assuming that both countries have equal technological development, each of them would benefit from trading goods requiring inputs of endowments that are locally abundant. For example, in case a nation has much land but little labor it would benefit from agricultural production. The flaws of the theory are as follows. First is that the states do not initiate trade as themselves, which is usually done by firms and corporations, and those firms strive to increase their benefit but not to make use of the factor endowment Secondly, the theory would work well in the conditions of a perfect competition that no nation ever has. The trading partners are never fully informed of the endowment factor of their vis-a-vis making it hard for them to determine the benefits of application of their own endowments. Thirdly, as the theory considers only funds, it does not look at the technological development which is never completely equal between various countries, as well as the theory does not consider the influence of organizational and management factors that can make a nation effective in production of a particular commodity even if the nation comparatively lacks endowment. Bibliography 1. Ball, Donald; McCulloh, Wendel, Geringer, Michael; Frantz, Paul; Minor, Michael. (2003). International Business: The Challenge of Global Competition. McGraw-Hill/Irwin; 9 edition. 2. Mankiw, Gregory N. (2006). Principles of Economics. South-Western College Pub; 4 edition 3. Buchholz, Todd G. (2007) New Ideas from Dead Economists: An Introduction to Modern Economic Thought Plume; Rev Upd edition

The Great Gastby

Abstract As the spokesman of the â€Å"Jazz Age†, F. Scott Fitzgerald , referred to his own experience, wrote his masterpiece-The Great Gatsby. Through abundant symbols, Fitzgerald profoundly depicted the society of Jazz Age and successfully displayed the disillusionment of American Dream, which existed in the majority of American in 1920s. To describe the restlessness of the â€Å"lost generation† in the â€Å"roaring twenties†, the author created several typical tragic characters. This paper, based on some symbolic theories, focuses on how the author brought his attitude to the surface to reveal the theme.And by analyzing the symbolic meanings of some leading characters, it further probes into the failure of American Dream. Key words Symbolism; characters; American Dream; disillusionment 1 Introduction 1. 1 Plot and characters review Jay Gatsby, formerly Jake Gatz, is a successful bootlegger with desire of being accepted in the highest social circles of Long Is land. Once he has done this, Gatsby spares no effort to win back the love of his former girlfriend Daisy, now married to a boorish â€Å"old-money† millionaire, Tom Buchanan.Gatsby's obsession with Daisy and his pursuit of this unworthy dream results in disillusionment and, ultimately, tragedy. Sidelines observer Nick Carraway, recounts the whole story. 1. 2 The spokesman of the â€Å"Jazz Age† F. Scott Fitzgerald is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. He was both a representative of his era and a severe critic of society. In his short life, Fitzgerald experiences overnight fame and wealth in 1920s but suffers a lot in 1930s, which shares much resemblance with American society.Furthermore, with a lot of works describing the expectation and disilluionment of the American young generation, he gained irreplaceable position in the history of American literature and was often called the spokesman of â€Å"Jazz Age†. The Great Gatsby, for which he was known, is somewhat a reflection of his experience and his attitude towards the American Dream. The novel shows the anomie following the First World War. During the â€Å"roaring† 1920s, American society enjoyed unprecedented levels of prosperity as the economy soared.At the same time, Prohibition, the ban on the sale and manufacutre of alcohol as mandated by the 18th century, made many bootleggers millionaires and led to an increase in organized crime. Although Fitzgerald, like Nick Carraway in his novel, idolized the riches of the age, he was uncomfortable with the unlimited materialism and the lack of morality that went with it. The value of money was mostly exaggerated during that age. The connection of the â€Å"old money† and â€Å"new money† is presented in geographical symbols of the novel: East Egg is the place where the established aristocracy lived, and West Egg – â€Å"the self-made rich†.Using his narratorâ€⠀œNick, the author told about his views of American Dream – it was â€Å"originally about discovery, individualism, and the pursuit of happiness† . 2 Symbolism in characters In the Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald skillfully selected diffirent people, such as Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan and Nick Carraway. This part will analyze the four main characters in detail and discuss their function in symbolism. 2. 1 Jay Gatsby Through the whole life of Gatsby we can see that he is the representative of the people who pursue the American dream.At first when Gatsby falls in love with Daisy, he is frustrated for the huge gap between their social status and wealth. Gatsby is a poor immigrant of low status but Daisy comes from an old wealthy American family. They belong to two totally different worlds under that condition where people all pursue money and material content. So their love is actually desperate and not realistic. He falls into great agony because he lost Daisy and he thinks they didn’t get married just because he is not rich enough.In Gatsby’s opinion, his dream of loving Daisy is ruined by the difference in their respective backgrounds, so he resorts to crime to make adequate money so as to impress Daisy and win her back. To some degree, he makes it. He gets the money he needs and then, through building up a large house and holding luxury parties and banquets, he successfully attracts Daisy’s attention. Daisy comes back to him, dating with him again. Gatsby is so happy to see that they finally return to their old days. But in fact, this is all his illusion, as their love is based on material possessions. He has lived not for himself, but for his dream, for his vision of the good life inspired by the beauty of a lovely rich girl. † The green light situated at the end of East Egg dock and visible from Gatsby’s West Egg lawn may be the best symbol of his unattainable dream. â€Å"He stretched out his arms tow ard the dark water in a curious way, and far as I was from him I could have sworm he was trembling. Involuntarily I glanced seaward—and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that might have been the end of a dock. In the end when Gatsby dies for the sake of Daisy, she just leaves him behind and goes to Europe with her husband to spend their holiday. Gatsby’s dream of a perfect Daisy and a happy life totally breaks up until now. The falling down of Gatsby’s dream represents the falling down of American Dream. Then why the dream fails in such a miserable way? First, Gatsby builds up an illusionary dream. He is fascinated with Daisy’s grace and charm, but blinds her shortcomings. â€Å"He gives Daisy an idealistic perfection that she cannot possess in reality† .Alhough later he comes to know that Daisy is not what she used to be and that she doesn’t love him, he cannot stop dreaming and continues to recall the old days. Gatsby’s dream is ruined by the unworthiness of its object, just as the American Dream in the 1920s is ruined by the unworthiness of its object—money and pleasure. Second, from the beginning he uses a wrong way to achieve his dream and this would inevitably lead to his dream’s coming into failure at last. He has made his fortune through racketeering and conducting suspicious business, regardless of the moral principles.The American dream of Gatsby corrupts as the unrestrained desire for money and pleasure surpasses those noble goals. More importantly, the sharp contrast between the ideal and the reality is due to result in the breakup of the dream. In some senses, Gatsby’s dream originated from the past, and made him sincerely persist. But when he was addicted into the past, he made efforts to find various possibilities in the future. He makes the historical past transform to the future in the vain hope.The green light representing his ideal fut ure, which also indicates the whole American ones, is unattainable. The American Dream destroys not only because of the profound social and historical reasons, but also being deeply concerned with the self-destructive characters of Gatsby. When Gatsby’s simple and naive characters are confronted with the cold society and moral decay of America, there will be no place for Gatsby to escape but die. In the end, the author wrote, â€Å"Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us.It eluded us then, but that's no matter – tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther †¦ And one fine morning – So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past† . Gatsby goes back ceaselessly into the past because the future is far too cruel to imagine. This is the tragedy of Gatsby: he himself lives in the past and is making a beautiful but illusionary dream of the future, so do the Ame ricans. 2. 2 Daisy Buchanan Throughout the book, Daisy is described almost in a fairytale tone.She is the princess in the castle, the wonderful girl that every man dreams of possessing. She is beautiful and rich and innocent and pure in her whiteness. â€Å"She dressed in white, and had a little white roadster †¦Ã¢â‚¬  . But that whiteness is mixed with the yellow of gold and the unavoidable corruption that money brings. Just as Gatsby once comments after their reunion, â€Å"her voice is full of money. † . Her love for Gatsby is conditioned by his wealth. When she saw Gatsby’s fabulous pile of shirts, she could not help crying:† I’ve never seen such — such beautiful shirts before. . For Daisy, her love associated closely with stable and extravagant life. Daisy proves her real nature when she chooses Tom over Gatsby, then allows Gatsby to take the blame for killing Myrtle Wilson even though she herself was driving the car. Finally, rather tha n attend Gatsby’s funeral, Daisy and Tom move away, leaving no forwarding address. Daisy lived in â€Å"a material world without being real, where poor ghosts, breathing like air. † Actually, Daisy stands for youth, gold and status, which many young Americans regard as their dreams.Yet, the dream has already became a nightmare, as it generates those money-oriented and power-persuing minds. As a social satire, Daisy is also a reflection on moral decadence in modern Amercian society. It is concerned with the corruption of values and the decline of spiritual life. Since the Industry Revolution, Americans have fallen in , not only the way of life through which they seeking for more luxurious enjoyment, but also wealth and status at the expense of moral decay. As a consequence, American Dream has totally failed to bring any kind of fulfillment, either spiritual or material. . 3 Tom Buchanan Tom Buchnan, the dude form Yale, is a liar, a hypocrite, and a bully. Being born int o a wealthy family has made him a spoiled man. He hasn’t really worked his entire life and instead, spends his days in indulgence and ease. All Tom’s feelings and actions are self-directed. He has a shameless affair with Myrtle because it satisfies his needs. He flaunts their relationship in public for he is a careless man who isn’t bothered by the sufferings he causes. This also attributes to he and Daisy’s escape in a situation where they would have to face.Tom is the typical character of his class. His social attitudes are laced with racism and sexism, and he never ever considers trying to live up to the moral standard he supposed to. Tom is â€Å"a scion of the great robber barons of the Gilded Age who seize the land, gutted the forests, laid the railroads, and turned the cities into vast urban fortresses for the purpose of protecting their own moneyed interests† . He represents descendants of those early pioneers, frontiersman and later settle rs who attempted to transform the Virgin Land into a New World Garden.These later empire-builders of the post-Civil War period, who were eager to replace crops with machines, set aside morality as easily and quickly as they attempted to buy up civilization. 2. 4 Nick Caraway Although Nick is not the hero in the novel, his importance as the narrator and a functional character makes him almost as much a central figure as Gatsby. He is Gatsby’s neighbor, Daisy’s cousin once removed, Tom’s classmate in college and the sweetie of Daisy’s close fried, Jordan.He is a tie, who connects many contradictions and conflicts among characters, and a key figure in the complicated relaion net. Nick uses his curious eyes to view Gatsby’s actions and holds sympathy to suppose Gatsby’s thoughts. As a witness who â€Å"has strong flexibility and broad and various information† , he can observe Gatsby’s actions standing far from him and take a neutra l and calm viw to value the story. Using â€Å"I† as witness to narrative the story, Fitzgerald let readers feel things directly while hid himself behind the case.Nick resembles Fitzgerald in such aspects as age, family background, education record, literary interest, military experience and seeks of fortune. â€Å"If Gatsby represents one part of Fitzgerald’s personality, the flashy celebrity who pursued and praised wealth in order to impress the woman he loved, then Nick represents another part: the quiet, reflective Midwesterner adrift in the lurid East† . So this may fully explain why Nick senses, understands and sympathizes Gatsby. The similarities between Nick and Fitzgerald make Nick voice more than the author.As a moral symbol he is the embodiment of a hope for moral and spiritual growth. Functioning as Fitzgerald’s speaker in making his ultimate value judgements, Nick realizes that the fast-paced, fun-driven lifestyle of New York is grotesque and damaging; an ideal based on materialism rather than a fulfilment of American Dream. Knowing the truth of the East, Nick quickly goes back without any hesitation. At the end, Nick is the only person escaping from the illusory American Dream and unfolds this tragic story to us all. 3 ConclusionIn the Great Gatsby, by using symbolic images, F. Scott Fitzgerald reveals the contradiction and inner conflict of the characters as well as displays his intelligence and excellent writing skill. The entire story is about the effect brought by the roaring age of reshaping people’s value , causing the deterioration of morality and running after money even one undeserved. Gatsby deadly accumulated great wealth in illegal way to get Daisy’ love, but he didn’t recognize people’s ugly inward—greedy of money and mean of kindness, and finally he died with everything lost.References [1] F. Scott Fitzgerald. The Great Gatsby. Jiangsu:YiLing Press, 1997 [2] Miller James E. Jr. F. Scott Fitzgerald: His Art and Technique. New York: New York University Press, 2001 [3] Wang Qiong. The Narrative Technique in â€Å"The Great Gatsby† from the Point View of Narration. Shanghai:Journal of Huzhou Teachers College, 2004 [4] Garrett George. Fire and Freshness: A Matter of Style in the Great Gatsby. In Matthew J. Broccoli (Ed), 2002 [5] Ernest H. Lockridge ed. Twentieth century interpretations of The Great Gatsby: A Collection of Critical Essays.Prentice-Hall, 1968 [6] Leech Geoffrey N & Short Michael H. New Essays on the Great Gatsby. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1985 [7] Zhang Tianjing. the Deeply Moving America Tragedy–Analysis the Great Gatsby. Journal of Xianyang Normal University, 2004 [8] Zhao Hongwei. Disillusionment of Gatsby’s† American Dream† From the Perspective of Society–Analysis of â€Å"The Great Gatsby†. Journal of Harbin University, 2003 [9] Mizener Arthur ed. F. Scott Fitzgerald: A Coll ection of Critical Essays, Englewood Cliffs. N. J: Prentice-Hall, 1963 The Great Gastby Chapter 7 1. Look up Trimalchio and decide whether that is an appropriate comparison for Gatsby. Trimalchio was the protagonist in Satyricon, by Petronius. He was a freedman who gained prestige and power through sheer tenacity and hard work. Once he attained his wealth, he enjoyed throwing lavish parties that were meant to impress his variety of guests. The comparison of Gatsby and Trimalchio is obvious. Both were newly rich, and trying to get the right attention. Fitzgerald's early version of Gatsby was actually titled â€Å"Trimalchio in West Egg†. 2.What has changed at Gatsby’s house? Why? Gatsby’s house becomes much quieter, and his parties come to an end because he no longer needed them to attract Daisy. 3. In chapter 1, Daisy and Jordan are lying on a couch. Find and compare the passage that this section repeats. 4. How do Gatsby and Daisy behave together? In the absence of Tom? With Tom around? While Tom is out of the room, Daisy kisses Gatsby on the lips and says she loves him. When Tom is around, Gatsby stares at Daisy with obvious passion and Daisy recklessly remarks, within earshot of Tom, that she loves Gatsby. . When is it that Tom realizes Daisy is in love with Gatsby? Why? After Daisy suggests they go to town, Tom witnesses a soft glance that passes between Daisy and Gatsby and can no longer deny the two of them are having an affair. 6. How does Gatsby characterize Daisy’s voice? What does that mean? How does that make sense to Nick? Gatsby says that her voice is â€Å"full of money† (-__-). For Gatsby, Daisy represents the wealth and elegance for which he has yearned all his life.It also shows that while Gatsby hesitates frequently, thinking before he speaks around these people because he was never really part of their world, Daisy, on the other hand, is free to do and say what she wishes, without worry, because she is so accustomed to living in this world. Nick realized that was the charm in her voice. 7. What does Tom learn about Wilson? What does Myrtle misinterpret? Tom learns that Wilson is trying to raise money to finance the move west that he has planned for him and his wife Myrtle.Myrtle is staring down from the windows above the garage at Jordan Baker, whom she seems to have mistaken for Daisy, her rival in love. 8. What is ironic about the music below the suite? 9. Describe the behavior of Tom, Gatsby, and Daisy. What is Nick’s attitude toward them? Tom and Gatsby have an argument, with Tom accusing Gatsby of lying about being an oxford man. When Gatsby successfully answers the question, Tom then explodes and asks him about his love affair with Daisy. Daisy tries and fails to quiet Tom.Nick remains a spectator of the scene and doesn’t say anything. 10. What is Gatsby’s insistence with Daisy? Why? How does this connect to earlier in the novel? Gatsby insists that Daisy never loved him, and not Tom, all these years. But when Daisy cannot honestly admit that ne ver loved Tom, Gatsby declares that Daisy is leaving Tom anyway. Gatsby does this because he realized that he was losing Daisy. 11. What does Nick realize about himself? How does it make him feel? Nick realizes that he that it is his 30th birthday.After Nick realizes it is his 30th birthday he acknowledges the fact that he has wasted too much of his time with people who do not actually care about anything other than wealth. He has spent a lot of his life on trivialities and sees that, all of a sudden, life is passing him by. His time with Nick, Jordan and the others has distracted him to the point where he loses focus of his own life and goals, thus, forgetting his own birthday. 12. Why does Myrtle Wilson die, according to Gatsby?How does this relate to her earlier misinterpretation? Because Daisy was driving and (accidentally? ) struck Myrtle. Myrtle saw Jordan Baker in the yellow car and thought she was Tom’s wife. She recognizes the yellow car as she’s running away and tries to speak to who she thinks is Jordan but it is in fact Daisy, the actual wife of Tom, who accidentally kills her. 13. What is the status of Daisy and Tom at the end of the chapter? Tom and Daisy have reconciled and it is obvious that they are going to stay together. 14.Compare Gatsby’s vigil at the end of the chapter with a similar moment earlier in the novel. Nick’s parting from Gatsby at the end of this chapter parallels his first sighting of Gatsby at the end of Chapter 1. In both cases, Gatsby stands alone in the moonlight pining for Daisy. In the earlier instance, he stretches his arms out toward the green light across the water, optimistic about the future. In this instance, he has made it past the green light, onto the lawn of Daisy’s house, but his dream is gone forever.

For the upcoming film based on the memoir Essay

Twelve Years a Slave (1853; sub-title: Narrative of Solomon Northup, a citizen of New-York, kidnapped in Washington city in 1841, and rescued in 1853, from a cotton plantation near the Red River in Louisiana), by Solomon Northup as told to David Wilson, is a memoir of a black man who was born free in New York state but kidnapped, sold into slavery and kept in bondage for 12 years in Louisiana before the American Civil War. He provided details of slave markets in Washington, DC, as well as describing at length cotton cultivation on major plantations in Louisiana. Published soon after Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Northup’s book sold 30,000 copies and was considered a bestseller.[1] It went through several editions in the nineteenth century. Supporting Stowe’s fictional narrative in detail, Northup’s first-hand account of his twelve years of bondage proved another bombshell[peacock term] in the nationalpolitical debate over slavery leading up to the Civil War, drawing endorsements from major Northern newspapers, anti-slavery organizations, and evangelical groups. After several editions in the 19th Century, the book fell into obscurity for nearly 100 years, until it was re-discovered by two Louisiana historians, Dr. Sue Eakin (Louisiana State University at Alexandria) and Dr. Joseph Logsdon (University of New Orleans).[2] In the early 1960’s they researched and retraced Solomon Northup’s journey[3] and co-edited a historically annotated version that was published by LSU Press in 1968. [4] A 2013 film based on the story and directed by Steve McQueen is scheduled for release by Fox Searchlight Pictures on October 18, 2013. Contents [hide] 1 Synopsis 2 Reception and historical value 3 Editions and adaptations 4 References 5 External links Synopsis[edit] In Upstate New York, black freeman Solomon Northup, a skilled carpenter and fiddler, is approached by two circus promoters who offer him a brief, high-paying job with their traveling circus. Without informing his wife, who is away at work in the next town, he travels with the strangers towards Washington DC in good spirits. One morning, he wakes to find himself drugged, bound, and in the cell of a slave pen. When Northup asserts his rights as a freeman, he is beaten and warned never again to mention his free life in New York. Transported by ship to New Orleans, Northup and other enslaved blacks contract smallpox and some die. In transit, Northup implores a sympathetic sailor to send a letter to his family. The letter arrives safely, but, lacking knowledge of his final destination, Northup’s family is unable to effect his rescue. Northup’s first owner is William Ford, a cotton planter on a bayou of the Red River, and he subsequently has several other owners during his twelve-year bondage. At times, his carpentry and other skills mean he is treated relatively well, but he also suffers extreme cruelty. On two occasions, he is attacked by a man who is to become his owner, John Tibeats, and finds himself unable to resist retaliating, for which he suffers great reprisals. Later he is sold to Edwin Epps, a notoriously cruel planter, who gives Northup the role of driver, requiring him to oversee the work of fellow slaves and punish them for undesirable behavior. Never, in almost 12 years, does he reveal his true history to a single slave or owner. Finally he confides his story in Samuel Bass, a white carpenter from Canada. Bass sends a letter to Northup’s wife, who calls on Henry Northup, a white attorney whose family once held and then freed Solomon Northup’s father. Henry Northup contacts New York state officials and the governor appoints him as an agent to travel to Louisiana and free Solomon Northup. He succeeds, and Solomon Northup leaves the plantation. After instigating a court case against the men who sold him into slavery, Northup is reunited with his family in New York. Reception and historical value[edit] Northup’s account describes the daily life of slaves at Bayou Boeuf in Louisiana, their diet and living conditions, the relationship between the master and slave, and the means that slave catchers had used to recapture runaways. Northup’s slave narrative has details similar to those of some other authors, such as Frederick Douglass, Harriet Ann Jacobs, or William Wells Brown, but he was unique in being kidnapped as a free man and sold into slavery. His book was a bestseller, rapidly selling 30,000 copies in the years before the American Civil War.[1] After additional printings in the 19th century, the book went out-of-print until 1968,[4] when historians Joseph Logsdon and Sue Eakin restored it to prominence. Dr. Eakin first discovered the story as a child growing up in Louisiana plantation country. Dr. Logsdon’s discovery occurred when a student from an old Louisiana family brought to class a copy of the original 1853 book that had been in her family for over a century. Together Logsdon and Eakin validated Solomon Northup’s tale by retracing his journey through Bayou Boeuf plantation country in central Louisiana where his bondage took place, through the slave sales records of New Orleans and Washington, D.C., and further documented his New York State origins, his father’s freeman’s decree, and the legal work which restored Northup’s freedom and prosecuted his abductors. In 1968, Eakin and Logsdon’s heavily footnoted edition of the original book was published by Louisiana State University Press, shedding new light on Northup’s story and establishing its historic significance. That book has been widely used by scholars and in classrooms for over fifty years and is still in print. In 1998 Logsdon received a call from scholars in upstate New York inviting him to participate in a search for Solomon’s grave, however bad weather prevented the search and Logsdon died the following June (1999). In 2007, Dr. Eakin completed development of an updated and expanded version that includes over 150 pages of new background material, maps, and photographs shortly before her death at age 90. In 2013, e-book and audiobook versions of her final definitive edition were released in her honor. With permission, scholars may use Eakin’s lifetime archives through The Sue Eakin Collection, LSU at Alexandria, La. The Joseph Logsdon Archives are available at the University of New Orleans. Historian Jesse Holland noted in a 2009 interview that he had relied on Northup’s memoir and detailed description of Washington in 1841 to identify the location of some slave markets. Holland has also researched the roles of ethnic African slaves as skilled laborers who helped build some of the important public buildings in Washington, including the Capitol and part of the original Executive Mansion.[5]

Microfinance provides both opportunities and challenges for women Essay

Microfinance provides both opportunities and challenges for women. Critically discuss with reference to at least one case study - Essay Example Land titling, it is believed, gives the poor a way out of poverty and integrating them into the markets. But many land titling programs as development projects do not take into account gender inequalities. Land lies at the heart of agrarian economies; which includes much of the developing world. Traditionally it has formed the basis of power, social status and is a vital productive resource. For rural women, however, the unequal ownership and control of this valued asset has become a critical factor that has created and reinforced gender inequality. World wide, in many rural societies women, like men, are active farmers and play substantial roles in primary agriculture production. Yet, they own very little land and are instead dependent upon social and customary provisions for indirect use as daughters, wives, mothers and community members (Agrawal, 1996). These rights are linked primarily to access, which do not grant security when traditional family structures dissolve in the case of divorce, desertion, widowhood and separation (Agrawal, 1989). This is especially relevant in todays context which is characterized by globalization, land commoditization, HIV/AIDs epidemic and increased feminization of agriculture (Agrawal, 1996, Whitehead and Tsikata, 2003, Razavi, 2009). According to Agrawal (1996), the idea of male bread-winner underlies the justification of men as legitimate owners of land; as it is assumed that sons will take care of mothers, while husbands and brothers will take care of wives and sisters respectively. Drawing upon the existing feminist literature, the paper seeks to draw out the arguments for womens land rights as a development intervention paradigm which maintain that it will lead to equality, empowerment, welfare and efficiency; followed by the discussions on the difficulties of its enforcement and consequences given existing cultural norms. The paper then discusses two case studies to highlight the benefits that have accrued

Gun ban is not practical Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Gun ban is not practical - Essay Example Even though some people think that the issue of ban on guns  will control crime, this concern is supposed to be nonexistent owing to the truth  that guns are essential for  safeguarding oneself  against crime, and through  the implementation of ban on guns   the right of people  to bear arms in the second amendment is violated.   Firstly, in order to reduce violent behaviour, the first step is to find out the reason causing it and hence address to that factor. Guns do not bring about the fury; they are merely the way by which the anger is expressed. Concentrating on the causes of the misery, distress, rage and feeling of defencelessness, that lead individuals to resort to crimes will contribute more than just implementing gun laws that are restrictive. As stated by David Kopel (450) â€Å"Making guns illegal will primarily disarm peaceful citizens. That gives a green light for violent criminals to attack everyone – both gun owners and non-owners alike.† Secondly if the guns will be outlawed then only the criminal will possess guns since there will always be a black market for these offenders to get their hands on illegal ammunition. A gun is just an instrument; they dont murder individuals. People slay people. The issue depends on the person using the gun, and what circumstances he is caught up in. Buying a gun lawfully is a difficult procedure. The purchaser has to wait for a time period of two months and so this process assures the incorruptibility and dependability of the owner of the gun. As stated by Hugh LaFollette (316), the power of non-gun weapons for example knives and clubs are also most of the times used for crimes so there is no point in banning the guns as they leave the innocent people at a disadvantage to protect themselves. Citizens who are law abiding have the justification to defend themselves against risks and threats. Due to possession of guns, robberies have reduced significantly. Thirdly, Guns just not simply protect lives, but they

Job Task Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Job Task Analysis - Essay Example ions and submitting them to the human resource manager, scheduling interviews for new employees in the branch, and following up on their progress once employed. Any memos for the department are also to be prepared by the personnel clerk in charge (Reddy, 2004). Behavioral objectives are goals that the military branch will be aiming to accomplish when training the personnel clerk. They include duties and responsibilities that the clerk should be conversant with by the end of the training. Therefore, according to the above tasks the behavioral objectives listed should be that: the personnel clerk will master all the recording procedures in the office; he or she will also be able to understand on how to follow up on the military personnel; he or she will be able to construct a pay roll sheet from the attendance register and lastly, that he or she will be able to prepare all the notices memos of the personnel department if need be. A job task analysis is used to train an employer by laying out all the duties to be performed. (Wolfe, 1991) An analysis for a personnel clerk would be: Enter into the office; Sign in at the register; Check out the attendance of each and every employee of the military branch; Note any absent employees; Identify the events of the day; Ensure all the office records are neatly in place; Arrange any misplaced documents; Prepare any memos required; Receive and attend to any visitors of the personnel department; Ensure that any injured militants are attended to; Ensure the pay roll sheet is in agreement with the attendance list; Check the mail box of the personnel department; Forward and present any available resumes and application mails to the necessary offices; Follow up on the new employees of the organization; Schedule interviews for any new employees and finally sign out the employees after work. Generally, a personnel clerk is important in all organizations since all organizations have employees that need to be managed and yet the