Murder of Westerman as a Catalyst of the American Civil War Cruelty Coursework

Murder of Westerman as a Catalyst of the American Civil War Cruelty - Coursework Example The collusion of Southern slave states was named as the Confederate States of America, and this coalition was an aftereffect of withdrawal of slave states from the Northern American States. There are numerous books that have portrayed the merciless and critical occasions of Civil War; be that as it may, Tony Horwitz’s book Confederates in the Attic: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War is an impressively fitting and effective book wherein Horwitz has portrayed the occasions in contemporary and individual setting. In depicting the Civil War Horwitz composed that, â€Å"Historians are attached to stating that the Civil War happened in 10,00 spots. Jab a pin in a guide of the South and you're probably going to nudge lose some fight or encounter or another tuft of Civil War history† (Horwitz 18). The narrating procured by the creator enlightens the criticality and effect of the Civil War in contemporary American Society (3-27).In the Civil War, the homicide of Michael W esterman who was a supporter of confederates is considered as one of the most huge occasions which had increased the Civil War. This paper will talk about the occasion of the death of Westerman, and it will likewise explain the happenings because of this homicide. It is likewise expected to depict the social and enthusiastic explanations behind the homicide of Westerman alongside reasons which escalated the war after the homicide of Westerman in the light of Horwitz portrayal in his book Confederates in the Attic: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War.Michael Westerman was during an excursion with his significant other Hannah soon after she brought forth twin kids. Westerman was driving a red pickup truck on which a confederation banner was mounted. He was in Todd County which is an area situated in Kentucky. Kentucky was not declaredly a piece of Confederation States of America; be that as it may, there were numerous huge similitudes present in the direct of Kentucky with the go als of Confederation States. Westerman halted at a service station for topping off the fuel in his vehicle. At the service station, there was a gathering of dark young person who saw the Westerman’s vehicle with a confederation banner mounted on it which the gathering of dark American adolescents considered as an offense (89-91). The Confederation banner was viewed as hostile due to the philosophy of racial disparity that the Confederation States followed. Westerman was trailed by the gathering of dark young people who badgering him out and about a few times. Westerman sped up his vehicle to get away from the experience with the gathering of young people. Westerman didn't realize that he was being pursued by another vehicle driven by dark young people. When the vehicle drew close to Westerman's vehicle, an adolescent shot a slug on his vehicle. The gunfire focused on Westerman, and he was killed in the street in Kentucky (90-93). Horwitz allegorically shows the power and seve rity of common war alongside his enthusiasm for it by expressing, â€Å"The War’s real scene was lavish with shading and beauty† (15).

Knowledge Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Information Management - Essay Example The paper discusses information the executives that has been created as an apparatus just as a compelling methodology that centers around utilizing of information, data and information among the individuals in an association. It in this way focuses on making, sharing and using the information or data that are either put away in database or archived in contents or papers, and changing over them to valuable types of information for the advantages of the association. Information is un-prepared data, and when these are accumulated, broke down, deciphered and recorded in reports or database, it becomes data. Information happens when individuals gain data and are handled for the utilization of them in the association. For quite a while, associations have been exclusively relying upon reports for recording and breaking down the information just as data, yet as of late, innovations have significant importance and jobs in the information the executives scene because of the advances in data in novation. Unsaid and Explicit information are regular terms in information the executives writing. Information can be delegated either express or unsaid. This characterization depends on where the information, data and information are put away. As per this characterization, information the executives is a procedure of putting away and making them utilized for the business all through the papers, records, information base as regularly alluded as unequivocal information. Data and information that exists in people’s mind are known to be a piece of implied information. ... Implicit and Explicit information are regular terms in information the board writing. Information can be named either express or unsaid. This order depends on where the information, data and information are put away. As indicated by this order, information the board is a procedure of putting away and making them utilized for the business all through the papers, records, information base as regularly alluded as unequivocal information. Data and information that exists in people’s mind are known to be a piece of implicit information (Noe, p. 170). Information that are put away in PCs helped by certain extraordinarily manufactured programming are fundamentally the same as that of unsaid information, regardless of the way that they are regularly alluded as express, since they can without much of a stretch be handled than that of papers or reports. In spite of the fact that the two papers and innovation information base together are known as express structures, innovation has rolle d out gigantic improvements and acquired more prominent comforts the field of information the executives, since innovation made information the board a simple procedure. Implied information is increasingly important and has more noteworthy hugeness as far as its adequacy to business, since information that exist in people’s psyche can without much of a stretch be handled, moved, shared and changed over to progressively helpful structures. Individuals may require more endeavors in distinguishing appropriate data from the archives or PCs, examining them, summing up and deciphering lastly utilizing them for the business purposes. To put it plainly, information the board involves creation, sharing and utilizing of data and information, that are put away either in papers, archives, database or

Gordon Allports Impact on the Field of Psychology

Gordon Allport's Impact on the Field of Psychology History and Biographies Print Gordon Allports Impact on Psychology of the Personality By Kendra Cherry facebook twitter Kendra Cherry, MS, is an author, educational consultant, and speaker focused on helping students learn about psychology. Learn about our editorial policy Kendra Cherry Updated on September 16, 2019 Bettmann / Contributor / Getty Images   More in Psychology History and Biographies Psychotherapy Basics Student Resources Theories Phobias Emotions Sleep and Dreaming In This Article Table of Contents Expand Early Life Meeting Sigmund Freud Approach to Psychology Career Trait Theory Contributions Selected Publications View All Back To Top Gordon Allport was a pioneering psychologist often referred to as one of the founders of personality psychology. He rejected two of the dominant schools of thought in psychology at the time, psychoanalysis and behaviorism, in favor of his own approach that stressed the importance of individual differences and situational variables. Today he is perhaps best remembered for his contributions to the trait theory of personality. In a review of the most influential psychologists of the twentieth century, Allport was ranked as the 11th most eminent psychologist. Early Life Gordon Allport was born in Montezuma, Indiana, on November 11, 1897. He was the youngest of four brothers and was often described as shy, but also hard-working and studious. His mother was a school teacher and his father was a doctor who instilled in Allport a strong work ethic. During his childhood, his father used the family home to house and treat patients. Allport operated his own printing business during his teen years and served as the editor of his high school newspaper. In 1915, Allport graduated second in his class and earned a scholarship to Harvard College, where one of his older brothers, Floyd Henry Allport, was working on a Ph.D. in psychology. After earning his bachelors degree in philosophy and economics from Harvard in 1919, Allport traveled to Istanbul, Turkey, to teach philosophy and economics. After a year of teaching, he returned to Harvard to finish his studies. Allport earned his Ph.D. in psychology in 1922 under the guidance of Hugo Munsterberg. Meeting Sigmund Freud In an essay entitled Pattern and Growth in Personality, Allport recounted his experience of meeting psychiatrist Sigmund Freud. In 1922, Allport traveled to Vienna, Austria, to meet the famous psychoanalyst. After entering Freuds office, he sat down nervously and told a story about a young boy he had seen on the train during his travels to Vienna. The boy, Allport explained, was afraid of getting dirty and refused to sit where a dirty-looking man had previously sat. Allport theorized that the child had acquired the behavior from his mother, who appeared to be very domineering. Freud studied Allport for a moment and then asked, And was that little boy you? Effect on Approach to Psychology Allport viewed the experience as an attempt by Freud to turn a simple observation into an analysis of Allports supposed unconscious memory of his own childhood. The experience would later serve as a reminder that psychoanalysis tended to dig too deeply. Behaviorism,  on the other hand, Allport believed, did not dig deeply enough. Instead, Allport chose to reject both psychoanalysis and behaviorism and embraced his own unique approach to personality. At this point in psychology history, behaviorism had become the dominant force in the United States and psychoanalysis remained a powerful influence. Allports approach to human psychology combined the empirical influence of the behaviorists with the acknowledgment that unconscious influences could also play a role in human behavior. Career Allport began working at Harvard in 1924 and later left to accept a position at Dartmouth. By 1930, he returned to Harvard where he would remain for the rest of his academic career. During his first year at Harvard, he taught what was most likely the first personality psychology class offered in the United States. His work as a teacher also had a profound effect on some of his students, which included Stanley Milgram, Jerome S. Bruner, Leo Postman, Thomas Pettigrew, and Anthony Greenwald. Trait Theory of Personality Allport is perhaps best known for his trait theory of personality. He began developing this theory by going through a dictionary and noting every term he found that described a personality trait. After compiling a list of 4,500 ?different traits, he organized them into three different trait categories, including: Cardinal Traits: These are traits that dominate an individuals entire personality. Cardinal traits are thought to be quite rare.Central Traits: Common traits that make up our personalities. Traits such as kindness, honesty, and friendliness are all examples of central traits.Secondary Traits: These are traits that are only present under certain conditions and circumstances. An example of a secondary trait would be getting nervous before delivering a speech to a large group of people. How Many Personality Traits Are There? Contributions to Psychology Allport died on October 9, 1967. In addition to his trait theory of personality, he left an indelible mark on psychology. As one of the founding figures of personality psychology, his lasting influence is still felt today. Rather than focusing on the psychoanalytic and behavioral approaches that were popular during his time, Allport instead chose to utilize an eclectic approach. Selected Publications Here are some of Allports works for further reading: Allport GW. Personality: a Psychological Interpretation. New York: Holt, Rinehart Winston; 1937.Allport GW. The Individual and His Religion. New York: McMillan; 1950.Allport GW. The Nature of Prejudice. Cambridge, MA: Addison-Wesley; 1954.Allport GW. Becoming: Basic Considerations for a Psychology of Personality. New Haven: Yale University Press; 1955.Allport GW. Pattern and Growth in Personality. New York: Holt, Rinehart Winston; 1961.

The Moral Equality Of Animals Vs Humans - 1428 Words

The Moral Equality of Animals vs Humans The discretion between animal versus human equality has been a controversial subject for many years. Philosophers and activists have pushed this matter into debate among the general society in our culture. What exactly is moral equality for animals? Some say it is equal rights to animals, and others say it is equal consideration of the animal. To understand the scope of equality based on rights, one must unfold the determination of a right in itself. Carl Cohen argues that animals have no rights, because they do not have the ability to know what a right is, but should never be treated inhumanely (Cohen 339). I will argue that Cohen’s view on animal rights is valid and sound, because animals are of instinct nature and do not perceive in according to human perception. Also, the opposite view would have detrimental effects on our population, economy, and natural habitat. Nevertheless, animals have the ability to feel pain and that aspect, certainly, for the sake of our morality, cannot be ignored. Carl Cohen is a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Michigan. In philosophy, his main interests focus on matters of practical importance including the moral status of animals and the uses of animals in biological science a.k.a animal experimentation. Cohen claims that animals have no rights because they cannot understand what a right is (Cohen 340). A right, according to Cohen, is a claim that someone may exercise against another.Show MoreRelatedFeral Cats1467 Words   |  6 Pagesthe nation. Feral Cats should be Trapped, Neutered, and Released instead of being Trapped and Killed. The Cats should only be euthanized in the case of irreparable diseases. These cats deserve animal liberation in the sense that they feel pain just as we as humans do, and we as humans possess the moral duty to prevent that pain. With a non-egalitarian view of Biocentric Individualism view on things we can determine the solution to the outbreak of feral cats. There were two different videos onRead MoreThe Between Humans And Animals1461 Words   |  6 Pagesves to kill of the unhealthy or weak members. When unnatural predation forced by humans makes way into the picture to simply hang the head of a beautiful, large mammal, it takes the important figures ability away to keep a population strong and protected. Another substantial issue caused by game hunts is when animals approached to be haunted escape, they pose a large threat on the native wildlife in natural ecosystems (Why Sport Hunting Is Cruel and Unnecessary, n.d.). Overall, this â€Å"exotic† pastimeRead MoreNature Vs. 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Every individual has his own meaning for this term. However, no matter how much individuals try to stimulate this term the reality is that theRead MorePolitical Theory: Comparing Locke, Rousseau and Plato Essay3770 Words   |  16 Pagesstandards for determining who should rule †¢ Man is not a political animal, the general will is the foundation of all legitimate authority †¢ All standards of justice and right have the origin in the unique human property of the will or free agency †¢ Liberation of the will from the usual sources that is the true center of gravity of Roussau’s philosophy. †¢ Primacy of the will †¢ Given rousseau’s libertarian conception of human nature. †¢ The fundamental problem is how to find a form of associationRead MoreA human induced global ecological crisis is occurring, threatening the stability of this earth and1900 Words   |  8 PagesA human induced global ecological crisis is occurring, threatening the stability of this earth and its inhabitants. 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Ethnocentrism is judging another culture solely by the values and standards of ones own culture.[1] The ethnocentric individual will judge other groups relative to his or her own particular ethnic group or culture, especially with concernRead MoreArgument For Promotion Of Core Csr1635 Words   |  7 PagesI am a Must/Must/Can and through this paper, I will argue my middle must against my opponent (Milton Friedman’s) â€Å"must not† argument for promotion of core CSR. WE MUST PROMOTE CORE CSR vs WE MUST NOT PROMOTE CORE CSR Milton Friedman, in his work titled, â€Å" The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits†, emphasizes the role of business in society is to maximize shareholder wealth, and likens any activity misaligned with regard to that mission as â€Å"stealing†. In my argument againstRead MoreConfederate Flag : History Or Hate1688 Words   |  7 Pagesquestioned. This mistaken idea often causes problems between the races of this state. Slavery was wrong. I would never try to justify it, because it can not be justified. It was simply wrong, God made us all equal. A human being was never intended to be treated like an animal, animals even were not meant to be treated like slaves. Slavery is a sensitive area, but the flag does not reflect this. The war was about the South s right to make it s own laws, and to be free from the Union. There were manyRead More Order vs. Freedom in Political Systems 1963 Words   |  8 PagesOrder vs. Freedom in Political Systems Order and freedom are both necessary and beneficial towards the citizens and society with the aim to promote harmony, yet they both contradict each other. This contradiction has existed throughout many years and it is still hard to decide which one is ideal for the society. This essay will discuss and analyze if order or freedom is more important for political systems. Many believe that order should be applied by the government; though it should be allowed

What Is Breaking The Love Into Two Essay - 1159 Words

Spreading The Love Into Two Doesn’t parent separation sound like such a bad thing? When parents get divorced, doesn’t it feel like the end of the world? When parents get a divorce they are not the only ones breaking up, it’s the whole family, right? Wrong. In most cases everyone would agree parent separation is a tragic time for a family. Although, not all scenarios makes parent separation seem so bad. In cases where a child might experience a lot of pain and suffering from their parents being together, they can see parent separation as an open door to a life of freedom. Parent separation, at first, creates a lot of pain and trauma, but once a child gets through the rough patches, there seems to be an open door to a new chapter in life†¦show more content†¦As time has passed through the years, people’s views and opinions on certain details in life have changed, as well as the role taking of an individual has changed overtime. The roles between men and women have changed. Wom en have become more of an important figure in the household besides doing, laundry and chores, women in the late 1900’s began to make a finance for the house. As women make their additions to helping out with the payments, the relationships between husband and wives have changed. â€Å"In the early 2000’s the pressure to find a perfect partner is even stronger. Women earn their own money and no longer feel so dependent on men.† Keeping that last idea in mind of how women have become to feel less dependent on their husband’s, it has caused the rate for divorce to increase over more recent years. Although children do not have an impact on that aspect it is said that â€Å"divorce rate among couples with children is 40% lower than couples without children† (England, Hermsen, Cotter). Parents are staying together, because of their children and staying unhappy in their relationship for their children. People might ask well how is that good for kids to see their parents together and unhappy? It’s not good at all, in fact it’s unhealthy for the children to witness that. Children need role models, people they look up to with love, they need to be shown what love is. Parents who argue all the time is not showing love or givingShow MoreRelatedMy Fathers Kidnapping By Chimamanda Ngozi Adichies And The Money By Junot Diaz881 Words   |  4 PagesIn the essays, â€Å"My Fathers Kidnappingâ €  by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichies and â€Å"The Money† by Junot Diaz one can infer that the author of both stories hold a similar message which is the power of loyalty and family will sometimes overcome the power of money. This is a very interesting point that is clearly seen in both works because it is unusual that love wins over money. The love of money is known as the root of all evil and both of these essays contradict that well know statement. Although, both storiesRead MoreKipnis What Is Love?1520 Words   |  7 PagesWhat is Love? Does anyone really know the meaning of the word? Does it have a different meaning to different people? In Kipnis’s essay â€Å"Love Labors†, Laura Kipnis touches on many different aspects of love. This is a touchy subject simply because love brings out many different opinions and beliefs. Kipnis argues over the fact that in order to have a good relationship and love someone people have to be able to meet certain requirements, which are mutuality, communication, and advanced intimacy. LoveRead More Love and what is needed for it exist as seen in two works Essay1331 Words   |  6 Pages Love and what is needed for it exist as seen in two works Love is a deep emotional feeling toward a person. Love comes in many forms, each being expressed in slightly different ways. 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One way in which the poets present their ideas about the pain of love is through their use of imagery withRead MoreEssay about Tom Stoppards Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead1471 Words   |  6 Pagesso well in Stoppards play that it reads like the love child of a play and a compelling critical essay. The play is academic yet conversationally phrased and it deepens our understanding of the original play but also criticizes it. The aspect of self-reflexive theater is used to comment on theater itself but also as a presentation of ideas and analysis that had previously had no place on the plot-centric set-up of stage and audience. The essay Rosencrantz and Guildensternare Dead: Theater of Criticism

Mayan Culture Free Essays

Modern Mayan culture has its roots in a very ancient culture. Ancient Mayan civilization spanned more than 3000 years and featured a written language, agriculture, a well-ordered social class system, a well-developed religious system, development of a calendar and trade. Much of the ancient tradition and culture has survived and been incorporated into the modern Mayan culture. We will write a custom essay sample on Mayan Culture or any similar topic only for you Order Now Religion Mayan religion is a hybrid of Christianity and ancient Mayan beliefs and rituals. The sixteenth century church, a central institution in the process of conquest, set the tone of the future relationship by working to replace Mayan religion with Spanish Christianity and to Hispanicize Mayan culture in general. (Stoll, 2003) Although many of their Gods have been replaced with statues of Christianity, the stories barely resemble the Christian versions. Today, devout Maya worship at mountain and cave shrines, making offerings of chickens, candles and incense with a ritual alcoholic drink. The Maya are a very superstitious people and have countless superstitions regarding events in mature which forewarn the observer of sickness, disaster, and death. Shaman/ daykeepers keep count of the 260 day ritual calendar and provide healing by identifying curses and offended ancestors, counting seeds and crystals in their divinations, and performing curando rituals. Marriage Mayan marriage is not prearranged by the family, although in ancient times it was accepted practice. In the more traditional villages, the young man must still ask the father for his daughters hand in marriage and certain rituals are followed. There is a traditional engagement and wedding  ritual dance that many Maya use in their wedding ceremonies. Most young married couples will live with either set of parents until they can begin a household on their own. The average marriage age of Maya people is 16 for females and 19 for males. Very few Maya remain unmarried as family and children are very important to the Maya. Family Family is a very important part of Maya culture. The average Maya family will have 6-8 children and most newlyweds have their first child within a year of marriage. In the domestic life of the Maya, family ties are strong, although outward displays of affection, such as kissing and embracing, are rare. Couples are considered affectionate if they carry out their respective duties faithfully. To their babies, however, the Maya are demonstrative and fondle and caress them, using baby talk as white parents do. It is evident that most parents are very fond of their children. Very rarely do fathers chastise their children physically and the mothers resort to harsh punishment only occasionally.  Ã‚   (Steggerda, 1941, p. 49) Food Production Strategies Many of the Mayan still live much the way they did when the Europeans came, weaving, cultivating corn and beans and collecting firewood to cook and heat their adobe houses. Electricity and road access have not changed the local traditions. Corn, which was cultivated by the ancient Mayans, remains the main crop. Most farmers still use the slash and burn method of farming used by their ancestors. Other strategies are share cropping and renting land to grow corn crops. The Maya form groups of up to twenty men, usually kin, rent a large piece of land, and divide it among themselves. Although this arrangement is much preferred to wage labor on the plantations, it   requires a minimum amount of capital for transportation, food, tools, seed, and so on, and expertise in dealing with the Ladino world. Many lack these resources and are forced into the largest of the temporary migratory streams. (Early, 1982, p. 88) Outside Contact The Maya, like most people who live in small and homogeneous groups where strong social controls operate, are conservative and unprogressive. Slow to take up new ideas, their attitudes and their material culture have been very little changed by modern trends and technological developments. Their pottery, weaving, and cross-stitch work have remained very much the same during the entire history of Yucatan. In general, they have not adopted the Spanish language but rather the Spaniards have adopted the Maya language. Their mode of dress has not changed appreciably for hundreds of years, and it is my belief that their daily life is very similar to that which their ancestors led. Only in the large Yucatan towns and cities, where social contacts are freer and where social controls cannot be maintained as strongly as in the smaller communities, are there signs of change. In such towns the European mode of dress is gradually being adopted, especially by the women, and cosmetics are commonly used. The people petition the government for radios, electric lights, and corn-grinding machines, and the idea of progress is gaining a hold in their minds. The cooperative movement and similar modern methods of economic organization are being tried. (Steggerda, 1941, p. 37) In Belize, the founding of the Maya Village Indigenous Experience is attempting to change the limited outside contact of the Maya culture by exposing it to tourism. They hope to bring money to the communities and improve the quality of life in the villages. (Steinberg, 2004) Many other Mayan communities are following this example in an effort to become more modern but they maintain the ancient rituals and beliefs, much like modern day New Orleans. These five concepts show the history and persevering culture of the Mayan people. Traditions with religion and family provide a rich background to pass on to the next generation. While they are struggling to enter the modern age, many of the more traditional Maya see no problem with the lifestyle they currently possess. Living in the United States, technology is readily available and most people are adept at using it. Things we take for granted such as telephones, computers, television, and automobiles are slow to make their way into the more rural areas of the Maya culture but they live full lives without these things. This is a huge culture difference because most Americans do not believe they can live without technology. The family tradition is also vastly different. Americans live a much faster paced life and many things must be balanced: work, children, marriage. Mayan women are traditional homemakers and Mayan men do the heavy labor. American women do many of the heavy labor jobs and not many people can afford to stay home with the children full time. Both cultures have pro’s and con’s to their lifestyle and culture but both are ever changing and adapting to the world around them. Both realize the importance of religion within a culture and continuing the race through children. The United States, however, is not one culture but hundreds and this gives it a unique background. It is much more varied than the ancient Mayan history the modern Maya still cultivate. References Early, J. D. (1982). The Demographic Structure and Evolution of a Peasant System: The Guatemalan Population. Boca Raton, FL: University Presses of Florida. Steggerda, M. (1941). Maya Indians of Yucatan. Washington, DC: Carnegie Institution of Washington. Steinberg, M. K. (1994, Summer). Tourism Development and Indigenous People: The Maya Experience in Southern Belize. Focus, 44, 17+. Retrieved June 08, 2007, from Questia database: https://www.questia.com/read/1G1-19897117/tourism-development-and-indigenous-people-the-maya Stoll, D. (2003). Dow, James W. Alan R. Sandstorm (Eds). Holy Saints and Fiery Preachers: The Anthropology of Protestantism in Mexico and Central America. Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, 9(3), 595+. Retrieved June 09, 2007 How to cite Mayan Culture, Essay examples

History Of Hippies free essay sample

The range, scope, potential and significance of this anti-establishment would only be realized as the sass drew on and the intensity of social movement escalated. The sixties was an era of great cultural and social upheaval by mass manipulation on the basis Of many social issues the causes and consequences of this era however remain contested.According to Melisa Kidder, among other, the most prominent causes of the entire anti-establishment movement may be attributed more to social and political than economic factors, and include the demographics of the baby boomers, disassociation of the youth, anti-war sentiment, the Cold War Atmosphere televisions coming of age and the media, and the US Civil Rights Movement 1 . The growth of psychology as well as the experimentation with he arts and psychedelic drugs also affected the counterculture movement as well as the course of the anti-establishment movement in an unexpected manner.Rosa argued that the science-based, rational society of the twentieth century alienated individuals, especially the youth who were born into a society with an existential crisis after World War 11. 2 According to the interview conducted with , the hippie or counterculture movement was characterized by a certain lifestyle. Explains that in the counterculture movement, the goal was to bring about a change in society according to the arms practiced by the hippies as advocated, such as free love for all, the use of drugs for a different mind-set, ecological values.For her, there was never a time of greater change, as it seemed that reality was speeding up and reaching a climax. Social factors of the Counterculture Movement Post-World War II Period The causes of the Baby Boom of the sasss is described by historians as a desire for normalcy after 16 years of depression and war, while others ascribe it to an anti-communistic strategy to outnumber the communistic world. Nevertheless, as the baby boomers reached young adulthood and became socially conscious, they became a notable factor in American society as such a large generation in social cohesion is a force great change, according to Terry Anderson.A decade after the end of World War II, many young Americans had come to despise the identity of their country. This group of people is known as the Beat Generation, or the Beatniks, they completely rejected the materialistic society advertised and institutionalized by public and media industries as well as the far reaching hand of institution. The beats, along with prominent figures such as Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac, advocated an alternative way of thinking and many other values embraced by the hippies such as a lifestyle advocating the use of drugs.The beats directly influenced the counterculture movement, as most values pursued by hippies were originally the values of beats. While the beats of the sasss were a restrictive group of mostly idealist writers, the counterculture movement spread to thousands of youths, most notably from the middle class, to shake the USA as no other youth movement before. There is however a widespread interpretation of historians of the counterculture movement as the reaction f spoilt youths seeking fun to distract from their boring over-confident lives in apprehension of the viewpoint of the counterculture movement as an alternative consciousness.In the 1 9605. The United States economy was prosperous, and purchasing power of the middle class youth increased alongside entertainment ind ustries. The youth believed that the US government should not overextend their influence, and that a democratic state should be left alone, albeit communistic. The view of a hypocritical nature of the United Stated government came to stifle the youth, as they have come disillusioned by the aggressive actions of the US around the world by the sass.The foreign policy of the US in dropping atomic bombs on Japan in 1945, the oppression of Cuba by the US, and finally the Vietnam War solidified the oppressive, traitorous and hypocritical nature of the US government in the eyes of the youth. The older generations continued to trust government, while the youth felt disillusioned, leading to deeper questions about the very basis of American values, which would lead to many social movements, including the US Civil Rights Movement. Political Factors of the Counterculture MovementThe Civil Rights Movement Although almost two hundred years have passed since the abolition of slavery in the LIST, yet racial discrimination remained a daily theme in the US in the sass. White racist aggressors were protected by the state and justice departments and FBI offi cials stood watch as demonstrators were brutally handled and jailed. Although the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) had been active since 1 909, and other influential civil rights movements existed before the sass, the protest for African-American rights and against segregation reached a turning point in this era.Students were a very important factor in this movement, with the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SYNC). In a single demonstration gaining national attention in 1 960, a student initiative whereby four black students refused to leave a whites only cafeteria was taken, resulting in the desegregation Of many areas. In the sass civil rights supporters saw the emergence of a strong charismatic leader; Martin Luther King Jar. He was influenced by Mahatma Gandhi, promoting the same non-violent philosophy, giving rise to mass manipulation in the form of sit-ins, boycotts and other peaceful ministrations in the 1 9605.After many attempts by the government to destroy Martin Luther King Jar. , he was finally assassinated by a white segregationist, causing riots throughout the country. Continuous violence against black people in the US along with the death of Martin Luther King Jar. , angered black Americans. Malcolm X criticized King for his peaceful methods, encouraging radical and violent protest. The Black Panther Party for Self- Defense was created in the sass to defend against racial violence and white injustice, yet unfortunately the leader of the Black Panthers Fred Hampton ND Malcolm x were both assassinated.Despite the large white resistance to segregation, the Civil Rights movement of the sass did achieve much. A major demand of African-Americans is their right to vote given to them by the 15th Amendment in 1 870, yet many states continued to restrict African Americans to vote by use of a comprehension or literary test. In 1 965, these practices were forbidden by congress Voting Rights ACTA. As proven by the killing of black militants however, the resistance to reforms of equality remain strong within the nation, despite considerable ground made.Throughout the sass, traditional means of battling government legislature decisions saw a great change, as peaceful mass manipulation led to violent uprising. National Politics, a New Left One of the most famous and influential New Left organization was The Students for a Democratic Society (SD), created as the youth became dissatisfied with American imperialist enterprise in foreign policy, while locally there was inequalities between Black and white people. The SD was rejected by the League of Industrial Democracy (LID), as being accused of having communistic allegiance.Thus the SD became independent, freeing itself room the anti-communistic and liberal left. This shift causes the emergence Of a new left, easily distinguishable from the Old Left, as unionism and anti- communist hysteria is what characterized most American organizations striving for democracy according to Doug Rossini. This New left focused primarily on social equality, democracy and peace, declaring that America should focus on its real social priorities, such as the abolition of squalor and neglect, and to create an atmosphere of creativity and dignity.Radical socialis t C Wright Mills and political theorist H Marcus were the main influences of students, advocating ideas such as that the close link between economic and political power being the cause of social inequalities in the US. Although in large part due to the draft obligating young Americans to join the war effort in Vietnam, the commitment of students protesting against military recruitment offices in campuses played a crucial role in ending the war. After a march on the pentagon in October 21 1967 which followed five days Of anti-war demonstration, the anti-war movement was national. Despite the opinion of most Americans that hippies are a laughable young lot, public pinion was swayed from 39% of the populace agreeing with American involvement in Vietnam in 1965, to 61 % in 1971 10. In this era, many different groups of people united under the same banner, and although the separation between these groups increased as the 1 sass went on, civil rights and anti war sentiments were embedded aspirations of the American youth.These middle class youths turned to their own domestic society to solve problems manifested and overlooked for centuries. To solve these issues, the New Left targeted government, yet more and more young people went another erection, many turned to the spiritual lure of Buddhism applying their ideals directly. The tools of the New Left was mostly cultural, as they excluded themselves from mainstream society, adopt ing lifestyles of fun, peace, love and freedom. Revolution, a Beetles song accurately illustrates the break that occurred supporters and opposition of the 1 sass New Left. Political activism and new consciousness is what characterized the counterculture 1. Economic Factors of the Counterculture Stuart hall in Encoding and Decoding in Television Discourse, explains a hegemony as defining possible meaning, and carrying the Stamp of legitimacy thin its mental horizon. It is coterminous with the natural order and what is taken for granted or inevitable about the social order.Thus the counterculture movement saw the American way of life as a restrictive version of reality, insisting that happiness is gained by possessing goods. The end of World War II brought tremendous wealth to the country, empowering the middle class, however it also meant that women would abandon their posts in jobs traditionally reserved for men. The role of women in society became very clearly defined, along with behavioral and fashion codes, as the Nuclear Family added to the massive production and consumption culture, creating the stereotype of the definition of a good American.The consequence of the perception that a housewife and bureaucratic husband as advertised by public and private institutions was perfect happiness, was that American Middle class youth did not miss a comfortable material life, as they striver towards predetermined roles 2. Americas youth came to realize that physical comfort while possessing no liberty did not satisfy them as people. The Beat generation along with writers such as Jack Kerouac, had by he sass already introduced questions on personal freedom, when the American way of life combusted the brewing tension.Young middle class Americans came to sympathize with oppressed Vietnamese, as the war in Vietnam and the draft succeeded in gathering and binding people to a mutual goal 3. The government and private institutions eagerly defended their cultural model based on the nuclear family, and viciously opposed reformation. The Gay Liberation Front in the sass provided an explanation for this in stating that gay liberation and other reforms would cause a revolutionary change in the entire society of the US.Thus any change of the culture of the nuclear family would threaten the (financial) interests of public and private institutions. It was revealed to the New Left that the materialistic status quo w as a manipulation of the people, aiming to keep industry going with the aid of workers and buyers, as well as preventing people to fully comprehend the capitalist system, as it would lead to massive rebellion as seen in the sass. As protest came in most part from the young middle class, the youth realized that the only interest in any US foreign and domestic policy is finance.People thus came to realize that politicians would not stop killing ND causing pain as long as their interest lies within these actions. In order to stop the supporting of these leaders, the youth spread its values across the country with the aid of different forms of mass media. The counterculture movement was based on the belief that political behavior would change alongside cultural change. This movement aimed to achieve the infinite, banning would not be tolerated from anyone and they would intend to expand their mindset.Culture of the Counterculture The social and political forces driving the counterculture movement were forged from a conservative society, however the New Left proves that a break n in points Of views from the youths and adult population existed whether or not the they were part of the counterculture movement. Accor ding to Young elation that sprouted the counterculture movement was clearly born from domestic and political excess in the US. The post-World War II era, the US Civil Rights Movement, the war in Vietnam and the Cold War environment launched an inevitable time of change in America as argued by Greg Hairless 5.It seemed that the apprehension of the world in the mass consciousness was inevitable despite conservative youths being numerous. Thus the many youths including the New Left activists encouraged an alternative form of consciousness, based on the values of peace, love and equality, striving to better institutions within the capitalist system. The counterculture however to aimed to end institutions of the time, as seen in their goal of a new consciousness. Sex, Drugs and Rock n Roll Sex, drugs and rock n roll is more than a famous slogan.This slogan represents the ideals and culture of the counterculture. Sex refers to sexual liberation which experienced at a total revolution in the 1 sass across the action as well as internationally. Although much of the hippie and counterculture movement was simply a means for fun and the use and experimentation of drugs and especially music was simply a way to obtain a good time, the usage of certain drugs, especially LSI was based on a strong spiritual message within the counterculture movements 6. Sexual liberation As well as in the broad society, sexism was an issue in the counterculture.Although many historians argue that women did not achieve liberation throughout the 1 asss, due to centuries of western paternalism, the fact that organizations were created to keep women from having premarital sex insinuates more sexual freedom experienced by women, although some women complained that the sexual liberation was about male access to women instead of actual liberation. The abandonment of Christian principles has led women to find a moderate balance for their sexual lives, as usually happens when an extreme is experienced.Although most hippies could not emancipate themselves f rom gender roles as portrayed by society, the counterculture movement launched a path towards equality of gender, and began with freedom of sexual intercourse 7. The Use of Drugs Experimentation in the sasss was rife, especially with drugs as LSI seen in context of freeing the minds of the youth from the narrow vision, while opening ones mind to new realities. Aloud Huxley and Timothy Leary tested and paved the way for drug use to be taken up in the counterculture. The consumption of this and many other hallucinogens made many youths passive, also contributing to the idea that change should be focused culturally instead of politically. Like the Beats before them, the hippies saw the use of LSI as a means of achieving spiritual enlightenment and artistic creativity. Psychedelic forms of art was caused by the consumption of LSI as well, finding expression in music along with psychedelic rock. The achievements of the counterculture in the realm of culture Were vast, and most visibly and everlasting was its effect on music 18.Although the counterculture is often described as a movement of love and peace, many disagreed on the ideals and means of obtaining peace and love. The Woodstock festival originally named 3 days of peace and music, gathering 500 000 people and being a current point of reference of the climax of the counterculture era. Psychedelic Rock was used by the same people using L SD, becoming a transcendental experience conveying the id eals of the counterculture. The self-described alternative consciousness promoted by the counterculture did not mean a rejection of western society, but intended to complete it and improve society as a whole.Although the counterculture included rebellion, the goal was to achieve harmony and understanding Of wholeness as praised by Eastern Philosophy 9. Legacy The Counterculture movement of 1 960 caused a radical shift in the implementation and instrument of US reason and supremacist liberal ideology as explained by this displacement of values was achieved despite immense counter subversive thinking that was purposely aimed at distorting the image of the youth generation of the sasss to public imagination.Due to this rhetoric propagated by the elite in whose interest it was, the hippies were seen as a dirty, misguided, irresponsible and frivolous group of spoilt middle class white children, looking for more than their comfortable lives and attempting to change the values of American Family and Community.Althoug h the hippie movement did eventually die out due to many reasons such as the end of the US Civil Rights movement, the Deaths of important counterculture leaders, and especially the media and initialization Of the advent of consumerism and the initialization of the economic marketplace, it is a turning point in the history of oppositional politics in the United States. Despite or rather because of the allegations of the transcendental nature of the counterculture movement, the perceived future was for many a unpredictable utopia.These unexpected, unrealistic expectations and invocations of the hippie movement opened new, alternative paths of radical assent, circumventing the dead end of contemporary cultural politics. The aggressive questioning of the conformed American identity caused a struggle for social and cultural justice, allowing the demotion of the assimilations liberal mentality. Conclusion The reviewing of American values allowed the inclusion of Native, African and Hispanic Americans into American society.Literature about the sass demonstrates conversation and conflict as having irreversibly undermined the prevailing norms of national representation. The impact of the counterculture movement caused a cultural schism to form between the western world and he US, as the west gradually changed into unfaithful Americanizes. According to Deride and Routines, loyalty to legacy involves a sort of infidelity, recasting the legacy of the sasss and keeping it alive. In order to keep this legacy alive, it may not be repeated, but must be made present.

Life of Langston Hughes free essay sample

A paper looking at the leader of the Harlem Renaissance. This is a term paper on Langston Hughes. It includes some basic biographical background, an analysis of his work, and the role he played in the Harlem Renaissance. The author analyzes each of Hughes different types of works to illustrate the variety of which he was capable. Langston Hughes is one of Americas most well-known and influential black writers. Perhaps, the reason he is so well known is because his works influenced so many people. Langston Hughes made a large and unique contribution not only to American literature, but to black American culture and to American humor as well. (Haskins: ix) Hughes was a leader and had a key role in the Harlem Renaissance. Throughout his forty-five year career, Hughes was a novelist, a reporter, a translator, a playwright, and a short-story writer, although he is mainly recognized as a poet. We will write a custom essay sample on Life of Langston Hughes or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Hughes began his career because of his unique style. Hughes used speech patterns of a stereotyped black culture along with a jazz/blues rhythm. Hughes style and political views are mainly related to his experiences growing up.

Medieval Methods for Making Fabric From Wool

Medieval Methods for Making Fabric From Wool In the Middle Ages, wool was turned into cloth in the thriving wool production trade, in home-based cottage industry, and in private households for family use. Methods could vary depending on the wherewithal of the producer, but the basic processes of spinning, weaving, and finishing cloth were essentially the same. Wool is usually sheared from sheep all at once, resulting in a large fleece. Occasionally, the skin of a slaughtered sheep was utilized for its wool; but the product obtained, which was called pulled wool, was an inferior grade to that shorn from live sheep. If the wool was intended for trade (as opposed to local use), it was bound up with similar fleeces and sold or traded off until it reached its final destination in a cloth-manufacturing town. It was there that processing began. Sorting The first thing done to a fleece was to separate its wool into its various grades by coarseness because different types of wool were destined for different end products and required specialized methods of processing. Also, some types of wool had specific uses in the manufacturing process itself. The wool in the outer layer of fleece was ordinarily longer, thicker and coarser than the wool from the inner layers. These fibers would be spun into worsted yarn. The inner layers had softer wool of varying lengths that would be spun into woolen yarn. Shorter fibers would be further sorted by grade into heavier and finer wools; the heavier ones would be used to make thicker yarn for the warp threads in the loom, and the lighter ones would be used for the wefts. Cleansing Next, the wool was washed; soap and water would usually do for worsteds. For the fibers that would be used to make woolens, the cleansing process was particularly stringent and could include hot alkaline water, lye, and even stale urine. The aim was to remove the wool grease (from which lanolin is extracted) and other oils and greases as well as dirt and foreign matter. The use of urine was frowned upon and even outlawed at various points in the Middle Ages, but it was still common in home industries throughout the era. Following cleansing, the wools were rinsed several times. Beating After rinsing, the wools were set out in the sun on wooden slats to dry and were beaten, or broken, with sticks. Willow branches were often used, and thus the process was called willeying in England, brisage de laines in France and wullebreken in Flanders. Beating the wool helped remove any remaining foreign matter, and it separated entangled or matted fibers. Preliminary Dyeing Sometimes, dye would be applied to fiber before it was used in manufacturing. If so, this is the point at which the dyeing would occur. It was fairly common to soak fibers in a preliminary dye with the expectation that the color would combine with a different shade in a later dye bath. Fabric that was dyed at this stage was known as dyed-in-the-wool. Dyes usually required a mordant to keep the color from fading, and mordants often left a crystalline residue that made working with fibers extremely difficult. Therefore, the most common dye used in this early stage was woad, which did not require a mordant. Woad was a blue dye made from an herb indigenous to Europe, and it took about three days to use it to dye fiber and make the color fast. In later medieval Europe, such a large percentage of wool cloths were dyed with woad that cloth workers were often known as blue nails.1 Greasing Before the wools could be subjected to the harsh processing treatment that lay ahead, they would be greased with butter or olive oil to protect them. Those who produced their own cloth at home were likely to skip the more rigorous cleansing, allowing some of the natural lanolin to remain as a lubricant instead of adding grease. Although this step was done primarily to the fibers intended for woolen yarn, there is evidence that the longer, thicker fibers used to make worsteds were also lightly greased. Combing The next step in preparing wool for spinning varied depending on the type of wool, the instruments available and, oddly enough, whether certain tools had been outlawed. For worsted yarn, simple wool combs were used to separate and straighten the fibers. The teeth of the combs might be wooden or, as the Middle Ages progressed, iron. A pair of combs was used, and the wool would be transferred from one comb to the other and back again until it had been straightened and aligned. Combs were usually constructed with several rows of teeth and had a handle, which made them look a little like a modern-day dog brush. Combs were also used for woolen fibers, but in the central Middle Ages cards were introduced. These were flat boards with many rows of short, sharp metal hooks. By placing a handful of wool on one card and combing it until it had been transferred to the other, and then repeating the process several times, a light, airy fiber would result. Carding separated wools more effectively than combing, and it did so without losing the shorter fibers. It was also a good way to blend together different types of wool. For reasons that remain unclear, cards were outlawed in portions of Europe for several centuries. John H. Munroe posits that the reasoning behind the ban could be a fear that the sharp metal hooks would damage the wool, or that carding made it too easy to fraudulently blend inferior wools into superior ones. Instead of carding or combing, some woolens were subjected to a process known as bowing. The bow was an arched wooden frame, the two ends of which were attached with a taut cord. The bow would be suspended from the ceiling, the cord would be placed in a pile of wool fibers, and the wooden frame would be struck with a mallet in order to get the cord to vibrate. The vibrating cord would separate the fibers. Just how effective or common bowing was is debatable, but at least it was legal. Spinning Once the fibers were combed (or carded or bowed), they were wound on a distaff a short, forked stick - in preparation for spinning. Spinning was chiefly the province of women. The spinster would draw a few fibers from the distaff, twisting them between thumb and forefinger as she did so, and attach them to a drop-spindle. The weight of the spindle would pull the fibers down, stretching them out as it spun. The spinning action of the spindle, with the help of the spinsters fingers, twisted the fibers together into yarn. The spinster would add more wool from the distaff until the spindle reached the floor; shed then wind the yarn around the spindle and repeat the process. Spinsters stood as they  spun  so that the drop-spindle could spin out as long a yarn as possible before it had to be wound up. Spinning wheels were probably invented in India sometime after 500 CE.; their earliest recorded use in Europe is in the 13th century. Initially, they werent the convenient sit-down models of later centuries, powered by a foot pedal; rather, they were  hand-powered  and large enough so that the spinster would need to stand to use it. It may not have been any easier on the spinsters feet, but much more yarn could be produced on a spinning wheel than with a drop-spindle. However, spinning with a drop-spindle was common throughout the Middle Ages until the 15th century. Once the yarn was spun, it might be dyed. Whether it was dyed in the wool or in the yarn, color had to be added  by  this stage if a multi-colored cloth was to be produced. Knitting While knitting wasnt wholly unknown in the Middle Ages, scant evidence of hand-knitted garments survives. The relative ease of the craft of knitting and the ready availability of materials and tools for making knitting needles makes it hard to believe that peasants didnt knit themselves warm clothing from wool they got from their own sheep. The lack of surviving garments isnt at all surprising, considering the fragility of all cloth and the amount of time that has passed since the medieval era. Peasants could have worn their knitted garments to pieces, or they may have reclaimed the yarn for alternate uses when the garment grew too old or threadbare to wear any longer. Far more common than knitting in the Middle Ages was weaving. Weaving Weaving cloth was practiced in households as well as in professional cloth-making establishments. In homes where people produced cloth for their own use, spinning was often the province of women, but weaving was usually done by men. Professional weavers in manufacturing locations like Flanders and Florence were also usually men, though women weavers were not unknown. The essence of weaving is, simply, to draw one yarn or thread (the weft) through a set of perpendicular yarns (the warp), threading the weft alternately behind and in front of each individual warp thread. Warp threads were usually stronger and heavier than weft  threads  and came from different grades of fiber. The variety of weights in warps and wefts could result in specific textures. The number of weft fibers drawn through the loom in one pass could vary, as could the number of warps the weft would travel in front of before passing behind; this deliberate variety was used to achieve different textured patterns. Sometimes, warp threads were dyed (usually blue) and weft threads remained undyed, producing colored patterns. Looms  were constructed to make this process go more smoothly. The earliest looms were vertical; the warp threads stretched from the top of the loom to the floor and, later, to a bottom frame or roller. Weavers stood when they worked on vertical looms. The  horizontal loom  made its first appearance in Europe in the 11th century, and by the 12th century, mechanized versions were being used. The advent of the mechanized horizontal loom is generally considered the most important technological development in medieval textile production. A weaver would sit at a mechanized loom, and instead of threading the weft in front of and behind alternate warps by hand, hed merely have to press a foot pedal to raise up one set of alternate warps and draw the weft underneath it in one straight pass. Then hed press the other pedal, which would raise the other set of warps, and draw the weft underneath  that  in the other direction. To make this process easier, a shuttle was used a boat-shaped tool that contained yarn wound around a bobbin. The shuttle would glide easily over the bottom set of warps as the yarn unspooled. Fulling  or Felting Once the fabric had been woven and taken off the loom it would be subjected to a  fulling  process. (Fulling wasnt usually necessary if the fabric was made from worsted as opposed to woolen yarn.) Fulling thickened the fabric and made the natural hair fibers mat together through agitation and the application of  liquid. It was more effective if heat was part of the equation, as well. Initially,  fulling  was done by immersing the cloth in a vat of warm water and stomping on it or beating it with hammers. Sometimes additional chemicals were added, including soap or urine to help remove the natural lanolin of the wool or the grease that had been added to protect it in the earlier stages of processing. In Flanders, fullers earth was used in the process to absorb impurities; this was a type of soil containing a significant amount of clay, and it was naturally available in the region. Though originally done by hand (or foot), the  fulling  process gradually became automated through the use of fulling mills. These were often quite large and powered by water, although smaller, hand-cranked machines were also known. Foot-fulling was still done in household manufacturing, or when the cloth was particularly fine and wasnt to be subjected to the harsh treatment of hammers. In towns where cloth manufacture was a thriving household industry, weavers could take their cloth to a communal fulling mill. The term fulling is sometimes used interchangeably with felting. Although the process is essentially the same,  fulling  is done to cloth that has already been woven, whereas felting actually produces cloth from unwoven, separate fibers. Once cloth was fulled or felted, it could not easily unravel. After  fulling, the fabric would be thoroughly rinsed. Even worsteds that didnt need  fulling  would be washed to remove any oil or dirt that had accumulated during the weaving process. Because dyeing was a process that immersed the fabric in liquid, it may have been dyed at this point, especially in home industries. However, it was more common to wait until a later stage in production.  Cloth  that was dyed after it was woven was known as dyed-in-the-piece. Drying After it was rinsed, cloth was hung up to dry. Drying was done on specially-designed frames known as tenter frames, which used tenterhooks to hold the cloth. (This is where we get the phrase on tenterhooks to describe a state of suspense.) The sturdy frames stretched the fabric so that it wouldnt shrink too much; this process was carefully gauged, because fabric that was stretched too far, while large in square feet, would be thinner and weaker than fabric that was stretched to the proper dimensions. Drying was done in the open air; and in cloth-producing towns, this meant the fabric was always subject to inspection. Local regulations often dictated the specifics of drying cloth in order to ensure quality, thus maintaining the reputation of the town as a source of fine cloth, as well as that of the cloth manufacturers themselves. Shearing Fulled fabrics- especially those made from curly-haired woolen yarn were often very fuzzy and covered with nap. Once the fabric had been dried, it would be shaved or  sheared  to remove this extra material. Shearers would use a device that had remained pretty much unchanged since Roman times: shears, which consisted of two razor-sharp blades attached to a U-shaped bow spring. The spring, which was made of steel, also served as the handle of the device. A shearer would attach the cloth to a padded table that sloped downward and had hooks to keep the fabric in place. He would then press the bottom blade of his shears into the cloth at the top of the table and gently slide it down, clipping the fuzz and nap by bringing down the top blade as he went. Shearing a piece of fabric completely could take several passes, and would often alternate with the next step in the process, napping. Napping or Teaseling After (and before, and after) shearing, the next step was to raise the nap of the fabric enough to give it a soft, smooth finish. This was done by grooming the cloth with the head of a plant known as a teasel. A teasel was a member of the  Dipsacus  genus and had a dense, prickly flower, and it would be rubbed gently over the fabric. Of course, this could raise the nap so much that the cloth would be too fuzzy and had to be sheared again. The amount of shearing and teaseling necessary would depend on the quality and type of wool used and the result desired. Though metal and wood tools were tested for this step, they were considered potentially too damaging for fine cloth, so the teasel plant was used for this process throughout the Middle Ages. Dyeing Cloth might be dyed in the wool or in the yarn, but even so, it would usually be dyed in the piece as well, either to deepen the color or to combine with the previous dye for a different tint. Dyeing in the piece was a procedure that could realistically take place at almost any point in the manufacturing process, but most commonly it was done after the fabric had been sheared. Pressing When the teaseling and shearing (and, possibly, dyeing) was done, the fabric would be pressed to complete the smoothing process. This was done in a flat, wooden vise. Woven wool that had been fulled, dried, shorn, teaseled, dyed, and pressed could be luxuriously soft to the touch and made into the finest clothing and draperies. Unfinished Cloth Professional cloth manufacturers in wool production towns could, and did, produce cloth from the wool-sorting stage to the final pressing. However, it was quite common to sell fabric that wasnt completely finished. Producing undyed fabric was very common, allowing tailors and drapers to choose just the right hue. And it was not at all uncommon to leave out the shearing and teaseling steps, reducing the price of the fabric for consumers willing and able to perform this task themselves. Cloth Quality and Variety Every step along the manufacturing process was an opportunity for cloth-makers to excel or not. Spinners and weavers who had low-quality wool to work with could still turn out fairly decent cloth, but it was common for such wool to be worked with the least possible effort in order to turn out a product quickly. Such cloth would, of course, be cheaper; and it might be used for items other than garments. When manufacturers paid for better raw materials and took the extra time required for higher quality, they could charge more for their products. Their reputation for quality would attract the wealthier merchants, artisans, guildsmen and the nobility. Although sumptuary laws were enacted, usually in times of economic instability, to keep the lower classes from garbing themselves in finery ordinarily reserved for the upper classes, it was more often the extreme expense of the clothing worn by the nobility that kept other people from buying it. Thanks to the diverse kinds of cloth manufacturers and the many types of wool of different levels of quality they had to work with, a wide variety of wool cloth was produced in medieval times.

Agricultural Settlers and the Great Plains Essay

Agricultural Settlers and the Great Plains - Essay Example Those who remained in the region supplemented their farming income from railway construction and other economic activities. These settlers who remained exhibited their abilities to adapt to the local environment (Adamson, 1998 p39). The sustainability of grain farming was of the doubt due to the frequent droughts that were experienced in this region. Sometimes the areas received low crop yield that was not enough to support life. Farmers, therefore, recognized the need to let the land to lie fallow for some time. During this period, livestock farming became dominant activity on the land (Adamson, 1998 p63). Depending on the settlers’ activities on the land, they grouped themselves into Indians of the Great Plains; Wagon Trains, Railroads, and Ranchers; The Cattle Kingdom; Mythic West and Buffalo Bill; Homesteaders; and the Tribal Cultures such as Wounded Knees and the Ghost Dance (Adamson, 1998 p55). For example, the cattle Kingdom comprised of Cattle Towns and the Cowboys lifestyle was the culture in this region. In summary, Great Plains is a region that is dominated by agricultural activities, both crop and animal farming. Earlier settlers came into this region by the opportunity to acquire land, and to practice agriculture as a source of income. Settlers in this region are characterized by the type of economic activity they practice on the land. For example, there are ranchers, Indians, The Cattle Kingdom and Homesteaders. The Paris Peace Conference is the meeting that was held to sign peace deals with defeated nations after World War 1. It was held in Paris France in 1919 and attended by delegates from more than twenty-nine nations (Adamson, 1998 p105). The key leaders and Nations which led this meeting include; Prime Minister David Lloyd George of Great Britain, President Woodrow Wilson of the United States, George Clemenceau of France, and Prime Minister Vittorio Orlando of Italy  (Adamson, 1998 p106). Other countries in attendant include China, Canada, Ukraine, and Australia.

Health Policy Reflection Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Health Policy Reflection - Research Paper Example When comparing the United States’ health care system to the Canadian health care system one of the most prominent recognitions is that the United States charges considerably more for the same procedures. Mack (2011) indicates that the average cost of an appendectomy in the United States is $8,000. This is compared with Canada where the average cost of this operation is $5,000. There are a variety of reasons for this price disparity. One of the most prominent recognitions is that in the United States considerable amount more money goes towards administrative costs. These costs extend to the medical professionals as well. It’s recognized that many qualified medical professionals leave Canada to pursue higher paying jobs in the United States. While United States medical administrators and physicians receive higher salaries, this does not directly translate into improved quality of care. Another prominent difference between the United States and Canadian health care systems is the type of medical interventions that are implemented. In the United States there is considerable emphasis placed on expensive interventions. For instance, United States medical treatment regularly involves tonsillectomies, knee replacements, and MRIs. While these interventions are implemented in the Canada, the Canadian health care system places more focus on treatment at the primary care physician level. Klune (2011) indicates that in great part the Canadian primary care system is able to treat these issues before they become more large-scale and require expensive interventions. A final consideration is the nature of attitudes and socioeconomic conditions within the United States. An amount of research has argued that one of the major reasons the United States must spend more on health care costs than Canada is because the United States crime rate is higher (O’Neil 2007, p. 42). This higher

Historical Influences on Architecture of Süleymaniye Mosque

Historical Influences on Architecture of Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque How has diverse cultures and architecture throughout history influenced the architecture of the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque? The main issue that will be covered by the author in this thesis is the question of how different cultures and architectural styles have influenced the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque’s design and structure. The reason for this investigation is to identify features, which have been acquired from other cultures, and also the way in which Architect Sinan developed an architectural style that was also influenced through the use of other landmark buildings around him such as the Hagia Sophia. Having said this, it is important to identify his engineering expertise, which will be discussed further in the second chapter of the thesis. It will be useful to also have a look at the influence that Architect Sinan acquired during his lifetime through other architectures and whether he has reflected these onto the making of the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque. The initial section of the thesis will be centered on familiarizing the reader with the history of Mosques respectively and how they have transformed over time up until the Ottoman Empire, as well as during the age of Sinan; where his style and works will be discussed. This will give the reader an understanding of how the stylistic and structural characteristics of traditional forms have developed over time and evolved into Ottoman Mosques and consequently the Suleymaniye. Which brings us onto the second chapter of the thesis. As mentioned, the second section will largely cover the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque’s history, function and structure. It is important to note that the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque has been through restoration many times due to earthquakes (which are a common occurrence in Istanbul) and wars, and how this has changed certain aspects of the building. The author will also look into whether or not the mosque has adapted to the changing times and social needs which the passing of time has brought with itself. Further, as seen from the table of contents, the functionality of the mosque will also be explored. As part of a larger complex, also known as the ‘Suleymaniye complex’, the Suleymaniye is a small but important part of this complex which also bears with it different functionalities. These will be described, as it will also give more of an insight into the possible changing nature of the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque through the acquisition of different functionalities within the comp lex itself. The structure is a major feature within the mosque, as it was influenced over time by many cultures and architectures such as the Hagia Sophia again, and Palladio, as well as influencing other architecture such as Michel angelos dome found above the roof of St Peters, Rome. The third chapter will initially look into the influence of other cultures such as the Islamic influence, the influence of the Byzantine Empire as well as the Barque-Style. However, as Turkey is wholly an Islamic country, and has been an Islamic country for many years pre-dating the Ottoman era, it is clear that the main influence will be the Islamic culture. However, it is important to also look into other cultural influences especially since people from other cultures also populate Turkey. Istanbul itself has been a city which seen the presence of people from different countries and or cultures brought by war etc. The issue of diverse cultural influences will arise within this study when we talk about the structure of the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque and its characteristics as different parts have been influenced or attained from a variety of different cultures. The Mosque has merged Islamic and Byzantine architectural elements. Within the final chapter of the thesis, the author will consider the influential effect of other architecture on the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque. Again, culture will be prevalent in this chapter too in order to understand how architecture is of an influence. For example, Architect Sinan has combined tall, slender towers with large domed buildings reinforced by half domes in the style of the Byzantine churchHagia Sophia. Many other styles from other cultures are evident within the Mosque, for example when the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque was destroyed by afire in 1660and was restored on the command of sultan Mehmed IV by architect FossatÄ ±. However the restoration changed the mosque into a more baroque style architecture. Taking elements from foreign cultures and religions and combining them into something original can be recognized in the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque. The originality of the great Ottoman mosques did not develop by removing all the foreign influences; instead it is a mixture that developed by the procedure of integration of foreign culture by the Turks of Byzantine culture. This is the symbol of the Ottoman Empire, a multiracial, multilingual, and multicultural empire. This will cast an understanding on the history of the Mosques and Ottoman Architecture that will hence lead to a conclusion of the influences on the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque. The sources mentioned in the bibliography will be of great use in acquiring the relevant information. These can be accessed through the web. The thesis will also require looking beyond these articles and books, as a site visit is required. The Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque The Sà ¼leymaniye mosque was built in Istanbul between 1550 and 1557. It is the largest of the Ottoman building enterprises and is regarded as one of Architect Sinan’s (Mimar Sinan) most famous masterpieces, as well as one of the most important examples of Ottoman architecture. Sinan was born in the last decade of the sixteenth century. Being enrolled as a teenager into the Janissary Corps that is a school for apprentices, he advanced his, carpentry, aarchitectural and engineering skill. Sinan served in various military roles during the reign of Suleyman the Magnificent, where he gradually developed approval for his engineering skills and achievements. During the Moldavian campaign was when Sinan was chosen to be the chief architect by the Prime Minister, Lutfi Pasha. Sinan was the chief architect for almost fifty years and was responsible for the design, construction and restoration of over 400 buildings, of which the Suleymaniye being one of the most important. During his t ime as chief architect, he contributed to theà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¨formation of an architecture thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¨is now recognized as ‘Ottoman Architecture’. His most innovative blends andà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¨interpretations of forms were reservedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¨for the mosques he built for Sultans. [1] Due to the experiences he gained through the practical aspects of his architectural life as well as his travels, he developed a reputation of an innovative designer of mosques and domed structures, which he then applied to the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque. Out of all of Sinan’s works, the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque aimed to exceed any other imperial mosque in beauty and size, which in most people’s opinions was a success. In the late 1540’s, the Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent ordered Sinan to build a mosque within a kulliye (complex of buildings adjacent to a mosque). Just like most imperial mosques, the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque is more than just a place of worship. The complex consisted of various social, religious and educational functions such as schools, a hospital, a caravanserai, Turkish baths, and more.[2] The mosque is located on the Old Palace, on a hill overlooking the Golden Horn. The mosque is symbolic in the city of Istanbul, as it sits on the highest hill, thus implies the power and strength of the Turkish Ottoman Empire. The complex was planned as a great centre of learning comprising of madrasas (a School for Islamic instruction) for studies in theology and holy law and medicine. Wide walkways surround the complex, where the outer sides consist of two rows of madrasas on the longer sides and social service buildings along the third side. Over time their has been additions of furth er buildings into the complex such as the hadith college, which have resulted in a lack of symmetry within the complex by attempting to adapt the buildings into older street networks. The mosque is located at the centre of the complex positioned towards the qiblah (direction of the Mecca, south-east). Around the mosque is a spacious courtyard measuring 44 by 58 meters, which has a fountain in the middle and a minaret in each corner, with a colonnaded peristyle with columns of marble, granite and porphyry.[3] The courtyard surrounded by an arched colonnade is a standard feature of Ottoman imperial mosques. Some of the marble and granite columns used for the Suleymaniye were collected from an old Byzantine Hippodrome, and from other locations in the city. In addition many materials where also collected from Roman and Byzantine buildings in Greece, Egypt, and other parts of the Ottoman Empire. This shows the diversity of cultures involved in the aesthetical and structural features with in the mosques design. The courtyard is enclosed on three sides by stonewalls, through the windows of which the sanctuary and funerary garden may be viewed. The fourth side has no wall built, allowing a panoramic view of the city and Golden horn. The minarets of the Suleymaniye have a total of 10 balconies; this was due to Suleyman the Magnificent being the 10th Ottoman sultan. Two taller minarets both frame the forecourt and mark the entrance to the interior space of worship where the sidewalls of the forecourt meet the mosque.[4] The mosque has many structural characteristics that resemble the Hagia Sophia. Sinan knew the Hagia Sophia well as he contributed to its preservation. For almost 500 yearsByzantine architecturesuch as the church of Hagia Sophia functioned as models for many of the Ottoman mosques including the Sà ¼leymaniye. [5] Although both were constructed in very different times, one representing the Christian-Byzantine Empire and the other representing the capability of the architect Sinan and the Islamic-Ottoman Empire, they have similarities as the Hagia Sophia influenced the Suleymaniye. Similar to the Hagia Sophia four giant piers hold up the main domes over a square plan. However the reinforcement system is much more complex ‘two half-domes stand on the axis of qiblah and hugearched walls filled with windows stand on the cross-axis’. The multiple domes and the arches supporting them also help to strengthen and distribute the weight of the massive central dome.[6] As well as th e columns being an essential part of the complex dome and support system of the mosque, it also had significant symbolic value religiously, symbolically and also architecturally. Although this supports the idea of influence of Hagia Sophia on the mosque, it also shows that the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque remains a unique piece of architecture due to its complexity, from the clashing aspects Sinan applied to the mosque. Taking elements from foreign cultures and religions and combining them into something original can be recognized in the Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque just by examining at the structural qualities and materials. The originality of the great Ottoman mosques did not appear by removing all the foreign influences, nor can it merely be reduced to the Byzantine style. It is a mixture that developed by the procedure of integration of foreign culture by the Turks of Byzantine culture. This is what Ottoman Empire is, a multiracial, multilingual, and multicultural empire, which is what will b e explored further throughout this study. Bibliography: 1. Cansever, Turget. The Architecture of Mimar Sinan. Architectural Design. V. 74. n. 6. Nov/Dec 2004. pg 64-70. 2. Celebi, Sai Mustafa. Book of Buildings: Memoirs of Sinan the Architect. Kocbank: Istanbul, 2002. pg. 68. 3. Freely, John and Augusto Romano Burelli. Sinan: Architect of Suleyman the Magnificent and the Ottoman Golden Age. Thames Hudson: London, 1992. pg. 15-18, 26-33, 44-45, 74-77, 123-137. 4. Goodwin, Godfrey. Sinan: Ottoman Architecture and Its Values Today. Redwood Press Limited. Great Britain, 1993. Pgs. 33-45. 5. Nelipuglu, Gulru. The Age of Sinan: Architectural Culture in the Ottoman Empire. Reaktion Books: London, 2005. pg. 207-221. 6. Yayinlari, Ege. Sinan: An Interpretation. Istanbul, Turkey, 1997. Pgs. 28-30. 7. Grabar, Oleg, ed. 1990. Muqarnas Volume VII: An Annual on Islamic Art and Architecture. Leiden: E.J. Brill. Page 92 8. Art History, Volume I: Prehistoric-1400, pgs 520 – 522 9. Sinan and Palladio: two cultures and nine squares,International journal of architectural heritage, vol. 6, no. 1, 2012 Jan./Feb., pgs. 1-18. 10. The Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque: a computational fractal analysis of visual complexity and layering in Sinans masterwork, ARQ: architectural research quarterly, vol. 16, no. 2, 2012 June, p. 171-182. 11. World architecture : the masterworks / Will Pryce, London : Thames and Hudson, 2009.Pgs 193 – 195 12. Special issue. Mimar Sinan: the urban vision, Environmental design, vol. 5, no. 5/6 (1/2), 1987, p. 6-221. [1] The Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque: a computational fractal analysis of visual complexity and layering in Sinans masterwork vol. 16, no. 2, 2012 June, p. 171-173 [2] Grabar, Oleg, ed. 1990. Muqarnas Volume VII: An Annual on Islamic Art and Architecture. Leiden: E.J. Brill. Page 92 [3] World architecture : the masterworks / Will Pryce,London : Thames and Hudson, 2009. Pg.193 [4] The Sà ¼leymaniye Mosque: a computational fractal analysis of visual complexity and layering in Sinans masterwork vol. 16, no. 2, 2012 June, p. 174 [5] Art History, Volume I: Prehistoric-1400, page 522. [6] World architecture : the masterworks / Will Pryce,London : Thames and Hudson, 2009. Pg.193

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner Chapters 11

That didn't make sense to me. Didn't the secrecy protect her more than it protected any of us? Riley hurried on before we had too long to examine his statement. â€Å"Of course, it doesn't matter now that they've decided to move on Seattle. We wil surprise them on their way in, and we wil annihilate them.† He whistled a single low note through his teeth. â€Å"Done. And then not only is the city al ours, other covens wil know not to mess with us. We won't have to be so careful to cover our tracks anymore. As much blood as you want, for everyone. Hunting every night. We'l move right into the city, and we will rule it.† The growls and snarls were like applause. Everyone was with him. Except for me. I didn't move, didn't make a sound. Neither did Fred, but who knows why that was? I was not with Riley because his promises sounded like lies. Or else my whole line of logic had been wrong. Riley said it was only these enemies that kept us from hunting without caution or restraint. But that didn't go along with the fact that al other vampires must have been discreet, or humans would have known about them long ago. I couldn't concentrate to work it out, because the door at the top of the stairs had not moved. Diego†¦ â€Å"We have to do this together, though. Today I'm going to lead you through some techniques. Fighting techniques. There's more to this than just scuffling around on the floor like toddlers. When it gets dark, we'l go outside and practice. I want you to practice hard, but keep your focus. I am not losing another member of this coven! We al need each other – every one of us. I wil not tolerate any more stupidity. If you think you don't have to listen to me, you are wrong.† He paused for a short second, the muscles in his face shifting into a new arrangement. â€Å"And you wil learn how wrong you are when I take you to her† – I shuddered and felt the tremor through the room as everyone else did, too – â€Å"and hold you while she tears off your legs and then slowly, slowly burns off your fingers, ears, lips, tongue, and every other superfluous appendage one by one.† We'd al lost a limb, at least, and we'd al burned when we became vampires, so we could easily imagine how that would feel, but it wasn't the threat itself that was so terrifying. The truly scary thing was Riley's face as he said it. His face was not twisted in rage, the way it usual y was when he was angry; it was calm and cold, smooth and beautiful, his mouth curled at the edges into a smal smile. I suddenly had the impression that this was a new Riley. Something had changed him, hardened him, but I couldn't imagine what could have happened in one night to create that cruel, perfect smile. I looked away, shivering a little, and saw as Raoul's smile shifted to echo Riley's. I could almost see the gears turning in Raoul's head. He wouldn't kil his victims so quickly in the future. â€Å"Now, let's get some teams figured out so that we can work in groups,† Riley said, his face normal again. â€Å"Kristie, Raoul, get your kids together and then divvy up the rest evenly. No fighting! Show me you can do this rational y. Prove yourselves.† He walked away from those two, ignoring the fact that they fel almost immediately into bickering, and made an arc around the outside edge of the room. He touched a few vampires on the shoulder as he passed, nudging them toward one of the new leaders or the other. I didn't realize at first that he was heading in my direction, because he took such a wide way around. â€Å"Bree,† he said, squinting toward where I stood. It looked like this took some effort. I felt like a block of ice. He must have smel ed my trail. I was dead. â€Å"Bree?† he said, softer now. His voice reminded me of the first time he'd talked to me. When he was nice to me. And then even lower, â€Å"I promised Diego I'd give you a message. He said to tel you it was a ninja thing. Does that make any sense to you?† He stil couldn't look at me, but he was edging closer. â€Å"Diego?† I murmured. I couldn't help myself. Riley smiled a tiny bit. â€Å"Can we talk?† He jerked his head toward the door. â€Å"I double-checked al the windows. The first floor is total y dark and safe.† I knew I wouldn't be as safe once I walked away from Fred, but I had to hear what Diego had wanted to tel me. What had happened? I should have stayed with him to meet Riley. I fol owed Riley through the room, keeping my head down. He gave Raoul a few instructions, nodded to Kristie, and then went up the stairs. From the corners of my eyes I saw a few people curiously watch the direction he was going. Riley passed through the door first, and the kitchen of the home was, as he'd promised, total y black. He motioned for me to keep fol owing and led me through a dark hal past a few open bedroom doors, then through another door with a dead bolt. We ended up in the garage. â€Å"You're brave,† he commented in a very low voice. â€Å"Or real y trusting. I thought it would be more work to get you upstairs with the sun up.† Whoops. I should have been more skittish. Too late now. I shrugged. â€Å"So you and Diego are pretty tight, right?† he asked, just breathing the words. Probably, if everyone were silent in the basement, they would stil be able to hear him, but it was pretty noisy down there right now. I shrugged again. â€Å"He saved my life,† I whispered. Riley lifted his chin, almost but not quite a nod, and appraised. Did he believe me? Did he think I stil feared the day? â€Å"He's the best,† Riley said. â€Å"The smartest kid I've got.† I nodded once. â€Å"We had a little meeting about the situation. We agreed that we need some surveil ance. Going in blind is too dangerous. He's the only one I trust to scout ahead.† He exhaled, almost angrily. â€Å"Wish I had two of him! Raoul's got too short a fuse and Kristie is too self-absorbed to get the big picture, but they're the best I've got, and I'l have to make do. Diego said you were smart, too.† I waited, not sure how much of our story Riley knew. â€Å"I need your help with Fred. Wow, that kid is strong! I couldn't even look at him tonight.† I nodded cautiously again. â€Å"Imagine if our enemies can't even look at us. It wil be so easy!† I didn't think Fred would like that idea, but maybe I was wrong. He didn't seem like he cared anything for this coven of ours. Would he want to save us? I didn't respond to Riley. â€Å"You spend a lot of time with him.† I shrugged. â€Å"Nobody bothers me there. It's not easy.† Riley pursed his lips and nodded. â€Å"Smart, like Diego said.† â€Å"Where is Diego?† I shouldn't have asked. The words just ripped out of their own accord. I waited anxiously, trying to look indifferent and most likely failing. â€Å"We don't have time to waste. I sent him south the second I found out what was coming. If our enemies decide to attack early, we need the advance warning. Diego wil meet up with us when we move against them.† I tried to imagine where Diego was now. I wished I were there with him. Maybe I could talk him out of doing Riley's bidding and putting himself in the line of fire in the process. But maybe not. It seemed like Diego was thick with Riley, just like I'd worried. â€Å"Diego wanted me to tel you something.† My eyes snapped to his face. Too fast, too eager. Blew it again. â€Å"Sounded like nonsense to me. He said, Tel Bree I've got the handshake figured out. I'l show her in four days, when we meet up.' I have no idea what that means. Do you?† I tried to force a poker face. â€Å"Maybe. He did say something about needing a secret handshake. For his underwater cave. Some kind of password. He was just kidding around, though. I'm not sure what he means now.† Riley chuckled. â€Å"Poor Diego.† â€Å"What?† â€Å"I think that kid likes you a lot more than you like him.† â€Å"Oh.† I looked away, confused. Was Diego giving me this message as a way to let me know I could trust Riley? But he hadn't told Riley I knew about the sun. Stil, he must have trusted Riley to tel him so much, to show Riley that he cared about me. I thought it would be wiser to keep my mouth shut, though. Too much had changed. â€Å"Don't write him off yet, Bree. He's the best, like I said. Give him a chance.† Riley was giving me romantic advice? This could not get weirder. I bobbed my head once and muttered, â€Å"Sure.† â€Å"See if you can talk to Fred. Make sure he's on board.† I shrugged. â€Å"I'l do what I can.† Riley smiled. â€Å"Great. I'l pul you aside before we leave, and you can tel me how it went. I'l keep it casual, not like tonight. I don't want him to feel like I'm spying on him.† â€Å"Okay.† Riley motioned for me to fol ow and then headed back to the basement. The training lasted al day, but I wasn't part of it. After Riley went back to his team leaders, I took my spot beside Fred. The others had been divided up into four groups of four, with Raoul and Kristie directing them. No one had picked Fred for a side, or maybe he'd ignored them, or maybe they couldn't even see that he was there. I could stil see him. He stood out – the only one not participating, a big blond elephant in the room. I had no desire to insinuate myself into either Raoul's team or Kristie's, so I just watched. No one seemed to notice that I was sitting out with Fred. Though we must have been somewhat invisible, thanks to talented Fred, I felt horribly obvious. I wished I were invisible to myself – that I could see the il usion so that I could trust it. But no one noticed us, and after a while I could almost relax. I watched the practicing closely. I wanted to know everything, just in case. I wasn't planning on fighting; I was planning on finding Diego and making a break for it. But what if Diego wanted to fight? Or what if we had to fight to get away from the rest? Better to pay attention. Only once did anyone ask about Diego. It was Kevin, but I had a sense that Raoul had put him up to it. â€Å"So, did Diego end up getting fried after al ?† Kevin asked in a forced joking tone. â€Å"Diego's with her,† Riley said, and no one had to ask who he meant. â€Å"Surveil ance.† A few people shuddered. No one said anything more about Diego. Was he real y with her? I cringed at the thought. Maybe Riley was just saying that to keep people from questioning him. He probably didn't want Raoul getting jealous and feeling second best when Riley needed him at his most arrogant today. I couldn't be sure, and I wasn't going to ask. I kept quiet, as usual, and watched the training. In the end, watching was boring, thirsty work. Riley didn't give his army a break for three days and two nights straight. During the daytime it was harder to stay out of the mix – we al were crammed so tightly into the basement. It made things easier in one way for Riley – he could usual y catch a fight before it got ugly. Outside at night, they had more room to real y work around each other, but Riley was kept busy darting back and forth to catch limbs and get them back to their owners quickly. He kept his temper wel, and he'd been smart enough to find al the lighters this time. I would have bet that this would spin out of control, that we'd lose at least a couple of coven members with Raoul and Kristie skirmishing head to head for days on end. But Riley had better control of them than I had thought possible. Stil, it was mostly repetition. I noticed Riley saying the same things over and over and over again. Work together, watch your back, don't go at her head-on; work together, watch your back, don't go at him head-on; work together, watch your back, don't go at her head-on. It was kind of ridiculous, real y, and made the group seem exceptional y stupid. But I was sure I would have been just as stupid if I'd been in the thick of the fight with them rather than watching calmly from the sidelines with Fred. It reminded me in a way of how Riley had dril ed into us our fear of the sun. Constant repetition. Stil, it was so dul that after about ten hours that first day, Fred produced a deck of cards and started playing solitaire. That was more interesting than watching the same mistakes over and over again, so I mostly watched him. After about another twelve hours – we were inside again – I nudged Fred to point out a red five that he could move over. He nodded and made the change. After that hand, he dealt out the cards to both of us, and we played rummy. We never spoke, but Fred smiled a few times. No one ever looked our way or asked us to join in. There were no hunting breaks, and as time went on, this got harder and harder to ignore. Fights broke out more regularly and with less provocation. Riley's commands got more shril, and he tore off two arms himself. I tried to forget the burning thirst as much as possible – after al, Riley must have been getting thirsty, too, so this couldn't last forever – but mostly thirst was the only thing on my mind. Fred was looking pretty strained. Early into the third night – one more day to go, and when I thought about the ticking clock it tied my empty stomach into knots – Riley cal ed al the mock fights to a halt. â€Å"Round it up, kids,† he told us, and everyone moved into a loose half-circle facing him. The original gangs al stood close together, so the practicing hadn't changed any of those al iances. Fred put the cards in his back pocket and stood up. I stood close to his side, counting on his repulsive aura to hide me. â€Å"You've done wel ,† Riley told us. â€Å"Tonight, you get a reward. Drink up, because tomorrow you're going to want your strength. â€Å" Snarls of relief from almost everyone. â€Å"I say want and not need for a reason,† Riley went on. â€Å"I think you guys have got this. You've stayed smart and worked hard. Our enemies aren't going to know what's hit them!† Kristie and Raoul growled, and both of their companies fol owed suit immediately. I was surprised to see it, but they did look like an army in that moment. Not that they were marching in formation or anything, but there was just something uniform about the response. Like they al were part of one big organism. As always, Fred and I were the glaring exceptions, but I thought only Riley was even the slightest bit aware of us – every now and then his eyes would scan across where we were standing, almost like he was checking to make sure he stil felt Fred's talent. And Riley didn't seem to mind that we weren't joining up. For now, anyway. â€Å"Um, you mean tomorrow night, right, boss?† Raoul clarified. â€Å"Right,† Riley said with a strange little smile. It didn't seem like anyone else noticed anything off in his reply – except for Fred. He looked down at me with one eyebrow raised. I shrugged. â€Å"You ready for your reward?† Riley asked. His little army roared in response.