What effect did the Enlightenment have on the concepts of liberty, rights, and the responsibilities of individuals?

The Enlightenment was, perhaps, one of the most influential movements of modern Westten society. The topic itself encompasses a wide expanse of thinkers and philosophers, and connections can be drawn between the Enlightenment and the Scientific Revolution, as well as the Renaissance in Western and Northern Europe.
That being said, the Enlightenment revolutionized the way in which citizens viewed their respective governments. Western democracy still displays many aspects of this change that was brought about by thinkers such as John Locke, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Thomas Hobbes, Baron de Montesquieu and Voltaire. One of the more revolutionary ideas was the concept of a social contract that exists between the government and the governed. Ironically, while many of these thinkers promoted the notion of a social contract, their reasons for doing so were not always for promoting the ideals of democracy. In some instances, as with Thomas Hobbes, the social contract was introduced as an argument against democratic government.
Regardless, the social contract suggested that there was in fact a contract between the government and the governed, whereby the governed forfeited some of their rights in exchange for the protections and stability government provided. In instances, where this contract was ignored, the impacted party had a right to seek an alternative. The U.S. Declaration of Independence references this concept- “That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness” [sic].
Additionally, Enlightenment thinkers believed that all humans were entitled to natural, god-given rights. John Locke is one of the more famous advocates of these rights, arguing that men are entitled to the life, liberty and the pursuit of property. Thomas Jefferson immortalized these ideas by their inclusion in the U.S. Declaration of Independence, replacing “property” with “the pursuit of happiness”.
In examining the American Revolution and the French Revolution if the 18th Century, one sees the influence the ideas of the Enlightenment has on society. While the ideas of John Locke seemingly formed the foundation of both revolutions, the ideas of other thinkers became ingrained in the ensuing governments, most notably in the United States Constitution. For example, the notion of separation of powers that is inherent in the U.S. political system was an idea proposed by Montesquieu in his work The Spirit of the Laws. Many of the rights afforded in the U.S. Bill of Rights (freedom of religion; freedom of speech) were ideas proposed by the French writer Voltaire.b
It is important to note that while the Enlightenment seems like a time citizens seemed to demand much from their governments, there was a similar onus placed on citizens as well. Again, there was the idea of a social contract. As in any contract, both sides were expected to honor their end of the agreement. Citizens, therefore, had a responsibility to their government as well as responsibility to speak out against any shortcomings of their government.

The Enlightenment was a heavily influential time period, but it should be noted that the Enlightenment is a big topic and is made up of many thinkers of profound historical significance, each of whom tended to say very different things from one another. This makes tackling the totality of your questions in such a short format practically impossible. This is one area where you really would need an entire book. Still, I'll give my thoughts as to a few of the notable trends running within the Enlightenment which have proved particularly influential in shaping later centuries of political discourse.
Among the most ubiquitous hallmarks of Enlightenment era political thought is the notion of the Social Contract. First postulated by Thomas Hobbes in defense of Absolutism, then taken up by John Locke to attack Absolutism, and later still by Jean Jacques Rousseau, Social Contract Theory states that governments were originally created to serve a function, and its adherents spent tremendous energy trying to discern what that original function was (this is the so called "Social Contract"). Some of their conclusions, particularly those of Locke, have been very influential in shaping modern values concerning governmental authority and political freedom.
For Locke, governments exist to safeguard the essential freedoms of life, liberty and property, and therefore any government which becomes oppressive loses its legitimacy. In such cases, resistance becomes a valid response to tyranny. This logic would serve as the theoretical underpinnings of the American Revolution, and its underlying assumption—that governments have a responsibility to safeguard the rights of its citizens—has not really gone away. That being said, modern democratic thought has changed and further evolved over time, particularly with the added influence of nineteenth-century Liberalism and Utilitarianism.
Similarly, the Enlightenment has been profound in shaping the discourse around political rights. Notice that political rights, like laws, tend to be listed and codified. With this in mind, the 1689 English Bill of Rights becomes a kind of turning point: it provided an explicit list of rights that would be protected and guaranteed to all English citizens. In the following century, the American Bill of Rights and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen would follow. Collectively, these documents have established a precedent which still holds tremendous influence today and serves as the foundation from which our modern understanding of political rights come from.
Finally, the Enlightenment era thinkers did tend to expect and advocate for a high degree of individual and collective responsibility. Lockean political ethics fails if the people lack the willingness to resist arbitrary rule. When Voltaire was writing against political abuses, he was working to challenge real injustices, and he did so by publishing. The Enlightenment was highly literate and discursive, and if its adherents simultaneously made appeals to the reading public, they also expected to heard by that reading public.

Why does David get so angry when Larry Jr. was picking on him and Chris in The Lost Boy?

You can find the answer to your question in chapter 5.
In that chapter, we learn that Larry Junior always picked on David and Chris whenever he liked. During one especially trying episode, David became enraged at Larry Junior's behavior. This is because Larry Junior used his size against the younger boys. In other words, Larry Junior bullied David and Chris simply because he was bigger and stronger. He knew that neither David nor Chris had the wherewithal to defend themselves against him.
Additionally, Larry Junior always ridiculed Chris's disability when he terrorized the younger boy. The latter suffered from cerebral palsy and stuttered every time he spoke. As for David, he was short for his age, and Larry Junior never ceased pointing out the fact.
All in all, David became enraged because he was tired of Larry Junior using his size to bully boys who were weaker and younger than him. David was especially upset at Larry Junior for ridiculing Chris's disability. After all, Chris had little power to change his physical and mental condition. He was helpless, which made Larry Junior's behavior even more repulsive.

How did Sumer's location in the Fertile Crescent allow their civilization to have specialized workers?

The term we often use to refer to the Fertile Crescent is Mesopotamia, a phrase which quite literally means (in the Greek) "between two rivers." This is what has ultimately shaped the region: the presence of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. This reflects a major theme of Ancient Civilization—the presence of River Valleys. We could talk about the Indus River in India, the Nile River in Egypt, or the Huang He in China, and see a similar theme: river valleys are central to ancient civilizations and tend to be the oldest locations of human settlement and civilization.
I think the way that you have phrased your question risks misconstruing the relationship between job specialization and civilization—by your wording, you imply that something in the Fertile Crescent allowed the people of Sumer to have job specialization, but ultimately, you should keep in mind that job specialization is actually one of the underlying features which defines civilization altogether. The real question isn't so much why does Sumer have job specialization, but rather, why does job specialization evolve in the context of these River Valleys? Sumer is just an illustration of a much larger and more fundamental theme.
Ultimately, it begins with the Neolithic Revolution (the discovery of agriculture), after which populations became sedentary. What will follow is population growth as settlements grow larger and larger, a population growth which is ultimately supported by agriculture. Here is where we arrive at job specialization: as populations grow larger, at a certain point, it simply becomes both more feasible and ultimately more advantageous for members of a population to start to specialize.
To bring this back to your question about the Fertile Crescent, I would suggest that you keep in mind that this entire evolution is based upon geographical preconditions, and the presence of these rivers created preconditions favorable to ancient agriculture to begin with. There had to be a geography conducive to agriculture to begin with for agrarian civilization to develop, and this is a requirement which the Fertile Crescent certainly fulfilled.

How do the children respond to the two men?

The children are intrigued and amused by the two men. However, they are also distrustful of the men's motives.
In the story, the narrator and her sister, Cathy, watch as two visitors walk onto their grandparents' property. The men tell Granny Cora that they are taking pictures for the county food stamp campaign.
As the men explain their reasons for trespassing on Granny's property, Cathy giggles. Although the text doesn't explain why Cathy reacts this way, we can make an informed guess as to why she does so. First, the text hints that Granny is intolerant of all forms of incivility. We can see this in her reaction regarding the boorish individual taking pictures of a man on the verge of suicide.
Granny obviously dislikes those who willfully exhibit bad manners. So, Cathy may have been amused by the ignorance exhibited by the men. After all, they have completely miscalculated Granny's tolerance for rudeness. Meanwhile, two other children are also observing the events before them. They are the twins from next door, Tyrone and Terry. Both Tyrone and Terry exhibit curiosity and distrust towards the two men.
By the end of the story, we understand why the children respond with little surprise at Granddaddy Cain's actions. They may have been originally curious, mistrustful, or even amused by the men's presence. However, they had little doubt that, once Granddaddy Cain returned, he would address the situation accordingly. Like Granny Cora, Granddaddy Cain is similarly intolerant of all forms of incivility.

What type of meter and rhyme scheme does Donne use in "Death, be not proud"?

The rhyme scheme of the first twelve lines of the poem is an alternating abab, where every other line rhymes. The last two lines, however, form a rhyming couplet, which is a technique often used by poets to suggest finality or closure. In this instance the poet wants the closing sentiment, that death shall be conquered, to be a final, unanswerable end to the poem.
The fact that the rhyme scheme changes in the final two lines also suggests that these two lines might represent the poem's volta. The volta is the moment in a poem where there is a change in tone or meaning. In the closing two lines, the negative attacks on death that make up the previous twelve lines are replaced by a more positive, triumphant declaration of the eternity of life after death. This poem then, if the volta is in the final two lines, would be classed as an English, or Shakespearean sonnet, as opposed to an Italian, or Petrarchan sonnet, where the volta is comprised of the last six lines.
The prosody, or metrical rhythm of the poem is iambic pentameter, where an iamb is a pair of syllables in which the first is unstressed and the second stressed. The prefix "pent" indicates that there are five iambs in each line. For example:

Death, be / not proud, / though some / have call/ed thee



In this line, the word "called," which by today's pronunciation would have one syllable, is formed of two syllables. In Renaissance England the "ed" suffix was generally pronounced as an extra syllable. The fact that the lines are in iambic pentameter also means that the poem has a rising meter, meaning that the last syllable of each line is stressed. A rising meter usually creates a more upbeat intonation, or tone, as opposed to a falling meter where the final syllable is unstressed. The upbeat intonation is fitting for this poem because the speaker is defiantly challenging the supposed dominion of death.

"Death, be not proud" is written in the form of an Italian or Petrarchan sonnet, a fourteen-line poem consisting of an eight-line octave followed by a six-line sestet. In the genre, there is traditional a "turn" or shift in focus between the octave and the sestet; in this case, it shifts from a description of death's power to a more positive view of death from a Christian perspective as the beginning of eternal life.


The rhyme scheme of the poem is ABBA ABBA CDD CAA , with the first two open quatrains comprising the octave and the final six lines the sestet.


The meter of the poem is iambic pentameter, but it is notable for several initial trochaic substitutions. In lines 1, 2, 4, and 8, the first iambs of the lines are replaced with trochees. Also distinctive are the nature of the rhymes, in which several are actually assonances, consisting of identical long vowel sounds rather than the more common vowel-consonant combinations.

What proverb is used in the story "Kabuliwala" by Rabindranath Tagore?

Two identifiable proverbs are implied in "Kabuliwala" by Rabindranath Tagore. They both relate to generosity and kindness.
At the end of the story, Mini's father displays kindness and generosity by giving the Kabuliwala money to travel to see his daughter again and also to have a fresh start in Afghanistan. He has been in prison for years for stabbing a man (after a quarrel related to pay for a shawl that he was indebted to him for) and his murderous action put a physical rift between he and Mini. It also darkened him in the eyes of Mini's father, who had not seen someone killed before:

The words gave me a sudden jolt. I had never seen a homicide before, so my heart flinched at the sight of the man.

At least one translation of the story says that Mini's father considers the appearance of the man on his daughter's wedding day to be a bad omen; another just says that he wished he would leave on such an auspicious day. Either way, it is clear the Kabuliwala is no longer welcome; Mini's father asks him to leave.
Despite this, Mini's father has a change of heart when he discovers the Kabuliwala carries around a paper with his daughter's hand print on it. He relates to the Kabuliwala as a father, and uncovers the true reason why the strange man spent so much time with Mini when she was younger. The Kabuliwala had a daughter in Afghanistan who he was working to provide for and years in prison separated him from her so long that he would now have trouble recognizing her, just as he had had trouble recognizing the full-grown Mini. The story describes this moment where it says:

It became obvious to him that his own daughter had grown up as well and he would have to get to know her all over again.

Mini's father then decides to act on the proverbs: "True happiness consists of making other people happy" and "Help thy brother's boat across, and lo, thine own has reached the shore":

I took out some money and gave it to him. "You go back to your daughter in Afghanistan, Rahamat, and may the happiness of your union bring blessings for my Mini too," I said.
I had to cut out one or two items from the eclat of the festivities for gifting that money. For example, the lighting decoration was not as gorgeous as I had wanted it to be, and the band party had to be canceled. This upset the woman, but buoyed by a benevolent spirit, my auspicious ceremony became more luminous.

Mini's father feels the joy of making a small sacrifice for another person, and he also expects that the act will bring good fortune on his own daughter in the future.

Persuade a reader that satire is a valuable form of literature. Refer to "The Interlopers" and "Mrs. Packletide's Tiger" by Saki and "The Greatest Man in the World" by James Thurber, along with the styles of the writers.

To persuade a reader that satire is a valuable form of literature, first define what is “valuable” to a reader. It could be an enjoyable reading experience, a lesson from literature that can affect the reader’s own life, or a combination of the two. Satire uses humor to comment on an idea or situation. It lets the reader have a good time and think critically about current events or popular beliefs. It covers both aspects of a “valuable” experience.
When selecting examples from these stories, start with the parts that made you laugh. Explain why those parts might be funny to you or to another reader. The use of irony and sarcasm, saying or reading the opposite of what we think or mean, makes people laugh. Does this technique make for a more interesting story? Does it let the reader think about what the authors are mocking? These humorous sections draw in the reader so the writer can make a deeper point. For example, how does Saki describe Miss Mebbin’s reaction upon seeing the tiger? What does the author point out that actually makes Mebbin nervous? Is that the reaction that most people would have if they saw a tiger? What does this say about Miss Mebbin or people who think like her?
A funny phrase can also indicate that Thurber or Saki are making a satirical point. For example, think about Jack Smurch’s voice in “The Greatest Man In The World.” Does Thurber make the character sound like a person many people should admire? Does Smurch talk about important things, provide wise words, or even speak clearly? Consider people’s reactions to Smurch in the book, and then think about how he sounds to you. What is Thurber trying to say about hero worship?
http://storyoftheweek.loa.org/2015/10/the-greatest-man-in-world.html

http://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/UBooks/MrsPac.shtml

Although Söngsam and Tokchae in "Cranes" represent opposite sides of the war, they share similarities. Compare their characters and their situations.

In the short story "Cranes," Söngsam and Tokchae are two childhood friends who lost contact throughout the years and find themselves on the opposite sides of a conflict. The latter is a member of a communist agrarian collective whilst the other is an officer. Although they are, politically, on opposing ends, they are very much alike since they grew up together. However, their common or shared experience is the fact that both had to make sacrifices due to the war.
In particular, both Söngsam and Tokchae had to do what was best for their family. As fathers, they each tried to protect their loved ones but in different ways: one stayed whilst the other ran away. Neither action was wrong, but was a decision based on their particular circumstances at the time. They also seem to be well aware that they are both pawns in the larger political games of the war. This perspective and ability to empathize with one another paves the way for Söngsam to allow Tokchae's escape.

When Pip returns from the churchyard, where is Mr. Joe?

Joe is sitting in the kitchen when Pip returns from his graveyard encounter with the fearsome convict.
Pip learns through Joe the unfortunate news that Mrs. Joe has "ram-paged" out and is looking for Pip for the thirteenth time. Joe also informs Pip that Mrs. Joe has gone out armed with Tickler, a wax-ended piece of a cane she frequently uses to hit Pip.
From Joe's dialogue with Pip, we learn quite a bit about the family dynamics and also about both Joe and Mrs. Joe's natures. Joe is a good-hearted, quiet blacksmith with whom Pip feels a strong bond of affection. We see Joe protect Pip as best as he can from Mrs. Joe's wrath. Mrs. Joe, however, comes across as a hard woman who makes the young Pip's life a misery. Between the convict and Mrs. Joe, Pip is up against it as the novel opens.

In the opening chapter of Great Expectations, we find the protagonist, Pip—who begins his story when he is still a young child—in the graveyard in which his parents and siblings are buried. He seems to visit this graveyard with some regularity, but this occasion is singular because he meets a man who will become important in the later narrative: an escaped convict.
After his encounter with the convict, Pip immediately runs home to the house in which he lives with his sister, Mrs Joe Gargery, and her husband, Joe. Pip and Joe have a close kinship, which Pip describes as being the result of their experience as "fellow sufferers" of Mrs Joe. Mrs Joe certainly rules the household with an iron fist, despite the fact that Joe himself is a large man with a physical occupation. A blacksmith, he can often be found working in his forge, which adjoins the house.
When Pip glances at the forge here, however, he finds it dark and shut up, and consequently proceeds to the kitchen where he finds Joe sitting by the fire on his own.

What connotations does Miss Scatcherd's name suggests in Jane Eyre?

This is an unpleasant name that sounds like scratch or scat, which is animal droppings. This fits Miss Scatcherd, a cruel teacher who victimizes the good Helen Burns. Jane thinks very poorly of her.
Miss Scatcherd seems to have her claws out, ready to scratch at and bully Helen about very petty things:

Burns, you are standing on the side of your shoe; turn your toes out immediately. [. . .] Burns, you poke your chin most unpleasantly; draw it in. [. . .] Burns, I insist on your holding your head up; I will not have you before me in that attitude.

Later, she turns even meaner, again over a small error on Helen's part:

You dirty, disagreeable girl! you have never cleaned your nails this morning!

For this, Miss Scatcherd beats Helen twelve blows on the back with a bundle of twigs, a punishment that seems far out of proportion to the very minor crime. Miss Scatcherd, a bully and a sadist, seems to have some serious anger issues, which she takes out on Helen, who won't fight back.
When Jane asks Helen about all this and why she tolerates Miss Scatherd, Helen defends her and says she is guilty of the faults the teacher names. Jane will have none of that, however, and offers a much more robust philosophy rather than merely accepting injustice meekly—a philosophy she has already used in her own life when she fought back against the cruel John Reed:

If people were always kind and obedient to those who are cruel and unjust, the wicked people would have it all their own way: they would never feel afraid, and so they would never alter, but would grow worse and worse. When we are struck at without a reason, we should strike back again very hard; I am sure we should—so hard as to teach the person who struck us never to do it again.

How does act 1, scene 4 in Hamlet show reason under threat? (Reason is defined by the capacity of the mind to arrive at judgments based on evidence and sound logic.)

Act 1, scene 4, of Hamlet is when the ghost appears for the second time in the play. This is when Hamlet himself is present and is faced with the spirit of his dead father for the first time.
He immediately addresses the ghostly figure, trying to communicate with it. These actions can be interpreted as the first to indicate Hamlet’s descent into madness:

What may this mean,
That thou, dead corse, again in complete steel
Revisits thus the glimpses of the moon,
Making night hideous and we fools of nature,
So horridly to shake our disposition
With thoughts beyond the reaches of our souls?
Say why is this? Wherefore? What should we do? (1.4.54–61.)

He is wondering what meaning is behind the ghost’s sudden appearance and asks what he is to do. Once the ghost signals to Hamlet to follow it, Hamlet, curious as to where the spirit will lead him, announces to Horatio and Marcellus (friends who have accompanied him to see the ghost) that he has decided to follow it.
Even though both Horatio and Marcellus warn him and advise against him following the ghost, claiming its presence makes them feel uneasy, Hamlet has already decided to go after the spirit, choosing to ignore his friends’ warnings. He even threatens to kill them if they try to stop him.
That Hamlet impulsively and unthinkingly decides to follow the spirit, and that he immediately threatens his good friends with death, shows us how very unstable his mental state is. One could argue that it is apparent here that Hamlet is no longer on the verge of abandoning reason but has already dived deep into the sea of madness.

When was the story published?

Animal Farm was published in 1945.

In Hard Times, what details does Dickens use to describe the schoolroom?

The novel Hard Times by Charles Dickens is set in the fictitious industrial mill-town of Coketown. The first two chapters of book 1, "The One Thing Needful" and "Murdering the Innocents," take place at the town school.
The descriptions of the schoolroom in the novel are very rudimentary because the room is extremely simple and basic. In chapter 1, the school board superintendent, Mr. Thomas Gradgrind, is delivering a lecture to the students in a "plain, bare, monotonous vault of a school-room." This gives us a picture of a room that is probably not decorated and only has what is "necessary" for the education of the children. By describing the room as a "vault," Dickens probably means that it has a high-arched ceiling.
In chapter 2, Dickens fills out this description by adding that the room has bare windows, which means that there are no curtains. Rays of sunlight come into the room through the windows and strike some of the children. Dickens also writes that the room is "intensely white-washed," which means that the walls are covered with bright white paint. The boys and girls sit separately in rows divided by a narrow aisle.

How do we see political strife and power struggles in Much Ado About Nothing?

One of the most common themes in Shakespeare's plays is the political strife between a rightful ruler and those who challenge that rule. We see it most clearly in Macbeth, Richard II, and several other history plays, but Shakespeare also explores it in Much Ado About Nothing in the form of Don John, the illegitimate brother of Don Pedro, who attempts to create distrust between Don Pedro and his most loyal followers and friends. The illegitimate son or brother becomes almost a stock character in Shakespeare—he cannot be trusted; his only goal is to sow discord in an otherwise peaceful reign; and he has few, if any, redeeming virtues. The subtext here and in other plays is that rightful rulers or leaders must always be aware of attempts to destroy their rule.

Discuss the theme of colonialism.

Colonialism and its enduring legacy is a central theme in Second-Class Citizen. The protagonist, Adah, is an indigenous African born in Nigeria during World War II and spends her entire childhood under British colonial rule. The limited opportunities for native peoples under colonialism included limited education. The schools designated for native children were inferior to those in which the colonists enrolled their children, but some private schools were available.
Adah uses a variety of tactics to pursue her education at the Methodist school. For adults, economic opportunities in the colony were also extremely limited, which contributed to a “brain drain.” After Nigeria became independent in 1960, although people were free, conditions actually worsened in some ways when many British enterprises were suddenly pulled out. These problems contributed to the decision of her husband, Francis, to emigrate. Once she joined him in England, many of their negative experiences seem to stem from white English people's bias against the former colonial subjects.

In "Second-Class Citizen," the characters uproot their lives from Nigeria to eventually move to the United Kingdom. In the novel, their lives in Nigeria are ruled by the British overlord, as they are a colonial nation. This idea is pervasive in the novel, as the colonial mindset automatically brands the characters as "second-class citizens."
Being distant subjects of the British government, the citizens of Nigeria are not given access to high-quality education or opportunities, in spite of the effort they put forth. When Adah and Francis move to the United Kingdom, in spite of the fact that they are working hard trying to earn a decent living and supporting themselves as well as they can, they are still treated with less respect and dignity, and they don't receive the opportunities they should, simply because they are not native Brits. This theme runs throughout the novel, as they are constantly scraping to get by and make their lives better, but are very unsuccessful.

What are some themes of Antigone?

Arguably the most important theme of the play is the conflict between human law and a higher moral law set down by the gods.
The law of Thebes, as laid down by Creon, says that Antigone's brother Polynices was a traitor whose body should be left to rot. The higher moral law to which Antigone adheres with equal insistence says that Polynices, whatever he's done, should be buried according to established customs in honor of the gods.
It's this central conflict that generates much of the play's action and sets the scene for an epic battle of wills between the resolute Creon and his equally stubborn niece. Creon is determined that earthly law should prevail, the law that he as king of Thebes has decreed in the time-honored fashion. As for Antigone, she's no less determined to see a higher morality win out, a cosmic justice established by the gods that operates at all times and in all places, irrespective of the circumstances.

The United States spends more on healthcare than any other country in the world. How should healthcare managers reduce healthcare costs and healthcare spending?

When trying to minimize cost in any system, especially one as complex as the healthcare industry, it is a good idea to first break down exactly where costs are accrued.
The United States owes its inflated cost of healthcare to two main agents. The first is the pharmaceutical industry (colloquially titled "big pharma"), which is made up of companies who pay scientists to invent new drugs, pay marketing teams to induce a consumer demand, and patent the drugs as their own intellectual property. All of these factors work together to let the patent-holding company of a given drug set the prices as high as they wish, which oftentimes approaches oligopolistic and even monopolistic market behavior.
The pharmaceutical industry's monopoly on healthcare in the United States makes it incumbent on another entity—the US government—to make the costs affordable to ordinary citizens. In its current political state, the US government does not guarantee healthcare as a right for its people. I would argue, also, that it does not work to break down the monopolistic corporations that control "big pharma"; instead, it uses taxpayers' money to unevenly allocate resources to third-party programs that collude with pharmaceutical companies to get package reductions on medicine.
Though healthcare managers can exert little real power to undo price-setting behavior, they can often choose to source non–name-brand versions of a given drug or find reasonable alternatives to drugs that are too expensive for patients at a given hospital.

What are the tricks performed by Gulliver?

The titular Gulliver from Jonathon Swift’s 1726 novel is flexible. He grew up with some education and was given a “scantly allowance.” Gulliver is neither impoverished nor a member of the aristocracy. As a middle-class man, Gulliver can interact with a variety of people, from kings to servants.
Gulliver discovers many islands in his travels. He observes the different nations, and for his safety, navigates accordingly. In the first adventure, Gulliver discovers that the miniature nation of Lilliput is ruled by an Emperor who appoints court officials with a rope dance, regardless of their qualifications. Impressing the Emperor is the most important thing someone can do in Lilliput, so Gulliver gains favor by capturing the Blefuscudian fleet.
Gulliver quickly learns new languages. In Brobdingnag, he becomes articulate enough to please the giantess queen. She asks him if he wants to become her pet, to which Gulliver swallows his pride and lies, “I should be proud to devote my life to her Majesty's service.”
Similarly, Gulliver talks his way out of a ritual in Japan. The test forces people to prove they are not members of Christianity by walking over a crucifix. Gulliver avoids the situation by appealing to Japan’s Emperor:

for the sake of my patron the king of Luggnagg, his majesty would condescend to excuse my performing the ceremony…of tramping upon the crucifix.

Gulliver survives his many journeys by tricking, appeasing, and fleeing from exotic nations.

What themes overlap between Gothic and Romantic literature? What are the similarities and differences in style?

Gothic and Romantic literature both overlap in terms of their focus on the individual and the individual's experience of heightened emotion. The Romantics felt that the feeling of intense emotion was more fundamental to the human experience than logic or reason, something, they felt, that must be taught. We are born knowing how to feel deeply, and we are returned to a more innocent and original state by continuing to experience intense emotions, especially those which are inspired by nature. The Gothics felt that the most intense form of intense emotion was fear or horror, and so they sought to inspire those feelings in their readers, as a way of producing similar effects. Romantic literature might focus on the sublimity of nature, on compelling readers to experience it second-hand via imagery and vivid descriptions. Gothic literature might focus on some terrifying experiences—like the creation of a monster or the existence of the supernatural—in order to create an intensely fearful response in readers.

Where in Speak does it say Melinda and Rachel have been friends since grade school?

At the beginning of the chapter entitled, "Communication 101," which is the twentieth chapter in the section entitled, "Fourth Marking Period," Melinda says to Rachel, "you've always talked about traveling, ever since we were kids." She then asks Rachel if she remembers "when (they) were in fourth grade," which was when they both read Heidi and "tried to melt cheese" in Rachel's fireplace. This is the moment in the book where we learn that Melinda and Rachel have been friends since grade school.
This connection between Melinda and Rachel, dating back to grade school, means that Melinda feels like she will be able to talk to Rachel about Andy Evans and about the night that she was raped by him at a party. Rachel at this stage likes Andy, so much so that even the mention of his name "wakes her muscles and makes her tummy jump." It is perhaps because Melinda and Rachel were friends in grade school that Melinda feels a particular sense of obligation to warn her against Andy.

The Tin Flute is a novel about the poor of Montreal and the effect of the depression and war on their lives. Comment with examples from the novel.

The Tin Flute is set in 1940, which influences the characters' attitudes and opinions of World War II. Because Canada is part of the United Kingdom at the time, Canadian soldiers are fighting in Europe. The United States will enter the war much later, in December 1941. While the military and related munitions manufacture have provided employment, the ripple effects have not spread throughout the economy. Many of the characters are still mired in extreme poverty.
While many Canadian men have joined up and already seen combat in Europe, others are staunchly opposed to the "English" war that they do not see as relevant to them. This vast difference of opinion is shown by the argument between Azarius and the snack bar owner. Similarly, the lack of consensus about the war's value, even as a means of employment, is shown by Emanuel's conversation in the restaurant with three former school friends; he has joined up and phrases his motivation as idealistic, but they remain unemployed and unconvinced of the value of being a soldier.
The limited benefit of the war in helping many families is most clearly shown in the female characters. Rose-Anna, in particular, already has eleven children and is expecting another; her son enlists mainly for the income it brings. Faced with imminent eviction, her inability to afford even a cheap toy—a tin flute—for her son encapsulates the effects of poverty. Florentine fortunately has a job as a waitress, but she bears a heavy financial burden because her father is unstable. Her infatuation with a soldier leads to her pregnancy and then to marriage with a different man after the soldier moves on.

How can statistics be applied to a real estate database?

There are many ways statistics can be applied to a real estate database, such as the MLS listing database. Statistics is the study of proportions and trends in numerical data, so all you have to do is apply that to various aspects of the real estate information. Several of the commonly used statistical real estate measures you’ll find currently are median home value, average local rate of appreciation of home value, and trends for houses with certain characteristics selling at certain price points. You can apply your own statistics to it however you want, though. You can summarize data of the real estate market based on size of homes, sale price, and more, which you can analyze with mean, median, and statistical trends. You can even do a hypothesis test about whether a house is likely to sell for 10% above average market value or something similar.

Critically analyse Moll Flanders and Evelina as you demonstrate how they show social changes that raise concerns regarding identity and the possibilities of self-invention, and show how the texts relate to the context of the eighteenth century.

The title characters in Moll Flanders and Evelina are women who share some personal features but for the most part are very different. While there were select paths to upward mobility in eighteenth-century England, people's lives were largely shaped by class and their parents' status. Inventing a unique and authentic self, especially within the bounds of honorable conduct, was particularly a challenge for females. Moll, born poor, becomes wealthy but does not aspire to respectability. Evelina, born into a respectable family but rejected by her father, hopes to fit into his class.


Moll Flanders, the novel, is generally considered picaresque and Moll, herself, one of the earliest female pícaro, "rogue," heroes. Defoe portrays her misadventures in England through several marriages and has her gain notoriety in a life of crime. Significantly for the times, one important vehicle of social mobility is immigration to the American colonies. Her stay in Virginia, along with her honor, is marred by the realization that she has married her brother. Nonetheless, Moll triumphs and, back in England, makes her fortune as an infamous robber.


Compared to Moll, Evelina has a less eventful life and, in terms of personality, does not seem like as much fun. She had an advantage over Moll of a very sheltered rural upbringing. Although she is susceptible to bad influences, in the form of London society and a French grandmother, Evelina holds her head high and does not pursue inappropriate lifestyles. The quest that Frances Burney sets for her is, on the surface, conventional: a respectable place in society and a happy marriage.


In her day, however, the stigma of Evelina's birth would have been a severe obstacle to overcome. Burney embraces and subverts an English stereotype of French loose morals, providing an excuse for her father's behavior. He is sufficiently well positioned that, once he accepts her, she can gain the status she desires. In this depiction of the English biases, however, Burney does offer a social and gendered critique: it is her father who did not lose face and whose position must redeem the daughter.

Was the Neolithic Revolution ultimately positive or negative for the human race?

Whether one considers the neolithic revolution positive or not depends on one's values. On the one hand, it led to the development of modern technology, which led to dramatic increases in life expectancy, far greater comfort and convenience, increased availability of adequate food and shelter in much of the world, and many other positive benefits. Without it, we would lack adequate food, safe drinking water, and cures for many diseases. Infant mortality would be much higher.
On the other hand, the same technology has given rise to global climate change, pollution, economic inequality, and weapons of mass destruction. Increased technological capacity has led to many species extinctions and the degradation of habitats. Therefore one can argue either side of the question equally well. Perhaps a definitive answer will only be possible in a few hundred years after the effects of anthropogenic changes on the planet become more obvious.

What is Franklin Pierce's legacy?

Franklin Pierce's legacy was one of growing division within the United States, between slave state and free state. As a Northern Democrat, Pierce came to see the abolitionist movement as the biggest single threat to the stability of the Union. Far from recognizing the limitless capacity of slavery to tear the country apart, not to mention its inherent wickedness, Pierce attempted to facilitate the institution's expansion into the new territories of Kansas and Nebraska.
The notorious Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, signed into law by President Pierce, was supposed to allow the people who lived in these territories to decide whether they would allow slavery within their boundaries. But in Kansas—"Bleeding Kansas" as it soon became known—this simply led to widespread political chaos and outbreaks of violent civil disorder, as each side accused the other of electoral fraud. Pierce, supposedly a supporter of states's rights, had no hesitation in sending in a detachment of Federal troops to quell the growing violence as well as forcibly dissolving the anti-slavery legislature.
Pierce's blatant partiality towards pro-slavery forces during his time in office created a lot of bad blood, which in turn drove North and South further apart than ever and hastened the nation's slide towards civil war.

What contributed to Jackson winning the election of 1828?

There were a couple of reasons why Andrew Jackson won the election of 1828. His victory is considered to be one of the great watersheds of American history.
One reason he won was because of what was seen as a "corrupt bargain" after the election of 1824; although Jackson had more popular and electoral votes than any other candidate, John Quincy Adams won the disputed election. Jackson's supporters thought the outcome was extremely unfair, and they were determined to win a resounding victory in 1828.
A second reason for Jackson's victory was his popularity with the common man. By 1828, presidential electors were being chosen by popular vote in almost all of the states, and no other candidate could match Jackson's popularity. While Jackson's main adversary, John Quincy Adams, was a brilliant and honorable man, he lacked Jackson's charisma.
https://www.britannica.com/event/United-States-presidential-election-of-1828

How do Moliere's characters play against expected gender roles in Tartuffe?

The first version of Tartuffe, by Jean Baptiste Poquelin, better known as Moliere, was performed at the Palace of Versailles in 1664, during the reign of King Louis XIV of France, who promptly banned the play from public performance.
A second version of the play, titled L'Imposteur (The Imposter), was performed in 1667 in the Théâtre du Palais-Royal in Paris and was also banned.
The third version of the play, Le Tartuffe, was performed in 1669, also at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal in Paris. The third version was not banned, and this is the version of the play which has come down to us.
Moliere changed the title from Tartuffe in 1664 to Le Tartuffe in 1669 partly because the term "tartuffe" was in common use in France and England as a synonym for "hypocrite," and Moliere shifted the title from "Tartuffe," the title character in the play, to "the Tartuffe," meaning someone who acts like Tartuffe.
In relation to the question of gender roles, Tartuffe wasn't banned because of any controversy concerning the portrayal of men or women in the play, but because influential Roman Catholic Church leaders strongly objected to what they considered Moliere's attack on religion. They also objected to the portrayal of Tartuffe as an outwardly pious person who is actually a lecherous, deceitful hypocrite.
Instead of directly undermining gender roles by portraying all of the female characters in ways that are adverse to societal norms, Moliere established one character, Mariane, as the cultural standard of the time. Mariane is quiet (seen but not heard, like a child), passive, and obedient to her father, Orgon, even to the point of agreeing to marry Tartuffe, even though she's in love with Valère.
Having established Mariane as the perfect woman (and perfect daughter), Moliere uses two other female characters, Elmire and Dorine, to satirize and criticize society's fixation with the perfect woman.
Elmire, Orgon's second wife and Marian's stepmother, is strong-minded, intelligent, and independent. Elmire actually "wears the pants" in the household. Except when bullying his daughter, Mariane, Orgon defers to Elmire, which is a definite role reversal.
Tartuffe attempts to seduce Elmire, and, not being as easily misled as Orgon is by Tartuffe's feigned virtue, Elmire rejects Tartuffe and eventually helps expose him for what he is.
Moliere's portrayal of Dorine is even more revolutionary than his portrayal of Elmire. A "henpecked husband" like Orgon is a well-known character in comic plays, but Dorine's character goes well beyond Elmire in terms of her relationship with men and her place in society.
Dorine is a servant. Of all the woman in the play, Dorine is the one person who should "know her place." Of all the woman in the play, however, Dorine is the most outspoken, both as a character in the play and as a commentator on the role of women in the play.
Dorine doesn't know her place. She has opinions, and she expresses them in no uncertain terms. She argues with men, and she encourages Mariane to argue with Orgon and stand up for herself. Dorine tells Orgon that she would never let a man choose who she married. Even though Dorine is a servant, she's definitely not subservient to any man.
In his first appeal to Louis XIV to lift the ban on Tartuffe, Moliere wrote that “the purpose of the comedy is to correct the faults of men.” In Tartuffe, Moliere shows that the prevailing attitude regarding a woman's role in French society is one of the "faults of men" that needs to be corrected.

What are the issues Stevenson mentions about the place and way Walter was held in Just Mercy?

Bryan Stevenson’s review of Walter McMillan’s case includes the numerous irregularities of his detention before and after McMillan’s trial. One key problem was that McMillan was incarcerated on death row in Alabama’s Holman Prison. However, McMillan had not been convicted of any crime; he was placed there even before he was tried.
The conditions on death row are inhumane. The cells are only 5 x 8 feet, and the prisoners must remain in them for 23 ½ hours per day. The inmates would converse about the highly visible Yellow Mama electric chair, decades old but still in use, frightening each other even more with stories about the painful deaths others had suffered due to its frequent malfunctioning. Walter was terrified, hopeless, and disoriented; the officials had shaved his head, and as a result, he had difficulty recognizing his own reflection.
https://books.google.com/books?id=egdxAwAAQBAJ&source=gbs_navlinks_s

How does the soul-tie or the relationship between Roderick and his twin sister, Madeline Usher, drive the whole story in "The Fall of the House of Usher"?

The whole story leads up to the climatic ending in which brother and sister die together and the house almost immediately collapses into the tarn.
Roderick and his twin sister, Madeline, are the last remaining members of the Usher family, known as the house of Usher. Their line—the genealogical house of Usher—is somehow mystically and supernaturally tied to the physical house of Usher they live in.
Beyond that, Roderick and Madeline share a strange symbiotic tie. They are dopplegangers, the mirror images of each other, and clearly, as Roderick understands, he cannot live if Madeline dies. When she escapes from the crypt and falls dead at his feet, he too perishes in the same moment:

With a low moaning cry, [Madeline] fell heavily inward upon the person of her brother, and in her violent and now final death-agonies, bore him to the floor a corpse . . .

The strange physical decline in Madeline is mirrored in the nervous mental condition that plagues Roderick. Both characters are symbols of sickness, and the house, too, covered in mold and fissures, replicates that sickness.
This is classic Gothic literature: Gothic holds up a mirror of parts of ourselves we don't want to see. In the dying Madeline, Roderick sees his own dying, and it terrifies him. Likewise, Gothic literature shows the creepy side of family that we often don't want to acknowledge, symbolized in haunted or creepy houses like Usher that are a distorted version of the happy homes our conscious minds like to conjure.
Both Madeline and Roderick are joined by decline and a deathly sickness, and that drives the story to its gruesome and terrifying end.

The idea of the "soul tie" that Edgar Allan Poe puts forward definitely drives his story, but we must recall that the story has a dual filter. First, the story is told by the narrator, an old friend of Roderick who admits to not actually knowing him all that well. Second, Roderick is the sole source of the information that the narrator shares with the reader. We do not actually hear from Madeline so we cannot be sure that she shares the idea of being her brother's soul mate.
The theme of family lineage being tied to incest is key in two ways. Roderick is convinced of its centrality, and shuts his sister up while he contemplates the next step. But because he acted rashly, he actually killed his sister and thereby destroyed their line—their house, which crumbles around them.
So says the narrator.

How did the Chinese religion reinforce the centrality of the family in Chinese social life?

The Chinese encompass a huge number of people living across millions of acres of land in mountainous, desert, coastal, and tropical regions. Their religion isn't easy to boil down, simply because the variety of Chinese lifestyles—even in an empire with relative homogeneity—does play a part in the variety of religious beliefs and practices.
Traditionally, the Chinese people have practiced Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism, with an underlying and pervasive element of nature/pagan/folk religion. This last element is the type of religion that was practiced worldwide long before "organized" single-god religions, such as Buddhism or Christianity, flourished. Examples of "folk" religion include the Celtic Druids of Europe or the Brujas (witch doctors) of the South and Central Americas.
In China, folk religion included superstitions; a powerful, mysterious natural world; spirits of the dead; clan spirits; and Feng Shui. These beliefs continue to mix with whatever "modern" religion is practiced in contemporary society.
An analogy is the way Mexican and Central American people practice Catholicism. The Catholic saints get mixed up with nature, witchcraft, and family, and animal totems get blended into Catholicism. Hence, the Day of the Dead is a ceremony that celebrates the power of dead ancestors, even though the Catholic religion proposes that these people live on in an afterlife.
Because of the strong influence of folk religion in China, the idea that ancestors are watching over their descendants remains. Although Buddhism does not propose any family or clan spirits, practicing Buddhists often still visit the graves of their ancestors and may believe they can be "haunted" by their ancestors and whichever family demons have been left unresolved.
Although Confucianism and Taoism stress balance and harmony in life (the latter with more of a slant toward balance with the natural world) and eschew superstitions, a Chinese person practicing either of these "modern" (post-500 BCE) religions may still use Feng Shui, may still venerate ancestors, and may still believe in spirits.
The bottom line is that the folk wisdom of venerating ancestors has been incorporated into modern religions. The importance of family and clan to survival became a "religion," because learning from older family members (e.g., grandparents) was a practical reality and because the belief that family members "lived on" reinforced the secure social value of being part of a lineage. Ancestor worship acknowledges the wisdom and knowledge of those who came before.
The veneration of ancestors by the Chinese is far more important than in Western culture; it is one way in which the Chinese (and many other Asian cultures) put the group ahead of the individual. The group must be cohesive; group rules must be followed, and individual wants and needs are far less important. In ancestor worship, the importance of the family is extended beyond the immediate family to all generations that came before. Thus, the individual is part of a much larger and more important group and views themselves as having a role to play in the group, often one in which they have little individual influence.

What are some well written sentences of an introduction, body, and closure for a college student's Oral Communications Persuasive Speech presentation on the vending machines throughout the buildings on her college campus?

In the introduction to this speech, the speaker must state her opinion clearly and powerfully. For example, she must state something along the lines of the following: "Vending machines must be placed throughout the campus to ensure that students have access to food and drink when the dining services are closed" (the speaker could also advocate for no vending machines on campus). The introduction must succinctly state the speaker's opinion and the overall reason for her opinion. In the body of the speech, she must clearly explain the reasons for her opinion in more detail, perhaps detailing the reasons that students must have access to vending machines and the hours when they cannot access other food or drink. It may be helpful for the student to enumerate her reasons; for example, she can state that there are three reasons that vending machines are necessary and explain each reason in depth. In the closure of her speech, she must summarize her opinion and provide a call to action. For example, she can tell the audience that they should contact the university president to advocate for more vending machines on campus.

According to Critchton, what two things must the best doctors balance?

The best doctors must know how to balance between theory and reality. In "Travels," Michael Critchton explains how he spent three years at Harvard Medical school learning the basics of how certain conditions come about without knowing why they happen. Critchton is disappointed by how some doctors prefer to diagnose patients and leave the patient with more questions than answers. Some expect the people they are treating to take the prescribed medications without question. Although it's true that doctors know more about a person's body and how illnesses affect them than any other person, sometimes that knowledge is never enough. The reality is that patients prefer doctors who are more open with them, and are not afraid to share serious details about their health. Therefore, good doctors must know that theory is not the answer to every medical condition, knowing why the patient did what they did is also important.

Does the short story contain a climax/resolution? Explain the answer by using examples from the story. Why does James include these conventional short story elements?

First, you have to uncover what is happening. The most likely scenario is you are reading about a man who is emasculated by his wife. She is constantly harping on him about forgetting things:

'Remember to get those overshoes while I’m having my hair done,' she said. 'I don’t need overshoes,' said Mitty. She put her mirror back into her bag. 'We’ve been all through that,' she said, getting out of the car. 'You’re not a young man any longer.'

At the same time, you are left wondering if he isn't suffering from onset Alzheimer's given his age and her saying "I wish you’d let Dr. Renshaw look you over."
Regardless if he utilizes escapism to masculinize himself or if he is doing it because his mind is wandering, each mini-story in and of itself has a climax. Unfortunately, there is no resolution as reality breaks through and the reader doesn't finish the experience playing out in Mitty's mind.
If the reader pays attention to the story happening between his imaginative scenarios, one sees an old man, forgetful in nature, worried he will forget the item that his wife wanted him to remember. He knows that she will berate him for his forgetfulness and the reader is left rooting for him. When he does remember the dog biscuits, his wife is still not satisfied as he sits in a chair that she could not readily see him in. He finally, albeit weakly, takes a stand against her berating when he finally states, "I was thinking,” said Walter Mitty, “does it ever occur to you that I am sometimes thinking?" At this point, the climax is that he finally stands up to his wife and advocates for himself. The resolution is that she contends he is ill, probably because he never acts like this, she states "I’m going to take your temperature when I get you home." He knows he is bested and no matter what he says or does, he just cannot win with her, so off he goes back into the recesses of his mind and faces the firing squad. He has attempted to stand up to her and was shot down.

When did globalization begin, and what characterizes it (that is, what are its primary social, cultural, political, and economic features)? How did Americans understand the role of the United States in the world after the Cold War? How did globalization shape this role?

Globalization is a phenomenon that includes the flow of goods, capital, ideas, and people on a global scale. The term means that societies, nations, and economies throughout the world are interconnected in increasingly meaningful and direct ways. Historians disagree about globalization's beginnings. Some note that global markets were integrated by the turn of the twentieth century, others argue it was earlier. But in popular usage, the term refers to the second half of the twentieth century, when various technologies and changing political conditions contributed to its emergence.
Globalization has included many different developments, including the large-scale migration of people from some parts of the world to others, a phenomenon that has drastically altered the demographic landscape of many countries in Europe in particular. Globalization has caused major economic shifts, as large "multinational" corporations moved their operations from countries like the United States to others around the world in an effort to reduce costs.
Politically, many enthusiasts of globalization thought that the spread of market capitalism would be accompanied by the spread of liberal democracy, but this development has not really come to pass. The economic rise of China in particular has altered the global political dynamic in ways not anticipated by many observers. Culturally, Western art, music, fashion, and material culture have spread throughout the world.
Americans still disagree about the role the nation should play in the world and about the nature of globalization itself. In general, during the Cold War, many Americans agreed that the nation should play an active role in the world, both to protect its economic interests and to promote democracy.
https://www.economist.com/free-exchange/2013/09/23/when-did-globalisation-start

What does Michael learn at the citizen's registration office?

The day after Michael does not acknowledge Hanna at the public pool, he finds her apartment empty. He calls and visits the streetcar company and learns that she had not shown up for work after rejecting a promotion to become a driver. Michael tracks down Hanna's landlord, who tells him that she had moved out earlier that morning, and would not be returning. Michael eventually thinks of contacting the citizens' registration office, where he is informed that Hanna had said she was moving to Hamburg. Michael wonders if he is to blame for Hanna leaving, whether she had felt betrayed when he ignored her at the pool. For years, Michael yearns for Hanna, looks for her wherever he goes, dreams of her while he is in high school and university. Hanna's abrupt departure has a profound effect on Michael into adulthood, reflected in his emotional distance and failed marriages.

I need chapter summaries on Stigma: Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity by Erving Goffman and how this book has contributed to society.

The sociologist Erving Goffman’s book Stigma: Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity, written in 1963, is an analysis of people within society who are considered abnormal based on their social identity. Goffman’s goal was to understand how these stigmatized persons feel in relation to so-called “normal” people. Goffman conducted extensive case studies and collective autobiographies to understand how people who are stigmatized by society feel.
Goffman theorized three types of stigma: stigma of character traits, physical stigma, and group identity stigma. Stigma of character traits refers to such things as experiencing mental illness or addiction. Physical stigma refers to things like body deformities, and group identity stigma refers to people who are ostracized because of things like religious practices or race and ethnicity.
Goffman’s work was very important in raising awareness about stigma and challenging the marginalization of people based on character traits, physical appearance, or group identity.
https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/action/cookieAbsent

What did Mr. Bumble want Mrs. Corney to agree to do in Charles Dickens's Oliver Twist?

The short answer is, marry him. Chapters 23 and 27 of Oliver Twist are concerned with the courtship of Mr. Bumble and Mrs. Corney. It is a very brief courtship and many things remain unspoken.
When Mr. Bumble comes to visit Mrs. Corney (who has been a widow for 25 years) in her rooms he gradually draws his chair closer to hers and then kisses her. She protests but not very convincingly. She is then called away to tend to Sally, who is at death’s door. While she is gone, Bumble takes an inventory of the room and apparently judges its quality worthy.
In the later chapter, when she returns, he manages to make his intentions clear without actually asking the question. Bumble points out that Mr. Slout, the manager, is expected to die soon, while will leave a “wacancy.” He implies that if the two of them are married, they could run the house together, calling it an “opportunity for a jining of hearts and housekeepings!” His proposal is simply to ask her to say “The little word? . . . The one little, little, little word . . . ” The “bashful beauty” stammers out “yes.”
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/730/730-h/730-h.htm

What do Macbeth and King Lear have in common?

Both Macbeth and King Lear seem to impose their problems and suffering gratuitously upon themselves. Macbeth murders Duncan and manages to pin the crime on Malcolm and Donalbain after they flee for their lives. Once he is King of Scotland, Macbeth is not satisfied with what he has achieved. He commits further crimes and becomes a terrible tyrant. People flee the land. Chaos ensues. The English monarch raises an army to invade Scotland, and Macbeth is killed in a duel with Macduff. Malcolm probably could not have received the military assistance of the English king just on his own merits and his claim to be the rightful Scottish monarch.
King Lear is so proud and inflexible that he will not consent to his daughters' terms. He could live in luxury with both of them alternately and be treated with respect and courtesy if he relinquishes his one hundred knights. Instead, he insists on living outdoors. Macbeth's problem is not that he murdered Duncan, but rather that he elected, unnecessarily it would seem, to become more and more tyrannical until he turned everyone in Scotland and England against him.

How would things be different if the American Revolution had never happened?

Counterfactuals can be difficult because it is rare that the occurrence or non-occurrence of an event will lead to one specific outcome. It is impossible to say what the world would be like without the American Revolution, both because it happened and, therefore, colors our judgement, and because the non-occurrence of the American Revolution could have led to various differing outcomes.
One potential outcome is that North America may have remained under the power of England, France, and Spain into the present day. Without the American Revolution as a successful precedent, the Mexican Revolution may never have occurred. This is unlikely but possible. Without the Mexican Revolution there is a possibility that Spain, although on the decline, could have retained its holdings in Florida and South and Central America (as well as the Southwest of North America). Similarly, without the American Revolution the French Revolution may not have occurred. The American Revolution served as a successful precedent and gave the French Revolutionaries some hope, while the French role in the American Revolution worsened the country's economic issues and provided fuel for the Revolutionary fire. Without the French Revolution and the near bankruptcy caused by supporting the Americans, the French would likely have retained their control over the Central US.
Canada's eventual independence makes it unlikely that England would have retained control over North America indefinitely. The American colonies could have gained independence at the same time as Canada, though it is likely that the New England colonies would have joined Canada. The Middle and Southern colonies could have united into one country, or formed several countries. If this occurred then the eventual decolonization of North America (after it became a sufficient resource dump) could have led to the enlargement of Canada, or the emergence of additional small nations governed by Native Americans or by other settler groups. These are just some possibilities.

Whom do girls never marry, according to Algernon?

In Act 1 of The Importance of Being Earnest, which takes place in Algernon Moncrieff’s Flat in Half-Moon Street, Algernon is having a conversation with Ernest Worthing (Jack). Algernon explains that Aunt Augusta would not approve of Jack being there. When Jack asks why not, Algernon responds "My dear fellow, the way you flirt with Gwendolen is perfectly disgraceful. It is almost as bad as the way Gwendolen flirts with you." To this, Jack responds that he is in love with Gwendolen and intends to propose to her. Jack also expresses that he finds Algernon's views on marriage "utterly umromantic." Algernon states that he does not believe Jack and Gwendolen will ever be married, and he explains that he believes this because "girls never marry the men they flirt with. Girls don’t think it right."
Later in Act 1, Algernon discusses his contempt at being seated next to a woman named Mary Farquhar at dinner parties. He doesn't wish to sit near her because she "always flirts with her own husband across the dinner-table." Algernon finds this extremely distasteful.
Based on these quotes from the text, Algernon is shown to have traditional, non-emotional views on marriage. He believes that marriage is a social contract rather than a celebration of love. In this context, Algernon does not believe women ever marry the men they flirt with, because flirting implies a physical or sexual attraction, which Algernon does not believe is the base of a marriage.
These views are consistent with the social views at the time. This play was published in 1895, at which time the social climate was that women married for safety and security and to have children, not for emotional reasons.
See the link below for additional information regarding gender roles in the 19th century.
https://www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/gender-roles-in-the-19th-centur

Algernon tells Jack that girls never marry the men they flirt with. For this reason, he is fairly sure that Jack will never end up married to Gwendolen, because the two of them have an ongoing flirtation. Of course, Algernon is probably being flippant with this remark. He goes on to explain that he is actually rather concerned about Jack's intentions towards Gwendolen because she is Algernon's cousin and he does not give his "consent" to whatever Jack plans to propose to her. Algernon has previously expressed views opposed to traditional marriage, stating that divorces are "made in heaven," and seems to be encouraging the suggestion that marriage does not spring from romance, but rather, from necessity. Girls do not marry the men they flirt with; they flirt with men who interest them, but they are required to marry men who will offer them a foothold in society or a good household, rather than men who are flirtatious bachelors.

Why was Jane locked up in the red room in Jane Eyre? Do you think she deserved this treatment?

Jane lives with her aunt, Mrs. Reed, and her bratty cousins: Elizabeth, John, and Georgiana. Mrs. Reed strongly dislikes Jane and always finds things wrong with her, reasons to blame her, and so on. Being prevented from joining the other children out of her aunt's malice, Jane gets a book and settles herself into a window seat to read quietly to herself. John comes to look for her, and she shows herself quickly so as not to risk being "'dragged'" out from behind the curtain. He first orders her to address him as "'Master,'" and he then strikes her, bullying and insulting her. Next, he throws her book at her, knocking her down and causing her to bleed from the head. She calls him a slave-driver, he attacks her, and she manages to fight him off, though she does not "very well know what [she] did with [her] hands." He screams out as though he is the victim. Just then, she is discovered by Mrs. Reed and the maid, and Jane is blamed for the fray. Jane's aunt orders her to be taken to the red room as punishment for her behavior. Because Jane was doing absolutely nothing wrong and because her cousin is such an entitled, violent, and malevolent boy, I don't think she deserves this treatment at all!

Can you describe the difference between each character according to their social status?

Boule de Suif is known to be a prostitute and is of higher social status, as demonstrated by the fact that she is well-fed (often described as round and fat), as well as the fact that she has snacks to share with the others on board. However, she is criticized by the other passengers for being a prostitute, and they do not share their food with her as she did earlier. Monsieur Carré-Lamadon and Madame Carré-Lamadon are also of higher social status—we know this from the fact that Monsieur owns three cotton spinning mills, and Madame is wearing expensive furs. Comte Hubert de Bréville is also of high social status—he has fortunes that make over half a million francs annually, and he is also in politics, serving on the General Council. Monsieur Loiseau is also of higher social status, owning a local winery.
The Nuns appear to be of lower social status. The Old Nun has smallpox, which suggests that she is not able to receive adequate medical care. Additionally, the Puny Nun is described as very small and sickly-looking, like she has not had enough to eat.

Write a paragraph about how colonial laws legalized sexual violence against black women, how black women took roles of white women sexually, and how the increased reproduction in black women advanced property value of a plantation.

Technically, colonial laws did not legalize sexual assault on black or, to be more precise, enslaved black women. Like other violent offenses, sexual assault and rape was illegal regardless of the victim. But historians find very few cases in which men were prosecuted for rape, whether of white or black women. This does not mean that the crime did not occur, but simply that there were reasons why it was not prosecuted. Women did not feel comfortable reporting the crime, and the male-controlled courts did not think it important enough to pursue prosecution. Given the unequal social status of African American women, it is likely that sexual assault was rampant in colonial America.
Colonial law encouraged sexual assault of enslaved women in another way. During the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, colonies in the Caribbean and every colony with a large enslaved population passed laws that made slavery hereditary. Along with these laws, they passed legislation that determined the status of an enslaved person based on their mother's status. So, in short, a child born to an enslaved woman would be enslaved, and a child born to a free woman would be free. This meant that slave owners and their sons could engage in sexual activity with enslaved women without worrying about the condition of any children that would result from sexual activity. (Having a child out of wedlock with a white woman usually resulted in a fine, and the father among others had to post a bond for the care of the child.) So in this sense, the radicalized, hereditary nature of slavery as it developed in the colonies basically indemnified white men for the sexual assault of enslaved women. It is very difficult to measure empirically, but written sources suggest that sexual activity between whites and the enslaved was rampant, and given the inequalities in power relations, it is impossible to categorize these interactions as anything other than sexual assault. While there is no evidence that whites engaged in sexual assault with enslaved women to produce slaves for sale, it is well-known by historians of slavery that children of mixed ancestry were sold as enslaved prostitutes in some cities, and tended to be valued as house servants on large plantations throughout the South. More generally, as the cotton economy expanded in the early nineteenth century, and the demand for slaves increased, slave owners had a financial interest in their slaves' natural increase.
https://books.google.com/books?id=8zDqCQAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=Sharon+Block+Rape+and+Sexual+Power&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiltvmO-ereAhVlQt8KHT1LCvEQ6AEIKjAA

https://www.history.org/history/teaching/slavelaw.cfm

Does Bernadette fall in love with Chee in The Sinister Pig?

In one of the final scenes in the novel, Bernadette is sitting in her car after being assaulted by the antagonists. She is waiting for backup to arrive.
When Chee arrives at the scene, he has a short but intimate conversation with Bernadette. He professes his love for her, and she returns the sentiment. Bernadette was waiting for Chee to finally honestly express his feelings towards her.
In the final scene of the novel, Bernadette is depicted as looking at Chee's old trailer, which he called home up to that point. The ending suggests that Bernadette and Chee plan on moving into an actual house together, thus reassuring the readers that the couple are finally openly in love.

At one point during the Civil War, most of the three million fighting in uniform were volunteers, not draftees. What reasons led them to voluntarily risk their life? Explore the question from both the Union and Confederate sides. Soldiers on the front lines were not the only ones affected by the war. The effects were far reaching. Explain how this conflict affected social and economic life in both the North and South. At the conclusion of the war, General Robert E. Lee noted that his army had “been compelled to yield to overwhelming numbers and resources.” Did the Confederacy have any realistic options that might have allowed it to overcome those disadvantages in numbers and resources and see a conclusion to the war that was more favorable to its objectives? Beyond its superior resources and numbers, what other factors contributed to the Union victory? Of these, which one would you identify as the most important?

Volunteers in the Union Army were motivated to commit to military service due to a variety of reasons, including support for abolition on moral grounds, but also economic self-interest. For instance, many recent Scandinavian immigrants were small farmers and saw slavery as a threat to their economic well-being, allowing Southern plantations to outproduce their own operations, which relied on wage labor. As well, factory workers in the North felt their own livelihood was under threat in the event of a Confederate victory, due to the possibility of the future introduction of slaves in industrial production.
Reasons for Southern volunteerism were just as varied and included a patriotic attachment to home states and the perception that they were under threat from advancing Union forces. In the case of African American volunteers, specifically, they were inspired to serve in the CSA Army by a promise of emancipation offered by the Confederate government.
The conflict was not limited to the military realm but impacted civilian life as well. Sherman's "March to the Sea," for instance, laid waste to vast swaths of Southern territory.
Beyond its superior resources and numbers, the North had the benefit of an established government, which gave it greater efficiency in operation. It also had greater domestic support; while the South monopolized a portion of the nation's slave states, the North included all free states plus four slave states. Finally, Northern railroad networks offered the North increased infrastructure for the rapid movement of men and material.
https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/civil-war-facts

https://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/Causes_of_Confederate_Defeat_in_the_Civil_War

Who said "but he that the steerage of my course direct my sail"?

Romeo Montague utters these words in Act 1, scene 4, on lines 113–114. He is still quite depressed about his inability to successfully woo the fair Rosaline, and his friends are trying to get him to go to the big costume party at the house of his family’s sworn enemy, Lord Capulet. He does not feel like dancing or partying, but he feels this strange compulsion to go, as though fate is urging him onward, perhaps even to his own destruction. Romeo uses a metaphor, comparing himself to a sailboat, and he alludes to the fact that he does not feel as though he is in control (or steering) of himself. Someone or something compels him to attend the party.

How does The Laramie Project piece together interviews to create a narrative?

To create The Laramie Project, Moisés Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Project members worked collaboratively in two major ways. The company members worked together both in planning their approach to the project and in carrying it out. At some times, the entire company met with individuals in Laramie, and at other times, one or more company members conversed with residents. The company was also committed to working collaboratively with the people of Laramie. Rather than going in to the city with a rigidly defined agenda, the company was flexible. As they learned more from the people they spoke with, they adapted the direction the project would take.
One important point was that Tectonic went into Laramie to learn how community members thought and felt about Matthew Shepard’s murder. The company was not trying to determine the guilt or innocence of the accused murderers—that was a matter for the courts. They were concerned with the climate in the city in which such a terrible crime had been committed, both before and after Shepard’s murder. Coming from New York into a small city that had already been invaded by the media, they were aware that some community members resented their presence. Building trust with Laramie’s people was a major component of their project. The company members had to be respectful of the real fear that community members, especially LGBTQ+ people, felt in the wake of the vicious hate crime.
After the company went back to New York, they had many difficult decisions to make about how to process the material. One point was clear: they would not try to suppress different perspectives in order to create an illusion of consensus among Laramie’s diverse viewpoints. Rather, they would incorporate the highly varied opinions into the finished product. It was especially important, when company members agreed to disagree with the perspective presented, that they not interfere with that speaker’s perspective. The dramatic effect of the project is enhanced because the audience hears what the company members heard while in Laramie, including some homophobic viewpoints.

What is the basic definition of bureaucracy? Who was one of the primary theorists on how bureaucracies were to function? Explain the primary functions on how a bureaucracy is supposed to work, according to the theorist.

The bureaucracy has been colloquially referred to as the "permanent government." It consists of officials and government employees charged with the day to day administration of the affairs of state and the implementation of the policies developed by elected political leaders. In contrast to elected political leaders, the bureaucracy remain at their posts through the passage of new governments. They are not directly responsible to the electorate and are, ideally, chosen through a meritocratic process.
The German sociologist Max Weber (1864–1920) was an early theorist on the nature of bureaucracies. According to him, the model bureaucracy will have several hallmarks, including: specialization of responsibilities, evaluation on the basis of productivity, a clearly defined set of goals, formal and objective rules, a division of labor, and a chain of command.
In the U.S. system of governance, the so-called "permanent government"—it has been claimed—has developed beyond the bureaucracy to include also staff members of standing congressional committees, as well as outside organizations and lobbyists. This triumvirate is referred to as the "iron triangle." There may be benefits in such an arrangement in that it encourages further professionalization and specialization, however, it also tends to remove the bureaucracy further from its ultimate role of being the implementer of policy developed by elected political leaders and into a hybrid role that finds it advocating and advancing policy as well.

What binds Canada and the United States together?

Canada and United States have shared geography, language, common interest, similar values and economic ties. These two countries have shared environment. This helps them work side by side to address environmental changes.
These two allies have an awesome trading relationship and Canada buys more goods in the United States than any other country. The trading relationship between the two countries helps them compete globally, eliminate barriers, support economic growth and grow stronger financially together.
Canada and United States have security and defense cooperation. This ensures cross border law enforcement, bolster cyber security and address threats early. The US is Canada's most important defense partner and ally. They have partnered since the Second World War in the defense of North America. They closely work together in support of international peace and security.
These two countries commit to advance clean and secure power, promote efficient transportation, show global leadership in addressing climate change, drive down short lived pollutants and protect nature.

The United States and Canada share more than a common border. Many people who live on the border live and work in both countries. People often travel freely between the two nations; the two nations are important to each other in terms of tourism as well. Canadian sports teams, such as the Toronto Raptors, play in American leagues. The two nations trade freely with each other through the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The two nations share the English language and a common history of being British colonies.
The two nations have also fought together overseas. Canadian forces were present in World War I, World War II, and the Global War on Terrorism. While the United States does project its force more often than Canada, Canada is also a part of NATO and has sent troops when asked to do so. The United States and Canada share a very close relationship as well as a long border. This is probably one of the most important US diplomatic and economic relationships.

Congress rejected President Andrew Johnson's readmission of the Confederate States to the Union. Congress also refused to seat the House and Senate members elected by those Confederate States. When and how were those Confederate States and their elected officials eventually accepted by Congress?

Post-Civil War Reconstruction was placed under control of Congress in 1866. The relevant actions that Congress took included denying congressional seats to the former Confederate states, in part in reaction to the passage of “Black Codes,” which imposed legal restrictions on African Americans, and the widely evident violent attacks on black citizens. Moreover, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and initiated the 14th Amendment, which then underwent the ratification process. Then, in 1870, Congress began the process to add the 15th Amendment to the Constitution. The 14th Amendment guarantees citizenship and equal protection to African Americans, as well as reducing congressional representation to the states that refused African American voting. The 15th Amendment guaranteed voting rights to African American men (but not women).
Ratification of the 14th Amendment was one requirement for re-entry, which many states initially refused to do. In 1867, Congress attached the re-entry into Congress to the states’ adoption of constitutions that matched the guarantees of the 14th and 15th amendments. This would be enforced, in part, thorough the Military Reconstruction Act, which placed those states under martial law in military districts. Thus, the process of re-entry advanced state by state, depending on when it created a new constitution. The lengthy process also included the impeachment of President Johnson, who retained office by a single vote. In 1868, Ulysses S. Grant, who had resigned as Johnson’s Secretary of War, was elected president.
The final states were thus readmitted under the Grant administration. As they achieved the necessary compliance, they were readmitted over a period of four years, from July of 1866 through July of 1870. On July 24, 1866, Tennessee was the first former Confederate state readmitted to the Union. In June of 1868, Arkansas, Louisiana, Florida, North Carolina, and South Carolina were all readmitted, followed by Alabama in July. In 1870, when the 15th Amendment was also ratified, the last four states were readmitted: Virginia (January), Mississippi (February), Texas (March), and on July 15, 1870, Georgia became the last state readmitted.
http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3103

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/reconstruction-timeline/

What position was Olaf in?

In Woodsong by Gary Paulsen, Gary is the leader of a team of sled dogs in a race. Gary and his team of dogs compete in the Iditarod: a treacherous, challenging, and life-threatening track of about 1,100 miles in length. Gary recounts that he began to hallucinate due to lack of sleep on the track (though he persisted, as he was determined to finish the race).
Each of the dogs on the team have their own character traits. Olaf, in particular, is considered to be the fool of the pack, who often acts like an ignoramus. He is certainly not a leader of the pack, and he runs in the back part of the dog pack.
In one instance, his idiotic tendency is on full display. During the bone wars (when the dogs fight over their bones), Olaf gets fooled by Columbia, a more clever and comical dog. Columbia, who captured a bone, put the bone just outside of Olaf's reach in an attempt to make Olaf think that Columbia was offering it up when Columbia was really just teasing Olaf.
Based on witnessing this interaction between Olaf and Columbia, Gary realizes that animals may have different levels of thinking and understanding, and their brain activity seems to be more advanced than Gary previously thought.

What is an oracle? What is it that Ferdinand believes even against an oracle in The Tempest?

In ancient Greece, an oracle was a gateway to the will of the gods. It was a place that, for a fee, people could consult with a priest or priestess, through whom the gods spoke, to receive prophecies and advice from the gods. The most famous (and most expensive) oracle was the Oracle of Apollo at Delphi, which was established in the eighth century BC.
Unfortunately, the information that the oracles provided was often cryptic and confusing—and sometimes even contradictory—and it was up to the individual to figure out exactly what the oracle meant.
A side business grew out of this for "prophets" and "seers" (like Teiresias in Oedipus Rex), who would interpret the oracle's information for a fee.
As far as Ferdinand in Shakespeare's The Tempest is concerned, the oracles were considered to be absolutely truthful and infallible.
In act 4 of The Tempest, Prospero gives Fernando permission to marry his daughter, Miranda, and Prospero praises Miranda to him:

PROSPERO: . . . Here, afore Heaven,I ratify this my rich gift. O Ferdinand,Do not smile at me that I boast of her,For thou shalt find she will outstrip all praise,And make it halt behind her.
FERDINAND: I do believe itAgainst an oracle.
PROSPERO: Then, as my gift and thine own acquisitionWorthily purchased take my daughter (4.1.7–15)

Prospero wasn't telling Ferdinand anything he didn't already know and believe. Ferdinand had already met Miranda, fallen in love with her, and seen for himself the remarkable person she was.

Why does T. Want to destroy Old Misery's house?

There is no reason explicitly stated in the story as to why T. wants to destroy Old Misery's house, but there are some clues. For example, when T. is giving his orders to the other boys, the author writes that it is "as though this plan had been with him all his life, pondered through the seasons." The implication here is that T. has perhaps always wanted to destroy something, and Old Misery's being away for a few days gives T. the opportunity to do act on this desire.
Later in the story, T. admits to not hating Old Misery. He says, "Of course I don't hate him . . . All this hate and love . . . it's soft, it's hooey. There's only things." This seems to confirm that T. destroys Old Misery's house for no other reason than the pleasure he derives from destroying things. T. seems to be something of a nihilist or maybe even a psychopath. He attaches no emotions—positive or negative—to anything, including the cold, methodical destruction of the house.

Why didn't the pilgrims live in Jamestown?

Jamestown was the first settlement in the Virginia colony and was located on the James river. Jamestown was granted a royal charter in order to produce cash crops, notably tobacco, for sale. Individual investors in the Virginia Company expected these crops to produce sufficient revenues to repay the investments with interest.
The Pilgrims left England to escape persecution for their Puritan beliefs. It is likely that they initially planned on settling in Virginia; however, they did not arrive in Virginia. Instead, the Pilgrims arrived at Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts. Since Massachusetts was not a colony at this time, the Pilgrims drafted the Mayflower Compact to govern life in the settlement. Later, a royal charter was granted to the Massachusetts Bay Company to found the Massachusetts colony, which encompassed the lands then settled by the Pilgrims.

Outlaws of the Marsh / Water Margin 水浒传 by Luo Guanzhong The 'heroes' in Luo's novella consists of a band of 108 bandits. However, each of these characters is not entirely morally consistent. From the perspective of the author, what does it mean to be a so-called 'hero'? What are some examples in the novel which support the assertion that the bandits in the novel are archetypal 'heroes'? And what are some examples which undermine or go against this assertion?

Water Margin (a.k.a Outlaws of the Marsh, Tale of the Marshes, All Men Are Brothers, Men of the Marshes or The Marshes of Mount Liang) is a fourteenth-century novel presumably written by Shi Naian, although many believe that it might have been written by his pupil Luo Guanzhong. It is the third novel of the Four Great Classical Chinese novels, and as such, it has been translated into many languages and has been used in many other forms of art, literature, and entertainment, such as TV, film and video game adaptations, comics, songs, paintings, and even board games.
The story revolves around a group of 108 bandits called the 108 Stars of Destiny (a.k.a. 108 Stars of Heavenly Earth, 108 Stars of Heaven and Earth), who lived in the Song Dynasty of China. Their concept is based on the Taoist belief that each person’s fate and destiny is predetermined by the stars. They are divided into two groups: the 36 Heavenly Spirits and the 72 Earthly Fiends. They have been reborn on Earth as heroes who will fight against injustice and immorality.
However, an interesting fact about the heroic group of bandits is the fact that they represent 108 demonic overlords who were banished by Shangdi (the “Emperor”)—the absolute God of the universe in Chinese theology and classical and mythological Chinese texts. Thus, their individual personalities and their moral compasses are far from perfect.
For instance, Song Jiang (a.k.a. Tiankui), the Leader Star and the commander of the bandits, was known as the “Protector of Justice and Righteousness." Because of his benevolence, selflessness, chivalry, and generosity, he was also called “Timely Rain,” and because of his dark complexion, he was occasionally called by his peers "Filial and Righteous Dark Third Son" and "Dark Song Jiang."
Despite his good nature, there are many flaws in his character. One apt example of this is his concubine. Song Jiang had a concubine named Yan Poxi, who didn’t really like him and, with time, even began to resent him, as he didn’t spend any time with her. Yan Poxi’s mother insisted that her daughter be with Song Jiang because he was the one who paid for her father’s funeral. So it’s safe to assume that Yan Poxi wasn’t interested in Song Jian and did not have any romantic feelings toward him. She only became his concubine because her family wanted to express their gratitude toward him.
Unhappy with the way Song Jiang treats her, she starts an affair with his administrative assistant Zhang Wenyuan, through whom she learns of Song Jiang’s group of bandits. Thus, she threatens to report him as an outlaw if he doesn’t allow her to marry Zhang, let her keep all of her belongings, and give her gold bars form Chao Gai. Being the righteous and benevolent person that he is, Song Jiang agrees to the first two conditions but doesn’t fulfill the third one, as he only had one gold bar from Chao Gai. Refusing to believe him, Yan Poxi continues with her threats, and Song Jiang kills her in anger.
Many readers believe that this essentially shows that Song Jiang is not the saint that he is usually described to be—not because he lost his patience and angrily killed his concubine, but because he didn’t really show any remorse or regret for doing the terrible deed. Instead, he burned the letter form Chao Gai and escaped from the Yuncheng County, thus choosing to escape from his problems, instead of staying and facing the consequences of his actions. He is also obviously vengeful and refuses to accept that the different opinions of others are as relevant as his own opinions. Interestingly enough, almost all of his bandits share similar characteristics with their leader.
This only shows that the author didn’t want to create perfect characters who are always selfless, moral, ethical, and righteous. Instead, he wanted to create real humans, who feel and experience real emotions and face real problems. Essentially, instead of heroes, he wanted to present anti-heroes, who were in perfect balance with their inner and their outer natures. That is why he based his heroes’ personas on demonic overlords. He wrote them as courageous individuals who are always ready to accept and fight for justice and the greater good, but they are also fearless bandits who are not afraid to face and even delve into darkness and villainy, especially if it guarantees their success.
The goal that Shi Naian had when creating his (anti)heroes was to represent the dualism of the Yin and Yang concept of Chinese philosophy, Taoism and cosmology. This describes how opposite forces are always interconnected and interdependent in nature and perfectly complement one another, thus creating one harmonious whole; in other words, one force cannot exist without the other, or the light cannot exist without darkness, and vice versa. This is why the 108 bandits are written as archetypal heroes who are not always entirely morally consistent.

Compare and contrast single-member districts and proportional representation (PR). How effective is each electoral system in representing its people’s interests? How do they support the party systems around which they arose?

With single-member legislative districts, often employed in "first past the post" voting systems as well as multi-round systems, the whole chamber of a parliamentary body is divided into a number of constituencies. Each of these is represented by a single delegate who represents the majority of the constituency.
Proportional representation usually allocates delegates to a legislative body as a percentage of the total number of votes received by a party. Several different methods for conducting elections under a proportional system exist, including the D'Hondt method, the Single Transferable Vote (STV), and others. Allocation of seats can occur either through local lists (where constituencies are represented by multiple delegates and allocated among parties in proportion to the number of votes received by the candidates from each party) or national lists (where there are no constituencies and a national slate of candidates is selected).
The single-member district system gives a strong voice to the ideological majority within any single district but also promotes greater cohesion and unity by forcing candidates to appeal to the widest swath of voters possible, aggregating as many issues and concerns as they can in the quest to maximize their vote totals. The single-member district may sometimes encourage greater party independence of politicians if a system de-couples a candidate from a party machine whose support is necessary for nomination.
By contrast, PR allows candidates to target their message and appeal to ideological minorities and can fail to encourage them to push majoritarian messages. However, it also helps give a voice to a greater percentage of the electorate than do single-member districts, in which the electoral minority exists without any representation at all. PR can often encourage greater obedience to party hierarchies, on which candidates are dependent during the nomination and selection phases of a campaign, thereby allowing greater efficiency in governance.
https://www.fraserinstitute.org/studies/proportional-representation-in-practice-an-international-comparison-of-ballots-and-voting-rules

What season is it in The Hobbit?

Seasons play an important role throughout the novel. They act as symbols and further connect the different parts of the story, making it very intricate.
In the first chapter of The Hobbit, when Bilbo Baggins takes off on an adventure, the action takes place sometime in April ("the firelight flickered—it was April—and still they played on," chapter 1). This starts the novel off in spring. Here, the season symbolizes new beginnings; Bilbo’s departure marks the beginning of a new adventure.
Later in the novel, while Bilbo—now accompanied by thirteen dwarves who requested his help with reclaiming their home, the Lonely Mountain—slowly makes his way to the destination, spring has already turned to autumn.
By the time they arrive at the entrance to the Lonely Mountain, Thorin Oakenshield remarks that autumn is nearly over. Here, the season symbolizes something sinister coming—as autumn is drawing to a close and winter is approaching, it foreshadows the inevitable Battle of Five Armies.

Compare and contrast the way Latin American nations achieved independence with the process in the United States.

The American revolutionaries initially fought to maintain their accustomed rights of self-government under the British Crown rather than independence from the mother country. The continuance of a stable political order with the right of self-representation was their focus, not rebellion. Only when these efforts failed was the decision to fight for separation made.
The spark that lit the fuse of revolution in Latin America was the classical liberal Bourbon Reforms, which intended to scale back the trading privileges of the criollos. When Napoleon invaded Spain in 1808 and Charles VI abdicated, the Mexican authorities were split over whether Joseph Bonaparte or Charles's son Ferdinand VII was the rightful king. The criollos initially sided with Ferdinand VII, whom they petitioned for redress of their perceived grievances. They thought the Spanish-born Peninsulares were usurping their privileges. Viceroy José de Iturrigaray supported the criollos's proposal of a new council to govern the colony. Peninsulares, seeing the danger of their exclusion from the new council, organized a coup to maintain their rights and authority. After the coup, Iturrigaray was replaced by a Spaniard, and the power struggle between the criollos and the Penisulares was underway in New Spain.
Reform-minded classical liberals in Spain put forward a new Constitution calling for the separation of powers, church reform, checks on the power of the monarchy, and enhanced powers for parliament in 1812. The Creole elites feared the loss of the privileges they enjoyed under the old system and threw their influence behind independence. Unlike the American revolutionaries, the criollos focused on independence rather than on securing the rights of all of the proposed citizens or subjects of their country. The Americans, on the other hand, fought for the maintenance of their traditional political liberties first and foremost and for independence only as a last resort. Despite popular myths to the contrary, the classical liberal reformers were in Spain, and the local revolutionaries were the political reactionaries trying to cling to their colonial privileges against broader reforms for the good of the nation.
Rather than put their best efforts into constructing a sound foundation for a new and lasting political order, the criollos focused their efforts on demonizing and killing the Spanish and on securing their own privileges rather than broader national interests.