Monday, January 27, 2020

F Scott Fitzgerald Was An American Dreamer English Literature Essay

F Scott Fitzgerald Was An American Dreamer English Literature Essay Modernism was a literary movement in the 19th century that challenged the traditional way of presenting art and all other aspects of social life, modernism also claimed that the traditional life was outdated and needed reforms and it described both a set of cultural tendencies and many associated cultural movements. Modernism was a contradiction against the conservative values of realism It argued that unlike traditional social system, the modern culture was permanent. It aimed at identifying the root causes that undermined social progress. Fitzgerald uses the basic concepts of modernity to advocate for change in literature and embrace new form of social organization. In his works, Fitzgerald uses various themes that advocate for modernism. Fitzgerald further emphasizes the way in which Modernism is fascinated with the way the mind processes or projects a reality which surrounds the individual but which is often alienating and oppressing. (Camacho) He utilizes the technique of the un reliable narrator to further locate The Great Gatsby within the Modernist sensibility. The experience of modernity was sophisticated and the narrator wishes that everyone would accept modernism. One things sure and nothings surer The rich get richer and the poor get children (www.goodreads.com) Here we are made aware of the fact that riches stood as a definition for the pompous and sophisticated people in society i know Ive been everywhere and seen everything and done everythingSophisticated God, Im sophisticated (Fitzgerald) The Great Gatsby explains in literary style all the characteristics of modernism. The experience of modernity was sophisticated and the narrator wishes that everyone would accept modernism Either you thinkor else others have to think for you and take power from you, pervert and discipline your natural tastes, civilize and sterilize'(goodbooksincquotes.blogspot.com) Fitzgerald calls out on the society to civilize as he saw tradition as numbing and detaching pe ople who expect positive aspects of modernity. Fitzgerald has cleared in his novel In America about the modernity how the women is set free but is aimless without any goal and is used as a sex object in the novel Tender is the night and because of this reason women like rosemary left behind people like Dick back and marched ahead towards the future One of the most interesting contributions Fitzgerald makes to the analysis of modernity he found in his various sources is his suggestion that the quintessential American art form, the cinema epitomizes the modern tourists consciousness is the movie movie studio at Monte Carlo, where Rosemary goes to meet Brady (Jackson, p. 139) There are many aspects of modernism in F. Scott Fitzgeralds works. Especially, The Great Gatsby, addresses important issues of Modernism. Most of the issues that relate to modernism are the development of technology, feminism, the effect of World War I upon society, a questioning of God, and the possibility of man s place in a possibly Godless Universe. Apart from these themes that deal in Modernist literature, Fitzgerald founded the technique of the unreliable narrator make The Great Gatsby an important part of modernism In fact, F. Scott Fitzgerald is a leader of the modernist movement in literature. His works look at the typical characteristics of modernism.The uniqueness and novelty of Fitzgeralds style put him in the lead of modernist writers. Fitzgeralds works of art and the characterization are used to aptly illustrate Fitzgerald as one who started the modernist movement. Moreover, modernism meant breaking away from traditional responses and predictable forms and raising social issues of decadence in an urbanized and industrial society. In this aspect Fitzgerald has succeeded greatly in his novel, The Great Gatsby. F. Scott Fitzgerald is known for his symbolic writing, like in the novel The Great Gatsby -Fitzgerald uses symbolism in the novel to represents an accurate reflection of the American life in the 1920s -The Doctor T.J. Eckelburgs eyes symbolize a godlike being watching everything a society, The food at Gatsbys party symbolize the members of the 1920s society -oranges show wasteful life, The two women dressed in yellow at Gatsbys party -they symbolize the values of the 1920s. Symbols are objects that recur in a piece of writing, which add an additional layer of meaning to the piece beyond the simple literal function of the object Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but thats no mattertomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther (Fitzgerald), Fitzgerald uses the green light as a metaphoric language to represent the consequences of the past to future dreams; Her porch was bright with the bought luxur y of star-shine; the wicker of the settee squeaked fashionably as she turned toward him and he kissed her curious and lovely mouth. She had caught a cold and it made her voice huskier and more charming than ever and Gatsby was overwhelmingly aware of the youth and mystery that wealth imprisons and preserves, of the freshness of many clothes and of Daisy, gleaming like silver, safe and proud above the hot struggles of the poor (Fitzgerald). This attraction to the lights and shining things are a symbolic device; as Pachalska said, To some extentthe symbolism of the green light is Fitzgeralds invention, but its interpretation is conditioned and constrained by the conventional associations of green and light, which are not under Fitzgeralds control (Pachalska, p. 283); the symbol is characterizing to darkness as light. In The Great Gatsby, Nick is aware of the influence effect light can have; I liked to walk up Fifth Avenue and pick out romantic women from the crowd and imagine that in a few minutes I was going to enter into their lives, and no one would ever know or disapprove. Sometimes, in my mind, I followed them to their apartments on the corners of hidden streets, and they turned and smiled back at me before they faded through a door into warm darkness (Fitzgerald). In great Gatsby America is like a dream, an illusion which means something that attracts but they are not achievable, everybody seeks ambitiously but eventually realizes that all dreams are not achievable and the dreams were all hallucinations or imaginations. Fitzgeralds lifestyle symbolism represent the superficial life lead by the society during the 1920s the sheep on the back lot of the old Laemmle studio (Fitzgerald, p.75), the sheep symbolize people and how they do what another person does without thinking if it is right or wrong, they follow what is done by others -you dont use your brains and think if what is done is right or wrong. the sheep just follows without thinking. So people are c ompared to them as they also do not think before acting. another big symbol throughout Fitzgeralds works is the car it symbolises the wealth and class, When they got to the coast again the sky way grey, and at Santa Monica a sudden gust of rain bounced over them, Stahr halted beside the road, put them. Stahr halted beside the road, put on a raincoat, and lifted the canvas top (Fitzgerald, p.305) this quote symbolizes wealth -only wealthy people drive nice cars, Everybody had seen it. It was a rich cream color, bright with nickel, swollen here and there in its monstrous length with triumphant hat-boxes and supper-boxes and tool-boxes, and terraced with a labyrinth of wind-shields that mirrored a dozen suns (Fitzgerald, p. 164) Gatsbys car is a good example as a status symbol. Overall, F. Scott Fitzgerald is very symbolic in his writing and applies those symbols to make observations of the world around him. He uses symbols to criticize human inhabitants and American society in many wa ys.

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Writing Application Letters

Application Letter There are some mistakes and ambiguous expressions in the following application letter for a job as a salesperson. Rewrite it after making the corrections or amendment to it. |Human Resources Department | |Avon Products (Guangzhou) Ltd. | |3? f 420, E. Huanshi Road | |Guangzhou 510075 | | | |July 3, 2009-9-26 | |Dear Sir or Madam: | | | |Noticing the enclosed advertisement in today’s Yangcheng Evening Newspaper, I wish to apply a part-time job as a salesgirl for| |the direct selling of your beauty products. | | | |I am a junior student at Guangdong College of Commerce. My major is Marketing. I studied Marketing, Marketing Techniques, | |Psychology of Consumption, Psychology of Women, Business Law, Labor Law, Business Ethics, Communications, Public Relations, | |etc. | | |I have some experience in marketing in the last two years. During the summer vacation and winter vacation of 2008, I once | |stayed at the Beauty Products Counter in the Taibai Department Store as a salesgirl. Last year I worked as a part-time | |salesgirl on Sundays for Procter and Gamble (Guangzhou) Ltd. I come from house to house to sell Rejoice 2-in-1, and Head and | |Shoulders shampoos. | | | |I think my education and some experience in marketing w ill let me to offer services for your sales promotion. If you give me a| |trial, I would do my best to give you every satisfaction. I will await for your answer. | | |Sincerely yours, | | | |Kay Jin | Writing task Option #1: You have seen the following recruiting advertisement in the local press and would like to apply for the position. Read the advertisement carefully and write a letter of application within 100-120 words, giving details of previous experiences, salary, etc. |Welcome to Our Team – Top Salary | | | |ASSISTANT SALES MANAGER wanted by an international company manufacturing textile piece goods. The applicant must have had | |adequate experience in the sales division of a large company and be willing to accept responsibility. | Option #2: You write an application letter to apply for a position that you may be interested in doing after graduation. Use your own educational background and work experience. What is an application letter? It is normal to send a cover letter (letter of application) with your resume even if you are also sending a complete application form. There may be occasions when you want to send a letter of application, with which you enclose a resume. Tips for writing winning application letters ? Write the letter to a specific person – the person you think is the one who would hire you. Take the trouble to find out the name of the person who is in the likeliest position to hire you. You can always call the receptionist and ask for the company’s mailing address and then ask the name of the specific person you’re looking for. Asking for an address makes it more likely that you’ll get the information you want rather than asking only for the name of a person with a specific title. ? Do your research. The more â€Å"general† your cover letter, the less successful it is likely to be. You want to demonstrate that you know something about the reader’s company, something that you had to do some research to find out. Customizing your letter to a particular company is impressive and makes you stand out from the pack of the job seekers. Tell the reader what you can do for the company, not what you want the company to do for you. Begin by stating some specific way in which you can help the company or department accomplish a particular goal, pre ferably giving an outstanding example of a related accomplishment. E. g. â€Å"Having had direct responsibility for three successful mergers in the energy industry, I am an ideal candidate to assist you with making a smooth transition I your recent merger with Company X†. ? Be specific about the job you are seeking. Hirers do not want to serve as your employment counselor, they want you to have already done your homework and figured out exactly what job you want. The â€Å"I can fulfill so many roles, just put me where I’m needed most† approach will get your letter filed in the wastebasket. ? Quantify your accomplishments. After your initial attention-grabbing statement of how you can help the company and stating your greatest related accomplishment, list four or five additional accomplishments – bulleted and quantified. ? Mention only accomplishments that directly relate to the job you want to get. ? Keep it brief, succinct and simple. Your cover letter should be short and to the point. Rarely should it be longer than one page. Remember, you are trying to capture the reader’s interest in knowing more about you. Telling your life story is boring. ? Make it easy on the eyes. When you’ve finished writing your letter, print it up and take a â€Å"big picture† look at it. Is it visually appealing? Is there plenty of white space (using bullets increases the white space)? Is it filled with complicated sentences and jammed to the margins? Does it look like a letter you would want to read? ? Close with an invitation for the reader to act. Tell the reader you would like to talk or meet and include these words: â€Å"Please give me a call at such-and-such a phone number. † Don’t say â€Å"I’ll give you a call in a few days to follow up and see if you’re interested in meeting†.

Friday, January 10, 2020

Pressure on Teens

Media’s Pressure on Teens Millions of boys and girls all over the U. S. get up every morning and step in front of their mirror to ask one question. The question crossing minds at that moment is â€Å"Does this look cool? † Oddly enough, to most teens in America, they are not meeting the standard set by their peers and the press. Teens base their styles, attitudes and ideas of what they see, hear and read which creates huge problems elsewhere. These problems can occur in the way teens treat others and the way they treat themselves. American teens and adults have yet to look past all the flashy clothing and make-up to understand what is actually being sold and how it can affect people in a terribly negative way. From my experience as a teen, I have seen my peers change to fit the latest fads and understand the weak points of teenagers. I have therefore concluded, the four strongest influences on teens from the media are the correlations from fashion and music to â€Å"self-identity†, showing teens how to think, talk, and feel, the selling of images not products, and body and physical issues. For most people, adolescence was a time of truth and realization or â€Å"finding yourself†. Well, it is good to know things have not changed, because young adults these days feel the same way. But for teens today, they only find out what and who the media wants them to be. The interests of teenagers are derived from music and television. If someone hears a band on the radio and people around them say the band is â€Å"sick† and â€Å" way cool† the person will believe it despite whether or not the music is trash. It all begins here. The links between music and finding your place at school or in a community are so incredibly strong teens base their outlook toward life and others on them. The connection between music and finding â€Å"who you are† is only the tip on the huge, esteem-eating, merciless iceberg of the media. Teens find ways to deal with life’s challenges by talking, thinking and feeling like the TV, music and modeling stars that they hear and see everyday. The shows and programs the majority of young adults watch are based on teenagers as well. Therefore, the viewers intentionally, or unintentionally, pick up habits their star has. For example, if a boy was suddenly introduced to the â€Å"wonderful and inspiring† music of the guitar thrashing band Metallica, he might begin to wear dark colors such as red and black that are often featured in the band’s music videos Most importantly, as it usually plays out, he would consider anyone who doesn’t listen to Metallica to be a brainless idiot with no taste in music. At this point in the youth’s life, prejudice and dislike of others based on style preferences rears its head and breaks loose from it confinements. Cliques are formed and members are selected and rejected. This leads to problems for those who are rejected and once again they feel they can never be as good as had been expected. Suppose someone was channel surfing and stumbled upon a car add. The model of car that is being sold is irrelevant, but what is going on around the car is what the company is trying to sell. The person who is watching believes the advertisement is for a product when in fact it is an image that is being sold. Confusing right? Explanations are close at hand. In the car add mentioned before (perhaps the car is a small Toyota Corolla) the colors are bright and vibrant; a young couple is sitting in the front seats of the car with their windows down, enjoying the fresh autumn air. Notice that when the voiceover is speaking of low APR financing until 2004, the young couple is smiling like there is no tomorrow. They glance each other lovingly as shadows whisk playfully over the windshield of the glittering car. This appeals to almost anyone, but for a girl who is looking for a cheap and comfortable car, this is the perfect sales pitch. Or perhaps the car is a Ford truck. Already the name sticks in the viewers mind but the video clips of buff men and rugged trips to the desert to rock climb convince them they need the truck. If the viewer can’t have the product, whether it be lip-gloss, a new car, a prom dress or even a new hairstyle, their self-esteem plummets. They begin to feel they are not capable of being so cool. One must keep in mind that the companies that are advertising are not selling a product, but an image that you will get when you go for this great, once-in-a-life-time offer. The last and most dangerous result of influence by the media is bulimia and anorexia nervosa. A simple stereotype must be cleared up before this essay goes any further. If a common businessman were asked about anorexia nervosa or bulimia, it is almost certain that he would say that it occurs only in women. What this common businessman doesn’t know, along with most of America’s public, is these diseases do occur in boys and men. When striving to meet that ideal weight to height ratio men will fast. They will continue to use that exercise plan they were been told was used by Arnold Schwarzenegger and eventually their body begins to feed of its own muscle because it has no nutrients. Once someone gets stuck in a routine of that sort they will have trouble quitting. For women, the cases are different but still maintain the idea of starving themselves to reach that slim and elegant look that so many stars and models seen in magazines have. For someone who has anorexia nervosa, every time they look in the mirror they see a huge and grotesque figure staring back. They are most certainly not over weight but their brain believes what it sees. Once again, people should be taught to look past all the fraud that is flashing in front of them and make good decisions based on reality. So next time an ad flashes onto the TV screen think of all the things really being sold and how to approach them correctly. To stand out in a crowd and be individual one must have a crowd and telling people they are idiots because they do not listen to Metallica is no way to attract a group. The diseases anorexia nervosa and bulimia are triggered by people wanting to be like those skinny, spindly women who strut around on cat walks showing off pieces of iridescent cloth draped about them. â€Å"Why? Why would someone want to be like that? one may ask, well, the truth is that these teenagers do not know who to follow or what to do. They see the media; they see companies telling them â€Å"This is hot! You need this to be cool! † and the viewers do not see what is happening to their own bodies, what is happening to others around them, what the consequences of their decision will be. If one fails to see behind the razzle and dazzle of the media they will be trapped in a cage of false faces and feelings; trapped in the mad â€Å"fun-house of fashion and fraud. †

Thursday, January 2, 2020

Spanish Phrases and Idioms Using ‘Ojo’

Sight is one of the most important senses, the one most of us use most to learn whats happening around us. So it shouldnt be surprising that a number of phrases refer to the organ of sight. This is especially true in Spanish, which has over two dozen phrases using the word ojo. Following are some of the most common ones, along with some examples of their use. Many of the definitions below include a literal translations. These are word-for-word translations of the phrase rather than how the phrases would be used or understood by a native speaker. Spanish Phrases Referring to Eyes abrir/cerrar los ojos (to open/close ones eyes): Es un ejercicio que consiste en abrir y cerrar los ojos. (Its an exercise that consists of opening and closing the eyes.) ojo a la funerala, ojo a la virulà ©, ojo morado (bruised or black eye; literally ) ojos saltones (bulging eyes; literally eyes that jump) poner los ojos en blanco (to roll ones eyes; literally to make the eyes white): Cuando no saben de quà © hablar, ponen los ojos en blanco. (When they dont know what to say, they roll their eyes.) Names of Things Using Ojo ojo de buey (porthole; literally crabs eye or oxs eye) ojo de la cerradura (keyhole; literally eye of the lock) ojo de la escalera (stairwell; literally eye of the stairway) ojo de gallo (corn, a type of growth on a foot; literally roosters eye) ojo de pez (fish-eye lens; literally fishs eye) ojo de la tormenta (eye of the storm) Idioms Using Ojo abrir los ojos a alguien, abrirle los ojos a alguien (to open someones eyes): El curso me abrià ³ los ojos a cosas que nunca se me habà ­an ocurrido antes. (The course opened my eyes to things that never had occurred to me before.) a ojos vistas (in plain sight, clearly, obviously; vista comes from the past participle of ver, to see): Antonio progresaba a ojos vistas en todos los aspectos. (Antonio clearly progressed in all aspects.) andar con ojo, andar con mucho ojo, andar con cien ojos (to be careful; literally to walk with an eye, to walk with much eye, and to walk with 1,000 eyes): Anda con ojo con el coche. (Be careful with the car.) a ojo de buen cubero (by rule of thumb, approximately, roughly; literally by the eye of a good barrel maker): La capacidad de la bandeja de papel, a ojo de buen cubero, no supera las 150 hojas. (The capacity of a tray of paper, as a rule of thumb, doesnt exceed 150 sheets.) comerse con los ojos a alguien (to figuratively drool over someone, to stare at someone): Andrea se comà ­a con los ojos a mi amigo Luis. (Andrea drooled over my friend Luis.) costar algo un ojo de la cara (to cost an arm and a leg; literally to cost an eye of the face): Este perro le costà ³ un ojo de la cara. (That dog cost him an arm and a leg.)  ¡Dichosos los ojos que te ven! (How great it is to see you! Literally, happy the eyes that see you!) en un abrir y cerrar de ojos (in the twinkling of an eye; literally in the opening and closing of eyes): En un abrir y cerrar de ojos la vida nos cambià ³. (Life changed us in the twinkling of an eye.) mirar algo con buenos/malos ojos (to look at something favorably/unfavorably, to approve/disapprove of; literally to look at something with good/bad eyes): Esa religià ³n miraba con malos ojos la comunicacià ³n con los antepasados. (That religion looks unfavorably on communication with the dead.) no pegar ojo (to not get any sleep; literally to not seal the eye shut): Hace dos noches que no pegà ³Ã‚  ojo Antonio. (Two nights ago Antonio didnt sleep) poner los ojos a/en alguien/algo (to set ones sights on someone/something): Pinochet puso los ojos en Sudà ¡frica. (Pinochet set his sights on South Africa.) ser todo ojos (to be all eyes): Martà ­n era todo ojos y todo oà ­dos para aprender. (Martin was all eyes and ears for learning.) tener ojo clà ­nico para algo (to be a good judge of something, to have a good eye for something; literally to have a clinical eye for something): No tiene ojo clà ­nico para elegir a quienes le acompaà ±an. (He doesnt have good judgment in picking who goes with him.) tener ojos de lince (to have extremely good eyesight, to have eagle eyes; literally to have the eyes of a lynx): Si tiene ojos de lince posiblemente pueda ver los pequeà ±os loros verdes. (If you can see really well, you might be able to see the small green parrots.) Proverbs and Sayings Ojo por ojo, diente por diente. (An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.) Ojos que no ven, corazà ³n que no siente. (What the eye doesnt see, the heart doesnt feel.) Cuatro ojos ven mà ¡s que dos. (Two heads are better than one. Literally, four eyes are better than two.)  ¡Ojo! can also be used by itself as an interjection to mean Watch out! or Be careful!