An EVil Cradling - Rape Commentary Essay Example for Free

An EVil Cradling Rape Commentary Essay This passage from Brian Keenans An Evil Cradling describes in first person narrative the scene when Said beats Brian in a manner analogous to a rape. This event gives us an insight into the guards weaknesses and their dependency on the hostages, making them in a paradoxical way- the actual prisoners. On the other hand, Brians and Johns defiance and mutual support suggest the rising determination which gives them control over the guards. Throughout this passage, the author demonstrates us that mental resistance is more powerful than any physical abuse, and Brian even states that the later feeds the first. The narrator claims that There was a part of me they could never bind nor abuse nor take from me. This suggests that physical maltreatment will never be able to reach into peoples minds, because mental strength cannot be bent. Brian also discovers that his resistance was a joyful thing and that the more he was beaten the stronger he became. However, the narrator makes it clear that it was not strength of the arm, nor of body but a huge determination never to give in to these men. This shows that physical exploitation and abuse humiliates their body, but at the same time it empowers intellectual strength and might. The limitations of the beatings are further emphasised in the quotations the blows and the bruises and the kicks hurt me but I felt no pain and I did not fear him. These suggest that the expected effects of the beatings like pain and fear, which could have been used as weapons against the prisoners, were no longer applicable for Brian and John. In this way, the hostages possess the ultimate power, the psychological one which gives them control over the guards making them their slaves. In the course of this passage is suggested that Said is sexually repressed by his religion and so in an attempt to relieve this he beats prisoners in a sexually excited manner. The narrator describes him as a violent lover and his abuse of my body a kind of rape. A lover implies a need for love and possibly sex. However, the guards strict religious views try to inhibit these natural feelings, and as the women in Lebanon are forbidden from having relationships with men before they are married, many men might find themselves in a controversial situation. To shows their masculinity, they turn into violent lovers and try to prove their power by physically subduing others. Brians summary of Said as a man so filled with fear and fascinated by violence and obsessed with sex seems to confirm this point. The guards are fearful and confused because of their repressed emotions that cause them frustration and anger. This explains their sudden changes in behaviour that occur throughout the novel from being caring and innocent into beating and humiliating the prisoners. Said is illustrated by the narrator as a wild and repugnant, almost animal-like person. While beating the prisoners the guard is silent and never talks to them. This implies his savagery, almost as if he lost his ability to speak, which makes him similar to an animal. The fact that he comes by night, shows that he wants to remain hidden from the view this further emphasising his feral inclinations during these moments. Brian gives a detailed account about Saids smell which was a mixture of sweat, strong sweetness and garlic, all of these combining into a violent aroma, which filled the room. These physical portrayals of his scent convey the feeling of disgust and loathing that Brian felt for the duration of this mental rape. The extract I sniffed the air like an animal suggests that something savage and inhuman happened, that Saids assault was beyond the boundaries of a humane deed. On the other hand, we have Brian and John whos humane gestures are highlighted by Saids savage behaviour. Initially Brian claims that he felt an elemental rage and he imagines the pleasure that he would gain from castrating Said. However, after a short while they both laughed together and the moment of violence became meaningless. This suggests that humour gives them sufficient strength to overcome their frustrations and unlike the guards they dont have to turn into violence to relieve their disturbances. After the fierce scene, the two whispered soft words of comfort and reassurance to each other. This emphasises the power of love, friendship, mutual support and provides a more positive and emotional sight after the violent event of the rape. Throughout the novel the hostages and the guards try to overcome their own fears, doubts and frustrations. This passage from the chapter Rape illustrates the ways in which they attempt to do so. Brian and John conquer these negative feelings by supporting, loving and laughing with each other. However, the confined fanatical views of the guards dont allow them to do so, so they seek control and relief by physically abusing others. In spite of this it seems that the psychological defiance of the hostages is a more powerful weapon than the beatings of the guards and so the ones that are somewhat in control in the prison are not the sentry, but the prisoners themselves. In this way, the author nicely concludes that humane and caring behaviour will triumph over brutality and violence.

An Interpretation of E.E. Cummings Anyone Lived in a Pretty How Town E

An Interpretation of E.E. Cummings' Anyone Lived in a Pretty How Town E.E. Cummings (1894-1962) is an American Poet whose works are some of the harder ones to understand. That's what Cummings is known for, his typography, language, punctuation, and his use of capital letters to give words special meanings. It has been stated that he has his own language known as Cummingsian. Cummings has done a lot of experimentation with language along with other poets during the Modernist era. Not only was Cummings an artistic writer and poet but he was an accomplished painter as well. Born in Cambridge Massachusetts, Cummings was a graduate of Harvard (1915) and was a volunteer ambulance driver in WWI. The French made him a prisoner of war and placed him in a detention camp for six months. This experience inspired his book "The Enormous Room," which was considered one of the finest books written on WWI. Before I go right into the analysis of the poem "anyone lived in a pretty how town" by Cummings, I felt it important to have a brief history about him. Not just history of him as a pers...

High School and New Tech High Essay

I never knew going to high-school would be such a big deal for me. High-school never seemed so challenging, but my first year of high-school was a challenging year, but also a fun year. Going to high-school was like the start of a new life, actually it was the start of a new life because I knew I would learn so much and become a mature young lady. My first year of high-school I went to Arsenal Technical High-school. I was in New Tech High, it was an academy that was mostly about Technology and projects. Yes, I was nervous the first couple of days of school, but after a couple of days I had got use to it. I met lots of new people and made a lot of friends that year, and by being able to experience a different environment of people really changed me as a person. Being in New Tech High I got to use a computer every day of school, I thought it was cool for students to get a computer their first year of high-school. I was even surprised that the students and I got the opportunity to use Mac Book computers. Being in New Tech High was very beneficial for me. In New Tech I learned a lot of new things about computers such as working with power-point, I movie, Word Excel, Photo-shop and more. Before I got to New Tech I didn’t know much about computers, but after my Freshman year of high-school I had learned so much it made me feel like a computer wiz. I also gained good work ethic skills, collaboration skills, 21st century communication skills, and good presentation skills. My first year of high-school was mostly about projects, I always worked in groups and collaborated with those around me. I actually found it to be fun to work with others, after working with others I knew how it felt to be part of a team. One thing that always made me so nervous in school was presentation day, every time I stood in front of that crowd of people in my classroom I got so nervous. At times I would even stutter cause I never experienced presenting before, but after a while I got use to presenting. People have to overcome obstacles in life and presenting was an obstacle I had to overcome to succeed in New Tech. After my first year of high-school I actually missed going to school, but I knew I had three more years of school before it was all over. My Sophomore Year of High-school It seem like I had more responsibilities than my first year. I always had work to do, I had projects on top of the work and I also had to study a lot for my tests. I’m glad I had responsibilities because if I never experienced the task of being responsible I wouldn’t know how to handle my responsibilities in the future. After responsibility came the good grades, I always tried to stay on top of my work so that I could make good grades in high-school, but at times it was hard because I was experiencing a different way of learning. Learning eight different subjects and trying to cram your brain was a difficult task to handle, but also a challenging task for me. At times It wasn’t all about work, in some of my classes I got to go do fun things such as going on field trips. I remember my Sophomore year my Zoology teacher took our class to Newport, Kentucky to the Newport Aquarium. Yes, it was very fun I never went out of town before and experiencing this moment was very exciting for me. Landers2 While continuing my Sophomore year I couldn’t wait until my Junior year, I knew my Junior was the year to start looking in to different colleges. College really never came across my mind the first two years of high-school, but when my Junior year finally came I knew it was time to start thinking about my college life. I had to figure out what I wanted to be, what I wanted to do and think about the places I wanted to go with my career field. At times I was a little confused about my life, I didn’t know where I should began my life and where I should start the beginning of a new life. My Junior year I was still in New Tech, after two years of being in New Tech High I felt like it was another home that kept me safe, and taught me more about life. I always had very good teachers, they taught me things that I didn’t know and also things that they already knew. I loved to come to class and learn from the teachers in New Tech High, I knew each and every day my teachers would teach me something new that would better my life and lead me on the road to success. After I realized what high-school was all about, I didn’t want to leave being able to walk down the hallway and see all my friends, and also get the opportunity to do things that other high-school students didn’t get was beneficial for me. It wasn’t all about working myself to death to get the next assignment done, It was also experiencing the life of a high-school students. Many teachers said, â€Å" cherish every moment of high-school cause when your gone you’re going to miss what was here. † I find that to be so true because now that I am out of high-school I wish I had one more chance to do it all over again. As the year went on my Senior year finally came I was so shocked, it seemed like the first day of high-school was just yesterday I couldn’t believe it was all almost over with. Deep down inside I knew I didn’t want to leave high-school even though at times I wished I had graduated, but when I thought about it, it seemed like my life flashed right before my eyes. I knew now I had grew into that mature young lady I said I was going to be, I was proud of myself that I made it through the years of high-school. I believed in myself, but I also thought that I wasn’t going to succeed at a lot because of my fear of failure. I thought that my fear of failure would ruin my high-school life, but it didn’t because I learned to face my fears and become stronger than what I was before. I was always the person that was shy to get in front of people, I was the person who didn’t believe that people would like me for me. After being in high-school I realized that it shouldn’t matter if others like you or not or if your being judged because at the end of the day your the one pushing forward and moving on to a successful life. Being in New Tech helped me mature and overcome a lot of my fears, I never use to be the type of person that was open to others but after being in high-school I learned how to collaborate and network with others. I knew graduation was coming, I was so nervous I felt it at the pit of my stomach everyday, but as graduation came closer and closer I knew it was my time to face the world and become what I wanted to be. I promised myself that when I got out of high-school I was going straight into college, and I kept that promise to myself because I knew no one could hand me my future in my hands. I had to be a that responsible person and walk across the stage and get my high-school diploma. At times I thought about graduation, I wasn’t ready I didn’t want to leave the place that taught me so much. When the time came for me to graduate, I was sitting there watching students walk across the stage and smile so happily. I was so nervous I sat still in my seat, I almost busted outwith tears but I held my composure and kept my head high. As I walked up to the stage I could feel the eyes of others staring at me, but I looked forward and kept walking and praying that I didn’t fall when I walked across the stage. When my name was called,† Lakeya Landers,† I walked across the stage and then I knew it was time for my life to began.

The Battle Of The Civil War - 1627 Words

As the first major battle of the Civil War the First Battle of Bull Run was an end to the illusions of a quick war and instead was a first glimpse of into the long and bloody four-year struggle the Civil War would become. In this paper the battle and its many repercussions across the political, social and military spectrum of the Union and Confederacy will be explored. Background: With the formation of the Confederate States and the outbreak of hostilities at Ft. Sumter only a few months earlier there was both political and popular pressure on both sides to commence hostilities and bring the war to a quick conclusion. Both sides believed that a few decisive battles would battles would make â€Å"the slovenly rebels of cowardly Yankees would†¦show more content†¦Sumter. In response to these factors President Lincoln directed General McDowell to devise a plan to attack the Confederates. In response the General drew up a plan to engage the rebels at Manassas Junction, Va. While McDowell had confidence in his plan he wasn’t as confident in his men who at the time were green and untested by battle. McDowell asked for more time to train his troops but the political pressure and popular opinion prevented any delays. This sentiment is evident in the words of Union Quartermaster-General Meigs who stated, â€Å"it’s better to whip them here†¦to make fight in Virginia was cheaper and the better case† (McPherson pg336). In this assessment Lincoln agreed and directed McDowell to commence his offensive as planned. Prelude to Battle: In June of 1861 McDowell presented his plan to Lincoln and the Cabinet to engage the flank of the 24,000 Confederates forces stationed at Bull Run Creek about 25 miles South West of Washington, DC. This Confederate force was commanded by General Beauregard, the hero of Ft Sumter which gave the plan an added benefit of a bit revenge. McDowell’s plan of attack was to use 35,000 Union Troops advancing in three separate columns with 10,000 troops held in reserve to engage a combined Confederate Army stationed around the Manassas rail junction and the Bull Run Creek. In addition a Union force under General Patterson’s of 15,000 was to prevent a Confederate