To Kill A Mocking Bird :: To Kill a Mockingbird Essays

The theme of Harper Lee's To Kill a Mocking Bird is the existence of racism and prejudice in the 1930 – 40's. Harper Lee succeeds in presenting the topic in a manner that is not overly simplistic and thus achieves the task of allowing the reader to fully appreciate the complex nature of unjust discrimination. Harper Lee's inclusion of characters such as Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, Dolphus Raymond and many others, aid the reader to grasp the concept of racism and its central role in the town of Maycomb. To Kill a Mocking Bird is narrated retrospectively from the view of Scout, the daughter of Atticus Finch a lawyer of Maycomb, and younger sister of Jem. The informal vocabulary of the narration is still good enough to suggest it is spoken from the view of an adult Scout, (looking back at her childhood) but is casual enough to be understood by most readers. Maycomb's racist attitude in To Kill a Mocking Bird is fueled by the events which occurred soon after World War I. After a devastating stock market crash, many employers lost a substantial amount of money and therefore could hardly afford to hire staff. Many resorted to buying slaves; it was cheap and required little responsibility on their part. This event led to the employment of Negroes. The Industrial revolution did not occur in South America since it was only logical to simply buy slaves rather than expensive machinery. The civil war soon followed, and declared that Negroes were no longer considered slaves and if they were unhappy with work conditions they could leave. Few did, since jobs were already dangerously scarce and by about 1930 racism toward blacks was obvious. Negroes were accused of stealing the jobs of white people and this led to a system of separate public transport, schools and even drinking fountains. To Kill a Mocking Bird expresses the racist attitudes of Maycomb most dominantly in the court case involving Tom Robinson (who's lawyer is Atticus Finch) and Mayella Eule. The trial makes blatantly obvious to the reader that Tom Robinson, the black man accused of rape is innocent and yet the jury finds him guilty. It also establishes that Mayella was actually beaten by her father and although the evidence that points to this occurrence is circumstantial, it is made perfectly clear. The court case also clarifies to the reader the frightful nature and obvious abundance of racism within the small town of Maycomb.

Hinduism and Buddhism vs. Confucianism and Taoism Essay

Hinduism is, some would say, the world’s most ancient and sprawling religion. Its scriptures and teachings are voluminous and wide-ranging, addressing everything from science and history to philosophy, art and, of course, spirituality. Comparatively speaking, the Hindu teachings are uniquely inclusive rather than exclusive. One of its early Vedas openly recognizes the universality of the spiritual path: â€Å"Truth is one; sages call it by different names.† As in Buddhism, Hinduism stresses the necessity of letting go our compulsive attachment to, and fascination with, the ego or the self, so that we can realize The Self, or selflessness. The differences in supreme beings between Hinduism and Buddhism show two extremes of the same idea. Hinduism believes in one Supreme Being, but separates its characteristics into many different Gods. Everything is a part of the Supreme Being. Buddhism sees the individual’s thought and nature as supreme, and therefore does not ha ve a single God, and so turns inward instead of outward. Similarities between views of man and nature greatly show the progression from Hinduism to Buddhism as the same ideas of everything being one and the same are expressed in different contexts. Both religions are also similarly based on attaining certain knowledge in order to reach salvation or Nirvana. Taoism and Confucianism have to be seen side-by-side as two distinct responses to the social, political and philosophical conditions of life two and a half millennia ago in China. Whereas Confucianism is greatly concerned with social relations, conduct and human society, Lao Tzu emphasized the need to look beyond the promises and treaties of human beings for a source of peace and contentment; and he urged to return to nature’s way, that is, a simple and harmonious life. Chuang Tzu developed Taoism emphasizing on the natural way as opposed to the artificial and contrived way of persons. The Tao is similar to the Christian God in that is omnipresent and all powerful. It is also an impersonal, impartial force, however, much like â€Å"the force† of George Lucas’ Star Wars. Tao means, more or less, â€Å"the way of things,† both material and immateria l, not dissimilar to the Buddhist term dharma. Taoism centers upon the absolute necessity, uniqueness, pervasiveness and indefinable elusiveness of this peculiar â€Å"way.† The following passage from the Tao Te Ching is a typical description of the Tao. â€Å"The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao. The name that can be named is not the eternal name.† Confucius thought that the problems of his time originated from  sovereign power used without moral principle. To cure this problem, he urged that the government should be administered for the benefit of all the people; and this is possible if the government officials were of the highest personal integrity and cared about the people as much as they did about themselves. (Do unto others as you would have them do unto you). 3. Perfection can be realized by following the inner Way (Tao) of nature. Tao is manifested in the workings of nature, for what individual things possess of Tao is the te, or function, of Tao. Tao, as a source, provides for the very existence of beings, but the function of Tao provides for their distinctness. Nonaction (wu-wei) is what things inherit from Tao as their function. â€Å"Tao invariably takes no action, and yet there is nothing left undone.† Non (artificial) action is letting things be accomplished in a natural and spontaneous way. The word â€Å"jen† means ‘virtue,’ ‘benevolence,’ ‘true humanhood,’ ‘moral character,’ ‘love,’ ‘human goodness,’ and ‘human-heartedness’. What makes us human is a matter of feeling as well as thinking; Chinese emphasize on the heart, rather than the reason, as the central feature of human nature. To realize jen, guides to action in everyday life are needed. Confucius found these guides in the rules of li (propriety). Li governs customs, ceremonies, and relationships established by human practice over the ages; and jen is realized through li. Jen is the ground of li; what makes li a standard of conduct is the fact that it is in accord with jen. Customs and regulations not in accord with jen are not really li. By li, we tame our unruly impulses and transform them into civilized expressions of human nature: that is, li is the means by which our humanity (jen) can be evoked and developed. â€Å"†¦ Li is the principle by which the ancient kings embodied the laws of heaven†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The word â€Å"li† means propriety in everything: moral discipline in personal conduct, the general principle of the social order, ritual and ceremony, a system of social relationships with definite attitudes toward one another, love in the parents, filial piety in the children, respect in the younger brothers, friendliness in the elder brothers, loyalty among friends, respect for authority among subjects, and benevolence in rulers.

Essay Night - 1225 Words

Night From the View of an S.S. Officer nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;This whole situation started out simple enough. The men and myself first moved into a little town called Sighet. The people there seemed so naive. None of them realized what was about to happen; none of them realized what happened when the Germans move into town. We first started by imprisoning the officials and made all the Jews were yellow stars. The Jews were then moved into a very small ghetto and cramped quarters. It was obvious that none of them had heard of the horror of the concentration camps and what awaited them once they left the safety of their homes. Some of the officers and I tried to be nice to the Jews because I,†¦show more content†¦I know some of them have to be lying about their age. Boys that are barely 15 claiming they are 18, but they only want what everybody else at the camps want; to stay alive. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Some prisoners and myself were transferred to a camp named Buna. It was a four-hour walk to the camp and once we got there the prisoners were required to undergo more medical exams to make sure they are still fit to work. The dentist even went as far as to remove the gold crowns in prisoners’ teeth. Things were going well for a few months although the officers and myself would take nothing less than hard work and cooperation from everyone. One day we had an unexpected air raid on Buna. The planes showered the camp with bombs and that is when things started to get out of control. People were trying to get away, stealing items, and trying to sneak some extra rations of soup. The officers were told to publicly hang anyone who broke the rules during this attack. We were made to do it in front of the entire camp so they could see what would happen if a person disobeyed. I was put in charge of supervising the hanging, but I couldn’t let morals get in the way. I was put here to do a job and that is what I had to do. We executed 4 people in total, including a small child just for trying to get food. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;I was aware that the Jewish holidays were approaching and it required them to fast. The rations that were given to the prisoners were hardly enough toShow MoreRelatedShadow of the Night619 Words   |  3 PagesShadow of the Night On a freezing, dark blue night of Li, in the Village of Li-Marta. This was an old little village, the houses were nothing but ash and rubble except an old abandoned barn. The barn had creaking floor boards and a rotten wooden roof. In this abandoned barn there lived a young and confident farm boy; his clothes were ragged and full of holes. The young boy was called Rye named after the agricultural god Ren-Rye. As Rye was sitting on the creaking floor boards a thought hit himRead MoreThe Night By Elie Wiesel904 Words   |  4 PagesIn Night by Elie Wiesel, the author reflects on his own experience of being separated from his family and eventually his own religion. This separation was not by any means voluntary, they were forced apart during the Holocaust. Wiesel was a Jew when the invasion of Hungary occurred and the Germans ripped members of his religion away from their home in Sighet. A once peaceful community where Wiesel learned to love the Kabbalah was now home to only dust and lost memories. Most members of that JewishRead MoreNight, By Eliezer Wiesel1585 Words   |  7 Pages There are many important themes and overtones to the book Night, by Eliezer Wiesel. One of the major themes from the book includes the protagonist, and author of his memoire, Elie Wiesel’s ever changing relationship with God. 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I hope he loves poetry.Read MoreSummary Of Night By Eli Wiesel1561 Words   |  7 PagesNight by Eli Wiesel Amrinder Bhuller P.2 Author: The author of Night is Elie Wiesel. In my opinion, he did a very good job in writing this story! Eli was born on September 30, 1928. Eli is currently 86 and has written a lot of books. Eli had served as a prisoner Auschwitz and other concentration camps. He wrote all his experiences in this book. The Night talks about his experiences in these concentration camps and all he went through. Everything is probably historically correct because he wentRead MoreThe s Night - Original Writing1526 Words   |  7 PagesEverything that happened in Elie Wiesel’s night. I will see, smell, and feel the holocaust through the eyes of Wiesel. â€Å"Alright, uh, Yavin. Nice name. I’m Mr. Hiraku. Are you ready?† the teacher asked, looking down at his chart for my name. â€Å"Yes sir.† I answered, a bit shakily. I had used VR before for video games, but never for something so important. â€Å"Alright. I’m going to read you off some side effects involved with this experience. ‘While participating in the Night VR experience software, you may encounterRead MoreNight, Hope, By Elie Wiesel1580 Words   |  7 Pagesthey grabbed onto it as tightly as they could. Throughout Elie Wiesel’s memoir, Night, hope is a recurring theme. Elie and the people he was around were living in the darkest of conditions, but they still were able to shine a bright light on their situation. They remained hopeful, and this inspired the world. Putting all of this together, it is evident that the theme of hope was demonstrated throughout the book Night because Elie and the Jewish people tried to remain hopeful as they were forced intoRead MoreNight Time Tour951 Words   |  4 Pagesonce more at the sea where the sunset splattered colors of red and orange on the rough surface of blue and violet. 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