Ted Hughes Poetry The Contrast between Vitality and Death Essays

Ted Hughes Poetry The Contrast between Vitality and Death Essays Ted Hughes Poetry The Contrast between Vitality and Death Essay Ted Hughes Poetry The Contrast between Vitality and Death Essay Essay Topic: Literature The Poems of Ted Hughes Ted Hughes famously quoted What excites my imagination is the war between vitality and death. This is a key factor in the effectiveness of nearly all of Hughes early work the stark contrast between life and death, vitality and lethargy. In poems such as The Jaguar, Roarers in a Ring and Six Young Men, there is a severe and often brutally sudden transition between the two extremes. I found all of these poems, particularly The Jaguar, intriguing and enthralling; the respect that Hughes has for animals and humans who live their lives to the full is admirably enormous. In The Jaguar, the poet describes his disregard for the majority of the animals in the zoo he visits because they have accepted captivity and surrendered to a life free from care, excitement and interest. Most of the animals have lost the magic of their natural instincts. He disdainfully describes them with words like indolence and sloth and uses the simile like cheap tarts to describe the parrots. This insinuates that they are willing to strut and show off to anyone, as they have lost any sense of pride and self worth they once had. However, there is one creature that excites and captivates the crowds, and as the title of the poem suggests, has also left a lasting impact on Hughes. Instead of lazing around idly, the sleek black Jaguar spins from the bars and hurries enraged. Despite being deprived of his natural environment and his freedom, the Jaguar is full of movement, actively bursting with power and energy. Hughes is markedly enthralled by the way that the Jaguar seems to create his own space, even within the confinement of his cage describing the creature as having the world rolling under the long thrust of his heel. Hughes uses powerful and potent images such as the drills of his eyes and the prison darkness to make the poem come alive. The poem has an underlining high regard for the Jaguar; it is clear he retains his sense of dignity and power and is still very much a wild beast. He has certainly not accepted his life in captivity. Hughes accentuates the difference between the Jaguar and the other animals by describing the reactions of the crowd, who stare mesmerised at the Jaguar as a child at a dream. This simile is effective as it creates a real sense of awe and amazement; children cannot often be captivated so strongly, suggesting the subject is something truly incredible. Contrarily, he implies that the majority of the cages contain nothing but sleeping straw, and visitors tend to rush past such animals without even noticing their existence. As well as the movements of the crowds, the difference between lively and lethargic is very much highlighted by the metaphorical language used. The curl of a snakes body is described as a fossil not only appropriate because of the coiled shape but also because it gives the impression of being very old and in a state of inertia. Similarly, the apes are of no interest to the crowds because their only motions are idle actions to pass the time; they merely yawn and adore their fleas in the sun. To my surprise, even the tigers and the lions are too fatigued with indolence to excite an audience. The simile still as the sun demonstrates the arrogance and immovability of the Lions, and also illustrates their colour. All these static, lazy images are countered by the rage, strength and ferocity of the Jaguar who does not limit his spirit to the boundaries of his cage. The pace and rhythm of the poem is quite fast with short sharp words, often monosyllable to stress the simplicity of the trouble-free animals. In contrast, the pace slows down in the third verse when talking about the Jaguar, with considerably longer sentences and words such as mesmerised. Roarers in a Ring is a more subtle observation, in the form of a narrative. It is Christmas Eve and a group of farmers are attempting to conceal their sorrow with alcohol and false laughter. The situation the poet describes is immediately identifiable, making it all the more hard-hitting. The poem begins on a cold note, describing a starving fox a symbol of the harsh realities of nature and death. Descriptions like The moor foamed like a white running sea create an atmosphere that is bleak, cold and uninviting. In the second verse the farmers huddle around a fire, which instead of sounding cosy, sounds as if they are hiding from the outside world. Later, it is suggested that their unceasing laughter is not genuine but is like a ball being tossed in the air. Instead of actually being happy they are forcing themselves to laugh because there is nothing else they can do, and ultimately because they are afraid. The poet talks as if he is watching them and says, You would have thought that if they did not laugh, they must weep. He is saying that they are scared to drop the pretence of joviality, as they dont want to face the prospect of sober misery. Thinking rather than laughing loudly means they must realise what their fate is lest silence drink blood. In contrast to the way they toss laughter, and their lives up, towards the end of the poem there is a strong feeling of downward movement, with lines like bottomless black silence through which it fell and blindly, rowdily balanced, took their fall. Despite their apparent liveliness, there is a constant undertone of sorrow. In the sixth verse the poet depicts how the farmers grand bellies shook and then suddenly the line Oh their flesh would drop to dust at the first sober look. This cruelly reminds the reader how vulnerable and weak they are compared to the sharpness of the air new as a razor and the power of the moor and the world in general. The poem draws to an end with the deaths of the farmers, and pointedly closes with the insignificance of this; as the world went whirling still it carries on unchanged by their absence. Another of Ted Hughes poems entitled Six Young Men displays a more direct change from descriptions of the life and the mens enthusiasm to their tragic deaths in the First World War. The poem observes a photograph taken forty years ago which pictures the six men who died only months later. The mens expressions are timeless and although the men are very much dead, the photo is undoubtedly alive The men were at the peak of their lives and the contrast between their vigour and anticipation with the tragedy of their death is shocking. Hughes describes each of the young men in turn by how they looked in a photograph, their beautiful surroundings, their camaraderie and lust for life itself. However, at the end of each verse, a brief yet cuttingly effective line reminds the reader of the mens fate their faces are four decades under the ground ends the second verse and Forty years rotting into soil ends the fourth. This pattern is repeated, as the poet touchingly recalls how their clothes would not be fashionable today, but at the time their shoes shone, which reflects their respectability. It also makes an alarming contrast as in life they had taken pride in their appearance but in death, they have spent forty years rotting in the soil. There is a more detailed description of how the men died and Hughes reveals that he knew them and also the scene in the picture. It makes the reader wonder what relationship he was to them. I speculated whether he had lost all these friends in the war. Was he the one behind the lens who had taken the picture? The poem reflects on the passing of time, and it is states that nothing lasts. The tone of the poem is bitter but invariably becomes more softly spoken when Hughes is recalling memories of the men going on a Sunday jaunt. He reflects on the irony of their lives and talks about the mangled last agony one of the men suffered in hospital, while for some nobody knows what they came to. In the last verse, the poet claims that six celluloid smiles are no less alive than any man, but at the same no less dead than a prehistoric creature. Hughes feels very strongly about the photograph; it is a paradox, a contradiction that that they should be smiling, when with hindsight he sees too many reasons why they should not. Hughes remembers them twice in death shot by rifle or trying to save a friend, and preserved in his cherished photograph which has not wrinkled their faces or hands, and they live in his memory, young forever. All of these poems touch on the contrast between vitality and death, either comparing the two directly, or focusing mainly on one of them. It is obvious that Hughes found victory in the untamed will of the Jaguar, and admiration for the remarkable lust each of the Six young men had for life whereas he scorned at the farmers who led pitiful, timid lives which ended as uneventfully as they had existed.

Learn to Code in 3 Months With Harvards Online Courses

Learn to Code in 3 Months With Harvard's Online Courses Harvard’s â€Å"Introduction to Computer Science† course is widely regarded as the best computer science course online and serves as a rigorous starting point for thousands of online students every year. Plus, the course is flexible: there’s an option for you whether you just want to look around, are dedicated to completing every assignment, or want to earn transferable college credit. Here’s some straight talk: â€Å"Introduction to Computer Science† is hard. It’s designed for students without previous computer programming experience, but it’s no walk in the park. If you enroll, you can expect to spend 10-20 hours on each of the nine project sets in addition to completing a complex final project. But, if you can dedicate the effort required, you’ll gain tangible skills, have a much more in-depth understanding of computer science and develop a better sense of whether or not this is a field you want to pursue.   Ã‚   Introducing Your Professor, David Malan The course is taught by David Malan, an instructor at Harvard University. Before creating the course and teaching at Harvard, David was the Chief Information Officer for Mindset Media. All of David’s Harvard courses are offered as OpenCourseWare – at no cost to the interested public. The primary instruction in â€Å"Introduction to Computer Science† is delivered through David’s videos, which are professionally filmed and often use screens and animation to get the point across. Fortunately, David is both concise and charismatic, making the videos an easy watch for students. (No dry, 2-hours-behind-a-podium lectures here). What You’ll Learn As an introductory course, you’ll learn a little bit of everything. The curriculum is broken down into twelve weeks of intense learning. Each weekly lesson includes an informational video from David Malan (generally filmed with a live student audience). There are also walkthrough videos, in which David directly demonstrates coding processes. Study session review videos are available for students that may be less comfortable with the material and need additional instruction in order to complete the problem sets. Videos and transcripts of videos can be downloaded and watched at your convenience. Lessons introduce students to: binary, algorithms, Boolean expressions, arrays, threads, Linux, C, cryptography, debugging, security, dynamic memory allocation, compiling, assembling, File I/O, hash tables, trees, HTTP, HTML, CSS, PHP, SQL, JavaScript, Ajax, and dozens of other topics. You won’t finish the course as a fluent programmer, but you’ll have a solid understanding of how programming languages work. What You’ll Do One of the reasons â€Å"Introduction to Computer Science† has been so successful is that it gives students the opportunity to apply what they’re learning while they’re learning it. In order to complete the course, students must successfully finish 9 problem sets. Students begin creating simple programs from the very first week. The instructions for completing the problem sets are extremely detailed and even feature extra help videos from past students (proudly wearing their black â€Å"I took CS50† t-shirts for solidarity with the currently-struggling). The final requirement is a self-guided project. Students can choose to create any type of software using the skills and programming languages they’ve learned throughout the course. Enrolled students submit their final project to an online fair – after the class is over, projects are shared through a website for peers to see what everyone else has been up to. Students needing extra assistance can work with Harvard tutors online for $50 an hour. Did You Want a Certificate With That? Whether you just want to take a peek at the course or want to earn college credit, â€Å"Introduction to Computer Science† has an option to help you get started coding. EdX is the easiest way to access course materials at your own pace. You can sign up for free to audit the course, with full access to videos, instructions, etc. You can also opt to donate $90 or more for a Verified Certificate of Achievement upon completion of all coursework. This can be listed on a resume or used in a portfolio, but will not give you college credit. You can also view course materials on CS50.tv, YouTube, or iTunes U. Alternatively, you can take the same online course through Harvard Extension School for about $2050. Through this more traditional online program, you will enroll with a cohort of students during the Spring or Fall semester, meet deadlines, and earn transferable college credit upon completion of the course.

Partnership Working Between Service Users And Mental Health Workers Essay

Partnership Working Between Service Users And Mental Health Workers - Essay Example The term users, not only applies to the people with mental disorders but also survivors, family members as well as providers of related services. According to Tait and Lester (2005), the conceptualization of users as providers, as reflected in the current trend of user-led services in UK provides a great opportunity for advancing the partnership working between service providers and the mental service users. The user- led services involve mental services carried out and managed by users through voluntary arrangements in conjunction with health care professionals. The concept of users-led services and the shift from institutionalized mental health care to the community-based care provide another great opportunity for partnership between the practitioners and the users. However, the partnership requires significant training of volunteers, promotion of personal support and user-led advocacy (Sherpherd, Boardman & Slade 2008). The practitioner-patient approach is based on the assumption that users have practical experience with the problems faced by people with mental disorders and therefore can provide the much needed understanding in delivering such services. The Need for a Shift in Attitudes among Practitioners and a Move away from the 'Us and Them' Approach The need for a shift in attitude among practitioners and moving from the ‘us and them’ approach can be attributed to the role of the user and practitioner partnership in the recovery of people with mental disorders. The relationship between the patients and clinicians requires a move from the expert/patient to a partnership in order to facilitate the process of recovery (Tait & Lester 2007). The concept of isolating people with mental disorders has been found to impart limited recovery achievements, with the social inclusion approach emerging as the most effective approach in caring for people with mental disorders. The move from the ‘us and them’ approach requires the recognition o f family members and other supporters crucial in the recovery of a patient as partners in the process of delivering mental health services. Effectiveness of the treatment and recovery process requires a collaborative effort between the practitioners and service users. The recovery approve has been proposed as one of the effective approaches in delivering mental health care services in different countries including United States, New Zealand, Australia and UK (Shepherd, Boardman & Slade 2008). This approach is founded on the basis of partnership between the service providers and service users in enhancing effectiveness of the health care services. The approach provides service users to participate actively in the delivery of the services rather emphasizing on expert/patient boundaries. The process of delivering effective health care interventions requires that health care practitioners shift their attitude from the expertise or authority status to personal coaches ready to offer thei r skills and learn from the patients or service users as well (Sherpherd, Boardman & Slade 2008). Practitioner-patient partnership requires significant trust, openness, honesty and support from both parties. Barriers to the Working Partnership and ways of overcoming them One of the greatest challenges in fostering working partnership between practitioners and mental health patients revolves around the lack of user empowerment. Families, patients

Classic Airlines and Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Classic Airlines and Marketing - Essay Example rs in this day and age are more empowered by the wonders of the Internet and other new technologies that give them the information that they need with just a click of a button, marketing strategies need to adapt to change as quickly and as appropriately as possible. It should be borne in mind, however, that at the core of every product innovation or fresh marketing approach is the need to address the customers’ needs. Seeing them as mere statistics won’t do the trick. More than anything else, the customers are human beings, and they always appreciate the high regard in which companies hold their needs. Their needs change from time to time, and often without warning. Thus, customization of products and services has become pronounced today more than ever. And if this end were to be achieved, the company needs to invest on more interaction with the customer. It is the best way to establish a â€Å"relationship,† not just a â€Å"transaction.† This investment ultimately reaps an â€Å"enduring relationship† of mutually satisfied needs. The case of Classic Airlines tells us that the challenges that it faces are the very same challenges that most companies are meeting today. Its mind-set is likewise commonplace. Most companies think that cutting on operating cost is the answer to their woes. However, a closer look at this would reveal that simply cutting down costs does not address more serious issues, such as customer loyalty and satisfaction. Obviously, no company is spared from the financial crisis. But this should not stop the company from delivering quality services to its customers, before and after the fact of selling. Companies should not forget that marketing does not end the moment the product or service is sold. Relationship marketing tells us that the company should aim to develop an enduring relationship. Thus, while it is important to know what products or services the client wants, it is just as essential to know what they think of the product after

Purpose of Schools Essay Example for Free

Purpose of Schools Essay School is an institutional mechanism that tries to share knowledge and/or be an agent for social action. Looking back to the ancient history of schools, some schools of ancient Israel for example feel that the main purpose of education was to ‘produce faithful members of a nation – a son who would bring pride to his family and his people and glory to God. ’ In ancient Greece, the school was to produce a productive citizen, wise and mature and Rome followed the example of Greece. However, there are some schools which are just for education, where basic knowledge is shared based on the age through a planned curriculum. There are schools which apart from providing knowledge through planned curricula do bring in social change through actions. I believe that a school has got to play the role of both i. e. sharing knowledge and also be an agency for social action. An example that can be cited following both is the ancient Hindu school called ‘gurukul’ , where apart from knowledge through planned curricula, there are learning sessions on various social norms and values that are normally practiced in the society. The purpose of a school is thus to orient students to socialize by understanding the background, culture and values of that area which would further add to their individual growth and understanding for nurturing good citizens. Apart from this, there is a need for the schools to see to it that students are able to gain proper knowledge which should further help them to able to attain further education and employment. Thus, we can say that the main purpose of schools is to provide education which would enhance the knowledge, skills and attributes of students and make them responsible citizens of the country. Even though schools as educational institutions have their own limitations of access to knowledge, funds to provide the services to students etc. based on the need and following the goal that the educational institution wants to achieve, teachers have to redesign their teaching strategies/pedagogy.

The Handmaids Tale: Oppression of Women for Male Political Gain Essay

The Handmaids Tale is a poetic tale of a woman's survival as a Handmaid in the male dominated Republic of Gilead. Offred portrayed the struggle living as a Handmaid, essentially becoming a walking womb and a slave to mankind. Women throughout Gilead are oppressed because they are seen as "potentially threatening and subversive and therefore require strict control" (Callaway 48). The fear of women rebelling and taking control of society is stopped through acts such as the caste system, the ceremony and the creation of the Handmaids. The Republic of Gilead is surrounded with people being oppressed. In order for the Republic to continue running the way it is, a sense of control needs to be felt by the government. Without control Gilead will collapse. The Republic of Gilead is a futuristic world where its citizens are controlled through a group of classes known as the caste system. Allana A. Callaway describes this government creation as a "superficially designed [way] to simplify the lives of citizens by dividing them into classes with clearly delineated standards" (Callaway 49). Each citizen in Gilead is controlled in some way by the caste. The Handmaids are controlled by their large red dresses and eye blinders on their hat. The Daughters wear white to show their purity, the Wives by their home restrictions. The Commanders are controlled by their obligations. Every person working, and living in Gilead has some sort of restriction placed on them. Offred is a Handmaid, who is thought of as the most and least important people in the caste system; "they rank among the most powerful female agents of the patriarchal order." (Callaway 50). The Handmaids have one thing that all the women in Gilead want – fertility. Their fertility ma... ...ssed by receiving less salary for more work. Women are seen as sexual trophies, things to look at. Men are seen as dominant, the bread winner and macho. Men and women are seen as sex symbols, and treated as such. If Americans do not begin to cooperate, life could end up much like the one described in The Handmaid’s Tale; a Republic that takes basic rights away from human beings. A country where the only way to gain basic human cooperation is abandoned and genders are oppressed to make the other more powerful. Works Cited Atwwod, M. (1986). The Handmaid's Tale. New York: Anchor Books. Callaway, Alanna A., "Women disunited : Margaret Atwood's The handmaid's tale as a critique of feminism" (2008). Master's Theses. Paper 3505. http://shcolarworks.sjsu.edu/etd_theses/3505 Version, H. B. (1984). Keith (Ed) Danby. New York: International Bible Society.

Contingency Theory of Leadership †Essay Essay

Description of work environment| My work environment would consist of helping young children who are not privileged and developing them to become successful. In certain areas of the country there are teens that don’t know what it feels like to work on a computer or how to apply for a job or know how to fill out an application for college. My goal is to take them under my wing and develop each and every one of them. I will have a computer lab set up with about 10 computers, most likely MACs and have a mini class session with them after their normal school hours. The first year will be geared towards juniors and seniors, then I’ll look to expand to freshman on up. In the table below, categorize different leadership approaches that could be used in the work environment you have described. Provide different suggestions for each of the four approaches to leadership. Directive approach| Supportive approach| For the first year it will be myself and another aid. Then after depending upon how fast this project grows there will be more teachers’ aides and highly trained professionals working with each student individually. There will be schedules posted but most of the time we will meet at least 2-3 times a week. Each person will be responsible for their success, I will give each person the tools they need to apply back into high school. Once they meet certain checkpoints in school they will get rewarded. With the teachers and aids that will be present they will get paid by the hour. They have the responsibility of following up on each child’s performance in school and making sure that they document appropriately. Failure to do so will result in termination of employment. Once the business is estabilshed and a student successfully enrolls in college we will provide additional support there and have certain scholarships available as well. Each employee that works with each person will be recognized individually and the one who successfully works with each student and help them enroll in college  will be rewarded for their hard work as well. Every employee will be responsible for telling each student their background and what they need to do to get to their point in life. They also will let the student know that they will be there to support them in each and every way. We want to see each person excel so we will be sure to accept anyone into our program regardless or sex, race, or religion. Participative approach Achievement-oriented approach We will allow each individual to be involved with their success and where they are at in the program. The teachers will be sure to let every student be involved in the decision-making because ultimately it’s their life. If a student is on their way out we will help reel them back in a help them understand why the path to success is not that way. | Depending upon the grade level that the child is in the teacher will have specific goals for that person. The employees will get rewarded for the success that their teen has achieved as well as the teen. All parties will succeed. So now that they have succeeded it is our responsibility as a business to make sure that they don’t fall off track. This program will be available to students until they turn 24 so we will follow them until then. We will make sure that they receive top honors if not close to it and be successful women and men. Leadership recommendation| What is your recommendation for the BEST leadership approach for the work environment you described? Explain your recommendation.To be honest I think that supportive approach will work better for this type of business. We are in it to make sure that everyone has there equal right to employment and education. Not all teens know what to do after high school or what steps they need to take to get there. This program is designed to help each and everyone of them and our teachers will be sure to help in any way. However, I also think that the participative approach will be great as well because each student will have to participate with the teachers to reach a common goal.