The Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck - 2119 Words

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck is a novel set during the mid-1930s drought and the fall of the American stock market. It depicts the plight of migrant workers throughout this time period, and follows the life of the protagonist, recently-released Oklahoma state convict, Tom Joad. He met up with former preacher Jim Casy, who renounced his ministerial calling due to his newfound belief that all life is holy, even the aspects that were categorized by others as sinful. After serving four years in prison on a manslaughter charge, Tom found Jim and together they returned to Tom’s family’s farm only to find it deserted, much like all the surrounding farms. The next day, the two men traveled to Tom’s uncle’s home, where he discovered the rest of his family packing to move to California in the hopes of finding a better life. This migration leads to death, abandonment, disappointment, and a new dream of organizing migrant workers to aid the depleted job marke t. The novel helped me to understand the struggle of the times, and what it means to lose everything and everyone in such a short period. Throughout these things, however grim they may seem, there is always a glimmer of hope. After the first chapter of the book, I was filled with a sense of foreboding and pity, empathetically so. The descriptions of the dead and dying crops, overwhelming dust storms, and starving families, struck a chord in my heart. â€Å"When the night came again it was black night, for the stars could notShow MoreRelatedThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck Essay1622 Words   |  7 Pages The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck, widely viewed as one of the most finest and powerful American writer, born to a middle-class family in 1902 in the Salinas Valley of California. Steinbeck is a writer who often spoke for the people. The Grapes of Wrath is a great movie, published in 1939, filled with many universal truths and views on human nature and society, especially where class is concerned. In the article, John Steinbeck The Grapes a wrath: A Call to Action says, â€Å"Steinbeck’s novel showcasedRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1075 Words   |  5 PagesKirsten Lloyd Mr. Eldridge AP Junior English 21 August 2014 Grapes of Wrath â€Å"Sometimes even to live is an act of courage.† (Seneca), In the 1939 novel, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, the reader accompanies the Joad family as they struggle to escape the crippling Dust Bowl of the mid- 1930’s. In hopes of establishing a new life for themselves after being forced off their land the family embark on a journey from Oklahoma to California in search of fruitful crops and steady work alongRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1563 Words   |  7 Pages John Steinbeck’s novel, The Grapes of Wrath, depicts a migrant farming family in the 1930s. During this time, life revolved around the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, making circumstances difficult for almost everyone involved, especially those who had little. This time of drought and despair caused people to lose hope in everything they’ve ever known, even themselves, but those who did not, put their hope in the â€Å"promised land† of California. Here, the grass was thought to be truly greenerRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1189 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"The Grapes of Wrath† Shortly after being released John Steinbeck’s book â€Å"The Grapes of Wrath† was banned because many critics viewed the novel as promoting communist propaganda, or socialist ideas. The ideas that many of these critics point to is Steinbeck’s depiction of the Big Banks/ Businesses as monsters, the comparison of Government camps to a utopia in contrast of the makeshift â€Å"Hoovervilles,† and the theme of the community before the individual, In his novel â€Å"The Grapes of Wrath† John SteinbeckRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1093 Words   |  5 Pages In John Steinbeck s The Grapes of Wrath, Tom Joad and his family are forced from their home during the 1930’s Oklahoma Dust Bowl and set out for California along with thousands of others in search of jobs, land, and hope for a brighter future. The Grapes of Wrath is Steinbeck’s way to expound about the injustice and hardship of real migrants during the Depression-era. H e utilizes accurate factual information, somber imagery, and creates pathos, allowing readers connections to the Joad’s plightRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1190 Words   |  5 PagesThe Grapes of Wrath April 14th, 1939, John Steinbeck published the novel, The Grapes of Wrath. The novel became an immediate best seller, with selling over 428,900 copies. Steinbeck, who lived through both the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, sought to bring attention to how families of Oklahoma outdid these disasters. Steinbeck focuses on families of Oklahoma, including the Joads family, who reside on a farm. The Joad family is tested with hardship when life for them on their farm takesRead MoreThe Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck702 Words   |  3 PagesJohn Steinbeck’s use of the intercalary chapters in The Grapes of Wrath helps weave the reader’s sympathy of the Joad family into a more broad sympathy for the migrant farmers as a whole, in the hopes that the readers would then be compelled to act upon what they have read. During the Great Depression, people had a big disconnect about what was happening in various parts of the country. People often struggle to find sympathy for events when they can’t even visualize a person who is suffering throughRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck2144 Words   |  9 PagesThe Grapes of Wrath is a well-known beloved novel of American Literature, written by John Steinbeck and published in 1939. Whoever said a road is just a road has not read The Grapes of Wrath. From the time we read when Tom Joad, novel’s protagonist, returns home after four years in prison; the meaning of roads changed. Route 66, also known as the mother road the road of flight, was a lifeline road, which allowed thousands of families to pursue their hopes and dreams. This road is also the road thatRead MoreThe Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck1014 Words   |  5 PagesJohn Steinbeck’s novel, The Grapes of Wrath, was first written and later published in the 1939. Fr om the time of its publication to date, the exemplary yet a simple book has seen Steinbeck win a number of highly coveted awards including Pulitzer Prize in 1940 and later on Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962. Set at the time of the Great Depression, the book most remarkably gives a descriptive account of the Oklahoma based sharecropper Joad’ poor family in the light of economic hardship, homelessnessRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1064 Words   |  5 PagesThe Grapes of Wrath, originated from a John Steinbeck’s book, a legendary film that focus on a major point of American history. The story follows the Joad family on their journey to California trying to survive the hardships. This film, focus on the social problems of America like the Dust bowl, The Great Depression, and industrialism. The Grapes of Wrath was filmed in a journalistic-documentary style, which displayed the realism of the epidemic in the thirties. The thirties the period The Grapes

Sex Education For The Retarded - 2081 Words

As humans, individuals with mental retardation have the right to emotionally enjoyable and socially appropriate sexual expression. Mental disabilities predispose this population to sexual risks. These individuals need to learn skills to reduce their susceptibility to sexual victimization. Because sexuality is an important aspect of any individual’s life, neglecting to provide it to those who are largely dependent on others for education and training is denying them full maturity as a person. Sex education that is tailored to their cognitive level and learning style, as well as their living arrangements is essential to protect the rights of this mentally retarded. Sex Education for the Mentally Retarded Over the last decade, American†¦show more content†¦They have similar curiosities and interests in their own bodies as well as others. Providing sex education will help them understand what happens as they mature and the decisions available to them. As these students are mixed into the mainstream of society, they need guidance to lead them to sexual fulfillment in society (May Kundert, 1996). They have the right to establish relationships with others and to be informed about their sexuality and what goes along with it. If these rights are to be maintained, we must explore sex education for them. Sex education is important for all teenagers, but it may be even more imperative for students with disabilities who do not learn well without direction (May, Kundert, Akpan, 1995). Individuals with mental retardation are reaching increasingly higher levels of independence and making greater contributions to society. They have to make more and more decisions on the job, on the street, within community living arrangements, and within relationships. With regard to most of these situations, these individuals generally do well. Shopping, using public transportation, and self-care have all been favorite targets for educational programs, and higher levels of success are often achieved. There is, however, one area in which this claim cannot be generally sustained and that is in the appropriate expression of sexuality (Brown, 1994). Sexuality,

Indigenous and Non Indigenous Australians

Question: Discuss about the Indigenous And Non Indigenous Australians? Answer: The media has been playing the role of intermediary and highlighting the social issues related to the indigenous communities. In this regard, there are several public discussions and public policy debates have been initiated to recognize these problems related to the aboriginals. There are several factors that led to the difference in the Indigenous and non Indigenous people. These inequalities is evident from the disparity in the distribution of income, access to basic necessities of life like food, clothing, shelter, health services, education and other social benefits. The indigenous people of Australia are the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander. They are distributed throughout the nation from cities to remote areas comprising of more than one group. They are distinguished on the basis of their culture, histories, languages etc. The indigenous population was calculated by Australia as 669,900 in 2011 which accounted for 3 per cent of the total Australian population. The indigen ous people in Australia can be of Aboriginal origin, Torres Strait Islander origin or can even be both. Statistics related to their distribution of origin reveals that around 90 per cent indigenous Australians were of Aboriginal origin, 6 percent were of Torres origin and 4 percent of the population comprises of both types of origins. There is a significant disparity in the ages of the indigenous and non indigenous population depicting indigenous population to be younger. (Australianmuseum.net.au, 2013) The concept of inequality works simultaneously with social, political and economic factors. These factors include the unequal distribution of income between the two groups, deprivation of the basic human necessities of life like food, education, health and other features of economic well being. The inequalities in the indigenous and non indigenous Australians creep up due to several factors. For instance, there is a significant disparity in the level of education which causes a difference in the professional front. These unequal opportunities available to the indigenous Australians led to widening the gap. (Leigh and Gong, 2009) The indigenous people were considered to be uncivilized and neglected. They were not given proper social benefits and opportunities as a result the non indigenous population of Australia. The non indigenous were educated, civilized and were provided with better opportunities and amenities of life. The inequality in the education, health and other social aspec t increased the gap between the indigenous and non indigenous population of Australia. (Aboriginal Economic Participation Strategy 2012-2016, 2015) Australian economy is characterized as a powerful economy with the least unemployment rates relative to the other OECD member countries. The government of Australia realized the need to recognize the indigenous society in the nation and developed opportunities for the indigenous people to allow them to participate in the functions of life and help them to gain independence and social security for their families. For diminishing the gap between the indigenous and non indigenous groups of the nation, the government has ensured that similar chances and opportunities be given to the indigenous people by providing them with better education, enhance their workforce participation and ensuring that they are financially independent. The government had undertaken an Economic Development Strategy which focuses on the reducing and eliminating the disparity in the two groups of population in the nation. The strategy has made improvements by benefiting the indigenous group by some major disadvant ages still prevails within the nation. (Altman, 2015) This strategy mainly emphasizes on the five important arenas that help to improve the social status of the indigenous Australians by initiating developmental approach in the field of education, health, skills and job opportunities and help them to acquire financial security and all kinds of independence. The five priorities are: Supporting the economic development by creating an environment that strengthens foundations Investment initiate in the field of education Improve and enhance participation in the field of development of skills and job opportunities Encouraging growth in the field of business and entrepreneurship developed by the indigenous population Achieving financial stability, security and independence by utilizing the economic assets to the full The first strategy encourages the participation of the indigenous group in the economic process so that they can also help to bring about economic prosperity to the nation and enjoy benefits acquired by the nation. The more they participate in the economic activities the more the economy gets developed. The gap between the indigenous and non indigenous people can e closed by encouraging investment in the field of services, infrastructure, health and well being indicators. This strategy focuses on the inequalities in the life expectancy, child mortality, on the disparities in employment and other developmental issues. (Aihw.gov.au, 2015) Other epicenter of the strategy is the Indigenous people must acquire access to habitats, introduction of information technology, tax and welfare system that enhance economic development and incorporating best governance for the nation. It is important to remember that the economy can only flourish if there is growth as well as development in the econ omy. Now development can be measured by the Indigenous Human Development Index which will include the areas related to income, educational attainment and life expectancy rates. In short it recognizes the income distribution pattern, health indicator and the educational status of the nation. These activities are based on targets that are to be achieved y 2018. In order to reduce the gap between the two groups of population, the government has realized that for introducing economic development in the economy, proper educational status is required to be maintained. As already discussed about the issue of economic development, the role of education in the prosperity of the economy is diversifying. With better education the people can get hold of better job opportunities which can help to increase or even generate incomes. This in turn has the ability to improve their standard of living. To establish a better education system it is necessary to focus on several aspects like school attendance which must increase. This must be the lookout of the parents to develop school readiness in children and help them to achieve proper outcomes. The strategy focuses on the access of children to higher education with a view to be a relevant resource for the economy. (Hunter and Gray, 2001) The third strategy of development skills and jobs is a crucial feature of participation of people in the economic process. The aim of this strategy is to generate job opportunities, introduce better training skills, and enhance the vocational training to help the skilled workers. Encouragement of education is very necessary for the readiness of jobs by the young indigenous population who prove to be an integral part of the economy. The priority focuses number four deals with the business and entrepreneurial skills of the young individuals. Initiating and regulating business can prove to strengthen the economy. For the economy to bloom there must be significant investment in business by putting up Indigenous business sectors that will generate employment, income and better standard of living of the people. Now for business to develop, the major factor of production that initiates the production process is capital for which the credit facilities in the country must ensure that the indi genous youths get proper financial support to build business prospects. It is necessary to develop a private public partnership that would help to expand the business sector of Australia. (Kalb et al., n.d.) Lastly, for the indigenous Australians to be stable and develop own economic stability it is necessary for them to financial independent. This financial stability and independence would give them a sense of future planning of their family lives. The strategy aims to develop jobs in the economy which will help to increase the level of income in the hands of the people which in turn will allow the individuals to increase and expand their assets which can be utilized in the future by them or their future generations and help to remove the concept of welfare dependency in the economy. To acquire house there must be easy availability of home loans and improve the stature of the Australias Intellectual Property Rights. (Digital, 2015) (Stewart, n.d.) We focus on two key areas: health and education. In spite of the strong economic development strategy there remained certain challenges that needed to be catered on. Health is an important indicator of development. (Grypma, 2009) The government of Australia had taken initiative with National Partnership Agreement worth $1.6 million for eliminating the gap between the two groups. $2.2 billion worth of investment for a period of five years on National Mental Health Reform package were undertaken by the government and several other programs and initiatives were taken under the strategy to promote and enhance the health status of the country. In spite of these, the life expectancy rate was estimated to be low for the indigenous population rather than the non indigenous. Also for the year 2008-2012, the infant mortality rate almost doubled for the indigenous relative to the non indigenous people. This means that the death rates for indigenous group is five times higher than that of the no n indigenous. Thus, the health scenario still has scope for improvement to eradicate the disparity between the two groups. (Booth and Carroll, 2005) Considering the educational condition of the country, only 59 percent of indigenous population was able to complete year 12 which is quite low as compared to 88 percent of the non indigenous people. This is followed by the unemployment rates in the economy for the indigenous people are again estimated to be five times more than that of the other group. These result in some way contradict the approaches and programs undertaken by the government like for the year 2009-2012, investment worth $651 billion were made on the Australian schools, a welfare measure was initiated by government allocating funds worth $24.8 million to encourage the parents so that their children attend school daily. (Jackson, 2008) (Lyons and Janca, 2012) The policy recommendations that must be taken by the government to ensure proper implementation of the goal of the economic development strategy are that the strategy focuses on the development assistance but it did not point out the target of such assistance. An effective policy on analyzing the demography of the indigenous group and pattern of their dwellings is required to distribute the development assistance evenly. Policies also must be taken to enhance the role of the state for initiating economic development so that the strategy and goals can be implemented diversely. The policy making process must be diversified by considering several aspects of the indigenous groups so that it does not get confined to mere consultation. Thus, we see that the government of Australia had taken proper steps and strategies to develop and eliminate the disparity between the Indigenous and Non indigenous population in Australia. But there still remained certain challenges that need to be rectified and implemented in a proper manner by the government. The essay also recognized some of the policy recommendations that the government can utilize to improve the economic development strategy on Indigenous Australians. (Whelan and Wright, 2013) References Aboriginal Economic Participation Strategy 2012-2016. (2015). 1st ed. [ebook] Available at: https://www.daa.wa.gov.au/Documents/AEP_Strategy.pdf [Accessed 9 Mar. 2015]. Aihw.gov.au, (2015).Indigenous health (AIHW). [online] Available at: https://www.aihw.gov.au/australias-health/2014/indigenous-health/ [Accessed 9 Mar. 2015]. Altman, J. (2015).Developing the Aborigines. 1st ed. [ebook] Available at: https://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/JlIndigP/2013/37.pdf [Accessed 9 Mar. 2015]. Australianmuseum.net.au, (2013).Introduction to Indigenous Australia - Australian Museum. [online] Available at: https://australianmuseum.net.au/indigenous-australia-introduction [Accessed 9 Mar. 2015]. Booth, A. and Carroll, N. (2005).The health status of indigenous and non-indigenous Australians. Canberra: Centre for Economic Policy Research, ANU. Digital, C. (2015).Australians Together. [online] Australians Together. Available at: https://www.australianstogether.org.au/stories/detail/the-gap-indigenous-disadvantage-in-australia [Accessed 9 Mar. 2015]. Grypma, P. (2009).The assessment of Indigenous Australians presenting with affective disorders. Hunter, B. and Gray, M. (2001). Analysing Recent Changes in Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Australians' Income: A Synthetic Panel Approach.The Australian Economic Review, 34(2), pp.135-154. Jackson, N. (2008). Educational attainment and the (growing) importance of age structure: Indigenous and non-indigenous Australians.Journal of Population Research, 25(2), pp.223-244. Kalb, G., Le, T., Hunter, B. and Leung, F. (n.d.). Decomposing Differences in Labour Force Status between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Australians.SSRN Journal. Leigh, A. and Gong, X. (2009). Estimating cognitive gaps between Indigenous and non Indigenous Australians.Education Economics, 17(2), pp.239-261. Lyons, Z. and Janca, A. (2012). Indigenous Children in Australia: Health, Education and Optimism for the Future.Australian Journal of Education, 56(1), pp.5-21. Stewart, M. (n.d.). Tax Law and Policy for Indigenous Economic Development.SSRN Journal. Whelan, S. and Wright, D. (2013). Health services use and lifestyle choices of Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.Social Science Medicine, 84, pp.1-12.

The Cruelty of Umbrellas free essay sample

One afternoon this summer, I dragged myself out of the house to ride my bike along the Hudson River. It was hot and humid – not the moist, soothing humidity that softly caresses you in a tropical rainforest, but the heavy, burning-your-skin humidity that sits on top of you without asking and swirls the stench of garbage up your nose. But I had promised myself that I would learn to ride my bike with no hands, and my days of summer freedom were slipping away. I rode steadily up the bike path, occasionally lifting my hands briefly before losing balance. I reached my favorite rest stop three miles from home. â€Å"What a Day for a Daydream† danced in my ears from my iPod, and I thought, Why, yes, it certainly is. I parked my bike and lay down on a wooden bench. Curly gray clouds loomed across the river, but I decided I had time to rest before cycling home. We will write a custom essay sample on The Cruelty of Umbrellas or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Just as I got comfortable, a man appeared in my peripheral vision. When he spoke to me, I removed my earbuds and listened to his calm, thickly accented voice. â€Å"It looks like its going to rain,† he said. As if that were all the permission they needed, the clouds released light raindrops that spotted the bench. â€Å"I was just like you once,† the man continued. â€Å"One day a long time ago, I went for a bike ride and lay down on a bench, even though it started to rain. People walking by me probably thought I was crazy.† In New York City, it is always a guessing game whether a stranger who talks to you is â€Å"crazy,† but I knew at that moment this man was not. I studied his gray mustache and wrinkles as he told me that the raindrops were like soft little fingers on his face. â€Å"Rain is like therapy,† he said, â€Å"when you just lie there and let it fall on your face.† It was as though he was narrating my thoughts. He continued to talk, and I imagined his home life. He had immigrated from a small town in eastern Europe, and he hung pots and pans on the wall in his kitchen. â€Å"You are from China?† he asked. â€Å"Well, I am half Chinese,† I replied, surprised that for the first time in my life, a stranger could see my true ethnicity, instead of supposing I was Mexican, Hawaiian, or Filipino. â€Å"Im taking a tai chi class, and theres this word, Kua, that means ‘Everything in the body is connected.† He began to sway a little. â€Å"When the shoulders move, the hips move. Everything is connected.† The rain fell harder, and lightning flashed like the gods were having a photo shoot. I told the man Id better get home. â€Å"Nice to meet you,† he said, and we called each others bikes beautiful before parting forever. I had never ridden in the rain before. Would my bike skid and fall over? But riding on the wet pavement was surprisingly smooth. The raindrops smacked me so hard I wondered what Id done wrong until I realized it was hail. I narrowed my eyes to see the path ahead of me and gripped the wet handlebars tightly. I was disheartened that I wouldnt be able to practice my hands-free skills on the way home. But then a crazy thought crept into my mind †¦ Why not? And at that moment, I experienced one of the most liberating sensations of my life. The wind and icy summer rain whipped my face as my bent knees took turns being first and I raised my arms in the air, my balance holding strong. I yelled to no one in particular. Id never been more truly in the moment. Everything was connected. As soon as I reached my block, the clouds shriveled away. I had never experienced a more unusual afternoon. Normally I would have chalked the rain up to bad luck, but I remembered the mans tai chi reference. Who cares if my clothes were soaked? For the first time, I saw the cruelty of umbrellas for barricading us from the soft, therapeutic, tapping fingers. Like an umbrella, the codes of urban society prevent us from having contact with strangers. The danger is understandable, but the thrill of riding a bike with no handlebars and the refreshment of wise words from a mysterious stranger is worth getting a little wet.