Materialistic Americans Essay Example for Free

Materialistic Americans Essay â€Å"With these words I can sell you anything† by William Lutz and â€Å"At sale at Old Navy: Cool Clothes for Identical Zombies! † by Damien Cave the readings explain how Americans are fooled into purchasing so many unnecessary things that most of the time don’t do what they promise when advertised as well as how the buyers themselves are blinded and don’t realized that they are wasting money, all because of the value of their pride and their need to be better than everyone else yet they are doing the same things as millions of other Americans. Although it seems correct that most people should be materialistic, it’s not a good thing because this form of living is damaging American’s values in many ways and advertisements are just making it worst. In Cave’s excerpt he explains how most Americans have become so materialistic now and that it’s becoming a big issue. In one part Cave says, â€Å"Consumers are being scammed, says Klein, arguing that stores like Old Nave and Ikea are duping millions, inspiring mass conformity while pretending to deliver high culture to the masses† (109). This explains how Americans are so gullible when it comes to buying products because most of the time they don’t really look into what they are buying they just want to own what everyone else has because that makes them â€Å"fit† it into this materialistic society because it’s all about hierarchy and who’s on top of everyone else. â€Å"Klein and Frank say that few consumers recognize just how conformist their consumption habits have become† (Cave 109). Some people do realize that they do over spend but they still don’t do anything about it because they always want more. There are many adults that think that buying so many things for themselves and their families is good because people always want to have the best things that are out there for their loved ones without realizing that they’re just giving money away to things they don’t really need. â€Å"At virtually every opening of Old Navy’s and Ikea’s stores-in the New York, Chicago, and San Francisco areas, for example- tens of thousand of people appeared in the first few days. Even now, long after the stores first opened, lines remain long† (Cave 110). Americans value so much their pride to be over achievers and be better than everyone else they come across but yet they aren’t much different from other people because they spend as much as every other person who might not have that much money because everyone’s values are similar. In Lutz’s excerpt he explains how Advertisements usually don’t promise what they offer and take people for fools but yet people keep buying more. He states, The biggest weasel word used in advertising doublespeak is ‘help’† (114). He explains how people are manipulated into buying products all the time that will help them with a desire objective and they are influenced by the advertisements. The things that people wear, drink, eat, etc are all influenced by something or someone, how else did they ever hear or see about those products. Advertisements are everywhere, people that see all these advertisements of products think those products apply to them because they know everyone else that will see them will want them too and they don’t to feel left out in not being part of the revolution of that product. Lutz also says, â€Å"Whenever advertisers want you to stop thinking about the product and to start thinking about something bigger, better, or more attractive than the product, they use that very popular weasel word, ‘like’† (119). American’s values are on risk when it comes to advertisements because people want their families to be well and grow a certain way, but that can’t happen when their television and billboards selling things that are out of the comfort of some people. Only by becoming an active, critical consumer of the double speak of advertising will you ver be able to cut through the doublespeak and discover what the ad is really saying† (Lutz 120). Americans value so much their pride and the liberty to do whatever they want that they think buying so much stuff applies to them. Americans also value their Independence in this country but it’s also being ruined by advertisements because how can people be independent when they are buying the same things as everyone else and are being exploited all at the same time? If people keep getting sucked into buying every little thing they see hey will doing the opposite of what they believe in, they will just be shaming who they are as Americans. Americans need to realize that buying everything that is advertised isn’t doing them any good. they will lose so much money on things they don’t really need and all for what? to be better than everyone else? People have forgotten about being independent and doing their own thing when it comes to having a different lifestyle from others. How can they take pride in themselves when they are just alike to everyone else and that’s what the readings explain, to not be gullible when it comes to this topic

J.J Thomson Essay Example for Free

J.J Thomson Essay J also had a brother that was two years younger than him-self named, Frederick Vernon Thompson. He went to private schools in the beginning of his education career, where he showed a great interest and passion for science, and when was 14 years old when he was accepted in to Owens College. His mother and father originally wanted him to study to be an engineer and get an apprentice for a local locomotive manufacturer, but due to his father’s death in 1873 his plans changed. He moved away from Owens College, and into Trinity College in Cambridge, where he then obtained his BA in mathematics in 1880. He married one of his students, Rose Elizabeth Paget, and they had one son and one daughter. J. J Thompson died still working on the college campus on August 30th, 1940 from unspecified causes at the age of 83. He married one of his students, Rose Elizabeth Paget, and they had one son and one daughter. J. J Thomson was without a doubt religious. He was a devout Anglican Episcopalian who regularly attended services at the Angelican church, and also went to Sunday evening college chapel services. I believe, that the best statement that I found, about the religious practices of Mr. Thomson was from one of his students, Sir Owen Richardson who said He was sincerely religious, a churchman with a dislike for Anglo-Catholicism, a regular communicant, who every day knelt in private prayer, a habit known only to Lady Thomson until near the end of his life. Further research shows that J. J Thompson never missed a day of prayer(as quoted above) and that every day before going to sleep, he would read his bible. Some of J. J’s speeches, and addresses also show that he was a devout believer in God, show in what he stated in his inaugural presidential address into the British association, As we conquer peak after peak we see in front of us regions full of interest and beauty, but we do not see ur goal, we do not see the horizon; in the distance tower still higher peaks, which will yield to those who ascend them still wider prospects, and deepen the feeling, the truth of which is emphasized by every advance in science, that Great are the Works of the Lord. Here we clearly see, that he doesn’t take credit for his accomplishments, he gives the credit to the Lord.

The Effect Of Content Based Instruction

The Effect Of Content Based Instruction Content-Based Instruction (CBI) as an approach has been defined as an approach to second language teaching in which teaching is organized around the content or information that students will acquire, rather than around a linguistic or other type of syllabus (Richard and Rodgers, 2001, p. 204). In this case, learners learn about some skills instead of learning about language. This teaching approach combines language and content, so it is considered as an effective teaching method by many researchers. CBI can be used in various ways for different skills and includes not only traditional teaching methods such as grammar-based instruction but also functional method such as Communicative Language Teaching. CBI is also supported by Krashens Monitor Model. According to this model, when learners receive comprehensible input, it is less difficult to learn the target language. And as a result, they can acquire it. And CBI has some features, including learning a language through academic skills and engaging in activities, that lead to meaningful and comprehensible input. II. Background Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) indicates a major change in language teaching in twentieth century. The origins of CLT can be found in the changes in the British language teaching tradition. Until then, Situational Language Teaching was the major British approach to the teaching English as a foreign language. CLT centers on giving students opportunities to practice using communicative function. In these activities, students use English to learn it rather than learning to use English. Among the practices of communicative-based methods, CBI is one of the approaches that its popularity and applicability have been increased since the 1990s. Saint Augustine made some recommendations regarding focus on meaningful content in language teaching. This can be the reason that some researchers, including Brinton, Snow and Wesche, suggest that Saint Augustine was an early proponent of Content-Based Language Teaching. In the 1970s, other educational plans had been designed. They all emphasize the principle of acquiring content through language rather than the study of language. Although there are slight differences in their aims, all the models agree with the role of language as a means of learning content. CBI took some of its theory and design from these plans. I will briefly take into account the role of content in these plans. Language across the Curriculum is a suggestion for native language education. It was recommended by a British governmental commission in the 1970s. It emphasizes a focus on reading and writing in different subjects. It also had an effect on American education, and the slogan every teacher, an English teacher became well-known to every instructor. However, this suggestion didnt have an influential effect on classrooms. Immersion Education had an effect on the theory of CBI as well. In this plan, the ordinary school syllabus is taught through the foreign language. The foreign language is not the subject of instruction. In fact, its a means for achieving content instruction. For example, a Spanish speaking child may enter an elementary school where the language of instruction for the entire content subject is French. Since the 1970s, immersion programs have been used in many parts of North America, and new forms of immersion have been planned. In the United States, immersion program can be considered in a number of languages, including French, German, Spanish, Japanese, and Chinese. Immigrant On-Arrival Program usually gives attention on the language of those immigrants who are recently arrived. Immigrants need to know the language of the country they live in. Australia was the first country that designed such a course. For a particular situation, notional, functional and grammatical instructions are integrated. And its usual course covers those parts of language that are needed to deal with government organization, shopping, finding a job, and so on. Australia uses Direct Method as the methodology of recently arrived immigrants. Programs for Students with Limited English Proficiency are used for two groups of children. First, these programs are used for those children whose language competence is not adequately developed in order to participate in normal classrooms. Second, they are used for those children who have immigrated to another country, and their parents participate in immigrant on-arrival program. These programs try to make children ready in order to be able to enter the normal classrooms. Language for Specific Purposes (LSP) is an attempt in order to perform particular roles (e.g. student, nurse, teacher, businessman, engineer, and technician) according to the needs of learners. LSP has paid special attention on English for Science and Technology (EST). In EST courses, learners learn to read technical articles or to write academic papers in different fields of science. III. Definition, Theories Ideas CBI involves the integration of content learning with language teaching. It refers to the concurrent study of language and subject matter. In other words, students are learning content (e.g. math, science, social studies, business, etc) at the same time they are developing their target language skills. There is also a variety of definitions of content. Some researchers believe that content is clearly an academic subject matter while others believe that it can be any topic, theme or issue of interest. It is indicated that language learning is more motivating when learners focus on something other than language. It can also be stated as people learn a second language most successfully when the information they are acquiring is perceived as interesting, useful, and leading to a desired goal (Richard Rodgers, 2001, p. 204). Usually, language is used for some purposes. And the purpose may refer to peoples jobs and education. So, its obvious that when peoples purposes are achieved through language learning, it will make gaining language knowledge a lot easier. Also, CBI classrooms can produce an increase in intrinsic motivation, since students are focus on subject matter that is important to their lives. And, students are beyond temporary extrinsic factors, like grades and tests. It can also be declared as when language becomes the medium to convey informational content of interest and relevance to the learner, then learners are pointed toward matters of intrinsic concern (Brown, 2001, p. 49). CBI shares the same basic principles with CLT and can be regarded as a logical development of some of the principles of CLT, particularly those rules that relate to the role of meaning in language learning. Because CBI provides an approach that is especially suited prepare ESL students to enter elementary or secondary education, it is widely used in English-speaking countries around the world. A difference between CBI and other kinds of language syllabus is how the elements for language study are selected. For example, in a grammatical syllabus, the items that are supposed to be learned are grammar points. They are selected in advance either by second language researcher or by teachers judgments about what grammar points should be presented first, second, third, and so on. The syllabus can even be determined by the course textbook. However, in CBI classrooms, the form and sequence of language syllabus are determined by content material. Instead of having a pre-selected grammar syllabus or list of vocabulary items, the grammar and vocabulary that are supposed to be learned come from the content material. So, it can be stated that since CBI refers to an approach rather than a method, no particular techniques or activities are related with it. IV. Assessment in CBI Classes Assessment in CBI classes can be problematic, but it is essential that teachers should evaluate learners learning. Usually in EFL classes, a learners performance is evaluated by assessment tasks such as discrete, de-contextualized tasks. And their central focus is on linguistic structure or vocabulary. However, students in CBI classes cannot be evaluated in the traditional way because they are exposed to more input and content through the class. Instead, CBI assessment must be simultaneously authentic and interactive. Students are required to interact with academic materials according to meaningful and contextualized text in order to analyze their knowledge. Also, assessment of CBI should not be simple and isolated. Students must integrate information in order to form their own opinions about subject matter. V. Models of CBI In the 1980s, four models are made according to the principles of CBI. These models can only be applied at the university levels. The examples of the most common models of CBI are theme-based language instruction, and sheltered content instruction. Theme-based language instruction refers to a kind of class that is based on a particular theme or topic such human rights or discrimination. Sheltered content instruction refers to a kind of class that learning of content material with only incidental language learning is considered as the goal. VI. Conclusion Today, Content-based courses are frequent in different countries since the 1980s, and this method is often used in ESP (English for Specific Purposes) classes where the content of input plays a significant role. It has been indicated that vocabulary is easier to acquire when there are contextual clues in order to make a connection between vocabulary and meaning. Moreover, when learners become aware of the relation between language learning and their favored goals, they become even more motivated to learn. Learners feel that learning is a kind of impressive thing because they know that they are studying authentic content material (not material that are made for all the foreign learners) in the target language. They know that it is a means to an end rather than an end in itself. It has also been proved to be a valid approach for language teaching at all stages of instruction, from elementary school to university levels, both in second or foreign language teaching settings. Generally CBI advocates claim that this approach leads to more successful results in comparison with other language teaching approaches. Because it provides a number of opportunities for teachers in order to match learners interests and needs with interesting, meaningful and contextualized content.

Why Education is Important :: Education

Many students around the world today focus mainly one thing while they are in school; Career and income, but how do you achieve that? How does one get the career they want and the income they yearn? The answer is education several countries are known for their exceptional performance in academics and the pressure related to their education. Among those countries are China, India and Japan. These three countries share a lot in common; exceptionally bright students and a very rigorous education system that showers students with pressure from parents to perform exceptional in school. Anita Desai, who is the author of Studies in the Park, shows us how the much education is important in India. Studies in the Park is about a young man named Suno. Suno is ready to apply for college, but before he goes into college, he must pass the entrance exams for his college. Suno undergoes pressure from his parents to study hard and pass the entrance exams. Suno is always reminded from his pare nts that he expects good results from him and he should just be studying. Suno starts to get fed up with all the talks and his loud home, so he tries and find a new place to go and study; The Park. At the park he meets other students who are just like him; tired of all the noise at home and fed up from their parents nagging at them to study. Anita Desai’s Studies in the Park undoubtedly connects with the importance of education worldwide, pressure placed on students for education and the pressure for incentives offered for education globally. Many students are constantly faced with the same problem everyday: Education. Desai showed emphasis on the pressure that students from India face and how expectations rise every year. Desai’s story may have been a replica of her very own young life because she focused on one’s own belief in education and the freedom to choose for one’s own future career. Firstly, Students that are living in highly populated countries understand the importance of education far greater than students that are living in countries with extra amenities and a lot of neighborhoods. In Desai’s Studies in the Park, the main character Suno was always told by his parents that education was thought that Suno’s parents had is very similar to Obama’s thoughts.

Faulkner’s Contradictory Roles as Father and Artist in the Film, William Faulkner: a Life on Paper :: Movie Film Essays

Faulkner’s Contradictory Roles as Father and Artist in the Film, William Faulkner: a Life on Paper After viewing the film William Faulkner: a Life on Paper it would be easy to attempt a pseudo-psychoanalytic interpretation of Faulkner’s relationship with his daughter and the other women in his life, but I think that would do a disservice to him. The film focused on the contradiction between Faulkner’s personal life, especially his relationships with women, and his professional life as a writer. The artistic sensibility that caused him to drink to excess and behave erratically does not fit common expectations of a good father. I think, however, that the interviews with his daughter, Jill Summers, and the other women who grew up with him as a father figure (at least one grand-daughter and one niece) indicate how that apparent contradiction was an essential part of the man whom they loved. I would like to consider two comments made by men who had known Faulkner in Oxford, Mississippi. One, a blacksmith, said that one day Faulkner suddenly left in the middle of a conversation with him. Faulkner’s only explanation later was that â€Å"when I think of something, I’ve got to go.† The other, a former friend of Faulkner’s speculated that he didn’t â€Å"think anyone knew who Bill really was, he was so moody†¦he was different from anybody else, seemed like.† The first comment indicates Faulkner’s unpredictability, possibly a humorous idiosyncrasy, but certainly not what is expected of a father. The second comment is intricately tied to the first. Because Faulkner’s behavior was unpredictable, often indicating that he was entirely self-absorbed in his own ideas and work, others found him to be distant. Those closest to Faulkner—his daughter, Jill, Phil Stone, and even Joan Williams—do not offer a portrayal of him that objects to his being erratic and distant. Probably the most poignant moment with Jill Summers is when she tells the story of asking her father not to drink before her birthday. His response was to remind her that Shakespeare’s daughter was never remembered by anyone. Although Summers relates the other facts of her father’s short-comings with little display of emotion, her face appeared pained after this story. Yet she said earlier in the film that she was absolutely sure that her father loved her very much. Maybe the problem is partly in what we expect a father to be. The film raises the problem of whether someone can function as both a great

Evaluation of Telémakhos’ Actions Essay -- Aristotle Telemakhos Essays

Evaluation of Telà ©makhos’ Actions Authors and poets in ancient and modern literature laud the actions of heroes and condemn the actions of villains—judging which is laudable action comes from understanding the virtues. Our greatest stories are nothing if not conflict between antagonist and protagonist, a battle against that esteemed as good and that which is evil. In ancient literature, our understanding of virtuous action comes principally from Aristotle. The path of virtue is the middle ground, such that it â€Å"is an intermediate between excess and defect† (Aristotle 1220). Just as Aristotle gives a framework with which to judge virtuous action, so Dante presents a framework with which to punish actions deemed outside of virtue. In Dante’s Inferno we meet non-Christians, those not baptized, whom God punishes according to the severity of their sin. At the entrance to Hell, Dante reads an inscription above the gate that says, â€Å"Abandon every hope, you who enter here† (Dante 1416). He ll is a place of stasis—the dead found there can never leave. Drawing from Homer’s Odyssey, this essay explores the actions of Odysseus’ son Telà ©makhos. By applying Aristotle’s Nichomacean Ethics and incorporating Dante’s system of punishment, this essay evaluates Telà ©makhos’ actions and places him in his proper place in hell: submerged in a hot river of blood forever. In order to know what virtuous action is, one must carefully choose between too much and too little. Aristotle says, â€Å"It is possible to fail in many ways, while to succeed is possible only in one way† (Aristotle 1221). This teaching is the premise of Nichomacean Ethics; Aristotle teaches what modern readers know as â€Å"The Golden Mean†Ã¢â‚¬â€the understanding that moral virtue â€Å"is a mean bet... ... audience just as Virgil warns Dante of his own fate. In the opening lines of the Inferno Dante says, â€Å"In the middle of the journey of our life I came to my senses in a dark forest, for I had lost the straight path† (1408). This straight path is the way of virtue. The relevance of virtue is as applicable today as it was in the time of Homer, Aristotle, and Dante—and in a Dantean understanding of the world, failure to follow the mean carries with it the punishment of an eternity in Hell. Works Cited Aristotle. Nichomacean Ethics. Trans. W. D. Ross. Wilkie and Hurt 1220-1225. Dante, Alighieri. The Divine Comedy. Trans. H. R. Huse. Wilkie and Hurt 1398-1571. Homer. The Odyssey. Trans. Robert Fitzgerald. Wilkie and Hurt 273-594. Wilkie, Brian, and James Hurt, ed. Literature of the Western World Volume 1. 5th Ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. 2001.

Raising Resilient Children

Another point he article makes is that by raising resilient children, they tend to be more self- efficient, resulting In future success as a teenager and an adult(Wade). Relation to Textbook There is a section in the textbook titled â€Å"The Wellsprings of Resilience†. It states children who have been beaten, neglected, or constantly subjected to verbal or physical abuse by their parents are more likely than other children to have emotional problems, become delinquent and violent, commit crimes, drop out of school, develop mental disorders such as depression, and develop chronic stress-related illnesses.It goes on to conclude that most children are surprisingly resilient, eventually overcoming drastic effects of having an abusive parent or even being sexually molested. These situations are extremely devastating, but don't happen In everyone life, but if a child was molested, even they can heal from that wound by being rescued by love. The book emphasizes the most significant reason for the resilience of children, is that we are all constantly interpreting our experiences. Whether we want to remain prisoners of childhood, or be enlightened by the possibilities of adulthood, IS a choice that ;s Vital.Child development research RAISING RESILIENT CHILDREN 3 does suggest certain overall guidelines to help parents teach children to be confident, considerate, and helpful: set high expectations that are appropriate to the child's age and temperament, and teach the child how to meet them, explain why the parent has applied a rule, encourage empathy, and notice, approve of, and reward good behavior(Camps). Relates to My World I chose this article because I can definitely relate to It. My mother raised me alone cause my dad left when I was a little girl.I remember In my childhood she always made sure that I was growing up to be an emotionally strong person. When I wanted to get myself dressed with no help, my mom would let me because she wanted me to learn the res ponsibility of dressing myself. She also let me be Ms. Bossy basically. The practices she taught me and wanted me to really grasp during my childhood has positively affected me as a teenager and a young adult. I do not plan to have children anytime soon, but I do completely agree that children need to be resilient. It really evolves their stronghold on life.Having a strong head on your shoulders is essential for getting through the tough tribulations and trials life throws at you. This article hits the head on the hammer. I truly appreciate the Information I have gotten from It. Ask Questions 1 OFF I Nils article sat arts out Walt a parent slang â€Å"How can we Keep two Solos inanely Ana merry, I thought, in a world that can seem as precarious as the one we live in now? † As I continued to read the article, I began asking myself how creditable these experts are and what are they really trying to accomplish.This article does not mention the hardships of raising children, and does not address how difficult it can be to do so. It Just states that if a parent uses these specific strategies when raising their children, the child will be emotionally stable, which is not always the case. Sometimes other things can interfere. Avoid Emotional Reasoning This article begins to go in detail about the parent wanting to solve the child's problems, sometimes blocking the logical thing to do, which is to let the child learn from their mistakes, and develop self-responsibility.Don't Oversimplify The article gives off an either/or thinking, with it being either you practice these guidelines or your children will grow up unemotionally stable. RAISING RESILIENT 5 Consider Other Interpretations This article does not give the opposite side of being resilient, so who is to say that these experts are correct, and know what they are talking about. Tolerate Uncertainty This article does not involve certainty of a sure situation. It Just simply states some things a parent can do to raise their child to be emotionally intact.