“I know why the caged bird sings” Essay Example for Free

â€Å"I know why the caged bird sings† Essay After a childhood full of cruelties, disappointments, and being raped at the hands of her mother’s boyfriend, Maya Angelou survived and became the most important civil, human, and Women’s Rights Activist. After her rape she was silent for 5 years, and only through the encouragement of her grandmother did she start to write and act. Her writings won her world acclaim and she was nominated for the National Book Award, a Tony Award and a Pulitzer Prize. She is indisputably one of the most influential women in history. Her poem â€Å"I know why the caged bird sings† shows her grace and skill as a poet, and a humanitarian. â€Å"I know why the caged bird sings† is a six stanza poem. The poem has a very traditional structure. The first two stanzas are triplets, followed by a quatrain, then another triplet, and ends with a quatrain. It has a very simple but effective rhyme scheme. The triplet stanza has a AAB rhyme, and the quatrain stanzas have a AAAB rhyme. This poem is lyrical and intense. The themes presented in this poem are of a freedom and triumph over adversity (Arensberg 273). In stanza one Angelou describes how birds in the wild have unbound freedom. She writes â€Å"leaps on the back of the wind†¦ dips his wings in the orange sunrays, (lines 1-3)† about the free birds activities. Her words affect the senses, and the reader feels the freedom the birds experience in flight. She brings nature and the outdoor elements to life and the audience is right there at play with the birds. Freedom abounds! In stark contrast, the next stanza snaps the reader back from their dreamlike state. There are a series of very strong words that create a feeling of depression, and claustrophobia. Angelou explains the life of a caged bird. â€Å"narrow cage, bars of rage, and wings clipped. (lines 3-6)† These phrases create a sense of dread and imprisonment. This evokes sympathy for the bird, and thoughts about if we were also imprisoned (Arensberg 280). The reader begins to think what is life unfair and, why that bird? and further, why me? â€Å"But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams, (line 14)† the poem continues and yet the bird still sings. Angelou comments â€Å" The caged bird still sings with a fearful trill of things unknown but longed for still (lines 17-18)† about the bird who displays the only freedom he has at present, his voice. Pierre Walker, in his 1995 article, comments â€Å"that the bird still dreams,â€Å" and he has the determination to overcome and make the best of his situation. There is a single focus for Angelou use of alliteration in this poem. She uses the â€Å"s† sound over and over again â€Å"his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream† (line 15). The â€Å"s† sound creates the feeling of wind, the whispering of tree leaves, the bird is scared but he sings because he can. He cannot fight his nature. He will find freedom anyway he can, and for that bird it is his singing. The use of the rhyme scheme in the quatrain portion of the poem is AAAB. The inflexibility of the first three lines in stanza 3 â€Å"thrill†¦hill†¦shrill† create the perfect path to the true theme of this poem. When the reader expects another word to rhyme it doesn’t, and the quatrain ends with â€Å"freedom. † The same is true for the last stanza, which is a repeat of the first. Liliane Arensberg explains that the rhyme reminds the reader that there is always hope, there is always the will to survive and the promise at the end of the tunnel of light (Arensberg 289) of freedom. â€Å"I know why the cage bird sings† by Maya Angelou is a very popular poem. Many people find inspiration in her words, and find solace in the hope and determination that bird has. If he can sing, so can the reader. If he can survive so can you. We cannot always choose our lot in life, but we can make the best of it. We can reflect, find out talents, and give those to the world. Maya Angelou presents a very important message to the reader in the form of a very lyrical almost song like poem by using strong imagery of a bird and it’s cage, the pursuit of freedom as a theme, a strong rhyme scheme, and alliteration. Angelou skill as an author cannot easily be missed and neither can her message that we must overcome misfortune and strife to become what we were always meant to be. Works Cited Angelou, Maya. The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou. 1st ed. New York: Random House, 1994. 101. Arensberg, Liliane K. Death as Metaphor of Self in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. College Language Association Journal 20 (1976): 273-91. Walker, Pierre A. Racial protest, identity, words and form in Maya Angelous I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. . College Literature 1 Oct 1995. 23 Nov 2005 http://www. highbeam. com/.

A Summary of Barbara W. Tuchmans The Guns of August :: Barbara W. Tuchman The Guns of August

A Summary of Barbara W. Tuchman's The Guns of August â€Å"The Guns of August† was written by Barbara W. Tuchman in 1962. The book details the causes of the first World war and describes the first month of the war. The book clearly illustrates how a local war became an entire European struggle by a call to war against Russia. Soon after the war became a world issue. Summary of the Book Plans The Beginning (Chapters 1-5) The book begins at the funeral procession of King Edward VII of England in 1910. This procession contained a glorious array of Kings and Nobles from around the world, this was to be the last. Throughout the procession there are mournful faces, but one â€Å"mournful face† hides happiness. The happiness is of Emperor William II of Germany. Throughout his life and reign, Edward candidly exhibited his love for France over his neighboring country, Germany. Now that Edward was out of the way, William was sure that he had earned the position as the ruler of Europe the entire and would soon take action to prove to the rest of the world that Germany was more powerful than all. In Germany, the Chief of the German General Staff, Count Alfred von Schlieffen, created a plan of attack in case of the possibility of a two-front war. But, this plan required invading Belgium, which(at the time) was neutral territory and proteced by England, Despite the promise of England to Belgium, Schlieffen continued with his attack plans. He believed that Germany’s army was far more powerful and advanced than England, and that there was no reason he should feel threatened. After years of perfecting his plans, they were finally finished in 1906. Nevertheless after all of those years of planning, he failed to properly reinforce the eastern front. Even though he was highly criticized for this, he stood by his decision stating that he knew the Russians would force the army into the cold harsh, Russian winter, such as the case of Napoleon. Even though Schlieffen came up with this wonderful and well thought out plan, his successor, General von Moltke, changed the plans entirely. Like Germany, France also concocted an offensive plan.

Continuous Assessments Essay

Continuous Assessment is an on-going process of gathering and interpreting information about students’ learning that you use to make decisions about what to teach, how to teach and how well students have learned. Basic characteristics of Continuous Assessments include the following; * It is an on-going process * It comprises of a variety of assessment methods * It gives timely feedback * Its aligned with curriculum and * Its collaborative with students. Some differences between Continuous Assessments and Formal Assessments Continuous Assessments| Examinations| Ongoing in the classroom throughout the year| Usually at the end of a unit, semester, term, year or cycle| Many different tasks| One exam or few tests per subject| Carried out by the teacher| Can be administered by someone other than the teacher| May be developed by the teacher| May be written by persons other than the classroom teacher| Marked by the teacher| May be marked by persons other than the classroom teacher| Teachers use assessment results to improve teaching| Don’t help teacher to identify learner weakness| Are connected to the syllabus being taught| May not be always be connected to what is taught|. General Advantages of Continuous Assessment * Learners will be assessed using different and appropriate assessment methods and this will provide a more valid assessment of the learner’s performance. * Assessment will now take place in an authentic context i. e. the learner will be assessed in a realistic situation, which is integral to the learning process. * During assessment, there will be immediate feedback into the learning process, thus promoting the formative role of assessment. * Opportunities are provided that would be impossible in a once-off external examination. * A variety of skills can be assessed by internal assessment, which otherwise would not have been considered for assessment purposes. * Assessment is on-going and therefore learners are compelled to work consistently and this will contribute to re-instating the culture of teaching and learning. * The educator who works closely with the learner will now carry out judgment of the learner’s performance. Specific Advantages of Continuous Assessment to the Learners * Monitor student progress * Develop study behaviour * Identify misconceptions * Motivate improvement Have realistic expectations. Specific Advantages of Continuous Assessment to the Parents * Involve in monitoring child’s progress * Understand student’s strengths and weaknesses * Strengthen learning partnership with school Seek assistance for their child Specific Advantages of Continuous Assessment to the Teachers * Evaluate effectiveness of their lessons * Modify teaching strategies * Improve judgments about what students have learned for final grades Evaluate effectiveness of programs How is Continuous Assessment Used? Continuous Assessment is usually used for the following Formative purposes; * Diagnosis: identify skills that students can do. * Diagnosis: identify errors that a student is making * Help decide how to change the lesson / unit plans * Provide students with practice * Help decide where to begin teaching * Modify students’ behaviour Continuous Assessment is usually used for the following Summative purposes; * Grading and promotion * Assigning final grades * Selection of students for programs * Provide superiors with data * Give awards (formally or informally) for work well done / effort made * Student classification Some Concerns of Teachers * Continuous Assessments is time consuming and requires a great deal of preparation and record keeping * A few students do not do well on projects during the term, but do well on final examinations; the zero on projects brings down their final grade * Some students are de-motivated when they do not see the rate of progress they anticipate * Lack of trust that the assessment tasks, such as projects and home work assignments that are not done under good supervision are the students’ own work *. Students seem overwhelmed with so many school-based continuous assessments that count towards their final grades, if every subject gives a project or a term paper, that’s a lot of work * The marks from continuous assessment are inconsistent across teachers Some Examples of Alternative Assessments * unseen written examinations * Seen written examinations * portfolio development * essays * projects * strategic or business plans * fieldwork * literature searches * journal article analysis/critiquing * oral presentations * dissertations * book, article, multi-media material reviews * laboratory reports * case studies * group/team work * audio/video tape production.

The Temperance Movement Essay - 2243 Words

In the early parts of the 20th Century, Canada experimented with banning alcohol consumption. There were some exceptions to this, but most of Canada’s Provincial governments issued some sort of prohibitory laws. The exception being Quà ©bec who only prohibited hard liquor, meaning that they allowed the production and consumption of beverages, such as, beer. This drive towards prohibition started during the mid-19th Century. It all started during the Temperance Movement, when proponents voluntarily abstained from alcohol. This abstention was due to alcohol’s, perceived, moral downfalls. However, slowly, the various provinces reversed their restrictions on alcohol and moved from prohibition to system of coordination. There were several†¦show more content†¦They thought that ridding the world of alcohol was necessary for their saviors return. They used the Temperance Movement as a means to achieve their ultimate goal—social salvation. The Temperance Move ment was not just about abstaining, or riding the world from alcohol, but it was all about religion. In fact, the movement had a positive correlation with religion; which, meaning that when religious fever increases so does the popularity of the Temperance Movement . In essence, the temperance was a religious, moral, crusade to prepare society for the second coming of the one true savior—Jesus Christ. Therefore, this shows that the Temperance Movement was a religious movement as well. The movement went further than just trying to cleanse society from the grips of alcohol. It centered on the health and well-being of the family unit. The movement consisted of various different organizations. Two examples of numerous temperance groups are The Bands of Hope of the Sons of Temperance (BHST) and the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU). The BHST for instance â€Å"encouraged children to abstain from liquor, tobacco, and bad language.† This shows that the Temperance Movement wanted to go beyond alcohol reform. It could be argued that all fore mentioned things are immoral, thus they must be abstained from. The reformers also tried to change, or create, a new definition of what it is to be a â€Å"real man.† The proponents of temperance said that â€Å"real men† doShow MoreRelatedThe Events Of Temperance Movement1332 Words   |  6 Pages Part 1: The Event; Temperance Movement â€Å"Second Great Awakening was not focused simply on promotion individual conversions; it was also intended to reform human society, which was said by Lyman Beecher a champion of evangelic Christian revivalism† (Tindall and Shi 508). The United States, which was known for a nation of separation and church and state was swept with religious revivals during 1790 to 1830s known as the Second Great Awakening. From the Second Great Awakening in 1842, the UnitedRead MoreAmerican Temperance Movement Essay1770 Words   |  8 Pagesto control alcohol consumption, or advocate temperance, has been a goal of humanity throughout countless periods of history. Many countries have had organized temperance movements, including Australia, Canada, Britain, Denmark, Poland, and of course, the United States. The American temperance movement was the most widespread reform movement of the 19th century, culminating in laws that completely banned the sale of all alcoholic beverages. The movemen t progressed from its humble local roots to nationwideRead MoreAmerican Temperance Movement Essay1815 Words   |  8 Pagesto control alcohol consumption, or advocate temperance, has been a goal of humanity throughout countless periods of history. Many countries have had organized temperance movements, including Australia, Canada, Britain, Denmark, Poland, and of course, the United States. The American temperance movement was the most widespread reform movement of the 19th century, culminating in laws that completely banned the sale of all alcoholic beverages. The movement progressed from its humble local roots to nationwideRead MoreThe Temperance Movement Of Antebellum America708 Words   |  3 PagesAntebellum Temperance The Temperance Movement in Antebellum America was one of the largest moral reforms of in 1800s. Several members of the community fought for the prohibition of alcohol, rather than just limiting the about being consumed. However, â€Å"many farmers argued that the society and its desire to eradicate King Alcohol—as temperance advocates often termed alcoholic beverages—were a scheme to deprive the people of their liberty. Starting with main in the 1851, twelve states and territoriesRead MoreWomen s Christian Temperance Movement Essay1385 Words   |  6 PagesThe recently formed Women s Christian Temperance Movement (WCTU) took up the campaign for the vote in 1885. The movement was strongly linked to church and had the motto ‘For God, Home and Humanity.’ The WCTU had previously been involved in a temperance movement and this was one of the main reasons they decided to campaign for the vote. According to Wood â€Å"social climate had the greatest effect on mobilising women into a combined effort to rid themselves of laws that discriminated against them. DrunkennessRead MoreThe Temperance Movement Of The Early 1900 S1934 Words   |  8 Pagesand feel no pain. But this destroyed families because they were almost constantly drunk. They would sometimes lose their only job because of the drinking. So, a lot of religious groups and many women started the temperance movement. There have been many people who have supported temperance in the past and it dates all the way back to when the Bible was written. Eventually the 18th Amendment was passed on January 26th 1919. This amendment was known as the â€Å"Noble Experiment†. This turned out to be aRead MoreThe Temperance Movement Essay1374 Words   |  6 PagesTemperance Movement What was the purpose of the Temperance Movement and Prohibition on alcohol? The Temperance Movement was an anti-alcohol movement. The Temperance Movement took place back in the early 20th century. The Christian abolitionists who fought slavery also prayed to the same God to end the scourge of alcohol. The purpose of the Temperance Movement was to try to abolish alcohol in the early 1900’s. â€Å"’We Sang Rock of Ages‘: Frances Willard Battles Alcohol in the late 19th Century† (Willard)Read MoreNASCAR and the Temperance Movement Essay603 Words   |  3 Pagesis the largest sanctioning body of stock car racing in the United States. NASCAR headquarters are located in Daytona Beach Florida. The temperance movement is what started the prohibition. The temperance movement of the 19th century was a movement that tried to moderate the consumption of alcohol and they pressed for complete absence of alcohol. The movement was mostly followed by women. Well in 1920 the prohibition was passed. Which made it illegal to sell, produce, import, or transport alcoholRead MoreProhibition During The Era Of 1920-1933 Essay814 Words   |  4 Pages During the era of 1920-1933 could best be characterized as the path to a sober nation. This time of history consisted of the eighteenth amendment which was passed on October 28th 1919; Volstead Act. The Volstead act was created to carry out the movement of prohibition. In addition, Prohibition is the legal prohibiting of the manufacture and sale of alcoholic drinks for common consumption according to dictionary.com. Furthermore, this amendment concurs that alcohol beverages could not be made, transportedRead MoreProhibition and the Effect on America756 Words   |  3 Pagesteenagers often turn to the underage consumption of alcohol to make them seem â€Å"cool,† or as a form of rebellion against parental and governmental authorities. The temperance movement acted as a predecessor to the prohibition of alcohol in the 1920’s. The temperance movement relied heavily on the efforts put forth by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) and the Anti-Saloon League. The WCTU lead thousands of women united against alcohol to make great pushes against alcoholism; they introduced an