In The Old Man and the Sea, different readers may place the climax at different points. Where do you think the climax is in this novel? Defend...

The climactic action of The Old Man and the Sea involves Santiago's ability to successfully pull in the great marlin and tie him to his boat, as well as his brave battle against the sharks who would deprive him of his success.

Because an enduring work such as Hemingway's tale lends itself to extended interpretations and broader meanings, the climax of the narrative is sometimes interpreted as other than the point at which Santiago finally conquers the marlin by impaling it with his harpoon. Some interpretations of this work extend the climax to include Santiago's heroic struggle against the sharks who would deprive him of the great fish. 

With the definition of the hero as,

A man who lives correctly, following the ideals of honor, courage, and endurance in a world that is sometimes chaotic, often stressful, and always painful, 

it seems that the climax should include Santiago's enduring struggle against the marlin and the sharks. He never gives up in his effort to bring back the marlin. Although he loses the marlin's meat to the sharks, Santiago finds the inner strength to continue to endure his greatest struggle. There is an extended climax because the high emotion remains as Santiago fights against the sharks for the same reason that he fights for the marlin. This reason for Santiago's fighting is what one critic calls "the intangibles that can redeem his individual life."

 At one point in his struggles, the old man tells himself,

You did not kill the fish only to keep alive and to sell for food, he thought. You killed him for pride and because you are a fisherman.

It is because of his pride as a fisherman that Santiago continues his battle by fighting the sharks. He repeats to himself, "Fight them. . . I'll fight them until I die." This statement also indicates that the narrative is still at a point of high emotion, a climactic point. 

The falling action occurs when Santiago returns to the little harbor, and he carries his mast over his shoulder up the hill. He is so exhausted by his fight that he must rest five times. Nevertheless, Santiago arrives home, lies on his bed, and falls asleep. As he sleeps, the old fisherman can dream since he has met all the challenges presented to him. Because of his endurance against both the marlin and the sharks, along with his perseverance during these climactic moments, Santiago can retain his pride and know that he is still a man. 

What are the historical significance, background, and evolution of the words to the song Maple Leaf Rag by Scott Joplin?

When examining the lyrics to Scott Joplin's classic ragtime composition Maple Leaf Rag, it is important to keep in mind that the lyrics were written some time after the 1899 publication of Joplin's original music, and not by Joplin. Rather, the lyrics were penned by Sydney Brown. Brown's lyrics, which were added with or without--probably the latter--Joplin's consent by his first publisher, John Stark, who had acquired the rights to Maple Leaf Rag and with whom Joplin had an ongoing feud, were noticeably racist and perpetuated negative stereotypes of African Americans. 

Ragtime was a product of late-nineteenth-century America and, more specifically, of the American South. As with blues and jazz, to which ragtime was a precursor, this musical genre was unique to the African American community, in particular those in St. Louis and Sedalia, Missouri. The origins of ragtime, then, cannot be separated from the racial hostilities and institution of racial segregation that continued to plague the South for decades after the end of the Civil War. And, in contrast to some other ragtime composers, Joplin eschewed music that catered to the lowest common denominator of white American society. The publication by Stark of Brown's lyrics, consequently, do not reflect upon Joplin, but upon the racism endemic to society during the latter's life. Ray Argyle, in his history of ragtime and of Joplin's role in popularizing it, Scott Joplin and the Age of Ragtime, quotes the American Federation of Musicians' 1901 declaration that "swore to play no ragtime and to do all in their power to counteract the pernicious influence...of the Negro school." (p. 36) Such was the atmosphere in which Brown penned the lyrics to Joplin's composition.

The lyrics to Maple Leaf Rag are replete with negative imagery illuminating the racial prejudices of the time:

I came from ole Virginy from the county Acomac
I have no wealth to speak of 'cept de clothes upon my back
I can do the country hoe-down I can buck and wing to show down
And while I'm in the notion, just step back and watch my motion

Oh go 'way man, I can hypnotize dis nation
I can shake the earth's foundation wit' the Maple Leaf Rag

..

The men were struck wit' jealousy, the razors 'gan to flash
But de ladies gathered 'round me for I'd surely made a mash

The finest belle, she sent a boy to call a coach and four
We rode around a season 'till we both were lost to reason....

Note the use of phrases like "de clothes," "I can buck and wing," "I can hypnotize  this nation," and "I can shake the earth's foundation wit' the Maple Leaf Rag." Brown's lyrics tell of a poor African American walking into a presumably upper-class white dance and scandalizing the attendees. Among the pernicious stereotypes of African American men was that they were sex-crazed predators who targeted white women. When the singer suggests that he can "shake the earth's foundation," he is playing to the fears of many caucasians that blacks were innately threatening not only to the status quo but to the sanctity of white women. The reaction of the men in the ballroom further perpetuates the myth of the ever-threatening African American and, of particular note, of the white man's need to castrate the black man who will otherwise rape white women with wanton abandon.

Sydney Brown's lyrics for Scott Joplin's composition are rarely heard for the simple reason that they do not improve the music and are highly offensive. They represented a bastardization of Joplin's music while also illuminating the blatant racism of the era in which both the original composition and the lyrics were written.

Why is the narrator crying after Doodle shows the family how he can walk in "The Scarlet Ibis"?

The narrator cries after Doodle demonstrates that he can walk because he is proud that he has taught his brother to be able to do so. Also, he is somewhat ashamed because he has instructed Doodle from the selfish motives of being embarrassed by Doodle's failure to walk at age five.

It [teaching Doodle to walk] seemed so hopeless from the beginning that it's a miracle I didn't give up. But all of us must...

The narrator cries after Doodle demonstrates that he can walk because he is proud that he has taught his brother to be able to do so. Also, he is somewhat ashamed because he has instructed Doodle from the selfish motives of being embarrassed by Doodle's failure to walk at age five.

It [teaching Doodle to walk] seemed so hopeless from the beginning that it's a miracle I didn't give up. But all of us must have something or someone to be proud of, and Doodle had become mine.

In James Hurst's story, when Doodle is born, the narrator is mortified that his baby brother is not normal. William Armstrong is "an invalid" and must lie on a rubber sheet. But, when the baby pushes himself up and recognizes his brother and smiles, the narrator takes some interest in him. Then, after his baby brother learns to turn himself over and later to crawl, the narrator determines that Doodle must learn to do normal things. The narrator/brother becomes so embarrassed to be pulling Doodle around in a cart when he is five that he becomes determined that Doodle will walk.

They Told Me You Had Been To Her Meaning

What linguistic/ language features does the poet use to create meaning in the poem below?

They told me you had been to her,

And mentioned me to him:

She gave me a good character, 

But said I could not swim.

He sent them word I had not gone

(we know it to be true):

If she should push the matter on, 

What would become of you?

I gave her one, they gave him two,

You gave us three or more:

They all returned from him to you,

Though they were mine before.

If I or she should chance to be 

Involved in this affair, 

He trusts to you to set them free,

Exactly as we were.

My notion was that you had been 

(Before she had this fit)

An obstacle that came between

Him, and ourselves, and it.

Don't let them know she liked them best, 

For this must ever be

A secret, kept from all the rest,

Between yourself and me

- From Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland

How did railroads impact the settlement of the west around 1864?

Under President Abraham Lincoln in 1862, the Pacific Railway Act was approved.  With most of the nation focused on the Civil War, less attention was paid to westward expansion.  In previous decades, westward expansion had been an important focus in the United States.  People traveling west had gone by covered wagon or by horse.  This way of travel was slow and was filled with obstacles.  Wagons were made of wood and could break.  Horses and oxen...

Under President Abraham Lincoln in 1862, the Pacific Railway Act was approved.  With most of the nation focused on the Civil War, less attention was paid to westward expansion.  In previous decades, westward expansion had been an important focus in the United States.  People traveling west had gone by covered wagon or by horse.  This way of travel was slow and was filled with obstacles.  Wagons were made of wood and could break.  Horses and oxen could become ill and die.  The journey could take from four months to over a year.

In 1869, the Transcontinental Railroad was completed.  After this, travel from the East to the West was much quicker and more efficient.  People did not have to worry about feeding livestock or repairing wagons.  Instead, they paid a fare and boarded a train to go west.  By the year 1876, one particularly fast train had a direct route from New York City to San Francisco that took about four days.  This transformed westward expansion in the United States.  New immigrants arriving in New York City could quickly and easily move west, where the population was relatively small and there were more economic opportunities.

How did Renaissance artwork look different from artwork during the Middle Ages?

Because the field of artwork is broad, I will focus on painting. There are many ways in which medieval painting differed from that of the Renaissance, which is what makes the latter period so important as an era of innovation.

First, nearly all medieval painting is religious in its subject matter. A great deal of Renaissance painting is, too, but more liberties are taken in the portrayal of the icons. Renaissance painters individualized the figures,...

Because the field of artwork is broad, I will focus on painting. There are many ways in which medieval painting differed from that of the Renaissance, which is what makes the latter period so important as an era of innovation.

First, nearly all medieval painting is religious in its subject matter. A great deal of Renaissance painting is, too, but more liberties are taken in the portrayal of the icons. Renaissance painters individualized the figures, allowed them to emote, showed the natural movement of the body, and often depicted subjects according to classical standards of beauty. Medieval iconography is less inspired and quite redundant. 

Moreover—and this leads to the second major difference—there is no depiction of perspective in medieval painting. The figures appear flat and two-dimensional. Vanishing point perspective developed during the Renaissance. With this technique, a set of parallel lines are perpendicular to a picture plane, drawing one's eye to a single point in space, then outward. This allowed for the illusion of depth on a flat surface.

The depiction of children is another very important difference. Both medieval and Renaissance painters were interested in the depiction of Madonna and Son. Based on the images, however, one thinks that medieval painters had no concept of what children actually looked like. They are little adults: elongated and earnest in their expressions. Renaissance artists painted babies as they are in real life: chubby, playful, and fidgety.

Why is the work a scalar quantity?

A scalar quantity is a quantity that can be measured by one number. This is in contrast to a vector quantity, that has to be represented by two, or more, numbers. For example, velocity is a vector quantity because it indicates how fastan object is moving, and in what direction.

Force is also a vector quantity, because it represents the strength of the push or pull, and also the direction of that push...

A scalar quantity is a quantity that can be measured by one number. This is in contrast to a vector quantity, that has to be represented by two, or more, numbers. For example, velocity is a vector quantity because it indicates how fast an object is moving, and in what direction.

Force is also a vector quantity, because it represents the strength of the push or pull, and also the direction of that push or pull. Work, however, is a quantity that indicates the result of the force's action: it combines the force with displacement that occurred in the direction of that force. Mathematically, it is expressed as follows:

`W=vecF*Deltavecx`

This is called a scalar product of the two vectors: the force vector and the displacement vector. It is a scalar because the result of it is just one number, calculated as follows:

`W =|vecF||Deltavecx|*cos(theta).`

So, work is the product of the magnitudes of the force and the displacement, and the cosine of the angle between them (`theta` ).

Work can also be thought of as a change in the kinetic energy of and object. The kinetic energy is

`K = 1/2mv^2` , where m is the mass and v is the speed of the object. Since mass and speed are scalar quantities (speed is a magnitude of velocity, and this a scalar), kinetic energy is also a scalar quantity, so the work, which equals the change in kinetic energy, is also a scalar quantity.