Compare and Contrast: Death of a Salesman & Oedipus Essay

Compare and Cotrast Separated by almost 3000 years of literature, two plays can still contain similar elements and characteristics that tie the two together. This is the case between the two plays, Oedipus The King and its counterpart Death of a Salesman, one written approximately 430 BC and the other written in 1949. When first reading this book, one might question, what could these stories possibly have in common; one is about a king who discovers he has killed his father and copulated with his mother and the other about a salesman with suicidal tendencies and unattainable dreams. As the reader further analysis the story, the underlying similarities become more apparent even as one might say that there are no relations between the two stories. Looking into the main protagonist of both plays, we realize that they are strikingly similar in aspects related to their prideful personality, demeanor, and temperament, all quite evident in the way they handle their personal conflicts which leads to their event ual downfalls. Analyzing these characters their shared traits become quite obvious to the reader. Divulging the two plays, we are faced with these two characters with strikingly similar personalities. Both prideful men, this trait becomes quite apparent when addressing other of their own merits. In the very beginning of the play Oedipus the King, Oedipus is addressing the conditions of the people and instead of really addressing the issues of the plague Oedipus uses it as an excuse to praise himself further saying , â€Å"Here I am myself- you all know me, the world knows my fame; I am Oedipus† ( Sophocles 1156: 6-8). His words of bravado show his prideful personality, that he is above all and that he is known by all even as far to say â€Å"the world knows [his] fame (1156: 7). As the play moves further along, his pride becomes more and more evident when Tiresias the blind prophet has named him the corruption and curse of the land. He shrugs it off and denies it with false confidence responding to her saying â€Å"you can’t hurt me or anyone else who sees the lig ht- you can never touch me (1167: 427-428). The delivery and  way Oedipus says this statement is said with a hurt pride covered up by false confidence. In the same way, Willy, the main protagonist of Death of a Salesman, is a quite prideful man who covers up his own short comings with grandeur delusions and false confidence in himself. In one instance, speaking to his boys, giving them advice on how to succeed: WILLY: Because the man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates personal interest, is the man who gets ahead. Be liked and you will never want. You take me, for instance. I never have to wait in line to see a buyer. â€Å"Willy Loman is here!† That’s all they have to know, and I go right through! ( Death of a Salesman 1435. Act I) Willy gives seemingly sound advice but he also takes it as an opportunity to puff out his chest in bravado and say that he himself is well liked by everyone â€Å"never hav[ing] to wait in line to see a buyer† (1435. Act I) . This is all for show, priding himself as a man who has succeeded in the world of business, in truth it is nothing more there mere false confidence. When addressing his wife about his trips up north to New England and his sales he contradicts himself when he say that he is â€Å"very well liked in Hartford†¦ the trouble is†¦ people don’t seem to take to me† (1437. Act I). All this false confidence and pride comes to light when he makes such statements even though he knows otherwise. Both Oedipus and Willy have this prideful personality that allows the play to propel of it, eventually leading to their own self demise in one way or another. Referencing to their own self demise, the eventual paths they choose leads to the outcomes of how the stories end up. How this goes about is how they decide their own fates, choosing to deal with situations in the wrong ways or all together ignoring others all together in beliefs that they are in the right. In the story Death of a Salesman, Willy is confronted with financial issues which become apparent when he and Linda are discussing the month’s payments in which he owes a â€Å"hundred and twenty dollars! If [his] business [doesn’t] pick up [he won’t] know what [he’s] gonna do† (1436 Act I). This problem could have simply been remedied when his neighbor had come for a visit: CHARLEY: You want a job? WILLY: I got a job, I told you that. (After a slight pause). What the hell are you offering me a job for? CHARLEY: Don’t get insulted. WILLY: Don’t insult me. (1440 Act I) The way he handled the situation was poor at best, and he had done so in a prideful manner as though his dignity was being attacked. Instead he could have simply looked into the possible venture which would have helped with monetary issues at home. These monetary issues attributed to his eventual suicide later on in the play. It becomes apparent that Willy deals with such situations with anger, a hint of anger and as though he himself was being attacked. Oedipus deals with his incestuous problem with the same mannerisms. When he himself has been accused of causing the plague in the city by Tiresias the blind prophet, he denies fault instead saying that Creon has put her up to it in order to over through him in which he says to Creon himself â€Å"You-here? You have the gall to show your face before the palace gates? You, plotting to kill me, kill the king-I see it all, the marauding thief himself scheming to steal my crown and power† (Sophocles 1171: 594-598). Here we see him dealing with the situation poorly with angst, as though he himself was being attacked.. Instead of tackling with the issue head on, he prefers to avoid the blame and instead play the victim. The two protagonist of both plays, confront their own problems with anger, and a feeling as though they themselves were under fire, that they were being criticized. These lead to their eventual downfall as the plays slowly progress onwards fueled by their own decisions and mannerisms. Tying all these elements together the two main protagonist become the major point of most of the similarities between Oedipus the King and Death of a Salesman. Their behavior and personality reflect that of prideful man who hides behind false bravados and confidence in attempts to avoid their problems. Their attempts to avoid the problem lie in the way they handle situations with anger and a feeling as though they were under criticism. All this brings the plays to a full circle, having the two main protagonists bring about their own self destruction. Work Cited Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. Charters, Ann, and Samuel Barclay. Literature and Its Writers: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. 5th ed. Boston: Bedford, 1997.1155-1199. Print. Sophocles. Oedipus the King. Charters, Ann, and Samuel Barclay. Literature and Its Writers: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. 5th ed. Boston: Bedford, 1997.1155-1199. Print.

Is Brutus justified to kill JC Essay

Brutus argued that Caesar should be killed because he was quickly gaining power. They were afraid that this power would corrupt him and lead him to do future harms. Brutus even believed that Caesar at the time of his death had not done anything to warrant his death. Although Brutus killed Julius Caesar for the right reason, it is still unjustified to kill an innocent man for what he had not done. Political assassination is justified depending on the circumstances. If the leader is good to the people, does everything for his country, and fights for the country, even if a potential threat, the assassination would not be justified. But if the leader was harming the people, did not care about the harming the people, did not care about the country, or was just not being a good leader, then it would be necessary. As long as the intentions are good, and the circumstances are right, then it should be ok. It would be different if you were killing a leader out of greed or because you just do n ot like them than if you were doing it for the good of the country. Caesar was an innocent man. He had not done anything wrong but was killed by his friends. He did nothing but help the Romans but they did not trust him. That is why he was killed; he never had a reason to be killed. It was just jealousy and fear. If there was a ruler like Hitler, then it would be necessary because he was killing a bunch of innocent people. Caesar was helping his country, but Hitler was hunting down and killing his people. The conspirators had made no plans for after the assassination of Caesar, they believed that the Republic would just revert back to what it was before. They thought they would be hailed as heroes, but instead had their houses burned down and were forced to flee Rome. Caesar was a benevolent dictator, he made no proscriptions, he forgave his enemies, and he made provisions for the poor, for colonies, for economic reform, legal and judicial reform, and in his will he left the equivalent of two months’ pay to the poorest Romans according to Anth ony’s speech. This is probably the most famous assassination and is the most widely known. John Kennedy Fitzgerald, America’s 35th president was assassinated when he was visiting Dallas with his convertible car. The killer had used a powerful sniper rifle and hide in a safe place waiting for the president to go through and open fire. John F. Kennedy died at the hospital due to his injuries. After this shocking incident, all the forces of the investigation from the FBI to the CIA have in life but death of J.F Kennedy remains a  mystery. He was one of the best president of the United States of America and also the youngest president at the time. Abraham Lincoln was the 16th president born in the United States. He came to power between 1861 and 1865, Lincoln was killed by John Wilkes, a man dissatisfied with the policies promulgated by the president. The assassination occurred when Lincoln was sitting in a cinema theater. When the air is crowded, everyone laughed, John Wilkes shot Lincoln and escaped through the back door. President Lincoln died later on the same day. Martin Luther King Jr. is the head of the character of the civil rights movement in the United States. The movement was created for the purpose of elimination of racial discrimination against African Americans. On April 4, 1968, while standing on the second floor of a hotel balcony, King was assassinated. After this incident happened, the ongoing violence increased across the city. The incident forced the incumbent president, Mr. Johnson declared one day of national mourning for King. After the funerals held, police began the investigation and search for the culprit. About two months later, James Earl Ray was arrested and accused of assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. All these men above died from what they believe and were making progress to their countries, now these are the bad guys that get killed or got away. This is Hitler’s assassination and considered the legendary murder in the 2nd World War. The field mission to assassinate Hitler as Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, a German nobleman. Stauffenberg is also the chief of the reserve forces in the Nazi army, but thought against Hitler. In fact, the plan to assassinate Hitler is prepared for a long time and is set to perform on July 20, 1944. According to the plan, Colonel Stauffenberg placed the bomb in Hitler’s conference room, near the sitting position of the Nazi bosses. The bomb exploded shortly after when Colonel Stauffenberge leave the room, killing four people, but Hitler unharmed. The reason is, the oak desk where Hitler sat with special structural inadvertently reduce the impact of the bomb, saving Hitler. Immediately, the Nazi bosses conducting sweeps to hunt for mastermind. Colonel Stauffenberg and his hand in the assassination plan are inevitable tragic death. Even their family members were also arrested in the concentration camps and tortured to death. However, if the successful assassination, the Nazis would be overthrown. World War 2 as well so may end earlier than 10 years, saving millions of lives and the European political  landscape will change. Even the dismal picture, the complexity of the Cold War also will change. Hitler was so lucky, he had a second chance and he did not change his ways of ruling. Finally he had to kill himself the next year on April 30, 1945 and Germany surrendered a few days later. Caesar’s death was not justified because he was murdered out of greed and jealousy. The murderers wanted to be powerful and praised for their â€Å"good deed† but never once did they think of the people themselves. Political assassination could be justified only if the leader was a bad person, and in getting rid of that leader, you try to make your country a better place for the citizen. Some men that are good just so unlucky, but when you turn evil, you can dodge bomb. My life plan is going to be evil as Hitler.

Health promotion Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Health promotion - Assignment Example These expansive effects of poor and unhygienic conditions in which the homeless live have continually emphasized to health professionals such as the advanced practice nurse the essentiality of embracing a managerial or a leadership role in advocating for and addressing the health needs of the homeless. Consequently, there is a need to strategize through various health programs that would help maintain the health of the homeless (National Institute of Health, 1997). For instance, affordable and clean housing could effectively alleviate the health-related suffering of the homeless. There are several definitions of homelessness that health providers should be acquainted with so that they effectively address the many health challenges faced by the homeless. For instance, homelessness could be defined as a state in which an individual sleeps or lives outside using public or private shelters. This type of homelessness, referred to as absolute homelessness, is quite unlike concealed homeles sness in which a person provisionally lodges with friends, families, or relatives. However, the common characteristics of the homeless include the risks their struggles to meet basic human needs such as housing and food during which they encounter problems related to service suitability, affordability, cleanliness, and adequacy. This paper explores the health issues faced by the homeless, discussing specific types of health issues encountered, the best possible interventions and strategies, and the possible role of advanced practice nurse in such situations. Health Issues for the Homeless Scores of literatures highlight the health issues faced by the homeless. Generally, there is an increased rate of infectious and chronic medical conditions such as tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, community-acquired pneumonia, cardiovascular disease, and chronic obstructive lung disease among the homeless. Prevalence rates for cancers are also higher in the homeless compared to the general population due to several risk factors such as cigarette smoking, alcoholism, and sun exposure. In fact, about 40% of homeless people reportedly have one type of chronic health problem or the other (Schanzer et al., 2007). Another 10% to 13% are reported to have psychotic disorders while between 20% and 40% are reported to have affective disorders (Schanzer et al., 2007). It has also been reported that about 20% to 30% of all adult emergency department visits are made by the homeless while homeless patients are reportedly being admitted five times more often and have longer stays at health facilities than the general population have (Schanzer et al., 2007). There is a rather direct correlation between homelessness and the accessibility and affordability of health services. What is more, the homeless are often found to be at a higher risk of contracting chronic and fatal conditions such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, cancer, and pneumonia among other such conditions. Nursing, nursing students, and other health providers have consequently been called upon every other time to initiate and implement programs and strategies by which the health issues facing the homeless could be addressed. Hence, nursing and nurses have quite crucial a role and responsibility in alleviating the suffering of the homeless with regards to health care inequalities and deprivation (Culhane et al., 2001). However, nursing and the provision of

English 102 the family Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

English 102 the family - Essay Example Rosaldo and Sylvia Yanagisako, who quite persuasively argue that the family is not â€Å"a universal human institution† (p. 1). As controversial as this argument sounds, one finds support from it in Diane Ackerman’s A Natural History of Love and Sara Ruddick’s â€Å"Thinking About the Father.† Both scientific and anthropological perspectives on the concept of the family invalidate earlier understandings of the concept and establish that the family is not a universal phenomenon and even where and when it exists in its traditional form, reflects the human desire for familiar patterns. The famed social anthropologists, Bronislaw Malinowski is responsible for the now popular misconception of the family as a universal phenomenon. As Collier, Rosaldo and Yanagisako argue, before Malinowski’s research and writings on the concept of the family, anthropologists believed that it was a culture-specific phenomenon, not a universal one (p. 1). Malinowski’s argument, which was based on his observations of the behaviour of Australian Aborigines, was based on the notion that sexual behavior was a determinant of the presence, or absence, of family. As he noted, insofar as Australian Aborigines only acknowledged one husband for any female and assumed that the husband was also the father, they acknowledged the phenomenon of the family (pp. 2-3). While he acknowledged the presence of sexual promiscuity among primitive groups such as the Aborigines and admitted that they engaged in orgies, he still argued that they recognized family units because, even in orgies, wome n were only allowed a specific sexual partner – their legally or socially recognized mate/husband (Collier, Rosaldo and Yanagisako, pp. 2-3). According to this argument, therefore, sexual behaviour was controlled in order to preserve the family unit and to ensure its survival. The family unit was preserved and protected by the

A Police Misconduct Case On Rodney King Assignment

A Police Misconduct Case On Rodney King - Assignment Example In addition, this paper focuses on the negative effects of unethical decision making while evaluating the effects violence caused acts of police brutality. Moreover, this research focuses on various moral and ethical concepts that are utilized in explaining how ethical dilemmas affected decision-making in this incidence. Introduction In the process of enforcing the law, various moral and ethical concepts determine an individual’s decision-making tendency. However, in some cases interpretation of moral and ethical concepts involved poses a challenge hence resulting to poor application of these concepts. Misinterpretation of these concepts introduces various unwanted results in the society. In this study, focus is placed on various moral and ethical concepts involved in the case of Rodney King. Question one Moral and ethical concepts play a crucial role in determining suitable decision-making (Zerbe, Ha?rtel and Ashkanasy, 2008).However, in some cases poor interpretation of the code of ethics results to its violation. For instance, in 1991 some traffic police officers brutally attacked an individual named Rodney king for violating traffic regulation in a Los Angeles suburb. Evidence in this case reveals that police officers used buttons to beat the complainant after the shocks they had used failed to incapacitate the individual. According to the defendants, the use of force was meant to ease the arrest of Rodney King who was drunk at the time he violated the traffic rules (Pollock, 2012). The acquittal of these officers in court worsened this case by causing the eruption of violence in the streets of Los Angeles where a large number of people were injured and property worth a lot of money was destroyed. In this case, a number of ethical dilemmas faced the parties that were involved. First, in the process of law enforcement officers are supposed to abide by the ethical code of conduct. However, in case of danger the officers were required to utilize conside rable force hence protecting themselves from injuries. In the case on Rodney king, the officers faced the dilemma of whether to abide by the code of conduct for the police officers or to protect each other from the probable injuries that might have been caused by Rodney (Kleinig, 2006).According to utilitarian ethics a decision is ethical if it results to a higher number of positive outcomes. In this case, concepts in utilitarian ethics would have required that the police officers to protect themselves from an attack by Rodney. However, virtue ethics requires that an individual’s actions should be judged based on the extent to which they employ suitable characters in decision-making. In this instance, the police officers ought to have employed virtues such as mercy and compassion thus using minimal force in arresting the culprit (Ferrell, Fraedrich and Ferrell, 2013).According to virtue ethics the actions taken by police officers in this case were unethical since they showed the use of force for selfish reasons. These selfish reasons may have included punishing individuals of the black American race or relieving stress among the officers. The ethical dilemma posed by the two concepts may have resulted to the violation of Rodney King’s rights. According to Zerbe, Ha?rtel and Ashkanasy (2008), ethical dilemmas in this case also emerged in the courtroom. In the process of determining whether the defendants were guilty or

Finance Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Finance - Case Study Example It should be noted that the selection of the family members for their respective positions are due to their being the relative of the founder and cannot be credited to their skills or experience in the industry. The current poor financial performance of G-III might be attributed to this set-up. Even though some of the important executives of G-III are not family members, the Goldfarbs are still in the highest ranks which place them in the position of making the final decisions even though some lower level executives disagree or might recommend otherwise. The efficiency of the management team is indicated by the financial position of G-III in comparison to other industry players. The case stated that in general, G-III has expanded market share from 2% to 10% with a compounded increase in revenue of 68% from 1986-1989. The market has grown faster at a rate of compounded 75% making G-III quite slow to respond to market expansion. Financially speaking, most of the company's resources are financed by riskier short term debt instead of long-term ones. As G-III is cash strapped, the company is illiquid and cannot pay its current obligations if they become due immediately. It also becomes apparent that the remedy for this will be from the capital which will be raised from the IPO.

A Gathering of Old Men by Ernest J. Gaines Essay

A Gathering of Old Men by Ernest J. Gaines - Essay Example A Gathering of Old Men occurs in Marshall Plantation situated in Bayonne Louisiana. The gathering is brought about by the revelations that Beau Baton, the plantations’ work boss, has been brutally murdered at the initial stages of the novel. As a result, she acts quickly and invites everyone staying within the precincts of the plantation. After Miss Merle’s arrival, Candy confesses to her that she was the one who had killed Beau. Merle does not believe her, and together, they decide to bring local men together with their shotguns so that they make it difficult for Sherriff Mapes to solve the crime. All the men arrive with their shotguns and are willing to co-operate. As anticipated, Sheriff Mapes arrive to investigate the crime. The first two people he summons both confess to have commite the crime. Moving to the next person, the sheriff questions Reverend Jameson. The Reverend keeps mum and does not answer him anything. Overwhelmed by anger, the sheriff punches him so hard that he falls to the ground (Gaines 80). The other men watching the scenario reacts to the sheriff’s action and lines up to be slapped too. The sheriff is so amazed by this sense of solidarity and their readiness to confess. He stops questioning them. Charlie’s absence from the men present in Mathu’s homestead is noticeable. This is because he was the one working closely with Beau. However, the sheriff does not pay much attention to his absenteeism since he views him as a weak individual who can not harm any one. His main suspect is Mathu since he has always openly demonstrated his hatred towards the local whites. Therefore, the sheriff believes that Mathu is the only one who can commit the murder (Gillis). On the contrary, he can not make any arrests since he does not have any evidence that links anyone to the murder. Furthermore, more black men come out to confess killing Beau. They claim that they were retaliating the killing of their son for a crime he did not commit, raping of their sisters and the killing of their brothers for no reason. Mapes is compelled to stay at the crime scene since he is confident that Fix, a white man known for lynching blacks will come with his men to avenge Beau’s death (Bryan). As the sheriff, he is bound to stay to maintain law and order. The sheriff strong belief that Mathu could be the murderer prompts him to arrest Mathu. However, before taking him away, Charlie comes to the picture. He confesses that he was the one who killed Beau (Gaines 110). He explains himself that he committed the crime after being threatened by Beau. He also revealed that he had convinced Mathu to take the blame before fleeing. However, he asserts that he had come back to speak the truth and take responsibility of his actions. After revealing his confession, Charlie is arrested by the sheriff. Before they leave Mathu’s compound to the police station, Luke Will and his group of whites arrive demanding Charlie t o be handed over to them for lynching (Attaining manhood). Mapes refuses and they shoot him. On seeing this, the black men immediately withdraw their shot guns and a gruesome battle ensues. The white men did not expect this retaliation and one of them is slightly injured (Attaining manhood). The primary battle takes place between Luke Will and Charlie. The two men strongly fight to finish one another. Eventually, Charlie shoots Luke Will before he is shot. He dies a hero and everyone in the area pays tribute to his dead body. On the other hand, all the individuals involved in the shootout are charged in a court of law and given five years probation each. Analysis The novel, A Gathering of Old Men by Ernest Gaines brings out many themes and various

After the American revolution conflicts between the North and South Essay

After the American revolution conflicts between the North and South - Essay Example The southern states majorly depended on cotton growing as their main source of revenue. There, however, existed a range of factories in the north of which most were agriculture based, as grain processing. The economy of the north was diverse with several other factories, apart from agriculture based. The southern states had slavery as the source of labor in their plantations (Jordan xii). This was among the issues that exacerbated the south with their northern counterparts. While the southern plantation owners embraced slavery, the north had it declared as an odd institution. The north and south had divergent economic interests. This difference possibly triggered the enmity that, among other factors, promoted the civil war. There was a notable difference in the labor forces between the north and south. The north consisted of a majority of skilled workers that made the labor market competitive while the south mainly used semiskilled and manual labor. There were high tariffs in the north, contrary to the south where there were low tariffs. The high tariffs shielded to the industries in the north from competition. The north and south had differences including their locations of land in the continent. While the northern states fall in the northern hemisphere, the southern states have their situation in the southern hemisphere. The demographics of the north and south showed explicit differences. The northern population was higher than the southern given the surge of people in the north, who worked in the factories. The immigration, therefore, escalated the population of the north. Differences over land issues were among the significant causes of the historic civil war. The union states (from the north) wanted their southern counterparts (confederate states) to surrender their large plantations for the building of industries and factories. The southern states, however, were reluctant to give in to such forces. This triggered a land conflict between the north and

A Mexican Tejano in American Texas Essay Example for Free

A Mexican Tejano in American Texas Essay Thesis As young Tejano boy who lives in Texas with family, friends, and a community with respectful ordinance and order for law. One has experienced a life drastic change when two frontiers are met in Texas for the demand for independence, land, and property in my land. A Tejano life becomes a change for one when the United States fight in battle for Independence with Mexico, and ultimately change the characteristic and the effects of a Tejano life-for a boy. I am Tejano What is a Tejano? We are known to be the first descendants to grow families in Texas. From 1600’s through the late 1800’s, Tejano’s are extractions of the Mexican and Spanish groups that first colonized the Texas frontier. I have lived many years in Texas prior to the revolution and I helped create the areas first plaza’s, politics, missionaries, plantations, ranches, and developed roadways. â€Å"I am a Tejano!† San Antonio de Bexar where I was born, part of the Spain’s colonial holdings in the New World. My father Bernardo H. Reyes had immigrated to Texas from the State of Veracruz, Mexico. My father’s European heritage and devoted craftsman skills. My father: Bernardo H. Reyes surged as a forerunner in the society of San Antonio. He devoted his work as a mayor (Alcalde), of San Antonio, Texas to which was heroic to a Tejano son. He hoisted us in the European section of the plaza, and sent my older blood brothers and me to Mexico for better schooling. In change, school was subject to change for me. My advantages in s chool came to an end. At the age of 13, my father passed unexpectedly forcing us to return home to supply support to family back home in 1811 and 1813. The Anti-colonial revolutionaries took over many towns as I watched violently defeating our Mexican military. My older brother Danny Reyes, fought with the Mexican Army, also, helping the rebels in the fights, he was discharged when they discovered the event leading to a Battle of Alaz’n in Coahuila-y-Tejas, on June 20, 1813. Tejano Origins Tejano’s contributed to a stable cultural effect throughout the economic region in Texas. My people ranched and furnished a true historical value to Texas with families cultivated a new transition of a foreign Spanish flag to the Mexican flag. From people who wrote the laws that define Tejano life and also invited Angelo Immigrants-Whites. Tejano life was important in unifying the community for a military purpose of the reconciliation to settle in Texas. Tejano cultures were very distinguished with a very strong sense of community. In 1821, one was told there was a population of 4,000 Tejano’s in Texas. The early Spaniards had originally brought with them a good associating for neighboring brothers-which was identified as the barrio. The barrio was reinforced on the Texas Frontera when the early expeditions came to settle in Texas. People came together as families creating communities around the missions which made Texas a home to Tejano’s to settle. The term â⠂¬Å"Tejano† has been used to identify ones people and as a Tejano boy historically. I knew that Texas was the heritage of Spaniards to Mexican culture, and is now forced to see a new transition take place-with the United States for Independence. Texas Between 1821 and 1836, Texas was the land that introduced two frontiers in the Battles of American Military and Mexican Military for Independence, land, and power. Culture and social commerce were competitive during these condemning years. A political dominance for Mexican lands was well-catching when new settlers migrated into Mexico. In September 1810, before the United States migrated, New Spain was afraid that the first movement for freedom would lead to independence by a Mexican Priest named Miguel Hidalgo (My Uncle). His main ambition was to create a movement that would be independent country from Spain. Ending Texas the New Constitution gave a self-governed province by making a new state of Coahuila y Texas. In 1810 Mexico declared its independence from Spain after a protracted struggle. In September 1821, after three hundred years under Spanish rule, Mexico obtained its sovereignty and became a New Mexican empire. Years after in 1836, the Alamo took battle in the front and in 1846 the Battle of the Mexican American War lasted two years ceding nearly half of its territory from Mexico to the United States. These were The Battle of the Alamo followed by the Mexican-American War in 1846. Changing the political forces during for Tejano’s in Texas. Anglo Men (White) Anglo is a prefix indicating a relation to English white people in 1821 (American History, 2012). When the Anglo Men first appeared in Texas, Tejano settlement composed three areas to separate the regions in Texas. The Nacogdoches region, the Bexar Goliad Region along with the San Antonio river. Each of the population fluctuated independently in its region from others between the Nueces River and the Rio Grande, but shared certain trademarks in many similarities, which was military. Spain closed the Mouth of the Mississippi to foreigners from 1784 through 1795 due to 50,000 Americans settlers crossing. It was difficult to return across the Appalachian Mountains. The Americans were trying to set plantations for their crops in Louisiana and Texas during this time. Thomas Jefferson Threatened Mexico for a war over this new transition. Philip Nolan became the first Anglo American to cross the borders to sell horse trading in Texas but was arrested by Spanish borders. In Mexico City foile d our plans. Mexico was afraid about the reports that American immigrants were flouting Mexican laws and entering illegally, causing the Tejano population to be outnumbered to a rate of ten to one. The Mexican government excluded the importation of indentured servants to Texas and I was then surrounded by angle white settlers. Conclusion It is evident that Tejano laws laid much of the foundation for a prosperous Texan society and community. Eventually, American settlers fight for Independence with Mexico in the Mexican-American War, changing the effects, cultures, and territories-for Tejano’s. Indeed, the history of Texas can never be complete without the story of his origins and founders of an eminent Tejano. Reference American History. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.let.rug.nl/usa/essays/1801-1900/anglo-american-colonization-in-texas/texas-1821-1836.php Garcia, D (2004, Jan). People Events: Jose’ Antonio Navarro (1795-1871). Remember the Alamo, From http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/alamo/filmmore/webcredits.html From http://www.geocities.com/flambdog/texanscivilwar.htm MARTINEZ-CATSAM, A. (2013). War along the Border: The Mexican Revolution and Tejano Communities. Journal of Southern History, 79(3), 752-753 Schultz, K. M. (2012). HIST 2 (2nd Ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.

Independent Auditors Report Essay Example for Free

Independent Auditors Report Essay LCC has conducted an audit of Apollo Shoes, Inc. balance sheets, the retained earnings, cash flows, and other related statements of income for the year ended December 31, 2006/2007. Apollo Shoes Inc management is responsible for maintaining the effective internal controls that goes along with the financial statements and how well the accuracy is going to be. LLC has evaluated the effectiveness of the said controls and with everything to see the relevance in the timing, the substantive in quality, and the comprehensive in nature. The responsibility of our firm is to express an opinion that is supported by audit evidence in regards to the accuracy of the Apollo Shoes, Inc. financial statements. Our firm has conducted all audit related services that is accepted by the United States and the generally accepted auditing standards. The planning and performance done ensures that the audit was done to execute and obtain reasonable assurance that the financial statements published by Apollo Shoes, Inc. are free and clear of material misstatement. It is going to include the examination of the evidence and/or the supporting documentation for the amounts that are disclosed and included in the financial statements. The assessment of the accounting principles that were used, how the management did their estimates and the overall evaluation of the presentation of the financial statements (Arens, Elder, Beasley, 2006). Therefore, we assert that this audit provides a reasonable basis for our rendered opinions with the information that was provided by Apollo Shoes, Inc. The consolidated financial statement referred to above have been presented fairly, in our opinion, based on the LLC audit services and those of the prior auditor. While accompanied by an explanatory paragraph below, the results of Apollo Shoes, Inc. financial position of the company as of December 31, 2006/2007 the cash flows and the operations for the year are in conformity with the generally accepted accounting principles. The financial statements of Apollo Shoes, Inc have been prepared assuming that they will remain in a going concern. The purpose of the LCC audit was not to evaluate the health of the company; SAS 59 indicated that the auditor has the responsibility to evaluate the company and to see whether the company is likely to remain a going concern (Arens, Elder, Beasley, 2006). LLC have expressed some uncertainty over Apollo Shoes, Inc. status as a going concern for a couple of factors. They are related to a loss of major customers that are pending legal proceedings, which could jeopardize the organization and its ability to operate. Mall Warts, the largest customer for Apollo Shoes, Inc. has declared bankruptcy, which has prompted a reduction in the clients operating activity, workforce and now an ongoing labor strike. It is a class action lawsuit for $12,000,000 for a gross negligence and violation of warranty on the merchantability that was filed in early 2008. With the legal fees that had incurred in 2007, the financial statements do not include any adjustments that may result from the outcomes of the uncertainties that are there.

Contingency Planning Policy Statement

Contingency Planning Policy Statement Disaster Recovery Planning plays a most vital part in major industries where stored information or so called data plays the key role. Every business organization can be subjected to serious incidents or accidents which can prevent it from continuing day-day or normal operations and may cause in huge loss in terms of time as well as money. These incidents can happen at any day and at anytime, these causes can be natural calamities, human errors and system malfunctions. All Disaster Recovery planning needs to encompass how employees will communicate, where they will go and how they will keep doing their jobs. The details can vary greatly, depending on the size and scope of an organization and the way it does business. For some businesses, issues such as supply chain logistics are most crucial and are the focus on the plan. For others, information technology may play a more pivotal role, and the Disaster Recovery plan may have more of a focus on systems recovery. In this paper we are go ing to primarily discuss about steps to implement an actual disaster recovery plan. Below is the brief description of how the plan is implemented. Developing a contingency planning policy statement Conducting the business impact analysis (BIA) Identifying preventive controls Developing recovery strategies Developing a contingency plan Planning, testing, training and exercises Planning maintenance activities All the above steps are planned and performed taking all factors of the business into consideration. We shall also discuss the limitations of implementing such a plan. We shall also include real time examples and the successful results yielded by implementing the Disaster Recovery Plan. So this plans would act like a backup recovery process or a kind of business continuity solution while the actual system goes offline or corrupted. DISASTER RECOVERY PLANNING Have we ever imagined as to what would happen if we belong to a business and we lose critical data or information due to some errors like human errors or a server crash or a lost computer or any natural calamity? Such kind of loss of information could lead to major losses in information in turn would affect the company in term of time and money and in this current world where recession has struck real bad the stakes are even higher. Protection information or data in a company is one of the major tasks or responsibility a company should take, such is the time where the disaster recovery planning would come in great help. Disasters strike untimely in many forms like natural disasters, computer errors or human errors. These kinds of disasters could lead to major catastrophe in the companys future. Disaster Recovery Planning is a procedure or a plan which protects the business data and in case of a calamity would help in continuity of business operations with the least loss amount in ter ms of time and money. The terrorist 9/11 attacks on the United States are one of such great examples in history for many organization decision makers to focus on the need for disaster recovery. There was huge loss of data and resulted in great loss of money and jolted the market for a few months. Business continuity and Disaster Recovery are major components which help to ensure that systems essential to the operation of the organization are available when needed. The term disaster took to a new height after the 9/11 events, before many business used to think disasters in terms of natural calamities or computer errors. Some events occur in such a way that it may take months or even years to recover. Sources say that till date, 70% of small businesses in the U.S. experienced a data loss in the past year due to technical or human disaster alone [AMI U.S. Small Business 2009 Annual Overview]. 1Over years many companied have started to realize the importance of this recovery planning an d business continuity. Sources even say that the companies which have actually using these plans are very happy and secure and scare for any type of disaster has been reduced. Sources say that from the year 2000 there has been a gradual increase in the companies who have started to implement the Disaster Recovery solution and the Business continuity solutions. The IT business has always been a target for many hackers and terrorist organizations all over the world. Over the years IT has improved and has been a major source of money as well as information. The security in the IT organization has always been a question mark as through the years, many disasters have occurred and there has been huge loss of data. In the early years IT companies has always been the target as the security measures werent that strong, they were used to be called as Single Point of Failures. So with the increasing threats from external organization, recovery plans and solutions have started to improve and ga ined lot of Interest over the years. IBM was an organization which had made a major influence in the market in providing the recovery solutions. Many companies initially thought that the implementation of these disaster recovery plans could be really expensive and had to deal with a lot of money, but they soon realized the loss occurred during a disaster is far more than the amount required to invest for the solutions. The primary reason in order to implement this kind of solution is: To implement accurate and continuous critical records, data backup, and off-site storage. To develop various strategies in order to provide alternative sites for business operations. To construct a contingency organization. To resume business operations with the loss of least amount of time and money. The following are the key steps or procedures which are needed to be followed in order to implement a disaster recovery plan: Developing a contingency planning policy statement Conducting the business impact analysis (BIA) Identifying preventive controls Developing recovery strategies Developing a contingency plan Planning, testing, training and exercises Planning maintenance activities CONTINGENCY PLANNING POLICY STATEMENT According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the following statement means that it is a set of management policies and procedures designed to maintain and restore business operations, possibly at an alternate location in the event of emergency, system failure or disaster.-2 This is one major component in the disaster recovery planning. In this, a plan is laid down keeping all the emergency situations in mind and preparation for any kind of disasters which may occur at any point of time. The policy statement is really talks about communication between management and those responsible for developing the plan. Keeping in view the driving goals of the project and the level of financial resources and other resources, the particular people who are involved and are to be responsible, this policy statement gives everything that the planners need to work out options in order to achieve the organizations goals. It also provides the scope to planners to interact with the management in case they need to re-assess the organization goals and resources from time to time. The importance of this step is not just for preparing the plan for the DR implementation but also at this step a major amount of cost is involved than the other phases of the DR implementation. Here a re the key points that the policy statement should address: What kind of disaster does the organization intend to cover? What do the organizations need to accomplish? How much time would it take in order to get things back to normal state? Where does the responsibility of the plan and planners end? How to take advantage of the crisis situation in order to improve your organization image with the stake holders? What level of system should be covered in case of any crisis? What is the maximum level of resources that the plan can command during the preparation, implementation, testing and maintenance? The initial draft for this plan may set goals that turn out to be impossible under the resource constraints specified. But as the time passes we need re-evaluate the policy and adjust the goals and resources according the situations. BUSINESS IMPACT ANALYSIS The primary purpose of this step is to ensure that everything is protected without any loss of resources. This will also facilitate as to how quickly the business operation should have to return to full operations in case a disaster occurs. These are analyzed and identified on the basis of the worst-case scenario which may occur that assumes that the physical infrastructure supporting each respective business unit would be destroyed and all records, equipment, etc. are not accessible within 30 days. The main objectives of the business impact analysis (BIA) are as follows: Estimating on what scale on each business unit can be affected financially, considering the worst case scenarios Estimating on what scale on the operations of each business unit can be affected considering the worse case scenarios. Identifying and estimating the amount of personnel required for recovery operations. Estimating the time frame required for each business unit, considering the worst case scenarios. The key business processes that act as backbones to the organizations ability to carry out its business are identified and the requirements that drive these processes are also analyzed. The above processes can be identified and sorted in two different ways. Outside-In Analysis: This analysis is conducted in consideration with external stake holders, outside suppliers and internal departments which depend on IT services. The outside-in analysis focuses on whole systems, at each layer taking into consideration, the current process or system as distinct from the users or other systems that depend on it and via versa. Depending on the overall complexity of your business and how it makes the ideal solution to divide things up in the context, we may end up with just a single layer or with many of them. Inside-Out Analysis: The inside-out phase primarily focuses on resources that are required in each layer in order to provide the services that have been identified in the Outside-In phase which covers everything from the core system to the IT resources in the organizations. Then for each of the above we shall determine the impact of a disaster which may cause disruption or damage of the resource on the functioning of the system and its ability to deliver the services on which other layers depend on. Then we determine the maximum time wastage due to the disaster test we conducted on each of the services on the basis of what other layers are dependent on these services. We shall also include in the analysis any indirect effects which were caused by the disaster on these services. The BIA Report should be presented to the Steering Committee PREVENTIVE MEASURES There has been a simple formula for determining the risk associated financially with a given type of disaster; $R=P*C*T where P is the probability that the disaster will occur, C is the hourly or daily cost of downtime in lost productivity, lost revenue, etc. and T is time outage. The primary purpose of this step is to reduce the time outage, which are also the main purposes of the DR plan. Since the risk and the other factor are directly proportional to the time outage associated, hence the reduction of time is the primary responsibility of this task. At the same time the reduction of the other two factors which is the probability of the occurrence of the disaster and the cost due to the downtime are equally important. So minimizing all the three factors would result in the least risk possible. Generally sources say that the cost of preventing a problem is far lower than the cost of fixing it after it occurs. Let us now look into how we can identify the above factors. Firstly the pr obability of disaster occurring is generally is the toughest one to say. Natural calamities come and strike without a sign. The only way to prevent them is to make the organization sites in safe places. Next is the computer malfunction or server crash, these can be prevented by regular maintenance, constant tracking through performance monitors, proper vigilance and good security. Secondly is the cost reduction, there should be maintenance in such a way that generally if by chance there has been any damage the system should be protected. We should not be in a position to replace and get a new one. Generally the cost associated in installing a new machine is always higher than the maintenance cost put on it. Even the cost of downtime can be reduced by reducing the organizations dependence on the system. Thirdly is the time outage, we need to have special ops teams which should act readily to any situational catastrophe. So by reducing all the above factors we can reduce the probabili ty of risk on the organization. RECOVERY STRATERGIES The primary task of this step is to determine how we have to achieve the disaster recovery goals for each of the systems and system components that were identified in the Business Impact Analysis. It is here that we do the core work of balancing costs and benefits of the available approaches. This step is not just about selecting specific vendors, determining exact costs, or developing detailed procedures, but the main purpose in this stage is to select the types of solution that you will use and to determine the scales of the costs involved. There are a set of consideration we need to follow while going through this phase. Firstly, we need to consider exactly what type of disasters may occur and classify them into different types based on the effectiveness Secondly; we need to consider solutions of differing range of coverage i.e. we need to determine solutions which can protect on the site failures as such a solution can also protect the system and its components. Lastly we need to consider are the characteristics of infrastructure, human and data aspects of recovery. Each of the above three factors should be considered separately and we should determine what type of solution and the cost associated for the solution. Out of the above three factors Infrastructure recovery is the simplest. The best feature of infrastructure is that it can be replaced easily. People are considered more difficult factors. Every personnel in the company are associated with particular skills and accordingly they are assigned roles. So if a recovery strategy is needed to be implemented on these people, suppose if a personnel has been fired or he quits then finding another personnel of the same skill set and roles is always an additional cost ,since we need to play better salaries. Thirdly it is the data; this cannot be replaced at any cost. Once a data is lost cannot be recovered at any cost. What we need to determine is to what extent of data we can lose and identify which is the c ritical data and we need to protect it accordingly. Once this is done, we have to note the recovery strategies for each system on the Master System Information form. DEVELOP THE CONTINGENCY PLAN This step is the apex or the peak activity of all your work. The main outcome of this phase is the documented plan and the complete implementation of the infrastructure in order to implement the plan. This documented plan includes each and every information of assumptions, constraints and specific procedure needed to be implemented. The implementation phase contains all the purchasing and setup of all the hardware and implementation at the sites, communication services etc. This phase itself is run by a team, just like a team which handles projects. Team which consists of different expertise with fixed timelines and deadlines. According to the NIST guide the following are some aspects or steps which needed to be followed during the plan. 1. Introduction: Here the main task is to document the goals and scope of the plan, along with any requirements that must be taken into account whenever the plan is updated. 2. Operational Overview: The purpose of this section is to provide a concise picture of the plans overall approach. It contains essentially two types of information: (1) a high-level overview of the systems being protected and the recovery strategies employed and (2) a description of the recovery teams and their roles. 3. Notification/Activation Phase: According to the NIST guide this phase defines the initial actions taken once a system disruption or emergency has been detected or appears to be imminent. This phase includes activities like notifying recovery personnel, assessing system damage and implementation of the plan. At the completion of this phase, recovery staff will be prepared to perform contingency measures to restore system functions on a temporary basis. 4. Recovery Phase: This section of the plan is one that documents in detail the solutions to be used to recover each system and the procedures required to carry out the recovery and restore operational activities. 5. Reconstitution Phase: This is the last of the three sections of the plan. As per the NIST guide this phase is where the recovery activities are terminated and normal operations are transferred back to the organizations facility. If the original facility is unrecoverable, the activities in this phase can also be applied to preparing a new facility to support system processing requirements. 6. Appendices: The appendices contains any information that (a) is necessary as reference material during recovery, (b) may be necessary during any revision of the plan, or (c) documents legal agreements. PLANNING TESTING TRAINING AND EXERCICES In this fast moving modern information technology world, with the change in time and things, many hardware components are replaced, softwares are upgraded, networks are reconfigured, data sizes grow. All the above factors play a major impact on the performance of the disaster recovery systems. Testing and exercising goals are established and alternative testing strategies are evaluated from time to time. Each and every procedure required for testing should be properly documented from time to time. Initially the testing should be done in sections and should be conducted after the office hours. Below are some types of testing: Check List Testing Simulation Testing Parallel Testing Full Interruption Testing Although these systems were fully tested when first installed, but the system is dynamic in nature, so proper training should be given to personnel from time to time. We need to conduct exercises from time to time to check the status and under different condition with the help from all the personnel in the organization. Once the plan has been properly tested and documented it should be approved by the top management to start off. The management would take all the responsibility of preparation of policies, procedure, responsibilities and tasks associated with it. It should make sure that they review the contingency plan at least annually and re-assess and approve it. At the same it should be responsible in making limitations and constraints. Proper implementation of the above all factors will lead to a smooth start up and helps the DR plan successful. PLAN MAINTAINENCE After developing a disaster recovery plan, it is equally important to ensure that the plan accurately runs accordingly to the current requirements and systems. There are three places, at which the plan can be reviewed firstly, during testing annually or semiannually, and secondly when changes are made in either the IT systems being protected or in the business processes they support. The first of the above two falls in the responsibility of the top management in the disaster recovery planning and so has to be done on a regular basis. The last requires that consideration of the impact of the changes on the disaster recovery plan to be introduced as a standard consideration in procedures that are outside the scope of direct concern of those responsible for the DR plan. SUMMARY The world is fast changing and organizations need to be prepared for natural or manmade disasters that could disrupt business processes. Customers and millions of dollars could potentially be lost and never be recovered if business processes are disrupted. The Business Continuity Plan helps resume the business processes and the Disaster Recovery Plan helps resume the IT systems. The core objective of a Disaster Recovery Plan is to restore the operability of systems that support mission-critical and critical business processes to normal operation as quickly as possible. Business continuity planning integrates the business resumption plan, occupant emergency plan, incident management plan, continuity of operations plan, and disaster recovery plan. Personnel from each major business unit should be included as members of the team and part of all disaster recovery planning activities. These people need to understand the business processes, technology behind those processes, networks, and systems in order to create the disaster recovery plan. Applications and systems are identified by the team that is mission-critical and critical to the organization. There would be a specialist disaster recovery team which will be responsible for training, implementing, and maintaining the plan. They will possess unique skills, knowledge, and abilities that should be updated in the plan. A Disaster Recovery Plan that is well developed, trained on, and maintained, will minimize loss and ensure continuity of critical business processes in the event of disaster.

School Days are the Happiest Days of your Life? :: Creative Writing Examples

School Days are the Happiest Days of your Life? When I was given this assignment, my initial reaction was this is easy! Half an hours writing- homework complete. Fifteen minutes later I find that it is incredibly difficult to sort out the jumble of thoughts, memories and feelings, that are fighting each other in the race to be the first to blot this pristine white page.(melodramatic, but true) I suppose I could take the easy way out, and write that looking back; my school days were happy, carefree days. The sun always shone. I had no real worries. Friends were plentiful and life was all about, fun, fun, fun. Well I could, but that would entail not being completely honest. I mean, certainly a not immodest percentage of school, (compared with life today) was carefree but by no means all of it. My over-riding recollections of school are the memories of never quite fitting in; the never quite making it into the 'in crowd.' Not that I wanted in, you understand. I wanted to be different (not another lemming) just not so different that I stood out. I blame my mother for that mentality for she drummed it into us all. If I spoke the usual refrain," but all my friends are her response was always." if your friend stuck her hand in the fire- would you do it too?" Well the answer to that was no, and when you said so, mum would smile and say," of course not love, you have your own mind. You're not a lemming; don't be afraid to be different." I was left feeling proud of myself for being 'different', but oh God, I still wanted that denim jacket, or those Adidas trainers, or to stay out for that extra half an hour; or the myriad of other 'things' that would have enabled me to fit in. Money was always tight when I was at school. With four kids to buy for - I feel mum used the lemming story no us, just so she wouldn't have to say "I can't afford it." At school, every deficit, both real and imagined between you and the 'in crowd' made you insecure. It could be your haircut, shoes or even just the number of pleats our gym skirt had. (Mine had none.) Plain skirts were cheaper. Positive Body Image, or lack of it in my case, was a major problem. I went through school convinced that I was fat and ugly. Fat!? I was only 81/2 stones! I would kill to be that weight again - and as for my

Obesity Lawsuits by Nancy Hall Essay -- Analysis, Nancy Hall

In Nancy Hall's "Obesity Lawsuits" (2004) essay, Hall is determined to address the problem constantly growing and silently taking lives in America every day, obesity. The author goes on to argue that people should not be suing "fast food companies" (Hall, 2004, p. 113), but rather look at themselves to blame for becoming obese. Americans need to think about their own decisions routinely, exercise to keep the extra weight off and choose meals that are healthier (Hall, 2004). The authors thesis states: "Listening to the subtle nuance emerging from legal debate, we can hear a discernable message that clearly spells out the desperate need for further study, public awareness, and education on obesity in America" (Hall, 2004, p.114). Even though Nancy Hall is not educated on obesity nor holds a degree in Health Sciences, the article is still persuasive because of the emotion placed into words pursued by direct and solid facts laid out on paper (Hall, 2004). Throughout the article, Hall (2004) uses facts and data to show readers how big of a growing concern obesity is becoming in America. However, Johnson-Sheehan & Paine (2010, p. 172) state that "...logos involves more than using logic to prove a point. Logos also involves appealing to someone else's common sense and using examples to demonstrate a point". In the beginning of the paper Hall, uses logos to impact the reader right away and capture their attention . One the author gathers facts from different sources, who have education dealing with obesity and other health fields (Hall, 2004). For instance, Hall quotes "Lisa Harnack and Simone French, associate professors in the Division of Epidemiology, School of Public Health at the Rhetorical Analysis 3 University of ... ...ence, but the author gathered data from those who are educated in those areas of study. Digging deep in past research, the writer finds experts from areas of study, relating to obesity and other health fields. Since the researchers are experts in those areas, this makes their data solid and reliable to use in her argument (Hall, 2004). Rhetorical Analysis 6 In conclusion, Nancy Hall's "Obesity Lawsuits" (2004), implies solid facts, uses an emotional appeal, and valid points to support her standing on this topic. Overall, Hall's argument is good because of all the techniques used to convey her point and sway the readers' opinion. Hall thinks that the lawsuits will cover up the growing problem in America and not resolve anything. Hall's strong argument will turn the focus from the courts to city streets, in an effort to stop obesity (Hall, 2004).

A Skittle of Milk Essay

â€Å"a skittle of milk† The metaphor, â€Å"skittle of milk,† is very effective. The inclusion of the detail of, â€Å"milk,† is particularly effective. The white colour of the milk reflects the purity and innocent mind of the persona. Highlighting that Duffy is in her youth and is inexperienced. The comparison of milk bottles to skittles is also effective. It reminds us of games played at school highlighting how innocent the poet was. This shows how enjoyable school was for the persona which helps draw in the reader into the poem through these common experiences. OPINION – Personally I feel that I could relate to this as I am familiar with the primary school environment. I feel Duffy’s use of the metaphor quite compelling. â€Å"The classroom glowed like a sweetshop.† The simile, â€Å"The classroom glowed like a sweetshop,† is comparing the class, what would be for a child , a colourful place: to a sweetshop. This creates a very positive about the classroom. The word, â€Å"glowed,† creates a very warm, colourful and comfortable atmosphere. It reflects the enthusiasm and delight that appeared on the children’s faces when they entered the room. They were thrilled and excited to be there. A sweetshop is usually the best place in the world to a child, and being there would create an excitement amongst friends. This emphasises how much the children loved being there and how magnificent this classroom was. OPNION – Reading this simile aroused my senses fully and let my mind remember how amazing sweet shops really were as a child, therefore developing my understanding of how much the young Carol Ann Duffy enjoyed her classroom. This is a really clever way of connecting with the reader. â€Å"Brady and Hindley faded, like the faint, uneasy smudge of a mistake.† The simile, â€Å"Brady and Hindley faded, like the faint, uneasy smudge of a mistake,† is very effective. The child murderers Brady and Hindley were horrifying and faded when they were alive. During Duffy’s childhood every single child would have been petrified of them. Their presence would have been felt due to the extensive media coverage of their crimes at the time. By saying, â€Å"faded like the faint, uneasy smudge of a mistake,† Duffy is suggesting the children were able to put them to the back of their minds when in the classroom. This emphasises the nurturing environment, â€Å"Mrs Tilscher loved you,† and the security felt in the class. This lets us know the teacher was a very protective and caring person, making the children feel no need to be insecure or afraid. OPINION – This is a very clear demonstration of the comforting environment many people experience in primary school. It’s also a very clever way of highlighting how much certainty the persona has that the teacher loves her, she feels welcome and important. â€Å"Laugh of a bell† The personification of the bell emphasises the positive experience the narrator has of school. The words, â€Å"running child,† demonstrate the sense of freedom and amusement children felt in primary school. It suggests keenness and eagerness of school emphasising the positive experience. The word, â€Å"laugh,† also highlights the merriment the children felt demonstrating the positive and cheerful atmosphere of the poem. However, the bell may also be a clever symbol that change awaits the poet and starts to include the sense of the poem within the poem. But, because the bell is being swung by a child it contrasts the bell which signifies lunch or break demonstrating the sense of freedom and joyous mood of the poem. OPINION – I feel that through this use of personification Duffy really sets the positive atmosphere of the poem and sucks in the reader through the  arousal of our senses. â€Å"inky tadpoles changed from commas into exclamation marks.† The metaphor, â€Å"inky tadpoles changed from commas into exclamation marks,† is very effective in getting the reader aware of the passage of time. The function of the exclamation mark is to highlight alarm and show that something unfamiliar is about to change. Of course Duffy here is referring to puberty and the beginning of adolescence. The word, â€Å"inky,† also reminds me of ink wells at school and how they spread across your page. This links to the unknown boundaries Duffy is about to experience. When tadpoles develop into frogs they is no resemblance between them. This relates to Duffy changing physically and shows signs of loss of innocence. OPINION – Duffy’s use of this metaphor has dramatic impact and allows the reader to relate to it as it is a part of life that everyone experiences. MEDUSA â€Å"grey bags of my lungs† The metaphor, â€Å"grey bags of my lungs,† is comparing the colour grey to the condition of her lungs. The word â€Å"grey† suggests something rotten, decayed, dirty and something that has a disgusting appearance. Next the word â€Å"bags† makes me think of something pathetic, deflated and something that is useless. This is effective in describing the conditions of medusa’s lungs – they are not very healthy, they aren’t functioning properly and are wasting away. This is because of her depression and how she is wasting away. OPINION – Personally I think Carol Ann Duffy’s use of the metaphor is very effective in conveying the state of her internally. It also arouses my sympathy towards medusa – it must be difficult dealing with her depression. â€Å"bullet tears in my eyes† The metaphor, â€Å"bullet tears in my eyes,† is comparing the power of her look to a bullet. The word, â€Å"bullet,† conveys something dangerous and harmful. Gives the sense that something is deadly. Next the word, â€Å"tears,† is reflecting Medusa’s emotions and suggests that she is vulnerable. But Medusa has no weakness as her tears (eyes) are deadly hence they are being compared to a, â€Å"bullet.† This reflects the power of Medusa’s eyes: they are a deadly weapon and can kill at the sight of them. It also allows me to connect with the poem as I too know what being upset feels like, it’s an ordinary human emotion. OPINION – In my opinion I think Carol Ann Duffy is very clever in revealing the fact that even though Medusa is crying she isn’t vulnerable. It links back to the condition of her, although she is depressed and heartbroken inside she isn’t weak or unable to defend herself. â€Å"Greek God† The metaphor, â€Å"Greek God,† is comparing the man she is deeply in love with to a Greek God. The phrase, â€Å"Greek God,† suggests the man she adores is perfect and is an Adonise, thus making him the most attractive and handsome man in all the land. It also makes him seem very powerful and heroic. He is an admirable figure to all the other men and people should aspire to be like him. The word, â€Å"perfect,† is also placed before the metaphor suggesting that Medusa’s lover has no flaw at all. However this is a contradiction to what she feels now. Since Medusa believed this man was, â€Å"perfect,† and was a man she felt strongly in love with, she finds it difficult to accept he isn’t actually perfect. As for him betraying her and going against her, she has started to realise the harm he has clearly caused her. Clearly this demonstrates how in love Medusa felt with this man which makes it easier to understand why she is in pain and feels sorrow over what has happened. OPINION – Personally, I think this is effective as it is easy to relate to. Everyone has that feeling, that someone special is perfect and like no other person in the world. But, in the end you are heartbroken when you find out it’s not true. â€Å"shield for a heart† The metaphor, â€Å"shield for a heart,† is comparing the ability of the man to express his emotion to a weapon of defence. Using the word, â€Å"shield,† suggests that the man is very defensive and isn’t capable of feeling the emotion of love. The fact he isn’t capable of this makes him quite arrogant. He is able just to go form girl to girl and not feel any regret or pain about leaving them. This image could also express that the man she is in love with isn’t open to feeling in love or is able to show it. He can’t open up and convey his emotions to other’s because he is so defensive. As well as this the image could also portray that her lover is very powerful and fearless because of his â€Å"shield for a heart.† Highlighting he is a very cold man and incapable of experiencing the feeling of real love. OPINION – I feel that this man is totally wrong. How could someone feel no love towards or very little love towards others? It’s disappointing that Medusa felt so strongly towards this man yet he cant return any feelings. â€Å"sword for a tongue† This metaphor, â€Å"sword for a tongue,† is comparing a weapon capable of killing someone to the strength and power of her lover’s words. They are able to hurt someone and cause great harm like the power of a sword. It demonstrates the harshness and sharpness of his words like the sharp blade of a sword. It also once again reflects how arrogant he is because he doesn’t realise how hurtful his words are to the woman who admires him in every way. OPINION – Duffy expresses this man’s arrogance very well. It makes me see how cruel and hurtful this man really is and personally Medusa has the right to feel that heartbroken and distraught at what’s happened to her. â€Å"Fire spewed from the mouth of a mountain† The personification of, â€Å"Fire spewed form the mouth of a mountain,† is a very  effective image. This is showing the extent of Medusa’s power as she was able to turn a dragon into a volcano. This is creating a very violent image which is reflecting the aggressiveness of Medusas’ acts on innocent creatures. Carol Ann Duffy, also uses the word â€Å"spewed† to highlight Medusa is so hurt and angered by what has happened to her. It creates a feeling of disgust within the reader. It also dramitifies everything that has happened to Medusa and once agai9n conveys her feeling of fury. OPINION – I feel sympathy towards Medusa at this point. She has been betrayed by the man she adored and was deeply in love with which has caused her to go on a killing spree of killing innocent creatures. STEALING â€Å"He looked magnificent; a tall, white mute beneath the winter moon.† Within stanza one there is a constant repetition of the letter ‘m’. This alliteration is a soft sound and creates an eerie atmosphere within the poem. It also creates an eerie feeling within the reader. This quiet sounding alliteration coupled with the single word sentence, â€Å"Midnight,† has a dramatic impact and sets a ghostly and frightening scene. The word choice of, â€Å"Midnight,† also emphasises the setting was late, and dark and was potentially a threatening time to be wondering around alone. This is an excellent way of setting the sinister tone of the stanza leading up to the first unusual theft. OPINION – I thought this was a very effective way of setting the atmosphere of the poem. It aroused suspense within me, I felt as though a chill pumped round my body and I was eager to read on. â€Å"A fierce chill piercing my gut.† In the second stanza Duffy makes clever use of the metaphor, â€Å"a fierce chill piercing my gut.† This is emphasising the cold and angry nature of the character. The words, â€Å"Fierce,† and, â€Å"Piercing,† both convey an inner pain  within the persona because of this violent language. Also continuing the threatening atmosphere that was created in the previous stanza. This suggests the boy is quite an aggressive person and this idea is confirmed later on in the poem. This aggression could possibly be a defensive consequence of the emotional pain he suffers inside. The character then goes onto say,† Life’s tough.† This is a very blunt statement which has a harshness behind it. He feels as though he is teaching others a lesson from his experiences. This conveys he may have had a tough, difficult and rough upbringing making him feel like an outcast from society. Again, the harsh tone comes across from this statement showing he had no sympathy or pity toward the people he was hurting. Emphasising how cruel and callous this person really is. OPINON – I found this metaphor to be particularly effective in revealing more about the persona in the poem. In a way it arouses sympathy towards the character because of the rough childhood he has probably experienced. However it doesn’t give him the right to harm others and cause them pain. â€Å"a mind as cold as the slice of ice within my own brain.† The simile, â€Å"a mind as cold as the slice of ice within my own brain,† conveys a person who is very numb to emotion and cold-hearted. It reveals that that the boy likes to think of himself as being unemotional and heatless. The internal rhyme, â€Å"slice of ice,†Ã¢â‚¬  starts to introduce painful images of the poem which expresses the anger and hate the character has inside him. At this point the snowman also seems to be a symbol for the cold and loneliness of the persona’s situation. The previous use of the word, â€Å"mate,† shows he craves for a companion with an ice-cold mind, which is unusual as friendship is usually associated with warmth. The boy is admitting that his brain is too full of ice that he cannot appreciate true friendship and that he is twisted inside revealing a lack of compassion. OPINION – Personally I think Duffy has really demonstrated how sometimes people do feel when they have had a tough life and feel alienated within society. It really allows me to imagine the twisted emotion and â€Å"thrill to  hurt† that goes on within this boy. â€Å"mucky ghost† The metaphor, â€Å"mucky ghost,† is very effective in expressing the persona’s isolation. The word, â€Å"ghost,† is very important. It creates a malevolent image emphasising the boy feels alienated. He is an invisible person who can meander through people’s homes leaving no traces. It feels as though he isn’t important and because he is an outcast he has to â€Å"steal† to prove his part in society. Ghosts are also things that are non-existent revealing that the persona might not even see himself as an ordinary person. This idea is confirmed at the end of the poem when he says, â€Å"You don’t even understand a word im saying, do you?† Reflecting that the boy feels like no-one can understand him, he is one of a kind and will always be an outcast. By mentioning ghost this re-establishes the ominous and frightening atmosphere shown in stanza one. Symbolising the isolation this character feels and the chilling setting of the poem. OPINION – I found the poets comparison very effective. The constant use of colours (white and blue) really vivifies the bitterness of the character and his heartless nature. â€Å"My breath ripped out in rags.† The metaphor, â€Å"my breath ripped out in rags,† is an aggressive image and reflects the cruelness and callousness of the persona. The word, â€Å"ripped,† highlights the violent language of the poem and has a dramatic impact on the reader making them feel the pain and chill inside the character. The alliteration and sibilance of the letter â€Å"s† again emphasises the harsh and callous nature of the boy. The line is also separated by enablement. This mimics his jerky, flustered, breathing pattern as he goes about the destruction of the snowman. The word, â€Å"rags,† is something withy no value. This echoes both the worthlessness of the persona and the worthlessness of the acts he is committing. He then says, â€Å"sick of the world.† This for me arouses sympathy as it is almost a cry for help and that he wants a better  life. He cant cope anymore with the isolation and this be the real reason behind the pointless thefts ands the anger within him. OPINION – I did feel empathy for the boy at this point in the poem as unless you know what being alienated feels like you cant understand how much internal pain it causes you. On the other hand taking it out on others is not fair and this creates dislike within me for the persona.

Iron Crowned Chapter 9

I propped myself up so that I could look Dorian in the face. Even in dim lighting, I could see he was serious. â€Å"Who, Kiyo?† I asked in astonishment. â€Å"No, the other annoying kitsune in your life.† â€Å"Why would you †¦ why would you suggest something like that?† â€Å"Excellent question,† he murmured. His brow furrowed in thought, then relaxed into resignation. â€Å"Because his human blood would protect him and – my personal opinions of him aside – he is a good asset in a fight. Most importantly, he would have no interest in the crown. Nor would it be of any use to him.† Every one of those things was true. But there was one obvious problem. â€Å"Kiyo wouldn't help me. Not anymore. Jasmine would be more willing – if only for a chance to escape.† The argument that Kiyo and I had had in the mountains was still fresh in my head. This brought a smile to Dorian's lips, and he trailed his fingertips down my arm. â€Å"You doubt your own charms. The kitsune will help you, if you ask him nicely. He's not over you as much as you think. And he too would jump at the chance at some foolhardy way to end this war.† â€Å"Foolhardy †¦ You've gone back and forth on the usefulness of the crown yourself. And now you're willing to – † I almost said â€Å"allow† but recalled my earlier words. Dorian didn't dictate my life. † – accept me going off with my ex-boyfriend?† â€Å"This is an acceptable solution. Still dangerous †¦ but I believe you two could manage it. And I trust you,† Dorian said simply. â€Å"As you trust me.† I stared down into his eyes, dark in the flickering torchlight, though the striking shape of his face and fair skin glowed like a masterpiece in marble. â€Å"I do trust you.† He smiled again. â€Å"Good. We'll make plans in the morning. But for now †¦Ã¢â‚¬  The smile gave way to a yawn. â€Å"I need sleep. This has been a long day.† It was true. He'd been part of an epic battle and then made love – or whatever you wanted to classify that kinky shit as – like a pro. My day had been pretty busy too, to say the least. I put my head down, wrapping back against him, and soon slept in spite of the shocking suggestion he'd just made. When we woke, however, the crown became our immediate breakfast topic. We'd opted for private dining at a small table in the sitting room adjacent to his bedroom. After hearing about my traipsing about in his too-long robe, he'd had my own made for these slumber parties: white velvet with gold embroidery. It was a bit more elaborate than I would have preferred but felt nice against my bare skin. The wounds certainly appreciated loose clothing too. â€Å"Invite him to your castle,† said Dorian. Fully rested, he'd shifted completely into cunning mode, barely touching the elaborate spread of pastries and meats his servants had set before us. â€Å"The gods know he won't come here.† â€Å"Or Tucson,† I suggested after swallowing a gentry version of a cinnamon roll. Maybe I could get Tim the recipe. â€Å"He'd probably come to my house there.† Dorian considered. â€Å"No. Get him to this world, to your domain, so that you can leave as soon as possible. Above all, you must not – under any circumstances – allow him to go back to Maiwenn and consult her on this.† I swallowed another bite and smiled. â€Å"You think she'd be jealous?† â€Å"That's the least of our reasons.† He ticked them off on his fingers. â€Å"Remember – she fears you. Us. She wouldn't see this as an end to the war. She'd see it as you scrambling for power. And, who knows? The kitsune might have no use for the crown himself, but she could coax him into bringing it to her.† â€Å"She's not vying for power, last I knew. Besides – it's winning the crown that's the big deal, right? If it was just given to her, no one would respect her for it. If it can even be given †¦ I thought it returns home when it's away from its victor.† Dorian didn't respond right away. â€Å"True. But then that would still keep the crown from you. And we mustn't forget she might simply talk him out of it because of simple concern for his life.† Dorian's tone implied this was a petty concern. â€Å"No, don't give him a chance to talk to her. Invite him to you and ask – beg, if need be – for his help. Stress whatever urgent reason will work. A need to end the war. Make up some ultimatum from the ghost.† I set the roll down and tapped my water glass absentmindedly. This was all starting to make me feel strange. â€Å"There's a lot of conniving here.† â€Å"There always is in politics. In war. In love, even. But this can help us – more than you can imagine. We must put our faith in the old adage that the ends justify the means.† I sighed. â€Å"Okay, then. I'll do it. When?† â€Å"As soon as possible. Katrice is regrouping. We can take advantage of that.† That smooth, calculating air faded. â€Å"Though I hate to lose you.† â€Å"Hey.† I reached across the table and laid my hand over his. â€Å"Don't think of it as ‘losing' me. It's just like I'm going to Tucson for a few days.† He grimaced. â€Å"Except your petty human job doesn't carry such risks. Fetches aside. I do wish you'd let my healers take care of those wounds before you go.† The stitched-up cut itched, though the rest weren't bothering me. I tested the range of motion on my left arm. It was stiff but moved. â€Å"Let your healers keep working here. Maybe I'll have Shaya fix it up.† She didn't possess the skill of a bona fide healer but could do some quick patches. Dorian didn't like that but let the matter go. We finished breakfast, rehashing what little he knew about the path to the Iron Crown. I shed my robe for my normal clothes, after first having one of his servants clean and re-bandage my back. My mother would be proud, seeing me follow doctor's orders. We didn't know where Kiyo was exactly, here or the human world, but Dorian sent a messenger to Maiwenn's court, inviting him to mine. No one from our lands would be welcomed with open arms in her territory, but she'd allow a messenger through and hopefully let us know if he wasn't currently in the Otherworld. I also sent Volusian to Tim and Lara, warning I'd be gone for a while and to cancel all my appointments. Lara wouldn't like that, but I had a feeling it would be the least of her worries when faced with Volusian for the first time. When the time for me to leave came, Dorian couldn't hide his conflicted feelings. The part of him always striving for advantage and control wanted that crown. The part of him that loved me worried about what I was walking into. â€Å"It'll be okay,† I said, wrapping my arms around him. â€Å"I'm Storm King's daughter, remember? This'll be cake. And hey, if that ghost's lying, I'll be back tonight.† â€Å"I don't know if I'd prefer that or not,† he mused. He rested his hand behind my neck and gave me a long, lingering kiss. â€Å"Be careful, Eugenie. Fight hard, but be careful. And take this.† From a hidden pocket in his cloak, he produced something glittering and handed it to me. I held it up. It was a ring, hanging on a fine chain. Both were made of gold. A diamond flanked by sapphires sat prominently on the ring, which was fashioned to look like a circle of leaves. â€Å"Is this magic?† I asked. He shook his head. â€Å"Just something to remember me by. Just something to think about.† I eyed him carefully. Marriage happened among the gentry, though not as often as among humans. Considering our divorce rate, maybe that was smart. They didn't give engagement rings like humans did, but he'd know my world's custom. This ring suddenly made me uneasy. â€Å"It's a thing of beauty,† he said, seeing my reaction. â€Å"For someone beautiful. I knew you wouldn't wear it on your finger, so keep it on the chain.† I nodded. Sometimes a gift was just a gift – particularly when someone was afraid his beloved might get killed soon. I kissed him again. â€Å"Thank you.† I'd come alone via the human world, so he sent an escort back to the Thorn Land with me. No one except Dorian and Masthera knew what I was going to do, but the group could sense something big was about to go down. Tension crackled around us as we traveled. Like so many, these soldiers considered Dorian and me a powerhouse. They could hardly wait to see what would happen next. Kiyo wasn't waiting for me in the Thorn Land, not that I'd expected results that quickly. No refusal had come from Maiwenn either, which I took as a good sign. â€Å"What are you and my lord planning?† asked Rurik when he saw me. â€Å"You've got that look.† â€Å"What look is that?† I asked curiously. He reminded me of Tim. â€Å"The look that says you're planning something.† I rolled my eyes. â€Å"Eloquent as ever, Rurik.† â€Å"Should I assemble fighters?† he asked, shrugging off my comment. Shaya joined us then, scrolls in her arms. â€Å"No. I do this alone. Well, not exactly. Kiyo's coming with me. I hope. He should be showing up here today.† I spoke more confidently than I felt. Despite Dorian's certainties, I still wasn't sure whether Kiyo would help or not. Rurik and Shaya exchanged glances. â€Å"Stop that,† I told them. â€Å"It's perfectly platonic. Dorian suggested it.† Rurik looked like he still had a few things to say about it, but Shaya interrupted. â€Å"The Linden King wrote back. He won't join with us – but he also won't fight against us.† â€Å"Not the best news, not the worst. We'll see if he comes crawling when his power's in dispute.† The words came out with more venom than I expected. Rurik seemed to approve. Shaya leafed through more papers. â€Å"Caria, the Laurel Queen, would like to meet with you and discuss the war, however.† I knew nothing about that land. â€Å"Have we even contacted her?† â€Å"No,† said Shaya, giving me a meaningful look. â€Å"But her kingdom borders the Linden Land.† â€Å"Ah.† I smiled. My comment to Ranelle that others would be eyeing her king's land as his power faded was true. In refusing my offer to defend against that, they'd allowed someone else to solicit me for the other side of that future dispute. â€Å"He'll regret his neutrality later. See if Caria'll meet with Dorian while I'm gone.† Dorian would understand the situation perfectly. I figured this was it and started to leave. â€Å"There's one more thing,† added Shaya, twisting a black braid in that nervous habit of hers. â€Å"Girard would like to see you.† Her unease had made me think something bad was coming, but Girard was one of the few people who rarely delivered bad news. If anything, he usually delivered gifts, always coming up with some marvelous new piece of craftsmanship. Some pieces – like Dorian's sword and Jasmine's chains – I'd commissioned specifically. Sometimes, however, inspiration struck the artist, and he'd present some intricately worked necklace or diadem that I felt certain was beyond human skill. He could even touch iron in very small amounts. â€Å"I'm sure he's made something great, but I'm not in the mood today,† I told her. â€Å"I want to see Jasmine.† â€Å"He's not here to display work. He wants to introduce you to his sister.† She looked at me expectantly and seemed surprised by my lack of reaction. â€Å"You've never heard of her? Imanuelle de la Colline?† I shook my head. â€Å"Should I have?† Shaya shrugged. â€Å"Maybe not. But I think you'll find her †¦ interesting. It'll only take a minute.† It was true I was in a hurry, but Shaya's attitude intrigued me. We went to Girard's workshop, rooms I'd given to him on the castle's outer edge in case his work ever set something on fire. He was bent over a table, fingers magically working a bundle of metal and jewels. â€Å"Another crown?† I asked with amusement. They seemed to be his favorite thing to make. Girard looked up, startled, and bowed. â€Å"No, Your Majesty. It's something Lord Rurik has requested. If you'd like another crown – â€Å" I waved him silent. â€Å"No, no. God knows I have plenty. Hardly seems like Rurik's style, though.† Girard didn't comment. Client confidentiality, I supposed. Turning, he pointed off toward the side of his workshop, and I gaped. A woman stood there, and somehow I hadn't noticed her upon entering – which seemed impossible. She and her brother shared the same dark skin and black hair, as well as a taste for bright clothing. The dress she wore was a stunning teal silk, cut shorter than most gentry dresses. Something about it gave me the impression she wore it for utility, not sexiness. â€Å"Your Majesty,† she said, sweeping me a curtsey. Also like Girard, a faintly French-sounding accent laced her words. â€Å"This is my sister, Imanuelle,† he said. Like Shaya, he seemed to expect me to know who his sister was. â€Å"It's nice to meet you,† I told her. When no one said anything, I shifted restlessly, impatient to go. Seeing this, Imanuelle strode forward, her steps graceful and liquid. â€Å"Your Majesty,† she said. â€Å"I've come to offer my services to you, should you like to hire me.† I glanced at the other faces, seeking more information, but received none. â€Å"What do you do?† I asked. â€Å"Do you work metal like Girard?† A mischievous smile crossed Imanuelle's face. She had caught on that I really didn't know who she was and appeared to enjoy that. â€Å"No. My talents are of †¦ a different nature.† I saw a slight gesture of her hand, and then suddenly, the teal silk dress turned yellow. A moment later, it changed form altogether, turning into a flowing velvet gown. Then, she wasn't Imanuelle at all. A clone of Shaya stood before me. After letting that sink in, Imanuelle returned to her original form. She bowed, as though having just performed a stage show. â€Å"I'm an illusionist,† she said. â€Å"I can make people see things that aren't there. Most importantly, I can make myself look like anything I choose.† It was one of the cooler gentry powers, but I didn't entirely see how it'd be useful for me. â€Å"So I can finally be in two places at once?† I joked. That brought another smile. â€Å"I suppose †¦ but I've honed other skills to accompany these. Ones many monarchs find useful. I †¦ get rid of problems.† Apparently guessing my confusion, Shaya sighed and dropped her usual formality. â€Å"You're better off not dancing around the subject. My queen prefers directness.† She turned to me. â€Å"Imanuelle is an assassin, Your Majesty.† Imanuelle's smile tightened a little. I think she preferred her more flowery description. â€Å"That's an ugly word for a formidable skill set.† It took me a moment to catch on. â€Å"So, you're here to – Wait. You think I'm going to hire you to, what, assassinate Katrice?† Imanuelle shrugged eloquently, and her brother spoke up for her. â€Å"Some might see that as a quick way to end the war, if I may be so bold.† Girard had picked up that I didn't like this idea at all and was understandably nervous. He valued his position with me. â€Å"It's a dirty, sneaky way to end a war!† I exclaimed. â€Å"It'd make me no better than Katrice and her bastard son.† â€Å"It would eliminate Katrice directly,† said Imanuelle. â€Å"Since she is the source of your problems. I could disguise myself as someone in her castle. Quick, easy. No other innocents need be hurt.† For a heartbeat, her words almost made sense. Then I shook my head emphatically. â€Å"No. I'm not going to stoop to that level.† Some of Imanuelle's pleasant demeanor faded. â€Å"There are monarchs who would give half their kingdoms for my services! I'm very selective. I'm doing you a great honor.† I narrowed my eyes. â€Å"You're doing me an honor?† She hesitated, realizing she was addressing one of the most formidable queens in the Otherworld. Again, Girard jumped in to save her. â€Å"Forgive our presumption, Your Majesty. We only wanted to offer it as an option.† â€Å"It's been offered,† I said bluntly. â€Å"And refused. Thank you for the ‘honor.' You're welcome to visit your brother, of course, but I'd prefer that you stay here no longer than absolutely necessary.† I turned dramatically away from them, just catching the outrage on Imanuelle's face, and strode out. Shaya hurried by my side. â€Å"Spoken like a queen,† she said. â€Å"Do I need to worry about that woman killing me now?† I asked. â€Å"Is she going to change into you and pull a knife on me?† â€Å"I'm sure you'd respond as efficiently as you do to the other attacks on you,† said Shaya dryly. â€Å"Her illusions aren't foolproof to everyone. I'm guessing Volusian could see through them if he were around. But, honestly †¦ although her pride has been hurt – she does have quite the reputation – I suspect she'll simply stalk off and leave you be, if only for her brother's sake.† â€Å"Well, that's nice. One less person trying to kill me.† I raked my hand through my hair. â€Å"Anything else I need to deal with?† That was a loaded question, of course. Shaya had a few more business matters for me to look over before I could finally see Jasmine. I hadn't talked to her after the dinner at Dorian's and felt she'd be a good distraction as I waited to see if Kiyo would come. I found her outside in one of the gardens, sitting in the shade of a mesquite tree as the sun grew higher and the heat increased. Her guards stood stoically nearby, and her fine chains glittered in the light. At my approach, she glanced up from a book. Petulant, power-hungry teen that she might be, she was also an avid reader, using fantasy to escape her mundane existence when she'd still lived among humans. This book was one I'd brought her recently, the first in a trendy series. â€Å"Is it good?† I asked, sitting down opposite her. â€Å"Not bad,† she said, playing cool. A moment later, she gave herself away. â€Å"Are there more out in the series?† â€Å"Three more, I think.† She said nothing but smiled as she set the book beside her. â€Å"Did you have fun at Dorian's?† I asked. â€Å"Yeah. It was nice to be out.† Her eyes gazed off, not really focusing on anything. â€Å"I think the best part was watching Shaya scare off all the guys hitting on me.† She turned back to me. â€Å"Is that what it's like for you all the time?† â€Å"Not since I got together with Dorian. They've slacked off – and Shaya doesn't scare them away. She abandons me.† Jasmine smiled again. â€Å"Dorian's crazy about you. Obsessed.† â€Å"That's kind of an extreme observation.† â€Å"It's true.† She brushed hair out of her eyes. The sunlight was turning it to gold, making me a little envious; I'd gotten true red from our father, rather than strawberry blond. She could wear pink. â€Å"It's good,† she continued. â€Å"His obsession. That bitch Ysabel wants him, you know. And she hates you. So does her mom.† â€Å"Yeah, I kind of figured that out.† She shrugged. â€Å"Well, then, keep Dorian close.† â€Å"I'm not worried.† â€Å"Ysabel's got kids, and you won't give him any.† I was so sick of hearing about me and procreation. â€Å"Lots of gentry women have kids. Are you saying I should worry about all of them, Little Miss Love Guru?† â€Å"Not all of them look like you. I mean, not exactly like you †¦ but I think Dorian gets off on redheads. Maybe he figures he'll have red-haired kids that way. I don't know. But, whatever. I'm just saying she's waiting there for you to slip up with Dorian. And he's already gone for her before. She's got a bigger chest than you, too.† â€Å"Hey,† I said indignantly. â€Å"That's irrelevant. Besides, he went for her – and she annoyed him. And I'm not going to ‘slip up.' He's not going anywhere.† I frowned, surprised by my next words, that I'd actually say them to her. â€Å"It's Kiyo I've got to pull in.† Jasmine's gray eyes widened in shock. â€Å"Him? He's no use to you †¦ unless, oh Jesus. You guys aren't planning some three-way, are you? I mean, I know you and Dorian get into some – â€Å" â€Å"No!† I exclaimed. â€Å"It's nothing like that. I need a favor from Kiyo, that's all. A big one. A dangerous one. I'm not sure what'll convince him.† I smiled weakly, remembering Dorian's expression when I'd showed up in the tight gentry dress. â€Å"I'd know what to do if it was Dorian.† Jasmine scoffed and gave me a scathing look. â€Å"How stupid are you? Even I know what to do if you want to suck in Kiyo. Look human.† â€Å"I am human. Who's stupid now?† Good grief. We'd advanced to snippy quarrelling. We were becoming real sisters more and more each day. â€Å"You're half human. Dorian likes that because he thinks he can knock you up †¦ but the rest? He wants you to be a queen. One of the shining ones. Kiyo doesn't. He hates all of that. He doesn't want you anywhere near it. You hooked up before you were into all the Otherworld stuff. Be like that.† I stared at her, startled because she had an excellent point. â€Å"Do I look human now?† Jasmine studied me critically. I had jeans and a T-shirt on, my hair pulled sloppily into a ponytail. My boots were sturdy, made for hiking. Plain. â€Å"Yeah,† she said, sounding surprised. â€Å"Scruffy and human. He'll be into that. Except for the ring. It's from Dorian, right? Put it under your shirt.† I touched the ring hanging on my chest, having forgotten about it. â€Å"How'd you know it was from him?† â€Å"Because you wouldn't get it for yourself, and no one else would either. It's also got oak leaves.† I peered down at it. Sure enough. I hadn't identified the leaves earlier. I followed her advice, concealing it under the shirt. She watched with approval, then seemed to really notice my shirt. â€Å"Who's Mà ¶tley Cre?† I was saved from lecturing her on classic rock when a servant scurried up to us, telling me Kiyo was here. The ease I'd felt with Jasmine vanished. I stood up, forcing calm, half-wondering if I should take her after all. No. Kiyo was the right choice. â€Å"Good luck,† Jasmine said, picking up her book. â€Å"And remember: be human.† I followed the servant away, embarrassed that I was taking advice from an insane fifteen-year-old. Except †¦ I knew she was right. I made sure my gait was casual, nothing regal. Then, I sent the servant away, deciding it'd be best to come to Kiyo on my own, rather than approaching with an escort, no matter how insignificant. He was waiting inside a parlor, pacing restlessly. I knew how uneasy I made him, and this invitation had no doubt put him on guard. I watched him unnoticed for a moment, admiring that muscled body while knowing it was wrong to do so. Sneaking up on him was impossible, though. He could smell me. My sweat and skin alone would have given me away, let alone the vanilla sunscreen and violet perfume I also wore. â€Å"Eugenie,† he said, turning around. â€Å"Nice to see you.† He seemed impassive, but his eyes made me think he really did like seeing me – physically at least. â€Å"Sorry for the abrupt request,† I said. â€Å"You were probably visiting Luisa, huh?† The mention of his daughter softened his expression a tiny, tiny bit. â€Å"Yeah, she's †¦ she grows every day. It's amazing.† He flipped back to alert mode. â€Å"But that's not why you asked me here.† â€Å"No.† I settled into one of the chairs, crossing my legs and hoping I looked casual and unassuming. â€Å"I need your help.† He continued standing. â€Å"That's unexpected.† â€Å"Well, I got an unexpected offer. Do you still want me to get out of this war?† â€Å"Of course.† He made a face. â€Å"Oh, Eug. Please tell me you don't want me to negotiate or something.† I smiled, both at the suggestion and his use of the nickname. â€Å"No, I need you for something that's more your specialty. I don't suppose you've ever heard of the Iron Crown?† Kiyo hadn't. I provided a brief rundown, explaining how the person who fought through and won it could allegedly inspire fear and awe. â€Å"And that's enough to make Katrice back off?† he asked skeptically. â€Å"So they say.† I shrugged. â€Å"It's weird to me too, but everyone I've talked to claims it'll intimidate Katrice and her armies.† Best not to mention that â€Å"everyone† was Dorian, a ghost, and a crazy seeress. â€Å"It'll prove what a badass I am. And if that forces her into peace talks †¦Ã¢â‚¬  I let him draw his own conclusions. â€Å"It's a gamble,† Kiyo said. He still sounded doubtful, but there was a crack there. He wanted the war over. He wanted me out of it. â€Å"But why ask me? Why not Dorian?† â€Å"Because he couldn't survive the quest. The way's lined with iron. It would take an insanely strong gentry – or people with human blood, like you and me. Plus, I trust you.† I didn't know if the human solidarity had gotten me anywhere, but he was definitely considering this more and more. I also wondered if admitting trust in him did anything. Part of what had driven us apart was my accusation that he didn't care enough about me to punish Leith. â€Å"I'd like to help you,† Kiyo said finally. â€Å"It's crazy – but no crazier than half the stuff around here. I should talk to Maiwenn first, though.† You must not – under any circumstances – allow him to go back to Maiwenn and consult her on this. â€Å"There's no time,† I said, hastily running through Dorian's laundry list of excuses. â€Å"We have to go now. The ghost who's going to help me threatened to back out if I didn't act soon. And we're currently on hold with Katrice. If I could return with the crown before the next battle, it would be †¦ well, it'd be amazing. No more bloodshed.† I could see him wavering, but he wasn't quite convinced. Really, I didn't blame him. If I had an ally who could advise me on some bizarre quest, I'd want to talk to her too before jumping in. â€Å"You can talk to her if you want,† I said. â€Å"But I've got to leave now. I can't stand waiting. I'll just go by myself.† That drove the dagger in. No matter how sketchy the logic, no matter how smart it would be to get Maiwenn's advice †¦ the fear of my running off into unknown dangers was too great. He stared at me for several heavy moments, his expression unreadable. Finally, he sighed. â€Å"Right now?† he asked. â€Å"Right now,† I said. â€Å"Then let's go.†