Meaning of Jane Eyre as a Whole

Meaning of Jane Eyre as a Whole The whole of the work is a critique of Victorian Englands social hierarchy and inequality for women. Jane struggles against social class and gender inequality, both of which she considers great injustices. Free Response Question (Year and Paraphrase of Question) 1997. Novels and plays often include scenes of weddings, funerals, parties, and other social occasions. Such scenes may reveal the values of the characters and the society in which they live. Select a novel or play that includes such a scene and, in a focused essay, discuss the contribution the scene makes to the meaning of the work as a whole. You may choose a work from the list below or another novel or play of literary merit. Opening Sentence for (your) Essay (Be prepared to write an essay on this novel at any given time during the quarter!) In the novel, Jane Eyre, a certain scene depicts Victorian Englands social class hierarchy. This scene is of when Mr. Rochester brings a party of distinguished gentry and ladies to his home and they all converse and relax in his parlor. In the scene, they indulge in their own splendor and think nothing of those who are considered to be in a lower social class than they. Their treatment of Jane, whom they consider beneath them, reveals just how little the higher classes of the time regarded those of lower classes. This value of social class in the society where they life greatly adds to the meaning of the work as a whole. Key Plot Incidents Jane Eyre is an orphan living with her terrible aunt, Mrs. Reed. In that home she is treated cruelly and disliked by all but Bessie, a servant in the home. One day, Jane is hit by John Reed, and she loses it and attacks him. As punishment for starting the fight she is sent to the red room where she has a vision of her dead uncles ghost she screams and faints. She wakes up in the care of Bessie and Mr. Lloyd, who makes the suggestion of Jane attending school. Mrs. Reed does so after Jane goes on a spiteful tirade against her. At Lowood School, Jane finds a miserable situation. The school is in horrible condition with inadequate means for survival and stern rules installed by the hypocritical headmaster, Mr. Brocklehurst. Jane has a dear friend there, Helen Burns. This angelic friend dies of consumption when an epidemic of typhus sweeps Lowood. So many girls die, it attracts the attention of the public who discover the horrible living conditions. Brocklehurst is replaced by better men. Jane stays for six more years as a student and then two as a teacher. She soon desires new experience after her time there and after her idol, Miss Temple, marries and leaves. Jane puts out an advertisement and is soon employed as a governess at Thornfield Hall. She teaches an illegitimate little French girl named Adele and meets the housekeeper, Mrs. Fairfax, both of who she befriends. The gentleman at Thornfield is Mr. Rochester, a dark and moody man. He and Jane have deep conversations often and confine in each other. Jane sees his flaws but falls in love with Mr. Rochester. One night she saves his life from a fire which creates a mystery for Jane concerning Grace Poole, a servant. Jane concludes that she is unaware of all the facts. One day, Mr. Rochester brings home a party of gentry and fine ladies. They stay for a couple of weeks. Jane is in silent despair as she sees Mr. Rochester fancy a beautiful but vicious woman, Blanche Ingram, and expects them to me married soon. Jane begins to make arrangements to leave Thornfield but then Rochester confesses love for Jane and proposes to her. She joyfully accepts. Their wedding day is ruined by the announcement that Rochester is already married. Mr. Mason, when attaining knowledge of Mr. Rochesters intentions concerning Jane, made it known that Mr. Rochester is married to Bertha, Mr. Masons sister, who is insane and who Mr. Rochester has kept hidden in the third story of his house. Jane, a strong defender of morality, cannot stay with Mr. Rochester, who is a great temptation. In the night she flees from Thornfield. She has nothing and is reduced to begging and is received by no one. Finally, when she is on the verge of death, she is taken in by three siblings, Mary, Diana, and St. John Rivers, at their manner, Marsh End. She becomes very close to them, especially the sisters. St. John finds employment for Jane as the teacher in a school for poor girls. One night, St. John comes and tells Jane, after discovering her identity, that she has inherited a large fortune of 20,000 pounds from her uncle, John Eyre. She also learns that she and the Rivers are cousins and is thrilled. She splits her fortune with her beloved relatives. As she lives with the Rivers she studies with Mary and Diana until St. John entices her to do so with him. She does and he soon asks her to accompany him to India as a missionary and his wife. She will not go as his wife because she does not love him. One night when he as almost convinced her to marry him, she hears Mr. Rochester cry out her name and she returns the call. The next morning, she sets out for Thornfield and her love. Upon arrival she discovers that Thornfield has been burned to the ground by Bertha, who jumped off the roof, killing herself. Mr. Rochester was stricken blind and crippled (he lost his hand) in the fire will trying to save all the servants and Bertha. He now lived with only two of his trusted servants in a dark place, Ferndean. Jane goes to him and they love as they did before. They are soon married and the story end with Janes short recount of the next ten happy years. Key Characters (Who and Why) Jane Eyre- Intelligent, moral, and opposes the injustice of oppression and inequality. She is plain but engaging and seeks fulfillment. She maintains high values throughout the whole book. She is a metaphorical challenge against Victorian treatment of women and those who are poverty stricken Edward Rochester- Master of Thornfield and wealthy employer of Jane Eyre. He is passionate, dark, and secretive. Jane falls in love with him and he loves Jane. Despite societal norms, he marries her. Before Jane, his life was reckless and lost. He was moody and miserable. St. John Rivers- Janes benefactor when she had nothing. Also her cousin and deliverer of good news. He is devoted to God. He wishes to be a missionary in India and asks Jane to accompany him as his wife. He is cold and ambitious. He is handsome. There are many other characters, with smaller roles, who come in and out of Janes life. Setting(s) Gateshead- Mrs. Reeds home. Jane grew up there for ten years. Lowood-the miserable school Jane attended and taught at. She gained her education and values there. Thornfield- The home where Jane was a governess. She finds a place there and falls in love. Mr. Rochesters home. Marsh End- the home of Mary, Dianna, and St. John Rivers. Becomes Janes home after she inherits her fortune. Significance of Opening Scene The significance of the opening scene is to establish Janes first thoughts of injustice and the beginning of the development of her high morals and her sense of right and wrong. Significance of Closing Scene Jane is rewarded for her living of high values and morality with the love of her life. Her reward is just. Style of Narration/Point of View The point of view is first person. It is from Jane herself. She narrates as though she is telling her life story from far in her future. Theme(s) Love vs. Autonomy- Jane longs to be loved, not only romantically, but by family. She wants to belong but not enough that she will lose her autonomy. Her fear of losing her connection to God motivates her to flee from temptation (Rochester). Religion- Jane is very religious. She struggles, throughout her story, to balance her desire to serve her God and with her desire to serve herself. Jane is very strong in her faith and has high principles as a result. She meets three religious figures. Mr. Brocklehurst represents hypocrisy and the danger of the Evangelical religious movement. Helen Burns represents passive hope and trust in God. St. John Rivers represents finding glory in God and self-importance. Jane does not accept any of these. Symbols(s) Bertha- Serves as a symbol of Rochesters unhappiness, and tribulation for Jane. Bertha is Janes trial. Bertha is also a symbolic critique of Englands locking away of other inferior cultures. Bertha represents Victorian wives who are kept under tight leash. The Red Room- symbolic of struggles Jane must overcome. Jane recalls the Red Room every time she is struggling. Janes desire to find more fulfillment in her life is symbolic of all feminine unrest. Tone A slap in the face of injustices. Deep-rooted misery and search for fulfillment.

Sammy Makes a Decision in John Updikes A&P :: A&P Essays

Sammy Makes a Decision John Updike's short story "A&P" is about a teenager who has to make a serious decision. The story is set in an A&P supermarket in a town north of Boston, probably about the year 1960. As the plot unfolds, Sammy changes from being a thoughtless and sexist boy to being a young man who can make a decision, even though it might hurt him. Sammy tells us he is nineteen years old. He is a check-out clerk in the local A&P, where the boss, Lengel, is a friend of Sammy's parents. Sammy does not seem to like his job very much. He calls one of his customers a "witch" and says the other customers are "houseslaves" and "sheep." He himself comes from a middle-class family. When they have a party, he says, they serve "lemonade and if it's a real racy affair Schlitz in tall glasses with 'They'll Do It Every Time' cartoons stencilled on" (15). In addition, Sammy is sexist. He gives long, loving descriptions of the girls who cause all the trouble, and he thinks at first that girls may not even have minds, asking, "do you really think it's a mind in there or just a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar?" (13) However, he does change as the plot goes on. The plot of the story deals with three girls who come into the store dressed only in bathing suits. They make their entrance in the very first sentence, and they complicate Sammy's life. At first, Sammy, his older friend Stokesie, and McMahon the butcher all look at the girls lustfully. But of them all, only Sammy enjoys the entertainment the girls bring. The other shoppers crash their carts, look stunned, and are suddenly jarred out of their everyday routine. Sammy, who seems bored with his job, finds the change amusing. He even begins to feel sorry for the girls when everyone else stares at them lustfully. The plot's major conflict occurs late in the story when Lengel, the manager, comes in and scolds the girls. Sammy knows that they are on their way out of the store, but Lengel has to yell at them and make them feel bad.

A Review and Evaluation of Current Weight Control/Loss Interventions

There is much debate regarding the most effective method of treating obesity. Most of the research has been done on adults; however, research is increasingly being done on children and adolescents as the prevalence of obesity in this population increases.Treatment of obesity includes many different methods, including various dietary, exercise, and behavioral interventions, medication, and surgery. A study by Barlow, Trowbridge, Klish, and Dietz (2002) looked at various interventions recommended to overweight children and adolescents by different health care providers.The most common interventions recommended by health care providers included changes in eating patterns and limiting specific foods. Less frequently recommended interventions were low-fat diets and modest calorie restrictions.Very infrequently recommended interventions were very low-calorie diets and commercial diets. Several health care providers also listed â€Å"fruit and vegetables,† â€Å"portion control,â₠¬  â€Å"increase water,† â€Å"fiber,† and â€Å"learn to determine hunger and fullness levels† as other interventions that they recommended. In the adolescent population, the most frequently recommended dietary intervention by all types of health care providers questioned was â€Å"limiting specific foods.†All types of health care providers were also highly likely to recommend increasing physical activity and limiting sedentary behaviors as physical activity interventions. Very few health care providers recommended medication, appetite suppressants, herbal remedies, or weight loss surgery.The current consensus is that the most effective weight loss and maintenance treatment includes a combination of caloric restriction, increased physical activity, and behavioral therapy, with extended treatment contact, weight loss satisfaction, and social support contributing to positive long-term outcomes in both obese adults and children (Williamson & Stewart, 2005 ).Diets and Problems Associated with DietingThe increased pressure to alleviate the obesity epidemic led to a boom in the dieting industry. Twenty-five percent of men and 45% of women are currently trying to lose weight, equating to about 71 million Americans (Newstarget.com, 2005). In 1996, consumers spent $70 billion annually in health care costs, and an additional $33 billion per year, trying to lose weight or prevent the return of weight gain (Chatzky, 2002).In 2004, those values rose to $100 billion spent annually on health-care cost, and the US weight loss market value rose to $46.3 billion annually (Newstarget.com, 2005). Dieting products and services range from $1.29 for Slim-Fast bars up to $25,000 for gastric bypass (Chatzky, 2002) with the number of bariatric surgeries totaling about 140,000 procedures in 2003 (Newstarget.com, 2005).Sales of over-the-counter diet and herbal supplements totaled $16.8 billion in 2000 (Kane, 2001) and are expected to grow 11.5% to approximat ed $703 million by 2008 (NewsTarget.com, 2008).Diet drugs have been around for over 35 years but became generally accepted in the medical community by the early 1990’s. The FDA has approved several treatments as clinically safe (i.e. sibutramine and orlistat) for those individuals with a BMI >30 or BMI 27-29 with one or more obesity related co-morbidity (ADA, 1997). There are amphetamine-like derivates available for short-term use but weight gain often occurs once discontinued.The risks associated with obesity drugs are neurotoxicity, primary pulmonary hypertension, and becoming reliant on the medication as opposed to making desired healthy lifestyle changes (ADA, 2002). Many of the overthecounter products have no proven efficacy or short- or long-term weight loss (ADA, 2002).Many Americans have turned to various dieting methods as weight control measures, leading to the ‘yo-yo’ dieting affect, ultimately contributing to the ever-increasing obesity rates.Commerci al structured programs, such as Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig and LA Weight Loss, are common approaches followed due to their convenience and support system. It is estimated that 7.1 million American frequent these commercial weight loss centers and their revenues are expected to grow 11% to $2 billion annually by 2008 (Newstarget.com, 2008).Miller (1999) performed a study to examine the history and effectiveness of diet and exercise in obesity therapy and to determine the best approach for future interventions.He summarized the dieting trends throughout the years with the initial strategy of the late 1950s to early 1960s focused on total fasting, which brought about quick weight loss but also increased risk of death due to serious loss of lean muscle mass and electrolytes. By the late 1960s to early 1970s, the emergence of the high protein/low carbohydrate diets became popular.These involved a diet with 5-10% of energy calories from carbohydrate and a resultant high fat content (50- 70% of calories) which relied on the high protein foods to minimize muscle catabolism and the low carbohydrate level to maintain a state of ketosis to theoretically increase fat burning (Miller 1999).The side effects ranged from nausea, hyperuricemia, fatigue and refeeding edema. In the mid 1970s, the trend shifted towards very low calorie liquid diets (VLCD) with ~300-400 kcal/day, which caused obvious weight loss through muscle catabolism and water release.The FDA terminated the use of this diet since ventricular arrhythmias resulted in 58 deaths. In the 1980s, the VLCD made a revival but at the level of 450-500 kcal/day, with fat content of ~2-18% of total calories, and up to 800 kcal/day for those individuals who were more active. Gallbladder disease and cardiac problems surfaced as side effects of this diet (Miller 1999).The low calorie commercial franchised programs such as Jenny Craig and Nutri/Systems arose in the 1980s as well. Meals were pre-packaged with ~1100-1200 kcal/d ay with the breakdown of energy approximately at 20% from protein, 20% from fat and 60% from carbohydrate.These programs found improved compliance compared to the VLCD, however a similar health risk was found to negatively impact the heart. Since the 1980s, numerous dieting books have hit the stores with many best sellers (i.e. Pritkins and Fit for Life).Despite the increased dieting trends, Miller (1999) noted that the NHANES determined the percentage of fat from kilocalories has dropped in the American diet but total energy has increased, particularly from refined or added sugars in the diet; in addition, obese individuals tend to consume less dietary fiber.Most people have attempted more than one diet method in their weight loss attempts with the average attempting a new method twice a year (FTC, 1997). Miller (1999) found that over the past 40 years, most dieting techniques cycle in and out of popularity and that many are actually hazardous to the health.Miller summarized that t he scientific community data indicated that a 15-week diet or diet plus exercise program led to a weight loss of about 11 kg in which 60-80% of the weight lost was kept off after one year, although most studies had limited long-term follow-up data and those available suggest that relapse to pre-diet weight typically occurred after 3-5 years. Many of the diets were difficult to assess due to their high dropout rates (some as high as 80%).Nutrition education and behavior modification programs, to include community education programs, worksite interventions, and home correspondence courses, typically resulted in ~10 kg weight loss with a 33% and 95% post-diet weight relapse at three and five years respectively.The commercial weight loss industry supplied little data over the last two decades, with much of it proclaimed scientifically inadequate due to small sample size, high dropout rates, poor study design and inadequate follow-up periods.Of the physician-directed programs, most did n ot result in a desired weight loss but better control of some of the co-morbidities associated with obesity (diabetes, CVD, etc.) (FTC, 1997).

Why the Firefly (Hotaru) Is Important in Japan

In some cultures firefly may not have a positive reputation. But in Japan, where they are called hotaru, they are beloved – a metaphor for passionate love in poetry since Manyou-shu (the 8th century anthology). Their eerie lights are also thought to be the altered form of the souls of soldiers who have died in war. It is popular to view the fireflies glow during hot summer nights (hotaru-gari). However, since hotaru inhabit only clean streams, their numbers have been decreasing in recent years due to pollution. Hotaru no Hikari (The Light of the Firefly) is probably one of the most popular Japanese songs. It is often sang when bidding farewell to one another such as at graduation ceremonies, the closing ceremony of events, and the end of the year. This tune comes from the Scottish folk song Auld Lang Syne, which doesnt mention fireflies at all. It is just that the poetic Japanese words somehow fit the melody of the song. There is also a childrens song titled Hotaru Koi (Come Firefly). Check out the lyrics in Japanese. Keisetsu-jidadi which literally translates into the era of the firefly and snow, means ones student days. It derives from the Chinese folklore and refers to studying in the glow of the fireflies and snow by the window. There is also an expression Keisetsu no kou which means the fruits of diligent study. This is a rather newly invented word, but hotaru-zoku (firefly tribe) refers to the people (mainly husbands) forced to smoke outside. There are many tall apartment buildings in the cities, which usually have small balconies. From a distance the light of cigarette outside the curtained window looks like the glow of a firefly. Hotaru no Haka (Grave of the Fireflies) is the Japanese animated film (1988) which is based on autobiographical novel by Akiyuki Nosaka. It follows the struggles of two orphans during the American firebombing at the end of World War II.