The eNotes Blog Remembering Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author Oscar Hijuelos, Dead at62

Remembering Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author Oscar Hijuelos, Dead at62 â€Å"Oh yes!The sweet summons of God to man.   Thats when He calls you up to His arms.   And its the most beautiful thing, a rebirth, a new life.   But, just the same Im in no rush to find out.†Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬â€¢Ã‚  Mr. Ives Christmas  by  Oscar Hijuelos Oscar Hijuelos, who was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1990 for his novel The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love  ,  died yesterday of a heart attack while playing tennis, according to his agent, Jennifer Lyons.   Hijuleos was 62. Hijuelos was the first Latino writer to be awarded the coveted prize.   The novel traces the journey of two Cuban brothers who leave Havana for a life in New York to pursue a career in music. In 1992, the novel was adapted into a film starring Armand Assante and Antonio Banderas. Although the Pulitzer brought the author fame, it also brought hardships.   Hijuelos felt labeled as an ethnic writer.    In an interview on NPRs  Newshour  in 2011, Hijuelos   discussed his memoir Thoughts Without Cigarettes.   He  told interviewer Ray Suarez that he   sometimes felt like a freak, simply because the level of my success and traveling around the world as quote a Latino writer as much as anything, was sort of wonderful and also very strange for me at the same time, because, indeed, Im I came up as but one version of many potential versions of Latinos that there could be. And I have never as I say in the memoir, I have never intended to represent myself as a spokesman for anybody but myself. And yet I would be in a roundtable in Sweden, in Stockholm, Sweden, at a live television show, and the host would come on and look around trying to figure out who the Latino guy was in the group. That kind of thing was both interesting and alarming at the same time. Here is the complete interview. Rest in Peace, Mr. Hijuelos.

Lust by Susan Minot

Lust by Susan Minot Susan Minot, the person behind the masterpiece short story Lust, creates and brings out the main character of the story in a unique manner. The protagonist’s relationship with the other characters in the story brings it out her uniqueness as opposed to her physical appearance.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Short Story Lust by Susan Minot specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Through her actions and feelings, the audience sees her real part in the story. Lust’s narrator does not have a name, but she is in her teenage years going to a religious academy that is located away from her home. The narrator comes out as a promiscuous person right from the beginning of the story when she says, â€Å"Leo was from a long time ago, the first one I ever saw nude† (Minot 3). Her relationships seem to be mostly with boys as opposed to associating with girls of her age. She is also sexually active as she confess es, â€Å"he kisses my palm and then directs my hand to his fly† (Minot 6). Her sexual escapades with different boys set the plot of the story. Even without the name of the main character, the audience can tell how she behaves and relates with others, which brings out the imbalance of power that exists between men and women particularly when it comes to sex. The powerful sexual desire that men in this story have completely overcomes the narrator. Minot uses both the first and second person throughout the story whereby in some instances she uses â€Å"I† as she talks about her life experiences. For instance, she says, â€Å"I had tasted Bruce’s tongue† (Minot 3), while in others she uses â€Å"you†, which stands for all women in general; fro instance, she posits, â€Å"You begin to feel like a piece of pounded veal† (Minot 16). The main character portrays behaviors of being overtly promiscuous such that in one instance, she admits that sleepi ng around was a normal thing that did not worry her at all. However, she discloses her fears of the promiscuous life by confessing, â€Å"All the next day, you’d be in a total fog, delirious, absent-minded, crossing the stress and nearly getting run over† (Minot 10). She goes on to state that for a boy sleeping with many girls was a good thing whilst for a girl it was an ominous thing to sleep around. This aspect shows that despite portraying a â€Å"do not care† attitude, at times she knew what she was doing was wrong and it was eating her from the inside. However, it is only at the end of the story that the narrator brings out her fears and worries. The narrator brings about the emotional detachment the main character has with authority figures; for instance, her parents. It is very easy for the audience to see there is no emotional bond that exists between her and her parents. She says, â€Å"My parents had no idea†¦parents never really know whatâ€℠¢s going on, especially when you’re away at school most of the time† (Minot 5).Advertising Looking for essay on american literature? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This assertion shows that her parents took her to a far away boarding school so that they would not have to deal with the issues that their teenage daughter was going through. The mentality of knowing her family is not anywhere near allows her to have all the freedom she wants in order to engage in whatever she likes. Another character who was propagating the main character’s promiscuous behavior according to the narrator was the school doctor. He was giving students the emergency pill without asking any relevant questions as the narrator notes, â€Å"The joke was that the school doctor gave out the pill like aspirin† (Minot 8). The main character reveals to the audience that most girls in the school used the pill, which would p revent them from getting pregnant once they engaged in unprotected sexual escapades. She could take the pills in the morning just before they went to the school chapel. The narrator shows that even if she wanted to stop her promiscuity, she could not get enough support to advice her and stand with her, particularly her parents. The housemother, Mrs. Gunther, made a point of advising them on how to find true love as she had fallen for the only boyfriend she had, Mr. Gunther, at eighteen years old, which ended in a marriage. However, the girls ignored all her advice and they would go about their partying, drinking, and having sex. Minot also shows that the main character was not confident even though she exuded a different personality. She felt weak with the men she associated with and so she was always obligated to say yes to sexual advances whenever they asked for it. She admits, â€Å"So if you flirted, you had to be prepared to go through with it† (Minot 9). She later state s how the boys would get angry if girl refused to give into sex advances. Therefore, Minot brings out the main character as someone who had a low self-esteem, which she masked with partying, drinking, and even taking drugs. She wanted to portray a personality that was extremely social, outgoing, and fun to be around while it was the exact opposite as she divulges, â€Å"After sex, you curl up like a shrimp, something deep inside you ruined, slammed in a place that sickens at slamming†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Minot 16). At one instance where she was with Tim, she stripped naked and lay on the rug after he had gone to close the door.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Short Story Lust by Susan Minot specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More From the entire story, the audience can see that the main character’s lustful behavior stands out courtesy of how she associates with other secondary characters in the story. Emotional depend ence comes into view by the way the narrator lacks any qualms with sleeping around especially since she is a girl. Girls and women in general grow up in a society that nurtures the precept that it is very wrong to sleep around as compared to boys and men who emerge as macho by perpetuating the same. The narrator also shows the amount of peer pressure that young people face and end up engaging in sex, alcohol, and even drugs. This aspect comes out clearly by how almost every girl in the school would take the birth control pill and also how the narrator could not say no to sex; she concedes, â€Å"I thought the worst thing anyone could call you was a cock-teaser†(Minot 9). Minot has done a tremendous job by enlightening the audience on the challenges that young people, especially at their teenage years, face due to peer pressure to involve themselves in sex, alcohol, and other drugs. She also shows how girls give in to sexual advances easily to boys. Girls learn a little too la te that sex never leads to love and as the narrator posits, â€Å"you open your legs but can’t, or don’t dare anymore, to open your heart† (Minot 17). Minot, Susan. Lust other stories, New York: Vintage Books, 1989. Print.

Risk Management Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Risk Management Plan - Essay Example Another area of concern is research and development process. There are of course many problems, for example, the project may soon be made obsolete by technical developments, or a change in taste by consumers or a competitors new ideas; the policy of the company could also change. Vast amounts of money may be spent on research and development but the projects can be later cancelled. This problem is closely connected with funding and lack of resources on further R & D (Marrison 2002). Staff changes can threaten the project and lead to information disclosure and lack of security issues. Staff is the key to all security measures and is the most vulnera ­ble aspect of IT security issues. Most frauds require an operative in another organization or collusion with existing employees. Segregation of staff duties and accurate documentation of programs is essential. The strict control of operations is vital, especially where satellite devices are connected to a central processor, allowing easy access to information. Physical plant security issues are connected with bomb threat, breaching of security barriers and lack of control and monitoring facilities (Frame 2002). As the needs of the orga ­nization change, managers can contract with external vendors to perform specialized services that the organization cannot perform internally. Still, in come cases vendors can deliver low quality spare parts and raw materials which create a risk for the project and schedule. It is important for the project management to agree all deliveries and specifications with vendors in order to avoid delays faults issues and delays. Suppliers should continually monitor product requirements, factory scheduling, and commitments of their customers against their own schedule to ensure that enough in ­ventory will be available. Once these systems are in place

Housing and homelessness Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Housing and homelessness - Coursework Example In the present day context, homelessness along with housing need is considered to be a social issue, which hampers the economic growth and stability of a country at large. The members of social care services provide affordable housing to people to secure their life and reduce health issues that lead towards the development of a healthy society (Department of Housing and Public Works, 2014). In relation to the above context, the essay intends to determine whether addressing and alleviating housing need is a part of social care policy and practice with focus on evaluating evidences and providing valid justifications. With the advent of globalisation, the lifestyle of people and economies of scale have changed by a considerable extent. The issue of homelessness and housing need is identified to s increase considerably that have been affecting the lives of the individuals and rising social issues. It will be vital to mention that in this present day context, the issue concerning homelessness must have ‘no place in the society’. Justifiably, homelessness is duly considered to be one of the social issues, which affects human civilisation and economy at large. It is observed in several countries that people live in the streets as they have no place for taking shelter. With reference to the census of 2011 in Queensland, UK, it was witnessed that about 19858 people lived in the streets as they were homeless (Department of Housing and Public Works, 2014). The issue concerning homelessness resembles the fact that the people are unable to afford a house for themselves, which is mainly because of increasing unemployment. This in turn elevates the poverty level, which is recognised as a social issue and thus utmost attention is provided to eradicate the same. Therefore, in this context, it can be inferred that assisting people in terms of offering them with street based help or

Hnc Accounts - Business Law Outcome Essay Example for Free

Hnc Accounts Business Law Outcome Essay There are two institutions in the UK that have the power to make statutory legislation in Scotland. The first of these institutions is Westminster (London) where elected individuals serve in the House of Commons. These members are known as MP’s (Members of Parliament). Parliament is responsible for passing new laws (legislation). In the late nineties the House of Commons allowed the passing of devolved powers to the newly created Scottish Parliament. Only certain powers were transferred to Holyrood and Westminster still control the laws that govern Tax, National Security and many others. Westminster is still regarded as Primary Legislation. This means that any law made by Westminster in reserved matters of policy must be adhered to by the Scottish Parliament. The second of these institutions is Holyrood (Edinburgh) where 129 elected individuals serve in the Scottish Parliament. These members are known as MSP’s (Members of Scottish Parliament). The Scottish Parliament was created on the 11th Sept 1997. The voters in Scotland took part in a referendum where they voted on a Devolved Scottish Parliament. This meant that Westminster would allow this devolved parliament to create laws in certain areas of policy. The Scottish people voted for a devolved parliament and the devolved powers were transferred from Westminster to The Scottish Parliament on the 1st July 1999. Westminster reserved certain powers that still govern many areas of Scotland today but the devolved powers allow Scotland to pass laws and regulate in areas such as Agriculture, Health and Housing to name a few. The process of making primary legislation in the UK follows a very strict procedure of three distinct stages. An MP, Lord or a member of the public can raise a bill to suggest a change of law (legislation). The first stage  of the process involves a parliamentary committee of members. They will review the bill and decide whether it moves to the second stage. The second stage allows amendments to the bill and allows the bill to be scrutinized by the committee and member. If the bill passes this stage then the third stage involves a member vote. If a majority of the members vote for the bill then the bill will be passed and presented to the Queen to receive a Royal Assent. The bill is now law. Common Law has a major role in Scots law today and it draws on four separate elements. Common Law is often referred to as the ‘Unwritten Law’ or ‘Historical Law’. This unwritten law has developed over centuries and draws from different sources. 1. Common law is based on Equity. Equity is the process of allowing judges to apply fairness or justice when there is no legislation to refer to. They must base these decisions on fairness and equality for all. When the judge follows this process of Equity he/she is actually making the law. This is called Precedent and we will talk about this in more detail in point 4. 2. Common law is also based on Institutional Writing. Centuries ago men of a higher class would finish their schooling in the various cities of Europe. These men would learn the laws of other countries and on their return to their estates in the UK would write about these laws and use them to govern their own estates. Institutional Writings no longer hold the authority as days gone by as Government Legislation and Judicial Precedent are supreme and overrule Institutional writings if they are based on similar cases. 3. Common Law is also based on Custom. Custom is when over a long period of time a particular habit is recognized by the people or social grouping. An example of this would be ‘common law husband’ where the couple are not in fact married but have lived as such so therefore the man would be entitled to the same rights as a legal husband. 4. The most important piece of common law in the courts today is Judicial Precedent. Judicial Precedent is where a judge or jury has no other legislation or act of parliament to decide a particular dispute and any decision they make will be followed in the future for any other similar disputes. A precedent can only be superseded by a higher court, government legislation or act of  parliament. Judicial Precedent tries to keep the law stable. Consistency through the court system is vital when trying to uphold the virtues of Fairness and Equality. The four key institutions of the European Union are the Council of Ministers, European Parliament, European Court of Justice and the European Commission. Each of these institutions has a representative from each member nation to allow a voice from each of the member states. The European Commission along with the Council of Ministers can change and amend laws within the European states. The Commission, unlike The Council of Ministers, has the power to change Regulations and issue Directives (these are orders passed by the European Commission or The Council of Ministers to ensure legislation is implemented within all the member states). If a state, company or persons break or do not comply with European law then it is the European Commission who will raise a court action against those who are not complying. The Council of Ministers is the legislative body of the EU. They are head of decision making and law/regulation introduction in the EU. They are the most powerful of all the institutions in Europe. Although the Council has the highest power there are still areas of legislation that the Council cannot pass with the advisory input of the European Parliament. The European Parliament is to advise and make recommendations to the Council of Ministers in various areas of legislation. They will review any piece of legislation or directive and give their opinions on the matter. If the Commission does not implement the recommendations of the Parliament then they must advise why they have not done so. The Parliament cannot change, implement or make European law and are there solely as an advisory Parliament. The European Court of Justice is the highest court within the European states on Community law (laws that have been issued by the Commission or Council of Ministers). If a state, company or persons fail to abide by the regulations  and directives issued by the Commission then it is the Court of Justice responsibility to ensure the law is observed. The Commission will initiate the proceedings and allow the member state an opportunity to defend itself against the complaint. If that process does not result in the breach being rectified the action will then go to the Courts of Justice. There are two main types of European Legislation. They are Directive Regulation. 1. Directive legislation allows the European Commission to give a timescale for a piece to legislation to be introduced. Directives are issued to ensure that law is common throughout the European Countries. They keep the peoples equality to fairness and equality protected throughout the member states. If a country does not adhere to these directives sanctions can be issued. 2. Regulation Legislation is required in an emergency situation or crisis. They must be acted upon immediately by the state that the order is against. An example of this would be the BSE crisis in the 90’s when an immediate ban was put on the importing and exporting of beef from the UK. All member states had to adhere to this regulation to ensure that British beef stocks did not contaminate the other member states beef stock.

Valuation of Supersize me Essay examples -- Morgan Spurlock Super Size

Evaluation of Super Size Me   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Americans are fat and growing fatter with each passing day. One does not have to do look far to see how fat we are. Take a stroll to the supermarket, college campuses, offices, playgrounds, fast food restaurants, or malls and see the evidence of fat America. What is causing this epidemic of obesity? There are a plethora of reasons including overeating, lack of exercise, fast food, processed food, dieting, and sedentary lifestyles. Morgan Spurlock of New York City decided to tackle one aspect of this problem with his idea of studying the McDonald’s way by limiting his intake of food for one month to only McDonald’s and filming this adventure. The result is the movie Super Size Me. Spurlock finds that the McDonald’s way is a super highway to fat city.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mr. Spurlock followed three rules as during this journey; he could only eat what was available over the counter, including water, no super sizing unless it was offered, and he had to eat and try every item at least once. But before Spurlock hit the roads throughout the United States interviewing Surgeon Generals to gym teachers, cooks to kids, and lawmakers to legislators, all in 20 cities (including Houston which is known as the â€Å"fattest city† in America) he went to numerous doctors and nutritionists and every one told him that he was in shape and in good health. While making the film, Spurlock consumed in 30 days as much McDonald’s as most nutritionists would advise to have in 8 years. He revealed to the American public the truth about fast food. Something many already knew, but found it easier to avoid the fattening truth. Today 1 in 4 Americans visit a fast food restaurant on a daily basis. About 95% of the commercials that children see are for foods filled with sugars and fats. Children are bombarded with images of fast food by media advertising. Most Americans understand the marketing strategy of McDonald's -- appealing to the young. From an early age children are lured into McDonald’s by promotions of toys, actions figures, yummy food packaged into Happy Meals, and small on site playgrounds. The food is fast, comparatively cheap, and hot. In the film Spurlock interviewed a family in front of the White House and asked them to recite the Pledge of the Allegiance. After they wearily recited it, the family was asked about their memories of McDonald’s. Their faces lit... ...e are those folks that will eat there every day let alone numerous times a week. In 1972, we spent 3 billion a year on fast food - today we spend more than 110 billion. Ironically Americans spend all kinds of money trying to lose weight each year, but need to concentrate on exercise, eating healthy, and cutting out fast food. Overweight Americans need to empower themselves and stop talking about being fat, and get moving on some simple solutions like eating less and moving more.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After this movie was shown at a film festival McDonalds stopped super sizing 6 weeks later and introduced the â€Å"Go Active!† meal. The results on Spurlock may have been extraordinary on how quickly he gained weight and how his body and health were slowly deteriorating, but this shows why so many Americans are overweight and the way they are. Everything, even the little â€Å"healthy† options are jam packed with sugars and calories. This might also explain why 60% of the population is overweight or obese. Super Size Me. Dir. Morgan Spurlock. Perf. Morgan Spurlock. 2004. DVD. Samuel Goldwin Films, 2004. â€Å"Super Size Me by the Pound†. Super Size Me: A Film of Epic Proportions. 8 Mar. 2004. .

Conservation of natural resources †essay writing Essay

conservation of natural resources Introduction  conservation of natural resources, the wise use of the earth’s resources by humanity. The term conservation came into use in the late 19th cent. and referred to the management, mainly for economic reasons, of such valuable natural resources as timber, fish, game, topsoil, pastureland, and minerals, and also to the preservation of forests (see forestry), wildlife (see wildlife refuge), parkland, wilderness, and watershed areas. In recent years the science of ecology has clarified the workings of the biosphere; i.e., the complex interrelationships among humans, other animals, plants, and the physical environment. At the same time burgeoning population and industry and the ensuing pollution have demonstrated how easily delicately balanced ecological relationships can be disrupted (see air pollution; water pollution; solid waste). Conservation of natural resources is now usually embraced in the broader conception of conserving the earth itself by protecting its capacity for self-renewal. Particularly complex are the problems of nonrenewable resources such as oil and coal (see energy, sources of) and other minerals in great demand. Current thinking also favors the protection of entire ecological regions by the creation of â€Å"biosphere reserves.† Examples of such conservation areas include the Great Barrier Reef off Australia and Adirondack State Park in the United States. The importance of reconciling human use and conservation beyond the boundaries of parks has become another important issue. Read more: conservation of natural resources: Introduction | Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/science/conservation-natural-resources.html#ixzz2gvJZaFAX Water Conservation We can live without food for three to five days a week, but we cannot stand for living without water for a day. Water is the basis of lives living on earth. But without a proper condition of water, there must be a bad effect on all types of lives as well. As it becoming worse because of the pollution and the climate change, water conservation is the perfect way to improve the quality of water as well as to balance the current and future water needs. To get through the water conservation, we should know the important, the goal and how we can conserve the water. If you have any questions, I’ll be very happy to answer them at the end of my presentation. Ok, to begin with, let’s have a look on what the important of water conservation. To human, water provides us a huge need for the basic needs as we need fresh water for drinking, to cook thing and to use in things we cook; for example, in the soup, cake, dessert, porridge and so on and we also need freshwater to wash ourselves for being clean and hygiene, to wash clothes for being fresh, to wash dishes for getting away from any kinds of gems, and even to wash our vehicles as needed. Freshwater is used in many ways. We can also use freshwater to improve the sanitation, irrigation, industry and so on. To animal, freshwater plays a very important role as their fundamental needs including the home for species and for drinking. Not different from the human kind, animal need water to support their buddies to survive. For water species, water is not only a basic home but also a place for them to get food. To the environment, freshwater can create the green which can also help both human and animal living in a good condition, for they will live in a kind of environment without pollution. Also, by growing greenery everywhere, it is a great function to cause the rainfall from the forest. And that really benefit to the living situation. That’s all I have time for the important for water conservation.