Historical Analysis of Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” - Literature Essay Samples

Although the feminist movement began to make a solid appearance in the United States in the mid 19th century, successful results did not show until the early 20th century. In the 1800s, women held little importance in society and had little to no voice. They had almost no power since they were not allowed to vote and were expected to be subordinate in marriage by always obliging to their husbands orders without any objection. The oppression of women in both marriage and society throughout the late 19th century is reflected in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper.† In this story, the narrator was diagnosed with temporary nervous depression with a slight hysterical tendency by her physician husband and as a result they lived in a secluded colonial mansion for the summer as treatment. During their three months stay, the wife had very little interaction with the outside world, was forbidden from doing strenuous activities, and was not supposed to write. Due to her constant isolation and slim activity, she progressively hallucinated a woman who was trapped in the wallpaper of her room, and was trying to break free. The woman in the wallpaper was a reflection of the progressive woman in the United States during the late 19th century. Many readers would argue that the narrator was actually mentally ill from the beginning, however the â€Å"sickness† she experienced was a result of both her husband and society restricting her and every other woman’s actions and freedom. For treatment to the narrator’s â€Å"illness† that was diagnosed by her husband, she underwent a less severe regimen of the rest cure for twelve weeks. The rest cure treatment was developed by Silas Weir Mitchell in the 1870s, the most prominent physician in the treatment of neurasthenia in the United States at the time, and was practiced widely throughout the U.S. and western Europe until the mid-1930s (Stiles). His therapy consisted of five elements: extreme bed rest, seclusion, dietary changes, massages, and electricity. The patients are removed from their home and family and are cared for by nurses. They also aren’t allowed to read or write or create a lot of neural stimulation. For at least five weeks, the patient is bedridden and can only leave to use the bathroom. Because of this, massages and electricity were used to prevent muscular atrophy. As for their diet, they mostly drank milk because of its high fat content. The treatment was used mostly on women that had severe nervous system issues which included hypochondria, hysteria, and temporary nervous depression (Poirier). Supposedly, many women actually benefitted from the treatment, however numerous patients developed negative psychological responses just like the ones the narrator experienced. The effects the narrator experienced from the rest cure were anxiety, hallucinations, depression, and paranoia. Although Dr. Mitchell and other medical experts weren’t fully aware of the physiological effects during the 19th century, recent researchers were able to uncover the negative outcomes of bed rest and isolation. Multiple studies have shown that long periods of bedrest can cause a patient to show symptoms of depression, anxiety, forgetfulness, and confusion. The lack of personal control and freedom one feels during bedrest is a factor in the cause of these symptoms (Breslow). Since the narrator’s husband made almost all of her decisions and wanted her to stay in her bed most of the time with little brain stimulation, it comes as no surprise that the wife is experiencing the negative psychological effects. Studies investigating the psychological effects of long-term solitary confinement reveal that â€Å"hallucinations, insomnia, paranoia, uncontrollable feeling s of rage and fear, and distortions of time and perception† can occur (Weir). Even though the narrator in â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† did not experience the same severity of isolation as prisoners in solitary confinement, it is expected that her symptoms are similar considering she spent the three months powerless in a secluded mansion under her husband’s overpowering actions and patriarchal tendencies. Although the rest cure technique was one factor into the narrator’s anxiety, paranoia, and hallucinations that led her to â€Å"free† the trapped woman in the wallpaper at the end of the story, another cause of her actions were from the restraints put on her emotional and physical freedom by her husband and the patriarchal society in the 19th century. Just like almost every other woman during that time period, the narrator didn’t have a voice in her marriage or society— unable to make her own choices such as writing in her journal, picking the room she will stay in for three months, and deciding who visits her. When she was fixated on the details of the wallpaper, the narrator perceived part of the design as a woman who was stuck in the wall and unable to break free. She described the woman in the wallpaper as â€Å"† (). When she ripped the wallpaper at the end of the story and â€Å"freed† the woman, it represented the narrator’s esc ape from the patriarchal and sexist gender roles that prevented equality in the American 19th century. By the mid-1800s, the fight for women’s suffrage became prevalent. In July 1848 Seneca Falls, New York, the first meeting dedicated to women’s rights took place and around 100 women attended with two-thirds of them being female. Smaller women’s rights conventions were also being convened across the United States which were prominently in the North. These groups were able to have the Married Women’s Property Act adopted in numerous states in 1882, which allowed married women control over their own property and income. Other regulations were also being enacted across America, such as the a New York Law created in 1860 that â€Å"gives women joint custody over their children and the right to sue and be sued† (Eisenberg et. al). The first state to grant women full voting was was Wyoming in 1869, and the other states that passed suffrage laws in the 19th century were Colorado (1893), Utah (1896), and Idaho (1896) (Crumrin et. al). These activists were no t just fighting for the right to vote, but were striving for social, economic, and educational equality. Just like the rest of the women in the late 1800s, the narrator in â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† is struggling with the lack of freedom and civil rights apparent in society. The frustration and stress from the inferiority she feels while stranded alone in the house with her misogynistic and obstinate husband ultimately leads to her psychotic breakdown in hopes to break free from the oppression.

Sociological Imagination And Historical Imagination

Sociological imagination is the ability to look beyond one’s social environment and observe those of others. It is being able to make connections between these different milieu and notice any patterns; to see if something is just a person trouble or a social issue. â€Å"The sociological imagination enables us to grasp history and biography and the relations between the two within society† (Mills). We are given the ability with this imagination to see how one’s personal scene plays into that of the larger historical one. Often times, it may seem that in the grand scheme of world history, our personal lives offer little contribution, yet, sociological imagination shows us how we in fact are crucial factors in determining our historical time period. The Elliot passage further drives home the point that it is impossible to â€Å"set apart† the self â€Å"from the social, cultural, political and historical contexts in which it is embedded† (Elliot: 6). We like to think that we cultivate ourselves yet we disregard the fact that our identities are influenced by the external factors in our milieu; our biographies are connected with history. Donna Gaines except from Teenage Wasteland illustrates the ideas of Mills’ sociological imagination by showing the connection between personal and public issues. Gaines discusses the epidemic of teenage suicide by examining the individual motives and branching it to the larger picture. She notes the difficult the individual teen faces on a daily basis,Show MoreRelatedThe Sociological Imagination And Me Essay1343 Words   |  6 PagesThe Sociological Imagination and Me Charles Wright Mills was a writer, a researcher, a teacher, a scholar and a well known sociologist. He was the author of the 1959 book, The Sociological Imagination. This book was poorly received by the sociological community at first, but it is one of the most widely read sociological texts today. The Sociological Imagination and Mills’ other works have had an immense impact on sociology, as he influenced many other scholars and the â€Å"New Left† movement of theRead MoreSociology Imagination833 Words   |  4 Pagesdefined sociological imagination as the vivid awareness of the relationship between experience and the wider society. The sociological imagination is the capacity to shift from one perspective to another: from the political to the psychological; from examination of a single family to comparative assessment of the national budgets of the world; from the theological school to the military establishment; from considerations of an oil industry to studies of contemporary poetry.[1] Sociological Imagination:Read MoreEssay on The Sociological Imagination1389 Words   |  6 PagesMy personal condensed definition of â€Å"the sociological imagination† is that it is the idea one should be aware of the societal structures around themselves, and how those structures can influence a person and vice-versa. In addition, I think that having a â€Å"sociological imagination† also involves a deep appreciation for the importance of society and culture. Consequently, for a person that has completed a basic introduction to sociology college course and actually paid attention, I would hope thatRead MoreThe Social Imagination of Forrest Gump1653 Words   |  7 PagesThe Sociological Imagination of Forrest Gump OR The Sociological Imagination Concept As Illustrated by the Movie, Forrest Gump What is sociological imagination? Our textbook describes sociological imagination as the ability to see our private experiences, personal difficulties, and achievements as, in part, a reflection of the structural arrangements of society and the times in which we live. The movie entitled Forrest Gump is a great example of sociological imagination. In this paper, I willRead MoreLiving As Woman And A Muslim Essay1235 Words   |  5 PagesAmerica The term sociological imagination was a concept constructed by the American Sociologist C. Wright Mills in 1959 to describe the ability to understand how our lives are affected by the historical and sociological changes around us. In order to possess the knowledge of sociological imagination, we should be able to pull away from the current situation and be able to look and think from a different perspective. C. Wright Mills defined his concept of sociological imagination as â€Å"...the vividRead MoreThe Sociological Imagination As Described By C. Wright Mills930 Words   |  4 PagesThe sociological imagination as described by C. Wright Mills is â€Å"the ability to understand the intersection between biography and history or interplay of self and the world.† (13) Mills also describes the sociological imagination by saying, â€Å"we have come to know every individual lives, from one generation to the next, in some society; that he lives out a biography, and that he lives out within some historical sequence. By the fact of his living he contributes, however minutely, to the shaping ofRead MoreThe Sociological Imagination and Freedom from Feelings of Entrapment1133 Words   |  5 PagesThe sociological imagination is the â€Å"quality of mind† (Mills, 1959: 4) that enables individuals to look outside their private sphere of consciousness and identify the structures and institutions in society that influence or cause their personal experiences. In this way, by looking at the bigger picture, they can understand their place in society and explain their circumstance in terms of societal influence. It was developed by Mills in a time of great social upheaval – industrialisation, globalisationRead MoreSociological Imagination Essay865 Words   |  4 PagesFrom The Sociological Imagination by C. Wright Mills addresses a distinction between personal troubles and public issues. Mills uses specific examples like unemployment and societal development. Mills explains the ability to connect the individual problems with societal problems. Throughout the text, we can see how Mills uses the perspective of an individual to explain the perspective of society and vice versa. Using sociological imagination, I will explain how education is influenced by societyRead MoreThe Concept Of Sociological Imagination : Connecting History987 Words   |  4 PagesConcept of Sociological Imagination: Connecting History to Biography C. Wright Mills believed that sociological imagination connects history and biography by means of cause and effect. Society and all things surrounding it have a particular interconnection when it comes to change. As a result, one major alteration to everyday society causes human relationships in history to adapt to change. History is altered by man, without human interaction and the exponential growth of historical events. MillsRead MoreSociological Imagination1017 Words   |  5 PagesThe concept of â€Å"sociological imagination† is one that can be explained many different ways. A simple way to think of the sociological imagination is to see it as a way a person thinks, where they know that what they do from day to day in their private lives (like the choices they make), are sometimes influenced by the larger environment in which they live (Mills 1959, 1). What C.W. Mills meant by this concept is that it is the ability to â€Å"understand the larger historical scene in te rms of its meaning

William Shakespeare s Merchant Of Venice - 2351 Words

William Shakespeare has written many plays with tragic endings, happy endings, and everything in between. One of his plays, Merchant of Venice, is considered a comedy for its resolve of marriage, fortune, and wellbeing of its main characters. Except for one. This character, Shylock, is the sole force pushing the play as a conflicted characters, and he is depicted as the villain of the play. The events that take place in the story leave Antonio with a happy ending, but a much more grim, destructive and crushing forfeiture for Shylock, which when boiled down and considered leaves a much darker happily ever after than thought for this play, which is why this play is best understood as a tragedy because the heart of the story is not the tale of the static Antonio, but rather the rise and fall of Shylock, the perceived villain, and money lender of Venice. Shylock’s rise and fall through the entire story reflects the play as a tragedy through Antonio’s relentless abuse towards Shylock with the devastating end of Shylock not having justice, Shylock losing of his daughter Jessica when he’s only trying to protect her, and Shylock losing everything during the trial scene where the law is manipulated to be in Antonio’s favor. To begin, Antonio’s abuse towards Shylock previously and presently in the play contributes heavily to the feeling of defeat when Antonio unjustly wins the trial, and only adds to the pain and suffering he has already experienced from Antonio. This abuse, ruthless,Show MoreRelatedWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice Essay1624 Words   |  7 PagesWilliam Shakespeare s comedy The Merchant of Venice uses contrasting religions to draw out major themes through the ethnic divides that are exemplified. The play expresses the extreme cultural divide between the Jews and Christians through a legal contract between two men. The rivalry between the two men, Shylock and Antonio is clear from the beginning of the play and only intensifies as it continues on. Modern day readers most likely take away a slightly different message from the play than whatRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice1320 Words   |  6 Pagesghetto, and were treated as inferior to the rest of the city. William Shakespeare’s play The Merchant of Venice exhibits the prejudicial attitudes of his era. Antonio, a Christian merchant, makes a deal with Shylock, a Jewish moneylender. Shylock uses it as an opportunity to exact revenge by demanding a pound of Antonio’s flesh if he does not meet his end of the bargain. By pitting the majority of his characters against Shylock, Shakespeare portrays Shylock in a way that discriminates against all JewsRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice2269 Words   |  10 PagesSamantha Hansen ENG 314 Brother Brugger 12.15.14 The Question of Shylock It is hard to read The Merchant of Venice without finding at least one character to sympathize with. The unforgettable villain Shylock as well as Portia, Shakespeare’s first and one of his most famous heroines are arguably some of this plays most beloved characters. But, is Shylock really the villain? Or is he a victim of circumstance? Shylock’s insistence for a pound of flesh has made him one of literatures most memorableRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice1970 Words   |  8 Pagesthe titles are reflective of the protagonists featured within. For example, the famous titles of Julius Caesar and Hamlet tell the tragedies of those respective characters. However, when it comes to William Shakespeare’s fourteenth play, The Merchant of Venice, it can be argued that Antonio, the merchant, is not who the play is about. In fact, there is not just one character, but instead multiple that fit the description of the protagonist. The main plot, or rather p lots, of the play revolve aroundRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice1315 Words   |  6 PagesIn The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare the play is based upon the hierarchy between Christian men and Jewish men. A character by the name of Bassanio borrows money from his friend Antonio, and Antonio borrows the money from Shylock to give to Bassanio. Eventually, Antonio cannot pay the money back because his ships have supposedly sunk. Therefore, he comes close to death because he signed a bond with Shylock stating that Shylock would get a pound of his flesh if the bond was not repaidRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice1532 Words   |  7 Pagesuseless dialogue can make readers skip over what seems like a false beginning to a good story. But think about this: what if those seemingly lengthy, extra, useless words were actually important? For example, the opening 115 lines of William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice are provide minimal support to the story at first glance. In these lines, Antonio and his friends are discussing the dynamics of happiness and sadness in order to find the root of Antonio’s sad mood. This portion of the play givesRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Merchant Of Venice988 Words   |  4 PagesAs I finished reading Merchant of Venice by Shakespeare, I realized that the struggle of the play gyrates around whether justice is truly served and is morality advocated or manipulated by those in authority. The struggle between the principles of justice have caused many readers to question the interaction between the definition of morality and justice. The bond that causes readers to take a closer look throughout the play originates from Shylock’s desire for vengeance and Antonio’s desireRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice1532 Words   |  7 Pagesfundamentalist Americans. The ills of money-lending from the Eastern perspective have been fodder for Western literature for centuries, replete with illustrations that mirror the differences and similarities in East-West cultural norms. In William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, money-lending has gone awry. In Act I, Scene iii, the Italian Antonio seeks to borrow 3,000 ducats from the Jewish Shylock, and Shylock intends to charge him interest, which is against Jewish economic-religious principles (BateRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice Essay1275 Words   |  6 PagesShakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice is so alike to our financially afflicted world. The rules of law and commerce are subject to deceptive manipulation, fear of the other overwhelms respect for a common humanity, duplicity is the norm, sexuality is a vehicle for ambition, and money drives and wraps almost every action. It is a classic tale that includes important details of the financial crisis in the Unit ed States during 2007-2009. Shakespeare’s Venice, like the New York of his time - and theRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice2059 Words   |  9 Pagesin The Merchant of Venice resembles a folktale known as â€Å"A Pound of Flesh† (325). Artese supports his supposition with background context and parallels between the two story lines. Literary versions of the pound of flesh story circulated during the sixteenth century and were collected since the nineteenth century because of the plot’s longevity and populairity Shakespeare would have been familiar with pound of flesh stories (326). Human commodification is a central issue in both The Merchant of Venice

Media Bias in News Reporting free essay sample

Media bias in the reporting of the news is pervasive it is present in every form of media and every style of reporting, no matter how non-biased one platform or outlet may claim to be. This is because of agenda-setting: the ability that the news has to tell the consumer which issues are important. Media of all kinds assert their agenda by many means. In a newspaper, the story on the front page is deemed to be of most importance; on a nightly news show, the story at the top of the hour is highlighted as most important, or labeled breaking news to signal that the viewer should pay ttention; on an online setting, the links to stories at the top of the page signal the consumer that these are newest and of most concern to them. Every media outlet has methods of agenda-setting that have been meticulously cultivated since the inception of mass media over a century ago. We will write a custom essay sample on Media Bias in News Reporting or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page There are many forms of bias that show up in the media, and there are many reasons why these biases happen. According to Studentnewsdaily. com Bias by omission is when the author intentionally leaves out facts that support the other side of an argument presented in an article. This bias can happen over the short term (for xample, an article on CNN that rips apart Obamacare by systematically pin-pointing how this system will attempt to under-cut conservative interests, such as private- sector health insurance providers); or, this bias can occur over long-term (for example, Fox News has become a haven for conservative viewpoints because, over time, this media hub has systematically omitted the liberal voice in the majority of the stories it reports). Another form of bias is inherent in the selection of sources to support a specific viewpoint in a news story. An example of this is when a newspaper uns a story about abortion and backs up its assumptions by testimony from experts who already subscribe to a school of thought that is either anti- or pro- abortion. The author simply references more experts who share the same point of view about an issue, therefore implying in that those in the know all feel this way about a topic like abortion. Another form of bias is story selection. This form is most obvious in media outlets that openly subscribe to a certain affiliation, be it republican or democrat. MSNBC may choose to run with a story at the top of their news show bout Joe Biden visiting a church in a poor, rural town in Alabama and reaching out to the locals about how they wont be left behind by the current administration, while Fox News may not even air the story at all. MSNBC frames the story as very important by selecting to air it at the top of their reports; Fox News, on the other hand, chooses to not air the story at all, framing it as unimportant and not news-worthy. Another form of bias, referenced already, is story placement. Each incarnation of mass media has a different, but equally powerful, way of placing a story in a certain way to make t feel more important. Newspapers may print a story they deem most important to their values on the front page, or give the story more body than others. Live news coverage than to less important stories. Another form of bias is labeling. A conservative news outlet may label the president as far left or ultra-liberal as opposed to democrat. A more liberal news outlet may label Bill OReilly as radical or far-right as opposed to republican. A polling organization that caters to republican ideals may show up on Fox News as experts, while on MSNBC they will e labeled a radical organization. The last form of bias is perhaps the most notorious in the news industry spin. Spin occurs when a story is presented with a certain tone that determines how the audience interprets it. It involves subjective comments about objective facts. For example, Bill Maher and Jon Stewart have made their careers on satirically spinning the news with a liberal voice. In their famous study of agenda-setting, McCombs and Shaw (1968) came to the conclusion that 1) the press and the media do not reflect reality; they filter and hape it; and, 2) media concentrations on a few issues and subjects leads the public to perceive those issues as more important than other issues. Through rigorous content-analysis and interviews with the public, McCombs and Shaw formulated that specific communities viewed certain issues as more important in a presidential elections than other communities, and these views were directly correlated to the media consumption of that particular community. For example, a more urban and racially diverse community may see the creation of Jobs as most important, because hat is what their news outlets choose to highlight as the main issue by using the methods of bias described above. In a more rural community, other issues are deemed as most important, such as a candidate subscribing to a pro-life point of view, or an anti-immigration platform.

What Is An Affirmative Action Essay Example For Students

What Is An Affirmative Action Essay Confucius and Confucianism-Books related to Confucius and Confucianism-Confucius and Confucianism- LIFE OF CONFUCIUS Confucius was believed to have been born in 551 BC., in the state of Lu, known today as the Shandong province. His parents, who died while he was a child, named him Kong Qui. Confucius was derived from the Latin word Kongfuzi which means Great Master Kong. Confucius was the most influential and respected philosopher in Chinese history. His ideas were the single strongest influence on Chinese society from around 100 BC. to the AD. 1900s. The Chinese government made his ideas the official state philosophy and many nearby countries honored his beliefs. Confucius wanted to gain the position as an adviser to a wise ruler, but he failed. He hoped to do this in order to be able to employ his ideas for reforming society. We will write a custom essay on What Is An Affirmative Action specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now If it wasnt for the disciples of Confucius his teachings would have never been spread around China, and he would have never been made known. His teachings were never written down by him, but his conversations and sayings were written down by his disciples in the analects. CONFUCIANISM Confucianism was the single most important thing in Chinese life. It affected everything in China; education, government, and attitudes toward behavior in public and private life. Confucianism is not a religion, but it is more a philosophy and a guide to morality and good government. At the time Confucius was born, China was in a constant state of war, and rapid political change altered the structure of Chinese society so much that people no longer respected the established behavioral guidelines. Confucius stated that the ideal person was one of good moral character. The ideal person was also truly reverent in worship and sincerely respected his father and his ruler. He was expected to think for himself, guided by definite rules of conduct. As Confucius said, he was expected to take as much trouble to discover what was right as lesser men take to discover what will pay. Confucius believed that this type of behavior by rulers had a greater effect on the people than did laws or codes of punishment. So when these types of people were rulers, their moral example would inspire the people to lead good lives. Confucius died sometime around 479 B.C., and his philosophy was not very well known. If it werent for his disciples his ideas would probably still be unknown. Confucius never wrote anything down himself; his disciples wrote all of his sayings down in a collection of books called the Analects. These contain all that modern day man knows about Confucius. There existed two important Confucian philosophers-Mencius (390-305 BC) and Xunzi (mid 200s B.C. ). They held beliefs similar to Confucius but they were somewhat different. Menciuss viewpoint was that people were born good, and that they had to preserve the natural compassion of the heart. Xunzi opposed this by saying that people could be good and live peacefully only if their minds were shaped by education and conduct. Both of these ideas parallel Confucius, in that they both state that people can be good. Confucianism was concerned primarily with the needs of society, and unlike Buddhism and Taoism, not the ability for a person to live in harmony with nature. Beginning in the 200s B.C. Buddhism and Taoism began to affect and reshape the standards of Confucianism, and things such as nature came into play. Around A.D. 200 to 600, there was a rapid decline in the Confucian Beliefs in China. This was partly because Confucianism now had to compete with Buddhism and Taoism, which were developed around this time. These religions were to Confucianism as night is to day, in other words, they were exact opposites. Buddhism and Taoism were largely concerned with the meaning of suffering and death, while Confucianism largely ignored these. The revival of Confucianism began around the 600s and was fully revived by the 700s. .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 , .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 .postImageUrl , .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 , .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65:hover , .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65:visited , .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65:active { border:0!important; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65:active , .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65 .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u1c043055871811abeae7189a9cc26b65:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: My Most Embarassing Day Ever Essay In the 1100s, there was a movement lead by Zhu-Xi called the Neo-Confucianism movement. He developed a branch of this movement known as the rational-wing, it dealt with the study of Li, the relationship between humans and nature. Another branch was called the intuitional-wing and it dealt mostly with enlightenment by a combination of meditation and moral action. In the 1900s there was a clash between Confucianism and Western beliefs such as Communism. For many years after the Communist change in China, the Government greatly opposed Confucianism because it tended to look into the past rather than to the future. However, all government opposition ended in 1977.

The heat given out by different types of primary alcohols Essays

The heat given out by different types of primary alcohols Essays The heat given out by different types of primary alcohols Essay The heat given out by different types of primary alcohols Essay In my investigation I will measure the heat given out by different types of primary alcohols when combusting with oxygen and compare the difference in the energy out put per mole of different alcohols.HypothesesBefore we can have a look at the heat content of the different alcohols, we must be able to understand the process of combustion, the changes of the energy within the system while combusting with oxygen and how to determine the difference of the energy given out per unit.First it is crucial to know that it is the external energy that we are measuring of the system, because as the Second Law of thermodynamics states that heat cannot be completely converted into work without some part of the system undergoing change, a equation is applied to the law illustrates that H (total heat content) = G (free energy) + TS (temperatureà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½entropy, TS is the unfree energy which is associated with the degree of disorder of the system), and H can only be equal t o G when TS=0 which only takes place at the temperature of absolute zero.We therefore cannot measure the total change in enthalpy (total heat content) since the 3rd law of thermodynamics states that absolute zero cannot be reached; the entropy which measures the degree of disorder also increases spontaneously that the particles of the system become disorderer or more random. What this investigation measures is the spontaneous change in the free energy which is converted into heat as stated in the second law of thermodynamics.Then it is necessary to know that the reaction is exothermic that is heat or in another word kinetic energy and light energy, which is the emission given out when the exited electron return to a lower energy levels, are given out to the surroundings causing the surroundings to gain more kinetic energy and rise in temperature. We can measure the different values of the bond energy of the reactants and the variation between the two values, if the value of variatio n is positive i.e. when energy is gained the reaction is endothermic, but if the value appears to be negative, then the reaction is exothermic. It is possible to calculate the average bond energy measured in kilo joules per mole (DH/KJ mol-1) and determine the variation. Knowing that C-H=413; C-O=336; C==O=805; H-O=464; O==O=498.3 and the following equation it is possible to calculate ?E.2CH3 (OH) +3O2= 2CO2 +4H2O(413à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½3+336+464)à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2+498.3à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½3-805à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2-464à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½4=-1359.1 KJ, thus the reaction is exothermic. And since the reactions of other alcohols are similar then we can say that the other alcohol combustions are exothermic.Another fact that we must know is that the end products of any combustion reaction are carbon dioxide and water, but before the new molecules can be formed, a certain energy level is needed to give sufficient energy for the collision by what means that if the energy is not sufficient or incorrec tly orientated the reactants will not form, sufficient energy that is needed to be reached is the activation energy of the system to form the activated complex that the atoms are separated.From the state of transition the particles in the molecules now attract to particles of opposite charge, and the orbital become over lapped that the some electrons of the orbital in the outer shell are influenced by both nuclei and therefore forms the molecular orbital (M.O.), and the electrons occupies the orbital whose energy is the lowest available to it. The filling of electrons to the M.O. i.e. the orbital in the sub-shells of the shells are filled up with electrons leads to the drop in energy level of the electrons which can also be called bond energy since it is the energy needed for the transition of energy level of the electrons. This can also be regarded as spontaneous change of the system that it tend to a minimum in potential energy, because the first law of thermodynamics states that energy can neither be created nor destroyed but is simply transferred from one form or system another, the decrease in the energy level of the electrons must mean that energy is transferred to the surroundings.From the information above I can now decide that the energy released per mole is determine by the decrease in energy level of the electrons of the valence shell spontaneously and the number of M.O. When there are more carbon atoms with in an alcohol, there will be more hydrogen atoms within the molecule as well, so that when the new molecules are formed there will be more M.O. of the similar sort formed and more energy will be released, according to the theories I have explained above.If we know the value of the reduction in the energy level when the M.O. are formed (the bond energy), the symbol equation of the reactions and the relative atomic mass (R.A.M.), then it is possible to calculate the energy given out per mole. I will work out the energy released per mole and I woul d expect the result of my experiment follow a similar pattern of increase of the set of values below. As we already knew, C-H=413; C-O=336; C==O=805; H-O=464; O==O=498.3; C-C=347Methanol: 2CH3OH+3O2= 2CO2 +4H2O(413à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½3+336+464)à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2+498.3à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½3-805à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2-464à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½4=-1359.1 kJ; 1359.1?2=679.55kJ mol-1Ethanol: C2H5OH+3O2=2CO2+3H2O347+413à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½5+336+464+3à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½498.3-(805à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2)à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2-(464à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2)à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½= -1297.1kJ1297.1à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½1=1297.1 kJ mol-1Propan-1-ol: 2C3H7OH+9O2=6CO2+8H2O(347à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2+413à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½7+336+464)à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2+498.3à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½9-805à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½6-464à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½8= -3829.3kJ3829.3à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2=1914.65 kJ mol-1Butan-1-ol: C4H9OH+6O2=4CO2+5H2O347à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½3+413à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½9+336+464+498.3à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½6-805à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½4-464à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½5= -2532.2kJ2532.2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½1=2532.2kJ mol-1From these set of results it is pos sible to predict that as the number of carbon atoms increases within an alcohol molecule, the energy out put per mole will also increase.Safety* Alcohols are highly flammable so that the spirit burners must be dealt with caution, any alcohol spillages on any surfaces must be cleaned immediately in case of fire.* Alcohols can cause blindness and death when took into the body, one must seek medical attention when took in.* Avoid touching the apparatus directly after experiments, when which will be heated up.* The flame must be kept distance away from other unnecessary apparatus.* Safety goggles and lab coats must be worn, and first aid kits and other first aid equipments must be ready in case of emergencies. (See photo 4)Apparatus* Spirit burner containing methanol, ethanol, propanol-1-ol and butanol-1-ol* Stand, boss and clamp* Thermometer* Digital balance accurate to 10-2 digits* Ruler* 2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½100ml2 measuring cylinder* Safety goggles, lab coats* Stop clock* Tin can* Heat proo f mat(See photo 1)MethodIn order to carry out this investigation, two measurements must be taken; they are the loss in the weight of the alcohols, and the temperature change of the water. Subsequently before we can start the experiment we must measure the weight of the spirit burner, and record the reading. Then the stand boss and the clamp should be set up to fix the tin in place. The reason why I have chosen the tin to be the calorimeter is because it is a good conductor to heat thus it has a relatively low heat capacity, and more kinetic energy can be passed to the water molecules efficiently to make accurate my results.The spirit burner should be positioned directly beneath the tin and a heat proof mat is needed to be placed under the spirit burner. The distance between the peak of the wick and the bottom of the tin must be kept constant in order to carry out a fair comparison. A draught shield is needed to be placed around the spirit burner and the tin to prevent the unnecessar y heat loss that could vary the result of the experiment. (See photo 2) After the apparatus have been set up as described above, then we must measure 200ml of water of 2à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½100ml measuring cylinder and add which to the tin, and then place the thermometer to the water and wait until the reading is stable. It important to keep the volume of water constant since the energy required to raise 1oc is associated with the mass.This stable reading can give the actual temperature before the experiment and this also tells me the temperature of the tin since the one have higher energy tends to give out energy spontaneously and equilibrium can be reached between the two. Knowing the heat capacity of the tin it is possible to calculate how much energy the calorimeter receives and this can give me a more accurate value of the heat generated by the alcohol. Since equilibrium can be reached by energy transfer from a hotter system to a colder, I can therefor say that the temperature of the ti n can is almost the same as the water. Now that knowing the heat capacity of the calorimeter system which is 0.277 kJ m3 oc and the weight of the tin can is 40.937g, then the energy that had been absorbed in each of the experiments can be calculated.After the preparations it is time to start the experiment by lighting the spirit burner thought the hole in the draught shield using a stick. The experiment will be carried out for approximately 180 seconds, the time is set upon the preliminary work I have done that this could prevent the maximum evaporation of water while efficient energy can be gained by the water to show a positive result. The reading from the thermometer must be taking quite exactly the same time when the flame extinguishes so that an accurate value can result that further out put of energy that will not be taken into account can be avoided.The spirit burner must also be weighed immediately to give a result as accurate as possible, since the weight can be reduced fro m other ways such as evaporation. The experiment of each alcohol will be carried out 3 times to give an accurate result and the same experiment will be repeated for each alcohol. Between each experiment it is necessary to clean off the carbon as the result of incomplete combustion produced at the bottom of the tin, because it can act as an insulator which will have effects on the accuracy of the results. One other of the natures of combustions is that the flame is not stable and within a flame the distribution of heat is not equal.Consequently it must me made sure that the sizes of the flames are the same since the distance between the wick and the tin can is already at constant. A difference between the cotton part, which is the interior of the wick, and the exterior material can cause a difference in the size of the flame, thus I have decided to cut the wick before each experiment to maintain the size of the flames. (See Photo 3) At this point it is vital to point out that the ran ge of alcohol used be limited within the primary alcohols, which all have similar molecular structures in terms of the arrangement, so that methanol, ethanol, propan-1-ol and butan-1-ol are used. I also felt that there is no significance in caring out the experiment further that pentan-1-ol and hexan-1-ol are necessary, since I can discover the pattern from the first four.Fair testIn the table below I will illustrate the thing that I will keep constant and that will vary to produce results of use.VariablesConstantsType of primary alcoholVolume of waterApproximately the same timeDistance between the top of spirit burner and the bottom of tinApproximately the same surface area of tin covered by the draught shieldWickThe same calorimeterResults:(See table 1, 2, 3 and graph 1, 2,3)Analysis:By looking a Graph 1, it is possible to see the correlation between the number of carbon atoms and the energy output per mole. The correlation had illustrated that both the expected values and observe d values are positive, how ever the expected values increase steadily with a high gradient than the values of the experiment. The outcome was expected and the cause had already been explained in the hypothesis. First by nature it is not possible to make 100% use from the energy given out by the reaction, because the energy given is mainly in the form of heat, the movement of particles that can be lost very easily.Evidence have also shown that the combustion is not complete because carbon, one of the activated complex in the process of the reaction had not been combined with oxygen forming carbon dioxide, thus less energy is produced by the reaction due to the incomplete combustion; the amount of carbon collected at the bottom of the tin can had increased as the alcohols containing more carbon was used, showing that more of the combustion/reaction was incomplete when the time for each spirit burner to combust was roughly 180 seconds.From graph 1 along, it is difficult to identify the anomalies due to its scale, thus the observed results had been put onto a new graph. (See graph 3) From the graph it is then possible to see that there is no anomalies in the experiment since the line of best fit goes through the error bars of the plotted points on the graph, the error bars represented the possible variation of data due to the inaccuracies experiment. But when looking at graph 2, the percentage of accuracy decreases as the number of carbon increases, butan-1-ol in particular had an anomalous value. If one of the values of the data in the percentage/accuracy graph is anomalous, then this value must also be at the wrong position in the energy output/carbon atoms graph, however there is not enough evident to investigate further.The characteristics of this calorimeter system only allows us to measure the heat transfer from one system to another, however heat was not the only product of the reaction that a relatively large part of the energy is in the forms of light, wh ich cannot be measured by the calorimeter system. However the difference in the gradient of the two lines of best fit had shown that they increase at different rates, i.e. there are errors in the last experiments which had made the rate of increase of the observed values differ from the expected.The percentage of accuracy of the results obtain from the experiment is shown on graph 2. From which it is clear that the results became less accurate as the chain of carbons got longer, in theory the molecule will increase its activation energy as the number of carbon atoms increases because each carbon atom have 4 half full sub-shells, since the electrons follow the Hund principle which states that when filling a sub-shell, there is less electron repulsion if each of each orbital is half-filled first before any single one is completely filled.In the M shell of carbon, 2s, 2px, 2py and 2pz orbital are half filled of that the 4 unpaired electrons can attract 4 other nuclei, thus the more car bon there is the half filled orbital there are. Again, as I had stated in my prediction that the energy level, the potential energy in particular of the electrons will drop, when an orbital is full, therefore more energy is required to provide sufficient energy i.e. bring back the initial energy level of the electrons for collision to occur properly. The more carbon atoms there are, the fuller orbital thus larger amount of energy will fall. The higher activation energy made difficult the supply of which, thus a larger amount is combusted improperly, and this can then explain the decrease in percentage of accuracy.Equally if there are more carbon atoms in the reactants, more products will form, and I had already investigated in my prediction that the reaction is exothermic, i.e. the energy given by the products is higher than the energy put in to the system due to the characteristics of different types of bonds. In this case, there are more bonds in the products, although the type of bonding may be different (? and ? bonds) that they have different energy levels.From my results it is possible of see that as the number of carbon atoms increased in a primary alcohol molecule, the energy output of it also increases. This had matched my prediction although the pattern between the expected and the observed is different.Evaluation:The results had shown a positive correlation between the set of results, however the results had also shown that the experiment did not accurately measure the energy output of the alcohols on graph 1. However there is potential to make more accurate the experiment by using method that could prevent as much heat loss as possible.Before it is possible to make further improvements on the investigation, probable errors must be identified and analyzed. It would consolidated my conclusion, in witch the particular errors are unidentified, if I had more evidence about the trend in the deduction of the percentage of accuracy, thus I would be a good idea to obtain the values of pentan-1-ol and hexan-1-ol. However if the equipments such as a variety of alcohols are not available, then more accurate methods can my applied to the current investigation to reduce the probability of anomalies occurring.First the heat produced by the reaction is not efficiently used to heat up the water, which can cause potential inaccuracies; some heat is lost to the surroundings and not taking in by water, because some would be conducted away by the apparatus e.g. the tin can some would be absorbed by the cylinder (not include in the calculation) and some lost through convection or move spontaneously to where air molecules have less energy due to nature. To solve the problem black painted tin cans which is able to absorb the maximum radiation given, and the infra red waved are able to heat up the water molecules. Yet not all part of the tin should be painted black, the inside and the outside of the sides of the tin can must maintain its shiny colour to prevent radiation given out by the heated up tin can.Some sort of insulation of the tin can is also able to avoid heat lost through conduction, consequently the tin can should be wrapped with wools to preserve the heat within. The apparatus that are purposed to preserve the heat are not all ideal, the cylinder used to increase the heat given to tin can should have had a higher heat capacity, because the draught shield was heated up but the large amount of energy, due to the large change in temperature, cannot and was not calculated. It would possibly be a good idea to use a better insulated draught shield, so that it would also by wrapped with wools and coated with silver paint to reduce conduction and radiation to the minimal. An enclosed and well insulated chamber can also increase the efficiency of the usage of the energy, by bring to a close the escape of the heat.Many other faults were caused by ineffectual apparatus. The hole that was used to light spirit burner acted as a drought, which provided oxygen which is an element in the equation of combustion, but this also had made the flame unstable due to the movement of the air. The thermometer was accurate 0.5 oC which could impact the final result, if the thermometer was accurate to 10-2 the results would be more accurate and more reliable. The shielding that are purposed to prevent heat loss can impede the process of putting off the flame, therefore the change in mass did not match the reading of the thermometer when taken, and the level of heat with in the chamber will not be consistent through out the experiment when attempting to distinguish the flame by capping the burner. This problem would be very difficult to solve that it would be difficult to have an enclosed system to prevent heat loss and to ensure that the flame can be distinguished easily.One other cause of error of my experiment was that the alcohols are not completely combusted because the activation energy cannot be reached when only little partition of the alcohols in the spirit burner are being burnt and not producing enough energy for efficient collision between particles so that carbon atoms are formed at the bottom of the tin can. The building up of the carbon also acted as an insulator that the heat cannot be conducted to the tin can and will impact on the results of my experiment. Again this is a problem that I have to face when the experiment is repeated, although the carbon can be displace after each experiment, but the effect of which during the experiment cannot be solved.Now that I think it is appropriate to introduce a different method which would guarantee the energy of the reaction can be accurately measured. In the current experiment heat loss to the surroundings and therefore the energy towards the water was not efficient, but if the surroundings, where heat is given to, is water then maximum percentage of energy released by the experiment would be given to water where it can be measured. The er ror occurred in measuring the mass was also a factor affecting the anomalous results, thus a given mass can be allowed to be completely combusted so that an accurate value can be obtained.Some of the energy given to water are lost, or transferred to the surrounding of the calorimeter which cannot be measured, the heat is transferred is because one system has more energy than the other. Knowing this if the calorimeter can be maintained at the same temperature as the water with, no heat transfer can occur through conduction, and when the calorimeter is concealed no further heat can escape by convection. In order to reduce radiation, as described above, the calorimeter can be coated in shiny colour. Rather than preceding the experiment in a spirit burner, where only a little mass of alcohol was being burnt which could not proved efficient energy output that the wrong proportion of which could be used to provide the efficiency for collision, and result in incomplete combustion.A larger mass could be burnt in a given length of time to produce more energy to secure further efficiency in collision. The appropriate apparatus which suites the description above would be a bomb calorimeter. (See diagram 1) The combustion would take place in the bomb where is cased with steel, which could with stand the impact of the explosion when alcohol being combusted and also conduct heat to the calorimeter. Within the bomb the reaction is triggered by a fuse-wire which is conducted to the mains, the fuse then burns the cotton attached to it and light the flame.The bomb is also well supplied with 25 atmosphere of oxygen, pumped in with a pipe, thus no draught is need. The bomb then will be placed in a calorimeter system filled with water, as stated above that maximum energy can be transferred in the water which can then be measured, the wall of this calorimeter will be filled with water and the temperature of which is controlled by a coil which equalizes the temperature so that heat cannot can not escape or get into the calorimeter. Because the heat cannot be transferred in or out of the calorimeter, the maximum temperature the system reaches would be almost, if not all the free energy of the reaction.As well as to discover the pattern among the primary alcohols, secondary and tertiary alcohols can also be investigated. We already know the relationship between the numbers of carbon atoms or the length of the carbon chain and the energy output, it would be equally significant to learn the science when the carbons are not in a chain or a irregular chain, and how a hybridized carbon if any at all is able to alter the results. Investigations could be among propan-2-ol, butan-2-ol, pentan-2-ol, hexan-2-ol, cyclohexanol and 2-methyl-propan-2-ol.

Solutions to Reduce the College Dropout Rate Essay

Solutions to Reduce the College Dropout Rate - Essay Example The high college dropout rate also has many financial implications upon the society as the dropout crisis causes a net loss of $319 billion in the earnings (â€Å"President Obama Announces†). Alternative education options, improved parent-teacher and teacher-student understanding, and the implementation of programs to improve the students’ readiness for college education can help reduce the college dropout rates. Lack of interest in education is the reason behind the dropout of 50 per cent of the population of the dropping out students whereas more than 66.66 per cent of these students dropout because they don’t get any motivation or inspiration from the educational institutions to continue the education (â€Å"President Obama Announces†). This means that a student’s decision to leave the college can be temporal and the student may want to resume the studies from where they were left if provided an opportunity. To facilitate such students, the gover nment should provide the students with alternative pathways to education and training. They can be transfer colleges or work-based experiences that would enable the students to continue their academic and professional development even after leaving the education in the proper channel. This way, a student is provided with an opportunity to revert to the regular channel after some time. Colleges should also alter their teaching practices to provide more individualized and personalized support to the students for engaging them more. A teacher’s understanding of the students’ psychology is fundamental to his/her display of appropriate behavior towards them. â€Å"Experience indicates that helping the high-risk student establish a linkage with the college through either a personal relationship with a staff member, involvement in campus organizations, or a campus-based work assignment appears to be the single-most effective means of reducing attrition† (Jones 17). Inc reasing the engagement of parents in the process can also be quite helpful. The teachers should frequently interact with the parents to find out ways to mutually encourage the students to study. This also makes a teacher better able to understand the psychology of individual students. The US President Obama has recently taken some initiatives to improve the condition in the US. He challenged the states to locate the high schools in the US in which the graduation rate is less than 60 per cent and offered funds to change increase it. The Obama Administration has reserved a total of $3.5 billion for funding the measures to improve the graduation rate in the schools that have been persistently showing a low performance on the graduation. In addition to that, the FY 2011 budget prepared by the Obama Administration is inclusive of $900 million for the support of the School Turnaround Grants. President Obama’s efforts are directed at preventing the school dropout in the US and makin g the learning more involving for the students by use of appropriate recovery strategies. The Obama Administration has also prepared a College Pathways Program with an investment worth $100 million for the promotion of a culture of the students’ readiness for colleges in the high schools. The programs prepared to achieve this provide the students with the opportunity to gain the college credit as well as the high school diploma simultaneously. Concluding, the college dropout rates have been on an increase everywhere both within the