The Black Newsletter Essay Example for Free

The Black Newsletter Essay Through the years, black women have endured the pressures and struggles in living with the American society. They exist in the middle of two strongholds: race and gender. These issues are somewhat weight on their backs and dealing with these burdens is definitely not easy. But living it through entails survival to meet the demands of the society. Further, one of those demands that must be accomplished is the aspect on education. Hence, how well do these black women perform in academics compared to whites and other race is a significant query and might as well be given a particular focus on this discussion. Evidently, there is no direct source that straightly compares the SAT scores of black women in contrast with that of the whites and all others. Instead, the race and gender of SAT takers in general were compared. According to JBHE Weekly Bulletin, â€Å"the racial scoring gap on the latest SAT college entrance examination is the widest in 20 years, as it shows that for white high school seniors, the average combined score on the reading and math sections was 1065 while the blacks’ average score was 856 and so the racial gap now is 209 points, which is 10 points higher than a year ago† (http://www. jbhe. com/latest/index090408_p. htm). The Black Newsletter also listed the result of the SAT, which included other races: â€Å"Black (430 Verbal, 427 Math), Asian (501 Verbal, 569 Math), White (527 Verbal, 533 Math) and Puerto Rican (455 Verbal, 451 Math)† (www. blackexcel. org/nov-2003. html). Noticeably, the black rated the lowest on that result listing. On the other hand, the Princeton Review held that â€Å"there was a variation by gender on the SAT result based on the College Board’s report, which revealed that women scored 42 points lower than men, representing a gap that has grown each of the past three years† (www. advancingwomen. com/college_satbias. html). Consequently, the abovementioned statistics greatly revealed that the black women are situated amidst two forces. Indeed, â€Å"black women have known they are the heirs of a dual inheritance: racism and sexism† says Veronica Chambers Doubleday, author of the book â€Å"Having It All: Black Women and Success† (www. highbeam. com/doc/1G1-99375215. html).

A Response To Peter Singer

A Response To Peter Singer In Famine, Affluence, and Morality, Peter Singer discusses that people are dying in Bengal from a lack of food, shelter, and medical care. Singer discusses in detail how poverty and war have created a large number of refugees that require millions just to keep them alive. Singer claims that countries and nations like Australia and Britain have given a considerable amount of assistance, but what has been given is not nearly enough. Singer believes that we have an obligation to prevent misfortunes such as, starvation or poverty, from occurring so long as it doesnt require us to sacrifice something equally as important. To reiterate, Singers main argument is, if it is in our power to prevent something very bad from happening, without thereby sacrificing anything morally significant, we ought, morally, to do it (Singer, p. 231). Singer responds that starvation in Bengal could be greatly reduced if everyone decided to pitch in. Singer opens his article with his example of a drowning child. To summarize, the scenario involves a person walking by a child who is drowning. Singer questions whether to go in after the child and get our clothes muddy, or to allow the child to drown. The vast majority of people would agree that one would have an obligation to save the drowning child. This can be related to Singers main argument, as one would have the power to prevent the child from drowning and getting ourselves dirty is not sacrificing anything equally significant. Singer also brings to light that whether there were other bystanders around while the child was drowning, even if they werent helping to save the child, one would still be morally obligated to save the child. Singers counter-argument is that we are more likely to help those that are close (the drowning child) then help those that are far away (starving refugees in Bengal). Singers response is that distance is irrelevant in what we should morally do. Sin gers example is simple and purposeful, and it leads us into the rest of his article. Peter Singer discusses a sense of equality, and how if we accept equality as part of our morality, then we cannot say that someone far away is not in need based on proximity and distance alone. After all, someone suffering in Bengal versus someone suffering in California should be viewed the same, right? Singer feels there are human fallacies with regards to the way we think. In his eyes, we are less likely to give to those that are far away regardless of how badly they need it. According to Singer, we need to evaluate how we help others that are far away. However, we need to be morally obligated to our families and our own country (our own poor, starving, homeless, etc), and it makes perfect sense that we will help those that are close in proximity. If we spent all of our extra money on those that live far away and forgot about those in need in our own country, how is that living up to Singers main argument of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦without sacrificing anything more significant? Singer resp onds by stating that donating is not a charity, but a duty. It is our duty to assist those in need. Singer provides a second counter-argument against the drowning child and the Bengal refugees. In the example of the drowning child, there is only one person to help but in the example of the refugees, there are millions upon millions to provide help. Singer responds to this by writing that regardless of whether you are the only one, or there are millions, it doesnt lessen your obligation to help. A third counter-argument presented by Singer regards famine. If everyone who could help, and still live within their means, gave a fixed amount of money in an attempt to prevent the famine then that is all wed be obligated to give. People who could only afford a fixed amount would donate the fixed amount while people who could afford much more than the fixed amount would still only be morally obligated to donate the fixed amount. Singers response is that this is a skewed way of reasoning, because people who can afford more should give more while people who can afford a little only give a little. Singers concept of marginal utility, as written by Singer (1972) himself is à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the level at which, by giving more, I would cause as much suffering to myself or my dependents as I would relieve by my gift. (p. 241). Singer continues to say, This would mean, of course, that one would reduce oneself to very near the material circumstances of a Bengali refugee. (p. 241). This relates to Singers main argument because the amount of help that is needed in Bengal and other countries is so great that it is highly unlikely that amount of assistance will ever be provided. In his article, Singer states The traditional distinction between duty and charity cannot be drawn, or at least, not in the place we normally draw it. (p. 235) Singers concept of duty is what we are morally obligated to do, and his concept of charity is giving money to a charitable cause but because of how charity is viewed there is nothing wrong with not giving. His concepts later change in his article when he discusses that his argument cannot support people in developed nations living an affluent lifestyle should enjoy giving money to those in need. If I was able to reach out to Singer and respond to his article, I would tell him that people are not morally required to do as much as he is asking of us. If we did exactly as Singer wanted, and that would be to quit our jobs and work full time to put an end to poverty and starvation, where would that leave us? Everybody involved in this full time effort would drop everything they were doing in order to meet the goal of ending starvation. Critical breakthroughs in science and technology would cease to exist because wed all be pitching in towards the goal. If there was an instance of choosing to do donate to the relief of starvation, which would probably yield excellent results, and choosing to do something that you wanted, which might yield good results, Singer would object and state that choosing to donate to the relief of starvation is our moral duty. Of course, there is no definitive way of knowing whether donating to the relief of doing something that we really wanted would be more or less beneficial than the other. Instead of donating, I might want to research and experiment more into a cure for HIV, while someone else may want to learn a second language or learn advanced physics. The point is that we dont know what everyones exact interests are, and therefore, we cant say whether it would be beneficial to donate over doing something we wanted to do. I would end my response to Peter Singer with an open-ended, yet thought provoking question: With regards to your moral duties, how much are you giving to charity and what have you done to prevent bad things from occurring, Mr. Singer? In conclusion, Singer is correct in his article. Humans should do more than we do to help those in need, regardless of their proximity or distance. However, I think Singer is overly exaggerated in his views and humans should not do as much as he expects us to do. It simply doesnt work.

Theodore Roosevelts domestic policy

Theodore Roosevelts domestic policy Introduction Theodore Roosevelt was born on October 27, 1858 in New York City. He entered history books as the youngest person to serve as the president of the United States of America. Roosevelt has been known by many as a champion of a strenuous life. As a young man, Theodore or Teddy as he was known was haunted by chronic asthma attacks. However, despite all these he voraciously fought his condition and devoted most of his early life to study. Theodore Roosevelt displayed authority, combined with an enigmatic personality. He revolutionized and modernized the American presidency by championing justice. His profound popularity gave him political mileage that perfectly complimented his Get action, do things, attitude in all the endeavors (The Presidents para.1). Many people had perceived Theodore Roosevelt as an unlikely candidate for what we may term as a reform president. He had been born into a wealthy family and this gave him the privilege of enjoying his youth at a level that was beyond of most of his peers. He was able to tour most parts of the world, was taught by private tutors, and spent most of his life in a mansion in New York. Roosevelt had obtained his education from Harvard. His social circle contained the upper crust. On contrary however, Roosevelts interests were vested in working class Americans rather than the affluent corporates. This was a riot against the very society that had brought him up (The Presidents para.2). The square deal It was in 1901 when Roosevelt entered the White House, he had inherited a federal government sided the big business against the working Americans. During this time, Wall Street was experiencing a financial shake-up. Being wise enough he momentarily restrained his progressivism. In early 1902, Roosevelt embarked on his square deal plan to launch an offensive against the powerful corporate trusts. Ideally, President Roosevelt was one of the most audacious Progressive luminaries of his time (The Presidents para.1). In most cases; his domestic policies capitalized on fighting corruption and injustice in major industries all this in the name of helping the common man. The Square Deal was meant to improve living standards of the American people and to exert more regulation over large corporations or trusts. In response to these actions, most businesses termed Roosevelt as a socialist and a demagogue. In his defense the president adamantly brushed off these accusations. As a matter of fact, Roosevelt had regard for big business, and was aware of the trusts contribution in increasing the standards living of the American people. The presidents dislike arose from the fact that the common American had very little control of these corporations. As a balancing act, Roosevelt feared surrendering too much power to labor (Spark notes para.2). Sherman Anti-Trust Act Roosevelts approach ran into a major huddle in 1902. This includes the 1902 Coal Strike when 140,000 miners went on strike in eastern Pennsylvania t. there was great panic in the whole nation since coal was a major source of energy in America in that era. The coal miners union demanded higher wages coupled with improved working conditions. The owners of the mine, failed to agree with the miners. Mitchell-a representative of the miners proposed to the president that an independent arbitration council would work (Spark notes para.2) However, both the miners and the company rejected arbitration. Pressure was mounting; Roosevelt therefore devised a plan to replace the miners with ten thousand army men, as an emergency plan to step in if consensus was not reached. Fortunate enough, the disaster was averted through independent arbitration. This was after the Secretary of War; Elihu Root worked with banker J.P. Morgan to convince the parties involved to accept independent arbitration. This was victory for Roosevelt in the eyes of the American people. In the year 1902, financiers on Wall Street received a screamer. This was when President Roosevelt decided to approve the governments lawsuit against Northern Securities,-a large and newly merged western railroad company, for violating the so called Sherman Anti-Trust Act. The financer of the project, J.P. Morgan, who had arranged the merger and even invested in Northern Securities, suffered the consequences (Spark notes para.2) The company together with its sympathizers cried foul and accused the president of witch hunting. On the other hand, the American people admired their presidents brevity and boldness in handling the tenacious trusts. To seal this victory, Roosevelt went ahead to nominate Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., to take the place of Justice Horace Gray on the Supreme Court. Holmes in his tenure as Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Court had been strongly against industry and railroads in similar suits. The governments victory translated into the disintegration of Northern Securities into smaller companies. It has been documented that during his tenure, President Roosevelt brought about forty-three lawsuits trusts. (Spark notes para.3) The 1902 Reclamation Act We also look at this Act as a major component of Roosevelts domestic policy. Roosevelt had great passion for the environmental conservation. His idea of conservation was revolutionary and unconventional at the time. The idea was to save the land for posterity as opposed to mere preservation. This resulted in the purchase of about 150 acres of land that was to be conserved. This Act also resulted into consortiums with very knowledgeable environmentalists of that time including the likes of Gifford Pinchot and John Muir. The byproduct of this relationship was the establishment of various wildlife preservation parks and reserves. (Spark notes para.6) In fact, the order and organization in forest reserve services was attributed to this policy. The National Forest Service was streamlined, adding to it were National Parks which were created for purposes of recreation and conservation. The enactment of these acts was not without opposition. Most of those against the Act including members of Congress had vested interests in the land that was being preserved. However, the grievances of some antagonists (white Settlers) were soothed when the 1902 Reclamation Act was enacted thus allowing dry, unlivable land to be irrigated, converting it into productive land. (Spark notes para.6) The Hepburn Bill In the year 1906, the Hepburn Bill was drafted and passed. This bill was to bring reforms in the way rate evaluations were calculated and further cut on excessive rebates that were designed to eliminate competition by firms. The bill also encouraged interstate commerce which was regulated by the Feds. The bill was a major blow to several companies that previously engaged in excessive rebate-issuing such as the railroads. (Spark notes para.3) The Meat Inspection Bill and Food and Drug Administration. In 1906, a distinguished author by the name Upton Sinclairs in his novel The Jungle explicitly painted the picture of the state of affairs of Chicago stockyards and meatpacking industry. This brought to light the dilapidated working conditions of these industries prompting Roosevelt to take action. What disgusted the head of state was the description by Sinclair about a worker who was operating the meat grinder and apparently fell into the meat grinder, was crashed and canned for sales to the public. The president immediately ordered an investigation into the matter and not only packinghouses in Chicago but also in the entire nation. The detailed report from the inquiry confirmed Sinclairs sentiments. This led to the drafting of the Meat Inspection Bill and later the formation of an organ known as creation of the Food and Drug Administration (Spark notes para.4) The 1907 financial crisis In 1907, the United States experienced financial tremors. This was initiated by the collapse the Knickerbockers Trust Company in New York. The effect also spread to many other banks. Accusing fingers were pointed at Roosevelt for the economic downturn. President Roosevelt in his defense cited plutocracy (the governing of the society by the wealthy class) as the source the troubles. At this juncture it was not really clear who to blame, but it was letter established that the problem was global. Major firms including the large brokerage of Moore and Schley were at the verge of going under. However, the federal government intervened and bailed them out of the financial stalemate. Government intervention brought about stability thus averting crashing of the stock market. Working with corporates such as Morgan, the president managed to evade the global economic depression during his era (Spark notes para.3) Conclusion President Theodore Roosevelt model of leadership is unique and noteworthy. Putting aside the challenges he faced, this frail man rose to be one of the worlds greatest leaders. His style of leadership is worth emulating. Theodore Roosevelt once said, No man who is corrupt, no man who condones corruption in others can possibly do his duty by the community (Montalvà ¡n 54). References The presidents (2003), Theodore Roosevelt. Retrieved April 06 from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/26_t_roosevelt/printable.html Spark notes (2010) ,Theodore Roosevelt,1901-1909: Domestic Policies. Retrieved April 06 from http://www.sparknotes.com/biography/troosevelt/section10.rhtml Montalvà ¡n C (2008), Military review 2009. Retrieved April 06 from http://usacac.army.mil/CAC2/MilitaryReview/Archives/English/MilitaryReview_20090228_art008.pdf

Gothic writing remains fascinated by objects and practices that are :: English Literature

Gothic writing remains fascinated by objects and practices that are negative, irrational and immoral. How far would you agree with this statement? Jane Eyre? WHY the focus, why the preoccupation? Introduction It is typical of Gothic writing to be fascinated by objects and practices that are negative, irrational and immoral.(define key term in terms of gothic elements) Such objects and practices are usually shunned by the society, much of which are very controversial. However, the Gothic being didactic in nature uses these objects and practices to challenge and convey a certain moral agenda. In this essay, in the context of Charlotte Bronte'sJane Eyre and Bram Stoker's Dracula, we are going to explore the different objects and practices in these novels that are negative, irrational and immoral and show how they can convey a moral agenda. There are several objects and practices in which portrays the immoral obesssions??? of Victorian society. Practices such as polygamy, voyeurism and rape, , incest and theà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Oedipus complex are such of immoral practices in which shows that the Gothic is fascinated in its writing. Polygamy is regarded immoral in Victorian times as men are traditonalluy monogamysupposed to have relationships with more than one woman. The blood transfusion scene in Stoker's Dracula of Lucy by Arthur Holmwood, Quincey Morris, Van Helsing and Doctor Seward depicts the controversies of polygamy. In page 225, Arthur claims that "he felt, since (the blood transfusion), as if 'they too had been really married and that she was his wife in the sight of God". This shows that Arthur, in Freudian terms, is already 'married' during the transfusion, along with the other men. If the idea of transfusing as a divine practice of marriage, the fact that, the other three men had also transferred blood to her would mean that they too have married her. This fulfils Lucy's desire of "letting a girl marry three menà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ as many want her", as it has been said in page 81. Voyeurism and rape, in which is regarded as an immoral act is also shown in Dracula in which the act of staking Lucy's heart is according Roth (199) is "relatively explicit and full of sexuality". When the stake is driven into her heart, she lapses into an orgasmic-like state, as it is quoted in page 277, "The Thing in the coffin writhed; and a hideous blood-curdling screech came from the opened red lips." Females being sexually open are regarded as immoral during the Victorian era. There are several examples showing Lucy being sexually open, as such in page 80, "You think me as a horrid flirt though I can't help feeling a sort of exaltation that" two men were interested

Cato the Elder and Julius Caesar Essay -- Roman History

The Roman Republic's most memorable men are Cato the Elder and Julius Caesar. Each man gained unfathomable power over the greatest nation of the world for its time. Our world today continues to feel the affects of Caesar, who developed the modern day calendar system (Suet. Caesar, 40). Both men changed Rome and added to its rich and nobel history. Ancient biographers, Plutarch and Suetonius, give insightful glimpses into to the lives of Cato and Caesar, and what formed them into history makers. Through careful analysis of Cato and Caesar's biographies, it becomes apparent that they shared similar skills and values that vaulted them to the top of Roman society. However, they were strikingly different in how they used their skills and lived their lives. Although the lives of Cato and Caesar are similar in many respects, the biographies of Plutarch and Suetonius reveal that personality and family background are the main causes for their differences. Commonalities between Cato and Caesar abound in Suetonius and Plutarch's biographies. The most apparent similarity is physical appearance and ability. Cato followed a sober mode of living and trained hard to attain â€Å" a tough constitution and a body which was as strong as it was healthy† (P1). In battle Cato was a â€Å"formidable fighter, who stood his ground resolutely and and confronted his opponents with a ferocious expression â€Å" (P1). Caesar was also strong in body and battle. He was â€Å"tall fair and well built,† and he was â€Å"a most skillful swordsman and horseman, and showed surprising powers of endurance† (s45,57). The enormous number of victories left by Caesar are testimony to his skill as general and fighter. Similarity in strength is only one part of dom... ...ter, Julia, like a game piece and married her to pompey to form an alliance. Caesar's personality has clearly shown through in these examples of marriage and offspring. On the other hand, Cato views his offspring and marriage in a much different light.. Due to his sense of hard work and care for family, Cato believes strongly that if he puts effort into his son's education he will be rewarded with a son to be proud of. This turns out to be true because Cato receives a letter from his son's commander, in which his son is praised â€Å"in the highest terms for his gallantry† (plu. 20). Also, Cato only had one wife at a time, and only remarried after his first wife died (plu. 24). Compared to Caesar, Cato's moral nature is clearly shining through. Personality and character traits clearly show the how difference arise within the context of marriage and offspring.

ICT in The Local Community Essay

I will be report I will be writing about how ICT has an affect on my local community which is Bradford, West Yorkshire. I will also include the good things and the bad about each part of ICT as it is used by the local community and laws that effect the way things are done in the local community. Booking tickets on-line. You can book tickets online for many events but the most popular is booking for the Alhambra theatre in Bradford. People often go to the Alhambra to see live shows that range from comedies to dramas and being able to book a ticket online is useful for many people in the local community. To book a ticket on-line is easy just follow the instructions on the site, here is an example: The good points about it are that to book a ticket the community doesn’t even have to move from their seat, and they can also take their time choosing when and what they want to see. The bad points about this is that the local community’s request might not go through although they have thought it has, or the system of the theatre may have gone down and then in that case they have to go to the theatre themselves. There is also a lack of human contact and they can only book into an area and not a specific seat, there also maybe a charge for tickets booked on-line and a further charge if you would like them posted to a home in the community. Another bad point is that the site may not be secure from credit card fraud. I think it could be improved by a confirmation being sent to their e-mail address so you know whether or not your booking has gone through. You can also book a ticket over the phone which is a little harder because rather than taking your time as on the web, The good points about booking a ticket over the phone is that time can be saved even if anyone in the community doesn’t own a computer. There are also some bad points for the local community about booking online and they are: they have to give credit card details over the phone and other people may be listening in to take your details without permission, although you are talking to someone there is still a lack of contact, you can book your ticket for most Bradford theatres like the Alhambra in Bradford city centre and the Imax cinema also in Bradford city centre at the times of Monday – Saturday 9:00am – 8:00pm except Thursday 11:00am – 8:00pm, one final thing is that they have to be clear on what they want to see and when they want to see it. There are always a variety of shows on at these popular places. People can be reassured when it comes to give out there personal details over the net because of the Data Protection Act, this law stops the Alhambra giving out any information about the customer purchasing a ticket over the net. This law is effective because it reassures people that any infor mation given out will be safe and stops credit card fraud. ICT in Libraries The library in Bradford uses ICT a lot of the time. They use it for booking books in and out of the library where they have a quick find system which allows them to locate any book whether it is in their department or another. Bradford Central library is the most popular library in Bradford and it has 8 floors each with 1 or 2 hone lines. They also have internet access which can be use by the local community. This is where the internet code of practice comes into play here, it is an agreement that protects internet users. This isn’t really effective because it is an agreement not a law. People still pay a small fee to register with this practice although there is no need to. The library also has access to other ICT appliances on all floors of the library which can be used by the puff called James by the public any time during opening hours. They also have bigger screen with bigger text which meet the needs of the visually impaired. Software packages available are: Word 2000, Excel 2000, Publisher 2000 and Power Point 2000. To get these programs the library has to be licensed which it is otherwise they would be breaking a Copyright Law called Software Copyright Laws which came into force in the year 1988. This law states that software can not be used if it is not registered. The Computer misuse act also comes in to consideration here because this law states that unauthorised access to computer programs or data is an offence. This also protects the library from hackers, hacking into their computers. This law is not really effective because there have been so few prosecutions because many organisations dislike to admit their security procedures have been breached. There are also 2 lifts installed in the library which help the disabled people get from floor to floor and also to help move large quantities of books or other things. The good points for the local community are that when you ring up you can go directly to the place you need to be rather than having to be transferred through the phone lines. Staff is always available if you should have a problem on the PCs. If you need somewhere quiet to come and do some work then you can do it here. There are also bigger screens if you are visually impaired which are extremely useful not just for the visually impaired but also for any detail which needs to be done. They also have a kurzweil personal reader which is the name of a cassette player which recognizes words on the screen and reads them which is ideal for a blind person There also some bad points to the libraries and they are that the library is not always open so you can’t go on them any time you like. There is a set amount of time you are on the PCs so if you have a large amount of work that needs to be done you may have to make several visits if you also need to do research at the same time. I think ways that this could be improved are a bigger variety of brail printers throughout the library and more cassette players so they do not have to keep going to the top floor just to get access to one. Traffic lights All traffic lights use ICT, some have sensors on them and some have timers. There is a variety of technology which is used to detect whether a car has arrived at an intersection ranging from lasers to rubber hoses filled with compressed air. The most common is an inductive loop which is a coil of wire embedded in to the road. There is an example of laser traffic lights on Hammestrasse junction on Valley Parade. The good points about this are that it reduces the build up of traffic around junctions. The bad points about this are that some may get vandalised and when there is too much traffic the lights are always changing and that leads to build up on one side of the lights and there will not be as much on the other. Also these are good for pedestrians because they have the advantage, when the button is pressed the lights change within 30 seconds. The bad points however are that if there is loads of traffic, lights are constantly changing which can be a pain if you are in a rush. Also if you are the only car at one point of the junction and many at another the green light will stay with the majority of the traffic so you could be waiting there for up to 5 minutes. There are also some lights on Wakefield Road near the end of Lister Avenue and those are in between 2 schools, which are BCCC and Lower Fields Primary, these are extremely useful for the many kids that use them many times throughout the year. These light work on a timer so even though there may not be any pedestrians there vehicles will have to stop anyway which can be stressful because it is on a main road.

Redemption and survival Essay

The novel by Victor Hugo entitled Les Miserables is story that looks into the life of John Valjean and his exploits towards awakening, redemption and survival. It depicts his transformation from a galley prisoner towards a new man. It conveys the different decisions and actions committed by a man towards choosing his path in life. Likewise, there are other characters that intertwine and provide relevant impact in Jean Valjean’s life and growth as an individual. Moreover, the setting of the story outlines the significance of societal factors that has been influential in the creation of decisions and actions that transpired in the duration of the story. Analyzing the different themes presented by Hugo in this story, one significant element in present in the idea is the element of morals, values, and perceptions. Looking at it, John Valjean is convicted because of stealing bread and was sent to the galleys. Upon his escape, he became aware of the prejudice and bias that society has given him. In here, Hugo was able to showcase the transformation of Jean Valjean from a criminal into an honest man with the help of the Bishop Myriel. Hugo mentions this in the novel by saying that â€Å"Jean Valjean, my brother, you no longer belong to evil, but to good. It is your soul I am buying for you. I withdraw it from dark thoughts and from the spirit of perdition, and I give it to God! † (p. 106). Another significant element that makes the book worth reading is its ability to showcase that amidst the presence of darkness and suffering, redemption do happens and it creates and avenues for change to occur. This was evident in the novel as different books presented these ideas in a different manner. For example, the suffering of Fantine and Cosette to survive was alleviated by Jean Valjean’s adoption of Cosette. Likewise, the suffering of Jean Valjean for acceptance and worth was compensated by becoming the Mayor M. Madeleine and serving the needs of people. The ability of the story to present the realities and harshness of life is also an interesting part to consider. Hugo was able to outline the significant areas that surround ones mind as he synthesizes them and provides the development for the characters. This was stated when Hugo said that â€Å"The generation now having its passing turn on earth is not compelled to abridge it for the generations, its equals after all, that will have their turn afterward . . . Hence, at certain periods, a deep chill on the magnanimous vanguard of the human race. † (p. 1242). Exploring on the idea of change, I would have to agree with the idea of Hugo that it happens because of ones ability to decide for their own. Whatever the outcome may be, it is their relevant that individuals use it for their own growth. This is the process for one to cultivate the totality of humanity and what it’s supposed to be. As Hugo argues, â€Å"from one end to the other; in its whole and in its details, whatever the omissions, the exceptions, or the faults – is the march from evil to good, from injustice to justice, from the false to the true, from night to day, from appetite to conscience, from rottenness to life, from brutality to duty, from Hell to Heaven, from nothingness to God† (p. 1242). Lastly, I would have to agree with the notion of Hugo that time and love can transcend betrayal and deception. This has been present and evident in various situations experienced by Jean Valjean. One significant example is the quote which says â€Å"by which the writing reversed on the blotter was corrected by the mirror and presented its original form; and Jean Valjean had beneath his eyes the letter Cosette had written Marius the evening before It was simple and devastating† (p. 1152). Though this situation did happen, Jean Valjean began to accept Marius as his own which came to a point of even rescuing him from the conflict and struggle. This is one manifestation of how the overall idea of love can help overcome and provide new avenues for change. By reading this book, I came to appreciate the situations happening around. It gave me the idea that our decisions can affect what our lives would be in the future. Likewise, it is through love, compassion and forgiveness that individuals, groups, and societies can overcome the hurdles and challenges brought about by pain, deception, deceit and violence. Overall, the book offers various areas that open up the mind of readers of the possibilities and realities that are happening. Hugo was able to convey a mixture of feelings that cultivate a total experience once reading the novel. In here, he combines the familiar facets of politics, religion, romance, and social situations that make the process of understanding significant and timeless in its own right. To conclude, the themes and issues presented in the book can be summarized by Hugo’s quote which says â€Å"The history of men is reflected in the history of cloacae† (p. 1462). In here, it just shows how one can grow and pursue life depending on what we take inside. It means that the actions, values, ideals, and perceptions that we accommodate and acquire dictate what we are and what we can become. This influences our actions and decisions in life as we find new ways to live according to the standards and changes happening.