Saturday, January 25, 2020

Longfellows Unique American Hero in Evangeline :: Longfellow Evangeline Essays

Longfellow's Unique American hero in Evangeline      Ã‚  Ã‚   Abstract: Longfellow's portrayal of the American Adam is set apart in that he does not praise this character as a role model for others. The concept of the American Adam is seen in a different light through the depiction of Basil in the narrative poem Evangeline.    R.W.B. Lewis explores the quest of the writers of the American Renaissance to create a literature that is uniquely American in his 1955 text, The American Adam: Innocence, Tragedy, and Tradition in the Nineteenth Century. This is accomplished through the image of "the authentic American as a figure of heroic innocence and vast potentialities, poised at the start of a new history" (Lewis 1). David S. Reynolds explains that these writers are working under the influence of "classic themes and devices" and producing "truly American texts" (5). Lewis convincingly argues "that the new hero" is "most easily identified with Adam before the Fall" (5). Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass, Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, and the works of several others of the period are tied to the creation of this new Adam, but the contribution of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow is largely neglected. Longfellow's portrayal of the American Adam is set apart in that he does not praise this character as a role model for others. The concept of the American Adam is seen in a different light through the depiction of Basil in the narrative poem Evangeline.    Evangeline is the tale of an Acadian woman's journey to find her lost lover after her people are exiled from their native Nova Scotia. Longfellow describes the state of the Acadians after this exile early in the second part of the poem:       Far asunder, on separate coasts, the Acadians landed;    Scattered were they, like flakes of snow, when the wind from the northeast    Strikes aslant though the fogs that darken the Banks of Newfoundland.    Friendless, homeless, hopeless, they wandered from city to city [. . .].    (38-39)    These lines reveal that the Acadians represent a people forced to start their lives anew in a land that is completely foreign to them.

Friday, January 17, 2020

My Future as a Criminal Lawyer

In twenty years, the one job I could see myself doing would be as a criminal lawyer. A criminal lawyer (a. k. a. appeals defense attorney/ appeals defense lawyer) is a lawyer that defends the organizations, individuals, and entities that have been charged with a crime. Their duties include basic fact finding, legal analysis, legal motions, memorandums, request bargaining, jury selection, and participating in trials and sentencing.Their salaries average from $50,000 to $105,000 a year, putting them in a high-middle class range. To be a criminal lawyer, you must have a four year undergraduate degree, and a J. D degree which you must attend 3 years of law school to complete, but to get into law school you must complete a law school administration test. I know that to be a criminal lawyer, I must try my hardest in school and put time and patience into my work. I want to be a criminal lawyer because out of all careers, this one best fits my abilities.I am very good at arguing and it keeps me busy, which I like. I'm also good at looking at the pros and cons of situations. The salary will also benifit me greatly. Some of the other plans that I have for my future will be complicated without having a good salary. And if I have children to care for, they would have all needs necessary. So, after thinking of all of this, it's is obvious that being a criminal lawyer is the right choice for me.

Wednesday, January 8, 2020

Does Peut-Être Que Require the Subjunctive in French

One of the biggest questions French students have is whether certain words and phrases require the subjunctive. It can lead to a lot of confusion, particularly when an adverb meaning perhaps is involved as it is in  peut-à ªtre  que.  So, is this subjunctive or indicative? Does Peut-Être Que Need the Subjunctive? No, peut-à ªtre que does not take the subjunctive. This is actually a very tricky subjunctive or  indicative  question. We are typically told to hold the statement up against reality: is there any uncertainty to it? If there is, then it would need to take the subjunctive. Since the adverb peut-à ªtre que  means maybe or perhaps. Wouldnt that then make it uncertain? In theory, yes, but  peut-à ªtre que  is a form of pouvoir, which is to be able to. Also, the  verb à ªtre  means to be. In combination, there is no question expressed within the phrase. To put this into context, its best to do a comparison. This statement is indicative: Peut-à ªtre que tu nas pas besoin de cela.Maybe you dont need that. You can rephrase this statement in the form of a question that does take the subjunctive: Est-il possible que  vous  nen  ayez pas besoin?Is it possible that you dont need that? This is because the phrase il est  possible que  raises a possibility or a chance. That in itself requires the subjunctive because it questions the certainty.