Origin And Importance Of Rattan Weaving Cultural Studies Essay

Origin And Importance Of Rattan Weaving Cultural Studies Essay A traditional mode of occupation to some of our local people. Mostly the weavers are blind people which had been trained by Ministry of Welfare to give this people a chance to earn and make living with this job. It is also one of Terengganu famous craft that can be bought as a souvenir or can be use in a daily work. Its is one way of diversifying the handicraft products and develop this family business into a more systematic industry producing long term, high standard quality products, that are able to penetrate the tourist and commercial markets. Mengkuang (screw pine leaves) or pandanus weaving is one of the traditional arts still very much alive and its products are still in demand. The Mengkuang and pandan leaves are found abundance in the local jungles. The leaves are first cut in long strips and dried in the sun. Once dried, it is boiled and dyed with vegetable colours. Still using the traditional weaving techniques, the mengkuang or pandan leaves are coiled, plaited, twined and woven to create beautifully products such as mats, conical food covers, grocery bags, hand fans, baskets, tissue decorative boxes, hats, handbags, slippers, purses and pencil cases. The potential of Mengkuang/pandan has been tapped into and creating increasing demands by tourists and locals. The Mengkuang/pandan finished products are widely available at the Central Market and souvenir shops. Wau Making Wau (pronounce as wow) can appear in all shapes and size but the most popular and famous kite is the moon kite (Wau Bulan) and cat kite (Wau Kucing) in the east coast. Kite making requires patience and tremendous skill. Bamboo will be cut and make into the frame or skeleton of the kite. The best time to cut the bamboo is in November or December and this will be kept for 10 months before it is split and soaked in water followed by heated to straighten and toughen. On the other hand, designs are traced on a tinted and shiny glazed paper and then carefully cut out and pasted on paper which is glued to the bamboo skeleton. The designs are normally flowers with vines which signifies women (flower) and man (vine), eg. if the flowers are in bud form, it symbolizes a young woman etc. In some older designs, flowers were drawn from the side and back to represent the shy and reserved personality of female in those days whereas for the vines, the more meandering the vines, the more twists and turns in a mans life. There are also waus that are made using the batik technique or painted by batik artists and the designs are always more creative and less formalized by tradition. It is never an easy job to fly a Wau kite into the sky. A traditional Wau can be as big as 3.5m in height and 2.5 m wing span and usually needs the help of a group of person to bring it to the sky. To choose a good kite, you should look at the harmonious colours matched and the flowers as well as the vines drawn which represent the inner state of the kite maker. In a windy day, a Wau can fly up to 450m into the sky. Batik Hand drawn batik is an exquisite and delicate art which requires skill, patience, meticulousness, flair and creativity. Batik is intrinsic to the fashion world, be it in cotton or silk or in the making of sarongs, scarf, pareos, shirts, shorts, handbags, purses and even shoes.  Terengganu batik shows originality and is not commercialised thus, retaining its price for the quality of the material and the elegance of the designs. A special wax is mixed with amber and boiled over a slow fire to maintain the optimum temperature. On white cotton or silk fabrics, a special copper chanting pen dipped with the wax.  The designs reflect nature-based motifs such as floral prints and marine life to produce a freestyle handrawn motifs. Each drawings are different. Another method is by using either tin, copper or brass block print stamped with flowers or abstract designs. They are first dipped into the wax and then used to print the designs on the white fabrics. Colours will be added after the wax had dried. Different colours can be added without spreading onto other parts as the wax creates sections within the designs. The fabrics will then dipped in boiling water to wash off the wax and to strengthen the colours before the batik can be made into different products. The elegant prints stand out on mens shirts and womens dresses. Batik souvenirs include pareos, scarfs, wall panels, neckties, handbags, purses and shoes. Contemporary batik designs are also being introduced as designer wear, to alleviate batik to exclusive international standards. Batiks are available at various shops especially at the central market. Watch out though for low quality batik sold at exorbitant price. The colours are easily come off, usually on the first wash. Buying at an established batik shops therefore guarantees the quality of the products. Songket The origins of the many different colourful and traditional textile are lost in antiquity. The art of songket weaving consist of using traditional heirloom to make intricate songket brocade through painstaking weaving with gold or silver threads. Songket is a rich fabric that is worn only on auspicious occasions and used to be the textiles of royalty. It is now the headgear of Sultans, Chief Ministers and the States Cabinet members. The weaving process usually takes a few days for normal and simple designs songket cloth but for more intricate designs, usually takes more than two weeks and can costs thousands of Malaysian Ringgit. Several shops in Kuala Terengganu sell this regal fabric that comes in an array of both vibrant and pastel shades. The elegant and exquisite songket is slowly being introduced into the international fashion scene by adapting it to a more contemporary style. Wood Carving Wood carving was originally found in houses of sulatans or Malay nobility as part of their interior decoration and the craftsmen were commissioned for their services. Because human depiction is prohibited in Islam, Malay wood carving gets its inspiration from flora, animal motif and Islamic art but this has never influence its finest artistically designs. Terengganu wood carving not only found in the beams, doorways, window shutters of a house, but also in the traditional boat making industry and some furniture items such as sofa, bed frame and mirror frame and as small as a jewelry box. Brassware The people in Terengganu are well known for their creativeness. A simple item will turn into a most exquisite and delicate article by their hands. Brassware is generally a cottage activity. It is very usual that the son will learn the skill and trading strategy from his father whom had also learned from his father and later brings forth to the next generations. Regardless whether it is from silver, wood or pewter, brassware like vases, ashtrays, jugs, candle stands, napkin holders, filigree jewellery, incense burners etc are turned into a piece of fine and presentable art and at the same time with practical usage. This is why brassware is always one of the ideal surveniors that one can bring home. It is believed that the skills were taught to the local folk by Chinese settlers from Funan. The lost-wax method is usually employed, though sandcasting is also used. At the Central Market, or Pasar Payang, located by the Terengganu river, brassware is sold amongst many other enticements. Keris Making This double edged wavy blade dagger is the synonymous with the Malay culture and way of life. In the ancient time, a man walks without a keris was akin to walking around in naked. In those days, keris was always believed to be endowed with mystical powers and guardian spirit, this makes it serves the function as weapon to defend oneself in a combat and to use for medicinal purposes. There are handful of Malay legendaries about keris. The famous among these will be the keris of Hang Tuah who is the Malay hero during the Sultanate of Melaka. Hang Tuahs keris, Taming Sari was presented by the King of Majapahit to Sultan of Melaka after Hang Tuah won in a challenge. This keris was believed to have endowed with powerful spirit. Whoever possesses this keris would attain invulnerability. There was a story saying that Hang Tuah killed his childhood friend, Hang Jebat because of being disloyal to the Sultan with this Taming Sari. He was very ashamed to have killed his own childhood friend in the name of loyalty, therefore he then returned the keris to the Sultan. There is always romance and adventure and nobility in a keris. Because of being so precious, keris is always highly valued and treated with special care. Keris has two kind of shapes: keris lurus (straight keris) and keris luk (meandering keris). Empu, the keris maker will make the dagger accordance with the wish of consumer. Whether straight or luk, this will only be done during which the nickel inserted iron rod is repeatedly being forged and smoldered. The fluid design of the blade makes the keris stand out as a unique dagger-like weapon. Its ornate carved handle also provides for a strong grip. It is no wonder that the keris is one of the oldest of personal weapons. Made from the combination of eight to ten different metals, the spiritual qualities of the keris are known to include the spirits of warriors. Some myths even warn that certain lethal daggers should never be simply removed from their sheaths for their blades must taste blood before being inserted again. Keris making is considered as a dying art in Malaysia, however visit to the keris making centre in Kampung Pasir Panjang and Kampung Ladang Titian in Kuala Terengganu is still worth. Here you can see how a piece of raw iron is to turn into this significance and meaning rich weapon. You can also purchase you own piece of keris collection with relatively cheap price. Beaded necklaces The Rungus, the natives of the Kudat area, have long been known to produce beautiful beaded necklaces; they wear long, broad multi-stranded pinakol crossed over their shoulders over their traditional black costumes interwoven with gold thread. Patterns on the strands tell of ancient fables, and human figures are picked out in bright hues in the beadwork. Ever-enterprising, the Rungus today produce bangles, earrings and even brooches to go with the necklaces. Parang The parang is still crafted in traditional ways by the Bajau from Kota Belud. The ones made by them these days are usually from scrap iron, which goes though a process of melting, pounding, shaping and finally polishing. The blades are straight and tapered, from a sharp tip widening up towards the hilt. Some may have patterns etched into the metal along the topside. The hilt and sheath are carved from of wood, and occasionally one can come across an antique parang with a wonderfully carved hilt of horn. In days gone by, the parang was used as a weapon as well as a work tool, but these days it is mainly a decorative item for display.    Tudung Duang Tudung Duang is the local name for a food cover: in the tropics, like in Sabah, food on the table has to be protected from insects and dust. One is instantly attracted to them because of their bright colours, especially when they are laid out on pandan (screw pine leaf) mats in high piles, like at the Kota Belud Tamu grounds on the weekly Sunday Market (tamu). Native hat By the shape of a native hat, and its patterns, one can immediately identify the wearer to which ethnic entity he or she belongs. Most hats here are steeply conical and have nature-derived designs on them. Murut hats woven from the strips of sombituon bamboo are hexagonal in shape with a three-bands patterned weaving. Hats from Penampang and Tuaran have wider, circular bases with geometrical designs. All these hats are crafted from bamboo and rattan strips, and the red and black colours used to be natural dyes red from the mengkudu root, or dragons blood which is obtained from the fruit of a climbing rattan, and black from the leaves and stalks of the indigo plant. The Murut from the Nabawan area are now reproducing their hats in scaled-down sizes, showing their skill and craftsmanship in the extremely delicate weaving. Lipa-lipa Bajau sailboats, the lipa-lipa, carved from wood, and blowpipes used by Murut on hunting trips are available in many handicraft shops. The tambu-tambu wood is the main wood used in making the lipa-lipa, apart from mata-mata and gangil. A traditional lipa-lipa is elaborately carved. The designs are based on the motifs of plants, namely the kembang tuli or dahan and kellong. The blowpipe, or sumpitan, can be made of bamboo or hardwood. In the latter case the central duct has been drilled through in a long, manual process. Pottery Pottery has a long tradition in Sabah, and ancient Chinese jars, or tajau, were once even used to bury the dead. The Murut especially cherish and value their heirloom jars, in which they still ferment tapai their traditional rice wine. If you visit some of the antique shops in KKs major shopping malls you might come across nice Ming Dynasty vases; better still, you admire antique jars that are kept in the houses of the locals (like in the picture left). On the way to Tuaran, there are several potteries manufacturing nice vases and plates, as well as other household items made from clay. Kain dastar Rinago There are over 32 different ethnic entities in Sabah, and all of them have their own, sometimes specialised handicraft. Many more traditional items appeal to visitors to Sabah, such as the richly woven kain dastar, a piece of fabric used as headgear by the men of certain ethnic communities such as the Kadazan and Dusun; and the rinago trays and boxes made of rattan and lingkong, a type of fern that produces long, very tough strands ideal for weaving. The latter is made by the Rungus people. Silverware The Malay Kelantanese are well known for their Silverware making skills. These skills have been around for centuries, influenced by the Hindu and Islamic Civilization famous for well crafted items from gold and copper. Copperwork This is a skilled handiwork still flourishing in Terengganu. Traditional techniques are still being used in most processes though machines have been introduced to replace some processes. Copperware products include tepak sireh, candle holders, wedding gift trays, ember holder, pahar and others. Ceramic Ceramic art is a craftwork using high quality clay that is kneaded, decorated with a variety of motif, and fire-dried in kilns to produce fine ceramic products. Bead The indigenous people of Sarawak have since long ago been associated with beadwork for adornment as well as for ceremonial purposes. Here, beads tradition goes back to the very remote past. The variety of beads, the materials from which they are made , their colours and the values attributed, all make up an interesting conversation and discussion. Beads, today, are used in many different ways and one can see government officials using them as gifts and garlands for different functions and events as well. Pua Kumbu Pua Kumbu is a traditional patterned multicolored ceremonial cotton cloth used by the Iban, made and used in Sarawak, Malaysia. Pua kumbu are woven by Dayak women and are considered to be sacred objects. They are used for lifecycle rituals and special events including the birth of a child, coming of age celebrations, receipt of an important item to a longhouse, and to screen a corpse that is being laid out in a longhouse prior to burial. Labu sayong Labu Sayong is a black-coloured gourd-shaped clay jar typically used to store and cool water. The state of Perak is renowned for this type of pottery. Belanga Found in many rural Malaysian homes, The belanga  is often  characterised by a round base and wide rim. It is often used to cook curries, as it is believed that its round base allows heat to be distributed more evenly. Terenang This angular-shaped jar is popularly used for storing water in the states of Pahang and Terengganu. It has a concave neck and a convex body. Tekat The art of embroidering golden thread onto a base material, generally velvet, was traditionally used to decorate traditional Malay weddings regalia. Kerongsang A three-piece brooch set traditionally used to pin the lapels of the baju kebaya together. Kerongsang usually comes in sets of three. The typical three-piece set comprises of a kerongsang ibu (mother piece) which is larger and heavier. The other two are called the kerongsang anak (child pieces) and are worn below the kerongsang ibu. Cucuk Sanggul A traditional hairpin used to secure hair in a bun at the back of womens heads. Typically made of gold or silver, these hairpins are normally worn in graduated sets of three, five or seven by brides and traditional dancers. Pending A large, intricately ornamented belt buckle worn around the sampin, a skirt-like cloth worn by men, to complement their baju melayu, the traditional attire for men. Traditionally, the pending is a sign of wealth and status for men.

Henri Matisse:Goldfish :: essays research papers

Henri Matisse: Goldfish Henri Emoile Matisse, born in 1869, is regarded as one of the â€Å"great formative figures in 20th-century art†, as well as the leader of the Fauve group. Fauvism is defined as â€Å"an early-20th-century movement in painting begun by a group of French artists and marked by the use of bold, often distorted forms and vivid colors.† Matisse was associated with this group due to his use of vivid colors, as well as his unusual style of presenting objects. Many critics at this time called him, as well as other artists with similar styles, â€Å"a disgrace for art and therefore called them 'The Fauves'. The Fauves means 'Wild Beasts', a name that the artists of the group accepted with pride.† The main goals of the artists in this movement were to break away from the rigid Impressionist movement, and begin using bolder colors, as well as their own interpretations of shapes. The work of Matisse is based on the principals and possibilities of 'leaving out'. The human min d can fill in what is missing in the painting, like dimension, details and plastical forms. The Fauves expressed their feelings of joy for life and joy for art and painting. Fauvism paved the way for future styles of art, and was considered radical in the early 20th century. Henri Emoile Matisse was born in Le Cateau in northern France on December 31, 1869. The son of a middle class family, his first career was in the law field. However, an appendicitis attack in 1890 rendered him bedridden, and with much time on his hands, he began to study the art of painting. To help alleviate his boredom, his mother bought him a paint box, and thus began his new passion: painting. In 1893, the work of Matisse was noticed by Gustav Moreau, (1826-1898) French painter, who developed a distinctive style in the Symbolist mode. Matisse displayed his work for the first time in 1896 at the ‘Salon de la Societe Nationale’. In 1903, Matisse was exposed to the pointillist paintings of Henri Edmond Cross and Paul Signac. Pointillism was a late 19th-century method of painting, consisting of depositing small dots or strokes of pure color on the canvas. Seen from a distance, these â€Å"points† blend and give the effect of a different color and heightened lumino sity. The style, a development of impressionist color theories, was originated by the French painters Georges Seurat and Paul Signac.

The Identity of a Puerto Rican Essays -- American History Hispanic Ess

The Identity of a Puerto Rican Sidney W. Mintz describes the Caribbean as "a scattering of some fifty inhabited units spanning nearly 2, 500 miles of sea between Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and the north coast of South America, constitute the oldest colonial sphere of Western European overseas expansion... these territories were dominated and navigated and explored, their aborigines had been thrust into the consciousness of European monarchs, philosophers, and scientists" (17). The islands in the Caribbean might have some common historical patterns of conquest, slavery and the development of multi-cultural societies but each island has its own history, culture and identity. As part of the Caribbean, Puerto Rico can identify with some of the other Hispanic colonies but in reality the issues of ethnicity, race and nationality are unique in Puerto Rico. In the essay, "Ethnic Conflict and Levels of Identity in the Caribbean: Deconstructing a Myth" Ralph R. Premdas writes, "Ethnic identity emerges from collective group consciousness that imparts a sense of belonging derived from membership in a community bound putatively by common descent and culture... Identity as belonging can be acquired through memberships as various communities bound by one or more social attributes such as race, language, religion, culture, region, etc" (24). The question for Puerto Rico is what is the identity of the people if the island has experienced 400 years of Spanish colonialism and 100 years of US sovereignty? How has and still is American colonial intervention affected or affects Puerto Rican culture? The Puerto Rican national identity has been challenged every since Columbus arrived on the island. To better understand the issues and the changes in id... ...uerto Ricanness by providing a counterexample of what Puerto Ricanness is not" (152). It is clearly seen today that many Puerto Ricans are proud to be Puerto Rican even those living in the mainland. Yes, their lives have been altered but their uniqueness and pride will always be there because they will always be Puerto Rican. The addition of US culture on the island adds to Puerto Rico’s makeup. Yet division amongst the Puerto Ricans exist due to the status question of the island. These divisions makes it hard for Puerto Ricans to be identify as one. Bibliography Carrion, Juan Manuel. ed.and Nationality in the Caribbean. Puerto Rico: University of Puerto Rico. 1997 Gonzalez, Jose Luis. Puerto Rico: The Four-Storey Country. New York: Markus Wiener Publishing, Inc. 1993 Morris, Nancy. Puerto Rico:Culture, Politics, and Identity. Connecticut: Praeger. 1995

Revenge and Vengeance in Shakespeares Hamlet - Revenge in Hamlet :: The Tragedy of Hamlet Essays

Revenge in Hamlet Revenge causes the characters in Hamlet to act blindly through anger and emotion, rather than through reason. It is based on the principle of an eye for an eye; this action is not always the best means to an end. Fortinbras, Laertes, and Hamlet were all looking to avenge the deaths of their fathers. They all acted on emotion driven by the want for revenge for their father's deaths, and this led to the downfall of two, and the rise to power of one. Since the heads of the three major families were each murdered, the eldest sons of these families felt that they needed to take some kind of action to avenge their father's deaths; this need to bring honour to their respective families was ultimately the demise of Laertes and Hamlet. There were three major families in the tragedy of Hamlet. These were the family of King Fortinbras, the family of Polonius, and the family of King Hamlet. Fortinbras, King of Norway, was killed by King Hamlet; slain by sword during a man-to-man battle.   "...Lost by his father, with all bonds of law, to our most valiant brother."[Act 1, Scene 2; lines 24-25]. This entitled King Hamlet to the land that was possessed by Fortinbras because it was written in a seal'd compact. Polonius was an advisor to the King, and father to Laertes and Ophelia. He was nosy and arrogant, and he did not trust his children, and at one point in the play, using his daughter to probe Hamlet. Young Hamlet killed Polonius while he was secretly listening in on a conversation between Hamlet and his mother. "How now! A rat? Dead, for a ducat, dead!"[Act 3, Scene 4; Line 25].   King Hamlet was the King of Denmark, and Hamlet's father. He had killed King Fortinbras, only to be killed by his brother, Claudius. " ...My offence is rank, it smells to heaven; A brother's murder..." Each of these events affected the sons of the deceased in the same way. Laertes found out about his father's death, and immediately returned home. He confronted the King and accused him of the murder of his father. Claudius told Laertes that Hamlet was responsible for his father's death. He then decides to kill Hamlet to avenge the death of his father. He and Claudius concoct a plot to kill Hamlet. Hamlet dies of wounds from the poisoned tipped sword Laertes used. Revenge and Vengeance in Shakespeare's Hamlet - Revenge in Hamlet :: The Tragedy of Hamlet Essays Revenge in Hamlet Revenge causes the characters in Hamlet to act blindly through anger and emotion, rather than through reason. It is based on the principle of an eye for an eye; this action is not always the best means to an end. Fortinbras, Laertes, and Hamlet were all looking to avenge the deaths of their fathers. They all acted on emotion driven by the want for revenge for their father's deaths, and this led to the downfall of two, and the rise to power of one. Since the heads of the three major families were each murdered, the eldest sons of these families felt that they needed to take some kind of action to avenge their father's deaths; this need to bring honour to their respective families was ultimately the demise of Laertes and Hamlet. There were three major families in the tragedy of Hamlet. These were the family of King Fortinbras, the family of Polonius, and the family of King Hamlet. Fortinbras, King of Norway, was killed by King Hamlet; slain by sword during a man-to-man battle.   "...Lost by his father, with all bonds of law, to our most valiant brother."[Act 1, Scene 2; lines 24-25]. This entitled King Hamlet to the land that was possessed by Fortinbras because it was written in a seal'd compact. Polonius was an advisor to the King, and father to Laertes and Ophelia. He was nosy and arrogant, and he did not trust his children, and at one point in the play, using his daughter to probe Hamlet. Young Hamlet killed Polonius while he was secretly listening in on a conversation between Hamlet and his mother. "How now! A rat? Dead, for a ducat, dead!"[Act 3, Scene 4; Line 25].   King Hamlet was the King of Denmark, and Hamlet's father. He had killed King Fortinbras, only to be killed by his brother, Claudius. " ...My offence is rank, it smells to heaven; A brother's murder..." Each of these events affected the sons of the deceased in the same way. Laertes found out about his father's death, and immediately returned home. He confronted the King and accused him of the murder of his father. Claudius told Laertes that Hamlet was responsible for his father's death. He then decides to kill Hamlet to avenge the death of his father. He and Claudius concoct a plot to kill Hamlet. Hamlet dies of wounds from the poisoned tipped sword Laertes used.

Advancement Opportunities of Professional Nursing

At a time of the global economic recession, the healthcare professions, including nursing are experiencing an unprecedented upsurge in enrollment. The competition for the most lucrative of nursing positions are on the horizon, not only from US-trained professionals, but from foreign-educated nurses as well – the foreign nursing experts from the Philippines, India, Pakistan, among others.There are two tracks which a professional nurse may pursue in relation with his work – the clinical and management tracks. The former is involved in pain management, beside care and assisting the physicians in surgical operations.The latter is involved in the day-to-day administration of hospitals and clinics, assisting management in the way these medical institutions are being run.The management track is involved in ensuring full efficiency in the deployment of nurses to the different departments of the hospital, and in providing contingency support in the event of a lack in human resou rces in a department.On the other hand, there are many ways by which nurses may advance themselves in their profession. At present, one of the more lucrative specializations in the nursing profession is being a nurse-anesthetist. He is involved in the general pain management of patients, under the direction and supervision of the physician-anesthesiologist.Being a nurse-anesthetist involves greater care and discretion in handling patients compared to regular non-specialized nurses, because it entails the administration of potentially-fatal anesthetic drugs.Meanwhile, nurses uninterested in greater pay can opt to involve themselves in international nursing work, as part of the staff of international medical organizations such as the Medicins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders), a most recognized international organization of doctors and nurses deployed in the most depressed areas of the world.Another field that may be pursued can be that of being a nurse-lecturer in a nursing s chool, especially now when there is great demand for highly-trained nurses to fill the positions of old nurses about to retire.For my part, I would pursue the clinical track of the nursing profession, because I believe that it would continue honing my bedside skills further and it would provides a sense of greater fulfillment in view of the fact that I shall continue being in constant interaction with patients whom I serve to the best of my abilities.References:Work in the Field. Doctors Without Borders. Retrieved from   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://doctorswithoutborders.org/work/field/ on April 8, 2009. American Association of Nurse Anesthetists. Education of Nurse Anesthetists in the United   Ã‚  Ã‚   States – At a Glance. 2005. Retrieved May 23, 2007, from http://www.aana.com/educuscrnas.aspx

“Ah, Are You Digging My Grave” by Thomas Hardy Essay

â€Å"Ah, Are You Digging On My Grave?† by Thomas Hardy has six regular stanzas of six lines, which are written sequentially. The lines generally have eight syllables. In all but the second and last stanzas, the second and last lines of each stanza have six syllables. The rhyme scheme is regular, with the second and last lines rhyming and the three lines in between rhyming with each other. The meter is very irregular, with accents falling on different syllables. This quality was possibly inspired by the folk music of Hardy’s time. Another musical quality of this poem is that there is a refrain: â€Å"Ah, Are You Digging On My Grave?† In the second line, when the woman asks if the one digging is her â€Å"loved one? – planting rue?† the word ‘rue’ is a double entendre. Rue is a shrub that symbolizes sorrow, so the corpse is really asking her loved one both if he is planting flowers on her grave and if he is feeling sorrow about her death. When the woman’s kin say â€Å"No tendance of her mound can loose/ Her spirit from Death’s gin† they are referring to a gin as in a type of snare or trap used to catch animals. There is synecdoche in the phrases â€Å"the brightest wealth has bred† in the first stanza and â€Å"one true heart was left behind† in the fifth stanza. This poem also uses a lot of irony. The woman-corpse wants to believe that her former acquaintances remember her and are affected by her death, but she continually finds out that the opposite is true: they have little concern for her now that she is dead. Hardy uses personification with the corpse and the dog. He gives them human traits like the ability to speak and feel emotions. When the dog is burying a bone on his dead mistress’s grave, it symbolizes how the people she knew while she was alive now view her. To them, she is just a bunch of bones buried in the ground, and no longer of any importance. The central theme of this poem is that no love or hate outlasts death. There is a lot of disappointment in the poem, depicting death and the afterlife as tragic things. The black humor and irony reveals a sad message: the dead woman is forgotten and eternally lonely. The poem is also satiric, mocking the sentimentalism of continual devotion to the dead. Hardy takes a similar stance as the Feste in Twelfth Night.

Analysis of Social Movements in the Egyptian Revolution

The Egyptian Revolution can undoubtedly be considered one of the significant events of the 2011. However, even after three months since the 18-day revolution, people are still unable to determine whether or not this revolution will bring about positive amends to Egyptian society. Having said that, the Egyptian Revolution has shown to be a convenience to many sociologists, as it offers a promising case study on social movements. Throughout this three-month revolution aftermath, it has become clear that the January 25th Revolution has brought about symptoms of virtually all sorts of social movements. In the typical sociological perspective, social movements are collective efforts to bring about social or political change. Characteristics of a social movement include it being goal-oriented, having a unified ideology, and having an organized, sometimes bureaucratic, system. Social movements can be characterized by the type of change they promote. There are six major types of social movements: expressive social movements, progressive social movements, resistant social movements, reformative social movements, revolutionary social movements, and utopian social movements. Expressive social movements attempt to change individuals, rather then directly trying to change institutions or laws. Evangelical groups and Alcoholic Anonymous groups offer examples. Members of such movements believe that because institutions are people-created, they can only be changed by changes in people. Progressive social movements attempt to improve society by making positive changes in institutions and organizations. The Labor Movement and Civil Rights Movement exemplify progressive social movements. Resistance movements, rather than advocating change, seek to hold it back and keep the status quo. For instance, an example of this type of movement is the anti-gun control movement. Reformative social movements attempt to make a major change to some aspect of society or politics in general. For instance, efforts to end the death penalty, or efforts to apply gun control in a society are considered reformative social movements. Revolutionary social movements advocate a radical shift in the fundamental structure or practice of a society. Such types of social movements tend to involve violence. Almost all revolutionary social movements arise when a specific segment of the population is strongly oppressed or generally dissatisfied with the society they inhabit. Examples of revolutionary social movements include the American Revolution, the French Revolution, and the Bolshevik Revolution. The last type of social movement is the utopian social movement. Such movements seek to create an ideal social environment from an image of a perfect society. They tend to reject violence as a method to gain its goal. Examples of such revolutions include Gandhi’s Peaceful Revolution and the counterculture movement in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s. First and foremost, the Egyptian Revolution, according to its name, can obviously be categorized under a revolutionary social movement. During the 18-day uprising, people, people assembled in the now distinguished, Tahrir Square, for a simple, yet drastic agenda. They called for the resignation of the President as well as his staff, substantial amendments to the constitution, and a promise for a democratic nation that grants its people their human rights. The protestors remained devoted to their aims until they eventually had them fulfilled. The fact the protestors’ agenda was realized makes the January 25th incident a revolution and not a revolt. Furthermore, unlike in reformative social movements, participants of the Egyptian Revolution called for drastic change in the ruling system. Reformative social movements tend attempt to gain rights and protection for some segment of society without changing other aspects. The Egyptian Revolution brought forth a change to the whole system. Furthermore, among the participants of the Egyptian Revolution, there were undoubtedly protestors that exemplified the symptoms of a utopian social movement. Evidently, many of the protestors zestfully chanted â€Å"Selmeya! Selmeya! † (Arabic roughly meaning, â€Å"Remain peaceful! †). Despite the eventual violence and chaos that emerged in streets all around Egypt, there is sufficient evidence to prove that many protestors did in fact call for non-violent demonstration. After the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak, symptoms of other social movements began appearing. For instance, having had their nationalist spirit replenished, many citizens took part in expressive social movements to better themselves and abide more strictly to their moral codes. Such campaigns can easily be observed by watching the television, as there have been many advertisements urging Egyptians to take better care of their nation. Additionally, progressive movements sporadically appeared after the resignation of the 83 year-old President. After the ouster of the President, minority groups in the population, such as the Copts, began calling for better treatment by the government. Also, groups that were previously subjugated by the government, specifically Islamist groups, began appealing for the Islamic amendments they asked for before. Such groups eventually came up with more stringent demands, that their progressive movements became reformative movements. For instance, the Copts who protested at the State’s ‘Maspiro’ building initially called for better conduct towards Coptic Christians in Egypt, however they eventually began calling for the change in the article of the constitution that states that Egyptian law is mostly derived from Islamic ‘Sharia’a’ Law. Ultimately, it is without a shadow of a doubt that the Egyptian January 25th revolution brought about the trend of desiring change. Hence, Egypt is commonly seeing all sorts of social movements nowadays. Having said that, although the change-urging groups in Egypt all claim to have the good of the country as their top priority, it must be acknowledged that a large number of these groups of conflicting ideologies. On top of that, many participants of these social movements derive their ideologies from religion, and thus this makes the matter delicate. Throughout the past few months, Egypt has seen a number of incidents involving sectarian strife. Such incidents gave a warning signal to what this revolution may very well lead to. The question to ask now is will Egypt remain â€Å"2eed wahda† (Arabic for â€Å"one hand†) as they fervently chanted during the 18-day uprising, or will contradictions in ideologies and demands for change lead to a theological strife within Egypt.