My Blog

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Perhaps you have heard the great debate in the news media about the possible reimbursement and restitution for all African-Americans who have ancestors who were slaves. After some 15 generations this turns out to be quite a large number of people, in fact it is over 40 million. If the United States government were forced to give let's say $ 75,000 to over 40 million people it would actually bankrupt our country, not that Social Security will not do that same thing in the near future anyway, but nevertheless it would bankrupt the nation.

Additionally, how can one group of people such as African Americans demand reimbursement and restitution when other nationalities were also exploited in the early days of America. Consider the Irish and the Chinese while building the railroad or the time before the Industrial Revolution when people work to the bone; both adults and children for very little food, no they were not slaves but definitely economically enslaved. And also if we give reparations to black-Americans descended from slaves, then we also owe the Japanese Americans who were interned during WWII – another black mark on our nations unfortunately. Recently in a coffee shop conversation I heard a white gentleman arguing with a black gentleman over this very issue. The white gentleman stated:

"What about all the crime being caused by black Americans in the inner city, I have to pay more in taxes for police and prisons and my car was broken into, I do not see anybody trying to reimburse me for that. I want my tax dollars back. So there is your Black Mirror. And if anyone calls me a racist for pointing out facts; then I call the Black Chamber of Commerce racist for having an all Black Club, excluding whites. This is a Black Racist issue, demanding repayment for slavery and those involved need to get a life and grow up. They are not helping America; they are tearing it down. Plato would have laughed at the insanity of all this. "

Now then, those were not the exact words of the white gentleman as this debate got quite heated and went on for about 30 minutes nevertheless that was the gist of the argument and it is something to philosophically think about. Do I agree with what he'd said? No not entirely, and I think both sides have some points of contention. Maybe someday we can all work this out and not be so afraid over race issues that we can not talk about it in a civilized way. What happened to America, what happened to the melting pot, why do these racial issues still go on. Why the racist comments from both sides, why the race baiting, and why all the anger from both white Americans and black Americans – We are All Americans after all!

The black gentleman was completely serious about wanting his $ 75,000 reimbursement. He said it was owed to him and he demanded restitution. The White Gentleman was adamant about not ever giving a red cent of tax dollars for reparations, so I guess this argument is just too heated to even mention anymore. Perhaps we should all consider this in 2006.

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Source by Lance Winslow

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Sign Language Learning Benefits

Some people might argue this that if person know one language, then why should they learn language that is designed for deaf people. There could be 1000 different reasons for learning another language. For example:

1) If two people know sign language then they can have conversations with each other no matter how high the level of background noise.

2) After studying American Sign Language you can become a sign language interpreter or get a raise in your job after learning another language.

3) You might already interpreting sign language but for job purpose you need to get certification.

4) Person may learn American sign to increase knowledge and ability to communicate in unique way. you can communicate to your deaf friend too.

5) May be you just love the sign language because it's very much visually oriented language.

6) In a study done by researchers and it was made clear that teaching baby a sign language has many advantages too, like babies are actually able to be taught simple sign language before they have the ability to speak.

7) Scientific studies have shown that children who learn sign language at a young age have on average a higher IQ of 8-13 points.

8) Learning American Sign Language will raise people awareness and sensitivity about the deaf community and you feel yourself more responsible.

Now days There is an ever growing interest in learning a sign language and for more information about teaching American Sign Language to your baby, yourself or young child I recommend to learn through this great Sign Language Learning Software.

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Source by William Dean

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Despite all the potential pitfalls and cultural differences, the vast majority of Russian – American marriages are successful.

Exact statistics are difficult to gather for a number of reasons. First, most census reports do not keep statistics using the categories of Russian women and American men.

Secondly, Russian – American marriages are a recent phenomenon for the most part. Most of them have only taken place since the breakup of the Soviet Union.

The number of marriages was small in the beginning and has taken on momentum as time marched on.

Consequently, most Russian – American marriages are a relatively new phenomenon. It is difficult to predict how these marriages will last the test of time.

However, INS statistics have estimated that approximately eighty per cent of Russian – American marriages are intact after two years. This is based on the number of green card and naturalization applications that they receive.

Marriage agencies, that specialize in bringing American men and Russian women together, estimate that between eighty percent and ninety five percent of marriages are successful, depending on which agency is reporting.

I would venture to say that the twenty per cent of Russian-American marriages that fail are substantially the fault of the American men.
Either the American men were not very judicious in their choice of partner or the men were not very good marriage partners.

They married women who were thirty years younger than them. They never got beyond the beauty to find out what their mate was really like before marrying them. They used their money, status, assets or position as bait to attract their mate.

They could not keep up to the libido or other energy demands of their younger wife. They had roommates or other people living with them that upset the family living situation.

They continued their chauvinistic, alcoholic, womanizing, or violent behavior that ruined their previous marriages.

Maybe they did not do enough to help their fiancé through the rough period of culture shock when they first come to America. Maybe they did not have enough patience to help their fiancé learn about all the little details of American life we ​​take for granted.

Maybe they thought they could exert 'control' over their foreign wife because she 'did not know any better.' Maybe they thought they had a sex toy, who would satisfy their demands without question.

The reason I say these things is that most Russian women find it extremely important to get and stay married. The status of married women in Russia is so much higher than being single,

Russian women will go the extra mile to make their marriage work.

They have a commitment to marriage that western women do not have. They will often stay in a marriage, even if they feel it is less than ideal, for the benefit of the marriage.

This requires an emotional and spiritual maturity that many people do not have.

Increasingly in western society over the past thirty years, marriage partners have put their own ego needs ahead of the needs of their family and children.

This is the fallout of the 'me' generation. Families, and especially children, were sacrificed at the altar of self-gratification. The ego demands of immature spouses put their own satisfaction ahead of the welfare of their family and children.

This is one reason the percentage of nuclear families in America has fallen from eighty per cent of the population to twenty percent over the past thirty years.

The missing ingredient is commitment. Russian women are looking for marriage to western men because many Russian men are no longer interested in commitment to family life. They are Peter Pans afraid to grow up.

American men are turning toward Russian women because they believe they embody the traditional values ​​that are missing in American women. The number one traditional value that is missing is

COMMITMENT

Many American men have a problem with commitment as well. They think that because they marry a foreign woman they will not have to work hard at making their marriage work. They are mistaken.

Because of all the cultural differences, a marriage between an American man and a Russian woman requires even more work.

But if both spouses are committed to making the marriage work, then those things can be worked out.

I would venture to say that:

If American men chose Russian women of average looks, women over thirty-five years of age, or women with children; and …

If they modified their lifestyle choices away from drug and alcohol abuse, violence, womanizing, and pornography; and …

If they worked hard to ease culture shock, show patience in teaching their Russian wives about life in their new country, and became better husbands and fathers; that the success ratio of Russian-American marriages would be close to one hundred percent.

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Source by John Kunkle

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Just take a moment to imagine. You have moved from Japan and are now living in America – where all of your hard work is paying off – and you and your family have a home and friends and jobs. You know that not everyone in the country likes "your kind" but that is okay, because you are living the American Dream. Then, suddenly, you and your Japanese friends and family are rounded up like cattle and shipped off in smelly trains with hardly any belongings to one of ten 'relocation centers' in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Idaho, Utah, or Wyoming.

The Internment, or Relocation, Camps were more like prisons. They came complete with tar-paper shacks, means at one time in a mess hall, barbed wire fences, and armed guards in towers. The guards were given orders to shoot anyone that tried to escape over the fence. Most of the prisoners that ended up getting shot were thought of by other prisoners as having gone insane.

In Hawaii the fear was much stronger, for obvious reasons, toward the Japanese. The military made lists – secretly – of potential espionage suspects amongst Hawaii's large Japanese population. The citizens were forced to speak in English on long distance phone calls so that the military personal could understand what they were saying.

The people that were forced into the Internment camps were divided into three groups – Nisei, Issei, and Kibei. The Nisei group integrated people that were born in the United States but their parents had immigrated to the US The Issei group included the people that had themselves emigrated to the US from Japan. The third group, Kibei, was made up of people that were actually Nisei but had been educated for the most part in Japan.

Most of the camps were generally peaceful and quiet. The only camp with considerable problems was the Tule Lake Relocation Center; located at the California – Oregon border. Tule Lake was selected as a segregation center for those in the camps whom asserted their loyalty to Japan over the United States. The Department of Justice also placed several internees there that were considered disloyal to America. The army was forced to tighten control as the strikes and demonstrations grew in number.

Life at an Internment Camp was described as "hard and demeaning". The internees were forced to eat in mess halls, use community bathrooms, and live in 20-by-25 foot tarpaper barracks. In the barracks the families were given one army cot per person – only the early arrivals got mattresses, the rest had straw-filled ticks. Their heat came from a stove and a single, bare light-bulb provided the only artificial lighting while a single window provided the lone natural lighting. None of the barracks had running water. Guards banned internees from using razors, scissors, and radios.

As for the matter of privacy, that concept was almost unknown. None of the walls reached the ceiling – there was about a foot gap – so all the neighbors could hear every conversation and every crying baby. In the barracks themselves families had to hang blankets to divide rooms. Not even the bathrooms and showers had dividers until the internees built them – even then they could not build enough. To make the barracks feel more like homes some people drew and painted on the walls and hung curtains on their window.

Meals were served at specific time's everyday – breakfast was from 6:00 to 7:00 am, lunch was from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm, and supper was from 5:00 to 6: 00 pm Long tables and benches made it hard for families to talk closely with each other without others overhearing every word. Traditional Japanese food was substituted with Vienna sausages, bread, and stewed tomatoes. Later in the war, fresh fruits, vegetables, and traditional Japanese rice were served. In the spring of 1942 one of the camps opened canteens where the internees were allowed to purchase snacks, toiletries, magazines, and cigarettes.

The children all went to War Relocation Authority (WRA) schools. The schools – elementary through high school levels – frequently assigned papers on why the students were proud to be Americans. The courses were all previously planned out and the teachers were able to choose from a list each State's Department of Education had made – none of the lists allowed Japanese to be taught. Most of the teachers were chosen from among the internees.

The Japanese – American Internment Centers were made because of an overwhelming fear of the Japanese and what the general population thought they would do to the country. Some of the people kept in the Internment Camps would have probably tried to help Japan, but most of those people were in America by choice and loved the country. The Internment Camps were far from fair treatment of American citizens, but the government still felt locking people up was the only way to keep the nation safe.

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Source by Emily Kompelien

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The Raven

If you were born between September 23rd and October 23rd, you were born under the sign of the raven. This article will describe what is likely to be your personality and character traits and offer ways in which the raven can help you as a spirit companion.

Spiritual Growth

Raven offers magical ability. You can become the magician in your own life, creating the life that you want most, and the life you were meant to have. We each have an inner magician available to us but with raven, that ability is enhanced and is always available to you.

Out of any darkness in your life, raven gives you the ability to bring light. With raven, you can take a wish or a dream that is still unformed and give to it the shape and form you desire.

Raven Totem Character Traits

"People born under the sign of the raven are highly efficient individuals who put ideas into practice. They can be dynamic, but they may not always seize opportunities when they arise. Individuals born under this sign are pretty tech-savvy people, so they are able to learn and use the latest technology quite easily, and they can use it to their advantage. Ravens are very ambitious; they have great potential for new and successful enterprises. " -Deborah Durbin, Simply Native American Astrology

Balance is very important to people born under this sign, so sometimes, when decisions have to be made, they are found sitting on the fence, weighing pros and cons and finding it hard to land on either side.

Raven people hate conflict and will avoid people who seem to be causing trouble. Though they are not known to carry a grudge, if you hurt them, they are not likely to forget it.

Does this sound like you, so far ?

If you were born under this sign, peace and quiet are important to you and you are likely to speak softly and do whatever it takes to create or maintain peace. You do not want to upset anyone, and can be very diplomatic and cooperative with others.

You are quite friendly and once you decide that you like someone, that person will probably become a lifelong friend. You are often very forgiving with those you love.

However, you are easily bored and sometimes, this affects your relationships. You may find that suddenly you are drifting away from a partner who was once important to you because it is hard for you to handle the demands of others.

Speaking of demands, you sometimes feel like the world is asking you to go too fast in order to keep up, when you would prefer a steadier pace. You do not like to hurry!

Your appearance is very important to you, and because you take such pride in it, you may sometimes seem vain and superficial. You do not see yourself that way, because you know how deeply you care about certain things, so you may wonder why people think that of you.

Professions

If you were born under this sign, then you are great with people and would do well in any profession that involved working with others. Because you can be pleasant and persuasive, you would be good in careers that require problem-solving.

High-pressure sales jobs where you work on commission probably would not be a good fit. But you are good at making arrangements for others, so social work or real estate would be good choices.

Careers in the beauty industry would fit because you enjoy helping other people to look good. Hairdresser, makeup artist or something else in that field would make a good career choice.

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Source by Jeanine Byers

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Understanding cultural difference is the key in building lasting relationships with your business partners abroad. China has a long and rich history and culture that has built a business environment that is markedly different than US business culture:

1. Relationship-based versus transaction-based

Relationships come before economics in China whereas in the US economics generally take a front row seat to relationships. Chinese people do business with people they know and trust.

Rather than getting into business discussion immediately once you meet, take time and get to know your potential partners abroad; invest now for payoff later. Once trust has been built, Chinese business people will gladly share their thoughts with you and will give you honest feedback. One way to build the trust and rapport is to hang out outside the office hour, for instance, invite them to lunch or dinner.

2. Face to face interactions versus doing business without meeting in person

Most of Chinese business activities and deals are made through face-to-face interactions. To successfully launch in China, you will need to visit China and build relationships with your partners through frequent face-to-face interactions. To accommodate Chinese business culture norms, many American companies have opened offices and hired locals in China to facilitate business in this foreign market. Other American companies form partnerships with local companies to bypass the need to establish a branch or office abroad.

3. Negotiations: prepare to haggle

There is a huge difference in the way negotiations take place in the US versus China. Chinese people tend to haggle and to believe that there is room for negotiation on every deal. US companies need to make a padded proposal. Always start with a reasonable proposal regardless and expect multiple rounds of negotiations.

4. Entertaining is a part of business

In China, entertaining (hosting) is an integral part of the business culture. In most instances, inviting potential partners or employees to dinner is appropriate and considered an informal meeting. A dinner with potential business partners may be used as a way to build trust and deepen a relationship. It may be used as a way to solicit feedback that you may be unable to obtain during the standard workday or in the typical work setting. A dinner or other social outing is also an appropriate way to follow up with deals informally agreed upon.

5. Communication style

Chinese people tend to be quiet and reserved in business settings while Americans tend to be outspoken and eloquent. This cultural difference may make it challenging for US companies to obtain the information they seek such as concerns, feedback, outright rejections, etc. Many times it may take a series of formal and informal meetings to reach your desired goal.

6. Closing a deal

Unlike in the US, in China the signing of a contract does not mean immediate business. After a contract is signed, understand that this is the beginning of the arrangement; follow up with your new partner and look for actions. Actions taken on the Chinese company's or partner's parts indicated commitment. Do not hesitate to suggest specific actions such as having a detailed discussion on next steps or suggesting a trial purchase order.

7. Gifting

Exchanging gifts has a long history in Chinese social and business culture. The good gifts include something representing the city or state you are from or things with your company logo. Gifts do not have to be expensive. It is something special that this person may not have. When you present a gift to an individual, it should be done privately. You should state that this gift is a gesture of friendship rather than business. When you gift to an organization, it should be presented to the leader of the organization. Gifts to avoid include scissors, clocks, handkerchiefs and others with negative meanings in China. Please run your gift ideas by several Chinese friends, family members, or co-workers before sending them to your current or potential business partners.

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Source by Casey Xiaomorris

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Did you ever wonder why the United States is called a melting pot? Do you even know what it means to call our country a melting pot?

This great land of ours has been attracting people from all over the world since its independence from British rule in 1783, at the end of the Revolutionary War. They came to this country leaving behind their homeland in order to make a better life for themselves. On the Statue of Liberty it reads "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free …". The Constitution of the United States starts with the words "We the people …". This is what our country is all about.

"We the people" are from Asia, Europe, South America, from every corner of the world. People have come and are still coming to this great country to become an American. This privilege of becoming a citizen should not be taken lightly. Becoming a citizen gives you the right to Life, Liberty, and pursuit of Happiness this being our Declaration of Independence. The pride of becoming a legal citizen and enjoying the freedoms that come with it is a dream come true for all the immigrants that come here.

The result of the melting pot are American citizens who become part of the history of our nation, who become the defenders of our freedom and who bring their own individual talents and culture to meld into this great society. We are Asian American, Euro American, Mid Eastern American, Afro American. We are all Americans under the red, white and blue flag.

Some people have mistaken our pride for our country and have called us arrogant. And still "we the people" have been there for the rest of the world during times of strife, such as world wars, famine, disease, etc … wherever, and whenever, we are needed we are there. Even those countries that are less than friendly to us, we come to their aid in time of need.

This country is great and will remain great if we hold on to the Constitution and the Bill of Rights that are the foundation of this nation. No man or country will ever be allowed to take these truths from us, not a mislead president or a misguided congress. This is our country and we are here because of what it stands for — Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness and "All men are created equal".

Celebrate our wonderful country and visit Mall4Men.com where you will find military watches and rings, sports watches, stainless steel jewelry and more. There is also a Gifts4Her Department for convenient shopping for your loved ones. Quality products at reasonable prices. Many items feature free shipping.

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Source by Victor Porrello

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One of the major controversies in the acquisition and development of America as an independent nation was the dilemma concerning the people who were already here. As a Christian people, it would have been sinful for our founders to just 'take' the land from other peoples. Therefore, the settlers and the succeeding generations began romanticizing the Indians, depicting them as either noble children of nature in need of civilization and Christianity or as ferocious, demonic savages in need of extermination. Neither view exhibited the reality of the Native Americans. From the earliest American writings, this image of the Indian, either as inherently noble or inherently evil, has persisted in our culture to the present.

In Columbus' letter regarding his first voyage to the Americas, he describes a virtual Garden of Eden. While he does not describe the natives he encounters in great detail, it is safe to assume that he did not find them to be menacing or ferocious savages based on the content of his letter. Columbus states that he "sent two men inland to learn if there were a king or great cities" and that the men traveled for three days and "found an infinity of small hamlets and people without number" (Norton 26). Surely Columbus would not have sent two men among the Indians if he had any indication that the Indians would not be peaceful and welcoming.

However in his letter to Ferdinand and Isabella, Columbus' view of the natives has changed. In pleading his plight to his sovereigns, Columbus says he is in "daily expectation of death" and "encompassed about by a million savages, full of cruelty" (Norton 28). These contrary and romanticized depictions of the Native Americans would be picked up and even expanded on by later American writers.

William Bradford carried on peaceful and friendly relations with the Indians that lived where they set up Plymouth Plantation. The Pilgrims made a treaty with the chief Massasoit which continued "24 years" (Norton 86). Additionally, Bradford transfers romantic qualities to Squanto, an Indian who had been captured and taken to England. Bradford says of Squanto that there are "scarce any left alive besides himself" which instigates the "vanishing Indian" myth that Cooper later uses for his narrative (Norton 87). Bradford also idealizes Squanto by referring to him as a "special instrument sent of God for [the Pilgrims] good" (Norton 87).

The writings of John Smith further emphasize the ambiguous feelings of the Europeans towards the Indians. When he and his men were in danger of starving to death, Smith describes how God "changed the hearts of the savages" so as to provide food for the Europeans (Norton 45). The indication here is clear: that the Indians are 'savage' by nature but all that is needed to make them good people is Christianity.

When Smith is later taken hostage by Powhatan and his tribe, he narrates how he was "kindly feasted and well used" (Norton 49). But despite this, Smith remains fearful of the Indians, no matter how much he tries to make himself sound bold and unafraid. The fact that he is afraid of the Indians and their personal nature is seen through Smith's description of the Indians in language and imagery that is horrifying. He depicts them as "devils," "fiends," having a "hellish voice" and entertaining him with "strange and fearful conjurations" (Norton 50). Smith is definitely romanticizing the Indians by making them seem as if they are demons from Hell.

These three romantic idealizations of the Indian ( noble warrior, bloodthirsty savage, and vanishing Indian) converge in James Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans. As the title suggests, the tribe of the Mohicans has been so very diminished that only two remain, Chingachgook and his son Uncas. This exhibits the "vanishing Indian" mythology.

The tribes of Indians that are the central focus in Cooper's narrative are the Mohicans (Delawares) and the Iroquois (Mohawks). These tribes are depicted in the characters of Chingachgook and Uncas (Mohicans), and Magua, who even though was born a Huron, has became a member of the Iroquois federation. According to Cooper, both of these tribes are vanishing due to the "inroads of civilization" (Cooper 6). Chingachgook tells Hawkeye when his son Uncas dies "there will no longer be any of the blood of the Sagamores" because Uncas is the last of the pure blood Mohicans (Cooper33).

As for the Six Nations of the Iroquois, Cooper tells the reader in a footnote that:

There are remnants of all these people still living on lands secured to them by the state; but they are daily disappearing, either by deaths or by removals to scenes more congenial to their habits. In a short time there will be no remains of these extraordinary people, in those regions in which they dwelt for centuries. (Cooper 20)

Thus does Cooper romanticize the idea of ​​the "vanishing Indian myth."

In his introduction to the first edition of his novel, Cooper describes the "native warriors of America" ​​in the following manner:

In war, he is daring, boastful, cunning, ruthless, self-denying, and self-devoted; in peace, just, generous, hospitable, revengeful, superstitious, modest, and commonly chaste. (Cooper 5)

This type of description of Indians denies their individuality in human emotions and characteristics. As such, it romanticizes them by assigning them inviolable personality traits. Of the narrative's three main Indian characters, Chingachgook and Uncas are idealized as the "noble warriors" and Magua is romanticized as the "bloodthirsty savage." None of these characters are presented in a realistic, humanistic fashion. They are spoken of in language that portrays them as highly exalted or irretrievably degraded.

In his first appearance in the novel, Chingachgook is seen seated on a log, engaged in a debate with Hawkeye. Chingachgook uses "calm and expressive gestures" and the posture of his body to "heighten" the effect of his "earnest language" (Cooper 29). He has reached middle age, but has no "symptoms of decay" that would suggest a lessening of "his manhood" (Cooper 29). Furthermore, even though Chingachgook is habitually suspicious, he is "not only without guile" but is possessed of "sturdy honesty" (Cooper 30). These physical and mental traits provide us with the classic image of the strong and stoic Indian warrior, one who is brave and fearless when necessary but kind and calm also. Chingachgook's son Uncas is idealized even more than his father is.

Uncas is "fearless", "dignified," "noble," "proud," "determined," "brave," and "constant" (Cooper 53). Even Alice, who is fearful of all Indians, says of Uncas that she "could sleep in peace with such a fearless and generous looking youth for her sentinel" (Cooper 53). And Duncan allows that Uncas is a "rare and brilliant instance of those natural qualities" existing in Indians (Cooper 53). This portrayal of Uncas suggests that he is not like others of his tribe or race; that he is somehow exalted above the rest. Cooper plays up this exaltation of Uncas by revealing that he is descended from a noble chief (implying that Uncas' blood is' royal ') later in the novel when Uncas is about to be burned at the stake (Cooper 309).

When Uncas is sentenced to death, his friends react in various ways: Duncan struggles to get free, Hawkeye anxiously looks around for a way to escape, and Cora throws herself at Tamenund's feet to plead for mercy for Uncas (Cooper 309). Only Uncas remains calm and serene. He watches the preparations for the fire with a "steady eye" and does not resist when the other Indians come to seize him (Cooper 309). One gets the impression that if Uncas had not been spared by the discovery of his tortoise tattoo, he would have went to his death calmly without saying one word to save himself. This is a highly idealized portrait of a person, not so would we expect someone to act in this particular circumstance no matter how brave the person was.

At the opposite side of human nature, Cooper romanticizes the character of Magua as intrinsically evil and depraved. Other than being brave and fearless, Magua has no qualities that would be considered good as possessing. Magua is described as having the "characteristic stoicism" of his race, but his countenance exhibits a "sullen fierceness" (Cooper 17). Further Magua's expression is "cunning," "savage," "repulsive," and having an eye "which [glistens] like a fiery star" (Cooper 18). Alice is afraid of Magua, based on his physical appearance, and refers to him as a "spectre" inhabiting the woods (Cooper 20). Cora tends to give Magua the benefit of the doubt, even though she first looks upon him with "pity, admiration, and horror" (Cooper 19). Even Duncan, who says he knows Magua well and trusts him, tells Alice not to show any distrust or fear to Magua, or she may "invite the danger [she] appears to apprehend" (Cooper 21). This admonition to Alice displays Duncan's tendency to equate Magua with some species of wild animal, which will attack when sensing fear.

The idealization of Indians in Last of the Mohicans exhibits the period's ambivalence towards the first inhabitants of the Americas. The colonists tended to either romanticize them as children of God or nature, or as savage, brutal heathens. This attitude towards the Indians began with Columbus and, in some degree, still exists today.

Sources

Norton Anthology of American Literature

The Last of the Mohicans

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Source by Mary Arnold

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Multiculturalism is nothing but multiple cultures living in the same society in an organized manner. People from different countries, ethnicity, traditions and backgrounds live and work together. This amazing feature is an important part of American society.

Many people from different countries started immigrating to the US in the 19th century. However, multiculturalism began in the US in the 1950s when the Civil Rights Movement started. This movement played a crucial part in highlighting issues such as inequality, discrimination and oppression. People started putting pressure not just on the government, but also on social institutions to treat them as equal. Figures such as George Washington Carver, William James and Charles H. Wesley were responsible for encouraging multiculturalism in the US. They all believed in living in a plural society that treated everyone at par and as equals.

The US has always proudly allowed people freedom to practice their own religion and express their thoughts. Regardless of culture, people are allowed equal opportunities. Today, the US has a vast number of Hispanics and Asians living there, and to have an egalitarian society, the people have to be willing to accept multiculturalism as part of their society.

The fastest growing group in the US is that of the Asian-Americans and Hispanics. The federal government has strict laws to promote an equal society and as a result of so many different cultures living in one place, America has truly become a melting pot of cultures. Minorities, Native Americans, African-Americans and immigrants from all corners of the world live harmoniously together forging a deeper bond.

As aspect of American society has had a deeper effect. There is a demand across the board that people from all walks of life should be able to enjoy equal rights. Hence, different communities and intellects came together to demand for rights for oppressed groups like lesbians, gays, the downtrodden and seniors.

In the education sector, no discrimination is allowed and child from all ethnicities and cultures are allowed to enter any education institution. Even in business and industry sectors, people are given rights for equal participation regardless of their backgrounds.

While there are some drawbacks to multiculturalism, it is the pros that one should always concentrate on. A society should not be discouraged to absorb people from different backgrounds.

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Source by Kum Martin

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The American dream is such a major theme in The Great Gatsby that whether you are studying it was just reading it for fun you must be wondering what Fitzgerald is trying to say about. Some people argue the book of the criticism of the American dream, some people think Fitzgerald is trying to say the American dream is dead, others think the criticism is solely of Gatsby who paid the price of living too long with a single dream. Let's have a look at some quotes from the Great Gatsby.

Gaby's dream is the most prominent of the book. It is all encompassing, it has taken over his life completely. He thought he loved Daisy, but when he finally met her after all these years he found that he still wanted more. He wanted her to say that she never loved another man. He could not be happy with what he had, he has to be perfect. He is an example of people who abuse the American dream.

Character's like Myrtle and Wilson look up and Daisy and Tom. They want what they have, they think that they have achieved the American Dream. The reader knows different thought, we can see exactly how happy Daisy and Tom are. Behind the façade of perfection they present, their perfect marriage, in their lovely house with their beautiful daughter, they are both bored and unhappy. With no job and no purpose in life they have grown 'restless.' Both of them have affairs and neither seems to care about there child. Fitzgerald is trying to say that life is not what you imagine at the top.

It is obvious that, at least in the world of the Great Gatsby, money does not buy you happiness. Unfortunately it is just as clear that the lower classes are obsessed with money and view it as their ticket to living the dream. When you only look at their bank balances Gatsby and Tom are both wildly successful and that is all the lower classes see.

The photograph that Gatsby's father carries around with him becomes the symbol of this obsession of the lower classes. Instead of carrying a picture of his son he carries aa picture of his house, a symbol of his wealth, and what proves he is a success. Just as Gatsby was lured by Dan Cody's expensive yacht, so the next generation will look at this photo and think that if they work hard enough they can come from nothing like Gatsby and be as happy as him. The sad fact is we know Gatsby was never happy and when he died no one came to his funeral.

What can we draw from this then, does Fitzgerald think the American dream is dead. On the contrary I believe that he thinks it will continue perpetually, the people always look at the rich and wish they could be like them. And so the book is not telling you the American dream is dead is telling you that it will always live on and be wary of its promises.

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Source by Matthew Alexander Jackson