...Tobias Wolff’s story of “Hunters in the Snow” is a fascinating story. It gives a small experience of what it is like to hang around a group of guys. Although it may be stereotypical and a little exaggerated, it presents the idea of how guys like to get on each other’s nerves and how they bond. It begins as Tub, one of the main characters, is stuck in the cold waiting on his friends to arrive for their habitual hunting trip. They almost hit him with their truck as they run halfway in the road and halfway on the sidewalk, and we see there is some immediate mistreatment between the group. As the story continues, there are many more instances where they encounter problems with each other. It is full of symbolism and imagery, and its sensitivity is shocking. A group of guys will wake up early in the morning, eat breakfast, put on camouflage, and spray themselves with pee to mask their own horrific scent. They will then go into a deer stand, sit there for hours, and watch the leaves move. This is an...
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...Character Sketch: Tobias Eaton In Veronica Roth’s Insurgent, Tobias Eaton or “Four”, as he is otherwise referred to, is intelligent, loving and strong. He is intelligent both in love and in warfare. Tobias proves his intelligence when he gives Tris, his girlfriend, an ultimatum. She continuously throws herself into situations where she acts recklessly by risking her life and Tobias will have none of it. He grows so tired of her behaviour that he says to her, “You are a sixteen-year-old girl who doesn’t understand that the value of a sacrifice lies in its necessity, not in throwing your life away! And if you do that again, you and I are done” (260). Tobias is able to identify the signs of someone who can potentially hurt him. He knows that if something awful happens to Tris, he will be affected as well, so in order to prevent himself from possible heartbreak, he warns his girlfriend. The fact that he sees value in life shows his intelligence. Tobias’ actions toward his partner also exhibit that he has an affectionate side. He cares enough about her that he is willing to subtly threaten her if she does not stop trying to destroy herself. Tobias constantly tells Tris how much she means to him and performs a series of romantic gestures. As the two of them get ready for combat, Tris tells Tobias that she is unable to fire a weapon, but all he says back to her is, “Hey. You have done more for this faction than any other person. You...you’re the bravest person I’ve ever met. Stay here...
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...This Boy’s Life is a memoir written about the author, Tobias Wolff, childhood memories and his growing pains during the 1950s. Throughout the memoir, Wolff goes through a process of discovering his own self-identity. (A process that many adolescent faces.) As described before the passage, being realistic about his identity makes him feel bitter. Jack doesn’t approve of himself and rather identify himself as another person. On page 213 and 214, Jack is writing his own recommendation letters from his “teachers” to get accepted by prep schools. After the passage, he describes how he and his friend would fight each other. Here, Wolff explores the theme of self-identity through hyperbole, humor, tone, connotation, and more. In the first paragraph,...
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...The novel This Boy’s Life by Tobias Wolff depicts the hardships faced by a boy in the 1950s. The main character, Toby Wolff or Jack, travels around the country with his mother, Rosemary, in an attempt to escape her abusive boyfriend. Jack is constantly adapting to his continuously changing surroundings and faces new problems everywhere he goes. Throughout the novel, the author uses secrecy among the characters to portray both plot and character development. Secrecy plays a major role in showing the character development of the main character Jack. When Jack decides to apply to private schools, he realizes he needs outstanding letters of recommendation to make sure he gets in. Jack decides to write the letters himself and he describes himself...
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...Week 7 Discussion Welcome to Week 7 Discussions! Let's begin by discussing the difference between capital budgeting screening decisions and capital budgeting preference decisions. According to the text screening decision are determined when solutions are measured against “preset hurdles” (pg. 628). For example there are certain predetermined phases that a solution would have to pass in regards to making a final decision. For budgets, their maybe certain profit goals or certain costs that need to be met in order for a company to move forward on either instituting a new product or cutting a product. Preference decisions are made by measuring a solution to different alternative opportunities. I believe the decision is made from a team’s or individual’s preference after the solution has been challenged by each alternative opportunity. How important is employee "buy-in" in a project? Please provide examples of projects that you have seen succeed and fail due to employee buy-in. My company owns and develops the GRE which is now called the Revised General Test. It took 2 years for our company to revise the test along with many hours and sacrifices. The GRE is a test prospective graduate students seeking to get into schools who accept the test as a part of their admission’s process. The revised version was scheduled for a predetermined date but because it was not ready the powers that be (of my company) decided to continue the process of revision for the test. With that...
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...“Fear of the unknown and mistrust can prompt resistance to change” Response: The thought-provoking statement provided for this discussion, “fear of the unknown and mistrust can prompt resistance to change,” is absolutely true. I have been in the U.S. Army for 13 years and have seen my fair share of changes and how an organization’s climate can influence the level of resistance to adjustments. Both fear of the unknown and mistrust are natural feelings that we all possess, but to what degree and why is it easier managed sometimes yet challenging at other times? An organization’s climate has much influence on how comfortable we are with changes being implemented. I can remember some years back, being part of a unit with an amazing leadership staff. Our commander at the time, insisted on training hard but kept us informed of every objective the training would meet if we gave it our all. In 2011, our brigade started to experience changes that stemmed from budget cuts taking place. This took a tremendous toll on how efficient and effective we were able to be as a unit yet, we overcame these obstacles having a high-level of morale. Although I wasn’t apart of the upper-management team that decided how we would adjust training operations with new constraints, as a squad leader it was important for me to keep my team focused on the training – calming the natural thoughts of uncertainty when changes occur. The existing climate made my task as a leader and the burden of uncertainty...
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...Introduction The staining test is a test for fiber identifycation. The test aims to identify four fiber contents of samples. It is to distinguish four fiber samples A, B, C and D from cotton, wool, polyester and nylon. The principle of that is to make use of small tuft of fiber samples and treated it with staining agent by dyeing it at short time. When different types of fibers are treated with staining agent, they will produce different coloration due to the differential of fibers construction and degree of staining agent uptake. The chemical composition, morphological structure and reativity of fibers differ from each other leading them to have particular affinity for specific staining agent. Test procedure i. At first, fiber sample A is taken for test. ii. Put the sample in the beaker with shirlastain A at 2 minues with tweezer and use glass rod to stir the fiber sample soaked into the staining agent thoroughly under room temperature.. iii. Take out the sample from the staining agent with tweezer and rinse it with cool water to wash out any excess staining agent from fiber surface. iv. Examine the fibres for staining and compare the color of the fiber sample with the samples. Observation of experiment i. During the experiment, when fiber sample A immersed into the staining agent, it is hard to soak thoroughly. While it keeps the better amount of staining agent after rinsing. Thus, it obtained the deepest color result. ii. When fiber sample B immersed into the...
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...Year 11 Physics Investigation- What factors affect the resistance of a wire? Introduction We are trying to find out if the thickness of a wire affects the resistance of a wire and also how it will do that. One reason I chose this investigation was because human reaction time is eliminated by not using the parachute method (the parachute experiment is to find out the factors affecting the rate of decent of a parachute), because you have to measure the timings on it by the eye and hand pressing the stop button and there could be some inaccuracies in this. In the test I am doing there is no space for human error because all the measuring is done by equipment and machines so all I have to do is make sure I use them properly and read them with accuracy. The wire resistance experiment is more precise because the equipment I will use to measure all sorts of different factors in the experiment is more precise than in the parachute experiment mainly because everything is still and not moving in the resistance experiment. We have chosen to do the thickness of the wire because it is easy to control and keep accurate because of the micrometer, which is very precise. In the parachute investigation I would have to measure the distances with a ruler and the micrometers precision is 0.01mm which is a very high precision whereas the ruler has a lower precision of 1mm. We could have used the material as a variable but when we get a graph of results it will be a bar chart...
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...Flextronics: Deciding On a Shop-Floor System for Producing the Microsoft Xbox Flextronics is a contract-manufacturing firm headquartered in Singapore. The article describes that the company is now working on a big project for Microsoft, and the project team faces some difficulties in making a crucial decision. Factors Making the Situation Difficult The first factor that influences the decision-making is communication problems. The most effective way to communicate is face-to-face. However, the communication between the Mexican team, Hungarian team as well as the leading team is severely challenged by geographical distance. In fact, communicating by email and phone call does not help build a good relationship, thus leading to trust issues among different teams. In this case, the Hungarian team shows a little arrogance and believes that Visual Factory is the best solution because they are more experienced. Also, due to their business culture, the Hungarian team members take pride in their self-invented software and hold prejudice towards Datasweep. Another factor that matters is the organizational structure, causing the inefficient allocation of authorities to account managers and project managers. The project team is supposed to function among different facilities and meet customer’s needs. Nevertheless, the group is so dispersed in different locations and departments that it has no real power. For instance, Porter and his team clearly stated that they would switch...
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...Exploring Tone in Powder and The Palmist While tone shows the author’s attitude towards their subject, it also forces the reader into a mindset the author so chooses. Both Tobias Wolff in Powder and Andrew Lam in The Palmist write to convey discomfort and lack of trust, allowing the reader to better understand the dynamics of the father-son relationships within their stories. Wolff’s tone in Powder allows the rocky relationship to ease into comfort towards the end. While Lam’s tone in The Palmist portrays uncertainty in life’s journey, both characters took to connect to a sense of familiarity. In each short story, the anxious tones serve essential parts for the reader to further understand the purpose of broken men wanting to connect with...
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...Hamlet's Soliloquy - To be, or not to be Hamlet's "To be, or not to be" soliloquy is arguably the most famous soliloquy in the history of the theatre. Even today, 400 years after it was written, most people are vaguely familiar with the soliloquy even though they may not know the play. What gives these 34 lines such universal appeal and recognition? What about Hamlet's introspection has prompted scholars and theatregoers alike to ask questions about their own existence over the centuries? In this soliloquy, Shakespeare strikes a chord with a fundamental human concern: the validity and worthiness of life. Would it not be easier for us to simply enter a never-ending sleep when we find ourselves facing the daunting problems of life than to "suffer / the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune"? However, it is perhaps because we do not know what this endless sleep entails that humans usually opt against suicide. "For in that sleep of death what dreams may come / When we have shuffled off this mortal coil / Must give us pause." Shakespeare seems to understand this dilemma through his character Hamlet, and thus the phrase "To be, or not to be" has been immortalized; indeed, it has pervaded our culture to such a remarkable extent that it has been referenced countless times in movies, television, and the media. Popular movies such as Billy Madison quote the famous phrase, and www.tobeornottobe.com serves as an online archive of Shakespeare's works. Today, a Shakespeare stereotype...
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...Binder, Gabrielle 2 March 2014 MUSC 1301 Sweeney Todd: Robert E. Lee High School Musical I am not a fan of horror or scary theatrics, so I was a little nervous about going to see Sweeney Todd, even if it was just a high school musical. I was quite impressed overall with the musical. The young actors and actresses did very well performing the story of Sweeney Todd. The story of Sweeney Todd was actually quite interesting. I was shocked that an elderly woman would even think to serve humans in pie form, but I guess she had to do what she felt necessary to keep her business open. The musical was not as scary as I initially thought it would be. The original musical’s music and lyrics were written by Stephen Sondheim. One of the main characters Sweeney Todd was played by Octavio de la Pena. He played his character very well. Throughout the musical Octavio never went out of character and he portrayed the different emotions well. He even used an English accent to go with the setting of the musical. The young man had great diction and his inflection was very natural. He did not sound as though he was acting, but that he was actually feeling each emotion. He also had great diction while singing songs that required him to sing very fast. I was able to understand every word as he sped through lyrics in the songs. I was surprised by one scene when Sweeney Todd actually showed some sort of compassion and allowed an unsuspecting victim to live. Sweeney Todd saw the man’s...
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...As one reads Tobias Wolff’s “The Rich Brother,” it is clear to see that the two main characters have very different outlooks on life. Pete, the older brother, is financially stable and is always striving for a better life. Donald, on the other hand, is lackadaisical and depends on others to help him through all of life’s predicaments. Some may argue that Pete is the problem out of the two brothers. It could be perceived that he is selfish, mean, uncaring, and he is ultimately living an unfulfilled life. The story shows the opposite. “The Rich Brother” clearly details how Pete is a caring and loving big brother to Donald, and that Donald is actually a selfish person towards Pete. One could make the argument that Donald should be pitied for his the circumstance that he has endured for years. He has been through a lot of failures over the years, but somehow the undertone of his mishaps are all related to him attempting to help other to succeed. In one statement made by Donald, it is apparent that Pete was babied or coddled by his mother. “Mom was always in a state about me climbing trees and so on. And you used to hit me there every chance you got.” (Qtd. in Arguing about Literature 264) As Donald continues his story about how Pete would attempt to kill him, the reader starts to see that Donald is over exaggerating the childhood situation. Donald tells a story that should be very memorable to Pete, but to the contrary, Pete seems legitimately boggled by the recollection. He admits...
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...Ezra Faulkner is a 17/18 year old boy who attends Eastwood high in the small town of Eastwood, California. In the beginning of the story, Toby, Ezra’s former middle school best friend faced a terrible tragedy. They went to Disneyland for his 12th birthday, when a fourteen-year-old boy’s head from Japan was decapitated on Thunder Mountain Railroad, and was scared for life. Later on, they eventually grew apart, as they both went to the same high school. This was when Ezra realized he had never really had a tragedy of his own. In high school, Ezra moved on to be one of the more popular jocks at the school and captain of the tennis team. Toby continued to stay one of the more nerdy boys that got bullied. One night, towards the end of junior year, Ezra’s own tragedy took place, and that was the night of a house party that he was suppose attend with his girlfriend at the time, Charlotte Hyde. He found out that she was cheating on him and quickly walked out to his car and began to leave the party when a black SUV ran into him and caused a huge car accident. This accident affected him greatly, and caused him to have knee problems throughout the rest of his life. That summer, he avoided all his friends, and felt as if he was a stranger of his own home. In the beginning of his senior year, it’s as if he was almost a stranger to his old, popular friends. Reuniting with his old friend, Toby at the pep rally at the beginning of the school year, instead of doing tennis, Toby signed him up for...
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...Tobias English Essay The short story Tobias involves two characters, a couple. The story mainly evolves around two themes, gender-roles and childishness. I will through this essay touch and a few subjects, the characters, the setting and the themes. There is, as stated two characters in the story, the protagonist, Tobias and Miriam. Tobias is an unemployed guy living at his girlfriend’s house. He has an education since he was teacher: “Tobias had taught history and Spanish in high school.” He was fired from there; he’s also been fired from some other jobs, but never for ineptitude. He doesn’t go much out, he just stays home eats potato chips and plays on his guitar, “I haven’t been out all day…” He doesn’t believe in himself, he doesn’t think he has what it takes to get a job, “I only have useless degrees” (paraphrased). His girlfriend thinks he is depressed and he doesn’t have any confidence, nothing is working out for him. Miriam is a very dominant character, she mows people aside and doesn’t think of the consequences, and she never once in the story asks Tobias for his opinion. “Get us some dinner, love.” She doesn’t consider Tobias’ opinions and she demeans him through the entire story, “you just sit around…” she knows that he doesn’t have a lot of confidence in himself, but doesn’t help him, she does the exact opposite, she brings Tobias further down. The setting is in Miriam’s apartment, where Tobias also lives. The apartment is their private space and therefore...
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