...Xiao Liang Kelly Robert English 101-02 Essay #3 3/30/2014 What Did the Firefighters Die for? A Response to Timothy Egan Do you have a friend or a relative who is a firefighter? Have you heard of what firefighters do? Have you seen how firefighters rescue people and property at the spot or on television? What is a firefighter? A firefighter also known as a fireman, is a rescuer extensively trained in firefighting, primarily to extinguish hazardous fires that threaten property and civilian or natural populations and to rescue people from dangerous situations, like collapsed or burning buildings. Luckily or unluckily, my cousin work as a firefighter. Since he became a firefighter, I never saw him at home having the dinner with us in Chinese New Year. He has to stand guard, and wait for the order if there something happen. We all know that the job as a firefighter is really dangerous. There is an explosion in my city as a result of the oil spilling. All of the firefighters including my cousin in my city went to the first rescue line to save lives and buildings. Everyone is in danger. Unfortunately, someone died in that accident. So that comes to problem: Should firefighters contribute their lives to save other’s lives or properties? My answer is no. It might because that I have someone who has the relationship with me in blood. So that I feel his life is important for me. I want him to protect his own life instead of saving others. How fire happens? It is clear that there...
Words: 1311 - Pages: 6
...means a happy life, with no worries and just pure happiness. But what is happiness? And what makes us think that urban life is pure happiness? In the essay “Living With Strangers” by Siri Hustvedt, we hear about a woman's move from the countryside of Minnesota, to the Big Apple in New York City. Her move is described with many comparisons with her previous life and experiences, and a lot of humor, which underlines her situation and her attitude to urban life. In the following essay I am going to analyze and comment on Siri Hustvedt’s essay “Living With Strangers”. Part of my essay will focus on the genre, the attitude to urban living and the contrasts between Siri’s life in Minnesota and her new life in New York City. As said, the essay is based on Siri Hustvedt’s own life and experiences. Siri Hustvedt grew up in Minnesota, where everybody knows and greets each other. Now she lives in New York City where nobody seems to care about each other, and where greeting strangers would be “impractical and unsound”. This is a big change for her, and she uses an overwhelming amount of detailed descriptions to describe her situation in the Big Apple. She uses many personal experiences and examples, which characterizes the essay genre. Furthermore, she is very reflective, descriptive, subjective and very personal in her way of writing the essay. “It didn’t take long for me to absorb the unwritten code of survival in this town (..). This simple law, one nearly every New Yorker subscribes to...
Words: 1138 - Pages: 5
...name: Donald Cassler Assignment: Xbox Live Services In order to review the beginning, middle, and end of your classmate’s paper: 1. Read these questions first.2. Read each part of your classmate’s essay (beginning, middle, and end).3. Answer the questions and include quotations from your classmate’s paper to explain your answers. Beginning Does the essay’s title make you want to read more? Why or why not? Yes,the essay's tittle makes me want to read it because I also like video games. I like that kind of entretainment. It catches my attention. Do the first one or two sentences of the paper grab your interest? Why or why not? Tell how the writer could get your attention with the first sentences. Yes, it catches my attention because even though the video game I have is wii, it is something similar that I can compare. I feel that there is a relation in between because both video games are fun and “... is a great service worth the time and money for anybody in need of entertainment.” That is a very good qoute that I agree with. Look at the essay’s introduction. Is there a thesis statement or “statement of purpose” drafted? (Look for a sentence that tells the reader what to expect from this essay.) What is the statement? “Xbox Live offers a fun pastime, hours of entertainment, and a lot of deals and offers retail stores can’t offer. But there are downsides to the service, such as maintenance, disconnecting, and other people who “cheat” so to speak on some...
Words: 1098 - Pages: 5
...Anthem Essay In her essay “How to live a Rational Life in an Irrational Society” Ayn Rand states that in a society with zero judging there could only be two people who had initiative. They could be someone who was willing to create rational and moral judgements for society or a thug who had no moral responsibilities such as a thug who was aware of how irrational the society really is. The character from her novel Anthem Equality 7-2125 would certainly agree with her as he is a person in the former group. He was right to denounce the way of his leaders in moral terms and to leave the City. On Ayn Rand’s Essay In her essay “How to live a Rational Life in an Irrational Society” Ayn Rand states that the only way to keep society rational is to judge others and be prepared to be judged yourself. In her essay Ayn Rand states, “An irrational society is a society of moral cowards—of men paralyzed by the loss of moral standards, principles and goals. But since men have to act, so long as they live, such a society is ready to be taken over by anyone willing to set its direction. The initiative can come from only two types of men: either from the man who is willing to assume the responsibility of asserting rational values—or from the thug who is not troubled by questions of responsibility.”. This is because not judging only benefits the evil overall and not the...
Words: 785 - Pages: 4
...2/21/2015 2/21/2015 James Turner Philosophy-1101 James Turner Philosophy-1101 Philosophy of Life And Other Essays By. B.J. Gupta Philosophy of Life And Other Essays By. B.J. Gupta B.J. Gupta gets right to the point in his book “Philosophy of life”. He does not use outlandish sentences and problematical paragraphs to explain what he is saying. The book starts out by his explanations of philosophy, and Gupta gives two examples of what philosophy meant in the past and what it means nowadays. Back when philosophy was developed a philosopher had been considered a thinker, and it did not matter on what subject. Nowadays, a philosopher is a thinker of non-materialistic subjects like knowledge. Those subjects like science, history, and economics have their own sets of thinkers labelled scientist, historian, economist etc. Gupta is saying that philosophy used to touch on many subjects, and even though these other subjects are not called philosophy, philosophy is in their DNA and always will be. (Gupta, p. 1) Then Gupta gives an example of “Philosophy of Life” he got of the internet, which is “Any philosophical view or vision of the nature or purpose of life or of the way that life should be lived”. (Random House, Inc., 2015) He does not give his own definition on the subject, but he does go on explaining that everyone has his or her own outlook on the philosophy of life, you do not have to be a philosopher to have an opinion on the matter. Some outlooks...
Words: 3060 - Pages: 13
...Sydney Hirschman English 101 Due July 18th 2012 Words:1254 Robert Fuentes Americanization For many years, the United Sates has been attracting immigrants from a variety of different races, countries and religions to come and live in a land full of freedom and opportunity. These immigrants are slowly but surely turning America into a culture melting pot, giving it the most diversity people have seen in a lifetime. Although it is a common misconception, these people are not just looking to live in America for working privileges. Their real desire is to become something that depicts pride and honor, an American. Being an American in a country as diverse as ours means more than just living on American soil, it has endless benefits that allows one to feel free. Unfortunately, the rapid flow of immigrants into America has led to many issues. One of the main ones is the concept of assimilation, which has been disputed for years due to the capacity of the incoming immigrants. Jay Nordlinger, in his essay “Bassackwards: Construction Spanish and Other Signs of the Times” notes that not “everyone who comes to America is dying to melt into the pot”. Yet he stresses, as does Linda Chavez in her essay “Supporting Family Values”, the need for immigrants to assimilate to American culture. These two concepts have been floating around America since the first illegal immigrants started to show up and they’ve been controversial ever since. Everyone is looking for a happy medium for the...
Words: 1262 - Pages: 6
...quote this early in the essay? Explain (1)I feel that Emerson’s quote “Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to its own string,” Is implying, whatever you set your mind too you can accomplish. “Every heart vibrates to its own Iron string,” Is implying that everyone is different; we go about doing things in different ways, but it doesn’t mean that it’s wrong. (2) I feel he placed this quote so early in the essay because; he wanted to attract the reader’s attention with such a unique passage. He tried grabbing their attention, early in the passage. 2. In paragraph 4, Emerson says, “it is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own” (as cited in Langan, 2014). What does he mean by this quote? What is his purpose in making this statement? Explain. (1) “It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion”, basically it’s saying that it is easy for other people to justify your life, doing what’s good in the eyes of society. Letting what other people think, affect the way you live your life. “It’s is easy in solitude to live after our own,” Is saying to live in solitude, you can easily live, doing the things that you want to do. (2) To shed light on the situation, of people caring, what other people think. Live by your own path; don’t let people influence what you do. It would be easy living in both situation, but living for your own self-interest, would be easier. 4. At the end of the essay, Gregory shifts his focus...
Words: 3234 - Pages: 13
...Arguments about Computer dependency Since their invention, people far and wide have become increasingly dependent on computers. Computers have found their way into just about every aspect of our lives, and in most cases, they make things easier for us [4] . They allow us to work from home, socialize with our friends and family who live too far away to visit, and they provide an ever-welcome stress relief when we come home from school or work and just want to have some fun. But as we increasingly rely on computers to get through the day, the question begs to be asked: have we become too dependent on computers? Despite the many benefits of computers, there are also a number of arguments against them, one of which is the negative effect some believe they are having on children's education. Illiteracy is a growing issue, and many say that computers are to blame. In the past few years, many teachers have taken to shuffling their students off to a computer to type out short, quick assignments that could easily be written out by hand. While this isn't much of an issue for older students, it is an issue for the younger students who are just learning to read and write. Regardless of how much we're coming to rely on computers, printing and handwriting are a necessary skill to have. But typing out assignments has an effect on more than just the ability to print4. It can also negatively impact their spelling and grammar. While most programs now have spell- and grammar-check, they...
Words: 1829 - Pages: 8
...“Stranger in the Village” In his essay “Stranger in the Village”, which was written during the trip to Switzerland in 1951. He describes the lives of Africa America and how he found racism to be prevalent in a Swiss village. It was obvious to see that Africa America were separated from white people in the society. Baldwin’s essay describes his realization about racial discrimination and how it impacts his whole life. This essay not only shows the experiences of Baldwin in the village, but also the complex historical relationship between the “blacks” and “whites”. By looking at Baldwin’s experience of racism and how he deals with it, Baldwin is trying to show us the effects of racism on him and Africa Americans in the community. Therefore he inspires people to change with hope for a good future between the “blacks” and “whites”. Baldwin was not aware that he lived in a racist society until he had experienced it when he traveled to small village in Switzerland. Baldwin describes about his experiences living in the village and how he was able to see the issues of race. He realized that his life was defines by the color of skin in Europe. When he got there the villagers stared at him and treated him like an alien coming from a different world. “From all available evidence no black man had ever set foot in this tiny Swiss village before I came”, it was like villagers have never seen a black man before. The small children were afraid of him, stated to...
Words: 608 - Pages: 3
...Dec 2014 03:14 GMT) The Pedagogical Possibilities of Covering Gilman’s Wallpaper Karla J. Murphy In his introduction to The Pedagogical Wallpaper, Jeffrey Andrew Weinstock notes how the pedagogical diversity of Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wall-Paper” prompted him to collect essays for this book. He goes on to explain that “given the ubiquity of the text within various academic settings, I was also struck by the absence of attention to the text within pedagogical contexts. Despite the large (and steadily growing) body of criticism to the story, very little of it explicitly addresses its importance as a tool to facilitate learning or various ways in which to make use of the text in the classroom” (3). As a collection, Weinstock’s The Pedagogical Wallpaper contains informed, detailed, and diverse analysis that attempts to shore up the absence of “pedagogical possibilities” concerning Gilman’s transgressive short story (9). Among the contributors are a MOO space specialist, a Gilman scholar, a queer theorist, an existentialist, a formalist, and several reader/student-response theorists. Because each essayist presents a distinct critical perspective on Gilman’s text, each essay is likewise concerned with “how the narrative teaches and how to teach the narrative” (5). Thus, it seems to me that Weinstock’s The Pedagogical Wallpaper resonates with Pedagogy’s conviction that teaching is central to our work as scholars and educators, no matter what our particular perspective...
Words: 2869 - Pages: 12
...native’s side on tourism. The essay is written in a second point of view and the reader is addressed directly in the essay. Kincaid places the reader in the shoes of the tourist, and tells the tourist what she would see through her travels on the island. In fact, the reader is a tourist in Antigua. Kincaid makes a connection in her essay that leaves the audience with an understanding of the corruption that goes on in the island of Antigua and how that relates to the negative view Kincaid has of tourists. Kincaid begins the essay by telling the beautiful sights and scenes Antigua has to offer. However, as the essay progresses the reader finds out how atrocious of a place Antigua is. For example, the schools are even unrecognizable: “You pass a building in a sea of dust and you think, It’s some latrines for people just passing by, but when you look again you see the building has written on it PIGLOTT’S SCHOOL”(Kincaid 1225). This is an example Kincaid uses to show how poor of a place Antigua is. This essay is written with many purposes in mind but the most important one is to change the tourists’ treatment and view of the locals. In order to make her point, Kincaid creates a feeling of compassion for the natives and instills a feeling of guilt in the tourists. Although, I think she is successful in creating sympathy for the natives, I do not think that she is successful in changing the behaviors of the tourists. One of her main focuses in this essay is tourism and how tourism has...
Words: 1467 - Pages: 6
...The informative and narrative essay “Can You Tell the Truth in a Small Town” by Kathleen Norris focuses on a small town community in the Dakotas in order to explain a bigger picture on how American society does not want to highlight failures and mistakes from the past. Norris conveys many individuals apart of this community have been trying to remember things the way they want to than how things actually are in reality, and therefore the community masks the truth and hides their history. On the other side of the spectrum, the informative and revealing essay “A Secret Society of the Starving” by Mim Udovitch validates the way individuals, especially young girls, engage themselves in dangerous activities and behaviors because of the familiar environment they have with others who can relate to them. Specifically in Udovitch’s essay, she targets a population of young girls who have an eating disorder and seek an emotional understanding within others on websites that promote an eating disorder community by sharing their experiences. Norris and Udovitch present different issues regarding communities in their essays, but they both explain that acceptance in American society affects how people cope with their problems, how they tell the truth, and what crucial details of their stories they leave out for others to hear. In both essays, females are pushed to follow their role in society if they want to fit in with the rest of their community. In Norris’s essay, she focuses on the expectations...
Words: 1465 - Pages: 6
...The Importance of Moral Values in Our Life Essay Positive moral values are important because they allow you to have an overall feeling of peace and joy. Moral values can give meaning and purpose to your life. You are able to direct your behavior towards beneficial and fulfilling activities. When you live your life according to moral values that are based on honesty, compassion, courage, modesty, and forgiveness, then you can also form positive bonds with other people. Incorporating the moral value of honesty in your life make you trustworthy. You will have a clear conscience because you can respect yourself. The people that you come into contact with will be able to count on you to be fair and sincere. Your integrity will allow you to advance in both your personal and professional life. There are more opportunities for you to fully experience life when you are an honest person. In addition to honesty, you also need to incorporate the moral value of compassion into your life. Compassion allows you to have sympathy for the misfortunes of other people. It also motivates you to want to give them any type of assistance that you can. Compassion results in your having feelings of mercy towards other people. When you have compassion as a moral value people are more likely to put their trust in you because you will be non-judgmental of their circumstances. Thirdly, the moral value of courage gives you the determination to face anything that impedes your progress through life. You...
Words: 1375 - Pages: 6
...their heads into it. Upon taking just a glance at our lives we could manage to understand that we make things more complex than they have to. Confucius once said, “Life is simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” This quote ostensibly covers the whole idea of this essay. We as humans have had rough time through our evolution; we have gone through much as a race that it has affected us to our core. Goulish explains it in his essay that it is our nature to complicate things. “Irreducible complexity seems to characterize the late twentieth century itself” (Goulish 557). Goulish seems to have a pretty good idea of what complexities are and how this trait of human beings has been us for as long as we can remember. Goulish does not hesitate to explain to his readers that making things complex is our nature. Goulish hits this spot right from the beginning of his essay, “Each time we experience a work of performance, we start over almost from nothing” (Goulish 557). Why does he say that? Goulish tells us that when we experience an act of performance we tend to look at it from the fresh eye instead of using our previous encounters in similar situations. He tells his readers that, come what may, we will look at things with the thought in our head that we have never encountered it before. Goulish mentions it multiple places in the essay that we are critics but “Why do we engage a critical mind?” Throughout the whole essay he has one purpose, “To try and explain to his readers...
Words: 1427 - Pages: 6
...Essay “Living with Strangers” Minnesota and New York are two thoroughly diverse cities, but still there are exceptions of this belief - they both, like every other city in the world, have their own tacit norms and proprieties. Cultures and societies have through time build ethics, which people outside the given group or civilization won’t understand. It can be everything from simply greeting each other, from rural Minnesota where “hi” slip of people’s tongues like honey to New York where its normal to live side by side with strangers, and addressing others on the street will make you seem ridiculous. This huge culture gap is what inspired Siri Hustvedt to write her anecdote “Living with Strangers”. The text is an essay, which is characterized by several things. It’s a non-fictional text, which means its about something real, and relates to this in an unbiased way. It is a very subjective style, written from a personal point of view, where the writer used own experience and reflections: “When I moved to New York in 1978, I quickly discovered what it meant to live among hordes of strangers…”. You can tell the text is personal by the fact that “I” is used a lot. The way of writing will seem very convincing to the ready. Hustvedt uses the ethos argument and therefore seems truthful and upstanding as a writer about this particular topic. The title represents the main topic quite well, as it refers to a very common paradox in urban societies - we have been to the moon...
Words: 944 - Pages: 4
