“The Ugly American,” directed by George Englund, depicts the fictional nation of Sarkhan and how it is affected by the involvements of both a democratic and communist state. Throughout the movie, one key theme is depicted, ignorance, which is displayed through the revolutionary war, the intervention by the United States government, and the public support in the United States. As Deong tries to revolt against Prime Minister Kwen Sai, he believes that he is the only one that could be correct. When Kwen Sai offers to meet with Deong, Deong denies the request at first because he is unwilling to listen to the Prime Minister. Deong was unaware of the communist invasion and could have been better informed if he rid himself of this ignorance. Deong further goes on to ignore Ambassador MacWhite when MacWhite warns him of his imminent death. While Deong does eventually listen to MacWhite, his continual display of ignorance throughout the …show more content…
MacWhite states that “it is a clear cut situation and it must be dealt with in a clear cut fashion.” Even after the ambassador has been in the country for a while, he is still ignorant to the problem that is present. Obviously, the situation within Sarkhan is not clear cut and therefore cannot be fixed with an easy solution. Everything is more complicated than what MacWhite realizes, and he is unwilling to listen to the prime minister. Only after Sai shows MacWhite the photos of an invasion, does MacWhite begin to consider the serious state of the country. Ambassador MacWhite begins to realize his ignorance toward the end of the movie. However, he has already failed at saving the country. He reflects on his mistakes stating that one cannot sacrifice their own principles for expediency. He is reminding the American people that remaining ignorant and taking the easy way destroys any effort one may
Throughout America, people place a high value in their freedom of speech. This right is protected by the first Amendment and practiced in communities throughout the country. However, a movement has recently gained momentum on college campuses calling for protection from words and ideas that may cause emotional discomfort. This movement is driven mainly by students who demand that speech be strictly monitored and punishments inflicted on individuals who cause even accidental offense. Greg Lukianoff and Johnathan Haidt discuss how this new trend affects the students mentally and socially in their article The Coddling of the American Mind published in The Atlantic Monthly. Lukianoff and Haidt mostly use logical reasoning and references to
According to Gregory Mantsios many American people believed that the classes in the United States were irrelevant, that we equally reside(ed) in a middle class nation, that we were all getting richer, and that everyone has an opportunity to succeed in life. But what many believed, was far from the truth. In reality the middle class of the United States receives a very small amount of the nation's wealth, and sixty percent of America's population receives less than 6 percent of the nation's wealth, while the top 1 percent of the American population receives 34 percent of the total national wealth. In the article Class in America ( 2009), written by Gregory Mantsios informs us that there are some huge differences that exist between the classes of America, especially the wealthy and the poor. After
They are a framework that guides a SOF soldier while dealing with foreign counterparts or other interagency actors. The characters in The Ugly American either live up to the imperatives or contradict them through their actions. Father Finian is a model for how a USSF soldier should conduct themselves with their counterparts; he embodies several of the SOF Imperatives as displayed in his vignette. This occurs when Father Finian anticipates and controls the psychological effects by recruiting his Burmese counterparts and by launching the propaganda campaign. Characters like George Swift do not display any part of the SOF Imperatives. He is similar to Joe Bing and Louis Sears; careerist bureaucrats who are more concerned with cocktail parties than improving US foreign relations. George Swift makes a critical error by not recognizing the political implications of his actions and sabotages Hillandale’s opportunity to influence the Sarkhanese king. The third kind of character, a character like the Ambassador Gilbert MacWhite, has the best intentions of the United States and foreign relations, but makes an error in violation of one of the SOF Imperatives. He attempts to ensure credibility and legitimacy by trying to raise the standards for the U.S. foreign service workers. MacWhite did not fully understand his operational environment as displayed in the Li Pang and Donald exchange. The Ugly American offers an alternative to the prominent American attitudes of the time and suggests a framework for US foreign relations. It also stands as a warning. The novel cautions against arrogance and mediocrity; it explains that communism (or other threats) will only triumph through American
Anne-Marie Slaughter is the first woman director of planning policy at the State Department and the president and CEO of the New America Foundation. She has taught at two of the most prestige schools in the country Princeton and Harvard Law. She is also the author and editor of several books, but the most recent one is called “The Idea That Is America: Keeping Faith with Our Values in a Dangerous World which was published in the year 2007. Slaughters essay is about trying to balance home life and work life, and it first appeared in the Atlantic in July/August 2012 issue and was also on the Huffington Post. This essay argues that women in high power jobs and government positions can have both a work life and also keep their home life. She started her essay with a little information on background about her job.
“Our Civilization is flinging itself to pieces. Stand back from the centrifuge” (Bradbury, 84). The novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is a comment on the habit of mankind to destroy itself, only to pop right back up from the ashes. The main character, Guy Montag, represents the parts of mankind that are becoming aware of this, through awareness, change through tragedy and obligation to spread both the former.
Americans live a beautiful paradox their entire lives without knowing the truth about anything and then being dumbfounded when they reach the real world.This idea expressed in the essay “Paradox and Dream” written by John Steinbeck. Which flows into the idea of what is John Steinbeck is trying to say about Americans and what is its literal meaning?
During the process of reading this compilation of works, Portrait of America, many different point of views were aired. The opinion or attitude on the subject was too tainted. The authors were very biased to their perception of the "story". This book could have been much more beneficial if the facts would have stayed to the straight and narrow. Only the detrimental facts needed to be applied to these chapters. For a history class, as broad as this, this book opened too many doors that could not be explained in as much detail as would be liked. Many of the authors enjoyed mentioning the most scandalous moments of the people's lives then dropped the fact without much support or follow through as to what happened to cause or end these events. Brief summaries only tease the mind, and with the course load of most students, there is hardly extra time to investigate the matter further in detail. For a class such as History 152, biographies and/or documentary style books are more worth the while of the student. For instance make a list of a selection of novels that could be read for the class, so that every student can then explore in depth what that student thinks is interesting. Although the book was teasing in nature the chapters did flow well and were easy to read. The procession of the chapters had wonderful transition as to not loose the student. While proceeding through this book there were several different reoccurring topics that appeared. This paper will discuss these two reoccurring topics: the civil rights movement and former presidents.
Despite all the criticism, of racism and other questionable material for young readers, Mark Twain’s The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn is a superbly written novel, which in the opinion of this reviewer should not be remove the literary cannon. Twain’s novel is a coming of age story that teaches young people many valuable lessons and to some extend makes students reexamine their own lives and morals. The most common argument for its removal from the literary canon is that the novel is too racist; it offends black readers, perpetuates cheap slave-era stereotypes, and deserves no place on today’s bookshelves. However one must ask if Twain is encouraging traditional southern racism or is Twain disputing these idea.
A Raisin in the Sun is written by a famous African- American play write, Lorraine Hansberry, in 1959. It was a first play written by a black woman and directed by a black man, Lloyd Richards, on Broadway in New York. The story of A Raisin in the Sun is based on Lorraine Hansberry’s own early life experiences, from which she and her whole family had to suffer, in Chicago. Hansberry’s father, Carol Hansberry, also fought a legal battle against a racial restrictive covenant that attempted to stop African- American families from moving in to white neighborhoods. He also made the history by moving his family to the white section of Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood in 1938. The struggle of Lorraine Hansberry’s family inspired her to write the play. The title of the play comes from Langston Hughes’s poem which compares a dream deferred too long to a raisin rotting in the sun. A Raisin in the Sun deals with the fact that family’s and individual’s dreams and inspirations for a better life are not confined to their race, but can be identified with by people with all back grounds.
Thomas Gray, a poet from the eighteenth century, coined the phrase “Ignorance is bliss” in his poem, Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College (1742), and three centuries later, this quote is commonly used to convey the message that sometimes, being ignorant of the truth can cause happiness, and knowledge can actually can be the source of pain or sadness. However, in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, this phrase is taken very literally, and knowledge is feared to the extent where books are considered illegal. Throughout The Hearth and the Salamander, Guy Montag, the main character, experiences a drastic change wherein he begins to realize that there is power in knowledge, and that this intelligence has the potential to be worth more than the so-called “bliss” that ignorance can bring.
Nutrition and health have become more popular in today 's society. Our generation is becoming more and more indebted to the idea of being healthy and eating nutritious meals. However, in “The American Paradox,” by Michael Pollan he argues that our unhealthy population is preoccupied with nutrition and the idea of eating healthy than their actual health. He also mentions the food industry, nutrition science and how culture affects the way we eat and make food choices. While Pollan is right about all these factor that affect our eating habits, there is more to it than that. Convenience, affordability and social influence also affects our food choices making them inadequate.
In the mid-1900s, the Unites States was rapidly changing from the introduction of a new standard of technology. The television had become the dominant form of entertainment. This seemingly simple thing quickly impacted the average American’s lifestyle and culture by creating new standards for the average household. New, intimidating concepts came about, and they began embedding themselves into American culture. It became clear to some people that some of these ideas could give rise to new social problems, which it did. Sixty- five years ago, in a library basement, a man named Ray Bradbury wrote a book called Fahrenheit 451, which was able to accurately predict social problems that would occur because he saw that Americans are addicted to gaining quick rewards and new technology, and also obsessed with wanting to feel content with their lives.
During the late 1940s and early 1950s many African Americans were subjected to racism in America. Blacks during this time had few opportunities and were constantly ridiculed by whites based on the color of their skin. Although numerous amounts of blacks ridiculed themselves and their own race based on the color of their skin. Many writers have tried to portray this time period with the use of various literary devices such as theme. Ralph Ellison is one of those great writers that depicted America during the 1940s and 1950s perfectly. He shows the life of an average black man during that time period through his narrator in the Invisible Man. In Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison uses symbolism, theme and conflict to portray racism of the whites and blacks in America during the late 1940s and early 1950s
William Domhoff’s investigation into America’s ruling class is an eye-opening and poignant reading experience, even for enlightened individuals regarding the US social class system. His book, Who Rules America, exploits the fundamental failures in America’s governing bodies to provide adequate resources for class mobility and shared power. He identifies history, corporate and social hierarchy, money-driven politics, a two-party system, and a policy-making process orchestrated by American elites amongst a vast array of causes leading to an ultimate effect of class-domination theory pervading American society. In articulating his thesis and supporting assertions, Domhoff appeals rhetorically toward an audience with prior knowledge of America’s
August Wilson’s play Fences brings an introspective view of the world and of Troy Maxson’s family and friends. The title Fences displays many revelations on what the meaning and significance of the impending building of the fence in the Maxson yard represents. Wilson shows how the family and friends of Troy survive in a day to day scenario through good times and bad. Wilson utilizes his main characters as the interpreters of Fences, both literally and figuratively. Racism, confinement, and protection show what Wilson was conveying when he chose the title Fences.