The Laughing Fools
I just started my new job working as a bartender in this local jazz club. Not knowing a person in the place, I thought that I would ease-drop on a conversation that these two men were engaged in, just so I could get to know the costumers better. The conversation was being lead by Lee and the other man, Mike, was prompting him to go on with the story. The story was about an incident that Lee had when he was a small boy with a paper route and his dog was killed. It was a sad story, I thought , but the men just laughed. The reason they laughed I have never figured out, now I am trying to understand the two men.
Working at the jazz joint , I see some rather strange things. Mike and Lee come in about once a week. I have listened to Lee and Mike have other discussions, although ease-dropping is not an easy task to do when working. The last time I listened in on uninvited was a conversation on Lee's mother. Lee talked how his mother did everything for him, she would cook his diner, do his laundry, clean his house and buy his groceries. She did all this for him, when he was moved out of her house and supposedly "on his own." Lee did not like his mother doing all this for him, but he never told her that he didn' t want her to keep doing the domestics around his house. She kept on doing things like that for her son, thinking that she was helping out. Eventually, Lee came to resent his mother for all that she did for him and as time passed he expected more from her. He did not tell her that she was interrupting his life. Lee's mother became ill. She had a long, painful battle with a disease, I am not sure which one, for I was only ease-dropping. As time passed she became worse. Lee's mother could not do all the things that she had done before, this was not good for Lee, for he had become dependent on one person and he disliked her for that. Finally she died. At the end of the story the two men were again laughing. This really bothered me. I was trying of something to say because it was just like the story with the dog, it had a sad ending with the same reaction of both Lee and Mike, they laughed.
Crockatt, Richard. The fifty years war : the United States and the Soviet Union in world politics, 1941-1991. London; New York; Routledge, 1995.
The discussion of physician-assisted suicide is frequently focused around the ethical implications. The confusion commonly surfaces from the simple question, what is physician-assisted suicide? Physician-assisted suicide can be defined as a circumstance in which a medical physician provides a lethal dose of medication to a patient with a fatal illness. In this case, the patient has given consent, as well as direction, to the physician to ethically aid in their death (Introduction to Physician-Assisted Suicide: At Issue,
No matter what actions or words a mother chooses, to a child his or her mother is on the highest pedestal. A mother is very important to a child because of the nourishing and love the child receives from his or her mother but not every child experiences the mother’s love or even having a mother. Bragg’s mother was something out of the ordinary because of all that she did for her children growing up, but no one is perfect in this world. Bragg’s mother’s flaw was always taking back her drunken husband and thinking that he could have changed since the last time he...
Gaddis, John Lewis. “We Now Know: Rethinking Cold War History.” Taking Sides: Clashing Views On Controversial Issues in United States History. Ed. Larry Madaras and James M. SoRelle. 14th Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011. 302-308.
There have been many attempts to explain the origins of the Cold War that developed between the capitalist West and the communist East after the Second World War. Indeed, there is great disagreement in explaining the source for the Cold War; some explanations draw on events pre-1945; some draw only on issues of ideology; others look to economics; security concerns dominate some arguments; personalities are seen as the root cause for some historians. So wide is the range of the historiography of the origins of the Cold War that is has been said "the Cold War has also spawned a war among historians, a controversy over how the Cold War got started, whether or not it was inevitable, and (above all) who bears the main responsibility for starting it" (Hammond 4). There are three main schools of thought in the historiography: the traditional view, known alternatively as the orthodox or liberal view, which finds fault lying mostly with the Russians and deems security concerns to be the root cause of the Cold War; the revisionist view, which argues that it is, in fact, the United States and the West to blame for the Cold War and not the Russians, and cites economic open-door interests for spawning the Cold War; finally, the post-revisionist view which finds fault with both sides in the conflict and points to issues raised both by the traditionalists as well as the revisionists for combining to cause the Cold War. While strong arguments are made by historians writing from the traditionalist school, as well as those writing from the revisionist school, I claim that the viewpoint of the post-revisionists is the most accurate in describing the origins of the Cold War.
An individual’s ‘Sense of Place’ is predominantly their place of belonging and acceptance in the world, may it be through a strong physical, emotional or spiritual connection. In Tim Winton’s novel ‘The Riders”, the concept of Sense of Place is explored through the desperate journey of its protagonist, Fred Scully. Scully’s elaborate search for identity throughout the novel is guided and influenced by the compulsive love he feels for his wife Jennifer and their family morals, the intensity of hope and the destruction it can cause and the nostalgic nature of Winton’s writing. Two quotes which reflect the ideals of a person’s Sense of Place are “Experience is not what happens to a man. It is what a man does with what happens to him.’(Aldous Huxley) and “It is not down in any map. True places never are.” (Herman Melville). Huxley and Melville’s statements closely resemble Fred Scully’s journey and rectify some of his motivations throughout the text.
Rat’s friend, Curt Lemon, dies and Rat writes to Lemon’s sister honoring him but sadly the sister does not write back; ironically she ignores Rat because she perceives the story as disturbing and horrible. The reader would expect Lemon’s sister to respond honoring her brother or thanking Rat but ironically she does not respond making all of Rats efforts go in vain. This is sad and Immoral because the sister does not care and O’Brien writes, “...So incredibly sad and true; she never wrote back” (51).
In One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey, McMurphy often uses the power of laughter to overcome what is going on in the world around him. Laughter lightens the feeling in the book, and at times gives it a warmer feeling. It also helps develop, and shape the characters throughout the entire story.
In 2007, the American Geriatrics Society defined Physician-Assisted Suicide as, “When a physician provides either equipment or medication, or informs the patient of the most efficacious use of already available means, for the purpose of assisting the patient to end his or her own life” (qtd. in Lachman 121). Physician-Assisted Suicide is what it says, suicide. In the United States the controversy of the “Right to die” is not new. According to Vicki D. Lachman a Clinical Associate Professor, after the Supreme Court decision in 1997, it was determined that there is not a constitutional right to die. The Supreme Court is allowing states to pass laws to legalize Physician-Assisted Suicide. Since then three states, Oregon, Washington, and Montana have made it legal to perform Phy...
The movement of transcendentalism was a powerful movement that began to emerge in American in the nineteenth century. These powerful movements made readers question, challenge, and examine what they were accustomed too. Transcendentalism was the belief that what the person can see, touch, feel, taste, or comprehend goes beyond those senses. People were to knowledge their thoughts through instinct and imagination not through logic or the senses; they were to trust themselves to be their own authority on what is right. When people were able to receive these ideas not as a religious beliefs, but as a way of understanding life then they were consider a transcendentalist. Transcendentalism was one of the many literary writing styles used during
L. and his family are experiencing the dying process and final days of his illness (Matzo & Sherman, 2015). Asian culture values collectivism— putting the needs of family and community over the needs of the individual (Hays & Erford, 2014). This seems to be the case with Mr. L. Although Mr. L. is weak and having difficulty eating, when asked how he feels he reports feeling fine. Additionally, Chinese culture holds the value that sadness and grief are kept private because a person’s dying thoughts influence end of life behavior, ultimately determining the cycle of life, death, and rebirth (Matzo & Sherman, 2015). Mr. L. demonstrates these values, keeping his emotions private and doesn’t complain about pain or discomfort. Mr. L. has not been told of his diagnosis or prognosis. In Asian cultures, dying patients are not told of their terminal illnesses because discussing end of life can lead to hopelessness. Additionally, in Chinese culture, the eldest male is responsible for decision-making (Matzo & Sherman). As Mr. L. can no longer make decisions, his oldest son would be responsible for deciding matters for the family. Furthermore, there appears to be an element of secrecy and lack of communication between the eldest son, mother, and youngest son. The eldest son and mother continue to encourage Mr. L. to eat when it causes aspiration. The younger son,
Someone inside the house was laughing” (Pg. 41). The laugh could have a variety of different implications.... ... middle of paper ... ...
oracle in Greek religion, priest or priestess who imparted the response of a god to a human questioner. The word is also used to refer to the response itself and to the shrine of a god. Every oracular shrine had a fixed method of divination. Many observed signs, such as the motion of objects dropped into a spring, the movement of birds, or the rustle of leaves. Often dreams were interpreted. A later and popular method involved the use of entranced persons whose ecstatic cries were interpreted by trained attendants. Before an oracle was questioned consultants underwent rites of purification and sacrifice. There were many established oracles in ancient Greece, the most famous being those of Zeus at Dodona and of Apollo at Delphi and at Didyma in Asia Minor. Other oracular shrines were located in Syria, Egypt, and Italy.
On reflection Mr Young’s case, I could identify that he required support to make sense of his loss, despite his diagnosis of early onset dementia. Mr Young’s long term partner just died during his hospital admission. According to Freud (1971), stress, grief and loss produce a mixture of physical and psychological reasons which are closely related with the social pressure about changes in status. He further stressed that these are often accompanied by financial problems; in this case, Mr Young’s problems was associated to accommodation in addition to losing his companion.
I’m interviewing my mom who didn’t have the best childhood. She was born in El grullo Jalisco she loved it there even if they barely fit in their house. My grandpa later decided to move to Pajacuaran Mich when my mom was only 8 years old. My mom fought to stay in Jalisco but didn’t fought hard enough. Throughout the years my grandma keeped getting pregnant and have miscarriages. If all her sibling would of survived I would of had 24 uncle and aunties but saddly 8 died. Imagine working at age 6 to be able to feed 10 or more people not including yourself. My mom would rather starve then knowing that her sibling haven’t ate. Knowing this changed my whole view for this beautiful hard working lady. I know have more respect towards her. I would never want to go through something like that because I haven’t been able to accept the fact that my grandpa is dead. Image if I had a brother and he died,