Historical Development of the 1960s Essay Example for Free

Historical Development of the 1960s Essay Historical Development of the 1960s Introduction            Of the many historical eras, the 1960 era is regarded as one of the most controversial eras ever in the history of America. However, this was not the anticipation that most of American citizens had. At the very beginning of the 1960s, many believed that this was perhaps the most promising era yet. They even dubbed this era the golden age. The expectations of the people intensified in 1961 when John F. Kennedy took the office of the president. His charisma and enthusiasm won the hearts and trust of the American people. They strongly believed that his government would provide solutions to the major problems that they were facing at the time. However, to the surprise of many, the decade turned out to be the complete opposite of what they had expected. The president himself was assassinated, a chaotic storm characterized by protests by civil rights movements engulfed the country, and instead of the war in Vietnam coming to a halt, it intensified. This essay will strive to create an interconnection between these events which shaped up the 1960s. It will tackle incidents relating to the free speech movement, the Vietnamwar, the Black Panther Party, Rock-n-roll, and the women’s movement, also known as the feminist movement, as witnessed in this decade.            An issue that had been a thorn in the flesh of the American people was coexistence of the white Americans and the African-Americans. Though the slave trade had been abolished by this time, issues of discrimination were still rampant in society. The African Americans would hence dedicate themselves to fighting for equality for their people in this society. At the very beginning of 1960, some four black students defied the norms of society at that particular time and sat down at a white’s-only lunch counter. Their actions were succeeded by demonstrations at that counter every day, drawing the nation’s attention.            6 years down the line, the African-American community still wanted society to regard them as equal with the rest of the Americans and this led to the formation of the Black Panther Party. It was originally known as the Black panther Party of self-defense but the name changed. This party movement was however founded for the sole purpose of eradicating police brutality in African-American neighborhoods. However, with the rapid expansion of the party and the start of a publication, the objectives of the party had diversified. This diversification meant that the party was keener on social empowerment thus disregarding the exclusivity of race. This however sparked up problems within the party since the radical members differed in opinion with the members that were in support of their socialistic cause. This made the party’s political motive to be disoriented and the government at that time considered the party as a national threat.            The Black community of the United States was not the only entity that was fighting for its civil rights. Gender inequality was still a societal vice that America was struggling with. During this time, men were given more opportunities as compared to women in virtually every field and this led to the second wave of the feminist movement. The job market viewed women as the less productive species. One of the reasons why this notion was upheld was because the women needed time off when they delivered and most employers believed the assertion that women would quit their job when they got pregnant. More to this, the society had branded the man as the provider of the home. It was therefore argued that men needed jobs and better paythan women because of the fact that there were people who were dependent on them. Generally, society had defined the place of a woman as the home; whether she was educated or not.            In 1963, Betty Freidan wrote a book, The Feminine Mystique. This book highlighted the frustration of the educated housewives and how society had forcefully put them in a state of dissatisfaction. What shocked many is the fact that she defied society’s assumption that women found satisfaction in only serving their families. This book stirred a revolutionary movement, one which historians refer to as the second wave of the feminist movement. This movement saw society begin to give women more chances in schools, the job market and also in matters involving remuneration.            From the historical facts available from this era, it is evident that civil rights protests and demonstrations were the order of the day. Even students took the liberty of staging their own protests during this period. The Free Speech Movement was the name given to the protests that the students staged. This movement took place in 1964-1965 at the University of California, Berkley, when students were expressing their discontentment on the ban that the school administration had imposed on on-campus political activities. The students rationale for the protests was that this ban was infringement of their academic freedom and right to free speech. The students felt that they could do more than just confine themselves to books. The objectives of the movement had been put in place way before the movement began when students in the campus formed a political party that enabled them to get involved in off-campus political and societal issues.            The students used this platform to source funds from campus students to support civil rights causes. However, this right was exclusively granted to the political clubs in the school and this is what prompted the school to impose the ban on on-campus political activities. Though the students were doing this out of good will, society was of a contrary opinion. For this reason, voters gave the governor seat to Ronald Regan in 1966 whose campaign forte was to make good the mess that the Berkley students had made.            Events in this era were not just restricted to the local scene. The events that America was involved in during this era also crossed boarders. America had been in conflict with Vietnam since the 1950’s. With the election of J. F. Kennedy, Americans were hopeful that this conflict was finally going to come to an end following his campaign theme; his government had answers to America’s biggest problems. However, these hopes seemed to go down the drain in 1963 when Kennedy was assassinated. The hopes of the American people were now in Lyndon B. Johnson’s hands. His government had two wars to fight; the war against poverty, and the war in Vietnam.            However, Johnson had committed himself to establishing an anti-communist south-Vietnam, a trait he had inherited from his predecessors in their solidarity to the country. For this reason, he had to make a choice to forego the war on poverty to attend to the war in Vietnam. More to this, the president had gained the support of the congress and they gave him the authorization to protect the American soldiers and their allies by all means necessary. The prolongation of the war caused a divide in the nation. Some were in support of the war, others protested against the war, whereas others fled to neighboring Canada to avoid being drafted into the war.            Amidst all these events that were happening, people needed something to give them an escape from it all even if it was temporary. Entertainment was the surest way of attaining such. In this era, the most common form of entertainment was music. Rock-n-rollwas the most popular music genre at the time. The developments in this genre were referred to as invasions and were named on the basis of where they originated from. The British invasion occurred in the early 1960s. In mid 1960s, garage rock was unveiled. The genre was common in North America. The genre gained this name because it was played by armatures at the comfort of their homes in their garages. However, this genre barely made it past the 1960s as it was replaced by other genres. Conclusion            The 1960s era, as highlighted above was a rather event-full one in the American history. Though it may seem like the era did not live up to its expectation as the golden age, it can be argued that to some extent it did. This is because the events during this time acted as milestones especially with regards to civil rights issues. However, the prolongation of the war in Vietnam did injustice to the country as it caused a divide. In conclusion, the 1960s were not shy of historical events. References Fischer, Klaus P.  America in White, Black, and Gray: The Stormy 1960s. New York [u.a.: Continuum, 2006. Print. Source document

lord of the flies piggy analysis Essay -- essays research papers

Piggy Character Analysis   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Piggy in the beginning of the book was using his common sense, he was intelligent, he knew what was right from wrong, and he could condone things that made him angry easily. In the beginning of the book, (pg. ) Ralph told everyone his name was Piggy even though Piggy specifically told Ralph that he didn't like to be called that name Piggy later condoned Ralph's action with great ease. Piggy's action's and behavior depended on his glasses. Piggy and his glasses symbolized intelligence, he represents the rational side of civilization. With the glasses it seemed as though Piggy made all the right choices, and he helped Ralph know what needed to be done with the tribe. Without his glasses Piggy couldn't see i.e, Piggy was useless without his glasses.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Dramatic changes occurred after the tribe killed Simon.(pg. ) Savage Piggy blamed the murder on Simon himself for crawling around at night. But civil Piggy would have blamed the murder on the boys and himself and would have brought it up constantly. By the end of the book piggy was not what he was in the begging he changed dramatically from being loquacious about what he knew to being loquacious and just rabbling.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Piggy fits into the theme of intellectual aspect of civilization because he was the one who thought of coming up with rules/ norms. (Pg. ) He also brought the civilization of england onto the island. If Pi...

Personality type INFJ letters Essay

INFJ (introverted, intuitive, feeling, judging) is a four-letter code used to represent one of the 16 personality types identified by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). This personality assessment was created by Isabel Myers and her mother Katherine Briggs in the 1940s based on the theories of Swiss psychoanalyst Carl Jung. People with INFJ personalities are creative, gentle and caring. According to David Keirsey, the INFJ type is one of the rarest with just one to three percent of the population exhibiting this personality type. INFJ Characteristics The MBTI identifies your personality type by looking at four main areas: 1) Extraversion vs Introversion, 2) Sensing vs Intuition, 3) Thinking vs Feeling and 4) Judging vs Perceiving. On each of these four areas, the MBTI identifies which way your personality tends to lean for each dimension. As you can see, the INFJ personality leans toward Introversion, Intuiting, Feeling and Judging. Introversion (I): INFJs tend to be reserved, quiet and have a small circle of close friends. Intuition (N): INFJs are prefer abstract concepts and tend to focus on the big picture rather than concrete details. Feeling (F): INFJs place a greater emphasis on personal concerns than objective facts when making decisions. Judging (J): INFJs like to exert control by planning, organizing and making decisions as early as possible. People with INFJ personalities tend to exhibit the following characteristics: Idealistic Sensitive to the needs of others Highly creative and artistic Reserved Focused on the future Private Values close, deep relationships Enjoys thinking about the meaning of life INFJs are driven by their strong values and seek out meaning in all areas of their lives including relationships and work. People with this type of personality are often described as deep and complex. INFJs have an innate ability to understand other people’s feelings. While they are introverted, they sometimes seem extroverted at times due to their strong interest in people and society. INFJs are interested in helping others and making the world a better place. They tend to be excellent listeners and are good at interacting with people which whom they are emotionally close and connected. While they care deeply about others, INFJs tend to be very introverted and are only willing to share their â€Å"true selves† with a select few. After being in social situations, INFJs need time to themselves to â€Å"recharge.† INFJs also have a talent for language and are usually quite good at expressing themselves on paper. They have a vivid inner life, but they are often hesitant to share this with others except for perhaps those closest to them. While they are quiet and sensitive, they can also be good leaders. Even when they don’t take on overt leadership roles, they often act as quiet influencers behind the scenes. In school, INFJs are usually high achievers and get good grades. They can be perfectionists at times and tend to put a great deal of effort into their academic work. INFJs enjoy learning, particularly about people, society, literature and art. They tend to prefer studying subjects that involves abstract theories and ideas rather than concrete facts and information. Because they are reserved and private, INFJs can be difficult to get to know. They place a high value on close, deep relationships and can be hurt easily, although they often hide these feelings from others. Best Careers for INFJs INFJs do well in careers where they can express their creativity. Because people with INFJ personality have such deeply held convictions and values, they do particularly well in jobs that support these principles.

The Relationship Between Fiction And Metaphysics in Short Story The White Stocking - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 7 Words: 2076 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Literature Essay Type Essay any type Level High school Did you like this example? Explore the relationship between fiction and metaphysics and/or ethics in D. H. Lawrences short story The White Stocking D.H. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Relationship Between Fiction And Metaphysics in Short Story The White Stocking" essay for you Create order Lawrence was well known, arguably notorious, for advocating the doctrine of romantic vitalism both in his life and in his writings. Originally a scientific term, the Oxford English Dictionary defines romantic vitalism as â€Å"The doctrine or theory that the origin and phenomena of life are due to or produced by a vital principle, as distinct from a purely chemical or physical force† (Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 1999, p1603). Lawrence’s championing of the philosophy persisted right up until his death in 1930: indeed, as Daniel Fuchs comments, â€Å"The voice of romantic vitalism speaks with intransigent integrity in Lawrence to the last (Fuchs, 2011, p156). In the early twentieth century, romantic vitalism, as Lawrence conceived of it, championed the view that people’s intellectual development had taken precedence over their spiritual and emotional development. This brief essay will examine how the metaphysical concept of romantic vitalism is expl ored through the treatment of human love and human weakness within the institution or marriage, and how individuals should behave towards one another within D.H.Lawrence’s early short story â€Å"The White Stocking†. â€Å"The White Stocking† is a narrative about desire and more specifically about repressed desire: as the very title of the story implies, it is about the idea of repression of sex and sexuality as being injurious to the spiritual and mental well being of the subject. It explores in tangential form a conflict between the physical nature of the body on the one hand, and the external pressures of social convention and an unexpressed, yet omniscient Christian morality which is supposed to govern people’s external conduct. At surface level, the story is about the relationship between a married couple, in this instance the Whistons- Ted and Elsie- and about a husband and wife at the beginning of another working day, yet the narrative voi ce foregrounds a potent dichotomy or duality which associates warmth and sensuality with femininity, and more particularly the female body, and conversely coldness and reason with masculinity. Yet, one must acknowledge that ‘The White Stocking’ is a story in which the physical atmosphere and physical objects are invested with a powerful symbolism for characters that convey meanings and resonances that they themselves are not yet aware of, but the process of the story is to show how they gain deeper awareness of these resonances, and their implications for their identities and their relationships with each other. Right from the very outset, it is heavily implied that Mrs Whiston as a character is (in the eyes of her husband, at least) imbued with a powerful sensuousness and an openness to nature and the natural world: They had been married two years. But still, when she had gone out of the room, he felt as if all his light and warmth were taken away, he became aware of the raw, cold morning. So he rose himself, wondering casually what had roused her so early. Usually she lay in bed as late as she could. (Lawrence, 2006, p49) Mrs Whiston has an innate warmth in spite of the coldness of their physical surroundings and of the cold English climate, and it is inferred, in spite of the repression of Christian civilisation that expresses itself through the conventional institution of marriage, as the authorial voice seems to imply. This sensuality and easiness with her body is portrayed as almost descending into a form of sluttish behaviour: in the eyes of her husband, the reader is told that â€Å"She looked like an untidy minx, but she was quick and handy enough.† (Lawrence, 2006, p50) The impression that is conveyed is not that of a respectable marriage and a respectable Christian household, but rather of a couple who have perhaps just engaged in frenetic sexual intercourse with each other. Mrs Whiston/Elsie is presented as a character who is much more open to the possibilities of living within the moment and awareness of the sensuous and sexual possibilities that existence can offer one. The story speaks of how she is ‘interested only in her envelopes this morning’ (Lawrence, 2006, p50). Throughout the story she is repeatedly connected with physicality and with physical objects, as exemplified by the lengthy attention paid to her receipt of the Valentine’s gifts and more specifically, her lengthy interaction with the story’s title object: the eponymous white stocking itself. Lace as a fabric is associated with physical feeling, with the body and with the skin. Indeed, the story mentions how Elsie/ Mrs Whiston was employed as ‘a warehouse girl in Adam’s lace factory before she was married’ (Lawrence, 2006, p56). Her role within a lace/hosiery factory defines her position and her identity in life prior to marriage: within the context of the stor y, the idea of fabrics, of lace and in particular, the idea of the white stocking seems to invoke the idea of freedom, independence and an elevated social status, as implied by Elsie’s strange yet eager embrace of the physical clothing and the pearl ear-rings that she presumes she has received as a Valentine’s present from her former suitor. Examining the incident in closer detail, Elsie’s emotional reaction to each of the gifts that she receives is individually noteworthy: she basically rejects the cartoon Valentine that she receives, more or less, because it offends her romantic and possibly aspirational nature. She is then described as smiling ‘pleasantly’(Lawrence, 2006, p51) at the white silk handkerchief that she receives in the white cardboard box, which contains ‘her initial, worked in heliotrope, fully displayed’(Lawrence, 2006, p51). The third gift, the eponymous white stocking contains a very pleasant surprise in its toe. The authorial voice talks of how she lifts ‘a pair of pearl ear-rings from the small box’ (Lawrence, 2006, p51) and goes ‘to the mirrorlooking at herself sideways in the glass. Curiously concentrated and intent she seemed as she fingered the lobes of her ears, her head bent on her side.’(Lawrence, 2006, p51) The message that accompanies the gift that ‘Pearls may be fair, but thou art fairer. Wear these for me, and I’ll love the wearer’ (Lawrence, 2006, p51) and the fact that Elsie has not received these items from her husband, suggests that either she has been and remains an object of romantic infatuation. As we subsequently learn, Elsie suspects that the pearl ear-rings are a gift from the rich lace manufacturer, Sam Adams, who was previously her employer and, it seems, a suitor who vainly tried to woo her. Suddenly a whole back story opens up, in which a vivid physical portrait of Adams as a lonely bachelor with a Ã¢â‚¬Ë œfondness for the girls’ (Lawrence, 2006, p56) emerges, and for whom Elsie is the main target of his amorous affections. He is described as wearing ‘a red carnation’ (Lawrence, 2006, p56) in his buttonhole in order ‘to impress her’. (Lawrence, 2006, p56) Why the intense focus on the details of the Valentine’s gifts? For a start, they appear to symbolise Elsie’s apparent ascent in the world and the sense that the reader gets of a desire on her part to ensure an improvement in her social status and the sense of social identity as being somehow fluid, and no longer fixed. As we learn towards the end of the first story, Whiston has risen in the world, having left Sam Adams’ employ and struck out on his own as a commercial traveller. The irony is that Elsie has apparently rejected the higher social status and greater financial and material security that would have come through marriage to Sam Adams, her former employer, and ha s followed her heart and her romantic nature and married Ted Whiston instead. Whiston is described in the story as being more physically attractive and more restrained in manner than Adams: the latter is ‘too loud for [Elsie’s] good taste (Lawrence, 2006, p56) whereas the former is described as being ‘a shapely young fellow of twenty-eight, sleepy now and easy with well-being (Lawrence, 2006, p50) The story’s narrative structure shifts towards engagement with the romantic triangle between Elsie, Whiston and Adams. Within the triangle Elsie believes that her beauty and her attractiveness to Adams give her a power over her husband through his rage and jealousy at Adams’ unabated courtship. The triangular relationship is expressed through the story of the Christmas party: Elsie dances with Adams and seems to revel in the physicality of dancing with him. Indeed, the experience is described as being ‘an intoxication to her’, (Lawrenc e, 2006, p60) and we see how much she shapes her own identity through her own enjoyment of physical and erotic contact with others. At the same time, her husband’s ontology and identity are defined in terms opposite to her own which ostensibly reject the erotic and which enforce boundaries of contact and affection. Ted Whiston instructs his wife to shun close contact with Adams, telling her that: â€Å"You don’t want to be too free with Sam AdamsYou know what he is†,(Lawrence, 2006, p63) and yet a mixture of pride, anger and reticence prevent him from explaining to Elsie why she should reject Adams’ attentions. At the heart of the story, the titular white stocking comes to represent the rift in the marriage between Ted and Elsie, and yet to symbolise how Elsie draws out the passion and an unexpected redemptive quality in Ted’s character. When they are walking back from the Christmas party after the incident in which Elsie mistakenly droppe d the white stocking, it is Elsie’s apparent remorse and regret which leaves her tearful and vulnerable, and which evokes in Ted a need to forgive, and in a moment of sudden epiphany to realise that he cares for and loves her very deeply indeed: And he held her very safe, and his heart was white-hot with love for her. His mind was amazed. He could only hold her against his chest that was white-hot with love and belief in her. So she was restored at last. (Lawrence, 2006, p66) In essence, the Christmas party establishes a pattern of behaviour within the marital relationship whereby Elsie’s continued attraction to Adams both provokes her husband’s violent jealousy to the point where he almost lashes out at her in piques of violence. Yet, if one looks at the relationship and the subsequent marriage between Ted and Elsie, it becomes the way in which her social identity is subsequently defined, and in which she finds a peculiar sense of security: Inside of marriage she found her liberty. She was rid of the responsibility of herself. Her husband must look after that. She was free to get what she could out of her time. (Lawrence, 2006, p66-7) This leads us towards consideration of the treatment of marriage within the narrative. At its heart it explores issues of trust, forgiveness and fidelity within marriage, and how well the social institution of marriage can withstand possible betrayal and compromise. The third great epiphany of the story centres on Elsie’s admission to her husband that the pearl ear-rings are not the first present that she has received from Sam Adams. This time, Ted Whiston is unable to restrain himself and hits his wife with a savage force: Then, quick as lightning, the back of his hand struck her with a crash across the mouth, and she was flung back blinded against the wall (Lawrence, 2006, p71) One might assume that the modern twenty-first century reader would be shocked and horrified by this expression of violence, and by Whiston’s apparent brutality towards his wife, yet this moment of aggression and physical injury seems to have the paradoxical effect of bringing Ted and Elsie closer together in a sudden and surprising moment of tenderness and compassion. It is almost as if Lawrence is implying that tenderness, cruelty and violence cannot exist apart from one another in marriage, being almost in a form of mutual symbiosis. In conclusion, this might be a very useful way of describing ‘The White Stocking’ because it is very much a story about relationships and human connections are mutually, helplessly dependent upon each other, and this is how the relationship progresses between Ted and Elsie. Reference List Concise Oxford English Dictionary (1999): Oxford UP, Oxford Fuchs, D. The Limits of Ferocity: Sexual Aggression Modern Literary Rebellion. (2011): Duke University Press, Durham NC Lawrence, D.H. Selected Stories. (2007): Penguin, London