Thursday, January 23, 2020
Everyday Use Essay: Lost Heritage :: Everyday Use essays
Lost Heritage in Everyday Use  By contrasting the family characters in "Everyday Use," Walker illustrates the mistake by some of placing the significance of heritage solely in material objects. Walker presents Mama and Maggie, the younger daughter, as an example that heritage in both knowledge and form passes from one generation to another through a learning and experience connection. However, by a broken connection, Dee, the older daughter, represents a misconception of heritage as material. During Dee's visit to Mama and Maggie, the contrast of the characters becomes a conflict because Dee misplaces the significance of heritage in her desire for racial heritage.     Mama and Maggie symbolize the connection between generations and the heritage that passed between them. Mama and Maggie continue to live together in their humble home. Mama is a robust woman who does the needed upkeep of the land,             I am a large, big-boned woman with rough, man-working          hands. In the winter, I wear overalls during the day.          I can kill and clean a hog as mercilessly as a man. I          can work outside all day, One winter I knocked a bull          calf straight in the brain with a sledge hammer and          had the meat hung up to chill before nightfall. (Walker          289)  And Maggie is the daughter, "homely and ashamed of the burn scars down her arms and legs," (Walker 288) who helps Mama by making "the yard so clean and wavy" (Walker 288) and washes dishes "in the kitchen over the dishpan" (Walker 293). Neither Mama nor Maggie are 'modernly' educated persons; "I [Mama] never had an education myself. Sometimes Maggie reads to me. She stumbles along good-naturedly She knows she is not bright" (Walker 290). However, by helping Mama, Maggie uses the hand-made items in her life, experiences the life of her ancestors, and learns the history of both, exemplified by Maggie's knowledge of the hand- made items and the people who made them--a knowledge which Dee does not possess.      Contrasting with Mama and Maggie, Dee seeks her heritage without understanding the heritage itself. Unlike Mama who is rough and man-like, and Maggie who is shy and scared, Dee is confident, where "Hesitation is no part of her nature," (Walker 289) and beautiful:           " first glimpse of leg out of the car tells me it is          Dee. Her feet were always neat-looking, as if God had          shaped them Dee next. A dress down to the ground           Earrings gold, too (Walker 291)  Also, Dee has a 'modern' education, having been sent "to a school in Augusta" (Walker 290). Dee attempts to connect with her racial heritage by taking
Wednesday, January 15, 2020
Healing the World Through Literature Essay
Literature has influenced our lives in many ways. One is the way we perceive the events around us. The media have always been telling and informing the public about wars. Instead of informing us about how we can heal the world, all we hear is whose fault it was as soon as a war breaks out. The question here is: How can literature help to heal the world in terms of war and peace? This is important because there are so many wars in the world and instead of fighting we can use them to help create peace and heal the world. We will then be able look back to the past and think how we can progress for the next time. It will also help us create peace by allowing everyone to understand each other. Thomas Hardy, Anthony Hecht and Muriel Rukeyser are three authors that help show how literature can heal the world. The first poem, Thomas Hardy’s â€Å"The Man He Killed†focuses on the senselessness and futility of war, where a man has killed another quite simply because they were fighting on opposing sides at war. It was written in the point of view of one of the soldiers who was enlisted in the infantry. In the opening stanza he states, â€Å"Had he and I but met by some old ancient inn, we should have sat us down to wet right many a nipperkin! †(Hardy 347) By this he means if they met outside of a pub, they would have enjoyed some drinks together, but because of the war, they are forced to shoot at one another. Then it explains how they met as soldiers in opposing sides and one had to die so they both shot each other, but the narrator shot killed the other. In the third stanza, he explains why he had to kill him. Literature could help us with war by displaying this poem. The poem shows how even when people just meet that because of a war, they are forced and required to kill another man instead of having peace. People fight in wars for all different reasons. Some people were born to join the army and be soldiers while others just join to get by in life with financial support from the army. In the lines thirteen through sixteen, towards the end of the poem the author is saying how both the men enlisted into the army because they were out of work, and they needed to sell their traps to get money, and now because of the war one of the men was killed unwontedly by another man who joined because he was out of work as well. In the second poem called â€Å"More Light! More Light! †by Anthony Hecht, it talks about two different stories in the poem. In the first story there is a man who was being charged for a crime he prays to his God he didn’t commit. He states, â€Å"I implore my God to witness that I have made no crime†(Hecht 349). He was being burned to death and one of the soldiers who was burning him because of his crime felt badly for the prisoner’s suffering. So he threw gun powder hoping it would catch fire and to end the prisoner of his misery but the gunpowder did not ignite, and the prisoner was burnt to death. â€Å"And that was but one, and by no means one of the worst; permitted at least his pitiful dignity; and such as were by made prayers in the name of Christ, that shall judge all men, for his soul’s tranquility†(Hecht 349). The second story is about three prisoners who were brought to the woods, two Jewish prisoners and one Polish prisoner. The German guards forced the Polish man to bury the Jewish men alive, but the Polish man refused to do it. So the German guards instead changed the roles, and the Polish man was shot in the stomach, buried up to his head, and was left there for three hours to bleed to death. The second story seemed to be much worse than the first because the Polish man was suffering and was only left there with his thoughts and prayers as he slowly died. â€Å"No prayers or incense rose up in those hours which grew to be years, and every day came mute ghosts from the ovens, sifting through crisp air, and settled upon his eyes in a black soot†(Hecht 350). Literature help with war and peace because this poem shows the past how the Jews and Polish men and women were tortured by the Nazis and war. And this poem can teach us how even during the darkest times of war some people like the Polish did not keep his dignity. And not be forced to kill another man because war, even if the result of not listening is your own death. In the third poem â€Å"Letter to the Front†by Muriel Rukeyser, talks about being a Jew in the twentieth century. This poem explains how Jewish people should be proud of being Jewish, and they shouldn’t hide it. The Jewish people went through a lot with World War II, with all the deaths and sufferings, but the Jewish population shouldn’t try to hide what they are. â€Å"Wishing to be invisible, you choose death of the spirit, the stone insanity†(Rukeyser 351). Hiding meant reducing God to nothing more than what you are. The author is saying that the Jews should be proud of who they are and what they believe in. To believe in God and pray for freedom to all people, and pray to live the impossible which can only happen with faith to their God. Not by hiding who they really are and their beliefs. Literature can help with War and peace by using this poem to show that belief in your God can help you get through any situation and not by hiding from your beliefs and who you truly are. Some people are already used to wars and violence that it doesn’t affect them. In order to find peace, we must first make an effort to understand all types of people. In terms of race, ethnicity, culture, values, religion, beliefs, etc. When people see life through someone else’s eyes they understand what they go through. That would be the only way to avoid violence. Literature can heal the world after devastation from war. Maybe one day we won’t have to worry about the war because there would be peace. Work Cited: Hardy, Thomas. â€Å"The Man He Killed. †Writing about the World. By Susan H. McLeod, John Jarvis, and Shelley Spear. Boston, MA: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2005. 346-48. Print. Hecht, Anthony. â€Å"More Light! More Light! †Writing about the World. By Susan H. McLeod, John Jarvis, and Shelley Spear. Boston, MA: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2005. 349-50. Print. Rukeyser, Muriel. â€Å"Letter to the Front. †Writing about the World. By Susan H. McLeod, John Jarvis, and Shelley Spear. Boston, MA: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2005. 351-52. Print.
Tuesday, January 7, 2020
Y-DNA Testing for Genealogyâ€How Does it Work
Y-DNA testing looks at the DNA in the Y-chromosome, a sex chromosome that is responsible for maleness. All biological males have one Y-chromosome in each cell and copies are passed down (virtually) unchanged from father to son each generation. How Its Used Y-DNA tests can be used to test your direct paternal lineageâ€â€your father, your fathers father, your fathers fathers father, etc. Along this direct paternal line, Y-DNA can be used to verify whether two individuals are descendants from the same distant paternal ancestor, as well as potentially find connections to others who are linked to your paternal lineage.  Y-DNA tests specific markers on the Y-chromosome of your DNA known as Short Tandem Repeat or STR markers. Because females do not carry the Y-chromosome, the Y-DNA test can only be used by males. A female can have their father or paternal grandfather tested. If that is not an option, look for a brother, uncle, cousin, or other direct male descendants of the male line youre interested in testing. How Y-DNA Testing Works When you take a Y-line DNA test, your results will return both a general haplogroup and a string of numbers. These numbers represent the repeats (stutters) found for each of the tested markers on the Y chromosome. The specific set of results from the tested STR markers determines your Y-DNA haplotype, a unique genetic code for your paternal ancestral line. Your haplotype will be the same as, or extremely similar to, all of the males who have come before you on your paternal lineâ€â€your father, grandfather, great-grandfather, etc. Y-DNA results have no real meaning when taken on their own. The value comes in comparing your specific results, or haplotype, with other individuals to whom you think you are related to see how many of your markers match. Matching numbers at most or all of the tested markers can indicate a shared ancestor. Depending upon the number of exact matches, and the number of markers tested, you can also determine approximately how recently this common ancestor was likely to have lived (within 5 generations, 16 generations, etc.). Short Tandem Repeat (STR) Markets Y-DNA tests a specific set of Y-chromosome Short Tandem Repeat (STR) markers. The number of markers tested by most DNA testing companies can range from a minimum of 12 to as many as 111, with 67 being commonly considered a useful amount. Having additional markers tested will generally refine the predicted time period in which two individuals are related, helpful for affirming or disproving a genealogical connection on the direct paternal line. Example: You have 12 markers tested, and you find that you are an exact (12 for 12) match to another individual. This tells you that there is about a 50% chance that the two of you share a common ancestor within 7 generations and a 95% chance that the common ancestor is within 23 generations. If you tested 67 markers, however, and found an exact (67 for 67) match with another individual, then there is a 50% chance that the two of you share a common ancestor within two generations and a 95% chance that the common ancestor is within 6 generations. The more STR markers, the higher the cost of the test. If cost is a serious factor for you, then you may want to consider starting with a smaller number of markers, and then upgrade at a later date if warranted. Generally, a test of at least 37-markers is preferred if your goal is to determine whether you descend from a specific ancestor or ancestral line. Very rare surnames may be able to obtain a useful result with as few as 12-markers. Join a Surname Project Since DNA testing cannot on its own identify the common ancestor that you share with another individual, a useful application of the Y-DNA test is the Surname Project, which brings together the results of many tested males with the same surname to help determine how (and if) they are related to each other. Many Surname Projects are hosted by testing companies, and you can often receive a discount on your DNA test if you order it directly through a DNA surname project. Some testing companies also give people the option to only share their results with people in their surname project, so you could potentially miss some matches if you are not a member of the project. Surname projects generally have their own website run by a project administrator. Many are hosted by the testing companies, while some are hosted privately. If you cant locate a project for your surname, you can also start one. The International Society of Genetic Genealogy offers tips for starting and running a DNA Surname Projectâ€â€select the For Admins link on the left-hand side of the page.
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