Writing Discussion Essay Example for Free

Writing Discussion Essay * How do your surrounding affect your reading comprehension? How might you minimize distractions while you are reading for your class assignments? Many things may affect your reading comprehension. Your surroundings and environment play an important role in your ability to comprehend when reading. Anything can be a distraction if it causes you to lose focus and draws your attention to something else. Distractions can be visual, physical, and auditory. To minimize distractions while you are reading first make sure you are in a place that is comfortable and away from electronic devices; television, computer, and phone. Be sure the temperature is not too hot or cold. If you are continually distracted while reading, you may not have a strong understanding and may need to reread the assignment or article. * Do you think freewriting is a good first step to take when approaching a writing assignment? Do you think you might use freewriting as a part of your writing process? Why or why not? Freewriting is a good first step to take when approaching a writing assignment because it brings out ideas and creativity in a short period of time. I will definitely use freewriting as part of my writing process. Not only will it help me with â€Å"writers block†, but it will allow me to be more creative and inspired with my thoughts. No need to waste time editing, formatting, and organizing-just jot down thoughts and ideas. There is no wrong or right way to do it. It is another form of brainstorming, but on paper.

Evaluation of the Effectiveness of the Prison System Essay -- Prison J

The failure of imprisonment has been one of the most noticeable features of the current crisis in criminal justice systems. At best, prisons are able to provide a form of crude retribution to those unfortunate to be apprehended. At worst, prisons are brutalizing, cannot be shown to rehabilitate or deter offenders, and are detrimental to the re-entry of offenders into society. If anything, they do little else than confine most prisoners, and as a result lead to the imposition of certain undesirable learning habits and labels. Such habits include the learning of survival patterns of behavior, which do little to help the prisoner to be reintegrated as a useful and productive member of the community. It has been established that prison work or training experiences all too often fail to impart skills that can be usefully applied once the prisoner is released. The prison experience also acts as a stigmatising one, so that the prisoner finds that society labels them as an undesirable or untrustworthy person, despite the fact that he/she has ostensibly been 'rehabilitated' (Bartollas, 1985). Both ideological and socioeconomic pressures play an important role in bringing about changes to the concept of punishment and the methods of dealing with the criminal deviant. To date, however, there has been an increasing pressure for the avoidance and the minimisation of the penal servitude. The general consensus of much criminological opinion is that imprisonment as a corrective and punitive method has failed. What has emerged in response to this failure is the notion of community-based corrections, a movement that has received both intellect... ...e. The prison institution is only a phenomenon of relatively recent times in the history of man, it is by no means true that society is unable to accommodate other means of social control (Andenaes, 1974). What needs to be reviewed is not so much the methods of correction but the basic doctrines of punishment themselves. The introduction of all these new schemes may only serve the purpose of extending social control, instead of defeating, many social problems. In fact, community-based corrections may be seen as undermining, not assisting, movement towards fundamental change in the criminal justice system. Alternatives, therefore, need to be clearly and completely separated and distinguished from the traditional prison system and the culture of imprisonment if they are to have any greater hope of being successful.

An Analysis of Things Fall Apart

In Things Fall apart, Okonkwo was considered a tragic hero. He used to be a great wrestler, a fierce warrior, and a successful farmer of yams in Umuofia. Shortly after Ikemefuna’s death, Okonkwo accidentally killed someone in a funeral ceremony. He and his family were sent into exile for seven years. Nevertheless, when he returned to Umuofia, he found himself unable to adapt to changing time as the white men came to live among the village. Okonkwo realized that he was no longer able to function within his changing society. Consequently, he committed suicide by hanging himself for his final tragedy. His tragic end was led by his character flaws, a betrayal of his clansmen, and the colonization. Okonkwo was impulsive; he acted before he thought without considering the consequence. Furthermore, he isolated himself by exhibiting anger through violent, irrational behavior. He was quick to anger. During the annual week of peace before planning time, tradition permitted no one to speak a hash word to other person in the village. However, one day during this week, Okonkwo beat his youngest wife, who went to a friend’s house to braid her hair and forgot to prepare Okonkwo’s meal and feed her children. Even he was reminded of the ban on violence, he didn’t stop the beating. However, his fear of weakness and failure also was his tragic flaw. Consequently, he didn’t take the advice that not to participate in the murder of Ikemefuna. Therefore, he actually killed Ikemefuna because he was afraid of being though weak. Moreover, Okonkwo was a man of action. He did things without considering the consequence. This flaw brought him a serious consequence at the end of the story. After the release from jail, Okonkwo thought about his revenge. He hoped Umuofia will wage war on the intruders. If they didn’t, he would take action on his own. In the next morning, the clansmen were lead to a meeting which was about took action against the unwanted strangers to rid themselves. During the meeting, five court messengers approached the group and said that the white man ordered the meeting stopped. Without a second thought, Okonkwo used his machete to sever the messenger’s head. However, his impulsiveness drove him to this deplorable condition. The betrayal of the clansmen contributed Okonkwo’s tragedy. As well as things had changed among the village, many people in Umuofia were not entirely unhappy with the white men’s influence on their village. However, the white men brought wealth to the village as they built a trading store for traded palm oil and palm nut kernels. The clans could gain great economic benefit from the trading store, hence the money flowed into the village. Therefore, not everyone in the village was united against the white men since they had provided a new way for the villagers to profit. With this opportunity, they were willing to accept the white man's rule because they weren't willing to sacrifice the new trading community to fight for their independence. People would rather choose peace and money instead of going to the war to against the white men. This change of the clan displeased Okonkwo. His return was not what he had hoped. Moreover, when Okonkwo killed the messenger in the meeting, no one tried to stop the other messengers from escaping. The clansmen were afraid, and someone even asked why Okonkwo killed the messenger. At that time, Okonkwo realized that the clan would never go to war and the Umuofia would surrender. He wiped his machete and walked away. Nevertheless, everything had fallen apart for Okonkwo. He failed alone. The colonization mainly contributed Okonkwo’s tragedy because they were unfamiliar with Umuofia’s culture. However, Enoch unmasked an egwugwu in the ceremony; his action was determined as a great crime and killed the ancestral spirits. Therefore, the egwugwu went to kill him, but he took refuge in the church compound. Mr. Smith, who was intolerant in fanaticism, tried to protect Enoch and asked the egwugwu to leave. Rather than hunt Enoch down and kill him, they burn the church. When the District Commissioner returned from trip and heard about the burning of the church, they asked six leaders of the village, including Okonkwo, to meet with him in his office. As one of the leaders began to tell about Enoch’s unmasking of an egwugwu, they were handcuffed and thrown in jail for several days. However, the DC said the leader would be treated well in the prison, and would be released after paying five or two hundred bags of cowries. Nevertheless, the guards repeatedly mistreated them in the prison. Okonkwo suffered insults and physical abuse there. The way the messenger mistreated him was humiliated. Therefore, he was put into fighting mood. His motivation for wanting revenge and his humiliation in jail were deeply personal. However, the DC was ignorant because he didn’t know the Umuofia’s culture; and he only listened to one side. If Okonkwo was tolerant and acted with considering the consequence, he might avoid his tragedy. Moreover, if Mr. Brown was not breaking down in health, he would still stay in Umuofia. Then, Mr. Smith would not take over his place. Consequently, the consequential outcome would not happen. Besides, if the District Commissioner could listen to both sides’ explanations or understand the Umuofia’s culture more, Okonkwo would not be put in the prison tragically. Then, he might avoid killing the court messenger. Furthermore, it might help preventing his tragedy from happening.

Huckleberry Finn Literary Analysis - 1448 Words

People often hesitate to accept what they do not understand. In the absence of love and compassion, it is no question that fear, ignorance, and hatred, all contribute to a melting pot of negativity in the world. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, is about the love and friendship cultivated by a young boy and a black slave on the Mississippi River. Despite the pair’s differences, they are able to endure the struggles and difficulties that the toilsome journey brings. Mark Twain, in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, emphasizes the shift in Huck’s view towards slavery by contrasting Huck’s initial tone of reflectiveness to his assertive tone, both collectively addressing the issue of racism in society. Twain makes the point†¦show more content†¦Jim’s unselfish actions reveal his love for Huck, and through Twain’s use of imagery, the reader is able to better comprehend this love and understand why such a choice is one of great diff iculty. Twain again uses another element of tone to reveal Huck’s assertive tone. In using syntax, Twain places emphasis on Huck’s continuous flow of uninterrupted thought. In the passage, he incorporates substantial amounts of semi-colons, dashes, and commas, to further represent Huck’s haphazard gush of thoughts. Twain writes, â€Å". . . straight off, but laid the paper down and set there thinking – thinking how good it was all this happened so, and . . .† (Twain 161). The usage of dashes emphasizes a shift in thought, therefore allowing the reader to notice Huck’s ambivalence. He also does not fail to disclose that Jim heavily depends on Huck and would be practically unable to function without him, and resorts to using italics to do this. A reader can infer that Huck is in the process of deciding between conforming to society’s standards or forming his own. This idea is proven through yet, another example of syntax: â€Å"I could go on sleeping; and see him how glad he was; and such-like times; . . . and the only one he’s got now; and . . .† (Twain 161). The reflective tone in the passage can be characterized, finally, through the usage of details. By using the tone element of details,Show MoreRelatedThe Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn Literary Analysis1888 Words   |  8 PagesThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Literary Analysis The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain has been banned from many schools and public libraries due to the use of racial slurs. Although these slurs are frowned upon now, they were a normal part of the society shaped Huckleberry (Huck) Finns life. The world Huck Finn grew up in is before the abolition of slavery. This is when the states is begun to separate, but the civil war is not yet stirring. Huckleberry’s life was influenced by hisRead MoreLiterary Analysis of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Essay1100 Words   |  5 PagesLiterary Analysis of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn In Huckleberry Finn there are several themes. There are themes of racism and slavery, civilized society, survival, water imagery, and the one I will be discussing, superstition ( SparkNotes Editors). Superstition is a belief or practice resulting from ignorance, fear of the unknown, trust in magic or chance, or a false conception of causation (â€Å"Merriam-Webster†). Superstition was a very popular theme in Huckleberry Finn thatRead MoreLiterary Analysis Of Mark Twain s Huckleberry Finn1082 Words   |  5 PagesBen Choi Mr. Biber April 3, 2015 English III H A Literary Analysis on the Themes of Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn David Hume, a Scottish philosopher of the 1700s, once said, Mankind are so much the same, in all times and places, that history informs us of nothing new or strange in this particular. Its chief use is only to discover the constant and universal principles of human nature. These â€Å"principles of human nature†, however, can be examined not only in history itself, but also in stories writtenRead MoreLiterary Analysis: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Essay1756 Words   |  8 PagesThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn â€Å"Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished; persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot.† (Twain, ix) Mark Twain opens his book with a personal notice, abstract from the storyline, to discourage the reader from looking for depth in his words. This severe yet humorous personal caution is written as such almost to dissuade his readers from having any high expectationsRead MoreAnalysis of Literary Techniques For The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain982 Words   |  4 Pages In The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn, Twain paints a colorful portrait of his life growing up in the south. Originally intended to be just a â€Å"fun† narrative about his childhood, Twain’s novel evolved into something much greater by criticising slavery and advocating for the rights of african-americans. The themes that the book represents were revolutionary in their time, s omething only accomplished through the narratives of Twain. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is aptly named due to it’s perspectivesRead MoreThe relation of form to content in Mark Twains The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn1097 Words   |  4 PagesAdventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) is autobiographic, ensuring a valuable narrative unity; each scene is delivered as-is rather than being described into fruition. It is a tale of boyish adventure floating along the Mississippi told as it would have appeared to the boy himself. Thus, the novel ascribes to one of several contrasting aesthetics found throughout American literature: Twain’s creation and manipulation of aesthetic through an emphasis of the ‘Vernacular’ rather than the ‘Literary’. The AdventuresRead MoreThe American Concept Of Self Creation1647 Words   |  7 Pagesindividual assuming a new identity to avoid danger or ridding themselves of a past life, are two examples of the lite rary concept of Self-Creation. In Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, we see the main character undergo several examples of â€Å"self-creation† during the course of the story for various motivations including those mentioned above. Throughout Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the main character changes in identity for several reasons to include those in which he protects himself andRead MoreThe Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain1854 Words   |  8 Pagesof Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is a one of a kind novel. The novel has been debated as controversial since it has been published in 1986. It has been considered racist, due to the â€Å"n† word. In its earlier days, racist people felt this book was a disgrace, because of the mingling of the two main characters. Among all of the negative comments, this book is truly a masterpiece. It is an unforgettable and enjoyable book for everyone to learn and scrutinize; it contains a multitude of liter ary devicesRead More Huck Finn Essay900 Words   |  4 Pages Tim Lively Critical Analysis: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Setting: Late 1800’s along the Mississippi River Plot: When the book begins, the main character, Huck Finn possesses a large sum of money. This causes his delinquent lifestyle to change drastically. Huck gets an education, and a home to live in with a caring elderly woman (the widow). One would think that Huck would be satisfied. Well, he wasn’t. He wanted his own lifestyle back. Huck’s drunkard father (pap), who had previouslyRead MoreAnalysis Of Mark Twain s Works Made A Huge Impact On Readers And Literary Critics1288 Words   |  6 Pages2/26/17 P:2 Outline Mark Twain’s works made a huge impact on readers and literary critics. His writing occurred during both the romantic and realist time eras in American Literature. He has simple, seemingly artless narrators and an understated style leads readers to arrive at the social commentary of his narratives on their own. Mark Twain’s writing influenced society because he created a new perspective on life with the views pointed out in his books. The distinctive trait of Twain s was his