Analysis of Feathers, a Short Story by Raymond Carver

Analysis of 'Feathers,' a Short Story by Raymond Carver American poet and author Raymond Carver (1938 - 1988) is one of those rare writers who is known, like  Alice Munro, primarily for his work in the short story form. Due to his economical use of language, Carver is often associated with a literary movement known as minimalism, but he himself objected to the term. In a 1983 interview, he said, Theres something about minimalist that smacks of smallness of vision and execution that I dont like. Feathers is the opening story of Carvers 1983 collection, Cathedral, in which he began to move away from the minimalist style. Plot of Feathers SPOILER ALERT: If you dont want to know what happens in the story, dont read this section. The narrator, Jack, and his wife, Fran, are invited to dinner at the home of Bud and Olla. Bud and Jack are friends from work, but no one else in the story has met before. Fran is not enthusiastic about going.   Bud and Olla live in the country and have a baby and a pet peacock. Jack, Fran, and Bud watch television while Olla prepares dinner and occasionally tends to the baby, who is fussing in another room. Fran notices a plaster cast of very crooked teeth sitting on top of the television. When Olla enters the room, she explains that Bud paid for her to have braces, so she keeps the cast to remind me how much I owe Bud. During dinner, the baby begins fussing again, so Olla brings him to the table. He is shockingly  ugly, but  Fran holds him  and delights in him in spite of his appearance. The peacock is permitted inside the house and plays gently with the baby. Later that night, Jack and Fran conceive a child even though they had not previously wanted children. As the years pass, their marriage sours and their child demonstrates a conniving streak. Fran blames their problems on Bud and Olla even though she saw them only on that one night. Wishes Wishes play a prominent role in the story. Jack explains that he and Fran regularly wished out loud for things we didnt have, like a new car or the chance to spend a couple of weeks in Canada. They dont wish for children because they dont want children. It is clear that the wishes arent serious. Jack acknowledges as much when he describes approaching Bud and Ollas house: I said, I wish we had us a place out here. It was just an idle thought, another wish that wouldnt amount to anything. In contrast, Olla is a character who has actually made her wishes come true. Or rather, she and Bud together have made her wishes come true. She tells Jack and Fran: I always dreamed of having me a peacock. Since I was a girl and found a picture of one in a magazine. The peacock is loud and exotic. Neither Jack nor Fran has ever seen one before, and it is much more dramatic than any of the idle wishes theyve been making. Yet Olla, an unassuming woman with an ugly baby and teeth that needed straightening, has made it a part of her life. Blame Though Jack would place the date later, Fran believes their marriage began to deteriorate precisely on the night they had dinner at Bud and Ollas, and she blames Bud and Olla for it. Jack explains: Goddamn those people and their ugly baby, Fran will say, for no apparent reason, while were watching TV late at night. Carver never makes it clear exactly what Fran blames them for, nor does he make it clear exactly why the dinner gathering inspires Jack and Fran to have a baby. Perhaps its because Bud and Olla seem so happy with their strange, squawking-peacock, ugly-baby lives. Fran and Jack dont think they want the particulars - a child, a house in the country, and certainly not a peacock - yet perhaps they find they do want the contentedness that Bud and Olla seem to have. And in some ways, Olla does give the impression that her happiness is a direct result of the particulars of her situation. Olla compliments Fran on her naturally straight teeth while she herself had required braces - and Buds devotion - to fix her crooked smile. At one point, Olla says, You wait until you get our own baby, Fran. Youll see. And as Fran and Jack are leaving, Olla even hands Fran some peacock feathers to take home. Gratitude But  Fran seems to be missing one fundamental element that Olla has: gratitude. When Olla explains how grateful she is to Bud for straightening her teeth (and, more generally, giving her a better life), Fran doesnt hear her because she is picking through the can of nuts, helping herself to the cashews. The impression is that Fran is self-centered, so focused on her own needs that she cant even hear someone elses expression of gratitude. Similarly, it seems symbolic that when Bud says grace, Olla is the only one who says amen. Where Happiness Comes From Jack does note one wish that came true: What I wished for was that Id never forget or otherwise let go of that evening. Thats one wish of mine that came true. And it was bad luck for me that it did. The evening seemed very special to him, and it left him feeling good about almost everything in my life. But he and Fran may have miscalculated where that good feeling was coming from, thinking it came from having things, like a baby, rather than feeling things, like love and appreciation.

Marketing Activities of Long Beach Seafood Restaurant Essay

Marketing Activities of Long Beach Seafood Restaurant - Essay Example This paper illustrates that the Long Beach seafood restaurant is believed to be quite well known for its exceptional offerings of different seafood to its customers. The restaurant is located on the East Coast Parkway and the other divisions of it are located in different places including Marina, East Coast Seafood Centre along with IMM Building in Singapore. The restaurant was founded in the year 1946 with its earliest division at Bedok Resthouse and delivered various seafood items to the various customer segments of Singapore including both domestic and international customers. The Long Beach restaurant is known to be quite popular for its unique offering of black pepper crabs in Singapore and is also renowned for its exceptional seafood offerings of Drunken Prawns along with various types of uncooked seafood. Moreover, the BBQ Golden Phoenix fish, Crispy Duck along with the signature dishes such as Golden Stripe Lobster were few of the most well-liked dishes of Long Beach during t he 1980s followed by House Speciality Prawn and other seafood items during the period of 1990s. The study intends to discuss the different information sources of analyzing the business environment of the food & beverage industry as well as situational analysis of Long Beach Restaurant to guide its strategic decision processes. Moreover, the paper will also include the 4Ps of the marketing mix and effective market segmentation initiatives for Long Beach in the competitive restaurant business. In addition, the brand management of major products along with the effective strategies of product lifecycle has also been considered in the study. Food chains or restaurants serving food and beverages to the customers entail certain strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Furthermore, these factors would be analyzed with the help of a SWOT analysis. Strengths of a restaurant are supposed to be those factors through which they attract customers and satisfy their respective demands rel ated to food and beverages along with ensuring profit maximization. The foremost strength of the restaurant i.e. Long Beach is its kitchen which is usually managed by highly proficient chefs. Furthermore, the chefs also conduct brainstorming activities in order to innovate and introduce new dishes.

Total Quality Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words - 2

Total Quality Management - Essay Example TQM was wielded into a coherent operating philosophy in Japan in the 1950s in its search for better methods to stimulate product quality. Its wisdom and usefulness caught the interest of W. Edward Deming and Joseph Juran who in the 1960s weaved into the Japanese concept their own ideas of quality generation. The TQM strategy was thus enriched by Deming’s statistical process control and Juran’s teamwork and plan-do-check-action concepts. In 1962, all three quality circles combined as TQM was registered with the Japanese Union of Scientists and Engineers as a workable concept of organizational process. By the 1980s, when Japan was rising as a global economic power, TQM was picked up by US and European companies.It was institutionalized in 1988 with the establishment of the European Foundation of Quality Management and has since become the basis for the granting of such quality achievement awards as the International Standards Organization. To implement TQM successfully, a n organization must bring its eight key elements into play.These are ethics, integrity and trust, which serve as the TQM basic foundation; training, teamwork and leadership which act as the building blocks; recognition as the roof; and communication as the binding mortar. Based on the strong foundation of ethics, integrity and trust, the building blocks of training, teamwork and leadership are set in place to reach the roof of recognition. Communication then binds all the elements together to work for the accomplishment of the TQM objectives. In so doing, there are three things to consider: the cost of quality, the counsel of quality gurus, and customer satisfaction. I. Cost of Quality The cost of quality is the extra time, effort and money spent by a company for preventing poor-quality products or services from reaching the consumers. In the words of Crosby, P. (1979), it is the price to pay for non-conformance. The cost of poor quality (Juran, J.,1988). As such, the cost of quality is distinguished from the company's expense on raw material, production and labor in that it involves, for the most part, activities on reworks, returns and customer complaints. There are four known types of quality cost: 1. External failure cost - this is associated with defects found after the customer receives the product, the cost incurred in processing customer complaints, returns, recalls and warranty claims. 2. Internal failure cost - the cost of quality associated with defects found before the customer receives the product, which is spent mostly on scrap, rework, re-inspection, re-testing, material review and material downgrade

The Complexities of Gendered, Sexualized and Racialised Violence and Essay

The Complexities of Gendered, Sexualized and Racialised Violence and the response of criminal law and criminal justice - Essay Example Similarly, the general establishment is that women contribute to a minor share of all crimes that are less professional in character and, less grave ensuing in their lesser representation in the criminal justice system. The position, therefore, is that gender can be of a larger statistical importance in the differentiation involving criminals and non-criminals as compared to any other trait. Gender and sexuality in criminality and criminal law justice The aspect of gender is an extremely serious issue in children upbringing, with distinction found in the way boys and girls socialize and stereotypical idea concerning gender suitable behaviors for females and males. This is position is revealed in socialization and is to blame for the criminal activities of females and males, relatively than biologically associated sex dissimilarity. While female socialization considered highlighting compliance, the deviant activities of males put up with and even overlooked and exempted. Objectives an d behaviors expectant for males considered to have a lot in agreement with criminal actions, with individual distinctiveness encouraged in the course of socialization into the masculine gender position, like aggression, considered exciting and tough, considerations necessary for participation in crime . Crime is considered as representatively masculine and maleness as providing the reason for crime. The position is that feminine violent behavior frequently judged further severely than masculine aggression since it reveals a superior deviation from the feminine social norms. Violent women, particularly, have to be consequently mentally not well, or imitating men since, it deviates from the feminine norms. The argument puts forward the belief that feminine offenders socialized wrongly into the masculine gender roles4. A number of explanations for this position have been obtained from the principal that feminine criminal activity has increased in tandem with the better liberation of women and an obvious masculinization of female behavior in general. Amplified offending considered foreseeable as hurdles that confined male privileges fell apart and socially defined sexually categorized roles became progressively more alike. Women’s amplified participation in criminal activities considered then as a purpose of them more often taking on conventionally male personality. Socializa tion, Biological and masculine clarifications of feminine offending cling to their center that criminal activities is a male action and that by meaning consequently, feminine offenders ought to be more masculine. Even though, the position may appear more naive, the concept has confirmed pleasantly clear-cut particularly for the media, the notion has shown to be a compelling justification for even current evident increases in feminine criminal involvement. It is imperative to note that the inspiration for offending is possibly diverse for offenders doing different types of offences. An example is that property offenders further probably motivated by financial achievement, brutal offenders likely driven by expressive desires. In consideration to masculinity, an individual might hypothesize that aggression and violence in essence involve a superior level of masculinity, undoubtedly portraying a greater deviation from all right

Comparing and contrasting the poems Essay Example for Free

Comparing and contrasting the poems Essay The poems Vultures by Chinua Achebe and What were they like? by Denise Levertov are the same in that they both about war and conflict between two different tribes or regions within one country. Both poems reflect the effects of war and how can dramatically change history. Chinua Achebe uses vultures to explore his thought and ideas of war. He starts by introducing us to their foul diet of dead humans and animal flesh, and then they appear to care and love for one another. Achebe feels that people should be hopeful that the goodness and love will one day overcome the evil inside others an that deep down there lies goodness and love in even the worlds most evil people, like Aldolf Hitler for example. Vultures is about the Biafran War in Nigeria which began in 1967 between the Hausan and Yoruban tribes. The poem is also about the concentration camps in Belsen. The theme of the poem is to show a contrast between good and evil. The poet uses metaphoric images of vultures to describe how a person or creature can be horrible and disgusting and do evil, horrific things but somewhere deep down inside there is a tiny speck of goodness and love. Thus the commandant at Belsen Camp going home for the day with fumes of human roast clinging rebelliously to his hairy nostrils will stop at the wayside sweet-shop and pick up a chocolate for his tender offspring. This stanza is clearly contrasts good and evil. A tremendously evil man who spends his days slaughtering innocent families will go home to his family with goodies for his children and where he is a completely different person, a caring father and a loving husband. The theme is similar to that in the poem What were they like? The US Forces killed many innocent men, women and children and caused devastating affects to the countries land and lives of millions in order to win a war. Only when they realised the terror they had caused and that it was too late, they withdrew they part in the war returned home to they families to live happily ever after. Although the themes of the poems are practically the same each poet delivers their point in different ways and also describes different aspects of war. Chinua Achebe choose to describe war from the side of the commanders and soldiers and Denise Levertov choose to describe war from the side of the countries people and how war effected them. The meaning of each poem lives up to the titles. By reading the title Vultures you immediately think of the scavenger creature. And What they were like? a phrase like this will be used to describe how something or someone was meaning they are no longer like that. In the poem they are no longer the way they were because they have been killed and forgotten about, they meaning the peasant of Vietnam during the war. Denise Levertov uses the word Sir more than once. I think she choose to use this word to show how soldiers would address their commanders. Denise Levertov uses a unique structure for the poem. She uses a sequence of numbered questions followed by the answers. The questions are to the point and reflect the innocent lives of the poor peasants living in Vietnam at the time of the war. Chinua Achebes poem seems to be set out in four verses but actually it is two. The verses are separated by the word Strange. Between lines 21-40 Achebe uses emphasis ( ) to show that its continuing but then he moves the subject to show theres something missing. Like this phrase in easy range of cold telescopic eyes Strange indeed how love in the other ways so particular, he seems to be observing the animals from a distance. At first he has just finished describing the nasty side of the creature then its as if his is interrupted by what we see as strange behaviour for a vulture, where they show each other love. Denise Levertov wanted to put across the fact that no justice was bought to those who lost their lives due to war, instead they were silenced; she felt very strongly about this a put her view down very straight forward. Her questions are to the point but the questions are a bit vague, they have a deeper mean than they appear. In Levertovs poem she says their singing resembled the flight of moths in the moonlight. Who can I say? It is silent now. This reflects how people especially the men who caused the suffering, would rather forget the horrendous images of dying innocence and pretend it never happened. For example, Sir, their light hearts turned to stone. It is not remembered whether in gardens stone lanterns illumined pleasant ways this means that it is not remembered because when the land was bombed the people and land was burnt down to nothing. The poems appear on the outside to be about simple ideas but between the lines there are some powerful thoughts. Vultures seem to be about the disgusting creature, Chinua Achebe uses them only to comment of a particular type of people. In what were they like? It seems to be only about individuals-the peasants but its really about big political events. Vultures symbolises people who benefit from others who are suffering and again this also contrasts with the Northern Communists in Vietnam who won a brutal war at the expense of innocent people.

The Great Gatsby :: essays research papers

In The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald offers up commentary on a variety of themes justice, power, greed, and betrayal, the American dream and so on. Each one of these themes is demonstrated through the relationships, which the characters have. Fitzgerald carefully sets up his novel into distinct social groups, in which each character fits. By creating distinct social classes – old money, new money, and no money, Fitzgerald shows the differing in the way relationships turn out. This book offers a vivid peek of what life was like during the 1920’s.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first relationship introduced in the novel is Tom and Daisy Buchanan. Tom is a very powerful domineering man, very self-centered and self-absorbed. While Daisy is a charming, beautiful lady, with a thrilling voice, she is very self-centered as well. Tom and Daisy’s relationship is undergoing stress. When Daisy notices that her finger is hurt she says, â€Å"You did it, Tom†¦ That’s what I get for marrying a brut of a man, a great big hulking physical specimen (Tom interrupts) â€Å"I hate that word hulking†¦even in kidding.† â€Å"Hulking,† insisted Daisy. (P 16) Daisy knows how to push all of Tom’s buttons and how hard to push them. Daisy tells Nick how cynical she is about everything, she shows her views in the statement â€Å"She told me it was a girl and I turned my head away and wept†¦ all right I’m glad it’s girl. And I hope she’ll be a fool – that’s the best thing a g irl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.† (P 21). It’s rumored that Tom is having an affair, â€Å"Tom’s got some woman in New York.† (P 19), and from what Daisy says she would just rather not notice what is really happening. Daisy and Tom never seem at peace with each other, just in an oblivious state where nothing can change them. They know â€Å"their place† is together; it suits society, they are perfectly matched. Daisy goes astray with Gatsby. â€Å"As he (Tom) left the room again she got up and went over to Gatsby and pulling his face down, kissing him on the mouth†¦You know I love you.† (P 122-123) Daisy uses Gatsby to rebel against Tom’s infidelity, but would never even consider leaving him, especially for an old flame. They are so materialistic; they except their flawed relationship as normal.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Myrtle and Tom have a very fiery relationship.

Behavioral Learning Theories Applied

Behavioral Learning theories Applied Education is quite the central focus in our current society. As the economy advances, education becomes of greater importance and our student’s future is strongly dependent on their educational opportunities. As many theorists have proven, there is no one way of teaching that targets an entire audience. Instead, every child has their own unique learning style that they respond best to. Any educator that takes on the responsibility of teaching must familiarize themselves with the different approaches so they observe the â€Å"No child left behind† act and fulfill their duty as a teacher. The many different approaches to learning include Behavioral, Social Cognitive, Information Processing, Constructivist, and Brain-based. The behavioral approach is concerned primarily with measureable and observable aspects of human behavior (Good & Brophy, 1990). Behavioral learning theories focus on the ways in which pleasurable or unpleasant consequences of behavior change individuals’ behavior over time and ways in which individual model their behavior on that of others (Slavin 2006). The emphasis is put on responses to experiences, especially reinforcement and punishment, as determinants of learning and behavior. The 4 prominent behaviorist and key players in the development of the behaviorist theory, that I like to relate to, were Watson, Pavlov, Thorndike, and Skinner. Pavlov’s main interest was physiology but it was the Classical Conditioning theory that made him so famous. Classical Conditioning is a learning process that occurs through associations between an environmental stimulus and a naturally occurring stimulus. Both Thorndike and Skinner- although differently expressed- delved into the formulation of Operant Conditioning. Operant conditioning is a learning methodology that occurs through rewards and punishments for behavior. An association is made between a behavior and a consequence for that behavior through operant conditioning. Skinner’s theory of Operant conditioning basically explains how we acquire our range of learned behaviors that we exhibit. If an individual’s behavior is immediately followed by pleasurable consequences, the individual will engage in that behavior more frequently (Slavin, pg. 137). The relationship between the behavior and its consequences is what later a learned behavior becomes. Skinner mentions reinforcement, punishment, extinction and rewards as the mechanisms for his theory. All of these responses have a time and place where its effectiveness is at its peak. Knowing our students, knowing ourselves, knowing the situation, and knowing what we want our outcome to be will help us determine which approach to use. As maintained by the above behaviorists, our behaviors change in accordance to the immediate reaction/consequence. These immediate reactions are the secret weapon that teachers should master for optimal success in the classroom. A teacher can observe and take note of the various responses her students respond best to. A teacher should constantly be asking herself â€Å"What serves as a motivation or reinforcement for this particular student to do well†? â€Å"Does the student utilize the Expectancy Theory†? The theory of motivation is based upon the belief that people’s efforts to achieve depend on their expectations of reward, or do they lean towards achievement motivation; the tendency to strive for success and to choose goal oriented, success/failure activities? There are countless responses that can work to motivate our students. Although some students seem naturally enthusiastic about learning, many need that extra motivational factor to help them with their studies. Psychologists define motivation as an internal process that activates, guides, and maintains behavior over time (Murphy & Alexander, 2000; Pintrich, 2003; Schunk, 2000; Stipek, 2002. ) As a student, I was often motivated to do especially good work when I felt the teacher doubted my capabilities. I practiced the quote â€Å"I do it because I can, I can because I want to, I want to because you said I couldn't†. That really pushed me to do well. It may have been a childish but it worked for me. Personally, I had a hard time doing well under reinforcements be it negative or positive. The lack of consistency and the time lapse between the action and response never worked for me. If I were to utilize a token system or any other system (I. E. praise, charts etc.. ) I would review the pros and cons very carefully. I feel that employing such methods carelessly can produce destructive results. Observing a second grade class, I noticed the teacher exercising very harsh consequences to eliminate behaviors. Indeed, her classroom was always spotless, and quiet. The student did not dare misbehave or not know their work for fear of punishment. Ultimately, these students lived in fear. They disliked the teacher, they disliked learning, and whatever they did learn was just to avoid punishment. Were they motivated to behave? Indeed. They were afraid of the consequences. Was the atmosphere an optimal learning environment? Most definitely not! It was at that point that I understood that employing Behavioral Learning Theories do not always produce favorable results. When I was a short term substitute teacher, I had the opportunity to visit many classrooms over the period of a few months. When I entered the classroom with an air about myself and dressed well, the students automatically received the initial dose of motivation to behave and to please. I then continue to hold their interest by teaching in an unconventional manner or in any way that they are unaccustomed to. Teaching unconventionally is fairly simple in one of the schools I substitute. The simplicity of the teaching style has not changed from 20 years ago. The teachers use the same old text-books, they practice â€Å"one teaching style fit all† methodology, just one teacher for the entire class, etc. When I enter a class, I ask them to rearrange their chairs so they are sitting in a semi-circle or in groups depending on the lesson. As the lesson continues, I try to avoid giving extrinsic motivation unless I feel the absolute need. I try to make the actual lesson the incentive. I praise after inquisitive questions and seem genuinely happy with correct responses. It’s an aura that a teacher needs to create that will infuse a sense of ‘wanting to do well’, most frequently by the desire to please. I have frequently observed many teachers successfully pair less desired behavior with desired behaviors for great results which is referred to as the Premack Principle (Premack, 1965). One incident stands out in my mind when a third grade teacher told a student that if he completes his homework, he will be able to remove his name from the â€Å"completed homework† sign outside the classroom. The teacher explained to me, that this particular student dislikes the fact that his name is up on the board, so she pairs doing homework with the favorable act of removing his name. Having his name on the board was supposed to be a reinforcement for doing homework, however Slavin mentions that if the behavior does not increase or decrease in frequency with the reinforcement than it is not necessarily a reinforcement (Slavin, 143). Behavioral Learning Theories are quite established and they are useful in changing behaviors. It is important to acknowledge however, that the theory has its limitation. Mainly, because of its focus on observable behaviors, other more abstract and conceptual learning remains unspoken. However, Social Learning theory helps bridge the gap between the behavioral and cognitive prospective (Slavin, pg 159). —————————————————————————————————————————— Appendix: 1)Slavin, R. E. (2006). Educational psychology: Theory and practice (8th ed. ). Boston: Pearson. 2)Premack, D. (1965). Reinforcement theory. In D. Levine, Nebraska symposium on motivation. Lincoln: Univeristy of Nebraska Press.