A Lost Identity Within I Am A Martinican Woman :: essays research papers

There is no single criterion that provides a necessary basis for identity, and neither is there a threshold, a critical mass of sufficient conditions. It is possible to assume that because â€Å"a† happened to a person, and â€Å"b† happened to the same person that he or she is a â€Å"c†-type person; however, it’s impossible to make up a definition which covers all that there is about identity. In the novel I am a Martinican Woman by Mayotte Capecia, the reader sees the main character, Mayotte, hopelessly striving to find a static definition of her identity. Mayotte has a need to feel anchored in something that she can define herself as, yet at the very same time, she feels torn between who she is and what she needs in life. These contrasting feelings only lead to the exaggeration of Mayotte’s emotions through her thoughts and actions, and her lack of identity becomes magnified to the reader. By analyzing the theme of racial identity and the stron g presence of patriarchal structures within the Martinican society, one is able to see the difficulty in Mayotte finding a separate identity for herself.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout the novel, Mayotte denigrates blacks, when, in fact, she is partially black. At the very beginning of the novel she depersonalizes herself from the â€Å"groups of young black girls† that carry baskets filled with food on their heads (Capecia, 34). Mayotte observes them and their graceful manner, but in no way associates herself with them, and even ventures to describe the crude details of how the girls stopped â€Å"to [meet] a need right there on the path; after which, she would simply wipe herself with her skirt and go on her way†(Capecia, 34). After her mother tells Mayotte the story about her grandmother, she expresses how proud she is that she had a white grandmother, yet she ventures to ask â€Å"How could a Canadian woman have loved a Martinican?†(Capecia, 63). She is amazed, it seems, that a white woman would stoop to marry a black man. Mayotte specifically states that a â€Å"grandmother was less commonplace than a white grandfather†(Capecia, 62).Here, it is evident, that Mayotte sees blacks as inferior. But at the same time, she is partially black. Many critics see this as an expression of the â€Å"lactification complex,†or the mind frame of idolizing whites as well as a desire to be white, that silently existed within not only Martinican society, but also throughout the Caribbean (CLA, 260).

Annotating (Glass Castle)

Annotating (Glass Castle) Glass Castle Did you notice anything unusual about Jeannette Walls portrayal of poverty, or homelessness? Even though they had bad times with food and other necessities, they still were happy as a family * When she was young, she viewed life as an adventure and when she got older and in West Virginia she started to see reality of her life and she didn’t want to be seen as the girl who lives in the beat up house and the family that didn’t always have food * She doesn’t let her situation of poverty be an excuse or a burden for not being successful and she knew she was going to push past it * It shows that the Walls’ lifestyle was a choice, when her she figures out her mom has had land worth a million dollars and she just wanted to live the way she was living When did Jeannette figure out that her life was not normal? * When film makers came to Welch and were making a documentary and she saw films about life in New York, she saw ther e was life outside the way they were living * When her dad was prostituting her out, her view of her father was changed * When she went over to a friend’s house they had a thermostat and she had never experience one before and this she realized there was much more like that and the way she was living wasn’t normal Do you think her parents were mentally ill?Her mom would stay in bed for days at a time and she would not even take care of her own kids and do nothing, she was probably in depression The dad was an alcoholic (when he tried to quit in Arizona he had withdrawal) and this was a mental illness He might have been molested by his mother, Erma-When Erma was molesting Brian and the children told their father he denied it and became very angry, probably trying to cover up what happened to him He also never wanted to go to West Virginia, he said it was because of pride but he was probably scared of going back to Erma Being molested by his would explain his alcoholism, his anger Annotating How do you know what is important enough to take notes on when you are reading? 1. Reveals some important detail about plot a. Exposition i. Time and Place of Setting, Setting Changes 1. Setting changes frequently in Glass Castle 2. Sometimes time is very difficult to figure out, in Glass Castle they were watching Water Gate which was in 70s, they lived in Lyndon B Johnson apartment building and he was president in late 60s ii. Introduces us to Main Characters iii. Hints at, or Suggests, the Conflict 3.When Jeannette went to hospital and her dad does the Skedaddle we know the problem is going to involve her dad or parents iv. Gives us necessary background info, Anything we need to Know what is Happening 4. We need to know these things for the story to make sense b. High-Point v. Every high point is like a mini climax in a story vi. The climax is the high point at the end c. Climax vii. The point where the Main Character, or Protagonist, Can win or lose, live or die, succeed or fail. d. Denouement (Resolution) viii. Happens the second we know which way the climax is going to go-win or lose, live or die, etc. ix.The Climax and Denouement happen in almost the exact same moment e. Conflict x. Conflict is most important element of plot xi. Internal 5. Glass Castle had a lot of internal conflict going on in Jeannette’s head xii. External – Most Movies or stories 6. Ex: Batman and Bane 2. When you come across special literary devices f. Foreshadowing xiii. Something earlier in the story that gives a hint to something that happens later in the story g. Symbol xiv. In Glass Castle the Glass Castle is a symbol of hope in the beginning but later it becomes disappointment and failure because they realize their dad was never going to build h. Irony xv.When something happens that is the exact opposite of what you expect i. Flashback xvi. The whole Glass Castle is a flashback because she is telling the story of her childhood 7. A memoir is one long series of flashbacks j. Juxtaposition xvii. Where you put two opposite scenes next to each other 8. Happens a lot in books 9. Ex: When Jeannette is living in a very high end apartment and her parents are living the streets and dumpster diving 3. When it reveals the importance of the title k. Sometimes it is obvious but others it is not xviii. Ex: In Glass Castle the first half of the book it was literally the house Rex was going to build and it represented hope and the future.Towards the end it represents disappointment in her father 4. Unfamiliar vocab words l. Circle and Look up and write definition by it xix. Ex: Hirsute-means harry or shaggy 5. When it reveals something important about a character m. New Character-Character List, Do every character and just put a little description on them with something specific what they said or did xx. Ex: Brian coming up with the idea of the catapult instead of saying Jeannette’s brother n. Mark when a character does or says something that is out-of-character, or not typical of them xxi. Ex: When Jeannette steals a watch from Mr. Becker (Eventually she brings it back) 6.Theme o. One of the main ideas or lessons that the writer is trying to teach us in a book xxii. Usually more than one them, even in short stories p. Made up of two parts xxiii. Subject matter xxiv. Author’s opinion 10. Ex: Glass Castle is about poverty and homelessness and Jeannette is trying to show us that poverty can be a choice 7. Highlight any phrases or sentences that you just like q. For whatever reason, funny, cool, just something you really like 8. Take note of anything that reflects your own personal experience, or some idea you’ve had or something you strongly believe Things Mr. Danforth Tests On Level 1 QuestionsLiteral questions that you can find in the text; concrete details you should be able to point to in the book. They are basic facts from the story (Where she worked for her first job in New York. Level 2 Questions Questions that require us to â€Å"read between the lines†-us making deductions on details or facts that are in the story and we are deducing a fact that is not written in the story. Means we come up with a fact, that is not written in the story, based up on one of two other facts in the story. Never printed in the book. Ex. : Why doesn’t Cinderella’s stepmother love her? Ex: Rex is sexually abused by his mother. He would never go back to West Virginia and also his mother, Erma molested her grandson as well.Ex: Rex is mentally ill based upon that he was molested by his mother and all the times he refused going back to West Virginia. She makes her clean all the time and gets all the really disgusting jobs and the other sisters don’t do any chores. She treats her differently because she is not her real daughter, she is her step daughter. She is jealous of Cinderella and her beauty and her daughters are ugly and fat, or maybe she’s jealous just for herself because she is old and not as pretty as Cinderella. Level 3 Reasoning Ideas that connect the story to real life in the present. Deep thinking themes. Ex: Mental illness and homelessness in the Glass Castle

Deception Point Page 48

The ax. In her fear, she had entirely forgotten the ice ax attached to the rip cord on her belt. The lightweight aluminum tool was bouncing along beside her leg. She looked up at the payload cable on the balloon. Thick, heavy-duty braided nylon. Reaching down, she fumbled for the bouncing ax. She grasped the handle and pulled it toward her, stretching the elastic rip cord. Still on her side, Rachel struggled to raise her arms over her head, placing the ax's serrated edge against the thick cord. Awkwardly, she began sawing the taut cable. â€Å"Yes!† Tolland yelled, fumbling now for his own ax. Sliding on her side, Rachel was stretched out, her arms above her, sawing at the taut cable. The line was strong, and the individual nylon strands were fraying slowly. Tolland gripped his own ax, twisted, raised his arms over his head, and tried to saw from underneath in the same spot. Their banana blades clicked together as they worked in tandem like lumberjacks. The rope began fraying on both sides now. We're going to do it, Rachel thought. This thing is going to break! Suddenly, the silver bubble of Mylar before them swooped upward as if it had hit an updraft. Rachel realized to her horror that it was simply following the contour of the land. They had arrived. The berms. The wall of white loomed only an instant before they were on it. The blow to Rachel's side as they hit the incline drove the wind from her lungs and wrenched the ax from her hand. Like a tangled water-skier being dragged up over a jump, Rachel felt her body dragged up the face of the berm and launched. She and Tolland were suddenly catapulted in a dizzying upward snarl. The trough between the berms spread out far beneath them, but the frayed payload cable held fast, lifting their accelerated bodies upward, carrying them clear out over the first trough. For an instant, she glimpsed what lay ahead. Two more berms-a short plateau-and then the drop-off to the sea. As if to give a voice to Rachel's own dumbstruck terror, the high-pitched scream of Corky Marlinson cut through the air. Somewhere behind them, he sailed up over the first berm. All three of them went airborne, the balloon clawing upward like a wild animal trying to break its captor's chains. Suddenly, like a gunshot in the night, a sudden snap echoed overhead. The frayed rope gave way, and the tattered end recoiled in Rachel's face. Instantly, they were falling. Somewhere overhead the Mylar balloon billowed out of control†¦ spiraling out to sea. Tangled in carabiners and harnesses, Rachel and Tolland tumbled back toward earth. As the white mound of the second berm rose up toward them, Rachel braced for impact. Barely clearing the top of the second berm, they crashed down the far side, the blow partially cushioned by their suits and the descending contour of the berm. As the world around her turned into a blur of arms and legs and ice, Rachel felt herself rocketing down the incline out onto the central ice trough. Instinctively she spread her arms and legs, trying to slow down before they hit the next berm. She felt them slowing, but only slightly, and it seemed only seconds before she and Tolland were sliding back up an incline. At the top, there was another instant of weightlessness as they cleared the crest. Then, filled with terror, Rachel felt them begin their dead slide down the other side and out onto the final plateau†¦ the last eighty feet of the Milne Glacier. As they skidded toward the cliff, Rachel could feel the drag of Corky on the tether, and she knew they were all slowing down. She knew it was too little too late. The end of the glacier raced toward them, and Rachel let out a helpless scream. Then it happened. The edge of the ice slid out from underneath them. The last thing Rachel remembered was falling. 54 The Westbrooke Place Apartments are located at 2201 N Street NW and promote themselves as one of the few unquestionably correct addresses in Washington. Gabrielle hurried through the gilded revolving door into the marble lobby, where a deafening waterfall reverberated. The doorman at the front desk looked surprised to see her. â€Å"Ms. Ashe? I didn't know you were stopping by tonight.† â€Å"I'm running late.† Gabrielle quickly signed in. The clock overhead read 6:22 P.M. The doorman scratched his head. â€Å"The senator gave me a list, but you weren't-â€Å" â€Å"They always forget the people who help them most.† She gave a harried smile and strode past him toward the elevator. Now the doorman looked uneasy. â€Å"I better call up.† â€Å"Thanks,† Gabrielle said, as she boarded the elevator and headed up. The senator's phone is off the hook. Riding the elevator to the ninth floor, Gabrielle exited and made her way down the elegant hallway. At the end, outside Sexton's doorway, she could see one of his bulky personal safety escorts-glorified bodyguards-sitting in the hall. He looked bored. Gabrielle was surprised to see security on duty, although apparently not as surprised as the guard was to see her. He jumped to his feet as she approached. â€Å"I know,† Gabrielle called out, still halfway down the hall. â€Å"It's a P.E. night. He doesn't want to be disturbed.† The guard nodded emphatically. â€Å"He gave me very strict orders that no visitors-â€Å" â€Å"It's an emergency.† The guard physically blocked the doorway. â€Å"He's in a private meeting.† â€Å"Really?† Gabrielle pulled the red envelope from under her arm. She flashed the White House seal in the man's face. â€Å"I was just in the Oval Office. I need to give the senator this information. Whatever old pals he's schmoozing tonight are going to have to do without him for a few minutes. Now, let me in.† The guard withered slightly at the sight of the White House seal on the envelope. Don't make me open this, Gabrielle thought. â€Å"Leave the folder,† he said. â€Å"I'll take it into him.† â€Å"The hell you will. I have direct orders from the White House to hand-deliver this. If I don't talk to him immediately, we can all start looking for jobs tomorrow morning. Do you understand?† The guard looked deeply conflicted, and Gabrielle sensed the senator had indeed been unusually adamant tonight about having no visitors. She moved in for the kill. Holding the White House envelope directly in his face, Gabrielle lowered her voice to a whisper and uttered the six words all Washington security personnel feared most. â€Å"You do not understand the situation.† Security personnel for politicians never understood the situation, and they hated that fact. They were hired guns, kept in the dark, never sure whether to stand firm in their orders or risk losing their jobs by mule-headedly ignoring some obvious crisis. The guard swallowed hard, eyeing the White House envelope again. â€Å"Okay, but I'm telling the senator you demanded to be let in.† He unlocked the door, and Gabrielle pushed past him before he changed his mind. She entered the apartment and quietly closed the door behind her, relocking it. Now inside the foyer, Gabrielle could hear muffled voices in Sexton's den down the hall-men's voices. Tonight's P.E. was obviously not the private meeting implied by Sexton's earlier call. As Gabrielle moved down the hall toward the den, she passed an open closet where a half dozen expensive men's coats hung inside-distinctive wool and tweed. Several briefcases sat on the floor. Apparently work stayed in the hall tonight. Gabrielle would have walked right past the cases except that one of the briefcases caught her eye. The nameplate bore a distinctive company logo. A bright red rocket. She paused, kneeling down to read it: SPACE AMERICA, INC. Puzzled, she examined the other briefcases. BEAL AEROSPACE. MICROCOSM, INC. ROTARY ROCKET COMPANY. KISTLER AEROSPACE.

Types of Columns and Architectures Classical Order

Types of Columns and Architectures Classical Order If your architect suggests a Classical order for your new porch columns, theres no need to return a blank stare. Its a good idea. An Order of Architecture is a set of rules or principles for designing buildings - similar to todays building code. Five Classical orders, three Greek and two Roman, comprise the types of columns we use even in todays architecture. In Western-based architecture, anything called classical means its from the civilizations of ancient Greece and Rome. A Classical order of architecture is the approach to building design established in Greece and Rome during what we now call the Classical period of architecture, from roughly 500 B.C. to 500 A.D. Greece became a province of Rome in 146 B.C. which is why these two Western civilizations are grouped together as Classical. During this time period, temples and important public buildings were constructed according to five distinct orders, each using a defined pedestal, type of column (base, shaft, and capital), and a different style entablature above the column. The Classical orders grew in popularity during the Renaissance era when architects such as Giacomo barozzi of Vignola wrote about them and used the design. In Architecture the word Order signifies a composition (in the same style) of a pedestal, a column, and an entablature, together with their ornamentation. Order means a perfect and regular disposition of all the parts of a beautiful composition; in a word, order is the opposite of confusion. - Giacomo da Vignola, 1563 Heres a brief overview of what the orders are and how they came to be written down. The Greek Orders of Architecture When studying an era-by-era timeline of ancient Greece, the height of Greek civilization was known as Classical Greece, from about 500 B.C. The inventive ancient Greeks developed three architecture orders using three distinct column styles. The earliest known stone column is from the Doric order, named for architecture first seen in the Dorian area of western Greece. Not to be outdone, the builders in the eastern Greece area of Ionia developed their own column style, which is known as the Ionic order. Classical orders are not unique to each area, but they were named for the part of Greece where they were first observed. The most ornate Grecian order, the latest developed and perhaps the most well-known by todays observer is the Corinthian order, first seen in the central area of Greece called Corinth. The Roman Orders of Architecture The Classical architecture of ancient Greece influenced the building designs of the Roman Empire. The Greek orders of architecture were continued in Italian architecture, and Roman architects also added their own variations by imitating two Greek column styles. The Tuscan order, first seen in the Tuscany area of Italy, is characterized by its grand simplicity - even more streamlined than the Grecian Doric. The capital and shaft of the Composite order of Roman architecture can be easily confused with the Greek Corinthean column, but the top entablature is much different. Rediscovering the Classical Orders The Classical orders of architecture might have become lost to history if it were not for the writings of early scholars and architects. The Roman architect Marcus Vitruvius, who lived during the first century B.C., documented the three Greek orders and the Tuscan order in his famous treatise De Architectura, or Ten Books on Architecture. Architecture depends on what Vitruvius calls propriety - that perfection of style which comes when a work is authoritatively constructed on approved principles. That perfection can be prescribed, and the Greeks prescribed certain architectural orders to honor the different Greek gods and goddesses. The temples of Minerva, Mars, and Hercules, will be Doric, since the virile strength of these gods makes daintiness entirely inappropriate to their houses. In temples to Venus, Flora, Proserpine, Spring-Water, and the Nymphs, the Corinthian order will be found to have peculiar significance, because these are delicate divinities and so its rather slender outlines, its flowers, leaves, and ornamental volutes will lend propriety where it is due. The construction of temples of the Ionic order to Juno, Diana, Father Bacchus, and the other gods of that kind, will be in keeping with the middle position which they hold; for the building of such will be an appropriate combination of the severity of the Doric and the delicacy of the Corinthian. - Vitruvius, Book I In Book III, Vitruvius writes prescriptively about symmetry and proportion  - how thick the column shafts should be and the proportional heights of columns when arranged for a temple. All the members which are to be above the capitals of the columns, that is, architraves, friezes, coronae, tympana, gables, and acroteria, should be inclined to the front a twelfth part of their own height...Each column should have twenty-four flutes... After the specifications, Vitruvius explains why - the visual impact of the specification. Writing specifications for his Emperor to enforce, Vitruvius wrote what many consider the first architecture textbook. The High Renaissance of the 15th and 16th centuries renewed interest in Greek and Roman architecture, and this is when Vitruvian beauty was translated - literally and figuratively. More than 1,500 years after Vitruvius wrote De Architectura, it was translated from Latin and Greek into Italian. More importantly, perhaps, the Italian Renaissance architect Giacomo da Vignola wrote an important treatise in which he more thoroughly described all five classical orders of architecture. Published in 1563, Vignolas treatise, The Five Orders of Architecture, became a guide for builders throughout western Europe. The Renaissance masters translated Classical architecture into a new type of architecture, in the manner of Classical designs, just as todays new classical or neoclassical styles are not strictly Classical orders of architecture. Even if the dimensions and proportions are not exactly followed, Classical orders make an architectural statement whenever they are used. How we design our temples is not far off from ancient times. Knowing how Vitruvius used columns can inform what columns we use today  - even on our porches.   Sources The Ten Books on Architecture by Vitruvius Pollio, Translated by Morris Hicky Morgan, Harvard University Press, 1914, Book I, Chapter II, Paragraph 5; Book III, Chapter V, paragraphs 13-14 The Five Orders of Architecture by Giacomo barozzi of Vignola, translated by Tommaso Juglaris and Warren Locke, 1889, p. 5

The 15th Century Chinese Explorer Cheng Ho

The 15th Century Chinese Explorer Cheng Ho Decades before Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in search of a water route to Asia, the Chinese were exploring the Indian Ocean and Western Pacific with seven voyages of the Treasure Fleet that solidified Chinese control over much of Asia in the 15th century. The Treasure Fleets were commanded by a powerful eunuch admiral named Cheng Ho. Cheng Ho was born around 1371 in Chinas southwestern Yunan Province (just north of Laos) with the name Ma Ho. Ma Hos father was a Muslim hajji (who had made a pilgrimage to Mecca) and the family name of Ma was used by Muslims in representations of the word Mohammed. When Ma Ho was ten years old (around 1381), he was captured along with other children when the Chinese army invaded Yunan to take control over the region. At the age of 13 he was castrated, as were other young prisoners, and he was placed as a servant in the household of the Chinese Emperors fourth son (out of twenty-six total sons), Prince Zhu Di. Ma Ho proved himself to be an exceptional servant to Prince Zhu Di. He became skilled in the arts of war and diplomacy and served as an officer of the prince. Zhu Di renamed Ma Ho as Cheng Ho because the eunuchs horse was killed in battle outside of a place called Zhenglunba. (Cheng Ho is also Zheng He in the newer Pinyin transliteration of Chinese but hes still most commonly called Cheng Ho). Cheng Ho was also known as San Bao which means three jewels. Cheng Ho, who was said to have been seven feet tall, was given greater power when Zhu Di became emperor in 1402. One year later, Zhu Di appointed Cheng Ho admiral and ordered him to oversee the construction of a Treasure Fleet to explore the seas surrounding China. Admiral Cheng Ho was the first eunuch appointed to such a high military position in China. First Voyage (1405-1407) The first Treasure Fleet consisted of 62 ships; four were huge wood boats, some of the largest ever built in history. They were approximately 400 feet (122 meters) long and 160 feet (50 meters) wide. The four were the flagships of the fleet of 62 ships assembled at Nanjing along the Yangtze (Chang) River. Included in the fleet were 339-foot (103-meter) long horse ships that carried nothing but horses, water ships that carried fresh water for the crew, troop transports, supply ships, and warships for offensive and defensive needs. The ships were filled with thousands of tons of Chinese goods to trade with others during the voyage. In the fall of 1405, the fleet was ready to embark with 27,800 men. The fleet utilized the compass, invented in China in the 11th century, for navigation. Graduated sticks of incense were burned to measure time. One day was equal to 10 watches of 2.4 hours each. Chinese navigators determine latitude through monitoring the North Star (Polaris) in the Northern Hemisphere or the Southern Cross in the Southern Hemisphere. The ships of the Treasure Fleet communicated with one another through the use of flags, lanterns, bells, carrier pigeons, gongs, and banners. The destination of the first voyage of the Treasure Fleet was Calicut, known as a major trading center on the southwestern coast of India. India was initially discovered by Chinese overland explorer Hsuan-Tsang in the seventh century. The fleet stopped in Vietnam, Java, and Malacca, and then headed west across the Indian Ocean to Sri Lanka and Calicut and Cochin (cities on the southwest coast of India). They remained in India to barter and trade from late 1406 to the spring of 1407 when they utilized the monsoon shift to sail toward home. On the return voyage, the Treasure Fleet was forced to battle pirates near Sumatra for several months. Eventually, Cheng Hos men managed to capture the pirate leader and take him to the Chinese capital Nanjing, arriving in 1407. Second Voyage (1407-1409) A second voyage of the Treasure Fleet departed on a return trip to India in 1407 but Cheng Ho did not command this voyage. He remained in China to oversee the repair of a temple at the birthplace of a favorite goddess. The Chinese envoys on board helped to ensure the power of a king of Calicut. The fleet returned in 1409. Third Voyage (1409-1411) The fleets third voyage (Cheng Hos second) from 1409 to 1411 consisted of 48 ships and 30,000 men. It followed closely the route of the first voyage but the Treasure Fleet established entrepots (warehouses) and stockades along their route to facilitate trade and storage of goods. On the second voyage, the King of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) was aggressive; Cheng Ho defeated the kings forces and captured the king to take him to Nanjing. Fourth Voyage (1413-1415) In late 1412, Cheng Ho was ordered by Zhu Di to make  a fourth  expedition. It wasnt until late 1413 or early 1414 that Cheng Ho embarked on his expedition with 63 ships and 28,560 men. The goal of this trip was to reach the Persian Gulf at Hormuz, known to be a city of amazing wealth and goods, including pearls and precious stones much coveted by the Chinese emperor. In the summer of 1415, the Treasure Fleet returned with a bounty of trade goods from the Persian Gulf. Detachments of this expedition sailed south along the eastern coast of Africa almost as far south as Mozambique. During each of Cheng Hos voyages, he brought back diplomats from other countries or encouraged ambassadors to go to the capital Nanjing on their own. Fifth Voyage (1417-1419) The fifth voyage was ordered in 1416 to return the ambassadors who had arrived from other countries. The Treasure Fleet departed in 1417 and visited the Persian Gulf and the east coast of Africa, returning envoys along the way. They returned in 1419. Sixth Voyage (1421-22) A sixth voyage was launched in the spring of 1421 and visited Southeast Asia, India, the Persian Gulf, and Africa. By this time, Africa was considered Chinas El Dorado, a source of riches. Cheng Ho returned in late 1421 but the remainder of the fleet didnt arrive in China until 1422. Emperor Zhu Di died in 1424 and his son Zhu Gaozhi became emperor. He canceled the voyages of the Treasure Fleets and ordered shipbuilders and sailors to stop their work and return home. Cheng Ho was appointed military commander of Nanjing. Seventh Voyage (1431-1433) The leadership of Zhu Gaozhi did not last long. He died in 1426 at the age of 26. His son and Zhu Dis grandson Zhu Zhanji took Zhu Gaozhis place. Zhu Zhanji was much more like his grandfather than his father was and in 1430 he resumed the Treasure Fleet voyages by ordering Cheng Ho to resume his duties as admiral and make  a seventh  voyage in an attempt to restore peaceful relations with the kingdoms of Malacca and Siam. It took a year to gear up for the voyage which departed as a large expedition with 100 ships and 27,500 men. On the return trip in  1433,  Cheng Ho is believed to have died; others state that he died in 1435 after the return to China. Nonetheless, the era of exploration for China was soon over as the following  emperors  prohibited trade and even the construction of ocean-going vessels. Its likely that a detachment of one of Cheng Hos fleets sailed to northern Australia during one of the seven voyages based  upon  the Chinese artifacts found as well as the oral history of the Aborigine. After the seven voyages of Cheng Ho and the Treasure Fleets, Europeans began to make headway toward China. In 1488 Bartolomeu Dias rounded Africas Cape of Good Hope, in 1498 Vasco da Gama reached Chinas favorite trading city of Calicut, and in 1521 Ferdinand Magellan finally reached Asia by sailing west. Chinas superiority in the Indian Ocean was unrivaled until the 16th century when the Portuguese arrived and established their colonies along the rim of the Indian Ocean.

Experience education at Babson College Scholarship Essay

Experience education at Babson College - Scholarship Essay Example Coming to the United States from Egypt after the Arab Spring has given me a new outlook in life pertaining to the business community of the Middle East that I have become quite passionate about. While the whole world seems to look at the Middle East, Egypt in particular as a civil war waiting to happen, what I see is a country that is on the verge of a new beginning. With that new beginning comes new opportunities in the business world that one must learn to recognize and utilize in its infancy in order to be ahead of the pack once the economy of Egypt begins to pick up again. I am particularly interested in the way the business sector can help to stabilize the Egyptian currency in the future. Without a stable currency, economic recovery and growth for the country will be next to impossible. Therefore, I have began to envision and predict the kind of economic policies that the Egyptian government might wish to implement in the future. I chose to envision something that has not happen ed yet because economic policies are developed over time through the cooperation of the business sector, actuarians, and various economic professionals whose sole concentration is the prediction of future economic trends. These are the people who become the business movers and shakers of the future. I wish to become one of those people. My passion is to learn all that I can about how to predict these business trends and how to best get on the ground floor with the business plan in order to ensure future success.

Circumstantial Evidence Within The Casey Anthony Trial Research Paper

Circumstantial Evidence Within The Casey Anthony Trial - Research Paper Example did not merit proving the case of intended murder of Caylee beyond reasonable doubt, it is evident that the prosecutors had adduced evidence that had sufficiently served the principle of ‘reasonable doubt’ as a requirement of the law (Sarokin, 2011). Circumstantial Evidence is the important piece of evidence in criminal cases prosecution, owing to the fact that only a small percentage of crimes would be executed out of existing direct evidence. If all cases were to depend on direct evidence where a witness was present when the accused committed a crime, only a meager criminal file cases would even pass for trial (Fanning, 2009). After all, what would hinder the defendant denying being involved even when the witness still witnessed the crime being committed? In this respect, Circumstantial Evidence is vital for criminal trial, since it provides for the relevant pathway through which reasoning can be applied, so at to reach to a conclusion regarding how the crime was committed. The Casey Anthony Trial appears to have deduced sufficient circumstantial evidence, only that it was not executed properly. First, false testimony that Casey gave to the law enforcement officers when they set on investigating the case is sufficient to indicate that the defendant was determined to obstruct the course of justice (Ashton & Pulitzer, 2012). Despite the fact that reasonable doubt as a basis of determining the guilty or not guilty verdict for the accused is a necessity, nothing could be more indicative of the fact that the defendant must have known something about the death of Caylee than the false statements. Therefore, Casey was lying so that she could obstruct the law enforcement officers from being able to conduct a fruitful investigation. Casey had lied to her mother that Caylee was either with a nanny, in the beach, in the house and a host of other places for the whole time that her grandmother was asking for whereabouts (Russell & Cohn, 2013). Additionally, Casey lied