Bless Me, Ultima character analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Bless Me, Ultima character analysis - Essay Example That is why of all her traits, I will focus on Ultima’s firm belief in balance which made her character some sort of a bridge in the problematic conflict of belief systems in the story. My analysis of Ultima starts with her role as a curandera as it reflects some form of universal principle. A shaman or the spiritual leader in a community is useful and performs an important function in authentic culture. She can resort to dreams and visions for help and guidance but she can also resort to the use medical arts with her herbal remedies and her vast experience in healing. Indeed, Ultima is adamant that disharmony and imbalance cause a disruption of health while her approach to healing is aimed at achieving a certain oneness and harmony with nature. Let me begin at the beginning. I do not mean the beginning that was in my dreams and the stories they whispered to me about my birth and the people of my father and mother, and my three brothers – but the beginning that came with Ultima. (Anaya 1991, 1) Anaya also attributes to Ultima, on one the hand the mythical Good Earth Mother and the religious Virgin of Guadalupe, on the other. In the novel, the Good Earth Mother often appears in Antonio’s dreams while the Virgin of Guadalupe is her mother’s spiritual protector. While they both hail from differing establishments they both represent one archetypal feminine principle – the intuitive, loving, life affirming protector and nurturer. Ultima’s character as presented showed that belief systems cannot be always mutually exclusive. Ultima as wise, complex and mysterious stemmed from her openness to receive, understand, assimilate and balance values that do not merely come from a single source, cultural grouping or belief. That is why she is tolerant and understanding as one of her main teachings to Antonio emphasized that those different

Abundance of drama Essay Example for Free

Abundance of drama Essay She and the other girls give the names of innocent people who had nothing to do with witchcraft leaving the act with a dramatic hysterical close as all the girls try to cleanse themselves of the confrontation with Beelzebub hinting at the future prospects of the play. The act steadily builds up to when Tituba is accused at the end of the act of witchcraft. Each ingredient of the, story, which we know is hearsay, is added until it comes together and there is sufficient evidence for her to be accused by Hale. The story, which has been building, takes a turn and instead of the inquisitive nature of which it started, it becomes more action orientated and becomes a name and shame game where people are incorrectly blamed and gives a dramatic effect to the audience. This final dramatic scene of the act is placed there to end the act with a mini peak of the story and to keep the audience interested and wanting more. Act two begins with a long conversation between Proctor and his wife. They talk about the every day things but the stage directions and language Miller uses, like the scene with Proctor and Abigail, strongly projects the dramatic effect on the audience and emotions of the relationship. Proctor is not at ease with his wife, the atmosphere appears tense and uncomfortable. He attempts to make conversation, are you well today? which is not the sort of thing a husband would say to his wife. He tries to make her happy by complimenting her: its well seasoned and grinning. It is obvious that the atmosphere could be cut with a knife as gently as he can depicts that he is carefully choosing his words and trying to be a good husband but desperately trying not to bring up the affair. But it is not in vain as Goody Proctor reacts warmly to him, blushing with pleasure; giving an inkling that she still loves him. Though the feeling is that of betrayal and guilt there is a warm, gentle fragment of loyalty and love emancipated out of their conversation, which proves they still both feel love towards one another. Mary Warren comes in to the house-hold to discuss the events which took place in Salem earlier on and that, Aye a proper court they have now. Theyve sent four judges out of Boston, and that 39 women have been accused of witchcraft. She then proceeds to talk about the accused and that Mrs Proctor has been accused. This shocks them and that Rebecca nurse has also been accused, as she is a well-respected person in the Salem community and adds to the drama. Both of the women have enemies who wish to destroy them (Abigail and Mrs Putnam) and two rival factions are now clearly taking form, Goody Proctor is arrested. The home scene between Proctor and his wife is placed before she is arrested to dramatically show how innocent and plain Goody Proctor was and the contrast of her seeing John in the wrong by her being arrested, this dramatically portraits injustice. Proctors actions towards the arrest of his wife are dramatic as he runs out adding to the action and pace of the scene, I will not have her chained! The fact he will not have her chained when they are authorised to do so indicates conflict and gives drama, the use of an apostrophe shows his anger again adds gives a dramatic effect to the audiences Towards the end of the act pressure is placed on a character this time it is Mary who is being pressurised by the now fiery Proctor due his wifes imprisonment. Proctor tries to force Mary to tell the court about the poppet which Mrs Proctor was arrested for, You will tell the court how the poppet come here. Mary claims she cannot, which she repeats and she begins to cry. Proctors language creates his mentality with the omnipotence of his language and the harsh anger which has built up inside to terrify Mary to get her to divulge her information to the court, Aye naked! And the wind will, gods icy wind will blow! His use of the word icy creates the chilling ominous threat to all the people who are dishonest and shows that he himself would not do it or he would be severely hypocritical. This, from what he said, is the first indication of his stern and ethical character and that Marys character is frail and easily manipulated both by Abigail and Proctor. Not only does the dramatic structure give the end of the act a dramatic finish but also the end of the act uses language to get across the seriousness and religious terror being brewed in Salem. Act three is set in the courtroom, the cases are being investigated and the questions and debating ensues. Mary now forced by Proctor to support Goody Proctor tells the court that she lied the day before. However she shows her weakness when she herself is blamed by Abigail, and cracks when Abigail condemns her by pretending that there is a spirit conjured by Mary, Let me go Mr Proctor, I cannot, I cannot. This leads to Proctor to loose his cool and condemn Abigail for doing all of this to spite him and to rid the world of his wife. He now has to admit to committing the sin of adultery: I have known her sir! This leads us to the turning point in the play. Proctor reveals to the court that his wife never tells a lie and that she would tell the court about his affair. By stating the truth it would obviously mean that she was telling the truth about the witchcraft and proving her innocence but would she be able to disgrace Proctors, name, which means so much to the people of the time period that the play was set. Millers dramatic structure brings the play to a mini climax if not the most important one by great structuring of the play; the play reaches a cross-roads. If Goody Proctor tells the truth it undermines everything that Abigail has said and shows her as a liar and everyone wrongly accused is released and brings about the end of court. But if she lies it means that all the people who have kept their morality and not lied will be charged. It defines the future of the factions and the play, having been built up throughout the opening acts. This is well dramatically structured to create complete unpredictability and a sense of curiosity as to how it will end. She is brought in and interrogated. Goody Proctors body language portraits the tension: liking her lips to stall for time now created in the court, as they all know this is the defining moment. She thinks about what she should say and glances at Proctor looks for help. In, agony, she answers the questions. Hard thought and constant silent pauses build the pressure within the room, Is your husband a lecher? Danforth the judge asks her. No. The pressure is lifted and the stomach churning feeling of the characters and audience takes over, this is summed up by the comment, oh god! when Goody Proctor realises what shes done. But by lying, going against everything she stands for. She obviously forgives Proctor as she took one for him when he had committed adultery this shows the romantic drama that she loves him so much she would give up her morals for his name. Abigail then starts off again pretending to draw attention on to herself, that Mary is conjuring spirits and uses her power to create mass hysteria. Miller liberally uses exclamation marks to emphasise the shouting and adding to the general madness of the courtroom. Abigails actions are dramatised and create a lot of fear, Abigail pointing with fear and which is added to by having all the girls at once shouting. It gives a fearful representation that the girls are possessed by some sought of satanic spirit. Mary shifts the blame onto Proctor who is then accused by the court. This is dramatically used as the story declines after the climax in act three and the story needs to be built up quickly to reach the final climax. In Act four this is done by the hysteria and the fact that Proctor is now being blamed by Abigail and ironically the reason the trouble started was because she wanted him, now she is getting rid of him and achieving nothing. In Act four Proctor has an emotional talk with his wife as she tries to persuade him to confess and be released. Miller goes to work on giving the audiences heart strings a pull using again language and stage actions to show the emotions of love and despair and create a great sense of drama using dramatic devices. Goody Proctor has forgiven him and believes; whatever, he does it is good man that does it, and thinks she drove him to have an affair. She states that, John, I counted myself so plain, so poorly made no honest love could come to me! Suspicion kissed you when I did. She thinks that there was nothing to love about her and before it was not her who kissed him but personified. This also implies that now when they talk and hold each other it is pure love for the first time in their relationship bringing a sense of romanticism to the ordeal that theyve been through. Millers dramatically structure places the conversation before the final and ultimate climax to act as the calm before the storm and to increase the pressure on John and ultimately be decisive to the final sequence of events. Proctor is to be hung but because he was persuaded he confesses but all the official figures want his confession in writing. By doing this he is giving up his, name. He realises that he will die before he will give up his name and rips up his life which he had signed. This then brings us to the most powerful and dramatic action within the whole play in my opinion as, His breast heaving, his eyes staring, Proctor tears up the paper and crumples it, and he is weeping in fury, but still erect. This shows that he will not sign away his, name, showing his courage. He has thrown away his life but still stands erect, theyve pushed him all the way physically and mentally but he has not fallen keeping his dignity, ethics and pride, which we know mean so much to him as does his life which is why it is so dramatic. Miller has created a twist luring the audience in with Goody Proctors persuasion, hooking them in with signing the confession but masking the fact he was to rip up his life, and die for what he believes and becoming a type of martyr or tragic hero. Millers, The Crucible, is structured to gain dramatic effect. Each act takes on the same structure and has very similar properties. The first two scenes to begin with build up information about different events, which take place off stage. All acts build up to a climax, giving away hints about the next act and each act ends with pressure being placed on a certain character. Act one it is Tituba; act two it is Mary; act three Mary and Mrs Proctor and act four John Proctor. The Crucible is a fitting name for the play as a crucible is a melting pot, which eventually displaces the pure from the waste. Which also happens in the play each act is a small melting pot as in act one, the different things are added by way of the story being built up and then heated. The heat in act one is Hale and overall the whole play is a melting pot. The story built up, the heat added by the way of the court and the pure displaced from the waste. The pure, being the characters that wouldnt pass on the blame because they were too strong and would not give up their morals. The irony is that the people who deserved to be killed i. e. Abigail and Paris compared to the remorseful Proctor and the innocent Rebecca nurse. Miller created a dramatic play by incorporating dramatic language, stage directions and the play is structured in such a way that it gives the audience an abundance of drama.

Effect of Technology on Social Interaction

Effect of Technology on Social Interaction INTRODUCTION: Since the presence of technology, humans have ignored themselves and each other. Technology, organized with commerce, which has slowly raided humans and their natural abilities and removed their capabilities. Today, many of us bargain with ourselves in depressed, alienated, drug addicts, stressed out, exhausted, poor health, isolated, alcoholics, and overweight and overworked. We are spending a lesser amount of time together in active face-to-face interaction and conversation with our families, neighbors, colleagues and friends, and more time at working, driving cars, drinking, eating, being online on the computer, sending text messages and emails consuming, eating, watching TV. We have endorsed this situation to change and have not been capable, to find the strength to repel. We have given up so much in conversation for the magnificence and never-ending progress of science, commerce and technology. But we have slight or no time for an insufficient kind statement with a friend or a n eighbor or simply another human being whose conduit we cross throughout our busy days. This condition is in extensive need of our genuine wisdom and attention in order to find elucidations for more congruence, health for human beings everywhere and wellness, and also to establish a balance among our habit of technology and the time we employ in social interaction and conversation with others. CURRENT SITUATION: It is an undeniable fact that the contemporary technologies, particularly the invention of the internet, has transfigured the way people live, work,, entertain and, communicate. To twitch with, the online messages and communication tools such as emails, MSN messenger and teleconference software have enabled the contacts of mutually the loved ones in distant place and associates working in another region. However, it is not unusual to see that news reporting constantly reports on the disadvantageous effect of these fluctuations in telecommunication. Firstly, misusing internet and ignoring the real communication can lead to social separation and segregation. Researches disclose that people, who spend their too much time at the computer cafes, tend to have complications when communicating and interacting with people in the actual world. Furthermore, many family actions which normally help fortify the family bonds cannot be merely replaced by online conversation. Generally, I personally believe that scientific and technological development has transformed our mode of communication in an optimistic and encouraging way, in terms of the expediency, time-efficiency and convenient. However, taken all the above stated negative inspirations into contemplation, we do need to keep poise between the period we employ on line and in actual and real world. DECLINE OF FACE TO FACE CONVERSATION: We are now in the middle of another daunting revolution, which is the Technological Revolution, having a very prodigious effect on the oral word and on societies and their relatives with each other. Only 50 years ago, the computer seemed on the scene. Its arrival and development is instigating the Technological Revolution to interchange ahead at supersonic speed and rapidity as we move profounder into the 21st century. We are forfeiting a very high value to have all these machineries and technologies at our disposal. It is crucial that we evaluate and analyze this situation. Multi-tasking is instigating us to be easily abstracted and diverted. Despite all the machines and technologies for easy interaction and communication with each other, we often sense socially isolated and lonely because most of our acquaintances and contacts are by machines and technology, not close sincere living human acquaintances. SOLUTION TO THIS HORRIBLE SITUATION: In order for us to move forward to the future, it is necessary and essential to go back to the past and history, because we have elapsed, left behind, and unrestricted an essential component that we want so that we can aware about our lives more effusively and with more sympathy. That component is our humanity. We need to get up and observe first what has transpired to us and then to guise deep into past to see what ensued to our ancestors, who, over the millenniums, had to undergo the slow procedure of losing their capabilities and of seeing the deterioration of living face-to-face social interactions and conversation as technology has developed, appeared and developed. All of us have been detached of many of our inherited abilities and of other capabilities that we have assimilated during our lives. The television, media and particularly advertising have influenced us that electronic or written communication is someway better and more precise than our own living spoken statement. W e have been persuaded that somehow inspecting life on a screen is more exciting and interesting than incarnate our own lives. We have become observers, immobile, consumers and seated, who always observers of what we need somewhat separate from ourselves. We have vanished confidence in our institutions, feelings, and abilities, and in our amusing inner resources that we barely know to find or how to exist. It is untainted that we need to re-become contestants in life and not just spectators and observers. By concerning with each other, we could be able to comprehend this goal. There are elucidations to ease up this condition, which we need to contemplate seriously. Many observers and philosophers of life have given us significant messages as to how to achieve this assignment. Communicating with each other can mean bartering concepts about positive and creative action we can take in mandate to resist this modern imperative that is determining us into spectators, users of machines, consumers and non-stop workers. Today, many of us devote a marvelous amount of our time placed in front of a TV or Computer screen or sending messages and emails to each other. It is unblemished that we need to be in touch with everyone, but most of the period our acquaintances are by machine and technologies not by actual life living face-to-face interaction. Before all the technology and machines evolved, people certainly used to employ more time together and as a consequence they were happier and social relations were flatter and more harmonious. IMPORTANCE OF INTER-CULTURAL COMMUNICATION: Today, we come into interaction regularly with other people not only from our own society and country but from all over the sphere and of all eternities and from altered walks of life, political, and religious opinions. This condition requires great sympathy, tolerance, sensitivity and understanding. Intercultural communication assistances can help us to communicate more harmoniously and smoothly with people on a face-to-face root with ease and without arguments or misunderstanding. We need to seek a profounder and more sympathetic understanding of the human knowledge of living a life on this earth and in our world. It can be very obliging to cultivate more familiarity of the many cultures and societies of our world, their past and histories, their characteristics and geographies, and their current states. ENCOURAGING HOSPITALITY INSTEAD OF HOSTALITY: People will communicate with others if they pass smiles and have a friendly expression and appearance. A cold, inimical facial appearance does not offer conversation communication or social interface. Therefore another elucidation to keeping face-to-face conversation and sociability thriving is to encourage and however friendly, pleasant and gracious relations, understanding, kindness, politeness, tolerance, and respect between human beings, irrespective of their age, race, nationality, social backgrounds, and the way of life, the language they express, their facial appearances, religious beliefs and dogmas, or other points of view. If we exercise this mode of behavior, others will follow. In normal conditions, friendly association should find between and among human. After all, we have a great transaction in common with everyone. For instance, we all have two arms, two legs, a head, and a body, and we all breathe, sleep, eat, and have a heart that is continuously beating. We all share the knowledge and information that we are not on this world forever and that we will consent here with nonentity in our hands. So it would seem impeccably reasonable for us to contemplate talking, conversing, communicating and interacting with our corresponding human beings more often and in a friendly and warm manner whenever the occasion presents itself while spending, at work, at shopping, at school, in a bus or road, at the airport, anywhere and everywhere, we often we ignore and avoid each other. So many chances to meet motivating people are conceded by. CONCLUSION: Since, thanks to the growth of e-commerce, people can accomplish a variety of actions, such as booking flights and accommodations, purchasing material ranging from cars to clothing, or even dating a foreigner, without treading out own house. Most prominently, the social links such as the Facebook has even fabricated an entire cybernetic world for us.

Irresponsibile Biff in Arthur Millers Death of a Salesman :: Death Salesman essays

Irresponsibile Biff in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Have you ever felt as if you do not know what to do with your life? Everyone does sometimes, but certain people are like that their whole life. These people are irresponsible and depend on others to survive.   In "Death of a Salesman", Biff is one of these people.   He is irresponsible because he depends on Happy, depends on Willy, and does not know what to do for a living.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Biff looks up on Happy as an example of good life.   It seems to him that Happy's life is stable and successful. Even though this is not true, Biff lets it bother him. He wants Happy to get him a job in New York so they could work together.   This shows some of his dependency and irresponsibility.   Biff does not seem as if he could live on his own successfully.   This disappoints both Happy and Willy. But this is not the only problem Biff has.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Biff also depends on Willy to get him through life.   Willy's low morals cause Biff to think it's all right to concentrate on football when he was in high school.   Biff does not think he has to work in school. When he flunks math, he does not know what to do and once again turns to Willy.   Now Biff cannot go to college and since he has been concentrating on football, he has little or no skills at anything else.   He depends on Willy's support to help him. But since Willy's expectations of Biff are not met, Biff does not receive the help he needs and moves off on his own.   This leaves Biff to find a goal in life and reach it.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Finally, Biff does not know what to do for a living.   He is constantly moving around, unsure of what to do next.   This may be because of his uncertainty of a future. Biff has never held a steady job.   Because of this, he has never held a steady home. This shows a lot of irresponsibility.   Until he knows what he wants to do, Biff cannot settle down and become an adult.   This inconsistency in employment makes Biff irresponsible.

Latino/Chicano/Hispanic Education Essay

In my research I discovered an abundant amount of information on educating Chicano’s or Latino’s in the United States, particulary California being that an extremely high population concentrations are in California. In this paper I will list some of the most important cultural diversity facts I’ve found regarding educational barriers, communication behaviors, cultural differences, teaching implications, learning styles and tools and insights. First, what is Chicano or Chicana? A Chicano or Chicana is a term used to indicate an identity held by some persons of Mexican descent living in the United States. Often times, it refers to a first or second generation Mexican American living in an urban, Mexican American immigrant community, where there exists the strong ethnic consciousness of being â€Å"Mexican American†. It is considered a term of ethnic pride, though not all Mexican Americans proud of their heritage necessarily consider themselves Chicano. A woman of this category is usually named by the feminine form Chicana, and, following the usual conventions for Spanish words, the masculine plural form Chicanos is used for groups that include both genders. Much attention has been directed to the Chicano or Latino youth in schools today. When looking at a chart provided by the 2000 census (Table 2. 1). It is obvious why Chicano or Latino have been recognized as a major player in schools, workforce and communities. Table 2. 1 Top Ten Countries of Birth and Ancestral Backgrounds of California Youth, Ages 13 to 24, 2000 Country of Birth Number Ancestry Number Foreign-Born U. S. -Born 1. Mexico 783,124 1. Mexican 1,228,338 2. Philippines 76,753 2. African American 310,810 3. El Salvador 59,612 3. German 279,195 4. Vietnam 58,701 4. Irish 210,186 5. Guatemala 42,795 5. English 178,050 6. Korea 28,228 6. Italian 161,383 7. Taiwan 25,859 7. American 158,956. 8. India 23,576 8. Filipino 107,742 9. Thailand 22,822 9. White 94,380 10. China 22,337 10. Chinese 82,943 SOURCE: Authors’ calculations from the 2000 Census. EDUCATIONAL BARRIERS AND TEACHING IMPLICATIONS I feel that educational barriers and teaching implications go hand in hand. I feel this is true since an educational barrier is a direct implication to teaching. Nearly half of all Californians today are first-generation or second-generation immigrants. As that share of the California population continues to grow, it is increasingly important to understand the nature of intergenerational progress for immigrant groups. ( Myers, Dowell, John Pitkin, and Julie Park) Recent research has called into question the intergenerational progress of immigrants, particularly educational progress between the second generation and the third generation. When the educational attainment of second and third generations is compared directly with that of their parents or their parents’ generation, the authors find strong intergenerational progress for all major immigrant groups. ( Myers, Dowell, John Pitkin, and Julie Park) However, even by the third generation, Mexican Americans in California have not attained the educational levels that whites have attained. In other words, there is some progress but even by the third generation only 11 percent of Mexican American adults have earned a bachelor’s degree. In contrast, among third-and-later generation whites, more than a third has a bachelor’s degree. Also, about 30 percent of California’s children are growing up in families where neither parent has completed high school. One consequence of this low educational attainment is that as many as 95 percent of these children might not earn a bachelor’s degree; the low educational attainment of parents makes it less likely that their children will attain high levels of education. Among these children at risk of low educational achievement, Mexican Americans make up a large percentage. More than half of all California youth ages 13 to 24 have a foreign born parent. Because a large number of these immigrant parents have a limited education, lack of improvement in educational attainment from one generation to the next would have serious implications for the state economically as well as socially. Education is an important determinant of social and economic well-being, such as income, health, home ownership, and civic participation. The concern for educational progress is particularly acute for Mexican Americans who, even by the third generation, have very low levels of educational attainment. It finds that intergenerational progress has not stalled but rather that second- and third-generation immigrants have made substantial educational progress when compared with their parents. Most of California’s Latino youth are of Mexican ancestry (84%) and over 60 percent of them were born in the United States. Overall, one in four youth is a first-generation immigrant (i. e. , born in a foreign country). About the same share are second-generation immigrants (i. e. , born in the United States with at least one foreign-born parent). Racial and ethnic differences in educational attainment are strongly influenced by immigration. Of the major racial and ethnic groups in California, young adults of Mexican descent have the lowest levels of education. Of those ages 25 to 29, only 51 percent have earned a high school diploma, compared to 93 percent of non-Hispanic whites. However, the rate for Mexican American youth born in the United States is substantially higher—76 percent. Mexican youth who come to the United States as teens often do not attend high school here. The older their age at arrival, the less likely Mexican youth are to attend school in California. Among those ages 16 to 18 and who recently arrived in the United States, less than half are enrolled in school. Among men, many are working; among women, substantial numbers are working, married, or raising children. In particular, although some research has suggested that educational progress stalls between the second and third generations for Mexican Americans, it has been found that college graduation rates of third-generation immigrants are more than twice those of their parents. Further, although over half of their parents did not graduate from high school, about eight in 10 third-generation Mexican Americans have graduated from high school. Even by the third generation, however, Mexican Americans in California have lower educational attainment than whites have. Despite strong intergenerational progress, less than 85 percent of third and-later-generation Mexican American adults, ages 25 to 34, have finished high school and only 11 percent have completed a bachelor’s degree. (â€Å"Third-and-later† generation includes youth with both parents born in the United States but the data do not identify whether their grandparents or great-grandparents were born in the United States. ) In comparison, among third-and-later-generation whites, 95 percent earned a high school diploma and over a third has a bachelor’s degree. Mexican immigrant youth who arrive at age 15 or older are among the least educated Californians. Improving their educational attainment is particularly challenging because many do not enroll in California schools but are working and raising families. Analysis suggests that about 30 percent of California’s children are growing up in families where neither parent has completed high school and that as many as 95 percent of these children might not achieve a bachelor’s degree. Among these children at risk of low educational achievement, Mexican Americans make up a large share (68%). The success of students in California’s community colleges is of particular importance for improving Latino postsecondary education because almost 80 percent of Latinos who enroll in public higher education enter through community colleges. Of great concern, however, is the low transfer rate to four-year institutions, and transfers are especially low among Latino students. In addition to preparing students for transfers, community colleges provide English language, remedial, and vocational courses. As the value of education and skills in the California economy continues to grow, these courses will become increasingly important to workforce training, especially for those who do not go on to complete a bachelor’s degree. CULTURAL DIFFERENCES. Because California has such large numbers of immigrants with limited education, a lack of improvement in educational attainment from one generation to the next would have serious implications for the state economically as well as socially. Educational progress is particularly important because education plays a role in determining racial and ethnic differences in other areas of social and economic well-being, such as poverty, health status, employment, home ownership, and civic participation (Reyes, 2001; Reed, 2003a). This information is important to understand why immigrant families rely so much on each other and not on education and opportunity. Hispanic-Americans are united by customs, language, religion, and values. There is, however, an extensive diversity of traits among Hispanic-Americans. One characteristic that is of paramount importance in most Hispanic cultures is family commitment, which involves loyalty, a strong support system, a belief that a child’s behavior reflects on the honor of the family, a hierarchical order among siblings, and a duty to care for family members. This strong sense of other-directedness conflicts with the United States’ mainstream emphasis on individualism (Vasquez, 1990). Stereotyped sex roles tend to exist among many Latinos: the male is perceived as dominant and strong, whereas the female is perceived as nurturing and self-sacrificing. Note, however, that in Latino cultures, the term â€Å"machismo† (used by Anglos to refer to male chauvinism) refers to a concept of chivalry that encompasses gallantry, courtesy, charity, and courage (Baron, 1991). Indeed, Hispanic culture’s emphasis on cooperation in the attainment of goals can result in Hispanic students’ discomfort with this nation’s conventional classroom competition. This cultural difference could play a negative role when the value of education in the California labor market has increased substantially in recent decades and projections suggest that workers without a college education will continue to see their earnings erode. Among youth in immigrant families, there is tremendous variation in family income and parental education. Among young immigrants ages 13 to 17, about one-third of those from Mexico are living in poor families and only 17 percent have a mother who finished high school (maternal education is measured only for those living with their mothers). These differences in family characteristics contribute to racial and ethnic differences in educational attainment for immigrant youth, which, in turn, contribute to education differences for their second-generation children. Differences in family characteristics explain most of the lower educational attainment of Mexican Americans. Among Mexican American youth, parental education, parental English language ability, and family income are substantially lower than among white youth. LEARNING STYLES An expanding body of research affirms that teaching and counseling students with interventions that are congruent with the students’ learning-style preferences result in their increased academic achievement and more positive attitudes toward learning. Research on the learning styles of Hispanic-Americans in particular, however, is limited. Within the Latino groups, the majority of studies have focused on the learning styles of Mexican-American elementary school children. Several investigations (Dunn, Griggs, & Price, 1993) have compared various ethnic groups of students in elementary school through college levels using a measure that identifies 21 elements of learning style grouped into five categories. 1. ENVIRONMENTAL LEARNING STYLE elements include sound, temperature, design, and light. A cool temperature and formal design were identified as important elements for Mexican-American elementary and middle school students (Dunn, Griggs, & Price, 1993). 2. EMOTIONAL LEARNING STYLE elements include responsibility, structure, persistence, and motivation. Sims (1988) reported that Mexican-American third- and fourth-graders were the least conforming of three ethnic groups studied. Yong and Ewing (1992), however, found that Mexican-American middle-school adolescents were conforming. The disparities between these data may result from subjects’ age, lifestyle, and urban/rural differences in the two studies. Both of these studies reported that Mexican-Americans required a higher degree of structure than did other groups. 3. SOCIOLOGICAL LEARNING STYLE elements are concerned with the social patterns in which one learns. Learning alone (as opposed to in groups) was preferred more by Caucasian students than by Mexican-American children (Dunn & Dunn, 1992, 1993) and more by Mexican-Americans students than by African-American children (Sims, 1988). Mexican-American students required significantly more sociological variety than either African-Americans or Caucasians (Dunn, Griggs, & Price, 1993). Mexican-American males were authority-oriented and Mexican-American females were strongly peer-oriented (Dunn, Griggs, & Price, 1993). 4. PHYSIOLOGICAL LEARNING STYLE elements relate to time of day, food and drink intake, perception, and mobility. Puerto-Rican college students exhibit a strong preference for learning in the late morning, afternoon, and evening. The time-of-day preferences of Mexican-Americans are less clear. Sims (1988) found that Caucasians preferred drinking or eating snacks while learning significantly more than did Mexican-Americans. Yong and Ewing (1992) reported that Latinos’ strongest perceptual strength was kinesthetic. Both Caucasians and African-American were significantly more auditory and visual than Mexican-Americans (Dunn, Griggs, & Price, 1993; Sims, 1988). The study by Sims (1988) indicated that Caucasian students exhibited a higher need for mobility than did Mexican-American students. Contrary to findings for the U. S. general population, Mexican-American females had a significantly higher need for mobility than their male counterparts (Dunn, Griggs, & Price, 1993). 5. PSYCHOLOGICAL LEARNING STYLE elements relate to global versus analytical processing. The construct of field dependence/independence is a component of this learning style. Field dependent individuals are more group-oriented and cooperative and less competitive than field independent individuals. Research generally has indicated that Mexican-American and other minority students are more field dependent than nonminority students. Hudgens (1993) found that Hispanic middle and secondary school students were more field dependent than Anglo students; Hispanic female (and African-American male) students had a greater internal locus of control than other groups; and Hispanic male (and African-American female) students had a greater external locus of control than other groups. INSIGHTS AND TOOLS There are a number of state and local programs designed to improve the lives of youth as well as to steer them in the direction of positive future outcomes. Youth ages 13 to 24 are of critical concern because during these ages youth are preparing for the transition to adulthood with its increased economic challenges and responsibilities and often with new marriage and parenting relationships. During these ages, many potentially life-changing decisions are often made, including the decisions to finish high school, to go to college, and perhaps to start a family. For these youth, adult education programs in school districts and community colleges can provide better schedules for part time, evening, and weekend coursework. In addition, as these youth become parents, programs that work with young children can assist parents with parental support and literacy improvement. For second and third generations, and for immigrants who do enter California schools, the quality of the K–12 public education system is clearly a key factor in success. Several recent and continuing reforms are improving California schools, particularly in the areas of student achievement, teacher quality, and quality of facilities. In addition, English language learning is of concern for the children of immigrants. For students whose own parents have limited educational experience, programs of educational counseling and tutoring are particularly helpful. BIBLIOGRAPHY: 1. Baron, A. , Jr. , Counseling Chicano College Students. In C. Lee, and B. Richardson (Eds. ), MULTICULTURAL ISSUES IN COUNSELING: New Approaches to Diversity (p. 171-184). Alexandria, VA: American Association for Counseling and Development. ED 329 861, 1991. 2. Dunn, R. , and K. Dunn. , TEACHING SECONDARY STUDENTS, 1993. 3. Dunn, R. , S. Griggs, and G. Price. , Learning Styles of Mexican-American and Anglo-American Elementary-School Students. JOURNAL OF MULTICULTURAL COUNSELING AND DEVELOPMENT 21(4): 237-247. EJ 470 183. 1993. 4. Hudgens, B. , THE RELATIONSHIP OF COGNITIVE STYLE, 1993. 5. Myers, Dowell, John Pitkin, and Julie Park, California Demographic Futures: Projections to 2030, by Immigrant Generations, Nativity, and Time of Arrival in U. S. , School of Policy, Planning, and Development, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, 2005. 6. Neumark, David, California’s Economic Future and Infrastructure Challenges, Occasional Paper, Public Policy Institute of California, San Francisco, California, 2005. 7. Reed, Deborah, â€Å"The Growing Importance of Education in California,† Occasional Paper, Public Policy Institute of California, San Francisco, California, 2003a. 8. Reed, Deborah, Racial and Ethnic Wage Gaps in the California Labor Market, Public Policy Institute of California, San Francisco, California, 2003b. 9. Reyes, Belinda I. , ed. , A Portrait of Race and Ethnicity in California: An Assessment of Social and Economic Well-Being, Public Policy Institute of California, San Francisco, California, 2001. 10. Sims, J., Learning Styles of Black-American, Mexican-American, and White-American Third- and Fourth-Grade Students in Traditional Public Schools. Doctoral dissertation, University of Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, 1988. 11. Vasquez, J. , Teaching to the Distinctive Traits of Minority Students. THE CLEARING HOUSE 63(7): 299-304,1990. 12. Yong, F. , and N. Ewing, A Comparative Study of the Learning-Style Preferences among Gifted African-American, Mexican-American and American Born Chinese Middle-Grade Students. ROEPER REVIEW 14(3): 120-123. EJ 447 200, 1992.

Definition and Examples of Deductive Arguments

Definition and Examples of Deductive Arguments Deduction is a method of reasoning from the general to the specific. Also called deductive reasoning and  top-down logic. In a deductive argument, a conclusion follows necessarily from the stated premises. (Contrast with induction.) In logic, a deductive argument is called a syllogism. In rhetoric, the equivalent of the syllogism is the enthymeme.​ Etymology From Latin, leading Examples and Observations The fundamental property of a deductively valid argument is this: If all of its premises are true, then its conclusion must be true also because the claim asserted by its conclusion already has been stated in its premises, although usually only implicitly.Scientific Deduction and Rhetorical DeductionFor Aristotle, scientific deduction differs in kind from its  rhetorical  counterpart. True, both are conducted according to the laws of thought. But rhetorical deduction is  inferior for two reasons: it starts with uncertain premises, and it is enthymematic: it generally relies on audience presuppositions to supply missing premises and conclusions. Because conclusions cannot be more certain than their premises and because any argument is deficient in rigor that relies on audience participation for its completion, rhetorical deductions can yield at best only plausible conclusions. . . .Syllogisms and EnthymemesVery rarely in literary argument do reasoners make use of the complete sy llogism, except to render perfectly apparent the premises from which the conclusion is deduced, or to show some fault in reasoning. Deductive arguments take various forms. One premise, or even the conclusion, may not be expressed if obvious enough to be taken for granted; in this case, the syllogism is called an enthymeme. One of the premises may be conditional, which gives the hypothetical syllogism. A syllogistic argument may be involved in a statement with its reasons, or with its inferences, or may be diffused throughout an extended discussion. To argue effectively, with clearness and cogency, the reasoner must have his deductive framework clearly in mind at every point of his discussion, and keep it before the reader or hearer. Pronunciation di-DUK-shun Also Known As Deductive Argument Sources H. Kahane,  Logic and Contemporary Rhetoric, 1998Alan G. Gross,  Starring the Text: The Place of Rhetoric in Science Studies. Southern Illinois University Press, 2006Elias J. MacEwan,  The Essentials of Argumentation. D.C. Heath, 1898