People Bingo Game Card Ideas

Class and Race in Faulkners The Mansion Essay - 2602 Words

Class and Race in Faulkners The Mansion In The Mansion, the last of William Faulkers Snopes Trilogy, Flem Snopes is killed by his daughter Linda and his cousin Mink because he betrayed family and clan ties. Flem used his wife Eula for his success and finally drove her to suicide. He also took advantage of his daughter s love for him and tried to deprive her of her property. When Mink, detained on a charge of killing Jack Houston, desperately needed Flems help, the cousin didnt even appear. They took revenge on him for his betrayal. The story, though, as Cleanth Brooks pointed out (Brooks 227-28), can also be read as of a class struggle: a capitalist Flem is killed by a communist Linda and a poor white, a member of the†¦show more content†¦Hits all right he thought Hitll go this time.... (702-3) What was the motive, then, of the Houston killing, which we seem to be strongly asked to refer to when we examine the Flem case? The direct cause was trouble over Minks cow, but behind it there was a wide gulf between the rich and the poor, a class difference between the landed class and poor whites, which may have made Mink angry enough to kill Houston. He saw Houston as a durn surly sullen son of a bitch that didnt even know he was lucky: rich, not only rich enough to afford a wife to whine and nag and steal his pockets ragged of every dollar he made, but rich enough to do without a wife if he wanted: rich enough to be able to hire a woman to cook his victuals instead of having to marry her. Rich enough to hire another nigger to get up in his stead on the cold mornings and go out in the wet and damp to feed not only the beef cattle which he sold at the top fat prices because he could afford to hold them till then, but that blooded stallion too... (340). Each afternoon ... he would walk up the muddy road ... to watch Houstons pedigreed beef herd, his own sorry animal among them, move, not even hurrying, toward and into the barn which was warmer and tighter against the weather than the cabin he lived in, to be fed by the hired Negro who wore warmer clothing than any he and his family possessed, cursing into the steamy vapor of his own breathing,Show MoreRelatedA Rose For Emily Character Analysis1269 Words   |  6 Pages A Rose for Emily William Faulkner’s, A Rose for Emily, is an account from an eye witness’ perspective of the life and dilemma of a noble woman belonging to the bankrupt aristocratic family in the late nineteenth century. It’s a tale of a woman who due to her seclusion at the hands of her father and severe critique by the society turns into a mentally unstable person. The character of Emily is intriguing in its stubbornness of defying the changes around her. She is set in her ways and unwillingRead MoreReview Of Absalom, Absalom ! By William Faulkner1978 Words   |  8 Pagesbetter than his father and equal to the upper class. In a sense, he has a desire to be the son who has more than father and then be the the unsurpassed father himself. However, it is intriguing how Thomas expects his son to react to him, considering that he may hold the same mentality as his father. Nonetheless, this concept is out of reach since Thomas doesn’t place value his relationship with his father, therefore does the same with his children. Faulkner’s Thomas Sutpen is one who reject the pastRead MoreHistory of the Development of the Short Story.3660 Words   |  15 Pagesfiction such as Victor Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame and from Sherwood Anderson’s characters in Winesburg, Ohio (1919). These settings and characters are often echoed in Southern fiction, with Civil War-era mansions and characters who are physically or mentally grotesque. Faulkner’s stories often fall under this category, as they probe the deep recesses of the human psyche while experimenting with fictional forms. In one piece, â€Å"That Evening Sun† (1931), Faulkner traces a surface story about

Send a Welcome Basket! Free Essays

Putting the ‘person’ in personnel Shalini Shukla 18 Oct 2012 With a history of more than 80 years in Singapore, OCBC is a bank centred on people. The Bank has come a long way from its first days of helping rice merchants continue to trade times of war. This is evident in its sterling performance in recent years. We will write a custom essay sample on Send a Welcome Basket! or any similar topic only for you Order Now In May this year, Bloomberg Markets magazine announced OCBC as the world’s strongest bank. Also, one in two businesses currently operating in Singapore has an account with the Bank. The success of the bank is built on the back of sound business policies and active talent management and development. For instance, within the first three days of a company being incorporated, OCBC will contact them about opening a corporate account with the bank. â€Å"The Bank practises the same proactivity when it comes to managing and developing its people,† says Eric Ong, Head of Emerging Business, Global Enterprise Banking, OCBC Bank. Career framework OCBC takes training and development seriously as human capital is the Bank’s key differentiator. Investment in this area helps to build the capabilities of employees to deliver superior performance. Learning is part of the Bank’s ongoing business strategy and helps to create a win-win situation for us and our staff,† says Ong. â€Å"By aligning employees’ learning objectives with business goals, we help employees succeed in building a career and not just a job with OCBC. † OCBC encourages its employees to take charge of their own careers through the Bank’s ‘Career Best’ programme, launc hed in 2002. This programme involves helping employees evaluate their strengths and career orientation, and finding the best fit between their talents and OCBC’s needs. The Bank also introduced the ‘OCBC Learning-3’ programme in 2007. A structured three-year development programme for employees, OCBC Learning-3 clearly delineates learning roadmaps for individual employees during their first three years of service with the Bank. â€Å"Underscoring our commitment to training, we have created the OCBC Learning Academy and also dedicated an entire floor at the OCBC Centre, called The Learning Space @ OCBC, for the sole purpose of learning and development,† says Ong. In addition to the typical classroom training, the Bank has also tapped on learning technologies like eLearning and virtual classrooms. Through the use of Web 2. 0 and video conferencing technology the training programmes are now able to reach out to employees in different geographies. Employees are given the first opportunity to learn of and apply for job-openings within the OCBC group through the Internal Job-Application Programme, in which after 18 to 24 months, an employee has the open to move into another role. We want to encourage employees to continually acquire new experiences, knowledge, skills and competencies, and allow individuals to fulfil their career aspirations at different stages of their careers,† Ong explains. This is especially so for Gen Y staff who constantly seek change and want progression – something to look forward to. They need to feel challenged and recognised for the work they do. If they are ‘stuck in a rut’, performance dips. à ¢â‚¬Å"In banking, employees need foundation,† says Ong. â€Å"I was once a bank teller. I then moved on to typing bank drafts and the like. Leaders walk the talk too. â€Å"In my business review, one part is financial numbers and business initiatives, while a large part (50%-60%) is based on the human resources,† says Ong. Hi-po attention A mentor to even people who’ve left the business, Ong believes in developing his people’s potential to the fullest. â€Å"I meet with business heads and see if there are vacancies in which we can slot the high potential candidate in,† he says. â€Å"This makes sure these people are given opportunities within the bank before they start looking elsewhere for them. It’s a proactive measure of staff retention. Senior management constantly works to push high-potential talent out of their current roles or comfort zones. This exists at all levels, be it ground sales people to middle and senior management level st aff. â€Å"We don’t want staff to be ‘too comfortable’ in their roles. They are not stretching their potential,† says Ong. â€Å"We assign them to other departments for three to six months. My sales folks, for instance, might be posted to risk management or operations. † While there is risk of losing talent to another department due to this job rotation, the advantages outweigh those risks. After coming back from their short job rotation stint, they come back with fresh insights and they can come up with new business ideas leading to increased productivity and business success,† says Ong. Ong cited an example of an employee who moved to the operations unit two years ago. When he came back to the Emerging Business department, he gave a new idea which was piloted and resulted in business growth of five times. Hi-potential staff are also given opportunities to travel and explore new markets. Young staff are accompanied by their senior leaders on these trips. ————————————————- There has to be a little risk-taking, be it with the business or with our people,† says Ong. â€Å"Being senior in management, we can give that gentle push, allowing our staff to soar. † ————————————————- You are required to : 1. Find out the strengths of OCBC Bank. Marks:- 2. 5 2. ————————————————- What do you learn from this case? Marks:-2. 5 ————————————————- Mail me back to abdullah. du@gmail. com By 4:00pm of 17. 04. 13 Write â€Å"Case study – HRM† on the subject line of your mail . All the best How to cite Send a Welcome Basket!, Papers

Taxi driver Essay Example For Students

Taxi driver Essay Yet, it does not come soon enough for Travis who cant take any more of this open sewer of a city. The sphere of Iris as the sought-for person is particularly interesting as it breaks many conventions. Turner notes that the object of rescue, Iris, does not wish to be rescued. In A Cinema Without Walls, Taxi Driver is described as a movie about a partially psychotic individuals self-characterization of himself as the savior of whom he seems to substitute for his displaced passion for the female handler of a political candidate . We will write a custom essay on Taxi driver specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now This raises an interesting point that it is Travis who has made Iris into an object to be rescued. This can effect the audience by leaving an impression that his motives for killing Sport are questionable and even futile. The fact that Corrigan writes about Traviss displaced passion for Betsy, who at the start of the film occupied the sought-for, princess sphere, brings to light Traviss struggle to understand perhaps what women want. This may distance the viewer, in particular female viewers, further from Travis. Levi-Strauss (1966), as documented in Film As Social Practice, suggests that a feature of mythologies is their dependence upon binary oppositions. By establishing a conflict between a pair of mutually exclusive opposing forces, this is one way of determining meaning. We define things not only in terms of what they are but in terms of what they are not. For example, Man means not woman and not boy. Turner concludes from this that by placing things in existing categories these oppositions can breed, producing further transformations of the same binary pattern. However, in Taxi Driver the pattern is harder to follow. The average example of male/female, strong/weak, rational/emotional falls apart when comparing Travis and Iris as a pair of opposing forces. Travis isnt rational, he is on the verge of psychopathy. Turner writes, normally in films a simple binary system is set up in which we measure good and bad through the determining category of the good hero. Travis is surely the hero, but is he a good hero? In fact it is hard to draw oppositions between Travis and the Villain, Sport, as both are strong males who use forceful methods and generally their actions are morally questionable. This can affect the audience by making them question their ideas about how a hero should act. More specifically, the viewer may notice that Scorcese, the director of Taxi Driver, is painting a picture which shows that there is no black and white. Sport is bad, Travis is bad and Iris doesnt wish to be rescued. This challenges viewers expectations about film narrative but also makes the film seem more realistic and confrontational. The binary oppositions are almost present in Travis himself, as Betsy puts it (quoting Kris Kristofferson) Hes a prophet and a pusher/ Partly truth, partly fiction/ A walking contradiction. Travis worries about a young girls future and innocence yet uses murder to reach his ends. Travis doesnt believe one should devote his life to morbid self-attention yet enters into a fanatical fitness regime and poses in front of the mirror. Travis claims not to be a pusher yet admits to repeatedly phoning Betsy until she agrees to go on a second date. This reveals to the audience Traviss self-destructive tendencies as he loathes his contradicting side. Paul Schrader, the writer of Taxi Driver, in an interview in Hollywood Cinema, comments that Traviss self-destructive impulse, instead of being inner-directed, has become outer-directed. At the end when Travis is shooting himself playfully, Paul explains, thats what he has been trying to do all along. Todorov (1977) sees narrative beginning in a stable point of equilibrium or, as Turner notes, what he calls a state of plenitude. .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f , .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f .postImageUrl , .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f , .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f:hover , .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f:visited , .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f:active { border:0!important; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f:active , .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u3050bbdddb1dcfa7088e1d2ec1bf597f:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Movie Analysis - Fury Essay This equilibrium is then disrupted by some power or force which results in a state of disequilibrium. Another force must act on this disrupting force to restore equilibrium. However to prove the process isnt entirely circular, this new plenitude is not entirely the same as the original equilibrium. In An Introduction to Film Studies, Rowe writes, Travis is not so much driven into disequilibrium by external events, his meetings with Betsy, the appearance of Iris and Sport in his cab, as by his determined drive to transform the world. The Media Students Book points out that another part of the construction of narratives involves the voice telling the story. This is very important to how the story will be interpreted by the audience and with which characters their affiliations will lie. A first person narrative will use I as the voice of the teller and should not give the reader access to events which that I could not have witnessed or known of (MSB). Taxi Driver seems very much like a first person narrative as we follow Travis everywhere and we hear his narration as he writes in his diary. Yet there are several scenes, involving Iris and Sport, and Betsy and Tom, without Travis which contradicts this idea. This leaves open to speculation whether this is what he thinks they are saying. This is possible as in these scenes, Travis is never far away, either loitering outside or about to enter the location. This can affect the audience by distancing them from Travis, even if temporarily, to see normal people interacting. As Travis says: Im Gods lonely man. Mise-en-scene can be an important part of a viewers sense of narrative. I shall look at the mise-en-scene of a short scene from Taxi Driver and the effects it has on the audience: The scene begins with music that is very fast and fluctuating and emphasizes that a change is in progress. Travis is cleaning his boots and sharpening a knife. The audience do not see much of Traviss face through out these shots as they are very tight close-ups which often crop out his head completely. We are left unsure of his emotions as we are denied his facial expressions, so we have to make assumptions based on his actions. Travis burns Betsys flowers which could be interpreted as a vengeful act. Travis also tapes a knife to his boot which, we are aware from earlier scenes, he is well practiced in removing quickly. This has an effect of building up to the final battle. The music suddenly becomes more upbeat as Travis puts money in a letter to Iris. The shot is closely framed and we can only see the back of his head, making his feelings unknown to us. Travis narrates as the music becomes more ominous and threatening. The scene cuts to the Palantine rally. Travis emerges from his taxi, his head is still cropped out of shot, but by now the audience has become accustomed to this style of shot. This adds extra emphasis and shock value when the camera abruptly pans up to Traviss Mohican hair. The extremity of the hair cut matches the extremity of his actions. Traviss costume, of Indian and Vietnam Vet, underlines how he doesnt wish to fit in with society, not wanting to participate in what he has witnessed in his cab. Corrigan suggests that this is a case of Generic Hysteria where one history and culture is madly trying not to fit into but hide behind the representations of another history and culture. The ending of the film fits in with audience expectations of a happy ending as the hero lives. Yet, as we hear that Iris is having trouble adjusting back at home and the fact that Travis is back to normal, we are left with an uneasy feeling that not all the loose ends have been tied up. Even Travis leaves the viewer with a final confused look in the rear view mirror which is startling and unnerving. In conclusion, I feel that there are many possible effects on the audience which might be argued to flow from the narrative construction of Taxi Driver. .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b , .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b .postImageUrl , .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b , .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b:hover , .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b:visited , .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b:active { border:0!important; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b:active , .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u7e283af648d6af2b29837c94531cc59b:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Understanding the Films of Andrzej Wajda EssayBibliography Bordwell, D and Thompson, Film Art An Introduction, McGraw-Hill (1993) Branston, G and Stafford, The Media Students Book, Rutledge (1996) Cook, The Cinema Book, B. F. I (1985) Corrigan, T. A Cinema Without Walls Movies and Culture after Vietnam Routledge Maltby, R and Craven, I Hollywood Cinema Blackwell (1995) Nelmes, J (ed) An Introduction to Film Studies (Ch 4: Film form and narrative by Allan Rowe) Routledge Turner, G Film as social practice (Ch 4) 2nd Edition, Routledge (1996).

The Evil of Good in Les Mis©rables Essays

The Evil of Good in Les Mis ©rables Essays The Evil of Good in Les Mis ©rables Essay The Evil of Good in Les Mis ©rables Essay Covert became suspicious of Monsieur Madeline when he lifts a cart of a man, and is justified In his suspicions. Covert said, Monsieur Mayor six weeks ago after that scene about that girl, I was enraged and denounced you The remarkable feat of strength that Madeline preformed caught Savers attention. Covert associated the strength with that of a convict and became suspicious. l believed it, for a long while I had had suspicions. Savers suspicions are justified because it was indeed Madeline who was the prisoner Covert remembers. Madeline courageous act led takeover developing a justified suspicion based on his memory of a strong prisoner. Jean Oval]mean undergoes an Internal conflict when he Is torn between freeing an innocent man and thinking of the greater good. Vallejo says, He repressed his flirt generous impulse and recoiled before such heroism. Although Vallejo turning himself in would mean reverting back to his old ways, it is what is values are pushing him to do. He would be tainting all he owned and stood for in sin if he decided to let Champagne pay for his errors. Vallejo says, That henceforth Mayor Madeline, with all his virtues would be abominable to him If Vallejo turned himself In It would mean abandoning many people who needed him, including Fanzine. Although Sympathetic would suffer unjustly, Oval]mean staying quiet would benefit the greater good. Vallejo goes back and forth repeatedly between his choice of saving one man or saving his town. Vallejo assumes responsibility for Fontanel because he wishes to help her become pappy and virtuous gall_ Oval]mean says, You shall do no more shall again become honest in again becoming happy. Because Fanzine lost her job at factory, she was forced to resort to becoming a prostitute in order to keep her child safe. Vallejo wants to compensate by giving the woman the opportunity to be honest again, so he takes her in and provides for her. Vallejo says, I do not doubt it that you have never ceased to be virtuous and holy before God. Fontanel only turned to prostitution because she had lost her Job and needed to pr otect her daughter. Vallejo recognizes she Is a good woman whos soul was tainted because of an error committed at his factory. Vallejo takes Fanzine in because he wishes to give her the chance to be happy and restore her virtue. The author uses the oxymoron the evil of good to represent how Covert stands for justice but Is ruthless In obtaining It. The author wrote, Covert, personified Justice light and truth In their celestial function of crushing out evil. Whatever stood for was not a negative, but in the purpose of the greater good. Covert believed that enforcing the law was a key element in obtaining justice. The author wrote, Covert, though frightful, had nothing ignoble about him. In enforcing the law, Covert was inconsiderate and indifferent when it came to others feelings. This earned him a frightful reputation and a cold personality. The oxymoron the evil of good represents Savers positive and negative sides. Of him alarmed Fanzine, and he told her of Baleens real identity . Fanzine beheld Covert Let seemed to her that the world was coming to an end. Fanzine recognized Covert as the inspector who had almost condemned her to Jail and was alarm. Fanzine was already weak from her illness, and the sight of Covert sent her over the edge. Covert said, There is a thief, a brigand, a convict named Jean Vallejo! And I have him in my grasp! Fanzine was shocked and confused by what Covert was saying. The stress brought on by Savers accusations about Vallejo led to her death. Vallejo blamed Covert for causing Fantasies death by alarming and confusing her with his presence and accusations.

The History of the Taj Mahal

The History of the Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal is a beautiful white marble mausoleum in the city of Agra, India. It is widely considered to be one of the greatest architectural masterpieces in the world  and is listed as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Every year, the Taj Mahal receives visits from between four and six million tourists from all over the world.   Interestingly, less than 500,000 of those visitors are from overseas; the vast majority are from India itself. UNESCO has designated the building and its grounds as an official World Heritage Site, and there is much concern that the sheer volume of foot traffic may have a negative impact on this wonder of the world. Still, it is hard to blame people in India for wanting to see the Taj, since the growing middle class there finally has the time and leisure to visit their countrys great treasure. Why the Taj Mahal Was Built The Taj Mahal was built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan  (r. 1628 - 1658) in honor of the Persian princess Mumtaz Mahal, his beloved third wife. She died in 1632 while bearing their fourteenth child, and Shah Jahan never really recovered from the loss. He poured his energy into designing and building the most beautiful tomb ever known for her, on the southern banks of the Yamuna River. It took some 20,000 artisans more than a decade to build the Taj Mahal complex. The white marble stone is inlaid with floral details carved from precious gems. In places, the stone is carved into delicate vined screens called pierce work so that visitors can see into the next chamber. All of the floors are inlaid with patterned stone, and incised painting in abstract designs adorns the walls. The artisans who did this incredible work were supervised by an entire committee of architects, headed by Ustad Ahmad Lahauri. The cost in modern values was about 53 billion rupees ($827 million US).  Construction of the mausoleum was completed around 1648. The Taj Mahal Today The Taj Mahal is one of the loveliest buildings in the world, combining architectural elements from across the Muslim lands. Among the other works that inspired its design are the Gur-e Amir, or the Tomb of Timur, in Samarkand, Uzbekistan; Humayuns Tomb in Delhi; and the Tomb of Itmad-Ud-Daulah in Agra. However, the Taj outshines all of these earlier mausoleums in its beauty and grace. Its name literally translates as Crown of Palaces. Shah Jahan was a member of the Mughal Dynasty, descended from Timur (Tamerlane) and from Genghis Khan.  His family ruled India from 1526 to 1857.  Unfortunately for Shah Jahan, and for India, the loss of Mumtaz Mahal and the construction of her amazing tomb utterly distracted Shah Jahan from the business of governing India.  He ended up being deposed and imprisoned by his own third son, the ruthless and intolerant Emperor Aurangzeb.  Shah Jahan ended his days under house arrest, lying in bed, gazing out at the white dome of the Taj Mahal.  His body was interred in the glorious building he had made, beside that of his beloved Mumtaz.

A Broader Passage by Leila Ahmed Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

A Broader Passage by Leila Ahmed - Essay Example The cultural politics have also embarked limitation on the narratives. It should be noted that the author has discussed the gender difference in this context as well. This makes it evident to note that the relationship between identity, power, narratives and politics is interrelated. This paper aims to provide an address regarding the relationship between identity, narrative and politics within the context of Ahmed’s experiences during her long life development. Ahmed discusses the relationship between identity, culture and politics in an interrelated manner. For instance, at one point, the author notes that she was able to speak English which made her consider Arabic language as an inferior language. Being in Egypt, Islamic population was made weak as they have not been given a free hand to experience the rituals of world. Ahmed notes that it is the politics that define the culture and identity of an individual. Egyptian politics have rather made people liable of expressing t hemselves in a sphere which does not allow complete liberty. In the case of women, this seems to be stricter as politics have embarked the role of women in Islamic states like Egypt to be fairly limited to their homes and nurture of family (Ahmed). It will not be incorrect to state that it is due to the lack of political liberty that people Islamic people are grouped with people from Africa and furthermore, they are termed as black people.