Comparing Washington Irvings Rip Van Winkle and Americas War of Indep

Parallels in Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle and America's War of Independence The story of Rip Van Winkle is well known throughout American culture. As one of America's most popular short stories, few school children have not heard of Rip Van Winkle's twenty-year slumber or imagined his long, gray beard. In the telling and re-telling of this mysterious tale, the original context of the story itself has, for the most part, been forgotten. Few Americans are aware of how the story originated, and in what context it was first presented to the public. "Rip Van Winkle" first appeared as a part of Washington Irving's The Sketch Book. This was a collection of various short works, ideas, thoughts, and pictures. "Rip van Winkle" was only a part of this collection, but eventually gained a great deal of popularity in its own right. When considering this story, it is important to keep in mind the original context and its relation to other works within The Sketch Book. However, as "Rip Van Winkle" has stood on its own in American culture, there is also a place for examining the story apart from The Sketch Book. When doing this, certain symbolism becomes apparent. Washington Irving uses symbolism in "Rip Van Winkle" to relate Rip's life and experiences to the situation of the American colonies in relation to Great Britain and the War of Independence. In this interpretation of the symbolism in "Rip Van Winkle", the marriage between Rip Van Winkle and Dame Van Winkle represents the union between the American colonies and Great Britain. The characters themselves possess certain attributes which symbolize the perceived characteristics of the two entities. Dame Van Winkle is usually unhappy with Rip. She has cer... ...respectively. Rip's experience in the Kaatskill Mountains ultimately sheds light on the changes of the American public, and Washington Irving accomplishes his purpose of establishing a tradition for the American short story. Works Cited Barbarese, JT. "Landscapes of the American Psyche." Sewanee Review. 100 (1992): 599-603. Dawsone, Hugh J. "Recovering 'Rip Van Winkle': A Corrective Reading." Lauter, Paul, ed. The Heath Anthology of American Literature. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1988. Rubin-Dorsky, Jeffrey. "The Value of Storytelling: 'Rip Van Winkle' and 'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow' in the Context of The Sketch Book". Modern Philology. 82:4 (1985): 393-406. Shear, Walter. "Cultural Fate and Social Freedom in Three American Short Stories." Studies in Short Fiction. 25:3 (1988): 249-259.

Fighting Racism in Africa

In September 1984, the segregated townships of the blacks in South Africa’s Vaal Triangle, around twenty five miles away from Johannesburg, were suddenly lit up – burned by the fury of resistance. It seemed as though the helplessness felt by the blacks for two years during which their rebellion had been controlled had suddenly turned into extreme anger. In any case, it became apparent at the time that the region was ungovernable by all means. Moreover, it appeared as though the Soweto revolt of 1976 was being repeated in the history of South Africa (Davis). After all, the blacks had not been able to secure their rights in their own countries during that time. It is ironic that the blacks have had to fight racism in their own countries for a very long time. The African National Congress was established to struggle for their rights. On its website, the African National Congress describes itself thus: The ANC is a national liberation movement. It was formed in 1912 to unite the African people and spearhead the struggle for fundamental political, social and economic change. For nine decades the ANC has led the struggle against racism and oppression, organizing mass resistance, mobilizing the international community and taking up the armed struggle against apartheid. The ANC achieved a decisive democratic breakthrough in the 1994 elections, where it was given a firm mandate to negotiate a new democratic Constitution for South Africa. The new Constitution was adopted in 1996. The ANC was re-elected in 1999 to national and provincial government with an increased andate. The policies of the ANC are determined by its membership and its leadership is accountable to the membership. Membership of the ANC is open to all South Africans above the age of 18 years, irrespective of race, color and creed, who accept its principles, policies and programs (â€Å"What is the African National Congress†). Stephen Davis, in his book, Apartheid's Rebels: Inside South Africa's Hidden War, describes the African National Congress in greater detail. According to the author, this movement has acted as the chief mobilizing agency of black resistance in South Africa. Furthermore, the unrest experienced by South Africa during the mid-1980’s was staged by the African National Congress through a tremendous transformation of the blacks. The unrest was neither unplanned; nor was it short-lived. Rather, the main adversary of Pretoria – the African National Congress – had developed it through an ever-widening network of secret cells where blacks were politicized as well as schooled in all manners of confrontation (Davis). Although the African National Congress has played a part in the governance of South Africa, Davis claims that the movement is rather unruly in the sense that it employed clandestine couriers that slipped across international borders, in addition to insurgents that primed themselves for attacks, including sabotage, against their enemies who were understood to be superior in both numbers as well as weaponry. The author also details the relationship between the African National Congress and the South African Communist Party – an ally. The propaganda of Pretoria had exploited this connection, while the legislators of the United States had been troubled by the effect that sanctions would have had on this friendship. According to Davis, the South African Communist Party was influential enough in the policymaking process of the African National Congress to be a cause of worry. The surge of new recruits that had been trained in violent rebellion had also given rise to apprehension within the African National Congress. Oliver Tambo, an exiled leader of the African National Congress, had taken a rather radical position because of this friendship. Nevertheless, Tambo argued that the majority of the blacks would simply balk at the endorsement of Marxist rule if free elections were to take place in South Africa. Hence, Davis believes that the relationship between the South African Communist Party and the African National Congress was merely one of convenience for the latter. The African National Congress enjoyed the assistance of the South African Communist Party in its underground operations. Moreover, the South African Communist Party was known to supply weapons as well as intelligence information from its Russian sponsors to the African National Congress. At the same time, the South African Communist Party acknowledged the importance of the struggle against apartheid that the African National Congress was engaged in. What is more, the South African Communist Party hoped to establish a Marxist society once the African National Congress had won its struggle (Davis). Thus, Davis’ study describes the struggles, divisions, and weaknesses of the African National Congress, while also dwelling on the successes of the movement. As an example, the African National Congress was able to transform itself at a time when it was almost forgotten. The movement was able to spread its roots far and wide by nurturing alliances with the United Democratic Front, a movement of mass protest, in addition to the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Davis). Undoubtedly, the African National Congress has come a long way. At the same time, however, its history leaves a number of questions unanswered for the reader. The main question seems to be the following: In a world applauding the power of information and knowledge – must we continue to fight against discrimination? Sadly, the answer is, ‘Yes, our world is not civilized enough at this point. ’

Fake Blood With Knife Chemistry Trick

Heres a cool chemistry trick, perfect for Halloween! Trace a knife over your skin and leave a message that appears to be written in blood. The project works equally well with a spoon  but somehow loses impact. Try it... Bleeding Knife Materials You only need a few materials for this project, however, youll either need access to a lab for the chemicals or else you can order them online. Dull knife (we dont need real blood here)5 grams ferric chloride5 grams potassium thiocyanateWater Prepare the Magic Solutions Prepare saturated solutions. Youll know the solutions are saturated if no additional solid will dissolve in the liquid. Mix a few milliliters of water with the ferric chloride to dissolve it.Separately, mix a few milliliters of water with the potassium thiocyanate to dissolve it. Perform the Trick Coat the area of skin to be bloodied or written on with the potassium thiocyanate solution. Youll get the best effect (dripping blood) if the skin remains damp, but the color appears just fine even if you let the area dry.Dip the knife blade in the ferric chloride solution.Draw on your skin with the dampened knife blade. A deep red liquid resembling blood will appear where the two solutions mix. How It Works This chemistry trick is one form of a sensitive test for the ferric ion. A red color is produced by the reaction between the ferric ion and the thiocyanate ion. Bleeding Knife Clean-Up and Safety When youre done, rinse the blade and your skin under running water to remove the chemicals. The demonstration is safe to perform, but restrict the project to your arm or hand and avoid eyes, nose or mouth to avoid ingestion of the chemicals or irritation of mucous membranes. More Halloween Chemistry Apply chemistry for more Halloween fun. You can make a glow-in-the-dark jack-o-lantern, slime that looks like ghostly ectoplasm, or a mad scientist Halloween costume.