Bread Givers

In this thesis paper I will be analyzing one of the most admired ‘Coming-of-the-Age’ novels, Bread Givers, written by Anzia Yezierska. This is a story of the clashes that every immigrant will have to endure – the invisible interior clashes and, as a direct consequence of them, the visible exterior conflicts. The story revolves around such cultural intricacies that, after completing the reading, it will engage us in a captivating debate on the very psychological infrastructure of human beings and the culture on which it is built.I will subsequently prove that this captivating debate will lead us to one final conclusion – which is the central argument of this work – stated as above in the thesis title. } The fact that America has more number of immigrants than any other part of the world combined, speaks volumes about the kind of peculiarity with which it attracts millions of people from across the globe. In fact throughout the history of America we ca n observe that the waves of immigrants are closely associated with the evolution of this country from the States of America to the United States of America.Since Bread Givers is a semi-autobiographical novel in nature, it becomes imperative that this paper begins the analysis from the author herself. Anzia Yezierska was born in Poland, sometime between 1880 and 1885. Her father was a religious scholar (Talmudic), and the large family, there were eight siblings to Anzia, was supported by the labors of her mother. This Yiddish family migrated to New York around 1890 taking a cue from Anzia’s elder brother Meyer who had migrated to America a few years before and had changed his name to Max Mayer.Here the family changes its family name to Mayer and the young Anzia becomes Hattie Mayer. But later as she grows mature, in her late twenties, she sheds this fictitious name and re-possesses her original name and retains it throughout her life in America. What transpires in her life fro m now on forms the fundamental premise of this novel. Anzia tells the story through the main character Sara Smolinsky. She has three sisters: Bessie, Fania, and Mashah; Shenah is Sara’s mother and Moses (also called Reb Smolinsky) her father – an idle man who spends time by reading Jewish religious/traditional books.Strained Parent-Child Relationships: Immigration Induced or Unfinished Business? The portrayal of strained relationships between parents and their children is one theme of this novel which must be paid due attention and diligent dissection since there exist a number of instances which make it esoteric to understand as to what causes what effect. In the novel the family head, Mr. Reb Smolinsky, is an idle man who never earns livelihood for his children and his wife Mrs. Smolinsky (Shenah) is a truly orthodox and docile woman who is in complete trepidation of her husband’s holy knowledge.In between such parents we find these four daughters struggling e very second of their life to attain happiness and to lead an independent life. Sara is un-equivocal about the harsh constraints that her father has placed on her elder sisters (and later on herself) and how ‘religiously’ he had crushed their dreams, and made them work harder and harder. The novel opens with a grim scene which Sara narrates thus: â€Å"I HAD just begun to peel the potatoes for dinner when my oldest sister Bessie came in, her eyes far away and very tired.She dropped on the bench by the sink and turned her head to the wall. One look at her, and I knew she had not yet found work. I went on peeling the potatoes, but I no more knew what my hands were doing. I felt only the dark hurt of her weary eyes. † (Anzia Yezierska; Bread Givers; Chapter I: Hester Street; Page 1) Even though it is quite convenient to assert that the immigration’s uprooting effects and impacts as the reasons behind such strained parent-children relations, but I do not agree with this.Justifications for my dissent galore through the length and the breadth of the novel. For example consider the instances of Bessie and Mashah’s romantic aspirations and how her father destroys them without even paying slightest of slight respect to the innocent desires and the natural right of an individual. Read what a downhearted and flabbergasted Bessie says: â€Å"I know I’m a fool. But I cannot help it. I haven’t the courage to live for myself. My own life is knocked out of me. No wonder Father called me the burden bearer†.(Anzia Yezierska; Bread Givers; Chapter-III: The Burden Bearer; Page 52, 53). As a consequence of these broken love affairs and their subsequent failed marriages (arranged by their father Mr. Smolinsky), these women suffer the bearings all along their life. Now, what’s the role of immigration here? Mr. Smolinsky would have confiscated his daughters in Poland as well because it is precisely in the pursuit of those s acred Jewish scriptures for which he devoted his life not even bothering to earn a livelihood for his family and then forcing his daughters to earn for him.Therefore, rather than the impact of immigration, it is the ‘unfinished businesses’ (psychologically) which strain the relationship between the children and their parents. Sara’s Conflicts – Culture of America & Shtetl at the Turn of the 20th Century: The differences between American culture and that of the Shtetl at the turn of 20th century help us to understand the conflicts between Sara and her father Mr. Smolinsky. While Mr. Smolinsky is a representative of old, orthodox genus, Sara belongs to the new, liberal kind of genre.Her father believes in the rule of the Jewish divine scriptures, but Sara discards his concerns for store decisions with utter disdain. She opposes him for his every authoritarian decisions and the ruthless way in which he used to enforce his thoughts and beliefs onto his daughte rs. Deeply immersed in his world of the exploration of Torah, Mr. Smolinsky contentiously disregards his outer world – a practical world of joys and sorrows. When Sara rejects the marriage proposal with Mr. Max Goldstein, the words in which her father Mr. Smolinsky slates her confirm his conformist view about life.He says: â€Å"It says in the Torah: What’s a woman without a man? Less than nothing – A blotted out existence. No life on earth and no hope in heaven. † (Anzia Yezierska; Bread Givers; Chapter-XV: On and On – Alone; Page 202). In deep contrast to such Jewish outlandish beliefs, the dawn of 20th century brought ‘classical liberalism’ with it which heralded the individual liberty as the ideal upon which the societies and governments must thrive. Sara clearly acts as a fitting envoy of this liberal living. These conflicts can be traced to the Shtetl Culture and the historical importance of them for Jews.Joshua Rothenberg says: â€Å"I am, of course, suggesting that the larger Jewish communities and not the shtetlekh were in all periods the real centers of Jewish culture in Eastern Europe. It is relatively simple to classify the Jewish communities which became centers of Jewish culture: they were called Ir eo-Eim im Be-Yisroel (Town and Mother in Israel), and were so designated in documents and writings of the respective periods of history. The term â€Å"shtetl culture† is therefore used incorrectly; the correct term should be â€Å"Eastern European Jewish culture.† (â€Å"Demythologizing the Shtetl† in Midstream (March 1981): 25-31). These words differentiate between the absolute nature of Shtetl Culture and its influence on the Jewish families. However, the up rise of liberalism in the US ensured that individual rights remain the prime concern for the society. Mr. Smolinsky's Personality Traits/Values and Sara’s Quandaries: An interesting element of the novel is that despite being a loud opponent of her father’s beliefs, towards the end of the novel Sara starts feeling in a parallel direction as regards to his thoughts.When she understands that she can’t be completely happy unless she finds a man, Sara equates this state of hers with what her father had told her when she declined to marry Mr. Goldstein. By the time Sara reaches a stage in life when everything she had dreamt has come true, she realizes that her once sturdy father has become fragile. Her mother is on the deathbed and she has one last wish that Sara should take care of her father who is alone and weak. By this time Sara has fallen in love with Hugo Seelig – a school principal.The internal conflict of Sara makes her feel the guilt of failing her mother in life and this guilt brings about a major shift in her thoughts when she decides to take care of her once despotic father. It seems as though she has reached the point from where she started her voyage towards finding her own identity and freedom. She says in the last line of the novel: I felt the shadow still there, over me. It wasn’t just my father, but the generations who made my father whose weight was still upon me†. (Anzia Yezierska; Bread Givers; Chapter-XXI: Man Born of Woman; Page 281).Hence the psychological quandaries of Sara propel her towards that state where she discovers, rather unwillingly, that she carries the same kind of flame which had kept her father aloof and immersed in exploring the Torah. Eventually, Sara realizes that her reconciliation with her father completes the unfinished business of the relation between a father and a daughter. We finally conclude that immigration has complex and deep cultural impacts and these impacts can’t be substituted by instant transition into the new culture. As we have seen in Sara’s life, she attained the state of completeness only after reconciling with her father.In other words reuniting with her past culture, and only in that she found solace of her life, of all her rebellions and her adventures of life. With this point, it follows that my thesis statement declared above stands proven right. Works Cited Anzia Yezierska; Bread Givers; Chapter I: Hester Street; Page 1 Anzia Yezierska; Bread Givers; Chapter-III: The Burden Bearer; Page 52, 53 Anzia Yezierska; Bread Givers; Chapter-XV: On and On – Alone; Page 202 Joshua Rothenberg; â€Å"Demythologizing the Shtetl† in Midstream (March 1981): 25-31 Anzia Yezierska; Bread Givers; Chapter-XXI: Man Born of Woman; Page 281

Evaluation of Maladaptive Behavior Essay

Maladaptive behavior is commonly observed in children who have troubled family lives or low self esteem (Maladaptive Behavior, 2003). In this case, there could be several reasons that the child is exhibiting and engaging in maladaptive behavior related to his environment at home. Using a variety of theories of moral development as well as a question-answer evaluation of the parenting styles of the child’s parents, the maladaptive behavior seen in the child as well as a solution will try to be understood. Different types of maladaptive behavior are attributed to different problems. While most parents simply believe that their child is misbehaving, maladaptive behavior is usually classified in groupings such as attention-seeking or revengeful, behavior inappropriateness (Maladaptive Behavior, 2003). The child being observed exhibits both types of maladaptive behavior, which can most likely be explained by moral development theories and poor parenting. For the behaviors such as repeating swear words, throwing food on the floor, drawing on the walls, and screaming in public, it is most likely a result of a self esteem or attention-seeking issue. The child is trying to get in trouble to get attention from the parents (Maladaptive Behavior, 2003). The child knows these behaviors are bad as Kohlberg states, â€Å"younger school-aged children tend to think either in terms of concrete, unvarying rules†¦or in terms of the rules of society†(Feldman, 2011; p. 311). However, the child also knows that participating in these behaviors will result in attention from the parents. The child is obviously aware that these actions are not societally accepted because it is likely that they have not observed them in their teachers, parents or other powerful authority figures (Feldman, 2011). In this area of maladaptive behavior, it would seem that the parents might have an uninvolved parenting style. To determine if this is true, the parents should be asked questions about their involvement with the child and how concerned they are with aspects of his development other than their role as a provider. The following questions would suffice: Do you believe that your only job is to feed, clothe, and shelter your child? (Feldman, 2011) Is there any child abuse or neglect in the family? (Feldman, 2011) How involved with your child would you say you are on a day-to-day basic, specifically related to disciplining their behavior? (Feldman, 2011) These would all be important to ask because if their answers indicate that they are neglectful, uninvolved in disciplinary as well as other areas of development, or confused on their role as a parent, they may be uninvolved parents. According to the textbook, â€Å"Children whose parents show uninvolved parenting styles are the worst off†¦their parents’ lack of involvement disrupts their emotional development, leading them to feel unloved†(Feldman, 2011; p. 317). This could make them act out in an attempt to get the attention of their indifferent or detached parents. The reasons behind the child’s behavior of hitting other children in daycare and ignoring direct commands from parents may be more along the lines of revengeful maladaptive behavior as it is intentional causation of harm to another student or person (Maladaptive Behavior, 2003). According to Piaget, children in the heteronomous stage, which happens in the early years of childhood, believe in immanent justice, â€Å"the notion that rules that are broken earn immediate punishment†(Feldman, 2011; p. 309). For this child, it is possible that he does not understand that his behavior is unacceptable even if he is mad at another student. This is probably the result of permissive parenting by the parents. The student most likely has never known that his behavior is bad because permissive parents such as his â€Å"provide lax and inconsistent feedback†¦and place little or no limits or control on their childrens behavior† (Feldman, 2011; p.316). To determine if this is true of the parents’ style of discipline the following questions could be asked: Do you expect a lot from your child in the areas of behavior? Would you ever be punitive or clear and consistent in your limits with your child? It they answer that they have few expectations, would rarely limit their children, or are inconsistent with their discipline it is possible that their permissiveness is causing the child to act badly in school and disregard their correction when it is given. Based on the observation of the parenting styles the child sees at home as well as the information from the moral development theories, it is clear that the parents are most likely at fault for their child’s maladaptive behavior. If they want their child to correct his behavior, they should engage in more authoritative parenting as children raised in this parenting style â€Å"fare best†¦are independent, friendly with peers, and cooperative† (Feldman, 2011; p.317). The parent should, as a part of this parenting style, be firm and set clear and consistent limits on their children. Additionally, induction, or discipline paired with explanation, can also be used so the child knows what they did and why it was wrong and can correct it in the future (Lee, 2013). References Feldman, R.S. (2011). Life span development: A topical approach. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Lee, M. (2013, April 1). Class #28: Prosocial Behavior, Values, and Spirituality. GPSYCH 160: Life Span Human Development – Section 8. Lecture conducted from James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA. Maladaptive Behavior. (2003). Retrieved April 8, 2013, from http://disease.disease.com/Therapy/Behavior/maladaptive-behavior.html

Medea Reduction Essay essays

Medea Reduction Essay essays Euripidess play, Medea portrays the characteristics of a tragedy. Through Jasons tragic flaws, it is shown how Medea possesses these elements. To begin with, Jason is a person of magnitude. As a boy, Jason lived in Thessaly and became skilled in all the manly exercises and every branch of human knowledge. He was later told to seek his rightful place in society by going to Greece to regain his fathers throne. Jason demonstrated the act of free will. Jason cast away Medea because he did not want to leave his high place in society. Consequently, Jasons actions were a result of his downfall. Medea, being a woman of pride and royalty wouldnt except defeat as the final answer. She planned her revenge, and ultimately prevailed in the end. The murder of her children and the murder of Jasons new wife and father in-law basically ruined everything that Jason stood for. Everyone that he ever cared for was taken from him, and Jason was left with nothing. Hubris was a significant character flaw that Jason possessed. Hubris is wanton insolence or arrogance resulting from excessive pride or from passion. Jason shows hubris when he is challenged to bring home the Golden Fleece; Now glory was Jasons ruling passion. He would have felt disgraced if he has declined any adventure, however difficult it might be: and the greater the danger, the greater the glory (The Golden Fleece 213). When is Colchis, Jason realized that he could not defeat the protectors of the fleece and agreed to marry Medea if she helped him obtain it. Even though he did not love her, let alone know her, he agreed in exchange for the power and glory the fleece would bring him. While hubris is a character flaw, hamartia is an error of judgment that Jason had clearly made. While at the time, Jason thought that he was getting a good deal by marrying Medea. His judgment turned fatal. In the end of the story ...

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Discrimination In Schools - And How It Affects Students Way of Life Essay

Discrimination In Schools - And How It Affects Students Way of Life - Essay Example This essay stresses that the affects of discrimination for the gay student during teenage years is nothing short of harrowing. These students confront harassment and abuse from their peers that is specifically directed at them because of their perceived or genuine sexual orientation. In many instances, issues regarding gay discrimination are not properly addressed by school administrators. In fact, there have been documented cases in which educators themselves have been involved in hostile discriminatory actions towards gay students. As a result, gay students are at a â€Å"considerable and disproportionate risk for mental health problems, self-endangerment and self-injury as well as for poor school performance, absenteeism, and dropping out of school†. This paper makes a conclusion that discriminatory behavior generates an adverse as well as humiliating impact on students, affecting their lives in and out of the classroom. This impact is strong and lasts a lifetime. The facts this paper discusses are, in themselves, a revolting admission of how far we have not come 40 years after tolerance was made a federal law. But what makes the situation even more distasteful is that the very system entrusted with educating and protecting students have abandoned the ideals that decry discrimination and thus the vast majority of children who fit into one or more of these categories, which equals the vast majority of children overall.

Philosophy - Kant Treatment of animals, Utilitarianism Vegetarianism Essay

Philosophy - Kant Treatment of animals, Utilitarianism Vegetarianism - Essay Example For instance, Immanuel Kant is opposed and condemned on the basis of his notion that only humans serve as the object of honor. The critics argue that Kant does not present anything in favor of displaying kindness towards animals, nor does he condemns exercising butcheries on the creature that is unable to speak or deliver a single word even. Kant does not give animals the status equal to man but is of the view that since the animals are unable to describe their pains and sufferings, they should be treated with kindness in the same manner as it is displayed towards the person. Hence, if Kantian philosophy is considered in its true prospect, it becomes crystal clear that the renowned philosopher lays stress upon the same moral values adopted by an overwhelming majority of the individuals belonging to various cultures and societies of the world. Moral values maintain the direct relationship with religious beliefs, social norms, and cultural values. All existing religions and culture preach kindness towards animals, and the same is emphasized upon by the philosophers. Neither religion, nor society allows harsh treatment of animals, but the life of the animals cannot be stated as honorable, precious and prestigious and that of the persons (i.e. humans) In his work under the title the Metaphysic of Morals, Kant declares that man is bound to pay his duties and obligations to himself and his fellow beings i.e. persons and nature of duties towards animals is surely different from those which are towards human beings.

Slapstick Comedy and Silent Films Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Slapstick Comedy and Silent Films - Essay Example Besides, enactment, the films also displayed certain captions which informed the audience about the theme of the film. The speedy actions enhanced the humor in the film. The actors who portrayed various characters were mostly shabbily or unconventionally dressed. Their funny attire supplemented by their clown like actions aroused laughter among the audiences. Thus the slapstick comedies consisted of absurd situations and vigorous actions, which had a comic tone and were performed by those actors who were highly energetic and good stuntmen. We find a detailed account on the comparative study of slapstick comedy and Commedia dell'arte in the book of David Madden, namely, -Harlequin's stick, Charlie's cane: a comparative study of commedia dell'arte and silent slapstick comedy. In his book, he gives the discrimination between the two art forms. Commedia dell'arte was performed directly in front of the audience, whereas the slapstick comedy was presented in an indirect form that is it was projected on the screen. The commedia plays were mostly for three hours whereas slapstick comedies were comparatively briefer. In commedia the actors were donned in masks and there was continuous verbal dexterity, slapstick noise, music and color, while the silent movies were devoid of sound and color as the films were Black and White. The commedia was not video graphed whereas the slapstick was video graphed and projected on the screen. (Harlequin's Stick, Charlie's Cane - David Madden, 1968) Actors like Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd were considered the milestones in the world of silent cinema. Their powerful performances spell bounded... The researcher of this essay focuses mostly on presenting and discussing the slapstick comedies, that is a device in which, the characters have exaggerated and speedy physical activities backed up by accurate timing. They do this mainly to make people understand what kind of character they are portraying in that film. More emphasis is given on speed of actions and facial expressions. For example, the researcher states that in slapstick comedies we find scenes like a person slipping on the peel of banana skin, somebody hitting a person with frying pan, a person hitting his head against a suddenly opened door, etc. The central character enacts certain scene, which seems to be normal initially but suddenly the situation becomes chaotic, with all the characters running helter-skelter creating confusion. And it is during this time that the actor has to show presence of mind and has to take some action, which will make the audience laugh and also he has to do something brilliant to come ou t of that chaotic situation. The actor performs all sorts of actions like leaping, running, tumbling down etc. And for all these purposes he uses props like buckets, shovel, ladder, sea-saw, sticks, roller skates etc., which generates comedy. The researcher then presents a study on the silent films actors of early 20th century, such as Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd, who were considered the milestones in the world of silent cinema and used the slapstick comedy in their films in a creative way that made their art memorable.