Do you think that the narrator is mentally ill to begin with, or has something else caused her to become mentally ill in "The Yellow Wallpaper"?

In the beginning of the narrative of "The Yellow Wallpaper," the narrator is suffering from what is now referred to as postpartum depression. This develops because of hormonal changes in women after childbirth. But, because of her forced confinement by her husband and physician, as well as her isolation from her baby and family and friends, the woman in this story becomes worse in her ability to think clearly and control her emotions.

According to the Mayo Clinic, among the many symptoms of this postpartum depression are these:

• Feelings of worthlessness, shame, guilt, or inadequacy


• Diminished ability to think clearly, concentrate or make decisions

"The Yellow Wallpaper" was published in 1892 as a criticism of the medical treatment that was prescribed at the time by Dr. Silas Weir Mitchell to women who suffered from what was then termed "nervous prostration," or "neurasthenia." This story is an indictment of the insensitivity demonstrated by male physicians to female patients who suffered from the depression that often follows childbirth.

The insensitivity to the woman's condition oppresses her in her marriage, and deprives her of her voice. Her doctor and husband tell her that she merely suffers from a "temporary nervous depression--a slight hysterical tendency." She is virtually incarcerated in a room of a strange house without any access to the lovely garden outside. Her feelings are ignored as she is placed in a room with bars on the windows and wallpaper that is stripped off in patches. What is there is hideous to the woman's artistic eye:

One of those sprawling flamboyant patterns committing every artistic sin....when you follow the lame uncertain curves for a little distance they suddenly commit suicide--plunge off at outrageous angles, and destroy themselves in unheard of contradictions. 

But, when she complains to her husband, he simply tells her, 

I must use my will and self-control and not let my silly fancies run away with me. 

When the narrator begs to go home, her husband denies her desires. In addition, he deprecates her creative powers of "story-making" and refuses to change the wallpaper and "give way to such fancies."

Isolated in a room that is repugnant to her with its hideous yellow wallpaper and "inharmonious" furniture, and without any outlet for her thoughts and feelings, the woman's imagination becomes overactive:

I...lie there for hours trying to decide whether that front pattern and the back pattern really did move together or separately. 

Because she is trapped in a room she finds hideous, the woman finally is seduced into an act of insanity that is committed in order to relieve her obsession with thoughts of entrapment.
Furthermore, she becomes mentally ill because of the insensitivity of her husband and Dr. Mitchell, who never recognize her symptoms or listen to her ideas and requests. Instead, they force her to remain alone in a room she detests without any outlets for her frustrations. 

How can children play a role in environmental conservation?

When it comes to environmental conservation, teaching children to have respect for nature and make sustainable, environmentally friendly decisions sets them on a lifelong path of responsible action. While some aspects of environmental conservation may be difficult for children to understand fully, they can certainly learn that some actions can be harmful to the world around us. Encouraging children to recycle materials appropriately is an easy task that helps them make a big impact. Real-world examples of the importance of conservation, like nature walks and picking up litter (with the necessary safety precautions), helps children gain a sense of ownership over their actions and make connections between the idea of conservation and their lived experiences. 

There are many conservationist activities that can be done as a family to develop a child's sense of responsibility in caring for the environment. Planting a tree, tending a home garden, and taking public transport on family outings are all great activities.

As with all things, it's okay to start small! Many adults find it difficult to act in a way that is totally environmentally friendly, but by encouraging children to make just a few steps towards conservation, they may develop a life-long habit of caring for the environment.

What is author Simon Burt's purpose in the story "I Just Kept On Smiling"?

It appears that the author's purpose in the story is to highlight the alienation a young boy can experience in a morally stifling and sterilized environment. Additionally, such an environment may unintentionally compound the dysfunction already present in his life.

In the story, the unnamed narrator is a twelve-year-old boy who attends a Catholic boarding school. It's interesting that the author never names this boy; perhaps the boy represents all boys who feel alienated from their parents and other authority figures in their lives. The narrator in the story is obviously unhappy. There's clearly no loving, emotional connection between him and the rest of his family. When he receives cards from his brother and parents on his birthday, the narrator simply throws them away after opening them. They hold no sentimental value for him.

Later, the boy' parents arrange for him to spend a week after Easter with Nicky Carver's family. The narrator's parents never discuss the matter with him; they just assume his acquiescence as a matter of habit. It is apparent that this obvious lack of communication between them is an indication of deeper dysfunction within the family structure. This dysfunction manifests itself in the narrator's actions.

The narrator steals three exercise books and revels in his secret. He experiences an intoxicating feeling of power and invincibility because he's succeeded in stealing the books from right under his teacher's nose. His actions don't faze him, and we are led to question why. In the end, when the narrator is angry with Nicky Carver for fraudulently confessing to the theft of the exercise books, we realize the dysfunction in the narrator's life is deeper than we think. The narrator is angry because Nicky successfully diminished his sense of power and autonomy; now he can no longer claim his theft as a secret only he can savor.

Yet, the narrator's rationale causes us to question why he keeps smiling after he catches Nicky Carver's eye at the end of the story. Has the narrator switched focus? Is he now reveling in the fact that Nicky has to "pay" for a crime he didn't commit? While the author doesn't answer our questions, choosing instead to let us form our own interpretations about the story, one thing is clear: a morally stifling and emotionally barren environment can often compound the deep dysfunction already present in a young child's life. Exposing this truth may well be the author's purpose in writing this story.

From Chapter 3 in Of Mice and Men, how could I translate Whit's slang to modern forms of speaking? Whit said, “I see what you mean. No, they...

In this passage, Whit is responding first to George's question if there has been any trouble since Curley's new wife arrived at the ranch. Whit responds that he understands what George means but there hasn't been any trouble yet.

The rest of the passage can be translated as follows: Curley has bees in his underwear (yellow jackets are actually a form of wasp, and drawers are underwear; this phrase means that Curley is on edge and nervous), but that's all that's happened so far. Every time the guys on the ranch are around, she comes by. She says she's looking for Curley or she forgot something and is looking for it. It seems like she can't keep away from the guys. And Curley acts like he has ants in his pants (again, meaning that he's on edge), but nothing has come of it yet. 

Describe in detail what Gulliver finds when he wakes up on the island.

When Gulliver wakes up in Lilliput, he sees that it is "just Day-light," and he realizes that he is unable to move his body at all.  At first, he can see nothing but the sky since he is unable to turn his head from side to side.  However, as he bends his eyes downward as far as possible, he sees, walking on his body toward his face, a human-like creature holding a bow and arrow, though the creature is fewer than six inches tall.  When he feels some forty more of these advancing on his person, he yells out, and they scatter.  At this point, he pulls against the ligatures tying his hair down on one side so that he can turn his head, and he sees a small stage to which a "person of Quality" mounts in order to deliver a long speech of which Gulliver cannot understand one word. 

How do "were" and "was" influence the theme of "The Truly Great" by Stephen Spender?

The main theme of the poem is that the "truly great" individuals of our time deserve to be remembered, cherished, and emulated by all of us.

The verbs "was" and "were" indicate these great individuals are no longer alive. Therefore, in order to cherish and to emulate them, it is imperative that, we, like the narrator, "think continually" of them. The narrator warns us not to let the hectic, modern lifestyle crowd out all thoughts of these great individuals. To do so would impede our own personal growth ("the flowering of the spirit").

The narrator tells us how these "truly great" individuals were inspired by the "Spirit, clothed from head to foot in song." Here, the "Spirit" clothed in song may refer to God or divinity; it may also refer to the mythological Muses. In Greek mythology, the Nine Muses were the goddesses of Music, Art, Literature, and Science. They were often invoked at the beginning of lyrical poems to inspire eloquence in the poet. Thus, it is noteworthy Spender alludes to them in his first stanza.

Again, the verb "was" used in conjunction with the great individuals (whose lips were "touched with fire") reminds us these beings are no longer among the living. They may have been the great, ancient writers and poets, and the narrator maintains that, even as he thinks of them now, he can see how inspired they were by the Muses or divine spirit of God. Spender only uses "was" and "were" once individually in the first stanza, but his meaning is clear: the "truly great" are no longer among us; thus, we must do everything in our power to keep them in our memories, for this is the only way to achieve greatness in ourselves.

Which part of Smith's analysis in The Wealth of Nations would Karl Marx reject?

Adam Smith's faith in the free market is one area that would provoke intense disagreement from Karl Marx.

A major component of Smith's analysis is his belief that the free market that can function without external control. Smith believes that the marketplace is where human happiness can be maximized.  The free market is where human talents are recognized.  It is where goods can be exchanged for compensation and services.  Smith believes in the "laissez faire" approach to the marketplace so much that he rejects the idea of controlling it.  For Smith, control is needed for something bad, and if the marketplace is where the greatest in human endeavor is realized, then controlling it would actually be a bad thing. Even if there are problems in the marketplace, Smith argues that the "invisible hand" of rationality and reasonability will solve everything, thereby rejecting the need for external control.

Marx would take issue with this emphasis on the marketplace needing to be free from external control.  In Marx's mind, the freedom afforded to the marketplace has enabled economic exploitation.  It is the freedom to have a small number of very rich people take advantage of the working class majority.  Marx would challenge Smith's belief that the free market is where happiness can be seen. Workers in the free market configuration are not very happy when they are working long hours for little in way of compensation.  Their happiness is not realized in Smith's "laissez faire."  Marx would reject Smith's idea that the marketplace does not need external control.  In a setting where economic exploitation is so rampant, Marx would argue that external control is needed in order to facilitate a new and more equitable economic system.

A strong underlying force in this film is the relationship between Amir and Hassan. Discuss their friendship. Why is Amir afraid to be Hassan's...

Amir and Hassan have a close relationship and enjoy playing together as children. They are essentially best friends, but Amir refuses to acknowledge this fact because Hassan is a Hazara and he is a Pashtun. It would be considered socially unacceptable for Amir to develop a mutual friendship with Hassan openly. Also, Amir is jealous of Hassan because Hassan is pure and talented. Amir continually tests Hassan's loyalty because he cannot comprehend how a person can be so loyal and morally upright. Amir also gets a kick out of teasing and playing tricks on Hassan. Amir resents Hassan because Hassan is the epitome of everything Amir is not. Hassan is athletic, naturally intelligent, and has a pure heart. While Baba ignores Amir, he admires Hassan, which is another reason Amir resents him. After the kite tournament, Amir witnesses Hassan getting raped and does not take action to stop Assef. Amir is filled with guilt because he did nothing to prevent Hassan from being raped. Amir can no longer be friends with Hassan because Hassan only reminds him of his cowardly decision to stand idly by and watch Hassan get raped.

One of the most significant historical reforms used in dealing with the juvenile offender was the opening of the New York House of Refuge in 1825....

The New York House of Refuge was founded in 1825 as a way of dealing with juvenile offenders in a more humane manner. Previously, youths who committed crimes were sent to jails and other institutions where they had to serve time with adults. Sometimes, children were sent to jails or penitentiaries for noncriminal offenses because cities such as New York, plagued with high rates of poverty, had nowhere else to put them. Reformers John Griscom and Thomas Eddy started the Society for the Prevention of Pauperism in an effort to house juveniles in facilities where they would not be alongside criminal adults. Their efforts led to the founding of the New York House of Refuge, which was clearly a humane and important milestone in the juvenile justice movement. 

The New York House of Refuge was the first institution for juvenile offenders, and it led to similar institutions in many cities. The New York House of Refuge went on to house boys and girls and to employ them in making shoes and chairs as well as in tailoring. Children also received some educational instruction in subjects such as reading, writing, arithmetic, geography, and music. They were also required to have morning and evening prayers. Over time, these institutions developed into educational facilities, called training and industrial schools. They resulted in a social changes in the ways in which juvenile offenders were treated, including an emphasis on education and preparation for adult life. 

The New York House of Refuge also led to new forms of judicial treatment for juvenile offenders, including probation and out-of-home placement. The juvenile court system was first established in 1899 in Cook County, Illinois. This court system was based on the legal idea of the state as parens patriae (the state as parent), which meant that the state could act on the behalf of children. Judges had wide latitude to decide what was best for children, acting in their interest.

The current juvenile justice movement has moved away from this system, as the Supreme Court instituted changes in the 1960s that gave juvenile offenders due process rights, including the right to an attorney. As a result, the system became more like the adult criminal justice system than like the earlier parens patriae system. Many juvenile facilities became more punitive in the 1980s, though there are some efforts in California and elsewhere to reform this system. Today's system is very different than earlier reform efforts such as the movement that established the New York House of Refuge, as it places less emphasis on humane treatment and rehabilitation of juvenile offenders.  

List descriptive details that help you visualize the marketplace in which the astrologer conducts his business, in the story "An Astrologer's Day"

The marketplace and its vendors is described in fairly vivid detail in "An Astrologer's Day" by R. K. Narayan. India is often described by first time visitors as a place of many colors, smells and textures, especially the outdoor markets where vendors of food, crafts and clothing sell their wares. The astrologer wears a "saffron-colored turban" wrapped around his head and "this color scheme never failed." He says customers are drawn to him "as bees are attracted to cosmos or dahlia stalks." Before we even see the marketplace we see that it will be a place of visual splendor, based upon the description of the astrologer's preparations.

The place itself is a bustle of activity. The astrologer's location in the market is "under the boughs of a spreading tamarind tree." One visual detail that seems important and which makes it possible to imagine how it looks is the fact there there is no municipal lighting, so vendors must provide their own lights. So the market place is not consistently lit and this adds to its unique visual appeal:

One or two had hissing gaslights, some had naked flares
struck on poles, some were lit up by old cycle lamps, and one or two, like the astrologer's, managed without lights of their own. It was a bewildering criss-cross of light
rays and moving shadows.

This passage is followed by a description of the astrologer's way of doing business: it is discovered he knows almost nothing about astrology, and simply speaks as the mood takes him, so the random quality of light and shadow seems appropriate here.

What figurative language is used in "The Interlopers" by Saki?

Saki uses figurative language in "The Interlopers" to expand meanings, generate imaginative ideas, depict scenes artistically, and intensify emotions.

Here are some examples of this figurative language:

• Imagery
  In describing the animosity between von Gradwitz and Znaeym, Saki employs sensory imagery: "as boys they had thirsted for one another's blood."
  Auditory imagery is also used, as there is "a splitting crash" of the beech tree that "thundered" down upon the two men.


• Metaphor
  Rather than calling the men Ulrich's enemies, Saki uses a metaphor that describes them as "the prowling thieves."


• Simile
  After the men lie pinioned under the huge branches, Ulrich takes a drink from his flask of wine, which warms and revives him. He then glances at Georg "with something like a throb of pity." Here a simile, a stated comparison using like or as, is used.


• Synecdoche
  As the two enemies come face to face, they hesitate because they can only kill instantly "for an offence against... hearth and honor." "Hearth" is an example of a part of the home being used for the whole idea of family. (Synecdoches are a figure of speech in which a part represents a whole.)


• Figures of speech
  Each of the foes has "hate in his heart" (This is also an example of alliteration with the /h/.)
  Ulrich asks Georg to help him "bury the old quarrel."
  When he sees the wolves, Ulrich speaks with the "idiotic chattering laugh of a man unstrung with hideous fear."

Why do you dislike the story The Giver?

The answer to this question is going to depend on each reader.  It is entirely up to you to pick a reason for why you did not like The Giver.  Maybe you liked the story as a whole, but you dislike a certain part.  That's fine too.  Just be sure to explain why you didn't like that part.  

Personally, I don't like the book as a whole, because it is about a dystopian society.  This is just my personal opinion.  I don't like reading books or watching movies that show the future in a depressing light, because it's depressing.  It makes me think that no matter what the actions of today are, they are pointless.  Society is going to fall apart.  I'm not so naive to think that the future will be a perfect utopia, but stories like The Giver, The Maze Runner, The Hunger Games, Mad Max, and Waterworld don't leave a lot of room for hope.

Jonas's society doesn't appear to be a dystopia at first.  There is no hate, poverty, starvation, or unemployment.  Those things are all wonderful; however, the people had to give up freedom and individuality.  They even gave up changes in weather and the ability to see color.   

I also didn't like the end of the book.  The reader is left wondering what happens to Jonas and Gabriel.  We never know if they made it or not.  I can't stand endings like that.  I just want the author to cleanly wrap up the story.  The Giver does not do this. 

Who is Hermione in The Winter's Tale?

Hermione is Queen of Sicily, wife to Leontes, and mother to Mamillius and Perdita. She is a gracious and friendly host who tries to convince Polixenes, Leontes’s best friend, to extend his stay in Sicily. In fact, she does not easily take no for an answer. Hermione declares, “Verily, / You shall not go: a lady's 'Verily' 's / As potent as a lord's,” and says she will be forced to keep Polixenes “as a prisoner.” Hermione and Polixenes enjoy this banter, and, while Leontes also seems to, his thoughts quickly turn to jealousy.

Almost immediately, Leontes plots the demise of his closest friend and the arrest of his wife. Polixenes escapes, but Hermione, pregnant with the unborn Perdita, is thrown in prison. Leontes is convinced Polixenes is the baby’s father, and he refuses to let their son Mamillius see Hermione.

The queen’s reputation for virtue is widely known, and everyone in the king’s circle attempts to convince him of her innocence. Paulina is especially outspoken, calling Hermione “a gracious innocent soul, / More free than he [Leontes] is jealous,” and hurling numerous insults at the king, on pain of death. Hermione has the child, whom Leontes exiles to the wilderness of Bohemia. Mamillius dies, Hermione collapses and is reported to die, and Leontes, all too late, comes to his senses.

Leontes grieves for over a decade. Unbeknownst to him, Hermione lives in hiding and Perdita was discovered and raised by two farmers. Eventually, Perdita and Polixenes reunite with Leontes, and Paulina reveals a “statue” of Hermione that turns out to be Hermione herself. It is a poignant ending and a marvelous reconciliation, although it cannot fully erase the lost years and lives of the past.

What causes David, Petra, and Rosalind to flee in The Chrysalids?

David, Rosalind, and Petra had to run away from Waknuk society because their telepathic abilities had been discovered.  If they didn't flee, their lives would be in danger. 

By chapter eleven, the group of telepaths is fairly competent at hiding their abilities.  Unfortunately, they are not flawless at controlling their abilities.  In chapter eleven, Petra is spooked by a creature, while she is playing in the woods.  She lets out a big telepathic scream, and several of the telepaths run to Petra's aid.  Another member of the Waknuk society happens across the group, and he is mystified at how so many of the kids managed to converge on the same spot.

I explained that my sister's pony had been attacked, and that we had answered her calls for help. He wasn't willing to take that at its face value. He looked at me steadily, and then turned to regard Sally and Katherine.

"Maybe. But what brought you two here in such a hurry?" he asked them.

"Naturally we came when we heard the child calling," Sally told him.

"I was right behind you, and I heard no calling," he said.   

This incident forces the telepathic group to be even more cautious than normal, but definite suspicion surrounds the group.  

In chapter twelve, Sally and Katherine are caught.  The two are tortured, and they are forced to reveal who several other telepaths are.  

"Sally, dear, of course we're not blaming you — either of you. We understand. But we must know what you've told them. How much do they know?"

"About thought-shapes — and David and Rosalind. They were nearly sure about them, but they wanted it confirmed."

"Petra, too?"

"Yes ... Oh, oh, oh...!" 

Rosalind, David, and Petra are all forced to flee.  Their goal is to make it to the place called "Sealand."  

Which quotes best describe Squealer's traits and importance in George Orwell's Animal Farm?

Squealer is described as a clever speaker. At the beginning of the book, he is painted in the following way: 

"He was a brilliant talker, and when he was arguing some difficult point he had a way of skipping from side to side and whisking his tail which was somehow very persuasive. The others said of Squealer that he could turn black into white" (page 6).

Squealer is so good at convincing others of his point of view that he can literally make black into white and make things that aren't true appear to be true. His importance is that he keeps the animals in line and maintains the pigs' top position in the hierarchy through his speeches. 

Squealer later uses his considerable powers of persuasion to tell the other animals that the pigs are justified in drinking all the farm's milk and eating the windfall apples. He says:

"Milk and apples (this has been proved by Science, comrades) contain substances absolutely necessary to the well-being of a pig. We pigs are brainworkers. The whole management and organisation of this farm depend on us" (page 14).

Squealer convinces the other animals to allow the pigs to eat all the best food because it's in the other animals' interest to do so. He makes the pigs' selfishness seem like altruism, and he backs up his arguments with pseudoscience. Whenever the other animals are even thinking about disagreeing with him, he cleverly asks them, "Surely, comrades, you do not want Jones back?" (page 22). He equates disagreeing with him to bringing back the old regime with Jones, and he frightens the others into agreeing with him. 

How does The Merchant of Venice end as a tragedy for Shylock?

Before answering this question, it's worth pointing out that The Merchant of Venice is not traditionally considered to be one of Shakespeare's tragedies; rather, it's often known as a "problem play," as certain key elements (such as Shylock's experience after his legal defeat) are left basically unresolved. Be that as it may, it is possible to find tragic elements in the character of Shylock, and it could certainly be argued that the play ends in tragedy for him.

Consider, for instance, Shylock's fate: oppressed by the Christian community in Venice, Shylock is driven to seek revenge on Antonio, an anti-Semitic merchant. Just when it seems Shylock has the upper hand, though, his pride and eagerness cause him to overlook a potential loophole in the contract he drew up with Antonio, and this loophole is swiftly used to bring about Shylock's downfall, which includes the loss of most of his fortune and a forced conversion to Christianity. While Shylock can in many ways be seen as the antagonist of the play, it's difficult to avoid pitying him in the end, as his fate seems particularly tragic when one considers how much oppression Shylock has already faced. As such, after taking into account the dramatic nature of Shylock's downfall, it could certainly be argued that the play ends as a tragedy for him, even if the play itself is not a classic Shakespearean tragedy. 

In the novel The Kite Runner, how are the characters' private lives shaped by the larger forces of history or culture?

Throughout the novel The Kite Runner, characters' lives are shaped by the larger forces of history and culture. Ali and Hassan are both Hazaras living in Kabul, Afghanistan and are considered minorities in a majority Sunni country. Both Ali and Hassan are discriminated against because of their ethnicities, occupy a lower social class, and are not educated. In contrast, Baba and Amir are both Pashtuns who are offered more opportunities in their home country of Afghanistan. Although Baba and Amir share many privileges because of their ethnicity, they are forced to interact with conservative Muslims who wish to impose a strictly religious culture. In 1979, the Soviets invade Afghanistan, which forces many Afghans to flee the country. Baba and Amir are forced to travel to America and begin a new life outside of Afghanistan. Later on in the novel, Amir gets a call from Rahim Khan, who is living in Pakistan because the Taliban has taken control of Afghanistan. The dire political situation in Afghanistan has negatively affected the country, and Amir is forced to save Sohrab from an orphanage in the dangerous city of Kabul. Upon entering Afghanistan in 2001, Amir witnesses firsthand how the citizens live in constant fear and danger under Taliban rule. Hosseini depicts how characters are discriminated against because of their ethnicities and forced to relocate because of political unrest throughout the novel The Kite Runner.

Should we as consumers think of buying "American made" first in our buying decisions?

The answer to this question is a matter of personal opinion.  Different people could legitimately have different views.  I will provide an argument on each side of the issue.

On the one hand, we can say that people should make it their first priority to “buy American.”  If we can buy a product that was made in America, we should do it even if there are better, cheaper products made in foreign countries.  There are two main arguments for this view.  First, we can say that we should do this for patriotic reasons.  We should want to support people in our own country, not foreigners.  We should want to make America our first priority rather than thinking of our own convenience.  Second, we could argue that buying American is good for us as well.  If we buy American, that will increase the demand for products that are made here.  When demand for these products rises, there will be more jobs for American workers.  This will boost our economy, which will presumably make it more likely that we and our children will get good jobs.

On the other hand, we can say that we should look first at price and quality when buying.  For one thing, this is the capitalist, non-socialist way of doing things.  If we just blindly buy American even if the goods are inferior, we are rewarding American companies who do a bad job, simply because they are American.  This is like homeschooling your child and giving them good grades because you love them even when they do bad work.  We do not want to reward people who do not deserve it.  Secondly, it is not at all clear that buying American is the best thing for our economy.  If we only buy American goods, we will put more Americans to work.  However, what happens when we drive out foreign competition, making the goods that we buy more expensive and of poorer quality?  Don’t we hurt our country just as much by reducing our standard of living in this way?  By buying the best products, regardless of where they are from, we keep prices low and quality high, allowing Americans to have the best possible products.

Which of these arguments makes more sense to you?

How is Romeo and Juliet similar to To Kill a Mockingbird in relation to theme, conflict, dynamic characters, etc.?

Romeo and Juliet is similar to To Kill a Mockingbird because in both works, people who are different from each other learn to love and respect each other. Romeo and Juliet are from feuding families, the Capulets and Montagues, but they fall in love and realize that they are not really different. As Juliet says, "What’s in a name? that which we call a rose / By any other name would smell as sweet" (II.2.47-48). In other words, she does not care if Romeo's last name is Montague (though her family--the Capulets--hates the Montagues), as she values him for himself, not for his name. 

Similarly, in To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout learns to love and appreciate Boo Radley, who is developmentally disabled, and to understand the injustice with which Tom Robinson is treated in a racist society. Atticus, her father, tells her,  "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view...until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” Atticus means that a person can't understand another until they really try to empathize with that person and see what he or she is experiencing. Therefore, the themes of understanding and intolerance are similar in both works, as are conflicts surrounding misunderstanding based on superficial differences. In addition, there are dynamic characters, such as Scout, Romeo, and Juliet, who change in the works and become more empathetic towards people who are different than they are. 

What were the impacts of world wars on world peace?

While World War I tried to prevent future wars and outlaw using war as a form of foreign policy, the diplomats who developed the Treaty of Versailles at the end of war failed to do so. The treaty, finalized in 1919, featured several elements, such as the war guilt clause, which forced Germany to accept blame for the war. This resulted in Germany's humiliation and created the desire, over time, for Germany to regain its lost lands and recover its hurt pride. In addition, Germany had to pay massive reparations, or money, to the allies, causing it to fall into financial hardship that also made the Germans turn to Hitler and to fighting World War II. Finally, though the treaty created the League of Nations to police aggression between nations, the U.S. did not join the league, and it was largely powerless. 

World War II resulted in many institutions to safeguard world peace, such as the United Nations. In addition, American policies such as the Marshall Plan gave money to rebuild Europe and Japan along peaceful, democratic means. However, the end of the war resulted in the growth of the Cold War between countries allied with the U.S. and countries allied with the Soviet Union. Many historians believe that, in part, the Soviet Union was motivated to instigate the Cold War because of the American show of power in dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 at the war's end. The Soviet Union captured much of Eastern Europe as a buffer against future aggressions by Germany. Therefore, World War II also ushered in the Cold War rather than creating world peace. 

Who are four Victorian era poets and what were their contributions to Victorian Poetry?

The Victorian Period is characterized by multiplicity and extreme variety of style and belief. Four renowned Victorian poets are Alfred Lord Tennyson, Robert Browning, Gerald Manley Hopkins, and Thomas Hardy.

• Alfred Lord Tennyson

Although Matthew Arnold criticized Tennyson as being without intellectual power because he had no unifying theme, others have praised him for his different types of poetry. Still, Tennyson shared with the other poets of his age a sense of estrangement. Perhaps, he is most notable for his advanced techniques of symbolism. For instance, he made use of the technique of symbolic situation, a method close to allegory as in "The Voyage" and "The Holy Grail," which represent the course of spiritual life.
Another long poem,"Maud," achieved psychological naturalism and reflects with poetic brilliance and mellifluous tone the social discontent of mid-century.  

• Robert Browning

Browning's career is often defined as the accomplishment of dramatic poetry, a form of poetry which dominated the twentieth century. Browning broke from the traditional poetic confession of the Romantics and moved to the dramatic monologue. "My Last Duchess" stands as an excellent example of such a monologue. In addition, Browning mastered ironic understatement and his diction strips away the superfluous, leaving the essential, a style that became characteristic of the twentieth century.

• Gerald Manley Hopkins

Hopkins is, perhaps, best known for his "Sprung Rhythm." This is a pattern in which there are a determined number of stresses, but the number and disposition of unstressed syllables are widely variable. Hopkins himself has said that he chose this meter because it was "the native and natural rhythm of speech," and because it retained the movement of song. This metric is flexible and catches the changing emotions of experience in a natural ways. It scans by accents or stresses alone, without concern for the number of syllables. Such poems as "God's Grandeur" and Pied Beauty" exemplify this "sprung rhythm."

• Thomas Hardy

Known as the "good gray poet," Thomas Hardy's style is rugged and idiosyncratic, but it is always sensitive though unsophisticated. His education was in a country environment where he most focused on the bare essentials. Not urbane and sophisticated, Hardy was intent upon the central passions of life, which provide his poems their symbolic wealth.

Perhaps better than many other Victorian poets, Thomas expressed the doubt and despair of his age, but used characterization more than illustrative incidents to do this. Influenced by ballads and folksongs, Hardy experimented with different meters and stanza forms. In addition, he liked to employ "rough-hewn rhythms and colloquial diction." 

What is the ionization energy required to raise a hydrogen atom from the n=2 state to the n = infinity state, using the Bohr model?

The ionization energy is simply the difference in energy between two states, in this case the `n=2` state and the `n=infinity` state.

In the Bohr model (which is a simple but very good approximation for the hydrogen atom), all electron states are modeled as having angular momentum that is some whole number `n` times Planck's reduced constant `h/{2pi}`:

`L = n h/{2 pi}`

This results in energy levels defined by n, such that the energy of each is inversely proportional to `n^2` , with a constant derived from more fundamental constants (but we can just take it as given at -13.6 eV):

`E = - {13.6 eV}/{n^2}`

Then, the n = 2 state has this energy:

`E = - {13.6 ev}/{2^2} = - 3.4 eV`

And there is in fact an n = infinity state, the limit at which the electron's energy reaches zero:

`E = - {13.6 eV}/{infty^2} = 0`

The ionization energy is the difference between these two, which is 3.4 eV. But we are asked for the energy in kJ/mol, so we need to do a unit conversion. There are `1.602*10^{-22}` kilojoules per electron-volt, and `6.02*10^23 ` electrons per mole.

`3.4 eV (1.602*10^{-22} {kJ}/{eV}) (6.02*10^{23} /{mol}) = 327.9 {kJ}/{mol}`
This rounds to 328 kJ/mol, which is answer D.

How are gender and race for inmates studied using the interpretive and critical framework?

Interpretive and critical analysis is a type of qualitative framework that asks people to make sense of what they are going through. Traditionally, studies in criminology have been more quantitative in nature. An interpretive and critical analysis allows researchers to study inmates in a more in-depth way and to understand the social, emotional, cultural, and other aspects of their experiences. 

For example, Miller and Glassner (2004) conducted a study of female gangs using this type of approach. To conduct their study, they used the interactionist technique of interviewing, which looks at the intersubjectivity between the researcher and interviewee to enhance the authenticity of interviewees' responses. Examining intersubjectivity means making the researchers' biases explicit to reduce their biases. Miller and Glassner (2004) also advocate treating participants' reactions as meaningful, even if they seem to go against cultural norms or ideas. For example, in their study, they regarded female gang members as intelligent, though this is contrary to cultural stereotypes. These types of studies, as Miner-Romanoff (2012) writes, are important because they implement carefully thought-out methodologies for interviewing and collecting data, as well as for interpreting data. 

To establish the researchers' trustworthiness in this type of study, participants are chosen to maximize variation with regard to race, gender, and other variables, such as type of offense and sentence. For example, Miner-Romanoff's study (2010) about inmates' understanding of their assignment to adult court included a demographic questionnaire that asked participants' race and gender, along with other variables. 

References:

Miller, J., & Glassner, B. (2004). The “inside” and the “outside”: Finding realities in interviews. In D. Silverman (Ed.), Qualitative research: Theory, method and practice (pp. 125-139). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Miner-Romanoff, K. (2012). Interpretive and Critical Phenomenological Crime Studies: A Model Design. The Qualitative Report 2012 Volume 17, Article 54, 1-32 http://www.nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR17/miner-romanoff.pdf

Miner-Romanoff, K. (2010). Incarcerated adults sentenced in adult criminal court while juveniles: Knowledge, understanding, and perceptions of their sentences. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Walden University, Minneapolis, MN. UMI No. 3412128.