Visual Analysis of Marilyn, by Audrey Flack essays

Visual Analysis of Marilyn, by Audrey Flack essays The piece that I have chosen to analyze is a painting called Marilyn, by Audrey Flack. The painting was made of oil over acrylic on canvas in the year 1977. The dimensions of this piece make me feel as if it is huge. Considering the fact that it is 8 x 8 I first relate the piece to my height which is a few feet smaller than 8 feet. When looking at the photograph of the painting in the text book I assumed it was a fairly small painting. The actual size of the piece makes me much more involved and engaged in the piece rather than if it were the size I automatically assumed it was. The proportions of the piece are 1:1; this makes the painting a perfect square, but because of how large the painting is I would not have noticed the proportions, like I did when looking at a small picture of it. When I look at this image and imagine being face to face with the original I feel as if I am at the same level as the work. I am very close to the figures, which makes me feel I am in the piece. The viewpoint almost makes me feel as though the painting is about myself even though I know it isnt and that it is actually about Marilyn Monroe and her life. I relate to each figure because they are all familiar objects that I can almost touch. The fact that this is a still life tells us the framing is intentional and the setting is very specific. There are many personal objects arranged around a book with Marilyns portrait, on elegant and rich colored fabric. Its difficult trying to imagine myself walking around in the piece because it isnt landscape, or a piece showing a plane that someone can stand on. The only way I feel I can move in the piece is with my eyes and not my feet. If I were to move I would move completely out of the paintings setting. I feel that I am not in a place at a specific time but that I am in a memory or someones thought. This thought being a very strong sens...

The Mexican-American War

The Mexican-American War From 1846 to 1848, the United States of America and Mexico went to war. There were several reasons why they did so, but the most important ones were the US annexation of Texas and the Americans desire for California and other Mexican territories. The Americans took the offensive, invading Mexico on three fronts: from the north through Texas, from the east through the port of Veracruz and into the west (present-day California and New Mexico). The Americans won every major battle of the war, mostly thanks to superior artillery and officers. In September  1847, American General Winfield Scott captured Mexico City: this was the final straw for the Mexicans, who finally sat down to negotiate. The war was disastrous for Mexico, as it was forced to sign away nearly half of its national territory, including California, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, and parts of several other current US states. The Western War American President James K. Polk intended to invade and hold the territories he wanted, so he sent General Stephen Kearny west from Fort Leavenworth with 1,700 men to invade and hold New Mexico and California. Kearny captured Santa Fe and then divided his forces, sending a large contingent south under Alexander Doniphan. Doniphan would eventually take the city of Chihuahua. Meanwhile, the war had already begun in California. Captain John C. Frà ©mont had been in the region with 60 men: they organized American settlers in California to revolt against the Mexican authorities there. He had the support of some US navy vessels in the area. The struggle between these men and the Mexicans went back and forth for a few months until Kearny arrived with what was left of his army. Although he was down to fewer than 200 men, Kearny made the difference: by January of 1847 the Mexican northwest was in American hands. General Taylors Invasion American General Zachary Taylor was already in Texas with his army waiting for hostilities to break out. There was already a large Mexican army on the border as well: Taylor routed it twice in early May of 1846 at the Battle of Palo Alto and the Battle of Resaca de la Palma. During both battles, superior American artillery units proved the difference. The losses forced the Mexicans to retreat to Monterrey: Taylor followed and took the city in September of 1846. Taylor moved to the south and was engaged by a massive Mexican army under the command of General Santa Anna at the Battle of Buena Vista on February 23, 1847: Taylor once again prevailed. The Americans hoped that they had proved their point: Taylors invasion had gone well and California was already securely under control. They sent envoys to Mexico in the hopes of ending the war and gaining the land they desired: Mexico would have none of it. Polk and his advisors decided to send yet another army into Mexico and General Winfield Scott was selected to lead it. General Scotts Invasion The best route to get to Mexico City was to go through the Atlantic port of Veracruz. In March of 1847, Scott began landing his troops near Veracruz. After a short siege, the city surrendered. Scott marched inland, defeating Santa Anna at the Battle of Cerro Gordo on April 17-18 along the way. By August Scott was at the gates of Mexico City itself. He defeated the Mexicans at the Battles of Contreras and Churubusco on August 20, gaining a toehold into the city. The two sides agreed to a brief armistice, during which time Scott hoped the Mexicans would finally negotiate, but Mexico still refused to sign away its territories to the north. In September of 1847, Scott attacked once again, crushing the Mexican fortification at Molino del Rey before assaulting the Chapultepec Fortress, which was also the Mexican Military Academy. Chapultepec guarded the entrance to the city: once it fell the Americans were able to take and hold Mexico City. General Santa Anna, seeing that the city had fallen, retreated with what troops he had left to unsuccessfully try and cut the American supply lines near Puebla. The major combat phase of the war had ended. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo The Mexican politicians and diplomats were finally forced to negotiate in earnest. For the next few months, they met with American diplomat Nicholas Trist, who had been ordered by Polk to secure all of the Mexican northwest in any peace settlement. In February of 1848, the two sides agreed on the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Mexico was forced to sign over all of California, Utah, and Nevada as well as parts of New Mexico, Arizona, Wyoming and Colorado in exchange for $15 million dollars and exoneration of about $3 million more in previous liability. The Rio Grande was established as the border of Texas. People living in these territories, including several tribes of Native Americans, reserved their properties and rights and were to be given US citizenship after a year. Lastly, future disagreements between the US and Mexico would be settled by mediation, not warfare. Legacy of the Mexican-American War Although it is often overlooked in comparison with the American Civil War, which broke out about 12 years later, the Mexican-American War was just as important to American History. The massive territories gained during the war make up a large percentage of present-day United States. As an added bonus, gold was discovered shortly thereafter in California which made the newly acquired lands even more valuable. The Mexican-American War was in many ways a precursor to the Civil War. Most of the important Civil War Generals fought in the Mexican-American War, including Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant, William Tecumseh Sherman, George Meade, George McClellan, Stonewall Jackson and many others. The tension between the slave states of the southern USA and the free states of the north was made worse by the addition of so much new territory: this hastened the onset of the Civil War. The Mexican-American War made the reputations of future US Presidents. Ulysses S. Grant, Zachary Taylor, and Franklin Pierce all fought in the war, and James Buchanan was Polks Secretary of State during the war. A Congressman named Abraham Lincoln made a name for himself in Washington by vocally opposing the war. Jefferson Davis, who would become President of the Confederate States of America, also distinguished himself during the war. If the war was a bonanza for the United States of America, it was a disaster for Mexico. If Texas is included, Mexico lost more than half of its national territory to the USA between 1836 and 1848. After the bloody war, Mexico was in ruins physically, economically, politically and socially. Many peasant groups took advantage of the chaos of war to lead uprisings all over the country: the worst was in Yucatan, where hundreds of thousands of people were killed. Although Americans have forgotten about the war, for the most part, many Mexicans are still irate about the theft of so much land and the humiliation of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Even though there is no realistic chance of Mexico ever reclaiming those lands, many Mexicans feel they still belong to them. Because of the war, there was much bad blood between the USA and Mexico for decades: relations did not begin to improve until World War Two, when Mexico decided to join the Allies and make common cause with the USA. Sources: Eisenhower, John S.D. So Far from God: the U.S. War with Mexico, 1846-1848. Norman: the University of Oklahoma Press, 1989 Henderson, Timothy J. A Glorious Defeat: Mexico and its War with the United States.New York: Hill and Wang, 2007. Wheelan, Joseph. Invading Mexico: Americas Continental Dream and the Mexican War, 1846-1848. New York: Carroll and Graf, 2007.

Diversity and the Culture of 'Fitting In' Essay

Diversity and the Culture of 'Fitting In' - Essay Example Two authors, Kenji Yoshino and Kwame Appiah, have recently addressed the problems confronting the diverse world of globalization. While they both advocate the justice and fairness that is due all people, they also have their differences. Yoshino warns that in the attempt to legislate equality, we have institutionalized conformity. In doing so we lose the very characteristics that make us unique. Appiah contends that as human beings we all possess cosmopolitanism, a worldly sense of shared ideals, principles, and moral obligations to our fellow man. From Appiah's point of view, we are more alike than different. Yoshino contends that our differences mark out individuality. Whose school is it anyway Students may wish to be cosmopolitan, and to shrink from their own uniqueness and just try to do their best at fitting in. Yoshino argues that it is the student's responsibility to bring to the experience their own individual outlook, flavor, and thinking. After all, it is the student's scho ol. Yoshino will help the student understand the implications of their culture, while Appiah will aid the student as they evolve from classroom to worldly college graduate. One of the most difficult tasks for any human being is the challenge of staying true to one's self, while fitting in with a diverse crowd. In college, this will be magnified several times over in every situation. We may be tempted to keep our true identity covered, out of fear of discrimination and bias. However, this would not only be unfair to yourself, but it would also cheat the other students out of the chance to experience the real you. We expect it of others and others expect it from us. Appiah speaks to this when he writes, "a deeper answer is that evaluating stories together is one of the central human ways of learning to align our responses to the world. And that alignment of responses is, in turn, one of the ways we maintain the social fabric, the texture of our relationships (29). We search for the common threads that bind us and as we work to build a world of universal civility based on the understanding of our sameness and an acceptance of our differences. We do not be come the same; we merely bring out and celebrate that which is the same. This celebration of the freedom to be unique is one of the ways in which we are all alike. "In practice, I expect the liberty paradigm to protect the authentic self better than the equality paradigm" (Yoshino 191). Women should not strive to be equal to be men, but should have as their goal the freedom and liberty to be women. Being free to be yourself, and not just fit in, in any social setting is the liberty that is the challenge for the college student. When you are free to be your true self, the classroom will present greater opportunities for self-expression and a deeper understanding of the material that is presented. When you know where you stand and where you are going, it is easier to see the effects of culture, bias, and the partiality that is presented in the classroom debates about the past, current events, and future policy. When you look around the campus you will see the future policy makers, the administrators, and leaders that will shape the future. A thorough understanding of the impact of culture and its potential for bias will be invaluable in shaping and contributing to the debate. If we wish to make

Politics and the AIDS epidemic Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Politics and the AIDS epidemic - Research Paper Example The part of the world that is affected worst by HIV infection is the sub-Saharan Africa. As of now, their is neither a cure nor a vaccine for AIDS. Thus, combating the disease is a major challenge for health care providers and biomedical scientists. AIDS and HIV infection represents one of the most public -pressing public health policy and public health problem in the world. Currently AIDS is pandemic and has significant impact on the health care costs. In the current era, HIV infection is considered to be in the end stage of a chronic disease with rapid spread among Hispanics and Blacks (Fox, 1990). Though the disease was first identified in 1981, the mode of transmission of the disease and causating agent was discovered only in 1984. In 1985, detection of the virus was developed and applied to blood transfusions. In 1987, anti-retroviral agents were manufactured and since then there has been constant upgrading of drugs to combat infection, but with no cure or vaccine for the diseas e. Currently, it is estimated that 850,000 to 950,000 Americans are living with HIV infection/AIDS (Kates, 2004). The disease is a national epidemic with severe effect on specific groups like injection drug users, gay and bisexual men, young individuals and racial and ethnic minorities. Currently, it is also increasingly affecting communities which are economically backward and also women. Since the time AIDS was diagnosed for the first time in the United States, the relationships among politics, science and health care policy have changed drastically. In the 1980s, the HIV epidemic's politics were dominated mainly by four interacting factors fear and fascination, individuals involved in the contraction and spread of the disease, endemic problems of the social policy of United States and the impact of scientific knowledge advances on policy (Fox, 1990). During the initial years, politics was considered as inimical for prevention, but not it is considered as central. The main challen ge is to facilitate prevention of spread of the virus through policies that protect the most vulnerable population. During the first decade of the AIDS epidemic in the US, the policies were hostile to several areas of research like sexuality and meedle exchange. The political climate last decade was more sympathetic and effective health policies were not there because of two important issues. One was the issue as to whether efforts towards prevention was to be targeted for high risk populations and high risk geographic areas alone, or, must be broadly based. The other was issue was uncertainty of involvement of democratic participation including various local health departments, federal government agencies and community-based organizations (Bayer, 1997). As far as international politics with regard to HIV infection/AIDS is concerned, World Bank has a major role to play for international health with regard to AIDS pandemic. The bank is mainly responsible for various efforts to combat factors contributing to the AIDS like poverty, in countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America. Initially, several structural adjustment programs which were often criticized by the critics were promoted. These developed several negative consequences and the World Bank, along with International Monetary Fund focused on health related issues. AIDS evoked political response and also government action. It was initially

Jerry Garcia And The Grateful Dead :: essays research papers fc

Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead Rock Legends of the 60s and 70s   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jerry Garcia’s life was filled with wonderful things, many of which he never expected in the first place. After an almost fatal heroin overdose in 1986, â€Å" Garcia philosophically stated, ‘ I’m 45 years old, I’m ready for anything, I didn’t even plan on living this long so all this shit is just add-on stuff.’ † (â€Å"Garcia†) This attitude shows why Garcia did all of the things he did and even how some of them came about. Garcia, who â€Å"functioned as the preeminent pied piper of the rock era,† led a life of great artistic ability which he used in many ways(â€Å"Grateful Dead_ Rockhall†).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jerry Garcia was born as Jerome John Garcia on 1 August, 1942 in San Francisco, California (â€Å"Garcia†/’Grateful Dead†). Garcia learned to play folk and rock & roll when he was 15 even though the third finger on his left hand was missing because of an accident as a child. In 1959 he served in the U.S. Army for a very short period of time (â€Å"Garcia†/Erlewine_). J.J. Garcia, also known as Captain Trips, was a diabetic heroine addict and was arrested on charges of heroine possession in 1985(Erlewine_/†Grateful Dead_ Rockhall†/†Garcia†). While in a Forest Knolls, California drug treatment center, Garcia died on 9 August 1995(â€Å"Grateful Dead†). Some of his ashes were scattered in the Ganges River not long after he died, and the rest were scattered into the San Francisco Bay in the second week of April 1996(â€Å"This Is the Week That Was†E7). The effect of his death was equivalent to those of J ohn F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., Elvis Presley, and John Lennon. When Garcia died â€Å"The press was largely in agreement, concerning that a major talent in the world of music had passed on (either that or all the news editors on daily newspapers are all 40-something ex-hippies.)†(â€Å"Grateful Dead†) The â€Å"pied piper† was and is now no more than a legend in many people’s eyes. The band name as well went down with Jerry as a unanimous agreement among the band members(â€Å"Grateful Dead†).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Captain Trips first played with Mother McCree’s Uptown Jug Champions who became the Warlocks in 1965 and later became the â€Å"seminal ‘60s rock & roll band the Grateful Dead† for which Garcia is most known(â€Å"Jerry Garcia_†). Grateful Dead is a name that was randomly chosen from an open copy of the Oxford English Dictionary.

Decisions: Good and Bad

Decisions: Good and Bad Introduction In the news today, it seems as though everything we hear is negative. While I was searching for an organization that recently made a good decision, it appears that most of the things we read and/or hear about these days are the bad. I found plenty of information on bad decisions made recently, however talk about positive decision-making seems to be scarce. In this paper, I will discuss my views of a former CEO of a global conglomerate and the positive decisions he has made, as well as a recent poor decision made by another large corporation.A Good Decision For decades, we have heard the brand names Apple or Macintosh. If one were to judge the decision-making skills of Steve Jobs based on the success of Apple, one would have to say that he had to possess some of the best decision-making skills possible. Over the past few years, we have seen the MacBook, iPods, iPhones and the iPad. With the competition of Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Compaq and Microsoft to name a few, the Apple organization has made great strides to maintain its place at the top of the consumers list.One of the best decisions ever made by Steve Jobs was to return to Apple as CEO and take the market by storm with innovative technology and a selection unsurpassed by any other company. Through dedication, hard work and a vision, he has brought technology to a completely new level and others are left to catch up. With the desire to provide consumers with products that they were not even sure that they wanted, Jobs has made his place in corporate America.Through his decisions to take the world by storm and develop the ideas that seemed nearly impossible, he has left quite a challenge in trying to surpass the advancements in technology that he has achieved. A Bad Decision Over the past few years, there has been a vast growth in technology and the variety of products offered to consumers. One of the most popular novelties in entertainment today is the services offered by Netflix. The company began as a mainstream DVD rental provider and later transformed into an online movie-streaming leader.Recently, Netflix experienced an exceptional growth in subscriptions and demonstrated a high customer demand. However, due to terrible management decisions, the image of the company would soon become tarnished. It seems as if the decision-makers of the company misunderstood the reason behind its success and imposed a steep increase in price for the DVD plus streaming subscribers. Offering no rational explanation behind this decision, Netflix quickly experienced a momentous downfall.They did not have content that would make the company indispensable, and since most customers used the services because of the low subscription rates, stock prices would fall and consumers were looking elsewhere. This has now opened up a window of opportunity for newcomers such as Blockbuster, Amazon and Redbox. Conclusion While decisions are made within organizations each day, the l evel of research and the motive behind the decision may be the most important factor.The good decision that I described above was driven by the desire to succeed and to create innovative products and making them available to a large group of consumers. The bad decision seems to have been made out of greed and should never be a factor in making decisions at such high level. I believe that as long as the people making decisions stay focused on what is truly important to the organization, major pitfalls or obstacles may be avoided.

Italian Verb Conjugations Scendere