The Death Penalty To Be or Not to Be Essay Example For Students

The Death Penalty: To Be or Not to Be Essay For the past several months Americans have regularly listed crime andviolence as the number one problem facing the nation, far surpassing worriesover the economy or health care. Despite the many government and community initiatives launched duringrecent years to reduce crime, most Americans see no improvement. In a 1993survey asking respondents if they felt crime was increasing or decreasing intheir areas, only 5 % felt that it was decreasing, a full 93 % felt that crimewas either increasing or staying the same. And it is not just statistics: Iconsider myself along with those 93 %. Because while Guiliani administration istalking about crime rates in the New York City going down, all I see and hearin the media are reports about horrible crimes committed by New Yorkers. We will write a custom essay on The Death Penalty: To Be or Not to Be specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now As George Pettinico states in his article Crime and punishment:America changes its mind : The medias extensive coverage of crime, especiallythe most brutal and horrific cases have heightened the publics fear and angerover this issue to a near frenzy. When asked in January of this year, Howoften do you see reports of violent crime on television ? 68 % replied almost every day . Although the media have played an important role in raising the publicsawareness of lawlessness, crime in America is far from a media createdphenomenon. Government statistics support the image of a nation which hasoverwhelmingly lost the war against crime. For instance, in 1960 there were 161reported violent crimes per 100,000 people By 1992, the figure had jumped to 758per 100,000 a rise of over 350 %. More and more people today are starting to think that something isterribly wrong when a modern, civilized nation must confront statistics likethese. The American public is demanding an end to this violence, and surveysshow that they believe swift and harsh punishment is the most appropriate andeffective means to these ends. The death penalty, or as it is sometimes being called capitalpunishment is the hardest punishment that could be received when a person isconvicted of a capital offense. Until recently it did not exist in New YorkState but after new governor, George Pataki was elected he managed to bring itback. Since September 1, 1994 the death penalty law was in effect. And eventhough, as far as I know, there is no strong statistical evidence that the deathpenalty lowers the murder rate, many people were very happy with that decision. What they probably though was some people would not commit a murder, rapeor another violent crime if they would know that they could get on a death rowfor that . However, my personal opinion is that death penalty has to be justifiedon its own goodness, rather than by some pragmatic result it brings about. Thegovernor and legislature of New York State evidently agree with this contention,for they enacted a death penalty law in the face of falling rates for murder andother serious crimes. Currently there are two opinions about the death penalty law. Firstopinion is that the existence of such a law helps keeping the crime rates down. The opposite one is about a fact that killing people should not be done byanybody, including state and federal law enforcement system. Let us take acloser look on both of those opinions. Bringing the death penalty law back to life was a part of Gov. GeorgePatakis election program. As we have seen learned from the media and from theresults of numerous surveys, a quite large number of people who supported GeorgePataki, were doing that mainly because of this part of his program. .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 , .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 .postImageUrl , .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 , .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8:hover , .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8:visited , .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8:active { border:0!important; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8:active , .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8 .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u167af25f1f2feffb0e085a3e4237f0d8:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Oscar Wilde EssayBut does having a death penalty law actually help keeping the crimerates down? The answer is in the statistics: it turns out that the violent crimerates in New York State did not go down for the past year since the deathpenalty law was in effect. Another thing that would surprise those who supportdeath penalty is its price. The fact is: each death penalty case costs about2.3 million dollars. That is three times more than a price for keeping a personin a prison for the rest of his life. Here is what Mr. C.Hoppe states in hisarticle Executions Cost Texas Millions : For the states which employ thedeath penalty, this luxury comes at a high price. In Texas, a death penalty casecosts taxpayers an average of $ 2.3 million, about three times the cost ofimprisoning someone in a single cell at the highest security level for 40years. A lot of articles were published in the newspapers and magazinesconcerning the question of a death penalty law. One of those articles lists many arguments against the death penalty. Here is what David Dunlap writes about the death penalty: Opposition to the death penalty does not arise from misplaced sympathy forconvicted murderers. On the contrary, murder demonstrates a lack of respect forhuman life. For this very reason, murder is abhorrent, and any policy of state authorized killings is immoral. Capital punishment denies due process of law. Its imposition isarbitrary and irrevocable. It forever deprives an individual of benefits of newevidence or new law that might warrant the reversal of a conviction or thesetting aside of a death sentence. The death penalty violates the constitutional guarantee of the equalprotection of the laws. It is applied randomly at best and discriminatorily atworst. It is imposed disproportionately up on those whose victims are white, onoffenders who are people of color, and on those who are themselves poor anduneducated. The defects in death penalty laws, conceded by the Supreme Court inthe early 1970s, have not been appreciably altered by the shift from unfettereddiscretion to guided discretion. These changes in death sentencing haveproved to be largely cosmetic. They merely mask the impermissible arbitrarinessof a process that results in an execution. Executions give society the unmistakable message that human life nolonger deserves respect when it is useful to take it and that homicide islegitimate when deemed justified by pragmatic concerns. Reliance on the death penalty obscures the true causes of crime anddistracts attention from the social measures that effectively contribute to itscontrol. Politicians who preach the desirability of executions as a weapon ofcrime control deceive the public and mask their own failure to support anti-crime measures that will really work. Capital punishment wastes resources. It squanders the time and energy ofcourts, prosecuting attorneys, defense counsel, juries, and courtroom andcorrectional personnel. It unduly burdens the system of criminal justice, and itis therefore counterproductive as an instrument for societys control of violentcrime. It epitomizes the tragic inefficacy and brutality of the resort toviolence rather than reason for the solution of difficult social problems. As we can see, from these points of view, death penalty in its everyaspect is a thing that American society must get rid of . But, as in every issue that involves the life of the human being, thereare different kinds of opinions regarding the death penalty law. Some peopleactually believe in effectiveness and usefulness of a death penalty. Even thoughthose opinions are not backed up by any facts or statistics, there still is avery large number of people of all races, ages and genders who support thedeath penalty law. Lawrence Altman is a part of the group of people whosupport the capital punishment. Here is what he thinks are the main argumentsfor having a death penalty : Is it described in a Holy Bible that a deathpenalty is required for a wide variety of crimes, such as murder, rape, etc. .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 , .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 .postImageUrl , .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 , .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0:hover , .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0:visited , .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0:active { border:0!important; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0:active , .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0 .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ua5e63766199b149d917047fe809591d0:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Shakespeare's Othello - Iago, Master of Cruelty in EssayAnother reason why the death penalty should be in effect is that manypeople feel that killing convicted murderers will satisfy their need for justiceand / or vengeance. Deterrence is another fact that speaks for the capital punishment: manypeople feel that the death penalty will deter criminals from killing. However,there are no known reliable statistics that support this belief. Also capital punishment reduces the costs that are required forimprisonment: once a convicted murder is executed and buried, there are nofurther costs. My personal opinion regarding this article is that listed abovearguments for the death penalty are very wrongful and could be easily turneddown by the results of numerous surveys and different statistics. Even the fact about the Holy Bible is wrong because, The Holy Biblespeaks positively against any killing of a human being whatsoever. But that isexactly what capital punishment is a killing of a human being that isauthorized by law. The statement about criminals being deterred by the presence of a deathpenalty is wrong also. According to statistics, the violent crime rate in NewYork State did not go down since the death penalty law became effective. Another fact from statistics is that numbers of committed violent crimesin the states that do have a death penalty law and numbers of committed violentcrimes in the states that do not have that law are approximately the same. Another false opinion about the death penalty is that it killing theconvicted murderer actually reduces the costs. As we learn from the Mr. Hoppesarticle, Executions cost Texas millions , the cost of executing a convictedprisoner costs three times more than keeping him in the cell for 40 years. As wecan see, the above opinion does not have any sense. The only true fact about the usefulness of a death penalty is the factthat many people feel that killing convicted murderers will satisfy their needfor justice and / or vengeance. The only bad thing about it is : executing acriminal does not bring his victim back to life. Even though some people fellrelieved when the murderer is executed, there is no way to reverse the crime(s)that he has committed. Even though almost everything and everybody speak against the capitalpunishment, I think that people who committed violent crimes should be punishedto the fullest extend of law, which capital punishment basically is. As well as no human being deserves to be executed, no human beingdeserves to have his or her life taken away by the criminal. The laws of livingsay: Sooner or later you will be responsible for everything you do in yourlife, whether you like it or not, and whether you regret it or not . Category: English The Death Penalty To Be Or Not To Be Essay Example For Students The Death Penalty: To Be Or Not To Be Essay The Death Penalty: To Be or Not to Be For the past several months Americans have regularly listed crime andviolence as the number one problem facing the nation, far surpassing worriesover the economy or health care. Despite the many government and community initiatives launched duringrecent years to reduce crime, most Americans see no improvement. In a 1993survey asking respondents if they felt crime was increasing or decreasing intheir areas, only 5 % felt that it was decreasing, a full 93 % felt that crimewas either increasing or staying the same. And it is not just statistics: Iconsider myself along with those 93 %. Because while Guiliani administration istalking about crime rates in the New York City going down, all I see and hearin the media are reports about horrible crimes committed by New Yorkers. We will write a custom essay on The Death Penalty: To Be Or Not To Be specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now As George Pettinico states in his article Crime and punishment:America changes its mind : The medias extensive coverage of crime, especiallythe most brutal and horrific cases have heightened the publics fear and angerover this issue to a near frenzy. When asked in January of this year, Howoften do you see reports of violent crime on television ? 68 % replied almost every day . Although the media have played an important role in raising the publicsawareness of lawlessness, crime in America is far from a media createdphenomenon. Government statistics support the image of a nation which hasoverwhelmingly lost the war against crime. For instance, in 1960 there were 161reported violent crimes per 100,000 people By 1992, the figure had jumped to 758per 100,000 a rise of over 350 %. More and more people today are starting to think that something isterribly wrong when a modern, civilized nation must confront statistics likethese. The American public is demanding an end to this violence, and surveysshow that they believe swift and harsh punishment is the most appropriate andeffective means to these ends. The death penalty, or as it is sometimes being called capitalpunishment is the hardest punishment that could be received when a person isconvicted of a capital offense. Until recently it did not exist in New YorkState but after new governor, George Pataki was elected he managed to bring itback. Since September 1, 1994 the death penalty law was in effect. And eventhough, as far as I know, there is no strong statistical evidence that the deathpenalty lowers the murder rate, many people were very happy with that decision. What they probably though was some people would not commit a murder, rapeor another violent crime if they would know that they could get on a death rowfor that . However, my personal opinion is that death penalty has to be justifiedon its own goodness, rather than by some pragmatic result it brings about. Thegovernor and legislature of New York State evidently agree with this contention,for they enacted a death penalty law in the face of falling rates for murder andother serious crimes. Currently there are two opinions about the death penalty law. Firstopinion is that the existence of such a law helps keeping the crime rates down. The opposite one is about a fact that killing people should not be done byanybody, including state and federal law enforcement system. Let us take acloser look on both of those opinions. Bringing the death penalty law back to life was a part of Gov. GeorgePatakis election program. As we have seen learned from the media and from theresults of numerous surveys, a quite large number of people who supported GeorgePataki, were doing that mainly because of this part of his program. .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f , .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f .postImageUrl , .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f , .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f:hover , .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f:visited , .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f:active { border:0!important; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f:active , .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u3332c0985da7526b44b02c7df28c0f9f:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: The Prospective EssayBut does having a death penalty law actually help keeping the crimerates down? The answer is in the statistics: it turns out that the violent crimerates in New York State did not go down for the past year since the deathpenalty law was in effect. Another thing that would surprise those who supportdeath penalty is its price. The fact is: each death penalty case costs about2.3 million dollars. That is three times more than a price for keeping a personin a prison for the rest of his life. Here is what Mr. C.Hoppe states in hisarticle Executions Cost Texas Millions : For the states

Free Essays on Our Town

Wilder's passionate plea in the play is to appreciate every moment of every day, for life is a fleeting thing. With troubles rapidly expanding in Europe and war becoming a looming reality, people were inundated with the negative aspects of life. To see Our Town was to escape from the negative and rejoice in the ordinary; it reaffirmed faith in the unchanging moral values of small town living. It was obviously the balm that audiences needed in the midst of a pessimistic and changing world. Through his play, Wilder tries to teach the audience to seize the moment and enjoy living. There are no guarantees about a certain life span, as evidenced by the premature deaths of Emily Webb and her brother, Wally; tomorrow may be too late. By calling the drama Our Town and portraying ordinary people and events, the people in the audience and the readers of the play can identify with the theme and apply it to their own lives. Our Town is an unusual play in structure. It intentionally conta! ins little action, in order to support the theme; nothing exciting or suspenseful happens in any of the three acts, just as nothing exciting happens in Grover's Corners. The play also ignores most dramatic conventions. In the beginning, the Stage Manager saunters on to an empty stage to talk directly to the audience; he tells them that the play is ready to begin. He then describes the appearance of Grover's Corners and its inhabitants. The play also ignores the unity of time and place. Between the first and second acts, three years pass. Then between the second and third acts, another nine years pass. In addition, the omniscient Stage Manager has repeated flashbacks to the past and flash-forwards to the future, further negating a unity of time. The play also has many locations. Although the entire play takes place in or around Grover's Corners, each act has a different and distinct key setting. In Act I, most of the action takes place in the homes of the Webbï ¿ ½... Free Essays on Our Town Free Essays on Our Town Our Town In the play Our Town, Thornton Wilder uses the commentary about certain social issues to further exemplify the point that the people of Grover’s Corner are really quite conservative and rather passive while they let life pass them by. The commentary of the people on a few issues such as suicide, alcoholism and religious faith show the people’s attitudes. A couple specific situations of a few people symbolize the perspective that the entire town has on the situations. Religious faith is one of the issues used by Wilder. Most everyone in Grover’s Corner is religious, and a member of one of the churches in town, all being Christian in one form or another. They are also very conservative republicans that don’t like change. Mr. Webb, publisher and editor of the local paper informed the audience, â€Å"Politically, we’re eighty-six per cent Republicans ... Religiously, we’re eighty-five per cent Protestants ... Very ordinary town, if you ask me... But our young people seem to like it well enough. Ninety per cent of them graduating from high school settle down right here to live.† The town’s people’s religion sets the standard for their morals and behavior in everyday life. Everyone goes about their daily routine day after day with a kind of faith that it will continue without changing unless they make the change themselves. When Emily is watching her funeral from above after she dies, she wants to go ba ck to how it was and relive just another day of her life. â€Å"But mother Gibbs, one can go back; one can go back there again †¦ into the living. I feel it. I know it.† pleaded Emily. One of the issues used by Wilder is suicide. Since suicide is very rarely seen especially in a small town like Grover’s Corner, one would expect that the town’s people would attempt to keep it a secret. Joe Stoddard, the local gravedigger, was speaking to Sam Craig, a man who grew up in the town, about one of the head stones... Free Essays on Our Town Wilder's passionate plea in the play is to appreciate every moment of every day, for life is a fleeting thing. With troubles rapidly expanding in Europe and war becoming a looming reality, people were inundated with the negative aspects of life. To see Our Town was to escape from the negative and rejoice in the ordinary; it reaffirmed faith in the unchanging moral values of small town living. It was obviously the balm that audiences needed in the midst of a pessimistic and changing world. Through his play, Wilder tries to teach the audience to seize the moment and enjoy living. There are no guarantees about a certain life span, as evidenced by the premature deaths of Emily Webb and her brother, Wally; tomorrow may be too late. By calling the drama Our Town and portraying ordinary people and events, the people in the audience and the readers of the play can identify with the theme and apply it to their own lives. Our Town is an unusual play in structure. It intentionally conta! ins little action, in order to support the theme; nothing exciting or suspenseful happens in any of the three acts, just as nothing exciting happens in Grover's Corners. The play also ignores most dramatic conventions. In the beginning, the Stage Manager saunters on to an empty stage to talk directly to the audience; he tells them that the play is ready to begin. He then describes the appearance of Grover's Corners and its inhabitants. The play also ignores the unity of time and place. Between the first and second acts, three years pass. Then between the second and third acts, another nine years pass. In addition, the omniscient Stage Manager has repeated flashbacks to the past and flash-forwards to the future, further negating a unity of time. The play also has many locations. Although the entire play takes place in or around Grover's Corners, each act has a different and distinct key setting. In Act I, most of the action takes place in the homes of the Webbï ¿ ½... Free Essays on Our Town In the play Our Town, the people of Grover’s Corners mask their worries and apprehensions about death in their quest for happiness. In the first act, a few deaths occur, and the attitude of the people towards these deaths is a negligent one of briefly acknowledging death and moving on. Also, the children in act two who are faced with adulthood are reluctant to accept the burden, through their hesitance to grow up and approach death. In the third act, when we finally get a clear picture of death, the reader sees that the people who are dead are regretful that their mundane lives were incomplete, not realizing the importance of life until they are dead. This method of living proves unfulfilling, as the dead arduously mourn their trivial lives yearning to have made a difference. The stage manager directs the flow of the play throughout, and his transient attitude towards death reflects Grover’s Corners overall outlook on a life that tries to mentally avoid death. This stan ce is established primarily by the stage manager in his first act narrative, which hastily describes the fatalities, masking their importance and reality. â€Å"Want to tell you something about that boy Joe Crowell there. Joe was awful bright – graduated from high school here, head of his class. So he got a scholarship to Massachusetts Tech. Graduated head of his class there, too. It was all wrote up in the Boston paper at the time. Goin’ to be a great engineer, Joe was. But the war broke out and he died in France.† (P.9) This brief account demonstrates the importance placed on a man’s death. The people of Grover’s Corners live in a world where change is frowned upon; consequently, the means of dealing with such a great adjustment as death is to prevent themselves from thinking of it. In the stagnant society of Grover’s corners, death is the ultimate obstacle, and ignorance is the remedy. Another instance where the stage manager subtly demon strates this pract...

Popular Products That Originated From Christmas

Popular Products That Originated From Christmas Christmas is filled with traditions and unique decorations not seen throughout the rest of the year. Many Christmas favorites also have nonreligious roots. Here is the origin of many well-known Christmas items. Christmas Tinsel Around 1610, tinsel was first invented in Germany made from genuine silver. Machines were invented that shredded silver into thin, tinsel-sized strips. Silver tinsel tarnishes and loses its shine with time, so artificial replacements were eventually invented. Candy Canes The origin of the candy cane goes back over 350 years when candy-makers both professional and amateur were making hard sugar sticks. The original candy was straight and completely white in color. Artificial Christmas Trees Towards the end of the 1800s, another variation of the traditional Christmas tree appeared: the artificial Christmas tree. Artificial trees originated in Germany. Metal wire trees were covered with goose, turkey, ostrich or swan feathers. The feathers were often died green to imitate pine needles. In the 1930s, the Addis Brush Company created the first artificial-brush trees, using the same machinery that made their toilet brushes! The Addis Silver Pine tree was patented in 1950. The Christmas tree was designed to have a revolving light source under it and colored gels allowed the light to shine in different shades as it revolved under the tree. History of Christmas Tree Lights Learn about the history of Christmas tree lights: from candles to inventor Albert Sadacca, who was 15 in 1917 when he first got the idea to make safe Christmas tree lights. Christmas Cards Englishman John Calcott Horsley popularized the tradition of sending Christmas greeting cards, in the 1830s. Christmas Snowman Yes, the snowman was invented, many times over. Enjoy these whimsical pictures of snowman inventions. They are from actual patents and trademarks. There are also a number of snowmen designs seen on Christmas trees and ornaments. Christmas Sweaters Knitted sweaters have been around a very long time, however, there is one certain type of sweater that delights us all during the holiday season. With lots of red and green colors, and reindeer, Santa, and snowman decorations, the Christmas sweater is both loved and even despised by many. History of Christmas On December 25, Christians traditionally celebrate the birth of Christ. The origins of the holiday are uncertain, however by the year 336, the Christian church in Rome observed the Feast of the Nativity (birth) on December 25. Christmas also coincided with the winter solstice and the Roman Festival of Saturnalia. While Christmas is a centuries-old tradition, it was never an official American national holiday until 1870. The House and Senate passed a bill introduced by Rep. Burton Chauncey Cook of Illinois that proposed making Christmas a national holiday. President Ulysses S. Grant signed the bill on June 28, 1870.

Organisations and Behaviour Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Organisations and Behaviour - Assignment Example 12 Works Cited 13 Name of the Student Name of the Professor Name of the Course Date 1.1 Comparison of the organizational structure of John Lewis Partnership Company and Bradford College The governance structure in this Partnership business was established by the founder of the organization, John Spedan Lewis. It was formed by staying in compliance with the Company’s constitution. The organizational structure of John Lewis Partnership Company provides the management with the independence and opportunity to become entrepreneurial as well as competitive while carrying out business operations for the achievement of long term success. The owners or the partners of the company are given the ownership responsibilities of the corporation by means of active involvement within the businesses. In contrary, the organizational structure of Bradford College is framed in such manner that the responsibilities are allocated equally to all the staff members. The organization allocates the dutie s, responsibilities and the managing power to the employees in order to ensure coordination and completion of tasks without any redundancy. The Director is the head of the organization. The Director allocates responsibilities to various departments including Finance, marketing and Businesses and Service Departments. The organizational structure of the institution helps in increasing its performance as well. Comparison of the Organizational Culture of John Lewis Partnership Company and Bradford College The organizational culture of John Lewis Partnership Company circulates around the employee ownership which is highly distinct and successful. The business owners of the corporation have themselves explained that their perspectives regarding the benefits from this type of partnership business is highly competitive in the retail environment. As the employees are given the decision making authority and the right to a share of profit, it encourages them to perform well and drive the sales as well as the customer service up high. The employee ownership has a motivational impact on their performances. The partners run the business by means of a self-governing framework consisting of a set of committees who communicates the opinions of the partners back to the Partnership Board, Partnership Council and Chairman. In contrast to this, the organizational culture of the college is based on 7 E’s which are Employability, Equality & Diversification, Enrichment, Enterprise, Environment, Excellence and Engagement of the Employers. The vision of the institution is to provide knowledge and skills to the students in order to help them in achieving their desired career and improving their standard of living. The employers provide the students with wide knowledge and skills related to high levels of numeracy, literacy and Information Technology literacy. It is a place where diversification and equality is encouraged and at the same time,

Analyze the reasons for the United States involvement in Vietnam Essay

Analyze the reasons for the United States involvement in Vietnam between 1953 and 1968 - Essay Example When French left the region it was divided into Laos, Cambodia, North Vietnam, and South Vietnam (Levy, 17). South Vietnam was governed by anti communist government and North Vietnam was controlled by communist forces. United States wanted to curb the influence of communism in the region and therefore helped build South Vietnam. United States was supporting anti communist forces from the French Indochina War because it wanted to build the pro capitalistic forces in the region. This is one of the main reasons of United States involvement in the Vietnamese War between 1953 and 1968. On the other hand, Soviet Union was providing all the help to communist forces in the North. This is why Vietnam became a proxy war between the two Super Powers. In reality, the conflict of Vietnam was a fight between capitalism and communism. Communist forces other than Soviet Union were also helping North Vietnam government. Their motivation was also to increase communist presence in the region. Communist wanted to extend their influence in the region and therefore supported the military advances of North Vietnam into Laos and Cambodia. Soviet Union and its allies thought of this as a way in which they can gain more turf in the region. The Soviet Union involvement in the region was became a reason for United States to get involved in the Vietnamese conflict. Another important reason for United States involvement in the Vietnam War was related to the trade and economic significance of the region. United States wanted to secure its interests in the region because of many economic reasons. A United States friendly Indochina region would have helped Japan in rebuilding its economy. United States had vowed to help Japan in rebuilding and pro capitalist governments in the region could become good markets for Japan (Rotter, 1). This was another reason for United States to enter into the Vietnamese conflict in 1950s and 60s. Britain, a United States ally, also wanted pro capitalistic regime s in the region because Malaya was a British colony neighboring Vietnam. Britain wanted to revive the tin and rubber industries of Malaya in order to help them with their post war recovery (Rotter, 1). This might be another reason why United States wanted to stop the proliferation of communism in the region as communism would destroy any trade opportunity. Another reason for United States involvement in the Vietnam War was that United States wanted to stop the war from escalating (Wiest, 20). This is another reason given for the involvement of United States in the Vietnam War. The war in Vietnam was creating problems and therefore the goal of United States was to curb the conflict and not let the conflict turn into a nuclear fight (20). This is why the government actively participated in war so that the conflict can be stopped before serious damages are realized. Tensions were high between United States and Soviet Union during the Vietnam War as both were supporting opposing forces. There was always a chance of escalation which could lead to an all out nuclear war. Some argue that United States active involvement was to stop this from happening and to find a solution to the problem without taking the cold war to the next level. This is why United States got involved in the war and helped South Vietnam defend itself from its

An Educational Workplace Challenge Essay Example for Free

An Educational Workplace Challenge Essay â€Å"It is our deep faith that God is compassionate and merciful, and mercy is what he bestows upon His subjects. He is generous and beautiful, and beauty is what he gives. That is how we should see the world, beautiful, with all its resources and contents, known to us or unknown. Qatar, our beloved, is also rich in natural resources. Be it human buds or wild flowers. All are blossoms, all are natural, all are beautiful bearing Qatar’s name. Let us all work together, caring for our little buds. Lets us plant them deep in the consciousness of our land. Let us nurture them with love and care to help them blossom into flowers filled with beautiful scents and filling their surroundings with beauty. † Her Highness Sheikha Moza Bint Nasser Bin Abdullah Al-Missned. (Shafallah 2007) â€Å"A picture says more than a thousand words. † For an educational institution, the vision statement shows the picture of what the school will be at its best. On the one hand, the vision is the very basis for everything that the school, the management, the teachers, the students, their parents and the community, all work for. On the other hand, the mission is the means to achieve this vision. The mission determines the strategies that will be implemented by the school management to achieve its goals and vision. Leadership takes a significant role in the achievement of this mission. This paper discusses workplace challenges and the influence of leadership in the achievement of successful school reforms. The Shafallah Center for Children with Special Needs and its efforts to solve its major problems and improve the implementation of its educational programs will be discussed using the concepts on leadership. Specifically, the paper will focus on the concept of parallel leadership and the roles of the school management and teaching professionals as leaders in influencing the school’s needed reforms. The Workplace The School The Shafallah Center for Children with Special Needs is a non-profit private school located in Doha City, Qatar, providing comprehensive services and care to individuals with departmental learning challenges, their families and the community. It was established in 1998 through the efforts of community leaders who believe in the vitality and importance of the family and the child’s role in the society particularly those children with special needs. They want to provide the children with the best care, services and educational facilities that will enable them to adapt to the surrounding environment in order to live among others in the community, and eventually secure their future. The center provides diagnosis, evaluation, school programs, training and development services for all children with all forms of disabilities from ages three to twenty-one years old. The goals and objectives of the school are: To provide comprehensive educational, instructional, rehabilitation, social, vocational and recreational services for children with special needs. To provide support and family counseling services to families of children with special needs, including individual and group therapy. To provide community awareness on dealing with children with special needs, as well as fostering acceptance and understanding of the nature of disabilities. To provide training opportunities through Shafallah Center and establishing an international entity specializing in this field. To serve as an advocate for public policy and legislative support of appropriate educational and vocational programs for children with special needs. (Shafallah 2007) School funds are generated from local and international grants and from regular tuition and matriculation of the students. The school offers five (5) programs aligned for students depending on age and learning concentration. These are the Pre-school and kindergarten which enrolls students ages 3-5. The school unit 2 is for students aging 6-21 with mild and moderate challenges, its coursework are in pre-academic, academic and pre-vocational and emphasizes on social and daily life skills. Unit 3 caters to students with mild and severe intellectual and developmental disabilities from ages 6-21; its programs are aimed to increase independence and activities are centered on daily living, self care and basic communication including socialization and leisure education. Unit 4 is designed for those diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders, ages ranging from 6-21. The program uses the model TEACCH (Treatment and Education of Autistic Related Communication Handicapped Children) and other models tailored for these children.

Using Lies to Define Morality of Characters in Adventures of Huckleberr

Mark Twain once said, "Lie--an abomination before the Lord and an ever present help in time of trouble." Twain's description of deceit gives it a type of double meaning. This idea of lying being used for good as well as evil is not unheard of. Many time people find it necessary to lie to maintain a greater good or save a life. However, all too often, people lie for self-serving, immoral purposes. In this quote, Twain elegantly shows the delicate balance between good and evil in the performance of the same act. Furthermore, Twain also shows this complex thought in his portrayal of characters in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Twains novel emulates his quote, juxtaposing the good and bad aspects of stretching the truth. Throughout the novel, Twain provides numerous commentaries on the morality of characters. His display of deception in the story continually serves to improve the reader?s understanding of a character?s moral integrity, based on the nature and intent of the lie. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain uses the lies of numerous characters to better define the moral ambiguity of those characters. Twain portrays the complete lack of moral fiber in the King and the Duke through their cons and deceit. On numerous accounts, the King and the Duke lie to others exclusively for self-serving and wicked motives. From the first meeting with the King and the Duke, Huck knows that, ?these liars warn?t no kings nor dukes at all, but just low-down humbugs and frauds? (ch. 19), knowledge obtained via the utter disregard for others in the King and the Duke?s scams. Huck?s use of ?fraud? (ch. 19), for instance, highlights the duo?s use of fabricated personas to rob others of their possessions, acts of such low ... ...n contrast to those of the King and Duke expose the dichotomy between good and evil present in everyday life. Traditionally, a dark shadow has loomed over the art of deception, and rightfully so in regards to the King and Duke. However, when in the face of a greater evil, a small number of noble people can use lies in a dignified manner, as demonstrated by Huckleberry Finn. By observing the motives someone has for straying from the truth, the morality of that person emerges, becoming ever more discernable . Lying, however, has evolved into an archetype for immorality and evil, only to be slightly redeemed by those who are fighting for a greater good. In this light, Twain portrays the dichotomy nested within deceitfulness within numerous characters in his Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a dichotomy that is too often slanted toward one, immoral side. - cdyoung

Australian visions Essay

Different Australian visions are often portrayed in various texts and motion pictures. Australian film Strictly Ballroom 1992 is a great example as the director uses very over-the-top and theatrical style of filmmaking to present a humorous story that reflects various ideals in Australian society with cinematography and film techniques. The movie not only showcases the persona of the underdog especially through the character of Fran, but also illustrates the concept of multiculturalism and the idea of achieving dreams on the land of Australia, which are all concepts that relates to different aspect of Australian visions. On the other hand the poem ‘My country’ written by Dorothea McKellar, expresses other ideals of Australia that are more directly related with the land. Through the use of poetic techniques such as metaphor the poet was able to depict both the natural danger and beauty of the nation that are also valued as important part of Australian visions. One of the main focuses of the movie Strictly Ballroom is the characteristic of the underdog, a term that is closely associated with Australian values. The belief of giving everyone a fair go is fully expressed through the story arc of Fran, whom like the ugly duckling was transformed into something beautiful by the end of the movie. This concept is expressed through the Baz Luhrmann’s portray of this character. The juxtaposition between her first appearance and her performance at the end fully showcases Fran’s role as the underdog. This is reinforced with her red dress and the lighting used during the ending of the movie. Differs to other contestants’ clothes that looked superficial and over-the-top, the authentic colour of red used for Fran made her stood out as a glamorous, confident and beautiful woman, which is completely different to her seemingly unattractive first appearance from the start of the film. This is further on supported by the lighting of the movie, which not only focuses on her and Scott’s dance, but also stresses the affect of the red costume, making the dress almost a dramatic symbol of her successful transformation and achievement within this film. On the other hand, the impact of her appearance also fully represents Australian’s idealisation of the underdog. Another theme of Strictly Ballroom is the idea of multiculturalism as this movie depicts the transformed modern society that accepts and embraces cultural differences.  This is expressed through the use of music in the film. For most part of the movie the music used is traditional ballroom scores or Australian classic songs such as ‘time after time’, which makes the simple instrumental Spanish music played in Fran’s house stood out. This not only illustrates the differences between Fran and Scott’s background but also puts the audience into the character’s shoes to experience another type of dancing and culture that exists on the land of Australia. This concept is again strengthened at the last scene of the movie when all the audiences joined with Scott’s parents and danced together. The long shot that presents the unified crowd combines with mid shots that focus on specific people like Fran’s father who has different background reinforce the positive connotation of multiculturalism. This also presents Strictly Ballroom as a movie that mirrored the value of contemporary Australian society, which is all about acceptance and embracement. The pursue for dream is a concept that is highly valued in Australia and the movie Strictly Ballroom relate this idea with the notion of overcoming fear and the challenge of authority. The focus on lines such as â€Å"A life lived in fear is a life half lived† shows the importance of this in relation to the character’s will of achieving their goals. However their desire is often dishearten by the dancing federation. The continuous use of low angle shots and the lack of music playing when characters such as Barry Fife talked establish their state of power, which the main characters have to conquer. This also made the scene from end of the movie highly symbolic. With the success of Scott and Fran’s performance, there was a high angle shot depicting a falling Fife who tumbled with the trophies on the table that contrasted with the previous use of low angel shots. This scene not only served as a comic relief for its audience but also represents the downfall of the authority, stressing the significance of this confrontation in terms of the Scott and Fran’s accomplish of their dream. In context of this film, these ideas reflect the possibility of reaching one’s goal in Australia. Just like the persona of the underdog this also relate to the stereotypical notion that this land typify a sense of hope and opportunity. My country written by Dorothea Mackellar is a poem that illustrates both the natural beauty and danger of Australia, depicting very different visions of the same nation in comparison to Strictly Ballroom. The poet’s repeated usage of various stones to describe the nature  scenery of this country not only stresses the authenticity of those features, but also made the stones a metaphor for the land’s flawlessness. This is seen through lines such as ‘An opal-hearted country’ and ‘Sapphire-misted mountain’, which continuously reinforce the genuine notion of beauty in Australia. On the other hand Mackellar also uses personification to describe the danger of this land. Lines such as ‘Her beauty and her terror’ and ‘her pitiless blue sky’ strengthen the image of the threating nature environment, giving the readers a real sense of fear and adoration for the poet’s country. Even though this text shared limited similari ty with Baz Luhrmann’s Strictly Ballroom, it still manages to express visions and depictions of Australia that is highly valued in this nation.

Mathematics, Education, and Computer Innovation

The introduction of the graphing calculator has changed the structure of teaching and learning mathematics. This made it possible for everybody to receive the benefits of a computer-generated visualization without the high cost of a computer. These graphing calculators over the years have lowered in cost, became easier to use, and are more portable. The next generation of graphing computers has arrived with the recent introduction of the Texas Instrument TI-92. This relative inexpensive calculator will allow more high school teachers to teach an area mostly untouched, computer symbolic algebra and computer interactive geometry, because it has not been practical or possible. The TI-92 is merely the beginning of the new revolution of hand-held computing tools. The next challenge mathematics teachers are facing is the teaching of traditional paper-and-pencil symbolic algebra skills. This task has been made obsolete by the more accurate and faster computer symbolic algebra algorithms. Students can get a far better illustration of important concepts and applications of mathematics with these new hand-held tools than with the traditional paper-and-pencil task. The paper-and-pencil task and other traditional skills must still be acquired, but students should spend less time acquiring it. More emphasize must be put on computing tools. Students should take advantage of the computer technology to become powerful and thoughtful â€Å"problem solvers.† The process of changing from traditional methods to a more computer-oriented environment has to be met by the education and mathematics community. Educators should have textbooks that better represents the new technology. Teachers need to be more technology literate. The mathematics community must dispel the image of â€Å"doing mathematics† with the traditional paper-and-pencil method. These reforms can better teach students important skills needed for the future. The use of technology in mathematics will give students an advantage mathematics and related technology. Students will need that advantage if they wish to compete in the twenty-first century. This article stressed very important issues educators, teachers, and the mathematics community must face. The reform will change the course of mathematics in school and elsewhere. As a student, I am very concern about the future of mathematics. My future plans will revolve around mathematics and technology. I understand the need to continue using the paper-and-pencil methods, but computing tools should be added to the current criteria. The future will be technologically intense and very competitive. Graphing calculators have enhanced mathematics and I think the new powerful computing tools will do the same for the next generation. These hand-held computers are inexpensive and contain very powerful and versatile computer software. This could be the computer for all mathematics students.

Music-Based Improv Games for Young Actors

Music-Based Improv Games for Young Actors Most improv exercises are intended to expand actors comfort with creating characters, interacting in front of an audience, and thinking on their feet. Few exercises, however, are built around musical comedy. There are a few reasons for this: Musical comedy requires music, and few drama teachers have access to a piano and piano player. Sure, you can play around with recorded music but thats not as easy as it sounds.Musical comedy requires singing, and a surprising number of young actors are very shy about singing. Those students who are not confident in their singing skills may refuse to take part.Musical comedy doesnt generally require the same level of character development as a straight play or even a non-musical comedy. With music and dance to take up the slack, many musicals have stock characters with little motivation and few personal characteristics. So why bother with music-related improv? First: almost every high school in America and many junior high schools produce musicals every spring. If your students plan to take part, theyll need to brush up their musical skills. Second, music is a terrific tool for building internal rhythm and other skills your young actors will need whether or not they ever play a musical lead. The improv activities described here are music-related, but they dont require participants to read music or even to sing! Theme Music Improv This improv activity is suitable for 2 – 3 performers. It requires theatrical music to be played while the actors perform. I recommend a simple keyboard and someone who can play impromptu background music. (Nothing fancy is necessary – just music that conveys different emotions.) Have the audience members suggest a location. For example: library, zoo, kindergarten class, driving school, etc. The actors begin the scene with a normal, everyday exchange: Hey, Bob, did you get that promotion?Son, I got a call from the principal today.Hello, and welcome to jury duty! Once the conversation is underway, the instructor (or whoever is manning the keyboard) plays background music. The melody can alternate between dramatic, whimsical, suspenseful, western, science-fiction, romantic, and so forth. The actors must then create action and dialogue that matches the mood of the music. Whenever the music changes, the behavior of the characters change. Emotion Symphony This drama exercise is terrific for large groups. One person (perhaps the drama instructor or group leader) serves as the orchestra conductor. The rest of the performers should sit or stand in rows, as though they were musicians in an orchestra. However, instead of having a string section or a brass section, the conductor will create emotion sections. Learn more about how your students can create an â€Å"Emotion Orchestra.† Song Spoofs It’s not easy to compose original melodies. (Just ask 80s band Milli Vanilli!). However, students can take their first step toward a song-writing career by spoofing existing songs. Form the students into groups (between 2 – 4 people). They should then select a song with which they are each familiar. Note: It doesn’t have to be a show tune – any Top 40 song will do. The instructor will give the song-writing groups a topic for their song lyrics. Because of the storytelling nature of musical theater, the more conflict, the better. Here are a few suggestions: Getting â€Å"dumped† on Prom Night.Being trapped in an elevator.Getting caught shoplifting.Saying goodbye to your dead goldfish.Finding out your grandma is a vampire. Students collectively write as much of the lyrics as they can, hopefully telling a story, or conveying lyrical dialogue. The song could be delivered by one or more characters. When the students present their work to the rest of the class, they can simply read the lyrics to the class. Or, if they feel brave enough, they can perform the newly created number and sing their hearts out!

Apollo 13

Apollo 13 Apollo 13 Apollo 13 is a film of year 1995 based on the ill fated Apollo13 lunar mission. The film is based on the book the lost moon by Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger. The film was directed by Ron Howard. The film was a huge success as it was different from the common films released in those days and it was based on a true event during the space race. Story On July 20, 1969, astronaut Jim Lovell is at his home celebrating the Apollo 11 moon landing party. He tells his wife Marilyn that he wish if he could ever land on the moon after watching Neil Armstrong’s historic first step steps on the moon. Lovell was expecting that he will fly Apollo 14 but after some time he is given a VIP tour of Apollo 13’s massive Saturn v rocket is ready to be launched. Then Lovell is informed that he and his crew has been selected as prime crew of Apollo 13. after hearing the news, Lovell tells his family about his launch. Her wife was little tensed because it was not a journey on earth it was towards moon. Before launch Lovell is informed that Ken Mattingly is not coming on the mission with him, Lovell tries best to get him on the flight but he is unsuccessful in doing so. Ken is replaced by pilot Jack Swigert. Next day they are ready for the launch and finally they move on. After the launch the middle engine of Saturn v cuts off prematurely because of over heat but they enter into orbit without problem, after performing the burn which will send Apollo 13 to the moon, Swigert changes the Apollo command module odyssey to dock with the lunar module Aquarius. After three days of the mission, Swigert is asked to stir the cryogenic oxygen tanks, leading to explosion in service module. The crew got to know that there is problem with oxygen tank and they think to cancel their landing on the moon and shut down the odyssey and on up the Aquarius for saving their life. John Aaron on earth who is a flight controller specifically trained to deal with the electrical and commu nication system recruits the crew to restart odyssey but they shut down the odyssey and powers up Aquarius and are near moon, they see the moon near to them and Lovell gets depressed by this. As the crew has powered up the Aquarius, there is a problem again, to conserve power they have to shut down the Aquarius and stay in freezing cold. The environment gets scary in the crew and Swigert blame mission control centre for not letting them to find out the technical problem in the craft, but Haise blames the Swigert and calls him inexperienced. Argument arises between both but it is soon cleared by Lovell. Aquarius is meant for two people only but it has to mange the carbon dioxide thrown by three men. An engineering team assembles at radio station Houston and makes a crude method of removing poisonous gas and air cleaners to be used in

Did Lincoln really want to free the slaves Research Paper

Did Lincoln really want to free the slaves - Research Paper Example "My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave, I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves, I would do it." (Lincoln 1862) President Lincoln wrote these words in August 22, 1862 to journalist Horace Greeley, an abolitionist who wrote for the New York Tribune. This was one month before the Emancipation Proclamation was issued. It is clear from this dialogue that Lincoln’s main concern at that time was to preserve the Union at all costs and not a sweeping condemnation of slavery. Even though The Emancipation Proclamation was a historic event and precipitated the end of slavery, the Emancipation Proclamation did not end slavery. This was because Lincoln did not have a deep conviction for or against slavery. Lincoln's objective was to preserve the Union and not to free the slaves. The Emancipation Proclamation was a historic event and precipitated the end of slavery. It was the first time that blacks could serve as militia. Blacks were allowed to enlist in the Union Army and Navy and consequently became agents of their own liberation. Lincoln needed extra troops on the ground in order to defeat the Confederacy and preserve the Union. Over 200,000 black troops were added to the Union Army. (US National Archives & Records Administration n.d.) 3 It is clear from his actions that Lincoln’s primary concern for issuing the proclamation was to build up the Union army in order to defeat the Confederacy. Since the Union prevailed in the war, Lincoln succeeded in his goal for a Union victory. Another example that shows that The Emancipation Proclamation was a historic event and precipitated the end of slavery was the subsequent passing of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution. The Emancipation Proclamation was a precursor to the thirteenth amendment which made slavery illegal in every state, not just those affected by the Em ancipation Proclamation. Congress ratified the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution on December 6, 1865. (13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Abolition of Slavery n.d.) Without the Emancipation Proclamation mandating freedom for some blacks, there would not have been the impetus for Congress to pass sweeping legislation mandating freedom to all blacks in the form of the Thirteenth Amendment. Even though The Emancipation Proclamation was a historic event and precipitated the end of slavery, The Emancipation Proclamation did not end slavery. This is because Lincoln did not have a deep conviction for or against slavery. The following is an elaboration upon the correspondence quoted in the beginning of this essay. 4 I would save the Union. I would save it the shortest way under the Constitution. The sooner the national authority can be restored; the nearer the Union will be "the Union as it was." If there be those who would not save the Union, unless they could at the same time save slavery, I do not agree with them. If there be those who would not save the Union unless they could at the same time destroy slavery, I do not agree with them. My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union; and what I forbear, I forbear because I do not believe it would help to save the Union. I shall do less whenever I shall believe what I am doing hurts the cause, and I shall do more whenever I shall believe doing more will help the cause. I shall try to correct errors when shown to be errors; and I shall adopt new