Lamb to the Slaughter and The Speckled Band :: English Literature

Both Lamb to the Slaughter and The Speckled Band share some characteristics of murder mysteries. What are the similarities and differences between the two stories? I this essay I am going to compare two short stories. 'The Speckled Band' by Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle and 'The Lamb to the Slaughter' by Roald Dahl. There are both many similarities and difference between these two stories. Though some similarities/differences are obvious and easy to spot, there are also some less obvious similarities/differences. The first difference we can see is the setting. 'In Lamb to the Slaughter', the main setting is in a quiet, warm house. 'The room was warm and clean, the curtains drawn, the two table lamps alight - hers and the one by the empty chair opposite.' This description tells us about how the house is appealing to be in. Also, by saying the 'empty chair opposite' you can gather that there is another character in the story, to which she is waiting for. The time period is a post 20th Century America (1954, about 10 years after the Second World War.) However, the main setting in 'The Speckled Band' is the complete opposite. 'The building was of grey, lichen-blotched stone, with a high central portion, and two curving wings, like the claws of a crab, thrown out on each side.' This gives a foreboding atmosphere, which could be used to en-still fear into readers. Another difference is that it is set in 19th Century England. Though both very different, both settings hold a murder to them. Other differences are in the way the characters are depicted. In 'Lamb to the Slaughter' the main character, Mary Maloney, is described as a quiet peaceful person. 'Curiously tranquil eyes with their new placid look, seemed larger, darker than before.' The writer also indicates that she is pregnant, 'for this was her sixth month with child.' With this description, you would not think of Mary to be a 'typical killer'. What people consider a typical killer is someone who is cold, precise and knows what they're doing, usually a man. However we are misled, 'brought it down as hard as she could on the back of his head. She might just have hit him with a steel club.' As you can see, this would not have been expected from a quiet tranquil person. There are no more descriptions of other people. This is strange as you would think that there would be more people in the story. Even though more people come into the story, they are not significant enough to get a description. They are just said to be a 'police detective'.

Permanent Change In An Individuals Knowledge Or Behaviour

Learning can be ocular, kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, lingual, logical, realistic, religious and moral, and, consequentially, scholars have really differing degrees of intelligence in these different sorts of larning. It is per se of import for instructors to hold a on the job cognition of how different pupils learn because of this fact that non all pupils learn in the same manner. An educators occupation is to ease acquisition for a pupil, and hence must be adaptable to these assorted acquisition manners in order to adequately supply for them, and this can non be done without an apprehension of different larning theories and manners. A pupil who is kinesthetic or visually intelligent is non traveling to profit from certain manners of learning every bit much as a pupil who is a logical scholar, presuming the pedagogue is merely learning in a logical manner. Therefore it is necessary for pedagogues to understand the differing sorts of larning so that they can pro vide for multiple intelligences within their lessons, both by admiting their being and leting pupils the chance to larn in different ways every bit good as developing pupils abilities to interact with intelligences that they might otherwise be non as accustomed to. Equally good as different intelligences there are different worldviews on how learning occurs, whether it is inactive or active, whether it is societal or personal, and these theories straight affect the teaching method embraced by the instructor keeping them. Therefore the acquisition theories will needfully order the types of intelligences most supported by the acquisition that is taking topographic point, and it is up to the pedagogue to understand these learning theories so that they may use them in a manner to outdo explore all of the multiple intelligences and give their pupils the best opportunity of making a higher order apprehension of any capable affair. Behaviourism is a theory that operates upon an ‘action-reaction ‘ or ‘stimulus-response ‘ construct of larning. At its kernel this worldview places the scholar in the place of being a ‘blank slate ‘ , an empty vas or ‘tabula rasa ‘ , which is so filled with the coveted cognition or acquisition. Behaviourism assumes that the scholar is inactive and that they respond to any and all environmental stimulations that they are exposed to. The environment acts on the scholar, non the scholar on the environment. Behaviorism can be broken down into two possible signifiers of conditioning: classical conditioning and operant conditioning, the late of which was founded by B. F. Skinner and is one of the most outstanding larning theory places. Skinner ‘s operant conditioning position is non-dualistic, it denies that the head is a separate thing to the organic structure, alternatively situating ideas to be private behaviors, analysable in the same manner that public behaviors are. Essentially learners learn to ‘operate ‘ on the environment. Functionally, operant conditioning plants on a footing of support and penalty. Reinforcement is a procedure by which a targeted behavior is caused to happen with greater frequence and penalty a lesser frequence. Both these effects have positive and negative fluctuations, by positive and negative we refer to their linear or subtractive qualities, non their moral deductions. Positive support is when a rewarding stimulation is to happen following a desirable behavior, therefore increasing its frequence. Negative support occurs when an unwanted stimulation is removed after a desirable behavior, besides increasing its frequence. Positive penalty is the happening of a penalty or negative stimulation following an unwanted behavior, diminishing its likelihood, while negative penalty is the remotion of a positive or honoring stimulation following a unsought behavior, besides diminishing the opportunity of reoccurrence. In contrast to behaviorism, constructivism positions the scholar as an active participant in the acquisition procedure. The scholar is an â€Å" information builder †[ 3 ], one of the basic premises behind constructivism is that â€Å" people are active scholars and must build cognition for themselves. †[ 4 ]This base premise is that the scholar is a â€Å" alone person with alone demands and backgrounds. †[ 5 ] Learning is a constructive, contextualized and active procedure by which the scholar is engaged in actively making a subjective reading of an otherwise nonsubjective world. One of the cardinal differences between constructivism and behaviorism is that the scholar is seen as conveying past experience and cognition to the acquisition, and that it is this past experience that is the specifying factor in the defining and constructing of new cognition. This construct at work postulates that people generate their appreciation on cognition through an interaction between their thoughts and experiences. Furthermore the scholar acts upon the environment, interacting with it to make significance, instead so being acted upon. Constructivism, nevertheless, is non a incorporate theory. Under the streamer of constructivism subsists three chief positions dubbed the exogenic position, the endogenous position and the dialectical position. An exogenic constructivism â€Å" position posits a strong influence of the external universe on cognition building, such as by experiences, instruction, and exposure to theoretical accounts. Knowledge is accurate to the extent it reflects that world. †[ 6 ]On the other manus, endogenous constructivism provinces that cognition is derived from earlier mental constructions and focal points on a coordination of â€Å" cognitive actions †[ 7 ], while dialectical constructivism is a blend of the two, situating that cognition is non wholly construed from the external universe, nor is it entirely of the head but instead is the consequence of interactions between the scholar and the environment. – Schunk, Dale H. ( 2008 ) Constructivist Theory ( Chapter 6 ) . In Learning Theories: An Educational Perspective. 5th Edition. ( pp.234-277 ) . Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson, Merrill Prentice Hall. ISBN 9780132435659 pg 239 A behaviorist schoolroom places the scholar in a inactive function, as earlier mentioned, they are ‘tabula rasa ‘[ 8 ]. As a consequence the pedagogue is positioned in an active function, basically ‘acting ‘ on the scholar to instil cognition. This can take to a schoolroom where the scholar is non needfully encouraged to prosecute with the cognition presented to them, but instead to basically digest it, taking the cognition in to regurgitate ‘as is ‘ when needed. There is nil incorrect with this type of acquisition, so for certain topics and certain countries of topics it is arguably the most efficient signifier of acquisition. However a failing nowadays within the behaviorist theory is that it does non let the scholar to come on much further so the ‘applying ‘ phase in the new blooms taxonomy. It may be wrong to state that it does non ‘allow ‘ , but it surely does non promote the scholar to come on farther into the analysin g, measuring and making phases of the theoretical account without proper motion into determining the scholars behaviour. Even though they may acquire their ain their ain, the attack does non supply scaffolding to back up the scholar to these more advanced interactions with the cognition. This is because the scholar is non forced to prosecute with the cognition in an active manner, they do non hold to do it their ain, alternatively expected to be able to retrace what the instructor has presented to them, demoing an ability to retrieve and reproduce, but non needfully to grok on a meaningful degree. On the other manus a constructivist attack efforts to guarantee that the scholar interacts on a degree that allows them to prosecute in making from the footing of the cognition conveyed, hence promoting higher order thought. However In a behaviorist schoolroom the instructor will be actively seeking to place behavior to be changed, and, one time identified, they will be after specific intercessions to change that behavior in a coveted manner utilizing ancestors and effects. The instructor invariably accumulates informations on the consequences of these intercessions and modifies their attack to more efficaciously ‘shape ‘ the pupils behaviour. Praise, although contingent upon the behavior of the pupil, will strategically and often be given out to reenforce coveted behaviors. Each lesson will hold clear and precises ends in footings of cognition, attitudes and accomplishments to be transferred to the pupils, and cues and prompts will be utilized in order to put up behavioral forms and determine the pupils into the coveted acquisition form. This would so be scheduled with uninterrupted regular support to get down with, followed by more intermittent and sporadic support to ease the pupil into ego regula ted acquisition. This defining is necessary because a rigorous behaviorist attack is merely utile for a short period of clip, determining is required to foster the pupils larning. In an English schoolroom it would be expected that the instructor would be actively reenforcing the battle of pupils in category treatment with prima and directed oppugning accompanied with congratulations for engagement. The teacher*/*** As a instructor it is of import to gain that behaviorism does work, it is a important portion of any instruction and has a really effectual and functional intent but that it is non all of the image. As with the demand to be various in learning to cover the multiple intelligences, so excessively do we hold to be various in the theories we use in our pattern. While behaviorism is a really of import tool we can utilize, and basically covers a big part of the behaviour direction and positive forms we can put in the category, we still need constructivism in order to ease * Piaget posited four phases that all human existences go through in the procedure of ripening. The sensorimotor phase is that phase â€Å" from birth to age 2. Children experience the universe through motion and senses ( utilize five senses to research the universe ) † -Santrock, John W.. Children. 9. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 1998. The preoperational phase consists of kids from ages two to seven and consists of egoism and begins to see the universe symbolically, so the kids begin to believe logically and travel into the concrete operational phase between ages seven and twelve and eventually from age 12 onwards reach the formal operation phase and develop abstract logical thinking. â€Å" the fact that many of the voluntary responses of animate beings and worlds are strengthened when they are reinforced ( followed by a desirable effect ) and weakened when they are either neglected or punished. † â€Å" †¦ organisms learn new behaviors and when to exhibit them and E »unlearnE? bing behaviors. † â€Å" †¦ all behaviors are accompanied by certain effects, and these effects strongly influence whether these behaviors are repeated and at what degree of strength. † â€Å" Positive interactions between instructor and pupils can bring forth successful acquisition results in the presence of complex kineticss of individuals, conditions and results. † Snowman et Al. ( 2009 ) . Chapter 7. â€Å" Behavioural Learning Theory: Operant Conditioning † . In Psychology Applied to Teaching. 1st Australian Edition. Milton, QLD: John Wiley & A ; Sons Australia Ltd. Bibliography

49 Simple Things You Can Do to Save the Earth Essay

Some of them, with their complicated timers and instant start-up features, constantly consume small amounts of electricity. (â€Å"Even the TV?† my wife asks. â€Å"Good thinking,† I tell her.) 3. SEPARATE YOUR GARBAGE. At our house we have separate garbage cans for glass, paper, plastic, aluminum, wood, organic matter, natural fabrics, synthetic fabrics, and rubber. (We split the work—my wife does the separating, I drop everything off at the recycling center.) 4. USE LESS WATER. We have two bricks in our toilet tank. But there’s a much simpler way to save water: Don’t flush every time! (â€Å"Don’t take the sports section in there with you!† is my wife’s tip. A sense of humor isso important.) 5. DON’T MOW THE LAWN. Let it grow. Naturally. Like a meadow. (â€Å"Like a dump!† jokes my wife.) See more:  Perseverance essay 6. DON’T SHAVE AS OFTEN. I shave once a week. (â€Å"If it’s good enough for Don Johnson,† I quip. â€Å"That was passà © years ago,† my wife informs me.) 7. DRIVE SLOWER. I try to maintain a nice, steady 40 miles per hour, the legal minimum on most highways. Also, I roll up the windows. It reduces wind resistance — and noise. (â€Å"You can’t hear those horns?† my wife asks, incredulous.) 8. SHOP WITH A RE-USABLE SHOPPING BAG. And, if you can, walk to the store. (â€Å"It’ll do wonders for your figure,† I mention casually to the missus.) 9. BOYCOTT! Boycott polluters, or anyone who sells any product that can cause pollution, or any product that might contain an ingredient that can cause pollution. (â€Å"What does that leave?† my wife asks. â€Å"Just the good stuff,† I reply.) 1 0. DO YOUR LAUNDRY BY HAND. It may be drudgery of the lowest order to have to hand-launder your clothes and hang them on a clothesline, but it saves water and energy. (â€Å"Whistle while you work,† I kid my wife. â€Å"Hitler is a jerk,† she continues. I’d forgotten that verse!) 11. TURN DOWN THE HEAT. Especially the water heater. (â€Å"They take cold showers in Sweden,† I like to hint. â€Å"Go to Sweden!†Ã¢â‚¬â€my wife.) 12. TAKE FEWER SHOWERS. But don’t share them, even if it’s been touted, albeit humorously, in other â€Å"x-number-of-simple-things-you-can-do-to-save-the-earth† books. Why? It uses more water. Figure it out for yourself. Better would be to take a bath in â€Å"recycled† bath water. Best: An occasional sponge bath. (â€Å"No, I’m not kidding,† I tell the wife.) 13. REPLACE METAL DOORKNOBS. During the winter, when it’s very dry, touch a metal doorknob and you get a little shock from the static electricity. That’s wasted electricity, I figure. We’ve replaced all our metal doorknobs with ones made of non-conducting rubber, wood or glass. (â€Å"You’ve got a screw loose,† my wife points out. And she’s right!) 14. GO SOLAR. For a small investment of about ten thousand dollars you can convert your house to solar energy. It’ll pay for itself in twenty years, I estimate. (â€Å"What next?† my wife wonders, as we all do.) 15. MOUNT A WINDMILL ON YOUR ROOF. It’s cheap—about eight hundred dollars—and easy to install. (â€Å"A little more to the right,† I yell up to her.) 16. MAKE YOUR OWN HONEY. In addition to producing delicious honey, our beehive is a real conversation starter. (â€Å"We have to talk,† my wife says. See?) 17. WORK AT HOME. Recently, I quit my job of twenty years to become a full-time writer. I write at home, on a computer. I’m not using up any gasoline or motor oil, I’m not wearing out any clothing or shoes. To put it simply: I’m not a drain on the environment. (â€Å"You don’t move,† my wife observes, exaggerating slightly.) 18. BOARD UP THE WINDOWS. Windows are nice, but they either let in too much heat, or let out too much, or vice versa. (â€Å"This is better than mini-blinds!† I shout to the wife, who can barely hear me over her own hammering.) 1 9. GET RID OF THE TELEPHONE. Think you can’t live without a telephone? Think again. We’ve done fine. (â€Å"Who would call us?† my wife rationalizes.) 20. GET RID OF THE BED. Many leading chiropractors say that sleeping on the floor, with no mattress or cushion, is the best way to sleep. (â€Å"We certainly haven’t needed a bed much lately,† my wife confides to a mutual friend.) 21. GET OUT AND ORGANIZE. At my wife’s suggestion, I got out of the house and into the community—to organize. Now I work with a diverse group of community activists and we meet four times a week—at our house. (â€Å"Whoare these people?† my wife asks. â€Å"They are the people,† I tell her proudly.) 22. BAN ALL CHLOROFLUOROCARBONS. Not just spray cans, but the refrigerator and the air conditioner. Get rid of them! We now have ice delivered to our house every day. (â€Å"You’re crazy!† my wife shouts from the kitchen. â€Å"So was Van Gogh!† I shout back.) 23. TREAT WOUNDS NATURALLY. If you’re injured, cut on the head, above the eyebrow—from a sharp piece of ice, let’s say—treat it naturally. Salt and lemon juice is the combination my wife favors. (â€Å"I want a divorce,† she says, pouring salt on my wound. â€Å"Ouch!† I say.) 24. KNOW THE LAW. And know a good lawyer. (My wife does.) 25. WHEN YOU MOVE, BE A GOOD NEIGHBOR. Having recently relocated to a smaller environment—an apartment—I can empathize with anyone who has had to go through a â€Å"moving experience† as I call it. Remember, along with a new habitat come new co-inhabitants. Get to know them. They are your neighbors and, as simplistic as this sounds, they are the keys to your survival. (When I explain this simplistic theory to one of my new neighbors, she’s fascinated. Maybe the beard works!) 26. CARPOOL. At my new part-time job I carpool with a couple of the ladies from the office. We’re saving gas, money, and we’re getting to know each other better. (â€Å"He used to have a fear of intimacy,† my wife tells the judge. On the advice of Barry, my lawyer, I can say nothing.) 27. MAKE LOVE, NOT WAR. I know, I know. But, if I could just use one earth-saving tip to draw your attention to the beautiful and cosmic experience of making love with a truly giving and understanding sexual partner. (Takethat, you lying, blood-sucking witch!) 28. SHARE YOUR SHOWERS. I’ve done a complete one-eighty on this one. Use a kitchen timer. (Or Ravel’s Bolero!) 29. WOMEN! Or should I say, women judges! (This just in: She gets the car, the house—everything except the profits from this book, Dear Reader.) 30. YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. When someone (especially someone much younger and less experienced than yourself that you only met two weeks ago) tells you that one person can’t make a difference—that no matter how much shouting and yelling and â€Å"whining and complaining† one person does nothing will change, that â€Å"you’re too old to be acting that way,† that â€Å"you should settle down and focus on one thing and do that well†Ã¢â‚¬â€when someone lays that trip on you, it’s time to split. (â€Å"I can make a difference!† I tell her, gathering my things.) 31. BUNDLE AND RECYCLE NEWSPAPERS. Sorry, I lost sight of what we’re trying to do here, which is save the earth. Take all your old newspapers, bundle them together, and bring them to a recycling center. They’ll give you a few bucks, which is nothing to sneeze at. (What happened?) 32. BUY A â€Å"RECYCLED† CAR. There are some good deals in used cars—if you take the time to look. (I didn’t, and boy am I sorry.) 33. DON’T LITTER THE HIGHWAYS. Be considerate. There are laws, but they’re rarely enforced. (Except in my case, of course. I told the officer I wasn’t living in my car—it had broken down, I was tired—but: A $100 fine for vagrancy, a night in jail, a towing charge of $75, and a ticket—I’m getting rid of this damn car!) 34. KEEP FIGHTING. That’s right. No matter how tough it gets, the fight to save the earth will go on, with or without you. (Right now it’s without. I’m back to my old habits again—smoking, drinking, and hanging out with a bunch of losers. One of them is a real nut, calls himself â€Å"The Master.†) 35. DONATE OLD CLOTHING. There are people out there who can get some good use out of your old moth-eaten sweater or sports jacket or worn-out pair of shoes. (I’m a 41 short.) 36. FOLLOW THE MASTER. The Master has forged an â€Å"alliance with the human spirit† that allows him to speak directly and simultaneously to every living thing on this planet. (Follow The Master.) 37. THINK FOR YOURSELF. Take it from someone who, after having his self-esteem obliterated by a persuasive con man and his gang of sycophants, escaped on foot—with nothing to eat for nine days but wild berries and mushrooms—and lived to talk about it! (You might have seen the story in the papers—†DAZED FOLLOWER OF DIZZY GURU FOUND ON FREEWAY†) 38. HI, HOW ARE YOU? I knew it was her before I picked up the phone. (The cobwebs that covered the receiver were now sticking to my face. â€Å"Fine,† I said.) 39. DON’T BE FOOLED. A wise consumer is a protected consumer. (I told my ex this when we got together for some Irish coffee at the mini-mall, near the old house. She ended up selling that barn for—get this—$650,000! â€Å"Honey, it seems like old times!† I whooped.) 40. RECYCLE! REVIVE! RERUN! Excuse my exuberance, but something is finally happening out there—something positive, something good. People are separating their garbage. They’re using biodegradable, ecologically safe, recyclable and reusable materials. Everything old is new again! (When my ex-wife and I decided to re-marry, I suggested a â€Å"Save the Earth† clause be added to our pre-nuptial agreement. â€Å"We have to talk,† she said, showing great interest at the time.) 41. MOVE TO THE COUNTRY. Inherit the land again. That’s what we did. Bought forty-three acres in Upstate New York. It’s a working farm, where my wife can go out to the barn and milk the cows, pick out the freshest eggs and knit our clothes from the wool she shears from our very own sheep. (And I can finish this book!)

Bonnie and Clyde Essays

Bonnie and Clyde Essays Bonnie and Clyde Paper Bonnie and Clyde Paper At first glance Bonnie and Clyde is a story of crime involving two equal parts, but after some examination it is clear that the film is very much a story exclusively about the character of Bonnie. Clyde and other characters act as foils for Bonnie and never fully develop in the same way that she does. Bonnie evolves as the story progresses, and although she is very masculinized, her initial immaturity dissipates with her characters confusion of gender identity. The film opens with an extreme close up of Bonnie putting lipstick on her lips, a very deliberate idea of femininity. However, she is bored and aimlessly wanders around her room naked; she peers outside and sees Clyde attempting to steal her mothers car. She confronts him and ultimately she is convinced to go with him to lead a life of freedom and excitement. Her role as the woman perpetuates her fascination with Clydes reckless masculine quality but the role becomes unnecessary and extraneous after he admits that he is impotent, or not much of a lover boy. She eventually accepts her role as equal companion to Clyde in his endeavors and becomes very satisfied with such. For instance, when trouble starts to brew Clyde warns Bonnie that she aint going to have a minutes peace, to which she simply responds, You promise? Later, in her foreshadowing poem that she reads to Clyde, shes admits to her self that death is the only means by which she will be relieved of the burdens of the life of crime she has chosen. Clyde in turn becomes excited by the poem realizing how their story would become legendary with its printing; his sexual ineptness is evidently cured and all of a sudden he wants to marry Bonny in the next scene. This is the most telling scene of Bonnies transformation back to a character that wants a civilized life; she asks Clyde if he would do anything differently if they could have it all back. Bonnie is noticeably disappointed when he responds superficially and without any regard to a different lifestyle which Bonnie now longs for. Bonnie is also significantly foiled against the films other female character, Bucks wife Blanche. Bonnie is very assertive and lively whereas Blanche is reserved and polite in the scene when they meet each other. Bonnie is quick to grab Clydes gun and pose in front of the car in a very masculine way for the camera. Blanche doesnt want her picture taken at all, and when its done anyway, it is just of her and Buck with their arms around each other. By this point in the film Bonnie is at her peak of masculine quality, she is surprised and disgusted at how reserved and manner-aware Blanche seems to be. When the gang is in the cabin and the police confront them, Bonnie responds as quickly as the three men do fend themselves off from the police officers. Blanche proceeds to only scream and run away from the loud guns and, as they escape, Blanche is practically left behind until she frantically runs after the vehicle; Bonnie is clearly one of the guys, a true part of the gang and Blanche is only an afterthought even to her husband Buck. Additionally, Bonnies character is the only one in the film that is shown as having a family who she wants to be with, with the exception of Buck and Clyde. C. W. Moss foils Bonnie in the sense that his father plays a significant role in the film, but he doesnt go to him until he needs help, and it is in the best interest of the whole gang. Bonnie longs to see her mother, an indication that she may miss her old life; it may have been boring but it was also meaningful and safe. She slowly become dissatisfied with the life she hastily chose when she met Clyde. She does go home to her mother with everyone but only after trying to run away from the gang in order to do so; she has become so dissatisfied with the life that she doesnt even bother to warn Clyde of her departure, not wanting to bring the gang into her family atmosphere. Both C.W. Moss father and Bonnies mother are disapproving of their behavior, but whereas Mrs. Parker reaffirms Bonnies need for something more, old man Moss feelings of Bonnie and Clyde and their way of life only causes C. W. Moss anger and a lack of understanding. Bonnie Parker is slowly transformed from restless female to a gun shooting, money loving, masculinized character. By the end of the film it is too late for her to transform back despite wanting nothing more; she realizes that any life with Clyde would be a nomadic life of crime and must accept her fate as a gangster as she wrote about it in her own poem. Ironically, Bonnie is the only character who both wants out of the life, but also realizes that such an opportunity is an impossibility.

Understanding SAT Scores What Do They Mean

Understanding SAT Scores What Do They Mean SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips You got your SAT score back, and you're not sure what to think of it. What does your SAT score mean? What does your SAT score measure? Is your SAT score high? Is it low? Will it get you into the college you hope to attend? I'll answer all of these questions below so you can start understanding SAT scores. What Does the SAT Measure? The SAT is supposed to measure your readiness for higher education and be a prediction of future academic success, thoughwhether it does measure so is debatable. There aremany smart, successful people, who don't do very well on the SAT. The SAT began as an Army IQ test, which was slightly altered and given as a college admissions test for the first time in 1926. However, the SAT did not become widespread until 1933, when the Harvard president began using it to judge scholarship applicants because he thought it was an accurate predictor of academic potential. By the 1940s, the SAT was the standard test among college applicants and was given to over 300,000 people in the US. What do SAT scores mean nowadays? Colleges continue to use the SAT because they see it and the ACT as â€Å"equalizers.† While every high school student across the country received a different education, all applicants take the SAT or ACT. Right or wrong, admissions officers see it as a fair way to compare students from across the globe. While what the SAT measures is debatable, the purpose of an SAT score isn’t. The purpose of your SAT score is to get you into college, so you should understand your SAT score in terms of how it can help you do that. How Does Your SAT Score Compare? SAT Score Range To understand your score, you need to know the range of possible SAT scores. If you already took the SAT or are taking the SAT this fall (2015), the composite scores can range from 600 to 2400. If you are taking the new SAT in spring 2016 or later, the composite scores can range from 400 to 1600. The average composite SAT score in the US is typically around 1500 (on the 2400 scale) though it varies slightly from year to year. The worst possible score (old test 600, new test 400) is very rare; only 374 students got this score in 2014, which is fewer than the 583 thatgot perfect scores (old test 2400, new test 1600). What’s a Good SAT Score in That Range? While we would all love a perfect score, it's unnecessary for most applicants. A good score for you depends on what college you hope to attend.To figure out if your score is â€Å"good† in terms of your target schools, search â€Å"[College Name] SAT.† That search should lead you to what's known as the Freshman Admit Profile. The name may vary slightly from school to school, but you should be able to find what's known as the 25th/75th percentile or the average SAT. The 25th percentile SAT score means that 25% of admits scored at or below (in other words, 75% of admitted applicants scored above). The 75th percentile SAT means that 75% of admits scored at or below (or 25% of admits scored above). The average SAT is an average of all of the admits’ SAT scores. A good score for that school is at or above the 75th percentile SAT score. If you reach that score and have a strong transcript and application, you'll have a great chance of getting in. For schools that only give the average SAT, I recommend aiming for a score 100 points higher than the average to ensure you are in the top 25% of students. Why should you aim for a higher score? In writing this, I'm assuming you are a typical applicant with no special qualification (recruited athlete, legacy, child of a significant donor, or a unique talent like a famous painter). Schools often accept students with special qualifications with lower scores. I think you should assume those students may account for as many as 25% of admits. If you're not one of those students, you want a higher SAT score to stand out, so aim for the 75th percentile or above. For further explanation, check out What is a good SAT score? A bad SAT score? An excellent SAT score? Should You Retest? How Many Times? If you did not meet the 75th percentile or above for your school of choice, I recommend retesting.However, you shouldn't take the SAT more than six times. If you haven't achieved your target score after three or four attempts, you're not preparing properly. You need to have a dedicated study plan to reach your goal. Check out one of our guides for sophomores, juniors, and seniors to creating an SAT study plan. Also, consider hiring an SAT tutor, taking an SAT class, or enrolling in an online SAT prep program such as PrepScholar. 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3 Disagreements About How to Use Either and Neither

3 Disagreements About How to Use Either and Neither 3 Disagreements About How to Use â€Å"Either† and â€Å"Neither† 3 Disagreements About How to Use â€Å"Either† and â€Å"Neither† By Mark Nichol Use of either and neither, and their associated words or and nor, is complicated by disagreements about proper usage. Here’s a discussion of the words and the opinions about their appropriate use. An â€Å"either . . . or† or â€Å"neither . . . nor† construction can include more than two elements, but some grammar guides advise writers to restrict the usage to reference to two choices: â€Å"I’m going to wear either blue or green† but not â€Å"I’m going to wear either blue, green, or red.† If you agree with that restriction (I don’t), delete either from the latter sentence and it’s optional in the first one, for that matter. Omitting neither is not an option in the sentence â€Å"I’m going to wear neither blue nor green,† but the idea can also be rendered â€Å"I’m not going to wear blue or green.† The proscription against using or, rather than nor, with neither (â€Å"I was neither here or there† instead of â€Å"I was neither here nor there†) is likewise not absolute, but nor is most common, and in this case I support the restriction. The third divergence is about agreement with a verb. The more restrictive rule is that when either or neither is the subject, or part of the subject, of a sentence or a clause, it should be accompanied by a singular verb: â€Å"I don’t think either of the candidates is qualified.† When two nouns or pronouns are framed by either and or, use a singular verb if the noun or pronoun closest to the verb is singular (â€Å"Either the boys or the girl is responsible†) and a plural verb if the closest noun or pronoun is plural (â€Å"Either the girl or the boys are responsible†) or both nouns or pronouns are plural (â€Å"Either the girls or the boys are responsible†). However, it is common to see a plural verb with either or neither in reference to a sole plural noun or pronoun, as in â€Å"Neither of the parties are willing to compromise.† The more conservative choice is to write â€Å"Neither of the parties is willing to compromise,† and I adhere to that option. Here are several other considerations: When constructing an â€Å"either . . . or† or a â€Å"neither . . . nor† statement, take care to place verbs appropriately. If one verb applies to both choices, place it before the â€Å"either . . . or† phrase: â€Å"She was going to leave either tomorrow or Saturday.† If a separate verb applies to each choice, either should precede the first verb, and or should come before the second one: â€Å"She was going to either leave tomorrow or wait until Saturday.† Also, avoid using a â€Å"not . . . either† phrase, as in â€Å"They will not vote on either the amended proposal or the original one†; revise to a â€Å"neither . . . nor† construction: â€Å"They will vote on neither the amended proposal nor the original one.† Finally, a statement that two things are not true can also be rendered with a â€Å"never . . . nor† construction: â€Å"Their facility had never completed an evaluation nor ever met anyone representing the contracting agency.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Direct and Indirect Objects26 Feel-Good WordsSentence Adverbs

Auteur theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Auteur theory - Essay Example Auteurism, or film analysis based on the idea of a directorial vision, grew out of his ideas. It spread to the United Kingdom, where the review Movie became its first primary practitioner. In the United States, Andrew Sarris introduced it in his 1962 essay â€Å"Notes on the Auteur Theory.† Sarris proposed some minimal requirements for a director to be considered an auteur: the director must demonstrate a level of competence in technique, evoke an individual style in terms of how a movie feels and looks, and even terms of overall theme. His work The American Cinema: Directors and Directions, 1929-1968, earned a reputation as the primary text for auteurism (Auteur theory). Auteurism has had its critics. Pauline Kael of The New Yorker objected to the idea of giving the director so much credit for a project that takes so many people to complete – not just the already mentioned scriptwriter, but the cinematographer as well. Also, auteurism can contribute greatly to the cost s of making a movie, and directors who develop a record of financial losses will not be able to bring a message of any kind to the big screen (Auteur theory). Also, New Criticism challenged auteur theory with its idea of the â€Å"intentional fallacy.† This referred to the idea that the words on a page of literature, or the images on a movie screen, are more important than the intentions of the author, or the intentions of the director. Because each viewer will approach a movie with a unique set of experiences and biases., the director's intention may never filter through the images and reach the mind of the viewer. In any discussion of directors who are considered auteurs, the name of Krzysztof Kieslowski comes to the forefront. Ironically, Kieslowski entered the study of film as a sort of detour on his original career path, which involved a desire to become a theater director. It was only when the College for Theater Technicians lacked a program for theater directors that he decided to study film as well (Krzysztof Kieslowski). Sieglohr posited that an auteur will see national identity as ripe fodder for "investigation and excavation" (Hill (Year) p. ). While Three Colors takes a look at the special significance of the three colors of the French flag, Kieslowski's early work took a look, as well, at the Polish national experience. As he studied film more extensively, he decided to make documentaries rather than directing plays. His first projects focused on the daily routines of workers, soldiers, and other citizens. However, even though Kieslowski's intentions were not to make political statements, even his attempts to depict the lives of Polish citizens realistically ran afoul of the censoring