Pride, Gender, and Inaction in Antigone

Pride, Gender, and Inaction in Antigone Pride, Gender, and Inaction in Antigone The central theme of Sophocles play â€Å"Antigone† is the dilemma that one faces, in adhering to ones own conclusion or to abide by the existing laws of the land. The play highlights the fact that men have been bestowed with independent thinking, and have been blessed with the capacity to analyze situations; Man must therefore consult his mental faculties and think rationally before making a judgment. Therefore, the four major themes of the play Antigone are Pride, Gender, Individual versus State; Conscience versus Law; Divine Law versus Human Law, and Inaction. There is no question that pride, in Antigone, is a trait loathed by the gods, one that is punishable without mercy. Sophocles describes the type of pride that allows men to create laws that substitute for divine principles. When Creon creates a law because he believes it is divine will, it is the ultimate display of punishable pride, for no man can ever form a law that is equivalent to or greater than divine right. Consequently, when Tiresias comes with the news that Creon will be punished, Creon realizes that he has made an awful mistake, and yet still refuses to admit it. Creon bends to the prophets message only because he wants to save his life, not because he knows hes gone too far. As a result, Creon must suffer the loss of his family. Individual versus State, Conscience versus Law, and Divine Law versus Human Law are three major conflicts in Antigone that are closely intertwined. Antigone and her principles pair with the first entity in each conflict, while Creon and his standards line up with the second. Antigone is a risk to the status quo; she invokes divine law as justification for her actions, but is implicit in her position on faith. She sacrifices her life out of devotion to principles higher than human law. Creons position is an understandable one, for example, in the stir of war, and with his reign so new, Creon has to set an example by showing his citizens that his power is supreme. On the other hand, Creons need to triumph over Antigone seems to be tremendously personal. The order of the state is not only at stake after Creons mistake, his sense of self as king is also in peril after his detrimental mistake. Antigones sex has profound effects on the significance of her actions. Creon himself says that the need to conquer her is vital because she is a woman. By refusing to be submissive, Antigone defies one of the basic rules of her society. Ismene is Antigones foil because she is intimidated by the rule of men, she believes that women should be subservient to men. Ismene says that men are stronger, and for that reason must be obeyed. In due course, we see that she has naively bought into the problematic concepts that Creon adopted. When Creon realizes he may be incorrect, he changes his argument, he claims that if he was wrong, he couldnt confess that he was beat by a woman, for that would upset divine law more than reneging on his principles would. It is this original fabrication that Sophocles play seeks to correct, primarily through the retribution the Gods inflict on Creon as a result of his insensitive and sexist thinking. When faced with prejudice, Antigone and Ismene react quite differently. Ismene is not so much frightened of injustice as she is terrified of her own downfall, she cannot bear to incur the fury of men for fear of being damned to the same fate as the rest of her family. After witnessing her father and brothers death, she thinks that the best course of action is to obey. In the case of Ismene, it seems inaction is unified with fear, she then willingly offers to die next to Antigone, at which point we recognize that she is not so much inactive as she is uncertain of her position as a woman. Accordingly, while Ismene is characterized primarily by doubt, Antigone is one who plunges ahead purely on self-confidence and her firm convictions about right and wrong. In the end, its because of these fundamental differences in philosophy that they cannot die as one. In the end, it is apparent that Antigone has received the best reward. Upon her death, she is reunited with her loved ones, her mother, her father, her brothers and even her affianced, Haemon. The fact that Haemon takes his life after Antigones death solidifies the idea that the gods truly are rewarding Antigone. While her family members are already present in the afterlife, her death robbed her of her adored spouse to be and â€Å"Denied [her] part in the wedding songs†¦Ã¢â‚¬  but this rejection is undone upon the death of Haemon. Creon and Ismene, with their narcissistic intentions, are both left alone and are eventually punished for their self-serving actions. While both Creon and Ismene experience the loss of family and must live out their lives in isolation, Creons punishment is fueled by the fact that his community loses admiration for him and soon after, his empire is taken over by a second war, leaving his life in complete ruin. Works Cited Sophocles. â€Å"Antigone.† Literature and the Writing Process. Ed. Elizabeth McMahan, Susan X Day, Robert Funk. 8th Ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice, 2007. 738-773.

Saving Sourdi Summary Essay

Analysis character †Nea of Saving Sourdi† by May-Lee Chai â€Å"Saving Sourdi† by May-Lee Chai, theme discusses a classic plot of the metamorphosis from childhood to adulthood. In her story, the two main characters Sourdi and Nea develop in stark contrast to one another. Nea, the younger sister, has difficulty growing up and maturing as her own life, as well as her sister’s life, progresses. Her naivety, aggression, and anxiety influence her decisions throughout the story in a negative way. Chai’s character is easily believable and relatable, everyone has had a point in their lives where they didn’t want to grow up, handled a situation poorly, or realized that their relationship with someone has changed drastically to the point of no repair. Nea, the protagonist in â€Å"Saving Sourdi†, is a tragic hero. We experience her attempts at protecting her sister and watch as they fail time and time again. Nea is a flat and static character. Throughout the story she does not change, she remains childish in her act ions and decisions. Their mother addresses this issue early on by saying, â€Å"You not thinking. That your problem. You always not think!† (Chai 70) Chai does not show us another side to Nea making her a flat character. We see her in the same light despite the life lessons she experiences in this short story. Nea is the same drastic, hardheaded child in the beginning as she is in the end. Growing and maturing is crucial in life. Some people, however, suffer from a sort of Peter Pan Syndrome. Nea can be described as an impulsive, strong-willed, and selfish adolescent who will never truly grow up. The family has never had it easy, always having to work and tolerate prejudice due to their foreign culture. Nea was forced to become a fighter early on no matter the situation. If she was a mature character, she could distinguish between when it was most sensible to simply avoid confrontation and back down. Nea is extremely protective of Sourdi. Her desire to fend for her â€Å"China Doll† sister (69) is the stem of all her decisions throughout the story. Sourdi is the prettier and more desirable sister. Chai highlights the incongruity of the sisters’ looks by solely depicting Sourdi’s beauty. By depicting Sourdi  as a China Doll so early in the story when the two men are harassing her in the family’s restaurant, Chai sets us up to believe that she needs defending and isn’t strong enough to do it herself. Nea thoroughly believes that is her role in life. As the plot progresses, however, it is easy to see that Sourdi is in fact quite strong and unbreakable. As Nea interacts with the other characters, she is always brash and rarely takes the time to understand their side of a situation. In many cases, she lies to manipulate people and her situation to achieve her selfish goals. Nea fakes her remorse about attacking the customer just to please her sister: â€Å"I was glad I’d stabbed that man. I was only crying because life was so unfair.† (72) When Nea needs to find a way to Sourdi’s home she lies to Duke about the severity of the situation because she knows deep down that it is not as bad as she wants to believe. If Sourdi was in trouble, it would ultimately mean that Nea could get her sister back. Nea fabricates this story to make up for the loss she felt when Sourdi moved on and abandoned her. She would rather believe that it was someone else who caused her sister to mature and move on than to believe it was her own fault or that it was Sourdi’s choice. â€Å"I would stay awake all night pinching the inside of Sourdi’s arm, the soft flesh of her thigh, to keep my sister from falling asleep and leaving me alone.† (72) Although her overall purpose at a glance is for Sourdi’s safety, her true ambition is wanting to keep her sister all to herself. During the story, May Lee Chai Saving Sourdi paints a picture of two extremely close sisters who have been put to the test. The pair has been relocated, put to work, and expected to mature quickly in their harsh new world. Nea is the narrator of the story, and she shares: â€Å"We used to say that we’d run away, Sourdi and me.† (72) The sisters would whisper their secrets back and forth at night, and lock themselves in the bathroom together and hide away together. As children the girls were inseparable but soon the age difference comes between them. Sourdi finds comforts in her first romance with a dishwasher, Duke, and slowly but surely Nea is left by the wayside. This distance is increased when Mr. Chhay is introduced and Nea quickly realizes that her sister is being severed from her life: â€Å"It was the beginning of the end. I should have fought harder then. I should have stabbed this man, too.† (75) In America, everyone is supposed to be equal. People are s upposed to be able to have the â€Å"American Dream† and have a successful career as well as support  a family without any trouble despite race, age, gender, or any other factors. In Ma and Sourdi’s eyes, however, they have seen their traditional culture and are still tied to those beliefs instead. Nea is much more Americanized than the other two women. Ma works very hard to support her children and in an effort to give Sourdi a better life, she makes sure she marries someone who can support her financially instead of someone like Duke who may not be as financially successful. Although she is unhappy, Sourdi understands her role and obeys her elders. Nea, who has been exposed to mostly American culture with little memories of their true roots does not understand this arrangement. As a result, she acts out and rebels against her entire family. The climax of the story occurs when Nea makes a daring attempt at saving her sister’s life. Nea’s irresponsible actions lead to an awkward situation for everyone. Nea refuses to believe that Sourdi is simply a busy woman with a child and a home to care for and immediately jumps to the conclusion that her husband is hurting her in some way. Her over active imagination gets her into trouble. She leaves home without telling her mother, lies to Duke about her true ambitions, blames Mr. Chhay for something he did not do, and creates a huge conflict over a slightly distraught phone call from Sourdi. The moment when Duke punches Mr. Chhay is the cultivation of Nea’s ill thought out plan crumbling before her eyes. Her immaturity caused an easily avoidable confrontation. Near the very end of the story, Chai shares Nea’s insight on her situation. â€Å"Sourdi looked at me then, so disappointed. I knew what she was thinking. She has grown up, and I had merely grown unworthy of her love.† (83) Nea finally realized she was being foolish the whole time. Chai’s protagonist in â€Å"Saving Sourdi†, Nea, is naà ¯ve, impulsive, and brash. She is unchanging and narrow-minded. Nea’s journey seems solely based on saving her sister when in actuality she is trying to find excuses to avoid growing up. The tragic hero fabricates false dangers to compensate her desire to be needed by her sister who has moved on with her life. Nea feels abandoned becausen Sourdi matures while she remains a child. Ma and Sourdi remain connected with traditional customs that Nea simply cannot understand due to her exposure to American culture. Her over active imagination, anxiety, and aggression get her into trouble. When Nea tries to rescue Sourdi from her husband, it is the last straw and she knows that she has lost her dear older sister for good. â€Å"She had made her choice,  and she hadn’t chosen me.† (84) Sourdi has matured and moved on while Nea is stuck in the memories of her childhood. Works Cited Chai, May-Lee. Dragon Chica: a Novel. Boston, Gemma, 2011. Fichter, M. M. et al. â€Å"Anorexia Nervosa in Greek and Turkish Adolescents.† European Archives of Psychiatry and Neurological Sciences, vol. 237, no. 4, 1988, pp. 200–208.

Importance of Effective Teacher Training

Defining Histology and How Its Used

Histology is defined as the scientific study of the microscopic structure (microanatomy) of cells and tissues. The term histology comes from the Greek words histos, meaning tissue or columns, and logia, which means study. The word histology first appeared in a 1819 book written by German anatomist and physiologist Karl Meyer, tracing its roots back to 17th-century microscopic studies of biological structures performed by Italian physician Marcello Malpighi. How Histology Works Courses in histology focus on the preparation of histology slides, relying on previous mastery of anatomy and physiology. Light and electron microscopy techniques are usually taught separately. The five steps of preparing slides for histology are: FixingProcessingEmbeddingSectioningStaining Cells and tissues must be fixed to prevent decay and degradation. Processing is required to prevent excessive alteration of tissues when they are embedded. Embedding involves placing a sample within a supporting material (e.g., paraffin or plastic) so small samples can be cut into thin sections, suitable for microscopy. Sectioning is performed using special blades called microtomes or ultramicrotomes. Sections are placed on microscope slides and stained. A variety of staining protocols are available, chosen to enhance the visibility of specific types of structures. The most common stain is a combination of hematoxylin and eosin (HE stain). Hematoxylin stains cellular nuclei blue, while eosin stains cytoplasm pink. Images of HE slides tend to be in shades of pink and blue. Toluidine blue stains the nucleus and cytoplasm blue, but mast cells purple. Wrights stain colors red blood cells blue/purple, while turning white blood cells and platelets other colors. Hematoxylin and eosin produce a permanent stain, so slides made using this combination may be kept for later examination. Some other histology stains are temporary, so photomicrography is necessary in order to preserve data. Most of the trichrome stains are differential stains, where a single mixture produces multiple colors. For example, Malloys trichrome stain colors cytoplasm pale red, the nucleus and muscle red, red blood cells and keratin orange, cartilage blue, and bone deep blue. Types of Tissues The two broad categories of tissues are plant tissue and animal tissue. Plant histology usually is called plant anatomy to avoid confusion. The main types of plant tissues are: Vascular tissueDermal tissueMeristematic tissueGround tissue In humans and other animals, all tissue may be classified as belonging to one of four groups: Nervous tissueMuscle tissueEpithelial tissueConnective tissue Subcategories of these main types include epithelium, endothelium, mesothelium, mesenchyme, germ cells, and stem cells. Histology may also be used to study structures in microorganisms, fungi, and algae. Careers in Histology A person who prepares tissues for sectioning, cuts them, stains them, and images them is called a histologist. Histologists work in labs and have highly refined skills, used to determine the best way to cut a sample, how to stain sections to make important structures visible, and how to image slides using microscopy. Laboratory personnel in a histology lab include biomedical scientists, medical technicians, histology technicians (HT), and histology technologists (HTL). The slides and images produced by histologists are examined by medical doctors called pathologists. Pathologists specialize in identifying abnormal cells and tissues. A pathologist can identify many conditions and diseases, including cancer and parasitic infection, so other doctors, veterinarians, and botanists can devise treatment plans or determine whether an abnormality led to death. Histopathologists are specialists who study diseased tissue. A career in histopathology typically requires a medical degree or doctorate. Many scientists in this discipline have dual degrees. Uses of Histology Histology is important in science education, applied science, and medicine. Histology is taught to biologists, medical students, and veterinary students because it helps them understand and recognize different types of tissues. In turn, histology bridges the gap between anatomy and physiology by showing what happens to tissues at the cellular level.Archaeologists use histology to study biological material recovered from archaeological sites. Bones and teeth are most likely to provide data. Paleontologists may recover useful material from organisms preserved in amber or frozen in permafrost.Histology is used to diagnose diseases in humans, animals, and plants and to analyze the effects of treatment.Histology is used during autopsies and forensic investigations to help understand unexplained deaths. In some cases, a cause of death may be evident from microscopic tissue examination. In other cases, the microanatomy may reveal clues about the environment after death.