Teaching Students With Special Education Needs Essay

Preparing Teachers to Teach Students with Special Education Needs Who is responsible for teaching students with special educational needs? If this question had been posed 20 years ago, 10 years ago, or even 5 years ago, what would have been the answer? While the answer may once have been the special education teacher, today it is not quite so clear. Within the last four decades there has been a push to include all students in the classroom so that all students are provided the same educational opportunities as their peers. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004) mandates that students are to be taught in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) possible; meaning the general classroom setting with accommodations to help them succeed. Only those students that cannot be successful with assistance in the classroom are pulled out and taught by a special education teacher or aid. Gone are the days where students with disabilities are automatically sent to a room down the hall, out of sight and out of mind of the general classroom teac her. It is almost guaranteed that a general education teacher will encounter a student with disabilities in their classroom (U.S. Department of Education, 2004). Inclusion in education is defined as including all students in the classroom despite race, gender, disability, or any other difference that might exist. Inclusion has become the hallmark of special education as the best option for all students. Currently students thatShow MoreRelatedInclusion Of Students With Mental Disabilities1551 Words   |  7 Pages Inclusive teaching is a term that expresses a commitment to teaching children with physical, mental, and learning disabilities in the classroom they would attend otherwise (to the greatest extent possible). In inclusive schools, support services are brought to the students as opposed to them leaving class to receive the help they require. This paper is going to focus on the inclusion of students with mental disabilities who are usually separated in special education classrooms. For parents and educatorsRead MoreBenefits Of Co Teaching For Students With Special Education1189 Words   |  5 PagesIntegrated Co-teaching is two or more teachers delivering instruction at the same time in the same physical space to a heterogeneous group of students (Friend and Cook, 2004). A student with special needs has the right to a free and appropriate public education. This is mandated under the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA 2004). This law also states that a student should be educated in their least restrict environment. Ideally, this would be the general education classroom. Co-teaching was designedRead MoreCollaborative Teaching And Inclusive Education1495 Words   |  6 PagesSpecial education settings provide an exclusive service to students who are physically or mentally challenged. There are many creative, and innovative teaching approaches and techniques developed these days to facilitate learners with special needs. Focusing to expand their learning outcomes I have decided to choose Collaborative Teaching and Inclusive Education as the most effective evidence-based strategy. As a matter of fact, the unders tandings and mastering of the strategies are crucial beforeRead MoreCareer in Special Education Essay1645 Words   |  7 PagesIn the profession of a special education teacher, a person commits to helping children achieve their best and to help â€Å"students overcome their obstacles† while finding a way that the child can effectively learn (Hollingsworth). My mom’s career as special education teacher for twenty-two years, allows me insight and experience into the tougher aspects of this career, but also the rewards to the job. My mom helps me understand that a special education teacher guides a child to expand their strengthsRead MoreBecoming A Teacher Is Charged With The Responsibility Of Imparting Knowledge And Skills864 Words   |  4 Pagesthe responsibility of imparting knowledge and skills that allow for continued ability of students to impact positively in the world. In the history, CTE teachers bore the responsibility of teaching and preparing students to me et the demands of the labor market (Wang, 2011). My teaching philosophy is aimed at improving teaching and learning methods to allow for acquiring of skills that will give the students a competitive edge in the labor market and ensure job sustainability. My philosophy is inRead MoreSpecial Education And Special Education Teachers1160 Words   |  5 Pagesschool officials, and staff to ensure success for each individual student. Collaborative teaching is successful way to teach and it has many benefits for the student. Special education teachers collaborate with general education teachers, school administrators parents and guardians, and school psychologist. Normally today in most schools, teachers work isolated which means it is one teacher to a classroom. Students with special needs and disabilities back in the day were taught in separate and isolatedRead MoreSpecial Education Teachers Help Develop An Iep1223 Words   |  5 Pages Special Education teachers help develop an IEP, or Individualized Education Program, for each student with disabilities (â€Å"Educating†). The IEP process is evaluation, determination of eligibility, and development (â€Å"Understanding). IEP’s take time to fill out because of the details. Special Education Teachers have to fill one out for each student they have. It is important that IEP’s are filled out properly in order to correctly track each child’s individual progress. Some IEP’s can be ten throughRead MoreSchools In The Present-Day Society Are Constantly Shifting1294 Words   |  6 Pagesenactment of inclusion is heavily connected by all students, teachers and pa rent’s attitudes whether they are voiced positively or negatively. Even though inclusion in classrooms is growing rapidly, there is little data to support its effectiveness. The lack of evidence may be because inclusion is beneficial to a child s social and reading skills more so than any other area. To have inclusion implemented correctly is important for the teaching staff, parents and school administrators to learn theRead MoreCo Teaching As A Teacher1513 Words   |  7 Pagesfull of students in desks being taught by one teacher will usually come to mind. But a new style of education known as co-teaching is become increasingly popular. Co-teaching is an umbrella term that involves many similar but different methods of instruction, but they all have one thing in common: two teachers in the same classroom at the same time. One might think that two teachers helping instruct students at the same time would create chaos, but this is definitely not the case. Co-teaching is a st yleRead MoreSpecial Needs : Teaching Needs1573 Words   |  7 PagesTeaching Special Needs What I Already Know / What I wanted to Know â€Å"Well, I only became a special needs teacher because all the teachers that your father had when he was in school all told him that he will never learn to read after he was diagnosed with severe dyslexia. So when he was put in special needs for his dyslexia, I started going to school to become a special needs teacher.† my grandmother told me. This made me start to wonder why he couldn’t just stay in the normal classroom and have just

Essay on Evolution versus Creationism - 810 Words

Evolution versus Creationism Evolution is a theory that’s based on science and more detailed evidence while Creationism is a faith-based theory. In no way is faith, a factor that influences the ideas and theories supported by scientists. As such, you really cannot compare one to the other; you have to just choose which one you believe is true although it is possible to believe in both at the same time. Since the beginning of human life, there has been a single question that has puzzled even the greatest of philosophers and scientists. Humans are, by nature, interested in their past. As a result every civilization through out time has sought to find the origin of life, and answered it to meet their needs. Early civilizations taught†¦show more content†¦Charles Darwin’s theory was expanded later to a larger scale, to proclaim that life has evolved from hydrogen that was present at the birth of the universe into all living things currently found on Earth. As with the theories and beliefs of early cultures, Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution must meet the same requirements in order to be viewed as plausible and believable. If the theory is logically based, mathematically supported, and there is either evidence promoting the theory, or a lack of evidence contrary to the theory it is accepted as a possible theory that explains life’s origins. However, Charles Darwin’s theory fails to meet any of the regulations placed before it. Logically the concept of a living organism emerging from something that is non-living is challenged greatly from the scientific community. A community that insists life must come from life, just as motion must come from motion. Just as a bowling ball is incapable of rolling without a force being applied, a rock is incapable of giving birth to an amoeba. The Second Law of Thermodynamics states â€Å"that left to it’s own devices, that is without interference by something else, any living being will break down into its simplest forms, in direct opposition to the theory of evolution that proposes that living beings will change and gain in complexity over time†. (Kylce) The mathematical opposition is equally hindering to the theory evolution. AccordingShow MoreRelatedUnderstanding Darwin s Theory Of Evolution1342 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"Evolution is the fundamental idea in all of life science – in all of biology,† claims Bill Nye. Creation versus evolution is a controversial subject. Is creation a reliable model of origins to teach children in today’s scientific era? Where I stand on it is no it is not a reliable model. The reasons that evolution is a reliable model and creation is not a reliable model of origins are because the belief in religion is decreasing, court cases, and the possibility of teaching both in school. To giveRead More Creationism vs. Evolution Essays1663 Words   |  7 PagesCreationism vs. Evolution This paper will focus on the huge controversy between Creationism and Evolution. I will provide two opposing viewpoints on this subject. First, the discussion will focus on the question of why many people believe that God created the universe and all living things. On the other end of the spectrum, scientific information will be presented that substantiates the evidence against the existence of God. This creationism counter-argument known as evolution has itsRead MoreShould Intelligent Design and/or Creationism Be Taught Alongside Evolution in Public Schools?641 Words   |  3 Pagesshould be taught alongside evolution in public schools, which has been going on for a great amount of years. Intelligent design is the idea of natures changes cannot be a random process, but a type of guidance must have lead to why nature is the way it is in today’s era. In most cases, that specific guidance is God. God has created the world for a purpose. Creationism is the same idea as intelligent design, believing that nature was created by a divine being, God. Evolution is the idea of natural selectionRead MoreThe Effects Of Clinical Depression On An Individual s Dreaming1485 Words   |  6 Pagesprocess which alters how they perceive and store certain stimuli. The only sociological factors that would relate to this topic would be the different things that go on in different people’s lives. I think that the most prominent side of the nature versus nurture debate in terms of this topic is nurture. Although we all dream by nature, the Continuity Hypothesis deals with the day-to-day experiences of the dreamer, which relates to nurture because of the differing backgrounds and lifestyles betweenRead MoreThe Origin Of Life And Evolution1744 Words   |  7 PagesGallup Institute in 2004 showed that an approximate of 42% of Americans believe that humanity was created by God, 18% believe in an evolution directed by God, and only 26% of them support Darwin’s theory. In Great Britain, a survey performed by BBC to a 2000 people sample found that 52% said to believe in non Darwinian explications for the origin of life and evolution. In a more recent survey done in 34 countries by Science magazine, which included the United States of America, Japan and 32 EuropeanRead MoreEvolution Through the Influence of God1605 Words   |  7 Pagesand Biblical moralities, the intellige nt design theory was established to accommodate believers in the divine Christ and the theory of evolution. This group believes that evolution is occurring, but that God created the start of all life. There are three main notions of the origin of life, evolution, creationism, and intelligent design. The first theory, evolution, explains how life on Earth formed and how organisms adapted through generations. Scientists have studied the theory for years and haveRead MoreWhy Creationism Should Be Taught919 Words   |  4 Pagesentitled â€Å"Why creationism should be taught in schools.† As can be ascertained from the title, the author’s position is that the theory of creation should be taught in schools alongside evolutionary studies. She writes the essay with a sure and almost condescending tone, making certain claims out of context in addition to using faulty logic in what I personally see as an attempt to confuse the reader about the view opposite her own. She begins her essay by discussing how teaching creationism has beenRead MoreCreationism vs. Evolutionism in Public Schools1538 Words   |  7 PagesDebate: Creationism vs. Evolution in Schools: 1st Affirmative Constructive Speech Creationism and Evolutionism by definition are very different topics. Currently, evolutionary naturalism is the most widely taught view of origins in America. In schools in the modern day, only evolutionism is taught and condoned. But before the 1920s, only creationism was taught, and evolution was forbidden. Then, on February 20, 2008, the Florida State Board of Education voted to revise the public school guidelinesRead MoreThe Debate Between Evolution and Creationism1648 Words   |  7 Pagesthe question was posed as to what is the debate between creationism vs. evolution consist of, the thought that it is ‘â€Å"God did it† vs. â€Å"Natural processes did it,†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Scott, 2004) may arise. Science cannot absolutely prove or disprove Creation or Evolution. Yet scientist and the remainder of society use creationism and evolution to prove our existence. Creationist believe in the Christian account of the origin as recorded in Genesis. Creationism is the bel ief that statements such as â€Å"In the beginningRead MoreEssay on Creationism vs. Evolution: How did it really happen?1163 Words   |  5 PagesCreationism vs. Evolution: How did it really happen? Ever since 1859 and the publication of On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin1, his first publication of his observations, much debate has come about concerning the issue of how life on earth came to be. Both the Creationists and Evolutionists believe in the Big Bang theory of creation of life; however, the mechanism for the development of new life provides the conflict. Evolutionists believe the cause of life on earth to be accidental

Formal Email Policy Business Process

Question: Write about Formal Email PolicyforBusiness Process. Answer: Introduction The email has revolutionized the business process all over the world. The organizations conduct most of their business activity through email. The most advantageous about this electronic medium is the speed of sending a message irrespective of the distance between the sender and the receivers. With the growing competition in the world, it is most important to have information and act accordingly. A business email contains information or news related to the business, which enable the employers to communicate with the workers effectively. The purpose of this paper is to research and produce a report on the development of formal email policy of an organization. Firstly it will be discussed why the organization should develop a formal email policy. It will also identify the issues around the email use in an organization. The report will also mention the benefits of a formal email policy. The report will also focus on describing how the policy should be implemented or enforced in the orga nization. The report will focus on the email policy of a renowned IT company IBM. Analysis Need for Formal Email Policy There are several reasons for a company to develop email policy. By developing this policy, a company can prevent email threats. It ensures that the employees are conscious about the corporate rules and instructions. This is developed to protect the organization against hacking and confidential leaks and to reduce the legal responsibility (Pardo and Schneider 2014). Any kind of misconduct can be prohibited by an email policy. It helps to avoid legal liability of the company. Email policy is necessary to inform the employees regarding the email etiquette to ensure that the company communicates in a professional manner. The email policy is also required to inform the employees that the higher authority is monitoring their emails. It is necessary to inform the employees that if they send or forward an email that contains any defamatory; offensive and racist contents then the employee and the company will be liable. Email policy is also required to let the users know if any confidential data is shared; or if any one copy and paste any message without permission then the sender and the company will be liable for infringement of copyrights (Wideman 2014). Hence, it is important for the users of business email id, to know the legal risks associated with the business emails. Since thepolicy for formal emailsare published, it is perceived that the users are well aware of the legal requirements of using that email ID. Hence, knowing the consequences, the formal legal policies prohibit the employee to forward any message without the senders consent. The formal email policy also required to be developed to prohibit the employees to use another employees official email account. The email policy is also important to develop to make sure that official id is not used for any other purposes. IBM is one of the largest information technology companies. The product of IBM includes software and hardware for a range of business servers. It has developed microchip; PC etc but it has gained its dominant position through its section of Information Technology. The company operates all over the world with a huge numbers of employees, around 377,757 as on 2015. Hence, email is an important way of communicating with millions of employees regularly. The company has to deal with several kinds of issues like employee satisfaction and the well-being of the company as well. This IT division of this giant company deals with different clients in assisting them in IT solution. Therefore, it holds lot of confidential data. Hence, it is necessary to develop email policy to make the employees aware of sharing data (IBM 2014). Email policy is also required to develop so that the employees can use it properly as a harmless means of communication. The need for formal email policy is necessary fo r IBM to make sure that the employers use this electronic tool in an effective; responsible and lawful manner. It is possible that any outsider can send any attachment or link in order to hack for getting information regarding the company. Therefore, formal email policy aware employees about not to click on links if it looks suspicious. It may contain viruses or phishing contents asking for personal financial details. The IBM is concern about its employees. Hence, in order to look after the interest of the employees and to keep them safe from any kind of cyber-crime, it is necessary for IBM to develop a formal email policy(RiskSupport.org.au 2014). The email policy of IBMinforms regarding all legal and safety aspects to the employees or the users; thus employees can avoid risks simply by following the guidelines of this policy. By this way, the employees can IBM can protect the organization from potential danger. Issues for Using Email Though email is a quick and cost-effective method of communication, there are significant issues thatcan be arose due to using emails in an organization. Email does not develop any personal connection between the sender and the receivers. Written messages may not convey the actual message to the employees. Sometimes the meanings can be misinterpreted, as the reader of the message cannot see the facial expression of the sender. The humor; sarcasm or strong emotion cannot be conveyed through emails. In addition to this, the using of wrong punctuation; upper case letters; highlight of text may convey wrong messages to the recipients. It is important for a business to develop relationship with the employees or with the coworkers to work as a team. Communicating through business emails is not effective to creating a proper business atmosphere. Another problem related to the business email is that information is overloaded. Too many emails take occupy huge and unnecessary time of the worke rs. Not only the office time but also the personal time is taken out of their lives. Some business houses have recognized the disadvantages of information overload. Using emails in workplace may waste the time of the employees. Employees can spend unnecessary time in sending personal notes or jokes around the co-workers. Therefore, email causes distraction in work(Martin and Nakayama 2013). Employees get addicted to sending personal emails or in checking emails numerously. Uses of emails in business may cause severe mismanagement in the system. This is when the employees do not read the email. Suppose, the top management has delivered some news or ordered something to do, but due to technical issues, the employees do not receive the email. They will fail to amend the task without knowing what has been conveyed. If the task is urgent, then failing to amend it may cause severe loss to the business. Therefore, disconnection of internet connection may lead to no exchange of news or mess ages, which may affect the operation of the company. Spam or viruses is a major issue of using business email. The PCs or the laptop in the workplace can be damaged because of receiving spam or viruses in the emails. This may destroy crucial informational data of the employee (Jackson and Russell 2015). This will hamper their work in progress anddetrimental to the companys performance. The sensitive information can be shared easily via email, no matter whether it is deliberately or accidentally but the after effect is the same. Using business email might be problematic for the employees, as the upper management monitors the account randomly. Any kind of personal email is accessible by the higher authority, hence contents of business emails do not have privacy. Benefits of Formal Email Policy In spite of several drawbacks of using business emails, the uses is not restricted or prohibited by the company, rather the significance of using business email is growing its importance day by day. The major reason behind this is that the speed of this communication tool. Email can be sent and received instantly. The information is disseminated very fast. Through email, single message can be reached to number of employees of an organization. anyone from the hierarchy can send message to the employees and any employee can communicate to the higher authority of a company. Therefore, emails help to bridge the gap between the workers and the management. Moreover, by communicating with the employees, the managers or the director of a company can get feedback on the service provided to the customers or regarding the work culture they are getting or about any grievances against the management or co-workers (Icaew.com 2014). Through email, an employee can share confidential information rele vant to the management. The business is not operating in the single city or in a single country. It may have operations globally. Hence, it is not possible to communicate verbally with all employees around the world. Therefore, through email information can be shared with everyone. Business email is not only used for communicating with the management and workers; it also help to communicate easily with the customers of the company. Through email, a business can target its audiences. The sales department of the company can approach to the consumer through emails. In addition to this, the customer can also send their feedbacks or requirement or any kind of complaints to the companys official email id. They can solve their problem by interacting through emails with the customer support team (Kalia, Nezhad, Bartoliniand and Singh 2013). The business email is sent free of cost and creating email account does not charge any costs. It just requires internet access. Email keeps record perma nently. Therefore, if some data is lost, which was once came through email; it can be retrieved easily. Moreover, the messages and replies are also remained saved in email, which can be required for any future references. Implementation or Enforcement of Email Policy Email policy of an organization can be enforced or implemented by providing training to the users. Employees should be trained regularly. The companys management should help the users by informing about the effective emails. It must also be mentioned that the offensive comment or jokes can be harmful for them. The use distress to them employees are made understood that offensive remarks can be abusive to other people that might cause distress to them (Davis 2015). Through training, they are informed that they should not click on unknown links asking personal details. The formal email policy can also be implemented by dealing with the prompt and necessary action when any employee complains about offensive mail. The internal procedures of the company should allow investigation regarding the complaints. The policy can be implemented by engaging he employees themselves in detecting the inappropriate content of email (Paczkowski, Parsel, and Rajagopal 2015). By implementing the email poli cy in the companies, the legal cost of the company can be reduced. The supervisor should arrange meeting within 10 days of hearing complaint. Moreover, by monitoring the email, it can be ensured that no policies are being breached. Email policies can be enforced by blocking the unwanted messages or contents from email. The wrong pattern of using business email can be lessen and email policy can be followed properly. By penalizing the employee who misuses the business email, the policy can be strictly enforced. The organization can includeemployees suggestion while making an email policy. They can also take legal advice while formulating the policy. Moreover, the policy should be applied to each level of hierarchy by making same rule for everyone (Cornwalls.com.au. 2010). Moreover, the company should revise the email policywhen necessary andwith any changes that might impact the liability of the company. Conclusion In the above discussion, the report has been made regarding the formal email policy in an organization.The report has discussed the why its is necessary for IBM to develop formal email policy. In this report it has discussed the benefits of using business email in an organization. The problem related to using email for business purpose has also been taken into consideration. This report has also discussed the ways in which the formal email policy can be enforced or implemented properly. It has been identified that using of business email hassignificant importance; however, there are some major loopholes. To make aware of the risks associate with the use of email in business, the formal email policy should be developed. By training and taking instant action, the email policy can be enforced properly in an organization. References Cornwalls.com.au. (2010).The Benefit of Workplace Policies when Communicated Effectively and Applied Consistently :: Cornwall Stodart Lawyers. [online] Available at: https://cornwalls.com.au/sharing-knowledge/legal-updates/the-benefit-of-workplace-polices-when-communicated-effectively-and-applied-consistently.aspx [Accessed 3 Jun. 2016]. Davis, J.B., 2015. What to Consider When Handling Company Vs. Private Email.policy. ibm.com. (2014).IBM Acceptable Internet use policy for IBM services - United States. [online] Available at: https://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/imc/html/aup1.html [Accessed 4 Jun. 2016]. Icaew.com. (2014).An email policy for your employees. [online] Available at: https://www.icaew.com/~/media/corporate/files/library/collections/online%20resources/briefings/directors%20briefings/hr36empo.ashx [Accessed 3 Jun. 2016]. Jackson, T. and Russell, E., 2015. Four email problems that even titans of tech haven't resolved.The Conversation. Kalia, A., Nezhad, H.R.M., Bartolini, C. and Singh, M., 2013.Identifying business tasks and commitments from email and chat conversations. Technical Report HPL-2013-4, HP Laboratories. Martin, J.N. and Nakayama, T.K., 2013.Experiencing intercultural communication.McGraw-Hill Higher Education. Paczkowski, L.W., Parsel, W.M. and Rajagopal, A., Sprint Communications Company LP, 2015.Trusted policy and charging enforcement function. U.S. Patent 9,066,230. Pardo, R. and Schneider, G., 2014. A formal privacy policy framework for social networks. InSoftware Engineering and Formal Methods(pp. 378-392). Springer International Publishing. RiskSupport.org.au. (2014).Developing an Email Usage Policy. [online] Available at: https://risksupport.org.au/resources/Documents/Developing%20an%20Email%20Usage%20Policy%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf [Accessed 4 Jun. 2016]. Wideman, R.B., , 2014.Messaging Policy Controlled Email De-Duplication. Quantum Corporation. U.S. Patent Application 14/515,705.

The Pursuit of Happyness Review Essay Example

The Pursuit of Happyness Review Essay The Pursuit of Happyness Review The pursuit of happyness is by Gabriele Muccino, and it is an amazing movie. This movie is an inspirational film based on a true story. It makes me think about a lot of things that I never considered before. Will Smith played a main part in this movie, and he is named Chris Gardner. In the beginning Chris Gardner goes to the hospital by bus every day; the purpose is to sell bone density scanners. His life is very difficult; he always didn’t have enough money to pay his rent. One day, he hears about an opportunity to be a bill broker. He depends on his persistence, eloquence, and a magic cube’s help; he got an opportunity to practice in this company. During this hard time, his wife could not bear their poverty anymore, and she went to New York alone. Gardner and his son lose their home. He perseveres all the time, so in the end of this story, he succeeds. This is a believable movie because it is based on a true story. Gardner is a real person, and this story really happened. If it was an imaginary story, it would not make people think such things can really happen. His life has plenty of difficulties after his wife leaves him; he and his son are homeless. We will write a custom essay sample on The Pursuit of Happyness Review specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Pursuit of Happyness Review specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Pursuit of Happyness Review specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Even though life is terrible, he never gives up. This movie has a lot of inspirational dialogue. One day, he plays basketball with his son. His son says he like basketball very much, and wanted to a famous basketball star. Gardner said to his son, â€Å"Don’t ever let somebody tell you, you can’t do something, not even me. † This dialogue in this film that makes people felt a father’s love, and it is the point impressive people. Chris Gardner says a word before, and it might be struck people. He said, â€Å"I’m the type of person, if you ask me a question, and I don’t know the answer, I’m go to tell you that I don’t know. But I bet you what: I know how to find the answer, and I will find the answer. † Because his spirit, he succeeds in the end. It is tell us a correct attitude is very important to our whole life. If we have a good attitude, we would succeed in the end. Having a goal is very important, Chris Gardner says, â€Å"If you have a dream, you must protect it. You also need to get it. † It could make people know that we must have a goal because it is a way to make you succeed. There are a lot of truths in this story, and this is a bright spot in this movie. The film is thought-provoking. Stereotypes about homelessness are challenged as viewers encounter someone who, despite his intelligence and hard work, becomes homeless. They see that there are children who are homeless. The film shows the plight of the homeless realistically: help is available, but it’s not enough help. Gardner and his son queue up at different places that take homeless people. Those scenes make people know what homelessness is really like. This movie is a very good movie for me, and I learned a lot from this movie. I can see how to get succeed. I know the chance to others, but to rely on themselves to grasp. It is a classical movie.

Sensorship essays

Sensorship essays There is a general consensus among social scientists that television violence increases the propensity to real-life aggression among some viewers. Recent studies conducted have shown evidence of television influencing people many different ways. One subject most often brought up is that the media as a whole encourages or influences violence. The TV is an influential tool which affects a wide variety of people. There are a three basic theories involved in the social learning theory. Top government studies have shown that violent material is popular;" This information according to the surgeon generals scientific advisory committee on television and social behavior. One leading social psychologist flatly states that evidence suggests that violence on television is potentially dangerous, in that it serves as a model for behavior, especially for small children or toddlers. Toddlers seem to be very prone to the influences of televised violence. There are many reasons for this. One reason being that, by the time infants are three months of age they can actively pay attention to an operating television set when placed in front of one by a parent or an authority figure. This was later proven by a case study conducted by the Japanese Government which was called The potential effects on infants of watching televised violence. The case studies conclusions were that toddlers are capable of learning verbal and nonverbal behaviors from aggressive or violent programs. They are also capable of imitating both what they see, and what they hear on the television. This is evidenced by children in the study under the age of two, who could recite complete phrases from soft drink commercials. It is believed that toddlers can do this because of their rapid learning abilities, and that their brain capacity is much larger at a young age. There are suggestions to prevent toddlers or young children f...

Understanding the Significance of Pandoras Box

Understanding the Significance of Pandora's Box A Pandoras box is a metaphor in our modern languages, and the proverbial phrase refers to a source of endless complications or trouble arising from a single, simple miscalculation. Pandoras story comes to us from ancient Greek mythology, specifically a set of epic poems by Hesiod, called the Theogony and Works and Days. Written during the 7th century BC, these poems relate how the gods came to create Pandora and how the  gift Zeus gave her ultimately ends the Golden Age of humankind. The Story of Pandoras Box According to Hesiod, Pandora was a curse on mankind as retribution after the Titan Prometheus stole fire and gave it to humans. Zeus had Hermes hammer the first human woman- Pandora- out of the earth. Hermes made her lovely as a goddess, with the gift of speech to tell lies, and the mind and nature of a treacherous dog. Athena dressed her in silvery clothing and taught her weaving; Hephaestus crowned her with a marvelous golden diadem of animals and sea creatures; Aphrodite poured grace on her head and desire and cares to weaken her limbs. Pandora was to be the first of a race of women, the first bride and a great misery who would live with mortal men as companions only in times of plenty, and desert them when times became difficult. Her name means both she who gives all gifts and she who was given all gifts. Never let it be said that Greeks had any use for women in general. All the Ills of the World Then Zeus sent this beautiful treachery as a gift to Prometheus brother Epimetheus, who ignored Prometheuss advice to never accept gifts from Zeus. In the house of Epimetheus, there was a jar- in some versions, it too was a gift from Zeus- and because of her insatiable greedy womans curiosity, Pandora lifted the lid on it. Out from the jar flew every trouble known to humanity. Strife, sickness, toil  and myriad other ills escaped from the jar to afflict men and women forever more. Pandora managed to keep one spirit in the jar as she shut the lid, a timid sprite named Elpis, usually translated as hope. Box, Casket or Jar? But our modern phrase says Pandoras box: how did that happen? Hesiod said the evils of the world were kept in a pithos, and that was uniformly employed by all Greek writers in telling the myth until the 16th century AD. Pithoi are huge storage jars that are typically partly buried in the ground. The first reference to something other than a pithos comes from the 16th-century writer Lilius Giraldus of Ferrara, who in 1580 used the word pyxis (or casket) to refer to the holder of evils opened by Pandora. Although the translation was not exact, it is a meaningful error, because a pyxis is a whited sepulcher, a beautiful fraud. Eventually, the casket became simplified as box.   Harrison (1900) argued that this mistranslation explicitly removed the Pandora myth from its association with All Souls Day, or rather the Athenian version, the festival of Anthesteria. The two-day drinking festival involves opening wine casks on the first day (the Pithoigia), releasing the souls of the dead; on the second day, men anointed their doors with pitch and chewed blackthorn to keep the newly released souls of the departed away. Then the casks were sealed again. Harrisons argument is bolstered by the fact that Pandora is a cult name of the great goddess Gaia. Pandora is not just any willful creature, she is the personification of Earth itself; both Kore and Persephone, made from the earth and rising from the underworld. The pithos connects her to the earth, the box or casket minimizes her importance. The Meaning of the Myth Hurwit (1995) says that the myth explains why humans must work to survive, that Pandora represents the beautiful figure of dread, something for which men can find no device or remedy. The quintessential woman was created to beguile men with her beauty and uncontrollable sexuality, to introduce falsehood and treachery and disobedience into their lives. Her task was to let loose all the evils upon the world  while trapping hope, unavailable to mortal men. Pandora is a trick gift, a punishment for the good of Promethean fire, she is, in fact, Zeuss price of fire. Brown points out that Hesiods story of Pandora is the icon of archaic Greek ideas of sexuality and economics. Hesiod didnt invent Pandora, but he did adapt the story to show that Zeus was the supreme being who shaped the world and caused the misery of the human lot, and how that caused human descent from the original bliss of a carefree existence. Pandora and Eve At this point, you may recognize in Pandora the story of the Biblical Eve. She too was the first woman, and she too was responsible for destroying an innocent, all-male Paradise and unleashing suffering ever after. Are the two related? Several scholars including Brown and Kirk argue that the Theogony was based on Mesopotamian tales, although blaming a woman for all the evils of the world is definitely more Greek than Mesopotamian. Both Pandora and Eve may well share a similar source. Sources Edited and updated by K. Kris Hirst Brown AS. 1997. Aphrodite and the Pandora Complex. The Classical Quarterly 47(1):26-47.Harrison JE. 1900. Pandoras Box. The Journal of Hellenic Studies 20:99-114.Hurwit JM. 1995. Beautiful Evil: Pandora and the Athena Parthenos. American Journal of Archaeology 99(2):171-186.Kirk GS. 1972. Greek Mythology: Some New Perspectives. The Journal of Hellenic Studies 92:74-85.Wolkow BM. 2007. The Mind of a Bitch: Pandoras Motive and Intent in the Erga. Hermes 135(3):247-262.

Quantitative Research Article Critique Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Quantitative Article Critique - Research Paper Example Independent and Dependent Variables of the Study For this study, a set of independent variables were initially tested for statistically significant effect on the dependent variable; the dependent variable being the test-taker’s success or failure at first sitting in an NCLEX-RN examination. The independent variables initially tested included SAT / ACT scores, science grade point average (GPA) prior to admission to the nursing program, critical thinking test score, writing portfolio score, individual nursing course grades, number of nursing course failures, all standardized test scores, graduating GPA, and number of semesters taken to complete the nursing program (McGahee, Gramling, & Reid, 2010). Science GPA was taken from the participant’s anatomy, physiology, and chemistry courses; the standardized tests were made up of a critical thinking test, an end of course test for each nursing course, and an RN Assessment test designed to predict NCLEX-RN success; the regular n umber of semesters required to complete the nursing program after completion of general education courses and acceptance into the nursing program was five. ... However, it may be noted that these same variables were not given due operational definitions which resulted in a vague description of how data was quantified in order to represent these variables. Without proper operationalization of the variables, future researchers may have a difficulty replicating such a study (Coughlan, Cronin, & Ryan, 2007). There was not much information on the demographic structure of the participants for this study. Their only qualification was being a graduate of a baccalaureate nursing school over a period of three years between fall 2006 and spring 2009. No information was provided on the participants’ sex, age, race/ethnicity, or socio-economic status. In addition, relevant characteristics of the sampled baccalaureate school were not identified (McGahee, Gramling, & Reid, 2010). Research Design A retrospective correlation design was used for this particular investigation (McGahee, Gramling, & Reid, 2010). As this study looks into possible predicto rs of NCLEX-RN success, the sample was treated as a whole and the independent variables were simply tested on their predictiveness capability, looking into main effects, and interaction effects between and among predictors. One notable discrepancy of this study is that the predictors were not tested for collinearity with each other. Duffy (2005) points out that such a test is necessary in order to filter out the possible redundant effects of certain variables. On the plus side, this study was designed in a similar manner as a number of previous studies as identified in the Review of Literature section. The methodologies used for this study bears similarities with the previous studies except for the specific variables under

How telecommuting can negatively impact innovation at work Essay

How telecommuting can negatively impact innovation at work - Essay Example As Gajendran & Harrison (2007), points out, telecommuting minimizes feedback, coordination, and supervision. One of these alterations is how employees are supervised. For instance, telecommuting removes the employee from the viewing area of the supervisor and impedes the supervisor from being able to observe the performance of the employers directly. For another thing, the employee’s dependence on the supervisor is reduced, employees will have to work out more inventiveness and might have to make extra decisions on their own, because a supervisor will not be available to guide them stage by stage. This can bring effects to the organization whenever employees come up with bad decisions. Moreover, telecommuting reduces in-person contacts if your clienteles are adapted to high-level direct contact with the workers that handle their activities. Additionally, telecommuting reduces the workforce in the office, and this leads to stress in the non-commuting employees. Turetken et al. (2011), states that those workers that stay in the offices tend to feel left out of the advantages of telecommuting, such as flexible hours and feel bitter that their colleagues have the choice of working in a more relaxed place. Also, if there is no update on the communication systems of the organization to replicate a disseminated workforce, the non-telecommuting staff might experience an amplified workload and the weight of the client communication problem. Telecommuters might have a difficult time building and retaining relationships with their co-workers, which might interfere with the overall job satisfaction and productivity. Since relations often lead to confidence and operational collaboration, telecommuting can deteriorate the complete atmosphere. On the other hand, telecommuting can impair teamwork. Workers who usually work together phy sically will require ways to present and review work, specifically on a casual level. Therefore, there might be a depression in productivity

Book Response Burned by Ellen Hopkins Essay Example for Free

Book Response Burned by Ellen Hopkins Essay Burned written by Ellen Hopkins Is a great novel, and worth the time to read. Burned is about a teen girl who was born and raised a Mormon; Pattyn Von Stratten she is like most teenagers growing up. Her family is extremely religious but in the same prospective her father is a drunk and very abusive. Pattyn is tired of living the fairytale of a Mormon lifestyle and ready to be energized with her own free spirit and way of life. Pattyn slowly starts to rebel against her family, school, church. While her father spends most of his time drunk; its left up to her mother to take care of the house hold and make sure everything is all in perfect running order to not upset Pattyn’s father. Pattyn begins rebelling even more so than she thought it would go. She gets suspended from school and gets sent to live with her aunt who she doesn’t even know. This is the beginning of it all the worst mistake her father could have made and where Pattyn makes decisions that are about to change her life completely. Pattyn soon falls in love with a boy names Ethan who she is bound to be attached to. Pattyn doesn’t see it but she is headed down the complete wrong path and when all she wanted is attention she’s going to get much more attention that she has intended to get. Ellen Hopkins is showing the themes of abuse and dysfunctional relationship, Pattyn’s father is an abusive drunk. I also think Hopkins is showing the theme of growing up and finding your destiny and who you are, when Pattyn is sent to live with her aunt in Nevada and basically create a whole new agenda for herself. Along with dysfunctional relationship, she’s displaying what love is like, too, when the character falls in love. I think she’s trying to prove that life doesn’t always go as planned and you have to work yourself around the problems that you find in life, and bad decision could change your life forever. I believe the main purpose of the novel is to reach out to teens. Ellen Hopkins expresses many different themes in her novel but one main theme I believe is im portant is physiological. Pattyn goes through many different stages of growing up and expressing her true self. She becomes more social with guys and becomes more of a social butterfly then the Mormon nerd she used to be. Pattyn lashes out and rebels against her family and church in many different ways. When Pattyn is set to live with her aunt she meets a boy and which she ends up in a relationship. Pattyn starts growing up and learning more about her sexual self and starts dreaming about all the what if’s. Pattyn starts to experiment with her new boyfriend Ethan and when she goes back home she shares the secret to her family that she is pregnant. Attempting to escape her fathers wrath, Pattyn and Ethan take off for California, unaware that Trevor, a perfect Mormon child who loved Pattyn, has written down the cars license plate number. When her father finds out, he calls his Highway patrolman friend to track them down, to find them on an icy road. Ethan speeds up in attempt to lose the patrolman, but loses control of his car and crashes. Pattyn wakes up in the hospital, to find out that both Ethan and their baby are dead. Her father disowns her, unable to bear the recent events. Pattyn is left with a life changing decision in the end; shoot and kill all those who caused her pain and Ethan and their babys deaths, or move on? Pattyn states that if her father would just say he loved her she would spare him. Ellen Hopkins is an amazing author and has a unbelievable way of relating to teens. Burned is just one of her fabulous novels all having a great meaning to the lives of teens. If I was asked if I would recommend Ellen Hopkins novels I would say she has a great way of reach out to teens in her books and educating them in a non-boring way and I enjoy reading and looking forward to any novel she creates.

Influences On Early American L :: essays research papers

It is strange to consider Thomas Jefferson’s writings when speaking on traits of the American. Jefferson never wrote directly on the topic of the general character of the American. It was he, who was more responsible for setting the parameters of a society which would fulfill the ideals of what would become a part of the American character. He knew that liberty and equality could not exist in a hierarchical society. He also was aware that a society which was primarily production oriented, bound together by interdependence on those who controlled the the financial resources would put to much power in the hands of a few. A society of farmers, he believed, could support a society based on individualism and not conformity. This view, read by early Americans, led to the view of the American being an individualist and not a conformist. In order to be considered a nation the people have to be united through a series of common qualities and values. The most important of these is the quality of individualism. To be an individualist ties in all the other essential qualities of being an American such as the right to create your own destiny. The opposite of this value is conformity, an essential trait of those under a hierarchical system such as a monarchy. Conformity is not only seen as a trait of the subservient but also a destroyer of true democracy. Individualism was a trait actual selected for by the very processes which led a certain type of person to come to America. The non-conformists were people who would not allow themselves to be goaded into directions the monarchs of the old world wanted them to follow. This type of person has to be and individualist because a conformist would just remain in the old world content to follow the lead of others. The effect of settling a wilderness also was a contributing factor to the formation of this trait. Being isolated from others and most of the time totally dependent on yourself or the small band to which you belonged for all your needs is very conducive to further development of individualism. This individualism could only thrive in a society such as the one Jefferson conceived. As society develops and the populations become concentrated interdependency grows killing off the independent spirit. As society changed from an agrarian one to production oriented society, starting in the early 1800’s, Americans became dependent on others for things which they no longer produced as a family unit.

Imagery in William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” Essay

In Hamlet, imagery of disease, poison and decay, are used by William Shakespeare for many purposes. Marcellus’ line in Act I illustrates the use of this imagery very well, â€Å"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.† Corruption is rampant, like a contagious disease infecting the court. The atmosphere of disease serves to heighten the audience’s disgust for the events that are taking place in the play. Secondly, disease leads to death, so the diseased society of Denmark is doomed. Because of this sense of doom, there is a slight foreshadowing of the play’s tragic ending. The tragic atmosphere is enhanced by the motif of disease and decay. These descriptions of disease, poison, and decay help us to understand the bitter relationships, the anxious, chaotic atmosphere, and also the emotional and moral decay of the characters existing in the play. The image of decay is first used at the end of Act I to help comprehend the depression Hamlet feels in his first soliloquy about suicide. When Hamlet releases the words â€Å"O that this too sullied flesh would melt, thaw, and resolve itself into a dew,† (I.ii, 129-130) he communicates how he wishes to not exist in this world anymore. An image of Hamlet’s flesh rotting and combining with the soil is produced. At this moment, Hamlet’s true emotions liberate, and his pain and his yearn for death can be felt. Hamlet continues to say â€Å"How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable seem to me all the uses of this world! Fie on’t, ah, fie, ’tis an unweeded garden that grows to seed. Things rank and gross in nature possess it merely.†(I.ii, 133-137) Here, Hamlet feels that the world around him is useless and in constant chaos. By creating these vivid images of death and decay, Shakespeare lets us peer into Hamlet’s soul and recognize his real underlying motivations. Claudius’ relationship with Hamlet is harsh, for he harbors a great hatred for his nephew and even feels threatened and at risk when he is by Hamlet. Claudius says â€Å"But like the owner of a foul disease. To keep it from divulging, let it feed even on the pith of life.†(IV.i, 21-23) Claudius speaks these lines when he is with the queen after the death of Polonius. The King says that he is the owner of a foul disease- Hamlet. The degree to which he despises Hamlet and his goal to prevent him from ruining this new life of his is unveiled. This shows us how endless Claudius’ hatred is  towards Hamlet. Claudius’ extreme anger and frustration is displayed when he says, â€Å"For like the hectic in my blood he rages, And though must cure me.†(IV.iii, 62-63) Claudius describes Hamlet as a vicious disease traveling through his own blood. Hamlet is trapped so deep in the midst of Claudius’ utter hatred of him, that Claudius wants Hamlet dead. Only when Hamlet is gone, Claudius can be cured from this ghastly disease that he suffers. The images of disease express the genuine feelings felt by Claudius. Imagery highlights the poor, horrid relationship that exists between father and stepson, uncle and nephew, king and heir. Shakespeare illuminates Claudius’ true sentiment with these images of disease. Hamlet gravely carries a reciprocal hatred for his uncle who has now become even more connected to him as his step-father and who has also risen in rank to serve as the powerful king of England. Hamlet’s knowledge of Claudius killing his father stems his hatred, therefore Hamlet can not feel anything but disgust and loathing for him. â€Å"Not where he eats, but where ‘a is eaten. A certain convocation of politic worms are e’en at him. Your worm is your only emperor for diet. We fat all creature else to fat us, and we fat ourselves for maggots.†(IV.iii; 19-22) Claudius has just asked Hamlet where Polonius is, and Hamlet replies ever so mockingly by saying he is at dinner. Hamlet killed Polonius and hates Claudius so much that he can even speak of the death of the King’s friend with such vulgarity. By saying â€Å"A man may fish with the worm that hath eat of a king, and eat of the fish that hath fed of that worm,†(IV. iii, 25-26) Hamlet again proves his hatred towards the King. Through his blatant rudeness, Hamlet surprises the King with the fact that even Kings can decay and be eaten. Hamlet’s smart and sneaky comments have underlying meanings that reveal to us his deep, eternal hatred for the king. The images of decay and rotting expose us to Hamlet’s true feelings for the King. The morality of several characters also decay. For example, Gertrude knowingly commits adultery by marrying her husband’s brother only months after his death. Only after Hamlet’s exchange with her in Act III does she appear to feel guilt or remorse for what she has done. Gertrude may be an obviously morally corrupt character, but the center of the play’s evil plots  and true decadence resides in Claudius. Claudius’ list of sins include the murder of his brother and usurp of his kingdom then marriage of his sister-in-law. In Act III he openly admits his guilt and tries to pray for forgiveness but is unable to put his heart into it, showing that he does not truly repent his sins. In addition, Claudius is also a manipulator and a hypocrite. This is revealed in Act IV when Laertes comes to Claudius demanding revenge, and the king builds up Laertes’ rage and directs it towards Hamlet. He plans various conniving schemes such as sending Hamlet to England to unknowingly be executed. When this plot fails, he stoops down even lower as to try to poison him. But Hamlet can be said to deserve some of these instances as punishments, though for Hamlet’s moral character also changes completely through the course of the play. Initially, Hamlet was extremely cautious; he was not sure of the true nature and goodness of the ghost and even doubted if Claudius had actually murdered his father, hence his decision to not act until he was sure, as shown by his â€Å"Rogue and Peasant Slave† soliloquy at the end of Act II. Likewise, at the end of Act III he again puts off killing Claudius because he does not want his father’s murderer to go to heaven, which would occur if he died while praying. Furthermore, Hamlet was once very conscientious, but in Act IV he suddenly stabs Polonius through the drapery, thinking it is Claudius, and from that point his ethics and morality falls rapidly downhill. Finally, he ruthlessly sends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, his old friends and confidants, to their deaths simply for serving the king and also to save himself. His â€Å"How all occasions inform against me† soliloquy in Act IV demonstrates how his priorities have changed too, and he will finally attempt to act in order for revenge and also to preserve his honor. Hamlet speaks of Fortinbras’ bravery and his own cowardice and concludes, â€Å"O, from this time forth, my thoughts be bloody, or be nothing worth!† (IV,iv,65-66) This Hamlet of bloody thoughts and revenge is totally different from the previous Hamlet who once had to be sure that Claudius was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt before his slaughter. In this play moral principles within numerous characters experience a substantial decay. It is evident that Shakespeare uses the imagery of poison, decay and disease to develop and enhance the various conflicts surrounding the play and also  the heavy, disarrayed atmosphere hovering over it. In Hamlet we truly see what a great deal of depth imagery provides us with. The imagery of disease, poison and decay gives us a chance to truly understand the complicated emotions that the characters experience in their mind and soul. The reader perceives the pervasive chaotic mood, helping them to better understand all aspects of this classic work. Also, with the imagery created by Shakespeare, we as readers, can actually comprehend the feelings that are experienced by the characters in Hamlet, that are not always obvious, but remain definitely very important to secure optimum understanding of a great piece of literature.

Nature Writing, and the Problem of Canonical Elision Essay

The research paper is quite possibly the most common assignment in English courses at CGU. For tips on how to approach your research papers, see our brochure on Writing in English Courses. The Paper| The struggle now being waged in the professoriate over which writers deserve canonical status is not just a struggle over the relative merits of literary geniuses; it is a struggle among contending factions for the right to be represented in the picture America draws of itself. (Tompkins 201) In 1850, with the help of her well-known father, James Fenimore Cooper, Susan Fenimore Cooper publishedRural Hours, a natural historical account of one year in the Otsego Lake area of New York state. I mention her father’s name in order to situate Susan Fenimore Cooper in literary history, or, more accurately, to position her book in relation to our understandings of literary history. For truthfully, if literary history were faithful to the developments of, and reactions to, literature of the past, Susan Fenimore Cooper’s name would be well-known to all scholars of nineteenth-century American literature. Her book was immensely popular both in America and abroad; it went through six printings by 1854, the publication year of Thoreau’s Walden. Rural Hours was reissued with a new chapter in 1868, reprinted again in 1876, and then abridged by 199 pages and reissued in 1887. When critics praised Rural Hours1 and the volume sold well, Susan Fenimore Cooper achieved literary fame as a writer of natural history. However, while many of her contemporaries knew her name, most scholars in the 1990s know only of her father. Why this oversight in the construction of literary history?2 In 1968, David Jones, a visitor to the Otsego Lake region in New York, reissued the 1887 edition of Cooper’s book. In his introduction he compares Rural Hours to the canonically established Walden and claims, â€Å"Rural Hours is not, like Walden, a multi-level book† (xxxvii). Instead Cooper’s text, Jones asserts, â€Å"tells us as [well] as a book can†¦how a representative part of the rural northeastern United States looked, sounded,  smelled, and even felt in the middle of the nineteenth century† (xxxvii-viii). Admittedly, portraying a location so fully is no small task, and although Jones intimates that Rural Hours provides enjoyable light reading, he clearly believes that Thoreau’s text far surpasses Cooper’s in its complexity and depth. I want to suggest that Jones’s evaluation of Rural Hours overlooks subtle but important textual intricacies, that Cooper’s text is multi-levelled, and is, in fact, concerned with much more than the local flora and fauna of the Otsego Lake region. One problem in determining the literary value of Rural Hours lies in our inability to classify its genre. The book takes the form of a nonfictional journal, but Rural Hours cannot be classified as autobiography in the traditional sense of one writer imparting the story of his or her life experiences. Cooper portrays her outside world as much as her personal experiences, and she relates her writings to her community more than to her own life. One is tempted to call Rural Hours â€Å"nature writing† and, in fact, her contemporary supporters do classify her text as such, but Cooper’s text does not meet the typical criteria for this genre, either. This is in part because of the imprecision of definitions of nature writing itself. Critics generally agree that nature writing is non-fictional prose in which the writer functions as an observer of the outside world, attempts to represent that outside world in language, and typically, reflects on the process of giving language to the natural world. It is commonly agreed that nature writing also evinces the author’s reflections of his or her individual spiritual growth. Sharon Cameron, in writing about Thoreau, suggests that â€Å"to write about nature is to write about how the mind sees nature, and sometimes about how the mind sees itself† (44). In his recent study of several nature writers, Scott Slovic echoes and expands Cameron’s definition: â€Å"[Nature writers] are not merely, or even primarily, analysts of nature or appreciators of nature–rather, they are students of the human mind† (3). We find, then, that according to our current definitions, â€Å"nature writers† write about their environment, but they also consider their personal relationship to it. Therefore, a writer like Cooper, who concerns herself more directly with her surroundings and less with her personal  reactions to them, somehow does not quite fit the criteria for the genre. How can a book such asRural Hours, rich with observations on the botany, ornithology, and natural history of an area, not be considered nature writing? I submit that we have been trained to read books about the natural world and the human relationship to it in ways that affect our abilities to find value in texts that deviate from the canonical Thoreauvian form–a form based on personal reflections regarding one’s relationship with nature, one’s connection to the community, the difficulties of conveying perceptions through language, and, most importantly, perhaps, the process of forming identity. When contemporary readers realize and examine the expectations that they bring to Rural Hours, and willingly suspend those expectations, thereby allowing the text to reveal its own agenda and voice its own concerns, they will discover that Cooper’s work is rich with insights regarding nineteenth-century America’s social, natural, and historical politics. Rural Hours is not so directly involved in exploring â€Å"how the mind sees nature† or â€Å"how the mind sees itself.† Instead, Cooper concerns herself with the ominous task of giving words to each aspect of her natural surroundings and to exploring the implications of this environment not for herself as an individual, but for her larger community, and ultimately, for the entire nation. We must ask, then, not only if Rural Hours has literary value, but also if we as critics can consider expanding our current conceptions of nature writing to accommodate a book such as Rural Hours. In his attempt to summarize what he considers to be the weaknesses of Cooper’s book, Jones quotes a description of autumn in Rural Hours and uses Cooper’s words to create an analogy concerning her prose: autumn, like Cooper’s prose, is â€Å"variable, changeable, not alike twice in succession, gay and brilliant yesterday, more languid and pale today† (xxxvii). â€Å"As literature,† Jones further explains, â€Å"Rural Hours varies from ‘brilliant’ in one passage to ‘languid and pale’ in another† (xxxvii). Jones offers very little support for this critical assessment of the book and, therefore, I cannot help but wonder why he truly found the narrative to be â€Å"languid and pale.† As we will see, Jones’s explanation for the â€Å"weakness of Miss  Cooper’s work† is circular and underdeveloped, and supports the conventional notion that quality nature writing portrays less of nature, and more of the author’s engagement with the natural world. Further examination of his criticisms will help to explain the exclusion of Rural Hours from most records of literary history. Jones explains, â€Å"[Cooper] brought realism and vitality to her portrait of rural life by revealing its ‘variable’ and ‘changeable’ nature, to be sure, but the very act produced a major flaw in the book† (xxxvii). Jones here suggests that Cooper’s realistic portrayal of the natural world is the very downfall of her book. However, her narrative dedication to the natural world, to its vitality and constancy, necessitates that portions of the text be purely descriptive. Jones thus seems to contradict himself: the â€Å"one level† at which Cooper’s text is â€Å"unsurpassed,† he asserts, is in its ability to so accurately and faithfully describe the natural world. This strength, however, is also the weakness of the book. Finally, Jones does not define this â€Å"flaw† at all; instead, he proceeds to discuss Thoreau’s Walden. Jones assumes throughout his introduction that Thoreau’s book is far superior to Cooper’s, that readers ofRural Hours will agree with this assessment, and that, therefore, his assessment requires no justification. This method of reasoning also presupposes that Walden and Rural Hours afford the same criteria for judgement, or, that they exhibit similar attempts at representing nature.3 If Cooper and Thoreau actually engage similar projects, this assessment is valid. If, however, these writers differ in their purposes, or represent–and react to–the natural world in distinct ways, then we need to examine these criteria of evaluation. How do we approach a text that attempts to represent the natural world on its own terms? Have we been taught to read texts whose straightforward depiction of the natural world is, seemingly, their main goal?4 If, as Jones suggests, Cooper’s prose remains so loyal to her subject that it is too realistic, and therefore borders on boring, we need to ask how we expect Cooper to represent nature so as to hold our attentions and why her  contemporaries were not also bored by her book. Many questions arise: what are contemporary readers’ expectations of writing that engages the natural world? How do our expectations differ from those of readers in the nineteenth century? Assuming that readers bought and consumed Cooper’s text because they found interest in both its subject matter and its perspective, how does Cooper’s direct conveyance of the natural world reflect her culture’s interests and concerns?5 What is the role of nature in such a text, as opposed to the role of people? How often do we require that a â€Å"realistic† portrayal of nature be replaced by metaphor or symbolism, thereby preventing â€Å"languid and pale† prose? How often do we want to read specifically about nature, and how often are we more interested in exploring the human presence in nature? Finally, is Rural Hours actually poorly written, or boring? Such questions, originating from an attempt to understand the immense success and warm reception of Rural Hours in the mid- to late-nineteenth century, cause us to examine our conceptions of how writers should relate to nature, how their relations should be represented through language, and how we–as readers–should read such texts. Read within our common understandings of nature writing, a conception that stresses writings influenced by the Romantics, Cooper’s prose may seem languid and pale, but if we approach Cooper’s text in other ways, as I will demonstrate, we will discern the richness of Rural Hours. Interest in writing that depicts the environment has increased in recent years. Clearly, texts such as Emerson’s â€Å"Nature† and Thoreau’s Walden have dominated our reading lists, but studies such as Cecelia Tichi’sNew World, New Earth and Annette Kolodny’s The Lay of the Land and The Land Before Her investigate the history of American interest in the environment and invite us to consider a variety of literary forms as important in understanding how Americans have related to their natural environment through the centuries. Tichi states, â€Å"Consistently since the seventeenth century [environmental reform] has formed an integral and important part of our cultural and literary history† (x). American interest in the land infiltrates our earliest documents, as Tichi proves in her study. In early  America, â€Å"the American spirit and the American continent were bonded ideologically,† and arguably continue to be bonded ideologically, albeit in different ways (Tichi ix). Another important study of Americans’ conceptions of the wilderness as reflected in literature is Bernard Rosenthal’s City of Nature. Rosenthal’s study focuses on Cooper’s predecessors and contemporaries, and concludes that two ideas of nature emerge in the writings of the American Romantics. He locates one idea of nature in the conception of wilderness as the space to be assumed by the emerging American city. The second idea of nature concerns the â€Å"new religious myth,† an individual journey into nature for the purpose of establishing what Rosenthal terms â€Å"the city of the self† (27). Put another way, â€Å"two irreconcilable connotations emerged as the most important definitions of the word nature†: one in which â€Å"nature represented commodity being transformed into civilization,† and one in which â€Å"nature became the metaphor for a new spiritual mythology† for the nineteenth-century individual (Rosenthal 31).6 Rosenthal suggests that, during the nineteenth century, the majority of Americans conceived of nature in this first way, and that most of the American Romantic writers worked within the second understanding of nature (71).7 These two conceptions of nature largely inform our readings of nineteenth-century texts that center, in some way, around the natural world. We have been taught not only to conceive of the natural world as a metaphor for our own society, but also to read texts that depict the natural world in terms of what they impart regarding the individual human spirit.8 We therefore approach texts that describe the natural world and that share personal reflections regarding the landscape with the expectation that they will either consider â€Å"the transformation of nature into its purest form, civilization,† or that they will explore nature â€Å"as spiritual place,† as the site of â€Å"an interior journey to a private place† in the spirit (Rosenthal 18), or that the author will attempt both visions of nature. 9 As readers we are taught that while purely descriptive prose may be poetically beautiful, it is boring, contains no metaphor or symbolism, and therefore lacks importance because it does not pertain to individual  spiritual growth. In the words of a colleague, â€Å"We skim over the flowers and birds and pretty things and look for what really happens.† However, what â€Å"really happens† often happens within the descriptive prose that we overlook. In relying on metaphor for our readings of such texts — either the metaphor of nature as civilization or nature as self — we fail to investigate the implications of capturing nature in language or the process by which a writer envisions elements of nature and transforms that vision into linguistic representation. We fail, finally, to ask how this investigation into the natural world functions not only for the individual or for society, but for the natural world itself. At this point, some may accuse me of oversimplifying nature writing; some may argue that metaphor and symbolism are the more complicated ways in which authors employ language, and that to dismiss these linguistic forms is to reduce nature writing to the parroting of knowledge of natural history, or the meaningless naming of colors, sounds, and sights. I am not, however, suggesting that nature writing texts not be considered for their metaphorical value, only that we consider the implications of only considering them in this way. Susan K. Harris makes a similar point in her study of nineteenth-century women’s sentimental novels written between 1840 and 1870: There appears to be an unspoken agreement not to submit nineteenth-century American women’s novels to extended analytical evaluation, largely†¦ because the evaluative modes most of us were taught devalue this literature a priori. (44) While Harris’s study focuses on fictional writings, the implications of her study for the study of nature writing and Susan Fenimore Cooper’s text are multiple and deserving of some attention. Harris finds that the criteria upon which scholars often scrutinize texts in order to determine their literary merit and the methods they employ in â€Å"analyzing† texts disregard important alternative aspects of texts. Harris suggests reading texts through a method she calls â€Å"process analysis,† a method of reading and interpreting a text that â€Å"foregrounds the relationship of the literary critical task to the critic’s stance in her own time† (145) and that considers the public, political and social context from which the  text emerged.10 Harris explains her belief that it is â€Å"important to establish the terms of the debate(s) in which the text participates the positions it takes, and how these positions are embodied in its textual structure† (46).11 Thus, as the language of the text is foregrounded, we look at the text as â€Å"both reactive and creative,† and disregard the traditional concern that the text â€Å"self-consciously embody ‘timeless truths'† (45). A text such as Cooper’s Rural Hours faces many of the obstacles in contemporary criticism that the sentimental novels that interest Harris face, especially when considered as part of the category of writing that has come to be called nature writing. Not only does Cooper’s book adopt a prosaic style that is contrary to those of canonized texts, but her book also forms part of a genre that itself is not very well established in the canon. She is, finally, a woman writing in a denigrated style within in a genre largely ignored by traditional scholarship. As critics have only recently begun to realize, historical and contemporary writers who represent their relationships to their surrounding environments exemplify differing ways of using language, and the linguistic methods these writers employ to represent and conceive of the natural world reflect, in complicated ways, the ideological implications of our cultural conceptions of nature. An understanding of the content of such writings, the issues they raise, and the methods of linguistic construction they employ will enable us, as literary scholars and historians, to realize how our language reflects our attitudes toward the earth, and more pointedly, how such attitudes have determined, prevented, or justified our actions against, and reactions to, the earth. The traditional approaches to such texts consider â€Å"timeless truths† in the forms of metaphors concerning nature as civilization or journeys to nature as journeys to the self. But these views often neglect to consider the author’s interest in the political and social opinions of the time concerning the proper relationship of society and the earth, and how writers in our society throughout history have coded such opinions in language.12 Studies such as Harris’s often center on cultural conceptions of gender in women’s fiction.13 The recent critical focus on issues of gender differentiation has lead contemporary critics to ask if women â€Å"naturally† relate to the outside world differently than men. In keeping with this interest, Annette Kolodny suggested in her 1975 study,The Lay of the Land, â€Å"that women’s writings and linguistic usages have all along been offering us alternate means of expression and perception† (ix) and that an examination of women’s writings on the subject of nature could yield better understandings of American conceptions of the wilderness. Kolodny also states that â€Å"a conscious and determined struggle to formulate for themselves the meaning of their landscape characterizes the writings of nineteenth-century Americans† (Lay of the Land 71). Certainly both Cooper and Thoreau’s texts engage in this struggle, although their engagements take different forms. Although I am not aware of any critical investigations as to whether Cooper’s and Thoreau’s alternative narrative styles are based in gender differences,14 most recent critics of Cooper (of which there are few) do seize on the issue of gender when exploring her text. Unlike Jones, they quickly dismiss Thoreau from their studies, and instead suggest that Cooper’s text presents a representative depiction of woman’s relationship to the natural world in nineteenth-century America.15 The most recent study of Rural Hours appears in Vera Norwood’s Made from This Earth, in which the author devotes a chapter to Susan Fenimore Cooper and her arguable influence on the women nature writers subsequent to her.16 Norwood argues that Cooper represented a â€Å"literary domestic,†17 a woman writer who wrote to deliver the â€Å"scenes and values of middle-class homes to a wide readership† (27). Thus, Norwood suggests, Cooper used the occasion of her book not only to describe her natural surroundings, but also to impart valuable lessons to her readers in a non-threatening manner. Norwood asserts that Cooper turned to nature to discover what nature teaches about the roles of women in the domestic realm.18 For example, Cooper describes robins and praises the mother robin’s dedication to her young, implicitly suggesting that human mothers should emulate the robin’s self-sacrificing nature (Cooper 39-40/Norwood 37-8). Thus, Norwood sees a conversation in Rural Hours, a dialogue that Cooper creates in her text between the  natural and human worlds in which gender roles in nature inform and enlighten gender roles in human society. Finally, Norwood claims that Cooper â€Å"was consumed with understanding what nature suggests about female roles and family responsibilities, and how gender definitions and familial arrangements help people comprehend what they see in nature† (37). Cooper does occasionally focus on gender roles and responsibilities in Rural Hours, but to state that she is â€Å"consumed† with such issues greatly exaggerates her narrative interests. As Norwood points out, Cooper ruminates on the devoted mother robin, but she also, interestingly, refers to the â€Å"voluntary imprisonment† of the mother, and to her â€Å"generous, enduring patience† (Cooper 40). While this patience is clearly â€Å"a noble attribute of parental affection† for Cooper, the scene leaves her somewhat incredulous and stunned by the mother’s consistent, uncomplaining waiting: Cooper admits this is a â€Å"striking instance† of parental devotion (40). While she may advocate human parental devotion, she also recognizes that the natural world is more willingly generous than the human world,19 and that whereas humans can learn from nature, there are also aspects of the natural world beyond human comprehension.20 Interestingly, and perhaps even provocatively, Norwood does not point out that the voluntarily imprisoned mothering robin is accompanied by the â€Å"male† of the â€Å"little family,† who â€Å"occasionally relieves his mate by taking her place awhile† and â€Å"exerts himself to bring her food, and to sing for her amusement† (40). Cooper includes his participation in her description of â€Å"voluntary imprisonment†; his is also a â€Å"striking instance† of parental affection. If Cooper invokes the mother robin as a testament to giving mothering, her invocation of the father bird suggests his necessary assistance around the â€Å"nest.† Ultimately, then, to read Cooper’s text in terms of its interest in gender affords some intriguing insights: Cooper clearly remains within her position as a middle- to upper-class â€Å"lady† throughout her narrative and, just as clearly, seeks confirmation of gender divisions and domestic roles from the natural world.21 These instances, though, are rare in Cooper’s  text. The themes and issues that arise more often in Rural Hours concern the establishment of a national identity and history, and while Cooper does not divorce her gender from the concerns that inform her larger agenda, she also does not encompass her interest in nationalism within explorations of domesticity. Certainly one aspect of Cooper’s desire to explore the natural world in order to formulate a national identity concerns the place of women in society, but to read Rural Hours solely in terms of its attempt to explore the implications of gender roles as exemplified in the natural environment greatly simplifies the complexities and layers of Cooper’s book. I do not wish to suggest that traditional feminist readings of Cooper’s text are unwarranted or unnecessary, nor that such readings will prove unproductive. I do believe, however, that reading Cooper’s book through too narrow a focus is hazardous not only in seeking to establish her in the canon of â€Å"serious† and â€Å"teachable† writers, but also in that such a reading sidesteps many larger cultural issues that her text engages. A critical reading of Cooper’s text should investigate her representations and explorations of gender roles in mid-nineteenth century America as well as her other complex and overt concerns, such as the creation of an American history, the treatment of American Indians, the problems of deforestation, and the religious connotations of the natural world, all of which fall under the rubric, in Cooper’s text, of the establishment of a national identity.22 As Jones points out, the majority of Cooper’s text contains descriptions of her surroundings. Her reflections are not always couched in metaphor, as Jones also suggests, but this does not detract from the value of Cooper’s text, nor does it indicate that Cooper does not entertain significant issues in her writing. Cooper’s descriptions of her surroundings reflect and embody her larger concern for the development of a national identity based in the land. In her view, the establishment of a national identity is linked to individual conceptions of the land, its flora and fauna, its people, and the relationship of the country’s peoples to the land. Cooper depicts the landscape of Otsego Lake, relates the history of the land and  its peoples, and describes the indigenous plants, animals, and waters of the area in an attempt to create an identity of place. The landscape, and the life the land supports, create the identity of this place. Cooper’s â€Å"literature of place†23 serves not only to create a natural identity for the Otsego Lake region, but also to assert the need for a similarly constructed national identity. The creation of a national identity, then, is the â€Å"cultural work† of Cooper’s text; she seeks to locate the â€Å"natural† identity of her new nation. Cooper’s development of this theme — a national identity rooted in the landscape — is subtle and calculated, but a scrupulous reading of Rural Hours reveals the careful construction of Cooper’s text. The opening pages ofRural Hours share observations that reflect the intentions of the book as stated in Cooper’s 1850 preface: The following notes contain, in a journal form, the simple record of those little events which make up the course of the seasons in rural life. In wandering about the fields, . . . one naturally gleans many trifling observations. . . The following pages were written in perfect good faith, all the trifling incidents alluded to having occurred as they are recorded. (Preface) In her first chapter, we read of the coming of spring: snow thaws, buds appear, robins return to the area. These are seemingly â€Å"little events,† â€Å"trifling† in their lack of worldly significance. One almost immediately notices, however, the pride Cooper takes in plants and animals â€Å"peculiar† to her â€Å"native land,† those that are uniquely America’s own. In contrast to the European robin, â€Å"our robin never builds [a nest] on the ground† (21), and the â€Å"pretty† white-bellied swallow, which â€Å"has been confounded with the European martin† is, Cooper assures, â€Å"peculiar to America† (56). Cooper also explains the uniqueness of American plants, complaining that the â€Å"wild natives of the woods† are often crowded out by European plants that were introduced by the colonists and that â€Å"[drive] away the prettier natives† (81).24 In her discussion of autumn in America, Cooper ruminates, â€Å"Had the woods of England been as rich as our own† English writers would  have praised the season in their writings long ago (336). Instead, â€Å"one is led to believe that the American autumn has helped to set the fashions for the sister season of the Old World† (335). American writers’ reflections on the landscape have encouraged English writers to do the same, Cooper suggests. These â€Å"trifling† observations begin to speak together, and we find Cooper asserting the importance of knowing the natural forms indigenous to one’s place. Thus, for Cooper, determining which birds, animals, and plants are native to America, as well as which of these are unknown to Europeans, helps to define the American landscape, and therefore helps to establish a national identity. She takes pride in her land and in its natural wealth. Cooper also mourns the losses that her land incurs, suggesting that any depletion of the natural aspects of a place drastically alter its identity. Like her seemingly innocent cataloging of natural plants and animals indigenous to America, which emerges as a plea for national pride and definition based on the natural world, her repeated lamentings of disappearing or decreasing portions of the natural world emerge as a plea for the preservation of the wilderness. Like Cooper’s gently emerging concern for identifying indigenous plants and animals, Cooper gradually develops this theme of loss throughout her text. â€Å"Little events,† when taken cumulatively, have large implications. Cooper observes wild pigeons in early March, for instance, and recalls a previous season when â€Å"they passed over the valley in†¦ large unbroken flocks several miles in extent succeeding each other.† Then she remarks, â€Å"There have not been so many here since that season† (18). The reader might dismiss this observation due to its early position in her book, but as one progresses through the text and continually comes across this motif of longing for previous times when–somehow–nature was more complete, one realizes that Cooper is truly concerned about the changes taking place in her surroundings. Her concern becomes much more overt, but not until much later in the book.25 Cooper’s seemingly minor concern for the losses of groups of  birds or plants culminates in her consideration of the rapid deforestation occurring in the country.26 She returns to the subject many times throughout the course of Rural Hours and, further along in the book, strongly criticizes people for their careless use of timber: One would think that by this time, when the forest has fallen in all the valleys — when the hills are becoming more bare every day–when timber and fuel are rising in prices, and new uses are found for even indifferent woods–some forethought and care in this respect would be natural in people laying claim to common sense. (213-14) Clearly, Cooper is warning her contemporaries by suggesting that they discontinue the destruction of trees for purposes of fueling their homes. The continual destruction of the forests so radically alters the landscape that Cooper cannot conceive of continued deforestation. She not only seeks to educate her audience regarding the benefits of preservation; she also makes the preservation of the American landscape a moral imperative. This moral duty for national preservation becomes linked to Cooper’s feelings regarding the â€Å"red man,† or Native Americans (93). Again, Cooper subtly portrays this sense of the loss of the indigenous peoples early in Rural Hours. When standing beside a clear running spring, she states, â€Å"one seems naturally to remember the red man; recollections of his vanished race linger there in a more definite form than elsewhere† (93). The rolling, clear water somehow evokes the â€Å"vanished† race: â€Å"yesterday they were here, to-day scarce a vestige of their existence can be pointed out among us† (94). However, later in Rural Hours, Cooper more overtly conveys her feelings regarding the colonists’ treatment of the indigenous peoples, which she finds integral to the colonists’ treatment of the landscape. While viewing a forest grove, she laments: â€Å"It needs but a few short minutes to bring one of these trees to the ground† (193). She reminds her readers that entire generations will come and go in the time that it takes for one of these mature trees to reach such magnificent heights: The stout arm so ready to raise the axe to-day, must grow weak with age, it must drop into the grave; its bone and sinew must crumble into dust long before another tree, tall and great as those, shall have grown from the  cone in our hand (193-94). In the same paragraph, Cooper calls for a reinstitution of wilderness, claiming that the wild deer, the wolf and the bear â€Å"must return from beyond the great lakes,† and then, significantly, that â€Å"the bones of the savage men buried under our feet must arise and move again. . . ere trees like those† ever appear again, so large, so wild (194).27 The mistreatment of Native Americans emerges as a large theme in Cooper’s text. She advocates retaining the names they gave to places and portions of the natural world, partly because of the beauty in â€Å"Indian words,† which â€Å"[unite] both sound and meaning† (484). In the creation of a national identity, Cooper intimates, the power of names is very suggestive: names reveal history and meaning, and the Indians words capture both elements. She argues against re-naming places not only due to the beauty of the Native American’s languages, however, but also because she believes that somehow European-Americans owe the indigenous peoples something. The refrain of loss that resonates throughout Cooper’s text reaches its climax in the following passage. I quote at length to impart Cooper’s passion: There are many reasons for preserving every Indian name which can be accurately placed; generally, they are recommended by their beauty; but even when harsh in sound, they still have a claim to be kept up on account of their historical interest, and their connection with the dialects of the different tribes. A name is all we leave them, let us at least preserve that monument to their memory; as we travel through the country, and pass river after river, lake after lake, we may thus learn how many were the tribes who have melted away before us, whose very existence would have been utterly forgotten but for the word which recalls the name they once bore. (485) As these words suggest, Cooper’s concerns in Rural Hours are far-reaching. Cooper finds little distinction between the establishment of a national identity based in the uniqueness of the land, the preservation of the wilderness, and the maintenance of the influence of indigenous cultures.28 The â€Å"natural† history of this place and its people provide its meaning. These enmeshed issues resonate even more strongly when Cooper places them in accordance with her religious ideals. Although her Christianity by no means permeates the text, its presence offers a cohesion between her many areas of interest. Cooper envisions each and every aspect of the natural world as belonging to part of God’s plan for Americans. For example, while admiring a particularly beautiful sky, Cooper says, At hours like these, the immeasurable goodness, the infinite wisdom of our Heavenly Father, are displayed in so great a degree of condescending tenderness to unworthy, sinful man, as must appear quite incomprehensible- entirely incredible to reason alone–were it not for the recollection of the mercies of past years, the positive proofs of experience†¦.What have the best of us done to merit one such day in a lifetime of follies and failings and sins? (73-74) I do want to stress that these moments are rare in Cooper’s text, that her homilies are short and few, but that they clearly convey her sense of wonder about the natural world.29 She finds value in each aspect of the natural world, and seeks to preserve the world as a testament of her faith in God. While maintaining the Puritan notion that the â€Å"new world† was intended for the colonists to cultivate, and that their duties included imparting Christianity to the Native Americans,30 Cooper also stresses the need to balance the human presence on, and cultivation of, the land with careful preservation of it. She envisions a society that works with the land, not against it, and that creates a national identity based on its intimate knowledge of, and respect for, the natural world. She suggests this balance between humans and nature lightheartedly, saying â€Å"Many birds like a village life; they seem to think man is a very good-natured animal, building chimneys and roofs, planting groves, and digging gardens for their especial benefit† (63). But she also asserts the seriousness of her belief in admiring her village, â€Å"rural and unambitious,† and â€Å"quite in proportion with surrounding objects† (114). Cooper further explains her belief in a â€Å"rural ideal,†31 a sustainable balance between civilization and nature, in an essay collected in The Home  Book of the Picturesque, which was published in 1851: The hand of man generally improves a landscape. The earth has been given to him, and his presence in Eden is natural; he gives life and spirit to the garden. It is only when he endeavors to rise above his true part of laborer and husbandman, when he assumes the character of creator, and piles you up hills, pumps you a river, scatters stones, or sprinkles cascades, that he is apt to fail. Generally the grassy meadow in the valley, the winding road climbing the hill-side, the cheerful village on the bank of the stream, give a higher additional interest to the view; or where there is something amiss in the scene, it is when there is some evident want of judgement, or good sense, or perhaps some proof of selfish avarice, or wastefulness, as when a country is stripped of its wood to fill the pockets or feed the fires of one generation. (82) This interest in creating a national identity based upon a balance of civilization, nature, and the preservation of religious ideologies forms the basic underlying motif in Cooper’s text. While her words often convey seemingly simple observations about her surroundings, Cooper’s linking of the natural world and the human treatment of it with the necessity of establishing a national conception of the proper human relationship to nature forms a complex, intricate portrayal of the myriad concerns of nineteenth-century life. Rural Hours also reveals how issues surrounding the formation of national concepts of environmental treatment were intertwined with the establishment of pride in a new country. Additional readings of Rural Hours will undoubtedly uncover themes and tropes unexplored in the present essay. In order for this to occur, however, we must continually ask ourselves how our preconceptions may prohibit finding value in texts that do not meet established, too often unchallenged, criteria for judgements. One can approach Rural Hours, finally, as a natural history engaged in creating the story of a region and as an attempt to appreciate nature on its own terms: not as a commodity for human use, but as beautiful, powerful, and suggestive of God’s greatness. In writing a balance between humans and nature, Cooper sets an agenda not only for her region, but for the country as a whole. Her text is filled with natural history, but it also expounds upon the concerns of an age in America’s  history. As such, it greatly contributes to our understandings of the human presence on the land. Sample Research Paper for an English Course| [1]. Cunningham offers an overview of critical reactions to Rural Hours (339-40) as do Jones (xvii-xxv) and Norwood (27). BACK [2]. The reading of Cooper’s text that follows, as well as my consideration of issues of literary historiography and canon construction owes much to Jane Tompkins’s work, as suggested by my epigraph, but also to Cathy N. Davidson’s study, Revolution and the Word. There Davidson states, â€Å"The issue here is not that literature provides an inaccurate reflection of history but that no documents can simply be ‘read’ as if they were objective, scientific data produced or preserved as some pure product of a people and the abiding record of their time. The record always suppresses more than it tells. Why, we must ask, are certain records kept in the first place? Why are they saved? The whole process of historiography, the archive itself, must be subjected to rigorous analysis. Who is keeping the records and for what purpose? Who is writing, to whom, and why?† (Revolution 2). These are some of the issues and concerns I will address with regard to Susan Fenimore Cooper and Nature Writing. BACK [3]. In her study, Writing Nature: Henry Thoreau’s Journal, Sharon Cameron considers Thoreau’s attempts at representing nature in his journals, and also contrasts this to Walden. BACK [4]. Obviously, I do not think that Cooper’s and Thoreau’s text engage nature similarly. While both writers reflect upon their surroundings and offer descriptions of elements of the natural world, each writer raises his/her own personal areas for concern. Chapters such as Thoreau’s â€Å"Where I Lived†¦Ã¢â‚¬  and â€Å"Economy† are totally absent from Cooper’s record of days. Sections concerned with environmental peril, such as Cooper’s reflections on the hazards of deforestation, which I will discuss later in this paper, are unparalleled in Thoreau’s text. While certainly some similar criteria exist for comparison, Thoreau’s Walden is finally a philosophical investigation of individual man’s â€Å"economy† and â€Å"wakefulness,† in Thoreau’s sense of those words, and Rural Hours does not concern the individual so much as the nation, or the community. Together, these texts offer interesting insights into different conceptions of the natural world in relation of humankind in mid-nineteenth century  America. BACK [5]. Jane Tompkins writes, â€Å"The text that becomes exceptional in the sense of reaching an exceptionally large audience does so not because of its departure from the ordinary and conventional, but through its embrace of what is most widely shared† (xvi). Like Tompkins, I assume that when many readers buy and read a book, they find value in that book, and that when a book’s success is marked by many reprintings and re-issuings, this reflects a cultural interest in the subject matter and in the implicit concerns of the book. BACK [6]. In both conceptions of nature, there is a religious ideology informing notions of meaning and direction. As Tichi so aptly explores in her New World, New Earth, the colonists conceived of the land as God’s gift to them, and their taming of the wilderness as therefore ordained by God. BACK [7]. Rosenthal states, â€Å"In America, the abstractions called nature came to be defined as the civilization that emerged from the wilderness; for the Romantics, who found their vocabulary in the country they inhabited, nature came to be equated with the civilization of the self, the world of inner vision† (71). He divides European and American Romantic writers in this way, but then admits the difficulty of such a radical division, especially when considering Thoreau’s Walden. Ultimately, Rosenthal suggests, American writers conceived of nature in both ways, as their texts reveal. BACK [8]. It interests me that the books of Cooper’s contemporary writers whom we do read in literature classes — Emerson, Thoreau, and, in a particularly daring syllabus, Margaret Fuller — were not nearly as successful during their lifetimes as Cooper’s. Furthermore, as many recent critics of nature writing note, the writings of these three authors more often concerned the human world than the natural world. What does it mean that readers in the nineteenth century were more interested in Cooper’s more focused portrayal of the natural world than in Thoreau’s symbolic and metaphorical vision of nature? BACK [9]. I do not mean to criticize Rosenthal for instituting these methods of reading texts that portray nature. Most readings of the canonical texts that engage nature maintain his model of two alternative ways of seeing the importance of nature, and I appreciate his clear delineation of these versions. BACK [10]. Another important context in which to examine such a text is in its relation to the literary heritage from which it originates. This seems especially crucial when considering a  text such as Cooper’s, because she was so clearly influenced by the place of literature in American society. Her father concerned himself with establishing a literary history in the country; Susan Cooper was extremely well-read (as her text evidences: see pgs. 220, 226-7, and her numerous references to writers), and the theme of the construction of a written history of America surfaces in Rural Hours. An analysis of Cooper’s thoughts regarding literature and the contribution her text will make to an emerging literary tradition in her country would certainly prove valuable in understanding the cultural interest in creating an American literary heritage. BACK [11]. Jane Tompkins raises very similar questions in her 1985 study, Sensational Designs. Tompkins asserts that contemporary critics often read our modern-day concerns into older texts — â€Å"questions about the self, the body, the possibilities of knowledge, the limits of language† — instead of heeding the text’s own concerns, such as the â€Å"religious beliefs, social practices, and economic and po litical circumstances† that may have influenced the author and her contemporaries. BACK [12]. Harris delineates the critical implications for such an approach; although, again, her focus is nineteenth-century women’s sentimental novels: â€Å"Structure and language, then, are the dual focuses of process analysis. Each demands three levels of study: the first, contextual, places the text within its own time; the second, rhetorical, examines narrator/narratee contracts and the ways in which the text may play with cultural significances; the third, retrospective, searches for traces of changing consciousness, building blocks for an ideologically self-conscious literary history. Together, they offer a paradigm that produces evaluative as well as investigate questions† (59). BACK [13]. Such studies, in addition to Harris’s, include Cathy N. Davidson’s Introduction to her edition of Susanna Rowson’s Charlotte Temple, and Jane Tompkins’s study of Uncle Tom’s Cabin in her book, Sensational Designs. Much contemporary feminist criticism similarly engages issues of cultural definitions and determinations of gender roles. BACK [14]. Critics inevitably mention Thoreau in their analyses of Rural Hours, but they mention his text as a benchmark, as a starting-off point (see Cunningham 341, Jones xxxvii, Norwood 26, and Patterson 2). It is very interesting that Thoreau’s text is used to describe Cooper’s when Cooper’s text preceded his, and her text sold well, whereas his did not. BACK   [15]. For such examinations, see Cunningham and Maddox. Cunningham’s essay is the older of these two (published in 1944), and celebrates Cooper’s prominence in Cooperstown while expressing frustration with Cooper’s â€Å"failure to face the obligations of her talent† (348). Cunningham speculates on reasons why Cooper’s Rural Hours was not followed up with more book-length writings, and suggests that â€Å"neither her immediate family circle nor the century into which she was born gave a woman freedom to develop creative talents† (349-50). Cooper’s family kept a very strict hold on both her personal and business affairs, and family duties perhaps curtailed her writing. Maddox’s study, which appeared in 1988, states that the strongest theme in Cooper’s writing is the American woman’s duty as inheritor and guardian of a legacy left by pioneering males. Woman is keeper of nature, maintainer of harmony and balance between nature and culture, and it is woman’s responsibility to ensure the harmony between the domestic and external realms. BACK [16]. Norwood bases her reading largely on Lucy B. Maddox’s study and focuses on similar motifs in her reading of Cooper’s text. BACK [17]. Norwood credits Mary Kelley with this phrase (Norwood 27). BACK [18]. Norwood’s tone and overall reading of Cooper’s text perplex me, as will become clear in this paper. On this particular point, for instance, Norwood explains Cooper’s conjoining of home and nature in a disparaging comment: â€Å"So, parasol in hand, Susan Cooper sallied forth from her domestic hearth to the gardens and woods of her home to speak to all Americans about their native land, in a voice blending lessons from the woman’s sphere with knowledge garnered from the scientist-naturalists whose company she kept and books she read† (30, emphasis added). Norwood writes to praise Cooper’s text, but moments like this one seem to belittle Cooper’s position and purpose. Furthermore, Cooper did not merely parrot the books she read and the naturalists with whom she spent time; in fact, many of Cooper’s references to other naturalists serve to correct their mistakes and to challenge their previous findings. Finally, Norwood overlooks many of the complexities in Cooper’s text, and perhaps too willingly accepts Lucy B. Maddox’s views o f Cooper’s text. BACK [19]. This remarkably â€Å"generous† quality of the natural world is, I will argue, a recurring theme in Rural Hours. BACK [20]. I will return to this theme in Cooper’s text later in this paper. BACK [21]. The publishing business at this time emphasized  Cooper’s status as a â€Å"lady† in their first editions of the book: Cooper was not named as author, but rather Rural Hours was â€Å"By a Lady.† Norwood considers the implications of the author’s anonymity (Norwood 27). BACK [22]. Hans Huth offers an insightful reading of the role of national identity in writings of this period. BACK [23]. Pamela Regis asserts a tradition of works and writers that comprise this â€Å"literature of place† genre. See her Describing Early America: Bartram, Jefferson, Crevecoeur, and the Rhetoric of Natural History (xii). BACK [24]. William Cronon’s study of the ecology of colonial New England confirms many of Cooper’s observations regarding plant life and also supports and provides reasons for some of her concerns regarding deforestation practices in nineteenth-century A merica. Cronon’s text is an interesting compliment to Cooper’s first-hand depiction of the imperiled landscape. BACK [25]. I cannot help but believe that Cooper intentionally placed this overt cultural criticism late in the book. Readers became engaged with her text, enticed by her â€Å"lady-like† view of Otsego Lake and its community, drawn in by her â€Å"trifling† observations and records of â€Å"little events,† and then Cooper subtly weaves in her threads of cultural criticism, hidden, as it were, between the plants, birds, and trees. Her society could easily overlook any questionable criticisms Cooper made because they were so buried in Cooper’s text. BACK [26]. Cronon also investigates the rapid deforestation occurring at this time in his Changes in the Land (pp. 108-126). BACK [27]. Cooper experiences a similar desire for a return to an earlier, wilder state of the land in her essay, â€Å"A Dissolving View.† In a fantasy, her view of a rolling, but populated, landscape dissolves into wilderness replete with forests. Finally, though, the â€Å"dissolving view† of her title is implicitly, of course, the dissolving wilderness. In a particularly direct passage, Cooper asserts â€Å"Indeed it would seem as if man had no sooner mastered the art of architecture, than he aimed at rivalling the dignity and durability of the works of nature which served as his models† (84). BACK [28]. Cooper clearly supports the indigenous cultures; however, she also reinforces the white man’s â€Å"duty† in â€Å"educating† and â€Å"civilizing† them. â€Å"This general fertility, this blending of the fields of man and his tillage with the woods, the great husbandry of Providence, gives a fine character to the country, which it could not claim when the lonely savage roamed through  wooded valleys. . .† (224). Later, she states, â€Å"The time seems to have come at last when their own eyes are opening to the real good of civilization, the advantages of knowledge, the blessings of Christianity† (181-82). BACK [29]. This devotion to God and his creation also, I believe, helps explain Cooper’s distance from the natural world. She admires the creation, but has no need to participate in the creation of the world. She seeks only to preserve the work of God, to thank him for his giving to her â€Å"despite our. . .unworthiness† (72). BACK [30]. See Tichi for an exploration of many documents from early America, including sermons and letters, that share this view of the continent. BACK [31]. This is Patterson’s phrase for Cooper’s conception of a relationship between human culture and the natural world. BACK Works Cited| Baym, Nina. Woman’s Fiction: A Guide to Novels by and about Women in America, 1820-1870. 2nd. ed. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1993. Cameron, Sharon. Writing Nature: Henry Thoreau’s Journal. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1985. Cooper, Susan Fenimore. â€Å"A Dissolving View.† in The Home Book of the Picturesque: Or American Scenery, Art, and Literature. Introduction by Motley F. Deakin. Gainesville: Scholars’ Facsimiles & Reprints, 1967. (Facsimile Reproduction) pp. 79- 94. – -. Rural Hours. New York: Putnam, 1850. Cronon, William. Changes in the Land: Indians, Colonists, and the Ecology of New England. New York: Hill and Wang, 1983. 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