Summary and Review of Uglies by Scott Westerfield - 663 Words

Uglies takes place In the future, where it is summer. The sun is fading; the deep blue gaps of night are peering through like an ocean, bottomless and cold. Every summer was beautiful and enjoying, up to this one. No wonder it couldn’t be beautiful, when you lose a best friend, nothing is. Tally Youngblood was still an ugly. Three months and two days until she finally turns sixteen years old, goes off for the surgery, and becomes a pretty like her friend Peris. Since Tally isn’t a very patient girl, she decides to sneak out and go to the New Pretty Town and see Peris just for a little while. Tally is a girl that loves pulling tricks and pranks. Even at the very beginning of the book, Tally is braking in to the New Pretty Town, and as we get to know, it isn’t her first time. She used to do it with Peris as well. When Shay and she aren’t arguing over the pretty surgery, they are breaking the law, pulling some tricks on younger children, and goofing around. Tally loves causing trouble, even though sometimes, the intensions aren’t like that. Also, Tally is a very brave sixteen -year old. Even though she has caused much trouble, especially to smokies, Tally is willing to clean up the mess and try to fix everything. At the beginning of the book, Tally’s goal is to turn sixteen and become a pretty. Many obstacles come in her way and towards the middle of the book; Tally realizes how she loves and has a good life being ugly. Now that she wants to be an Ugly, she can’t. The

The Architecture of El Tajin

The once-magnificent city of El Tajin, which flourished not far inland from Mexicos Gulf Coast from roughly 800-1200 A.D., features some truly spectacular architecture. The palaces, temples and ballcourts of the excavated city show impressive architectural details like cornices, inset glyphs and niches. The City of Storms After the fall of Teotihuacan around 650 A.D., El Tajin was one of several powerful city-states that arose in the ensuing vacuum of power. The city flourished from about 800 to 1200 A.D. At one time, the city covered 500 hectares and may have had as many as 30,000 inhabitants; its influence spread throughout Mexicos Gulf Coast region. Their chief God was Quetzalcoatl, whose worship was common in Mesoamerican lands at the time. After 1200 A.D., the city was abandoned and left to return to the jungle: only locals knew about it until a Spanish colonial official stumbled across it in 1785. For the past century, a series of excavation and preservation programs have taken place there, and it is an important site for tourists and historians alike. The City of El Tajin and its Architecture The word Tajà ­n refers to a spirit with great powers over the weather, especially in terms of rain, lightning, thunder and storms. El Tajà ­n was built in the lush, hilly lowlands not far from the Gulf Coast. It is spread out over a relatively spacious area, but hills and arroyos defined the city limits. Much of it may once have been built of wood or other perishable materials: these have been long since lost to the jungle. There are a number of temples and buildings in the Arroyo Group and old ceremonial center and palaces and administrative-type buildings in Tajà ­n Chico, located on a hill to the north of the rest of the city. To the northeast is the impressive Great Xicalcoliuhqui wall. None of the buildings is known to be hollow or to house a tomb of any sort. Most of the buildings and structures are made of a locally available sandstone. Some of the temples and pyramids are built over earlier structures. Many of the pyramids and temples are made of finely carved stone and f illed with packed earth. Architectural Influence and Innovations El Tajin is unique enough architecturally that it has its own style, often referred to as Classic Central Veracruz. Nevertheless, there are some obvious external influences on the architectural style at the site. The overall style of the pyramids at the site is referred to in Spanish as the talà ºd-tablero style (it basically translates as slope/walls). In other words, the overall slope of the pyramid is created by piling progressively smaller square or rectangular levels on top of another. These levels can be quite tall, and there is always a stairway to grant access to the top. This style came to El Tajà ­n from Teotihuacan, but the builders of El Tajin took it further. On many of the pyramids in the ceremonial center, the tiers of the pyramids are adorned with cornices which jut out into space on the sides and corners. This gives the buildings a striking, majestic silhouette. The builders of El Tajà ­n also added niches to the flat walls of the tiers, resulting in a richly textured, dramatic look not seen at Teotihuacan. El Tajin also shows influence from Classic era Maya cities. One notable similarity is the association of altitude with power: in El Tajà ­n, the ruling class built a palace complexes on hills adjacent to the ceremonial center. From this section of the city, known as Tajin Chico, the ruling class gazed down upon the homes of their subjects and the pyramids of the ceremonial district and the Arroyo Group. In addition, building 19 is a pyramid which features four stairways to the top, on in each cardinal direction. This is similar to el Castillo or the Temple of Kukulcan in Chichà ©n Itzà ¡, which likewise has four stairways.   Another innovation at El Tajà ­n was the idea of plaster ceilings. Most of the structures at the top of pyramids or on finely built bases were constructed of perishable materials such as wood, but there is some evidence in the Tajà ­n Chico area of the site that some of the ceilings may have been made of a heavy plaster. Even the ceiling at the Building of the Columns may have had an arched plaster ceiling, as archaeologists discovered large blocks of convex, polished blocks of plaster there. Ballcourts of El Tajn The ballgame was of paramount importance to the people of El Tajà ­n. No fewer than seventeen ballcourts have been found so far at El Tajà ­n, including several in and around the ceremonial center. The usual shape of a ball court was that of a double T: a long narrow area in the middle with an open space at either end. At El Tajà ­n, buildings and pyramids were often constructed in such a way that they would naturally create courts between them. For example, one of the ballcourts in the ceremonial center is defined on either side by Buildings 13 and 14, which were designed for spectators. The south end of the ballcourt, however, is defined by Building 16, an early version of the Pyramid of the Niches. One of the most striking structures at El Tajin is the South Ballcourt. This was obviously the most important one, as it is decorated with six marvelous panels carved in bas-relief. These show scenes from the ceremonious ballgames including human sacrifice, which often was the result of one of the games. The Niches of El Tajin The most remarkable innovation of El Tajà ­ns architects was the niches so common at the site. From the rudimentary ones at Building 16 to the magnificence of the Pyramid of the Niches, the sites best-known structure, niches are everywhere at El Tajà ­n. The niches of El Tajà ­n are small recesses set into the exterior walls of the tiers of several pyramids on the site. Some of the niches in Tajà ­n Chico have a spiral-like design in them: this was one of the symbols of Quetzalcoatl. The best example of the importance of the Niches at El Tajin is the impressive Pyramid of the Niches. The pyramid, which sits on a square base, has exactly 365 deep-set, well-designed niches, suggesting that it was a place where the sun was worshiped. It was once dramatically painted to heighten the contrast between the shady, recessed niches and the faces of the tiers; the interior of the niches was painted black, and the surrounding walls red. On the stairway, there were once six platform-altars (only five remain). Each of these altars features three small niches: this adds up to eighteen niches, possibly representing the Mesoamerican solar calendar, which had eighteen months. Importance of Architecture at El Tajin The architects of El Tajin were very skilled, using advances such as cornices, niches, cement and plaster to make their buildings, which were brightly, dramatically painted to great effect. Their skill is also evident in the simple fact that so many of their buildings have survived to the present day, although the archaeologists who restored the magnificent palaces and temples surely helped. Unfortunately for those who study the City of Storms, relatively few records remain of the people who lived there. There are no books and no direct accounts by anyone who ever had direct contact with them. Unlike the Maya, who were fond of carving glyphs with names, dates and information into their stone artwork, the artists of El Tajin rarely did so. This lack of information makes the architecture that much more important: it is the best source of information about this lost culture. Sources: Coe, Andrew. . Emeryville, CA: Avalon Travel Publishing, 2001. Ladrà ³n de Guevara, Sara. El Tajin: La Urbe que Representa al Orbe. Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Economica, 2010. Solà ­s, Felipe. El Tajà ­n. Mà ©xico: Editorial Mà ©xico Desconocido, 2003. Wilkerson, Jeffrey K. Eighty Centuries of Veracruz. National Geographic 158, No. 2 (August 1980), 203-232. Zaleta, Leonardo. Tajà ­n: Misterio y Belleza. Pozo Rico: Leonardo Zaleta 1979 (2011).

Essay on Inequalities as Portrayed in the Media a Gender...

Inequalities as Portrayed in the Media: A Gender Analysis Media plays a big role in conventional Canadian society. It is becoming more and more influential and a bigger part of everyone’s daily lives. Since the invention and spread of the use of the printing press in the mid fifteen-hundreds, societies have been able to produce mass quantities of information available to the general public. Books were printed and made available to a large audience, replacing word of mouth communication about a society’s existence. Since then, various other forms of mass media have been created; including, radio networks, television programs, mass produced magazines, music and advertising. These are all examples of media that Canadians are exposed to†¦show more content†¦It will argue that inequalities exist between men and women within society, and this is enforced through the communicated messages sent via media. It will take the standpoint that gender equality in the media would mean an equal representation of both sexes with a diversity of male and female roles. In the world of music there are many different niches and types of music. From country to jazz, to hip-hop to local ‘indie’ bands, the world of music seems to have something for an endless variety of tastes and likings. When looking at music to assess gender inequalities, I will then focus on so-called ‘top hits’ in order to assure that the songs chosen have reached a large crowd, therefore influencing more people. Last year, the well known G-Unit member 50-Cent added another top hit to the charts. His song ‘Just a Little Bit’ managed to be on the Top 100 songs of 2006, not to mention his achievements previous years with songs such as ‘Candy Shop’ and ‘In Da Club’ (Rolling Stone, 2007). The bottom line here is that 50-Cent is a well known rapper reaching many mainstream music listeners, especially the young. When taking a look at his lyrics to the song titled ‘Just a Little Bit’, the way in which women are portrayed and sung about is purely sexual. The song starts off with pretty much telling female listeners to ‘shake that thing’ for maleShow MoreRelatedThe Exploration Of Feminist Theory Essay1536 Words   |  7 Pagestheory is based on the common ideology of feminism within the Communication world. Illustrating gender inequality the feminist theory analysis into the social fields of politics, business, media platforms, and social normalities. Research traditions include socio-psychology and semiotics due to the cause and effect relationships that help create social standards while also the symbolic forms of media that influence how people perceive and view women. The epistemology foundation used in this theoryRead MoreThe Media Is A Mirror Of Society, And If That Society Is1461 Words   |  6 PagesThe media is a mirror of society, and if that society is by any means influenced by stereotypes, the media will reflect it. Advertising, according to Erving Goffman, author of the book Gender Advertising, depicts how men and women behave as a social purpose and how today’s social purpose is highly unbalanced in men’s favor. Some people say that advertisers should be held accountable for the unethical images they present. Others, however, say that consumers should be to blame because by buying theRead MoreGender And The Media By Rosalind Gill1596 Words   |  7 Pages Book Review of Gender an d the Media by Rosalind Gill Gender and the Media by Rosalind Gill addresses gender stereotypes that are brought onto women and men through the media resulting in objectification and subjectification. Gill discusses how the representation of gender is altered as a result of the media in Western societies. Gender and the Media is aimed to address the rapid transmission of media and how those changes affect the construction of feminine and masculine gender roles in societyRead MoreThe Portrayal Of Women During The Arab World1651 Words   |  7 PagesThe portrayal of women in the media is a global phenomenon that many nations, countries and cultures struggle to find equality in the portrayal of gender throughout media systems. The Middle East and the Arab World is no exception to this phenomenon, recognizing and contributing to the negatively portrayed images of Arab women represented in the global mass media. For my research paper, I chose to focus on how women in the Arab World are breaking boundaries of these n egative stereotypical imagesRead MoreThe Representation Of Gender And Media978 Words   |  4 PagesNowadays the representation of gender in media has become very common. It is all about the representation of phenomenally rapid change: change’s in gender relation transformations in media technologies, regulatory frameworks, content ownership and theoretical revolutions in the approaches used to make sense of gender representations. Gender and media aims to freeze the frame, press the pause button, or hit the refresh key to construct that how media shows social stereotypes. There are many advertisementsRead MoreMedia s Influence On Gender Relations And Sexuality1230 Words   |  5 PagesHistorically, media represented gender and sexuality in the way that matched the dominant public view and mirrors the evolution of gender-related biases and stereotypes and views on sexuality. In the course of time, gender relations and sexuality evolved and changed and all these changes fou nd their reflection in mass media (Bonvillain, 1995, 210). Mass media, in their turn, portrayed gender relations and sexuality according to the dominant cultural view on gender relations and sexuality. This isRead MoreGender Roles Are A Conception Of Femininity And Masculinity Essay1157 Words   |  5 PagesWomen in Advertisements Gender roles are a conception of femininity and masculinity. The gender roles for men and women in society are partially constituted of individual thinking. These conceptions and gender roles are not completely biological but also social and cultural. Women are earning advanced degrees and are entering careers which have been traditionally dominated by men. But women are still depicted as images of beauty and sexuality in movies, video games and advertisements. This paperRead MoreIn January 2013 a prominent national US newspaper quoted former Secretary of State, Condolezza800 Words   |  4 Pagesdiscusses how significant inequality is in America. The social class that you are born into will influence your outlook on social class and will also be the social class you stay in (Loewen, 1995. 322). Your social class will determine the opportunities available for you including health, fitness, nutrition, education, SAT scores, medical resources and more (Loewen, 1995. 321-322). Loewen also proposes that the education system in America does not incorporate a proper analysis of our social class (LoewenRead MoreThe Image Of Parenting889 Words   |  4 Pagesparenting portrayed in films nowadays contrast the existing feature of parenting. In the 19th century fathers in Europe and North America were expected to be family patriarchs and stern moral teachers, 20th century fathers have been relatively uninvolved in the daily routines of family life (Coltrane, 1996). Most western cultures has been remarkably brought changes in gender role by modernization and globalization. Globalization at its peak is tied with media and film is a vital media technologyRead MoreA Brief History And Analysis Of Portrayal Of Women Essay1422 Words   |  6 PagesHistory and Analysis of the Portrayal of Women in Magazines Throughout history women have been depicted and treated as an inferior to the male all aspects of life. It is without debate, that to this day, like many other countries, the United States of America is a patriarchal society, valuing men over women and using various tactics to oppress women by constructing gender roles. These gender roles are thrust upon people before birth and are reinforced through society within the media. This object

Glenn Colquhoun free essay sample

A spell to be cast prior to dying, by Glen Colquhoun have a reoccurring theme which is to die as you are in life and not to fear death. Colquhoun’s position as a Medical professional adds impetus to the imperatives present in both poems. A Spell to be cast prior to dying is a poem which tries to reinforce the idea that life was not given to us so that we are to fear death but to make the most of the time we have and to go out with a ‘bang’. Colquhoun uses the repetition of â€Å"Die† both to put the reader at a position where they are effectively being desensitized to death and also to convey that Colquhoun being a doctor deals with death every day and the unpleasantries that accompany it. This is shown by the statement â€Å"Die, go on, get the hell out of here, find your own way home. We will write a custom essay sample on Glenn Colquhoun or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page † How ever Colquhoun feels it is his duty as a doctor to set an example of a strong minded person, that Colquhoun seemed to show an emotional weakness when he said â€Å".. Die looking backwards as though you were some how desperate to get of the tracks before the train hit This showed that Colquhoun was looked up to by the family members of the deceased but he was unable to look up to another figure. Colquhoun also uses the repetition of die to illustrate the different situations that people can die in. â€Å"die without anybody noticing it. † Is an example of a reclusive person and that would not want anyone else to bear witness to their unfortunate end. Colquhoun being a New Zealand poet falls under the category of a kiwi bloke who is traditionally subjected to the stereotype of being comfortable with death and just being able to accept it and move on. How ever Colquhoun showed how even he as a doctor can be caught off-guard by death â€Å"That’s all I want to say, go on, get the hell out of here, find your own way home. † The statement has hints at desperation in Colquhoun’s persona which shows that he is tired of having to deal with it in people’s stead. Another of Colquhoun’s poems Mothers, love your sons urges not only mothers but fathers, brothers and sisters to love the people closest to them even in there misadventures. Colquhoun uses the obvious imperative of â€Å"love your sons† but more so his use of â€Å"Love you granite sons, your Crystal sons, your paper sons† to deepen his meaning and to make the imperative that much more effective. Colquhoun also emphasizes the importance of loving your sons by showing some of the bad decisions we as people make, ‘terrible haircuts’, ‘badly ironed clothes’ to show weakness and that we should love them for their triumph as well as their blundering mistakes. Colquhoun cleverly used the statement â€Å"love you’re big, dumb sons, your idiot sons, you’re †¦. Sons† to show that sons generally boast ‘shoot first, ask questions later’ attitude and that gave special impetus to when he said, â€Å"You’re irresponsible sons and their indestructible limbs. † Colquhoun is effectively showing that the sons are unfit to care for themselves and it is the responsibility of a mother to be the responsible person who will wait up to 3am when the sons return from and eventful night gallivanting about unaware of the yelling their actions have brought about. Colquhoun being doctor usually sees the sons when they are in their worst shape. Mothers, love your sons and A spell to be cast prior to dying, by Glen Colquhoun. He used metaphors and Imperitives to convey an important theme which is that living life, and careing for those close to you is more important than fearing death. And his position as a Medical professional and as a father added impetus to the techniques present in both poems.