Music in the 20th Century

Music in the 20th Century The 20th century is described as the period from 1900-1999, however, there is an inconsistency with the dates allocated to this period of music (20th century music). Most people believe the dates to be 1900-1940. This is because when people refer to 20th century music, they are referring to 20th century â€Å"classical† music (as opposed to jazz, rock, pop etc.).This period (1900-1940) is when the main works of the era were composed. There were many countries involved in the development of this era. Countries such as Germany and Russia (influenced neoclassicism) and France (influenced impressionism). Other areas, such as Argentina, Brazil and Latin America produced some important composers. Prominent composers in this era include; Igor Stravinsky, Claude Debussy, George Gershwin, Bela Bartok and Arnold Schoenberg. Although music from the 20th century is vastly different from previous eras, the composers were still influenced by elements of the past. They used a combination these elements and the other elements introduced in this era to create their own sound. There are five basic categories to describe the musical elements of 20th century music. These are melody, rhythm, harmony, texture and timbre/instrumentation. The melodies were wide-ranging, contained wide-leaps (much less vocal-centric), and were unbalanced and unpredictable. There was much less emphasis put on the melody and this meant the rhythms became more important. This is different from the previous eras except for the fact that the Baroque and Romantic eras also had hard-to-remember melodies. The rhythms in 20th century music became more complex. There were frequent tempo changes and the music used polyrhythms and other exciting and different rhythmic techniques. These polyrhythms can be seen in Charles Ives’ music. As men tioned before, there was more emphasis on rhythm in this era compared to the previous eras. The rhythms were also quite unpredictable. Other than that, these elements are quite similar to the romantic era and quite different to the classical era (steady tempo etc.). There were a few new harmonic techniques introduced in this era. These include the fourth chord (notes a fourth apart), the polychord (two chords played at the same time) and tone clusters. With regards to key, there was an increase in atonal (no home key) and polytonal (more than one home key) music and also the introduction of the 12-tone technique. There was an uncontrolled emphasis on dissonance and dissonant chords, similar to the romantic era, except dissonance in the 20th century was used way more frequently. This created a constant clashing sound/feel in the music that was almost unheard of in the classical and Baroque eras. The texture of this era was polyphonic and contrapuntal as opposed to homophonic. There w as more of an emphasis on increasing tonal range and on percussion and wind instruments as opposed to string instruments as seen in the previous eras. Their role was changed to that of a more percussive one, as seen in Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring. Electronic instruments were also sometimes used. This era was a time of revolt and change. Like any other period it is a change as a reaction to the previous ideas of the previous eras. At first these styles were not received well (causing riots at concerts), but eventually, people got used to the unconventional style of this era. It is quite different to the periods before it. The developments in this era include: more electronic instruments being used and developments in compositional techniques that completely disregarded previous rules or systems (while sometimes using elements for the previous eras). This can be seen in the development of the harmonic techniques. It was basically a time where each composer could experiment and create their own style and sound (e.g use of whole-tone and pentatonic scales). This was because they did not have to follow existing rules set out for them, like in the baroque and classical periods. Impressionism, as the name suggests, focuses on the impression of an idea that a piece of music evokes rather than having a clear description. This creates a soft, subtle, almost dream-like effect. The music has a colourful texture and uses unusual scales such as the whole-tone scale. It was influenced by the impressionist movement in France, which was an artistic movement. Many of the composers were influenced by the nature of the paintings themselves. Some say this movement was a reaction to late romanticism. Composers within the genre preferred to use short genres and forms such as preludes, nocturnes and arabesques. A prominent composer in this style is French composer, Claude Debussy. You can clearly see elements of impressionism in his composition, Clair De Lune from Suite Bergamasque. The piece has an overall dream-like effect and Debussy experiments with non-functional harmony. Even though it opens and closes with the tonic chord of D flat major, the root key throughout the p iece is unclear. There is a presence of dissonance and the rhythms are relatively complex. As mentioned before there is a use of unconventional harmony. Expressionism is extremely emotionally driven. It acts as reaction to the composer’s subconscious mind.† It was influenced/started by Van Gogh’s paintings. The music is not meant to be â€Å"pretty† or â€Å"pleasing to the ear .This is why some say it is a reaction to this positive characteristic of Impressionism. The music is very expressive, similar to the romantic period, so there are contrasts in dynamics and tempo. The melodies are also unbalanced with wide–leaps and complex rhythms. There is still a presence of dissonance and tonality has also basically been terminated. Some genres within this style include orchestral pieces and dramas such as operas, melodramas and one- act dramas. This was probably a popular genre because dramas are sure to evoke the strong emotion the music suggests. A prominent composer in this genre is Austrian composer, Arnold Schoenberg. He influenced the development of atonality and 12-tone technique. Many elements of expressionism can be seen in his composition, Erwotung Op.17 (1909). This composition is a score for his one-act drama, Erwotung. The music of the orchestra perfectly reflects the strong emotions of the main character (when she finds her dead lover) and the depressing story line, which supposedly has elements of dirty realism. This composition has no overall musical, rhythmic, melodic and harmonic structure (it is through-composed). It is atonal, as most expressionist music is, and it is still quite expressive. Neoclassicism is more â€Å"structural† than impressionism and expressionism. It is more balanced and places more emphasis on emotional restriction. This was influenced by the elements of the classical period and that is why it is called Neoclassicism. It was a reaction to the emotionally driven romanticism and expressionism periods. Germany and France were involved with the development of this style because of the composers it produced. Even though there was more structure, there were still elements of 20th music, such as complex/exciting rhythmic aspects. Similar to the classical period, genres within this style include symphonies, operas, chamber music, concerto grosso, fugue etc. A prominent composer within this style is Igor Stravinsky. He is a Russian composer who converted to this style after the 1920s. It is said that his opera, The Rake’s Progress, was the composition that concluded his Neoclassicism. This opera was set in the 18th century; therefore it gave wa y for classical elements in the music to be displayed. It is a 3-act opera that is based on the legend of Faust. Stravinsky uses counterpoint in this opera which indicates a contrapuntal texture. As with most of Stravinsky’s works, the rhythms relatively energetic and there is a melodic and harmonic diversity. The 20th century was a time of change and experimentation and 20th century music reflects that. The many styles and techniques that have developed from this one era and the non-existent limits that were put into place for composers reflects just how less structured the music was compared to the previous eras of music. (1314 words) REFERENCE PAGE An Analysis of Clair De Lune from Suite Bergamasque.Thomas Stones Blog. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Sept. 2014. . All about Romantic Music and Its Features.All about Romantic Music and Its Features. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Aug. 2014. . BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 27 Aug. 2014. . Comparison between Romantic, Impressionist and Early 20th Century Music.Inkling. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Aug. 2014. Erwartung, Monodrama in 1 Act, Op. 17 Arnold Schoenberg | Details, Parts / Movements and Recordings | AllMusic.AllMusic. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Sept. 2014. . . GMK notes: grade 11 and 9(SA and FR) â€Å"Igor Stravinsky.Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 09 Mar. 2014. Web. 04 Sept. 2014. Impressionist Music.Princeton University. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Aug. 2014. . Leeuw, Ton De, and Rokus De. Groot.Music of the Twentieth Century: A Study of Its Elements and Structure. Amsterdam: Amsterdam UP, 2005. Print. Music Listening 20th Century.Flashcards. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Aug. 2014. . The Different isms of Music.About. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Aug. 2014. The Rakes Progress. Simple English Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Sept. 2014. . Three Musicians.Three Musicians. N.p., n.d. Web. 27Aug. 2014. . Music in the 20th Century Music in the 20th Century The 20th century music started around the time of 1900 – 1960. The simplest way to describe the 20th century is: the period of fundamental change. Different styles were popular in different areas. This type of music was very common in European countries, places like Germany and France were very involved in the creation of the era as well as composers in America. This era was a different era to any that had gone before, all music characteristics that were once part of the romantic era were completely contrasted to create the 20th century music which is emotionless yet evokes emotion. There were many famous composers during the 20th century such as Claude Debussy (1862 – 1918), a French composer; and Maurice Ravel (1875 – 1937) – they were known as the two â€Å"great† impressionist. As well as them was Igor Stravinsky (1882 – 1971) he composed neoclassical pieces. George Gershwin (1898 1937) an American composer incorporated jazz blues into h is pieces. These are just a few composers who tried to compose music which was out of the ordinary. During the transformation from Romantic era to 20th Century a lot of things changes. Suddenly some elements were more important than others. Where in Romantic era tonality was not as important it became more important in the 20th Century. Form was once important, especially in baroque, but in the 20th century it became less important. Rhythms however became an important part of 20th century music they were very different to the rhythms of the previous periods. Harmonies became more complex and new. The texture was predominantly the same but in some 20th century styles the texture would change often. George Gershwin, an American composer, was one of the composers that used new scales and harmonies in his pieces. He implemented jazz blues into his piece â€Å"Rhapsody in Blue†. The characteristics of the 20th Century music was new to everyone that lived in that time. Tone colour changed from having to blend to not blending at all and the use of percussion instruments increased. Melodies and harmonies too were no longer as they were. Chords were being used differently melodies were becoming unpredictable. There was less emphasis on the differentiation between consonant and dissonant harmonies. Composers started using the twelve-tone system a lot more often as well. In pieces such as Assez Lent by Maurice Ravel, you can clearly hear the change between the dissonant and consonant parts of the piece as well as the constant change in dynamic and the use of chromatic notes. Impressionistic music was mainly composed in the European area. The aim of this music was not to express emotion or to tell a story but rather to create atmosphere and allow listeners to create their own interpretations. This music style included many dissonant chords and an extensive use of whole-tone scales. Other characteristics such as differences in dynamics, continuous change in texture and frequent modulation was also used in this style. Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel are the most well-known impressionist composers in the 20th century. A well-known composition composed by Ravel was The Pavane of the Dead Princess. The piece gained much interest through the image the title portrayed, it was suggestive â€Å"who is the dead princess?† the title is even more impressionistic as the piece is not about a dance for a dead princess but rather a young princess dancing to a pavane. Ravel’s opinion on the piece changed as he felt it was not original enough, that the ABACA form was too weak. Expressionisms is a style that originated in Germany. Its main feature was to create emotional within the listener. Expressionists attempted to create emotion through creating music that was different to what had been composed in previously. The lack of tonality and sharp melodies definitely created emotions within the listeners as it was completely different to anything that had been written in the romantic era. A well-known composer of this style is Arnold Schoenberg, creator of the twelve-tone system. Pierrot Lunaire, is a common composition of Schoenberg’s. You can tell that it is an expressionism piece through the use of twelve-tone notes, irregular rhythms and constant time signature changes. Neoclassicism is a music style that was predominant during the two world wars. It is a style in which the music contains characteristics and elements from musical styles of previous eras, most commonly classical. Some of these elements include balance form and lack of emotion. Although the music has imitations of the classical and baroque era, it still includes the new harmonisations and progressions found in the 20th century music. Neoclassicism was seen as a style going against the styles of the romantic period, it was not considered to be a protest or movement but rather it became popular for musicians to compose in this style. One of the most common composers of neoclassicism was Igor Stravinsky. He composed one of the first neoclassical pieces was The Rite of Spring. The public at the time rioted about the new style as it was completely different to everything they had heard before, the lack of harmonisation and dissonant sounds was displeasing and in that way evoked emotion alt hough negative at that. The 20th Century period was by far the most productive era. Everything that occurred in the 20th century changed to idea of music completely. What once was just strict harmonies and beautiful melodies could now be atonal and have no real structure. Even the sound of an audience could be considered music. This drastic change in music ideology has and will affect the way music is produced in today’s time. References Unknown: (ppt) 20th Century â€Å"ism† Dr Melanie Foster, 2009: Analysis of The Rite of Spring http://igorsrite.blogspot.com/2009/06/analysis-of-rite-of-spring.html Three Musicians. 2014. Three Musicians. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.tarleton.edu/Faculty/boucher/Fundamentals20thCentury.htm. Music History and Analysis. Atlantic International University: bachelor, master, doctoral degree. 2014. Music History and Analysis. Atlantic International University: bachelor, master, doctoral degree. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.aiu.edu/publications/student/english/131-179/Music-History-and-Analysis.html Neoclassicism (music) Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 2014. Neoclassicism (music) Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [ONLINE] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Neoclassical_Musicoldid=134035187 BBC GCSE Bitesize: Expressionism. 2014. BBC GCSE Bitesize: Expressionism. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/music/music_20th_century/schoenberg1 Impressionism. 2014. Impressionism. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.academic.muohio.edu/mus189/impressionism/ Maurice Ravel The Elegant Impressionist. 2014. Maurice Ravel The Elegant Impressionist. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.favorite-classical-composers.com/maurice-ravel.html. Program Notes Title. 2014. Program Notes Title. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.barbwired.com/barbweb/programs/ravel_pavane.html.

A Caribbean Legacy Essay -- Caribbean History Culture Essays

A Caribbean Legacy The notions of slavery, colonialism, and race are indelible aspects of Caribbean history. In order to fathom the current political, social, economic, and cultural climate of the Caribbean one must engage in a critical study and understanding of the impact slavery has had in modern day Caribbean societies. The modes and intricacies of modern day Caribbean societies are intimately related to the plantation systems of the colonial period, which welcomed the arrival of the largest migration in history. Author Michelle Cliff, in her essay "If I Could Write This With Fire," attempts to make sense of the current deplorable social conditions of racial inequality in her native land of Jamaica. It is within this context of understanding the current social and racial strife in Jamaica that Michelle Cliff presents the intimate relationship between past and present. Michelle Cliff, in an ontological manner attempts to unmask the current phenomena of racial strife in Jamaica by considering and examining the disdainful legacies of slavery brought upon by ruthless European colonialism in the Americas. Cliff, like many of the historians, sociologists, and economists which we have encountered in our study of Caribbean history, is partaking in an unmasking process of the Jamaican society in her literature in order to reconcile a ravaged Jamaican and Caribbean identity. Ultimately, Michelle Cliff’s desire to make sense of the Caribbean’s intricate social and cultural mosaic prompted her to "look back," and, as she states in her essay: To try and locate the vanishing point: where the lines of perspective converge and disappear. Lines of color and class. Line of history and social context. Lines of denial and rejection. Wh... ...nges imposed by the plantation system created a hierarchy of color (similar to the one discussed by Michelle Cliff in Abeng, wherein the color of one's skin designated one's occupation and social position). Whiteness indicated economic and political superiority as well as leisure while blackness represented low social status and arduous labor. Consequently, it is quite evident that Knight offers significant evidence affirming the notion that slavery, or in this particular case, the social caste system imposed by the plantations has indeed had a grave influence in the evolution of Caribbean societies. -Footnotes- 1.) Excerpt taken from: Michelle Cliff’s essay, "If I Could Write This With Fire." 2.) ibid (1) 3.) Quote taken from page 124 of: Knight, Franklin. The Caribbean: The Genesis of a Fragmented Nationalism. Oxford University Press: New York, 1990.

Movie: Tucker - Preston Tucker Essay -- essays research papers

Movie: Tucker - Preston Tucker Preston Tucker was a car-crazy kid who hung around auto speedways and grew up to create an automobile Tucker that was years ahead of its time. He was a man of pioneering spirit, ingenuity, and daring, who revolutionized Detroit in the 1940s with his stunning car of tomorrow. It was streamlined, futuristic, and fast the car every American dreamed of owning, at a price most people could afford. When he wanted to start to produce the car he faces a lot of barriers, an oligopoly. In the movie Tucker, there are only a small number of firms. Like Kaiser-Frazier Automotive Company and Ford Motor Company. Each of the companies holds a large share and the action from each one may have a great affect on the others. The product in this movie is car. Car is similar, differentiated product and this is the characteristics of an oligopoly. There are many problems when Tucker tries to produce his dream car. Since his car is a new one, he needs to use a lot of advertising to promote it in order to attract people to buy it. Like magazine, car shower, and TV. When Tucker tried to produce his car, he faced many problems. First he had the financial problem he needed $15 million to produce the bomber engine. However, he did not have enough money, so he issued 4 million shares to raise his money. Besides, retooling for a model change could cost $20 million and since his car was a new brand, Tucker was lack of support of the big firms, so he needed a lot of money ...

Imprisonment and Social Control Essay -- Prison Justice

Imprisonment is one of the primary ways in which social control may be achieved; the Sage Dictionary of Criminology defines social control as a concept used to describe all the ways in which conformity may be achieved. Throughout time imprisonment and its ideas around social control have varied. Imprisonment has not always been used for punishment, nor has it always thought about the prisoners themselves. However when looking at imprisonment it is important to consider the new penology. Therefore, it needs to be clear what the new penology is. The new penology is said, not to be about punishing individuals or about rehabilitating them, but about identifying and managing unruly groups in society. It is concerned with the managerial processes, not the individual’s behaviour or even community organisation. All in all, its goal is to make crime tolerable, not to eliminate it entirely. (Feeley, M and Simon, J). Therefore the New Penology is not about the reform of individuals but the control of populations as a whole, with imprisonment focusing on particular offenders who are defined as ‘persistent’ or ‘high rate’. In light of this, the history of imprisonment, the purposes of imprisonment and indeed the question of whether it works as a form of social control or not all need to be addressed, as well as looking into the critics of the new penology. Imprisonment has a number of purposes, the first being punishment, which brings with it the idea of retribution and revenge. The second purpose is incapacitation, this looks at the protection of society and the length of time the individual must serve in prison. Deterrence is the third purpose; it attempts to prevent the individual committing any future crime and goes some way to deter ... ...ology. Devon: Willan Publishing, pp 684-713. Sampson, R, and Laub, J. (1933), ‘Individual Factors in Crime’, in Newburn, T. Criminology. Devon: Willan Publishing, pp. 843. Shichor, D. (1997) ‘Three Strikes as a Public Policy: The Convergence of the New Penology and the McDonaldization of Punishment’, Crime Delinquency, (43), pp. 470-492. Spelman, W. (2000) ‘What Recent Studies Do (and Dont) Tell Us About Imprisonment and Crime’. In Michael, T. Crime and Justice: A Review of Research. (3). Chicargo: University of Chicargo Press. Wilson, D. (2006) ‘Social Control’, The Sage Dictionary of Criminology: 391-392. London: Sage Publications. Woolfe, H. And Tumim, S. (1991). ‘Official Aims of Imprisonment’, in Cavadino, M. and Dignan, J. The Penal System: An Introduction. London: Sage Publications. Zedner, L (2004). Criminal Justice. New York, USA: Oxford University.

Because I could Not Stop for Death values

â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop For Death† Emily Dickinson During the start of the realist movement, Emily Dickinson wrote â€Å"Because I could Not Stop for Death,† questioning the communal values of religion and eternity. The poem, at first, looks to be about the eternal afterlife, but with closer inspection of the language, (i. e. â€Å"Surmised† is a word of uncertainty) we find that she is actually not sure about the eternity of afterlife and all it entails. The 19th century was the beginning of a new era. Science and religion were beginning to intersect and to ome, clash.Dickinson's poem, in a way, is a direct comparison of this battle, as she is obviously struggling with idea of eternity and the traditional belief of the afterlife being heaven or hell. Dickinson uses realism in this poem by speaking of the reality of death, an event every living thing will experience, while using symbolism and personification. Death is personified as a gentleman who is gent ly taking her on a carriage ride. The first two lines, â€Å"Because I could not stop for Death/He kindly stopped for me-â€Å"(Dickinson, Line -2) symbolizes that the narrator has died but not on her own terms.She was not prepared for death, but Death â€Å"kindly' stopped for her. Dickinson personifies death, but is talking about the actual event of dying. Unlike the common fear among society of death, this Journey is calm and peaceful: â€Å"He knew no haste† (Dickinson, Line 5) and â€Å"For His Civility' (Dickinson Line 8) are phrases used to describe the gentle nature of death. On her Journey, she reflects the stages of her life. â€Å"We passed the School, where Children strove† (Dickinson,line 9) represents her childhood or youth.We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain† (Dickinson,line 1 1) represents the maturity of adulthood, and â€Å"We passed the Setting Sun† (Dickinson, line 12) represents the end. All of these events are common to everyone; childhood, adulthood, and death. Carol Frost writes, â€Å"There are no lectures and no overt theological speculations†¦ † . Hidden under the symbolism, lies only the process of dying. The poem questions the traditional values of religion and the beliefs that after death, comes eternity in a heavenly paradise.She is not accompanied by angels, here is no light leading to eternity, or visions of God reaching out his hands to embrace ner returning soul. Her actual beliets are unclear, but sne was clearly not religious. â€Å"Emily Dickenson lived in a time defined by the struggle to reconcile traditional Christian beliefs with newly emerging scientific concepts, the most influential being Darwinism. Dickinson's struggles with faith and doubt reflect her society's diverse perceptions of God, nature, and humankind. † (The Church). The scene as she comes closer to her destination is slowly getting dark and cold.We passed the Setting Sun/Or rather-He passed US† an d â€Å"The Dews drew quivering and chill† (Dickinson, lines 12-14) represent the leaving of the physical world and entering a dreary existence. At first, death was kind and now he's lured her into the darkness. A common belief among religious people is that when one dies, they enter a euphoric afterlife. As she reflects on the day of her death, she says, â€Å"Since then-tis Centuries- and yet/Feels shorter than the day/' first surmised the Horses' Heads/Were toward Eternity-â€Å"(Dickinson, lines 21-24).Dickinson gives no clear answer about her existence after death, but by the tone, she does not appear to be in a magical place. She also leaves the answer open to the reader's imagination by saying the centuries seemed shorter than the day she assumed she was going towards eternity. The 19th century introduced the ideology that mankind's creation had scientific explanations, and the beginning of the realist movement. These events mixed with Dickinson's already formed skep ticism, resulted in the creation of, â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop for Death†.

Nationally Identity Cards

Real ID will not make people any safer no matter how people strive and spin it. In reality people will be less safe from tyranny and despotism than ever before for the reason that it doesn’t come from outside forces but right here in the homeland; our own backyard (AJY, 2005). The terrorist attacks of September 11  have revived proposals for a national identity card system as a way to confirm the identity of airline passengers and keep away from terrorists from entering the country (Kristof and Stanley, 2004). For instance, the Chairman and CEO of Oracle Corp., Larry Ellison, lately called for the creation of a national ID system and offered to make available the software for it without charge.The newest calls for a national ID are only the latest in a long series of proposals that have cropped up repeatedly over the past decade, typically in the framework of immigration policy, but also in connection with gun control or health care reform. But the creation of a national I.D . card remains a misplaced, superficial â€Å"quick fix.† It offers only a false sense of security and will not enhance our security but will pose serious threats to the civil liberties and civil rights. A National ID will not keep people safe or free.The problem is the card itself. No matter how unforgeable we make it, it will be forged. And even worse, people will get legitimate cards in fraudulent names (Schneier, 2004). A national ID card system will not avoid terrorism. It would not have thwarted the September 11 hijackers, for instance, lot of whom reportedly had identification documents on them, and were in the country legally.  Terrorists and criminals will continue to be able to get by legal and illegal means the documents needed to get a government ID, such as birth certificates.Yes, these new documents will have data like digital fingerprints on them, but that won't show real identity just that the carrier has obtained what could without difficulty be a fraudulen t document. And their creation would not justify the cost to American taxpayers, which according to the Social Security Administration would be at least $4 billion. It is an impractical and ineffective proposal a simplistic and naà ¯ve try to use gee-whiz technology to solve difficult social and economic problems.A national ID card system would not protect us from terrorism, but it would construct a system of internal passports that would extensively diminish the freedom and privacy of law-abiding citizens. Once put in place, it is extremely unlikely that such a system would be restricted to its original purpose. Social Security numbers, for instance, were initially intended to be used only to administer the retirement program.   But that limit has been routinely ignored and steadily abandoned over the past 50 years. A national ID system would threaten the privacy that Americans have always enjoyed and gradually amplify the control that government and business wields over everyda y citizens (Miller, 1995).What happens when an ID card is stolen? What proof is used to make a decision that gets a card? A national ID would require a governmental database of every person in the U.S. containing continually updated identifying information. It would likely contain numerous errors, any one of which could render someone unemployable and probably much worse until they get their â€Å"file† straightened out. And once that database was created, its use would almost certainly expand. Law enforcement and other government agencies would soon ask to link into it, while employers, direct mailers, landlords, private investigators, landlords, credit agencies, mortgage brokers, civil litigants, and a long list of other parties would begin seeking access, further eroding the privacy that Americans have always expected in their personal lives.Americans have long had a visceral aversion to building a society in which the authorities could act like totalitarian sentries and d emand â€Å"your papers please!† And that everyday intrusiveness would be conjoined with the full power of modern computer and database technology. When a police officer or security guard scans your ID card with his pocket bar-code reader, for instance, will a permanent record be created of that check, including the time and your location? How long before office buildings, doctors' offices, gas stations, highway tolls, subways and buses incorporate the ID card into their security or payment systems for greater efficiency? The end result could be a nation where citizens' movements inside their own country are monitored and recorded through these â€Å"internal passports.†Rather than eliminating discrimination, as some have claimed, a national identity card would foster new forms of discrimination and harassment of anyone perceived as looking or sounding â€Å"foreign.† That is what happened after Congress passed the Employer Sanctions provision of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1985: widespread discrimination against foreign-looking American workers, particularly Asians and Hispanics. A 1990 General Accounting Office study found almost 20 percent of employers engaged in such practices.A national ID card would have the same effect on a massive scale, as Latinos, Asians, Caribbean’s and other minorities became subject to ceaseless status and identity checks from police, banks, merchants and others. Failure to carry a national I.D. card would likely come to be viewed as a reason for search, detention or arrest of minorities. The stigma and humiliation of constantly having to prove that they are Americans or legal immigrants would weigh heavily on such groups.National ID is an extremely terrible idea it really isn't clear to me that a national ID card does not make identification more reliable as well as realizing important economic savings by standardization. In particular while I agree that using one ID system introduces an ordinary point of high value failure it also economically feasible to invest a great deal more in the ID system. If one ID replaces n IDs you can make the ID cost roughly about the sum of the costs of all those other IDs. If one national ID replaced our entire driver's licenses, passports, credit cards and so forth it could afford more sophisticated safeguards than any of the former IDs individually.National ID system is a bad idea. Unfortunately, insecure and badly abused national ID system already exist the Social Security Number. Using SSN and Driver's Licenses as ID systems is bad, bad, bad. There are little or no regulations governing how these data can be used and this result in the current state of things: with your name and SSN, an identity thief can wreak havoc on your life. With a plain, secure, and open architecture for individual ID's, then we, as citizens, could take power over how our identities are used and disseminated for things like insurance forms, employment appl ications, credit applications, etc. Unfortunately, the need to positively identify and track an individual for these purposes is a stone cold part of daily life.Rather than reject outright the notion of any form of national ID we should be actively working towards an architecture that actually works and provides safeguards for our personal information, while at the same time making application processes easier and more streamlined. Honestly, it makes me fume that I have to fill out my personal and insurance information every time I go to any medical professional. Why can't I enter a PIN number or password into a secured touch pad and automatically authorize the download of my information automatically? Enabling this sort of ability would be moving forward, not backward.REFERENCEAJY, Real ID Act Is Our National ID Card; Real Bad, Real Stupid, 2005 Bruce Schneier. A National ID Card Wouldn't Make Us Safer. Minneapolis Star Tribune, 2004 ;http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2005/05/r eal_id.html;Kristof and Jay Stanley. Should the U.S. adopt a national ID card system? Many countries issue national ID cards. Post-9/11 security concerns have prompted a debate about whether †¦ ): An article from: New York Times Upfront, Scholastic, Inc., 2004.Miller, John J.   A national ID system: Big brother's solution to illegal immigration, Cato Institute (1995).

Reaction Paper †Fiction: Short Story

â€Å"The Jilting of Granny Weatherall† is a small story written by Katherine Anne Porter, the American writer. It was published in 1930 along with other short stories alike, as part of story collection called â€Å"Flowering Judas†. The reaction to this fiction story from a reader’s point of view I’m going to express in this short essay. The whole setting of this story is drawn around the bed of Ms. Weatherall, where she is spending the last moments of her life. The author is focusing her attention on Granny’s thoughts in form of her own self-monologue. The other characters present in the final scene of Granny’s life are: her own daughter, Cornelia, Dr. Harry, the priest, and her grandchildren, who are invited to visit their grandmother before she dies. The fact that Granny Weatherall is having a serious illness is concealed from her by the doctor and the relatives. Being close to death Ms. Weatherall is staying in bright mind and is rehearsing her own thoughts of the past and is fantasizing about present as what she would do if she did not have to stay in bed. The other characters in the story display little action, like quiet talk of Granny’s daughter to the doctor that irritates Ms. Weatherall as she starts feeling more concern about herself. The doctor, on the other hand, is trying to cheer Ms. Weatherall up by telling her that she is looking good and referring to her as â€Å"little girl†, which is inappropriate with ladies of her age. The author is mainly concentrating on Granny’s thoughts in this story. In her memories she goes back into past, sees her husband that died many years ago, and, even against her will, she reminds about events that happened to her when she was a teenager. The author is writing the story the way readers can see not only old woman dying among her relatives but as she watches her own life before her eyes before she passes away. The other people who surround Ms. Weatherall seem not to destruct her from her own thoughts with their actions. The concept of this inner journey is to introduce the reader to Ms. Weatherall’s personality and what her life was about. All the sudden the old lady is seeing things that happened to her many years ago, the memories she either regretted or kept hidden through her entire life. These memories become so lose that she almost experiences them over again after so many years. The author makes it obvious that the old lady has given her heart and soul to being a mother and wife up to her final breath. The whole flow of the story changes as Ms. Weatherall gets close to dying. It seems like the flow of her thoughts is becoming more emotional. Granny starts denying her critical condition and it seems like sh e loses control over the situation. She recalls, once when she thought she was close to dying twenty years ago she did not feel that way and she did not expect death coming. This event has given her the experience of not being afraid of it. She survived that day, and from that point on death has become something invisible to her. Granny almost fell as she could get up of the bed and return to her daily activities. In her own thoughts she acts as she has got things to do tomorrow. She displays incredible stubbornness and will to continue as her death comes closer. The author wanted to make connection between the simple rehearsal of thoughts to almost euphorical state of mind as death comes closer. Ms. Weatherall was always an honest catholic, and her faith in God is inspiring her even now. She remembers, when she was young her faith helped her to overcome any obstacles, and everything she was about to take on could easily be accomplished. â€Å"Thank God there was a little margin over for peace: then a person could spread out the plan of life and tuck in the edges orderly†. Finally Granny Weatherall rests in peace like her long lived father who was her hero and whose image she kept in her mind until her final hour. I personally like the story and how it is told. I found myself relate to this story because a year ago I went through the same period of sorrow when my grandmother was passing away. In this story I felt not only sympathy to Ms. Weatherall as I read it, but I was pleasantly impressed of her courage and will to live even after knowing that she was close to dying. I think this is because she is not only courageous person but she truly has God in her heart. I think this is a really good work by the author as she found a very interesting theme of life and death. I read somewhere that each person before dying sees their own life flashing before them. This was a really good example of interpretations of final thoughts of person and emotional preparation to the end of life.