Nervous conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga is rich in contrasts like different settings and financial status, which the writer uses to portray the characters and their different perspectives. The impact of these contrasts are so extreme that the characters become so very different from each other, which will be discussed further in the essay.
Education and illiteracy are one pair of contrasts that are depicted in the novel. This contrast is one of the reasons why characters like Babamukuru and Jeremiah act so differently. As Babamukuru has the opportunity to be educated, he knows his duty to fund the education of unlucky people like Tambu. However, illiteracy molds people like Jeremiah and Takesure to be ignorant about the importance of working.
…show more content…
The mission school and England provides a conducive environment as it has an “exotic library” that a student like Tambu needs for extensive reading. Besides this, and an equally important factor of the mission is good influence (Nyasha) and supervision (Babamukuru and Maiguru). Good hygiene and good food is also as important as studying because without health, one wouldn't do anything. The homestead however has everything that is not suitable for the student to study like Jeremiah’s bad influence and lack of facilities, good food and hygiene. Besides, Tambu would also have to help her mother in doing manual work if she has stayed in the homestead. Distance is also a problem as it is quite a long way from the homestead to the mission school.
Rhodesia, as well, is very different from England. Unlike England, girls in Rhodesia do not wear open dresses and they do not talk back against their parents. However, Nyasha, in spite of being an African acts like an English girl by wearing open dresses and rebels against her father. Besides how they act or wear, Rhodesia represents illiteracy, ignorance and poverty while England represents wealth and education. These two countries are reflected on the characters and circumstances of Tambu and Nyasha.
One’s present condition is due to their circumstances and actions. From the use of these contrasts, Tsitsi Dangarembga has successfully provided
“To climb…you have to be completely selfish”(pg.182). Though it may not always be true, to some degree it is. But it’s not just when you’re climbing, every single action that you take could be the difference between trust and suspicion, between death and life, between rising glory and simmering rage. People tend to be self-centered all the time, and sometimes, it really is the appropriate time to be selfish. On the other hand, it’s not always the best choice to be so selfish.
Frederick Douglass’s “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass an American Slave” recounts the life of Frederick Douglass as a slave on his journey to finding freedom. As a slave, he was treated as a second-rate citizen and was not taught how to be literate. Literacy is the ability to read and write. Slaves were robbed of the privilege of reading and writing and thus robbed of any educational means. Without these educational means, slaves were not allowed to grow in society and have a sense of capability within society. Instead, slaves were suppressed by the white man as property and forced to labor as the lowest part of society. Literacy is the education that separates humans from other forms of life and whites from slaves. Literacy
The novel is nurtured with a very soft but sophisticated diction. The essay itself portrays the author’s style of sarcasm and explains his points in a very clear manner. In addition, the author has used vocabulary that is very easy to understand and manages to relate the readers with his simplistic words. The author is able to convey a strong and provoc...
Having an understanding will determine whether or not one will have an indulgent of language. As Berry states, “illiteracy is both a personal and a public danger. Think how constantly "the average American" is surrounded by premeditated language, in newspapers and magazines, on signs and billboards, on TV and forever being asked to buy or believe somebody else's line of goods.” If a person reads a newspaper and can’t understand what’s written, it’s definitely going to be a personal danger. Now when that person is asked a question about the news spread or what a product does that is shown in a magazine, if one can’t understand what’s scripted that same person won’t able to clarify it and that’s public danger. Even if the product looks good in a magazine or billboard, but if one can’t understand what the product does than he or she won’t be able to purchase the item. Majority of the Americans watch debates on TV and if one person doesn’t understand anything that the candidates are saying, then that person will have a hard time conversing with family members or even colleagues. Being illiterate will have a toll in a person’s ordinary ambiance, but having knowledge will make it easier for a person to have discussions about their understandings on what’s written, seen, read, or
Education is a privilege. The knowledge gained through education enables an individual’s potential to be optimally utilized owing to training of the human mind, and enlarge their view over the world. Both “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” by Frederick Douglass himself and “Old Times on the Mississippi” by Mark Twain explore the idea of education. The two autobiographies are extremely different; one was written by a former slave, while the other was written by a white man. Hence, it is to be expected that both men had had different motivations to get an education, and different processes of acquiring education. Their results of education, however, were fairly similar.
Through literacy will come emancipation. So runs a theme throughout the various selections we have read thus far. But emancipation comes in many forms, as does literacy. The various aspects of academic literacy are rather obvious in relation to emancipation, especially when one is confronted with exclusion from membership in the dominant culture. In the various slave narratives we have examined, all but one writer, Mary Prince, managed to achieve academic literacy to varying degrees (although, Mary Prince was in the process of learning to read and write). And even though she was not literate, Mary was still able to have her story told. Frederick Douglass, made it a point to attain literacy at any cost. Most, but not all, of Toni Morrison's characters in Song of Solomon appear to have attained at least a modicum of literacy. In Push, Sapphire has her protagonist, Precious, pointed down a long road toward at least a minimal form of academic literacy that will allow her to become a more functional human being and a much more productive member of society. What part does literacy play in the advancement of the individual, and to what lengths will one go to achieve it? What part must the individual play to make certain that literacy leads to the desired or implied advancement? And, finally, is there a cost for literacy, or is it always something gained?
There are a couple of main points that stood out to me when I was reading the article by Yarhouse about sin and its influence on psychopathology. One of these points was the different terminology used to when discussing pathology. The author talked about various ways people chose to describe pathology and how these terms influence how we perceive pathology. The second point that I found to be important, was the Christian explanation of pathology and how this can influence psychology. I think that this point is crucial because as Christians, we have a unique perspective on psychopathology that can be very beneficial to the field of psychology as a whole.
What symptoms classify a person to be diagnosed as sick? A cough, a sore throat, or maybe a fever. Often times when individuals refer to the word ‘sick’, they neglect to mention a common disorder, one which takes a tremendous amount of personal determination, courage and strength in order to overcome. Mental illness took the author, Joanne Greenberg, down a path complete with obstacles, forcing her to battle against schizophrenia, a chronic brain disorder resulting in delusions, hallucinations, trouble with thinking and concentration as well as a lack of motivation. This complex piece of literature was originally composed to fight against the prejudice accusations associated with mental illness, while providing the semi-autobiographical novelist
Emotional discomfort can sometimes be perceived as mental instability. A person may look, act, or feel insane, when in truth they are just very uncomfortable in their own skin. The narrator has a genuinely difficult decision to make which far outside his comfort zone. He is choosing between a woman who has been like a mother to him and much needed job that he feels he may enjoy. This choice is tearing him apart from the inside out. From the ringing noises that interrupt his every thought to the skin he is scraping off. The author uses diction, syntax, and extended metaphors to express the complete and utter discomfort of the narrator, both physically and emotionally.
Illiteracy was an instrumental tool used to deprive slaves in an attempt to keep them ignorant and manageable during the 1800’s. If slaves were to learn how to read, they could in turn be educated. The oppressing class during this time period realized that if slaves were able to become educated they could no longer be useful, for it would be increasingly difficult to exploit their services. The ability to read was the white man’s power over slaves. Douglass, realizing the situation of his enslavement, took advantage of his privileges and began to secretly learn how to read and write. As he become more proficient in English, Douglass began to gain a following of slaves who were willing to learn. He used his knowledge to covertly conduct a school where he would teach other slaves the alphabet and numbers. The experience of teaching others brought tremendous joy to Douglass who felt he was providing a better opportunity to his fellow slaves.
In “The Human Cost of an Illiterate Society”, Kozol writes how the illiterate people struggle in our society. Without having an education that works with the society a person lives in, English for example, it can cause multiple issues when they need to communicate with others. Kozol writes, “They cannot understand the written details on a health insurance form. They cannot read the waivers that they sign preceding surgical procedures” (189), which is just a few of the numerous examples of how these people can struggle in everyday life. With having the proper education of the society a person lives in, they will be able to be successful. It is heart wrenching to see some people are not able to communicate, especially in a dire situation. Getting an education that works with the society someone lives in will lead people being successful and feeling
Illiteracy is not limited to children, teenagers, adults, a particular socio-economic level, or a particular race. When George, now 68, was a child he moved frequently because his father ran a small circus. He never stayed in one place long enough to learn how to read. Finally, he quit school, never to return. Now after retirement, he has decided to learn how to read. He arrived at the library reading room to find the door was locked. The sign indicated that a key was available at the information desk, but George did not know what the sign said. So he sat down and waited several hours for someone to open the door. Meh Chin from China, the mother of a third grader, is interested in communicating better with her children, who have already become fluent in English at an early age.
The general essence of the article is that the old ways of work and the work ethic of the older generations have broken apart. In place of stable routine and predictable career paths, employees are now expected to be fluid in their jobs, and open to change on very short notice. Workers of today's generation can no longer expect long term work, or the trust and loyalty that were given to the employees of the older generation. In some ways, the writer argues that this change between the generations is positive, as they can make for a more dynamic economy. However, they are also the cause of the article's title, "The Corrosion of Character". The work ethics of the employees are no longer valued. They are taken as face value, and there is no trust and loyalty. These changes are destructive to the worker's sense of sustained purpose, integrity of self and the trust they hold in others within the workplace.
Illiteracy is detrimental to any society. First people must know what it is before the problem can be fixed. Illiteracy can be defined as the inability to read or write. Lately illiteracy has been moved up to the ability to comprehend what one reads or writes. There are 40 to 44 million adults alone in the United States that do not have the ability to comprehend words that they are reading. This is an enormous problem that can lead to even more devastating effects.
However, in the U.S., Darling’s major conflicts were based on adapting to a new country, new family, new friends, and constantly home sick. She grows to see her home and its people differently because of how she is living in the U.S. She grows to see the U.S. differently because in Paradise it was completely different and in the U.S she has everything that she didn’t have in Paradise. In Zimbabwe, Darling was naive and innocent, whereas in the U.S. Darling is more experienced and simple. Through the conflicts of childhood, Darling changes to become more civilized and working to be able to attend college. However, she retains her sense of how her life was in Paradise.