Unlikely Savior
If people were asked to describe a judge or leader for the Israelites, imaginations might conjure up a pious, older man paying strict adherence to the Mosaic laws and Codes of his people. One would not call to mind a young man with superhuman strength who drinks, fights, gambles and goes whoring whenever the spirit moves him. Samson fits the latter description, a very unlikely vessel for the Holy Spirit. Even more remarkable is the realization that Samson was exactly the way God wanted him to be—a hell-raiser. Why would God pick such a rabble-rousing rogue to be the champion of freedom for His chosen people? Because Samson was a catalyst meant to disrupt the complacency of the Israelites with regards to their subjugation to the Philistines—the proverbial lit match to the powder keg. He was also created to serve as an archetypical folk hero for his generation and those to follow, a larger-than-life symbol to remember and take heart from when things got tough.
“Created” is the operative word for Samson—he is created for a purpose. He doesn’t become the man he will be due to happenstance; he is given no choice. God had plans for him since before he was born. In a passage similar to others found in both the Old and New Testaments, an angel comes to Samson’s mother (then barren) and announces a miraculous birth. He instructs her to abstain from wine and not to eat things from the vine or unclean things. He adds that “…no razor shall come to his head: for the child will be a Nazarite unto God from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.” Samson was predestined to initiate a chain of events, not to see what he started to its conclusion. Note that the angel said, “…shall begin to deliver,” not “…shall deliver...”(Judges 13:3-5).
Regardless of the outcome, Sampson reaches adulthood and sets forth to fulfilling his destiny with great aplomb.
He was a leader in Lexington and a dynamic character in this novel. Moses made it clear that he did not want any accidents or casualties in his community. Ironically he was one of the first casualties in the war. Moses stated, “Strong feelings demand strong words.” (Fast 31) He was passionate about his religion and about the kind of man he wanted to be.
During the progression of A&P, Sammy's words and action reflect his growth from an immature teenager to a person who takes a stand for what he believes is wrong.
The transition from childhood to adulthood is not only a physical challenge but, psychological and socially exhausting. John Updike who wrote “A & P” recognized this and used it characterize the main character. The protagonist Sammy was developed around the concept of the journey into adulthood. Sammy is a nineteen years old boy who works at the A&P grocery store in a small New England town. It is not until three young girls walk into the store in just their bathing suits that Sammy is faced with the realization that he undoubtedly has to face the harsh truth of growing up.
Through the Prologue to the Pardoner's tale, the character of the Pardoner is revealed. Although the Pardoner displays many important traits, the most prevalent is his greed. Throughout the prologue, the Pardoner displays his greed and even admits that the only thing he cares about is money: "I preach nothing except for gain" ("Pardoner's Tale", Line 105). This avarice is seen strongly in the Pardoner's tale as well. In the Pardoner's tale, three friends begin a journey in order to murder Death. On their journey, though, an old man leads them to a great deal of treasure. At this point, all three of the friends in the tale display a greed similar to the Pardoner's. The three friends decide that someone should bring bread and wine for a celebration. As the youngest of the friends leaves to go buy wine, the other two greedily plot to kill him so they can split the treasure only two ways. Even the youngest decides to "put it in his mind to buy poison / With which he might kill his two companions" (383, 384). The greed, which is evident in the character of the Pardoner, is also clearly seen in the tale.
A pardoner is a person that could relieve someone from their sins. In the case of the Pardoners Tale, the Pardoner expects money for relieving sinners from their sins and for telling a story. The pardoner in this tale is hypocritical, his scare tactics prove this. He says that greed over things like money is an evil thing, and his audience should give him large amounts of money so he can pardon them from their sins.
...nnel for the message to the Israelites. This serves God's ultimately purpose of setting his chosen people free. Although Moses does not seem like a worthy candidate for the task, God gives him the power to overcome his flaws. Moses was successful in communicating and obeying God's word throughout his journey, because he never sought to control or possess the land or the people, unlike Pharaoh. In the end, the journey of the spiritual hero can finish in either one of these two paths. It is up to the individual whether or not they will succumb to temptation and be led down into hell and remain there forever.
The history and popularity of diamonds in Africa all began in 1866 when the first diamond was found along the banks of the Orange River. In the next fifteen years, Africa became the leading supplier of diamonds in the world, exporting more than nations such as India and Brazil. The discovery of these highly valued and highly demanded diamonds brought an immense amount of trade into Africa, a continent known for its poverty. One diamond company in particular, De Beers, instantly became interested in African diamond mines. By 1888, the company controlled the entire market, connecting African diamonds to wealthy humans all over the world. In 1929, De Beers began marketing diamonds to the middle class as well and associated the diamond with engagement and marriage, increasing the demand of the diamond worldwide. Though the company felt they had a hold on the market, they were wrong. Soon Lebanese traders discovered the enormous profit they could make by smuggling diamonds out of the country. As a result illicit mining and trading increased throughout countries in Africa and especially in Sierra Leone. To make matters worse, the government seemed to overlook the problem, if not sometimes encourage it. One Sierra Leone leader, Siaka Stevens, encouraged illicit trading to gain more control over the diamond mines. Succeeding leaders did the same, and with a corrupt government, the country of Sierra Leone was very vulnerable for a rebellion. Instead of bringing the continent of Africa out of its years of poverty stricken hardship, the discovery of diamonds in Africa only brought more of a curse as it fueled civil war, created political instability between governments, and caused unimaginable human suffering for African citizens.
Israelite history from about 1200 to 1000 BC is marked by the leadership of the Twelve Judges. The Book of Judges does not give a chronological account of the time between the settlement of Canaan and the rise of the monarchy, but instead tells a series of short accounts of the Judge’s accomplishments. The Twelve Judges served the Hebrew people as tribal leaders, military leaders, arbiters of disputes, and enliveners of faith. After the death of Joshua, the Israelites fell into a cycle of sin, calamity, repentance, and deliverance. The Judges emerged when the Israelites began to fall away from their core religious beliefs by worshipping false Gods. Each time that happened, God sent a Judge to save the Israelites from destruction.
Chaucer first begins his sly jab at the Church’s motives through the description of the Pardoner’s physical appearance and attitude in his “Canterbury Tales.” Chaucer uses the Pardoner as a representation of the Church as a whole, and by describing the Pardoner and his defects, is able to show what he thinks of the Roman Catholic Church. All people present in the “Canterbury Tales” must tell a tale as a part of story-telling contest, and the pilgrim Chaucer, the character in the story Chaucer uses to portray himself, writes down the tales as they are told, as well as the story teller. The description of the Pardoner hints at the relationship and similarity between the Pardoner and the Church as a whole, as well as marks the beginning of the irony to be observed throughout the “Pardoner’s Prologue and Tale.” The narrator describes the Pardoner as an extremely over confident, arrogant, and unattractive man, noting that his hair is “as yellow as wex,” lying thin and fl...
In The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer indirectly depicts the characters through the stories they tell. The tale is a window upon the person that tells it. However, the Pardoner’s tale seems to contradict this situation. The Pardoner, an immoral man, tells a moral story because he believes that doing this will further his ultimate objective – revenge upon God for his anomalous physical attributes. “He had the same small voice a goat has got. / His chin no beard had harboured, nor would harbour, / smoother than ever chin was left by barber. / I judge he was a gelding, or a mare” (21).
The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer is a collection of stories by a group of pilgrims who are heading to Canterbury Cathedral. In this book, the pardoner and the reeve show antipodal characters in many ways. The pardoner is beautiful blonde hair man who is being loved by everyone. However he is very corrupted and smart and sells fake religious stuff to people saying very good compliment. On the other hand, the reeve is very serious and honest business man. He is very smart enough to know what criminals think and do. The pardoner story-tells a great example (or tale?) of seven deadly sins and reeve’s story is mocking of the miller. These very different characteristic men tell story telling that human beings are always punished for being greedy. The crooked pardoner and the honest reeve have different purposes for telling their tales, but their stories have the same major theme; sins deserve punishment.
A tragic hero is defined as a person of high social rank, who has a tragic flaw or flaws that lead to their downfall. These heroes’ downfalls are usually either complete ruin or death. Tragic heroes face their downfall with courage and dignity. While many characters in Julius Caesar could fit these conditions, the person who fits the role of a tragic hero the best is Marcus Brutus. Brutus develops into a tragic hero throughout the play, and this is shown though his qualifications of a tragic hero, his high status, his tragic flaws, and his courage in the face of his death.
The Monk's Tale is not a strict narrative tale as are most of the other Canterbury Tales. Instead, it chronicles various historical characters who experience a fall from grace. The first of these is Lucifer, the fair angel who fell from heaven to hell. Next is Adam, the one man who was not born of original sin, but lost Paradise for all humanity. Samson fell from grace when he admitted his secret to his wife, who betrayed it to his enemies and then took another lover. Samson slew one thousand men with an ass's jawbone, then prayed for God to quench his thirst. From the jawbone's tooth sprung a well. He would have conquered the world if he had not told Delilah that his strength came from his refusal to cut his hair. Without this strength his enemies cut out Samson's eyes and imprisoned him. In the temple where Samson was kept he knocked down two of the pillars, killing himself and everyone else in the temple. The next tale is of Hercules, whose strength was unparalleled. He was finally defeated when Deianera sent Hercules a poisoned shirt made by Nessus. The Monk then tells the tale of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon who had twice defeated Israel. The proud king constructed a large gold statue to which all must pray, or else be cast into a pit of flames. Yet when Daniel disobeyed the king, Nebuchadnezzar lost all dignity, acting like a great beast until God relieved him of his insanity. The next, Balthasar, the son of Nebuchadnezzar, also worshipped false idols, but fortune cast him down.
Santarossa, B. (2004, January 13). Diamonds: Adding lustre to the Canadian economy. Retrieved November 06, 2017, from https://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-621-m/11-621-m2004008-eng.htm
...er’s diamond cartel, the world’s most powerful monopoly, no longer exists, the company itself is still a billion-dollar business. The demand for diamonds is still great and the supply scarce. Diamond engagement rings are no longer seen as the only accepted form of engagement rings; therefore people look to cheaper alternatives. Although substitutes for diamonds are increasing in popularity and diamonds are no longer seen as the only symbol of love, are still in high demand. The interdependence of firms in the oligopoly market structure stabilizes diamond prices and still allows for the firms’ profits to be maximized. De Beers and the Central Selling Organization monopoly managed to set the price of diamonds extremely high. Although the oligopoly market structure regulates diamond prices, in relation to the useful value of a diamond the price of diamonds is too high