The Woman Who Fathered Me A Caribbean Womans Role in...

The Woman Who Fathered Me: A Caribbean Womans Role in the Family Female children born into low income families in Jamaica and other islands of the Caribbean are burdened with a stereotype that their male counterparts will never know. When faced with the gender oppression their society has constantly been feeding, and the fact that so many women must act as the single financial heads of their families, many women of the Caribbean must settle for low paying occupations associated with female or domestic labor. For women born into families at the bottom of the economic ladder, there is little hope of social mobility or escape from the fist of poverty. In most cases, the cycle continues to feed itself from mother to daughter. In my†¦show more content†¦Here where the fences penetrated each other and in silent collaboration produced a corner there were three. The three were shuffling episodes and exchanging confidences which informed their life with meaning. The meaning was not clear to them. It was not their concern, and it never would be. Th eir consciousnesshad never been quickened by the fact of life to which these confidences would have been a sure testimony. The sun let its light flow down on them as life let itself flow through them. I begin my paper with this excerpt because it says a great deal about life for women, and especially mothers, in the Caribbean. I recently took a travel study course through the English department to study Caribbean literature in Barbados and we were asked to read Lammings book before we left. Reading it I had assumed that the lifestyle and events he was describing had to be somewhat dated, but after two weeks on the island I realized that things are just now beginning to change as far as womens identity and role in the family. It has only been with in the past thirty years that women in the Caribbean have collectively begun to gain consciousness, unite, and come forward in their pursuit of equality with their male oppressors. Not only is it beautifully written, but Lammings description brings up two important issues that are crucial to the thesis of my paper. First, as seen through all the different fathers of Miss Fosters six children, the commonShow MoreRelatedEssay on The End of Oppression for Jamaican Women5572 Words   |  23 Pages12) Women have different roles in politics, economics and religion than their counterparts. It is important to know not just the general role of women, but it is also important to know where they come from. Women have not played a big role in politics, have been oppressed economically, and have not received equal pay. In the Rastafarian culture women are subservient, this is slowly changing. Where does this leave Jamaican women? A race looking for strong women role models. Black women do notRead MoreOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 PagesBlack, ed., Modern American Queer History Eric Sandweiss, St. Louis: The Evolution of an American Urban Landscape Sam Wineburg, Historical Thinking and Other Unnatural Acts: Charting the Future of Teaching the Past Sharon Hartman Strom, Political Woman: Florence Luscomb and the Legacy of Radical Reform Michael Adas, ed., Agricultural and Pastoral Societies in Ancient and Classical History Jack Metzgar, Striking Steel: Solidarity Remembered Janis Appier, Policing Women: The Sexual Politics of

The Learning Years of Medieval Childhood

The physical manifestations of biological puberty are difficult to ignore, and it is hard to believe that such obvious indications as the onset of menses in girls or the growth of facial hair in boys were not acknowledged as part of a transition into another phase of life. If nothing else, the bodily changes of adolescence made it clear that childhood would soon be over. Medival Adolescence and Adulthood It has been argued that adolescence was not recognized by medieval society as a stage of life separate from adulthood, but this is not at all a certainty. To be sure, teenagers were known to take on some of the work of full-fledged adults. But at the same time, such privileges as inheritance and land ownership were withheld in some cultures until the age of 21. This disparity between rights and responsibilities will be familiar to those who remember a time when the U.S. voting age was 21 and the military draft age was 18. If a child was to leave home before reaching full maturity, the teen years were the most likely time for him to do so. But this did not mean he was on his own. The move from the parents household was almost always into another household, where the adolescent would be under the supervision of an adult who fed and clothed the teenager and to whose discipline the teen was subject. Even as youths left their families behind and took on increasingly more difficult tasks, there was still a social structure to keep them protected and, to some extent, under control. The teen years were also the time to concentrate more intensely on learning in preparation for adulthood. Not all adolescents had schooling options, and serious scholarship could last a lifetime, but in some ways, education was the archetypal experience of adolescence. Schooling Formal education was unusual in the Middle Ages, although by the fifteenth century there were schooling options to prepare a child for his future. Some cities such as London had schools that children of both genders  attended during the day. Here they learned to read and write, a skill that became a prerequisite for acceptance as an apprentice in many Guilds. A small percentage of peasant children managed to attend school in order to learn how to read and write and understand basic math; this usually took place at a monastery. For this education, their parents had to pay the lord a fine and usually promise that the child would not take ecclesiastical orders.  When they grew up, these students would use what theyd learned to keep village or court records, or even to manage the lords estate. Noble girls, and on occasion boys,  were sometimes sent to live in nunneries in order to receive basic schooling. Nuns would teach them to read (and possibly to write) and make sure they knew their prayers. Girls were very likely taught spinning and needlework and other domestic skills to prepare them for marriage. Occasionally such students would become nuns themselves. If a child was to become a serious scholar, his path usually lay in the monastic life, an option that was rarely open to or sought by the average townsman or peasant. Only those boys with the most notable acumen were chosen from these ranks; they were then raised by the monks, where their lives could be peaceful and fulfilling or frustrating and restrictive, depending on the situation and their temperaments. Children at monasteries were most often younger sons of noble families, who were known to give their children to the church in the early Middle Ages. This practice was outlawed by the Church as early as the seventh century (at the Council of Toledo) but was still known to take place on occasion in the centuries that followed. Monasteries and cathedrals eventually began to maintain schools for students who were destined for secular life. For younger students, instruction began with the skills of reading and writing and moved on to the Trivium of the Seven Liberal Arts: grammar, rhetoric, and logic. As they grew older, they studied the Quadrivium: arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, and music. Younger students were subject to the corporal discipline of their instructors, but by the time they entered University, such measures were rare. Advanced schooling was almost exclusively the province of males, but some females were able to acquire an admirable education nonetheless. The story of Heloise, who took private lessons from Peter Abelard, is a memorable exception; and the youth of both genders at the court of twelfth-century Poitou undoubtedly could read well enough to enjoy and debate the new literature of Courtly Love. However, in the later Middle Ages nunneries suffered a drop in literacy,  reducing available options for a quality learning experience. Higher education for females depended largely on individual circumstances. In the twelfth century, cathedral schools evolved into universities. Students and masters banded together into guilds to protect their rights and further their educational opportunities. Embarking on a course of study with a university was a step toward adulthood, but it was a path that began in adolescence. University One might argue that once a student reached university level he could be considered an adult; and, since this is one of the instances in which a young person might be living on his own, there is certainly logic behind the assertion. However, university students were notorious for making merry and making trouble. Both official university restrictions and unofficial social guidelines kept the students in a subordinate position, not only to their teachers but to senior students. In the eyes of society, it would appear that students were not yet completely considered adults. Its also important to remember that, although there were age specifications as well as experience requirements to become a teacher, no age qualifications governed a students entry into a university. It was a young mans ability as a scholar that determined if he was ready to pursue higher education. Therefore, we have no hard-and-fast age group to consider; students were  usually  still teenagers when they entered university, and legally not yet in full possession of their rights. A student beginning his studies was known as a  bajan,  and in many  cases,  he underwent a rite of passage called the jocund advent upon his arrival at university. The nature of this ordeal varied according to place and time, but it usually involved feasting and rituals similar to the hazing of modern fraternities. After a year at  school,  the  bajan  could be purged of his lowly status by expounding a passage and debating it with his fellow students. If he made his argument successfully, he would be washed clean and led through the town on an ass. Possibly due to their monastic origins, students were tonsured (the tops of their heads were shaved) and wore clothing similar to that of the monk: a  cope  and cassock or a closed-over long-sleeved tunic and overtunic. Their diet could be fairly erratic if they were on their own and with limited funds; they had to purchase what was inexpensive from the shops of the city. Early universities had no provisions for housing, and young men had to live with friends or relatives or otherwise fend for themselves. Before long colleges were set up to aid the less affluent students, the first being the College of the Eighteen in Paris.  In return for a small allowance and a bed at the Hospice of the Blessed Mary, students were asked to offer prayers and take turns carrying the cross and holy water before the bodies of deceased patients. Some residents proved to be insolent and even violent, disrupting the studies of serious students and breaking in when they stayed out after hours. Thus, the Hospice began to restrict its hospitality to students who behaved more pleasantly, and it required them to pass weekly examinations to prove their work was meeting expectations.  The residency  was limited to a year, with the possibility of a years renewal at the discretion of the foundationers. Institutions such as the College of the Eighteen evolved into endowed residences for students, among them Merton at Oxford and Peterhouse at Cambridge. In time, these colleges began to acquire manuscripts and scientific instruments for their students and offer regular salaries to teachers in a concerted effort to prepare candidates in their quests for a degree. By the end of the fifteenth century, few students lived outside colleges. Students attended lectures regularly. In the early days of universities, lectures were held in a hired hall, a church, or the masters home, but soon buildings were constructed for the express purpose of teaching. When not at lectures a student would read significant works, write about them, and expound on them to fellow scholars and teachers. All this was in preparation for the day when he would write a thesis and expound on it to the doctors of the university in return for a degree. The subjects studied included theology, law (both canon and common), and medicine. The University of Paris was foremost in theological studies, Bologna was renowned for its law school, and Salernos medical school was unsurpassed. In the 13th and 14th centuries  numerous universities  sprang up throughout Europe and England, and some students were not content to limit their studies to only one school. Earlier scholars such as  John of Salisbury  and  Gerbert of Aurillac  had traveled far and wide to glean their education; now students were following in their footsteps (sometimes literally). Many of these were serious in motive and driven by a thirst for knowledge. Others, known as  Goliards, were more lighthearted in nature—poets seeking adventure and love. All this may present a picture of students thronging the cities and highways of medieval Europe, but in  reality,  scholarly studies at such a level were unusual. By and large, if a teenager were to undergo any form of structured education, it was more likely to be as an apprentice. Apprenticeship With few exceptions, apprenticeship began in the teens and lasted from seven to ten years. Though it wasnt unheard of for sons to be apprenticed to their own fathers, it was fairly uncommon.  Sons of master craftsmen were by Guild law automatically accepted into the Guild; yet many still took the apprenticeship route, with someone other than their fathers, for the experience and training it offered. Apprentices in larger towns and cities were supplied from outlying villages in substantial numbers,  supplementing labor forces that dwindled from diseases such as the plague and other factors of city living. Apprenticeship also took place in village businesses, where a teenager might learn milling or felting cloth. Apprenticeship was not limited to males. While there were fewer girls than boys taken in as apprentices, girls were trained in a wide variety of trades. They were more likely to be trained by the masters wife, who often knew nearly as much about the trade as her husband (and sometimes more). Although such trades as that of seamstress were more common for females, girls were not limited to learning skills they could take into a marriage, and once they married many continued plying their trades. Youngsters rarely had any choice in which craft they would learn, or with what particular master they would work; the destiny of an apprentice was usually determined by the connections his family had. For example, a young man whose father had a haberdasher for a friend might be apprenticed to that haberdasher, or perhaps to another haberdasher in the same guild. The connection might be through a godparent or neighbor instead of a blood relative. Affluent families had more affluent connections, and a wealthy Londoners son was more likely than a country boy to find himself learning the goldsmith trade. Apprenticeships were formally arranged with contracts and sponsors. Guilds required that bonds of surety be posted to guarantee that apprentices fulfilled expectations; if they did not, the sponsor was liable for the fee. In addition, sponsors or the candidates themselves would sometimes pay the master a fee to take on the apprentice. This would help the master cover the expenses of caring for the apprentice over the next several years. The relationship between master and apprentice was as significant as that between parent and offspring. Apprentices lived in their masters house or shop; they usually ate with the masters family, often wore clothes provided by the master, and were subject to the masters discipline. Living in such close proximity, the apprentice could and often did form close emotional bonds with this foster family, and might even marry the bosss daughter. Whether or not they married into the family, apprentices were often remembered in their masters wills. There were also cases of abuse, which might end up in court; though apprentices were usually the victims, at times they took extreme advantage of their benefactors, stealing from them and even engaging in violent confrontations. Apprentices sometimes ran away, and the sponsor would have to pay the master the surety fee to make up for the time, money and effort that had gone into training the runaway. The apprentices were there to learn and the primary purpose the master had taken them into his home was to teach them; so learning all the skills associated with the craft was what occupied most of their time. Some masters might take advantage of the free labor, and assign menial tasks to the young worker and teach him the secrets of the craft only slowly, but this was not all that common. An affluent craftsmaster would have servants to perform the unskilled tasks he needed to be done in the shop; and, the sooner he taught his apprentice the skills of the trade, the sooner his apprentice could help him properly in the business. It was the last hidden mysteries of the trade that might take some time to acquire. Apprenticeship was an extension of the adolescent  years  and could take up almost a quarter of the average medieval lifespan. At the end of his training, the apprentice was ready to go out on his own as a journeyman. Yet he was still likely to remain with his master as an employee. Sources Hanawalt, Barbara,  Growing Up in Medieval London  (Oxford University Press, 1993).Hanawalt, Barbara,  The Ties that Bound: Peasant Families in Medieval England  (Oxford University Press, 1986).Power, Eileen,  Medieval Women  (Cambridge University Press, 1995).Rowling, Marjorie, Life in Medieval Times  (Berkley Publishing Group, 1979).

The Secret Circle The Power Chapter Three Free Essays

â€Å"Jacinth! Are you in there? Jacinth!† Cassie blinked in the bright sunlight. She’d seen this room before. It was her grandmother’s kitchen – except that it wasn’t. We will write a custom essay sample on The Secret Circle: The Power Chapter Three or any similar topic only for you Order Now The walls of her grandmother’s kitchen were sagging and dingy; these were straight and clean. Her grandmother’s hearth was stained with the smoke of centuries; this hearth looked almost new and was a slightly different shape. The iron hook for hanging pots on shone. It was the room in her dream, the dream she’d had the last time she spent the night at Diana’s house. The low chair she was sitting in was the same. But this dream seemed to be picking up where the other had left off. â€Å"Jacinth, have you fallen asleep with your eyes open? Kate is here!† A feeling of anticipation and excitement filled Cassie. Kate; who was Kate? Without even knowing why, she found herself standing up, and she realized that she was wearing a dress that brushed the tips of her neat brocade shoes. The red leather Book of Shadows fell from her lap to the ground. She turned toward the voice, toward what would have been the side door of her grandmother’s house. In this house it seemed to be the front door. It was filled with sunlight, and there were two figures standing there. One was tall, with a silhouette like the engravings of Puritan women she’d seen in history books. The other was smaller, with shining hair. Cassie couldn’t see either of the figures’ faces, but the smaller one was holding out eager hands to her. Cassie reached for them, stepping forward – – and the dream changed. It was dark and she could hear the tortured scream of wood being ripped asunder. Salt spray stung her face and her eyes struggled vainly to pierce the darkness. The ship was going down. Lost, all lost. And the Master Tools were lost as well – for now. But only for now. The savage determination of the thought filled Cassie and she tasted bile at the back of her throat. Even as icy water rushed around her legs she felt the dream lose focus. She tried to hang on to it, but it melted and shifted around her, and the darkness of the turbulent, stormy night became the quiet darkness of Diana’s room. She was awake. And relieved beyond reason just to be alive. It wasn’t really so dark in here. Dawn was brightening the curtains, turning the room gray. Diana was sleeping peacefully beside her. How could Diana be peaceful after all that had happened? After what Diana had learned about her best friend and her boyfriend, after losing the leadership of the coven, how could Diana sleep at all? But the dark lashes on Diana’s cheek were still and serene and there was no bitterness in Diana’s face. She’s so good. I could never be that good, Cassie thought. Not if I tried all my life. Still, just being near Diana made her feel better. Cassie knew she wasn’t going to sleep anymore. She sat back against the headboard and thought. God, she was glad to have things right with Diana again. And with Adam – Cassie was almost afraid to think of Adam, worried about what kind of pain it would bring. But although there was a deep-down ache at the picture of him, it was not unbearable, and the poison of jealousy and anger was truly gone. She honestly wanted him and Diana to be happy. She was a different person from the one who’d burned with the frustration of not being able to have him these last six weeks. She’d done a lot of strange things in the last six weeks, so many that she hardly knew herself anymore. 1 can’t believe it, she thought; I went out and stole pumpkins with Chris and Doug in Salem. I drove that dog off Chris – that wasn’t like me at all. 1 played Pizza Man with Faye. I went on that wild motorcycle ride with Deborah †¦ well, that wasn’t so bad. A lot of things she’d done in the last month weren’t all bad. The lying and deception and guilt had been awful, but some of the changes had been good. She’d gotten closer to Deborah and Suzan, and she’d gained some insight into what made the Henderson brothers tick. Even Nick – she thought she understood him better now. And she’d found strength in herself she’d never thought she had. Strength to chase the shadowy thing in the cemetery – Black John? – after Jeffrey’s death, strength to ask a boy to a dance, strength, in the end, to stand up to Faye. She only hoped it was enough strength to stand up to the days ahead. Cassie hadn’t been to the old science building since Faye had lured her there and held her hostage, that first week of school. It was just as dark and unsafe-looking as she remembered. She had no idea why Faye had wanted them to meet here, except that this was Faye’s territory, while the beach had always been Diana’s. It was strange to see Faye in Diana’s place, standing in front of the group with all eyes on her. Faye was wearing ordinary clothes today, black leggings and a red and black striped sweater, but a mysterious aura of leadership still clung to her. As she paced, her star rubies flashed in the shafts of sunlight that came through the boarded-up windows. â€Å"I believe it was Cassie who wanted this meeting called. She said there was a lot she had to tell us – right, Cassie?† â€Å"About what my grandmother said before she died,† Cassie said steadily, looking Faye in the eyes. â€Å"Before Black John killed her.† If she’d expected Faye to be abashed, she was disappointed; those hooded golden eyes remained level and arrogant. Apparently Faye took no responsibility for the actions of Black John, even though she was the one who’d arranged for him to be set free. â€Å"Was it really Black John?† Suzan said doubtfully, putting a exquisitely manicured fingernail to her perfect mouth, as if thinking was a new and difficult exercise. â€Å"Was he really there?† â€Å"He was really there. He is really here,† Cassie said. Suzan wasn’t as stupid as she acted, and sometimes she had surprising insights. Cassie wanted her on their side. â€Å"He came out of that mound in the cemetery. It was his grave, I guess. When we brought the skull to the cemetery and released the dark energy, it gave him the strength to come back.† â€Å"Back from the dead?† Sean asked nervously. Before Cassie could answer, Melanie said, â€Å"That mound couldn’t have been Black John’s grave, Cassie. I’m sorry, but it just couldn’t. It’s far too modern.† â€Å"I know it’s modern. It’s not Black John’s first grave; I don’t even know if he had a grave in the 1600s. I guess not if he died at sea †¦Ã¢â‚¬  There were startled looks from some of the group, but Cassie scarcely noticed. â€Å"Anyway, it’s not his grave from then. It’s his grave from 1976.† Laurel, who was pouring a thermos cup of herbal tea, sloshed hot liquid on the floor. Faye stopped dead. â€Å"What?† she snarled. Even Diana and Adam looked disconcerted, glancing at each other. But support came from an unexpected quarter. â€Å"Just let her tell the story,† Deborah said. Thumbs hooked in her jeans pockets, she moved to where Cassie was sitting on an overturned crate, and stood beside her. Cassie took a deep breath. â€Å"I knew something was weird when I saw all those graves in the cemetery – graves of your parents, all killed in 1976. Diana said it was a hurricane, but it still seemed strange to me. I mean, why were only parents dead? Especially when I learned that you’d all been born just a few months before. With all those little babies, you’d think some of them would have died in an ordinary hurricane. That’s not even to mention the weirdness of all of you being born within a one-month period.† She was relaxing a little now, although it was difficult to talk with everyone looking at her. At least their eyes weren’t glinting with enmity and suspicion today. Only Faye looked hostile, standing with her arms folded across her chest, her feline eyes narrowed. â€Å"But you see, the explanation for all of it is really simple,† Cassie went on. â€Å"Black John came back during the last generation, our parents’ generation. Nobody knew it was him, and my grandmother said nobody could ever figure out how he came back, but it was Black John. He tried to make our parents into a coven when they were just a little older than us.† â€Å"Our parents?† Doug asked, snickering. â€Å"C’mon, Cassie, give us a break.† There were chuckles from others in the audience, and the expressions ranged from skeptical to troubled to openly mocking. â€Å"No, wait,† Adam said, beginning to look excited. â€Å"There are some things that that would explain. I know my grandmother wanders in her mind now and then? but she’s said things to me about my parents – about us kids forming a coven – that just might fit.† His blue-gray eyes were snapping with intensity. â€Å"Here’s something else,† Deborah said, looking sideways at Nick. â€Å"Cassie’s grandma said my mom was going to marry Nick’s dad, but Black John made her marry my dad instead. That might explain why my mom freaks when you even mention magic, and why she always looks kind of guilty when she says Nick is growing up to look just like his father. It might explain a lot.† Cassie noticed Nick, who was standing apart from the group as usual, in a dark corner. He was staring at the floor so hard, his eyes seemed to be about to bore a hole through it. â€Å"Yeah, it might,† he said so softly Cassie could barely hear the words. She wondered what he meant. â€Å"It would explain why they yell at each other all the time, too – my parents, I mean,† Deborah was adding. â€Å"All parents yell all the time,† Chris said with a shrug. â€Å"All the parents around here are the ones who survived Black John,† said Cassie. â€Å"They survived because they didn’t go to fight him. My grandmother said that after eleven babies were born in one month, our parents realized what Black John was up to. He wanted a coven he could control completely, a coven of kids he could mold while they were growing up. You guys† – Cassie nodded around the group – â€Å"were going to be his coven.† The members of the Club looked at one another. â€Å"But what about you, Cassie?† Laurel asked. â€Å"I wasn’t born until later. Neither was Kori, you know. We weren’t part of Black John’s plans; we were just regular kids. But you guys were going to be his. He arranged everything about you.† â€Å"And the parents who didn’t like that idea went to fight Black John,† Deborah put in. â€Å"They killed him; they burned him and the house at Number Thirteen, but they died themselves doing it. The ones that are alive are the cowards who stayed at home.† â€Å"Like my father,† Suzan said abruptly, looking up from her nails. â€Å"He gets really nervous if you mention the Vietnam Memorial or the Titanic or anything about anybody dying to save other people. And he won’t talk about my mom.† Cassie saw startled looks around the Circle. There was a kind of recognition in many of the members’ eyes. â€Å"Like my dad,† Diana said wonderingly. â€Å"He always talks about my mother being so brave, but he’s never said exactly why. No wonder, if he didn’t go, if he let her go alone.† She bit her lip, distressed. â€Å"What a horrible thing to find out about your own father.† â€Å"Yeah, well, I’ve got it worse,† Deborah said, looking grim. â€Å"Both my parents didn’t go. And neither did yours,† she added to the Hendersons, who looked at each other and scowled. â€Å"While those of us with no parents are lucky?† Melanie asked, raising her eyebrows. â€Å"At least you know they had guts,† Deborah said shortly. â€Å"You and Adam and Laurel and Nick have something to be proud of. I’d rather be raised by a grandmother or a great-aunt than have parents who scream at each other all the time because they’re so ashamed of themselves.† Cassie was watching Nick again, and she saw something leave his face, some tension that had been there ever since she’d known him. It made him look different, softer somehow, more vulnerable. At that moment he raised his eyes and met hers, catching her in the act of watching him. Cassie wanted to look away, but she couldn’t, and to her surprise there was no hostility in his gaze. His mouth crooked slightly in a wry, relieved smile, and she found herself almost smiling back in sympathy. Then she realized Faye was looking at them. Turning back, she spoke quickly to the entire group. â€Å"The ones who died were killed because our parents didn’t all stick together. That’s what my grandmother said, anyway. She said that we were the ones in danger now, because Black John’s come to take us back. He still wants his coven, and now he’s alive again – a living, breathing man. She said that he won’t look burned and awful when we see him again, and we might not recognize him, but we have to be ready for him.† â€Å"Why?† Adam asked, his level voice seeming loud in the sudden silence. â€Å"Just what did she think he’s going to do?† Cassie lifted her hands. There was no longer a guilty secret between her and Adam, but every time she looked at him, she felt – a connection. A new connection, that of two people who’d been tried by fire and had come out stronger. There would always be an understanding between them. â€Å"I don’t know what he’s going to do,† she told Adam. â€Å"Fool us, my grandma said. Get us to follow him the way our parents did. But how, I don’t know.† â€Å"The reason 1 ask is because he may not want all of us,† Adam said, still quietly. â€Å"You said he arranged for the eleven of us to be born – and if he joins the coven as its leader, that makes twelve. But you weren’t one of the eleven, Cassie. Neither was Kori. And it looks like he got Kori out of the way.† Diana drew in a sharp breath. â€Å"Oh, my God – Cassie! You’ve got to leave. You’ve got to get out of New Salem, go back to California – † She stopped, because Cassie was shaking her head. â€Å"I can’t,† Cassie said simply. â€Å"My grandma told me I had to stay and fight. She said that was why my mom brought me back, so I could fight him. I may be half outsider, but I guess I’m one kid he didn’t plan, so maybe I have some kind of advantage.† â€Å"Don’t be modest,† Deborah broke in caustically. â€Å"The old lady told us it was because your family was always the strongest. You’ve got the clearest sight and the most power, she said.† â€Å"And I’ve got our Book of Shadows, now,† Cassie said, somewhat embarrassed, bending to take the red leather book out of her backpack. â€Å"My grandmother had it hidden behind a loose brick in the kitchen fireplace. Black John wanted it, so there must be something in it that he’s afraid of. I’m going to read it and try to find out what that something is.† â€Å"What can the rest of us do?† Laurel asked. Cassie realized the question was directed at her; except for Faye, who was glowering, they were all looking at her expectantly. Flustered, she lifted her hands again and shook her head. â€Å"We can talk to the old ladies in the town who’re still alive,† Deborah suggested. â€Å"That’s my idea, anyway. Cassie’s grandma said our parents have forgotten about magic, that they made themselves forget to survive. But I figure the old ladies might not have forgotten, and we can question them. Like Laurel’s Granny Quincey, and Adam’s grandma, old Mrs. Franklin. Even your great-aunt, Mel.† Melanie looked doubtful. â€Å"Great-aunt Constance doesn’t approve of the old ways at all. She’s pretty – inflexible – about it.† â€Å"And Granny Quincey is so frail,† Laurel said. â€Å"As for old Mrs. Franklin – well, she’s not always all there.† â€Å"To put it tactfully,† Adam said. â€Å"Let’s face it, my grandmother can get pretty loopy at times. But I think Deborah’s right; they’re all we’ve got, so we have to make the most of them. We can try to pump some parents for information, too . . . what have we got to lose?† â€Å"An arm and an eye, if it’s my father you’re pumping,† Suzan muttered, holding her fingers in a shaft of sunlight to examine her nails. But Chris and Doug Henderson grinned wildly and said they’d be happy to interrogate all the parents. â€Å"We’ll say, ‘Hey, -remember that guy you fried like Freddy Krueger sixteen years ago? Well, he’s back, so can you, like, give us any help in recognizing him?'† Doug said with relish. â€Å"Didn’t your grandma say anything that might help?† Laurel asked Cassie. â€Å"No . . . wait.† Cassie straightened up, excitement stirring inside her. â€Å"She said they identified Black John’s body in the burned house because of his ring, a lodestone ring.† She looked at Melanie. â€Å"You’re the crystal expert; so what’s lodestone?† â€Å"It’s magnetite, black iron oxide,† Melanie said, her cool gray eyes narrowed thoughtfully. â€Å"It’s like hematite, which is iron oxide too, but hematite’s blood-red when you cut it in thin slices. Magnetite is black and magnetic.† Cassie tried to control her expression. Well, she’d known the hematite came from Black John’s house; maybe it had even been his stone. She shouldn’t be surprised that he wore a ring of something similar. Still, she felt a twinge of apprehension. She’d really better get rid of that piece of hematite. Right now it was sitting in a jewelry box in her bedroom, where she’d put it when Diana drove her over to her house to pick up her clothes this morning before school. â€Å"Okay, we’ll keep on the lookout for that,† Adam was saying, sparing Cassie the necessity of speaking. â€Å"We can talk to the old ladies tomorrow – or maybe we should wait until after Cassie’s grandmother’s funeral.† â€Å"All right,† Cassie murmured. â€Å"You’re making a lot of suggestions, Adam,† Faye said, stung into speaking at last. Her arms were still folded over her chest, and her honey-pale skin was flushed with anger. Adam looked back without expression. â€Å"Come to think of it, there was another suggestion I was going to make,† he said. â€Å"I think we should retake the leadership vote.† Faye lunged toward him, golden eyes blazing. â€Å"You can’t do that!† â€Å"Why not? If all of us agree,† Adam said calmly. â€Å"Because it’s not in the traditions,† Faye hissed. â€Å"You look at any Book of Shadows and you’ll see! The vote is the vote; I won and it can’t be changed now. I’m the coven leader.† Adam turned to the others for help, but Melanie was looking troubled and Diana was slowly shaking her head. â€Å"She’s right, Adam,† Diana said softly. â€Å"The vote was fair, at the time. There aren’t any provisions for changing it.† Melanie nodded her unwilling agreement. â€Å"And I don’t like you making all these plans without consulting me,† Faye went on, pacing again like a panther in a cage. Sparks actually seemed to flash from her eyes, the way they flashed from the red gems at her throat and on her fingers as she crossed patches of sunlight. â€Å"Well, what do you want us to do?† Laurel said challengingly, tossing her long light-brown hair back. â€Å"You were the one who wanted Black John out, Faye. You said he was going to help us, to give us his power. Well, how about it? What do you say now that he’s here?† Faye was breathing hard. â€Å"He may be testing us – â€Å"By killing Cassie’s grandma?† Deborah cut in harshly. â€Å"Don’t be stupid, Faye. I was there; I saw it. There’s no excuse for murdering old ladies.† Faye glared at her defecting ex-lieutenant. â€Å"I don’t know why he did that! Maybe he has some plans that we don’t know about.† â€Å"That’s the truest thing you’ve ever said,† Melanie interrupted. â€Å"He does have plans, Faye – to take us over. He’s already killed four people, and if we annoy him I’m sure he’ll be happy to kill us, too.† Faye stopped pacing and smiled triumphantly. â€Å"He can’t,† she snapped. â€Å"If Cassie is right – and I’m not saying she is, but if she is – then he needs us for his coven. So he can’t kill us!† â€Å"Well, he can’t kill all of us, anyway,† Adam said dryly. â€Å"He can only spare one.† Silence fell. The members of the Circle glanced uneasily at one another. â€Å"Well, then, maybe you’d each better be sure you’re not the one,† Faye said, smiling around at them. It wasn’t quite her old, lazy smile; it was more a baring of teeth. Before anyone could say anything she turned around and stalked out of the room. They could hear her footsteps going rapidly down the stairs, then the slam of the science building’s front door. Cassie, Adam, and Diana looked at one another. Adam shook his head. â€Å"We’re in trouble,† he said. â€Å"Oh, so is that what we figured out at this meeting?† said Deborah. Diana leaned her forehead against her hand wearily. â€Å"We need her,† she said. â€Å"She is the coven leader, and we need her on our side, not on his. We’d better go talk to her.† Slowly, the Club members got up. Outside, it was too bright, and Cassie squinted. Seventh period had just ended and people were flooding out of the school exits. Cassie scanned the crowds but couldn’t see Faye. â€Å"She’s probably gone home,† Diana was saying. â€Å"We’ll have to go after her .. .† Cassie didn’t hear the rest. Among the milling students in the parking lot she had suddenly glimpsed a familiar face. A strange familiar face, one that didn’t belong here, one that she had to rack her brains to identify. For God’s sake, where had she seen that turned-up nose, that straw-colored hair, those cold hazel eyes before? It was someone she’d known quite well, someone she’d been used to looking at day after day, but that she’d been only too happy to forget about when she came to New Salem. A feeling of heat and humidity overcame Cassie. A memory of sand underfoot, sweat trickling down her sides, suntan lotion greasy on her nose. A sound of lapping waves and a smell of overheated bodies and a sense of oppression. Cape Cod. The familiar girl was Portia. How to cite The Secret Circle: The Power Chapter Three, Essay examples

The Value Orientations Method Essay Sample free essay sample

To work with people of other civilizations. it’s of import to understand their â€Å"world position. † The Value Orientation Method ( VOM ) provides a manner to understand core cultural differences related to five basic human concerns. or orientations. The method has been used widely in cross-cultural state of affairss. including in higher instruction. wellness services. and conflict declaration. A 16-question unwritten study is available and can be used for formal research about cultural differences or informally in preparation to assist people go cognizant of and work with cultural differences at the single and institutional degrees. Tom GallagherLeadership Development SpecialistOffice of Personnel and Organizational DevelopmentOregon State University Extension ServiceCorvallis. Beaver stateInternet Address: [ electronic mail protected ]/* IntroductionChanges in the demographics of the United States challenge Extension module and staff to work efficaciously across civilizations. One of the cardinal jobs of working efficaciously with people of another civilization is understanding basic differences in â€Å"world position. † Without this apprehension. it is hard to supply appropriate services and easy to acquire into unneeded struggle. There is. nevertheless. a method to rapidly assist people understand cultural differences. This article introduces the Value Orientation Method ( VOM ) . a tool that can assist place differences in nucleus values across civilizations. For those readers familiar with the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator ( Keirsey. 1998 ) and how it describes type of persons. the VOM provides a similar method for depicting types of civilizations. Background The foundations for VOM were developed in the 1940s and 1950s by anthropologists with the Harvard Values Project ( Kluckhohn A ; Strodtbeck. 1961 ) . The undertaking squad proposed that it is possible to separate civilizations based on how they each addressed five common human concerns. They did non suggest that these were the lone five concerns but that they were utile in understanding cultural differences. They besides proposed from their survey that civilizations could react to the jobs in at least three ways and that all civilizations would show each of the three responses. It was the rank order of responses that gave a civilization its character. They called these responses to the five concerns â€Å"value orientations. † Today we might name them â€Å"core values. † Kohls ( 1981 ) provides a brief debut to the five human jobs and the three possible responses ( Figure 1 ) . Figure 1 Description of Five Common Human Concerns and Three Possible Responses ( based on Kohls. 1981 ) Concerns/ orientations| Possible ResponsesHuman Nature: What is the basic nature of people? | Evil. Most people can’t be trusted. Peoples are fundamentally bad and need to be controlled. | Mixed. There are both evil people and good people in the universe. and you have to look into people out to happen out which they are. Peoples can be changed with the right counsel. | Good. Most people are fundamentally reasonably good at bosom ; they are born good. | Man-Nature Relationship: What is the appropriate relationship to nature| Subordinate to Nature. Peoples truly can’t alteration nature. Life is mostly determined by external forces. such as destiny and genetic sciences. What happens was meant to go on. | Harmony with Nature. Man should. in every manner. live in harmoniousness with nature. | Dominant over Nature. It the great human challenge to suppress and command nature. Everyt hing from air conditioning to the â€Å"green revolution† has resulted from holding met this challenge. | Time Sense: How should we best think about clip? | Past. Peoples should larn from history. pull the values they live by from history. and strive to go on past traditions into the hereafter. | Present. The present minute is everything. Let’s make the most of it. Don’t worry about tomorrow: enjoy today. Future. Planning and end puting do it possible for people to carry through miracles. to alter and turn. A small forfeit today will convey a better tomorrow. | Activity: What is the best manner of activity? | Being. It’s plenty to merely â€Å"be. † It’s non necessary to carry through great things in life to experience your life has been worthwhile. | Becoming. The chief intent for being placed on this Earth is for one’s ain inner development. | Doing. If people work hard and use themselves to the full. their attempts will be rewarded. What a individual accomplishes is a step of his or her worth. | Social Relationss: What is the best signifier of societal organisation? | Hierarchical. There is a natural order to dealingss. some people are born to take. others are followings. Decisions should be made by those in charge. | Collateral. The best manner to be organized is as a group. where everyone portions in the determination procedure. It is of import non to do of import determinations entirely. | Individual. All people should hold equal rights. and each should hold complete control over one’s ain fate. When we have to do a determination as a group it should be â€Å"one individual one ballot. †| Most surveies of the dominant Euro-American civilization in the United States find that it is future oriented. focused on making. stress individuality. aspires to be dominant over nature. and believes that human nature is assorted. some people are good and some are bad ( e. g. . Carter. 1990 ) . By contrast. most surveies show that Native civilizations are past oriented. focused on being. stress collateral ( group ) dealingss. aspire to be in harmoniousness with nature. and believe that people are basically good ( e. g. . Russo. 2000a ) . It is of import to observe here that each civilization will show all three possible responses at some clip. For illustration. it is common for Euro-Americans to hold a â€Å"doing† orientation during the workweek but to hold a â€Å"being† orientation on weekends and while on holiday. The VOM theory recognizes that there is diverseness within a culture–both among subgroups and individuals–and that grade of socialization affairs. The Kluckhohn Center for the Study of Values has worked with a figure of bookmans from assorted subjects to prove the VOM in different cross-cultural state of affairss. The VOM has been found effectual when working in higher instruction ( Ortuno. 1991 ) . medical specialty ( Ponce. 1985 ) . nursing ( Brink. 1984 ) . mental health/stress intervention ( Papajohn A ; Spielgel. 2000 ) . and conflict declaration ( Gallagher. 2000a ) . The VOM has proven really effectual in working in conflict declaration affecting Native people and public resource direction bureaus ( Russo. 2000a ) . Methods The basic appraisal instrument is a study. consisting of 16 state of affairss with associated inquiries. ( See the sample inquiry in Figure 2. ) The instrument was originally designed with this story/response format so that it could be read to people who could understand English but non read it good. The instrument has proven every bit effectual with non-literate and literate respondents. The full instrument is available from the writer or from the Kluckhohn Center ( 1995 ) . Figure 2 Sample Question ( about clip orientation ) from VOM Instrument Some people were speaking about the manner that kids should be brought up. Here are three different ideas:1. Some people say that kids should ever be taught the traditions of the yesteryear. They believe the olds ways are best. and it is when kids do non follow them that things go incorrect. ( A ) 2. Some people say that kids should be taught some of the old traditions. but it is incorrect to take a firm stand that they stick to these ways. These people believe that it is necessary for kids to ever larn about and take on whatever of the new ways will outdo assist them acquire along in the universe of today. ( B ) 3. Some people do non believe kids should be taught much about the past traditions at all. except as an interesting narrative of what has gone earlier. These people believe that the universe goes along best when kids are taught the things that will do them desire to happen out for themselves new ways of making th ings to replace the old. ( C ) Which of these people has the best thought about how kids should be taught? [ Your reply: ________ ] Which of these people has the following best thought? [ Your reply: ________ ] Note: Idea â€Å"A† is past orientation. â€Å"B† present orientation. â€Å"C† future orientation. | The VOM can be used in several ways. from a research-focused analysis of differences to an informal. awareness-building tool. As a scientific tool. the VOM provides a manner to mensurate value differences. which can so be linked with other variables. such as engagement in or penchant for a plan. For illustration. an person from a group that preferred hierarchal dealingss ( strong concatenation of bid ) may non prefer a plan that involves extended collateral treatments to make a determination. On the informal side. many people who complete the study have an â€Å"ah hah† experience as they become cognizant that other people score the inquiries otherwise. This response. besides encountered when people take the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator for the first clip. provides a â€Å"learning minute. † In this minute it is possible to d emo how such cardinal facets of our lives as leading. determination devising. communicating. and motive are shaped by our value orientations. Decision The VOM. in add-on to functioning as a tool to understand civilizations. is utile in assisting to understand our organisations ( Carter. 2000 ; Gallagher. 2000b ) . Our establishments. including Extension. have an organisational civilization that is consistent with the value orientations of the dominant civilization. For illustration. an organisation may hold a really strong orientation toward the yesteryear. therefore it can be nerve-racking for people from a present or future orientation to entree the establishment. or work within it. In Extension. the value orientations of the Euro-American laminitiss can do it hard for people from other civilizations to entree our plans and occupations. Socialization is. arguably. one reply to cultural differences. But another–and likely the most immediate. effectual. and fair–is for each of us to understand ourselves. to understand the â€Å"others. † and so to research â€Å"finding the in-between ground† ( Russo. 20 00b ) . R of bookmans and experts have tried to explicate the impact of transverse cultural differences on people’s behavior to assist cut down the intercultural hazards of international concern. Dr. Milton Bennett. co-founder of the Intercultural Development Research Institute. believes that the more experience a individual has with cultural differences the more that individual will develop intercultural competency. going more effectual when working across civilizations. Harmonizing to Bennett’s Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity ( DMIS ) . there are six phases on this way to developing intercultural competency. each characterised by certain perceptual experiences and behavior towards the â€Å"own† and the â€Å"other† civilization. As the in writing below illustrates the chief alteration along the line of intercultural competency occurs from ethnocentrism to ethnorelativism. In other words. from an apprehension of your ain civilization as being su perior to an apprehension of your ain civilization as equal in value and complexness to any other civilization. Cross Cultural Theory: Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity| Each of the six stages of Bennett’s Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity are described in more item below: Denial: When in this first phase. persons refuse all interaction with other civilizations and demo no involvement in detecting cultural differences. They may besides move agressively during transverse cultural state of affairss. Defense: In this phase. persons consider all other civilizations to be inferior to their ain civilization and will invariably knock behavior or ideas by person from another civilization. Minimization: When this phase is reached. persons will get down believing that all civilizations portion commom values. They will besides minise any cultural dfferences by rectifying people to fit their outlooks. Credence: At this phase. persons may still judge other civilizations negatively but they will be given to recognize that civilizations are different and they may go funny about cultural differences Adaptation: During this phase persons gain the ability to accommodate their behaviors more easy and efficaciously by deliberately altering their ain behavior or communicating manner. Integration: This phase tends to merely be achieved by long term expatriates populating and working abroad or Global Nomads. In this phase. persons instinctively change their behavior and communicating manner when interacting with other civilizations. Progressing from ‘Ethnocentrism’ to ‘Ethnorelativism’ on the graduated table takes clip. yet it is critical for the success of any concern individual working in what is an progressively planetary economic system. Becoming more interculturally sensitive can be achieved through a combination of first manus experience with other civilizations and engagement on intercultural preparation classs like Effective Global Leadership or Doing Business in India. While the concluding phase ’integration’ is rarely reached. a combination of experience life and working in other states and taking portion in trim intercultural preparation classs allows planetary concern people to make the ‘adaptation’ p hase. geting a high degree of intercultural competency that will guarantee they are successful working internationally.