Analysis Of Marriage As A Cultural Difference English Literature Essay

Analysis Of Marriage As A Cultural Difference English Literature Essay Although the basic meaning behind marriage is same everywhere, it is actually practised in different ways in different cultures. Every culture has its own ways and means to promote marriage. They all have inbuilt rules and restrictions which has been followed by the people all through out their existence. So keeping the above context in mind, this essay focuses on the views on Indian Hindu marriage and different European systems of marriage. Emphasis is given on the traditional marriage practises followed by Hindu Indians as well as The Irish and The English. Indian Marriage Marriage customs in India is totally different if you look from the viewpoint of Western Countries and it might look more complicated that any other country, but even though its complicated, the Indian marriage life has been very much working very much for the Indian families since generations and the bond between husband and wife is stronger than ever. The love for parents also plays a major role in the stability of Indian marriage life. Role of Arranged Marriages in India In India love marriages do happen, but they are not generally accepted and to find the spouse its not an ideal mean. The result of a man and woman falling in love can be defined as love marriages. Rather than love marriage its mostly arranged marriage in India. In India finding a groom for his daughter is the responsibility of the brides father. He approaches the prospective grooms father about the possibility of marriages after choosing from the many available prospective guys. One of the most challenging tasks that an Indian father faces is finding a groom and arranging marriage for his beloved daughter. If by a particular age the girl doesnt manage to get married her father faces a great deal of shame. Education level, location and caste decide the optimal age for marriage. In India, generally a girl gets married in her teens among Indias lower-caste tribal people and among Indias privileged higher-caste a girl gets married at older ages after college. Spouse is chosen for their children most of the times by Indian parents thinking he would be the best for their children, but marriage decisions may also arise from benefits their family might get after the marriage like for instance- Business relations, dowry etc. The Role of Astrology in Hindu Marriage When the bride and grooms fathers have agreed to a match, they move onto the next important step, that is matching the horoscope. Matching horoscope is the deciding factor in 95% of the Hindu marriage in India. So for this, both parties give their respective childrens horoscopes to the priest to see if its a match or not. The medium in which the horoscope is read is called janat patri. If there is sufficient amount of match in janat patri, it is determined that the boy and the girl are a perfect match for each other, and the arrangements for marriage starts from there. How Spouses are found in India In India a large network of family and friends of the groom are involved in the search for a matching spouse, matching the likes of not only the groom but also his family. The people of India are very good in keeping networks among various groups and also within the people of a particular group, hence once it is known that there is a search for a spouse needed for a particular groom, then word of mouth plays important role in connecting with potential spouses. The word of mouth may go along the routes of the different connections that the person has in relation to his friends, school, relatives or even business. Classified ads in newspapers also play an important part in finding a spouse in India. Matrimonial ads in newspapers do not bring about much stigma in the society as these ads are focused on life time commitment rather than temporary romantic relations which can be seen in western countries. The ads in the classifieds are mostly arranged and categorised on the basis of religion and caste and in some cases other attributes based on education and profession, region or similar characteristics are also considered. Gossips and people that are privy to particular information in the society turn out to play an important role in the matchmaking process. This can be any person in the society like a Barber who often plays an important role particularly in parts of north India. Different people tend to engage in talks with the barber leading to exchange of lots of scoops that barber may know of through other customers and in many cases lead to the fathers of the potential bride and groom meetin g up. Arranged marriage is the present norm in India and as a developing country it is seen that a small percent adopt the western culture but again it also is always arranged by families. Hence it would take a long time before love marriages similar to those in western regions would be seen in India. From a Guys Point of View An Indian guy, on sighting a girl who looks acceptable to him or what one may say  as love at first sight, would not go head over heels at her and approach her straightway.   He would rather study her from a distance, and make an interpretation of the girl portraying as his wife. If hes satisfied with his portrayal then he leaves it to the parents. One tip some parents give their son in this regard is, see if she has the qualities of your own  mother;  if she reminds you of your mother in several respects, pin her in your heart, develop a clean and sacred  friendship and after some more meetings, propose to her.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The guy would never try to date her, as in there is no point in him to date her because he already knows everything about the girl.   He has properly studied her and already has all information about her, her likes and dislikes, whether shes a socially active girl or very homely girl n stuff.  If at all he decides to take her on a date, he might want her to take an adult with her for being socially responsible. And the question of pre marital sex is Never. Because virginity is something which is considered sacred and preserved by most until marriage. When they get married they start their romance in the life and fall in love with each other and From the Girls Point of View Many young girls do  fall in love with  some   man , mostly as a result of the   love at first sight syndrome but she then wouldnt think in terms of dating him but put asks her  parents to get all the details about him and see if hes a match for their family. She wouldnt have any heartily feelings for him until the marriage date is arranged with Parents consent. In most of the cases, a marriage broker is involved who is involved in the meet up and match making process of boy and girl. Once satisfied with all the required parameters, a meeting is arranged by the parents for the boy and girl to meet each other which is also called seeing ceremony which usually takes place in girls house which is often referred to as bride seeing.   During this meeting, guy and the girl will be given a brief time to make up their mind about the others acceptability as his/her life partners.   Most of the time, Boys like to have a chat with the girl before giving   his opinion, for this t hey both would be allowed into a room in the Brides   house  for a few minutes of chit chat.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   If the guy and the girl like each other, then the parents take over by negotiating on various arrangements including the fixing of marriage dates, expenses, venues etc. In most of the cases there is an engagement ceremony to seal the alliance;   this takes place mostly in the case where in the   Girl   has to complete her studies or the Boy has to settle down with a good job or for some other reasons the marriage could take place only  after several months. Even during this period, the Boy and Girl are normally not allowed to date but are permitted to see each other for a chit chat but always  in one of the two homes. This is what happens in nearly 90 percent cases but the remaining rest possibly follow the Western ways and may have lots of datings  and  hangouts  to find out their compatibility and in this process  may even try out some intimacy as well. But experience shows that these relations are the one wont last long.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Hindu Weddingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ A Hindu wedding ceremony could last for couple of hours and is attended by a large number of relatives, friends, acquaintances and so on. The wedding mostly takes place in a mandap or a tent, which is beautifully decorated with flowers. Hindu wedding ceremonies can last for days and involve many rituals to be done which mainly involves a priest reciting devotional Sanskrit slogans which is done in order for the couple to get gods blessings. Traditionally, the bride wears a sari with lot of designs and hand works on it. The sari should be draped modestly over her hair. The bride is usually covered with enormous amount of jewellery but it also depends on the social status of the family. Some of them make the bride wear more jewellery just to show their social status. One feature of the brides wardrobe which has become popular is the use of mehndi to decorate her hands and feet. The groom usually wears a kafni (long shirt extending to the knees) with pijamo (leggings) or dhoti (sort of an overgrown loincloth) or sherwani which is a long coat like garment. The groom might also wear a turban. The priest in this ceremony need not be an experienced priest. The priest should be familiar with Hindu weddings and comfortable acting as a master of ceremonies, guiding the participants through their parts and explaining the meaning of the service to the audience. There is no problem in the priest having the ritual book in his hand and reading from it. Saptapadi is a very important ritual performed by the Hindu couple when they get married, it is basically a ritual ceremony to symbolise god where in the couple hold hands and circle around a sacred fire and light and it will give them holy blessings. During this the priest chants the slogans and mantras which emphasis the significance of the marriage. After this the groom applies sindoor at the beginning or completely along the parting-line of a womans hair and ties mangalsutra (the wedding chain) around her neck. Both sindoor and mangalsutra are considered religious and as a sacred symbol for them. European Marriage There are several forms of marriage in European countries and each and every country has their own traditional methods and ritual ceremonies for marriage. But conducting marriage through a religious service is a must in all the Western countries. According to the Europeans, the secret of successful marriage is based on faithfulness, or based on adequate Income or even based on agreement of politics. European Marriage Pattern In the course of early modern times, the population of Europe developed a family and marriage pattern which differed sharply from that of the most of the rest of the world. This European marriage pattern was marked by very late marriage, by the extreme rarity of households containing more than one couple and by the frequent presence of the young unmarried servants. This seemingly unique pattern has significance not only because of its impact on the nature of family life but also because of its possible connection with the emergence of other patterns of modern western life. Late marriage seems to have been connected with systems of widespread free land tenure and private property. By delaying marriage, young people were waiting to accumulate sufficient property before founding a family. (Often they served as servants in the homes of unrelated families during the period before marriage). This period of delayed gratification was a primitive form of population control and a sign of rational control over ones economic situation. By establishing a long period between physical maturation and marriage, it helped create the separate state of adolescence with its many sexual and emotional strains. It also played a role in the transition from marriage choices controlled by parents for their minor children to marriage partners chosen by the spouse themselves, many of whom were now adults parents had either dies or retired. The English Marriageà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. The bride and the Wedding party enter the hall, lead by a small girl who scatters flowers all along the way until they reach the chapel. The flowered path and express hope for the brides path through life to be happy and lovely. To prevent the bride from any jealous evil wishers from cursing the bride, the bridesmaids dress very much like the bride. Brides usually sew a good luck charm, such as the silver horseshoe of royal British brides, to the hem of their wedding dresses. Old English wedding tradition also calls for the bride to carry a horseshoe, streaming with ribbons, for good luck. The traditional practise is that the couple exchange vows outside the wedding chapel doorway, so that anyone can watch the ceremony (worldweddingtraditions.com). Traditional English Wedding Receptions The English wedding is celebrated with a Wedding Cake and usually its fruit cake which is made up of dried fruits like raisins, ground almonds and cherries. The couple usually saves the top layer of the wedding cake for the baptism of their first child and this layer is usually referred to as christening cake The fruitcake is served at the wedding reception along with another traditional cake the grooms cake which originated during the Tudor period. Even the grooms cake used to be a fruitcake until sometime back but now, its usually likely to be a chocolate cake. Ribbon Pull is a unique Victorian wedding reception, where in a sterling silver charm is purchased for each of the bridesmaids. Then a ribbon is attached to each one, and the baker places them between layers of the wedding cake as it is being assembled. So when the cake is ready to be cut all the bridesmaids gather so that they can each pull one ribbon before the couple share their first slice of the cake, claiming for herself a promised good future(worldweddingtraditions.com). The olden tradition of tying shoes to the cars of newlyweds also began in England during the Tudor period. Before this, the practise of throwing shoes at the newlyweds when they were leaving the Church was widely practised for having Good Luck. The modern tradition is to tie the shoes to the honeymoon vehicle. The English also consider raining on a wedding day to be a sign of Good Fortune ahead. The Irish Marriage The Irish Claddagh Ring An Irish brides wedding ring is called a Claddagh ring. It is a heart held by two hands with the heart topped by a crown. The hands represent faith, the crown symbolizes honour, and the heart signifies love. The rings motto is: Let love and friendship reign. (worldweddingtraditions.com). A woman shows that shes single and shes ready to see guys by wearing the Claddagh Ring on her right hand with the heart facing towards the outward end of her finger and if the ring is worn on the right hand with the heart facing inward, then she is showing that she is engaged. And if the Claddagh Ring is worn on the left hand it means that the woman is married. Wedding Day Traditions in Ireland According to the Irish tradition, the wedding couple walks to the Church together before exchanging vows. Then the witness of the marriage would bless the couple with rice and sometimes uses larger items like pots and pans as well when they walk towards the chapel. Traditionally, Irish bride used to wear a blue wedding dress because it symbolized purity in olden times. But when white dress started symbolizing virginity and purity in recent times, Irish started using white wedding dress. The English Lavender flower on the brides wedding dress is supposed to help the couple have a long and happy long lasting relation and also the English Lavender was a symbol for love, devotion, loyalty and luck in ancient times. Braided hair was an ancient symbol for female power and luck, so in present weddings, women can be often seen with a braided hair during the wedding. And St. Patricks Day is treated as the luckiest day to get married in Ireland (worldweddingtraditions.com). An Irish Honeymoon mi na meala , which in Irish means The Month of Honey is part of a custom followed by the Irish newlyweds wherein the couple spend a month together drinking honeyed wine especially in those cases where the couple married by eloping away from home. It is believed that as a month passes, the girl will become pregnant and the family will accept the marriage because of that, and the girls family would desire her to live with the guys family. Even today many couples follow ancient traditions mixed with modern values so as to maintain the traditional touch in their marriage life.

best friends Essay -- essays research papers

It was a sunny Sunday morning; the spring breeze was evident all around, the kind that says summer in on the way. My best friend called and offered to take me rock climbing up at Indian Hills, I was thrilled but timid. Waiting with anticipation I could hear the sound of his car coming, it was distinct in its own way because the muffler was on its last leg. He arrived in style, no not really. The paint of his car was peeling off and the smell of the exhaust filled the air with a horrible aroma. Every time I got in his car I felt embarrassed, but it was all right because he was the only one who could drive. As we started up the 225 Highway we were following traffic along the twisting, turning road. Suddenly my best friend cursed under his breath. I looked at him surprisingly and asked, "What's wrong?" He started to laugh, took his foot off the accelerator, hit the brakes, and said "Didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t you see that state trooper?" I nodded, "Well we were going 85 up this road," he said. Luckily we were not the only cars on the road. About a mile from the turn off we slowed down to 55 miles an hour. When we pulled off the side of the road, we were both surprised to find that there were no other cars parked there. Normally this turn off was packed with cars, with people climbing in the Indian Hills. Although we were both happy that there was no one else around to interfere, there was a lingering feeling of dread. If something were to go wrong there wouldn't be anybody else around to help. We both got out of the car and decided to go on against our better judgment. The trail up was steep; about two feet wide surrounded, with scrub brush. On the way up I was thinking both about how bad my legs were getting cut from the brush, and about not slipping on the sandy trail. The half-mile long hike was nothing but a warm up for my best friend and I, who are avid backpackers and trail hikers. We reached the top and headed to the intermediate climbs off to the left. My best friend is an experienced rock climber so this was nothing to him. However it didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t look too intermediate to me. Mount Everest came to mind! I walked over and stood underneath the rock formations. I felt so little like a two-story building surrounded by skyscrapers. The incredible height was nothing in comparison to the thought of falling onto the jagged rocks that surrounded the ... ...sier way. About half way down the hill we both realized we were lost, it had seemed that we were going in the wrong direction. By this time it was almost pitch dark. Concentrating on ground beneath my feet, it became somewhat of a blur to me. I started crying with out warning. I guess it was a delayed shock that had finally hit me. With great emotion I knew that I had to compose myself before Mark saw me crying. I thought to myself, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Thank god Mark was in the right place at the right time.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? I could have either been seriously injured and even worse dead. As we kept walking we could hear cars in the faint background and see headlights. We headed toward the sound and used the lights for visual guidance. Finally we reached the highway only to realize we were about a  ¼ of a mile from the car. We were lucky it wasn't a longer walk. On the way home, after a long silence mark said, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“We shouldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t tell our parents, especiall y your mom, because you know how protective she is.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? From that day on realization washed over me and I decided that it would be better if my feet remain on the ground. I also realized that friends are always there when you need them, especially best friends.

Discrimination Against The Elderly :: essays research papers fc

Discrimination against the Elderly American society has been described as maintaining a stereotypic and often negative perception of older adults. This negative and/or stereotypic perception of aging and aged individuals is apparent in such areas as language, media, and humor. For example, such commonly used phrases as over the hill and an old fart denote old age as a period of impotency and incompetence. The term used to describe this stereotypic and often negative bias against older adults is ageism. Ageism can be defined as "any attitude, action, or institutional structure, which subordinates a person or group because of age or any assignment of roles in society purely on the basis of age"(Webster 25). As an ism, ageism reflects a prejudice in society against older adults. The victims of bigotry and prejudice are generally referred to as minorities. This is not because they are necessarily fewer in number, but because they are deprived of the rights and privileges of the majority (the Aged 4). Ageism, however, is different from other isms (sexism, racism etc.), for primarily two reasons. First, age classification is not static. An individual's age classification changes as one progresses through life. Therefore, age classification is characterized by continual change, while the other classification systems traditionally used by society such as race and gender remain constant. From this we can conclude that denial of old age is a principal source of bigotry against those who are old now (the Aged 4). Second, no one is exempt from at some point achieving the status of old. Unless they die at an early age, they will experience ageism. The later is an important distinction as ageism can affect an individual on two levels. First, the individual may be ageist with respect to others. That is they may stereotype other people on the basis of age. Second, the individual may be ageist with respect to self so ageist attitudes may affect the self-concept. â€Å"We live in a culture that reveres youth. To be young is to be alive, sexy, and full of energy. To be old is to be "senile," "worthless," and having "one foot in the grave"†(Online 1). This is the attitude most often seen in modern society. In general there are at least nine known major stereotypes that reflect prejudice towards senior citizens. These include illness, impotency, ugliness, mental decline, mental illness, uselessness, isolation, poverty and depression(Ageism 20).

Under The Influence :: essays research papers

In the first volume of the trilogy, Celestine, there were many positive and negative influences in the life of Celestine. The Indian Department discouraged Celestine in many ways. Father Victor Gaudet also played an important role in her life. Lastly, Celestine faced struggles with her family at home. Some of the positive and negative influences in Celestine's life were the discouragement of the Indian Department, Father Victor Gaudet, and her struggles at home.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Celestine had many conflicts at the Laing Center. To be admitted to grade one at the Laing Center, a child had to have at least one half year of kindergarten. Sister Candida would not accept Celestine because she hadn't attended kindergarten. Then there were Celestine's encounters with Mrs. Hoffman at the Church of Christ United Separate School (C.C.U.). Mrs. Hoffman disliked Indians, perhaps, because her husband had had an affair with one. She heard about it and left her husband for a couple of weeks. Celestine had arrived late to class one morning. As she walked into the classroom, she could feel the teacher's disgusting glance. After class was over, Mrs. Hoffman grabbed Celestine's arm tightly as she was about to leave. Mrs. Hoffman had heard that Celestine had been to the bars so she threatened to send Celestine to the principal's office the next time she went to those bars. Celestine did not let her anger overcome her and was victorious in that situation. Unf ortunately for Celestine, this next encounter would have a different outcome. During another session, Mrs. Hoffman had asked Celestine who the mayor of Battle City was. When Celestine couldn't answer quickly, Mrs. Hoffman tried to put pressure on Celestine by rushing her. After thinking about it for a while, Celestine's reply was her grandfather, Chief Moses Deer. This sent the class into an Julius uproar. Mrs. Hoffman silenced the room by shouting, 'Oh, you're nothing but a dumb Indian!'; (Piepenburg 280). Celestine buried her head in her arms for the rest of the class. After the session was over, other Raven classmates tried to help Celestine from her depression. Celestine finally rose, but when she tried to leave, Mrs. Hoffman blocked her way. Fire builded in Celestine as she struck Mrs. Hoffman on the cheek and slashed her ear. As Mrs. Hoffman cried out, Celestine fled. This resulted in Celestine's expulsion from the C.C.U. Separate School. Later, Celestine, her mother Mona Lafluer, and her grandmother, Bella Deer, had planned to see the principal, Martine Sorenson.

Island of the Sequined Love Nun Chapter 39~41

39 Showtime The Sky Priestess rolled over in bed and slapped the beeping intercom as if it was a mouthy stepchild. â€Å"I'm sleeping here,† she said. â€Å"Get in character, Beth. We have an order, due in Japan in six hours.† â€Å"Why don't these fuckers ever call at a civilized hour?† â€Å"We guarantee freshness. We have to deliver.† â€Å"Don't grow a sense of humor on me at this point, Sebastian. The shock might kill me. Who's the chosen?† â€Å"Sepie, female, nineteen, a hundred and ten pounds.† â€Å"I know her,† the Sky Priestess said. â€Å"What about our pilot?† â€Å"I'm putting two of the staff on him to make sure he stays in his bungalow.† â€Å"He's still going to hear it. Are you sure you don't want to sedate him?† â€Å"Use your head, Beth. He has to fly. We'll do it with smaller explosions. Maybe he'll sleep through it.† She was wide awake now and starting to feel the excitement and anxiety of a performance. â€Å"I'll be ready in twenty minutes. Have the ninjas start my music.† Tuck had Favo in a headlock and was administering affectionate noogies to the old man's scalp. â€Å"I love this fuckin' guy. This fuckin' guy is the best. I love all you fuckin' guys.† Malink had never seen noogies and wondered why this bizarre ritual had never showed up in the party scenes in People. He prided himself on understanding white people's habits, but this was a new one. Favo didn't seem to be enjoying the ritual nearly as much as Tuck was. The tuba had all been drunk. Maybe it was time to rescue his friend. â€Å"Now we go find the girl-man,† Malink said. Tuck looked up, still holding Favo, whose eyes were starting to bug out a little. â€Å"‘Kay,† the pilot said. Malink led them into the village, his bowlegged gait more wobbly than normal. A dozen Shark men and Tucker crashed and staggered behind him. As they passed by the bachelors' house and onto the trail that led to Sarapul's side of the island, the music started: big band sounds with easy liquid rhythms echoed through the jungle. The Shark men stopped in their tracks and when the music paused, just for a second, they shouted, â€Å"Pennsylvania 6-5000!† and the music began again. â€Å"What's that?† Tucker asked. Women and children were stirring from their sleep, creeping off into the bushes to pee, rubbing sleepy eyes and stretching creaky backs. Malink said, â€Å"The Sky Priestess is coming.† â€Å"Who?† Tuck finally released Favo, who he had been dragging by his head. The old man gasped, then grinned and sat splayed-legged on the trail. â€Å"We have to go,† Malink said. â€Å"You should go back now.† The music paused and Malink, along with the rest of the Shark People, shouted, â€Å"Pennsylvania 6-5000!† â€Å"Go now,† Malink ordered, once again the chief. â€Å"The Sky Priestess comes. We must get ready.† He turned and strode back into the village. The other Shark men scattered, leaving Tucker standing on the trail by himself. Tuck heard the sound of large prop planes mixing with the big band music. The Shark People were draining out of the village onto the trails that led to the runway. Within seconds, the village was deserted. Tuck staggered back to the beach where he'd left his fins and mask. As he stepped over the logs of the drinking circle, there was an explosion and he thought for a moment that he'd found another land mine until he realized that the sound had come from the direction of the runway. Not trusting himself to find the path through the village, Tucker decided to follow the beach back to the compound. After he'd gone a hundred yards or so, he saw something white lying on the beach and bent to pick it up. A long spiral notebook. The moon was high in the sky and he could see a name printed on the cover in bold permanent marker: JEFFERSON PARDEE. Beth Curtis, dressed in surgical greens, waved the guards away from Tuck's door and knocked. She waited a few seconds and knocked again, then walked in. She could just make out a sleeping figure through the mosquito net. â€Å"Case, get up. We've got to fly.† The body did not stir. â€Å"Case?† She pulled aside the netting and poked the sleeping figure. A green coconut rolled out of the bed and thumped at her feet. â€Å"You sleep with a coconut? You pathetic bastard.† She jumped back and a groggy Tucker Case groaned. â€Å"What?† â€Å"Wake up. We fly in half an hour.† Tuck rolled over and blinked through the hangover fog. The sun was coming up and the roosters were going off all over the island. The room was only half-lit. â€Å"What time is it?† â€Å"It's time to go. Get the plane ready.† Beth Curtis walked out. Tuck rolled out of bed, crawled to the bathroom, and emptied his stomach into the bowl with a trumpeting heave. 40 Unfriendly Skies Tuck spooled up the jets as he watched the guards scramble around the Lear. Each time one walked past the nose, Tuck flipped on the radar and chuckled. The microwave energy wasn't enough to boil the guards in their skins, which was Tuck's fantasy, but he could be reasonably certain that they would never have any children and he might have planted the seeds of a few choice tumors. Once in Houston a maintenance man made the mistake of walking in front of Mary Jean's jet with an armload of fluorescent bulbs meant for the hangar, and Jake Skye had shown Tucker a little trick. â€Å"Watch this, Jake had said.† He flipped on the radar and the bulbs, bombarded by the microwaves from the radar, lit up in the maintenance man's arms. The poor guy threw the bulbs in the air and ran off the field, leaving a pile of glass shards and white powder behind. It was the second-coolest thing Tucker had ever seen, the first being the time they had used the Gulfstream's jets to sandblast the paint off a Porsche whose owner in-sisted on parking on the tarmac. Tuck was waiting for one of the guards to walk behind the jets when Beth Curtis came on board. She wore her business suit and carried the briefcase and the cooler, but this time she sat in one of the passenger seats in the back and fell asleep before they took off. Tuck took the opportunity to suck some oxygen from the emergency supply to help cut through his hangover. When they were five hundred miles out over the Pacific, Tuck peeked into the passenger compartment to make sure Beth Curtis was still sleeping. When he was sure she was still out, he checked the fuel gauges, then pushed the yoke forward and dropped the Lear down to level off at a hundred feet. Traveling at almost six hundred miles per hour at only a hundred feet off the water did exactly what Tuck had hoped it would. He was absolutely ecstatic with an adrenaline rush that chased his hangover back to the Dark Ages. He dropped another fifty feet and laughed out loud when some salt spray dashed the windscreen. It was a clear sunny day with only a few wispy columnar clouds rising off the water. Tuck flew under and through them as if they were enemy ghosts. Then a speck appeared on the horizon. A second later Tuck recog-nized it as a ship and pulled the jet up to two hundred feet. Suddenly something rose off the ship's deck. A helicopter, going out to spot and herd schools of tuna for the factory ship. Tuck pulled up on the yoke, but the helicopter rose directly into his path. There wasn't even time to key the radio to warn the pilot. Tuck threw the Lear into a tight turn while pulling the jet up and whizzed by the helicopter close enough to see the pilot's eyes go wide. He could just make out men shaking fists at him from the deck of the factory ship. â€Å"Eee-haa!† he shouted (a bad habit he'd picked up in Texas cowboy bars, and if this wasn't cowboy flying, what was?). He steered the jet back on course and leveled off at two hundred feet. He was still dangerously low and burning fuel four times faster than he would at altitude, but hell, a guy had to have some fun. He wasn't paying for the fuel, and there hadn't been much low-level flying when he'd worked for Mary Jean. People on the ground might have trouble remembering the numbers on the side of the plane to report to the FAA, but you don't soon forget a pink jet flying close enough to the ground to cool your soup. â€Å"What in the hell was that?† Beth Curtis appeared in the cockpit doorway. â€Å"Why are we so low?† A wave of panic akin to being caught smoking in the boys' room swept over Tuck, but he couldn't think fast enough to come up with a viable lie. He said, â€Å"You haven't surfed until you've surfed in a Learjet.† Much to his amazement, Beth Curtis said, â€Å"Cool!† and strapped herself into the copilot's seat. Tuck grinned and eased the jet down to fifty feet. Beth Curtis clapped her hands like an excited child. â€Å"This is great!† â€Å"We can't do it for long. Burns too much fuel.† â€Å"A little while longer, okay?† Tuck smiled. â€Å"Maybe five more minutes. We can catch a tailwind at altitude that'll save us some time and fuel.† â€Å"Is this what you were doing the night you crashed?† Tuck winced. â€Å"No.† â€Å"Because I could understand if it was. What a rush!† She reached out and grabbed his shoulder affectionately. â€Å"I love this. How could you let me sleep through this?† â€Å"We can surf some more on the way back,† Tuck said. And with that his resolve was gone. He'd planned to ask her about the music and explosions from last night. He'd planned to ask her about Jefferson Pardee's notebook, which he carried in his back pocket, but he didn't want to break this mood. It had been too long since he'd had any attention from a beautiful woman, and he gave himself to it like a jonesing junkie. â€Å"I'm sorry,† she said, â€Å"but you'll have to wait here.† Beth Curtis retrieved her briefcase and cooler from the back of the plane and met the dark-suited Japanese on the tarmac. There was another Lear spooling up nearby and a couple of workmen in coveralls waited beside a large cardboard carton. Tuck watched as Beth Curtis handed the cooler to one of the suits, who ran to the waiting Lear. Within seconds, the door was pulled shut and the other Lear was taxied out to the runway. Another one of the suits handed Beth a thick manila envelope, which she stashed in her briefcase. She turned and ran back into the plane. She stepped into the cockpit and put her briefcase behind the copilot's seat. â€Å"I'll be right back, ten minutes max. I've got to make sure these guys get my TV on board unbroken.† â€Å"TV?† â€Å"Thirty-two-inch Trinitron,† she said with a smile. â€Å"To replace the one that you're using.† â€Å"I want a thirty-two-inch Trinitron,† Tuck said to her back, but she was already out the door. He looked out the window to make sure she was busy with the television, then pulled her briefcase from behind the seat and threw the latches. To his amazement, it was unlocked. He removed the manila envelope. Under it lay a small automatic pistol. He could take it, but then what? Hold it on Beth Curtis until she confessed to whatever she and the doctor were doing? And what was that? Research? There was no law against that. He left the gun untouched and opened the envelope. He wasn't sure what he expected to find: research notes, bearer bonds, stock certificates, cash, something that would shed some light on all this clandestine behavior for sure. What he found was four issues of People magazine and four issues of Us. Beth Curtis was smuggling American cheese out of Japan and that was it. He put the envelope back into the briefcase and slid it behind the seat, then pulled Jefferson Pardee's notebook out of his pocket. Perhaps there was something inside that would tell him how the notebook had gotten to a beach some seven hundred miles from where its owner was supposed to be. He flipped though the pages where Pardee had scribbled phone numbers, dates, and a few notes, but the only things he recognized were his own name, the names of Sebastian Curtis and his wife, and the word â€Å"Learjet,† followed by â€Å"Why? How? Who paid?† and â€Å"Find other pilot.† Pardee was obviously asking the same questions that were circling in Tuck's mind, but what was this about another pilot? Had Pardee come to Alualu looking for the answers? And if he did, where was he now? â€Å"What's that?† Beth Curtis said as she came through the cockpit door. Tuck flipped the notebook shut and stuffed it in his back pocket. â€Å"Some flight notes. I'm used to keeping a log for the FAA. I guess I brought this along out of habit.† In the midst of the lie, he almost panicked. If she asked where he had gotten the notebook in the first place, he was dead. Maybe better to confront her here in Japan anyway – while he knew where the gun was. She said, â€Å"I didn't realize there was any paperwork to flying a plane.† â€Å"More than you'd think,† Tuck said. â€Å"I'm still getting used to how this plane handles. I'm just writing down things I need to remember, you know, climb rates and engine exhaust pressures, fuel consumption per hour at altitude, stuff like that.† Right, he thought. Baffle her with bullshit. â€Å"Oh,† she said with what Tuck thought was indifference until she reached behind her seat and pulled out her briefcase. He held his breath, waiting for the gun to appear. She took out an issue of People and opened it on her lap. She didn't look away from the magazine until they were well over the Pacific, heading home. â€Å"You know, we haven't seen much of you lately. Maybe you should come up to the house and have dinner with Sebastian and me tonight.† She had slipped on her fifties housewife personality. Tuck had been thinking about Pardee's notebook and where he'd found it. He wanted to get back to the village tonight. If Pardee had come to Alualu, maybe the old chief knew something about it. â€Å"I'm a little tired. We got a pretty early start. I think maybe I'll just fix up something quick at my place and get to bed early.† She yawned. â€Å"Maybe tomorrow night. Around seven. Maybe we can try out my new TV.† â€Å"That'll be fine.† Tuck said. â€Å"I have a few things I'd like to discuss with you and the doc anyway.† â€Å"Good,† she said. â€Å"I think we should spend more time together. Now explain to me what all these gauges mean.† 41 What's a Kidney? Privacy is a rare commodity on a small island and secrets weigh heavy on their keepers. Malink was weary with the burden of too many secrets. If he could only go to the drinking circle and let his secrets out, let the coconut telegraph carry his secrets to the edges of the island and let him walk light. But that wasn't going to happen. Secrets sought him out now, even from the old cannibal. He stood with Sarapul and Kimi examining an eighty-four-foot breadfruit tree with a trunk you couldn't get your arms around. Kimi held an ax on his shoulder, waiting for Malink's judgment. â€Å"Why so big?† Malink asked. â€Å"This tree will give much breadfruit.† â€Å"This is the tree,† Sarapul said. â€Å"The navigator has chosen it.† Kimi said, â€Å"We will plant ten trees to take its place, but this is the one.† â€Å"Why do you need such a big tree?† â€Å"I can't tell you,† Sarapul said. â€Å"You will tell me or you won't cut the tree.† â€Å"If I tell you, will you promise not to tell anyone else?† Malink sighed. Yet another secret. â€Å"I will tell no one.† â€Å"Come. We'll show you.† Sarapul led Malink and Kimi through the jungle to an overgrown spot piled with dried palm leaves. Malink leaned on a tree while the old cannibal pulled away the palm fronds to reveal the prow of a canoe. Not just any canoe. A forty-foot-long sailing canoe. Malink hadn't seen one since he was a small boy. â€Å"This is why we need the tree,† Sarapul said. â€Å"I have hidden it here for many years, but the hull is rotten and we need to fix it.† Malink felt something stir in him at the sight of the big eye painted on the prow. Something that went back to a time before he could remember, when his people sailed thousands of miles by the eye of the canoe and the guidance of the great navigators. Lost arts made sad by this reminder. He shook his head. â€Å"No one knows how to build a sailing canoe anymore, Sarapul. You are so old you don't remember what you've forgotten.† â€Å"He can fix it,† Sarapul said, pointing to Kimi. Kimi grinned. â€Å"My father taught me. He was a great navigator from Satawan.† Malink raised a grizzled eyebrow. â€Å"That is where you learned our language?† â€Å"I can fix it. And I can sail it.† â€Å"He's teaching me,† Sarapul said. Malink felt the stirring inside him grow into excitement. There was something here he hadn't felt since the arrival of Vincent. This was a secret that lifted him rather than weighing him down. But he was chief and dignity forbade him from shouting joy to the sky. â€Å"You may cut the tree, but there is a condition.† â€Å"You can't tell anyone,† Sarapul said. â€Å"I will not tell anyone. But when the canoe is fixed, you must teach one of the young ones to be a navigator.† He looked at Kimi. â€Å"Will you do that?† Kimi nodded. â€Å"You have your tree, old man,† Malink said. â€Å"I will tell no one.† He turned and walked and fell into a light bowlegged amble down the path. Kimi called to him, â€Å"I hear my friend, the pilot, was in the village last night.† Malink turned. The coconut telegraph evidently ran even to Sarapul's little corner of the island. â€Å"He asked about you. He said he will come back.† â€Å"Did he have a bat with him?† â€Å"No bat,† Malink said. â€Å"Come tonight to the drinking circle. Maybe he will come.† â€Å"I can't,† Kimi said. â€Å"The boys from the bachelors' house hate me.† â€Å"They hate the girl-man,† Malink said, â€Å"not the navigator. You come.† After a nutritious dinner of canned peaches and instant coffee, Tuck checked the position of the guards, turned out the lights, and built his coconut-headed surrogate under the mosquito netting. Only the second time and already it seemed routine. There was none of the nervousness or anxiety of the night before as he crawled below window level to the bathroom and pried up the metal shower tray. He dropped through the opening and was reaching up to grab his mask and fins when he heard the knock on the front door and froze. He heard the door open and Beth Curtis call, â€Å"Mr. Case, are you asleep already?† He couldn't let her see the dummy in his bed. â€Å"I'm in the bathroom. Just a second.† He caught the edges of the shower opening and vaulted back into the bathroom. The metal tray fell back over the opening, sounding like the Tin Man trying to escape from a garbage can. He heard Beth Curtis pad to the bathroom door. â€Å"Are you all right in there?† â€Å"Fine,† Tuck said. â€Å"Just dropped the soap.† He snagged a bar of soap off the sink and placed it in the bottom of the shower tray, then threw open the bathroom door. Beth Curtis stood there in a long red silk kimono that was open in a narrow canyon of white flesh to her navel. Whatever Tuck was going to say, he forgot. â€Å"Sebastian wanted me to bring you this.† She held out a check. Tuck tore his eyes from her cleavage and took the check. â€Å"Five thousand dollars. Mrs. Curtis, this is really more than I bargained for.† â€Å"You deserve it. You were very sweet to take the time to explain all the instrumentation to me.† She leaned over and kissed him on the forehead, keeping the warm pressure of her lips there a little too long. Tuck imagined her tongue darting though his skull and licking his brain's pleasure center. He could smell her perfume, something deep and musky, and his eyes locked on her breasts, which were completely exposed when she leaned forward. He felt as if he had been staring at an arc welder and that creamy powdered image would travel across his field of vision for hours. A chasm of silence opened up and wrenched his attention back into the room. â€Å"This is very generous,† he said. â€Å"But it could have waited. It's not like I have anywhere to spend it.† â€Å"I know. I just wanted to thank you again. Personally, without Sebastian around. And I thought you might be able to explain some of the finer points of flying a jet. It's all so exciting.† Never a man of strong resolve, the combination of sight, scent, and flattery activated Tuck's seduction autopilot. He glanced toward the bed and the switch clicked off. Sexual response was replaced by the dummy Tuck shaking its coconut head. He looked back at her and locked on her eyes – only her eyes. â€Å"Maybe tomorrow,† he said. â€Å"I'm really bushed. I was just going to catch a shower and go right to bed.† For an instant her pouty smile disappeared and her lips seemed to tighten into a red line, then just as quickly the smile was back, and Tuck wasn't sure he'd seen the change at all. â€Å"Well, tomorrow, then,† she said, pulling the front of her kimono together as if she had only just noticed that it had fallen open. â€Å"We'll see you at seven.† She turned at the door and threw Tuck a parade queen wave as she left, once again the darling of the Eisenhower era. When she was safely out of the bungalow, Tuck ran to the bed and picked up the green coconut. â€Å"What in the hell was that about?† The coconut didn't answer. â€Å"Fine,† Tuck said, fitting the head back on the sleeping dummy. â€Å"I am not impressed. I am not shaken, nor am I stirred. Weirdness is my business.† Even as he said it, he dismissed the hallucination as his own good sense manifesting a warning, but the duel cravings for a drink and a woman yanked at his insides like dull fishhooks. He turned off the light and let the cravings lead him out the bathroom hatch to the moonlit sea. Forty minutes later he took his place in the circle of the Shark men. Chief Malink stood and greeted Tuck with a jarring backslap. â€Å"Good to see you, my friend. How's it hanging?† â€Å"It hangs with magnificent splendor,† Tuck said, his programmed response to the truck drivers and cowboys who used that expression, although he wondered where Malink had heard it. â€Å"But I'm a little parched,† he said. A fat young man named Vincent was pouring tonight and he handed Tucker the coconut cup with a smile. Tuck sipped at first, fighting that first gag, then gulped down the coconut liquor and gritted his teeth to keep it from coming back up. The older men in the group seemed festive and yattered back and forth in their native language, but Tuck noticed that the younger men were sulking, digging their toes into the sand like pouting little boys. â€Å"Why so glum, guys? Someone kill you dog?† â€Å"No,† Malink said, not quite understanding the question. â€Å"We eat a turtle today.† Having your dog killed must mean something different here than it means back in Texas, Tuck realized. Malink sensed Tuck's confusion. â€Å"They are sad because the Sky Priestess has chosen the mispel from their house and she will be gone many days now.† â€Å"Mispel?† â€Å"The girl you followed last night is mispel of the bachelors' house.† â€Å"Sorry to hear that, guys,† Tuck said, acting as if he had the slightest idea what a mispel or being chosen was. He figured that maybe it had something to do with PMS. Maybe when the women started getting cranky with the old Sky Priestess cramps, they just checked her into a special â€Å"chosen† hut until she mellowed out. He waited until the cup came around the circle before he brought it up again. â€Å"So she was chosen by the old Sky Priestess, huh? Tough luck there. Did you try giving her chocolate? That takes the edge off sometimes.† â€Å"We give her special tuba when she comes,† Malink said. â€Å"Tastes like shit!† several of the men chanted. Abo, the fierce one, said, â€Å"I am chosen and now Sepie is chosen. I will marry her.† Several of the other young men seemed less than pleased at Abo's announcement. â€Å"Come on, man,† Tuck said. â€Å"You might need a little attitude adjustment, but you're not chosen.† â€Å"I am,† Abo insisted. â€Å"Look.† He turned his back to the group and ran his finger across a long pink scar that ran diagonally across his ribs. â€Å"The Sky Priestess chose me for Vincent in the time of the ripe breadfruit.† Tuck stared at the scar, stunned, hoping that what he was thinking was as far off as his PMS theory had been. â€Å"The Sky Priestess? That was the music last night, all the noise?† â€Å"Yes,† Malink said, â€Å"Vincent brings her in his airplane. We never see it, but we hear it.† â€Å"And when someone is chosen, then does the jet always fly the next day?† Malink nodded. â€Å"No one was chosen for a long time until Vin cent sent you to fly the white airplane. We thought Vincent was angry with us.† Tuck looked to Abo, who seemed satisfied that the chief was backing him up. â€Å"Where do you go when you are chosen?† â€Å"You go to the white house where the Sorcerer lives. There are many machine.† â€Å"And then what? What happens in the white house?† â€Å"It is secret.† Tuck was across the circle in Abo's face. â€Å"What happens there?† Abo seemed frightened and turned away. Tuck looked around at the other men. â€Å"Who else here has been chosen?† The fat kid who had been pouring twisted so Tuck could see the scar on his back. â€Å"What's your name, kid?† â€Å"Vincent.† â€Å"I should have known. Vincent, what happens in the white house?† Young Vincent shook his head. Tuck turned to Malink. â€Å"What happens?† Malink shook his head. â€Å"I don't know. I have not been chosen.† A familiar voice called out of the dark, â€Å"They make them sleep.† Everyone turned to see Kimi coming down the path from the village. The old cannibal creaked along behind him. Abo barked a reproach to Kimi in his native tongue. Kimi barked back something in the same language. Tuck didn't have to know the language to know that Kimi had told the fierce one to fuck off. â€Å"Kimi, are you okay?† Tuck barely recognized the navigator. He was wearing the blue loincloth of the Shark men and he seemed to have put on some muscle. Tuck was genuinely delighted to see him. The navigator ran to him and threw his arms around the pilot. Tuck found himself returning the embrace. Several of the young men had stood and were glaring at Kimi. One of the jugs of tuba had been kicked over, but no one seemed to notice the liquor running out on the sand. â€Å"Kimi, do you know what's going on here?† â€Å"A pretty white woman with yellow hair. She come out of the fence and take the girl away. They will put her to sleep and when she wakes up she will have a cut here.† He drew his finger across the back of his ribs. â€Å"No!† Abo screamed. He leaped over the crouching Malink to get to Kimi. Without thinking, Tuck swung around and caught Abo under the jaw with a roundhouse punch. Abo's feet flew out from under him and he landed on his back. Tuck rubbed his hand. Abo tried to struggle to his feet and Malink barked an order to two of the young Vincents. Re-luctantly, they restrained their friend. â€Å"Vincent has sent the pilot,† Malink reminded them. Tuck turned back to Kimi. â€Å"What happens then?† â€Å"You owe me five hundred dollars.† â€Å"You'll get it. What happens then?† â€Å"The chosen has to stay in bed for many days. There are tube stuck in them and they are in much pain. Then they come back.† â€Å"That's it?† â€Å"Yes,† Kimi said. Malink stood now and addressed Kimi. â€Å"How do you know this?† Kimi shrugged. â€Å"Sepie tells me.† Malink turned to Abo, who had stopped struggling and now looked terrified. â€Å"She said she would not tell. The girl-man put a spell on her.† Tuck stood rubbing his knuckles, watching this little tropical opera and feeling like someone had snapped on a light and found him french-kissing a maggoty corpse. The cooler, the surgical garb, the flights on short notice, the second jet waiting on the tarmac in Japan, the guards, the secrecy, the money. How had he been so fucking stupid? Malink was hurling a string of native curses at Abo, who looked as if he would burst into tears any second. â€Å"You dumb motherfuckers!† Tuck shouted. Malink stopped talking. â€Å"She's selling your kidneys. The doc is taking out your kidneys and selling them in Japan.† This revelation didn't have quite the effect that Tuck thought it would. In fact, he seemed to be the only one concerned about it at all. â€Å"Did you hear me?† Malink looked a little embarrassed. â€Å"What is a kidney?†

Essay over Reading

â€Å"Being Country† by Bobbie Ann Mason It’s kind of crazy how stories you read can bring so many mental pictures in your mind of things you can relate to it. In Bobbie Ann Mason’s story, â€Å"Being Country†, I related very well to the country style of living. I, myself, lived in a very small country town in Texas, and know people just like the â€Å"country people† noted in Mason’s story. The subject I visualized a lot throughout reading this was the food. There is nothing better in the whole world than good ole’ southern cooking.Back home in Texas I had a buddy that was a â€Å"country boy†, and anytime I went over to the Tapley’s house for dinner; I knew I was in for a treat. I can remember one night his mom came out with humungous steaks that they had just received from their last cattle. The juices all over the plate, the large ears of corn, the twice baked potatoes, and fresh green bean casserole had my saliva goi ng bonkers in my mouth. I can still visualize the way the table was set with the decorative valentines table cloth and the silver utensils.When I was reading about all of the different foods the mother making, it triggered my mind to go back and remember Mrs. Tapley in the kitchen slaving over all of the dishes. When dinner time came we all huddled around the table where Mr. Tapley said grace. I’m pretty sure it went a little like, â€Å"We thank god for the blessing to be able to grow our own food and for the prosperous seasons he has brought us and for the future. In God’s name, Amen. † After that amen, we feasted. Myself and the Tapley’s filled our faces until our stomachs said no more.During this obliteration of food I don’t recall us ever saying a word, just like in Mason’s essay it is a given that at the dinner table it is strictly about enjoying the meal that has been placed in front of you. No talking is necessary but there are the o ccasional jokes popped off usually by the head of the table. The imagery that has been placed in my head by Mason’s story has not only made me think solely upon the one experience I have explained. It makes me think about my town as a whole. The coffee shop in my town was smack dab in the middle of what Mason calls her â€Å"square† ours was the Brookshire’s enter. The coffee shop was across the street from the center of which also had our neighborhood groceries, Brookshire’s Grocery. Walking out of Brookshire’s you can always smell the Coffee shop’s rich fragrance of coffee bean no matter what time of the day. Recollections of my step dad walking out of the grocery store and saying the same thing Mason’s dad would say to her, â€Å"I hate that smell! † Coffee isn’t my sort of thing either, but I do however love the smell of coffee in the morning. And walking out of brookshire’s was always heavenly smelling the Co ffee Shop.My most fond memory however was sparked when Mason starts talking about her grandmother. My grandmother was a country woman and grew up in Iowa on a farm herself. My grandma was always so conservative and would save any leftovers if possible because she grew up just like Mason says, â€Å"†¦ haunted by the fear of crop failure. We ate as if we didn’t know where our next meal might come from. † My grandmother was simply always scared we weren’t going to have enough food. When we would go to Brookshire’s she would always over stock the house with food.Snacks, drinks, meals, dessert, soups and just about anything you could name has probably been through my house as well. She made so many meals that were just out of ingredients she threw together, and my brother and I were always the Guinea pigs. All my grandma would do is work around the house, cook and clean just like what Mason states about her grandmother when saying she doesn’t know any different. When thinking of my grandmother I think of a kind and gentle voice so in my head whenever I read what her grandma was saying I heard a voice much similar to my grandmother’s.In conclusion, Bobbie Ann Mason’s â€Å"Being Country† really hit home to me. It showed me how imagery can play a big role in writing, and how it can really persuade the reader to keep reading. I now understand that the visual art must be consumed by the readers through the writer’s capabilities to trigger the readers mind. It is just up to the writer on whether or not they express their visual presentation well enough to the reader. â€Å"Being Country† definitely displayed it’s visual art to me by making me feel like I was back in my little Podunk town in Texas.

Drama and Theater Essay

What is drama? What are the similarities and differences between Greek Drama, Renaissance Drama, Kabuki Drama, and Contemporary Drama? Drama is tension. In the context of a play in a theatre, tension often means that the audience is expecting something to happen between the characters on stage. Will they shoot each other? Will they finally confess their undying love for one another? Drama derived from the Greek verb dran, meaning â€Å" to act† or â€Å"to do†, refers to actions or deeds as they are performed in a theatrical setting for the benefit of a body of spectators. Drama is often combined with music and dance: the drama in opera is sung throughout; musicals include spoken dialogue and songs; and some forms of drama have regular musical accompaniment (Banham, 1998). Drama was the crowning glory of the Athenian Age. This period has been called by different terms. It has been called the Age of Pericles because Pericles was the ruling power in Athens at the time. It has been also called the Athenian Age because Athens became the white-hot literary center of Greece, and it has been called the Golden Age because the drama flourished during this period. There were three great tragic writers: Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes, the greatest writer of comedy the world has ever produced ( Serrano & Lapid, 1987, p. 26) Drama and Theater The theatre of ancient Greece, or ancient Greek drama, is a theatrical culture that flourished in ancient Greece between c. 550 and c. 220 BCE. It is true that there is much in human nature that loves dramatic presentation, for man loves to imitate other persons. Gestures by a narrator or an orator may be considered dramatic, but these are only disjointed actions; there is a wide step between this and dramatic actions. The Greeks gave the drama as a literary form to the world. The drama of antiquity is very different from the drama as we now know it. It had dignity, nobility, and power. It had little of the spontaneity and easy naturalness of modern plays. The Greek drama was cut up into situations or episodes, and between these episodes were choral recitations of great length. These choral recitations, though they had beauty and power, slowed the action and interrupted the forward movement of the story. The choruses however, were visually attractive. The participants, competed with each other in the splendor of their dresses and the excellence of their singing and dancing (Serrano and Lapid, 1987, p. 26-27). Some example of the Greek drama were the Story of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra , by Aeschylus and The story of Oedipus The King by Sophocles (p. 28). Primary in a true appreciation of Renaissance drama is the poetry. The theatre of their day was a poetical one. Rather than being confused by the poetry we find in these plays, we need to understand why the poetical theatre was, and is, superior in expression and more powerful in emotion than a realistic one. Their stage was â€Å"conventional†or poetical while today’s stage is realistic. As an example, in Shakespeare’s Timon of Athens Timon is disgusted with mankind, hating all of the supposedly â€Å"decent† people he knows. When confronted by thieves he tells them to go about their work merrily; everyone steals, and he offers examples of thievery: I’ll example you with thievery: The sun’s a thief, and with his great attraction Robs the vast sea; the moon’s an arrant thief, And her pale fire she snatches from the sun; The sea’s a thief, whose liquid surge resolves The moon into salt tears; the earth’s a thief, That feeds and breeds by a composture stol’n From gen’ral excrement; each things’s a thief. (Timon of Athens 4. 3. 438-45). Kabuki, like other traditional forms of drama in Japan as well as in other cultures around the world, was (and sometimes still is) performed in full-day programs. Rather than attending a single play for 2–5 hours, as one might do in a modern Western-style theater, one would â€Å"escape† from the day-to-day world, devoting a full day to entertainment in the theater district. Though some plays, particularly the historical jidaimono, might go on for an entire day, most plays were shorter and would be arranged, in full or in part, alongside other plays in order to produce a full-day program. This was because it was required in kabuki play to get the audience showing different preference that is in either the history plays or domestic plays like a drama, to enjoy during the full-day program. Contemporary Drama was never very popular after World War I, drama in a realist style continued to dominate the commercial theatre, especially in the United States. Even there, however, psychological realism seemed to be the goal, and nonrealistic scenic and dramatic devices were employed to achieve this end. The plays of Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams, for instance, use memory scenes, dream sequences, purely symbolic characters, projections, and the like. Even O’Neill’s later works-ostensibly realistic plays such as Long Day’s Journey into Night (produced 1956)-incorporate poetic dialogue and a carefully orchestrated background of sounds to soften the hard-edged realism. Scenery was almost always suggestive rather than realistic. European drama was not much influenced by psychological realism but was more concerned with plays of ideas, as evidenced in the works of the Italian dramatist Luigi Pirandello, the French playwrights Jean Anouilh and Jean Giraudoux, and the Belgian playwright Michel de Ghelderode. In England in the 1950s John Osborne’s Look Back in Anger (1956) became a rallying point for the postwar â€Å"angry young men†; a Vietnam trilogy of the early 1970s, by the American playwright David Rabe, expressed the anger and frustration of many towards the war in Vietnam. Under he influence of Brecht, many postwar German playwrights wrote documentary dramas that, based on historical incidents, explored the moral obligations of individuals to themselves and to society. An example is The Deputy (1963), by Rolf Hochhuth, which deals with Pope Pius XII’s silence during World War II. The contemporary drama does not purport to be easy; it insists on a greater understanding of all things pertinent to modern humanity and its relationships to religion, societal order, psychology in order to appreciate its message; however, it critically acknowledges that most of us remain ignorant to all the former. Thus, the drama instructs, irritates, challenges, and begs for intelligence in order to gain from its message. It remains didactic, combined with pleasure, but always wishing to challenge the current notions of authority. References http://www. clt. astate. edu/wnarey/modern_contemporary_drama. htm Banham, Martin, (1998 ed. ). The Cambridge Guide to Theatre. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521434378. Serrano, Josephine and Lapid, Milagros, (1987). English Communication Arts and Skills Through World Literature. Phoenix Publishing House, Inc.