Essays & Novels

-Makes a plea for using language with clarity, honesty, and directness-Too much writing suffers from vagueness and ugliness-Confused writing reflects confused thinking -Points out flaws in excerpts of writing-Makes a list of bad writing habits to avoid

-Exploration of the meaning of self-respect: Honesty, integrity, and discipline -What self-respect is not: technique of "negative definition" used when explaining an abstract concept

-Describes his mother after she had lapsed into senility-Visits her at Baltimore Hospital where she confuses the present with the past-Tells people exactly whats on her mind (young doctor ignorant of history)-Speculates on the bonds and relations between parents and children-Importance on memory and the value of the past (responsibility)- "a braided cord of humanity"

-comical-"road rage" caused by car congestion and decline in civility-CAPITAL LETTERS venting-"Parking Lot Rage", "Shopping Cart Rage"

-Concerned with and upset about the developments and consequences of a rapidly rising electronic culture -Written words dominate oral culture in Greece-Movable type and printing press-Imagine life 50-100 years ago? Significant change-Electronic technologies are resulting in a "reweaving" of society and culture"

-A lipsticked mouth is a "bloody gash, a visible wound" that "bleeds over everything"-Symbol of deeper wounds in the culture of women's beauty- Ranges across history to analyze the beauty standards of women

-How peoples risk assessment analysis lacks sound mathematical or scientific basis-How irrational people's behavior choices often are and how little real analysis preceded them-How low personal risks differ from societal ones-Why certain kinds of risks are more widely publicized than others

-Young man living between two musical worlds (classical vs jazz)-Distracted and inspired by practicing musicians-Power of music to soothe humanity-Can take inspiration from struggling musicians-Music helps us understand ourselves, gives order and meaning to our lives, and contributes to our social and cultural identity

-Influence that alcohol had on his father who drank heavilyHarmed his family -Described the self-deception of his father along with the deception of others who pretended that he did not have a serious problem-"the corrosive mixture of helplessness, responsibility, and shame" that he felt "as the son of an alcoholic"-How he "remains under the influence"-Not a drinker, "sips warily" out of fear and knowledge that he is 4 times more likely to become an alcoholic

-He served as a sub-divisional police officer for Burma's colonial master, England-Conveys his ambivalence about the people he supervises and the country he serves-Agony of the elephant in its death throes-Cinematic effect (slow) = intensified emotion

-Satire-Recommends killing Irish babies to solve a severe economic problem: overpopulation-Portrays his speaker as a man with a serious public service proposal-Irony: violation of morality-Summary of benefits his enacted proposal would provide

-How to focus and concentrate "awareness"-How to extend and preserve it-Argues the benefits of distractions and the value of learning to manage them-Women have multiple awareness: "peripheral vision"-The multi-tasking lives of women allow for interruption

Uses examples to explore the importance of having a place to call "home"

-Describes a visit to Maine Lake that evokes childhood memories with his father-Reflects on his recent trip in the context of the time he spent at the lake as a youth -About the passage of time, about change and changelessness, and mortality-He watched his son doing the things he did as a boy at the lake -"living a dual existence"

KIng succeeded in articulating the frustrations and aspirations of America's blacks in a way that gave hope to the oppressed and opened the eyes of many oppressors

Tells the shuffling between the private language of family and the public language of society.

His family spoke Spanish, his society English, but the distinction between an intimate private language and an alienating public language is experienced

An episode on an overheated commuter train triggers an argument against his and his fellow americans' passive acceptance of circumstances

Compares the media's depiction with the reality that she experiences firsthand as a person afflicted with multiple sclerosis

Focuses on the dramatic decrease in New York City's violent crime rate during the 1990's. The decrease was fueled in large part by strict policing of more minor crimes

Examines the destructive potential of various types of lies, including those that seem necessary and even beneficial: The White Lie, Façades, Ignoring the Plain Facts, Deflecting, Omission, Stereotypes and Clichés, Groupthink, Out-And-Out Lies, Dismissal, and Delusion

Looking back at the men he knew as a child, Sanders compellingly analyzes his own mixed feelings toward feminism

A moment of deceit and disillusionment for a boy of twelve who is pressured into "accepting" God in a church full of people who insist they have "seen" God

Examines differences in the ways men and women talk to each other. Examines seven areas of miscommunication between genders: Apologies, criticism, Thank-yous, fighting, praise, complaints, and jokes

An investigation of table manners, Visser analyzes the fast-food restaurant. What do we seek when we visit such a place? How does the management oblige us? Success hinges on predictability

-Presents fast food culture as wasteful-The fluidity and freedom of America has become a liability-Logical appeal- Does more than abuse workers .

.. threatens a civilization that should be preserved-Asks for stronger unions, more government control-Solution: respect the landscape and the creatures that inhabit them for their inherent value & to live by a sense of what is reasonable and decent

- Romance: the truth of the human heart- Themes:1) Alienation2) Appearance vs Reality3) Breaking Society's Rules

- Steinbeck's theme: the human struggle to maintain dignity in the face of social injustice and loneliness1) Religion: Action > Praying2) Transcendentalism: Humankind > Individual3) Agrarianism: Those who labor the Earth = God's chosen people4) Family: Sustains you- Argumentative social protest: persuaded law makers to fix laws to help migrants -Migrants "cluster together like grapes"

-Criticism: Americans lay waste to their own country-Theme: Americans converse not only amiably but intimately under the protection of anonymity