Simon stock catholic school Essay Example for Free

Simon stock catholic school Essay My teacher Miss McCay has asked me to create a presentation because before she used a flip chart and now she has got a computer she would like to use a computer aided design. Alternative Solutions 1. manual 2. Computer presentation software. Advantages and disadvantages 1. The advantages of a manual solution are that it is a lot cheaper and you do not need any hardware or software to use it. As it does not need a computer to run on it does not use any electricity. The disadvantages are that when you have finish with it you cannot get rid of it. If you run out of room then you have to buy a new manual solution or start to use a computer aided solution 2. The advantages of a computer aided system are that there is a lot of disk space to store writing power points or pictures. The disadvantages are that it is more expensive to run and you have to take longer to make. Objectives My objectives are that I will use computer presentation software and in it there will be: 1. a smart simple font 2. bright colours 3. many different colours 4. short words 5. animation between slides 6. sounds between slides` Analysis Software and hardware. For this dilemma, I will be using computer presentation software. The most suitable software that I can use is Microsoft PowerPoint. I will be using PowerPoint, because it is designed for creating a power point and that is what I need to make. With this software I will be able to make action buttons, allowing the students to look at the presentation quickly, like an interactive word booklet, also in power point I can use logos, pictures and symbols etc, a weakness of a PowerPoint is that as it is saved onto a computer I could be deleted or not saved properly or the computer may crash and would lose all my work. To find research I will be using different software, such as the Internet. I will use the Internet to gather useful information on networks so it will help year seven and me and networks. I will then be able to use a look at my work using a program called Spelling and grammar check so if I spell a word wrong it will change the word to the correct spelling for me. I can use a thesaurus which can put in and take out better words to make it more detailed to make more interesting for year seven. I will use my memory stick to transfer information between my house and school, this is good because it is very simple to use and it is easy to save and it will save me a lot of time. I would also be using a multimedia Projector. This piece of hardware is useful because it will allow me to project my presentation onto a smart board; the students will have an extremely large and clear view of the presentation I have made for them. When I have made my presentation, my user, Miss McKay will be able to show my presentation to year seven using this piece of hardware. Another piece of hardware I will be using is a printer. A printer will be useful to print out pictures of the screen, which will help year seven to understand networks. I would keep one print out for the final copy of my presentation, so I will have a hard copy of the answer to the problem at hand. Inputs For this part of the coursework I will be putting useful information such as text to explain what is happening in the area around the text that I have wrote. Beside the text I will put in graphics/ pictures of relevant pictures to go with the text, so it will be easy for my target audience (year seven). Thought out the presentation I will be using the same font so my target audience will get use to the same font. Also in the presentation I will be using the same font size. All the writing I do I will be using a keyboard as the input for the txt in my presentation. Another input I will use is the Internet, which I can use for gathering information and picture to make my PowerPoint more interesting for year seven. So good websites that I can use are www. bbc. co. uk/bitesize The screenshot on the page before is of the GCSE bite size revision website, from the BBC. It shows where I will obtain most of my information from, to put into my networks presentation. This website provides me with detailed information and well-drawn diagrams. This website provides me with detailed information and well-drawn diagrams. This web site is where I will be getting most of my information. However, I will need to move it into Word, and then redraft the writing so it will be easy for year seven users so they can understand the information that I have given them. This site is where I will be getting all my information. However, I will need to import the pictures or screenshots into word, my year seven users can easily understand the information they are being given. Graphics/pictures and either copy and paste them into my presentation, or import them. Because the Internet is so vast, I will be able to find the right graphics for any of my pages. I will also find useful graphics/pictures from clip art: I will use also information that I have gathers from pervious years where I have been learning information that I need to use now. The graphics/pictures will be imported from a range of sources. The first source that I will use is the Internet.

What Is The Great Famine History Essay

What Is The Great Famine History Essay The Great Famine is one of the seminal moments in Irish history. Ireland in the mid-nineteenth century was a colony of Britain its people mostly tenant farmers. When the potato crop failed in 1845 and failed again for five years in a row a tragedy of enormous proportions played out, there was a cascade of death, but also a cascade of bad decision making, self-serving opportunism, and moral sanctimony a tragedy that is still having its effects today. There are three predominant lenses through which the ideology behind British response to the Famine is largely interpreted the traditional Irish nationalist lens, the revisionist lens, and the post-revisionist lens. The nationalist lens perceives the Famine as a symbol of British misrule in Ireland and comparisons to genocide are frequently made fears of fuelling IRA violence have often led historians of the famine to be accused of self-censorship or political correctness. Whilst the revisionists attempt to place the Famine in the con text of the time arguing the British Government did all they could have done they are frequently criticised of playing down the Famine by marginalizing, minimizing or sanitizing it. Lastly, post-revisionism endeavours to implement new economic and statistical techniques in an attempt to understand the Famine in a new light they challenge revisionism and do not accept the nationalist interpretation either. There were three fundamental ideologies that largely determined the British governments response (or lack of) to the Famine: the economic doctrines of the Famine period, the protestant belief in providentialism, and the deep-rooted ethnic prejudice against the Catholic Irish. Whilst the British indifference to the Famine cannot rightly be called genocide, the nationalist interpretation of the ideology is the most strongly evidenced. Recent famine historiography has largely been dominated by revisionist scholarship. Kinealy reverses this trend and makes a strong antirevisionist case for genocide by arguing against traditional orthodoxies. Kinealy convincingly argues that the British Government knew what was going on in Ireland and had the ability to provide relief to many of the people. However, for various political and ideological reasons they chose not to do so. She posits that the Famine and social policy essentially became a tool with which the British Government could use to ensure that modernization took place in Ireland. The British Governments response to the Famine was heavily influenced by providentialism the doctrine that human affairs are regulated by divine agency for human good.  [1]  Ultra-Protestants typically interpreted the blight as vengeance against Irish Catholicism  [2]  . Gray argues that it would be wrong and too simplistic to say that the British Government was a direct cause of the Famine, its responsibility lies more in its inaction its failure to grasp the growing and tremendous problems within Ireland in the early nineteenth century. It is evident that the British Government saw there was a problem a growing crisis of poverty and unemployment, however not enough was done to address the massive problems of poverty and inequality in pre-famine Ireland. When this great, sudden, unforeseen shock of the potato blight comes and the flimsy underpinnings of rural Irish society collapse the Government was not prepared they had no plan or solution. They fell back on methods wi th which they had used to deal with previous much smaller crises, when those failed there was a tendency to see the Famine as an opportunity and also a necessity of rebuilding Irish society from scratch. For those who are genuine believers in divine providence the blight was interpreted as a catalyst for implementing these fundamental changes in Ireland  [3]  and to alleviate Irelands need for continued private financial dependence on England. This notion of Providentialism was inextricably linked to the classical economic doctrine of lasses-faire. Donnellys post-revisionist interpretation, along with Kinealy and Gray is careful to emphasize the British governments reliance on the economic doctrine of laissez faire (prevailing economic theorem of the day) singling out Trevelyans devotion to this economic ideology of allowing industry to be essentially free of government interference that led (what Donnelly illustrates) to Trevelyans greatest blunder his refusal to prohibit food exports. Donnelly points out that the relief efforts provided by the British Government were deliberately spread over a period of time rather than simultaneously in order to prevent a culture of dependence. He states that since economy in public expenditure being one of the gods that Trevelyan worshipped  [4]  , Trevelyan and his contemporaries certainly were not forthcoming with funds and cut corners. This aversion to charity was implemented to avert, as they believed, an Irish population that could potentially become solely dependent on government assistance as opposed to contributing to their own prosperity. Kinealy and Ó Grà ¡da both reflect that the government placed the economy above humanitarian relief efforts during the Famine period  [5]  . The impact of the economic doctrine of laissez-faire can be seen as the ideology behind the British Governments (under Whig leadership) decision to end the Temporary Relief Act or Soup Kitchen Act in September 1847 only six months after it was established. The British Government also decided that strict adherence to the principals of political economy'  [6]  regardless of, or because of its consequences: the decision to allow the export of large quantities of grain and livestock to Britain during the height of the crisis; the sale of relief supplies at market prices; and frivolent expenditure on unproductive public works. These disastrous decisions certainly lend some weight to John Mitchels case for genocide. However, as Donnelly illustrates in reality Irish grain exports decreased significantly throughout the Famine period and imports ultimately increased substantially. Although we cannot dismiss Mitchels perspective completely, by halting grain exports during the period after the catastrophic harvest of 1846 and before the importation of large supplies of foreign grain early in 1847, could possibly (as many Nationalists since the Famine have argued) have prevented or at minimum slowed the onset of mass starvation and disease. Ki nealy is of the opinion that had grain exports been stopped, the effects of the Famine could have been minimised. She puts forward the notion that the Famine was due to inadequate food distribution as opposed to an actual lack of food potatoes were only responsible for 20 percent of Irelands agricultural production  [7]  . Kinealy points towards the British governments reluctance to intervene and upset the merchant classes due to the forthcoming election  [8]  . Conversely, Ó Grà ¡da, along with Gray does not believe there would have been adequate food supplies, regardless of whether food was exported or not  [9]  . Sir Charles Trevelyan, who was a key British official for public relief and oversaw the entire relief process during the whole period of the Famine (he served under the Tory and Whig governments), has been fairly targeted by Nationalist historians and thoroughly demonized as ..Trevelyan a strong proponent of providentialism described the Famine in 1848 as a direct stroke of an all-wise and all-merciful Providence, which laid bare the deep and inveterate root of social evil; the Famine, he avowed, was the sharp but effectual remedy by which the cure is likely to be effected. God grant that the generation to which this opportunity has been offered may rightly perform its part  [10]  With statements like this it is not hard to label Trevelyan as an evangelical providentialist (interpreting the Famine as part of Gods divine plan for Ireland). In contrast to many Nationalist historians, the revisionist Haines controversially attempts to put up a defence for Trevelyan (merely a civil s ervant) suggesting that the possibility that Trevelyan could have influenced the government policy on famine relief measures was unlikely  [11]  . Haines states Phytophthora Infestans [the potato blight], not Trevelyan, was the tyrant who brought death and suffering to Ireland on a scale never before witnessed.  [12]  She is correct in asserting that the cause of the Famine was undeniably due to the potato blight, however the distinction between the blight and the Famine is best surmised in John Mitchels famous phrase: The Almighty, indeed, sent the potato blight, but the English created the Famine.  [13]   The revisionist Peter Gray views the manifestation of burgeoning British public opinion in parliament as an explanation behind British ideology and consequently British policies towards Ireland (during the Famine period). He sees The Panic of 1847 (the British financial crisis) as a plausible justification for the catalyst which inspired, awakened and gave voice to an assertive middle-class political opinion  [14]  . British hostility towards the Irish was further The Panic of 1847 (British financial crisis) is often viewed as a plausible justification to the British Governments response to the Famine. Peter Gray states in the conditions of the later 1840s [government policy] amounted to a sentence of death on many thousands (93 Moralism unsurprisingly trails behind providentialism in the deplorable belief that the Catholic Irish were morally bankrupt, physically and mentally inferior they were viewed as biologically inferior according to those in the British government. Members of parliament were abundantly clear in making such statements on the floor of the House of Commons. Kinealy, along with Donnelly develops this notion that the British government held a set of ethnic prejudices towards the Catholic Irish. These prejudices, Kinealy argues, had an impact of leading British officials (ministers, civil servants, politician and representatives) that to led widespread discrimination and the formation of attitudes which in turn justified the inadequate aid and relief policies by the British government. These racist attitudes had the effect of spreading, as Donnelly states, famine fatigue in Britain. This blunted or perhaps even eliminated any potential sympathies that could have sustained political will to alleviate the Famine. De Nie has argues the British government used the Famine as an opportunity to promote and reinforce and portrayal of the Irish as subhuman and fundamentally a foreign race.  [15]  He points out that it was the Times that set the precedent of racism even in the earliest years of the Famine. De Nie argues that by implementing racism the British people succeeded in self-justification this was accomplished by projecting the blame for the Irish suffering onto the Irish themselves This essay has examined the three prevalent lenses through which the British ideology is viewed. The nationalist view of British ideology is the most well evidenced. However, as historians we must refrain judging the actions of individuals against contemporary morals and ideals. There is some merit to revisionist and post-revisionist arguments and they must not be dismissed entirely. All three lenses must be viewed within the context of the time without impediment by personal or national agenda. It is evident that the Great Famine was arguably one event in a long process of colonial disregard and exploitation of segments of the Irish people by the British Government for its own purposes and benefits. The psychological damage of the Famine was predated by several hundred years of policies by the British government which were specifically designed to undermine the spirit of the Irish people, remove them from their lands, destroy the structure of Irish society, and in general reduce the segments of the Irish population to poverty and insignificance. The Famine came along during the tail end of previous three-hundred years of discrimination to weaken the people who are weakened already in many ways by the institutions of the Church. This caused widespread devastation through disease, starvation, death and emigration. Approximately twenty-five percent of people left Ireland or died over a ten year period. The psychological history of the Famine continues to live on particularly within the Irish Catholic population. Maybe the deepest price the Irish have paid for the famine was the shame not the shame of those who let it happen, but the shame of those to whom it was done and which they have found it so very hard to speak. It is important in this academic analysis not to lose sight of the scope and significance of the Famine. It would be a great travesty for an event of such magnitude to be relegated to the pages of revisionist historiography. Nationalist outrage has been stifled by the weight of revisionist historiography.

Legalizing Concealed Weapons May Deter Crime Essay -- Argumentative Pe

Legalizing Concealed Weapons May Deter Crime A concealed weapon is a firearm hidden on a person. Thomas Jefferson once wrote that "laws that forbid the carrying of arms... disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes. Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man"(Lee 147). "In Florida, 315,000 permits had been issued to citizens for concealed weapons by December 31, 1995. Only five have been revoked because the permit holder committed a violent crime with a gun" ( Kopel 129). Many crimes could have been avoided if you could carry a concealed weapon in every state. "If the states that do not have right - to - carry concealed guns had adopted the laws in 1992, approximately 1,570 murders; 4,177 rapes; and over 60,000 aggravated assaults would have been avoided yearly" (Kopel 129). Many people worry that innocent people or trained police officers would get hurt. The idea that poorly trained, armed people looking to become heroes would make it more dangerous for innocent people. Many law-enforcement organizations say different. They voluntarily issue concealed carry permits to citizens who pass a background checks. The concealed-carry movement is based on the principle that responsible citizens should not expect government to provide them with the essentials of life. Providing for the safety of one's self and one's family is first of all a personal duty. In the past five years in Miami, four concealed weapons permits have been revoked for criminal misuses of concealed weapons. Everyone may benefit from concealed-carry reform.... ... Brady, chairman of Handgun Control, said, "I don't believe gun owners have rights." Rosie O'Donnell said I honestly think-and I am not an expert on the amendments-I think the only people in this nation who should be allowed to own guns are police officers. I don't care if you want to hunt; I don't care if you think it's your right. I say 'sorry'. It is 1999 we have had enough as a nation. You are not allowed to own a gun and if you do own a gun, I think you should go to prison (Lee 149). I believe like Thomas Jefferson did that laws that forbid the carrying of arms, disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes. In the future crime rates might drop, but that does not mean that all violent crime will stop. Carrying a concealed weapon does not guarantee that you will not be a victim, but I think it will help to protect yourself.

Importance of Symbols Essay examples -- English Literature Essays

Importance of Symbols In all novels the use of symbols are what make the story feel so real to the reader. A symbol as simple as a bird can mean so much more then what you see. Whereas a symbol as complicated as the sea, can mean so much less then what you thought. It is a person perception that brings them to the true meaning of a specific symbol. Symbols are message within a word that must be analyzed to discover. In The Awakening, Kate Chopin conveys her ideas by using carefully crafted symbols that reflect her characters' thoughts and futures. Early in the novel, while Edna attempts to escape from society's strong grasp, birds emphasize her entanglement by forecasting her actions and monitor her development by reflecting her feelings. The novel opens with the image of a bird, trapped and unable to communicate: "a green and yellow parrot, which hung in the cage outside the door...could speak a little Spanish, and also a language that nobody understood" (1). Like the bird, Edna feels trapped and believes that society has imprisoned her. Her marriage to Mr. Pontellier suffocates her and keeps her from being free. At the same time, she remains shut apart from society like the bird in the cage, and different ideas and feelings prevent her from communicating. The only person in society that begins to understand her, Robert, eventually decides that he must remain a member of society instead of staying with her. He says that "you [Edna] were not free; you were Leonce Pontellier's wife" and that "[Robert] was demented, dreaming of wild, impossible things...[such as] men who had set their wives free" (108). Robert does not want to do something wild and unacceptable to society. In a situation parallel to that of Edna's, the only bird that understands the parrot is the mockingbird (Reisz) that "[is] whistling its fluty notes upon the breeze with maddening persistence" (1). Because the parrot continues to shriek, people move it away from their society: "[Mr. Farvial] insisted upon having the bird removed and consigned to regions of darkness" (23). Society wants to hide the bird in darkness, as it wants to do to Edna, in order to keep the bird from causing problems. Later, when Mademoiselle Reisz tells Edna that "the bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings," she uses birds to forecast Edna's future an... ...ean, naked, returning to the innocence of her childhood. " She felt like some new-born creature" (189). As Edna swims on to her freedom, "She did not look back?but went on and on, thinking of the bluegrass meadow?believing that it had no beginning and no end" (190). It is there in the ocean that she first realizes her physical, mental, and emotional potential. It is only natural that the water, which has seduced her with its sound reclaims her. Edna Pontellier has always abided by social expectations and lived for everyone but herself. In order for her to gain her independence and escape from her trapped state in society she must put all that she has ever known behind her. This last scene symbolizes Edna giving up her life for her freedom. She goes back to where she first got some independence(the sea) and breaks through the cage that held her prison and dies, living solely for herself. Though see lost her life she finally got out of the world see dreaded living in so much. Without symbols a story would be a group of words placed in a sequential, yet pointless order. There would be no such thing of reading for pleasure, for the fact our minds would feel useless without symbols.

Freckle Juice :: essays research papers

Freckle Juice is a classic children's book written by Judy Blume. Although written in 1971, the story can relate to every new generation of middle school aged children. The book revolves around Andrew Marcus, a freckleless boy with a burning desire to have freckles. His greatest object of envy is Nicky Lane, whom he sits behind in class. Nicky is covered with freckles. Unfortunately, Andrew also shares his classroom with Sharon, a conniving little girl. Once Sharon learns of Andrew's desire to have freckles, she sells him a bogus recipe for "Freckle Juice," which Sharon guarantees will produce freckles. The recipe is a nauseating concoction of kitchen items, including vinegar, onions, and mustard. When Andrew drinks the "Freckle Juice" he not only becomes violently sick, but fails to get any freckles. Not wanting to return to school still freckleless, Andrew covers his face with blue dots with a magic marker. His classmates find his blue freckles amusing. Then hi s teacher, Miss Kelley, gives him a "secret formula" to remove the "freckles," and stresses to Andrew that he is very handsome with without freckles. Andrew also learns that Nicky is actually envious of him because he doesn't have freckles.I enjoyed reading this book. I feel that someone in any age group could read the story, enjoy it, and understand the value of self concept and self esteem that it emphasizes. Nearly every human finds a flaw in them whether it is obesity, mannerisms, language, or not having freckles! This story encourages people to see themselves as others do, and to appreciate the qualities they possess. I strongly feel that Freckle Juice would be an important component to teach in the middle grade classroom. Children at this age level can feel extremely self conscious of their appearance, as they are evolving from adolescence to puberty.

Sammy of Updike’s A & P: The Voice of Youth and Openness

John Updike, in his short story A & P, has made the excellent choice of making an unpretentious nineteen-year-old boy the narrator.   Sammy, the check-out counter boy provides an honest and unequivocal look at the other characters the way young boys can be.As a narrator, Sammy is able to give the readers a background of what the other characters are like, by describing their interactions and the inclinations of the grocery’s patrons.   The narrator’s honest and casual style creates a vivid picture of the society involved in the story, which in turn discusses the traditional and the unconventional.â€Å"It is in this setting that Updike reveals, through what is almost a prose dramatic monologue technique, the sensitive character of a nineteen year old grocery clerk named Sammy, who rejects the standards of the A & P and in so doing commits himself to [a] kind of individual freedom†Ã‚  (Porter 1155).  Sammy does not make observations according to consequences or what may be thought of as â€Å"right†; instead, he thinks without editing his thoughts, thus producing an accurate account, according to his point of view, of what has happened.He is a character who has no reason to embellish the tale because he is already separating from the views of the majority.Sammy has an eye on everyone coming in and out of the A & P. He is able to observe people passing by the doors, paying for their purchases and even selecting products.   There is no ambiguity in the way he describes people.â€Å"She's one of these cash-register-watchers, a witch about fifty with rouge on her cheekbones and no eyebrows†¦She'd been watching cash registers forty years and probably never seen a mistake before†Ã‚  (Updike). In his thoughts, he is not afraid to describe one of the patrons the way he perceives her.Later, he describes the reactions of the other shoppers towards the three girls who enter the A & P in their swimsuits:   â€Å"You could s ee them, when Queenie's white shoulders dawned on them, kind of jerk, or hop, or hiccup, but their eyes snapped back to their own baskets and on they pushed.I bet you could set off dynamite in an A & P and the people would by and large keep reaching†¦But there was no doubt, this jiggled them†Ã‚  (Updike).   Ã‚  Sammy recognizes the level of propriety practiced by the patrons of the A & P, and most likely by the small town itself.He knows the people’s reactions toward the three girls who have become representations of unconventional behavior; Sammy is amused with these reactions which he finds typical of the people he regularly sees at the A & P.Sammy, though distracted by the unprecedented entrance of the three girls, is still able to report what has been going on with the other characters.   This means that as a narrator he is at least able to portray the general mood of the â€Å"event†.If he were completely focused on the girls alone, he will not be a ble to make an adequate comparison between the girls’ carefree behavior and the more rigid attitude of the rest of the characters, especially his boss Lengel’s.Even the lustful reaction of Stokesie, the other clerk, does not escape Sammy.   So, he is not just drawn towards the completely conventional and unconventional characters; he is aware of those who are caught in between, admiring the different but staying with those who remain the same.The perspective of an adolescent is that of someone trying to find his or her place in the world.   The teenage Sammy is still open to new ideas unlike the older characters in the A & P, who have judged the three girls harshly based on their appearance.   â€Å"Girls, I don't want to argue with you. After this, come in here with your shoulders covered. It's our policy†¦That's policy for you. Policy is what the kingpins want. What the others want is juvenile delinquency†Ã‚  (Updike).   Moreover, their attire has automatically given them the label of juvenile delinquents.   Though apparently the rest of the characters think the same way, Sammy steps away from the general opinion and has become the girls’ defender.Though Sammy openly admires the girls, his youth and his previous commentaries on some shoppers show that whether the girls have come to the A & P in swimsuits or not, he will still be critical of the attitudes of the conventional people.He is ready enough to scrutinize each person he encounters partly because he does come across as a bored young man who is waiting for something exciting to happen.Updike’s Sammy has proved to be a reliable narrator; his youth provides free flowing and interesting narrative.   The reader becomes privy to the young man’s thoughts and his strong opinions of people provide a clear idea of what kind of society he is living in.Works Cited:Porter, M. Gilbert. â€Å"John Updike's â€Å"A&P†: The Establishment and an Emerson ian Cashier.† The English Journal (1972): 1155-1158.Updike, John. â€Å"A & P.† 9 February 2008 .   

Hidden messages of objects of African art Essay

In our modern world works of art play a role which is quite different from the role they used to play in the past. Indeed, in ancient times the craftsmanship of masters who produced utensils necessary for daily needs was already the source of art, because their products were among few vehicles of self-expression. As the result, many of the objects of the ancient art were simultaneously the objects of use, like vessels for liquids, different decorated tools, etc. However, with time and along with the social developments at least since Hellenistic culture art in the Western world was becoming more a means of self-expression of man and of our human striving for beauty. This process, while preserving the attraction to objects of practical utilization endowed with artistic qualities, also led to the separation of decorative art into a means to achieve aesthetic satisfaction. At a certain moment, art began to be integrated into the approaches towards creation of living spaces of human beings, and, importantly, the works of art began to be valued for their own sake. Since the industrial revolution, when technologies enabled mass production of products, the role of art in the Western world underwent further transformation art because capitalism initiated â€Å". . . the bringing of art . . . into subordinate relation . . .†[1] Since those times there appeared a tendency to perceive works of art as a kind of modern icons enclosed in museums for public viewing. Thus, â€Å"the religion of art . . . was born†[2], and art as a consecrated phenomenon has been by now somewhat isolated from our everyday lives. In this regard, one of the most important tasks of museums is to find the most effective ways to immerse people into artistic environment and to teach them not only to contemplate objects with their eyes, but as well to feel them with all their senses, as if reliving experiences of those human beings who created artistic objects. This task becomes especially challenging when it comes to the presentation of artifacts of cultures that significantly differ from our own. To see such challenges we may turn our attention to art of Africa, which contains a lot of exotic elements for modern viewers. One of the most important qualities of art in African cultures is its focus on immediate human experiences. In addition to racial differences among the ethnic groups of Africa that are reflected in their approach towards depiction of human beings, works of African art in most cases also look so strange for modern viewers because they represent world views and unique experiences (already fixed by addition of â€Å"and unique experiences†) of their creators which are really different from ours. Indeed, African art builds upon heritage of several millennia of various cultural traditions embodied in such diverse artistic artifacts as sculptures created for ritual purposes, wooden and golden monuments, ornaments made of silver and gold, unique garments, masks, and other artifacts. On grounds of this diversity, it is very hard to make generalizations about the African culture. However, there are some common elements that can be viewed as main motives and themes of African art. For example, it is a well known fact that African natural environment is very harsh in comparison to other regions of the world. Consequently, for African denizens the answer to the need to maintain population has traditionally been the bearing of numerous children. Therefore, African women are primarily associated with the symbol of life, because the existence and integrity of families and clans depends on one hand upon ability of woman to give birth to children, and on other hand upon her role as supporter of old parents and upon her mission in many African societies of contacting with spirits of the ancestors through prayers and ritual offerings. On ground of this, many themes in African art are in one way or another linked with symbols of fertility of women, of soil as another source of life, and of animals and plants. For example, many African shrines are dedicated to spirits that are believed to provide fertility, and they often contain some sculptures or other art forms that symbolize fertility. In a more direct fashion, in many African cultures there is an abundance of art objects that directly depict pregnant women. In this way we can see that African art has traditionally been influenced by specifics of its environment. However, one of the Western approaches to African art lies in our attempts to find out whether Africans make art for its own sake, and this approach may be somewhat misleading. At this point we may recall our considerations of the development of art in the Western world when until relatively recent times art was not meant to be placed in museums as it is often the case today, but rather was integrated in the life of society, for instance in religious and even political practices. In this connection, African art seems to have retained the ability to keep itself close to everyday concerns of people as far as it aims to reflect upon the most urgent concerns of African people. The objects of African art bristle with expressive emotions of their masters who with the help of objects of art try to investigate their relation with the world, and who through art communicate their striving to survive in a tough environment. Therefore, African art can hardly be separated from the lives of people who created it, and this unity seems to be stronger than in the Western artistic tradition.[3] One of the very exciting exhibitions where we can find beautiful exemplars of African art is the exhibition devoted to Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Let us with the help of this exhibition explore how modern viewers perceive objects of quite a different culture, and whether this exhibition manages to make the displayed objects of art speak to spectators in their native language. For this task we may pick several objects representative of the African culture as far as they reflect upon the main traditional themes of past and present African art. It must be pointed out from the outset that very often there are no firm dates for many of objects of African art. This is because African artists neither signed nor dated their creations. However, as many pieces of African art are made of wood, which is not a very long-lasting material, especially in African environment, it is thought that most of the wooden pieces of African art can probably be dated as belonging to the end of the nineteenth or the beginning of the twentieth century. Of course, aside from wood many objects are made of stone, clay, bronze, silver, gold, ivory, and terracotta. Such objects are long-lasting and those of them that have been found in known archeological contexts and in properly investigated archaeological locations have more or less fixed dates attributed to them. I propose to choose the following objects for the further research: A seated figure of a male from the thirteenth century, which offers an impressive image of anxiety that speaks directly to viewers` emotions (figure 1 in Appendix). This object originates from Inland Niger Delta region, the site named Jenne-jeno, which is the most ancient known city of sub-Saharan Africa. The Metropolitan Museum of Art acquired this object in 1981 as a bequest from Joseph Pulitzer, Harris Brisbane Dick, and Rogers Funds. (already fixed) A memorial head of a ruler of the Akan ethnic group from Western Africa from the seventeenth century that reflects idealized notions of African people (figure 2 in Appendix). This object`s origin was Hemang city in the Twifo region of Ghana, the land of the Akan ethnic group. It was initially a part of Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection and was given to museum by Nelson A. Rockefeller in 1967. A pendant mask dated of the sixteenth century, which has an interesting history and therefore can enhance our understanding of the role of art in African cultures (figure 3 in Appendix). This object originates from Benin, a culturally important region populated by Edo speaking people that is a part of southern and northern The mask has a rich history of ownership, as it belonged to Brenda Z. Seligman, Prof. C. G. Seligman, and Sir Ralph Moor. In the end, it also became a part of Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection and was gifted to museum by Nelson A. Rockefeller in 1972. (I`m afraid that if more detailed info is needed on provenance, the only way to get it is to visit the museum and find out, because officially Metropolitan Museum states only what we have mentioned above, i.e. that â€Å"it belonged to Brenda Z. Seligman, Prof. C. G. Seligman, and Sir Ralph Moor. In the end, it also became a part of Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection and was gifted to museum by Nelso n A. Rockefeller in 1972†) Of course, there exists a diverse and comprehensive body of research dedicated to such a complex phenomenon as African art. Most of the books dedicated to this topic attempt to integrate African art with social and ethnographic peculiarities of African cultures. I believe that this is a rightful path to follow, because if we try to comprehend the meaning of African objects of art while ignoring their context we risk not grasping their true meaning that was assigned to them by their creators. Among books that provide such an integrated approach to the research of African art we may highlight several. One of them is the work History of Art in Africa by Monica Blackmun Visona and numerous co-authors. This book is not that much a strictly formal research but rather a detailed guide that increases our understanding of artistic forms created in different regions of Africa by different peoples and cultures, especially those of the Sub-Saharan areas. From the academic point of view, by means of a combination of modern research of various forms of African arts and their attempts to apply those findings to different geographic regions and different times of African history authors had made a significant contribution to the literature devoted to the history of art. Another relevant work that deals with African art is the book edited by Tom Phillips Africa: The Art of a Continent. It is one of the most thorough general works on African art that provides detailed overview of art forms and styles, and at the same time gives extensive description of African tribes and their influence on regionalized art forms. In this way, this book is helpful as a reference for those who would like to systemize the knowledge of African art that one already has, and to localize cultural centers of African art. In addition to the mentioned books, the work of Sidney Littlefield Kasfir Contemporary African Art is the worthy piece of reasearch that treats the transformations in African art in the latter half of the 20th century. It is a very helpful direction of research because, among other things, it shows how the traditional forms of African art are reevaluated by contemporary African artists themselves. The high level of scholarship of the author and his masterful ability to tie modernity with history co-operate to paradoxically make this book relevant for those who aim to better understand not only modern African art, but its traditional forms as well, which is the important achievement for this author. Each of the mentioned books contains some outstanding points, but at the same time none of them can pretend to be a fully comprehensive guide to African art, if it is at all possible to make a such a guide. But as all those books cover somewhat different aspects of African art, I believe that our task is to try to combine their findings with our immediate impressions from the contemplation of the objects of African art from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in order to achieve the highest possible level of comprehension of the uniqueness of African cultural heritage. This aim leads me to a more general task which I will try to accomplish, namely to see whether it is possible for a museum as a kind of â€Å"modern cultural church† of our society to present objects of an unfamiliar culture in such a way as to enable viewers to really penetrate beyond the objects` material form and recreate in their minds experiences similar to those of artists who embodied their feelings in artistic creations. This task presupposes some psychological research, of which my own impressions from the exhibition will be the object, and also considerations about the general level of successfulness of the exhibit as measured by visible impressions of its other visitors. The first object of our analysis is a seated figure of a male. Due to the age of this piece of art and the fact that African artists did not inscribe their names on their creations it is impossible to know who exactly was the author of this object. However, we know that this sculpture originates from a location known as Jenne-jeno, which was the most ancient known city of sub-Saharan Africa. This was a center that thrived around the ninth century AD, but declined by the beginning of the fifteenth century leaving numerous artifacts made of forged iron, cast brass, and clay. While performed archaeological digs give only a vague glimpse of the true role of art in that region, the available heritage of the old culture of Jenne-jeno definitely shows that artists of the urban society of that time possessed highly sophisticated artistic skills. For example, this particularly impressive figure, with its legs crossed, its chest almost pressed against a leg, and its head touching its knee, transmits the sensation of anxiety and stress, or, alternatively, of a full immersion in a prayer. This frozen emotional load of the sculpture bespeaks the motives of a creator of this piece of art that apparently were aimed at expressing intense emotional experiences that could arise from such events as ritual commemoration of the death of loved people. The method of direct portrayal of emotions as if written on the face of the figure serves to actually dissolve boundaries of time and make this object universally understood. (well, sometimes we have to defend our position, and in this case it actually could be both that the figure is tense or relaxed in prayer, and it`s not a contradiction. In fact, I checked the website of the Metropolitan and, ironically, there it is also said that this figure â€Å"simultaneously suggests the knotted tension of anxiety and the sublime absorption of deep prayer†) At the same time, sculptures like this one despite their concreteness of representation could simultaneously serve as a symbolic image of ancestors or mythic heroes, in this way existing in realms of both the material and spiritual, and therefore most probably were employed in ritual ceremonies. Indeed, the shaved head of this figure and its state of self-immersion are somewhat symbolized and remind of mourning practices that are still used by many cultures of sub-Saharan Africa.[4] In this way, this object enables us to suppose that such practices were as well common 700 years ago among peoples of the Inland Niger Delta. But, of course, due to the mentioned scarcity of our knowledge of the true role of art in the region of Jenne-jeno we cannot convincingly limit the role of this figure exclusively to mourning practices. In terms of materials used, this object is made of terracotta, a brownish baked earth clay that is a durable and easily workable substance. Usually, found terracotta figures have a lot of detail, because this material was widely used in African art for production of bodily ornaments and jewelry. This sculpture is not an exception as can be seen from its physical appearance and its surface qualities. For example, the technique used for the creation of this object enabled the author to make the parallel lines of knobs and dots on the back of the figure in such a way as to give it a heightened sense of relief. By the way, such knobs and dots were employed in African art quite often, sometimes covering the whole space of human figures. It is thought that this element in art was supposed to stand for signs of some kind of sicknesses that abound in African environment. [5] Combining the mentioned aspects of this object of art, I have to admit that I was greatly impressed by its overall look, and I noticed that the general response of other museum visitors was similar as people were apparently staying near this object for a longer time than on average. I believe the reason for this is the skillful work of the artist who managed to embody in the material shape a lot of emotional load, and therefore reached a powerful effect. But what made me especially excited about this object was the realization of the fact that for the author of this work its message was most probably personally experienced, and therefore this object conforms to one of the most important tasks of art, which lies in the creation of universal space of communication that transcends bounds of time and cultures. The second object of our research is a memorial head of a ruler dated of the seventeenth century, and for which we also do not know the author. This terracotta object is a decorated portrait that depicts a serene man with accurately balanced facial features and striped long neck. This form of African art belongs to what is called in some West-African cultures as â€Å"mma†, an idealized image that depicts the positive qualities that were expected from a ruler. Therefore, one of the main motives for the creation of this object was its involvement in ritual procedures. In fact, it is known that such portraits were crafted posthumously and were left along with similar images of preceding rulers in special sacred cemeteries and shrines called â€Å"mmaso† that had to keep the memory and the history of lineage of noble members of African societies. Additionally, this practice of posthumous pictorial commemoration of rulers also extended to members of his court and his servants, who were supposed to continue their service for their ruler after his death as well. â€Å"Mmaso† cemeteries were the places of regular offerings and prayers aimed at the constant support of the deceased ancestors.[6] On these grounds, it stands to reason that artists who created portraits such as the one we are studying were adding a great deal of symbolism to their creations. Indeed, the general appearance of this object is such that for me it was hard to imagine the person who it was intended to copy, and I suspect that the exact physical resemblance might not have been the main concern of the author of this memorial portrait. This head is also made from terracotta, and is decorated with fragments of quartz. But in contrast to the previous terracotta object that depicts a figure in a very plastic and emotional way, this object looks as if it was consciously processed by the artist without excessive modification of the original terracotta sphere. It seems that the facial features of the man float above the rough material they are inscribed on, and radiate a kind and positive irony, which to my judgement testifies to a very subtle technique used by the artist that is on a par with the best recognized masterpieces of fine arts. At the same time, it seems to me that this object of art retains some mystery, as if the closed eyes of the man say that we cannot see the world that his eyes had seen, and that we might have to become one of his contemporaries to fully perceive the world view of this ancient ruler and the artist who immortalized him. (Hm, it`s really hard to say what the professor meant by putting â€Å"!† along this portion of the text. . . Do you know exactly?) Interestingly, many people in the museum behaved as if feeling in some subconscious way the ultimate futility of efforts to fully comprehend the message of this object, because I noticed that in most cases visitors did not spend much time near this memorial head. But I believe that with this work the artist reached perhaps the most important artistic effect, that of its ability to intrigue truly attentive viewers, and therefore make them wonder about the hidden aspects of the culture that gave birth to this object. The last target of our research is a mask, the object strongly associated with African art. And, indeed, this mask had a special meaning for its creators. It is dated of the sixteenth century, and in contrast to previous anonymous works this artifact can give us some hints as to its artistic origin. In fact, this mask is thought to have been created in the beginning of the sixteenth century for the king of Benin Esigie. The mask depicts the elaborated and thoughtful portrait of the mother of the king, and it was probably used in rites that honored the king`s mother. From this we can guess that this mask was created by some court artist specifically for the ritual purposes, moreover that even today in many African cultures similar pendant masks are always involved in yearly rituals of spiritual purification. To reinforce this assumption we should point out that this mask is primarily made of ivory, the material that in Benin is associated with the white color that symbolizes ritual purity of the god of the sea named Olokun. This god was also viewed as a spiritual guard of kings, so this mask could bear several meanings.[7] In addition to ivory as a primary material, this mask is decorated with metal mosaic, has carved superficial incisions in the skin of its forehead, and holds below the chin beads made of coral. Interestingly, the collar and the diadem of the mask contain images of mudfish and bearded Portuguese. Mudfish live both in the water and on land, and thus it stands for the dual nature of the king who is simultaneously human and divine. On the other hand, Portuguese, who arrived from the sea, were perceived as coming from the spiritual realm. In this way, this mask integrates in it numerous symbols of the African culture. In general, this object of art conveys a somewhat different impression than previous ones. First of all, its high level of detail draws attention and begs for an especially careful inspection from the side of a viewer. On the other hand, despite having many types of decorations this mask nevertheless looks very integral and thematically complete. Moreover, among the objects of our research this mask is the most realistic one in terms of its resemblance to an actual human being. But at the same time it seemed to me that maybe because of its portrait-like look many people fail to notice the depth of its symbolical meaning of which the facial form of the mask is merely a small part. Thus, we can see that African artists already long time ago fully possessed the skill of integration of multilayered symbolical messages in a work of art, which uncovers the richness of their world views. On ground of our observations, we may conclude that museum exhibits can really give visitors a chance to relive experiences of cultures as different from ours as African ones are. However, the expansion of our cultural awareness is a task that perhaps to a larger degree depends on a viewer himself. Indeed, if a viewer just walks by the exhibit, she may get only a very limited impression of African art which may only confirm some formulaic notions that many of us have about it, like that there are a lot of masks, that objects of African art are of a strange look, etc. Even I must admit that without the deeper investigation of the history and hidden messages of the objects of African art that we had researched I would most probably also fail to see the true meaning of the works of African art, because a superficiality of judgement reduces the artistic creations merely to their material form and ignores their spiritual connotation. On a more practical side, I would recommend that in relation to exhibits devoted to exotic forms of art, of which African art is a good example, museums should not merely provide a passive presentation of artistic objects, but rather should take more proactive steps in terms of attraction of visitors` attention towards hidden aspects of art that may defy superficial attitude. For example, this purpose may be achieved through organization of publicly open regular thematic seminars on new historical, ethnographic and iconographic research devoted to African and other exotic forms of art, and through advertised presentations of new objects obtained by museum. All of this would help put what otherwise might be perceived as isolated individual objects of art into a larger cultural context, and therefore might increase public awareness of the specifics and values of art of different regions of the world.    Bibliography: â€Å"Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas†. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2006. Bacquart, Jean-Baptiste. The Tribal Arts of Africa. Thames & Hudson, 2002. Brettell, Richard R. Modern Art 1851-1929 : Capitalism and Representation. Oxford University Press, 1999. Drewal, Henry John, Pemberton, John III, Abiodun, Rowland, and Wardwell, Allen, (Ed.). Yoruba: Nine Centuries of African Art and Thought. Harry N Abrams, 1990. Ezra, Kate. Royal Art of Benin: The Perls Collection. Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1992. Hahner-Herzog, Iris, Kecskesi, Maria, and Vajda, Lazlo. African Masks: The Barbier- Mueller Collection. Prestel Publishing, 1998. Kasfir, Sidney Littlefield. Contemporary African Art. Thames & Hudson, 2000. Mills, C. Wright. Power, Politics, and People: The Collected Essays of C. Wright Mills Oxford University Press, 1967. Phillips, Tom, (Ed.). Africa: The Art of a Continent. Prestel Publishing, 1999. Thompson, Robert Farris. African Art in Motion: Icon and Act in the Collection of Katherine Coryton White. University of California Press, 1974. Turner, Victor Witter. Revelation and divination in Ndembu ritual (Symbol, myth, and ritual). Cornell University Press, 1975. Visona, Monica Blackmun, Poynor, Robin, Cole, Herbert M., Harris, Michael D., Abiodun, Rowland, and Blier, Suzanne Preston. History of Art in Africa. Prentice Hall, 2003. Willett, Frank. African Art. Thames & Hudson, 2002. Works Cited: Hahner-Herzog, Iris, Kecskesi, Maria, and Vajda, Lazlo. African Masks: The Barbier- Mueller Collection. Prestel Publishing, 1998. Kasfir, Sidney Littlefield. Contemporary African Art. Thames & Hudson, 2000. Mills, C. Wright. Power, Politics, and People: The Collected Essays of C. Wright Mills. Oxford University Press, 1967. Paz, Octavio. Convergences: Essays on Art and Literature. Harvest/HBJ Book, 1991. Phillips, Tom, (Ed.). Africa: The Art of a Continent. Prestel Publishing, 1999. Visona, Monica Blackmun, Poynor, Robin, Cole, Herbert M., Harris, Michael D., Abiodun, Rowland, and Blier, Suzanne Preston. History of Art in Africa. Prentice Hall, 2003. (As you could see, I already have removed Paz from Bibliography)